The Heart of the Matter
by LindaInDC
Disclaimer: This is a work of fiction based on Castle, the ABC show, also owned by Andrew W. Marlowe and other cool, brilliant people. I do not own the characters, but have written this work with no intent to gain profit from it. It is for reading enjoyment only. The story, names and places are fictional, and any similarities to real persons, places and events are purely coincidental.
Thank you for reading, providing reviews and favoriting/following this story. You all are amazing.
Note: July 24, 2016- this is not additional chapters in this update. I am just breaking down this one massive post into smaller ones allowing a chapter per page.
A great big note of thanks to Sass, who helped me with her magical doctor powers to square away the clinical side of this story. I wanted to do this justice, without writing a clinical textbook.
Chapter Thirteen
The trip made to the hospital seemed to take an eternity. The car came quickly, and Rick was taken downstairs by way of a wheel chair to save his energy. Kate sat against the door and Rick at her right side. Alexis sat on his right, and his mother took the front seat with the driver. Alexis held her dad's hand, while Rick rested his hand on Kate's knee. Kate wrapped her left hand into the crook of his left arm, while her right hand nervously stroked the fine hairs at the back of his neck. It helped her stay focused, to have such a tactile connection to her husband, and it relaxed him, as well.
A short time later, the car pulled under the canopy that protected the entrance to the Hospital. A wheelchair awaited Castle as he arrived. Once he was in the chair, he was greeted by a nurse that was assigned to him as his transplant liaison, she would help him with anything he needed prior to surgery, and would be available to his family during the procedure, to help keep them at ease and well-informed. The rest of the trip upstairs was a blur of activity, as he was assessed, had questions asked, blood drawn and other tests.
Rick was placed on a transport gurney and told that he would be transported to the surgical holding area in a few moments. Martha was the first to him. "My son, I love you. You are the joy of my heart, and you focus on getting back here to us. I love you." She ended her time with him with a kiss to his forehead.
Alexis wiped the tears from her cheeks, while Rick grabbed her into as tight of a hug as he could manage. "Pumpkin, I need you to be there for your Grams and Kate. They are gonna worry, and I need you to remind them how much I love them, and they will remind you of how very much I love you."
Alexis nodded, as her voice was too clogged with tears. She let him go and stepped back so that Kate could get to him. Martha pulled Alexis to her to give her a comforting hug, and to also give husband and wife a moment of privacy.
Kate stepped up to her husband, leaned over and hugged him. "Babe, I love you. You better listen to them better than you listened to me when we first worked together." This brought a chuckle to both of them. She continued, "I am not ready to spend any less than the next fifty years or so with you, so don't even think about getting out any earlier!"
Rick, his tears slowly glancing off his cheek, said, "I am looking forward to the fifty years, but my first immediate goal is in the next three or so months. I want to find a place and not get out of bed for the whole trip."
Kate laughed at his words and replied, "I'll hold you to that." She leaned in more and brushed her lips towards his. He pulled her in tighter, bringing her lips back to his, letting his tongue slide through the seam of her lips. Kate opened her lips and caressed his tongue with hers for a long moment, then let the kiss end on its own. She rested her forehead on his, and whispered, "Always, Rick."
Rick placed a kiss onto her chin as he then looked into her eyes and repeated, "Always."
The transporter announced it was time and the gurney began the journey to the surgical area. Kate held his hand until the distance caused their hands to separate, and Martha walked over to the newlywed and pulled her into a hug, trying to infuse her with love and support. Alexis was a step behind, and the three ladies clung to one another, drawing strength, and sending a united prayer to the heavens to watch out over the man that they all so dearly loved.
The women were directed to the surgical waiting area, where they were given a private area to wait, given Castle's VIP status. "Ladies?" A voice called to them, causing them to look up. It was Harper Thommas, Rick's surgeon.
"Harper, thank you for helping Richard." Martha said as she reached and took the surgeon's hand.
"It's my honor, Martha. I just wanted to stop out and say hello and that I am gonna take good care of him. Try not to wear yourselves out, ok?"
All three agreed with the surgeon's request. "So, I'll come out after we're done, and we have him in the ICU. I have to get going, as I am meeting with both teams for the donor, as well as Rick's. I'll see you all soon." Harper smiled at them and then turned and exited, going back to the surgical area.
Kate had called her father within minutes of arriving to the waiting area. Within an hour, she looked up upon hearing footsteps, and a quiet call of "Katie?"
