Chapter 8

That little sentence, made everything else lose perspective in my brain. Connie, Lula and I joked about the Bat Cave. Hinted that Ranger must have a place he actually called home. "Once you go into the Bat Cave, there's no turning back. It's forever. " Ranger had said this to me on one of those occasions. I didn't take everything he said literally, Ranger has a dark sense of humor, but him saying it now had a bearing of truth.

The seventh floor apartment at RangeMan was impersonal. There was nothing substantial that said who he was. I had spent time at his apartment on more than one occasion when he was kind enough to let me hide from some pretty scary people. It was cold and businesslike. Not that it wasn't nice. I loved Ranger's apartment. It was always clean, smelled great and he had Ella. I would call her a housekeeper, but she was more than that. She also made him food and took care of the other people he employed. Her husband took care of the building, she took care of Ranger. She was like Alfred to Batman. She made his life easy in Jersey. He always had clean clothes, his bed was always made, and she put Bvlgari green shower gel in his bathroom. If I could afford that kind of luxury, I would be a happy person. I have picked her brain on the subject of Ranger, but I don't think she knows anymore than I do, and she washes his clothes. He doesn't give an inch about his personal life. And here I am, probably standing right in the middle of it.

Ranger gave me a quick glance, and actually smiled. "I think you need to make an appearance downstairs. I run a tight ship when were working, but up here, it's different."

I had no idea what the rest of this night would bring. I only knew that this was a lot more than I had ever expected to happen when I woke up this morning. I followed Mr. Carlos Manoso, AKA Ranger, AKA who the hell is this? downstairs.

When Ranger walks into a room at RangeMan, people shut up. There is silence, and serious "man" things going on. But when he came downstairs here, no one even noticed him. He blended in like a chameleon. I walked in behind him. A basketball game was on the flat screen. Ranger's men were busy with kitchen duties. They wore clothes that did not have Rangeman insignia's on them. It was strange seeing them as people instead of employees following directions. It was as odd emotional moment for me. So much had changed in the last twelve months, and now this. I was in the inner circle of Rangers life. Ranger. Not Joe. Ranger. If I could go back a year, and tell myself this is what my life would be like in twelve months, I think I would have checked myself into a looney bin. Ranger went into the kitchen and poured us both a glass of wine, I took the bottle, I thought I might need it. I followed him outside to a balcony that overlooked the canyon below.

"So," I began. Not exactly sure where to start. "When did you decide to become a mountain man? I leave for a year, and now you live in New Mexico?" I took another drink of my wine, and found the glass was already empty, so I poured another.

Ranger leaned against the railing."My father bought this cabin after he finished his tour in the Army." Ranger told me. "It was his place to get away. My mother gave it to me when I enlisted in the service. Over the years I bought the land surrounding it. Sometimes I come up here to get away, to take a deep breath and get back to normal. Especially if I come back from a job that is bad. I come here to chill out before going home. When I found out about the website, and what was happening, we were already here. Some fucked up shit went down, and you can't just throw yourself back into real life, you have to ease back in, or it will ruin you. We were close to Arizona, so I had Tank go get you."

"So why haven't you ever mentioned this place before?"

He took a drink of wine. "Because, it was none of your business."

"And now it is?"

His eyes glanced momentarily at me, and then over at the canyon below. "Maybe."

He turned towards me, watching me as he spoke."This is my personal space, Stephanie. Maybe the only place I really have that is close to a home. This is where I am. I share this place only with the people I care about and trust the most."

"So now you trust me, and you care about me?" I knew he was letting me in, but I was teetering on buzzed. I put the glass of wine down, mostly because it was empty again. Also because I was flirting with someone I put in the "fun but dangerous" category.

