Title: Rock Foundation

Disclaimer: I do not own the Castle characters or their story lines. I just borrow them for fun.

Summary: A Sequel of sorts for my one-shot Rock Solid. Kate and Rick deal with the aftermath of Knockdown and move forward with their lives, learning to balance their partnership with their budding relationship.

Author's note: Sorry about the lack of chapter this weekend (see second author's note for details, which also explain my appalling lack of review responses. I'm sorry!). But! Here is the next chapter, which is nice and long, and pretty fluffy (I think we'll all need a little fluff after the cliffy tonight (which I haven't seen…but it's Castle, so I'm sure it's HUGE), and I thought I could provide some). Happy Castle Monday!

Emma


Chapter XII

Their lunch was interrupted by a call from Esposito that had them riding over toward Times Square to the Wellington Hotel.

"What have we got?" Kate asked as they reached the 12th floor and stepped out to find the hall lined with uniforms.

"A Miss Prathis was found dead when the patrons returned from their outing. She's one of the maid staff here," Ryan briefed them as he led them through and into the suite. "Mr. and Mrs. Skites are giving their statements to uniforms."

Lanie was crouched over the body. "Were you two at lunch?" she asked as they approached.

"Yes," Kate nodded and the two shared a small smile before putting on their game faces. "So, what've we got?"

"Your vic was knocked out with an iron," she pointed to the discarded item that was smeared with blood on the counter, "and then injected with something that our thoughtful killer left in her arm."

"Not very careful about covering his tracks, was he?" Rick asked as he looked down at the poor woman.

Kate made a noise of consent before walking around the suite. "Alright, get CSU to sweep for prints."

Ryan and Esposito stood at the door, watching them, as Kate returned to Rick's side. Rick gave Kate's foot a subtle nudge and glanced toward the pair at the other side of the suite. Kate simply took a step closer to him as they discussed the possibilities for killers. They shared a satisfied glance when Ryan left the room in a huff to make his calls, and Esposito followed Lanie out with the body, obviously trying to get her to give up her information.

The rest of the afternoon passed quickly as they gathered their evidence and questioned the only two people found on surveillance for the hall after the patrons had left: John Hadley, another guest and Richie Granth, the supervisor who came up and found Prathis. Both were a bust.

Kate sighed and rubbed a hand over her face as they sat on her desk and looked at the murder board. "We're missing something," she told Rick.

He placed a hand on her knee and she looked over at him, raising an eyebrow. He glanced over at Ryan before looking back at her. "We'll figure it out."

Kate nodded and let him keep his hand on her leg, happy for the small comfort it provided. She didn't need his help keeping her cool, but she found, to her surprise, that it was nice.

"No one came in or went out other than the maid. Then she's found dead. She couldn't have done it herself, and CSU didn't find any prints."

Rick listened as she rattled off their known info and stared at the board. "What do we know about the guests?"

"The Skites have been happily married for ten years. They have a son, Brandon, who's 27. He's dating a nice girl. They were with them this weekend; the girlfriend was meeting the parents for the first time."

"Where were they staying?"

"The Wellington."

Rick shook his head. "No, I mean the kid and girlfriend?"

"The Wellington," Kate repeated, not understanding.

"What room?"

"724."

Rick's eyes widened. "That's right next to our vic's room."

"Right, Castle. They were staying at the hotel together, so they had rooms right next to one another."

"Were they adjoining?" Rick asked excitedly.

Kate gaped at him before she turned and called to Ryan, "I need the son and girlfriend brought down here STAT, and I need a search team to go look at the adjoining room- Room 724- at the Wellington: sweep for prints, weapons, anything."

Ryan nodded and Kate turned back to Rick. "We may even get out of here before midnight, Castle. Thanks."

Rick smiled and moved closer to her, leaning in to 'grab a pen' off of her desk. "I may have a vested interest in our getting out early enough for a night out," he whispered in her ear, before moving back.

Kate looked startled before she bit her lip and gave him a small nod. They surveyed the board for a few minutes before there was a commotion at the entrance to the bullpen and an agitated Brandon Skites was dragged in, along with his girlfriend.

"Does that woman look far too calm to you?" Rick asked as they watched the suspects go to interrogation.

"Wasn't the son, that's for sure," Kate replied before she squared her shoulders and marched toward interrogation, Rick hot on her heels.

It took a remarkably short amount of time to crack the girlfriend, who was actually seeing the father. She'd gone through the adjoining doors to kill the mother, and been accosted by the maid. She heard the son waking up, panicked and killed the maid.

