Disclaimer: The characters belonging to Janet Evanovich are used strictly for entertainment purposes.

…

Chapter 29

Ranger and I decided to visit Seppe first. His flight was scheduled for this evening and we'd been at my parents' longer than I'd anticipated. I wanted to personally thank him for his help, as well as let him see that Carlo was alive and healthy. I knew, thanks to Camila's memories, that'd he'd want to say goodbye to his little surrogate grandchild.

"Thank you for everything. We'll meet again someday."

"Yes, we will."

I hugged him and then he and Ranger shook hands before we said goodbye and left his room. On the way back to Rangeman, I asked, "What did my dad say to you?"

He gave an almost indiscernible lift of his shoulders. "Settled a few things. No worries, babe. I still have all of your favorite parts."

I gave him 'the look' and he shook his head. "He wants to know when I'm going to make an honest woman of you. Don't worry, I didn't make any promises, but I did tell him what we've already decided." What did that mean, exactly?

There was no time to ask because we reached the Rangeman office and pulled into the garage. When we walked onto the fifth floor with a little mini Ranger in tow, the men were more than surprised, to say the least. I think their initial reaction was because it was strange to see a baby in this place, but then Cal approached us and asked, "Who's this little guy?"

I smiled at him. "This is Carlo. He's our son."

"Whoa," he said, taking a step back. He looked from me, to Carlo, to Ranger, then Carlo, and back to me again. "He really is."

The rest of the guys displayed equal shock, then rallied around to congratulate us. We gave them the five minute version of the story and then Ranger made a short formal announcement of our immediate plans.

On the plane, Ranger and I discussed our future, mostly where we'd live. One thing was certain: we had to return to D.C. until his military contract was up, which was another two years and some change. He ended the talk with saying, "Stephanie will be back in Trenton as often as possible. Her family will want to see Carlo and she has friends here. I'll join her when I can. We'll return as a family to Trenton when my term is up. Until then, Tank is still in command here."

"As a family. That mean you're getting hitched?" Lester asked, wiggling his eyebrows.

"All possibilities are under consideration." This was news to me. We hadn't discussed marriage. Living arrangements had been at the top of the list and every other subject had been avoided.

…

For the next week, Carlo and I stayed in Trenton with my parents. Ranger had to report back with his commanding officer and I needed a little time to be home before I left again. My bruises faded until they were almost nonexistent and I felt like I could be in public without people staring at me. I don't know what the big deal was, really. Everyone should have been used to me having bruises by now given my history.

Watching Ranger get on the plane was the hardest thing I'd done since, well, finding out I was a mother. Even waking up and discovering that I was in Paris and finding out later that I was dead wasn't as hard as letting him go. I wasn't 'needy' or dependent on him. He was just such a part of who I was now and being apart was like losing good air quality. Trenton life kept me busy enough so I didn't dwell on his absence. Too much.

Of course, news about Lucille and Vinnie spread through the Burg faster than a California wildfire. I couldn't go anywhere without someone stopping me to ask for a detailed account of what happened. I didn't feed their gossip and they didn't need me to do it anyway since their imaginations were telling the story far better than I could.

Another rumor spread about Harry's house being emptied and the contents going up for auction. No one in Trenton had seen or heard from Harry for at least a week, so everyone was saying that he'd gone crazy when he found out about Lucille and left town. I figured the real answer was far more gruesome, but I wasn't going to ask Seppe what happened. Knowing his sense of justice, he'd tell me thinking I wanted to know all of the details, and really I was fine not knowing the actual truth.

I'd finally had time earlier in the week to call Jean Philippe and Elise. I told them about Carlo and promised to send pictures. I also found out their son's name was Philippe Michel and got as many details about him as possible, then I had them fax pictures to Seppe.

"There are no guarantees," I said. "But my friend is willing to do what he can to see if he can find out anything. If anyone has the connections needed to look into his disappearance, this man does."

"Stephanie, we do not know what to say," Elise said. Her voice was husky and I felt horrible that she was fighting tears, and hoped it wasn't because this was too painful for her. "After all this time…" No words were necessary. We both understood what it meant to them and how much they wanted to know the truth.

"I'll let you know as soon as I hear anything," I said. We said our goodbyes and, as I hung up, I thought about how Ranger and I would definitely have to visit them soon and introduce them to Carlo.

I finally got to take Eddie out last night to celebrate his promotion. The meeting had been bittersweet. First, he'd hugged me, and then he'd told me all of the cop shop gossip I'd missed out on.

"I couldn't even drive by your old apartment building without feeling sad." He laughed and gave a small snort. "Crazy how many side streets I took so I could avoid yours."

