Thank God AWM is our showrunner and not Shonda Rhimes.
*sobs quietly in a corner*
It's been days since she's seen him, both he and Alexis. She finally finished her training at the Academy and started as a uni two weeks ago. She's been running herself ragged ever since, eager to prove herself. She loves what she does, thrives on it day after day. The job hums in her veins and it feels so right, like she's meant to do this.
But it does mean that she hasn't been able to spend as much time with them as she'd like, which she hates.
Tonight she finds a vase of colored daisies waiting for her when she gets home. The sun had set hours ago and she's dead on her feet. Thank God she's got the day off tomorrow.
She brings the bouquet to her nose, closing her eyes as she inhales deeply. She smiles, tugging on her bottom lip as she slips the small card from a stem.
We miss you.
Love,
Rick and Alexis
She presses the card into her palm as she fishes her phone out of the pocket of her blues. It's definitely too late to call, but she just wants to hear the sound of his voice, groggy and sleep sated.
He hums sleepily before greeting her with a raspy "Hello."
"Hey, handsome." She slips her shoes from her feet, tosses them inside the open closet.
"Kate? What time is it?"
"It's late. Really late. I just wanted to hear the sound of your voice," she confesses, slipping her fingers over the buttons of her shirt.
"I'm glad you called. I miss you," he says softly. She hears him shuffling in bed, nuzzling further into his soft pillow. She imagines him closing his eyes on a sigh, his phone resting between his ear and the pillow, leaving his hands free to slip between the cold sheets.
"I miss you too," she admits. She kicks out of her pants and collapses on the bed, clad only in her white undershirt and underwear.
"But you have tomorrow off, right?" he asks through a yawn.
Her fingers slip through the edges of her hair, billowed across the pillow.
"Yeah." And then, "Shall we make a day of it?"
He scoffs. "I'm insulted by the question, Beckett. I haven't seen you in days, so you better get your ass in gear tomorrow."
She laughs, gentle and tired. "Nothing too taxing though, okay? Tomorrow's Sunday and I'm beat."
"You tryin' to say that my kid and I wear you out, Beckett?" he murmurs.
"Yes."
He huffs. "See if I send you any more flowers."
She chuckles, shifting onto her side to get more comfortable. "I loved them, by the way. They're beautiful."
"You're welcome."
"I don't recall saying thank you," she retorts.
"It was implied." He pauses. And again, "You're welcome." His teasing warms her inside, cloaks around her as if he's there with her now.
She can't help but dish it right back out.
"You're kind of insufferable, Mr. Castle."
He groans. "You can't expect much out of me at this hour."
Ah, right. She woke him up. "Yeah, I should let you go back to sleep," she says, biting the inside of her cheek guiltily.
"Talk to me til we fall asleep," he suggests quietly.
It's a suggestion that would normally make her roll her eyes (they aren't teenagers, for God's sake), but because it's him and it's just sweet and perfect, she doesn't protest in the slightest.
She sighs, happy and sleepy, reaching across her bed to flick the lamp off, cloaking her bedroom in complete darkness with the exception of a sliver of moonlight that pokes through a curtain.
"Tell me a story, Kate," he mumbles.
She frowns. "But you're the writer."
"Doesn't make your words any less beautiful."
She latches onto that, sticks it in the recesses of her heart as she begins to spin a quiet tale for him, complete with knights, white horses, and impenetrable castles.
A soft knock on her door wakes her up the next morning (erm, afternoon), pulls her out of the best sleep she's gotten in a few days. She stretches lazily, lingers to let the streaming sun warm her face before she slips on a pair of pajama shorts to greet her visitor.
She flicks her hair into a low ponytail and brushes the sleep from her eyes as she presses against the door, squinting to get a glimpse through the peephole. She smiles, shaking her head as she pulls the door open for her dark-haired boyfriend and his fair-haired daughter.
"What are you doing here?" she asks as he pulls her into a warm embrace. She ruffles her fingers through Alexis's hair, pulls away from him enough to brush a kiss against the little girl's forehead. "Hi, sweetie," she greets softly.
