July 4, 2023
Kate loved spending the Fourth of July weekend in the Hamptons for so many reasons. Of course, there was the pool, the ocean, and the house. Then there was the fact that because the house was so big, they were surrounded by family and friends. Rick and the guys (including her dad) would spend the weekend grilling all sorts of meat, and that was always fun to watch them try to outdo each other. But her favorite reason of all was watching Rick with his kids. When she first knew him (and really didn't like him, no matter what he thought), she loved watching him with Alexis or talking about Alexis. So it wasn't hard to figure out why she loved coming here so much – relaxed, playful Rick with his kids was something that made her heart burst.
Yes, Alexis was all grown up; she was married and had a child of her own, but Kate still loved seeing her with Rick. Sometimes she was reminded of the very mature 15 year old she had first met; sometimes she saw the fun loving teenager she got to know later on; and sometimes she saw the young woman she knew when she and Rick were first married. She loved hearing Alexis tease Rick and she loved the serious conversations the two of them would have. They had a strong bond from all the years it was just the two of them, but that bond had expanded over the years.
Kate smiled as she thought of Rick and James, their first born. Jamie was seven years old now, and very much his own person, but he not only looked like Rick, he acted so much like him too. They both loved comic books, superheroes, Star Wars, and Star Trek. (Well, if she was honest, she loved all those things too, but those two were obsessive about them) Jamie sounded like Rick when he laughed, and he laughed a lot like his dad did. He was her goofball kid, and she loved watching him and Rick sitting on the couch together, watching a silly movie and laughing.
Of course, their little girl, Hannah had her dad wrapped around her little finger. (As were all the males in the family) It still warmed her heart when she thought of the times she came home from the precinct and she found Rick having a tea party with Hannah and her dolls, or the times he played dress up with her. Their four year old was also a fan of superheroes and comic books, and Kate could come home to the two of them acting out some scene from a movie instead of them having a tea party.
Then Kate thought of their baby, Alex, who would turn a year old in September. So far, they thought he was a mixture of the both of them – he had Rick's blue eyes, nose, and chin with Kate's hair and smile. She could still remember the look of glee on Rick's face when they did the pregnancy test together and it turned up positive – "Just like the time traveler said Kate!" – and the pure joy on his face when he first held Alex in his arms right after he was born. She had a feeling that he too would love superheroes and comic books, but he could surprise them. She couldn't wait to find out, and knew that Rick felt the same way.
And the added joy in their lives – a granddaughter. Six months after Alex was born, Alexis gave birth to Katherine Marie. Kate had been honored that Alexis and Mike named their daughter after her. Alexis teased them about "raising their children together" as she had during that case when they took care of Benny, but in a serious moment had told Kate she wanted her daughter to be as strong as the woman she was named after. Rick had cried when Alexis said that, and Kate did too.
So it was with a full heart that Kate Beckett Castle turned to her family and friends and made an announcement. "I'm going to retire from the NYPD and run for State Senate next year."