"She told me that she wasn't going to stay here, Dad, but she did! Did you invite her to stay? Oh, I'm so happy that she stayed! We've got to make her breakfast. Do you think she likes bacon? Can we make bacon? I'll go get it out of the fridge!"

Rick chuckled, following his daughter into the kitchen. Alexis had been a non-stop chatterbox ever since she woke up early this morning and found a sleeping Kate by her side. "I didn't wake her up, Dad," Alexis had said. "She looked really sleepy, so I got out of bed super quiet and sneaked out of my room. I wonder when she'll wake up. Do you think it will be soon? Oh, I hope she doesn't sleep for a long time."

Castle let Alexis monitor the bacon as he began to stir chocolate chips into the pancake batter he'd prepared. He half-listened to the six-year-old's chatter, nodding and responding when appropriate as he poured batter onto the griddle into small circles. He couldn't get Kate off his mind.

No one should have to go through what Kate was going through, especially not at her age. Her story fascinated him, but even more than that, her confidence, drive, and her way with Alexis captivated him. Not to mention she was stunningly beautiful. Kate had so much potential. All she needed was someone to help her get back on her feet, so to speak, so that she could move on with her life. But how could he help?

He absently mindedly flipped the pancakes with his spatula, thinking. Castle neither needed nor wanted a live-in nanny. He'd been raised mostly by nannies in his childhood, and he didn't want that for his daughter. He told Kate that his previous babysitter, Rachel, walked Alexis to and from school, but he had failed to mention that the only reason Rachel did that was because her family lived in the same building as Castle, and Rachel's high school was only a block away from Alexis' elementary school. It had been convenient for Rachel to do, but it wouldn't be for Kate. He didn't want Kate to have to make that journey to and from the school twice a day if she didn't have to. Surely, there were better things for her to do than just walk Alexis to school daily and babysit every once in a while.

As Castle removed the cooked pancakes from the griddle and poured more batter on, he suddenly had an idea. He'd have to make a phone call after breakfast. There was no guarantee that anything would work, but he prayed that it would. Kate deserved it.

Kate woke up and slowly rolled over. She hadn't slept that well in a long time. She opened her eyes slowly, blinking at the sunlight assaulting her from the open window. As soon as she realized where she was, though, her eyes popped open. Damn it. She'd fallen asleep in Alexis' bed last night, after promising herself she wouldn't stay the night.

She'd just stayed the night, uninvited, at the house of a man she hadn't even known for two days. Not to mention that this man was Richard Freaking Castle, and he was this handsome millionaire, and she was, well, the way she was, and oh, God, she'd promised to have lunch with him today. But if he couldn't find her, they wouldn't be able to have lunch, and she wouldn't have to face him. She had to disappear. That's all there was to it.

Kate got out of bed quickly, slipped her sneakers on, and tiptoed out of Alexis' room onto the landing. She could hear quiet voices coming from what sounded like the kitchen. If they really were in the kitchen, she'd be able to make it from the stairs to the front door without either Castle noticing. Kate snuck down the stairs as quietly as possible, tiptoeing to the door and slinging her backpack over her shoulder before flipping the lock. She quietly turned the handle and opened the door slowly, preparing to exit silently. She was not prepared, however, for what was waiting for her in the hallway.

A well-dressed woman with shoulder-length wavy red hair and an oversized red purse stood in the hallway, fist raised as though she were about to knock. "Oh, hello, darling," the woman said, surprised. "You must be the babysitter Richard told me about. He didn't tell me you were staying the night. Oh, thank you, dear," she continued as she brushed past Kate into the apartment, closing the door behind her.

"I… I was just…" Kate started.

"Oh, how silly of me! I didn't introduce myself. Where have my manners gone? Martha Rodgers, actress," she said theatrically, holding out her gloved hand for Kate to shake. "Richard is my son. Richard, darling," she called. "I'm here!"

Great, Kate thought. There was no way she could leave now.

Castle rounded the corner, wearing an apron and carrying a spatula. "Mother, you didn't tell me you were coming! Morning, Kate," he said, nodding in Kate's direction. Her face flushed.

"I just… uh…" Kate tried again.

Martha continued on, ignoring Kate's attempt to speak. "I'm your mother, Richard. I can come over any time I like. But isn't it too soon to have a new woman staying the night?" Martha asked. "Besides, I thought you were with Gina. She was your excuse for leaving the party last night, anyway."

"Gina? I—what? No, Mother! Gina and I are just friends. Just friends," Castle said. He looked bewildered, and if Kate wasn't mistaken, embarrassed.

