Kate yawned as she set the timer for the final 45 minutes for the apple pie. It was late, but Castle's "fun and spontaneous" way of cooking meant there was still a lot of cleaning to do. Sighing, she grabbed a towel and started wiping down the counter.

"Kate!" Exhausted as she was, Martha's exclamation actually startled her. "The guest never cleans"

"Oh, I don't want to—"

"Nonsense, you just go relax in front of the movie." She flicked her hands toward the couch in a shooing motion. "Richard and Alexis will take care of this."

"Yeah, you've had a long day. Go ahead and relax—wait! You're not going to help mother?"

"No dear, it's not like it's my mess, and I'm dog tired."

"As if you ever clean up your messes anyways…"

Martha paused her progress up the stairs. "I heard that Richard"

He shrugged unapologetically; it was the truth. Then, when his mother had finally completed her dramatic exit, Castle turned to Kate.

"Go sit," his voice was softly commanding, the way it always got when he tried to take care of her. She wasn't sure if she loved it or hated it. "This won't take us too long."

Ten minutes later, the Grinch was feasting with the Whos, and Alexis proclaimed the kitchen to be "as clean as it ever is." With a yawn, the girl excused herself to bed, wishing them both a good night.

Castle flopped down on the couch, his Christmas cheer giving him the courage to sit dangerously close to Kate. A contented sigh began to escape his lips, but it was cut short when she shot to her feet.

"I should go."Her face was turned to the door. If she looked him in the eye she might not have the courage to leave.

"Now?"

"Well, the movie's over, everyone's going to bed…"

Did he detect hesitancy in her voice? "You can't leave now, the pies aren't done!"

"Don't whine Castle. The pies won't be done until almost two and I have to work tomorrow."

"Wait! It's after midnight?"

"Yeah, by a lot"

Suddenly, he jumped up, capturing her in a hug that lifted her feet off the ground. "Merry Christmas, Kate!"

"Uh…" That was way more exuberance that she expected at this hour. "…Merry Christmas Castle?"

He heard her underlying request and gently lowered her feet to the floor, taking a reluctant step back.

"Seriously though, I have to go home."

"You're right. It is really late and you look exhausted..."

Thinking she had won, Kate turned to get her bag. Castle reached for her wrist and held, just tight enough to prove he was serious.

"…So, you should stay here."

She looked from his hand up to his softly pleading eyes. A gentle tug was enough to get him to release her, but he looked heartbroken. Her chest tightened with guilt. All he was asking for tonight was a little company on a holiday, but she was running. Why?

"Look, I don't have a change of clothes for tomorrow and if I have to get up at five just to drive over to my apartment, it kind of defeats the purpose."

"Oh…" Damn her logic! If only…"Oh!"

"What?" His smile was downright mischievous and it was making her nervous.

"You have clothes here."

"Huh?"

"I'm saying, you don't have to go home because you left clothes here last time you stayed!"

"Last time I stayed? When was…I haven't…since my apartment blew up! That was almost two ye—" She jabbed him in the chest with her index finger. "You kept my clothes here for that long, and didn't even try to give them back? That's creepy even for you."

"I, uh…well, see…" She was giving him that look. His brain felt like an echoing cavern as he searched for an explanation. "I figured a situation like this might arise, and uh, it was only a few things. So I held onto them, you know, just in case."

"Uh huh…" Somehow she figured the 'case' in which he imagined her here did not involve baked goods.

"Come on Beckett, it's not a big deal, just stay. You don't really want to wake up alone on Christmas, do you?"

She stared him down, one eyebrow arching upward.

"No! I meant like, ah, with no one around to wish you 'Merry Christmas' or sit down to a big breakfast with."

'Well…" What he was offering sounded nice, actually, way better than nice. Even the part about not waking up alone… Whoa, down girl.

"Fine." He perked up at her response. "But I'm staying on the couch."

"No, I'll take the couch."

"It's non-negotiable, Castle. I'm not sleeping in your room!"

They held each other's glares for a long moment, but eventually Castle gave in. "Alright," He had won the important battle anyway. "Let's pop in another classic while these pies finish up."

An alarm was blaring in her ears. It wasn't her phone and she didn't know where it was coming from, but it neededto stop. Forcing her eyelids open, she fixated on the unfamiliar alarm clock next to the bed and fumbled desperately for the off button.

Finally, quiet settled over her. She let her self relax back into the feather pillows, relishing the peace and comfort.

