A/N: Thanks for your reviews!

Chapter 5

"Is it all going to fit?" Johanna asked late Sunday morning as she stood by holding a bag that needed to go in the trunk of the car.

Jim shifted things around and then took the bag from her hand. "Anything breakable in here?" he asked.

"No."

He wedged the bag in and closed the trunk. "That's all we're getting in the trunk, sweetheart; the rest will have to go in the back with Scarlett."

"I better get her in her carrier," Johanna replied. "I'll have to give her a treat once she gets in so she'll feel rewarded."

Jim nodded, a small smile playing on his lips. "We can't have her going unrewarded for doing what we want…but once we get her settled in the back, we can pack the rest of the stuff in."

Johanna headed back to the house and he followed behind her, watching her bound up the steps to the back porch as if she hadn't spent most of the past thirty-six hours in a frenzy of knocking things off their to-do list so that they could leave today instead of Monday morning. She was desperate to get away he thought to himself as he followed her into the house and took a seat at the table as she went off to find her pet. He couldn't really blame her, why hang around when you weren't wanted or needed? Everyone they knew would be busy this week, preparing for family arrivals and the holiday itself. He had called Jeff and asked him if he'd collect the mail, which he had agreed to willingly…but he had also had to hear how excited his best friend was to have Noah in his home for Christmas Eve for the first time. He didn't begrudge Jeff and Maggie the joy of finally getting to spend Christmas with their grandson…but it only served to remind him that he wouldn't be having that joy with McKenzie…and he had to admit that he felt as sour about it as Johanna did. He had skimmed through his Facebook newsfeed the night before and had been inundated by the posts of happy friends and family anticipating the holiday, sharing pictures of preparations, decorations, grandchildren and favorite memories of holidays past. He was sure that Johanna had also gotten a nice dose on her own Facebook page…and he was sure it was probably what motivated her to get the hell out of town as soon as possible.

Jim breathed deeply; he had woke up at five Saturday morning, his hand reaching for his wife to pull her close but he had found her place vacant. A search of the house had found her giving the house that good cleaning she wanted it to have before they left…she had already been at it for an hour when he had found her. She had shooed him back to bed to sleep for awhile longer, and most likely so he wouldn't be underfoot while she cleaned, he mused. By the time he got up again, it was after seven and she was finished the cleaning and had breakfast cooking. After their morning meal, she had declared it time to go the market and get what they needed before it got crowded. When they returned home, she packed up the DVDs, books and magazines they wanted to take with them. She cleaned out the fridge, throwing out anything that might go bad while they were away. They packed up laptops and the small amount of work they were allowing themselves to take; gathered up the gifts for each other and packed them carefully.

He sighed a little; it had been a whirlwind all day long with only breaks for dinner and its cleanup and showers. The evening had been spent packing their suitcases, finding the spare chargers for the phones and ensuring that her reading glasses were tucked in her purse. She had been restless in her sleep all night…he hadn't been surprised when she got up early that morning to go over all of her lists to make sure everything had been done.

"Come on, Scarlett," Johanna said, her voice breaking Jim's train of thought as she made her way into the kitchen with Scarlett trotting along side of her; her favorite toy in her mouth, the other in Johanna's hand.

"I see Scarlett's packed for the trip," Jim remarked.

She smiled a little. "You know she doesn't mind her carrier as long as she has her favorite toy with her."

"I know," he replied, watching as she stooped down and opened the door of the carrier for Scarlett.

"Go in your carrier," she told her. "We're going to the cabin, you can visit your toys you have up there and Santa might bring you some new ones."

Jim got up from the table to get the bag of cat treats so Scarlett would be rewarded for her cooperation. This is what their life had become…watching their cat play with her gifts on Christmas instead of their granddaughter.

"Good girl," Johanna said as Scarlett went into the carrier and got herself situated, keeping her favorite toy close as Johanna laid the other inside with her. "Give her a treat," she said as she glanced at her husband. "She's being a good girl."

He smiled as he knelt down and gave Scarlett a treat. "There you go, Scarlett; you take a nap on the drive up and it won't seem long to you," he said as she happily accepted her treat while Johanna closed the door and latched it.

"Get that towel and drape over the carrier when I pick it up," Johanna said, nodding toward the old towel she had hanging on the back of the chair. "I don't want cold air blowing in on her as I take her to the car.

Jim settled the towel over the carrier as she wanted, apologizing to Scarlett as she meowed. "It's only until you get in the car, Scarlett."

