A/N Everything you recognize belongs to Janet Evanovich. Thank you to Kathy's amazing beta skills, Heather for all her sound advice and encouragement and Lisa who did a little of both! Without you all, this story would not have happened.

~Chapter 7

***Apr 12

SPOV

I walk into the office the next morning feeling good. The salad I ate for dinner balanced out the crazy I ate for lunch yesterday. I'm hungry, but I'm going to be very selective in what I choose for the next couple of days. The promise I made to myself about not eating junk food ever again is crap but I'm going to eat healthy until I crave the junk. I put my bag in my bottom drawer and check out my inbox. It's full, big surprise! I get the first few searches running. I using every available computer. Once that's done, I go into the break room for some coffee and breakfast. I run into Ella and she pulls me into a hug. She whispers "Thank you" into my ear. We cannot openly discuss anything that happened so this is all we show.

The mood in the office is just a little off. The whispering is quiet and I know the gossip is circulating. Rangeman is different from the Burg but gossip is gossip even without judgment.

I start the next round of searches and start going through Kelsey's duties. I re-assign her jobs to various Merry Men, Tank getting back the bulk of it. I have to show him a few things about the new software. It's still far less than he was doing before so he isn't that mad.

"Are we going to list the job again?" I asked him and he grunted. I didn't know how to interpret that but I let it go. I'll ask Ranger later.

Les walks over to my cubicle and shocks the crap out of me. I thought he would be home dealing with this but no, here he is.

"Oh Les, I'm so sorry!" I tell him and stand to give him a hug.

"No, I'm sorry," he tells me. "I should have known that if she was asking me to choose her over my friends, it wasn't going to work."

"You did what you had to do. I understand. You had to try to make it work. Why aren't you taking some time off to recover?" I ask. "You've been through a lot."

"I need to keep busy," he says simply. I get it. I would just channel my emotions into eating and be twice as miserable. Working seems like a better idea.

"Well, I'm here if you need me." I squeeze his arm "How about we get the guys together and go to Shorty's? I bet in your weakened state, I can whip your butt at pool," I say and Les looks apprehensive.

"Don't worry, it'll just be us guys." I say, deepening my voice. "No chicks."

"We can relax and drink and tell embarrassing stories about ourselves. Pretty much like normal." I add and I see the point where I have him convinced. He even starts to look hopeful and I correctly guess where his mind went.

"I am NOT, I repeat, NOT going to a strip club." I say emphatically and he can't quite wipe the smirk off his face to look crestfallen. "I may be one of the guys but I am not interested in looking at big boobs and flossed asses." I add, as his face has taken on the wistful look again. "You can do that tomorrow. I'm sure the guys will be more than happy to go with you tomorrow. Tonight we will go to Shorty's."

All of the available guys were on board with the plan, they had already heard news via the gossip line. I'm really happy that everyone rallies around Les to go out and support him. I'm sure they will rally around him for the strip club too. I roll my eyes.

We commandeer three large booths in the back by the pool tables. The beer is flowing and the conversation is happy as I steer the discussion to embarrassing stories. I tell everyone about chasing my skip on the nude beach. I hadn't even told Ranger about that one. Lula and I chasing that stupid nude bartender had been quite a sight. Ranger doesn't share any embarrassing stories but Les shares one from their youth. Apparently Les and Ranger were trying to impress some girls and buy some alcohol when one of the girls got sick and threw up on Ranger. He was in the process of cleaning it up when her parents arrived. Her friend had called them. Ranger was standing there covered in vomit trying to explain why their daughter was drunk and why she was calling him 'Papi Chulo'. I have to ask what that means and everyone roars with laughter, well, everyone but Ranger. He is carefully studying his boots. I look around and that makes everyone laugh harder.

