139. Chapter 139

Chapter 139

Beckett went to work on Monday with a bit of a spring in her step. The massive pressure of the FBI case was over, and her precinct was again her only responsibility. She greeted Sergeant Wesley and that day's security officer and went about her regular daily activities undistracted.

In conversation with Castle the night before, they agreed that the next two weeks loomed endlessly before them, but their long weekend in the Hamptons at the end of those two weeks glowed with promise on the horizon.

A small but lovely flower arrangement arrived for her that morning and was sent up to her office. The accompanying card read,

Kate,

I had almost forgotten the feeling of being completely relaxed. We both thank you and Rick for the use of your beautiful home and the much needed time away.

Victoria and Ray Gates

Kate took the flowers home with her at the end of the day, and Castle told her that Ray Gates had stopped by to drop off the spare key for the beach house.

"He had lunch with us and hung out with Jamie and me for a little while, and Jamie warmed right up to him. We had a good visit. It sounded like he and the captain enjoyed the beach, too."

"Did you read the note with the flowers? She called you Rick instead of Mr. Castle. I'm wondering if that's a step toward a little more informality between us. I still feel a little awkward on that score."

"Ray called me Rick from the beginning. Let her lead. It may feel a little awkward for her, too. The longer you're a captain, the easier it should get."

"Speaking of captains, I got a text from Captain Dohrman today asking if I'm trying to show him up. Somebody sent him a link to a news report on the trafficking case."

"Oops."

"It wasn't like that," she answered with a smile. He told me it made him proud…said to keep the fifteenth looking that good until he could get back to it. I still send him little reports now and then… let him know when someone gets a commendation, gets married, has a new baby…stops behaving like a twit... He usually sends them a postcard or something. It keeps him in the loop and keeps them from forgetting that he cares."

"So he's still planning on being back at the end of the year?"

"As far as I know. That's what I'm still prepared for. Until then, I guess I'll continue the effort to keep up the good name of the fifteenth."

xxxxx

The next morning, when there was a lull in things vying for her attention, Beckett called the morgue.

"What can I do for you, Captain Beckett?" Lanie asked playfully.

"Help me plan a girls' night. I haven't seen you since you got back from your honeymoon."

"Let me talk to Frank. Is tomorrow too soon? A girls' night sounds great."

"I think tomorrow is okay. I'll call Rick."

"I'll call you back in a little while." About an hour later, after both women had spoken with their spouses, Lanie called back and said, "Tomorrow after work. Where and when?"

"Old Haunt at five-thirty?"

"Works for me," Lanie agreed. "Gotta get back to work. Apparently having two of us gone and the heat wave crazies gifting the morgue with a lot of new clientele didn't work out well. We've been working long hours since we got back last week."

"See you tomorrow, then," Kate answered.

The following night, the two women met at The Old Haunt. Following a big hug, they sat down in their regular booth to talk, and the bartender sent a server with their usual drinks. They ordered dinner and then started catching up.

"You look happy," Kate observed.

"I am happy," Lanie answered with a smile. "I spent a long time thinking I'd never have this. There were fleeting moments with Javi that I thought maybe…but I couldn't imagine always. I'd overheard you and Castle use that word a few times when it wasn't meant for anybody else to hear, and the way you said it…it had such importance. I didn't want to settle for anything less."

"And you can see always with Frank?"

"I can."

"I never thought I'd find that kind of always, either. But now I can't imagine my life any other way."

"We don't have quite what you and Castle do, but most folks don't. People envy what the two of you have."

"Tell me about the honeymoon. What did you do…other than the expected?" Kate asked with a mischievous grin.

"Well, it was a tropical island, so…other than the expected, and there was plenty of that…we spent time on the beach and in the water. We went into town and did some shopping, and there was a couples' store. We found some sexy honeymoon lingerie. Hmmm…not sure if you call it lingerie if it's for a man. But whatever you call it, he looked so good in his. And he worked it, too." There was a faraway look in Lanie's eyes, and Kate laughed.

"That look, Lanie. I almost feel like I'm intruding."

"No apologies for it from over here. It was a memorable night." Lanie grinned at her friend. "I'm pretty sure you've had a few of those with Castle."

