Honestly, the story is driving me, not the other way around and I'm not quite sure where this chapter came from.
Not mine and Ranger acts a little crazy/ angst-y/ completely insane in this chapter.
Ranger's POV
Taking a break from all the paperwork, I leaned back in my chair and stared at the picture Stephanie on my desk. She was about twenty five weeks pregnant now and allowed me to take a picture of her last night on one condition- that I was the only one to see it.
She was beautifully pregnant.
And naked.
She was lying on the bed, cradling our unborn son in her arms who was still growing and warm inside her, looking at him with awe and all the love in her heart.
This picture had the power to make my blood boil and to calm me down.
I was brought out of my reverie when there was a knock on my door.
"Enter." I barked. In the doorway stood Jeanne Ellen. "Hello Jeanne."
"Hello Ranger. Long time, no see."
"Good mission, I presume."
"Got done three months ahead of schedule. I also heard a wild rumor about you."
"Oh yeah? What's that?"
"That you retired."
I nodded my head once. "It's true."
"I never thought I'd see the day when the Mighty Ranger Manoso retired from the army."
"It was time and I had a change in priorities."
"It wouldn't have anything to do with Stephanie, would it?"
I didn't respond. "Why are you here, Jeanne?"
"I figured we could spend some time getting reacquainted. Just like old times. You know, go down to four and…" She trailed off seductively, something that wasn't lost on me, but didn't work anymore. Not since I had Stephanie in our bed every night…
And every morning…
Even sometimes in the middle of the afternoon depending on her hormones.
"Sorry to disappoint Jeanne, but I'm going to pass."
"Oh? So you're finally with Stephanie?"
I nodded my head. "We've been married for five and a half months." Five and a half fabulous months.
"Thanks, but I'll pass. Stephanie is all I'll need."
Before she could respond, my beautiful wife walked in. She looked amazing with her eyes half focused, beautiful belly and her crazy hair going in every direction. Just the way I liked it.
"Hey, Babe." I said, getting up and kissing her senseless.
"Hi."
"Have a good nap?"
"Mmhmm." She said. "Got any searches for me?"
"Waiting in your office."
She kissed me lightly once more. "I'll see you later."
"Count on it." I wolf grinned and smacked her butt once. She squeaked, but added an extra swing into her hips as she left.
"Didn't see you as the daddy type, Ranger."
I turned back to Jeanne. "I wasn't until I met her. We're done here. We can be friends, but no more benefits."
"That's fine. The offer still stands in case she can't or won't satisfy you."
I nodded once and she left. I didn't plan on using it because every time we made love, Stephanie left me completely satisfied. More satisfied than I've ever been with any other woman.
I worked for a few more hours, and then headed towards Stephanie's office so we could head home. Knocking once before I entered, I found it empty. Huh, she hadn't said good-bye.
And then I saw it.
Her rings glittered on her desk.
Oh no, she wouldn't.
After grabbing her rings, I walked/ ran towards the control room. "Can you tell me where Stephanie is?"
Hal tapped a few buttons. "She's at the Batcave." He said. Ever since the guys found out Stephanie called home the Batcave, they've been doing it too.
I swear, her pregnancy has made me more tolerable. The old Ranger would have ripped them to shreds.
I was going soft.
I nodded to Hal and ran back to get my keys before heading towards the elevator. Hopefully I could catch her before she could leave me forever.
Making it home in ten minutes, I ran from the garage to the kitchen door.
"Babe?" I called, praying she was still here.
"Hi, Carlos." She said, kissing me on the forehead, when I found her in the bedroom. "I was going to take a bath, you want to join me?"
Huh?
I pulled her into my arms. "Babe, please don't leave me. Jeanne is just a friend. There was nothing serious going on between us and I'm faithful only to you. You're the only girl for me."
"That's great. You joining me or what."
"So you're not leaving me?"
She looked confused. "Why would I do that? I trust you not to cheat on me."
I held up her rings. "You left these at the office."
"That's where I left them! God, pregnancy brain hits again. I swear, if our son wasn't attached to my insides, I'd lose him too." She slipped on the rings and sighed happily.
Pregnancy brain? What the…
"Every once in a while, I get absent minded. Glad to see your brain hasn't gone missing."
"I don't get it. Why didn't you say goodbye to me?"
She pushed me into the bathroom and removed our clothes. "You were having a conference call with Boston. I didn't want to disturb you." She then pushed me towards the tub.
"So you never thought of leaving me because Jeanne tried to proposition me?"
"No, why would I do that? Honestly, Carlos, you're acting like a hormonal woman."
God, I was going soft.
"If I left you every time a woman came onto you, I'd have left you about fifty times. This week." She positioned herself in the curve of my body. "You want to begin what I'm sure will be a hilarious tale from the beginning?"
"Jeanne came in and told me if you didn't satisfy me in any way that she'd take care of it. And when I came to get you to go home, you had already gone and left your rings at work. I thought you left me because you were feeling insecure about Jeanne being there or something. I can't handle you leaving me, Steph. Please don't leave me."
She turned in my arms. "You are so cute. You've told me and showed me all the different ways you love my new body and that you would never cheat on me and I trust you. Sure, my hormones get out of whack a lot, but the one day they're normal, you've got the crazy hormones. Imagine that." She smiled at me. "Maybe we're more connected in this pregnancy than we originally thought."
"The day I eat Tastykakes as a food group is the day I'm getting my gun and killing myself."
She smirked. "There's time yet, Batman."
Later, after I had shown her the many ways I love her expanding body, she showed me something extraordinary.
"Lay your head on my stomach." She said.
"What?"
She sighed and rolled her eyes. "Just do it. You've done it millions of times before. The doctor said it won't hurt the baby."
I looked at her warily.
"Do it, or I'll cry."
God no, not the tears. Anything but my Babe's tears. A third world country would be less painful. I placed my head on her stomach.
"This is insane."
"Shut up. What do you hear?"
"Nothing. I hear…"
His heartbeat. I locked eyes with her and she smiled.
"Holy shit."
She laughed.
"Babe, this is the coolest thing ever."
She smiled. "I know."
I kissed her once and for the rest of the night, listened to the strong thudding of our sons' heart.
