A/N: I don't own any of this.

How AWESOME was Rise? This story is now AU I suppose, Rise having never happened. Sorry it took awhile. I've been a little busy. Thanks for all the alerts, reviews and favorites. I love them all.

...

It was early September and Castle was a mess. He and Kate had just returned from dropping Alexis off at Stanford and he was miserable. Kate was at a loss. For two days straight he sat in his office just starring into space. She wanted to help but wasn't sure she could. Finally at the end of day two she softly knocked on his office door.

"Yeah?" he called. She slowly opened the door flashing him a tentative smile.

"Hey, whatcha doing?" Kate asked as she made her way around his desk settling herself in his lap.

"Writing..." he tried. She looked at his computer screen which had a blank document open on it.

"Oh yeah, how's that going?" she said quietly.

"Not so great. It just hurts Kate," he whimpered.

'I know, I'm sorry. Any thing I can do to help?" He sighed and palmed her burgeoning bump.

"We should have timed this better. He should have been here before Alexis left so there was no kidlessness," he pouted.

"Ha, timed? Timing this," she said pointing to her stomach, "would mean that we actually planned this in the first place."

"Oh yeah, right," he smiled sheepishly. She brushed his hair back off his forehead and pressed her lips there.

"Let me help," she mumbled as she pressed her lips to his temple, then his cheek. He finally turned his eyes to hers, then dropped his gaze to her lips before crashing them with his own. "I'm sure I can think of some ways to distract you," she murmured as they broke for air.

"Oh yeah? Like how?" He asked her eyebrows raised in anticipation.

"I'm going to let you," she started, pressing an open mouth kiss to his pulse point eliciting an encouraging groan. "Take me to dinner," she finished with a grin.

"Tease," he pouted.

"I wasn't finished. First we are going to take a shower. Then we are going to dinner. And then we'll come back here and I'm going to show you how great kidlessness can be," she said smirking. She pushed up off his lap walking toward their bedroom with a little extra sway in her hips. When she reached the door she looked over her shoulder at him throwing him a sexy grin, pulling her shirt off and dropping it on the floor. She laughed when she heard him scramble, a string of curse words falling out of his mouth as he most likely stubbed his toe on something in his haste.

...

"Where would you like to go for dinner?" Castle asked as they got ready in their bathroom.

"I was thinking that little italian place around the corner. It's nice out, we could walk?" She asked locking eyes with him in the mirror.

"Sure," he smiled at her. She flashed him a grin of her own. There's nothing like a little shower sex to cheer a man up.

It was still fairly warm outside so she dressed in a pair of jeans, a light sweater and slipped on a pair of flats. She surveyed herself in the mirror. There was no hiding her bump any longer. She smiled at this thought and rubbed a hand across her belly.

...

They walked hand in hand the few blocks to the restaurant. Just as the small bistro came into view Kate abruptly stopped.

"Shit," she said closing her eyes.

"What? What's wrong?" Rick asked.

"I forgot my phone," she responded slapping her forehead. "Shit." Castle turned her toward him with his eyebrows raised.

"You need it," he assumed. She did. She was technically on call right now and Esposito and Ryan had been texting her about their case all day. Kate nodded sheepishly causing Rick to smile.

"You go get us a table and I'll go get your phone," he stated. "Where is it?" She pondered this for a moment.

"On the dresser in the closet..." He turned to leave. "...Or in the bathroom on the counter?" He grinned at her and started walking quickly toward the loft. "Thank you!" She called after him appreciating the view of his backside. After he turned the corner Kate made her way to the restaurant's entrance. She was waiting for an emerging couple to clear the sidewalk when she heard her name.

"Detective Beckett," the woman clinging to her date said. Kate forced back a grimace recognizing the voice immediately.

"Agent Shaw, hi." Kate said finally meeting the FBI agent's eyes. It was nothing against the woman. Kate actually quite liked her, but she just wasn't in the mood tonight. All she wanted to do was have a quiet dinner with Rick and then retreat back to the loft. Part of the appeal of this tiny restaurant was the anonymity it offered them.

"This is my husband, Jack." Kate smiled and shook the man's hand.

"Nice to meet you," she said as she felt Jordan's eyes travel down to her stomach and back. Crap. Kate instinctively palmed her bump with her left hand, giving Jordan a clear view of her engagement ring.

"Looks like you've been busy," Jordan commented.

"Yes, I guess I have. How are you doing?" Kate said, trying to steer the conversation away from her. She didn't like the smug look on Jordan's face like she already knew who put that ring on her finger. Part of it was hoping that all the 'I told you so's' were done. Kate saw Castle approaching from over Jordan's shoulder looking rather winded, while the FBI agent said something about an anniversary dinner.

"Oh wow, congratulations," Kate smiled as Castle gave her a questioning look.

"So-" Jordan began but was cut off by Castle's arrival. He slipped past the couple hooking his arm around Kate's waist and kissing her cheek and handing her the forgotten phone.

"Jordan!" Castle said excitedly when he finally realized who Kate had been talking to you. "How are you?"

