I am Stephanie Plum Manoso. I have been married to Ricardo Carlos Manoso aka Ranger for two months. We got married because someone was trying to kill him and someone still is. My husband has been away for a couple weeks on business. I am expecting him back at any time. I work for my cousin's bail bond company as a bail bonds enforcement agent. It was just like any other day for me and I was at the office when Lula looked out and saw my husband leaning against his Porsche's turbo.

"Don't look now but tall, handsome and married Ranger is walking in this building," Lula said.

I felt a hand go on the back of my neck. And heard a sweet whisper, "Let's talk". I put the files in my hand bag and followed Ranger outside. He pulled me toward him and all of a sudden I threw up on his boots.

"Babe, Tank told me you were sick."

"I am not sick. I am late."

Ranger gazed into my eyes and said, "Late, as in late, or late for work."

"Late, late Ranger."

He took a deep breath and then lifted my head and kissed me on my eyebrows.

"I have bonds that I have to bring in and I will call you if I need you promise." Then I walked back to the office and said "Lula, do you want to come with me to get some bonds or not. "

"Jeez yes, hold your horses, I am coming. Hi there Ranger." And then we got into my CRV and took off leaving Ranger hanging around the office looking at his shoes.

One of the first bonds that we went after was old man Ralph. For indecent exposure, and then he did not show up for court. So we had to go get him. Lula said "I will knock his socks off" and then she took out her .45 cort. "You will do none of that, Lula we will get him without any shooting." "Jeez what is your problem today lady snapping at everybody around you." Lula asked.

"Sorry not feeling well today."

"Should have called in," Lula said.

I stopped the car and got out and walked to the door. The door opened and old man Ralph was staring straight at me. "I am not in a good mood Ralph and would like you to come with me nice and easy." He pushed me into Lula and started running. Lula got up first and then pounced on him. She then sat on him.

"Get this fatso off of me," he said.

"Did you just call me fat I hope that is not what I heard." Then she started to roll in the ground with him while swinging her purse at him.

I got up and then got her up, then got Ralph up and put the cuffs on him. Then I brought him to my car when all of a sudden my car went up in smoke.

I took out my cell phone and called my hubby.

"Yo" he said.

"My car just blew up can you come get us?"

"Babe" then he hung up.

When Ranger got there he noticed that Morelli and the fire department were already there.

"Hey how is it going with Ranger?" Morelli asked Stephanie.

"Pretty good, he is gone a lot but he really cares for me," Stephanie said to him.

Ranger walked up to us and said, "Babe, Tank will be here with an SUV shortly." He looked at Stephanie and noticed that she was all dirty.

"Don't ask please," she told him.

We all watched as they took my SUV away. Ranger looked down at Ralph with the cuffs on him. Tank came up to us, and said, "Here is the SUV Ranger." Ranger took the keys and gave them to me. "Here you go Babe."

"Thanks."

Then Steph helped Ralph up and walked with him to the SUV with Lula following her.

Ranger looked at Tank and then Tank said, "Steph still sick."

Ranger looked at his friend and just shook his head.

"Let's go Tank and see if we can get some work done today," Ranger said.

That evening was Friday and we usually went to my parents' house for dinner tonight which was no different but first we had to do something at our apartment in Rangemen building. I walked into the apartment and Ranger was leaning against the sink with a glass of wine in his hand. He looked at the little brown bag in my hand and asked, "Is that the test?"

"Yes, I was going to do it here instead at my parent's house, that way we would know what we are walking into tonight."

"Good plan." He then put the wine glass down and walked into the bedroom with me, he pulled me close to him and kissed me on the forehead. I turned and then walked into the bathroom to pee on the little stick and then wait.

"How long do we have to wait?" Ranger asked.

"Five minutes," I told him.

All of a sudden my cell phone rang, "Hello."

"Steph, it's your mother, are you and Ranger coming tonight? I am making a roast with pineapple upside down cake."

I dropped the phone and went to the toilet to throw up. Ranger picked up the phone.

"Hello."

"Ranger this is your mother in law, I was talking to Steph. What happened to her?

"She had to use the bathroom we will be there in a few minutes." Then Ranger shut the phone off and looked at Steph who was holding her stomach.

"Ranger, I am pregnant."

He walked up to her, picked her up, and twirled her around.

"Babe," he said, then he kissed her.

"I am glad you are happy about this, but this complicates things. We still don't know who is trying to kill you and now I am pregnant."

"Babe, let's not worry about that right now, let's just enjoy today," Ranger said and then he kissed me again.

We drove in silence to my parents' house in the burg. Ranger parked the Porsche turbo and we got out.

"He we go," I said as we entered my parent's house.

