We're getting close to the finish. Slight reminder that I have never had to tell an eleven-year-old that I found out her long lost father is her mother's "work partner" so forgive me if this seems unrealistic.

Chapter Five

"Castle, that was delicious," Kate comments as she puts down her fork. She can't remember ever having chicken parmesan that good before; she doubts if she has, actually.

"Ahem," he daughter coughs, glaring up at her. Kate chuckles.

"And Johanna, of course," she adds. "Well done, little chef."

Jo beams proudly and Kate is struck again by the similarities she can see between the girl and the man sitting across from her. How had she not seen it before? What kind of detective-?

"Beckett?" Castle's voice breaks her from her thoughts and she looks over at him. His eyes are wide and slightly inquisitive. At first, she thinks he's going to ask her what she's thinking about and her cheeks warm at the thought, but then his eyes flit to Joey, who's having an animated conversation with Alexis about…something or other that she hasn't really been listening to and Kate nods in understanding, her gut clenching.

"Hey, Jo," she says, softly, interrupting the girl in the middle of a long-winded monologue, which stops immediately at the sound of her name.

"Yeah, Mom?" Joey asks, turning to look up at Beckett with those big blue Castle eyes of hers.

Kate smiles and reaches out to stroke her hair, giving herself a moment to stall and breathe as she does so. "There's something I—we," she shares a look and a nod with Castle, "have to tell you. And Alexis." She smiles over at the redhead, who's seated next to her father.

"You and Castle are finally going on a date?" Joey blurts in excitement, a wide smile on her face. Castle sputters and Beckett blushes as Alexis covers her mouth with her hand.

"No!" she says, quickly, looking embarrassedly at the two Castles. She clears her throat. "No, baby, but, um…close? I guess…" Joey tilts her head to the side in that confused, puppy dog way that Castle always does and good lord, she should just turn in her badge right now for being so oblivious. "It…it has something to do with that, um, thing that we talked about; when you asked me about your real father?" Johanna furrows her brows in a perfect imitation of her mother, but says nothing. "Well, um," Beckett says, continuing, "I know I told you before that I had no idea who he was, but, uh…well, I just figured it out and I—"

"You know who my father is?" Joey gasps. "Who is he?" The young girls leans in towards her mother, eyes big and blue and curious and hopeful. Kate glances at Castle, who watches with some apprehension in his eyes. Her gaze is too slow returning, however, and Johanna turns her attentions to the writer, confused. "Do you know who he is?" she asks him. "Is that what this is all about? Is he a friend of yours?"

"Uh…" Castle says, looking to Beckett, who just nods in encouragement. He takes a deep breath and turns to Alexis. "Pumpkin," he says, "do you remember when you were four and you were supposed to spend the holidays with your mother?"

"Uh…yeah?" Alexis replies, her gaze shifting over everybody at the table. "But then Mom got some part in a movie and you had to come get me. What about it?"

"Well," Castle says, "I couldn't get a direct flight last minute—especially not during the holidays—so I had to make a connection in Nevada; Las Vegas, to be more specific."

"Okay…" Alexis says. "So?"

"So, while I was there I was kind of…miserable. I…I missed you terribly, and the divorce was still so new, and I had to be seated in coach and…well, things were just not going great, so I decided to get myself a drink at the airport bar. Only, I didn't just stop at one."

Alexis lets out a sigh and shakes her head. "Dad…" she says, mournfully.

"I know, I know," he says, but I stopped drinking hours before my flight was supposed to leave, so I'd be okay to pick you up. Anyway, I was seated at the bar, ordering drink after drink and it was pretty late, so I was alone. Until…"

"I walked in," Kate finishes softly for him. Both Alexis and Johanna gaped at her, wide-eyed.

"You two have met before?" Alexis asked. Castle and Beckett both nod, neither looking at the other. Kate's eyes were solely trained on Johanna as she processed this new information. She could practically hear the cogs and bolts in her mind clicking together as they pieced together this puzzle.

