Thanks again to every body who reviewed and pointed out that baseball isn't played in December. I changed that now.
I appreciate all your constructive criticism.
O-o-o-o-o
January 1999
Kate stepped out of her room to see if her mother needed some help with preparing Sunday breakfast. It would help her concentrate on something else than her dream.
She'd dreamed about Mystery-Man again. She'd dreamed that she run into him and that he was thrilled about the prospect of them having a child together. Then the scene had changed and they'd been walking with a stroller and occasionally stopped to kiss each other. Then she'd dreamed of celebrating Christmas together instead of sitting around with her parents, trying to concentrate on the celebrations and not think about him like she had done.
Then she'd woken up and found herself unable to go back to sleep. It was too early to get up for her but she wasn't surprised when she found her mother already relaxing on the couch and reading a book. Her mother was an early riser by nature and was always up at ungodly hours.
Kate stopped to watch her mother read. She had definitely inherited her ability to focus on a book without noticing her surroundings from her mother. Johanna's brows were furrowed in confusion as if she was trying to make sense of something. Kate smiled. What was her mother reading now? A mystery book, no doubt.
Kate inwardly sighed. She had enjoyed her first mystery book so much but when she'd tried to finish it she just couldn't. It reminded her so much of her encounter with Mystery-Man that every time she even looked at the book she felt sad and regretful.
Kate kept watching her mom. She seemed intrigued with her book. Kate wished she could read mysteries without starting to cry every time too.
But then Kate's gaze drifted from her mother's face to the book she was holding. Since Johanna was laying on her back and holding the book up in the air, Kate could easily see the front and back cover of the book.
Her breath caught. Unintentionally she made a step forward and snatched to book out of her mother's fingers.
„Hey" Johanna protested. But Kate didn't hear a thing. All she could do is stare at the picture on the back of her mother's book. The picture of a young handsome man with bright blue eyes.
„Katie?" Johanna asked confused. Why was her daughter staring at her book?
„That's him" Kate whispered, still looking at the picture.
„What?" Johanna gasped and got up from the couch to stand beside her daughter to look at the picture.
„He is your Mystery-Man?" Johanna asked. Her daughter had slept with her favorite author? „You met Richard Castle?"
„Richard" Kate tried out his name. Ugh, no! „Rick" she tried again. Better, much better but so intimate.
„Castle" she whispered. Yeah, that was perfect. It rolled perfectly off her tongue.
Johanna smiled. Just wait, Katie, just wait. We are going to find him now. She left her daughter standing in the middle of the living room, staring at the book. Johanna opened the internet browser on her computer and started to google away.
A few minutes later Johanna came back just to find her daughter still staring at the picture. She smirked a little but schooled her features before she approached Kate.
„Come on, Katie" she pulled the book out of her daughter's fingers and put it down on the coffee table. „Help me with breakfast, will you?"
„Yeah" she nodded, still deep in thoughts.
During their preparations of Sunday breakfast Johanna managed to distract her daughter from all thoughts revolving around Richard Castle. They made pancakes, waffles, bacon, eggs and cut fruit.
„There are my two perfect girls with perfect breakfast" Jim smiled when he emerged from the bedroom. He kissed both of them on the cheek while asking if there was anything he could help with. Of course there wasn't. So he sat down on his place on the kitchen table while Johanna and Kate brought the last plates.
„Katie and I are going out after breakfast" Johanna told her husband while they ate.
„We are?" Kate asked simultaneously with Jim's „What are you two doing?"
„Yes, we are" Johanna directed at Kate. To Jim she said „Girl's trip. None of your business"
„Where are we going?" Kate asked. She didn't really feel like going out. She wanted to steal her mom's book and read it, maybe look some more at the handsome man on the back cover. And then she wanted to think about how she could get in contact with him and once she figured it out she needed to find her courage to actually do so.
„Just wait and see, Katie" Johanna told her, a secret smirk on her lips. „It will be good for you. Trust me"
Kate sighed, knowing there was no way she was getting around that. Whatever her mother had planned she was already excited about it. And when Johanna was excited about something there was no arguing.
That's how Kate found herself in the passenger seat of her mother's car an hour later, still not knowing where they were going but dressed in her favorite jeans and a nice blouse on her mother's insistence.
„Care to tell me where you are taking me?" Kate asked a little annoyed. She knew her mother meant well but right now she felt like going back to bed. If that was because of the pregnancy or the recent discover of Mystery-Man's identity, she didn't know. And she didn't really care. She just wanted to hide in her room and read his book.
„To a book-signing" Johanna replied.
„A book-signing?" Kate's voice was full of suspicion.
„Yeah. This author I like just happens to do one today." Johanna replied with a mischievous smirk.
„Mom, no!" Kate immediately started to protest when she caught up with her mother's intentions.
„Katie, yes" Johanna gave back.
„Turn around, mom" Kate insisted. Panic started to creep in.
„No, we are going to meet your Mystery-Man"
„Mom, no. I don't want to" now the panic in her voice was evident.
Johanna glanced at her. What was wrong? Sure she'd anticipated Katie's protests but not like this. Not like she was actually afraid.
„What's wrong?" Johanna asked concerned.
„I just don't want to go" Kate insisted stubbornly.
„You know you have to give me a reason if you want me to turn around, Katie" Johanna said.
