Disclaimer: All things "Castle" belong to ABC & Co.
Author's Note: This was originally intended to be a one-shot but it got too long for that so it's now a two-shot future fic, fluff and smut, written for the Castle Pornado (and being posted a little late, because RL got in the way). Cavity alert for seriously fluffy fluff. Consider yourselves warned and if you're looking for a plot, you won't find it here.
For Mobazan27.
Future Perfect
Part One
Kate pushed open the door to the loft with a little sigh of relief, feeling the spurt of joy she always felt on coming home. Her noisy, messy, wonderful home.
Her thought was immediately belied as she stepped inside to be greeted by the sound of silence. The house was still messy—there were dirty dishes and other various detritus from the day's meals left out in the kitchen and a single stray sock of Lily's on the floor in the family room—but it was entirely and completely quiet. Hmm.
"Lily? Castle?"
She had sent Castle her usual text to let him know she was on her way home before she'd left the precinct. He hadn't responded but that wasn't unusual since he was usually busy with their daughter. She supposed Castle must simply have taken Lily out for some errand or something but then again, he hadn't mentioned an outing and anyway, he normally wouldn't take Lily anywhere in the evening without Kate and certainly not on an evening she planned to spend at home.
Curious but not alarming, at least not yet.
She slipped off her shoes and put her gun away in the safe before moving towards their bedroom to check if Castle and Lily were sleeping. It wasn't Lily's usual naptime but then Lily didn't have much of a "usual naptime" at all. (Kate had given up on the idea of ever sticking to an orderly, predictable schedule pretty much from the day Lily had arrived. And even though it still surprised her at times, she loved it.)
Nope, no husband and no baby daughter in their bedroom either. But—Kate felt a smile curve her lips—there was a dress laid out on their bed. One she'd never seen before so clearly her sneaky husband had found time to do some shopping. And oh, the dress was beautiful, deep purple and silky and with a flare at the skirt to fall to just above her knees.
So they were going out tonight, to somewhere fancy too.
Hmm. Well, if Castle had planned a surprise, she could surprise him too. A faint smile flitted around her lips as she moved towards her dresser to look through her underwear collection. Thanks to the advent of Lily, she no longer wore sexy underwear on anything approaching a regular basis so gradually her sexy underwear collection had been relegated to the bottom of the drawer so tonight, she deliberately went straight to the bottom of the drawer. Mm. Ooh, that would work. She smiled to herself as she plucked out a set that basically consisted of a few scraps of black silk and lace masquerading as under-clothing.
Smiling (okay, smirking) to herself, she retreated into the bathroom to change, just in case her absent husband decided to return. No need to risk spoiling his part of the surprise.
Which turned out to be the right decision because she heard the faint sound of the door as she was just slipping into the dress and knew Castle must be home now. Zipping up her dress, she surveyed herself in the mirror, a bubble of anticipation and pleasure growing in her chest. She hadn't had a bad day at work but it was work (work without Castle, which was still not her favorite thing) and she felt her mood lift, happiness buzzing through her. As much as she adored her daughter, it occurred to her that it was nice to get dressed up like this, would be fun to go out somewhere with Castle. She couldn't really remember the last time she and Castle had gotten dressed up and gone out somewhere nice. They'd had a quiet Christmas and New Year's with just their family and before then, there hadn't been any opportunity either, not since… before Lily had been born—god, had it really been more than a year?
Well, clearly Castle had something planned to make up for that.
She quickly touched up her makeup to make it more appropriate for a night out and then opened the door to their bedroom, making Castle spin around from the closet to look at her and then to stare.
"Hey—wow," he breathed out, his greeting truncated as he stared and said nothing more.
"Hey, babe. I see you've planned something for the evening."
"Uh huh," he agreed absently, his eyes still focused somewhere below her face.
She smirked to herself, a bubble of satisfaction rising within her. She wasn't quite back to her pre-pregnancy weight; there were a few pesky pounds that refused to leave but it was very clear that it didn't matter in the slightest to Castle. She sternly controlled her expression as she said, "Eyes up, Castle."
