Ranger
Dios! Stephanie was going to be the death of me. Only one partner before me? That was unfathomable. The woman was sexy without realizing it. Stephanie walked across her house, swaying her sexy hips. She didn't bother covering her nakedness. When she returned, she had a robe hiding her sexy curves from view.
I didn't want to think about the cop, but my mind drifted there without permission. Morelli never knew what he had when they were married. Having her ride me as her boobs bounced in my face made me blow before I wanted. I tried to hold off, but my ribs protested, and I gave in. A flick to her clit had her bursting around me. My heart had invested in Stephanie without my permission. The woman disarmed me. Stephanie Plum was everything I wanted in a partner wrapped in a sexy package.
She fell asleep in my arms after turning away from me. It tugged on my ribs, but I wouldn't let her move to the other side of the bed. The pain was a reminder that I survived. I smiled at my Babe as she wiggled her sexy ass against my thigh. Dios! It made me hard. I craved her.
I stared at the ceiling until my eyes grew heavy. The gun Stephanie gave me was tucked under my pillow, within reach if someone broke into her house. Dios! I thought I knew what it meant to love, but I was clueless. Now, I know. I loved Stephanie. I would do anything for her.
My sleep was dreamless, which I attributed to the gorgeous brunette beside me. Hair was strewn messily across her pillow and tickling my nose. Stephanie's leg had draped over my hip, trapping me to the bed. Sometime during the night, Stephanie draped herself across my body. She had me wrapped with her body. Her head rested on my shoulder with her arm across my chest - above my broken ribs. Even in sleep, Stephanie was mindful of my injuries.
Her eyes fluttered open. The motion tickled my neck a second before her hot lips pressed against my neck. "Good morning, Cuban sex god," Stephanie said, her voice thick from sleep. I chuckled at her name for me. She had seen nothing yet.
"Morning, Babe. Did you sleep well?" I asked. Stephanie carefully unwrapped herself from me. I felt the loss of her warm softness as she shifted to her side of the bed. My ribs ached from our activity the previous night. Hell, it hurt to breathe. I didn't let my injuries interfere with loving Stephanie.
"Sorry," she mumbled. Stephanie sat at the edge of the bed. She looked at the alarm clock and grimaced. It was 1000 hours. We had slept in. "You're late for your meds. I'll be back." I watched her hips sway as she left the bedroom. She used the washroom before disappearing farther into the house.
Stephanie returned to the bedroom carrying a tray. I was disappointed she had dressed in an oversized shirt. "It's nothing fancy," she said as she entered the room. "I brought your antibiotics and some pain meds." She carefully set the tray on my lap before climbing into bed beside me. "Do you need more pillows behind your back?"
"I'm good, Babe. Thanks," I replied. My ribs ached when I reached for a sandwich.
Stephanie didn't miss my groan, but she wisely remained silent. She passed me the pills and glass holding what appeared to be pond scum. "It's a protein shake," Stephanie explained.
"It looks like pond scum," I said. Stephanie rolled her eyes and insisted that I drink it. I popped my pills into my mouth, then chugged the shake, choosing to get that unpleasantness out of the way. "It tastes like pond scum."
"Exactly how could you possibly know?" she asked. Stephanie looked into my eyes for the answer. Whatever she saw made her giggle. Her laughter triggered a memory.
I was in the Amazon rainforest. Rain poured for several days. "It's confidential, right?" she asked. I nodded and took another bite of the delicious turkey sandwich. It was an odd choice for breakfast.
The mosquitos were vicious. They bit wherever my skin was exposed. Noises didn't echo, but my men were close enough for me to hear them slapping at the pesky insects. The tree canopies kept us dry from the rain. It did nothing to prevent us from sweating in the heat.
"Talk to me," Stephanie whispered. "You're scaring me." Her phone rang in the other room. Stephanie reluctantly climbed out of bed to answer it.
Tank, Lester and Bobby took to the trees as I pushed ahead, creating a path through the dense vegetation and vines. The men weren't supposed to be on the mission. I was supposed to go alone. My intuition strongly suggested I assemble a team to watch my back.