He laughed. "Just hear me out. You wanted to know who I was. Well, this is as close to reality as you are going to get. There's no room service here. Just usually me, myself, and I. At the office in Jersey, I don't have time for all that domestic shit. Up here, it's very different. I bring close friends up here. That would include Tank, Hal, Lester,Cal and Ramon. They are the people who have my back, and not because I pay them. They have been my friends since the Army. Every year, for about a month, we come up here to shake demons out of our heads. We've seen too much, and this is where we can get a grip on what is important."

Ranger leaned over the railing and pointed down the canyon. "Down below there are three cabins. Tank has his own, Hal and Lester have theirs. When Ramon and Cal come up with us, they have to either double up or bunk here. This time, Cal isn't here and Ramon is staying with Tank. Eventually they will also have places here if they want them. I don't intrude on them. They don't intrude on me. They come up here when they need to, just like I do."

I watched him as he spoke. Ranger is not someone who talks. I enjoyed hearing him; it was nice to get to know this man. He was so much more than he let on. My eyes caught something moving in the brush, a coyote ran below us, searching for food or just checking on his perimeters. I watched as it ran through the route Tank had taken earlier. Sniffing the ground, checking out rabbit holes. Occasionally stopping and standing very still as he listened to the noises of the night. The wind moved up the canyon and the coyote proceeded down the trail, parting the brush to go into the trees. It was peaceful here. I could see how this place was good for his soul. Ranger stood behind me and wrapped his arms around my waist, He kissed the back of my neck, nuzzling gently into my hair.

"Let's go eat. Everything is going to get cold if we don't get in there, and grab it quick".

Perfect. A man after my own heart. That's more like it.

Sitting down at a dinner table with Rangers men is a real experience. They wanted me to feel at home. I don't think that they are used to setting the table and getting things together like this. It was more of an "eat with your fingers and wipe your mouth with your shirt" kind of place. It wasn't my mother's table, but I thought it was wonderful. I miss my family and my Sunday dinners with my mom and dad more than I thought. There was something to be said about eating a meal together that made you really feel like family. This was Ranger's family, and he included me. After everything that had happened, it was just what I needed to get me back to myself. Maybe that is a little of what he meant about being here. Who knows? I just knew that for now, I felt at home for the first time since I left Trenton.

As we ate I asked about the picture Kyle had on his wall. "Kyle was our team leader." Tank said. "Ranger was second in command. All of us worked together so well, that we stayed close after our tours were finished. Kyle was the only one who didn't stick around. He went home. He had his own life he wanted to get back too. We had been taught a certain set of skills that weren't exactly in high demand. It was a joint decision to stay together and work. Now we have Rangeman."

I sat there silently, letting them talk. Telling stories about different things that had happened. I didn't know any of these guys even spoke, and here they were forming complete sentences. I was flabbergasted. I poured more wine, but the bottle was empty, and I was getting the spins. I retreated to the couch. I was feeling slightly dizzy. I sat between Hal and Lester. Ranger was at the table, going over paperwork. I thought this night really couldn't get any better.

I leaned over to Hal, and put my head on his shoulder "You guys are so great" I said. Then I fell off the couch.

"Are you okay?" Ranger asked, picking me up.

Well of course I was okay! Sheesh! "Can't someone accidentally fall off the couch?"

I think after that, I may have lasted another twenty minutes before I passed out on Tanks shoulder.

I woke up with a start, not sure where I was. Moonlight was coming through a large window. I was in someone's bed. Ranger. This was his bed. We were in New Mexico. Last thing I remember was being downstairs talking to Tank. I also remember I couldn't keep my eyes open. I wondered if I had fallen asleep on Tank. I wondered if I drooled on him. Oh geez, I hope not.

Ranger's arm was draped over me. He was holding me protectively close against himself. I knew he usually slept in the nude. Was he nude now? I double checked to make sure I wasn't nude. Nope. Clothes still on. Not night clothes either. These were the clothes I had on when I left Scottsdale. My curiosity was killing me. I wanted to know if he was sleeping with any clothes on.

