A/N: "Loving and losing is better than nothing at all."
I've had this story in my head a very long time. I prompted it a while back during my first story. But I've fleshed out a lot more ideas and plot points for this story, that now, I feel I can write it all the way through without a problem.
Something to know about this story, I will start EVERY CHAPTER with a flashback, going in order of how they came to be where they are at the start of this story. I was going to put it in italics, but I've decided to test my mettle a bit and just try to write it in past tense. Let me know if it gets too confusing. I'll try to tie the flashback into the actual chapter as best I can.
Also, this story assumes that their wedding at the end of season six went out without a hitch, instead of the fatal gunshot wound to the heart that led to the show's demise that was the last fifteen seconds of season six. Their wedding went out without a problem, and Castle's kidnapping never happened. And this also ignores (kinda) the shows canon on their kids. It's Henry their son, not Lily their daughter. :)
Summary: Rick Castle takes his wife, a pregnant Kate Beckett, and their three-year-old son to the park. When their son is kidnapped, their marriage is tested for the first real time. Will they get their son back and will their marriage survive?
"I do." She said in a breathless voice over an exploding heart.
"By the power vested in me by the state of New York," The pastor raddled off, but she's already bouncing with excitement, "I now pronounce you man and-"
Not waiting any longer, she leapt forward and slammed her lips against him, both of them smiling into their first kiss and husband and wife. His arms went around her and pulled her in as he rocked her off to the side, drowning out the sound of the loud applause erupting behind them. She threw her arms around his neck and captured his lips in a deeply loving kiss, her heart soaring and exuding pure happiness, radiating it through her entire system.
"Ladies and gentlemen, I present to you, Mr. and Mrs. Richard Castle."
As those words hit her ears, she felt another tidal wave of giddy happiness crack through her like a lightning bolt. He pulled back with a bright, boyish, face-splitting smile, still holding her to him. "I love you."
Her smile split her own face in two, matching his. "I love you too."
Kate smiles to herself, feeling Henry swing her arm from below. She looks down with a smile, seeing him walk playfully in between her and his father, his head bobbing from side to side with playfulness as he swings the arms of his parents. Going to the park is one of his favorite things lately. He especially loves the swings.
Their anniversary is coming up, she thinks to herself as they enter the park. Rick looks down with a smile, down at his son, pulls up on Henry's arm, lifting him up off the ground. "Ragh!" He says, picking up Henry by the arm while Kate does the same so he's swinging by the arms in between them. Rick sets him down with a thud just as Henry lets out a loud, happy giggle.
Kate slowly leans down and takes Henry's coat in her hands. "Be safe, okay, gummy bear?" She says as she's tugging his coat tighter over his small body then going up to pull down and straighten his hat over his head. "And keep your coat on. I don't want you getting sick."
"Come on, mommy. You keep making all these rules, he's never gonna have any fun." Rick says from above with a smirk.
Kate looks up over her shoulder with a deadpan stare. "Keep it up, daddy, and I'll make sure you get whatever he does if he doesn't keep his coat on."
"I'm fine, mommy." Henry interrupts his parents.
Kate looks back over at her son, "I know you are, Henry, and that's because..." She says, straightening his coat against his shoulders, "you keep your coat on when mommy tells you, right?"
"I'll keep it on, mommy." He says in his three-year-old boyish tone.
Kate smiles lovingly, putting her hands over Henry's ears, "Love you, gummy bear." She tells him, smiling lovingly at her son.
"Love you too, mommy!" He says and scampers off toward the playground, immediately going toward the jungle gym.
Kate stands back up with an inward groan, feeling Rick's hand slide up against her back as she gets back to her feet. Being pregnant again is draining, especially when she already has a child to take care off. Using the 'two mouths to feed' argument for her dietary cheating only worked for so long with Rick before he called her on it. But now that they have Henry, she knows that she actually has another mouth to feed. Kate steps into her husband's side, putting her arm around his back and letting him pull her in with his hand on her arm, both of them watching their son play.
Rick, watching his son smile, laugh and play, like they do as often as they can by coming here, is happier than he's ever been in his life. It feels amazing to be a father again, and to have a son. Raising Alexis was great, and he just knows he's going to have another chance at raising a girl again. But still, he loves that he's picking up action figures off the floor instead of dolls. Henry has his eyes, but his hair has a wave that he seems to have gotten from his mother, along with her nose.
Rick looks over to his wife, of what will be four years in just a week, seeing her smile softly, her hazel eyes gazing lovingly over at their son. She loves Henry so much. And she loves being a mother more than he ever anticipated. Having someone to gang up on him with seems to be her favorite thing to do lately. They ganged up on him just this morning after breakfast for a tickle fight. Well, not so much a tickle fight as a tickle mugging. He's usually able to put up more of a fight, especially knowing exactly where his mother's most ticklish spots are. But Henry's too fast for him.
Rick leans over, pressing his lips to her temple, squeezing her arm. He can feel her relax in his arm, and after a moment, he pulls back with a smile. "Come on, let's get you off her feet." He says and starts walking her over to the bench that's off the paved walkway cutting through the park.
Kate rolls her eyes as she sits down next to him, cuddling herself into his side. "Rick, I'm four months pregnant. Not crippled."
"Yes, four months pregnant with my child. I have a vested interest in making sure you're comfortable."
"That's very sweet, Lancelot, but our child is just fine without you carrying me around everywhere. I'm fine." She argues back, letting him put his arm around her.
"Don't pretend you don't love it, okay? I know that you started abusing your power whenever you were pregnant with Henry."
"I didn't do anything differently that you're not offering to do now, Hun."
"I was testing out reverse psychology, see if it actually worked." He shrugs.