"Sleeping the morning away wasn't exactly what I had in mind when I told you to get your butt into gear, Beckett," he teases as they step into her apartment.
Alexis rolls her eyes. "He's been antsy all morning."
Kate laughs, cocking her head as she slips her fingers lovingly through the short hairs above his ear. "Is that so?"
He smiles, his eyes light, full, and happy.
"So what, you decided to wake me up yourself?" she asks, rolling her eyes on a smile as she drops her hand from his face and shuffles to the kitchen.
"In our defense, we brought you breakfast." He sets a white pastry bag on top of her counter, grinning proudly.
She raises an eyebrow, slides her gaze across his body and Alexis's. "I don't see any coffee." She folds her arms across her chest, mouth twitching in amusement.
He exchanges glances with Alexis, who sports an adorable grimace.
"They were out?" he offers.
She lets out a laugh of disbelief. "Every coffee shop in town?" She unrolls the bag and pulls out a blueberry muffin, rips a bite from it greedily.
He shrugs. "Coffee shortage."
"You are so full of it, Richard Castle." She tears off a sizable piece and pushes it into his open, protesting mouth.
Alexis laughs, her bright blue eyes shining in amusement.
"You'd never forget my coffee, would you, Alexis?" Kate teases, throwing Castle a look.
Alexis puts on her most solemn face, shaking her head gravely. "Never."
Kate wraps an arm around the girl's shoulder, tucks her into her side affectionately. "Finally someone I can count on."
"Harsh, Beckett," he mumbles around a mouthful of muffin, looking personally affronted.
"Your ego can't take a little bruising, Castle?" She pats his cheek patronizingly. He narrows his eyes at her and she grins, leans into brush a quick kiss against his mouth. His hand is warm and gripping at her hip, attempting to keep her there. She wraps her palm around it and squeezes gently, reaches her other hand up to brush against his eyebrow.
"Later," she says softly, pulling her lip between her teeth as she purposefully flicks her gaze down to his soft mouth and back to his eyes. He visibly swallows and she smiles, blushing as she pulls away from him.
"Sorry about that, Alexis," she apologizes as she notes the way the young redhead stares blankly at an abstract painting on the opposite wall.
"It's not your fault, Kate." Her eyes flick to her father's, mildly annoyed. "Honestly, Dad, didn't anyone teach you to keep your hands to yourself?"
Kate lets out a squeak of laughter, clapping her hand over her mouth at his stunned expression.
"I'll try not to let it happen again?" he asks, unsure. Oh, she loves it. So good.
Alexis hums in disapproval, turns back to Kate. "What are we doing today?"
"Would you be terribly upset if we camped out here for the day?"
Alexis grins. "Movie marathon?"
Kate smiles. "Read my mind. We can order in, build ourselves a nest on the floor." She cards a hand through Alexis' hair, reaches down to cup her chin. "Sound good?" Alexis nods. "Why don't you go check out my movie collection? If nothing works, we'll just have to send your dad out to comb through the rentals."
Alexis beams and scurries out of the kitchen to slide down in front of Kate's entertainment system.
Kate tears her eyes away from the girl, places a hand on Castle's arm.
"What about you? Cool with the plan?" She steps closer, wraps her arms around his neck as his hands settle around her waist.
"More than," he says. He brushes his mouth against her forehead as Kate closes her eyes, sighing in contentment. Longest five days of her life. His lips travel to her ear, where he places a kiss just at her hairline.
"I've missed having you here in my arms," he murmurs, wrapping her in a tighter embrace.
Oh, she's a puddle in his arms. Can't bring herself to care in the slightest.
"I've missed being here," she replies gently.
"Work was good?"
She nods. "Yeah." She bumps her nose against his cheek, lets out a long breath. "But not as good as this."
I wrote an outtake for this story that gives us Rick's perspective when he finds Kate passed out on her mother's birthday. You can find it on my page; it's called "Deliverance".
Obviously, I can only keep up the UST for so long and I'm toying with writing an 'M'-rated outtake. I can go either way, though, so if you have opinions one way or another, let me know.
Olivia