I really have to learn Spanish! Ugh, I pull out my phone and Google it. My mouth drops open when I read 'pimp daddy' on the screen. Holy Shit! I start laughing. I can't get the image of Ranger looking at this girl's dad with her calling him that. That sets us off on lots of embarrassing and highly entertaining stories for the evening. I feel that we have more than enough ammo to blast each other for the rest of our lives. The evening goes well and since most of us are comfortably buzzed, we all have designated drivers. Ranger is mine. He stayed boringly sober and I call him Papi Chulo for the rest of the night. He doesn't seem to mind.

***Apr 13

"It's morning already?" I ask Ranger as he sits on the corner of the bed. "I want to go back to sleep." I try to pull the sheet over my head to block out the overhead light he turned on.

"Get up sleepy head. You have a lot to do. You're still filling in as office manager until we find someone. I have a meeting offsite or I would cover for you."

"You're the reason I don't want to get up. You should cover for me."

"Come on, I'll make it up to you later. I'll get you a cake."

"What kind of cake?" I ask, opening one eye.

He smiles at me. "A big one. Now get up."

He leaves to go get into the shower and I close my one eye. On the one hand, if I fall back to sleep, I get to sleep more. On the other hand, I get cake. Now Ranger's idea of cake is not necessarily the same as mine but who am I kidding, it's still cake.

"Ok, I'll get up. It had better be a birthday cake." I mumble on my way into the bathroom. I take care of business and am washing my hands when the shower turns off. I'm treated to a dripping wet Ranger dressed in nothing but a towel. Nice.

"Stop looking at me like that or I'll be late for my meeting," he says, hurrying into the closet to get dressed. Since he has an offsite meeting then maybe I'll get to see corporate Ranger. He's definitely in my top three. Naked Ranger is number one. Casual Ranger is number two. I've never seen Ranger in his army fatigues but I'm holding a position in my top five just in case.

"Babe. What in the world are you doing?" he asks, coming out of the closet fully dressed.

"What?" I ask, not sure what exactly he's asking.

"You rinsed the toothpaste off your brush." he says with a smirk. He comes out of the closet with his tie hanging around his neck and pulling his belt through his belt loops. He has on a black Armani suit with a crisp white shirt. He looks amazing.

"Sorry. I was distracted." I say with only a minimum of redness staining my cheeks. I busy myself with re-doing my toothbrush and begin brushing. I would normally have jumped in the shower but I would have missed seeing Ranger off so I'm going through my routine backwards. It's a sacrifice I'm willing to make. I smile at my own humor.

"I would love to know what is going through that brain of yours."

"I plead the fifth." I say and he walks up to the mirror next to me to tie his tie. A smile is still playing on his face.

"So, I have to go to the Bonds Office today to pick up my files. I'll go at lunchtime and I won't be gone too long." I say to him. When he doesn't respond, I walk over to the shower and turn it on before adding, "don't forget my birthday cake."

I don't hear a reply, but I know Batman has supersonic hearing so I know he heard me.

The morning progresses quickly and I make sure all of the systems are working seamlessly. It's good to do periodic checks so problems can be addressed quickly. Everything checks out and I'm able to help with searches to catch everyone up. Now that everything is automatic, there is less to do to keep everything running. Poor Tank had so much of this piled on his plate before, I'm surprised he didn't quit.

I look at my watch and it's 11:30. My stomach takes that cue and starts to rumble. I guess it's time to head out. I grab my bag and head to the garage to my 2013 Ford Focus. This is not one of my favorite cars but it does the job. I haven't had it very long and won't miss it at all when it goes to car heaven. It doesn't have any fun features but it does have AC in the winter and heated seats in the summer. I crack myself up. If I could only keep a car longer than a few months then I would spurge on the modern conveniences.

I decide to stop at McDonalds today. I'm craving an apple pie. I get an extra meal, milkshake and pie. I'm sure someone will eat it. I arrive at the Bonds Office at a little after 12:00.

"Hey ya'll" I say with a southern accent.

"What' cha doing white girl. You got anything in that bag for me?" Lula asks as I come in with the food and drink containers.

"I may have something extra in here." I hedge and pull out my food. I put the rest of the bag on the table and pick up my milkshake. Connie gets up and comes over to look.

