This is a continuation of Ranger and Stephanie's relationship from my four other stories that started with Come Someday. I was planning to wait until Gotcha was complete before posting this one, but I consider this a stand-alone story, and anyone who has read my stories know that Ranger and Stephanie always end up together, so I didn't think anyone would mind if I didn't wait. I have six chapters so far for this story and I plan on adding on to it, as well as updating a few of my other stories, as soon as possible. The Highlawn Pavilian is a real restaurant. I've only seen it online, so I used my imagination to fill in what their website didn't show. All familiar places, phrases, and characters belong to Janet Evanovich. The mistakes are mine. Warnings for mild language and smut.

I was sitting across from Ranger at his little kitchen table. I hadn't seen a whole lot of him today. And the few times that I did see him, he seemed to have been unusually quiet. Ranger is a man of few words normally, but today was different. He seemed ... distracted.

"Is everything okay?" I asked him.

"Why wouldn't they be?"

"I'm not sure."

Ranger had gotten up early and, after showering and eating breakfast, spent most of the day holed up his office. It's not that I needed company all the time, but I had to admit that I'd felt a tad lonely. And worse than feeling lonely, I'd had most of the day to think. Which, in my case, was never a good thing. My brain was now clogged with questions that I wasn't sure I wanted the answers to. What if Ranger wanted out of the relationship? What if he was tired of our semi-domestic lifestyle and wanted his own space back? What if he wanted to go back to his Man of Mystery days? Not that Ranger wasn't still mysterious. But at least now I knew where he was the majority of the time.

I gave my head a slight shake and tried to push the doubts away. Get a grip, Stephanie. Could be he just had some work to finish. Or maybe he'd spent the day zeroing in on a skip ...

"I had Tank make us dinner reservations for tonight," Ranger said, breaking into my thoughts."I thought we could use a night out."

My heart suddenly felt leaden in my chest. Well Stephanie, I thought to myself, what did you expect? You knew this moment was coming so why are you so surprised? I guess I was hoping that I was just imagining things. Even when things were going good, I knew somewhere in the back of my mind that the other shoe was going to drop. But over the last couple of months, I had let my guard down. And now that shoe had just dropped. Hard. And my mind was reeling.

"Sure," I squeaked out. See, if we were a normal couple dinner out would be something to look forward to. But Ranger's usually so busy that he doesn't have a lot of free time. And the time he did have, we used for more enjoyable activities. So an unexpected dinner out was unsettling. Especially after he'd been acting strange. Not to mention that I'd just about convinced myself that our relationship was over.

"I still have some things to finish up, but I should be done by five."

"Okay by me," I said, feeling anything but okay.

We'd finished the lunch Ella had brought up, and I was just stalling over coffee. I wasn't in a hurry for lunch to end. And I certainly wasn't in any hurry to go out tonight, but I knew there would be no putting it off.

Ranger must have read my thoughts, because he pushed back from the table, stood, and looked down at me.

"Are you staying in the building today?" He asked.

I blew out a sigh."I should probably go to the office and check in with Connie."

Ranger locked eyes with me."If you need help capturing someone, call the control room. Tank or Hal will go with you."

At least he still cares about my safety, I thought, that's something, right?

"Not necessary," I told him."Lula will be able to go with me."

"Babe, it is necessary," Ranger said."Lula can't hit a target two inches in front of her. Do you honestly think that she could protect you from someone who wanted to do some damage."

Okay, that might be true but ..."She would try," I said, feeling the need to defend Lula. After all, she is my partner in crime. And Lula does try to protect me. Unfortunately, it's in her own way. Which, more often than not, ends up with me, alone, talking to the police and Lula long gone.

"That makes me feel so much better," Ranger said."Call the control room."

"I'll call, okay, but I'm telling Lula that you don't trust her."

"Is that supposed to scare me?"

"Yes." Lula was almost as scary as Ranger when she got worked up, just in a different way.

Ranger kissed the top of my head."I'm heading back to work. I'll see you later."

I pushed myself out of the chair and made my way to the front door. I dug my car keys out of my bag before hiking it up onto my shoulder and hitting the elevator.

Ten minutes later, I was walking into the bonds office.

"What's wrong with your face?" Lula asked."Death row inmates look happier than you."

"Ranger wants to go out to dinner tonight?"

"And that's what put that look on your face?" Lula asked."Hell, he ask me, I'd probably faint dead away right after wetting my pants."

