Alright, I was way excited to get this up, and I couldn't wait till morning. So, here is to all my fabulous readers and reviewers. I hope you enjoy this chapter as much as I enjoyed writing it.

Kate stood outside the French doors for a few more moments before she closed the curtain. Her eyes were beginning to droop and her mind was slowly beginning to lose all thoughts. Turning into her room, she looked around, a small sigh escaping her lips.

It was empty.

Sure, there was a King sized bed and a cabinet holding a nicely sized big screen television. Plus the mini bar was nestled in the corner, but it was still empty.

Pulling off her yoga pants, Kate let them drop to the ground, now only wearing a pair of boy shorts and a white cami, the black bra straps revealed into the emptiness. Walking around the bed, she turned the lamp off and climbed into the cool sheets, her eyes closing only for a moment before a knocking became apparent on the glass doors.

She waited a moment, waiting to see if it was only the rushing wind that had been going all week. When the knocking came again, Kate knew that it must be someone, although she found it hard to believe someone climbed onto her balcony on the second floor to see her. Someone was obviously there, though. So, she got out of bed, walking towards the French doors for the second time that night.

Opening the curtain, she exposed a man standing there, a good four inches between the two in distance and height. He was in a white shirt that showed his well toned stomach and arms and a pair of basketball shorts, showing his tanned calf muscles.

It made her jump slightly before she realized who it was. None other than Richard Castle stood outside her hotel room at one o'clock in the morning.

"Castle? What are you doing here?" Her voice was full of surprise considering what she had said to him twice that day Opening the doors a bit more wider, she walked out onto the balcony, past the nice looking man, before she closed them behind her, looking up at him and waiting for his answer.

"I wanted to talk to you. I know it's late… or rather early, but I couldn't sleep without telling you." His voice was soft, and the wind that had been blowing around them all day had seized and now was just a soft, calming breeze.

"How did you get here? You're down the hall from here. At least seven hotel rooms away." She knew that didn't matter, but she wanted to know. She also wanted to know why, but the thought of why he may be there scared her slightly.

"I convinced Alexis to trade me rooms after we got into that fight. I knew I would have to man up and talk to you before tomorrow, but when I went out into the hallway, Josh was out there, talking to the best man. I figured I wouldn't intrude on what I'm sure was a very indulging conversation and I just sort of…" His eyes moved to the starry sky as he searched for a word. "Jumped the balcony."

Beckett couldn't help but let a small laugh escape her as she shook her head and crossed her arms.

"Alright, now why are you here?" Her voice was full of curiosity, despite her best efforts to keep that out of it.

"Kate, you're a detective. You already know why I'm here." He took a step towards her, a look in his eyes that she hadn't seen since the night she had gone over to his place before they came to the Hamptons. A look of pure and unconditional love.

"Rick, please, don't. Not now… not-" She was cut off though by his voice.

"No, Kate. If it's not now, it's never. The wedding is in 3 days. I need to know."

Kate looked down at the ground, the sand on the balcony keeping her eyes company as she thought about what she could say. She knew what his unasked question was, and she knew that answer. Well, she was 99.5% sure of what the answer could be. But that .5% was what was keeping her from saying it.

"Rick Castle. We have been partners for four years. I have trust you with my life for almost that long. We're best friends. I know I can tell you anything, anything in the world, and you would never ever judge me." Her green eyes finally looked into his blue orbs, all of her feelings hanging out. "When I first met you, I never thought, in a million years, that I would be able to tolerate you for this long. But I've learned a few things from you that I take to heart."

Kate let her hand slip into his larger one, intertwining their fingers as she continued on. "I learned that there is more than one kind of family. I had Lanie and Esposito, Ryan and Montgomery, but they weren't the kind of family I was looking for. We looked out for each other, and I trusted them with my life, but I never thought I would be able to let them in far enough for them to see me how they do today." Looking out at the ocean, she took a breath in of the salty air. "You came along, and you started to show my true colors. You showed me that I didn't have to be related by blood to be able to trust them with more than just my life.

"Then you started the Nikki Heat series. I mean, I was absolutely furious when I found out, but at the same time, I was so incredibly flattered. I had always dreamed of meeting you, especially after my mother died. I had always wanted to meet the man who, without knowing so, pulled me through her murder. So when I saw that first crime scene, I knew it was meant to be this way." Her eye slowly moved back to Rick's. Seeing the look in his eyes caused her to look down.

She didn't want to see the love or the tenderness that they held. She didn't want to see the confusion they wore while she spoke of their relationship and what it had grown to become. She knew that once she did see all of that, and she let her body take it in, she wouldn't be able to resist him any longer. She hadn't told anyonenthat the wedding was off.

Maybe now it was time to break the news.

"Kate, what are you trying to tell me?" His other hand pulled hers into the warmth of his fingers, causing her eyes to look at him.

"You're a writer. You know what I'm trying to say." A hint of a smile was on both of their lips before she continued.

"Rick, I love you. There is no doubt about it. But, our time came, and it passed. When you left two years ago with Gina to go to the Hamptons, I knew it was for more than just business. I broke up with Demming to be with you, and you waltzed off with her." Heartbreak was apparent in her voice as she kept her gaze on him.

"Kate, our time is still here. I'm here, right now. It's not gone, not yet. Please, let me show you that." His eyes were full of hurt as she shook her head, the tear that glistened down her cheek catching his eye as his thumb stopped it from traveling any further than it needed too.

"Castle, go back to your room. We can't do this." Kate tried to get her hands out of his grip, but he refused to let her go.

"No, Kate. You aren't running away this time."

The words took her by surprise, and when she looked up, their proximity was closer than it had been since they started talking that night.

In that apartment she hadn't let him kiss her, she didn't betray her fiancé, but after seeing him with that trauma doctor, after the two slipped into his room when they thought everyone wasn't paying attention had hurt her. She had his word that he wasn't sleeping with another woman when she had her suspicions but he had lied. She had ignored all the signs that he was cheating on her and just looked for the love she was longing to feel for so long. She had tried to keep the relationship between them alive, but it just didn't work out. They weren't meant to be.

The wedge between the doctor and the detective had began to form long before they planned the wedding, but it was her feelings for Castle and how she was finally started to let them show, that was what made her really think about how things would really turn out for the two. The feelings, they had always been there, but now it was time to act upon them.

So, instead of pulling away from Rick, she met him halfway, her lips touching his in a soft and gentle kiss. The kiss matched the breeze, calming and full of feelings, but not overbearing.

It didn't stay like that for long.

When the passion started to seep in, and it most definitely did, Rick's body was holding Kate between the wall of her room and his body, his hands tangled in her hair. Her tongue gently grazed the bottom of his lip, begging for access. When the access was granted, their tongues battled for dominance, exploring every aspect of each other's mouths.

Her hands wound around his neck, pulling him closer to her as his right hand moved to her waist, his left staying knotted with her brown locks. The heat and the passion lasted for moments that seemed like centuries before Kate pulled a way, her eyes still closed as her chest heaved up and down slightly. Her cheeks were tinted a soft pink, and when she opened her eyes, she saw the love and lust and desire in his.

"I love you, too." His words were soft, and soon after met with another kiss, a short one, but expressing more feelings then she ever thought possible.

He loved her too.

Cruel place to end the story? I think not. Thank you all for reading this story with me, I hope you all enjoyed reading it as much as I enjoyed writing it. Have wonderful Castle Mondays and then the rest of the week that isn't as awesome due to a new Castle not being on, and I hope to see you all in the near future.

~Kate