Author's Note: Apologies for the delay in posting this chapter but RL got in the way.

The Best-Laid Plans

Chapter 24

They spent most of the rest of the afternoon learning what they could about Jared Wisnowski. The basic information wasn't too difficult. Helen had mentioned that he worked for a financial company and with that, they were able to check said company's website and find Wisnowski's title and brief biography, none of which told them much pertinent except insofar as it confirmed that he would certainly be rich and privileged.

The boys were able to talk to Ashley Vincenzo who confirmed Helen's story. Kate sent uniforms armed with Winkowski's picture to the restaurant where Helen confirmed they had eaten and one of the wait staff who manned the front desk at the restaurant thought she remembered seeing someone who looked like Winkowski lurking outside the restaurant the night before. It was, of course, circumstantial evidence at best but it was something.

They also had a stroke of luck Kate hadn't exactly depended on in that a judge agreed to sign off on a warrant to get Jared Wisnowski's phone records.

The phone records themselves took some hours to arrive but proved to be worth the wait because in it, they found a text message from some friend of Wisnowski's sent just the evening before mentioning that he'd just seen "your girlfriend" having dinner with another man at the same restaurant where Helen and the victim had eaten. It didn't specify Helen's name but with the restaurant name, it didn't need to. She wasn't sure Esposito and Ryan had ever been quite so grimly pleased to be asked to bring in a suspect.

Castle shifted in his chair and she glanced at him. "What?"

He slid a look at her, then away, and then back again. "Will you have the boys interrogate Wisnowski?"

"They can watch but it's my job."

He grimaced but she gave him credit for not putting his protest into words. She knew very well that he didn't like the idea of her being in the same room as an abuser of women but he knew her too well to try to persuade her out of it. She reached out and touched her hand briefly to his wrist. "I'll be armed and you know I'm hardly helpless."

"I'll be in there with you," was all he said.

"Of course you will be," she agreed.

The boys returned with Wisnowski in short order and she only watched as they escorted Wisnowski to the box and left him there, summoning a uniform to stand just outside.

It was only then that she and Castle moved to join the boys just outside the observation room.

"Did he give you any trouble?"

Espo scoffed. "Him? He's a bully and bullies don't stand up to people who are stronger than they are."

"He's also arrogant," Ryan put in. "Made it clear he was only doing us a favor as far as he's concerned. Thinks he's above the law."

It was her turn to bare her teeth a little in an unamused smile. "Well, then, I think it's high time someone showed him otherwise, don't you?"

But first, they made him wait. Not entirely because she wanted to annoy him, although that was a factor, but because she wanted to go over all the evidence again, organize the case just in case they weren't able to get a confession out of him immediately.

It was a little more than an hour before she and Castle finally entered the box, just after the boys slipped into the observation room with Ryan giving her a small salute before he went.

Wisnowski was pacing around the room in his impatience when they walked in.

Kate hated herself a little for it but her steps almost hitched at the first sight of him up close, a chill zipping through her. Not of fear or intimidation or anything like that but in person, she could see–and was a little horrified to realize it–a vague resemblance between Wisnowski and Castle, enough that she abruptly understood why Helen had reacted the way she had to Castle. It was because both Castle and Wisnowski were, in outward appearance, the same type of man, tall, successful, and good-looking men, Wisnowski dressed in what were clearly designer clothes. They were roughly the same height, although Castle was somewhat broader, and their hair was similar, in its color and even down to the style, at least when Castle made an effort to style his hair the way he did when he was dressed up, while Wisnowski clearly used hair products to keep his hair styled just so. They even both had blue eyes, although Wisnowski's were paler, almost ice-blue.

The resemblance was vague, based on superficialities, and she doubted anyone else would think anything of it but Kate was a woman, as well as a cop, so she saw it. And couldn't help but think that Wisnowski was, in a disturbing way, like Castle in the way that the portrait of Dorian Gray was like Dorian Gray himself. Because Castle looked like a friendly, generally cheerful man, which of course he was (although she supposed part of this might be because she knew this side of him so well but it wasn't only that). The faint lines bracketing his mouth were from his ready smiles and his eyes were, as she knew, warm. Wisnowski looked colder and harder, for lack of a better word, looked as if he had never smiled or laughed out of real amusement in his life. The differences in their characters reflected in their appearance, at least in her eyes.

Helen obviously did not know Castle and had more reason to fear the resemblance than Kate had but no doubt Helen had seen the slight resemblance as well.

