Familiar characters belong to JE. The kids, with the exception of Julie, belong to me. TAKE THAT, JE!! evil laugh

Another After Distraction short that takes place almost nine months after the epilogue in "The Distraction"

Welcome to the World, Sophie Manoso

Stephanie stared up, counting the little bumps in the textured ceiling. For the fifty-seventh time in a week, she counted roughly eight thousand, three hundred and four bumps.

Bed rest was definitely not one of her favorite pastimes.

She was due to give birth at any time and Ranger was determined that this time, she would have a safe, normal birth. No crazy kidnappers delivering their baby in a cold, damp warehouse basement, that was for sure. He even went so far as to have a bodyguard stationed outside below their bedroom window and one outside the door in the hallway.

Nobody would take away Ranger's chance to see his child being born. Not this time. Never again.

Stephanie sighed, placing her open hands on her enormous whale belly. "You have to come out soon, Sophia Rose. You're three days late and I'm going insane here. Daddy has us both on lockdown."

Of course, she couldn't blame her husband for the extra protection. When Julian was born, she had been tied to a dirty cot in a cold, damp warehouse held hostage by a sociopath bent on revenge. It was a miracle that both mother and son had gotten back home safely.

She didn't want her daughter to be born in such conditions. So instead of complaining out loud, she gritted her teeth and started counting bumps again.

One thousand three hundred seventy four… one thousand three hundred seventy five… one thousand three hundred seventy six…

A sudden sharp pain in her abdomen made her shriek loudly and it wasn't a second before Ranger burst into the room, a bowl of rocky road ice cream and green olives in hand. "Babe! Are you okay? Is it time?"

Stephanie gritted her teeth, scrunching her face as the pain clung to her for a few seconds longer. And just as quickly as it had come, it was gone. "First contraction," she managed to say, her heart pounding in nervous anticipation. She took a deep, cleansing breath and grinned up at him.

Ranger set the bowl on the nightstand and sat down on the edge of the bed, grabbing for her hand. "Should we go to the hospital now?"

Stephanie shook her head, eyeballing the ice cream melting beside the bed. "Need to wait to see how far along they are. But I think you need to hand me that bowl, mister."

Ranger chuckled, reaching out for her sundae. Stephanie grabbed it from his grip and began hungrily shoveling the softening ice cream into her mouth. She moaned in ecstatic pleasure with each bite and despite the fact that his wife was nine months and three days pregnant, Ranger was more than ready to put those moans to good use.

Shaking the sexy thoughts from his head, he resigned himself to six weeks of forced celibacy. That was the only depressing part of adding on to their family. Six whole weeks of lying in bed beside a sexy, full breasted, naked Stephanie and not being able to make love to her.

But on the very bright side, he would be welcoming a new member into the family. A daughter. Their daughter. He was ecstatic. For the millionth time since they found out that Steph was carrying a little girl, he wondered what Sophia Rose would look like. Would she have big blue eyes like her mother and brother? Would she have curly brown hair or straight black hair? Would her skin tone be like Julian's or more like his? Would she be quiet and serious or outgoing and spontaneous? Would she prefer birthday cake or broccoli?

Ranger couldn't wait to find out.

Stephanie slurped up the last remnants of melted ice cream and smacked her lips in satisfaction, handing him the empty bowl. He grinned, setting it back on the nightstand.

"Feel better?"

She smiled. "I will once Sophia decides to come out."

Ranger chuckled, climbing over her and lying down beside her. His arms automatically wrapped around her, pulling her close. "I can't wait either. I keep trying to picture what she looks like."

Stephanie's smile turned dreamy as she leaned against her husband. "I do, too."

Ranger buried his face in her hair, breathing in the warm, sweet scent of her citrus shampoo. "I've never seen Julian so excited. He's downstairs with Elizabeth working on a 'Welcome Home' banner for his little sister."

"I bet he's a mess."

"Covered head to toe in fingerpaint. Elizabeth has him stripped down to his diaper."

Stephanie's laugh turned into a whimper as another contraction made her clench in pain. Ranger began the breathing exercises they learned at Lamaze class and Stephanie followed his lead. A minute later, her body relaxed.

"That wasn't so bad."

He glanced at the alarm clock beside the bed. "About fifteen minutes apart."

Stephanie sighed. "Still got a while to go, Batman. You'd better get comfortable."

