Ok. Thanks! :)
Chapter 5
Ranger -
I decided to hit the gym after dinner with Steph. I had a lot of restless energy and hopped on the treadmill to run it off. I ran, and thought about tonight. She'd done most of the talking, as usual, but it felt different. It felt ... closer, which is why I'd gone against all my carefully-enacted rules for Steph and kissed her. We'd been almost strictly professional since she came to Rangeman full time. I figured I shouldn't analyze it too much.
What I should analyze is which one of my men is camera happy. We'd talked about it at dinner. We haven't brought anyone else into the loop, mostly because I wasn't overly worried and Steph's spidey sense wasn't activated. Between us, our instincts were generally reliable.
Finally feeling settled enough for sleep, I headed up to seven, showered, and pulled my prized possession from the nightstand drawer and set it out as I had the last two nights. I'd put it away when I got up in the morning but, for now, I could imagine Steph was here.
-
I would have beat the fuck out of this jackass if it wouldn't have added an hour onto the TPD stop. This shit only happened with Steph. She convinced me last night to help her help Lula with a wily skip. Lula took Steph's position when she quit, and was doing a decent job of it. But she was struggling with this guy, and Steph is a pushover for her friends. That is the ONLY explanation why I was standing here, soaking wet, waiting for Steph to bring me a towel from the back of the Expedition. She was doing a shitty job of hiding her glee at our reversed roles. When she could no longer hold it in, and her laughter burst through, I flipped my towel around her neck and pulled her to me. She grinned and squirmed to get away from the cold wet, jarring the unconscious skip awake. Fucker.
Pulling into the garage soon after, Steph said, "This was fun, Ranger. We should get out of the office more."
I didn't tell her I usually "get out of the office" with Tank when we're going stir crazy from paperwork. We don't hit the streets as often anymore, leaving the daily pick ups to some of the other guys, but we still thrive on the hunt. Well, and the fight. And we don't chase skips whose weapon of choice was a bucket of water - our skips shoot bullets.
"Yeah, Babe. Just what I was thinking." I ruffled her hair, and started toward the steps, "Don't forget the Feds are coming this afternoon about that new case. I'll see you later - gotta change first."
Before I got very far, I heard "Ranger!" I turned back to her. "Thank you."
"No price, Babe."