Disclaimer: Characters aren't mine. I'm simply playing with them for a bit.

Thank you all for the reviews and fav/follows. I'm so glad that you all are enjoying this story. This chapter hasn't been beta'd so please excuse all the mistakes.

Lifetime of Love

Chapter 9

After both men walked out of my hospital room that day, my heart felt empty. It felt like it was never going to be whole again and I desperately needed it to be whole. I hated feeling that emptiness and this loneliness. I hated where my life had led me. I was an unwed soon-to-be-mother. The father of the baby lied to me at the very start of our relationship and I couldn't trust him. He didn't even know about the life we had created.

As I laid it that hospital bed, I thought about what I was going to do after I got out of the hospital. I couldn't go back to my apartment. That was where I was attacked and I sure as hell didn't feel safe there anymore. I couldn't go back to RangeMan because I didn't trust the guys anymore. Some of them must have known what was going on and not one of them warned me. I realized that the tension between Les and Zero had been because of the lies, yet Les never said a thing to me about it. It hurt that they all betrayed me like that.

I didn't want to go back and live with my parents. My mom would be all over me about settling down and starting a family. She'll shit down both legs when she finds out that I'm pregnant and not planning on seeing the father again for a while. Once she found out that I was pregnant, she would have my wedding planned in a week and I refused to get married to someone just because I got knocked up. It wasn't 1950 anymore, but trying to tell my mom that was difficult.

It was disheartening when I realized that I had nowhere to go. I heard a knock on my door again and before I could respond, Joe stepped through.

"What happened to your guard dogs? I thought maybe you got discharged when I didn't see anyone standing outside your door." Hearing that caused the tears to fall again. Ranger pulled the guard detail off my door because I asked for space and since the threat was gone, they were no longer needed. Joe saw my tears and immediately wrapped me in his arms.

"Cupcake, please tell me what's going on. I can't help you if I don't know what the problem is." I needed to tell someone and Joe was the only person who I trusted right then.

I opened my mouth and told him everything. From mine and Ranger's sex only relationship, to Valentine's Day, to the stalker, to Zero, to the attack, to the TRUTH from the guys, and finally I told him about the baby. He listened the entire time and didn't interrupt. He held me closer when I cried and wiped the tears off of my face. At the end of my fucked up life story, I collapsed back on the bed exhausted. Joe let out a long sigh and ran his hands through his hair.

"What do you want to do, Stephanie?" His voice was full of concern so the full name didn't bother me like it normally did.

"I need to get away. I need some time to think about all of this shit, but I don't have anywhere to go." He thought for a second and then smiled. He grabbed his phone and raised his finger in the 'one second' motion. I heard him talking on his phone, but was too distracted to follow the conversation. After a few minutes he hung up and smiled at me again.

"How does Ohio sound?" I had no clue what he was talking about and I honestly didn't even know where Ohio was in the country.

"Huh?" Eloquent I know, but it had been a rough day.

"I have a friend who is trying to sell his house in Greenville Ohio. He's willing to let you live there for as long as you need or until the house sells. It's fully furnished because he moved into his new wife's house in New York. He didn't need any of the furniture." Sounded good so far.

"I can't pay him rent or anything. I have no money and I doubt I find a job." Joe shook his head.

"Don't worry about it. The house is standing empty and it's a fact that houses sell faster when there is someone living in them. He agreed to let you stay there for free if you help keep the house clean and show it to people who are interested in buying it." Joe brushed some hair away from my face and smiled at me.

"Think about it Steph. You could get way from Trenton and from the people who hurt you. You could use the time to think about what and who you want. I would do it, Cupcake." He sat back down on the bed and wiped a few stray tears off my face.

"Can I think about it and let you know tomorrow morning? I'm probably going to be discharged and I guess I need to figure out something for when that happens."

"Come stay with me. I have an empty room and you can decide if you want to go to Ohio or not. It's a great little town, I used to go and visit him often. It would be a great place to have the little peanut." He placed his hand on my still flat stomach.

"Like I said, I'll think about it. You don't care if I crash at your house for a night or two? If I did go, I would need to spend a little time letting people know what was going on. I don't want to freak everyone out when I disappear."

"You're welcome anytime. Karen will probably be there, so you can get to know her a little before you leave." I saw the sparkle in his eyes when he said her name. Joe was falling in love and I was happy for my friend.

