Hi everyone !

Here is chapter 28. I'm really sorry for th delay but i've been literally drowning in work from university, and it's not going to end anytime soon. I'll be updating, i swear ... just maybe not as regularly as before. I much as i love to write, uni comes first.

so ... enjoy !

They were in bed, trying to get their breathing back after several rounds of passionate love making, when the front door of the loft barged open. Hearing someone running to the bedroom, Rick had just the time to pull the covers on their naked bodies before the bedroom door opened. Kate tried to hide behind Rick when she saw Alexis.

"Dad! Come on, we have to go!"

"Go where Pumpkin?" Rick asked, trying not to let his uneasiness for being naked show.

"To the hospital! Come on! Get dressed and let's go!" Alexis said before leaving the bedroom.

The simple word "hospital" had both of them out of bed and into clothes seconds after the door closed.

"Alexis, what is going on? Why do we need to go to the hospital?" Rick asked, running out of the bedroom.

As an answer she only pressed the button on the answering machine. Jim's voice filled the silent loft.

"Hey Katie! I uh … I need to drop Alexis off in a few hours. Claire and Lisa were in a car accident on their way to the house and they've been sent to Mount Sinai Hospital."

That's all that was said but it was enough to have her grab her keys and rush out the door. She didn't like when her father sounded so scared. It brought back bad memories. She ran down the stairs, not bothering to wait for the elevator. She remembered Rick and Alexis when she heard footsteps run after her. They all got in her car and got out of the parking garage siren yelling and lights flashing.

O-o-O-o-O-o-O-o-O

"Hi, we're looking for Claire and Lisa … Oh my God, what's their last name?" Kate asked, turning to Rick at the nurse station.

Before he had time to react, her father literally materialized next to her, hugging her.

"Dad, are they ok?"

"I don't know, they're still in surgery … both of them"

"Where is Andy?" Rick asked as they moved to the waiting room.

"He is with a nurse. He just has a scratch on his forehead but he's fine, thank God for that," Jim said, collapsing on a chair. "She said she'll bring him back when she's done cleaning him up."

The four of them waited for a while in silence, each of them lost in their thoughts.

"Does anyone want coffee?" Kate asked, getting up from her chair.

"I could use a coffee," Rick said, trying to mask his yawn.

Kate smiled, completely understanding why caffeine was much needed for both of them. After coming home from the wedding they didn't really have time to sleep before Alexis came to find them in a rather delicate situation.

"I'll get you one," Kate said, winking discretely at him. "Dad, you want one?" she asked, turning to him.

"I'll go with you," Jim said, getting up. "I need to move or I'll just go crazy."

"Don't worry, they're going to be fine." Rick heard Kate say to her father, putting a hand on his shoulder as they went away.

"So, how was the wedding?" Jim asked his daughter as they walked into a corridor to the cafeteria.

"It was really nice. Jenny's dress was absolutely gorgeous. And Ryan asked me to be the godmother of the child they're expecting."She said, a smile growing on her face.

"Did it give Rick ideas that I need to discuss with him?" Jim asked in what he wanted to be a threatening voice.

"He doesn't need to go to a wedding to have this kind of ideas Dad," she laughed. "And don't scare him away!"

"Uh … maybe he's not the only one to have this kind of ideas …" Jim said.

"So, how do you want your coffee?" Kate asked as they were approaching the cafeteria, trying to change the course of the conversation.

"Just take me a regular one, I'm going to buy the paper over there," Jim said, laughing and shaking his head as he moved to the newsagent's.

Kate placed her order for coffee and thought about getting married to Richard Castle. She had had these kinds of thoughts since the first time she had seen him on TV. Even before reading his books. She had always thought that he was hot. Now she knew he was hot … and he was hers. She smiled at the thought. After his books were published, she would watch every TV apparition or read every article about him. Except for the gossip magazines … she didn't like this side of him. Now she knew that it was just a constructed persona for publicity. She knew the real Richard Castle and she'd never let him go again. She was startled out of her thoughts by two voices calling her at the same time.

"Miss? Here are your coffees" the girl behind the counter said.

"Kate?"

She would recognize this voice anywhere. She didn't want to face him right now so she just took the cup holder and walked away.

"Kate! I know it's you, why are you avoiding me? Can't we at least talk?"

"Talk about what Josh, I have nothing to say to you!" she said, finally turning to him.

He was in his scrubs, apparently on a break in his shift.

