Genre: Romance, Family, Humor, Supernatural
Rating: M for sexual situations and language
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: Was glad getting the feedback I did for the last chapter so will get into my thank yous for them! TORONTOSUN (I was happy to see you liked that Josie was starting to stand. And that you thought it was good writing!),
Mb (It was great you thought it was a very sweet part for Josie's first birthday. And wow, I can't believe I ended up putting Julia instead of Josie and I reread that part three times too and missed it every time. But thanks for pointing that out, I fixed it and I really have to remember to watch I don't mix up their names, lol. And I'm not surprised that you loved that the city family came. No surprise either that you thought it was interesting with their conversation with Esposito about the murderer being a disciple of Tyson that killed himself so he wouldn't have to give information. And yeah, with 3XK still around they have to be vigilant as you said. And it's hard not to see the city family watching out for them in the end. And yeah, the lawn games I searched for sounded like they'd be fun, and I'd try them so I'm glad you did too. Oh and that they'd be fun for all ages as you said, since they were different ages of course. I'm happy to see you loved Alexis having to explain why she was calling Beckett mom and that you thought it was easy and natural for them to hear that. And I agree, Louis and Alexis are lucky they have parents who are true loves as you put it and their inner circle of friends too so they can see it and try to get that for themselves. Really happy you thought the birthday was sweet for Josie, not surprised you mentioned she'll be walking soon and saying mama and dada soon along with other words and learn more after those. You're welcome for the first half! Glad you thought the second half was wonderfully written. And I'm not surprised you were wondering where the presents were from Josie's family, I wanted to spread them out, lol. But I'm happy you thought they were nice and perfect gift, since I haven't gotten a baby a gift since my cousins were born, lol. Not surprised you thought it was nice seeing them relaxed and happy with their close friends and family, but I'm glad too! I'm not surprised you're looking forward to them going to San Francisco to see the houses and places for their past lives. So I hope you'll enjoy this chapter! And not surprised you're hoping they'll go in the houses in the city and Mill Valley and the people living there are as happy as they'd been in their past lives. I'm not surprised you laughed at Castle and Beckett torturing themselves with their abstinence or that it's so worth it for them to do that. You're welcome for sharing the second half! Stay safe yourself!) and
Guest (I'm glad that you've stayed with the series since it's gotten so far along so thank you a ton for that! And I'm so happy you enjoyed the last story with the crime not being a murder and thought it was an interesting twist. Oh and I'm happy you were glad about Alexis and Louis. It was great to see that your favorite was the flashback to Skye and Mary meeting their oldest two since I loved writing that. And I'm so happy you found the trip to Mexico City super interesting, I wanted to make it as much as I could. And with as much history as the city has I wanted to put it in their short week there, lol, so I'm glad I managed to to that! Really pleased you want to read more and are looking forward to as well of course, again, thanks for reading. And you're welcome too!).
Thanks so much for the reviews, loved reading them and I appreciate the time taken to write them out and send them my way!
A/N #2: The title of this chapter is the name of a song by The First Class which is all the information I was able to find out about it.
Let's Go Back To San Francisco
"There's our car," Castle said as he spotted it in the parking lot.
"Really?" Beckett asked, stopping when she realized which one he was talking about.
"What?" Castle asked. "Our return to San Francisco I wanted to go in style. Plus we are going to drive along the coast."
"The coast?" Beckett said in surprise.
"I was looking at a map and I think we should make that the very first stop," Castle said.
"Alright, but still," Beckett said.
"Hey," Castle said quickly as she was glancing at the convertible car he'd gotten for their trip. "It's the same name we have back at home."
"I know," Beckett said with a sigh as it was a dark blue Benz. "Do you want this model?"
"No, just for fun," Castle told her as he urged her to start walking again. "And because it's California."
Beckett laughed and lightly pinched his side before she let him open the passenger door for her. She said, "I will admit it is gorgeous."
"You can drive," Castle said quickly.
"I know, but I'll let you take care of this; see if you know where to stop," Beckett said simply before he was loading their suitcases and then going around. "Don't do everything for me," she told him teasingly once he was in the driver's seat.
"I won't," Castle promised her. Starting the car, he drove out of the parking lot at the rental agency at the San Francisco International Airport they'd landed at a little before eleven on the twenty-first of April. He had his GPS on and as they were leaving the airport itself to reach the 380, he did his best not to go too fast. They were stopping at a light before they reached the freeway and he put the hood down since the weather was beautiful. "I'm glad it was California weather today," he commented as he drove.
"Don't let Skye hear you saying that," Beckett told him teasingly. "But yes, it's wonderful," she said before she was looking up at the blue sky with some puffy white clouds. She reached to her husband and squeezed his arm saying, "Though I'm missing the girls a lot right now, I'm so happy we're here."
"Me too," Castle said, glancing at her since he had to go on the on ramp.
Beckett looked around them as they were going west and eventually reached the coast. She didn't mind that her hair was blowing crazily in the wind as it reminded her of when she and her husband had gone to LA together. But she pushed that aside quickly as she didn't want to think about the reason they'd gone there. She watched the ocean as they were going by it and smiled when her husband glanced at her at one point.
