WORTH WORKING FOR
CHAPTER FOUR
OCTOBER
She isn't sure why, but when she arrives at her doctor's office the following week for her first check-up, she's surprised when she sees Rick outside. She pauses for a moment and just stares as he leans against the building, his hands in his jacket pockets, the very picture of handsomeness.
"You're here," she blurts when he spots her, masking the relief that he kept his promise.
Rick opens the door and motions for her to go in ahead of him. "I told you I would be," he reminds her. "I'll come to every appointment that I can."
She doesn't respond to his comment, just joins him in the waiting room after checking in. It feels weird to be filling out health history paperwork while sitting next to a man she barely knows but is having a child with, but she pushes the thought down and focuses on the form in front of her.
"Do you want me to stay out here?"
She looks up from the paperwork and meets Rick's concerned gaze. "What? Oh, no, you don't have to. It's your kid, too."
His gaze softens, and she's about to do something stupid like reach for his hand when a nurse calls her name.
Rick is silent while the nurse checks her vitals and gets basic information, and Kate assumes that he's playing Angry Birds on his phone, as he had been in the lobby. But she hears a rustle and the click of a pen when the nurse leaves, and is surprised to see him with a notebook in his hands.
"I don't want to forget anything," he explains when he looks up at her.
There's a brief knock on the door before it opens, and the doctor steps in, saving Kate from having to respond. She'd half expected Rick to be absent, especially once she realized who he was. She sees the tabloids, knows his reputation as a playboy and preference for busty blondes, neither of which are adjectives that can be used to describe her. He's even said in his interviews that he doesn't see kids in his future.
And maybe he hasn't; the most recent interview she remembers was from earlier that year, so unless he'd had a crystal ball or time machine, there was literally no way to know what the autumn would bring. After all, kids have never been part of her plan, and now she's at her OB-GYN, getting information on prenatal care and being gently lectured about managing her stress.
"If I may, Mr. Castle-" Dr. Stevens adds.
"Rick," he interjects.
Dr. Stevens smiles. "Rick. If I may, I'm a big fan of your books. I cried when I finished your latest."
Kate lies back so the exam can continue. She'd also cried when she finished Storm Fall, and has been anxiously awaiting for his next book. She doesn't say that, though, just tries to relax.
"Kate, I didn't realize you were back in town," Dr. Stevens continues, motioning for Kate to sit up and lift her shirt, and she starts examining her side. "You're healing well, as far as I can tell. Both scars may stretch as you grow, but continue putting the cream on them, and you should be fine. And of course, come to all your check-ups." She sits back and types a few things into the computer.
Her nerves return when she lays back down for the ultrasound. Not for the process itself, but because she has a feeling that this moment could change everything. More than realizing she'd missed her period, or seeing the positive pregnancy test, or telling Rick.
Once she sees or hears it, it's real.
She hears Rick gasp when an image appears on the screen, and although Dr. Stevens points out the shape that will become a child, Kate can't see it. That doesn't seem to matter, though, not to Rick, because she glances over to see him staring at the screen, slack-jawed and misty-eyed.
Despite her misgivings about the entire situation, about letting Rick into too much of her life, she holds out her hand. "Want to come closer?" she offers with a brief wiggle of her fingers.
The corner of his mouth lifts, and he pushes himself up and stands next to the table. "That is so cool," he breathes, his voice thick with emotion.
"Isn't it?" Dr. Stevens agrees.
Kate doesn't say anything - she can't, not if she wants to keep some level of composure. But then Rick takes her hand, and a few tears fall anyway. She quickly swipes them away, but if the reassuring squeeze of her hand is any indication, he noticed. He's smart enough not to say anything, though, and she takes a few slow, deep breaths, and turns her attention back to her doctor.
"Everything looks good," Dr. Stevens is saying. "Based on your conception, you're looking at a due date around June ninth, give or take."
"June," Kate repeats. She'd already guessed as much, but hearing it come from her doctor, having it in her records…
It's going to go by in an instant.
And she's terrified.
She doesn't realize until she's home that she barely said a word to Rick after the appointment. It wasn't intentional, or to shut him out; she was just so caught up in her own thoughts that they parted ways with little more than a goodbye.
Hearing her approximate due date brought home the fact that she and Rick have a lot to work out in a very short time. They both need to set up a nursery, figure out a custody arrangement, finances…
She collapses on the couch and pinches the bridge of her nose, feeling a headache coming on.
It's overwhelming.
Tears prick at the corners of her eyes, and she takes a deep breath and scrapes her hands down her face. She's never been an outwardly emotional person, but these pregnancy hormones are something else. She should buy stock in Kleenex; at the rate she's buying boxes, she'll be able to fund her kid's college education with the stock earnings.
College fund. Something else for the list.