Kate glared at her for a few seconds but then she deflated. „What if he doesn't even remember me? Doesn't recognize me. It's been three months. Maybe it was only a one-night-stand to him. And if it meant more to him than he probably hates me now for disappearing. I can't do this, mom. There are so many ways this could go wrong. I'm not ready to face him yet"
„Or it could go right" Johanna said. „It's not going to get easier, Katie. The longer you wait, the harder it gets. You just have to be brave."
Brave. That's not how Kate felt. But maybe her mother was right. Maybe lying in her bed and turning thoughts around wasn't going to help her find her courage.
o-o-o-o-o
Kate was fidgeting beside her. She was incredibly nervous. She'd smoothed her hair and blouse ten times in the last five minutes. Johanna could almost feel her thoughts running in circles. It was starting to get on her nerves as well. Of course she could understand why Katie was nervous but that didn't stop her from finding her fidgeting unnerving.
„Why don't you get us a coffee from the shop next door, Katie?" Johanna suggested when she couldn't take it anymore. There were still a lot of people (mostly women) in front of them and the line was progressing very slowly.
„Sure" Kate replied relieved. Waiting was making her even more nervous than she already was. How would he react? Would he even recognize her? Did he hate her? Would he talk to her? How would he react when she told him that she was pregnant? Would he want to have anything to do with her and the baby?
Unfortunately after Kate had left the bookstore the line seemed to move forward a lot faster than it had before and soon Johanna found herself second in line and Katie still wasn't back. She studied the young man recently flirting charmingly with the woman, whose book he was just signing.
„Thanks for coming" Richard Castle ended his talk with the woman in front of Johanna. Now was her turn and Katie still wasn't back yet. Johanna threw one last look back to the entrance of the bookstore before she made a step forward to approach him at his desk.
Johanna turned her head to look at him just to find him already staring at her. The charming smile she'd seen him use on the woman that had been in front of her in line all but gone. Instead she could see a vulnerability in his eyes, heartbreak that he'd been hiding behind his charming mask.
Johanna cleared her throat. „Mr Castle?"
He shook his head and pulled up his smile again, still slightly shaken up.
„Sorry" he smiled as he took the book from her, studying her features intently. Johanna smirked. She knew her daughter resembled her. So much for Katie's fear that he wouldn't remember her. „You just…" he broke up. „You remember me of someone I met" he sighed heavily.
„Oh really?" Johanna asked.
„Yeah" he said. „I thought we had something special but then…" he trailed of, heartbreak in his eyes and voice. Then he seemed to remember that he was working and should play his charming role not tell some fan about his personal problems. He shook his head again and put the mask on again.
„So? Whom do I make this out to?" he asked but before Johanna could reply, someone else did.
„Kate Beckett" said her daughter and Richard Castle, who'd already bent down over the book, ready to scribble a name, immediately looked up. His pen slipped out of his fingers as he caught sight of Kate.
„You" Castle breathed between awe, confusion and heartbreak.
„Hi" Kate replied shyly and Johanna watched the sparks between them fly. Well, her daughter hadn't been kidding when she'd said she'd felt a connection with him. The whole room could probably feel it.
Well, maybe not the whole room. Definitely not the dark-haired woman who rudely interrupted their staring contest. Johanna disliked her immediately.
„Richard!" she said sharply. „What's taking you so long? There are still at least fifty people in line!"
The woman glanced at Kate, then back at the author and rolled her eyes in annoyance. „Just write your number in her book and meet her after the signing. You don't have time for this now!"
Richard Castle glared at the woman who must be his publicist or something before he turned back to Kate. He smiled at her, shyness, awe and …was that love?... in his eyes.
„Have coffee with me after I'm done here?" he asked, nerves evident in his voice.
Kate nodded, smiling brightly. „Okay" she agreed.
His eyes brightened up too, the corners of his mouth almost reaching his eyes.
„Great!" he exclaimed. „I'll meet you next door in about an hour?"
Kate nodded again, seemingly unable to produce words. Johanna rolled her eyes. What had happened to her eloquent, sassy daughter?
They just smiled at each other and Johanna had to pull Katie out behind her. Even as the next woman approached his desk he kept throwing glances in their direction.
O-o-o-o-o
Kate Beckett.
Kate.
Finally he knew her name.
She came back. She came back! He felt giddy with joy. She was even more beautiful than he remembered. He couldn't wait until the signing was finally over and he got to meet her in the coffee shop next door.
She wouldn't bail, would she? She came to him. She would be there, right?
The rest of the signing he was caught between nervousness and excitement.
O-o-o-o-o
„What if he doesn't want anything to do with me after I tell him that I'm pregnant?" Kate asked, staring worriedly into her empty coffee cup which had never contained coffee in the first place since the doctor had told her that she could only have one coffee per day due to the pregnancy.
„That won't happen" Johanna said for what felt like the thousandth time.
„You don't know that" Kate insisted once again.
„Yes, I do. That man is head over heels for you. Just like you are for him" Kate opened her mouth to deny it but Johanna stopped her before a word could come out. „Don't even try, Katie"
„Maybe" Kate shrugged. „But that doesn't include a baby"
„Don't worry so much, honey. Talk to him, see how he reacts. Don't assume. He seems like a nice guy" Johanna told her. Then she caught sight of the man finally entering the cafe. Johanna let out a relieved sigh. She loved her daughter. But this nervousness and insecurity was slowly starting to get on her nerves. This was so not like her daughter.
„There he is" Johanna said. „See you at home, honey." She got up, kissed her daughter's cheek and walked out of the cafe, greeting Richard Castle briefly on her way out.