Rangeday

by ArwenLune

Summary:

RANGEDAY: noun Annual company outing of Rangeman Inc. See also: mayhem, mystery, 'challenge accepted', selfdefence, football, barbeque, betting book, Stephanie, margaritas, Build a Bear, car disaster, Aurora's Holistic ReBirthing Centre, diversion.

Notes:

So... I wrote this in 2006. And I've developed as a writer since then and parts of this story make me cringe a little, but it's also apparently still a favourite of many people. And short of major revision (just, NO) this is what it is and what it will stay. I'm kind of okay with that.

The Stephanie in this story isn't always quite the same person from the books, partly because the inspiration of this story was my frustration with how Canon Stephanie just did. not. grow. I think this splits off after book 11 - I never read beyond 12.

Sorry if the formatting sucks at times. I've tried to fix things where I spotted them.

Chapter 1

She was in her cubicle, digging into the latest search, when the hair at the back of her neck stood up. The low chatter in the office had stilled, and that could only mean one thing.

'Officer on deck', as Ram put it. Ram had been in the navy.

"Babe."

"Hey."

They stared at one another for a moment, and she forced herself not to look him over, knowing he'd see her do it. She'd drool, and that was embarrassing.

"I have an assignment for you," he started.

She rose an eyebrow at him. He flashed a grin and tossed a big manila envelope on her desk. "Organise RangeDay. It's our annual outing."

There was an outing? Like a company day? Mental image of the RangeMen playing minigolf. She blinked, trying to banish it.

"To what do I owe this dubious honour?"

"You're the closest thing I have to an organisational talent."

"I am?"

"Last time the guys left it far too late and Ella and I ended up doing most of the organisation."

"Oh. When is it?"

"In two months."

"Pretty short notice."

"I have every faith that you'll think of something."

Bastard. He said that just so she'd feel flattered instead of pressured into organising. Oh well, the idea of the guys on a day out was appealing, she had to admit. Maybe she'd feel less awkward between them if they'd all spent a day outside the normal work environment.

She'd been working for RangeMan for three months now, mostly doing research and phone work. Sometimes she'd go insane with being inside all the time and run some errands.

Right now, she wasn't sure if she wanted to get back to real field work. Yes, she occasionally went insane in her cubicle, but the Stiva incident still felt too recent, too raw, to feel good about being back in the real action. She'd figured it was time to get serious about training. Ranger had given one of his quiet 'proud of you' reactions and made some arrangements for her.

Lester coached her twice a week at the gun range. The dayshift guys dragged her along for their lunchbreak workout, and that meant she had to think of an excuse if she didn't want to go. A good excuse. Since the atmosphere was good and she'd been starting to enjoy the sessions, she bothered less and less with the excuses. It was hard to keep hold of her I-hate-exercise attitude in the face of Ram and Bobby's relentless energy and enthusiasm.

Ranger had also set her up with a self defence teacher in a dojo downtown, and she spent her Wednesday evenings being taught formal karate, whatever-works improvisation and everything in between. Her confidence was growing.

Morelli had been pleased to hear about her going to a dojo. Guess he'd been worried Ranger was going to teach her himself. Then he'd blown a gasket when he'd heard which dojo, shouting that it was under investigation for Yakuza – Japanese mob – contacts.

She'd finally told him that she needed some time for herself, to figure out what she wanted from life, let alone a relationship. She'd told Ranger the same, and he'd eased off the pressure, going from smoking hot to simply warm around her. She missed the occasional hot kisses, but for the moment warm felt good. Her life wasn't an emotional rollercoaster for a change.

She smiled at Ranger, warming up to the idea of a company outing.
"Alright, so what sort of thing do you usually do?"

"Paintball is always a safe bet. Or you could ask around to see what everybody wants to do."

She sat back and shook her head.
"Nuh-uh. If I organise, we're not paintballing."

One of his eyebrows went up a fraction of an inch.

"If you really think I want to crawl through the woods with a bunch of ex-special forces guys looking to paint me, think again."

His lips quirked a little, and she figured he was enjoying the mental image.

"All the info about previous years and budget is in that envelope. If you think you have something we'll all enjoy you're welcome to keep it secret. You can use my office to organise without anyone snooping."

She nodded. Hell, surprising the Rangemen might be fun.

"What about my normal work?"

"Hawk will need to keep off his leg for a couple of weeks, he can take over some of it."

Hawk had caught an unfortunate kick in the knee from a skip. She looked at the envelope again, wondering what on earth you did for a company outing with guys whose idea of fun was an 'interior decorating' job?

"I have to warn you," Ranger said lowly over her ear, making her breath catch momentarily. "If you want to keep it a surprise, the guys will take that as a challenge to find out about it."

"I'll keep it in mind," she said, trying not to shiver. He may have backed off, he was by no means letting her forget about the frightening levels of carnal attraction between them.

"Babe."

And he was gone.

The rest of her day flew by with some searches and the new project. Previous years had seen successes of the simple, guy-activity type. Paintballing, lasergaming, go-karting. She wanted something really cool for this year, something that would help her feel more like a part of the crew. Something she would be able to do on the same level as they. That ruled out quite a few physical things. At the same time it would have to appeal to the men.

She typed the budget, requirements and some ideas into a word document and then sat thinking for a while. If the guys would be trying to find out about it, it wouldn't be safe on her computer account. Hell, probably it wouldn't be safe anywhere. Not much point worrying about it at this stage. She'd ask Ranger later if she should take any digital precautions or if her computer account was off-limits. For now she called the file and saved it away in the folder called STUFF TO SORT OUT.

She got a small chicken sandwich from the kitchen and ate it sitting on one of the control room tables, legs dangling, chatting with the guys.

"Hey Steph!" Bobby came into the room, glancing at her sandwich. "That your dinner? Tell me you're not dieting."
She laughed because Bobby shared her love for fast food. No doubt to Ranger's irritation when the occasional take-out bag entered the office.

"Dojo tonight. I usually eat afterward."

"How is it going with the training anyway?"

She shrugged.
"It's going. Feels like very slow, but going."

"Impatient as always. It takes a while for that stuff to become second nature, you know. And you've only been at it for what, a couple of months?"

"I think this is the eighth or ninth time."

"Well, all I know is that Ranger was pretty goddamn impressed with your teacher. Said she knocked him onto his ass, and there's not a whole lot of people who can manage that."

Stephanie paused mid-bite.
"Really? Tsuy never told me that. I mean, I knew he'd been over to talk to her…"

The dojo she went to was one of the small, old fashioned places with a membership almost exclusively of Japanese locals. It was owned by the Yatsumi's, a closed-faced family that didn't speak a lot of English and instilled a rigid and traditional regime in the training. Steph had been incredibly relieved when it turned out her teacher was a niece of the Sensei, a slim woman in her late twenties that used the smaller dojo room to teach her own form of self defence. And thankfully, Tsuy didn't insist on the discipline as it was wielded by her uncle.

They talked for a bit longer, and when she was done with her sandwich it was time to get going.

"Kick like you want to hurt something, Stephanie," Tsuy goaded. "It's not a Labrador puppy. Remember your breathing."

Steph gritted her teeth and struck out again, kicking a lot harder this time. The cushion moved timely to block the blow, and she kicked again.

"Let's take a moment," Tsuy said when Stephanie felt a trickle of sweat run along her spine, sitting down and motioning for Steph to do the same. "Did you feel that if you breathe right, you can kick a lot harder?"

"Yeah. I just can't imagine that if I'm in a situation in the field I'll remember to breathe right." Tsuy just nodded, waiting as if she knew she had more on her heart.

"It just seems like all the things we do are good to know, but wouldn't really be any use if a skip went crazy on me. Feels like I've been practising for months and still wouldn't be able to defend myself."

Tsuy smiled. It annoyed Stephanie like little else could.

"It does not matter how slowly you go so long as you do not stop."

"Is that whatshisname again? Confusicus?"

"Confucius. And you may not wish to hear it, but he was right."

"So are there any of those old guys who said things like 'boldly go forth and kick his ass'?"

That smile again.
"You should read Sun-Tzu some time. The Art of War. Very interesting."

Stephanie gave her the yeah-right look and Tsuy flashed a grin.

"Ranger said you might grow impatient with the pace. I'll tell you the same I told him: this isn't a crash course. I'm not teaching you a few handy tricks."

"I know that."

"Maybe you do. I'm telling you all the same. Really being able to handle yourself with confidence and safety means that your body needs to take over in a crisis. You don't think, you just act. You need body memory, and the only way to gain that is to build skill over time, repeating everything until you can do it in your sleep."

"So you're telling me to be patient."

Tsuy nodded.
"You're improving though, I hope you see that yourself. At some point soon I'll arrange someone to come practise with us."

Stephanie nodded. She'd been taught a couple of ways to deflect an assailant, but Tsuy was smaller and lighter than herself. Almost all of the people she faced were larger. Sometimes a lot larger.

"Let's go. We're going to do a couple of different throws, and then we'll call it a day."

"Stick a form in me, I'm done." Steph flopped backward against the mat, staring up at the ceiling. She was exhausted and her entire body ached. It'd be worse tomorrow.

There was a hand-written sign on the ceiling. She nodded at it.

"What does that say?"

"It doesn't translate too well. I suppose you could say 'Our greatest glory is not in never falling, but in rising every time we fall'"

"Very encouraging."

Tsuy chuckled quietly and reached a hand down to her.
"Want to go have some dinner?"

"I'm starving." She let the smaller woman pull her to her feet.

"I'll take that for a yes."

Sometimes Tsuy sounded disturbingly like Ranger. How well did those two know one another? She'd have to fish into that some time. Actually, over food sounded like an excellent time.

"Lobby in twenty minutes?"

Stephanie nodded that that would be fine.

They were both freshly showered when Tsuy met her in the lobby downstairs. She looked almost formal, neat slacks and an open dress jacket over a blouse. She gestured for Stephanie to follow her out.

"I usually eat with the family. They're two doors down."

"The restaurant?"

A nod. "Unmarried nieces can't possibly be expected to cook for themselves. They need to eat with the family as often as possible."

"Sounds like my family."

"They mean well, and most of the time it's convenient for me. My aunt just keeps grasping it as an opportunity to make me swim in the Japanese gene-pool."

Stephanie laughed, reminded of her mother's desperation to get her married off. It seemed to have died off for now. More likely because her mother had run out of suitable candidates than that she had given up her efforts to get her daughter married off.

The restaurant was a nice place, not very large. There were three tables that were build around a large cooking plate. At one of them a cook was working while a company was seated around him, watching him cook their meals. There were a few normal tables alone the sides. Tsuy walked to a table in front of the window and gestured for Stephanie to sit down.

"I'll be right back. Is there anything you don't eat?"

She didn't think it'd be okay to say 'vegetables' so she just shook her head. She'd never had Japanese before. She watched as Tsuy greeted the cook with a slight bow and approached the elderly woman behind the bar. Rapid-fire Japanese was exchanged and Stephanie smiled. If you mentally inserted the hand-gestures it was just like an Italian family.

Before long dishes started to arrive from the kitchen. Round bowl with some kind of light broth, rice balls coated with sesame seed, chicken in a delicious smelling sauce, all kinds of things coated in batter and fried. Tsuy briefly explained what everything was, then took chopsticks out of their paper wrapper and poured them both a cup of warmed sake.

Stephanie pulled the wooden chopsticks apart and wondered how on earth she would tackled the food with them before it grew cold.

The cook that was working nearby said something to Tsuy, and she answered, then turned to Stephanie.

"My cousin reminds me to give you," she snapped her fingers, trying to find the right word. "cutlery?"

"Cutlery yes, and that would be great," she said in relief. The food smelt far too nice to let it grow cold. A moment later she had tools she knew how to use, and discovered dish by dish that she really liked the Japanese kitchen. They even fried vegetables! Tempura was delicious. Ranger would laugh if she told him about that. Well okay, maybe he wouldn't laugh, but probably his eyes would.

"I want to learn that," she said, watching Tsuy's fingers operate the chopsticks.

"Lifetime of practise."

"Like the martial arts?"

"Pretty much. Doesn't mean you can't learn it as well though. Just takes time."

"Bobby says you, and I quote, 'knocked Ranger on his ass'."

"I did. Don't think I'd manage it again though."

"How so?"

"You and I," Tsuy gestured to include them both, "the best thing we have going for us is the element of surprise. We look like we couldn't knock over a…" she said a word in Japanese, gesturing to the pretty-looking vase that held the warmed sake. "So if we have to take someone out, do it hard. Don't hesitate, give it all you have. You're only going to get one chance to surprise."

"You surprised Ranger?"

Tsuy nodded.

"And if you didn't surprise him?"

"That I don't know. Probably an ambulance would be involved."

Stephanie nodded. It had been explained to her that sparring and full-force fighting were very different things. Tsuy had also expressly forbidden her to demonstrate her new skills on anyone she liked. Sparring style she wouldn't win from the guys at Rangeman, and full-force she'd risk serious damage to herself or her opponent, and probably both.

"I was wondering how you met Ranger in the first place."

"He had a few documents he needed translating a while ago, and I mediated in a meeting with a local Japanese business."

"And then he decided you were going to teach me self defence?"

"Evidently."

Stephanie ate some more of the tempura, feeling the other woman's eyes on her. She expected a question, but it didn't come. Guess Tsuy wasn't much into prying. Or, and judging from this look, she didn't need to pry.
She answered the unspoken question with a little wave of her fork.

"He just wants me to learn to take care of myself in the field."

Tsuy made an 'oh yeah?' sound and took a sip of sake.

"Guess he's tired of saving my ass every time," Stephanie continued, fishing a little. She wanted to know what Ranger had said about her.

"May be."

Damn her. Was there a Blank-walling 101 class she could sign up for somewhere? Probably it was standard RangeMan training.

"It's nice of him though. I appreciate it."

"If it was just that, he could have sent you to any dojo."

HAH! Stephanie hid her triumph as the other woman continued. Some information at last.

"He spent a lot of time making sure that you would not only learn, but be comfortable doing it."

She found herself staring at Tsuy and quickly covered with a sip of sake. It was strangely flavourful for something that looked like warm water. Her tongue tingled a bit.

Damn, was she having the warm-fuzzies over the fact that he'd found her a self defence teacher?
She understood what Tsuy meant though. Any dojo could have taught her the basics, but Ranger had looked for someone who taught without the rigid discipline that would no doubt have put her off the lessons. He hadn't just wanted her to learn, he'd wanted her to enjoy it.

He wasn't in her bed, or kissing her, or making her see crosseyed with lust, but he was still showing her he cared. It was something she knew wasn't between Morelli and her. If Morelli wasn't in her bed, his efforts were centred almost exclusively on getting back into it.

"Speaking of Ranger…" Tsuy interrupted her thoughts. "could you ask him if he can lend us someone to practise with?"

"You want me to practise on one of the Rangemen?"

God, what if she landed more of them in the hospital?

"Yes. Someone you're comfortable with, and whose ego won't be bruised if a couple of girls make him hit the mat."

Chapter 2

"Sure, Tank will go with you."

She stared at Ranger, thinking he must have one hell of an employee-insurance plan. He didn't turn away from her when he spoke again.

"Tank, got a problem with that?"

She cut her eyes to Tank, who was slouched in a chair eating an apple. The large man flashed a toothy grin at her stunned expression.
"Sounds like fun."

"See, Babe? No problem."

She looked from one man to the other and shook her head in disbelief. Here she'd been wondering how the hell she could talk one of the guys into going with her to class and now it turned out Tank was practically volunteering. All the guys had been ribbing her on how they wanted hazard pay if they were going to work with her, and now… She'd never understand these men.

Probably they just liked keeping her off-balance.

Friday. Another day at the office. She'd been pondering at the company-outing thing for two days now. Had googled until she hoped never to see another minigolf, volleyball or picnic ground website. The more active side of the spectrum seemed to contain things like survival tracks, abseiling, white water rafting and paintball again. What was it with men and paintball anyway? You'd think crawling around in the forest trying not to get shot would get old. Apparently it was fun if being shot didn't mean being wounded or dead. Or so Ram and Bobby had claimed.

She needed some outside input. Maybe Connie and Lula would have any ideas, and even if they didn't it'd be nice just to hang with the girls for a while. Since the news had come out that she'd be organising RangeDay she had become subject to a lot of attention and prying questions. Probably the book would open soon and she'd have to take paranoia to new levels.

Ranger had made it clear to the guys that his office was off-limits and that her phone and computer account were not to be touched. Not that that helped much when everything in the building was seen and heard and recorded. She'd have to get mail sent to another address to really be consistent. Her home address was out – Ranger had already indicated that he liked a challenge as much as the rest of the men. If she wanted to keep it a surprise, she'd need to outmanoeuvre him.

She found herself rather liking the idea of outmanoeuvring Ranger. And… if she couldn't do it in the sneakiness department, she couldn't do it at all.

"Hey girl! How ya doin' in the BatOffice?"

She laughed and plonked the bag of donuts onto the desk.

"Going well, just wanted a change of air." She bit into a Boston Crème and started to explain her predicament.

"So ya wanna do something cool, but not girly," Lula summarised.

"Yeah. Something that won't have me standing by the sidelines, you know? I don't want to be office-girl."

"Maybe you should start by thinking of things you could do?" Connie suggested.

"I thought of that, but there really isn't anything I can think of that I'm good at that they're not better at, AND that isn't girly."

"Girl, you gotta stop thinking like that. 'Course there's things!"

"Like what?"

Lula opened her mouth, but stilled. Her lips moved silently for a moment.

Stephanie hung her head. "That's what I mean."

"Why is it so important to keep this secret, anyway? You could just have a poll in the office and pick the most favourite activity."

"Because it'll be paintball. And I don't want to go paintballing with those guys."

The other women nodded. They couldn't fault her for that.

"And I want it to be a surprise, something really cool. Something that's worth all the anticipation. I don't want there to be a betting book on this day and then have it turn out a disappointment." She blushed. "Is that weird?"

"Hell no!" Lula grinned. "I'm gonna wrack my brain trying to think of something for you. You're gonna impress the hell out of Batman and the merry men."

She ran into Morelli in Tasty Pastry. Talk about shared history at this place. He pulled her to the side and gave her a full-body hug.
"Good to see you."

"It's good to see you too, Joe."

She untangled herself and stepped back before her body started to make the decisions here. His eyes were very soft.

"I miss you, cupcake."

She missed him too – he'd been a part of her life for so long it was strange to only see him like this. Strange not to be aware of what was going on his life, and strange that he wasn't up on hers. But she didn't want a discussion right now, so she settled for a smile and a:
"How's Bob?"

"Why don't you drop by more often to see for yourself?" Because it was far too easy to end up in bed with Mr. Best Buns in Trenton. Not that she was going to tell him that.

Remembering her epiphany in the Japanese restaurant, she smiled at him. "Been busy. Can I borrow him to go running some time?"

He looked at her in utter shock.
"You? Running? What's gotten into you?"

She saw in his face that he expected the answer to be 'Ranger'.

"Just my new regime. Lots of exercise and no complications."

"Complications?"

"Men."

"No men?" Suggestive grin. "You're never going to keep that up."

"I can, and I will, and I feel great." Take that, Morelli. I have control over my hormones. Sometimes.

"Sure, cupcake. Pick Bob up anytime you like. And let me know when you fall off the wagon with that no-man thing."

Joe walked off with a grin, and she tried not to feel sad. It only confirmed what she already knew about their relationship. The sex was great. Without the sex, what was between them was… unreliable. If he knew he wasn't going to get her into bed, Morelli wasn't even that interested in seeing her.

She picked up the donuts and walked out to the black Explorer she'd borrowed. Well, the joke was on Morelli. She'd sworn no oath not to have sex – had just decided to back off from the men in her life until she made sense of how she felt about them, and they about her. And part of the puzzle had just started to resolved itself.

There was a hole in her life, but was it a Morelli-shaped hole or just the space he left when he stepped back?

"Steph, can you help me with—"

She held up her hand to stop Hawk from walking in further. He grinned and mimicked walking into an invisible wall. She turned off the monitor and stacked the various brochures she had in front of her, putting them in a drawer.

Hawks eyes were fixed on the stack and snapped to her when she closed the drawer. It made her smile inwardly. Hawk was a new recruit, a big Cherokee man with milimetred hair and a solid build. Now and then she'd find herself completely entranced by the easy grace of his motions.

"Yes?"

"I tried searching for medical records but I must be doing something wrong, I'm not getting anything."

She gave him a hard look, but he radiated honest sheepishness. She'd explained this to him the day before.

Hmm.

She got up and followed him to the cubicle he was using. He was still favouring his right leg. Plopping down in the extra chair before the computer she concentrated on the search application on screen.

"So how's the organising going?"

She made a non-committal sound, not looking up.

"You pick out an activity yet?"

"Hey Steph, you want coffee?" Lester stuck his head around the cubicle wall. A look passed between him and Hawk.

"Yeah… please…" she kept her eyes fixed to the screen, wondering if they'd grow more obvious if she didn't answer to the fishing.

"Ah, I see. You used colons instead of semi-colons in your search request. Here, this should work." She hit enter and spun her chair to face him.

"I could swear I specifically mentioned this when I explained it to you yesterday."

At that moment Lester came in with coffee, handing it over but staying in the entrance, blocking it.

"Made any decisions about RangeDay yet?"

Great, she was being tag-teamed now.

"The book running yet?" she replied.

"Boss said you told him paintball was out."

"I'm considering options."

"So paintball is not out?" Hawk.

Man, how hard was it to understand that she wasn't going to tell them?
"I'm so not having this conversation."

She got up and made for the exit. Lester didn't move out of her way.

"Unless you want hot coffee over your shirt I suggest you move out of my way," she said sweetly. He flashed a wide grin and stepped aside with an exaggerated 'feel free' gesture.

"Thank you," she said, feeling a little snarky. If she wanted to do this well, she'd have to think seriously about a strategy to keep her plans secret. If they couldn't get anything out of spying, they'd probably nag at her until she inadvertedly gave something away.

She'd never have to do strategy before. Something to consider over the weekend.

Friday late afternoon was office hangout time. The weekly evaluation at 5 PM often ran over into a beer-and-pizza session. If there was no job scheduled for the evening that session didn't seldomly relocate itself to Shorty's when the dayshift came off and contractors took over for the weekend.

"Hey Bombshell, are you coming along to Shorty's? I'm driving tonight."

She smiled at Tank. The designated driver was a new thing. Tank and Ranger had introduced it to avoid irresponsible driving.

"Sure, but only if everybody shuts up about RangeDay."

Tank just laughed. Lester, on his fourth beer, cried out in disappointment from the other side of the room.

"Damn it Steph, there goes our plan to get you sauced and pry all your secrets out of you!"

"Lester Santos, let me warn you right here," she called back. "if anyone uses alcohol to fish details out of me, I can assure you that RangeDay will consist of minigolf and karaoke!"

From the sudden silence and stricken expressions around the room she figured she had struck gold with that threat.

"Not minigolf!" Ram groaned.

"Maybe bowling," she smirked. "Or a nice motivational speaker."

Ranger looked pained. "You're twisting the knife, Babe."

Oh yeah, and she was loving every second of it.
"Sensitivity workshops? You know, with roleplays and stuff?"

A collective groan.
"We give in!" Lester called, slamming his fist onto the table, making the beer bottles jump. "Friday afternoon, or any occasion where Steph drinks alcohol, is off-limits for investigations. Agreed?"

Everybody nodded. Ranger gave her a 200-watt grin. She leant back in triumph.

"Bring on the margaritas, I say!"

The men laughed and they all trooped out of the meeting room, Stephanie as one of the last. Suddenly she was stopped by large hands over the side of her hips.

"You're getting worryingly good at negotiating, babe," Ranger said softly over her ear. She repressed a shiver. "You found the leverage and used it."

"Well there's this professor who taught me a thing or two…" she said on a smile, still giddy from her victory. She leaned back a little and felt him take a deep breath, his body starting to lean against her – then he seemed to remember about keeping space. His hands removed themselves a little reluctantly, and she squeezed her eyes shut, wishing that she knew if the rush to her stomach was relief or disappointment.

His hand ghosted her shoulder and he leant in for the briefest of moments.
"Proud of you…"

She smiled because there was real pride in his voice, and willed her body to relax. God, it felt good to be that close to him. It was good that he was willing to give her space, because even with her new-found self control she didn't think she'd be able to resist him. And nice as it would no doubt be, it'd complicate the whole affair just when it felt like she was starting to untangle the mess of her feelings.

Ranger's habit of advancing emotionally, and then just when she began to feel there might be something there, to retreat again – it really wouldn't help her sort herself out. He'd do the nicest, caring things for her. Then he'd remind her he didn't do relationships. Better to back the hell off than to get burnt by that again.

She was sad about what she'd realised about Joe and her. She did love him, in her own way, and she was pretty sure that Joe also loved her – in his own way. It was just that those ways seemed to be incompatible.

His love seemed to confuse caring with holding too tight. With a burg life like his mother lead. He either seemed to let things with her too loose, or hold them too tight. And she could never work out where that balance should be, either. She wanted him to hold her close, but when he did she felt restricted. Push and pull, like an eternal cycle, a never-ending tango.

Life was great. She loved her life. This drink tasted great too.

"I love margaritas!" she proclaimed, raising the glass high in the air. This got a round of cheers from the guys, and she felt herself grin so wide her face was in danger of splitting. She loved the guys. Big handsome men who looked out for her and most of the time acted like brothers – what wasn't to like?

Ranger reached out and put a tall glass of mineral water in front of her. She took it without thinking and took a sip. Tasted strange just after a margarita. Would ensure that she'd last the evening instead of being ill or passing out. That sort of thing was embarrassing enough as it was, doing it amidst the merry men while they were on their 10th drink would definitely provide them with amusement for the next ten years or so.

She'd figured out that if she drank a glass of water between every real drink, she'd be pleasantly snockered without loosing control, her dinner or her consciousness. Then she'd told Ranger and Tank about it, just in case she forgot about it. And, nice as they were – or rather, nice as they could be – they cheerfully enforced it.

Ranger had been nice about a lot of things lately. And usually Ranger was only this nice if there was something in it for him. Mercenary. Opportunist. He used those labels with pride. Sometimes his actions had felt… different… but it was still a difficult thought to shake. That fateful morning-after conversation stood seared into her brain. She couldn't help running everything he did through the filter it had created.

"Hey, what're you getting out of this?" it shot out of her mouth before she could stop herself. Damn drunken blabbermouth of hers. He looked at her, presumably waiting for her to explain. She gestured at the glass of water.

"Getting out of the glass of water?"

"Errr…" Yeesh, couldn't he keep up? "Out of… out of… being all nice to me."

His look was intense but unreadable, and held her eyes for what seemed like a long time. Then Bobby called something from the other end of the booth and he broke contact to answer. A shiver crept down her spine.

Forcing it away, she focussed her attention on a story Lester and Bobby were telling with much shouting and arm-waving. It made her smile to see them so relaxed. She sat back and let their energy surround her, for once not feeling pushed toward the centre of attention.

"You're falling asleep, Babe."

"No I'm not." She didn't open her eyes, trying not to shiver at his warm breath over her ear. "I'm just enjoying listening to you guys."

"We're all getting ready to leave."

Shit. Well okay, maybe she'd been dozing off a little. Cover, Steph. Cover.

"Well okay, I'm ready to go home too."

Grin from Ranger.
"I'll drive you."

Uh-oh. He didn't look like he'd forgotten her earlier comment. Still that intense look in his eyes. She wondered if he'd actually speak to her during the drive or if he planned to talk at her place. More uh-oh. Better not encourage him to come upstairs, or she'd fall off the wagon with her plans to sort herself out before she tackled the complications with the men in her life.

She operated on automatic as she wished everybody a good weekend and got into the Porsche with Ranger. He looked at her for a long moment and then rolled over the engine.

With a flash of alcohol induced clarity – how rare was that? – she realised that she wasn't really sure what she wanted from Ranger, but another one-night-stand wasn't it. No matter what her hormones said.

It would no doubt be wonderful, and afterward she'd feel worse. Best not to go there at all. It was time to be in control. Wonder Woman was in control, right? Probably Wonder Woman wasn't led around by her hormones.

Tsuy's voice sounded in her head.
'The best way to appear purposeful is to be purposeful. Take stock, decide where you want to go and how you're going to get there, and go for it.'

They had been talking about navigating streets and difficult situations at the time, but really, the advice applied to her entire life. And so long as she didn't know what she wanted, she was going to stay where she was. Figuratively speaking.

That was it. Attitude. Out with Doormat-Stephanie and in with Wonder Stephanie. Did Wonder Woman ever drink a couple of margaritas before she came to this kind of enlightening moments?

Chapter 3

They stopped in the parking lot of her apartment. Before she could open the door he hit the central doorlocks.

"Do you want to explain to me what you meant by that comment earlier?"

He sounded a little dark, as if he was annoyed, or maybe what she had said was bothering him somehow. A year ago she would have gone into a panic with the thought she had pissed him off. Now she just wondered what he thought to get for an answer, and what kind she wanted to give him.

"Which one?"

"What I was getting out of 'being all nice to you'."

Oh. The margaritas forced the answer from her lips before she could help herself.

"Well usually there's a deal going on when you do that sort of thing."

Something unidentifiable washed over his face before the blank expression returned.

"I told you that there's no price for what we give each other, babe."

"You also said you were a mercenary and that everything is a deal with you. Which one is it?"

"I was…" he gestured as if to pluck the words from the air, "I am—"

Wow, Ranger speechless. That was new. A little startling, too. He was always so in control.

"Maybe we should, should, should talk about this some other time," she said, stumbling over her words. The look in his eyes was unnerving her. "Probably this is not so good with me all margarita-y and you… you…"

"I don't always know what to say, babe," he said suddenly with what seemed almost like a sad smile. "And sometimes when I think I do, it's the wrong thing."

She didn't know what to say to that, and before she could try for words he suddenly leant in and kissed her, just a brush of his lips. A slow shiver crawled its way down her spine, full of arousal and confusion. Then he pulled back and smiled at her.

"You're right. We'll talk Monday, okay?"

She nodded, feeling light-headed with the kiss and the sudden changes in his behaviour. Okay, probably the alcohol had something to do with it as well. The locks clicked open.

"I'll have your car dropped off tomorrow morning. Wave at the window when you're okay up there."

"Goodnight," she whispered before she let the car door fall shut, wondering what the hell had just happened. When she got into her apartment she had a quick look around, then opened the curtain to signal she was okay. The Cayenne drove off and she closed the curtains again, suddenly too tired to do more than kick off her shoes and crawl under the covers.

She didn't wake until noon and didn't feel bad about it for a second. Unlike in her skiptracing days, her weekends were all hers. Well, except for Saturday dinner at her parents. Her job at RangeMan paid enough to cover the rent without worries, keep her fridge full and her twice-monthly (and anytime she felt the impulse) shopping trips to Macy's without cares. There was no need to spend the weekends staking out or puzzling about skips.

Sometimes she did anyway, in Lula's apartment with a load of fast-food and some cheesy movie. She hadn't gone with Lula on a takedown since the Stiva incident, but she still enjoyed the tracing element of the work.

Last time Lula needed help, Ranger had sent Hal to help out. Stephanie suspected that they were seeing each other now, because Lula wasn't saying anything about it. Since Lula openly drooled over any man she considered hunk-material, this was probably telling.

It made Stephanie smile, because Hal wasn't saying anything either, and she hoped that meant those two were enjoying themselves together. He was a good guy and Lula deserved someone who appreciated her for what she'd become, not looked down on what she'd been.

She showered until the bathroom resembled a sauna, fixed hair and makeup, and dressed in jeans, T-shirt and fleece jacket. Time to be domestic. There were no more grapes for Rex and the fridge was starting to grow empty. Even with the whole self-improvement thing, Ranger had never told her to eat better. Or rather, never more than he had before.

It was just… well at some point a couple of weeks ago she had started to notice these cravings. Not for sugar or chocolate or icecream, but for weird things like cheese, mustard, runny eggyoke and plain yoghurt. Things she'd never cared for before.

After the initial pregnancy scare (more of a pregnancy panic, really) she had mentioned it to Tsuy, who had remarked that maybe her body was trying to tell her something.

"What would it want to say?"

"That you're not giving it what it needs?"

Uh oh, that was usually the beginning of a lecture. At least, with Ranger it was. Tsuy just gave her a look.

"I'm not your life-coach. If you want to eat like you do, I'm not going to stop you. I certainly don't plan to be your enforcer."

Stephanie had shrugged, oddly tickled by the idea that she wasn't being pushed.
"Let's say that I'm trying to learn to listen to myself. What would you recommend?"

"I'm not going to advise you, because I mainly eat rice and I have no idea about western diets. But I can send you to a friend who gives dietary advice."

Grimace. Diet. Not a good word.
"I'm not exactly Miss Willpower. I'm not up for radical changes and health-food and stuff.."

Nor for breaking the sugar habit. The last thing she needed while she tried to take control of her life was to turn into a raging nymphomaniac.

"The man who moves a mountain begins by carrying away small stones.
Successful diets don't give you the feeling that you're giving up a lot, or you'd never stick to them. He's pretty realistic."

Xander had turned out to be a weather beaten man with grey, tied-back hair. In his late fifties, also did acupuncture. A New Age man.

They had decided together that she didn't really need to lose weight and that she just needed better eating habits. Then he'd given her some pointers for healthier eating, a small cookbook with stirfry recipes, and the assurance that she shouldn't try to break her sugar habit, just bring it under control.

As she pushed a trolley through the supermarket Stephanie reflected that it was working. Stirfrying was a great way to cook – chop it all up, toss it in the wok, stir until done. No recipe needed, really. Her mother wouldn't approve of it as it wasn't Proper Burg Home Cooking, but it was a hell of a lot healthier than Pino's or MacD's and she was beginning to enjoy her 'does this go together?' experiments. Especially with the enormous supermarket selection of sauces to spice up the stirfry meals. And it wasn't like she had stopped with the fastfood completely… but lately her self-cooked meals outnumbered the times she ate fastfood.

Ranger didn't know about the latest item in her self-improvement scheme, and for some reason she wanted to keep it that way. She wasn't changing for him, and she didn't want to give him that idea.

Why not? She had no idea. Maybe because it felt like he had so much power over her already. She didn't like to give him the idea that she was doing this for him, because she really wasn't.

Staring at the packaged chicken breast it suddenly occurred to her that she was doing all these things now because Tsuy gave her the feeling that she was doing them for herself. No pushing, no indication that certain things would or would not disappoint her – she just offered options.

Ranger often got her to do things because she didn't like disappointing him. He knew it and made use of it. In a way it made her feel a little like a child anxious to please, and worried to take home a bad report card.
She did look up to him in certain aspects, but like a teenager resenting pressure she also rebelled, only carried the gun because he forced her, sometimes even – she was ashamed to admit it to herself now – took risks just to prove to herself that she could, that she was independent, that he wasn't always right.

Ridiculous really. No matter how it had grown to be this way, she vowed at this moment, in front of the cheese displays, to make it stop.

Waiting at the checkout a rebellious thought rose: was Tsuy talking to Ranger about things like diet, reading, training? Was she still being shaped, just in a more subtle way?

As she loaded the shopping into her new second-hand car she shook her head. Enough with the paranoia and puberty thoughts. Tsuy was being a good teacher, and starting to become a friend. And she could always ask if Ranger was receiving progress reports or not.

Speaking of progress reports… she wondered if the Merry Men were using the grapevine as a way to find out about rangeday. The network was infamous for carrying everything and anything that could be of interest, and though not all of them were tapped into it, she couldn't imagine that nobody would try.

Best to keep her most talkative friends out of the loop, then. Or perhaps, since there was no way Connie and Lula would accept not being told anything, she could use them to spread some tactical misinformation.

The thought of lying to her friends wasn't comfortable, but to let them know her true plans – providing she would actually have some, minor detail that – would be a sure way of letting the entire Burg know. She might as well rent one of those little airplanes with a banner behind it.

It was with that thought in mind that she evaded the subject during dinner with her parents. When Grandma Mazur asked about it, she only mentioned that she was considering mountainbiking, and changed the subject.

When she got home she rang Tsuy. A voice she didn't recognise answered in Japanese. Background noise of a car on the highway.

"Erm, hello? Is this Tsuy's phone?"

Some quick talking in the background on the other side, then the unfamiliar voice came back, clearly unused to the English language.

"One… moment.. please."

Some shuffling sounds and then finally:

"Tsuy."

"Hiya, it's Stephanie. Is this a bad moment?"

"Not at all. Sorry about that, my great-aunt speaks little English. I have you on headset now."

"Just called to let you know that I have someone to come along wednesday. Tank is looking forward to it."

She could almost hear the smile on the other side of the line.

"That is good, I will not have to bribe a cousin now."

"I also have a question…"

"Go ahead."

"I'm organising the company outing of RangeMan, and I'm trying to keep it a secret from everybody."

"Ambitious plan."

Stephanie burst into laughter at that dry assessment.
"You're telling me! I wanted to ask for your help with keeping it secret."

"What did you have in mind?" curious tone. Sounded as if Tsuy liked the idea as well.

"A postal address that I can have information sent to without anyone seeing it."

"You can use mine. Do you have email?"

She gave it, smiling as Tsuy said something in Japanese and then repeated the address letter for letter, apparently so her great-aunt could write it down.

"I'll send you my postal address and some more stuff. Is your email secure?"

"It's been declared out-of-bounds for spying."

"Ah, so there are rules to this. That's good. I'll send that email when I get home in an hour or so."

Stephanie disconnected with a smile. Not only did she now have a secure place to receive mail, she also had an ally.

So, the plan for keeping rangeday secret was starting to take shape. Now she just needed to figure out what rangeday would actually be…

One of her best ideas so far was a racing day at an actual track. The guys would definitely appreciate that sort of thing and she had more or less equal chances because it wasn't strength based. It was a little heavy on the budget, but if she didn't make dinner too crazy – and who wanted to serve the Merry Men haute cuisine anyway? – it was possible.

The only problem would be the possibility of a car blowing up… Not something she thought she would ever live down.

"What do you think, Rex?"

He came out of his soup can to accept the grape and then scurried to hide the loot.

"Yeah, I think so too," she sighed.

She jotted the idea under the header 'cool, but—' and sat staring out of the window. Ella had mentioned that it was a good idea to have at least something tiring during the day, or the guys would be hyperactive all night and no restaurant was thrilled about entertaining a group of hyperactive musclemen.

"Like when you want kids to behave themselves during dinner, you have to let them blow off steam first." She had said.

It made sense, but it didn't make her decisions any easier. With any other company group she'd find a really cool survival run/assault course, but that was the sort of thing that they were guaranteed to be extremely good at. It would set her apart as the office girl, and though she never pretended to be as good or as experienced as they, she wanted to feel like she was part of the team.

Her laptop dinged with an incoming email.

---

from: tsuyiko.yatsumi at dojomail
to: bombshell at rangeman
subject: Sun Tzu and the Art of Organising Corporate Outings

Stephanie,

Attached to this email you will find a decent translation of Sun Tzu's 'The Art of War'. The man was a master tactician and is well worth reading. Since I know you're not going to read it, let me give you some quotes…

"Supreme excellence consists in breaking the enemy's resistance without fighting."

"All warfare is based on deception. Hence, when able to attack, we must seem unable; when using our forces, we must seem inactive; when we are near, we must make the enemy believe we are far away; when far away, we must make him believe we are near. Hold out baits to entice the enemy. Feign disorder, and crush him."

And last… does this remind you of anyone?

"Be extremely subtle, even to the point of formlessness. Be extremely mysterious, even to the point of soundlessness. Thereby you can be the director of the opponent's fate."

The postal address is in the signature. See you Wednesday.

Tsuy

---

Yikes. That sounded like Ranger slept with this book under his pillow. Curious now, she opened the attachment.

Half an hour later she went to bed, leaving the rest of the book for the Sunday. She'd expected it to be ancient, dry writing full of directions on how to launch an attack and how to organise a defence. Instead, it was short, to the point and extremely practical.

'You can be sure of succeeding in your attacks if you only attack places which are undefended. You can ensure the safety of your defence if you only hold positions that cannot be attacked.'

Combined with advice about besieging cities that sounded as if it was learned from personal experience – under no circumstance lay siege to a city – she could almost see the General sitting in his tent at the end of a long day, nursing a cup of hot tea, penning down advice for those newer to warfare.

Heh. Maybe she should write a book as well. The Art of Bountyhunting. It would hold advice such as

'If an FTA is near a garbage can and you engage him, you will inevitably find yourself rolling in garbage. Create another opportunity to take him down.'

And

'The clever bountyhunter avoids the use of a stungun unless she has brought backup to carry the stunned skip into the car.'

And

'A bountyhunter must adapt to the situation. If the skip is drunk, lie to him. If he is violent, bring backup. If he is likely to flee, cut off his escape routes. If he is armed, wear a vest. If he is in a bar, wear a skirt. If he is holed up, create a division to flush him out. And finally, if he is impossible to take, do not engage.'

She fell asleep with a smile.

Chapter 4

Waking was slow, unhurried. Nothing pressing to do today. Nothing to think about except for the impending fiasco of RangeDay and the impending doom of a talk with Ranger. Last time they'd talked he'd made it clear there could never be anything between them… well anything… in the way of a relationship. Obviously he didn't include lethally hot one-night-stands in that rule.

And she didn't want another one. She'd started to become aware of just how much she cared for him – as a friend, maybe even as something more. And he seemed to care for her too. There were even fleeting moments when she thought it was something else apart from fond protectiveness. He'd called it love, then qualified it. He loved her, in his own way. What did that mean?

Well, maybe she loved him too, in her own way. So that was okay. And another night with him would probably upset that balance, make it not-okay. Make her want more of him, more than he was willing to share. So, no more of that.

It was an easy enough resolution when she was hanging on her own couch clad in old sweats, with him not there. When he was close it felt more like a new year resolution, the kind you made fully knowing that you'd break it within a month.

"Lula, I'm going nuts here. Want to go for some therapeutic shopping?"

"Sorry girl, kinda busy today…"

Hmm, Lula not up for shopping? She sounded… odd. Like she didn't really want to talk right now. Stephanie listened to the explanation but concentrated on the background sounds. Yes, there it was. Low rumbling whisper.

"Doesn't matter Lula, some other time. Have fun with Hal."

Heh, Lula speechless. Stephanie disconnected with a grin. The fact that Lula wasn't telling about this made her suspect there were serious feelings involved, and there was no way she'd give her friend a hard time about that. She just couldn't help teasing a little.

That left her without shopping partner – Mary Lou was visiting her in-laws for the weekend. No doubt she was by now pulling out her hair and wishing she was at home, but that didn't help Stephanie right now.

She stood before the bathroom mirror and looked at herself, trying to determine if she could psych herself up into powershop-mode.

Not really. Figures. When she couldn't afford it, shopping seemed like the most urgent need. When she could afford, she couldn't get in the mood for it.

"Something else," she told her reflection. "Something new."

The hair maybe? Hmm yes, she could go see Mr Alexander. He might be pleasantly surprised that for once she didn't have a hair disaster that needed fixing.

---

"I want something… different. Fresh. I don't know."

"A whole new look?"

Whoa, on reflection, that sounded too drastic.

"Maybe just colours. Highlights?"

Mr Alexander fluffed her hair for a long moment and considered it.

"With your hair just highlights might look a little… forced. If you're feeling adventurous, we could do highlights and lowlights mixed. It'll all blend together, natural and very vibrant."

Hmm. Vibrant sounded good.

"What colours would you use?"

The board with the colour samples came out, and Mr Alexander pointed out some light, some copper and some dark tints.

"We don't do this on straight hair, but with curls like yours it'll look good."

"Go for it. I promise not to run away."

Mr Alexander gave her a look that said that he'd believe that if she handcuffed herself to the chair, but went to work anyway.

Blues Brothers was the film of the day, popcorn wasn't all that unhealthy according to Xander (even if she did cheat by buttering it slightly) and her hair looked great. All in all, a pretty good day. She still didn't have THE idea for RangeDay, but a whole stack of brochures were now winging their way to Tsuy's mailbox, so at least it felt like she was doing something about it.

Plus, it was Sunday evening and she wasn't sweating about the Monday, like in her lingerie-buyer days. She even kind of looked forward to going back to work, though the gun-range session with Lester looked to be trying. An hour in close quarters being cornered about her plans? At least she'd have a gun in hand. And if that failed to work, she could always threaten him with sensitivity workshops…

---

She woke with the nagging sensation that something was wrong. It tugged her from sleep and had her trying to remember where her gun was before she even moved. Crap, it was in her pocketbook, and that was standing next to the bedroom door. A quick look around told her that as of yet, she was alone - in her bedroom at least. Knowing her luck, probably not for long. She scooted to the side of the bed and reached down, feeling for the 3-inch stiletto heel she knew was lying there somewhere.

Sitting up, the improvised weapon in her hand, she looked straight into Ranger's face as he appeared in the bedroom doorway. He took her in - wild hair, faded pink T-shirt and shoe in hand - and smiled wide in the gloom.

"Killer shoes, Babe."

Ranger humour. She lowered the shoe, feeling a bit silly.

"What are you doing here?"

He hadn't broken into her apartment since she'd said she wanted space.

"We're going running."

"We are?"

"You won't have time for your mid-day workout-"

"I won't?"

"-because we're going to a meeting."

"We are?"

Uh-oh, she could only blame being-woken-early crankiness. Pissing off Batman? Not a good idea. She couldn't stop herself though, it was like some evil entity had taken possession of her voice.

"Is this Ranger-my-boss that's standing in my bedroom or is it Ranger-my-friend?"

He blinked. Guess that was as good as a stunned look in anyone else.

"The second."

"Ah, so what you meant to say was 'good morning Stephanie, sorry for waking you at this ungodly hour. I want to take you along to a meeting today and you probably won't have time for your usual work-out because of it, so would you like to go running with me now?' but for some reason it all kind of came out wrong."

She hid a smile as he seemed to need a second or two to process that. Guess it was early for him too. Then his smile grew, his teeth gleaming in the half-dark of her bedroom.

"Babe."

She sighed. Guess that was all she was going to get. One word, though he did give it what she supposed was a fond tone, as if she was amusing him again.

"Make some coffee and I'll be out in minute."

It took a couple of minutes to get into sweats, her hair into an acceptable ponytail and find a ballcap. Then another few minutes to calm the wild thoughts that were running through her head. Was he still planning that 'conversation' that he'd threatened on friday? Would he want to discuss things during running or would it be silence as usual? She didn't figure him for talking while he ran, but then again he rarely said much when it didn't concern a job.

She psyched herself up in front of the bathroom mirror and promised herself she had nothing to worry about - her condition had improved and she could always blame friday's drunken outburst on the margaritas.

She came into the kitchen and found Ranger watching Rex, who was attempting to stuff a small round carrot into his cheek pouches. He was feeding Rex now? She smiled. He turned around and nodded at seeing her running clothes.

"You ready? Coffee when we get back."

They were halfway through their route before she remembered to ask about the meeting.

"It's a possible new account I'm meeting. Dress suity."

She rolled her eyes.

"You want to elaborate on that? Exactly what am I there for? What do you expect me to do?"

"I just want you to sit in, pretend you're a secretary, make note of things. Be an extra pair of ears for me."

"Notes of what?"

"Things that make that infamous spidey sense of you tingle."

Ah HA.

"So I'm not there as secretary."

"That's what they'll assume, and it will be useful to let them. They might say things around you they wouldn't around me."

"So I'm there for my instincts?"

He nodded.
"And because it's time you learn more about the organisational side of RangeMan."

Hmm. That was good. They turned a corner and to her surprise she still wasn't out of breath. Damn, those workouts with the day shift definitely made a difference.

"Do you normally go on your own to meetings like this?"

"Tank usually goes with me. He says that since he's going with you Wednesdays, you've got to take over this."

She chuckled. "Anything to get out of wearing a suit?"

"Not a lot of people see more to Tank than his size and his colour, Babe."

She sobered, knowing it was true. Ranger could morph into Mr Mañoso, international businessman. Tank always looked like… well, like Tank, and the assumption was all too often that he was just muscle, someone who didn't think, didn't reason, didn't care. It had to be grating to be ignored when Tank was in fact office manager, and usually knew more about the daily running of the company than Ranger did.

What Ranger didn't seem to realise was that the assumption toward her was more or less the same; she'd seen that in countless business meetings in her time as lingerie buyer. Unless she actively tried to disprove it, she was assumed to be a bimbo playing at having a real job just until it was the right time to start a family. 'Playing with pretty lingerie', an asshole of a boss had once summarised her job as buyer.

They ran in silence for a while. She was slowing down, but they were not far from her apartment anyway. Sweat ran down her spine. It was march and too chilly for just a t-shirt, but after five minutes running the sweatshirt had felt too warm.

"How are your self defence lessons coming along?" he asked suddenly. Ranger making conversation? Didn't happen often. Or maybe this wasn't just conversation. Only one way to find out.

"You mean you don't get regular progress reports?"

He chuckled.

"Tsuy would never give them even if I did want them. She's your teacher, and I just sign out the checks."

Oh. Somehow that was unexpected. She'd thought he was keeping himself updated about it. He must have read her thoughts because he continued with the hint of a smile.

"You're not doing this for me, Babe. I'm just giving you the opportunities to learn."

"Did you ask her to teach me the physical stuff or the whole… philosophy as well?"

"Philosophy?"

"She's giving me books to read and all."

"Are you enjoying it?"

She just nodded, feeling strangely unwilling to reveal that she was enjoying a book on strategy. Especially since she was almost sure it was one of his favourites.

"Maybe she's trying to be a friend to you."

"I thought about that. Guess I didn't want to be… assuming."

Really she had been worried that Tsuy was doing these things because it was part of the lessons, and would not be comfortable with being asked to go out shopping or something like that. And it was not like asking her about it would be a good course or action... implying she was acting as a friend because she was being paid for it would most certainly offend.

"This culture thing is complicated," she finally said with a sigh. "I don't want to offend."

He nodded slightly as if agreeing with her, and slowed to a walk to cool off.

"So what have you learnt so far?"

"Well, we've done basic blocks, punches and kicks… fall-training… so maybe I won't be pushed around as easily… or at least not hurt myself when I fall. And we're doing throws. Oh, and we've been working on the whole aware-of-your-surroundings thing."

"And is it working?"

She glanced at him, thinking that he probably already knew if she was more aware of her surroundings or not.

"I don't know yet. Still working on the 'soft eyes' thing. Have you tried to sneak up on me lately?"

He flashed her a smile as he opened the apartment building's door. That was her entire answer. She decided that since he rarely let pass an opportunity to tell her she needed to be more aware, either he hadn't tried, or he hadn't succeeded. Interesting.

"Did Tank really offer to go with me Wednesday?"

"He did."

"Why? What if he gets hurt? I've broken his leg, gotten him blown up…"

He opened the door to her apartment.
"Babe."

One word, so many different ways to say it. From the look he gave her as she walked in after him, this time it meant something like 'you really should stop blaming yourself for everything bad that happens'. Or perhaps it was 'and I'm still paying a fortune in heightened employee insurance rates' but she rather hoped it was the first.

She went into the kitchen and switched on the coffee machine that Ranger had made ready earlier, being sure to add another scoop of ground coffee. He drank it too weak. Liked the taste – a leftover from his cover when he was FTA - hated to poison his body with the caffeine. That always made her grin.

"You get on with him, and he's one of the few people who can leave their ego outside a dojo."

Well yeah. Probably it was easy to be confident in your masculinity when you were six-foot-four and weighed about 230 pounds.

"Most of the guys wouldn't be able to resist…" he made a small gesture, searching for the right words. "Making sure you knew…"

"That I had nothing on them."

He nodded, and she realised he hadn't really want to tell her that. Probably didn't want to discourage her.

"It's okay, you can say that. I'll probably never be able to field any of your guys in sparring."

He just looked at her for a moment.

"Babe, sparring is just practise. Training. What matters is that you can handle yourself in a real situation. When it's crunchtime, anything goes. Be sure to get Tsuy to teach you the dirty tricks. Then we'll see if our Rangers training knows any she doesn't, and teach you those, too."

She was glad to have the excuse of the coffee, because he would have noticed her blinking away moisture. Why her eyes grew wet, she didn't really know.
Perhaps it was the realisation that no matter if there would ever be anything… more… between them or not, she had his complete support. In the daily Stephanie vs. World struggle, he was utterly and completely on her side. Amazing how strong that could make her feel.

"Milk?"

He was watching the black stream as she poured the coffee, and she saw him grimace.

"Lots of. You've made it stronger again."

She smiled a little at his long-suffering tone.
"Sorry, couldn't resist." His lips twitched a grin. "And… thanks."

"For what, Babe?"

"For being such a good friend."

He nodded in acknowledgement, but perhaps there was a moment of… something… in his eyes that suggested that wasn't quite what he had hoped to hear. Or perhaps she was just imagining that.

---

"Mr Mañoso, shall I begin with explaining our current situation?"

Stephanie sat back and let the neat, nasal voice wash over her. She was trying to pay attention, but she didn't really know what she was supposed to listen for and it soon all blurred to a drone. To entertain herself she scribbled some notes and observed the faces around the table.

The company was an upstart computer business, wanting a security system because they had extremely expensive machinery system on the building. The people around the table were evidence to the fact that the company was a marriage between technical types and financial people. An uneasy marriage at times, from the looks of it. Assuming Ranger would be listening to the words – he understood more of it anyway – she concentrated on figuring out the dynamics around the table.

The techs and the financial people seemed at odds in some way; when a young-ish man with a long ponytail and a barbell piercing through his nose spoke up she understood why. He said the technology was so important it had to be kept safe at whatever cost. Now those last three words were like red rags to a bull for financial people. Especially in front of the owner of an independent security company.

There was one person at the table she couldn't place. A young guy, flashy suit, brash attitude. Business hotshot. Didn't fit with the geeks. Didn't really seem to be part of the conservative-suit brigade either. He'd leered at her despite her conservative trouser suit and low-key make-up and hair, and then dismissed her completely. Brash was sitting next to Barbell and it was clear that there was no love lost between these two men.

The conversation moved on to the current security measures and the history of the building, and she couldn't help but note that this seemed to be an uneasy topic for some of the people around the table. More than that, Barbell, who turned out to be more or less the representative for the techs, seemed to notice this as well.

She studied him covertly, fascinated by his unusual appearance amidst the suits. Apparently bountyhunting wasn't the only profession where you could get away with jeans and T-shirt in a meeting. Barbell wore threadbare old jeans and a black longsleeve with a simple drawing of a penguin on it.

He noticed her looking and she gave him a small smile before letting her eyes drift on to the person to his right and jotting some notes.

Ranger had said that they might not be able to speak about the meeting while they were in the building, but that she could write it down and he would find a way to read her observations in the break. So she made a little table diagram and wrote down things about people with arrows to their place at the table.

'Clash in company between techs and suits'. She drew an arrow to Brash and wrote 'where does he fit?'. Then about several at the table: 'Fidgety during discussion about current measures/history of building'.

Then, thinking back to the way one of the suits had toyed with his notes, she added 'Why added security now? Break-in? Threats?'

The turned her attention back to the speaker in time to hear him announce a break in the meeting. Everybody got up and Ranger gestured her close, asking her to retrieve something from his coat in the reception area. He didn't need anything, but it gave her a good excuse to walk around a bit, maybe overhear something interesting.

She smiled, passed him her notebook, and followed the crowd.

---

The inside of the Mercedes was an oasis of rest, the tinted windows blocking out the curious stares of the receptionist. Ranger started the engine and classical music washed over them, soothing.

Stephanie leant back and closed her eyes. Then she undid the tight bun at the back of her head. Thank God she hardly ever had to wear her hair like that these days. She shook out the curls, grimacing because her scalp hurt.

A large hand curled around the back of her head, fingers gently digging into her hair, massaging her scalp. She turned the back of her head toward Ranger and leant into his hand. This felt divine.

"You did good, babe," he said after a little while, and his quiet tone made her feel like she was ten feet tall. "If you hadn't noticed that, I would have entered this contract with the wrong ideas and for the wrong price."

She couldn't answer since she currently felt like melting into a puddle on the fine leather seat of the Mercedes, but he didn't seem to mind.

"I like your hair, by the way," he suddenly whispered from a lot closer. She jumped, not having heard him shift in his seat. His other hand joined the first and she almost moaned. God, the man knew how to use his hands. Don't take that thought any further, Steph. Stop right there… damn, too late.

"The receptionist is probably still watching," she managed after a couple of minutes of bliss. "Probably she's waiting for the car to start rocking."

And I'm trying to resist the urge to jump you.

Ranger released her, a little reluctantly it seemed. She turned back in her seat and he flashed her a 200-watt smile as he steered the car out of the parking lot.

Chapter 5

"Hey Bombshell. How was your stint of being Robin?"

She looked at Tank in shock, having somehow hoped the entire office did not know about what she, Connie and Lula called Ranger. Tank flashed her a grin that told her to forget about that.

"It was all right," she said quickly. "I'm sure glad I didn't become a secretary though."

She dropped down into her deskchair and blindly reached out to feel at her in-tray. Empty. Figure that.

"Hawk's emptied it out for you. Gives you time to spend on RangeDay," said Tank. She gave him a sharp look, wondering if she should expect blatant, Lester-style fishing from him. Probably not. Tank would be more subtle.

"So, the book running yet?"

A little nod. Then:
"I'm keeping it."

"Thought you might. Here's my idea: if no one guesses it, the pot is mine."

"Already arranged."

"Any rules I should know about?"

He folded his arms over his massive chest, effectively blocking off the entrance to the cubicle. She smiled because he probably didn't even realise he was doing it.
"Book closes a week before the day, and you can't see it."

"To make sure I don't change anything last minute?"

Jeez. As if she could organise several activities and then randomly chose one last-minute. Organising just one day was enough work!

"Just a precaution."

"Is there usually a lot of money on this?"

He raised an eyebrow.

"Just curious. If there is, I'd feel bad about going shopping with it." Talk about sounding more confident than she felt. "I'd put it toward a charity or something."

"That's cool, but nobody would blame you if you put it into a savings account. Some of the other guys will, if they win it."

She looked at him and gave a slight nod in acknowledgement. Tank had watched her go through periods of serious hand-to-mouth living, when the occasional job for RangeMan had been all between her and an empty fridge. She even suspected that he and Ranger had kept an eye on her in some way. Somehow there had always seemed to be an easy job when the payment reminders had starting to pile up, and once she had found Big Blue filled up when she could have sworn the gas tank was empty.

