WORTH WORKING FOR
CHAPTER THIRTEEN
Her bed's different.
Panic gives way to confusion when she realizes that she's not actually in her bed. She sits up and looks around, taking in the soft, gray sheets, the subtle, masculine décor...
Well, the huge lion picture is anything but subtle.
She smiles as the events of last night come back to her.
After their talk at dinner, they'd come to an agreement to put it away for now, so they did. She helped him wash dishes, then they settled on the couch to watch a movie.
She doesn't even remember closing her eyes, but she was so tired after the physical and mental toll of the case, and Rick's couch was so soft and comfortable, that she didn't even make it past the opening credits.
Rick must have carried her to his room, and judging by the large t-shirt she's wearing, and lack of pants, he helped her out of her work clothes.
Also, judging by the lack of a pillow on the other side of the bed, she might have slept alone.
Rick's bed is so much more comfortable than hers, a mattress with the perfect amount of give, and sheets that are probably a thread count she didn't know existed. As much as she wants to burrow under the covers for the whole day, her bladder disagrees, and besides, she wants to give her host his room back.
She notices an open doorway, and she peeks through it to find an en suite bathroom, complete with a very large shower – big enough for two, she notes with a tug of arousal – and separate tub. There's a new toothbrush and toothpaste next to one of the sinks, and she brushes her teeth.
Her clothes are nowhere to be found, and she doesn't want to snoop in his dresser for shorts or pants, so she grabs the robe hanging on the back of the bedroom door and slips it on.
She follows her nose to the kitchen, where she finds Rick mixing something in a bowl, and an almost-full pot of coffee on the counter.
He glances up when she's close, and he grins and sets the bowl down. "Hey, you're awake." He pours coffee into a mug and adds cream. "I was about to come check on you. I made batter for pancakes if you're hungry, or I can make something else if you prefer."
She gives him a small smile of thanks and lifts the mug to her lips, takes a long inhale, her eyes closing as she takes in the warmth. "Thanks," she says quietly, then takes a sip. "Pancakes are fine. Where did you sleep?"
"Upstairs." The tips of his ears turn pink. "I wasn't sure how you'd feel about sharing a bed without having any input – I wouldn't have done anything, obviously, but you were out. You barely stirred when I picked you up," he explains, "so I went upstairs."
She sits at the bar and leans her elbows on the top, curls her fingers around her mug. "Oh. Well, for the record, I wouldn't have minded waking up next to you," she admits, her cheeks warming from more than the coffee.
He offers her a slight lift of his lips. "I'll keep that in mind for next time. Now, you hungry? Should I start the pancakes?"
She nods, and when he forbids her from helping, she relaxes in her seat and watches. Heat rolls through her as his arms flex and his t-shirt pulls around his broad back, as she imagines the scrape of his day-old scruff on her skin.
God, she wants him.
Even after the stress of the last few days and the rollercoaster of emotions she's been through, she wants to feel his hands on her.
By the time he prepares two plates and joins her at the bar, she's almost shaking with desire. She manages to control herself, although she does take his hand in hers, laces their fingers together, and pulls his hand onto her lap.
He stiffens at first, but after a few seconds, he relaxes and grabs his fork.
"So, you like Christmas, huh?" she jokes after helping him clean up from the meal.
It hadn't registered last night, but now that she feels a bit more like herself, she's a bit taken aback by the sheer amount of Christmas decorations on display. There's even a ten-foot tree in the corner of the living room that she has no idea how she missed.
In short, it looks like he bought out a Christmas store and just relocated everything into his apartment.
Rick glances at her and smirks. "What gave it away?" he teases. When she just rolls her eyes, he drops his dish towel on the counter and leans against it. "I couldn't help but notice the lack of decorations at your place."
She knows he doesn't mean anything by the comment. But still she tenses, and she crosses her arms and moves towards the living room, needing to put space between her and his unspoken judgment.
He grabs her wrist before she goes too far, and he tugs her back to him. "Hey. I'm sorry if I said the wrong thing. I was just making an observation."
"No, it-" She sighs and hangs her head for a moment, then looks back up at him. "I haven't decorated since my mom died," she explains. "We still had the decorations up when it happened, and when Dad and I eventually took them down, it felt like we were putting Christmas away."
Rick's eyes soften with understanding.
"It's not as bad anymore, but for the first several years especially, the holidays were really hard. Mom loved Christmas, so celebrating without her..."
