Just a small filler chapter. As always, reviews are love and much appreciated...
Dinner that night was wonderful. Kate couldn't remember the last time she had laughed so much. Watching Castle interact with Alexis was wonderful. He was such a good father. Any child would be lucky to have him for a father. She must have looked sad, because Castle reached over and squeezed her hand softly. She shook her head softly and Castle knew that she wouldn't want to talk about it. At least not in front of Alexis. He made a silent promise to her that they would talk about it later. Kate nodded softly and smiled sadly at him.
They arrived home shortly after midnight. Alexis hugged her father and wished Kate goodnight. Kate and Castle sat together on the couch. He brought her a cup of coffee and she raised her eyebrows. Castle smiled and told her, "It's decaf..."
Kate winced when she drank it and said, "Thanks. I think."
Castle laughed and told her softly, "Want to talk about it?"
She should have known that he wouldn't leave it alone. So, she put down her cup and shook her head, "Not really, but I know you. You will just keep pushing and pushing."
Castle smiled at her, "You know I will get it out of you eventually. So you might as well go ahead and tell me."
"Okay. You have to promise not to make fun of me."
"Me? Make fun of you. Never." Kate shot him a 'you've got to be kidding me' look. Castle continued, "I promise."
Kate looked into his eyes and finally said, "Okay. I just keep thinking that my baby isn't going to have a father. And seeing you with Alexis. It reminds me how lucky she is to have a father like you. Any child would."
Castle looked at Kate and saw the tears in her eyes. Then he put his hand on her stomach and whispered, "I'll always be there for you. For both of you."
"It's not the same Castle. This baby isn't yours biologically and.."
"Biology doesn't mean anything. I love you and I love your baby. Because this baby is part of you. Whether or not he or she is mine doesn't really matter."
Kate let her hand rest on his cheek and her thumb rubbed his cheek. She finally whispered, "You are such a dear sweet man. I really don't deserve you Castle."
Castle shrugged, "You deserve so much more than me."
Kate laughed, "We are at an impasse then. We are going to go round and round here. Lets just agree to disagree then."
Castle laughed softly and told her, "Agreed. Look, I love you and I love this baby." When Kate started to protest, Castle held up his hand and silenced her. Then she smiled and let him continue, "I know that I don't share a single ounce of his or her DNA, but that doesn't matter to me. All I want is a chance to make a life with you. With both of you. That, would make me the happiest man in the world."
Kate looked deep into his eyes and realized that he was telling the truth. It didn't matter to him that the baby wasn't his. She could see the love he felt for her shining in his eyes. It was in that moment that she realized she wanted to share a life with him. Wanted her baby to know the love of this amazing man. She took his hand in hers and placed it on her stomach. The baby kicked softly and Castle and Kate smiled at each other. It was in that moment that Kate knew her decision had been made. She couldn't deny her baby the love of this amazing man. A man that would love her baby simply because he already love it's mother.
Kate leaned forward and kissed Castle softly. Kate pulled back and whispered, "You really do love me. Love us."
Castle smiled at her, "I think you're finally starting to understand."
"Shut up Castle and kiss me again..."
"Gladly."
After what seemed like an eternity, the pair separated and Castle whispered, "What does this mean for us Kate?"
"I love you Castle. I always have. I just tried to deny it. To push it away. Hell, I even got pregnant and tried to marry another man. A man that I thought I loved. And why? So I could deny how I felt about you. You've been my best friend for years Castle. I didn't want to lose that if a relationship with you went wrong. So..."
"So you decided to marry Demming..."
Kate nodded and Castle noticed the tears sliding down her cheeks. She couldn't take looking him in the eyes and whispered, "Look at me Kate."
Kate shook her head and whispered, "I can't Castle. It's too humiliating... To know that I nearly made the biggest mistake of my life simply because I was scared of losing you..."
"It doesn't matter Kate. What matters is what we are doing now. Talking about it. Finally talking about everything. About our feelings. I love you Kate. I want to spend the rest of our lives together. Me, you and any other children we have together."
Kate did a double take at that statement. Then she whispered, "You want more children? With me?"
Smiling, Castle nodded and she lunged forward and kissed him again. And just like that, two became three.