I slowly moved my hand to check. Casually placing it on my hip then moving it behind me. I felt around. I felt around some more. He had on string tie comfy pants and I didn't think he was really asleep because now his hand had slowly moved from my waist to where it was now, which was under my shirt and traveling. His fingers glided stealthily across my rib cage and across my sports bra. It was a casual move, but my nipples have been on high alert for months now. I was suddenly aroused.

In my defense, not counting the shower massager and the doctor who gave me a breast exam a few months ago, it had been over a year since I had any action. Ranger was not exactly chopped liver. I was in the Bat Cave for God's sake. What had I expected? That he would sleep on the couch? Did I want him to sleep on the couch? No. What I wanted at this moment was for Ranger to make me sing the hallelujah chorus. I deserved it. Being celibate for over a year does things to your psyche. It's not natural, at least it's not natural when I try to justify flirting with the UPS guy when he drops off packages at the office.

I turned towards him to make sure he wasn't a figment of my imagination. He was there, and he was real. His eyes reflected the moon coming in through the window. A shadow of a smile flickered across his face.

"How did I get in your bed?" I whispered.

"I put you here."

"Why?"

"Because you passed out on Tank."

"Is this where I am suppose to sleep?"

"The choice is yours."

"Is it where you want me to sleep?"

"Yes."

"For how long?"

"Your ruining this for me."

His fingers were still touching the spandex fabric of the sports bra. They moved back and forth across it, causing friction and making everything catch fire.

"its a good question." I said, trying to concentrate without my hair smoking.

"Is it a question I have to answer right this moment?"

His fingers glided over my spandex covered nipples again. There was no doubt he had their attention and mine. This was not really a time for conversation. I had dreamt about what I would do if I had Ranger all to myself again, and those dreams were not exactly rated G.

My fingers ran the length of his muscled arm. Ranger watched me with his smoky brown eyes, waiting for the answer I really didn't need to give him. He knew that he had what I wanted. There wasn't much chance that I would stop what ever was happening. He leaned down and kissed me very softly making me want him even more.

"Well?" He whispered.

"Are you seducing me?" I asked.

"Yes. Do you want me to stop?"

This time I nodded. "No."

It was 10am.

Ranger was sleeping next to me. I am caught in plenty of situations that have me in the same bed with Ranger, but I have never been with him when he actually sleeps in. My head hurt. I really needed my hangover fix. Fries and a Coke. They were calling me. Without them, the day could be ruined. I had no idea how far away fries would be, or a Coke for that matter, but I had a feeling it was quite a distance. I needed to call Lula and have her pick me up. Problem was, She was about eight thousand miles away. I let out a groan, but before I could roll out of Rangers nice soft comfy bed, he pulled me back down.

"Where do you think you're going?" He said. Pinning me down. "There are no fast food places out here, and I know you are not going out for a run."

I really did need that fix, but Ranger's bed was warm, Ranger was warm, and I was getting warmer by the minute. It did not take him long to have me thinking that it could wait.

Noon was fast approaching. I was in the shower with Ranger, still not ready to let go of what we had just shared. I was wondering when I would wake up from this strange, erotic dream that I had walked into. I was having serious doubts that I was coherent. The Bat Cave? Could this really be happening?

I wrapped a towel around myself and looked in the bathroom mirror and pinched myself. My reality hadn't changed. This wasn't a dream, but a dream stuffed inside a nightmare. I needed to face my life.

"I think that I need to figure out what to do about the contract out on me."I said. "Maybe try to defuse the situation before I become road kill."

Ranger was already getting dressed. He was going casual. Jeans, a black t-shirt, commando. Nice.

"Jersey sent out an email to us last night." He said. "You are not going to like it, either. I have a meeting set up for Rangeman, so we can get our ducks in a row. I scheduled a conference with the Trenton P.D. Homicide table later, and their Mafia task force. Things should move pretty quickly after that."

I started pulling on my clothes. Thinking of how much Ranger had done for me over the last few years. I never said thank you for him helping with any of it. I left Jersey so I could figure out what I wanted, and try to change things, and I ended up still needing help.

