THE PROPOSAL
"'Katherine Houghton Beckett, will you marry me?'
'No.' She rises from the swing and walks away without another word. Castle is already up and runs to her, grabbing her arm. 'Kate. Stop! Stop! Don't you think I deserve an explanation?'
She stares at him for a moment. 'Castle, I took the job. I've worked my last case for the NYPD. I leave tomorrow for DC. It's over. Get on with your life.' Castle's mouth drops open unable to absorb her words. She walks away again and this time he doesn't run after her. Kate Beckett climbs into her car and drives away."
Alexis looks at her father as he spins this unlikely scenario. "Dad! She would never do that!" Alexis closes the ring box and hands it back to her father.
Castle considers Alexis' words and say, "Yeah! You're right. If I know my girl, she would never be that mean. She might say 'no' but she wouldn't be mean about it. She would let me down easy." Suddenly, he thinks back on her responses after each one of his declarations of love and a twinge of fear runs through his veins. She hadn't been cruel but it had hurt like hell nonetheless.
"But, Dad, do you think this is the right time to propose? Don't you think you should talk first, not ambush her with a proposal?" She moves around the desk and leans on the edge near her father's chair. But he has already made the decision and he is not going to second guess it now.
"No. I need to do this, Pumpkin. Your Grandmother is right. I don't hold back, except with Kate. She tried to ask me where we were headed but I avoided talking about it because I was afraid to change the status quo. But I need to show her that I am in this for the long haul. She needs to know that I will still be her partner even when things get tough. I need to start acting like a grown up." Castle smiles up at his daughter as she wraps her arms around him.
"Good luck, Dad," she says.
"Thanks, sweetheart," he replies, rises to his feet and placing a kiss on her head as he heads out the door, jacket and ring in hand.
It's not going the way he envisioned it. He is still hurt by the lies. But this is who she is and, anyway, she just apologized. She agrees with him when he says they both deserve more. Why is he so nervous? He'd never been nervous proposing before. Get on with it, Rick, he tells himself. And before he realizes it, he is on one knee, saying the words as he had rehearsed, holding the ring out to her.
He sees the surprise on her face. He got her. He told her after his birthday surprise that he would get her and he has done it.
But then he realizes she is not moving. This is a bad sign, he tells himself. Ring, knee, grown up proposal...but she is not smiling. His two previous proposals had been met with shouts of glee and tears and nodding heads. But Kate says nothing and doesn't move. Wait, what did I do wrong, he wonders.
After a few seconds which feels like an eternity to Castle, Kate says, "Are you kidding me right now? This is your proposal?" She raises her eyebrow.
Confused, Castle says, "I know this is not a helicopter or hot air balloon ride but, I thought you wanted simple and intimate?" Castle is still holding the ring to her and his knee is starting to hurt.
As if reading his mind, Kate commands, "Castle. Get off your knee and sit down before you hurt yourself." She rolls her eye at him as he does.
"Okay...not the answer I was hoping for, in fact, not an answer at all. I just proposed to you Kate," he whines. He sits back down on the swing a bit stunned.
Kate gives him a stern look. "I arranged a murder mystery a la 'Rear Window' for you and the best you can do is blurt out a proposal when you're still mad at me?" In a mocking tone, she says, "So Mommy was apologizing to Daddy for keeping secrets when out of the blue Daddy popped the question. Really? That's what you want to tell our children?" She shakes her head at him.
Castle doesn't know whether to take her reaction as a yes or no but he can see she is in a good enough mood to tease him. "Okay. Not one of my best proposals...but...we are at our swings and you're at a crossroads. You apologized. You agreed that we both deserve more. I felt the tide turning in my favor. The ring has been burning a hole in my pocket since my birthday. So, yes, I felt the seriousness of the moment and took my shot. I told you I was going to surprise you after my birthday," Castle defends.
Kate smirks and rolls her eyes yet again. "Seriously Castle. Did you really think I would want you to propose while you're mad at me. Castle, I want simple but magical. I'm sorry but this will not do. Do it again."
Castle looks appalled. "That's it. You wound me. For that, I'm not going to ask again. If you want to get married, you are going to have to propose to me." Castle feigns indignation.
