It's probably pretty obvious from this story that I'm a Babe through and though, although I enjoy a good Tart story now and then too, or anything about Hector. Any stories I write under JE Fanfic will be Babe based, although, I'm finding myself more and more drawn to Julie's character.

Does anyone know of another story that has Julie as the main character? I can't find any.

"Te Amo"

Chapter 16

Pov- Shilo

I woke slowly, my body still stiff and my eyes heavy. I felt like I'd been sleeping a lot the last few days, but it never felt like I'd had enough. I rolled carefully onto my side and smiled at the sight of a very naked Julie sprawled out on the sheets next to me, sound asleep. That might have something to do with the soreness too.

I carefully slid out of bed so I wouldn't wake her up and headed for the shower in Julie's bathroom. My brother's were coming into town today and I had asked to be part of the group sent to pick them up from the airport. It would be a few hours before we left, but I wanted to settle a few things around RangeMan before I faced them.

I showered quickly using the stool Bobby had found for me to keep extra weight off my ribs. Once I was out, I sent him a text letting him know I'd be down in a few minutes. This had become standard procedure for us in the days since I'd left the hospital. True to Ranger's word, I never felt any animosity from Bobby while he treated me, but I could tell we would eventually need to talk. Hopefully, with enough time, and the progress I was making with Ranger, he'd come to see that I'd only ever meant the best for Julie.

I slid into clean panties and winced as I bent over to pull on a clean pair of black sweatpants. I added a black tank top and piled my wet hair up onto my head to keep it out of the way. Julie was still asleep as I snuck past her and I felt myself smile as she scooted closer to my side of the bed.

I stopped in the kitchen to grab a bottle of water and get my slippers when I noticed the bottle left on the counter. The bottle was about seven inches high and made of twisted, dark purple glass. The image on the front was of a dark orchid and I grinned at the note pinned under it.

I slid the piece of paper towards me and caught the scent of black orchids on it as I opened it. All it said, written in Julie's neat script, was "Hurry Back"

I took a moment to reign in my smile before heading out into the hall. I stopped by the open door to my old RangeMan room and glanced in to see both Ryan and Connor talking. After being released from the hospital, Ryan had realized that he no longer had a home to go back to. Ranger had given him my apartment at RangeMan to use while he was under Bobby's care, since it was obvious I'd be spending all of my time in Julie's room anyway. I knew he was hoping to be out of the way as quickly as possible, but it was taking time for the insurance company to get back to him on everything he'd lost in the fire.

Ryan came over when he saw me and kissed my forehead. "Morning Shy."

"Good morning." I peeked around his shoulder and waved at Connor too. "Hi Connor."

"How you feeling?" He asked, joining us in the doorway.

I shrugged. "Better every day. I'm on my way to see Bobby right now."

"He just cleared me." Ryan said happily.

"What are your plans now?" I asked.

He pointed at Connor. "I'll be staying with Connor until I can get things settled with my insurance. Then I guess I'll be hunting for a new place to stay."

"What about you?" Connor asked looking over at me. "What are your plans?"

I smiled. "Still working on the details. I'll keep you informed."

I turned to leave, but Ryan caught my arm. "I know Col. Lowry's boys are flying in today and you need to spend time with them, but if you can make it, the band's having dinner tonight at a club downtown. I'd love you to meet the rest of my friends."

"I'll try." I promised. "I know Robert's going to handle most of the funeral stuff, but I'm sure they'll want a full run down on what happened and I've got to talk to TPD today too."

"Sounds like a blast." Connor said, rolling his eyes and I smiled at how easily the two of us had become friends.

They let me leave when I turned and I rode the elevator down to Bobby's clink on three. He was waiting when I walked in and I took my standard place on his makeshift examination table. He checked over my cuts and gave me a clean bill of health. The mark on my neck would scar since the stitches had been ripped, but I wasn't too worried about it.

"Continue to take it easy on your ribs." He said, once he'd lowered my file. "It will probably be a month before they're fully healed, but other than that you're progressing just fine. Have you noticed any dizziness or loss of appetite?"

Nope, I was feeling stronger everyday and I felt better this morning then I had in the last several days. I finally knew what I was going to do. I stood to leave and waited until Bobby looked up at me. "Thank you for taking care of me." I said honestly.

He nodded. "Just doing my job."

"You didn't have to agree to treating me here, I could have stayed at the hospital."

"Ranger wanted you both moved here. It was easier this way."