"Let's get her settled so she doesn't get upset," his wife said as she headed for the door.

He followed her out to the car in the driveway and took the carrier from her hand, securing Scarlett's temporary shelter on the backseat and then removing the towel so she could see out once more. "Alright, you're good to go," he told her.

"Now for the next load," Johanna said as they made their way back to the house.

"We're burning off our breakfast with all this back and forth," Jim replied. "I'm already looking forward to dinner."

She laughed a little. "Remind your stomach that we're having tv dinners; but I will make us a salad to go with them."

"Some garlic bread too?" he asked.

"Yes; I'll make some bread to go with it too…I'd say you've earned it since you haven't said anything about me speeding up things to get out of here a little sooner."

"I don't mind, sweetheart," he told her sincerely as they began to gather up the remaining items in the kitchen. "Did you get a gift out for McKenzie?"

She nodded as she picked up the gift bag that they had stowed a few select items in. "Yeah…it won't seem like much but it's a stuffed animal she fell in love with on one of our shopping trips. It's one of the last things I wrapped so it was clear in my mind about what was in this package."

"Nothing wrong with that," Jim replied. "You probably told me before but what stuffed animal is it?"

She smiled wistfully. "A cute little Penguin; it has on a pink toboggan hat and McKenzie just fell in love with it as soon as she saw it on the shelf. She squealed and cooed and reached for it. She played with it all through the store…I had to wait until she went down for a nap to get it away from her at home…I know for sure she'll like this one."

"She'll like all of them," he assured.

"I hope so…I already have a few pictures of her cuddling with the penguin in the store…so at least I've seen her with it."

"That's true," he replied. "Let's get this stuff loaded, make sure we have everything, lock up and be on our way."

Johanna released a weighted breath. "Sounds good to me."

A short while later, Jim pulled into the garage of Castle's building and found a place to park. "I'll wait here with Scarlett while you run those things up to Katie," he stated as he turned off the car.

Johanna glanced at him. "I'll stay with Scarlett, you go."

"I don't want to, you go."

"Why don't you?" she retorted.

"Because…I don't want to…you're the mother, you do it."

"You're the father, you'll be in and out faster than me," Johanna replied. "You go."

"There's only one way to settle this," Jim remarked as he fished a quarter out of the cup holder. "Call it."

"Heads," she stated as he tossed the coin.

"Tails," he said as he quickly checked the coin and dropped it into the pocket of his jacket. "You lose, you go."

"I didn't get a good look at that coin," Johanna stated as she eyed him, her brow arched in suspicion.

"What, are you saying you don't trust me?" Jim asked.

"Well I didn't get a good look at that coin and you shoved it in your pocket pretty damn fast…I think we should do it over."

"That's what the loser always says," he quipped. "Get on up there and make our deliveries."

"Fine," she huffed. "But I know you cheated…so you're stopping at McDonalds and getting me a milkshake as compensation."

"I didn't cheat but I can live with those terms," her husband replied. "Scarlett and I will be here awaiting your return."

"I won't be long," she promised as she unbuckled her seatbelt and opened the door. "Sit here and contemplate how you cheated your wife in a coin toss."

"I didn't cheat."

"I think you did," she remarked as she got out of the car and gathered up the gift bag.

Jim met her eye. "Can you prove it?"

"Not with physical evidence…but I know you did."

He smiled. "You have no case; now be your way little elf; go spread Christmas cheer."

She smirked at him. "Bite me."

"As soon as we get to the cabin, sweetheart," he quipped. "You just tell me where to start and I'll nibble on you all night long."

Johanna shook her head at him. "Some things never change."

"Lucky for us," he said with a grin.

She managed a small smile despite dreading the errand she had to carry out. "I'll be back."

"We'll be here."

Johanna shut the door of the car and headed for the elevator, wishing Jim had done this. She didn't want to go up to the loft…she knew it was stupid but she couldn't help feeling a little bitter. Facebook was full of happy friends and family eagerly anticipating the holiday and time with their families. They had made a stop at her brother and sister-in-law's the day before to drop off their gifts and Valerie had been gushing about it being her year to have Greg and his family for Christmas; Claire wasn't working as she was on maternity leave, her baby due any minute and even Trevor was finding his way home to his parents this year. Her sister-in-law was ecstatic; her house would be full with children, their significant others and her two grandchildren…even Valerie's sister planned to stop in. She was happy for Frankie and Valerie; it wasn't often that they got all three of their kids home for the holiday and she was glad that Ally and little Sophie would be there to get spoiled by their grandparents. She was happy for them…really she was…just as she was happy for Jeff and Maggie and their special Christmas Eve they had planned. She was happy for all of them…just terribly sad for herself and she hated it.