Kate rushed into her father's arms, and he walked her back into the chairs, taking a moment to greet Martha and Alexis, as well. Jim asked, "How long is it expected to take?"
Alexis answered first, "They said about four to six hours, if all is normal."
Jim smiled at her and replied, "And it will be normal. Is there anything that I can do for any of you? Is there anyone I can call or notify?"
Kate sat up and replied, "I should call my Captain, she asked to let her know."
Alexis added, "And Dad's agent and Gina."
Jim had an idea, "Why don't you just put together an email and state what you want to say in it, and we can send it out to everyone, so you aren't saying the same message over and over?"
Martha smiled, "Excellent idea. I will craft the message, and you can tell me who should be included." With that, the actress set to work. Within minutes, everyone, from the boys to Gina were notified and the family could focus on Rick.
Jim excused himself and said he would be back shortly. Within twenty minutes, he returned, with two small cards, that he gave one to Kate, the other to Martha. "Here, hang on to these. I spoke with your liaison and they have made arrangements for you to be able to stay in their VIP lodging. They have rooms to accommodate families, and I doubted that any of you were planning to go home tonight."
"Thank you, Dad." Kate said as she hugged his arm.
Once again, time seemed to crawl by for the family. Over the hours, Javi and Lanie arrived, and brought coffee for everyone. Ryan arrived shortly after his partner, with the message that Captain Gates was in meetings all day at 1 Police Plaza, and would check in after.
Time ticked away slowly, despite updates from the team. At around the five hour mark, the liaison appeared, and notified the family that the surgery was done and went as well as could be expected. They were finishing up and would be taking him to the Cardiac Intensive Care Unit shortly. A sigh of relief came from the small band of friends that had gathered. Rick Castle was stable. Most began leaving, with words of encouragement and to say that they would be back to visit soon.
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Harper Thommas entered the waiting area reserved for Rick's family. Sitting with them, she recapped the surgery. The surgeon stated, "The surgery went really smooth. His lungs were remarkably good and free of fluid, so that will go far with how quickly he recovers. He'll stay in the Cardiac ICU for two or three days, so we can keep a close eye on him."
Kate asked, "So how long do you anticipate he'll be here?"
Harper replied, "My patients are usually here two to three weeks, depending on how things are going, so I would assume the same for Rick, at this point. So the visiting hours in the ICU are pretty strict, and Rick is going to be sedated for a while, so why don't you all try to go get some rest and I'll let you know how he's doing in the morning. There is a waiting area where you can call in and talk to the nursing staff and find out when you can visit him."
Harper rose, prompting them to do the same, and she drew each of the ladies into a firm hug, and waved as she left the area.
####
Rick remained in the hospital fifteen days, and was discharged home, where he was greeted with a banner and ribbons welcoming him home. On every flat surface balloons and cards from nearly everyone from the twelfth precinct, the Mayor, Harper Thommas and her fiancé, as well as Black Pawn, Paula, and even Meredith, Alexis' mother and Rick's first ex-wife.
Kate was thankful for the leave of absence she had taken prior to Rick's surgery, as he had good days and bad days. The good days saw him doing his exercises with ease, taking his medications readily and even on some days, flying his remote control helicopter or tank around the loft, terrorizing the family. The bad days saw him in bed and in pain, not wanting to move or to eat. Eventually he would get up, but on those days, it just seemed as if everything took more effort, and that was usually the responsibility of Mrs. Richard Castle.
There were frequent trips back to the hospital for tests to make sure that all was on the up and up, and they sighed in relief each time they were given a good report. As the weeks went by, it was apparent that Rick was improving, and getting closer to the man he was prior to when this nightmare all began.
Over the weeks, Kate and Rick would help him focus on his recovery by working a little most days on what they wanted to do about a small ceremony and honeymoon, once they were able.
Rick smirked and asked, "So I guess a giant roller coaster is out, huh?"
Smacking his arm, Kate laughed, "That would have been out even if you hadn't had surgery!"
Rick had an idea, "Why don't we rent our park and have it at the little gazebo, near our swings?"
Kate's face lit up. "Oh Castle, that's perfect! It is just us saying vows for It could be small, just enough for our closest friends and family, and then we could meet up at The Old Haunt for a reception."
Rick kissed his wife. "You're right, it's perfect."
Kate smiled seductively as she stroked his chin gently, "And I was thinking, why don't we spend a week or so up in the Hamptons at the house? It would be private, but close enough that we could get back here if we needed to quickly."
