AN: Here's the next chapter! Thanks for all the follows, favorites, and reviews for this story. I really appreciate them!

Disclaimer: I don't own Castle.

Chapter 14

Rick sighed, a half hearted smile spreading across his face. Well, it looked like he was making some progress in his writing. He swept his gaze over the screen, examining his writing so far, fairly satisfied. His stroll in the park aided him in his latest brainstorm. While his newest character was no Nikki Heat, she was still pretty decent. The thought made him pause.

When did he allow his writing to be just decent? Oh right, when he decided to keep his promise. Not that he never kept a promise, just that this particular one was quite the obstacle to his career. However, as long it kept him out of jail, he would do it.

Groaning, he stretched his arms before wheeling around his desk. He missed walking without the hinderance of crutches. At least he had one more week in the wheelchair and then he could do what he wanted. Hopefully, nothing else would happen that would cause him to injure his knee any further. He didn't need whatever small amount of luck he had left to run out on him.

Looking out his window, Rick gazed longingly at the apartment across the way. It was hard, but he slowly, but surely felt himself getting over her. Well, he thought he was. He needed to give it another week or so to figure it out. In that time, he would continue to write and meet his deadline. He would spin of tale of the non-Nikki character, make Gina and Paula happy. It would be enough until the cast was removed and he was fee to roam.

It needed to be enough.

The following week, Kate sat on the couch across from her M.E. friend. She had invited Lanie over for drinks and girl talk, which was part of a plan to bring normalcy back into her own life. She figured calling Lanie over for a chat was a good way to go. Plus, she missed the woman, both of them being busy or too confined to meet or talk, with the exception of the occasional phone call. Kate had been thrilled when Lanie said yes to the idea.

So now, Kate sipped her wine as her friend chatted away.

"How are you doing? You definitely look much better than the last time I saw you," her friend inquired, raising an eyebrow.

Kate swirled the liquid in her glass, staring at it intently "I'm okay. I've been improving these past few weeks. I feel stronger, thanks to the physical therapy, and I'm sure I'll be able to return to the precinct soon." She laughed at the medical examiner's eye roll. "What? I need to get back to work at some point."

"Of course, because you're you," Lanie replied. "However, the way Ryan and Esposito talked, Montgomery was going to put a barrier around the precinct if you tried to return to work before he allowed it."

"I wouldn't be surprised if he did," Kate murmured. "I'm just tired of not doing anything, which is why I'm glad to be doing physical therapy. It forces me out of the apartment." It also distracted her from thinking about a certain author.

Lanie nodded in agreement, her expression solemn. "Listen, Ryan told me about Castle. I'm really sorry. I thought he was a great guy. Guess not."

The detective pursed her lips, her glance moving to the windows. Her thoughts briefly flickered to what he might be doing at that moment, but she quashed them in an instant.

"Honestly? He was a nice guy, but what he did was creepy, and so very wrong." She shook her head, taking another sip. "I couldn't let someone like that stay in my life, it would only lead to trouble."

No matter how much you wanted him to stay, a voice in her head taunted.

"You made the right call," her friend assured her. "Otherwise, what would have happened if he stayed? It would tell him that his behavior was normal, which it wasn't."

Kate sighed, looking down at her hands. Truth be told, if she hadn't kicked Castle out of her life, he could have been eating dinner with her, talking her into watching another movie, or whatever else he came up with to entertain her.

She frowned, realizing how ridiculous her thoughts sounded. She wasn't one to pine after a guy, particularly one with stalker tendencies, and she wasn't going to start now.

"Yeah, I'm glad I dodged that bullet," she remarked, attempting to ignore the way her chest clenched. Time for a change in topic. "So, how is everything with you?"

Lanie grinned, diving into detail about some new cases, and Kate listened, glad for the distraction.

However, the voice in the back of her mind, the one that knew her desires, taunted her with possibilities of a future with a certain author. It continued for the rest of the night and Kate found it difficult to ignore.

She also realized she didn't want to silence it just yet.

"All right, Rick, you're free to go!"

Rick sighed in relief, gingerly swinging his uncovered knee next to the table top in the doctor's office. It felt so nice to be cast-free, again.

"Promise me you won't break it so soon?" the doctor pleaded.

The writer gave the man a salute along with a teasing grin.

"I promise I have absolutely no plans to break any of my bones in the near future," he said, getting off the table.

The doctor rolled his eyes, amused. Handing Rick a piece of paper with directions for after care, he instructed the author to go to the physical therapy unit to set up an appointment.

"You need to go twice a week," he ordered. "Particularly since your leg has been inactive for quite some time."

Rick nodded in agreement. His leg felt stiff, but still somewhat moveable. Hopefully, physical therapy would get him back on track. However, he would use crutches to move around for a bit longer in order to not overwhelm his newly healed injury.

After a final goodbye, Rick left the office and rode the elevator up to the tenth floor. Thankfully, the physical therapy office took up most of the floor, so the entrance wasn't hard to find. He entered, approaching the receptionist, who he discovered was a fan, since she softly squealed when she spotted him. She fawned over him for a few minutes before instructing him to wait as she examined the schedule. He took a seat in one of the cushioned chairs, noting that the office was fairly empty.

Much like his other doctor visits, he grabbed a magazine, one he hadn't already read, and thumbed through it. Growing bored, he picked up another, landing on an article that seemed halfway interesting. As he read, he heard the door to the office open, but he didn't look up, too engrossed in an article about pandas.

"I'm here to see Roland," a voice at the desk murmured.

The sound made him freeze, his grip on the magazine tightening. He knew that voice, he'd recognize it anywhere. It meant that she was here, with him, in the exact same room. Then, it dawned on him.

Oh shit, Kate was here.

He needed to move out of her line of sight and fast. Getting up from the chair, he began to walk toward the other end of room, hoping to hide himself behind the other side of the reception desk. Unfortunately, he wasn't quick enough.

"Castle?" she called in a bewildered tone.

He turned, plastering an uneasy smile on his face. Fear ran through him as he took in the upset and angry expression on her face. Oh, and she was giving him the patented Beckett glare. Not good.

"Hey, Kate." A nervous chuckle escaped his lips. "Long time, no see."

He was so dead.