Author's Note: In which we see some of what Kate is thinking.

Nothing Lost

Chapter 47

"Oh."

Kate hastily swiped the tears out of her eyes, before she turned at the sound of Alexis's quiet expression of surprise. "Alexis, hi, you're awake awfully early."

The girl shrugged a little. "I didn't think anyone else would be awake yet either. I just came down to get a cup of water. Are you okay?"

She quickly pasted a small smile on her face. "I'm fine. I woke up and couldn't get back to sleep, that's all." She hadn't wanted to go back to sleep since sleep meant nightmares, dreams of her mom being murdered, Bracken wielding the knife, or sometimes, dreams of her mom, holding out her elephants, a look of reproach on her face. (You should have listened, Katie. If you'd listened to me, you would have known about the tape sooner…) She didn't know which nightmare was worse.

"Oh, okay."

Alexis came up, joining Kate in looking out of the French doors leading outside, staring out over the darkness of the bay. The sky was still the gray before the sunrise but it was just starting to gradually get lighter outside.

"It's beautiful out here," Kate observed quietly after a moment. Not that they could see much but she knew it was true. Castle had not been exaggerating when he said his house overlooked the water and had some great views; for once, he might even have understated it.

"Yeah, I always like coming here. Sometimes, it even seems like a waste to spend time sleeping when I'm here but then, I usually do end up sleeping in anyway." Alexis shot Kate a self-deprecating smile at this.

Kate managed a smile in response. "You're on vacation so you should sleep in." She only wished she could get some peaceful sleep these days. Her smile faltered a little at the thought before she managed to get her expression under control. At this early hour, she hadn't been expecting anyone else to be awake, had not had a chance to put her defenses into place yet.

"I can go back upstairs if you'd rather be alone," Alexis offered a little shyly.

Oh shit. Kate forced as bright a smile as she could manage. "No, you don't have to do that. It's nice having company. It was starting to get too quiet." She would certainly not send Alexis away, no matter her own comfort. This was Alexis's home, not hers. And in any event, it wasn't as if Kate's solitary musings were pleasant ones, far from it. Spending some time with Alexis, with all the teen's generally uncomplicated, innocent sweetness, would probably do her good. "I'm glad you and your grandmother have come out to join us. I know your dad's happy about it. I only hope you don't mind spending time away from the City now, when Ashley's getting closer to leaving for college."

It was Alexis's turn to give Kate a reassuring smile. "Oh, don't worry about that, Kate. Ashley's not leaving for almost three weeks and I'm still talking to him almost every day. I was happy to come out here." She paused and then went on, a little less fluently, "I'm really glad you agreed to come out here. I know Dad's wanted to invite you here for a while."

Kate tried not to flush at Alexis's somewhat oblique reference to Castle's feelings. Knowing how willing Castle was to open his home to her was one thing but hearing his daughter talk about it was something else. Not for the first time, she felt another little flicker of uncertainty at the whole idea of dating someone with a child, even a teenager as well-behaved as Alexis. She didn't know what to do, how to act with the child of a significant other, and certainly not sharing a roof with a boyfriend and his family (even if the roof was as expansive as this mansion was). And it was made easier now by the fact that she and Castle weren't sharing a bedroom—yet. Oh god. Kate suddenly imagined greeting Alexis and Martha in the morning with both of them knowing that Kate had just emerged from Castle's bedroom, his bed, and felt something like panic flare.

Stupid, stupid, why was she even thinking about this? She wasn't close to being physically ready for that so there was no point fretting over it now.

She pushed the disquieting thoughts aside and changed the subject. "How is everything with you and Ashley?"

"Oh, everything's fine. We made up like I told you and he apologized for not listening to me much and he's been trying." The girl's expression softened and for the first time, Kate saw some of the teenage infatuation Alexis felt for Ashley. "He's really sweet, you know, and so cute."

Kate felt a tickle of amusement which she sternly kept out of her expression since she remembered very well how serious her own teenage affections had seemed to her at the time. "I'm sure he is." She did believe that. Not because of Alexis's undoubtedly biased opinion but because even Castle had grudgingly admitted he thought Ashley was a nice enough boy, which was high praise considering Ashley was Alexis's boyfriend and Kate was sure that a teenage boy could come with personal recommendations from the Pope, the Archbishop of Canterbury, and the Dalai Lama and Castle would still not be convinced said boy could be trusted with Alexis.

