Disclaimer: I still make no money on the characters of JE.

A/N: Wanda, you are the greatest Beta a writer could have!

"Ray, can I ask you a question?"

I turned my head away from the road, to glance at Steph in the passenger seat. Anything had to be better than this uncomfortable silence that had fallen between the two of us. I knew my words with her earlier today could damage the fragile friendship beginning between us, and right now the ball was in her court. I turned my attention back to the road and took the right hand turn she told me would take us to the store.

"Ask away, I can't promise it will be something I can answer, but I'll give it a shot."

"Why are you helping me?" She asked quietly. I was taken aback by that question. It seemed fairly obvious to me. She was going to get herself or someone else killed if she didn't learn a few basic things.

"I'm helping because it's my duty."

I heard her sigh softly and turn her head out the side window. "Figures Ranger was paying you."

Well shit! Did we have to have this conversation while driving? I spotted the grocery store up ahead about a block, so I pushed the pedal down farther speeding my way to the parking lot, where I took the first available space.

"No one is paying me to help you Steph." I turned to look at her shaking my head slightly. "I have knowledge that you need, it is my duty as a human being to share that knowledge with you in the hopes of keeping you alive."

I knew how she tried so hard to help everyone else, but did she really have no concept of basic human decency as it applied to her? I watched her as she thought over what I had just told her, but she didn't appear to be convinced.

"If you saw a child running with scissors, or playing with matches, wouldn't you stop them for their own good?" when she nodded slowly I smiled. "See, that is very much what is happening here. You are doing things that you don't even know are dangerous, so I am showing you."

She still didn't look convinced, but dropped the subject as she opened her door to get out. I shrugged and climbed out of the car after her. I wasn't going to push anything on her, I just hoped she would be responsive to learning.

We were no more than 3 cars away from our parking space when I couldn't take watching her anymore. I stopped in my tracks and gently grabbed her arm to get her attention. I realized how severe the problem was when she jumped at my light touch.

"Stephanie, why do you walk like that?"

She stopped and turned towards me, confusion plain on her face. "Like what?"

"All scrunched up, like an old lady who's afraid someone is going to take her bingo winnings."

She snorted a little as though she found my description amusing. "I guess I am trying to make a smaller target of myself." She said almost as a question, like she was hoping that was the right answer, but didn't really have a clue.

I shook my head and looked at her. "Steph, what you are doing is painting a target on your back. Stand straight, put your purse on your shoulder and hold your head up. Walk like you know where you're going and that nothing is going to stop you. It tells anyone watching you that you are not a victim, that you are a strong woman who will be too much trouble to take."

"But I'm not." She whispered.

I took a deep breath and silently counted backwards from 10. This was going to be harder than I thought.

"Sure you are. You have to believe that you have the knowledge to keep yourself safe. This is a great case of fake it till you make it girl. If you act like you are confident, you will get hassled less, which will make you more confident. Just try it."

I watched Stephanie transform before my very eyes. She stood straight, and lifted her gaze from the ground. Suddenly she looked confident, instead of beaten down by life. I slung my arm around her shoulders and grinned.

"That's the way to do it, you look like a woman who means business."

She laughed quietly and glanced at me. "I'm channeling my inner Ranger."

I couldn't help but laugh at that as we continued our way into the grocery store. If channeling my brother is what it took to keep her from acting like a victim, then I was more than happy to let her do it.

"Whatever works girl." I grabbed a cart from the line just outside the doors and waited for a young woman to go through the doors first. I headed straight for the aisle with coffee in it. Bobby's place didn't have a coffee pot, but I grabbed a cheap one and put it in the cart. I didn't like having to rely on the stuff in the break room. If I kept drinking that I was going to end up with blood in my caffeine stream. I picked up several packages of coffee and tossed them in the cart too. I watched Steph pick up a can of the generic stuff and shuddered. I slipped a can of Folgers into my cart to send home with her, no one should have to drink substandard coffee. We moved through the aisles and I made sure to grab plenty of junk food. After all who can really live with out Doritos? I personally think that hell is a place with no Doritos and coffee.

We worked our way up and down each aisle in the store, Steph adding only a few items to her cart in comparison to my over flowing collection of stuff. We finally made it to the meat section, I stocked up on beef. I didn't like eating out, and missed cooking, but I needed something real to sink my teeth into.

"Do you think Ranger is going to be upset that you're bringing junk food into the health food palace?" She asked with a laugh as she helped me sort through packages of meat to find the ones closest to one pound.

"Probably not, but that's just too bad. He will deal with it or he'll get mad, glare at me and threaten me with more gym time, and I'll smile, nod, say Yes Sir, and then ask him if he's hungry." I said with a grin as I moved on to picking up some bacon.

"You don't mean that!" She sounded shocked that I would even suggest being that disrespectful to him.

"Of course I do." I stopped with a package of bacon in my hand and turned to look at her. "Steph, all you have ever known is Ranger the tough bad ass bounty hunter. I've known him since he was just Ricky, my annoying little brother. He can huff and puff all he wants and I'll be glad to let him. In front of people who are not family, I'll Yes Sir, No Sir, and follow orders like a good girl, but we both know I am only doing it because I respect him enough not to give him a hard time in front of his employees. When it's just us though, he's not my boss, he's family."

