Apologies for the gap, enjoy!
"Finishing... finishing... finishing... finished!"
Richard Castle sat under the dimming daylight in a little nook he'd dug for himself on the beach. His laptop lay balancing on his thighs, the screen still brightly showing the open word document that was the official first draft of the latest installment to the Nikki Heat novels. He'd made sure to set himself up close enough to to the house that he still had his Wi-Fi coverage and decided it would be best to send the file to Gina as soon as possible - seeing as his deadline was two weeks prior and he wanted to at least have a partly peaceful summer. He waited for the email to send before shutting down and closing the laptop. He hoped Gina didn't want to change too many things; he didn't want to have to think about Nikki Heat or Detective Katherine Beckett any more than he had to. Castle checked his watch and noticed that he'd been on the beach writing for almost two hours and wondered if Gina was still busy in her conference call. Just as he was thinking whether or not he should start dinner or not, the heavens open and he was hit in the face with a downpour of rain. Scrambling to his feet, he grabbed his laptop and wrapped it in the blanket he'd been sitting on, saving it from the pounding rain.
Barely a minute later he reached the house; his clothes were almost completely soaked through but luckily he'd been planning to change anyway. He jogged upstairs to his office and was only very slightly surprised when he could hear Gina's voice from behind the closed door - she always did work long hours. He pushed the door open slowly and creeped inside so he didn't disturb her, placed his laptop on his desk and waited patiently for her to have a spare minute. He didn't have to wait long before she looked up at him.
"Everything alright, Rick?"
"Of course. You'll be happy to know that I've finished - and emailed - the first draft to you."
Her eye lit up and she gave him a bright but tired smile. "That's brilliant, Rick. I'll have a look at it tomorrow."
"Are you nearly finished? Only I was thinking of making a start on dinner. It'll take about an hour or so."
She glanced at the time and sighed. "We were supposed to be finished a couple of hours ago but Bradley's being difficult; demanding five books not three and flexible deadlines but that's just not how we run things at Black Pawn. I'm signing off in half an hour regardless, and if negotiations are still not finished, the other publishers will have to sort it out." she rubbed her eyes gently before giving Rick a questioning look. "Why the hell are you soaking wet?"
He looked down at his body; his shirt was sticking to his arms and torso while his pants were hanging slightly from the weight of the water. A small puddle had also started to form at his feet from the excess. He laughed quietly to himself before responding. "I was on the beach when it started raining, I'd be surprised if we're not hit by a full on storm but I'm almost certain we won't be. I was on my way to change when I heard you still in here. How does lightly smoked chicken and bacon carbonara sound?"
"Delicious, I can't wait. I really should get back to it if I have any hope of finishing things up."
"Sure, come down soon, okay?"
She nodded and he gave her a quick peck on the cheek before leaving the room and heading to the master bedroom. He took a quick, five minute shower before changing into jeans and another thin, cotton shirt. He stayed bare foot and padded through the house, back down to the kitchen. He hadn't been to the house in months, preferring to stay in the city to be at Becketts every beck and call. Before he started shadowing Beckett at the Twelfth precinct, he had found the need to escape to the house and force himself to find inspiration to write once a month or so. Over the last two years, however, he hadn't felt the need. Working with Kate had been enough. Hell, just being near Kate had been enough. It saddened him to think that their partnership could really be over but it would do good to dwell on it now. He had to keep his mind focused and forget he ever loved Katherine Beckett.
Twenty-five minutes after Rick left his office, Gina was finally able to finish her call. "So we're all in agreement? Four books and a weeks leeway on all deadline? Good. I want the contracts drawn up and brought over for me to sign tomorrow. You have the address. I wish you all a good night and I'll see you in a few weeks."
Gina ended her call and turned off her phone, not wanting to give anyone the opportunity to disturb her for the rest of the night. She wanted nothing more than to go downstairs and eat but she not only knew dinner was not yet ready (Rick would have called up) but she also was in desperate need of a refreshing shower. Rick had placed her luggage in the large, walk in closet and once she had retrieved her shower things, she strolled in to the en-suite bathroom. Half an hour later she was out, swaddled in a large, fluffy white towel with another wrapped tightly around her head, soaking up the excess water from her blonde hair.
She'd picked out a simple summer dress to wear, knowing that she would just be changing out of it again in a few hours. As she approached the closet again to retrieve her hairbrush, she heard and loud buzzing behind her and after investigating the source of the noise, she found herself frozen in place staring at Rick's phone on the bed. The device was flashing brightly as the incoming call continued but it was the image set as his display for the caller that caused her to freeze. The picture was a self taken one of Rick and Detective Beckett standing together, heads tilting towards each other, big grins on their faces and each holding a take-out coffee cup. Gina knew Rick. Photos like these were reserved for Alexis and Alexis alone. Every one else simply got a portrait picture set as their display. But not Beckett. The sight upset her, probably a lot more than it should have but she couldn't help it. Were the two involved? Was their partnership more than just work related? There had been rumors but Rick had always denied it, had he lied?
The buzzing stopped and the silence that followed snapped Gina back to present day. She stared at the phone, a feeling of hatred towards the woman who had just called. She wasn't even sure the feeling was justified but that didn't stop her from feeling it. The phone vibrated against the bedspread once more to signal that a voicemail had been sent. For a second she had considered taking the phone downstairs with her and letting Rick know his muse had called but she discarded that thought fairly quickly. Instead, she picked up the phone and sat on the bed, cautiously listening out for any approaching footsteps. the phone was locked but it wouldn't take a genius to work out the password - he always had it set to the year of Alexis' birth. She opened up the message and listened to the voice of, by the sounds of it, a slightly intoxicated Katherine Beckett.
"Hey, Castle, it's... it's Kate. I just wanted to let you know that... I don't blame you for inviting Gina to go with you, I took too long to decide and I get that you didn't want to wait anymore. I'm sorry for the way I reacted, it wasn't called for. I... I just want you to know that there'll still be a chair for you at the end of my desk if you... you know... still want it. After today, I understand if you don't. Take care... Rick."
Gina pulled the phone from her ear with a shaking hand. So he'd asked Beckett first? He'd been turned down by Beckett then asked Gina to go with him? She was devastated. She honestly thought that this could be a new start for them, that maybe Rick had come to care for her as more than just his publisher again. She had been wrong. So, so wrong and it hurt. She was just a rebound. She felt stupid for even thinking that Rick truly gave a damn about her. He had seemed to genuine and she'd once again fallen for his charm. She loved him though, never stopped loving him even after she agreed to sign the divorce papers. It took her two minutes to decide that she wasn't losing him again. Gina hadn't come all this way to leave the same night. Listening carefully again, he tapped away at the phone deleting all trace that Becket had called. She deleted her name from the call log, the message indicating the existence of the voicemail and the voicemail itself. Obviously he and the detective had had an argument of sorts and knowing Rick, the slightest hint that she would be willing to continue working with him and he'd go running back. Gina couldn't let him though, not now.
She changed quickly and towel dried her hair, letting her damp locks fall loosely to her shoulders. Rick had loved this look on her when they were married - the natural look. She would make him fall back in love with her. Gina left the phone on the bed and walked out the room, vowing to make Richard Castle regret even divorcing her in the process.