"I didn't bring anything so you're gonna have to share." she tells Lula.

They split up the food and we have it eaten in no time. Connie gives me the files and asks if I want to take the one for Rangeman. I agree and we spend a few more minutes sharing Burg gossip. I find out that one of my high school teachers is now dating Connie's uncle, there was a power outage and the dry cleaners that I worked for caught fire. Oh, and Joe is back to telling everyone we're getting back together. Perfect.

I arrive back to Haywood and finish my afternoon splitting my time between admin stuff and searches. It's now 5:00pm and I pick up my bag to go home. I assume that Ranger is going to bring my birthday cake to me. I check in on Rex and busy myself with cleaning his cage and giving him all new bedding. I look around and decide that I have done enough cleaning for one day and plop myself on the couch. I scan Netflix for new shows to watch. I settle on The Blacklist. It's quite a few seasons so I have avoided it in the past but I'm interested in the storyline so I start the first episode.

Halfway through the third episode my stomach revolts. I pause the show to look in the fridge. I already know there is nothing spectacular but I look anyway. I was hoping Ranger would have made an appearance by now . Ugh. This is why I want to be in a relationship. I want the security of knowing that my boyfriend is going to show up and if not then I want to know why. None of this keeping me in the dark crap. I get that Ranger is probably busy but waiting and not knowing sucks. I pull out my trusty jar of peanut butter and worthless white bread. I'm out of olives so I'm stuck with just the peanut butter sandwich.

I take my drink and sandwich back into the living room and resume the show. I finished the first four episodes and know that I won't make a fifth so I turn it off and get ready for bed. I'm a little irritated that Ranger didn't show up with my cake and that I was really just waiting for him. I really need to figure this out but right now my bed is calling and that requires way less effort. I'll deal with my emotions when I'm not so sleepy.

***Apr 14

The next morning arrives with a dark and gloomy sky. I would think that it was indicative of my mood except Trenton gets its fair share of dark and gloomy skies and thankfully I don't have that many gloomy spirit days. I go through my morning routine of showering and dressing for work. I plan on working the morning for Rangeman and the afternoon chasing skips. I skip the coffee and breakfast at my apartment since I have nothing in the way of food and I'm out of creamer. Rangeman has lots of both so it's not a tough decision.

I get off the elevator on the fifth floor and find it business as usual. I put my bag in my desk drawer and key in my first search. While that's running, I have time to get breakfast and coffee in the break room. I see Ella in there and I ask her how the new changes are going.

"Oh Stephanie, it's great." she gushes. "I didn't realize how much time cleaning the building took me. I'm so glad you suggested it. I have more time to look into meals and Louis is starting my greenhouse construction on the roof next week."

"I'm so glad. I really didn't know how you got everything done. You were running yourself ragged."

"I know, but I love these guys and I'd do anything for them."

"Yep. I know how you feel. This place is like a family to me. They are actually more loving than my real family." I say, telling her the truth. I go about making my coffee and look in the fridge for cream cheese for my bagel.

"Stop by six. I may or may not have some extra brownies I made for Louis last night," she says, giving me a wink before heading out the door.

"I'll be there." I yell to her.

I stop in front of Tank's office and knock on the door. "Come in," he says in his deep baritone.

"Hey Big Guy, having any problems with the software?" I ask.

"Nope. Everything is running smoothly. The problems I'm having are from the guys entering the wrong information. If you can beat some sense into them, that would be great," he says, smiling.

"I'll leave that to you." I tell him. "Ok, I only have a handful of searches that I'm running so I'll take care of that and head out. My skips aren't going to catch themselves." I add, turning to walk through the door.

"If you need help just holler," he says to me as I walked out. I bump into Les on the way to the printer.

"Hey Beautiful. Guess what?" he asks and I look at him expectantly. "We got the Canter account."

My eyes get big. "Oh That's great!"

"Shhh. It's still a secret. The Boss is going to announce it Monday morning. I think he's going to throw a party for us as a thank you but shhh, you didn't hear it from me," he says on a whisper.

