"Go to sleep, querida. I know you're tired and Ella's right, tomorrow will be a long day. We have to tell both you're parents and mine and that alone will be enough to test a saint."
She yawned mid-laugh and knew he was right. "Night, Ranger. I love you."
"I love you too, Babe. G'night." He heard her breathing even out and allowed himself to drift to sleep with a content smile on his face.
Chapter 3
"Mixed Reviews"
At first he thought it was his internal clock that woke him. Then he thought that it was his Babe fondling him in her sleep that had woken him up. His next thought was, 'What the Hell?', when her mouth closed over his cock and her hand came up to fondle his balls.
She heard his sharp intake of breath and knew she had finally succeeded in waking him. It wasn't like him to sleep through her moving about in bed, much less while she went to the bathroom and kissed her way down his body. This morning he had done just that. She'd decided to take things to the next level and see just how much he would sleep through.
She brushed her lips over the twitching head of his hard member and then descended to suck as much of him as she could into her warm mouth. After only a few more strokes, he pulled out of her mouth, flipped her on her back and thrust hard and deep between her legs.
He knew he should have reciprocated with his own foreplay, but she had him in such a state that he had to be buried deep inside her. Besides, her little adventure with him this morning already had her wet and ready. He leaned down to kiss her slow and deep, whispering against her mouth, "Babe". He pushed her knees upward towards her chest, to increase his penetration and pumped in and out at a leisurely rate. He felt her shudder with her first orgasm and it fueled his desire. He sped up his movements inside her as she panted and moaned his name over and over.
When he reached between them and pressed her clit, she went over the top with him only two strokes behind. He collapsed on top of her and buried his head into the curve of her neck.
"Mmmm…that's my favorite way to wake up." He turned his head toward the clock, smirked and then propped up on his elbows. "You didn't think that would distract me from our morning run, did you?"
She laughed, "The thought never crossed my mind,…but did it work?"
He kissed her below the ear, before answering, "No, besides you can come back up here and take a nap, while I get ready to meet a client. You don't have any skips, so you can get ready during my meeting this morning. Then I'm all yours for the day. We'll make the rounds spreading the news of our marriage."
He laughed when she rolled her eyes and then whimpered when he pulled out of her. "C'mon, Babe, let's get dressed. We can go down and tell the guys before our run. If you're really good, I'll have Ella make blueberry pancakes for you for breakfast."
She groaned but rolled out of bed, knowing that it was senseless to argue with him. "Hmmf, I thought I'd already been really good. See if I wake you with morning fellatio again."
He just laughed at her comment, "Babe, I was talking about not complaining about running not the morning fellatio. That….was very much appreciated." When the smile returned to her face, he went to the bathroom to take care of Mother Nature's call. When he finished, she went in to do the same.
As she was pressing the end of the toothpaste tube up from the bottom, he came in and mashed the tube in the middle, causing a glob of paste to drop onto her toothbrush. "Babe, none of that stuff bothers me. If you leave your panties on the floor, stockings hanging from the shower, or mash the toothpaste from the middle, it's not going to cause marital discord."
She hadn't realized that she was even doing it. She looked down at the toothpaste, then back at him and smiled tenderly, asking, "So, what will, as you say, cause marital discord?"
When she started the circular motion of the brush on her teeth, he answered truthfully, "Leaving home without your gun or taking unnecessary chances. What about you? What's something that I might do to cause your displeasure?"
She thought about it while she finished brushing her teeth, put her toothbrush beside his in the holder and wiped her mouth then her hands on the small towel. She decided that since he was being so open and honest, she owed it to him to do the same. "Not discussing things with me that involve me or not letting me know when I do something that bothers you. Leaving the toilet seat up or your shoes by the couch are not really issues for me either."
He pulled on her ponytail, "Good to know, now let's go downstairs."