A smile filled Rick's face as he responded, "That sounds like a perfect idea. And we don't have to worry about reservations or all that."
"Yes," Kate answered, "We'll just have to wait for the all clear from the good doctor. But we also have to find out just how vigorous we can be, and for how long. I want to make love to you every day, every hour we're together, but that doesn't seem like it's going to be realistic for you, Castle."
Rick looked incredulous, "For me? Babe, that wouldn't be realistic for a porn star!" At their shared laugh, "But I know what you mean. We'll have a good time, and we'll figure it all out."
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It had been fourteen weeks since Rick was discharged from the hospital. The day had arrived for the ceremony in the park. The couple were not nervous about what would happen at the ceremony, or the reception. They were just letting their friends and family take part in a ceremony that let them see the love that they shared and had already pledged themselves to for the rest of their lives.
Their car dropped them off at the edge of the park, at the entrance, and the couple arrived arm in arm as they walked to the gazebo in the corner of the park. Other than several satin white ribbons, no decorations were needed, as the gazebo was natural wood and the couple wanted the attention to be on the words, rather than the location. Under the covering, Judge Markway stood, and greeted the couple, and acted as more of an emcee than justice of the peace. He said a few words about the couple, shared a poem and then moved out of the way so that Kate and Rick could begin.
Kate held both of his hands, looked into Rick's eyes and began, "Rick, when I first met you, marrying you was the absolute last thing on my mind." The group chuckled at the memory. "But you were special, even then I could feel it. When I fell for you, I fell hard, but it took me a while to know I was ready for my life with you. I know that I made the right choice, and I plan to spend the rest of my life celebrating that choice with you by my side. I love you, Rick, and I couldn't think of a better partner in crime with whom to spend the rest of my life."
Rick reached and took his wife's left hand, and whispered, "I wanted to give you a little something for today." He pulled her rings from her finger, and added a simple platinum ring guard with a channel of small diamonds to complete her set, then slid them all back onto her ring finger. "Kate," Rick paused, the emotions threatening to overtake his voice.
"Shhh. It's ok, we're here together." Kate comforted him.
Rick nodded and smiled then continued, "Kate, I knew from the first day I met you, that you were special. I felt a zing of electricity the first time you touched my hand. We've faced so much together, and despite all those challenges, we're just getting started. I can't wait to wake up next to you each morning and face the day with you by my side. You are mine, as I am yours, and as long as I have your love, I want for nothing more. I love you, Kate.
The couple fell into a kiss, and allowed their mouths to open and enjoyed each other in the kiss, and the promise of more later. Kate reached up and rubbed his cheek softly, and then the couple turned and faced their family and friends, who were clapping and cheering for the happy couple.
The Old Haunt was closed for business that day, as Rick wanted his friends and family to take as much time as they wanted to celebrate. Toasts were made to the happy couple, Jim and Martha made a joint toast to welcome the other's child into the family. Alexis even made a toast, and welcomed Kate into the family…finally! Hors d'oeuvres were served, and drinks of the alcoholic and non-alcoholic variety were served.
The couple remained for an hour, then decided they were going to head to their honeymoon. They were cheered as they left, with whistles, calls of "have fun, but not too much fun!" and good hearted ribbing. They climbed into the back of the car Rick had hired, and they were off to their honeymoon.
The drive to the Hamptons was a relaxing time, as they were both able to stretch out in the back and just spend time together. The couple drew the privacy window, and engaged in some healthy kissing and touching, but refrained from any real heavy activity, until they reached the beach house.
Kate and Rick slept some of the way to the house, and Rick woke with Kate's legs across his lap, and his wife stroking his cheek softly, which she loved to do. "Rick, I was thinking." Kate began the conversation, "About work. Would you mind if I didn't go back right away?"
Rick grinned and drew her to him in a kiss before answering, "Babe, I would be more than fine with it. I want you to do what makes you happiest. I love you, Mrs. Castle."
"I love you too, Mr. Castle." Kate said with a smile.
"Did you have any ideas about what you want to do while you are away from the precinct?" Rick inquired.
"I thought I would merge our two places, and spend some time with my gorgeous, sexy, loving husband, and working together with you to make sure that those walls are long gone." Kate explained.
"Babe, that sounds perfect. I gave you my old heart, and my new heart is yours, as well. For always I'd be honored to spend time with my beautiful, sexy, smart, funny bride." Rick replied as he hugged Kate.
"And just look at us, we're here, together, and on our way for the rest of our lives." Kate said and relaxed into the rest of the ride.
To be continued...