"You met in Las Vegas," the girl says, softly, "at an airport bar…twelve years ago…"

"Just about," Kate confirms with a sigh.

Johanna glances up at her, then turns her wide gaze on Castle, her eyes scanning him from left to right, as if seeing him for the very first time. "That means…you're my father?" she asks, squinting her eyes. Alexis's eyes widen and she turns to look at Castle, just as he nods his head very slowly.

"Yes," he says, looking between the two girls. "I am."

Johanna is quiet, just staring at him with disbelief etched in her eyes, her mouth gaping slightly. Alexis does the same, but her eyes flit between Castle, Beckett, and Johanna, her little sister. She shakes her head. "I can't believe this," she sighs. "Talk about serendipity."

That seems to break the tension in the room slightly as Castle and Beckett both give the teen cautious smiles. Castle places his arm around her shoulder and kisses her forehead, then looks back to Joey, who still hasn't stopped giving him that look. He shares a look of concern with Beckett and the woman nods, turning to her eleven-year-old daughter.

"Jo?" she asks, causing the girl to blink and turn to her. "Are you okay? Do you need to lie down or something? I know this is a lot to take in."

Joey shakes her head, then turns away and stands from her chair, walking around the table to where Castle sits. Both of her parents' gazes follow her the whole way. Castle turns his body from Alexis to Johanna as she stands in front on him, almost eye-to-eye with him now that he's sitting down. He offers her a warm smile, but she doesn't smile back.

"You're my dad," she states, simply. He nods. "You and my mom had sex twelve years ago and you made me." He blushes and nods this time. He can hear Alexis snicker behind him. "You haven't been in my life at all since I was born." This time it's slight accusatory and slightly hurt.

"Had I known about you," Castle says, "I would have. Believe me; I would have loved nothing more than being an active part of your life, munchkin."

Joey nods. "I believe you," she says, with a resolute nod, "but what happens now?"

"What do you mean?" Castle asks, even though he knows exactly what she means. He doesn't really want to assume or make any decisions for her.

"Are you going to be my dad?" the girl asks. "Like, for real? Do I have to call you dad and spend the night here sometimes? Do you want me to change my last name to Castle?"

Castle shakes his head. "I don't want you to do anything that you don't want to do," he tells her. "It's all up to you, okay? Whether or not you call me dad is…completely your call. I just…we felt you deserved to know and, really, all I want is to be a part of your life."

"Me too," Alexis pipes up, leaning around him to smile down at Jo. "I've always wanted a baby brother. I guess you'll do."

Johanna wrinkles her nose and sticks out her tongue; Alexis mirrors it and both Kate and Castle laugh, sharing a look—which does not go unnoticed by Joey. She smirks and throws herself into his arms, surprising the man before he actively wraps his arms around her, pulling her into his lap.

He holds her for a little while until he begins to wriggle in his arms, but he just holds tighter. "Agh!" Joey groans. "Lemme goooo!"

"Nuh uh," Castle replies, laughing. "I have eleven years of hugs to make up for and we haven't even gotten past the first day." Joey rolls her eyes and looks over at her mother, who is just smiling at all of them and shaking her head.

"Hey," Jo says, suddenly, "so does this mean you're gonna ask my mom out finally?"

Castle sputters and Kate buries her red face in her hands as Alexis laughs out loud. Joey joins in, her high-pitched giggles mingling with her sister's raucous laughter. Kate peeks through her fingers and locks eyes with him as he partially hides behind his daughters, but neither can hide the glimmer of want in their eye, let alone the happy smiles that cover both faces.

It's nearly ten PM when Beckett declares it time to leave. She and Jo had stayed to watch a movie and spend some 'quality family time' with the girl's newfound sister and father. Kate had tried to duck out, her reasoning being that she wasn't exactly a Castle, but Jo pulled her back.

"You're my mother," she said, "so you're still family." There was an underlying tone of 'duh' laced in her daughter's tone that she didn't even try to hide. And Kate didn't fight it; she knew that it would be no use, anyway. Besides, she would just have to return in a couple of hours to pick the girl up, anyway, so why not stay? Johanna had curled into her body, with Alexis on the other side of her and Castle acting as the redhead's human pillow, as they settled in for Legally Blonde, which was a favorite of everybody there—even Castle.

