We're getting down to the last chapter on this story (just the epilogue left after this). I'll be shifting gears to my next story soon, which will be entitled "A Drop in the Ocean," a sequel to "Changes." Lucy has been demanding my attention again :)
Disclaimer: I don't own them.
When laying with you, I could stay there close my eyes
feel you here forever.
You and me together, nothing is better.
-Adele, Set fire to the rain
He awoke with smile on his face, feeling completely relaxed and at peace with his surroundings. Looking out his bedroom window, he noticed that a steady rain poured. It created a delightfully calming and rhythmic drumming on the roof of his loft. Letting out a sigh, Castle looked down to the woman who was sprawled out in his bed. She was currently sleeping on his chest, the sheet coming to just above her backside while her hair sprawled out around her.
"All this time, and you've been right here waiting for me." He whispered, stroking his fingers gently up and down her spine. She stirred slightly, but settled back against him and remained asleep.
Castle reflected on all of the dreams and flashes he'd been having over the past weeks. He still had a difficult time believing that they were memories, as opposed to fantasies concocted by a man desperately and hopelessly in love. It occurred to him that despite his own insecurities, his denial that they might really have been a them, she was the first thing he remembered. He lovingly whispered to her sleeping form.
"Even in the darkest moments of confusion, Kate, I remembered you. I remembered your skin and your lips. I remembered your smell and the feel of your skin against mine. I'm sorry it took me so long to trust in it."
"Better late than never," came her unexpected reply. Her voice was heavy with sleep, but loving, nevertheless. "Is there anything else you remember?"
She didn't hear, but felt his answer at first, shuttering as his warm tongue made contact with the sweet spot behind her ear. "I remember that I can unhinge you by doing this," he spoke, sliding one of his hands into her hair as his other snaked below the blanket and grasped her bare bottom.
She sighed heavily as she rotated her hips slowly, bringing herself into delicious contact with him and causing them both to groan. "You'd better be up for this," she warned him as she slipped her hand down between them and grasped his member, "because you're starting something here that I fully expect you to see through, Mr. Castle."
He chuckled softly, "Well, I'm nothing if not determined, Kate. I finish everything I start." She sought out his lips with her own, smiling against their kiss as she lightly bit his bottom lip. "the question is, can you see that I finish?" She challenged him flirtatiously.
With no warning, he flipped them and pressed her body into the mattress, "Amnesia or no, I can take you wherever you want to go." He slid his fingers down her abdomen and sought out her center. Finding her ready for him, he used his knee to separate her legs and sank deeply into her.
No other words were spoken, as they simply enjoyed their long-neglected practice of morning-lovemaking. The intensity he found in the act caught him off guard, as he'd forgotten just how strong their connection was in the light of day; both of them free to lock gazes and communicate volumes without uttering a sound.
When they finally collapsed in one another's arms, they simply lay contentedly and savored the connection they shared. Kate waited for her breathing to normalize, holding Castle against her body with both arms wrapped firmly around his back. She planted kisses along his collarbone, not wanting to lose contact with him quite yet.
"I'm not going anywhere Kate." He whispered, sensing her trepidation.
"I know, I'm just needing a few more minutes to be sure that this isn't a dream." She spoke, her voice somewhat broken.
Castle pushed himself up onto his elbows, granting him a better view of her face so that he could meet her gaze. He said nothing for a moment, taking in her expression as he contemplated her. When he finally lowered himself back down he brought his lips to her ear and placed gentle kisses there before whispering.
"Marry me." It was more of a statement than a question, a request that was filled with more heart than she'd ever heard.
She simply brought her arms back around him and held him against her again, refusing to break their contact as tears slipped down her face. She smiled softly as she felt him move to place kisses along her cheek, kissing away the trails of moisture. He spoke again.
"Marry me Kate."
She laughed then, not out of spite or humor, but out of pure joy. He was finally back, she was in her bed and he was inside of her, proposing. Looking into his eyes, she cupped his face and brought their lips together. "Thank you, for coming back to me."
They kissed tenderly, Kate replying to his proposal between kisses, "yes. Yes. Yes." Soon they gained intensity again, and as she felt him stir and harden within her, she held him more tightly to her body. They moved together once again, Kate lacing her fingers tightly through his hair as he brought her closer and closer to the edge of her own ecstasy.
They didn't make it out of bed until well after lunch that day.
As the weeks passed Castle remembered more and more from the months he'd lost. It was as if finally coming back together with Kate gave him some sort of permission to completely trust himself; to trust that his flashes were actual memories. It was easier said than done, as some of the memories, especially ones with zombies and of Kate quitting her job, seemed completely outlandish.
Still, when he presented his loved ones with scenarios that he believed to be true, they always seemed to confirm. Kate hadn't been fired because of the Slaughter case, instead she walked away from her badge and into his arms. It made him feel relieved to know she wasn't out chasing criminals anymore, and even more lucky that he was going to call her his wife one day soon.
He'd also never forget the morning Alexis came to visit and he nonchalantly dropped parts of her graduation speech into their conversation. When he'd finally asked her where they put the tassel she'd given him, the one that he had placed on the lamp shade, she embraced him happily.
Although they kept their engagement to themselves for the time being, it became apparent early on that Castle and Beckett were together again. The happiness that they shared couldn't be hidden, and it spread quickly to their friends and family. It was a relief to see the progress that Castle made, and to see Kate happy again to have him by her side.
The last major milestone for him came the day he began to remember what he'd written and where he'd left off on his latest Nikki Heat manuscript. That was the day life started to return to normal, because it was the day he began to write again.
