Title: Rock Foundation
Disclaimer: I do not own the Castle characters or their story lines. I just borrow them for fun.
Summary: A Sequel of sorts for my one-shot Rock Solid. Kate and Rick deal with the aftermath of Knockdown and move forward with their lives, learning to balance their partnership with their budding relationship.
Author's note: This is possibly the longest chapter yet. I hope you like it. I enjoyed writing it.
Chapter XVII:
Kate woke the next morning to the feeling of lips kissing their way down her neck. She smiled and reached a hand back to cup Rick's cheek as his mouth explored her pulse.
"Morning," he murmured into her ear.
"Morning," she replied sleepily. "What time is it?"
"Early." His teeth found her ear lobe and Kate gave a contented sigh.
"How early?" she asked a minute later.
"Bout 6:30," he growled, flipping them over so that he could lavish her face with kisses.
"I…have to get up," she breathed into his mouth as their lips finally met.
"You're already getting me up," he mumbled back.
She laughed. "No, I actually have to get up, Rick."
He pulled back and pouted at her. "You're sure you have to go?"
Kate sat up with him and gave him a gentle yet firm kiss. "As amazing as a morning in bed with you does sound, I have to run an errand before work."
"Errand?" he asked, tilting his head in thought. A moment later, his expression changed from boyish to concerned. "You're going to talk to Lockwood."
Kate nodded and felt her heart flutter as he drew her close and kissed her forehead, his arms cradling her to his chest. His hands stroked through her hair. This switch between the boy-Castle and the man-Rick would take some getting used to, but, oh; he kissed her cheek and she felt warmth spread over her body.
He'd done unmentionable things to her the previous night after their kiss had escalated to near scorching levels. His mouth, his chest, his hands— he'd touched her in ways no man had ever done, ways that made her writhe and scream and feel so utterly cherished all at once.
Their love-making—that was what it was— had been amazing, but here, with his lips against her cheek and his hands running soothing circles over her back as they sat in the middle of his bed, she felt twice the passion of the night before.
"Do you want me to come with you?" he asked quietly, his breath tickling her ear.
Kate squeezed her eyes shut. She did. She truly wanted him to come. But this was something she needed to do on her own. "Thank you, but no."
He pulled back to look at her and they had a conversation with their eyes. After a moment, he nodded and gave her a chaste kiss. "Can I make you breakfast before you go?" he asked when he pulled back.
"I was planning on grabbing something after. I don't really want food right now," she admitted.
"Then let me walk you to the door?"
"I think I'll be safe on my own, but a little extra security can't hurt. You never know in this apartment," she said, smiling as he grinned and stood, extending a hand to her.
They dressed together, taking turns to button up buttons and straighten collars on each other. When they were clothed, Rick took her hand and walked with her to the door. She was about to slip into her heels when she felt his arms sweeping her up and into a mind-numbing kiss. They broke apart and Kate looked up at him, trying to look confused but failing as a grin split her face.
"You like me without my heels on," she told him.
He smiled guiltily. "Don't get me wrong, I love the power heels. Sexy! But, well, there's something kind of nice about being able to do this," he pulled her into a hug and rested his chin on the top of her head. "Like I can hug all of you."
She pulled back and gave him a small smile that told him she liked their height difference too, before she slipped into her heels. Now eye-to-eye, they considered each other. Rick was the first to break and leaned in to kiss her cheek.
"Have a good morning. I'll be by the Precinct later. Call me if you get a body before then?"
"Of course. I'll see you later, Rick," she said as he opened the door for her. "Have a good breakfast with Alexis, and apologize for me, would you? I promise to try to make it for dinner."
He laughed. "Oh, you'll be here. I won't be the one to disappoint my mother, and you're an integral part of keeping her happy tonight."
Kate simply laughed. "Catch you later," she said, and then she hopped into the elevator, watching as the doors closed over his smiling face.
Rick stared after her for longer than was probably acceptable for his age. Then he shook himself free of the spell she'd cast on him and went about showering and getting ready for the day. It was Saturday, so he didn't technically need to be at the Precinct, but, well, Kate was there.
He glanced at the clock as he made his way back down to the kitchen and groaned a bit. It was only 8am. He grabbed a muffin and retreated to his office, deciding that he should be productive if he wasn't going to be sleeping. Before he knew it, it was 9:30 and Alexis was bustling around the kitchen.
