I DO NOT OWN CASTLE!

Chapter 1

Beckett opened her eyes seeing the rays of sunlight coming through the open window. She took a deep breath and smelled Castle's unique scent before she shifted. She smiled, as she looked up at Castle still sound asleep. Her hand rested on his chest and his wrapped around her, holding her tight to his side. It had been a month since the breaking point. Since Beckett resigned her position, since she put her past behind her, since she and Castle started a new way of life together. they weren't sure what to do about her not being a cop but neither of them cared much deciding to take a trip away, ignoring calls from everyone but family. Beckett was glad she had finally taken the trip to the Hampton house. She smiled as she ran her hand up Castle's chest, gently rubbing over his jaw.

"You're up early again." She heard him say before he opened his eyes and turned his head to look at her.

"It's a habit." She smiled. He knew it was a habit. She had been waking up at six in the morning every day since she started at the precinct and he had really noticed the habit since they started spending the nights together. "You're up early."

"It's hard to sleep with you touching me like that." He smirked making her give him a bright smile. She rolled and kissed him making him push up and roll on top of her before a phone ringing beside them made them look at it. Beckett smiled as she reached over to see Esposito's number show up. She pushed the button to silence the ring before dropping the phone and going back to kissing Castle. "Who was it this time?"

"Ryan again." She sighed.

Castle looked at her a minute before he sighed and rolled onto his back bringing her with him. "Maybe you should talk to him. It's been three months since you talked to any of them."

"I know but…" She trailed off rolling onto her back making him push up onto his elbow to look at her.

"He was just trying to keep you safe. He was keeping you alive."

"I know that. It's just that him telling Gates…" She looked at him and he could see the pain in her eyes. "It hurt. It was like a betrayal."

"Yeah but you were on a warpath, you needed someone to take care of you when I couldn't." Castle said shaking his head. "You should talk to him. See what he wants. Same with the others. Maybe they just want to talk."

"Maybe they are just trying to get a hold of me for Gates so she can get me back on the force and punish me." She said making him smirk and shake his head.

"I doubt they would do that. Just talk to them. That's all you have to do."

"What about you? They've been calling you too. You don't need to talk to them with how everything was left?" She asked as he laid back.

"I'll talk to them later. Right now you need to fix what happened between you and your brothers." Beckett gave a heavy sigh before rolling to lay her chin on his chest and look at him. "You know I'm right."

"I hate it when you're right." She narrowed her eyes. "I'm going to get dressed and call them back. You get some more sleep before you need to go to that meeting with Gina." She kissed his cheek and rolled out of the bed as Castle gave a small sigh and he closed his eyes thinking about what Esposito and Ryan would want.

"She's still not answering." Ryan said as he sat in his chair next to Esposito.

"Do you really expect her too? You told the boss about what was going on, you broke her trust and you got us both kicked out." Esposito said. He and Ryan had made up soon after the incident but Ryan knew his partner was still angry with him.

Ryan looked down sadly. "I know, man I told you I was sorry."

"I know. You did what you had to, I know that and Beckett knows that but you know how she is. Try calling her again." He told his friend making Ryan give a sigh and turn back to his phone to dial the number again. "We're going to need her and Castle if we're going to solve this case."

"Good thing we talked Gates into letting them back in." Ryan smirked.

"Good thing Beckett was the best we had and that Castle had connections." Esposito agreed before he turned away letting Ryan call.

Beckett was just pulling on her shirt when her phone rang again. She looked at the id and saw it was Ryan's desk line. She took a breath before she pushed the answer button. No matter how much she didn't want to, Castle was right. She needed to fix things with her brothers. "Beckett." She answered. There was nothing. "Hello?" She asked

"Sorry, I… I didn't think you would answer." Ryan said shocked. "I've been trying to get a hold of you all summer, but no one would tell me where you were. Your dad refused to tell us anything at all. What's going on? You're not dying or anything right?" Beckett couldn't help the small laugh that escaped as she opened the bathroom door. She saw Castle roll over and she dropped her voice.

"No, I'm not dying." She said softly as she made it through the bedroom and into the hallway to the living room.

"Why are you whispering? You okay?"

"I'm fine." She said sternly and a little louder this time. "I didn't want to wake anyone." She said as she walked out onto the porch. "What have you been calling for?"

"I wanted to apologize about what happened. I just wanted to keep you guys from getting killed. I had to te-."

"I know, Kevin. I understand why you did it. I probably would have done the same thing in your position, and I appreciate it. I do, but it still betrayed my trust that we would keep what happened in the family." She stood looking out at the calm water of the lake in the early morning light.

"I know it did, I'm sorry. I really am. I didn't mean to make you leave; I just couldn't see my best friends killed." He glanced around to make sure no one was listening as he spoke to her. "You're not just another cop, a colleague; you not even a best friend. You're like my sister. I'll do what I have to, to keep you safe."

