They don't belong to me and I'm not making any money… Thank you all for reading and for all of the wonderful reviews. And a big thanks to haleigh.l for her help editing, I really appreciate it!
And I really hope you enjoy this chapter. Sorry it took me so long to get it posted, I'll try not to let it go so long again. My professors have been monopolizing my time, trying to cram as much info into the last few weeks as they can… I'd much rather be writing this than lab reports, but the end is in sight!
What Happens in Vegas
Chapter 10
When Ranger and I left the Rangeman building, headed for his parents' house, I was nervous. When Ranger took the exit that would take us into Newark, a flock of butterflies took up residence in my stomach. When we entered what I recognized as his old neighborhood, the butterflies had a party and invited all their friends.
We passed the place he had parked while looking for Scrog and traveled the remaining block separating me from the Manoso house. Closing my eyes and taking a deep breath, I told myself I could do this. They were just Ranger's family. Right… I believed that.
When I felt the car come to a stop, I jerked my eyes open and looked up at the house Ranger had parked in front of. It was small and neat with sparkling windows. It would have fit into the Burg well.
I was still taking in the house, when I heard Ranger curse softly beside me.
"What's up?" I asked, afraid our stalker had somehow tailed us despite him, Cal and Woody.
"Babe, I'm really sorry. It was only supposed to be my parents and Grandma tonight, but it looks like my siblings are here too."
I wondered how he knew they were here until I saw him glaring slightly at some other vehicles parked near the house. That would do it.
"It'll be okay," I said, secretly hoping that it would. There wasn't anything I could really do about it now.
"Thanks."
I nodded and closed my eyes to take another few deep breaths. I heard Ranger get out of the car, but I wasn't ready yet. When I heard my door open, I opened my eyes and turned to find Ranger looking down at me.
"They're just my family," he said, taking my hand and pulling me out of the car.
"And that's the problem," I said softly.
"Explain."
"It's kind of intimidating to meet your family because you're always so quiet about them. I don't know much other than the number of siblings you have and that your grandmother likes to cook. And to them, I'm just the woman that married you and is planning to get divorced. On top of all that, I really want them to like me, but don't feel like they will."
When I finally stopped for air, Ranger reached out and wrapped me in his arms. We stood like that, beside the car, for a few moments before he spoke.
"You're more than 'the woman that married me' to them. The guys have been singing your praises for a while now and they know how you helped get Julie back. In fact, they'd been bugging me to bring you to dinner for awhile now."
"Really?" I asked, tilting my face up from it's hiding place against his chest.
"Really."
"Okay, then," I said, taking a deep breath. "Let's do this."
"Proud of you, Babe." He gave me one last squeeze and with a go-ahead from the guys, he led me up to the house.
Standing behind the screen door, I saw a petite, older woman with Ranger's coloring and smile. I was going to guess that was his mother. She held the door open for us and I felt the urge to bolt. Ranger must have picked up on that with is ESP though, because he tightened his grip on my hand as we headed through the door.
I'd barely registered the door closing, before I was wrapped in a tight embrace.
"Stephanie, it's so nice to finally meet you," Ranger's mother said.
"Uh, it's nice to meet you too, Mrs. Manoso," I replied, feeling a bit awkward as I returned her hug. My family doesn't hug and I've never gotten used to being hugged by strangers.
"Please, call me Gloria. We're family."
I nodded slightly as she released me and turned to Ranger. She hugged him as well, and then drew back before slapping him upside the head.
"You got married without telling your mother? And when were you going to tell me if the boys hadn't called? What am I going to do with you?"
I watched in wonder as she scolded Ranger in rapid Spanish now. I never could have imagined him, standing stock still, getting lectured for his actions. From the way he was taking it, however, I was going to bet that this wasn't something he was unfamiliar with. Eventually, she lost steam and cupped Ranger's cheek.
"I am happy for you, though," she said, before turning to me. "Both of you." I cringed at that, knowing that during dinner, we were going to have to tell her that we weren't planning on staying married.
Ranger must have noticed my discomfort because he pulled her attention back to himself.
"Is Abuela here?"
"No. She's cooking at the church dinner. She'd forgotten the dinner was tonight. Then by the time she remembered, it was too late to call you and reschedule since your sisters were arriving. She probably won't be back until later."
"Alright," Ranger said, before giving his mother a glare, which didn't seem to intimidate her in the least. "And what are the girls doing here?"
"I let it slip to Adalia that you were bringing Stephanie tonight and she must have told the others."
