As ever, thank you so much for reading, and especially your lovely reviews. I hope, however you celebrate, that you are enjoying the season. I am on holiday (love university breaks! ;)), had a quiet Christmas with family, and hoping to get a fair bit of writing done before I have to get back into the work grind.

Facing Up

After our brunch, we strolled along the beach, finding a spot that was not crowded, and Carlos spread out towels under some dappled shade from nearby palm trees. I stripped off my sundress while Carlos took off his shirt, and he applied sunscreen all over my back and legs, although I took it from him with a mock glare when he went to continue on my stomach and chest. He grinned at me unrepentantly. He told me he did not need sunscreen, as his skin did not burn, but I gently applied some to his face and neck, telling him the glare from the water intensified the sun. He just shrugged. We stood to go for a swim; I had left my clutch purse in the car, not wanting to risk it being stolen. Carlos also left his wallet and weapons in the car, but he had brought a small plastic bag and he buried the car keys discreetly in the sand under one corner of his towel.

The water was beautiful, clear, cool without being cold, with soft waves rolling in. We splashed and played for half an hour in the water, then went back to rest on our towels. I had never seen Carlos so relaxed; I had not really picked him for the lazing on the beach type. I realised I must have said this out loud, as he smiled at me and replied, "Normally, no. I'm not. But like any teen in Miami, I did my fair share of swimming and lazing at the beach. It brings back good memories. Besides, I like being here with you."

He leered at me teasingly, and I laughed and gently punched his shoulder. "Down, boy!" I teased back. He just grinned at me. We relaxed for another hour or so, before taking another dip in the ocean. As we rested again, Carlos dug up his keys and told me he was going to get us some cold drinks. I snoozed lightly in the breezy shade until I was woken with a startled yelp when a drip of cold water landed on my warmed skin. I gave Carlos my strongest glare, which he ignored with a grin, and he handed me a bottle of soda and one of the bottles of water. I set down the water and opened the soda to take several satisfying swallows. Carlos then handed me a popsicle from behind his back, and I exclaimed in surprise and pleasure. I kissed him lightly, and we sat close to enjoy the fruity, frozen treat and sip our drinks.

We packed up our beach gear, and Carlos led me up to the facilities nearby. I quickly rinsed the salt water off me under the outdoor shower and ducked into the bathrooms to change into my underwear and sundress, and brush my hair. Once dressed, I re-joined Carlos, who had also rinsed off and changed his shorts for khaki chinos. We drove away from the beach to find a parking spot near Calle Ocho in Little Havana. We wandered down the street, which I was surprised to see was full of musical entertainers, art displays, and vibrant stalls. Carlos explained it was Viernes Culturales, or Cultural Friday, a monthly celebration on the last Friday of each month. I was slightly shocked to realise it was the last Friday in September, and summer was quickly coming to a close. Back in Trenton it would already be fall, we would start to see the seasons change, and cool weather set in.

I put it aside as we walked the street, stopping to browse at stalls and displays, listening to street performers as we ate empanadas and sweet plantains, and sipped iced coconut water with sprigs of mint. Carlos' arm was around me and we enjoyed the atmosphere until sunset. At seven pm, we joined a free, historic walking tour, as the guide pointed out historic buildings and explained the history of Little Havana; how it had evolved from the Castro exile in the 1960s and become a centrepiece for Cuban and Latino culture through the decades.

The walking tour finished after an hour, and Carlos led me to a quiet, Brazilian grill restaurant, where we ate chicken and pork carved from long skewers onto our plates, with side salads and rice and beans. He ordered a classic Caipirinha drink for us to share. It was fresh with lime and very enjoyable. After dinner, we strolled slowly back to the car, and held hands as Carlos drove us back to Rangeman. It had been one of the best days I could ever remember, and I could not help loving Carlos more for creating it and sharing it with me.

On Monday morning, I went down to another scheduled meeting with Carlos, Marco, and Tank. Carlos had contacted a lawyer in Trenton, on his Newark lawyer's recommendation, and there would be a phone meeting this afternoon to begin the purchase and permit processes. I was a little concerned; it looked likely that at least one of us, most likely me, was going to have to return to Trenton soon. There was going to be a lot of paperwork and meetings, and someone needed to be on site for this to proceed smoothly.

I wasn't concerned about returning per se; I was concerned that Carlos would not be able to return with me. Our relationship seemed to be back on track, but I could not help feeling a little insecure about being separated from him again. On the other hand, he had told me he had an initial appointment to see a therapist tomorrow, and I wanted him to be able to get healthy and whole. I just felt unsettled at the imminent separation.

We continued our planning discussions and at the end, Carlos indicated that I should stay in his office. He seemed uncertain of how to begin, and I knew my guess was going to be correct.

"You want me to go back to Trenton, don't you?" I asked.

He gave me a slightly wry smile, "Want you to? No. But I think I need you to." He affirmed.

