"Up, up, up, darlings!"

Martha comes striding into the bedroom and flings open the curtains with a dramatic flourish. Warm beams of light cascade through the windows, bounce off the furniture and blind Kate's barely opened eyes. Sunlight reflects off her new ring, reflecting sparkling beads of multicolored light onto the ceiling. She pulls the covers tightly around her body, all too aware that she is naked and that Rick's mother is still standing expectantly at the side of the bed. A small smile plays at her lips as she wiggles her fingers and notices the little diamonds of light dancing on the ceiling.

"Ugh! Mother! What time is it? And have you no sense of privacy?" Rick grumbles, fighting to keep his eyes opened against the glaring sunlight.

"Darling, it almost one in the afternoon. It's Christmas Day. Alexis and I were content to let you two lovebirds sleep in, God knows we could all use it after the last few days, but surely you haven't forgotten about the party tonight?"

He had actually. Forgotten about the party.

Shit!

A small gathering really, just a handful of close friends who by choice, circumstance or poor luck had managed to find themselves stuck in the city for Christmas. Still, all of these people had in some way or another changed his life for the better and he owed it to them to make an effort to give them a happy holiday.

No matter how much he'd prefer to lay wrapped around Kate's naked body all day. All week. Forever.

"Okay, Mother." he concedes, opening his eyes fully. "We're awake. Could you kindly leave now? So my wife and I can get decent."

Kate, who had been quietly laying next to him lets out a small chuckle, raises her hand to her mouth to cover it.

"What's so funny?" he asks softly.

"You just called me your wife. It sounds...weird. You also just admitted to your mother that we are not decent."

A soft blush creeps up her chest, takes residence on the apples of her cheeks. She averts her gaze from Martha, too embarrassed by her lack of clothing and instead aims a pointed glare at Rick. His apparent lack of concern about their nakedness not particularly surprising but still leaving her more than a little mortified.

"Weird is kind of a requirement for living in this household, Kate. You better get used to it," Martha clucks as she breezes out the door. "Ten minutes!" she yells, "I've already got the coffee on. We've got preparing to do. The show must go on!"

"God!" Kate groans, hiding her head under the sheets.

Rick squeezes Kate's hand, removes the sheet and lays a gentle kiss on her cheek.

"Come on, gorgeous. You and I have a date with the shower."

"Really? And all this time I was thinking you had grand plans to wine and dine me. Turns out you only want to see me naked. Just like every other man."

Kate puts on an over-exaggerated pout. Waits for him to begin a stumbling correction. For him to assure her that he does indeed intend on wining and dining her. Instead, he ducks his head under the covers, rolls himself on top of her and after a long and drawn out process of scanning her body, running his hands up her thighs, her torso, placing gentle kisses along the way; he finally raises his eyes to hers.

"I have absolutely no problem admitting I want and more importantly love seeing you naked."

Again he lets his eyes rove around and down to her chest. Allows his fingers dance around her areola, teasing her nipples into stiff peaks. A cocky grin settles on his face and she considers kissing it right off.

She is cut off before she has the chance to ponder any further.

"However annoying though she is, my mother has a point. We've got to get moving. You go first, I'll go get a head start on breakfast while you shower. Eggs on toast good for you?"

She feels him semi-aroused between her thighs and being a conscientious woman, not wanting to let anything go to waste, she has a better idea. Squeezing her thighs together, capturing him, she raises her head and purrs into his ear, "Or...you could join me in the shower."

She feels him bob up and down between her thighs, sucks gently on his neck as his adam's apple mimics the motion in his throat.

"To conserve water, of course. No funny business. As you said, we've got no time."

"Err, yeah." She watches as he schools his features, takes deep breaths and wills his body back into submission.

"That would work too. Sure," he states, jumping up out of bed, pulling her up and alongside him. "Why not?"

A playful leer settles in his eyes, his mouths hangs a little open. He openly admires her naked form and she smirks at his eagerness, pleased to know she still wields a whole lot of power over this man.

"Well, what are we waiting for?" he cries, tugging her into the bathroom.

His boy-like exuberance and enthusiasm for joining her in the shower sends little flutters of want to her belly, the curve of his tight rear-end as she ambles up behind him sends a flood of need even lower. He turns on the faucets and steam soon fills the room. He removes the bandages from his wrists and she is glad to note that the swelling has gone down significantly. They look almost normal, bar the bright red rings around both and the small amount of scabbing where his wrist meets his left hand. He quickly brushes his teeth while she watches him in the mirror. He hands her a spare toothbrush and grins as he catches her eying his more 'masculine' body parts in the reflection.

She loads the brush with toothpaste and takes a minute to file away her inventory of his body as he steps into the shower. Broad, strong shoulders. Highly muscular arms and long, lean legs. His chest is sizable and tight and though he has something of a pooch around his belly, she realizes he is a lot more athletic than she ever gave him credit for. She wonders when he has the time to work out. You don't get those arms by sitting at a desk and typing.

Jesus, those arms!

She realizes she is just as hopeless as he is. She also realizes she is wasting time. Quickly, she scrubs the vestiges of sleep and too-much coffee the previous day from her mouth, gargles with mouthwash and hurries to join him in the shower.

