It's really good to know there's still people reading this story. I appreciate the reviews but above all, I'm thankful for having such an amazing beta as .stanathan. And yes Sumer95, they will go back to the 12, after all, that's what makes the show… I'm a big time shipper since the X-Files, but I believe in maintaining the essence of the show (but my shipper heart is bigger than my case heart!) Plus, I see fan fiction as a way of getting what the producers refuse to give us, and in this case, I believe it's romance :)

Ideas, opinions and criticism, is welcomed and cherished, but I won't blackmail you guys for it !

Hope you have a great day, and if you find a way of owning Castle with about a 100 dollars, please, let me know…I could really use the income!

Hour 22

I ask him to take the potatoes out of the oven just as I'm giving the final touches to the chicken. It's a simple recipe actually, just some water, lemon, onions and mustard and you've got yourself a really tender chicken breast. We used to make them with my mum almost every Sunday. I don't remember eating them in the last thirteen years. It's kind of sad when I really think about it. I mean, I have all these really good memories of our time as a family and instead of appreciating them, I've been so driven by her murder that I let that define me instead of the good times.

No more.

I have a once in a lifetime opportunity for a happy ever after and I'm going to take it. I expect we'll get some bumps in the road, but all in all, I can see Castle and I living happily ever after…

He sets the table in a nice, almost-but-not-quite romantic way. Table cloth, nice silverware and low lighting, but there're no candles or flowers to be seen. I like it better this way. More of an I-love-spending-my-time-with-you-so-this-is-how-we're-gonna-eat-from-now-on than I'm-trying-to-get-into-your-pants kind of way. And I really like that. Besides, he'll get there as soon as those dammed bruises disappear…

"Can we, maybe, talk about something trivial over dinner?" I ask.

"What, like the weather?"

"Yeah. Or, I don't know, something less dangerous than what happened yesterday, my mothers case, what I'm going to do for the rest of my life, my lying, your hiding…"

"Ok, ok, I get the picture. Something less meaningful."

"No, not less meaningful, just less stressful."

"Such as?"

I hold on to the answer until we're seated. He's in the corner and I'm to his left. I like it this way, it allows us to share meaningful looks but I can also place a hand on his knee. "Uh, how about your next book?"

"Frozen Heat?"

"Yeah. How is the writing coming along? You haven't spoken about it much…"

"It's actually almost done…"

"Really? Does that mean I can almost read it?"

"Why, anxious much?"

"Yeah. Heaps! I love your books… always have…"

"You- uh, that's the first time you've openly admitted to enjoying them."

"C'mon Castle! You've seen my bookcase, you know I have them all…"

"Yeah, but you never told me when you bought your first copy. Was it before or after I started shadowing you?"

"Ok, so maybe the whole 'how is your next book coming' thing isn't less trivial than denying I love yous…"

"Oh, so you've been a fan forever? Do you have any signed copies? When did you read your fist Castle book?"

"My first Castle book was the first of the Storm saga."

"Ok, the first Storm book… that means almost fourteen years ago…"

"I was in college. My mother thought I was spending way too much time reading law books so she bought it for me and sent it with a postcard of this dog wearing glasses and reading the paper. It was hilarious! Anyway, she said it'd do me good to read something less boring. We read it in the same week and we talked about it over the phone for hours. We'd agree on which chapters to read for the next day and then argue about them. It was the last gift she ever gave me…After seeing me reading it over and over again, a friend at the academy told me you had lots of other books. And I went to my parent's place, hoping my mother had them and after hours of searching, I found all of them in this amazingly well wrapped box under my parents bed. The paper was Christmassy and had my name on a card. She wanted me to have them all so I'd always have something good to read. And I've been your number one fan since then."

"Thank you for sharing that with me."

"No Castle. Thank you for saving me years before actually meeting me. I don't know where I'd be if it wasn't for you. I remember waiting in line for hours for you to sign that first Storm book for me."

"I wish I remembered you…"

"I'm glad you don't. I wasn't in a happy place. But even then, you knew how to make me smile."

"Why? Did I write you a dedication? Did I hit on you?"

"No, you didn't hit on me. But yes, you did write a dedication. It went something like this: 'To Kate. Hope those sad eyes find a reason to smile again. It's a shame for this word to miss that smile'. It was sweet and perceptive. It made me believe you really saw your fans, not just through them."

"I don't know about the fans, but I'm glad I saw you, even if I don't remember doing so…"

"I am too."

We spend the rest of the dinner in comfortable silence. We share some meaningful looks and some under-the-table touches. They make me feel like a teenager again. It's absurd really. He saw me naked last night and again this morning, but those almost furtive touches are making a big hole in my "he won't see me naked again tonight" resolution. I place my hand in his and put them both over the table. Even if he learns to live with them, I don't want for him to see my bruises again. For the first time in my life, I'm not proud of sporting those purple reminders of my fight with Maddox. And our fight. I don't want either one of us remembering that fight. I focus on our joined hands. I let my fingers play with his in this silent dance. I place mine between his only to take them out and place all of them inside his palm and then start again.

"Have I told you yet that I love you?" He asks suddenly.

"Still?" I wonder.

"Always."

"Good. Because I really love you too."

"Does that mean I'll get to see you naked tonight?"

"Nice try mister, but no way José!"

"Why not? I know it's not because of the scar. Is it because of the bruises? Because I really don't mind those…"

"But I do Castle. They're a painful reminder of the last time I turned my back on you."

"But that's just it Kate. It was the last time. Besides, I see them as the last time I almost lost you forever but because of Ryan I get to share the rest of my life with you. They remind me that you're done with chasing death. I know shit happens, but at least for a while, we won't go looking for it, you know? And they remind me of that. Actually, I think I love those bruises…"

"I'm still not sure you'll get to see them tonight…"

"Fine. But mind my words: this talk aint over 'til it's over. And it'll only be over when I get to hold you against me, no t-shirts, no underwear in between. I can live without making love to you tonight. But that's as far as I'll go."

"We'll see who wins by the end of the night."

"Having you with me means I've already won."

"Cut the cheesy phrases, they won't get you no-where!"

"Fine. Let's clean this up so we can go cuddle one the couch."

"By cuddle you mean necking?"

"Maybe… just wait and see. I'll wash this up, you find some dessert that says 'happy first 24 hours together'. I've been able to kiss you and grope you all day. That deserves a celebration!"

"Fine by me!" God it feels so good to kiss him. After four years of restraining ourselves, we can't seem to be able to stop touching each other. We opened the gates and the flood came in. And I'm loving every second of it!