Chapter Four
I drove away from Steph's in a maelstrom of emotion. I wasn't sure if the uppermost feeling was anger or sorrow. Didn't she realize that it's because I love her so much that I want to protect her? If Steward wanted to, he could fry her brain and she would spend the rest of her life as nothing more than a vegetable. Maybe that was part of the problem. I hadn't really told her just what kind of damage Steward was capable of. I'd only touched on the basics.
I pulled into a local motel and parked the Jag. It was good to be behind the wheel of my baby again. I'd lent it to a good friend to care for after I found Sandy Claws. I really didn't need it in my job. But now that I was living with Steph and leading a semi-normal life, I needed wheels, and since I had to track Steward down, I'd asked for it back.
Was I still living with Steph? I wanted to be. The question was did she still want to be with me?
I rented a room and then decided to go see Ranger; I needed to know exactly what had gone down at RangeMan after Steph saw me drive away.
Before materializing in Ranger's office, I checked to make sure he was alone. He was, so I allowed him to see me. The only reaction Ranger gave to my sudden appearance was a raised eyebrow. The man certainly is controlled.
Since Ranger didn't seem inclined to even say hello, I decided to get the ball rolling. "I understand you had a visitor today."
"She talked to you." Ranger knew Steph well enough to know that she would have immediately confronted me over my presence at RangeMan today.
"I would say she shouted rather than talked." I looked accusingly at Ranger. "What did you tell her?"
"Nothing. She already seemed to know everything."
"Yeah. She has uncanny instincts. Even without her empathic powers she can read people like books." I went over to the sofa and made myself comfortable.
Steepling his fingers together, Ranger leaned back in his chair, and peered at me through half closed eyes. "You know she's not going to be able to stay away from it. She's going to go after Steward no matter what you tell her."
"I know," I nodded. "I have a couple of leads to follow up on tomorrow. Grandma Mazur has her court date – will you look after Steph for me?"
Ranger opened his eyes fully and I got the impression that he was trying to find an ulterior motive in my request. "You want me to babysit her?"
"In essence, yeah."
"You trust me with her?"
I thought about that for a fraction of second. "Yes. I do."
"I wouldn't." He was silent for a beat before surprising me with his next question. "Do you need a place to stay?"
"How...?"
"I'm also good at reading people."
"No, I'm fixed for the night, thanks." I stood up and walked over to Ranger's desk. Putting my hands flat on his desk, I leaned forward. "Don't let her get too close to Steward if he comes after her. I don't want anything to happen to her."
"Neither do I."
I straightened up, nodded at him and popped straight to my motel room. I sat down on the bed and looked around at the dingy room. Without warning the loneliness and silence crashed down on me. I flopped back on the bed and thought about Steph. I couldn't visualize my life without her in it.
How the Hell had things gotten so screwed up so fast. Only yesterday we were playfully bantering with each other over coffee. Now, here I was, alone in a motel room, with no real idea of why. Well, okay, maybe I had some idea. This relationship gig was new to me. Hell, I thought, as I beat the bed with my fist, being in love was a totally new experience. Before Steph entered my life, I'd happily made the acquaintance of any female that happened to be in whichever city I was currently in, conveniently forgetting them the second I left.
Then again, being with Steph was a totally new experience in itself. She may have great instincts but she always landed herself in trouble. Which was the number one reason why I really wanted to keep her away from Steward. He wasn't just trouble, he was dangerous trouble. And somehow, I had a feeling that this whole mess with Steph might bounce back to him.
Looking around the empty room, I let out a long groan. Steward wasn't going to win this one. I'd meant what I had said before I'd left our apartment. I'd told her I wasn't going to give up on us, and I'd meant it. My home was with her. I refused to accept that she'd kicked me out of her life for good.
Now I knew I was going to fight for her...for our future; the only question was – how to get our relationship back on track.
oo000oo
For the second morning in a row, I woke without the comforting warm presence of Diesel in my bed. For a moment, I wondered where he was, and then the memory of the previous night came flooding in. Where had he slept? Had he stayed in a motel or perhaps with an old friend or even worse, an old girl friend? I smothered a sob. One thing I knew for certain, I missed him. And deep down I also knew that while I couldn't completely trust him on some things, I knew he wouldn't cheat on me.
I sensed the loss of his presence in my mind as well as in my bed. I'd gotten so used to feeling his emotions. I didn't have to open myself to him anymore, he was just... there. The phone rang before the feeling of loss could properly take hold. Groaning, I rolled over and answered it.
