Homecomings
This is a ficlet in the same universe as Pick Me Up At the Lost and Found and Piece By Piece (I call it the Lost and Found Series for what it's worth). I was prompted by Anonymous on tumblr to write a part where AU!Beckett meets Alexis, so here it is! Enjoy!
"Hey, babe."
She winces through the greeting, knowing she sounds guilty. She was supposed to have left her office already and they both know it. Any other night and it wouldn't be a problem – he's used to her workaholic ways – but tonight's special and she doesn't want to disappoint him.
"Hey," he chirps, light and cheerful. She's hoping seeing his daughter again will be more than enough to keep his spirits up, even if she does have to bail on their first dinner for three instead of just two. "I'm at the airport, her plane's about to land. I made her one of those stupid signs, but I think she'll love it."
Kate laughs softly, pushing her hair behind her ear. "She will. She's going to be so happy to see you. Maybe you'll make a scene and it'll end up on YouTube," she teases.
"Wouldn't be the first time that's happened," Rick quips easily, giving her the opportunity to sigh and roll her eyes at him.
"Of course not. You forget I've read your file, Ricky."
"And you're the unofficial president of my fan club."
"Shut up."
"My point, Captain, is that you've seen all the escapades."
"Is that what the people are calling your naked butt these days?"
His laugh echoes across the line, warming her from the inside out. When he speaks again, he sounds content, despite the question he has to ask, "You're still at work, aren't you?"
Regret settles firmly in her gut again. "I'm so sorry, but the Wilson case went to hell and now their lawyer is threatening to sue the department, and I just knowthere's something in those files you and I went through the other day, so I'm –"
"Kate, it's okay. We'll do dinner tomorrow night, or the next, or even lunch one day if that's easier. You do what you need to do. The book's not a best-seller yet; I don't know if I can support us both if Wilson's lawyer takes you to the cleaners right now. I mean I can try, but it's probably for the best if we wait until the second book comes out before getting sued. Just for the financial cushion."
Her breath freezes in her throat. He, what?
"Ah, that was…" Supposed to be an inside thought, Castle?
"Well, I do have that thing about my shoes and my coats," she finds her voice and her bravery. "But I suppose I could part with some of them if we needed the cash."
Her boyfriend recovers nicely. "Oh good. That's good to know."
Cheeks flaming, her thumbnail finds its way between her teeth. "Yeah?"
"Uh huh. Besides, if it comes down to it, I have more than a few things I could get rid of. Plus if we're lucky, we can 'accidentally' throw some of Mother's things into the pile and – oh, she's here. I gotta go, Beckett. See you at home later?"
He doesn't give her the chance to answer, instead ending the call just as she hears him call to his daughter joyfully.
Will he see her at home later? He means his place tonight, though she's heard him refer to both of their apartments as home somewhat interchangeably. Which is a little strange after less than a year together, but really good at the same time.
She shouldn't go to his place, she really shouldn't. Not with his daughter there and the two of them having never met. It would be odd for the girl to wake up in the morning and see some random woman making herself at home. No, it'll be better if she just goes back to her apartment for the night and makes plans to meet the two of them over an extended lunch break tomorrow.
She texts him to tell him that much, promising to make it up to him another time. She won't be going to his place after she's done here.
Which is, of course, why she lets herself into her boyfriend's home at just after 2 AM, only to come face to face with a set of bright blue eyes that rival Rick's in intensity.
"I – oh god, I'm so sorry," she fumbles, reaching for her badge, just in case the girl's ready to call the police on her, or worse.
"I'm Kate Beckett. Your dad and I are…" Oh god, this is a disaster. "I, I should've gone home, I'm sorry. I'll just… go."
She turns to leave, embarrassment coloring her cheeks, only to hear Castle's daughter dissolve into quiet laughter.
"Captain Beckett, it's okay. Dad told me you might let yourself in. I think he's asleep but I'm still, you know, on LA time."
Alexis hides behind a curtain of dark hair, suddenly looking as bashful as Kate feels, but it actually helps. Guess they're jumping into the awkwardness instead of avoiding it.
"He told you I might, huh?" she asks, casting an affectionate glance toward the bedroom.
Castle's daughter smiles quickly. "Yeah, he just said you were working late, but you might let yourself in anyway, so not to freak out if we met in the morning."
Oh god, Castle, don't tell your daughter that.
Her face must show how mortified she is, because Alexis laughs again. "It's okay, really. I'd rather he be honest with me than treat me like I'm ten."
They share a smile before Alexis looks down at the butter knife in her hand. "I was making toast… would you like something?"
Her attempt to decline is quickly overruled by her stomach. The power bar at her desk was a long time ago, and Castle always has her favorite late night snacks in his pantry.
Alexis laughs. "I'll make you something."
Well, that sounds familiar. Like father, like daughter.
"That'd be great, thanks. But I'll help. It's, well it's really the least I can do since I barged in at two in the morning."
"Sure."
They work side by side, somehow feeling practiced at this despite it being the first time they've ever laid eyes on each other. When their snack is complete, they stay at the counter, taking nearly simultaneous bites.