I shook my head. "I'm sorry for the part I've played in all of this Bobby." I said, hoping with every fiber in my being that he believed me. "I love Julie. I never meant to put her in harms way."

He thought for a moment and I was starting to worry that he wouldn't respond when he nodded. "I know that." He said easily. "I think everyone here got that impression when Julie pinned you to the wall on five."

I blushed at the memory. Julie and I had attended the morning meeting, the morning after I'd come to stay at RangeMan and she'd officially announced our relationship to all of her friends and coworkers. I think she'd been caught off guard by how easily they all took the news. In fact, I was betting, that like Razor, most of them had already guessed.

To follow up her announcement she'd pressed me into the wall and kissed me until my ribs were screaming at the lack of oxygen. I hadn't minded, but Ranger had followed up by reminded us that public displays of affection were best left off the work floor.

"Yeah, that might not have been the best place."

"She loves you." Bobby interrupted.

I nodded. "I know."

"I think you're going to do great here."

I raised an eyebrow. "What are you talking about?"

He smiled at me and leaned back against the counter behind him. "Who do you think suggested to Ranger that the best way he would be able to, not only get to know you, but keep an eye on you while you courted his daughter, would be to offer you a job here."

"You got him to offer me the job?"

Bobby nodded. "You have all of the skills that Ranger looks for in the men he hires. You're smart, your combat trained, you know what you're doing. Few people could have handled the satiation you were in with as much success as you achieved. You not only lived with minor injury to yourself, you managed to get both the other hostages out alive as well. Face it, your good. I may have pointed it out to him, but Ranger was already thinking about it."

I couldn't help the small smile on my face as I gathered my things and prepared to leave. I was starting to realize that the hard exterior all of the Merry Men wore was just a cover to scare people. They really were a bunch of loveable guys.

"For what it's worth." He added. "I think you'll be good for Julie too."

"Thanks Bobby."

He didn't say anything more as I let myself out and headed up to five. For the last three days, since Ranger had come to speak with me at the hospital, I hadn't been able to get his offer out of my head. When I'd come back to my room after my second round of x-ray's I'd been surprised to find Ranger sitting in my room alone, waiting for me.

I'd been prepared for just about anything, but like I was learning about the rest of Ranger's Merry Men, Ranger was full of surprises. He hadn't yelled at me. If fact he hadn't even been mad at me. He'd told me that he loved his daughter and if I hurt her I'd regret it. Then he'd asked if I was interested in a full time position at RangeMan.

I ignored the looks of the other Merry Men as I walked through five and knocked on Ranger's office door. I'd been avoiding five, since coming back to RangeMan in order to give the guys some space.

"Come in."

I pushed the door open and let myself in, making sure to close the door behind myself. I didn't want anyone trying to overhear our conversation.

"Good morning, Shilo." Ranger said, his voice even and powerful as he watched me walk in.

I nodded as I sat down. "Good morning."

He was silent, watching me while he waited for me to start.

"I've been thinking about what you said." I started, jumping straight to the point since I knew Ranger wasn't one for extra chit-chat. "I think I could be a great addition to your team here if you still have a place for me."

He smiled. "I hoped you would pick to stay with us."

"Marks not going to be happy with us." I added, thinking about my boss back in New York. I'd only worked with Mark for a short time, but he's quickly become my only real friend in New York. I'd miss him once I moved.

Ranger laughed, "No, in fact he's quite livid with me for stealing you away from him. His exact words were that I 'poached' his best computer person."

"You already spoke to him?"

Ranger nodded. "He called me yesterday to see where the case was going and to ask how quickly you'd be able to return. I told him not to expect you back."

"Why?" I asked. "You didn't know if I'd say yes or not."

"I thought it was a safe bet." He said easily. "The men here like you even if they're still giving you a hard time, and they don't always take to everyone who comes in. Plus there's Julie to factor in and while I might not understand the two of you, after having met my Stephanie, I do understand love."

He picked up his phone and dialed a short inter-office number. Someone answered and he said "My office, now." Before hanging the phone back up.

We sat silently for a moment until there was another knock on the door. Ranger called out for the visitor to come in and Razor let himself into the office.

"What's up Boss?" Razor asked, and then his eyes landed on me. "Morning Shilo."

I smiled. "Hi."

"Come in." Ranger said. "Take a seat." He added nodding to the empty chair next to mine.

