Alright, here's the second chapter. There will be at least one other, then I think that's it. Although it might get stretched into two because I haven't figured out all the details yet. And I would just like to thank all of my lovely, lovely reviewers. I always appreciate it when people take the time to tell me what they think. You made my day. I would appreciate knowing whether you think I'm in character at the start of this, because I wasn't sure.

And without further ado, here we go:

xxxxx

He cared about her? That was his answer? He'd poked his nose in where it wasn't wanted, caused her no small amount of pain, all because he cared about her? Was he serious?

"What? You…" Kate paused before continuing, and took a few calming breaths to steady herself, and looked at him, really looked at him. He actually looked sincere. She couldn't se any of the laughter that was usually present in his eyes. In fact, he was as sober as she'd ever seen him. And now that she was looking, she couldn't help noticing that he looked like hell, like he hadn't been having the best couple of weeks either. Maybe Lanie was right (ugh, and she'd be insufferable about it too). So maybe the instinctive angry reaction wasn't the best way to go. Maybe she should give him a chance to explain. Alright, he had ten minutes.

He was watching her carefully, trying to gauge her reaction. He knew he'd only get one shot at fixing this. It certainly wasn't the time for a hurried explanation. A careless word might send her packing, and he wasn't going to watch Kate Beckett walk away from him again. So he waited for her to make up her mind about his answer, unsure whether anger or understanding would win the day.

"I don't understand Castle. I don't understand why given what I told you, you chose to do this because you care about me." He moved to answer her, but she continued before he could. "So right now, I'm going to need more words. I mean, usually I can't get you to shut up. You're always going on about some stupid stories at work..." Then inspiration seemed to strike her. "Alright Castle, you're the writer. Tell me this story. Because I need to hear it. Right now. Go."

"Are you willing to listen to the whole thing?" He asked her.

"I just asked you to tell it didn't I?"

"Yeah, but at the start it might not sound too good. And I know I don't deserve it, but try to hear me out until the end. Please. If I'm the writer telling you the story, you be the cop. I'll give you my confession, but I need you to hear the whole thing.

She took a breath. Well, she'd made it this far; it seemed like a reasonable request. And who knows why, but she was trying to be reasonable. "Alright Castle. Tell me your story and I'll listen. But technically if you're giving a confession I can ask questions to clarify the facts."

"Alright, just… try… try not to hate me too much."

"That I won't promise."

He winced, even though he'd been expecting that. "Maybe we should sit." He told her, gesturing to the pair of chairs in the room

"Alright, but you're stalling."

"Trying to collect my thoughts," he corrected smoothly. "Besides, I figure I've only got one shot at this, I've got to make it count." When she looked up at him suspiciously he continued. "Like I said Detective, you matter." That seemed to surprise her, and he realized it was something they would need to come back to. But not right now. That wasn't how the story went, that came later. "But I'm getting ahead of myself. This particular story doesn't start there. It starts on the day you told me about your parents. I won't be so foolish as to ask you if you remember. I don't imagine that's something you tell people so often that you forget when it happens. But you told me. And I don't want you to think it was something I took lightly Detective, because it wasn't. I'll admit, part of my interest was professional. You've fascinated me almost from the moment we met. You're so unexpected, so complex, so very interesting. And a mass of contradictions. Almost as soon as I met you inspiration struck, because you really are a perfect protagonist for a detective story. Suddenly my writers block was gone, a thing of the past. And I was over the moon. So I forced myself into your life. As I'm sure you've noticed I'm good at wedging myself into situations where I'm not exactly wanted." She nodded her head, acknowledging the point, but didn't interrupt him as he continued.

"Besides, my new character wasn't complete. I needed more detail. I wanted to understand you. Wanted to see what made you tick. And my interest was never purely professional. After all, you are a stunningly beautiful woman. I started working with you, seeing how you solved cases. Getting to know you a bit. And the more I found out the more I wanted to know. I kept telling myself it was for the book, but that was really only part of it. I saw how much you loved your job, how much it mattered to you. I saw how much you cared about the victims, about making things right. I saw how you spent basically your whole life doing things for others, giving other people closure, keeping other people safe. And I wanted to do something for you. Give you something, make your life better."