"Mums the word," I tell him, making a fake zipping motion over my lips. Maybe that's why Ranger couldn't stop by yesterday. Sometime between then and now my irritation morphed into disappointment.

The day goes by quickly and I find myself in front of the TV again. This time I have a meatball sub from Pino's. I watch two more episodes of The Blacklist, and have just started the third when I hear my locks tumble.

Checking to make sure my hair wasn't standing on end and I have no sauce stains on my shirt are the only things I could do before Ranger is standing in front of me with a cake. More than one of my fantasies involve Ranger and a birthday suit ... and cake. I look down to gather up my garbage and hide my suspiciously pink cheeks.

"I have your cake," he says, as he leans down to kiss me. I pull the box out of his hands and peek inside. Yep, it's a birthday cake alright. It doesn't even have someone else's name on it. It does, however, have 'You're Welcome' written in pretty pink icing. I'm confused.

"What does this mean?" I ask him.

"Well, I was hoping you would be so excited for the cake," he starts with his hands on my hips and kissing my neck. "That you would be too busy thanking me and by the time you finally got a chance to open the box" he removes the box from my hands and places it on the coffee table, before resuming his exploration. "I would be saying you're welcome to you for the, ahhhh cake," he says in the deep sexy voice that gives me chills.

"Oh, is that so?" I ask, smiling at his playfulness. "What happens now that I saw the 'you're welcome' message?"

"Pretty much the same thing," he says lifting me up and carrying me to the bedroom. It was an hour and a half before I sent him out to get the cake and a fork.

***April 15

The next day, I'm sitting at my desk doing searches when I get a fabulous idea. I pull out the container with the last piece of cake from yesterday. I look up at the control room floor. I can hear the normal cadence of noise so I know Ranger's not on the floor. I walk to the printer to check on my reports and glance down at his door. His office is open and his light is off. This means he's not in residence. I circle back to get my cake and a few things from the break room.

I have to work to get my focus back on the three potential employee background searches since I am not doing well in my current state. I shake my head and give up. I go to the break room and sit with Hal and Cal while I try to get my mind off the cake. The cake in Ranger's office.

It works, before I know it, I hear "Stephanie. I can't get this to work. I need your help with this data" and I look up to see Ranger standing at the door. "This may take awhile so grab me some water too," he says, and I almost believe him. Almost.

The rest of the afternoon we work in his office with the door locked and the camera scrambled.

Ranger is taking a turn in his attached bathroom as I look at the sticky note that had fallen to the floor. I had written 'A you're welcome piece from me...' That thought made me smile as we both have a lot to be thankful for. He comes out looking mostly presentable and I slide by with my clothes in my hands. I fear I won't quite be so lucky. I really need to keep some supplies in this bathroom too. I pull my hair in a ponytail and fix as much as I can. Oh well. As long as I don't run into Les. He's the only one who will comment. He's the only one with a death wish.

***Apr 16

Today is Saturday and I usually work a few hours in the Bonds Office. Lula shows up about an hour after I do. Unfortunately the donuts are not to her liking and she's in a mood.

"Come on. Let's go," she urges.

"I can't. Money is really tight right now. I'm watching every penny." I reply.

"You know, you could always marry Batman or have his bat baby, then you would be set for life," she says, while I was drinking my last sip of coffee. I choked and spewed coffee everywhere. Thankfully the coffee had cooled a bit or it would have been a really bad day. I frantically get a tissue and clean up the mess. I shoot her a dirty look. "Not cool".

Connie and Lula both are still laughing and I decided this is a perfect time to go home and go back to bed. On my way out, I see a Rangeman SUV with the newbie Tyler heading in so I hold the door for him. Lula was still talking about me marrying Batman and having a Bat-baby to promote my financial freedom. I ignore her. I really hope Tyler doesn't know who Batman is. That would be awkward. I wave to Bobby in the truck and get in my crap car and drive home. Some days I wish I would've just stayed in bed. Actually I wish that most days. Ugh.

