"Will you be okay if go? I can cancel. Just say the word."

"No, I'll be fine. Go ahead," Kate yawned again.

"I promise to be back in an hour or two. If you need anything or get sick again, call me. Okay?"

He looked down at her and smiled. She was fast asleep.

Disclaimer: I don't own any of these amazing characters. Damn.

Dreams. Kate wasn't having terrifying nightmares; she was having wonderful, warm dreams. Dreams of a heated undercover kiss. Dreams of shared lunches and sensual back-and-forth banter. Dreams of hot, uncontrolled sex in a storage closet...

"Kate...Kate...Hey, sleepyhead...time to wake up. It's after noon. I made you some lunch. You should really try to eat something."

Kate stirred from her sleep and reluctantly opened her eyes. She was greeted by Castle's piercing blue eyes intently staring at her. "How long have I been sleeping?"

"A little over five hours. I made lunch. I figured your stomach might be empty after this morning."

"Thanks," she shyly smiled. "I was really tired. I suppose I am a little hungry."

Castle went into the kitchen, grabbed a plate with Kate's lunch, and returned. He handed her the plate with a small sub sandwich and pasta salad. "About this morning..."

Kate abruptly pushed the plate away as soon as she caught sight of the salami that was innocently sticking out of the sub bun. She made a mad dash to the bathroom. Castle found himself in the same position as he was that morning, except this time, thank God, he was fully clothed. When the dry heaves finally stopped, he helped her up and led her back to the bed again. He gave her another glass of cold water and watched her with growing concern. She looked pale, worn out, and completely miserable.

Castle's brow furrowed. He placed his hand gently on her shoulder and softly rubbed it. "Kate, are you okay? I knew I should have cancelled that meeting."

"I'll be okay, I think. It's probably just morning sickness." She held her head down.

He lifted her chin to look into her weary eyes. "You need to keep something down."

"I...I don't think I can."

An idea popped into Castle's head, and he smiled triumphantly. "Wait a minute." He ran out of the room and returned with a popsicle. "Try this."

Kate hesitated at first, but finally took the popsicle. She slowly ate it and found that its sweet flavor and coldness did seem to settle her stomach. When she was able to keep the popsicle down, Castle seemed smug and satisfied with himself. He waited for about fifteen minutes, and then he made her a couple pieces of toast and some ginger tea. Somehow, it felt natural to have him taking care of her. She couldn't remember when she felt so loved and warm inside.

After she was able to eat a piece of toast and drink some of the tea, Castle broke the silence. "Why don't you take a shower and get dressed while I write for awhile?"

"Sounds like a plan," Kate smiled.

Since her clothes were in the guest room, she showered there. Before she went upstairs, Castle wrapped a plastic bag around her cast. When his fingers touched her skin, she felt her stomach flutter. As she showered, she mentally went over everything that happened in the last 24 hours. Even though she didn't have memories of them or the past few years of her life, she was sure of one thing: She wanted...no...needed Richard Castle. The problem seemed to be that he wanted a different Kate. He wanted the Kate that remembered him...them. No matter how hard she tried to be, she wasn't that Kate anymore. She sighed in resignation and wrapped herself in a towel. She looked at herself in the mirror. That's when she noticed it. She couldn't believe she hadn't noticed it before: A single bullet scar in the center of her chest. She shuddered as she touched it. Maybe those nightmares weren't nightmares after all.

About an hour after she went upstairs, Kate tentatively entered Castle's study and caught him intensely typing away on his laptop.

"Derrick Storm?" she smiled.

"Nikki Heat," he smirked.

"Who's Nikki Heat?"

His glanced up at her with amused eyes. "She's a hot, badass homicide detective that works for the NYPD."

Kate furrowed her eyebrows. "Tell me more."

Castle grinned smugly. "She solves murders with the assistance of her ruggedly handsome, capable partner, Jameson Rook."

She noticed that word, 'partner,' again. "So, he's a detective too?"

No, he's a journalist."

"Doesn't make sense. Why would a journalist be a homicide detective's partner?"

"Because he's helpful, and I'd like to think, insightful."

"But what if she needs back-up? What does he do? Threaten criminals with his pen?" Kate laughed.

"Hey, Rook can be quite resourceful when he needs to be," defended Castle.

