A/N: Hola! I hope you guys had a great weekend.
So, this story would have fitted better on Valentine's Day, but my muse is very whimsical and she hits me with stuff when I least expect it.
This is for Hope (Tshlw) on her birthday. May you have a wonderful day and may I see you turn at least another 60 years more. I love you to pieces, my friend. Thank you for having crossed my path.
DISCLAIMER: Do I seriously need to do this?
Best. Gift. Ever.
"I am not going, Kate." He blurts tiredly, the cup of coffee in his hand tilting to the side. "I already told Paula. It is not happening."
Kate sighs loudly and straightens his mug with her finger. "Can you be reasonable just for a second? This is a movie we're talking about, Castle. It's a great opportunity."
"That I don't want to take. Look what happened with Heat Wave."
He gets up from the breakfast bar and puts his mug on the sink, turns around and crosses his arms. His face is somber, but his eyes still radiate some hope.
"It won't happen again." She reassures him. "You've been there before. You know how it works. This time you have the experience and the authority to say what you want to do with it." She gets up too and walks closer to him. "The Storm graphic novels are a huge hit. Think about how happy your fans will be."
The corner of his mouth twitches at that and Kate takes it as an encouragement. "Come on! You know you wanna do it."
"No. Stop it. Not happening."
Kate growls and rolls her eyes at him, turning to rinse her mug and put it on the dishwasher along with his. "I don't get you."
Castle smiles and picks up his blazer from the counter, putting it on and fixing his cuffs. "There is nothing to get. I just don't want to do it."
"Oh, really?" The detective asks smugly. "You've spent years bragging about one of your books being turned into a movie, and now that you have the chance to do it again you're going to pass?" She pulls on his shirt collar, putting it straight and in line with his jacket and then smoothes the fabric down his chest. "You can't fool me, Richard Castle. There is something you're not telling me."
"Damn." He curses, chuckling under his breath. "Sometimes I forget how good a detective you are."
Kate arches an eyebrow and crosses her arms. "Spill, babe."
He lets out another long sigh and licks his lips. "Okay… I don't want to go because…" He stalls, his nose cringing at the thought of his real reason.
"Come on, Castle."
"Because I'd be there for out first Valentine's Day as a married couple." He stammers way too quickly. "I don't want to miss it."
Kate's insides turn into mush at his confession, and if it weren't because she has to be at work in about forty minutes, she'd be jumping him right here and now.
She reaches for his jaw and cradles his face in her hand, stroking the soft patch of skin under his eye. "Aw, Rick! That is very sweet, Hun, but I don't want you to miss such a great opportunity because of it." She says softly, leaning closer and smacking a quick peck on his lips. "February 14th is just a date. We can celebrate any other day."
Castle sighs and takes her hand off his face, squeezing lightly. "But I want it to be special, Kate. It's Valentine's Day!"
He starts walking towards the front door and turns waiting for her. His face is troubled and she knows that he wants to stay with her with all his heart, but the chance of a new movie based on his graphic novels is just too enticing. She can't let him miss it.
She grabs her bag, keys and badge and trots her way to his side. "Castle, you and I being together, any day of the year, is special enough. I don't care if we celebrate Valentine's Day or not, I just want you to be happy."
"You make me happy."
Kate smiles, her eyes shining with love. "Yeah, and since I'm not going anywhere, you have to go to LA and sign that contract. I promise I will let you pamper me all you want when you come back."
10 days later…
Kate puts the phone between her shoulder and her ear, while she pays the cabby and takes care of her suitcase. The little device slides against the fabric of her coat and she has to bend her neck farther, trying to stop it from falling. Multitasking can be a dangerous thing, she thinks as she grabs her iphone again and closes the door of the cab.
"So, if Castle calls there for any reason, you know what to do, right?" She asks.
Espo stifles a laugh. "Yes, Beckett. We know what to do." He replies on a mocking tone. "We will tell him that you're with Gates or in the box running an interrogation. You don't have to worry, chica. We've got you covered."
She smirks as she checks the monitors for her counter. "I know you do. Thank you, guys. Have a great weekend."
She hangs up and puts the phone on her purse. Her counter is number 164 and there is a never-ending line.
"I'm thinking coffee is in order…"
Castle hangs up his phone and chews on his lip. It's the third time he's called Kate in the last 40 minutes and her phone keeps sending him straight to voicemail. That is not normal.
His writer's mind is starting to come up with crazy scenarios, but he reminds himself that everything is ok. Probably she's just busy and her phone died on her – again - and she didn't even noticed. He can't remember the amount of times he's had to remind her to charge the damn thing. You would think she'd be more careful about that being a cop and getting called at all times.
He sighs and takes a look at his watch. The one-hour break they took for lunch is almost over and he has to go back to his meeting with the producers, which is not exactly what he had in mind when he started planning Valentine's Day.
Taking his seat at the table, he leans his head on his left hand and starts daydreaming about champagne glasses, and roses, and slow dancing with his lovely wife.
Kate smiles as Maurice rolls her trolley into the room and gives her an update on her plan.
"Everything is ready Mrs. Castle." Maurice gabs animatedly. "I gave the order downstairs to inform him as soon as he arrives, that his room has been closed due to a leak from the upstairs guest's bathroom and that he's been moved into this one."
"Perfect." She mumbles, her eyes scanning the very same room they shared almost 3 years ago. The room where she realized her feelings for her partner were too big and intense to be ignored for much longer.
"Did you bring the champagne?"
"It's on the mini bar. I put it there myself. The best we have."
She nods and takes out a $20 bill from her wallet. "Thank you, Maurice. You've been great."
The man gives her a bright smile, takes the money and walks backwards towards the door. "Always a pleasure, Mrs. Castle. Always a pleasure."