She sighed deeply as the elevator stopped and the doors slid open. She briefly wondered if she could just knock on the door and leave the bag, making a quick escape back to the elevator but she thought better of it and made her way across the hallway and knocked on the door, hoping this would be quick and somewhat painless.

"Mom," Kate said in surprise as she opened the door a few moments later.

"I'm sorry I didn't call first," Johanna replied. "I hope you're not busy."

"No, come in."

"Johanna, this is a surprise," Castle stated as he stepped out of the kitchen. "I don't think you've been here to see our holiday décor this year. What do you think?"

She took in the over the top melee of decorations and a tree that could probably be a smaller sibling of the one at Rockefeller Center. It was all a bit too much for her taste; it felt like you could smother from the overload of tinsel and decorations. "As long as you enjoy it, that's all that matters," she replied with a small sincere smile.

He eyed her. "What does that mean?"

"It means as long as you like how you decorate, that's all that matters."

"You don't like how I decorate?" Castle asked.

"Honestly, Rick; it's not my house so I really don't care how you decorate it."

"At least I decorate," he remarked. "Unlike some people…like you."

"I had a tree out," Johanna retorted.

"I'm sorry but that thing on the stand is not a Christmas tree," he replied. "It's an insult to Christmas trees."

"If I want someone to tell me how to decorate my house, I'll call my sister…she has a degree in it; last time I checked, you didn't," Johanna remarked.

"Let's not start a war over Christmas trees," Kate stated. "And you really shouldn't fish for compliments, Castle…and then act petty when you don't get one. Mom, let me take your coat."

"I'm not staying," she replied. "I'm just here to drop some things off."

"You don't have to run off," Kate told her. "McKenzie's awake, she's in the playpen; she'll want you as soon as she sees you and she'll cry if you rush in and out."

"I'll try not to let her see me; I can't stay. Your father is in the car with Scarlett. We're all packed and have our groceries in the cooler; we're heading for the cabin."

"I thought you were staying home this year?" her daughter remarked.

"We had intended to but there's no reason to stay now; you don't need me to babysit and you're going one step further by leaving the state so there's no reason for us to hang around the city. We just stopped to give you these things," she said as Castle drifted away from their group to go check on the baby.

"What?" Kate asked.

Johanna reached into the bag and drew out two envelopes first. "These are for you and Rick from your father," she said, handing them over. "They're just from your father; not from me in any way. I remember the rules."

"Mom," she sighed.

"It's alright that you don't want Christmas gifts from me, Katie; I understand, that's why I don't buy you any…I just like to make sure that you know who the gift is from so you don't think I'm breaking the rules."

Guilt coursed through her as she held the envelopes; she had started the rule during her mother's first Christmas home…or rather she had instituted it after that first Christmas had crashed and burned in epic proportions…and now she didn't know how to undo it…didn't even know what gift she would even buy for her mother if she decided to be the one to break the rule of no gift giving between them. She had coerced her to accept a Mother's Day gift but Christmas was different. Christmas was so much harder.

"I called you Friday night," Kate told her. "Did Dad tell you? He said you were getting your bath when I called."

"He told me."

"You didn't call back," she replied. "I've kind of been waiting on you to call back."

"Is something wrong?" Johanna asked.

"No, I just thought we should discuss how things were when I left Friday evening."

"There's nothing to discuss about it," her mother remarked. "I didn't call back because I've been busy. We planned to leave tomorrow but we pushed through the things we needed to get done and decided to go today…I wanted to go as soon as possible."

"Why?"

"Because I do. This is for McKenzie," Johanna stated as she pulled a package from the bag that was wrapped in paper featuring cute cartoonish penguins wearing Santa hats. "We have other gifts for her of course but we wanted her to have something from us to open on Christmas morning. She can open the rest of her gifts the next time she's at the house…your father said he'll take the day off and we'll have our own celebration with McKenzie after the New Year."

Kate accepted the box with another pang of guilt. "I'll send you pictures of her opening it."