Telling the son and mother had been terrible. The father was being put away for premeditation. Two hours after they'd brought in the son and girlfriend, the mother and son left, and Kate slumped back in her seat.

"Are you still interested in dinner tonight?" Rick asked, coming to sit down beside her.

Kate smiled over at him. "Definitely. Can I go back and get cleaned up? You look fine, but I don't really want to go out in my suit jacket."

"I'll be over at 8:30 then," Rick told her, before he stood and held out her jacket for her. Kate accepted the help and they left the Precinct together, smiling at the perturbed looks on Ryan and Esposito's faces.

They parted ways at the street. Rick watched her walk away, grinning as she looked back at him and rolled her eyes. But there was a definite increase in the sway of her hips when she turned away and walked toward the garage. He gave a small wave and made his way back to his apartment, making the calls he needed to make to ensure that this was the best date Kate Beckett had ever had in her life.

"The blue," Alexis said from the doorway a few hours later as he was trying to choose between two ties.

"Thanks. How was your day, Sweetie? You got back late."

Alexis sighed. "Paige wanted to study and made me stay until 7. Now I've only got about twenty minutes before Ashley comes over to study."

Rick raised an eyebrow. "Can I trust you two here alone?"

Alexis laughed. "He has to leave at 9:30 to meet his curfew, and yes, Dad. Ashley would never do anything, and you know I wouldn't."

"Sorry. I just feel like it's something I'm supposed to ask."

Alexis gave him a squeeze. "I know, Dad. And thank you." She then turned and looked at him appraisingly. "Should I be asking you the same thing? Going out on a date with Kate; that's pretty serious."

Rick nodded. "It is, but you can rest assured that I'll be good. I like this one, Lex, and I don't plan to screw it up."

"Good. I like her too. Now, go and pick up the lady!"

"Yes Mam. Call me if you need anything," he told her as he gathered his things and grabbed the bouquet of flowers from the counter.

Alexis shooed him out of the apartment and he made his way down in the elevator and into the car he had waiting for them. He spent the ride in a state of nerves, his leg jiggling as he toyed with the petals of the lilies he'd gotten for her. They'd spent practically every day together for the better part of three years, and one date shouldn't feel quite so important; but it was the start of them as a them and that made all the difference, really.

The driver pulled up to her building and Rick hopped out. He made it to her floor and stood in front of the door, taking a deep breath before he knocked. Kate opened the door almost instantly and he worked to keep his mouth shut.

She was wearing a blue halter-top dress that flared out a bit at the waist, a white sweater and a pair of blue boots that made her legs look like they never ended. She smiled shyly as he looked her over.

"You…you look incredible," Rick managed to say as he handed her the flowers.

"Thank you," Kate blushed, before hurrying to put the flowers in a vase. She grabbed her purse, swung on a white pea coat and took his outstretched hand. She locked her apartment and they got into the elevator.

"You really do look incredible, Kate," Rick told her as they rode down.

"Thank you, Rick," she leaned over and gave him a chaste kiss. "You don't look so bad yourself."

Rick smiled and led her to the car, opening the door and getting in after her.

"So, where are you taking me?" she asked as the car drove away from the curb.

"It's a surprise," Rick said enigmatically as he leaned over and wrapped and arm around her. "But I promise that you'll like it."

Kate let herself meld into his side. In all honesty, they could be going to a dive, eating greasy burgers and being served by a surly high schooler, and she wouldn't really care.

They sat in a comfortable silence for the remainder of the drive, Rick's fingers teasing one of Kate's curls, and her hand massaging his knee. When the car stopped, Rick got out and extended a hand to Kate. He led her into a small restaurant called Gaetana's, which Kate had never even heard of. The inside was cozy and dark, very warm yet intimate, and they were lead over to a table in the corner.

Rick ordered an expensive wine and they lost themselves in the menus. Kate was pleasantly surprised to find that they weren't at a restaurant that would normally bankrupt her.

"This looks amazing, Rick," she told him as she eyed the tortellini.

"It's one of the best Italian joints I've ever been to," he replied. "I took Alexis here once, and ever since she's been begging me to take her back whenever we go out."

The server came and took their orders, giving Rick a big smile and asking after Alexis. Kate watched the interchange with interest; this wasn't someplace Rick had picked just to impress her. This was part of his life.

"I figured somewhere small would be better than La Cirque," he ventured as he watched her look around at the small restaurant.

"It's lovely. It doesn't really scream Richard Castle to me, though," she told him.

He smiled. "Well, I'm not 'Richard Castle' most of the time, as you know."