"Hey, Dad," she greeted as he came in. "I'm heading to Ashley's to study for the day. I noticed Kate's gone."
"Yeah, she needed to get some things done. Is this your idea of sleeping in? 9:30?"
"Considering that I'm usually up by seven, yeah," she shrugged. "You're usually asleep when I get up these days, or already gone."
"I know, but you generally sleep past 10 on the weekends," he said as he handed her a glass and got out juice.
"I've done a lot of sleeping in the past few days. I think my body's giving it up now."
"Rejecting sleep? Want to share some of those interesting genes with me?" Rick asked excitedly.
Alexis shook her head as she dug into her bowl of cereal. "Sorry, these are all mine," she told him. "What are we having for dinner, and where?"
"I think your Gram wanted to order in, so probably Chinese or Italian, if that's alright with you."
"Chinese sounds great," she replied as she put her bowl in the sink and grabbed her bag. "Will you be with Kate all day?"
"Probably. I'll have my cell on me. Call if you need anything."
"Okay. See you later, Dad."
She skipped from the apartment, leaving her father to watch after her. Rick sighed. His little girl wasn't quite so little anymore. In fact, in just a year, she'd be getting ready to head off to college. He was old, and getting older, and she was about to leave forever.
It was with this very heavy feeling that he left his apartment and made his way to the station, stopping to pick up coffee and a bear claw in case Kate hadn't eaten yet. He walked into the bullpen and found all three of the Detectives sitting around Kate's desk, a file open in front of them. He placed the coffee and treat down on the desk and leaned over Kate's shoulder to look at the file.
"Did we get a case?" he asked quietly. No one seemed surprised to find him there.
"Nah, we're just looking at our closure record for the past three years," Kate replied. "It's been surprisingly good."
"Hmm," he replied. "What happened three years ago?"
Ryan and Esposito looked over at him and then glanced at Beckett. Castle was leaning over her shoulder, his hands next to her arms so that he practically surrounded her. Beckett was chewing on a pencil and refusing to look at Castle, while the man himself smirked.
"Wasn't that about when we got new computers?" Beckett asked the boys.
They laughed as Castle pulled back. "Hmpf," he grumbled, pulling up his chair. The three Detectives watched him do so, realizing that none of them had sat inhis seat, in deference to the fact that it was his.
"I think the lab also got an upgrade that year," Esposito added.
"Didn't the Captain get a bigger budget too?" Ryan grinned.
Castle pouted and made a grab for the folder. Beckett was quick, but he managed to grab some of the papers. "Seems these records only go back to the Tisdale case. Tell me, didn't you solve any other murders that year before hers?"
Ryan and Esposito stopped smiling and Beckett simply rolled her eyes. "Of course we did. But these records only go back so far."
"What was significant about the Tisdale case then?" Rick countered.
"Not sure," Esposito shrugged. "Did something happen to you Ryan?"
"Nope, you?" Ryan replied.
"Nah. Must have been Beckett. Tell us, Beckett, what changed for you?"
"Oh, you know, picked up a pet that wouldn't leave me alone," she waved them off. "I don't know how it would have affected our closure rate though."
Castle just stared at them, caught somewhere between outrage and amusement. "What breed was this 'pet,' pray tell?"
The boys watched their boss and her 'pet' lock eyes. It was one of those freaky moments when the two of them communicated without using words. And it wasn't like they were making non-verbal comments on someone's outfit. No, these two had whole conversations, about heavy stuff, with just their eyes.
"I'm not sure. I'm fairly positive that he's a mutt, stuck somewhere between pain-in-the-ass and surprisingly helpful."
"Sounds like a worthwhile pet. Ever think about getting him a collar?"
Ryan and Esposito snickered while Beckett rolled her eyes. "I don't know, Castle. I'm not sure he could handle a shock collar and a whip. I don't think one would be effective without the other, do you?"
Now all three boys looked stunned and Kate internally grinned. God, men were easy!
"That's just wrong," Esposito muttered and stood, Ryan following closely behind him.
"Jeez, that was over the top."
Rick was still sitting there, mouth agape.
"Cat got your tongue, Castle?" she asked as she took the files from him and returned them to the folder. "Okay, seriously? It was good, but it wasn't that good."
