Unapologize

By: PricklySare

Chapter Two: Steph's POV

I was finishing up a search when I felt the tell all tingle shoot down my neck alerting me to Ranger's arrival. He'd been out of the office or behind closed doors in meetings for most of the day and I hadn't seen much of him. I'd missed him. Without turning around I acknowledged his presence with a "Hey, Ranger." I could feel his smile like a physical caress. I was amusing him, and that was okay. We were okay. Recently we'd been spending more time together, and I could tell that Ranger was slowly opening up to me. Morelli and I called it quits, again, a few months ago. Apparently I was a lousy girlfriend. That too was okay, since he was a lousy boyfriend. I'm pretty sure that there won't be another 'on again' phase.

"Babe." Ranger is my very own Man of Mystery, my personal Dark Knight. A master at conveying a wealth of information and emotion in a single word. Does it get annoying? Are there times that I want to ring his neck, providing I could actually get my hands around his neck? Yes, to all. However, whenever he says, 'Babe' I understand everything he isn't saying. This time he sounded tired, and a little tense. I turned around and looked at him, needing to take in his appearance in order to better understand. Yep, he was definitely tired. "You look tired. Everything okay?" I asked.

"Long day." He replied. He'd been getting better at not hiding his feelings behind his 'blank face' recently, and I was glad that this time was no exception.

I looked at the time on my computer. Holy Shit, I'd missed dinner at my parents' again. Fuck me. With an internal sigh I said, ""Wow. Long day is right. Looks like I'm not going to make it to my parents' house for dinner...again. I'm sure my mother is planning ways to make me pay for being a bad daughter." Then again, what else was new? Someday I was really going to have to quit worrying, quit caring. I couldn't help but worry about the distinct lack of dessert if I quit caring though.

Ranger's ESP must have been working exceptionally well because he asked, "Think she'll take away dessert?"

Feeling brave I smiled and said, "Maybe I should give up sugar."

Now, you would think I'd have learned not to play this particular game with Ranger. Obviously, I hadn't. I watched as his wolf smile flashed across his face and my nipples contracted painfully while my panties simultaneously bit the dust and he said, "Maybe you should."

"Uh, uh, umm, shit." I could feel my whole body flushing with embarrassment. I totally sucked at this game! Why can't I remember that before I pull the proverbial tiger's tail? I would love nothing more than to fall pussy first into his bed, or at the very least onto him. Unfortunately, I wasn't meant for casual sex. At least not with him. I'm sure I could handle it with some other hot guy who didn't tie my heart up in knots, someone who didn't have the power to destroy me.

He was without a doubt the most beautiful man in the world, possibly the known universe. Hell, I'd wager that he was right up there with the gods on Mount Olympus. Maybe he was a demigod? I could totally believe that. The man was pure magic in everything. I'd have to think more on that later. An electric pulse coursed through my body when his finger tilted my chin up and said, "Babe, got a job for you tonight, if you're interested."

I had to clear my throat before I could answer him, I've never said no to him when he needed my help, and I wouldn't be starting tonight. "Sure. When, where, and what?" When it came to jobs for him they usually involved me doing my best impression of a slut. Sometimes, with more clothes than others. Hell, if he needed me to wrap myself in saran wrap and call myself a sparkler I would. How sad am I? Thankfully that hadn't been a requirement yet. Knock on wood.

I started to mentally sort through my closet to determine what possible outfits I could use for the job when he said, "Nine o'clock. You can get ready on seven and Ella will have everything you need waiting for you. Would you like to have dinner with me?"

Ella is a god too. I'm convinced. Okay, maybe not a god, but definitely a goddess, or would that be demigoddess? Her food is magic, and I'm convinced calorie-free as well. Then there seems to be a never ending supply of clothing that fits me perfectly. Either she is the world's best shopper, or she's got a direct line with the shopping 'Powers That Be'. I'm not sure when she manages to get these outfits, especially on such short notice. Someday, maybe I'll ask her about it. Maybe she has a magic wardrobe. If she does, I need to get me one of those. Hell yeah! Ella food, even better than my mother's. Maybe there would even be dessert. "Yeah, that'd be great."

I shut down my computer, grabbed my stuff and followed him to the elevator. I had to concentrate on my breathing, and my drooling, so that I didn't spontaneously combust from being so close to him. He was every wet dream I've ever had, every fantasy I could ever imagine, and being locked in an elevator made behaving a test of wills. The thought of pushing him against the wall and licking every inch of his body, cameras be damned, made me shut my eyes. As long as he didn't touch me I'd be okay.

