Genre: Crime, Drama, Family, Romance, Humor
Rating: M for violence, language and sexual situations
Disclaimer: I do not own the characters featured on the show Castle, they belong to the creator of the show, ABC, and the others who do own them.
A/N #1: I loved getting the reviews I did for the last chapter and seeing the feedback to what there was about the case, so want to say thank you for them! Beckett-Castle4ever (It was so nice to see that even though you don't usually read crime scene chapters as you said, you read this one and you liked it too. And I did love seeing you thought it was well written, always great to know my readers think that!), vetgirlmx (It was interesting to see your reaction to how the three vics were chosen, but I do agree with you, very creepy that it was because of that. But that's what I was aiming for so I did love seeing your reaction to that fact! But hope you don't really have nightmares about it! But you're right; it is progress and might help the case. Laughed when you saw that Castle not knowing when Alexis is coming home is driving him crazy, it's what I wanted to have happen. And you're right, might be a better surprise the more he worries over it! And really happy to see you want to read more of course, as always!), life's a mystery (Happy to see you liked the way the case progressed in the last chapter. And so glad you're waiting for the next chapter, which now you don't need to do anymore, lol) and pcol22 (Really happy to see again that you enjoyed the last chapter, as I always say. And you'll see of course what happens with the suspect, but interesting to see what you thought about that. Glad that you're looking forward to the next chapter, and here it is!). So thanks for them as they were really nice, and was great to get the reviews I did, loved reading them all! And as always, appreciate you writing them out and sending them to me!
Late Nights All Alone
Looking up at the books on the shelf high above her head, Julia pursed her lips and then glanced down at the ones that were below her. Nodding her head, she put her feet on the lowest shelf and started to step up to the second one as Martha walked into Castle's office where she was beginning her climb.
"Julia, what are you doing?" Martha said, going over to her quickly and picking her up.
"Can I see Castle's book?" Julia asked before she was set down on the floor.
"Oh, I don't think so; your mom told me she doesn't want you reading his books yet. And she wouldn't want you to be climbing the shelves either. Neither would Richard," Martha said slightly sternly.
"I'm sorry. But is there bad things in them? His books?" Julia asked, about to protest before she guessed the reason why she wasn't being allowed to read them.
"Well, a little bit, but they're not really books for kids to read," Martha said, taking her out into the living room. "Though you know, you should tell him to write for kids."
"Would he?" Julia asked interestedly, forgetting what she'd been about to ask.
"I don't know, but if you told him James Patterson just had his second book for kids released, that might make him," Martha said. She was going to say more when the sound of the door opening interrupted her and she looked up saying, "I thought I was going to have to try and make dinner for us," as her son stepped aside to let his fiancée go inside first.
"You mean order dinner," Castle commented, taking the overnight bag that Beckett was holding as Julia rushed over to them.
"Mommy!" the little girl squealed in joy as her mother scooped her up into her arms. "You're here before it got dark!"
"Well, sunset isn't for a while longer, but we did sweetie," Beckett said, before sharing a kiss with her.
"We-" Castle started to say. "Thank you Mother," he said as she took the two boxes of pizza he'd been carrying with another overnight bag. "We would have been sooner but we headed out for some pizza."
"And you went pretty far if you got Stefano's," Martha commented.
"Ooh, I wish Alexis was here," Julia said as she went to Castle. "Can we send her some pizza?"
"I wish, but we'll have it when she comes home," he told the little girl before kissing her on the cheek. "Want to help me set the table?" he asked her.
"Before we get settled with dinner, I should tell you both that I caught Julia trying to climb up and get your books," Martha said, directing the last to her son.
"Julia, you know you're not supposed to do that," Beckett said as the little girl buried her face into Castle's neck. "And why do you want to read his books?" She looked at her fiancé when their daughter shrugged, and said, "Maybe you'll tell us after we've eaten."
Gathering around the table, Castle and Beckett didn't say anything to Julia about the incident, and it wasn't until they'd all taken a few bites of the pizza that she did speak. "Mommy, Castle, who's Nikki Heat?" she asked.
"Now we know," Castle said, wiping his lips with his napkin quickly. He and Beckett had discussed whether or not they should tell their daughter about the character based on Beckett, and decided to wait until she was older; or else found out first as she seemed to have. He turned to the little girl and asked, "Who told you about that?"
"Johnny said his mommy and daddy were talking about the book you write last time," Julia said, looking confused.
"They meant the newest book he wrote," Beckett explained.
"They weren't wondering why he hasn't released a new one were they?" Martha asked, looking at her son pointedly.
Shaking his head slightly at that, Castle then turned to Julia and asked, "What did they say?" not wanting to talk about why Hamptons Heat was still not finished.
"His mommy said that my mommy was Nikki Heat," Julia said before she scrunched up her nose and then corrected herself saying, "He said she said based on, but we don't know what that means."
"It means that Nikki Heat is sort of like her," Castle explained. "When I met your mom, I saw a lot of things about her I liked for a character, and I took that and made Nikki Heat. But she's not your mom exactly."
"Oh," Julia said. "Is there someone like you in the book?"
"This should be interesting," Martha said with a slight laugh, since the little girl had been looking at Castle. "How far are you going to explain that?"
"There is," Beckett said. "Did Johnny say his mother mentioned the name Jameson Rook?"
"Yeah, that's you?" Julia asked Castle.
"Based on me," he quickly corrected.
"Based, it's pretty close," Martha told Julia.
"Are they like you are in real life?" the little girl then asked.
