Drop And Give Me Twenty
#4 in the Rangeman Series
(5/2/06)
A/N: When reading the cadence songs in this story, the regular font is the lead singer, the italics are everyone else
Prologue:
Ranger Manoso guided his Porsche Turbo into the parking lot of the apartment building on Hamilton Avenue. It was 4:35am and all of the inhabitants of this particular building were asleep. The building was full of senior citizens, the exceptions were a newlywed couple living on the 3rd floor and Ranger’s mission for the night…Stephanie Plum who lived on the 2nd floor.
He turned off the ignition and looked around the parking lot. No green SUV, no Ducati motorcycle. He stepped out and let himself into the apartment building taking the stairs to the 2nd floor. Deftly, he picked the deadbolt lock and eased the door open quietly so that the chain lock wouldn’t make noise. He took a rubber band and a small tack out of his pocket and reached through the gap, sliding the rubber band around the chain peg and then tacking the other end of the rubber band as far back as he could reach. He closed the door quietly and smiled when he heard the chain slide through and out of the slot. He opened the door with no further impediment and retrieved his tools. It wouldn’t do to let Stephanie figure out how he got past the chain…might ruin his Man of Mystery image.
Quietly, he checked the apartment. Empty pizza box on the coffee table, Ghostbusters movie case on the top of the TV. Rex, the hamster, was running his nightly marathon. Ranger walked silently through the dark apartment. When he reached the bedroom door he stopped and took a measured breath. If the cop was in bed with her…. let it go, he told himself. The cop wasn’t here. No green SUV, no Ducati. He opened the door to see Stephanie lying in bed. Alone. He smiled as he took in her tousled curls, little knit tank top and cotton shorts. He liked to watch her sleep. She didn’t snore or drool but sometimes she would giggle or snuggle down into her pillow. Those were the nights where it took all of his formidable willpower to keep from slipping into bed and taking her in his arms.
He stepped over to the window and took a small flash light out of his pocket. He quickly flashed the light three times and then put it away. He unlocked the bedroom window and lifted the sash 3 inches. Stepping over to the bed, he leaned down and laid a gentle kiss to Stephanie’s forehead. “Don’t hate me for this one, babe. Consider it part of your initiation.”
Ranger turned and went into the kitchen. He pulled down the can of coffee and started a fresh pot. Maybe she’d be less hostile if caffeine was ready and waiting for her.
*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*
They moved like shadows, each knowing exactly where the others were and their assignments. They crept up the stairs of the three story apartment building barely making a sound. At the roof, the 5 of the 10 men dressed in black secured their ropes and put on their rappelling harnesses.
The biggest of the team, Tank, let himself carefully over the ledge of the building and began walking down the building toward the 2nd floor fire escape, slowly sliding the rope through his hands as he went. One by one, the other men followed. Tank eased his bulky body onto the fire escape landing and slid the window sash up completely so he could enter the room. Bobby followed by Lester came in next. Hal and Ram brought up the rear. The remaining members of the team pulled up the ropes and removed the equipment, quietly walking the stairs and returning to their vehicles.
The men surrounded the bed of the sleeping woman. They watched her with small smiles on their faces, anticipating the fireworks that they imagined would soon follow. The digital clock on her nightstand clicked over to 5:00am. Tank grinned and nodded to Bobby to do the honors. Bobby took a deep breath and yelled in his best drill sergeant voice, “Rise and shine, Bombshell!”
*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*
Stephanie was having a great dream. She was standing in between Joe Morelli, her on-again-but-currently-off-again, boyfriend and Ranger Manoso, her mentor, boss, friend and one-time lover. They were telling her that they decided it wasn’t fair to make her choose between them and so they had decided to share her. Ranger reached behind his head and pulled his black t-shirt off, revealing big, muscular shoulders and 8-pack abs. Joe followed, baring broad shoulders with tight abs and an eagle tattoo on his chest. Each of them reached for her, Joe pulling her back against him and Ranger dropping to his knees in front of her, his hands wrapping around her calves. Ranger was just starting to unbutton her pants with his teeth when she was jolted out of sleep by someone yelling.
She sat up quickly, her mass of curls falling into her eyes. She pushed them back and opened bleary eyes to see a wall of black. She looked up and found 5 of Ranger’s Merry Men standing at the end of her bed. “What the fuck!?” she yelled, glancing over at the clock. “Do you guys know what time it is? What the hell are you doing here?!”
Bobby stepped up to the bed, “Good morning, Steph. It’s time to get up!”
She gave him an ‘eat shit’ look and flopped back onto the mattress pulling the blankets over her head. “Bite me,” she mumbled.
The men chuckled and Tank and Hal grabbed the covers from the end of the bed and pulled. The blankets came off suddenly and she propped herself up on one elbow and gave them a deceptively sweet smile. “Tank?” she asked, “You do remember that you taught me martial arts, right?”
Tank grinned, “Yeah, Steph?”