"Last fall, just after we started dating, he left me these really romantic notes pretending to be a secret admirer and then, he was so understanding and sweet the time I thought I'd lost Theodore."

"Who's Theodore?"

"Oh, Theodore's Ashley's pet rat. He's sort of like Ashley's best friend too, Ashley's had him for years and Ashley talks to Theodore just like he would a person and everything." Alexis dimpled a little. "It's really cute actually."

A pet rat, okay, well, she supposed she'd heard of stranger pets. She kept her expression blandly curious, hiding her amusement. "I see." She felt her mood lifting a little. Yes, talking to Alexis was good for her, Alexis whose teenage preoccupations were so… normal, so innocent, so far removed from any kind of violence or death.

The girl gave a small rueful laugh. "I tease Ashley that he's going to miss Theodore more than he'll miss me. Ashley was actually hoping to bring Theodore with him to college but then he found out that his dorm doesn't allow any pets, not even fish."

"Probably a smart policy," Kate noted.

Alexis smiled. "Yeah, probably. I mean, Ashley's not like most college kids, he's more responsible so he'd probably be okay but I can understand the rule."

"Has Ashley finished getting everything he'll need together so he can start packing? If he's leaving in a few weeks, he'll probably need to start actually packing, figure out what he can take and what he can't, soon."

"He says he thinks he has just about everything but his mom keeps taking him out to shop." The girl made a small face. "So he's been too busy for us to actually spend that much time together."

"That's too bad. I'm sorry."

"Thanks." Alexis sobered, hesitating before she went on, "Kate, can I ask you something?"

"Of course, Alexis. What is it?"

"I've just been wondering, with Ashley leaving so soon and how hard it's already been this summer to feel connected with Ashley so busy and preoccupied with things that I'm not a part of, how much worse will it be when he's at Stanford, all the way across the country? I was worried about this all along but Ashley convinced me we could make a long-distance relationship work. But now, I'm just…"

"You're not so sure?" Kate completed gently.

"Yeah." Alexis sighed a little, for a moment looking very young and vulnerable. "When I was worrying about this before Ashley decided to go to Stanford, Dad said I might be overthinking things and I shouldn't let practicality and statistics about long-distance college relationships get in the way of my relationship with Ashley."

That did sound like the sort of advice Castle would give.

Alexis looked up at Kate, uncertainty clear in her wide eyes. "I don't want to lose Ashley; it's why I decided to go to Stanford too. But what if we can't make the long-distance thing work? What do you think, Kate? Have you ever been in a long-distance relationship?"

"No, I haven't," she answered honestly. Neither she nor Will had even thought to suggest it when Will had announced his move to Boston, perhaps neither of them had cared enough to want to try or perhaps they'd both simply been too rational to believe it would really work. "I had a good friend in high school though, who tried a long-distance relationship with her boyfriend when they both left for college." She'd almost forgotten about Hannah and her then-boyfriend, Dominic, but the memory came back, all the more readily because she'd heard about how Hannah was doing just last year when she'd caught up with another old friend, Madison. Hannah, who had stayed in the area for college, going to Princeton, while Dominic had gone to the University of North Carolina—not very close but still much closer than Stanford was from New York.

"What happened? Did your high school friend make a long distance relationship work?"

"For a while, yes. I think she and her boyfriend eventually broke up in the spring semester of their freshman year but by that point, they'd been long-distance for more than six months."

"Oh." Disappointment dimmed Alexis's eyes.

Kate's heart pinched a little and on impulse, she wrapped an arm around the girl's shoulders, giving her a brief half-hug. "For what it's worth, Alexis, I wouldn't just give up now. You never really know until you try. Long-distance relationships are hard but I do think they're possible. It just means you and Ashley both need to try harder to make the relationship work but as long as you're both willing to put in the effort, that should be all that matters." Even as she spoke, part of her mind was wondering how she could presume to give relationship advice—it wasn't as if Kate herself had a sterling track record with relationships. But for all that, she couldn't simply stay silent either, not when Alexis clearly sought some reassurance or comfort, something.

And she could only hope her advice helped—or at the very least, didn't end up hurting Alexis. Kate was adult enough—and pragmatic enough—that she wouldn't have bet any money on Alexis's relationship with Ashley lasting but that had more to do with their age than the long-distance thing. But at the very least, Alexis wouldn't be left wondering, what if.

