Hey kids, here's something really short and quick that came about due to an anonymous question on my Tumblr yesterday.

The question itself was, "When and how do you think Beckett will tell Castle she loves him?"- which I think we can all appreciate as being an extremely difficult question to answer! Honestly, I can just see this particular scenario going so many different ways. Maybe she'll say it right in the midst of throes of passion, or maybe she'll just cutely blurt it out when he brings her coffee and gratitude-pancakes in the morning, or maybe she'll want so much to say it but not be able to let it out until days or even weeks down the track. We'll just never know (until it happens, of course :P).

But anyhow, I just wanted to mention that I haven't actually read any post-Always fics, so I apologise if my story clashes with anyone else's. Trust me, it was unknowingly done.

Well, here you go.

It was dark when she woke.

It was dark and she was so comfortable and for a moment she wondered why the hell she had even woken up at all.

But then, in all honesty, she already knew the reason; and that reason had a lot to do with the incredible man whose chest was currently pressed to her back, his arm around her waist and breath feathering ever so slightly against her ear.

God, it had been such a long time since she'd slept in anyone's arms.

It felt like longer than forever since the days of she and Josh– and besides, even when they were together, their crazy, often-conflicting schedules had barely allowed for sleepovers.

And as for before that – well, Tom hadn't even made it as far as her bed, thanks to her– previously unprecedented– need to 'take it slow', a request which she understood a lot better now than she had then.

Will was so long ago that she barely remembered what his arms felt like.

But, now that she'd actually experienced it– rather than simply dreamed about it like she had for longer than she'd care to admit– Castle's embrace was something she knew with certainty that she would never be able to forget.

And that was exactly why she was awake at– cracking one eye, she glanced blearily at the clock on the nightstand – 2:34am.

Because, as someone so completely accustomed to sleeping alone, sleeping in Castle's arms simply felt so strange... all for the single reason that it felt so right.

God, she'd probably never be able to sleep alone again.

...Not that she was really complaining about that, to be honest.

Smiling slightly, she shifted to slip a hand beneath the covers, reaching down to where his arm curled around her waist, her fingers finding the large, warm hand that was splayed across her stomach. Covering his hand with hers, she gently stroked his skin, reveling in the simple fact that they were finally here, together, with no walls or misunderstandings to keep them apart.

Finally, he was hers– and she was his.

And honestly, she couldn't remember feeling this happy– this whole, this utterly at peace– in her entire life.

God, I love you, Castle, she thought fervently, then suddenly paused, her fingers stilling against his hand.

Wait.

Had she told him that?

Surely she had. Surely, somewhere in the multiple rounds of love-making– which had been oh so worth the wait, she thought impishly, before swiftly sobering once more– surely she had said those three words, the words that had been on both her mind and the tip of her tongue for weeks now.

Surely, she had told him.

Right?

But then...

Back at the door, she'd been too tongue-tied– hampered first by the clumsiness of her own tongue, then by the delicious feel of his– and then, once they'd made it to the bedroom, her vocabulary seemed suddenly unable to expand beyond a single word, Castle's name tumbling over and over from her lips.

His name was like a plea, a prayer, a promise. His name held more meaning to her than any other word she'd ever known, but it was not the only word she'd wanted– needed– him to hear from her lips.

She loved him. She knew it in her mind, but she had also felt it in her body, last night stronger than ever, pulsing through her veins in every single moment that had passed after he had opened the door. He had to have felt it too. He had to know.

Surely, he knew she loved him.

But now, it wasn't enough that he knew.

She had to know that he knew.

Determinedly ignoring how incredibly comfortable she was– because god, she doubted she'd ever felt this comfortable in her whole life– she carefully inched free of Castle's grip, lifting his warm, possessive arm just enough to allow her to slowly roll over, her nose now bare millimeters from his.

Instantly, her eyes fixed upon his sleeping face, causing her breath to hitch slightly in her chest, her heart seeming to take on the consistency of melted butter. It struck her then that this was a Castle that was hers alone; this was an aspect of him that from now on– that is, if they somehow managed to stumble through this love thing without falling flat on their faces– none other than she would ever see.

Mine, she thought suddenly, feeling the smile spreading across her lips. You're mine.

Her mouth was still curved into that smile as she leaned in, her lips just a hair's breadth from his, one hand lifting to stroke his already lightly-stubbled cheek.

"Castle," she said softly, her lips finding his in a brief, gentle kiss.

When the only response was a half-conscious "Mmmmnnnggghhh?" and a slight– but completely adorable– scrunching of the eyebrows, Beckett let out a tiny, breathy laugh and tried again, this time making her voice a little louder and the kiss a little more insistent.

This time, she knew she had succeeded even before his eyes began to open; suddenly, his arm tightened around her, his fingers stroking tantalizingly against the bare skin of her back. His mouth slowly stretched into a blissful smile, his nose brushing hers before he finally opened his eyes, allowing her to see the utter happiness and love that shone through them like a beacon.

"Kate?" he murmured, his voice low and roughened from sleep, a deep rumble that instantly relit the familiar, slow-burning fire of want that he had always evoked in her. Ignoring her suddenly overheating body, Beckett trailed her fingers against his cheek, her eyes holding his, letting her gaze convey the gravity of what she was about to say.

"Castle," she whispered again, her thumb stroking lightly against his slightly-parted lips. With their gazes still locked, she saw the first flickers of realization and hope flit through his eyes, felt the absence of his warm breath against her own lips as he suddenly stopped breathing, anticipating what was to come.

She knew how he felt. After all, they had both been waiting for this moment for a long, long time.

Her eyes still locked with his, Beckett drew a deep, steadying breath, then slowly let it go, letting the last of her fears go with it. Then, with her heart racing in the way that it did only for him, she finally spoke the three words that had been forming inside her since the very first moment they'd met.

"I love you."

Well, that was it. Sorry it was so brief- I was originally just going to post it to Tumblr but then I thought, 'hey, why the hell not', and posted it here instead. If you spotted any mistakes or thought the word-flow needed improving, please let me know. This was written while I was making dinner last night and is only lightly edited, so it's more than possible that it's not of a particularly high standard.

Anyhow, hope you enjoyed it, and thanks so much for reading!

-Laura

(PS- If anyone is interested, the link to my tumblr is on my profile :P)