"Tell you what, you think about it, and I'll let you know if the numbers rise above a serious shopping trip."

"Okay. Thanks."

He nodded and began to turn away, then seemed to change his mind.
"If you have time, would you mind doing my hair? Ella's out of town and it's getting long."

She glanced at his hair and grinned. Long being relative – it was like he was wearing a densely curled helmet. A lot of the guys kept their hair millimetred, so RangeMan had a set of clippers in the office.

"Sure. I'll be out in a minute."

---

"And sir, how would you like your hair done today? Short is in style right now, and you are lucky, because the choice is—" she paused to look at the different combs, "Short, very short, and bald."

"Hmm now, let me think," Tank mused in a fake posh accent as he sat down with a towel around his neck. "I do like to go with the fashion. I think today it will be very short, if you please."

"Very well, sir."

Hawk was watching them with wide what-are-you-guys-smoking eyes. Stephanie grinned wide, clicked the right comb into place, and set to work. When she was almost done, Ram wordlessly rolled his chair next to Tank's. She ran the clipper over the last patch of Tank's hair and placed it straight over to Ram.

"She's on a roll!" Ram laughed, moving his chair so she could reach him more easily. Tank took over Ram's monitors. From the corner of her eye she saw Bobby eye Tank's head and run a hand through his own longer spikes. Then, when she was done with Ram, that spiky head appeared in front of her.

"Oh my god, I can't stop!" she called out, left hand grabbing at her right wrist as if the hand with the clipper had a life of its own. She made a path from Bobby's forehead straight back, as if she was mowing grass, then went from ear to ear, then worked on the sides until he had four squares of spikes, then finally took those off as well. The next victim was already standing next to her.

---

She had just cleared away the hair when Ranger walked in. He noticed the row of newly shorn heads at the monitor bank and blinked. Then he noticed Tank and Hawk at their desks and did a double-take. His face showed an honest to God what-the-hell? expression before it went neutral.

"Why does my control room look like I recruit straight from bootcamp?"

"It was bad, boss, real bad!" Bobby cried out from behind his monitor. "Steph got that gleam in her eyes and she just went crazy!"

"I'm going to have nightmares," Hawk declared, faking a sob. "It was just so terrible."

"Don't worry, we'll get you counselling," said Tank, giving him there-there pats on his shoulder as he walked past. "I think we all need it. If I just think of the way she ran after Bobby with that clipper…"

"You were lucky you weren't there, boss," added Ram, looking like he had a hard time keeping his face straight. "There was no stopping her. If we hadn't pried that machine from her fingers…" He shuddered.

Ranger gave them an exasperated you're-all-insane look. It was nice to see she wasn't the only one causing that look in him. Then he cut his eyes to her. She'd been silent, watching the spectacle.

He rose an eyebrow at her. She gave him her best look of wide-eyed innocence. He just kept looking.

"Wasn't me," she finally said. "You can't prove a thing. Must have been my evil twin."

His face was stern, and a muscle jumped along the line of his jaw. Either he wanted to ship her off to Somalia, or it was giving him real trouble not to burst into laughter.

"In my office, now."

Uh-oh, had she misjudged and was he angry? She followed him into his office and shut the door at his request. His face was its usual stoic and she found herself cursing his ability to always keep his emotions to himself. Or perhaps he just liked to keep her on her toes.
That thought annoyed her. She hated the way her happiness could be influenced by if he was pleased with her or not. Don't stand there like a schoolkid in the principal's office, she said to herself. Go for the offence.

"Am I in trouble for playing hairdresser?"

He looked at her for what seemed like an eternity, and determined not to be out-stared she looked back, trying to figure out what on earth was going on in his head.

Suddenly a grin tugged at his lips.
"No."

"Oh."

"Just try not to distract the guys when they're at the monitors." Ah, she'd expected this lecture.

"We kept everything covered."

A nod in acknowledgement. He believed her. No lecture.

Wow.

"So why am I here?"

"Is that a philosophical question?"

She rolled her eyes.
"In your office, with the door closed."

He flashed her a heart-stoppping grin.
"Want to come up to have dinner?"

She blinked at this sudden change in gears. He wasn't angry. Okay. He wanted her to come for dinner? Whoa.

"I'm cooking, and I hate cooking for me alone," he continued.

"Sounds good," she managed to bring out.

"I'll see you appear when you're done here, then." He started toward the door and she realised he hadn't wanted to ask her in front of the guys. Guess he was trying to maintain some sort of professional distance on the workfloor.

"So…" he stopped when she spoke and turned back to her. "Should I look suitably chewed-out when I walk out?"

The wide smile again. If he kept doing that, she'd start to gibber.
"Go for it, though Tank won't be fooled."

Her face felt flushed and her heart was beating loudly in her ears. Damn, if she stayed a moment longer she'd completely fall off this sort-out-the-feelings-first wagon.

She pasted her best crestfallen look onto her face and reached for the door, brushing against him just slightly. Heard his intake of breath and resisted a smile. At least she wasn't the only one affected. Whatever it was that was between them – she'd taken to calling it thing – hung in the air like a physical presence.

She closed the door behind her and breathed the free air. Damn, she had to get that under control if she was going to have dinner in his apartment.

---

She sat in her cubicle for a while, trying to find her cool. Thing wasn't going to take control tonight. She'd have dinner, and talk, and have a good time – and leave. No clothes would be removed at any point. Well, except from her coat.

Yeah, that was the ticket.

Now she was beginning to come to terms with the idea that she wanted more of him… wanted a relationship or a friend, not something in between… she wondered what it was he wanted. Then she wondered if he even knew. If he just wanted sex, then why was he spending so much time with her? Plenty of women he could get that from a lot easier, and as far as she knew – which admittedly wasn't very far, but still - he wasn't with anyone else. He used to behave as if he wanted just sex from her, but not really of late.

He'd been acting… different of late. More approachable. This morning had felt good, despite the running. They'd talked and then shared comfortable silence over coffee. And she felt pretty good about her stint as his assistant in that meeting.

So… maybe it was time for a strategy. That made her feel bad, but only for about two seconds. Most likely he employed plenty of strategies where she was concerned, so why should she feel bad about using it on him?
If she wanted either a relationship or a friendship and preferably the first, and he seemed to prefer a friendship with benefits, then she could encourage him out of the middle. Actually, by refusing the benefits, she already was. Then it was his choice which was things went, though she could maybe encourage him in the same direction. Make the opponent move in the desired direction by making the other options seem undesirable.

Except that made her feel uncomfortably like her mother, with that saying about not giving away the milk for free. And she refused to think of herself as a cow. Once you started that way, you really were on your way to being barefoot and in the kitchen. What was the use to being enlightened and modern if you viewed sex as the most significant thing a woman had to offer in life? As if the rest of her as a person was just something to be put up with for the sake of sex.

Now she thought of it, if no access to sex made him move toward a relationship, then maybe she didn't want him at all.

The reason she didn't want to have sex with him was because she'd feel lower than low when he inevitably left. And, she told herself, what was wrong with self protection? Enough with the excuses.

---

"Wow, that was amazing."

She sank back, sated. The food had been simple but very flavourful.

"My mother was determined that none of her sons were going to live on ramen and fried egg," he said. "I'm no wonder in the kitchen, but not as helpless without Ella as she likes to think."

His eyes suddenly grew dark as he watched her, and she realised she was licking clean the spoon she'd used for the fruit salad that had been dessert. Thing was thick in the air. She froze, mentally giving herself a smack in the forehead. Everything had been so friendly-comfortable so far that this sudden sexual tension felt like a tidal wave, washing over her.

Uh-oh.

"Babe."

"I, err… I should probably go," she stumbled, getting up. It had been a good evening and this seemed like the right time to end it. Before he decided that he wanted her for dessert.
No more friends with benefits. Repeat to self. No more friends with benefits.

Two, three steps and he was in front of her. She backed away until her shoulders hit a wall and he followed, the heated, focused look in his eyes seeming to suck all the oxygen out of the air. His hands hit the wall on either side of her shoulders and her hands seemed to have migrated to his sides with no input of her brain whatsoever. She slid them behind him and up, enjoying the feel of his broad back.

His lips crashed down on hers and sensual heat coursed through her, enough to make her knees turn into jelly. His hands on her hips now, keeping her upright, pulling her into his. She could feel the hard length of him and her hormones did a victory dance. His hands slid up, under her shirt. Burning on the skin of her back. She moaned into his mouth.

Somewhere in the Ranger-induced brainfog she remembered she was supposed to remember something, but he slid his thigh between hers and his hot breath over her ear wrung a ragged groan from her lips. His hands gripped at her hips in a way that told her resistance was futile. He slid his hands up her back and her bra sprang open—

Whoa. Back that truck the fuck up. Resistance is futile? Did you actually just think that? Awfully close to the cow and the milk now. Remember the way you felt when he left that morning.

She put her fingertips against the front of his shoulders and pushed without the illusion that she could actually move him. When he didn't let up from where he was ravaging the side of her neck, she pulled herself together and tried for speech.

"Let me go."

It sounded feeble and breathless and he ignored it, but just hearing herself say it made her feel more determined.

Think of this as cheesecake, she told herself. It'll be great, but tomorrow you'll feel like shit and hate your lack of self control.

"Ranger, I want to go home. Now."

"You don't mean that," he spoke against the skin just under her ear, sucking at her lobe. A shiver of arousal crawled down her spine and she felt herself waver. Think of what it felt like. His hands were on her bottom, grinding her hips against his. Think of his back as he walked out. She sucked for air as he nicked little bites into the side of her neck and soothed them with his tongue.

"Yes, I do," she managed finally, pushing at his shoulders again, a little harder this time. He looked up and his eyes were very, very dark. They roamed over her face and then downward, lingering on her breasts. Her nipples were hard, standing out against the fabric of her t-shirt.

"I don't think you do," he said in a sexy murmur, making her knees want to buckle all over again. She berated them sternly in the privacy of her own head. Remember that cold, sick feeling as he walked out of the door.

"Okay, so my body agrees with you. The rest of me knows this is a bad idea."

He leant in, his hands kneading her behind, his thigh still between hers, the length of him insistent against her.
"You didn't let that stop you before," he whispered hotly in her ear.

"There's a lot of things you can say about me, but I don't generally make the same mistake twice."

The thought shot out of her mouth before she could stop it. His body tensed and he pushed away a little. Might as well have been a mile. The temperature seemed to have dropped about ten degrees.
Damn it, her and her gut-mouth connection. Sometimes the brain just wasn't involved at all.

"Want to explain that, babe?"

Ack, she hadn't meant to say mistake. Not as such. Just an event she didn't plan to repeat. He was looming, face blank, eyes stormy.

Then it occurred to her that he did and said plenty of things that confused or upset her, and he never explained if he didn't feel like it. She didn't owe him an explanation.

"No, in fact I don't."

Not what he wanted to hear. He stepped closer, a warning look in his eyes. She drew in a slow breath, listened to Tsuy's voice saying 'Respect yourself and others will respect you. Confucius said that', and held her ground. If he wanted to be her friend, intimidating her to get the answers he wanted was not the way to go. She squashed the fear and resisted the urge to run and hide.

"Wow, you're real intimidating when you do that."

He froze in place. A muscle in his jaw jumped, and for a moment she thought he'd grab her and shake her until her teeth rattled. Or worse. He'd never hurt her, would he? She stared at him with wide eyes, wondering if she'd misjudged him.

"That was the intended effect," he finally gritting out, sounding as if she'd completely derailed his trail of thought.

"Well, it's working." With that she slipped away, grabbed her bag and was out of the door, letting it quietly fall shut behind her. The lift felt as if it was very slow today. It seemed like a good moment to cry, but for some reason she didn't.

---

Once in the car she sat still for a long moment, taking deep breaths. Her bra was loose, but she didn't want to fix it in the garage. She was very aware that the control room crew was watching, and tried to calm down. This was SO not how she'd wanted the evening to turn out.

After a couple of minutes she shook her hands a few times to get rid of the tension, and drove out of the garage before one of the guys would come down to check on her. She stopped at the 7/11, deciding that this definitely warranted for Ben&Jerry's and TastyKakes. Her coat was still with Ranger, but she didn't feel the chill.

---

Hours later she was still awake. The thinking position wasn't working today. Why was it so hard to hang out with Ranger? Every time they spent time together left her confused. He wanted her. No, he wanted her in his bed. Oh wait, now he wanted her to answer to him like his men did. He wanted her to be safer. He wanted her to explain herself on command while he never did so. He wanted her to have confidence. He wanted her to give in when he pushed.

Nothing matched up.

What the hell was that all about?

What was it SHE wanted, anyway? Parts of this were starting to piece together. She wanted him to see her as equal. Not amusement or occasionally handy to have about the place. Not someone to kiss when he felt like it, or get into bed when he was in an opportunistic mood. She not only wanted more from him, she wanted to be more to him.

She startled from that scary conclusion as her cellphone rang. Grabbed for it and answered it with a sleepy "Hello?"

Just breathing on the other side.

Jeez, not another crazy after her. She could do without that. It had to be 2 AM by now.

"If there's any freaks calling me at this hour they could at least say something interesting," she grumbled, and hung up. Suddenly she felt ready to sleep. Enough with the pondering, at least for tonight. She curled up on her side, pretended she was in Macy's and had won the lottery, and let herself sink away.

---

She didn't bother to drag open her eyes when the phone went again. Grabbed it, hit the right button and held it against her ear. Just breathing again. Not icky or heavy or anything. Just… breathing.

"…Babe?"

Her breath rushed out of her with a woosh. It was Ranger? Why was he calling so late? And why didn't he say anything?

"Are you okay?"

He was silent, but she could sense he was smiling. Middle of the night was when her mouth had a brain-bypass. More than normal, anyway.

"What are you smiling for?"

Boggled silence.

"How can you know that?"

That made her smile. She'd surprised him. He sounded… she didn't know. Different from during daytime. Less shielded.

"I don't know, I can… feel it, maybe."

"I smiled because only you could ask if I was okay after the way I… after tonight."

Oh. Jeez, how did you reply to that?

"So why do you call? I was asleep."

Silence again. It drew out for so long that she felt herself begin to drift.

"I couldn't sleep."

She startled back to awareness when he suddenly spoke again.

"And I… it isn't right of me to encourage you to grow stronger and then get angry when you no longer fold when I push."

Was that an apology? It sure sounded like one. Wow.
Batman. Did. Not. Apologise.

Maybe that meant she was talking to Ricardo Manoso now.

Her mother's daughter wanted to apologise in return, but the rest of her couldn't figure out what for. She wasn't going to apologise for standing up for herself. She was past that point.

"You're changing, and I… admire that. I guess it's taking me some time to adapt."

She realised he kept talking because she still hadn't said anything, and grasped around for the right words.

"Okay. It's taking me some time to adapt too."

His long exhale sounded like relief.

"I had some time to think about what I said," she said after a long moment. "I meant…"

Damn, did she really want to explain that she thought that night was a mistake because it made her want more of him and she knew she couldn't have it?

"You don't have to explain, Babe," he said gently. "I shouldn't have pressured you. I was tempted and I forgot about giving you space to think."

Yeah, the thinking about what she wanted. She thought she had it figured out, mostly.

"Maybe you should do some soul-searching as well," she said after a long moment. She couldn't believe she was telling this to Batman. Then again, in the middle of the night the rules seemed different somehow. "So that we both know what we want."

He chuckled a little, and she wondered why this amused him.

They were both silent for a while, strangely comfortable. Hearing his quiet breathing, something suddenly occurred to her.

"Did you call earlier as well?"

She heard him inhale, as if he wasn't sure how to answer this.

"Yes."

"So why didn't you say something?"

More silence. She sensed this time it wasn't the usual I'm-not-going-to-answer-you silence.
"I don't exactly have a lot of experience apologising, Babe. And you sounded like I'd woken you up."

He felt bad about waking me, she realised. How weird is that? He's woken me up loads of times.

"So what made you call back?"

"I didn't want you to think you had a stalker… and I figured you'd be awake after that anyway."

Ah, so he hadn't want to worry her. Huh. He clearly underestimated her ability to sleep at the drop of a hat, crazy phonecalls or not.

"This is nice," she sighed after a moment, feeling supremely comfortable. Snuggled up in bed with Ranger's voice in her ear, him actually telling her things, and none of the struggle to keep her hormones in check like when he was actually present. Weird but nice.

"What is?"

"Talking on the phone. We actually talk."

He breathed a soundless chuckle.

"Maybe we should do this more often, then. Goodnight Babe."

Chapter 6

Her coat was on the back of her office chair, but Ranger wasn't in the office the next day. Not that that didn't happen frequently, so she tried not to wonder and set about her business with searches and some more RangeDay ideas. More brochures to the dojo address. She'd have to find a way to pick up the first ones on Wednesday without Tank noticing.

That made her wonder how Tank would be in the dojo. She wasn't sure if he'd ever been in a place like that. Perhaps she'd better warn him that skintight T-shirts would be frowned upon. Or rather, not frowned upon but quietly disapproved of.

The first time she had turned up in sweats and a T-shirt. Talking after the lesson Tsuy had very gently and in a roundabout way mentioned that to her culture dressing appropriately was a sign of respect. That was all, but Steph knew a hint when she heard one, and Tsuy had seemed pleased when the next time she'd worn nice slacks and a blouse when she came to the dojo.

---

From: at dojomail
To: bombshell at rangeman
Subject: Post

I have a stack of brochures for you. Is there a way I can pass these to you tomorrow evening or should I not try with your colleague (tell me he's not really called Tank) present?
On a different subject, do you know of a good hairdresser? I haven't been brave enough to just try out a place (yet).

Tsuy

---

From: bombshell at rangeman
to: at dojomail
subject:re:Post

Best not to pass over anything tomorrow. Tank (his street name… you'll have to wait and see how he introduces himself) is in with the spy-crowd and you can't put much past him.
I go to Mr Alexander for my hair. Actually, if it suits you I could go with you and we could pass over things there.
I could arrange Thursday afternoon off, or we could do saturday.

Steph

---

From: at dojomail
To: bombshell at rangeman
Subject: re: Post

Thursday afternoon works for me. Let me know time and where you want to meet.

Tsuy

---

That evening she went for dinner with her parents. Valerie was present with Lisa, but not the older girls. Albert had taken them to dinner with his parents. Looking at Val it was not hard to see why she hadn't gone with them – she looked like she was at the end of her rope.

The dinner was quiet, for certain values of quiet. Val sobbed into her mashed potatoes.

"No need to add salt to that," Grandma Mazur said helpfully. Val just groaned.

"I don't sleep because Lisa keeps me up and the girls are all excited because their birthdays are coming up and I need to organise their birthday party but it's all so expensive and all their friends have really nice parties and…" she let out a high-pitched wailing sound. Lisa picked up on it and added her voice. Stephanie felt a headache begin to throb behind her eyeballs.

"Val.."

"I mean we can afford to give a nice party, Albert's practise has been picking up of late, but their birthdays are only three weeks apart so I'd have to organise TWO parties—"

"Val—"

"—so close together, and it has to be original or their friends will think it's stupid, and what am I going to DO—"

"VAL!" she finally managed to interrupt the lament.

"What?"

"Would the girls mind sharing their birthday party if it was something really nice?"

Valerie sniffled, rocking Lisa who was still in full screeching mode. Stephanie was beginning to rethink the idea that maybe someday she wanted children. If her niece could make her feel like her brain was melting within 5 minutes, how on earth would she handle a child of her own? Better not contemplate this, anyway.

"Maybe, I don't know… they do have some of the same friends…"

Truth was, Stephanie was having an honest-to-god brainwave. A flash of inspiration. She could almost go so far as to call it a stray particle of sheer brilliance. If she organised a birthday party for the girls from the RangeMan office, that would be the perfect cover to hide the fact that she was organising the REAL RangeDay from somewhere else.

Plus, if the Men in Black uncovered this plan, they'd have conniptions.

"If you let me know details, like budget and how many kids to invite, I don't mind organising it for you." In fact, I already have an idea.

Valerie stared at her.
"You'd do that?"

"Sure. No problem."

Val gave her a one-sided hug as she was still holding on to Lisa. The baby calmed down from siren-strength screaming to normal loud crying, and the dinner ended on a reasonably calm note.

Wednesday morning dawned bright and early, and to her surprise she found herself eager to get to work. Nothing like a bit of devious planning to make a girl look forward to her work day.

Ranger still wasn't in, and from what the control room guys said he wasn't on the 7th floor. That worried her a little, but nobody else seemed concerned. Maybe he was in the Batcave. He'd sounded okay last time she spoke to him, so she decided to take her cue from the team and stop worrying. Now he wasn't here, she could use his office.

Then she ordered brochures. After the initial rush of her plan, which was to get loads of party brochures, she had realised that that would make things too obvious. Maybe it'd fool Lester and Hawk and Cal, but Tank and certainly Ranger knew her too well. So she restrained herself to three requests, one of them from Build a Bear. She'd bumped into that one on an earlier search – they did do company parties. Apparently several large organisations had gone there and built bears.

The idea of an office filled with Bears in Black just made her crack up. No way could she get the merry men to go with her to build bears.

It would be a perfect birthday party for Angie and Mary Alice.

The other brochures were from a theatre and a place that gave cooking classes. She felt especially pleased with the last one. Having heard some of the comments when they were told she would organise RangeDay, this would fit right into their fears without being to obviously phoney.

She knew they took note of all post she received. Probably they googled all the names and addresses that could have to do with RangeDay. The groans would let her know when the mail had arrived.
Then she could organise the birthday party for her nieces with Build a Bear, and watch the office implode as she received repeat correspondence from that company. As long as she was careful and acted suitably downcast when the guys didn't seem to like the idea, this plan could cover her real movements for weeks.

This done, she hid everything, erased the browser history and cookies, and returned to her own cubicle to do her normal work.

"Hey Tank."

She didn't look up from her monitor and wondered if he knew that she could tell his presence by the way the light suddenly no longer fell through the entrance of her cubicle.

"Bombshell. 'Sup?"

"Nothing much. You still looking forward to class tonight?"

"Sure. Padded room, no guns, no cars – what can go wrong?"

She shot him a glare, and he grinned back at her, unrepentant.

"Jus' wanted to know what the dress-code's like. Do I need gi?"

"For the lesson we just wear sweats and a T-shirt. The dojo itself is fairly formal though. This—" she gestured to his cammies and skin-tight T-shirt "—probably wouldn't go over too well."

He nodded and turned to leave.

"Hey… just a question."

He turned back to her, waiting.

"Where's Ranger? Nobody will tell me."

"At home. Said he was taking a few days off."

Ranger taking days off? And he wasn't in the office, so that must mean he was in the batcave.

"Is he okay? I've never known him to take time off."

Tank gave her a look she couldn't place.

"Maybe he just got a lot to think about."

He was already there when she parked at the dojo, and got out to greet her. Black chinos and a button-down shirt. Nice. Hot.

"You clean up well," she smiled. He gave her a look and a nod that probably meant 'you as well', and they went inside. One of Tsuy's many relatives was behind the reception desk and greeted them politely.

Stephanie signed behind her name in the dojo book, and noticed today's lesson said 'and visitor' in Tsuy's spiky script. It made her smile, because apparently her teacher hadn't wanted to write down 'Tank'.

She passed the pen over to him and grinned as he wrote his name on the line. Thomas Foster. Not many people knew him as Thomas. He'd said it was okay to call him that, but she was so used to Tank that he'd probably stay Tank forever in her mind.

"Tsuyiko is on her way down," the receptionist lady told them. They thanked her and walked further into the lobby.

"I've been past here before, but I had no idea it was this large," Tank remarked. "Looks like just a house from the outside."

"Our humble dojo, nothing special," a light voice remarked from behind them. They turned and found Tsuy in a sleek black trouser suit. Nice. Very formal. Stephanie was glad she'd mentioned dresscode to Tank.

They clasped hands in greeting and Tsuy made that slight bow that Stephanie suspected was almost automatic.

"Good to see you."

"And you. This is Tank, a colleague at RangeMan."

To her amusement Tank wasn't fazed by the unusual greeting. He took Tsuy's extended hands in his own and bowed over them just as she did.

"Thomas Foster."

"Tsuyiko Yatsumi. Welcome."

Stephanie noted that Tank did in fact have T-shirts that weren't skin tight, and wondered where he got them. Probably he had to order them specially. He was in slate grey sweats, doing warm-up stretches when she entered the room.

Tsuy was working her way through an advanced kata with a fluid grace that made her feel down. Would she ever be that good? Just the prospect of having to practise with Tank made her nervous.

She started on her own warm up routine, a mix between some simple kata and the stretches she did with the guys before the lunchtime workout. For a long moment there was no other sound than breathing.

Then a little hiss. Tsuy had stopped mid-movement, a grimace on her face. The other two both looked up.

"I am afraid it's going to take me a while to warm up today. I had a disagreement with a horse monday." She seemed to find this an embarrassing confession. Stephanie thought it was a bit of a relief. Maybe her own incompetence wouldn't contrast so sharply if Tsuy wasn't completely in form today.

"Disagreement?" Tank asked.

"We... we discussed matters and agreed it wasn't working out," she said gravely. "Irreconcilable differences."

Stephanie grinned. "Like what?"

"Well, he stopped and I continued."

"Ah, you used the ejection seat," deadpanned Tank.

She broke into a sudden smile.
"I like that one."

Stephanie watched and listened as Tsuy explained about momentum in a throw, and about how you couldn't stop a Tank-sized man charging at you, but if you know the techniques, you could change his direction.

Then it was time to do it. She stood in the middle of the room and watched Tank size her up. Her knees were shaking and the whole idea suddenly seemed ridiculous. Tank could hurt her without even trying. Where did she get the idea that she could hold her own to someone of his size who WAS trying?
It was probably best that she never went back to fieldwork anyway. What could she do that the RangeMen couldn't? It wasn't like they needed her talent in the rolling-in-garbage department or couldn't work without cars blowing up on regular basis.

She startled back to reality when she felt a touch on her upper arm. Tsuy was standing next to her, looking a little sad for some reason. Her voice was pitched soft and low when she spoke.

"Can you explain to me why this give you trouble?"

She stared at her teacher, unable to find the words.

"You were looking so… what is the word…" Tsuy made a small gesture with her hand. "Despondent? I want to help you, but I need to understand what part of this troubles you."

"I worry that even when he's—" she glanced over to Tank, who was leaning against the wall with the calm patience she had seen in him before. "even when he's being really careful, I won't be able to handle it and get hurt."

Tsuy nodded.
"Would it help if you practised this throw with me again first?"

God yes. It had been easy with Tsuy.

"Maybe… Could you demonstrate it for me with Tank? From where I'm standing it looks just impossible."

The smaller woman nodded, and Stephanie moved to the side of the room to stand against the wall. Tank came to attention, watching Tsuy. She had dropped into a loose-kneed defensive stance and was making a slow come-here gesture with the fingers of both hands.

Stephanie watched as Tank looked her over. Probably wondering if Ranger would kill him if he squashed her teacher.

They bowed to one another, and the staring contest resumed. It reminded her of two cats trying out each possible move before they were made. Looked a little strange, the differences in size so great that Stephanie wondered how this would turn out. From the look of his face, Tank was thinking the same.

"I've seen this look before, Thomas" Tsuy grinned. "It says 'I had better make sure I don't break her"

"Oh yeah? On who?" said Tank, sounding like he was enjoying himself.

"On your boss, about two seconds before he hit the mat."

Stephanie was surprised at the taunting tone. Not something she'd expected to hear from her teacher. Tank was glowering. Tsuy seemed unaffected. He shifted his weight and she followed, shadowing his motions seamlessly. The air between them seemed to shiver. Breathing sounded loudly. Knuckles crackled. Tails twitched.

Tank suddenly grinned huge and pounced. About half a second later he hit the mat with a resounding thud. It happened so fast Stephanie had trouble following what happened. Seemed like Tsuy rolled back, put her feet in his stomach and let his momentum carry him over her and into the mat. He rolled away and sat up.

Tsuy sat up too and straightened her ponytail.

"You okay?" he asked.

She nodded.

"Didn't think you'd go for a circle throw," he said, getting to his feet, offering her a hand up. She didn't say anything, just smiled as he pulled her to her feet.

"Looked like you were expecting a hip throw," she answered. "Thought it'd be a nice surprise."

Stephanie practised the different throws with Tsuy a few times, until she felt quite comfortable with the techniques and with seeing the smaller woman run at her. Tank was leaning again the wall, standing in his habitual parade rest. Following the lesson with interest. Finally Tsuy got to her feet after another short flight to the mat, and walked to the place where they kept bottles of water.

"I've had enough flight lessons for the moment." She made a nod toward Tank. "Your turn."

Stephanie felt herself freeze up.

"An opponent in a real fight would never repeat himself, because part of fighting someone is learning them, their motions, how they tend to react – and then adapt your own strategy to that. We will come to that later. For now, Thomas will act like each approach is a first, so that you can practise your technique and grow comfortable with this."

Tank stepped into position and they each bowed to open the encounter. It was one of the few dojo-etiquette things Tsuy insisted on.

She had no more time to consider it because Tank charged at her, evidently having decided that giving her time to worry didn't improve things. Panic flashed but somehow training took over, and she let herself roll back, put her feet to his stomach, and he went flying. He turned it into a shoulder roll behind her, and she let herself flop against the mat.

"You okay?"

"Yeah. Jeez. Wow." Gosh, she was having an articulate moment alright.

Tank grinned and pulled her to her feet.
"Easier than you expected, huh?"

"Yeah! Guess it was just scary to see you come at me like that."

"Use the words 'freight train' or 'bull' at this point and I will put you on night shifts until further notice," he warned her dryly.

They continued to practise for a while, adding the requirement that she had to get up straight away, as she would in a real situation. Now and then Tsuy would touch Tank on the arm to get him to lean down, so she could whisper something in his ear. Stephanie soon learned to fear this, because it usually meant Tank changed something, and she'd have to make a split-second decision about how she would deflect him.

"Last time, then we have a break," Tsuy said. Tank turned to face her and his lips twitched. Uh-oh. She had the feeling this last time wouldn't be easy.

He charged like before, but when he was two paces away he gave a loud roar. She backed away in reflex, stumbled, and for a moment his body blocked out the light. In a panic she pulled in her knees and felt his full weight land on them, squashing her knees up against her chest. Then he rolled over her shoulder and to the side, hitting the mat chest-first and with a thud that reverberated around the room.

"Christ. You okay?"

She pulled herself together and sat up.

"Yeah. Let me tell you, you're a lot heavier like that. How are you?"

He rolled over onto his back and climbed to his feet.

"That was a serious beached-whale landing. If you do that to a skip on asphalt…"

"I'd hurt my back so bad I couldn't stand up."

"The point is," interjected Tsuy, "that you recovered and managed something like a throw. You got him off you."

"Only because he let me."

Tsuy shrugged.
"We'll do it again some time. There'll be a moment where he doesn't have to, anymore."

She had half expected soothing comments on the line that it was just fine, and felt strangely relieved by what Tsuy said. She knew it hadn't been good and didn't want to be told it was, in that belittling tone that always seemed to imply that it didn't really matter anyway. It did matter, and it needed work, but Tsuy would make her do it over and over until it did go perfect.

With a flash of insight she realised that she was being taken seriously. Even Ranger, who she knew cared about her, occasionally looked at her with that look that said 'I'm indulging you'.

She'd asked Tsuy to help her become really good, and now Tsuy would take pride in doing just that. It would be hard work, but it'd be all real, all hers. Nobody would be able to take it away again.

They sat for a while talking and regaining breath, and then they got to the strategic part of the lesson. She had been practising kicks, punches and blocks on cushions, on Tsuy and in sequences, but now Tank would take hold of her, and she's have to work through the process of getting free. All in slow motion, with plenty of time to think.

It seemed silly at first, but she soon realised that figuring out how to combine kick, stab and knee to free herself was a lot harder when there was a 230-pound man holding on to her. Even if he was just breathing quietly, waiting for her to work through it. He acted his reaction when she demonstrated the techniques properly, but otherwise was impassive.

She'd been standing in his grip for what had to be five minutes by now, growing increasingly desperate. No way could she get out of this. It was getting late and it felt like he had kept the hardest thing for last.

"Okay, I don't know how to do this. I'm stuck."

Tsuy walked around them, taking everything in critically.
"There will be moments like this. Moments when you can't move, or not hard enough, and there don't seem to be any options. This is something we must come to terms with. However, the upside is that there are very few occasions where an attacker is going to keep hold of you like Thomas is holding you now. Usually they'll move, and then you'll have new chances – especially if he's going to shift his balance."

She tilted her head.

"For now though, I see an option."

"Okay, why don't you get in here and show me."

To her surprise her teacher nodded, and Tank let go of her to take hold of Tsuy in the same manner. It took a moment for them to agree how exactly the feet had been positioned, and then Stephanie could view the tableau from the outside. It was strange, but very interesting. She ran through the same list as before. Both feet on the outside of his right leg, both hands trapped in his left, pulled against his chest by his left arm around the waist and entire body off balance. No way to kick, no leverage to use her arms, no space to twist or move.

"I still don't see it."

"Watch."

Tsuy glanced up into Tank's face, and Stephanie wondered if he knew what she'd do. Her head bent, and she brought her mouth to the side of the hand that was holding her wrists to demonstrate biting him on the last knuckle. Tank let go of the wrists, she feinted for his eyes, and seconds later she was out of his grip.

They bowed to one another to close their session.

"Did you forget about biting?"

Stephanie nodded. She hadn't been far enough into the 'anything goes' mindset, it seemed.

Tsuy asked Tank to show them his hand, and traced her fingertip over it to show where the most sensitive places were.

"Between the knuckles is always good. It hurts a lot and makes the fingers open in a reflex. Between the thumb and forefinger is also a good place."

Stephanie faced Tank for the last time to free herself. Once her hands were free she had several options and she settled on a punch to the throat. Her half-released her and she stumbled, off balance. Then instead of letting her go, Tank let himself drop with her, twisting to avoid landing on her. Before she'd time to realise what happened he dug his fingers into her ribs and tickled. She rolled with a startled squeak and tried to struggle free. Tank was doing an his impression of Evil Laughter, though the grin on his face detracted from the effect a little.

"Help! Tsuy!" she yelped when tears where running down her face and she was gasping for breath. "He's using a secret weapon!"

She was vaguely aware of Tsuy circling them, and then suddenly Tank rolled over onto his stomach. His heavy arm trapped her beside him, but Tsuy grabbed the thumb of that hand and twisted it behind his back, freeing her.

"His other," were the cryptic instructions, but now he wasn't tickling her any longer she could think. She moved to his other side and put her knee on his forearm. Tsuy had his other hand and her knee at the top of his back.

"Man, tackled into the mat by two hot women. The other guys will be so jealous," he muttered into the mat. Then his eyes widened with something of shock and horror. Guess sometimes Tank had a gut-mouth connection too. He clearly hadn't meant to say that out loud.

She released his arm and let herself roll onto her back, laughing so hard she couldn't breathe. Tsuy pushed herself away and came to a sit with her back against the wall, legs out in front of her. Her eyes were wide, as if she couldn't think of a way to react to that. Tank rolled over to look at her.

"Sorry. That offend you?"

She stared at him, and then waggled her hand in a yes/no/maybe gesture.
"I can't believe you just said that," she said finally, her head shaking in disbelief. Then, apparently ready to dismiss it, she got up and invited them for dinner.

Food was a large bowl of what she knew as Miso soup, filled with noodles, spicy grilled chicken, and a lot of unidentifiable vegetables. It was glorious. Apparently Tank thought so too, and Tsuy quietly arranged for some extra dishes to appear. He looked uneasy when they were brought, maybe a bit embarrassed with his appetite. The elderly man in cook's clothes unloaded the tray of dishes onto the table, bowed, and said something to Tank in Japanese.

When he left they both looked at her for translation. She smiled a little.
"He said to not feel…" she paused to think of the word. "self conscious? The saying does not translate well, but he means that it pleases the cook to see a guest eat so well."

That established, neither of them hesitated to polish off the dishes.

Chapter 7

The next morning found a stack of files on her desk. Ranger's sign-out signature was on the files, so he must be back. She wondered where he'd been, and if his disappearance had anything to do with the last time she saw him. Probably not. He'd probably been on a mission or to visit his daughter. She'd never find out anyway.

'I'm convinced these 3 talk to each other, but how? Use your contacts. See if you can find a connection.' The typed note said. No sign-off. Not that she expected one. Since she would get to the RangeDay matters this afternoon she set to it right away.

"Hey, Tank-Man!"

Only Lester would greet Tank like that.

"So how was it last night? Get your ass kicked?"

If Tank answered she couldn't hear it from her cubicle.

"So do I get to go next week? I wouldn't mind wrestling with the Bombshell and that hot Japanese—"

She heard a solid thwacking sound and Lester stopped abruptly.

"Not a chance." Tank sounded very definite.

Stephanie stifled a giggle. Guess he wasn't about to give up his position as her training victim. That was good.

---

She was in the little kitchen making herself a sandwich when the hair on the back of her neck stood up. Bat-radar.

"Hey Ranger."

"Babe."

He was standing against the doorjamb about 10 paces away, watching her. Sark Street Ranger today, in black rapper pants, painted-on T-shirt and enough gold around his neck to secure bail for murder one. He'd looked like this when her mother had all but forced him to have dinner with her family.

"Why the smile?"

"Just remembering the look on my dad's face when you came to dinner looking like that."

His lips twitched with the hint of a grin.

Silence while she made her sandwich and he watched. Was he waiting for her to ask where he'd been? If he was, he could wait a while. If he wanted her to know, he'd tell her. She'd finally figured out that sometimes her questions made him more guarded. If she acted like she didn't much care, sometimes he'd tell her things she otherwise wouldn't have heard.

"How was your lesson yesterday?"

"Good. Great."

He looked like he hoped to hear more, but didn't ask. She finished making her chicken sandwich.

"Those files you gave me this morning, how urgent is it?"

He gave a slight one-sided shrug.
"See what you can find out before your weekend."

"Kay. 'Cause I was planning to take the afternoon off."

He looked a little surprised. "Cleared it with Tank?"

She nodded.

"This anything to do with RangeDay?"

"No." Errr… well maybe a little. He kept his eyes trained on her. Felt like an interrogation.

"Everything going okay with organising?" That sounded like genuine concern.

Uh-huh. Like she'd tell him. Was he expecting her to forget he had a stake in the betting and tell him because he was the boss?

"Sure. You place a bet yet?"

He flashed a grin.
"Not yet."

"Should I worry?"

He just smiled. Gulp. She took her sandwich and retreated to her cubicle.

---

She found a parking space and carefully parked her car. Then she rang Tsuy. "Hey, are you here yet?"

"Just driving into the lot. Wait a moment, I see you."

The line disconnected, and a moment later she heard a car rev. A small blue car zoomed past and parked three cars down. She got out and wandered over. It was a new model Mini Cooper S with white bonnet stripes and tinted windows. Well-used but in good condition. The door opened and Tsuy angled out in a sleek pinstripe trousersuit, looking like she was going to a business meeting.

"Jeez, I always feel underdressed when I'm with you," she heard herself say. Then clapped a hand before her mouth. Good going Steph, criticising her dress style is a good way to become better friends.

Tsuy made a head motion that seemed to say 'no matter'.
"It's a little more formal than I'd like, but I seem to have lost my sense of style when I moved," she grinned. She remoted the car locked and they walked into the mall.

"I wasn't raised so traditional as my mother's family is. It was just easier to dress to their standards when I came here."

"Because it has to pass muster at the dojo?"

The other woman nodded.
"While I'm here I wanted to do a bit of shopping. See if I can find some more casual things."

"Let's see when Mr Alexander has time for you first."

That turned out to be in two hours, so Macy's it was.

By the time it was time for the hairdresser, Stephanie had acquired several hot new tops, perfect FMPs in a gorgeous shade of cacao, and a new understanding of her friend and mentor.

For one thing, almost her entire maternal family, well over a hundred people, lived within a 200 metre radius of the dojo. She'd grown up in international schools around the world. She had a cat and part-time care of her uncle's two dogs. And she was a boring shopper. She selected a pile of things off the racks – most of it conservative and all of it long-sleeved – and tried it on in the fitting room. Then everything was sorted into 'yes' and 'no', and the things of the 'yes' pile taken to the checkout.

Stephanie looked on in amazement. What fun was shopping if you weren't going to agonise over the perfect choice? She suggested a fitted sleeveless top that would have looked great on her friend, but Tsuy pulled up her jacket sleeve to reveal a forearm full of bruises. Contact training. Well okay, that was a good reason to go with long sleeves.

"Some of the things here I like, but a lot of it just doesn't suit me. Never had this problem in Tokyo…"

It was strange to think that this place, where Stephanie had lived all her life, wasn't home to Tsuy.

"Why did you move here, anyway?"

"My parents passed away."

Oh. God. Foot-in-mouth disease today.

"I'm so sorry, I had no idea—"

"No need to apologise. You had no way of knowing," she dismissed it. "So, what would you suggest I wear?"

---

Mr. Alexander fell in love with Tsuy's hair, combing his fingers through it over and over. The word 'luxurious' was used at least twice. She seemed to find it rather embarrassing. Stephanie settled into the waiting area, grabbed a girly magazine from the table, and put the small stack of brochures Tsuy had brought behind the magazine cover. Just in case anyone she knew would come in.

Murder Mystery dinner, indoor climbing hall, and her personal favourite – the Go Game. This last option seemed most appealing. They would be divided into teams, get some wireless equipment, and be sent on a hunt through the city, solving puzzles and problems, receiving messages with instructions, interacting with planted actors, figuring things out as they went. Like a scavenger hunt on speed. Sounded like great fun, and something she could actually be an asset in. It was active and challenging and new. It was perfect for RangeDay.

Checking if there was anyone within hearing distance and finding no one, she rang the company. Yes, they could certainly arrange a Go Game for her company, including a dinner with review session. She explained what kind of people she was organising for and the type of activities could be customised to fit the Merry Men. It stretched the budget just slightly, but there wouldn't really be any additional costs so that wasn't a problem.

She did a mental Snoopy dance, seeing the perfect RangeDay unfold in front of her, and decided to go for it.

So when did she want the event to take place? Early May? The young man on the line stifled a chuckle. Did she mean next year?

She grimaced and remembered just on how short notice she was working. In the world of corporate outings, she was about 10 months too late to arrange anything. Her mood fell.

"This May, sadly. I'll have to think of something else. Thank you for the information, I'll keep your company in mind for next year."

The Murder Mystery dinner and indoor climbing hall both had identical reactions. Certainly they could arrange a great company outing. But not before next November.

She put the brochures back into the bag and hung her head. Maybe it was time to admit defeat and go for the easy option after all. Paintball or lasertag or go-karting. If she could still book anything, that was.
Mr. Alexander was just finishing up with Tsuy. About the length of a forearm had been cut off the hip-length black hair, letting it fall to the underside of her shoulderblades in a nice layered cut. Stephanie walked over and stood behind her friend, looking at her in the mirror.

"Looks good. Feels a lot lighter, I'll bet."

Tsuy smiled, moving her head this way and that. Seemed very pleased with the result. It made her look a lot less severe.

"Did you find anything in your mail?" she asked when they were walking back to the cars. Stephanie sighed.

"I had something brilliant. Then I called and they all but laughed at me when I said it had to be early May."

"Ai. I'll assume that other places that do corporate activities will react the same."

"I think so, yes…"

"So you'd have to find something that isn't specifically aimed at companies. Then you'd have more chance. Or something new that isn't very popular yet."

She hadn't looked at it that way yet. Then again, how on earth was she going to find something?

"Could you take these back and throw them away?" she passed the bag with brochures back when they arrived with the cars. "I don't want them found, so I can't throw them away at home or in the office."

"They'd search your garbage?"

"Oh yeah. I'm this close," she indicated with thumb and forefinger, "to searching my car for bugs."

"Wow. I knew they were fanatic, but…"

"They get carried away." She shrugged. "It's kind of a challenge on both sides." Actually, she was enjoying it. Or would enjoy it if she actually had a genius RangeDay plan that wouldn't be a let-down after all this anticipation.

"I just had an idea. Joan, where I go horseriding, mentioned something about a new company near her house. I think it had to do with beach activities. I'll try to find out more."

Stephanie opened her car and put her shopping bags in the passenger seat.
"Thanks. I guess I just have to keep trying."

"You'll think of something. Thank you for sending me to this Mr Alexander – he's great."

"I'll see you Wednesday, bye!"

She started the car and the radio came on. Godsmack. She'd think of something? Sometimes she wished she could live up to the boundless faith in her abilities some people seemed to have. Sure, it was nice that they weren't telling her she couldn't do it anyway, but it also gave her something to live up to, with plenty of opportunity to disappoint.

It was pretty terrifying, actually.

She was cruising toward the exit of the lot when there was a flash of silver on her left and a splintering bang. Her car jerked and then everything was black.

"Jesus, look at what you did to my car!" someone was yelling. Stephanie slogged through the fog of unconsciousness, trying to remember if she did anything to anyone's car. Not that she knew of. Not that that usually made a difference. The voice - male and young - kept going, ranting and cursing. She was on her side, the gearstick poking her in the ribs. Her head was throbbing.

She reached out to open her door and hit her knuckles on something before she reached the handle. She dragged open her eyes and found it was the door. It had bent inward for about half a metre. A silver Lexus had rammed into it ass-first and that had to be the source of the male voice.

As she watched, trying to scrape her thoughts together, a blue Mini appeared and parked behind her car, so that the Lexus was blocked in. Tsuy got out, tying her hair back as she came over.

"Stephanie? How are you?"

"My car..." she groaned. "Is it too much to ask that for ONCE, my cars STAY ALIVE?" she asked the world in general. She struggled her legs out from under the wheel and moved into the passenger side. Tsuy had opened the door and knelt down, staring into her eyes, assessing.

"You remember what happened?"

"I was just driving and this idiot rammed my car."

"What day is it?"

"Thursday."

"Did you buy anything today?"

She felt a smile break through despite everything.
"Kick-ass brown FMP."

Tsuy chuckled silently.
"Hurt anywhere?"

"Just my head."

"You have a bump. Probably from the rear view mirror." behind her the Lexus driver appeared. He didn't seem to have calmed down any. "Don't get up, I'll deal with it. Police is on its way."

With that Tsuy went around the car, and Stephanie could see her speaking with the other driver. He yelled, she stayed calm. Zen calm.
One of these days she wanted to learn that kind of calm too. She could see it threw the Lexus guy off balance. This was Jersey, where accident aftermath went hand in hand with yelling, hand gestures and the occasional punch. It was the thing to do. You weren't supposed to calmly discuss things.

She dug for her phone and hit a speed dial.

"Al's auto shop," the phone was answered.

"Hey Al, it's me.." introduction was no longer required. She wished it was. The short lifespan of her cars wasn't something she found amusing. Seemed like she was the only one in the whole damn world. Even Ranger, not someone who laughed at her misadventures a lot, had trouble hiding his amusement when this sort of thing happened.

"Bombshell. Trouble?"

"A twerp in a Lexus rammed me. Driver's side is all to hell."

"I'll come pick it up. Where are you?"

"At the mall, in the lot."

"You okay?" He could be pretty nice, sometimes. Actually, all the guys in her life could be pretty considerate when they felt like it. 'Could' being the operative word in that sentence.

"Okay-ish. Thanks, Al."

Then the cops appeared. Just her luck. Carl and Big Dog. They grinned huge when they saw her.

"Oh man, Johnson is going to be so happy. You just paid for his wedding reception."

"Couldn't you have made it blow up? Just a little?"

She groaned and dropped her head in her hands. Just then, her cellphone rang.

"Yeah."

"Hey Steph," said Tank. "Al rang. You okay?"

"Everything's just peachy," she found herself unable to keep the sarcasm from her voice. "My car's wrecked, my head hurts, and people are standing around laughing."

"I'm sending someone over."

"It's okay Tank, no need to bother. Tsuy's here with me. I'll be fine."

"It's not a bother, Steph."

She heard the dial tone and suddenly felt a little warmer, mentally taking back the thought about the guys only being considerate when they felt like it. Tank especially seemed to genuinely look out for her. If it was for her or for Ranger's sake she didn't know, but it was appreciated.

Joe was suddenly standing between the side of the car and the opened door, preventing an escape. He wore a 5-O'clock shadow, a black T-shirt, threadbare Levi's and worry lines around his eyes.

"Jesus Cupcake, what did you get up to now?"

All warm-fuzzy thoughts disappeared abruptly, and she surged to her feet and into Joe's face.

"I didn't do anything! This goddamned idiot rammed me! It was NOT MY FAULT! I'm SICK of being everybody's amusement!"

"I just tore halfway across town because Control said you had an accident. Do you have any idea how many times I've done that? Do you have any idea how many times I've driven through red lights and used blue lights while praying people weren't calling the coroner?"

God, he was making it all about him again. As if she did these things deliberately just to make him worry. As if she liked it when it happened. As if she wasn't about to burst into goddamn tears because her car was dead and he was yelling at her like she'd done it on purpose.

"I didn't ask for you to do that!"

The conversation went downhill from there, the volume up. They were in each other's face, and the world had shrunk to this tiny time-space continuum with her and Joe toe to toe, screaming at one another. The brain was not involved, just years of hurt and frustration coming from their mouths. Somewhere in the back of her mind a tiny voice urged her to stop, to calm down, but she was shouting too loud to heed it.

She didn't notice Tank arriving, speaking with Tsuy. Ram was with him. She didn't notice Carl Constanza cuffing the Lexus driver. She didn't notice the faces of the rest of the cops and of Al when they arrived. She just knew that large hands suddenly landed on her shoulders, turned her around and steered her away. Tank, telling her in that soothing, low-pitched voice that she was going home now and he would take care of things. He walked her to the Mini and got her into the passenger side.

Tsuy had stepped in front of Joe at the same moment Tank had turned her away. Stephanie sat numbly in the Mini and watched through the tinted windows as they exchanged a few words. Her head was pounding with everything that had happened over the past half hour. The mirror revealed that she had a massive bruised lump growing in her hairline.
Then the driver's side opened and Tsuy angled in, started the engine, buckled in and reversed out of the tangle of cars with a spin of the wheel.

"Seatbelt," came the calm instruction. Stephanie struggled with the 4-point racer seatbelt and the bucket seat.

The inside of the car was more spacious than she'd expected, but not luxurious. The seats were fake leather and the dashboard was scuffed. A badge had been screwed on top of the central console. Nürburgring Überlebende' it said. Stephanie watched her teacher as she drove. Her face was impassive as usual, but there was a tension along her eyes that said she wasn't happy about something. She also drove like she was on a racing track and the other cars were merely obstacles, but that could be normal.

"I'm sorry," Stephanie managed finally.

"What for?"

"That you had to listen to that."

Tsuy said nothing.

"It's not always like this. Most of the time he's really sweet and we have a lot of fun." And smoking hot sex. May be best to leave that out.

"I'm sure."

Damn it, she hated it when Ranger did this, the quiet I-disapprove-but-I'm-not-going-to-say-anything vibe, but Ranger at least had a discernable reason; he didn't seem to want her to be with Morelli anymore. Hah! First he'd sent her back to him and now he seemed to have changed his mind. Why, she had no idea.

Tsuy, as far as she knew, was neutral. Had no outside motive to disapprove of how Morelli and she treated one another.

"I think— no." The other woman cut herself off to overtake a lorry. Stephanie found herself gripping the handle on her door. Tsuy said something to herself in Japanese, and then continued "Maybe you can explain to me sometime how this relationship makes you happy."

Uh-oh, not something she had a ready answer for. If she had one at all. Use the Force, Luke. This is not the conversation subject you are looking for. She grasped around.

"Hey, how did you get that other driver to back off?"

"Jedi mind trick."

She burst into laughter at the dry, matter-of-fact tone and the resonation with her own thoughts. She knew Tsuy was somewhat in touch with western culture, but she'd always viewed her teacher in the light of what was different. That she was familiar with Star Wars was something that kept surprising her.

"Will you be all right at home?"

"Sure. I don't have a concussion... can you just stop at Pino's so I can get some dinner?"

She nodded.
"Thomas said he'd send someone to pick you up tomorrow morning and they could lend you a company car."

"Oh great. Probably full of bugs to find out about RangeDay."

"Time for new levels of paranoia."

"Yeah."

Chapter 8

It was Ram who rang her doorbell the next morning. He'd brought the shopping bags she had left in the wrecked car. She told him to sit and drink coffee while she tried to minimise the bruise on her forehead.

Not much she could do with the lump, but the bruise at least looked smaller and less extreme. Well, for certain values of less. It was still a glaringly obvious dark purple area on her forehead, after all. And it was Friday. Not that she was in the mood to go out with the guys anyway. All her muscles felt sore.

"You okay?" asked Ram when she came out of the bedroom in RangeMan black.

"Sure. Is it really horribly visible?"

He looked at her with a frown.
"You mean the bruise? I was talking about that screaming match you had with the cop yesterday."

"Oh. That."

She saw him grimace.

"If my wife had a car accident like that and I yelled at her…" he said. Then stilled. Seemed to decide he shouldn't get involved in this. She was thankful.

"Joe and I are… different."

He nodded in acknowledgement, tersely. Threw the remainder of his coffee down the sink and walked into the hallway so she could lock her door.

He was quiet on the way to the office. Not zone-quiet, Ram was usually quite animated while driving. It was a I-think-you're-wrong-and-I'm-trying-to-stay-out-of-it kind of silence. Yesterday Tsuy and now Ram. Both were… objective people, mostly. Neither of them had a particular reason to want to influence her love life. Maybe that should tell her something.

"Okay, spit it out," she finally sighed. "I promise to listen."

As expected, he didn't pretend not to understand her. She'd grown to know him comfortably well, over near-daily gym sessions.

"If that had been me and my wife, I would be staying with my brother right now."

She nodded in acknowledgement, not sure how to react. He continued:

"What worries me is that you don't even seem shocked. Leaving aside for a moment that you were also in the wrong—" she opened her mouth to protest and he cut her a look. "You don't seem to find anything wrong with the way he reacted to the fact that you just had an accident which was not your fault."

She let that sink in for a moment, unsure where he was going with this. Ram glanced at her and let out a long sigh.

"My wife would kick me out of the house, and she would be damn right too. She deserves better than that. She certainly doesn't deserve to be yelled at because some idiot drove into her."

Not liking where this was going. Uncomfortable thoughts. Time for denial.

"I know Joe didn't mean it like that—"

"You promised to listen."

That was true.

"So I'm thinking, maybe Stephanie thinks she deserves that reaction, you know? Maybe somewhere deep down she feels that this Morelli is justified in treating her that way."

They were both silent for a while. Stephanie thinking that this was an extremely uncomfortable line of thought. Did she think she deserved it? What she wanted was someone who just held her when disaster struck, and supported her. Helped her make things right.

But the Burg was strong. He's a saint to put up with her, it whispered. I can't believe what she's put him through. All this, and he's still prepared to marry her.

She couldn't even remember all the cars that she had scrapped since she started as a bounty hunter. It was amazing that he really did still want her. And Joe had been worried, and she'd reacted wrong, and tempers had taken over…

"The driver of that Lexus was yelling at you," Ram's calm voice cut in. "Does that make you angry?"

She remembered the snot-nosed guy. Couldn't have been older than twenty. Jersey girl indignation rose to the surface in an instant.

"Yeah! HE was wrong, backing up without looking. I was just driving by!"

"So you don't know him, but you don't think he had the right to yell at you?"

Uh-oh. She could feel where this was going and it was not a good place. She squirmed in her seat and was relieved to notice they were almost at the office. Maybe if she stalled…

The gate opened and Ram parked the car. When she reached for the door the automatic locks clicked. He gave her a stern look. No getting away.

"Okay, no…"

"But you're… involved… with Morelli and you don't seem shocked or angry that he yelled at you."

She fixed her eyes on the dashboard, having no answer to that. It was true, and when he put it like this it felt insane. She was more angry with a stranger for yelling at her than with Morelli, who wanted to marry her. Wanted the whole have, hold, love and cherish deal. How could he promise her that when this was his reaction when she got into an accident?

Worse, the moment she'd seen him in front of her she'd expected him to yell. Had wished he hadn't turned up.

The doorlocks clicked open.
"Something to think about," Ram said kindly.

---

She couldn't concentrate on her work. She'd exhausted her network on the three files Ranger had given her, and was reading them all over again. Well, she was trying. Her eyes kept unfocussing.

"Hey Bombshell," Bobby poked his head around her cubicle entrance, startling her. "You wanna come along to the gym?"

Was it twelve already? God, and she still had nothing on these files. Not on RangeDay either. All she had was a million conflicting thoughts raging around her mind. Maybe a little exercise would help.

"Sure, I'll be there in fifteen."

Ranger was out to inspect an account, so the 7th floor apartment would be empty. That was good. She wasn't sure if she felt up to facing him right now, not while she kept seeing herself toe-to-toe with Joe, yelling. Not while his arms seemed like the perfect place to run to, to hide in.

She opened the door and the apartment felt like a haven, peaceful and welcoming. She mindlessly began to change into exercise clothes.

She loved Joe. Or at least, that's what she'd always thought. And he said he loved her, wanted to marry her.

Then how came they couldn't seem to find any respect for each other? How come that the only time they made each other feel really good was in bed? She'd put it down to temper and dangerous jobs and being Italian, but that couldn't be all of it.

Could she really imagine spending her life with Joe and be happy with it? The answer prompted her to lean against the wall and let herself sink to the floor. No. She'd looked at him with the almost star-struck idea of him she'd had when she was sixteen. She had never really let go of that idea, of wanting him so badly she would have given up anything to be with him.

Now he wanted her. What just hadn't caught up with her across the years was the realisation that just because she had wanted him, she wasn't obliged to still want him.

Truth was she'd known this for a while. She loved the thought of loving Joe. The thought of marrying and having a family was appealing whenever life got difficult. The nice, safe existence where no skips threw disgusting things at her and where no sickos latched onto her… it was an escape thought.

Except that of late she had grown better, and needed that escape thought less and less. Instead of appealing it become stifling. And instead of the man she'd like to marry some day, Morelli had become the man who wanted to stuff her into the Burg housewife mold and cut off any bits that didn't fit, like cookie dough. Like her strange profession and her oddball friends and her desire to fly. And she wasn't prepared to go without those things.

