Author's Note: well,here it is folks, the final chapter. Thank you all for sticking with this one, it's been a blast to write. Manu, thanks as always, you are totally awesome, and this wouldn't have been anywhere near as good as it is now. *hugs* Please review folks. This is the first time i've actually managed to write a multi-chapter fic to completion! any feedback is greatly appreciated.

Thanks, folks!

NevynR

Beckett sat uncomfortably and sighed. Running her hand through her hair, she leaned back, trying to ease her muscles. The seats at the airport, she decided, were obviously designed by somebody with no knowledge of anatomy. Her backside was numb, her legs hurt, and she gave passing consideration to getting one of them for the interrogation room, but reasoned that since torture was still technically illegal, Gates probably wouldn't go for it.

She looked at her watch, then back up to the arrivals board for what felt like the tenth time in as many minutes. Closing her eyes, she tried to relax for a moment.

It's not his fault the plane got delayed. She repeated to herself in her head, trying not to let it add to her already impressive irritation levels. There had been no luck with the ABP on Jonathan Marks, there had been a three-car pile up on East 34th on her way to JFK, she was hungry and now the plane was late.

Pulling out her cell phone, she checked it again, just in case she'd missed a call or a text. Seeing nothing new, she put the phone away and sighed. Forcing her mind away from the boring wait, she made herself think happier thoughts. Running the earlier events through her memories, the first thing that came to mind was just how thankful she was for the massage Castle had dragged her into. If it hadn't been for that, she realised, she probably would have snapped by now. A small smile creeping onto her lips, she remembered their lunch at Remy's on the way back to the precinct. The burgers, the two caramel shakes, and light-hearted banter with her partner had all combined to make her actually cheerful for the first time in recent memory.

Her stomach grumbled loudly at her, reminding her that thinking about Remy's probably wasn't going to help her hunger at all. Sending the offending organ a quick glare, she smiled again, this time in amazement. At some point, she realised, Castle had reminded her stomach what actual food at semi-regular hours were.

Must be the late cases the last month, She mused. I haven't eaten at my apartment in... She paused, thinking hard. She ran their recent cases through her head, counting. This case, the Jones double murder, and before that was the Mikkelsen case...

Thinking back, she could count less than half a dozen meals at her apartment in the last three weeks. Okay, so maybe a steady diet of coffee, bear-claws and take-out wasn't exactly healthy, but the stuff that Castle kept them supplied with? Her stomach let out another rumble as she recalled the Thai he'd brought in for lunch last week, and the chicken risotto they'd shared for dinner the same night, perched on the desk, bouncing theories as they absently stole pieces of chicken from each other when they thought they were unobserved.

Chuckling to herself, Kate finally admitted to herself that perhaps her partner had been onto something when he had casually referred to her as his work wife. She kept his antics reigned in (somewhat), and he kept her fed and caffeinated. Happier too, she thought, although even letting that particular thought loose in her head caused her to tense up slightly.

The abrupt shift in her mood enough to snap her out of her idle thinking, Beckett sat up straighter, her heart suddenly racing. Her mind whirling, she tried to uncover when she had gone from stressing and being irritable to daydreaming about her partner. The familiar jittery feeling in her stomach overtaking the hunger, her heart sank.

Oh no, She thought. Not again... Not after last time...

Detective Beckett wasn't a woman who scared easily. More often than not, she had a tendency to run directly at the source of her fear and try to beat it head on. That is why, all those years ago, she refused a night light, and it was also why she nearly lost herself down the rabbit-hole of her mother's murder. The years had taught her to shield herself well, from hurt, from pain, from fear.

A year ago, she'd been making progress, opening up more, especially where a certain writer was concerned. She'd finally faced down her inner demons enough to talk to him about... emotions, and he'd done what she'd feared most of all: he'd left. That summer, she'd worked harder on her cases and even harder on rebuilding her fortress.

When Rick Castle strolled back into her life, he found whatever progress he'd made up to that point washed away. Kate had retreated so far from him that she'd found, whether she was looking for it or not, the one thing that would keep him at arm's length: Josh. Although she hadn't known it at the time, her budding relationship with Demming had practically forced Castle away from her. In her hurt, she had wrapped herself in an impenetrable cocoon, and her partner had had the decency to respect her decision.

She had changed since then, she knew. Grown, healed, she was more... relaxed. The more she thought about it, the more Kate realised that he'd changed as well. Frowning slightly, the wheels of her mind turned, analysing. No more late night parties (unless they were with her and the boys), no string of meaningless relationships, and no more signing chests. While she'd been so intent on keeping him out of her heart (albeit unsuccessfully), he'd grown up. To her, Richard Castle, playboy millionaire author had imperceptibly changed into just Rick.