"I feel strange about you getting involved in my problems, but I don't know what I would have done if you hadn't. I don't have any idea how to repay you for everything."

"I'm sure you could think of something." Ranger smiled as he laced up his boots. He looked at me thoughtfully for a moment. "I already know what you would have done if i wasn't around, and it probably wouldn't have been the wrong approach, but a more dangerous one. You would have gone directly to the source; Connie. And between Lula and yourself, you would have set up a meeting with some cousin of hers to discuss what they wanted, so you could stay alive."

That sounded like a pretty good plan to me. I knew Connie would have some way to get a meeting set up. Ranger was good. I was still working on that one in my brain. I wonder if I talk in my sleep. If I did, what the hell else do I say?

"Not a bad plan." Ranger said. "But mine is a little safer."

He reached up and swept a curl off my face and tucked it behind my ear, affectionately. "You don't have to thank me, or repay me for helping you, I love you. Don't think I'm not doing this for my own personal gain. I'm just not sure how to feel about it yet. So I'm dropping it."

Oh, OK. Hello. What? My brain was changing course; brakes were squealing, engines coming to a halt. As George Costanza would say, "Worlds are colliding,Jerry!" I bit my lip hard. His personal gain? What did that mean, exactly? I knew he loved me, but it always was in a sweet noncommittal way. Ranger was the lone wolf. He expressed that to me on many occasions just how lone he was and that in no way could he ever be more. So what kind of a statement was that? I needed to know, because what if something terrible happened? What if one of us fell off a cliff or something? I would never know. It would forever be the unanswered question!

"No, that's not okay." I said. "You can't lay out a sentence like that on me, and expect me to just drop it. I'm not you; I can't just walk away from a statement like that."

He looked at me for a long moment, then put on his SEALS cap. "It means, I missed you more than I thought I would. It's a problem. I am not sure what to do about it."

Don't fall for it, Stephanie Plum. My mind raced to the rescue. Just be cool. He is probably just elated from morning sex. Be calm.

He was still talking.. "After the meeting, we will know more."

I'd hoped I hadn't missed anything while my brain jumped out of my skull for a moment to regroup.

"Stephanie, let me lead when they start asking questions." He said. "I need to be in control of this bullshit before it blows up in your face. We need to have cooperation from Trenton to get anything accomplished. I need you to be on my side."

Usually, that kind of comment would start an argument, but for this, I would be happy to let someone take over. This was way over my head.

He kissed me and let me go. "Let's get this stupid shit over with."

There were apples and oranges in a bowl on the table. I was starving. I went in the kitchen and searched the refrigerator of something edible. I opted for a bagel with cream cheese and coffee. How was I supposed to wake up without sugar? I dumped two more spoonfuls of sugar in my coffee and knocked down five aspirin in an attempt to stop my head from exploding. I picked up the bagel and nibbled on it trying to pretend it was something with sprinkles on it. Tank and the rest of the crew all ambled in after a few minutes. They looked fresh from being up for hours doing sit ups or whatever it was they did for fun.

We took our seats at the table. Tank was across from me, Hal and Ramon on each side of me, Lester next to Ranger who sat at the head of the table.

"This is what we know." Ranger began. "Which is still not very much. Paul Banter, aka "Frederick the Weasel" put out a hit on you for something you did to piss him off. The Mafia now wants you also. The first one is pretty bad. But the Mob is worse. Trenton P.D. and Scottsdale P.D need you to give your statements about the shootings. The FBI is also on the list of people who want to have a conference. From what I am getting from the street is that it is all about a missing hard drive. The FBI wants it and the Mob wants it. Apparently the reason Fred wanted you dead was because he said you stole it."

"I would never have taken anything from that jerk. He bit me. You know that? Why would I take anything from him?"

Actually, I believe most of North America knew he bit me if the numbers were correct on Joyce's stupid website.

