Lightning Flashes - Chapter 8


One night of staying with Rick turns into two, then three, and after a disastrous attempt at being home on her own that results in her calling him at two in the morning near tears, she gives in and accepts that she'll be staying with her friend until she's cleared by a doctor to go back to work. She hates it and somehow hates that she's getting used to it – being here with him and Alexis, making dinners (watching Rick make dinners) each night – at the same time.

To say she's a bad patient is an understatement. She's grumpy, argumentative, snippy, and impatient with Rick when he tries to help, which only makes her feel worse. He's taking good care of her and she's taking her pain and frustration out on him.

He doesn't flinch, though. He knows she doesn't mean any of it. He knows she's happy to be there with him – and not just because moving her upper body is still an ordeal. He's keeping her sane even when he's making her a little crazy, keeping her entertained when she's bored, and doing his best to give her space but still be there when she asks for him. He understands the situation and forgives her for her bad days, which is more than she deserves at times, really.

It also helps for him to see her recovering, she thinks. Eases his mind in a way simply having her check in from her apartment each night won't.

Having the extra hand (just one, given how tender her side still is) with Alexis is merely a perk for him. Kate doesn't mind helping, in fact it's a balm to the ragged pieces of her – physical and otherwise – to spend time sitting with Alexis, tickling her little tummy, and watching as the girl grows a little more each day. Gone is the stationary little one. In her place is a rolling fiend; more than once in the last few days, Kate's put her on one side of the living room and looked up a moment later to find Alexis halfway across the plush carpet.

(The third time it happened, she'd wised up and put throw pillows down to keep Alexis from rolling off the carpet and onto the hardwood.)

"We're going to have to get her to crawl at some point," Rick murmurs one afternoon as they watch Alexis happily move from her stomach to her back over and over. "So she can work her legs and be ready to walk."

Beckett nods, drawing her lip between her teeth. "I'm sure she'll crawl soon. This is just the first step, no pun intended, right? She's learning that she can move on her own before she starts exploring all the ways to make it happen."

He smiles, reaching for his water and offering her a sip. Kate takes the bottle, lifting it to her lips and drinking her fill before handing it over to him. She ignores his amused look; he'd offered the water to her; he should've been prepared for her to drink it.

"Speaking of walking," she says, wondering how he's going to take her next words. He's been reluctant to let her out of his sight – save for when he ducks out to grocery shop and retrieve things from her place on her behalf (and she'd drawn the line at him poking through her underwear drawer after the first time when she'd been asleep) – preaching instead all about making sure she rests and relaxes. Part of her wonders if his imagination is running away with him and he's afraid she's a target for retaliation. "I'm getting a little bit stir-crazy, Rick. I need to get out of the house."

He nods, looking thoughtful. "Let's take a walk, then – all of us. Alexis and I could use some fresh air, too, I think."

A bemused smile touches her lips. "You're not just coming with me because you're worried I might pass out on the way back, are you?"

"No," he says, just shy of nonchalant and she lifts an eyebrow. "I want to stretch my legs too, and I can't exactly leave the baby here alone, now can I?"

She snorts. "What? You afraid she'd going to throw a wild party and not invite you?"

"Oh yeah, definitely. And we can't have that."

"No, never," she teases, waving off his help as she gets to her feet. "Okay, let's do that. I'll even let you buy me some food on the way back."

Rick grins, holding out his hands to her once she's upright. Kate rolls her eyes but grasps his fingers and pretends she's hauling him up. She tries to ignore how close it puts him; tries not to think about how warm he'd be if she slips her arms around his waist and presses her face to his chest.

"I'll get my shoes," he says, his eyes bright with mischief.

Kate exhales. Maybe getting out of the loft will be good for both of them.


The walk is exactly what she needs. It's cool for this time of year, which makes strolling easier. Even Alexis enjoys the opportunity to get out, to see more than just their four walls. And most importantly, both Kate and Rick seem to relax once again. The protective hunch to his shoulders seems to melt away and as a result, Beckett finds herself relaxing even more.

They make a few circles of the block before branching out a little farther, setting their sights on the park. She knows he's doing it on purpose, making their way to a place with benches and fewer people but she doesn't comment; the chance to relax when the city is relatively calm is never a bad thing.

"Snack?" he offers once they've found a perch, reaching into Alexis's diaper bag for the little puffs he's taken to feeding the baby one by one.

"Of your daughter's food?"