"I was kinda expecting it, Carlos. There's going to be a lot of paperwork with the building, and shuffling documents to government offices. It needs someone on site to keep everything on track. Besides, there will probably be some FTAs, if Vinnie hasn't already got a few."

He gave me a genuine smile at that, "As a matter of fact, Vinnie contacted me this morning. He has an FTA waiting. I told him you would pick it up in the next couple of days and begin the research. He wasn't happy; wanted me to drop everything and come back, but I told him you were more than capable." He hesitated another moment, before continuing, "As a matter of fact, Les Sebring contacted me yesterday. He also has an FTA he wants to contract to me. That one is more of a problem though since we have not worked with him before. He may not be accepting of working through you, given his previous attitude. I thought of sending Santos back with you. But I'm not sure if that will be enough for Sebring. He seemed to be hesitant to contract to anyone other than me. I'm going to call him back today and see what he says. If he agrees to work with you and Santos, I will agree to take that file as well. "

I took a deep breath, and asked in a small voice, "When do you think you will come back to Trenton?"

He hesitated, "I'm not sure, Babe. I want to come back with you, but I promised you and Marco I would work with this therapist." He trailed off.

"I do want you to, and I understand," I reassured him, "I'm just going to miss you."

He stood up, coming around the desk to draw me up into his arms, "I'll miss you too, Babe. But I promise we'll talk every day, and I'll see how things go with the therapist. If they have another option, like doing phone consultations, or referring me to another therapist in New Jersey, I might be able to come back soon. But he came highly recommended, and he's approved under my government contract, and I want to start there."

I nodded into his shoulder and tightened my arms around him. He nuzzled into the top of my head. We were startled slightly by a knock on the door. Carlos drew back, and called out, "Enter."

Lester opened the door, and walked in, grinning lasciviously at me in Carlos' arms. But he made no direct comment, simply saying, "You wanted to see me, Ranger?"

"I rarely want to see you Santos," Carlos smirked.

Lester looked mightily offended, "You wound me, boss!"

I rolled my eyes at both of them. Carlos continued, "I'm going to have to send Steph back to Trenton." Lester looked surprised, and a dark look flickered across his face. But before he could respond, Carlos added, "There's an FTA file waiting, possibly two. Plus, Steph is going to be the primary contact and liaison in Trenton for the building purchase and contract negotiations. I wanted to ask you if you could accompany her back to pick up the FTAs."

Lester looked somewhat reassured at this, and I saw him switch into professional planning mode. "I can go, no problems, but there are a couple of FTAs here in Miami that need management oversight as well. Will you take them on?"

Carlos nodded, "Set up a time to brief me tomorrow morning. I'm going to try and get you both on a plane early tomorrow afternoon."

Les agreed, "We should probably think about starting to train someone else here in the FTA planning and management side. I know that you and Marco are both capable, but with the expansion, travel, and other things coming up, it seems likely that we're going to need someone to be able to step up here."

Carlos looked thoughtful for a moment, and then nodded again, "Sounds like a good idea. Do you have any recommendations?"

Lester glanced at me, "Lamont did well in Steph's training, had some good ideas, and I think he has some good instincts. He'll need a fair bit of training and mentoring, but if you and I start working with him, he might be a good fit."

Carlos glanced at me as I thought about what Lester said. Carlos raised an eyebrow. I responded, "I can't really speak to his instincts like Lester, but he did do well in the training, and he offered some suggestions about planning and reporting with the FTAs that were solid."

Carlos nodded decisively, "Good enough. Run it past Marco first. If Marco agrees, talk to Lamont today and let him know I want to work with him in planning the FTA recoveries you are handing over."

Lester agreed and turned to leave. Carlos called him back, "We need to start identifying people in Trenton as well. I have Hector on board but keep your eyes open for anyone else we might bring on board there."

Lester looked at me a little uncertainly, then spoke, "Steph can tell you about one person that might be a good fit. He's a trained paramedic and did the college course with Steph. I met him at their celebration party, and he impressed me then. I don't know if he's found another job, but if he's available he'd be trainable, in my opinion." Carlos nodded and Lester left.

Carlos turned back to me and quirked his eyebrow again. I said, "His name is Robert Brown, goes by Bobby. He was a trained paramedic, worked in New York City, but had to return to Trenton for family reasons. He has to be available most nights to look after his mother, so that put a hiatus on his paramedic career. He was looking for work in Trenton with some career potential. He looks really fit and said he was trained in firearms. I thought he might also be an interesting recruit with his medic training. I imagine having a trained medic on staff would be an asset."

Carlos thought about that, "Yes, seems like a possibility. Do you have contact details?"

I nodded, "Back in Trenton. He's actually dating Tricia, my friend I made through the course. You know, the librarian at Trenton public library?"

Carlos chuckled at that, "Well, contact him when you get back and see if he's interested. If he is, Lester might be able to use him for surveillance and backup and feel him out. We can employ him as a casual contractor until Trenton is up and running. That's what I'm doing for Hector. I can also talk to him about his medical expertise. He might be able to help us with fitness evals, training, and setting standards and protocols. We've mostly just based everything off the military and police, but it wouldn't hurt to see if we can tailor it. See if he's interested."