He blinked and jerked his eyes up to her face. "Right, yeah," he agreed, not very smoothly, and then added, somewhat restored to himself, "Oh, before you ask, my mother is watching Lily for the night. And Alexis is watching my mother so she'll make sure that my mother doesn't decide to introduce our toddler to jello shots or something like that."
She couldn't help a laugh even as she gave him a look of mild reproach. "Martha wouldn't do that, Castle. She's not that irresponsible." Or irresponsible at all, not when it came to Lily. She might be unconventional, to say the least, but Martha would sooner cut off her own arm than do anything that would be harmful to her granddaughter.
"This is my mother we're talking about. She had me learn how to make Bloody Marys before the age of 10."
"Yes, and clearly you've turned out terribly as a result," Kate drawled.
"Says the woman who married me."
"Temporary insanity," she quipped.
"Hey!" Castle turned from where he'd picked out a suit to throw her a pout. "Mean, Beckett," he pretended to grumble.
She only laughed and didn't even bother to pretend to be doing anything other than ogling him as he stripped out of his t-shirt and jeans and changed into a nice dark suit and one of his dark burgundy shirts that always made his eyes seem almost startlingly blue in contrast.
Mm, he still had a great ass. And of course, she'd always been a big fan of the muscles of his chest and arms. What, he was her husband, she was allowed to ogle.
His eyes caught hers as he finished buttoning up his shirt and he quirked his eyebrows at her. "See something you like?"
"It's a very nice shirt," she answered primly.
He smirked at her. "I think it's the body inside the shirt you were looking at."
Guilty as charged but she chose not to admit it (at least, not then) and only made a show of gathering up a wrap and finding a small formal purse for the evening. She knew he still had that cocky smirk on his face—by now, she could sense it—but she ignored it in favor of getting ready for an evening out. Not least because if she gave in and looked at him again, it was entirely possible—probable—to lead to things that would lead to them staying in rather than leaving the loft.
It wasn't long before he was standing beside her, holding out a hand. "You ready to leave, Mrs. Castle?"
She smiled—as usual when he called her 'Mrs. Castle'—and put her hand in his. "Lead the way, Mr. Castle."
By now, Kate felt no surprise at all to see the luxurious town car Castle had hired, only smiling a greeting for the driver before sliding into the back seat. It did surprise her a little that Castle made no attempt to tease her—well, touch her—once they were inside the car, only held her hand decorously on the seat between them.
"So Castle, wanna tell me where we're going?"
He favored her with another smirk, his eyes dancing with some mischief now. "Nope, it's a surprise."
She eyed him but she could tell when she could try to tease an answer out of him and when he was determined to carry through with his surprise and this was one of the latter times. Oh well, she trusted him. And there was a light in his eyes that told her that whatever he had planned was something she would like.
Only to change her mind a few minutes later as he pulled something out of his jacket pocket, dangling it in front of her. "Here, put this on, Beckett."
A blindfold? She gave him a narrow-eyed look. "I don't think so."
He gave her one of his wide-eyes pleading looks but she resisted it.
"No, Castle, I am not wearing a blindfold in public," she stated flatly. What she might do, occasionally, in the privacy of their bedroom was neither here nor there; trust him or no, a blindfold in public was a step too far.
He affected a beleaguered sigh but she could see in his expression that he wasn't actually that surprised. He knew her too well. "Fine, well, at least close your eyes and no peeking."
"Are you kidding me, Castle?"
"Nope. I told you it's a surprise so you need to close your eyes."
It was her turn to huff an exaggerated sigh but she closed her eyes. "Just remember that my shooting you will put a damper on our night out," she warned with mock tartness.
"Duly noted."
And then she could feel that he was actually waving his hand barely inches in front of her face, making sure she wasn't peeking. She really might end up killing him. "Castle!"
"Fine, fine, just don't peek. It'll ruin the surprise."