"I think Ranger might dump me tonight," I said, my voice sounding a little wobbly.

"That's the dumbest thing I ever heard," Lula said."I've seen the way Ranger looks at you. And it ain't the look of a man who's wanting to be rid of you. Heck, Ranger don't even let you come here without some sort of tracking thingy on you."

"That's different," I said to her."That's about my safety. You know, trying to keep me from getting injured on the job."

"Uh-huh," Lula said."I'm sure that's what it is."

"Lula's right," Connie said."Anyone within a five mile radius of the two of you together are in danger of getting hot flashes."

True. The chemistry between us hasn't changed, but something had. I just wasn't sure what it was.

"You know what your problem is? You like to borrow trouble," Lula said to me."Here you are sleeping with the finest man on earth. You're one suitcase away from living with him. And you have your pick of expensive cars. Not to mention, Ranger's threatened to shoot any Rangeman goon that lets anything happen to you. What the hecks to be so worried about?"

That it all could end, I thought. Not so much the cars and the apartment, although those were nice, too. But the friendship, the love, and the caring parts of what we have.

"Ranger knows that if the two of you are no longer together Morelli might want to pick up where the two of you left off," Connie said."And Ranger isn't about to let that happen."

I wish I could be as sure as Connie and Lula.

"You know what you need?" Lula asked."You need to go shopping. You need to find something to wear tonight that will make you feel sexy. And that'll no doubt make Ranger stand up and take notice, if you know what I'm saying."

I knew what she was saying, and it didn't sound like a bad idea.

I turned to Connie."Do you need me for anything?"

"Nope," Connie said."It's been slow around here."

If I hadn't been mostly staying in Ranger's apartment, this would have worried me. Since capturing skips is the only way I'm able to pay my rent. No skips equals no rent money. Depending on tonight, though, maybe I should be worried.

"Okay," I said to Lula."Let's roll. I could use some retail therapy."

I let myself into Ranger's apartment three hours later with my arms full of bags. I poked my head into the kitchen, and checked out the office on my way into the bedroom. No Ranger. I'd seen all his cars parked in the Rangeman garage when I pulled in, so probably he was downstairs on the fifth floor. Good deal. Now Ranger would get the full impact of all my hard work.

I took a fast shower that left me a little over an hour and a half to get ready. If I was quick I could pull it off.

Ranger was standing at the kitchen counter when I came back into the kitchen. His eyes went immediately to me as I walked towards him. So what if I added a little more hip sway than usual as I walked. I knew I looked hot. I snuck a glance at Ranger and I was right. The chemistry definitely hadn't changed.

Ranger's attention focused on the top of my dress, and slowly moved down my body to the hem that hit about six inches above my knee.

"Looking good, Babe." Ranger said, after a few heated moments.

I was wearing a black satin tiered dress with a few well placed sequined inserts. It was strapless, the fit snug to my body, and I had plenty of leg on display. I'd decided that if tonight was the night Ranger called it quits, then I was going to look really sexy so he'd think twice about what he'd be giving up. On my feet were four-inch slingback heels made from glittery fabric. I'm not usually the sparkly-shoe type, but they worked perfectly with the dress. And since I wasn't wearing any jewelry aside from fake diamond studs in my ears, Lula thought I could use something blingy to help with my confidence. The small black clutch I was holding was large enough to hold lipstick, and the cell phone Lula insisted I take. She wanted to know the outcome of dinner as soon as she possibly could. And I figured I may need a sympathetic ear afterward, so I had agreed. My hair was done up in a deceptively casual style that looked like it took a minute to do, but in reality had taken over thirty minutes. I was as prepared as I was going to get.

"You clean up pretty good yourself," I said, checking him out.

Ranger had dressed up for the evening, too. The black dress pants and black button down dress shirt wouldn't seem especially dressy on a normal guy. But the clothes, combined with Ranger's good looks, were all that were needed to make Ranger look like a walking Cuban fantasy. If tonight hadn't seemed so important, I may have attacked him. He must have changed clothes before going downstairs, because I'd been back and forth from the bedroom to the bathroom for the last two hours and I would definitely have noticed if he'd been in there with me.

"So," I asked,"where are we going."

"A restaurant in West Orange."

"Why so far away?"

"It's a good restaurant," Ranger said.

Umm-hmm. Going out of town is also a good way to avoid Burg gossips, I thought, as we walked to the front door.

We didn't say much on the elevator ride down to the garage. Again, normal for Ranger not so normal for me. I was in a state.