Kate checks her watch for the thousandth time during the last hour. She has everything ready. The champagne is chilling; the food will arrive as soon as they call for it, and her gift… Well, that is in her pocket, waiting for the right moment to be taken out and change their lives forever.
She can't wait to see his face.
Castle huffs as he walks out of the elevator. This day can't get any better. The meeting was boring as hell, they didn't reach an agreement on anything, and now, when he finally has the chance to rest, they tell him his room had a leak and they had to move him into another one; and not just a regular room. Their room.
"Are you sure you don't have another room available, Maurice?"
The man smirks and shakes his head while he opens the door to his room. "I am sorry, Mr. Castle, but we're full and this was the only we had left."
Maurice walks inside and waits for him to enter, his eyebrow raised in question as for why he's standing at the entrance. "I am sure you will find this room…" The man stops and opens the door as far as it goes. "… More than perfect."
And that's when he sees her. His amazing wife, standing in the middle of the room, wearing the most beautiful and sexy dress he's ever seen, and giving him the biggest of smiles.
His heart stammers in his chest as he walks towards her. She's gorgeous. Beautiful. Perfect. And, the best part? She's all his.
"Hey, babe." She whispers as soon as he practically crashes into her. He's missed her so much.
"Tell me you're not going to vanish when I open my eyes."
Kate laughs softly and strokes his jaw. "I am not. I am very real, Castle."
He sinks his nose in the crook of her neck and smiles. She smells like home and it's so easy getting lost in her that he almost forgets about anything else.
He sighs and takes a step back to look at her. "You look amazing, Kate." He blurts, his mouth open in awe. "What are you doing here?"
Kate frowns and steps closer to him, pocking him hard in the chest. "That's it? "You look amazing, Kate", "What are you doing here?"" She mocks, mimicking his voice. "I fly all the way here from New York City to surprise you on Valentine's Day, and I don't even get a kiss?"
That's all she has to say before he's all over her. His mouth connects with hers, their teeth clashing through their too wide smiles.
It's not long before just the touch of their lips is not enough, and Kate's dress becomes a deep blue puddle on the floor.
"So, what happened to February 14th is just a date, huh?" He asks, nuzzling her earlobe. "I go away for 3 days and suddenly you changed your mind?"
She pinches his nipple and moves to be on top of him, her thighs straddling his hips. "Shut up, Castle. I just wanted to surprise you."
"Oh, that you did, honey. Mission accomplished." He jokes. "You made my day. No, my week. No, my… Ugh, forget it. You're just the best thing that's ever happened to me." He whispers, his eyes bored into hers. "Along with Alexis, of course."
She smiles. He's the best thing that's ever happened to her too. "Aw, Castle."
She kisses him deeply, their chests touching, reviving the embers of their previous encounter.
"I had planned a great evening, you know. I had champagne in the mini bar, a great dinner that's probably spoiled by now... Oh, and a gift." She mumbles against his neck. "I had a gift too. But since you were so eager to skip to the last part of my plan, I am assuming you are not interested in all that?"
He squeals and turns her around, crushing her against the mattress. "WHAT? You have a gift for me and you didn't say anything? Ka-ate!"
"Oh, so you want it now?"
"Do you know me at all, woman?"
She laughs loudly and pats his head jokingly. "Oh, I do… Let me get up, I'll go get it."
She strides her way into the living room area of their suite with her heart on her throat, and grabs the white envelope she left on the coffee table right before Castle arrived. She's so nervous. This is something big, and she just hopes he likes the surprise as much as she did.
Pressing the little packet against her heart she makes her way back, feeling her pulse becoming fast and her hands sweaty. This is it.
She hands him the envelope and waits while he inspects the item from the distance. "Are you going to take it?"
"Did they run out of wrapping paper?" He jokes.
She rolls her eyes and sighs. "Just open it, Castle."
"Ok, ok."
He grabs the little thing and shakes it, trying to guess what in the world could be inside of a small white envelope that can be considered a Valentine's Day gift.
"Is it a pen?" He asks. "It feels like a pen."
"Open it."
So, he does. He tears the flap away and takes out a little plastic stick, one he can identify easily. His heart starts thundering in his chest, the sound of it's beating deafening in his ears as he turns it around to see the positive sign drawn in the reactive strip.
"Oh, my God!" He practically screams.
He gets up from the bed and starts pacing frantically in front of Kate, who is submitting her lower lip to a massive assault.
"So you're… Oh, my god." He blurts. "This is… Wow, Kate!"
She scrunches her nose and looks at him from under her long eyelashes. "Is it okay with you? I mean, I know I said I wanted to wait a bit, but it seems you have SWAT units instead of sperm. I was still on the pill when I found out."
Castle snorts. "SWAT units?" He asks amused. "It totally suits me."
She smirks and nods, her eyes still avoiding his. "So, you're ok with this?"
"Am I ok with this? Kate, we're having a baby! Our own beautiful, precious baby." He states, holding her hands and bringing her closer to him. "I am not ok, honey. I am ecstatic."
She hugs him hard. That's exactly what she needed to hear. She was sure that he would be ok with it, but that was not enough. Bringing a new life into their lives is a huge step for them and it involves a lot of changes that they need to come up to terms with.
"Good. That's good, babe, 'cause I am too."
Castle holds her close while he examines the pregnancy test one more time. The pink positive sign makes him smile every time he looks at it.
"Thank you, Kate. Best. Gift. Ever." He whispers. "I love you."
"I love you too, Castle. Happy Valentine's Day."
THE END
You deserve so much more, Hop Hop. I hope you liked it and that it made you smile. I LOVE YOU!
Thanks so much for reading, guys. Feel free to comment and wish Hope a happy birthday :)