"Mr. Wisnowski, I'm Detective Kate Beckett and this is Richard Castle."

Wisnowski turned on them. "It's about damn time someone showed up. Do you have any idea how long I've been waiting?"

"Sorry for the wait," she responded coolly and entirely insincerely. "We had some other work to take care of. Now sit down. I have some questions to ask you."

Wisnowski sat, leaning back in the chair in a position of ease, as if he were the one in charge here.

She and Castle both sat.

"We want to talk to you about Evan Hardesty."

"Never heard of him," Wisnowski retorted coolly. "Should I have?"

He was a very good liar, she noted, but then again, most domestic abusers were.

"Perhaps not," she pretended to concede. "He was killed last night but before that, he was on a date with your ex-girlfriend."

The mention of his ex-girlfriend got Wisnowski to react, a flash of anger darkening his expression before he visibly tried to smooth it out. "I have lots of ex-girlfriends," he tried to sound flippant, a man of the world.

"I'm sure you remember this one, your most recent ex-girlfriend. Helen. The one who dumped you."

His facade cracked slightly. "That bitch!" His expression blanked, his tone once again all cool hauteur. "What did she tell you? She's a liar, I can tell you that."

"We have other sources. She's not the only one who knows about you and her, what you did, how she dumped you." She repeated the insulting phrase.

Wisnowski's arrogant mask was firmly in place. "She didn't dump me, whatever she said. I got tired of her. She was always so whiny, so stupid. I could do better."

"That's not what it sounded like. Sounded like you had trouble letting go, that you expected her to come back to you." She was guessing from the way the text from Wisnowski's friend telling him about Helen and the victim's dinner had still referred to Helen as Wisnowski's girlfriend but it would also be typical of such controlling abusers.

"I guess you heard wrong. Easy mistake to make. Women do get so easily confused," he added with enough condescension in his voice that Kate felt a flare of real temper that she fought to tamp down.

Beside her, she felt Castle tense as he briefly shifted his leg over so his ankle brushed hers. It was all the signal she got before he sat forward, resting both his arms on the table and she saw that he'd nudged his sleeve up a little and pushed his watch down so it was visible. "You know what, I don't believe you, Wisnowski," he drawled, his tone sounding very different from the Castle she was used to. This voice was all rich, arrogant celebrity. Not far removed from the tones she'd first heard at his book launch party a year ago, his jackass celebrity tone that had instantly annoyed her and, yes, prejudiced her against him.

She saw Wisnowski react to it too, his eyes darting down to Castle's clearly expensive watch. It would be a status symbol, one Wisnowski would certainly recognize. It hadn't surprised her that Wisnowski hadn't appeared aware of Castle's celebrity status; Wisnowski wasn't the sort of man who read fiction or cared to keep track of people who were actually famous or richer than he was. And Castle wasn't wearing one of his better, obviously expensive suits since he never did in the precinct, was dressed casually in one of his usual button-downs and jeans, so aside from the watch, he wasn't obviously rich–not someone Wisnowski would have cared to acknowledge–but now Wisnowski knew otherwise.

"I don't know why you'd say that," Wisnowski tried to bluff but she detected a little strain in his voice. He had an easier time lying to her but lying to Castle–a man and one who he now knew was, at the very least, richer than he was–was a different thing. Typical of Wisnowski to care more about wealth than anything else.

"I've asked around, heard about you. I know people at Sprague," Castle went on, still in the same drawl, referring to the company where Wisnowski worked. (Which might well be true, knowing Castle.) His voice was disdainful. "I don't know what you think but you're not that impressive. I've seen your ex's picture and if anyone was dating down, it was her. She must have gotten so tired of putting up with you, faking it all the time. It was no wonder she finally upped and left you and now she found herself a real man in Hardesty and I bet you just couldn't stand that, could you. Knowing another man could satisfy her when you couldn't–"

"Shut up!" Wisnowski screamed as he shot to his feet. He'd cracked, the arrogant mask, the civilized facade, was gone now. "She's mine, I tell you! She thought she could get away from me but I'll show her just like I showed him! Thinking he could take what was mine! He got what he deserved, telling me she'd made her choice. She'll know and she'll pay, slut that she–"

"That's enough. You are under arrest for the murder of Evan Hardesty," Kate interrupted him, cutting across his tirade as she took out her handcuffs.

