And that ladies and gentleman is what I call procrastination.
Chapter 20: One Man's Treasure
A grin spreads across her face before opening her eyes. She thinks for a second that he is already awake. He normally does wake up first, ready to race on to the next adventure, assuming that it will be better than the last. But apparently he is in no rush to move onto their next step. This one is worth soaking in. She hears very little sound coming from anywhere else. No stirring in the house, no outdoor chaos, just a simple hum of a bird or two outside. She gently reaches out and pushes his hair aside. She does it so lightly her fingers don't even touch his face. Still he pulls away a second before smiling as he opens his eyes. "Good morning, Kate."
"Morning," she huffs, with a bit of a laugh.
He leans forward to kiss her, then asks, "What time is it?"
"Um- not sure."
"The kids?"
She shrugs, "Don't know."
"It's quiet," he adds.
She looks around, as if listening for herself, "It's kind of nice."
"Calm," he says it as if it's maybe a question.
"It's very nice," she agrees, cuddling into him a little more.
…
Lux gently closes the door to her room. It is a small guest room that has two twin beds, one of which she slept in, Alexis in the other. It's seven in the morning, so she doesn't expect she anyone else is awake. Yesterday morning everyone seemed to wake up at the crack of dawn, while she slept in until ten, but the second night in the Hamptons wasn't as peaceful to her. She creeps down the hall of the second floor, counting off the rooms. One mine and Alexis', Two an office, Three sitting room (I didn't even know people actually had those.) She stops at the top of the stairs and looks down the rest of the hall and finishes counting. Four a bathroom, Five Castle and Kate's room. She walks down the stairs, landing her just a couple of feet from the front door, so she grabs her moccasins, before continuing down the mostly hardwood floored house in nothing, but her thin ankle socks. She eventually finds herself in the kitchen, making coffee and sitting on top of the counter. There is a window over the sink that is clear and perfect to see the whole yard. A backyard makes it sound quant. It is anything but. In fact, she suspects there is a pool somewhere, in the at least to acre yard. Which makes her wonder how close the ocean might be. After about two minutes her curiosity gets the better of her, so she abandons the coffee, pushes off the counter and makes her way to the porch.
…
"No, it wasn't a question, Kate," Castle says as Kate rolls her eyes.
"Oh come on, Castle, you never-"
"No."
She squints, "Never?"
"Is it real that surprising? I know you; you would never change your name. You will never, so why don't you believe that I didn't think to ask."
"Did you want to ask?"
"No," he says, sure she already knows why. She laughs and rolls out of bed. He quickly explains even though it is clear she isn't by any means mad at him, "You're asking why I didn't ask for you to change your name to Castle? I'm pretty sure I call you Beckett more than Kate. And I think you have called me by my first name…" He looks to the ceiling as if he can actually count the times, "Not including when you've arrested me, I'm going to say seven times." She purses her lips, giving him a humorous look. "Castle and Beckett," he adds, "That's who we are."
She laughs as she pulls on her jeans, "Castle and Beckett."
"Exactly," he adds.
She smiles, "And that's why I wouldn't change it." She seems to cut herself off short, as she looks out the window.
"What is it?" He asks.
"Lux."
"Well I wouldn't have suggested it, but that would be up to her."
"No," she waves him off, "Lux, she's outside."
"What's she doing outside?"
She shrugs again, "It looks like, just walking around."
He's about to suggest that she's probably just taking a walk, but he can see Kate already questioning that. He looks over to the clock on the nightstand. "We've been up for an hour. We should get up, make breakfast, visit."
She looks at him her eyes big. It's the first time this morning he hasn't seen a trace of a smile on her face. "Go on," he encourages again, which instantly makes the smile return. She gives him a quick kiss before running downstairs.
…
"Lux!" She spins around at the sound of her name. Kate is standing on the top of the porch steps. She is at least ten yards away. Lux uncrosses one of her arms and gives Kate a short wave.
"What're you doing?"
"Just taking a walk."
"Aren't you cold?" Lux shakes her head. Kate looks to the door than to Lux, unsure of what to do. Soon enough she is pulling on a pair of shoes then quickly walking out to where Lux is standing. "You okay?" Kate asks as soon as she reaches her.
"Fine," Lux says, trying to pass it off so that at the same time she is asking Kate why she bothered following her out to the middle of the yard.
