When Ranger woke the next morning, he was on his back with Stephanie snuggled up under his right arm. Her head was on his shoulder, her leg bent across his, and her arm across his chest. Mr. Pants was sleeping stretched between his torso and his arm on his other side. Flanked by heat sources, it was no wonder that he'd pushed the covers down as he slept.

He slid out from under Stephanie, taking care not to disturb her, though he couldn't avoid jostling the cat, who gave him a grumpy look. Ranger apologized by rubbing him under the chin and Mr. Pants went back to sleep. When he returned from the gym an hour later, Stephanie was on her side with the cat curled up behind her knees. Neither stirred as he showered and changed for the day. He was tempted to drop a kiss on her cheek as he left for his office downstairs, but was afraid he'd wake her.

At 0807, she sent a good morning text which he returned. She made sure that he'd be in his office all morning, then promised to come down on her way out to the interview with Ms. Kamdar. Since her meeting was at 1115, and the office was ten minutes away, he estimated the time of her appearance to be 1030. When she walked in at 1025 he figured it was close enough to count as a win, especially as it was earlier than he'd thought.

"Good morning, Batman," Stephanie said with a smile as she entered the room.

She was dressed to impress in black ankle boots, charcoal grey dress slacks, and a maroon mock turtleneck sweater. A long grey herringbone blazer and the jewelry from last night completed the look. A modest clip held her long bangs in a side part while the rest of her hair was pulled back into a low ponytail at the nape of her neck.

She was stunning, and his breath caught in his throat for a moment at the sight of her.

"Back atcha, Babe," he replied as he stood, then rounded the corner of his desk to meet her.

Ranger took her in his arms and gave her a proper good morning kiss. One with enough passion to tell her how much he loved her, but not so much that anyone looking through the doorway got a peepshow.

Ending the kiss, he kept her in his embrace and asked quietly, "How are you feeling this morning?"

"Refreshed and cootie-free." She gave him a quick kiss on the lips. "Honestly, I haven't slept so well in ages. Your bed is super comfortable, especially with you in it. Then, after you left, Mr. Pants kept me warm."

"Be warned," he said with a grin, "He sprawls across the mattress and takes his half out of the middle. You might find yourself clinging to the edge of the bed."

"Well, he's been a perfect angel so far," she said, then changed the subject. "Wish me luck at my interview."

"Always. We can go to lunch once you get back."

Stephanie shook her head. "Thanks but I plan to be a while. I'd like to look around the area and check out the surroundings. Scope out the stores and restaurants in easy walking distance of the office. Look for any quiet corners to sit with a bag lunch and people-watch. That kind of thing."

"I'll come with you. I can show you around," Ranger said, mentally reviewing his schedule for the day. Tank could handle his appointment at 1300. The other items could be pushed back. He was already reaching for his phone to call Tank when he realized that Steph was shaking her head.

"I know you could, but I'd like to do this myself. That way it doesn't matter how much time I take at any particular place, or which ones I choose to explore or to bypass," she explained. "Maybe I'll check out every storefront down there, and on every block between here and there. Or maybe I'll go check out the huge waterfront park that I saw on the map that's only a block or two east of the office."

So, she wanted to get familiar with this part of downtown, and wanted to do it at her own speed. He could understand that, even while he had to quash the urge to insist that he accompany her. While he did worry about her wandering alone in a city that was strange to her, it wasn't like she was some country bumpkin. She'd grown up in Trenton, lived in Pittsburgh and Cincinnati, and spent the last three years in Chicago. All of which she'd done on her own.

Maybe he still needed to work on dialing down the protective instincts where she was concerned. He reminded himself that he didn't need to be her bodyguard, especially since that insistence had been part of what had chased her off to begin with.

"Okay," he conceded. "Then let's get you over to Jaime to sign out a vehicle."

The SUV would have a radio and GPS tracker in it already. The trackers for her person and her handbag would be signed out at the same time. She was shaking her head again. Ranger was fairly sure he wasn't going to like what she was going to say.

"No thanks," she said breezily, waving one hand. "I don't need a vehicle."

"Babe." He stared at her. She said she'd studied the maps. Surely she didn't plan on walking? Maybe she hadn't checked distances? "It's almost three miles from here to there. Six miles round trip."