Before Ranger could reply, there was a beeping noise from the kitchen and Gloria spoke up again. "I have to finish up dinner. It shouldn't be long, so why don't you show Stephanie around and introduce her."
She disappeared quickly, leaving Ranger and I standing in the closed in porch.
"How're you holding up, Babe?"
"Good," I said. And I was. The nerves had diminished a bit and Gloria hadn't been bad. I'd been expecting a Cuban version of my own mother when I saw the house, but she'd been relatively calm… considering.
"You want the tour?"
I rolled my eyes at that. He should know by now that even nervous and intimidated, my curiosity can't be crushed. He just chuckled and took me by the hand to lead me further into the house.
We passed through the small foyer and poked our heads into the kitchen. We didn't stay long, but I did manage to catch a whiff of whatever Gloria was cooking, and it had me looking forward to dinner. Back through the foyer, Ranger pointed out a small powder room, and then led me towards what I assumed was the sitting room. I took a calming breath since I had a feeling we were about to run into more people.
Before we quite got to the door, Ranger dropped my hand. Confused, I turned to face him only to hear a shout of 'Uncle Carlos' as a bunch of kids catapulted themselves at him. He was quickly covered in them, with a small boy on his back, another in his right arm and a little girl in his left. I just cocked my head to one side and took in this unfamiliar image of Ranger.
Suddenly, the little girl turned to me and asked, "Who are you?"
"Uh," I said, unsure of how to reply. Thankfully, Ranger helped me out.
"Pilar, this is my wife, and your Aunt Steph," he said.
And I had a minor panic attack. He introduced me as his wife, which I guess was true… and Aunt Steph? Shit, I was their aunt.
"Okay," she replied, disentangling her arms from Ranger and reaching out for me. Still in shock, I took her without thinking about it.
"Babe, you okay?" Ranger asked, pulling me back to reality.
"Uh, yeah."
"Good, then I'll continue introductions. This is Nat," he said, bouncing the boy he was still holding before turning to look at the boy clinging to his back, "And this is Pedro."
"He's my twin," Pilar told me proudly.
"Really?" I asked, feigning interest. Kids are definitely not my specialty.
"Uh huh, but he's older."
"Oh," I said, not sure how else to respond. Thankfully, Ranger saved me once again.
"Why don't we introduce Aunt Steph to the rest of the family?" Ranger asked the kids.
They all nodded enthusiastically, so Ranger took my free hand again and led me into the room that the kids had come from. The room wasn't full as I had expected, but held only thee women who had been sitting and talking. They stopped as we entered, and suddenly I felt very awkward. I may not be good with kids, but I was okay meeting them. They weren't going to judge me, and were pretty easy to please. Ranger's sisters may be a different story.
"Breathe, Babe," Ranger whispered, as he squeezed my hand and led me further into the room.
Closing my eyes for a moment, I took yet another deep breath and allowed him to lead me over to a couch where three women were sitting.
"Mama," said Pilar, climbing from me to the woman on the left, "this is Aunt Steph."
"Hello, Steph," she said, extending her hand. "I'm Adalia. It's nice to finally meet you."
"It's nice to meet you too," I said automatically, shaking her hand.
"That's my mama," Nat said proudly, pointing to the woman who was sitting in the middle.
"I'm Celia," she said, also extending her hand.
"And I'm Maria, Carlos' sister-in-law. I'd shake, but I don't want to wake Alva," she said, indicating the baby that was sleeping in her arms.
"Not a problem. It's nice to meet you both."
"The pleasure's all ours," said Celia, shooting Ranger a glare. "You probably didn't even know Carlos had a family. We've been hearing all about you from the guys for a while now."
"I don't know what the guys told you, but it wasn't my fault," I said before I even thought about it.
"Don't worry, it was all good," Adalia assured me.
"Right," I said, not wholly convinced. "And Ranger did tell me about you. A little."
"Probably just so you wouldn't think he was some sort of Army-issue machine," I heard from behind me.
Turning around, I found a softer, more domestic-looking version of Ranger. I was going to go out on a limb and say that was his brother.
"Yeah, Babe, this is Antonio. And behind him, is my father Manuel, Celia's husband Ben and Adalia's husband Teo."
I nodded, shook all of their hands and told them it was nice to meet them. Thank God I was used to large Burg families, or I'd be quite overwhelmed right about now. We made random small talk for a few minutes until it slowly died down. Suddenly, I was feeling very awkward and conscious that everyone was avoiding bringing up Ranger and my Vegas wedding. I knew they'd ask eventually, but right now, I wasn't ready.