She laughs nodding her head. "Yeah, fat chance, Rick. In fact," She begins, running her finger in a pattern against his crossed leg, "I think I just might be getting a craving for those rolls that place up in Atlantic City has. The ones with the honey that are all warm and fluffy." She teases.
"Yeah, I'm not falling for that one again. If you want me out of the loft so you and Lanie can gush over baby clothes, then just say so, Lieutenant." Rick says, taking her hand, pinching her wedding band with his thumb and forefinger. "You know, it's our anniversary next week."
She smiles, feeling a warmth in her heart. "Mmhmm." She nods. "You remind me every year, Hun."
"Well, you forgot the first time, remember?"
She's quick to defend herself. They've gone over this a thousand and one times. "I did not forget! I got stuck in a meeting at 1PP and my phone was dead." She says, readjusting herself against the bench. "Besides... it's not like I didn't make up for it or anything."
Rick smirks, remembering that hot, intense, passionate night with a two month pregnant Kate Castle. He looks down to her stomach again. She's beginning to show a lot earlier than she did with Henry. With Henry, it was at least six months before she began to noticeably show. But their second child is coming in a lot quicker than Henry did. He takes her hand, entwining their fingers together. "You ready to do it again?" He asks in a soft voice.
She smiles, her eyes down to her lap before she turns them up to him. "Always."
He smiles warmly in return, leaning down and pressing a loving kiss on her lips. With a soft pluck, he leans back.
"We get the results back in two days." She says.
"You sure you want to find out early this time?"
"Well, Rick, last time, we got caught off guard, remember? We ended up having to take half of everything we bought back and repaint the nursery."
Rick nods, "Alright, if you insist."
Kate looks back up at her husband, "You still think I'm having a girl?"
"I think..." He begins, looking down at his wife, who's looking up at him with an expectant smile, "that I'm the luckiest man on Earth."
Her smile brightens and lights up her features in an instant, holding his loving gaze for a moment before she lets her eyes drift shut and lays her head down on his shoulder. "You know, we could take Henry up to the lake house this weekend."
"He does love it up there."
"Yeah, we could..." She says, looking out toward the playground, shrugging her shoulders before looking back up to him, "invite my dad up, maybe even Ryan and Jenny. Give Henry a chance to play with Sarah Grace."
"Yeah, your dad does love to dote on Henry a lot." Rick says.
Kate chuckles, "Yeah, he loves being a grandpa."
"You know, I think Henry has more toys from your dad than he does from his own dad."
Kate laughs again. "Well, isn't that the purpose of grandparents?"
"That, and dressing up my children in the strangest outfits while I'm at book signings."
"Oh, come on, Rick. Martha isn't that bad."
"Kate, I came home one day and Henry was dressed as a pink caterpiller Even I felt embarrassed by that."
"He was three months old, Rick." She says, looking up at him.
"No need to defend her, Kate." He says, looking out toward the playground. "But the lake house does sound like a good idea. We could make a pretty good weekend out of it. Bring your dad along, my mother, his big sister. Maybe even get his Uncle Javi to come along."
Kate laughs, resting her head down on her husband's shoulder again, feeling pulled by a light sleep. After a moment, she feels his lips kiss her scalp lovingly, and she moves her head up to look up at him with a smile. She loves Henry with every fiber of her being, and he's changed her life immeasurably for the better, but he has the childlike energy of his father, which can be very draining, especially when she's four months pregnant. Henry loves to play, and she's had a long week at the precinct, so she's tired.
Rick loves being at home again with a child to raise. His new books after the Nikki Heat series are taking off, but he's staying at home as a stay-at-home dad, like he did with Alexis. When she married Rick, she never thought that she'd feel that kind of love in her life the day of their wedding in the Hampton's, that amazing, wholehearted, radiating happiness. Until she had Henry, that is. She loves her son, her family, more than anything else and wouldn't give them up for the world.
Her phone vibrates in her coat pocket and she inwardly groans, moving to answer it. Rolling her eyes, she puts her phone to her ear, "Beckett."
Rick watches her brow carefully for the familiar furrow. It's usually something that can be delegated to someone else over the phone. Ever since that blow out they had while she was pregnant, when she convinced herself to take the lieutenant's exam, she's had to incur more of a leadership role at the precinct, but is rarely out in the field. He still consults on cases from home when he can, even sometimes going down there with Henry to pay his uncles and Aunt Lanie a visit, but that's soon to change after she has their daughter.
He knows it's a girl, but she's adamant about not jumping the gun.
After a moment, her eyes drift shut. "Okay, I'll be right there." Beckett moans into her phone and slides it back into the inside pocket of her coat. "I have to go into work."
Rick groans on a sigh and rubs her back as she stands up. He was just beginning to enjoy the cool afternoon out in the park with his family.
"Henry!" Kate calls from the walkway. "Come on, gummy bear, we have to go!"
Rick stands up and looks out toward the playground, waiting to hear the protest from Henry. They just got here, after all. "Come on, bud, we've gotta go!" He calls out.
Kate leans out, scanning the playground. "You see him?"
There's a clench that goes into his throat like a bullet when he scans the playground and doesn't see the familiar sight of Henry's wavy air and red coat. "Henry?" He calls out, quickly making his way across the grass toward the playground.
"Henry?" Kate calls out over the rabble of other children, her heart starting to palpitate inside of her chest. "Alright, gummy bear, this isn't funny!"
Coming back around the playset, Rick looks across the playground at his wife. "Henry!" He calls.
This isn't happening. This isn't happening.
Kate spins around, her heart shuttering and shattering inside of her chest with scared, heartbreaking grief and panic, hot tears already falling down her face. "Henry!"