Thanks for the great response to the previous chapter. Last chap dealt with Julie's feelings struggle and this one deals with S)
Disclaimer: The Plum universe belongs to JE.
I trotted downstairs for a drink. It was the middle of the night, but since I was already down here I took a moment to check up on Buddy. The pup was curled in its bed looking tiny and sleeping as soundly as his owner. Eddie had practically fallen asleep while getting acquainted with his new companion and we had to pry his small hands from the dog to put him to bed.
With a smile, I moved to the kitchen. An ice cold glass of water was exactly what I needed.
Just when I finished drinking I sensed a presence in the room. With a half spin I turned around to find Ranger standing a few feet away. His dark hair was tousled from sleep, his boxers rode low on his hips and he had a far away look in his eyes.
"Hey." I gave him a small finger wave as I refilled my glass.
"I woke up and you weren't in bed." His voice was a little rough from sleep.
"Woke up thirsty." I cleared the distance between us, because I've only ever seen him this way a handful of times. In the past, even before we became involved intimately, he came to me on more than one occasion claiming he needed me to guard his sleep. At first, I thought he was yanking my chain, until I realized that maybe because of his military experience he could no longer disconnect into a deep sleep. But what I failed to recognize early enough was that he didn't need me to guard him of his enemies in case they tried to get to him in his sleep, but to guard him of his dreams. Or better put, to guard him of his nightmares. He'd needed someone to anchor him to reality. "Here." I knew what he needed without him explaining. I can read him better than anyone. Ranger's lips touched the glass and I tilted it a bit so he could drink.
His eyes closed as he drank, savoring the liquid. "Ah." He opened his eyes and this time I could tell reality was starting to sober him up. I left the glass of water on the counter next to us to free my hands. Just as I looped my arms around his neck, his hands landed on my hips. "Babe." I watched him exhale slowly, feeling the way his muscles shifted as the tension left his body. An even slower inhale later his heartbeat began to settle into its normal rhythm.
I peppered his face with tiny kisses while I stroked his nape with the fingers of one hand. Ranger wrapped his arms around my middle, pressing me closer to him. My lips moved to kiss along line of his jaw until I reached his lips. Our kiss was soft, lips gently touching. When we broke apart I grabbed his hand. When he nodded, I led the way back to our bedroom.
I must have dozed off and was jolted awake when there was a shift in the bed. The mattress dipped under the weight of a body. I opened my eyes, barely seeing him in the darkness as he slipped back under the sheets. "Mmm…." I threw both an arm and leg over his side to keep him in place. "Can't sleep?" My words were muffled against his throat, but I knew he heard me.
"No." Ranger's hand landed on the back of my thigh, hitching my leg a tad higher. His fingers drew random shapes on my skin, the touch almost reverent.
"Wanna talk about it?" My hand roamed across his back in a soothing caress.
"There's a knot in my chest." The hand on my thigh moved higher up, slipping into my sleep shorts. "Es como un mal presentimiento."
"A bad feeling?"
"Babe."
Babe can mean almost anything. This time, it meant he was feeling extra protective over me. "I'm right here." My lips trailed to his chest, skimming over his heart.
"Babe." He rolled to his back, bringing me with him to be on top. I straddled him, resting my hands on either side of his shoulders. Leaning forward, I fused my lips to his. "Te amo, Stephanie." He murmured against my lips when our kiss ended.
I cupped his face in my palms. "I love you, Carlos."
S&R
The light in the room bothered me, so with a flip I turned away. I opened my eyes to find sunlight spilling through the drapes. Frowning, I propped myself on one elbow to look at the bedside clock. "Fuck!" It was a quarter to nine. I swung my legs over the side of the bed and hurried to the bathroom. There was a note taped to the door.
Babe,
You were sleeping so soundly that I didn't want to wake you. Got our son ready and drove him to school. Don't worry. Take the day off. You deserve it.
R
I took an extra-long shower, because I could, before I trotted downstairs to eat. My cell phone rang before I reached the fridge. It was my sister.
"Can you meet me for lunch?" Valerie said she needed to talk to me.
"Uhm, I'm actually not at Rangeman today." I said I could meet her in a couple minutes if it was that important.
"Thanks." She said she'd meet me at the new Mexican restaurant on Hamilton.
Connie and Lula have talked wonders about that place. Works for me. "Okay." I disconnected and after making sure that Buddy would be alright in my absence, I left the house.
S&R- Ranger's POV
I spent my morning on desk duty. By eleven I was a little annoyed with paperwork. Babe makes it look easy. With a sigh, I pinched the bridge of my nose as I pushed away from my desk. I'd had enough and decided to take a break. It was a little early, but I decided to go home to have lunch with my wife.
My cell phone rang when I was a few blocks away from my destination. "Yo." I snapped, not in the mood for interruptions.