He shook his head a little. "Sorry, got caught up in a daydream."
"Please don't tell me that you actually want a shock collar."
He laughed a bit nervously. "God, no! Just, well, that image led to other images, which led to a rather vivid memory of last night."
"What happened last night?" Esposito asked, having walked up on his way to the break room without either or them noticing.
"I tripped and got shocked by a wire. It wasn't pretty," Rick replied instantly. Kate was tempted to be impressed by the speed of the lie.
"Uh-huh," Esposito replied. "And what did you do last night, Beckett?"
"I don't see how that's any of your business Espo," Kate replied. "But, if you must know, I went home after I had dinner with Castle and his daughter. Had an early night. Why, what did you do last night?"
"I had pizza and we saw a movie," he shrugged.
Kate and Rick grinned at each other. "We?" Rick asked.
"Got a new lady friend, Espo?" Kate added.
"Did I say we? I meant I. I saw a movie."
"Oh, wow, seeing a movie alone?"
"That's a bit sad, Bro," Castle told him. "Hope you meet a nice girl soon."
Esposito's phone rang and he answered without looking and then his eyes widened. He quickly schooled his features and began giving monosyllabic answers to the person on the other line.
"Uh-huh. Yeah, of course. See you then. Right. Me too." He hung up the phone, took one look at their curious faces, and turned around, marching over to his desk, where he pretended to look busy.
"I feel like we should have a roster or something so we can keep track of how many times we win," Rick said happily, leaning back in his chair.
"I almost want to compliment you on your lying skills. Almost."
"What's stopping you?"
"Other than the fact that it would be giving you a compliment and adding to your already grossly large ego? I'm not sure how comfortable I am with how fast you came up with that."
"Like yours was any less questionable?" he scoffed.
They stared each other down for a moment. "Well, this is a silly argument," Kate said. "Well played, Castle," she stuck out a hand.
"Likewise, Detective."
They shook hands, fighting the urge to laugh at themselves. Kate reopened the file and looked down at the long list of cases they'd closed with Rick's help.
"We really have closed more cases with you here," she said quietly.
"You would have closed them without me," he shrugged. "But I'm happy to be 'surprisingly helpful' for as long as you want." Kate smiled. "I didn't get a chance to ask; how was your errand this morning?"
"It went as I expected it to," Kate shrugged, as though that movement would really make the entire thing inconsequential.
"I'm sorry," he said quietly, leaning in so that their words could not be overheard.
"I didn't go in with any presumptions. He'll talk someday."
Rick nodded and leaned away, reaching for a pad of paper she didn't know he kept on her desk. He took a pen and began scribbling. Kate was momentarily confused until she found the fingers of their left hands entwined. They worked on in silence, Kate doing some paperwork while Rick wrote. No one bothered them and they were done with everything, well, Kate was done with everything by 3pm.
"Does your mom need to be picked up?" Kate asked as they bid the boys goodbye and made their way into the elevator.
"No, I sent a driver. She'll get home in time for dinner."
"What is dinner?"
They stepped out of the elevator and stood together on the street. "Either Chinese or Italian. My mother will let me know which tickles her fancy once she's on the ground."
"You're so whipped," Kate giggled.
"I like to think of it as self preservation, in place of being whipped, thank you."
"Whatever you need to tell yourself," she smiled.
"Do you need to go home, or do you want to go sit in the park or something?" he asked.
She could read the lingering concern in his eyes. Her morning had been far from perfect once she'd left his house. Not only had 'Lockwood' refused to talk, but she'd been held up in traffic and spilled coffee all over her counter at home. It wouldn't have mattered, but after the fruitless trip to high security to see the only piece of the puzzle they had, everything had seemed worse.
"Sitting in the park sounds nice, actually," she replied.
He smiled and they walked away from the Precinct, their bodies close together. Once they'd turned the corner and cross the street, Rick wrapped an arm around her. Kate smiled and leaned into him, sliding her own arm across his waist to grip the back of his jacket. They walked over to Central Park, despite the distance. Neither was in a hurry.
They found a quiet bench and sat together, Rick's arm over her shoulders. It wasn't an extremely intimate embrace; any passerby could easily misconstrue the two as friends. But Kate felt the hand he ran over her arm and the way his body rose and fell with breath against her side.