"I know it was all my fault, I was never there for you. I promise I'll change and …"

"Why would you change?" Kate asked, getting afraid of the turn the conversation was taking.

"I want to give us another shot. I know I accused you of being more comfortable with Castle than me but I can work on that, I swear…"

"Josh, stop right now. There is no getting back together."

"But Kate, I love you"

"I …I'm not available, Josh, and even if I was I would not go back to you. I … I don't want to be mean but there is no nice way to say it. When I met you I was trying to forget someone. I was never a hundred percent with you and you deserve someone better than me. I'm sorry but that's the way it is and it's not gonna change." Kate said, turning around and walking back to the waiting room, and more importantly back to Rick.

She was sleep-deprived and she could feel her body and nerves getting tired. When she arrived in front of Rick, she could feel a lonely tear going down her cheek. When he noticed her, Castle got up and hugged her. When he backed away, he brushed her tears away.

"What's going on Kate?"

"Nothing, I'm just really tired. And Josh said he wanted to get back together so I had to be mean to him. But I'll be fine, I just really need to sleep," she answered, a small smile on her face

"Come on, go lay down on this couch for a while. Your dad went with the nurse to sign some paperwork so that Andy can come home with us tonight." He said, leading her to the couch in the corner of the waiting room.

He sat down at one end and made her lay down, her head on his lap. Passing his fingers in her hair, she was asleep within minutes, the three cups of coffee completely forgotten.

O-o-O-o-O-o-O-o-O

When Kate Beckett woke up from her nap, she felt disoriented. She was apparently sleeping on a couch but it was not at the loft. Someone was on the couch with her but it wasn't Rick, or even Alexis. She slowly opened her eyes so as not to be blinded by the bright light, and saw she was being used as a pillow by Andy. As soon as she realized it was him, everything came back to her: the wedding, the hospital, Josh …

"Hey there sleeping beauty. Feeling better?" Rick asked when he saw that her eyes were open.

"Yes, much better, thanks," she answered

"Here you go, I thought you could use some caffeine," he added, handing her a cup of steaming coffee.

"Oh, you're the best boyfriend ever," she said before kissing him quickly and starting on her coffee.

"I hope so, because I'm the last one you're ever gonna have honey," Rick said, winking at her and kissing her hair.

Kate smiled in her coffee when she realized something.

"Where is Alexis?"

"She went to my mother's. She has an important test tomorrow and she needed to study."

"How are Claire and Lisa?" Kate asked her father

"They're both out of surgery. Claire will be discharged tomorrow but she'll have to come back twice a week to check on her lung, they were kind of crashed in the accident. She was projected into the steering wheel. For Lisa it's going to be longer but the doctors are optimistic. They had to repair both her legs. She was the one who took most of the hit, being in the passenger seat. She'll have to stay in the hospital for at least a month to be sure that everything's healing properly and when she's able to walk again, she'll have daily physical therapy but she will be able to live somewhere else. Now I just have to find a place nearby o fit the four of us because we can't just come here every two days and …"

"Wow wow wow, Jim! Calm down. You can stay with us. You don't need to pay for a place for just two or three months. And you'll never find anything anyway. We're just a few minutes from the hospital. We have way more rooms than necessary. And most of all, it will be a pleasure to have you all over. That's what family's for, right?" Rick asked.

"No, I can't. You're just starting your life together, I don't want to intrude …"

"Dad, you're not intruding, we're proposing. Plus, we'd love to have this little guy with us," Kate said, taking Andy in her arms where he settled against her shoulder and went back to sleep. It could be good practice she thought, smiling at the child.

"Are you really sure. Because I really don't want you resent me or anything for robbing you from your first months of living together and …"

"Jim, we're sure!"

"I have one condition though," Kate said. "You are not acting like I'm sixteen again ok?" she asked, turning back to her father.

"Well, if you don't act like you did when you were sixteen, I won't have to" Jim replied.

"What happened when she was sixteen?" Rick asked, always curious.

"Nothing!" Kate said, throwing a death glare to him. "Come on Dad, let's go home. The visiting hours are over anyway. We'll come back tomorrow when we can actually see them."

They all walked out the door, Kate carrying a still sleeping Andy, Rick carrying Kate's stuff, and Jim carrying baby things that the nurse had given him for the night.

"Oh, this is going to be interesting!" Rick thought as they left the hospital.

He had no idea what he had gotten himself into …