Wanted to have the edits for this one and Fake Love done in time for the close of 2024, but it's been very crazy in my neck of the woods. Fake Love and a rated M oneshot are next on the upload list.

Disclaimer: The Plum universe belongs to JE. Typos are my bad.

Luisa's POV

Despite their honest initiative, I still felt bad for not being the one to tidy up after our meal. Guests shouldn't be the ones to clean up. My mother taught me better than that. Not being able to stay away, I decided to head back to the kitchen to at the very least offer my assistance like a good host ought to do.

That was my intention until I reached my destination. Still standing in the hallway, I remained frozen as I inadvertently intruded on a clearly intimate moment. Leaning back against the sink counter, Stephanie reared her head back so that their gazes were locked in a private, though silent, conversation. His mouth didn't form any words, at least that I could tell, but she read Carlos so perfectly. With a wide grin spreading across her beautiful face, Stephanie tilted her head back just a little more in anticipation for his next move.

"Haha. Very funny, Mr. Opportunist." Stephanie said through her smile, blue eyes sparkling as she watched Carlos lean forward. His massive build, in comparison to her smaller one, fully blocked her from my viewpoint as they shared what sounded like a very tongue heavy kiss.

"Babe…" Carlos said something I couldn't really hear, too low so it only reached Stephanie's ears. Her immediate full face flush gave away what his hushed words didn't as he pulled back and inadvertently granted me better visibility.

Unfortunately, my clumsiness broke the spell when I dropped the decorative utensil I accidentally leaned against. So much for crashing their moment while clearly hovering in the doorway. Clumsy me.

"I'm sorry." I automatically apologized for the intrusion, ready to leave them to it. "I didn't mean to hover." I explained to Stephanie after Carlos left to check in with his men posted outside in the shadows.

"No, I'm sorry." Stephanie's flustered expression hid her previous blush so well. "We didn't mean to get carried away." She said I had nothing to apologize for as it's my home.

"I remember those days." I shared, easing the tension tenfold when she let out a choked laugh in response.

Stephanie has a gift. She makes you feel so at ease with her, almost as if you've known each other forever. Stephanie's ability to make you tell her things without prompting is something that should be studied. I found myself sharing way too many deeply personal details in such a short timespan, but I only realized it once I was in bed running my fingers through my daughter's hair. Like the nights before this one, my once opinionated and sometimes rebellious teenager is cuddled up beside me. Sleeping on her side facing me, Danielle has left me with little space on my side of the bed.

Long after our daughter fell asleep, Jay finally came to bed. When I called it a night, he hung back with Carlos and Stephanie. Without saying a word, Jay went about his bedtime routine in silence before he expertly transferred himself from his chair to his side of the bed.

"Night." He whispered, his hand fleetingly patting mine as it rested over our daughter's shoulder.

"Night." I said back, though the word got stuck in my throat. He was asleep before I could re-form the reciprocation. Or at least, he pretended to be.

I drifted off myself, exhaustion inevitably catching up to me too. Just like the previous nights, I couldn't stay asleep for more than a couple hours of consecutive slumber. Unlike the previous nights though, this time it was something completely different that awoke me suddenly. Listening carefully, I eventually realized that the sounds that infiltrated my dreamless sleep were muffled. What I initially thought were groans were easier to decipher once I paid close attention long enough.

Moans. Moaning interrupted my sleep.

Cutting my eyes to the right, I easily made out Jay's still figure, sleeping as soundly as our daughter. Shaking my head, I figured it was nice that at least someone had a good nighttime routine in this house. It certainly isn't us.

Exasperated, I silently cursed at myself for not being able to conceive sleep once again. The obvious sounds of pleasure seemed to drag on and increase in volume, seemingly continuing with no clear end in sight. Stephanie and Carlos should be more considerate, for crying out loud! The least they could do would be to try and be quieter.

Eventually, they must have satiated their passion because the love sounds ceased. Finally. Breathing a sigh of relief that my daughter and husband were still sound asleep, I closed my eyes with the intention of returning to dreamland.

Frustratingly, sleep was elusive. Lying awake in bed despite being exhausted is the absolute worst. Unable to rest, I reached for my cell phone and carefully slid out from under the covers. Heading down to the kitchen to make myself a cup of tea seemed like the best idea up until I found myself facing a huge shadowy figure in the hall opposite Jay's lift. The instant I registered that the shadow was deep black, darker than the darkness around it, I screamed!

S&R

Stephanie's POV

Having been partnered with Ranger on the field numerous times since my first case as a bounty hunter has strengthened our silent communication. He can read me better than I can myself pretty much all the time, though I've learned to do the same for him over the years. Sticking to his back as much as physically possible, I silently followed him out of the littlest Sullivan's bedroom and out into the creepy hall. No words were exchanged between us, moving stealthy solely on nonverbal cues from him. This is one of the things the guys tend to tease us, well mostly me, on. The Merry Men say that the way we can exchange conversations with a single look is unbelievable. I've seen them do the same thing, yet the guys don't think that counts because of all their military training. Go figure.

