Genre: Crime, Drama, Family, Romance, Humor
Rating: M for violence, language and sexual situations
Disclaimer: I do not own the characters featured on the show Castle, they belong to the creator of the show, ABC, and the others who do own them.
A/N #1: Wasn't sure the feedback I was going to get for the last chapter, so I was very pleased in the end getting all that I did and need to get to the thank yous right away! vetgirlmx (It was nice seeing that you enjoyed the chapter. And not surprised to see you enjoyed them looking at the apartment, but I thought it was great you liked that they loved the place. And yeah, lol, it would be hard to wrap everything up with her mother's case and not have her visit her mother's grave. But I was really glad that I was able to surprise you with Julia wanting to go visit her too. And I'm so glad that writing that gave it more of a sense of closure, didn't expect that, so was very nice reading it in your review! I thought that what Julia said there would be emotional for readers, 'cause it sure was for me when I was writing it, so I was happy I'd managed to convey that of course. And also did it well too! Yeah, I didn't want the sadness dragging on Castle and Beckett and the rest of them, plus as you pointed out, it shows that they're strong together as a family and that their healing process is secure too. And yep, now they're free with this, so it was great to read that in your review, again, what I was trying to convey! Not surprised you're wondering how they'll want to keep an eye on Isabella. And with that, I'm really happy that you want to read more of course, and you can now here!), Beckett-Castle4ever (It was very nice to read that you're loving this story so much, great reading that right off the bat, lol. I thought you might enjoy the family time in this one, and I was pleased to see I was correct in that. I also loved reading your reaction to Julia talking to her grandmother. I was definitely happy that I wrote it in such a way that it melted your heart when she mentioned telling siblings about her grandmother, thought that might happen too. It was nice seeing too that you enjoyed them looking through the apartment, that I thought readers would enjoy as well. So glad that you too can't wait for the next chapter to read, and also, you don't need to wait for it anymore!), life's a mystery (Was pleased to see you thought the last chapter was a nice one too. And again, happy reading another reviewer enjoyed Castle and Beckett going through the apartment as well. And I was so happy to read that you liked their time at the park, I enjoyed writing that, lol. And of course, nice to see that you also liked reading when they went to visit Johanna's grave too. Love that you liked all of the chapter, lol), bayand (I really liked the way you worded it in your review, that the chapter was a great way for them to come off the roller coaster ride that was the last case, it gets the point across as to what I was trying to do! I was pleased to see that you enjoyed the family bonding time, as well as the family time in general, and so much, lol, very happy to know you do since I love writing that!), LoveAbby (It was great to see that you enjoyed the last chapter of course. And I was glad that to see that you cried when Julia was at Johanna's grave, but not glad that you cried… I suppose I want to say better that I was glad the scene moved you that much. Especially since I was aiming for that, so nice to know I managed it! And a great compliment what you said about my writing, I appreciate that and will try to keep writing my best!) and pcol22 (Also nice to see you too enjoyed the chapter! And interesting what you noticed about the apartment, I hadn't realized that about it… lol, you figure I should since I'm the writer. But I am so happy that you were already looking forward to the next chapter when you reviewed, and now you can of course read it here!). So thanks so much to you reviewers for sending me what you did and I as always appreciate the time you all to do that for me, loved reading everything!
A/N #2: The title of this chapter is a lyric from the song Sat Singing by George Harrison, from his original rejected track listing of his album Somewhere in England.
You're Everything My Eyes Could See
The sound of hooves thudding in the early morning air cut through the sound of birds chirping and the distant sound of waves crashing along the shore. The two horses rode over the field, bounding over the fence they came to at their riders' command. They eased their gaits on the other side, heads bobbing up and down as they were slowed to a walk.
"Not bad," Castle commented, teasing his fiancée.
"Yeah, I knew how to do that before you, so I'm sure that was great," Beckett shot back, joking as well. She smiled as he laughed at her and she let him take her free hand as they walked their horses back the rest of the way to the stables. It was the day after their arrival in the Hamptons, and were taking their morning ride that he had suggested back in the city. They'd been there since early afternoon the day before, and she was already feeling a lot more relaxed not having to think about their past case. "So, breakfast after this?" she suggested.
"You worked through the bear claw already?" Castle asked.
"Half a bear claw," Beckett reminded him.
"Yeah, I was thinking just some of the fruit we picked up yesterday," Castle agreed. "But you want to swim at the pool or the beach today?"
"Pool, we were at the beach last night," Beckett said with a smile. "Though that was a lot of fun."
"I'll agree, it definitely was," Castle said, nodding. "Pool should be fun too, we'll be alone."
"You're right, we will," Beckett said simply before she let go of Castle's hand and rode the rest of the way to the stables which they were almost to. She looked back over her shoulder, knowing she was teasing her fiancé with that, but she couldn't help it. Turning back, she could feel her own frustration as she had woken up that morning aroused from her dreams about Castle and what they'd been doing in them, feeling the last few days where they'd been unable to do anything in the tension of her body. Shaking her head, she stopped her horse in front of the building where the horse's stall was and dismounted, seeing he was doing the same next to her.
"I can keep up," Castle commented as they walked into the building.
"Good, you need to," Beckett replied simply. She smiled when her fiancé paused in mid-step, and she turned her attention to the stable hand that was approaching them, handing the woman the reins. "Any chance to give him an apple?"
"A carrot," the woman replied, handing one to her as she held the horse in place.
Feeding her horse, Beckett murmured to it as she rubbed her hand up and down his forehead and muzzle. When it had finished the carrot, she let the stable hand take it, looking over at Castle who was handing his horse off to another worker. "Okay, so, home?" she asked.
"Well, wash our hands first, and then home," Castle said, showing her his right hand where his horse had slobbered a little over it in eating its carrot.
Beckett smiled and led the way to the sink near the entrance, saying, "What time are those reservations?"
"Seven thirty," Castle said. "I wanted to leave us enough time for either the pool or the beach; I didn't know where we'd be going."