"And then you told me about your mother. You trusted me with that. And, I knew how much it meant. I could see how much the lack of closure still hurt. It didn't seem fair to me that you should spend your days giving some measure of peace to other victim's families and have none for yourself. I know life isn't fair, but still, it seemed particularly cruel."

"And then inspiration struck. Well, it seemed like inspiration at the time. What if I looked into your mother's case? What if I found something? Even thought I figured it was unlikely, it was possible. I mean, with my connections I did have access to resources you didn't. Maybe they'd find something you'd missed. It seems unbelievably arrogant when I look back on it now, even for me. I don't know that I'd really thought through how it would even work. I guess I had some stupid idea of walking into the precinct and presenting you with evidence that solved your mother's murder. It was meant to be a gesture, a gift. I wanted to give you something that meant something to you."

"So I got a copy of your mother's file. When I first looked through it I couldn't see anything out of place, but like I said, I have connections. So I got a friend of mine to re-examine the coroner's report. And in the meantime I broached the subject with you. Which is a conversation you obviously remember. Up until that point I don't think I'd ever really thought about how you might see my interference. I just assumed you'd look at it like I did. Like it was a nice thing to do for a friend." He laughed self-deprecatingly, "I said I was arrogant didn't I? You certainly set me straight. Told me we were done if I so much as breathed on that file. But it was way, way too late for that. I'd already set my plan in motion. But then I thought, okay, it's still not too bad. I mean, chances Dr. Murray finds anything are slim to none since no one else noticed anything before now. So I'll just get the file back, put it back in storage, and respect Kate's wishes. She never needs to know. Not the noblest of attitudes I admit, but the thought of losing you made any other course of action unthinkable."

"But then fate intervened. The Doc did find something. Something big. Something important. And I knew I had to tell you. Oh I didn't want to tell you. I knew you'd keep your word and we'd be done. But I'd opened Pandora's box, and the damn thing couldn't be shut again. Even if it did turn your world upside down. So I knew I had to tell you. Especially if there was even the slightest chance you'd get the answers you deserved."

"So I told you. And you reacted just as I expected, and probably deserved. But Beckett, I need you to know, my intent was never malicious. I wanted… I was trying to do something nice, something to make you think I was more than just the superficial celebrity writer who followed you around all day irritating and annoying you. And I swear to you that Nikki Heat had nothing to do with it. She never even entered my mind when I first read that file. And nothing even remotely associated with your mother's death will ever find its way into one of my books. Whatever happens, you have my word on that Detective. Like I said, I didn't do this for my novels. I did it for you, because I care. I may be arrogant and stupid sometimes, but like I told you once, I'm not a jackass." He paused briefly, "Well, most of the time at least."

Almost the entire time Castle had been speaking Kate had been staring at him in stunned silence, hadn't interrupted him once. When he finished she stood up abruptly. "I… I… just give me a second Castle." His whole story…and she had to admit it was a good story… It did make sense on some level. It did. But did it justify his actions? And did she believe him? She didn't know. She wanted to. Oh god. She wanted to. She hadn't realized how much she'd wanted him to have some sort of explanation, some sort of reason until that moment. She wrapped her arms around herself as she paced back and forth in his office. If he was telling the truth… If he meant all that… "So what now?" she asked him.

"That's up to you." He told her. "I'm in no position to be making demands. I'll do whatever you want Detective. Anything you need just let me know and I'll do my best to make it happen."

She didn't know what she wanted to do about him quite yet, but she did know one thing. "I need to know what you found."

"You sure?" he asked, concerned.

"No, but tell me anyways."

"Do you, do you want to see the file, or…"

"No!" she cried, before taking a breath and continuing more calmly, "No. Just give me the highlights."

"I can do that." He told her from his position on the couch, watching in concern as she started her third circuit of his room. "I showed your mother's file to a friend of mine like I told you. I'd consulted him in the past for my books and I knew he was good, knew he'd do me a favour. Like I said, even if I never really expected him to find anything, he definitely did. Apparently the pattern of the knife wounds indicated the killer knew what he was doing. The first stab wound was twisted to immobilize the victim. No way that's a lucky hit. It would have killed her. The others were just for show to throw off anyone investigating. Based on that alone, Dr. Murray concluded your mother was targeted." She flinched then, but didn't say anything so he continued. "Then on a hunch he searched through the other unsolved case files and found three other victims killed in a similar way."

