Disclaimer: They're not mine. I'm only borrowing them for the summer. Andrew Marlowe is doing a spectacular job. Way better than I could ever do.

And All The Mornings Ever After

Chapter 10 – Space? Who Needs Space?

Dinner was a quiet, slightly awkward affair. Kate was tired, Alexis a little moody, and Castle? Well, Castle was Castle – always trying to placate, to keep everyone happy with small talk and humor the way only he could.

Kate smiled at him appreciatively, seeing the effort he was going to, trying to smooth her way into his little family. He refused to let Alexis treat her like an outsider, to make her feel anything less than welcome, and she knew how much that was costing him – going up against his daughter; the light of his life.

"Here, let me help you clear up," said Kate, standing stiffly as she got up from the dinner table. "Dinner was lovely, Rick. Thank you," she added, watching Alexis come to life a little, to agree with her and join in thanking her dad.

"Kate," said Castle, coming round to her side of the table to capture her gently by the elbow, "I've got this. Please? Just go sit down and relax. It won't take Alexis and I long to clean up. Will it, pumpkin?" he asked his daughter, giving her no way out of helping him, so that Kate could rest.

"No," Alexis replied quietly, taking the hint and loading up with dishes and silverware before making her way to the kitchen.

"Please?" Castle added more softly, leaning down to kiss Kate on the cheek.

"Fine," she sighed, giving in to him. "But just for tonight. Don't think I'm going to let you boss me around now we're dating, Richard Castle," she said, a smile creeping onto her face and into her eyes.

"Oh? That so?" he asked, a cheeky grin tugging at his lips. "So…so…we're dating then?" he asked her, clearly delighted.

"Sounds odd. I know. Doesn't it?" said Kate, wrinkling her nose at the word. "Well, what would you call it?" she asked, taking a glass from his hand and laying it down on the table so that she could wrap her arms around his waist, stepping into the small space between them.

"Hmmm," Castle pondered her question as he looked down at her.

She looked smaller, and softer than normal, in just his sweats and tee shirt.

"Come on. You're the wordsmith," teased Kate, flexing her fingers into his back muscles so that he reciprocated by wrapping his arms around her too.

"You've got me, Kate," he admitted. "Speechless."

"Oh, I know I've got you," she teased back, rocking her hips against his so that his eyes slammed shut and he had to concentrate on her need to find a label for this, for them, to stop himself from dragging her off to bed right now.

"Dating sounds…" he paused to consider, moving just slightly back from her to preserve his dignity.

"Juvenile? Teenage? A lot less than I want this to be?" suggested Kate, watching Castle's eyes widen on her last statement.

"Again," he said breathlessly. "You did it again – speechless, Kate."

She decided to take pity on him. At least until they could have some time alone to toss this stuff around without having Alexis scowl at them and ruin their fun.

Stepping back away from him, until she was only lightly holding onto his sides, she said, "How about we shelve this discussion for later, and you go help clear up before poor Alexis has it all done by herself?"

Castle turned to watch his daughter working quietly in the kitchen alone.

"Good plan," he said, kissing Kate gratefully on the forehead. "And you…feet up," he instructed, turning her by the shoulders to propel her towards the sofa.

Kate did as she was told, settling down on the huge leather sofa to read while Castle and Alexis tidied the kitchen. She could hear soft murmurings coming from that general direction, but tried hard to ignore it, giving them some privacy to talk.

"You okay, sweetie?" asked Castle, nudging Alexis with his hip. "You were awfully quiet over dinner. Something bothering you?"

"No, dad. I'm fine, really," she said, giving him a half-hearted smile.

"Because you know that you can talk to me about anything, pumpkin," he added, trying hard to get her to open up.

"I know, dad," she relied flatly.

Castle frowned to himself. This was going to be harder than he thought, and if he'd realized just how much of a damper Alexis could put on things, he wouldn't have lobbied for that glass of wine to take the edge off his excitement at finally having Kate with him.

"I can do these," said Castle, indicating the small array of wine and water glasses he was going to finish off by hand. "Why don't you go and keep Kate company?" he suggested, watching a flash of alarm cross Alexis' face before she could catch it.

"Or…or you could. Keep her company, I mean," she stammered, trying to take the kitchen towel away from her father. "And I can do these."

"Alexis," he said gently, laying a hand on her shoulder, "Kate's here to stay, sweetie. In our lives, I mean. So the sooner you get used to that…"

She looked down at her feet, scuffing the toe of her black ballet flat against the tile in an awkward, child-like manner. Looking so far from the brave young woman he had just watched deliver such a wise and heart-felt valedictory speech in front of her assembled classmates and their parents only the day before.

