Hour 69
"Can we cancel the dinner and stay like this?" I ask.
"You don't really mean that. You won't be able to leave for the Hamptons unless we have this dinner."
"But that doesn't mean I wouldn't rather we stayed like this."
"Really? Ironing and book reading does it for you?"
"No, quiet afternoons, sharing meaningless things and not needing to actually do something or to worry about what I say or don't say, about what I'm wearing – or not wearing for that matter – not being on call, with no murder to solve, no other reason for drinking coffee but my love for it and generally just vegging out with you does it for me."
With that, he drops the book and comes to me, takes the iron from my hand, swiftly finishes the last shirt, unplugs the weirdest ironing device I've ever seen and kisses me. I mean, really, truly, deeply kisses me. I feel like every kiss we've share thus far was only a preparation for this kiss. The love, the tenderness, the lust and general sentiment of this kiss makes it the greatest one in my life. Really. It should be used as BC and AC, like, Before the Kiss and After the Kiss. Don't get me wrong, we've shared some truly amazing kisses these past 69 hours, but the one we're sharing right now puts the rest to shame.
"You do realize that you've just described what I hope our life will always be, right?" He says to me.
"Really? You don't want for us to ever go back to the precinct?"
"I don't mind either way, as long as we get to generally veg out after the case is closed. We could add some kids here and there, Alexis visiting and my mother generally doing the walk of shame…" I chuckle at that. "And I would die a very happy man."
"No dying mister. We're going to live a long life together. With a few kids here and there, Alexis, your mother and probably my dad as soon as he sees your Hamptons house. I saw the pictures over your desk. That's not a summer house, that's a summer mansion."
"Is that a problem?"
"No, as long as you don't mind my dad taking it from you every other weekend, it's more than fine by me."
"Good. Cause it's yours if you want it. That way, he'd have to ask you and not me if he can take the keys. Anything any Beckett asks is doable."
"What if he asks you to let me go?"
"Anything any Beckett asks that doesn't involve me letting you go is doable." He amends quickly.
"That's more like it."
"Would he do it?"
"Would he do what?"
"Ask me to let you go."
"I don't think so, no. And even if he does, you better not."
"Don't worry Kate, you're stuck with me!"
"I better be! One and done, Castle, one and done." And he kisses me again. I thought topping the last one would be impossible, but he somehow manages to do it.
"I hate letting you go… But we better start moving if we want to have dinner ready for when the guys get here. We have little over an hour to bake the pizzas, set the table and dress ourselves. Because I somehow don't see the guys appreciating my parading shirtless while you run around wearing only said piece of clothing. I know we're all friend and that, but they see you as a little sister, and when it comes down to it, they'll behave as Neanderthal big brothers whilst defending your honour."
"And don't you ever forget that!"
"And you know what the saddest thing is for me? As soon as I introduce you to my friends they are going to love you more than me, so all our friends would help you hide my body, but none of them would help me hide yours if you ever decide to hurt me..."
"Then I guess it's a good thing I'm not really planning on doing so...I actually don't think I'd even be able to allow them to hurt you. I love you way too much for that. So if it ever comes to that, rest assured, it'd be you and me against the word." And just seeing his smile makes my certainty worthy. God, how I love this man. And it feels so good to be able to admit it. "C'mon. You go back to the pizzas while I make the sauce and we'll take care of everything else once they are in the oven."
"Sounds like a plan!"
And so we both get busy, working in the kitchen in companionable silence. He sometimes tries to impress me with his pizza making antics but he stops after he drops the third one to the floor. "It's a good think you cleaned it after lunch, if not we wouldn't have enough food."
"It's an even better thing I currently don't hold a badge or I'd be forced to arrest you for trying to poison our friends."
"I think poison is a too strong a word. But remind me to make this the anchovies one, just to be safe. We don't want to go to the Hamptons being sick."
"Oh so now it's Ok to poison our friends?"
"The way I see it, Espo would be more than happy getting sick, after all, he now goes home to the arms of Lanie ME. And since he's team-less, Ryan probably wouldn't mind getting sick himself."
"Yeah. Ok. Besides, we really don't have much of a choice. But if they do get sick, I'm blaming you!"
"Hey! What happened to me and you against the world?!"
"That only applies if somebody else is threatening you with bodily harm."
"That means you'll still poke me with your killing finger and continue to twist my ear and pinch my nose?"
"You know it, mister. Any problem with that?" And just to make my point, I lift said finger and threaten to jab him with it.
"Now, there's no need for you to become the scary I-can-take-you-with-my-finger-detective-Beckett, the lovely-I-love-you-and-accept-you-as-you-are Kate that's been parading around all afternoon is more than fine with me. Now go stir your sauce and if you want, you could start setting the table. The tablecloths are..."
"I know where they are Castle. In the bottom drawer, because it was the only one Alexis could reach when she was a baby and you didn't want anything even remotely dangerous close to her."
"Sometimes I forget you memory is as good, if not better, than mine!"
"And you better remember that writer boy, because everything you say will be used against you."
"Trust me honey, I can't wait!"
"Don't 'honey' me Castle. We've been through this already!"
"I know, but it suits you."
"Just like writer monkey works fine with you!"
"Hey now! Mine is a commonly used pet name, yours is just an insult in disguise!"
"Your choice Castle!"
"Will you ever accept anything else than Beckett or Kate?"
"Detective never bothered me." I raise an eyebrow at him.
"And that's it? No honey, darling, muffin?"
"Nope. Unless you want to be called poopyhead the first time we give a press release together!"
"Would you do that? A press release, I mean?"
"When the time is right and we deem it necessary, yeah, I would. You'll never hear me say I enjoy your fame and the fact that in many ways you're a public figure, but it's a part of who you are, and that means I'll have to learn to live with it."
"Thank you. Knowing that's how you feel about the whole thing makes me feel a lot better, because fame is something that comes with the territory, and truth be told, I don't know if I'm ready to let go of writing just yet!"
"And you better never stop writing Castle! I love your books so much that I'd never be able to forgive myself for being the reason you stop writing. I know how much your books meant for me when I was having a bad time, and I know that even if I'm the only one who gets to share your bed, drink your coffee and kiss you good morning, I can't deny the rest of the world the chance to be inspired by your words."
"Even if they involve Rook and Nikki having sex?"
"As long as you conjure those scenes from your mind and not from our experiences, I can learn to live with them."
"Ok, so I can't use us to create them, but would you be willing to recreate them, you know, for veracity purposes?"
"That could be arranged, Mr Castle. Now, go back to the pizzas, I'll get the table ready!"
Once I'm done with the table, I go straight to his room to get dressed. Just as I'm finishing with the makeup, I hear him come into the room. He finds me in the bathroom, sprawled over the sink. He comes to where I'm standing and gives me a peck on my neck. "Hey! That's not fair! You got ready without me! Maybe I wanted to see you!"
"I know you did, that's why I got ready without you! Do you honestly believe we would have been ready in time had I waited for you? If the kisses we've shared this hour are any indication, had we been alone, naked, tighter, the guys would have been left knocking at the door. And there's no way I'm doing that to our friends. Now, let me go and get ready, I'll start working with the pizza flavours" And with that, I just leave him alone looking at himself in the mirror.