With the last glass placed on the table, Kate finally lets herself heave a sigh of relief and then glance at her watch. She'd rushed home after Eli's play and begged her mother to come along to help, in order to put the finishing touches on dinner and set the table.
It'd all been done with the real fear Castle, Alexis, and Martha would arrive before she finished, but her watch tells Kate it's now 7:45 p.m. and her dinner guests, her father, and her son should arrive soon. She's less bothered by the latter two being delayed, knowing that a room of kids hyped up on adrenaline from a successful performance, as well as the knowledge Santa is mere days away, means there's no successful strategy for a quick exit.
It's part of the reason she took her dad's offer to bring Eli with him, though she'd insisted on hugging and kissing her kid's cheek until he'd squirmed away and vigorously rubbed off the lipstick stain Kate left behind. But he'd come back a moment later to hug her and ask if he'd done a good job, and beamed when she assured him he was the best one on the stage.
Snapping herself out of the memory of his big smile, she hurries back into the kitchen. One look at Johanna is enough to know her mother isn't feeling her urgency to rush preparing food. She's at the island, humming to herself and leisurely tossing the salad Kate asked her to take care of.
"Mom, are you done with that?" Kate hears the snap in her voice and mentally cringes because it's not her mother's fault she extended an impromptu dinner invitation and quickly had to pivot to a different meal that would feed three more people. But she'd still prefer that meal be largely finished when the guests arrive.
"I'll be done in a minute." There's nothing of note in Johanna's reply, but Kate grumbles under her breath anyway while carrying two other side dishes to the table. What she can't see is her mother's knowing grin, though true to her word the salad is fully mixed and ready for serving when her daughter comes back for it.
With how fast Kate's walking, Johanna's really waiting for her to misstep and turn an ankle. Her black dress with the off-shoulder neckline and flared skirt is beautiful, and the velvet-trimmed pumps with the crystal straps are truly stunning footwear, but four-inch heels aren't meant to be worn when you are scurrying to put a meal onto a table.
She knows why Katie dressed up. It's the same reason she's flustered the meal might not be to everyone's taste, or someone might object to a simple pot roast and sides. But Johanna just waits it out, carefully placing the warm bread and two salad dressings into her lap before she rolls into the dining room.
"Drinks and the roast are all that we have left," she announces, a moment later hearing the thunk of ice hitting the bottom of an empty glass. Once she's made it back into the kitchen, Kate's holding the pitcher against the refrigerator door and watching the filtered water pour into the container. "You can breathe, Katie. It's going to work out."
"I'm fine," she responds quickly, but Johanna can feel her daughter urging the water to pour faster. If the look on her face wasn't enough of a clue, she starts tapping her foot against the hardwood floor and Johanna fails to disguise her amused snort.
"What, mom?" Kate asks, caught somewhere between exasperation and annoyance.
Johanna almost shrugs off the question, prepared to lie to spare a fight with her daughter. But there's something else coming off Katie in waves; fear and guilt. The guilt is what she's glimpsing when Kate thinks no one is looking, and that's what she can't abide. Her daughter beating herself up for wanting to move on with her life.
"Rick and Martha have never struck me as the sort who will get upset they were invited for a meal and only got served pot roast," Johanna says, all too aware that if she dives into the actual topic at hand that Kate will just pick a fight to avoid it. "So what's really going on here?"
With the pitcher mostly full, Kate is delayed from having to answer while she deposits it onto the table, but once back in the kitchen she rolls her eyes at her mother's expectant look.
"The only thing left to do is remove the roast from the stove, but it needs a few more minutes," Johanna responds, ignoring the look in favor of some gentle prodding. "So you might as well tell me, or I'll just keep asking. You'll get upset, we'll have a fight, and it'll spoil your evening."
Realizing there's no way out, Kate goes still, internalizing the battle that has been waging since Rick Castle came to town. Though, really, small skirmishes have broken out before now. There was the lawyer she met while testifying in a vehicular manslaughter case last year, and a mechanic from Pine Hills she'd met through a mutual friend. The mechanic lasted the longest, getting four dates before Kate decided it wasn't right.
