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Rick was hurrying around the loft putting the finishing touches on the party. All of the food was set out. The decorations were hung and Beckett was upstairs helping Alexis get ready.. He had offered to help, but was stopped by the looks that both ladies gave him. He finally threw up his hands and said, "Okay. I get it. I know where I'm not needed."

Alexis gave him a kiss on his cheek and hurried upstairs with Beckett following close behind her. He wished that Meredith had been there, but she hadn't shown up yet. He honestly wondered if she would. He wouldn't be surprised if she didn't. Nothing surprised him where his ex-wife was concerned.

So, when the doorbell rang about twenty minutes before everyone was scheduled to arrive, he knew that it was her. He sighed and plastered on his best fake smile and opened the door to the loft. Meredith came strolling in like she owned the place. She tried to give him a kiss, but he moved away quickly. Walking back over into the kitchen. He watched as Meredith looked around and then he told her, "If you're looking for Alexis she's upstairs getting ready for the party."

"Thank you Richard. I'll go help her get ready and…"

"She has help."

Meredith laughed sarcastically and rolled her eyes, "I'm sure she would appreciate someone helping her that was actually born in this century. While your mother means well, she has no sense of fashion and…"

"I never said it was Mother that was helping her get ready Meredith. If you want to help me down here I can…"

He almost laughed at the look on her face. She was looking at him as if he had three heads. Then she asked, "You want me to help? In the kitchen? Surely you have servants for that kind of thing Richard. I mean honestly."

He found himself counting to ten in his head. He bit the inside of his lip and said, "I don't have servants. You know that Meredith. You can either help me here or you can have a seat on the couch. Today isn't about you. It's about Alexis."

Meredith huffed loudly and went to sit on the couch. There was no way she was setting foot inside his kitchen. That kind of thing was definitely beneath her.

Alexis and Kate came downstairs about ten minutes after Meredith arrived. Rick was the first one to see her and he smiled and told his daughter, "You look beautiful Pumpkin."

He smiled when he saw that Kate had also gotten herself ready for the party. He leaned forward and kissed her softly. Forgetting that his ex-wife was sitting just feet away. She put her arms around his neck as they kissed. They pulled apart and he whispered, "Wow. What was that for?"

"For being you. I love you."

"Feelings mutual."

Alexis spotted her mom sitting on the couch and ran over to her, "Mom! You're here!"

Meredith smiled, "Of course. I wouldn't miss this day for the…"

She stopped when she saw Rick and Kate standing in the kitchen kissing. To say that she was unprepared to see her ex-husband kissing another woman in the kitchen was an understatement. She asked Alexis, "Who is that woman your father is kissing?"

Alexis smiled, "That's Kate. She's his girlfriend. She's awesome."

"Really?"

"Yeah. She helped me pick out this dress and she helped me get ready."

"That's nice sweetie. Introduce me to her."

Nodding, Alexis took her mom's hand and led her over to the kitchen where her dad and Kate were finishing putting out the plates and napkins. She smiled and said, "Kate. I want you to meet my mom, Meredith. Mom, this is Kate. She's a police Detective."

Meredith barely managed to hide the look of surprise on her face. This woman was a police detective? Surely Richard could do better. After all, he was a bestselling author. He wondered if that's why this woman was with him. She had to be with him for his money. Well, she was going to put a stop to it and fast.

Clearing her throat, Meredith smiled and said, "Really? A police detective? Isn't that an incredibly dangerous job?"

Kate smiled, "It can be, but I have a great team."

"Really?"

Rick could sense his ex's tone of voice and he didn't like it one bit. He knew that she thought that anyone who wasn't connected to Hollywood was beneath him. He told her, "Meredith…."

"It's okay Richard. I'm just having a friendly chat with her."

He knew that her talks were usually anything but friendly. Especially when it came to him. He sighed and wondered what she was up to. Kate smiled at him and squeezed his hand. She was a big girl and she could sense what this other woman was trying to do. She wouldn't be scared off by someone like her. She knew that there was a reason why she was his ex-wife.

Kate smiled and picked up a platter and carried it to the table. Ignoring the dirty looks she was receiving from the other woman in the room. She turned and asked, "What?"

Meredith had followed her and whispered, "I know why you're with him."

Laughing Kate said, "Because I love him. I love them both."

Meredith shook her head, "You're just using him for his money. I know your type."

"Honestly? He's a professor at a small college. He doesn't have that much money and even if he did I'm not that type of woman. Honestly, I don't know where you get off accusing me of using him for anything."

"You don't know…" It was more a statement that a question. Something that Meredith found quite interesting. She watched at Kate turned and joined Rick in the kitchen. She went to stand with Alexis. She could use this to her advantage. She could get rid of this other woman and get her ex-husband and daughter back.

Before she could say anything however, she saw Kate walking into Richard's bedroom. He was following close behind her. She wondered what they were up to. However, she didn't have to wonder long, when she saw them coming out with balloons and presents. Shaking her head she realized she had once again been outdone. She had been planning on taking Alexis shopping the following day.

Alexis apparently sensed her mom's distress and said, "It's okay mom. You don't have to get me anything."

Shaking her head, "I'm taking you shopping tomorrow. We will go to every shop you want."

Alexis sighed to herself. Of course her mom would only focus on the material things. Honestly having her here with her right now was the best present she could have asked for. She shook her head, "I'm just glad that you're here mom."