Kate took his hand across the table. "Yeah, I do."

"So, Katherine Beckett, what's your favorite animal?"

Kate snorted. "Favorite animal? Really?"

"Well, I know your favorite color, sports team, foods, books, music…but as for pets, well, we've never talked about that."

Kate giggled. "I guess it's a monkey? I always thought they were very cool as a kid. As for a pet, I'd want a dog, I think. But, as it is, I'd never have time to take care of one. What about you?"

Rick grinned. "I'm very partial to penguins. As a pet, I think I'd like a dog too, but Alexis would never let me get one when she was younger; she said I wouldn't take care of it! Can you believe that?"

"I can, actually," Kate replied, laughing as he pouted. "But maybe you've grown up, or you will, so that you could have one someday."

"I hope so," Rick said wistfully, before they caught each others' eyes and laughed. "Your turn."

Kate considered him. There wasn't much that she didn't know about his professional life. She'd never tell him, but she actually was Castlefreak1212. And she'd met Alexis and Martha, and had spent more time around them in the past months than she had in years with her own father. She needed to top the randomness of 'favorite animal.'

"Alright, Richard Castle, what's your favorite instrument?"

Rick smirked. "Nice. The bassoon."

"The bassoon?"

"Yeah," he smiled. "They make the best sound. I mean, it's a weird sound, but it's fun to listen to."

"I would have pegged you for violin or something more…dramatic," Kate admitted.

"Is that your favorite instrument, Kate?"

"No," Kate blushed slightly. "I've, um, always had a thing for piano."

"Huh," he smiled knowingly.

"What?"

"Oh, nothing. Anyway, my turn, right?"

"Right," she replied skeptically.

"You've got unlimited money and no cases for a week. Where do you go? And," he held up a hand as she jumped to answer, "it can't be to visit friends, or family. I'm talking serious travel. The vacation time can last longer if the plane ride is more than 12 hours."

"You're not going to whisk me away to wherever I tell you the minute we get time off, are you?" she asked.

He laughed. "Only if you asked. I'd never try to force you; I know that when there's time, it's more about relaxing and getting the personal stuff done. But I still want to know."

She smiled. "Honestly? I've never been to Italy. I didn't manage to get there when I went abroad, and I've always really wanted to see the Roman ruins and Vatican City, Venice, Tuscany, you know? After that, I think I'd want to do Asia…but Italy sounds more relaxing, if we're going by your premise."

"I can see you riding a vespa in Positano," Rick smiled.

"Do I look like Diane Lane in this vision of yours?" Kate laughed

"No, no. You're driving the vespa, and you're totally wearing a red dress, not a white one."

Kate nodded. "That's better."

At that moment, their food arrived and there were a few quiet minutes, broken only by exclamations of how good the food was, or offers to share different parts of their entrees. Kate was thoroughly impressed by the cuisine, and the fact that she was sharing it with Rick Castle wasn't too bad either.

"This is really amazing, Rick," she told him.

"I'm glad you like it," he replied. "Now, we were in the middle of our first date questions, and I believe it was your turn."

"I think I want to know your answer to the travel question. It doesn't have to be somewhere new though, since I assume you've been everywhere you've ever wanted to go."

Rick shook his head. "I haven't done much of Asia, actually. I went for one book signing when I was in my early twenties, but I just hit Beijing and Tokyo. I'd like to see Angkor Watt, if I got the chance. As for something a bit closer, I'd like to go back to Paris; I haven't been since Alexis was very very small, and we did mostly kid-friendly things, that trip."

"I only spent a few days there with a friend, and he wasn't much for sight-seeing, really," Kate admitted.

"College sweet heart?"

"Travel buddy, actually," Kate blushed. "We met about a week before I left Russia for my month of travel after my semester there, and, well…"

Rick laughed. "Do you still keep in contact?"

"Oh, God, no!" Kate exclaimed. "He wasn't someone I wanted to really know. He was fun, you know? And, after that, actually, I came home and Mom…" she trailed off.

"Understood," Rick said gently as he laid a hand over hers.

"Your question," Kate smiled, looking down at her hands.

"What do you want for desert?"

"Oh," Kate shrugged before he handed her the desert menu. "Oh!" There were about 20 choices. "Um, do you have a suggestion?"

Rick looked highly amused. "I'm partial to both their cheesecake and tiramisu."

"One of each, then?" she asked. "And we can split?"

"Your wish is my command," he grinned as the waiter came over. "One cheesecake and one tiramisu, please." The waiter nodded and took their dinner plates away.

"Your question," Kate said quietly.