"This movie is storytelling gold," he said, at Beckett incredulous raised eyebrow. "Elle Woods is one of the deepest and most well-thought-out characters in cinema history."

"You're very passionate about this," she commented, wryly.

"Do not get him started on the social commentary in this film," Alexis warned her. "He'll argue for hours about how much of a feminist icon Elle Woods is and how there hasn't been any like her since the movie came out and blah, blah, blah…" Castle poked Alexis in the side for that and the girl shrieked, snorting.

"It's a pretty great movie," Kate had agreed. "And Elle Woods is totally a feminist icon. Also, her shoes are amazing."

Castle had laughed at that as he started the movie.

At some point, Johanna and Alexis had conked out, leaving only Rick and Kate to enjoy the film as Elle busted Chutney Wyndham for her perm-related false alibi. They watched quietly, but sneaked glances at each other all throughout, both of them thinking about what Joey had said earlier, about the possibility of them dating. Whether it was a good idea or not, neither could really say, now that they knew there was so much more on the line than just them.

Kate had always known, before entering any relationship, she would have to think of not only her own heart, but of her daughter's as well. Now, her daughter's heart could be considered much more important as the thought of things not working out between her and Castle might make things tense for Jo as well. Though, if Kate were being honest with herself, that was always a risk with those two, father or not.

Halfway through the movie, after Johanna had already started to doze against Beckett's chest, Castle had stretched out his arms, immediately catching Kate's attention as the muscles in his biceps rippled beneath the simple button up he wore, rolled up to his elbows. When his hands came back down, one landed over the back of the couch, fingers flat against the fabric, as if reaching out for her.

Kate had stared at those fingers, long and thick and calloused, for at least twenty minutes, her eyes glancing back to the movie every now and then, until she cautiously lifted her own arm, stopping only when Jo began to stir from the movement. She ran her fingers gently over the braid, which was beginning to fall apart, and pressed a kiss to the girl's crown, before she mirrored Castle's position, her hand reaching for his until their fingers brushed.

His face showed no reaction to the touch, whatsoever, but she felt his thumb sweep over her knuckles as he tentatively stroked her hand. Kate could only hope that she was as good at hiding her blush as she thought.

When the credits finally rolled, their fingers were interlocked, still and comfortable behind their daughter's heads. Kate chanced a glance over at Castle and found him staring at her. The intensity of his gaze made her cheeks tinge pink and she looked away, pulling her hand back to shake her daughter's shoulder, even as her fingers tingled with the loss.

"Jo," she whispers in the girl's ear. "Jojo, it's time to get up, babe."

"Five more minutes, Mom," Johanna groans and Kate smirks, pressing a kiss to her daughter's hairline.

"It's not time for school, silly," she says, affectionately. "Time to head home and go to bed."

Joey peeks one eye open. "Do I have to?" she moans. "Can't I just stay at Dad's tonight?" Kate's eyes widen at that and she looks over at Castle, who's beaming at the choice of name, as well as the request. She smiles softly, but sadly and shakes her head.

"Not tonight, bub," she says. "All of your clothes are at home and you have school tomorrow. Maybe you can stay this weekend?" She looks over at Castle, who nods enthusiastically, and she smiles down at her—their daughter. "That sound good?" she asks.

Johanna shrugs as she sits up, stretching out her limbs. "I guess so," she says. Alexis stirs next to her and before either Castle or Beckett know it, all four of them are standing in the foyer. The two girls hug tightly, promising to see one another again, and then Joey falls directly into Castle's outstretched arms, allowing him to squeeze her tightly.

"I love you, munchkin," he murmurs into her hair.

"I love you two, Cas—Dad," she replies, pulling away with a sheepish grin. "It's gonna take some time to get used to that, I guess," she says.

"Take all the time you need," he tells her, pressing a kiss to her forehead. "Be good for your mother."