He appeared to have half-forgotten about her presence but he turned on her, slapping the cuffs aside and releasing an angry bark of a laugh that sounded manic rather than amused. "You–you dare! You're just another stupid whore, just like–"

Castle's fist shot out, slamming into Wisnowski's face with enough force to send him staggering back. The boys burst in through the door, Ryan briefly gripping Castle's shoulder, before he joined Esposito in subduing Wisnowski, who was swearing, glaring, and struggling, none of which had any effect whatsoever on the boys, who cuffed him none too gently and yanked him out of the room.

When they were gone, the room abruptly felt almost too quiet and she belatedly remembered to breathe, reaching out for Castle, almost automatically.

"Hey, you okay?"

He turned to her, shaking his right hand out. "I was going to ask you that," he countered, studying her. "He was talking to you–"

She did not tell him that she had heard worse, although it was true. "You can't imagine I care what a scumbag like him says." She reached for his hand, holding it in both of hers, as she examined his bruised knuckles, reddened and scratched in some places, probably from Wisnowski's teeth. "Your hand–"

"Is fine," he reassured, opening and closing his fist as if to demonstrate.

"Beckett." Montgomery's voice from the door had her dropping Castle's hand and turning towards the door.

"Sir?"

Montgomery nodded at Castle before focusing on her. "Do you want to tell me what all the commotion is about?"

"Of course, sir," she agreed and dutifully followed the Captain out of the box, although she did allow her hand to brush against Castle's on her way past him.

Montgomery turned to her the moment they were in his office. "Now, what is all this I'm hearing about Castle beating up a suspect?"

She hid a grimace. She should have known the bullpen rumor mill would be alive and well and fascinated by what had just happened, helped by the fact that her relationship with Castle was now an open secret in the bullpen. "That's an exaggeration. It was just a punch after the man had already confessed to killing the victim." She gave the Captain a quick summary of the case.

Montgomery's expression had darkened as she told him about Helen's story but now, he only paused. "And the reason for Castle hitting the man? Was Wisnowski resisting arrest?"

"Castle was defending me. Wisnowski was angry at my placing him under arrest and used insulting language," she paraphrased. She had no doubt the Captain would check with the boys too, who would also have heard, so he would get the full story. She didn't need to repeat it herself. She might not care what Wisnowski thought or said but it didn't mean she hadn't minded.

But Castle had defended her. It occurred to her, belatedly, that she hadn't seen Castle really hit anyone before. He'd knocked his head back into Dick Coonan's as a distraction but actually punching someone, no, she hadn't seen it. She hadn't really thought Castle had it in him to be violent; certainly, she knew he would never hit a woman or anyone weaker than he was.

"I see." From his tone, Montgomery could guess the sort of language Wisnowski would have used. "Well, I see no reason that anyone upstairs needs to know about this minor dust-up," he decreed.

"Thank you, sir." It meant Castle would not need to face any questions about what he'd done since she doubted One PP would look all that kindly on a civilian consultant punching a suspect absent a much more physical threat.

"And Beckett?"

She turned back. "Yes?"

The Captain's expression softened a little. "Tell Castle good job."

A small smile escaped her at that. "Yes, sir, thank you."

She found Castle sitting in his usual chair, scowling at the picture of Wisnowski on the murder board. She briefly rested her hand on his shoulder as she passed him before sitting down herself. "Let me take another look at your hand."

He rested his right hand on her desk wordlessly.

It appeared he had washed his hands but his knuckles were bruised, still reddened and raw in places. It didn't look bad, not in her inexpert opinion, but she didn't like seeing it. She just… liked his hands, his strong, beautiful hands. His hands that had touched every inch of her and always with such gentleness. She'd known he was strong–the muscles of his chest and arms were evidence of that–but for all his strength, when he touched her, he had always been gentle, controlled even in the middle of passion.

"You're sure your hand is okay?"

"Yeah, it doesn't hurt much." He made a small rueful face. "Believe it or not, I have punched people before." As if he'd somehow known her earlier thoughts about not realizing he was capable of inflicting any violence himself.

"The Captain said to tell you good job."

His lips twitched a little. "It wasn't exactly planned." He hesitated, sobering, and then added, "Sorry, by the way."

She blinked. "For what?"

"If I overstepped by taking over the interrogation the way I did." He lifted one shoulder in a half-shrug. "I thought he'd be likely to pay more attention to me."

"You spared me from having to spend more time talking to him so I think I should rather be thanking you. And for this," she added, briefly sliding her hand to rest over the uninjured part of his fingers.