Razor shut the door and came in, taking the seat next to me with a very confused look on his face. I kept my mouth shut not sure exactly what Ranger had wanted Razor for. Razor was dressed in full RangeMan black. He'd gotten his sling off the same day I'd come back to Haywood, but he was still off field work, waiting to be cleared medically by Bobby.

"Razor, your first six months here have been exemplary." Ranger started.

Razor nodded, but kept his face blank. "Thank you Sr."

"Hector came to see me a few days ago. He thinks you're ready for full field work. He's been very pleased with how quickly you've completed your training with him."

"He's been a great mentor to me." Razor said.

Ranger nodded. "Hector doesn't usually ask to work with new team members. The last time he took an interest in a new employ was when Stephanie joined us. He is also interested in taking on your training Shilo." Ranger said looking over at me.

"Me?" Why would Hector want to train me?

"Her?" Razor said, and then he looked at me with a big smile on his face. "You're staying with us? What about New York?"

I nodded. "Yeah, I'm staying here. I just came in here to talk to Ranger about it." We both looked back to Ranger who was sitting behind his desk watching us.

"I want the two of you to team up together." He said. "Official RangeMan partners. Hector will continue to provide mentoring to you both and act as your first stop should you have any questions."

"That's awesome." Razor said excited, patting my arm. "We're going to be a great team."

"I thought you and Blaze were partners." I said, looking to Ranger for clarification.

Ranger shook his head. "Razor and Blaze are both still fairly new to the company. We usually give new guys about six month, to see how well they settle in with the group before finding them a permanent partner to work with. The two of you hit it off right away. We'll start you off with security and install. Razor, I know Hector's been teaching you about the different equipment we use here. Maybe we'll have you handle some of the bond work too. As much as I hate to admit it, the core team and myself are not as young as we used to be."

"What about Blaze?" Razor asked.

Ranger smiled. "Julie is also ready for full field work. She and Blaze have been close friends for awhile now. Looks like another strong pairing to me."

"He's going to love that." Razor agreed. "Have you told him yet?" He asked Ranger.

Ranger shook his head. "No, I will speak with them both after the morning meeting and we'll announce the new pairs at tomorrow's meeting. Shilo, you can start with Hector next week, but no fieldwork until you're cleared with Bobby. That goes for you too Razor."

Ranger dismissed us both shortly after that and we left the office quickly. Razor wrapped his arms around my chest and picked me up off my feet. He spun us in a circle and gave a victory whoop, which I would have joined had I been able to breathe.

"Oh sorry, Shilo." Razor said, setting me down when he realized I was in pain. "Your ribs still bothering you?"

I nodded. "Yeah, they're going to take a while to heal."

"This is so great." He continued. "You're going to love working with Hector. He's freaky smart and he can fence too. He'll teach you all of the Tech work behind RangeMan and he's been telling me about some of his under cover work. You should see some of his knife tricks."

"Hector fences?" I knew Hector was good with knives, maybe that's why he'd taken an interest in Razor and myself, but I'd never have guessed that he also fenced.

Razor nodded. "Yep, He's pretty good at it too. I've learned a lot from him. He's kind of quite, but he know's his stuff."

We parted ways on the staircase, Razor heading down to the gym, while I let myself out on four. I could still hear Ryan and Connor talking, but I skipped past their room, letting myself back into Julie's apartment.

The apartment was still quiet when I let myself in and kicked off my slippers in the doorway. I padded gently over to Julie's bedroom door and found her lying right where I'd left her. She rolled over and smiled at me, the sheet thrown over her hips did little to hide her body from me.

"Morning." She said on a yawn, stretching out like an exotic jungle cat. Her caramel colored skin looked right at home amongst the earth-toned bedroom.

I crossed the room, stepping out of my sweats, before crawling back into the bed. "Morning." I said, placing a kiss on her neck before lying down next to her and snuggling close.

"You go check in with Bobby?" She asked wrapping an arm around my waist.

I nodded. "Yep, I'm all good, except for the ribs."

Julie pressed gently into my side and tossed one of her legs over my hips, molding into my side. "You were gone for almost an hour; he didn't give you a hard time did he?" She asked.

"No," I promised. "Bobby and I are fine. He likes me."

"Really?" She asked.

I nodded. "Yep, actually I was talking to Ranger."

She stilled and I rolled onto my side so I could see her face. "What did he want?" She asked. "You never told me what he wanted at the hospital either."

"I know, we were talking about my return to New York now that the case is over and I'm healing up."

