Genre: Crime, Drama, Romance, Family, Humor
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: I was really glad getting the reviews I did for the last chapter so I will go ahead and get started on my thank yous for those! MsNYC (I had to laugh at you mentioning that Castle and Beckett are a pair of horny teens as you put it, though I wasn't surprised you thought that, lol. And not surprised you enjoyed the flashback in the first half either. And I was really happy that you thought the lovemaking was tastefully written as usual for both halves of the chapter, I do my best to write that way! And of course, I knew you enjoyed the flashbacks in both halves, which is great since of course I love to write them! And I was pleased to read that you thought it was great writing as usual too!),
TORONTOSUN (Great to read you liked how they are together with their family since it's fun to write Castle and Beckett with them!) and
Mb (Really happy to see you thought the last chapter was beautifully written. And I'm so glad that you love that Castle and Beckett are tender with each other in their love scenes but also have a fiery passion for one another too. And how you described it is how I see it with their love scenes, it not being just a physical think but a way for them to express their deep eternal love, as you put it, along with passion that always grows stronger. Really pleased to see that you loved the flashback too! You're welcome for sharing the first half! And of course, I was happy seeing you thought the second half was beautifully written as well. Happy that you thought the flashback was sweet, loving and hot too! And not surprised you mentioned how it was that both past and present. I wasn't surprised that you love that Castle and Beckett understand that they're only truly in love with each other as you put it, past and present. And I definitely agree, they're always going to be soul mates! I had to have them make time for their kids and family since that's also a part of who they are. And glad you said that makes them loving and sexy to outsiders seeing them together. Pleased to read you thought it was beautifully written. And you're welcome for the second half too!)
Thanks so much for the reviews, I loved reading them and appreciate the time taken to write them out and send them my way!
A/N #2: The title of this chapter is the title of a song by Marc Jordon.
London In The Rain
After she had slipped her husband's white t-shirt on, Beckett went back to the bed and kept her eye on him while she walked up to it. She studied him sleeping for a bit, soon smiling at him before she moved to climb onto the mattress. Lying next to him on her side she reached up carefully and brushed her fingers over his hair that was on his forehead. She was gentle in her touch but soon heard her husband groaning in response before she watched his eyes opening.
"Morning love," Castle told her when he realized what he was looking at. He smiled and then said, "You're amazing."
"Morning Rick," Beckett said with a smile. "But what did I do that was amazing?"
"Letting you be the first thing I saw when I woke up," Castle said firmly, moving then to lay on his back. At the same time he was reaching for her, pulling her against his side and relieved that she was moving to him. They lay there in silence for a while before his stomach suddenly growled and he sighed before saying, "Sorry."
"Don't worry," Beckett said with a smile, moving so she could kiss his cheek. "I'm hungry too, would you mind getting the food though?"
"No but…" Castle said, glancing at her body.
"You have other shirts," Beckett told him teasingly. She outright laughed when he grumbled as he got up and she watched him going to the closet before she sat up.
"What do you want?" Castle asked her. "Or do you need the menu?"
"I need the menu, I only looked for dinner," Beckett replied.
"Okay," Castle said easily, going over to the living room. When he was back at the bed he told his wife, "I was thinking of getting an omelet."
"We can split one," Beckett said. "And get something else," she added as she read what the hotel offered.
"Hey, what about waffles?" Castle asked.
Looking up at him Beckett asked with a smile, "We'll share?" When he nodded she closed the menu and gave it back to him saying, "Sounds great."
"What do you want on our omelet?" Castle asked her.
"Ham, tomatoes and mushrooms with cheese," Beckett replied, knowing her husband would like that as well. She took his kiss before he left her to order, and she got off the bed before she went to the window to move the curtains. Taking stock of the weather at that point, she was relieved to see that the sky was cloudy and the ground was dry. She turned around when she heard her husband's footsteps and said, "That was fast."
"It was easy to order," Castle said, walking up to her. He wrapped his arms around her and then kissed her tenderly before they slowly parted. "Do you want to eat here again?" he asked before he could do more than that kiss.
"Of course," Beckett said. "But we're going to the museum," she told him firmly.
"Sure," Castle replied swiftly. He then pulled her closer to him again, feeling her pressed up against his chest before he said, "I guess I need to let you go… don't I?" He wasn't surprised when she started to laugh and he smiled as he watched her, waiting for her to calm down before he heard her answer.
"That would be nice, I wouldn't want you to drag me over to the door like this," Beckett told him.
Sighing, while he was releasing her, Castle said, "True, so we're eating in here?"
"I'd like to," Beckett said.
"Okay," Castle commented as he reached for his robe that was still on the armchair. He smiled at her as she was right behind him when he turned around and he closed his robe before he let her tie it. "You want to go don't you?" he asked her as she finished but was reaching up to straighten his robe lapels.
"I do… I was wondering if we should maybe rest tonight," Beckett said slowly before she looked up at him.