"Sort of," Beckett said after she and Castle exchanged a look. "But sweetie, those books are for older people, so why don't you wait until you can read longer books, and see if you still want to read his?"
"Kay. Oh! Martha said you should write a kids book," Julia said quickly.
"Is this because of Patterson's book?" Castle asked his mother.
"That's what she said," Julia replied, nodding rapidly.
"I'll see," Castle replied simply. "Speaking of books though, tell us what you looked at in the Spain book."
Julia didn't see the change in topic, as she was eager to share what her class had learned about from the book. When the meal was over and the table was being cleared, she said to her mother, "What about my dress to take to show Celia?"
"I'll pack it tonight," Beckett promised. "Just remind me. Now though, why don't you say the alphabet again? For more practice."
As Julia proceeded to recite, Martha pulled the little girl with her to the couch where she said, once she was finished, "Very good, I know you'll pass your test with flying colors darling."
"Thank you," Julia said, leaning against her legs. "Now what do we do?"
"Since you don't have any homework, we can always play a game," Castle said, handing his mother a mug of coffee.
"Which one?" Julia asked eagerly.
"Yes, go get it," Beckett said when her fiancé looked at her questioningly. "This was going to be your graduation present, but we decided the show that night will be."
"This can be an early present," Julia said.
"Then it's an early present," Castle said, setting down the game.
"Perfection… I seem to remember Alexis having this when she was little, and you never getting it completed if there's a timer," Martha said.
"Yeah, it's that game," Castle said.
"Alexis was telling me about the smaller version of the game they have now, apparently May's girls love it. But this one is for her age, so it's more of a challenge," Beckett said as Castle began to take the plastic wrapping off the box. "And she told me about him having trouble with it too."
"Hey, Alexis did," Castle said quickly in defense as he pulled out the game itself. "And I bet you will too."
"Probably, since I've never played it before," Beckett said, taking the plastic pieces from him as he opened the bags they were in. "Okay sweetie," she said, turning her attention to their daughter. "What you need to do is set all of these pieces; or try to put them back; before the timer runs out and this pops up."
"Is it hard to do?" Julia asked.
"At first, but you keep playing you'll get better," Castle replied. "Want to go first?" He wasn't surprised when Julia quickly shook her head and he turned to his fiancée.
"Oh no, you're first, you've played it the most out of us…" Beckett began before trailing off.
"I never really played it, but loved to watch Alexis when she played, so I get the idea of the game," Martha said, waving her hand.
"Okay, I guess it's me, the last time I played this Alexis was seven, so that was thirteen years ago," Castle said, pointing to Beckett.
"You suck all the joy out of watching you," she said, before reaching over and squeezing his hand to make sure he knew she was kidding.
Pushing down the board, Castle set the timer and then began, not surprised when Julia leaned against the edge of the table to watch him. He was a little taken aback when she started to cheer him on, and he had to laugh when she let out a cry of surprise when the timer stopped and the board popped back up, pushing the pieces he'd managed to set in with it. "Not too bad," he said as he got all the pieces. "Want to try now?"
"Now you Mommy," Julia said, shaking her head.
Beckett did about as well as Castle did, a surprise for her since it was her first time playing. But when the board popped up she laughed with him as their daughter pretended to get scared again. "Okay sweetie," she said as she handed the pieces to Martha. "Your turn to try."'
"Don't worry if it's hard the first time, you'll get better as you go like I said," Castle said, setting the board. "Ready? Go!"
With Castle and Beckett looking on, Julia tried to fit the pieces into the spaces, Martha holding them for her in her hands. She became a little panicked at first and almost shoved a round shape into a rectangle space, but then recovered. She didn't get as many as her mother and Castle had, but when the timer ran out, she clapped her hands and begged to get to go again.
"One more game Julia," Beckett said, finishing her turn the little girl had insisted she take.
"Kay," Julia said with a sigh. She had gotten slightly better the last two turns, and that last game she managed to get a few more pieces in before the board popped back up. She sighed as her mother put the game away and turned to Martha. "Do I have to go to bed?" she asked.
"I don't say, that's up to your mother and Richard," she replied easily. "And since they're saying it's time, I think you do kiddo."
Sighing again, Julia wrapped her arms tightly around Martha's neck and said, "Thank you for picking me up. But I won't see you tomorrow."
"Tomorrow morning," Martha promised. "And then Thursday night I'll see you."
"You don't pick me up?" Julia asked.
"Your grandpapa is going to," Beckett reminded her. "He wants to see your dance class."
"Oh, but you will come to see when I graduate?" Julia queried shyly.
"Of course, I have my Friday completely free, no classes, or parties… well, until that night of course," Martha said.
"I told you to come with us," Castle said, coming back from his office and putting the game away.
"No, no, I'm in agreement with Jim, you three should have a night out together with your little girl who is going to be in the first grade," Martha said, hugging her at the end. "I can't believe it; you're growing up so fast. And I mean the same for your clothes. Good thing the year is almost over, your mother would have to get you a new jumper for school."
"I'm growing that much?" Julia asked in surprise, looking over to her mother and Castle.
"Pretty much," he said, Beckett nodding with him.
"And you know sleeping helps you grow taller," Martha said. "So sweet dreams and I'll see you tomorrow morning for breakfast. Goodnight Julia."
"Night Martha," Julia replied with a smile before she kissed her cheek. She took Castle's hand, and walked up the stairs with him as her mother trailed behind. "How much am I gonna grow?" she asked as they went into Alexis' room and then the bathroom.