Kate nodded with a smile of her own. "So you're Mrs. Stokes now. I have to admit to being surprised that you didn't keep your name."

"We talked about it and decided that you and Castle had the right idea. I'll keep Parish at work, but I'm Stokes anywhere else. Like when you and Castle were married, Detective Castle and Consultant Castle would have been confusing. Even our ME reports could be confusing. Dr. Stokes conferred with Dr. Stokes and concluded… It made sense. I'm glad you did this whole marriage thing first. It's obviously working for you, and I've learned a lot from watching…and listening to you think out loud."

"Glad my struggles could help."

"Trust me, I wouldn't want to go through everything you've been through to get to where you are. You and Castle deserve every ounce of happiness you have. Now, let me tell you more about that tropical paradise I had to give up because I have to work."

They talked about the amenities at the hotel, the tours and activities, and laughed about some of the snooty guests at the resort.

"Castle and I sit and people watch sometimes. He does that for his characters occasionally, but he got me involved a while back, too. We make up stories about people like the snooty guests…their backgrounds or the reason they're in New York, now and then their love lives. It's fun.

"Show me," Lanie said conspiratorially, looking around the booths for a subject. "Tell me about that mousy looking little man over there."

Kate looked and thought for a minute. "He's an accountant."

"Well, that just fits the way he looks."

"I'm not finished. Patience, Mrs Stokes." She glanced briefly around the room before continuing her story. "He's very good at his job, but he's even better at finding girlfriends because he knows a sexual trick that women can't give up once they've experienced it. Word spreads, and he's practically beating the women off with a stick."

"I could make an inappropriate remark but I'm too interested in your story."

"That very proper woman in blue, the one who's eating alone? They have a rendezvous planned after they have dinner. He's going to leave the room and call her with the room number at that hotel across the street, then she's going to leave and follow him a few minutes later."

"Damn. Castle's imagination has rubbed off on you. Okay. My turn. The couple over there near the exit. The well-dressed ones. Look at that jewelry. He's a jewel thief…"

It took Lanie a little longer to spin a tale, but she obviously enjoyed it; and they tried a few more, laughing at some outlandish things they came up with. The mousy little man left, and about five minutes later, the woman in blue answered her phone, signaled for her bill and left a few minutes after. They both dissolved into giggles, and Lanie said, "I'm almost ready to believe your story."

Over dinner and drinks, they caught up on personal life, Ryan's new baby, cases, and anything else that crossed their minds before Kate bowed out to try to get home before Jamie was asleep. After a big hug and a promise to get together again soon, they went their separate ways.

xxxxx

The next two weeks seemed to go by slowly, all the members of the family working at their own purposes. Alexis was in class, and JD was temporarily helping his grandfather plan some changes involving one of his stores. Castle was making good progress on his book, his normal procrastination tactics and distraction by small child notwithstanding. For Kate, work was back to normal, or as normal as a job constantly dealing with crime of one sort or another could be.

Their weekend at the beach finally arrived, and the Castles and all their children were ready for it. Gates called Beckett on Wednesday to confirm that she was still needed for backup and told Beckett to leave on Thursday night if she wanted to, saying that she didn't mind being on standby for an extra night. So the family arrived in the Hamptons around dark on Thursday night, looking forward to the beach.

When Jamie was asleep and the adults were discussing plans for the weekend, Alexis asked, "Dad, can we plan things so all of us have some free time? We want you and Kate to have some time for yourselves. You haven't had much of that for a while. But JD and I would like to wander around and do some shopping on our own tomorrow, and maybe have dinner while we're out."

"Alexis, we didn't ask you to come so we'd have a babysitter," Kate answered. "You and JD…"

"I know that, Kate. You don't ask us to help all the time…and it's almost always things like anniversaries or birthdays or when Dad is called to help with a case. The other times we've volunteered, remember?" She looked over at her father and continued. "Why don't you and Kate take tomorrow morning to sleep in? Both of you probably need it. JD and I will get Jamie up, give him a little snack and take him to play on the beach. Then we'll make breakfast and turn him loose to wake you up. We'll go out and have some time on our own tomorrow afternoon and tomorrow evening. You and Kate get Jamie and breakfast on Saturday and we'll watch baby brother once he's down for his afternoon nap so you can have some time on your own. We can play Sunday by ear."