She frowned, suddenly becoming very interested in my hair, which was laying on the pillow near her. "When are you leaving?" She asked and the little hint of pain in her voice just made me more excited to tell her that I was staying.

"I'm not." I told her, smiling at the confusion on her face when she looked back up at me. "Ranger offered me a job here, full time. As long as you're ok with it, I'll take the offer."

She moved fast, rolling over so she was straddling my waist, her hands braced on either side of my chest. Her nose brushed against mine as she stared at me. "He did?"

I nodded, biting my lip to try to control my smile. "Yeah,"

"Of course I want you to stay. What did you say?"

"Yes, he made Razor my field partner. I start next week."

She smiled and then her lips were on mine. I wrapped my arms around her, my fingers playing with her hair or running down her bare back. Her round little breasts pressing into my chest. I moaned as her lips moved down my neck and her tongue flicked out to taste the hollow at the base of my throat.

"Julie," I said on another moan as she bit down on the point where my shoulder and neck met, marking my skin. I could feel her body pressed into ever line of mine and her scent filled my nose, threatening to distract me from the rest of the things I had to do today.

"Shh," She said gently before cooing something to me in Spanish. Sweet things, dirty things, little words of love. I only knew a few of the one's she'd taught me, but it wasn't hard to guess their general meanings from the inflections in her voice and the heat in her eyes.

I loved it when she spoke Spanish to me and I felt myself flush at the rush of moisture between my legs as she moved down to my waist. Maybe Hector would include language lessons in my training if I asked him nicely.

I felt her soft hands slip under my shirt and remembered why I was trying to get her attention before. We had to stop now or there would be no hope. "Julie," I said again jumping when her finger brushed over one of my hard nipples, pinching lightly at my skin. "I have to be in the garage in twenty minutes. Lester's waiting for me."

She growled, the vibration from her lips did wonderful things to my skin and I was wondering how late I could be before Lester came looking for me. I felt Julie pause in her exploration of my skin and groaned at the lost of contact as she fixed my shirt and climbed back up my body.

"I forgot your brother's were coming in today." She said. "You're picking them up at the airport?"

I nodded and said, "Yeah, I wanted to be there when they land. They're going to have lots of questions. A familiar face will help them relax."

She kissed my neck again and my hips bucked against her when she ran a finger along the ruined seam of my panties. She lifted the finger to her lips and grinned at me before licking it clean. "We can finish celebrating tonight then." She said her dark eyes hooded and lustful. "After all, we have lots of time now."

I nodded. "Tonight," I vowed. "Ryan and his friends are going to a club tonight for dinner, they invited us. If we've got time will you go with me?"

She nodded. "Love too. I'm looking forward to seeing you dance." I grimaced, it had been a really long time since I'd danced.

We forced ourselves out of bed and moved around the room to get ready. I heard the water turn on in the bathroom and knew Julie was taking a shower. I hadn't had Julie in the shower yet and it took nearly a full minute to remind myself that I didn't have the time to take her right now. You'll have all night, I promised myself and set about finding clothes to wear for the day.

I tightened the wrap around my waist before sliding into a clean pair of panties and a pair of light blue jeans. I found a cream colored, button up blouse and settled on a pair of matching cream-colored heels. I looked at myself in the bathroom mirror and smiled. I brushed out my hair and tied it back into a messy bun before adding just a touch of dark makeup to my eyes.

My pendant hung around my neck, where it had been since Julie had given it back to me and for once I was confident in wearing it proudly on the outside of my clothing. I smiled at it, catching it shimmer in the light of the bathroom and ran my finger over it. Once I was settled in Trenton, I'd have to look into getting my name changed back. I didn't have to hide anymore.

I took one last look in the mirror and shrugged. There wasn't anything I could do about all of the cuts and burses, the worst, still being the dark ring around my right eye. I walked back into the room and pulled my old Army jacket out of my bag. I let my fingers run over the camo fabric and smiled at the patches on it. I didn't wear the jacket to often anymore, but I liked to wear it around my brothers to remind them that I could still play with the big boys. That and Scotty hated it when I wore the jacket with civilian clothing and I was still smarting over the fact that he was blaming the Col.'s death on me.

I slid the jacket on and grabbed my phone getting ready to head out when I heard Julie's voice behind me.

"Dios"

I glanced up to find Julie standing near the bathroom room, her eyes locked on me, wrapped in nothing but a plush white towel.

"What?" I asked, looking over my outfit. "Too much?" Maybe I should just wear RangeMan black.

