PLEASE READ THE AUTHOR NOTE BEFORE CONTINUING!
A/N: I know it's been awhile since I had new chapters for this fic but honestly I wrote 8 through 11 in like two days I was in such a good groove. I didn't have a way to post them however until now so here you go. I was going to only post 1 chapter at a time since a few I really want them to have an impact but...I can't do that to my beloved readers so here all 4 are at once. I do ask you take like a couple seconds between each on and think about the last line or two...they have some pretty big bangs to them if I do say so myself.
MERRY CHRISTMAS TO MY FANS AND FOLLOWERS AND TO ALL CASTLE FANS A LIKE RATHER YOU BE A KATE/CASTLE SHIPPER OR LANIE/ESPOSITO MAY WE ALL GET WHAT WE WANT TO SEE ON CASTLE!
After the Doctors they swung by the precinct. Lanie wanted to see Kate and Esposito wanted to hear how the case was going. Lanie and Kate went straight into the break room together while Ryan, Castle and Esposito stood around Ryans desk.
"So, We got an I.D. on the victim" Ryan reached for a file and handed it to Esposito.
Esposito read for a few minutes before looking up at Ryan confused.
"Lawrence Smith? He was an M.E?" Ryan nodded with the same baffled expression.
"Yeah he was, Beckett has us looking into his job anyone who might have a grudge and we're still following up on Rosies point about the overkill so far nothing has popped"
Esposito dropped the file onto Ryans desk and Castle grinned.
"So, How's it going with Lanie?" Esposito shrugged.
"Fine, Why?"
"Oh no reason just rumor has it that you're in love with her" Castle grinned wider and Esposito shot Ryan a look.
"What? man you told him?" He pointed at Castle and Ryan grinned.
"Hey he kept bugging me, He's very observant he knew something was going on"
Esposito groaned before throwing himself down onto his desk chair.
"Does Beckett know too?" He asked and Castle went over putting a hand on his shoulder.
"Esposito...everybody knows" Castle smiled at Ryan who nodded.
"I got to get her out of there" He shot out of his chair and strode towards the break room.
Kate handed Lanie a cup of coffee. They had went into the break room and shut the door for some privacy and Lanie was sitting on the couch with her leg up and Kate had pulled up a chair next to her.
"Thanks" Lanie took a sip of the coffee.
"So, How's it going?" Lanie shrugged.
"I don't know...he sits up with me when I have nightmares and he let's me sleep in his bed but he's keeping me at a distance and I don't know why"
Kate watched her friend then sighed.
"Lanie...There's something I got to tell you" the seriousness in Kates face alerted Lanie.
"What is it?" Kate glanced at the door and bit her lip.
"Kate, What?" She turned back to Lanie.
"It's Esposito...He..." The door opened and both women turned to see Esposito he froze.
"Hey, Sorry I just stopped to see if you were ready" He motioned and Lanie sighed,
"Yeah, Yeah I'm ready" She reached for her crutches and Kate helped her stand giving her a quick hug she whisperes in Lanie's ear.
"Call me later"
Esposito held the door and Kate noticed the look in his eyes when Lanie walked by. His eyes softened and seemed to light at the same time and even look warmer. Kate smiled the poor boy was smitten.
She was shaking her head and stirring cream into her coffee when Castle came in. She turned just as he moved for some coffee and they collided. hot coffee spilled down both of them and she swore before dropping the cup into the sink behind her.
"CASTLE!"
"I'm sorry, I'm sorry" He grabbed paper towels and began wiping at his shirt and hands.
She winced and began running cold water on her hands.
"What do you want Castle?"
"I came to see if you would have dinner with me"
She froze for a second then took a deep breath and went back to running the water on her hands.
"Why?" He shrugged and moved closer. He slipped his arms around her and took her hands in his.
"I don't know something in the way Esposito is being with Lanie" She didn't say anything,
"So? What do you say? Have dinner with me?" She didn't speak and her turned her around.
"Castle...I..." She looked up at him and he took a deep breath and kissed her.
She brought her hands up to his chest thinking of pushing him away but they rested there instead and he could feel the cold water from them soaking his shirt. She kissed him back and he thought he had died and went to heaven Kate Beckett was kissing him back and it was everything he ever thought it could be and more.
She was more timid and shy then she was in anything else just barely putting pressure but he loved it, It only made him want more. he couldn't get enough of her. He pulled away and put his forehead against hers.
"Kate, Kate, Kate...Have dinner with me" He whispered and she nodded.
"Yes"
Lanie was sitting on the bed by the suitcase Esposito was packing.
"Are you sure you want to do this?" He asked for about the hundereth time.
"Yes, I'm sure. It's all I've looked forward too" She smiled.
He gave her a lopsided smile back, They were on their way to his mothers house and after that they were going to a movie with Ryan and Rosie then back to his mothers house for the weekend. Lanie was excited to see Rosie and Maria again and Esposito was a nervous wreck. He zipped the suitcase hers was already packed.
"Alright, Let's go"
They drove quite a ways to the very edges of the city. Where kids were getting off the buses and their parents picked them up. Each side of the rode had adorable two story houses and most had large yards that were fenced in with play sets and dogs. This was a family neighborhood. Quiet and safe untouched by the cruelty and reality of the tight squeezed city and Lanie loved the neighborhood.
"I love this neighborhood" She smiled at him and he nodded.
"Yeah, Me too it was a great place growing up. It's a great place to start a family"
"Do you think about that a lot?" She asked and he shrugged.
"Yeah I guess. I mean someday I'd like to move to a different precinct in this area settle down have some kids and live close to mom and Rosie"
"I can see you...with a wife and kids" She said and she honestly could he hesitated a beat then spoke.