Taking her hand, Castle raised it to his lips where he pressed a gentle kiss to it before squeezing it. He was annoyed he needed to let it go, but they were nearing the city and he was aware they'd get to the part of the beach the club had been on soon. He turned into the parking lot as soon as he could and was parking at nearly the end of it. Once he had put the roof back up, he turned to his wife and he was about to speak when she was beating him to what he'd been about to ask her.
"I'm ready," Beckett told her husband. "You?"
"Yeah," Castle said as he grabbed his sunglasses before they got out of the car. After he locked it, he handed his glasses to his wife and put the sunglasses on before he said, "Okay."
Beckett smiled before she and her husband were taking one another's hands at the same time. They walked onto the beach and looked around as they stood still before she tugged his hand and they walked north a little before stopping again. "Here," she said, looking at the distance to the breaking waves.
"I thought the same," Castle replied, letting go of her hand so he could wrap his arm around her. He held her close and said, "It did look like a home."
Smiling again Beckett said, "My dad wasn't intending that, but it worked out for Prohibition."
Nodding his head, Castle kissed her cheek and then said, "When we were kids we loved running around out here."
"Mmm-hmm," Beckett replied with a smile. She then turned to him and wrapped her arms around his neck before saying, "I love you."
"I love you too," Castle said, not surprised at her emotion since he was feeling it a little himself. They shared a kiss, keeping it gentle but lingering for a while until they parted, and he pressed his forehead to hers. He then smiled and said, "Remember when Prohibition ended?"
"Yes," Beckett said. "We came here to have a party though we had to go back to the girls the day after."
"Would you want me to tell you about it?" Castle asked.
Shaking her head Beckett brushed her lips against his before she said, "I'd like to go to the hotel now."
Nodding, Castle kissed her gently before they pulled apart from each other, but they were holding each other's hands as they returned to their car. He didn't open the door for her that time, taking off his sunglasses to put his glasses back on. Once they were back inside, he drove along the southern part of Golden Gate Park while his wife was watching as they turned to go through the middle of it. "Okay?" he asked after they'd left the park and were at a red light.
"Yeah, it's weird looking at everything now," Beckett confessed after slight hesitation.
"I know what you mean," Castle said, nodding his head rapidly. The light changed and as they were going again, he said, "We've been here before but now that we're aware of who we were…"
"That's what I was thinking," Beckett said in agreement before she was watching the city outside the car as they were getting closer to Union Square.
Castle pulled the car up to the valet parking at the Westin St. Francis and stepping out handed the keys over. Since he'd opened the trunk the bellman that had stepped out was getting their suitcases and he thanked both men before going onto the sidewalk with his wife. Walking inside he said immediately, "We never came in here."
"No," Beckett said with a smile, squeezing his hand. "We never really needed to remember. Skye would always meet us outside after she worked."
"I don't think we had a reason to come in either," Castle added. While his wife nodded, they got into line at reception and he checked them in before they were following the bellman with their suitcases to the elevator. As they were going up, he wanted to speak to his wife but held back since he didn't really want to say much in front of the bellman. On their floor they went down the hall until they stopped at a familiar numbered door. Stepping inside after Beckett, he waited for the bellman to leave their luggage inside the bedroom before he handed the man a twenty and he closed and locked the door. "They've redone the room," he said.
"They did," Beckett said with a smile. "It needed it."
"True," Castle said, recalling the colors the room had had before. "The gold?"
"It goes with the blue," Beckett told him with a smile. "Let's unpack."
"Right," Castle said, shaking himself and going to the bedroom with her. He couldn't help glancing at the bed before he turned his attention to his suitcase and he and Beckett unpacked quickly before they were going into the bathroom to unpack their toiletry bags. "Wow, nice," he said as he looked around.
"I was waiting for you to say that," Beckett said with a slight laugh. She squeezed his arm and went to her sink before she was unpacking the small bag. "Hold on," she said as he was finishing before her.
"Actually, I was going to tell you I'm going out to look at the room service menu," Castle replied. "Though you're sure you don't want to go anywhere?"
"I'm sure," Beckett told him, smiling. "And I'm finished," she told him, putting the empty bags she had away in a drawer. She walked with him out into the living room and they placed their order on the TV app available.
"Are you getting flashbacks to Mexico City?" Castle asked her when they'd finished and went to the chez against a window to sit together.
"Yes, but not now," Beckett said simply as she was looking out of the window.
Castle leaned over and kissed his wife gently on the lips before he said, "I'm so happy right now."
"I can tell," Beckett said, taking his hand. She tangled their fingers immediately and then said, "We walked along the side," nodding to the bedroom.
"Of course we did, I had patrol around here," Castle said. He stared into her eyes for a while and then said, "And I loved the way you'd use the excuse of getting coffee for me."
"I get the feeling my mom was making me take it so we'd get together sooner," Beckett said thoughtfully.
"I don't think I'd have kissed you," Castle said. "Not if I wanted to keep my job."
