A/N: All character thoughts are in italics. Janet E. owns all recognizable characters, but the plot line and mistakes are mine alone. Wow. The last chapter of my first long story. Thanks to everyone who patiently waited for my chaotic life to level out so that my muse could come out from hiding and give us all some closure. A big thanks goes to Susan for proofing and gently encouraging me. I have so much respect for all authors that are able to consistently churn out wonderful stories while juggling jobs and life! Without further ado…...

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Chapter 20

Stephanie heard the door lock click behind her and the soft rattle of the door knob turn as she lay on her side facing away from the bedroom door. She knew she locked the stupid thing but that had never been an effective barrier in the past and apparently it still wasn't.

….Master key, babe. It is my building…...

Closing her eyes, she tried to mentally calm herself in order to prepare for whatever was going to happen. She knew it could go either way and so much was on the line for her, and for Ranger whether he realized it or not. She drew in a deep breath and let out a long drawn-out sigh. It was a small consolation to her that he now accepted this newfound connection, whatever it was. However, she had too much riding on this to settle for a consolation prize.

Remembering what happened with this connection halted the direction of her thoughts. She scrunched her eyes tight trying to block him from picking up on them. She thought of Macy's. She pictured Grandma Mazur in her clearance bikini. She mentally hummed her ABC's. She imagined a warm apple pie straight from the oven with vanilla ice cream dolloped on top. Images flooded her mind.

Ranger stopped next to the bed and looked down at Stephanie's back. The pure love and joy he felt from her while he was in the living room fueled his bravery to pursue her. He loved her, God help him but still wondered if letting her in was the right thing to do. There was just so much ugliness inside him – he was still afraid he would overwhelm her and destroy her. That he couldn't live with.

He reached down to softly stroke the curve of her hip and felt an uncomfortable surge of emotions try to engulf him as a warm tingling sensation shot up his arm and to his chest. It was so strong it almost doubled him over with its intensity. The effect threw him mentally off balance and out of control of the situation, causing him to have a knee-jerk reaction.

He pulled back. Locked it all down. Reverting back to his old protective mechanisms, he crossed his arms and smirked at her.

…. Pie. Warm and moist. I like your pie, Babe…

He watched as she stiffened, then rolled over to glare at him in frustrated disappointment.

She gritted out "Stop it. Now."

Stephanie pulled herself up to a sitting position with her back against the headboard of the bed and tucked her good leg up under her healing one, making sure not to dislodge her towel. Not breaking eye contact with Ranger, she grabbed a pillow and hugged it to her chest like protective armor. They continued to stare at each other in silence.

Steph pointed at the bedside chair across the room from her with a hand flourish, while nodding toward it to indicate to Ranger he should take a seat. She watched as he deliberately made his way to the chair and eased down into it, keeping his arms crossed over his chest.

The silent standoff continued.

Stephanie's eyes softened when she caught a fleeting glimpse of the emotional turmoil plaguing Ranger. Feeling the internal tug of war that was going on in his head, her heart gentled and she mentally reached out to soothe him.

"I'm on to you, Mister. Save that worn out song and dance routine for someone else." She relented and gave Ranger a half smile.

Still feeling unsettled, Ranger dropped his head to rest on the back of the chair and stared at the ceiling, rubbing his hands up and down the arm rests. The tension within him began to slowly subside as he felt a soft fluttering sensation gently rubbing at his temples.

He cleared his throat nervously. "I could feel you out there. I …. I think I feel you now."

He closed his eyes and continued softly. "I was there. In your head. I thought you wanted Morelli even after he treated you like shit but I saw –"

"Everything?"

He nodded.

"I know. You saw into me; just like I saw into you. I told you, I know everything." Steph paused for emphasis. "Everything, Ranger. Not just what you think I should know." She gave a little huff and mumbled "I feel like a broken record here."

Ranger's silence began to make her uncomfortable. Steph quietly eased up off the bed and sat on the end closest to him. Feeling her nearness, Ranger raised his head and stared at her intently causing Steph to fidget with the edge of the bath towel still tightly wrapped around her.

"Everything?"

His voice was so quiet, Stephanie almost missed the words. It was her turn to nod at him.

"I felt what you feel. I also can feel you fighting against what you feel for me, Ranger. I don't get it."