"Oh you don't have to worry about that," Johanna replied. "I don't require proof that she got it, I know you wouldn't keep it from her. You're going to be busy; trust me, I know what it's like to have a kid on Christmas morning, you're trying to get pictures of everything, trying to help her open things and she's more interested in the paper and the bows than the actual gifts. We just wanted to make sure she had something from us on Christmas morning; we know she doesn't understand the holiday and she won't remember it…but at least we know she had a gift from us on the morning of her first Christmas. We don't require anything beyond that knowledge."

"Someone seems a tad bit moody," Castle remarked as he carried McKenzie toward them.

"Not moody," Johanna replied, although she knew she probably was. "Just tired from being up late packing and getting things ready to leave…and believe me, I can't wait to get the hell out of this city and away from this holiday."

"Mom!" Kate exclaimed.

"Oh, Katie, she's not old enough to repeat me yet. When she gets to that age I'll try to stop cussing but I'm not promising anything…after all, you repeated your grandmother several times…because apparently cussing while watching Wheel of Fortune was your thing with Elizabeth when you were little."

"I wasn't really referring to the cussing so much as the attitude," her daughter replied.

She shrugged. "It is what it is."

"MaMaMa!" McKenzie exclaimed from her father's arms, her gaze pinned to her grandmother.

"Hi, sweetheart," Johanna replied as she pulled another item out of the bag. "Here, Katie; this is from McKenzie for you."

"I already got her a gift from McKenzie," Castle remarked. "You didn't really think I wouldn't, did you?"

"No, of course not."

"Then why would you get one?" he asked, a touch of offense in his voice that she apparently hadn't thought he'd get something fitting for McKenzie to give to Kate. "That's my job."

His mother-in-law shrugged. "Because we saw it and thought it would make a nice gift from McKenzie to her mother. Where is it written that a child can only give her mother one gift? I always gave my mother more than one gift and Jim always let Katie pick out a few things for me when she was little that had her name only on them. Speaking of Jim, he paid for the gift so there wouldn't be any blurring of lines of your gift giving rules."

"Mom," Kate said with a deep sigh. "Do we have to do this every year?"

"They're your rules, Katie; I just make sure you know I'm abiding by them."

"I don't really think you need to make a production out of reminding me."

"I hope you didn't get her the same gift from McKenzie that I did," Castle remarked as he eyed the package. "You probably should have called me about it."

Johanna sighed and took the package back from Kate, ripping a corner of the paper.

"What are you doing?!" Kate exclaimed.

"The same thing your husband was planning on doing as soon as I left," she replied as she pulled the small box from the paper and pulled off the lid. She lifted out the double sided frame that held one of McKenzie's photo's with Santa on one side and a cast of her handprint on the other.

Castle cringed. "Yeah; that's the same thing I got…you really should've called me. I mean you had to know I was going to get her something from the baby…and that's a popular item for women who have new babies."

"Should I also clear McKenzie's gifts through you? It takes a little fun out of shopping."

"Well…it would be very easy to end up buying the same gifts," he replied. "But since she spends a lot of time at your house she could keep any double gifts there."

"I'll sleep so much better tonight," Johanna remarked sarcastically. "As for this gift, I'll keep it for myself as a keepsake from McKenzie."

"We were going to get you something from McKenzie," Kate remarked. "I just haven't finished my shopping; I'm hoping to do it tomorrow when it's a little less crowded."

"No need for that," her mother replied. "That might blur the lines of our rules. I'll keep this…I like it."

"But I don't have that picture…that's one of the ones you had taken. Can I least have the picture?"

"No, they're a gift to myself."

Kate gave her an amused smirk. "I think you're being a little petty about the pictures…it is my baby on the picture."

"It's my money that paid for them and you have your own but let's not let it be said that I was petty," Johanna remarked as she flexed the frame and then snapped it in half, handing the photo side to Kate. "There you go, Merry Christmas and Happy New Year from your daughter."

Kate sighed a little. "Mom, I know you're upset about us being away for Christmas…"

"No, not at all; you can have Christmas on the moon for all I care; after all, I hear Rick owns property there anyway."

"Yeah, you're definitely upset about it," Kate replied. "But I don't know what you want me to do. How was I to know that you planned on being around this year?"

"I guess you could've asked," she replied; "But I don't want you to do a damn thing, Katie; go to Vermont and strap your sticks to your boots and go flying down all the mountains you want. Have fun."

"I think she wants us to feel a little guilty," Castle remarked.