That cold truth made her cry. Joe had been such a large part of her life for so long that the idea that it was never going to be anything tore at her heart. She grabbed a large towel from the nearby pile and hugged it to her chest, crying until she didn't have any tears left.

She didn't know how much time had passed when the housephone rang, but she couldn't be bothered to get up and answer it, so it didn't matter. A minute later her cellphone chirped. She stared at the display and sniffled, trying to pull herself together. It was Ram.

"Hey, are you going to come down?"

He sounded gentle, like he wouldn't be twisting her arm if she said no. Unlike normally. Ram was her exercise enforcer.

"I'm…" she stifled a hiccough, "sorer from yesterday than I thought."

He seemed to understand what she meant.
"No problem. We'll see you after lunch."

"Ram?"

"Yeah?"

"Thank you," she said, hoping he understood it wasn't for letting her off the hook with the exercise.

"You're welcome," he answered, and hung up.

She took a long shower in the luxury of Ranger's bathroom and decided that it was time for the pro-active approach. She'd call Joe and speak to him tonight. She knew this time it was serious. It was really over and that thought saddened her, but somewhere it also felt like a relief. She could stop trying. Maybe in time she could also stop feeling guilty.

RangeDay, now that was another problem all together. Tsuy might have had a point with the suggestion to move away from specific company-outing activities. They were all booked full, so she had to think of something else. The Go Game had been so attractive… but then again myself she could use the elements of that for something else. Except that would be a hell of a lot of work. Or maybe a new company… except that it was hard to find those unless you had a connection to put you on their trail. Oh well.

First things first.

"Hey Joe," she talked to his voicemail. "Can I come over tonight? I'll bring pizza."

It had taken her only a moment to decide she didn't want him to come over to her apartment, and she certainly didn't want to do it in public. The Burg would know soon enough. If she went to his house, she could control the end of the conversation. If it degenerated into yelling, she could leave. Plus, she got to see Bob. That was always a plus.

The rest of her day passed in a haze. She found some clues in the three files Ranger had given her and rang some friends to follow up on it. Nothing definite, but some ideas did come back to her. Hopefully enough to satisfy Ranger. The Friday afternoon meeting was boisterous as usual, but she wasn't in the mood and kept her mind on business. Ranger noticed, and Tank, but they let her. She was thankful.

After the meeting ran to an end she excused herself and made for her cubicle. She wouldn't go to Joe until 7:30 or so, but she had to get out of here, that was for sure.

"Babe."

She jumped and cursed herself, ready for the aware-of-your-surroundings lecture. She'd been growing agitated with the prospect of facing Morelli tonight and hadn't been paying attention.

He watched her steadily from the entrance of her cubicle. Blocking it. Uh-oh, she was definitely cornered and she didn't know if she was up to keeping it together just now.

"You okay?"

"Yeah," she said on a sigh. "Just peachy."

She gathered her things and turned to him to leave. He was still blocking the exit.

"I eh.." she made a nervous gesture, "kind of want to go home."

He stepped closer and she felt frozen on the spot. Was he going back to 'applying pressure'? She told herself to get the hell away but couldn't find the strength. He could always break through all of her emotional defences. Annoying, but something she'd come to accept. And she was tired from all the turmoil of the day.

His hands came up to the side of her shoulders, holding her very gently in place. Instead of kissing her as she'd half expected, he inspected her forehead, and she realised he was looking at the lumpy bruise.

"That must be tender," he said softly. His voice washed over her. She felt her eyes drift shut and her resistance slip. Right now, nothing would be better than to bask in his strength for a little while.

He leant in a little, their bodies touching just slightly. She let out a long sigh and just allowed herself to drift for a moment, soaking in his warmth.

"If you need help with Range Day…" he said softly, his lips just barely brushing her forehead. "You'll tell me, yes?"

She gave a tiny nod.

"Giving us all a challenge is not important."

"kay…"

God, he could be sweet when he wanted to be. So sweet in fact, that she could feel the first signs of an irrationally emotional tearfest coming on. And that just wouldn't do.

"I need to go." Before I cry all over your shirt.

He brushed a feathery kiss over her forehead and released her, stepping back and out of the way.

"Have a good weekend."

"And you," she replied, slipping past her and him of the door with a wave to the crew on deck.

Once down in the garage she come to a halt. Car! She smacked herself in the forehead and hissed with pain because she had momentarily forgotten about the lump.

But wait a moment, there was a familiar weight in her coat pocket. She fished for it – pack of gum, Tasty Pastry napkins, bunch of empty batteries, hair elastic, nylon riot cuffs… keys! Drawing them out she found one of the Explorer key sets. She strongly suspected those had not been there when she put on the coat, she'd have heard them jangle. Ranger must have slipped them in there just now. The sneak. The thoughtful sneak.

---

In the end the confrontation with Joe turned out to be a lot less dramatic than she had imagined. He opened the door for her and she saw in his eyes that he knew why she was there.

Bob stormed at her and almost bowled her over in his enthusiasm. In the split second before he jumped up she stuck out the hand with the pizza and Joe caught the box before it fell prey to the undiscerning appetite of the dog. She spent a happy few minutes petting and cuddling the dog. He was squirming and whole-body wagging and generally very happy to see her. She finally became aware of Joe watching her with a sad look on his face.

"This is goodbye?"

It was a question, but it really wasn't.

"Yeah," she confirmed finally, her voice soft. He already knew.

"Wanna a beer with your pizza?"

Okay, so he was still willing to share it. That was a good sign, she figured.

She reviewed the conversation when she was in bed, staring up at the ceiling. She felt… sad. But also lighter. And guilty for that last sentiment.

They'd sat down on the couch with the beer and pizza, Bob sitting between them looking hopefully from plate to plate. She'd looked up at Joe and seen in his eyes the same resignation she knew was in her own.

"What made you decide?" he asked after a long moment.

"Something a friend said," she admitted after a moment.

"The Yatsumi girl?"

She shook her head.
"Someone who doesn't know you, and doesn't really know me either."

"What did they say?"

"He asked if I thought the other driver had the right to yell at me."

She saw Joe's eyes darken as he extended that reasoning. Then he sighed.

"Rookie cop was tagging along to me yesterday. I went back to my car and he gave me this look…"

He took a long pull of his beer.

"Like… I don't know. Just made me realise that we can't keep doing this."

"It's not working for either of us," she agreed, amazed at how much easier than imagined this conversation was going.

"Time to step off the emotional rollercoaster."

They ate in silence, contemplating a future with 'them' definitely over. Stephanie found it incredibly difficult. He'd been part of her life for so long, and for so long she'd always believed they'd eventually end up together.

She finished her pizza and put the plate on the ground, for Bob to lick clean. Joe saw and his lips quirked in a half-grin.

"We went in opposite directions, you know." He said after a moment.
"Years ago I saw you looking around my house with this… look."

"I was thinking you needed a cookie jar to make your house really homey."

"Yeah. And I told you to not get any ideas."

She nodded, remembering keenly. It had been quite a strange morning.

"Probably about the only time you ever listened to me. Now I'd kill for you to look around my house that way."

"But I don't…" she said, knowing he knew it. "That's not what I want anymore. Maybe I never really wanted it, just thought that I was supposed to want it, or something. I don't know."

He put his plate away and pulled her into a hug, pressing his cheek against the top of her head. She let out a deep breath and just held him for a moment, feeling sad about the future that would never happen.

"You have to go fly, Cupcake," he said softly into her hair. "I don't want to stop you any more. Or you're going to be just like your granny when I die. I never want you to feel you have to catch up on life."

She sniffled a little, her eyes wet.

They were wet again now, in the darkness of her own bedroom, and tears slowly ran down the side of her face. Today was the end of something big, and that made her sadder than she'd expected. The end of the world as she knew it. The end of her image of the future. She'd have to think of something new to fill all that space ahead of her.

On an impulse she grabbed her cellphone and hit the speed dial. Then lost her nerve. God, it was late. Early. He might be angry that she woke him for something stupid. It was answered before she could lose her nerve completely and hang up.

"Babe." He sounded like the phone had startled him awake. "You okay?"

"Yeah, yeah, I'm okay. Sorry," she stumbled, realising he thought she was in trouble. "Didn't mean to startle you, I just… I'm sorry, nevermind."

Before he could say a word she disconnected, feeling worse than before. Jeez, here was this man who kept looking out for her and the only thing she did in return was to wake him up in the middle of the night just because she felt like talking. She'd heard rustling as if he was sitting up in bed. Did she get into trouble that often, that he expected the worst news whenever she called?

And now she'd hung up on him. After waking him. Good going, Steph. Real good going. She thumped her head back against the pillow a few times and sighed.

Her cellphone rang. She opened it and then didn't know what to say.

"Babe." His voice was thick with sleep and irritation. "Don't hang up on me."

"S-sorry, I—"

"—if you're gonna wake me in the middle of the night, the least you could do is talk to me for a while."

Chapter 9

"—if you're gonna wake me in the middle of the night, the least you could do is talk to me for a while."

She let out a nervous chuckle.

"Sorry, I called before I could stop myself, maybe I should wipe the speed dial," she blathered, trying to give some sort of explanation as to why she'd woken him. Not that she actually knew herself. "Far too easy to—"

"Babe, I don't want you to stop yourself when you want to call me," he interrupted before she could dig herself in deeper. His words calmed her nerves. He didn't mind. He didn't mind.

"Sorry, I… I just feel bad 'cause I woke you up."

"Will you stop apologising every other word?" he sounded drowsy and just a touch exasperated. "I like it when you call. I like it best when you call and you're not in some sort of trouble."

Whoa. Did Batman just say that he liked it when she called socially?

"I thought the handcuffed-in-the-shower call was the best kind of call."

He rumbled a sleepy laugh and she couldn't help smiling along.

"You might never eclipse that call, Babe."

I could try… she thought, then thought the better of it.

"Thought you didn't do social calls."

"I don't. You are, as usual, the exception."

They were silent for a little while, comfortably. It was a bit strange; she'd never thought she'd enjoy being quiet on the phone with someone. He didn't seem to mind at all. Finally she remembered what had prompted her to call in the first place.

"Do you have image of the future?"

He was silent for a long moment, probably wondered what prompted this.

"You mean like a plan? How I think things will turn out?"

"Yeah."

"I don't. I never look that far into the future."

"Really?"

"Well… maybe for the business. And I have some things I'd like to see happening. But if you're asking what I expect life to be like in ten years, I have no idea."

Somehow that surprised her. She'd always thought he planned his life to the nines. Everything according to schedule.

"I used to…" she said after a long moment. "I had this whole plan for my life."

"Not anymore?"

"I don't know," she sighed. "It's all different. I'm not even sure I like the plan anymore."

"So ditch it," he suggested. "You're good at improvising."

"I'm not sure I like it better without a plan."

"Babe, you aren't following it anyway."

"But at least I had it, you know?" she wasn't making sense and she knew it.

"So you don't have it anymore?" there was a smile in his voice, and she realised she'd just talked about the plan in past tense.

"I guess not," she admitted finally.

"Scary, isn't it?"

"Yeah."

More silence. She wondered if he'd just admitted that he'd been in a similar situation himself. Maybe after he separated from the mother of his daughter. Then she wondered if she'd just told him that she and Joe had ended it for good. Maybe he already knew.

"See it as an opportunity," he said after a while. "You could do anything. Without guilt."

"Like jumping off a bridge."

"And finding you can fly."

Huh.

"I'll stick with short-term plans for now. Like training, and RangeDay."

She could hear him chuckle.

"About that…" sounding serious again now. "speaking as your boss here, just for a moment…"

Uh-oh.

"Yeah?"

"You will tell me if you need help with that, right? I'm not trying to win a bet here. I get the feeling that the whole betting thing has put a lot of pressure on what was already a difficult assignment."

She sighed, feeling kind of relieved that he wasn't so fanatic that he couldn't put himself out of the situation for a moment.

"I had something perfect, but they laughed when I told them the date."

Ranger sucked in a breath.
"I was afraid of that."

"I have some more leads to run down, but I'm running out of ideas. Can you tell me some things you think would be cool?"

She could hear him shift as he thought about it, maybe running his hand through his hair.

"Hell, you could organise a barbeque and a game of football and nobody would be disappointed. There's no need to make it complicated."

"Yeah, but I wanna join in. See me playing football along with your guys?"

She'd get squashed. Literally.

"Maybe not," he conceded after a moment. She wondered if he was having the same mental image as her. Little Stephanie clutching the ball, running for her life as a flock of Merry Men closed in.

"Still, think simple. We don't get to wind down and play around much. Especially as a group. Just a whole day of downtime will be great."

"'kay," she said, oddly touched by his reassurance. "I just want it to be cool, you know? Especially when everybody is all excited and spying and betting."

"I could order it to stop, if you like. If it would make organising easier for you."

"Would they?"

He chuckled.
"Probably not completely, but at least you wouldn't hear about it anymore."

"If it comes to that I could always just announce what we're going to do."

"That would do the trick."

"Umm, okay. How about this. I run down what I'm currently working on, and if I don't have something by Wednesday or so, I'll come to you for help."

"If that's what you want, Babe," he smiled. She couldn't help smiling as well. It felt good that he was willing to follow her lead on this.

"Hey, when do you need the Explorer back?"

"When you no longer need it, Babe. I'm just glad you didn't get hurt worse."

She didn't want to think about yesterday, so she continued,

"So is it bugged?"

He gave a burst of laughter.

"I haven't done it, but I can't guarantee some of the guys haven't grown overly enthusiastic."

Okay, that was good to remember. No important conversations in that car. She yawned wide. What time was it anyway? Felt horribly late.

He chuckled and seemed to yawn also.
"You're making me yawn, Babe. You ready to sleep now?"

"Yeah… thanks. For listening."

"Anytime, Babe. Sleep well."

---

"Hey Miss Thing, ready to do some serious shopping?"

She smiled at her friend. She was feeling a little down about her life, and nobody distracted her from her troubles better than Lula. Lula was in red today. Clothes, nails, hair, beads in the hair – stunning was the word Stephanie would have chosen to describe it. Nobody had the personality to carry off an outfit like this. Nobody except Lula.

"Hey girl! Love the outfit," she smiled at her friend.

"Let's get going girl, I need me some Victory's Secret goodies."

"So it's really over with supercop this time?"

"Yeah. Really really."

"You sorry 'bout it?"

She took a deep breath, held it for a long moment, and then slowly let it out. Was she sorry?

"In a way…"

Lula took a bite of her donut and watched her thoughtfully from across the table.

"In a sorry-it's-over way or in a sorry-it-didn't-work-out way?"

Straight to the heart of the matter, as always.

"I think the second."

Lula took a sip of her coffee.

"That's good. Better than the first."

"Yeah. I feel bad though. And I feel bad that he feels bad."

Lula watched her, quietly.

"…and I keep thinking… this decision makes two people feel bad. How can it be a good decision?"

"Girl, if you're going to tell me that you were blissfully happy with Morelli and that you broke up with him in a delirium-induced brainfart—"

Stephanie almost choked on her own coffee.

"—then I'd be sending you back to him right now. But I know it wasn't like that, and you do too."

She nodded slowly.
"It's just weird to realise that everything I always imagined about the future is off."

Lula shrugged.
"It's okay to feel weird about that. Or sad. But don't go back because it's easier than having to make new plans for the future."

She nodded at her friend. It was true. Just hard to remember when the future opened in front of her like a gaping black hole.

"I just worry that…" she stopped and tried again. "If I go back… It's almost a habit. You'll…"

"I'll drag you away by the hair," Lula promised, understanding what she meant. "You gotta get through this point, find different things to look forward to. It gets easier after a while. Hell, I'm the queen of starting over."

That she was. God, she really did have some amazing friends. Lula who believed she could be whatever she wanted to be, and went right ahead to get there. Sally whose new band was gaining popularity hand over hand. Connie who ruled over skips, family members and Vinnie with Burg-minded authority. Mary Lou who was doing the Burg mother thing and still managed to give it her own wild-headed spin. Tsuy with her quiet ability to accept only what was offered and support change without forcing it. And Ranger, always at her back with his confidence and his encouragement.

---

She spent most of her Sunday tracking down activities that didn't require booking a year in advance. The backup plan formed itself – if no great activity presented itself she could always take them camping and organise a kick-ass barbeque. It wouldn't be that exciting, but she trusted Ranger when he said that nobody would be disappointed.

Except her. But she'd have to live with that.

By dinnertime her list contained an African percussion session, wheelchair-sports, a fencing class, skiing in an indoor hall, a juggling clinic and dinghy sailing. Not all of it ideal, but a good list to track down on monday.

It was nearing lunchtime on Monday when Tsuy rang on her cellphone. Stephanie was in Ranger's office, making the calls for the shortlist she had made the day before. The dinghy sailing and the percussion class weren't possible, but the other things could still be booked. Good news, though she'd have to find a way to make the other activities day-filling.

"Heya Stephanie, do you want to go for lunch?"

"Hey Tsuy! Sure, where do you want to meet?"

"I'll pick you up at the office in ten minutes."

Seven minutes later she was down in the lobby, wondering why this was happening. It was a strange way to meet her friend. The receptionist seemed to think so too, judging by the look he was giving her. She never ventured into the ground-level lobby.

A dark blue Toyota RAV4 stopped at the curb, the tinted window lowering to reveal Tsuy. Stephanie got in and was greeted by muted doggy howls. There was a large wire bench on the turned-down backseats with two dogs in it. They looked a bit like husky's, but with dark eyes and brown-tipped fur.

"Ah, your part-time dogs?"

Tsuy smiled.
"The big loud one is called Miyo—" the dog in question barked in reaction to his name. "—the other one is Iseki. She's shy, so it's best to ignore her for now."

Stephanie was still sitting turned around in her seat, holding her hand out to Miyo. He sniffed at it and then gave her a tiny lick, as if he approved of her and the matter was now settled.

"I thought we might get some lunch to go and take a walk in the park."

"Okay," she simply said, wondering if there was a specific reason Tsuy wanted to have lunch with her. Ah well, she'd find out – or not.

Fifteen minutes later they were on a bench on the park, Stephanie savouring her meatball sub, Tsuy working on a large salad. The dogs were wandering around them, Miyo dragging around a huge stick, Iseki always with an eye on Tsuy.

"I spoke to Joan and did some digging," Tsuy said after a while. "Found something about that company I was talking about."

She fished about in her messenger bag, drew out a note and passed it to Stephanie. It had a cellphone number on it and a little list of activities.

Very cool activities.

Make that extremely cool activities.

"They don't have brochures yet, but apparently they can arrange those things, or a combination."

"This would be perfect. Amazing. Wow." Especially in combination with a barbeque and a night in tents on location. The merry men were going to go nuts. "How did you find these guys?"

Tsuy smiled a little.
"They were the reason I… what did Thomas call it? Used the ejection seat of my horse, last week. It saw them coming and panicked."

"Thanks for finding them. Jeez, you've done a lot of work for me…"

"Don't mention it. I don't have much work going on at the moment, I'm bored."

The gave her pause for thought. She knew her friend lived above the dojo, in a family-owned apartment. No rent to pay seemed like a luxury to Stephanie, but she didn't envy her friend's isolation. It was a very closed community. Maybe she could help her make some more contact with the outside world. Something to consider, anyway.

"This is so cool. You think they'll be free to do it?"

"They're upstarts. A company day would be new to them, I think they'd be very happy to do it. And quite willing to organise the day just how you want it."

"I'm going to call them." Better get this confirmed before she did the snoopy dance. It would be such a disappointment if it turned out this thing couldn't happen for some reason. She suddenly understood why Tsuy had picked her up – not a lot of chances for the guys to spy on her here.

"I'm going to try to teach the dog that retrieving a ball is fun."

 

 

She felt like dancing. She felt like whooping. She felt like doing the Snoopy dance while shouting 'YEAH!' on the top of her voice.

She did none of those things, because some of the joggers in the distance would probably know someone who knew someone… and before she knew it everybody and their Aunt Rosalia would talk about how she'd broken up with poor Joe Morelli and was now celebrating in the park.

She did, however, smile so wide it felt like her face might split.

Tsuy was a little way over, throwing tennisballs for the largest dog and encouraging the smaller dog to also fetch. Stephanie approached from the side, not wanting to startle either one of them.

"You look you have good news," Tsuy said.

"They can do it. It sounds really good."

"I'm glad. It must be a relief." She didn't sound very enthusiastic, but Stephanie knew her well enough by now that didn't have to mean she wasn't happy for her. Tsuy just didn't usually show much emotion. Apparently it was a cultural thing.

Miyo dropped the ball in front of them and it was promptly picked up with the plastic throwing-stick and thrown again. Miyo shot off after it. Iseki looked anxiously from ball to woman and then seemed to decide to stay with Tsuy.

"She doesn't understand that fetching is fun?"

"She's a rescue, I brought her with me when I moved here. Nobody ever taught her to play..."

They were silent for a while, Tsuy still throwing the ball as the dog retrieved it.

"Want to come with me on a road trip tomorrow?" Stephanie finally asked. Tsuy gave her a questioning look.

"I am going to see that company tomorrow to hammer out the details of the day, and then have a look at the location they suggested. If you have the time, I'd be glad of the company."

Tsuy nodded her head to the dogs.
"I have these two with me all week. My cousin is getting married on Friday, everybody is busy."

"You could bring them… let them have a run at the beach."

Tsuy considered that a moment, and nodded.

"Very well. In that case I'll provide the car, or Ranger will have dog hair all over his shiny black car," she smiled. "Besides, all those cars have a tracking system, am I right?"

"Yeah. I hadn't even thought of that. We'll have to think of a way to shake off any over-enthusiastic Merry Men."

"Should be easy… we just avoid anyone who looks like he should play in a rugby team."

"Rugby?"

"Every time I meet any of the people that work at RangeMan I am reminded of the All Blacks.. they're the New Zealand rugby team." She glanced to Stephanie and continued, "Look them up on the internet sometime, you'll understand what I mean."

"I might. The RangeMen will not be as easy to avoid as the New Zealand rugby team though…" Stephanie mused. "Hey, here's an idea. Sometimes I go to Tasty Pastry in the morning for a kickstart donut-and-coffee. They'll let me use the back way out if I ask. You could pick me up at the back alley…"

Tsuy looked like she thought this might be a bit over the top, but nodded. They walked in silence for a while, Stephanie trying to reign in the part of her that wanted to sing and dance with joy. It wouldn't do to get back to the office like this. They'd read her like a book. They strolled on, beginning to return to the car.

"I have a problem," Tsuy said after a long silence.

Stephanie looked at her, wondering what kind of problem would cause Tsuy to come to her.

"Thomas asked me out."

Chapter 10

"Thomas asked me out."

She stopped in her tracks and stared at her friend. Tank had asked her out? She'd thought he seemed a little taken with Tsuy, but this was Tank - it wasn't easy to tell what he thought of anything, really. What she did know was that it had taken a lot longer for him to behave as open and animated around herself.

"Please tell me you didn't do that say-yes-because-you-didn't-want-to-offend thing."

"Well, I—"

She felt her heart plummet. Despite all the attention he received from the opposite sex, Tank didn't do a lot of dating. Stephanie had a hunch that for him to ask someone out, he was fairly serious about it. If Tsuy was going to disappoint him because she couldn't bring herself to refuse him outright...

"—I said yes because I didn't want to give him the idea I don't want to... get to know him better."

"You do?"

A small nod.

"Okay... so what's the problem?"

Tsuy sighed, and Stephanie realised that her friend found it difficult to talk about this. Probably wasn't used to girlfriend-type talk like she was.

"It's... it's too fast! I've only just met him. And he wants to take me to a restaurant. In my family, when you go to a restaurant as a couple you're practically engaged!"

Whoa. No wonder she sounded a little worried. The cultural gap was wider than she'd expected.

"So how would you get to know him if you couldn't go on a date?"

"We'd... I don't know, meet during the daytime, in public. Spend time together."

It was strange to be advising Tsuy for once, instead of the other way around. She didn't mind, but caution said that she shouldn't get in the middle of this. If anything was going to work out between Tank and Tsuy, they'd need to grow comfortable talking about this stuff.

"Okay. How about I slip him the hint to take it slow and keep it during the day. Then when you meet up, you sit down together and find a way to bridge this culture gap."

"If you could do that... I know you would be more direct, but I could not think of a way to introduce him to the idea of being considered a marriage candidate if he took me for dinner. Certainly not just after I met him for the first time."

Stephanie chuckled.
"A bit like saying 'I want our wedding in tints of blue, and I already know what I want to call our children' on a first date."

"Something like that. A Japanese man would know what to expect, but I thought the idea might…"

"Put him off?"

Tsuy nodded.

Maybe she was right, but then again maybe not. Stephanie could understand the idea though. In Tsuy's cultural circle you didn't date just for fun. Dates were for finding a partner with the purpose of marrying them. Okay, with most people it worked that way, but not quite as explicit as Tsuy put it. Did Tank understand this? Or would he back off the moment he realised what the expectations were if he kept seeing her?

On the way back to the office she wondered how on earth she was going to explain this to Tank. He hadn't mentioned anything about it - as if he would share that sort of thing with her - and she didn't want to give him the idea that she was going to intrude on whatever was going on between her friends.

As the RAV pulled up to the curb she tried to school her face into a neutral expression. It took three checks in the mirror before she found one she could hold.

"9:00 behind Tasty Pastry?" she confirmed with Tsuy before she stepped out.

"I'll ring your mobile when I'm there. And… thank you."

She threw a smile over her shoulder and headed into the building.

Stephanie spent the afternoon hiding in her cubicle, afraid that her manic happiness about RangeDay would show to the guys. Think about Joe, she told herself repeatedly. When that didn't work, think about funerals.

She was listening to the interview fragments that came with one of the file searches. The big earphones didn't do her hair any good, but it was better than having the whole office listen along and heckle. Especially since the interview was about the protests rallied against the opening of a sex shop. They were great guys, but they tended to be extremely… guy-ish.

"You look like you had a good lunch," Ranger remarked from the entrance of her cubicle. She jumped and shot him a glare. Easier not to look smug while she was glaring. Then again it wasn't easy to keep glaring because he was being Executive Board Ranger today, in a lightweight charcoal sweater with the sleeves pushed up. Mmm, tanned muscular forearms. There had to be something wrong with her that she could go droolly over a man's forearms. What was it he just said? Oh yeah.

"Pino's."

His lips twitched a little.

"How is that search on Clark coming along?"

"Just listening to the interviews now. Should have something by the end of the day."

He nodded in acknowledgement. Hey, while he was here she might as well tell him about tomorrow.

"Ranger, do you have anything important for me tomorrow?"

"Why?"

"Well… I need to make a little field trip."

His eyes searched her face for what seemed a long moment. She was sure he could tell she was happy about something.

"This mean you won't need any help?" with RangeDay, it went unspoken.

"Think so."

He seemed pleased.
"You have your day."

She suddenly became aware of how quiet it had grown in the room. No one spoke. The normal low-level hubbub of the control room was gone. Breathless silence. Uh-oh.

Ranger noticed as well, and grinned.
"Good luck."

It was a you're-going-to-need-it grin. He was probably right. Now the organisation was looking well, he'd feel no need to hold back from trying to pry her secrets from her. Nor would any of the others.

---

The next morning she dressed in jeans and a Rangeman T-shirt, a black fleece over it like a jacket. Neat enough, but not formal. From what she knew of the company they weren't suity people, but it didn't hurt to look vaguely professional.

She packed a change of clothes and some other things into a big shopper, locked up and left, whistling.

Mary Lou's house was the first stop of the day. It was a hectic moment at her friend's place, but Mary Lou was happy to help out.

"Hey Steph! I put the stuff you asked for on the table," she said as she made peanut butter and jelly sandwiches with lightning speed. On the corner of the kitchen table lay an old cellphone. Stephanie took out her own Rangeman-issued phone and programmed it to divert calls to the number of Mary Lou's old pre-paid phone, but didn't activate that function yet. Then she got out the bag she always took to work, took the essentials out and put them in the shopper bag.

"Do you mind using my bag today?"

"Which one?"

She held the work-bag up for Mary Lou to see.
"That one's nice. Just for the day?"

She grinned.
"I'm putting my cellphone in it, and there's a slight chance you might be approached by some big guys looking for me. Give them a ditzy smile and pretend I forgot it and that you're hanging on to it until I come back."

"Sure thing. Most of those guys don't hurt the eye, anyway."

She put the Rangeman phone and keyset into the work bag and put it next to Mary Lou's bag. Then she helped the boys get ready to go to school.

At 8:45 Mary Lou's minivan stopped at Tasty Pastry and both women went in for coffee and donuts. Biting into a Boston Crème, Stephanie resisted the urge to look around herself constantly. No call to look as paranoid as she felt. She'd brought her bag with her and hoped they like looked they were gearing up for a day of serious sales-hunting.

Her cellphone rang at exactly 9 AM.

"Hi," said Tsuy. "I'm in position. It's the red monster."

"Hey good morning!" she thrilled for the benefit of the people in the shop. "We're just finished with coffee. Going to be at Macy's in half an hour."

"See you in a moment," Tsuy answered with a grin in her voice. Stephanie said goodbye and disconnected. Probably she was taking the whole spy-avoidance-thing a little over the top, but hell, if she was going to do it, she wanted to do it well.

She sat down to finish her coffee and activated the divert on her RangeMan phone, then dropped it into her work bag. Then she grabbed her shopper bag and told Mary Lou she'd be right back, and disappeared into the back of the shop. The toilets were here… and so was the back exit. Mary Lou knew she wouldn't come back and her friend would take her time with another cup of coffee, then leave. At this time of day hardly anyone sat down in the bakery, so hopefully that wouldn't attract any attention.

She walked down the back alley wondering what car would fit the description of 'red monster'. It turned out to be an aged 2-seater LandCruiser in scratched, mud-splattered maroon. It had all-terrain tires, a custom bullbar and a snorkel-type exhaust. It was not a polite car. It looked like it had been to Siberia and liked it there.

"Nice car," she said as she climbed into the passenger seat.

Tsuy was in jeans and a fitted blue polo over white longsleeves.
"If you're going to drive 4-wheeldrive, might as well drive a real workhorse," she said. "Beats all those shiny rounded shopping-SUVs that never go off the tarmac."

That made her grin. She hadn't figured her friend for someone with Opinions on cars. Didn't seem to fit with the whole serene/Zen/simple living thing. Then again, if you were going to put function before fashion, this car was definitely the way to go. The floormats were rubber with raised edges and there were a pair of calf-high combat boots behind the driver's seat. There was no radio. Stephanie discovered why as Tsuy pulled away from the curb. You wouldn't have been able to hear the radio anyway.

"You borrowed this off someone?" she called over the noise.

"My cousin!" Tsuy said. "It handles about as well as a combine harvester, but I figured it'd do better on the beach than the Mini."

The dogs were in a wire bench in the back. Miyo gave her a mournful look.

"Miyo," Stephanie greeted. "You look sad today, fellow!"

He gave a little whine and licked her fingers.

"We had a slight discussion this morning about whether or not it's acceptable to chase runners," Tsuy said. "He'll get over it."

"Must have been a good workout for that runner."

"And for me. I had to go after him, and I hate running."

"You do?" she heard the surprise in her own voice.

"Hurts my ankles. I swim to keep fit."

"Ranger insists that I run so I can keep up with my skips…" Or keep ahead of them. Then again she didn't actually do any skiptracing anymore. Now she thought of it like this, she kind of missed it. Maybe she could ask Ranger if he could move some more light fieldwork her way, so she got out of the office more often, and not just in a surveillance kind of way.

"There's a few things he and I don't agree on, but this isn't one of them," said Tsuy.

"Oh? What don't you agree on?"

"Guns." She paused a moment as she overtook another car. "He insists you carry one, I think that if you don't plan on using it you're better off without."

"I'm a lot better with my gun these days."

"That's good… Hey, how's life in the office? Found any bugs yet?"

"Haven't found any, but that doesn't mean much… I had to clear this out-of-office day, and I'm pretty sure everybody realised that it's for RangeDay."

"What about your phone?"

"I've borrowed an old handset to forward calls to. I'm not sure if they can actually trace calls or if there's just a tracker in the handset though."

Stephanie turned her head and tried to check out the traffic behind her. She couldn't see much with the bench in the way.

"Are we being followed?"

Tsuy had an amused look on her face.
"You think they'd do that?"

Ranger wouldn't follow her, would he? Hell yes he would. Certainly if he thought she might be succeeding in fooling him. He could be very fanatic.

"Absolutely."

"I don't know. How can you tell?"

"Err… I'll look. Can I use the right mirror?"

"Go for it. Not sure if the adjuster works though."

She ended up having to roll down the window and adjust the mirror by hand. Then she asked Tsuy to take a couple of turns and couldn't discover a tail.

"I'm not sure if this means there isn't one, or they're too good and I'm not seeing them."

"I should have watched some spy films first, to get in the right frame of mind for this stuff," Tsuy said with a small smile. "But I think… if they were trailing you in the first place, they would probably still sit at the bakery wondering what's taking you so long, wouldn't they?"

Heh. They probably wouldn't suspect anything until Mary Lou left on her own. They were always complaining that she took forever in the bathroom.

"True. Probably grousing about how long it takes me to touch up my make-up."

"Even if they connect me to your mission, I don't think this car will be recognised, because I hardly ever drive it. And if they are following us now, we'll see that soon enough when we get on the backroads—"

"Maybe you're right. I guess I get carried away with all that special forces stuff sometimes."

"—and then we could always use the rocket launcher," continued her friend blithely.

"You watch too much James Bond."

---

"…and in early May it would be best to have wetsuits for everybody. We could provide those if you let us know sizes."

"I may make use of that, though I think at least some of them have their own. I'll check on that."

Ella probably had sizes, and maybe she knew what kind of equipment the guys had themselves. Stephanie made a note on the sheet of paper they had prepared for her.

"Okay, next point. You can cater the complete day?"

Jake shuffled some papers until he found what he'd prepared on the subject. He was an attractive surfer-type-gone-business-school who hadn't found his place in the corporate world, and had now started this little company with a friend and his wife. She liked him; he seemed as excited about the plans as she was, and as determined to make it a success.
"We can. I understood we're looking at lunch, barbeque dinner and breakfast?"

"And lunch again. I expect it will be a late night, so I want to be able to take our time in the morning."

"Okay… my proposal: we're bringing in a cook for the barbeque, and the other meals will be sandwiches and whatever you want to prepare yourself, since you said you'll bring some little stoves and such. We'll arrange a tent to store the food, water tank and all the equipment."

"Okay… I'll have to check but I'm pretty sure we can bring our own sleeping tents."

Tsuy had followed the planning with silent interest. She had offered to wait in the car or take the dogs for a walk while Stephanie was in the meeting, but she had figured that Tsuy already knew the plans anyway, and that maybe a second pair of ears would come in useful. Now she saw from the corner of her eye how her friend sat up a little straighter. She turned to Tsuy, raising her eyebrows in question. Did she have something to say? The other woman smiled a little.

"Will the food not go off?"

Jake turned to Tsuy with a boyish grin, perhaps surprised that she spoke now. Apart from the introductions she hadn't said a word.
"The cook suggested a large self-contained cooler. It works on a battery. And she's bringing the food for the barbeque with her when she arrives around 5 PM."

Tsuy nodded in acknowledgement, and Stephanie continued with the list of practical issues. She hadn't thought it was possible, but this looked to be absolutely perfect. It was almost frightening.

---

"I can't believe I went from help-I'll-never-find anything to having a complete plan in under two days," Stephanie said when they were back in the car. It almost felt too good to be true. "I keep wanting to pinch myself, you know?"

Tsuy gave her a questioning look.

"Pinching myself… to check if I'm awake. Maybe I'm dreaming all this."

"Ah, that is what you mean. Well if that were so… we would be dreaming together. That would be quite a feat."

Tsuy turned the key and the car growled to life.
"Where to?"

"Let's check out these locations, see where we want to do this thing."

"This place is perfect. We'll have it practically to ourselves."

She turned around, looking in all directions. Tsuy was putting on the combat boots she'd brought.

The beach was wide and shielded by a row of dunes. Some trick in the offshore streams made the waves higher and the tidal difference greater than on the beaches around Point Pleasant and the popular shore resorts. It wasn't easy to get to, but that would work in their favour. The last few miles could only be tackled at low tide by four-wheel drive. Random sunbathers and recreants were unlikely to come by and crash the party.

Tsuy opened the back door of the car. When the dogs jumped out she grabbed Miyo by the collar before he could make off
"Don't roll in anything disgusting," she told the dog sternly. It looked chastised for about half a second and sprinted off as soon as she released it, barking at the waves.

"They do like that, don't they? Bob once found a rotting fish." Stephanie grimaced at the memory. Especially of the mess her bathroom had been after the whole event.

"You'd think with those fine noses they wouldn't like smelling awful."

"Maybe to them it's like perfume."

Both women shuddered at the thought of rotting-fish perfume.

Suddenly the borrowed cellphone rang, and Stephanie climbed back into the car and shut the doors before she answered it. No use going through all this trouble to be unfindable if she was going to let callers hear the ocean in the background.

"Yo."

"Hey Steph." Hawk sounded a bit surprised, as if he hadn't expected the phone to actually be answered. Were they watching Mary Lou, listening to hear her RangeMan phone ring from her work bag? "How are you?"

"Just fine, thanks," she answered, wondering what he wanted. She waited him out.

"I, um, I was wondering if you'd already started on the file that was on your desk." He sounded like he was making this up on the spot. She resisted a grin. Hawk was a great guy who simply could not lie. It wasn't in his nature, not in his culture and he was proud of it. She rather admired that staunch truthfulness, but it wasn't exactly an advantage in this line of business.

"Which file is it?"

She heard him shuffle some papers.
"Campbell."

That hadn't been in her in-tray when she left the day before, and it was unlikely that Hawk didn't know that, but she decided to let him get away with the excuse.

"Nope, haven't seen it yet."

"Ah, okay. Thanks. Bye." Dial tone.

She got out and laughed as Miyo immediately put his tennis ball at her feet. When she stepped over it he picked it up and followed her until she stood still near Tsuy, and then tried to put it on the toes of her boots. She finally gave in and threw it for him.
Tsuy was tossing a second ball to the other dog, apparently still trying to teach it to play. It was catching it and seemed to entertain the idea that this might be fun, so maybe she was making progress.

---

"Where do you want me to drop you off?"

They were nearing Trenton and this was a problem she hadn't considered before. If she was seen with Tsuy then immediately her lessons would be suspect, and there was a chance someone might try to push her friend for information. She didn't think Tank would do that, but the other guys… Not that she thought Tsuy would give up any information, but she'd been such a great help that it wasn't exactly nice to repay with harassment from curious RangeMen.

Wait a moment. Presumably they had no idea of her current whereabouts; if they were watching anyone, it would be Mary Lou and/or her house. She could arrange with Mary Lou to meet in the mall, just let Tsuy drop her off at an entrance and meet somewhere. Anyone watching Mare would just see her appear, not see how she'd gotten there.

"Hey Mare! How are you doing?"

"Steph! Well this was an exciting day, I can tell you! The boys were a bit hyperactive about all these spygames going on, so I brought them to my mother."

"Do you have time to come to the mall? I want to meet back up with you without anyone seeing me arrive."

"Sure, I've got an hour before I need to get started on dinner. Where do you want to meet?"

Stephanie thought about that for a moment.
"Go to Victoria's Secret… I'll meet you there."

"I'll be there in twenty minutes or so."

They hung up and she felt pretty pleased with herself. If they could beat Mary Lou there, anyone following her friend would be none the wiser by her sudden reappearance. Plus, Victoria's Secret was a hard place for any of the guys to lurk inconspicuously… not that it wouldn't be fun to see them try.

"Thank you so much," she said to Tsuy when the LandCruiser stopped at the back entrance of the mall.

"It was my pleasure. I will see you in the dojo tomorrow."

"We'll have to act like we haven't spent today together," she grinned. Tsuy nodded in acknowledgement, and Stephanie went inside. Time for the last part of her plan.

She'd just selected some comfy sport undies from the bargain bin when Mary Lou ran into the shop. They simultaneously caught up on the events of Mare's day and browsed the racks. Finally Stephanie was satisfied that at least some of the Merry Men now knew more about the daily activities of a Burg housewife than they ever wished to know… and that it was unlikely that anyone was the wiser about how she had spent the day.

She received her own bag back and turned off the cellphone divert. Then they paid for their selections and walked out of the shop.

"I have one thing more to do… want to come with me?" she said.

Mary Lou grinned.
"I'm in. Today was a total thrill!"

Stephanie tried to gauge if there were any RangeMen watching, but didn't want to look too aware. She'd just have to hope there were. She led the way to the Build-A-Bear shop.

"Thanks so much for helping me, Mare. I promise I'll tell you all about it in a couple of weeks."

"No Steph, thank you! I had so much fun today, you just have to let me know if you ever need another diversion. And I'm jealous that you get to work with so many hunks. That Lester Santos… mm-MM!"

Stephanie laughed and left her friend to her spy-adventure fantasies.

The moment she shut the door of the black RangeMan Explorer her phone began to ring the batman tune.

"Yo."

"Yo Babe. Good day?"

"Yeah, there were some good sales at the mall," she said. Hey, if he wanted information he'd have to work for it just like everybody else.

"This day will go into RangeMan history as most unproductive day ever—"

Oops. Had the guys really been after her all day?

"—and as the most entertaining."

Well that sounded as if he wasn't angry about it. Or at least, like he wasn't blaming her.

"Hey, I can't help it if the guys can't concentrate on their work…" she protested with a smile.

He chuckled. "Tank has a load of new material for his 'best of security cam' reel."

"Promising. Maybe I'll no longer be the only one in there."

He boomed with laughter and disconnected.

Notes:

you'll have noticed that I took the creative licence to create the kind of beach needed for this story. Yeah, it doesn't exist within driving distance from Trenton. Maybe there exists a strange warp in the time-space continuum that allows those In The Know to end up on a beach in the Netherlands. You're going to have to suspend your disbelief on that account. Sorry!

Chapter 11

She drove to work on Wednesday morning wondering what to say to Tank. It'd be best if she could speak to him before the lesson that evening, but…

Well, it was a bit awkward. She couldn't imagine Tank wanting to share details of his love life with her, let alone having to receive hints for a first date. Ah well, if this meant things with Tsuy went easier he'd probably forgive her later on.

"Tank? You have a moment?"

He looked up and gestured her in. She closed the door behind her to signal this was private. His door was always open.

He watched her silently as she settled in the visitor's chair. She'd grown a lot more comfortable with him since the first time she'd met him, but he still wasn't exactly talkative. She wondered what he'd talk about with Tsuy… and then smiled at the thought they'd both be perfectly happy not saying much.

"Got a call from a certain self-defence teacher last night…"

He raised an eyebrow at her, and she realised that being direct was probably a lot more effective here than trying to be delicate. Also…

"Did you really ask her out when I had that accident?"

She'd come to the conclusion that it hadn't been Wednesday evening, for sure. She had been with one of them at all times. Plus, when he called her after the accident he'd said he would send someone… until she'd mentioned Tsuy was with her. Then he'd turned up himself.

He flashed a grin, unrepentant.
"Seemed like a good moment."

She sucked in a breath and grinned back.
"Damn, and there I was thinking you just came to make sure I was okay."

He leant back in his chair, and she took that for a signal to get to the point.

"She was a bit worried about this dating thing—" the faintest hint of a grimace passed over Tank's face, "—and I promised I'd mention this to you."

A hand gesture for her to continue. This was the closest to impatience she'd ever seen him.

"Date in the evening – not good, for now."

He nodded in acceptance.

"It kind of sounded like for her dating is something you don't do until you're quite serious. At first you'd just spend time together in daytime, get to know each other."

"Okay, that's good to know. Thanks."

He looked slightly relieved. Maybe he had been worried about a change of mind. She wondered if she should give him some advice on communicating with Tsuy. It felt a bit weird to talk about her friend like this, but if they liked each other and wanted to spend time together, this little titbit could make all the difference.

"Can I give you some advice?"

Blank stare. Could mean anything from 'go for it' to 'You think I need it?'. She plunged on.
"She has this weird thing about saying no. Apparently her people don't do it 'cause it's bad for harmony, or something."

"She won't say no? I didn't figure her for a passive person."
Ah, she had his interest now.

"Apparently sometimes they even say yes and then later act no, because to them it saves face. It's kind of complicated." That was an understatement, but she was sure he understood that. "She told me that she's trying to learn to at least not say yes, but I guess you just can't rely on outright answers."

"So how would she react instead?"

"She changes the subject. That took me a while to figure out."

"I'll keep it in mind. You ready to kick ass tonight?"

She grinned at him. Absolutely she was ready.

---

"I'm stuck. There's no way to get out of this," Stephanie sighed.

Tsuy walked around, taking in the situation, considering. Tank had her squashed up against the wall, hands pinned to her side, his heavy body pinning in her into place. He was too close to knee him. She simply couldn't move anything apart from her head, and headbutting him in the chest would only give her a headache.

"I agree. Not many options from here. Do you want to come with me a moment so I can help you find a solution?"

Stephanie nodded, and Tank released her. She grinned because he was wearing his uh-oh… expression.

Tsuy gestured to the door and they stepped outside of the dojo room for a moment.

"Surprise him, so he's off-balance. Then use the moment," Tsuy said.

"Okay… how would I surprise him?" she really couldn't see this working.

"Make like you're going to be sick."

"What?" she heard her own voice squeak. Talk about surprise.

"Most people recoil in reflex at the idea that you'll vomit on them. You get bonus points if you can actually induce it."

"You'd do that?" she couldn't believe Tsuy of all people would suggest this. What about this whole honour code in martial arts?

"Especially if this attacker was wanting to rape me. Not a lot of things are more libido-killing than sick or the thought of it. Chances are good he will at least shift onto his back foot, and you have your moment."

"Okay. But how will this work in slow motion?"

"Thomas will act out his reactions. You don't have to do it really slow as long as you do it low-impact."

Tank watched from the other side of the dojo room as they came back inside. He grinned as he watched them.

"Something tells me Ninja and Bombshell have been sharing some eeeeevil tricks!"

She grinned at his nickname for Tsuy. It had a fond tone to it. Tsuy smiled a little. Maybe he'd called her that before.

"Yup. You worried?"

He tilted his head a fraction to allow that he might be, a little.

They resettled into the earlier stance and she wiggled a bit, pretending she was trying to get a hand free. He leaned in heavier, something of caution in his face. He didn't believe for a moment that that was all she had in mind to try.

She gulped and thought of Ramirez, feeling the blood drain from her face almost immediately. Tank would never intentionally hurt her, but the bulk of his body blocking her way… and if she imagined Ramirez' soft, taunting tone…

"—I'm gonna be—"

She shut her mouth and felt her body heave. The weight was abruptly shifted away from her as Tank rocked back on his heels. He still had her hands, but she now had enough space to use her knees. One of them flew up toward his crotch, stopped in time, and then came down so her heel landed on his foot. Her hands were suddenly free and she mimicked a finger-stab to his eyes.

Tank staggered back and she slipped out from between him and the wall, retreating almost to the other side of the room.

Tsuy applauded a few times, softly. Tank straightened up. Stephanie tried to get herself back under control and picked up a water bottle for a drink.

"Well done. Are you all right?" Tsuy said. She took a long swig of water, did some deep breathing, and nodded.

"Yeah. That was very… real… for a moment there."

"Hell, Bombshell, I didn't have to act that reaction."

"Last thing for today," Tsuy said later that evening. She opened a cupboard and took out two bricks, some pieces of wood, and a red pillow. This she set up in the middle of the room. A piece of wood balanced like a bridge on the two bricks, the pillow underneath.

Tank smiled and sat down against the wall, his part of the session over. Stephanie and Tsuy stood on each side of the wooden plank.

"You are going to use your hand to break the wood," Tsuy announced. Stephanie looked down at the plank.

"No way."

"Why do you say that?"

"It'll hurt."

"Not if you do it right."

"What does that mean? Do I have to spend an hour in meditation suspending my nerve-ends first or something?"

Tsuy chuckled soundlessly.
"You shape your hand correctly, like we have practised, and you breathe like you have been doing during all our sessions. And you aim for the pillow, not the wood."

"But why do this? I'm hardly going to be attacked by a tree."

"You watch too much Karate Kid."

Tsuy sat down on her heels and gestured for her to do the same.
"You do not believe you can do this. I am prove something to you."

"Proving," Stephanie corrected her friend distractedly, eyes fixed on the wood grain.

"Proving," Tsuy inclined her head a fraction in acceptance of the correction. "Proving that you are stronger than you think."

She'd used the boxing bag in the gym a few times, but that was different. She'd been wearing gloves. And the bag was pretty hard, but not like wood. On the other hand she didn't think Tsuy would ask her to do something that she really couldn't do.

"Talk me through this?"

"Very well. First of all you must ignore the wood. It is simply in the way of your goal, the pillow."

Huh. Right.

"Then you shape your hand," Tsuy watched as Stephanie formed a loose fist. "Indeed so. Now breathe slow, deep. And on an outbreath, call out. Swing your hand. Hit the pillow."

"I have to yell?"

"You do not have to, but it often helps."

"Oh."

She scrutinised the bit of wood for a long moment, then took it away and stared at the pillow. It was plump and kind of pale red. With a bit of effort she could imagine Dickhead Orr's face there instead. It had been that shade while he loudly encouraged Joyce to ride him harder on the new dining room table. The plank was just in the way of delivering a nice, satisfying punch to his nose. Yeah. Hold on to that thought.

She could spend ten more minutes agonising about this, trying to gear up for it, but it would hurt either way. Better to get it over with.

She replaced the plank, took a deep breath, yelled 'HAI!' while swinging her fist, heard a loud crack, and watched as the two halves fell to the padded floor.

Silence filled the dojo. A glance passed between Tank and Tsuy. Stephanie looked at her own hand as it still rested on the pillow. It hadn't hurt at all.

"Wow."

---

It was Friday and she was still riding the victory train. The stunned, utterly triumphant feeling that had come over as she sat there watching the two halves of the plank clatter to the mat still hadn't left her. It was as if with one swing of her fist she'd broken years of frustration, Burg pressure, guilt, discouragement and setbacks.

There was nothing to feel guilty about. She didn't have to do the Burg thing – she could do the Stephanie thing and there was nothing wrong with that. And she could damn well do with her life whatever the hell she wanted to.

She'd fitted the halves together and asked Tsuy to write her name on it as a witness, wanting to hang the broken plank on the wall in her bedroom as a reminder of this moment. Her friend had fetched a marker and written a line in Japanese, then underneath it the translation: "Where ever you go, go with all your heart." Confucius. She also put the date on it and signed it.
Liking the way it looked, Stephanie had then handed the marker over to Tank, seeing as he was also witness. He'd grinned and drawn a little cartoon of a figure with wild curls letting a fist crash down and bits of wood flying everywhere. He could really draw. Then he'd signed it.

Thursday morning Ranger had woken her up to go running, since he wanted to take her along to a meeting later in the morning. They hadn't talked much but it had been nice. These runs had improved a lot since she had grown able to keep up with him. And she'd made herself useful during the meeting, even participating in the discussion and asking some critical questions.

"Steph, you coming along to Shorty's?"

"Of course! Someone promised to beat me at pool," she grinned at Hal. On the other side of the table Lester slammed his fist down on the table and did a loud Austin Powers 'Yeah baby, Yeah!'. He seemed to be well on his way toward a good buzz, and that was always fun. Lester was a happy drunk. Nobody stayed moody for long during nights like these. Not that that would be the case tonight. She was already drunk on happiness – and she hadn't even hit the margaritas yet.

"I'll beat ya good, Bombshell!" he called out, grinning wide. She'd won a game of pool from Hector a couple of weeks ago, and Lester had scolded Hector for losing from a girl. She'd offered him a game, but before they had been able to play it there'd been a fight at the bar, and they had had to migrate to another place, which didn't have a pool table.

"I'm trembling in my boots!" she called back, grinning just as wide. She'd practically majored in pool back in college. He didn't know that.

She felt Ranger's eyes, and turned to find him watching her with a smile. It didn't fade as her eyes found his. He was watching her with what she thought might be tenderness, even love. Was it still the kind of love that came without ring, but with condom? She didn't know, and right now she didn't care. It was good to have him in her life, no matter in which capacity.

---

"Did you play a lot of pool when you were in college?"

She heard his car door shut while she struggled with the buckle of her seatbelt. Not only was she tanked up on margaritas and a sky-high mood, she hadn't eaten anything since the pizza early in the evening, and it was now somewhere past midnight. She felt decidedly woozy.

"Yup," she answered finally, sitting back, giving up on the seatbelt. He grinned and reached over, fastening it for her.

"It's not hard to imagine you in college."

The engine came to life and the Cayenne rolled away from Shorty's, leaving a herd of the boisterous rangemen to pile into the two SUVs they used to transport people.

"What were you like?" she asked before she could contain her curiosity. Had Ranger ever been the typical wild college boy she'd known so many of? It was hard to imagine.

"Liked the subjects, hated the lectures," he said, his eyes focussed on the road ahead. "I was a disruptive little shit. Sit-down-and-shut-up education has never been my thing."

She grinned and was silent for a while, dreamily watching the red taillights of the cars ahead. It was nice to be in a car with him. Hell, it was nice to be just about anywhere with him.

"Hey," she suddenly noticed. "My place is that way..."

"Slight detour, Babe."

"Oh."

He was smiling, and she turned sideways in the passenger chair, so she could look at him more easily.

"Where are we going?"

He didn't answer. When he hit the indicator and turned off the road, she looked through the windscreen and saw a familiar sight.

"Taking me to McDonalds?" she squeaked in surprise.

"I can hear your stomach, Babe," he smiled.

"But don't you like… spotnani—sponati- suddenly combust when you come too near to one?"

He threw his head back and laughed. The sound made her stomach skip and flutter. He swung the car into the drive-through and ordered. Instead of the salad she had expected, he got a milkshake and fries for himself.

"Hey, cool," she said to herself when he stabbed the straw through the lid on his milkshake. "An alien must have taken over Ranger's body… an alien with cravings."

He parked on the far side of the lot.
"I have cravings, Babe," he said with a smile, claiming his fries before she could confiscate them. "I just don't usually give in to them."

She didn't answer, because she had her mouth full of burger. He slurped on his milkshake and then gestured at her with the cup.
"You have a bad influence on me."

"Hey!"

He grinned at her indignant tone.

"Well okay, you have an influence on me. Jury's still out on if it's good or bad."

That made her grin.

"You have a good influence on me," she said, watching his fingers as he lifted a fry to his mouth.

"Babe, mostly I think you have a good influence on you."

What? Was that meant nicely or not? She wasn't up to complicated conversation at this time of night… let alone with this amount of alcohol in her bloodstream. He must have noticed her confusion, because he continued.

"You've grown a lot over the last few months. Become safer. Started living your own life instead of what others want it to be." The pride spoke from his voice. "I'll bet that if you would go after a skip now, you wouldn't get covered in garbage."

"I don't go after skips anymore," she shrugged, taking a sip of her coke.

"Sounds like you regret that."

"Maybe I do a little… I think I'm ready to do more fieldwork."

He smiled wide; unreserved, lighting up the car.

He'd once mentioned, in the week after the Stiva incident, that she should let him know when she felt ready to do more that research in the office. Probably he hadn't wanted her to feel pressured, because he'd never mentioned it again.

"How are you doing? Still worried about not having a life script?"

She grinned as she found that she hadn't worried about that in days. Must have been the thrill about RangeDay and her victory in the dojo that put it out of her mind.

"Not as much, I guess."

She finished her food and wiped her fingers with a napkin.

"I'm kind of sad things didn't work out with Joe…" she thought he might look a little crestfallen at that. "I also feel like I lost 20 pounds. Shame my jeans don't show it."

"Don't," he said quietly, voice serious. Don't what? She was beginning to feel she was lagging behind in this conversation.

"Don't be sad?"

"Don't feel like you have to lose weight."

Huh? So it was alright to be sad about Joe? She shook her head to clear it, grasping for a way to react.
"I thought you didn't want a fat chick working for you."

He actually grimaced. Then all of a sudden she found herself sideways on his lap, legs stuck out over the console. He had his arms around her and his eyes were very serious.
"There's couple of things I wish I hadn't said to you, and that's one of them."

She blinked in surprise. Those words had stung at the time, but he'd been right, so it hadn't bothered her that much. She was surprised he even remembered it.
"Why?"

She was very aware of how close they were right now, but it didn't have the supercharged sexual tension she was almost accustomed to. Mmm, he smelt good. She relaxed into his arms and let herself enjoy the feel of him. She was tipsy after all, she could always blame it on the margaritas later.

"I don't like the thought that I made you feel bad about yourself."

"You've always encouraged me," she said with a shrug in her voice. She couldn't quite understood why it bothered him. His lips were close to her temple. If she turned her head and sat up a little… but then that would be a bad idea. A very, very bad idea.

"Tank is taking Tsuy out," she said, just to have something to say, so she didn't have to concentrate on his warm breath brushing her cheek.

"Oh? So that's why he was so pleased about, Wednesday evening," Ranger said. She smiled at the tone of his voice. He was happy for his friend.
She wished she could be completely happy for Tsuy, without the slight tinge of jealousy she currently felt – Tank did do relationships. And while he might not rush things, but if things worked out between them, happily ever after was definitely an option for her friends.

As opposed to the happily-until-bailout she knew was the only thing she could have with Ranger. That was exactly why she didn't want to get involved with him, though her body thought differently.
She didn't feel much appeal for the marriage, 2.6 kids, suburb house with white picket fence and Golden Retriever thing… but she did want the commitment. It didn't have to be a ring. If Ranger wanted to be involved but reserved the right to one day say 'it's been fun, goodbye' then she wasn't going to go there with him. If she was going to have a relationship ever again, she wanted to be all the way in there, and her partner on that same page.

His breath was warm and moist over her ear and she couldn't contain a shiver. It was easy thinking those kind of things. It was harder sticking to them when he was this close and seeming intent to get closer. Even harder when most of her body agreed with him that this was a marvellous idea.

His hand shifted from where it played with her hair and a touch on her cheek gently turned her head to face him. Then he kissed her, slow and smouldering. It was a good thing there were several layers of clothing between them, or she was sure they would have been fused together, heated skin melded.

