Chapter Four
I guess I'm just a positive person, but given the darkness about to happen in the finale, I wanted the next chapters to depict a much happier way of Castle helping Beckett out of the rabbit hole. Enjoy!
"Well Beckett, I'm not a detective, but I hang around a few very good ones. And since we're heading south on the Garden State Parkway, I'd say that we're heading to the Jersey shore."
They had been flying along in his red Ferrari, laughing and joking with each other. Their hangovers were finally going away, and they were simply enjoying each other's company. Kate, however, remained adamant in her refusal to tell Castle where they were actually headed.
"Really, Castle? You figured that out already? These detectives have really taught you well, haven't they?" She touched the accelerator and the car effortlessly screamed past a minivan loaded with beach paraphernalia. Damn, this car was fun to drive.
"Oh yea, they're the best. New York's finest. Names are Ryan and Esposito," he teased.
She smiled and rolled her eyes. "OK, Castle, you got me; we're heading to the shore. But I bet you still can't guess where!" She taunted.
"Come on, Kate, there's got to be like a million little beach towns. Why can't you just tell me? We'll be there in a few hours, anyway."
"And miss out on watching you squirm? It's killing you not knowing where I'm taking you! Seeing you like this is almost as much fun as driving this bad-ass car, Castle!" Kate let out a carefree laugh.
Castle looked over at her and smiled. He loved it when she was so relaxed and happy, even if it was at his expense. And she sure was enjoying driving the Ferrari, although the temperature required them to keep the top up. Better for conversation anyway, he told himself.
"If you're taking me to Atlantic City, you should know that I can get comped at some of the finest places," Castle bragged.
Do I look like the kind of girl that considers a long weekend in Atlantic City special?" Kate feigned offense.
"Point taken. What about Wildwood? I love old fashioned boardwalks, although it's too early for much stuff to be open …"
"You don't strike me as the Wildwood type, Castle."
"It's not a good memory actually. Eleven years old. Witnessed my eighteen-year-old nanny lose her virginity to the pool boy."
"Castle, that's gross!" Kate looked appalled.
"It wasn't all bad. I mean that girl had a body like you wouldn't believe. And I can still remember how they did this kinky thing where she managed to put her one leg..."
"Castle!"
"You asked."
"I did not ask!"
"Well, you did not ask very loudly."
"I don't want to hear anymore about your childhood leering sessions. It's creepy, Castle".
"Well detective be forewarned, if you keep making me guess our destination, I have lots of stories that involve girls, small New Jersey towns and things that happen under boardwalks!"
Kate sighed. Life with an author and his imagination was never dull. At least she hoped some of those stories were his imagination!
She decided to relent. "In the interest of keeping the conversation out of the pornographic genre, I guess I'll tell you where I'm taking you."
There was silence. Castle knew to wait patiently.
"Cape May." She finally said.
"Victorian Cape May?" He asked.
"Yes, that's the one. Please tell me you don't have some tale of sexual conquest about the town?" Kate begged.
"Never been there." Castle replied.
"Oh." She was slightly disappointed. "I guess I'm not surprised. I mean it's not your type of place, no glitz, no glamour."
"Are you kidding me? I've always wanted to go there!" Castle seemed thrilled "The architecture, the history and it's supposed to be absolutely beautiful. The whole town has been designated a National historic landmark, if I'm not mistaken."
Kate beamed before adding softly. "I'm excited about sharing it with you, Rick."
They drove a few miles in comfortable silence.
"So tell me, Kate, why Cape May?" Castle asked quietly.
"Do I have to have a reason?" She answered innocently.
"You want this to be a special weekend for us and in order for you to feel that way, it would have to be special place for you." Castle replied matter-of-factly.
Kate glared.
"What?" he asked.
"I hate it when you do that - know me so well"
"I can assure you there are parts of you that I don't know well at all, yet."
"Very funny, Castle."
"Frustrating, actually."
Kate smirked. She stared at the highway. He waited.
Finally, she asked him. "So do you want to know? About Cape May, I mean."
Castle sensed how difficult it was for Kate to have this conversation. "Only if you're ready to talk about it."
There he goes again, knowing me. Kate fought back the panic that instinctively welled up in her. You trust him, she reminded herself.
