Happy October! (AKA Spooky Season;)
Disclaimer: The Plum Universe belongs to JE. Typos are my bad.
Ranger's POV
"Babe." Her slim fingers drummed against my upper back, tapping through my T-shirt over my shoulder blades in an anxious manner.
"Sorry." Babe pressed herself fully against my back, resting her head on mine and whispering the apology into my right ear. "It's just that…" Her shrug caused her breasts to drag along my upper back with the quick movement, further igniting the fire that always burns just below the surface. "… when we're in bed, you're, you know…" Stephanie buried her face against my neck as she admitted that she finds it hard to get comfortable when we're in bed and I'm fully clothed. Apparently, I've conditioned her to my being naked when we're in bed. I'm still working on getting Babe to join me in bed naked. For now, she'll only go to sleep in the nude after she's had an orgasm or two. The opportunist in me acknowledges the progress she's made.
At my groan while she snaked her arm over my ribs to be able to rest her hand over my left pectoral as she hugged me from behind, Stephanie was quick to point out that when she's the big spoon I don't have an insistent poke at my lower back or ass. Granted, the mental image of me molding myself to her bare back while we're in bed did nothing to ease me back from this sparked desire. It's a nightly occurrence that we seek each other for that physical contact, even in our sleep.
"I'll shut up now and behave." Stephanie whispered the promise against my ear, settling fully against my back and doing her best to stifle a giggling fit. Craning my neck, I searched for her smiling lips with mine. Our kiss was short due to our awkward angle and Babe's uncontrollable laughter.
When I first met Babe, I could hardly comprehend how someone could talk so much and so fast. As I was drawn more and more to her, I began craving getting to hear her voice and actually listen to what she had to say. In fact, one of the early instances when I broke into her apartment in the wee hours of the night, I was startled to find that even in slumber Stephanie can be quite chatty. The first time I experienced it I was sure she'd made me and was pissed. It took me longer than I'd ever admit to realize that she was very much asleep while she cursed up a storm.
Silence blanketed us for a handful of seconds before Stephanie shifted, brushing against me in the process as she tried to find a more comfortable position, pointing out how being in a teenager's bedroom that resembles what she always dreamed would be her room in high school is making her picture what it would have been like if we met as teenagers.
"Yeah, I know. You probably wouldn't have given me a second glance." Babe said she wasn't part of the popular crowd, sounding a bit sad as she reminisced about her teenage years.
"Babe." Taking her hand in mine, I brought it up to my lips to press a kiss on her palm before returning her hand to where it previously rested over my heart. "I would have been a really bad influence on you." I certainly would have found a way to climb through her bedroom window or helped her snuck out to go joy riding with me.
"My mom would have loved that." Babe said sarcastically. Helen Plum despises me now and I'm a respected business owner and decorated Army Ranger. So, Stephanie's mother would have absolutely hated me ten times more as the teenage menace I was nearly two decades ago.
Stephanie eventually settled in for the night, drifting off to sleep inevitably. Her even breathing against my nape gave it away, along with the end of her pillow talk. I've grown to cherish the time we spend conversing, especially when we're snuggled together, preferably sans clothes.
I, on the other hand, was full on vigilant. Jason Sullivan, like most of the Core Team, and I met during basic training. Hawk, as we nicknamed him due to his intense piercing stare, was forced to divert from his once planned military career when a life-threatening injury after an ambush made him reevaluate his life. With a wife and young daughter waiting for him stateside, Hawk fought hard to live and took his medical discharge without any bitterness. His energy was solely focused on returning to his wife and daughter. With his highly intellectual brain intact, Hawk made a name for himself as a consultant. He made great investments in the right markets, and by the time I was working hard to establish Rangeman as a security household name, Hawk was already a millionaire. He supported and trusted Rangeman from day one, signing on with our first branch, Miami, without hesitation. Hawk's been a VIP client from the get go, so when he personally called me to ask for assistance, I promptly took matters into my own hands.
Last month was the first time an alert was raised from Hawk's residence. He moved his family from Miami early last summer in preparation for his only daughter starting Princeton next fall. The move went pretty smooth for the Sullivans, despite the major adjustment, up until a few weeks ago. Just after Danielle, Hawk's daughter, started her Senior year of high school, the family has been plagued by odd occurrences. There have been several alarms manually set off by Hawk and his family these past several weeks. Their claims of an intruder have been unsubstantiated. Patrol units haven't found any evidence of a break in, our surveillance cameras haven't picked up anything, and there are no technical malfunctions found with our systems. As a precaution, we did a full systems check after doing a major overhaul of Hawk's equipment. In fact, our other residential clients in this affluent neighborhood haven't experienced any issues. The situation is baffling to say the least.
When Hawk came to me, pleading for help, I believed him when he said that he and his family are experiencing something. Unsure of what else could be the matter, I brought Babe into the mix. Stephanie did a walkthrough two days ago when Hector reworked the systems on the property. Babe didn't see or sense anything out of place in the light of day, so she suggested we spend a night in the home and go through the nightly motions and bedtime routine with the Sullivans.
In preparation for tonight, I had Hector recheck the system and even add additional outdoor cameras and sensors. With the initial report of an intruder coming from Danielle, Babe and I are spending the night in her bedroom. Hawk shared in confidence that his wife, his daughter and himself have all been sleeping in the same bedroom these last two weeks. Hawk's paraplegia after his time in the service has never been a limitation for him, though he does feel like it puts him at a disadvantage with the current situation.
Babe has remained asleep, likely lulled by the silence, leaving me to be the one on alert. As we neared the hour when the Sullivans have experienced whatever it is they're experiencing almost like clockwork now, I checked in with my men who are on the outside. The team hiding in the shadows on the grounds have not reported any disturbances. Control room gave the visual all clear.
As I tried to fight the sudden drowsiness that overcame me, I got out of bed and stretched my legs. Standing near the window, off to the side to keep myself from being seen from below, I noticed a cat balancing on the balcony's railing.
"Mmhm…" Babe's whimpering groan caused me to snap my attention back to her.
Danielle has found comfort in pushing her bed up against the opposite wall from her balcony's sliding glass doors. Stephanie's facing the wall, so her whimpers are somewhat muffled.
"Babe." I called to her to soothe what I figured was a nightmare, approaching the bed quickly.
Seeing a small boy cuddled up against her back, I was careful as I climbed into bed beside them.
Halfway through realization hit me. Startled, I jumped back as I roughly yanked the covers off Babe's body. Eyes wide, I shook out the sheets and looked under the bed for that little figure I saw seconds ago. Breathing hard, I came up empty handed.
"What…" Babe awoke from the bed jostling repeatedly and violently, frowning as she tried to shield her eyes from my flashlight as it illuminated the empty space beside her. "Oh my…" Her eyes bulged out as her attention focused on something, or someone, behind me.