Disclaimer: I don't own Castle.
Richard watched her as she slept. Kate seemed so peaceful like that. It just seemed like it was the only time the burden of her job and mother's death weren't weighing down on her. That's what Richard liked about her. She was strong, smart, and beautiful. She would bend to her breaking point and never let it show. But he knew she would never let her guard down around him.
He stroked a strand of her dark hair away from her face, letting his fingers linger on her soft skin. She shifted slightly and turned her face into his stomach. He didn't blame her for being exhausted. After their latest case, he had invited her over for dinner and the result was this.
She was wonderful in his eyes. Any guy would be lucky to be with her, but all she saw in him was a partner at work. Was it so wrong to love her when he knew the chances of her returning his love? Was it so wrong to want to protect her though the everyday torture of knowing the truth stabbed him repeatedly in the heart?
That's why he couldn't come to regret his decision to take a break from solving crimes. He couldn't stand it anymore; every time he saw her, he just wanted to blurt out his feelings, take her in his arms, and simply make her happy. That's all he wanted was her happiness. But the pain was getting to be too much. After a period of extreme depression, his mother had rightly advised her consider just a break.
Richard blinked out of his thoughts when Kate murmured something in her sleep: a name, his name. He tucked her hair behind her ear and listened in silence, barely daring to breathe as he hoped she would say it again for the sake of his sanity that he wasn't hallucinating.
"Castle," Kate breathed, turning her head slightly so that her face was tilted up.
"I'm here," Richard whispered, expecting no reply.
"Castle…" Her voice was urgent this time.
He touched her cheek lightly and bent his head to kiss her temple.
"Why?" she asked, her eyes still closed.
He watched in astonishment as a tear ran down her cheek. He quietly wiped it away with his thumb. "It's ok," he whispered in her ear before brushing his lips over hers. He felt the woman's body go rigid and he moved to pull back. However, Kate fisted her hand in his shirt and pulled him back down to kiss him fully and deeply.
"I love you," Richard whispered and kissed her jaw.
She looked up at him and smiled softly. "I'll deny this at the office, but I love you too."
Richard chuckled and cupped her cheek in one hand as he kissed her again. Oh how he prayed morning would never come.