"For tomorrow?" Castle asked. When his wife nodded he leaned down and brushed his lips to hers before saying, "That's fine, I know you need to work tomorrow."
Beckett smiled at that comment before she squeezed his shoulders she was holding by then as there was a knock on the door. While her husband closed the door behind him, she went to the bed and fixed the sheets slightly before she was climbing onto it, waiting for him to come back.
"I forgot to tell you I got us pineapple juice again," Castle told his wife as he entered the room.
"Good," Beckett said simply, waiting for him to join her. She took the tray he had, waiting for him to sit on the bed next to her before she gave it back to him. They started to eat after that, quiet as they were both hungry until she felt his hand on her arm and looked at him.
"I know you want to go, but I just want to make sure," Castle began. "You don't think we should save this museum for when we're with the girls."
"It's another one they can go to while we're in Adare," Beckett replied. "And they know we're going; don't worry."
"They want us to go?" Castle asked her.
"Yes," Beckett said simply before she smiled and turned back to their omelet and waffles. After they had finished they got up, the tray on the table in the living room before they were changing into their clothes for the day.
"Kate," Castle said, going to the bathroom once he was dressed.
"Yes?" Beckett asked as she walked inside after him.
"Do you still want to go swimming?" Castle inquired. When she nodded he said, "I was thinking of pushing that to tonight, in case we're at the museum for a while."
"We might need to eat dinner sooner," Beckett replied. "So we're not late talking to the kids."
"I'm fine with that," Castle said quickly.
Beckett laughed softly before she said, "Okay, then finish so we can go."
Castle turned to his brush, running it through his hair until he was sure that it was set. Since he was finished first he turned to his wife as she was setting down her brush, which made him walk over to her and gently press his face against her hair. As she paused he murmured into her ear, "I'd like to make a request," unable to keep his voice from taking on a husky timbre.
"Okay," Beckett said, speaking carefully as she wasn't unaffected by his tone.
"Keep your hair down? At least at the museum," Castle said, saying the last rapidly.
Beckett was smiling before she turned and told him, "I will, but I want to put it up when we swim."
Nodding, Castle said, "I expected that."
"Okay, then we can go," Beckett said before he let her go. She followed him, once he'd let go of her, out into the rest of the suite. She grabbed her coat and made sure her camera was in her bag before she followed her husband to the door.
"Mind if I lead us today?" Castle asked his wife while they were walking over to the elevators.
"No," Beckett said simply. She wasn't surprised when her husband looked at her in surprise and she told him, "It would be fun, and I was doing that yesterday."
"Really I was just going to walk through as much as possible," Castle said.
Beckett smiled and squeezed her husband's hand which was holding hers before they were stepping into an elevator. "Since we're not doing anything else," she told him. "We should be able to see everything."
"How many pictures are you going to take?" Castle asked his wife when they were starting down to the lobby.
"A lot," Beckett said simply and seriously. She then smiled and said, "I put another card in my camera last night."
Castle nodded as they were stopping at a floor, and he watched another couple stepping inside with them. He and his wife were quiet, waiting before they got to the lobby before he said, "Are you sure you don't want to call any of the others?"
"It's not me," Beckett said in amusement. "It's them, they still want to practice."
"You would figure they'd get tired of it," Castle commented. "But I guess they're serious about practicing." He thought for a moment and then said, "They'll be interesting at the dinner tomorrow."
"They will," Beckett replied before they were stepping out of the hotel. The doorman at the front hailed a cab for them and once they were sitting in the back she told the cabbie, "Natural History Museum," before they were pulling away. As they were traveling through the streets she reached to her husband's leg, taking his hand and entwining their fingers. She held it for a while before squeezing it and then reaching for her phone as she'd heard an alert on it.
"Skye?" Castle asked, watching her.
Nodding, Beckett read the text she'd gotten and then showed the screen to Castle so he could read the message that said, 'Mind if we join you at the museum, the others want to rest.'
"Yeah, that's fine," Castle said quickly. "That would be fun. Just them though?"
Beckett held up her hand and then started to text Skye back writing, You're more than welcome, we're almost there but we'll wait for you at the entrance. Does anyone else want to go with you? They can. She sent that and then waited for the answering text before she told her husband, "The others in the band are going to do other things, I told her we're going to wait for them in the entrance."
"Great," Castle said before he felt the cab slowing down. He was quick to pay the cabbie before he followed his wife out and they turned to the impressive building, going inside and getting a map before they sat to wait.
"There they are," Beckett said a short time later.
"How'd they get here so fast?" Castle asked, looking at his watch.
Beckett smiled at him before she stood up and walked to the two women saying, "I'm glad you guys joined us."
"I really hope you're being honest," Skye said wryly.
"We are," Castle said, smiling at his wife as he'd joined her.
"Okay," Mary said once they'd greeted one another. "Where do we start."