"How late did Alexis sleep in?" Kate asked after a few minutes.
Rick laughed, the sound rumbling through his chest and into her body. "9:30. I swear, I don't know where that child gets it."
"You're up early to come work with me."
"Yes, but that's the product of 16 years of having a child. I'm still not a morning person. And Meredith, well, you can't get her up before eight if your life depends on it."
"Not even Alexis?"
Rick sighed and she felt his arm tighten around her. "She got up for the first few months, because Alexis was still breast feeding, something I'm still surprised Meredith agreed to. But once we got her on a bottle, she wouldn't get up. Even when Alexis was very small, I was the go-to parent for nightmares or wet beds. Meredith was virtually unwakable."
"That sounds less than ideal," Kate hedged. It sounded horrible, but it had been his life.
"It was, but only in that Alexis needed her mom and Meredith only wanted to be a mother from ten to eight. I loved taking care of Alexis. Yes, the nightmares were painful to watch and listen to, and no one wants to hear his baby crying in the night because she's sick or hurting, but those are some of the best memories. The ones where I could just hold her and make the bad things go away—I don't have that kind of magic anymore."
Kate put her hand on his knee. "But you're still her Dad," she said softly. This was what it was about. Alexis was growing up. Most of her was sad for him, watching as he mourned for the childhood his daughter was leaving behind. The other small part of her was oddly turned on by the paternal vibes he was giving off. This was so not the time for that.
"Yeah, but she's not little anymore. And I'm not the person she'll want to come to for all of her problems. And she'll leave, go off to college…I'm not ready for that."
Kate was surprised by how upset he sounded. "Hey," she sat up so she could look at him. "You okay?"
He blinked a few times and then gave her a smile that was very nearly real. "Yeah. Sorry, got a bit maudlin there."
Kate rolled her eyes. "Not maudlin, Rick, just serious. Alexis is growing up, and yes, she will go off to school, but that's over a year away. She'll always need you, even if that means that she's calling to ask you how to stop a sink from attacking her."
He grinned. "Do you know the answer to that one? Because I don't."
"How do you think I have that example? I had to call my dad when I moved into my first apartment during college. I turned the sink on and it went absolutely haywire, flooded the bathroom. I ended up sitting in three inches of water, sobbing over the phone. But Dad talked me down and got me through it. Later that month, he showed up and taught me how to fix everything."
She felt his lips against her temple and raised her eyes to meet his. "Thanks, KB," he said softly before he leaned in to kiss her.
It would have been easy to be completely swept up. She could feel his emotion pouring through the kiss, feel it wrapping around her with his arms. The comfort thing worked both ways, and she was glad that she could give him the solace he so often gave her.
"Rick," she protested as they began to move from sweet to heated.
"Nu-uh," he murmured against her mouth, pulling her closer on the bench.
"Paparazzi," she managed.
He broke away and rested his forehead against hers. "Well, that's a mood killer."
Kate giggled. "I can think of worse. Anyway, we need to get to your house so that your mother has someone to come home to."
"Have we really been sitting here for that long?" he asked, glancing at his watch and finding that it was 4:30 already.
"Time flies," Kate shrugged, standing and extending a hand to him.
He took it and they walked over to the nearest street and hailed a cab. He looked over at her and was glad to see how relaxed she looked. He hadn't meant for their trip to the park to be about him. She was the one who'd had the difficult morning, after all.
"And sometimes talking about someone else's problem is the best way to get over a bad day," she said.
Rick startled. "How the hell did you do that?"
"You didn't think you were the only one who could do the mind Ninja thing, did you? Man, your ego," she shook her head, laughing at his dumbfounded expression.
"I…that's hot and disturbing all at once!"
"Glad to keep you on your toes, Ricky," she said as the cab stopped. She got out and waited while he paid the cabby and then took his hand. "Don't feel like you always need to fix problems. Sometimes just being you does it for you…but don't take that to heart too much."
He just looked at her. "Extraordinary," he said after a minute.
She blushed and looked down at her shoes, feeling suddenly shy. Men had told her all her life that she was gorgeous, stunning, beautiful, hot…the list of things she had never truly believed went on and on. But there was something about the honest and raw way he said 'extraordinary' that made her stomach flutter. It was hard to not believe him when he spoke that way.