Once in the hall we easily spotted Luisa having a full on panic attack just outside the master bedroom as the beam of Ranger's flashlight illuminated her shaking form.

"Luisa." Ranger called out to her first, using his flashlight to bathe us in enough light so that she could easily make us out. No need to further spook her out. The woman looks absolutely horrified as is.

We took turns, trying our best to get her past whatever has Luisa in such a state. With little success, I finally released my secure hold on the back of Ranger's shirt and made a move to step past him in an effort to provide comfort to Mrs. Sullivan.

Except, I didn't get to do so. Amidst Luisa's panic, the shrill cracking sound of a loud bang pierced through my ears. A sharp impact, followed by another, hit my midsection. I felt myself falling quickly, either from instinct or sheer force.

But then, I kept falling and falling, which was so odd. Why was it taking so long for me to hit the floor? So, so weird.

I was stuck in a rapid descent, unable to grab onto anything as I kept falling in the pitch-black surroundings. At some point, after what felt like forever, my back finally thudded against a hard surface. With the wind knocked out of my lungs from the harsh impact, I tried to regain my bearings.

Wheezing and in pain, I sensed I wasn't alone in the cramped space. Disoriented, I kept still while my eyes darted all around. Despite still not being able to make anything out in the darkness, I knew someone or something was hovering nearby. I could feel I wasn't alone.

Frozen in place, my mind raced once the air returned to my lungs. It took me long moments to finally register that I still had Ranger's mini Glock in my hand. Somehow, I perceived that the other occupant also noted that I was armed, likely at the same time as I did. Not wanting to be a sitting duck for too long, I weighed my options carefully.

"Rang—!" The scream for help died in my throat as a rustling movement at last revealed my opponent's position.

S&R

Lester's POV

Just when the night threatened to be a total bust, a feminine moan floated through our comms. Cutting my eyes to Slick's position, I did my best to choke down the snicker that threatened to emerge. My cousin prides himself on being Mr. Always In Control, but if this moaning is anything to go by, ha!

"Damn!" Ram's rumbling chuckle broke through our comms, clearly also hearing the active love sounds floating through the line.

Oh, they're getting freaky! I've always suspected Beautiful throws down. My cuz is one lucky fucker.

We did our best to bite our tongues and remain vigilant at our posts, but it was extremely difficult. Like, very very hard. In fact, we were only fully successful once the moaning subsided. Guess they just couldn't keep their hands to themselves, and just had to relieve some tension. Man, even after becoming official, despite moving in together, those two still have so much sexual tension. From the first time Ranger mentioned a certain new bounty hunter he took under his wing, I immediately wondered if there was a physical aspect to their teaming up as soon as we knew that the bounty hunter he was mentoring was a woman. As time passed and they grew visibly closer and closer, I honestly figured they were for sure having sex. How could they not be doing the deed when Ranger had never been that close or protective over anyone, much less a woman he'd just met, before? There was no other possibility in my mind. When Julie was taken and Beautiful offered herself up as bait in exchange to the deranged psycho that Scrog was, that's when we all knew that there was more than just a physical relationship between my cousin and one Stephanie Plum. Every instance after that, no matter how tiny or monumental, only served to fully cement the reality that those two tried to fight off for so long. We're all so lucky that they finally moved past their stubborn resolve and made it work, because it was getting out of hand. Ranger was insufferable every time Beautiful was back with the cop, though it became glaringly obvious long ago that it was my cousin's doing. Shit, I wouldn't be one to repeatedly push away someone who was willing to give up their life for my child. My cousin was really stupid for a cool minute there. Beautiful too, but still.

There was blissful silence for too short of a time frame before all hell broke loose. As soon as Ranger's voice floated through our comms, I was tempted to rib him about needing to tap in some backup. In a different circumstance, just my tone would have automatically earned me time on the mats with him. Ranger brushing past that was sobering, ensuring we all snapped back to attention. Shit just went sideways and fast!

"Where is Stephanie?!" Ranger roared, very much directing his question to Hector. He's not wasting valuable time until some of us slip into the home. Of all the times I've been relegated to the outdoor team, this time it sucks to be out here with Ram and Slick while the main action is elsewhere.

"Estefania is next to you." Hector shared as keys got smacked into oblivion on his keyboard by his fingertips.

I braced for Ranger's barked command, knowing that Beautiful is not next to him despite her trackers saying so.

"Wait… no, she's under you…" Hector amended.

Any other time, I'd have some smartass, dirty comment to add in response to Hector's. He's gotten better with his English, yet sometimes there's wide openings to joke about innuendos. Sadly, tonight, he gets a free pass. Beautiful's wellbeing trumps my need to fuck around.

"She's moving…" The instant Hector had a good understanding of the situation, Ranger barked out a series of commands. He'll follow Hec's directions so he can get to his Babe first, while the rest of us secure the full perimeter.

Looks like all those nights we thought were possibly false alarms at Hawk's had merit to them after all. All it took was H-plus-threeish for the real commencement of our ops. Not unexpectedly, leave it to Beautiful to give us an action-packed night!

H-hour is, according to Google, "it's go time", lol.