"I know it seems strange right now. But if you give her a…"

"Give her a chance. I know, dad," interrupted Alexis, with a flash of anger. "Lanie already told me, so no need," she added testily.

If she had slapped her father across the face, her words would have had no less impact. He stared at her, disappointed, saddened, and not for the first time that night, at a loss for words.

"I think I'll go to my room," Alexis said finally. "Leave you guys alone," she added, squeezing Castle's arm in what she hoped was a conciliatory manner. "Night, daddy."

"Night, pumpkin," said Castle, kissing the top of her head, unable to raise a smile to go along with his words.

"Night, Kate," Alexis called across the floor of the loft, waving to her as she reached the bottom of the steps.

Kate looked up from her magazine in surprise, and then down at her father's watch. But she wisely decided to say nothing about the fact that it was only eight-thirty, and therefore far too early for the eighteen year old to be going to bed.

"Night, Alexis. Sleep well," she called to the girl, raising her hand in a matching wave as she watched Castle's daughter trail up to her room, all of her usual spark and bounce gone.

A couple of minutes later, when Castle had finished putting every last dish away, he wandered over to the sofa carrying two glasses of wine, a white and navy striped kitchen towel still thrown over his shoulder.

He looked tousled and adorable; managing to appear domesticated, and yet manly and sexy all at the same time, thought Kate, admiring him surreptitiously through her lashes.

Castle set the glasses down on the coffee table, and then sat down on the sofa near Kate, though nowhere near close enough for her liking. The look on his face was tentative, as if he was unsure how close he was entitled to get to her, as if he hadn't been told the rules yet. He rubbed a hand across his eyes in a nervous manner and reached for the remote.

Kate felt a pang of regret. She knew this was largely her fault; that she'd knocked his self-confidence where she was concerned, by keeping him at arms length for so long. So she swiveled on the sofa, and lifted her legs so that she could lay them across his lap, trying to show him how easy they could be with one another.

If she had to lead him in this, then lead him she would.

Castle smiled gratefully at her, and placed his large, warm hand on her bare ankle, sliding it a little way up inside the cuff of her pants to smooth his fingers across her shin.

"You hoping for extra brownie points?" teased Kate, leaning forward to tug the kitchen towel off his shoulder.

"Oh! Sorry. Forgot that was there," he said, tossing it over the back of the sofa. "More wine? I thought we could toast," he suggested a little hesitantly, handing her a glass before lifting one for himself.

The pale, straw-colored liquid swirled around the bowl of the wine glass, throwing bright, circular reflections across Kate's thighs and stomach.

"To us," said Castle, quietly and sincerely, raising his glass to clink against Kate's as he caught her eye and held her gaze; silently communicating so much more than those two little words ever could.

The fine glass goblets rang out like small bells when their surfaces kissed, and then they raised them to their lips to complete the toast.

"To us," echoed Kate, with a sure, steady smile that eased the moment, and brought a wide, delighted smile to her partner's face as warmth flooded her eyes.

"So…" said Kate, after taking a couple of sips of wine, and letting the alcohol flow through her system, relaxing her aching body with the quiet buzz it set off in her veins. "How's she doing?" she asked, tilting her head towards Alexis' room.

Castle looked a little troubled, but quickly tried to hide it before he answered her.

"Hey," said Kate, leaning forward to touch his fingers. "No secrets. Okay? We do this right, Castle. Share everything. Agreed?" she asked him, squeezing his hand until he looked at her.

He gave her a slight nod of agreement.

"I honestly didn't think she'd take it this hard," he admitted. "But then I also didn't expect to be in a position to test that theory," he added wryly.

"I'm sorry," said Kate, full of contrition. "I…I know this was sudden, and maybe not the best way to…"

"Hey, Kate, no. None of that. I want to hear none of that. I have absolutely no regrets. I'm…I can't begin to tell you how…how blessed I feel right now. Blessed, is that even the right word?" he wondered aloud.

"Sounds good to me," agreed Kate. "I thought I'd lost you. Missed my chance. So, yeah, blessed is a pretty accurate way of describing it."

"You never lost me, Kate. Never. We just…we lost sight of where we were headed for a second back there. I'm sorry too. I wish I'd done a few things differently, said a few things I kept to myself for too long. Been a little braver. But that's all water under the bridge now, right?" he said, giving her ankle a gentle squeeze.

"Agreed," said Kate, taking another sip of her wine to hide the tide of emotion that was making her lip tremble.

"So do you think she'll come round? Because I was thinking," said Kate, pausing to get the words together to make sure this came out right.

