I still have no idea where this chapter came from. And I seriously debated posting it, but then I figured it is another day in Ranger, Steph, and Olive's, life. Everything familiar belongs to Janet.

I watched Stephanie flinch as a branch broke off a nearby tree and slammed into the side of the Rangeman building. She knew I had entered her office, but had waited for me to speak ... likely knowing what I'm about to say.

"You get a wind day, Babe," I told her, smiling as Mo sidestepped around Olivia's rattle-offer to check in with me. "I'm benching you."

"Oh really?" She asked, turning away from the window to lift her eyebrows at me and the dog that sat for a head-scratch.

"Yes. Call me paranoid, but given the last couple months of our life, if you go after a skip in this weather ... a tree will likely fall on your car before you even make it off Haywood. I'm not risking it or you."

"But I got all of my reports and searches done yesterday so I'd be free to go after Neal NcCarsy today. What am I going to do if Tank and I are sidelined?"

"I don't care what Tank chooses to do, but I can think of a number of things I can see you doing."

"Do any of them involve me being fully-clothed?" She asked in an extremely flirty tone.

"One or two. Our daughter is still very much awake, so the naked ideas will have to wait."

"This day is going from strange ... to a bit disappointing now."

With a tug on the leg of my pants that didn't have anything to do with my wife turning frisky, I looked down at my baby staring up at me with her arms raised. If Olive didn't have an independent streak as large as Steph's, I'd be more concerned about her wanting so much one-on-one time with us. Seeing how quick she is to embark on her own adventures, with or without Gunny and Mo flanking her, shows that the hug/kiss/and cuddle time with her Mama and I is reserved for when she needs it or just plain wants it.

Not being able to be in the states very often when Julie was Olive's age, I can't say if Olivia's reactions are typical ones, or feelings specific to her when it comes to us. Either way, if I'm here and my daughter wants me, she is going to get my undivided attention until she grows bored with me and requires more thrilling activities.

If only Stephanie could be as easy to read and to please. I kissed my baby and let her go when she started wriggling to get started on her next round of play before a nap got involved in her day and 'sidelined' her.

"You and Olivia can help me locate Terral Wilson," I suggested.

Steph rolled her eyes. "Please ... you already know where he is. You're just pinning down his exact location. You don't need me for what Vince is going to tell you in three minutes."

"You're wrong," I told her. "I always need you and your input on a case."

My phone buzzed and even without looking at her, I could see her eyes make another rotation.

"Wilson's hanging out in the Beer's Trap over in Bordentown," I was informed. "Sources say once he shows up, he stays until a waitress gets off her shift."

"What time does that happen?" I asked Vince.

"Six."

"Say bye-bye to Daddy, Olive," Steph whispered. "He's got a bad guy to go get."

"Bye-bye ... Ba, Ba," was my daughter's answer.

"Yup, that bad guy is history," my wife agreed.

"Send Cal and Junior," I told Vince, "since you can tell Tank and Lester that they will be busy apprehending NcCarsy."

"Will do," I was told. "I'll call you when both are in custody."

I disconnected and was immediately caught in blue-eyed high beams. "You're staying with Olive and I?"

"What I took from your comment about not having the luxury of many days of me staying safe inside the building, is that you have to spend as much time worrying about my safety as I do about yours."

"I know you can invade and promptly take over small countries with only a gun and a prayer, but I do worry about you anyway. I've realized that a side effect of loving someone so much is that your guts can feel like they're being put through a blender on a daily basis."

"As 'romantic' as that sounds," I told her, transferring the grin from my lips onto hers via a thorough kiss, "it is a pretty accurate description. I'm choosing to be yours and Olive's today. Since I don't feel comfortable sending you out after a skip, I'll be keeping you company."

She stared at me while petting Gunny's head. Yet another male who is gazing adoringly at her.

"You're serious?" She asked.

"Yes. There are many things I choose not to regret, time with you and our daughter stays at the top of that list. The only good thing that comes from a major scare, is that I'm reminded that spending time with those I love is not a given ... it's a gift that can be taken away at any time. What?" I asked, when she just stared at me after a quick glance to make sure Olive is occupied with Mo or a toy and is continuing to stay out of trouble.

"Do you have any idea how unique of a guy you are?" She asked me.

"I've told you that I'm the only Ranger you will ever need, and also the only man who can give you everything you need."

"Yeah, but I thought you meant something else by that ... not that you were going to surpass yourself when it comes to thinking more about me and our daughters, than having to prove what a solitary badass you are."

"There are many reasons to be glad I'm who I am ... and one is not needing to prove a damn thing to anyone. If I take a day off for my women, it's because I don't want to be anywhere else."

That got me a grin. "I figured that out for myself when you chose to show up at my apartment on your nights off just to talk to me when weren't together/together yet. Add in Olivia, and I know we and Julie are your core's team ... the one you prefer to be with even when you do have other places to go and important stuff to do."

"My reputation is one thing, but I want my legacy to be built around a different set of priorities."

"I hope you know that you've already accomplished that goal," my wife told me. "Julie knows you love her, and are there for her any time day or night. I have a feeling Olive is going to believe well into her teen years that you're responsible for putting the sun up for her everyday. And I fully understand how unbelievably lucky I am to be loved by you. You go into every job, mission, basically every single day, with a can't-fail attitude. But when it comes to our relationship, you switch over to won't fail and refuse to give up ... and you've passed a similar determination onto me to be everything you need just from choosing to let yourself love me."