She stalked over to me and grabbed the collar of my jacket, pulling me to her for another panty-wetting kiss. I pulled back before we could lose ourselves and she smiled at me. "Apparently ink isn't my only fetish point." She said, running a finger down the edge of my jacket. "You look amazing in this coat."

Her eye drifted to some of the army patches along the sleeves and she pointed to one. "What's this one for?" She asked. "I recognize most of the other ones."

The patch in question was my personal favorite. "It's the dead man's hand." I explained. The patch was a picture of five playing cards: the ace of spades, the ace of clovers, and the two black eights. The fifth card in the hand was face down leaving its identity unknown. "It was the patch for my old Army team."

I gave Julie one last kiss before rushing out the door. I took the elevator and arrived in the garage right at nine. Lester was waiting by one of the RangeMan SUV's and he grinned when I stopped in front of him. "Nice jacket."

"Thanks."

"Trying to prove a point?" He asked as we climbed into the car and he started it up.

"I don't know what you're talking about." I said innocently.

Lester maneuvered the roads like a pro and we got waved into a private parking lot once Lester flashed his RangeMan ID to the airport security. The private lot put us closer to the runway where private planes landed and we left the car there to go check on arrival times.

We'd only been waiting for ten minutes when Adam's flight was announced. I grabbed Lester's hand and practically dragged him to the right gate, standing on my toes to see over the people in front of us.

Adam was the last of the first class passengers to get off the plane and I nearly tackled him. Adam caught himself at the last minute and dropped his bag so he could wrap his arms around my waist and give me a big hug.

He pressed a wet and sloppy kiss to my forehead. "Hey there Shilo."

He spun us in a circle and I winced when he set me down.

"You ok?" He asked, looking over my face.

I nodded. "I've had worse." and that was the truth.

He ran a knuckle lightly down the bruise near my eye and frowned. "The man who did this is in jail right?" He asked.

"He's dead." I said.

Adam smiled. "Even better."

I raised an eyebrow at him. "What happened to your anti-violence attitude? Where's my loveable pacifist? The boy who'd rather run away from home then join the army like his dear old Dad?"

"I don't believe in war." He said, lowering his voice so we wouldn't be overheard. "I think there has to be a better way for countries to solve their differences. You are far more important to me, however, and I'd personally see to it that any man who did you harm, got it back ten times over."

I kissed his cheek. "It's nice to know you still care."

"I might not tell you every day," He started. "but, I love ya little sis. Never forget that."

Adam refused to let me take his bag so I grabbed his hand and lead him over to where Lester was waiting for us off to the side of the crowd.

"Is this your hot girlfriend?" Adam asked, quickly lightening the atmosphere and becoming the lighthearted jokester I knew and loved.

Lester gave a bark of laughter and I elbowed Adam in the side. "No, this is Lester Santos. I work with him here at RangeMan. Lester this is my brother Adam Lowry."

"Nice to meet you." Lester said, offering a hand for a very manly handshake. "Your father was a great man, I'm sorry we couldn't meet under better circumstances."

"It's nice to meet you too." Adam said with a smile that didn't quite mask the sorrow in his eyes. "Thanks for helping look after Shilo."

Lester grinned. "She's a handful."

"Tell me about it."

"Hello," I interrupted, pointing at myself. "Standing right here."

Adam just grinned and pulled me closer to his side. "You're still a pain in the ass."

"The RangeMan jet's supposed to land in half an hour." I told him, trying to change the subject away from myself. "We can put your things in the car and go wait down on the runway for it."

Adam hooked his arm through mine while we walked. "So," He said casually looking around when we got to the luggage rack. "Where's your hot girlfriend?" He asked, this time putting air quotes around the word 'girl friend'.

I rolled my eyes. "Back at RangeMan, she had things to do this morning and couldn't come with me."

"Sure," He said sarcastically. "I'm still having trouble believing that you made friends with real living people."

Lester laughed again and I shot him a dark look.

"You can meet her later." I promised him.

"I'll believe it when I see her."

Adam and I continued to harass each other while we loaded his things into the SUV and headed over to wait near the garage where the RangeMan plane would land. To my dismay, Lester joined in on the teasing and soon it was two against one in favor of the boys.

"At least I actually have a girlfriend." I shot back, sticking my tongue out at them. I couldn't remember the last time Adam had been in a serious relationship, if he ever had.

Adam grinned and said. "Touché" with a nod of his head.

"Well I'm married." Lester said. "So I win."

"You are?" I asked, I hadn't known that.

