Esposito knew he was going in and out of sleep, thanks to the drugs and the remnants of anesthetic in his system, so he wasn't at all surprised to find one minute he was playing Texas Hold'em with Meredeth with M&M's as their ante - the doctor said he was fine to eat regular foods, with those high in protein and iron being most important - only to tell to close his eyes for just a moment, he had drifted off for an hour or two.

Now as he woke up, he heard the metallic click-click rhythm of knitting needles. Turning his head slightly, he saw his mother sitting beside his bed, knitting with the silent intensity he knew was her way of keeping it together when upset. She'd done it before when he was ten and had needed to have his tonsils out, and again when he was sixteen and had been severely ill with salmonella poisoning; the second time it had been a little more embarrassing since he'd started dating his first girlfriend and didn't want her to think him a pussy that his mommy was with him in the hospital should she visit.

This time, however, it was nothing but childhood comfort he felt when he saw Rosalita with her blue aluminum knitting needles working on yet another project. He turned his head on his pillow and spoke in her native tongue. 'What are you working on, Mami?'

Rosalita looked up, barely missing a beat. 'It's a blanket for your cousin Merecedes. She and Filipe are having another baby in November. How are you feeling?'

'Okay. Sleepy. Where's Meredeth?'

'Your sister convinced her to take a rest at her place since the West Village is closer than Chelsea, get showered and a proper bite to eat.' Rosalita finished her line of stitches, then set aside her needles. 'That girl wasn't interested in leaving your side unless I stayed with you. Didn't want you waking up alone.'

'She loves me, Mami. I don't know what I'd do without her.'

Rosalita stood up, brushed her hand over he son's brow. 'You love her very much. Anyone can see it. So explain to me why Valencia doesn't?'

'Oh, Jesus-'

'Javier Jimeno, no swearing.'

Esposito winced; he hated when his mother middle-named him. 'Sorry, Mami, but how did you know about that?'

'Meredeth mentioned it when we got here, and she had to bodily restrain your sister from going and finding that woman. I don't understand it. You dated, she was a two-timing little hussy so you ended it. Why she doesn't let it go?'

'Who knows?' Esposito sighed, felt his eyelids grow heavy again. 'Wake me when Meredeth gets here, okay?'

He drifted into sleep and once again came out of it, this time to see his father and Castle in his room. This time, he felt a little less foggy and was even able to sit up with the aid of his auto-adjuster on his bed. Both were sitting around his bed, eating some kind of soup and chatting.

'Hey, Sleeping Beauty!' Castle flashed his friend a grin, reached into the insulated bag at his feet. 'Lanie had to head into work, but she brought you something to eat that doesn't taste like it was stewed with gym socks.'

Esposito accepted the container; he could feel his taste-buds tingle with hope and they weren't disappointed when he tasted Meredeth's spinach and tomato soup, steaming hot and fragrant. Castle discreetly nudged over the table for him to put the plastic-ware on as they continued to eat.

'Any word on when they're springing you?'

'Sometime on Friday I think, Saturday at the latest.' Esposito sampled Meredeth's soup and almost broke down at the little taste of home. 'Where'd Mami go?'

'Also in to work. It is a busy day at the bakery. We brought the bag Lanie put together before going to meet Beckett.'

'Oh thanks.'

'Don't thank us. Meredeth made a list last night of things she knew you'd want.' Castle pursed his lips in a half-pout, half-smirk. 'You've got a good one there, pal.'

'Don't I know it.'

'Lucky for you she cooks,' Alejandro added, spooning up soup. 'Of course you'd find a girl who's almost as good a chef as your mama.'

Esposito squirmed a little. 'It's not the only reason I love her.'

'No, you love her because she is kind and intelligent and beautiful and most of all, she makes you happy. The fact she makes good food is a bonus.'

'Exactly.' He paused a moment. 'You bring any of Mere's cracked wheat bread?'

The next time he awoke, it wasn't a floaty dream-like surfacing, but hard and brutal, like being in a dark room with the lights suddenly switched on. Esposito blinked hard and felt his temper immediately going on edge when he saw Valencia standing by the foot of his bed with his chart.