She jumps when she feels a vibration under her ass, and she pulls her phone from her back pocket, hesitates when she sees that Rick is calling her. He's been checking in with her daily, but almost exclusively via text. Aside from telling him about the pregnancy and the appointment that day, they've only spoken one other time.
She takes a deep breath to compose herself and answers. "Hello?"
"Kate, hey, it's Rick."
She flushes at his deep, sexy baritone. God, she barely knows him, yet his voice sends heat rushing through her body. It reminds her of that night, of his whispered words in the dark, his deep moans of pleasure.
She clears her throat. Get a hold of yourself. "Hi. What's up?"
There's a long pause, and she almost checks to see if the call dropped when Rick speaks.
"I just wanted to check in," he explains, "since we just kind of left after the appointment. How are you feeling?"
"Oh." She relaxes back into the couch cushions. "I'm okay, mostly. Some nausea here and there, but I manage it."
Rick hums. "Okay. Well, can I do anything to help with that? Keep your tea stocked? Buy every box in the city?"
Kate chuckles. She's pretty sure he's joking about buying out the city's supply of ginger tea, but it's sweet. "Thanks, but I'm good. I got a lot."
He's silent again for several seconds before he takes a deep breath. "Look, Kate, I know this is kind of weird. We don't really know each other. But we're in it together, and I don't know about you, but the appointment today was like a slap in the face that it's actually happening. It's not this hypothetical, abstract thing."
"It's been that way for me for a while, but yeah, I get it."
"And I know we have several months, but-"
"It'll be June before we know it," she interrupts.
"Exactly." There's a smile in his voice that sends pleasant shivers down her spine. "So, I was thinking, are you free in the next few days? We can grab coffee, maybe lunch or dinner? Spend some time together?"
"Um…" She hesitates, but realizes that he's right. They're no longer temporary acquaintances, partners in a fun night to look back on. They're irrevocably linked now, and no matter what the future holds, they'll always be part of each other's lives.
Besides, it's not like he's a complete stranger proposing marriage, or even asking her on a date. It's just coffee or a meal, not much more than playing a round of pool in the dim corner of a bar.
Her body goes hot at the memory of what that game led to.
And then her stomach churns, reminding her of the other consequence of that night.
"Kate?"
Rick's soft, slightly concerned voice comes through the speaker, and she realizes that he's still waiting for an answer.
"Sorry, was looking at my schedule," she lies. No need for him to know she was having a brief existential crisis. "I'm free tomorrow."
"Great. How do you feel about coffee?"
The corner of her mouth quirks. "I am pro-coffee," she teases, "even though I have to limit it now."
Rick chuckles, and the deep, raspy noise sends pleasant shivers down her spine. Oh dear God.
"Two cups won't do it for you?" he teases right back.
"Not even remotely."
It shouldn't surprise her how easily this banter comes, considering how well they'd clicked during their night together.
She tends to keep people at arm's length until she feels comfortable enough to trust them with more of herself, which takes time. The only person she's let into her walls quickly is Lanie, but they'd clicked right away, thanks in part to both being high-performing females in male-dominated industries. They both recognized the need to support each other professionally, and it was pure luck that they got along personally as well.
She has no reason to feel this comfortable with Rick. He wasn't her first one night stand, but he's the only one she's let into her apartment, thanks in no small part to the way just his presence seemed reassuring. And now, to banter, even flirt, unprompted and unhelped by alcohol, she wonders if she's losing her mind.
There's just something about Rick that has her letting down her guard. She almost wishes that she could let it down entirely, show him all of her, her past and her faults and her figurative scars - he's already seen her literal ones, after all. But the last thing she needs is for him to find out how much work he'd have to put into any relationship with her, and leave her heartbroken when it's too hard.
"Think you can wait until ten for your allotted coffee?" Rick asks, interrupting her thoughts. "Or should we meet earlier?"
She chuckles despite her misgivings. "Ten is fine. I'll survive."
"Perfect. I'll pick you up."
He knocks on her door promptly at ten the next morning, and she checks her makeup in the mirror one last time before opening the door.
"Hey," she says, stepping aside to let him in. She doesn't miss the way his eyes darken and flick down her body as he comes in. She also doesn't miss how his black sweater brings out the blue in his eyes, or how great his ass looks in his jeans when she does her own quick perusal of his body.
He turns around before she has a chance to tear her gaze away from his ass, and she feels her face warm when she sees the knowing smirk on his lips. "Ready to go?" he asks in a deep rasp.
She's tempted to say no, and suggest they stay in for the day, but she forces herself to grab her coat instead. She notices his eyes follow the movement as she tucks her badge in her pocket, but he doesn't say anything, just steps out into the hallway.
