Here's chapter 3! It's time to start fixing the angst and start working things out ;) As always, tell me what you think via the 'review' button!

The next morning, Castle was making coffee when Kate emerged from the bedroom, her hair messed up in a very sexy bedhead kind of way, and wearing one of Castle's old oversized college sweatshirts over her pajamas. He held out a mug filled with coffee to her and she took it, placed it on the counter, and pulled his face to hers for a very passionate kiss.

"Well, good morning to you too," Castle stammered. Kate grinned wickedly at how flustered she had made him and sipped her coffee. He poured himself a cup and they went and sat on the couch together.

Kate listened to Castle list his plans for the day, as well as hers. He would write while she spent a few hours at the Precinct, then he would pick her up for lunch before her appointment with . After the appointment, he would either take her back to work or they could spend the afternoon together, her choice.

She smiled and nodded, taking large sips of coffee and trying to avoid speaking. Kate's plan had been to subtly distance herself from Rick, so he wouldn't get hurt or lose himself in trying to make her happy. But when he was so selfless like this, and so sweet and caring and kind, and sexy, he was hard to resist. She had spent hours last night tossing and turning, and the only thing that calmed her down enough to sleep was him. She had looked at his handsome, sleeping face and instantly felt soothed.

"If the boys need me for the case, I'll go back to the 12th. But if not, an afternoon off with you sounds perfect," she finally said, squeezing Castle's hand. He smiled and squeezed back.

"Yes, it does."

Kate went into the bedroom and got dressed, and when she emerged, Castle was standing by the door, holding her red peacoat out to her. She slipped into it and pressed a small kiss to his lips.

"Have a good day, beautiful," he said with a smile. He handed her a travel coffee mug, filled with the warm liquid.

"You too, handsome."

Castle sat at his desk, laptop in front of him. He had really wanted to go to the Precinct today, but Kate had made him promise that he would sit this case out and get some writing done. He was far from making his first deadline, which was next month. He couldn't even decide on a full case, he just had some small details. Rook was out of his coma and both he and Nikki, though they refused to say it to each other, were afraid to be apart for too long. Then Castle had a great idea: Rook should ask Nikki to move in with him! They'd been dating for a while, and were crazy about each other, and it would add a light, loving aspect to the book, which maybe would give him some room for a slightly grittier, more intense case.

And then he got an even better idea: why not let reality mirror fiction and ask Kate to move in with him? There would be no more back and forth, no 'my place or yours.' Sure, it had only been 4 weeks, but he loved Kate more than anything in the world, and he was certain they would be together for the rest of their lives. And moving in together didn't mean speeding up the relationship – they wouldn't sleep together until Kate wanted to. And think about it, it was them. Castle and Beckett. They were far from strangers. Even if they had only acknowledged it recently, they had been in love with each other for at least 2 years.

A rush of confidence surged through Castle and he picked up his phone, texting himself a reminder to make a copy of his key before he picked Kate up for therapy. Then he returned to Rook and Nikki, typing furiously.

He was powering through his latest chapter, and had been writing for close to 2 hours when Alexis came into his office. Even though it was about 10 AM, she only had something like 2 classes this semester and was home a lot more often.

"Hey dad."

"Hey sweetie. Just give me one second for Rook finish his sentence…."

He finished his thought and hit save, then looked up at his beautiful daughter.

"What's up?"

"Well, I was wondering if I could sleepover at Claire's tonight. She's inviting a ton of girls over for a movie marathon. I know I had a sleepover last night too, but I want to spend as much time as I can with my friends before graduation..."

"Of course you can go," he smiled. "Sounds like fun."

"Thanks," she grinned and came around the desk to hug him. He pulled her into his lap and brushed her long, shiny red hair away from her face.

"Oh, and Grams just left. She said that she's teaching classes at her studio all day, and then there's a rehearsal for King Lear tonight, so she said not to expect her until late tonight or even early tomorrow morning."

Castle laughed. "Better there than here."

Alexis nodded. "Yeah. And that way you and Beckett can have a nice dinner in. How is she, by the way? I know she's been here all the nights you have, but I haven't seen her much."

"She's okay. Working on getting better, but it's going to take some time," Castle said, not wanting to say too much. "But actually honey, I wanted to ask you about that."

"About what?"

"About how you would feel if I asked Kate to move in with us."

Alexis thought for a moment, then asked, "Dad, are you asking my permission?"

"Of course, sweetie," he said. "It's your house too, even if only for a few more months." He sighed and Alexis giggled. Then she smiled at him.

"I think it's a great idea, dad. Beckett is already part of the family, might as well make it semi-official. And I hate to think of her being alone in her apartment ever, after what happened. Plus, I'll be going off to college in a few months, and who knows what could go wrong if you were here all my yourself."

Castle squeezed his daughter in a huge hug. After about 40 seconds, Alexis said, "Dad. You can let go."

