Chapter 9

After Adam left, I went back to the kitchen to finish my beer. But when I got back to the kitchen I saw 3 beer bottles out. We'd each just had one and Adam hadn't finished his. I was really confused, until I heard a board creak. I looked toward my living room and saw Ranger.

"What did you hear?" I asked. I wasn't even going to bother asking him what he was doing here. I always hated it when he broke into my apartment, but I knew there was nothing I could do about it.

"This is wrong, Stephanie," Ranger said.

"Yeah, breaking and entering, it's a crime."

"You shouldn't be dating a kid."

"He's not a kid."

"He practically is."

"It's not abnormal to have had little sexual experience at his age," I argued.

"Were you as inexperienced as him when you were his age?" Ranger asked.

"Everyone is different."

"Exactly," Ranger stated. "You two; are completely different. Too different, to be together."

"You and I are pretty far apart," I said. "That didn't stop us from having a relationship."

"We never tried to date each other," Ranger reminded me.

"We still slept together."

"And did it work out?" Ranger asked. "We only did it once. You were never comfortable doing it again."

"Morelli made things complicated," I said. "And you didn't want a relationship."

"Do you really want to be responsible for transporting someone through a big change like this?"

"I'm not deflowering him, he's had sex before."

"Yet he was acting tonight like a virgin bride on her wedding night."

"He was nervous."

"He should be dating someone who is closer to his experience level," Ranger said. Then, Ranger went on to further list why I was wrong for Adam. "I doubt he's ever dated someone who has exploded a car. Or a person whose life has been in danger on more than one occasion." And then he added a doozy. "Do you think he's dated anyone with murder on their conscience?"

I knew arguing with him would be pointless. Despite our argument, I was on his side. I wasn't right for Adam. After all I'd been through, was any normal guy at my level? Ranger and Morelli were. But even they didn't seem to be right for me.

"He drove you around in a sexy car, he looked super sexy, and yet NO SEX HAPPENED!" Lula freaked out on me. "Why didn't you tap that?"

"It was our first date!" I shouted back. "I'm not that easy!"

"HA!" I could hear Vinny in his office.

"Let's stop yelling," I whispered to Lula. "I'd rather Vinny wasn't privy to any of this."

"Fine," Lula agreed. "But honestly, Stephanie, nothing happened?"

"Yes, Lula," I told her. "Nothing happened."

"But, you slept over at his house once," Lula said. "He knows about your past already." No he doesn't. "What's stopping you from jumping him? Are you two waiting to be in love?"

I was completely composed until she mentioned the love part. It made me twitch. And despite how small it was, it didn't go unnoticed to Lula.

"What. The. FUCK!" Lula yelled again. I shushed her. This was definitely something I didn't want Vinny privy to.

"It's complicated," I tried to explain to her.

"What's complicated?" Connie asked. She came into the office from a supply store run.

"Stephanie is waiting till marriage to get jiggy with her boy toy," Lula said.

"No, I'm not," I told a very disbelieving Connie. "We are just using the 5 date rule, which is how I'd do it anyway."

"That's a pretty good goal," Connie said. I gave her an appreciative nod and then made a, 'so there,' gesture to Lula.

"Who follows proper dating etiquette with a rebound?" Lula argued, refusing to be 2 against 1.

"He's not a rebound," I argued back.

"He's the guy you're dating while you are on a break from your on again off again boyfriend," Lula said. "Sounds like a rebound to me."

"She does have a point," Connie agreed.

"Hey," I said. "You were on my side. Stay there."

"Whose idea was it to use the 5 date rule?" Lula asked.

"It was mutual," I told her.

"Who suggested it first?"

"He did."

"Really?" Lula asked. "He didn't try to convince you to do it earlier?"

"No," I told her. "He felt the most comfortable with it being 5 dates. He wasn't ready to do it sooner."

"Are you going to save everything for the 5th date?" Connie asked.

"Aren't those the guidelines involved in the 5 date rule?" I asked.

"Some people do a little half way work around the 3rd or 4th date," Connie said.

"Oh…well…I don't know." I told her. "I think it's something we'll decide as we go along."

"What would you prefer?"

"…I don't know."

"You don't know?" Lula asked astounded. "How can you not know?"

"I haven't really thought about it."

"Well think about it now."

"I don't want to."

"Why not?"

"Because…we have an FTA to find," I tried to distract her.

"Bullshit!" Lula called me out. "Why won't you tell us?"

"Because I don't know!"

"What kind of woman doesn't know what she wants?"

"This woman!"

"Knock…it…off…" we could hear Vinny chanting in his office.

"Now I'm siding with Vinny," Connie said. "Take a break, girls."

I was completely fine with dropping this conversation. But I knew Lula was far from over it. I knew I could tell Lula and Connie exactly why I was doing things the way I was. I could tell them how I wasn't even sure I would be sticking with Adam the entire 5-date timeline. But I knew what would happen with that. There would be more judgment. Connie would tell me that I shouldn't be in this relationship and Lula would agree. But she'd just say, 'dump his ass.'

"There's only one outstanding bond at the moment," Connie said.

"Yeah, Russell," I said.

"Magda Mirren turned herself in," Connie told us. "That made things considerably easier for us all."

"We're aware," I said. I tried to look Lula in the eye, but she was still pissed. She probably would be like this all day. If we'd let her get out all her frustration and if I'd told her more details, she would deflate a little. But I wanted to respect Adam and keep his secret safe. I didn't want to be judged. And I didn't want to say aloud everything that Ranger had pointed out the night before.

I left with Russell's folder with the plan to find him at his place of work. I wasn't sure if I'd be getting Lula's help, so I didn't gesture her to follow. But as I was walking to my car, I could hear someone walking behind me. Despite being angry with me, I knew Lula would rather not be stuck in the office all day. I turned to look at her. She looked like she was trying to calm down.

I considering her telling her something more about my relationship with Adam, just to make her feel better. But I couldn't decide what to tell her. We ended up speaking briefly to go over our game plan. And then we got into our respective cars and headed out.