I felt my heart race. Sweat poured from my hairline. We were close. I could feel it resonate in my bones.
"My patient's fever broke in the night," Stephanie said. "I don't know how to answer. He appears to be in a trance." Her smooth fingers stroked my cheeks. "Misha, I need to go. He needs me. Thanks, I'll tell him."
"Carlos? Are you okay?" Stephanie asked. I tried to respond, but my memories pulled me back inside my mind.
The sharpness of a needle hit my neck. I swayed on my feet before someone caught me, swinging me over his shoulders. It wasn't Tank or the others. The man groaned under my weight. I felt him transfer me to another man. He was slightly bigger, but I knew it wasn't my men. The enemy - likely my target - caught me. I was always careful. As they carried me to their destination, I noticed a trail camera attached to a tree. It blended in with the bark. They saw us coming. Why do they have trail cameras? Did someone warn them?
A child, perhaps a young woman, giggled and followed behind. She removed the cameras as my captors carried me past them. Realization hit me like a tsunami. Someone tipped them off. Who?
The ground moved for several minutes before I got chained to a chair. I knew we were on a boat, having recognized the gentle sway as the home rocked from side to side. The thrum of the motor broke through the haze. How was my team supposed to find me? Would they make it out alive?
I was beaten for several days or weeks before they hit me hard enough to break bones. The pain was excruciating. Whatever they wanted, they couldn't beat it out of me. I was barely conscious when they tossed me off the boat.
"Please, talk to me," Stephanie begged. She removed the tray from my lap and the half-eaten sandwich from my hand. Stephanie pulled the blankets back and straddled me. Her thumbs wiped my damp cheeks.
"Carlos, you're safe. Please, look at me." She repeated the words several times before I broke from the memories. "Don't cry," she whispered. Her fingers pushed through my hair. Stephanie gently scratched my scalp, calming me.
"Are my men safe?" I quietly asked, closing my eyes. I couldn't bear to hear the answer while looking into Stephanie's gorgeous eyes.
"I don't know," she replied. Stephanie kissed my eyelids. I opened my eyes to search for the truth in hers. Stephanie honestly didn't know. Her eyes mirrored the concern in mine. "Who do I ask without drawing attention?"
I didn't have an answer. Anyone Stephanie asked would know where to find me before I could protect her from whoever appeared at her door. Her naked sex rubbed against me, making me hard. Stephanie shifted to move off my lap, but I slipped inside her. She stopped and rocked against me. Dios! The heat and tightness of her vagina were too much to resist. "Carlos," Stephanie screamed as she orgasmed. I immediately followed her over the edge.
"Babe?" I asked when she wiped a tear from her cheek.
"I'm sorry," she whispered. Stephanie climbed from the bed and ran to the shower. I had no idea what I did to make her run. The water turned on. Shit! We didn't use protection, and I didn't know if I was clean. My captors didn't sexually assault me. The military ensured I was clean before getting deployed. I preferred to err on the side of caution, and I was ashamed for not protecting Stephanie from whatever I may have caught in my abrasions.
She climbed back into the bed after pulling on panties and a clean shirt. "Who called earlier?" I asked, trying to take her mind off whatever upset her.
"Misha. She ran your labs, then destroyed the samples," Stephanie replied. "You're clean. Misha wants to rerun the labs in six weeks."
Stephanie grabbed her laptop and logged into her email account. I raised an eyebrow when she grinned. The woman was mercurial. A minute ago, she was crying. What happened between then and now?
"Babe, what did you do?" I asked, leaving the discussion of her sudden mood change until later.
"Nothing bad. I just didn't expect it to work," she replied. I patiently waited for her to talk. "I'm sorry, but I have your emails forwarded to my account since you said Rangeman didn't monitor your private one. Please, don't be mad."
I bit back the pain caused by my ribs when I moved. Stephanie apologized as she set the laptop on my thighs. "Babe?" She carefully rearranged the pillows to allow me to sit up more.
"Those are your emails which came in overnight," Stephanie replied. "Go ahead. Read them." She chewed on her thumbnail as I turned my attention to the screen. Stephanie looked away from the laptop, giving me privacy to review the emails. Most women would read over my shoulder to glean some intel I was unwilling to share.