He laughed and released her. He waved her away with his hand. "Go, go. Be a teenager, have fun with your friends!"

She smiled and walked towards his office door. When she got to the doorway, she turned around and said, "Dad?"

"Yeah, sweetie?"

"Does Kate make you happy?"

"Happier than I ever thought I could be," he replied truthfully. She smiled thoughtfully.

"Good."

xxxx

It was 1:15, and Castle was racing to the Precinct to pick Kate up for a late lunch before her 3 o'clock appointment with . He had just made a copy of his house key at a local locksmith shop, and hidden safely away in his pocket to give to Kate later tonight. He had walked, underestimating the time it took to get from his loft to the locksmith's, and then to the 12th. He entered the precinct, got in the elevator, and hit the button for the homicide floor. Once the elevator started to move, Castle leaned against the back wall and closed his eyes, panting slightly.

When the elevator opened, he smoothed his hair and tried to compose himself, then stepped into the bullpen. It was not too busy, and he could see Kate, Ryan, and Esposito looking at the murder board for their current case. He tiptoed up behind them just in time for Esposito to turn around and casually say, "Hey bro. Next time you sneak up on someone, you may want quieter shoes."

Ryan and Kate burst into laughter and Kate greeted him with a kiss on the cheek as he looked down at his feet in confusion. Were Converse really that loud? Esposito laughed and held his hand out, birds ready to be fed.

"I'm just messing with you, man. I could see your in the reflection of Gates's office window."

Castle laughed and fed Espo's birds, then looked at the murder board while Kate gathered her coat and purse.

"A used bookstore owner? Rare editions of some of the best and most interesting literature of our time? Cool!"

Ryan laughed. " 'Interesting'? That's the best word you can come up with? You're a writer, Castle, be more creative."

Castle grinned his evil super villain-grin and wiggled his eyebrows. "Magnificent, life-altering, mind-blowing, stupendous, terrific, astonishing, provocative, moving, insightful, enjoyable, intriguing, amazing, powerful…"

Esposito and Kate laughed and Ryan just looked sheepish, then pretended to answer a phone over at his desk.

"Impressive," Kate said, slipping her coat on. She ran her fingers through her shiny chestnut curls. "Ready to go to lunch, Writer Boy?"

"Writer Man!," Castle protested, as they headed towards the elevator. Kate just smiled. "C'mon, Kate!"

xxxx

After a wonderful lunch at Remy's, Castle had dropped Kate off at 's office, with the promise to be there to pick her up in exactly one hour. She had kissed him and squeezed his hand, just needing some comfort for a moment.

Now she sat on 's couch, trying to think of the best way to answer the question he had just asked.

"My relationship with Rick is…..good," she said, trying to subtly avoid eye contact. He noticed.

"You seem unsure."

"I'm just… I was worried he was sacrificing too much in his life to make me happy, so I thought about pushing him away. I thought that if he knew how hard it is for me to make it through a day, he might see it his fault, as something he can work harder to fix. He cares for me so much, and I feel like I'm just going to disappoint him. And it's not fair for him to lose who he is in an effort to change some things that can be changed."

nodded. "And what is he sacrificing?"

"His writing, spending time with his daughter. Alexis is going to college in a few months, and he spends all his time focused on making me comfortable and happy."

"Do you think he sees this as an imbalance?"

"No, I don't think so."

"And you think that if he knew you were still struggling, and that things were still very hard for you, he would think it was something he was doing and spend even more time and energy trying to fix it?"

"Yes. Time and energy he could spend working on his next book, or playing poker with his writer buddies, or enjoying these last few months with his daughter at home."

"Do you think that you are not worth his effort?"

Kate hung her head. "I don't know. Maybe?"

"And you said that you don't want to disappoint him... do you think that not getting better will disappoint him?"

"I don't know. He just has this optimism about him, I just think that he doesn't really understand the amount of pain I'm in sometimes. He may not realize how hard it truly is for me most mornings to even get out of bed."

"Kate, it seems to me that Rick is very much in love with you. Do you feel the same way about him?"

Kate looked up at him, a little offended. He didn't really have the right to ask that, but that wasn't what bothered her. "Of course!"

"How does he make you feel?"

"Safe. Protected. Loved, and cared for. I feel like I'm worth it to someone, and that I have a reason to be happy every day. And I'm so terribly in love with him, with everything about him. I mean, he can be a pain in the ass sometimes, but he's my pain in the ass," Kate confessed. She was surprised at how open she was being, and seemed to be too. It wasn't too clear though, he was very good at keeping a straight face.

"Do you doubt that he will be there for you, no matter what happens?"

"No," Kate said. "I know he'll always be there for me when I need him to be."

"Then I think you have nothing to worry about with Castle. And no reason to push him away. You are very important to him, Kate, and having someone you can depend on in the way you described will help you get through everything you are feeling."