Hello readers! See? I didn't go and die on you. But my vacation was fun and relaxing and all kinds of hectic so I didn't get nearly as much writing done as I would have liked. Alaska and the Seattle area however are gorgeous and I advise if you get the chance to visit, run don't walk! Apologies for making you wait so long. Also, any funky breaks or weird looking quote marks, etc, blame my Xoom and Documents-to-go. I think I got them all. Turns out writing on a tablet isn't the best of ways to do it. Even with a Bluetooth keyboard.

Chapter 13

She looked so small amongst the hospital bed. Curled up into a ball and hidden under stark white sheets. Just the top of her head, a flash of auburn brown with whispers of honey gold peeking above the covers. Rick felt a surge of warmth and protectiveness fill his body at the sight of her. Daring not to wake her during a time she so desperately needed her rest, he shooed his mother and daughter out of the room and quietly took up residence alongside her bed. Her heartbeat was strong and steady, he noted. Oxygenation at an almost constant ninety-eight percent. A marked improvement from just a day earlier when it was not uncommon for bells and buzzers to routinely break the monotony of the steady beeping, warning of a skipped beat or low saturation levels. He smiled over at her and gently placed a kiss on her forehead. He didn't realize how much he had missed just her presence in the room. Some of the fondest memories he had were of them sharing warm, comfortable silences. And so he propped his feet up on the bed, took out his laptop to begin writing and simply breathed in the essence of her.

She smelled him first. The familiar scent of subtle yet spicy aftershave and fresh brewed coffee was etched into her psyche. How does he always manage to find such delectable coffee, she wondered. No matter the hour, nor the location he could always be counted upon for a cup of New York's finest Joe. She had been awake for what she assumed was the better part of an hour. She had woken with a gasp and he had and brushed her hair off her face, soothed her with whispers of love and butterfly kisses to her forehead. Not quite ready for confronting the task at hand, Kate had played possum. Content to breathe in his scent and listen to the tap, tap, tap of the keyboard. She had let the rhythmic tapping lull her into a hypnotic daze. She wondered what he was writing. Was it Nikki or some new character? He would often bounce new ideas off her. Some were good, some awful. She'd always give him an honest opinion, even if some of his latest creations had left her seething with jealousy. Buxom blonds with an affinity for strong, intellectual heroes were his most recent dalliances. She had guessed that a lot of his latest additions were intended entirely for that reaction from her. And so she'd made sure to not let on. She had acted appropriately appalled and he had acted appropriately smug. Sometimes he'd just type random words that popped into his head. A hodgepodge of random gibberish that took his fancy. He claimed as long as something was on the page it wasn't really writer's block. She found it an insightful peek into his mind and cherished the scraps of paper she'd sometimes find tossed aside on her desk.

Suddenly, the typing came to a halt. She could feel his gaze on her. A small smile twitched at the corner of her lips.

"I know you're awake." he murmured. "It's Nikki."

"I wasn't asking." she replied coyly.

"You weren't asking very loudly. I'm not getting very far with her though. She keeps sidetracking me with life-threatening injuries and unspoken vows of undying love. There's only so much tragedy one heroine can take before my readers are going to be out looking for my blood." he replied with a smile. "How are you feeling?

"For someone with a GSW to the abdomen, surprisingly good." Kate sighed softly, "Maybe she just doesn't know where to begin?" Kate questioned with a meek smile.

"Oh?" he queried. "You think you could help me out here? Break the block, so to speak?"

"I think Nikkiknows exactly what she feels and for that matter, what she wants. Maybe she's just been hiding for so long she doesn't know how to begin...Maybe she's afraid of rocking the boat. Messing up the very good thing she already has with Rook."

"Maybe Nikki doesn't know what she's letting pass her by..."

"Possibly." she smirked.

At that moment a wave of activity entered the room. A young cop in a crisp, navy blue uniform was barking orders at a small woman with bright red hair and a dark gray power suit, who seemed to be paying him no heed. "You can't just go in there. There's protocol to be followed, are you even on the list?" he ordered. "This is much too much, it hasn't been authorized." he growled.

"I assure you, it's the bare minimum." the woman retorted haughtily. "Would you hold this?" She chuffed, shoving a laptop and what looked like a day-planner into the dumbfounded looking officer's hands.

"Rick! Darling!" she beamed at the novelist. "Tell this buffoon that I am here at your begging. I almost had the bribe the nurses station to get up here. Luckily my description of a ruggedly handsome, yet boyishly charming novelist got me this far. You didn't tell me there would be a small army of New York City policemen guarding the floor. I get the feeling when you said that this lady had been injured, it was the understatement of the year. Leave a little something out did we? Any-who, you know that thing we discussed over the phone? Well, I've got two interns with rather heavy loads out in the lobby waiting to ease their burden. You think you could do something about Cujo over here?" She nodded in the direction of the surly cop and then focused her gaze on the stunned looking woman in bed. "Ah, and you must be Kate." she said, eying Kate appreciatively. "Pleasure to meet you." she intoned with a knowing smile.