Silence.
"OK," she took a deep breath, "So, um, my parents' honeymooned there."
Castle looked surprised. "Wow. It sounds like the perfect place for a honeymoon."
"Yea. That's what my Mom thought. Over the years we would take summer vacations there, or go for holidays. Just the three of us."
Castle could see that Kate was getting lost in some very special memories. He listened, watching intently as she allowed simple joy to slowly engulf her.
"Anyway, for their tenth wedding anniversary my dad surprised my mom with a small little Victorian beach house. Right near the ocean and the lighthouse. Castle, she loved this place." Beckett was absolutely beaming as she told the story.
"Especially after she'd had a tough case, we'd to go down there just to relax and get away. She would make these special crab cakes that were my grandmother's recipe and we'd sit on the porch in the rocking chairs and listen to the sea gulls. It was…. magic. That's what she'd always say to us. Being there together was magic."
"Sounds very special." Castle said quietly.
"It was."
For several minutes there was no sound but the humming of the well-tuned Ferrari engine.
Castle could see the change in her facial expression and felt the anguish in her voice when she finally continued.
"Once she died, my dad and I couldn't even think about coming back here. It was just too painful. In fact, it's been twelve years now and he's never gone back."
"And you?"
"Not for a long time. But when I was in therapy they convinced me that it could be cathartic for me to go. So I started coming, occasionally. Alone." Her voice took on an intense sincerity. " I talk to her when I'm there, Castle. I can almost feel her sometimes."
Silence.
"When was the last time you came down?"
"Last summer. I took Lanie and one of her friends down for a weekend. She thought it would be good for me to get away, since I was so…miserable."
Castle clenched his jaw. God, if only he could take last summer back.
"Anyway, I guess they had a good time, but I wasn't much company for them. I just sat around obsessing about my Mom's murder case, and some other things." She glanced at Castle and saw the distress on his face. They needed to talk about Gina, but not now. She tried to lighten the mood.
"Don't ever get Lanie started about my lack of abilities as a hostess!"
They continued the drive in much needed silence, both of them acutely aware of the magnitude of the recent conversation, and both needing time to process it.
After a few minutes, Castle began feeling uneasy. Kate seemed so sure about this trip, but he was having doubts. This house meant the world to her, that much was obvious. But to go from innocent childhood memories to their second official date, which would involve sex, at least he hoped it would, was a huge leap. What if this weekend ended up tarnishing those memories for her?
"Kate, are you sure you want to do this with me, there?" He finally asked apprehensively.
"Rick, I loved this place growing up and it meant so much to my Mom. And it's as close as I can come to sharing herwith you." She answered sincerely.
"I'm honored, Kate. But what about, you know, the other stuff?" Castle was actually embarrassed.
"I've been considering bringing you here for a long time, Castle. And yes, I've even thought about that."
He was staring down at the floor with a sheepish look, his hands fidgeting in his lap.
Kate saw his expression and smiled, finding it hard to believe that this world famous playboy was a nervous wreck about sex. She tried again to reassure him. "Sharing my childhood bed with you will not be a problem, Rick.' He actually flinched at her words.
"I think you've earned the invitation, you know?" Kate was attempting to make him laugh, but she could see that he was clearly still uncomfortable.
"Tell you what, Castle. If it starts to upset me or I feel weird about having sex with you in my family's beach house, we'll just go to a Bed and Breakfast. They have tons of them in Cape May and it's still the off-season. We'll have no problem finding something."
"So this means we really are going to have sex?" Castle yelped gleefully, only half joking.
Kate rolled her eyes. "Unless I find a hot pool boy instead."
Castle stuck out his lip in a pouting gesture at her joke, but then grew quiet. He sat back and took a few moments to absorb everything Kate had just shared with him.
Slowly he began to break into his classic grin, reaching out for her hand across the consol. "OK then, Beckett, as long as you're sure about this."
He looked devilishly over at her. "Shall we use this second official date to start making our own special Cape May memories? Because I have some really good ideas about how we might get started…"
Kate laughed out loud and hit the accelerator. "Just as long as they don't involve asking me to put my leg anywhere too kinky, Mr. Castle."