But Johanna watched her beat herself up in the days before and after those dates. Kate never said she felt she was betraying Tom, but she talked about him more than usual. She had even pulled out their wedding album and shown a somewhat uninterested Eli all the photos from the ceremony.
"I just want everyone to have a good time," her daughter finally says, giving a cursory glance at her watch. Now it's Johanna's turn to roll her eyes, and to snag Kate's hand when she walks past her chair. The action is enough that she pauses, and when Johanna gives a gentle tug Kate dutifully kneels so they can easily lock eyes.
"Please understand that I'm saying this because I love you," she begins, lightly squeezing Kate's hand with her own. "It's not to hurt you or to make you angry with me, but because I don't want you to ruin something by being scared."
"Mom, what…."
Leaning over her chair, Johanna puts both of her hands on Kate's cheeks so she has no choice but to meet her eyes. Then she leans forward to drop a quick kiss between her daughter's eyebrows. "Tom wants you to be happy."
She watches Kate's eyes widen with surprise and then glaze over with tears. Her mouth crumples a moment later, and soon her daughter is pulling away and getting to her feet. Johanna can't help the slight sting of hurt that wells up, even if she knows Kate isn't pushing her away, just trying to contain her emotions.
"I know that," Kate sniffs, discreetly wiping under her eyes when a couple of tears spillover. "That doesn't mean it's easy."
"You're right, it doesn't," Johanna agrees. "Loss is a very personal thing, Kate. Someone else could live through a similar situation and never feel the time was right to move on, another could find it had come a year later. I'm not saying you should just jump in because Rick is here and the two of you still have this connection." She has to fight a smile when Kate immediately opens her mouth to object, only to be silenced by the knowing glint in Johanna's eyes. "I'm saying that I don't want you to deny yourself something magical out of a sense of duty or fear that you may get hurt again. If you aren't ready, then you aren't. But if you are, then you should seize the moment."
Over on the island, Kate's phone rings with an alarm meant to remind her the roast is done. She's removed one of these from the pot dozens of times in life, and easily tips out some of the excess liquid into a large bowl with a strainer placed on top to catch the meat and vegetables also within her dutch oven. But the whole time, she's dwelling on what her mother said.
When Kate's transferred the remainder of the main course into its serving dish and inserted the spoon, she's worked out what she wants to say to Johanna. As usual, her mother is patiently waiting for whatever comes next and she realizes this is one of those times where Johanna is just there to listen versus suggesting what Kate should or shouldn't do.
"Rick's the one who got away," she admits softly, proud that she manages not to blush in front of her mother. "He's the guy every person I dated was compared to. Tom was the only one who could match him, and sometimes I think that's why I fell so hard."
"I'm sensing a 'but' coming…."
"His life is in New York, mom. Mine is here. Even if I want to, how are we supposed to build something when you might see each other every other weekend?" It's a rhetorical question, but one Johanna doesn't get to answer once Eli comes barreling into the kitchen with Jim, Castle, Alexis, and Martha close behind.
Kate gets little more than a glance at her son before he's wrapping his arms around her legs and squeezing. "Rick said he wants to see my comic books," he announces at top volume, tilting his head up to look at her. It's then she realizes her son has a crown on his head, though it's currently off-kilter and sloping toward his left eye. An additional look shows her that Eli's also wearing a navy blue robe that's easily two sizes too big, the hem wet and slightly muddy from dragging the ground.
He's still wearing the red and green striped pants and pointed shoe covers meant for his elf costume in the Christmas pageant, but she's at a loss for where he found the rest of it.
"Eli, whose crown is that?" she asks sharply, catching her father's eye as he takes off his coat. Jim just shrugs.
"I think both must belong to Connor Brandt. They were standing together before we left and then some of the crowd got in the way. Once they moved on, Eli was wearing the robe and crown, and Connor was gone. I assume wearing Eli's elf hat and shirt," he explains while they both watch Eli give a dramatic toss of the robe's trailing ends. The action sends the crown toppling off his head and Kate cringes when he dives to catch it. She just knows she'll end up apologizing to Tanya Brandt because her son destroyed her child's costume, which she probably made herself.