Rick nods. "It doesn't feel right?" he finishes quietly.
She meets his gaze and offers a small smile. "Yeah," she whispers. "A couple years after he got sober, Dad bought a cabin upstate, and he goes up there for the holiday."
"What about you?"
"I work. It keeps me from sitting around and moping, and it allows others to spend the day with their families. Working is my tradition. Next year will be different," she adds, pressing her hand against her lower belly. "I don't know if I'll be able to bring myself to decorate, or even look at our old stuff. But for now..."
"For now, you'll follow your tradition," Rick finishes for her. He steps close and covers her hand on her belly with his, brushes his lips against her forehead. "I admire you, Kate," he murmurs against her skin before moving back and cupping her face with both hands and gazing into her eyes. "Your strength, your heart." He pauses, then smirks. "And your hotness."
She chuckles and rolls her eyes. "Hotness isn't something to admire," she teases.
"I beg to differ." He falls serious again. "Mother and I usually spend Christmas together, but since she's in Dallas this year, I'll just be sitting around. Maybe I can visit you at the precinct?"
She smiles. "I'd like that."
"Kate, Rick, good to see you again."
Kate smiles when Dr. Stevens looks between the two of them, her brow raised. Usually Rick sits in a chair against the wall, at least at first, but he'd pulled the chair next to her, and she'd taken his hand, laced their fingers together. Since the line between friendship and something more has blurred, there's no reason for him not to be at her side for the entirety of these appointments.
There's a squeeze on her hand, and she looks at Rick, answers his reassuring smile with one of hers. Even though she hasn't had a good reason to be nervous, she is. But with Rick's hand holding hers, his calm presence next to her, and his quiet strength, she relaxes a little more as the appointment progresses.
"Do you guys want to know the sex?" the nurse asks later in the appointment.
Kate meets Rick's eyes, and although she can see the excitement in his gaze, he shrugs.
"Up to you," he says, squeezing her hand. "I'm happy with either."
She draws her bottom lip between her teeth. She hasn't thought about it, assumed it was too early to tell. The sex – or gender – of her child wouldn't change the love she already has for them. And she's never really cared for gender reveal parties anyway.
But...
"Can we tell already?" she asks the nurse.
She nods.
Kate meets Rick's gaze again and nods. "Yeah?" she asks quietly.
Rick's face breaks out into a wide grin, and he surges forward, presses his mouth to hers. "Yeah," he murmurs.
She glances at the nurse and nods. "Yeah."
"Well..." The nurse points at something on the monitor, and all three of them lean forward to get a better look.
"Is that a-"
"Yep. Congratulations, you're having a boy!"
"Here you go, milady," Rick drawls, appearing in front of her with a mug in each hand. He holds one of them out to her, and grins when she takes it and immediately cups it in her hands.
She glances up at him as she lifts the mug to her lips, follows his movements as he settles on the other end of the couch. "Milady?" she echoes, raising her brows, smirking at the cute flush that spreads across his cheeks. "Am I a fair maiden in the fifteenth century?" she teases, shifting so she can curl her legs under her.
Rick scoots closer to her and curls his fingers around the back of her knee, pulls until she gives in and straightens it, and begins massaging her foot. "If I say yes, will you accuse me of being misogynistic?" he fires back. When she just smiles and shakes her head, he gestures to her other leg, holds her cocoa while she adjusts and drapes both of her legs over his lap.
She takes the cocoa back, but it's forgotten when he begins to rub both of her shins. She groans and drops her head back. "You're really good at that," she murmurs, relaxing into the cushions, her eyes closing without realizing it. "Amazing hands."
Those hands freeze, and she opens her eyes to find him just staring at her, his blue eyes almost black and a hungry look on his face.
Rick takes her barely-touched cocoa and sets it on the coffee table, and her breath quickens as he places his knees on either side of her legs, straddling her, his gaze full of longing. His hands come up to frame her face, his thumbs gently caressing her cheeks, one tracing her bottom lip.
Another time – even just the last few days – she might feel trapped by him hovering over her, effectively pinning her to the couch. But he'd never hurt her, she knows, has probably known it since she first met him. He's only ever shown reverence and respect. Any time she's expressed her boundaries, he's respected them. If she asked, he'd let her up, no questions asked.
But she doesn't want that.
She wants him.
She reaches up and presses her hand to his cheek, shivering at the rough stubble under her palm, drops her gaze to his mouth as she slides her hand to the back of his head and brings his mouth to hers.