He opened the passengers door for me, and waited while I slid into the cushy leather seat. If I hadn't been so distracted I would have noticed that he took the time to fully appreciate my little skirt that had ridden up higher on my legs as I sat down. He closed my door and got behind the wheel.

On the drive to the restaurant, I didn't pay any attention to the scenery that was flying by. And I didn't try to make small talk. I was focusing all my energy on not making a fool out of myself.

The restaurant came into view all to soon, and I mentally braced myself for the night ahead.

The Highlawn Pavilion was a beautiful turn of the century Florentine-style building. The restaurant was beyond elegant, but it gave off such an old world charm that I forgot to be intimidated by it. Driving up I saw the lights of Manhattan off in the distance and the view was breathtaking. I'd like to think I wasn't easily swayed by expensive things, but I had to admit that I was impressed.

I was still taking in the restaurant when Ranger pulled up to the front of the building. He handed the keys to the Turbo over to the valet, and opened the door for me. I slid out and shimmied the dress back down my legs. With his hand at the small of my back, Ranger escorted me inside.

I looked around the huge dining room and didn't see any other people inside of it except for the staff and us.

"You reserved the entire dining room just for dinner?" I asked, as realization dawned on me.

"Yes," Ranger said. He had moved his hand to my hip as he ushered me to our table."I didn't want to share you tonight, Babe."

Well, that sounded promising. Maybe I was reading to much into his odd behavior. Probably this was just going to be a nice dinner out. It could be that I was just blowing things all out of proportion. Again.

Ranger pulled my chair out for me."And it's not just dinner."

Shit. Now I was right back to worrying about getting dumped again. Ranger was getting to be hell on my nerves.

"What do you mean this isn't just dinner?"

A waitress arrived at our table. She managed to tell Ranger that everything was ready, and pour us each a glass of wine, in between blushing and stammering. Ranger had that effect on women.

"What's ready?" I asked.

Ranger waited until the waitress left before speaking. He picked up my hand and locked eyes with me."I've been thinking about making some changes ..." Ranger began.

"Am I one of those changes?" I couldn't wait for Ranger to finish. I had to know now. I couldn't take much more.

"Yes." Ranger said.

I closed my eyes for a moment. Breathe, Stephanie, I thought. You can get through this. You've been shot at, not to mention actually shot, multiple times. You've survived living with your parents on more than one occasion. And the 7-11, stocked with every type of candy bar I could possibly want, was open twenty-four hours a day. You can do this!

I opened my eyes, and stared blankly at Ranger as the last two words of what he had asked registered in my confused brain.

"What did you just say?" Not trusting my ears.

"I asked you to marry me, Steph."

I felt my mouth drop open. And it stayed that way until Ranger reached over and gently closed it with his fingertip.

"Babe," Ranger said,"say something."

"That's not funny," I said to him. I couldn't keep the hurt out of my voice.

"Wasn't meant to be."

The hurt quickly turned into anger when an unpleasant thought popped into my head.

"Did one of the guys put you up to this?" I loved the guys at Rangeman, but they've been known to have a nasty sense of humor.

"No."

"Lula?"

"No."

"You're serious?" I asked.

"Don't I look serious?" He asked me.

Okay, here's the thing, Ranger always looked serious. I could never tell when he was kidding or when he was being serious.

"You're asking me to believe that you really want to marry me?"

"Yes," he said, his mouth curling up at the corners at the expression on my face."I really do want to marry you."

I still couldn't quite comprehend what was going on. And my mouth wasn't totally in cooperation with my brain."What happened to ...this is the kind of love that doesn't call for a ring? I remember you telling me that more than once."

"I changed my mind."

"You never change your mind," I said, still confused."You are kidding, aren't you?"

"No, Steph," Ranger said. He still had hold of my hand and he slid a three carat, cushion-cut, diamond pave ring onto my finger."And since you won't answer my question, I'm going to assume it's a yes."

Way to ruin a moment, Stephanie, I said to myself. You didn't even give him an answer.

"O-o-f course it's a yes," I said."If you're sure?"

Ranger raised my hand to his lips and kissed it before placing it back on the table."I'm sure."

This didn't feel real. I felt like I was watching a movie. I was engaged to Ranger?! I never thought that this would happen. We'd been mostly living together for a while, but I didn't think he'd actually want to take the step to make it legal.