"No, no guilt," Johanna replied. "You have your own family and your own life. I'm just the babysitter; which I'm fine with, I love my time with McKenzie. Here," she said; pulling the last object from the bag and handing it to her son-in-law since her daughter's hands were full. "This is one of the storybooks I bought her for the season for at my house but we hadn't gotten around to it. Maybe Martha can read it to her while you're out skiing."

"How the Grinch Stole Christmas," Castle said as he read the cover and then glanced to his wife and whispered; "I sense some shade with this gift."

"No need to whisper, Rick," Johanna said. "I know what shade is, I teach college students…and it's not shade. It's a seasonal storybook that Jim and I didn't get around to reading to our granddaughter so we thought perhaps her other grandmother could read it to her since I assume the two of you will be busy. If you think it somehow applies to you, maybe you should ask yourself why that is."

"You're not calling my mother the Grinch, are you?" he asked. "Because she had nothing to do with us making these plans."

"No, I wasn't," she retorted. "I have no reason to call Martha that; I just thought since you plan on her babysitting while you're out skiing, she might want to read McKenzie a story…but since it's a problem, I'll take it back home and put it away until next year," she said sharply, jerking the book back out of his hand and shoving it back into the bag along with the cast of the baby's handprint. "I can't do a goddamn thing without you thinking I have some deep hidden meaning for it."

"What are we supposed to think?" Castle replied. "I know from Kate that you're unhappy about our plans and you bring us a book about a Grinch who steals Christmas…it feels a bit pointed…and a little too coincidental coming from a lawyer…who obviously feels like we're taking something from her by going on vacation."

Anger and hurt flickered in her eyes. "It's good to know that all of those lunches I sat through didn't change your opinion of me…I thought we were doing a lot better but I guess I was wrong. I shouldn't be surprised, I'm always wrong…but still; I thought you might have a slightly higher opinion of me than you used to."

Castle sighed. "We are better than we used to be…but sometimes it's difficult to get along with you when you're in the mood you've been in all month. You can't act like we're taking something from you and then hand us a storybook about a Grinch and not expect us to draw a conclusion…and as for the gift thing, next year call me first."

She smiled but it lacked warmth. "Next year if we see something that would make a cute gift from McKenzie to her mother, we'll just walk on by it. So don't worry, Rick; it won't happen again. We weren't trying to steal your thunder; it was the furthest thing from our minds."

It was Kate's turn to sigh deeply. "Mom, you clearly don't want to be here so why didn't you just send Dad to the door?"

"Because I lost the coin toss in the car," she answered.

"Coin toss?"

"Yeah; to determine who had to come up here and drop these things off…I think he cheated, I didn't get a good look at that coin," Johanna replied. "But it doesn't matter, I've done what I came to do and now I need to get going. Have a safe trip, see you in January…Rick, I may still be a little moody in early January for obvious reasons so brace yourself, dear; I'll try to get back to skittles and rainbows for February…I am fond of Valentine's Day."

He smiled. "Good to know…thanks for the warning; Kate will be picking McKenzie up all of January."

"Wonderful," she replied. "See you all later."

"Aren't you going to hold the baby?" Kate asked.

"No, she's content with her father."

"You could at least kiss her goodbye if you're not planning on seeing her for weeks," Kate retorted.

"Katie, how am I supposed to see her if we're not in the same state? It wasn't my plan, it's your plan which you're entitled to make but you can't get mad at me because I state the obvious."

Kate's gaze dropped. "But still."

Johanna moved closer to her granddaughter and kissed her cheek. "See you in a few weeks, sweetheart; Grandpa and I love you. You have fun for Christmas; I know Santa will treat you well."

Her granddaughter reached for her but she made no move to lift her from Castle's arms. Instead she captured a small hand and pressed a kiss to it. "I have to go, sweetie; Grandpa's waiting…we're getting the hell out of Dodge. I wish you could come with me but you have to go skiing."

"Mom…" Kate said as Johanna turned away to head for the door.

"What, Katie? I have to get going."

"You and Dad…could come to Vermont."

Johanna laughed but it sounded hollow to their ears. "Oh we would but we recently found out that we're too old for Vermont according to our daughter…who is just jealous that I'm a better ice skater than she is so she can kiss my ice skates because I'm not hanging them up."

"Yeah, you're totally in a mood," Kate remarked as she laid the gifts on the stand. "And I'm not jealous…it's not like you're the Kristi Yamaguchi of Manhattan."

"No, but I'm still a better skater than you are. I took lessons…I won a medal."