His tongue nudges the seam of her lips, and she opens her mouth with a sigh, moans when his tongue meets hers. She lifts herself up, wanting to be closer, needing to feel his body pressed against hers.
She bends her knees and lifts her hips, and as soon as her groin bumps into his, something inside of him seems to snap.
He tears his mouth from hers and gets off the couch, but before she can complain, he grabs her hand and leads her to his bedroom.
"Are you working on New Year's?" Rick asks a short time later, his arm around her naked back, fingers lightly trailing up and down her arm, making goosebumps erupt over her entire body.
Kate props her chin on his sternum and smirks at the hungry look in his eye. They finished just a few minutes ago – her body is still humming – but already he looks like he could go for a round two.
She chooses to ignore it, needing a little more time to recover, and squeezes his waist, presses a quick kiss to his chest. "No. I'm working on Christmas Eve and Day, so I'm off."
He nods. "Great. You should come over."
"Huh?"
"I'm having a party. It's an annual thing. I wasn't sure if you were working, or if you'd want to come regardless, but come." He tucks a stray lock of hair behind her ear. "Next year's going to bring a lot of change for both of us, and I'd like to be with you when it starts."
Her breath catches in her throat, and she shifts to hover over him, props herself on her elbows as she gazes into his eyes. She leans down and brushes her lips across his, moans when he cups the back of her head and deepens the kiss. "Okay," she whispers when they pull apart for air.
He grins. "Yeah?"
"Yeah. But Rick-" She hesitates, worry creeping in that he might take this the wrong way, but barrels on. "I don't want the baby to be public yet. Our friends and family know, but that's it – I haven't told Gates or anyone else at work yet, and I don't want them to find out by-"
Rick stops her with a soft kiss to her lips. "Okay," he whispers.
"Okay?" she repeats, pulling back, furrowing her brow in confusion. "You're okay hiding it?"
He tucks her hair behind her ear. "When you first told me, I wanted to shout from every rooftop in the city that I'm going to be a dad. But you're part of this too. Hell, you're affected more than me. You're doing all the work, I'm just along for the ride. So, you don't want it public, it won't be public. Period." He kisses her again. "Although, at some point, we'll have to. Eventually, you'll start to show."
She sighs in relief and lays her cheek back onto his chest, smiles when she feels his arm curl around her back, holding her close. "How'd I get so lucky?" she breathes. "You're just..."
"Perfect?"
She chuckles and pinches his side. "I wouldn't go that far," she teases.
He chuckles deep in his chest, and she closes her eyes and lets herself relax.
He's not wrong, though: he's been pretty damn perfect this whole time. She's the one who's kept him at an arm's length when she can't bear to face whatever demons threaten to overtake her, and he's been nothing but patient and supportive.
When she, a complete stranger, surprised him at the bar she didn't know he owned and told him she was pregnant with his kid, he didn't even hesitate to stand beside her.
God, she could fall for him.
As she drifts off to sleep, though, Rick doing the same if the steady rise and fall of his chest is any indication, she thinks that it might already be happening.
It's been less than a day since they found out they're having a boy, and already, Kate is wondering what he'll be like, if he'll take more after her or Rick.
Hopefully Rick, she decides as she watches him attempt to make a snowman, despite there barely being any snow on the ground.
He's having a blast, the snow that began to fall while they were enjoying their coffee bringing out his inner child. Almost immediately upon seeing the flakes outside the window, he jumped up and insisted that they go outside.
She has to work tomorrow, so she'd suggested that they go to her place, and she could get a change of clothes for the next day.
"And then we can come back," she'd said, straddling his lap, "or we can stay and relive our first night together."
He'd obviously liked option number two, since he'd flipped them and pinned her to the bed.
They didn't leave for over an hour.
Now, as he clears an ever-growing area of snow only to make one of the smallest snowmen she's ever seen, she can't help but wonder what she'd be doing now if she wasn't here, if he wasn't in her life.
Probably working, she knows. If not already on shift when bad weather would come in, she'd usually go into the precinct anyway, either to cover for anyone who couldn't make it, or be an extra body if they'd get overwhelmed. It's always been fulfilling, the opportunity to make a difference, to be a light in the darkest days of people's lives.
Her life is still fulfilling now, just in a different way.
Her heart swells when Rick looks up at her, a wide grin overtaking his face when their eyes meet. He sticks a small rock in the snowman, presumably for a nose, but it causes the head to fall to the ground. He puts it back and stands, points at it as if to say "stay," and walks over to her.