Deciding it's not worth battling Eli to take it off right now, Kate readjusts the crown on his head and drops a quick kiss against his hair. Beside her, Alexis is carefully placing a bakery box onto the kitchen island and gives a small grin when she notices Kate watching her. "We got a chocolate cake. Salted caramel filling between the layers. It's not very Christmas-y, but it looked amazing."
Kate just laughs because Eli has already climbed onto one of the island stools and is leaning over the box with wide eyes. "I'm sure it will be delicious. Thanks for bringing it, Alexis," she adds, shooting a stern look to her son when he slides a hand toward the box. Eli quickly takes the hint and slides off the stool into the relative safety of Johanna's arms and she takes a moment to greet Martha with a hug.
"My dear, I have to tell you that your son is a delight," Martha tells her once they've released one another. "And he's very talented on the stage. I was so impressed by his timing during the play tonight. You should consider putting him into acting classes and really letting him hone his abilities."
While she knows Martha means no harm with the unsolicited advice, Kate has to work carefully to school her features so she doesn't signal to the older woman just how unlikely it is that she would put Eli into any acting class. It's not that she disapproves, but more so that he's only six and so far from sticking to most of his current interests. "I'll think about it," she promises, and then like a moth to a flame Kate feels Castle's eyes on her. She doesn't actively think about looking for him, she just automatically does and feels the electricity flow when their eyes lock while he speaks to her mother.
"Dinner is ready whenever everyone wants to take their seats," Kate says after a moment, doing her best to ignore how her stomach flips once she realizes Rick has flowers in one hand.
He brought her flowers, even though they're sitting down to dinner with both of their families and it will surely bring up all kinds of questions. She's absurdly touched by the gesture and realizes just how much she'd like to thank him for it.
And maybe not just with words. Or holding his hand under the table.
Lost in thought, Kate doesn't notice that everyone else has picked up on how she and Castle are staring at one another. But she does tune back in to hear her mother suggest everyone go to the dining room. Within seconds, it's just her and Rick in the kitchen. Someone has even taken the pot roast into the other room.
Left alone, she feels her pulse slightly increase, though it could also be due to the way his eyes are roving over her. Castle's gaze feels a bit like x-ray vision, and Kate has to actively keep herself from fidgeting under it. But he looks a little gobsmacked, leaving her proud that she took the time to dress up.
"You look amazing," Rick finally says, his voice full of gravel which makes her stomach flip for a completely different reason. When he steps forward, Kate can't decide if she should meet him halfway or take one back, wholly afraid that if he were to get too close she might kiss him despite the five other people waiting a few feet away.
It's not the first time she's wished there was a wall separating the dining room and kitchen, but it's the first time she's wanted one to have a private moment with a man.
But Castle just grabs her hand and smiles, passing the flowers to her with his free one. "I got these for you," he says softly, a certain sweetness in his voice that makes it so hard to resist eliminating the couple of inches separating them to touch her mouth to his.
He's like a magnet, and the pull just grows stronger now that she's lowered some of her barriers.
"Thank you," she manages instead, gently running her thumb over the silky petal of a purple lily with a golden-yellow center. The whole bouquet is breathtaking, filled with a couple of her favorite flowers, her favorite color, and a selection of wildflowers that make the arrangement look a bit like someone just went into a meadow and scooped them up.
What she should do is step away and put them into some water, but what happens is Rick uses their joined hands to pull Kate closer. The cellophane wrapper on the flowers crinkles when it's slightly crushed between them, and her breath catches.
"MOM, COME ON, I'M HUNGRY."
Though the bellow from Eli is followed by a sharp admonishment from her mother, it serves to pop the bubble between Kate and Rick. He's quick to take a step away with a rueful smile, an apology flashing in his eyes. "I'm sorry, I shouldn't have…."
"There's no apology necessary," she says quickly, and then holds up the flowers. "Go ahead and take a seat. I'm going to put these in water and I'll be right there."
Once Rick has gone into the dining room, Kate pulls a vase from one of the lower cabinets built into her kitchen island. Standing at the sink, watching the water fill the crystal container, she forces herself to take slow, deep breaths and resolutely tries not to think what it'd be like to kiss Castle after 15 years.
With their dinner largely complete, Jim Beckett decides Alexis Castle is an exceptional teenager.