"No one ever knows how tall they'll be," Castle commented as he filled the tub.
"He's right, you could be taller than I am, shorter, the same height," Beckett said as she helped Julia out of her shirt and jeans she'd worn to school. "Did Alexis' schools ever have a casual week?"
"Her middle school, and like Julia's school, it was only the last week of school," Castle commented, folding the t-shirt with horses running across it. "Also still pretty strict, Julia's lucky she can wear Beatles shirts."
"I think so too," the little girl said as her mother scooped her up and set her into the water. "Can I play?"
"Yes," Beckett said, handing Julia the set of bath crayons Castle had bought. "I really hope Alexis doesn't mind this," she commented as she began to rub Julia's back with her washcloth and the little girl started to color along the side of the tub.
"It does wash out," Castle said. "And since I'm not letting her use those every time she takes a bath, it'll be okay."
"Did you tell Alexis you're gonna get a new house?" Julia asked.
"No," Beckett said simply. "Remember we told you we're not sure we are yet."
"But you have to," Julia said simply.
"I told you that explanation wasn't going to work," Beckett shot back to her fiancé.
"Hey, I forget she's insanely smart," Castle said, holding his hands up as their daughter giggled at his expression. "We don't really want to say anything yet to anyone, until we're sure what we're going to do."
"So keep it a secret too?" Julia asked.
"Yes, but really, your mom and Alexis will probably figure out; if they haven't already; that we might need a new place," Beckett said. "But they should be okay with it once we assure them-"
"They'll have rooms at our new place," Castle said with her. He nodded and said, "You're right, they will be."
"What're you thinking?" Beckett asked, taking the crayon Julia held out to her since she'd finished washing the little girl.
"What about your dad?" Castle asked.
"What about him?" Beckett said.
"I'm wondering if we should get a room for him," Castle commented. "Since he would want to be with his granddaughter, he could stay the night and… no? Never mind," he said quickly when he saw Beckett was shaking her head. "Then what about this," he said. "I'm thinking we should open up the house for Fourth of July."
"What do you mean by that, a party?" Beckett asked. "I think it's a little bit early for us to be hosting parties."
"Would you do that with me?" Castle asked.
Smiling a little as Julia washed away the tic-tac-toe game they'd been playing, Beckett said, "I wouldn't have much choice would I?"
"Your smile gave you away," Castle said, going over to her and kneeling next to the tub with her. He kissed her gently before they shared another one and pulled away from each other.
"I would, but I wouldn't want to throw too many," Beckett said, running her hand over the back of Julia's head.
"They'll be mostly kid friendly," Castle said. "Speaking of that, we need to get a really big living room for parties. Because once we're living together we need to throw some awesome parties for her, for her birthday."
"We will," Beckett said, smiling when Julia looked up at them. "Why don't you explain what you meant by open up the beach house?"
"You know there are four bedrooms, but remember that door to the extension the owners before me did?" Castle asked.
"Yeah, I asked you the first time I went and you just said they were rooms. I thought they were things like rec rooms… or something," Beckett said. "They're bedrooms?"
"There are three more, the last one's a library," Castle said. "But the library's at the other end of the house, plus with just me, my mother and Alexis, those rooms were never needed."
"Who're you thinking of asking to come for the holiday?" Beckett asked as she had Julia get out of the tub then.
"You dad, and then what do you think about Celia and her parents?" Castle asked.
"Could they?" Julia asked excitedly as he dried her off.
"If they want to," Beckett said. "But are the rooms ready at all?"
"They just need to be cleaned, and they're set," Castle said. "I have to admit," he said as he took Julia's clothes that his fiancée handed him. "I've thought about actually knocking down that wall with the doorway, but never thought it would work with just three of us. But now that it's five, we could do that; could invite the boys and Lanie to stay after the wedding."
"To make up for the fact that we haven't told them about us?" Beckett asked. When Castle nodded she followed him to the bedroom and said, "Okay, we'll ask Anita and George on Friday when we can, see what they say. But sweetie," she said to their daughter as Castle picked her up and set her on the bed. "They might have other plans and not be able to go."
"I know, but I hope they can," Julia said, jumping up and down once before getting on her knees. "Do I get a story?" she asked eagerly.
"Just five pages tonight," Castle said, handing Beckett the book they'd been reading to Julia. "But I'm sure once school is over, we'll let her stay up a little longer," he said slowly.
"The key word being a little, she'll have day camp remember," Beckett reminded him. She sat back then with Julia on her lap, and read from the book Key to the Treasure; a book Castle had as a child and had given to Alexis, who'd given it to Julia and one Beckett herself had as a child. As she finished the fifth page, she wasn't too surprised when Julia looked sleepy, and she moved to lay her down on the bed before she let Castle lean over and share a kiss with her.
"Night Julia, I love you," he said to her quickly; as he could tell that she'd likely fall asleep soon.
Murmuring a goodnight, too tired to nod her head, Julia smiled briefly at her mother as she leaned over and kissed her lips gently, moving her own in return just barely. "Love you," she sighed before she yawned widely.
"Love you Julia, sweet dreams," Beckett said, smiling before she pressed a kiss to her forehead and then stood to tuck her in.
That time it didn't take very long for their daughter to fall asleep, and Castle and Beckett were going down the stairs to see Martha sitting at the counter, seeming to be waiting for them.
"So tell me about your case," she said to the two as her son began to make coffee.
"Go ahead, I don't know why you bother to look to me for permission," Beckett said with a wry smile, shaking her head at her fiancé's glance in her direction.