"What are you, a five year old?" she muttered but found her irritation dissipating even as she spoke. Oh damn, this man. He was ridiculous, no doubt about that, but he always got so into schemes like this, tried so hard to bring magic into every day. And succeeded with Lily-and yes, with her too. She loved him for it.
"Hush, Beckett, you're going to love it. Just wait."
The car slowed to a halt and then stopped and she heroically refrained from opening her eyes.
"No opening your eyes until I say so."
"I get it, Castle. And I won't."
"Good."
He gripped her hand and she carefully slid out of the car, trying to identify where they were. It was a futile endeavor, of course. All she knew was their general whereabouts from the cross streets she'd last seen but aside from that, she had nothing.
Really, he was lucky she trusted him. There wasn't another person in the world who she would allow to do this.
He tugged on her hand and she followed obediently, stepping rather cautiously. She could sense the sudden change in the temperature and the air as they stepped inside a building, heard the click of her heels on what sounded like marble. The atmosphere was an odd mix of bustling and subdued, no sound of silverware so it wasn't a restaurant as would have been her first guess. No, it was something else, something familiar, but before she could begin to analyze what seemed so familiar, she was being led somewhere else and heard Castle direct someone to "52 please."
Okay, so this must be an elevator, she guessed, and was proven right when she heard a familiar bell sound and felt the elevator begin to move.
The elevator came to a stop and she heard the doors slide open and Castle led her out and immediately, she was aware of a change in atmosphere again, to say nothing of a drop in the noise level. It was quiet up here, no one or very few other people around. She could feel a breeze from somewhere ahead of them and guessed a door must be open leading outside. To a balcony, she guessed.
"Just a sec," Castle said and led her a few more steps before directing her to stop. "Okay, now, open."
She did. And blinked in the sudden light to focus, first, on his smiling face and then look around. It was a big space, clearly meant for fancy parties, with a bar off to one side and leading out onto… a rooftop deck. It was very glitzy, opulent. And empty, except for the two of them.
There was something vaguely familiar about it, some nagging memory tugging at the back of her mind, but before she could tease it out, she felt Castle take both her hands in his and tug her towards him.
"Happy anniversary, Beckett," he told her quietly, his arms loosely sliding around her waist.
Huh, what? "We got married in November," she responded, a faint frown crossing her face. She knew he hadn't forgotten their wedding anniversary, he wouldn't. Besides, he had given her a beautiful necklace for their last anniversary, not that many months ago.
He smirked, just a little. "Not the anniversary I'm talking about. Try again."
Another anniversary. They'd gotten together (and gotten engaged) in May, so it couldn't be that. She glanced around and now the memory emerged. A party—she'd last been here in the middle of a party, lots of people, mostly women, bustling around. A laugh bubbled up. Oh yes, now she understood. "This is where the Storm Fall book launch party was."
He grinned, pleased with her (and himself). "Now you've got it. I realized the other day that today is the 10 year anniversary of the day we met."
"Not exactly," she corrected him automatically. (Had it really been 10 years?)
He made a face at her. "You know I don't count the book signing."
"You mean you don't remember the book signing," she teased, more to see him bridle the way he tended to when reminded of that than because she meant anything. Teasing him about not remembering their actual first meeting had become something of a running joke between them if only because he tended to pout so adorably when she did so.
"I've had thousands of book signings," he pretended to grumble. "But I have not been arrested so many times that I'd forget the date it happened."
She quirked her eyebrow at him. "Oh no? I think a certain police horse would beg to differ."
He gave a crack of laughter. "You're never going to let me live that down, are you?"
"Nope," she grinned.
"Anyway," he went on, "I could never forget the date on which a certain leggy detective—"
"Leggy?" she interrupted him. "Really, Castle, that's the adjective you pick to describe me?"
The corners of his lips tugged upwards into a teasing leer as he deliberately scanned her body from head to toe. "Well, Beckett," he answered in a tone of mock thoughtfulness, "I could have picked other... attributes. I think you're aware of my deep and abiding appreciation for your br—"
She shot him a look. "Do not finish that sentence, Castle."