00000000

"Did the guys bring that stars and moon mobile for Sophie's nursery yet?"

"Tank brought it this morning," Ranger shifted slightly so Stephanie was lying more comfortably against him. She was sitting back between his outstretched legs, her back against his chest. His hands moved over her shoulders, forcing the tension out of her body with his touch.

"What about those rabbit paintings? Did you hang them up yet?"

"I did that yesterday."

"Good." Stephanie yawned, dropping her head back against his shoulder. "God, I'm ready for a nap and I haven't even really started yet."

"You're doing great," Ranger assured her, moving her hair aside to brush his lips against her ear. "I'm so honored to be here with you for this."

Stephanie smiled. "Well you deserve it, what with all the midnight craving runs and the mood swings."

Ranger chuckled. "They weren't that bad, Babe."

Stephanie's hands suddenly gripped his thighs tightly and Ranger winced at the little shot of pain it caused.

"Jesus Christ!" She shrieked, arching off the bed from the strong contraction. Unintelligible words bubbled out of her mouth followed by a pained sob.

"Breathe, Babe," Ranger murmured, glancing at the alarm clock. Ten minutes apart.

Her body collapsed back on the bed, her chest heaving from exertion. "Shit, that was a big one."

Ranger was relieved when she released his thighs from her superhuman grip. "Sounded like it. Are you okay? Do you need anything?"

Stephanie shook her head, breathing in deeply. "Not yet. But soon, I'll be demanding an epidural. I deserve my drugs this time."

Ranger murmured in agreement, his hands moving around his wife's body to settle on her belly. He spread them apart, palms down and fingers splayed out, feeling his daughter inside. He began to gently rub Stephanie's belly while playfully nibbling on her earlobe. "I wonder which time she was conceived."

Stephanie grinned, her hands moving to cover his. "I have it narrowed down to two incidences."

Ranger chuckled, tracing her lobe with his tongue. "Do tell, Mrs. Manoso."

Stephanie moaned, leaning back further into his chest. "It was either that time in your office when you knocked everything off your desk to make space…"

Ranger groaned at the memory, his dick tightening in his pants instantly. "God, that was worth having to replace my computer. And the paperweights." He nuzzled her cheek and left a kiss behind. "You were amazing."

"Aren't I always?"

He grinned. "Definitely. But that time went in the books. Had to be in the top ten."

She rolled her eyes but couldn't help but agree. That time had been sensational. "The other possibility was the next day in the front seat of the Cayenne."

Ranger's already hard dick twitched. "Another top ten moment. I remember you couldn't wait until we got home so I had to pull in behind The Party Store."

Stephanie laughed. "I wasn't the only one who couldn't wait! You had me out of my seat and in your lap before you even put the car in 'park'!"

"You were wearing that short skirt and no panties! What was I supposed to do?"

Stephanie opened her mouth to comment but she tensed again, screaming instead. Her hands clasped around her husband's, leaving crescent moon patterns in his skin from her fingernails. He immediately started the breathing and she followed suit. The contraction lasted a minute and a half before releasing her from its grip.

"Shit, that fucking hurt!" She whimpered, falling back against him. He glanced at the clock.

"Six minutes. You think it's time to head to the hospital?"

Stephanie nodded, swallowing hard. Despite her excitement at bringing Sophia into the world, she was terrified. She remembered the hours of excruciating pain when she had Julian and wasn't looking forward to a repeat. But this time is different, she told herself. You're not a hostage now. You'll be in a hospital with your husband by your side coaching you. And despite the lousy birthing conditions, you love Julian more than anything. It will be the same with Sophia. The pain will be worth it.

Ranger's arms wrapped around her from behind, hugging her tightly. "This time will be so much easier, Babe. I promise you."

"I know," she whispered, savoring the feel of his body surrounding hers.

00000000

"Oh my God, you fucking lied to me! You son of a bitch, you said it would be easier!" Stephanie screamed, bearing down on Ranger's hand. He winced at the pain, telling himself that it was nowhere near what his furious wife was going through.

Dr. Marshall looked up at him from her perch between Stephanie's legs. "Don't worry, Carlos. She doesn't mean it."

"I do too fucking mean it," Stephanie growled, clenching her teeth. "I never want to see your dick again, Carlos! You keep it in your fucking pants and out of my sight!"