***Apr 18

The announcement comes in on Monday. We got the Canter account. This is a big account. It'll probably net us somewhere between one and two million in generated revenue. We're all so excited and the mood around the office kicks up a notch. As a celebration, Ranger is planning to rent a beach house for the weekend and is giving everyone an immediate bonus of 5k. Any of the employees can come to the beach party and we have a signup sheet to make sure everyone gets to participate. I'm so excited because it's in Point Pleasant right on the beach and just a short walk to the boardwalk. We are going to have such a great time.

I take Lula and head to the mall. A new bikini and sundress are on my list. I found a really cute suit and it looks awesome on me. It's the traditional bikini with strings and everything. A lot of the suits nowadays have really cheeky bottoms and while I do wear a thong as underwear, I prefer my cheeks covered from the sun and horny co-workers. After I buy the bikini, I have to get a new wrap and new sandals and new sunglasses. Oh, I need a beach bag too. Needless to say, I'm going to spend a lot of time and money here today.

A few days later, I have a low level bond to pick up and I want back up. I want better backup than Lula, I mean. Technically he's a low level bond but he shouldn't be. He's a lunatic. He's charged with breaking and entering. Problem is, he was probably trying to kill his baby mama. She called the police and he was only charged with B & E.

I have to go pick him up for the measly $300. He's crazy by all accounts and his ex-girlfriend is scared to death of him. She really wants me to get him so she can relax. She told me that he really doesn't want her to have this baby and she's working on disappearing so she and the baby can have a life.

Lula was okay with me asking Ranger for a Merry Man as a ride along and all three of us are seated in the black SUV heading toward Chester's mother's house. What is it about psychos and their mothers?

"I don't know why the little weasel doesn't want her to have the baby?" Lula says, It's not like she's demanding child support or nothin'."

"I know. She does deserve child support though. She works as a cashier and he makes FIVE times what she makes for crying out loud," I say with determination in my voice. "Val didn't get shit from her cheating ex and she struggled for a while. She's still struggling."

"But him being a psychopath and all puts a damper on that." Lula responds.

"Yeah, that does put a damper on their relationship..." I say in a pretend male voice.

"Is that one of them quotes from that stupid movie you like?" she asks me.

"Yeah, it's from The Princess Bride." I tell her. "You need to watch it." I tell her for the hundredth time.

"I ain't watchin' no bride movie," she says and I see Manny smirk. Ha. He's seen it! Good to know that some of the Merry Men are civilized.

"It's a classic!" I tell her and let the matter drop. We just pulled up to the house . Movie chat is done, we got us an asshole to catch.

The takedown doesn't go very well. If it hadn't been for Manny, it would have been bad. Lula freaked and pulled her gun. I guess his ex-girlfriend was related to someone Lula worked for and it was personal.

Thankfully no one was shot and there was only minimal damage to the house, specifically the kitchen table and all four chairs. A threat to his mother ensured we wouldn't be facing any complaint charges of excessive force or destruction of property. Thanks to Manny for that too.

I'm relaying the events to Ranger and he is giving me a scowl.

"I know, Lula isn't always the best partner." I tell him.

"That's an understatement," he replies. "I would like for you to take one of my men anytime she goes with you. "

"I don't think that'll work. How about I try to only take her on my regulars?" I offer.

"So you'll go alone with everyone else? I don't know which scenario is worse," he says looking like just the thought of that pains him.

"I'll be careful. I promise," I try to reassure him. He doesn't look convinced but he doesn't fight me on it. The Bonds Office has been slow and I have a feeling that it's about to get slower. I wouldn't put it past him to take even more middle range bonds to keep me safe. Unfortunately, it puts me in a financial crisis and makes me dependent on his charity. Ugh.