Well, She amended in her head. At home he's Rick, at work he's still Castle. It had been coming for a while, she realised. The more she'd seen of him outside the workplace, the more layers he unfolded. His relationship with his daughter had showed her that he could be serious when he needed to, hell, being a single father raising a teenage daughter would test anybody. The devotion he showed, the love and respect between the two of them tugged at her hear, as much for the simplicity and sweetness of it as the bittersweet tang it brought to her, knowing that she'd missed out on so much with her own father.

His generosity was bottomless, for those he cared about. Still a little uncomfortable when his wealth came into the picture, Beckett knew that what Martha had told her was true: that it doesn't change who you are, it just magnifies it. Richard had taken his innate compassion, and used his money and status to help people.

How many men, She wondered. Would casually offer a hundred grand like that? On the chance of finding a lead on a cold case? She shook her head, still amazed that he hadn't even paused for thought, he'd just assumed that if that was what it took, he'd pay it.

The other thing that stuck in her mind vividly was how he was when it came to her current boyfriend. When Esposito had let her know in no uncertain terms that Castle wasn't following her around just for the books any more, and that the reason he had left was because he couldn't stand to see her with another man, she'd realised her mistake too late. Unable to bear the sight of the happy couple, he'd run away to lick his wounds, never knowing that they had missed the opportunity, like two boats passing silently in the night.

When he came back, she could see the difference in him. He'd obviously done a lot of soul-searching over that horrible summer, and come to the decision that he wanted to be in her life, even if it was just as a friend: he put her happiness above his own. Castle had not only respected her enough to not bring it up, he'd been a perfect gentleman the whole time, squashing whatever he might be feeling, and being polite to the doctor. She'd been sure he would have brought the subject up after their heated kiss in the alley, or the freezer, in fact, it was all she could do not to broach the subject herself on a few occasions since then.

The topic of her partner had become almost taboo when she was talking with Josh, the mention of 'Castle' or 'Rick' was usually enough to make him tense, a frown forming almost immediately. He hadn't been shy about pressing her on the issue, at least once the author returned from the Hampton's. In the end, Josh had found out that there were just some things you didn't push Kate Beckett on, and that was one of them. She had let him know, quietly and firmly, that he'd saved her life several times since he started shadowing her, and she'd returned the favour. It was one of the unwritten rules of the force: you don't bail on your partner. For better or worse, he was there, and she was grateful for it.

Relaxing a little as the thoughts percolated in her mind, she closed her eyes and let a soft smile form as she tried to remember exactly when she'd stopped considering him an annoying shadow and accepted him as her partner.

"Kate?" Her eyes flew open as she was addressed. Standing in front of her, bags over his shoulder, was Josh. Blinking rapidly to clear her head, Kate stood up.

Josh dropped his bags and stepped forward, wrapping his arms around her. Dipping his head, he pressed his lips to hers as she snaked her arms around his hips. She kept the kiss light, unsure why it felt... odd.

Perhaps it was that she'd been daydreaming about Castle, and the kiss they shared. That had been... explosive. She'd been consumed by it, every nerve set afire, tingling with anticipation as their tongues fought for domination, his hands gripping her hair firmly, enough to be in control, commanding, but somehow still letting her know that she could pull back anytime she wanted, no that she had wanted to do that at all. In fact, if the guard hadn't brought his presence to her attention by sniggering, she had the distinct impression that neither of them would have been ale to stop anytime soon. Between them, they had three years of pent up sexual tension, and the kiss broke the dam, desire flooding them. If she was honest with herself, Beckett suspected that without the interruption, they'd have staggered back to the car and... With an abrupt mental shake, she pulled her mind away from doing her partner in the back of the police car in a darkened alley, to the boyfriend kissing her in the arrivals lounge of the airport.

The sense of wrongness returned in full-force. Before she had a chance to analyze the feeling, Josh slipped his tongue between her lips as he ran his hands down, cupping her backside, pulling her close as he squeezed her ass.

Kate froze, any enjoyment of his greeting washed away by a rising tide of anger. He hadn't even said hello, after a week away, and the first thing he did was jam his tongue down her throat and grope her ass, in the middle of the crowd? She'd have considered letting it slide, maybe, if she wasn't still angry with him. Jerking away from him, Beckett drew breath to speak her mind, when something over his shoulder caught her attention.

Frowning, she stepped around Josh, breaking his grip without losing a beat. She looked hard for a second, before confirming what she suspected: Jonathan Marks was in line, about to board a flight to Mexico.

"Kate, what the hell?" Josh demanded as he spun in place to face her, his good mood evaporating. Turning to face him briefly, Beckett spoke, her voice calm and firm, her don't-mess-with-me expression firmly in place.