"Speaking of the restaurants," Beckett began as they left the stable. She had to stop short as she was almost running into a woman who was trying to walk in. She and the woman grabbed each other by the arms and she said, "Rebecca!"
"Kate, hey, so it was you two I saw," Rebecca Foster said with a smile. "I was getting something for Dave and spotted you riding in; I didn't know you rode."
"Me?" Beckett asked.
"Both of you," Rebecca corrected.
"I didn't know you did," Beckett said as Castle was looking at the object that their friend had dropped.
"I have since I was little," Rebecca commented. "So where's Julia?"
"In the city," Castle replied. "The rest of the family is coming tomorrow morning."
"Great, Mari will be happy to hear that," Rebecca said. "Come and see David, he'll want to say hi."
"Are you riding?" Castle asked, handing her the item she'd dropped.
"Not exactly," Rebecca replied as she led the way past the stables.
"How're Shane and Mari?" Beckett asked. She was surprised when the woman stopped abruptly and asked, "Was I not supposed to ask?" wondering at her reaction.
Sighing, Rebecca turned to them and said, "David and I were wondering how to tell you two about this, since we knew you'd wonder. But I should just say it, Shane isn't our son."
"He's… but he looks just like Dave," Castle said in surprise as Beckett looked to him in her shock.
"That's because he's our nephew," Rebecca replied. "His mother; David's sister; became an alcoholic when he was four, so she gave him to David and me, since we were married by then. She's been sober for about six years, then a year ago she reconnected with Shane's father; he was the result of their one night together after their first date; they got married, and last month after school ended she came back to take him with her to their new home in Charleston."
"That might explain why Shane wasn't really with you that often," Castle said slowly.
"Those times he really was on trips," Rebecca said. "And you met him at that party after Christmas. Though he never was that close with the three of us."
"You're sure his mother's sober?" Beckett asked.
"She is, and we met Shane's father; he's a reverend now," Rebecca replied. "So we're hoping she and Shane will do okay with him to watch over them."
"How are you and David? And what about Mari?" Beckett inquired.
"Well, with regards to Mari, she and Shane were never close, he never let himself treat her like a sister," Rebecca replied. "So she accepted that he was actually her cousin really well. And as for us… we're okay, it hurts a little since we started thinking of him as a son after all these years of raising him, but…" She ended with a shrug and said, "We just want him to be happy, and he seemed to be once he was with his mother again."
"I hope he'll be happy too," Castle commented, Beckett echoing him.
"Alright, Dave is going to have a cow if I don't get back to him now, so come on," Rebecca said.
"Where's Mari?" Beckett then asked.
"She's playing at a friend's house," Rebecca said as they came to a field close to the stables where a man was riding around the edge slowly, another horse saddled with him. "Dave," she called out as she got up on the fence. "Here," she said in playful irritation as she handed her husband what she'd gone to get.
"Thank you gorgeous, can I have a kiss?" David Foster asked his wife.
Giving him a quick peck on the check, Rebecca then pushed his face with her hand and said, "Now give me back my horse you dink."
Laughing, David looked at Castle and Beckett as he gave the reins of the other horse to his wife and said, "Nice to see you guys again how's everyone in your family?"
"Doing pretty well," Beckett replied.
"You play polo?" Castle asked.
"Yep, part of a league," David said, swinging the mallet he'd forgotten. "You interested in playing?"
"Always have been since I first heard of the sport," Castle said, undisguised admiration in his voice.
"Then… hold on," David said. He whistled to a man walking by and called, "Can you get two more ponies saddled up and brought for them?" Looking at Beckett he asked, "You don't mind joining in?"
"Not at all," she replied as she was looking at her fiancé to see his reaction.
"By ponies," Castle said in a low tone of voice as both David and Rebecca rode around the field a little as their horses were getting antsy standing in place. "He means horses, they-"
"I know, they call them polo ponies, because they have stamina to last for a game," Beckett said with a smile. "I know a little about the sport," she said to Castle's surprised look.
"Have you ever wanted to play?" he asked her.
"Not really, but I wouldn't mind to learn a little," Beckett replied before they turned their attention to the stable hand who was coming over with two horses. "Arabians," she said under her breath.
"That's what we ride when we practice like this," David said as he and Rebecca were back at the fence. He smiled and gave them a brief explanation of the rules of the game before saying, "I won't tell them to you in detail, I'd be here all day. Plus this is just for fun." When they had come into the field he said, "So we'll just pass the ball towards our ends of the field to score. Do you think you can lean over and hit it?"
Since he was referring to her, Beckett leaned over with the mallet she'd been given, swinging at the ground. "I can manage," she said with a nod.
"Alright, try not to hit the horses, and let's start," David said, tossing the ball out to Castle.
Guessing he was going to decide which end of the field was the Fosters' goal, Castle swung down, striking the ball to Beckett who shot it ahead until he was ahead of her. Before they could get to close to the end though, Rebecca was swinging the ball away and passing it to her husband.
The four were laughing as they played, calling back and forth to one another before David scored against Castle and Beckett. He slowed down his horse and said, "You'd be pretty good; both of you."
"I think I'd rather ride," Beckett said with a smile.
"Me too, I just help him practice," Rebecca said.
"Too bad you didn't live here Rick," David said. "You'd be a great number one."
"Since my defense skills are lacking," Castle commented. "What position do you play?"
"Number two," David commented. He got off his horse and said, "We should go, I promised Becca we'd ride after playing a little, and it's starting to get warmer."
"Thanks for letting us play," Castle said, meaning that fully.
"Not a problem, thanks for helping me practice," David said.
"We'll see you on Friday afternoon," Rebecca said, hugging Beckett since by then they were all off their horses. She then whispered to her, "You should see if he can't ride on a team in the city. He'll look pretty nice in the uniform and equipment."
Shaking her head Beckett said, "We'll see you." She waved to David as his wife took his hand and the two walked away. She felt Castle's hand on her back, and she turned to him, taking his hand before they walked in the other direction.