Patting him on the cheek, she said, "That's very kind of you, Ranger, but no thanks. I figured I'd use Uber. I use them frequently in Chicago even though I have my own car. There were times when it wasn't worth dealing with the traffic or parking, like when I went to a concert or a festival. Or sometimes I knew that if I left the office at midday to grab lunch or run an errand, I might not be able to get a parking place when I got back. So, I'd call a cab or a rideshare."

Huh. Not quite what he'd expected her to say. Stepping back from her, he leaned on the edge of his desk and crossed his arms. One of the basic tenets of personal security was to never get into a car with a stranger, yet here she was blithely intending to do just that on her first outing in strange territory. A career spent leading a team into fluid situations that called for rapid-fire decisions with split-second timing meant that the order overruling her had nearly made it out of his mouth before he managed to clamp his teeth shut against it. In his head, he heard the echoes of Linda's diatribe denouncing his 'iron-fisted tyranny and condescending assumption' that only his decisions were correct.

There was no maybe about it. Ranger needed to rein himself in. He really had no desire to be the … what else had Linda called him? Oh, right. The Autocratic Emperor of Security. There was also the memory of Lester's whisper behind him, right before Linda went ballistic. "You sure you want to walk this path again, primo?"

No, Ranger thought. No, I do not. He tried for a compromise.

"If you'd rather not drive yourself, I'll assign a car and driver to you."

Ranger ran through the day's employee roster in his head. Would it be better to assign her one of the teams, so there'd be a driver and a backup? But he'd have to pull them off their route, and either leave it uncovered or pull two people off the control floor to cover. No, probably better to pull one person off the floor to drive Steph. After all, she wasn't going far. If there was an emergency, he was no more than three miles away with plenty of men at his command.

This time Stephanie gave him a stern look and put her hands on her hips. "I've got this handled, Ranger."

"I'm sure you do," he said, "but I don't see why you'd rather pay for a rideshare when you've got all these resources at your disposal."

"Because I don't have them at my disposal. You do."

"Which means that you do, too. Anything I have, I will gladly give to you. You know that." It took a great deal of effort, but Ranger managed not to raise his voice.

"Yes. And I've always pushed back on that, haven't I?" Stephanie gave him a sharp look and came very close to raising just one of her eyebrows.

Fair point. It had always been a struggle. He had the manpower and the equipment and if he didn't, he could get it. Basically anything she needed, he could provide. He had never understood why she fought him. Why wouldn't she want –

Something clicked and it occurred to him many, MANY, years too late that he'd never once asked her that. Asked her why she refused his offers. After all, if someone wanted to give him something he needed, he'd take it in a heartbeat. Wouldn't he?

Slowly, finally, Ranger asked the question he should have asked back then. "Why won't you accept what I can provide for you?"

"Because I don't want to be dependent on anyone. When I was younger, I knew that, I could feel that, but I couldn't say why," Stephanie said. "Between counseling and working with lawyers, I have a better shot at explaining it. Keep in mind that while I don't think you'd do this, so many others would that this is something that most women learn to deal with early on."

She paused to gather her thoughts. "If I accept your offer, that's a type of indebtedness and debts can be called. You give me something, then I owe you something in return. It's kind of like bartering, but the trade is incomplete. Most men – and feel free to silently repeat 'not all men' as needed – most men see everything through a transactional lens. And many of those men feel that what the woman owes them is something physical. How many times have we heard a guy complain about spending money on a woman but not getting sex? 'Sure it's a first date, but I bought her dinner, I should at least get–' a kiss or a hand job or full on sex. Do I include you in the not all men? Yes. Am I still going to be cautious? Also yes. It's an ingrained defense mechanism and it feels wrong to go against it."

Her pause was longer this time, and it had an expectant air. Ranger considered what she'd said and saw the truth of it. Back in his barracks days, when guys came back from a night out clubbing, how often would he hear some version of what the guy thought he was owed? Many of the guys around them would be commiserating and trash talking the woman.

But Ranger also had heard the other side of that when his older sisters would come home from a date. Eavesdropping was wrong, but his curiosity outweighed his mother's teachings. His two oldest sisters shared the room next to the one he shared with his brother. When he put a glass jar to the wall and pressed his ear against it, he could hear everything. They'd talk about the pressure the guys put on them, about how it was clear the guy was more interested in what was under the clothes than who was wearing them. As Celia had put it after one particularly disastrous date, "I'm not even a person to him, just a walking collection of body parts." Ranger also heard about how insistent, even aggressive, the guys could be which made him both angry at the guy and indignant on his sisters' behalf. He vowed never to be one of those guys.