"You keep telling yourself that, kiddo. It's Katherine, is it?" Martha asked, turning to face Kate.

"I… it's just Kate," Kate said hesitantly.

"Well, darling, I will call you Katherine. That's a much more suitable name for a beautiful woman like yourself. Oh, I smell breakfast," she trilled, waltzing into the kitchen.

Castle looked at Kate and shrugged. "Looks like we have a guest for breakfast," he said apologetically.

We? Oh no. "Castle…" Kate started, shifting her gaze to the ground. "I didn't know that I… I mean… I didn't mean to… I should be going."

Castle chuckled, making her cheeks turn red again. "Kate, it's okay," he said softly. "Alexis had a nightmare, so you went to comfort her and accidentally fell asleep. Am I right?" Kate nodded sheepishly.

"Look, Kate, don't worry about it," he said gently, seeming to sense her embarrassment. "I got back a lot later last night than I thought I would, anyway. Mother made me go to the afterparty with her, and… well, you see how she is," he said, gesturing to the kitchen with his spatula. "Anyway, I was planning on asking you if you wanted to stay the night. I wasn't about to kick you out at 1:00 in the morning when you and I both know good and well that you wouldn't have had anywhere to go."

Kate opened her mouth to speak, but quickly shut it. He wasn't making a big deal out of the fact that she'd stayed the night—he had been going to ask her to, anyway. Not romantically, but out of kindness. Don't be stupid, Kate, a voice in the back of her head said. Remember what happened last time.

"Castle, I…" Kate started, trying to find the words she wanted to say. He was silent but attentive, giving her the space to think. "Thank you," she finally managed, raising her eyes to meet his.

"Any time," Castle replied, a gentle smile on his face. "Would you like to stay for breakfast, Kate? I made pancakes."

"You mean you burned pancakes," Martha's voice chimed from the kitchen.

Castle jumped, a worried look on his face, and hurried to the kitchen. Kate shook her head, smiling, and followed. Breakfast with the Castle family ought to be interesting.

Sure enough, between Alexis' excited chatter and Martha's tales of "the good old days," Rick and Kate hardly got two words in each during breakfast. Kate frequently caught Castle staring at her from across the table, and he'd shake his head or shrug his shoulders when he caught her eyes. At one point, he rolled his eyes and mouthed the word "redheads," causing Kate to stifle a laugh. The Castle family was unique, to say the least, but oddly enough, Kate liked it.

After breakfast, Martha insisted on washing Kate's clothes. "Honestly, darling, these clothes have seen better days," she said. "They almost look like you slept in them last night! So out of the kindness of my heart, I will wash what you're wearing for you. Put these on," she continued, passing Kate a pair of Rick's lounge pants and a large red T-shirt, "and give me what you're wearing."

Twenty minutes later, Kate emerged from the bathroom. She'd coupled her clothing change with a shower and was feeling refreshed. The red T-shirt was about three sizes too big, and she'd rolled up the lounge pants at the waist three times to keep them from falling off. I look stupid, Kate thought, having rolled her eyes at her reflection in the mirror.

Moments later, when she walked into the kitchen, Alexis confirmed Kate's thoughts. "You look silly, Kate!" the child laughed. "Why are you wearing Dad's clothes?"

"Gram is doing Kate's laundry for her, Alexis," Castle said, saving Kate from having to speak. "She's just borrowing my clothes until hers are clean. And Kate, I must say, you look runway-ready in that fashionable outfit."

"All credit goes to your mother for picking it out for me," Kate answered with a grin, running her hand through her damp hair. "And what smells so good?"

"Cookies!" Castle exclaimed, slipping his hand into an oven mitt and opening the oven a crack. "I heard about your little bet with Alexis yesterday afternoon. Promising her extra ice cream if you guys would lose? I'm crushed, Kate," he finished with mock disappointment.

Kate felt her cheeks redden. How did he know about that? She glanced at Alexis, who had a guilty look on her face. "I didn't mean to tell him," she said sorrowfully, lowering her eyes.

"So I'm making you cookies. A deal's a deal," Castle said, shutting the oven. The cookie sheet now lay on the counter, 16 golden-brown cookies cooling on it. "And I didn't know what kind of cookie you liked, so I'm making you Alexis' favorite: oatmeal." He used his oven mitt as a puppet for the last word, raising his eyebrows playfully.

Kate sighed. "Castle, you don't have to make me cookies…" she started.

"What's that?" Rick asked through his oven mitt puppet. "I can't understand you. Here, put this on," he said, tossing her a spare oven mitt.