With nothing left to lose, she forged ahead. "I am so in love with you – only you - you know that now. You felt it."

Sadness invaded her voice as she broke eye contact and stared at her hands. "But, you've given me absolutely no reason to believe that I should. Even now when I can feel you fighting yourself."

Ranger stood up and limped over to the window. He put his hands on both sides of the window frame and stared out at nothing in particular. Pausing a few beats, he turned his head toward her. The raw anguish that emanated from his face filled the room.

"I don't have a choice, Steph. I have to do this. Don't you get it? I have to live my life without you in order to protect you. In order to protect me. I, uh…" Ranger thunked his forehead on the window in frustration. "Fuuuuck…I'm not good with this expressing your feelings crap. This is why it won't work!"

Stephanie's mind was flooded with mental flashes from Ranger. She saw what he thought were his darkest moments that haunted him. She saw how he saw himself – unworthy of love and happiness because of his past. She saw his deepest fears that involved losing her to past enemies and losing control over protecting himself from heartbreak. She felt the anguish and abject sorrow that flooded him because he believed he couldn't act on his strongest desire to love her back.

A part of her wanted to tuck tail and slink out the door, running far away from this stubborn man. The part of her that was just as stubborn (if not more so) squared her shoulders and dug in deeper where under all of the despair that ate at him was the bright light of the purest love just waiting to break through the comfortable blackness he chose to cloak himself in. Stephanie went to him and wrapped her arms around Ranger, leaning her head against his back. She focused everything she had and flooded him with love. Squeezing him with her arms, she kissed the spot between his shoulder blades.

…Technically, we don't need words any more….

They both felt the zing of electricity that raced through them as they touched. Steph gave a little yelp of surprise while Ranger twisted around to see what happened. His arms caught her to keep her from falling as she stumbled backward, but he couldn't bring himself to let her go. His infamous control was nowhere to be found when it came to her and he found himself pulling her closer until they touched from chest to hip.

Stephanie reached up and gently cradled Ranger's cheek and reveled at the warm tingles that radiated from her fingers to her heart. She gazed into his warm chocolate eyes, willing him to let her in on his own accord, then licked her lips.

"You say you have to do this, have to live your life this way?" She gently stroked his cheek with the pads of her fingers, sending tingles of warmth across the side of his face. "That's no life, Ranger. That's not living."

Ranger put his forehead against hers and started whispering.

"Babe…. Steph. What you deserve is a fairy tale, but I'm a nightmare."

She pulled her head back, staring straight into his eyes with enough determination for the both of them, then slowly started shaking her head.

"Nope. I'm not buying that line. You're forgetting I can see not just what's on the surface but what's buried deep inside too – the real you that's locked away. You think you're the only one with things in their past? We all carry around personal baggage. The trick is finding someone that helps you carry it and lightens the load." She leaned in closer and gave Ranger a conspiratory wink. "You are a good man, Ranger, with a good soul. I saw your light in there. It just needs some help getting out. I saw that you were never afraid to die during any of your missions. Now it's time to quit being afraid to live."

Steph reached both arms up around Ranger's neck and cradled the back of his head, then pulled so that they were nose to nose. "When I'm with you, whatever we're doing, wherever we are…...whatever this is…I know it's right, Ranger. It feels right." She gave a tiny kiss that zapped his chin. "We feel right." She placed another that tingled the right side of his mouth. "You feel it, I know it." She kissed the left side leaving warm tingles there, then stared into his eyes, projecting her thoughts laced with pure love.

…It's time to quit fighting against this. Meet me half way here…. Be brave…...

She felt him mentally reach out to her. He felt her mentally mesh herself with him. The darkness that ate at him began to shatter and flake away. It was at that point that Ranger knew they crossed an imaginary line in the sand, one there was no turning back from.

Ranger closed the distance between them, and kissed her. He poured all his desire and pent up feelings into it. Snaking his hand under the edge of Steph's towel, he gently caressed her sides and made circles on the small of her back. He knew it was cliché, but he swore he could feel arcs of electricity jump between them as they kissed.

Breaking for air, he was more than a little amused that he was breathing as hard as Steph. Pulling her tighter in his arms, he began walking them back toward the bed, until the back of Stephanie's legs hit against its side. He bent down and began placing small feathery kisses along her collarbone.