He tucked one of my wayward curls behind my ear and whispered so softly, I barely heard him, "So beautiful." I could smell his distinct scent. Essence of Ranger. Feeling his breath tickle my skin, and watching his eyes darken to deep black pools would have destroyed my panties if they weren't already a lost cause. Holy shit he was far too potent. Most people feared him because of the 'darkness' inside him. I feared him because of the strength, the love, the compassion that so few people seemed to notice. This was one of those times that I feared him more than any psycho, more than any stalker, more than any possible nightmare. When Ranger was like this, I feared for my life. Not because he would ever physically hurt me, but because if I let it go farther and he walked away again my heart would shatter and Stephanie Plum, the Bombshell Bounty Hunter, would cease to exist. Not a pleasant thought.

I sent up a silent prayer of thanks when the elevator doors slid open. Another moment in there and I wouldn't have cared about heartbreak. Apparently, I needed to get laid. Big shock there. I hadn't had a social orgasm since over a month before Morelli and I called it quits. He'd been undercover, or possibly under the covers, and I hadn't seen much of him when he wasn't.

Stepping into Ranger's seventh floor apartment always calmed me regardless of what was going on. There was a Zen-like calmness that permeated the area. Nothing bad could ever happen in the Dark Knight's inner sanctum. It was my own personal slice of Denial Land. It's the one place I've always felt safe, even when I knew I wasn't truly safe from the owner. I think it had to do with the sinfully wonderful sheets...and the shower....and possibly the tub. Ella was definitely part of it; she was after all responsible for it. See, another point in the Ella being a powerfully magic deity column.

"I'll call Ella and have her bring dinner up. Why don't you go shower, the food should be here when you're finished." Ranger said to me. Woohoo! Ranger's shower. I could definitely get on board with that. His shower had his shower gel. I don't deny it. I'm a shower gel slut, and I'm okay with that.

"Thanks. Who could pass up an offer like that?" I said, smiling as I headed into the bathroom. It was happy time for Stephanie Plum.

The hot water and steam were working their magic on muscles I hadn't even known were tense, while I massaged shampoo into my hair before letting the water cascade over me rinsing it clean. I worked conditioner in from roots to tips and shaved my legs. My Brazilian wax was still good, and once again I was thankful that I'd listened to Connie and Lula and started getting it done after Morelli and I split. They were right, it did make me feel sexier, and it was definitely easier to deal with.

I grabbed the magic bottle of Bulgari like it was the Holy Grail and squeezed a quarter size amount onto the pouf, lathering it into a rich foam. Ranger's scent perfumed the steam that surrounded me and I felt my stomach quiver and my doodah tighten. The suds felt like silk against my skin as it trailed over my slick, sensitive skin. All the pent up sexual frustration needed to come out. I needed an orgasm more than I needed to breathe. Since I couldn't have an actual Ranger induced orgasm, I would just have to use my overly detailed, overly used, imagination to provide me my much needed release.

I closed my eyes and imagined that the hands gliding over me were the color of a mocha latte, strong, and slightly calloused from use. They tweaked my nipples as they slid over my breasts, slowly working their way lower across my body. I was so on edge that I knew it wasn't going to take much to send me flying. I let my right hand slip lower while my left had returned to my breasts playing with first one then the other.

My folds were already dripping with my desire and I slipped first one finger and then another inside, pumping them slowly in and out. I added a third finger and couldn't hold the moan that slid from my throat. I began pumping my fingers in and out faster, and faster, imagining that they were Ranger's. Imagining that he was so close that he'd sheath himself inside me, filling me, satisfying this never ending hunger inside me. The orgasm hit me without warning, hard and fast and dropped me to my knees, Ranger's names tumbled from my lips as my legs quivered and the orgasm slowly faded.

Shutting off the water I wrapped a bath sheet around me and gave a passing thought to whether or not Ranger had heard me, and decided I really didn't care if he had. I wasn't going to be embarrassed by my need for release. I wasn't getting it anywhere else, and if I was going to be any good to anyone tonight I didn't need to be distracted by unfulfilled sexual need. I put it out of my mind and started to tame my hair with the hair products that mysteriously appeared under the sink at some point since the Slayer incident. Everything I could ever need, except perhaps for saturated fats, was available in this apartment.

I pulled on the robe that was hanging from the back of the door, a beautiful blue that almost perfectly matched my eyes, tying the belt around my waist I opened the door to the mouth watering aroma of Ella's cooking. Ranger was serving our food onto plates when I walked into the kitchen and my mouth went dry at the sight of domestic Ranger. The man looked edible no matter what he was doing. He has a natural elegance and grace about him that would be more fitting on a large feline than on a man, yet he was definitely all man. My stomach decided to interrupt my musings with a decidedly angry sound. Ranger gave a slight shake of his head and asked, "Ready to eat, Babe?"

"Obviously," I said. I was always ready to eat, regardless if my stomach noises amused him or not. I wasn't one to turn down food. Especially, Ella food. I'm still convinced it's magic. "I'm starving."