92 Days

by Castlefan6

Authors Note: This is Totally AU; Beckett has left the hospital after her shooting, This describes the activity of each, during those 92 days without contact, both in the hospital and out. It blends some Canon dialog, courtesy of Dust Jackets Dot Com, then goes quickly and completely AU. What were each up to during this time, Taking Literary License to fill in the blanks.

I don't own Castle; I use the characters for amusement purposes only, except the ones I create.

Also, we take liberties with the timeline from Canon and use events to make this a more believable fiction, thanks.

**************************************************************************/

Chapter 8

Beckett Cabin, Upstate New York

Day 21-28

Kate's POV

Renee was busy, and precise in her actions, she let Kate lean on her to get to the bathroom, had her sit on the toilet until she retrieved a small chair, and then she changed seats. She examined the wounds as she carefully removed the bandages, and she got to work disinfecting and cleansing them.

The new bandages felt much better, whether it was Renee's gentle touch or the soothing of the medication she was using, Kate was pleased with the relief she felt, almost immediately. She had given her some pads to wipe herself where she could reach, they also were wet with disinfectant soap, that didn't need to be rinsed, and provided a cleaner, fresher feeling rather than the sweaty, smelly self she felt before Renee appeared on site.

"Kate, I told you to wipe where you could reach, without hurting yourself, your therapist will do a good job in inflicting pain on you, no use for you to add to it. Don't reach where it hurts, that's my job, I'm used to it, so don't get all shy on me now girl. I don't play for that team, I love men, and men only, so relax." She laughed but seemed to know exactly what Kate was wondering and worrying about.

She loved men, and she referred to Castle as Ricky? How well did she know him, or want to know him? Stop that Kate, it's none of your business, she mentally scolded herself. She wiped herself with the cooling pads, it wasn't her scalding hot bath, but it beat the hell out of how she had been feeling

"Kate, give us 10 good days, no infection and no problems, if you have the strength, I have a secret of how to get you into a short, and I mean short shower, understand?" Renee said she seemed to know the secrets to motivate her patients,

"Really Renee? That would be spectacular, I mean, I just don't feel clean, but these sponge wipes are the best I've had since I got shot. Where did you find them, and why doesn't the hospital use these?" Kate asked,

"Well answer to the first question, remember I took care of my Mom, and she was like you, without a shower she didn't feel clean, so I finally found these. Answer to the second question, the hospital won't spend that much money, on supplies, but to me, patient happiness is worth the cost." She smiled,

"Speaking of that, Renee, do you have my insurance information?" Kate asked,

"Well, don't worry about it now, we have all we need, so your job is to get well, how do you feel, like walking back to your chair?" Renee asked, Kate, noticed she was part nurse, part friend, and part cheerleader all rolled into one.

"Sure, and Renee, thanks, I had no idea of what it meant to have a nurse coming in here, to be honest, I was all against it, at first but now, I realize, I really do need help, at least for a little while," Kate said, quietly, the sincerity in her words was evident,

"No problem Kate, and just for the record, you aren't the first tough patient that has been sent to us, we all have our hang-ups, we just need to work together to get YOU better as soon as possible." She smiled,

"Well, I'm sure the staff at the hospital don't consider me a tough patient, they all think I am a BITCH, and in many ways, they're correct. I was, well am, angry that I got shot the way I did. When I pinned the badge on, I always knew there was that chance, and I've had a few skirmishes before, but who would think that the COWARD wound hide in a cemetery when we were paying honor to my Captain, I guess, well" she stopped talking as tears threatened, and one fell from her eye.

"I understand Kate, when Mom got the diagnosis, I hated everything, I didn't have a reason to, I just did. My mom was dying a horrible death and sporting events were still occurring, people were happy getting married, celebrating anniversaries, birthdays, and here was my mom, not knowing if she had the rest of today, much less tomorrow. I turned that into hate, for everyone, and everything" Renee said, tears filling her eyes,

Kate looked at the young lady, holding one of her hands tenderly now as she wiped so gently across her body. "Renee, can I ask a personal question, and you don't have to answer it if you don't wish to, I mean,

"You want to know how I got out of that funk, and got things turned around, right?"