"Of course you are."

Shaking her head, Alexis simply walked to sit by her mom. She forgot all about everything when her friends started arriving. About halfway into the party, she noticed that Kate was missing. She walked over to her dad and asked, "Where's Kate."

He whispered, "She's not feeling good Pumpkin. She went to lay down. I was just getting ready to check on her."

Alexis felt bad that she wasn't feeling good. So, she told her dad, "Go. Check on her dad."

Rick walked into his bedroom and was surprised when he didn't see her on the bed. After standing in the middle of the room, he heard sounds coming from the bathroom. He knocked softly before he walking inside. He saw surprised to see her sitting with her head propped up against the wall. He sat down beside her and asked, "You okay?"

The look she gave him could have killed a lesser man. He saw her shake her head, "I'm going to die."

He chuckled and said, "You aren't dying. You probably have a stomach bug. You will be better tomorrow."

He heard her whisper, "More like seven months."

He did a double take and asked, "What?"

She sighed sadly and told him, "I didn't want to do this today. I wanted to wait until later. This day is supposed to be about Alexis."

Watching him shake his head and seeing the look of confusion on his face, she almost laughed. However, she felt the nausea building and pushed herself up and threw up in the toilet again. Damn. It was getting worse. He was holding her hair back and whispering soothing words to her. When that bout of nausea was over, she sat down again and whispered, "I'm pregnant."

To say that he was shocked would have been an understatement. He simply stared at her and she wondered if he was upset at her. They had barely been dating for six months. She knew that they were committed to one another, but that was a far cry from wanting children. When she had found out, she had spent three hours crying in her apartment. She was so sure that he wouldn't want this. Hell, she wasn't even sure what to think of it herself. She finally whispered, "Say something."

His mouth opened and closed and then he got a huge smile on his face and asked, "Are you sure?"

Nodding she told him, "I found out the other day. I just wasn't sure how to tell you. I know that we've never talked about what our future holds and…."

He leaned down to kiss her, but she pulled away. When she saw the hurt in his eyes she told him, "My mouth tastes horrible. Are you mad?"

He looked at her and whispered, "How can you ask me that? I could never be mad at you for something like this. A baby…"

Part of her wondered if they were ready for this. She whispered, 'I'm sorry…."

He ignored her protests and kissed her on the lips softly. Then he leaned his forehead on her and whispered, "Never be sorry for this. Never…."

She sighed and he asked, "Are you ready to get up?"

Nodding, he offered him her hand. He helped her to her feet and they walked into the bedroom together. Alexis was sitting on the bed and looking worried. She asked, "Are you okay?"

Kate smiled at her and said, "I'm fine."

"What's wrong with you Kate?"

The two adults looked at each other and then Kate nodded her approval. Rick told his daughter softly, "She's going to have a baby."

He watched as his daughter's mouth opened and closed a few times. Then she rushed forward and hugged Kate. She gave her dad a pointed look and he knew what that look meant. However, the choice was taken out of his hands when he heard Meredith shriek, "She's pregnant? She's using you for your money Richard."

It was at that point that Kate knew that she'd had enough. She turned to his ex-wife and said, "I'm not after him for his money. And…"

Later, he would say that he saw it coming, but he had no way to stop it. He heard Meredith say, "So, you're saying that you aren't with him because of his writing? Because he's a bestselling, world famous author."

"What in the hell are you talking about Meredith?"

Meredith practically sneered at her, "Oh please! Like you don't know who he is. You think he can afford this loft on a teacher's salary?"

Turning to Rick, she asked, "What the hell is she talking about Rick? I thought the loft belonged to you and your mom and…"

"Oh please! He bought this place with his first royalty check."

"Royalty check from what?"

Alexis piped up, "Mom! Butt out! This is none of your business., It's between Kate and dad!"

Meredith turned and looked at her daughter and said, "So she knows about him and his writing. The fact that he keeps his Richard Castle persona held so close to the vest that no one knows about it and…"

That's when Kate stopped listening to Alexis and her mother. She turned and looked at Rick. She knew that she was pale and he looked just as bad as she did. She whispered, "Is that true?"

"Kate, listen I…."

Shaking her head, "No…..Is she telling the truth? Please tell me she isn't telling the truth. That you haven't been keeping this from me for the last six months."

That's when Alexis pulled her mom out of the bedroom. She had never been so mad at her mom. She was also mad at her father for not telling Kate before this.

Rick whispered, "I wanted to tell you. I just never found the right time. I…"

Her mouth fell open and she whispered, "You never found the right time? How about before we slept together? How about before I practically moved in with you? Before I fell in love with you? God...I've been so stupid…."

"Kate...Listen to me. I wanted to tell you so many times."

"Why did you do this? Is it some kind of game for you?"

He watched as the tears fell down her cheeks. He closed his eyes and whispered, "No. It's not a game Kate. I am Richard Castle. I don't like flaunting my writing career. I just wanted a normal life. Wanted someone to love me for me. Not because of my money or fame. I…"

"Well, you accomplished that. I fell in love with you. But you broke my heart in the process. I want nothing to do with you or you family. Just...Just leave me alone."

"Kate, please wait."

Shaking her head, she tore her arm out of his and grabbed her keys and her purse and walked out of his loft. Not stopping even when she heard Alexis calling out for her. Right then and there she wanted nothing to do with anyone in that house and she just needed to get some distance from them all…..