"What would you have done, if you hadn't become a Detective?"

Kate met his gaze. He wanted to know her, really know her. That wasn't new, but this obviously wasn't about Nikki Heat. This was her, the her that had existed before her mother had been killed. The her that existed when she was a little rich girl with the world on her plate.

"I wanted to either teach high school German or Russian, or become a Literature Professor," she admitted.

"Do you speak Russian and German fluently?"

"I speak Russian fluently, and I would have picked up German if I needed to for the job. You speak Chinese, right?"

Rick laughed. "Enough to intimidate your suspects, but not enough to teach it."

"Still works pretty well," Kate smiled.

"Did you study Lit in college?"

"I was a Classics and Russian double," Kate shrugged. "Then I got out and went into the force. Suffice it to say they were surprised to have me."

"Do you ever miss it?" Rick asked softly.

Kate shook her head. "I liked what I studied in college, but I love what I do. It sounds weird, but I love solving murders. I love the puzzle, and then the- what did you call it?- the rush of figuring it out."

"Well, you're great at it," Rick told her.

"Thanks, Rick. I don't think we'd do as well without you there, though," she told him honestly. He grinned. "Don't tell the boys I admitted that."

"My lips are sealed," he mimed zipping his mouth shut and throwing away the key.

"You might want to wait on that, Mr. Castle," their waiter told him as he brought the deserts to their table. "I think you'll want to eat this."

They laughed and thanked him, before digging in. "You need to try this!" they exclaimed at the same moment, before meeting each others' eyes and simultaneously stealing a forkful across the table.

"Wow. We're definitely coming back here," Kate proclaimed once they were done. Rick grinned. He'd bring her here anytime.

The waiter arrived with their check and Rick met her eyes across the table. "Are we splitting?" he asked.

Kate smiled. "You want to pay, don't you?"

Rick nodded. "I mean, going Dutch is just fine…but it's a date?"

Kate took pity on him, seeing the uncertainty in his eyes. "You can pay, Rick."

He beamed and placed his credit card in the pouch and then turned back to her. "You ready for phase two?"

Kate raised an eyebrow. "There's a phase two?"

"Well, there doesn't have to be, if you want to head in early, but yeah, there's a phase two."

The waiter came and took the bill.

"I guess it depends on the phase two," she shrugged, laughing at his affronted look. "I'm good for whatever you've got in store, Mr. Castle."

Rick grinned. "Good. Now, may I help you into your jacket, Miss?" he asked as the waiter came back over and handed him his card. "Thanks, Jeff."

"Hope you see you again, Mr. Castle."

They shook hands and then Rick helped Kate slip on her jacket, an act of chivalry that she didn't really mind at all. He took her hand and then led her out of the building and into the waiting town car. When had he called for that?

"So, where's phase two?" she asked as they settled into the back of the car. "And don't tell me it's a surprise."

"Don't you want it to be a mystery?" he asked petulantly.

Kate whacked him lightly on the chest. "I've had enough of mysteries for today."

"Alright. We're going to a little place I found when I was wandering around with writer's block about 15 years ago. It hasn't really changed a bit."

"What is this place?" Kate asked as the car stopped and they got out of the car. She stared up at the slightly dilapidated front of what looked like an old-style arcade.

"Now, I know we're not really dressed for it, but I thought this would be fun," Rick hedged, looking for her reaction. "Route 85, the best little arcade in NYC."

Kate giggled and after a moment began to laugh full out. Rick looked worried and she caught his eye. She stood up straight and leaned up to give him a kiss, which went from chaste to almost indecent in two seconds flat. When they finally broke apart, Kate smiled at him.

"You, Rick Castle, are a constant surprise. Now, hand me a twenty so I can make change, and prepare to get your ass whooped."

She pulled him inside and they ran around like little kids, squabbling over air hockey and laughing as they tried to one-up each other at ski ball. Kate won, but Rick chalked it up to her being a better shot than him. Kate simply pumped a fist in victory and beat him at ping-pong.

They left an hour later, Kate sporting a rather large red teddy bear that she'd won with their collected tickets. They got back into the town car and she turned to Rick, grinning like a little kid.

"That was really fun," she told him, placing the teddy on the floor by their feet and wrapping her arms around him.

"I'm glad you liked it. I figured it would be something kind of silly that we could just do for fun, you know?"

"I was perfect," she sighed as he kissed her head. "Really. Best first date ever."

Rick grinned into her hair. "Good. I think so too." He leaned in to kiss her and they lost themselves in each other for the rest of the ride.