"Only when you're here," Martha said, raising her cup of coffee.
As he finished two mugs, Castle explained the case, and also what they'd gotten since seeing the picture of the man who was Paul in the band. Beckett helped explain there, as she'd been the one to go to Gates to show her the two pictures they had; the captain agreeing there wasn't enough seen of the suspect's face to conclusively identify him as Sunderland. Gates had also agreed that Beckett's idea of letting the band return would be the best thing, as there wasn't really anything to say that the killer was a band member and they couldn't really hold anyone to investigate or interrogate at that point; plus she didn't want members of the band fleeing before they could speak to them.
"And that was the rest of our day," Beckett finished with. "Esposito and Ryan contacting the FBI to see if there were other homicides following the same line as our vics, science student, teacher and judge. But nothing close to it of course. And then Castle and I took another look at the footage we were able to get and the phone records of all the vics."
"And nothing still?" Martha asked.
"No, but though we're not getting too far into finding out who the killer is," Castle said, sitting down at the table with Beckett. "I am really glad there haven't been any other murders."
"And this Sunderland, is he back in Atlantic City?" Martha said.
"He is," Beckett said. "As far as the band's manager; who's with them; knows, he was busy all last night with a… friend."
"Ah, I see," Martha replied.
"We confirmed that, but then again," Castle said. "Enough money passes hands, anyone will say anything."
"I'd love to talk to this friend, but again, we don't really have much reason to," Beckett said. "We put in a request to the hotel and they're sending us footage in the morning of yesterday after their show that night to about one this afternoon."
"He went back to his room?" Martha said in surprise. When they nodded she then said, "I thought you didn't want to alert the band or anyone else to your investigation."
"The manager was with Sunderland that night," Castle said. "And Beckett posed as an ex of his; she never gave him a name so as far as he knows, an ex is trying to find him, if the manager tells him. He'll never know which one though."
"And does Gates know you did that?" Martha said.
"No, that was all his idea," Beckett said, nodding to her fiancé. "Well, his and Esposito's."
"That makes sense," Martha replied. "Well, since I can imagine you two will want to look things over for your case, I'll say goodnight."
"Goodnight Martha," Beckett said as Castle said goodnight as well. "I'm sure you're expecting me to want to take a look at this case," she told him once they were alone.
"I am," he replied as she went to her work bag. "But you know we pretty much have taken Sunderland off the list as a prime suspect."
"I know, but something really bothers me," Beckett said, taking out a paper.
"The no financial records after yesterday morning?" Castle asked. "Yeah, that's annoyed me too because I don't see him paying for that 'friend' by cash; and if he did, there'd be a record."
"Unless he borrowed the money," he and Beckett said at the same time as they looked at each other.
"Or someone's credit card," Castle continued. "Or it was a threesome and the other guy paid."
"We'd have to ask him tomorrow. But really, nothing at all?" Beckett said as she looked at the paper.
"Unless," Castle began. "What if the band's popularity has gone down, and this is something to bring back the fans. What if they're trying to spring a Paul is dead hoax?"
"Wow, Castle, I never thought of that," Beckett said, looking at him in surprise.
Opening his mouth as he was shocked to hear her buying into that theory, Castle then frowned as his fiancée smiled at the paper in her hands and said, "Okay, so it's not that, but he is there with the band and…"
"And?" Beckett asked as he looked at his watch.
"Too late, they're performing their show," Castle said.
"What is it?" Beckett asked in slight irritation as he was silent then.
"No, I just thought, what if they were given cash before the show?" Castle said to her.
"That would make sense," Beckett replied. "They're only playing two shows, so if they were paid before the first one, it would explain why there's no record of him using a card for his accounts. But would he carry around that much on him, I'm guessing it's more than just hundreds."
Looking at each other, Castle and Beckett were quiet for only a few seconds before they said, "Hotel safe," at the same time.
"Okay, so tomorrow, we'll talk with him, get the name of his friend and clear him completely; also see if he used the safe in his room. In the meantime, we might need to contact the FBI, to see if it's possible for them to search for the side of a face," Beckett said, putting her folder away in her bag as they stood up.
"Did we ever get anything from the hospital where the first vic worked?" Castle asked.
"Just that she had a date with a guy named Bob," Beckett said. "I told Ryan to head there to try and find him, once we started to realize we were focusing too much on Sunderland."
"Great, so, shower?" Castle asked as he took her bag from her.
"You're putting that away, I'm taking a shower," Beckett said simply. "And don't come inside with me, I'm being serious."
Castle breathed out a little as she walked to his room, watching her closely, before he hurried to get her bag inside the closet. Going after her, he schooled himself not to run, disappointed she didn't want him to join her, but he knew he had enough time to inveigle her still.
Sitting on top of the bed, Beckett pressed down on the strings of her mandolin to form D, then looked up as she could hear Castle talking in the bathroom. As she heard his half of the conversation, she bit at her lower lip hard, to keep from laughing as he was trying yet again to wheedle from his daughter when she'd be returning home.
"No, I realize you do have to move all your stuff back home, but since you were staying at Diana's, you didn't really need as much stuff as you did when you… well, yes, I'm sure you'll want to see everything in the city one last time. But we'll go back; Kate and I have already talked about that remember? We might try and go next Spring Break, make it a tradition every year," Castle was saying. "But I just want to know when you're coming into JFK, so I can take my car and pick you up, that way you don't have to spend money on a cab. Okay, okay, I'll try and stop, but really Alexis, you have to promise me you're coming home at the very least. Alright, yeah, I'll give my love to Julia. Love you kiddo, bye."