"Don't look at me," Skye said quickly as Castle and Beckett looked at her. "I've been here but not for some time. You two lead the way we're merely tagging along."
"He's doing that," Beckett replied with a smile.
"I kind of wanted to start with the dinosaurs," Castle replied, speaking hesitantly.
"That's fine," Mary said.
"Yeah, always interesting," Skye said quickly.
"It's fine," Beckett said hurriedly when she realized her husband was looking at her. She laughed shortly when they started to walk and she told him, "I was nodding my head Rick."
"I just wanted to hear that verbally," Castle began. "You know, to make sure."
Beckett smiled and then said, "I'll remember that for next time." She smiled a little wider when her husband nodded, and she squeezed his arm before they stepped into the dinosaur room. As they were passing fossils and a few recreated dinosaurs, she took pictures but soon after turned to her husband. Seeing that he was looking around at the displays in awe, she smiled which she tried to hide after that before she felt Skye coming up on her left.
"Have you ever been interested in that?" the investigator asked her.
"I have, but not as much as my husband," Beckett replied, smiling as he was looking at that moment at a dinosaur egg. "Though I did enjoy Jurassic Park when that came out."
"Oh, I did as well," Skye said. "Was lucky Dad agreed to let me see it."
"I was lucky my parents let me," Beckett said with a nod. She then smiled before turning to her friend from the display and said, "You read the book didn't you?"
"After the movie, I wasn't aware of it until my Dad told me that," Skye answered.
"At thirteen?" Castle said as he'd been able to hear their conversation.
"Twelve," Beckett and Skye said together. They shared a look before they were laughing briefly with their spouses and they continued through the large room.
"I think that we really need to bring the girls," Mary told her wife.
"I know, I know," Skye replied as they were looking at a skull of a triceratops. "I'm not sure when we'll have that chance though." She then looked at their friends and asked, "What about you?"
"We want to bring our daughters too," Castle said. "But we were thinking of having the others come here to London instead of going home after Spain this summer."
"While you go to Adare?" Mary asked.
Nodding Beckett answered saying, "We didn't feel it was fair to have them go home while we'd be staying in Ireland." She wasn't surprised when the two women looked at each other and she glanced at her husband before Skye was clearing her throat lightly to speak.
"We wouldn't mind coming here," the investigator said.
"Are you sure?" Castle said.
"We're not about to join you at Adare," Skye commented wryly.
"I wasn't talking about the same room," Castle said in mock exasperation.
"Alright kids," Mary said to the two, sharing a smile with Beckett. "Can we keep going?"
"Yeah," Castle said, leading the way out before he paused and looked at the map. "We need to eat dinner early don't we?" he then asked his wife.
"We do," Beckett said. "So go near where you want to go for lunch."
"I can't pick a place," Castle said quickly before looking at the other two women.
"Let me see," Skye said, holding her hand out to him. When he'd given her the map she read it over before she said, "I think this place will be good."
"Is it because of my eagerness about the dinosaurs," Castle said with a sigh as the investigator was pointing out The T-Rex Grill.
"Yes, but," Skye said before she smiled. "Really I'd like to see what this place is like."
"Alright," Mary said. "I think we have that set so what's next?"
"Fossils," Castle said shortly before the women were laughing at his tone. He took his wife's hand as they headed over to the room and then started to look at the different specimens on display.
"What is it?" Beckett asked her husband as they were looking at a large fossil on the wall of a sea creature.
"That name seems really familiar," Castle said.
"Her story's been on Mysteries at the Museum," Skye said. She smiled when the couple looked at her and she told them, "It has, since of course her finds were so important."
"We have to tell Julia," Castle told his wife quickly.
"We will," Beckett said. "And make sure they come here?" When her husband nodded seriously she laughed softly and they continued to the next fossil.
"Here's another story that was on the show," Mary said with a smile as they came to a large skeleton cast.
"Eliza loved that one," Beckett said, since it was a giant ground sloth. "When they showed what it really was."
"She wanted to hug it," Castle commented. "Though we made sure she saw its claws."
"I hope you let her know it didn't really use those for hurting anything," Skye said.
"We told her," Castle said. "And we showed her sloths today and that just made it worse."
"She asked for one?" Mary asked as they were continuing.
"Of course," Beckett said. "But we managed to convince her it needed rainforest trees and not ours."
"Good idea," Skye said before they were looking at the next fossils until they had finished and were stepping out of the room. She and her wife immediately looked at Castle who shook his head and was looking at the map again.
"Do you guys mind going to the Creepy Crawlies section?" he asked once he'd considered the map for a bit. "It's right here."
"No, that's fine," Mary said when her wife looked at her. "They're not reptiles grá."
Since she'd glanced at Castle at that moment Skye asked, "I had assumed already they had them here; am I right?"
"Yeah," Castle said as he folded the map and handed it to his wife. "But that'll be later and we can always split up."
"Oh no," Mary told him as they were walking over to the room. "We can go."