His fingers found her chin and he tilted her head up so that he could see her eyes. "You are," he asserted.
She smiled and kissed him lightly before she moved away and took his hand to tug him into the building. They rode up in the elevator, Kate's cheeks still tinged pink and a small, shy smile gracing her lips. As he watched her try to fight an internal battle over his words, he vowed to say them as often as she'd let him. He could tell that she didn't always think that much of herself. And she should. He certainly did.
They entered the apartment and he took her coat, hanging it up while she slipped out of her heels. He turned around and had a sense of déjà vu, seeing her standing at the door, the same height as she had been that morning.
"Wow, you really like me without my heels on," she teased.
He growled and pulled her to him, capturing her into a searing kiss. Her hands ran over his chest and up to his neck, tugging him impossibly closer. He felt overwhelmed by the power of her kiss, her scent, her skin beneath his hands. They tugged and caressed, hands finding bare skin by lifting shirts and scooting under hems. When air became absolutely necessary, they broke apart.
"God, I…" Rick stammered. His 'vast arsenal of rapier wit' was failing him. Words couldn't express what had just happened.
"I keep thinking…" Kate panted. "I keep thinking it will stop being so, so…"
"Consuming?" he offered as his brain kicked back into gear.
"Yeah, but it's like the opposite," she whispered.
He nodded against her forehead where their heads met. "Yeah."
They stood there for a minute, simply gazing into each other's eyes, their bodies still pressed as closely together as you could get while still wearing clothing.
"Um, should we set for dinner?" Kate asked. "Where's Alexis?"
"Up here!" a voice called from the top of the stairwell.
They wheeled around, dropping their arms and stepping away from each other. "Uh, hi, Sweetie!" Rick said enthusiastically.
"Hey Dad, hey Kate," she replied with a grin. "I didn't want to interrupt the moment, but Grams just called. She'll be here in half and hour, and she'd like to eat as soon as possible."
"Okay, well, I'll go make that call and check my email, then," Rick stammered and then walked over to his office.
"So, how was your day?" Kate asked after an awkward minute in which Alexis grinned and she shifted around uneasily.
"It was good. I studied with Ashley," Alexis replied as she skipped down the stairs. "How was yours, any good murders?"
Kate took in the interested expression that looked so much like Rick's did. "You are so your father's daughter," she laughed. "But not today, no. I did some paperwork and your father wrote a bit."
"Boring day then?" They walked over to the kitchen and began getting plates and silverware.
"Not really," Kate shrugged as she opened a drawer to get napkins. When had she figured out where their napkin drawer was? "Sometimes the quiet days are just relaxing."
"But detecting sounds so interesting," Alexis enthused while they laid everything out. "And getting to give people that closure? I mean, you have such an important job."
Kate looked over at the teen. Rick's gorgeous, brainy, talented daughter was praising her job? "It's…satisfying, that's true," Kate replied.
"I think it sounds fascinating," Alexis continued.
"Parts of it are. Parts of it are horrifying."
They had moved to the couch without either having realized it, and sat facing each other with their legs pulled up and their heads resting on their hands.
Kate watched a flicker of understanding pass across the girl's face. "Does it make it hard to live a normal life?" Alexis asked.
"I don't have a normal life," Kate shrugged. "I catch killers for a living and spend my nights looking at photos of dead bodies."
"But you date and read and have fun too."
"I do, but I can tell you the dating pool is small when you're in my line of work. Guys tend to scare off easy when you say: Homicide Detective." Alexis nodded and Kate smiled. "But, sometimes you find the right one. I mean, you don't exactly have a normal life either, do you?" she asked, looking around at the pictures of the Castles doing all manner of odd things.
"I guess not," Alexis laughed. "That's why I don't think it would bother me."
"Don't think what would bother you?" Kate asked.
"Being a Detective."
Kate stared at her. "You want to be a Detective?"
"I've thought about it," Alexis replied, looking suddenly shy. "I mean, I know I might not be strong enough or I might be too emotional…"
Kate laid a hand on her knee. "Oh, Alexis. I think you're strong enough to do whatever you want, and don't let anyone tell you that emotions are bad." She waited for Alexis' nod. "I'm not surprised because I think you'd be bad at it; I'm surprised because of all of the amazing things and doors you have open, you want to choose the one that involves dead bodies and constant danger to your being."