"What'd she say to you?" Castle asked when they were almost to his car.
"Nothing really, just mentioning that we should see if you can play in the cit…y. What?" Beckett asked, trailing off as a huge smile appeared on her fiancé's face.
"So the uniform's flattering I take it?" Castle queried. He grinned at the blush on his fiancée's cheeks and said, "I should look into it," as he opened the passenger door for her. He grabbed her hand before she got inside, and he kissed her gently saying, "And I'll try it on for you when we're alone." When he closed the door, he had to wonder if he was literally strutting around the car; he didn't want to but he couldn't help it, the flash of desire in his fiancée's eyes was too much to resist. He sighed then, understanding why she looked like that, and he got in the car, trying to forget their ride as he started the engine and pulled away from the stables.
"You okay?" Beckett was saying as she took off her Windsors sitting on the bench at the front door, watching Castle doing the same.
"Huh? Oh, yeah, just was thinking about playing," he said.
Studying her fiancé, Beckett stood up and went to him before she said, "We should probably take a shower."
"Good idea, I smell like horse," Castle commented, smelling his polo shirt he'd worn and making a slight face. He was surprised when she grabbed his hand, dragging him up the stairs. "Together?" he asked, trying to keep the eagerness out of his voice.
Beckett didn't say a word, not until they were at the shower in the bathroom. She turned to him and said, "I need you," staring into his eyes.
"Oh thank god, I thought you didn't want me to touch you," Castle said before he gathered her in his arms, relief saturating his voice.
Before he could kiss her though, Beckett stopped him saying, "Shower first, and then you can touch," as she unbuttoned his polo shirt
"What about touching in the shower?" Castle asked, voice muffled since she was pulling off the shirt.
"I don't care," Beckett said in a little impatience. She wasn't surprised when Castle quickly began to work on her clothes, having to detour him from her tight khakis she'd brought in anticipation of that morning's ride, to her blouse. When it was off, she let him work on his jeans, and at the same time she got herself naked before stepping into the shower without waiting for him. She smiled when he hurried in under the water with her, and they kissed deeply, clinging to one another. She couldn't help the moan that had escaped her lips into his mouth, she felt as if it'd been longer than just days since she'd felt his body against hers without the restriction of clothes. She deepened the kiss slightly, feeling his hands stroking her back, pressing against the small of it to bring her closer to him. Leaning against him as much as she could, she slid her nails over the back of his head before they parted to get some much needed air.
Brushing his lips over Beckett's shoulder to drift up to her neck, Castle bit here and there until he could feel her racing pulse. He let his hands wander over her body, wherever they wanted to go, and felt her moan with each pass he made. When he went back up to her lips, he pushed against her hard, hearing the groan that escaped under her breath, knowing she could feel him as they were kissing yet again.
The shower became a little of a blur for the two then, trying to caress what they could of each other, and just barely remembering to wash each other off. They were in a bit of a rush at the end, their arousal pushed higher and higher until Beckett turned off the water, and Castle followed her out, taking their time then to dry each other off before they parted with a kiss.
Stepping out to the bedroom, Becket could feel her fiancé's gaze on her back. She went to the bed, standing at her side, watching the intensity in his blue eyes as he walked around to her. Biting her lower lip, she wrapped her arms around him when he was close enough for her to do so, and kissed him slowly yet sensuously. She felt his hands at her towel wrapped around her, and when she pulled back to look at him she smiled and whispered, "Fuck me Rick."
His heart suddenly thudding in his chest at her words, Castle took her lips in another kiss, but that one much quicker. He pressed his forehead against hers once they parted and murmured against her lips as he was pulling apart the towel, "I adore you love."
Beckett slipped out from his arms since he was holding her towel, and she lay back on the bed, watching as he pushed the sheets over the edge to the floor. She propped herself up on her pillows before he came to her, and she waited for him to put a pillow below her hips before she parted her legs to him, biting her lower lip as he lay on top of her. "Can I make a request?" she asked. When her fiancé nodded, she whispered to him, and the next second he was kissing her, crushing her lips with his own which she took as his assent.
Feeling Beckett clutching at him tightly, Castle groaned against her before he suddenly pulled away abruptly, looking into her eyes. "I need-" he started to say as he felt the heat of his arousal raging out of control looking into her half lidded eyes. But she reached up to him, kissing him hard as she reached in between them, grasping his erection and making him forget what he'd been about to say. With a slight grunt, he moved with her then, and slid slowly into her body, his groan feeling like it lasted a lot longer than it did. But it was one of relief, and when he pulled away to breathe he helped her, taking her left leg to perch her ankle on his shoulder as she was wrapping her right leg around his waist. "You…" he said before trailing off on an exhale of breath.
Beckett couldn't blame him for that, she could feel him deep and hard, the sensation making her body burn, and with his first thrust she was nearly digging her nails into his arms. She was quick to follow him though, moving her hips at the same pace he was, feeling like she could smile as he followed her request of going slowly before speeding up to the letter. She reached up with her hands, cupping his cheeks as his eyes closed and he seemed to be trying to withstand how she felt. She shivered once when his head turned and he pressed a kiss to her right thumb before taking that digit with his mouth. When his tongue flicked against the skin she shook hard, the shock of that touch sending a literal explosion through her body. It set off an ache at her breasts and where they were coupled together, and she thrust against him a little faster than he was.
Leaning down enough, Castle took her lips with his own, before he felt her moving up against him. Having to pull back, he broke off the kiss before seeing that she had pushed herself onto her arms, leaning against them as she seemed to be trying to look between them. He tried to move away from her a little, to allow her to, and groaned heavily as he caught sight of their bodies together. Their hips smacked, withdrawing before meeting yet again, and he was almost hypnotized by the easy motion though it was rough, both of them moving in sync again. He was startled from his stare as Beckett's hand came into his view, and he watched as she managed to slip it in between them. Her first touch to her clit he felt as well as she immediately tightened around him in response, and he slammed into her. Liking that feeling, he suddenly moved in that way, hard and without making it very paced, just literally ramming into her as many times he could manage. He could feel the sweat on his body, and he looked down to his fiancée, seeing her hands were both above her head, clutching at the pillow underneath her as she raced to follow his lead, the sound of their bodies meeting almost seeming to echo in the room.