Kate blushed, but nodded,

"Well, mom, actually mom and Rick tag-teamed me and reminded me of how many days I had with her and that I was fortunate enough to know that the end was coming. I could act like a spoiled child, or I could make those days count. Rick held me for hours, as I sobbed, I think I cried until I couldn't cry another tear. He didn't say a word, just held me, and when I was cried out, the hate was gone and I saw what they meant. Mom lived for six weeks more, I cherish each of those days, and Rick, he was there for me whenever I needed, day or night." She said quietly,

"You love him don't you Renee?" Kate asked softly,

"As if you don't Kate, I've seen pictures of the way you look at him when he doesn't know you're looking, but to answer your question, yes, I love him, but not like you. I love him like a brother, or someone closer than that. He's never touched me other than to hold me, and God, I tried, I really did, but he just said,"

"Rae, this wouldn't be right, well it would be great but it would be for all the wrong reasons. I'll always be here for you, but you deserve someone who has saved that same love that you have for so many, someone waiting to find you. I love you, but not that way, I hope you understand, I mean," then he kissed me, no Kate, not like that, on the top of the head like he's done Alexis millions of times. It was the sweetest rejection I ever got," she smiled,

"So, you and Rick, and I mean" Kate stammered,

"Kate, no, nothing, I love him to death, and no one is going to mistreat him, but no, not that way, he doesn't love me and won't lead me on," She said sadly,

"Well, he's different from most guys. When I first met him that's what I thought he wanted a quick romp in the sack then move on, but now, well" Kate's words faded,

"I know he told me, Kate, we're friends, the type of friends he can tell me about lady trouble, and he vents every guy who dates me, I swear he's worse than my Dad would have been, that is had he bothered to stick around," Renee said softly,

Kate smiled, as she slid on a new gown, with Renee's help and felt like a new person, she made it back to her couch again, and this time, she didn't collapse. Renee had laid out her medication in a plastic container, labeled, with the times, and day of the week they were due.

"Is there anything else Kate, I'll be back the day after tomorrow or call me on my cell, I don't live too far if you need me. REMEMBER, if you have a high fever, chills, or feel off, in any way, don't wait, get in the car and go to the ER, please" Renee patted her hand as she gathered her supplies.

"I will Renee, thank you so very much, Dad, mentioned something about a housekeeper coming in as well, so I don't know who it's going to be, but I'm going to walk back and forth to the bed to build up my strength so I can use the bed, not the couch for sleeping," she said,

"I already turned it down for you, and I'm glad you said it, I was going to tell you, couches are for sitting on and unruly male mates, other than that sleep in the bed" as they both laughed,

She patted Kate's shoulder, and looked her in the eyes, "Kate, take it one day at a time, regardless of what happens, all you can control is what happens in your life, OK?" It's tough and took me a while to understand, but it's true, I'll see you in a couple of days" as she made her way out of the door.

Kate had just caught her breath when she heard the backdoor open, and her Dad fussing in the kitchen,

"Dad, do you have a minute?" She called out,

A few minutes later her dad appeared in the doorway, with a look on his face that proved he would rather be anywhere but here right now,

"What is it, Katherine? What do you need?" He said softly,

"I need to apologize, really apologize and talk to my dad, not as the detective, but as his daughter, if he has a minute,"

XxX

Eva's Townhouse

Day 21-28

7:00 PM

Rick's POV

Rick had called Paula last evening and left her a message to alert her of the news blast that was going to happen. Her instructions were to let them print the pictures, the only thing he wanted to be scrubbed was any personal information such as an address, age, and the last name for Eva since she was a behind the scene person, no one needed to know that, or any reference to him and Ellie from the previous time in New York.

He arrived at Eva's townhouse promptly at seven, she was right it was very close to his hotel, with a bottle of wine, and a bouquet of flowers that was close to the perfume she wore in fragrance. She wore something that was a cross between the cherry shampoo of Beckett, and Ellie's Paradis Provence by Shalini.

Ellie could have been a commercial for them, she smelled just as described in their marketing, (Fields of blue Lavender, Thyme, Orange Blossoms, Sunflowers following the golden Sun, ancient Olive trees, the sky that turns pink as it touches the azure of the Mediterranean and amorous nights drenched in Jasmine.)