I opened each email and quickly read the messages. Mama was worried when the other men returned, and I hadn't. "My men are safe."
"Thank goodness," Stephanie said, sighing in relief. "Did they complete your directive?" I looked at Stephanie in surprise. She shrugged. "My dad was in the military. I may have recalled him asking that question a few times."
"I was under the impression his family didn't know," I replied. "For your information, the men completed my mission."
"Pfft," Stephanie snorted. "My mom permanently resides in denial land. I briefly had a residence there until JJ died. Daddy and I didn't have secrets until the day I buried my son."
"Your father knew about Morelli abusing you and did nothing?" I quietly asked. Stephanie shivered, feeling the underlying rage emanating from every pore of my skin.
"Carlos," Stephanie said, caressing my cheek to calm my anger. She turned to face me, then held my face between her soft hands. "Daddy offered me a way out, but I refused to leave without Joey Jr." It was the first time she said her son's name. I saw the agony in her eyes. She was still grieving her son. "I told you what happened when I tried to leave."
Stephanie consoled me while she was the one who tragically lost a child. "Do you want more children?" I boldly asked when she released my face. Stephanie leaned against the headboard.
She shook her head and shrugged. "I wasn't interested in having a second child with my ex-husband. He messed with our contraceptives one time too much. Starting over scares me. You never said anything when you figured it out, but what do you know about me?"
"Everything," I replied honestly. "I had gaps in my memories when I first saw your face. You looked familiar, but I know we never met. Morelli told many lies about your marriage. He spun tales of your infidelity."
Stephanie rolled her eyes. "That doesn't shock me. Joe kept harassing me after our son died. I had to wait until the judge ruled on our divorce before leaving," she explained.
"How did you escape without him or anyone else stopping you?" I asked. It was a mystery.
"Oh, my God. It was a brilliant plan. I have a trusted friend. We never actually met face-to-face. Our communications happened in the dark web," Stephanie replied, her eyes sparkling mischievously. "He got me a passport, license and papers in my new name and one to use for travelling. My friend left me a car with everything hidden in the glove compartment. The key got tucked above the wheel well. I drove the car to the train station, then purchased a ticket to New York."
"Did you go to New York?" I asked despite knowing the answer.
Stephanie assessed me before replying, "You and I both know I didn't board the train. My friend left me wigs and clothes in a backpack. I used the washroom to change my appearance, then I exited through the other entrance and walked to the bus station."
"Where you purchased a ticket and board the bus?" I asked. Tank and I speculated Frank Plum assisted his daughter's escape, then hired Rangeman as a ruse to throw off suspicion.
"You're half right. I purchased a ticket to New York, but I climbed into the luggage compartment of the bus heading toward Philadelphia. Nobody noticed me. It smelled of gas and exhaust fumes. I'm lucky I didn't suffocate," Stephanie proudly replied. "I took a cab to the airport, caught a flight to Miami, then connected to the flight here."
"How did you purchase the airline ticket?" I asked. Our investigation ended at the bus terminal, where the trail ran cold.
"The ticket was waiting for me at the airport," she replied.
"What name did you use?" I asked.
Stephanie reached into the nightstand to grab an envelope. Two sets of documents and a cellphone fell onto my lap when I tipped it. Estefania Perez had dark blond straight hair. Michelle Pardo resembled Stephanie, but she had straight hair. It was that second set of identification that caused me to pause.
"Carlos, is something wrong?" Stephanie gently stroked my arm, attempting to get my attention.
"I know who helped you escape," I replied. "And it wasn't your father."
"Daddy didn't know I was leaving," Stephanie said, furrowing her brows. She thought for a few seconds before asking, "Why did you think it was Dad?"
"He hired us to search for you. I assumed it was to misdirect your mother and Morelli," I explained.
Stephanie snorted, "Daddy wouldn't have wasted his money if he helped me escape Trenton." She shook her head and huffed a few times. "Should I be worried about my friend?"
"No, but he owes me an explanation."