It took long minutes before the kiss came to an end and then she leant in close, her face against his shoulder. He held her, one of his hands stroking along her side, equal parts soothing and electrifying. His breath was calming down to slow, deep breaths. The side of his neck was warm against her cheek and she could feel his pulse and smell his skin. It was heaven.

It was way, way too comfortable. The thought occurred that she could get used to this… would like to get used to this… and that it was definitely time to be at home in her own bed and alone so, before she could be tempted to beg him to take her to his home.

"I'd like to go home," she said softly. She knew he'd heard her; his muscles stiffened a fraction. He let out a long breath, almost a sigh. After a long moment he released her, helped her back into the passenger seat and fastened her seatbelt. He was silent on the way to her apartment. He usually was while he drove, but this time she couldn't help feeling he was angry, or something like that.

He walked her up to her apartment and did the habitual quick sweep of the rooms. When all was clear, she went to the kitchen to say hi to Rex and drink a glass of water.

"Want as well?" she gestured with the glass, and a little water splashed over the edge. She licked it off before it could run into her sleeve. He shook 'no', and his eyes suddenly seemed darker. Realising he'd been looking at her lick at the water, she momentarily forgot her plans to be in bed, soon, alone – and threw him a wicked grin.

She took a sip and closed her eyes in enjoyment of the cool liquid. Then suddenly the glass was taken from her hand and put on the counter with a soft clink. She still had her eyes closed and didn't hear him move, but that wonderfully male scent was a lot stronger now.

"What are you doing?" she whispered.

"Thinking about kissing you," he whispered over her right ear. Her breath hitched at the warmth of it.

"Oh." What did you reply to something like that? She kept her eyes closed, rather enjoying the sensory pleasure of his closeness.

"I was telling you something earlier, but I'm not sure you heard me…" he breathed over her other ear.

He what? What did he mean? He'd told her quite a few things over the course of the night. Most of them trivial.
"Maybe you should try again," she whispered, feeling her lips curve into a smile. A delicious shiver crawled down her spine.

"I think maybe I should…"

She'd expected words, not the sensation of his lips on hers – but she couldn't bring herself to be disappointed. One hand was cradling the side of her face, the other stroking the small of her back. She suddenly noticed she was swaying on her feet. His tongue licked along her lips and she opened them a little, feeling her breath rush out as he pulled her closer against his body. Her knees buckled and she vaguely heard someone moan. Might have been her.

Somehow her hands had ended up on his back, underneath his shirt. She let them slide upward, playing over the hard muscles of his broad back. His mouth tore away from hers and he trailed hot, open-mouthed kisses along the side of her neck. She flexed her fingers when he reached a particularly sensitive spot.

"Babe," he groaned. "I love you…"

It took a few seconds before the shockwaves of the detonating bomb – well, okay, statement – reached her befuddled brain. When it finally did, she felt some hidden source of anger erupt like a volcano.

"What?"

From zero to bitch in 0.2 seconds. She took a step back, was stopped by his hand on her back, and shot him a furious glare. His face was without emotion. The hand released her.

"You tell me that now?"

He gave no reply, just looked at her. His face blank. That just angered her more. Was she the only one that gave a damn? Were her emotions a game to him, picked up and played with or put back on the shelf like a Gameboy? Was she still entertainment?

"You do all these things, give me all that help, be there for me every time, and you tell me to go back to Morelli. You tell me that you love me and in the next breath that you won't have a relationship with me, but you keep giving me those goddamn kisses," she was trembling with emotion now; mostly anger, and that was good. If she stopped being angry she'd start to cry. That just wouldn't do. She could hear her own voice rise.
"And just when I'm getting used to the idea that you're giving me exactly as much as you're willing to give me and that there won't ever be more, you go and kiss me like that and say those things? What is this? A new way to get me into bed? Your idea of entertainment? Giving me a little taste of what it could be like, and then disappearing back to the batcave?"

She couldn't continue because his fingers were on her lips, gently, halting her fuming rant.

"I'm sorry," he said. It had a final tone to it. Then he was gone.

Chapter 12

That night, Stephanie managed to crawl into bed before she collapsed into a crying fit. How could such a great week end so lousy? She'd had the victory of working out RangeDay, and the success in the dojo. She'd been feeling great. This evening out had been a lot of fun. And then Ranger had ruined it all by… by…

By spending most of the evening being so damn thoughtful that she couldn't avoid the realisation of how much she wanted him. How much she wanted a relationship with him, and how much she couldn't have one. Couldn't he keep a friendly distance to make it easier for her? Then he'd closed the night off with a zinger. Not only could he be singularly wonderful, he said he loved her.

Did he like hearing her heart shatter?

No. She couldn't imagine that he'd consciously hurt her. Hurt her by being cold or unthinking or opportunistic, yes. Deliberately? No. Maybe he simply thought it was time to get back into her bed now Morelli was out of it. And maybe he thought he'd get there sooner if he said those words. After all, she wasn't supposed to think anything of them. Wasn't allowed to want anything from him.

And if he'd meant them differently… in a way she couldn't currently bear to think of too closely… then she'd just ruined it. Had just turned into a screaming harpy because he'd told her…
That made her cry some more. Finally, somewhere before dawn, she fell asleep.

Over the course of the weekend she couldn't count how many times she picked up the phone and put it back down. What was she going to say to him? Sorry I yelled at you when you told me you loved me? She'd probably lose her nerve and hang up as soon as she heard his voice, and that wouldn't exactly make things better. No, she'd wait until Monday, go into his office, and apologise with those same guts she'd been so proud of last week.

Sunday dinner was it's usual disastrous affair. Grandma Mazur had brought along her latest stud and Albert spilled gravy in his lap. Valerie had been upbeat though. Especially when Stephanie pulled her outside for a chat and let her know the girls' birthday party was all but arranged. She just needed the names and addresses of the party-goers to send out the invitations

It would be a small party with four invitees for each, but Valerie had decided to step out of the parental one-up-mans race of bigger, wilder and more expensive parties, and the girls were excited about having a birthday together ever since they'd been told that their mother used to celebrate her teenage birthdays with their Aunt Steph. Shared parties were for big girls.

Monday rolled around without the thunder-and-lightning drama she'd half expected from it. The Explorer didn't detonate when she rolled over the engine. The traffic was amazingly light, not allowing her to believe the universe was telling her to go back home. She rolled into the garage and spotted her own car. Al had returned it with the best he could do on the crumpled side. It wasn't as good as new, but she'd told him not to bother too much with the cosmetics. Chances of this car lasting her a year were slim anyway.

One of the guys was on the phone with an account, so she mouthed 'hey' to the men on the floor and slipped into her cubicle. A small stack of files awaited her, and she started in on the first.

When it was about 10:30 AM she wandered to the kitchen, made coffee for herself and weird herbal tea for Ranger, and wandered over to his office. Looked like he was digging himself through a stack of paperwork. He'd been known to grasp any excuse to get away from that, so chances were good she at least wouldn't be sent away immediately.

He looked up. "Babe."

"Hey. Can I come in?"

He nodded and gestured to the extra chair. She put the tea on his desk and settled herself.

"Peace offering," she said with a nod toward the cup.

His lips twitched with the hint of a smile.
"Thank you."

She wondered if he meant the tea or the sentiment behind it. They were both silent a long time. She stirred her coffee, the spoon clinking loudly in the quiet office. She listened as the silence solidified.

"I'm sorry," she said finally. "For what happened Friday."

"So am I," he said quietly. Did he mean for his part or for hers?

"You didn't deserve to get your head chewed off for saying… what you said," she continued, and then fell silent. She'd noticed with Tsuy that she had the tendency to fill silence because it felt uncomfortable – while her friend simply did not feel the need to speak to enjoy each other's company. Maybe it worked with Ranger like that too. Don't try to fill the silence, it'll only make you babble. Think Zen thoughts.

"…anyway."

He still hadn't said anything, just looked at her. How did you think Zen thoughts anyway? Wasn't Zen about not thinking, only absorbing? Something like that. Whatever. It wasn't doing anything for her right now.

"I'll get on with my searches." She got up and put the chair back under the side table.

"Babe…"

Turning back she found him standing. She halted to wait for him to speak, and he let out a long breath. The fingers of his left hand were tapping the pad of his thumb.

"I want to see you down at the shooting range at 2:30. I want to see how you're getting on."

She deflated. All business again. Guess that was that. They were both sorry, and the subject was closed.

For her lunchtime workout she just used the cross trainer. It wasn't a very varied workout, but she could put on her little mp3-player and let the pounding of the music drive the motions of her body. No thinking required. The guys stayed out of her hair, apparently noticing that she wasn't in the mood for playing about.

Ranger wasn't in his apartment so she hurried in and out of the shower, not wanting to run into him while she wasn't fully dressed.

She didn't use the Bvlgari. The constant sensory reminder of him would be too much while his moods and actions could have such a huge influence on how she felt. It would be like an ex-smoker spraying on the smell of cigarettes just in case they forgot the craving for a second. She made a mental note to bring her own showergel to put with her workout things.

When she got back to her cubicle she put a new search into the system and read through the output of the previous one while it churned, marking any abnormalities and interesting details with a yellow marker.

2:30 PM came far too earlier for her tastes. She didn't feel prepared for this at all. Grabbing her gun (for practise) cellphone (to call for help) and keys (to make a quick getaway) she went downstairs.

She'd just reeled in her first target when he came in, nodding approvingly at the paper figure. Six shots. All in the core area of the body. Two of them through the heart.

"You've improved."

He leant against the back wall and gestured for her to continue. She wondered why he'd ordered her to demonstrate her skills. After their discussion earlier, it hadn't seemed like he wanted to be alone with her in close quarters. He'd practically looked her out of his office.

After the fourth reload he came up next to her, gesturing for her to take off the ear protection.

"I've seen enough."

Seen enough for what? Still confused here…

"Want to come on a takedown with us tonight?"

Ah! Now she understood. This was a skill review. Business. Still, it was comforting that he wasn't avoiding her. Maybe in a while they could find some way to be comfortable with each other again.

"What kind of takedown?" How likely am I to get covered in garbage?

"Some girl tried to hire a hit man to take down the people a few houses down. Somehow she made bail, and we've scheduled her for pick-up tonight."

"I'm in."

He smiled just slightly.
"Thought you might be."

He walked over to the chairs that stood in the far corner and settled down into one, motioning her to sit down as well.

"Thought we should talk about Friday."

She grimaced. Contrary to most women, she didn't actually enjoy talking about her feelings. Especially when they seemed to make so little sense.

"Okay…" she pulled a chair opposite him and sat down. "You feel comfortable having this conversation with my gun next to me on the table?"

He gave her a non-plussed look.

"Babe, there are always loaded guns near when we talk. I think you know what I've done to keep you safe; I think you know that I'd never harm you. And if I thought for a moment that you'd ever shoot me, we wouldn't be having this conversation."

"Right." She'd meant to lighten the mood, but he wasn't in a lightable mood, apparently. He leant his elbows on his knees and took a deep breath. She realised that he seemed to find this as difficult as she did.

That was a comfort. She wasn't used to calm, sensible conversations about things like this. Yelling and door-slamming were to be avoided. She was good with yelling and door-slamming. This kind of conversation had her on shakier ground. At least she wasn't the only one who seemed to find it a little daunting.

He let out a long breath.
"I meant what I said, on Friday night."

"I know you did."

That seemed to surprise him a bit.

"You've said it before," she pointed out mildly.

"Yes… I meant it then too."

"I know."

She wondered if he'd really thought she hadn't believed him. He loved her, in his own way. She'd seen the look in his eyes just after he'd caught her falling from the cupboard in Stiva's hide-away. His own way was a 6-lane highway. His own way was very, very serious.

"If you believe it, why did it get you so angry? If you really believe it, how could you think I would hurt you for my own amusement?"

She sighed, running her hand through her hair.
"I don't know. It wasn't a rational moment, remember? I said things I shouldn't have."

"Babe, rational or not, you didn't make it up. It came from somewhere."

"I wish it hadn't."

"I'm glad it did."

HUH?

His lips quirked a little at her reaction.
"It wasn't good to hear, but I needed to know."

"Needed to know what?" That she'd blow up in his face if he told her that?

"What you feel. Contrary to popular belief, I can't actually read minds. I want you to tell me why what I said made you so angry."

"I… I—" she shut her mouth with a snap. She felt put on the spot, almost interrogated. Why wasn't he telling her why he said that? She hated how off-balance he could make her feel. His approval could put her on top of the world. His disapproval or disappointment could depress her. He could make or break her day.

"I thought it was a new attempt to get me into bed," she finally blurted.

His face went stony. For some reason it didn't stop her now she was speaking.

"Because if you don't want a relationship, but you do say things like that… well what DO you want?"

He didn't answer. She hadn't really expected him to.
"It feels like…" come on Steph, just spit it out. If he didn't want to hear it he wouldn't be insisting on a talk. Time for plain speaking. "...like you've put up this big brick wall right across the possibility that you and I ever become more than friends."

He looked a little pained, but waited for her to continue.

"And every time you kiss me like you did Friday, or say the things you said… it's like you keep pushing me to climb over the damn wall, you know? Because if you don't want me to do something with it… why are you telling me at all? It's not like you couldn't keep it from me. There's loads of things you don't tell me."

She looked into his eyes, trying to gauge how he was taking this. He gave a slow nod. Hopefully that meant he was with her.
"But you keep pushing and it feels like you want me to do something… and I don't want to climb over that wall."

"You don't want to go down that road?"

"I don't even want to try, because you don't want to go there."

He nodded, seeming to understand.

"I think that if I give in and climb that wall, you're going to turn around again and get angry with me for breaching the boundaries. For pushing."

He leant forward on his elbows and stroked his fingertips over her cheeks, so gentle that it took a deep breath to ease back the tears. Not the moment to start crying. No matter how the whole incident had upset her.

He pulled his chair closer so he could cradle her face in his hands, thumbs slowly stroking her cheeks.
"Babe… I didn't know that those words were still standing there. I thought because things were different for me, they could be different for us."

She stared at him.

"You can thank Celia for wielding the clue-hammer at me about this. She made me understand that words like that don't get forgotten."

He leant forward and brushed a kiss across her forehead.

"So I'm telling you that they no longer stand. I meant it then, but I've changed my mind. Things are different now."

She sucked air, suddenly feeling like she hadn't breathed in minutes. What did this mean? What did he mean? What was different?

"And now I don't know if you're still interested… and I don't know how this'll turn out… but I'd like to go out with you."

She stared at him in speechless shock. He… he… what? He'd changed his mind? He wanted to go out with her? Like in, on a date? Did he mean that he was open to the possibility of having a relationship with her?
What if he changed his mind again?

"It'd help if you said something at this point," he said with the hint of a smile.

"What?" what should she say? He hadn't asked anything. And this latest twist had her mind spinning at top speed. Hope warred with caution. She'd longed for him to change his mind on this, but part of her was fretting now that he had. What that really what he'd meant? And if it was, what if it didn't work? What if she put him off like she'd put off the men before him?

"Let me take you out, tonight?"

"Out like on a date?"

"Yeah."

"A date like…" she paused. Say this or not? Aw hell, if they were going to put cards on the table… might as well make sure she understood this correctly.

"Like… two people getting to know each other with the option of getting into a relationship?"

If she'd expected him to flinch and back off and take back his words, she would have been wrong. He just nodded.

"Yeah. Tonight?"

Oh God, he was serious. She blurted the first thing that came to mind.
"Takedown."

He conceded that with a nod. "Good point, it might get late. I have something tomorrow... Wednesday? No, your lesson. Thursday?"

She nodded, her eyes wide. This sounded like an honest-to-God date. He got to his feet and gently pulled her up with him. Her hands almost automatically slid around to his back. He felt warm and solid, undeniably real. That was good, because she was beginning to wonder if this was happening at all.

"Don't fret…" he whispered over her ear, "we'll take it slow." Then, punctuating each word with a kiss along her jaw line, "one… step… at… a… time…" He ended up on her lips, and she felt her fingers curl into the material of his shirt as his tongue touched hers. His hands made slow passes over her back, and her stomach did something weird and fluttery that had her feeling light-headed.

"Scary," she whispered when the kiss finally ended.

"Yeah."

For some reason it comforted her that he agreed with her on that. If he'd approached this subject with his usual self-possessed confidence, she might have shot him after all.

---

"Okay, so what element do I add to this takedown that you couldn't get from any of the guys?"

Ranger gave her a slightly puzzled look. She was trying to figure out why he had wanted her to come along on this one. So far without success.

"Babe."

Tank slung his kit bag over her shoulder and grinned at her.
"You add Stephanie," he gave it his best infomercial voice. "A rarely found and very precious mixture of intuition, unconventional thinking, empathy and Burg connections. You too can add Stephanie to your projects! Call us now!"

She grinned. He beamed and continued in a sotto voce perfect for the small print, "Stephanie should not be applied to volatile situations. Please ensure that your car insurance is up to date before purchase."

She smacked him on the arm, but he just grinned wider.

"I should put you in charge of RangeMan's PR and marketing," Ranger said.

"No way, man. I like kicking stupid people out of dark basements."

"Don't think much kicking will be involved. As criminals go, this girl is not the brightest light in the sky. Apparently the reason she hired a hit man was to kill everybody living in a place a few houses down. She thought they had a massive chunk of dope on the table and she wanted it."

"So what was it?" Stephanie couldn't resist asking.

Ranger shook his head and chuckled.
"Cheese. A chunk of cheese. The hit man was a vice cop."

"Boy, a well-thought out plan. Almost as good as managing to make a million-dollar bail and then going FTA."

"...And then hiding out at her sister's place," Tank grinned. "I just love it when we get to bust intellectuals."

"How long has she been there?"

"'Bout two days. We been watching the house, but there's seven people living there. I didn't want to do a takedown in a full house. It don't look good when bystanders get shot." She smiled because Ranger was slipping into ghetto speak.

"Specially the kiddies," Tank added. "Papers love that stuff. Not good for business."

They stepped out of the lift and Tank got into the driver's seat. Ranger stopped her a moment before she could get in, and re-secured the Velcro tabs on her vest.
"Thought you'd find this one interesting," he said, apparently in answer to her earlier question. "Plus, it's good to have you with us when it's a female skip."

Ah, that made sense. Any girl willing to hire a hit man to off her neighbours wouldn't hesitate to cry rape if she thought it'd get her anywhere.

"Listen up now," Ranger called up the stairs. "We've got this place covered from all sides and we're not feeling too patient, so in thirty seconds I'm going to come up these stairs and you'd better not be holding any weapons!"

The answer was a stream of unintelligible curses.

"Looks like she found some dope after all," Tank commented.

"It's your party," Ranger answered the woman. "You either go out walking, or in a body bag. Don't matter to me, we get our money either way!"

They heard a clonk as if a weapon was put down and shoved away. Ranger shrugged and walked up the stairs. No shots. Tank followed, and when he could see, gestured for Stephanie to follow. Unless they told her to retreat, she wasn't going to let the skip out of her sight as long as RangeMan had her.

"Damn," Tank voiced the common opinion when the three of them were in the bedroom. Crouched in a corner was the FTA, covered in blood from cuts and scratches. Her pupils were pinpricks in her light brown eyes. High as a kite. And, apart from a short satin night dress that didn't cover nearly enough, naked.

The men took one step toward her and she began to scream, her voice high and hoarse. The few words that could be made out were on the lines of 'don't touch me' and 'assault' and 'rape'. Ranger and Tank exchanged a glance.

"Man, I prefer it when they just want to shoot us," Tank muttered. They approached the woman, clearly looking for a way to detain her with the minimum amount of trouble. As they closed in the FTA however she suddenly rocketed into motion, pushing herself off of the wall and scooting between the two men, low enough by the ground that Ranger's grab came too late. Stephanie, still in the doorway, watched as the woman shot to her feet and made for the exit - and then halting abruptly when she saw the doorway was blocked.

"Hi!" Stephanie said brightly. The two men closed in, and the woman made a desperate lunge at her, trying to somehow slip through. Stephanie caught her by the upper arms, shifted her weight to the side, and let the woman tumble over her hip like she'd practised.
A blinding pain shot down one arm, but she followed the furiously wrestling skip to the ground, put one knee in the small of her back and tried to get both arms twisted behind her back. She didn't quite manage; her right arm hurt, her hand felt useless. A large hand reached into view and presented the skip's other arm. A pair of cuffs dropped down and she put them on to the still-screeching woman.

"Nice work, Steph," Tank grinned, getting up.

"Thanks for the help," she said absently, noting she was covered in blood. At least black didn't really show it. She just had to wash her face. And her elbow was hurting. "Can you find something to cover her up?"

"Ranger's working on it. Man, did she think she had to live up to that high bond?"

She couldn't hear Ranger approach because of the screaming, but a pair of sweats suddenly dangled to her right.

"Get her upright," he instructed. Then, the screaming apparently getting to him, "Be quiet."

His tone was so quietly menacing that the woman closed her mouth with a snap.

Stephanie let up from her back and grabbed a bloody upper arm. Her right arm still wouldn't cooperate. Ranger's hand shot out to haul the skip to her feet.

"You okay?" he asked with a glance to her arm.

"Must have knocked it against the door or something. Hit the whats-it, the funny bone.."

Ranger held the woman as Stephanie held out the sweatpants, and the woman stepped into them as instructed, apparently having realised that being near-naked wouldn't change the fact that she was going to the pokey. He undid the cuffs first one side, allowing her to put her arm through the zipped sweatshirt, cuffing it again, then the other side. Never letting her arms out of control. Put a pair of trainers down and she stepped into them.
When the skip was finally dressed, he marched her downstairs to where Tank was already waiting in the Bronco. She trailed after the woman was in, he turned to look at her.

"Can you straighten your arm?"

She shook no, keeping it cradled to her stomach. It was hurting a lot more than a few minutes ago. Not like hitting the funny bone.

"Don't like the sound of that. We'll go to the ER for X-rays. Tank will take the skip to the bureau."

"No," she said quickly. "I want to go in that car. The ER can wait 20 more minutes."

His lips thinned in disapproval.

"You brought me along for a specific reason," she reminded him. This was one thing she wasn't going to budge on. "And I will not allow that bitch to ruin Tank's life with false accusations."

"Babe." His tone held a hint of restraint. As if he was resisting the urge to drag her into one of the other cars.

She gave him a my-decision-is-final glare and turned away to pull open the passenger door of the Bronco. Inside, the skip was screeching her head off. Tank looked at her as she settled into the passenger seat.
"You don't look good."

"I'll go to the ER when you've dropped her off."

He shrugged and drove off. Stephanie did her best to ignore the skip, but when she started directing her cursing at her, it became more difficult.

"I hate you, bitch! I'll get you! I'll make sure my cousins get you! They'll come when you sleep!"

She felt the remaining blood drain from her face when hearing that. A person entering her apartment while she was inside was a deeply rooted fear. When she was not there and someone broke in, it was upsetting, but things were just things. The thought that she'd one day wake up to find a less than well-meaning visitor terrified her.

"Shut up," she said. The woman went on, going into gruesome detail. Tank was clenching his teeth, clearly itching to silence her but needing his attention on the traffic. Stephanie reached out to take the stun gun from his belt and turned a little in her seat. Her arm hurt and she wasn't going to sit here listening to this stuff. She pressed the prongs to the ankle of the screeching woman and hit the button. A sudden silence formed in the car.

"Well done," Tank said with a grin. She managed a smile back, but really she felt sickened. She was the Bombshell Bounty Hunter. Finding out where she lived was a matter of minutes if you knew where to ask. And if she was going to do more field work, there'd be people pissed off enough to find out. Something to think about later.

The skip began to wake up just as Tank turned into the docking area of the police station. She screeched about what had been done to her, and then immediately threatened to sue. They both got out and shut the doors, closing the skip in with the noise.

"We got a lawyer for this sort of thing," Tank assured her. "Don't worry about it."

Eddie Gazzara came out to the car. He greeted Tank with a nod and then looked at Stephanie.

"Hey, pizza delivery?"

"The very best. Hope you have earplugs."

"Man, I always get the fun ones," he complained. "You okay, Steph? You look pale."

"Cracked my elbow." And it was hurting like all hell. A black Explorer stopped a few metres away, Ranger behind the wheel. His face was blank, but she could tell by the abrupt way the car stopped that he wasn't happy. Hal got out at the passenger side and walked over.

"I'll take over. You go with the boss."

"'kay." Now the skip was delivered the plan of going to the ER for X-rays was starting to sound like a good idea. She hoped it wasn't broken. Getting a plaster cast four weeks from RangeDay… it'd be a real pain if she couldn't participate in all the fun she was planning.

Tank gave her a gentle nudge toward the Explorer. "Go, girl."

She got into the car and managed to close the door with her left hand. Ranger said nothing, just looked at her face a long moment and drove off.
She hated the thought that he was unhappy with her, but couldn't concentrate enough to think of a way to solve this situation. She'd disobeyed an order from her boss. Not that it was the first time, but…

"That wasn't how I planned for your first takedown to go," he said after a couple of minutes. She blinked and looked at him, not understanding.

"Didn't it go okay?" They'd gotten the skip, right? No ambulances had been required. No need for Morelli to turn up. No bets won or lost – or at least none that she knew of. Counted as a success in her book.

"The plan didn't involve a trip to the ER, Babe."

"Oh."

For some reason Monday evening was a particularly busy night for the emergency room, and an hour later she was still waiting for the X-rays. A kind nurse had provided her with a pre-emptive dose of painkiller, so she was leaning against Ranger's broad shoulder and drifted somewhere between discomfort and fuzzy-brainedness.
She was half aware of a phone call happening at some point, but Ranger was stroking a hand along her back in a slow, soothing rhythm and she was beginning to tune into her own particular form of Zen – nothing existed but Ranger's hand gliding in warm passes along her back.

Some indeterminable time later she felt a change in the atmosphere of the room. Hubbub and conversation stilled for a long moment and then started again, and she opened her eyes a little.
Tank stood in the doorway, holding a small duffle bag. He saw them and smiled wide. She hazily wondered what kind of picture they made, still in urban assault gear, her head nestled against Ranger's shoulder, his arm around her. Then to think that just this morning she thought he'd never speak to her again.

"Man, I can't believe you really broke her arm just to get to hold her," Tank grinned when he'd joined them. She couldn't see Ranger's face, but his muscles tensed, as if he was scowling at his friend. She stuck out her tongue and Tank laughed a little.

"Brought you some clothes, because I'll bet they're going to cut that shirt off of you. AND—" he held up a big paper bag.

"You're a god among men," she mumbled. Pino's! She suddenly realised she was starving. Ranger chuckled.

Tank sat down next to Ranger and informed him in a low tone of what had happened at the bureau. Stephanie tried to follow the conversation while digging into her meatball sub. Apparently he'd given a statement to be ahead of any undue accusations, and he'd contacted the RangeMan lawyer to inform him of what had happened. With any luck they'd avoid further shit. If not, then they had done all they could.

"Oh, Steph, the guys said to tell you this serves you right for having them follow Mary Lou Stankovic around for an entire day."

"They really did that?"

She felt Ranger laugh soundlessly. It was a really nice feeling.

"There were wails of anguish," Tank said gravely.

"Cries of disgust, too," Ranger chuckled. "You have a devious mind."

"Man, I haven't had that much fun since we got new carpet in the office," said Tank.

New carpet was fun? Ranger grinned at her puzzled look.

"The building was carpeted when I bought it, and I left the stuff in. Nothing special, but it was good enough. Then we discovered that when the weather gets dry in winter, you build up static electricity like you wouldn't believe."

"Suddenly we had people using their super mutant powers to zap each other," Tank grinned.

"I never wanted to be the kind of employer that yells 'pick up your feet!' across the workfloor. Everybody was shuffling along."

"I wish I could say this sounds weird, but it's actually not hard to imagine," Stephanie smiled. "Tell me you have this stuff on film."

"Some of it, yeah. I think Ram saved some more stuff. There was a petition to change the company name into X-man," Ranger remembered fondly. "And people spray-painting big silver Xes on shirts. It was insanity for a week or so. Of course, I had to pretend not to be amused."

"I work in a company where everybody is insane," she declared with a grin. "And you know what? I'm not even surprised."

"That's nothing," laughed Tank. "You should have been around when Star Wars Episode 1 came out. Suddenly the boss here appeared in meeting notes as Darth Ranger."

She was listening to the men remembering various other Star Wars-themes highlights and still giggling when the nurse came to get her.

Almost two hours later she was back in the Explorer with Ranger, a painkiller prescription, and a cast. Tank had left while she was in X-ray.

"If I'm very good, the doc said the cast could come off next week and I'll just need a brace for a few weeks," she finished telling Ranger. It had turned out to be a hairline fracture. Not bad enough to need more than a few weeks of rest. Not normally bad enough to plaster either, but they insisted that the Bombshell Bounty Hunter couldn't be trusted to keep calm for that long, so before she knew it she'd ended up with a cast from her knuckles to her upper arm.

"Work from home tomorrow," He said as he helped her out of the car and into her apartment building. "Do whatever you can from here. Laze about the rest of the day. Boss' orders."

"I'll be bored," she muttered.

"Watch Indiana Jones."

She didn't bother to answer that. He wasn't going to budge, and she probably shouldn't try to drive with her arm like this anyway. He guided her to her couch.

"Do you want something to eat?" he was nosing through her fridge.

"Not hungry," she said. Her head kept sinking to the side. She was dirty and exhausted. Currently sleep seemed the more important thing. She'd wash the sheets later.

He returned with a large plastic bag and taped it around her arm. She watched the concentration on his face in wonder.

"You're going to shower," he let her know. She blinked and wondered how he imagined that. He had to help her get up from the couch, and then she leant against him to stay upright.

A couple of minutes later she found out how he imagined that. She was sitting in the bath, arm over the side, he washing her. If she'd been more awake and in less pain, she might have found this arousing or awkward – possibly both. As it was, his manner was perfectly neutral, and she was grateful for the help. The foam that came off her hair as he washed it was pink at first. She didn't want to know what it would have been like if she'd gone to sleep without washing.

"Is this part of the company care for employees that get hurt at work?" she smiled sleepily when he helped her upright and wrapped a large towel around her. He gave her a look that said she was playing with fire.

"Babe."

"Point taken…"

A short time later she was warm in bed, her telephone within reach. She was dimly aware that he stroked her forehead a moment, and then nothing more.

Chapter 13

She woke with a headache the size of Greenland. She'd been forced to sleep on her back, the huge lump of her right arm weighing her down. Not comfortable at all. And she had a vague memory of Ranger wrapping a towel around her. When she was naked.

Meep!

She dug back trough the fuzz, but nothing much wanted to resurface. She'd been pretty out of it from the painkillers. And bloody. And he'd put her into the bath and helped her as chastely as if she was his daughter. Ack, not a good thought. Did she really have that little effect on him or… no, let's not think about this any further. She was grateful that he hadn't dropped her off and drove away, or she'd still be sitting on her couch with matted blood in her hair, no doubt feeling much, much worse.

And glance at the alarm clock revealed it was nearing 11 AM. She had a flash of too-late! panic and then remembered he'd said to stay at home today. Work from home, even. But what could she do from home? RangeDay needed some practical things arranged, but she really needed Ella for that. She could do some things by email, but the risk of sending it to the wrong person…

Actually…

She stumbled to her feet, swallowed down a painkiller and brought her laptop to the bed. While it booted up she got herself hot chocolate and a poptart.

"What do you mean, hot chocolate is for later in the day?" she said to Rex, dropping a grape and a small corner of poptart into his dish. "I can have it now if I want to."

Her fridge was mostly empty, so she'd have to call someone about grocery shopping. Her parents, maybe. Then again she didn't quite feel up to the veritable flood of fussing that would bring with it. They'd be sure to complain that she was doing fieldwork again. They just couldn't understand that her nice, well-paid, safe deskjob bored the shit out of her. Even with the new responsibilities and challenges Ranger had moved her way, she still felt cooped up. Now if she could do half deskjob and half fieldwork… that would be something else.

She brought her things to the bedroom and put them on the side table. Getting around with only one arm was a real bother. When she'd finally settled herself in, she pulled the laptop closer and opened The Art of War. Now the activities were mostly final, she could take some time to throw people off the trail. She had no illusions that things were really as quiet as it seemed to her; you couldn't sneak around covert-ops trained men and believe they weren't sneaking right back at you.

One thing she hadn't counted on when involving Tsuy in her plans, was that Tank was now getting closer to Tsuy. And she didn't figure him for the kind of person who'd fish for information with a date, but it wasn't impossible that he'd find something to put him on the right track.

She'd been subjected to some really obvious attempts to get information from her, and she remembered from yesterday that her ruse last Tuesday had definitely attracted attention, but what else were they doing?

They definitely didn't believe the Build a Bear thing. If nobody had connected it to the birthdays of her nieces she would be surprised, but most of all they had to know she'd never set up RangeDay to be something that wouldn't be enjoyed. What would be the point of that?

That she wasn't really aware of what they were doing just meant that they were very, very good at it. Luckily Sun Tzu had some 2400 year old wisdom just for this situation.

She could use their expectations about her to her advantage. What did they believe about her? That she was clumsy. Okay, that was actually true. That she couldn't resist talking about Rangeday with someone. In that aspect they'd gone to the same Women 101 class as Joe – they 'knew' that she couldn't keep secrets. She'd have to call around a bit to find out of they'd been interrogating her friends. Maybe she could drop some strategic misinformation.

Another thing they assumed about her was that she lacked the strategic knack to truly pull this off. True, she hadn't had Army Ranger classes and she didn't play Risk a lot, but she hadn't given up on herself just yet. Taking a sip of hot chocolate, she started writing. Forty minutes later she sent out some emails.

---

From:bombshell at rangeman
To:ramvernon at rangeman
Subject:[confidential]

Dear Ella,

I need to arrange a few things more with you about RD. I'll look you up when I can get back to the office, but for now I just need to know this so I can get back to the company. Do any of the guys have their own abseil gear? The hall needs to order some more heavy-duty harnesses if we don't bring any of our own, so I need to know this ASAP.

Thanks,

Steph

---

From:bombshell at rangeman
To:rangermanoso at rangeman
Subject:[confidential]

Hi Ella,

Just a quick RD-related question before I start making (one-handed! :-( ) phonecalls – do you know if any of the guys have wetsuits? The company that rents us the windsurfing gear can arrange those for us too, but then I'll need to know sizes. It might take them some time to come by that many mega-size wetsuits!

See you when I get back to the office,

Steph

---

From:bombshell at rangeman
To:tankfoster at rangeman
Subject:[confidential]

Hello Ella,

There's not much I can do from here but I'm doing some phone calls. The file I got about RD said that you have a list of what is in storage, and I wondered if you could tell me if everybody has their own tent or if we need to rent them.

I for one will need one – I'm all for being at one with nature and so on, but not for sharing my sleeping bag with sticks and leaves and crawly things!

Can I assume everybody has sleeping bags, mats. etc?

Thanks in advance,

Steph

---

Then not a minute later she sent another to each address, separately so they could not see they were not the only one to receive it.

---

AAAARRRGH!

You did not see that email. Please tell me that you just got this one and have no idea what I'm talking about. If you do, don't. My brain is full of fuzz and I'm a world-class dope.

I'm just going to go and bash my head against a wall

---

She hoped it sounded suitably ditzy and that they could believe she'd addressed the email wrong in a flash of fuzzy-brainedness… and was now beating herself over the head about it.

She wondered about the implications of sending these emails. One major advantage on her side was that the guys were playing each to their own, and were unlikely to share information with each other. They were more likely to send each other on a wild goose chase than tell anyone about these emails.

The emails contained hints, in case of the one for Ranger, quite close in the right direction. She figured that since he hadn't spoken of it to her at all, he was doing his investigation in secret, and she suspected he was a lot closer to the truth than she'd like. Ranger was the master of Sneak. She wouldn't be surprised if he knew quite a lot about Rangeday.

If she gave him a morsel that confirmed what he already knew or suspected, that might bring him close, but might also stop him from digging further.

There was a good chance he'd call her as soon as he got the email. Even more so that he'd gloat. She'd have to act suitably crestfallen, and fend of any questions. She could always act sulky and say that he already knew more than enough. She'd have to resist the urge to make his smugness disappear. He could be smug now. She could be smug on the day itself.

The phone rang. She took a deep breath, dropped herself deep into the I've-just-ruined-everything mindset, and answered.

"Yeah?"

"Babe." He'd used that same tone when her cars blew up. Amusement laced with affection.

She groaned.

"Don't say anything. This is not happening."

"Babe."

"What can I say, I'm stoned! These fucking painkillers…"

He chuckled a bit.

"How is your arm?"

"Feels like it weighs about a ton."

"Put it on a pillow at night. You need to keep the hand high."

"I will, I will." She let out a deep, deep sigh. He was silent. She couldn't tell if he was amused or disappointed by finding out about Rangeday.

"You won't tell anyone, right?" she said in a small voice.

"Babe." Of course not, his tone said. Not that she believed he'd keep quiet out of the goodness of his heart – he was in on the betting like everyone else.

"I have a wetsuit, and a few others have as well. I have that sort of thing on a list somewhere, so I'll check for you."

"That would be really nice of you."

"I'm a nice guy." She could hear the grin in his voice. "Do you need any other help?"

Aww, he was so nice about it that she almost felt a sliver of guilt about misleading him. Almost. And it was only a tiny sliver.

"It's mostly arranged. I just need to fix some details."

"Okay. Have you eaten?"

"Poptart," she supplied.

He let a repulsed silence draw out.

"I'm sending Ella grocery shopping for you. Someone will drop it off this afternoon."

"You don't have to do that."

"I want to." There was no refusing that. Besides, her fridge was kind of empty.

"Okay. Thanks."

"Get some rest," he instructed.

"'kay."

"And don't eat too much crap."

She made a non-committal mm-hmm sound.

"And better not write any more emails until you're off the pills."

"Yeah."

"Oh, and Babe?"

"Yeah?"

"If the guys give you anything, better take a good look at it. They're up to something."

"I will. Tha—" and she heard the dial tone.

Boy, this was better than she could have hoped for. Not only did he seem to think he knew everything now, he warned her about the others. She wouldn't even be surprised if he entertained himself by putting them on the wrong track. He'd be helping her without even knowing it. Of course, he thought he was helping himself win the bet, but with a bit of luck it'd work to her advantage.

Tired by all this scheming, she snoozed for a while. The painkillers might not make her stoned like she'd pretended, but they did make her sleepy.

When she woke up she called Alex the dietician. They chatted for a short while, and she passed on a message to his sister. When she'd first met him his sister had been in his office, all wide floral skirts and quartz bead necklaces. Aurora was a qualified Ayurvedic massage therapist who also gave a range of courses. Some of them with inspiring titles like 'Discover your connection with the Earth Goddess' and 'Breathe with your roots in the Earth' and 'Ayurvedic Expressive Dance' and so on. Stephanie had liked her, though the courses sounded altogether too far-fetched for her own tastes.

Alex would ask Aurora to call Stephanie's extension at the Rangeman office later that day. Since she wasn't there, the call would pass to the central switchboard, where whoever was in the control room at that moment would get it.

She grinned at the thought that they'd probably be perfectly polite, ask her to repeat the company name ('Holistic Re-Birthing Centre') and whimper in horror as soon as the phone was put down. Or maybe they'd Google it first and then whimper.

Stephanie smiled in satisfaction. Sun Tzu knew what he was talking about.

Feeling that she had an excuse, she closed her laptop and settled down on her side, arranging a pillow in front of her to rest her arm on. It didn't take long at all before she sank away.

"Jesus, look at this."

"Stay the fuck out of that man. There are limits."

"Get your panties out of a twist, she's not gonna wake up."

"Doesn't matter man."

A few seconds passed. Stephanie dragged herself from her stupor. Was she hallucinating or were there two men in her bedroom?

"Cal," the second voice said in a threatening tone. She finally recognised him as Lester.

"Yeah, yeah, yeah. In a minute," Cal said. His voice came from behind her, in the direction of her closet.

"If you don't get your grubby paws out of my underwear drawer this very moment," she said groggily, opening her eyes, "You will be in major, major trouble."

"Fuck!" he said under his breath, and she heard him move.

"Hey Bombshell, sorry for waking you," Lester said. "We just came to bring you some food and stuff."

Yeah, right.

"Thanks, that's very nice of you," she yawned. "Did you plan to wake me when you were finished with your tour of the place?"

Lester looked a little crestfallen.

"I planned to let you sleep, actually. And I apologise for Cal here," he nodded at the other man, who was doing his best to sheepish, "he's got no sense of privacy."

It's hard to look sheepish when you have a flaming skull tattoo on your forehead. Cal wasn't doing a very good job of it.

"Sorry 'bout your arm," he finally said. She nodded in acknowledgement. She chose to believe that he was also sorry about going through her underwear. Not to mention the rest of the house. Life was easier if she didn't expect the impossible.

"We brought you a gift," Lester announced, stepping out of the room and returning with a stuffed animal in his hands. It was a brown bear. In doctor's clothes. It was deadly cute.

"Thought he could look after you. I'll put him down here, 'kay?" he put the bear on top of the dresser next to the door.

"Thanks Lester, that's really nice of you guys," she smiled. "Am I being unrealistically hopeful if I ask if there are any donuts with the food you brought?"

"The boss got Ella to shop for you," he said. That meant it was probably all healthy, though Ella had been known to bake cookies. "Then Tank said to get you some donuts as well, so we picked up a few on our way here."

"Bless you. And him."

Lester beamed.

"We'll be off, then. Be good, and that cast will be off in no time."

"Thanks for dropping by. Say thanks to Tank for me?"

"Sure."

When they were gone she sat watching the bear for a while. It was cute, obviously selected with some care. She loved it. She also didn't trust it.

Maybe without Ranger's warning she would have been happy with a thoughtful gift from the guys. Then again maybe not. Maybe she'd have been suspicious either way.

In any case it was probably bugged. The question was, would it be the only bug or would they have placed another one somewhere? She hoped they wouldn't sink that low, but there was really no guarantee. Maybe she could speak to Ranger about the possibility. For now she could make use of the near-certainty that someone in the office was listening in.

She used her mobile to call her landline and answered it on the second ring.

"Hey girl! … Yeah, it sucks … You have no idea... of course not!... Lula! … Can you get your mind out of the gutter for a moment?…. well, try… no…. yeah, I know… what was her name again?… Aurora… okay…for THE day… no, I'm not telling you… what do you mean why not? You're sleeping with the enemy, girl! …uh-huh… no, of course I know… hell yes, only I don't think I'll be up for it for a few days… can't carry bags, you know… how about Saturday?... Cool… see you then… bye!"

She disconnected her fake conversation and smiled to herself. The idea that Lula might know something would direct attention away from Tsuy, hopefully – and Lula would be sure to enjoy the sudden interest from the merry men. Stephanie was pretty sure Lula and Hal were an item, but as her friend put it, 'still got eyes!'

She examined the bear while eating a donut. Yup, it was definitely bugged. She could feel the transmitter inside its head. She would be annoyed about it if it wasn't such a funny idea that one of the guys would have gone to Build A Bear to make this thing.

Letting them know that she knew about it would be a waste of opportunity, but she refused to leave it in her apartment. She could try foisting it off onto someone, but then the guys would be listening in on that person. She refused to intrude on someone's privacy like that. Just because others did it to her didn't mean she had to do it to someone else.

Getting an idea, she found an old shoe-box in her closet and put the bear inside. Taping it shut was a struggle with one hand, but she managed. Then she took a waterproof marker and wrote the address of Rangeman Boston on the lid. She put the box in the bathroom, shut the door, and walked to her kitchen to call Dillon.

He turned up ten minutes later.

"Steph! Didn't know you broke your arm. Are you doing okay?"

She told him what happened and they caught up for a few minutes. Finally she came to the point.

"I have this package that needs to be in the mail. Could you post it for me please?"

"Sure. I'll drop it off this afternoon."

"Oh, it's not in a hurry. In fact, send it with the slowest option they have."

Okay, so the bear was gone. That didn't mean she wasn't listened to anymore though. The idea that they'd been through her things made her feel very uncomfortable. It took things out of the fun Rangeday challenge and well into the ballpark of privacy invasion.

"Yo."

"Yo yourself," she smiled.

"Got the groceries?"

"Yeah, Ella is the best." There'd been chocolate chip cookies. Home made.

"She insisted that being pampered is an essential part of recovery."

Marry me now, Ella.

"So… err…" how to breach this subject. He waited in silence. "I woke up to find the guys going through my apartment."

Nothing.

"As in, searching my apartment."

"I'll speak with them. Did they give you anything?"

That wasn't quite what she'd expected. She'd expected him to be pissed off on her behalf.

"A bugged bear. I got rid of it, but how do I know they didn't put more bugs around the house?"

He was silent a moment.

"I'm going to assume everybody is well aware that that would be crossing a line."

He sounded a lot more serious about this. 'I'm going to assume' sounded more like 'everybody had better be'.

"People cross lines. Especially when there's money at stake."

"Point." He was silent a moment. "I can't guarantee you there isn't one, but I'll find out, and deal with it."

"Thanks. I hate it that my own home feels like it has a revolving door for anybody and everybody. I never know who's going to stand by my bed when I wake up."

"Babe."

There was something about his tone that caught her attention. In fact, the entire conversation gave her a feeling of vague apprehension. She liked to think she knew him tolerably well – maybe as well as he allowed her to know him. And it definitely seemed as if he acted out of character about the fact that the men had searched her apartment. She'd expected him to get angry about it. He'd hardly blinked. And he thought hiding transmitters in her home was crossing a line, but not searching it?

Wait a minute…

"You've done it yourself, haven't you?"

"Babe?"

"You've gone through my apartment."

The silence stretched. He didn't deny. She hadn't expected to ever hear him confess something like this, but this was as good as.

"Babe."

That tone confirmed it, and she didn't know what to say, what to feel. When had he done it? Was it a one-time thing or a regular occurrence? Was that how he always seemed to know about what went on in her life? What had he been looking for? What on earth would she say to him now?

"I'll speak to you later, okay?" and she disconnected.

Half an hour later she still didn't know what to feel. Disappointment? Anger? Irritation? Betrayal? She was at a loss. Mostly it annoyed her that his privacy was holy and that she couldn't even ask questions freely, but that he seemed to consider it okay for him to search her home instead of even asking questions.

In any case, there was something she should have done a while ago.

"Hey Joe," she said when he answered his phone. "How are you?"

"Cupcake," he grinned. "I'm okay. How's your arm?"

She wasn't surprised that he knew.

"The cast is awkward as hell, but the pain is fading. I'm feeling okay."

"That's good to hear. Nice bust, last night."

To her surprise he sounded like he meant it. Maybe her choice of job was easier to take now she definitely wasn't going to be his wife. It felt good to talk to him as a friend.

"Thanks. Did she give you guys a lot of trouble?"

"We put her in an isolation cell until she finally stopped screeching."

She chuckled. "Served her right. Hey, don't you have a home security specialist in the bureau?"

"Sure, John. Do you need him?"

"I was wondering if he could recommend me a good locksmith."

"Hang on, I'll ask."

A moment later he came back on with the address of a downtown locksmith.

"These guys have a specialist that comes to check the place out and can recommend and install the whole deal. It's not cheap, but it'll help with your uninvited visitor problem."

"Thanks, Joe. Give Bob a hug for me."

She called the locksmith and they offered to send someone over in an hour. That left about enough time for a quick pick-up session so she wouldn't be too embarrassed to have a total stranger in her apartment.

"I'm surprised," the locksmith said after inspecting the doors. She was in her late forties, greying hair tied back. "These are pretty decent locks. Didn't you say you get a lot of unwanted visitors?"

"Yeah. It seems like everybody knows how to pick my locks, except me."

"Okay, I can see that slapping on some more locks will not do much than slow 'em a bit, so I'm gonna get some low-tech doohickeys from the car, 'kay?"

She returned a few minutes later with a box full of metal ware.

"There's not much I can add that will help against break-ins when you are not at home, to be honest. Anything that you need to lock and unlock from the outside can also be breached by people who have the tools, knowledge and patience. Short of installing a massive electronic security system I can't think of much to stop them, and even then they only have to break a window to get in anyway."

She came into the hallway and closed the door, turning back toward it.

"However I have some nice low-tech things you can use to lock yourself in."

She held out a heavy thing that looked like a giant hinge. It had a metal shield on both sides.

"This thing we bolt on the wall here," she held one side against the wall on the hinge-side of the door. "and then this arm swings out until it lies against the door, and you click this lever into place to lock it… like so."

The thing now made a 90-degree angle in the corner of wall and door. The door couldn't swing inward. Even with all the locks opened, it simply wouldn't open. And it would be invisible from the outside.

"What if someone puts his boot to the door?"

The locksmith examined the door critically.

"This is a good door. You get this special?"

It was the door Ranger had had installed for her at the same time with the security system.

"A friend got it for me."

"Well from the looks of it it'll hold, and I saw that this is a supporting wall, so unless they put enough weight to this door to push over the entire wall, this puppy isn't gonna open."

"I think I have to ask the super before I have this stuff installed. It might do damage to the wall, right?"

"Shouldn't. I brought some metal shields to distribute the weight if someone does give it a good kick. It won't look too pretty, but…"

"It'll be safe?"

"I reckon about as safe as you can get in a place like this."

Two hours later she was alone again, with the door locked solid. Maybe locks wouldn't stop overenthusiastic and invasive Rangemen while she was out, but she'd just though of something that would.

From: To: Subject:

bombshell@rangeman.com everybody@rangeman.com Please note

Dear all, If any of you ever break into / search my apartment again, prepare for the most touchy-feely sensitivity training I can find. With meditation, and sharing of feelings, and everybody crying at least once. And I will arrange for this session to be videoed. In addition to that, I will sign you all up as a candidate for the TV show 'Queer Eye for the Straight Guy'. I'm sure the make-over team will find many things about you that can be improved. Respect for personal privacy being one of them. Love, Stephanie.

 

She didn't get up to much the rest of the day, apart from agonising about whether or not to have dinner with her family. The guilt about not telling them she'd broken her arm (though it was unlikely they didn't already know) warred with the horror of being fussed over like they would. Pineapple-upside-down cake versus self respect. What a choice. Then she remembered that with the bags of groceries Ella had included a microwaveable meal of pasta with lemon-cream sauce and chunks of roasted chicken. It smelt divine and the choice was made. Probably Ella jumped at the chance to cook for someone who wasn't obsessed with calories and sodium and saturated fats.

She also found Häagen-Dazs strawberry cheesecake ice cream in her freezer. Lester must have put it in. Life was good.

Stephanie woke with a jolt as metal sounds came from her front door. She'd fallen asleep on the couch with Ghostbusters on, her afghan around her shoulders. It was 10:20 in the evening. Seemed about the right time for migrating to her bed and going right back to sleep. Except that she had a visitor.

Who at this very same moment was discovering the merits of the newly installed hardware. She listened as the locks clicked open, and heard the hinges as someone pushed the door. And pushed again.

A moment later her cell phone rang.

"Yo."

"Babe."

"Heya, Ranger," she said brightly. Then waited. And waited.

He sighed.

"Could you please open the door?"

"Oh, it's you trying to get in," she said. "I had no idea." He disconnected.

Okay, so maybe she shouldn't bait him when he was going out of his way to care for her with her broken arm. She just couldn't stand the thought of him going through her apartment. When had he done it? How often? What had he been looking for?

She walked to the front door and disengaged the corner bolt. The door swung open.

Ranger was in cargoes and a lightweight black sweater, the sleeves pushed up his forearms. After work Ranger. He was carrying a black duffle bag, and he looked tired.

"Ranger."

"Babe." He sounded a little unsure of himself, as if he didn't quite know what kind of mood to expect of her. That seemed only fair. She still didn't know what to feel, so why should he know more than her? She stepped aside to let him in. He turned back to the door for a moment to examine the new bolt. Then he came into her living room and put the duffle on the table.

"Brought a tracer." He sounded remote, almost businesslike. Eerily like he'd sounded… it was only yesterday morning that she'd gone to his office hoping to make peace. A lot had happened since then. She wondered if they weren't back at the same place now. That thought made her intensely sad.

"A what?"

He pulled out a black hand-held device.

"This should trace any transmitter."

Ah.

"Do you think you'll find any?"

He gave her a level look.

"I discussed this with the men and they agreed with me that there was an important boundary between offering you a bugged gift and planting a transmitter somewhere in your home."

No mention of a boundary about searching her apartment. She'd get to that. First she was eager to make sure there really wasn't a transmitter somewhere.

He continued: "Nobody volunteered the information that this boundary had been crossed."

'We had better not find anything' was the clearly implied message. If anyone was listening in, they'd be booking a ticket to Easter Island right now.

She sat on the couch and watched him sweep the room meticulously. After about fifteen minutes he'd done the entire apartment, including bathroom and kitchen cupboards. He sat down on the opposite end of the couch, turning sideways to face her.

"Nothing."

"That's good," she said, not knowing what else to say. How to breech this sudden distance. Just last night he'd taken care of her with a gentleness that had amazed and endeared her. Now he was back to business.

"We're still on for Thursday?" he asked. She blinked. He was concerned about that? On second thought, maybe he should be. She wasn't sure how she felt about him right now.

"How often have you done it?" she asked instead of answering. No need to clarify what she was talking about. There was something of resignation in his eyes.

"Twice."

"When?"

"Once shortly after I met you for the first time."

"Why?"

"There was a project I was working on at the time. Meeting you… It all seemed so convenient that I wanted to make sure you were… what you claimed to be."

"As opposed to?"

He was silent for a while, looking at her. Finally he sighed.

"As opposed to someone planted to get closer to me."

Hmm. Okay. She didn't like it, but it was far enough in the past that she couldn't get particularly upset about it.

"And the second time?"

"Last week."

She gave him a steady look. His face was blank, his eyes cold. It was the closed-off expression she'd seen occasionally on his face during the Ramos mess. Now she thought of it, during that evening she'd hoped to bring him in because Joyce was blackmailing her. Was this his Army Ranger face? He clearly didn't find it easy to answer her questions on this.

"Why?" she asked softly. "Why did you think it was okay to go through my things? You're such a private person that there's loads of questions I feel I can't even ask you, and you don't even bother to ask me, you go straight to the source?"

"Babe…" he sounded a little pained. She waited.

"I used to…" he stopped, started over. "This kind of thing used to be my job. I did a lot of information-gathering missions and I was very good at it."

Of course. She'd never have known if her spidey sense hadn't prickled. Not a thing had been out of place.

"And if you do things like that often enough… you start to forget that there's a person behind the information you're gathering."

Like… the background checks she ran every day. She did it as part of her job, but she tried to never forget that it was someone's private life she was digging into, and always treated the information as confidential. Nothing she found out from those checks was going to end up in the Burg grapevine.

"I got… carried away… with the whole Rangeday thing." He paused a moment, seeming to struggle for words. "Didn't stop to consider that this time, I wasn't under orders, and that I had to decide on the boundaries for myself."

She sat a little stunned. That was way more than she'd ever expected to hear from him. Tank had mentioned once that he'd quit the Rangers because it felt like he was becoming a machine. She wondered if it had been the same for Ranger.

"Yes," she finally said. He gave her a questioning look. "Thursday," she clarified.

His face slowly relaxed, and the army look disappeared. She smiled because it was a relief to at-ease Range reappear. Then at-ease Ranger made way for something-up-my-sleeve Ranger.

"Good. Since you're having such a good time with all the mystery, I'm not telling you where we're going."

Oh boy.

Chapter 14

"You can't write, you can't use the mouse. What are you—" big yawn "—going to do in the office?"

"Ram, just pick me up please. I'm going insane!"

It was Wednesday morning, and she'd decided one day at home was quite enough for her sanity.

Ram sighed. She felt slightly sorry she'd called him out of bed. Then again, he had to get out anyway, and she desperately needed him to pick her up when he went to the office.

"If the boss growls because you were supposed to stay home longer, it's not on my head."

"He only said that I had to stay home yesterday. Nothing about today. Come on."

"Be there in half an hour."

"Thanks!" she called, but only the dial tone answered her.

Now she had to hurry to get ready. Normally thirty minutes would be fine before leaving for the office, but the cast slowed her down quite a bit. She managed the world's fastest one-handed catwash at the bathroom sink and struggled into her clothes. Buttons and zippers were out, so she settled for soft stretchy exercise trousers with a slight flare. Unfortunately they were Barbie pink. To even it out she picked a black hooded sweatshirt. Not exactly professional, but not totally slobby either. She just had to stay in her cubicle, on her chair, and nobody would see.

Yeah, right. She slipped on the sling they'd given her and she was ready to go.

Ram just stared at her legs when she opened the door to him, and not in a gosh-they-look-great way.

"What?" she snapped, hating to be dependent on getting rides and others shopping for her.

"Pink," he just said, like he was shell-shocked. Jeez, what was it with guys?

"It's the only thing I can deal with one-handedly," she grumbled. And she'd die before she'd ask help getting dressed. Except maybe to Ranger. Nope, on second thought, not even Ranger. That would just be too weird. She could deal with the impersonal way he'd washed her on Tuesday, because she'd been half unconscious and needed to be clean. However, when fully awake and aware, she liked Ranger the way he was. Liked the heated looks and the knowledge that he entertained Ideas when she licked her lips. It was sweet that he'd taken care of her, but frankly, 'sweet' was not a word she'd ever thought to connect to him. Domestic/Perfect Boyfriend Ranger was a little scary.

"Can we go now?"

---

Ranger was standing behind Hal at the monitor bank when she came into the control room. It was crew change-over so there were seven men staring at her in wordless shock. At least, she hoped it was shock.

Ranger looked like he was thinking about smiling. She did a one-handed 'what can you do?' gesture.

"Wow Steph, is that your suggestion for a new Rangeman uniform?" Bobby grinned.

"It's the only thing I could find that didn't have buttons," she said, a little defensively. Well, the only halfway decent thing without buttons.

"Babe," Ranger sounded amused. "Go shopping. Find something black."

"Can't go shopping." His eyebrows rose in question. "Have you ever tried signing a creditcard slip with your left hand?"

The guys burst into laughter. Guess they thought she was joking.

She went to her cubicle and put the mouse on the left side of her keyboard. That wasn't going to be easy to work with, but anything was better than sitting at home. Rex was good company, but the conversations tended to be a little one-sided.

She slowly keyed in the first search request and went to make herself a sandwich. She hadn't quite gotten as far as breakfast before Ram picked her up.

"You weren't supposed to get back here yet," Ranger said, appearing next to the fridge. "Bones broken during a takedown earn you a full week off, just ask Tank." He sounded amused.