Beckett laughed and leaned over so they could share another kiss before she said, "I want to go out as soon as we finish."
"So do I," Castle replied. "But what about the cable cars?"
"We will, we have to show pictures to the girls," Beckett said as he was getting up since there was a knock at the door.
"What time will we call them?" Castle asked, though he knew his wife wouldn't have the chance to answer.
"I… have your food," the employee on the other side said, trailing off for a moment.
"Thanks," Castle said, glancing at his wife who was smiling as she walked over to the table where the man was setting down their bowl and plate. He tipped him and watched him before the door was closed and locked again. "He knew us," he commented as he went back to the table where she was sitting.
"I figured," Beckett said, smiling again. She then picked up her fork and said, "We'll call them at one."
"Where will we be?" Castle asked.
"We'll have to use the phone," Beckett said.
"We could bring the tablet with us; just use that," Castle suggested. "Since we have Bluetooth."
"Alright," Beckett said, smiling before she squeezed his hand and they began eating. She tried her best not to smile at the way her husband was glancing at her and she finished her salad before she told him, "Tonight love."
"It's not that," Castle said quickly. "I mean… yeah, I want to do that very badly but it's more…"
"More what?" Beckett asked as they were clearing the table. She was startled when he grabbed her bowl and she jumped a little at the clatter of her fork as he seemed to throw everything onto the floor in the hall. "Rick-" she said before he was jogging over to the bedroom. "Rick your knee!" she said as she hurried after him.
"I'm fine," Castle told her seriously, shaking his head. "I need to brush my teeth."
Though she was incredibly confused, Beckett followed him in that before she was drying her mouth. "Now will you tell-" she began before he was taking her hand.
Out in the bedroom, Castle let go of her and gathered her in his arms before he was quickly kissing her. He made it intense immediately and they were suddenly lost for a while as they were exchanging multiple kisses until they had to breathe normally for a good amount of time
"Are you sure you're not thinking of the bed?" Beckett asked once she felt she could speak.
"Very," Castle said. "I needed to do that."
"I'm not surprised but… we need to go," Beckett told him with a smile.
"Yeah," Castle said, looking at his watch. "It's almost twelve forty-five. Would you want to wait?"
Beckett hesitated for a moment before she said, "I think I'd want to go."
"Me too," Castle said, leaning over and kissing her again. That time he made it simple and once they'd parted he said, "I'm ready."
"Hold on," Beckett said in amusement before she was going to get her bag so she could carry her tablet in it. "Do you have the key?" she asked as she put the straps over her shoulder.
"Yeah, Kate… I hate to tell you this but your lips," Castle said.
Handing her husband her bag, Beckett hurried over to the bathroom and looked at herself seeing that her light-colored lipstick had smeared a little. "Rick," she called to him. "You know you'll need to clean up."
"I just did," Castle said, coming in with a folded tissue. He threw it away and watched her applying her lipstick again before saying, "What if we tried now?"
"Go ahead," Beckett said. She laughed softly as she followed her husband out to the living room and texted her father while he was setting up the tablet. "I'll need to switch to my purse," she told him as they were waiting for a responding text.
"I know, I don't mind," Castle said, turning on the TV. "Okay, it's ready."
Beckett looked down at her phone to see that the text then was from her father and told her husband, "They're ready."
Sitting with her on the couch in front of the TV, Castle pressed the button for the Skype app and smiled as he saw that Julia was alone with Josie in the family room. "Are you the only one there?" he asked.
"No, Gram and Grandpapa are here," Julia replied before they walked behind her.
"Where's Eliza?" Beckett said.
"She wanted to go over to the Foster's to play," Martha said. "We reminded her that you were going to call but she wanted to play with Dani."
"Really badly," Julia said. "I'm going over to play with Mari but I remembered."
"It's okay, we'll talk to her on the phone once we hang up," Beckett said. "So how was it today?"
Smiling and feeling a little weird without her little sister there, Julia told her parents about her day and said, "It was nice to have Study Hall when I did; or else I wouldn't have been able to go over there."
"What about Mari?" Castle asked. "She doesn't have any?"
"She does and she's doing it right now," Julia replied. "It's also why I came home."
Beckett laughed softly and said, "Okay. What about Josie?"
"She had a normal day, and she's still standing and trying to take a step but it's all she can do," Jim said.
Smiling down at the baby; as she had recently begun attempting steps with her sisters' urging; Beckett said, "I'm sure she'll get that soon, she just needs the practice."
"Also Katie, Rebecca and David asked Julia and Eliza over for dinner," Jim told his daughter. "We gave permission."
"Behave while you're over there," Beckett said.
"You didn't think we'd let you?" Castle asked the girl as she appeared to be waiting for their response.
Shrugging Julia said, "I was hoping you wouldn't mind."
"Your gram and grandpapa are in charge now," Beckett replied.
"She's right," Castle said. "I'm guessing you want us to tell you what we've done so far?"
"That would be cool," Julia said before they were laughing together.
"The flight was nice… we slept during it but there wasn't really any bad turbulence which is appreciated," Castle commented.
"As soon as we got our car, we drove out to Ocean Beach," Beckett told them.