"Well," Ranger said. "Fred must have convinced the Mob that you had it, even though it didn't save his life. He was found dead in Long Island a month ago."

I put my head down on the table, and tried to get a grip.

"It was never confirmed that Tony "The Tool" Barella was the sniper. We do know he was in Trenton, and there's no proof he ever left. This could be a real problem if you go back."

"If there was a hit out on me, why didn't they just come out to Scottsdale and shoot me? I wasn't exactly hiding."

"That's something that I would like to know." Ranger said. "Maybe, "The Weasel's" contract was only a local thing. The Mafia wasn't looking for you until recently. As for the FBI, I am still thinking that shooting at the office was a way to search the place without interruptions. I don't think the intention was to hit you, just scare you. Probably looking for the drive or the tape, who knows? I think they were unofficially looking, or they would have had a search warrant. Probably this is an embarrassment to the department."

Well, they did a good job, I was definitely scared. I was getting nervous, my leg started shaking. I hoped no one noticed.

"So what does this mean?" I said. Was I supposed to be afraid of people taking pot-shots at me forever? I couldn't go back home? Would I ever feel safe anywhere? I felt safe in Scottsdale, until yesterday. I wanted that back. I had successfully reinvented myself out there. I could feel all the color draining out of my face. My brain was spinning in a million different directions. Up until now, I had things like food and great sex to take my mind off all this. Now, reality was staring me in the face. This was a serious problem, and not to want to dwell on it too much, but what if I did start really falling for Ranger? Geez.

"I am not sure what it means yet." Ranger said, drawing me back in. "It's better if we get the facts from Trenton, before we can actively discuss what we need to do next. Joe Morelli will be on video conference with us in about ten minutes. He chose to help us figure things out. Everyone wants you to come out of this alive."

Joe? I think I was going to be sick. Not only was I afraid, but now I had to see Joe Morelli and deal with those feelings again, too. I tried to breathe. Inhale, exhale. I was suddenly tired. I really just wanted to go back up stairs and wake up from this dream that had become a really bad nightmare.

I decided to let Ranger take this one. I think this was way too big for me to handle on my own. I needed his protection, unless I wanted to live on the Moon. Jesus Christ, all I did was pick up a skip. If it wasn't for Eddie, things would be different. I stopped in mid thought. No, this was my fault. I was not being professional. I had a car that was all fucked up. This was my fault. Period.

The reason people were afraid for me was because I wasn't taking my job seriously. I wasn't that good at it. I kept thinking it was temporary. When we moved to Scottsdale, I did learn my job, and I got a car that was dependable and not all screwed up. I was professional, (except on my days off.) Plus, I never got on video! This was definitely my fault.

I had blanked out, talking to myself. Ranger was still talking. "For now, If you leave the valley wear your vests." Ranger looked my direction. "No one here wants to lose you, especially me."

Especially me? My jaw dropped. I think I was losing my mind. He said that in front of everyone! I can't think about that right now! He's messing with me, I know it. And if I am really on a Mafia hit list, what were the odds I would live? Probably slim to none. I was going to start to hyperventilate. I needed someone solid. I didn't know if I could get a pretend "It is going to be okay" from Ranger right now. I hadn't even asked the most obvious question of all.

"You can call off a hit, and talk to the mafia guys, tell them I don't have what they want, right?" Tank was a rock. I directed the question at him. But Ranger answered.

"I don't know, Stephanie. That is what we are hoping."

I looked at Ranger, hoping for strength to ooze out of him and into me. He stared right back at me. He still had confidence that I never would have. He would protect me.

"What if we can't call off the hit? "

"I'm not working with doubt, Babe."

He didn't answer my question! He never answered my questions.