"Always," the girl scoffs, rolling her eyes and he shakes his head, looking up at Beckett.

"I swear you must have cloned her," he says. "She is exactly like you."

"Barely," Kate denies. "She's more like you than anything. Wait until you hear about her upcoming science project."

"Can't wait," he says, his eyes crinkling as he smiles down at her, eyes shining with…something she can't really name. She's sure the same is reflected in her eyes, though. Then something changes in his face and he glances at their daughters, then back up to her. "Actually," he says, "do you mind if we talk out in the hall real quick?"

Kate's heart thumps in her chest and her throat goes dry. She nods. "Sure," she says, then looks down at Jo. "I'll be right back, babe," she says. The girl nods and the two adults shuffle out the door.

Once in the hallway, they just stand there for a long moment before both of them speak. Simultaneously.

"So what did you want to—"

"I was just thinking—"

They stop, laugh, and blush, avoiding eye contact for a moment. Kate clears her throat.

"So," she says, "what did you—"

"Would you like to go to dinner?" Castle blurts and both pairs of eyes widen. This time it's Castle who clears his throat.

"Are you…you're asking me out on a date?" Kate asks, butterflies in her stomach. Castle nods, eyes wide like a deer caught in the headlights. She bites her lip and looks down, feeling her fingers begin to tingle again. "Castle, I don't know if that's such a good—"

His hands cupping her cheek stop the words dead in her throat, and the look in his eyes barely gives her any warning as his mouth descends on hers, locking theirs lips together in a frenzy of passion. Kate can't suppress the moan that spills from her lips, nor can she stop her hands from raising to bury themselves in his hair, her body pressing against his. His answering groan vibrates against her lips and she clutches him tighter, revels in the thick-muscled arms that wrap around her waist.

When they pull back, both are panting, their faces flushed and eyes locked, hands still clutching each other. Kate nods, slowly. "Okay," she gasps. "Okay."

"Okay what?" Castle asks, his mind blissfully blank after the kiss they just shared. All it takes from Kate is the lift of one skillfully sculpted brow and the cotton in his mind dissipates. "Oh," he says, a lazy grin spreading his lips. "Great. Is…is tomorrow night too soon?"

"It's fine," Kate says, "so long as I'm not on call and your mother can babysit Jo."

"Oh god," Castle groans. "Mother." He presses his face into her neck as he remembers that they didn't even tell Martha—who'd called ahead to let them know not to wait up for her. Kate chuckles and presses a kiss to his rough cheek. She feels his answering smile against her skin.

When he pulls back, she's beaming at him, happiness glinting in her eyes. The knowledge that they'll have to talk in depth about custody and what their new romantic relationship will mean for this strange little 'family' they have now at the back of her mind. It will have to come forward at some point, but right now, all she cares about is the man whose arms she's in; the father of her daughter.

When they finally pull away from each other—with a single, parting kiss—Castle turns to open the door, surprised to find Alexis handing Joey money.

"8…9…10," Alexis finishes counting just as they walk in. She turns to Beckett and shakes her head. "I never thought he'd break you that quickly," she says. Kate rolls her eyes.

"Your father is a pretty persuasive guy," she says, then leans in to stage-whisper, "or, you know, annoying."

"Hey!" Castle practically whines. Kate snorts and grabs her daughter's hand.

"Come on, Jojo," she says to the yawning girl, "let's get you home before you fall asleep on the subway. I am so not strong enough to carry you anymore."

"Okay," Joey sighs. "Bye, Alexis. Bye, Dad," she says, earning a kiss on the forehead from Castle. The man then presses a peck to Kate's lips as she's leaving, which is a surprise, though not unwanted.

"Night, Castles," she says as she tugs Jo down the hall.

"So," Joey asks when they're in the elevator, "what made you finally say yes? Was it something he said?"

"More like what he didn't say," Kate replies with a smirk.

Johanna wrinkles her nose. "Ew! Mo-om! Gross!"

Kate just laughs as she pulls her daughter against her side in a warm hug.

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