And what about himself last night? Mel had offered to comp the bill for a party of twelve in a private room with an appetizer buffet and drinks. That would have been a huge savings, but he'd turned it down for the very same reason that Steph kept turning him down. He didn't want to owe the man. How did he not realize this sooner? Because he was being self-centered and oblivious. Linda really had him pegged. Autocratic Emperor, indeed.

Ranger found himself nodding. "I get it. I understand not wanting to be obligated. I've felt the same, myself." He saw her shoulders relax and her lips curve upward until he continued. "But what about now? We're a couple so the dynamic is different."

"Is it?" Stephanie tipped her head and squinted at him. "Is it really? The transactional component is still there, but it's been augmented by a forced dependency. By providing all the resources, I'd be forced to rely on you. Again, not that I think you'd do that but I've seen it many times through divorce proceedings at the law firm. Women with absolutely nothing in their own name and nowhere to go after a lifetime of being –" she made air quotes and spoke in exaggerated tones "– taken care of. They'd actually been made helpless."

Frowning, she wrapped her arms around herself and stared at the floor for a moment. When she looked up at him, her arms stayed where they were and she hunched her shoulders.

"Dickie tried to do that to me. I didn't get it at the time. I just knew that the thought of being a stay at home housewife made me uneasy. Don't get me wrong. It's a perfectly valid choice that many women are happy to make. But there was something about the way Dickie tried to insist that rubbed me the wrong way. He was pissed when I got that little Miata. Kept saying I'd deprived him of the chance to surprise me with a better car, but I got the feeling it was the fact that it was in my name and that I'd been able to afford it on my own that he didn't like."

Ranger stayed motionless, not wanting to disrupt the moment. Stephanie had never opened up like this about her marriage. There'd be the occasional snarky comment or joke, but she'd drawn a line. She'd open up to here and no farther. He had respected that and never pried. Dios knew he had lines of his own. This new information was giving him insight into her behavior and some of her reactions.

Sighing loudly, Stephanie dropped her arms to her sides and pressed her shoulders back. "If it hadn't been for that crappy job and my little car, I wouldn't have had any way to leave him when I found him screwing Joyce. I would have been stuck there, having to put up with his cheating. And if I couldn't leave, if he knew I was at his mercy, then what else would he start doing? As it was, I could barely afford that rundown apartment, but it was mine and no one could throw me out. Well, except for the landlord, but you know what I mean. It was my refuge, somewhere to go if I needed to."

Ranger was glad she'd told him because that actually explained a lot. Watching it happen to other people was one way to learn a lesson, but it seemed as if personal experience had given her the bonus of a trauma response. Either way, he understood where she was coming from.

"Thank you for telling me this." He pushed off from the desk and stepped in front of her, cupping her face in his hands. "I can see why you'd be wary of gifts. I'm getting better with expressing myself with words, but actions still come easier. My way of showing that I care is to protect and provide. I didn't realize that might be triggering for you. I'm sorry."

Softly, he kissed her lips then pulled her in for a long hug.

"If you ask before providing," she said into his neck, "and take no for an answer, I think we'll be fine."

"You got it," he said.

"Now." She pushed away. "Time for me to order up an Uber."

It was so hard not to ask her to take a tracker or a panic button. His fingers itched with the urge to slip one into her pocket, but he stayed strong and refrained even though he had one sitting in the top drawer of his desk. As Lester had suggested, Ranger was not going to make the same mistakes again.

"I'd appreciate it if you could text. Let me know how things are going," he said, concentrating on making that come out as a request instead of an order. "Remember we're having dinner with Julie and Alec tonight."

"Yep. I remember." She gave him a peck on the lips and hurried out the door.

Ranger barely had time to sit at his desk when he heard Stephanie's enthusiastic cry of "Manny!" immediately followed by Manny's shout of "Wifey!"