Ranger seemed to notice my discomfort and shrugged off the boys that were still hanging on him before pulling me from the group a bit. "I'm going to finish giving Steph the tour before dinner. You can get to know her a bit more when we eat."
With that, he led me from the room and up a flight of stairs. I tried to stop every few steps to check out the pictures of Ranger and his siblings along the way, but he drug me up the stairs and down a hall. Near the end, he pushed open a door before leading me over to a bed where we both sat down. I immediately relaxed onto his shoulder and closed my eyes.
"How're you holding up, Babe?"
"Okay, I guess. I'm just waiting for someone to bring up us being married, though. I'm not sure I'm prepared for that conversation."
"Yeah," Ranger agreed as he scooted us backwards and stretched out on the bed, pulling me down beside him. "They're just curious. They'll ask some questions, but will accept our decision without much resistance."
"Mmm." I wasn't sure what to say, so I just made a sound of agreement as I snuggled into Ranger. I kind of wished we could just stay here all evening and not face his family.
"This was my room," Ranger said after a few minutes of laying in silence.
"Really?" I suddenly took a bit more interest in the room as I swung my eyes around.
It was painted a soft yellow, with a floral border and lacy, white bed clothes. Rolling to look at Ranger, I attempted an eyebrow lift. I don't think I pulled it off because he just laughed and snuggled me closer.
"Mama redecorated a bit."
"So, what'd it look like before?" I asked. If I was lucky, I might just find out some more about my man of mystery. He seemed amazingly relaxed here, and I was going to take advantage of that.
"Well, the walls were white, but covered in heavy metal posters. And the bedspread was blue, but the bed was never made this neatly. The floor was usually covered in the contents of the room and there was a 'do not enter' sign on the door."
"Private even at a young age," I teased.
"It never worked," he said, just as the door burst open and two twenty something's came rushing into the room. "And there's why," he continued, in a long suffering voice.
"Steph!" exclaimed one of the girls as they flopped onto the bed with Ranger and me. "We finally get to meet you."
"Uh," I said, turning my head to Ranger.
"Babe, these are my younger sisters, Mira and Elisa. What are you two doing here?"
"Adalia called and said you were bringing Steph to dinner," said Mira. "We wanted to meet our new sister."
"And see our wonderful big brother," said Elisa, wrapping Ranger in a hug that he tolerated with a glower. I just barely suppressed a giggle.
"How much do I have to pay you two to go back to your apartment?" Ranger asked.
"Not enough money in the world, big bro," Mira said, leaning over me and giving him a kiss on the forehead.
"Then how about you go back downstairs?"
"Only if you come with us. Mama sent us to get you for dinner."
"Fine. Go. We'll be down in a minute."
"Now Carlos," said Elisa in a mock serious tone. "You know Mama never let you have girls alone in your room."
"Go."
"Fine, but if we get in trouble, it was all your fault. Steph, you'll back us up right?"
"Sure." Anything to get them out of the room before they ordered themselves one-way tickets to a third world country.
Ranger let out a sigh before getting off the bed and pulling me with him. "Ready for this, Babe?"
"No, but I doubt I ever will be, so let's get it over with."
"Proud of you," he whispered into my hair. I felt the usual warmth those words caused spread through my belly and felt like I really could do this.
Getting off the bed, Ranger led me downstairs and into the dining room. The massive table, which stretched across the room, was piled with food and crowded with people. I followed Ranger into the room and tried not to make eye contact as he secured us a pair of seats near the middle of the table.
When we were seated, I finally braved a look around the table. I had noticed the noise level drop dramatically, to that of the kids only, when we entered the room. All of the adults were paying rapt attention to Ranger and me. Turning my eyes to Ranger, I could see that he was not happy with the situation, so I grabbed his hand under the table and gave it a squeeze. Like he had said earlier, they were just curious. And I could understand that, especially if they had ever heard his stand on relationships.
"So," said Gloria, breaking the silence. "Steph, you have to let me know how to get in touch with your mother so we can plan a reception."
"Oh no, that won't be necessary," I started before she spoke again.
"It's the least we can do, since we didn't get to help with the wedding."
I turned my head towards Ranger and gave him a look that clearly said he could deal with this. There was no way I was starting the divorce conversation.
"Actually Mama, Steph and I hadn't planned on getting married."
"Maybe not, but you are married and there's not much you can do."
"We were thinking we'd get un-married," Ranger replied. Did he think if he said un-married instead of divorced it would trick her? If he did, it didn't work.