She shrugged.
"I was going nuts at home. I like being at home when I should be out doing things, but…"

"When you have to be home…" he said.

"Speaking from experience?"

He nodded.

"What did you have?"

"Had my leg in traction for a while once."

Gah. At least she could get up and walk around.

"Well I'm not up to my usual speed, but I'm just going to be here. Unless this-" she pointed at her trousers, "is a problem."

"Babe." He was silent for a moment, as if he were considering something. "I don't want to give the men the idea that you get away with more than they would."

"I'm sorry. I can't drive, so I can't go shopping. Should I have stayed home?"

Please say no. I'm going to claw through the walls of my apartment.

"I'll think of something." His eyes were suddenly smiling. "I like it when you're here. Even if you do wear Pepto-Bismol pink."

She sighed in relief. The last thing she wanted was to be seen as Ranger's charity project who didn't have to follow the same rules as everybody else. The second-last thing was to be sent home because she didn't have the right colour of trousers on. Choices, choices.

"Be glad I'm not at home panicking about what on earth to wear to a mystery date." She managed to say it as a joke, but she was kind of worried about it. She could hardly turn up in sweats – what if he planned to take her to a nice restaurant? And she didn't exactly have a lot of clothing that went with a white biceps-to-knuckles cast. Plus, eating with one hand wasn't the most elegant thing she'd ever done.

He stepped a little closer, the outside of his arm brushing her shoulder. It probably looked casual. It didn't feel casual.

"Babe, don't worry about it. It's a relaxed place, or if you prefer, we can eat upstairs."

She tried not to look like a deer in headlights.

Eat upstairs? Hadn't they kind of decided to take things slow? She might have trouble reigning in her hormones if they were in his apartment with his shower and huge bed and 1000-thread count sheets so near.

"No, it's okay." Best not to put herself into temptation. Her body was very much opposed to taking it slow, but the rest of her found it a reassuring thought. If things would work out, they'd do so for a long time to come. There was no need to rush.

Sure, you really believe that, her hormones smirked.

She put her sandwich on a plate and brushed past Ranger to get out of the small kitchen corner. He leant in a little, so her arm touched his chest for a long moment. She grinned. They'd have to keep a professional distance in the office – even if they guys did know they were seeing each other, it wouldn't do the team any good if the boss was snogging with one of the employees in public view. Then again, she wasn't sure about him, but these little touches didn't exactly awaken professional thoughts in her.

---

"Babe."

"Babe." More emphasis now. She startled out of her trance. It was nearing 11 AM. Ranger was standing next to her. He quirked a smile and then grew serious again.

"Normally with a dress code violation I send the men home. Since you can't drive, I'm docking your pay for today instead."

That wasn't unexpected. At least she didn't have to go home, where the walls were closing in like that one scene in Star Wars.
"Okay."

"But because this isn't technically a working day for you, you're welcome to go upstairs and watch Ghostbusters. I should have the DVD somewhere."

Wide eyes.
"You watch Ghostbusters? You own the DVD?"

"My daughter loves it."

She decided to take him up on his offer an hour later, going for a lunchtime snooze instead of the usual workout. The film just served as a familiar backdrop; she curled up on the luxurious leather couch and sank away before the librarian even looked around the corner.

---

She woke suddenly and sat up. Something had changed. Blinking, she found Ella next to the couch. On the silent TV screen, the marshmallow man was burning.

"Sorry dear, I didn't mean to wake you."

The DVD system said it was just a little past 1 PM.

"That's okay, it was a one-film nap," she smiled. "Time to get back to work."

Her mobile phone rang around 3 PM, just when she felt like going back upstairs for another film. She normally didn't feel this tired early in the day. Could a broken arm – not even really broken – slow you down this much? Everything cost double the effort with this cast.

"Hey girl!" Lula called out as soon as she answered. "You up for some shopping?"

"Up for it, always. But I'm at work."

"Well girl, ask the boss. I got the feeling he won't object. He don't say 'no' to you a lot."

"I really can't ask for time off to go shopping—"

She felt the hair in the back of her neck prickle, and turned around to find Ranger watching her. He gave a small nod.

"—oh."

"What's happening girl?" Lula said in her ear. She was still watching Ranger. She wasn't sure she could stop. God, he looked good. He quirked a small smile and mouthed 'go shop'.

"Huh? Oh sorry. Apparently I can go shopping with you."

Lula burst into laughter.
"He with you there now? I can tell 'cause you all fuzzy-brained suddenly. Does the man know he got this effect on you?"

Her eyes were still on him. She felt rooted to the spot. His eyes were dark, and she felt her stomach do a weird flip-floppy thing.

"You know…" she said after a long moment, swallowing because her throat felt dry, "I think Macy's is just what I need right now."

Ranger flashed a smile, put an envelope on her desk, and disappeared.

When she'd hung up the phone she got to that envelope. It was in the same sort of envelope her paychecks arrived in, except it wasn't time for a paycheck. It was addressed and gummed closed like it was ready for the outgoing mail. There was a yellow post-it note on it with a few words in scrawly handwriting. Ranger's. Looking at his writing you couldn't help the feeling that he'd missed his calling as a serial killer. He usually typed everything he couldn't say in person – as Tank put it, to cut down on the amount of people queuing at his desk to ask him what the hell he'd written to them.

She looked at the words a moment. 'Go by the bank first'.

Curious about what he meant she opened the envelope. There was a note on Rangeman paper. It said 'Bonus for high-risk takedown, April 4.' Inside the note was a cheque for five grand.

She looked at the date. Yesterday. Thank God, that meant he hadn't just written a check minutes ago to send her shopping with. Probably Tank got one as well. If she was going to be involved with the boss she didn't want the feeling that he was treating her different than the rest of the employees. At least not on the work floor. Off the work floor he was welcome to treat her very different than the guys… in fact she'd insist on it.

---

"Girl, I been wanting to speak to you," Lula began as soon as she'd gotten into the Firebird. "You give my man the idea I knew something 'bout that Rangeday thing?"

Aha, so Hal had been in on the bugged bear. She stifled a grin. Seemed like Lula and Hal were pretty serious. Her friend looked great. Glowy.

"I might have. You and he still good?"

Lula got a silly grin. "Girl, we GREAT. Lemme tell you, Yesterday I got home and he was at my place and he was all.. intense, you know? Said I knew a secret and when the night was over, I'd be begging to tell him!"

"And?"

She fanned herself. "I was begging alright!" She made an oh-wow face. "Told him a whole bunch of things, but guess it wasn't what he wanted to hear."

Stephanie laughed.
"If you play your cards right you can stretch that game at least another night."

"I was gonna give you shit about not telling me all about this party of yours," Lula said. "But I decided you can keep your secret. More fun for me this way!"

At the end of the day she had some clothes that she could manage with one arm and that didn't look like pyjamas. Her hair was a problem, but she was quickly coming to the conclusion that she didn't feel particularly sexy with that big cast, and couldn't truly be bothered to fret about her hair. Ranger had seen her in worse states and somehow that hadn't deterred him, so there shouldn't be a problem with just looking nice rather than the drop-dead sexy look she had been intended to go for. Even though it went against all her Burg instincts.

Lula brought her home after they'd had dinner at the golden arches. In her defence, Stephanie had managed not to supersize anything. Still, by the time she got home she was on a distinctive Mc-Rush.

"Hey, if you want to keep Hal's attention with this torture thing," she said on an impulse before she stepped out of the Firebird, "Mention the codeword. Aurora."

Lula grinned wide.
"Aurora? I'll keep it in mind. See you!"

Stephanie sank down on her bed with a satisfied sigh. She had some nice new clothes and made her friend very happy. And tomorrow… tomorrow would be good too.

Actually, before she went to sleep there was one thing to do.

"Moshi moshi."

"Hey Tsuy, how was your date?"

It was silent a moment. Maybe her friend wasn't used to such an abrupt beginning of a phone conversation.

"Hello Stephanie. How is your arm?"

"It doesn't hurt, but this big cast is annoying. I keep wanting to stretch my arm."

"I'm sorry to hear that. When does it come off?"

"I hope the beginning of next week. Hey, you're avoiding the question!"

Tsuy was quiet for a long moment. Stephanie wondered if she was going to tell at all.

"It was… good. We enjoyed ourselves."

"And… what did you do? I want details!" oh God, she had turned into Lula.

"We went to an animal shelter."

Hmm, that was an unexpected move from Tank, though she had to admit she didn't really know him well enough to know what was normal for him. They spent time together at work, but she'd never really come to know at-home Tank. Like with Ranger, she hadn't really been aware that there was an at-home Tank.

"Were you this quiet with him too?" she grinned.

"No."

"And? Are you going to see him again?"

"Yes."

She could hear the smile in her voice.

"How did you know when we met?" Ah, so Tsuy could be curious too. Stephanie grinned.

"I could see it on his face. He's been all… all…"

She let the silence stretch. It took a while. Tsuy wasn't bothered by silence. Did the woman not have an impatient bone in her body?

"All?"

Hah!

"All glowy."

It was true, too. Tank was just as quiet as usual, but he seemed subtly different. She'd caught him smiling while he was doing paperwork. Maybe this was an alternative universe where the guys smiled while doing paperwork, but she didn't think so.

---

Another day, another hasty morning ritual. She hadn't slept very well; the cast kept her from getting completely comfortable. Ram waited patiently as she tamed her hair and pondered her clothing choice. Chances were good that she wouldn't get home before her date, so she had to choose strategically. She finally went with new stretchy black trousers, Rangeman T-shirt and black fleece jacket loose over her sling. She packed a fancier top and a bright blue shawl for the evening. It wasn't sexy, but at least it didn't look like she'd gone out in her pyjamas.

She was grateful for her shopping trip that evening. It wasn't that it was a fancy restaurant – cozy was a better description – but… well it was a little Cuban place, and she couldn't quite escape that Ranger knew the owner quite well. Maybe family-well. So it was a good thing that she didn't look completely uncivilised, even if she did have to eat with one hand.

Dessert had just arrived when Ranger's phone buzzed. He glanced at the screen and then answered. It was probably Tank, he'd told anyone else not to bother him.

"Yo. No, she's with me."

She gave him a questioning look. He listened to an explanation on the other side, shaking his head slightly as if he couldn't believe what he was hearing.

"Tell them she's fine. We'll come by after dinner for the paperwork."

He put the phone away and she leant her chin on her hands, looking at him.
"I don't really want to hear this, do I?"

"Probably not."

She picked up her spoon and dug into the delicious swirl of white and pure chocolate mousse.
"So don't tell me yet. After dinner."

He looked like he was considering a smile. Probably it wasn't too serious if he reacted like this. Damn, this mousse was amazing. How could Ranger resist this stuff? He'd taken one small spoonful from hers, savoured it, and that was enough for him. The man obviously had self-restraint that exceeded any level she could imagine.
This smile was probably because he couldn't imagine her not wanting to find out right away. Just because she was curious didn't mean she couldn't wait a while to find out, right? It was probably something dramatic yet entertaining. Grandma Mazur arrested for lechery. Another dead guy on her couch. A firebomb to her appartment.

Oh my God, how can I think that? Rex!

"I give in. What happened? Is Rex okay?"

"Babe."

"Well?"

"They found your car abandoned not far from the bond office. Tank was just checking if you were okay."

"Right, so what was it doing there?"

"He thought joyriders, but they're still looking into it."

"Is it too much to ask that it's in one piece?"

He hesitated a moment, and she groaned.
"It exploded, didn't it?"

"It looks like it was driven into a lamp post and then exploded."

She wanted to scream. She wanted to bash her head against the table. She wanted to yell "WHY ME?" at the word in general.

Instead she took another spoonful of the mousse and felt her eyes drift shut in pure unadulterated enjoyment. When she opened her eyes again, Ranger was watching her intently, his eyes very dark. He seemed a little surprised at her lack of reaction.

"It's a car," she shrugged. "Cars blow up. It wasn't even a very nice one, so I have a hard time getting worked up over it."

"I'll have someone drop off a car for you."

"Thanks, but by the time I can drive again," she indicated her arm, "I'll have bought a new one."

He looked amused.
"Babe, I meant for you to keep the car."

Oh. She looked at him and debated the idea of accepting another car. If he'd give her an Explorer that was written off and getting replaced, then she could live with that. But knowing him it wouldn't be an older or cheaper car, and she felt a little uneasy about accepting. Especially since its origin would be hard to define. She had other options. She could afford a new second hand. Maybe she'd get another Accord. Her current… previous… had served her well.

"Giving someone a car after the first date?"

"Babe, I gave you a car well before our first date."

That was true. But back then she hadn't had much in the way of options. And if she were fair about it, she hadn't been trying to find some kind of balance for a relationship with him, either.

"Well, I can't accept one now we're dating. Look, I can't explain it right now, okay?"

He looked at her for a long moment, and then nodded in acceptance.

"What are you going to do?"

"Second-hand car shopping. Want to come?"

He was quiet a moment, maybe reviewing his mental calendar.

"Tomorrow afternoon."

She rolled her eyes. He could at least have made it sound like a question.

"I have to work tomorrow. I was planning on going Saturday morning."

He flashed a grin.
"If you ask your boss nicely he'll give you time off and drive you there."

Drat, he had her there. Unless she wanted her father along, which would no doubt invite long discussions about her job and the buying of American-made cars… She loved her father, but the idea of taking him along car-shopping didn't appeal much. He'd only try to talk her into a Buick.

"Okay. Three O'clock work for you?"

She took another spoonful of mousse, and he nodded, watching her. She finished her dessert in silence. The way he was looking at her eating the mousse gave her three-quarters of a hot flash. How could a man make her feel like that just by watching her eat? Only Batman had this effect on her. Pondering this, she realised she'd let her tongue flick out to clean off the spoon.

"Babe." He sounded warning, and just a tiny bit strained. His eyes said that she was playing with advanced nuclear weaponry. She blushed a little and put the spoon down.

He paid for the meal and then guided her out with a hand in the small of her back. She felt warm and fluttery. Spending time with Ranger had always made her feel warm… hot even… but the fluttery thing was new. Scary, too. It made her realise that she was treading on thin ice here. Better walk carefully or it would break… and then she'd really be in the cold.

He backed her against the side of the BMW and cradled her face in his hands, giving her an intense look. Arousal mingled with apprehension and she shivered. Could be that she was already in over her head. Could be that he had a hold of her heart. Could be that she wasn't completely convinced he'd be careful with it.

"Dios, what you do to me," he breathed, leaning in to kiss her. No tongue, just deliciously soft lips, caressing her own with such a tender intensity that she felt like he was stealing her air. When he backed off she found her good hand had fisted into the side of his shirt.

His lips curled into the hint of a smile and he kissed her forehead, just a light brush of his lips. She took a slow, deep breath and felt most of the apprehension melt away.

"Let's go," he said softly. She thought just for the fraction of a second that he'd take her to his home. His eyes were—

"We need to sort out the paperwork."

Oh. She didn't know if that little rush in her stomach was relief or disappointment.

---

By the time they arrived, her ex-car was being hauled up on the flatbed truck that would take it to the scrap heap. She looked at it and sighed. Just then Morelli's car came down the street and stopped next to where they were watching the proceedings. The window rolled down and he nodded at them in greeting.

Ranger nodded back, face neutral. Joe looked from the wrecked car to her and grinned

"You outdid yourself on this one, Cupcake. Remote explosions are a new one."

"It's not funny."

His lips pressed into a line, and his eyes were laughing. She looked into his eyes and felt a giggle bubble up. She clapped a hand over her mouth before it could get out.

"I bet it wasn't your fault, either," he grinned.

"Shut up," she laughed. "Was anyone hurt?"

"I just got the call that two kids turned up at the emergency room. Eyebrows scorched off and some superficial burns."

"Thank God no one died. Hope it was a lesson for them."

He hesitated a moment.
"When the call went out…" he closed his eyes a moment and grimaced. "Your phone went straight to voicemail."

"I turned it off. I'm sorry."

He opened his eyes and gave her a sad smile.
"It's okay. Tank called me as soon as he knew you were okay."

She blinked. Not something she'd expected from Tank. He and Joe has been uncomplimentary about one another the few times they'd commented on each other. She made a mental note to thank Tank him for not letting Joe worry.

Morelli made eye contact with Ranger.
"'ppreciate it," he said.

Ranger nodded in acknowledgement.

---

She followed him into her apartment and waited while he checked around.

"Clear." He slid his gun back into his waistband and went to the door. She looked at him in surprise. Was he in a hurry to leave?

"Are you not… I was going to make coffee," she said.

"I have to go, Babe."

"Oh." Well that was embarrassing. Ask a guy to stay a while after he brings you home and he practically runs out. Doubly embarrassing and painful when it was Ranger. Usually she didn't scare guys off until at least the third date.

He must have seen some of that on her face, because suddenly he was standing in front of her.

"Babe, why didn't you want to have dinner in my apartment?"

Because I didn't think I could resist you if you decided that you wanted me in your bed, she thought. Because I really think this might have a chance if we don't rush anything.

He kissed her then. It wasn't a lets-get-naked kind of kiss. It was slow and sensual and full of promise. When he finally broke it she was plastered against him, his arms around her.

"That's why I have to go now. I'll see you tomorrow," he said with the hint of a smile.

---

When she came into the office the next day Lester and Hal was at the control desk.

"Hey Steph!" Lester said. "Glad you're okay!"

"Yeah. Sorry about your car," Hal added.

"Thanks. Is Tank in?"

Lester glanced at a roster.
"He's working from 1200 to 2000 these days."

She smiled at the military time denotation.
"I thought he came in mornings…"

"He used to, he just changed this yesterday."

Hmm, that was interesting. Something to do with Tsuy maybe? Working 80 hours a week wasn't exactly practical if you were serious about seeing someone. Oh well, she could try to pry it from him later. Or not. Maybe she should leave it. Yes. No. Damn.

"Ah, I just wanted to thank him for calling Joe and my parents last night."

Hal beamed.
"First test of the new protocol. Worked well, didn't it?"

"Protocol?"

Tell me you don't have a flowchart called 'things to do when Stephanie blows stuff up'

"We've been updating all the protocols. They're basically lists of actions to take in different situations. Who to call, and so on. Everyone here has at least one to his name."

"And… how many do I have?"

"Three. We were going to ask you to look at them. Make sure we're not missing anyone when we start calling."

"Okay. It worked well yesterday though. My parents heard from here before the grapevine reached them."

Hal and Lester high-fived each other.

"That was the challenge when we were working on your protocol," said Lester. "Oh, I think there's an envelop full of paperwork headed your way about what you want to happen if you get hurt in the field. You haven't had one before because you didn't do fieldwork, but now…"

"And a meeting with the Rangeman laywer," Hal added.

"Boy, that's thorough."

"The boss is a thorough man."

That he was. He was also a sneaky man. When she settled in at her desk she found a post-it note between the papers in her desk drawer. It said 'Laser Quest Challenge' and a phone number in a handwriting she didn't recognise. It was a little scuffed, as if she'd had it for a while. She'd never seen it before, so the concluded this was Ranger's way to keep the others off-balance about what direction she was taking with RangeDay.

Just to add to the confusion, she wrote 'ref: 8301' on a smaller post-it and stuck it to the first one.

The day was half over before she really knew it. Ranger appeared in her cubicle, dressed in black/grey camo trousers and tight black T-shirt. He wasn't thugged out, but it was definitely his street side. Yum. She didn't see Street Ranger much these days.

"You ready?"

"Yup."

He led the way to one of the older Explorers. She wondered why they were taking that car, but didn't ask. Probably he'd just smile and not tell her anyway. She settled in while he drove out of the garage.

"Babe, why don't you want me to give you a car?"

She looked at him as he drove. This had to bother him on some level if he returned to the subject. She wondered if she would ever be able to explain it to him.

Because I'm not convinced that they're completely legal and I don't know how to ask you.

"It's hard to explain. Why do you want to give me one?"

He shrugged. "Like seeing you in things I gave you."

"I have a wardrobe full of Rangeman clothes, you see me in that all the time," she deflected. It was true, too. It had started out with the standard T-shirts. Then the fleece jacket, Goretex windbreaker, sleeveless tops for in the gym… latest addition were nice black blouses with the Rangeman logo, for client meetings. "Everything short of monogrammed Rangeman underwear."

He looked over at her, his eyes widened a fraction and she saw the idea take root. Uh-oh.

"I hate blowing up fancy cars," she changed the subject in a hurry. "When it's a second hand make-do it's not such a waste." Nice save. And good to know that the mention of underwear distracts him from a subject.

He inclined his head a fraction to concede her point, and let the subject rest. Thank God.

"What kind of car were you thinking of?"

She looked over the huge lot filled with used cars. "I don't know. Thought maybe I'd get another Accord."

He watched as she checked out a few cars, and then drifted off to where the trucks were parked. He seemed to take a particular interest in one older model Toyota. When he pulled out his cell phone, she wandered over to find out what was up.

"Yo ... Yeah. Hey, that truck you'd seen on Top Gear... that one. What model? ... Hilux 2.4. Think we have a winner... no, 98 … Al could take care of that … Yeah, I'll tell her."

She looked at him, intrigued as usual by the cryptic conversation. He cut his eyes from the car to her and back, seeming to contemplate something. She looked at the car, trying to figure out why it had his attention. It was a midnight blue Toyota Hilux, a smallish truck. It was late-90s and looked well-used, but it had the kind of sturdy look about it that said it wasn't even halfway its useful lifespan.

"So what's special about this one?" she said when he didn't explain himself.

"It's ideal for you."

"But I don't want a truck."

"I think you should consider this one. It's very special."

"I repeat, what's special about it?"

"This truck might be THE most indestructible vehicle available to civilians."

She quirked an eyebrow at him. When he just looked back, faint grin still on his face, she got into the cab and slammed the door shut, trying to get a feel for the car. The interior had obviously been cleaned, but it was still shabby. The seats were ripped. She did like the view of the road it offered. And it had a passenger bench instead of a seat, so in a pinch three people fit in.

The passenger door opened and Ranger got in.

"Tank can tell you more about this, but the short story is that a British carshow called Top Gear subjected this model to some very destructive tests, and it survived everything, still started, and still drove."

"I should probably feel insulted by the fact that that makes a car ideal for me," she sighed. "But I guess it's true. So what did they do with it?"

"Among other things, drove it into the sea and dug it out of the sand after the tide left it. Set it on fire. And put it on top of a 20-story flat building when it was demolished."

"By machines?"

"Explosives."

"You have to be kidding me."

"Apparently it needed some crowbarring to get the wheels free, fifteen minutes of work by a mechanic, and it was good to drive."

She sat back and debated it with herself. On the one hand the car wasn't exactly glamorous. She'd set out with something hot and sleek in mind.. and if not that, at least something fit for polite society. This car wasn't polite. In fact, her mother would probably have a conniption.
On the other hand, it was kind of cool. The outside looked pretty good, and it had a good feel to it. It there was such a thing as a car that complemented her aura, this had to be it. And a car you could drive into the sea, leave there for a tide, dig out and drive away in... it might just be up to a career as her car.

"You've convinced me. I don't like the interior though."

"Let's talk to Al about that."

"What if I need to transport people? Or go on a stakeout?"

"Babe." isn't-that-obvious tone. "You borrow an Explorer."

"Thanks." she sat in silence for a minute more. "Yeah... yes. I want Al to check it out, and if he says it's a good buy, I'll go for it."

Ranger smiled.

Forty minutes later Al turned off the engine and patted the hood, grinning at her.
"Good choice. This puppy is going to last forever."

Yeah right, with her history for cars?

"Does it need any work?"

"Bit of tuning... I could have it ready by tomorrow evening."

"What can you do for the interior?"

"When does that cast come off?"

"Wednesday, hopefully."

"Tell you what, I'll fix it up nice and drop it off for you Wednesday."

"Works for me."

She paid for the car and watched Al drive it away. Ranger put an arm about her and kissed her temple.
"Let's eat."

Mmm. Good idea.

Chapter 15

Wednesday morning April 12 had finally arrived. Hospital day! Not that she enjoyed hospitals, but with any luck the cast would come off today. She closed her eyes and fervently wished that the bone had healed enough that she would be allowed to go without. She'd certainly been careful enough. Well, mostly, anyway.

Okay, that one kiss with Ranger had turned a little enthusiastic, but…

Anyway.

She hadn't seen him since Saturday; he'd gone on some undefined trip. Business or personal? He could be securing a third world country or watching Ghostbusters with his daughter. She had no way of knowing.

She had used the time to sort out Rangeday details. Told herself that it didn't matter that she didn't know where he was. She hadn't asked, knowing that he wouldn't tell her anyway. Not wanting to hear him say 'babe' in his why are you asking this tone.

She had an uneasy feeling about the situation though. She couldn't even ask him about it these days, because she didn't want him to feel she was intrusive. And she didn't want to be intrusive, because he had parts of his life that he didn't want to share and she wanted to prove that she could live with that. Wanted to prove that she wanted him for what he was, and that she didn't want to change him.

She'd just quietly hoped that things would be different now they were seeing each other.

And why did it feel like a month instead of just four days?

Her doorbell rang. One of the men would drive her to the hospital and then take her to the office. It turned out to be Lester.

He grinned when she struggled with her seatbelt and reached over to help her. That grin made her a little uneasy. Had he volunteered for this job because he could corner her about Rangeday?

"Don't like the look of that grin," she said. "What are you smirking about?"

"Just nice to have you alone," he shrugged. "Been wanting to talk to you."

"About what?"

"About that grin Tank's been sporting lately."

Whoa, change of gear. She blinked.
"Has he? I hadn't noticed." Yeah, right. Lester wasn't fooled.

"He's been disturbingly cheerful, and Bobby and me reckoned that if anyone was up on the gossip, it'd be you."

"What makes you think there's any gossip?"

"Come on, you've seen him!" Lester called out, exasperated. "The man was smiling. When does Tank smile? He just won't tell us anything."

"Well maybe that means he doesn't want you to know."

"Steph, girl, you have a few things to learn about Rangeman. Around here, if you wait for information to come to you, you'll wait till you're blue in the face."

"And if you pry in Tank's business, he'll help you get blue in the face."

His laugh boomed around the car.

"The X-ray looks good, but don't think you're there yet, okay?" the doctor said, giving her a strict look. "You need to go easy on it for another couple of weeks. No crazy stuff."

"I promise," she said solemnly. "I'll be good. Just please, please don't give me another cast."

He looked from the X-ray to her bare arm and back.
"All right. I'm sending you to a physiotherapist for some exercises. And use this elastic bandage."

---

"Moshi moshi."

"Tsuy?"

"Good afternoon Stephanie. How are you?"

She couldn't contain her enthusiasm.
"The cast is off!"

"Congratulations. That must be a relief." She could hear her friend smile.

"Absolutely. I just called to see if there was anything we could do tonight… I have to go easy on the arm, so…"

"I could think of something."

Stephanie smiled as she spotted Tank watching her from across the room.
"I think Tank is wondering if you want him there as well."

"He is always welcome, but we won't have much to do for him as victim," Tsuy said after a moment of hesitation. Stephanie sensed that her friend felt awkward about asking Tank along just because she wanted to see him, so was leaving it up to her.

"I think he may have some tricks to show us from his army training," she said. She needed to speak to her friend in private, but that could be another time.

"Ask him if he could come along, then," Tsuy sounded relieved.

---

She was startled from her concentration by her desk phone.

"Hey Steph, Al's here for you. He's out front," Hawk said.

On her way to the lift she walked by the window and spotted a dark blue truck. Her eyebrows rose. That couldn't possibly be HER truck...

On her way down she tried to think of an explanation, and couldn't think of any. She'd just asked Al to fix the seats!

"That rotten—!" she said under her breath when she stepped outside and walked up to the truck. Then to Al, who'd gotten out: "He replaced it, didn't he? This is a different car." No need to clarify who she was talking about.

Al looked at her dumbfounded.
"Nope, same car. I just civilised her a little for you." He patted the hood, proud of his work. "New seats, new dashboards, put in air, fixed up the bodywork and the coating, different bulbar... plus the standard bountyhunter package."

"Al, I didn't ask for all that stuff!" she was almost wailing now. Al's time didn't come cheap.

"Said I'd fix it up nice for you, dint I?"

He gave her the keys and got into a waiting car.
"Good luck with it!"

"But what about the-" The car drove off, "bill," she finished lamely.

After a long moment she remembered that the guys were probably watching out of the windows upstairs, and got into the car to park it in the garage. The seats were faux leather, comfortable and easy to clean. There was a roll cage she didn't remember, floorbolts at the passenger side and a reinforced sissy bar to lock an FTA to. The dashboards were all new, and she found a GPS hidden in a small compartment. There was a note there too. She wasn't surprised when it had Ranger's scrawl on it.

'Enjoy. R'

He was out of town until at least tomorrow, so she couldn't run upstairs and yell at him… thank him… kiss him senseless… Any of the above. All of the above. She pulled out her cell phone and got his voicemail.

"Go." beep

"Hey, it's me. Al just brought the car. Jeez. Just… I don't know what to say. Thanks. You're insane, but thanks."

---

"New car?" Tsuy greeted her while she took off her shoes. "Saw it from the attic window. Good choice."

"I noticed that everybody around here seems to drive Toyota," Stephanie said. The RAV, the LandCruiser… actually most of the cars in the lot were Toyota's.

"Family thing," Tsuy smiled. "In 1937 Mr Toyoda helped my great-grandfather set up a business."

She seemed to think that explained everything. Maybe they all drove Toyotas as some form of loyalty? Or maybe it was about buying Japanese. She smiled because it reminded her of her father.

"You drive a Mini," she said as they walked into the dojo room.

"The Mini was a gift from some British friends. And one of the uncles of my mother still doesn't talk to me because I drive it."

"Someone gave you a Mini off the racing track?"

"It's been raced on the Nurburgring in Germany. One day I just got a call from a shipping company, that they had a birthday delivery for me."

"You have crazy friends. Speaking of friends, where is Tank? He said he'd be here."

"He called, he will be."

She grinned. She was still getting used to how her friend suddenly spoke more with Tank than she did.

"I saw you made the front page of the paper," Tsuy smiled. Stephanie groaned.
"My grandmother was so excited to have new material for her collection. There hasn't been that much since I stopped bounty hunting."

"I could have made a better photo, but I thought the article was all right."

"You do photography?"

"I study it… or rather, studied. I put things on halt when I came here."

"How far along are you?"

"Just need to do the final project. Well, design it first. Maybe a year more work. I actually just had my cameras shipped in from Tokyo, I'm going insane with boredom. Figure I can get started here."

That was interesting. Did this mean she had no plans to return to Japan anytime soon?

"You could finish it here, couldn't you? I'm sure there's an Arts college that does a similar program around here."

"I'm considering that."

Steph felt an idea stand up in the back of her mind and do a snoopy dance. She wanted to have some photos of Rangeday, and had been planning to buy a bunch of disposable watertight cameras so the guys could make them themselves. Nobody would want to get stuck with being designated photographer if that meant missing out on the fun. However if Tsuy could come by to make some photos… Having good quality images opened up a world of fun. Like having posters made afterward. She made a mental note to discuss with Ranger if it would be okay to invite someone to come by and make photos.

"Shame we didn't meet a couple of years earlier, you could have made a project of my cars and their demise."

Tsuy grinned.
"That would have been the talk of my school, that is for sure. I have a good feeling about that Hilux though."

"That's what Ranger said. I'm not so sure."

"I figure that if that blows up too, you should go to Hollywood and make major money working for a special effects company."

"I didn't make the last one blow up! It just happened!"

"Those joyriders say different," Tank said suddenly from behind her. She jumped, and then got distracted watching an almost-smile pass between her friends. It was the only indication that they saw more of each other these days. No kiss, no 'hey babe'. If they had been anyone else, she would have thought it cold.

"Hey wait, what did those guys say? And where?"

Tank sank down smoothly to sit cross-legged. He settled down so that they formed a little circle and waited a moment, a grin playing at his lips. That probably meant it was amusing to him and embarrassing to her.

"Sold their story to the paper. They took your car for a dare."

"What?"

"It was a college bet. These guys got high and bet some friends that they could drive your car for an hour and it wouldn't explode."

She rounded her back and let herself roll back, groaning.

"Did they make it an hour?"

"Forty nine minutes. They had a stopwatch with them."

Stephanie rubbed at her eyes with the palms of her hands and sighed.
"This didn't happen. I'm having a really wacko dream."

"Gets better," Tank announced.

"It never does."

"Trust me, you'll love this. They are in their police statement as saying, and I quote 'she has super-mutant-turtle-ninja powers and detonated the car with her mind rays.'"

"You're making that up."

"Would I?"

She used the weight of her legs to roll herself back up to a sitting position.
"Absolutely you would."

Tank tilted his head to concede the point.
"I didn't, though. But don't take my word for it…" his eyes glistered with glee, "it will be in the paper tomorrow."

"My life is a statistic improbability."

---

Later that night she curled up around a pillow and sighed happily. They had exchanged some interesting ways to defend yourself with common items; keys, shoes, cell phones... everything could be used if you knew how, and she knew now. She'd need some more practise, but once the ideas were there… her arm already felt less stiff. She'd go to the gun range tomorrow to get back into practise.

And tomorrow Ranger would be back. He'd called briefly earlier tonight, to ask how it went at the hospital. They'd talked for a little while. Imagine that! Talking on the phone with Mr One-Word Answer, for at least 5 minutes, about nothing in particular. Maybe this was an alternative universe.

It hadn't made her feel breathless this time, and that was a relief. It was scary enough that she would actually miss him when he'd been gone for just four days. Over the years she'd known him there had been plenty of times that she hadn't seen him for weeks on end, and she had noticed, but it hadn't really felt like it did now. Like there was a Ranger-shaped emptiness in her life. And that, frankly, terrified her like nothing else. She was more than walking on thin ice. She was walking a tight rope over the Grand Canyon after half a bottle of wine. In gale-force wind.
Blindfolded.

---

"Hey Wonder Woman!"

She let the door to the control room fall shut behind her and blinked at Bobby, not exactly awake yet. He grinned wide and pointed at the outside of her cubicle across the room. There, copied and enlarged to A2 format, a newspaper header said:

BOMBSHELL BOUNTY HUNTER HAS SUPER POWERS

Several Rangemen were watching her, she noticed. Maybe they were waiting for her to impersonate her mother and wail 'Why me?'.

"Damn, my secret identity is out."

"We've ordered you a T-shirt," Hawk grinned.

"Cool. Black? Don't tell the boss. Maybe I can get away with it in the office."

She spent 40 minutes on the shooting range with Lester and did a short session in the gym over lunch. Then she spoke with Ella about some practical details for Rangeday. Much to her own shock, everything seemed pretty much sorted. It was getting kind of disconcerting.

Any moment now things would implode. The company would cancel. The cook would get a hernia. The material would get wrecked in a fire. There'd be a hurricane and they couldn't get on the beach. The weather would turn and in an unseasonable cold spell it'd start to freeze. The guys would figure out what the activities were and she'd lose the bet. The guys would hate the activities.

Calm down. Picture the ocean. Concentrate on the surf. Breathe with the surf.

She forced herself to take deep, slow breaths. This was going to work out. And if it wasn't, it wouldn't be for her lack of effort.

I need a donut.

It was just past three when there was a hush in the office. Felt like static electricity suddenly filled the room. Officer-on-deck silence. She heard Ranger talk to the men at the monitors in a low voice, and then it grew silent. Now, she had to time this well…

"Yo boss," she said, turning her chair to face him. The little intake of breath said she'd caught him. Hah, go Steph!

He looked edible in black slacks and button-down shirt, top button open. She tried not to stare while he stayed outside the cubicle for a moment to look at the enlarged article. His eyes smiled.

"Babe." It meant 'only you', she thought.

"Since I'm officially Wonder Woman now, do I get a raise?" she grinned.

"I'll consider it. Come to my office," he said. She chose to take it as a request rather than an order, and followed him. He closed the door behind her and then pulled her close, hands on her hips.

"I try to behave professionally toward you in the office," he said with his lips about an inch away from hers. "It's not easy when you look at me like you just did."

"Did what?" being this close to him didn't do wonders for her higher brain functions.

"You looked at me like I was the first Boston Crème you'd seen in weeks."

She rose up on her toes and leant in, capturing his bottom lip and giving it a nibble.
"Yum."

The next moment he was kissing her, and his hands on her back held her to him and upright and that was good, because her knees certainly weren't working properly.

"Babe."

He sounded a little out of breath. Well, good. At least she wasn't the only one.

"Mm."

She pressed her nose against the side of his neck as he pulled her tighter against him. Mmm, he smelt good. His arms were around her, strong as if he didn't intend to let her go for a while yet.

"Missed me?" she joked.

"Mm," he hummed just above her ear. It meant 'yes'. She thought.

"How long have you been home?" It was a quarter past three. He'd said he'd be back mid-morning.

"About 97 seconds."

"Funny."

He was slowly rocking them from side to side while they talked, almost like dancing. Seductively soothing. She struggled to keep her brain functioning. It was altogether too tempting to let herself drift away on clouds of warm fuzziness.

"The men are getting worried about RangeDay, Babe" he said after a moment. She resisted the urge to smirk and went with a trembling bottom lip. Not that he could see it, with her forehead against his neck and his chin resting on her head.

"What, they don't think it'll be any fun?" she said, putting a bit of dejection in her voice. "I really am trying…"

"You're not fooling me, Babe," he whispered over her ear. "But by all means, continue for their sake."

Damn. Note to self: fooling Ranger takes acting lessons.

"And you, are you worried?" she asked after a long moment. His soft breath over her ear was a little distracting. Probably that was the point.

"Not about RangeDay," he said with a grin in his voice. She wondered what he was worried about.

"While we're talking about that," she started after a long moment.

"Yes?"

"Would it be okay to invite someone to come for a few hours during the day, to make photos?"

"Have anyone in mind?"

"I just found out that Tsuy studies photography."

"And you're not telling her the activities?" He was probably thinking of Tank finding out.

"No." There's no need. "I could let her know the location last minute."

"Go for it," he kissed her. "It'd be fun to have good photos of the day."

---

She lay in bed that night and tried to pretend she was in a tropical place, swinging lazily in a hammock. Some handsome Cuban looking man bringing her a drink with a little umbrella in it.

It wasn't working tonight. She was swinging back and forth between feeling warm fuzz about Ranger's return – because had he actually kind of told her that he wasn't home until he saw her, or had that been her imagination? – and apprehension about that warm fuzz.

Warm fuzzy feelings for someone who disappeared into the unknown for days were not sensible. Warm fuzzy feelings for someone who did possibly lethally dangerous things in that same unknown… well that would inevitably lead to heartbreak of a sort.

Stop thinking about this. Hammock. Soft sound of the ocean. Warm breeze. Swinging lazily…

---

"Bombshell! You gonna come shoot pool or what!"

Another day had passed. She shook herself from her thoughts and got up to join Hawk and Bobby at the pool table. Lately Shorty's was trying out some entertainment besides beer and pizza. After an unfortunate trail-run of a darting board, which had invoked some 911 calls and a short but memorable police investigation, he had settled on a pool table. Not that pool cues couldn't be used to do damage, but there was no risk of that now because there was a crowd of Merry Men around the table and no one else was even going to come near the cues.

"Sure, I'll give it a go," she shrugged, accepting a cue from Hawk. "Aren't you supposed to do the blue-crayon thing on the tip?"

Around her the betting began. She accepted the chalk from someone and took her time making the tip of the cue blue. She had had one drink and it hadn't hit her as hard as usually, but they didn't know that. She smiled at the blue tip while she worked.

"It's done, Steph," Hal grinned.

"Missed a bit," she said seriously, and continued. Then, while it grew quiet around her, she declared the cue "pretty" and looked up to smile at Bobby. The betting seemed to be mostly in favour of him, and she wasn't surprised. Apparently he'd gotten a reputation for it in the service. Mathematical mind, gift for strategy – it really wasn't surprising that he was good at it.

Hopefully it would be a surprise that she was, too. With a bit of luck these guys were in for a surprise. She'd practically majored in pool at college.

"Ladies first," Bobby grinned. One of the new guys called that it was only fair that she start, or she'd never even get to play. She leaned forward and afforded the other side of the table a look down her top. Not that there was anything to see with this high V-neck, but it was the principle of the thing. A murmur arose.

She broke the rack and proceeded to sink balls, no longer pretending to be tipsy after the fourth ball or so. Nobody was fooled, anyway. It was very quiet around her, and she smiled to herself. Guys. Maybe this would teach them to bet on her and her life. The rangemen didn't do it to the extend that the cops did, but it still irked her sometimes.

The last ball hit the pocket with a thud and she straightened up. Everybody started talking at once. Bobby looked bemused, and then started to laugh, warm and deep. Hector was suddenly in front of her and gave her a hug, raving about something in Spanish.

He let her go and she was rocked by Ranger's force field as he came up behind her, his body skimming hers.

"Very impressive," he whispered over her ear, and she scolded her knees for going weak. "The acting and the playing."

A lot of wallets were suddenly in hand and Ranger and Hector were given money. Ah, her supporters. She half turned so Ranger could hear her.

"How did you know?"

"You told me about your college days," he grinned. "And Hector is convinced you're really Wonder Woman."

He gestured at Shorty for another round and guided her back to the booth.

It was late – or early, depending on how you looked at it – when he drove her home. She sat sideward in her seat, watching him be in his driving zone.

Who is this man?

The thought rose to her Margarita-addled mind before she could stop it, and now it was there it wouldn't go away. She tried to answer it.

This is Ranger. He's my mentor, my friend and I think that I might be in love with him.

Yes, but who IS he?

Ranger is Ranger. Ranger supports me and says he loves me. He is he and I am me.

But you know about you. You know who your parents are, what your favourite food is, where you'd like to go on holiday, what you want out of life. You don't know anything about him. Where was he this past week? Why doesn't he tell you? Where do his cars come from? Is he willing to be there when you're not in a jam? And how can you claim to love someone you don't know anything about?

She let out a long sigh, suddenly feeling rather down. For the longest time she'd considered the idea of a relationship with Ranger, and now she had the chance she was reconsidering. How could this ever work? They'd only been going out a few weeks and she already caught herself thinking 'if only'. If only he was more open with her. If only he'd tell her where he went when he was on those secret missions. If only…

Chapter 16

"I had a great afternoon. Never figured you for going to the zoo," she smiled, punching the lift button.

He watched her as she bounced on the balls of her feet and gave her a small smile.
"April is the best time of the year."

"I liked the baby tigers best. Hard to think that something so cute will become a huge tiger. And the little giraffe trying to figure out what to do with all those legs."

She stepped out of the lift and waited for him to unlock the door to his apartment.
"So what did you like best?"

He slanted her a hot look while he closed the door behind them.
"You watching the baby tigers."

She felt herself blush. She hadn't managed to convince him to eat an icecream, so she had made sure he knew how much she enjoyed hers. The baby tigers had been cute, but she'd stayed there so long because there was a breeze to cool down her face.

It had been a good day; time spent together with nothing exploding and nobody getting shot. Quite unusual, really. She sat at the bar while he got out a wok pan and put it on a high flame. Ella and Louis had gone out for the evening, but Ella had left behind the chopped-up components of a good wok meal.

Stephanie rested her chin on her hands and watched him cook, smiling because every now and then he'd look at her, seeming tempted to come over and kiss her, and then the cooking food would draw his attention back to the stove.

"So, do I get icecream for dessert?" she teased. "Or chocolate mousse?"

Before she realised it he was facing her from across the bar, his hands on her upper arms, hauling her closer while he leant in. His eyes were dark and she thought that the way he looked at her might just melt her bones.

"You're playing with fire, Babe," he murmured against her lips.

She sucked air and desire washing through her, hot and demanding. He didn't move, and she couldn't. Suspended in the hormone-charged force field between them. She wanted to be in that amazing bed with this amazing man right now, and there was no reason why that couldn't happen. Her legs were shaved. Rex would be fine until tomorrow. The perfect opportunity to stay the night… And to make sure that there wouldn't be lot of sleeping on the to-do list. Her eyes glazed over at the thought of it.

"Ranger—" she drew in a deep breath, suddenly aware of a new smell. "The food. Ranger, the FOOD!"

He snapped out of whatever had a hold on him and let go, grabbing the wok and shaking the food, cursing under his breath. The beginning of a burning smell dissipated and they both heard her stomach rumble.

Ranger shook his head with an unrepentant grin.
"You're a hazard to my brain function."

"That better be a compliment."

He caught her hands to the surface of the bar with one hand and turned the wok burner down with the other. Then, not letting go of her hands, he walked around the end of the bar to end up behind her, melded up against her back. Well, some of him melded. Other parts pushed against her, insistently. Was that her favourite part pressing against her backside? She arched her back a little to make sure. Ranger gripped her wrists a little harder and pressed himself against her.

"You'd better believe it," he said in a low voice. She felt herself sweat in select places. Then all of a sudden he let go, going back to the stove, turning the flame back up, leaving her flushed and off-balance.

"You—you—"

She put her hands flat on the countertop and took a few deep breaths, trying to get herself under control.

"The food, Steph, the food!" he taunted, his eyes gleaming wickedly.

"Good point," she managed in an almost normal voice. "I'm really hungry."

Damn skippy.

Once she managed to force her attention to her appetite, the meal was very good. They ate at ease, the tension shelved for now. That made her grin. After dessert they could get it back off the shelf.

"Ella was thrilled when I said you'd eat over," he said when they were done. "I think she's been experimenting with her icecream machine."

"Ella has an icecream machine?"

"The secret of eating well is to make the cook happy," he flashed a small grin. "She promised me this would be something we'll both like."

"I'm curious now."

It turned out to be icecream made of, well, a smoothy. Strawberries and orange and banana, with some yoghurt, frozen into a deliciously smooth icecream.

"Ella is a marvel," she said amidst appreciative little sounds. "This is amazing."

She watched him take a spoonful. God, he was sexy when he didn't use the blank face. She put another spoonful into her mouth and then moved over to kiss him. He caught an arm about her waist and pulled her sideways onto his lap, and they shared a delicious, icecream-flavoured kiss.

"Mmm," he said when they finally broke for air. "I think Ella is getting a raise."

She laughed and he chuckled and she closed her eyes briefly, feeling the vibration in his chest and willing this moment between them to last forever. Right now, right here, she could believe that loving him wouldn't prove a painful mistake.

She startled when he slid an arm under her legs and stood up, lifting her effortlessly and carrying her to the huge sofa. He sat down with her in the corner, so she could lean against the armrest. He reached over to undo her shoelaces and take off her shoes, so she could nestle her feet onto the couch. Then he laid a kiss on her that made her forget everything around her, even her own name. His hands were on her back and side, rubbing in a slow rhythm that seemed to scorch her skin. A fire blazed low in her stomach, and she dimly wondered if that loud, fast thudding in her ears was her heart, and if he could hear it, too.

When they had broken apart and she just sat there in a daze of lust, he caressed the shell of her ear with his lips.
"Tell me about Rangeday," he whispered.

She grasped around for her powers of speech and then suddenly realised what he'd said.
"You already know about Rangeday," she said, sounding breathless. He settled a hand on her belly and began to rub slow, hot little circles.

"Not everything…" he said low over her ear, his voice husky. "Tell me everything."

She felt her insides turn to quivering jelly. When he was like this, he could ask her anything. He was irresistible.
And he knew it.

Just a moment now, a small but insistent voice said from the back of her mind. Is he actually using this as an interrogation? And did you just think he could ask anything, while you still can't ask him anything?

Stephanie mentally squashed down her raging hormones and drop-kicked the resulting mess firmly into the corner of frustration and anger. She closed her eyes and took a long breath. Her heart still hammered like she'd been for a run.

"Boy, you're good," she said then. "Almost had me there."

His face lost its expression and his hands stilled.
"Babe?"

"You know just about anything there is to know about me, but this one, ONE thing that you miss details on, boy that must bug you like nothing else. Meanwhile," she took his hand off her stomach and dropped it, "I still don't know a thing about you and I can't even ask you."

He was silent for a long moment, measuring his words perhaps. She was about to continue, getting into her rant now, when he said:
"Why can't you ask?"

"What's your daughter's name? Where do your cars come from? Where were you when you were gone earlier this week?"

His face hardened and the warmth drained from his eyes. Something small and fragile crumpled inside of her and she struggled to her feet, shoving his hands away. He stayed where he was, eyes fixed on her as she paced.
"What brought this on?"

"You did!" she heard her voice rise and embraced the anger. It was better than the bitterness welling up in her throat. "You did! With your secrecy and your silence!"

He didn't say anything, so she continued.
"You know what? I've been psyching myself up for a week to ask you that! You've actually trained me to NOT ask you questions, because I know this is the reaction I'll get, and I don't want you to feel that I'm intrusive, so I don't even ask anymore!"

She waited for him to say something, get into the conversation… argument… whatever. To give some sort of reaction. He just sat there, watching her blank-faced.

"I don't understand what you want with me if you don't want me to know you. Am I supposed to just happily kiss you goodbye when you leave to do God-knows-what in God-know-where? Well box me up and mail me to Somalia, but that just isn't going to fly. Don't-ask-don't-tell is NO basis for a relationship!"

His voice was cool when he finally spoke.
"What do you want to know?"

"I want to know the things you usually learn about a person in the first month that you know them. The things I want to know, I shouldn't have to ask for!"

He said nothing. She threw up her hands in exasperation and growing anger. Was he just waiting for her to calm down so he could go back to kissing her or something? Did he not see a problem in any of this? Did he not care? She suddenly felt painfully alone in this 'relationship'. At least with Joe they had both been invested in what was going on. She had thought Ranger was willing to make space for her in his lifestyle, but come to think of it he'd never actually said that. Did he expect her to just adapt herself to his life?

"Sometimes I feel alone while you're right here," she whispered, desolation momentarily overtaking anger. "You once told me that I had thirty percent of Morelli. I'm beginning to feel like all you'll ever share with me is five."

He stood up and seemed to want to reach for her, but his face was still blank. It was scaring her a little, and she sidestepped him, needing some space. She continued pacing, restless, wishing he would give her some sort of reaction. Some indication that she wasn't alone in here, that it touched him, too.

"And then I remember what you said… about being an opportunist, and being back in my bed if Morelli was out of it." Her voice wavered briefly at the memory. "Is that what's happening now? Is this a new way to get into my bed? Because if we keep going on this course, all this will ever be is a convenient arrangement between fuckbuddies, and that's never going to be enough for me!"

Anger flared in his eyes, and she almost wished he'd yell, that he'd grab her, that he'd give her some idea of what was going on inside his head.

Instead all she got was a cold, measured
"Why do you think of that night as a mistake?"

"Because I felt something with you there!" she yelled, back to full volume. "Because for one night, it felt like you were willing to share more with me than your body, and then you left without looking back, and it made me feel cheaper than I've ever felt!" she rubbed at her forehead, turning away to look out of the window. Her voice dropped. "Even cheaper than after Joe and the Tasty Pastry," she continued. "At least back then I had the excuse of being young and stupid. Seems only the first part has changed since then."

She was aching, craving to hear about his reasons. Why he'd wanted that night in the first place. What it had been for him. Why he'd left as he did. What, if anything, was different now. But it was silent in the room, and after a long moment she saw in the window reflection that he turned and walked into the kitchen.

Well, that was it, she told herself, feeling more alone than ever. You gave it a go, anyway. Had some nice times. Better leave now.

She picked up her shoes and coat and quietly walked out of the apartment. The lift was there, and she stepped into her shoes while it rode down to the garage. She felt strange, numb. Probably she'd want to have a cry later, but right now she didn't feel anything.

It was over. Her short-lived attempt to have something like a relationship with Ranger was over before it had even really begun. She'd wondered what it was like to be with him and now she knew. It was impossible.

The sight of the Hilux evoked mixed feelings in her. Her car… but it carried his stamp. For a long moment she wished for her trusty Accord, all hers. She'd ask Al for the bill of the revision and pay it back to Rangeman. Then she'd go to Vinnie and get back into bounty hunting.

The engine growled to life and she sighed in relief. In a moment she'd be gone. Maybe then the ringing in her ears would lift and she'd find some air that had oxygen in it. She let the truck roll up to the gate and held her badge in front of the chipreading box that controlled the gate. It beeped, and the little light blinked green in recognition, but then changed back to red.

The gate didn't open.

She tried again, cursing softly, and was met with the same results.

No way this is happening.

She hauled out her cell phone and dialled the control room. Woody answered.

"Open. The. Gate," she gritted without greeting, having no doubt that he was watching her on camera and knew what was going on.

"Sorry Steph, can't do. The boss—"

"Really likes his BMW, I believe," she cut him off. "I can see it here in my rear view mirror, gleaming prettily. And when I throw this thing into reverse and step on the gas, it won't look so nice anymore. What will it be?"

"Shit Steph, it won't be on my head." Disconnect.

She put the car into reverse and just when she was ready to back it up, the passenger door opened, to possibly the last person on earth she wanted to see right now. She looked away, not wanting him to see how hot her face suddenly felt and how close she was to tears.

Ranger climbed into the passenger seat and closed the door. He sat silently for a long moment, and then she heard a soft clinking and felt something hard and cool touch her hand. Glancing down she found it was a bottle of Corona, a slice of lime in the neck. Accepting without really wanting to, she put it to her lips and took a swig. From the corners of her eyes she saw him do the same, a pensive look on his face.

I want to go home, she wanted to tell him. Open the gate and let me go.

But she didn't. They sat there for long minutes, silent, drinking. The Hilux was still idling, but she left it, not sure if he was going to say anything, not willing to let go of her chance for a quick get-away. What did he want? More silence wasn't going to change anything. She waited him out, sipping her beer. The bottle was nearly empty when he heard him let out a long breath.

"I hate when I yell. I hear myself do it and I sound just like my father."

She glanced at him, but said nothing. Wasn't about to do anything that might make him stop speaking. He rubbed at his jaw.

"Man, we were little shits as a kid, my brother and me. Always up to something. My father wasn't a bad man. He just didn't know how to deal with us."

She had no problem imagining him as a little hellraiser.

"Then during my marriage…" he paused a long moments, seeming to struggle for words. "Alicia had a hell of a temper. And that was before I learned to control mine."

She had no trouble imagining that, either. It wasn't hard to see that his time in the Rangers had played a huge role in making him the man he was today.

"We had these… fights. Screaming matches. The baby crying in her crib. The neighbours calling the police because they thought we were killing each other."

He glanced at her, then back at the windscreen, not really seeming to see anything.

"One of those times I realised that I sounded just like my father, and that I never wanted to make someone I cared about feel like he used to make me feel. I doesn't…" he trailed off, started again, "It doesn't mean that I don't care."

She nodded slightly to acknowledge his words, recognising this confession for what it was. He was opening up to her, though it clearly wasn't easy. He was trying to give her something.

"Will you come back upstairs?" he asked, sounding just a touch uncertain. "To talk for a while?"

She wondered if that meant that he would actually tell her something, or if they'd end up in his bed and this evening would never be mentioned again. No, that last was what happened when she was with Joe. Ranger was thorough. Maybe he realised that something had to change. He was trying to talk to her. Maybe this would make a difference.

Maybe it won't.

But if you don't go, you won't find out.

"Okay."

She backed the Hilux back into its spot and got out, noting that he waited until her feet were on the ground before he got out himself.

He didn't say anything in the lift back upstairs, and she fidgeted with the empty beer bottle, unsure of what would happen now. Why he didn't say anything anymore. She had just gone off at him like a screaming harpy and pretty much called everything off. How did you continue a conversation from that point on? Not something she had experience with. With Joe there were usually a couple of weeks between these occurrences.

She startled when his hand suddenly folded around hers, and he winced at that reaction, but didn't let go. His thumb stroked the back of her hand, stilling the nervous fidgeting with its calm warmth.

"It's okay, Babe," he said softly. "Let's just wait until we're not on camera."

Good point.

He let them in and took the bottle from her hand.
"Want another one?"

Better to have a vaguely clear mind about this.
"No thanks."

She stood around awkwardly while he filled two glasses with mineral water. Where to sit? The armchair? That might send the wrong message. The sofa? She still wasn't sure what kind of talk this was going to be, and the sofa might be closer to him than she could handle.

"God, it kills me to see you like this in my house," he said softly from the kitchen entrance. "So ill at ease."

Is this your house? She wanted to ask. Is this your home?

"I was trying to decide where to sit," she said instead, mindlessly.

He nodded as if that made sense to him, handed her a glass, and then walked past her to sit in the far end of the sofa. Leaving it up to her to decide where to sit. She stood uncertain for a moment, then settled down at the other end of the sofa, half turning to look at him. She noticed that she was still wearing her coat, but left it. Depending on how this conversation would turn out, it might save time later.

"I'm sorry, Babe," he said after a long silence. "You've been… hurting… and I didn't even realise."

She didn't have anything to say to that, so she said nothing. He didn't seem to expect it, anyway.

"God, I don't even know where to begin…" he rubbed at the bridge of his nose and then took a deep breath. "I've only ever had one relationship before now, Babe, and that was my marriage. Which I fucked up in spectacular fashion."

He seemed to expect a reaction from her, but when she didn't say anything, he continued.

"In hindsight I was way too immature to even try for something so serious, but she was pregnant, and we thought we were doing the right thing. All the women since then.."

She closed her eyes, not particularly caring to hear this.

"…what I had with them was purely physical. I never wanted more than that. I thought I would never want more than that."

He paused, glancing at her.
"Babe, what I'm trying to tell you is that I don't exactly have a lot of experience in building a solid romantic relationship. That doesn't excuse me, but maybe it explains some things."

She nodded, but didn't say anything. Now he was talking she wasn't going to distract him with comments or questions.

"That night… I'm not proud of how I ended up in your bed, Babe. I wanted it, more than ever, and I was convinced that at that moment, you did too."

That almost sounded like a question, and she nodded to confirm his thought. He sounded vaguely relieved when he continued.
"But by the time—" he shook his head and started over. "I didn't sleep at all. When you finally slept, I just lay there and watched you. I'd never done that before, never wanted to do that before, with anyone. I didn't sleep because I didn't want to miss a moment of that night."

"You ran out," she said, grimacing at how small and hurt she sounded. "That morning. Without even looking at me."

"I know, and I can only apologise for it. The alarm went and I… I just wanted to stay. And that— I panicked, Babe, and I fled."

She sat there watching him, speechless.