Whatever fragrance that Eva wore, he loved it, and thought it was really pleasant, not overpowering, but remained in his nostrils long after he had left her. Perhaps that was it, the lingering, the wanting effect it had on men, after the date.

He shook his head, "This is business Rick, it's far too early for any of those shenanigans" he reminded himself. The other side of the brain argued that it was also stupid to eat alone when a lovely lady had invited him.

He was about to ring the bell when the door flew open and he was greeted with a brief kiss, nothing like she had laid on him last night, perhaps it was the alcohol after all, and not him, he thought.

"Right on time, come in Rick, how are you today? What have you been up to, and it better not have been working, you're supposed to chill on weekends," she laughed, as she took the flowers, then the wine, this was sweet, you weren't supposed to bring anything remember, no strings attached." She smiled, and kissed his cheek,

"I'll be right back, I need to get these into a vase, and some water, again, they're beautiful Rick, thank you." She smiled at him,

"You're welcome Eva, and to answer your question, I was working, well writing some edits Gina, my editor had for the second Heat book, Naked Heat. I did manage to get in my run, and workout, so trying to keep my high school figure," he waggled his eyebrows, patted his tight abs, and laughed, he felt comfortable around Eva for some reason.

"Yeah right, as if you needed it, you look great Rick, and I'm not just blowing smoke, you do. So many guys after school seem to forget the theory of input and output, if you're going to go out and drink, you're going to have to work it off, or it will suddenly appear in places you never wanted, "She said, as Rick cracked up, laughing,

"I'll have to remember that Eva, all I ever thought was, well I don't want to look like the jocks at the 25th year class reunion, their 44-inch chests now around their middle, or the guys saying they wore the same size belt, but they didn't admit they had to wear it several inches lower than they used to," Rick said and had to catch Eva. She was laughing so hard she actually snorted, which made them both laugh and they wound up on the couch, her in his lap, his hands on her gorgeous legs, a lot higher than they should be.

It was only a moment of awkwardness, Eva simply kissed his cheek and pushed herself up, "Thanks Rick, that's the best laugh I've had in, almost forever," she smiled still trying to keep from laughing again.

"What can I help you with Eva, something, well besides you and the flowers smells delicious" Rick replied,

"Well, the bread is in the oven if you want to give it two minutes then use the hot pads there and take it out, I have the lasagna resting, and the salad is in the fridge. Let me run and freshen up, I'll be right back, and don't burn my buns" she said, then both started laughing all over again, as she realized what she had said.

They enjoyed a delicious meal, Eva was a hell of a cook, and the conversation was free, and easy like they had been friends forever. As Eva brought out a small portion of tiramisu, for dessert with coffee's she said, "No Rick, I didn't make that, only one place to get that here, Teressa's Bakery, down three blocks." She smiled as he stood and pushed her chair in again, as he had done the entire evening.

Rick started gathering dishes when they were done and taking them to the kitchen, Eva, smiled, yeah, he's a hell of a catch that someone threw away she thought as she followed his lead.

She entered the kitchen, "Dishwasher or wash by hand?" Rick asked,

"How about the dishwasher, then we can take another coffee or a drink if you prefer and just sit and visit, I need to tell you about a couple of calls I received today but not while we were eating." She smiled,

Once everything was cleared and loaded in the dishwasher, each grabbed a cup of coffee, well Rick grabbed the one Eva had already poured and mixed his cream into and headed for the living room, Rick following her. "Love Seat, OK?" she asked,

Rick smile, "Sure, I'll try to behave this time and keep from feeling your legs all up", he laughed

"Oh, don't say that, what if I feel yours all up?" she asked, leaving him speechless for a moment, then he knew she had got him as she burst out laughing,

They sat and she began to speak, "I have to confess, Ellie called me this morning, concerned," She said,

Rick looked puzzled, "Concerned, what about Eva, I thought everything was fine, and we did the negotiations before any of us even had one drink?" He said, concern clearly in his voice and on his face,

"Oh, nothing like that Rick, she was thrilled with the contract, even her agent told her she did better on her own than she would have by going through him, he's still taking his cut," she laughed, "No she just asked me how big a fool she made of herself last night, and how badly she threw herself at you in public," Eva said as Rick blushed,

"I don't think she has anything to worry about, I mean, from a man's perspective the kisses were great, but nothing that would get us into trouble with the studio or the fans, well as far as I know," Rick said,

Eva smiled big, "I'm glad you said that, it's the same message I gave her. Lion Gate has a morale clause in our contracts, but if they want to enforce that, half the front office and most of the EP's will get fired for screwing their staff.