Beckett could feel Castle deep inside her, his hips pressing against her so tightly she wondered why there wasn't more friction when he moved away. But there was enough where they were coupled, and everything in her was literally pulsating, feeling as if it was on fire. She moved against him hard, as hard as he was moving, and she bit at her lower lip roughly before he abruptly slowed down. Her eyes flew open as he took her leg off his shoulder, putting it with the other around his waist, and she was quick as he leaned down, kissing her deeply. They weren't bothering to match their pace, instead they were rough in their kiss, and she arched her back as his right hand brushed against her breast. That seemed to set something off between them, as their bodies began to speed up with one another, making her throw her head back, moaning his name repeatedly as the buildup of the feeling of them moving together meant that same, rough friction from shortly before. "Rick…" she begged him, not quite sure what she was asking him for.
"Tell me to stop," Castle told her, his voice straining slightly as he kissed around her neck and then went down to her breasts, seeing her shake her head just before he did. He heard her moan in response as he began to suckle at her nipple, flicking his tongue against the taunt nub over and over again. Her fingers were threading through his hair before raking down his scalp as he moved to her other mound, making his entire body shudder in reaction. He could feel how she was moving with him, how slick she was with her desire, and he was unable to stop himself. He didn't try to slow down or delay or stop, wanting to push her, needing to bring her over the edge with him as he was close, his body aching with pleasure.
Clutching at Castle's shoulders, Becket tried to get some kind of handle on time, feeling as if they had been moving together for a large amount of it. But he suddenly jerked down against her, hitting her clit directly, and she completely lost it, arching her back roughly as she cried out his name repeatedly. Her fingers were growing white on his back, holding onto him as a few moments later, he was thrusting haphazardly groaning her name against her neck, and she could feel his release, clutching him to her even tighter though she wasn't sure that was possible as she felt herself skirting the edge of passing out. She was unaware of how long it took before they were stopping, but finally they relaxed, slumped to the bed and she turned her head to press a kiss to his temple. "Hmm, I needed that," she murmured against his skin, feeling herself throbbing around him in the aftermath.
"Really?" Castle asked, looking up at her.
About to reply to that, Beckett then gave him a glare, not surprised when in response to that, he leaned down to kiss her. She hugged him tightly around the neck as she parted her lips to his searching tongue, running her hands up and down the back of his head, slowly, deliberately. "So you did too it looks like," she teased him.
"For a while; since we woke up," Castle admitted before he cleared that up for her. "Try riding a horse like that."
"Or play polo," Beckett commented wryly. "Though you seemed to have a lot of fun. You should look into it back home."
"I'll give it a shot, you're sure you're not urging me to do that so you can see me in the gear and uniform?" Castle asked. He laughed when she pinched his side, but soon cut himself off by kissing her slowly, deliberately. When they parted he was about to speak before a noise kept him from doing so. "So, breakfast?" he commented.
Smiling, since his stomach had been rumbling, Beckett nodded and said, "It might be brunch," glancing at the clock. "Oh, no, it's breakfast."
"I'll be back," Castle said. But instead of moving away from her, he brushed his lips against hers and then murmured, "I love you Kate."
"Hmm, you said that already," Beckett said, moving her hand to his cheek, caressing it with the backs of her fingers. "But go, once you leave it doesn't mean we're done."
"It doesn't?" Castle asked, perking up at that since he could tell she was serious. When she nodded once, he kissed her deeply, but made it quick before he carefully withdrew from her, and brushed his thumb against her lower lip before he threw on his pajama pants and left the room saying, "Don't go anywhere."
Beckett shook her head at that, and laid her head back on the pillows behind her, looking up at the pattern of sunlight shining on the ceiling from the ocean outside. She glanced around the room and remembered the day before when they had arrived, Castle showing her all the changes to the house he'd had started since they'd talked about it two months before. Their room had been repainted, the walls now all a very pale blue, the trim repainted a slightly brighter white. She loved it, as it felt a little like she was looking at the sky early in the morning. He had even gotten a new mattress for the bed; the kind she liked; and towels in the same blue as the walls in the bathroom for just her to use. Julia's room had been painted, a bright sky blue their daughter had picked out and she knew the little girl would absolutely love it.
What had surprised her the most was the fact that her father's room was ready, painted and with furniture Castle had told Beckett could be temporary if he wanted something else. There was also a key on one of the dressers, since he was going to let Jim be able to come whenever he wanted. She smiled to herself, remembering what she had told him when he'd asked if her dad would like the room. With the walls painted in his favorite deep green color, she wasn't sure how he could hate it there.
That turned her thoughts to her fiancé again, and she sighed as she remembered their ride and the kisses he'd given her as they'd let their horses take a break. She traced her lips slowly, carefully, and remembered his hungrier ones once they'd reached home, and she felt him inside of her, moving in her, filling her deeply and making her feel his desire for her the entire time; from beginning to end. Beckett bit at her lower lip once, and then realized that her fingers were stroking her abdomen. She looked down at them, and glanced to the doorway, trying to hear if Castle was coming back. But there were no footsteps, so she lowered her hand, brushing against her clit.
Breathing in deeply at that first touch since it reverberated through her entire body, Beckett let herself start to rub up and down carefully, closing her eyes to better enjoy the sensation. She spread her legs a little wider then, imagining Castle with her, touching her and kissing her repeatedly, not having to work too hard to do that since he had done exactly that not long before.
It was at that moment that Castle returned; a tray in his hands with coffee and strawberries on them. When he caught sight of Beckett, he nearly dropped everything to the floor when he realized what she was doing, and he hurried to set the tray on the nearest dresser. He then went around to sit next to her on the edge of the bed, not too surprised when she didn't react to him. He was tempted to touch her, but held back, wanting to watch her for as long as he could.