"I don't have any experience with this kind of relationships Babe, but I— I want to learn, if you'll give me the chance. I want to learn to make you happy."

He glanced at her, but she couldn't think of anything to say, and he continued.

"I didn't realise that you needed to know those things because you didn't ask, and I've never been the information-volunteering kind." He gave her an intense look. "It's okay to ask, Babe. I don't think you're intrusive."

"That's okay for some things," she acknowledged. "But if you want me in your life, you're going to have to show me in. I'm not going to push you about things. I figure; you want me to know something, I'll know. And if I don't know something..." like where you live or when your birthday is or who your family is and what you want with me "then that's because you don't want me to know."

"Babe..." he stared at her, and she thought she saw something of shock and... disbelief? "You're not making this easy."

"I'm not trying to. It isn't easy. And if you don't want to do this... then I need to know."

His eyes were hardening. "Let me get this straight. You want me to tell you Every. Single. Detail. about my life, unless it's something I don't want you to know?"

It kills me when you look at me like this.

"Yes. No." I don't know! "Not that literally. But I want you to share yourself with me. You already know me, and I want to feel like I know you..." she put a hand over her heart and clenched it into a fist, trying to put the indescribably into words and failing, "really know you. And if you can't do that—" her voice was faltering with the thought, and she sniffed and carried on, forcing the words out, "-because your life still doesn't lend itself to relationships and you just don't see that changing, you need to tell me now, because then we're just not after the same things and—"

She hadn't even noticed him moving, but he cut her off with a kiss. It was gentle and brief and it stole all of her air. When he backed off, he settled down to sit next to her and just looked at her for a long moment. She blinked, trying to force back tears.

"There isn't much I wouldn't do for you."

She cast her eyes down, the contact too intense.

"I know you don't want to hear that right now," he fitted his hand to the side of her head, rubbing his thumb along her cheek. "-but I need to know that you know that."

He made it sound as important as breathing. Maybe to him it was.
"Okay." Small voice. It sounded like the 'but' in his speech was imminent. Still no tears though. That was good, right?

He seemed to struggle for words for a long moment.
"I can't give you all the answers. And of what I can tell you, I can't tell you everything right now."

She started to say something, but he cut her off.

"But I'm going to try. Not tonight, from now on. Can you give me that chance?"

She stared at him, trying to understand what he was saying. He wasn't going to answer all her questions right this moment. Well, that would have been too good to be true. But he seemed to genuinely understand that he needed to share more of himself if this was going to work, and he seemed willing to do that, or at least try to.

Truth be told, she hadn't exactly done her part in helping him with that, either. Had she honestly expected him to just tell her, in between scorching hot kisses, 'by the way, my birthday is august 11 and my mother is called Mari' ?

She put her hand over his where it was still cupping the side of her head, and leant in to brush her lips over his.

"Yeah," she whispered. "But only because you've got a great ass."

His eyes widened, and then his head tipped back and he let out a full-throated laugh.

Chapter 17

"Wake up, Babe."

"Mmmf?"

She lay on her stomach in bed, face smooshed into her pillow. Her inborn time-telling instinct told her it was way too early to get up for a Monday morning. For any day, but definitely for a Monday.

"Wake up," a low, sexy voice sing-songed over her ear. The warm, moist breath woke up her body, but her brain was taking its sweet time.

"Why?" she mumbled. "'s not time for work yet..."

He laughed softly, trailing the back of his nails over the nape of her neck, raising goosebumps in their wake.

"Running, Babe."

"Nooo..."

More chuckling. How could he sound this sexy at 5:30 in the morning?
"I have a washcloth full of ice cubes in my hand," he murmured, lips brushing the shell of her ear. "And I'm going to apply them to your body if you don't get up in the next ten seconds."

Mmm, they could do interesting things with icecubes...

"—and not in a nice way."

Wait, what? Ice cubes?

She rolled over and sat up, glaring at his disgustingly sexy and awake self next to her bed. True to his word he was holding a handful of freezing hell.
"You have guts, mister," she grumbled. "Coming into my home and forcing me to run on pain of icecubes."

He flashed her a 200-watt smile, tossed her a set of running clothes, and left her to change. She looked at his choice - shorts and a long-sleeve t-shirt. The weather looked okay as far as she could see, but she'd learned that his definition of T-shirt weather differed from hers... either that or he liked to look at her chest when she was cold. Possibly both. Just to annoy him, she accepted his choice of clothing but used the nipple-shields she'd bought to use for bra-less distraction outfits.

Once she had found her running rhythm she found herself thinking this wasn't such a bad way to start the day. The pounding of her feet on the pavement gave her chance to churn through the weekend before the insanity at work started. Saturday had been full of high highs and low lows... the lowest point being the fight she'd had with Ranger. Then they had made up, sort of, and he'd promised to learn to be more open. It hadn't been everything she'd wanted, but she recognised it for a sincere attempt from his side, so maybe this was all she could ask for.

They had held each other for a long time after that, just holding on, soaking each other in. And then she'd gone home. It had seemed logical at the time. By the time she'd actually gotten into her own bed her body had screamed at her in frustration, but by then it was past 1 AM. The image of the Rangeman nightshift glued to the control room monitors as she returned to Ranger's apartment just an hour after she had left was enough to keep her in her own bed. She might be frustrated, but she wasn't that desperate. Yet.

That had been good because Val had called her out of bed on Sunday morning to ask if she wanted to join the Build-A-Bear birthday party, since one of the invitees had cancelled. Once copious amounts of donuts and coffee had been consumed she was in just the right mindset for that sort of thing, and had had an enjoyable day with her sister and nieces. She had picked a yellow Labrador that reminded her of Bob and dressed him up in a cute jogging suit. When she'd gotten home she'd been so drop-dead exhausted that the phrase kids are fun when they don't go home with you had been a recurring theme in her dreams.

They were halfway through the usual route before she remembered to ask what had brought on this early run. Ranger flashed her a smile.

"I'm going to be in Boston for most of the week."

And this is reason to drag me out of bed at an ungodly hour WHY exactly...?

"The Boston police department has asked Rangeman to take part in a large-scale operation," he volunteered after a long moment. "That's where I was last week. I'll need to be there a lot in the next few weeks."

"Oh. Is it dangerous?"

He smiled to himself and suddenly slung an arm about her shoulders, never breaking the pace of their run. He came in close and aimed a kiss at her ear. It went astray and landed up in her hairline. They both grinned, and he let go again

"You never disappoint. And it's no more dangerous than what I'd be doing here."

"Okay. You gonna call?"

"Whenever I can."

"Good. So why is this reason to drag me out of bed and threaten me with icecubes?"

He laughed out loud, and she felt her stomach leap and her spine shiver at the deep sound.

"I have to leave at seven. Figured it'd be the only way I could get to speak to you before I left."

"You could have talked to me without dragging me out of bed," she grumbled, but half heartedly. Now she was out, the running was actually quite nice. Hello endorphins!

"Would have remembered anything I said?"

"Good point."

"How are things going for Rangeday? Everything set for May 5?"

"Don't remind me or I'll stress. Only two and a half weeks left now."

"Need any help?"

She glanced at him and grinned.
"That's the stressful part. Everything is pretty much done. Except shopping on the day before. So the only thing left to do is stress."

He brushed the back of his hand along her arm for a moment, and she hoped that her running-rhythm breathing hid the little gasp. What was probably meant as a comforting gesture set her skin on fire. He noticed, of course. His eyes were warm and dark when he looked at her.

"Babe, pack a football and food and the day has no way of failing."

She glanced up at him and smiled. He could be very reassuring when he put his mind to it. They slowed down to a walk to cool down.

"Can I shower here? I brought breakfast."

She grinned because those two things seemed to have no connection to one another.

"Sure." Like I'd refuse to see you damp, in a towel.

When they reached the parking lot of her apartment building he went to his car and brought out two small shopping bags and a duffle with what she presumed were his work clothes. The back of the Cayenne was filled with some more bags and things.

"You're leaving straight from here?"

He nodded, handing her one of the shopping bags. It was full of fruit.

She smiled at him as they went inside. It suddenly occurred to her that he had arranged his morning like this to see her for as long as possible before he left, and she felt a rush of indeterminable warmth. No doubt it would have been far easier to run on the treadmill, have Ella make his breakfast and start out from his apartment. Instead he'd come to see her.

When they had put down the bags in her kitchen she backed him against the refrigerator and planted a kiss on him to make sure he knew how much she appreciated the effort. His nostrils flared and he let out a little groan that had her entertaining thoughts of keeping him locked up in her apartment for the rest of the day. Mmm, the possibilities! His hands came up and drew her against his solid, hard body, and she felt her knees go weak at the feel and the scent of him. Sweaty Joe had never done much for her. Sweaty Ranger had her hindbrain sitting up and drooling.

She nipped his bottom lip and drew back, smiling because he looked about as breathless as she felt. From the look of him, it would take no persuasion at all to move this little party to the bedroom. She was definitely warmed up to that idea. Heated up, in fact. But well... he'd still have to leave afterward. And one time of him walking out the door while she was still in the afterglow stage was enough. No more of that. If he got back into her bed then she was keeping him, and since that couldn't happen today...

"Go shower."

"Babe..." he said quietly, hands tightening on her backside.

"Unless you want me to kidnap you and handcuff you to the bed to keep you here as my willing slave..." was that a flash of temptation in his eyes? Note for later reference – he likes that idea. "Go. Shower. And be dressed when you come out of there." Because so help me God, I may not be able to resist you in a towel.

He flashed her a grin and actually lifted her a little, making a half-turn to put her down out of his path, and striding off toward the bathroom without another look at her. She grinned at his less-than-graceful walk. Then, while she made coffee and cleaned fruit, got a bit distracted thinking about him under her shower, Bvlgari bubbles sliding down that gorgeous chest closely followed by his hand going down... down...

She yelped when he materialised behind her, and he grabbed both her elbows before she could turn around with the knife still in her hand.

"Easy Babe," he said softly of her ear, his voice pitched soothingly low. "I thought you heard me."

Her heartbeat slowed down to pre-stroke level and stayed there, encouraged by his closeness and his fresh, male scent. Mmm. Yummy Ranger. I should turn around and take a bite. What was he saying?

"Guess I was deep in thought." Yeah, lecherous thoughts.

"Mm-hmm," he seemed to have caught that last thought. Then he slid his hands down her arms and took over the knife. Caged to the counter by his arms and his hard body. If she turned around... Oh God. She found that she was actually panting a little. His self-control seemed to have returned to him, but it wouldn't stand much of a chance in the face of her super-charged Hungarian hormones.

"Now you shower, Babe."

He pulled back an arm to let her go, and she scurried away before she could change her mind about the not-turning-around thing. Wouldn't want to mess up this Boston thing for him by making him late. Yeah, that's it. Repeat until cooled down. Must not make the hot man late for his important project. Must not make the hot man late.

The bathroom was still steamed up and smelt of Bvlgari. Her eyes glazed over, and she quickly shucked her clothes and stepped under the stream. Mmm, shower massager.

I could. Easily.

Kind of dirty with him waiting for me in the kitchen.

...kind of hot, too.

She caught the hint of a musky scent on the air.

Maybe he did, too. He'd seemed a lot more relaxed when he came out of the shower. She imagined him under the hot spray, long fingers gliding down his stomach, grasping himself, stroking, pumping...

I'm not doing this. I'm not doing this. I'm not I'm not I'm not I'm NO—

I can't believe I just did that.

She washed with Bvlgari, hoping it would drown out any other scent that might be on the air. Then she turned the spray cool for a moment in the hope that it would take away the worst of the afterglow.

He looked at her as she entered the kitchen, fully dressed for the day, and quirked a slow smile at her. His eyes grew very dark, and his nostrils flared as he drew in a slow breath. Of course he knew instantly. This was Ranger. She blushed deeply and looked away. She might feel comfortable playing the game of hook and bait with him, but being practically caught self-combusting with him in the next room...

He put down the cup he'd been holding and the next moment had his arms around her, his body reverberating with a soft, deep laugh.

"Babe," he chuckled into her neck, then kissed the still-damp skin. She let go of her breath, the momentary wave of embarrassment fading. He held her away a little and kissed her deeply, unhurried now. His kiss and his body seemed a lot more... relaxed... than before his shower. Either he'd done some amazing relaxation techniques or she hadn't been the only one using the shower to let off some steam.

"I figured that if we kept going on that course, I'd never end up in Boston," he whispered against her lips, his eyes smiling.

"And I figured that if we kept going like that, I wouldn't let you go."

He gave her a 200-watt smile and a sound kiss on the lips, and then stepped back to lead her to the table. There was coffee, freshly toasted bagels and cream cheese, tall glasses of fruity-looking smoothie, and one perfect Boston crème on a plate.

"You're feeding me a donut?"

He sat down and put cream cheese on a bagel. She did the same. Save the best for last.

"Tasty Pasty shares are losing value, Babe. When did you decide to start eating better?"

She shrugged. "Two months ago or so."

He nodded approvingly, but didn't say anything else for a while. They ate in comfortable silence. Until she drank of the pink stuff he had made in her blender.

"What's in this?"

"Strawberry, apple, orange juice, yoghurt."

"I mean the bits."

"Ground flax seed. Very good source of fatty acids."

"I don't want seeds in my smoothie," she grumbled, more to annoy him than that she really objected. "And aren't there enough fatty acids in my donut?"

He did an excellent put-upon sigh, but she could tell he knew that she was baiting him.

The front door was already open, but they were still in her little hallway, saying goodbye.

"I really have to go now."

"That's the third time you've said that."

"Mmm," he kissed her again, his hands sliding down her back and toward her backside. "That's because—" Kiss. His hands cupped her cheeks and squeezed "—you're a hard woman to say goodbye to." Kiss. He pulled her against him with a slow, hard grind.

Say something. Say something. Say something.

"Uhh... should I be flattered?" Flattened. Definitely flattened.

Brief, hard kiss. "Yeah."

Another kiss, longer and hotter. Her knees went weak and she leaned her upper back against the wall.

"..very."

She let her hands slide into his back pockets and curled her fingers as she let her tongue tangle with his.

He finally tore himself lose, and she grinned at the reluctance. At least she wasn't the only one.

"See you Saturday, Babe."

---

"Moshi moshi."

"Heya Tsuy. How's life?"

"Hello Stephanie. Not particularly exciting today, I regret to say. And how is yours?"

"I work in an office filled with ex-military men," she grinned. "Every day is a thrill. Hey, do you want to go for lunch?" Don't make me say out loud that I've got stuff to discuss with you. Junior is listening from the next cubicle.

"Sure. Where do you want to go?"

She must have a radar for this kind of thing.

"Don't know yet. Shall I pick you up at the dojo?"

"Works for me."

"I'll be there at twelve."

---

"Jeez, you really know how to take all the fun out of pizza, don't you?"

Tsuy looked from the poor imitation of a pizza in front of her with a non-plussed expression.

"Pizza," Stephanie declared, waving at her own Bombshell Special, a masterpiece by Pino's. Then a nod to Tsuy's special, which pretty much lacked everything hers was made up of. It had vegetables. And a little bit of cheese. And nothing else. "Un-pizza."

"You mean that," Tsuy wrinkled her nose at Stephanie's pizza, "is the fun part?"

"Yeah. You don't know how to have fun," she teased.

"I should take you for a drive some time," her friend mused with a glint in her eyes. "Or maybe sailing." Then she seemed to sober. "Is that how people here see me though? As someone who doesn't know how to have fun?"

She thought for a moment about how to phrase this.
"You can come across as someone who is very serious and very together," she said carefully.

Tsuy nodded in acknowledgement and took another bite of her un-pizza. And another. Stephanie felt her hands wanting to curl into fists, wanting, needing a reaction.

I hope I didn't insult her or something. Is she not going to answer? Is she going to let this drive me up the wall?

Or maybe Tsuy was like Ranger, who didn't seem to get that she was hoping for a reaction when they were having this sort of conversation. She'd be waiting for an answer, and meanwhile he'd move on to other things.

"I suppose that compared to Americans, all Japanese people are introverts," Tsuy finally said. "It's a cultural thing. And just because I don't talk about my problems doesn't mean I don't have any."

What kind of problems would you have? She almost asked. But that would be silly.

"Hey, I'm kind of looking for someone to make photos at the day," she said instead.

Tsuy looked at her in surprise.
"You'd have an outsider there?"

"Sure. Would you be interested?""

"Sounds like fun," she flashed a smile. "Not often I get that kind of models."

"Ohh, now there's an idea. Maybe we should get them all to pose for you, and make a calendar. Good money to be made."

Tsuy shook her head with a small grin.
"No posing. Let them do their things and I'll get some good photos. I'll have to get a protective case for the camera, but I planned to get one anyway... could do that Wednesday."

"Cool. You can come along the entire day, and you can stay the night if you like."

Her friend looked uncertain, so she added:
"Sharing a tent with me. I'll be glad to have another woman along to counter-effect the testosterone overdoses."

Tsuy's face said I'm not sure how well this will go over with some of my relatives. "I'll think about staying the night," she said. "It's quite close to where I go horse riding, so I may drop by a few times over the day. We'll see. Oh, before I forget, the company called me, because they weren't sure if they could contact you. You need to call the cook to discuss dinner."

She passed over a scrap of paper with a phone number on it. Yes, that would be a good idea. Barbeque with plenty of vegetables and a big bowl of salad, had been her idea. Had to make sure there was an adequate supply of tree bark.

Her apartment felt empty when she got home that evening, and that was weird – because it was always empty, save for Rex. She couldn't quite define why it felt like this now, and stopped herself from trying. Then she made ham and cheese toasties for dinner and called the cook to talk about the Rangeday menu. It would be a barbeque, but not with just big slabs of meat. Simone would make sure there were plenty of vegetables and salads for the people who didn't follow the Caveman Diet. She would arrange the meals, but Stephanie would do the snacks and beer and other-drinks shopping the day before.

---

Waking up with the alarm beeping didn't quite have the same charm as Ranger waking her. She hit snooze and groaned, trying to gear herself up for getting out of bed. It was only Tuesday. He wouldn't be back until Friday, and why did that feel like an impossibly long stretch?

Don't answer that.

His apartment felt empty when she went there to change for the lunchtime workout. She couldn't quite define why, because he'd only been gone for 2 days and there were no doubt other times when he wasn't there for a while.

When she came back into the office at 12:05 Lester and Ram were still there. Usually they would be in the changing room by now.

"Hey guys, could I actually be running ahead of you today?"

Ram didn't smile.
"No workout today Steph, sorry."

"Oh? Why not?"

"Tank is using the gym," Lester said. "We'll skip today."
His eyes said don't ask and she knew how to take a hint. She could hit him up for more information later.

"'Kay. I'll go change back."

Just when she got back into the office Tank came in. His face was blank as always, but he didn't seem in a good mood.

"Bill needs a ride," he said softly to Hal. Hal got up from his place at the monitor bank, took a set of car keys and left. Tank replaced him and settled in to listen to the scanner. He seemed calm, but there was a distinct don't bother me vibe around the big man.

"He fired?" Lester asked after a long moment.

"He's fired."

Hmm. Tank takes up the gym for twenty minutes and this guy needs a ride because he's fired?

Bill had been new, started two weeks ago. She had met him a few times, a big guy with brown hair and sharp little eyes. He hadn't given her the time of day, but she had felt him looking at her sometimes.

"It's not that I'm curious," she said to Ram when the two of them were sitting in the lunchroom half an hour later. "I just want to know everything."

He chewed on his tuna sandwich and didn't say anything.

"So what happened? Tank kick this guy out? What did he do?"

"Said something crude."

"Um, yeah? People say crude things around here all the time. Never known that to piss Tank off."

Ram sighed, seeming to realise she wasn't going to let this go.
"Okay, you know how of late, Tank's been smiling a lot when he comes in? We figure he's seeing someone."

Somehow she wasn't surprised that they didn't know. Tank was a private person.

"Well, Bill must have heard us the other day, and when Tank came in he said— something I ain't gonna repeat."

Stephanie sucked in a breath. It wasn't as if Ram didn't swear and curse with the best of them. If he didn't want to repeat it…

"Exactly," Ram said, drinking his coffee. "Tank took the opportunity to adjust that attitude for him. He didn't have a very good mood to begin with, so Hal drove the guy to the ER."

"Shit." She didn't know Tank as volatile, and a crude remark didn't seem enough to warrant this sort of reaction. She wondered what had put him in that mood.

"Did anyone ever get his attitude about me adjusted?" she asked then.

"Not in this way," he said after a moment.

Well, thank God for that. If there's any ass-kicking to be done then I prefer to do it myself.

"It helps that everybody knew from the beginning that the boss had a thing for you," Ram continued blithely.

"What?"

"Come on, giving you cars? All those things he did to help you out, to protect you? Accepting your calls no matter WHAT he was doing at the time?"

Oh dear, had she called him during important meetings or something?

Ram continued. "Having someone open a safe house for you, and then NOT dragging you in by the collar because you, I quote, 'didn't want to go'? Usually when Ranger tells people they go into a safe house they go, one way or another. A guy doesn't do all those things for just anyone."

"But... but… a thing? What's a thing?"

"Well, like, it's when a guy… you know, a thing." His tone said that that should be obvious.

She kept at it for a while longer, trying to figure out if the rangemen had known all along what she had only found out recently – that Ranger had feelings for her. But Ram would say no more, repeating that the boss' thing had been clear to everybody, and that this had inspired respect in the men, or at least the good sense not to say anything stupid.

He'd grimaced at those last words, but she didn't find that such a bad thought. She was all for getting by on her own merit, but not to the extremes that she'd rather have half the guys alternately dismissing her and hitting on her than have a quiet word from Ranger give her a fighting chance.

Chapter 18

The week crawled forward, and she had to admit to herself that it could be Ranger's absence that made it seem like time had slowed down. Either that or she was in some weird sort of time warp.

Tank had gone to join Ranger in Boston early on Wednesday and Tsuy had spent that day in New York, so there was no lesson. She'd gone over to Mary Lou's instead to have dinner, then took her friend out to see a film and have a few drinks. It had been nice to have the time to catch up – she had been feeling vaguely guilty over seeing so little of her friend.

Then Thursday afternoon she helped Lula with a few skips – the first time since the Stiva episode. To her surprise it had gone quite well. They had taken in three FTAs: one who went with minimal fuss, one who thought she wouldn't be able to handcuff him and had been proven wrong, and one who had been holding a bowl of lukewarm chicken soup when they surprised him.

Thankfully Lula had gotten into the habit of keeping a towel and some spare shirts in the Firebird, so she had walked into the police station with the skip in cuffs and her chin high, daring anyone to claim that she hadn't started the day wearing a day-glo orange T-shirt.

Joe had come up, taken a head-to-toe look at her, and hugged her wearing a wide grin.
"Glad you're back," he'd whispered, and she had grinned in surprise. Wasn't he supposed to do his 'I can't believe you're doing that job' thing? But now he had retired the idea that she would be the mother of his children, he seemed quite happy to see her returning to her old self.

And she was, she realised. She no longer felt anxious about knocking on doors to go after skips. She could handle herself – and her gun – and most of Lula's skips were well within her capacities. Together with Lula, who had been doing some training herself, they had little trouble.

"Girl!" Lula had exclaimed, high-fiving her. "We are SO good. See the way I tackled that guy? Bet he didn't think a full-figured woman like me could move that way!"

"Hal giving you lessons?" she'd grinned, sharing her friend's elation. It was good to have a takedown going smooth. Well, apart from the chicken-souping. Minor detail that.

Lula had nodded and fanned herself. Stephanie grinned. Nothing like a hot man to make that kind of lesson enjoyable. That, she suspected, was the reason Ranger had never given her those lessons himself. Self restraint would have been a problem for both of them.
"Girl, lemme tell you... he knows how to motivate, ya know?"

---

Thursday night she had gone to dinner with her parents, to silence the maternal-guilt claims that they never saw her anymore... and to pre-emptively ward her against the guilt if she could not make it on Sunday night. Could not make it because a certain Cuban man might be back in Trenton for the weekend… and she intended to make good use of the weekend.

He hadn't called and that made her feel weird, since he had said he would. Of course she could call him, but something stopped her. Maybe it was the fear that he'd think her clingy. She knew he was fine, or the control room would have let her know, so she figured he just had a lot of things on his mind. Or maybe... no. Maybe he was testing if she could handle his sudden disappearances and not hearing anything from him. No. He wouldn't do that. Would he?

---

Today, Friday, she was assured of something to do in the evening – Shorty's with the guys. It felt good that they assumed she'd go with them whether Ranger was there or not. The first few times it had felt like she'd been taken along to not offend him, but now she began to feel like part of the group. Not quite as close as some of them were, but then what did she expect? She hadn't served time in the army with them. It was just cool that they genuinely seemed to want her along because they thought she was fun to have around.

Plus, Bobby wanted a pool rematch.

"No more, no more!" she called out as Hector set down a new glass in front of her. Ranger not here to remind her to drink water, she'd been well into her third Margarita before she remembered that Hal probably wouldn't be happy if she barfed in his car. Junior had stayed sober and would take a bunch of the guys back to the Rangeman building to crash for the night in the 4th floor apartments, and Hal would drop a few others off at home.

"Go on, uno mas, uno mas!" he exclaimed, grinning at her. She tried to glare at him, but failed.

"Bobby hired you so I wouldn't beat him again," she accused him, sitting down heavily, grabbing the pitcher of water and pouring herself a glass.

Hector gave her his best 'would I do that?' look and disappeared, leaving her to listen to Woody relating some kind of story to Lester and Slick. It had something to do with a colonel, a lizard and a pole-dance, but she couldn't quite keep track.

---

"Everything's... whats-it... spinning," she declared as the SUV took a roundabout. Hal smiled as he drove. They had dropped off Cal and Ram first, and were now on their way to her apartment building.

"Did I," she began, hands weaving in the air as she tried to grasp the words, "Did I ever say... thing... you know, sorry?"

"Sorry for what?"

"For... you know, bzzt!" she mimicked stunning him.

Hal shrugged.

"Never would have met Lula otherwise."

"Wha?" Now that was interesting. Lula had never told her how she and Hal had gotten together.

"Nosy woman. I'm not telling."

"I'll pry it... pry it out of Lula," she announced unsteadily.

He didn't reply, but shook his head with a fond expression. It was clear he was crazy about her friend, and anyone who could make Lula this happy and confident was a friend of hers.

Back when she was going through a series of unfortunate relationships, Lula used to quote Sex and the City.

'What if Prince Charming had never shown up? Would Snow White have laid on her ass in that glass box forever? Or would she have gotten up, spit out the damn apple, gotten a kick-ass job and a health care plan and moved on with her life?'

Stephanie smiled because she could still hear her friend say it. Now it seemed that Lula had found the prince after she had gotten up on her own, and it was one who liked her just the way she was.

"You gonna be okay? Don't feel ill?" he asked, opening her front door for her.

"Noooo... I'm a happy drunk," she said with a silly grin, weaving in place to compensate for the weird way the floor was moving. "Gonna be fine. Thanks for the whats-it. Thing. Ride."

"You're welcome. See you Monday!"

She flopped onto her bed and just about managed to kick off her shoes and jeans before sleep took over.

---

She startled awake because she was being jostled, but the split-second of panic dissipated when the Bat-radar took over. It was Ranger, shifting her so he could open the covers and put her under them. She sighed happily as she took in the scent of him. His lips touched hers and he gave her a slow, lingering kiss.

"Mmmm..."

"Babe," he said softly, and she opened her eyes. The red numbers of her alarm said it was past 3 AM. Ranger was standing next to her bed in the faint red glow, wearing tight boxers and nothing else. If the room hadn't already been spinning gently, it would have started from the sight of him. He was smooth skin over well-defined muscle. He was magic. He was... getting ready to get into bed with her?

She scrambled to make space and then hooked an arm about his neck when he bent over to give her another kiss. She pulled him onto the bed, and he landed with an oof. He chuckled and rolled to get comfortable, pulling her close.

"Had a good night?"

"Mmmm."

He shot her a 200-watt grin that lit up the darkness of her bedroom.

"I can tell."

He pulled the cover over the both of them and let out a long breath, his body relaxing. He was on his back, she draped against his side. Her head was pillowed on his shoulder and she had one knee drawn up over his leg, so she was plastered against him. Full body contact.

Intimate body contact. Thoughts of sleep fled, and tanked up on margarita's as she was her hormones came to awareness with an almost audible roar.

He was idly stroking her back, leaving trails of fire wherever he touched her. His heart was beating slow and steady in his chest. She turned her head and licked the skin, wondering if she could get that thud-thud-thud to speed up. He let out a soft groan and pulled her up so he could kiss her.

"Babe..."

"Mmm."

He gently sucked on her tongue and she got a rush that went from her toes to her scalp, making her fingers curl into his shoulders. She pushed herself up and shifted until she was lying on top of him, chest to chest, crotch to crotch. She dug her fingers into his hair as she kissed him with fervour, and moaned when she felt his body grow enthusiastic for this new position.

She sat up, straddling him, and struggled out of her T-shirt and the bra she hadn't bothered to take off earlier. His hands glided her rib cage, thumbs brushing the undersides of her breasts. She shook her hair back and closed her eyes because she suddenly felt dizzy again. Pushing the feeling away she went in for another heated kiss.

"Babe," he groaned when they broke for air. "Stop that..." His fingers dug into her hip as he held her still, stopping her from rubbing herself against him. She made a little sound of frustration.

"Why?" damn if that didn't sound like whining. Want sex NOW!

He flipped her over so she was on her back, and she reeled as the world spun and dipped crazily. Or was that the mattress? She couldn't be sure. Suddenly Ranger's face filled her world as he leant down from next to her, leaning up on one elbow.

"Because," he kissed her briefly, "I am tired," kiss, "and you," kiss, "are drunk."

"Am not!" she protested, and he grinned because she most definitely was and she knew it. "What does it matter?"

"Because I have plans for the first time we make love," he whispered. She felt her insides melt at the way he put that. "And either of us falling asleep is not part of those plans."

He looked gorgeous in the gloom, leaned up over her, his hair loose and falling about his face. He was looking at her, intense, radiating… something. She couldn't quite find a word for it just now, but all of a sudden her eyes prickled and she blinked, emotions and eyes overflowing. She sniffled and turned so she could bury her face in the side of his neck. His arms came around her and pulled her close, but soothing, the sexual overtones gone now.

"Women," he sighed with an eyeroll in his voice. "Always with the waterworks."

"Screw you," she said against his skin, squeezing him. "Can't you say anything nice without... flolow... flolowing with something mean?"

He pressed a kiss above her ear.

"No."

"That's 'cause you're mean …and I… aspolubely—ablosutely… tot'lly wouldn' fall… 'sleep," she huffed, a little indignant still.

"Of course not, Babe," he grinned into her hair. "Silly me."

---

"Babe?"

Awareness came with a sledgehammer in hand. "Graaaah."

"What was that?" He pitched his voice low, but it was still too loud.

"Shoot me," she whimpered, reaching up to feel if her head was actually still attached to the rest of her. Turned out it was. Unfortunately.

"Not a chance." He sounded amused. She wanted to slap him, but that would involve things currently outside of her capabilities. Like moving and opening her eyes.

"Go 'way."

"You don't really want me to." He said, a not-so-well-hidden hint of smugness to his voice.

You have no idea.

"I have the cure," he sing-songed. She became aware of the smell of grease and fried stuff.

"Just gimme an IV feed," she mumbled into her pillow. He laughed softly.

"Here, drink this."

She rolled over and groaned as her head protested. He helped her sit up against the pillows, and she realised that she didn't have a shirt on.

What the hell happened?

"You tore off both our clothes and tackled me to the bed," Ranger supplied with a grin in his voice.

She directed a baleful glare in his direction.

"I didn't say that out loud."

"You were thinking it very loudly."

"I tackled you to the bed?"

I can't believe I can't remember this. Is he making it up?

"My fantasies about you will never quite be the same." He was smirking at her.

Don't think about his fantasies right now. Can always revisit that topic when you feel better.

"Then what happened?"

I'm wearing my underwear. What the hell?

"You were mad at me for saying you would fall asleep," he grinned. "And then you fell asleep."

That sparked something in her memory. The feeling of intense sexual frustration… his hands on her hips, holding her still.

"Here, drink this."

He handed her a tall glass with something pink and faintly fizzy.
"Vitamins and painkiller mix."

"I want the coke and fries," she mumbled, not feeling very ready to face his cheerfulness.

"After you drink this."

She did as he said, then downed the fries and coke, then went to the bathroom and brushed her teeth. That seemed about enough activity for the moment, so she went back to bed.

Ranger stayed with her for a while, on his side with an arm around her. His slow, steady breathing brushed her ear. She didn't feel up to doing anything, so they did nothing, not even talking. Just lay on her bed, close together. Touching. Breathing. Feeling. She basked in his presence.

This would never have happened with Joe.

Morelli couldn't do nothing. Certainly not in bed. They'd either have had sex or he would have gone off to do something else. And she would have felt empty and a little cold and not understood why.

Now she knew. This is what she'd been craving.

Some time past noon he moved, trailing a hand along her shoulder.

"I have to go, Babe. Haven't been in the office yet."

"Mmm-hmm."

"Have dinner with me tonight?"

"Mmm…"

He kissed her cheek, chuckling.
"Laze about some more, Babe. See you at seven? Ella will be thrilled to hear you're coming over."

She suspected he added that last bit to make sure she wouldn't sleep through dinnertime.

He leant over her and kissed her, slow and tender and wonderful. She ran a hand through his hair and smiled up to him, feeling warm and fluttery and not caring that her head was still pounding.

I think I love him.

She felt her heart seize up with that thought. It was equal parts thrilling and terrifying.

For a long moment he looked like he wanted to say something, but then a rueful smile crossed his face. He brushed a kiss over her forehead, and was gone.

---

"Hello Stephanie, nice to see you again," Ella smiled. She was just finishing transferring bowls and platters from a trolley to the kitchen counter. "It's always a pleasure to have you here."

She remembered her first encounter with Ella and smiled. Ranger busied himself with opening the wine, and they sat to the nicely set table when Ella left. Cloth napkins and lit candles. A real date, then.

"Did it go well in Boston?" she asked, after she had become from a delicious smoked chicken and honey-mustard sauce entrée.

"Not as well as I had hoped," he said with a small shrug. "Don't much like working with government departments involved. They work slow. Bureaucracy."

"How long do you expect to be needed there?"

"Depends."

He must have noticed her annoyed eyeroll because he continued,
"On how fluid the situation is there. If things don't start happening soon I'm not going back until they do. The Boston office can do some of the legwork."

She watched as he piled salad on his plate and some slices of the amazing rolled chicken loaf.

"Is Ella happy when I come over because she gets to make dessert?"

"Ella is happy because you appreciate her cooking skills fully," he said, working on his salad.

"You mean you don't?"

A long, slow look. She wondered if there was something she should have known or sensed.

"Babe, my taste perception is shot to hell," he finally said. "I can't really taste subtle flavouring."

Huh, she couldn't imagine what eating was like if you couldn't really taste the food.

"How come?"

"I got a head injury during my time in the Rangers. My parachute didn't open fully and I spent a long time recovering."

She winced in sympathy. Had that been the same incident that put his leg into traction?

"This seemed the most minor damage at the time, but it has been the most lasting. It's grown better over time. At first there was no taste at all and hardly any smell."

"Is that how you got into salad?"

He chuckled.
"If you don't have taste to make something good, texture becomes very important. Imagine the feeling of a donut in your mouth without the taste."

She tried, but her imagination wouldn't stretch the distance.

"I like eating together with you because things seem to taste better," he said after a long moment. "My imagination kind of takes the cue from you."

She smiled because that explained why he would complain about her eating habits, but still liked to feed her the occasional donut.

"Tasting vicariously through me?"

"Exactly."

They were halfway through dessert when his mobile rang, and he answered with an apologetic glance at her.

"Yo."

"Now is not a good time."

The person on the other side said something, and his entire demeanour changed. This was not good news.
"Fuck. Call in Tank and Lester."

He was already walking toward his bedroom.
"Get Hal to cover the control room. I'll be down in two."

"I'm sorry babe, some high-profile scum just turned up."

She tried not to grimace, because he didn't seem too happy about this himself. She didn't want to make him feel guilty. She followed him to his bedroom and watched him dress in urban combat gear. It seemed like a well practised ritual; as if he'd done this a thousand times before. Maybe he had.

"Thanks for coming by last night," she said softly, trying not to feel disappointed about this ending for the evening. She'd thought it had potential. She wasn't drunk, no longer hung-over, and they would have had all of tomorrow morning to sleep in.

"My—" he spun from shrugging into a shoulder holster and his lips crashed down onto hers for a brief, hard kiss, "—pleasure."

"Will I see you before you go back to Boston?" she asked while he slid various weapons into their places. It didn't look like he'd be back tonight, so she planned to go home. Maybe Lula would be up for some clubbing, if Hal had been called in. Not that she felt very festive while Ranger was out facing God-knew-what.

"Hope so. I'll call in any case."

She nodded, not feeling this was the right moment to point out that despite his promise, he hadn't called over the past week.

He kissed her again just before he went out of the door, but preoccupied, as if he was already with his mind on the duty roster and the take-down tactics, but felt he owed her that kiss. She smiled and pulled back, her fingers digging into his biceps.

"Let's save that for later. Try not to get killed, huh?"

His hand cupped her cheek for a brief moment, and he gave her an intense look that had her heart rate doubling. Then he turned, and was gone.

She ate the chocolate mousse Ella had left and it was delicious, but the best part of the evening was currently about to go into danger and she couldn't put that out of her mind. Finally she cleared the table and put everything into the dishwasher and went home to watch Top Gun.

---

She slept in on Sunday, trying to forget the thought that Ranger should have been in bed there with her.

I need to stop focussing on the fact that he's not here. He's doing what he can, but he'll never be a dependable always-at-home guy. Sometimes shit happens and he needs to go clean up.

She spent a long moment imagining Ranger as a staid, always-there-when-he-says-he'd-be, homey kind of man. Then she wiped away the tears of laughter. That was just silly. She didn't want him to be domesticated; she liked him like he was. He might not always be there when she wanted him to be, but he was always there when she needed him. If business took him away, she wouldn't do either of them a favour by sitting at home moping about it.

That decided, she got dressed, armed herself with three layers of mascara and her credit card, and went furniture shopping.

When Ram had come to pick her up the week before she'd seen him look around her living room, and seen through his eyes what it looked like. Like the room of a student who acquired most of the furniture at the curb when other people moved house. After her poorest days were over she'd replaced some of the things she's sold, and she'd bought a small, cheap loveseat after the couch with death cooties had been thrown out. But overall it was still, well... run down and desperate looking. She ought to do some furniture shopping – she had the money now. Not money to go all-out, but enough to make the place a lot nicer than it was.

Around four in the afternoon she was sitting on her new couch watching TV, feeling happy and bouncy about her new things. The batman tune suddenly rang from her mobile phone, startling her. She paused the DVD player and answered it.

"Yo."

"Yo yourself," Ranger said. She could hear his smile.

"How are you? Did things work out last night?"

"Not really," he said, sounding tired. "It was a mess. Took all night and today. I've only been back for half an hour."

"That's not good. You planned to leave for Boston sometime after midnight, right?"

He was silent for a long moment, just breathing. She wondered if she'd said something wrong until she heard a rush of air, like he was yawning.

"'fraid so. I have an early meeting, so ETD is oh-two-thirty."

"Gah."

She heard him chuckle.

"I'm calling to apologise for abandoning you last night. Not exactly how I planned the night to end."

Now that was interesting.

"What did you have planned?"

"I'll tell you that some time when I'm less tired," he said, voice a little deeper suddenly.

"Hmm. Promising. Hey, you could come over now and keep me company on my couch until you have to leave."

"I need to sleep, Babe. And your couch... lacks in comfort."

"I meant to sleep. And I bought a new couch today."

"Oh yeah?"

"Yeah. It's big and L-shaped and really really comfy," she tempted. "You could sleep while I have a film marathon. I'll even turn the sound down..."

Silence for a while, and she waited to see if her sales pitch was having the desired effect. Then he let out a long sigh.

"I can't believe that I'm saying this, but... sold. Be over in twenty."

She changed into comfortable sweatclothes and filled up the DVD exchanger with Vin Diesel films. Twenty minutes later Ranger came in, looking like death warmed over. A very attractive death... on the level of Meet Joe Black death. But death warmed over nonetheless. He was in black sweatpants and hooded sweatshirt, as if he'd called her while he was already in bed and then just threw something on to come over.

She wrapped her arms around him and kissed his collarbone through his shirt, just holding on for a moment. He let out a long breath and pressed a kiss to her forehead.

"You really bought a new couch?" he said, seeming to find it almost hard to believe.

"Uh-huh. Go look," she sent him into the living. After bolting the door she went after him. He was standing there taking it in.

"Not just a couch."

"Nope. Cabinet and lamps and table and things… I shopped like never before. It was heroic. Dramatic. A film should be made. 'Quest for Furniture – the Epic Voyage of One Woman and Her Credit Card'. Guaranteed blockbuster."

He quirked a tired smile and slung an arm about her shoulder to pull her in for a kiss. Warm lips, no tongue. He was tired all right. She could feel him sway a little.

"You sit down," she nudged him in the direction of the couch. "I'll get some stuff. Have you eaten?"

"Yeah. Don't know what it was, but it filled," he said. "Lester-" he yawned "—arranged take-out. Sometimes it's best not to ask."

She got him a bottle of water and then pulled a pillow and blanket from her bedroom closet. He was sitting on the new couch, his shoes off, looking a bit dazed.

"Nice," he said when she returned, indicating the couch.

"Thanks."

She gave him the pillow and blanket and settled down at the short end of the L with her back in the corner, facing the television. Ranger lay down on the long end of the couch, his head pillowed on her thigh. She smiled down on him, tracing his eyebrow with a fingertip.

She switched on the DVD player, and the opening credits of The Fast and the Furious began to play.

"Do you need me to turn down the sound?"

"It's okay," he murmured, turning onto his side, pulling his knees up a bit. "I can sleep anywhere… at any moment. Military skill."

She smiled because he was already dropping off, and let her hand drift through his hair while she watched the film. It had come with the 'Vin Diesel collection' she'd picked up on her last shopping trip. Yum. As she and Lula had agreed, that man could always make a career of recording erotic stories if the acting gig didn't work out. He'd make a fortune.

Toward the end of the film Ranger woke up a little, and she helped him put a pillow under his head so they were both more comfortable. Her leg was tingling; the circulation had been cut off. He settled down on the pillow with the top of his head pressed against the side of her leg, one hand touching her knee.

She'd been concerned that he wouldn't really get any deep sleep, but he insisted he was used to sleeping in snatches and that he would get as much rest here as he would have in his apartment.

She was halfway into the second film, xXx, when he suddenly stirred.

"Babe," it sounded pained.

"You okay?" she whispered.

"This," he said, his voice thick with sleep. "Is an amazingly bad film. Really, really-"

"I know," she whispered, leaning over to kiss his temple. "It's awful. So bad it's almost good."

She felt him chuckle.

"You're a little crazy, Babe," he murmured.

"But in a good way?"

"Yeah…" he sounded like he was on the edge of sleep. "In a good way."

When xXx had ended she considered going straight on to the next one – Pitch Black or the Pacifier, but decided she couldn't be bothered. Ranger was asleep, his fingers curled into the folds of her loose sweatpants. She gently pried loose his hand and got up to use the toilet and eat a peanut butter and jelly sandwich. It was nearing 8 PM and she felt lazy and comfortable, in fact about ready for a nap.

Shame he was in the middle of the long side. She couldn't crawl up to him without either pushing him to the edge, or hanging on the edge herself. Oh well. He wasn't using the blanket, so she took it and curled up on the short side of the couch, her head next to his on the pillow, her forehead against his hair. He smelt good, of Ranger and Bvlgari. She stroked his hand a long moment and then gently curled her fingers around his wrist.

Mmm.

Listening to his slow, steady breath she let her limbs grow heavy, and gently sank away into sleep.

---

"Babe."

"Hmm?"

She felt a touch to her cheek, and dragged her eyes open to find Ranger almost nose to nose with her. He was propped up on his forearms, skin a deep gold in the soft light of her new wall lamp.

"Hey," she whispered.

"Hey yourself. Come here," he said, dragging the blanket off of her when she didn't move immediately.

"...what?"

"You're cute when you're sleepy," he said, his voice very low. He leant in for a kiss. "Now move... You got a good couch."

She got up and joined him on the long end, which was indeed wide enough that she could lie in his arms without feeling like she was about to fall off. He was half on his back, and she plastered herself against his chest, face in the crook of his neck, one knee between his. It was an intimate position and at any other moment her hormones would have been roaring, but right now there was just a slight hum of sexual tension, low key. Comfortable.

His heartbeat was a slow, comforting rhythm. It couldn't dispel the question from her mind.

"Ranger?" she said after a while. He shifted slightly, waking up a little.

"Hmm?"

"Why are we not..." she grasped around for a good way to put this, and found none. "...doing it?" she finished finally.

"Impatient, Babe?" he sounded drowsy. Clearly didn't have sex on his mind. Should she be offended?

"Well... you mean you're not?"

She felt his soundless chuckle.

"Last time we did it," he paused to sleepily kiss the top of her head, "you thought of it as a mistake later. We're..." he trailed off, and she hoped he wasn't falling asleep mid-sentence. She tightened her arm around his waist a little, hoping he'd continue.

"We're not gonna do it again until I'm sure... that it's... dif'rent..." he finally finished, on the edge of sleep. His tone was decisive, as if he was confident that things would go as he intended. Hell, he probably was confident of that. Things usually did. No use arguing with him now though. She pressed a kiss to his chest and didn't say anything more, letting him fall asleep.

She appreciated the idea that he wanted it to be perfect, but if he thought he was the only one who got to make this kind of decision, he was in for a surprise. She'd thought it was a mistake back then because of what it had changed in their dynamic. His abrupt emotional distance, while she had started to crave being closer to him. If that was different this time, and she was certain that it would be, then she couldn't see how it could be a mistake again.

Well, pretty certain. About 99.98 percent certain. There was an infinitely small chance that one of those shared, brain-shattering orgasms would convince him that this relationship couldn't happen for some reason. But as she lay there in his arms, his steady heartbeat lulling her to sleep, the possibility didn't worry her all that much.

I love you, she mouthed against the skin just above his collarbone. You're damn stubborn and arrogant and rude and confusing and I love you.

---

His watch alarm went off at 2 AM, and she smiled because he came awake instantly, looking delectably sleep-tousled.

"You look rested," she said in awe as he sat up. This sort of sleep would definitely not count as a real night to her.

"Told you, military skill," he said with a flash of his blinding smile. He leant in to kiss her, long and lingering, lots of tongue. She felt her fingers curl into the front of his shirt and moaned into his mouth.

His hands slid to the front of her shoulders and he suddenly pushed their bodies apart, his breath sounding strained.

"Let's cool it a bit." His voice didn't sound cool. In fact he sounded heated, and memories of the kind of things he'd whispered in her ear in this tone of voice flooded her mind. Cool it? She thought she could change his mind

"You probably could, Babe," he said, guessing her thought. "But I'll still have to leave in half an hour."

Okay. Yeah, that wasn't part of the plan. She took a deep breath and tried to ease the raging fire low in her stomach.

"Are you going home first?" she asked, and her voice sounded almost normal.

"Someone is bringing the car and my things. Should be here soon."

With impeccable timing there was a knock to her door. Ranger went to the door and received a duffel bag from Vince. The men exchanged car keys and Vince left.

"I took the Porsche this afternoon, so that Ella could pack the BMW," he explained at her curious look. "Wasn't happy with the amount of fuel the Cayenne drank during that last five-hour trip."

He went to shower and get dressed, and she made coffee and tried not to picture his naked body in her bathroom. Needless to say that wasn't working so well.

"I'd like you to sit in on an interview tomorrow," he said when they were sitting down, he fresh-faced with coffee, she fuzzy-brained with another glass of wine. Hey, she needed a bit of help to get back to sleep after he left.

"Um, okay. What kind?"

"Potential new hire. This guy is a contract in Boston, I sent him down here to speak to Tank."

"Bill's replacement? What exactly will I be doing?"

Do I need to rate his dickhead-potential or something? Are you trying to avoid another Bill type? And would you have cared about that if I hadn't worked in the office?

"I'd like you to just sit in and observe."

"Sure."

All too soon he put on his shoes and started making preparations to leave. She slugged back the rest of her wine and got up to wrap her arms around him, swaying a little.
"This is weird," she smiled. "Kinda like I'm back in college."

"You mean being drunk?" he grinned.

"No no… I had a boyfriend back then who worked night shifts," she explained seriously. "He'd come by in the mornings, after work. I would breakfast…"

"With poptarts?"

"Poptarts and coffee," she nodded. "And he'd have poptarts and beer."

"And then you'd go to class and he'd go to bed?"

She kissed him.
"Yeah."

Well, sometimes she'd skipped class and gone back to bed as well, but it was probably okay to leave that part out.

"Have to go now," he announced, sounding decisive. He kissed her senseless, which admittedly wasn't hard with her current levels of alcohol and lust, and whispered 'see you Friday' into her ear, and was gone.

Chapter 19

With the help of the wine she slept for about three more hours, but by six AM she'd been far more awake than she considered acceptable. Worse, she still had enough alcohol in her bloodstream to feel halfway between wobbly and hung over. A couple of cups strong coffee and about a litre of water helped clear her head.

"Hey Steph!" Lester grinned when she come into the office at eight. "You look like someone kept you up all night."

Someone did, but not in the way you think. She said nothing, just gave him a friendly thwack to the back of his head as she walked past.

"Hey Tank. You look like your weekend turned out okay," she greeted the big man.

He gave her a small nod.
"It did, despite the crisis Saturday."

Had he seen Tsuy? She'd wager he had, but there was just no non-nosy way to find out. Since most of the guys only appreciated her nosiness when it concerned an FTA that had to be found, she left it.

"Ranger said there's an interview?"

"Yeah, it's at 10 AM."

"Do you have a file or anything on this guy?"

"I do, but I don't want you to read it."

She gave him a confused look.
"I thought Ranger said he wanted my opinion on this guy. I need to prepare myself if I'm going to be any use."

Tank smiled.
"Don't prepare. I know all his background, but having read all that, sometimes you overlook stuff a fresh person would spot right away."

"Okay. But this guy is basically qualified, right? So it's just to see if he's suitable."

"He's qualified. Ranger ran into him during a job last week. Boston can't offer him a permanent position and he doesn't mind relocating, so the boss sent him down here for a talk."

She was already in the meeting room when Tank brought the man in, and next to the huge black man the interviewee looked almost small. People tended to be nervous when standing next to Tank, but clearly, this man wasn't intimidated. He was a little over 6 feet tall and while not as bulky as most of the rangemem, he had a hard look to his body.
His hair was millimetred and his skin was shaded in a way that suggested a lot of time in the sun - or a mixed ancestry. Judging by his cheekbones, probably the second.

He walked around the table toward her, extending his hand. She was pleasantly surprised, because usually she was acknowledged with a glance and then dismissed. She smiled as she accepted his hand, and paused the fraction of a second when her eyes met his - they were a startling pale blue. His lips quirked a little at her reaction.

"Michael Scofield," he introduced himself.

"Stephanie Plum. Nice to meet you."

She'd agreed beforehand that she would introduce herself by name but not by function, because Tank wanted to know how the guy would react. It was a common technique in negotiations, he had explained. Leave out some information and observe how the other filled in that gap. Apparently it said a lot about a person.

She sat silently while Tank asked Scofield about his experience and ambitions. Not sure what exactly they wanted her to pay attention to, she tuned out the words for a little while and just observed him. He wore a navy dress shirt over a white longsleeve and slacks, neat but not suity. He'd picked a chair that faced the door and seemed to have part of his attention on whatever was happening behind it.
A phone rang in the next room and there was a slight pause in his speaking, as if he couldn't tune out the environmental sounds. She wondered about that. It wasn't an army thing; even Ranger, Mr aware-of-your-surroundings, could tune out the office sounds and concentrate on what he was doing.

He spoke softly, in a low, slightly gravely voice. He seemed to consider his answers carefully, and to her surprise, now and then he would look at her, addressing her as well as Tank.

"So, tell me what you think of this guy," Tank turned to her after Scofield had left.

"Is this a test?"

He considered that a moment.

"Call it an exercise. You're observant, and you notice different things than I do."

"Okay. He's not military."

Tank nodded.

"I think— I'm not sure, but I think he's done time."

"How do you come to that conclusion?"

"He looked at his watch and I saw the edges of a tattoo. And he wore a long-sleeved shirt under his dress shirt. I think he has a full-torso tattoo."

"Lots of people do," Tank shrugged, challenging her.

"Hmm, okay. I connected it with jailtime, but you're right. He also habitually speaks like he doesn't want to be overheard, and he has this... I don't know, hyper-vigilance?"

He made a 'go on' gesture.

"I know you guys are aware of your surroundings, but you're also used to trusting someone else to be on guard for you. Like when you're in here, you tune out the sound of a door slamming or a phone ringing next door, because you know there's other guys watching out. He couldn't tune that out. I think maybe he's done time and has learned to have eyes in the back of his head."

He nodded approvingly.
"Anything else?"

"He's intelligent... and observant. He knew that I wasn't here to take notes. He even tried to draw me into the conversation a bit, maybe to feel me out... or to flatter me."

Tank grinned slightly.

"See, this is why we like you to sit in on this kind of thing," he said. "You notice different things."

"So why is Rangeman interested in this guy?"

"It's time to diversify the team."

"How so?"

"Everybody here, with the exception of you, has spent extended time in the military," he said. "While we value the training and discipline that has given us, it means that we basically all think according to the same military tracks. We do things the way we've done them before, because a drill sergeant yelled any creativity out of us."

She was surprised to hear him speak of the army like that - and surprised that he included himself. She'd never consider him or Ranger uncreative. He quirked her a smile.

"I don't regret my choices, Bombshell. But it can't be denied that to function in the army, you have to think army. Since you've started working here we've noticed the value of having someone around who doesn't think army. Sometimes cases are like abstract puzzles," he continued. "With all of us are sitting on one side of the table figuring it out. Then you come in and sit down on the other side of the table."

"Thinking outside the box?" she grinned. "To speak with a horrible management cliché."

He chuckled.
"Ranger decided that when we interviewed for a replacement for Bill, we should try to find someone who could help make this a more balanced team. So we sit on all sides of the table."

She wondered if this had anything to do with the botched job on saturday night. She had heard that it something to do with people waiting for orders instead of improvising and reacting to the situation fluidly.

She had noticed that Rangeman had a core team of leaders, and that the rest of the men had mostly been hired because of good attitude and physical ability. Maybe now that the business was shifting in different directions, Ranger found he needed other types of personalities in there as well.

"So are you hiring him?"

"Do you think we should?"

"I hate it when you ask for my opinion but don't give me yours," she sighed. "Okay, I think he could be an asset, but I can't decide until I know what got him into the pen. He's a smart guy. I wonder... Usually guys like this are smart enough not to do anything too illegal, or good enough that they don't get caught. Having the second sort of guy work for Rangeman would be a risk for the business, so I can't see that."

"He held up a bank," Tank said. "To get into the same prison where his brother was on death row."

"Um, okay?" This helped the situation how?

"It played out big in the Chicago papers a couple years ago. The brother had been framed, and his name was finally cleared. Scofield sat out half of his five years and then got out on parole. I think he had planned to break them out, but of course you don't hear that stuff on the news."

"Hmm."

"I intend to hire him, unless you have a bad feeling about it," Tank said. "He'd be doing mostly tracing until he's passed some training courses, so you'd work together with him a lot."

"He needs training courses?"

"It's easier to find someone with the right mindset and train them, than get someone with the physical skills and try to change their way of thinking."

"Fair enough. When would he start?"

"Tomorrow, if he can. We're offering him a 4th flour apartment until he finds a place."

"'kay. I'll let him know about Rangeday," she grinned. Tank quirked a grin back, but didn't try to pry anything out of her. Maybe he had other methods.

Michael Scofield started the next day, and she spent some time introducing him to the men and to the work. He was at ease with computers and quickly got the hang of the various search programs. Most of the men were polite, but cool – like they had been with her at first. She was surprised; she'd thought they had acted like that because of who she was. Now it seemed like they just took a while to warm up to new people

She found she liked Michael, but he seemed like one of those men you'd never really get to know. Private, guarded almost. She wondered if he had decided on a way he would behave around the office and was now following that course. Pleasant, neutral, untouchable.

She told him about Rangeday and the surrounding intrigue and plotting, because the tension in the office was increasing by the day. The betting book was closing this coming Friday at four PM, so she fully expected some last-ditch attempts to uncover her plans. Michael chuckled silently.

"How did you get into this kind of stuff? Someone mentioned you used to bounty hunt."

"I was hard up with the hunting and Ranger offered me a job," she shrugged, not feeling like explaining exactly what drama had surrounded her being hired. "I'm naturally nosy, so I was perfect for research. My friend Lula does the bounty hunting now, and I help her sometimes."

He grinned at that and leant back in his chair.
"Are you involved in any of the fieldwork here?"

"Sometimes. Stakeouts, takedowns, mostly." She didn't mention distractions. Didn't want him to think that was the only reason she worked there. "You?"

He was silent for a moment, as if wondering how much he wanted to tell her. She got the feeling that he considered that question a lot.
"Have you read my file?"

She shook no.
"Just your CV. After the interview Monday."

He nodded to himself and then seemed to come to a decision.
"I'm still on parole, so I won't do any fieldwork at first."

Ah, that was it.
"You can't risk getting caught carrying concealed." Or hitting a skip, or doing any of the grey-area things that sometimes occurred during take-downs.

He nodded.
"By the time it's over I will be up to par with the physical stuff, so it works out okay."

"I kind of wondered how a structural engineer ended up in Security."

He gave her a look that probably meant 'you ask a lot of questions' and she held up her hands in defence.

"Hey, I'm not saying anything. You're looking at a former lingerie buyer. I did say I'm naturally nosy."

He chuckled and was silent for a moment.
"In my workfield you don't get hired if your record isn't spotless. After I got out, I did some nightshift work for an agency and there I ran into someone who referred me to Rangeman Boston." He leant forward. "Now, how did a lingerie buyer end up bounty hunter?"

"I was laid off and I was out of stuff to sell to pay the rent," she said. "Blackmailed my cousin Vinnie into giving me the job."