She felt giddy as a school girl as they made their way to the fifth floor, relaxing into his arms in their usual position, her back to his chest. When the elevator door opened and they walked out, all motion ceased. It was quiet enough to hear a pin drop as all heads turned towards them.
As the men gathered around, Ranger cleared his throat, "Men, I wanted to thank you all for your hard work during my absence. Tank has updated me and I know that you all did whatever it took to help in finding Sullivan along with your regular duties. Stephanie and I also wanted you guys to be the first to know that on our way home from Tennessee, we got married."
There were a lot of astonished four letter words before the crushing hugs began. Ranger was grinning from ear to ear as Stephanie was passed from one man then to the next while he received manly slaps on the back. Of course, Lester had to have his say. "Beautiful, I thought after you jumped me in the woods that we had something going."
Ranger watched as his bride turned three shades of red at Lester's comment and the good natured laughing of his men. He growled, "Mine," as he pulled her into the curve of his hip.
"Oh, my God, Ella is a goddess." She moaned again as she stuffed the last bite of fluffy blueberry pancakes into her mouth.
Ranger couldn't resist, he leaned over and licked her lips clean of syrup. "Yum." He pushed back from the table and put on his jacket. He was dressed in what Stephanie called 'Armani Ranger'. "Babe, I'll be about an hour and a half in my meeting and then I'll be ready to go, okay?"
As she was making her way towards the bedroom, she replied in a singsong voice, "'Kay, have a good meeting sweetie."
"My wife, the smartass," he grumbled under his breath and tried to wipe the smile off his face as he walked out the door. If he didn't get control of this goofy smile, he was going to lose his badass image.
As soon as Ranger was out of the door, Stephanie began hot footing about the apartment, stripping sheets and picking up clothes. No matter what Ella said about taking care of them, she couldn't allow her to think she was a slob or to see the soaked sheets. When she heard the door opening and Ella's usual greeting of 'Hello, Dear', she had just stuffed the last of the clothes into the hamper.
She went to the kitchen with the sheets in her arms and laid them by the door. Taking Ella by the hand, she led her to the couch. She smiled kindly at the puzzled expression on the sweet woman's face. "Ella, I know that the house-keeping duties are yours, but I thought that we could talk privately about some things. I'm not entirely comfortable with you changing and washing the sheets to our bed, so from now on, Ranger or I will take care of that chore."
Ella frowned, "But, it's my job, Stephanie, and it's not like I haven't been married for the past thirty years. I know a little about what goes on in the bedroom."
Stephanie knew from the burning of her cheeks that she was blistering red, but she plowed through firmly. "I know, but on those sheets are the evidence of mine and my husband's sex life and it's something that I feel is private. I've already talked to Ranger about this and even though it doesn't seem to bother him, he's agreed to abide by my wishes. Besides, you're already going to have added laundry and cooking with me living here, this is just one less thing that you have to worry about."
Even through the evidence of Stephanie's embarrassment, Ella could see the determination in her eyes. She smiled and thought, God Bless this modest woman for coming into Ranger's life. She patted Stephanie's hand. "I understand, dear. I'll show you where the laundry is and you can take care of it in your own way. I have to say though how much I'm going to enjoy having you here. You've made Ranger happy and for that, I thank you. Now, if you'll put the sheets into the washing machine and fresh ones on the bed, I'll take care of the rest."
Stephanie was relieved to have that conversation over with. Talking about her sex life with the matronly woman was not high on her list of favorite things to do. After taking care of the sheets, she went about getting ready for the day while Ella bustled around the living room, dusting and vacuuming.
She heard Ella's goodbye just as she was rummaging through the closet for something to wear. When she came out with an unfamiliar white sundress, complete with tags, she was puzzled. She didn't remember buying it, so she called Ella. "Ella, where did the white sundress come from?"