Beckett wasn't aware she had an audience, until her eyes fluttered open, and she gasped slightly, shocked to see him suddenly there when she had been fantasizing about him so intently. "You-" she began to say.
"Don't stop on my account," Castle commented.
Beckett didn't reply to that, but then smiled and moved, pushing the pillows aside before she sat up. "Off," she said, tugging on the waist band of his pants.
Castle was a little startled at that, but did as she indicated, coming back to her naked, and he was about to reach for he when she put her hands on his chest, holding him away from her. "No?" he asked, confused as to what she wanted.
"Not yet," Beckett said simply with a smile. "Let me watch."
Gritting his teeth together at that, Castle nodded once, and then moved so he was fully on the bed on his knees. His fiancée touching him to help him, he grasped his erection in his hand, and moved it up and down once. It wasn't really a surprise when that action took him back to all the times he'd imagined Beckett, in many different ways and wanting him as much as he wanted her. The relief was that he didn't have to imagine it, it was real. "Touch yourself Kate," he urged her, his voice a little distorted from the pleasure he was doing to himself.
Beckett nearly laughed at the expression on Castle's face when she immediately started to finger herself at his suggestion, his eyes wide as he watched her. But she was feeling pleasure again, and she couldn't help it, leaning over to kiss him deeply before they parted.
The room was quiet, only the sounds of their heavy breathing and greedy kisses filling the empty space. They were carefully watching one another, wanting to make sure they were together when they finally got off.
"Tell me…" Castle said.
Nodding, Beckett finally stopped stroking herself, and took Castle's free hand off of her breast before straddling him. She rocked her body back and forth on his erection, until finally she tensed, shaking a few times as he thrust up in her in immediate response. She moaned a few times with each wave of pleasure, the intensity of her orgasm not as much as the last bout, but it was enough for her; able to tell it was enough for her fiancé too as she felt his climax readily.
"Watching you love, you're pure sex you know," Castle commented when they'd stopped moving, breathing hard.
"Pure sex?" Beckett asked, shaking her hair past her shoulders.
"Yep, which doesn't make sense does it?" Castle asked.
"No," Beckett said, shaking her head with a laugh. She kissed him then quickly and then said, "But as long as you love me and want me just like that, I could care less. And now, I'm hungry, especially after that." She kissed him then, and then went over to the headboard, watching as he straightened out his pillows before bringing the tray to her. When he handed her her mug of coffee, she smiled and said, "Thank you," as he'd made a heart in the foam, just barely visible by then. "So I'm guessing you were thinking of me downstairs while I was busy thinking of you here."
"I just couldn't touch myself… well, I could, but, not there," Castle said, thinking a moment. "But you seemed to enjoy yourself."
"Immensely, I was remembering how we were together before, and how good it felt to have you inside of me," Beckett murmured, looking at the copy of the Hamptons Report he'd brought with him.
Pausing to take a drink, Castle studied his fiancée and said, "So no more hesitation."
"No more, as many times as possible is fine with me," Beckett said, glancing at him out of the corner of her eye.
"Another reason why I love you Kate," Castle said, leaning over then and kissing her deeply on the lips.
"Hmm, glad I can make you happy," Beckett said with a smile before they went back to their breakfast. She set aside the newspaper, the cover story about the funeral for Officer Thornton and Carlotta taking away some of her joy in the moment. She turned her attention to her fiancé, feeding him as he did the same to her until they finished. As she got up to get changed into her bathing suit while he left with their breakfast items, she couldn't help remembering Monday, when she'd had to face another funeral for someone from the 12th before Isabella's mother was buried.
Walking out into her bedroom, Beckett smiled at her fiancé and their daughter, who were sitting on the edge of her bed waiting for her. "We should get going," she said as she held her hand out to Julia.
"I wish you could come with me to see Alexis learn sitar and swim too," the little girl said when they were at the door.
"Me too but, we'll see you later this afternoon at Castle's, he's making dinner tonight," Beckett said, putting on her shoes. She smiled as Julia reached up and touched her citation bars on her uniform blazer and she took the little girl's hand, kissing it before she took her hat that Julia had been holding for her. "I want you to have fun with Alexis okay?" she told her seriously.
"Yeah, I hope you do too Mommy," Julia said. She cupped her mother's cheeks and said, "I hope you have fun with Castle even if you are sad now."
"I will, and I'll have fun with you tonight too, since I don't have to work tomorrow we can watch something special," Beckett said. She hugged Julia tightly to her and whispered, "Have fun, and tell me about what happens at Padma's okay?" before she shared a kiss with her.
"Alexis and I will say," Julia said, looking at her sister with a smile. "Do we go now?" she asked.
"Yep, as long as you're ready, we can go," Alexis said. She picked up her sitar case, watching her sister say goodbye to Castle.
"Like your mom said, have a ton of fun, and see if maybe you want to play one of those when you're older," he was telling Julia.
"Maybe," the little girl said with a smile. She shared a kiss with Castle before he set her down and she said, "Take care of Mommy?"
"I always do," Castle assured her. He put his hand on Beckett's back after they'd watched their daughters walk down the hall before going out of sight. He closed the door and asked, "I need to go?"
"Yeah, it's starting in twenty minutes," Beckett said. "I was hoping never to have to do this again."
"I'll scope the area somehow before you get there, make sure it's okay," Castle said.
"No, I don't think I'll get shot again," Beckett said, unable to help smiling slightly at his somber tone. "I just didn't want to have to go to another funeral for someone from the station."
Nodding, Castle leaned down and brushed his lips across his fiancée's before pulling back. "I'll see you there," he told her simply, staring into her eyes. When she nodded he left, hearing the door close behind him and hoping she'd be alright.
