Today is the premiere and I am super excited! Well here is the next, long, chapter. Thank you guys for all your wonderful responses to my story, I really do love it! I try to respond to you guys when I can. Hope you enjoy it! ~A

The darkness of the night sky began to fade as the Monday morning sunlight peeked its way throughout the buildings and trees of Manhattan. The crisp fall air was cool, but comfortable. There's something about the fall that's comforting. It could be the change of seasons and the shades of green trees turning bright reds, yellows, and oranges. It could be the warmth from the sun and the nice breeze of fall that hits you as you walk down Broadway to catch a bus or a taxi. It also might be because you've been waiting for something or someone during a long summer heat.

Detective Kate Beckett stared at her alarm clock, anticipating the sound to go off any minute. Once it did, she hit the off button and got out of her bed. She slipped on her black slippers and made her way to the bathroom across the hall. The wooden floor boards creaked as she walked. Once in the bathroom, she hopped in the shower. She let the hot water wash down her hair and backside as she began to fully wake up. After her shower she got dressed, leaving her towel on her head. She threw on a black turtleneck and a pair of gray dress pants with black heels. Beckett walked over to her jewelry box to put her mother's ring around her neck, and then cuffed on her father's watch. She added some light make-up to her light skinned face, and started to dry her long brown hair. She walked back into her bedroom to grab her cell phone, and work bag. She grabbed her black leather jacket, and walked into the kitchen for an apple, then made her way out the front door.

Walking down her street, she noticed a few orange leaves on the sidewalk. She loved the fall. Memories of her and her mother jumping in piles of bright colored leaves in central park flashed in her mind. Her heels made light clicking sounds on the New York City pavement, as she made her way to the twelfth precinct.

She had waited for this day for three months.

Castle's Apartment….

Not a day had gone by that Richard Castle didn't think about Kate Beckett. He wondered where she was almost every minute of every day. It wasn't because he craved to solve a murder, although he did enjoy that, it was because he loved her. He loved her charm, her brains, her beauty, her heart, and of course her hotness. But what he loved most about her was the fact that she was extraordinary. She was the toughest nut to crack when he first met her. She had once referred to herself as the "Beckett Onion." But he was able to peel each layer through the three years of their partnership. And now he was exactly where he wanted to be- in love with her and she was in love with him. But it had been three months. Three long months of phone calls or text messages of her assuring him she was alright. He gave her the space she had asked for. He had to if he wanted to be with her. It took almost every bone in his body not to hail a cab in the middle of the night and go to her apartment just to see her.

Castle was standing in his kitchen, pouring coffee into his mug. He was reading the newspaper as Alexis walked into the room.

"Good morning." He greeted.

"Morning dad, anything good?" Alexis said, referring to the paper.

"Not really, unless you care about who wore the best dress last night at the Emmys." Castle smiled, flashing the entertainment section to Alexis. She smiled, as she pour some cereal into a bowl.

"So." Alexis said.

"So." Castle repeated, placing the newspaper down on the counter. She looked him in the eyes. He could tell what she was implying. Alexis loved having her dad around more and knowing that he was safe. But it hurt her to see her dad going crazy all summer without Beckett. There was a few times where she wanted to pick up the phone herself. But they had a talk after their small argument over Castle working again with Beckett, and the break all summer gave them time to heal also.

"She'll call." Alexis comforted. She took a bite of her cereal. Castle hoped Alexis was right. It had been the longest three months of his life. He was sick of wondering. He needed to talk to Beckett. But he knew this was the week she would be starting work again. He ran his hands through his brown hair, stressed.

"Oh darling if you keep pulling your hair like that you'll start receding." Martha said as she entered the kitchen, dressed in her usual fabulous attire.

"Morning to you too mother." Castle smiled.

"Still no word?" Martha asked. Castle shook his head no.

"I'm gonna be late, bye guys." Alexis said, taking a last bite of her cereal. She grabbed her book bag and ran out the door.

"Have a good day!" Castle yelled, as she ran out. He sighed. Martha sat down at the counter.

"Oh Richard, when she's ready she'll call."

"I just…what if she doesn't…"

"She will."