"Stephanie?" I covered my eyes with my free hand and let my head fall back on the pillow. My mother's voice was not the voice I wanted to hear this morning. I wanted to hear D's voice saying 'Good morning, sunshine.'
"Good morning, Mom."
"How's your leg today?" From the tone of her voice, I could tell she was concerned. Concerned was good. "I ask because your grandmother has her court date today and I was hoping you could take her. Your father is refusing to."
"I'm supposed to stay off of it as much as possible and I'm not allowed to drive."
"Oh okay. I don't suppose Diesel could...?"
"Um... no Mom, Diesel's very busy today, er, in fact he's already left." I did some quick thinking. "I'll try and get someone to give us a ride." I heard some scuffling and Grandma came on the line.
"I want to go to the Clip 'n Curl first. You never know, I might get a judge who's a real unattached hottie. Judge's don't retire do they?"
I rolled my eyes. "I think that's just Supreme Court judges, Grandma."
"Oh. Well, never mind. I still wanna look my best. I have an appointment at nine."
"Don't worry, Grandma. I'll get you there." I disconnected but stayed in my prone position. I could call Lula, but then I really didn't feel like explaining to her what had happened with Diesel. I wouldn't have to say anything – she'd know something was wrong by just looking at me. Plus, as much as I love her, I didn't think I could cope with her exuberance today. Ranger. I'd phone Ranger, if he couldn't help me, maybe one of his men would be free.
I needed a caffeine fix before I phoned him. I was pouring out my first cup of coffee when there was a knock on the door. I opened it to find the object of my earlier musings standing there.
I raised my eyebrows. "Since when do you knock? You usually just come straight in as if the door wasn't even locked."
"You're no longer a free agent, Babe."
"That's a matter of opinion." I muttered under my breath as I walked back to the kitchen.
Batman, however, had ears like the proverbial bat. "Don't be so sure."
His comment made me look back at him in surprise. He was corporate Ranger today. Ranger looks sexy, no matter what he wears. When he wears a suit and tie, he's gorgeous beyond imagination, and all thoughts of Diesel and my relationship with him flew out of my mind.
"Why are you all dressed up? Got a meeting?"
"Thought I'd drive you and your grandma to court," He glanced looked down at my knee. "Since you shouldn't be driving."
I looked at him suspiciously trying to figure out what his real reason was for coming to my apartment. Unfortunately, he had his blank face on as he went over to my coffee maker and helped himself to a cup of java. I decided to give him the benefit of the doubt and take his offer at face value until further evidence came to light.
"Thanks. Interestingly enough, I was just about to call you and ask if you or one of your men could help me out."
"I've cleared my calendar for the day. Go get ready so we can make sure your grandma gets to court on time." Ranger looked as if he was about to smirk, but the moment passed in a flash. "We don't want her going FTA. I'd have to pay my men danger money to go after her if she did."
I left him in the kitchen drinking his coffee while I went off to get intimately acquainted with a pair of panty hose and a business suit.
It was late afternoon when I finally made it home. Grandma's court appearance had had all the makings of a three-ring circus. She'd talked when she was supposed to be silent and had stayed mum when she was supposed to answer questions. Then she had the audacity to ask the judge for his phone number! If the ground had opened up and swallowed me, I wouldn't have been sorry!
Ranger had been wonderful. He'd asked his lawyer to handle the case and the attorney had met us at the court. It was only due to his expertise that Grandma had been allowed home with just a fine and the confiscation of her firearm. She'd been in contempt so many times during the proceedings that anyone else would've been thrown in jail and the key tossed into the river!
I entered my apartment and immediately thought that I'd entered the wrong one. The smell coming from the kitchen was heavenly. I dropped my purse on the kitchen table and peered into the oven to find lasagna just about ready to be served. I glanced into the dining room, and was surprised to see that the table was set with matching plates, candles and flowers.
It had to be Diesel; no one else would have done this. But I couldn't hear him in the apartment. I was changing into a pair of sweats when a fine collection of curse words filtered out of the kitchen. I went back to the kitchen and leaned on the doorframe. He had placed a bottle of Chianti on the counter. His back was to me and he was searching in the drawers for something.
After admiring the view of his tight ass for a few seconds, I took pity on him. "The corkscrew is in the drawer next to the refrigerator."
He pulled open the drawer and took out the corkscrew before turning to face me. "Are you going to tell me to get out again?"
"No." I gave him a half-smile. "At least not yet." Especially since he'd prepared one of my favorite dishes.
"Dinner's ready. Why don't you go and sit at the table and I'll bring it in."
