I don't own these characters they belong to Janet Evanovich. I will warn those of you who want to know, it will get dark. But that is a ways down the road. Thank you for all your reviews and please continue if you would. I hope you enjoy the chapter.

Chapter 6

Ranger POV

I stood there, on the deck, watching Manny walk away. I had my arm around Stephanie's waist and I pulled her closer to me. Once he was out of sight, I turned my eyes towards Babe. She was still watching the direction Manny disappeared. She looked so beautiful, and for a second, fragile. She looked up at me and raised her hand to my cheek.

"Well we better get going. I have a feeling he'll show back up here if we take too long." She smiled at me and winked. Her voice was calm, but I detected a slight shake to it.

I pulled her in front of me and placed my forehead on hers. "Don't let go of my hand. I want you right beside me. Always." I kissed her and felt her press into my body. She pulled away from me and smiled.

"Well husband of mine let's get this show on the road." I couldn't help but smile slightly. I kissed her nose and took her hand to help her onto the dock. Lester and Bobby followed.

The ride to the Vasquez house was mostly silent except for the occasional need for Lester to give us a recap of his day. Babe would call him a "Man Whore" and they would banter back and for a few minutes. I was trying to remain focused on what information I needed to obtain so I could get us back home as quickly as possible. It was going to be difficult to keep my head in the game and have Stephanie here. For once the mission was not the top priority in my mind. Her safety was.

The Vasquez home was on the opposite side of the island. We drove through downtown and as we did the size of the properties increased, as did the price tags. Bobby turned onto the cobblestone, palm tree lined driveway and I heard Babe gasp beside me as the house came into view. The front of the house had large palm trees and gardenia hedges. The sun was just starting to set, and there was a soft glow coming from the few windows that were on this side of the house. When I opened the door, Babe took a deep breath and closed her eyes. The gardenias combined with the ocean breeze filled the air. I took her hand and helped her out of the car. The house was white stucco. It had soft curving lines and a very modern feel.

"This place is gorgeous." Steph whispered.

Lester put his hand on Babe's shoulder and leaned into her ear. "You ain't seen nothing yet Beautiful."

Before we could ring the door bell, Victor, the middle brother and the most stable of the three, opened the door.

"Carlos, Les, Stephanie, please come in." He gestured for us to enter and we complied, with Bobby bringing up the rear. "We are having drinks out on the patio tonight. Are mojitos okay with everyone?" He led us out through the foyer towards the back of the house as he spoke. I watched Babe's face with amusement as she tried to not be impressed by the house. She looked up in the foyer and above us was a huge crystal chandelier. The light was throwing rainbows on the sand colored marble floor. The house was modern in a lot of features, but filled with dark wood and antiques at the same time. You could tell this was a family that had more money than they knew what to do with.

We walked down the five stairs that led to the "living room". The back wall of the house was all windows. There was a large bar in this room filled with crystal glasses and every kind of alcohol known to man. On the opposite side of the room was a large leather sectional facing a fire place and above the fire place was a 55 inch plasma television.

Manny and Hector were outside on the patio. It was made of the same cobblestones as the driveway. A pool and hot tub were to our right as we exited. They both looked inviting, but I had no intention of these lunatics seeing Babe in a bikini tonight. Victor crossed to the large table where his brothers were sitting and pulled out a chair for Babe. She nodded in appreciation and I took a set on her left, Lester on her right. In front of us, was a dock and moored to it was 161 ft yacht. It made our boat look like a toy. It was silver and white and probably cost more than all three of my office buildings combined.

"Looks like we will be roughing it tomorrow." Lester joked, pointing to the dock. "I'm not used to traveling in such horrible conditions."

"It fit its purpose very nicely. I hope that you will enjoy the journey Stephanie." Manny's gaze hadn't ventured from Steph since we walked onto the patio.

"I am sure it will be a very enjoyable trip. Of course as long as I am with Carlos it doesn't really matter where we are." I kissed her hand and then slid my arm around her shoulder, pulling her to me.

Victor arrived then with the drinks and took his place next to Lester. I actually liked Victor. He was quiet, but stable. I almost felt like, given a choice, he would leave this life behind. But that is the thing with being born into a family like the Vasquez's, you never really have a choice. Money and power isn't always what it is cracked up to be.

"Are any of you married?" Steph tired to keep the conversation going and off of us. Manny smiled at her, while Hector's eyes kept raking up and down her body. If I didn't think it would get us killed, I would have but a bullet in his head right then.