"And what's in it for him?"

"The story, of course," he smugly snickered.

"So, you want me to believe that this guy, Rook, partners up with this detective, Nikki Heat, for the story. Even though there has to be a million other ways to get a decent story, he risks his life and limb for this one. Sorry, I don't buy it. There has to be more to it than that."

"And what, dear detec...uh, I mean, Kate, do you think that is?"

"I don't know, Rick. Why don't you tell me since you're obviously holding out on me." She bit her bottom lip and stared at him expectantly.

Finally, he caved. "Okay...so maybe he likes her a little bit."

"A little bit, Rick?"

He huffed indignantly. "Okay, maybe he likes her a lot."

She contemplated this for a few seconds. "Oh, I see," she smirked. "And does she like him a lot?"

"I'd like to think so." His eyes danced with mischief.

Just then, they heard a knock at the door. Kate followed him into the living room, and Castle answered it. She noticed that a pretty blonde stood at the door.

"Come in, Gina. To what do I owe this pleasure?" Castle did not act pleased.

"After you left, I noticed there were a couple of papers you forgot to sign," she smiled sweetly at Castle.

"Oh, hi Kate. I didn't realize you would be here." Gina was annoyed.

Gina coyly glanced over at Kate, and Kate sized Gina up. There was something familiar about her that Kate didn't like. She also didn't particularly care for the way Gina was flirting and smiling at Rick.

Castle interrupted Kate's thoughts. "Kate had an accident, so she's staying with us for awhile. The doctor says she has some amnesia, but her memories should return in a few days."

"How wonderfully considerate of you to be helping her, Rick. If I remember correctly, I wouldn't have expected anything less. I know you've always had a soft spot for weak women in need," she smirked.

"Kate, this is Gina, my publisher."

"And his second ex-wife," she added and smiled smugly at Kate.

"So, Alexis is your daughter?"

"Heavens no! Even though Rick and I were quite passionate with each other, we never had any children," she flashed Kate a catty smile.

I guess that's your loss," Kate smirked and left the room. She was furious and couldn't stand to be in the same room with the likes of that woman for one second longer. She couldn't believe he went to a meeting with his ex-wife while she was at home in his bed, pregnant with his child, and puking her guts out. She angrily paced back and forth in his study.

Castle joined her five minutes later. He seemed nervous and somewhat irritated. "What was that all about?"

She glared at him. "I don't want to talk about it. I'm going to take a nap."

She started to leave the room, but he grabbed her arm and stopped her. "Your nap can wait. I want to talk about this now."

Kate jerked her arm loose. "I'm at home, sick in your bed, pregnant with your child, and you're meeting with your ex-wife? Do you think I should be happy about that?"

"She's my publisher! Nothing more. You would understand that if you could just remember."

"I don't like her for some reason, memories or no memories. She is bossy and obviously still has feelings for you. Could she be any more obvious when she was openly flirting with you? 'Rick and I were quite passionate with each other,' she snickered and rolled her eyes for emphasis.

"You're jealous."

"I. Am. Not. Jealous."

"You are completely jealous, Kate Beckett. If it wasn't so damned irritating, I'd find it quite adorable."

"In your dreams."

"Well, we both know how real my dreams can be." He lifted an eyebrow at her.

"Yes we do. Just as real as the cold shower you took this morning, huh?" she smirked.

Something snapped. All the pent-up desire and burning need he had been keeping bottled up surfaced, and Castle finally lost control. He walked over to her, grabbed both of her arms, forcefully pushed her up against the wall, and hungrily claimed her lips. The kiss was rough, and he ravaged her mouth, greedily taking all he could get. His hands caressed her breasts, then cupped her bottom and savagely pulled her closer into him, so close that she could feel his hardness pressing into her. When his lips finally released hers, he grabbed her face, and his dark feral eyes searched her panicked green ones. "I won't be taking cold showers forever, darling Kate. You want me as much as I want you. And when your memories return, God help me, I'll have you."

Please review! The scar will be dealt with a bit later. In the next chapter, I thought some more jealousy might be a bit interesting, and a good way to get my frustrations out on a few more of my least favorite characters. ;)

Her memories will return, but I want to have a little fun with these two first.