I reached out and took the corkscrew from his hand, grabbed the bottle of wine and went to sit down at the table. The whole situation felt awkward to me. When Diesel followed with a bowl of green salad, I wasn't sure if I needed to apologize or if he did. Should we just ignore the fight, pretend it'd never happened? That would be my choice; I always preferred to go for denial.
I think Diesel also felt the tension in the air; he didn't say a word while he served the food before sitting down opposite me.
I sat there and stared at my food, I couldn't make an effort to pick up my fork.
"Diesel..."
"Steph..."
We both stopped and I laughed nervously, while he gave me a wry grin.
"Thank you for cooking this, it looks lovely."
"Lasagna is my idea of comfort food. Wine?"
"Um... yeah. Thanks."
I took a bite of the pasta and almost moaned. It was even better than my mother's. "Did you actually make this or did you order take-out from some fancy restaurant?"
"You wound me." The look on his face said that he was anything but wounded. "I made it. You know I love to cook."
"It's delicious." We continued to eat in silence for a while. The awkwardness settling on us again like a thick blanket.
Diesel cleared his throat, put down his fork and reached across the table to lightly touch my hand. "Steph. I should have kept you in the loop about Ranger. I should have realized you'd find out and be pissed." The rueful look he gave me made him look like an overgrown schoolboy. "We try to keep interaction with Normals to a minimum during our cases. However, Ranger's helped us out from time to time and he's been sworn to secrecy."
"Yeah, Ranger knows how to keep a secret. But I'm an Unmentionable so I should have been told. Especially since it was Ranger, and considering how often I work with the man." I looked down at my almost empty plate and tried to remember actually eating all of what had been there only moments before.
"I know. You're right. I promise not to forget that you're part of my world now."
We finished our food and took our wine over to the couch. I sat down, and stretched my feet out on the couch as I leaned against the arm of the sofa. Diesel sat at the other end and turned to face me.
"Where are we?"
I didn't even pretend to misunderstand. "I don't know, D. I really don't. I do know that your not trusting me, hurt."
He nodded. "I'm so used to working alone. Damn, I've always been alone. Oh yeah, there've been women, of course there have." I was surprised at the stab of jealousy that statement had given me. "But I've never lived with someone. Hell, I've never had a relationship with anyone that's gone past the first date."
"My relationship history hasn't exactly been a Harlequin Romance either."
Diesel gently lifted my legs and moved closer so he could place my feet on his lap. I relaxed back against the cushions while he started to massage first one foot then the other. "Can we try again?"
"I can't forget what happened, but I'm will to give it another go."
"I promise to tell you more about what I'm doing."
"And I promise not to kick you out again. Except for tonight."
He looked shocked and a little hurt by that statement. "I didn't like sleeping alone last night."
"Neither did I. And I didn't like waking up alone either. But if you stay here tonight we're going to make love."
Diesel gave me what could only be described as a pout. "I promise to behave."
I focused my gaze on the blank television screen. "Yes, but I can't. If I got into bed with you I doubt I'd be able to keep my hands to myself." I shook my head and turned to look at him. "Sex would just be a band-aid on the problem and we'll never really solve it that way." I smiled at him. "No, we should wait a bit before we resume normal programming."
Diesel gave a reluctant sigh. "I hate to have to say this, but you're right." He gave my feet a gentle squeeze before setting them aside and standing up. He stepped over to my end of the couch, leaned down and gave me the softest, sweetest kiss on the mouth, without even a hint of tongue. "I'll call you tomorrow. I love you." And then he was gone.
My chest constricted. I couldn't even run after him to tell him that I loved him too. Stupid Unmentionable powers. And damn, he'd left me with the dishes. Guess I'd asked for it, and really shouldn't complain since he had done all the cooking.
With perfect timing, the phone rang just as I'd finished loading the dishwasher.
"Yo."
"Babe."
"You don't hold the copyright on the word, Ranger."
I distinctly heard a chuckle. Oh my God. I made Ranger laugh!
"Babe. You never disappoint. Having a good evening?"
"It's okay." I really didn't want to discuss my love life or lack of it with Ranger. Besides, if I verbalized my feelings about Diesel, I felt I would jinx the whole deal.
"Have a job for you tomorrow, if you're interested."
I thought about it. I was interested, but was I really up for it. I stretched out my knee and glanced around my empty apartment. Oh the Hell with it. I needed something to take my mind off my relationship problems. "Sure. What kind of job? Distraction?"
"No. Female FTA. She's known to be violent, but we still need a female present at the take down."