"Oh god," Beckett whispered softly. "Four victims and no one noticed?"

"Yeah." Castle agreed softly. "That's all I have so far. But I've called in another couple of favours. Got people looking over the other three files. Ryan and Esposito have been helping out when they can, making sure we have access…"

"Ryan and Esposito?" She interrupted sharply.

Castle looked a bit guilty at that. If this went south the guys were going to be even unhappier with him than they already were. "Um, yeah. They've been helping out. Sort of. Only because they care too. Don't worry, they still hate me. But we reached an understanding. They help me try and solve your mother's murder by getting me the information I need, with the caveat that if you ever say the word my body'll be disposed of in a way that even the best search team will never find it. You don't need to be involved Beckett. I mean, you can be obviously, but if it's too much…" he shrugged his shoulders. "Like I said, whatever you need."

If Kate Beckett had been shocked before this one took the cake. "You're still looking?"

"Ummm. Yes." Really, he thought that would have been obvious. "What'd you think I was going to do? Open this up and then just walk away?" He paused to get a good look at her face. "You did. Geez Detective, even at my most arrogant I knew this'd probably take a while. I'm not stopping now unless you order me to, and let's face it, maybe not even then. And neither are Ryan or Esposito. Heck, now that you know about it we can probably bring Dr. Parish on board as well." He stood then, and moved towards her, worried about her lack of response (she should have been screaming at him long before now), and the fact that she couldn't seem to stop pacing. Watching her he couldn't get rid of the idea that he'd broken Kate Beckett; it was a terrifying thought. He took another step towards her, "Beckett…" then more softly, "Kate…"

She looked at him then. And he could practically see her struggling to work things out in her head. "Castle, you told me you'd do whatever I wanted. Whatever I need."

"Yes," he told her. "Well, barring actually giving you my first-born." He paused, "Mother on the other hand is negotiable. And actually, depending on what you wanted her for, as long as she could fit it in between school, homework, and the odd date with Owen, Alexis might do it willingly anyways. She thinks you're pretty awesome." He sobered, "But yeah, other than sacrificing my only child, because let's face it I'm no Abraham, whatever you need."

Kate took another shaky breath. She couldn't seem to take it all in, to make sense of it all. What she needed was to stop all the thoughts that were flying around her brain, what she needed was… "I… I think I need a hug."

And almost before she'd finished speaking he was there, and oh.

Oh.

Yes.

She should have known he'd be good at this. There were some things you could tell just by looking at someone. The way he was touching her. He seemed to know exactly what to do. He'd somehow managed to just wrap himself around her, one arm around her waist and the other around her shoulders. And he somehow knew exactly how tightly to hold her. Tightly enough that she didn't feel like he was going to disappear, but not so tightly that she felt trapped. Her arms had somehow found their way around his neck, although she wasn't sure exactly when that had happened, and her head was on his shoulder. She could smell his cologne. Couldn't place it, but it wasn't overpowering, it was just… nice. She could almost get used to this. If his promise to get her through this included hugs whenever she asked then she might even think about forgiving him.

Katherine Beckett was literally wrapped in his arms. He was holding Detective Katherine Beckett. He wasn't sure what deity he'd managed to impress, but whoever or whatever was responsible, he sent them his sincere mental thanks. He wasn't stupid enough to think this meant that she'd forgiven him, but it was probably a step in the right direction. I mean, women don't tend to instigate lengthy hugs with men they intend to toss out of their lives at the first opportunity. Do they? He supposed some women might, but unless he was very much mistaken, Katherine Beckett was not one of them. He resisted the urge to hold her tighter. No point in scaring her off. Oh god, she wasn't crying was she? He didn't know if he could deal with a teary-eyed Kate. That might be the final straw that caused him to throw himself at her feet and beg. No he didn't think she was crying. Trembling a little, but no tears. God she smelled good. Some sort of blend of citrus and maybe aloe. He had to say when he'd imagined her in his arms in the past (and he had a good imagination) this wasn't exactly what he'd pictured, but… Oh bad thoughts! Bad thoughts! What was wrong with him? She came to him for comfort when by rights she should still be refusing to speak to him and that's where his mind went? Bad Castle! He would hold her like this for as long as she damn well wanted. Several days if necessary. He didn't have anywhere he needed to be. Still, she smelled really good.