Shit.

This wasn't her bed, and it certainly wasn't the couch she had agreed to sleep on last night. She turned to the other side of the bed, ready to strangle Castle.

He wasn't there. In fact, the covers were still neatly tucked into the other edge of the bed suggesting she had, in fact, slept alone.

Good. Her rebellious mind flashed to the time she had woken up next to him, the way it felt for that moment before she realized what was going on. No! She wasn't disappointed. After all this was what she asked for, wasn't it?

"Castle!" His face was smashed into a throw pillow a bit of wetness evident by his mouth. "Castle!" He responded with a snore.

She weighed her options. Yell louder? No. Shake him? No. Gently press a kiss to his lips? No!

Before her mind could get away from her again, Kate hoisted the books from the coffee table into the air and let them crash to the floor.

"What the—" He didn't shoot up like she was expecting but rather flailed his limbs about and flipped onto his back.

"Was that really necessary?" He sat up, trying glare, but… "Stop laughing! It wasn't that funny"

"Sorry but that was just…" A final snort of laughter escaped before she caught her breath and wiped her eyes. "I was trying to be mad but now I really can't"

"Mad? For what?"

"For putting me in your bed when I explicitly told you not too!" Her voice pitched up against her will.

"That doesn't sound like not being mad…"

"Castle…" It was practically a growl.

"Look, you fell asleep almost as soon as you hit the couch. You always work so damn hard and I didn't want the timers to wake you up. Besides you didn't exactly complain last night."

"People don't usually complain when they're asleep Castle."

"Come on Kate. Do you really think I could carry you in there, take your shoes off, get you under the covers, and set the alarm for exactly when you wanted without your assitance? I'm suave, but not that much."

"Oh…"

"You woke up a little when I put you down on the bed but you were pretty groggy. I'm not surprised you don't remember."

"Yeah, I do that sometimes."

Castle smiled at the bit of pink blooming in her cheeks. "It was pretty adorable actually. Especially when you begged me to stay with you."

"When I …what?"

He raised his eyebrows as she scrambled for words.

"Of course, I was a gentleman, but you sure were insistent…"

"I didn't…" He was never going to let her live this down.

His poker face began to crack, the corners of his mouth twitching upwards, betraying him.

"I didn't!" She slapped him across the arm "Castle!"

"Ow, okay! That last part may have been in my imagination."

"Ugh. You." Another smack, this time more playful than scolding.

He flashed a sheepish grin. "Let me make it up to you with breakfast?"

"Depends what we're having. Cereal is not going to cut it."

"Katherine Beckett, don't be ridiculous. It's Christmas!"

"So, what breakfast is worthy of a Castle Christmas?"

"You'll see." He got up and pressed his hand to her back, gently directing her back to his room. "Go shower. I'll bring you the clothes and Alexis's hairdryer."

Kate really regretted that she hadn't allotted more time for a shower as soon as she saw his bathroom, but a nice long soak would have to wait for another day. Clean and wrapped in an impossibly soft towel, she cautiously stuck her head into the bedroom. The door to the hall was closed, but she dashed over to lock it just in case. Comfortably certain she wouldn't be experiencing any sitcom-esque embarrassments, she let the towel drop to the floor and pulled her shirt from last night back on so the new one wouldn't get wet.

Her purse, a hairdryer, a brush, and the clothes he promised were neatly lined up and the foot of the bed. She recognized the plum button-up stacked on top of a pair of black dress pants as one of the things she had assumed got lost in the course of the fire and all the moving and wondered if any other items were still hiding around Castle's loft.

Her long hair took forever to get dry, leaving her concerned about having time for breakfast. She quickly applied some make up from the back-up stuff she had in her purse. Gathering everything from the bathroom she hurried back out into the bedroom to change. Once her bra was fastened she reached for the shirt, but froze before she could put it on.

Something else was sitting on top of the pants, something that had been covered by the shirt before, something red and lacey. They were definitely hers; she remembered looking for them on a special occasion or two. The thought of him holding onto those all this time brought up a disturbing mixture of feelings, but right now anger was winning. Yeah, it was a good thing she had Lanie to lie about his cause of death.

A.N. Sorry that I took forever to update. I felt pretty worn out after exams. Thank you everyone who gave me encouragement both for the story and school; it means so much to me. The next and final chapter should be up soon, especially considering the deadline. Hopefully it won't run away with me anymore than this one did. I look forward to hearing you opinions.