From a very young age, Kate had always known she had grown up in a fairly privileged household. It wasn't hard to deduce; her family lived in a nice Manhattan apartment and her parents both held well paying jobs as high power attorneys at well respected law firms int he city. Growing up, she spent a fair number of evenings at social events teeming with the Manhattan elite and many of her friends had parents in the same social circle.

And yet despite all that, her parents chose to send her to a public school. Claimed that it would teach her character, expose her to people from all walks of life rather than the privileged few. She had worked hard, gotten into Stuyvesant, and from there obtained acceptance to Stanford University. She had been on track to become a lawyer, just like her parents, and everything in her life was perfect.

Then her mother had died.

Suddenly, she found herself wanting more than just becoming a lawyer. She wanted to bring the person to justice, which was why she found herself transferring from Stanford to NYU. Even knowing the difference in pay, she didn't want to become a lawyer anymore. She wanted to become a detective. And she was willing to give up the only lifestyle she knew to do so.

So when she met Richard Castle for the first time she had been completely unphased. He was a famous author, it was only right to expect that he was wealthy. His book launch party was nothing new to her, the socialites and debutantes swarming the room only a reminder of the functions she had attended with her parents.

Then there had been the Espresso Machine that he had purchased for the precinct, a gorgeous and unquestionably expensive machine. One that she still couldn't get the hang of, despite it having been nearly eight years since he had purchased it for the department.

The $100,000 that he had offered had been a surprise; even growing up she hadn't really experienced anybody who could pull that sort of money at the drop of a hat. And yet, it wasn't until she had seen his loft that she began to sense that Richard Castle might just be a bit wealthier than she had originally assumed.

Him purchasing The Old Haunt had been another surprise. Him, investing in a novelty bar just for the sake of doing so? And then, there had been the hotel in LA, the gorgeous suite and the team of staff that knew exactly who he was and his preferences in just about everything.

And yet, it wasn't until her first visit to his Hamptons house that she thought she was finally grasping just how much money the man had. The engagement ring had been another milestone, another item that burst any preconceived notions she might have had. Of course, then there had been the property that Castle had purchased on the moon.

But Kate had never really realized just how wealthy Rick Castle was until the summer after their wedding.

He had worked something out with the boys and Captain Gates, an agreement that had him whisking her out of the precinct and into a waiting limousine. The ride back to the loft had been a short one, the time that he had allowed her to pack not much longer. And then they had piled back into the limousine, this time whisked off to a small airfield where a private jet was waiting.

She couldn't help but stare at her surroundings as she climbed the stairs and stepped onto the plush white carpet. But she had pulled herself together before turning to look back at Castle. "Really? Don't you think this is a bit much?"

"Just enjoy it, Kate." was all he said before settling them into two sinfully soft leather seats.

"Where are we going?"

"It's a surprise."

She had left it at that, choosing to enjoy the most luxurious flight she had ever experienced before.

The plane had landed soon enough, and it wasn't until they climbed out of the jet that Kate realized where they were. "LA? What are we doing here?"

"Do you trust me?"

She couldn't help herself; she rolled her eyes. But she had nodded her acquiescence nonetheless and he had led her off to yet another waiting limo.

The ride had been a short one this time, simply to the nearby harbour where their bags and themselves had been loaded onto a golf cart before being driven down the pier.

No way.

"Castle?" she asked, her brows raised as she turned to look at him.

"Yeah?"

"What's going on?"

He grin was excited, childish almost as he turned towards Kate. "Well, you know how we were discussing potential honeymoon destinations and that, well-"

"You'd pretty much been everywhere?"

"Yeah, that. And how we wanted our place to be unique, our own adventure?"

Kate simply nodded, not trusting herself to speak at this point.

"Well, you see that yacht over there?" he asked, pointing towards a three storied yacht that was easily 60'. "It's ours, for the month at least, and we can go wherever you want." He was met with silence, a frozen expression that he wasn't entirely sure how to read. "I mean, I thought it'd be a good idea and it kind of makes the entire world our destination and I thought you'd like it and there are enough berths that we could fly people out to join us for a few days. Alexis, our parents, the boys, eve-"

Shaking her head, Kate couldn't help but smile as she leaned in to plant a kiss on Castle's lips, interrupting whatever else he was about to say. "It's perfect Castle, really." she finally said as she pulled away, intertwining her fingers with his as she rested her head on his shoulder. "Absolutely perfect."

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Tumblr Prompt: Kate never really realized just how wealthy Rick Castle was until...