"Steph and Ranger are here," Grandma said as she came up to us.

Steph's father came out and took Ranger's hand, and said "Missed you the past couple of weeks."

"Had to work but I am back now." Ranger said.

Steph had worked her way into the kitchen, and started to eat some vegetables.

Ranger sat in the living room with my father and his nieces and nephews and his brother in law Albert.

"Hey Uncle Ranger, when are you going to make me a big cousin?"

"All right I know you did not think of that all by yourself Mary Alice so who gave you that idea?" Ranger asked her.

"Grandma Plum," Mary Alice replied and look at me I am a horse.

Ranger turned his head and watched me from a distance. She has a glow to her face tonight, he thought to himself.

Grandma Mazer yelled "Dinner everyone." Then everyone from the living room came into the dining room to eat.

Everyone took their seats at the table, me next to Ranger, who had a glass of wine. We all passed the meat around and then it came up - the subject I was dreading. My mother had said, "Ranger and Steph when are you going to make me a grandmother, that way you can stop Steph from working her job."

I looked at Ranger who had a small grin on his face, we had only just found out that I was pregnant and had not even discussed continuing on at Vinnie's but I knew that subject just came up.

Ranger sat still for a couple of minutes, and then I looked at him and then he just blurt it out. I had no clue what had come over come over him but he just yelled out,

"Stephanie is pregnant."

My mother did the sign of the cross, came over to us and then gave me a hug and then Ranger a hug.

"Thank god now you can stop working at Vinnie's." I just sat there stunned.

Then all of a sudden there was a shot and the roast went up in the air and on the floor.

Grandma Mazer said, "Ops I hit the trigger of my gun and it went off."

"Grandma Mazer, how many times do I have to tell you, you are not allowed to have guns," my mother yelled and reached over for Grandma's purse. Grandma ran out of the house as fast as she could.

My father just shoved food in his mouth. All of a sudden Ranger's phone went off.

Ranger said "excuse me" and got up and walked out to the porch.

"Yo," he said.

"It's Tank, there was a break in at the Rangemen office in Boston. They want you to check it out."

"Right, I think I will take Steph with me on this one." Then he closed his phone and walked back in.

"Sorry everyone, but that was Tank, there is something wrong in Boston, and Steph and I have to check it out."

He pulled Steph out from her seat. "Well, then I think we better go, bye everyone see you next Friday," Steph said.

Her mother said as they were walking out the door, "no wine Steph think of the baby."

Steph gave a wave to her mother and then got in the car. Ranger took off.

"Thank god for Tank," Steph said.

"Yup" Ranger added and then continued to drive to the airport that had a Rangemen Jet waiting for them.

On the jet, Ranger brought up the subject he was dreading, Steph, the pregnancy and her job.

"Babe, we need to talk."

"About what?"

"You, your job and the pregnancy."

"Fine say what you want to say," Steph said as she looked at him coolly.

"I am not saying that you have to completely stop your job at Vinnie's but I am saying I would prefer it if you cut back on the hours you work there. Take the minor bonds that come up that don't rake in a lot of money the less dangerous ones."

"Ranger, I love what I do, and I don't want to quit. I will be careful I swear."

"Come and work for me in secrecy you have done that before and your good at it. It is safer," Ranger answered her.

"Ranger, how about a between deal, I will work for you if you let me continue to do some but not all bonds. I will do the easy one the safe ones. And you pick up the slack for me at Vinnie's," Steph said to her husband.

"I can handle that," he said and then he moved closer to her and kissed her lightly on the lips.

She dug her nails into him, gripped the back of the neck, and then she really realized this was not Ranger. So she all of a sudden she pulled her .38 out and pointed it at him. "Where is he?"

"Babe put the gun down." Ranger said.

"You're not Ranger. Now where is he?"

"Listen babe." Then all of a sudden she took a shot at the person and that person said, "You shot me in the foot."

Stephanie went to a case and took out some rope.

"Sit down and shut up," she said.

The man did what he was told and then she tied him up. "I am going to Rangemen in Boston and then I am going to tell them that you are the fake Ranger."

"You better get me to the airport and fast." Ranger told Lt. Dolan.

"Yeah, but how did she know that was not you and that quickly too?" Lt. Dolan asked shaking his head.

"You will have your chance to ask her," Ranger told him.

After the plane landed, Steph came off with her .38 in her hand.

It was now pouring rain, and then she heard him.

"Babe," Ranger said with a sideways grin on his face.

She rushed toward him and gave him a hard kiss right on the lips. He took her into his arms and just held her.

"You best get inside the two of you" Lt. Dolan told them.

"Let's go babe." Then Ranger guided her inside a private room where they could talk.