"Josh, stay here." She saw him open his mouth to say something else, but his words died in his throat as he saw her flip back the edge of her jacket, unsnapping her holster as she walked casually towards the boarding line.

When she got to within a couple of feet, she slowed. Her voice firm, she spoke.

"Jonathan Marks? You are..." She got no further before he took one look at her face, turned, and bolted. Cursing under her breath, Beckett ran after him, hurdling over baggage as she raced through the crowd. Gaining on him rapidly, she braced herself as he skidded around a corner. Pushing off the wall, she launched herself at him as soon as he came back into view.

Her flying tackle sending them both sprawling, he was lucky enough to roll slightly. Before she could pin him, he spun, his fist lashing out at her face. Her training kicking in, Beckett deflected the punch , gripped his wrist and twisted it as she rolled.

Slamming his face into the floor, she straddled his hips as she yanked his arm up behind his back, her free hand already reaching for her cuffs. The metallic sounds of them closing around his wrists, she grinned at her suspect, the adrenaline still pumping through her.

"Jonathan Marks, you are under arrest for the murder of your brother." Climbing off, she hauled him to his feet, dragging him back towards Josh. Her boyfriend gaped at her, stunned. He knew, in some abstract sense, what she did on a daily basis but seeing the reality of her work in front of him, he had no words. Beckett, however did and wasn't shy about using them.

"Grab your bags, Josh, I need to get Mr Marks here back to the precinct before I drop you home." Josh frowned at her as he picked up on the implication: she was dropping him home, and then going back to work. Before he could say anything, she pulled out her cell phone. Seconds later, the call was answered.

"Esposito? Yeah, I'm at JFK, and I just arrested the brother. I'll be back at the precinct in half an hour, tops. Thanks." She hung up, and marched her captive towards the doors. Noticing the absence of a certain surgeon, she glanced back over her shoulder at him. "You coming?" Shaking her head, she kept walking. She had a job to do, and he was slowing her down. Reaching the Crown Vic, Beckett unlocked the door and shoved Marks inside. Closing the door firmly, she popped the trunk so that Josh could put his bags in. Grabbing her cell phone out again, she tapped out a quick text message and hit send.

*Arrested Marks at JFK, interview in ~30, if you want in.*

It wasn't strictly necessary, but she felt that at least giving Castle the option of sitting in on the interrogation was the right thing to do, especially given how much help he'd been on the case, even from LA. She'd have called him, but Beckett was hungry, and the sooner she got the interrogation over with, the sooner she could have dinner. Texting was quicker, she decided. It had nothing to do with her not wanting to call her partner while her boyfriend was in the car, she told herself, but the excuse sounded thin, even in her own head.

Sliding into her seat, she did up her belt and started the car, looking over at her boyfriend briefly. Seeing he was buckled in, she pulled out of the car park, and headed back into the city.

Shifting in his seat, Josh tried to find a position that didn't let the springs in the seat dig into his back. After nearly a minute of squirming, he glanced over at Beckett, who had her eyes fixed firmly on the road. The set of her shoulders and the line of her lips told him quite clearly that she found something very amusing, and was only just holding it back. Seeing him looking at her, she asked him.

"Something wrong, Josh?" The smirk teasing the corners of her mouth, she had to turn back to the traffic, just to keep her expression neutral.

"This seat is probably the most uncomfortable thing I've ever sat in, that's what." He complained. Unable to control her face any longer, Beckett chuckled. "Why's that so damned funny?" Josh demanded, irritated that she found his discomfort amusing.

"Well since you asked," She replied. "I never thought I'd hear you agreeing with Castle on something..." She paused. Seeing his confused expression, she went on. "That's his seat, and he complains about that spring every time he gets into the car." A frown forming almost immediately, Josh shut his mouth and stared out the window, not trusting himself to speak.

Barely five minutes had passed before he broke the uncomfortable silence between them.

"Kate, what was that, back at the airport?" Sending him a glare, she responded.

"Josh, I am only going to say this once, so listen well." She paused, judging the effect of her words on him. "This is me at work, okay? The last thing I need right now is for us to have an argument about our relationship in front of a murder suspect, who I have to interview in less than half an hour."

"Are we going to argue?" He sounded a little confused, and quite a lot taken aback.

"Yes." She replied tersely, her tone shutting down any further conversation. The silence hanging thickly in the air between them, Josh wisely kept his mouth shut for the remainder of the drive.

The elevator doors opened, and Beckett marched her suspect out, followed by Josh. On their way to the interrogation room, her pace slowed briefly as she saw the familiar figure of her partner, sitting in his chair at her desk, talking casually with Ryan and Esposito. A little surprised to see him there given the hour, she threw him a small smile. Esposito, noting the look between the two of them, straightened up.

