Twenty-five

Richard Castle was having the best summer of his life. He went to work every day with his best friend. He came home most nights to his daughter and girlfriend's smiling faces. The fact that his best friend and girlfriend just happened to be the same person—well, that was the icing on the cake.

In the middle of July, Kate and Castle celebrated the one year anniversary of the first time they made love. While Alexis spent the night and following day with her grandmother, Kate and Castle went to dinner and then secluded themselves in his bedroom for the next eighteen hours. They lay together, talking and kissing softly. They both confessed that one year earlier they never would have predicted ending up in the place they were now, though both were entirely grateful for it.

As they reminded, Castle confessed that he was much more nervous than he let on during their inaugural coupling. He had not had sex in quite some time before that night and was afraid it would show. Kate admitted to a similar dry spell and used that as her reasoning for not noticing any awkwardness from Castle; she was simply far too eager.

The same week as their anniversary, Castle completed the last chapter of his novel featuring Nikki Heat. The book was far from ready to be sent to a publisher as it needed to be gone through several more times and probably have sections rewritten, but the fact that he had completed his first novel in years was an accomplishment on its own. More so, the enthusiasm he received from Kate on the subject meant more to him than he could ever say. She meant more to him than he could ever say.

The more Castle thought about it, the more it made total sense. He was in love with her—more in love with her than he'd ever been with anyone before. She loved him, he knew that, and cared deeply for his daughter as well. He wanted to be with her forever, build a family and a future; there was no doubt about it.

Rendered completely overzealous by his feelings for her, Castle escaped from the ladies in his life the following weekend and visited half a dozen jewelry shops searching for the ring that would be perfect for Kate. He quickly discovered that engagement rings were much more expensive than he recalled them to be. Then again, the last time he shopped had been fourteen years earlier.

By the end of the day, he found a ring that fit both her taste and his budget. It was simple, but elegant in an understated way; just like she was.

With the ring purchase down, Castle knew his next step would be speaking with his daughter. Kate would not just be joining him, but them in their family. Alexis had as much right to an opinion as anyone, but he wasn't concerned; he'd seen how close they had become. On the long list of reasons why he loved Kate Beckett, one of them was undoubtedly how good she was with his daughter.

"Alexis, sweetie, can you come here a minute? I want to talk to you about something."

The young girl tossed the book she was reading aside, and walked over to join her father at the kitchen table. "What's up, Dad?"

"I wanted to talk to you about Kate."

Alexis eyed him curiously. "What about her?"

"Well, you know she's been part of our lives for a year now—over a year, and she's really become part of this family so, I…I've decided I want to ask her to marry me and I wanted to talk to you about it," he said, smiling broadly at her. "What do you think of that?"

Alexis lowered her eyes to her lap and chewed on her bottom lip. Her father's jaw dropped a few millimeters. He had expected excitement or joy from her. Or, at the very least, placid acceptance. He had not been anticipating silence.

"What's wrong, Alexis? I thought you liked her?"

Alexis looked up quickly. "I do; I do like her dad. She's really nice and fun to hang out with but…well, I don't know if I can call her 'Mom.'"

Castle almost laughed. He never expected that thought out of her; he didn't even think it was a concern. "Oh, no Alexis you don't have to. I mean, I don't think Kate expects that; I certainly don't."

Alexis sat quietly for another moment before asking, "Would she move in with us?"

Castle nodded. "Probably, but not right away." He and Kate had never discussed living together. It had sort of been mentioned when they went on a long weekend vacation together; both of them agreed that spending time together—the three of them—had been very nice, but the subject of her actually moving in with them had never been broached. Knowing what he knew about her, Castle figured Kate wouldn't want to start packing boxes the same day she accepted his proposal; she needed time to adjust and he had no problem with that.

The girl smiled up at her father. "She makes you happy, doesn't she?"

"Of course; very happy. I love her."

Alexis stood from her chair and wrapped her arms around her father's shoulders, giving him a warm hug. "I'm glad you're happy, Dad."

"Well thank you," Castle said, pulling back and looking at her. "But you'll be happy too, right?"

"Sure. I mean, it already kinda feels like she lives here. Now it'll just be official." Alexis smiled at him and sat back down. "So when are you going to ask her?"

"I haven't decided yet," he told her truthfully. "Still trying to think of the best way."

"Well make it good, Dad. A girl probably only gets one proposal in her lifetime."

Castle couldn't help but chuckle at his daughter's parting words, though she most definitely had a point. As he intended to spend the rest of his life with Kate, that would mean she would only receive one marriage proposal in her lifetime. In that case, he did—per his daughter's suggestion—need to make it good.

For several days Castle thought about the best location to propose to Kate. Taking her out to dinner and doing it at a restaurant was an option, but that didn't seem right; it was too impersonal to them. He wanted to do it some place special; some place with meaning. Her apartment was always an option. He could sneak her key from her purse, let himself in and cover the place with roses and candles. That idea certainly wasn't out of the running, but he still wasn't convinced it was the best fit.

As he debated more proposal scenarios in his mind, Castle decided to write down the words he wanted to say to her on paper. He liked to think he had an above average skill level with the written word, but when it came to putting pen to paper on the subject of his feelings for Kate Beckett, he found himself struggling. How could simple words express how he felt with every fiber of his being? Worse yet, even if he did find the right words, would he be able to say them without tripping up or babbling like a fool. That's when he got his next idea: he would propose by letter. Well, by email.