"What was he like as a kid?" She finally asked as we moved through the other cold area's.

I grabbed half a dozen rolls of sugar cookie dough, and a few chocolate chip as I shrugged. "He was scrawny, but he had an attitude." I laughed softly remembering the way he used to act like he was so tough.

"Funny thing is, he acted so tough, but he was just a tenderhearted kid who had gotten in over his head. I think he felt abandoned when is parents sent him to Miami. It wasn't until he got older that he realized that it was just as hard on them as it was on him."

I moved slowly through the produce section stocking up on fruits, and the occasional vegetable.

"How did you meet him?" She wanted to know as she walked beside me through the store.

"He was in some of the same classes as my little brother Robin, and so Robin brought him home after school one day, and the rest as they say is history."

"So how did you meet Lester, Bobby and Tank?" She asked as we stood in line waiting to check out.

I smiled and glanced back at her. "Oh I think I'll let them tell you that."

"They don't talk, much less talk about their pasts." She muttered looking down at the floor.

"I bet I can get them to talk, but I am going to need more supplies." I told her as I gestured for her to back out of the check out lane. I led us back to the bread aisle and started adding loaves of white bread to Stephanie's cart because mine had run out of room.

"What are you going to do?" Step asked wide eyed as I moved us on to the canned soup aisle and picked up two of the industrial sized cans of Campbell's tomato soup.

"I'm going to make dinner tonight at my place. Want to help?"

"Umm I can't cook. At all."

I couldn't help but laugh and shake my head. "This isn't going to be cooking really. More like warming stuff up. I promise I won't let you screw it up." I stopped for a minute thinking about the menu to decide what I else I needed to pick up.

"Hey Steph, can you run back to the meat and get me a couple more packages of bacon? I have to go grab some milk and stuff."

We split up and I headed to the dairy section where I grabbed a couple gallons of milk and practically bought out the stock of Kraft American Singles. I was going to make a meal that my dad used to make all the time, then I was going to proceed to kick each of my brothers in the shins under the table until they answered Stephanie's questions. My boys might be tough, but getting kicked in the shins hurt, especially if it was the same place repeatedly until the desired result was acquired. I smiled to myself as I headed back to meet Steph at the check out.

I went ahead and started unloading both carts, I silenced Stephanie's objections with a look. Her tiny amount of groceries wasn't going to make a bit of difference in the amount, especially after I had to stock up enough to feed the boys tonight. I paid for our groceries and Steph and I took them out to the car. I did have to remind her quietly to walk tall, but all in all she did really good.

We were a couple blocks away from the Rangeman building when Steph stopped staring out the window and asked. " How are we going to get all this stuff upstairs?"

I laughed and glanced at her quick before turning my attention back to the road. "You mean you have worked with these guys for years and never realized that they make excellent pack mules?"

"Huh? You mean you're going to have the guys take it up?"

"Sure, I bought it, I'm going to cook it and if they want to eat it, then they can help carry it. It's kinda like the Little Red Hen."

Steph furrowed her brow looking really confused. "I don't think I know that story."

I shifted a little to pull my phone out of my back pocket. "I'll tell it to you while we cook."

I dialed Bobby's cell from memory and waited for him to pick up. "Hey, do me a favor and grab the other boys and meet me in the garage in…" I glanced at the dashboard clock. "5. I need some help."

I hug up the phone and tossed it into the console. "They'll meet us in the garage, and then after we get everything upstairs, we can start prepping for dinner."

"Prepping? I thought you said it was going to be easy." Steph almost whined.

I turned into the parking garage on Haywood. "It is, but these guys can eat, so we have to make a lot of it. But it won't be hard I promise."

"If you say so."

I did say so. I wasn't going to ask her to do anything difficult, just a lot of it. I pulled into a parking space and watched my brothers walk over. I popped the trunk before Steph and I got out.

"Holy crap! You planning on feeding an Army?" Lester asked as he started grabbing groceries.

"Nope, just you four and Steph. I'm making dinner tonight."

Just then Tank reached in the trunk to grab a bag and one of the large cans of tomato soup rolled out. He picked it up and looked at me. "This mean you're making what I think you're making?"

I nodded with a grin. "Yup. It wouldn't be a family dinner if I didn't."

"Yes!" They all said together, and quickly grabbed the rest of the bags.

We all trouped upstairs to the apartment, and the guys set to putting away the groceries while I handed Steph a coke and told her to go sit down. When she started to object I shook my head and ushered her to the couch. "No arguments. First time you're here you're company, second time you're family. So for now you sit down while the boys get everything put away."

She shrugged and flopped down on the couch and turned on the tv flipping through the channels. I headed back to the kitchen to find the pots and pans I would need to cook tonight. I should have known that Bobby wouldn't have much. A quick conversation with the guys and Ricky decided that he would have Ella bring down what I would need in a little bit.

I was just kicking the guys out the door when Lester looked over his shoulder at me and grinned. "hmmm the women in the kitchen cooking while us men are out doing real work. Just the way it ought to be."

I rolled my eyes and playfully kicked him in the ass. "Yup, the women are going to cook for you men, and then ya'll get to clean up AND serve desert."

Lester laughed and closed the door behind him. I had missed hanging out with the guys. I turned to Steph to tell her the plan of attack.