Alexis momentarily tipped her head to rest against Kate's shoulder, a characteristic little gesture that caught at Kate's heart because she'd seen Alexis do this same thing with Castle. The girl straightened up and gave Kate a brighter-eyed look of gratitude. "Thanks, Kate."

"Any time. I'm always here if you want to talk." Oh lord, when had she accepted this… responsibility, this commitment, to being there for Alexis? And yet, what else could she do? It didn't even have to do with Castle, not really, because she honestly cared about Alexis for herself and not only as Castle's daughter.

They stood in companionable silence for a little while, watching as the brightness increased outside.

It was a few minutes before Alexis spoke again. "Kate?"

"Hmm?"

Alexis hesitated and Kate glanced at the girl to see she was looking uncertain, even a little shy—oddly, since Kate would have said they'd become more comfortable over the course of the morning. "I don't want to pry but is everything okay with you and Dad? You haven't… argued or anything?"

Kate tried not to stiffen or otherwise react visibly. "Everything's fine, Alexis. Why do you ask?" She thought Castle had been managing well, certainly better than she herself had been in hiding any reaction to the cassette or preoccupation over Jordan Shaw's visit yesterday. Wait. "Has your dad said anything—" She didn't for a minute think Castle would have mentioned the cassette and its contents to Alexis of all people but he might have let slip that he was worried about something or—oh wait.

It abruptly, belatedly occurred to her that, even aside from Castle's innate compassion, it couldn't have been easy for Castle to hear Montgomery's voice on the recording, confirming the kidnapping and extortion scheme he'd been part of. Montgomery had been Castle's friend too and she knew, although Castle had never said so outright, that Castle had respected Montgomery as well as liked him. It might even have been harder on Castle than it had been on her in some ways because she was a cynic, unlike Castle who still tended to believe the best about people, in spite of, or perhaps even because of, writing about murder.

"No, no," Alexis hurriedly answered. "He wouldn't, not to me. You've seen, he's been putting on a good show the past couple days but I can usually tell when he's faking it. And well, I've seen him watching you when he thinks you're not looking and he's seemed… kind of down, lik he's worried about something. I'm sorry, I really don't want to pry, but I was just wondering," she rushed to add, looking rather abashed now, as if her courage had waned.

Oh god. Kate felt rather as if Alexis had struck her in the head—she might even deserve it—but she managed to answer, forcing a small reassuring smile. "I think it's because of me starting physical therapy from tomorrow. But it's nothing for you to worry about, Alexis. Your dad and I are fine. We certainly haven't argued." That, at least, was true. They would need to have had an actual conversation, without barriers, to argue.

Thankfully, Alexis appeared to accept this explanation. "Oh, okay. Thanks for telling me, Kate."

Kate managed another smile. "It's sweet of you to worry. Now, I think I'm going to start making coffee."

Alexis gave her a sunny smile. "Okay. I'm going to go up and change and then I can help you start making breakfast?"

"That sounds great."

Alexis flitted upstairs leaving Kate alone to turn to the task of making coffee. She had watched Castle making it often enough this week to have learned how to use his futuristic coffee maker so it didn't require much thought. Fortunately, as her mind, her whole self, was still reeling from the impact of Alexis's so-innocent words and what it had made her realize.

How blind she'd been—no, worse, how self-centered she had been. And how badly she had failed this past week, failed herself, failed Castle. She had promised that she would try to let Castle in, try to be better at the whole relationship thing. And for a while, at the cabin, she had mostly managed it. She trusted Castle and it had been easier in the peace and solitude of the cabin to talk to him more. And of course, as she'd realized a long time ago, simply spending time with Castle, talking to him and laughing with him and, yes, kissing him—all that was easy, seemed to come almost as naturally as breathing.

But then her mom's case had blown up—again—with a suddenness and unexpectedness that had made it all the more devastating than it otherwise would have been. Intellectually, she knew the discovery of the cassette was a good thing, the vital link they'd needed to tie Bracken to her mom's murder. But she couldn't feel any relief or brighter emotion. Knowing Bracken's identity was one thing but actually hearing his voice threatening her mom's life—her mom, whom she'd loved so much—had made her feel like her heart was being crushed in her chest. She'd wanted to cry and scream and sob and rage and hunt Bracken down like an animal and tear him to shreds.