In the blink of an eye, he assumed an expression that would have done justice to a saint. "I very much appreciate your brains," he told her piously. "Why, Beckett, whatever did you think I was going to say?"
She sputtered a laugh. He'd got her there. Damn it. Not that she believed for a second that he'd actually been thinking of his appreciation for her brains. "Castle!"
He smirked. "As I was saying, I could never forget the day a certain detective walked into my life… and turned my entire world upside down and inside out."
She gave a gasp of feigned outrage. "You were the one who turned my life upside down and inside out!"
"I did no such thing," he pretended to huff. "I was simply minding my own business, completely innocent that someone had concocted a plan to use my books to set up an innocent man."
She snorted. "I think you're forgetting the way you barged into my life after that first case was solved and refused to leave."
"It was for research purposes. My intentions were entirely pure."
"Pure, ha," she scoffed. "That's some nice revisionist history you're telling yourself there, Writer Boy."
He made a face at her, entirely belied by the laughter sparking in his eyes. "If you'll stop interrupting me, I'm trying to tell a story about the day 10 years ago today that a certain detective walked up to me and changed my life forever." Just like that, his tone was entirely sober and she felt her heart melt as he went on, his eyes holding hers. "She intrigued me, challenged me, irritated the hell out of me sometimes." She sputtered a soft laugh that faded as he finished, serious once more, "And she made me a better man."
She choked a little. Oh damn, he was going to make her cry. "Rick…"
Whatever she might have been about to say was cut off as he kissed her, his lips lingering long enough to make her mind go blank as she sank into him.
He drew back slowly. "Happy anniversary, Kate."
She couldn't help her smile. "Happy made-up anniversary, Castle." Oh, this silly man. This silly, wonderful, good man who had changed her life forever.
"Made up," he huffed. "You mock me when I'm trying to be romantic?"
She cut off his faux grumbling with another kiss, twining her tongue around his and deliberately drawing his lower lip between her teeth. His eyes were satisfyingly hazy when she drew back. "10 years since the best thing that ever happened to me."
His lips curved. "Best 10 years of my life."
Annoyingly, she felt her throat get tight at his words. It had been the best 10 years of her life too but after her mom's death, she felt as if she'd never be happy again, had not been happy until he had insinuated himself into her life and her heart. But for him to say that it had been the best 10 years of his life… She knew he might not have had the picture-perfect life that his publicity had indicated with his glittering success and wealth and his cozy family life with Alexis (and Martha) in his loft before they'd met but he also hadn't had to face so much danger either. And yet, in spite of it all, in spite of the shootings, the serial killers, the conspiracies, and all the hurt, he still said it had been the best 10 years of his life and meant it.
"Me too, Rick," was all she managed to say, but then by now, with him, that was enough.
His smile deepened but all he said was, "Come on, Beckett, surprise isn't quite over yet."
She gave a little laugh and allowed him to lead her over to the other side of the bar to—wait, she remembered this. This was almost exactly where Castle had been standing and talking to Alexis when she'd first approached him. Only now, she saw a small table set for two, complete with covered dishes and a bottle of champagne waiting in a bucket of ice. Everything for a perfect private romantic dinner for two, in fact.
"Castle, how did you arrange all this?" Putting all this together even while he spent his days taking care of Lily, being the best father imaginable, and still found time to write. Oh, this man. He never did anything by halves, did he?
He shrugged a little as he pulled out a chair for her. "Made a few phone calls while Lily was napping, it wasn't too hard. This room wasn't booked since it's a weekday so it wasn't a big deal."
She doubted it had really been as easy as he was making it sound but she also knew how he tended to demur when charged with his own generosity so she contented herself with giving him a kiss on the cheek before she sat down. And started to plan ahead for the more intimate ways in which she could express her gratitude later.
~To be continued (with smut)…~
A/N 2: Thank you to all readers and reviewers.