"You want me to put him in room one, Beckett?" He asked, a split second before he saw Josh. His face hardened slightly. He didn't really like the handsome doctor, and made no secret about it either.

Beckett slowed down, letting the Hispanic detective take custody of their suspect.

"Thanks, Esposito. I'll be in shortly." She didn't spare Marks a second glance as he was lead away to the interrogation room. Noting the plastic bag on the desk in front of Castle, she could see the distinctive outline of a take-out container inside. Her smile grew and he inclined his head towards her, letting her know that yes, the food was for her.

Moving around the desk, Beckett dumped her bag, then looked up at her boyfriend as her memory threw up a red flag, interrupting her train of thought. Frowning, she kept her tone carefully neutral, and asked "Josh, did you end up making those reservations for dinner tonight?" The blank look on her boyfriend's face being all the confirmation she needed, she sat down before glaring at him. She held her tongue, waiting for the penny to drop. An uncomfortable second passed, before he remembered the phone call the first night he was in LA, and guilt washed across Josh's face.

"Babe, I'm so sorry, I totally forgot-" Beckett felt something shift inside her, like the first few pebbles falling down a mountainside, seconds before the avalanche started moving.

"I figured you might have done." She snapped, cutting him off. "It's not like dinner with the girlfriend you haven't seen for a week is important, right? Please, ignore the fact that it's gone seven o'clock, and I haven't eaten since lunch time on the off chance that we'd be going out tonight for dinner." His face flushing with embarrassment, Josh opened his mouth to reply, but the sharp shake of her head and the laser glare that pinned him in place kept the words trapped. Ignoring him for a moment, she glanced over at Castle, sitting quietly, patiently in his chair, trying very hard to give the impression he wasn't there at all. Her attention drifted from him to the container of food on the desk between them. Seeing where she was looking, he slid the container across the polished wood, an easy smile on his lips as he focused on ignoring the tension between her and Josh, lurking behind him.

Opening the container, she heard her stomach growl in anticipation as the mouth-watering aroma hit her nose. Licking her lips, she eyes the beef cannelloni as she asked,

"That place on West 56th?" Somewhat spoiled by his take-out choices over the years, she assumed this was from one of his favourite restaurants, which just happened to be en-route from the loft to the precinct. Shaking his head, Castle replied,

"Casa del Castillo, actually..." Beckett reached into the bag and found the knife and fork he'd placed in there. Cutting some off, she started eating, her throaty purr of appreciation bringing a sparkle to the author's eyes. Swallowing, Kate flashed a tight smile at him as she cut the next piece.

"Remind me to thank Alexis next time I'm round... This is divine!" A teasing smile creeping across his face, Castle asked.

"How could you tell?" Swallowing the second mouthful, she answered.

"She uses a bit less oregano than you do, and adds Parmesan to the mozzarella..."

Stepping forward, Josh spoke, threads of anger in his voice.

"Kate, can I talk you?" He glared at the author. "Privately?" Swallowing another mouthful, Beckett maintained eye contact with him as she selected another piece of food. Placing it in her mouth and chewing with deliberate slowness, she finished, carefully placing her fork down before responding.

"You can wait, Josh. I'm starving, and it's your fault. You ate on the plane, didn't you?" He nodded once, his face heating as he fumed. "Then let me finish my dinner. We'll talk when I'm done." Her tone hard, it left no room for argument. She spoke as if there were no way the future would be anything but the way she intended. Given the crap he knew he was in already, Josh bit his tongue. Crossing his arms defensively, he glanced around, looking for a chair. Beckett had her own, as did Castle, who had pulled out a notepad and was writing, an air of concentration about him as if the argument wasn't worth paying attention to. The nearest free seats were several desks over, as both Ryan and Esposito had returned to their own, and looked very much like they were intent on the paperwork that they were working on. Seeing nothing in the immediate vicinity, and trying hard to feel less like an unwelcome third wheel, he huffed in irritation as he leaned against a desk, annoyed at being forced to stay standing while Beckett continued eating her dinner.

Finishing the last of the cannelloni, Beckett closed the container and looked across the desk at her partner.

"Thanks, Castle, I needed that like you wouldn't believe." A grateful smile on her face, she leaned back in her chair, pleasantly full from the dinner Rick had brought in for her on the off chance that she hadn't eaten yet. Her face hardening, she stood up and walked around the desk. Sending Josh a heated look, she jerked her head, indicating that he head to interview room two for their 'private talk'.

Closing the door behind her, she turned. Pointing to the chair they usually sat suspects in, she spoke.

"Sit." Josh flopped down in the chair and crossed his arms again. "You wanted to talk, so talk." She demanded as she leaned against the one-way glass, her own arms folded.