"These are pretty good, you know," he insists, chuckling when Kate huffs. "Especially the peach and blueberry ones. The banana leaves something to be desired. Oh, and the yogurt bites aren't bad either, though Alexis isn't a big fan yet. But yes, I put some actual snacks in there, too. Ones that don't have the Gerber baby on the label."

She laughs, shaking her head. "I'll take some of those snacks, thanks."

Rick grins, depositing a bag of goldfish into her lap. She watches him pop one of the little puffs into his mouth, offering Alexis one a moment later.

"What?" he asks.

Kate shakes her head once again. "Nothing. You're just taking food from a baby – literally."

She pops a goldfish into her mouth, crunching for emphasis.

Her friend chuckles, trading one of the puffs for a goldfish. "She's a sharer, Kate. What can I say?"

"Mhmm." She leans over, rubbing Alexis's knee. "I'll make him stop stealing your food, sweetheart."

Alexis grins a gummy smile, kicking her feet. She thrusts her fist in Kate's direction, showing her the crushed, damp remains of the snack Rick had passed to her.

"Oh no, that's yours. You eat it."

Alexis jabbers in return. Her eyes go wide when Rick pops another puff between her lips and Kate watches her gum at it.

"She likes them, huh?" she teases, leaning back against the bench and turning her attention to Rick. "Doesn't look like she does."

He sticks his tongue out. "We're working on it. She's still getting used to the–"

His phone practically screeches from the diaper bag, cutting off his justifications. He grapples for it, checking the caller ID before putting it aside.

"Trouble in paradise?" Kate drawls, having caught at least a partial view of the caller ID. Paula's been conspicuously absent lately, suspiciously so, especially given where Rick is in his promotion cycle. She hasn't commented on the other woman's absence – not that she usually does comment on her friend's agent – but suffice to say she has noticed.

"It's ah, it's nothing."

"You sure?" she asks, keeping her voice light even as she catalogues his body language. The tic of his jaw. The agitated flutter of his fingers. The exaggerated smiles he gives Alexis before handing her another puff and stealing more goldfish from Kate for himself. He's trying too hard to appear unaffected by Paula's call.

"Uh huh. Everything's good."

She doesn't believe him for a second. She lets it lie, though, knowing he's more likely to spill if she gives him the space to decide for himself that he wants to talk.

They're exactly alike in that way.


They're all dragging by the time they agree to head back home. The time outside had been good for them, refreshed her in ways she hadn't even realized she'd needed, but it's also the most work she's done in weeks and now she is exhausted.

Rick notices, of course, though he wisely says nothing to suggest that the outing was a bad idea. He does, however, offer up the stroller for her to lean on in the final few blocks they need to travel and through the lobby when they make it back to the loft, even though he's still doing most of the pushing and pretending he isn't. She's grateful for it and tells him so with an appreciative smile in the elevator.

"I had fun today, Kate," he says, shaking her head when she adds her gratitude for indulging her need to break out of the house. "It was good to get some fresh air and see the sun from somewhere other than the balcony."

She nods, easing the stroller over the gap in the threshold and off the elevator. Her feet scuff the floor a little harder as they round the final corner to his door, almost as if they know she'll be able to sit down again very soon.

Only to come to an abrupt stop when she spies a visitor at Rick's door.

It's not his mother; Martha would have let herself in. And it's not the blonde who's been editing his books more lately – Gina, she thinks he said the woman's name is. It's not one of his more recent dates either – thank god. (She ignores the voice that reminds her to be happy for him, no matter who he's dating.) No, the dark hair in a high ponytail and tailored poncho can only belong to one person.

Paula. The person whose call he'd ignored when they were at the park.

"Well, it's about time you showed up," Paula says. "I called you over two hours ago."

"We were out," Rick says, touching a hand to Kate's back and fishing his keys out of his pocket. "I was going to call you back when I got home."

"Uh huh," Paula drawls, stepping aside to allow them to unlock the door and steer the stroller inside. "You haven't called me back the last three times I've called, Ricky. And here you are playing house."

Beckett's eyes cut to her friend, surprised by that. She'd known something was up – that much he'd made obvious in the park – but it isn't like Rick to ignore his agent completely. His editor, yeah, but not Paula.

"We've been a little busy lately, Paula," he says, moving their bags from the stroller and easing Alexis from the seat.

Kate holds her arms out for the baby, not wanting to be the one to fight the battle with getting the stroller back in the closet. Her eyes roll at Rick's hesitance, but she stands firm until he gives Alexis over. She doesn't even comment when his fingers linger until they're both sure she has the girl secure in her grip. Kate's muscles protest quietly, but it's nothing she can't handle for the time being.