"We'll see how terrified you are," Skye said wryly. She laughed when her wife playfully pinched her arm before she then turned her attention to the insects that were in the room.
"Weird," Castle said as they came to a cabinet with crustaceans eventually.
"I guess it's creepy," Beckett said. She smiled at her husband when he looked at her and then said, "Let's go ahead and get lunch okay?"
"Yeah," Castle said slowly before he turned to his wife as she touched his arm. "Sorry, just looking at the shells."
"Come on," Beckett said as Skye and Mary had already started to walk ahead of them. She took his hand and they went after their friends until they were entering the restaurant. "Cute," she said.
"Yeah, I was thinking of recommending this to the parents that brought the kids here," Castle said.
"You mean your parents?" Mary asked in obvious confusion.
"No I meant the other kids' parents," Castle replied quickly before they got in line and then looked at the menu.
"Are you getting another burger?" Beckett asked her husband after they'd been reading for a while. When he shook his head she then asked, "The steak? Ribs?"
"What do you guys think about sharing two pizzas?" Castle asked the two women.
"That would be nice, would that be enough?" Skye asked.
"I was going to get the Caesar salad with chicken," Mary commented.
"You can have some slices too," Beckett told her.
"Sounds good," Mary replied easily.
"Is anyone getting their lager?" Skye asked.
"No, I kind of wanted to eat at a pub tonight love," Castle answered before he told the rest to his wife.
"That's fine," Beckett said with a nod. "I'll just get some sparkling water. And if you're thinking of dessert I'd rather get that fruit platter."
"I'm fine with that," Castle said.
"So are we," Skye said before she smiled when the two turned to her. "We'll order one too for us. What pizza will you order?" she asked as they were nearing the front of the line.
"I'll get the ham and mushroom," Castle said, looking at his wife. When she nodded he then looked with her over at the two women who were staring at the menu again and he was about to ask them if they needed more time when Mary spoke first.
"Just get the Margherita," the doctor said with a smile. "She loves that one," Mary told the two as she'd nodded to her wife.
"I was going to suggest that," Beckett said to Skye after they'd left their spouses so they could get a table at their insistence.
"I do really enjoy it," the investigator commented before they started to laugh. Skye then looked around at the tables they were near and asked, "Where should we go?"
"Maybe we should go to the table with the booth," Beckett said when she saw it.
Skye nodded in agreement, and they went together over to one of those tables to sit as they waited for their spouses. While they were she said, "Are you ready for tomorrow?"
Glancing at her Beckett said, "I'm not the one performing. Photographing will be a lot easier." She then studied her friend and said, "What is it?"
"Wait until they come over here," Skye said laughingly. "I should have known you were able to tell."
"You should have," Beckett told her teasingly. She then turned to front of the restaurant before she saw Castle and Mary were making their way over to them. She and Skye stood up before they were helping their husband and wife with the drinks and the plate with the salad. After they'd had the boxes with the pizza open they took their slices before starting to eat, not speaking before she looked at her friend and said, "Skye?"
"I thought you'd forget you were so hungry," the investigator said jokingly. Skye then became a little more serious and told the others, "I got a text from Stella this morning; our costumes for Killer Queen are set," keeping her voice down though they were sitting away from the other people there.
"That fast?" Castle asked in surprise.
"She has other collections to work on," Skye pointed out.
"Let me guess," Mary said. "We're trying them on tomorrow?"
"She'd like us to, for any adjustments," Skye replied before she looked at Beckett.
"I'm fine doing that," she replied quickly. Beckett then said, "Are you going to practice moving at all?"
"No," Skye said simply. She took a drink of water before she told the others, "I decided not to worry about choreography; Freddie didn't."
"Good, you won't be too worried," Mary told her wife. When Skye looked at her she smiled and said, "I know you."
"Yeah," Skye said shortly before she was smiling. They tapped their glasses together before she said to the other two, "She does."
"We got that," Beckett said, trying not to laugh. She then asked, "Are you guys planning on doing anything tonight?"
"Not really," Mary said first since her wife had looked at her. "We were just going to stay in."
"You guys?" Skye said.
"You heard us planning," Beckett commented. She wasn't surprised when the investigator nodded in response and they turned their attention back to their food, finishing their meal. She turned to her husband when they'd left the restaurant and was about to ask him where he wanted to go before he stopped her by holding the map out to Skye.
"I really don't have to keep picking where we go," Castle told her.
"You do," Skye said easily.
Sighing, as he knew she was serious, Castle looked at the map and then said, "We should head back to the other side of the museum and then come back this way since there's… I'm not sure what this is but it goes to the second floor."
Skye took the map then and saw what he was talking about, nodding and said, "I think it's likely an escalator. Quite steep but there must be something to it."
"I think we should do that," Mary said. "There's some interesting rooms that way."