Her daughter rolled her eyes. "Yes, I know all about your Little Miss Manhattan Skating Pageant Bronze Medal of 1961…if you were as good as you think you are, you would've won the gold."

"It's hard to win gold when the judge's daughter is in the same competition," Johanna retorted. "But at least I won a medal…where's yours? Oh, that's right, you don't have one because you wouldn't take the lessons…you wanted to teach yourself and you weren't wearing one of those cute little skating dresses, oh no, you were too good for that."

"Those dresses are stupid," Kate remarked. "All they do is flash your ass as you spin around."

"Your ass is covered!"

"Yeah, by something that looks like a bathing suit with a flimsy skirt stapled over it; I wasn't wearing that. I'm sure you liked prancing out on the ice in yours when you were ten but it wasn't for me."

Johanna smirked at her. "I enjoyed mine a great deal; my grandmother made it and said I looked adorable."

"Of course she said that, she's your grandmother," Kate retorted. "For all you know, you looked like a nerd."

"I did not!"

"Ladies," Castle stated as McKenzie babbled along with them. "Does an ice skating dress from 1961 really matter?"

Kate breathed deeply. "No, it doesn't…considering I wasn't even born yet. But Mom, please thank Dad for me for sharing every tidbit of our conversation."

"You should've known he'd tell me; after all, he didn't like the implication that we're suddenly decrepit…I guess it's a good thing that we're still young enough to babysit every time the phone rings. But don't worry, we're not going to pop up in Vermont; we've been there before and we weren't impressed enough to want to go back. We're going to our home in the mountains and staying there until January. Have a safe trip, a happy holiday and let me know when babysitting resumes," Johanna remarked as she made her way to the door.

"Wait," Kate said, hurrying after her as McKenzie whimpered, her gaze following her grandmother.

"Katie, I have to go. I've got groceries and a cat in the car, not to mention my husband who is probably going to ring my phone any moment. I don't have all day; we want to be up there before dark."

"I don't want you to go away angry," her daughter replied.

"I'm not angry," Johanna told her. "I want you to have a nice holiday; and if going to Vermont is what's going to make you happy, then I hope you have a wonderful trip."

"I want you to have a nice holiday too," Kate murmured. "There have been a lot of bad ones…I hope you find a way to have a nice one for a change."

Johanna's gaze drifted back to McKenzie. "I thought I had found a way but I was wrong…and that's no one's problem but mine, so don't take it as a guilt trip like you accuse your father of because it isn't. I'm sorry for apparently being moody…I just hate this time of year for obvious reasons. It's going to be okay though, I have my husband and I have my cat…a nice cozy home waiting for me in the mountains…don't worry, I'll be happy with them, especially once the city fades into the distance."

"Mom…."

"It's alright, Katie; it's better that we all go away…if we were both in the city and didn't spend a part of the holiday together, it would be constantly on my mind and I'd feel that disappointment of missing you and McKenzie keenly…but if you're in Vermont and I'm in upstate New York in the mountains, then it's different…we're separated by miles that way…instead of making the choice to be separated while in the same city. It's fine…it's just the way things are and I know it's never going to change. Please don't worry about it. It's your baby's first Christmas; you should enjoy it with every fiber of your being. I'll see you in a few weeks."

It didn't feel like it was alright, Kate thought to herself, catching the layer of sadness that laid in her mother's eyes as she told McKenzie she loved her once more. Her parents only had her and for the moment they only had one grandchild…and she hadn't chosen them once again, adding insult to injury by taking their grandchild away for the holiday where she'd be out of their reach. She hadn't thought it would matter; her mother had brushed off the holiday the last few years but maybe McKenzie would have made the difference this time…maybe she had been planning on trying for McKenzie this time…now they'd never know.

"Mom," she said softly, watching her mother step across the threshold of the door.

Johanna sighed deeply and Kate could feel how badly she wanted to make her escape. "What, Katie?"

"You didn't hug me," she murmured. "You didn't hug McKenzie."

Johanna's eyes closed briefly; she didn't want to dole out hugs, she just wanted to go away. Holding her granddaughter would only make her want things she couldn't have…and her daughter probably only wanted hugged to ease the guilt she kept accusing everyone of bestowing on her. She moved back into the room and accepted her granddaughter as Rick held her out to her. McKenzie smiled, an excited squeal slipping across her lips as her small hands clutched her grandmother's coat. "MaMaMa," she babbled.