It felt like an age ago.

Wednesday night Tsuy dedicated the lesson to pressure points; where to find them, how to use them and how to follow up. It was a fun lesson and she felt thrilled to notice that her friend was actually exerting herself during a sparring session. Before ,Tsuy had held back, applying enough pressure that she had a challenge but not so much that it was discouraging. It felt good that she could now make the other woman work hard enough to break a sweat.

The three of them had a dinner of zaru soba noodles with marinated beef, edamame beans and all the trappings, and Stephanie smiled to see that the cook brought them a great amount of food to start with. Had Tsuy arranged for double portions so they would be saved the trouble of asking if there was more? It wouldn't surprise her.

She was pleased to see how happy Tank and Tsuy seemed to be with each other. It was very muted, but she caught the occasional warm smile across the table and smiled to herself. Whatever it was that had put Tank in such a foul mood last week, it was apparently solved now.

"Friday is when the big company day secret comes out, isn't it?" Tsuy asked. "Does that mean you'll finally tell me?"

She grinned because her friend seemed to feel the need to convince Tank that she didn't know anything. Maybe he'd been poking around.

"Yeah, next week I'll tell you," she answered. "Not earlier."

"Why not? I'm good at keeping secrets..."

"And he," she nodded her head to Tank, who was following the conversation with rapt interest, "is good at getting them out of people."

Tsuy and Tank eyed each other for a long moment, and Tank gave a slow, slightly dangerous smile. Tsuy's eyes widened a little and she abruptly turned back to Stephanie.

"Good point. Tell me later."

The day flew by on Thursday as she tried hard to concentrate on her searches. The guys were clearly thinking about Rangeday and a lot of eyes were trained on her every move. She tried not to smile or look smug too early for that. Instead she practised her innocent look.

Thursday night the landline phone rang, and for a moment she thought it might be Ranger. He had promised to call, so he would, right? Not like last week. He'd probably been busy, but Ranger always did what he promised.

"Hello Stephanie," Grandma Mazur said, her voice full of glee. "I must thank you for all the scenery you caused us today. It was a most spectacular show!"

"Scenery? Grandma, what happened?"

"I'm talking about all those hunky black-clad men that came to see us today! Even Ellen admitted that there were some fine speciMEN among them!"

"People from my work came to see you? What about?"

"Rangeday, of course! They convinced us it was vital that they found out about your plans, but we of course knew nothing. I did offer to show them your old room.."

The nerve of them! At least grandma probably made them sorry for trying...

"Well we just wanted to thank you for the show. The only thing that could have made this day better would have been the hottie bounty hunter with the nice package dropping by."

"He's out of town," she said distractedly. "Thanks for letting me know about this."

Mary Lou was the first she called.

"There were four of them, FOUR!" her friend thrilled. "The first one was really intimidating, with a tattoo on his forehead. I knew he works with you but I didn't want him in the house, so I told him you were taking them mountainbiking. Then a while later came that really gorgeous charming man, Santos, and I invited him for coffee because I was bored, and he was really persuasive so I told him I thought you guys were going rock climbing. And around lunch—" Mary Lou broke for air, "the big guy you stunned last year. He was really nice so I offered him lunch and..."

Stephanie felt her eyebrows rise while her friend related the story of her four Rangeman visitors, and oh by the way one came by yesterday as well, and... and...

"Well girl," Lula said, "I'll tell ya, Hal sure tried to get it out of me! But I resisted bravely and let that fine man torture me for hours – I never said a word!"

"Uh-huh. Hours of torture. The things you do for me," she grinned. "Seen any of the other guys?"

"A bunch of 'em came down the office. Connie was having a ball with 'em."

"Yes, I've had unusual amounts of Rangemen dropping by this week." Connie said. "Kind of seemed like every receipt and every file needed its own courier. Lula and I laughed our heads off."

"Did you tell them anything?"

"We told them everything! Everything and anything we could think of."

"I'm going to get mobbed at the office tomorrow."

Some more calling around revealed that one of the men had even been to the police bureau to ask Joe and Eddie if they knew of anything. The merry men were nothing if not thorough.

She woke around 2 AM from the sounds of someone working on her door locks. The first flash of panic ebbed away to make room for the thought that Ranger could have come home early. This brought her from panic straight to hot flash. She hadn't forgotten his statement about how he would decide when the time was right. She'd thought it arrogant then, and she still did – but if he thought the right time was now, he'd find no contest here.

She slipped out of bed and tip-toed into the hall. The corner bolt was set. She had to admit she sometimes forgot, but tonight it was set. She wondered how he would handle that. Maybe he'd ring her mobile to get her to come open it. She could surprise him...

The second lock tumbled and there was a push inward, halted by the bolt arm. He cursed softly and pushed again. She reached out to disengage the bolt when there was another, harder push.

"Fuck man, just open the goddamned door," someone hissed.

"I'm telling you, it's open!" another voice.

Stephanie froze and felt all the warmth leave her body. Not Ranger. She'd been about to open the door in her t-shirt and underwear and it wasn't Ranger. Cold sweat chilled her back.

Someone pushed again. The second voice let off a string of curses that could have turned the air blue.
"Fuck, what did she do, pull her couch in front of it? Damn it, we have to be back in the office before Bobby comes back. I don't want the boss hearing about this."

She finally recognised the voice as Vince, and relaxed again. Vince was trying to break into her apartment. What he hoped to accomplish there was anyone's guess. She didn't have anything about Rangeday in her home. The only thing that could give her away was on a remote internet archive that she accessed via her laptop, everything firmly passworded. Probably only Ranger knew she even had a laptop, and even he would have to somehow know where to go AND know her password details before he'd find anything.

Meanwhile she had the problem of two merry men on the other side of the door. They weren't dangerous, but she didn't feel up to midnight interrogations. So far all the Rangeday intrigue had been a fun challenge, and she didn't want them to take this over the edge of intrusion.

"Um, guys?" she interrupted their whispered discussion full of curses. "I suggest you leave right now, or I'll have the cops out here."

"Fuck the cops," Slick said through the door after a long moment. "We'll be gone by then."

He had a point.
"Okay, how about this?" she conceded. "I'll call Ranger and let him know what's going on."

"Fuck."

"See, I know he's in Boston and all, but I'm sure he'd find a moment for you in his schedule when he gets back."

She heard some scuffling as if they packed stuff back into a bag, and then a low conversation disappearing down the hallway. Her shoulders slumped as the tension drained away. She locked the door properly, thankful to the locksmith that had recommended her the deadbolt and her own sense to use it tonight.

I need to make sure I remember to lock it every night, she told herself sternly.

She waited at the window until she saw a black Explorer start up and drive out of the parking lot.

Sleep wouldn't come again. He still hadn't called. She stared at the ceiling and sighed. It wasn't so much that she needed a phone call – she missed him, but she knew he was okay. And she could probably call on his mobile. It was just he'd promised to call her. If she called, it'd feel like she was whining. As if she couldn't handle not hearing from him for a few days. She didn't want to feel like some needy woman who freaked when he didn't have time to call her. It was just hard to believe that he didn't have five minutes in which to call her. That had to mean

Had to mean

Damned if I know what it means.

---

Friday morning the tension in the Rangeman building was an almost audible buzz in the air. It kind of reminded her of Christmas evenings when she was a kid. Her sister going to bed earlier because that made morning come sooner. She herself, hyperactive and unable to sleep for fear of missing anything.

The men in the office would abruptly cease their conversations when she approached, and she rolled her eyes at them.

Michael looked up from a stack of newspaper archive material and flashed her a grin.
"And then to think I thought this would be a serious place, being the head office and all."

"Apparently this is nothing. Tank keeps a 'best of security tape' video reel, to be shown at the company Christmas party."

"So it's also like this when the boss is here? He has the fear of God into the Boston guys."

"Maybe a little less openly." She stood in the doorway of her cubicle and looked in. "Did they search my stuff?"

"Think so. Someone was in there when I got here."

She stood at the entrance of the cubby for a moment. Everything had been left in almost perfect order, so they'd been thorough. Not that there was much to find. At best they would have found a post-it note she had made some notes on about the shopping that had to be done on Thursday the 4th.

"Oh well, apart from the amount of beer I plan to buy, I don't reckon they found out much of interest. Have you put in a bet?"

"Put a tenner on a wild guess, to get into the spirit of things."

She chuckled.
"You know, when this whole thing started I thought that would be the extend of it for everybody. I didn't expect for the guys to go all special forces on me."

"Hey Steph, you going to the gym with us?" Ram stuck his head into her cubby at lunch time.

"Only if I'm not in danger of interrogation!" she replied.

"Now bombshell, you know we're more subtle than that," Lester smirked. "You coming as well, Michael?"

When she walked into the gym she found Ram at the weight bench and Lester and Michael on the treadmills. Michael wore a T-shirt and she saw she'd been right about the tattoo. They were full sleeves and she suspected covered his torso as well. Some kind of church style display with words here and there. What did it mean? She decided to ask at a later point.

"Thought you had ambition to tackle the Stairmaster this time," Lester said when she stepped on the crosstrainer.

"Do I look like someone who likes stairs? I'm a lift person. I don't even walk stairs to get somewhere, let alone never-ending stairs on an evil machine."

"Didn't you fall off last time?" Ram interjected.

Damn, someone had seen that? Curse those video cameras.

"Didn't you drop a dumbell on your foot last time?" she asked sweetly. He flashed her a grin.

After the warming up the guys went to the big punching bag, coaching Michael, while she did her sets of weighs. She'd moved on to kilo weights now, and though the goal wasn't to grow buff, it was still satisfying to feel that she could do 25 repetitions without straining. When she'd first started doing this, everything hurt after 10.

The guys had moved on to some friendly sparring, and when she was done with her set she observed them while walking out on the treadmill. Ram and Lester did this a lot, punching and blocking with the easy familiarity they seemed to have in everything. Michael was less experienced. His punches were good, but his defence was lacking. She wondered who would be training him.

She was so absorbed watching them spar that she hadn't heard what they discussed in low voices. Suddenly she was grabbed by the upper arms from two sides and dragged off the treadmill. She yelped in shock, and Lester put his hand over her mouth.
"Shh, Bombshell. Here's a choice," he said in a low tone. "You tell us all about Rangeday, or we'll stick you under the cold shower."

She glanced to Ram, who was holding her other arm, and Michael, who was observing with a blank expression. She imagined that he didn't know what to think.

She bit Lester's finger and he uncovered her mouth.
"Wow, Santos. You were right, you guys are subtle," she grinned, her heartbeat lowering to normal. Don't be intimidated. This was all in fun. She knew these guys and they would never hurt her.

"Right, cold shower it is," Ram said. They began to drag her toward the dressing room. She tossed the security camera in the corner a wicked smile.

"Gee guys, are you sure you want to tell Tank about how you put me under the shower?" she said. "cause he might think that a bit unprofessional. And I don't think Ranger would be too amused either "

She trailed off as they came to a halt in the door opening.
"Fuck, she's right. That wouldn't go over well with the boss," Lester said.

"Especially not since it'd take the both of you to get and keep me in there," she grinned. Now she thought of it, taking a shower with two buff guys didn't sound so bad. This was definitely fantasy material.

"Actually, that might be fun. I've changed my mind, let's go!" she tried to move through the door, but now they were holding her back, and a silent conversation was exchanged over her head. She imagined it had something to do with Ranger, Fed-Ex rates, and third-world countries.

After a long moment they turned her around and nudged her back into the gym, and then both disappeared into the changing room. The door clicked shut behind her.

She looked at Michael, who was shaking his head with bemused disbelief.

"If you think that was drastic, last night I had two guys trying to break into my apartment. Luckily I recently treated myself to a really good deadbolt."

"Are they always this fanatic?"

"I think it's an army thing."

They shared a 'what can you do?' shrug.

"Maybe I should send them to sensitivity training after all. A Rangeday of sharing and hugging and meditating... that would be fun."

She thought that over for a moment longer.

"For certain values of fun."

They were both silent for a moment, contemplating the idea.

"Except then I'd have to join a witness protection program."

He gave a 'that'd be a bother' kind of hum, and tossed her her towel.

"Are you actually going to reveal it today? It's just the closing of the book, right?"

"Hadn't decided yet. Just for this, I might decide not to tell until next Thursday."

"Bet that will go over well."

Oh yeah. She just couldn't help thinking that a little revenge was in order. Standing under the shower in the 7th floor apartment, she decided she was definitely due the opportunity to make them squirm a little.

---

"Gentlemen, the book closes right now," Tank said softly. Somehow the hubbub in the break room quietened down instantly. She always wondered how he did that – be heard while speaking so softly. If she'd wanted to say something she'd have had to shout.

Not now though. Right now she could whisper and they'd hear her. That would be because the entire room was staring at her intently. She stared back.

Don't make any sudden movements.

"Well?" someone finally demanded.

"Well what?" she smiled.

"Well who won!"

"I would have to see the book to tell you that," she said mildly, trying to resist a smirk. Tank pushed the closed book over the table in her direction. She glanced at it, but left it where it was.

"You're not telling?" Hal.

"I was going to but then certain people got so fanatic—" the men looked at each other, "—that I haven't decided yet if we're going to do what I had planned or go for sensitivity training after all."

"You can't be serious about that!" someone groaned.

"Some people seem to need it."

"It was a joke, Bombshell!" Lester called out.

"Maybe," she conceded to him. "But a couple of things happened that I didn't find that funny."

She saw Tank come to attention and look over the faces of the men, clearly displeased about this news. It was very, very silent for a long minute.

"So," she declared, when no more protest could be heard. "You're all getting a kit list by Tuesday."

She got up and started to leave. Hal looked like he wanted to say something, but Tank still had the 'someone's in trouble' look in his eyes and nobody spoke.

---

She didn't look up from her monitor when Tank appeared in her cubicle.

"You going to tell me what happened?"

"Wasn't planning on it," she said shrugged.

"Why not?"

"Because people getting heads ripped off doesn't really add to the party I'm planning."

He was silent for a while, and she typed in the last search request for the day. The Saturday crew would probably need this for their takedown, so she didn't mind working a little longer.

"Fair enough," Tank said finally. "Aren't you curious if anyone guessed right?"

"Sure I am. I'm just resisting the urge to find out, because that would give it away."

"You coming back to the break room?"

"Yeah, when this is done. But if I'm going to be bugged about it "

"You won't."

---

It was nearly eight PM when she got back to her apartment. She'd had pizza and orange juice – getting drunk around the guys hadn't seemed like a good idea right now. Some of the guys planned to go to a club and that had been a good moment to call it a night and go home. Vin Diesel was waiting for her.

She was halfway through The Pacifier when her mobile phone sounded the batman tune. She paused the DVD to answer it.

"Yo."

"Yo yourself."

Silence. She let it stretch for a moment, wondering why on earth he had called her if he wasn't going to say anything. After a minute she decided that that zen crap was for the birds.

"You still in Boston?"

"Yeah, there's something planned for tonight. Probably won't be home until tomorrow morning. Sorry Babe."

She tried not to sigh. She'd really looked forward to seeing him tonight. Why did it feel like he wasn't as bothered as she was? Don't think that. It's the job.

"Okay."

"I'll call you tomorrow when I feel halfway human again."

"Ranger?"

"Hmm?"

"Was this a test?"

The words had formed themselves before she really thought about it. She hadn't worded it quite this way to herself, but this was what she thought he'd been doing. Testing her.

"Babe?"

"Being away, not calling. Was this a test to see if I could handle being with you?"

She could almost hear his expression hardening.

"I have to go Babe, I'll see you tomorrow."

She cursed the dial tone. Who did he think he was? Did he think she was the only one supposed to give in this relationship, and that she was willing to let him steer while she hung on and stuck with him? That it would be her doing all the adapting and he could just do what he always did? That he got to decide if and when they'd see each other, if and when they had sex? As if he was such an expert on making relationships work. Hell, apparently he had no idea who he was in with.

I'll show him, the ass. He won't know what hit him.

She stomped down the stairs and went to her car. The Hilux gave a satisfying growl in the quiet parking lot.

I'll fucking show the bastard!

---

Something tickled on the edge of her mind, and Stephanie slowly swam toward awareness. She was deliciously comfortable, snuggled into a light cover, curled up on a mattress that may well have been a fluffy summer's cloud in a previous life. She felt like she'd slept for a week. With the dim realisation that it was Saturday she stretched lazily. No rush to get up. She could stay in bed all day if she felt like it.

Stretching her arms her fingertips came to touch something solid, and a jolt of awareness shot down her arm. This wasn't her own bed. And that that was Ranger she'd just poked in the shoulder. He was moving now, clearly just waking. His dark eyes, still heavy-lidded with sleep, searched her face.

"Hey." What else could she say? She was in his bed, and she'd just poked him awake. What had happened last night? How had she ended up here anyway?

"Hey yourself," he said, his voice husky with sleep.

"What am I doing here?" she wondered, sleepily rubbing her face.

Ranger rolled over until he was right next to her.

"I think you came over to chew me out."

Oh yeah. She'd been pissed off, but tiredness had overtaken her anger somewhere around midnight. The Corona's she'd stolen from his fridge hadn't helped. She'd lain down on his wonderful bed thinking she'd just close her eyes for a little while.
Stephanie tried to re-find her anger at his arrogance, but it wasn't easy when he was this close to her, all warm muscle and smooth skin and deliciously sleep-tousled hair.

"Well, you deserved it," she finally said.

He hummed his agreement and pulled her closer, slipping a knee between hers. She draped her arm over his side and nestled her nose against the side of his neck.

"Mmm."

After a while she realised he was laughing silently.

"What?" she grumbled.

"If this is a chewing-out," he whispered with laughter in his voice, "then I'll be sure to piss you off more often."

"Shut up." She bit down in his trapezium muscle to emphasise her words. "Don't remind me what a rude and infuriating man you are."

He growled low in his chest and pulled her closer against him. Her breasts were pressed against his hard chest and she found her lower body in full contact with other hard parts of him.

" You know, an apology isn't going to cut it this time," she whispered, fighting to hold on to her brain functions. He hind brain punched the air and did she snoopy dance. This is finally it!

"I know. I'll have to plan a way to get back into your good graces."

Oh boy.

She took a deep breath, a rush of heat leaving her speechless for the moment. One of his hands stroked down her back and back up, this time underneath her T-shirt. His hand seemed incredibly warm and her skin came alive with fiery trails where he touched her. Her fingers curled into the skin of his back, and he shifted his leg, angling their hips closer together.

She licked the skin of his throat and rocked her hips against the hard length of him. If she shifted just a little the friction... there, that was it. He groaned and a hand dug into her hair, pulling her head back so he could claim her lips. The kiss racked up her body temperature to previously unseen heights, and when they broke it they were both breathing heavy.

"If you're going to break this off because it doesn't adhere to some kind of 'perfect moment' scenario you have in your head—" she panted, grinding her hips against the hard ridge of his erection, "—then I promise you I'll lock myself into my apartment with one of those rabbit vibrators—"

He made a strangled sound and his fingers dug into her backside, and she moaned and added:

"And stay in there for months and months—" she gasped as he drew her earlobe into his mouth, "—just me and the rabbit and a biiig box of batteries."

"Babe..." that was definitely a groan. "Christ."

He suddenly rolled them over so he was above her, and leant up, tugging on her T-shirt. She raised her arms, wanting it out of the way. Wanting to be skin to skin. Then she started to laugh a little because he was hindering the process by kissing her deeply, simultaneously plundering her mouth and tugging the T-shirt upward.

He broke for air and chuckled as well, and she felt buoyed by heat and mirth and love, all mingled together in an intoxicating mix. His eyes were narrowed and his lips curved upward, and he was giving her an intense, dark-eyed look. She tried to stop laughing, but couldn't, and it bubbled up, grew, until her entire body shook with the silent force of it.

"What? It's not nice to laugh around a naked man, Babe," he said, his eyes warm as he looked at her.

"I love you—" she heard herself say it and her eyes widened in shock. Whatever she'd wanted to tell him, that wasn't it. If she'd had her hands free, she would have clapped them in front of her mouth. His smile grew wide and brilliant, and he leant down to kiss her, slow now, and gentle, and intense.

"If I tell you how I feel," he kissed her again, soft presses of his lips to her forehead, her eyes, her lips. "Will you yell at me?"

Her breath caught at that and she sobered; she hadn't understood up 'till now how much that had hurt him. It was a painful reminder to a time when he'd told her something that mattered, and she'd been angry because she hadn't wanted to hear it. Or rather, had wanted to hear it, but had been too unsure and insecure to really trust it.

"No."

She let her hands glide over the skin of his back, soothing. His spine was tensed, and he was giving her an intense look.

"As long as you don't stop looking at me like that," she whispered, using the opportunity to lean up and press a soft kiss just under the corner of his left eye. "And as long as you'll share yourself with me." She kissed under the other eye and lay back down, smiling because he looked so very serious.

"I—" he closed his eyes and she could feel tension crawl through his back. He was silent for a long moment. "You're amazing."

She could take that to mean that he couldn't promise that he would share himself with her, but she felt too good to let her insecurities get in the way now. She'd told him how she felt and he'd been stunned and happy. Just because he couldn't quite say it back right now didn't mean he didn't feel it. He did love her – the way he was holding on to her and the curling of his fingers and the breathless "Oh Dios" he was whispering in her ear all told her that he did. His lips trailed along her jaw line to her lips and they shared a slow, deep, powerful kiss that made her feel light in the head.

"Ranger?"

He leant up on his forearms so he could look at her.
"Babe?"

"You better call control and tell them that you don't want to be disturbed for a while " he chuckled " because if you think I'll let you run out again," she licked the shell of his ear and dropped her voice to a husky whisper, "you're seriously mistaken."

Now it was his turn to laugh softly, and she loved the sound of it, the look on his face, the vibration in his body and the delicious pressure that seemed to set her body on fire. She smiled at him, just soaking him up, storing this moment, this feeling, for whatever difficulties they would encounter in the future.

God, I love him.

"You have a way of messing up my plans," he finally said, his tone warm.

"It's what I do," she grinned, undulating her body against him. "What was the plan?"

"I was going to kidnap you and take you home."

Something in the way he said that made her forget about rocking her hips for just a moment.

"And then I was already there?" she fished for information. He smiled.

"Home – home, Babe. Not here."

Finally see the batcave? That was tempting. Not half as tempting as his deliciously hard body against her own, though. She'd see his house later. Right now she had other things on her mind. She stroked her fingertips under the waistband of his silk boxer and softly raked her nails over his skin. His hips jerked, and she shifted her legs a little too the side, so that he was nestled between her thighs, the pressure just in the right place.

She slowly trailed her nails up over his back and he kissed her, hard and deep, almost squirming under her hands.

"You gonna call?"

He reached out to grab his mobile phone from the nightstand and speed- dialled control.

"Yo, it's me. You're in charge."

"Yeah. Dire emergency only. Dire, Santos."

He disconnected and tossed the phone away.

"Now, where was I..."

Notes:

I stole Michael Scofield from Prison Break, because I could easily see him as a Rangeman. I don't know anything about how PB will continue and end, so this is him from an alternative universe

Chapter 20

"You're all... glowy," Tsuy greeted when she'd climbed into the passenger side of the Hilux. "I take it you had a good week?"

It was Thursday May 4, the day before Rangeday. A takedown had come up the day before and she'd had to cancel the lesson, so this was the first time she'd seen her friend since last week.

"Oh yeah," she said as she pulled away from the dojo. "Wonderful week."

The glow could probably be attributed to the series of orgasms that had happened on Saturday and Sunday. She felt so good it was a miracle that not everybody could see – or maybe they could but were too polite to say.

Saturday afternoon she and Ranger had finally persuaded each other out of bed. They'd packed some stuff and gone to what he referred to as 'home home'. It had turned out to be a wooden cabin up near Lehigh Gorge state park, a rustic old structure built around a huge round fireplace. You could easily imagine him holing up there during a snow storm. It had no central heating and water came from a well out back.

It had taken some getting used to the slower pace for everything, but she'd enjoyed being there with Ranger, who wore the house like a comfortable coat. She'd learnt a lot of new things about him, because this house was very personal – it had photos and favourite books and a red and cream comforter handmade by his grandmother.

They had spent the rest of the weekend talking and laughing and making love, and any possible combination of those three things, and it had been so wonderful that Monday morning had come as a harsh reality. Ranger had to leave early for Boston and she went to the Monday morning briefing, determined to act as a regular employee. It was likely that the new developments between Ranger and her were already known in the control room, but she was damned if she would allow it to change anything.

Thankfully the only change seemed to be the new favourite word in the vocabulary of the guys – suddenly everything was 'lucky'. She decided for everyone's sanity that she would ignore the reference to 'getting lucky' and just get on with things.

Ranger had returned this Thursday morning, and he would be dealing with paperwork all day. Her day would be busy with last minute Rangeday preparations. He had promised a date and a surprise for tonight, and she was looking forward to finding out what a man like Ranger considered a surprise date. Bungee jumping? Rock climbing? NASCAR racing?

"Have the range-men heard about tomorrow yet?" Tsuy said, drawing her attention back to the present.

"No, I haven't said anything. I was a bit annoyed about some stuff they did, so I didn't tell."

And after that she'd been distracted by Ranger. Come to think of it, none of the guys had so much as mentioned it this week apart from when she emailed them kit-lists. Maybe Tank had had a word with them.

When they got out at the mall they got a shopping cart each and went inside. Her friend was looking preppy today, Stephanie noticed. Her hair in a high ponytail, a navy polo with an image of a sailing ship above her left breast, dark blue jeans and expensive looking boat shoes. She looked very un-Jersey, especially next to her own jeans skirt and kick-ass knee-high boots.

They looked at the shopping list Ella had helped make.

"Bloody hell."

"Yeah. I think we'll start with the beer. Then we can leave the cart at the checkout office while we shop for the rest of the stuff."

"Shame you can't drive your truck around in here, we could use that as cart," Tsuy said. "That's a lot of beer."

"I wanted to rent a keg, but apparently they don't like putting those things on the beach. The sand can ruin everything. We're better off getting a load of cans and digging a hole to keep them cool."

---

"This is a lot of beer," Tsuy said in awe as they'd stacked all the trays of cans into the cart.

"A lo-o-ot of beer," Stephanie agreed with a grin. Maybe it was a little over the top, but nobody would have to drive home, and she didn't want it to be the kind of party where the beer ran out around midnight. Besides, most of the guys had an alcohol tolerance of epic proportions. Hell, most of the guys were of epic proportions. Especially Ranger...

Don't think about that now. Focus on something else.

"So, how are you and Tank?"

Her friend smiled slightly.

"Good."

Stephanie rolled her eyes. Good? She wanted details.

"Hey, do you know what put him in such a mood last week? It was the day before he went to Boston."

"We had an argument about my trip to New York," Tsuy said as they pushed the heavy cart together. "He thought it was too dangerous and didn't want me to go. I thought he didn't get to make that kind of decisions for me."

"Ah, security experts. They see danger everywhere. Did you work it out before he left?"

"Yes, that night. We compromised."

She briefly considered telling her friend about the incident at work, but suspected that it wouldn't do Tank any favours. Better to stay out of that.

"Hey, does he know you'll be there, tomorrow?"

"Not unless you told him."

"Nope. Should be a nice surprise," she grinned. She'd have to make sure she was near to Tank when he noticed his girlfriend was there. She had seen affection between them, but they were both so low-key that she was hoping to see some real PDA there. Plus she was curious to see how he'd react when he found out Tsuy had known of the plans all along.

Hell, she was curious to find out how any of the guys would react to what she had in store for them.

They filled an entire cart full of chips, dips and nibbles. They also bought juice and other drinks. Stephanie took a bottle of roséé for herself and a bottle of sparkly water to mix with it. It was a tip from Ella to drink wine, but not get to the point of falling-down drunk. OR to the point of passing out

"Hey, do you want sakè? Actually, have you decided if you want to stay the night?"

"If you don't mind sharing a tent..."

"I'm not going to share one with Ranger, that's for sure!" she said, and Tsuy's look of relief said she'd hit the nail on the head. "It's a company thing. I'm trying to get rid of the image that I only work there because Ranger and I..."

Tsuy saved her from finishing that sentence.

"Thomas doesn't understand why I don't want to kiss in public."

"Not at all?"

"Well... a kiss is all right. But not a kiss, if that makes sense."

"Ah yes, no tongue when other people can see."

Tsuy did a palms-up gesture.

"See? You get it. He doesn't."

"Most of the guys at Rangeman are like that. I think it's an army thing. They're so used to not having any privacy that they don't really get what the problem is."

The other woman nodded while she eyed up the isle with the crisps and nibbles.

"If we'll share a tent I'll stay the night. I planned to go to my friend Joanne—"

"She's the one with the horses?"

"Yes. It's not far, so I'll drop by between trainings, and then I'll come over in the evening."

"Cool. Do we have your drink in here? It's the privilege of the shopper to get exactly what she wants to drink herself."

"I'll get some grapefruit juice. I don't really drink alcohol."

"Not at all?" she could have sworn that her friend usually drank sakè over dinner.

"I have no alcohol tolerance. It makes me ill. Sakè is the only thing I can stand, and only at dinner. I'll bring some."

"Anything but sakè makes you ill, straight away?"

Tsuy nodded. "Apparently it's a genetic thing."

"That sucks."

"Especially for the people who don't like anyone sober around, to remember everything," the smaller woman said with the flash of a grin.

---

Two store employees were helping them load the three very full carts into the back of the Hilux when Stephanie's phone rang. It was Lester.

"Hey Bombshell, are you near the bond office?"

"Kind of, why?"

"I need someone to pick up a file, and I can't spare anyone here right now."

"Sure, no problem."

"Hey Tsuy, do you mind if we run an errant before I drop you off?"

"Not at all. Don't have much to do before tonight."

They finished organising all the stuff in the back of the truck and put the hard cover over it.

"Are you seeing Tank tonight?"

Her friend smiled slightly.

"I thought you had this rule about dating in daytime?"

They got into the cab and Stephanie rolled over the engine.

"I came to my senses," Tsuy shrugged. "If I want to make my whole family happy, just dating in daytime isn't going to cut it."

" I finally got to that point too. If I wanted to make my mother happy..."

"...you wouldn't be happy, and because of that, she wouldn't be happy either?" Tsuy supplied.

"Exactly."

---

"I just have to be in the bond office for a moment. Want to come in?"

"Sure."

Connie was at her desk painting her nails bright fuchsia. Lula was filing in a shiny silver mini-skirt and a faux-leather plunge top. Her hair was done up with silver beads and clicked softly while she worked. The overall effect was... stunning. There was just no other word for it. Stephanie felt Tsuy pause a fraction of a second when she took Lula in.

"Hey girls," she greeted. "Just dropping by to pick something up for the guys. This is Tsuy."

Tsuy stepped forward and shook hands with Connie and then Lula.

"Pleased to meet you."

"You the one who worked the self defence wonders on our girl here?" Lula replied, hand on her hip, looking the other woman up and down.

"I teach her," Tsuy evaded. Her voice was soft and cool, making Lula sound even louder by comparison.

"And I hear you been teaching Tank too!" There was a barb in the word 'teaching', and Stephanie frowned. She'd realised that these two women didn't have much in common, but she hadn't expected problems in the couple of minutes they would be in the office.

Tsuy had taken a step back, creating more space between them. Standing opposite Lula she seemed even more upper class – expensive deck shoes, sailing polo, British accent more noticeable all of a sudden. Quite out of place in the dingy bonds office. It wasn't hard to see why Lula felt the need to assert herself.

"I don't teach Thomas," Tsuy answered softly, just a hint of edge in her voice. "There is no need; he is quite proficient."

Stephanie saw Lula's nostrils flare, and realised she had never heard Tsuy call Tank Tank. It was always Thomas. She suddenly wondered why, but shoved the question to the back of her mind when Lula opened her mouth to answer.

"Connie, can you get me that file? Lester said it was urgent," she said out loud, hoping to get out of there before Lula went into full-blown rhino mode. She had the feeling that though Tsuy was into non-confrontational living, she wouldn't be backing down. Connie nodded and pulled a thick file out of a drawer.

Stephanie took the file, called a goodbye, and went to the door. Tsuy turned around and followed her out. Stephanie grimaced because the idea that she was dismissed by the smaller woman wouldn't calm Lula any, but at least they were out of there.

The ride to the Rangeman office was silent. She wanted to ask what the hell that was all about, but Tsuy was silent, closed off. She recognised the vibe from Ranger and knew it was no use to ask right now. She did, however, have another question.

"Why do you always call Tank Thomas?"

It was silent for so long that she thought she wouldn't get an answer at all. Finally Tsuy explain ina low voice:

"To my people... a name is also a description." She was silent again, and Stephanie decided to try to draw her out. This didn't seem the right note to end the day on.

"So when you call him Tank..." she trailed off, waiting.

"Then I call him a crude, imprecise weapon."

"Right." It made more sense now. "And if he calls you Ninja?"

"'Ninja' comes from the roots of skill, and stealth. It is a compliment."

She pulled the car into the Rangeman garage, and got out with the files.

"You coming?"

Tsuy gave a small shake of her head.

"You're gonna meet all the guys tomorrow – might be nice to meet some of them ahead of time?"

"I've met enough new people for today."

Is she worried she'll get a repeat of what just happened? Stephanie pondered in the lift. She'd never considered that Tsuy might be insecure about meeting new people. She always seemed so composed that it was hard to imagine. But maybe her reaction to unsettling encounters was to act remote, step back, speak in a cool, soft voice. To withdraw.

In other words, the exact opposite of what Lula did when she felt insecure. Small wonder that those two clashed almost instantly.

It probably didn't help that Lula used to have quite a crush on Tank, who had known but never taken her up on it.

She dropped off the files and got back into the truck. Tsuy was sitting quietly, perhaps deep in thought, and they drove back to the dojo in silence.

"Are you still coming tomorrow?" she asked when the car came to a stop in front of the dojo. "It won't be like at the bond office."

Tsuy nodded, and said goodbye. It didn't occur to Stephanie until she was halfway back to the office that that nod could have been an agreement with the first, or the second thing she had said.

She thought for a long moment and then punched a number on her mobile phone. It was answered after two rings.

"Go."

"Hey Tank, can you talk?"

"Sure Steph, I'm in my car. What's up?"

"Err... I'm about to tell you a secret."

She heard him chuckle silently.

"I always encourage that."

"Tsuy's going to be there tomorrow, to make photos."

He was silent for a moment, perhaps thinking about the implications.

"She knows what we're going to do?"

"Err, yes."

"The acting talent! So why this sudden confession?"

"I kind of need your help. She went with me to do the shopping this afternoon, and we went to the bond office to get some files for Lester. And... she ran into Lula."

He made a 'go on' sound.

"They're like polar opposites. It turned... ugly... within two sentences."

"Okay..." he was silent for a moment, and she imagined he was trying to wrap his head around the concept. "...What does this have to do with tomorrow? Lula won't be there, right?"

"No, but Tsuy seemed pretty rattled, and I'm kind of worried that she's decided against meeting a load of new people."

"Ah. I'll see what I can do. Thanks for the heads-up."

---

"Hey, white girl."

"Hey Lula." She'd been expecting this phone call.

"Why'd you go and bring her in here?"

"Lula—"

"—we don't need no snooty rich girls around the place. You upgrading your friends?"

"Lula! Of course not. Can't I make a new friend without losing an existing one?"

It was silent for a moment, as if she'd derailed a rant.

"Just don't bring her along. We got no room at the office for little snobby girls judging me and waving Tank in my face."

Ah, so that was the real sore point. Tank.

"Why would she judge you?"

"Don't gimme that, Steph! She was all stepping back, giving me that LOOK. Like she was wondering from what rock I crawled out under."

"Lula, Tsuy's not like that. I think the only thing she judged you on, was the way you were trying to bite her head off before she'd hardly said a word."

"Yeah, right." Lula was silent for a moment, and Stephanie wondered how such an inoffensive person as Tsuy had managed to push all her friend's buttons.

"At least I don't have to wonder what she got that I don't," Lula finally said, sounding a little calmer. Stephanie doubted that Tank's choices had anything to do with background or status or possessions, but maybe it would be easier for Lula to convince herself of that right now.

"Lula, you're happy with Hal, right?" it was silent, so she continued, "Because he dropped me off home last Friday and it was clear that he's very happy to have you."

"Yeah..." more silence. It was a rarity with Lula. "You know what? You're right. Screw Tank, and screw his pretty skinny Yacht Club girl. If that's the kind of woman he wants, I ain't got no use for him anyway. I'm so over this."

She wondered if the other woman had heard how that sounded, and kept silent for a long moment, hoping Lula's ears would catch up with her brain.

"Yeah, yeah. I know that sounded bitter as hell. I just felt rejected all over again, you know? I'll get over it. And I still don't like her."

"That's okay. I doubt she'll ever voluntarily come into the office again."

"Well... good. Gotta go girl, see ya!"

---

"Mmm."

She put down her fork and grinned at Ranger. He shot her an answering smile. They were sitting on the padded bench-seat of a corner booth in Rosselini's.

"That was amazing."

"I kind of noticed that."

In an act of bravery... or insanity... they had agreed that they would choose each other's dinner courses. So far he seemed to have enjoyed his carpaccio with parmesan, salad and pine nuts. He'd picked a salad with smoked chicken and honey-mustard sauce for her.

"Wait 'till you see what I picked you for main course."

Ranger started to answer and then suddenly stopped, a hand going to his pocket. His phone was buzzing. He shot her an apologetic glance, took it out and flipped it open, grimacing when he recognised the caller number.

"Yo."

"I was assured this would take place after the weekend."

"You'd better... I will be back in Trenton tomorrow morning."

He listened to a long and fervent explanation, and rolled his eyes at her. Despite the disappointment of possibly losing him for the evening, she grinned.

"It had better."

He disconnected and swore under his breath.

"Not good?" she asked the obvious.

"I'm sorry, Babe. The situation in Boston has changed and it's all going to go down tonight."

There were a thousand things she could say, but none of them would help the matter in any case, so she left it. She moved over so she could lean against him, half listening while he called Tank.

"Yo, it's me. It's ex-vent time in Boston."

"That's what I said... let's hope so."

"Flying... yeah. Tsuy with you? One moment."

He turned to her.

"Babe, I have tickets for a thing tonight... do you want to go with Tsuy instead?"

She nodded, curious what 'a thing' would turn out to be. Didn't matter – anything would be better than sitting alone all evening, praying he'd be safe, praying he'd just turn up the following morning. And since Tsuy wasn't used to this sort of thing happening, it'd probably be good to hang out together tonight.

"The girls can hang out together. Rosselini's. Yeah... my car. That works. See you."

He disconnected, and she listened as he called control to arrange a plane readied and an overnight bag to be brought over. Finally he put the phone on the table in front of him. Then the next moment she was plastered against his side, his lips on hers, and he was stealing her breath with his intensity. It was scorching and mercifully brief, or she might have start groping him in full view of the Burg.

"What does ex-vent mean?" she said when she'd caught her breath a little.

"We used to work with a guy called Simon. He was fond of saying that the excrement had hit the ventilator."

She grinned despite her disappointment over his impending departure.

"What happens now?"

"Tank and Tsuy are coming over here with Tsuy's car. Tank and I go to the airport, and we'll leave you girls to have dinner."

"Okay..."

"...and it's going on my account, so no paying for anything."

She kissed him, trying to enjoy the moment instead of focussing on the fact that he'd be leaving soon. After a couple of seconds it started to work and the slow, sensuous touch of his hands on her back made her sigh with pleasure. She could almost climb into his lap, make it a full-body kiss...

Suddenly someone cleared his throat quite close to her ear. She jumped, breaking the kiss with a little yelp. Ranger and Tank laughed softly. Tsuy and Tank had squeezed into the booth as well, putting the men on the outside.

"Hey Bombshell, I'm here to arrange your partner exchange," Tank said with a grin. "I'm taking the old guy, and here—" he put his arms around Tsuy and kissed her temple, "—is the replacement."

"You have to watch out, you know," Stephanie said. "I might not want to give her back."

Both men took in a quick, deep breath at that. Stephanie looked at Tsuy and gave her an innocent shrug and a wink. Men. They were so predictable.

Ranger composed himself and put an envelope on the table, and then he and Tank got up and left. The abruptness of their departure no longer surprised her. Ranger had explained that stretching the goodbyes in this sort of situation only made it more difficult for everybody. Now that she felt comfortable with her feelings for him, and secure in his feelings for her... even though he hadn't told her, she could understand that sentiment.

"Dinner and a show? You're getting classy in your old age," they heard Tank comment as the men walked out. At just that moment the waiter brought the main courses, so it was a while before the women spoke again.

"Does this happen a lot?"

"Not that often, thank God," Stephanie said. "Usually when it's a night off, someone else handles the emergencies."

"Only this one couldn't be handled by anyone else?"

"Yeah." She spotted the envelope and picked it up. Inside were two tickets for the Lion King musical.

"Oh my god."

"He's sending us to see that?" Tsuy had an incredulous smile on her face.

"Yeah. Good seats, too. You want to go?"

"Of course! I've never been to a musical. I grew up on Kabuki and Noh, Japanese theatre."

"I thought you lived in London for a while."

"Near London, but by the time I could have travelled to West End on my own, I lived on a ship, safely away from the temptation of London. My father didn't approve of Western musicals."

Or much western influence at all, it seemed. Stephanie wondered how someone that traditional had come to live abroad – but then, maybe living abroad had confirmed the traditional opinions. It was said that the Burg was more Italian in some matters than Italy itself.

They shared a pineapple with mint icecream for dessert, and then lingered over coffee, discussing anything but what Ranger and Tank would be getting up to over the course of the night. Stephanie didn't exactly know, and was glad the musical would serve as a distraction from thinking too closely about it.

"Tank rode in this?" she asked as she opened the passenger door of the Mini. The seat was all the way back.

Tsuy nodded. "He was surprised that he fit, but these things are like the Tardis – bigger on the inside than on the outside."

That wasn't what had surprised Stephanie though. Tank had once said that he let women drive in bed sometimes, but never in a car. Guess he'd been playing up the bad boy image. Tsuy definitely seemed to bring out the softie in him.

She mentally washed out her brain. Tank and softie in the same sentence? He'd never be a softie. He was still quiet, strong, tough-as-nails ex-Ranger Tank. She'd just never seen tenderness in his eyes like when he looked at Tsuy.

The reason that she felt secure in Ranger's feelings for her was that she'd seen it in his eyes when he looked at her. Funny that she hadn't recognised it until she'd seen it in Tank.

"Do you feel prepared for tomorrow?" she asked when they were on their way. Partly to fish about if Tank had broached the subject, partly to distract herself from Tsuy's kamikaze driving style.

"I guess so. I was a little... rattled... earlier. I don't want to give you the feeling that you have to chose between Lula and I."

"It's okay, I don't... I won't. You just got off on the wrong foot. A next time—"

"There won't be a next time."

"Why not? If you both would let me explain..." but how could she, when she didn't really understand why two of her friends had reacted so hostile to each other? It wasn't just about Tank. It was everything, but she couldn't define it.

"This is where we hit the cultural differences," Tsuy said after a long silence. "If I don't get along with someone, I remove myself from the situation and avoid it in the future. Western people always want to talk about everything."

"Yeah, I guess we do. I'm not going to push you from that course of action, but I'd still like to explain you something."

Tsuy nodded, her eyes on traffic. Stephanie took that to mean that unlike Ranger in his zone, she was still listening.

"Lula hasn't been with Hal for very long yet. Before, she had a thing for Tank. He knew, but never took her up on it. She finally figured it wasn't going to happen and moved on." She paused a moment, feeling bad for talking about her friend like this. But if it would help cool down the hostility... "and all of a sudden you're here, and you're everything she's not, and you're with him."

"She's everything I'm not, too."

"Yeah, but you're not insecure about who you are."

"It's actually a little tiring—" Tsuy downshifted the Mini to three and roared past a minivan, shoehorned the little car into a gap, and shifted gear back to four, "—that people assume they are the only ones with insecurities."

She was reminded of an earlier conversation. Just because Tsuy didn't show things on the outside, didn't mean it wasn't there.

"Point taken. What I meant is that because you are so different... I think she felt rejected all over again."

Tsuy tilted her head, considering this, and Stephanie decided to shut up. Maybe it would help... maybe they would never meet again. Maybe a spark of understanding was all she could hope for.

---

"Did you like it?" she asked when they were back in the car. The other woman had been very quiet all through the musical and afterward. Stephanie had a hard time telling if that was because she disapproved of the style or if it was for some other reason.

Tsuy was focussed on traffic. It took a long moment for her to react.

"Like it?"

"The musical? You're so quiet."

"I'm still…"

Enthralled? Enraged? Mind-boggled? Disgusted? Undecided?

The Mini zoomed past a big SUV, weaving in and out of traffic like a hornet.

"Overwhelmed. The music… the costumes... the dancing. Just… wow."

"You're going to drag Tank along to more musicals now?" she grinned.

"I don't think there's any dragging him anywhere," she said. "I might be tempted to try though."

They were both silent for a moment, and Stephanie noted the time on the car clock. 10:43 PM. Whatever Ranger and Tank were doing, they would be in the middle of it now. She spent a moment sending a silent prayer on the off-chance that it would make a difference. Please let them be safe.

"Can you drop me at the office? I'm staying there tonight. Makes it easier to leave early tomorrow." She'd just planned to spent the night in Ranger's arms rather than just in his bed.

Please let Ranger and Tank be back in time and in shape to be a part of tomorrow.

"What time are you up tomorrow?" she asked when Tsuy idled at the curb in front of the office.

"I'm usually up by six."

"Okay, I'm sure Tank will let you know if he can, but just in case, I'll let you know how things turn out, okay?" no need to define what 'just in case' was. Could be anything from ambulances and intensive care to broken phones and exhausted sleep.

"I'd appreciate that," Tsuy said.

Stephanie got out of the little car and stood in the open door for a long moment, leaning down to look at her friend. She wanted to say something optimistic, but found herself unable to think of words that didn't sound trite. Tsuy seemed to have the same problem, and after a long moment she simple reached out her hand. Stephanie took it and squeezed it briefly, and that simple contact made her feel a little better somehow.

"See you tomorrow."

The closed the car door and watched the car zoom off, wondering if she'd manage any sleep at all.

Chapter 21

The alarm went at 06:15 AM, and Stephanie felt a wave of disappointment when she found she was still alone between the luxurious sheets of the 7th floor apartment. She'd half hoped, half expected for Ranger to return during the night and silently slip into bed with her. That he hadn't, worried her. She grabbed her phone from the nightstand.

"Rangeman control."

She didn't recognise the voice, and then sleepily remembered that the control room would be manned by contract workers so that the regular crew was free for Rangeday.

"Hello, this is Stephanie," she said, "Is anything known about Ranger and Tank?"

"Good morning Ms Plum," was the polite answer. "Ranger called at six, and they were just boarding the plane. He said to proceed with your plans for the day, and he will call you when he lands."

"Okay, thank you."

She hung up and let herself flop back onto the bed. He was safe. He was flying back to Trenton right this moment. He might not make it exactly in time and he was likely to be tired, but she didn't give a damn.

"Moshi moshi,"

"Hey Tsuy, have you heard from Tank yet?"

"Goodmorning, Stephanie. Yes, he just sent me a text message that he's all right."

"Ah, good. Feel ready for today?"

"I suppose I do. How about you?"

"Now I know the guys are alright…" She realised she was feeling kind of hyper now that the worry was fading. No doubt the merry men were the same… probably worse, since they still didn't know what was going to happen.

"I know what you mean. Hey, here's a question. I have the dogs with me today. Is it okay if I bring them for a while? They're spending the night at Joanne's place."

"If you think they can handle it, sure."

"Great. I'll see you there."

Everybody had been asked to be in the meeting room at 7:00 to get route descriptions and be given the stuff that had to be brought along, so she got a move on. After a quick shower with her favourite shower gel she dressed in jeans and a stretchy, soft pink tee with a big white daisy on the front. No need to dress in black today, and she intended to make full use of that. Would the guys come in their own clothes or would they automatically dress for work? She hoped to see some individuals today.

Ella was in the kitchen when she got out of the bedroom. She'd prepared an omelette and some fresh baked bagels.

"Morning Ella."

"Good morning Stephanie. Ranger hasn't returned yet?"

"He's on his way. I hope he got some sleep."

"They have some apartments in the Boston office as well, so perhaps he slept for a couple of hours there."

"I hope so."

"Are you still nervous?"

"Just hyper. Whatever happens, nothing much I can do about it now."

"The weather looks good. It's predicted to be about 25 degrees Celsius, with a nice breeze. I'm sure you'll have a wonderful day."

"Thank you, I really hope so. Are you and Luis still coming?"

"Of course. I wouldn't miss it for the world. We'll be there around six."

---

"Gentlemen!"

The group quietened down, and she smiled because the black Rangeman clothing on Cal and Junior was the occasional island in a sea of jeans and T-shirts. Most of the guys had decided that Rangeday definitely called for informal clothing. Lester and Bobby had taken this a step further and were wearing the loudest Hawaii shirts she had ever seen.

Eager eyes followed her around the room as she handed out the sheets with directions.

"You're going to tell us now, right? Right?"

"Come on Bombshell, you've won. Just tell us."

"Yeah, we're dying here!"

She ignored them, having decided that she might as well let them discover when they arrived.
"This is where we're going."

"The beach!"

"Awesome!"

There would be twenty-one people including her, and she'd made teams of seven, trying to achieve well-balanced groups. She hadn't really planned a competitive element, but knowing the guys, that would develop anyway.
The boisterous group made its way to the garage and started piling bags and tents and other things into the cars, their voices echoing through the garage. She'd managed to convince them that carpooling would be a good idea. Why go to such a beautiful stretch of beach and then park it full of cars?

When the cars were packed and everybody was ready she hesitated. She'd planned to just load everybody up and go, but she hadn't heard from Ranger and Tank yet. What if they were too tired to drive, or something like that? She didn't like the idea of leaving without him.

She hauled out her mobile and hit the speed dial. He answered after three rings.

"Yo, Babe."

"Yo yourself. Where are you?"

"Just taxiing to the terminal. We should be at the office in half an hour."

"Are you good to drive? Did you get any sleep?"

"A couple of hours. We're good. You go along with the group, someone has to stay in charge of that lot."

She grinned at the idea that Ranger would consider her in charge.

"Okay. Ella has directions to the place. I'll see you when you get there."

"See you then," he said, and disconnected. She sighed. At least it was a step up from a complete sudden disconnect

"They good?" Lester asked.

"They're fine, they'll just be a bit late. We're good to go."

He turned to the rest of the guys and made a circular motion with his hand. She didn't know what it meant but clearly the others did, because everybody got in and seven engines roared to life. A minute later seven cars rolled down the street, each of them full of boisterous men. Probably most of them were arguing about what the activities would be, who won the book, and who got to control the CD player.

"How are you settling in?" she asked Michael, who was riding with her in the Hilux.

He made a non-committal sound.

"Slowly," he finally said. "I still get the 'intellectual' cracks."

"I've been here half a year and I still get the 'Jersey girl' cracks."

"It's different in Boston. This is a much closer group."

"A lot of them served together in the army, so it just takes a while to become part of them, I guess. Today might help."

"Yeah, stuff outside of the normal activities."

She got the impression that he had been struggling to rebuild his life, with no time for relaxing. Small wonder if he had been released six months ago, with no support system to fall back on. He'd asked Tank for extra hours on the roster, and Tank had nodded and given him extra control room shifts. Michael could do with some activities outside of work, and a chance to become friends with his colleagues.

When they got to the beach she saw that Jake, Dominic and a third instructor were already there. She guessed that would be Malik. He was a tall, dark-skinned man with his hair in close corn-row braiding. His shoulders were wide, but he wasn't bulky like most of the Rangemen. He could have been Tank's brother, without the weightlifting habit.

Jake and the other men had put up a big army tent to store equipment and food in, and next to the tent, seven three-wheeled buggies were lined up. Michael leant forward in his seat as soon as they came within sight.

"Trikes?"

"They're for beach sailing."

His eyes gleamed, and she thought this could be the first genuine grin she'd seen on him since she met him. He would smile politely in greeting, but he was always guarded, reserved. With his pale blue eyes sparkling and a grin on his lips Stephanie found him devastatingly handsome. Since she didn't think Ranger would consent to her having a male harem, she idly considered if she had any friends to introduce Michael to.

When they got out of the car she found the other guys slapping hands together and talking about their bets. Apparently nobody had guessed beach sailing. She grinned inwardly because it wasn't the only thing she had in store for them.

"Let's put up the tents first," she said.

They proceeded to do just that, in a far more efficient manner than she would have. Stuff was transferred from the cars to the tents – bags, boxes, and Rodriguez produced a large cooler that disappeared into the army tent were the food and equipment was stored.

Bobby had brought a small igloo-model tent and a large package that turned out to be something like a modern tipi. Unlike the small and light sleeping tents, you could easily stand up in it.

"That's my festival tent," he told her when she asked what he used it for. "I thought it'd come in handy to store stuff out of the wind, and to change."

She thanked him for bringing it, though she highly doubted that any of the guys would have a problem with changing out in the open. It was for her benefit, and that was very nice of him.

Twenty minutes later there was a camp, complete with the tents in half a circle and a dug-out fireplace in the open space. The Merry Men were nothing if not good in the wild. Putting up her own tent, borrowed from the Rangeman store room, had been a struggle until Hector and Woody suddenly came over and took the fibreglass construction from her hands.

"Here, we'll do that," Woody grinned, assembling the poles with practised ease.

"We get to good stuff soon, si?" Hector said with a nod toward the landsailing buggies.

"Well okay then, if you insist…" she said, a bit unnecessary since they'd already erected her tent and were pinning it down with the tent pegs.

---

It was nearly 9:30 AM when everything was set up. She went to the waterline, watching the waves roll in. Before long the men surrounded her with expectant looks.

"Well!" Junior couldn't contain himself.

"So, get into your teams and we'll get started," she said.

It only took a minute of squabbling for the three groups to form on the beach. She'd put Ranger and Tank into the blue team because it would be easiest to step into that activity if they were late. She was in the White team together with Bobby, Hawk, Michael, Manny, Cal and Zero.

"We have three teams and three activities. We'll have lunch in two and half hours, and then you all change to your second activity."

"The red team starts with Jake; he is a beach sailing instructor."

Ram and Lester high-fived each other.

"…the white team with Dominic; he'll go surf kayaking with you."

"Yeah baby, yeah!" Manny did his Austin Powers imitation. Bobby, Michael and the rest of the white team were grinning.

"…and the blue team with Malik. He's a power kite instr—"

"Bárbaro!" Hector exclaimed.

She startled as a pair of huge arms lifted her off the ground in a giant bear hug. Lester, clearly liking the planning for the day. Everybody laughed while he put her down again.

"Awesome, Steph," he grinned at her. Then he was off, going back to his team to get ready for beach sailing.

"Kayaking?" Zero said to Dom. "You goin' to teach us the cool rolls and all?"

Zero was one of the fringe guys, usually working in nightshifts. She didn't see him much and knew little about him apart from the intimate details of his on-off relationship with a Philly stripper. Who ever said that only women gossiped? He wasn't tall, but built solidly and had a big tribal tattoo on his right calf.

"Yeah, we want all the tricks," Bobby agreed. Manny and Cal nodded in agreement.

"Sure," Dominic grinned at them. "Go get into your wet suits; the kayaks are in the big tent."

---

Walking through the soft sand toward the tents she found Cal next to her.

"Man, how did you arrange all this? The boss said the budget…" he made a vague chopping gesture.

"Ranger told us that to balance the new bonus system, the budget for Rangeday had been cut in half," Bobby supplied, appearing on her other side. "He said to prepare ourselves for a barbeque and a game of football."

She smiled at them and shrugged. So that's how he'd tried to temper the expectations.

"Ranger is a sneak."

"Damn right," Cal rumbled.

She was just zipping up her wetsuit when a truck pulled up. That had to be the guys. She pushed through the flap of the tipi, took a split second to appreciate the sculpted planes and angles of Bobby's bare back, and walked to Ranger as he got out of Tank's truck. He walked toward her, and they collided in a hard hug, the force of worry and relief behind it.

He had wrapped her up in his arms, and she buried her face into the side of her neck. She hadn't allowed herself to think about it, but the worry had weighed on her mind all night.

"Hey Babe," he said finally, his tone light. She smiled against his skin, because his grip on her indicated that he definitely hadn't taken the situation lightly.

"Hey Ranger."

"Hey boss!"

They both looked at Lester, who had rolled one of the buggies onto the hard sand and was putting the mast in place together with Junior. Three buggies were already set up, their sails still down.

"Looks like she won the bet, alright!"

Ranger flashed a grin and gave her a brief, hard kiss on the lips. Then he let go, apparently deciding that that was enough intimacy in front of the men. She buried her disappointment. If she wanted to be part of the team, snogging the boss in full view wouldn't help.

"So what do I start with?"

"You and Tank are in the Blue team. Power kiting."

She gestured to the small group on the other side of the tent camp. Hal had Hector by the back of his belt to stop the smaller man from becoming airborne by the power of the kite. Ranger quirked a smile.

"Cool. What are you going to do?" he held her at arm's length, taking his time to look her over. His eyes grew dark.

Guess he likes the wetsuit.

"Surf kayaking."

At that moment the guys started to bring the kayaks from the army tent where they had been stored, working in pairs to bring them to the waterline.

"Give her up man, she's gotta come with us," Zero grinned. Ranger looked like he thought about smiling. After a moment he turned her to face away from him, and gave her a little push with his hands on her hips. She chuckled and went, leaving him to join the kiters.

---

After a brief instruction about the kayaks they went into the water, and even though a wave drenched her within the first five seconds in the kayak, she was grinning from ear to ear. Dom had taken them to behind the surf for some basic skills, like how to catch a wave and how to go against one. The trick was not to go completely sideways, apparently.

Then they went off to play in the surf, waiting for good waves, riding them to the white foam, struggling back out to catch another wave. It was great fun, and when she got tired she paddled to behind the breakers, where Dom was teaching some of the guys the beginning of the rolling technique. Apparently it was called eskimoteering.

She watched the kiters on the beach and smiled when Tank was given the strongest of the kites, big enough to take most other men flying. He took a few steps and then jumped, and she heard the guys whoop as he landed a couple of metres further in the sand. Seemed like everybody was having fun. Something eased in her stomach at that realisation; a knot she hadn't even known was there.

