God Said

Chapter 18

Rick let Kate pull him outside after they put on coats since she was going outside. "This way." She walked with him to the end of the house, pulled out a key and unlocked a door, and then took him inside. "Now that you're here this is our space," Kate told him.

Rick saw a living room, a kitchen that had a table, one bedroom with one bed, a bathroom, and a stacked washer and dryer. "Mom calls it a mother-in-law suite but its ours now. We just have to move in. It even has a crib for Alexis." Kate was so happy.

"Her name is Wednesday now," Rick corrected her.

"Wednesday?" Kate gaped at him. "I'm Angel. I hate my name!" It gave her one more reason to be angry with her mother.

"I'm Adam," Rick said and rolled his eyes.

Kate stepped into him and let him hold her. "What are we going to do?" She didn't want to be here. This wasn't her dream and her mother was the cause of it.

"We adapt and wait. What else is there to do? A United States Senator wants your mother dead," Rick pointed out.

"But why are we here? He's after her not us," Kate said.

"You obviously haven't read my books. If he can't get to your mother he kidnaps you and your father. She gives herself up to be killed or he kills you both. Naturally after your mother does just that and is dead you two have to die as well.

"They didn't have a choice but to include you and your dad. And I'm here because of you." Rick tightened his hold on her.

"I guess." Kate let him win that one.

"Johanna…April tells me you aren't talking to her. She's hurting. She didn't plan for this to happen. How was she supposed to know this bozo would want her dead?" Rick told her what she likely already knew.

"She's the reason for all of this. She kept secrets and lied to us. Dad's still angry with her." Kate found that Rick wouldn't let go of her.

"She did what she thought was right. If you and your dad got involved they would be in direct danger instead of just family members. So she was wrong. She'll be wrong again and so will you. So will I and so will your dad. It's just a question of when.

"You might want to give her a break. Your silence is hurting her. She's your mother." Rick tried to reach her but she remained silent.

In the end Rick moved his suitcase to this bedroom and watched as Kate did the same. "I'm sleeping here. I love you," Kate told him yet again. Now that she had said it she realized it was really easy to keep saying it.

"It's a good thing I love you too. It looks like our bedroom is going to be tight." They had one dresser and Alexis's crib and changing table took up most of the rest of the bedroom.

The entire space was a bit tight. "You're sure you don't want to live in the main house?" Rick asked her.

"Yes!" Kate quickly replied and hung up some clothes in their little closet that doubled as the laundry room.

Rick sighed. He was betting it was because Kate…Angel was still angry with her mother. Still Rick took up half the dresser and tried to find space to hang some clothes.

That was the thing about being here. They both only had what they had brought with them from San Francisco. Everything else was in storage somewhere else now. Likely in boxes.

The move went really fast if not a little cold. "I don't know about you but I need a new coat. I lived in California; it's freezing outside."

"I got Dad to take me to a store to buy one. I'm warm now. I have to go from building to building most days. It's cold here. Lovely but cold!" Kate even shivered a little and since she was done she stepped into Rick again so he could hold her.

"Tell me you love me again," Kate asked him.

"I loved you after our first kiss. I love you even more now. Your mother loves you too, you know. She gave birth to you and raised you." Rick tried again and felt her tighten her hold on him. He would try again later.

"Can we go eat now?" Rick pleaded. "I'm starving. That burger I had in Seattle just isn't cutting it."

oO{}O{}Oo

Dinner was very uncomfortably silent. Neither Jim nor Kate even tried to talk to Johanna. Even if he meant Angel, Mike, and April. It forced him to sit there and eat and say nothing.

However, he did help clean up after while Jim retreated to the living room and Kate took Alexis with her.

"Is it always like a morgue in here?" Rick asked Johanna after he brought the last of it into the kitchen.

"Noticed that, did you? I've tried but they're both still really angry with me. I'm beginning to be afraid that I'm going to be divorced." Johanna had real fears.

"Well I'm here. Kate…Angel, tells me that Jim…Mike, has the bookstore again tomorrow after taking Angel to school first. I want to leave Alexis…Wednesday with you and help him at the store all day. I happen to love books. Maybe I can talk to him." Rick was willing to help. This was Kate's family.

"Would you?" Johanna suddenly saw some light. "I'll keep her. I'll be happy to keep her. She's so cute. I really miss the orange hair, though," Johanna told him which had Rick chuckling.

"I barely even recognized Kate." Rick groaned. "Angel."

"I'm so very sorry but I'm truly glad you're here," Johanna admitted. She desperately needed someone to help her get her family back.

"When's your birthday?" Rick queried since he suddenly had an idea if the timing would work.

"February 4th, why?" Johanna didn't see why he needed to know that except to get her a present that she didn't really need.