She's smart and poised; and had both managed to engage his six-year-old grandson with a discussion about some television show involving Yoda and a Mandalorian, whatever that is, and talk to both himself and Johanna about her burgeoning interest in environmental law.
He can't think of many adults who could pull that off, never mind teenagers. While he tries not to judge, most of the boys and girls he sees who are Alexis' age rarely look up from their phones and rely on text messages rather than actual conversation.
The only strike he can find is how little she knows about baseball, though Jim has no memory of Rick being interested in sports. He'd attended a few games with their family years ago, but that time was spent observing people in the stands versus learning the nuances of the game. Alexis, however, has an analytical mind that he thinks might take to his favorite hobby.
Not that it matters. Given his daughter's continued denial of her feelings for Rick Castle, he's unlikely to see the man's daughter ever again once Christmas has come and gone.
He's surprisingly undecided on his feelings about it. A few days ago, Jim would have said Rick couldn't get out of town fast enough, but now he's sitting at a dinner table and watching the man crack jokes that have his grandson in stitches and his daughter trying to hide just how much she adores watching the two of them bond.
Even when Eli hasn't been part of the conversation; when it's just Kate and Rick with heads bent together, his daughter is almost always smiling or laughing. Ever since Tom died, most of her genuine laughs are reserved for her son.
She's clearly happy, and that's enough to lift some of the reservations he carries about Rick. Not all of them, but some.
"You look very serious."
Johanna's eyes are twinkling when he glances her way, but there's a slight frown painting her mouth nonetheless. Her plate is empty, as is his, and he snags her hand to give it a squeeze. "I'm alright, Jo. Just thinking."
His wife's eyes leave his face to settle on the far end of the table where Alexis is gesturing wildly as she tells Kate and Rick some story that has both of them laughing. Eli's leaning over in his seat and looking at photos Martha is showing him on her phone, oohing and ahhing at things Jim hopes aren't inappropriate for a six-year-old.
Martha's a wonderful woman, but sometimes she gets ahead of herself.
"She loves him, Jim," Johanna murmurs, patting his hand. "Maybe she always has in some capacity, I don't know. But I do know she's scared to death."
It's only fear of Katie's wrath if she were to overhear that halts his squawk of protest, but he still shakes his head. "He's been in town for five days. How can she possibly be in love with him again?"
Johanna just offers him a patient smile, unlacing their hands to push a lock of hair off his forehead. "It doesn't take everyone six years to realize they're in love, Jim. Some of us move a lot faster than you." She's teasing, but he still has to concede that she's right. How many times had Jo told him she knew within the first week of their him that they were going to end up together, while he went on for years oblivious they shared anything but friendship.
"She loves him. She just hasn't realized it yet," Johanna repeats, giving him a soft smile.
As they talk, Rick and Kate both slide their seats back nearly in unison and Alexis is quick to join them. The three all start gathering up empty plates and glasses, which is a signal to Eli that the meal is finally over and he's allowed to leave the table. Once all the dishes are stacked and carried into the kitchen, he's wiggling from his chair and Jim distantly hears his thundering footsteps up the stairs and then a dull thump. If he had to guess, the trailing robe probably foiled his grandson yet again.
"Alexis and I need to go upstairs for a few minutes, but I can get everyone dessert before we go," Kate offers before he, Johanna, or Martha leave the table.
"Kate, no," Martha says with a shake of her head. "I'm happy to wait a bit for cake and coffee. Take your time with Alexis." Johanna is quick to agree, which is enough of an answer that Jim won't be the lone holdout.
Mimicking the earlier trio, all three of them leave the table at the same time with Johanna directing traffic into Kate's living room. It's by far the most comfortable spot in the house with two overstuffed couches, Tom's beloved leather armchair, and a huge wall of bookshelves, photos, and other mementos from his daughter and grandson's life.
What he appreciates most is the collection of vintage records and his father's ancient record player gifted to Kate decades ago. There's also a prized baseball signed by the 1994 Yankees, though it'd actually belonged to his late son-in-law.
He takes the armchair by default, knowing Johanna prefers to position her chair beside it. Martha settles onto the couch as the thundering footsteps sound over their heads, followed shortly by the same pattern on the stairs. Soon enough, Eli's flinging himself onto the couch and yelling, "RICK, I HAVE SPIDER-MAN."