“Well, if the five of you don’t get out of my bedroom, I’m going to give you a demonstration of just how much I remember from your little training classes.”
“Oh?” he asked. “You do realize that you’d have to get out of bed for that?”
“Fuck,” she muttered. “What’s it going to take for you guys to leave and come back at a decent hour? Oh, say 10 o’clock?”
Lester piped up, “Can’t do that, Bombshell. Got work to do then. You need to get up.”
Stephanie sat up quickly and tossed one of her pillows at Lester. “Don’t call me Bombshell! And I’m in research! I don’t have to be to work until nine, so kiss my ass!”
“I’d be more than happy to kiss it,” said Ranger as he walked into the room with a cup of coffee in his hand. “Just say the word, Babe.”
She took the offered coffee cup and glared up at him. “Why are you guys here?” She shivered a little and looked over at the open window. “You came in from the fire escape?”
Ranger shook his head, “I didn’t. I came in through the front door. They came in through the fire escape.”
“What the
hell for?”
“Training.
It’s been a while since they had to rappel down buildings, so we used this as an
opportunity to exercise some skills.”
“Besides,” said Lester with a grin, “it’s fun!”
Stephanie sipped her coffee. It was perfect and she wasn’t surprised that Ranger knew how she liked her coffee. Ranger knew all kinds of things. She motioned them out with her free hand, “Well, you’ve had your fun and woke me from a sound sleep. Now get out.”
Ranger snatched the coffee cup from her hand just as she raised it for a sip. “Hey!” she squawked. “Give that back!”
“Get up and get dressed,” he said extending his hand. “We’ve got to get going.”
She let him pull her out of bed. “Going where?”
“We run every morning at 5:00, Steph,” said Bobby. “You’re my partner for the next two weeks so you can run with us.”
“Tank didn’t make me run every day,” she said.
“That’s cause I knew better,” said Tank. “But Bobby’s your lead partner now, Steph and he’s also in charge of our team fitness. So, you need to run.”
Stephanie blew out a breath and prayed for patience. “Look guys, I’m sure you mean well but there are three things I don’t do: run, diet and doggy stuff. So, everybody out! Run if you want, but leave me out of it.”
The men looked to Ranger and he nodded, so they filed out quietly. Steph gulped down the last of the coffee and headed for the bathroom. She went to shut the door but Ranger’s foot was in the way. He curled his fingers around the door and leaned into the bathroom until they were just a few inches apart. “Woof” he said, laughing and Stephanie blushed pink. “Seems to me, I’ve been able to get you to do two out of three. Looks like that argument’s not gonna hold, Babe. Better get dressed.”
Chapter 1:
Stephanie finished tying her shoes and headed downstairs to meet with the Rangeman crew. She exited the building to see 10 hard-bodied men, stripped down to nothing but sweat pants and running shoes. There wasn’t less than a 6 pack among them. Stephanie stared in fascinated awe at the Rangeman crew as they did their stretching exercises in the parking lot. She could feel her IQ sliding down at least 40 points.
“You’ll catch flies that way, babe,” chuckled Ranger as he put a finger under her chin and pushed her mouth closed.
Stephanie blushed at being caught ogling. She looked at him sheepishly, “Sorry.”
“I’m not,” said Ranger. “It’s always fun to watch you get embarrassed.” He grinned at her, “Besides, we get our turn while you stretch out.”
“Oh, I don’t need to stretch. I’m good.”
Ranger frowned at her. “Stretch. We’re running 3 miles today. Easy for us, not so much for you. I don’t want you coming up with a pulled hamstring. Or worse.”
Stephanie stretched while the Rangemen jogged in place, watching her and giving her pointers.
“Flex your feet, Steph. Stretch out that calf muscle,” called Tank.
“Don’t forget your upper body stretching,” called Bobby. “Nothing worse than pulling a back muscle.”
Once she had finished, Ranger smiled at her and then started running out of the parking lot. The Merry Men followed, moving into an organized formation. Bobby motioned for Stephanie to run with him. They kept an even pace behind the others.
*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*
Stephanie struggled to keep pace with Bobby. She was getting tired; she wasn’t going to make the three mile marker. Distraction was the key, she knew. She tried to count the beats of their feet against the pavement. Hal was running in front of her so she tried to concentrate on the bead of sweat that rolled down his spine. She took a deep breath, desperate to get more air into her lungs. She stumbled a little and Bobby tapped her shoulder and held up a single finger. “Just one more, Steph.” She nodded.
Refocusing her energy, she tried to find a distraction to keep her mind occupied on something other than the pain in her side and her fatigue. She looked for Ranger, who had been on the opposite side of the formation but couldn’t see him for all of the buff bodies in the way. Suddenly, she realized he was next to her. He gave her a little smile as he matched strides with her. “Hanging in there?” Again, she nodded, not wanting to admit to him that she was pushing her limits just to keep up. She didn’t want to hear him tell her to lay off the donuts.