Turning her attention back to her mandolin, Beckett began to strum the opening of a song and only looked up when her fiancé came out, looking irked. "So no luck," she said simply, since she knew he'd realize she was able to hear the conversation.
"Not really," Castle said in frustration as he got onto the bed next to her. "But… there's not much I can do, she's an adult now. Unless I flew across the country and brought her back. But I get the feeling she really wouldn't like that."
"I don't think Julia would either," Beckett said simply, looking at her instrument as she switched chords.
"What about you?" Castle asked as he watched her for a moment.
"Oh, I think I'd survive, I get the feeling you'd only go to grab her and drag her to the airport, so you'd be back," Beckett replied, not looking at him.
Watching the smile that played on his fiancée's lips, Castle didn't say anything to that, instead watched her play the song he'd watched her struggle with for the past two weeks since she'd gotten the chords. Her fingers sliding up and down the neck of the dark blue instrument, he said, "I told you that was a good one."
"You did," Beckett said, pushing the papers with the song on them apart so she could see the notes and chords. "And stop saying that; for the past six months every time I play this you won't stop reminding me that you found it."
"Just as long as you agree with me that it doesn't look like Julia's at all," Castle said, smiling as he knew his fiancée was joking.
"I know," Beckett said. "The red here helps," she told him, tapping the patch of dark red next to the bottom of the neck.
"Do you have it?" Castle asked as she went back to forming chords but didn't play.
"I think so," Beckett replied easily. "I'm assuming you want me to play?" she asked as there was a long stretch of silence between them.
"By all means," Castle said.
"I'm not singing," Beckett warned him before she began to play the song Dehra Dun. She had become interested in the music to that song when she and Castle had finished watching the Anthology two weeks earlier, the last DVD being the bonus features. George Harrison; whose song it was; had played a brief snippet of it; but hers and Castle's interests had been piqued and they'd listened to the full unreleased song online. Since the singer had been playing it on a ukulele, she had decided to try it on a mandolin, but had to adjust a little to playing it on the eight stringed instrument. Though she said she wasn't going to sing, she couldn't help humming it, not realizing she was doing so until she finished.
"Very nice," Castle said. "Should I applaud?"
"That's okay," Beckett said, setting the papers on her nightstand. "I get the feeling Julia's going to want me to teach her that on guitar once she can play that."
"And then she'll want to learn how to play on the mandolin," Castle commented, not surprised when she started playing a few random chords. "We'll have to have little concerts for our parents and friends; you two performing for us."
"That reminds me," Beckett said suddenly. "I've wanted to ask, what did Espo talk to you about before we left the building earlier today?"
"Oh, thanks for reminding me," Castle said in reply, sitting up a little more. "First, tell me what Lanie talked to you about at the morgue."
Sighing, Beckett stopped playing and said, "She tried to set me up on a blind date." She then opened her mouth to speak and hesitated before saying, "And I… agreed."
"Okay, then that clears things up for me," Castle said quickly, wrapping his arm around her. "Esposito set me up on a 'blind date' as well," he said, putting those two words into air quotes. "And said she was a friend of his, and old friend, and is apparently hot."
"And Lanie told me," Beckett said, having suspected that her blind date was with Castle when he hadn't answered her question first. "That the guy she was setting me up with was pretty nice, and he loved kids."
"Pretty nice?" Castle asked in confusion.
"That's how she worded it," Beckett said. "But I agreed because I've run out of ideas to delay this, she knows I'm used to being a mother, and apparently I have to be lonely at this point."
"She told you you need to get laid right?" Castle asked, sensing from his fiancée's tone what she wasn't saying.
"Not in that exact way, but pretty much," Beckett replied. "And you?"
"Espo seemed pretty desperate," Castle said. "Which surprised the hell out of me; I've never seen him like that. So I'm going to guess Lanie was pretty determined and got him to be too. But yeah, I agreed. So what do you want to do?"
Taking in a deep breath Beckett said, "I think you have the same idea as me. Agree to go wherever-"
"Le Circe, six thirty tomorrow," Castle said.
"Really, did he say to have the date then?" Beckett asked in surprise.
"Basically," Castle said. "Which of course means-"
"They'll be there," they said at the same time.
"So what'll we do with them there?" Castle asked his fiancée.
"Lanie's been easing up on her attempts to set me up on dates," Beckett said slowly at first. "I agreed to this, because I thought that maybe we could do something to get her to stop trying to do that altogether."
"Has she ever talked about other guys lately when she has tried?" Castle said.
"No, that's the funny thing, I've told her that I don't really want to be set up on a date with you, yet she persists," Beckett said. "I don't think she'll forget that conversation we had a couple years back about you."
"It doesn't sound like it. So you want to go," Castle said.
"Let's meet there, but instead of sitting down, I'll leave first, you can go a little after," Beckett told him.
"How am I going to stay longer?" Castle asked.
"Talk to someone," Beckett replied with a shrug. "If it's a woman, so much the better. But," she told him, her tone becoming a little serious. "Don't make her think she's got a chance."
"Yeah, wasn't planning on it," Castle replied. "Since I had the idea; since we won't get to eat there; why don't I pick up Remy's on the way back and we can eat on the roof."
"That would be nice," Beckett said with a slight smile.
"And who knows, you might get laid after all, like Lanie said-," Castle began before his fiancée shoved him over to his laughter. "I'm kidding. Okay, we're set with what we're going to do; I just hope Espo doesn't check to see if I made the reservation."
