Kate looked up from her paperwork, and stared at the clock. It was already past nine-thirty on a dismal cloudy Friday. God, I get to be stuck here while Castle's out with that little arm-candy of his. Damn. Life would've been so much easier if she had just- Suddenly, the elevator doors opened, and Kate saw Rick step out. He looked pissed off.

"So, where's your girlfriend, Castle?" Beckett said, trying to lighten the mood. Well, his mood anyways. The tiniest mention of Castle's new toy made Kate sick to her stomach with regret and anger.

"We broke up." Castle said, passing Kate's desk in a huff. Had her ears deceived her? Had Kate truly just heard what she thought she had? She wanted to ask Castle, just to be sure, but he had passed into the next room to grab his things. Beckett walked in behind him. Only now did she notice how truly angry Castle was. His face was three shades of red, and Kate could almost see the smoke-stacks in his ears.

"Castle, you okay?" At this point, Beckett was past her feelings of disdain for Castle, and was truly concerned for him.

"Dammit Beckett, why can't you just stay out of it, huh?" Beckett coiled back. Rick had rarely ever lashed out at her like this.

"Castle, I just want to know if you're okay!"

"Yeah? Well I'm not! So just back off! Why the Hell should you care anyways? Aren't you with Mr. Scotty hottie now?" Oof, that hurt. Castle stormed by Beckett. He was flying now, past the bullpen and straight into elevator. Beckett trotted after him, but the elevator closed on her, nearly catching her foot. Dammit Beckett! Why can't you just stay out of it, huh? These words played over and over in Beckett's head as she jumped in the elevator. She ran out the front door, trying to see what way Rick had gone. She saw him at the end of the sidewalk, and she laced between the crowds trying to catch him. Over her head, Beckett could hear the thunder rolling in. Thunder that matched the racing, angry beat of her own heart.

"Rick! Slow down!" wow, Castle had already blown half way down the street before Beckett caught up to him. She put a hand on his shoulder and spun him towards her. But that just made him angry.

"What the hell do you want?"

"I need to talk to you!"

"Why? So you can gloat about your perfect relationship with your new boyfriend? So you can say I told you so? What Beckett?"

Kate was growing furious. She tried to hold back a scream, but her anger burst forth. Along with her secret.

"I wanted to tell you I love you." Oh shit. Shit shit shit! Beckett held her hand to her mouth. The look on Rick's face softened, and his shoulders relaxed.

"Y-you, love me?" Dammit Kate! Why couldn't you just keep your mouth shut? But now that the secret was out, Kate forged on.

"Of course, Rick! I- I've always loved you." And the more Beckett said it out loud, the more true it became to her. She thought for sure that Castle would turn and laugh at her, or just leave her there and walk away. But instead, he did something that shocked her.

He kissed her.

He kissed her! His silky lips pressed against hers, Beckett could feel the magic between them. When he pulled away, he stared at her with those big blue puppy dog eyes of his. Eyes that were filled with love. He pulled her in to him, and they kissed again. The minute their lips collided, a song came to Kate's mind. What was the name of it? Falling for you, by Jem. The song was about finding love after so much heartbreak. Truly, this song had been made for this day. As Castle deepened the kiss, Beckett pulled apart.

"What's wrong?"

"Nothing, nothing at all."

"Then why'd you stop?"

"I think we should head to my place."

And so they did. It was at least ten by the time they had gotten there, and once the door was closed, they went at it. Hard. They tumbled over the couch, and they settled there for a while, just making out. Suddenly, Kate stood up and led Castle to her room.

That's where things started heating up.

The thunderstorm outside was brewing. Beckett turned on her iPod when she got to her room, and that same song she had in her head before came on. Said there'd be no goin' back, promised myself I wouldn't be that sad. Maybe that's why you've come along, to show me it's not always bad. Kate turned, only to run into Rick's strong body. He leaned down and kissed her lightly on the cheek. He then migrated down to her neck and hit her soft spot just right, making her moan.

Suddenly, Kate took control and pulled Castle to her bed. He began removing his jacket and shirt, and once he'd done that, he reached for the buttons on Kate's blouse. But she suddenly stopped him.

"What's wrong?" He asked breathlessly.

"I- my scar." Beckett replied sheepishly.

"Kate, I don't give a damn if you have one scar, or even a million scars. I only care that I love you, not for how you look, but for who you are." Wow! Kate had never imagined that Castle could be that sweet. So when he moved for her blouse again, she let him.

Kate woke up, looked at the clock, and saw that it was 2:30 in the morning. She had awoken with a gasp, for Kate had dreamt a horrible nightmare. She had been reliving the moments of her shooting, and had shot awake. Now, she sat at the edge of her bed and cried. The dream had been so vivid, so realistic, that Kate could actually feel the burning in her chest.

Suddenly, Castle stirred in bed beside her.

"Kate, what's wrong?" He said, his voice sounding groggy.

"I-it was j-just a nightmare." She said, trying not to worry him. But it was a little late for that. Rick sat up, and hugged Kate, rocking her a little in his big, strong arms. He gave her a peck on the cheek.

"It's okay, I'm here for you."

And Kate knew that he truly was.

"Do you need to talk about it?"

"No, I'm okay." And this time, Kate really meant it. She felt safe and happy with Rick there. She felt like having him there had lifted an immense weight off of her shoulders.

"Hey, Rick?"

"Yes?"

"Thanks."

"For what?"

"For everything."