My brain was still a little fuzzy and I don't remember exactly what we ate for dinner. I assumed we'd be leaving shortly, since Ranger didn't do dessert, but after a few minutes our waitress came back carrying an over-sized martini glass filled with mouthwatering tiramisu. There was also a waiter right behind her with a bottle of champagne and two glasses. I shot Ranger a look.

"You're going to eat sugar?" I asked, after the champagne was poured and we were alone again. He must have remembered how much I enjoyed the tiramisu from Rossini's that time we ate there together. Or Ranger just knew me well enough to know that I loved desserts of any kind.

"No," Ranger said, smiling."You are."

He picked up the spoon and fed me a bite of it. I've had countless fantasies of Ranger and dessert over the years. Never once did I think one would come true. He was pulling out all the stops tonight, I thought to myself, an engagement ring and orgasmic tiramisu. If I'd of said no to the ring, the dessert would have made me change my mind.

"You're sure you don't want any of this?" I asked, licking some cream off of the spoon."You don't know what you're missing."

"I won't be missing anything," Ranger said, watching my lips."I'll havemy dessert at home."

And, just like that, I got a flash that went from my toes all the way to the roots of my hair.

"And when will that be?" I asked Ranger. Thinking home sounded like a good idea.

"As soon as you're done."

"I'm done."

Ranger looked down at the still half-full dish in front of me."Babe, you never pass up dessert."

He was right. I never pass up anything sugary or fattening if I could help it. But I've since learned that there are a few things in the world that could rival it. Ranger being one of them.

"Tonight's the exception," I told him.

"Works for me," Ranger said.

He stood and pulled my chair back for me. His hand went to my waist as he guided me out of the restaurant. Since nobody came running after us for not paying, I assumed the bill had been taken care of in advance. When the valet brought the Turbo back, Ranger opened the car door for me and dropped a kiss on my mouth before angling behind the wheel.

I dug my cell phone out of my bag and Ranger looked over at me.

"What are you doing?" He asked.

"Calling Lula," I said."I sort of told her that I was worried you were going to break things off with me tonight. Lula thought I was acting crazy, and wanted me to call her afterward so she could say, I told you so."

"Why would you think that I wanted to end things?" Ranger asked.

"You've been quieter than usual," I said to him."And things have been so good between us, that I guess I just assumed it was about to end."

"That's not going to happen, Steph," Ranger said, smiling."I'm stuck with you for the long haul."

That's not what I wanted to here. I narrowed my eyes at him."It could be the other way around, you know. Maybe I'm the one stuck with you." Not likely, but I had to say something.

Ranger's smiled widened."How about we just agree that we're stuck with each other for the duration."

Okay, I could live with that.

I flipped my phone open and dialed Lula. She answered on the first ring.

"Are you okay?" She asked."You need me to come over? I got cake. I got three different types of chips. And I got lots of booze. Where are you? You at your apartment? I can be there in ten minutes."

For someone who'd insisted Ranger wasn't going to dump me, she sure had been prepared if he had.

I looked down at the huge diamond on my finger."Things didn't go quite the way I had thought," I told her.

"What does that mean?"

"I'll tell you and Connie first thing tomorrow morning."

"Where are you now?" Lula asked.

"I'm on my way back to Rangeman."

"Damn," Lula said."You had me worried there for a minute. I guess I'll have to take care of the food and booze by myself then seeing as how you won't be needin' it."

I dropped the phone back in my bag. Lula was always willing to sacrifice herself for the greater good.

Ranger stopped at a red light. He reached over and trailed his fingertips along my thigh.

"Did I mention that I like this dress you're wearing?" He asked.

"You did say something about me looking good tonight," I told him."I think you liking the dress was implied."

His fingers were slowly inching higher. If the light didn't change soon, I might be looking at an indecent exposure charge.

Luckily, the light did change. Ranger took his hand off my leg and resumed driving.

"Tease," I said to him.

"Babe, you don't know the half of it."

Uh-oh.

Ranger turned down Haywood Street, fobbed his way into the Rangeman underground garage, and parked in the space closest to the elevator. He came around to my side of the car, wrapped his arm around my waist, and moved me toward the elevator.

"Do the guys know about this?" I asked Ranger when the doors closed.

"Just Tank and Ella."

WelI, now was as good a time as any, I thought. And I flashed the ring towards the mini-cam.

Ranger gave his head an almost imperceptible shake."I'm never going to hear the end of this," Ranger said.