"Yep," He opened his wallet and showed me a picture of himself sitting outside in the grass with a very attractive woman. She had short, bright blond hair and dark brown eyes. "Her name's Heather." Lester said with a soft little smile. "She's a nurse over at Saint Francis. Our fifth anniversary is next month."

"Congratulations, she's so pretty. How'd she fall for a fool like you?"

He ran a hand over my head, messing up my hair. "Oh she's just as big a dork as I am, but she keeps me in line." He smiled. "I'll have to introduce the two of you."

The three of us sat along the edge of the RangeMan garage and chatted while we waited for the plane to land. When it did Lester hung back to let Adam and I greet the others. Robert, Scott and Jimmy all filed off with their bags and I moved forward to take one from Robert.

"Hey Shilo." He said, hooking an arm around my neck to pull me in for a light hug.

I hugged him back, wrapping my arms around his waist, and offered a small smile. Their arrival brought back into focus why we were all here and the air was uncomfortably thick with the grief over Col. Lowry's passing. I watched as Adam embraced his brothers and was sad when neither Scotty or Jim came over to give me a hug.

Robert took my hand in his and smiled gently at me, seeing where I was looking. "Give them some time," He said softly, guessing my train of thought. "It was a long flight."

I nodded along and helped the three of them load their bags into the back of the SUV with Lester. Once everyone was settled, I took my place back in the passenger's seat and Lester pulled out into traffic.

Pov- Julie

I watched as Shilo hurried out the door, enjoying the way her jeans hugged the firm curves of her backside. Once she was gone, I set about righting myself for the day. I brushed my hair out and left it down before dawning my usual RangeMan black uniform.

I made it down to five with only seconds to spare before the morning meeting started. I slid into my place next to Blaze , just as Ranger and the core team walked in. Blaze caught my eye and made a show of looking at his watch. I rolled my eyes, but didn't have the chance to say anything as Ranger started talking.

The meeting was fairly standard. We'd gotten our bond on Michael settled and those involved could expect their cut of the money by the end of the day. An alarm had gone off at one of our high-end client's houses last night, but we hadn't found a reason for the breach, so we were going to continue monitoring them. Information would be given for Col. Lowry's funeral service as soon as possible should any of the men wish to attend the funeral. They all would, RangeMan was nothing if not sportive.

Ranger dismissed the group calling out for me over the light talk that had started.

"Julie, could I speak with you a moment?"

I moved over to his side. "What's up Dad?"

"Come with me." He said easily, heading out of the room. He gave Tank a look as we left and lead me down the hall to his main office.

He opened the door, letting me pass into the office before closing it behind us. I suddenly had flash backs to being sent to the principal's office and wondered if I'd possible done something wrong.

Ranger had just taken his seat when there was another knock at the door.

"Come in." Ranger called easily.

The door swung open and I watched as Blaze and Tank came in. I could see the outline of Tank's brace under his shirt and wondered how much longer he'd have to keep his shoulder immobilized. I knew the cast was driving him nuts. Tank closed the door and nodded that Blaze should take the seat next to me.

"You can stop looking so guilty." Tank said with a chuckle. "You're not in trouble."

Blaze let out a breath and I let myself relax. "Then what's up?" I asked.

"Julie I'm sure Shilo spoke to you this morning," Ranger started. "but, I want to make sure that Blaze has heard the good news."

"What news?" Blaze asked looking thoroughly confused.

Ranger just grinned. "Razor has been moved to full time field work. He'll be partnering with Shilo permanently, since she has decided to stay with us here at RangeMan."

"That's great."

Ranger held up a hand to stop him, so he could continue. "The two of you are also ready for full field work. Blaze, Tank has given me wonderful reviews about your progress. I think the pair of you will make a good RangeMan team. What do you think?"

Blaze smirked at me and I smiled back. I'd expected that Ranger would make Blaze a full time partner, since his reviews were easily as strong as Razor's had been. I'd never guessed, however, that he'd name me as Blaze's partner.

"Me too?" I asked, unsure.

He nodded. "I promised to trust in your abilities. I think you're ready. What would you guys say to working with Tank and Lester on taking over more of the skip tracking side of RangeMan?" He asked. "Steph is looking to end her field work, in order to spend more time with the boys and the client side of RangeMan. With the core team and myself also getting older; it's time we brought in some younger blood to help us chase the lowlifes around."