"If they go that far then we're really going to need to sit down with them and have a talk," Beckett said, not surprised her fiancé nodded in agreement. "I just have to wonder her reaction when I walk out."
"I'll try and see," Castle said simply. They were quiet for a while, before he looked down at the mandolin in her hands still and asked, "Should we get some sleep?"
Glancing up at him, Beckett smiled slightly and leaned over, kissing him briefly on the lips. She nearly laughed at his startled expression, but the urge to do so was gone when he quickly became serious and grabbed her, pulling her to him to kiss her hard. But before they got too close to each other he groaned and she asked, "What is it?" in concern.
"The frets," Castle said as he held his hand to his chest, taking the instrument from her and starting to lean over.
"Castle, if you leave that on the nightstand…" Beckett began warningly.
"Okay, okay," he said with a slightly frustrated sigh. He went to the case on his dresser and closed it before going back to the bed quickly. He was tempted to jump onto it with her, but instead decided to do something else.
A little surprised when he suddenly walked slowly around the bed to his side, Beckett frowned a little as he sat next to her. But then quickly realized what he was doing before she said, "So," very simply to let him begin.
"You didn't let your hair down," Castle said simply. He almost smiled before he caught himself at Beckett's surprise at the comment, and continued with, "Even in the shower you didn't."
"I wasn't washing my hair, so why should I?" Beckett said with a shrug.
"Mind if I do that for you?" Castle asked.
Opening her mouth to answer, Beckett then closed it and finally nodded once before she turned around, wondering how they'd gone from that kiss to that point. But Castle was carefully pulling her hair from the bun she'd set it in, and then running his fingers through her locks as they fell around her shoulders. "So I'm wondering," she finally said, her voice shaking a little as he was carefully running his hand over her hair. "Why this fetish with my hair?"
Not answering, Castle pushed her hair away from her right shoulder and leaned over, pulling on her pink jersey shirt, until enough skin was exposed. Leaning over, he pressed his lips to it, not surprised when Beckett shuddered at the first touch before she suddenly pulled away and turned to him. Before she could do anything though, he was quick to grab her around the waist and he went to the junction of her neck and shoulder, sucking hungrily at first on the skin there.
Breathing out heavily, Beckett held onto Castle tightly as his hands felt like they were all over her. One was underneath her shirt, and the other was grasping at her thigh, sliding up to the hem of her shorts. She felt him pull away slowly suddenly, and watched as he raised his head enough to kiss her, much harder than they'd done the first time. She threw her arms around him tightly as both his hands were under her shirt, starting to pull up on it though they weren't really close to stopping their kiss. Finally though, she pulled away, watching him as he got her shirt off her and to the floor quickly. She did the same with his, not surprised he didn't really protest that, and they seemed to fall into one another, kissing ardently as he pulled her onto his lap.
Feeling Beckett's legs wrapping around his waist, Castle shuddered in pleasure as she moved her hips gently to him, and he suddenly switched gears. He let that kiss go on as long as it could before he pulled away and then made her stand up on her side of the bed. "Easier to do it this way," he said.
"For me maybe," Beckett said simply before she slapped his hands away from the waistband of her shorts. She pulled them off as Castle sat up on the edge of the bed, watching her. "How many times," she began once she had discarded everything. "And you still act like you've never seen me before," she teased him as she straddled his lap.
"Oh no, I have a pretty good memory, so I'm not forgetting you," Castle said as she started to kiss at his shoulders and neck. "I just love seeing you like this, and having you all to myself."
"Hmm, I think I can safely say the same," Beckett said, going up to his lips then. They kissed deeply, but not so roughly as before, until they needed to breathe again and they parted. She was a little surprised when he moved them, laying her down on the middle of the bed after placing some pillows behind her. "You know you're still dressed."
"Not enough for me to go outside that door though," Castle said in return before they were both working to push his pants off his hips. He let her take over when she took his lips in a kiss, and they tangled their tongues together for a brief moment in her mouth before he pulled away to get rid of the last of his clothes. Going back to her, he kissed her deeply again, but kept it brief before kissing down the side of her neck. He diverted from his path, nipping at her racing pulse, before going down her collarbone and shoulders. He was a little surprised when she took his hand and placed it on her breast, but took it in stride and gently squeezed it before she moaned softly. Groaning himself, he nuzzled her lips and without realizing he was saying it, murmured, "Kate… love."
Though she waited for him to continue, it was a little bit of a shock when Castle didn't say anything else before he started to kiss her hard. Beckett couldn't really say anything to that as she wrapped her arms around him tightly while they struggled a little between one another. Finally she was able to slide her tongue into his mouth where they rolled around each other a little before going back to hers. It was then they parted, needing to breathe badly. Pressing their foreheads together she could feel his hot breath against her, and she whispered, "Do we need to wait?"
Instead of answering that, Castle moved his head to the side, brushing his lips in a straight path down her cheek, neck and finally to her breasts. He could feel her tensing up as he lightly flicked his tongue out to both her nipples, her legs moving up against his thighs in response. He moved to take her right nipple, suckling at it as his hand reached in between them, and slid down to the apex of her legs. He began to slowly stoke her, feeling even more of a reaction that time as her hips slammed against his. "I just want to make sure you're ready," he told her, pulling away from her chest which he'd taken his time stimulating.