"And what does my wife look like to you?" She swallowed.
"I...I don't know"
"I do, I'm thinking black hair and dark brown beautiful eyes. Creamy soft skin and a beautiful smile...of course this kind of woman would have to be interested in me"
"I promise you...she would be" She said softly and he looked over at her before turning into the driveway of a small two story white house. The front yard was small the back year decent sized and like most of the yards had a white picket fence.
He went around and opened the door for her and helped her with her crutches just as Maria and Rosie came out onto the yard.
Esposito gave them each a hug and as Rosie went for the bags he asked her if Ryan was there yet the smile on her face gave him his answer. Ryan was standing holding the door for Lanie when they got there, He took the bags from Rosie and her smile brightened.
"How are you holding up?" He asked Esposito when he walked by.
"Look at her man, She fits right in" He motioned at Lanie who was smiling at Maria as they made their way into the kitchen for coffee. Rosie hung back with him and Ryan.
"Yeah she does so why don't you go ahead and make her a permanent thing?" Rosie asked and Ryan laughed Esposito shook his head.
After coffee and fresh cake. Ryan, Rosie, Lanie and Esposito went and saw a movie. The men let the women pick and they ended up seeing a chick flick that neither one of them was interested in seeing. Esposito was mildly surprised when Ryan footed the bill for Rosie but he didn't comment.
They got home a little late but Maria had supper made and after eating Esposito took Lanie to his old room and she went to bed he came back down to see Rosie and his mother had headed off to bed as well leaving him and Ryan to do the dishes and he saw his opening to bring up what was bothering him.
"Are you hitting on my sister?" He asked while drying a towel and the clatter as Ryan dropped the plate he was washing was his answer.
"Would you hate me if I said yes?"
"No, I just might have to kill you if you hurt her" Ryan gave him a look.
"You really think I would hurt her? I love your family" He went back to scrubbing a pan.
"Alright then. What's new on the case"
"Well, we got something we didn't really see coming" Esposito put a plate away.
"What did you get a hit on the overkill? Explosives?" Ryan shook his head.
"No man, There are four other M.E.'s dead in our district" He quit washing to turn to Esposito.
"What? How? Why?" Ryan held up a hand.
"We don't know. They were all killed different ways and it's going to take awhile to decided if there is a connection and what it is so don't get upset. It might be nothing at all"
Esposito nodded and put the last plate away. He knew Ryan was right there was no sense reading into anything when they didn't have all the details but something told him to worry. He headed off to bed and relaxed once he was slid under the covers and Lanie was with in seeing distance. Ryan was on the couch but he still put his gun beside his bed just in case.
Ryan was sitting on the couch flipping through the channels on television when the soft little feet came down the stairs and he turned to see Rosie.
"Want some company?" She asked and he smiled.
"Sure" They did this a lot on nights he stayed over she'd come downstairs and they'd watch television and just talk late into the night. Somehow over the years though it had grown more important to him then he realized.
She sat down and he glanced over at her nearly groaning out loud.
"Geez. Rosie do you think you could put clothes on?" She was wearing one of the precinct shirts that Esposito had gotten her it was gray and large enough that she wore it for night clothes but it barely skimmed the top of her thighs.
"These are clothes. I've worn this before when you stayed over" She said and he realized she was right a second before wondering when it started to get under his skin like it did.
"Sorry, You're right just...never mind"
"Do you think Javier will get the nerve up to ask out Lanie?"
"I don't know. I know he's liked her a really long time"
"It's hard...liking someone for a long time and them just wanting to be friends" He squirmed in his seat a little but didn't look at her.
"Oh yeah?"
"Yeah, You want to tell them but you're afraid of ruining the friendship" she looked right at him when she spoke.
"Yeah, plus there's always the age difference" he didn't realize he said it out loud until she spoke.
"There isn't that big of difference between Lanie and Javier"
He looked over at her and she gave him a devilish little smile.
"Screw it" He tossed the remote onto the coffee table and kissed her. Bringing her against him with one hand behind her head the other on her waist. She responded and he could hardly believe it.
He drew her closer and she swung one of her endlessly long legs over his to straddle his lap. His hands wound into her hair and he kissed her like a man about to die. Her hands found the bottom of his shirt and slid under it up his chest where her nails left little claw marks.
He moved his hands to those creamy soft legs that had been driving him nuts. Sliding his hands up her legs from her knee to her hip and she left out a soft little noise. Her skin was so soft and he was almost afraid his rough hands would hurt her. He pulled away and she tried to follow him sneaking in kisses while he tried to talk.
"Rose...Rosie...Hey...Hey...stop we need...to stop" He finally took her shoulders and held her away but he was smiling.
"Let's go up to my room"She offered.
"I don't know Rosie...I..."
"You don't feel that way about me do you?" She looked rejected but he kissed that look away.
"I do. I really do Rosie...I just think we should you know...take things slow"
"we can...we can take it very very slow" The tone in her voice let him know she was thinking in a different term then him and he swallowed.
"Rosie...Have you ever even...done this before?" She blushed and looked away and he smiled kissing her cheek.
"I haven't had a boyfriend since I met you" She said and he was stunned.
"Rosie...why didn't you ever say anything?"
"Come on Ryan...You only saw me as a kid"
"At first I did but not anymore" He kissed her cheek, Her neck and one of her tiny little shoulders.
"Really? What do you see me as now" He smiled at her.
"I see you...as the kind of woman I could settle down with" He kissed her again.
She pulled away this time and climbed off his lap taking his hand with a shy smile.
"Come on then"
He hesitated a second before he stood and let her lead him up the stairs to her room. Silently praying Esposito wouldn't kill him in the morning.