"Okay. I'll call you tomorrow when I get discharged. Can I ask you to do me another favor?"

"Ask away."

"Can you pick up Rex and my stuff from RangeMan. I'm not ready to face them. I'll text Tank and ask him to have my stuff waiting for you in the lobby." Joe smiled and nodded.

"I would love to do that. I might get to give Manoso a piece of my mind. Stupid idiot didn't learn from my mistakes and lost the most important thing to him." I laughed at Joe's obvious inner monologue.

Joe stayed with me the rest of the day. He went out to pick up Pino's subs for dinner and we watched a game on TV. It felt just like old times except we weren't having sex and we weren't fighting about stupid shit. We were good friends. Joe kissed my cheek before he left for the night and promised to pick me up tomorrow when I got sprung from my sterile prison.

I fell asleep with thoughts about leaving Trenton heavy on my mind. I knew that it wouldn't be forever but it would give me a chance to clear my head. I had so much garbage in there that I wasn't sure who or what I really wanted. I needed time and space to figure it out. It sounded like I would get both of those in Greenville.

I woke the next morning with a happier outlook on my life. I knew what I needed and wanted to do, I just had to make it happen. First think I needed to do was get out of this damn hospital.

I talked to the doctor and got some recommendations for doctors to see in Greenville. He even set up my first OB/GYN appointment for me with my new doctor there. He signed my discharge papers and I was a free woman.

I found some clothes in the closet. I guess I needed to thank Ranger for them being there, but I wasn't ready to talk to him yet. I wasn't sure I was even going to tell him or Zero that I was leaving.

Joe picked me up just like he said he would and took me to his house. He got me settled on the couch before leaving to get my things from RangeMan. I texted Tank earlier that morning with my request and he promised my things would be waiting in the lobby. He apologized for the way the situation was handled and I knew he was sincere, but it still hurt.

Joe returned with my things an hour after he left. He was smiling so I guess he got that chat with Ranger.

"Everything okay?" I asked tentatively from my place on the couch.

"Perfect, Cupcake. I got to speak my peace to the boss man and even got to talk to the other punk. I didn't tell them about you maybe leaving. I thought if you wanted them to know, then you would tell them yourself. I will say though, Steph, those men both love you. I've never seen Manoso look so broken before. And the other guy looked just as bad. The tension in that building was crazy so I assume the rest of the employees aren't too happy with the boss either." I felt bad for Ranger and Zero, but they brought everything on themselves.

"Thanks Joe. I appreciate all your help. I think I'm going to take your friend up on the offer. I can spend tomorrow telling the people who I want to know and then I can leave early the next day. I really need this, I think." He smiled and pulled me into a hug.

"I think you need to do this too. You can use me to funnel information back to anyone you want. I wouldn't give out your address or phone number to anyone. You might not get any peace if people knew how to contact you." I thought about it, and I didn't want to totally disappear, but I did want to be left alone. I would think about what else I needed to do to make sure that happened.

Joe and I enjoyed an evening in front of the TV. We found stupid movies on and laughed our way through three of them. Joe and I fell into an easy friendship after the relationship ended. I would miss him while I was away. Joe went to bed early, and I was once again left with my thoughts.

I noticed a tablet of paper on the coffee table so I grabbed it and the pen laying next to it. I needed to write a few letters to the guys. I knew that they weren't going to be enough, but it's the best thing that I could think of. After I got all the letters written I headed up to the spare room and crawled into the comfortable bed. Before I fell asleep, I formed my escape plan. It was what I needed to do to guarantee that I wasn't followed or tracked.

I filled Joe in on my plan the next morning at breakfast. He had a huge role to play in making everything work.

"You want to do what?" His shocked expression made me giggle.

"I want to leave my piece of shit car here so the guys from RangeMan think I'm just hanging out here. I'll need you to take me to a car dealership out-of-town and I'll buy something to get me where I need to go. I'll have my bags packed so I can just leave straight from there. I've written letters to the guys and I'll call my dad and tell him what's going on, but I don't want anyone else to know. I'll call you with updates and you can keep my dad informed." I was excited about getting the show on the road now that I had a solid plan. "I trust you to keep my plans secret and I really don't want anyone to know where I am. I'm closing my checking accounts and canceling my credit cards and I'll just use cash wherever I go. If I have to find a job when I get there, I will. But I think I have enough in savings to live for a while if I'm not paying rent."