"I think" kiss "we" kiss "have way" kiss "too many" kiss "clothes on" kiss "to finish" kiss "this discussion" kiss "Babe".

Steph gave a small whimper of agreement as she tilted her head to the side, encouraging him to keep kissing her. Closing her eyes to savor the warm tingly sensations Ranger was sending all over her, she barely noticed the absence of her towel as he pulled it away and dropped it on the floor to accompany his gym clothes.

Sliding his arms to cradle her back and legs, Ranger gently scooped Steph up and laid her down in the center of her bed. He followed her down then rolled her underneath him while he supported his weight on his elbows. He placed his hands gently on each side if her face and stared intently into her eyes.

"Once we do this, you're mine Steph. It's all or nothing – there's no going back." He paused and kissed her gently. "I'm not gonna sugar coat this, Babe. It's not going to be easy." He looked into her eyes again for reassurance.

She lifted her head and kissed him back. "Nothing worth it is ever easy and I'm up for the challenge. And it goes both ways here – we do this and you are mine and only mine. You do not want to deal with a pissed off Italian-Hungarian Jersey girl." She gave him a mock glare and a playful smack on his shoulder. He responded by kissing her, then trailing kisses slowly down her neck once again.

Their bodies came together, cementing the mental connection that lay between them. As their chests touched, both felt the warm tingly sensations concentrate along their scar lines and pulsate over the scars above their hearts. His pleasure was hers and her pleasure was his. Each reveled in what the other felt, which further heightened their own sensations and emotions.

In the darkening room, Ranger laced his fingers together with Stephanie's as he pushed them both closer to ecstasy. He lowered his head onto her shoulder, as she strained against him.

…...I love you Stephanie. Love you so much. Need you like air…...

…. Love you, Ranger …...Love you ...All of you…

That was enough to send them both tumbling into bliss. As pleasure swamped both of them, the air became charged with white hot electricity that lit up the darkening room, snapping and crackling with small explosions that gradually dissipated as they came down from their shared orgasms.

Rolling to his side, Ranger gently cradled Stephanie into his, with her head resting in the crook of his shoulder. They lay still for few minutes, both trying to catch their breath and process what just happened.

Steph tilted her head up to look at Ranger. "What was that? The room was glowing…."

Ranger kissed her on her forehead and smiled down at her. "Fireworks, babe. We made fireworks. You might have gotten a part of your magical fairy tale after all."

Steph snuggled deeper into his arms. "Love is the closest thing we have to magic, you know. That made it pure magic." She chuckled to herself and buried her head into his chest.

"I always thought you were magic Ranger, after our first time together. Now I know it's not my imagination."

Ranger traced small circles on Steph's shoulder and let his mind process it all. The ramifications were both exhilarating and nerve wracking. He turned to face her, keeping his arms loosely around her.

" No, not your imagination." He paused for a beat. "No secrets separate us now, Babe."

She smiled at him. "No, they don't. I'm an open book to you."

He closed his eyes and rubbed his nose against hers. "Just like I'm an open book to you. You now are privy to some things that place you in a lot of danger if anyone finds out we have this connection. We might be in big trouble here, Babe."

Propping herself up on her arm, Steph looked down at Ranger. "Well if we are, at least I'll be in trouble with you. But you're right. This needs to stay quiet." She smiled. "Together we can handle anything. You know, like we're stronger together. It's a shame it took getting struck by lightning and almost dying to figure it out."

She looked down at where their chests touched and gave a little gasp. "Look. If this isn't a sign –"

They both stared at the scars from the lightning strike that snaked across their chests. Traveling up each arm the Lichtenburg scars traveled in a mirror-like pattern up their entwined arms, ending at a swirling comma shape that covered the areas over their chest. With their intimate positioning bringing their chests together, the comma shaped scars made a circle when they touched.

The significance was not lost on either of them. Ranger pulled her tight against him, and kissed her above her ear as he felt everything click into place between them.

"Two halves of a whole, Babe. Two halves of a whole."

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AN: Thank you so much for reading! I couldn't have done it without the wonderful feedback from everyone. I'm going to take a break and recharge but I foresee potential stories building from this one.