No matter how much she learned about her mom's case, thinking about it never got any easier; if anything, every new revelation only made her hurt more in some ways. Her mom's case, the deep, festering wound she carried. Her mom's case did something to her, she could recognize that. It made her terribly vulnerable and because of that, it made her want to run. It made her blind to anything else, made her selfish.

And combined with the blow of hearing Montgomery's own voice talking about blackmail and complicity in framing Pulgatti for murder…

She had reacted instinctively, returned to all her old, bad habits of hiding, keeping her hurt to herself. She could tell herself that part of it had been the need to protect her dad but she knew that didn't explain or justify what she'd done—or failed to do—this past week.

Because she'd shut Castle out too. She knew she had. Oh, it hadn't been an entirely conscious decision, certainly not at first, but as the week went on, when she'd thought about it at all—whenever Castle alluded to the subject of her mom's case—she'd told herself it would be easier on him if she didn't burden him with her own rioting, ugly emotions. Protecting him as she was trying to protect herself in a way from the emotions that at times seemed about to rip her apart, make her crazy. She hadn't wanted to think about how she felt—even as she found it hard, if not impossible, to think about anything else—actually talking about it in any way had seemed impossible. She was clinging to composure by a fraying thread as it was. No, she hadn't been ready—still wasn't ready—to talk about it.

But she could have at least told Castle that, rather than shut him out entirely the way she had. He would have waited. He already had waited, had been giving her time, she could see that now.

And stupidly, selfishly, she'd never stopped to consider how hard it might be for him to be shut out. Had never stopped to consider if he might be worrying, hurting, too in his own way.

This latest, final revelation in her mom's case had served as a test of sorts, a test of her own promise to try and break down her walls, try and let Castle in. Be completely in a real relationship, with all the give-and-take that entailed, for the bad times as well as the good.

A test that she'd failed. And what made it seem even worse was that she hadn't come to this realization herself. It had taken Alexis, the words of an innocent 16-year-old, who'd seen Castle and his mood more clearly than Kate herself had. Alexis, who had cared enough to look and then to ask about it. Unlike Kate herself.

Oh, she could tell herself that Alexis had, after all, known Castle all her life and as his daughter, had every reason to be more familiar with Castle's mannerisms and habits than Kate herself could be after knowing Castle for just over two years and only sharing a roof with him, sporadically at that, for the last month.

But the fact remained that Kate, as much as she cared about—no, admit it, loved—Castle, she had still turned away from him when this devastating blow struck.

Breaking down her walls and letting Castle in was clearly a work in progress and right now, she was failing. Failing at this most important relationship of her life, failing the most important person in her life—because that was what Castle was, wasn't it? And it was long past time she started acting like it.

Alexis's return interrupted Kate's bout of self-castigation and she summoned up a smile for the girl, made somewhat easier by the fact that Alexis was wearing a t-shirt printed with cheerful sunflowers and looked like a sort of summer sprite.

"So what do you think we should make for breakfast?" Kate asked.

"Bacon," Alexis suggested with a rather impish smile. "Dad loves bacon."

Kate found herself laughing almost in spite of herself, her spirits rising to match Alexis's enthusiasm. "Okay, bacon it is," she agreed. "And to go with it, how about some scrambled eggs and fruit?"

"Perfect."

Kate and Alexis worked in easy harmony, helped by the size of the kitchen which meant they each had plenty of counter space. Kate asked Alexis to cut up some fruit, keeping a careful eye on the girl until it became clear that Alexis knew what she was doing and was as responsible about using a knife as she appeared to be about everything else. And while Alexis did that, Kate fried up the bacon.

She was in the middle of making scrambled eggs when Castle appeared, his eyes lighting up as he saw the two of them. "I thought I was waking up early but then I got out of the shower and literally smelled the coffee—oh, and the bacon!"

Kate had to smile at his characteristic enthusiasm, even as her heart pinched with guilt and regret. She certainly hadn't been giving him much reason to smile this past week. That was due to Alexis, as much as it had been Alexis's suggestion to make bacon. "Morning, Castle."

"Good morning, Dad."

"Morning, Beckett." Castle turned to Alexis, resting his hands on her shoulders as he pretended to study her face with a show of concern. "And you, daughter, what kind of teenager are you, waking up so early when you're on your summer vacation?" He shook his head, clicking his tongue in mock dismay.

Alexis affected a sigh. "I know, I'm a terrible disappointment."