RPOV

I hate that Steph has to partner with Lula. She makes her job harder and much more dangerous. Manny gave me a report on the capture and I wanted to strangle Lula. I shake my head. I have meetings straight through lunch and into the evening so I grab a few protein bars. I get a call after my meeting with the Alphabet agencies on the incendiary device used with the Lucas Diaz case. They still don't have many leads on what's going on. It was noted that the device has ties to an ex-CIA operative that was recently discharged from service. This is starting to get traction and will probably end up with a task force in the next few months.

"Yo?" I answer. I know it's Stephanie and it makes me happy just to hear her voice. I don't clue her in to that fact. I like where we are now. I don't want to scare her away but I don't want to lead her on.

"Yo yourself." she responds. "What do you need me to get for the party this weekend?"

"Nothing. I split up the list with the guys." I tell her and she's quiet. "I want you to relax and have fun." I add, trying to fix whatever's wrong.

"Okay," she says after a few seconds. "If you need something last minute, let me know."

"Thanks but I think we have everything covered." I reassure her.

***Apr 21

SPOV

I had called Val earlier in the week. I'm excited to tell her that I got three thousand dollars for her. We made plans for lunch today. I expected the money would hit my account in a couple of days so I was confident that by today, I would be able to hand her a bank envelope with cash.

I walk into Pino's right at noon. Val was alone and sitting at a booth off to the side. I slide in across from her. "Thanks for everything Steph," she says as a greeting.

"No problem. I'm glad I'm able to help." I tell her.

"This is going to help so much. Albert hasn't had a client for two months and we're behind on our mortgage plus his rent is going up," she explains. "I have been so stressed about this. I can't tell you how big a relief it is not to have to worry. We are almost caught up. I would die if I have to ask Mom and Dad for help. I would never hear the end of it."

"Oh, I know. You would hear how so and so's daughter isn't borrowing money from her parents." I say the last part trying to imitate my mother's voice. We both laugh.

The rest of lunch is going well until none other than Joe Morelli walked in.

"Ugh" I say to Val. "Please make it so he doesn't see me."

"You still haven't forgiven him for the article?" asks Val.

"It's not like that." I tell her, irritated that she may be implying that it's just a matter of time before I go back to that jerk. "It doesn't matter. All that matters is that we are done and we are never getting back together," I say as he comes to our table and with his body, pushes me in the booth to sit down. I had maintained my position so there wasn't enough room for him to sit but he just slid me over, essentially trapping me in.

"Excuse me?" I say hotly. "We are having a private conversation and you are NOT invited."

"I just wanted to say hi," he says with a big smile. "How are the Plum sisters today?"

"Good." Val chimes in, smiling. What the hell Val?

"Move please. I want you to get out," I say, as anger starts to build.

"No problem, I will leave you girls to chat. I just wanted to say hi." He looks back and forth from me to Val. Thankfully he slides out of the booth and stands. "I'll see you later Cupcake," he adds and walks away.

I don't want to cause a scene so I don't hurl the insults at him that he deserves. The nerve of that man. I look at Valerie. She's dreamily watching Joe walking away. WTF? I was going to go into this long diatribe but judging by the fact that Val is still staring at Joe, I save my breath. Instead, I say. "I'm never getting back together with him. Ever." I emphasize ever. I want to make sure she understands. Ugh. She isn't listening. "Are you kidding me?" I finally ask her.

"What? He's so hot," she says. "I can't believe you got to sleep with him."

"What? Valerie! He's an ass." I exclaim.

"Yeah. He has a great ass," she replies, still watching him.

"Oh forget it." I mutter looking at my watch. Where the hell is our food? I want this lunch over with and away from love sick Valerie. Thankfully our food came a few minutes later and I'm able to chat about meaningless stuff while we eat. We say our goodbyes and part with a quick hug. Thankfully I don't see Joe in the parking lot. I wouldn't put it past him to be waiting for me. I head back to the Bonds Office and check in. There are no low bonds for me so I head home. I could go back to Rangeman and work but I need a nap. Lunch with Val and seeing Joe zapped my energy. I change my mind and take a relaxing bath and give myself a pedicure instead. I didn't want to get my sleep schedule screwed up before going to the beach. I finish the evening packing and I'm ready to crawl in bed when I get a text from Ranger.