Her smile wobbled as she hugged her granddaughter, breathing in her soft scent as she kissed her cheek. "I'll miss you, kitten," she murmured to her.

"Why do you call her kitten?" Castle asked.

"Because she's cute and cuddly and she has green eyes," Johanna replied. "Is it a problem?"

"No…just seemed odd."

"You call her jellybean and I don't find that odd," she remarked as she began to hand McKenzie back to him.

The baby held on to her coat, fussing as her father gently pried her away. She kept reaching for her even as Johanna slipped away, her fussing becoming a wail. "MaMaMa!"

Johanna hated to ignore her granddaughter's cry but if she didn't, she'd never get away, she thought to herself as she quickly hugged her daughter. "See you later," she told Kate as she pulled away.

"Mom."

She kept her back turned, weariness weighing on her. "Katie, please let me go," she said softly. "You're just making it worse."

Unexpected emotion clawed at Kate and she tried to push it down. "I love you."

"I love you too," Johanna replied before quickly walking through the open door, her granddaughter's cries still sounding behind her. She struggled to hold her own tears back as she stabbed the button for the elevator with her finger, her foot tapping impatiently as she waited for the doors to open. She stepped inside, exhaling slowly…now it was time to flee.

"Well that was a fun visit," Castle said sarcastically as Kate closed the door, their daughter still crying for her grandmother.

"You didn't help matters," she snapped as she took McKenzie from his arms so that she could comfort her.

"Oh come on, you know there was some serious shade with that book," he retorted.

"Of course there was," Kate exclaimed. "But you started before that with your fishing for compliments and then throwing it in her face that she only had a small tree…and then the thing with the gift from McKenzie."

"Well she had no business buying you a gift from McKenzie," Castle stated. "I'm your husband, I'm her father; that's my job! She had no business doing it and buying the same gift I did is what she gets for doing it in the first place. She just loves to swoop in and do everything…well some things are mine and she'll have to get over it."

"She wasn't trying to take anything from you; she just thought it was a cute gift…thanks for spoiling what McKenzie is giving me from you, by the way."

"How was I supposed to hide it once she opened the one she brought?"

"I don't know, Castle; by keeping your mouth shut and waiting until she left…then maybe you could have said that you got the same thing but you'd get something else and we could have given the handprint to Martha."

"My gift shouldn't have to be the one to be changed; it was my job to buy it, not hers…now she knows not to do it and we won't have to worry about it anymore. There is one other gift for you from McKenzie so you'll still have that one to be surprised about."

"You still didn't have to hurt her feelings; you could've been nicer about it."

"She insinuated that my decorations are ugly."

"She did not; but I can tell you for sure that she does not like overly crowded, overly decorated spaces. She likes an elegant, streamlined look, where you can tell that you still have a home amid the decorations…so I'm not surprised at all that she doesn't like what we have going on here…but she didn't say she didn't like it out loud. She said as long as you like it, that's all that mattered."

"It was the way she said it," Castle replied. "She was ready for a fight."

"No; you're the one who seems to be spoiling for a fight the last few days and you still haven't told me what's bothering you. I wish you would so you'd feel better."

"I'm fine. What were you doing telling them to come to Vermont? I didn't make any reservations for them!?"

"I felt bad!" she exclaimed as McKenzie cuddled close. "You heard what she said about us being apart on Christmas…I felt guilty."

"That's what she was hoping for."

"I think she meant what she said," Kate replied. "I can't help it that I feel bad for it...I am her only child…and McKenzie is her only grandchild for now. I just…I don't like to see her that way. She's never going to get better about Christmas if she doesn't have a reason to do it."

"She'd get better if she'd try harder," Castle replied. "But I think they like running away to the mountains to hide from it instead of facing it and getting through it."

"Why shouldn't they go to the mountains when they don't have anything to look forward to at home?" she said as she rubbed the baby's back.

"We're not changing our plans, Kate. I expect to hear from Sheila tomorrow…so you probably should go out and finish up whatever shopping you want to do tomorrow."

"I didn't ask to change our plans," she retorted. "I was making a point. I hope you get this burr out of your ass soon because it's not making me look forward to a holiday with you either."

Castle breathed deeply. "I'm sorry; I'm frustrated with the book."

"I've seen you frustrated with books before, Castle. It's something else."

"I'm also frustrated with you worrying about your mother and feeling guilty for having a life with your family that doesn't include her every second."