'Val.' He all but growled her name as she came up to stand beside him. She glanced up, saw he was awake and shut the chart.

'Javier, it's okay, she's gone. No need to worry about that blonde pig anymore.'

'Valencia, stop calling my girlfriend a blond pig. She's not fat and she's not blonde.'

'Oh sweetie, I get it. You needed some space and I forgive you for your other women, but really, she's ridiculous. What possible reason could you have for dating her other than to get me back?'

Esposito stared at her. 'I don't know how to say this any more clearly, Val. I broke up with you two years ago. I've met someone I love very much and there is nothing I wouldn't do for her. It's over between you and me. I love Meredeth. And I want you to leave.'

'You don't mean that.' Tears that she could call up at will now sparkled in Valencia's eyes. 'Javier, how could you forget what we had?'

'We were together for four months, we only had sex once because you were cheating on me. You think I didn't know about Greg Leeds?' he asked her, incredulity straining his patience when he saw the guilty light of knowledge flash in her eyes.

'Well, riddle me this. Why isn't she here taking care of you?'

'She went to Lili's to shower, because she spent the night here with me.'

'You should have called me to stay with you. You need rest and you need your loved ones supporting you, not a pushy bitch like her.'

'Watch who you call a bitch, skiderik.'

Esposito's head whipped over to the door; twin vines of delight and panic twisting in his gut when he saw Meredeth, hair still damp from a shower, standing in the door way, her face calm and set. Behind her was Beckett and another nurse, their expressions mirroring Meredeth's.

'Can I help you with something?' Valencia asked in a poisoned-honey voice.

'Val, I would like you to leave. I need to speak with Javi in private.'

'Whatever you have to say to him can wait.' Now Valencia's lip curled into a condescending sneer. 'He's been hurt and he doesn't need you around bothering him.'

Before Esposito or Meredeth could respond, Lili swung into the room. Her bouncy gait ground to a halt when she saw the woman standing beside her brother's bed, and her temper went from zero to Aida in a nanosecond.

'You,' she snarled, and was across the room in three strides, getting right in Valencia's face. 'Who the fuck do you think you are, you conniving, machete-mouthed bitch!'

'Lili-'

'How dare you treat my brother, and my cunada futura that way! You disgust me, you low-lying, nasty whore-faced tramp!'

'Cunada futura is it? You really think so?'

'I know so!' Lili declared hotly. If it hadn't been for the fired-up temper, it would have been almost comical how in three-inch boots Lili was nose-to-chest with Valencia in flat-sneakers and Lili looked like she could have eaten the woman alive. 'Everyone knows it, because they don't have their heads up their asses like you do, so you need to get the fuck out of here before I let you really have it.'

'Why don't you tell that fat cunt to waddle out of here and leave Javier's care to a real woman.'

Lili's face, beat red with temper, nearly turned purple as she unleashed a torrent of very unflattering Spanish, which set Valencia off on her own tirade in the same language, with Beckett trying to step in and calm them down before it came to blows. Esposito felt his energy drain as Meredeth silently slipped over to stand by him. She gave his arm a supporting squeeze, then opened her mouth.

'Enough!' she bellowed, so loudly that everyone in the room shut up like a switch had been thrown. 'Lili, go join Cam, Castle and Javi's father in the cafeteria for a few minutes. Now,' she added emphatically when it looked like Lili was going to protest. The second Esposito's sister was gone from the room Meredeth turned to Valencia, sarcasm throbbing in her voice like a bass line. 'I understand how you might have trouble figuring out why a man like Javi wouldn't want to be with such a sweet example of graceful womanhood as you, but he loves me. That's not an idea or impression, that's a stone cold hard fact, and it leaves you with two options. You can leave now with your dignity intact and speak to Detective Beckett and your supervisor like a rational adult or you can be hauled out of here by Detective Beckett in restraints and be taken upstairs for a psychiatric diagnosis.'

'You think-' Valencia started but was cut off as Meredeth continued.

