Disclaimer:  If you recognize it, I don't own it.  JE owns all.  I'm just borrowing her characters for my own amusement.  No infringement is intended. 

 

 

Dinner at Shorty’s

#2 in the Rangeman Series
(6/30/05)

 

Takes place 3 days after EoT  

 

Ranger clicked off the speaker phone from his desk and stood up for a stretch.  Nearly five o’clock and he was beat.  It had been a long week. He walked onto the control deck and noticed that the swing-shift crew had arrived.  Tank was waiting near the door.  “Hey Carlos, me and the boys are heading to Shorty’s.  You want to ride along?”

 

Not having anything else to do, Ranger agreed to go.  The two men headed out to Tank’s maroon Hummer.  When they arrived, they saw Lester, Cal, Woody, Slick, Hal and Bobby waiting for them.  The men piled into several vehicles and headed for the bar.

*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*

 

“One extra large Artery-Choker with fat crust and extra cheese.  Also a pitcher of beer, sweetheart.  Thanks.  What are you guys going to have?” Tank asked.  The other men chuckled but placed their orders with the waitress.

 

Lester had a small Hawaiian pizza, Cal, Hal and Woody decided to split a family-sized combination with anchovies and Bobby and Slick shared a double pepperoni.  Everyone looked to Ranger, curious to see if Mr. Health-Nut would stray from the usual.

 

“Personal vegetarian, light crust, no onions and a glass of ice tea.”  The group groaned loudly.

 

“Ranger, man.  Live a little and at least have a beer,” said Bobby. 

 

“Aw, Bob.  You know Ranger – he don’t want to ruin his girlish figure with those saturated fats.  One glass of beer will go straight to his gut and then the women of Trenton won’t be walking into walls anymore ‘cause he’ll have a pony keg instead of a six pack,” chuckled Lester. 

 

Ranger gave Lester a smirk and flipped him off.  Everyone laughed. 

 

Tank raised his pitcher of beer, “I propose a toast – to Stephanie Plum for about the most interesting week I’ve had while working at Rangeman.  The woman is never boring.”   Around the table, the others raised their glasses and cheered “here, here” – except for Ranger who didn’t know whether to be amused, or offended on Stephanie’s behalf. 

 

“So, what was your favorite part of the week?,” asked Woody to everyone in general.

 

“The gun range,” said Hal with a small smile.  Ranger quirked an eyebrow at him.  Apparently, he hadn’t been fast enough scrambling that monitor.

 

“The carjack, “chuckled Tank, “I love bouncing people off walls.”

 

Cal smiled, “What about when she went out for lunch?  That was pretty funny.”

 

“Oh yeah, that was good,” answered Slick.  “But what about the cemetery?  You can’t say that the cemetery thing wasn’t priceless.”

 

Hal looked around confused, “What happened at the cemetery?”

 

Ranger slid his gaze away from the them, he wasn’t going to divulge any information about his conversations with Stephanie.  His private life had always been private and that was the way it would remain.  The boys were commenting about Stephanie in good fun, and in a way he was happy about that since it showed that they were ready to accept her as a member of the team, but when it got down to a personal level he’d put a stop to it. His relationship with Stephanie, working or otherwise, was not for public consumption.

 

Slick filled him in, “Turns out, Stephanie is a crier.  She broke down sobbing at the funeral and Ranger practically pulled her into his jacket with him to console her.”  He looked over at Ranger and waggled his eyebrows, “Cop a nice feel there, boss?” he joked. 

 

Ranger wasn’t amused and cut his eyes at Slick, “Be careful,” he said softly.  He hadn’t moved a muscle, but the tone of his voice was enough to let everyone at the table know that subject was closed and it was time to move on. 

 

Tank gave Ranger an appraising look.  “So, what was your favorite part of Stephanie’s first week with us?”

 

Ranger glanced at each of them in turn wondering what he should say.  He sure as hell wasn’t going to tell them it was holding her naked body wrapped just in his robe.  After a few moments, he decided that Stephanie had taken enough hits over the years about her skills, so maybe it would help beef up her standing with the Rangeman crew if they heard about something unexpected.  “I think it was probably the right hook.  That was fun.” Also educational.