Slowly Kate's thoughts were beginning to slow to a more manageable pace. Enough to sort them out a little. She still had no idea what she was going to do about her mother. That was still too raw, but what about the man who currently had his arms wrapped around her in a manner that suggested that he really wouldn't mind staying like this as long as she wanted? Could she forgive him? It still felt like a betrayal, but… but his motives just might have been pure. On the other hand, could she believe him? What did the outside evidence say? Lanie certainly thought he cared about her. Lanie was hardly impartial of course, but she also wasn't so delusional that Kate could completely dismiss her opinion. And she'd admitted herself that Castle was fun. She might even be becoming a bit fond of the man, might admit he might be good for her, and good for the department, when he wasn't being completely irritating of course. Sure he was arrogant, and infuriating, and unbelievably immature. But he had taken her to a ritzy party, and he had opened up his home to her, and he'd helped her solve a case that was eating at her even after it was closed in the eyes of the department. Heck, he'd even let her win at poker because he'd thought it would make her happy. It had come off patronizing and condescending of course, a big strong man, looking out for the weak female, but his intentions had been in the right place.

And with that Kate realized something: Castle's intentions were almost always in the right place. How he acted on them was often supremely misguided, usually because he didn't consider other viewpoints to his own. Really, he was like a child with no impulse control. But at the core, behind the sexual innuendo and the banter and the stories, he usually was trying to help.

A loud crash from the other room jolted them both from their thoughts. As she extricated herself from his arms Kate wondered vaguely how long they'd been standing there without speaking. She self-consciously ran a hand through her hair as she glanced at him. He looked concerned, concerned mixed with something else. She recognized that look. It was the look he got when he wanted to know what she was thinking, but didn't want to ask. And it somehow also made her want to tell him. But before she could open her mouth she was also struck by something else. She'd noticed earlier that he hadn't looked his best, but up close it was even more noticeable. His skin was pale, like he hadn't been outside in a few days, his hair looked a little more on the disheveled side than usual and he looked exhausted, like he hadn't been sleeping well. He had been upset, enough that he was having trouble sleeping. Well, nobody ever said that Kate Beckett didn't have a bit of an evil side, because the thought pleased her more than it probably should have. She didn't even bother to hide her grin.

Castle couldn't help watching her apprehensively. He figured it was about time for the verdict. She'd had time to deliberate, now she was going to tell him whether he was guilty or not. She looked like she was about to say something, but then she paused to look at him. He tried his best not to fidget, no easy task when he wanted to demand she tell him his fate. Just when he began to think she'd never speak, unexpectedly she grinned. Really grinned. Well, that was… good?

"You know, you look like crap Castle. I think you did miss me." When he didn't say anything right away she continued. "You know, your agent's not going to like that. Big celebrity author like you can't afford to let himself go."

She was mocking him. He gives her a full confession, apologizes for his actions and tells her he'll do whatever she wants, and she responds with mockery. Praise the Lord!

"Ah yes," he responded with a grin of his own, "I so missed your particular brand of support and concern Detective."

"If I thought your vanity would allow it I'd be worried this was all a ploy to garner sympathy, but as it is I guess I believe it's genuine." He looked hopeful as she continued. "You may be arrogant, and vain, and immature sometimes Castle, but you're not cruel. So even though sometimes the things you do make me want to shoot you between the eyes, and even though I'm not entirely sure I forgive you yet, I guess I believe you. And I guess I don't mind if you want to keep following me around all day."

There was a brief pause while Kate waited for her words to sink in. Then suddenly she found her face was being crushed into Castle's chest. Almost as quickly as he'd grabbed her, he released her, talking a mile a minute. "Good, good. That's good. Because between you and me, I was a little worried about what was going to happen when I showed up at your desk on Monday, if Montgomery didn't just put his foot down and have me thrown out of course. Although, if you'd kept your word and gone all impersonal on me I don't know that I would have wanted to stay. Besides, between Ryan and Esposito and Dr. Parish, I would have basically been a dead man walking. Oh this is great! I'm so glad you came over. I would have gone and talked to you, I mean, I wanted to, but since I was the jerk… But then you came." He paused, and something else seemed to strike him." Hey! Did I miss any interesting cases? Any really weird ones? I'm guessing since you dropped by in the middle of the afternoon that you're not working one now. So do you want me to drop by the station on Monday or just wait for you to call me if we get a case? You get a case I mean."