Pulling up the video feed for the floor, he saw Manny give Steph a quick hug as the two of them spoke animatedly, with matching smiles. Then Steph gestured to her watch and gave Manny a small wave. The elevator had just arrived so she hurried in and hit a button, then gave Manny a bigger wave as the doors closed. Manny stood there, smiling at the closed doors of the elevator, until Wraith punched him in the shoulder as she walked past, breaking the spell. He had a bounce in his step and a happy expression on his face as he went back to his station.

Cutting off the feed, Ranger had a smile of his own. Stephanie was back and so far, she'd won over everyone she met, even those she'd been most concerned about.

0 o 0

Catching up on paperwork wasn't as easy as it should have been. Ranger kept losing his place in the report on his screen every time he snuck a look at his phone, hoping to see another text from Stephanie. She'd texted to let him know she'd arrived for the interview, then to tell him that it was over and seemed to have gone well, and she was going to check out the area immediately around the building. Her last text had been about scouting out a place for lunch. But that was three hours ago.

Realistically, he knew that she was probably enjoying herself and hadn't thought about updates. Most importantly, any texts she sent were a courtesy, not a duty. She wasn't some employee required to provide regular reports, though he'd gotten used to texting with her a couple of times a day. Mentally, he made a note to thank her for the texts that she did send today, and not fuss at her for not sending more.

Ranger flipped his phone face down and got back to his report, but just as he'd found where he'd left off, Lester sauntered into the office, followed by Tank and Bobby. Lester took up his usual seat in the leather wingback chair off to the side, while Tank and Bobby sat in the client chairs in front of the desk. Late afternoon was often a time for informal meetings so this wasn't anything out of the ordinary but for the gleam in Lester's eyes. Ranger saved the document. Pushing his keyboard aside, he looked at his cousin expectantly.

"I heard Steph left in an Uber this morning," Lester said.

Ranger nodded, wondering where this was going. Was Lester also concerned about her being alone in Miami?

"So, she turned down your offers of various combinations of a fleet vehicle," Lester continued, "and one or two security experts as escorts slash bodyguards and you didn't override her wishes?"

Ranger gave another short nod, and began preparing a defense against any accusation of carelessness with Stephanie's safety.

Lester leaned forward, eyes intent. "Didn't sneak around her wishes with anything? No trackers? No panic button? No surveillance team? Not tracking her phone?

Ranger shook his head once for each question and decided the best way to explain his failure to secure her person by summarizing her words to him, leaving out the most personal portions. Lester's next words, however, disarmed him completely as Ranger realized that he'd mistaken the reasons for the interrogation.

"Proud of you, primo." Lester relaxed back into the chair, smiling. "Your self-improvement is showing."

"Hers, too," said Bobby. "Can we talk about that takedown last night? Smooth moves and no hesitation. That's the kind of reaction you get with dedicated learning. You don't get that by taking a class at the Y every couple of years."

"That's for sure," Tank said. "But if she's got moves like that, how'd her partner get hurt?"

"His injury was her motivation for training," Ranger replied. "I found out a few more details about that. It's not something Stephanie wants to discuss. Hell, she doesn't even want to think about it, so all I have is the bare outline."

After Stephanie had met the guys in person on her previous visit, she'd said that he could pass along what she'd told him. The men waited patiently while Ranger debated how much to say, though there was very little he actually knew. No names beyond first names for her co-workers, and not even a hint of who the perps were.

"The agency had written a bond on a pair of stone cold bruisers, both as big as you, Tank. Deadline's almost on them so the agency sends out every available BEA in pairs. The A-teams get the most probable sites. B and C teams get the least likely. Her partner was okay, but not great, and they got sent to a site that should have been a bust. Instead they hit paydirt. Both maniacs were there."

Ranger paused, noting the grim expressions of his audience. Even as good as they were, there'd been times they'd been outmatched or outgunned. It was just the way the world worked. They'd all been lucky enough to survive.

"From what Stephanie said," Ranger continued, "she either didn't have her gun or it wasn't loaded. Her stun gun and pepper spray had no effect. She even tried jumping one but couldn't stay on him. In the meantime, the perps – armed with at least one gun, a bat, and a large knife – were focused on the partner, which is why he took most of the damage."

Tank summed it up. "So, the C-team got ambushed by A-list career criminals, had to fight way above their weight class, and got smacked down hard?"

"Basically," Ranger agreed. "Stephanie's convinced the entire thing was her fault for not being completely prepared but –" pausing, he shrugged.