"Si usted hermosa brujita. I have a wife, Sophia and two sons, Constantine and Fidel. My brothers have not found the right woman for them yet. So be careful not to bewitch them too much. They might try to steal you away." (Yes you beautiful witch) Manny winked at Steph and I felt her stiffen slightly. Hector laughed and it could be described as nothing but menacing.

"Are they in Havana then?" Steph was doing a great job. I was so proud of her.

"Si. You will understand our home more once we get there. There is the main house where our parents live, as well as my brothers. That is where you will be staying. My home is also on the property. I am sure that Sophia will enjoy the company." I noticed something when Manny spoke of his wife. Victor tensed slightly and looked towards the water. I had a feeling that the dynamics of this family were even more complex that we could imagine.

We continued the small talk and finished our second round of drinks as the sun made its final appearance on the horizon. Babe leaned into me and looked up, her eyes communicating her desire to leave.

"Manny I think I better get my wife back to the boat. She's had a very busy couple of day. What time are we leaving in the morning?" I didn't like not having control over our itinerary, but I had no choice but to let him run the show.

"We will have a car at the dock to pick you up at 9:00. As I am sure you are aware, we have a specific route we have to take. It will take us longer to get there than if we were able to make a straight run. So make sure you are prepared to enjoy the hot tub on board Stephanie." We stood as Manny finished speaking and I shook his hand.

"Thank you for nice evening." I nodded at Hector and Victor and took Babe's hand.

"Dulces suenos una hermoso. Nos vemos en la manana." (Sweet dream beautiful one. See you in the morning.) Manny came and took Babe's hand and kissed it.

Babe nodded and looked between the brothers. "Good night gentlemen. Thank you for a lovely evening."

Victor showed us to the door and we all go into the SUV and headed back to our boat. Babe put her head on my shoulder and instantly fell asleep. When we got back to the boat, I took her below deck to our room and undressed her, sliding her under the covers. As I kissed her, she opened her eyes.

"Aren't you coming to bed?" She brought her hand up to my neck, holding me close to her.

"I'll be back in a few minutes Babe. I need to talk to Les. Get some sleep." I kissed her and leaned in and whispered in her ear. "I'm so proud of."

A soft smile came to her lips as she drifted back to sleep. I stood there and looked at her for a moment.

All we had been through. It all brought us to this lie that I wanted so badly to be real. I closed my eyes and took a deep breath, checking my emotions. I exited the cabin and headed on deck.

We were about a mile off shore and Bobby had just dropped anchor. Lester was standing on the deck, three Corona's on the table next to him. I walked up to him and grabbed one, taking a long pull off the bottle.

"So, I think that went as well as can be expected, don't you?" Lester's eyes got hard as he looked at me, reaching around me to grab his beer.

"Tomorrow is a completely different story. I want to keep as much distance as possible between Steph and Manny. Victor, he seems the most harmless of the three. Hector, well I don't want him anywhere near her, but I know that is impossible now." I sighed, taking another drink and looking out over the water.

Bobby had silently joined the party, standing between Lester and me. "If we get separated, I assume you want me with Bomber." I nodded my head.

"If we get there and all hell breaks loose, all I care about is Babe getting home in one piece. I already informed the General that there has been a change in plans and he will have to send in the B team for elimination of the family. I want us back on US soil as soon as we get the names of their connections."

We all took seats on the lounge chairs that covered the deck. I lay my head back and looked at the stars. I had learned a lot by watching the brothers tonight and their interaction with Stephanie. And the reaction of Victor when Sophia, Manny's wife, was mentioned peaked my curiosity. We might be able to use that to our advantage. I had a worst case scenario come into my brain as I watched Manny look at Steph tonight. I only let it enter my brain for a minute. I don't think I could live with myself if we had to resort to that. I closed my eyes and pushed the image of that ultimate distraction out of my head. I wouldn't ever allow that to happen and I hated the part of me that even let it be an option.

I finished my beer and left Bobby and Lester on deck. As I entered the cabin, Babe's scent drew me to her. I got undressed and climbed into bed next to her, pulling her to me. I kissed her shoulder and up to her neck. I felt her sigh and I whispered in her ear.

"Mi vida yo daria por la suya, porque sin ti no tengo nada. Tu eres mi aire, mi sol, mi corazon. Tu eres mi mejor amiga. Usted me a consumido, la mente, cuerpo y alma. Te quiero." (My life I could give for yours because without you I have nothing. You are my air, my sun, my heart. You are my best friend. You consume me, mind body and soul. I love you.)

I let the rhythm of her heart under my hand and the sound of her breathing lull me to sleep.