Having finally reached a question he wanted her to answer Castle paused to let her give one. She laughed, "I don't care Castle. You can show up on Monday if you want, or if you want to catch up on your beauty sleep, you can wait for me to call." She answered him, looking at him with a mixture of indulgence and amusement.

"You know, most women would be a little more sympathetic about the fact that I felt so badly about stuff that I was having trouble sleeping."

"Hey, I said I believed you, not that you didn't deserve a little punishment."

"True."

Castle looked like he wanted to say something else when their conversation was interrupted by a knock at the door. "Come in," he called, not taking his eyes off of his lovely detective until he heard his daughter's voice.

"Hi Dad, it's me. I was just wondering… Detective Beckett! You're here!" Huh, so he guessed his mother hadn't mentioned to his daughter that they had an unexpected visitor.

"Hi Alexis." Kate said by way of greeting.

Alexis Castle almost couldn't believe her eyes. The woman her father had been pining over for the last two weeks was standing in his office, and she was smiling. They were both smiling! Alexis wished she hadn't disturbed them. "It's great to see you! I'm so sorry to interrupt. I didn't know anyone else was in here. I'll come back later."

Alexis turned to leave, but Kate stopped her. "No, Alexis, don't worry about it we were just finishing up anyways. I should probably be heading out."

But Alexis didn't really want that. "Oh, don't leave on my account. I was just going to ask Dad what he was planning on doing about dinner since our kitchen has pretty much been taken over for an off-broadway run."

Castle smirked. "I hadn't thought about it to tell you the truth, but it is getting late. Any suggestions oh daughter of mine?"

"Well, unless you want to catch the late show I suggest we go out. I was thinking Indian."

"Rajah's?" he asked.

"Exactly." Then Alexis had a brilliant idea. Turning to the other woman in the room, and adopting her friendliest tone, she asked, "Would you like to join us Detective?"

Castle froze, waiting for an answer. "Oh, um, thank you, but no. I wouldn't want to intrude." Kate told the young girl.

But Alexis dismissed that completely. She might be the sensible one in the family, but she was still a Castle, and very used to getting her own way. "You're not intruding. Do you like Indian food?"

"Well yes…"

"Then you'll love this. It's one of my favourites. Rajah's has the best curry in the city. And we want you to come don't we dad?"

"Oh absolutely." Castle said with a decisive nod. "Detective Beckett is welcome any time, she knows that."

Kate looked at the two pleading faces in front of her, knowing she didn't stand a chance. Having two Castles against her didn't seem quite fair. But she had to admit that she was getting hungry, and Indian food did sound better than going home and heating up something from the back of her freezer. She sighed and gave in, "Well, if you're sure I wouldn't be intruding…"

"Great!" Alexis cried.

"I'll go make reservations." Castle told the two women.

"Wait, reservations?" Kate asked concerned. "Just how fancy is this place? Because I'm not dressed…"

"Oh, it's not fancy." Alexis hurried to assure her. "It's just busy. You're fine. I'm wearing this," she added, gesturing to her admittedly casual outfit of blue jeans and a shirt. "Dad, on the other hand should probably go clean himself up a bit. No offense Dad, but you look terrible."

Kate snickered, "Told you."

"Alright, alright. You win." Castle conceded. "I'll go change and get cleaned up after I make the reservations. Alexis, entertain Detective Beckett while I'm gone would you? Be back in a jiffy." They were right; he probably didn't look his best. But that was probably fixable with a change of his clothes and maybe a quick shave.

"Sure thing dad." His daughter called after him.

"So," Kate said when he was gone, "How's it going?"

"Good, school's good. Lots of work, but still okay. Went to a movie with friends today, but other than that not much is going on." She paused, "It really is great to see you though."

Kate paused, before grinning, "Yeah, it's great to see you to."