Sighing, Beckett waited a few more minutes, before she left, holding her hat under her arm. She smiled at Mrs. Parker who came into the building, not surprised that a few other residents in the lobby were watching her. By then the news had broken that Bracken had ordered the mother of his illegitimate baby killed, tried to kill Isabella himself and that he had had Officer Thornton killed by the officer's partner he had bribed. Luckily her involvement in the senator's death hadn't been leaked to the public, so she knew they were only looking at her since they'd found out she worked with Thornton. She stepped outside, and spotted Esposito driving LT's squad car, the officer himself sitting in the passenger seat. "Hey LT," she said as she got in, squeezing his shoulder as she sat.
Nodding, the officer didn't reply, and the trip to the cemetery was silent before they parked outside among the other squad cars; some of them not even the 12th's. When they got to where Thornton was going to be laid to rest, they went to Captain Gates who was standing with Thornton's wife and son to give their condolences.
"Kate," Castle said quietly, managing to catch up with his fiancée as she was walking behind Esposito and LT a little. "Ryan's around here somewhere, the area's cleared; he and Javi were remembering the last time we were here."
"I'll have to thank them later," Beckett said before they reached the officer's wife. "Joy," she said, taking the woman's hands. "I am so-" She had just been about to say she felt so sorry about not being able to prevent her husband's death, when the woman was hugging her to her surprise.
"I thought you might be feeling guilty Beckett," Joy said with a slight smile that trembled at her lips when she pulled away. "But you shouldn't, Geoff did his job, and he couldn't let anything happen to that baby. I needed to tell you that he wouldn't want you blaming yourself, it was Bracken, and everything is because of Bracken."
Nodding, as she knew the woman was right, Beckett looked down at the woman's two and a half year old son, smiling a little and saying, "How is he?"
"Alright, I don't think he understands what's going on, but he's okay," Joy said, nodding. "Thank you for coming, and you too Castle, Geoff told me a lot about you."
"I wish we were meeting under better circumstances," Castle murmured. He then followed Beckett over to some empty seats near Ryan and Esposito, talking with them before they heard the sound of the band playing, and they turned to see the rider-less horse being led in front of the hearse. He reached over to Beckett, brushing against her gently to see if she was okay, when she smiled briefly at him before turning her attention back to the funeral.
Beckett breathed in deeply as she watched LT and the other officers that Thornton had been friends with act as pallbearers and LT also spoke a eulogy before the casket was lowered into the ground. It was then she took the risk, reaching to her fiancée and taking his hand, not caring anyone would be able to see their hands clasped together tightly as they gave each other what comfort they could from such a simple gesture.
"What do you want?" the older man said gruffly as he opened the apartment door.
"Dad, please," the young woman walking up behind him said. "Let them in, they worked with Joseph."
"Are they here to-" the man began to say.
"Dad, enough, go get them something to drink, please," the woman said. "Detectives, come in."
"I'm sorry, but we wanted to see you," Beckett said, since she was in front of the boys and Castle.
"I'm surprised, no one else has," the woman; Gordon's wife; said with a sigh, rubbing the small of her back.
"They're a little unsure if you'd want visitors Lynn," Ryan said.
"Please, sit down, I know you don't have time, the woman who you were protecting is going to be buried soon isn't she?" Lynn asked.
"We have enough time," Beckett said simply. "But first, we started a collection for your baby, yours and Joy and Thornton's son," she said as she handed an envelope with her. "It's not charity, but an early baby shower gift."
"Thank you," Lynn said, tears appearing in her eyes. "Is… is she-" she started to say before there was a quiet knock on the door.
"I'll get it," Esposito offered. He went over and looked out, looking at the others in surprise before opening the door and stepping aside to let Joy and her son in.
"Joy?" Beckett asked as Lynn placed her hands protectively over her abdomen.
"I came here to see you Lynn, to see if you were okay," Joy said softly. "To see if you need any help at all."
"No, no, I'm fine, I… thank you," Lynn whispered as the woman hugged her.
Sharing a look with Castle, Beckett breathed out a little; having been unsure of the reason Joy had come to see the wife of her husband's killer. But as she watched them sit down together on a couch in the corner of the living room, she guessed they would both be okay, going over to join them, asking about the baby.
Watching his fiancée as they had drinks of iced tea Lynn's father had brought out, Castle missed what Ryan was saying as he watched Beckett place her hand on Ethan; Thornton's son's head, talking to him seriously. He breathed out as she smiled; making the little boy do the same before letting him look at her hat. He felt that she was alright, but hoped their break from the case would be enough to help them both get back to normal.
Walking inside the hotel room after Manuel Ortiz had let her and Castle in, Beckett smiled widely when she saw Isabella on her aunt's lap and said, "Hello Madeline, I hope you don't mind, I brought my partner, Richard Castle with me to see Isabella before you leave for Boston."
"You helped her protect my sister and niece?" Madeline asked. She smiled slightly when Castle nodded and said, "Thank you for coming to the funeral."
"I had to attend," Castle said simply. "How is she doing?"
"Oh, just fine, she's a wonderful baby," Madeline said, kissing her niece's temple as the baby shifted in her arms. "Would you like to hold her?" she asked Beckett.
"Of course," she said, taking the baby as Madeline shifted her to her. She smiled down at Isabella as the little girl looked up at her with wide eyes. "Hey," she said softly, going over to the window. "I see you remember me," she murmured, the baby taking her pendant in her little fist. She took it out of her hand, letting Isabella hold onto her index finger before looking up at Castle who had walked over to her.
"Ms. Spencer, Mr. Ortiz, Beckett and I have something we'd like to ask," he then said when his fiancée nodded to him. When he saw the two looking at him questioningly he quickly said, "We'd like to be able to keep in touch with you, to see how Isabella does as she grows up."
"And if you ever need any help, we would be glad to assist you in any way," Beckett said. "Both Isabella and you."
"That's very nice of you to offer," Madeline said, her husband nodding in agreement. "But this isn't out of guilt is it?"
"I would be lying if I said no," Beckett said. "But we really do want to make sure Isabella will be okay."