"That's a very generous offer, Pumpkin."

Alexis shrugged. "It took you so long to find Kate and marry her that I don't get to live with my little brother like I always wanted to; so I have to find ways to spend time with him…JD, too…because we want to. My idea was just to plan when we're doing things."

"Then thank you. A morning to sleep in sounds wonderful, and your schedule is fine, too," Kate answered. "And if you want to change your plans for any reason, just say so."

"We got here late, and Jamie went to bed late. I think I'm ready to collapse and look forward to sleeping in," Castle said. "How about you, Kate?"

"Me. too. Knock on our door tomorrow morning if you need reinforcements."

"We'll be fine. Don't worry about it," Alexis assured them.

After quickly going through their normal getting ready for bed routine, Castle and Kate went to bed and fell asleep almost instantly.

"Come back here," Castle insisted when Kate started to get out of bed the next morning. "We have a free, unhurried morning to sleep in. We should take advantage."

"But it's almost seven o'clock."

"No, no, no, Sweetheart. You're looking at it all wrong." Then he explained in Castlesque fashion, "You should be thinking, 'We're on vacation, and it isn't even seven o'clock yet.'"

Kate laughed and gave in to his logic. She gave him a firm kiss, and answered mischievously, "You know what? You're right."

He moved himself above her, kissing her neck right where he knew she liked it…a lot, and asked hopefully, "So, playtime?"

"Convince me," she challenged.

A little before nine, there had been a thorough and successful convincing, a playful shower and a little more snuggling in bed. Then the knock of a small fist was heard at the door, and Jamie's voice was calling, "Mommy, Daddy. Get up. It's breakfast."

"Alexis did say they'd get Jamie to wake us up for breakfast," Castle said as Kate put her robe on and went to the door, giving Castle time to do the same before he pulled the covers back over himself.

Kate opened the door and asked, "Is that my little boy I hear?"

Jamie smiled and restated, "It's breakfast." Then she stooped down to meet him at his height and pointed to the bed. "I think you need to go get Daddy." The toddler went to the bed and grabbed Castle's hand to pull him out, but Castle pretended to still be asleep; so Jamie pulled harder and called, "Daddy!" a couple of times. Then Kate grabbed her husband's ankle and helped their son pull him halfway out of the bed, accompanied by Castle's protests that they were ganging up on him.

"Dad, are you still pulling that 'I'm sleepy and you have to drag me out of the bed' trick?" Alexis called from the top of the stairs.

"Stop giving away all my secrets, traitor," he called back.

"I'll start giving away better secrets if you don't get down here while breakfast is still warm," his firstborn threatened.

Castle grabbed his son and tickled him as Kate put on a pair of shorts and a tank top, then he handed him off to her while he pulled on a pair of shorts and a T-shirt.

"Come on Peanut," Kate said excitedly. "Let's race your daddy to breakfast." She took off down the stairs with Jamie, Castle thundering not far behind and talking about cheaters as they all three came barreling into the kitchen and laughing.

"Quite an entrance," JD said drily as he put a plate of bacon on the table.

"Oh, like you've never made a grand entrance," Castle scoffed.

JD laughed, offering no argument, and he and Alexis continued stocking the table

As the atmosphere calmed and they all ate breakfast, Castle said, "My boy is still in his pajamas. I'm guessing that means you didn't get to the beach yet?"

"Yeah," JD answered. "He slept a little later than we expected, and he seemed happy in here, so we thought we'd wait until later."

"We can all go after breakfast." Kate responded.

"Jamie isn't the least bit afraid of the water this year…goes right at it full tilt," Castle warned his wife.

"So we need eyes on him every second and need to give him lots of reminders. Got it," she answered.

The rest of the morning was spent with the whole family on the beach. They set up a couple of umbrellas to give them a little break from the sun now and then, took plenty of sunscreen, and the adults took turns riding the waves and keeping an eye on Jamie. His parents played with him in the shallow edges of the waves that came in and later took him a little farther into the water, neither parent being in the water even at knee height. Both of them holding his hands, they lifted him when a rogue wave came in a little harder or deeper than the others and bounced him in and out of the water, all of them alternately laughing, and whooping.

After lunch, Alexis and JD prepared for their day out on their own, and Rick and Kate took time to calm a wound up little son and read to him before his nap.