"Kate's recovering – she got injured at work. I've been making sure she's okay before I worried about anything else," he says. He barely looks over his shoulder, but Kate sees the way his agent's eyes roll before she turns and walks toward his office.

"Sorry to hear she got hurt, but she looks fine enough to me," Paula says, glancing over her shoulder at Kate. "We need to talk, Rick."

Her friend's fingers curl around her elbow, getting her eyes first. "Put Alexis on her mat, Kate, and relax on the couch. I'll get dinner started in a few minutes."

Her instinct is to argue, but her legs are starting to feel like lead and her ribs have begun to throb a little bit at the added weight in her arms. So she nods instead, taking the diaper bag from his shoulder and carrying both the baby and the bag to the couch and getting settled.

Rick offers her a look, checking to be sure she's good before joining Paula in his office.

Almost immediately, she regrets not taking Alexis upstairs and getting her changed. Not because the baby needs a new diaper, but because there's no privacy in Castle's office, and Rick and Paula are not exactly quiet.

"Look, Paula, I know I canceled once–"

"Three times, Rick. Three dates with – I'm just gonna say it – gorgeous women who are very nearly out of your league – and that's saying something – and you have canceled on all of them. And don't tell me it's because you were writing, because we both know that's a lie."

Kate's brow furrows. He hadn't said anything about having plans, hadn't made any indication that he was supposed to be somewhere other than in the loft with her and Alexis.

"This was more important," he says, not kowtowed in the least by the vehemence in his agent's tone. "Kate's hurt-"

"Tell me something," Paula interrupts, "do you even want me to keep setting you up? You say you have fun but-"

"Paula-"

"But you're clearly not that invested in any of them."

Kate glances down at Alexis, murmuring to the girl that they really shouldn't be listening to this conversation.

"Well, no," he says slowly, and Kate can picture him running his hand through his hair and down the back of his neck. The way he does when he's feeling sheepish, when he's been called on something he didn't want to acknowledge.

"Of course not, Rick. Because no matter who the girl is, what her name is, or how many dates you have with her, she's never gonna be Kate Beckett."

Her head snaps up, sure she hasn't heard Paula correctly. He's – there's no way.

She shakes her head, trying to get to her tired feet without groaning and alerting her friend and his agent to the fact that she's still out here and has heard everything they've had to say.

"Come on, sweetheart," she murmurs, kissing Alexis's hair on the way up the stairs. "Let's go get you into the bath – yeah, it's before dinner, but you'll be okay. We'll put a long bib on you when you eat."

Her heart pounds against her ribs and a rushing in her ears. If she didn't have the baby in her arms, there's a distinct possibility that she would be out the door already. Even just for a few minutes while she processes what she's heard.

It's been… well, not easy, but it's been doable when it's just been her alone in her crush or whatever it could be called. It's been something she could ignore, something she could tell herself is best left unsaid, unanswered. But if he…

If he's…

"Hey," Rick breathes, sinking down beside her on the tile. His hands join hers in the soapy bath water, trickling bubbles over his daughter's shoulder.

Alexis giggles, slapping the water a little harder.

Kate flicks a small stream of water her way, checking her watch. The rest of Rick's conversation with Paula must have been interesting, because they've been up here for a while without hearing a peep from either of them; long enough to get Alexis changed and into the bath; long enough to make sure the girl's secure in her bath seat and that the water isn't too hot; long enough to get the bath toys out and for Kate's shirt to end up damp. She's not sure what it means that she didn't hear Paula leave, though.

"You shouldn't have carried her up here."

She swallows, shaking her head. "It's fine, Castle. She practically walked up here herself. I was just along for stability."

He chuckles, lowering his chin. "Paula's gone," he says. "Food's in the oven. I thought you might've decided for a quick nap, but here you are."

"Here I am," she agrees, licking her lips. Her heart calms a little more; he's here, she's here, nothing's changed. Nothing she heard means anything has to change. "She's almost done. We're mostly playing now."

Rick grins, flicking water in Alexis's direction, then Kate's. "Oh good, my favorite time."

She laughs, not arguing that in the slightest. Her shoulder bumps his before she splashes back, and she delights in the way his eyes crinkle and his teeth show when he laughs.

They're happy this way. The rest doesn't matter; they're happy like this.


As always, I appreciate your patience with the time between chapters and I hope you enjoyed this one. Thank you for reading!

Until next time.