"Did you look to see where the club used to be?" Julia asked eagerly.
"Yes, we forgot to take pictures though," Castle said, looking at his wife at that realization.
"It's okay," Beckett said. "We'll take you where it was when we go back," she said as she turned back to the screen. "We were feeling kind of emotional seeing the spot and remembering it."
As she was nodding her head Julia then said, "Where'd you go after?"
"We just came here to the hotel," Castle answered. "We unpacked and had lunch before we came here to talk to you."
"And after?" Julia asked.
"We're going around Union Square a little and then head to Chinatown," Beckett said. "We'll tell you more about that tomorrow."
"Cool," Julia said with a smile
"I hate to stop but since we need to talk to Eliza and you want to go play with Mari we'll say goodbye," Castle said.
"Will you call the same time tomorrow?" Martha asked her son.
"We'll try," Castle said when his wife had nodded to his glance.
"You're going to be in Mill Valley, right?" Julia asked them.
"Amama-ba!" Josie vocalized.
"Most likely since we're going to have lunch there," Beckett replied. "And we'll have to talk to you on the tablet if you don't mind."
"I don't care!" Julia said immediately. "Could we maybe see the house that way?"
"We'll try," Beckett said.
"I think we can love," Castle told her. "Just walk in the neighborhood to show them around."
"Alright, we'll do that," Beckett said, unable to help smiling at his obvious eagerness. They turned to their family and said goodbye to them before they were hanging up and she said, "We'll have to make this quick."
"I know, I'm sure Dani will be with her and wanting to keep playing," Castle said. "Imagine when Dani's in first grade."
"Next fall," Beckett said as the Foster's youngest had started pre-school at the start of the school year the autumn before.
"They're all growing up," Castle said, finishing disconnecting the tablet and going to the room to put it away. When he came back out to his wife, she was dialing Rebecca's number and he stood with her.
"Hey Kate," the woman said as she picked up the phone. "I'm assuming you called your dad first?"
"We did, we already talked with the girls and our parents," Beckett said. "But we'd like to talk with Eliza."
"She's here, I called to her when the phone rang," Rebecca said. "Here she is," she then said as there were footsteps.
"Hi Mommy! Daddy!" Eliza said happily.
"Hey sweetheart," Castle said with a smile. "I'm sorry we couldn't see you today."
"I'm sorry, I really wanted to play with Dani," Eliza said.
"It's okay, we're only going to talk with you quickly today," Beckett said. "So tell us what you did." As the little girl was talking eagerly about what she'd done she shared a smile with her husband before they were telling her what they'd done.
"Oh! You saw the beach! Is it pretty?" Eliza asked when she'd finished.
"It is, we'll go there when we come back next time," Castle told her.
"And the hotel is nice?" Eliza asked.
"You'll be here too next time," Beckett said with a smile as she and her husband were aware the little girl had always wanted to see the hotel after her big sisters had told her about it.
"Okay, well… Dani wants to play," Eliza said. "So will you tell me tomorrow what you do?"
"We plan to," Castle said firmly, smiling with his wife as their second youngest was giggling wildly. They said goodbye to their daughter and hearing her squealing with Dani they were about to hang up when a familiar voice came onto the phone.
"Hey Mom, Dad," Julia said.
"Hey, go and play crazy now that you're at Mari's," Castle said jokingly.
Laughing, Julia then said, "I know, just wanted to say hi and I love you still."
"We love you sweetie," Beckett told her.
"A lot," Castle said. When Julia had said goodbye to them, he smiled as his wife hung up once they'd said the same. "I really love our girls."
"Me too, Alexis?" Beckett asked.
"We'll text her later," Castle replied. When his wife nodded, he stood with her but stayed in the living room as she was getting her purse ready so they could leave.
"Okay," Beckett said, coming out to him. She took his hand and said, "Let's go," tugging at it.
"Impatient?" Castle asked her.
"Very, let's go," Beckett replied simply with a smile. She wasn't surprised when her husband quickly hurried out with her and they were soon walking down the hall to the elevators. Having a car to themselves she said, "Would you like to go to the mall at all?"
"Would you like a smoothie?" Castle asked.
Beckett laughed and said, "Alright. But how do you know if they have it in the food court?"
"We'll find out," Castle told her. He smiled as she was laughing again, and he brought her hand up to his lips to kiss it.
Cupping his cheek Beckett was longing to kiss him but they were stopping at the lobby and she could only do that. They went together out to Union Square, not stopping before they went down Powell Street, pausing at the cable cars once they'd crossed Ellis Street a couple blocks down. She took pictures of the famous cars and she and her husband sat in one for a moment.
"We preferred the platform on the back," Castle eventually told his wife.
Nodding her head Beckett said, "I remember that. She then smiled and said, "But it's déjà vu again."
"It is," Castle replied. "We should go."
"Yeah," Beckett said before they were walking the rest of the way to Market where they waited to cross into the shopping mall. Seeing the inside made her smile and she said, "I'm expecting to see Julia… only five years old."
"I was thinking of that too," Castle said. He then said, "Can you believe it was seven years ago?"