"Thank you," Alexis murmurs after a slow pull from her water bottle. "For taking the chance on my dad. He likes to joke a lot and pretend things don't get to him as much as they do, but after Finite Laughter and all that entailed, he stopped pretending things didn't bother him. He read all those awful reviews and just gave up on all of us and went through the motions. That's why I had to leave; he was destroying himself and I couldn't watch it anymore."
She's heard this story before from Rick, but hearing it from Alexis, from a daughter's perspective… it has her gut tightening. She's been there. She's watched that, and she knows exactly how the girl has to be feeling right now.
"He knows this already, but I've read all of his books, even the last one. I actually went to one of his book signings when he was still writing Derrick Storm, and I'd read the papers and all of the gossip about him, but to meet him for real earlier this year was completely different. He's nothing like I thought he'd be."
Alexis eyes her curiously, no doubt wondering where she's going with this.
"He's better," she confesses quietly, heart in her throat.
The younger woman's face splits on a grin, prompting Kate's teeth to clamp down on her lower lip. Her own giddy smile breaks free anyway.
"I'm," she starts again, wondering if this is the most appropriate thing to tell her boyfriend, her partner's, daughter. "I'm no stranger to walling yourself off to escape hurt, so maybe that… helped me help him?"
Alexis nods. "I think it did. You know, he talks about you all the time. I don't think I've ever heard him talk about someone like that, not even me, and he used to talk about me constantly. It was so embarrassing."
She laughs. "He still does. We did the wall of Alexis after a date once."
"…and you came back? That thing is creepy. You must love him."
Kate's hand freezes halfway to her mouth, but she manages to steady herself under the weight of Rick's daughter's words. It's one thing to tell him, she's told him often, but it's another to hear it from anyone else. "Yeah I do."
"Good," Alexis murmurs, taking a bite of her snack. "He deserves that. Someone who loves him because he's great, not because he's rich or famous, or whatever."
She nods in agreement. "He does. He is, loved that way."
The girl smiles again. "Good."
Beckett exhales, feeling the tightness around her heart loosen.
After a few minutes, Alexis wipes her mouth. "I think I'm going to head to bed," she murmurs, motioning toward the stairs. "Maybe I'll be able to get to sleep. It was nice meeting you, Captain Beckett."
"Kate," she answers automatically. "I walked into your home in the middle of the night, I think it's okay to call me Kate."
Alexis grins, her smile just like her father's. "I'm glad you came over, Kate. We're still having lunch tomorrow, right?"
She nods. "Right."
The girl nods. "I'll see you then."
"See you then," she agrees lamely.
She waits until Alexis disappears from sight to cram the rest of the toast into her mouth and shove her plate into the dishwasher. Her hands dust over her dress pants half a second before she remembers why that's a bad idea, but she just makes a mental note to tell the dry cleaner about the potential for oil stains when she takes her laundry in the next time. Right now she just wants to make it into her boyfriend's bedroom before her relief get the better of her.
The urge to shake him awake and report what just happened is strong.
She doesn't, though, not when she sees how peaceful he looks, curled on his side facing the part of the bed she's appropriated as her own, the empty side.
Her heart fills; he left room for her, even though she said it'd be better for her to stay away. He leaves room for her, even when they think they're sleeping separately.
This man.
Her feet are quiet against the hardwood and then the carpet as she pads to the dresser for one of Castle's shirts. She could wear the pajamas – her pajamas – that are right next to the deep red cotton, but she loves this shirt more. She'll just make sure to grab the pants in the morning when she ducks out for her coffee.
The rest of her nightly routine is quick. She heads into the bathroom, using the makeup removal pads that appeared one day after she bemoaned forgetting her face wash at home before using the toilet, brushing her teeth, and practically sliding back to Rick's side.
He doesn't stir as she lifts the covers, not even when she lowers her body against the pillow-soft mattress. He only twitches when she covers the distance between them, palm seeking the curve of her hip.
"Kate, hi," he smiles, fixing bleary eyes on her, making her think he's not actually awake. "You came home."
"Mhmm," she agrees indulgently, stroking the hair at his temple. "I came home. Close your eyes, Castle, and sleep."
"Mmm kay. 'Lexis is home, too."
Their lips brush, but it's not much more than a sleepy pucker on his end.
"I know. We actually talked. I um, I think I passed the test."
"Knew you would," he praises, even in sleep. "'Cause I love you."
"Love you, too, Castle." She kisses him again, rubbing her nose against the underside of his chin when she pulls away. Rolling onto her back and then her side, Kate laces her fingers with his and tugs his sleep-heavy arm around her. He sighs contentedly, dropping a kiss to the back of her neck before he's out once more.
It takes her a few minutes to unwind. The Wilson case, the rest of her day, even Alexis's words all race through her brain before she lets them go for the night. There will be time to fight with a smarmy lawyer and to get to know Castle's daughter tomorrow. Right now the man she loves is a solid wall at her back, breathing evenly, and that's all she needs to let sleep take her.