"You really are such a disappointment," Castle agreed in a tone that meant the exact opposite, slinging his arm around her shoulders and pressing a kiss to her hair.

Alexis laughed and ducked out of his arm, elbowing him. "Thanks. Now get out of the way, Dad, so I can finish cutting the fruit."

Castle obeyed, backing away with his hands raised in a gesture of surrender.

Kate smiled, feeling her heart turn into a soft, melting thing in her chest. He really was adorable with Alexis. His eyes met hers and she wasn't sure how much of what she was feeling he read in her expression but something flared in his eyes and he moved to her side as if magnetically drawn. His hand found the small of her back and she leaned into him as he bent to brush his lips to her cheek—but she deliberately turned her head so his lips touched hers instead. And what had no doubt been intended to be a quick buss spun out, lingered.

Until a soft sound made them both jerk apart, abruptly remembering that they weren't alone.

Alexis was blushing as brightly as her hair and she wasn't quite able to look at them directly, although a small smile was playing around her lips. "I, uh, I'm going to go wake Grams up so she doesn't miss out on breakfast."

With that, she fled and Kate bit her lip as she met Castle's eyes. "I'm sorry," she blurted out before she'd quite realized she was going to.

"I'm pretty sure Alexis will survive the trauma of seeing us kissing," Castle responded lightly.

"No, not for that. I meant, I'm sorry for this week, the way I…" she trailed off uncertainly, seeing the way he instantly sobered.

But then the sound of footsteps and a door closing from upstairs had him turning his head slightly and she could have kicked herself for bringing this up now. It was hardly the right time to get into anything serious, when their family members were about to join them and they would be interrupted at any minute. Oh, why couldn't she get this relationship thing right?

"Can we talk, for real, later?" she offered instead.

His expression softened. "Of course." And then he added with a gently teasing smile, "You made me bacon and take it from me, bacon will cover a multitude of sins."

A small, rather shaky laugh escaped her. Oh this man, still, even now, trying to set her at ease, make her smile. "Good to know."

He returned her smile but all he said was, "The coffee's ready. Do you want some?"

She managed a real smile, understanding that his mostly rhetorical question was another indicator that they were okay, still, well, them. "Sure, thanks."

"One coffee for Kate, coming right up," he announced in a fair imitation of a barista as he busied himself preparing two cups of coffee, making hers just the way she liked it and taking the time to shape a little foam heart before presenting it to her.

Their fingers brushed as she accepted the mug. "Thanks, Castle," was all she said but her eyes met and held his and she thought, hoped, that he saw the apology in her eyes, her promise that they would talk, for real, and that the self-imposed barriers she'd retreated behind this past week would be taken down.

"Good morning, you two."

Kate swivelled her head around at the sound of her dad's greeting. "Good morning, Dad."

"Morning, Jim. Coffee?"

"Yes, thanks, Rick," her dad agreed rather absently as he took in the breakfast spread, the neatly-cut fruit, the bacon, the scrambled eggs which she was just spooning into a large bowl for people to help themselves. "Oh, Katie, this looks delicious."

"I didn't prepare all of it. Alexis helped," she hurriedly added.

Her dad's expression softened, became tinged with wistfulness. "It reminds me of those Sunday breakfasts your mom used to make, remember, Katie-bug?"

Oh damn. The mention of her mom had stupid tears pricking at the back of her eyes, her throat tightening with emotion. She was so hyper-emotional these days at the mention of her mom, missed her mom so much. She felt as if she'd regressed back to the days immediately following her mom's death when everything reminded her of her mom, once more a gaping wound in her chest. She swallowed hard, pressing her lips together as she fought the surge of emotion because she could not let her dad see, could not break down and start to cry over scrambled eggs like a crazy person. "I remember," she managed.

"It was a special treat on Sunday mornings," her dad went on, turning to Castle—thankfully, as it gave Kate a chance to fight to regain some composure. "Breakfast during the week was always rushed, usually eaten on the go, but on Sundays, Johanna would let Katie choose what she wanted to eat for breakfast, pancakes or waffles or eggs and bacon." Her dad shot Kate a look of teasing reminiscence. "Katie was always very methodical about her choice, followed a schedule of her own making so we never had the same thing two weeks in a row." Her dad's expression softened. "Thanks to Katie's schedule, we always knew ahead of time what we'd have for breakfast on any given Sunday but even so, every Sunday, Johanna always asked, made it seem like a special treat."