Later in the afternoon they took him to the pool and Kate asked as they took him into the water, "So how are you teaching him to swim, and how can I help?"

"Well, obviously we aren't going for a breaststroke yet, just some dog paddling…enough to keep him afloat and let him move around a little bit." He helped Jamie show her what they had done before and continued from there. There were also floating toys he could sit in and paddle around the pool. By dinnertime, their son could paddle on his own for very short distances between them before one or the other of them felt the need to keep him from sinking.

There was a shallow kid's pool that Castle had covered when Alexis outgrew it, and he'd had it uncovered and cleaned for Jamie.

"We made good progress today," he commented to Kate with a proud smile. They were sitting on the low step at the side of the shallow pool watching their son play with his water toys. "I can't believe he's so willing to stay with it for that long. He loves being in the water. I think he'd stay out here all day if we'd let him."

"Well, we'd better get him out if we're going to have dinner before his bedtime," she answered.

"Let's get him out, wash him off in the shower out here, and call somewhere for food," Castle suggested "We stayed here a lot longer than we intended."

"But it was nice…relaxing. We needed that…together."

"I'll get our budding Aquaman. You go find the takeout menus."

Around dusk, they took a walk on the beach and had Jamie take his bucket for any shells they found. By the time Alexis and JD got home, everybody else was in in their rooms and in their beds. Jamie was sleeping. Rick and Kate were pursuing other interests.

Saturday was very much like Friday with a reversal of personnel. The parents were up with Jamie, and Kate was finding ways to let him help with breakfast. They spent time on the beach before the sun was too hot and then some more time in the pool. During Jamie's afternoon nap, Alexis and JD took over and Rick and Kate went out to spend time in town, just the two of them. They had dinner reservations in a restaurant with a perfect view of the ocean and enjoyed their uninterrupted time, but they were home in time to tuck their son in for the night.

Coming in from the beach on Sunday morning, Kate said, "I don't want to go back yet."

"Just say the word, Sweetheart," Castle answered sounding like someone out of The Godfather. "You got a sugar daddy anytime you want."

"Maybe someday," she told him with an accompanying kiss. "But right now, I'm just whining. Not ready to be a kept woman quite yet."

Dropping the impersonation, he assured her, "I know that, but the offer is always open."

"Are all the bags packed?" Alexis asked.

"All but what we need for showers and getting dressed," Kate responded.

"Okay," Castle told them. "Here's the plan. In forty-five minutes, we meet at the front door with bags ready to load in the car; then we'll stop at Bernie's for brunch before we head home."

Once everyone was cleaned up and presentable, they had brunch, a brief visit at the restaurant with Bernie and Irene, and left before the traffic going back to the city was too bad. Alexis and JD were delivered to their apartment, and the three remaining Castles went home, tired but happy. The rest of their day was spent enjoying the time to do spur of the moment things that appealed to them.

While she rocked her sleepy son after his story, Jamie asked, "Can we go back to the beach?"

"You and Daddy can go, but Mommy can't go again for a while."

"You have to work?" he asked.

"Yeah. Mommy has to work," she said sadly. But maybe we can find a pool close to the loft. I could go with you there."

"A pool here?"

"Daddy and I will see if we can find one. I promise."

Castle peeked around the door and asked, "Is there room for a daddy in that snuggle?"

"What do you think, Peanut? Is there room for Daddy?" she asked.

Jamie nodded and smiled a sleepy smile; and Kate stood briefly so Castle could sit with them, his arms around both.

xxxxx

Work for Castle was going well. He had a couple of chapters in reserve in case he had a little dry spell and Gina started pushing him again. Each time he'd finished a new chapter and completed his own editing on it, he would send one of the reserve chapters and replace it with the new one. It was working for him, offering him some peace of mind.

As for Kate, her days at work were routine for the time being. The paperwork was always there; but she enjoyed interacting with her detectives and officers, and her willing presence among them continued to foster an atmosphere of both cooperation and expectation of high standards. It was obvious to her staff that she expected as much or more of herself as she expected of them. No matter where one works, there will always be a few slackers and complainers; but at the fifteenth, they had precious few supporters.

