Happy Birthday, LilyGhost!
As far as bad days go, today had to rank right up there with the worst of the worst. Anything and everything that could possibly go wrong did, and in the most spectacular way imaginable.
It started with my car. Anyone who knew me would say I had unbelievably bad car karma and I couldn't argue, but I'd had my current ten-year-old piece of shit for close to four months without a single issue so I thought I'd finally broken the car curse. I was wrong, of course.
I was headed out route 12 to pick up Jethro Stubbins, an FTA who'd been arrested for solicitation of prostitution and also for trying to bribe the vice cop who busted him. Halfway there, my car started making a clanking noise, which I probably shouldn't have ignored, and then black smoke began spewing out from under the hood, followed by flames, which made me finally stop and when I jumped out, the entire front end was burning.
I'd left my bag on the passenger seat which contained my phone so I was stuck out in the middle of nowhere with no way to call anyone for help. It was late August and hot as hell and I had no choice but to start hoofing it. I tried sticking my thumb out to hitch a ride at any car I heard coming but the only one I thought was going to stop turned out to be freaking Jethro. When he saw it was me, he swerved into a standing mud puddle on the side of the road, which sprayed me head to toe with the dirty water.
By the time I made it back into town I was sweating bullets, slightly sunburned and smelled like I hadn't showered in days. I trudged into the bonds office hoping I could bribe Lula or Connie into giving me a ride home and came face to face with Vinnie. I didn't know what had set him off but he was in a mood and the sight of me, covered in filth and without a body receipt to turn in, made him lose whatever grip he may have had left on his temper. After calling me a worthless excuse for a bounty hunter along with a string of other obscenities, he fired me and said he never wanted to see my face in his office again. I flipped him the bird and told him up which orifice he should shove his head and then stomped out without asking for a ride.
I walked the rest of the way home and after a long hot shower, I decided I was done with the day, and maybe with my whole life. I ate an entire pint of Ben and Jerry's, drank the last quarter of a bottle of vodka I found in my freezer and went to bed.
At midnight, when something crashed through my living room window, I wasn't even shocked.
I didn't know what had been used as an accelerant for the firebomb, but the fire department was having a difficult time getting it under control and it was rapidly spreading to the surrounding apartments. I had been just lucky enough to get out of my window and down the fire escape before my entire bedroom was engulfed and thankfully the fire alarms of the building were in working order, so all my elderly neighbors were out in the street with me and not being burned alive.
A fourth fire truck arrived with wailing sirens just as something inside the building exploded and a giant fireball shot up into the air, making us all retreat further away. It was then I knew for sure there was no way Rex was going to be saved and the tears I'd been trying to keep at bay spilled down my face.
Strong, familiar hands came down on my shoulders and I didn't hesitate to turn into Ranger's comforting embrace. He'd been out of the country for several weeks but seemed to have some sort of sixth sense about me being in trouble and always showed up when I needed him most.
I slipped my arms around his waist, hugging him as tightly as I could, and he held me for a long time without saying anything at all. When I had my emotions somewhat under control, I released my hold and tried to step back but he didn't let me get far. Both hands came up, cradling my cheeks in his palms and his deep brown eyes, teeming with concern, met my teary gaze.
"Are you okay?" he asked softly, and the gentle tone made the tears start again.
"Rex," I managed to get out on a sob and Ranger pulled me back into his arms.
"I'm sorry, Babe," he said, and I stopped trying to fight it and wept openly against his chest.
I don't know how long he held me but when I eventually stopped crying, the fire was mostly out and a lot of my neighbors had been picked up by friends or relatives, so Ranger and I were alone on the lawn across from my building.
He touched my face again when I backed out of his arms and wiped away the tear tracks on my cheeks with his thumbs. "Do you have a place to stay tonight," he asked, and the question made my stomach drop.
I'd been so consumed with grief over the loss of Rex the thought I was now homeless hadn't crossed my mind. I turned to look at the burnt-out shell of my apartment building. No one would be living there for a very long time, if ever again. I wouldn't be surprised if they bulldozed the rest of it and put up a mini mart in its place.