After Beckett had smiled at the others looking at her they walked to the other side of the museum where the dinosaur room was. They went through the others around it until they could go back towards the restaurant. Once they'd gone through the Human Evolution room they came to the Earth Hall and looked around at the different items before they reached the stegosaurus that was near the escalator.
"It says it's the most intact fossil found of this kind," Castle commented.
"Impressive," Skye said.
"You're thinking of Iris?" Mary asked her wife.
When Skye nodded Beckett asked, "She likes this kind of dinosaur?"
"We had to assure her that they're herbivores," Mary answered before her wife could.
"And I don't know if this would really reassure her," Skye said since the fossil's mouth was open.
"At least you guys would be there to," Castle said.
"We would," Mary said, smiling at her wife. "Should we head up?"
"I think so," Skye said as they turned to the escalator. When they got to the bottom of it she looked up and said, "And we head up two floors for that."
"Are you afraid?" Castle asked her in confusion.
"Oh no, just letting anyone else who is a way out," Skye said.
"Let's go," Mary said in mock annoyance since her wife was looking at her.
Going up the escalator, the four looked around the two rooms that were there before they headed down the stairs to the next floor.
"Ah, I was wondering if we'd see a room like this," Skye commented as they came into the first.
"I saw but I let you guys lead," Castle said quickly when the three looked at him. "Ladies," he corrected himself hurriedly.
"He did I think," Mary said as Beckett was studying her husband.
"I know, I'm teasing him," she said with a smile before she squeezed her husband's arm. She then turned her attention to the first display, which were of some rocks. Though she was eager to get to the gems she had seen in the distance she schooled herself to give everything equal attention until they'd finally reached the first display.
"Quite a specimen," Skye commented.
"I know," Beckett said, studying a sapphire turban button. "Though I'm not too big a fan of the colors on the side."
"Neither am I," Skye said. She then saw her friend was looking at her and she said, "What?"
"You don't wear jewelry," Beckett pointed out to her while they were walking to the next display.
"Not about to wear something like this," Skye said jokingly, indicating the Kol-I-Noor diamond before they were looking at it with their spouses.
"I'm so glad you didn't want a diamond that big," Castle eventually told his wife.
"My engagement ring?" Beckett asked. When he nodded seriously she squeezed his shoulder and told him, "If you'd gotten something like that for me we would have to talk."
"Probably," Castle said in agreement before they were continuing to the next display. After they'd looked at everything he told the other three, "There's only one more room here; From the Beginning," as he was looking at the map.
"That's fine, we should try and see everything," Skye told him.
"We wanted to try," Mary said.
"Okay, but there isn't all that much left," Castle said, handing the map to Skye.
"He's right," the investigator said. "Only a few rooms." She gave him the map and then looked at her watch saying, "It's nearly three you know."
"Great, we can swim sooner," Castle said.
"We'll see," Beckett replied, shaking her head. While they were walking again to another exhibit with Jurassic ammonites she said, "Are you going to tell your girls about the sequoia?"
"Of course, they'll be quite pleased knowing something from home is here," Skye said. She then looked at the two and asked, "When do you think you'll go to San Francisco again?"
"I have no idea," Beckett said, answering once she'd taken a picture of the fossils under the glass. "We have too much to do until then and of course the girls' school comes first."
"How're your books doing?" Mary asked.
"Good," Castle said, not surprised when his wife looked at him to answer.
"He wants to make the transition to the Hamptons the best possible," Beckett then said as the two women were sharing a look.
"I thought it'd be the next book," Skye said.
"We were going to have it be that book," Beckett explained. "But we decided to have it here as well as the wedding. That way we can jump ahead in time and go to about six months after their honeymoon."
"I can't wait to read it," Mary said.
"Me too," Skye said while they were leaving the room. "Now how about you let us pay for our copy?"
"That's not going to happen," Castle said, not surprised the investigator had asked since she and Mary would.
"It doesn't hurt our sales," Beckett said reassuringly to the women. They had left The Vault room they'd been in and she said to her husband, "Was that it?"
"That was the last thing," Castle said. "Gift shop?" When the women nodded he said, "I hate to say it but it goes a lot faster without the kids."
"No you're right," Beckett told him. "But they're coming here as soon as they can."
"After they see your pictures they'll want to," Castle said. When his wife glanced at him he smiled at her before they made their way down to the gift shop on the ground floor.
"We can get the girls something," Beckett said when they were inside the shop. "But just one thing again."
"Sure," Castle said a little absently as he was looking around at the merchandise he could see.
"Rick," Beckett said, touching his chest briefly to make sure she got his attention.
"Excuse me?" a voice said before Castle could answer. "Sorry," the woman said when the two looked at her. "I just saw you and… you're the writers right?"
"We are," Castle said after glancing at his wife.
"Oh, I'm such a fan of your books, both of the ones you have," the woman began before she made a face. "Sorry, the series with Moor and Green and then your book in the twenties."
"We're glad to hear that," Beckett said.
