Castle can't drag his body out of bed. He is laying there replaying the last conversation he had with Beckett. "She did nod her head when I told her I care about her and her Mom's case. I wonder if she really believed me. Maybe she nodded like, "Yeah right, buddy!" In any case, she probably hates me. I wasn't meddling though, was I?"

Alexis hops onto his bed as she says "Good Morning" just little too loudly.

"What's so good about it?" He says

"Well, for one, I made breakfast" Alexis says. "For another, I have a plan for you and Det. Beckket."

"I'm listening," Castle sits up in bed with a pillow behind him now.

"I think flowers are in order, Dad!"

"Flowers? I think I messed up worse than flowers could ever help, honey."

"I think Det. Beckett needs a reminder that you are friends. Fill out the card and I will have them sent to her."

Castle writes:

Every family deserves an ending to the story, Kate.

I just wanted to help with your Mom's story.

See the roses again, Kate, and not just the thorns.

Trust me.

Your friend, Rick Castle

He hands the card to Alexis who grabs her coat and leaves the condo.

Castle feels a bit better and decides it's time to get out of bed. A hot shower will do the trick and a good breakfast. A smile crosses his face when he remembers Alexis made him breakfast.

There is a knock on Kate's apartment door. It's him she thinks. He probably wants to talk. Then she hears, "Delivery!" "Delivery, what did I order?"

She opens the door. The floral delivery man is standing there holding the most beautiful arrangement of 10 red roses and 2 white roses with baby's breath in a beautiful crystal vase. Inside the arrangement is a card. She thanks the delivery man and brings the vase inside. She reaches for the card. As she reads the card from Castle, tears come to her eyes. "Trust me."

"It's about more than trust." She whispers.

She places the vase on her coffee table in the middle of her living room. She smiles at how they brighten the room. "Castle even brightens a room when he isn't in it." She shakes her head and a smile begins to form.

How can she not trust this man? He listens to her, really listens to her. He cares what she thinks and feels and always asks if she needs to talk. He treats her as an equal, where Will always took for granted she would follow him. Will had all of the control in their relationship. Castle shares control with her whether it be working a case or playing poker and he called her extraordinary! He always seems to know just what to say to her to inspire or to have her energies re-directed.

He was following his heart when he worked her Mom's file. She knows that about him. He wouldn't hurt her. He has always treated her with dignity and respect, even while flirting. She has never had such a relationship where she didn't have to fight for herself or give in to keep the peace. She can disagree and they talk things through, or she can listen to his reasoning and come to a different conclusion. But no matter how she thought about it, she knew he would never intentionally hurt her.

"See the roses and not just the thorns." She has never seen so many roses since meeting Castle. He has shown her how to laugh again and how to tease and play. She smiles more, dreams more, and cares how she looks and feels more. "Trust me."

"It is about more than trust, Castle" she says out loud to the room. Trust isn't easy for Kate, but with this man, trust isn't the hard part. Friends have been few and far between for Kate. Her work prevents the time for more than casual relationships. Laney was her closest friend and they met through work but formed a fast bond. Yet even Laney has not been able to penetrate Kate's wall. The subject of her mom's murder has never been a topic she opened up about to anyone, especially Laney.

Yet with Castle, she felt safe enough early on to share this very personal and painful part of her life. Why? What is about him? He makes her feel safe. He listens to her and instead of just her words he hears her heart. He felt her pain when she was telling him about the murder. She saw it on his face. She has never been able to talk about things easily with others. It was always safer to keep things inside of her. When she is with Castle, she can tell him things and speak of her fears so easily. She doesn't hold back anymore. She has trusted him with her story, her vulnerabilities, and he has protected them for her. She can not lose him in her life.

She needs to feel safe even more now with the re-opening of her mother's case. It is about more than trust, it is. It is about her best friend. Yes Castle is her best friend. He cares. No one ever cared enough to help her before him. Will saw it best for Kate to just accept the findings and move on. Move on? Easy to say to someone else, but very hard to do for a loved one that just feels it doesn't make sense. Castle thought like she did about the case. He felt it should be looked at again and he took it to an expert for help.

That is what friends do for each other. They listen, they feel and they fight for them. Castle is fighting for her and for her mom that he never met. She needs to accept his help, thank him for caring enough to get involved, and apologize for her anger. If she is lucky, her best friend will understand. She grabs her keys and head out to talk to him.

Castle sits down to a breakfast of scrambled eggs and bacon that Alexis made before she left. "Not too bad, cold, but not bad" he says. His hair is still damp from his shower but he does feel a bit better. "I hope Alexis is right about the flowers." He finishes his breakfast and starts to clean up when his buzzer rings. He opens the door to see Kate. "Hi", she says. "Hi yourself" he answers. He reaches his hand out to hers to usher her in to his condo. She takes it and walks inside.

"I had to come over, Castle. I need to say something."

"Ok" Castle swallows hard wondering why all of a sudden his mouth went completely dry.

She looks him in the eye and he sees she is nervous.

"Thank you for the flowers. They really are beautiful."

"I want to help Kate, that's all. I never meant for you to be hurt. But I guess all roses have thorns, so no matter how good my intentions were, you did get hurt. I'm sorry."

"I want an ending too Castle. I want to know. 12 years without knowing is too long. You are a good friend, the best actually. I have never had anyone that wanted to help me before. In fact many people talked me out of continuing to investigate. The more I look at it though, the more things just don't sit right with me. When I told you about her murder, I saw that you didn't believe the official story either. The questions you asked the look when you heard it wasn't a robbery but a supposed gang type random wayward event, told me I was right. If you will work with me, well, if you want to work with me, I know we can figure this out. Rick Castle, will you help me? I trust you, we work great together, and I know you will help me with whatever we dig up. I do trust you; you have never let me down."

Rick is smiling from ear to ear. "You trust me? A beautiful woman trusts me? Hmm that is something new!" They both laugh. "Kate, I never stopped helping you and I won't now. I have resources, you have the knowledge and together we have the determination to see this thing through. We can do it Kate."

"Watch me though, Castle. I can't go back to the pit I was in years ago. It was a dark place and I had to fight hard to move past it."

"Listen, watching you is the easiest assignment going, but seriously. I won't sit and watch you sink, Kate. I am here for you and I am not going anywhere. Trust me."

Kate answers with a smile, "It is about more than trust, Rick. It is about seeing roses again and not the thorns. Did you know you sent ten red roses and 2 white ones by the way?"

"Kate, the ten red roses are for the years since your mother death and the two white ones are for us working together to solve her murder. We're a good team Kate. I trust us."

She moves close to him as he reaches around her waist to pull her close. She lifts her arms around his neck as they hold each close. She moves her head back as she says to him, "I trust us too, Rick." He leans down and kisses her lips as she closes her eyes.

They know there work will start tomorrow, but they are happy that for tonight they have the quiet of his condo and the two of them seal their deal with kisses until they quiet is broken by his family. "Enjoy this, he tells her the condo is never this quiet or peaceful." As if on cue, the door flies open with Martha and Alexis caught up in whirlwind of conversation as they hardly even notice the couple standing in the middle of the room.

They both laugh as they link arm in arm to go see what the fuss is all about.