She laughed before responding, "Ranger asked me to do some shopping for you. At the time, I didn't know that the two of you had gotten married. I suppose he knew you wouldn't have time to go shopping and didn't want you worrying about what you were going to wear to meet his family. Before you say anything, I enjoyed it immensely and all the dresses were on sale. I left the receipt for you on the bar in the kitchen if anything needs to be returned or you don't like them."
She immediately walked back to the closet, "Dresses? As in plural?" She found them as Ella explained that she wasn't sure what Stephanie would like so she got several and for different occasions. The woman really had great taste. There were three more in the closet, another sundress, one that was dressy enough for dinner at a nice restaurant and another that was a bit more formal. Each of them fit to perfection and suited her style to a tee.
She decided to wear the white one since it was getting close to Labor Day and would soon be out of season. Just as she slipped on her sandals, she heard Ranger coming into the apartment. As he came through the door, he smiled appreciatively and kissed her on the lips before going to the closet to change out of his suit.
She gawked as he came back out wearing khaki's and a navy polo shirt. Then she grinned, "Did Ella go shopping for you too?"
As he slid his belt through the belt loops, he answered, "Yeah, didn't want your Dad to think that all I wear is black. I figured we're going to have enough feedback from your mother and mine, that maybe I could garner his support with my wardrobe. We're also taking an 'American made' truck."
Even though his little speech was casual, it occurred to her that Ranger was a bit out of his element. She knelt in front of where he was putting on his shoes and gently took his hands in hers, holding his gaze steady. "Just you and me, Babe, that's all that really matters."
When he heard her repeat his words from the day of their wedding, he released the tension he hadn't known he'd been harboring. He leaned down and took her lips in a hungry kiss. He pulled back just enough to rest his forehead against hers. "Thanks, I needed that."
They both sat outside the house where she had grown up, eyeing the two women waiting at the front door. Without looking at him, she asked, "Is it too late to pretend that we got lost?" He squeezed her hand and got out of the truck.
Never one to shirk a responsibility, he opened her door and said, "C'mon, Babe, let's do this."
When she was standing on the sidewalk, Ranger threaded his left hand with hers and walked beside her to the front door. It was a symbol of unity and helped to relax her jittery nerves.
"Mom, Grandma, you remember Ranger."
Stephanie nearly forgot her nerves when her grandmother waggled her eyebrows at Ranger.
"Stephanie, I just fixed some sandwiches, will you and Ranger stay for lunch?"
She looked around to see her father already seated at the table. "Sure, but Ranger and I have some news for you first." Her mother was already fixing two more sandwiches and she thought it would be best to just get it over with, like ripping off a band-aid. "Mom, Dad, Grandma,…um…Ranger and I got married while we were out of town."
Neither Ranger nor Stephanie was fast enough to catch her mother before she hit the floor in a dead faint. Her dad stood, shook Ranger's hand and then went over to help Stephanie revive her mother.
All the while, her grandmother was prancing around, shouting gleefully, "Hot damn, Stephanie married the 'package'." Then she rattled off, "OMG, ttfn, got to tell my bff, Marge," and she sprinted out the door.
Stephanie gave her dad a strange look; he just shrugged, and said, "She's been texting with the women from the Clip-n-Curl."
When her mother finally came around from her fainting spell, she looked with confusion marring her face at Stephanie, "I thought…did you say…" and then finally gave up, throwing her hands up in the air. The rest of lunch was eaten in silence. Even when they were finished, her mother hadn't regained the ability to speak. For a change, her dad walked them to the door.
He pulled her in for a hug and told her, "I'm happy for you, Pumpkin." He shook Ranger's hand again and told him to take care of his daughter.
They both sat in the truck dazed and when they looked at each other after a minute they burst into laughter.
With tears streaming down her face, she choked out, "Ranger, if I'd have known that our marriage would render my mother speechless, I'd have proposed to you years ago."
He threw his head back and laughed some more. "Babe, you never disappoint and your family is still a bit scary." He shook his head, then asked, "You ready to go face the girls?"