'And if you ever, ever, call me a waddling cunt again, you will need to go back to your plastic-surgeon fuck buddy, only this time it will be as his patient because I will have rearranged your face so your own mother can't tell who you are. Am I clear?'

Esposito sat up a little straight, pride for his woman radiating out of every pore. 'I think you've made it very clear, Mere.'

'I think so too.'

There was nothing but humming silence for eight seconds, and for a moment, Meredeth thought she'd have to follow through on her threat. She'd flexed her fingers, ready to ball them into fists when Valencia gave a haughty toss of the hair.

'I'll leave if it what Javier wants.'

'Very much so,' he said in a rush.

'In a moment, Detective. I need to speak to Miss Morales concerning her actions last night,' Beckett said in her cool interrogation voice, 'and it would be easier with you and Meredeth both here.'

'Of course, whatever I can do to help our city's finest.'

Beckett's eyebrows wanted to arch in amazement at how this woman yo-yoed between her emotions so quickly, that she could go from sniping at Meredeth to falsely demure graciousness so quickly. 'Miss Morales, you were working on the ER desk last night when Miss Coleman and Mrs. Ryan came in as visitors, correct?'

'Yes, that's correct.'

'And despite her name on his medical records as an emergency contact and his next of kin, you told Miss Coleman that she would have to remain in the ER waiting room. Why is that?'

'She was being belligerent and causing problems. I was about to call Security to have her removed when you approached and explained the situation to me, which was then verified by my supervisor. I was merely acting in the patient's best interest.'

'No, Val,' the nurse-supervisor said in a severe tone, 'what you did was lie to a patient's family member and deliberately misinform her with malicious intent. What you did, was break the law. Detective Beckett is well within her authority right now to arrest you for criminal negligence, provided that Meredeth wants to press charges.'

Meredeth swallowed, then took her hand in Esposito's. 'No, I don't. But I would like to request that she not have the opportunity to potentially do this to someone else.'

'Agreed. Nurse Morales, as of this moment, you are no longer an employee of Stuyvesant Memorial Hospital.' The nurse supervisor stepped forward now. 'I'm going to escort you to the locker room where you will clean out your things, turn in your keys and ID, and furthermore, you will also be undergoing psychiatric evaluation to determine whether or not your license as a New York State-registered health-care provider will be suspended.'

The blood that had churned viciously in Valencia's veins drained from her face so she was pale as paper. 'That's absurd! All because I did what was best for him? Javier,' she pleaded in a desperate voice, 'please tell them. I'm the only woman you want with you.'

'The only thing I want from you, Val, is to never see you again, and if you so much as even think an unkind thought about Meredeth I will let her and my sister tag-team your sorry fat ass.'

'You can't be serious. Javier? It's really over? Just like that?' Her voice was pathetic, as if it had just sunk in; then the pitiful sadness hardened when he stared her down with a look that could have frozen mercury. 'Fine. But when you're sick of her, don't look to me for comfort or to take you back!' she declared haughtily, then sailed out the door, with Beckett and the nurse-supervisor following closely behind.

'What a...you know, I don't think there's even a word for that kind of crazy.' Relieved the drama of Valencia was behind them Meredeth pulled up a chair beside Esposito's bed, pulled a copy of The Maltese Falcon out of her bag. 'You in the mood for some Bogey?'

'Sure.'

Meredeth pulled out her portable DVD-player, popped in the disc, then passed him a ziploc bag as she cuddled in beside him with the remote. 'Here. Just like at home.'

'But how will I eat and hold on to you at the same time? I only have one good arm.'

Meredeth simply tipped her face up to him and batted her lashes coyly. 'Hello, my name is Daniela, and I'm your personal nurse,' she said, thickening her voice with a Danish accent, 'and I am here to attend to your every need, including hand-feeding you chocolate almonds or pummeling insane ex-girlfriends, if that's what you want.'

He laughed, the first real laugh he'd had since being in the hospital. 'Did I tell you I love you yet today, Mere?'

'Can't really remember.'

'Well, I do.'

'Love you too.'

'Now feed me, my love slave.'

R&R&Enjoy.