For such a small person, the kid has a set of lungs. Jim and Johanna move to correct him in tandem for yelling and then, from the back of the house, Kate shouts "MR. CASTLE, ELI."
With a heavy sigh, Eli flips open his book and jiggles his legs in excitement when footsteps sound from down the hall.
A moment later, Rick turns the corner and the Eli lights up, asking for him to sit on the couch. Once he obliges the request, Eli's practically crawling on his lap, talking rapidly about a goblin, Spider-Man, and some other plot points. With careful hands, he gently grasps the hardcover book in one hand and Eli's arm in the other. "We can read it together, buddy. Just have a seat," he coaxes, smiling when the six-year-old carefully sits beside him.
"Alright, what do we have here?" Rick asks, flipping to the cover. Rather than a traditional comic book, this is a hardcover that contains a series of short illustrated stories documenting the adventures of Spider-Man. Opening the cover, he flips through several pages until he finds the table of contents. "Cause for creation, Science vs. science, Hulk disposal, Last days of Summer…." he reads the various titles, waiting for the kid next to him to chime in with his preferred tale.
When he stops, Eli leans forward and flips the page, jabbing a finger toward 'The Amazing Spider-Kid,' "That's my favorite," he says with a grin.
"Well, if it's your favorite, how can we not?" Rick says with a smile, sticking his thumb between the pages near where he expects the story will start. He proves to be about seven pages shy of the beginning, requiring a few more turns. Once in the right place, he clears his throat and tilts the book so Eli can see the illustrations, then quietly begins to read as to not disturb anyone else in the room.
They're two pages into it when Kate and Alexis leave the kitchen, and it's the slow cadence of Rick's voice that draws them past the stairs and to the living room across the hall. Her parents and Martha are at the far end of the room, engrossed in a conversation though each of them shoots covert looks at Eli and Rick as they sit on her couch.
Her son is curled against him, head resting on Castle's arm and his eyes already growing heavy. She's not surprised given the big day he's had with the play performance and the morning's rehearsal, but Kate isn't about to swoop in and cart him off to bed. She just stands in the cased opening to the room a little longer, letting the soothing tones of the Spider-Man adventure she's read to Eli dozens of times wash over her as her heart fills with appreciation for Rick Castle.
Pulling her bottom lip between her teeth, she chances a glance at the teenager beside her. Alexis is smiling, and there's a slight sadness in her eyes that she doesn't quite manage to hide when she notices Kate's look. "Sorry, I just…." she shakes her head, stepping back into the hallway with a shrug. "I always wanted a sibling, and it never worked out."
Kate had a few years like that herself and had even gone so far one Christmas as to ask Santa to bring her a sibling. It hadn't happened, which she later realized was probably because her parents were older when they welcomed her into the world and the risk of Johanna trying to carry another was likely too great. "I know that feeling," she tells Alexis, gesturing for the teenager to take the stairs first. "I spent the better part of one summer asking my mom what I needed to do to get a brother or sister, and then tattled on her to my grandmother for failing to give me a good answer."
Alexis tips her head back and laughs at that, pausing at the top of the stairs. "I've never done that," she admits, falling into step beside Kate when she goes past a stuffed bookshelf which includes some of Castle's greatest hits, and then opens the first door they come to. "But I did try to bargain with my parents for a sibling, and when they said no I asked for a pony instead."
Kate's mouth twitches with a smile at the story, easily able to picture a precocious redhead in pigtails and a pink dress while she tries to charm her parents. "Did you get a pony?"
"Sadly, no," Alexis replies, reaching back to gather her long hair up and then use the hair tie on her wrist to secure it at the nape of her neck. "Dad agreed we could get a dog instead. His agent lets us dogsit her Boston Terrier for a weekend, but my mom turned out to be allergic and that was the end of it."
"That's terrible," the older woman says with a frown, opening her closet door and flipping the light switch. Standing in her bedroom, Alexis can only see a section of one wall, but there's a rack with several coats and three pairs of tall boots neatly arranged underneath. "But I get it," Kate continues, her voice a bit muffled when she steps into the closet. "I only had a goldfish as a kid. My parents didn't think I was responsible enough to care for a dog or a cat and resisted my requests for one."