She nodded and turned to stare out the window at her parent's house as he pulled onto the street. She hoped that her mother's inability to speak remained a permanent affliction. She was still deep in thought when she looked up to realize they were sitting in front of the bonds office. Oh, Shit. Connie and Lula were both staring out the window.
Ranger got out, walked around the truck and opened her door. She took another deep breath and got out to join hands with him in their pose of unity that had been the theme for the day. She could hear the squealing before Ranger even got the door to the bonds office open.
"Shyat! White girl, I knew you had it in you! Batman, it's about time you got your head on straight and asked my girl to marry you." Lula was ever colorful in hot pink spandex from head to toe. Lula gripped Stephanie in a hug so tight that she thought she might lose consciousness. Stephanie stumbled back when Lula released her suddenly. Ranger was taking in the whole exchange with a huge smile on his face. "Jeez, Batman, you ought not do that to a girl. My girl here may be used to you smiling like that, but the rest of us mortals need a little warning. Shit, my heart can't take much of that business."
When Ranger let loose a full blown, deep belly laugh, Stephanie thought that Connie was going to pass out. She recovered enough to ask to see Stephanie's ring. "Oh, Steph, it's beautiful. And to think, I'm responsible for all of this." Stephanie thought Connie was going to cry, she was so proud.
Once they were back in the truck, preparing to go to Newark, Ranger received a call. It was Tank telling him that he was needed back at Rangeman. She could tell he wasn't happy and asked why. "Babe, today was supposed to be our day. On top of that, it's going to make us arrive later than I wanted. Now, all my family will be gathered together for Friday night dinner by the time we get there. I didn't want your first time meeting my mom to include the entire family."
Stephanie gulped, then whispered, "The entire family?" At his nod, she closed her eyes, chanting you can do this, you can do this, over and over in her head. When she looked back at Ranger, she felt stronger from her little internal pep talk. "It's okay, Ranger. We can do this."
It took two hours for Ranger to sort out the problem with the account. Stephanie had used the time wisely by taking a nap. Their delay was going to cause them to arrive right at dinner time. Oh, joy. Fortunately, Ranger's mom didn't have 'Burg' radar, so nobody was waiting for them at the front door. He had called this morning to inform his mother that he was bringing Stephanie when he came to visit.
Ranger let them into the foyer and called out to his mom. Stephanie could see through the back patio doors, that there was quite a crowd milling about outside. As he led her towards the glass door, several heads turned to gawk. She saw a petite woman make her way towards Ranger and assumed that this was his mother.
****Please, assume that the words in italics are spoken in Spanish – It's too much of a headache to translate that much.****
"Ric, I'm so glad that you've made it!" She kissed Ranger on the cheek, before leaning in to wrap him in an embrace. He pulled back and spoke to her in English.
"Mom,….everyone, this is Stephanie, my wife. Babe, this is my Mom, Maria"
At the gasps and strings of Spanish that resulted from his abrupt announcement, all Stephanie could think was 'great going Manoso', talk about ripping off a band-aid. She could tell by the tone of Maria's voice that she wasn't pleased. You didn't need to be able to speak Spanish to determine her displeasure.
Ranger held up a hand, "Mom, Stephanie doesn't speak Spanish. Please, speak English in front of her."
Maria nearly snarled the words that came out of her mouth, "Fine. But first, I'd like to speak with you in private."
Stephanie patted his arm, signaling that it was alright. She thought that some things needed to be discussed in private between them. He kissed her on the cheek before following his Mom to what she supposed was the kitchen. Isn't that where all major discussion were held. Stephanie watched as Ranger left, then turned to find about twenty dark faces boring holes through her.
A beautiful female version of Ranger stepped forward, extending her hand in a friendly greeting. "I'm Celia. Welcome to the chaos known as the 'Manoso Clan'."
Stephanie managed to squeak out a polite, "Thanks. Ranger has told me a little about you. Do you think that he's going to be okay?"