"Then check to see if you did," Beckett said, biting her lower lip briefly. She nearly smiled at the eager look in Castle's eyes at her direct permission, but it never manifested as he seemed to race down her body, kissing her wildly as he went. She felt his lips against her folds, and trembled as she gripped the bed underneath her tightly. His mouth opened, and when she felt his tongue running in a straight line, she nearly screamed as it was more stimulation than she'd gotten so far that night. "Castle, you… now you're sure, hurry," she said, nearly gasping out the last word as she pulled on his shoulders to bring him up to her.
Kissing her, Castle moved to press his body against hers instead of entering her, and feeling her groan against his lips he knew she was frustrated. But he kept their hips pressed close together, even when they parted, and he looked to see how far he'd pushed her. He was a little surprised to see her eyes were closed, but a second later he was groaning loudly as her hand slipped between them, and managed to make him move away from her enough to grasp his erection in her hand. When she proceeded to stroke him, he was a little unsure of how to proceed, since he was enjoying her ministrations greatly. But finally, he remembered exactly how much she was ready for him, and decided he'd waited long enough. So he reached in between them, and took both her hands, laying them next to her head as they stared at each other. Feeling her arching up against him, he finally breathed out and said, "Help me."
Though she didn't have a chance to reply to that, Beckett allowed him to take her hand, bringing it back down to where their bodies were nearly joined. She took over then, and grasped his length firmly in her hand before positioning him. She closed her eyes tightly as she let go of him once he proceeded to slide inside of her, and she couldn't help the slight moan that escaped her before his hips were firmly cradled against her own. "Castle," she whispered, kissing him deeply. She wasn't surprised that first thrust was very easy, almost careful; she welcomed it as she realized it was what she wanted, not even knowing that when they'd started though. Wrapping her arms around his neck, she tilted her head back as he took her left leg, placing it around his waist as she began to match his thrusts.
Trailing his lips down Beckett's neck since he had ready access to it, Castle felt her other leg wrapping around his legs, and he changed the angle of his hips suddenly. He sank into her, feeling her tensing up immediately in response as he managed to brush against her clit at the same time. He moved down a little further until he was at her breasts, brushing his lips over the tops of them before she loosened her hold. "Do you… want me to," he asked, wanting to tease her a little.
"I think you know… Castle," Beckett started to say in slight annoyance before she slid into his name, gasping it as he took her right breast a little roughly. He was still moving in an easy, measured rhythm against her, and she had to dig her nails into the backs of his shoulders at the marked difference. She looked down at him, watching as his hand came up to start fondling her other mound, not really being that gentle with it. But it didn't hurt; the coarseness of his touch was a stronger jolt than just a simple caress. Neither was more pleasurable than the other, and it had the same result, her body feeling like it was literally throbbing from head to toe. So when his hand went from her chest to the apex of her legs, she was tensing up roughly as his fingers were joining him in being gentle. "You… oh god… Rick," she moaned as he moved away from her breasts then. At his shudder she pulled him to her lips and they kissed passionately while they were moving steadily still, pressing hard against each other when their hips met.
Pulling away, Castle went to his fiancée's ear, nibbling at the lobe gently as she tensed up underneath him. "I'm hoping you're feeling the same… I am," he said, having to pause and swallow roughly as he was staring down at her. There was a slight sheen of sweat covering her by then, and he suddenly got an idea. "Don't be mad at me," he whispered to her before he slowed down. He watched Beckett closely, making sure she wasn't going to kill him for doing that. He hadn't stopped, but he was moving very little, and he was rigid against her as the sensation of them moving together so slowly was a shock.
Running her hands over the back of his head, Beckett found herself struggling slightly to even up with him. Her muscles were straining to just barely move as he was doing, and she hooked her arms up around his shoulders to have some kind of leverage to do that. She was a little startled when he suddenly moved, and they were turned around, both on their knees. Not bothering to try and figure out how he'd been able to do that so fast, she started to move on him, not needing any other help to keep at the same slow pace that he'd been. She kissed him hard, feeling Castle's arms wrapping around her tightly, holding her against him as they went a little crazy. They were parting and kissing again a number of times, not letting much time pass between each before they finally calmed down and then relaxed, kissing slowly. She heard him murmur, "Love," and nothing else, making her wonder for a brief second what exactly he meant by that. Before she could try and think about that, he was kissing her hard, making her lips throb as their tongues met inside her mouth.
Reaching down to her back slowly, Castle pulled away from their heated kiss, to catch her gaze as he carefully cupped her ass in his hands. Squeezing it tightly, once, he got the reaction he was hoping for, a quick jerk against him and he was moving, turning them back around so her back was on the mattress. He kissed her hard, and sped up slightly, since he could feel they were getting closer and closer, even with the slowest pace he'd ever had them at. Kissing at her neck, he slid down to the hollow of her throat, nipping at the edge of it he could feel the cool aquamarine against his lips, and he pulled back, pressing his forehead to hers. "I love you Kate," he murmured against her lips.
"I love you too… Rick," Beckett whispered back to him, her breath catching as his fingers were at her clit again, rubbing her there determinedly. She was pressing her body back against the bed as he kissed her again, and when they parted, his teeth nibbling at her lower lip seemed to be the last little push she needed, and she was soon arching her back roughly before crying out his name. Her climax was a shock, as her body moved a lot faster than it had been, and she wasn't aware that her fiancé had stopped moving.
Watching her closely, Castle was having a hard time reining himself in as she was writhing against him and he could feel her orgasm easily since he was still. He wasn't too surprised when she stopped, and he was struck again by how beautiful she was having taken her pleasure; it was a constant thought he'd had since they had become lovers.