"No, I mean…what if she doesn't feel the same way anymore." Castle paused, "It's been three months. That's three months of reflecting and sorting through the mess she was in. She could feel completely different now. I mean, she's been talking to a psychiatrist every week to get through it and I wasn't a part of her healing."

"Have you forgotten about the other three years you've been with her? She knows how you feel, everyone that knows the both of you knows how you both feel about each other." Martha touched his arm, "Richard, that woman cared about you enough to let you go so that she could find her way back to you. And she will." Martha tapped on Castle's cell phone that was sitting on the counter. Castle smiled at his mother.

Martha left to go to an audition for a new play. Castle finished some of the breakfast dishes, and he walked into his study. He sipped his warm coffee, then set it down on his desk. Castle stood in the middle of the room and looked out into the living room. The long couch that had once comforted the bodies of him and Beckett was empty. He remembered that night like a chapter from one of his books. The smell of her hair, and sweet perfume of cherries. The taste and softness of her perfect lips. The way her long brown hair fell perfectly against her cheek for him to brush it away. He missed her more than anything. He looked at his watch- 7:15am. She was probably on her way to the precinct right now.

Castle looked outside onto the street below. People were walking at a fast New York City pace to get to work. He could see the colors of the trees- orange and red. It made him think of fire- heat. Heat Rises had become another best seller over the summer. His small book tour did keep him busy at first, but at the end of the day he only wanted one thing- Kate. He wondered if she wanted him to be there with her on her first day back. He figured it would take time to get adjusted and back into the groove of things at work. He wanted to be there for her, but how?

The precinct...

The familiar smell of the precinct filled Kate's nostrils as she got off the elevator. She looked around, everything looked the same. The floors were wooden, and the walls were brick. The light of the morning brightened the room through the large windows in each office. Beckett walked to her desk and set down her bag. She sighed. She couldn't believe she was back. The last time she stood in here she wasn't herself. She was lost, hurt, and wounded physically and mentally. She began taking off her jacket when Esposito and Ryan walked out of the coffee room.

"Well, look who it is." Esposito smiled.

"Hey." Beckett said, smiling back at her partners. Esposito was wearing a a light gray button-up shirt with a black striped tie, and black pants. Ryan was wearing a blue button-up shirt and a gray vest over a white tie and gray pants.

"Nice to have you back." Ryan said, leaning on her desk.

"Nice to see that you guys haven't lost your appetites." Beckett joked, nodding at the piles of danishes and small mini donut holes on their paper plates.

" Detectives." Gates greeted, as she walked up to Beckett's desk interrupting their reunion. Ryan gulped down his donut, hoping it wasn't noticeable to her.

"Morning." The three of them said like kids that had just been caught cheating on a test. There was something very intimidating about this woman. But Beckett decided to just let her be the boss, for now.

"Where are your desks?" Gates asked. Ryan and Esposito creased their cute brows.

"Um…over there." Ryan replied, confused at her question.

"Oh, that's right. Sorry I couldn't see them because of the piles of paperwork lying on them." Gates smirked. They got the hint now. Beckett was definitely not used to this.

"We'll talk to you later Beckett." Ryan said, as he and Esposito rushed off to their desks.

"Come with me." Gates ordered Beckett, as she began to walk towards her office. Beckett followed her with her green eyes, and looked at the guys. They shrugged at her.

Three months ago it was hard for Beckett to stand in the office of Roy Montgomery, but now she had accepted it. The psychiatrist she had been seeing all summer helped her get past the what if's and why's. She walked into the office and stood in front Gates' desk.

"So, feeling better?" Gates asked.

"Much better."Beckett replied, looking Gates in the eyes.

"Good to hear." Gates smiled, "Now, I assume you want to get back to work. That's why you're here, right?"

"Yes." Beckett said. Gates was looking at a file in front of her.

"Well you seem to have the approval of the board and your doctor cleared you to be back on duty. So I guess all there is to say is welcome back to the twelfth detective." Gates said, extending her hand to shake Beckett's.

"I'm glad to be back." Beckett smiled, shaking her hand. They released, and Beckett turned to walk out until Gates stopped her.

"Before you leave you might need these." Gates said, as Beckett turned to see her holding Beckett's badge and gun. Beckett took a step forward and accepted the two items from her. She immediately felt whole again.