"Richard Castle, I will not play oven mitt puppets with you," Kate said as sternly as she could. "You don't have to…"

Castle looked at Alexis. "I can't understand a word she's saying. Can you?" his mitt said to Alexis. The child, playing along, shook her head, a grin on her face.

"Oh, fine," Kate said, a tone of annoyance in her voice. She slipped the oven mitt on her hand and stepped toward Castle, raising her mitted hand inches from his face. "This is the stupidest thing I've ever done," she said tersely, making her oven mitt speak with every word.

"Now I can understand you!" Castle exclaimed through his mitt. "So do you like oatmeal cookies?"

"They're my favorite!" Alexis piped up, oven mitt on her hand. Dear Lord, how many oven mitts did the man have? Kate sighed.

"They're my favorite, too," her mitt admitted to Alexis. The child smiled widely.

Right at that moment, Martha waltzed into the room. "I smell cookies!" she trilled. "Really, Richard, it's too soon for dessert. Breakfast was only an hour ago"

"Can't hear you, Gram!" Alexis' mitt spoke. Martha titled her head to the side, confused.

"It's a shame that I only have three oven mitts," Rick said quietly to Kate and Alexis, a playful tone in his voice. The oven mitt trio shared a collective look, then collapsed into giggles, ignoring Martha's protests.

Kate had learned something very important today: it was impossible to have an argument with someone when you were both using oven mitts as puppets.

After baking the rest of the cookies, Alexis had begged Kate to color pictures with her. The two retreated to Alexis' bedroom with crayons and paper, and Castle decided to take advantage of the opportunity to withdraw into his study and make his phone call. After a brief conversation, Rick hung up the phone with a smile. It looked like his idea was going to work out. He just hoped Kate would accept his offer.

The door to his study swung open, and Rick jumped. "What's happening, kiddo?" Martha said grandly, entering the room.

"You could have knocked, Mother," Castle said, exasperated.

"So tell me about Katherine," Martha continued, seating herself in the plush brown armchair across from Castle's desk. "How long have you known her? Where did you meet her? I want all the details," she finished airily.

Rick sighed. "I met her two days ago, Mother. In the park," he said. "I asked her if she'd babysit Alexis last night so that I could go to your play, and she said yes." Okay, so that's not exactly how it happened. But the fewer details his mother knew, the better. He had conveniently "forgotten" to mention to Martha that Kate was homeless, for fear of his mother's judgment.

"Just like that, Richard? You didn't interview the girl or anything? Really, darling, I thought you'd know better than that," Martha said.

"I did interview her, Mother… well, sort of. I took her to lunch," Castle said. "And after our lunch conversation, I asked her to babysit."

Martha looked unconvinced. "I'd hardly call that an interview, Richard," she said, waving her hand airily. "So you meet a random girl in the park, take her to lunch, and ask her to babysit? Does she even have a babysitting résumé?" She paused, reading the look in her son's eyes. "Okay, what's really going on, Richard?" she asked gently.

"She's homeless, Mother." The words were out of his mouth before he realized it. He watched the expression on Martha's face change, but trudged on. "She was just sitting there, looking so sad, and I just wanted to help. So I took her to lunch, and the more we talked, the more I realized I didn't want to let her go."

Damn it. He hadn't meant to say that. Martha was looking at him, knowingly. "I mean… I just wanted to help," he repeated. "And I saw the way she lit up when we talked about Alexis. So I just kind of asked," he finished lamely.

"And then you called one of your higher-up friends, pulled some strings, and got her a real job," Martha added, laughing at the surprise that decorated Rick's features. "I heard your telephone conversation, Richard."

Of course she'd eavesdropped. Castle shook his head, preparing for a speech from his mother about people taking advantage of him, or about falling for yet another girl so quickly.

Instead of a speech, though, Martha stood and walked to his side. "I raised a good man," she said gently, placing a hand on his shoulder.

"Thank you, Mother," Castle said, surprised. "So you think I'm doing the right thing?"

Martha smiled. "Absolutely, kiddo." She turned to leave the room, pausing when she reached the door. "But Richard," she said, turning to face him. "If you don't let her live in your spare bedroom from now on, I will be taking her in, and she will live with me. And you tell her I said that," she added as she left the room.

Castle breathed a sigh of relief. Never in a million years would he have expected Martha Rodgers, the self-proclaimed queen of all things fancy, to readily accept a homeless woman. Maybe I misjudged her, he thought with a smile.

Now he just had to hope that Kate's stubborn streak wouldn't prevent her from accepting what he planned to offer her at lunch.

Author's note: I cannot say enough good things about my beta, Cathey. She's amazing. This story would not be happening without her.

As always, I love reading your reviews, and thank you all for reading!