I nodded along and Blaze looked even more excited then I was. I'd noticed in the last few months that Ranger and the core team guys were starting to do less field work. While I knew they were all still in great shape, there was no denying the fact that Ranger would soon be turning 43 and I knew Bobby and Tank were both a couple years older than he was.

Ranger caught my eye and I smiled, leaning back in my seat. "Sounds like a great plan. Trenton will still have one bad-ass Manoso keeping everyone in check."

Tank chuckled. "I think she just called you old."

"Trust me," Ranger said, mirroring my little grin. "This bad-ass has still got it."

Ranger and Tank talked a little more about what our new role around RangeMan would be. Tank was Razor's primary teacher and Bobby was mine. As a new partnership, however, Lester would be taking on the bulk of our training, showing us the ropes with catching skips and the police side to that work. As well as doing the high-end skips for Vinnie, RangeMan also took on some high-end skips for other bond agencies as well. Mostly ex-military guys who'd gotten in trouble with the law and no one else wanted to risk having to hunt down.

"You start next week." Ranger said, "Lester will have more information for you then. Meet him in the gym at 0500."

Blaze and I left the office both of us waiting until we'd hit the stairwell before busting into a little victory dance. "This is going to be awesome." Blaze cheered. I agreed, and to celebrate I challenged him to a match in the gym.

"Oh you're going down."

Razor was in the gym, running on a treadmill, since he wasn't supposed to over use his arm and I'm sure he knew the moment we walked in that we'd just gotten our good news from Ranger.

"Hey guys," He called over to use with a knowing smile. "What's up?"

Blaze kicked off his shoes and pulled his t-shirt over his head. "Just going to kick Julie's ass. No big deal."

"Have you been cleared to spar?" Razor asked looking at me.

I nodded and added my shoes and t-shirt to the pile of clothes. "Yep, yesterday. I don't have to wear the boot anymore either. I should still take it easy, but I figure I don't need both of my feet to beat Blaze anyway."

A couple of the other guys who were working out nearby chuckled and soon we had the whole gym's attention. Blaze and I exchanged blow's and lock holds for nearly fifteen minutes before my bad ankle did start to give me problems and I was forced to concede the victory to Blaze.

"I'll get you next time." I vowed as I sat down hard next to him on the mats.

"I don't doubt that you will." He agreed.

We caught our breath and chatted with Razor for a bit before I excused myself to change into clean clothes. When I came back down to five I caught sight of Shilo on the floor with a group of guys I didn't recognize, but knew they had to be Col. Lowry's son's.

Shilo and her brother's were speaking with Ranger and Lester. Ranger nodded at whatever she'd said and then nodded in the direction of RangeMan's largest conference room. They'd probably asked to use it while they made the funeral arrangements.

As they turned to head down the hall, she caught my eye and sent me a small smile. I could see weight in her face and knew she was hiding behind some of her walls again, when the smile didn't reach her eyes.

One of her brother's, I was guessing Adam since he looked the youngest, saw were she was looking and followed her line of sight over to me. I raised a hand in greeting, not approaching them yet, so they could have their space.

He said something to Shilo, who nodded, before sending me a big smile and his own little wave. Shilo took Adam's hand and spoke to her brother's before leading them down the hall and into the conference room. I knew I'd get the chance to see them later, but it was hard not to go to her side, knowing that she was hurting.

Ranger came over to me and gave me a knowing look, having watched me look after Shilo while she walked away. "They're going to start planning the memorial. Then Lester will take the boys over to the morgue so they can visit their father. While the boy's are gone, Shilo will need to go down to TPD. She's meeting with Detective Morelli to give her complete statement. You should go with her."

I nodded. "I'd like that."

He gave me a key. "Take the turbo. Make sure she's there by 1500."

"3 o'clock, got it." Stupid military time.

I wasn't technically on duty today, but I needed something to do to pass the time before I went crazy so I ran searches for Tank and took lunch in the break room with Ram and Bobby.

"How are you feeling Ram?"

Ram shrugged his shoulders. "Stiff and sore all over."

"The burns are healing quickly though." Bobby said, positively. "They'll leave scars, but you shouldn't have any lasting side-effects."

"Did you see all of Col. Lowry's boys?" Ram asked.

I nodded. "Yep, they're talking right now."

"Looks like we'll have two services to go to next week." Bobby said.

"Has Caesar's family picked a date yet?" I asked.

"Next Tuesday. Ranger's calling in contract workers so everyone can go and pay their respects."