Stephanie pulled the laptop onto her lap. She went into a chat group on the dark net. I laughed when I saw her username. Principessa zucca to lágrima oscura. "¿Podemos hablar?" (Pumpkin Princess to dark teardrop. Can we talk?) Stephanie used the Google translator to speak to him in Spanish.
"Si," he quickly replied. "¿Estas segura y necesitas dinero?" (Are you safe, and do you need money?)
"I am. Thanks for asking. I have enough money for now," Stephanie replied, slipping into English. "Why Pardo?" I laughed when Stephanie got to the point. Her question quickly disappeared from the private chat. Someone was protecting her by deleting their conversation.
"Your husband is my boss," he replied. I barely read the sentence before it disappeared.
"Husband?" Stephanie asked aloud. "Carlos, can you pass me the papers?"
She returned to the chat after reading the marital status on her identification. "Marc Pardo is my husband? Why did you do that?" Stephanie asked aloud while typing her question.
"He can protect you," he replied. I knew Hector Hernandez was communicating with Stephanie. Hector knew where to find Stephanie all along, the sneak. Apparently, it wasn't his only secret. Hector spoke and understood English. I tucked that knowledge away for now.
"Is the asshole still causing waves?" Stephanie queried, making me laugh.
"Filed a missing persons report," he replied. Stephanie growled and pounded on the keyboard to respond.
"Why now? We're divorced. He needs to leave me alone." I wiped a tear from Stephanie's cheek. "Would I ever be safe from him?" Stephanie asked.
"Si. I won't let him hurt you ever again," he replied. "Let me know when you're ready to come home."
"You never told me your name," Stephanie typed.
"Check your burner phone. I won't say it online," he said. He deleted the conversation.
Stephanie grabbed the phone from my lap. "Do you know Hector Hernandez?" she asked.
"Yes. He works for Rangeman," I replied.
"How much trouble is Hector in?" Stephanie closed the chat box for the deep web, then put her laptop on the nightstand.
"None. Hector was protecting you." I returned the papers and identification to the envelope. Stephanie leaned over to place them inside the drawer. Her shirt slid up, showing the red lacy panties she wore.
I tugged Stephanie onto my lap. After pushing her panties aside, I plunged into her warmth. My ribs protested, but I couldn't get enough of the woman. "Ahh," she moaned. Her back was against my chest. I plucked her nipples as she moved up and down.
"Babe, don't move. Use your muscles," I whispered. It was too much movement for my ribs. The squeeze of her vaginal walls made me cum too soon. She screamed my name as she shattered with me.
Stephanie carefully got off my lap and went to the washroom to clean. I could hear her crying when the tap turned on. Dios! We didn't use a condom. Everything about Stephanie made me dismiss logic. I groaned as I pulled the shorts up my legs. My ribs ached from bending over. I slowly climbed out of bed and joined Stephanie in the washroom.
"Why are you in here?" Stephanie whispered. She leaned against the sink and lowered her head, hiding her face from view using her hair as a curtain.
"Babe, tell me what's wrong," I asked. "Please." I wasn't beneath begging her to communicate.
"What happens when you go home? I've been searching all my life for a man like you," she quietly said. I knew there was more behind the tears than my pending departure. Whatever bothered her, I prayed she'd tell me before it was too late.
"You can come home with me," I replied without thinking.
"I'm not ready to do that."
"Stephanie," I said. She gasped when I spoke her full name. "This is new to me too."
"What do you mean?"
"I have never felt this way about a woman before," I confessed. She turned to look into my eyes and wondered how to interpret my words. "We have an indescribable connection, Babe."
Stephanie snorted. "Soldiers tend to fall in love with their nurses. It's the Florence Nightingale phenomenon," she dismissively stated.
"No," I replied. I raised her hand and placed it over my heart. "You settled in here. Leaving you behind will hurt."
"You, leaving me behind will hurt," she whispered. "But I need more time."
"I'm here until I heal and complete physiotherapy," I added.
"Carlos, you have a business to run," she said. "The men need you more."
"We'll table this discussion for now." Stephanie exhaled a sigh of relief. "We can afford to concentrate on our corner of paradise before I go home," I offered.
Neither Stephanie nor I broached the subject again. I was in love with Stephanie Plum. She was mine as much as I was hers.