"You have daughters, both of you?" Ortiz asked. When Castle and Beckett nodded, he wrote down something on a pad of paper the hotel provided, and at his wife's nod he gave it to him. "Our address and Maddy's number."
"Okay, this is my number, and this is Beckett's," Castle said, going to the paper and writing them down.
"Call if you need anything," Beckett urged them as she handed Isabella back to her aunt. "We'll help if we can."
After Castle had held Isabella for a little as they spoke with the baby's aunt and uncle, he and Beckett left, heading back to his place which they found empty. He followed her into his room, watching as she set her hat down on the dresser before glancing into the mirror above it at her reflection. "Kate?" he asked carefully, going over to her.
"Yeah, I need to get this off," Beckett said, reaching up to unbutton her blazer. When she had it open, she was about to take it off when she felt her fiancé behind her to help her slide it off her arms.
Watching her, Castle didn't say a word, just relieved to see the tension that was obvious in her body disappear as she unbuttoned and removed her shirt before taking off her undershirt, belt and then trousers, taking her hair down from its bun. He tossed the clothes she handed him on his bed to fold later, and went to her, taking her blouse and helping her into that before he helped with her jeans, closing the fly once she had them on.
Though she knew that he was aware there was no need to help her, Beckett couldn't help but feel a little better with his assistance. It was almost as if he were taking some of her stress from her with his actions. When she was dressed, she wasn't surprised when he ran his hands down her shoulders and her arms before taking her by the waist. He leaned down, and kissed her, gently, softly, and she felt there was nothing sexual in him helping her, it was only to be there for her, and she wrapped her arms around him tightly, kissing him a little harder to thank him as best she could.
"Ready to go? Kate?" Castle called as he walked out into the bedroom to find his fiancée staring into the fireplace.
"Sorry, just… thinking," Beckett said, turning to him as she tied her bathing suit cover-up closed. "I'm ready."
"So I'm thinking we should swim for a little, and then have those sandwiches we bought from the bakery for lunch and then after we can… We didn't plan for that," Castle said.
"We'll see how things go," Beckett said, smiling at the expression on his face. She squeezed his hand once they had stepped outside, and going to the pool she took off her cover-up before saying, "I forgot… sunscreen," in exasperation before trailing off as Castle was holding the bottle in his hand. "You know I have spray right?"
"Oh I know, I just thought this would work better," Castle said. "You know, a more concentrated sunscreen than mist."
"Sure," Beckett said, rolling her eyes though she was smiling slightly. She took the bottle from him and spread it over her arms and legs before handing it to her fiancé, turning on the lounge chair she'd chosen since it was partially in the shade.
"I don't think that'll work love," Castle said. "Your bikini is in the way." At her look he gave her one of his own saying, "You didn't do your chest, didn't even put your ring on your necklace."
Wrinkling her nose, Beckett first moved her engagement ring onto her necklace, and then turned around, untying the top and bottom of her bikini top. "Go ahead," she said simply as he didn't do anything for what felt like a long time.
"Turn around," Castle said. When she started to say his name he quickly pointed out, "I put it on your back last I'll calm down."
Sighing, Beckett turned around and watched him start to rub the sunscreen around her shoulders before sliding to her breasts. She bit her lower lip to bite back a reaction, but wasn't able to cover up her moan. "There's something I don't get," she started to say.
"I don't discriminate about size," Castle said quickly, knowing already what she was going to ask. Since he'd done her upper chest by then, he quickly discarded the bottle and began to rub her breasts with the sunscreen he'd gotten on his hands. "And they really are fantastic breasts," he said. "I'm not kidding," he said when he glanced up at her since he got no reaction to that, seeing she looked a little doubtful at his sincerity.
Beckett nodded slightly since she'd been able to tell he'd been serious then, and she told him, "Better do the back now."
"Why?" Castle asked, though he was long since finished covering her front. When his fiancée jerked her chin to his groin, he smirked at her and said, "That should tell you I'm serious."
"Hurry up, I did want to swim," Beckett chided him jokingly as she turned around. She sighed as he rubbed the lotion into her back, also managing to get out a few kinks that had built up in her with the case, and she felt fully relaxed as she put her bikini top on. But she shook the urge to lie down on the chair and soak up the sun as her fiancé began to cover himself in sunscreen. She took the bottle, and worked the white cream over his back for him before she slipped out of his grasp and went to the steps.
"Come on, don't be prissy," Castle said. He laughed when his fiancée glared at him slightly and said, "Come in over here, the water is warm."
Beckett walked around the pool, and watched as Castle jumped into the water in a cannonball, trying to pull back away from the water. She was unsuccessful and he splashed her, but it was alright, since as he'd said, the water was warm. She sat on the edge and sighed as her legs moved through the water, feeling as if she were being caressed by the heat. "Nice cannonball, you know in Germany they have a competition for that, or had, I'm not sure if they still do it," she said when her fiancé came up to her.
"Interesting, but I don't think I'd be able to compete, I just do it for fun," he told her, taking her hand that was caressing his hair. "Come here Kate," he said, suddenly aroused as he watched her above him.
"I don't think we should," Beckett said, stopping him and making him sigh in disappointment. "Sorry, I want to, badly, but, they're all going to be here tomorrow…"
"It's okay, you're right about that," Castle said, conceding the point. "But come here anyways, there's something else we can do here."
Beckett; already guessing what that was, slipped into the water, her hair cascading down her shoulders as she went under, her ponytail holder tossed to the side of the pool. She swam to the steps, and when she stepped up onto the shallow end she turned to see her fiancé following her. "You're right, nothing wrong with swimming here," she teased him as she sat on the top step.
"You know, I realized what I wanted to say when I told you you were pure sex earlier," Castle said, going on his knees in front of her on the bottom step. "You're a goddess," he told her, his voice husky on the last word.
"Of what, sex?" Beckett asked though he'd told her that before.
"No, you're the complete package of a woman, I would say like Parvati," Castle said, thinking for a moment.