At 2:30 I knocked on the door to the conference room Shilo and her brothers had gone to and found them all standing around one side of the table with Lester. It looked like they were just wrapping up. Shilo smiled when she saw me and I moved to her side, easily taking her hand.

Everyone had turned to look at me when I walked in and from the curious looks; I was guessing her older brother's didn't know about me yet. Adam stepped forward and took my hand.

"Julie, it's nice to meet you." He smirked at Shilo. "Your right, she's hot."

"Told you she was real." Shilo mumbled.

I grinned at that and pulled Adam into a hug. "Adam right?" I asked. "It's nice to meet you too." I pulled back and smiled at her other brothers. "All of you." I added. "I'm sorry it has to be under these sad terms."

The eldest of the group stepped forward next and held his hand out to me. "It's very nice to meet you." He said, honestly. "I'm Robert. Shilo's just told us about you and the fight that led to the Col's death. Thank you for looking after her. We might have had to come down for a double funeral."

"She doesn't need much looking after." I said honestly. "But, I do what I can."

Shilo introduced the other two and I stepped forward to shake hands. Jimmy smiled when I said hi, but Scott ignored my outstretched hand completely.

"A pleasure." He said snidely and the blank face he wore didn't hide his displeasure. He glanced over my shoulder towards Lester. "Are we ready?" He asked.

"Whenever you are." Lester answered neutrally.

Scotty nodded once and left the room quickly. Jimmy shrugged when I caught his eye again and left too.

"I don't think he likes me." I said, turning to face those who remained.

"He's being a prick." Shilo said moving to my side. "Ignore them."

"This is hard on them." Robert said. "It's a lot to take in. Give him a chance."

"He's blaming me." Shilo continued. "You know he is and he doesn't like my relationship with Julie. This is why I never brought it up."

Robert nodded. "We all knew Scotty probably wouldn't. I wish you would have told me though." He said giving her a look I couldn't read. "Your life style doesn't offend or frighten me. You're still my sister."

"Jimmy seemed to like me." I offered.

"Not for long." Shilo said. "As soon as Scott talks him into believe that our relationship is wrong Jimmy will avoid us too. He's always followed Scotty's lead. Little sheep."

Adam hooked his arm around her shoulders and pulled her into a one sided hug. "So kick his butt after the funeral." He said. "Then, if you want, you never really need to see him again afterwards."

"Might be for the best." She agreed.

"At least you've got these guys." I offered, nodding at Robert and Adam. "I like them."

She smiled. "And Tom." She added. "I'll have to introduce you guys when he gets home. He's a great guy."

"He's the one overseas right?" I asked.

Robert nodded. "Yep, has been for almost a year now. I was able to speak with him shortly, but he won't be able to come home for the service."

Robert and Adam both gave me another quick hug before they left with Lester to find Scott and Jimmy. I caught Shilo as she turned to leave too and held her back until the door was closed. Once we were alone I pulled her to me, nestling her between my knees as I sat on the edge of the table.

I stared at her until she looked up at me. "You ok?" I asked.

"Fine,"

"Liar." That was her go-to answer when she was trying to hide behind her walls. I brushed a strand of hair away from her face and wondered how much shit I'd get from the guys in the control room if I kissed her right here.

She sighed and I watched her shoulders slump a bit, as she pressed closer to me. "Ok," She amended. "So I'm not having the best day ever."

I laid a quick kiss to her temple and smiled at the little jump of heat in her eyes. "This is the best day I've had in a long time." I told her.

She raised an eyebrow at me so I continued. "Today I found out that I get to keep the most amazing woman I've ever met." She blushed. It wasn't something she did very often, but I loved the way it stained her cheeks pink and highlighted her freckles.

"You're stuck with me alright." She agreed and I was glad to see the playful quirk of her mouth and a lightless to her stance that hadn't been there a moment before. She leaned in and placed a light kiss to my lips. "Have I told you 'I love you' yet today?" She asked.

"I don't think so."

She smiled. "Well I do."

"As I love you. Now come on." I said moving her back a step as I hopped to my feet. "You've got an appointment at TPD and we best not be late."

She groaned as I took her hand and lead her down to the garage. I knew she didn't really want to go, but the look she gave me when I stopped in front of the turbo was priceless.

"We're taking your Dad's car?"

I held up the keys and shook them at her. "Yep, get in. This thing's amazing."

~Darkrose.

Yeah, next chapter will probably be fluffy, it's been a while since I've done a long scene with just Julie and Shilo.

R&R