Celia waved it away, "Ric can handle Mama just fine. He's talked to me about you too, and I'm glad that he finally figured it all out."
Another Ranger replica walked forward but didn't offer her hand or her official 'welcome'. "Is that what you always refer to my brother as? Ranger? Why don't you use his given name?" Her tone left no doubt that she found the title distasteful.
Stephanie was guessing that this was Isabel and shrugged her shoulders, refusing to give Ranger's sister the satisfaction of being intimidated. "It's what he introduced himself to me as and it's what I've always called him. Besides, he doesn't call me Stephanie usually, unless he's very serious."
Celia laughed out loud, pleased with Stephanie's spunk. "So, what do you call my brother when you're serious?"
Before Stephanie could answer, Ranger was beside her, "Words too vile to repeat, little sister." Stephanie tried to elbow him in the gut, but he was swifter than she was and expertly dodged her blow. He entwined their hands and brought their joined fingers to his lips.
Celia and Isabel both eyed the exchange with mixed reviews. Celia was delighted and Isabel…well….not so much. "Brother, it's a good thing you saw her first, otherwise, I'd have given you a run for your money. She's a keeper."
When Stephanie's head snapped around to look at Celia, it was the first time that she really noticed the appreciative look. Her cheeks bloomed bright red.
Celia breathed out her next words, "Oh, my, and if she wasn't beautiful enough. That shade is lovely on her surprised face. I can see that you have respected my privacy. Thanks, Brother, but there's no need to protect me. I'm proud to be a lesbian." She had said the last part loud enough for the entire crowd to hear and Stephanie realized that Celia had done it on purpose. She was trying to get their family to focus on something other than Stephanie.
Ranger and Stephanie made the rounds through the family, introducing her to everyone. Manuel was just as obnoxious as Isabel. His wife, Rosa, was holding their two year old boy trying to calm him, as he cried and tried to pull away from her. She was polite enough when she explained that he was upset because he couldn't swim with the older kids.
Stephanie squeezed Ranger's hand to get his attention, "Ranger, I need to use the restroom." When he started towards the door to show her the way, she shook her head. "I think I can find it on my own. You should stay here and talk to your brother. He's been biting at the bit to get you alone."
When she was finished in the bathroom, she went to tackle the real reason she left Ranger's side. She knew that Maria was still in the kitchen, fuming. Stephanie found her and chose to ignore the glare that she gave her when she walked into the room. "Mrs. Manoso, I know that this is all a bit of a shock to you, but I just wanted you to know that I love your son. He's more than just my husband. From the first day we met, he's been my friend, mentor and protector. I hope that one day you and I can become friends. If not, at least you can know that your son is very much loved." Stephanie turned to leave, but stopped short when Maria spoke softly.
"I can see the love that you share. I'm not blind. It's just hard. I hope you can understand and give me time. In the future, please, call me Maria."
Stephanie breathed a sigh of relief as she stepped back out onto the patio. She saw Manuel still had Ranger cornered and avoided their area. She scanned the backyard, noticing that the older children had tired of the pool and were now engaged in a game of kickball. As her eyes perused the gathering, she landed on a sight that sent her heart racing.
Ranger looked up just in time to see Stephanie sprinting toward the pool. His heart stopped dead when he saw what had her in a panic. He pushed Manuel out of the way and started towards her at a dead run. He watched as his wife dove into the pool, pulling out the sputtering child. He leaned down to take the screaming toddler from her arms. He handed Lucas to a crying Rosa and took Stephanie's hand to pull her from the pool.
Stephanie's clothes were plastered to her body and she was shivering from the adrenaline rush. Somebody wrapped a towel around her as Ranger pulled her into his arms. Later, she would think how funny it was that you could go from zero to hero in five seconds flat. The rest of the afternoon had an entirely different tone. Ranger's family could no longer harbor hard feelings towards the woman who had saved their little Lucas and captured all of their hearts in the process.