Disclaimer: *sigh* I don't own Castle

A/N: Thanks to kw15915 for reading this over.

Sing along with us
Dee dee dee-dee dee
Dah dah dah-dah dah
Yeah we're hap-happy
Dah dah-dah
Dee-dah-do dee-dah-do dah-do-dah
Dah-do-dah-dah-dah
Dah-dah-dah do-dah-dah

-Mungo Jerry, In the Summertime

*~* Tuesday, June 30 *~*

"Mummy, I don't feel good."

While Kate opened the window and warned her son not to put his arms out the window, Castle corrected Frobisher's grammar and his sister complained that he was lying. The summer had begun in a cacophony of sound, laughter and chatter. The crunch of the gravel echoed through the car, a loud drone in the background contrasting with the higher pitch of the wind that picked up close to the coast.

"You always say that when we go down the road." Grace crossed her arms and rolled her eyes.

The last gravel road before they reached the beach house was twisty and there were several large hills. He had been sick once, six years ago, going down the same road and obviously didn't forget it.

Grace at age eight was wild and outspoken, a great little ball of fire. She had brown hair curly like her mother and intense blue eyes like her father and her big sister. She was definitely not one to be outdone for attention and made sure she was a part of every conversation. She liked to be right about everything but also had to know absolutely everything. She was an everything- always kind of girl.

Frobisher would be ten in October and was quieter than his sister, serious and intense with green eyes like his mother and red curly hair. He loved to read more than anything but when is little sister got him involved they could play for hours in their own little world; battling dragons, being pirates or explorers in the Amazon.

The car drew to a halt in the driveway and there was a chorus of seatbelts clicking followed by the car doors banging open. Frobisher and Grace were dancing in front of the passenger door before Castle had even started to unbuckle his seatbelt.

"Daddddeeee, let's gooooo." They grabbed his hands once he was out of the car and started to pull him along.

Castle looked back at his wife with both love and questioning in his eyes.

"Go on," she urged, "I'll get the stuff out of the car."

He leaned through the open window to give her a kiss on the cheek and as he walked away, or rather was pulled away, he threw over his shoulder, "Oops fell asleep!"

Kate yelled back and said in unison with Frobisher and Grace, "Stop calling her oops!"

Kate turned around in her seat; sure enough Claire had fallen asleep. They had worked so hard to keep her awake for the drive, knowing if she fell asleep that late in the day that she would have troubles sleeping that night. She climbed out of the car and opened the girl's door to let some air into the car and left her sleeping; knowing that waking her up now would not make for a happy Claire and definitely not make for a happy mother. Claire was generally a happy girl except when she just woke up, especially if you woke her up.

They had gotten a late start today since Kate had meetings at the Police Academy and Castle had his fair share of meetings with his editor, publisher and agent. It had been a hectic day trying to fit it all in and pack the car with three wildly excited kids running around. But, they were here now, to relax for the whole summer.

She unlocked the front door smiling at the familiarity; the rug in the foyer, the pictures on the wall, the cheery yellow walls in the kitchen at the end of the hall. It was a place full of memories and you could feel them the second you opened the door.

Kate slowly emptied the car, leaving the bags piled in the hallway because she didn't want to be out of earshot of Claire in case she woke up. She hummed to herself, not sure exactly what song it was just probably the last song that had been on the radio. She sang a phrase here and there when it came to her but mostly just reveled at how nice it was to be free of the city. You could sing to yourself and there went hundreds of people walking down the street thinking you were crazy.

She smiled as she piled the foam noodles by the path to go down to the beach, remembering her husband's parting words. Claire was an 'Oops', but the greatest surprise they could have asked for. In truth, they hadn't thought so much about how it had happened. Kate was sloppy with the pill sometimes or then again maybe they were the 0.01%; it didn't really matter to them. They had only been worried though since Kate was over forty and the risk of Down's and other birth defects increased at that point, but it all was well in the end. More than just well; perfect.

Castle of course, called the baby 'Oops' while she was pregnant and it had stuck with him even though their Claire was a walking, sometimes talking, one year old. Frobisher and Grace were fierce protectors of their little sister and took it upon themselves call out their father when he called her 'Oops'. Kate thought it was hilarious and sweet and joined them, teasingly of course.

They came clattering up the porch steps and through the sliding glass doors to the kitchen where Kate and Claire were getting dinner ready. Rather, Kate was making dinner and Claire was making a lovely puddle on her tray with her sippy cup of water.

"What's for dinner?" They jumped up and down, Castle included; the excitement from the beach had not yet worn off yet.

"Mac and Cheese."

"From a box?" Frobisher asked incredulously.

Kate nodded.

The two kids pumped their fists in the air and shouted, "Yes!"

The adults laughed while Claire banged her cup on her tray echoing her siblings', "Yes!"

Ruffling their hair Castle said, "Guys, go hide you treasures so your mum doesn't find them and don't forget to wash your hands."

They ran off giggling, hands in their pockets to touch the treasures they had just collected, just to make sure they hadn't magically disappeared.

Kate sidled up to Castle and poked him in the chest. "Treasures? You let them collect more stuff? A few summers ago we had a whole bathtub full of shells and rocks."

He smiled and drew her close, "I collected something for you too," he showed her the heart shaped rock; grey and light blue, "to add to our collection."

Kate kissed the grey that was beginning to appear at his temples, "Thank you," before stepping away, "but you will be the one that makes them put it all back when we leave, not me."

Later after the kids were bathed and in bed, Castle slid into bed where Kate was reading. She had started from her pile of summer beach reads, paperback mysteries and romance novels. Later in the summer he knew she would pick up something with more substance and would be interrupting him every few minutes to ask 'Did you know?' or 'Listen to this!'.

She finished the page, folded down the corner while he cringed, and slowly put the book down. With a seductive smile, Kate rolled on top of him, straddling his hips, "Hi."

He kissed her softly, "Hi. It's good to be back isn't it?"

She answered him with a kiss, took it deeper, sliding her feet down his calves. She stopped abruptly, "Castle! You got sand in the bed!"

A/N: I will be telling the story of their summer in The Hamptons over the course of my summer (which starts today-yay!). So, I hope you join me because I'm having fun in this little world. Let me know what you think or if there is anything you want to see :)