A/N: Although the next chapter is the epilogue it will pick up right where this one leaves off. The majority of the epilogue will also be M rated. This and the epilogue together make my two favorite chapters of this story so I hope you enjoy reading them as much as I enjoyed writing them.
Those of you who follow me on twitter know that life is throwing me some hard balls lately and I want you to know how much I appreciate all of the support, kind words, and prayers! Thank you all so much!
Happy reading!
Disclaimer: I claim no ownership of Castle or the characters used in this story.
More Than I Could Have Asked For
Just before noon, November 9th, 2015
"Castle…"
The soft melody of Kate's voice drifts through the room, slowly lulling him to consciousness. He hums at the same time his hands reach out for her, but he's met with empty, cold sheets. He cracks an eye open in search of her but squeezes it closed again when sunlight floods his retina.
He rolls his body away from the bright light and blinks both eyes open this time, smiling when Kate comes in to focus. He's about to coax her back into the bed with him so that he can pay some more attention to her luscious lips—as if he didn't give them enough attention last night—when he notices that she's fully dressed and ready for the day.
She's a true image of beauty, dressed in his favorite skinny jeans—even though he hates peeling her out of them—and a plum colored tunic, complete with the flats that he adores on her because of the perfect height difference it allows them.
Kate offers him a bright smile as he pushes himself into a sitting position and then she disappears for a moment only to return with a large cup of coffee and a sweet smelling pastry that instantly makes his mouth water.
"I haven't been up that long, if that's what you're wondering." She sits on the edge of the bed, nudging his hip with her knee. "Breakfast was already over when I went downstairs, but I managed to sweet talk the hostess into bringing these out to me along with a large thermos of coffee."
He stares at her with a goofy grin on his face, blue eyes brightening with the depths of his love for her. "I love it when you use sweet talk to get your way, only I like it more when you use it on me."
"Oh Castle," she singsongs as she rises off the bed and walks over to the large picture window that overlooks the veranda, "I won't need to sweet talk you to get my way by the time tonight rolls around."
He won't argue—can't argue with that because she's exactly right. There will be no amount of persuasion needed to get what she wants tonight. Her. He wants her and he has a feeling that she's referring to the same thing that he's thinking.
"He finishes his pastry and coffee while he watches her. She's a vial of pent up energy, eyes bright and roaming every inch of their surroundings, ready to explore the beauty of the Galle Fort and he can't stand to keep her waiting any longer. He dresses quickly and brushes his teeth before returning to find her in the same spot she was before. He wraps his arms around her waist, kissing her cheek when she inclines her head towards him.
"Ready to go explore, Mrs. Castle?"
"Do you even have to ask?" she smirks, turning in his arms to plant a soft kiss on his lips. He keeps her there for only a moment before reaching for her hand and pulling her towards the door, and by the time they get to the front door and spill out onto the street, she's the one pulling him.
She's like a child visiting Disneyland for the first time as she pulls him along, excitement rolling off of her in waves. "Castle, this place is so beautiful. I could spend years here looking at all of it."
He tightens his grip on her hand in response, continues to follow her through the streets of Galle. She's fascinated by the architecture, the languages of the native people and the history of the Dutch Fort.
Each place she stops them at offers a new piece of history, a piece of the puzzle that eventually forms a larger, detailed picture. By the time they make it to the gardens on the back side of the Amangalla, they're filled with in depth knowledge of the Fort and how it came to be. Both Kate and Castle's arms are filled with souvenirs of their trip, little pieces of Galle to take back home with them. The majority of the bags are filled with little things that will only have meaning to them, trinkets that made her eyes light up as they passed by so much so that Castle would add it to their selection of things.
They'll take the things to the Hamptons; fill their newly remodeled house with memories of their honeymoon.
Castle briefly leaves Kate in the middle of the garden, tenderly trailing her fingers over each brightly colored plant, so that he can deposit their bags in their room. It's nearly dinner time now and the sweet smelling aroma of dinner floods his senses the moment he enters the lobby of the resort. He pauses a moment to talk to the hostess, uses is charm to talk her into setting a special table for them and then continues on his way to their room.
He sets the bags gently on the floor and steps into the bathroom to quickly freshen up so that he can go down and coax Kate into the dining area. He spots her through the large picture window as he's about to step out of the room. She's an image of beauty and grace, wandering through the lush garden as if it's her favorite place on earth. She's breathtaking and he can't stand another moment away from her.
