"You know, Katie, it might be tough to believe, but there were people who called me difficult before I met your father."
Every time she started this story, I would roll my eyes. "Mom, you've told me this like a thousand times."
"And now I'm gonna tell you again," she'd say. "I was fresh out of law school, inexperienced as anything. I only got a job at that firm because your grandfather had a connection there. Your dad had been there for a couple of years, and he was very set in his ways. Well, you know your father."
I'd nod, partly to show her I agreed and partly just so that she would get to the end of her story faster.
"My very first month there, he consulted with me on a pro bono case. It was no secret that he didn't want to do it. You know your father," she'd say again, "he was very polite about it, but there was another case at the time, a big, tough, important case that he'd wanted, but it had been assigned to one of his colleagues. He thought pro bono work was a waste of time, and since I was new, he assumed I had no idea what I was doing. He called me 'the intern' when he thought I wasn't listening. In some respects he was right, I still had a lot to learn, but I was no intern. And it was no concern of mine whether the firm got paid or not. I was barely concerned whether I got paid. What did I care? I was a trust fund kid. I'd always had enough money to support all of my wants and needs. But I was convinced, even then, that I could make a difference in the world, and that was why I became a lawyer. Not for the money. Not for my parents' approval. I wanted to make a difference."
"Mom," I'd prod her, convinced that I had better things to do than listen to this for the hundredth time, "I know."
"But your dad," she'd say, ignoring me, "He didn't come from that kind of background. He understood the value of a dollar, and he wasn't interested in working for free. But once he was on a case, he was on that case. He put everything he had into it. He'd stay at the office until three in the morning some nights, tying up loose ends. Meanwhile I'd leave at five and go out and party with my friends from undergrad, and I'd barely make it into the office by nine the next morning. I worked hard when I was there, but the minute the day ended, it was over. And if I found an angle on a case, it was the angle we were going to take. If another lawyer had a different opinion, that was their problem. And nobody ever dared to tell me I was wrong. Not, that is, until your father."
"And he did, and that made you the person you are today," I'd try to fill in, wishing she'd end the story there. "I know, mom."
Again, she'd ignore me. "You know, if he would've yelled at me I just would've asked for another case, and I would've gotten it. And if it happened again with another lawyer, I'd have done the same thing. I would've quit the firm if I'd thought I had to. It made no difference to me. But your dad… he has a way of sneaking up on people. He got me right at the end of the day, and he told me he'd found some new information on the case. Of course, I didn't want to hear it, but he just handed me this file, calm as anything, and told me he thought I should read it. He didn't say I had to, just that he thought I should. I was intrigued, so I read it. This was a long file. It took me the better part of an hour just to read through. And I realized that the approach he'd taken was much better than mine. It was more complex, but it created a much better case. And at that moment… I think I fell in love with his notes." She'd laugh. "Legal notes. Sexy, right? But I did. I was fascinated. The way his mind worked… it was so much different than mine. People don't think of law as creative, but anything can be creative, it's just a matter of how you look at it. I'll bet I went through that file a dozen times that night, rereading everything he'd compiled and adding my own insight. The next thing I knew, it was five in the morning. I'd worked all night. I got so much flak from my friends for that. But I didn't care anymore. I knew that this was what I wanted to do for the rest of my life. And I don't think I figured it out until much later, years later, but your dad was the person I wanted to do it with."
"And you learned how to compromise," I'd sigh. Because at the heart of the love story she liked to tell, this was her point.
"I did." She'd smile. "Katie, relationships are about give and take. All relationships. With friends, boyfriends, parents…" She always added that last word with a gleam in her eye. "Everything isn't gonna go your way all the time, and you have to be okay with that."
I'd roll my eyes. I hated the story because it was always the mask for a lecture. Every time she told it, I made up my mind never to compromise, no matter what the stakes were. She was trying to present it as a sign of maturity, but I saw it as a sign of weakness.