His expression darkened. "I didn't mean what I said, not the way it sounded," he blurted out. "I just figured it was the only language he would understand, what he would care about."

"I know." And he'd been right. Wisnowski, in his misogynistic bullying way, would react more strongly to impugning his manhood, as it were, especially coming from a man like Castle, who was richer but otherwise, yes, similar enough to Wisnowski himself in appearance to come across as a rival. She could have cracked Wisnowski herself but it would have taken much more time and more time with someone like Wisnowski who frankly made her flesh crawl was not something she would have welcomed.

"He deserved more than just a punch after what he did," he muttered grimly.

"He'll certainly get more than just a punch now."

"I'd kill any man who treated Alexis the way he treated Helen." He paused and then slid a rueful look to her. "Although I suppose I shouldn't say such a thing to a cop."

She met his eyes. "If anyone treated Alexis the way he treated Helen, I'd help you hide the body."

He jerked a little in surprise, his expression abruptly softening, as he stared at her as if she were some sort of miracle.

She felt color creep into her cheeks from the look in his eyes, her heart suddenly leaping, and abruptly had to avert her eyes from his. "Ah, if you can take the murder board down, I need to call the victim's brother and Helen, tell them what happened. And then I don't think I need to get an immediate start on writing up the case report so we can head home." Home to the loft. She hadn't really been thinking of staying over at the loft again tonight, the last night Martha had before leaving (the small duffel bag she'd packed this morning was only preparation for some future day). But after what had just happened, what Castle had done, she didn't feel like letting him out of her sight.

His expression brightened until he looked somewhat more like his usual self. "You're coming back to the loft with me?"

"Unless you have some objection to that," she responded with mock seriousness.

His lips curved into his first smile in some hours. "No objection at all. It sounds great."

"Good."

And so that was what they did.

As conversations after closing a case went, she thought telling Evan Hardesty's brother why Evan had been killed was certainly among the harder ones. It was always harder when the victim turned out to have been innocent, had not actually done anything to, if not deserve, but to provoke the killer. But even that conversation was easier than having to tell Helen the truth of what had happened, why her ex had killed Evan Hardesty.

She put her phone down with a sigh, turning away from her desk to find that Castle had finished putting away the murder board.

He caught her sigh and met her eyes as he sat down. "Those can't have been easy conversations to have."

Her lips twisted a little. "They weren't." She paused and then went on, surprising herself a little but then, when it came to the burden her job often placed on her, there wasn't anyone else she could really talk to. She could talk to Lanie a little but Lanie was not overly given to introspection and was, as she probably had to be, used to viewing death clinically, rather than considering the emotional impact on the living. And Kate generally avoided talking to her dad about any of the harder parts of her job, not wanting him to worry, still, even now, a little wary about burdening her dad. "Helen blames herself, thinks that if it hadn't been for her, Evan Hardesty wouldn't be dead. I tried to tell her it wasn't her fault but…"

"Guilt isn't exactly rational," he observed. "I hate to say it but I'm sure Helen is going to have a hard time coming to terms with this. She was traumatized by Wisnowski once already and now…"

"And now, just when she was starting to think about trying her wings again, she's been traumatized again with knowing that Wisnowski killed a man over her," she finished. "And I had to be the one to tell her." She hated that so much of her job entailed being a messenger of death, like being an ambassador from Hades.

"You were also the one who was able to assure her that Wisnowski won't be able to hurt her or any woman ever again," he pointed out. "You told her that she's safe from him now and forever. That matters too."

How did he know the right thing to say? He was good at that, at viewing things in a more positive light. His perspective was good for her. He was good for her.

She pushed herself to her feet. "Come on, Castle, I think we can call it a day and go home."

And so they did. Montgomery saw them leave with a nod and a half-wave and they paused to exchange a few words with the boys before leaving the bullpen. Once in the privacy of the elevator, she allowed herself to slip her hand into his, briefly resting her head on his shoulder. She felt his glance at her but he didn't comment.

Packing her duffel bag this morning had been a work of impulse but she was amply rewarded for it by the way his eyes lit when she retrieved it from her trunk the moment they arrived at the loft.

They walked inside to find Alexis lounging on the couch watching TV. "Hi, Dad, Kate," she greeted them cheerfully, apparently unfazed at Kate's coming back to the loft with Castle and with a bag as well.

"Hi, sweetheart," Castle greeted, moving to the couch and tugging the girl up so he could wrap his arms around her.

