FACE TO FACE
EPILOGUE

ONE YEAR LATER

Oh no.

Not this. Not now.

Kate took a deep breath and gripped the bathroom counter, and she lifted her head, looked at herself in the mirror. She took a few moments to study herself closely, and really, she should have realized.

Actually, she was surprised that Rick hadn't said anything. He'd always been so in tune with her body - he liked to joke that he needed to study her as much as possible for the accuracy of his sex scenes - that he should have noticed even before she did.

Unless he had, and he was going to end things because her body had changed.

She shook her head, blinked away the tears that threatened to fall. She wasn't upset, not really. It was just the worst possible timing. Rick was on a two-week book tour and wasn't due home for a few more days, and she was weeks from the biggest litigation in her young career, one that could catapult her into being offered partner.

But what she thought was just fatigue from working too hard was something completely different.

The quiet scrape of a key in the front door jolted her from her thoughts, and she splashed water on her face and threw the stick in the drawer before going out to the living room.

When she saw her boyfriend's large frame fill the entry way she couldn't help but smile, and she lifted her fingers to her lips to muffle a snicker. His back was to her, and he was shutting the door quietly, obviously trying not to make a sound in the darkness.

He left his suitcase at the door, and he moved towards the bedroom, but Kate jumped at the loud thud of his shin making contact with the coffee table.

"Shit!" he hissed, bending over and grabbing his leg.

Kate snorted, the sound echoing in the large, open room, and she saw Rick's head lift. She took pity on him and flicked the light switch next to her, illuminating the space with the warm glow from the lamps scattered throughout.

Rick blinked a few times, and then his face lit up with a smile. "You're awake," he whispered, limping towards her.

Kate grinned and covered the distance between them in a few long strides, wrapping her arms around his waist. She felt his arms encircle her, and she sighed in relief. "You're home," she breathed.

"I couldn't stay away any longer," he admitted, his lips at the top of her head. "I missed you too much."

She chuckled and gripped the back of his shirt. "You could have flown me out there, you know," she pointed out, "instead of disappointing fans."

"I didn't. My last signing was this morning. I went straight to the airport and changed my flight."

Kate leaned back so she could look up at him. "So you missed out on three days of sightseeing?" she teased.

Really, she wasn't surprised that he changed his flight. As much as he'd claimed enjoying the travel, meeting his adoring fans, and leaving little gifts around the city, he'd admitted to her after his last trip that he'd felt more homesick than he ever had.

Rick lifted his hands to cradle her jaw, and he brushed his thumbs across her cheeks, his eyes locked on hers in a tender gaze. "I didn't want to do it without you," he admits, his voice soft, loving.

She barely had a chance to smile before his mouth was on hers, his tongue slipping through the seam of her lips, stroking the roof of her mouth, curling around her tongue. She moaned and locked her arms around his neck, pulling herself flush against him, moaning when she felt his erection press against her.

She couldn't stop the roll of her hips or the slide of her fingers through his hair as she gripped his head and pushed her tongue against his. She hooked her ankle around his calf, and he groaned into her mouth, dropped his hands to her hips.

He nudged her back and she went willingly, let him lower her to the couch, and he kneeled over her. His hands slid under the t-shirt she wore, and when he pulled away long enough to tug it over her head, he glanced at it and smirked.

"Mine?" he teased, holding up the old, worn shirt.

She felt her face flush and she grabbed it from him, threw it across the room. "Yes, asshole, I wear your shirts when you're gone." She hooked her finger in the front of his flannel and raised an eyebrow. "It makes me feel like you're here. Now, are you going to replace it, or do I have to put it back on?"

Rick narrowed his eyes and lowered his mouth to hers once again.

"I'm glad I came home early," Rick murmured against the side of her breast.

Kate chuckled, her fingers trailing through the soft hair at the nape of his neck. "Me too," she husked, her voice still rough with arousal. She felt him sigh, and he lifted himself off her, sat between her feet on the opposite end of the couch.

As his eyes roamed over her naked body, he smirked, then grabbed one of her feet and dug his thumbs into the arch.

She groaned and threw her head back against the cushion. "Rick," she moaned, "that's amazing. My heels have been killing me lately." She expected her boyfriend to make some quip about her choice of shoes, but when he didn't, she lifted her head to look at him.

He was staring at her, concentration all over his face, his expression serious despite the flush still across his chest from his recent orgasm.

"What is it?" she asked when he remained silent.

He tilted his head as he switched feet. "You seemed sad," he said. "When we talked yesterday."

"Is that why you came home early?" she asked, sitting up and tugging her foot from his grip. "Of course I was sad, I missed you."

He leveled his gaze at her. "Kate."