"I'm sorry for interrupting your conversation," the woman said. "I just wanted to say and… you don't need to answer but I hope your baby daughter is doing well."
"She is," Beckett said with a nod.
The woman nodded before she said, "Thank you for talking to me, have a great day."
After they'd said goodbye to the woman Castle turned to his wife and said, "Should we have offered her autographs."
"I don't think she wanted one," Beckett said. "Now let's find the stuff for the girls so we can get going."
Following his wife then, Castle was looking at more items they were passing before he stopped and then called to her. "What about t-shirts?" he asked her when she had walked back to him.
"Alright," Beckett said, since he'd stopped at a t-shirt with butterflies on it for a baby. She picked out a slightly bigger size for Josie to wear that summer and she said to her husband, "If you see something for Julia or Eliza let me know."
"Am I the only one looking?" Castle replied.
"No, but you had luck finding one already," Beckett said with a smile.
"Okay," Castle said before they were continuing to walk through the children's items. He wasn't surprised when she slowed down at a shirt and he said, "I think she'd like it."
"You don't think it's too morbid?" Beckett said as the shirt had a 'Missing Presumed Extinct' poster with a Dodo bird on it.
"Not really," Castle said after thinking for a bit. "She knows about this bird."
"Alright," Beckett said as she took one of the shirts in their second oldest daughter's size. "What about Alexis?"
"I don't think so," Castle said. "I mean we could look for mugs I guess."
"Good idea, luckily they have a lot," Beckett said as she'd seen them on some shelves. They continued but were stopping very shortly after at the same time before her husband was speaking before she could.
"It's Dippy," Castle said.
"Alright," Beckett said with a smile as the blue and white striped shirt had a silhouette in white on the blue of the famous diplodocus they'd seen back in New York City. Eliza had loved the plaster cast of the bones and she knew her husband was thinking of that as well. Taking the shirt he picked out from him she checked the size to make sure before she frowned and said, "Get the next size up."
"But…" Castle started to say before he trailed off. "She's grown?"
"She has," Beckett said with a nod. When he gave her the next size up she told him, "She'll be six next month."
"Don't remind me," Castle said, shaking his head. He then noticed the way his wife was looking at him and he said, "What?"
"It's very sweet you think that," Beckett replied.
"But," Castle then supplied for her when she didn't continue.
"We can't really think that way," Beckett said.
"Oh, I'm glad you said we," Castle said, smiling when his wife laughed as they went over to the registers. He then recalled something and was going to call to his wife when she stopped at a display.
"I think they'll like these cups," Beckett said, picking up a box of coffee cups. "They do like espresso." She then saw the look on his face and she said, "What?" in slight surprise.
"Sorry, I thought you'd forgotten to look for Alexis," Castle explained quickly. He then smiled and said, "Yeah, those look great… but Audubon pictures?"
"It's just one," Beckett gently corrected him as the cups had the famous ornithologist's picture of a Louisiana heron with foliage of the painting on the saucers. "And remember that Louis loves all animals. And Alexis."
"Okay," Castle said with a nod before they were walking to the registers again. "Wait," he said quickly.
"We…" Beckett said as she knew he'd found something for one of their daughters. She stopped herself when she looked down at what he'd picked up and said with a smile, "Because it's orange?"
"Or… oh, her Tigger doll," Castle said in confusion at first before he realized she was thinking of that. He smiled down at the knitted Diplodocus toy he'd picked up in a bright orange and he then told his wife, "I really thought it was cute, and she'd like it."
"She will," Beckett said. They continued and when they were in line to pay she wasn't surprised that her husband took everything and paid for them. While he was doing that she went over to Mary and asked her, "Did you get something for your girls?"
"We did, just shirts since it's easier to grab that," the doctor replied. "And for all of us a coffee table book about the museum."
"Good idea," Beckett replied before she saw their spouses were walking back to them, tote bags in hand.
"Should we share a taxi?" Skye asked as they were heading to the entrance to go back outside.
"We'll fit," Castle commented.
"I think she was asking us if we were going anywhere else since they're not," Beckett told him. "We aren't either," she told the two women before they went over to the curb to hail a cab which her husband was doing.
Once they were in the back Castle said to his wife, "Like I said before we can swim."
"We will," Beckett assured him with a smile as he was speaking Irish. She then turned to the other two and asked, "Would you guys want to join us?"
"I think we'll pass," Skye said after she and Mary had shared a look. "But thank you for asking."
"We might wait until we get to White Mount," the doctor then said.
"Then we'll see you at…?" Beckett said as she noticed that they were getting closer to the hotel.
"I think we can head over there together," Skye replied. "We won't need to be there that early. I think Paul said nine thirty," she said, directing the last to her wife.
"He did," Mary said with a nod. "We were going to leave around nine, a little before depending on traffic."
The cab had stopped at that point and the four got out of the backseat once the cabbie had been paid, standing on the sidewalk to talk after it had left.
"Text us once you leave your room," Castle said to the two women.
