Disclaimer: I do not own Castle

Chapter 6

Castle had managed to finish up all the readings and signings within two days and decided to come home un-announced

It was 10 pm when he reached the loft and he couldn't wait to see his family. God he missed them so much! he turned the key and opened the door. He dragged his bags in and set them down next to the couch and went in search of his wife and son.

When he came to Alex's room, The little boy was sound asleep. He walked into the room and knelt beside the bed and ran his hand through his son's soft brown curls.

He had hair just like his mother. Rick smiled. He loved this boy to the moon and back. Their son. He was the fruit of their love and he was what will always keep them together... no matter how huge a fight they have... none of them would ever want to hurt him.. Rick kissed Alex on his head and whispered to him "I'll see you tomorrow morning big guy".

He turned and quietly made his way through the study and into his bedroom only to hear the sound of a running shower from the bathroom.

She must have just gotten some time to herself after putting Alex to sleep. He looked around the room, wondering if he should just wait here or out in the living room.

But even before he could answer that thought, he heard the taps go off and in the next minute, the door opened.
And his Kate,
his smart, sexy, hot detective... his wife… came walking out in her PJs, wiping her hair with a towel, not realizing the presence of someone in her room. The sight of her made his heart leap.

But nothing else. He didn't act upon it. His heart felt cold. He was still upset even though he was glad to see her. he was still angry. The memories of that night, still so fresh in his mind.

"Hey" he said...

Kate was dead tired... they had finally caught that son of a bitch today and put him behind bars! And it had been a tiring day chasing after him.
She had even hurt herself in the process of taking him down and her shoulder was bruised.

She had gone over to her dads place to pick Alex up after duty and then come home, changed into something more comfortable and snuggled with her son on the couch with Superman playing on their flat screen and a warm dinner that she had prepared for them.

When Alex began to doze off, she carried him to his room and tucked him in, promising him that it was just one more day he'd have to wait, until his daddy came home. And with that, Alex fell asleep.

Kate, now, finally having time to herself, stripped off her clothes and went in for a shower. Washing off the dirt and grime from her body at the end of the day always made her feel better, homely.

The sting she felt when the water touched her shoulder was excruciating and she wanted to groan aloud. But she kept it in her.

She shampooed and rinsed her hair too and when she was finally done, she put on her PJs and walked out, wiping her hair, and thinking about calling Castle up, to check on how he was doing.

They had spoken over the phone twice after that first call. He seemed… alright… but she knew he was holding back. If anyone could see through him, It was her.

He sure wasn't hiding his hurt well enough, even though he was trying, for her sake.

And it pained her all the more. She needed him to come home soon so that they could fix this. She was ready to do anything for him.

She just wanted him to be Himself again.

She wanted him to honestly tell her she had been a bitch to him that day…

she wanted him to yell at her… she deserved nothing better.

She wanted… she wanted…

she just wanted him home…

Kate was startled with the low voice of the man she'd come to love the most. When she looked up to find him standing there, she froze!

"Hey" he had said.

"Rick… you're here" she said. more to herself than to him.

"Yea... I'm home"

"oh Rick…" she exclaimed as she ran into his arms and buried her head into his chest... the smell of him was comforting... the feel of his chest under her cheek, his arms around her body, his breath against her hair.. She was melting into him... the way he was holding her though…

She knew he wasn't fully into it. But they both needed this.

She closed her eyes and focused on the warmth of him… everything about him was intoxicating...

Really! What on earth made her hurt him so bad!

She didn't realize how long she may have been hugging him. But soon he tugged at her to look at him and she looked deep into his eyes for the first time since the night she left.

And they didn't have that spark in them. The one she loved. He was obviously still hurting... and that pained her.

His eyes were cold.

Rick took hold of both of her hands... distancing himself a little and said softly... "Come on... let's talk..."

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