"Alarms just went off at the Smith residence." Vince cut right to the chase, saying the Smiths were on vacation and that no one's supposed to be there. "Ram and Lester are about 15 minutes away."
I was only a block away. "I'm on it." I disconnected as I hooked a U-turn.
I parked one house away. Quickly, I scanned the front of the house. Nothing seemed out of the ordinary, so I slipped to the back with my Glock handy. The backyard was clear. Next, I checked the back windows. There were no signs of activity, so I slipped inside.
Gun raised, I did a sweep of the ground floor. Nothing. When I reached the front door a harsh, masculine groan drifted down from the second floor. Silently, I moved to find the source.
"Oh yeah…" Another groan. "Just like that, baby."
The sounds were coming from the room at the end of the hall. When I walked into the bedroom I found a naked man sitting on the edge of the bed. An equally naked woman was on her knees in front of him, her head bobbing up and down enthusiastically.
"What the hell!" The man locked eyes with my gun.
"Don't move." I warned as he attempted to reach behind him.
"Oh." The woman turned to face me, a sensuous grin tugging at the corners of her mouth. She stood, quickly winking at her partner, before turning towards me. "Yum!" She launched herself at me.
"No." I grabbed her hands with my free hand, effectively keeping her from reaching the zipper. Effortlessly, I kept her at arm's length while I drilled the man with my patented no nonsense glare.
"Da fuck you want?" The man stood, not bothering to reach for clothing. He was frustrated. Can't blame him. I'd be frustrated too if someone ruined my fun. But I can't feel sympathy for him. Get a place and run your own naked parade without interruptions. That simple.
"This house belongs to my client."
"Oh shit." Realization dawned on him. "We're not breaking in." He said he was house sitting for his cousin. "We got busy and I totally forgot about the alarm." He grimaced.
Footsteps sounded behind me and I didn't have to turn around to know backup had arrived, because Lester muttered 'Damn, she's fine'.
I went back to my car as the guys worked it out with the client. It had been hard to contain a chuckle while the client had to hear via phone about his cousin re-enacting a porno type scene for Rangeman.
That whole incident took about twenty minutes, but thankfully it would only be a short drive to the house.
I was a bit disappointed when I didn't find Babe in the house. Just to make sure, I checked the garage. Since her car wasn't there, I called her phone.
"Babe." I greeted when she answered on the second ring.
"Hi."
"I want to have lunch with you."
"I had breakfast with Val and now I'm at Giovincci's." She asked if I was at Rangeman.
"No, I'm at home." I grinned to myself, admitting I wanted to swing by to have lunch with her.
"Why didn't you call me?"
"I wanted to surprise you."
"Aww." I could picture her smile. She talked to someone before coming back on the line. "Ranger?"
"Still here, Babe."
"I'm just about done here."
"Babe." I disconnected and got to work while I waited for her.
I was just about done whipping lunch for the both of us when my cell phone rang. My cock twitched, thinking Babe was calling to say she was already turning the corner. I don't often get to have my wife for myself during the middle of the day. I checked the readout and groaned with annoyance when I saw Tank's number on the screen. "Yo?" Can't a man get a break so he can be able to have some private time with his wife without being interrupted?
"Stephanie's off the radar." He informed.
"Both trackers?" I swallowed as my heartbeat speed up. Neither of us wanted to voice what we were thinking. I've had this conversation with him many, many times before. An explosion, a fire, kidnapping... I've heard it all, but that doesn't mean I'm used to it.
"Yes." Tank said Wendell and Cal were on their way to Giovincci's.
I disconnected as I raced back to the car.
I had a white knuckled grip on the steering wheel the entire drive. My heart was beating wildly, almost to the point where I briefly wondered if it would beat out of my chest. "Babe." I muttered as I wound my way through streets, heading towards her last known location.
And suddenly, my restlessness last night made sense.
My phone rang as I screeched to a halt in the middle of the street. The place was already swarming with cops and paramedics, blocking traffic in both directions. The air was thick with the remnants of an explosion. "What?" I growled into the phone.
"Cal has visual." Tank told me where I could find her. I hung up, already sprinting towards the center of all the commotion.
The ache in my chest ceased when I spotted her, leaning against the back of the ambulance. A young paramedic was shining a light in her eyes as he asked her something. She shook her head when he was done.
"Babe." I breathed out my nickname for her. My voice made Stephanie turn to face me. There wasn't a single scratch on her that I could see.
"I'm fine." She assured, but I still ran my hands all over her to confirm.
"You're pregnant." I didn't even realize I said it out loud.
"I know." She hugged me back, burying her face against the side of my neck. "I was loading the stuff when my cell fell." That made Babe get back on the curb as she studied her best options to retrieve the device. "A truck came out of nowhere and smashed into my car." She told me chaos ensued and then there was a big fireball in the sky.
"I don't care about the car or the phone." I hooked a finger under her chin, tilting her head so I could kiss her. "I care about you." My hold tightened a fraction more.