"Mr. Castle," Shaw said by way of greeting. Kate could tell that Rick's appearance just confirmed Jordan's suspicions. "I hear you two finally took down Jerry Tyson. Nice work." They both forced a smile as the unwelcome memories flashed through their heads. They chatted a few minutes longer before saying goodbye. As Kate and Rick turned toward the restaurant Jordan lightly grabbed Castle's elbow. "I told you, I"m rarely wrong about these things," she said smirking. Castle smiled remembering the conversation well. "And..." Jordan added looking at Kate, "...Glad to see things aren't so complicated any more." Kate forced a laugh as Jordan winked at her.

...

Castle made it all the way until they were seated at their table.

"What's not so complicated anymore?" He asked casually as he set his napkin in his lap. Kate paused momentarily not sure if she really wanted to give this to him. They had many discussions about how everyone seemed to figure out they were perfect for each other before they did. But Jordan came before the Gina/Demming debacle and that's something she still didn't want to talk about. She could feel his gaze on her as she slowly unrolled her silverware and placed her own napkin in her lap.

"Us. We're not so complicated anymore. Or maybe more complicated depending on how you look at it," she teased. His eyebrows found their way to his hairline.

"Shaw said something to you about us? When?" He was intrigued. She could tell by the look on his face he wasn't about to let this go.

"After we closed the case. She said something about how you cared about me, even if I may not have been ready to see it. And I told her it was complicated."

"It was complicated," he agreed. She smiled at him relieved. "Remember Fallon?" She nodded and rolled her eyes. How could she forget? Her and Castle had almost died twice during that case. "He thought we were together."

"Really?" She was surprised, trying to think back to all that happened in between the near death experiences.

"Yeah, he told me so after they pulled us from the freezer," his eyes dropped to his hands.

"Ah, Josh..."

"Yup, Josh." Something dark flashed across his face. It was quick, barely a second before it was replaced with a playful grin. "I wonder how many other people knew before us?"

"Oh, I already knew..." It was out of her mouth before she even realized what she had said.

"Did you now?" He asked with his head cocked, a teasing grin played across his face. It was ridiculous that she suddenly felt so naked. She was wearing his ring, carrying his child, but even still, she was nervous. She'd been in love with him for almost three years and he still didn't know when exactly it was that she fell. Rick must have sensed her anxiety because before she could say anything he let her off the hook. He grabbed her hand across table and said, "Me too. I knew too." Her chest tightened. Half standing Kate leaned over the table and crashed her lips with his. It was quick, but thorough.

"I love you," she whispered against his lips before sitting back down.

Castle swallowed hard and squirmed in his chair.

"Are we ready for the check?" he asked looking around for their server.

"Easy there Stud, we haven't even ordered yet." She said, pleased at the affect she still had on him. He put on a pathetic pout that slid off his face when her foot found its way up his calf.

"Tease."

"You love it," she replied.

"Yes. I really do."

...

She had stopped teasing him by the time their food arrived and they sat in comfortable silence enjoying their meals. As it turned out Esposito texted Kate three times so Castle's little trip home wasn't a complete waste.

Castle grew quiet as they made their way home. Kate didn't need to look at him to know he was thinking about Alexis. She bumped his hip and squeezed his hand.

"She'll be home in six weeks for the wedding babe," she said softly. He sighed and ran his free hand down his face.

"I just miss her," he said.

"I know. Me too." He sighed again and took their entwined hands and draping them over her shoulder pulling her closer.

When they got home she dragged him to the kitchen and found his favorite ice cream in the freezer. She grabbed two spoons and handed him the pint. He tried to smile at her but it didn't reach his eyes. While he opened the double fudge brownie Kate awkwardly pulled herself up onto the counter. They took turns digging into the carton until it was half gone. After licking her spoon clean Kate dropped it in the sink next to her. Castle followed suit and put the remaining ice cream back in the freezer. He leaned against the stainless steel refrigerator looking like a lost little boy.

"Come here," Kate called. He pushed himself from the fridge, quickly closing the distance between them. She opened her legs and pulled on his shirt until he couldn't get any closer. She wrapped her arms tightly around his neck as his arms twined around her waist. They stayed that way, just holding each other for several minutes. When he started to pull back she stopped him by placing an open mouthed kiss against his pulse point. His hands travelled up and down her sides as she assaulted his neck and jaw. Finally she found his lips with hers. Her tongue was insistent against his. They kissed deeply until the lack of oxygen became an issue. Breathing heavily she moved her lips to his ear.

"How many times have we started something on this counter but haven't been able to finish it...on this counter?" She asked. She heard his breath catch before a groan slipped from his throat. He pulled back until his forehead rested against hers, a brilliant smile splitting his face.

"Is this one of the perks you were speaking of earlier?" He inquired. She bit her lip and nodded. He grabbed her hips pulling until they met his. She moaned as his mouth found hers again. They got lost in each other. And for a little while she helped him forget about the now empty room at the top of the stairs.