From Ranger: R u ready for the beach?

From Steph: Yep. I'm packed and ready to go.

From Ranger: I have a lot to get done before I can leave.

From Steph: I can help. What do you need?

From Ranger: Can you come over now?

Crap. I look down at my pj's. I guess I can change. It's only ten. I was going to lay on the couch watching tv until I got sleepy.

From Steph: Sure. B there in a few.

I debate whether I should bring Rex and my bags so I don't have to come back here tomorrow. I'll just bring everything in case. I'm most likely going to stay over tonight so there's no sense in coming back if I don't need to.

I arrive at Haywood 30 minutes later. I leave my bags in the car and make my way up to seven. I have Rex's aquarium under my arm and my messenger bag on my other shoulder. I'm not sure if Ranger is in the apartment or on five but I want to put Rex down. He's a dead giveaway that I am planning on spending the night. I fob my way in and put Rex in his temporary home and get him settled. He's usually jittery after traveling so I brought him a special snack. I open the pop tart pack and break off a corner. I speak softly to him to try and coax him out.

"It's okay little guy. You can come get it." I say to him. After about 30 seconds I see his nose twitch out of the can. "That's a good boy, you are going to be just fine." I say relieved that he's okay now. I turn to see Ranger leaning against the counter. He has his thinking about smiling look. "What? He has a hard time traveling." I say and go over to him to step into his arms. He pulls me close and gives me a kiss. The moment is weirdly domestic and intimate at the same time. I enjoy every second of it.

Ranger pulls back and asks, "Can you run payroll while I continue to catch up on the reports this week? I don't want all of this waiting for me on Sunday night."

"Sure." I answer. "Do I need to merge the time sheets and get everything ready for the wire transfer too?"

"That would be great. We're running on a skeleton crew for the next two and a half days so the more we can do the better."

We both get to work and complete all the tasks we had discussed plus a few more that came up as we were working. I shut down Ranger's PC and he closes his laptop. It's after midnight and I am getting sleepy. I stifle a yawn and Ranger pulls me out of his chair.

"Let's get ready for bed." He tells me as he pulls me into the bathroom. I grab my toothbrush from my drawer and use my sink. I have commandeered quite a bit of space in Ranger's life. I have duplicates of all of my toiletries here so I don't have to carry my things back and forth. It's nice. We brush our teeth side by side and it makes me happy and I realize that I really want this. The thought of cohabitating with Joe was anxiety-inducing but with Ranger it feels right. I don't dare look at him for fear of him reading my thoughts. Instead, I busy myself washing my face and putting everything away. A quick trip answering nature's call and I'm back at the sink washing my hands. I take a few minutes longer so I can gather my strength and shove my domestic thoughts deep into the land of denial. I have right now. I have this moment and I want to make the best of it.

Ranger has beaten me to bed. He's laying propped up against the headboard bare to the waist. At least that's as far as I can tell. The sheet is draped across his hips giving me a peak at the V his abs make before being rudely covered by the sheet. I stop at the edge of the bed and pause. The lights are dim but his bed side lamp is on, casting a shadow over him adding to the allure. In a bold move, I shimmy my shorts off. I pull my shirt off slowly exposing a little belly at a time. I'm searching his face. He's looking at my body as it moves with each small action. I'm starting to feel self conscious and am tempted to stop. I want to just jump in bed and cover up but he gives me a smile and I'm emboldened to continue. Standing there in my bra and panties, I repeat the shimmy action this time with panties. Finally I reach behind my back and unclip my bra. I let it fall to the floor and slowly spin around. I crawl onto the bed toward Ranger. His eyes are now locked with mine. I pull back the covers and crawl in. I turn my back to him and say "Okay. Goodnight." and pretend to sleep. In two seconds flat, I am pressed against a very hot, very hard Cuban male. "I don't think so Babe." and those were the last coherent words spoken for the night.