"You're right it's not too cold," Kate says looking up at the clear sky and the blaring sun. Even so, it is only forty-five degrees, so she keeps her oversized sweater tightly over her in her crossed arms.
Lux squints as she asks, "Is there a pool?"
"It's not that warm," Kate argues.
"Yeah, I know, I was just wondering."
She squints a little at Lux, "Um- no… but the beach is right up the road."
"I've never been."
"Well we can go when it gets warmer," Kate assures.
"I don't have a swimsuit."
"I'll get you one."
Lux turns away from her and starts walking again. After taking a couple strides ahead of Kate, who again is unsure of if she should follow her, Lux turns on her heels to look past her mother. "This place is huge."
Kate smiles and starts walking after Lux, because she seems to be inviting her to come along, "You just now realize that."
"I've never been to a house this big," Lux says. Kate's smile fades a bit, when she realizes Lux may be feeling a little of the bittersweet feeling she had the first time she came here.
"Well that's not that strange," Kate assures.
Lux turns to walk forward again once Kate catches up, "Oh yeah, and where did you grow up Kate? It couldn't have been much different than this."
Kate smiles again and shakes her head, "Much different than this."
"Oh come on. Both of your parents were lawyers."
Kate can't help, but let out a laugh, "Not hot shot lawyers. And even so there is a difference between the upper class and bestselling novelist." Lux looks at her, her cheeks are pinched up a little. Kate shakes her head. "I lived in an apartment my whole life. No mansion, no beach."
Lux purses her lips. For a moment, Kate thinks that Lux doesn't believe her, but then Lux says, "What else?"
"What else?" Kate asks with a slightly different inflection.
"What else should I know about you?"
Kate thinks about it for a second, but summarizing her whole life into fun facts then choosing the right ones is difficult so instead she just asks, "What do you wanna know?"
"I don't know. I didn't even know your full name until yesterday." Kate looks at her curiously, unsure of how that possibly is. Lux can see this so she repeats the extent of Kate's name that she knew up until yesterday, "Kate Beckett."
It wasn't until she heard her repeat it did she understand what Lux meant. "Well just in case you missed it. It's Katherine Houghton Beckett."
Lux jokingly holds out her hand as if introducing herself, "Lux Cassandra Beckett."
Kate shakes her hand and laughs, "Nice to meet you."
…
On the third day, it seemed like everyone found comfort in the loftiness of the house. So much so everyone had spread out and allowed for a rather quiet afternoon. Alexis was relaxing in the living room, Lux upstairs, and Kate and Castle are in the kitchen. Kate is leaning against the counter as if debating between sitting on the counter and keeping her feet on the ground.
"Whatcha thinking about?" Castle asks.
She bites her lip, unsure of how to sum up her thoughts, but lands on, "Comfort."
Castle leans back against the wall crossing his arms over his chest. He looks over her overall posture. Her hands are gripping the edge of the counter tightly, her wrists are twisted, her elbows are locked, and her shoulders are cradling her head. "You don't look comfortable."
Kate relaxes her arms and follows his lead by crossing her arms as well. "It's just- it's nice here, but soon'll have to go back home and-"
"What?"
"It's like we're not facing it- facing life- and I love it, I really do but-"
"Eventually we're going to have to go back," Castle finishes.
Kate looks up at him, gritting her teeth as if to say yes. Before she can say anything the doorbell rings.
"Fern's here," Alexis says, walking into the kitchen.
Kate gives a somber smile and yells to Lux upstairs, "Hey Lux! Can you get the door?"
"You guys are closer."
Alexis stipends a laugh, "Sometimes I forget she's sixteen."
"Almost seventeen," Kate points out, almost as if reminding herself to keep track of the days this time. The doorbell rings again, "Lux!"
Only a couple seconds later they can hear Lux running down the stairs. She swings open the door and immediately wipes away the bad mood she had on, she immediately wraps her arms around Tasha, "Tasha!" She pulls her in the door, "How- how did you get here?"
"I brought her," Fern says, poking her head in. She has a plastic accordion folder under her arm as she walks in.
Fern walks up to Kate and Castle, "I've got a couple of papers for you guys to sign."
"What else could we possibly have to sigh for?" Castle says in a semi joking tone.
"Me," Tasha answers as she and Lux join everyone else in the kitchen.