When they pulled up to Kate's building they broke apart and Kate looked at Rick, her breath coming in pants. "Wanna come up?" she asked, a sudden shyness taking over her voice.

Rick nodded and she took his hand. They made their way up to her apartment in a sort of tingling silence, Kate pulled into Rick's side in the elevator, the bear dangling from her other hand.

She unlocked her apartment and they took off their coats before standing around awkwardly. Kate took off her heels after a minute and Rick smiled at the sudden height difference.

"As much as I like you in your power heels, I have to admit, I kind of like you like this," he said as he reached for her and pulled her in for a hug. Her head fit snugly beneath his chin and she wound her arms around his neck.

They stood, locked in an embrace in her foyer for a long moment, before Kate pulled back and tugged him over to the couch. He smiled and lay down, opening his arms for her to lie down in front of him. She snuggled into his chest and they lay in silence, simply being.

It wasn't as though she'd expected him to rip her clothes off and take her against her front door, but cuddling after a date? That wasn't expected. But, oh, was it nice, she thought as he ran his hands over her back and played with her hair. She yawned, snuggling closer, and she felt a laugh rumble through his chest.

"Tired you out, did I, KB?" he asked softly.

"Mmmhmm," she whispered.

"Come on, let's get you to bed," he murmured, gently sitting them up and slipping out behind her to help her up.

She let him guide her to her room. Once there, they looked at each other for a moment before Kate huffed and shucked off her sweater and bit her lip. He'd seen her in much less than a teddy. With that, she removed her dress, giggling a little as Rick stood, gob smacked by the door, watching her in awe. After a pause, he shook his head a little and moved toward her.

"You're gorgeous, Kate," he told her as he ran a hand down her side and cupped her cheek in his hand. He leaned in and kissed her gently, before pulling back.

"You joining me, Writer Man?" she asked as she sauntered into the bathroom and brushed her teeth. He stood in the doorway to the bathroom, watching her as she pulled her hair back and took off her make up. "Really?" she asked, looking over at him.

"Kate, I watch you do paperwork and find it interesting," he shrugged. "This is way better, trust me."

She giggled and moved to the doorway. "Well, as much as I find this a bit flattering, you don't need to watch me use the toilet. Make yourself comfortable, I'll be out in a minute, and you can use the bathroom and stuff."

He nodded and she closed the door. He looked around her bedroom, spotting the flowers he'd brought her during her mom's case hanging from a string by the window. They were almost fully dried and he smiled before he stripped out of his jacket, pants and shirt, leaving him in a pair of boxers, socks and an undershirt.

The bathroom door opened and Kate came out and got into bed. "All yours."

He nodded and went about his nightly ablutions, smiling at the extra toothbrush she'd left out for him. When he made it back into the bedroom, she was snuggled under the covers on the right side of the bed. He climbed in next to her and gazed at her sleepy face.

"Is Alexis expecting you back?" Kate asked, realizing that this question was about an hour too late.

"Nah. I told her earlier that I may not come back, and I texted her a while ago saying I wouldn't be."

"Responsible Dad," Kate said sweetly, before she leaned over and kissed him.

They lay in her bed and kissed for what felt like hours. Kate hadn't made out with someone like this in years. Rick felt like he was wrapped in a cloud of heaven, as corny as it sounded.

When they broke apart, Rick pulled her into his side and flipped off the lights. "Goodnight, Kate," he whispered.

"Night Rick. Thanks for the date." She smiled as he gave her a squeeze.

"Any time," he told her, before she felt the heavy weight of sleep taking her under.

Rick watched her sleep for a few minutes, amazed that he was holding Kate Beckett in her bed, with her sleeping peacefully in his arms. The fact that they were still clothed didn't even faze him. He pulled her tighter against his chest and let his eyes fall shut, smiling into her hair. Best first date ever.


Author's Note II:

So, I have a good reason for not updating on Friday night, which I had planned to do: I got hit in the head by my iron! It was a collegiate extravaganza. I was looking for a pair of shoes, managed to get the cord to snap back as it dangled off a shelf, and found myself with a bump and cut on my head from the iron that fell four feet to hit me! I then took a fun ride in the ambulance to the ER, where I was told I was fine, no concussion, but that it was good that I came to get checked out. Since then, I've been a bit shaky and didn't do much but lay around all weekend, and was told today that I do, in fact HAVE a concussion (grrr). So I made this chapter longer, in order to make up for the missed one over the weekend. I hope you like it. I also hope you like the nod to the iron at the beginning in the case. I kind of hate irons now, just a little bit.