Ranger wouldn't ask me if he didn't think I could handle it. And he did need a woman present in case the FTA screamed sexual abuse, or even worse, rape. "No problem. What time?"
"We've another job first thing. I'll pick you up at eleven."
"Okay. Night Ranger."
"Night, Babe."
Oh my God again! Another first. He finished a phone conversation properly. Perhaps I should check to make sure the sky isn't falling!
Eleven o'clock the next morning saw me sitting in the back seat of a large, black SUV on the way to pick up Attila the Hun a.k.a. Judith Hansen. Ranger hadn't shown me a picture or anything - but she had to be bad news, especially since her apprehension warranted both Ranger and Ram. Apparently, Attila, er, Judith had caught her lover cheating on her and had taken a knife to his jugular while he slept. Ranger and Ram were taking point on this one and I knew I was just along as window dressing for the lawyers.
We pulled up to the curb outside a well-kept home on Sherman. I hung back at the bottom of the steps while Ranger and Ram walked up to the front door and knocked. A diminutive woman answered the door and had to lean back to look at the guys' faces. This very pretty, neatly dressed, tiny lady couldn't possibly be Judith Hansen. She didn't look the sort to kill a mouse let alone her lover.
Ranger took up a non-threatening stance but still put one foot inside the door to stop her from shutting the door on us. "Ms. Judith Hansen?"
"Yes, that's me." Even her voice was sweet. This had to be a case of mistaken identity.
"Ma'am, I'm Carlos Manoso and I'm here on behalf of your bail bondsman. You missed your court date and we have to take you downtown to reschedule."
"Oh yes, I know I missed my date. I didn't know whom to call about it. I'm so glad you came. You see, I was helping to chaperone a field trip for my church's kindergarten on that day and I couldn't let them down." Her smile included all three of us. "If you'd just come in for a moment, I'll get my bag and coat." I watched her run nimbly up the stairs.
I was dumbstruck. "She's a murderer? Are you sure you've got the right file, Ranger?"
"Takes all sorts, Babe."
Just ten minutes later, we were in the SUV with Judith sitting in the back with me. Ranger had actually apologized to the woman when he'd put the cuffs on her, telling her it was standard procedure.
I couldn't help myself, I had to know. "Ms. Hansen, did you really kill your boyfriend?"
"Oh yes dear, I did. I was really quite angry that he'd cheated on me, you see. I had thought of taking a pair of pliers to his testicles to stop him from doing the same thing to anyone else." She stopped to shake her head and sigh. "But I couldn't find where he'd put the tool box. So I took a knife from the kitchen. You know it was very easy to do. A bit like sticking a skewer in a chicken."
I almost choked from trying to hold back my laughter. Ram, however wasn't being so successful; I could see his shoulders shaking.
It had only taken a few minutes to drop Miss dainty Attila off at the police station and get our body receipt. We were almost at the bonds office to leave the paperwork with Connie, when we heard the screeching of tires, followed by the earsplitting crunching sound that metal makes when two cars meet head-on.
Up ahead of us a scene of carnage was being played out. Vehicles were at a standstill and people were running towards two cars that were a tangled and twisted mass of metal.
We pulled over and Ram headed off to the office with the paperwork while Ranger called 911.
I got out of our vehicle and watched the incident unfolding before me. There had been young children in one of the cars and the sound of their crying carried to where I was standing. The drivers of both cars were slumped over the steering wheels, but from my current location, I couldn't tell how badly they were hurt.
It was early afternoon and there wasn't a lot of traffic on the road, but what there was had been brought to a standstill by the ghastly scene. Ranger walked around the SUV and stood next to me; I looked up at him and he nodded towards an armored truck that had been caught up in the mess. "That's wrong."
I looked at the truck that he'd indicated. The guard and the driver had gotten out and were trying to help the victims. "They shouldn't leave the truck, should they?"
"No."
Quite a crowd had gathered on the sidewalks and as I glanced over them, one pointy face, decorated by a pair of glasses and framed by slicked back hair came sharply into focus. I put a hand on Ranger's arm. "We have a familiar face over there on the sidewalk." I jerked my head in the direction of the other side of the street. "Steward."
Ranger nodded once, and took off, hand on the firearm at his hip. I followed at a slightly slower pace keeping an eye on Steward, who was on the move. "He's making for the armored truck."
Even as I yelled, Ranger was changing direction towards the truck in order to intercept the skip. Steward had a head start and was already climbing up into the cab when Ranger reached the truck, with me just a few paces behind. Steward looked directly at Ranger and then at me. I had a mental picture of pure evil, like a yawning pit into Hell, and then I saw Batman shake his head as if trying to clear it.