"Alright, we'll see you then," Skye said. "Enjoy the rest of your night."
"You too," Beckett said to the two women before they went into the hotel. They went up to their respective floors together, saying goodbye before she and her husband were alone. She smiled at Castle when he took her hand and she said, "Did you want to swim right now?"
"Yeah," he said rapidly. "Since we have the time until dinner." Castle then looked at his watch before he said, "What time did you want to go though?"
Looking at her father's watch Beckett considered the time before she said, "We can swim for about forty-five minutes, come back to take a quick shower and then go once we're ready."
"Sounds like a good plan," Castle said seriously. He wasn't surprised when his wife rolled her eyes and he squeezed her hand that was still in his before they headed out to the hall. When they were at their room they went in quickly and hurried to change into their swim clothes before covering up and heading back out again with some towels. When they went to the pool they discovered they were on their own again and he followed his wife to get in before anyone else joined them.
After they'd swum a bit, Beckett went to the side before she looked over her shoulder at her husband as he joined her. "Want to race?" she asked with a smile.
"I don't think so," Castle said. He wasn't surprised when she looked at him with slightly widened eyes and he was quick to tell her, "I was thinking of something else."
"Are you going to let me know what that is?" Beckett asked, puzzled.
"Let's swim a little first," Castle said. He wasn't taken aback when she gave him a look but she went with him around the pool a few times before they stopped on the side again. He was about to talk then but his wife was doing so first though he wasn't surprised when she did.
"You know you can tell me," Beckett told her husband pointedly.
Since she'd been speaking in Irish, Castle breathed out heavily and then said in the same language, "Would it surprise you if I told you I wanted to do something in the shower?"
"Of course not," Beckett replied. When her husband started looking at her questioningly she smiled and then told him, "We'll see what we can do."
"You do want to," Castle stated instead of asking.
"Yes," Beckett said simply and in English.
"Love," Castle breathed, tempted to kiss her. But two women were walking into the room as well as someone on a treadmill in the gym room that looked onto the pool, so he merely reached to her hand holding the side of the pool before they were swimming again. He'd been a little unsure of the two women, but they were sitting on some of the lounge chairs and talking so he and Beckett were able to swim on their own.
After they'd been swimming for what felt like a while, Beckett asked her husband what time it was since he was the only one of the two of them that had a watch still. When he held his wrist out to her she saw they'd been there for nearly an hour and she said, "We better go."
"I was going to say," Castle replied. He swam with her over to the ladder they were near before they went to their towels on one of the lounge chairs.
Beckett dried off rapidly, glancing over at the women who were still talking. She wasn't surprised when they continued to and she focused her attention on finishing drying before she threw on the sundress she'd brought for cover. Her husband was ready first so she nodded to him before they were leaving the room to head for the nearest elevators they could use to go up to their floor.
When he was closing and locking the door Castle said, "Want some tea?"
"That's okay," Beckett said. "I wanted to take a shower first."
"But you do want some," Castle stated.
"I'll see how I feel after the shower," Beckett said. "Come on, you did want to eat at a pub right?"
"Yeah… why?" Castle said in surprise.
"You wouldn't want to play a game of darts?" Beckett asked him. She smiled when he immediately groaned and then said, "One at least."
Sighing, as he could tell his wife was serious, Castle looked at her and said, "Okay, but let's not bet anything."
"We won't," Beckett replied before she turned to the bathroom and started walking over to it. She heard her husband following her and she smiled before she stepped into the room and went to the shower stall. She was about to open the door when her husband's hand appeared on hers and she turned to him.
"I'll take care of this," Castle said though he wasn't letting her go.
"Okay," Beckett eventually said, trying not to smile again. "But you know you do need to let me go right?"
"Yeah," Castle said hurriedly before he let go of her hand. He watched her walk to where the towels were kept but soon shook himself as he knew she would turn around to find him staring. He opened the door and turned on the water before they were both undressing rapidly and stepping inside with him just behind her. As soon as they were in he couldn't stop himself, pressing her against the wall across from the door gently before he said, "Please tell me you still would like this," staring intently into her eyes.
Beckett gazed at her husband for a bit before she reached for him, cupping his face with her hands and she leaned against him, kissing him lovingly before his arms were wrapping around her tightly. As their kiss became deeper very shortly after, she slid her hands up the back of his neck to reach his hair. When she touched his hair she let her fingers slide through it before they were slowly parting. She and Castle stared at each other and for some time before her husband was moving first. She closed her eyes tightly as he lowered his head to her neck and she let out a soft moan at the feel of his lips. When he reached for her breasts she couldn't help gasping as it had startled her, and while he pulled away she could watch him descend to her chest.
Kissing around her mounds heatedly, Castle tried to get himself to calm down and take his time. But he found it was impossible as he was enjoying the feel of her breasts under his lips. Her skin was both soft and wet and he could have spent a long time pressing a kiss wherever he could if his wife's moans weren't letting him know he needed to do more for her. Reluctantly he pulled away and took her lips with his own though he kept that brief as he was moving again, getting on his knees.
