I recently found the rest of this story. It's been two years since I updated it, but I figured, why not. As ever, the characters are not my own. Some of the ideas are.
"Come on, dad, gram, are you going to stand there forever? The pancakes are getting cold!" Alexis beckons them over with a spatula. Castle goes to pull out plates as Martha lays out placemats. He drops a casual kiss on first Alexis' head and then Kate's, all of them jostling for space behind the kitchen counter as they ferry pancakes, eggs, bacon, fruit, toast, juice, milk and a multitude of pancake toppings to the table.
"Wow! You guys have really gone all out!" Castle's eyes light up with child-like glee. Kate and Alexis share secret smiles and Alexis says, "Well, dad, in honor of you being home and our family all being together again, we decided to make you a special breakfast. So, for once, and only once, we decided to make you something that will never be made in this kitchen again." Castle looks confused until Beckett slides her plate over to him. "Is that-?" "A smorelette, and don't ever expect another one," Kate answers. "You guys…" He suddenly cannot speak. He might be crying. Alexis looks concerned. "Dad? Are you okay?" He nods, then shakes his head, then stands up. "Come here, all of you," he says, tugging Kate up on one side and Alexis on the other.
He pulls them into a hug, and Alexis drags Martha into it, too, and for a moment they are silent and then laughing and crying and nearly stumbling as they try to get over the sheer joy of being together like this. He catches Kate's eye over the heads of his mother and daughter, and hopes that his gaze conveys at least a little bit of the immense gratitude he feels towards her. Her watery smile betrays such a depth of love that for a second he forgets all about the fact that he is holding not just her but also his mother and daughter, and leans in to kiss her until she blushes and starts away from them, which brings the tangled embrace to its natural end.
Breakfast flows easily from there, the table full of laughter, and even catching up on all the events he's missed in the last two months seems exciting rather than painful. They eat until they can eat no more, and sit there until the eggs have congealed into unappealing cold lumps, the pancakes become soggy masses in syrup, and the sun is no longer streaming in through the windows. They are reluctant to leave this somehow magical moment in time. Finally, though, Martha sighs and stands. "Well, I don't know about you kids, but I have a rehearsal this afternoon. I'd better get going if I want to make it in time." Alexis shifts and stands, too. "Yeah, dad, I've got to go as well. We've got a group project for my politics class, and we're meeting up to discuss it at 3. I need to prepare a bit before that." Castle looks from one to the other. "Go, guys, I'll see you in the evening, don't worry. And I'll clean up. It's the least I can do after you made me such a fabulous breakfast." Kate lays a hand on his arm. "We'll clean up, Rick. I've got no place to be. I'm not on call today." His smile grows wider. "See? Don't worry about it," he tells his mother and daughter. "Kate's here to keep me out of trouble." Martha smirks as she heads towards the stairs, and Alexis rolls her eyes and kisses her father's cheek before doing the same thing.
And then there's just the two of them at the table. Kate is suddenly shy with him. She looks away and begins stacking plates, preparing to take them to the kitchen sink. Castle finds himself uncharacteristically tongue-tied. This softer, more diffident version of Kate never fails to charm him. Sure, her hot, teasing, badass, confident avatar leaves him speechless, but somehow, this vulnerable side of her always has him mesmerized, perhaps because he is one of the few people who gets to see it. He feels incredibly lucky that she allows him to see her this way. He stacks plates and utensils alongside her, scoops the nasty congealed mess of eggs and pancakes into the garbage, and takes a rag out to clean the table while she starts washing dishes. He makes quick work of the table and goes to help her.
"You left before I woke up this morning," he murmurs into her ear, and she almost drops the plate she is holding. "Castle! A little warning!" she hisses at him. But he sees her eyes, and the sparkle in them and the flush along her collarbones tell him that she is not annoyed; far from it. So he takes a chance and draws his fingers over the back of her soapy hand. "You made me a lovely breakfast today. Thank you." He's standing directly behind her, almost enveloping her with his embrace, but the only point he touches is the back of her hand.
Slowly, ever so slowly, he begins to draw circles on it with his thumb. He sees her bite her lip and close her eyes. With his other hand, he reaches out to draw her hair to one side, uncovering her neck. Her hair is shorter now than it used to be, so he lets his hand linger, keeping her hair out of the way as he bends his head and places a tiny open-mouthed kiss at the base of her neck. He feels her whole body shudder. Then the plate she is holding drops out of her hand and into the water-filled sink with a splash and loud clunk and they both startle away from each other. She turns around so that their faces are mere inches away. He can see the trepidation and desire and love in her eyes as she rises to place a sweet kiss on his mouth. For a moment, they kiss with their eyes open, just the soft pressure of lips on lips. Just as her eyes begin to drift shut, they hear the clipping of heels on the stairs and break apart. She goes back to her dishes in the sink and he takes up the place next to her to rinse and set them to dry as she scrubs.