"I just…Reading Dad's books and hearing about you and what you do— it sounds so worthwhile and interesting and challenging. I'm not saying it's definitely what I want, but I've been thinking about it," she petered off.
"We can talk more about this whenever you want," Kate assured her. "I wouldn't mention it to…" she was cut off by Rick's presence.
"Wouldn't mention what?" he asked, looking between them.
"How little I liked Ashley's last attempt at cooking," Alexis supplied.
The Castle's had a lot of excuses and white lies just lying there for them to use. She'd have to ask Alexis why that was. She couldn't imagine that the girl needed to lie all that often. Maybe it was just being a writer's kid.
"Oh, cut the poor kid some slack!" Rick exclaimed. "I'm impressed that he's even trying."
"I'm impressed that you're impressed," Kate returned. Alexis grinned.
"And why's that?" Rick asked.
"Complimenting the boyfriend? That's very mature of you, Rick."
"I'm not even going to dignify that with a response."
The girls giggled while he turned around and went to look for wine for dinner. Just then the door opened and Martha bustled in, laden with bags.
"Grams!" Alexis squealed, jumping off the couch to hurtle into her Grandmother, who looked completely prepared for it.
Kate got up and walked over to the foyer, meeting Rick halfway there. He wrapped an arm around her and leaned down to kiss her cheek. Martha looked up from Alexis' shoulder and caught the gesture.
"About time!" she said.
Alexis turned around and grinned. "I know, isn't it great?"
They disengaged and Martha hugged Rick. "Finally, Kiddo," she whispered into his ear. He smiled and nodded.
Then she moved over to Kate while Alexis and Rick grabbed a few bags and whisked them upstairs.
"Welcome back," Kate said, starting slightly as Martha pulled her in for a hug.
"Thank you. And welcome," she replied, letting her go so she could get a good look at the Detective. "You look well. Richard told me about the case, though I'm sure he didn't tell me everything."
"I think sometimes less is more," Kate nodded. "But I'm good. We're getting there, and that's all I can hope for, really."
"Very true. Now, when did this happen?" she asked.
"Um, I guess about a week ago?" Kate blushed.
"I'm so happy for you! It certainly took you two long enough."
Kate laughed a bit. "Yeah. But we're here now, right?"
"Right. And we're very glad that you're here, all of us," Martha beamed. "I know you'll make him very happy."
Kate felt like that statement packed more of a punch than it seemed. She was about to respond when the bell rang. "Oh, that'll be the food. Rick?" Kate called up the stairs. He appeared, dragging Alexis with him, the girl scooting across the floor in sock-clad feet. "Food's here," she told him.
The two hurried down the stairs and soon they were all seated around the table passing Chinese and Italian around. Martha was watching everything Kate and Rick did, which wasn't much, while she and Alexis held court in conversation.
Kate was happy to let everything wash over her. Alexis might want to be a Detective, like her. Martha had basically welcomed her to the family. And Rick had his hand on her knee and kept sneaking glances at her throughout the meal. It felt as though the future were looking back at her and had sent her this moment to entice her to want for more.
She'd had her revelations about Rick. She knew. She truly knew. But now, sitting with his family, she felt a new wave of understanding break across her mind. Rick came with a family, which meant that she would have a family. It meant that she'd have Alexis and Martha all the time. It meant that there would be holiday dinners and celebrations. Her father could be there. They could have Christmas in the loft and have an amazing tree. They could have holidays in the Hamptons. They could…
The fact that she was jumping the gun didn't bother her. She wanted to be a part of this, of their little world. And it seemed like all of them wanted it too. Was it because they'd been working together and been friends for so long that this switch was just organic? Shouldn't she need more time before coming to all of these realizations? Shouldn't she want to get some distance, think it through?
Rick's hand gave her knee a squeeze and she glanced over at him. The look of pure affection he sent her as their eyes met squashed all of her worries. She reached down and laced their fingers together on her knee. She didn't need time. She just needed this.
As their eyes met and her fingers found his, Rick wondered if she was feeling the complete sense of wholeness like he was. He hadn't thought that his life was missing something—that he was missing something— before he met Kate Beckett. But now, with her sitting at his dinner table with his mother and daughter, he wondered how they'd gone so long before taking this step. This was the only reality he wanted. This was the only reality he needed. This was it.