"I don't think you should be comparing me to a specific goddess, just say you think I am a goddess, as in-" Beckett started to say.
"You're worthy of worship," Castle said. "I know I've said that, but I mean it." He saw the sudden realization of what his fiancée had said about herself on her face and smiled saying, "You were just correcting what I said, but I stand by that, you're worthy of worship and it's what I was doing earlier."
"Thank you for that by the way," Beckett said. "It's my hope we can repeat that soon."
"You're giving me some really mixed signals love, you either want me or you want to tease me," Castle said. He stood up, looking her over before saying, "Or most likely both."
Beckett stood up in response to that, and was going to step out of the pool before she was suddenly being picked up around the waist. "Castle! Put me down!" she cried, unable to help laughing just before he fell backwards and they went under the water. When they'd resurfaced she splashed him in the face, and dove under the water as he went to grab for her. Swimming towards the deep end, she came back up for air, and cried out as she was pulled under.
When they were both above the water, Castle stood in the middle of the pool and wrapped his arms around his fiancée, holding her to him as they began to kiss hungrily. Her arms were wrapped tightly around his neck, and he could feel her desire in the way she drew her tongue along his. When they parted for air he murmured, "Do me a favor?"
"I'm not swimming topless," Beckett said. She couldn't help laugh and kiss him when a frustrated expression flashed across his face in response and then told him, "We might push it too far doing that Rick."
Sighing in acquiescence, Castle followed her to the other end of the pool where they held onto the side and tread the water as he leaned over to kiss her simply. "Something I wanted to ask, when we get married are you going to keep calling me Castle?"
"I've thought about it," Beckett said. "But I think I should call you Rick, though that doesn't seem right. So I figured what would be best would be just to call you whatever I feel like. And with that, if I call you Rick, pay attention to my tone."
"Like right now, you said it twice and I feel no compunction to run with you under my arm to the bed in there," Castle said, nodding to the door next to the fireplace and TV.
"You know I almost forgot about that room," Beckett commented.
"Another question, going to call me anything else?" Castle asked.
"You should have just asked outright for an endearment," Beckett said with a smile since she knew he was serious. "And I've thought about that as well."
"And?" Castle asked, wondering what she was thinking as she pushed away from the edge. He was quick to follow her to the steps on the other side and said, "Something… I won't like?" he guessed as he sat with her on the top step.
"No, I'd like to call you love too," Beckett said. She smiled when one appeared on Castle's face immediately and she asked, "That's okay with you?"
"Definitely, I tried to imagine once what you could call me, but nothing ever really worked in my mind," Castle said. As she cupped his cheek then, he leaned over, kissing her gently before they parted.
"I thought you'd think it was a less masculine endearment, love," Beckett said, testing the word for the first time. It felt slightly odd on her tongue, but when Castle kissed her firmly in response to it she smiled inwardly and kissed him back before pulling him into the pool where they began to swim back and forth. They raced one another, wrestled a little together; which had been Castle's idea that she'd agreed with only because she found herself by then wanting to be close to her fiancé; and finally just tread the water at the deep end, leaning their heads in close and sharing gentle kisses as they spoke while holding onto the edge. Finally though, she led him out of the pool, and they swam to the steps before going back to the lounge chair they'd been at earlier.
About to join Beckett as she lay down, Castle laughed as he dodged her halfhearted kick against him and said, "What?"
"Get your own chair," she teased him. She smiled when he gave her a look and then said, "Or get lunch; either one."
"You're hungry?" Castle asked sitting on the end of the chair as he waited for her to adjust the back before sitting up slightly.
"Wrestling with your future husband in a pool will do that to you," Beckett said wryly. She laughed when he came over to her at that, and she wrapped her arms loosely around his neck before they kissed deeply. It was only one kiss, but enough to arouse her and make her grasp at his ass quickly as he stood up.
"You confuse me a lot of the time Kate," Castle teased her; seeing her cheeks flushed slightly as he turned to look at her. "Stay or go?"
"Go, I wasn't kidding about being hungry," Beckett said, watching him go after throwing his towel around his shoulders. She bit her lower lip as she thought about how the day was still relatively young, and then relaxed back on the chair, closing her eyes and letting the sun's warmth make her drowsy. Since she had been so busy with her fiancé for a large part of the day, she wasn't too surprised when she dozed off eventually, only the sudden shock of ice against her leg making her jerk awake. "Castle! What-" she started to say before she saw his surprise.
"Sorry, I thought you were just joking," he said. "Should I have made drinks?"
"Yes, but next time make sure I'm not asleep before you do that," Beckett said, taking the glass. "I didn't know you knew how the make frozen margaritas too."
"Picked it up in the Yucatan, took Alexis and my mother there when she was young," Castle commented. "We stayed at a resort and the bartender at the beach was a genius with these, taught me after I paid him for the lessons, which I suggested to him because he wasn't really supposed to do that."
"Mango?" Beckett asked with a smile after taking a sip. "That would explain the color and the mangoes you had in the fridge. Thank you," she said, raising the glass to him as he sat in the chair next to her. She got up to sit on the edge across from him, watching him drag over the table between their chairs. "So, I took a sip already, but I think we should still toast the beginning of our vacation. Salud."
"Salud, love," Castle said, tapping his glass against hers. He then leaned over once they'd drunk a little, kissing her gently on the lips. They seemed to both freeze as they could taste the fruit on each other's lips, and he carefully deepened the kiss, but only enough so they could feel the pressure of each other's lips as warmth through the ice of the drink before he pulled away.
Breathing in deeply, Beckett said, "We should eat." When he nodded, she nearly laughed as she could tell that he was still in a state of half arousal, but what kept her from doing that was her own trouble facing that as well. She tried to ignore it then, bringing up their daughters, speculating on what they were doing right that second.
Castle went along with that subject and they talked about their family and the next day when they would arrive to spend the holiday weekend with them. They shared a few more kisses the same as the first, but they lingered, neither of them ever able to shake their desire as they went through lunch.