I looked at Ranger again; well actually, I looked at his butt. A burst of pure lust shot through me. All I could think of was getting another look, or to be more exact, some more hands-on experience of what his cargoes were covering. He turned to face me and my eyes feasted on his groin. It seemed I wasn't the only one experiencing a sudden surge of sexual need. I brought my gaze up to meet his and all sounds faded away. He walked towards me like a lion stalking his prey, and all I knew was that I wanted to be caught.
It felt like we were the only two people in the world as he came within kissing distance. I raised my face to his and he cradled the side of my head in his hand threading his fingers into my hair. With excruciating slowness, he lowered his head towards my face until his lips touched mine. The kiss was soft but demanding and I responded, opening my mouth in invitation. Through a lust filled haze I could hear the distant sound of emergency vehicles. Ranger tore his mouth from mine with a whispered curse, grabbed my hand and almost dragged me into a nearby alley.
He'd just pushed me against the rough brick of the wall and was about to kiss me again, an idea I wholeheartedly supported, when his cell rang. He swore and ripped the phone off his belt. "This'd better be good. No. Take the SUV. We'll make our own way." He shoved the damned thing back onto his belt and I melted into his embrace as his lips captured mine again.
I needed to feel skin. I couldn't drag his shirt out of his waistband fast enough before I tunneled my hands under the fabric to caress the muscles on his back. The smooth skin felt like silk and I wanted more. I heard a growl as he removed his mouth from mine and attacked my neck with those commanding lips. I stretched my head to the side to give him better access. Meanwhile his hands had been busy; the buttons on my shirt had already given way to his questing fingers. My nipples were pushing against the inside of my bra, and the garment felt tight. Oh God, I so wanted to get naked with this man.
I felt my skin quiver as he kissed his way past my collarbone to the swell of my breast. We needed some privacy; I didn't think either of us wanted to get arrested for indecent exposure. I knew what I wanted to do, I also knew I wasn't supposed to do it. I mentally shrugged; since when did I follow the rules. Ranger knew about the Unmentionable world already, what harm could it do? "The Hell with this." And I popped us both to his bedroom at RangeMan.
Ranger looked around and then down at our naked bodies. Raising an eyebrow, he chuckled. "Neat party trick."
I didn't feel inclined to talk. Right then I just wanted to taste him. I pulled his head down to mine and kissed him. Without breaking our kiss, he picked me up and laid me on the bed. I sighed as he began to caress my neck with his lips, and when he started to nibble and suck his way down to my breast, I felt moisture pool between my legs. I arched my back as he drew the taut peak of my breast into his mouth, gently gnawing at it with his teeth and then biting. The mix of pain and pleasure brought me close to the edge. I felt his knee nudging my legs apart and I gladly opened to him. The pressure of his thigh at my core was heaven and I rubbed myself against him.
As I opened my legs, I automatically opened my mind. I reached out and touched Ranger's mind with mine. Through the haze of lust, something felt wrong. It was as if I was driving on a one-way street when it should have been two-way. There was no give and take. Ranger was giving with his body but not with his mind; it felt so wrong. From beyond the edge of the fog of sex I felt another mind. It was giving. It was loving, and it was feeling intense sadness. It was Diesel.
With almost superhuman strength, I pushed Ranger off me and scrambled off the bed. I reached for the pile of clothing that I'd materialized into the room with us, grabbed mine and disappeared into the bathroom.
The reflected Stephanie in the mirror looked accusingly at me. I turned my back on my reflection and began to dress. Minutes later, I emerged from the bathroom fully clothed to find Ranger had pulled on his pants and was sitting on the bed with his head cradled in his hands.
I stood outside the bathroom door watching him. He knew I was there but he didn't look up. This man had been part of my life for a few years now and I didn't want to lose his friendship. We'd been lovers once for such a brief period, and I still loved him. But I knew that Diesel was my future, and if I knew that how could I possibly have betrayed him by even thinking of making love with Ranger. I was having intense difficulty reconciling what I felt with what I'd done.
I moved forward but remained at a safe distance from him. "You realize this was Steward's doing don't you." It was a statement of fact and Ranger appeared to accept it as such.
He looked up at me and I felt as if he could see straight into my soul. "Babe, we wouldn't have acted on the impulse if we hadn't wanted to."
"No. No. No, I won't believe that. I love Diesel. I want Diesel." The tears came then and I couldn't bear to stay where I'd betrayed my love. I closed my eyes and willed myself back to my apartment.