Alexis gave a little laugh as she patted Castle on the back. "Uh, is everything okay?"

Castle released Alexis and pressed a kiss to her forehead. "Does something have to be wrong for me to give my daughter a hug?" he asked with a show of confusion.

"No, of course not, but you don't usually insist on it like this either," Alexis rejoined. "Did something happen? Kate?" Her eyes sought out Kate.

"Nothing happened," Kate hurriedly assured the girl, catching Castle's glance. "I think he's just thinking about how much he's going to miss you this summer."

Alexis's expression softened and she tipped into her dad's side. "I'm not leaving for another week, Dad. Don't start getting all mushy now."

Kate hid a smile and retreated into Castle's office to put her gun away in the safe and deposit her bag in his bedroom before returning to the front room to catch the tail end of Alexis telling Castle where Martha was. "—said she'll be back before it's too late."

"No need for her to rush back on my account," he interjected dryly.

"Dad!" Alexis elbowed him. "Be nice. And Grams is leaving tomorrow so I wanted to spend some more time with her."

Castle lifted his hands in mock surrender. "All right, all right, I'll be nice." He glanced back at Kate. "Beckett, you must be hungry. Come and eat and save me from Alexis's scolding."

"Oh, I didn't realize you guys hadn't eaten yet," Alexis exclaimed. "Grams and I made pasta and there's plenty left over."

Kate threw a smile at the girl. "And Alexis can just scold you while you eat, Castle," she teased. "It's called multi-tasking."

He made a face at her as he headed towards the kitchen. "Your concern for my digestion is touching," he drawled.

Alexis laughed, falling into step beside Kate as she headed towards the kitchen in turn. "I think your digestion can handle it."

Castle had found the large tupperware of pasta in the fridge and retrieved it, setting it out on the island where Alexis was setting out plates that she set down haphazardly.

Alexis grabbed for Castle's hand. "Dad! What happened to your hand?"

Oh, right. For a moment, Kate had almost forgotten, especially because Castle had assured her again that his hand was fine and she had to admit, it didn't look that bad, the bruising slight and the scratches not bleeding but it was still noticeable.

"It's nothing, Alexis," Castle quickly reassured.

"This doesn't look like nothing. Did you hit someone?"

"You could be a detective," Castle quipped, although he faltered a little at Alexis's unamused look.

"A killer tried to resist arrest," Kate hurriedly stepped in. "And your dad helped to subdue him but he really is okay."

"Oh, Dad," Alexis sighed.

Castle freed his right hand, lifting it to touch her chin, meeting her eyes. "Hey. I really am fine, okay? You don't need to worry about me."

"Says the man who can't even take care of himself well enough to put his own dirty dishes in the sink," Alexis returned but her expression was soft, and she momentarily rested her head on his shoulder.

"That's laziness, not inability, thank you very much," Castle defended.

"I'll keep an eye on him, Alexis," Kate spoke up. "Although I don't promise to pick up his dirty dishes."

That made Alexis smile while Castle made a face but Alexis did relax and they were able to reheat the pasta and eat their dinners while Alexis chatted blithely about her sleepover the night before and her plans with her friends for the coming week. It was all so… homey, so family-like. And so very different from Kate's usual life.

After a day and a case like this one, that seemed to show so much of the worst of human nature, to be able to come back not to the quiet, solitary comfort of her apartment but to a home like this, filled with warmth and life and love. And innocence, not just in the person of Alexis herself who was, for all her teenage maturity, still innocent, her world untouched by any violence, as it should be at her age–but also in the family–Castle, Alexis, and Martha–who, no matter the unconventionality of their family unit with the absence of Meredith, were so solid together. Kate had seen enough of dysfunctional, unhappy families in the course of her job to recognize that the very way Castle and Martha baited each other was in itself proof of how close their relationship was, that they could exchange barbs constantly with the knowledge that the foundation of affection between them was rock-solid.

And now, in some way, it seemed she was becoming part of this family unit as, well, Castle's girlfriend (as odd as that still sounded) with some of her clothes in his bedroom, an expected and accepted addition to the family.

As if to demonstrate it, her eyes met Castle's and they shared small smiles of amusement at Alexis heaving a world-weary sigh as she finished recounting some teenage drama between her friends, for all the world as if Alexis herself was some matron, decades removed from such teenage drama herself. An almost mirror image flashed into her mind, a memory of her own parents exchanging similar smiles as they listened to her teenage self talking about her day. And for once, the memory of her parents didn't hurt quite so sharply, perhaps because this time, it didn't present such a stark contrast to her present.