Castle and Kate look at her with amused expressions, but Fern confirms, "She's right." She pulls the papers out of the folder and hands them to Castle, who is the one to reach out and grab them. "They're guardianship agreement papers. Same as the ones you signed when you first took Tasha in."
"Then why do we have to sign them again?" Castle asks.
"Because she was convicted in the last two years and most people don't want criminals," Fern says, shooting Tasha a playful glare.
"Okay, just to be clear you only had to tell us if she had been in juvie in the last two years," Castle asks, purely out of curiosity.
Fern nods, cautiously unsure of where he's going with this, "Yes."
Kate beats Castle to his next question, "Have you been in juvie before?"
A smirk spreads across Tasha's face, which is only a little nervous. Her nerves seem to settle rather quickly, because Kate gives her a humorous grin. She grabs the papers Castle just signed. She shakes her head as she signs them, "Let's just add to the chaos."
…
Lux is stretched out across the loveseat in the living room, even though Tasha is sitting at the end, so her feet are crossed on Tasha's lap.
"How do you guys like it out here?" Castle asks from the other couch diagonal from them.
"I mean it would be better in the summer," Tasha says.
"Tasha thinks she's a princess now," Lux jokes, digging her heels into Tasha's legs, causing Tasha to push her legs off.
"Am not!"
"No, you're right. You don't have the manners of a princess."
Alexis pouts going back to the original comment, "I mean it is better here in the summer."
"Alexis does like to have her birthday here," Castle argues.
"Not this last year," Alexis says, not really thinking about it.
"I really am sorry I wasn't here, sweetheart," Castle wholeheartedly apologizes.
Lux instantly recognizes the expression on Castle's face as the same one from the courtroom the expression Kate had just after her own testimony. Lux thinks it may be an expression only parents can have.
Alexis was already up to get a drink so she wraps her arms around his neck. "I know," she says, before walking into the kitchen.
"I'm sure it is better in the summer," Lux assures, breaking the silence.
Kate smiles, "Yeah and we'll get you a swimsuit, promise."
Tasha breaks out with a little laugh, and is obviously about to say something, but Lux shoots her a glare.
"Am I missing something?" Kate asks.
The two girls sit there in silence for a second. Castle looks between the two of them, then guesses, "You can't swim."
Silence has the potential of building up again, but Kate quickly fills it in with a smile, "That's okay. We can teach you."
"Yeah," Castle nods. "In the summer."
Lux smiles but looks down. "In the summer," she says quietly to herself, concerned that she won't still be with them in the summer.
…
"Hello?" Kate asks answering the phone, after looking at the caller ID and being surprised when she saw that it was Fern.
Lux and Tasha come down stairs, causing a thundering sound as they run down. "Okay?" Kate asks, as the girls come into the kitchen, each of them grabbing a glass from the cabinet. Lux pours a glass of water, sloshing it when Tasha playfully shoves her. "Hey!" Lux exclaims.
"Guys," Kate warns, then goes back to talking on the phone, "I'm sorry, I didn't quite catch that."
"Hey dad?" Alexis says as she walks into the kitchen. She charges to a whisper when she realizes her dad isn't in the kitchen and Kate is on the phone. "Do you know where my dad is?"
Kate points over her shoulder to the hall, trying to signify that he is upstairs, then presses the palm of her free hand to her ear. "What about you do you need to be there?"
"Whoa! Hold your horses," Castle says when Alexis runs into him in the hallway.
"Sunday- this Sunday?" Kate asks wrapping her arms around her waist. "Guys," she tries to hush them again.
"Tasha stop!"
"Dad, can you talk to Amy? She wants to know what the next step to getting something published is."
"God, Lux, look at the mess you made."
"Hang on," Kate says finally giving up on staying in the kitchen, and walking into the hall. "Did you say this Sunday?"
When Kate walked away, Castle took notice and can still see her struggling to hear in the hall. "Hey guys, why don't we move to the living room," he suggests guiding them all out of the kitchen, before walking back over to Kate.
"Yes, thank you," she says, just before hanging up.
"What's up?" Castle asks, as soon as Kate hangs up.
"The adoption hearing is set for Sunday," Kate says with only a touch of a nervous energy.
"Okay…" Castle says, trying to give off a calming energy. It being the fifth day of them being in the Hamptons, and Friday, Castle adds, "It means it's time to go home."
I know this was kind of a filler chapter, but I hope you enjoyed anyways. Hopefully I can finish the next chapter very very soon.