He sets the mug of coffee down in front of her, waiting to be greeted by her mischievous grin. Today marks the first day of freedom in her healing process. That magical number her doctor kept throwing around when it would be okay for her to start resuming certain daily activities like caffeine intake for instance. It all starts with the caffeine, he thinks with a mischievous grin of his own. But she doesn't look up from the newspaper, doesn't even acknowledge him. Castle takes a seat at the table next to her, nudging the mug in her direction.
"Happy Magic Number Day," he tells her, trying to hint at the fact that this coffee is no longer decaf.
But she still seems lost in thought, her mind focused on whatever The New York Times is telling her.
"What is it?" he asks, reaching out to place his hand over hers gripping the paper and trying to peer at whatever article she's reading.
"String of murders in Manhattan. Press thinks they're related, that there's a serial killer on the loose. NYPD won't comment. I should be there, Castle. These are my people, my precinct -"
"Ryan and Esposito know how to do their jobs. And I'm sure whoever the new captain is that 1PP assigned to take over for Montgomery knows how to do his job too."
"Her job," Kate corrects. "The boys said our new captain is a woman."
"I'm sure she's fully competent."
"Yeah, sure," she shrugs.
"The role to protect the city does not fall solely on your shoulders, Beckett. I hate to break it to you, but you're not Batman."
She sighs, one hand dropping the paper to curl around his wrist. "I just feel useless out here. I need to get back to my life."
"This past month hasn't been your life?"
"No, I - I didn't mean..." she trails off, dropping the paper the rest of the way to cover his hand with both of hers. "My life, our life, isn't hiding up here in the Catskills trying to get our shit together. You have a daughter to get back to, and a good chunk of your next book to turn into Paula. And I have murderers to catch. I've loved spending time out here with you, and we still have a few more weeks that will be even better now that I'm able to be more...active. But this isn't our life, Castle. We belong back at the 12th catching whoever this is," she gestures at the paper, "and figuring out who the hell shot me."
"You can take the detective out of the precinct, but you can't take the detective out of the woman."
"It's just who I am, Castle. You've known that as long as you've known me."
"No, I know. Doesn't make me any more comfortable about you following a trail that leaves everyone on it dead in its wake, but I know you are who you are."
"I beat their attempt at my death. They don't have to know I'm still looking."
"You seriously don't think you're going to have a tail on you the second you set foot back in the city? They're going to be watching your every move to see if another assassination attempt is necessary. You can't give them any reason to pull that trigger again."
"I can let it go for a while. Let them think that I've dropped it. But you know as well as I do, that this case always finds a way to end up back in my interrogation room. I stopped looking for it, and it showed up anyway. I don't expect to have all of the answers right away this fall. We could still be years away from knowing the truth. But I can't keep looking over my shoulder waiting for the other shoe to drop for the rest of my life. I need all of this over to feel safe again."
"I'm on your side, Kate. I'm not trying to get you to drop it forever. I'm just asking you to look before you jump."
Her hands release his wrist and move to curl around the still warm mug in front of her. "This is why I need to go back to work, I need the job as a distraction. Out here all I can do is think about it."
"Then allow me to distract you," Castle says, folding up the newspaper. "Start by drinking your fully caffeinated coffee and we'll go from there."
"I know you have good intentions but it's not going to be that easy." She takes a sip of coffee and nearly purrs as it meets her tongue. "Oh I've missed you."
"You having a coffee orgasm over there? Want me to leave you two alone?"
She shoots him a look before taking another sip.
"Look, I know this place is filled with your mother and it can't be easy, especially not right now, but - just give me the day. Allow me to take your mind off of things."
"You know, I know my heart is doing better, but I don't know if a full day spent in bed -"
"You live in the gutter, you know that, right?"
"Only because you're there to keep me company."
"You're not going to tell me where we're going, are you?" Kate asks, side-eyeing him from the passenger seat of the car.
"Nope."
"Or why you insisted on me bringing a change of clothes?"
