Chapter 1: Kiss Me Slowly

Song is by Parachute

A/N: So, this is my new story. It's going to be filled with smut, fluff, etc. I felt like you all deserved a part two to 'I Love You Whether it's Wrong or Right' and this is it. I want you all to see their life after all that drama. This story will be like a bunch of one moments. Some chapters will go together, but some won't. You'll understand lol. OK, now on to the reading.

Richard ran his hands up and down her forearm with the softest stroke that could've made her heart liquefy continuously. His eyes focused on Luke while he danced with the characters on Noggin. The way he always took care of them- Lucas and her-no matter how complicated the circumstances had been, he endlessly gave one hundred and ten percent. He took care of her throughout the times she looked-for him most when she came back from Italy; he prized Lucas without any questions. Rick kissed the crook of her neck tenderly breaking her out of her nostalgia.

"You know, I never got to ask you why you have Lucas's middle name as Alexander. Seeing as you were alone when you had him? How'd you come up with his name?" He snaked his arms around her waist, pulling her closer than they were in the kitchen.

"I suppose it's just because I have a love for Star Wars," she joked with a small giggle (Kate Beckett didn't giggle. "I'm so holding this against her," he said to himself) and the green and her eyes glinting vibrantly.

His eyebrows shot up in disappointment, not because of the Star Wars comment, but because she was avoiding the question. "Really, Beckett?" He tried to sustain his chuckle by allowing a small smile to form on his lips.

She just shrugged and made her way to Luke's side, "Hey, buddy, what's going on over here?"

Luke looked up at her with a beam, all his tiny white teeth shining from the glow coming off the television, "Mom, Bubble Guppies' on and said one—" he pointed his index finger up, "-and one-" again, adding another finger up, "-equals two!"

She crouched on her knees to have better access to grasp him in a hug, "You just love using your big boy voice, don't you?" She touched noses with him and gave a raspberry on his cheek leaving the room filled with a clash of giggles forming from the both of them.

They looked so parallel at times. Of course his hair always resembled Castle's, but the way he illuminated up the room when smiling was like a copy of Beckett. Rick leaned against the counter with his arms folded over his chest admiring the show in front of his eyes. It mesmerized him every time he'd watch them; each time a little more than the last.

"Luke, you need to take a bath now," he made his way to their side, not really wanting to break them out of their content moment.

Luke whined quietly and slumped with his shoulders in defeat when Kate shut the television and picked him up to hand him to Rick. "Do we have to, Papa?"

Rick continued to walk towards the bathroom in his bedroom with Lucas on his hip, "Yes, kiddo, we do have to take you a bath. You're smelly."

Lucas huffed and played with the watch on Castle's wrist, "Fine," he dragged the word out for a dramatic effect.

"Wow, it's like acting runs in the Castles' blood. My mother really has accidentally let that pass down," Castle rustled his hair, placed him on the toilet in order to turn the bathtub on.

After several minutes of conversing about the shows on television today, Rick placed his hand under the faucet to make sure it was warm enough before stripping Luke from his dirty clothing and placing him in the tub.

Kate strolled in, taking a seat on the tile floor beside Castle, "Hey."

Luke closed his eyes while Rick poured water on his hair with the cup causing Luke to cough a little.

"You OK?" He asked him; patting his slick back sympathetically Luke just nodded.

"What're you doing, baby?" Kate asked caressing Lucas's face maternally. Rick continued to lather his body before noticing his sleeve falling down to his wrist-which Kate immediately rolled back up.

"Papa's taking me a bath, and the ocopus (for some reason Luke couldn't pronounce octopus) and shark are fighting!" He held up the toys in his hand, and demonstrating the shark biting the octopus and adding his own "pssh" and "boom!" noises.

Beckett just nodded with a small smile tugging at the edges of her lips. Stealing a swift glance at Castle and seeing that he was grinning at them caused a soft blush painting itself onto her neckline and cheeks. Kate happened to note that he was incessantly zoning out when looking at them, a dorky grin plastered on his face.

Several seconds passed, allowing the sounds of splashing and hands grazing while cleaning Luke's toddler body to fill the air. Luke was feeling playful tonight and flicked Rick's face with water once he came closer to grab the cub. Castle's mouth dropped out; he let out a huffed laugh and brushing his wet hands through his hair before shaking his head wildly like a wet dog to wet Kate and Lucas.

Her face was dripping with water; so, she left the bathroom to go get more towels from the room. The minute she was about to walk in she saw Rick making silly faces with Lucas wrapped in a silk white towel. Their fingers in their mouths', stretching it out and poking their tongue out at each other. They both looked at Kate in union; their eyes wide with embarrassment. They both broke out into loud laughter. She just stood there, holding her phone in her hand, neither (Lucas and Castle) realizing that she had walked in, or grabbed her phone to video tape the Kodak moment. She was definitely going to be showing the detectives and her best friend once they got to the precinct tomorrow.

"You never told me the real reason as to why you named him Lucas Alexander," he broke the silence in the room.

She turned her head, brush in one hand, hair in the other. She was brushing out all the knots in her hair.

"Well, honestly, for some strange reason that name stuck out to me, and now I see why—" she turned to face him completely, "—seeing as I never told you the psychic said an Alexander would be very important to me and probably save my life, yada-yada," she moved her hands to emphasize, "And funny thing is that it was always you. Though you changed your name to Richard Edgar Castle rather than keeping Richard Alexander Rodgers-I don't mind that, though. Either way, two Alexanders are important to me, now. Hopefully, he won't have to 'save my life'."

"So, I was in your conscience even when you didn't remember me," he stated with his eyebrows raised, but a boastful grin appearing.

"It was always hard dealing with him when he was younger. I didn't know how I had him or who his father was, and at the time I didn't want to know because I was scared shitless. And I apologize about that."

"Hey, it wasn't your fault, Kate. You had amnesia," his hand squeezed her shoulders.

"I know you must hate not being there for his first steps, or the way he said his first words," she breathed out sighing in regret for taking those precious moments from him.

"I suppose, but the hardest part was when I had the feeling you were alive and nobody believed me. Therapy didn't help much, either."

Silence.

"…I have those moments recorded. You can watch them," she whispered high enough for him to hear.

"Pardon me?" His eyebrows knit together in bewilderment.

"When I came looking for you back six months ago, I packed it. I never told you, but I specifically looked for you because the way you came at me in the hospital when I took you. After those vague memories came back, I realized the resemblance between you and Luke. That's another reason I came for you. It took a lot of courage to drop everything and take the risk to come find you with Danielle and our son."

"I'm happy you did. I was never able to love anyone more than I love you, no matter how many women came into my life," he gave a tiny smile to her declaration of guilt and plastered a chaste kiss on her mouth.