She sighed and tucked her hair behind her ears. "That's not all," she admitted. "I'm also a little worried." When Rick just lifted an inquisitive brow, she sighed again and rolled her eyes. "Fine, I'm more than a little worried. Just-" She took a deep breath. "I'll be right back."

She grabbed her robe from the back of the bathroom door and slipped the stick in the pocket before returning to the living room.

Rick straightened his shoulders when he spotted her, and he narrowed his eyes at the robe. "It must be serious if you put on clothes," he quipped.

"It is, so can you pull your pants up?" she shot back, nodding at his lap. She sat next to him as he pulled his jeans and briefs back over his hips, and she turned to face him, tucked one leg under her. "I didn't tell you that I haven't felt that great in the last week," she began.

Rick's brows furrowed, and he reached out a hand, cupped her cheek. "No, you didn't. I wish you had, I would've come home."

"No, that wasn't necessary," she insisted, shaking her head. She covered his hand with hers and gave it a reassuring squeeze. "Just some nausea and fatigue. It wasn't enough to worry you." She took a deep breath. "But now I know what's going on."

Rick brushed his thumb across her cheekbone, his concerned eyes searching hers. When she pulled the stick from her pocket and held it towards him, he looked down, then took it, looked up at her after examining it. "Is this-" His voice cracked and he cleared his throat. "Kate, is this what I think it is?"

She nodded, her gaze locked on his, hoping, praying, that he wouldn't be upset.

His face lit up with a smile, and he dropped the positive pregnancy test, wrapped his arms around her in a crushing hug. "We're going to have a baby." He pulled back, buried his fingers in her hair, and brought her mouth to his. "I knew it," he murmured against her lips.

"Wait, what?" she asked, tugging herself out of his embrace. "You've been gone for two weeks. How did you know?"

He smirked. "You've been sensitive lately."

She leaned back and crossed her arms, raised her eyebrows. "Excuse me?"

"No, that's not what I meant. Your boobs," he explained, his ears turning pink. "I am very well acquainted with your body, Kate. You don't think I would notice how your reactions have changed? Plus, you skipped your period last month, although I figured that was stress," he added, reaching for her hand, lacing their fingers together.

"And you-" She searched his eyes, remembering how he acted last time he'd been told similar news. But nowhere was the panic, or the anger, of last time.

All she saw was love and happiness.

"You're okay with it?" she asked.

He cocked his head, a smirk tugging at his mouth. "Of course. Why wouldn't I be?"

"It's just that, well, when Meredith..." She trailed off, not wanting to bring up the catalyst of their brief separation previous year, when his ex had claimed he was the father of her unborn child.

"Oh," Rick interrupted with a wry chuckle. "Not my proudest moment. Kate, that wasn't about having a baby," he explained in a thick voice, sliding his fingers along her jaw. "That was about having a baby with her." He brushed his thumb across her chin. "But with you? God, Kate, I can't imagine anything better."

Kate swallowed around the lump of emotion in her throat and lifted her hand to cover his. "I love you," she finally managed, her voice cracking, blinking through her unshed tears.

Rick leaned forward and captured her mouth with his, swallowing her moan, held her to him as his tongue curled around hers. He tugged her onto his lap, and his hands slid down to her ass, held her close to him as he lifted his hips into hers. "Marry me," he gasped when she pulled back to catch her breath.

She cupped his face with her hands and looked into his eyes, finding them dark with arousal, but also with hope. "Are you serious?" she asked, shaking her head to clear some of the desire from her mind. "We haven't talked about it."

"We haven't talked about kids, either, but it's happening," he pointed out. "There's no reason the lack of a prior conversation should hold us back." He slid his hands up to the small of her back and leaned back against the couch. "I love you, Kate," he said, his words insistent and tender. "I've known for a long time that I want to spend the rest of my life with you. And now…" He trailed off, but when she didn't say anything, he continued. "You don't have to answer now. But I didn't want another minute to go by without you knowing that I'm all in. Forever."

"Yes," she blurted. She crushed her mouth against his, burying her fingers in his hair. "Yes," she murmured against his mouth. "Now. Immediately."

Rick chuckled and nudged her back. "No rush, love. We'll talk about when." He tucked a stray lock of hair behind her ear, stretched up to brush his lips to hers. "I love you, Kate," he muttered. "More than I thought possible."

Kate dropped her forehead to his and sighed, overwhelmed with happiness and love for him, and excitement for their future. A family, a life, a future. She wasn't sure what was going to happen with her potential partnership, but she knew one thing: with Rick by her side, they were unstoppable.

-FIN-

A/N: Thank you all for the reads, follows, favorites, and reviews. I hope you enjoyed reading as much as I enjoyed writing! As always, I am hard at work on other fics, so keep your eye on my page for whatever comes next! (Hopefully another Ficathon fic, but we shall see.)