The conference call with Joe Morelli was in 5 minutes. It would be the first time I would see his face since the night he said goodbye. I paced the room, watching the clock. I didn't know how I felt about him anymore. Thinking about it made me feel strange and light headed. I started breathing hard. I did a few stretches, walked back and forth from the window to the table. Window to the table, and back again. I wasn't hungry. I really didn't want to do this. I was back into a situation not any different from the one I got into when I left. Nothing had changed. I had prolonged it by running. I wanted to be more grown up, I wanted to be more productive. But not at this very moment. Not now. Because at this moment, I had to get out of the room before I freaked out. I was sweating; I was going to have an anxiety attack. I sure as hell wasn't going to do it in front of all these people.

"I need to go to the bathroom." I said, and I got up, and instead went outside and ran.

There have been times when I have taken off before, I've used my bedroom window at my parents house, or my bathroom window at the apartment. Sometimes it is just necessary to take a break, go find someone or some place that won't make the world look so bleak. The people I ran too were Mary Lou, Lula, and even my friend Mooner. Morelli and Ranger have been in my web of safe places from time to time. None of those places were available to me. I had worked really hard to get my head out of my ass. I had worked on my skills. I was a decent bounty hunter. I had a Jeep that hadn't been destroyed, I had held on to my handcuffs, for God's sake.

I climbed up the mountain behind the cabin. Going down looked like it might end badly. Up was better. I wanted to just get away from all the bad that kept creeping into my life. To be stronger, to be able to face Morelli, maybe even be Bionic. At the very least I wanted to be able to face the one person I was trying to prove myself to. I wanted to say to Morelli, "see? I can take care of myself. I am not a walking disaster, you jerk."

Shit. It wouldn't happen today. Nothing had changed at all. Now I had to have a team of people keeping me safe. I wanted to scream. I was dealing with the same old problems that always interrupted the safe places inside my heart.

Ok. So.. Climbing up a mountain may seem fun to most people, but it was unseasonably hot. The ground was so extreme, it burned my fingers as I grabbed hold of each and every rock. I didn't have the right shoes for this type of climbing; I don't think I owned shoes for this. But I did it anyway. By the time I stopped, I was on a small plateau high above the valley. The cabin looked small. I felt better way up here. I didn't want to have to talk to Joe. I was not ready to face it right now. Thirty minutes past as I sat pretending that my life was normal. My phone rang, and brought it all back.

"What?" I knew I sounded rude, but I was not ready to put my big girl pants on just yet. Give me a break already. It was Ranger, and he was saying something to me, but he kept going from English to Spanish to maybe German for all I knew. He sounded kind of frustrated, so I faked some static and hung up.

Two hours later, I was feeling a little more confident, and I had to find a bathroom. I was hot, and I think I was getting a pretty good sunburn. I stood up and took a look around, realizing that I could not get down from this place I had decided to run to. I took a deep breath, and called Ranger. He picked up, but he was silent.

"I'm stuck." I said. "I can't get down. I need some help."

"Where are you?" he said. I could here slight irritation in his tone. "You left your bag and your tracker here. We have been looking for you."

I told him that I was up the mountain behind the house.

"Hal won the bet then". He hung up.

Tank and Lester got me down without too much trouble. I kicked Tank in the face once, but it was just a little kick and it wasn't my fault. We walked back to the house; I thanked them for helping me.

"Joe wasn't the one we talked to; he opted out of the conference call." Lester said. "He let one of the other guys fill in. Just so you know."

I was still glad not to have been there. I was able to ward off an embarrassing anxiety attack; I didn't want to let them see me lose it.

I went into the cabin, going directly upstairs as quickly as I could. I didn't want the evil eye from Ranger just yet. I really had to pee, and I wanted a shower. I was hot, and had desert sand down my pants. I think I had decent sunburn to go with it. The shower felt great. I checked the mirror. I had slight sunburn, but it just made my freckles come out a little on my nose that I didn't know existed. I thought it gave me a healthy red glow. At least I told myself that it was a healthy red glow, and the heat that was coming from it was just my imagination. I am now determined to be okay with my life from this point on. I took a deep breath, wrapped a towel around myself and stepped out of the bathroom.