Joe still looked shocked but was nodding his head in agreement with what I was saying.

"Sounds like a damn good plan. How much do you have in savings?"

"A little over twenty-thousand. I'll keep my insurance so I won't have to worry about medical bills with the baby coming. I'm not planning on being gone forever, just long enough to clear my head."

"Sounds like plenty of money. I'll sell your car after I give RangeMan the letters and mail you that cash. It probably won't be much." He chuckled and I giggled thinking about the poor condition of my car.

"Are you sure about all of this, Cupcake? You can hide here if you want to." Joe wrapped me in his arms and gave me a hug.

"I'm positive. I need to do this. Thank you for all your help." I hugged him back and just enjoyed the feeling of being in his arms. There was no romantic feelings, but it was still nice to feel loved.

"It's my pleasure. I've got to run, but I'll be back by noon and we'll get you a new car and on the road. Will that be enough time for you to pack?" I nodded as I pulled away from him.

"Plenty of time. I'm just going to go to my apartment and pack my clothes and some pictures, I'll tell Dillon to donate the rest of it." Sad to say that I didn't have that many personal belongings.

"Okay, see you in a little bit." He kissed my forehead and rushed out the back door.

I spent the next hour on the phone with my dad. He understood my reasons fully and asked if I needed any money. I assured him that I had plenty and told him to contact Joe if he needed to get information to me. He promised to keep everything a secret and told me he would handle my mother. I had no doubt that he could handle her, I just felt sorry for him for putting him in that position. My mother wasn't going to be happy when she finds out that I left.

It only took me two hours to pack up my apartment. I told Dillon about leaving and asked him to donate everything that I left there. He agreed and wished me luck. I didn't tell him where I was going, Ranger could break him in a minute.

I met Joe back at his house right at noon and I threw my bags into his SUV. I grabbed Rex and his necessities and buckled his cage in the back. My car was parked in front of Joe's house and I left the keys on the table by the door. I took one last look at the house and felt a tear fall. I wasn't just saying goodbye to Joe, I was saying goodbye to Trenton and to RangeMan.

Joe drove me to the bank so I could close my accounts and then to a car dealership outside of Trenton. I bought a little used Honda for $3500 and transferred my bags to my new car. I moved Rex over and soon it was time for me to go. It was a little over a nine-hour drive and I needed to hit the road. I turned off my cellphone and handed it to Joe.

"I'll call you as soon as I get there. The letters are in your spare room, but give me a day or two before you deliver them." Joe nodded and I could see the tears in his eyes. Seeing them made mine fill with tears too. He took me into his arms and gave me a hug.

"I hope you find what you need, Cupcake. This town isn't going to be the same without you."

"I'll be back. Take care of yourself, Joe. Maybe I'll get a wedding invitation soon." I poked him in the ribs and laughed. From our talks, he was falling hard for Karen and I think she felt the same.

"That will be awhile, but hopefully sometime. I love you, Stephanie. Be safe." He hugged me again and dropped a kiss on top of my head.

"I love you too, Joe. I'll be safe. It's not just about me anymore." He placed his hand over my stomach and smiled.

"See ya later, Cupcake." I watched at he got into his SUV and drove away. A few tears fell, but they quickly dried up. I didn't have time to stand around and cry. I still had a long drive ahead of me.

I don't know who estimates the drive time on google maps, but I'm guessing it's a man because a woman would think to add time in for pee stops. I used the ten-hour drive to make a plan for the next day.

I would need to buy some groceries and learn my way around the town. I needed to find where my doctor's office was and maybe look for a part-time job. Something to keep me busy. If I just sat around and thought about my miserable life, I would go crazy.

When I finally pulled into the driveway of the little house in Greenville, I was exhausted. I took a little time to explore the house. It was small, but it would be perfect for me. The furniture was nice and comfortable that's really all I cared about. I got Rex positioned on the counter and fed him some hamster nuggets. There wasn't any food in the house so he would have to settle for that for now. I ate all the Cheetos that I picked up the last time I stopped. I made my way up to the bedroom and fell into a deep sleep the second my head hit the pillow. I missed Trenton, but I knew I needed this.

A/N - Let me know what you think. Good, bad or ugly...doesn't matter. The next chapter will be up on Monday! : )