The door opened mid-way through Alexis's talking about her plan to try to meet a couple other people who were also going to Princeton before the summer program actually started.

"Darlings," Martha caroled as she swept in. "How lovely to see you all together."

"Grams, you're home!" Alexis exclaimed delightedly, slipping off her stool and throwing her arms around Martha.

Beside her, Castle made a show of rolling his eyes. "It's been something like two hours since they last saw each other," he murmured.

Kate suppressed a laugh. "Hi, Martha," she greeted Martha instead, accepting the older woman's scented embrace.

"Mother, is Chet bearing up at the thought of your upcoming absence all right?" Castle asked as he, too, bent to accept Martha's hug.

"He's fine. There are such things as telephones and Skype, after all, and it's only two months. I told him I'd be back before he even has time to really notice I'm gone."

"Yes, because you're such a quiet, unassuming presence," Castle murmured ironically.

Martha waved a dismissive hand. "Oh, hush, you, you're not exactly known for your quiet, retiring personality yourself."

Kate shot Castle a smirk. "She has you there, Castle. No one would ever describe you as quiet."

"Yeah, I figured out one day that I think the longest Dad's ever gone without talking is about 30 minutes. He even talks during movies and makes people shush him," Alexis chimed in.

Castle shot Alexis a look of exaggerated betrayal making her giggle before turning very deliberately to Martha and asking, "And how did everything go at the theater getting everything ready to go?"

With that opening, Martha readily launched into recounting a humorous story about a mix-up involving the costumes for the show that had delayed their getting packed up by some hours with her characteristic flair. Alexis laughed and Castle moved to stand beside Kate, still perched on a stool, slinging an arm around her shoulders and dropping an absent kiss on her hair, while his eyes rested on Alexis's smiling face.

And Kate couldn't help but note that neither Martha nor Alexis reacted by so much as a flicker of an eyelash to Castle's position, his affectionate gesture. She didn't know how it could all seem so… easy, the way she fit in with the family but somehow, at least for now, it did.

Once Martha finished her story, Alexis reminded Martha that she still needed to finish packing, offering to help, and they both retreated upstairs, wishing Kate and Castle a goodnight, Alexis giving not only Castle but also Kate a hug goodnight, surprising Kate yet again. Although she supposed she shouldn't be surprised that Castle's daughter was as freely and openly affectionate as Castle himself was.

Kate retreated into their bedroom (when had she started to think of Castle's bedroom as being theirs?) while Castle finished putting away their dishes and then felt something inside her soften and melt as she noticed that Castle had pushed aside some of his clothes to make room in his closet and also emptied out one of the drawers of his dresser for her. It had only been that morning that he'd suggested she pack a bag with some of her clothes to leave here (as surprising as that seemed) and already, he'd made space for her.

Oh, this man… it wasn't, of course, news to her that Castle was a good, generous man but after the day they'd had, the stark contrast between Castle and the evil that was Jared Wisnowski, in spite of their superficial similarities, it abruptly struck her all over again just how… glad she was to be with him, how lucky she was. (Too lucky? A small corner of her was afraid that this was too good to last, too good to be true–but for now, she was here, he was hers.)

"Just think, by this time tomorrow, my mother will be miles aw–" Castle entered the room, pushing the door closed behind him, before he broke off, noticing that she was standing unmoving in front of the open dresser drawer. "Beckett, what's up?"

She turned to look at him, leaving her duffel bag only half-unpacked. The rest could wait. For now… she felt a surge of emotion, warmth filling her chest, for this man–this man who had leaped to her defense, who was so good at making her laugh, who she knew she was falling for, faster than she'd believed was possible…

She wanted to tell him that, say something, but as usual, what she felt the most, she could not quite say, and after a moment, she gave up and simply walked straight into his arms, pulling his head down to kiss him. She couldn't put into words what she felt at that moment but she could try to show him, show him with the touch of her lips, the press of her body, all that she felt.

Some time later, when they were curled up together in bed, sated and relaxed, with her tucked against his side, she thought, she hoped, that he understood.

~To be continued…~

A/N 2: I'm sorry but I must apologize in advance because I won't be able to post next week as I'll be travelling, and computer-less, for the Thanksgiving holiday. Wishing everyone in the US a happy and healthy Thanksgiving.