"What the hell was all that about, Kate?" He spat out bitterly. Raising an eyebrow, Beckett answered, her face neutral.

"That? I'm not surprised you didn't recognise it, Josh... It's the actions of somebody who actually cares."

"That's not what I was talking about, and you know it. I meant what was with the food? How come you could tell his kid made it? Just how often have you been eating at his place, Kate?" Her face heating up, Kate felt her anger flare at the way he referred to Alexis, and his implication.

"Why don't you come right out and say what you're thinking Josh?"

"Fine! Have you been fucking him long?"

Kate snapped, her face flushing red as she stepped forward, slamming her hands down on the table between them. Her voice low and full of menace, she spoke slowly, a half-beat pause between each word.

"I am not screwing around." She glared at him. "Since you asked, Castle is a friend. I eat around there every now and then, when you are on call, because he invites me to his poker nights and movie nights. He brings leftovers in every now and then, because he knows what it's like when we get stuck on a case and have to work late." There was a moment's pause before Josh asked

"Okay, so what was with you at the airport tonight?"

"Excuse me? What was 'with me'?" Her hands on her hips, Beckett took a deep breath before continuing. "Sorry if I didn't feel like being groped in front of a crowd of strangers, Josh. I'd seen you for all of ten seconds before you were playing with my ass! How the hell do you think I was feeling?" On a roll, she swept clean over his attempted response. "You go away for a whole damn week, and I don't get one single phone call! Not even a lousy text, Josh. The first thing I heard from you was you trying to arrange a lift from the airport so you didn't have to catch a cab. You couldn't even be bothered to arrange dinner!" Beckett's voice had raised as she went on. When she finished, she was panting, her face flushed as she finally vented at him.

"I was busy!" He snapped back, on the verge of yelling.

"With what? You don't expect me to believe you were at the conference twenty four hours a day, do you? Would it have killed you to make a thirty second phone call when you knocked off for the day? That's all it would have taken, Josh... A quick call to see how my day was, just to say hi, that kind of thing, you know?"

"You could have called!" He retorted, angry that she seemed to believe it was all his fault.

"Yeah, I suppose I could have called, but you know, given the first conversation we had, I was curious if you would actually spare a couple of minutes and make the call yourself. I guess I'm just not worth the effort, am I? Or do you just not care at all what I think?"

"I care, you know that, Kate..." He said, trying to calm her down, the heat fading from his voice.

"Do I, Josh? You hadn't spoken to me in a whole damn week, and the first words out of your mouth weren't 'hi, how are you?' or even 'what are you doing?'. They were you trying to score a lift home..." Beckett replied, thoroughly pissed off by his total inability to actually see what he'd done wrong,

"Oh, come on, Kate! Are you really going to pull that card?"

"I'm not pulling any card, Josh. I'm sick of you being such a self-absorbed asshole. It's taken me a while, but I've finally realised that's what's been pissing me off the last couple of months. It's always about you... You go away, and just expect that I'll be here when you come back. I see you when it's convenient for you, and if something comes up with my work, you get all snarky, because I'm just a cop, it's not like I'm out there saving lives, is it? What we have isn't a relationship... it's a year-long booty call, and I'm sick of it, Josh. I want somebody who can be there for me, somebody to come home to every night, and wake up next to every morning. Since you can't or won't, we're done."

Stunned, he gaped at her for a few seconds, before he gathered his scrambled thoughts. He couldn't remember the last time anybody had spoken to him like that, and it stung. More than that, he knew she was deadly serious about what she said. Clenching his jaw, he couldn't actually recall the last time somebody dumped him either.

"So what, that's it? You're not even going to give us a chance? Try to work something out?"

"You've had your chance, Josh, when you didn't go to Haiti. I was nearly ready to call it quits then, but you stayed. If our relationship meant something to you, you'd have put more effort into it, but you didn't." She walked over to the door and unlocked it. Throwing it open, she addressed him once more, her voice calm again. "Grab your bags and call a cab. I've got work to do." She walked out of the interview room without a backwards glance, her face set, refusing to shed a tear as another relationship crashed and burned.

Seething, she headed for the other interview room, where Jonathan Marks had been cooling his heels for the last half an hour. Placing her hand on the door handle, she turned, calling out to her partner.

"Castle, are you coming?" Standing up, he walked over quickly, giving her a quick once-over, making sure she was okay. Giving him an almost imperceptible nod of her head, she let him know that she was still fine to interrogate their suspect.

As the door closed behind them, Esposito turned to his partner, an evil grin on his face.

"I so wouldn't want to be Marks right about now." Both moving on an unspoken impulse, they headed for the observation room. As the door closed behind them, Ryan's voice could be heard.

"Ten bucks says she gets him to confess in under ten minutes."