"Baby's first snowman," he says, wrapping his arm around her waist and tugging her into his side.
She slips her arm under his coat and squeezes his waist. "If you call that a snowman," she teases, laughing when he gasps in horror.
"It's totally a snowman!" He pauses and tilts his head as he examines it. "Well, a snow-something."
She laughs. "Come on, Rick. Walk me home." She tucks her hand in his back pocket and squeezes his ass. "I'll let you warm me up when we get there."
There's a low growl from deep in his chest, and before she can react, her hand is in his, and he's practically dragging her down the sidewalk.
CHRISTMAS EVE
Are you busy?
Kate smiles when she reads the text from Rick, is about to respond when a new message comes in.
I need to find a home for all of this accompanies a picture of his kitchen, where every inch of the counter in the frame is covered by cookies.
She chuckles and calls him, warmth spreading through her when he picks up and she hears the deep timbre of his voice.
"I've eaten so much dough, I think I'm turning into a cookie."
She grins and leans back in her chair, absent-mindedly swivels back and forth. "Turn the heater up and see if you turn crispy at the edges," she teases.
Rick chuckles, and she hears the soft whoosh of the couch. "I'm bored," he whines.
"Do you not have a book to work on?"
"Couldn't concentrate. Would the precinct accept baked goods as a Christmas Eve present?"
She glances around at the near-empty bullpen. Karpowski is working on paperwork, but most uniforms are on patrol, and she's one of just a few detectives on shift. Getting several dozen cookies may be excessive for a skeleton crew...
But it would be nice to see Rick.
"Absolutely," she finally says. "Just give me a shout when you're here."
"Better atmosphere than last week," Rick quips, stepping off the elevator an hour later.
Kate knows he doesn't mean anything by it, but still she bristles, her back going rigid in self-defense. Last time he was at the precinct, there was a damn sniper on the loose, so of course it's better now. She takes a deep, calming breath; she might not be past the lingering anxiety from that case after all.
Rick must see the tension in her face, because when they reach the break room, he sets the box of cookies down and turns to her. "Sorry, Kate, I didn't think."
"It's fine. I'm just trying not to think about it." She reaches out and squeezes his hand. "I'm good. What kind of cookies did you make?" she asks, turning him to face the table, needing to change the subject.
That seems to do the trick, because his eyes light up, and he starts unpacking the various containers. "So many." She tries to listen, but she can only stare as he pulls out what ends up being close to six dozen cookies, every dozen different.
"Where is everyone?" Rick asks once the table is full. "I figured the place would be full of people who got in trouble while last-minute Christmas shopping."
Kate chuckles and grabs a chocolate chip cookie. "Not really. More petty crime and shoplifting today, although there will be a couple more detectives working tomorrow. Christmas Day does have its fair share of homicides, unfortunately," she explains. She takes a bite of the cookie and closes her eyes, moaning at the taste. "Oh my God, Rick. This-" She pauses and nods at him. "You can make these anytime you want."
Rick grins and wraps an arm around her waist, pulls her into his embrace. "Gladly."
Normally, she keeps things professional at work, keeps the PDA to a minimum. But Karpowski's the only other person in the bullpen right now, and her nose is buried in paperwork. So Kate loops her arms around Rick's neck and lifts herself to press her mouth to his.
"So, you guys together now?"
She jumps back, her cheeks burning, and she turns to see Esposito standing at the door, smirking. He pulls his phone out of his back pocket. "I gotta tell Ryan he owes me twenty bucks."
Kate rolls her eyes and moves away from Rick, her body immediately missing his. She takes another cookie – sugar this time – and nudges Espo aside when she leaves the room. "Ass," she teases, smiling when she hears Rick's footsteps following her.
"You working on any cases today?" he asks, pulling a chair next to her desk and sitting so he's facing her.
"I don't have anything active, but I have some paperwork to finish. And I'll hang around until I get a call, so I'll work on a cold case or help with others in the meantime," she explains.
Rick leans his elbow on her desk. "Paperwork. Sounds fascinating," he jokes.
"It's a necessary evil." She leans back in her chair and laces her fingers over her stomach. "What, are you going to hang out?"
He shrugs. "Unless I'd be in the way. I'll just sit around and mope at home otherwise, and I'd much rather be with you."
She grins. "I'm happy to have the company."
A/N: Look for chapters a little more often.