"Yeah; I know she's your favorite thing to blame, but I don't really buy that excuse either…but since it upsets you, I won't mention her…I won't mention either one of my parents, okay?"

He closed his eyes briefly before he followed her back to the living room where she settled down on the couch with McKenzie. "You don't have to go that far," he said quietly. "I just want us to have a nice Christmas, that's all…and I know if you're dwelling, you won't…and I get mad at her for being the reason why you dwell."

"Don't worry, Castle; it's done," Kate replied. "They're on their way to the cabin, I won't hear from them until after the New Year rolls in. We'll go to Vermont and have a nice Christmas, everything will be fine. When is Martha coming home so you can tell her our travel plans?"

"I don't know…I thought she'd be home today but I haven't heard from her yet."

"She must be lingering with Ben," she said with a smile as she grabbed McKenzie's blanket and laid it over her as she cradled her, seeing that her daughter was getting sleepy.

"Seems like she's always lingering with Ben lately," he responded. "She hasn't been home most of the week. McKenzie's going to forget what she looks like."

"She is not," Kate laughed. "She just saw her Wednesday."

"It's now Sunday."

She shrugged. "Martha always comes home, Rick; she'll be back before long. She'll probably be here for dinner."

"I guess we'll see."

Kate gave him an amused smirk. "Are you having male PMS or something? You've been brooding."

"No, but if I did have some form of PMS, I probably caught it from you."

"My period was last week and it's not catching, nice try," she quipped. "I'm going to go put McKenzie down for her nap, she's sleepy."

Castle moved toward them and kissed McKenzie's head. "Sweet dreams, jellybean."

Kate rose from the sofa. "After I get her down, how about we watch a movie together and forget about holidays, parents and frustrating books?"

He smiled, pressing a kiss to her lips. "Just what the doctor ordered. I'll pick a few selections for us to choose from when you come back down."

She gave him a smile and headed for the stairs, hoping that some downtime together would cure him of his mood.

"How did it go?" Jim asked once they had pulled out of the garage.

"The next time we have a coin toss, I'm flipping the coin," Johanna remarked.

"That bad?"

"Rick seemed to take offense to the fact that we got a gift for McKenzie to give to Katie. He said I should've asked first, that getting that gift is his job; that we might have gotten the same thing he did; I should've known he got her something, blah, blah. So I opened it up because I figured they would as soon as I left…and of course, since the universe hates me, it's the same gift. So I said I'd keep it for myself. Katie wanted the picture so I broke the frame in half and gave it to her. I have the baby's handprint."

Jim sighed deeply. "I guess we won't make that mistake again."

She nodded. "I assured him of that. I gave them the storybook for McKenzie…and Rick said I was giving them that book to imply that they're grinches who are taking something from me."

"It's a goddamn storybook!" Jim exclaimed. "McKenzie likes stories and we hadn't read her that one yet. There wasn't any ulterior motive!"

"He thinks there is; I said maybe Martha could read it to her while they're out skiing and then he asked if I was calling Martha a Grinch. I wasn't and I have no reason to do so which I told him. He says it's a pointed gift and too coincidental coming from a lawyer. I put it back in the bag with the handprint. I wasn't insinuating anything with the damn book."

"I know you weren't," her husband replied. "They really don't have to go to these lengths of making something out of a storybook just to push us further away. We got the memo that we're not wanted for the holidays, there's no need to go this far…we got it the first time."

She gave a soft scoff. "That's the truth. I was also told it's hard to get along with me this time of year because I'm in a 'mood'.

"Up until Friday I thought you had been in a pretty good mood all month…especially considering it is this time of year…and I didn't blame you for the downswing you took Friday night."

"I'm glad someone doesn't."

Jim patted her thigh. "I'll get you some French fries to go with your milkshake."

"I'll take them," she replied. "As I was trying to leave, Katie said we could go to Vermont."

"Not a chance in hell," he laughed.

"I reminded her that she implied we're too old for Vermont and winter sports. She's not happy that you told me that."

"Isn't that a shame," Jim replied. "She must've had a moment of guilt when she said we could go…well I don't go where I'm not welcomed. We made our own plans now and that's what we're going to do."

"Agreed," Johanna said as she sank back against her seat. "Just you, me and Scarlett…in our own vacation home where we can't be thrown out or accused of anything."

"That's right," he remarked as they headed toward McDonalds for their quick stop. "We're on our way, sweetheart."

"I'm glad," she murmured. "So very glad."