"Sorry, Eddie."

"Hey, I'm just glad you're alive. Who else would take me out for pizza and a beer?"

Joe even made a trip back to the Burg from the City. He'd heard I was alive and wanted to come see for himself personally that I was okay. His bear hug practically cracked my spine. It was good to see him again, and to see him so happy.

Carlo was a shock to him. Luckily, he resembled Ranger enough that there were no awkward questions to answer. I was glad because that conversation with Joe would have taken more energy than I cared to give.

He told me he was engaged to a woman who kicked his ass more than I ever did. Guess he'd always been a sucker for women with attitude. The similarities ended there. Apparently she is a domestic goddess who dotes on him. I had to smile at that. Joe and I both ended up with exactly what we needed.

Tonight, Carlo and I were dressed for dinner, waiting for Ranger. I'd gotten a hotel room for us because I couldn't imagine having sex in my parents' house. And after a week of separation? No way.

Tonight would be the first meal with just the three of us and I was incredibly happy. We were a family and we were sharing the rest of our lives together.

Carlo dazzled me with a baby smile as we sat in an armchair waiting for Ranger when I heard the front door open. Baby and mom both swung our heads toward the noise and Carlo gave Ranger a big grin.

"Hey, little man," he said, smiling back at Carlo as he set his briefcase down and began unbuttoning the jacket of his uniform. "Hey," he said, looking at me.

I smiled at him. "Not wearing that for dinner?"

Ranger tilted his head a little and said, "Why, you like it?"

I laughed. "Sure, I like it, but I'd rather have you comfortable and not holding your shoulders at attention all night."

"Small favors," Ranger said and began to strip. Of course, I had to watch. You can't be in the room with that many ripples and bumps and not look.

My voice was husky when I said, "You didn't have time to change?"

"Didn't want to be late." He stopped unbuckling his pants and looked at me. "Am I late?"

Try as I might, I couldn't get my eyes to stay focused on his. They kept straying down to where his hands had frozen at his zipper. It's a good thing he was all mine or I'd be completely screwed.

"Babe."

My eyes flew up to his and I felt my cheeks warm up. "Sorry. Uh, no. Not late. Just on time."

I was rewarded with one of Ranger's lady killer smiles. He turned and walked across the room to us and my breath caught in my throat at the sight of his bare chest and the triangle of hot male flesh exposed by the open zipper of his pants. When he reached us, he sank to his knees and lifted Carlo out of my arms. I was always slightly mesmerized by seeing the two of them together. Carlo mirrored as much of Ranger as was humanly possible without actually being him. In the dim light, I couldn't see the baby's blue eyes, they looked almost as dark and fathomless as his father's.

Ranger lifted Carlo up to his face and planted a kiss on his cheek, then tucked him into his side and, together, they looked at me.

"Uh oh," I said.

"What?"

"I'm in trouble. You two are dangerous together. I can see it now. When he's in high school, the teen girls will be drooling over him and their moms will be drooling over you."

Ranger had moved closer and closer while I spoke. I scooched back in the chair and he invaded every inch I'd opened. He now had me trapped against the back with his chest hovering dangerously close to touching mine, close enough that even the slightest breath would bring us into contact. His lips were close enough that I could feel their warmth tingling against mine. I'm not sure how he accomplished it with a baby in his arms, but he had and Carlo looked like he was having fun gnawing on Ranger's shoulder. "Babe, they can drool all they want, you're the only one who can touch."

For some reason, I wanted to cry. It was the perfect thing to say in some ways, and in others, the wrong thing to say. Our talks of the future had always ended with a 'we'll work it out' statement. Call me sentimental, but I wanted him to say just once exactly what he wanted from me. Even if all he wanted was to cohabitate in unmarried bliss, I'd be happier knowing that than trying to guess. Curious people do not do well with guessing games.

"What just went through your mind?"

Nuh-uh. Not going there. "I was just thinking about how good it sounds. You having eyes only for me, that is."

"Liar."

I gasped and tried to move back, but the chair had no give and Ranger was always one to take any advantage he could.

"Tell me what you were thinking."

"Tell me what you want from me."

Now he pulled back, just a little, to look at me, face stoic, eyes shielded. Giving himself time to formulate a reply without me seeing where his thoughts were going. He knew I carefully watched them for any nuances to alert me to his feelings, especially if I couldn't guess his actual thoughts.

Slowly, his face broke and he smiled, eyes warming up to full-blown love, lingering on mine. "Everything, Stephanie. I want everything from you."

My breathing rate increased. What did he mean by everything?