"Yeah! Right! Like that's going to happen," Kate says sarcastically.
Castle takes a breath and says, "I am hurt that you didn't talk to me but as I said, keeping secrets is who you are. When we are married, you won't be allowed to do that anymore. Do you understand?" Kate nods. "Good," Castle says.
"Okay, Castle, but once we are married you are going to have to stop deflecting. When I ask you a question you are going to have to answer it. Full body massages are good and well, but give me an answer so I don't have to wonder and I can enjoy the massage. Do you think you can do that?"
"I promise to try." He smiles.
"And I promise to try, too." Kate smiles back. "By the way, hold on to my ring because you got that part right. It's a bit more than I ever expected but it's beautiful."
Castle beams."What can I say, I'm a gift ninja." Kate rises from the swing and starts walking to the car. Castle sits a moment.
Kate turns, "Castle! You comin?"
Castle stands up and runs after her. "Where are we going?"
"To my place, to pack up the rest of my stuff." Kate answers.
"You took the job in DC?" Castle asks.
"For a guy who has written four best sellers based on me, I thought you would know the answer to that question." Kate keeps walking to the car.
"You didn't take the job, Kate?" She nods. "But it's a great opportunity!"
"Castle, you know what is a great opportunity?" He shakes his head. "Working with the best team ever assembled including my current partner." She pokes him in the chest to make her point. "Living in the city I love surrounded by my family and friends. Adding to that family and being married to my favorite writer. Now that is a great opportunity! Not to mention there are incredible job opportunities for a person with my talents here in New York." Castle takes Kate's hand and twirls her around into his arms.
"I love you" he tells her.
"I love you too, Writer Boy." Kate wraps her arms around his neck and kisses him. "Now let's go pack my stuff. I'm moving in."
As they drive toward her apartment, Castle asks, "Did you say you wanted to add to our family?" Kate smiles and lifts her eyebrows in mock surprise.
"Don't you?" She asks.
"I asked first." Castle responds.
"Yes. You're not getting any younger Castle. We need to get on with it before you're too old to pick up our children." Her smile is infectious and cause Castle to beam back at her.
"How many little Castles were you planning on?" Castle asks.
"Oh. At least a couple, don't you think?" Her smile is beautiful and he sees excitement he hasn't seen in her eyes since his birthday surprise.
"Yeah, that's a good number." Castle could not be happier at this moment even though she has yet to say 'yes.'
Kate parks the car and they take the elevator to her apartment. As they approach her door, they hear a loud bang coming from her apartment. Kate draws her gun and turns to Castle, her finger to her lips. She tries the knob and realizes the door is unlocked. Castle puts his back to the wall as he has been taught. Kate turns to him and whispers, "Stay out here." Before he can stop her, she flings the door open, yells out, NYPD, freeze!" and runs into the dark apartment.
"Kate!" He yells. He takes a deep breath and enters the apartment unarmed.
Suddenly, a single light comes on and Castle sees a banner across the living room that says "WILL YOU MARRY ME, CASTLE?!" Kate stands in the middle of her living room holding a blue box from Tiffany's in her hands. Castle looks at her with the same surprised expression on his face as the night of his birthday.
Realizing that she is proposing to him, he says, "You just can't help yourself can you? You win Detective Beckett. You are the queen of surprises. How could I say no to such an extraordinary proposal? I'll marry you, you beautiful creature!" He takes her in his arms and kisses her only to be startled by shouts of congratulations from Alexis, Martha, Lanie, Ryan, Jenny, Esposito, Jim and even Captain Gates and Perlmutter. Holding Kate in his arms he turns to see the bucket of ice with the open bottle of Champagne. Alexis hands Rick and Kate each a glass of Champagne and clinks her glass to them. "Congratulations! I couldn't be happier for you." She gives each of them a kiss on the cheek. Then, one by one their extended family clinks their respective glasses to the happy couple. Castle is reminded of the final scene in Murder on the Orient Express. It's perfect.
"That's how it's done, Castle. Fortunately for you, you will never have to propose to anyone ever again." She gives him one of her broad, beautiful, heart stopping smiles and leans in for a kiss.
"I love you, Kate," he says.
"I love you too, Rick."
The End