"You didn't…" Beckett said, before realizing what he was doing. She hissed slightly as he proceeded to move then, and she wrapped her arms around him saying, "You're always rough when you start again," since it wasn't they first time they'd done that.
"I have to be," Castle said simply. He kissed her hard, and could feel her moving with him easily. When they needed to breathe, he shot down to her neck, kissing at it hungrily before biting at her collarbone once. Soothing that with his tongue, he wasn't surprised when she grabbed him tightly to her, both her legs around his waist. Moving inside her, he finally couldn't take it and went up to her ear whispering to her, "You feel too good Kate, I want you with me, right now," almost growling out a command to her. He moved to her lips and brushed his against her before he pulled away, feeling her arching her back slightly. He sped up somewhat, and couldn't stop himself as his self control abruptly snapped, and he was thrusting against her as hard as he could.
Her nails digging into his skin slightly, Beckett cried out his name as she joined him shortly, not sure why exactly she was climaxing so quickly after the first. But though she couldn't explain why, she didn't really care, as both of them orgasming so intensely together was making her literally dizzy. It was something of a relief when they stopped, as she could get hold of herself, and she felt Castle; his face pressed against her neck where he'd been literally chanting her name. She stroked the back of his head, not surprised when he shuddered once in response to that, and said, "You know you could have just fucked me."
"You never asked," Castle said, teasing her back. He raised his head when she laughed slightly and kissed her, feeling her hands on his cheeks. "You know," he murmured, nuzzling her lips with his. "I find myself looking forward to tomorrow night."
Waiting for him to move next to her, Beckett turned onto her side and said, "Of course you are, you're expecting a repeat performance of tonight."
"I am not," Castle said. When his fiancée just looked at him with her eyebrow slightly raised he breathed out a mock irritated sigh and said, "Okay, I am, but what I was talking about is having dinner on the roof."
"We've done that before, oh, I remember," Beckett said quickly. She had to smile then as she and Castle had been having dinner at the beginning of April on the roof. It had started to rain, and they'd had to run inside and also order in. "You have to admit, it didn't turn out that badly in the end."
"No," Castle said slowly, as he was remembering too. After they'd eaten together at his table next to the windows, they'd cleaned up, and had managed to touch each other a whole lot more than they'd cleaned, before disappearing into his room. "But I still would like one rain free date on the roof with you," he said as he wrapped his arm around her, pulling her close.
"Does it still count as a date though we're engaged?" Beckett asked. "Because I never really was sure about that whole date night idea."
"A dinner then, if you want to call it that," Castle said with a one shoulder shrug since he was on his side as well.
Quiet after that, Beckett was the first to break the silence saying, "Castle, you… did you call me love, twice?"
Raising his head a little, he said, "I… yeah, I did," speaking very slowly.
"You didn't want to?" Beckett then said.
"No, I did, I do but I wanted to see what you'd say to being called that before I started to," Castle replied. "I guess I couldn't wait to ask."
"No you couldn't, but," Beckett said, pressing against him. "If you had asked, I would have been alright with it." When he looked relieved she then said, "Is that meant to be used when we're like this?"
"I wasn't planning on it, but it might end up that way," Castle said simply. "Though I may call you love out in public… once I can."
"I never thought you'd say that actually, it seems very British," Beckett said. "And what Skye-"
"Yeah I know, what Skye calls her wife," Castle quickly said before she could finish. "I know, but, I read it in a book when I was younger… don't ask what book because I don't remember. The main character calling his wife that; it was a British book I got in that bookstore on 118th. Anyways, I read that and thought that was something different to call someone you were in love with, so decided to use it myself."
"And you did that often," Beckett stated, glancing at him as she lay on her back.
"I think you know already what I'm going to say, but if you want to hear it, then no, I didn't," Castle said. "It never felt right to say it to the other women I've been with. And you?" he asked quickly as he knew she didn't really want a reminder of those other women.
"Me what?" Beckett asked.
"Going to call me anything?" Castle asked. "You have to have some form of endearment for me, I think I earned it." He grunted slightly at her light jab into his side with her elbow and then moved to lay on top of her; supporting his weight with his arms as he kissed her.
When they finally parted, she smiled and said, "I don't know, Rick seems to work."
"Yeah, but you realize you'll need to keep that for when we're alone right?" Castle asked, shuddering as she tended to use his first name when they were in their more intimate moments.
"I know, but I'm surprised," Beckett said after they'd kissed gently. "You didn't try and push me to call you that once we're married."
"I thought about that," Castle said as they got off the bed since they were on top of the covers still. "And I think right now I prefer you calling me Castle more."
"Then we're agreed," Beckett said simply, slipping under the sheet. She sighed a little as the cool linen was a relief on her still hot skin. Turning away from her fiancé, she smiled briefly when he moved up behind her, pressing close as she said, "I was going to say we should dress, but there's not really a need for it."
"Never is really," Castle said before she glanced back at him. He couldn't help smirking slightly at that before he leaned over enough to kiss her, deepening it as they let themselves get more and more involved in it. But finally they pulled away, and he brushed his lips across hers as they murmured goodnights to one another, and he finally let himself relax as he held her close, falling asleep quickly.
Beckett closed her eyes around the same time that Castle did, thinking of the next day and their supposed date. She sighed as she knew nothing could be done about it until that night, and she pressed back against her fiancé as the exhaustion of their lovemaking finally caught up with her, and she was soon lost to sleep, feeling him still holding her tight.