He manages to sneak up on her when he steps into the garden. Her body is bent forward, towering over a bright pink flower that looks like a mixture between a rose and some other flower that he can't recall the name of. How could anyone manage to think of anything else with her standing in front of them like that?
He catches her hand in his own, spins her around and into the front of his body and presses her in close. She startles for only a second before she comes willingly and drapes her arms around his neck.
"It's not nice to sneak up on your wife, Mr. Castle." She's scolding him, but everything about her tone says otherwise.
"I couldn't help it. You were so beautiful standing out here and I needed you in my arms," he answers with a smirk and a soft kiss to her cheek.
"You can have me in your arms any time you want, you know that right?" she questions with a smile on her face and a raised eyebrow that makes her look adorable and sexy at the same time.
"Oh I do know, and I'll prove that to you tonight." He holds her there in the warm embrace of his arms until he sees the hostess step out and indicate that their table is ready.
He takes a step back from Kate before reaching for her hand and tugging her towards the front door of the resort with an excited grin plastered on his face.
"Where are we going?" she asks as he hurries them through the garden.
"You'll see," he answers as he throws her a wink over his shoulder.
When they get inside the resort he leads her over to the hostess stand. The delicious aroma of food hits her instantly and her stomach growls, letting her know just how hungry she is. They follow the hostess through the dining room passing many empty tables and she's about to protest when she sees where they're headed and her breath catches in her throat.
Nestled directly in the center of the veranda is a small table lit by candlelight and set for two. Twinkling lights wrap around the railing and complete the romantic setting perfectly. It's private, intimate, and beautiful and she has no words for the amount of love she has for her husband.
She lets him lead her towards the table, nodding at the hostess when she winks at them and slips away to give the happy couple some privacy. Castle pulls out her chair but before she sinks down into it she turns and wraps her arms around him, hugging him tightly.
"I love this and I love you, so much. We went through so much to get to where we are now, Castle, but this moment with you makes it all worth it," she whispers and he tightens his arms around her.
"I love you, too. You're worth it, Kate. All of it." He kisses her cheek once she's seated, but instead of sitting across from her he slides his chair around so that he's right beside her. He wraps his hand around her knee and keeps it there.
Dinner is everything Castle wanted it to be and more than Kate could have ever asked for. Tender filet-mignon marinated in a tangy bourbon sauce and topped with caramelized onions, grilled vegetables and a baked potato. They pair it with a sweet vintage red and ask for an extra bottle to take up to the room with them.
They remain on the veranda for a while after their meal has been cleared away, arms wrapped around each other. The warm evening air drifts across their skin, leaving goose-bumps in its wake despite the warm temperature. They watch the sun set, content in each other's arms.
Castle's eyes are closed when he feels Kate turn in his arms and he hums when her lips press against the side of his neck. She trails a blazing path up to his jaw, stopping when she gets to his lips so that she can properly thank him for the amazing dinner he arranged for them.
When she pulls away she's grinning and Castle shivers in anticipation because he knows that look. But just to indulge her, he decides to ask her about it.
"What's that look for?"
"Well, I was just thinking about tomorrow and how uh, 'busy' we're going to be."
"Mhmm," he hums against her cheek.
"I want to give you one of your gifts tonight. I mean you gave me mine early so it's only fair that I do the same right?"
She's got this sparkle of excitement as she speaks about his gift, but there's an underlying hint of something else in her tone and he can't quite place it. He knows that whatever it is she's about to give him is special to her. She takes great care in picking out gifts especially when it comes to him.
They walk hand in hand up to their room, oblivious to anyone around them. The moment they step through the door the rest of the world falls away and all that matters is the two of them and the life they have together. She leads him over to the large couch in the corner of the room and gently pushes him down. His hands slide to the backs of her thighs and pull her in between his legs and she lets him keep her there momentarily. She brings her hands to his head, slides her fingers through his hair and smiles when he kisses her stomach.
He tightens his hands when she starts to pull away, but she slides her hands down his face, gentles him with the soft press of her lips to the crown of his head. "Let me get your gift. I'll be right back."
She slinks away from him and goes to her bag and after a few moments of searching pulls a small black book out. She seems cautious when she comes back to sit beside him on the couch and she holds the book tightly in her hands. Castle waits patiently until she's ready.
She takes a deep breath and angles her body towards him, but she keeps a firm grip on the book. "I know you are aware that I started seeing Dr. Burke again while you were missing."
He nods and lets her continue.