" – there was no way she and her partner were coming out unscathed, regardless of how prepped she was," Tank concluded.

Ranger nodded. "I can tell you that the incident was incredibly traumatic for her. She did have physical injuries as well, just not to the same extent." He frowned, trying to keep his equilibrium, to stay in command mode where his emotions were muffled. "Broke her forearm and some ribs. I have a feeling she got tagged with a blade, but that was all she'd say."

Bobby and Tank both grimaced and Lester winced. No one wanted to think about Stephanie on the receiving end of an attack. It was bad enough when a skip laid hands on her during a distraction, and they were right there to stop it. The idea of her suffering serious bodily harm where none of them could reach her, defend her, made all them uneasy.

"Good thing we know she was in Cincinnati investigating workers comp claims," Bobby said, "because that sounds like that really fucked up takedown that happened in Pittsburgh with Slash and Burn. You remember them? John Nash and Arty Fairburn, those psychos joined at the hip who lived and breathed violence."

Tank huffed. "Not many guys out there as big as me. To see the pair of them come at you … hell, I'd nope out if I could."

"Shit yeah. Same here," said Lester. "Those guys were total whack jobs. Wasn't enough to rob the convenience store. They had to beat the shit out of everyone in it. Even when the clerk just handed over everything with no fuss, that wasn't good enough. They wanted blood and screaming."

Ranger clutched at the edge of his desk as a chill went through him, and the pit of his stomach dropped like it was full of lead. She hadn't used names. Except for her partner, Gerry. She'd never said who they were after. But the timeline. What was the timeline?

Bobby was still telling the story. "Two bounty hunters had the extreme bad luck to stumble across these pricks who got the drop on them. Slash and Burn roughed up the one guy, knocked him out, and the two of them started whaling on the other guy. Shot him at least once, then bashed him to the ground with a baseball bat."

Ranger remembered hearing about that. When? When did it happen? Another chill, deeper than the first, ran through his veins as goose bumps raised up all over his body and he felt nauseated. Madre de Dios. The timing fit. And how likely was it that two such similar incidents with similar antagonists would happen in the same city?

"They would've finished that guy off, but the partner came to, saw what was happening and crawled over, threw himself on top of the guy – I think his name was Harry? Gerry? Anyway, partner takes the next blow from the bat. Partner literally crouched next to him and covered Gerry's head and shoulders with his own body and put his arms over his own head to try to protect it from a full-on swing."

Now his skin felt warm and clammy, in startling contrast to the bone deep chill that lingered within. Taking slow deep breaths to quell the nausea, Ranger tried to shut out the sound of Bobby's voice but it took all his concentration not to vomit.

"Slash – or maybe it was Burn. Dunno who was holding the bat." Bobby paused only a second before deciding it didn't matter. "Anyway, whoever was swinging it would have gotten a home run at the ballpark because it broke the partner's arm. Burn gets a few slices in on the partner's back."

Saliva flooded Ranger's mouth and his stomach muscles tightened. The three scars that he'd seen last night as he'd bathed her. He'd known them for knife wounds. Jesus. Closing his eyes, he clenched his fists and his jaw against the sensation, fighting his own autonomic systems. He didn't dare unclench his mouth, afraid he'd throw up, or else he'd have told Bobby to shut the fuck up already.

"Now this whole time, the neighbor's dogs have been going crazy, barking and jumping, and I remember there were at least a couple of gunshots. And this is like ten in the morning, so it's all out in the open, people are home and they'd called the cops first thing. Slash and Burn waited until the last minute. Waited until the cops were pulling up, screeching to a halt with lights and sirens going, then just slipped out the back yard."

Still at odds with himself, Ranger opened his eyes. Tank was looking at Bobby, who'd been looking off in the distance as he told his story. But Lester … Lester was looking right at him. Ranger saw the growing horror on his cousin's face as he took in Ranger's appearance. Saw the moment his cousin made the connection.

"Oh, shit," Lester whispered as his hands clutched the arms of the chair, then he hunched forward, grabbing at his midriff. "Oh, shit. Oh, Christ. Madre de Dios." Voice low and unceasing, Lester continued his unbroken litany of curses and profanity, spilling the words out like a verbal form of the vomit Ranger was fighting against.