"Thank you," Beckett paused, "Captain."

She walked out of the office, and walked to her desk. She set her gun down as she sat in her chair. She ran her fingers over the golden"0334"on her badge. She had almost forgotten the feel of a badge, it had been so long. She clipped it on her belt, on her right side. Then her eyes wandered over to the vacant brown chair. Castle, she thought. What was he doing right now? Was he thinking about her? He was probably writing, or playing with a new toy he bought. Or maybe he was burning a hole through the floor of his office, pacing, and wondering when she would call him.

She starred at the brown chair. She missed him. She looked up over to Esposito and Ryan, they were doing paperwork. She smiled, she had missed them too. Everything seemed normal. She yawned, quietly. Coffee is something she needed.

"Um, excuse me?" A voice said. Beckett almost jumped.

"Hi, can I help you?" She asked, standing up.

"Are you detective Beckett?"The young guy asked. He was wearing a black hoodie, and jeans. He looked like a college freshman.

"Yes." She replied, creasing her brow.

"A gentleman downstairs told me to bring this up to you, and this." He said, holding up a coffee and a brown paper bag. She looked at it curiously.

"Thanks, a…" Beckett said, as she reached into her pocket to give the kid a tip.

"Oh no, he took care of it." He smiled, handing her the two items. He walked away towards the elevator. Beckett sat back down, and sniffed her latte'. The sweet smell of caramel wafted into the air as she removed the lid. She opened the bag and reached in to find a bear-claw and a note. She held the bear-claw in her hand and the note in the other. It said:

Thought you could use this.

Miss you,

C

Beckett smiled. Her heart and stomach felt butterflies at his last two words. He had somehow managed to be there with her, even though he wasn't actually there. Beckett took a bite of her bear-claw and sipped her latte' carefully. She set down them both down on the desk, and reached into her pocket for her cell phone. She stared at the screen for a moment before selecting contacts and scrolling down to Castle. She clicked his icon and let her finger hover above "call."

Was she ready? Had she completely healed herself over the three month hiatus of not seeing him all summer? Her heart had been missing him since the day she kissed him goodbye in his apartment. He held her all night in his arms, supporting her decision to give them space until she was ready. She looked back over to the note and made her decision.

A few blocks away…

Castle was in the back of a cab, almost home. He wondered if Beckett had gotten the coffee and treat he had sent up to her yet. As the cab hit almost every green light, he looked down at his phone. Nothing. He sighed. The traffic was very light at this time in the morning. As the cab pulled up to the front his building, Castle swiped his credit card and gave the cab driver a tip. He exited the cab and greeted the doorman as he walked back into his apartment building.

The elevator seemed to be taking forever to reach his floor. When it finally did, he stood for a moment contemplating if he should run back to the precinct and just go to her. But he figured that would be the wrong thing to do. He needed to wait. It had nearly killed him to be downstairs in the lobby of the precinct, knowing how close she was to him. A few officers greeted him as he walked in, like old times. He stood there with the coffee, bear-claw, and note- before he saw the young guy who was delivering newspapers. He paid the kid twenty bucks to go up to the homicide floor and deliver his message.

Castle was now back inside his apartment. He tossed his keys and coat onto the loveseat. He plopped down on the sofa and closed his eyes. Then the sound he had waited for finally went off in his jacket pocket. He almost didn't even recognize the ringtone. He immediately jumped up and tossed his jacket around, and pulled out his phone to see the name he had been waiting for.

He had waited for this day for three months.

Thoughts? I made this chapter a bit longer than my usual ones. I thought you guys would like it, and I hope you did! And yes, I decided to leave you with a tease…sorry for being cruel! But at least you know that the call has been made now! I had trouble figuring out Kate's badge number. In season 1 I recall her saying, "41319." But in season 3 it's, "0334." So sorry if it is wrong. I watched a clip of season 3 just to make sure it was right. And in "Set-up" she says "0334" when her and Castle are running away from the radio-active bombs in the storage locker. I really love feedback and your thoughts. I will work on some more later today if I get a chance. Today is the day of the premiere! So excited! Thank you for reading! xo Ashley