"After my first visit—once we knew that getting you back was going to be more difficult than we thought, he made a suggestion."
She looks down at the book and then back up at him. Memories swirl in the hazel orbs of her eyes and Castle moves his hand to her knee, offers her a reassuring squeeze that propels her forward.
"He gave me this at the end of my second session. I thought he was going to ask me to write to you about what I was feeling while you were missing. There was just no way that I could've done that. It was all I could do to live with those feelings." She pauses and runs her hand over the front of the book, before placing it in his lap.
"He knew me better than I thought. He asked me to sit down each day and write about something that I was excited to do with you in the future. Anything. And so that's what I did. For every day that you were gone I wrote something in there about our future. Some days were harder than others. Sometimes the last thing I wanted to think about was the future, especially when I wasn't sure that I was going to get one with you."
He tightens his grip on her knee and she covers his hand with her own, offering him an emotional smile before continuing.
"I originally planned to give it to you right after you came home, but the time never seemed right. The night we talked about future plans I decided to wait and give it to you on our first wedding anniversary because that was the first time since our original wedding day that I believed we would get our happy ending."
He lifts his hand to her face and cups her cheek and she leans into his touch.
"I know it's not an extravagant gift, but I know how much you love words and after all the words you've given me, I figured it was about time I gave you some of my own."
She smiles shyly, but when she tries to dip her head he uses the hand still on her cheek to lift her face. "This gift is so much more than I could have ever asked for, Kate. I love it so much. Thank you for finding hope each day that I was apart from you."
"Thank you for coming back to me," she answers and he lays the book beside him so that he can pull her into his lap.
"As long as I was alive there was no way that I wasn't coming home to you, Kate."
"I love you," he whispers before he slides his lips over hers and swallows her answer with the hot press of his tongue. She moans her approval as she slides her legs over his hips and pushes herself closer to him. He blindly reaches for the book she just gave him and carefully sets it on the table beside the couch. She rocks more insistently against him and he grips her hips and hauls her closer.
He pulls away from her lips only long enough to lower her to the couch and then he slides over her waiting body and reaches for the hem of her shirt.
"You know it's not technically our anniversary yet?" she tosses the words at him with a wink, but gasps when his hands slide further up her body, exposing her heated flesh as he pulls her shirt over her head and throws it to the side.
"It will be by the time we reach the bed," he growls seconds before his lips cover hers again.
His kisses are bruising as he assaults her mouth, a week's worth of sexual energy igniting the flame and burning through them. She gives back just as much as she takes and when his hands slide to the waistband of her pants she's ready to sob with relief.
He unbuttons her jeans with practiced ease, but it takes a joint effort from both of them to slide them down her legs. She can't suppress her giggle at his huff of frustration when he finally drops the jeans into a heap on the floor. "I have no idea how you even get those on."
She laughs again as she tugs on his shirt and pulls it over his head. His pants and boxers come off with one swift flick of her wrists and she grins up at him when he looks at her in surprise.
"Been waiting all week for this, Babe."
He manages to release the clasp of her bra with one hand while his other hooks the edge of her lacy black panties and begins to slide them down her legs. She helps him push them off and when he finally settles between her legs they both breathe a happy sigh.
Kate pulls him back to her lips at the same time that her legs wrap around his waist and he grunts into her mouth when the tip of his erection brushes against her soaked folds. There won't be any need for buildup during round one. In fact, Kate's pretty sure that she's going to come as soon as he presses into her so she decides she better tell him the second part of his gift.
"Castle," she hisses out when he nips at the pulse point on her neck before soothing it with his tongue. He doesn't lift his head so she grips his hair in her hands and gently pulls him away from her neck.
"What's wrong?" he asks as he studies her face.
"Nothing is wrong, Babe, but I need you to listen for a sec, okay?"
He nods and waits for whatever she's about to say.
"I have to give you the second part of your gift now."
"But Kate, it's not…"
She presses her finger to his lips and smiles at him. "Just listen. I've been doing a lot of thinking about our future and after everything that we've been through; I don't want to wait any longer. I want to start a family with you."
He stares at her for a moment, but she knows the moment that he understands what she's saying.
"Kate, you want…"
She laughs at his inability to form complete sentences which usually only happens when they're like this, naked and pressed against each other.
"I want to make a baby with you."
And after a statement like that, he doesn't need any more words from her.
Yay for 30k words!
Sadly, only the epilogue follows.
Would love to hear your thoughts! xo