"You're like a brother to me, I know you will always have my back and keep me safe. Just make sure you know I didn't leave because of you."

"What? Then why did you leave?" He asked confused now. All this time he thought she had left because she couldn't work with someone who she didn't trust.

"You betrayed my trust, but I still trust that you'll watch my back. You're my brother and it made it hurt more, yes, but it wasn't why I left." She knew what he was thinking. "I left because I became so wrapped up in the case I wasn't listening to anyone, I screwed up more than just my own head. I needed to set things right and to do that I needed to leave."

"You're okay though?" He asked worried again.

Beckett gave a small smile. "Yeah, I'm okay. Just needed some time to think. That's all." She sat in a chair to the side as she felt the heaviness in her chest begin to lift. "Is Esposito still out?"

There was a slight pause before he answered. "No, Gates brought him back two months ago. She can't afford to have her best detectives not solving cases. She is even trying to track you and Castle down. We could get a hold of either one of you. Gates wants you both back. She wants her best detective and she knows Castle comes with you. You guys are like a package deal." He laughed as Beckett saw Castle walk out onto the porch, handing her a cup of coffee.

"Why does she want us?" She asked earning a look from Castle as he took a seat next to her.

"Because we are getting cases that no one can solve. Javi and I have been doing the best we can but the two of us working with rookies just doesn't work on some cases. We need your thoughts and leadership and we need Castle's crazy theory stories." There was a pause. "Have you talked to him since he left the team?" Beckett looked at Castle before she answered.

"A bit." Again Castle gave a look before his phone started to ring. He stood up looking at the name before he kissed the top of her head and walked inside to answer it.

"If you need to go…" He trailed off.

"No it's fine. It was someone else's phone." She knew they deserved to know the truth but she wasn't ready to have everyone know about them. Not just yet, and she knew Castle wasn't ready for the reveal to Gina or the press. "So what do you want me to do?"

"We need you to help. We have a case that came in a few days ago and the rookies just can't match us. One of them threw up at the crime scene. We need the talented Kate Beckett back and Gates is going to allow it." Beckett gave a small sigh she knew she wanted to go back, she knew she should help them get justice for the families but she needed to think about it. Beckett needed to know she would be able to stay away from her mother's case permanently.

"Can I let you know?" She asked hoping he would agree.

"Yeah, sure. Just call Javi or me, we're both working on getting a hold of you and Castle. And tell Castle if you talk to him…." There was a pause and she could hear something in the background. "Oh, he's talking to Javier now, so… just think about it."

"I will. Thanks for calling."

"Yeah, no problem. Talk to you later." The two hung up and Beckett took a breath before pushing up and walking in the house seeing Castle on the couch. She walked over and leaned on the back of the couch watching as he looked at her and gave a small smile.

"I'm sure she knows that…. yeah…" He said before Beckett moved closer and started hearing Esposito's voice.

"Bro, we need you guys back here. Ryan just talked to Beckett and she said she would call him back. What about you?" Castle looked at Beckett wondering what to say. She moved closer to whisper so Esposito could hear her.

"Tell him you'll think about it." She said.

"Dude, I didn't know you had someone over. I'll let you go."

"It's fine." He said looking at Beckett. "I'll let you know about going back."

"Alright." Castle heard Esposito give a small sigh. "Listen, I know it's none of my business who you go out with and all but… dude, you really need to get things out in the open with Beckett. She loves you but she's afraid to do anything to change her life. You have to do something and get things straight with her." Castle smirked as Beckett looked confused, not able to hear any more.

"We'll see. Look I got to go. I'll let you know if I decide to go back." He hung up and looked at Beckett.

"What?" Beckett asked confused.

Castle smiled before pulling Beckett over the back to land in his lap. "Esposito telling me to set things right with you. Apparently you love me." He grinned making her smile and shake her head. "Is that true, detective?" He asked making her look at him.

"I'm not a detective." She reminded him.

"You want to be." He replied looking into her eyes. "You want to go back and work cases; you want it to go back to the way it used to be." She shook her head.

"Not everything." She placed her hand on his chest, as she looked into his blue eyes. "I want to go back and be a detective. To solve murders and give families the justice but I don't want to lose you. I don't want to lose myself."

Castle leaned down giving her a quick kiss. "Well Gina has been wanting me to write another Nikki Heat novel. Maybe we can work through everything together. Take on each obstacle as it comes."

"You want to go back?" She wondered. "You'll stay with me?"

"Always." He replied with a smile before they kissed and were soon heading for the bedroom to repeat the night before.

Five hours later Beckett went to lay down at Castle's loft while he went to his meeting with Gina. He was going to tell Gina he was going back to work at the precinct and would have another novel for her. Beckett smiled as she lay down. They were going to be a team again. Working side-by-side solving murders, that no one else could. She pulled her phone from her pocket and called Ryan. There was no answer so she called Esposito.

"Detective Esposito." She heard.