"Nope."
"Are you kidnapping me from my own family cabin?"
"Is it kidnapping if you came willingly?"
"Depends on how long you plan to keep me hostage."
He laughs softly as her gaze shifts back out the window, trying to figure out their destination from their surroundings.
"Have you ever been up here during the fall?" Castle asks. "I bet it's beautiful with all of these trees changing colors. It's beautiful now just with everything a uniform green."
"I haven't, but my dad has. He probably has pictures if you'd like to see them."
He nods, pulling into a small, gravel parking lot which contains only three other cars. The area is completely shrouded in trees and it's a dead end save for the footpath that leads who knows where.
"You brought me here to go hiking?" Kate asks, stepping out of the car and eyeing the overnight bag in the backseat. "We're not really prepared for camping..."
"Just a half a mile walk, and all of your questions will be answered," he tells her, opening the backseat door and slinging the bag over his shoulder.
"Castle -"
He extends his hand to her and pulls her toward the footpath. "Trust me."
Leaves and twigs crunch under their feet as they make their way down the dirt path, their fingers still intertwined. She finds herself wishing for bug spray as she swats a mosquito away from her face and slaps another that tries to land on the back of Castle's neck.
"Hey," Castle grunts. "There are easier and much more satisfying ways to give me a bruise on my neck you know."
"A. There was a mosquito. You're welcome for not letting it bite you. And B. are you asking me to give you a hickey?"
"Ah come on, Beckett. When was the last time you made out like a couple of horny teenagers?"
"That's all we've been doing lately," she laughs nudging him with her elbow.
It's cool under the shade of the trees and the ground is damp from a combination of rainfall and the surrounding environment. There's a crow overhead, keeping a watchful eye of its nest, crowing as they get closer to its home tree. They come to a wooden bridge and stop there for a moment to watch the steady stream of water flow beneath.
Castle bends to the ground and picks up two sticks. "Pick one."
She stares at him quizzically. "To do what with?"
"Race. We're going to drop them on this side of the bridge, and see whose comes out first on the other side."
A small smile tugs at her lips. "Fine. But I find my own stick."
"Suit yourself," he shrugs, dropping his less favorable stick back on the bridge.
She wanders ahead and comes back with a stick about the same size as his but with less tiny branches sticking off of it. "More aerodynamic," she tells him.
"We'll see about that," he replies turning back to the stream. "Okay drop them on the count of three, ready? One, two, three!"
They release their sticks and rush to the other side to look for them.
"Any second now," Castle mutters.
"Water's not moving as fast as you thought it was, huh?" Kate asks, watching him more than she's watching the water.
"Ooo there!" He points down at the stream. "That's mine, I win!"
"That isn't yours, that one's mine."
"No, nope yours is over there," he says pointing off to the side.
"That one is way too big, no. This one is mine."
"I don't think so," he says, shaking his head and already starting to walk backwards down the rest of the bridge before turning to run. "Better luck next time."
"Such a sore loser," she teases, chasing after him. "Stop trying to run from me, Castle, we already learned last week you can't win."
He stops when he gets to the edge of the clearing, and she nearly runs into him, her shoulder brushing across his back.
"What is it?"
But then she sees what he's looking at: the lighthouse.
"Castle -"
"The Saugerties Lighthouse was originally built in 1869 and became automated in the 1950s. Now it serves as a museum and a two bedroom bed and breakfast. One of which is ours for the night."
She gazes up at him, wide-eyed. "Castle -"
"You needed a night out of that cabin full of family history, Kate. And this place has been on my New York state bucket list for years. Plus, I've heard it's pretty romantic and the chef makes a great chicken pot pie on occasion."
She snakes her arms around his torso, hugging him from the side, while keeping her gaze trained on the lighthouse. "Thank you."
He bends his head and kisses the top of her hair. "See? I told you I could provide distractions."
AN: Thank you all so much for the warm wishes after last chapter! Here's hoping it all works out :)