As if he heard my thoughts, and maybe he had, he said, "I want you naked beside me, under me, over me every night in our bed. I want to build a life with you for our son, for us. And I want you to give up your last name."

"Oh."

He pulled my left hand up to his mouth and kissed the tip of each finger, never looking away, waiting.

I wanted the words, so I said, "Well, I guess I could go to the courthouse and fill out the paperwork to change my last name. Which one do you want me to have?" I wanted to congratulate myself on not cracking even a small smile.

Instead of teasing back, Ranger stood and walked over to Carlo's bassinet. He laid the baby down and returned to me, taking my hands in his and pulling me up to stand in front of him.

"Let me do this again." Very slowly, he lowered himself to the floor to one knee. "I'm an idiot. No, I've been an idiot. Before." He swallowed and looked down at our hands. When had he taken my hands in his? My heart began to thud loudly, the way hearts do when 'the' moment comes. I hoped I didn't pass out on him.

When he looked back up, I couldn't swear to it, but I thought his eyes were moist. "I lost you, in the worst way. Forever. I don't know what I did or how I did it, but I got another chance. With you. Got to see your smile again, touch your skin. Kiss you."

Hearing such a speech from him was almost painful, but I'd wanted the words and there was no way I'd stop him now.

"Now I want to keep you in the best way. Forever. I know we've never talked about it, but I'd finally have everything if you married me and I'd spend the rest of my life showing you how happy I am."

Suddenly, I didn't want to do this on unequal ground. Ranger didn't have to lower himself below me to propose. We were partners and I wanted to start this thing out right, on the same level. So I dropped down to my knees and looked into his eyes. "Okay, but only because you said forever."

We kissed and kissed some more. And then Carlo started to cry. It was the first time I'd heard him really cry and I sat up. "He's hungry."

Ranger groaned. "So am I." But he was smiling. "We might as well eat because you're going to need energy. I missed you."

And that was one of the many reasons I loved him. He was so good to my hormones.

…

Epilogue

I sat on the perfectly manicured lawn enjoying the scent of the pink, purple, and yellow freesias that had grown from the bulbs I'd planted last fall. Today, I weeded the bed and aerated the soil and the smell of warm earth mingled with the heady floral scent. It reminded me of springtime at Grandma Mazur's house when I was a girl. She'd taught me to plant flowers and how to help them survive.

"We're like these flowers, Stephanie. Colorful, resilient, and fast growers." She'd leaned back and admired them, her gloved hands crusted with mud. Then she'd looked at me and said, "But just like them, we can't sit in stagnant water, we need good drainage. Don't let the crap of life drown you. Learn how to let it go. It's the best advice this old woman can give a young girl with a free spirit."

"Okay. How do I do that?" My ten year old self had asked.

"Don't dwell on the small stuff, just keep moving forward. Living in the Burg — well, you're going to see a lot of useless crap. Just remember not to let it take you down. And if you ever feel like it is, just come see me and I'll help chase away the crazies." She'd smiled at me with a twinkle in her eye and an expression full of love and understanding.

I turned to her headstone and smiled. "You were right, Grandma. Good drainage makes for a happy life." I leaned down and smelled one of the purple blooms nearest where I sat. "A lot's happened since the last time I came to see you."

With my eyes closed, I told her about life in Washington D.C. "You'd love to visit the base. All those men in uniform… On second thought, I think I'd have to keep you as far away from them as possible for their peace of mind." I laughed. "You always did love the effect you had on men."

I told her about married life and how it only made my relationship with Ranger better. "It's been a year and I'm still really happy we did it. Who'd have guessed? I'll never be like mom, even when we move back to Trenton, but I can handle this type of domestication. Of course, the minute Ranger asks me to cook…" I laughed. There was no way he ever would. Not if he didn't want to be loaded down with extra grease, sugar, and carbs. No, I was pretty safe from that request.

I explained about hiring Connie to manage the bail bonds side of Rangeman and my mother, of all people, deciding she needed some excitement and offering to be the receptionist and file clerk. Lula had moved on from bond enforcement into full-time motherhood. Little Deon was almost nine months old now and already showing signs of his dad's height and breadth. Domestic life completely suited Lula. She'd actually become quite the star baker, but I didn't tell my mother or Ella. Lula's chocolate cake could reduce me to tears.

The phone call Ranger received two weeks ago came to mind. "Marco, the one who was with me when I was kidnapped, is alive. Ranger finally tracked him down. The bastards at his organization never got back to us." I'd talked about him before on my visits. Sure, it was silly to think she could actually hear me, but it was nice to talk to her nonetheless. I held onto everything of her that I could, especially now.