I ran through the short list of people I knew who would put me up for a few days. My sister, of course, but the thought of even one night on her couch with all her spawn and her doofus husband gave me acid reflux. Same with Mary Lou. Lula and Connie certainly would let me stay for a while but they both lived in studio apartments and that was a little too much closeness for me.
That left my parents. Honestly, I'd rather sleep on a park bench than spend any time listening to my Mother tell me how I wouldn't have gotten my place blown up if I'd just taken that job at the tampon factory.
"You're welcome to come home with me," Ranger volunteered, obviously sensing my distress.
I was hoping he would offer but I had to be sure he meant it because the last time I saw him he told me I should repair my relationship with Morelli. I did not take his advice in that regard, but since he'd been gone, I didn't know if he knew.
"Really?" I questioned, trying to keep the hopeful desperation out of my voice.
His answer was to take my hand and tug me to his Porsche. He opened the passenger door of the Turbo and I gratefully slid into the bucket seat. By the time I got my seatbelt buckled, Ranger was behind the wheel and easing away from the curb.
We were halfway to Rangeman when I realized what I had on, or more accurately, what I didn't. I'd been asleep when the firebomb crashed through my window, and I hadn't had time to change my clothes or put on shoes before evacuating. I glanced down at my bare feet and the tiny red boyshort panties I'd chosen to sleep in and crossed my arms over my chest when I saw my nipples were hard and visible through the thin white tank top I always wore to bed. It was not the kind of outfit I would feel comfortable wearing in the heavily monitored halls of Ranger's building.
I don't know what sound I made, thinking about all of the guys who would see my scantily clad body making its way to the apartment of their boss, but Ranger cut his eyes to me.
"I'll scramble the cameras when we get there, Steph," he assured me, and I breathed a sigh of relief before turning to look at his profile while he drove.
"How do you always know what I'm thinking?" He didn't respond but I noticed the tilt of his lips at the corners.
It was almost two in the morning when we pulled into the parking structure and true to his word, Ranger hit a button on his key fob before we got out of the car to scramble the security feed. The garage was deserted, but with a firm hand at the small of my back, he quickly ushered me to the elevator anyway. He hit the penthouse button on the panel simultaneously with the one on his keys when we stepped inside the car.
He kept his hand on my back the whole ride to the seventh floor and I was grateful. It made me feel safe and steady and warm and I almost whimpered at the loss of his touch when he removed it to open the door to his apartment, holding it to let me go in before him.
He secured it behind us and took my hand again, pulling me through the kitchen and into his bedroom. I'd only been in there one other time and my eyes gravitated to his bed without my consent. Heat crept up my neck at the memory of all the things we'd done together in that bed. I was so lost in my own head, remembering every slow caress, every taste of his lips, every deep stroke that I physically jerked when Ranger spoke, bringing me harshly back into reality.
"Do you want to take a shower?"
I did and I told him so. "But I don't have any clean clothes to put on after. Or any clothes at all. Or underwear, or shoes or a phone or…" The tears came again in a rush and I furiously tried to blink them away. Everything I owned had been in that apartment and all I had left were the literal clothes on my back, such as they were.
Ranger darted into his closet and came out a second later holding something surprising. In his hand was what looked like a pair of my panties and a tank top. They were identical to the ones I had on, just different colors. I glanced up at his face in shock and that little smile was touching his lips again. "You left them the last time you were here."
He held them out and I took them silently. The fact he'd kept my clothes was doing crazy things to my heart and I didn't trust myself to speak.
Ranger touched my cheek again, gliding his thumb across the delicate skin under my eye.
"Things can easily be replaced, Babe. I'm just relieved you didn't burn up with all your stuff. Go take a shower. There is a new toothbrush and a comb in the drawer next to the sink and when you're done, we'll try and get some sleep." He gently pushed me toward the bathroom.
I did what he suggested and scrubbed myself clean in his enormous shower, using a little more of his Bvlgari shower gel than was probably necessary. When I was done, I dried myself off, found the comb in his drawer and ran it through my hair before brushing my teeth with the new toothbrush and then donning the outfit he'd apparently been keeping in his closet for weeks.