"You're on, bro."

Kate sat back on her couch with a sigh. Opening the tub of triple chocolate ice-cream with one hand, she handed Lanie a spoon. A minute passed in silence, before Lanie broke the ice.

"Honey, are you okay?" Kate pulled the spoon out of her mouth, inspecting it for a moment, thinking.

"I think I am, Lanie..." She turned her attention to her friend at the other end of the couch. "It's not like I had no idea it was coming..." She paused, a small frown appearing. When she didn't follow her statement up for a moment, Lanie prodded her.

"You gonna tell me what's going on in that head of yours, girl?" A brief, sad look passing over her face, Beckett replied.

"Just thinking how different this is to last time..."

"How so?" Lanie had a fair idea what was running through her friend's head, but she wanted to get her to admit it out loud for a change.

"Last time..." She trailed off for a second. "I broke up with Tom for Castle. I left it too late, he'd already tried to move on with Gina..." She dug out another spoonful of ice-cream, remembering the sting of rejection as Castle left the precinct with his ex-wife on his arm.

"And this time...?" Lanie prompted gently. She knew if she pushed too hard too soon, Kate would clam up. Getting information out of her friend was like fishing, sometimes. Beckett sighed, staring absently at her distorted reflection in the back of the spoon.

"This time, it's because I knew it wasn't going anywhere. That, and..." She bit her lip, wondering if she was getting ahead of herself. Her face lighting up as she scented blood in the water, Lanie pounced on the slip.

"What happened?" Her face lit up as her mind whirled, considering possibilities. Surely not. She thought. She couldn't have kept it a secret if they were already together...

"Nothing..." Kate replied, a blush stealing across her cheeks.

"Katherine Beckett, don't you lie to me..." Lanie threatened, not willing to let it drop, not with a teaser like that.

"It's nothing really..." Beckett replied, staring fixedly at the tub of ice-cream in her lap. She looked at her friend and saw the look on the ME's face. Deciding she'd better spill, she went on. "We spoke on the phone a couple of times while he was in LA. About the case... and then we just talked." Pausing, she scooped more ice-cream as she muttered almost under her breath. "and then he read me to sleep last night."

Before Lanie could read anything into her admission, a knock at the door disturbed their conversation. Raising an eyebrow at the detective, Lanie asked,

"Expecting company?" Puzzled, Beckett shook her head as she stood up, handing over the nearly empty tub. Peering through the peephole, she saw a man in a familiar delivery uniform. She opened the door and signed the pad. Accepting the package, she closed and locked the door behind her as she made her way back to the couch.

Opening it, she laughed out loud at the contents: two tubs of her favourite ice-cream, and a note. Scanning the hand-written letter quickly, she handed it to the waiting ME.

Didn't know if you were up for company, thought this might be of some help.

RC

Her eyebrows both raised in the direction of the detective currently digging into her tub of chocolate fudge swirl, Lanie waited patiently for answers.

"We were talking about his books, and one thing lead to another, and he read me to sleep, okay?" Lanie didn't say anything, she just sat and smirked, amused as hell that the two of them finally seemed to be on the same page. After a moment, she asked

"So you two are…?" Blushing again, Kate replied.

"No… not yet, anyway."

"But you want there to be, right?" Sighing, Beckett finally voiced what she'd been thinking for a while now.

"Yes, Lanie, I want there to be something. Happy now?" A smug look on her face, Lanie grinned like the cat that got the cream.

"Oh, I'm happy all right, girl. Took you long enough to admit it!" She paused. "Just to be sure though, there's no Gina waiting in the wings this time?" Chuckling, Kate blushed as she recalled the incident with Nathalie.

"No, there isn't anybody else with him."

"That look right there? That is telling me there's more to the story than you're letting on…" Leaning forward, she snagged a spoonful of ice-cream from the fresh tub as she asked. "What happened? I want details…" Lanie could quite clearly see the rosy tint rapidly covering her friend's face, and knew there was some juicy information she was holding back.

"He called me from LA the day he got there. You remember Nathalie Rhodes?"

"That actress playing Nikki Heat? The one who stole your coffee?"

"That's the one. You remember how she tried to sleep with Rick for 'research'?"

"You might have mentioned it once or twice…" Lanie replied, understatement coating her tone thickly.

"Well, she tried again almost as soon as he got to the studio." Her mouth dropping open, the ME couldn't stop the words from slipping out.

"What did he do…?"

"He called me for help. She wasn't taking 'no' for an answer, and he'd practically barricaded himself in the toilets to keep away from her." The pleased tone in the detective's voice quite obvious, she continued. "We talked, and he pulled the 'fake girlfriend on the phone' routine. If he actually had another woman he was interested in, he'd have called her, wouldn't he?" Lanie nodded, eager for more.