Ranger was sitting on the bed, watching me like I was an animal he was studying. I pretended that he was not there, and started looking for my clothes. I couldn't remember if I left my bag in here, downstairs, or in the car. I was flustered that he was in the room. I had come out of the shower confident, but not confidant enough to put my underpants on in front of Ranger.

"Your bag is still in the car, Babe."

I started for the stairs. I didn't care if I was in just a towel, I wanted my clothes. Ranger grabbed my towel and pulled me back. He picked me up, and tossed me on the bed.

"You can't just go walking around without any clothes on around here." Fire flickered through his eyes.

"My men are nice to you, but I don't want to get them all riled up. It could turn into a pissing contest, and I don't need the drama right now."

He went down to the Jeep before I could tell him where he could stick it. Ranger came back up with my bag. He put it on the bed, and sat down in a chair. Watching me, like he was before. As if there was no break in the moment. Like I had walked out of the bathroom to him. I couldn't believe I needed to tell him that I wanted to dress alone. I was starting to get mad.

"Are you going to leave, so I can get dressed?"

"No".

I couldn't believe he said that! So I did what any rational girl would do. I took my towel off and sauntered over to the window, turned on the lights so everyone could see me, and I proceeded to get dressed. I knew that his whole crew was outside. With the light on, they could see everything that went on in the upstairs rooms. I think I surprised him, because his eyes flicked from chocolate-brown to black. He took the remote and the shades went down over the window.

He stared at me with eyes that were little black orbs of fury. I was a little afraid. I had never really seen Ranger get angry, and I didn't want to see it now. But I couldn't help myself. He was being a jerk by staying in the room while I got dressed; he was doing it on purpose, because I wouldn't follow directions.

He spoke softly and in command of himself, like he was holding back the growling cat with one hand. "I thought we had an understanding about how you and I need to act when my men are present. When we are alone, that may waver in your favor. When I am with RangeMan employees, I need some cooperation from you."

He got up from the chair and came toward me. I backed up a little. It was instinct, and I was suddenly feeling slightly vulnerable, and very naked.

"You gave all my men a show out there. I have no idea what the effect will be, but you called my bluff, and I am kind of impressed."

This wasn't what I had expected from him. It had probably taken a lot of Zen Buddha stuff to get him prepared to make that speech. He came closer to me. His eyes were soft now and sensuous. "If you weren't ready to do the interview today, all you needed to do was tell me. I'll listen to you. I still need to talk to you about the conversation with Trenton P.D." He touched me, looking down at my body and then back up into my eyes. "But it can wait."

He was standing very close to me. I looked up at him as his hands traveled down my arms, picking them up and placing them around his neck. He pulled me up to him, wrapping my legs around his waist. He held me there, kissing me as he pushed me up against the wall. I held on tight, as a wave of heat traveled through me. I wanted this to happen, I had fantasies about this happening with him ever since I left Trenton. Holy crap, it was happening for real. My heart was pounding fast. He unbuckled his pants with some urgency, letting them fall. I gasped, as suddenly he was inside me, and I gripped my legs tight around his hips, holding him to me.

Ranger watched me, his eyes danced with excitement and he smiled, moving deeper, pushing me harder up against the wall. Desire flowed through me, I couldn't control it. I needed to pull him closer, and I kissed him hard, wanting him as much,if not more than he wanted me. His breath quickened with every stroke. Ranger put his arm behind my back and carried me onto the bed, still locked together. His breath hot and fast against my cheek. He grabbed for me, kissing me roughly as he came. Relaxing into me, and catching his breath. His lips caressed my skin as his heart rate slowed to an even pulse. Ranger wrapped his arms around me, holding me tight. He picked up the remote and the blinds drew open. We watched the sun fall beneath the horizon, still locked together. "Stephanie," he said. "I can't pretend anymore. I'm in love with you."

I kissed him, and snuggled into his arms.