Oddly enough, it was as if Lester's reaction acted like a release valve for Ranger. The imminent need to retch eased as his stomach kicked it down a few notches. Tank and Bobby were staring at Lester who, having finally run out of expletives, was sitting up but looking shaky, his face distraught. Then all eyes turned to Ranger.

He had to take a couple of calming breaths and lick his lips before he could speak. "Stephanie didn't go straight to Cincinnati."

There was a sharp inhale from Bobby who started rubbing his hands down the outside of his thighs. It was a self-soothing gesture that came out subconsciously in dire circumstances. Tank's blank face dropped down but, like Lester, he grabbed at the arms of his chair, holding so tightly that the tendons in every finger stood out. Lester held one hand on his stomach and looked queasy, as if he was feeling the same nausea that had hit Ranger.

Feeling a little shaky himself, Ranger parked his elbows on the arms of his chair and clasped his hands across his abdomen. It was a pose he'd discovered years ago for simultaneously steadying oneself and giving the appearance of control.

"She just calls it The Incident and gave only the barest of details. She didn't give names except for that of her partner – Gerry." There was a general murmur as the men took that in. As he spoke, Ranger could feel the inner chill fade and his stomach returning to normal. He continued. "From Trenton, she went to Pittsburgh. It wasn't until after The Incident that she ended up in Ohio, and that's where she prefers to start her history. I understand her reasons and have honored that request. It was in Ohio that she started training. Like I said, what happened to her partner was her motivation. In her mind, and from the way she tells the story, she's the sole reason that he got hurt."

"No." Bobby was shaking his head. "No. Based on how it happened? She's not the reason he got hurt. She's the reason he's still alive. She threw herself into harm's way to protect him even though all she had was her own body. That swing was meant to kill him, and would have if she hadn't gotten in the way of it. And if she hadn't put her arms over her head in time, that bat would've crushed her skull instead of his."

There was silence as they all took that in. Then Lester asked, "But the rest of the story is so detailed. How did it get told as two guys instead of Steph and some guy?"

Ranger had also wondered about that, and had an answer. "Bond enforcement is a field that skews heavily male. Any story you hear, you tend to assume the participants are male. Even if the story started out correct, someone along the way may have assumed that it wasn't and 'fixed' it, passing it along with two men as the bounty hunters."

Before anyone could reply, Lester's phone buzzed. Checking the screen he smiled. "It's Julie." Putting the phone to his ear, he connected the call. "What's up, Junebug? They're here. We're all in your Dad's office. Okay." Pulling the phone away, he tapped the screen then held it in one hand. "Okay, Julie, you're on speaker."

Julie's voice, bright and cheerful, drifted from the phone. "I need to consult the Uncles, please. Ranger, you can listen but you can't chime in, okay?"

"All right, Julie," Ranger replied.

He and Julie had gotten much closer in the years since she'd been kidnapped by Scrog. It had taken a long time, but every so often she'd call him Dad instead of Ranger, and his heart leapt with happiness every time she did. She'd explained once that she'd felt conflicted at first. That calling Ranger Dad had felt like she was turning her back on Ron, the good man who'd raised her. After discussing it with her friends, she realized that there were many blended families out there with more than one man called Dad or woman called Mom and whatever worked for each family was what was right. Ranger understood that, and if he wished that she'd always call him Dad, well, he'd keep that to himself.

"Okay, mis tíos. My dad and Stephanie are coming for dinner tonight and I know you've all had a chance to meet her. I'm worried about two things – whether this is going to be a rehash of the toxic original, and whether she's really back for good. I'd rather not have to scrounge up another emergency kitten to keep Ranger from going emo again."

Tank, the asshole, gave Ranger a huge grin. Ranger flipped him off.

Lester was the first to reply. "I think we can safely say that this time Stephanie is here for good."

"She's got her act together," said Tank. "I think you'll like her even more than the old Stephanie. And you should see her new defense skills."

"I have to agree with those two," said Bobby. "I think we're looking at a new and improved couple here that have the skills to work through any disagreements."

Ranger could hear the relief in Julie's voice when she said, "I'm so glad to hear that." Then her tone turned playful as she added, "I might get him a kitten anyway. Just for fun."

Ranger rolled his eyes at that last bit but, true to his word, didn't say a thing.