"Not really," Beckett said as they were heading down the escalator. "Should we come here too?"
"I think Julia's told Eliza about this mall," Castle said. "We should do a lunch."
Beckett laughed momentarily before she said, "I'd love to, they will too."
Castle nodded before he spotted the smoothie place and stopped before saying, "This one?"
"Skye and Mary go to this one sometimes in Santa Monica," Beckett replied as she saw it was a Jamba Juice. Looking at the menu she made her decision quickly and told her husband, "I'll order?"
"Yeah, I'd like to grab the Matcha tea one," Castle replied.
"I was going to pick that one myself," Beckett said, smiling. She squeezed her husband's arm and then told the woman at the register their order before they were waiting. By then there weren't too many people, so they were leaving the mall in a short amount of time, walking back up Powell with their smoothies until they got to Union Square.
"The girls will remember this," Castle commented.
"I know, they loved running through here," Beckett said. "And playing a little bit. But it'll be great to see them now; Julia was on her own almost last time."
"Yeah and Eliza will love the monument," Castle said.
"She will," Beckett said. Since they'd gotten smaller cups, they were finishing their drinks by the time they'd gotten to Stockton to reach Sutter. "Look," she said with a smile as they were throwing away their cups.
"It's still here," Castle said, seeing the WM Glen & Son sign above the store's open doors. "Want to head in?"
"Of course," Beckett replied before they crossed and then started to walk around. They split up and she looked at the skirts and scarves available while her husband went to the hats. She was picking out four scarves before walking to where her husband had a Sherlock Holmes type hat on and said with a smile, "I don't think so."
"No? It'd look really cool while we're on a case," Castle said.
"No," Beckett said firmly. She smiled when he pretended to pout for a second before they were walking to the front of the store.
"For the girls?" Castle asked.
Nodding Beckett said, "Josie's might have to go into storage for a little bit before she can wear it."
"She'll like it though," Castle said, amused his wife had bought different tartans but all had blue in them. He squeezed her arm and took the scarves, but just to set them down on the counter for her before he was looking at the selection of candies they had.
When Beckett had finished, she wasn't surprised to see her husband buying a bag of Jelly Babies and as they left the store she asked, "Dessert?"
"Oh no," Castle replied, shaking his head quickly. "For our picnic at Alamo Square… maybe if we have a picnic in Golden Gate Park too."
Smiling, as she knew her husband desperately wanted to do that, Beckett looped her arm through his and murmured, "I can't wait."
Castle had to kiss her, their lips only meeting briefly before they were parting, and he stared into her eyes for a moment before they were reaching Grant and needed to turn the corner. He smiled when he saw the familiar gates to Chinatown a block away and he said, "How many times we came here," stating that before his wife was speaking as she squeezed his arm.
"I was thinking that," Beckett replied. "But you know things have changed," she added.
"I realize but we're still going to recall," Castle said.
"I know but I'm just saying that so you won't run around and talk about how it was back then," Beckett explained.
"Oh, I won't," Castle replied quickly. When his wife looked at him, he said, "Seriously. And if I need to, I can say it like this," speaking the last sentence in Irish.
"Good," Beckett replied easily, smiling when he squeezed her hand that was holding onto his arm. As they walked through the gate, they were looking into the stores they were passing and crossed two streets before she was startled when her husband suddenly pulled her into a familiar one.
"Humor me," Castle said.
"For what?" Beckett asked, completely confused. "You're getting stuff for the girls?"
"No… I mean we should, one thing at least," Castle replied. "But for now, I'll get it first."
Beckett, though she was still puzzled, followed her husband through the store though he was stopping soon after they'd gotten to the first of the merchandise. When he started to look through the cinnabar bracelets she smiled, thinking he was getting it for Alexis. She turned to the display nearby of jewelry before her husband was touching her arm. "She'll love it," she said with a smile as he showed her the bracelet he was holding.
"She?" Castle asked with a frown. "It's for you."
Beckett opened her mouth to speak before she stopped herself and then took the light blue cinnabar bracelet from him before slipping it on her right wrist. She smiled as her husband was holding her hand so they could see how it looked and she told him, "I love it."
"Good, I'm getting it for you," Castle said. He looked up into her eyes and said, "You don't mind do you?"
"No," Beckett said with a smile.
"Good," Castle said. He took the bracelet from her and asked, "Would you wear it after I buy it?" At her nod he had to really control himself as he wanted to kiss her but held back when his wife was suddenly looking around them. "What're you looking for?"
"Hold on," Beckett said, starting to go around the different displays. She finally found what she was looking for in the back and she picked up a box, holding it out to him.
Nodding Castle reached up to her and cupped her cheek with his hand for a moment before he said, "It looked something like this."
Smiling, as her husband had said that in Irish Beckett said in the same language, "You can use it?"
"Of course," Castle said firmly as she'd given him a reddish-brown cinnabar box that had a carved landscape on the top and abstract design on the sides. "I do have letters from you."
Beckett was smiling again and wished there weren't other people around them as she wanted to kiss him quickly. "Okay, let's-" she started to say before her husband was stopping her from walking.
