A/N- More angst, but they are talking things out...

When morning came, Kate woke from a restless nights sleep. She kept replaying her conversation with Castle over and over in her mind. She wondered if he would pick her up from the hospital or if she would have to call a taxi. So, she called Castle and when he answered she asked, "I'm ready to go home."

"Okay..."

"I can call a cab if you're busy. I don't want to be a bother."

Castle sighed, "You're not a bother. I'll be there in an hour. Bye Kate."

He hung up the phone before she could say anything else. She sighed and closed her eyes. She felt her whole world crashing down around her. All because of her stupid pride. Had she ruined the best thing that had ever happened to her? She could only wonder and worry as she waited for him. She kept her eyes on the door. Waiting for the man she loved and the man that she had hurt so terribly the day before. Hoping that she could find the words to make it up to him. Praying that it wasn't too late to ask for his forgiveness.

She must have fallen asleep waiting for him. Because the next thing she knew, she felt his lips on hers and his hand on her stomach. She smiled sadly at him and whispered, "Hello..."

"Are you ready to go?"

She nodded and started to get out of the bed. Castle took her hand and helped her up. Then he whispered, "Sorry."

"What for?"

"For helping you..."

"Don't Castle..."

"Don't what? Don't care about you? Don't care about the baby? I need you to tell me what I'm allowed to fucking care about here! Because the last I knew, I'm your husband and allowed to at least care about you if no one else. I really need you to tell me Katherine. Because I'm drowning here and you are holding the only life preserver."

She could hear the unspoken words in his statement. He was still hurting over what she had said to him yesterday. She took his face in her hands and kissed him softly. Then she whispered, "I'm so sorry Rick. I didn't mean what I said. I was scared and I knew that I was wrong. Wrong for going out into the field again. I knew that my center of balance was off, but I don't want to give up my job. I couldn't lash out at the man that did this to me..."

"So you lashed out at me."

"I did. And I'm sorry."

He shook his head and told her, "I can't do this Kate."

"You're leaving me?"

"No, but I can't do this every time we get into a fight. I can't wonder if I'm going to fall even more in love with your daughter and you will take her away from me. Because she isn't mine in every way that really counts. How many times are you going to throw it in my face? What happens when she wants something and I say yes and you don't like it? Are you going to say no and use the fact that I'm not her real dad against me?"

"I wouldn't do that Rick."

"No? Well you do it every single time you get mad at me now. Every time I get worried about you or her. You tell me it isn't my concern. It either has to be all or nothing. You told me that the only thing that matters is that I love her. Well, I do. I love both of you. I'm willing to raise her as my daughter. I won't treat her any different that I do Alexis or any other child we might or might not have together in the future, but..."

"But what?"

"But you can't keep doing this Kate. I don't think my heart can take it anymore."

It was then that she rushed over to him. She couldn't lose him. Not again. She'd lost him for the three years that she'd been married to Josh and it had killed her. Now, knowing how great they were together, it would destroy her. She smiled at her husband and whispered, "I'm so sorry Castle. I'm sorry for saying that she isn't your daughter. Because she couldn't be more your daughter. She was very still last night."

Despite being upset at her, Castle looked at her in alarm and asked, "Is she okay? I thought the doctors gave you the okay to leave. Should I call them? I..."

She smiled and told him, "She likes when you talk to her. I tried, but she didn't respond to my voice. At least not in the same way she does to you. I think she was mad at me for not making you stay. So, she hardly moved at all last night." Then she took his hand and pressed it to her stomach and whispered, "She's been moving a lot since you got here."

As if to prove a point, her daughter kicked beneath her hand. Castle closed his eyes and whispered, "You two are killing me here."

"She doesn't know any better and her mom should know better." She pulled the maternity leave papers out of her bag and showed it to him, "Roy brought these by last night. He gave me a choice. Go on leave or desk duty."

"What did you tell him?"

"That I needed to talk to you."

"Why?"

"Because, you're my husband and we need to make these decisions together. I want to make every single important decision together. And even the little ones. I love you Richard Castle and I'm sorry for saying that you aren't her father. Because you are. In every single way that counts."

"What about the next time you get upset at me? Because I'm always going to worry about you. Both of you. Maybe we should take a break and think about whether or not we want the same things. Before anyone else is hurt by our actions."

"No! No Castle I don't want that. I love you and I need you. We both need you."

As if she agreed with her, the baby kicked again at her words and Castle's heart melted. He finally kissed her softly and whispered, "Okay..."

Kate knew that she had a lot to make up for. She kissed him and whispered, "Take me home Richard Castle."

He nodded and the nurse came to push her out in the wheelchair. Castle opened the door and helped Kate into the car. Then he got behind the wheel and started the car. He pulled out into traffic and once he was headed home, he took her hand and gave it a squeeze. Then, he whispered softly, "I love you. Both of you."

Kate put his hand on her stomach and whispered, "We love you to."

Castle smiled and he knew then that everything would be fine. As long as they talked things out in the future, things would be just fine. What they didn't realize was that there was one other person that had been hurt by their fight. A little girl that wondered if she would have to choose between her father and the woman she had come to love like a mother...