"It's me. I wanted to let you and Ryan know that Castle and I will both be coming back."

"Both of you? You talked to him?" Esposito asked wondering if the two had fixed what was off between them.

"Yeah, we talked about going back and we'll be there in the morning to talk to Gates."

"Alright, we'll see you tomorrow." The two hung up and Beckett laid back onto the bed, snuggling into the softness of Castle's pillow and blanket.

The next day came fast. Beckett woke to the alarm Castle had set the night before and she climbed from the bed to get a shower as Castle went to start the coffee before he went to get his own things ready for his shower. The two were deeply in love, and loved touching each other but their relationship was more than just sex. They would take showers together and have their fun while in there but they knew this was not the time for it. They needed to get ready to go to work and keep their hands to themselves while there. Starting out with sex in the shower would only make things more difficult.

"Your turn." Beckett said softly as she walked out fully dressed with her makeup perfect as always. Castle smiled as he grabbed his shirt from the closet. He gave her a kiss as he passed towards the bathroom.

"Coffee should be ready soon." Beckett nodded and left him to shower and dress as she went to set out the coffee for the two of them. Beckett was finishing the coffee when her phone rang.

"Beckett." She answered as she continued to fix the coffee. "Yeah, okay." She hung up as Castle walked out dressed and ready to go. "Looks like we have a fresh case that Gates wants us on." She told him.

"Now this sounds interesting." Castle smirked taking his travel mug of coffee as she took hers and they left to go to the first crime scene in a month. Pulling up she found Gates at the door to the apartment where the crime scene was.

"It's about time you got here, Detective." Gates said handing her back her badge and gun. "Now get to work. I want this solved quickly." She said sternly before walking away. Beckett and Castle walked into the crowded apartment and found Esposito and Ryan walking towards them looking worried.

"Gates is not happy." Ryan whispered as they passed them to talk to another neighbor. The two could tell Gates was on one of her rampages when they walked in.

"She really is having a bad day." Castle said as they stopped by Lanie examining the body.

"Probably because of who our vic is." Lanie told him as she leaned back, away from the body. "You two got her fast."

"And at the same time." Esposito joked as he walked past them to join his partner. Lanie looked at Beckett who rolled her eyes.

"So who's our vic?" Beckett asked getting the topic back to work. She bent down across from Lanie as she started explaining.

"John Taylor. He's from Narc. Four GSW to the chest. I'll have to run some more tests but it looks like he was mixed up in some stuff. Which would add to why your boss is storming around the crime scene."

"What do you mean?" Beckett asked her friend

"There's white powder around his nose." Castle said as he leaned down to get a closer look at the body. "You think he's mixed up in drugs?"

"Wouldn't be the first time a Narc cop got hooked." Beckett said standing up as Ryan and Esposito walked back over. "What did you come up with?" She asked them.

"The wife found the body when she came home from work and called 9-1-1. They have two kids who have been at her mother's for the last few days and were supposed to be there another three days. They were going to celebrate her new position at her company so her mother took the kids for a few days." Ryan explained.

"The neighbors said they heard a man and woman yelling and then what they thought were gunshots." Esposito started. "A few called the cops and reported it. A few minutes later they heard the wife scream and she called 9-1-1. No one got a look at anyone leaving. They were too afraid to look."

Beckett nodded and looked around the room. "See if you can get any video or if anyone saw someone leaving about the same time." The two men nodded and went off to start their search. Beckett and Castle walked over to where the wife sat. "Hi, Mrs. Taylor. I'm detective Kate Beckett, this is Richard Castle. We're just going to ask you a few questions about what happened."

"I already told the other cops." She said as tears ran down her cheeks again. "Why do I have to keep saying it?"

"I know it's hard, but we just want to make sure we get every detail. Sometimes going over it several times with the police can help remember something." The wife nodded and gave the same story Ryan and Esposito had told her. "Okay. Thank you."

"Please, get whoever did this to him. Please." She begged.

"I promise I will do everything in my power to get the person who did this to your husband." Beckett told her before she and Castle turned away to walk back down to the lobby. They stopped to talk to Ryan and Esposito on their way out. "Any tapes?"

"The manager is getting what he has." Esposito told her before looking at her and Castle. "so how did you two show up at the same time if Castle's coming from farther away?" he grinned as Beckett turned away not wanting to even answer the detective but knew it would only get worse.

"I told you Castle and I would be back in the morning, I got your call and picked him up. It's faster than waiting for him to get here. Not that it's any of your business." She shook her head as Castle just shrugged at the detective. They weren't ashamed of their relationship or each other but at this moment they still wanted to stay quiet until they were sure they had their relationship worked out so that jealous fans, sarcastic and gloating coworkers and stalker paparazzi didn't have a chance to cause any problems.

"Sure." Ryan said as if he didn't believe her.

"Get what you can. We'll meet you back at the precinct and we'll get everything on the board." Beckett said before she and Castle left the two shrugging and getting what they needed.