I beamed at this, "I sure will. He was getting a bit desperate for work, but he may be interested in part-time even if he's found something else. He said he loved being a paramedic, so using some of that training would probably be appealing for him."

Carlos smiled at me and drew me back into his embrace. "Do you have much you need to get done today?" he asked.

"A couple of calls about the building. And I want to finalise some of the reports from the training, especially if I'm going back tomorrow."

"I've set my laptop up next door in the meeting room; you can work in there. There's a phone in there as well." He paused, then added, "I'll talk to Carol, ask if she can do a special dinner for us tonight. I'd like to spend tonight alone with you."

I smiled at him and nodded, "Sounds good, Carlos. I'll go up later this afternoon and start packing my stuff up. Let me know what time you'll come up."

Carlos hesitated a moment, then asked, "Do you need to pack everything up, Steph? Maybe… Maybe you could leave some things here? You know if you want to. I'm sure you'll be back."

I caught my breath and let it go in a small huff, before I smiled again, "That's a plan Carlos," I said huskily. I felt the knot in my chest from our upcoming separation loosen slightly.

I spent several hours typing up the training reports, stopping only to grab some lunch from the break room on the fifth floor. Carol had set out salad sandwiches and a warm chicken and rice dish. It was so tasty. I also grabbed an apple and took it back to my desk. At around three o'clock, I emailed the finished reports to Carlos and Marco for their feedback and packed up my stuff. I knocked on Carlos' closed door before I headed to the penthouse apartment, to hear a gruff 'Enter'. I did so, and smiled at Carlos, who looked like he had been running his hands through his hair.

"Problems?" I asked cheekily. He smiled at me ruefully.

"Not really. Just people being people. I.e., illogical and a bit stupid. What's up?"

"Just heading up to pack what I need to and relax. I sent you and Marco the reports. If you approve them, I'll send them on to all the management team tomorrow before I leave." I paused, then continued as he nodded, "What time are you coming up?"

"Another couple of hours," he replied. "I have to sort out some kind of solution for this client, before I meet with him tomorrow, or I just might be tempted to strangle him."

I moved further into the office and shut the door, "Want to share? A fresh pair of eyes or ears might help?"

Carlos looked thoughtful and then agreed, "OK. Well, the business is a shipping and distribution hub for cruise ships. Supplies paper goods, dinner ware, kitchenware, shit like that. He says the cruise lines won't agree to having their trucks monitored or searched as they arrive or leave, but he is concerned that his loss rate is way too high. I can't seem to convince him that it's obvious that the goods are going missing via the trucks, and he needs to have better controls over the loading. He just keeps saying that the trucks belong to the cruise lines, and they won't agree to searches by his staff or a security firm."

I thought about this for a few minutes, mulling over some options. I decided to try a different angle, "What if we ignore the trucks for now, and concentrate on the loading docks?" Carlos shot me an intrigued look, and I continued, "You could set up cameras, angled so they give clear visibility over the loading docks, but not into the trucks themselves. At least then you could see what is being loaded, how much, etc." Carlos nodded thoughtfully.

"We have one camera and a guard on the docks; but that might boost it. That's a good idea."

I warmed to the topic, "Maybe it's not strictly a security idea, and I don't know if he'll want to hear anything about his operations, but there's another thing he could do. He could set up a 'staging area' where goods for the different trucks are stored, ready for loading, and they could be inspected and searched prior to loading. You could have video monitoring over the area to watch that nobody tampers with the goods after they're approved for loading. That way, you're not searching the trucks, but you are monitoring what gets loaded pretty carefully."

Carlos looked gobsmacked at this idea. He stood abruptly and startled me as he strode around the desk to sweep me up into his arms. He swung me around and kissed me soundly. "You're brilliant, Babe!" he exclaimed. "That's a fantastic idea, and I know exactly where to suggest he set it up on his blueprints. He might need to install an additional roller door, and we would need some more cameras, but it would definitely work." He set me back on my feet and gave me his full 1000-watt smile, "You are so clever, Steph. Thank you. I was tearing my hair out."

I reached up to smooth his hair back and smiled at him, "I could see that. I'm glad I could help." I reached up to kiss him lightly. "I'm going to head upstairs now I've made the world safe for Rangeman," I quipped. Carlos chuckled.

"I'll see you in about an hour then, Babe." I looked back at him, quizzically; he had said two hours. "You solved my problem. I just need to work up the proposals, so I'll only be an hour or maybe ninety minutes."

I laughed lightly and he added, "Carol is going to make us a special dinner before she leaves tonight. She'll bring it up just before six."

I smiled again; I always seem to be smiling when I'm with Carlos now. "Good deal, Carlos." I gave him a little wave and headed upstairs.

Please review if you can. I love them.

I hope you have a wonderful new year's eve and I hope 2024 brings good things to you and yours. Robyn