Castle watched her carefully, keeping quiet to give her time to say whatever was bubbling in that brilliant brain of hers. A shiver of fearful anticipation passed through him.

"I just kind of landed on you last night. I had no plan. I don't know if you noticed?" she laughed nervously, running her hand through her hair. "But I was just a little crazy desperate to get here to…to tell you how I felt. I just…I needed you, Castle," she said with disarming honesty.

"And I love you even more for that," he told her, putting their wine glasses down so that he could slide along the sofa beside her, gently lowering them to a horizontal position, so that their heads rested on a pillow, and his body lay along the line of hers.

"Yeah, but crazy and impulsive are fine when there's just you and me to consider. But you have Alexis, and…and she's getting ready to go off to college. That's been such a big thing for you for so long now. I've watched you fret, and get anxious the closer that time has come. So, I said that I would stay tonight, and I will," she continued.

Castle was barely breathing behind her, and he wanted to tell her to stop talking right there. That he couldn't bear to hear anymore. He just wanted to make tonight, the certainty of it, last forever.

"Then tomorrow, I think I should go home, Rick. Give you both some space to get used to this," she said quietly, reaching for his hand.

Castle eased himself up on his elbow behind her. His voice a little raised when he spoke.

"I don't want space from you, Katherine Beckett. Space is the last thing I want. We just…we found each other, Kate. Don't you see? I don't want to watch you walk out that door…I,"

"Shhh," whispered Kate, as Castle's tone became more plaintive, frantic, and she worried that Alexis might hear them.

She turned in his arms until she was lying facing him.

"You need to understand what I'm about to say, Castle. You need to listen to me, okay?" she said, looking straight into his eyes, the gentle expression on her face, belying the determination in her voice.

He nodded, skimming his fingers down her temple, mapping her cheek, before dropping his hand down onto her back again to keep her close.

Kate placed both hands either side of his face, holding him gently so she could see that he understood.

"We're doing this, you and me. I know this is sudden, and a shock, and you're not sure if it's real, maybe. But there's no going back now. I love you, and there have been rumors that you might feel the same," she said, ducking down to peer into his eyes, hoping for the hint of a smile.

"But I'm not moving in with you any time soon, and I know you're not asking me to. We have to find our way with this, Castle. And you need to understand that just because I go home to spend the night at my apartment, or several nights for that matter, that doesn't mean we're through, okay? And when I walk out that door, I'm not walking out on you. I need you to have faith in me, faith in us. We've been through so much. And I want us to go through so much more…good things this time, and together. Really together, Castle. Do you understand?" she asked tenderly.

He nodded, his eyes searching her face, absorbing her. Thrilled to be this close, and excited by the picture she was painting of their future.

"I know how much I've hurt you, Rick. But I will make it up to you over time. Just have a little faith. That's all I ask. Can you do that?" she asked, rubbing her hand gently down his arm, before leaning forward to capture his mouth in a tender kiss.

"I just…" he objected half-heartedly.

"I know," Kate said softly, nodding in understanding. "Me too. But we have to do it this way. For her sake. Today has made that abundantly clear. We have to, Castle. You'll regret it otherwise, and I'd hate for you to resent us for coming between you and that special daughter of yours."

"You're amazing, you know that? Truly amazing," he replied, tipping her chin up towards him, before he met her mouth with a gentle brush of his lips, slow and reverent.

Kate leaned closer, eager to feel the friction of his mouth on hers, the warm sweep of his tongue before he pushed his way in, his breathing becoming faster, more urgent as they clutched at one another.

Kate moaned as Castle's fingers hit a particularly tender spot near the top of her spine, and she arched forward, away from his touch, away from the pain.

"Oh Kate, I'm sorry. I'll be more careful, love," he said, easing them both to a sitting position.

"How about we just go to bed?" suggested Kate, standing first and holding out her hand to him, a wonderful, inviting smile on her face, eager to lighten things between them after their serious discussion.

"See," said Castle, "what you just said right there…blessed. You just make me feel blessed, Kate Beckett."

"So…you comin', Castle?" she asked playfully, swinging her hand in his.

"Give me a minute, and that's exactly what I'll be doing," he replied, eyes sparkling with salacious humor.

"Hmmm, just a minute?" teased Kate. "Cause the clock starts now, big boy," she said, as she dropped his hand and hurried off in the direction of the bedroom without him, throwing a quick glance over her shoulder to make sure he was right behind her.

And since we're talking about Richard Castle, that's exactly where he was – right behind her.

A/N: Thank you for the reviews. I am listening!