When I returned to the bedroom he was turning down the duvet on his bed and glanced at me over his shoulder. "Feel better?"
"Yes," I admitted. I made my way across the room and after he pulled back the blanket and sheets I said, "Thank you for rescuing me and for letting me stay here tonight."
He spun to face me and graced me with a rare full smile. "Anything for you, Babe."
I thought about that and how true it was. There hadn't been one time when I was in trouble when he didn't come to my aid, whether I'd asked for help or not and I wanted him to know how much it meant to me, how much he meant to me, but I couldn't seem to find the words, so I did what I'd been wanting to do since we walked into his bedroom.
I grabbed a handful of his t-shirt and pulled him to me, covering his mouth with mine. He went still for two long beats before his hands were on my hips, and he opened his mouth to accept my seeking tongue. I snaked my arms up around his shoulders and buried my fingers in the hair at the nape of his neck. Tugging him closer, I deepened the kiss and couldn't stop the small moan from leaving my throat when his dexterous fingers drifted up my torso and the pads of his thumbs brushed over the pebbled nipples trying to push their way out of my tank top.
I could feel the hard length of him pressing into my hip and wanted nothing more than to get him out of his clothes and into my body, but he broke the kiss and rested his forehead against mine. He took two short breaths before saying, "You've had a rough, emotional night, Steph. This probably isn't the best idea."
"Yeah, it's a terrible idea," I agreed and moved my hands down his back. When they reached his waist, I untucked the t-shirt from his cargo pants and slid my fingers under the material, needing to feel his warm skin. I dipped them into the waistband of his pants and the tips skimmed over the swell of his magnificent ass.
His hands flexed once, twice into the curve of my waist and he breathed my name. "Stephanie." I couldn't tell if it was a plea or protest. "Are you sure?"
My entire world went up in flames today and I wasn't sure about much of anything anymore, except this. My feelings for Ranger had never changed even as every other part of my life burned to the ground.
"I'm sure," I insisted.
Ranger yanked the tank top I'd just put on up and off my body before the last syllable had even left my mouth. He briefly suckled on a nipple before lifting me by the waist and depositing me onto his bed. He quickly stripped and before I could admire the many ridges of his well-defined abs, he was tugging the black boyshort panties down my legs. When they were off, he kneeled between my legs and after running his hands up and down the full length of them, dropped his head to the apex of my thighs.
I nearly levitated off the mattress at the first swipe of his tongue. All the things he did with his mouth after that had me crashing through an orgasm faster than I knew was possible. I squeezed my eyes shut and fisted my hands in the sheets until the last shudder subsided.
When I opened them again, Ranger's face was hovering over mine. There was a smoldering intensity in his lustful gaze that left me breathless and as I tried to suck in some oxygen, his lips covered mine and his tongue dived deep. His hands were busy while he plundered my mouth, teasing, gliding, massaging every inch of skin he could. By the time his fingers curled under my butt and he raised my hips to the perfect position, I was so over stimulated I came the second he surged inside me.
He didn't move while I clenched helplessly around him, clinging to his arms while tremors of pleasure scattered everywhere at once. Breaths sawed from his lungs in uneven bursts as he searched my eyes, for what I wasn't certain. "Ranger, I…" I trailed off, not knowing what I was trying to say but I knew I didn't want him to stop, I never wanted this to end, so I tightened my thighs around his hips, looped my arms around his neck and pulled him closer, wanting to feel the heavy weight of him against my chest.
He buried his face in my neck and withdrew from me almost entirely before plunging back in. His breath was hot on my skin, licking, sucking, nipping across my collarbones as he retreated again. Three more slow, powerful strokes and I was begging for more. Never one to deny me anything he sank into a rhythm that swiftly had us both shattering into the abyss.
It had never been this way with anyone else. No one had ever made me feel the way Ranger did, in or out of bed and I wanted to tell him. I wanted to tell him a lot of things, but I was emotionally and now physically fully spent, and sleep was dragging me under. He rolled to his back, gathered me to his side and I lost the battle to stay coherent wrapped tightly in his arms.