Summer Rain

Disclaimer: Not mine... characters are property of ABC

Summary: After Kate's shooting, Castle finds that he can't stay away. They discover that nothing clears the air like a summer rain. Co-written with lms2457.

A/N: Again, you have my apologies for the long wait. The awesome idea of Spirit of the Season sorta jumped in line, then life happened, and most of you probably already know about that... Anyway, one more chapter after this, and we can all have our happy ending! ;)

Chapter 9

Kate squeezed his hand and nodded that she was ready. Rick watched her for a moment, taking in the way she stood as she waited on him to pull her forward, take her deeper into the unknown.

He felt a little pride roll through his veins, knowing she was trying so hard, and it was mainly because of him. If he hadn't come out here, she would still be inside the cabin, looking out.

But enough of that line of thought. Now, he was taking her through the woods, helping her make it past this wall that was barring her from living.

"Here we go," he said, and took a few steps forward, making sure there was nothing she could trip over as he slowly pulled Kate behind him.

For the longest time, the only sounds he heard was the sound of their footsteps crackling through the layer of dried leaves and the birds singing overhead. Occasionally, there was the hum and whistle of the breeze as it cut its way through the trees.

They approached an area where a fallen tree blocked the way. Castle squeezed her hand again, "It's going to get a little interesting here, Kate. I need you to trust me, okay?"

She kept her eyes closed and he could see a bit of trepidation flash across her face. "What's going on?"

"Just a log to step over. No big deal." Castle stepped on top of the log, never letting go of her hand. "A big step. That's all."

"I've got your hand," he said, "don't forget that."

Kate sighed as she reached forward with her free hand, and touched the fallen tree. She set her foot beside her hand, then pulled herself up with Castle's help. "I'm a cop, Castle. I've had more than a few runs through a obstacle course. Blind and otherwise."

"True," he admitted, properly chagrined. "But I haven't, and certainly not with your safety in my hands." He looked over the side to make sure there were no creatures hiding on the other side. When he saw it was safe, he said, "Okay, I'm going to step down now."

"All right," she answered.

When Castle got down, he let go of her hand and got her by the waist. "I've got you," he said, and she leaned toward him as he brought her down to his side.

Or at least tried to.

Somewhere between Kate's feet leaving the log and Rick bringing her down, he lost his balance and teetered to the side. "Hold on," he cried as he lost the battle and fell.

Kate cried out as well as he managed to bring her close and turn enough so he landed on his side.

Winded and wincing at the pain that shot through his left shoulder, he took a moment to catch his breath.

"You okay?" she asked as she untangled herself out of his arms and got to her knees.

"Yeah," he said, then rolled off the hurt side and pulled himself up into a sitting position. He rubbed his shoulder and looked at her, seeing she didn't appear hurt. "What about you?"

"I'm fine, actually." Kate put her hand over his, "I think you took the brunt of the fall. Are you sure you're okay? Way to prove your point, by the way."

Rick rolled his shoulder a little, stretching the offended muscles. "I'm sure it's bruised, but I'll be fine. My pride on the other hand..." He trailed off as took her hand and squeezed it lightly, "I'm just glad you weren't hurt."

"Then, come on, we still have a ways to go." She got to her feet and reached a hand toward him, quirking her eyebrow and wearing that teasing smile he couldn't get enough of. "You coming, Castle?"

He was more than a little amazed at the change in her. A small amount of fear remained in her eyes, but it was buried deep. And she seemed intent on taking the lead from here. A definite move in the positive direction, any way he looked at it.

With a smile, he took her hand and let her help him up. "Yeah," he said, and stumbled a bit toward her as he got to his feet.

"And you're sure you're all right?" The amusement in her tone got to him. This was the woman he knew. The one he loved. Healing, still, but more present than she had been since his arrival. The thought made his breath catch. He hoped she didn't notice.

"I'm fine, trust me," he answered, and was pretty sure that came out sounding way more pathetic than he intended. Probably gave away far too much.

Kate blinked slowly and stepped even closer, wrapped her arms around him, lightly nudged her nose against his before she kissed him.

Her reaction startled him, made him a freeze for a moment in surprise. There were so many things he wanted to say, but knew now wasn't the time, so he took the easy route and just gave in to the press of her lips against his.

It was so easy to lose himself in the feel of her. She was everywhere, and he couldn't imagine anything ever being quite like this. He pulled her closer when he felt the tip of her tongue touch his.

Sometime during all this, Kate had worked his shirt open and her hands were stroking over his chest like last night. It was driving him mad.

He reluctantly let his hands fall from her. She was working on his neck now, and Castle really needed her to stop before it was too late. He wasn't sure if he could handle another round of teasing, or whatever this was.

"Kate..."

Her finger touched his lips for a moment. "It's all right," she said, then she took his hands and put them back where they had been. "It's your turn to let go, Castle."

When she kissed him this time, he held onto her like he'd never let go.

"You're quiet. Are you okay?" Rick still held Kate close, his hand lightly resting on her hip as they sat against a tree, loving how well she fit by his side. Still, he wasn't sure if they had pushed too far, too fast.

He could feel her breath tickle against his neck as she said, "I haven't felt so at peace in a long time."

"I'm glad," he said, feeling a little pride at having something to do with her statement.

"Yeah, me too." Kate smiled up at him, then looked around slowly. Suddenly, her eyes grew wide and her breathing quickened as if she were searching the trees for something.

"Are you all right?" he asked, seeing a spark of panic in her eyes.

Kate looked back at him for a moment before she closed her eyes and took a deep breath, just as he showed her before. When she opened her eyes again, she shook her head. "I'm fine, just.. I don't know... had a moment."

"I understand," he said, then took her hand in his, "And you're not alone."

"I know that now," Kate nodded and he felt her relax against him once more. "Thanks to you."

They'd been out in the woods for quite some time, so he figured she might be ready to go back to the cabin. "So, you ready to walk back?"

When she hesitated, it made him wonder if he might've said something wrong. "Sure," she answered, "and I know the way."

Rick got to his feet and helped her up, happy to let her lead again. It showed how far they'd gone in such a short time. "I'll follow you anywhere," he said.

She took a few steps ahead of him and he followed. After walking for a few minutes, Kate stopped so suddenly, he almost bumped into her. She shushed him with her finger against his lips, then pointed off to the right.

It took him a moment to see what it was that had her attention. In fact, he didn't see it until the small creature moved and rustled the leaves in which it was hiding. Almost totally camouflaged in a pile of leaves was a small rabbit, nestling in just a little further, and almost perfectly hidden.

He noticed how the tension in her shoulders eased a bit as she looked back at him, smiling so beautifully. Not that there was ever a time he didn't think her smile was beautiful. It must be the time spent here, together, that made it just a little more awesome.

"Your detecting skills definitely haven't faded," he whispered, "I had no idea there was anything around."

The smiled quirked a little and became smaller with the roll of her eyes. "This from the guy who was talking earlier about listening to the world sing." She nudged him with her shoulder, "Let's stay here a little longer, let the world tell us its story. You know, kind of like what we did earlier; just listen and let it all unfold."

He wrapped his arms around her, so glad for the time here, with her. "I think that sounds wonderful."