She's laughing when she enters the bedroom again, carrying four long evening gowns by their hangers. "In hindsight, I can't say they were wrong about that," she shrugs, flashing a rueful smile. "I was pretty wild as a kid, and that held fast until about age 23."
The statement prompts a lot of questions from Alexis, who quickly does the math in her head and combines it with what she already knows about Kate's relationship with her father. "Weren't you dating my dad then?"
She's carefully placing the dresses onto her bed when Alexis asks, but there's a flash of surprise in how Kate's eyes widen. "Wow, I wasn't expecting that," she admits with a small laugh, absently scratching at a spot on her neck. "But yeah, we were dating then. Though it really had nothing to do with your dad. God knows he's just a big kid at heart."
"The biggest," Alexis chuckles. "We have a top-of-the-line laser tag set at home. He claims he bought our first one for my seventh birthday so my friends and I would have some fun, but we've played it far more than I ever did with any friends I invited over."
"Please tell me you regularly destroy him," Kate says with no small amount of glee. "He was so insufferable whenever I'd agree to play any sort of game, and then he'd get upset if he lost." There's a small pause then, almost as if she's unsure if she should finish the thought, but Kate licks her lips and grins. "It made beating him way more fun."
Pressing her lips together to try to keep from laughing, Alexis nods. "No, both of those things are still very true. But I'm currently winning. We keep a running tally of points scored, and I'm up 456 to 439."
"Good girl," Kate praises, quickly returning to her closet to pick up one more dress. This one is an emerald green one-shoulder gown with a crystal belt that she'd bought on a whim and never worn. It'd just never felt right. But Alexis' eyes track the garment from the time she exits the closet until she's standing by the bed where all the others are draped. "Maybe you should start with this one?" she asks with a smile, holding the hanger out for the teenager to take.
Alexis doesn't hesitate, grasping the hanger with one hand and draping the rest of the dress over one arm. "It's really pretty," she murmurs, immediately stepping toward the bathroom when Kate points to the open door.
"Light switch is on your right," Kate adds quickly, relaxing slightly when the light turns on and the redhead gives her a smile as she closes the door.
With nothing to do but wait for Alexis to emerge, Kate takes to pacing her room. She's on her second turn when she hears the creak in the floorboard at the top of the stairs, followed closely by slow, measured footsteps. Her door is open, so all she has to do is wait for her guest to appear.
She'd been expecting to see Martha, sure the woman is curious as to what dress Alexis likes or perhaps hoping to give advice on what best suits her granddaughter. Instead, Kate is greeted by Castle wearing a sheepish smile, and her six-year-old with his arms and legs wrapped around Rick's torso like a koala.
Without speaking, he turns slightly to give her a better view of Eli's sleeping face. His long eyelashes form a dark fan against his skin, and his mouth is open with a bit of drool seeping out that's sure to leave a wet patch on Rick's shirt. "Just point me to his room and I'll put him in bed," he whispers, an apology for letting her son fall asleep written in every facial muscle.
"First door on the right," she replies softly, hovering in the doorway of her bedroom until Rick opens the door and eases inside with Eli. "Alexis," Kate says a moment later, raising her voice enough that she's sure the teenager can hear her inside the bathroom. "I'm going to put Eli to bed. I'll be back in a few minutes."
By the time she steps into Eli's room, Rick has already lowered him onto his bed. It's usually the trickiest part of the transition as far as keeping her son asleep, and Kate can't help but be impressed with his skill. He looks like he's going to leave Eli sleeping on top of the blankets, so she steps in with a small smile and points to the crown somehow still on his head. "If you'll take that off, I'll handle the rest," she offers, sitting on the edge of the bed to untie the robe sash and ease Eli's right arm out of the garment.
She's pleased to note he's still wearing the t-shirt he'd had on when they left the house earlier, meaning he's truly only lost two parts of his play costume. With his other arm out of its sleeve, Kate chuckles softly when her gentle nudge sends her son rolling onto his side, freeing most of the robe from under his body.
