Chapter Twelve:
Rick awoke the next morning to the sound of his cellphone ringing on his nightstand. He growls as he picks the offending device up to answer it. "It's early."
"Rise and shine writer-boy. You've got a busy day ahead of you... Remember?" Lanie's far too cheery voice for this time of the morning replies. "I'll meet you in the lobby in fifteen minutes. I'll even let you buy me breakfast... Later Castle." She hangs up before Rick can respond.
Knowing just how punctual the ME was, he nearly sprints from the bed to his bathroom for a quick "shower. Exactly fifteen minutes later he is standing in the lobby, his hair still dripping wet as Lanie enters, trying, but failing to contain her laughter.
The two share a leisurely breakfast in the hotel's restaurant. Lanie shared stories about Javi and Kevin while Rick listened intently. Castle talked about living in Key West and how different it was from his former life in New York. Lanie could tell from the way he spoke just how much he missed his former life, how much he missed his wife.
They were finishing their second cup of coffee when the ME comments. "Let's get going writer-boy. You've got an appointment at the salon to get that mane of hair lopped off... Then we get to go shopping for some new clothes..." She almost giggled with glee as she spoke.
"Oh goody." Rick sarcastically replies.
X-X-X-X
Kate awoke to the wonderful smell of breakfast cooking and for the faintest of moments thought that she was home with Rick. Then she opens her eyes and sees where she is. Alexis enters the living room carrying two cups of coffee, placing one on the table in front of Kate. "It should be pretty close to the way you make it... I don't normally keep all of the ingredients..."
Kate takes an appraising smell of the drink and can't help but smile. She hasn't had a good cup of coffee in over a year. Taking a tentative sip, she smiles. "This is perfect. Thank you... And thank you for letting me stay here..."
"I couldn't let you drive after all of the wine we drank last night... Breakfast is ready in the kitchen... " Alexis gestures into the kitchen. Beckett thanks her and follows the younger Castle into the kitchen. The two women ate their meal in relative silence and Kate complimented her on her cooking.
Alexis breaks the silence. "You know, I spent a long time last night thinking about everything we talked about last night... I love my father more than anything... I just hope that one day I'm lucky enough to find a man that loves me as much as he loves you... He'd die for you, hell, he threw himself in front of a bullet for you..."
Kate starts to reply, but Alexis holds up her hand to stop her. "I'll help you Kate... For dad..."
Beckett couldn't contain her tears hearing that the one woman who has the most influence on Rick has agreed to help bring them together. "Thank you Alexis... I won't let you down. I promise..."
The two women spend the rest of the morning discussing ways to get the two back together. Most of the plans were far too complex to be practical. Both were afraid that an ambush of his Florida home would only increase the chance of him running again. Neither knew that as they spoke, the subject of their scheming was sitting in a New York men's salon.
Rick emerges from the stylist's chair looking completely different from when he entered. Lanie gives him an appraising look and can't seem to contain her smile. "Damn writer-boy! You look good..."
"Really?" Rick nervously inquires.
"If you weren't so hopelessly in love with my best friend, I'd make a play for you myself... But then again, you've always been that way..." She gives him an almost wistful look as she speaks. "Let's go get some lunch... And you're buying."
They have a quiet lunch at one of the better eateries nearby. The conversation was kept to safe topics, such as their plans for the upcoming holidays. Lanie was hoping that Rick was going to be in the city so that she and her band of conspirators could come up with a plan to get the two together. Castle assumed as much and was evasive with his answers, but not totally discounting the idea of returning to the city permanently.
"What are your plans for the evening?" Lanie inquires. She had been busy on the phone while Rick was in the salon talking to Ryan and Espo trying to get them together for the first time in well over a year. While Ryan had been more than receptive to the idea, Espo was not as sure about facing Castle. Lanie assumed that part of the reason was he was ashamed of how he treated the writer before Rick vanished, believing that Castle was responsible for Kate moving out of the loft.
"Why?" Rick replies, immediately suspicious.
"While you were getting all 'prettied' up at the salon, I called the boys and they'd love to see you..."
"I, I don't know about that Lanie. I mean we didn't exactly part on the best of terms..."
Lanie can see the hesitation on Castle's part, not sure how he feels about seeing Kate's friends. He couldn't forget how Espo assumed that he was the reason for Kate's behavior. "Look Castle, the boys understand why you did what you did... I thought that it would be nice for you to see them before you head back south..."