Castle had been looking around the selection before he picked one out and then gave it to his wife. "I know you have some from me," as he was giving her a cinnabar box. That one had a flower motif and a circle of what he guessed was a type of white wood in another floral motif. "I'd love for you to keep them here," he murmured to her.
Beckett couldn't stop herself that time and she wrapped her arms around her husband's neck while she still held her box. She shared a kiss with him, their lips pressing together a little roughly before they were soon after parting. "Thank you," she said.
Nodding his head Castle said, "And I do need to say thank you. We should keep the boxes together."
"We will," Beckett said with a smile. She let him go reluctantly, feeling him letting go of her at that moment, and they walked together through the rest of the store. She paused at the incense and looked back at her husband before saying, "I'd like to just get these for them."
"What about Josie?" Castle asked.
"I know, I'm not sure to be honest," Beckett replied. She glanced around and said, "I was thinking of slippers."
"That might work," Castle said. "For winter?"
Beckett nodded and said, "We should get her a size bigger though; once she starts walking they won't really work for her."
"I'll follow you," Castle replied easily.
"We need to get the incense first," Beckett said with a soft laugh.
"Right," Castle said, looking at the boxes that were in front of them. He and his wife were looking at the different scents and they picked out a few boxes for Alexis and Julia. "What will we get for Eliza?" he asked once they'd paused.
"These cone ones," Beckett said. "I feel more comfortable with those for her."
"Good idea, I hadn't thought of them," Castle said, smiling as he watched her picking out rose and then pine. "She's going to think of Christmas," he told her teasingly while they were walking to the shoes.
"She always manages to," Beckett replied easily. Smiling as her husband squeezed her side playfully, she then picked up a pair of brocade slippers in blue and told him, "The girls will like this for her."
"Yes," Castle said simply. When his wife looked at him, he said, "I don't want to say it."
"It's fine if you do," Beckett replied in amusement.
"It's why you picked the color isn't it?" Castle asked in response, studying her. She merely smiled at him and started to walk to the registers with him staring after her. He was breathing out hard for a moment before shaking himself and then hurrying after her as fast as he could.
Once her husband had paid for everything, Beckett was about to walk out of the store when her husband was grabbing her arm gently. "What?" she asked in surprise.
"Here," Castle said, handing her the bracelet.
Beckett was smiling as she slipped it on and then said, "Ready?"
"Now I am," Castle replied firmly. He was smiling as she laughed, and he leaned over, gently kissing her cheek before they were walking back out to Grant. Going north again he nodded to the restaurant they were eventually passing and said, "Let me know whenever you want to have dinner."
"You wouldn't want to eat something different?" Beckett asked him with a smile.
"No, I do like that restaurant," Castle replied. "And it's one of the places we went to regularly."
Beckett couldn't help smiling again and told him, "I remember, but I did want to give you the option."
"You don't need to," Castle said, bringing her hand up to his lips. He kissed it again and they went down past the restaurant, studying the shops they were passing before they stopped at the same time and he turned to his wife.
"We can go," Beckett told him as she squeezed his hand. "I'm starting to get hungry."
"So am I," Castle said, and they turned back around to head to the restaurant. He followed her up the stairs once they'd gone through the doors and he spoke to the host at the desk at the top for them. He then spoke in Mandarin to let them know they wanted just water and tea.
"You surprised him," Beckett said in Irish with a smile.
"I guess I did," Castle said as he'd seen that on the man's face. He then said, "Anything in particular?"
"Yeah, bao," Beckett said simply. When her husband nodded slowly, she said, with a slight laugh, "Anything is good."
"Great, here comes the first cart," Castle said as he'd spotted it first. When the woman had come up to them, he was speaking to her in Mandarin as well, unsurprised when his wife was chiming in as well. "You should be proud of yourself," he said in Irish once they were on their own.
"Why?" Beckett asked in amusement.
"Because you picked it up quickly," Castle commented as they thanked the waiter who was bringing their drinks. He waited for his wife to pick up her cup of tea and he said, "To this trip and… our memories."
Beckett smiled and nodded before she said, "To our memories," before they were tapping their glasses together and taking drinks. She then turned her attention to the food and once they had eaten for a bit she said, "What should we do after this?"
"You're set with shops?" Castle asked her.
"I am, we bought something for the girls so…" Beckett said. "And of course we bought for one another."
"Would you want to go around to any of the clothing shops?" Castle asked her.
"I think I'm good," Beckett said.
"What?" Castle asked as she was looking at him a certain way he wasn't sure what it meant.
"You're trying to buy some things for me," Beckett replied.
"I'd like to," Castle corrected her. He smiled as she laughed and he then said, "But if you wouldn't want to that's fine; I can buy for you, but I can't force you there."
"No," Beckett said simply.
"What're you thinking?" Castle asked as she had a thoughtful expression on her face.
"I'd like to go somewhere, but I need you to go back to our room," Beckett said.
Castle was going to speak but he quickly stopped himself and said, "Okay."
"That's it?" Beckett asked with a smile.