Yeah, her mom had. Kate blinked rapidly, hiding her face in her mug of coffee. Her mom had been so good at that, making even everyday things seem like special occasions.

"That's a great story, Jim," Castle spoke up before adding with a tell-tale smirk playing around his lips, "I remember Sunday traditions from growing up too. Every Sunday, my mother had me make her a bloody Mary."

"I heard that, Richard," Martha called a moment before she appeared, making a characteristically dramatic entrance. "And don't listen to him. That only happened once or twice when he was growing up." She flapped a hand in Castle's direction. "He always exaggerates, you know. Can't believe a word he says."

"He does like to make up stories," Alexis interjected as she, too, joined them in the kitchen, shooting a smirk at Castle.

"We'd better eat before all the food gets cold," Castle announced loudly and then at a more normal volume, "Jim, help yourself."

Her dad duly did so, filling a plate with scrambled eggs, a little bit of bacon, and a larger helping of fruit, while Kate accepted the plate Alexis handed her with a smile, although she gestured for Alexis to help herself to the food ahead of her.

Martha and Castle followed after her, exchanging the pointed, baiting remarks that were so characteristic of their unique dynamic. But for all Castle's show of irritation with Martha, he easily filled her plate as well as his own and poured her a glass of the juice Martha favored in the mornings before he sat down himself.

And it was… nice, better than nice even. It was something Kate had already noted in the couple days since Martha and Alexis had arrived in the Hamptons but no room with the Castle-Rodgers family in it could seem anything other than homey, cozy even. The warmth of their characters, their affection for each other, seemed to have permeated the very walls of the house so it was somehow easy to forget what a mansion the house really was once inside, because inside, it felt like a regular family home.

And it hadn't taken more than one meal for both her dad and herself to have somehow become absorbed into the family dynamic. It might have been due to Martha, who never bothered to make small talk, but was as direct and, yes, dramatic, as ever and spoke to both Kate and her dad as if she'd known them for years. Or perhaps it was due to Alexis who, while a little quieter than both her grandmother and her dad, was so transparently sincere and welcoming that it would probably have taken a heart of stone to resist liking her—and neither Kate nor Jim had such a heart. Or perhaps, more probably, it was really because of Castle. Castle, who was really at the center of it all, who had already become so comfortable with both Kate and her dad, accepted as part of the small Beckett family circle, and who now served as the linchpin bringing what had been two discrete family units into a larger whole.

Yes, it was because of Castle. Kate heard her dad laugh at something Alexis said and for a moment, found it hard to breathe on another rush of emotion. Oh, she missed her mom, wanted her mom there. It was so easy, somehow, to imagine her mom there—surprisingly so, since her mom had never been there—but in the warmth of a real family home, it was easy to picture her mom. Her mom who'd seemingly been the glue that held their family together so that after she'd gone, it had taken years before Kate and her dad had somehow managed to patch the Beckett family back together again, recapture some of the familial warmth they'd lost. Yes, she could picture her mom there. Her mom, who would have enjoyed Martha's dramatics and general flair for life, immediately warmed to Alexis and approved of her sweetness and her intelligence—and of course, her mom would have loved meeting Castle too.

But that could never happen now.

Because of Bracken. The reminder, never far from her consciousness these past days, tore at her mood, sent her spirits plummeting, her throat tightening and she wasn't sure if it was from suppressed sobs or a scream of rage or maybe both at the same time. Her hand tightened convulsively on her fork and for a second, she wavered, on the edge of bolting out of her seat, escaping. Hiding in the restroom or something.

But then she felt a light touch on her knee and glanced sharply over at Castle. He was carefully not looking at her, was talking to both her dad and Alexis. Keeping their attention fixed on him, so they wouldn't look at her, she realized slowly, acting as a shield of sorts.

And this time, she reached out to him, let her hand lightly grasp his knee for a moment until he, still addressing her dad and Alexis, grasped her hand with his. She turned her hand over, gripping his hand as if it were a lifeline.

And slowly, slowly, felt the tidal wave of emotion start to recede as she tried to focus on the warmth and strength of his hand holding hers. It helped although she wasn't quite sure why, at least enough to allow her to make it through the meal. For the moment, it was enough.

~To be continued…~

A/N 2: I hope everyone who celebrates it has a very happy Easter weekend.