"So you were on the other end of the phone while he talked dirty to his pretend girlfriend?" Of all the things she'd suspected, Kate Beckett getting hot and heavy on the phone with the author was probably the last thing she'd have thought of. Kate nodded, not really trusting herself to answer. The silence hung in the air for a second before the ME prompted her. "And…? How was it? What happened?"

"It was… good." She bit her lip, recalling the effect his words had had on her. "Very good... I may have gotten a little caught up in the whole thing."

"Kate, you can't tease me like that! Details!"

"He might have asked a question as part of the conversation, and I might have accidentally answered it…"

"Oh no you didn't!"

"I did… He asked, in character, what I was wearing, and I told him. I kinda let it slip that knew he liked the top I was wearing as well." Her face flaming, Kate couldn't help but smile, glad to be able to talk about it openly. "So yeah, he knows I'm interested, and if our call last night is any indication, I'm pretty sure he is too."

Digging into the ice-cream again, they spent the rest of the evening engaging in the time-honored rituals of a post break-up girls night in.

Beckett took a deep breath, steadying herself as she stood outside the store.

If you're going to do this, She thought firmly. You might as well go the whole hog.

Pushing open the door, she entered, her confident smile at odds with the churning in her stomach. The cheery jingle of the bell a she stepped into the store was a good omen, she decided as she approached the counter, her mind made up.

Castle sat in his office, typing rapidly on his laptop. With the case closed, he was taking the time to get some writing done. Beckett was on call today, he knew, and given the fight with Josh the night before he was certain she'd spent the night in, most probably with Lanie. Giving her some space, he focused instead on his job, and keeping Gina from beating him to death with his latest manuscript.

The clicking of his keys the only sound in the office, he was interrupted by the chime of his cell phone. Hitting save, he dug the phone out as he sighed, a little irritated at being disturbed just as he'd gotten into the groove, and he really needed to get some more done on the next chapter. His irritation evaporated, replaced by a smile when he noted that the sender was none other than his gorgeous partner. A little confused as to why she'd be messaging him rather than calling, he opened the message, hoping for once that there wasn't a body.

*Rick, if you don't have any plans today, do you fancy a burger at lunch? My shout.*

Surprised, he checked his watch before tapping out a reply.

*No plans. Where and when? :-)*

The smiley face quite accurately reflecting the grin now plastered on his own face, Castle tried hard to control the nerves that had already started to churn in his stomach. Impatiently, he waited for her response while his foot tapped out an irregular rhythm on the floor, unable to sit still. Barely thirty seconds later, his phone buzzed in his hand, still managing to startle him despite the fact that he was waiting for it.

*Remy's, 1pm ok?*

Sending a silent prayer to whomever might be listening, Rick let out a heartfelt sigh of happiness. Glancing at his watch again, he realised that he had less than an hour to wait. Taking a deep breath, he let it out slowly as he typed his response. He paused for several seconds with his finger hovering over the send button. Thinking better of it, he deleted what he had written, and tried again.

No, He thought. Best not to rush into anything just yet...

*I'll see you there*

Stepping out of the cab, Castle paid the driver and headed towards Remy's. Checking the time out of habit, he saw that he still had five minutes to spare.

Good. He thought. Early for once.

Getting more nervous by the minute, the writer made his way over to their regular booth surprised to find Beckett there already. Her eyes downcast, he could see her lip was slightly swollen from being pulled between her teeth repeatedly. Lost in her thoughts, his presence startled her slightly, her head jerking up and their eyes meeting across the table. Caught by his gaze for a moment, her hands fidgeted nervously in her lap.

"Kate?" His voice breaking the silence, a small frown creased Castle's forehead. "Are you okay?" The butterflies in his stomach were more like a herd of elephants, making feel almost nauseous as he ran his eyes over her, trying to decipher why she'd asked him to meet her here on her day off. She drew a deep breath and held it for a second.

Here goes nothing, She thought, bracing herself as she took the plunge. "Rick, I have a couple of things for you." She swallowed, trying to remember the words she'd spent most of the night before trying to get straight in her head.

"Okay..." His tone hesitant, Castle decided it would be best to wait and see where she was going with it. If he had learned anything over the years, it was to let a woman have her say first, it prevented a lot of accidental foot-in-mouth incidents. Pulling her hands out from under the table, she handed him a square box. Deep navy blue and unmarked, the box was clearly designed for jewellery, further confusing the author.

"A gift, Castle, and a question." She fought to keep her voice steady as she met his eyes once more. In answer to his unspoken query, she continued. "The question comes after." Taking the box from her outstretched hands like it was ticking ominously, he carefully opened it.