"About a month from now. That's actually pretty good. I've got an idea. Just leave it to me," Rick told her. Johanna clearly didn't get it but she did start to smile.

oO{}O{}Oo

Kate had obviously not thought this through as she walked into the bedroom after taking a shower and letting Rick take his. She had every intention of making love to him just like always. Except Alexis's crib was practically right next to the bed.

In San Francisco they had made love in her bedroom so Alexis didn't have to see or hear anything. Now what was she going to do? The living room and dining room were already pretty full. The kitchen was an "L" shape and didn't have that much space.

Kate looked down at her and saw that she was smiling back at her. "You're not even asleep." Kate couldn't resist her so she picked her up, took her to bed with her, and placed her on her chest as she lay on her back. "You're really cute but I want to make love to your daddy. So I need you to go to sleep," Kate told her. "Sleep, you're really tired so go to sleep for me. Please." She had gone without making love for eleven long days and she was horny.

What she hadn't planned on doing was going to sleep before, with, or after Alexis did.

Rick walked in wearing just his pajama bottoms. He didn't usually wear them and counted himself lucky that he'd even brought them. It was cold outside so it was cool inside. However he walked into the bedroom and saw a sleeping Kate with a sleeping Alexis on her chest.

It gave him another chance to make a memory he was never going to forget. He was still happy that Kate hadn't run when she found out about Alexis. Looking at her now showed that she had adjusted to Alexis beautifully. He wasn't sure how he could love her more but he was anxious for when or if that day came.

Since Alexis was asleep and he didn't want her to fall off of Kate and fall to the floor, he carefully lifted up Alexis, kissed her, and put her in her crib. Then he moved around to the other side of the bed and very carefully turned Kate on her side and pulled her in tight to him. He had really missed having her at his side each night. This felt so much better.

oO{}O{}Oo

Kate got out of the jeep and leaned in through the window to kiss Rick and jogged into her building for her class. For a change she was happy to be going to school. Her grand plan for last night had clearly not worked out and while she had at first objected, she gave in and was going to help him move back into the main house so they could find a way to make love to each other and not have Alexis watch them.

"So show me this bookstore of yours," Rick asked Jim and watched him drive. He still wasn't sure just what he thought about living in Anchorage. He just wasn't a cold-weather-filled-with-ice-and-snow-everywhere kind of guy.

oO{}O{}Oo

Rick spent the day helping Jim. Thanks to Rick who knew how to sell books or at least what was supposed to work, he spent the entire day moving books around and putting books that they really needed to get rid of right up front where customers couldn't miss them and made a handmade sign saying that they were on sale.

"Are you planning to be angry with your wife the rest of your life?" Rick asked Jim.

"I haven't decided. I have a problem with secrets and being lied to," Jim told him. Since they didn't have any customers at the moment he was helping Rick move books around as directed.

"Have you considered asking her the timeline of how everything happened? You're both lawyers. In my research the police create a timeline for everything. When did the victim die? Did their best suspect have access to him during that time? If he didn't then who did?

"He put out a hit on your wife. Exactly when did that happen? She said she had help. Who was her help? Was he really any help? A precinct captain sounds like help to me. FBI help sounds even better.

"Can I ask a question since I don't have an answer. Don't senators sit on chairs? Agriculture, Finance, and others I probably haven't even heard of. What if one of them is FBI?" Rick questioned him.

Jim actually stopped setting books in place. "There are twenty-four committees and yes, one of them will allow access to FBI updates," Jim admitted. He also knew he hadn't given her a chance to really explain or provide a timeline.

"Still she wasn't going to tell us until after dinner at a restaurant. Lying by omission is still a lie. Don't the police or military for that matter call for support? Aren't I support?" Jim demanded.

"Are you?" Rick countered. Suddenly they got a customer so their conversation came to an end.

oO{}O{}Oo

It was time to go home so Jim was locking the door. "Do we stop and get…Angel or go home?"

Jim grinned since even they still had trouble with their new names. "It's Thursday, she only has the one class today so she would have taken a taxi home."

"Works for me. Personally I could use a good, home-cooked meal." He had been eating room service and takeout for days and was tired of it. He couldn't even cook his own.

oO{}O{}Oo

They both find April in the kitchen cooking dinner. "If you are looking for…Wednesday, Kat…Angel took over the second she came home. She's somewhere. Except she's been spending a lot of time moving back out of the mother-in law suite. I'm guessing it wasn't big enough," Johanna mentioned.

"It was a bit tight and it's a big house," Rick admitted.

Johanna nodded. "Dinner is about twenty minutes so you two are on time."

"I think your husband may have some questions for you," Rick said quietly. "When he's ready to ask them. He really is hot about secrets and lies."