As a teenager, the last thing I wanted to end up with was my mother's life. Now, when I look back, I'm surprised to see that in so many ways, my life mirrors hers. My teenage self would be ashamed of what I've become. But I'm not. I couldn't be prouder.
When he was done reading he looked up at her, beaming, and she relaxed, leaning back a little in the chair that he'd positioned right beside his desk. No matter how many times he read her writing, it always made her a little nervous. After all, he was a bestselling author. Her favorite author, to add even more pressure to the situation. She was still new at this. Plus, no matter what she wrote, somewhere just beneath the surface she always seemed to be talking about him.
"You keep getting better," he insisted, and she felt herself blush.
"You think?"
"Definitely. See how this is a little longer than what you've been doing?"
"Yeah, I realized that when I was writing it… is that okay?"
"Oh yeah, yeah, it's great. You got into it, didn't you? You were enjoying writing it?"
A tiny smile crept across her lips. "Yeah… I guess I did."
"I can tell. It's a good thing. And with this, even more than some of the other stuff you've written? I really feel like I know your mom a little after reading it. And that's what you're going for, isn't it?"
She nodded. "Yeah. Definitely. Really?"
"Really." He smirked. "So she had kind of a wild side to her, did she?"
Kate shrugged. "I never really saw it. I guess it was… when she was younger. Or maybe she just liked to tell me that story because she wanted me to grow out of my rebellious phase. That was what I thought at the time, anyway."
He smiled. "And now?"
"Now… I don't know. What do you think?"
"Well, from the very little I know about her… I think it's true. You know, you meet someone, and you grow to admire them… it has an effect on you. Plus, everyone has to grow up sometime."
"Even you?" she teased.
"Oh, I hope not." He smiled. "What do you think? Have I changed since we met?"
"I don't know if you've changed or I just know you better. You've gotten better at detective work. How's that?"
"That's a cop-out. No… pun intended." He grinned in such a way that suggested that he thought the pun was hilarious anyway. "Really. Do you think you've changed me?"
She rolled her eyes. "I would answer you, but this really feels like a trick question."
He laughed. "It's not, I swear."
"Yeah, I think… I think you're a little different."
"Different how?"
"I think you've matured. I mean, not totally, you're still Castle, and I've actually come to appreciate your… childishness, I guess. It's refreshing. But… I don't know. I think you know when to turn it on and when to turn it off."
"Why, Katherine Beckett, do I detect a compliment?"
She shrugged. "Well, you're my boyfriend now, I can do that every once in awhile. Don't expect it all the time, though."
He smiled, and it was strangely lacking in sarcasm. "Oh, I know better than that. Thank you."
"So what about me?" she prompted. "Do you think I've changed since you met me?"
He nodded easily. "Definitely."
She cocked her head to one side, purely curious. "How so?"
"You've mellowed. A lot. You're not afraid to smile, or to… I don't know, let your guard down every now and then. You're still great at what you do, but you're not so intense."
She smiled. "I guess that's a good thing?"
He nodded. "It's definitely a good thing."
"Does that mean we've both changed each other for the better?"
"I think so."
"So… what does that mean?"
He shrugged. "I think it means we're a perfect match."
"Well, we knew that," she said, giving him a flirtatious look.
He responded by leaning slightly toward her, and she allowed his lips to meet hers. Hers gave, responding instinctually to the pressure of his and the chemistry between them. She had something to say, but every time she tried to speak it came out as a slight moan, which only increased his vigor.
"Rick," she finally managed, pulling away a little, but smiling. When he didn't stop, and her lips didn't seem to want to stop kissing back, she pushed his shoulder away with some force. "Castle," she managed to get out, "stop."
"I don't want to stop," he said, his bottom lip jutting out slightly as if he were an oppressed four-year-old, and brushing her cheek as he spoke near a whisper. "I spent all day at the precinct helping you do paperwork. I think I deserve a reward for that."
She chuckled. "I think so too. I just want to talk to you about something first, and then I promise you'll get your reward."
He backed away enough that there was a cushion of air between his face and hers, but his hand remained on her thigh. "You promise?" he asked with his best puppy dog eyes.