A tiny spot of blood appeared on his hand where one of Stephanie's fingernails was digging in. He held onto her tight, though, and kept up with the breathing. He'd expected her wrath during the delivery. The only thing he was sorry about was that he had missed it with Julian's birth.

The thought of her going through this much pain and suffering alone while in the situation she was in with Luis Miranda made his heart tighten. He couldn't even imagine the hell it had been for her. So even with her screaming and cursing and yelling at him, he savored every moment. He wouldn't give it up for anything.

Stephanie went limp beside him, sweating and gasping for breath. She looked up at him and his heart clenched at the sight of her tear filled eyes. "I'm sorry, baby," she whispered, her voice weak. "I didn't mean it. I love your dick."

Ranger smiled, leaning down to kiss her forehead. "It's okay, Babe. I know it's hurting you. Yell all you want, I don't mind."

She nodded, swallowing hard and squeezing his hand. "I should have known that our daughter would keep this up for seventeen hours. Of course she'd be fashionably late."

Ranger chuckled, his hands sliding up her arms to stop at her shoulders. When he began to massage them, she moaned in relief.

It didn't last long. Dr. Marshall glanced over at the machine monitoring Stephanie's contractions and back down between her legs. "Okay, Steph, this next one, I need you to push."

Ranger immediately moved to sit behind his wife, propping her upper body up. Stephanie grabbed his hands, pulling them around her, clutching tightly in anxiety.

The searing pain ripped through her and Stephanie pushed, screaming hoarsely. Her body curved in on itself with the force and Ranger held onto her as tightly as he could, willing his strength into her. With a whimper, she collapsed back into him, breathing heavily.

"Push again, Steph!" The doctor demanded. "You're doing great!"

Once again, Stephanie pushed with all her might. Ranger heard her teeth clenching and he wondered if a trip to the dentist might be in order soon.

"I can see the head!" Dr. Marshall announced, grinning widely. "Push!"

"I'm fucking pushing!" Stephanie sobbed, her body trembling with the effort. "Get her out of me! Get her out!"

Ranger held his breath as his wife pushed as hard as she could. It couldn't have been a few seconds later that a furious little cry filled the air.

Stephanie slumped back against him, exhausted and crying. Dr. Marshall smiled brightly, holding up their screaming, wiggling little girl in her capable hands.

"You've got your girl, guys," the doctor announced. "And a little beauty at that."

Stephanie whimpered, her teary blue eyes wide at the sight. Ranger blinked back his own tears, staring at the tiny being that he and his wife had created.

The nurses quickly cleaned the baby off and wrapped her in a warm pink blanket. A couple minutes after delivering her, Stephanie was holding her daughter in her arms.

For the first time in hours, she was speechless. Huge brown eyes stared up at her, the same warm chocolate color as Ranger's. A tuft of curly brown fuzz crowned the tiny little head. And even though it wasn't possible, at least according to the books, little Sophie was smiling at them.

"Look at that!" Ranger breathed, reaching out to trace his daughter's cheek with his finger. "She's smiling already!"

Stephanie sniffled, tears freely falling from her eyes. "She's got your eyes. She's so beautiful, Carlos."

They became silent, staring down at the baby nestled contently in pink.

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Stephanie was fast asleep.

Ranger sat in the chair beside her bed, Sophie held safely in his arms. He couldn't get over how tiny she was. He'd counted ten tiny fingers and ten tiny toes over a dozen times. He ran his finger down both smooth cheeks every twenty minutes. He leaned down to breathe in the clean baby scent every half hour.

He whispered stories to his new daughter about Julian and Stephanie; about Julie in Miami and the big uncles in black waiting impatiently for her welcome home party. He told her all about her pink bunny room waiting for her. He told her about the fishing cabin by the lake where he would take her when she was a little older. He told her about grandparents and great grandmothers; aunts and uncles and cousins and friends who couldn't wait to finally meet her. He told her that broccoli and blueberries tasted better than birthday cake, unless it was actually her birthday. He told her that soy burgers tasted just as good as the real thing and were better for her.

He told her that he couldn't wait to see her fly.

Ranger sighed in contentment, once again leaning down to brush a kiss on his daughter's forehead. Staring down into eyes that mirrored his own, he smiled.

"Welcome to the world, Sophie Manoso."

Yeah, couldn't resist the fluffy goodness. LOL. Let me know what you think.