A/N:

Sorry for not getting this chapter up sooner, the fic gods were not very kind to me this week. I got lost in the weeds of Chapter 4. Good news for you…your Castle/Beckett torture is over and Chapter 5 is almost done. Enjoy! Thanks again for your reviews. If you don't like this chapter, please let me know so I can use it to make the other chapters better. I appreciate all your feedback. Happy Reading!!

Chapter 4….

Kate Beckett is sulking and she doesn't care. In the past hour Beckett's flipped through all of the magazines left by Esposito. What she really wants is one of her Derek Storm books. For as long as she can remember, she's liked those best whenever she was sick. Unfortunately, the only thing she has to keep her company was her thoughts. On nights like this, they were their own special torture and she's positive she's been through enough torture for one day. At least she can't remember passing out at work. The boys, of course, aren't going to let her live it down anytime soon. The only good thing is that, knowing Esposito, he already made it so nobody else would bother her about it.

Kate closes her eyes as she slides her mom's ring back and forth across the gold chain. After all these years, that an object does so much to ease her worries still surprises her. Like so many times in her life, she wishes her mom was here but, somehow, the ring makes her feel closer to her. Whenever her mom used to hug her, she'd sway back and forth. It's a memory that always brings a smile to her face, especially when she remembers how, as a teenager, after every hug she would be sure to remind her mom that she was much too old for such things. Without fail, her mom would tell her how she'd miss those special hugs one day and Kate would just roll her eyes. She's never stopped missing them.

Peeking around the curtain, Castle is speechless. It's been much too long since he's laid eyes on the woman in front of him. Nervous, he watches as she rocks back and forth, eyes closed. It's not often he gets to observe her with her guard completely down. The moment would be perfect if not for the frown on her beautiful face. A frown he's determined to wipe away by whatever means necessary.

"Did someone order soup?"

"Castle?" Kate's shocked to see him standing in front of her holding a rather large shopping bag, "You were quiet. You're never quiet. How long have you been standing there?"

"Just long enough to run through my Beckett fantasy list. This, actually, is number five." He waits long enough for the predictable exasperation to play across Beckett's face, "Only in my version you're the nurse and I'm the patient. Ooh and you're wearing a really, really, really short skirt. Red garters and red stilettos. "

"Why does that not surprise me Castle?" Beckett crosses her arms, refusing to give him the satisfaction of knowing that she's glad to see him. His ego is already big enough.

Glancing around the very empty room, he's glad he came back because she'd either be horribly depressed or crazy by morning if she spent the whole night alone surrounded by these stark white walls, "You know me well Detective Beckett."

"Sometimes I wish I knew you a little less." What she really wants to know is how after flying across the country, Castle manages to look his usual handsome self without so much of a hair out of place. He's as charming and energetic as he is when he arrives at the precinct every morning.

"Oh admit it. You missed me." This is going much better than he expected. Beckett has yet to kick him out and the sparkle in her tired eyes tells him she is, indeed, happy to see him.

"I thought you were off chasing starlets in Hollywood." It hardly ever works but she hopes ignoring his question makes it go away.

"Ah, no need to be jealous. We both know you're my favorite prey."

"I'm not exactly a challenge tonight." They're the first honest words she's spoken. She might be glad that Castle came back but for self-preservation purposes she needs to keep him at arm's length. Only thing is, if he keeps smiling at her like that, her walls don't have a chance in hell of staying up.

"Don't you know? I've been waiting for that day since we met." As is always the case, his flirting is just a slight exaggeration of his actual feelings for Beckett. He's wanted her to stop putting up a fight and succumb to his charms since the day they met. Unfortunately, she won't budge.

"Go away Castle." The minute the words are out of her mouth she regrets them. What is wrong with her? She doesn't want to be by herself, yet, she goes and tells the one person she wants to be here to leave.

"Okay."

Leaving upon request is very unCastlelike. When did he become so easy to get rid of? He's standing at the foot of her bed, looking at her with those puppy dog eyes like he's waiting for her to stop him. It's not that she doesn't want to. He came all this way, she knows she should stop him. Still, she just watches Castle walk away.

"Ha! You didn't think you could get rid of me that easily did you?"

"A girl can dream." This time Beckett's smile undermines any attempts at hiding her true feelings, "What's in the bag anyway?"

"You'll see."

"As much as I appreciate your visit, I find it hard to believe there's nowhere you'd rather be on your first night back in town."

Satisfied that he's starting to wear her down, Castle moves over to take the chair next to her bed. "One day you're going to have to stop doubting my intentions."

Beckett meets his smugness with a raise of her eyebrows. She's not sure what to think really. He does usually have good intentions and the smile on his face makes her think he's happy to be here. What doesn't make sense is that he didn't come into her room when he was here earlier. She can't help but wonder what or who he left for earlier and why he bothered coming back. She wants to ask him except she isn't so sure she wants to know the answer.

"Here suits me just fine Beckett." The doubt in her eyes disappoints him but that's quickly replaced by sheer determination. He's here to take care of her whether she likes it or not. He leans towards her, "You know if this is what happens when I leave you for a few days, I may never leave again."

Maybe it's his proximity to her, but instead of lightening the mood, his words bring a little more tension to the room. Perhaps his words are a little too close to the truth…for both of them. Part of him really never wants to leave her again. A bigger part than he cares to admit. The part that wanted to come home on Tuesday instead of Friday. He never liked travelling much anyway unless he was with Alexis. Now it seems, he liked it even less since it kept him away from a certain New York City detective every day. Beckett's silence and the stunned look on her face tells him he's not the only one who didn't like him being away.

What Castle doesn't know is that Beckett likes the idea of him not leaving a little too much. So much so she can't bring herself to look him in the eye right now. She hadn't expected to miss him and at first she didn't. It wasn't until Wednesday that she spent more time thinking about him than her case. It had shocked her really. What she thought would be a welcome relief, just made the days drag on.

One day he's going to find out what she's thinking when she gets that look in her eye but for now he's got other things to take care of, "Are you cold?"

"No." She must've hit her head harder than she thought if she's lying about this. Truth is, despite her best efforts, she can't stop trembling. After the third blanket, she decided she wouldn't bother the nurses to ask for more.

He laughs at the lengths she'll go not to seem like she needs anything, "Really? Then why are you shivering?"

"Because it's freezing in here and hospitals have the world's thinnest blankets."

"In spite of what you think, today's your lucky day." Castle reaches into the bag behind him pulling out a blanket and gently spreading it across her, "Nothing like curling up with a good, warm blanket when you're sick."

"Um…." Kate knows this shouldn't be so hard for her. It's just, it's just she can't remember the last time she's let anyone take care of her. She's not quite sure why she's so comfortable letting Castle do it.

"The word you're looking for is 'thanks.' You know, you don't always have to pretend to be so tough Detective."

"Occupational hazard," she sinks back into the bed feeling warmer already.

Castle refuses to be the first to look away, "Well, we're going to have to work on that Detective."

His eyes are a storm of emotions. Understanding, concern, uncertainty, need, want, hope, and questions, so many questions. Sometimes she feels like his eyes weave their way around her like out of control ivy. She's afraid that one day he will become part of her. She wonders if maybe he already has.

"Did you really bring soup?"