 

At their look of confusion, Ranger elaborated.  “After we left the cemetery, we followed Barroni to his store.  He was giving Steph a hard time, teasing her about crying at the cemetery and out of nowhere, she popped him hard enough to bust his nose.”

 

“No shit?” asked Lester, his eyes wide.  “Man, who would have guessed she had that in her.”

 

“Serious?” asked Cal, piling fallen toppings onto his pizza slice.  “Wow.”

 

Ranger leaned back in his chair, swirling his tea in the glass, “Stephanie Plum is the definition of the adage ‘never judge a book by its cover’.  She might look beautiful, soft and sweet, but underneath the Jersey Girl exterior is someone who is smart, insightful and determined.  And when she’s pissed off, if she doesn’t kick you in the balls, you should really watch out for the right hook.”  The men seemed to making a mental note of that, Ranger noticed.  That was good, maybe that would be enough for them to build a respectful working relationship with her.

 

Lester raised his glass, “Here’s to one week with no car explosions and no broken bones.” The men raised their glasses as Lester added, “Man, life is gonna be dull if she stays behind that desk.” 

 

“Ok, so we all have our favorite moments from this week…least favorite?” asked Woody again.

 

Tank and Ranger locked eyes and said in unison, “Homicidal undertaker.”  Both men had an understanding that what was said between them during the search for Stephanie would stay between them.  No one else at Rangeman, or anywhere for that matter, needed to know just how much her disappearance had affected them.  The others at the table pretty much agreed that Stephanie getting kidnapped and nearly killed sucked royal. 

 

“How does she get involved in stuff like that?” asked Bobby.  “It’s like she’s a magnet for every nutcase in town.”

 

Ranger accepted a refill on his ice tea from the waitress with a nod of thanks. “Stephanie may not have the training that you all have, and she hates her gun, but she has two things going for her: luck and tenacity.”  He gave a small smile, “Once she gets hooked on something she devotes 100%.  Even when she’s in over her head, she might take a step back, but she never punts.”

 

Tank and Cal, both who had worked with Stephanie the most of the Rangeman crew, nodded.  They both had a burgeoning respect for her.  Tank took a sip of his beer, “I know it’s only been a week, Carlos, but she seemed a little stir crazy with all this research; she’s not used to sitting still.  You gonna let her out in the field again?”

 

“Yeah, once things calm down from this latest ordeal.  I’ll be teaming her up with each of you on a rotational basis.” Ranger looked at his crew, expecting groans and grimaces.  If they were concerned or unhappy they didn’t say anything.  “You will receive hazard pay when your rotation comes up.”  They still didn’t say anything, but Ranger thought he saw a measure of relief in their eyes.  Stephanie was hell on his Merry Men.

 

They finished up their meal and headed out to the parking lot.  They all split up and got in their vehicles.  Tank buckled his seatbelt and looked at Ranger, “Who’s gonna have first up with Stephanie?” 

 

“Me.”

 

“You’re going to partner her up?  Think that’s a good idea, Carlos?  You guys in tight quarters might be a little much – for both of you.”

 

Ranger slouched in his seat, “Yeah, but I never ask the men to do something I won’t do.  Besides, she’s really uncomfortable around you guys.”

 

Tank’s eyes widened, “Serious?  Huh.  You’d think she’d be more uncomfortable around you, what with all the sexual tension you two have going.”

 

“Babe and I…we’ve reached a certain comfort level.  I push her just enough to keep things interesting and she pushes back just enough to keep me at bay.  With you guys, I think she’s intimidated and also afraid one of you is going to get hurt again by helping her.”

 

“We’re all big boys.  Anyway, back to the partner thing.  I think I should have first rotation.  I’ve worked with her before, and I can help her get comfortable with the new situation.”  He put the key in the ignition and turned the engine over; the Hummer roared to life.  “Besides, I like her and if she keeps helping out Lula, then that’s so much the better.”

 

Ranger glanced at him and smiled. “Lula, huh?”

 

Tank blew out a breath and then smiled sheepishly, “Yeah.”