Inside, lay a necklace. No, he realised upon closer inspection, it was two. A matched set, they took his breath away. Nestled together, the two halves of a glittering ying and yang. The ying glittered like a fallen star, cut from a flawless diamond, the teardrop, it hung point upwards on a fine white gold chain. The yang lay nestled against its partner, cut from obsidian. A black so deep it almost glowed, it was threaded on a thicker chain hanging point down. The chain was still white gold, but more masculine, and not as long. The facets catching the light from the window behind them, Rick could only stare at them, his pulse thundering in his ears as he tried to make sense of what he saw, of what it might mean. He swallowed thickly, forcing himself to remember how to breathe.

Quietly, Kate spoke, her voice soft and vulnerable as she explained.

"You were right, Rick, when you told me that Will wasn't right for me. Turns out, the same could be said for Josh and I as well. We weren't working, I guess we were just too much alike." She gave him a soft smile. "It was a panda of a relationship, Castle, it just took me a while to see it." Understanding flooding him, Castle recalled what he'd told her years ago, when they were discussing her ex: ying needs yang, ying-ying is a name for a panda. Seeing the change in his eyes, she continued. "I'm too cynical, Castle, I put up walls after my mom was killed, and until you came along, I didn't realise just how much sunlight those walls cut off. You are everything I'm not, and when we're together, it all just... works. Balance, harmony, whatever you want to call it, I'm better because of you, with you."

His heart soaring, Rick placed the necklaces on the table between them, and took her hands in his own. Still having trouble believing he was awake, he asked quietly.

"And the question, Kate?" Running his thumbs across the back of her hands, he could feel the hammering of her heart, matching his own.

"Will you..." She bit her lip briefly, before laying herself bare. "Will you wear it, Rick?" Unable to speak the words herself, Castle knew what she was asking. Would he wear the necklace and think of her, and the matching jewel around her neck? Would he be her other half, complete the circle and make them both whole? The words rising from him unbidden, he responded, his voice full of emotion.

"I would be honoured." He gave her hands a gentle squeeze, before slipping free. Picking up the box once more, he opened it and withdrew the necklaces. His attention still on her, he undid the top button of his shirt and placed the chain around his neck. Doing the clasp up, he felt something connect inside him, the weight of it around his neck and the slight coolness of the metal combined to feel... right. His eyes full of emotions he didn't feel the need to hide any longer, he traced one fingertip over the obsidian facets.

"Thank you, Kate." He said softly. Seeing the gold of the chain in place, the yang nestled against his chest, Kate finally allowed herself to relax, letting out the breath she didn't realise she'd been holding. Her goofy smile matching his, she scooted around the booth so that her thigh was pressed against his. Looking at him properly, she allowed herself to just... look for a few seconds. No need to worry about being caught staring, no feeling guilty. Raising her hands behind her neck, she undid her necklace. Her mother's ring in one hand, she allowed the chain to slip free onto the table. Picking up the white gold one, she threaded the ring onto it. Sliding into place, Johanna's ring hung directly around the diamond, framing it without touching.

Nudging her partner with her elbow, Beckett turned slightly, her back resting against him. Taking the necklace from her, Castle wrapped his arms around her as he placed the chain around her neck, the ring and diamond slipping into her shirt. Fastening it, he felt the fine tremors in her as his fingertips brushed the back of her neck. Feather-light, he ran his fingers up the side of her neck, trailing down her jaw. The barest hint of pressure as he reached the point of her chin, and she pivoted around to face him, never breaking contact with his fingers.

Her face tilted up, lips parted slightly, she drank in the sight of him. Not needing to resist the magnetic pull of him any longer, she slowly leaned in closer to him, the proximity warming her. Dipping his head, Rick brought their lips together, so gently she wasn't sure they'd made contact. Her breath catching, she let the kiss deepen slowly, lips moving slowly, tasting each other.

Rick slid his hand along her cheek, weaving his fingers through her hair as he drew a breath, the scent of cherries filling his nose as surely as the thoughts of the woman in his arms filled his mind.

Unhurried, the kiss was relaxed, and full of promise. There wasn't anything needing their attention, their lives weren't under threat, and they could just relax and enjoy it. Slowly breaking apart, they rested their foreheads against each other, slightly out of breath. Pulling her bottom lip between her teeth, Kate looked up at her boyfriend and batted her eyelashes at him. Pulling back slightly, she asked teasingly.

"So, Rick, what does a girl have to do to get some food around here?"

A/N: aaaaand done! I hope the Lanie / Beckett scenes were okay, this is probably the first time i've done so much dialogue between them, and i wasn't sure if i got it totally right. anyway, i'm off to get some more work done on Demons' Run and Layers... remember... reviews are the lifeblood of authors! :-D