It was Monday the following morning and for the tenth time that hour Kate's hand drifted toward the phone, sitting in the captains office on the opposite side of the desk, pretending not to notice Rick said, "Captain Esposito told you he would keep an eye on her..., Kate..."

"Are you profiling me?" Kate asked him in a tight tone, as her eyebrow slowly rose to an arch.

"No... I don't have to I feel that same fear but, your feelings are perfectly normal" Rick told her softly.

"Kate..." Rick Said "You knew this was coming... you had your opportunity to say no six months ago when the police academy called you you didn't"

Re-shuffling her paperwork for the fiftieth time Kate admitted thickly with a voice full of emotion, "Rick... both you and I know what the job is like... if anything ever happened to her"

"I know Kate... you're not the only one who would be devastated..." Rick told her "Your being the "A" typical worried mother"

Kate just gave him a look and Rick shut up...

6 P.M. end of shift. Annmarie Castle dropped by the 12th she had spent allot of time here growing up and was glad one of her mom's old co-workers from the 12th was her captain at the sixth precinct that way she had a least one familiar face in the crowd. Annmarie was her mother's daughter and had a hunch her godfather Javier Esposito was watching out for her at her mother's request. Not that she objected mind you, but it did remind her of her first day of school.

Walking passed all the desks at the 10th precinct Looking at her mother Annmarie realized she was not the only worried about her first day on the job, walking into her mothers office Annmarie asked "How many times..., Mom?"

Kate stated emphatically "I didn't call honest"

Annmarie knew her mother and knew she was not being entirely honest so she rephrased the question "How many times did you think about calling mom"

"Only ten times an hour" Kate told her daughter with a strangled worried tone biting back her fear.

Realizing they were about to have a private moment and not wanting to ruin his wife's well crafted persona as a tough-as-nails take no prisoners captain Rick moved to quickly close the blinds.

Walking into her mother's arms Annmarie said "Thanks mom..."

"For...?" Kate asked.

"Wanting to call... ten times an hour" Annmarie told her softly.

Both Annmarie and Kate held out an arm to Rick saying "Come on"

As he walking into a group hug Rick said, "Tonight is family dinner night"

Annmarie commented "Dad that's not until Sunday... remember...Dad" she said with a smirk.

"Where is it written we can't have family dinner more than once a week?" Her father asked indignantly.

When Beckett & Castle had, Annmarie, Kate had one proviso she did not want to live somewhere that was his or somewhere that was hers but theirs so Castle gave the loft apartment to Alexis and they moved into something with more space and not as many prying eyes. Fortunately, it was only a few floors up from his old place. What Rick Never told Kate at the time was that he owned the building.

30 minutes later Annmarie walked into the penthouse suite that her mother and father share only to notice a new addition hanging beside their wedding photo. A 20x24 portrait of her and her mother both in NYPD dress blues with her father standing beside her on her left and her mother on her right. Annmarie couldn't help but smile looking at the photo.

"Mom" Annmarie said, "How long had you been planning to give me my badge"

Looking up from her dinner preparations Kate said "The day I got the call from the Academy commander..."

"Wait a minute... you were planning that moment for six months..." Annmarie asked her mother in a tight voice full of emotions.

"Yes Annmarie" Kate told her daughter.

"How...!" Asked Annmarie

"Your mother and I kept our relationship secret for months" Said Annmarie's Father "Mind you it was not that easy with Gates looking over our shoulders all the time!"

That memory brought a smile to both her parents

Rick stated, "Never did tell me why she didn't like me..."

Taste testing the Fettuccine Alfredo to see if it was aldenti enough Kate commented "She told me... the day she retired"

"Do Tell" Castle Said in a soft spoken quizzical tenor.

"Gates thought you were some playboy thrill seeker..." Kate explained.

Helping her dad set the table Annmarie stated, "Dad it's only the three of us why is there five place-settings...?" Looking at her father who was in the misted of a count down saying 5,4,3,2,1.

Alexis called out "we're here dad"