---

She was just beyond the breakers waiting for a good wave when an old army-green Landrover Defender entered their secluded section of beach. It had a zipped tarp-tent over the back. The car came to a stop some way from the waterline and a slight figure in a navy warm-up suit jumped out. Tsuy.

She looked around for a moment and zipped open the back of the car. Instantly it seemed as if the beach was filled with dogs. The two Stephanie had already met, and three smaller brown dogs. Miyo and two of the others stood at the waterline and barked at the waves and the kayaks, tails wagging hard.

They looked friendly enough, so she let a good wave carry her to the beach and got out in ankle-deep water. The dogs crowded around her, in the foam, wanting to lick her hands while she dragged her kayak onto the beach.

They were sleek, tan and red-brown dogs with light brown eyes and huge triangular ears. Beautiful, friendly and on the hyperactive side. Miyo stood back a little, more reserved. The larger dog greeted her with a soft howl.

She heard a camera click and looked up to find Tsuy, mirror shades on her face and a professional looking camera in her hand. She wore a fitted polo and warm-up trousers with poppers along the outside of the legs. Perhaps they covered up her riding tights. Her ball cap said 'Lundgren Endurance Horses'

"Hey! Glad to see you came. Where did you find these little guys?"

Her friend adjusted some things on the camera and didn't take it away from her face while she talked.

"They're Joanne's dogs, she breeds Kelpies." Click, click. Stephanie knew that Joanne Lundgren was the friend Tsuy went to when she went horseback riding.

"If they're too rowdy I can put them back in the car."

"Nah, they're cool, and it's hard to out-rowdy the merry men! Have you spotted Tank yet?"

Tsuy looked around the beach, shaking her head, and then a smile broke through when she spotted the large man. He was flying a smaller stunt kite and watching as Hal took a big jump with one of the powerkites, his face lit up with laughter. Stephanie found herself fascinated – it was the first time she'd seen the guys this open.

"You should go make some photos there," she said after a long moment.

"Definitely."

She watched as her friend walked over to the kiters, two Kelpies ahead of her, Iseki the polar dog on her heels. Tank handed his kite to Vince and met her halfway, catching her up in a hug. Stephanie saw heads turn from all along the beach. Guess now everybody knew why Tank had been smiling of late.

Ranger hunched down to pet the dogs and Stephanie felt a wave of warm something-or-another at the sight of it. God, he was amazing. It was hard to believe that they were actually trying this relationship thing. She'd hoped for it, but she'd never been able to picture a future with him. She had never thought he would ever want that. Now she was beginning to think that a future with him wouldn't have to change the things about her life that she liked. There was no demand to quit her job, become a housewife, have kids. They could go on living their lives the way they liked best, only better because they would be living it together.

She'd been afraid of commitment with Joe because life as she knew it would be over. Committing to Joe meant his idea of growing up – the same idea her mother had. It occurred to her now that she wasn't afraid of commitment with Ranger. He'd never try to make her into something she wasn't. Life as she knew it would only get better.

That was, if he was actually willing to commit to her. Don't think about this stuff now. Today is a good day.

.

A pair of arms closed around her waist and she jumped, startled from her thoughts. Ranger turned her around to face him and kissed her forehead.

"Are you okay? You seem sad."

She buried her face in the crook of his neck and just breathed for a long moment, willing herself to let go of the fear and live by the day. The future could be full of misery, or full of happiness. It would be what it would be. No use spoiling the present by running ahead. And the present happened to be pretty damn awesome.

"I'm okay," she whispered, brushing a kiss to his throat, just above his T-shirt collar. He took a deep breath and his arms tightened a little. She half expected him to kiss her, but he didn't, perhaps because of the men. His hand was tracing circles over her upper back, reassuring. She wondered how he knew what she needed before she did.

"HEY! GET A ROOM!" someone bellowed from further along the beach. They startled apart and then grinned at their own reaction.

"It's getting time for lunch," she said, sad thoughts already fading. "Got to feed the savages."

"We'd better," he agreed solemnly

As they turned around they found themselves before Tsuy's lens. She was standing about ten paces away, and clearly had been standing there for a few minutes. One of her dogs sat beside her. Stephanie wondered if her 'moment' had been caught in glorious technicolour.

"Do you have to do that?" she asked as she let go of Ranger. He gave her side a little squeeze and went off to the kiting group.

"You'll have to trust me," Tsuy said. "Anyway, you did ask me to get all the good pictures…"

"Yeah, but I meant that sort of good pictures…" she nodded to the rest of the white team. They had dragged the kayaks onto the beach and started to peel themselves from their wetsuits as they walked up the beach.

Hawk, solid like a man used to hard work; Bobby, into weight training and with a more sculpted chest; Michael, leanly muscled with the full-torso tattoo she had suspected… there was plenty of eye candy.

"Artful," said Tsuy with the camera already up. She clicked away as the men came closer.

"Feels like I'm a wildlife photographer," she said, looking through the lens while adjusting the focus.

Stephanie grinned.
"You mean we'll get one of those photo series of an animal storming toward the camera?"

"Exactly. Found with a trampled body."

"For lunch we'll just toss them a big chunk of raw zebra."

The three men were a few paces away when they were swarmed by Miyo and the Kelpies, barking and tails wagging wildly. One of the Kelpies put down a tennis ball in front of Hawk. When the man ignored it, the dog picked it up and tried to touch it to his hand.

"Hey, where did all these dogs come from?" Bobby called out, stopped in his tracks to pet the excited dogs.

"There was a sale," Tsuy said from behind her camera. Click, click.

"Typical. Women…" Hawk grinned, accepting the ball and throwing it. Four dogs shot off after it.

Michael hunched down and tried to tempt Iseki, the dog that had stuck close to Tsuy, to come over. Both the women smiled because he was talking to the dog in a low voice.

"And who are you? Don't be shy…"

Iseki whimpered, torn between staying in safety and going to him. Its curled tail gave a plaintive wag at the friendly voice, and then it shied behind Tsuy's legs. One of the Kelpies barrelled past, eager to claim Michael's attention. He laughed softly and petted it.

"I'm very scary, obviously."

"Yeah, we all agree," Bobby interjected. "I'm Bobby," he introduced himself to Tsuy. "Scary here is Michael, and Beefy Spice there goes through life by the name of Hawk."

"Pleased to meet you. I'm Tsuyiko Yatsumi."

"Ah, the self defence teacher, right? You've done great work with Steph here."

Tsuy made a slight bow in acknowledgement. It seemed almost automatic, because the accompanying words deflected the compliment.

"Stephanie did all the hard work. I only showed the way."

Hawk threw the ball once more and turned to Stephanie.

"Are you going to feed us anytime soon?"

"I'm considering it," she teased. He gave a mock-growl.

"Well, consider quickly. I'm hungry."

He and Bobby went ahead to the camp, and Stephanie heard part of their conversation drift back as they walked off.

"So is that Tank's…?"

"I don't know man. We'll have to…" Bobby lowered his voice and the rest of the sentence was lost on the wind.

Stephanie hoped this didn't intend to pester Tsuy, because her friend might not be ready for the Rangeman Inquisition. The other woman seemed comfortable enough right now, but it had occurred to Stephanie that the dogs were an excellent way to redirect attention her friend wasn't comfortable with. Questions about the status of Tank and her would definitely fall in that category.

Michael had stayed behind, still playing with the dogs.

"You have dogs yourself?" Tsuy asked him, taking a photo.

"Used to, when I was a kid. I miss it."

Especially since he wouldn't have had the chance to have dogs in his life over the past few years, Stephanie reflected. Prison time deprived people of things you took for granted when you were free. Like the chance to pet a friendly dog. She studied Michael's tattoo, wondering what had brought him to get such a huge design. It had a lot of smaller designs and words and random pictures incorporated into it, and a lot of detail that made little sense to her. Probably it all had its own story, but she doubted he would be willing to tell it.

Michael smoothly rose to his feet and extended his hand to Tsuy.

"I'm Michael, by the way. But you already knew that." He flashed a smile and Stephanie could swear she saw her friend give the tiniest gasp.

"Nice to meet you. Tsuy."

"You're from England?" he referred to her accent.

"I'm not really from anywhere."

Michael nodded as if he understood the sentiment.

---

"Hello Tsuy-Chan! You must be Tank's new squeeze!" Lester loudly greeted Tsuy as the women joined the rest of the group. Every face in the vicinity turned to look what was going on. Tank, standing on the other side of the camp, observed the exchange with a blank expression on his face.

Stephanie grimaced. Not exactly how she'd hoped for things to start out.

Apart from a slight hesitation in her pace, Tsuy gave no indication that she'd even heard it. She turned to Lester, extended her hand, and introduced herself in a polite, level tone.

"Tsuyiko Yatsumi."

Her voice projected aloof politeness, and Stephanie felt every bit of posh-boarding-school, stiff-upper-lip upbringing reflected in it. Then the tone disappeared as fast as it had come.

"You must be Rude Spice."

Lester barked out a laugh, accepting the offered hand and raising it to his lips. Tank's expression relaxed, and everybody turned back to their conversations.

---

"Ranger, you have a bad influence on the Bombshell," Lester declared. "There's green stuff on this!"

Ranger grinned, biting into his smoked salmon and salad sandwich. All around him, men were opening up the buns to check what was inside.

"Cucumber!" Ram said. "That's it, she's gone over to the dark side."

"Thought it was the light side," Hal mumbled with his mouth full. "Jedi food."

"Yeah, aren't we the dark side?"

"Okay, but 'she's gone over to the light side' doesn't have the same ring to it," Zero said.

"We can't be the light side, not after all that running around with Darth Maul light sabres." Tank interjected.

"Except Zero – he had a Jedi sabre," Cal pointed out.

"Only because the Darth Maul ones had sold out," Zero defended.

"No excuses!" Hector called out. "It is so:" he gestured to the right with both hands, one of which was holding a ham sandwich. "Salad. El jefe—"
"Tofu!" someone called. Hector nodded solemnly. Ranger was hiding a grin.

"Tofu. El Zero. Y la Stephanie." His hands went to the left. "On other side: El Rangemen. Darth Maul. Dodge Viper."

"If there are only two sides, where do people like officer Gaspick go?" Stephanie grinned. "Cause he sure as hell doesn't belong on the light side."

"She's right," Woody agreed. "He can't be on the light side, and he doesn't get to be on the cool side either."

"The grey side?"

"That's in the middle. Loser like that don't get to be in the middle."

"There's nothing else. Maybe ultraviolet."

"Too cool," Manny said. "Ultraviolet is for Ford GTs."

"You and that race toy," Ram said. "That's not a real car, it's a train! If you're going to get a race monster, at least get one that can take a corner, like the McLaren." This bold statement was met by murmurs, but Ram barrelled on, "And Gaspick is anti-dark side. Not cool at all, and not good either."

Approving nods all around.

"Anti-dark it is."

"Did Hector just put me on the light side?" Ranger asked Stephanie under his breath as Zero opened his mouth to protest his light side status. Stephanie grinned. "I think he did, Batman."

"Just wanted to check." He turned to the group and just looked at Hector for a long moment. It had to be an intense look because the smaller man turned to meet the gaze in seconds.

"Ah, I just remember. Naturalmente, El jefe is honorary dark side," he suddenly spoke up. Some of the men nodded in agreement. If the dark side was bad-ass, then Ranger clearly couldn't be left out. Even though he ate rabbit food.

"You can't be on the light side and blow up cars," Manny said, giving Stephanie a thoughtful look. "On the other hand, she feeds us salad."

"Very sneakily, too," Zero added to the offence. He hadn't been able to negotiate his way out of the light side and clearly didn't want to be left alone.

"Hey, if I stealthily tried to feed you salad, wouldn't that be more of a dark side thing to do?" she pitched in, feeling she ought to have a say in this.

"She has a point."

"Nonsense!"

"Ah, but what is more…" Hector lobbied. "On one hand—" he gestured, "—salad." He gestured with the other hand, "On other hand, coches going BWAAAAOUM!"

Faces around the circle nodded that this was a clear case. The stealth salad was negated by the exploding cars. Welcome to the Dark Side, Stephanie Plum. She grinned at Tsuy, who was following the discussion like a tennis match, a look of bemusement on her face.

"I have a Sith Academy t-shirt, but I think to these guys, the tofu weighs heavier," she said to Stephanie.

"Oh, I would say," Tank butted in from Tsuy's other side, "that you're good enough at living double lives to qualify. You had me convinced you didn't know a thing."

"So she knew." Ranger turned his head, pinning her with his eyes. "For how long?"

Tsuy glanced at Stephanie.

"About… since the beginning?"

"Let me get this straight", Hal interrupted, sandwich in hand. "You've been seeing Tank 'the Interrogator' Foster for months… and he never suspected you knew about this?"

"Man, I don't know if this reflects good on her or bad on him," Lester grinned.

"Or both."

"She knew?" Cal said suddenly from next to Tank. "She knew? I waste a day tailin' Ms Stankovich and you been sleeping with the enemy and din't even get it out of her?"

Stephanie winced at the way he put that, but Tsuy didn't react. Tank shot Cal a look that had him shut his mouth with an almost audible snap. Perhaps it was the memory of Bill that did it.

"Hey, we all got up to some weird stuff trying to find out," Eddie said with unusual tact. "I listened to enough Burg gossip to start my own Reader's Digest."

Lester broke into hysterical laughter. Everybody gave him puzzled looks except Bobby, who was sporting a wide grin.

Stephanie looked from Eddie to Lester and back.

"Major feeling of impending doom," Eddie said. He glanced at Manny, who shrugged.

"We have—" Lester choked out, "photos!"

Eddie's expression said 'uh-oh'.

"Of you in that hairdresser place," Bobby said with a shit-eating grin.

"Getting your head shaved—" Lester gasped for breath, "between little old ladies getting purple rinses!"

Stephanie burst into laughter. It was such an absurd image. Big tough Eddie, the kind of guy who gave skips a menacing look and they were ready to hold out their hands to get cuffed, in the Clip and Curl. The image was killing her.

Eddie gave Manny a pissed-off look.
"You were supposed to keep watch."

"I did! I don't know how they got close enough to make photos," Manny defended.

"Got a report from Steph's grandma and borrowed my brother's car to check it out," Bobby grinned. "Hey, it was a good shave, right?" He ran a hand over his own close-shaved head and ribbed; "I'm thinking of going there myself."

Stephanie choked on her laughter and spluttered for a moment. Ranger reached out to pat her back, sporting a wide grin.

"Dolly would make a killing," she whispered harshly. "My grandma and all her friends would come in daily!"

"Man, at least I had the guts," Eddie grumbled. "You just skulked about searching cubicles."

"Yeah Bobby, me too," Lester added, ignoring the cubicle comment. "My sister has this magazine with an article about how to be a metro man. Apparently you have to get ridiculously expensive head shaves. I'm thinking of a metro-man make-over." He schooled his face in what he thought was a metro-man expression.

"And pink polo shirts," Roy added helpfully.

Lester nodded.
"That's the next step. Then I'll learn to almost-cry during chick-flicks and take a facemask every night. Chicks dig it, man."

Someone coughed 'facial' but a glance from Ranger ensured that the conversation steered free from gutter-talk.

Stephanie traded a glance with Tsuy, who seemed to have the same mental image of Lester in pink polo, and they both tried to contain the giggles. Lester in pink polo would still be a big, handsome guy with a rakish grin and the bad-boy sex appeal of an entire rugby team. Women were already falling over him.

"What?" he turned to them, mock-hurt. "You don't think I have feelings?" he faked a sniffle, and Stephanie burst into laughter.

"Sure you do, Les," she finally managed. "It's just the mental image of you in a pink polo, crying over Bridges of Madison Country."

He let go of the act and shot her a grin.
"Sure I can do that. I'll just be crying with laughter."

"It's okay Les, we know the sensitive-guy thing isn't an act," Tank said seriously. "Why else would you be found at Build-A-Bear?"

Heads whipped around. Tank raised an eyebrow.

"It was just to find out if a reservation had been made, man."

"Ah, that bear you walked out with was a gift from the shop you couldn't refuse?" Ranger seemed to rather enjoy this. Lester winced.

"Man, we're gonna need an extra long Christmas party this year," Tank announced. "I have a lot of material for the video."

"You got that on tape?"

Tank nodded his head at Ranger.

"He did."

Lester shook his head in disbelief.

"Man, sometimes I think you really are smoke."

Ranger quirked a grin and said nothing. He liked to reinforce that idea.

"Much as I enjoy hearing about this…" Stephanie said, "it's time to get going again. Red team will go to Malik for power kiting, Blue goes surf kayaking with Dom, and White to Jake for beach sailing."

---

Half an hour later she was racing along the beach, barely 20 cm from the sand. The wind was rushing around her face, whipping her ponytail, and she was resisting the urge to whoop. It felt like she was going faster than any car could go. That couldn't be true, but she was so close to the ground that it seemed about right.

The buggy itself was little more than a fabric seat suspended aboard three fat little wheels. There was a bar for her feet to go on, and which doubled as the steering control of the front wheel. Jake had given them some explanation on how to steer, turn, and especially how to stop. Essentially it was like dinghy sailing, and she had done that a few times in the past. Only this went a lot faster.

To her right another buggy moved into view, and a moment later the green Defender Tsuy had arrived in moved up on her left. She glanced to the side and found Tank driving, Tsuy in the passenger seat, camera at the ready. The car paced them for a long moment, and then pulled ahead to where Michael was tacking to begin the stretch back to the camp.

She hadn't really seen them together yet apart from their greeting. Tsuy didn't like to demonstrate in front of others. Tank, like Ranger sometimes, probably felt the need to show the men they were an item and that she was off limits. He wasn't wrong – a couple of the men seemed to consider getting dates a competitive sport.

There was a gust of wind and she felt the buggy hurtle forward, leaving Bobby to her right behind. There was a roar from the wheels on the damp sand and the wind around her ears, and she found herself grinning hugely. This was more fun than the Miata… it actually came close to the Porsche.

What a rush!

She was back at the camp not ten minutes later, unable to wipe the grin off her face.

"That was SO cool!"

"Were you okay with the slowing down?" Dom asked, grinning in return.

"Yeah. It was a little scary to steer straight into the wind, but it worked okay, I slowed down enough that I felt safe tacking."

"Cool. Just make sure you have enough space to do it in and it's dead easy. You going again?"

"Is the pope catholic?"

---

"Man that was cool. I never expected it to go that fast, you know?"

Stephanie smiled because that was something, coming from Tank. He was dragging a buggy to the storage tent as the third round of activities wound down. It was getting time for dinner, and Hawk was building a fire downwind from the camp. The cook had arrived with a couple of big coolers full of various delicious things, and the barbeque was warming up.

Tsuy, who had left mid-afternoon to go horseback riding with her friend, had returned half an hour ago, sans dogs this time, in time to snap some photos of the last round. Stephanie was already looking forward to seeing the photos of Tank and Ranger beach sailing, Ram, Lester and the guys kayaking – herself in mid-air as a powerkite took her for a short flight.

When one of the buggies had gone unused Dom had cheerfully talked Tsuy into it, and the smaller woman had returned ten minutes later with windswept hair and sparkling eyes.

Her stomach said it was nearing dinnertime, and Stephanie found that the guys were beginning to gravitate toward the camp. The Red team was changing out of their wetsuits and the last of her own group were putting away the kites.

Junior and Cal were hovering near the cook while she worked, reminding her of Bob. Bob didn't beg, he just hung around in case you decided you didn't want that piece of pizza.

It was clearly making the cook a little nervous. Time to do something about it… create a distraction. Well, she was good at that.

"Hey Babe, what's up?" Ranger smiled. She loved the way his voice sounded when he was at ease. A little lower, a little warmer, a lot sexier. That was a thought for another time.

"Cook says it'll take about half an hour before we can eat, so I thought we'd play a game."

Ranger looked around the camp, spotted the guys near the cook, and nodded. He gestured for Tank to come over.

"What did you have in mind?"

"I brought a really big inner tube. Thought we could play rugby with it."

Tank arrived just in time to hear that, and smiled widely.

"Tugby? I haven't played that in ages."

Ranger and Tank exchanged a grin.

"You thought of everything, didn't you?" He said to Stephanie. His smile racked up her heart rate. The entire organisation had been worth it just to see him look at her like this.

"Is the tube ready?"

She snapped out of her daze.

"Malik has a compressor in his van, I'll go inflate it."

"We'll round up the guys."

Five minutes later she rolled the tube up to the playing field the guys had set out. The tube was huge – on its side, almost as tall as she was. The hole in the middle was wide enough to hold two medium-sized Rangemen or three normal people.

Ranger and Tank had each created a team of six, from the looks of it pretty evenly matched. The rest of the guys were standing off to the side, ready to cheer and comment on the game.

"Hey Steph, you gonna play with us?" Lester called from Tank's side.

"Course not! She's with our team!" Woody bellowed across the field.

"I think I'll pass," she called back, laughing. "Maybe next game."

No way could she keep up if the guys played rough, and she didn't want to be the little girl that screwed up the game because she couldn't take the heat.

That was exactly why she'd made sure the main part of the day was non-competitive. It wasn't fun to be the dead weight of a team. That wasn't to say she wouldn't enjoy watching …

She rolled the tube up to where Hawk was waiting. He would be the referee, his knee not yet ready for this kind of rough-play. Together they scraped a little trough in the sand and put the tube into it, so it would stand upright. The teams were gathered behind lines, each ten paces away from the tube.

Hawk nodded at her and they both turned and joined the rest of the Rangemen who weren't playing. Rodriquez, the man who had filled up her in-tray when she had just started in her job, grinned at her.

"Very wise, Stephanie. We're too sensible for this stuff."

He was an office worker, and though he was in decent shape for a man pushing fifty, she understood why he left this game to the others. When the boys played, they played hard.

Hawk joined them, and put two fingers to his mouth to whistle the starting sign. A terrible cave-man roar rose as the teams went for the tube, and as one man the spectators stepped back a few paces to make sure they were out of reach.

"By God, I think they're having a flashback to a few thousand years ago," Tsuy said softly, watching with wide eyes.

Stephanie grinned.
"I'll never again call a man 'uncivilised' for not putting down the toilet seat."

On the field, Bobby had managed to end up inside the tube and was running full-tilt to the other side of the field with it, Ranger clearing the way for him. Junior jumped in Bobby's path but bounced off, and the small crowd howled with laughter.

"One point for Ranger's team," Hawk declared officially.

Tank, who had been unexpectedly tag-teamed by no less than three of the rival team, brushed the sand out of his millimetred hair and called his team for a strategy meeting. Tsuy directed the long lens of her camera at the huddle of men and whispered 'look up… look up' to herself. A moment later the men did, and she took the photo.

"Are you doing close-ups?"

"Yes. If you want some wide shots, there's a simple digital Canon in a case on the passenger seat in the Defender."

"I can use it?"

"Sure. Just don't drop it into the sand."

The 'simple digital' turned out to be a Canon EOS 350D, with more settings that she knew how to handle. In the case with it were three different lenses and a clear plastic casing that closed all the way around the camera. The lens currently on the camera seemed the default one, so she left it.
There were three more aluminium flight-type cases in the car, travel worn on the outside, well padded on the inside. Four camera's, and the EOS was the 'simple' one. She briefly wondered if Tank ever felt daunted by the differences in background and situation between him and Tsuy.

She put the strap around her neck and returned to the playing field.

"Not sure how this works."

Tsuy turned the camera on for her, checked some settings and put it in its plastic casing. Stephanie idly wondered if this was the thing that had caused the argument between her friends about going to New York.

Her friend set the camera in sport setting.
"This is fun. Just hold this down and it makes four photos," She made a chopping motion with her hand, "tac-tac-tac-tac."

She looked through the lens just in time to catch Cal diving into the tube. Michael and Ram each grabbed hold from the outside, like tugboats and a cargo ship. Cal set into motion and the rest of Tank's team cleared the way, Michael and Ram helping to keep other hands off the tube. Tank, clearly not feeling subtle, tackled Ranger to the ground. Both men were grinning as they struggled in the sand. Stephanie walked around the field to get a better angle.

"One-one," Hawk called out a moment later. Tank rolled to his feet and offered Ranger a hand up. Stephanie expected a pull-down trick, but Ranger accepted the hand and rose with a grin.

Not long after that shirts started to come off and the eyecandy-factor rose considerably. Sweaty, buff bodies and fierce grins. She hoped Tsuy was getting a lot of close-ups.

The cook approached her and glanced at the battlefield with wide eyes.

"We're ready to eat in five minutes."

"Great. I thought it'd be best to keep everybody busy until you were ready."

"Thank you. I had something to eat for them at that point, but I thought it'd be best that we could go straight into a full meal instead of having to wait between dishes."

"Five minutes!" Hawk announced after she'd told him.

The teams immediately seemed to grow more fanatic. Within sixty seconds both Hal and Junior were stuffed in the tube, back to each other, each trying to push to opposite sides. It was like something straight out of a cartoon. Half a moment later they were surrounded by the rest of their teams, all pushing and pulling at each other and at the tube.

Hawk shook his head with a wide grin. There was no way the tube could go anywhere like this. The teams were too evenly matched. Zero was circling the mess, tripping people up where he could, and soon it was a big pile of bodies, the air full of yelling, cursing, encouragement from the spectators and – she couldn't tell who it was – hysterical laughter.

Stephanie checked her watch. One minute left. She didn't want to break things off while they were far from a conclusion, but this could take a while. She glanced at Hawk, and he nodded his head at the ongoing battle. All of a sudden Tank and Ram scooped the tube from under the pile of people, shook off Hector who was hanging on to it, and passed to Michael. The latter made a break for it, dragging the tube along. Zero spotted him and moved to intercept, but too late.

"Score for Michael! Tank's team wins!"

A roar went up, and the body-pile started to disassemble. Tank's team celebrated by pounding each other on the back, and most of the men wandered to the sea to rinse off the sweat and the sand before dinner.

"You'll make photos of that too, right?" she asked Tsuy.

Her friend hesitated.

"Seems a bit… indiscrete."

"These guys are the embodiment of indiscrete. Nobody will care."

Tsuy still hesitated.

"Do it as a public service. For the good of the female population of the planet. Besides, it's art, right?"

"If you put it like that…"

Chapter 22

"Congratulations Stephanie," Ella smiled at her, gesturing toward the group of mostly silent men. "I've never seen them this quiet."

She grinned back, looking around. The men were quiet because they were sitting around the campfire, plates in their laps, eating with every sign of enjoyment. The cook had managed to cook up a storm of great food, and in such quantities that no waiting was required.

"Thank you. Guess things turned out pretty well."

"You got to be kiddin' me," Lester said from close by, gesturing for emphasis with a chicken leg in his hand. "Today was great."

"Yeah," Zero agreed, gnawing on a rib.

"…and the food's damn good!" Eddie added with his mouth full.

"Thanks," she said softly, feeling oddly awkward about accepting the compliments. She hadn't been fishing for that. It had been fun organising something for the guys, and she found it enough reward to see everybody have a great day.

Ella gave her a smile and went over to talk to the cook. Stephanie wandered to where Ranger was sitting with Tank and Tsuy.

"Hey Babe," he smiled up at her. His eyes said 'are you okay?'

She flopped down into the sand next to him, careful not to spill her drink.

"Hey. Food's okay?"

"Everything is great," Tank rumbled. "Stop worrying and enjoy."

"I'm not worrying."

"So stop jumping up and checking on everything," Ranger said.

She grinned and took a swig.
"Okay."

She leant against his side and then sat back up, very aware of how it would look to be seen acting intimate in front of the guys. They all knew that she and Ranger were together, but knowing it and seeing it were still different things. She agreed with Ranger that discretion was important.

A hand brushed her shoulder and then gently tugged her back, until she was leaning against his side. Apparently this kind of contact was okay. He was warm and solid where she leant against him, his voice revebrating in his chest as he talked to Tank about an upcoming assignment. His hand trailed along her shoulder before he broke the contact, illustrating a point to Tank. She smiled and re-focussed on Ram, who was telling an outrageous story from when he was in Singapore during his Navy time.

When everybody was sated the cook packed up her things, and Vince and Slick helped her load everything into her van. They'd been unusually helpful today, and she wondered if they were still worried that she'd let Ranger know about their nightly attempt to break in. She wasn't planning on it – they had gotten carried away with the insanity, and no harm was done. Plus, she didn't want to bring members of her team into trouble.

"So are we doing to play another game of Tugby?" Junior said when everybody was just sitting around the fire, talking.

Stephanie grimaced. She was up for a game, but not for that game. She glanced at Tsuy, who was leaning back against Tank's knees. They exchanged a look and a small shake of heads. No way.

"How about something we can all play?" Tank said.

"Skull rugby!" Roy grinned.

"Murder ball?"

Tank gave a tiny shake of his head.

"Pom Pom?"

Stephanie grinned. Pom Pom was fun. It was a chase-and-tackle game, but more individual, and there were ways to make it less rough on yourself.

"Do you play with tagging or—"

"We pick people up. More fun that way," Bobby said.

"What kind of game?" Tsuy asked softly, sitting up.

"Someone's in the middle of the field, and the rest lines up on one side," Tank explained to her in a low voice. "Then on a signal they cross, and the one in the middle has to lift one of the crossers off the ground to get them on his side."

"British Bulldogs," Tsuy nodded. "Used to play that a lot."

Tank flashed a wide grin.

---

"What did you call this game again?" Stephanie asked as they were making their way back to the field.

"British Bulldogs."

"So who are the bulldogs?"

Tsuy shrugged.

The two woman had been elected the first 'it'; Zero had laughingly suggested that together they counted as one Rangeman.

We'll see about that.

"Um," Stephanie said. "No way can we lift any of these guys."

The goal of the men was to cross the 20 by 40 metre playing field that had been marked by traffic cones on the corners. Their own goal was to catch the men and 'convert' them to their side by lifting them off the ground.

"Lift? We just need to get them to loose touch of the ground for a moment, don't we?"

Stephanie took a hairband out of the pocket of her lightweight zip-up hoodie and pulled her hair up in a ponytail. Then she took her jacket off and tossed it aside. One of the men wolf-whistled. She shot him an Italian salute.
"So how do we do that?"

The way she'd played the game before, you hung on to your victim and then lifted them up. Once they had one or two of the guys on their side that would work, but how would they get those?

Tsuy flashed a smile and took off her ballcap and shoes. She positioned herself next to Stephanie in the middle of the field. The women eyed the line of men facing them. All of them outweighing them. Most, outweighing the both of them put together. All of them grinning.

"By surprising the hell out of them. We didn't practise all those throws just for emergencies. So how about we start…"

"We're ready!" Stephanie called to Hawk a few minutes later. Hawk nodded and blew the whistle as a starting sign.

Some of the men took off at a run, others walked across, loudly telling each other they weren't worried. Stephanie went for Ranger, who was jogging across. When she had almost reached him, she suddenly veered off to the right, ending up directly in front of Woody. He moved to evade her but was too late. She managed a crude hip-throw, and he landed with a thud in the sand.

She heard cheering from the group of men now on the other side of the field and turned around. Tsuy was brushing sand off her clothes, as was Michael Scofield.

"…trying to avoid plowing into you," he was saying when Woody and she reached them.

"Hey Michael. Went flying?"

He chuckled.
"It was interesting."

The four of them stood together in the middle of the field, discussing their tactic in low voices.

"They still don't think we can do this," Tsuy said. "Let's try to make use of that. Who is the big guy with the tattoage on his head?"

"Cal," Woody said. "You're going to go for him?"

"Might be a good idea to gather some muscle before we tackle the real challenges," Steph said, nodding at Tank, Bobby, Ram, Lester and Ranger. They stood slightly off to the side talking, all the while keeping an eye on them.

"Someone is going to figure out that if they drop to the ground, we'll have trouble lifting them," Tsuy said.

"Leave 'em," Stephanie said. "We can handle that when we have some more bodies."

They nodded to Hawk and the second run started. Tsuy and Woody went after Cal, and Stephanie and Michael tag-teamed Junior. It was a surprisingly easy cooperation, starting with Michael's speed driving the other man where he wanted him, and ending with Stephanie doing a perfect circle throw that earned her an eyebrow-rising from Ranger and an approving nod from Tsuy. She glowed with pleasure and pride.

Junior got to his feet with an unholy gleam in his eyes.

"Right! Now for the best part!" he looked over the playing field and barked a laugh. "Cal, I can't believe she got you!"

They once again gathered in the middle.

"Man, woman tacklin' me to the ground…" Cal sucked air between his teeth. "Don't happen a lot, ya know?"

With the extra two Merry Men on their side they caught another three guys in the next run, and very soon there were more people in the middle of the field than on the line.

"I vote we do the boss next," Lester grinned. He'd been tackled by Junior and Michael and unceremoniously lifted out of the sand with help from Cal and Woody.

"We ain't gonna get the boss," Junior shook his head. "Already tried."

"You just didn't do it right, man. Steph, come over here a moment?"

She leant closer, intrigued by the idea of getting Ranger. She certainly couldn't see how it could be done he was fast, and he was great at dodging any throw or tackle the guys had tried. Lester put his arm about her shoulders and leant in toward Junior, Vince and Cal.

"You notice how he and Tank have been sticking close? I bet if we…"

When the signal sounded a moment later, she ran straight into Ranger's path. The plan was to tempt him to pick being tackled by her over being tackled by the merry men. They would make for Tank, but back her up if Ranger managed to evade her.

"OOF!"

Lester's idea worked and Ranger couldn't evade her completely, but the circle throw she'd intended became an ungainly tackle, sending the both of them into the soft sand. His feet hadn't left the ground, and he turned his fall into a controlled roll and was rising to his feet while she was still on her back in the sand. She cursed inwardly for not hanging on to him; now he'd get away.

"Hi boss!" someone said brightly, and the next moment Ranger was surrounded by at least ten rangemen. "So nice of you to stop by."

Junior offered her a hand to get up, and she joined the circle.

"So, shall we do this the easy way or the hard way?" Lester wondered aloud. Stephanie realised that if Ranger was intent on escaping, probably even ten guys couldn't contain him unless they were willing to risk a trip to the emergency room. The agreement was though, that once on the ground, the men wouldn't struggle. They didn't have to cooperate with being lifted, but they couldn't struggle.

Ranger looked around, seemed to come to the conclusion that cooperating or not, he would get off the ground, and shrugged. Cal and Vince grabbed him under an arm each, and Lester and Alvirez hooked an arm under Ranger's knees.

"One, two, three—"

A cheer went up and Ranger was back in the sand. She offered him a hand up and he gave her a brief, hard hug the moment he was on his feet.

"Right!" he grinned when he let go. He turned to look at Tank, and then did a gesture where he pointed at his own eyes and then at Tank.

Tank flashed a grin. Nobody had been able to even slow the big man down so far. Momentum combined with agility made him almost impossible to tackle.

Besides Tank still in the game were Ram, Bobby and Manny. Ranger started to organise some of the guys to take down Tank, and Stephanie shared a look with Tsuy.

"Let's leave 'em to that, huh?"

Tsuy nodded.

"They're nice guys, but when they're in pack like this they are a little scary."

"Hmm, a bit, I guess," Stephanie answered. Then she realised that that was how she'd felt about the guys at first. As a group, they had seemed like a steam roller without anyone at the wheel. Not malicious, but they could do a lot of damage. She didn't feel that way any longer.

Guess I've grown accustomed to them… and gotten to know them individually.

"I don't think 'pack' is the word though… how do you call a group of hyenas? A gaggle?"

"A giggle?"

They shared a grin.

"No, that's not it. Hmm. A herd of Rangemen? An avalanche of Rangemen?"

"A stampede of Rangemen?" Tsuy suggested.

Stephanie snorted laughter.

"That's it! Perfect. I'll have to—"

"HEY MAN, ANY TIME TODAY?" Bobby bellowed across the field.

Ranger's group broke up their strategy discussion and positioned themselves in the field.

"Shall we grab Loud Spice over there?" Tsuy said, flicking her eyes in Bobby's direction.

"Sure. How?"

At that moment Hawk blew the whistle, and everybody started to run. Tsuy made a 'follow me' gesture as she headed for Bobby's path.

"What are you—"

"Improvise!"

She swerved off to the right to meet Bobby early on in the field, and then threw herself in his path, hoping to at least unbalance him enough for Tsuy to finish him off somehow. Bobby threw his weight to the left to avoid her, and a moment later she heard him curse loudly.

Stephanie picked up her head from its resting place in the sand and pushed herself to a sit. A couple of paces onward she found both Tsuy and Bobby down in the sand, Bobby's arms around Tsuy's waist. Stephanie lifted one eyebrow, and he grinned at her as he let go of Tsuy.

"Bloody hell," the smaller women summarised.

"Yeah. Ditto. Hell of a feint."

"Hell of a reaction," she said with a disbelieving shake of her head.

Behind them a sudden cheer went up, and they looked around to see Tank bodily hauled out of the sand and then dropped back into it. From the looks of it Ram had won the game, perhaps by sneaking across once everybody else was otherwise engaged.

"Right!" Bobby grinned, already on his feet and offering each of the women a hand to pull them up. "Let's go have a beer."

---

"I think I speak for everybody here—"

"Not for me!" Slick heckled.

Lester gave him a glare and continued,

"When I say that we had a great time today."

"I take that back!" Slick called.

"Yeah man, it was awesome!"

The circle broke into cheered agreements, nods, and wolf whistles.

Stephanie blushed. It was great that they'd all had fun, but it felt a little awkward to be addressed like this. Just seeing them enjoy the day had been enough.

"So hereby we wanted to ask—" he glanced at Ranger, who gave an infinitesimal nod, "—if you'd like to be next year's organiser."

"Yeah Steph, go on!"

"Promise we won't bug your house!"

"Just as long as it's not sensitivity training!"

She looked at Lester and nodded her assent, and the guys broke into cheering and chattering. Someone suggested this needed drinking on – as if an excuse were needed – and Slick tossed cans around the circle.

Frederick Rodriguez left for a moment, and returned with the big cooler they'd seen earlier.

"To celebrate today, I'd like to offer you this cooking experiment…"

He waited for the cries of mock horror to die down.

"My daughter—"

"THE HOTTIE!" Roy interrupted.

Rodriguez gave him a death glare. Stephanie knew that his daughter was 21, and strictly forbidden to get within 5 miles of any of the Rangemen. Frederick liked his colleagues, but he was fiercely protective of his daughter.

"My daughter gave me a book with ideas for jello shots. This seemed like a good excuse to do some experimenting."

"I love your daughter! I want to marry her!" Eddie called.

He received a look that plainly said 'over my cold, dead body' and grinned.

A tray went around the circle, and everybody took a plastic cup with a brightly coloured jello shot in it. Stephanie took the lid of off hers and smelt it.

"Mmm, blackberry and Triple Sec."

Ranger glanced at her with a disbelieving grin.

"What?"

"I knew you can identify dessert by scent at twenty paces, but jello shots?"

"All thanks to my college education."

He shot her a smile.

"I have to hand it to you. You completely outmanoeuvred the guys."

"Thanks."

She sighed and nestled closer against him.

"And you?"

He was silent for a while, staring at the fire.

"Yeah, me too," he admitted finally, grudgingly. "Didn't realise you were that good of an actress."

"I have many talents."

"One of them being strategy, it seems. That misdirected email to Ella was a nice twist."

Was he really indicating that it worked? She realised this was high praise from the master.

"I had some help."

"Tsuy."

"Yeah. Did you know?"

"I didn't suspect until a couple of days ago. She didn't seem the type…"

"She gave me Sun Tzu to read."

He laughed silently.

---

"Oh, before we forget," Tank said while everybody was trying a jello shot. "Steph, you won the book, hands down."

The guys cheered uproariously and applauded.

"We'll arrange things when we're back in the office, so everybody can pay up!" The noise died down abruptly. She grinned. Nobody was going to cheer at the idea of paying up, even though they would do it without complaint. Tank would make sure of that.

"And then… and then…this chick Aurora—"

Stephanie tuned in to the general conversation for a moment, having been talking to Michael and Hawk on the side. Roy was recounting the story with beer-induced openness. She found herself grinning widely as the tale unfolded. Roy and Zero had been suspicious of the 'Holistic Rebirthing centre' and had looked it up to make sure it wasn't some sort of cover.

"This chick Aurora said we could look around, but only if we dint disturb the lessons. And we ended up—" Roy dissolved into laughter. "—ended up—"

"What Roy is sayin' is that we crashed us a yoga class," Zero grinned. "And we had to join in."

"Whaddaya mean 'had to'?" Vince said. "She hold you at gunpoint?"

"Nah, the teacher chick was—" Roy made a few hand gestures that indicated a very large vase… or an extremely curvy woman. "Hot," he summarised.

"So we stayed, so Roy could ask her out," Zero finished, taking a long swig of his beer.

Stephanie couldn't contain her curiosity.

"And what did she say?"

"She don't date men she's never met before," Roy said. His tone was relaxed, and she wondered if he didn't care… or if he'd found a solution.

"So did you sign up?"

"I aint sayin'."

"There's no need!" Zero laughed.

Stephanie smiled, wondering if the yoga teacher had counted on this possibility. Probably not.

"I'd pay good money for photos of Roy in yoga class," she whispered to Ranger. Roy was a big guy, with shoulder-length blonde hair and a beard. A Viking type. She could only imagine what the yoga class had thought when he came in.

Ranger flashed a wide smile.

"Zero might be open to an offer."

---

"Babe, you look tired," Ranger put an arm around her and dropped a kiss on her head.

"That's because I am," she smiled. "It's been a long day - for you too."

It was nearing 2 AM and the fire was burning low. The party had calmed down. Ella and Luis had left around midnight, and some of the guys had decided that a nightly swim was just the thing. After they'd come back Hal had brought out a guitar to play for a while, softly in the background. Stephanie had been surprised to find he played very well – not just popular songs, but classical pieces as well.

Now most of the guys were sitting in smaller groups, talking softly. Vince, Alvirez and Slick had flopped down into the sand and Vince was snoring rather loudly, but most of the others seemed mostly sober. She'd been half worried that it would end up with everybody drunk, but apparently the rangemen knew how to keep a party pleasant. Maybe they reserved the wilder partying for when their boss was not around.

She hunched down next to Tsuy, who was leaning against Tank's drawn-up knees and listening to what he and Bobby were discussing.

"Hey, I'm going to bed in a little while."

"I could sleep," Tsuy admitted. "Where is our tent?"

"Hey, why don't you girls sleep outside?" Bobby said.

"Gonna be a nice night," Tank filled in. "Most of us are going to crash around the fire."

Stephanie looked at Tsuy and saw the indecision.

"Shall we get your stuff from the car first?" she offered. Her friend nodded and stood up.

"If you don't want to do it, that's okay," Stephanie said when they were out of earshot. "I don't mind either way."

"I want to," Tsuy said. "But it's not entirely… proper."

"Which part? Sleeping together with a bunch of people, or sleeping together with Tank?"

"The last," Tsuy said as she unlocked the Landrover.

"You're both in sleeping bags, and you have at least a dozen chaperones," she countered.

"You're corrupting me," Tsuy sighed after a long moment. Stephanie laughed because it was the exact same tone she had used with Ranger at some point.

"You're going out with Tank, and I am corrupting you?"

"Actually I suspect Thomas is doing his level best not to corrupt me," she smiled in the dark.

"So now what?"

"I'll do it."

"You sure? I didn't mean to push you…"

"I'm sure."

---

Around the fire the circle had broken up, and some of the guys were moving mats and sleeping bags out of the tents and to a wide circle around the fireplace. Hawk was preparing the fire for the night.

They moved their things to the circle as well and then went into the tipi to change.

"Hope you don't mind doing this in the dark… I noticed that with the light on, this tent is like one of those shadow-puppet theatres."

When they came back outside, most of the men were already changed. She wondered about the complete lack of comments on the changing session – normally that would have been good for a few suggestive jokes and a bit of ribbing. Maybe the guys were on their best manners. Or maybe Ranger or Tank had given them a talking to about appropriate behaviour.

Maybe that sensitivity training wasn't needed after all. In any case she was glad, not for herself but for Tsuy.

Ranger had arranged the four mats next to each other; he left, then Stephanie, then Tsuy, and then Tank on the right outside. Their heads would be a couple of metres from the fire, close enough to still feel the warmth.

Most of the guys were settling in, and someone had put zipped-open sleeping bags over the guys who had fallen asleep in the sand., They had put their mats next to them, so they could roll onto them if they woke up cold. She smiled – they took care of each other.

She settled into her sleeping bag and listened as the camp gradually grew silent. Someone was having a whispered conversation off to her right, but the words disappeared against the background sound of the sea. Tank and Tsuy were silent, facing each other with their hands intertwined.

"Babe," Ranger said. His voice was so soft and low that it made her shiver. She turned toward him and found his lips for a long, leisurely kiss.

"Mmm," he murmured when the kiss ran its course.

"This is nice," she whispered. "The stars are so bright…"

He pulled her close in the crook of his arm, so they could both look up. They watched silently for a while, and Stephanie could feel herself drift off, so comfortable that it was hard to believe she wasn't in a bed. Her limbs were pleasantly tired from the day, but sharing this with Ranger was so wonderful that she wasn't willing to let herself fall asleep yet.

"Sleep, babe," he whispered in her ear, no breath behind the words. "Sleep."

---

"Steph?"

She muddled toward consciousness, wondering what was going on.

"Babe?"

"Hmm?"

"Wake up, Babe," Ranger whispered in her ear in that deliciously low tone.

"I'm awake," she whispered back. Mostly.

"Come on, get up."

She stifled a groan.

"Why? It's early…" At least she assumed so, with the air cold on her face, and the camp still silent.

"Just do it."

She opened her eyes and found it was still dark, though the sky was lightening toward the East. Ranger had put on sweatpants and a T-shirt, and was holding his sweatshirt out to her.

To her surprise she felt rested despite the few hours of sleep. Maybe it was something about the sea air. In any case, now that she'd blinked away the cobwebs of sleep she was quite happy to find out what Ranger was up to. She crawled out of her sleeping bag and put on his too-big black sweatshirt and a pair of sweatpants.

As they snuck past she looked at Tsuy and Tank. The big man was on his back, the sleeping bag down about his abdomen. Despite the chill morning air he didn't seem cold in his thin T-shirt. Tsuy on the other hand was burrowed into her sleeping bag, with only her face and a few wisps of hair visible. She laid on her side in the crook of Tank's arm, head pillowed on his shoulder. Stephanie and Ranger shared a smile at the sight.

When she glanced back, Tank's eyes were open. He looked at Ranger, perhaps wondering what was going on. Ranger shook his head and made an OK sign, and understanding that there was nothing wrong, Tank closed his eyes again.

"Nice to see them getting along," Stephanie said idly when they were out of earshot. Ranger led her off to the right, slightly toward the surf. "You're not going to make me run, right?"

He turned to her with a blinding smile.

"Not today."

"Oh good. So what…?"

He found a ledge near the top of a dune that seemed to satisfy him, and spread out a blanket to sit on. It offered a wide view of the sea and the sky, which was growing paler in the East.

He doesn't plan to…

"Not that," he grinned at her, pulling her down to sit next to him. "We'll save that for a time and place more private."

She blushed because he'd guessed her thoughts… again.

"Oh."

"I made myself wake up in time, and it's such a nice morning… I wanted to share this with you," he finished under his breath.

She leant in to kiss his temple, stomach light with happiness. This felt real, being here with him. He hadn't done it because it was a romantic thing to do – he had done it because it mattered to him and he wanted to share it with her.

I love you.

She didn't say the words because she didn't want him to feel pressured to say them, so she settled for;

"Thank you."

He curled his arm around her and pulled her in for a slow, gentle kiss.

The sky turned a hazy orange, and she leaned against Ranger, feeling so happy that her heart felt like bursting. This was like something from a romance novel.

"This is really cliché."

"Babe?"

"The sunrise, sitting here with you. All that's missing is that you're called Harald or perhaps Rudolf and have your shirt open too far. And me swooning."

A grin broke through on his face.

"If you want to wear a bodice I'd be happy to rip it open for you."

"I'll keep that in mind," she grinned. "Are you telling me you know the stories I'm talking about?"

"Broke into my sister's stash one day to find out what the fuss was about. You used to read 'em?"

"I bought one when I was fourteen and read it secretly, because they were 'dirty books'." They both laughed. "Then grandma walked in and we giggled about it together. It was so silly."

He shifted so he was sitting behind her, legs outside of hers. She sighed in happiness and leaned back against his chest. He put his arms around her and drew her close against him, resting his chin on the top of her head.

"So what about the future?" he said after a couple of minutes of comfortable silence. She shrugged slightly. What was he asking? It seemed an idle question, as if he wanted to discuss something with her but didn't quite know how to bring it up.

"I don't know. You planning to disappear?"

"No."

"Die?"

"No."

"Call me when you're away?"

He was silent for a while, and she just waited. They hadn't discussed it before, but it still bothered her. She wasn't desperate for a phone call if she knew he was okay, but if he promised then he had to deliver.

"I did intend to call, Babe."

"So why…"

He was silent again, and she waited him out.

"It was getting serious, babe. That last weekend with you…"

She remembered him sleeping on her couch while she watched films. It had been comfortable and intimate. She'd felt like she was with the person, not the persona. With Carlos.

"…I wasn't sure if I could handle it. So I tried to create some distance."

He let out a long sigh.

"Then I felt worse because I risked losing you."

"And then you came back and I was in your bed?"

He chuckled at the memory.

"Pretty much. You made it easy for me."

"I know." It had been selfish, in a way. By going to his apartment she had spared herself the worry and wait about whether or not he would contact her on his return.

"I'm sorry, Babe. Yes, I'll call when I can."

"Good." She punctuated with a kiss. "That's all I need to know about the future."

He smiled.

"There are a few more things…"

Another time those words might have filled her with dread, but she was in his arms, and his eyes were warm. There was no bad-news vibe; not even a closed-off vibe.

"Like your job."

"What's with it?"

"Rangeday is in for a reorganisation, so I hope you're up for a change."

"What kind of reorganisation?"

"Anyone can run the basic searches, so routine research is going back to whoever is handling the case. They will be backed up by a pool of research experts for the harder cases."

She nodded. It made sense to let everybody type in their own searches and print off the results. But what did that leave for her to do?

"I'm going to move you off routine research, and onto a new project Tank is going to set up. It'll involve a lot of field-research, and it's a completely new avenue for Rangeman, so you guys will have to make the path as you go."

"That sounds interesting," she said. A lot more challenging than typing in search requests, that was for sure. "What will we be doing?"

"Acquiring information for outside parties. Boston PD is interested in using our skills, and they're not the only one."

"Don't cops have their own research network?"

He kissed her behind the ear.

"They do, but it turns up different things from ours. People don't like talking to cops. They like talking to you. People tell you stuff."

She stifled a giggle. It was true – just usually they didn't tell her the important stuff.

"I'd have to work in Boston?"

"I'm starting with one department for this project, so if an assignment took you there, yes, at least at first. If there's enough market for it, Boston will set up its own department."

"Cool. Business trips."

He grinned.

"What about Tank? People like to tell him stuff, as well?"

"Tank is very good at acquiring information. And people will tell you stuff because they think the alternative to talking to you, is talking to him," Ranger said.

She grinned.

"Works for me."

"You'll be doing that for about 60 percent of your time, and the remaining time will be some general fieldwork, research backup, training courses, and the odd take-down."

She half-turned, so she could kiss him. She'd never told him how the days in the office got to her, but he'd clearly been aware of it. Now it was possible, he'd given her something that would take her out of the office – and from the sounds of it, without much risk of being shot at.

"I like it. I'll really be pulling my weight in the company…"

His eyebrows rose.

"You haven't so far?"

"I have… but… you know."

A shake of his head said that he didn't.

"Sometimes I felt like the only reason I was working there was that you didn't like seeing me chase criminals for Vinnie."

"You've never been my charity project, Babe." He pressed a kiss just under her ear. "You needed a job off the streets, and I had something at the time."

She nodded. It was true that at the time, she certainly hadn't been up to taking down FTAs. She was grateful that he'd known what she needed, when she hadn't even really known it herself.

They were silent for a while, watching the rim of the sun rise over the horizon.

"Is that why you didn't want me to buy you a car?" Ranger asked softly.

She startled to attention. So he hadn't forgotten about that.

"Err… partly. I wasn't…" she trailed off. I wasn't sure how to ask you if they were stolen. Sure, that's a great way to put it.

"I wasn't—I didn't know if it would be the kind of car I shouldn't ask questions about."

He let out a sigh, and she felt him shake his head.

"Babe…"

She wanted to tell him that it didn't matter, but she would have been lying. It did matter.

"I'd never give you a car that could get you into trouble." He hugged her tighter to him. "I never have."

She smiled a little sadly, because she was going to have to pry her unspoken questions out of him. How did you ask a guy if he was involved in anything illegal? It was hard enough to accept the danger that his line of work placed him into. She didn't want to have to worry about police investigations and jail time as well.

"So where do the cars come from? I hate to pry, but if we're talking about a future…"

He chuckled softly.

"I have had some grey cars in the past, but as of the last two years, everything is clean. I have a deal with an old friend. I secure his car business and he supplies me with vehicles at cost price."

"Okay…"

"As for the rest of the business… same story. I've been cleaning up."

She nodded, satisfied with that.

"So how do you see the future?" she asked after a long moment. She realised that so far he'd only wanted to know about her ideas, without telling her his own.

"Be with you," he whispered in her ear.

She rolled her eyes.

"And…?"

"That's it, Babe. I just want you in my life; for a long time, as much as possible."

"Oh." Did that mean he'd changed-

"Does the no-marriage clause still stand?" she said before she could stop herself. She felt his body tense. Great going, Steph. Why don't you just tell him you want a ring?

"Yes, he said finally. His arms tightened around her and she realised that she was holding her breath. Tears burned in the back of her throat. Stupid, stupid, stupid. Here she was thinking things had changed, that he wanted to share his life with her, and meanwhile he—

"No marriage does not mean no commitment, Babe."

"If you're okay with commitment, why don't you want to marry?"

"I was married once. So were you. Did it give you any guarantee that things would last?"

She shrugged her tense shoulders, needing some space, not really wanting to hear his reasoning. Trying not to care. She'd always held hope that if he really loved her, really wanted to be with her, he'd change his mind.

"Not guarantee, but—" But what? If she was brutally honest with herself, a guarantee was exactly what she wanted. She wanted him to promise, in front of witnesses, that he'd stay with her for the rest of their lives.

"—you're not Dickie," she finished lamely.

"I'm not," he agreed, pulling her closer against his chest. "And I'll never treat you that way. I love you, and I want you in my life."

"I don't understand," she sighed. "How can you say all that and not want to marry?"

"I don't believe it's good for a relationship to tie each other down. People get lazy, because the other can't just leave."

And he wanted to reserve the right to just up and leave one day? The thought upset her, but then she thought of the marriages she knew that had gone wrong. Being married didn't stop people from leaving anyway.

"What are you saying?"

His lips were trailing along her neck, feathery kisses that made her shiver. Very distracting. Her near-tears were fading. He'd just said he loved her. Whatever else the future held might need some more negotiating, but she knew the important part when she heard it.

"I'm saying…" he whispered in her ear, "…that I want to make each day I'm with you so good that there'll always be another day."

She had a small revelation, and smiled. It might not be the proposal and the ring she had been brought up to want, but in his own way he promised her his world. Her spine relaxed, and she leaned into him.

Her mother would have a fit, but Stephanie didn't need to be safely married off to someone who would take care of her. She wasn't a cow, after all. She didn't have to barter with the milk.

"Will you come live with me?"

She half-turned in the sand to catch his lips, stilling him for a long moment. When the kiss had come to an end she smiled at him.

"Where would we live?"

He thought about that for a moment.
"The cabin isn't really suited to long-term occupation, but the apartment—"

"Is wonderful, but it's not really a home," she said softly.

He tilted his head a little, conceding her the point.

"What makes a home to you?"

"Doesn't have to be big. It has personal stuff, photos, books… furniture we've picked up over time. Real stuff, nothing designer-bought. A big dinner table so we can invite friends over…"

He was nodding along.
"We can buy a house."

Her face must have reflected her sudden panic, because he hugged her closer and said;
"I don't mean right now. When we feel ready."

"Okay. Can we get a dog then?"

"No kids?"

"No kids." She looked at him to see if he was okay with that, and he just smiled.

"Works for me. I hope to see more of Julie."

"I'd like that. She's a wonderful girl."

Relief washed over her at the lack of drama. The last few months she was with him, Joe had grown more and more eager for a bunch of little Morelli's around the house. He had said he was ready - and she had felt suffocated. She'd always assumed she'd want that someday. All women wanted children, right? At some point the thought would stop making her stomach feel squishy, and she'd hear a baby cry and instead of cringe at the noise, would want one for herself. Right?

Mary Lou had taken it as a sign that Joe wasn't the right man, but the thought of children with Ranger did the same. The conclusion was finally clear. She'd waited for years for the motherly urges to appear, but they hadn't, and it became easier and easier to admit that she wasn't sorry.

"What kind of dog do you want?"

"I don't know, maybe a Chihuahua?"

The two seconds he stared at her in complete shock were truly film-worthy. Then she burst into laughter, body convulsing with the force of it.

"You—your face," she hiccoughed, laughing uncontrollably.

He pressed close and growled.

"Very… funny…"

She yelped as he started to tickle her, and pushed off in the sand to get away from him. That made her re-discover that they were on a dune, and she grabbed at the sand to stop herself from sliding down on her stomach. Tears of laughter didn't make it any easier.

Ranger loomed over her on hands and knees.

"I'll agree to a German Shepherd," he tempted in a sexy voice.

"A Shitzu?" she counter-offered, still laughing.

The next moment he pounced, and they went tumbling down the dune together, over and over.

…

The loose, soft sand, warm on the surface

…

The sound of their mingled laughter

…

His hand clamped on her upper arm, warm and firm

…

Rays of the early morning sun lighting up his laughing face

…

His dark, sparkling eyes so close

…

The scent of salt on the air

…

The weight of his body against her, shaking with laughter

"OOF!"

They rolled to a halt at the foot of the dune, and Ranger rolled his weight off of her, bringing them side to side, facing each other.

She'd been about to say something, but the words died on her lips when his eyes grew serious. His hand came up, fingertips tracing her face so tenderly. His eyes were entrancing, and for once she had no trouble understanding what emotion was behind his look.

It'll be okay.

She smiled.

Yes, it will be.