Rick sighs, knowing that it was pointless to argue with Lanie. "Where and when?"
Lanie can't help but flash a victorious smile. "Seven o'clock. The Olde Haunt. Kevin's bringing Jenny and I told Espo to bring a date if he wanted to..."
Castle can't help but give her a surprised look as she nonchalantly discusses Javi dating another woman. It was obvious from the way that she mentioned it that she had moved on from the detective in her life. "You're coming? Right?" Rick nervously inquires, not sure how the two men will react to seeing him after all this time.
Lanie has to laugh at the look on his face. "Of course I'm coming writer-boy. I want to see the looks on their faces when they see you..."
X-X-X-X
Kate and Alexis spent the better part of the day shopping at some of the better stores in the city. Very little was purchased, but both seemed to enjoy just being together again after all of this time. They enjoyed lunch at one of the trendy bistros near Beverly Hills that Alexis had read a review about. Alexis drove the two up to Santa Monica and they spent the afternoon on the pier taking in the sights. Being at the pier was bittersweet for Kate. She liked being here with Alexis, but remembered her last time, taking down the man that had killed Mike Royce, her mentor. How close she came to taking the man's life. And now that she thought about it, another example of her obsession taking control of her, ignoring direct orders from both the NYPD and the LAPD to leave the case alone.
They decide to have dinner at one of the more fashionable restaurants in the city. Kate returns to her hotel to shower and change into something appropriate. Alexis does the same and they agree to meet there. During their lunch, Alexis had passed Kate Rick's new email address and as soon as Beckett was in her room, her laptop was open. She sat there staring at the blank screen petrified. Kate had no idea what to say to him after all of this time. Frustrated with herself, she opts to take a shower and hope that she can come up with something that will get his attention. Still wrapped in her towel, she sits down in front of the blank screen and starts to type. She re-reads the opening line and quickly deletes it, knowing she has to get his attention quickly. She also knows that staring with an apology would be probably the worst thing she could do.
Cursing herself, she shuts the laptop and focuses on getting dressed for her dinner with Alexis. She was scheduled to fly back to New York on the noon flight that will get her back to the city late that evening. Kate considered asking Alexis for her help in what she should say to her father, but quickly dismissed the thought. She had made this mess, it was time for her to clean it up.
Kate arrives at the restaurant a few minutes early and is pleased to see Alexis already seated at their table. The redhead rises up from her seat dressed in a beautiful emerald green cocktail dress and matching heels. Beckett was taken back by just how much Alexis had grown since the first time they met all those years ago. The wise beyond her years girl was now a beautiful woman. How Alexis seemed to be the perfect combination of her mother's looks with her father's personality and intelligence. For a fleeting moment, she wondered if her children with Rick would have been as perfect.
The two women exchange hugs and compliment each other on their choices of outfits. Kate was similarly dressed, but in a deep purple which was her favorite color. The meal was excellent and the conversation flowed smoothly. Both seemed to be comfortable with each other. During dessert, Kate confesses that she had tried and failed, to put together a message for Rick. Alexis considers Kate's problem and simply replies 'tell him the truth'.
"No matter what it is, no matter how he might feel about it, tell the truth. It was lies and half-truths that got you into this mess. It's the only thing that will get you out of it." Alexis pauses for a moment. "And whatever you do, don't make a promise you can't keep..."
Kate considered everything that the young woman said and knew she was right. She'd made promises to him in the past and broken them without a second thought, always able to justify why in her mind. If she was to have any chance with him, she had to be willing to keep her word regardless of circumstances.
They finished their meal and the two women exchanged hugs and promises to stay in touch as they waited for the valet to bring their cars to them. They knew that they would see each other for Christmas. Martha had already arranged that. Kate thanked Alexis for all of her help and promised that she would do what she had been told regarding Rick.
Back in her room, Kate changed out of her evening wear and slipped into one of Rick's old tee shirts. It was thread bare by now, but always seemed to help her sleep when she wore it. She sits down at the desk and opens her laptop again. After talking to Alexis earlier, the words seemed to flow now and she was done with the note before she even realized it. She quickly proofread it and decided that no changes were needed. Kate had told him the truth and that was all she could do. How he reacts to it was up to him...