Alexis smiled back. Oh things were going to be just fine.

xxxxx

On a quick trip between the piano and the liquor cabinet Martha noticed the door to her son's office was ajar. Had Detective Beckett managed to sneak out without her noticing? She was dying of curiosity to know what had happened, so she decided it wouldn't hurt to just go take a quick peep inside. When she reached the door she realized the voices coming from it weren't quite the pair she was expecting. For a start they were both decidedly female, and were apparently in a deep discussion of the merits of the latest Harry Potter movie when compared to the book. "Knock knock." She said as she opened the door wider.

"Hi Grams." Alexis greeted her.

"Hi Martha," said the Detective at her side, who was clearly trying not to look self-conscious and failing miserably.

"And what is going on in here?" she asked. "Was there a party I wasn't invited to?"

Alexis grinned, "Of course not Grams, you're always the life of the party. We're just waiting for Dad to finish changing so we can go out to dinner."

"Oh lovely!" Martha exclaimed, glad Richard and his lovely detective had apparently sorted out their problems enough to go to dinner, and also because it meant she'd have the house to herself for a few hours and so wouldn't have to worry about keeping the volume low, which was particularly lucky because some of her friends were talking about trying out some selections from Les Misérables. And you simply couldn't achieve the passion necessary to effectively pull off those songs if you were worried about decibel level. "Well in that case come give us your opinion of Colette's rendition of 'I Dreamed a Dream.' Poor woman insists she's better than that Susan Boyle woman."

And with that Martha herded the two laughing woman towards the music.

xxxxx

Castle tried to clean himself up as quickly as possible. He had to admit they were right and he hadn't been looking his best. But he thought he'd spruced himself up pretty nicely, without going overboard. Not that there was any reason to go overboard of course. He just felt like celebrating is all. After all, it's not every day that a man gets a second chance with the woman… the woman who had become his muse.

But she wasn't just his muse anymore was she? What had Kate Beckett become to him exactly? A friend, yes. A woman he was glad to see bonding with his daughter? Absolutely. A woman he wanted to spend more time with? That he wanted to feel comfortable around him, that he wanted to comfort? Yes to all of the above. But…

Enough. He'd just been reinstated in her good graces. He wasn't going to over-analyze this, or think it to death. They were just going out for a friendly dinner with his daughter. Re-forging a partnership. Yes, a partnership. If something happened down the line, well, they'd cross that bridge when they came to it. Right now though, there was no need to complicate matters.

Smiling he strolled back to his office, experiencing a momentary flash of panic when he saw it was empty before remembering that there was no way his daughter would have let the other woman leave. He'd have to thank her for issuing the dinner invitation at some point. Stroke of genius that. Deciding there was really only one other place they could conceivably be, Castle strolled leisurely towards the piano. Only to be greeted by the sight of his mother and another women singing a duet while Beckett and Alexis looked on. He caught Kate's eye and raised an eyebrow. She just grinned and shrugged.

Luckily the song seemed to be wrapping up. After accepting her public's applause, Martha noticed him. "Richard!" she cried. "Well, don't you look nice? So lovely to see you looking almost human again." When he cringed she continued on. "Oh, there's no need to look like that darling, you were upset. Nothing to be ashamed of. And now that your muse has returned you can stop your pining and move on." Before he could stop her she'd turned to Kate. "Well, he was pining. Both Alexis and I knew it, even if he'll deny it. I'm glad you two have decided to sort out your differences."

It was times like these that he wondered why on earth he'd agreed to let his mother move in with him. Deciding he'd better step in before she started giving Beckett the play by play of the last two weeks of his life he grabbed his daughter and his friend by the arm, and moved them towards the door. "Yes, thank-you for that mother. We're just going to go and grab some dinner. Try not to burn the house down while we're gone would you?"

"Oh don't you worry about a thing. We're just going to sing a few songs, have a few drinks. Everything will be fine here. Just go and enjoy yourselves."

"Good-bye mother. Fire extinguisher's behind the television if you need it." And with that he'd finally managed to get the three of them out of the apartment. Thank goodness.

"So, pining huh?" Kate asked him with a smirk.

Alexis giggled.

Castle, paused to consider his options. But there was really only one response to a statement like that.

"Oh, shut up."

xxxxx

TBC