Kate and Castle had met at the twelfth precinct. Their joined desks had been the place where he learned about her, laughed with her, and, ultimately, fallen in love with her. Though it may not have been as romantic as a flower and candle filled bedroom, it certainly was the place that fit their love the best.

Nervous butterflies in his stomach, Castle composed his proposal email. He changed the wording over a dozen times and still didn't feel satisfied, but then realized he never would. Just like with one of his novels, he had to draw a line in the sand and stop rewriting when he felt the words were right.

Kate

When I thought of how I was going to do this, a million different scenarios came to my head. I wanted to do it some place that had meaning for us, or in some way that made it uniquely us. Doing this over an email might not seem like the most romantic, but I thought it was the best way because I had to do it here—at the twelfth.

The day we became partners was the day my life became extraordinary. From that moment I would never be the same again, and I didn't want to be, because having you in my life changed it for the better. I love you, Katherine Beckett, and I will work every day to make you as happy as you make me.

Will you marry me?

PS – Please don't freak out about this. I know you wanted to take things slow, but I can't help myself. I don't want to spend a day apart from you ever for the rest of my life.

Castle debated the postscript, but ultimately decided to include it. As they had yet to talk about a long-term future together, he feared his proposal would rear the head of Kate's commitment phobia, but he hoped that wouldn't be the case. Though they had not discussed it, there were many other things between them that indicated a serious, long-term commitment and not just a casual relationship.

With bated breath, Castle pressed the send button on the email. He rested his elbow on the desk and his chin atop his closed fist as he leaned his head to the side so he could see around his computer monitor to Kate's face. Her eyes drifted lazily around her computer monitor until they stopped dead and widened several millimeters. Castle felt his heart clutch in his chest; this was it—she was reading his email.

Still holding his breath, he watched her eyes skim across the screen. She brought one hand up to gently cover her mouth and he could see her suck in a deep breath. She hadn't looked at him yet—why hadn't she looked at him?! He wanted to see her face light up, her smile grow ear-to-ear. Instead, she typed several words on her keyboard, clicked her mouse, and pushed herself away from her desk.

Castle watched her disappear down the hallway with a furrowed brow. Holy shit—had she refused his proposal?! How as that even possible? He had been sure she'd accept. Mostly sure. Pretty sure.

Oh god.

When an email appeared in his inbox, Castle jumped; it was from her. His heart racing, he moved his mouse to click on the message. Her email displayed on his screen.

Yes.

PS – I'm not freaking out.

It was all Castle could do to stop himself from literally leaping from his chair with joy. Now he understood why she walked away; she wanted him to follow so they could celebrate without an audience. He stood with such haste that he knocked his chair back into the desk behind him, drawing the attention of several officers in the vicinity. With a nervous laugh, he pushed the chair back into the desk as casually as he could before following his partner—his fiancée!—down the hall.

Kate Beckett rose from her desk taking slow, even breaths. Despite her best efforts, her hands were still trembling. She was engaged—engaged!

Reading Castle's email she could hardly believe it. It was just so out of the blue—so unexpected! Though she had never officially said the words out loud or even in her mind, she knew he would be the man she married; she'd known for a while. Absolutely no doubt existed about that fact.

In her mind, there was no need to rush. She would never have pressured him for a proposal despite the fact that they had effectively been dating for over a year. They were committed and happy, which was all that matter to her. They could have continued that way for another year for all she cared, but as long as he was asking she certainly wasn't going to say no. She did tell a small lie in her email, though; she was freaking out a tiny bit.

By the time Kate reached the alley behind the twelfth she could feel her knees begin to shake. Nope, she wasn't going to cry—not at work. Her fingertips rattled so she clasped her hands tightly together in hopes of mitigating the trembling.

"Kate?"

Oh good; he had followed her just like she hoped he would. She spun around and smiled at him, though his blue eyes weren't as bright as she expected; they displayed the slightest hint of concern.

He took two steps towards her and gazed down at her clasped hands. "Are you alright? You're shaking."

She shook her head and laughed. "I'm fine; I promise."

"Really? Because if this is too soon or you're not-"

"No, no," she cut him off, closing the distance between them and wrapping her arms around his shoulders. "I want this. I can't imagine not having you in my life. What would that even be like?" she asked with a rhetoric laugh. Truly, she couldn't fathom it.

"Well, it would be a lot more boring, that's for sure," he concluded.

She laughed and kissed him. "I love you."

He beamed. "I love you too and I know this is sudden, but I found a ring and I got excited and-"

"A ring?" she questioned, eyebrows raised.

"Of course," he assured her in an isn't-it-obvious tone. He pulled his arms from around his waist so he could reach into the front pocket of his blazer and retrieve the midnight blue jewelry box. His eyes trained on her face, he flicked it open and watched her gasp.

"Oh Castle; it's perfect."

"Yeah?" he asked, plucking it from the box. She held out her left hand to him and slipped the ring on her fourth finger.

"Yeah, it is," she nodded. Tears had already formed in her eyes, but by that point she didn't even care if they fell.

Gathering her back up in her arms, Castle asked, "Are you happy, Kate?"

She nodded and leaned her face in so their foreheads bumped together. "More than I could ever have imagined."