"A divorce?" Gloria asked, while his sisters replied with things such as, "Carlos don't be ridiculous," and "You can't get divorced." His father continued eating, much like I expected mine would. The other men in the family gave Ranger looks that showed exactly how crazy they thought he was to say such a thing to their mother.
"Steph, is that what you want?" Adalia asked me suddenly, locking her eyes to mine. I was startled by how similar her gaze was to Ranger's when he wanted to know something. And I had thought the Army taught him that.
"Umm, marriage wasn't in my plan either," I said, trying to avoid the question.
It hadn't been part of the plan, but now I didn't really know what I wanted. A week ago, I certainly wasn't looking to get married again any time soon, and the thought of marriage to Joe always terrified me.
But the idea of marriage to Ranger was completely different. I was realizing my love for him was completely different than that for Joe. What terrified me about Ranger, was that I might actually want to be married to him. But, whatever my feelings, I was still too confused to explain them to myself, let alone Ranger's family.
"But now that you are married?" Mira prompted undeterred.
I felt my eyes get big and my cheeks flush as I tried to think of a way around this question. I was just beginning to panic when Gloria came to my rescue.
"Don't interrogate her, girls," she ordered. "This is Carlos and Stephanie's decision. I do think you two should make a go of your marriage before you decide to end it, though."
"We're not ending it immediately," I blurted out, wanting to placate her.
"Really?" Maybe that wasn't such a good idea. Judging by how Ranger tightened his grip on my hand, I was betting that it wasn't.
"We are having a bit of a problem with a stalker right now, and we're going to get that taken care of first," he said.
"So for the time being you're staying married?" Celia asked.
"Yes," Ranger said, before pointedly tuning to his brother and brothers-in-law and pointedly turning the conversation to some recent news.
They had watched the entire conversation so far as one would a tennis match and looked about as relieved as I felt that it was over.
I spent a few minutes watching Ranger talk with his brothers. I'd never seen him like this and it was fascinating to witness this side. Eventually, I nibbled on the food that was in front of me and nearly moaned out loud at the explosion of flavor inside my mouth. When Ranger stopped speaking to give my hand another little squeeze before picking the conversation back up, I realized I may not have been entirely successful.
I was feeling a little embarrassed and self-conscious with the knowledge that the eyes of Ranger's sisters and mother were still on me. Casting about my mind for a safe topic, I took another bite of the wonderful creation in front of me.
"This is wonderful," I said, looking up to meet Gloria's eyes.
"Thank you. It's one of Carlos' favorites. I could teach you how to make it if you want."
Oh shit. Time to confess my lack of domestic skill. "Um, I can't really cook."
I was cringing, waiting for her shock when she gave me a little smile.
"Well, you'll just have to get Carlos to make it for you."
I felt Ranger's hand tense up very slightly in mine and had to suppress a laugh. Batman's family was revealing information and there wasn't much he could do about it.
We talked about inconsequential things for awhile before Mira, who was the youngest and chattiest of Ranger's sisters, finally broke down and asked about my car history.
"Is it true you really blew up Carlos' Boxter? Sometimes I don't believe everything Lester and Bobby tell us."
"It wasn't my fault," I said with a sigh. Ranger just chuckled beside me.
After that, we talked some more about my bounty hunting escapades. They asked me about the Burg and laughed at how similar it was to their own neighborhood. I also got some stories about Ranger as a child that ranged from sweet to hilarious. Though it all, I could see the tension in his jaw, but he never tried to stop them. He only protested slightly when, after dinner, Gloria got out all of his old school pictures to show me. He hadn't been kidding when he said he was a skinny kid…
By the end of the evening, I was completely in love with Ranger's family. And I'm pretty sure they liked me too. They made Ranger promise to bring me back some time, and then made me promise to make him keep his promise. Gloria said she was going to take full advantage of the time I was her daughter-in-law, and then after that, she'd have to accept I was a friend of the family. That made me smile.
Eventually, we had to leave and Ranger called Cal and Woody to escort us back out to the Turbo. Once we were safely locked in and buckled up, Ranger turned and gave me a grin.
"You charmed my family, Babe. I was expecting my mother to give me a harder time about getting divorced, but instead she's accepting your decision. Didn't I tell you there was nothing to worry about?"
"Yeah," I admitted. "Just don't expect things to go as smoothly when we have dinner with my family."
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A/N: So, how was dinner with the Manosos? Please review and tell me what you though! I love getting feedback and it puts me in the mood to write when my muse is being lazy…