"That's it," Castle said. Since she was considering him, he told her, "I was going to ask if you would be okay but that's a knee-jerk reaction."
"I had a feeling," Beckett commented. She then said, "Alright, we'll split up at Union Square and I'll be back shortly."
"Yeah," Castle replied quickly. They were finishing their food by then; having had sesame balls as their dessert; and he quickly paid before they were leaving. Outside they walked hand in hand together down Grant until they were at Sutter and then Stockton before they walked into the square.
"I shouldn't take too long," Beckett told her husband as they were looking at one another.
"Sure, I'll wait for you," Castle said. "Pool?"
"Maybe tomorrow night," Beckett said.
Hearing her tone of voice, Castle nodded rapidly and said, "Yes," expecting her to comment on that. But her reaction was to kiss his cheek before they were separating. He wanted to linger and watch her to get an idea of where she was going but knew she wouldn't want him to, so he was walking swiftly to the hotel and inside.
Back in the room, Castle took the bag they'd used for their purchases and got the slippers for Josie. Smiling at how tiny they were he put them back and put the bag on a table that was near the door. He looked around the living room and was uncertain for a moment of what to do while he waited. His eyes came to rest on the TV, and he sat on the couch before he turned it on, looking around the different stations to see what he might watch. He did his best not to look at his watch and end up making the time go far slower, and just managed to succeed in doing that for nearly forty minutes. As soon as he heard the door opening, he nearly jumped up before his wife was walking in. "Hey," he said as she turned to him once the door was locked.
"Hey, anything good on?" Beckett asked him.
"I guess," Castle said immediately. When she glanced at him, he shrugged and said, "The Giants were playing the Oakland A's, I was watching that."
"Boring?" Beckett asked.
"I'm watching more because I watched the Giants back when they came to the city," Castle replied.
"In 1958?" Beckett said.
"How do you know that?" Castle asked.
"Dad has a great memory for that," Beckett replied simply. "Don't follow me," she then told him as she was walking into the bedroom.
Castle frowned for a moment as his wife closed the door behind her but shook his head, walking over to the window nearest it to wait for her. Looking down at Union Square he could see the people still walking around before his wife was opening the door.
"Mind if we watch the rest of the game?" Beckett asked her with a smile as she stepped out to him.
"No, but I will point out it could run long," Castle said as he followed her to the couch.
"That's okay," Beckett said simply, smiling at him before she sat.
"Can I ask why you changed?" Castle asked her.
"You can," Beckett said.
When his wife didn't continue Castle said, "Do I really need to ask again?"
Beckett couldn't help laughing and she wrapped her arms around her husband, kissing his cheek. She then said, "I just felt like it."
"You bought this?" Castle asked, touching the skirt of her abstract patterned sundress.
"I did, I saw it in the window," Beckett said. "Once we were going to Chinatown."
"I could have gotten it for you," Castle said.
"I was fine on my own," Beckett said. She smiled when her husband reluctantly nodded and then said, "Let's watch the game."
"Would you want a drink or anything with it?" Castle asked her.
"No, I'm good," Beckett replied. "I'd want my head to be clear for this."
Though he was nodding in agreement with that Castle had a feeling she wasn't talking about the baseball game they were soon watching. They were silent until a commercial break and he was about to comment on something when his wife was doing so first.
"Who do you think we should root for?" Beckett asked him.
"I was going to ask you that myself," Castle replied. "And honestly I don't know… I guess the Giants."
Beckett nodded before she was turning back to the game though she wasn't really paying much attention to it. That was even more the case when her husband took her right hand, gently moving her bracelet she still had on up and down the limb. She glanced at him and then turned off the TV saying, "They're ahead anyways," as her husband looked at her questioningly.
"Which team?" Castle asked.
"The Giants but I don't really care," Beckett replied easily before she was moving with his help.
With his wife settled on his lap Castle asked, "Tell you about that night now?"
"Please," Beckett said as she wrapped her arms around his neck.
"Okay, it was the Friday night after; so December eighth in 1933 and we had somehow managed to get invitations out in a few days," Castle started with, his arms around his wife's waist. "We also asked everyone to dress in twenties clothes for the club and they all did. You were wearing your dress you kept."
Beckett was smiling as she then told him, "I told you before we drove into the city… or took a ferry into the city, that I saved it for a reason. Though I'm recalling wearing it for you as I got older."
"You did," Castle said with a nod. "But that night we got to the beach and the club and we had Skye, Mary and Patrick with us. Your mom was watching the kids for us." When she nodded, he then continued saying, "We were waiting for everyone to get the tables ready before we were going to look at the vault."
"I don't know how you did it," Rick said, seeing all the bottles that were on the shelves. "But you managed to find more than enough for tonight."
"I have a lot of swell friends," Patrick said. "And the coppers know not to stop us now."
"He said there were tons of people at Haussler's," Mary explained.
"I was fourth in the door when he opened," Patrick said.
"But we have our liqueurs back," Rose began with a nod. "And now we have the chance to serve them without worrying about the coppers; sorry."