"Hey, you're the one who proposed," I told him."It must have occurred to you what would happen when everyone found out. And this will be nothing compared to what will happen when my mother and grandmother find out." I could only imagine what the guys in the control room were saying now.

"What about your family?" I asked him.

"They've been told."

"Pretty sure of yourself, aren't you?"

"Always."

"And Julie?" I asked.

"Julie, too," Ranger said."She was happy about it."

Julie and I being held hostage together kind of broke the ice in our relationship. That took a moment to sink in. I was going to be a stepmother. Sort of, anyway.

When the elevator stopped on seven, Ranger unlocked the front door, and followed me in. Something was definitely going on. I walked to the kitchen and noticed the candles lit in the dining room and more champagne. I was guessing this was Ella's handiwork.

"I was going to ask you when we got home," Ranger said,"but you looked so nervous that I decided to put you out of your misery."

"Jeez," I said to him,"that's romantic."

Ranger smiled at me."Yeah. I'm a romantic guy."

I rolled my eyes at him and dropped my little clutch on the kitchen counter. Ranger came up silently behind me and stood pressed against my back. His lips taking full advantage of the fact that my neck and shoulders were bare.

"What are you doing?" I asked him, my brain starting to get a little fuzzy.

He touched his tongue to the pulse point in my neck, then pressed his lips to the same spot, asserting just enough pressure to make my pulse triple."You mentioned something about dessert," Ranger said."And you look good enough to eat."

A wave of heat rushed straight to my doodah at the thought. I wasn't sure if my body was up for anymore excitement tonight.

Ranger turned me in his arms, his fingers toying with the zipper at the back of my dress. And my body changed it's mind about the excitement. It was more than ready for anything Ranger wanted to dish out.

"What about the champagne," I asked him. Not that I needed any. Between the wine at dinner, the tiramisu, and the feel of Ranger's lips on me, I was already feeling more than a little tipsy.

Ranger's mouth moved to my ear."Later," he whispered.

A felt a little shiver of anticipation at the sound of that.

"When I first saw that ring in the store," Ranger whispered against my ear."My thoughts immediately went to what it would look like with you wearing it ... and nothing else." His breath was warm, and the feel of it against my ear was causing goosebumps to break out all over my skin.

His eyes caught mine, and we stood looking at each other for a long moment before Ranger picked me up and carried me to the bedroom. When all that I was left wearing was his engagement ring, Ranger quickly shed his clothes. I felt myself sink into the mattress as Ranger moved over me. He ran his fingers through my curls as he lowered his mouth to mine. When our tongues touched, Ranger angled my head for better access. Desire shot through me like a freight train. My fingers dug into his back as he broke away from my mouth and started kissing his way down my neck. I felt his tongue at my breast, spending considerable at my nipples, before moving on to my navel, my belly. I held my breath and fisted my hands into the sheets when I felt Ranger's breath against me, followed by his mouth. When my vision started to clear, I focused on Ranger. He was resting his chin on my lower abdomen, breathing a little heavily himself, looking up at me.

I took a few deep breaths."You should be illegal," I told him.

Ranger pressed another kiss to my navel, then slid up next to me on the bed."Are you complaining," he asked, his mouth brushing mine.

"No," I said."Not even a little."

"Good," Ranger said, his voice a whisper against my ear."Because I'm not even close to being done."

Oh boy. OH BOY!

By the time we were finished, the small of Ranger's back was slick with sweat and my hair was plastered against my damp face. Ranger rolled me on top of him and pulled the covers over us. I snuggled my face into his neck, closed my eyes, and instantly fell asleep.

I was looking down at my ring the next morning."What am I supposed to do with this?" I asked Ranger, who was sipping coffee across from me.

"What do you mean?"

"The ring. As much as I'd like to, I can't wear this when I'm working."

"Why not?" Ranger asked.

My eyes opened wide."Why not? First off, I don't want it to get full of whatever I end up rolling around in ..."

"It can be cleaned," Ranger said.

I rolled my eyes at him."Secondly, I'd be afraid someone would steal it."

"I'll be able to find it."

It took a few seconds for me to process that. I looked more closely at the ring before catching Ranger's eye.

"You've got to be kidding me," I said."You put a tracking device in my ring?"

"Something like that."

"Why?" As if I couldn't guess.

"For the reason you just mentioned," Ranger said, calmly."And if someone ever takes you again, it'll be one more way to locate you."

Okay, that sounded more like a safety issue rather than a privacy issue. I could live with that.