Lt. Dolan came in and said "Lt. Dolan FBI."

"Hi Stephanie Manoso."

"I know, but I would like to know how you knew about our decoy so quickly," Lt. Dolan said to her.

"This should be good" Ranger said and then all eyes turned on Steph.

"It was the little things, like when I first told your decoy that I was pregnant." Steph said as she looked at Ranger.

Ranger's face went slack, "Steph are you sure?"

"The home pregnancy test came up positive," Steph told him.

"We need to confirm this, and you should see Dr. Steven here in Boston at the Rangemen Building."

"That right there flag number one the real Ranger needs confirmation, your Ranger just picked me up and twirled me around in a circle."

"Then on the plane he brought up my job as a bail bonds enforcement agent. As long as I have known Ranger he has not once told me to stop doing it. You see I amuse him when I do my job as a bail bonds enforcement agent. Flag number two"

"The third flag is that the Real Ranger does not drink wine in the middle of the day, he hardly drinks at all and the real Ranger does not wear his wedding band" Steph said.

The dummy playing Ranger looked at his left hand at his wedding band.

"Geez I thought we had he down path pretty good, guess not" Lt. Dolan said.

"Now your turn Ranger, what is going on, and mind you I still have my gun," Steph said as she turned to see her husband.

"About two weeks ago, I found out that the Drug Cartel from New Mexico was after me, so I set it up so I could go away for a while and hopefully you would not have noticed, but the soonest they could get a double for me was this morning. So we switched places, so that they would have time to catch the guy for the drug cartel that was after me. I did not expect you to pick up on it so quickly babe."

Stephanie just blushed and shrugged.

"How your man Lt. Dolan?" Steph asked.

"He is fine the bullet just grazed his right foot."

Ranger just shook his head and walked up to her and kissed her lightly on the lips.

All of a sudden she turned and threw up on some boots.

"Babe, lets go to Rangemen"

"Mr. Manoso they are still out there."

"Lt. Dolan, if my wife could figure out that was not me and mind you she did it in four hours, then they know that was not me with her in New Jersey."

"But I will take some FBI men to penetrate Rangemen for extra secrecy but no one is taking my place again," Ranger said coolly at him.

Then Ranger and Stephanie walked out of the room together to go to Rangemen in Boston.

On the way to Rangemen, Ranger was on the phone with Dr. Steven. When he was done he said "Dr. Steven will see us at Rangemen."

"Good," Steph said to him and then put her head on his shoulder.

When they got there, Dr. Steven was waiting for us in the corridor, "Where do you want to do this blood test?"

"In here," and then Ranger opened a door and I followed the Doctor and Ranger in.

"Please Mrs. Manoso roll up your sleeve."

I rolled up my sleeve and the doctor put the needle in my arm and withdrew blood.

"I will have the results to you in a couple of hours." Then the doctor left.

Ranger helped Stephanie down from the table and they left the room.

"I am hungry," Stephanie said to Ranger.

"Alright let's go up to the apartment and see what they have to eat."

"Ranger, I want fried chicken."

Ranger turned to her, "Babe that stuff is so bad for you."

"Please" she begged.

Ranger got on the phone "Hands can you pick up some fried chicken for Steph?"

"Sure." Then Ranger hung up and said "Let's go upstairs".

Once they got upstairs, Ranger put his mouth to hers, and gave her a long slow kiss that made her spine tingle. He then picked her up and walked to the bed.

"Ranger."

"Ya babe," and then he kissed her again.

He was on top of her, and she could only let him do whatever he wanted to her.

That's when it happened. The person with the gun butted Ranger on the side of the head.

Steph shrieked.

"Shut up or you're dead just like your husband," the guy with the mask said.

Steph shut her mouth and moved to the head of the bed, searching for something anything that she could use to defend herself with. Then it happened. Ranger came through and tackled him, and they were wrestling for the gun.

It was then that Steph saw Hands in the kitchen, and he noticed the action in the bedroom. He ran in and split the two up. Then he took out his gun and pointed it at the man with the mask on his face. He tossed a pair of cuffs to Ranger and then Ranger put them on the guy.

Hands pulled off the mask and saw it was Lewis from the Jersey Rangemen Building.

"Lewis, figures the Mexico drug cartel would buy you off," Ranger said and then added "Hands get him out of my face."

Ranger went to the kitchen to get a towel for his head.

"Babe," and then he walked to the head of the bed to Stephanie.

"You need to get checked out," Steph said to him.

"Yes, ma'am," then they walked out of the apt and downstairs hoping to catch Dr. Steven.

In the end Ranger got 30 stiches, and learned that he was going to be a father. Steph got her man back and told Vinnie that she could not work for him for a while but Ranger would take over.