"We did what three people out enjoying themselves would do, celebrate, and we kissed a little. I agree from the woman's perspective, I enjoyed every second of ours," she watched his face,

"I know Rick, you got burned with Gina mixing business with pleasure, so I'm not pushing anything, you know how I feel, no commitment or strings attached." She leaned in and kissed him quickly on the lips as she took his coffee cup,

"More coffee or are you ready for the wine?" Eva asked with a smile,

"Neither, the wine is for you Eva, I hope you enjoy it, and well, I'm curious about what we need to talk about, eh, besides Ellie" he blushed,

"Well, based on the performance of our progress, the studio got a call from the execs, it seems they're interested in working out some timeline for the second movie, Naked Heat. When they learned we had Ellie committed for all five of the potential films, they decided to make the request formal.

"Our current timeline will put us at a world premiere in 68 days, I spoke to Gina, Naked Heat, in book form is due to be released 30 days later, then we can start resuming filming after giving the cast and crew the added 45 days off, this is just a tentative timeline, but I wanted to know what you thought Rick?

"Is that enough of a break for you? The only condition the brass had was that you were the EP on the film, you can bring Roy along, but, it's your show this time." She said as she smiled,

"Well, you've been busy, and productive I must say. Damn Eva, how did you have time to pull this all off from the time we had dinner last evening till now?" Rick asked,

"Well, I may have started pre-negotiations when the studio saw how smoothly the filming was going, the missing piece was locking Ellie down, at least in their eyes." She smiled, as she flashed him a shot of the legs, he had groped not more than a few minutes earlier. Her legs were every bit as nice as K', no stop that, business first.

"Eva if we land this, I want you to be co-executive producer with me, we both know that Roy has added little to the project, and well, I'll have the talk with him to start looking, I don't want to surprise him," Rick said,

"Do you mean that Rick, seriously? My name just below yours on the credits?" she said, as she rushed and sat on his lap,

"Yes, I'm serious, but one downside, you know tha"

"I know, I know, regardless of my role, we can kiss, but we can't take it farther, you need to keep business and pleasure separate. Rick, I know who broke your heart and I understand you need time. I'm here, not going anywhere, and to answer your question, I would be honored to take on your Executive Producer number two slot. Thank you for thinking of me and having the confidence to give me a shot at it" She said as she stole a little bit longer kiss on his lips before standing and pulling him up into a hug.

"You know we can't say anything to anyone about this, right, especially until I talk to Roy, and the negotiations are concluded with the brass, OK?" Rick almost whispered in her ear, God how did she get this close he thought, she did smell heavenly.

"OK? But I meant what I said, and thank you for the lovely flowers, wine, and the evening. It's been a long time since I've entertained, but it was worth the wait." She said,

He walked slowly to the door, the old Rick Castle would be dragging her, or be drugged across the room, half-naked by this time into the bedroom, but it's better this way. She followed him and kissed him sweetly goodnight, neither wanted to be the first to break the kiss, so it went on until she heard a noise in the staircase. She gently pulled back and gave him one more peck, "Good night Rick, thank you again, it was a lovely evening"

"Good night Eva, that it was. I'll see you Monday unless you want to do something tomorrow"

"Tomorrow, what did you have in mind, Rick?" Eva asked, thinking she didn't care if they went to cut grass and clean the highways in the heat, she just loved being in his company.

"How about a trip through the park, and maybe, I buy lunch, I'll see you say, how is"

"Let's make it 9:00 AM Rick, plenty of time to walk in the cool and work up an appetite," She smiled,

"OK, till tomorrow at 9:00, Goodnight Eva," one last kiss and he was gone, thinking OK, this is slow, we can do this.

Eva was leaning against her door, touching her lips and placing the kiss from there to her heart, yeah, this was really a great project,

TBC