Shaking his head Rick said, "I'm not one any longer." He then said, "We'll have to go out," as he was checking his pocket watch.
"Our guests are arriving?" Kate asked her husband.
"They will shortly," Rick answered before he was taking some bottles, along with Patrick and Skye. They went to the bar and as the others were getting the bottles set on their shelves to display, he went with his wife to the entrance. "Happy love?" he asked her.
"I am, Da's club finally is back to what he wanted it to be," Kate said. "No longer illegal." She had to turn her attention as they could hear some familiar car horns. "Look!" she said in delight. "They've brought their Tin Lizzies."
Rick loved her obvious joy in seeing the cars, and he wrapped his arm around her for a moment before he then said, "They must have started out earlier with those jalopies."
"These are no jalopies," Brad called, waving to them.
"Hello Lily!" Kate called to her friend. She waved at the two before they were leaving the automobile, but they only had a moment to greet them as more and more people were starting to come in.
"We decided, for the occasion, to charge a fee for drinks," Castle said.
"Do you remember how much? It was the Depression and the New Deal was just barely starting to help," Beckett said.
"Yeah, the alcohol being legal again helped some money get out there," Castle said. "Including us. But to answer your question I'm sure we charged two dollars."
Thinking that over Beckett said, "That sounds right. It's enough for us to get a profit since we were packed that night. And it would keep everyone from drinking our supplies. And we had food."
"That was fifty cents," Castle said. "And they paid. That was it along with that and drinks."
"Keep going," Beckett said with a smile as she was gently running her hand over the back of his head.
Castle didn't need to be told twice though he was taking a moment to enjoy the feel of her touch. Once he did speak, he began with, "When we were all there you and I went inside to the stage where the band was, and you made a toast."
"I would like to thank you all here to the Blue Bay on this momentous night," Kate was saying, holding up her glass of champagne. "And join us in toasting Junior who made this club the joint it is today. And of course we can't forget the President, Mr. Roosevelt we thank you for making speakeasies no more!"
"To Junior!" everyone was calling out. "To Roosevelt!" They were tapping their glasses together and drinking before they were starting to walk around and taking turns at the bar.
"Mingle my love?" Rick asked his wife.
"I'd love to," Kate said, seeing her sister gesturing to her. While she and Rick were walking around and talking to others the rest of their family was doing the same. Once dinner was being served, she and Rick sat with the other three and said, "It's too bad Ma wouldn't come."
"You think she would though?" Rose asked. "She was never one for funny juice."
"No, but she would have loved seeing everyone honoring Da and Junior," Kate said, not surprised her sister started to nod at that. She smiled across the table at her and then started to eat, speaking with the others though Patrick was soon asking about her children.
"Are they all swell?" he asked. "I feel like we haven't seen them in ages."
"Of course, you'll see them Sunday at least," Kate replied.
"They're a little sore that Josephine will turn another year before they will," Rick commented.
"But not so much that they despise her," Kate said.
"Good, Ma would be livid at that," Rose said with a smile.
"Are you sure you can't stay here as well?" Kate told her twin.
Shaking her head Rose told her, "I'm very sure. And we wouldn't want to stick our nose in anyone's business."
As she was rolling her eyes, Kate had to reach down under the tablecloth as her husband was staring to reach for the hem of her dress. She did her best to continue to talk with the others, as her husband would periodically rub her thigh, and was relieved when she made it through the meal without letting anyone else know what he was doing. As soon as the plates were cleared for them, she was standing up and going to the band.
Following her shortly after, Rick reached his wife in time for the music to begin and he lowered his head to her ear asking her, "Might I have this dance?"
Kate nodded rapidly, taking his hand before they were walking together over to the middle of the dance floor since only a few people had gathered. They were soon after dancing the Charleston together; their music for that evening strictly jazz.
"We did a ton of dancing that night," Castle said.
"We did," Beckett said with a smile.
"What's that for?" Castle asked, brushing his fingertips across her lower lip.
"Because we did that mostly together," Beckett replied. She then dipped her head to his and they were kissing briefly. "We had dessert."
"Yes, Baked Alaska," Castle said in amusement.
"Flambéed in alcohol," Beckett said, her tone the same. She then said, "And we danced again. We took a break out on the beach but not for very long."
"No, though we did get to kiss for a while," Castle reminded her. He then smiled and said, "So at least we weren't making love right on the beach."
"No," Beckett said in amusement. "And after the party was over?"
"Well, because of curfew and it was a weeknight," Castle said.
"I remember that," Beckett said with a nod. "So we finished at what time on the ninth?"
"It stopped at twelve-thirty and everyone was gone by one," Castle answered. "And that included your sister and in laws."
"Let's go," Beckett said before her husband could say anything. She stood up and walked over to the bedroom, not surprised to find her husband was following very closely behind her. She smiled at him and then said, "Sit with me."
"Of course," Castle replied as they were going to the edge of the bed. "Do you want me to keep going?"
"Of course," Beckett said firmly.
Smiling for a moment at her tone, Castle said, "Then you and I went to the 'bedroom' in the back of the club. I let you go inside first while I was watching you walking around on your own."