"Unless whoever steals me decides to take the ring off and hock it."

"The ring stays on. Wouldn't want Morelli to think that there was trouble and try anything," Ranger said, his mouth turning up slightly in a smile.

"This is about Morelli?" Like he had to worry about Joe.

"No," Ranger said."But it is a side bonus."

I blew out a sigh. I hadn't given any thought to Morelli finding out. Although we've been broken up for a while, I knew the news of me marrying Ranger was going to hurt. Not only because Joe had been talking about getting married for years, but because of who I was marrying. Joe had always warned me that Ranger, and his lifestyle, were dangerous. And he'd tried to keep me from working with Ranger as much as he possibly could. Which, obviously, led to a lot of our fights. So it was going to be a one-two punch when someone tells him about us.

"Babe," Ranger said."Are you still with me?"

"I was just thinking," I told him.

"Couldn't have been anything good judging by your expression."

"I was just worried about how Joe was going to take it when he finds out about this."

"He knows we're together," Ranger pointed out.

"Yes ... but us getting married is something else entirely."

"What do you think he's going to do?" Ranger asked me.

"Nothing, I hope," I said."I just don't want to hurt him."

"Morelli had his chance," Ranger said."Now he'll just have to deal with you being unavailable permanently."

"Wow. You're Mr. Sensitivity this morning."

"Babe, that was me being sensitive," Ranger said with a smile.

"Are you implying that I'm going to be easy to get over?"

"No," Ranger said."I'd be feeling the same way as Morelli if our situations were reversed. But I don't want you thinking about him. If anything, the news might give him a reason to move on."

"Move on? Like leave Trenton?"

"No," Ranger said."More like it'll give him a reason to leave you alone. He's been under the impression that we won't last long. And he seems more than willing to wait for just the right moment to get his foot back in the door."

"But Joe and I had been broken up for a while before we started seeing each other," I said."Wouldn't he have tried to get back together then?"

"Babe," Ranger said."I hate to say this, but your track record with Morelli hasn't been all that good. The two of you have broken up and gotten back together so many times that Morelli probably figured it would be just a matter of waiting you out before you were a couple again."

"Doesn't my track record make you nervous?" I asked Ranger.

"No."

"Why not?" I asked, curious.

"First off," Ranger said,"you're wearing my ring."

I looked down at my finger again."Yeah. And?"

"You and Morelli couldn't discuss anything wedding related without you breaking out in a cold sweat," Ranger said."Let alone pick out a ring. And you didn't hesitate at all when I asked you." Ranger smiled."At least, you didn't hesitate when you finally figured out that I wasn't messing with you."

I gave him a Burg worthy glare."Are you done?"

"No. You and Morelli were never right for each other," Ranger said.

"Oh, really?" I said, my eyebrow raised."And just when had you figured that out?"

"From the very beginning. Morelli was expecting you to settle down eventually and turn into a typical Burg housewife, not continue on as a bounty hunter who gets shot at every other day."

"I could be a damn good housewife if I wanted to," I said."And sometimes people don't shoot at me."

"That's the thing, Steph," Ranger said to me."You don't want to be a housewife. And there will never be anything typical about you."

"That's a good thing, right?"

Ranger picked up my hand and kissed the inside of my wrist."It's a very good thing, Babe."

"Just out of curiosity," I asked,"when did you know that we were right for each other?" I held my breath waiting for his answer.

"The same time," Ranger said, his voice soft.

"Then why were you always pushing me away?"

Ranger placed my hand back down onto the table."You weren't ready," he said."Yes, I wanted you. But I wasn't willing to risk the future I knew we could have together just to get you into bed. At least, I couldn't risk it again."

My mind flashed back to the DeChooch deal for a moment."Jeez," I said."All that was going on behind the mask? You know, you could have sped this whole thing up if you learned how to communicate better."

Ranger laughed."Don't worry, I had a plan if you took too long."

I didn't ask about the plan, but I suspected it had something to do with getting me in a bed for an extended period of time. Or a car. Or an alley ...

Ranger pushed back from the table."I have to get to work. I can't put it off any longer."

I knew what he meant, the men were going to be impossible."Do you need me to protect you?" I asked.

Ranger bent down and kissed me."No. I'll just fire all of them if they get out of hand. What are your plans for the day?"

"Bonds office first thing. Lula won't wait forever." Too bad there was no way of threatening Lula when she got out of hand. Lula wasn't afraid of anything, least of all anything I would be able to come up with.