Rick seems to read her mind before she acts, leaning in to lift Eli's legs from the mattress so the remainder of it slides free. He sleeps on when Kate hangs the robe on the closet doorknob and is equally unphased at the removal of his elf slippers. She chooses to leave him in his socks and then glances at Castle with an unspoken request he picks her son up a second time. As Eli's lifted off the mattress once again, Kate draws the blankets back and Rick immediately puts him back into bed. Seconds later she's tugging the blankets up to his shoulders and smudging a kiss into her son's hair, marveling at how easy that all was.
"Thanks for that," she whispers once she's stood up, finding his hand and fitting her smaller one into it. With a slight tug, Rick is following her to Eli's doorway and pauses when she turns on a lamp that projects stars onto the ceiling. "You're pretty great with him."
He shrugs at that, running his thumb over the knuckles of their joined hands. "He's n excellent kid, and we like a lot of the same things…." Rick grins, wiggling his eyebrows at her.
"Oh, I know. It's one of the big draws for him," Kate chuckles, leaning back against the door frame and glancing over her shoulder at her sleeping son. The image of Eli curled up with Rick on her couch replays in her mind as she stands there, squeezing at her heart with its sweetness and possibility. And she can't help but think of what she told her mother about her connection to the man that's been so open and honest ever since he crashed back into her life.
"Well, it's not just Eli I'm thinking about here," Rick murmurs a moment later, taking a step closer to her. "You're the biggest piece of this puzzle, Kate."
She swallows at his confession, and when her tongue darts out to lick her dry lips, Castle's eyes track the movement. "I don't want to scare you, or to push you into something you don't want, but there's still something here," he adds, his voice gravelly and low. He's close enough now that the skirt of her dress is brushing against the denim covering his legs, and she can see the beginning of a five o'clock shadow dusting his jawline.
Releasing an unsteady breath, Kate meets his eyes only to be hit by the intention painted on his face. He wants to kiss her; if she'll let him.
She could call him off, tell him now isn't the time, but the words won't come. And deep down, there's part of Kate which doesn't care. Let him kiss her with her son and his daughter mere feet away. She'll deal with the repercussions when they come.
When Rick leans in, she's sure there's a moment when her heart stops beating, and try as she might to keep her eyes open, they close on their own. So she misses when he diverts to the side of her face, lips landing squarely in the space where her ear meets her cheek. "I want to kiss you," is the next thing she hears, followed by a second peck in the same spot.
"Castle," Kate manages little more than a whisper, turning her head until their noses brush. "I…."
She has no idea if he intended to ask for permission, and it doesn't matter anyway because there's the whisper of his breath against her lips, followed by the feel of Rick's mouth sliding over hers. Somewhere in the back of her throat, Kate releases a groan of relief and tilts her head to give him better purchase.
And then it shatters as quickly as it started. Suddenly Rick's pulling away and looking toward the opposite side of the hall. It's Alexis in Kate's bedroom, her voice full of excitement as she calls her to come see the dress.
"I'll be right there," she replies, slumping slightly until her forehead rests on Castle's shoulder. She groans a second later, releasing a long breath and stepping away from him before she does something stupid like kiss him senseless against her son's bedroom door. And Rick seems to get it because he pulls Eli's door closed and dusts a kiss on her cheek before slipping back downstairs.
Curled in his warm bed with his favorite Teddy Bear, Eli is mostly asleep. He remembers the play and dinner, of Alexis talking to him about The Avengers and Rick reading him his favorite Spider-Man story.
If he thinks hard, there are soft voices and touches. His mom giving him a goodnight kiss and his night light of stars turning on.
With a sigh, he rolls over and opens his eyes wishing he had some water to drink. He's suddenly very thirsty, but not so much that he wants to leave his bed to get anything. Instead, Eli clutches his bear tighter and closes his eyes, but his half-memory won't quite leave.
It's fuzzy on the edges. His mom and Rick are in his door, standing way closer than he's ever seen them. And then he remembers the last thing he saw before falling into the good sort of sleep where he dreams about being a superhero.
His mom kissed Rick.
For the second time since he woke up, Eli's eyes pop open. The stars are still flickering on the ceiling and he smiles up at them. Sarah Grace had told him to ask Jesus as well as Santa, and it looks like she was right.
He's got part of his wish already.
"You guys are fast," he whispers to Jesus and Santa with a sleepy smile, drifting yet again into the land of dreams.