Kate stared confused at the fiery red-head and raised an eyebrow towards Rick. "Oh, Margie! I'd almost forgotten. Nick," he said, turning towards the cop, "she's good. I promise. Please let her assistants in. I personally vouch for them."

The young policeman gave a wary nod of his head and waved the others in. Quickly, the room was filled with blooms of all varieties. The scent of roses and gardenias filled the air and the rustle of cellophane and ribbon assaulted the ears. Blooms adorned the window ledge and every free, flat surface of the room. The once bland and rather drab hospital room was transformed into a lush tropical paradise. Kate stared blankly between Rick and the newcomer. "I took the liberty of bringing these too." Margie motioned towards a large platter of delectable looking, fresh fruit and chocolates. "I didn't know if the lady would be allowed but if nothing else, her guests will be well fed. And now..." She pulled out a large gift box with a flourish. "A little something for Kate that I personally added. Open it, please." she intoned, handing the brightly wrapped gift to Kate. Inside was a silk robe and pajama set, adorned with a delicate, hand-painted design of bamboo and blossoms. To Kate, it looked like heaven. The hospital issued gown had done nothing but scratch and irritate her since she had been alert enough to notice.

"I don't know what to say. This is gorgeous but really, you shouldn't have. We don't even know each other and while I'm sure Rick was behind this and he will most definitely hear about this later, it's just too much."

"Nonsense! I have known this boy for nearly a decade and anyone who can turn him into the puddle of mush that I heard over the phone earlier is a friend of mine. You will wear this robe and you will love it. Consider it the gift of a long and lasting friendship. If Rick here has anything to do with it, I have a feeling this won't be the last we will be seeing of each other." The feisty redhead winked over at Rick and nodded towards Kate. "But enough, chit-chat from me. You look like you need your rest and Rick here is starting to look like a cornered beast. I'll take that as my cue to leave. Get well soon, hon." She waved and breezed out of the room, leaving Kate with her jaw drooping lazily open and Rick blushing all number of shades red.

"Kate, Margaret, Margaret, Kate." Rick smiled over at Kate. "She's an old friend, my personal florist and as you can tell...quite the handful."

"Castle...Rick. Really, this..." she waved her hands about the room, "was not necessary. I'm a cop, getting shot is kind of a part of the job description. I'm not the kind of girl who needs to be showered with gifts and lavished with attention to be happy. It's already too much just that you have been here so much these past few days. You have a family to think about."

"Kate, you are my family. The sooner you realize this and let me be your family, the happier the entire family will be. They love you... I love you. Let us in. Please."

"Rick I..."

"No, please, don't say anything right now. Just let it settle in, marinate for a while..I'm..we're not going anywhere."

"Rick..."

"And besides, I promised Alexis I wouldn't stop telling you until you said it back, so you may as well settle in for the long haul..and really..."

"Oh, for Christ's sake." She gingerly reached behind her head, grabbed a pillow and threw it squarely at his head. "Will you shut up already?"

"I'm sorry, I didn't mean to..."

She rolled her eyes and tried again. "If you would let me get a sentence in edgewise, you'd know that I have been trying to tell you that I love you too."

"You..what?" He stared disbelievingly at her. "No way. That was entirely too easy. Who are you and what have you done with my detective?"

"Ha ha, very funny. Really though, Rick..I love you too. More so than you can possibly know. The other night at my place, I keep wondering how things might have been different if I'd just had the courage to tell you then. I've known for a long time and we've wasted so much time already. So many opportunities. So much has been lost..." A harsh sob escaped her lips and she was once again thrown into the awful memories of the preceding week. Her aching torso was racked with a fresh wave of pain. She wasn't sure how much was physical, how much was emotional.

"Kate.." he whispered and with that he leaned over her bed, cupped her face in his hands and gently tried to soothe away the hurt and pain with his lips. It wasn't a rushed or panicked kiss, not like in the alley. There were no fireworks or jolts of electricity to his groin. This kiss was slow and chaste, sweet and delicious. Filled with three years of unspoken love, promises of always. Kate kissed him back, genuinely and soundly. When they slowly broke apart and looked each other in the eye, this time there was no embarrassment, no guilt. Just two matching grins and the ever present, if slightly more insistent beep of the heart monitor. He brushed a stray hair from her face and tucked it behind her ear. "That was..."

"Amazing." she finished for him. "Yeah."

Kate closed her eyes and let the butterflies flapping wildly in her belly sooth her into a quiet sleep.

Rick just sat. And stared, smiled a goofy grin. And thanked the universe for once again being on his side.

The End? I think so. For now at least.

I'm going to mark this as a big break. I'm not entirely sure where I want this to go. It wasn't even close to where I envisioned declarations of love happening and not at all in the way I had planned either. I apologize again for making you guys wait so long.

Turns out writing fic on paper isn't nearly as easy as it is in my noggin. :D Still, for my first go around the block it wasn't so painful that I won't be inspired to try again. If you all will have me.

To those of you who hung around to this point, no words can express my thanks. For all the reviews and favorites and marks, they made my day. Thank you!