She wakes him up a little after ten with the press of her palm against his cheek, a whisper just at his jaw. "Castle, it's getting late," she murmurs against the shell of his ear.

"Hmm?" he mumbles sleepily, his eyes bleary with sleep. God, he's exhausted.

Her answering smile is gentle and warm, one that he can 100 percent get used to. "Hey, partner. I'm gonna head home."

He nods, takes a few moments to latch onto the words from his sleep-addled brain. "I know what you're gonna say, but you can take the guest room if you're too tired," he offers softly, his head falling back to rest on his elbow that's splayed along the top of the couch.

"I appreciate the offer, but I kinda wanna fall into my own bed tonight," she says, clapping his thigh gently as she rises from her cozy spot.

He musters the strength to follow, sways a little on his feet as she shoves on her shoes.

"Jeez, Castle, how much did you have to drink?" she jokes, eyes twinkling.

"Ha ha," he huffs back to her, eyes narrowing. "Just haven't been sleeping that well lately," he admits, scrubbing a hand down his face.

"Maybe it'll get a little better after today, hmm?" she asks sheepishly, teeth tugging at her lip.

"I have no doubt," he replies easily. They still have a long way to go, but at least he knows what direction they're heading in now. Makes the Therapy pill a little easier to swallow.

His four words are apparently just what she needs, her lip released from the prison of her teeth, curving upward before her head ducks shyly beneath the curtain of her hair. He's not sure she's ever been so adorable.

All too soon, she's walking toward the door and he's shuffling after her.

She opens the door and turns back toward him, resting the side of her head on the door frame as she looks up at him. A little happy, a little flirty. He can really get used to this version of Katherine Beckett.

"So," she starts slowly. "I had a good time today?" it comes out more like a question and he laughs, understanding perfectly.

"Me too. A good start."

She nods, opens her mouth to say something, but hesitates.

"Can I - " she stutters, a blush staining her cheeks.

He's bold again, brushing a finger against her sweep of her jaw. "What is it, Kate?"

"I really do want us to go slow, Castle, but…" she gestures helplessly and he doesn't think he's ever seen her at such a loss for words.

"But….?" Ah, he knows where she's going with this, but he wants her to work for it.

She sees right through him, rolling her eyes. She snatches the front of his shirt, tugging him into her as he yelps. "Jesus, Castle, will you just kiss me already?"

"Why, Detective Beckett, all you had to was ask," he smirks. She shoots him a glare and reaches up to tweak his ear. "Ouch," he winces. "Or violence works too."

She huffs out an exasperated sigh, the corners of her lips twitching as she cradles the back of his neck, nudging his mouth to fall onto hers. He sips from her lips lazily, his fingers slipping through the strands of her hair before falling to the small of her back. He can hear the slight hitch in her breath, feel the light tremble of her fingers at the nape of his neck.

It's everything.

It's over all too soon as he takes a moment to smudge his lips at her forehead. He knows he's taking liberties tonight, but he doesn't know the next time they'll allow themselves this little piece of their future together.

He so desperately wants to tell her he loves her again, but the timing is all wrong. He buries the three words beneath a swallow as he relinquishes his hold on her.

"I'll call the mayor tomorrow," he promises. "With any luck, your plucky sidekick will have your coffee waiting for you Monday morning."

She lifts an eyebrow, amused. "Waiting for me?"

Ooh, yeah. No way he's beating her into the precinct. "Er, your plucky sidekick will have coffee for you Monday morning."

She chuckles. "Tell my partner," she emphasizes, "That I'm looking forward to solving crimes with him again."

He grins. "I'll pass along the message."

"Good," she says softly. "Um, I think Dr. Burke is out of the office on Sundays, but I'll give him a call on Monday and see what his thoughts are on our….joint therapeutic effort," she half-jokes.

"I'll do the same with Jen," he agrees.

She makes a face again at that. "What's her last name?"

He scratches his head. "Uh, I don't remember. It starts with a 'Z.' I think it's Polish or something."

Kate's mouth falls open. "You don't know? You're getting therapy from this woman and you don't even know her last name?"

He rolls his eyes. "I know her last name, Beckett. I just don't remember her last name. Big difference," he replies. "You're gonna like her, I think."

She hums, doesn't look convinced. "We'll see."

"Promise me you'll give her a chance," he asks gently.

She cocks her head. "Of course I will, Castle," she pauses. "You mean too much to me."

He smiles. "Good. Now get outta here before we have another hour-long conversation standing at the door."

She laughs, lifting onto her toes to brush a kiss against his cheek. "Good night, Rick."

His heart skips a beat. "Until tomorrow, Kate."


That night, he sleeps better than he has in months.

He wakes up the next morning — late, he realizes with a groan. The twelve hours was just what he needed, though, so he can't bring himself to feel guilty about waking up at 10 a.m., on a Sunday, nevertheless. He stumbles into the kitchen and finds Alexis and Martha, bright-eyed and bushy-tailed.

Alexis shoots him a bright smile over her shoulder, busying herself with breakfast.

"Alexis, you're making breakfast?" he asks, delighted.

She shrugs. "Yeah, I woke up this morning practically starving for pancakes and Gram came down a few minutes later, so we thought, why not whip up a little Sunday brunch?"

"Geniuses, the both of you," he praises the red-headed duo, clambering onto a bar stool. "What can I do to help?" he asks, pouring himself a glass of orange juice.

"We're almost set here, Dad. The bacon is done, the pancakes are almost ready and Grams finished the toast - "

He nearly chokes on his juice, turning to his mother. "Hold on, I'm sorry. You made toast?" he asks her. "I'm so proud of you."

"Now, Richard, don't be smart. I am perfectly capable of making a quality meal. I just simply choose not to."

"Exactly. You usually supervise with a bottle of wine," he smirks, reaching across the counter to snag a piece of bacon.

She waves him off. "To each their own, darling."

"So, Dad, how did it go with Detective Beckett yesterday?" Alexis asks.

"Really well," he admits. "Actually, I'm going back to the precinct tomorrow." Even just the thought of it brings a smile to his face.

Shoot, he has to remember to call the mayor today.

His daughter hesitates, the spatula in her hand hovering over the plate of pancakes. "And you're okay with that? It's what you want?"

He nods slowly. "Beckett and I did a lot of talking yesterday. There's no denying that we have a lot to work through, but we want to work on it...together." He doesn't want to say more than that, but he hopes it'll be enough to put them at ease for now.

"Well, I for one think you're looking brighter than you have in months, kiddo," Martha says, lifting her bloody mary to him before she takes a long sip.

"Thanks, Mother," he says gratefully. "I feel good about it."

He looks up, catches a wary shadow glance over Alexis' face. "Remember what I said, pumpkin," he reminds her.

She gives him a small smile. "It'll be okay."

It'll be okay.


I knew it had been awhile and not gonna lie, thought it had been a year at most — it's been more like 3.5 years. I still love this story, though, and am making my way through this and "Before the world fell..." Hopefully I will get back to "Can't start a fire..." as well, but for now, these two are on my agenda.

Hope you're all doing well. Feels good to be back, in whatever capacity that is now.

Liv