They walk in silence to a coffee shop just a couple blocks from her apartment, one she's never been to despite living here for almost two years.
"Seriously?" he asks as he opens the door and motions for her to go first, when she mentions her lack of patronage here.
She nods her thanks and pauses just inside, waits for him as he holds the door open for a stream of people leaving. "Busy place," she comments when he finally rejoins her.
"Especially for a Wednesday. At least we seem to have missed a rush," he adds when they walk right up to the counter. He motions for Kate to order. "After you."
She feels his eyes on her as she orders, and flushes when she asks for decaf and notices his smirk. "Yes, I already had coffee this morning," she says after he orders and pays.
He holds up his hands in a gesture of innocence. "I didn't say anything."
"Yeah, well, you were not saying anything very loudly," she teases. "I didn't sleep well, so I needed it to feel half-human."
The barista calls out Rick's name, and he picks up both of their drinks and leads her to an empty table. "Little Cosmo keeping you up? Do I need to give him a serious lecture about it?"
She raises her brows as they sit. "Little Cosmo?" she echoes.
"Yeah. Is the 'little' too much?"
"No." She leans forward when he relaxes. "The whole thing's too much. Cosmo?" she repeats. "That's a dog name."
Rick slouches in his chair and his cheeks turn bright pink. "I had to call him something," he murmurs, barely audible.
"Or her," Kate adds. "Alright. You can call them Cosmo, but don't expect me to."
His face brightens as he sits up. "Good, because I named my shopping list 'Cosmo's room.'"
"Shopping list?" She knows she's just repeating his words back at him, but she's confused. He's known about the baby for less than a week, and he's already shopping? She hasn't even begun thinking about that.
"Yeah. Obviously, we'll need to come up with some kind of custody arrangement, but no matter what it is, he - or she - will have a room at my place." He finally stops to take a breath, and he grins when he sees her face. "You look confused."
She shakes her head in disbelief. "Kind of," she admits with a sigh. "Not confused necessarily, more taken aback. You're a lot more enthusiastic than I expected, I guess."
"I told you I want to be involved, Kate," he says, suddenly serious, repeating his words from a previous conversation. "It's not an empty promise. I'm also the product of a one night stand. I don't know who my father is, let alone met him. Don't get me wrong, Mother was great, and I wouldn't change a thing about my upbringing. But I want my kid to have a different experience, and I definitely don't want the whole burden to fall on you."
He shrugs his shoulders. "So yes, I've already begun researching car seats and cribs, and tomorrow I'll start to clear out one of my spare rooms for the kid. Our kid," he adds.
"Oh," Kate breathes. It's all she can do to absorb all the information he just told her, but at the end, she's floored that he shared it all with a relative stranger.
Although, isn't that the point of them meeting today? To pull away from the stranger label, and get to know each other a little more?
"So, you know a little more about me," Rick continues. "What about you?"
She shrugs. "I'm just me."
"Bullshit." He rests his elbows on the table and fixes his gaze on her, his blue eyes so bright and inquisitive that she almost has to look away. "I know how to Google, Kate. I haven't, because I'd rather hear about you from you. But I'm pretty sure it would give me the basics, things I already know, or can easily deduce. You put a badge in your pocket, so you're a cop. I can assume that you're not patrol, since you didn't pull out a uniform when you got called in that morning. So you're probably a detective."
She clenches her jaw, thoroughly annoyed at his accuracy. He's perceptive; keeping him at arm's length may be more difficult than she thought.
She picks up her coffee and leans back in her chair, tries to exude a casual confidence, a challenge to him. "Okay, Rick, you seem to be so confident in your ability to read people. So you tell me. What else do you think you know about me?"
Rick raises a brow and mirrors her pose, flicks his gaze to her chest before meeting her eyes with a fierce determination in his. "I'm pretty sure that scar on your chest is from a bullet."
Her heart drops to her stomach. Her shooting and everything around it - the reason she was targeted, the case that began it all - is one of her most closely guarded secrets. It's her mother's death that pushed her into law enforcement, the resurgence of information a couple of years ago that eventually led to her bleeding out at her captain's funeral.
But all of that information has to be earned. It's not a story that she's going to tell her one night stand-slash-baby daddy over coffee a month after they first met.
"You're very guarded," he continues, his eyes locked on hers, studying her reactions. "That tells me something happened to make you need to protect yourself. Bad heartbreak, maybe, or a loss. Not enough to reject all advances, otherwise we wouldn't be here. But enough that anyone who wants to know you, the real you, will have to work for it."
The rest of the café fades away with every word that he gets right. Either he's better than she thought, or she's slacking, showing more of herself than she should.
She clears her throat. "Are you one of those people, Rick?"
His eyes soften and the corner of his mouth quirks. "I'm patient and persistent, Kate. You'll see."