The week before Beckett left on her beach trip, she had given Patton dates available for time off in October. The week after she returned from the beach, Patton knocked on the captain's door at the end of her shift.

"Do you have a minute, Captain?"

Beckett looked up from the report she was working on and said, "Yeah. I needed a little break anyway."

"I brought the leave request with the days to go and meet my aunt. And I wanted to ask who to call for advice on handling my mother's estate."

Beckett accepted the request form and opened her top desk drawer to retrieve a business card.

"This card is for our attorney's office. My husband has been a client there for a long time, so there's no expense involved. It's a favor to him. You'll probably see one of the most junior attorneys on their staff, but even their newest recruits wouldn't be there if they weren't capable of competently handling a simple estate closing. They'll take care of any problems that might arise and answer any questions you might have. I gave them the barest outline of the circumstances so they know they may be working with deadlines, but I left it for you to fill in any other necessary details. Don't let the fancy office bother you. They're easy to talk to."

"I didn't expect that. When you said 'we have resources to help' I thought you meant the department."

"I could have found sources there, too. I just wanted to know it's going to be covered well for you. Too many other things have gone wrong with paperwork in your life, and I know these people won't let that happen again. When you call, tell them that Mrs. Castle made arrangements for you. The receptionist will know to set up an appointment."

"And you're Mrs. Castle?"

"Yes. Legally I'm Mrs. Castle. It was easier to be Beckett at work."

Patton nodded her understanding. "Thank you for this. I owe you a lot."

"Doing your job well is all I need, Patton. And your life being a little easier after things are settled should help. Win/win. Right?"

"Yeah. Probably. I'll call them tomorrow morning. Thanks."

Patton left, and Beckett finished the little bit left of her report before going home herself.

When she and Castle had time to sit and talk before they went to bed, she said, "Patton finally asked about legal help for her Mom's estate, and I gave her the number for Winston's law firm."

"She knows she's likely to get one of the newbies, right?"

"She knows. She's going to call them tomorrow."

"Good. I like that you feel comfortable doing things like that now."

"It's getting easier," she answered," planting a little kiss at the edge of his jaw. After a short pause, she changed the subject. "We need to start looking for a bed for Jamie," Kate told him. "When I went in to get him this morning, he was trying to climb out again, and the mattress is as low as it will go. He's less likely to get hurt if he falls off the edge of a toddler bed than if he falls over the top of the crib rail. He's growing up too fast," she said, looking a little misty eyed.

"It happens," Castle answered. "I'm still having trouble with Alexis being almost twenty-two and married."

"Me, too, and I wasn't even there for most of her life."

"There's nothing you can do about it, so you just have to love everything about them as it happens…and take lots of pictures and videos to help you remember."

"I think I can count on you and Alexis for enough pictures and videos to remember, and then there's the rest of us."

"You're no slouch when it comes to whipping out that camera phone, either."

"Guilty," she admitted. "We won't forget, will we?"

"No. We'll just add to the memories as we go." He kissed her head and draped an arm around her shoulders. "We'll look into a new bed for Jamie tomorrow. For now, let's go to bed and work on a sibling for our boy...and maybe we can have this same conversation about both of them in a few more years."

xxxxx

The next couple of months ran smoothly for the fifteenth; so Kate was at home most evenings, giving her the family time she loved. She and Castle even babysat for Ryan and Jenny a couple of times, and the Ryan's returned the favor so Rick and Kate could have a couple of quiet evenings out. As well as a couple of relaxing nights out for his parents, it also gave Jamie the chance to be around a newborn baby. There was another weekend trip to the Hamptons in early September, this time just Castle, Kate, and Jamie.

After a week long anniversary stay at the beach house in August, the college age children were back in class for the fall semester, Alexis closing in on her Bachelor's degree and JD starting on his Master's; and Martha was busy with the administrative responsibilities of the fall semester at her school. Meagan had taken on a few serious clients as a personal trainer, and she and Kate were back to their workout and sparring sessions at the fifteenth. Jim was about to close an important merger, and John was completing the changes JD had helped him plan for his haberdashery.

The book launch for Castle's new book was scheduled for the end of September; and if everything went according to plan, the final chapters of the next book would be turned in for editing about the same time as the book launch for Raging Heat.

Life was running smoothly, and the entire family was enjoying it.