"Yeah, thank you for trying." Johanna didn't know what else to do but let him cool off.

"We're both back at the store tomorrow so I'm not done with him just yet," Rick assured her. He rummaged around, found something to snack on that didn't ruin his dinner, and went off in search of Kate and his daughter.

oO{}O{}Oo

"And?" Rick questioned Jim the next day as they spent their time dusting and cleaning when they didn't have a customer.

"I didn't talk to her," Jim said sheepishly.

"So you don't know all the facts yet. I thought you were a lawyer?" Rick questioned him and heard him grumble so he must have hit a nerve. Rick remained silent till he was back after getting them lunch.

Rick decided it was now or never and he'd had the courage to bring it so he retrieved it from a coat pocket and set it on the check out counter in front of him.

"What's this?" It looked suspiciously familiar but he hadn't seen one in a long time.

"Open it." Rick was sweating this. Given how angry Jim was he didn't know where it stopped or if he was angry about everything.

Jim picked it up, opened it, and now was certain what it was. "It's gorgeous. This is what I think it is, isn't it?" Jim questioned him.

"I bought it after I was told I was going to come here. I don't know what she'll say or even when it will actually take place. I'm well aware of our age difference. My first fear was that I had a baby but she's made it past that pretty well. Next was the age difference.

"But I'm old-fashioned. I didn't get to do this with Meredith. Her parents were dead. Actually I wouldn't have even asked her if she hadn't been pregnant. That's what you do right? Offer to marry the woman you got pregnant?

"So I'm asking you for your permission to ask your daughter to marry me. If she'll have me. Maybe she's the one that has a problem with our age difference." Rick didn't think so but one never knew for certain.

"She told us that she loved you. I think that was the time when she was finally admitting it to herself. She's as stubborn as her mother. She's taught Katie well." Jim looked at the ring again.

Jim closed the box and held it out to him to take back. "You've got it, son. Katie gave us a number of scares with her idea of boyfriends. She finally found one that's worth keeping. As for Alexis, we both know she loves her. If you're worried about the age difference I don't think she sees it. She's been too grown up for her own good since she was really young," Jim told him and watched Rick take back the box.

"Did you know she refused a nightlight? We don't think it was because she wasn't scared. We're pretty sure she was. But she wouldn't let it defeat her. She was willing to fight back against the dark.

"Just watch her stubborn streak. It runs wide and very deep," Jim told him. "Welcome to the family, son, whenever that date actually happens."

oO{}O{}Oo

The very next day Kate was awake and resting against Rick. Last night's sex had been her first in almost a week and when she moved a leg to put her leg between his she was reminded what doing without sex for that long meant to her muscles. Still it had her grinning. She loved both of them. She knew it and wasn't afraid to admit it.

She still wasn't overly happy that she was taking classes in Anchorage instead of San Francisco but at least her dream was still alive. Today's two classes were late enough that she didn't have to get up early. But if she wanted a ride to school she did indeed have to get up early.

Today, however, she got a passionate kiss goodbye after she was dropped off at school.

Today it was Johanna and Rick at the store. Johanna saw a slightly different interior and ended up helping him to keep redesigning the interior. Tomorrow would be the big test to see if this did anything. It would be the weekend and paperwork showed that most of their sales took place on weekends.

oO{}O{}Oo

The next day was Jim and their lone employee which left Rick, Kate, Alexis, and Johanna at home. Johanna was somewhere while Kate was holding Alexis and Rick was sitting across from her typing away.

Rick stopped and flexed his fingers. "You're still here? Go talk to your mother." Rick pushed her a little.

"Why should I?" Kate was still just as angry as her dad was.

"Because she's your mother. She loves you. You told me once that she had become your best friend. Best friends talk to each other." Rick tried to reach her yet she just sat there and kept trying to get Alexis who was awake to keep smiling at her.

"You want to be a lawyer. Your client has secrets. If you want to serve him you need to find out those secrets. You can't just assume. You're a lawyer, not a judge. So stop judging her and go talk to her. Find out everything she knows and why she did what she did.

"Or find a different job." Rick gave her a bigger push.

"FINE!" Kate was angry but realized he had a point. She handed Alexis over to him and went in search of her mother.

oO{}O{}Oo

Rick was happy she was gone. He had finally gotten past her stubborn streak. Except that didn't last long when he heard Kate yelling. She was angry again and he sighed. Even he didn't know everything. But she wasn't his mother.

His mother was still in New York City after being informed that her son wouldn't be talking to her for perhaps months. The Marshal couldn't tell her much else. He was safe, Alexis was safe, and everyone he knew was safe. She would just have to wait.

Suddenly the house was silent and Rick didn't know if that was a good thing or bad.