Though she was concerned for her husband's knees, Beckett knew already he wouldn't stop and she let him kneel before she leaned back against the wall. As her husband was pleasuring her she was trying to hold onto that wall to use it to withstand what he was making her feel. As always it didn't work since he was too adept at pleasing her exactly as she wanted. She only hoped she would last for longer than a few minutes as she could feel her body reacting immediately.
When his wife did finally climax, Castle's hands were on the small of her back, holding it so she couldn't slip along the wall. From her cries that were echoing off the tiles he understood she was going through an intense orgasm and he was dealing with his own desire and pride at the same time. But she finally calmed down and once he was sure he could move he stood up, holding her in his arms before kissing her deeply.
Responding to him, Beckett wrapped her arms around him again but that time she only held onto the back of his neck with both her hands so she wouldn't be distracted. When they'd kissed several more times she stopped him from doing it again and said, "I was supposed to be first," as they pressed their foreheads together.
"You should punish me," Castle said.
"I should," Beckett said with a smile, kissing him deeply a moment later. After they'd parted she then began to kiss over his chest, moving quickly to get on her knees before she took his erection in her hands. She began with kissing it and then moved on to slipping it into her mouth. Once she had she bobbed her head quickly, knowing her husband needed that, and she used her hands at the same time since they were free to do so. She had no idea how long it took for him to break but once he had she was doing her best to keep up with his pleasure.
Feeling his body returning to normal after a long time handling the satisfaction she'd given him, Castle forced himself to let go of his wife's head so she could stand. "I didn't hurt you did I?" he asked her.
"No," Beckett said reassuringly. She let him take her in his arms though she was quick to wrap her own about his neck, and they were kissing again. That time they were far more tender and slower, letting it linger before she pulled away first and her husband was murmuring into her ear.
"We need to do something else," Castle said, his voice husky with desire.
"I know but… you can still touch," Beckett said. She wasn't surprised that her husband pulled back and she smiled saying, "I'm serious. But we need to start washing up."
"Yeah," Castle said quickly, turning his attention to their bottles of shampoo and conditioner on the shelf near them. He grabbed his wife's rose scented shampoo and then lathered her hair since she'd been getting it wet. He stared into her eyes as he was working his fingers over her scalp gently, pleased when she moaned softly in response to his massage.
"I can't really do the same for you," Beckett pointed out to him when he'd stopped and she was rinsing her hair.
"It's alright," Castle told her, getting her conditioner. "Touching is better."
"Pervert," Beckett said with a smile as she stepped away from the water so she could get close to him. She waited for him to get the conditioner on her hair before she was responding to his kiss he was giving her shortly after. Once she had wrapped her arms around his neck she felt him picking her up, though only so he didn't need to bow his head too far to reach her. She was still enjoying it and she was trying not to moan at his touch as he was moving his fingers just slightly. When they parted she smiled at him and said, "Set me down."
"Sure," Castle replied, wondering what she wanted to do after she rinsed out her hair. He was a little surprised when she was reaching for his shampoo but he was quick to move, bowing slightly for her.
Beckett didn't say anything, washing her husband's hair before they were wrapping their arms around each other tightly and kissing again. They were intense that instance and didn't stop for some time until they had to breathe for more than a few seconds. When they parted she reached down to his erection and started to gently rub at it. She wasn't surprised when her husband was reaching for her and they began to pleasure one another furiously before they climaxed shortly after with him leaning against the wall. "Don't say a word," she said once she had recovered enough to speak.
"I have to say something," Castle replied.
Smiling for a moment, Beckett then told him, "Okay."
"I wish you wouldn't do that," Castle said, looking down at her body though they were still pressed close together.
"We'll wash off," Beckett said firmly, knowing he was talking about the fact that she'd made sure his release had gotten all over her upper body. She brushed her lips against his and then said, "I love you Rick. That includes this too."
"I'm so glad to hear that," Castle said before he leaned down and kissed her deeply. They lingered for a while and once they'd parted he said seriously, "I love you too Kate." They kissed again and after parting he said, "Now we need to wash up."
"Do you regret me leaning on you?" Beckett said with a smile as they moved to stand under the water.
"No," Castle said swiftly. They kissed and he washed her first before she was doing the same for him and they shared one last kiss before he turned off the water. He knew there was a reason she was drying herself off but he was still tempted to go over to her as they moved to the bedroom with their clothes. He glanced at her while they dressed but only once, quickly putting on everything before he was waiting for her to finish as she glanced at him.
"Do we need to leave right now?" Beckett asked him.
"Soon," Castle said, checking his watch before he went with her into the bathroom. After they had brushed their hair he went out to check on the weather while his wife was drying her hair further. He saw that it had started to rain at some point and he told Beckett when she walked out into the bedroom.