No you aren't crazy, this is a new chapter of Glass Slipper mere days after I posted the last one. I'm going to try and post a new chapter twice a week and see how that goes. I make no guarantees but that would be nice, wouldn't it? To get more than one chapter a week? Right. Okay, so this chapter is again pretty short but I think you might like it. Let me know what you guys think inyour review.

Alright updates, "Flower Child" (my Once Upon A Time fic) is moving along nicely. Daily updates so you won't miss a thing. A few hours ago I posted a new chapter of Armed and Dangerous so please go an check that out. We really aprpeciate the reviews there but please, guys, go and read it and review it even if you hate it; we just want to hear from you. And speaking of Armed and Dangerous, one of my co-authors LittleLizzieZentara recently posted a new story called 'Pheromone my Lovely'; it's loosely based on an episode of Lois and Clark so go and check that out and tell her I sent you.

And that's all folks!

Please review and as always you can follow me on twitter you can find me at vatrask

Enjoy 3

Her apartment exploded. Yup. Boom. And for once, she didn't blame Castle – the one time that it was…kind of sort of his fault. But it wasn't, she sighed inwardly, she had to keep reminding herself that this killer – who apparently wasn't Ben Conrad – was just using Nikki Heat as an excuse to be a psychopath; it wasn't anyone's fault but the person who dropped this killer on his head as a child. It still would have been easier for her to blame Castle for putting her in the crosshairs but she couldn't. And yet here she was, homeless and surviving on the few clothes she could salvage from the wreckage – at least this gave her a reason to do some shopping, and Lanie would love to help her. Yes, she was frustrated but just at the situation more than anything. This sucked.

She didn't miss the knowing looks mixed in with the sympathy when she and Castle passed the boys on their way back to his house; back to Castle's loft where she'd only been a handful of times and always felt welcome in. And now it was her home for the next few nights until she could find a more permanent place to stay. She had a feeling that if Castle asked her to make the loft her permanent home, she'd pause before saying no. She'd never truly lived with a man since she moved out of her dad's place – though she'd gotten plenty of offers – she hated change and living with another being was one of the biggest changes in a girl's life. So her trip to Casa De Castle would be short-lived and that was okay – assuming she survived the first night.

Grateful to have salvaged a pair of pajamas that wasn't destroyed by the flames or smoke – much to Castle's chagrin no doubt – she wished Castle a goodnight, throwing a towel playfully in his face as she ascended the stairs to the guest bedroom. It was only when she was alone that the weight of the day settled into her skin and she found herself leaning against the door, running a hand through her hair and biting her lip to keep herself from crying. Her home was destroyed; all of her keepsakes and treasures left over from her childhood – her time with her mother – were charred or completely gone. And she hadn't even told her dad yet, god, he was going to kill her; assuming this killer didn't get to her first. Thoughts like that had her shoulders quaking with the heaviness of the situation, her chest tightening at the thought of everything that had happened so far. She tried to calm her tears and they came out was almost whimpers that shook her body until she sunk down to the floor, her knees coming up to her chest. She knew that crying would get her nowhere but when she was stuck in someone else's home because she had none of her own and there was some psychopath killing people to taunt her, make her crazy – and it was working; she couldn't think of anything else to do but cry until she was too drained to keep her eyes open and then she'd half-heartedly change into her pajamas and sleep for a few hours until she would wake up and go back to work.

She bolted awake a few hours later to the sound of screaming that echoed from her nightmare…only to realize that it was her gasps and sobs that woke her up. Damn; she hadn't had a nightmare in years and usually it was about her mother but tonight, she watch a faceless villain shoot a hole through Rick Castle's head and then come after her. And it had felt so real, so painful to watch the lights go out that she bolted from the bed and was halfway down the stairs before she realized what she was doing. She was just going to double check, she assured herself, better safe than sorry. She crept into the study area, careful of any objects that might leap out at her in the darkness, but paused at his desk, staring at his bedroom door. What was she doing? Castle was in there sleeping and she was going to just sneak in there and do what? Releasing a long, shallow breath, she sat her hip against the edge of his desk and stared at the black door in contemplation. She could the subtle sound of breathing but she wasn't sure if it was him or her. Either way, they were both alive and that was all that mattered. Stamping down her irrational fear, she berated herself for being so emotional when there was a killer on the loose. Losing her home and everything she knew was just a side effect – everything would figure itself out eventually.

Shaking her head, she bumped her hip off the desk and turned towards the main door, knocking one of his baskets off the edge, scattering its contents across the floor. Wincing at the sound, she ducked her head and dropped to the ground as though hiding would dull the sound of the crash, quickly gathering the trinkets that had been in the little plastic box meant to hold paper; trust Castle to fill it with loving memories rather than work. She tried her best not to admire the objects as she placed them back in the basket but little hand-drawn key-chains proclaiming 'happy father's day dad love Aleksis' was too precious not to admire. Her hand caught on something small and metal and she instantly wrapped her fingers around it, inspecting the diamond ring in the palm of her hand. She ran her hand over the crystal in admiration; it was simple cut diamond set in a square frame – nothing special at all. But obviously it was precious to him or it wouldn't have ended up in the basket. Subconsciously her hand rose to her ear and she rubbed it as a memory of a long time ago came to mind after so long.

She once had earrings like this one – well her mother did – but she'd lost them a few months before her mother died. This wasn't the earring, obviously, how could it be, but it was close enough to bring back a sense of nostalgia and she ended up cross-legged on the floor of Castle's office, admiring the back-less earring in her hand. She found herself wondering who the earring belonged to. One of his ex-wives? Kyra – oh that still stung – maybe? Did he love this woman? Did it matter to her? Okay, maybe it mattered a little – there was something about Castle that made her care and she couldn't pin-point what it was – it was something endearing that attracted her to him whenever they were together. They'd be together a lot more for the next little while; could she handle that? Could he? She sighed, placing the earring back in the basket but staying in her spot on the floor, this was going to be a long night, a long case and a very long test of wills. Who would crack first?

And what would happen when they did?