The Box

Chapter 2

AN: I'm overwelmed, thank you. Right after I had published this story, I was told that my dad needs to be checked for a serious cronic disease, so I was really shocked and sad, I've always been a daddy's girl. He doesn't want anyone to know until he's tested, so I've been feeling alone all day. But to the my point... when I got back to my computer you guys really cheered me up, I had over 50 emails! Thanks for the support!

~even on the worst days, there's a possibility for joy.~

Jim closed the door behind him, as he walked into the kitchen were Castle was sitting. Even though he didn't know what was in the box, his wife left for their daugther, he was pretty sure that this was something she wanted to do alone.

Castle had a questioning look on his face, as Jim was approaching. He couldn't read Jim's face. What was wrong? Did something happen to him or someone close to him? And why was Beckett still in his office, when her father wasn't?

"So...?" Castle said, as Jim sat down on one of the bar stools, at the countertop, next to Castle, hoping that Jim would continue the sentence.

"I think she just needs to be alone for this, there is nothing to hide, but I just figured being the strong person she is, she wanted to do this alone."

"Do what alone?" Castle asked, since he had no idea of what Jim was talking about.

"I don't know if she would want me to tell you, or if she wants to tell you herself."

"Just tell me Jim, if she wants to tell me I can act surprised." Castle joked, but Jim didn't even smile.

"Since you two are getting married in a couple of months, I guess I could tell you what I know, but I don't know that much." It didn't look like he was gonna have the father-in-law talk he wanted to have with Castle, Castle preferred talking about what was happening with Beckett at the moment, Jim thought that maybe that was a good sign, seeing how much Castle loved his Katie.

"Ok..?" Castle said questioning, he didn't know how serious to take this, Jim was not really showing emotions, maybe it wasn't that serious, just very personal, he thought. "Can I offer you something to drink? Water, Coffee, Juice...?"

"Coffee sounds good" Castle quickly poured both of them a cup of coffee, thinking that in respect he wouldn't finish his wine infront of Jim.

"You know you can drink wine infront of me, right? I've been sober for years by now."

"A cup of coffee is good."

"Ok" Jim took a sip before he started talking again.

"As you know, when Johanna died she was working on a very dangours case, and she had a feeling that she might get too close, and well..." Jim took a breath, it was always hard for him to talk about what happened. "...you know what happened to her."

After a moment of silence Jim continued. "Knowing that there was a possiblity for her life to be taken away, made her think about Katie's future"

"A couple of days before she was killed, she gave me a little beautiful handmade wooden box, with Kate Beckett carved into it." Castle could see on Jim's face how much he missed the love of his life. "The only thing she said was: 'Babe, I'm working on a dangours case, and if anything happens to me, now or in the future, I want you to give this box to Katie before her wedding.' I remember I just started crying and she told me I couldn't tell anyone, and what could I tell people? The only thing I could say was what she had said, and what are words when you don't have any evidence?" Castle felt like Jim was blaiming himself for his wife's death, even though he had nothing to do with it.

"So that's what Kate is going through now?" Castle asked carefully.

"Yes, but I've no idea what's in it, and had forgot all about it, until Katie called and told me that you had moved the wedding to the spring."

"I agree with you, she probably wants to be alone for this." They didn't talk for a few minutes, until Jim broke the silence.

"While we wait for her, I think we should talk about upcoming events." Jim said, Castle frooze a little, when Jim saw that, he just smiled and said, "Don't worry Rick, I'm not the scary father-in-law type."

"Good" Castle answered a little calmer, even though Jim didn't seem that scary.

"How come you moved the wedding? And how is the planning going?"

"We just realised that we couldn't wait to be husband and wife" Castle said with a wide smile on his face.

"You two are so in love, you remind me of me and Johanna back then, of course I took 3 years to declare my love, while you took four." He said a little sarcastic. Castle smiled, he knew it took him long, but the wait was worth it.

"Anyways, the planning is coming along, we don't have a venue or anything, but she has a dress."

"She does? She didn't tell me, of course that's something a bride-to-be would tell her mother."

"Yeah, she said, that when she tried the dress on, she thought for a moment she couldn't do it without her mother." Castle continued. "We were working on a case, were we were in contact with Mathilda King, which, appearantly, Kate modeled for once. Mathilda asked her to try on a dress, because she had to choose between two dresses for the magazine, but when Kate got home later that day, Mathilda had sent the dress over, because it would look prettier on her than in any magazine."

"What are we? Two men sitting, drinking coffee and talking about a wedding dress." Jim said joking.

"Two men that love Kate." Castle said and Jim had a smile on his face. "And by the way, she calls me babe, like you said Johanna called you, I always figured Katherine Houghton Beckett, soon to be Castle,..." He added in "...would be the last person in this world to use petnames. But now it makes sense."

"Yeah, that's unlike her, but she takes after her mom."

They talk a little more, then sit in nice silence, but suddenly they both say: "I wonder what's in that box."

AN: So what do you think? You must hate me for not really revealing anything, in this chapter, about the box, but that is what chapter 3 will be about.