"In fact, they covered up the fact that he was alive, but somehow—there's a 'don't ask, don't tell' policy in my marriage—Ranger found out about it. Turns out the shot to the head ricocheted off his skull and only grazed his skin. The second shot barely missed his heart and passed straight through. He was incredibly lucky Adriano was such a bad shot, even at close range."

I looked down at the flowerbed and saw a weed I'd missed, so I pulled it up. "Ranger was a little concerned about telling me he was alive. He didn't say so, but I could tell. He doesn't like the fact that Camila was in love with him. I think he's afraid something could trigger her to resurface, but I know it won't. She and I have an understanding. Well, if that's possible. I know she's not real and I guess you could say she knows it. My brain just has to keep remembering it. But you know how stubborn I am."

I looked over the cemetery at the setting sun and then looked up at the tulip tree that guarded her grave. "Mom and dad really found you the best spot in the joint. Your favorite kind of tree is here and you're on a hill. Okay, so it isn't a huge hill, but it's still a hill. And you have the best view of the early evening sun. Today's is amazing. The clouds are purple and hot pink and orange." I laughed. "They remind me of you!"

The smile faded and a sober expression replaced it. I raised my hand to the stone to trace my fingertip over the letters of her name. "I miss you." I drew in a deep breath and smelled the freesias again. Her favorite flower, the scent of her perfume. I could feel her near me on these spring days when they were in bloom.

Another scent wafted across the air. Bvlgari. I smiled when I heard footsteps approaching in the grass. "You'd better have a good reason for sneaking up on me."

There was a smile in his voice when he said, "I'm just walking, babe."

I turned my head and looked up at Ranger. The sun behind him cast a shroud of light around him, making him seem like a god in a pair of black dress slacks and a red button up shirt with three of the buttons undone. "Mmm, why do you always look so incredible?"

He crouched down before me with his elbows on his knees. "You look incredible, babe." The 200 watt smile was full on at this point.

"Thank you." I raised my hand up for him to help me stand.

His arms came around me and pressed me against his body after he'd tugged me to my feet. "About ready to go?"

I kissed him and said, "Yes. Hey, I was thinking earlier."

"Dangerous."

Ignoring him, I continued, "What do you think of Elise Karolina Mañoso?"

Okay, so we'd decided to have one more kid. I could never get over the fact that I missed everything with Carlo. As much as I tried, I could never remember anything about my pregnancy. Gotta say that I'm happy I don't remember the delivery—that is until I remember I'm going to do it again and have no clue what I'm doing. Ranger and I realized we were in a good place to have kids if we were going to do it and, after much debate, decided it was now or never. I'm only halfway through and already wonder what I was thinking. I'd been glad to miss out on the crappy parts of having a kid, hadn't I?

He flicked his eyes to Grandma Mazur's headstone and lowered his hands to my slightly rounded belly. "Think giving her the same middle name as your grandma is wise?"

A hummingbird caught my attention as it flitted above a pink freesia bloom at the corner of Grandma's headstone. "Oh, I think it will be fine. She's bound to have some of Grandma's mischief in her anyway."

Ranger shook his head and gave a short laugh. "As long as I never hear her say the word 'package'. Guns at the dinner table are banned, too."

"You? Banning guns?" I whistled. "Anything else?"

"Now that you mention it. Leather, thongs, and—"

"Shh," I said and kissed him again. "How about if we just let her be herself?"

He smiled at me with so much love in his face it made my heart hurt. "I'd like that."

…

A/N: That's it. The end. There's no more to tell, my friends. Thanks so much for reading and a special thanks to those of you who kept me going with your reviews. I WILL respond to them all and I'm sorry I'm so far behind. The holidays have been incredibly hectic.

I should put a note in here for all of those who are in the "Stephanie wouldn't want to have kids" camp. In general, I agree. And I debated a lot about having the second one, but it seemed right due to the circumstances of Carlo's whole existence. They missed a lot and I decided to give them a chance to experience it all together. I will say that it almost didn't happen, but I just decided to go with it because it fit the story. Luckily, you can do that in alternate reality. :)

I've said it before and I'll say it again: This story would be sitting on my computer very messy and jumbled up if it weren't for Rach. Her attention to detail and butt-kicking abilities have been the keys to the release of this thing. Rach, I have to say that for all the times I got grumpy with you or wanted to throw in the towel, you've put up with a lot from me, but I wouldn't have changed a thing about what you did for me and this story. I'll go on record and say you were right, even if we're the only ones who know exactly what that means. :) Thanks so much. There aren't enough words for my gratitude and even if there were, I'm not sure this is where I'd type them. Babe, you're one in a million.