Ranger surprised her by starting to count off beats, then breaking into a song of some kind. His voice rang out with a rich, warm tone, and the Merry Men answered as if they’d been singing the song for years. When she realized what they were singing, she knew that they had – it was a military song.
One mile -
No Sweat
Two miles - Better yet
Three miles - Gotta run
Four miles - Just for fun
Come on - Let's go
We can go - Through the snow
We can run - To the sun
We can train - In the rain
A-I-R-B-O-R-N-E
Can you be - Like me?
Airborne – Infantry
As the men repeated the song, Stephanie realized that listening to them helped distract her from her discomfort. She was able to keep a better pace with Bobby and didn’t even notice the stitch in her side. She looked to Ranger who grinned and winked at her, then sped up to his normal pace to run near the front of the formation.
A few minutes later, she heard Ranger start another song:
A is for
Airborne
I is for in the wind
R is for rough and tough
B is for bonafide
O is for on the go
R is for ranger
N is for never quit
E is for everyday
'Cause I'm Airborne
All the way
Super-duper
Paratrooper
R is for
rough and tough
A is for all the way
N is for never quit
G is for gung-ho
E is for excellence
R is for Ranger.
As they finished the song, they rounded the corner to see her apartment building just two blocks away. She was relieved that the run was nearly over and she hadn’t thrown up or dropped to the ground in exhaustion. She didn’t want to be embarrassed in front of the guys. The group stopped running and slowed to a walk as they neared the parking lot.
Tank dropped back to walk with her. He slung a heavy arm over her shoulders. “You did good, Steph.”
They stopped in her parking lot and some of the Rangemen went to their cars. Ranger walked over to his Porsche and took out his cell phone to check for messages. She tried to get her breathing evened out before she answered, “Thanks. You guys do that every day?”
“No,” Lester added, “We usually run 8, but Ranger thought we should take it easy on you the first few days.”
“Eight?!” she said in surprise. “There’s no way I’m going to be able to run eight miles. No way.”
“I bet you can do eight by the end of our two weeks together,” said Bobby.
“I’ll take that bet,” said Vince. “She can barely walk after just three. Fifty bucks says she can’t even do 5 by the end of your rotation.”
“You’re on!” said Bobby.
Vince shook his head, “You guys think she’s some supergirl or something, but she’s just a little Burg girl trying to be somebody she’s not.”
Stephanie narrowed her eyes at him, “You got a problem with me, Troyer?”
Vince gave her an assessing look, “I just don’t get what’s so special about you that all of these guys are fawning all over you. The Bombshell,” he said with air quotes. “My feeling is that you shouldn’t run with the big boys when you got to squat to piss, that’s all.”
Ranger’s hand came down on Vince’s shoulder, taking him by surprise. “I think you’re on deck this morning, Troyer. Maybe you should get going.”
Vince cleared his throat nervously. “Yeah, I probably should.” He turned and went to his truck without another word.
Tank glared at Vince as he walked away. “Don’t listen to him, Steph. You didn’t think you could throw Bobby when we first got started with self defense, but you did throw him. You struggled with three miles today, but in a few days, three will be easy. Just watch.”
“Yeah, we’ll be working on some other stuff too this week so it will get easier for you,” added Bobby.
Lester pulled his cell phone off his belt. “Gotta go. Got an appointment.” He gave Steph a smile, “You have a fun week, Bombshell.”
Stephanie sighed, “Please stop calling me that.” Lester just laughed as he walked away. “And the way he said that makes me worry. What aren’t you guys telling me?”
Bobby laughed and started walking toward his truck. “I’ll see you later this afternoon. Meet me in the training room after lunch.”
Stephanie looked at Tank and Ranger, “OK, what am I missing?”
Tank cleared his throat, “It’s nothing bad, Steph. It’s just that Bobby’s the Rangeman prankster.”
“Prankster? I’m not sure I like the sound of that. What kind of pranks are we talking about?”
Tank patted her on the shoulder, “Don’t worry, nothing real bad. His pranks are pretty harmless.” He started walking toward his Hummer, but turned around to add, “Really” with a big grin.
“Somehow that’s not very comforting,” Steph muttered.
Ranger hooked an arm around her neck and pulled her close to kiss her forehead. “Tank’s right, Bobby’s harmless. Mostly, his pranks are juvenile. Just check your toilet seat for saran wrap, make sure your sheets aren’t shorted and check your ass for a “kick me” sign, and you’ll be fine.”
TBC
Continue to #5 - Is That a Gun In Your Pocket or Are You Just Happy To See Me?
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Disclaimers, Credits and Dedications
The characters in this story belong to Janet Evanovich. I do not own any part of the Plum ‘verse and no infringement is intended. I’m just borrowing them to play with and promise to return them unharmed. Although if she wants to part with Ranger or any of the Merry Men, I’d hock my house to buy one. J
The cadences in this story, with the exception of "Ranger's Babe" are taken from the United States Army Handbook.
The Rangeman Series is dedicated with much appreciation to the men and women serving in the United States Armed Forces. God bless you all and keep you safe.