"Yes," she laughed.
"Okay, talk fast."
"I have a couple of vacation days that are gonna expire soon," she said. "I was thinking about taking a little trip, just for a couple of days. My dad has this little cabin in the mountains. We used to go there on weekends sometimes when I was little, but I haven't been there in… I don't even know how long. I remembered it when I was writing the other day, and I'd like to go there again. See if it brings back some memories."
"And now you're leaving me?" His eyebrows came together in that way that they had when he was upset, or pretending to be, wrinkling his forehead and creating that little extra fold just above his eyelid that she'd always found so attractive. "Depriving me of even more valuable kissing time?"
She laughed again. "No, actually, I was thinking just the opposite. I thought maybe you could come with me."
He raised his eyebrows. "Come with you? To your dad's cozy, secluded cabin in the mountains? Seriously?"
She grinned. "I didn't say anything about 'secluded'."
He shrugged. "I inferred. Am I wrong?"
She shook her head. "No, I guess it's pretty secluded. So is that a yes?"
"No, that wasn't a yes. This is a yes." He nodded vehemently. "Yes!"
She rolled her eyes. "So I should take the days off?"
"Absolutely. You deserve a break, and if the days are going to expire, you should definitely take advantage of them before they do. I'm just surprised that you want to take a romantic vacation together. We've only been dating a couple of weeks."
She laughed. "It's not a vacation, it's just a couple of days. And it doesn't have to be romantic."
"But I want it to be."
"We'll see." She raised an eyebrow teasingly. "Okay. I'll tell Montgomery tomorrow. I'll see if I can get this weekend. It's short notice, but I don't think he'll have a problem with it unless we're in the middle of a case. I think I already have Sunday off, so maybe I can take Friday and Saturday and make three days of it."
"Very spur of the moment. I'm impressed."
She smiled. "Yeah, maybe you have influenced me."
"Oh, I know I have." He grinned. "Alexis has a big test on Monday, so she probably won't be much fun this weekend anyway. Works out perfectly."
"Good. So as long as I get approval, it's a plan."
"Best plan I've heard in a long time."
"Good. But it's getting late. I guess I should go."
"Hey!" he said, affronted. "No, you shouldn't." He kissed her lips once, slowly, as a reminder. "My reward? You promised."
A girlish smile crept across her face. "Oh, how could I forget?" she whispered.
"Stay here tonight," he suggested.
She immediately rebuffed him. "We can't do that, can we? Your family's here."
He shrugged. "They already know I stayed at your place last week. And if we're going to be together for a whole long weekend, we should probably get used to spending the night together. We've only done it once before."
She raised an eyebrow. "What exactly do you mean by 'spending the night together'?"
He shrugged. "That's up to you."
She gave it a long moment's consideration, and then nodded. "Alright. I'll stay."
He actually looked surprised. "You will?"
She laughed. "Are you trying to get me to change my mind?"
"No!" he said quickly. "No, not at all. You'll stay." He smiled. "I'm glad you'll stay."
She nodded. She loved everything about this relationship, and it was about time that she stopped letting it scare her. She'd already dived in. Now it was time to submerge. "I am too."
A/N: Obviously I took some liberties with Johanna's story, but I think I like how it turned out. :) I tried to base it to some extent on the information that we got in the deleted scene from Season 3 where Castle and Jim meet, because I love that scene and it's one of the few times they actually sort of talk about Johanna and Jim's relationship. (If you don't know what I'm talking about and you're curious, you can PM me and I'll send you the YouTube link... or you can just look it up.) Oh, and I'm taking basically everything I know about law from Drop Dead Diva (don't judge... it's kind of a guilty pleasure, and it's a fun summer show... plus if anything from Kate's writing sounds authentic, it's actually somewhat informative), so if anything's a bit off base, it's because I don't actually know what I'm talking about and I'm faking it. :P
Anyway, I hope you liked the chapter, and reviews are awesome. :) Thanks so much for reading!