As she steps into the large enclosure she almost loses her footing. The rich, manly smell of his body-wash mingling with the hot steam in the shower, rushes into her nostrils and sends a shiver down her spine. Rivers of water cascading down his chest make her tongue ache to lick a path upwards and towards his mouth. The moan as he applies shampoo and massages it into his hair has her grabbing at the tile for extra support. It's an all out assault on her senses and she knows now, there is no way they will be out of the shower within Martha's ten minute time frame.

"Let me," she whispers, gently guiding his raw wrists to his side, letting her fingers run through his hair. He eyes open to small slits, a light smile quirks at the corners of his lips. He nods almost imperceptibly and once again lets his eyes slip shut.

She grabs a hold of his biceps, pulls him softly from the spray and works up a heavy lather on his head. Threads her hands through his hair and digs her fingernails lightly into his scalp, kneads at his neck and manipulates his shoulders. She massages away the previous week's tension and has him humming with pleasure. As she works her way down his body, applying more of the intoxicating body-wash as needed, his obvious need for her grows between them. He reaches behind her, cups her bottom in his sizable hands and drags her to him for a searing kiss.

"You are an incredible tease," he growls in her ear. His eyes are a deep blue, pupils dilated and radiating need.

"Who said I was teasing?" she grins, reaching between their bodies to stroke him. "I'm not one to waste water and I am certainly not one to waste this." She gives him a little squeeze for emphasis and is rewarded with a guttural moan.

With that, she is scooped up into his arms, spun around and pinned against the shower wall. Wrapping her legs around his torso for purchase, she closes her eyes and lets out a satisfied hum as he enters her.

Hooray for saving the planet, she thinks as the warm water rushes over them and he plunges deeper inside.

Hooray for saving the planet, he thinks as she moans his name and claws at his shoulders.

"Extraordinary.." he whispers as sometime later, she shatters around him.

They exit his room twenty minutes or so later and are greeted with self-satisfied smiles from both Martha and Alexis. Martha is practically oozing with cognition of what was going on in the bathroom. Alexis is smiling smugly but has a definite tinge of pink on her cheeks.

"Feeling...refreshed, you two?" Martha inquires with a raised brow.

"Mother!" "Gram!" Castle and Alexis reply together.

"Well, I'm feeling better..." Kate answers. A pleased grin adorning her lips and a feisty glint in her eyes.

'Post-coital Kate' is playful and cute, her defenses significantly lowered. Rick doesn't think he will ever tire of this variant of her personality.

"Welcome to the family!" Martha laughs, walking over and embracing them both in a warm squeeze.

"Really, welcome," she whispers warmly into Kate's ear.

"Thanks, Martha." Kate replies, genuinely touched by his family's all out acceptance of their new-found relationship. Thinking about it though, she supposes they had four years to prepare for it. As far as 'walk of shames' go, this one is relatively pain free. After the week they have all had, nothing would be very likely to surprise them, she thinks.

"I'm sorry about the interruption earlier, Darling; but we were running short on time and are even shorter now," she directs at Rick.

"Right." he says, glad for the relative lack of awkwardness in the current situation. Somehow not surprised that moving forward with Kate wouldn't be very difficult after years, agonizingly slowly, getting past the 'getting to know you' phase. His two previous marriages had been started and over with in less time. His last marriage, he thought, would last a lifetime.

"What do we need to do?" he inquires, brushing a kiss to Alexis's forehead and squeezing her shoulder as he rounds the counter and heads for the coffee.

The girl starts to recite a long list of items that need cleaning, catering that needs picking up, decorations that need preparing.

Rick gets the task of picking up the food, nobody really wanting to go out in the freezing weather and the women busy themselves with the loft.

They clean and make the place festive in little time. Martha and Kate are relaxing on the couch with a glass of wine when Rick returns. Alexis softly plays Christmas carols on the baby grand and smiles in his direction as he enters.

I'm home, Rick thinks, carefully placing the trays of food on the table and walking over to greet Kate with a soft kiss on the top of her head. He repeats the action again, with both his mother and daughter, before wiggling his rear-end and shoving both Kate and Martha aside so he can sit between them.

I'm home, Kate thinks as he oafishly plants himself beside her, raises her left hand and lays a sloppy kiss to her newly-adorned ring finger. She smacks him away with an insult, a smile and an gentle tug on his ear, happy that while everything has changed, really, nothing has changed at all. He's still that same nine year old on a sugar rush, she's still the grown up with the playful jibes and mock indignation at the ready.

Before long, there is a knock at the door and Kate is surprised to realize it's already nearing six.

Martha jumps from the couch and Alexis rises from the piano. The two of them scurry off to the kitchen to finish preparations with the food. Rick is about to answer the door when he stops dead in his tracks and realizes what he is wearing. The same faded jeans and a 'cookie monster' shirt, approximately two sizes too small for him. It had worked when he was out picking up food, his sweater and jacket had hidden the ridiculous garb. He had worn it because it was soft and comfortable under the prickly wool sweater, now he's horrified that it might be someone he has an image to uphold behind the door.

Kate notices his indecision, stalled halfway to the door with a slight look of panic on his face.

"Could you..?" he gestures to the door as another knock sounds.

"Sure," Kate replies with a smirk, "Wouldn't want you losing any of that refined and debonair, Richard Castle cred."

He smiles gratefully and run off towards the bedroom.

Kate takes a deep breath, her hand stilling on the knob momentarily.

Her nerves are a little agitated and she's somewhat apprehensive about revealing to everyone their new relationship status. Married. Just thinking it sends a little thrill of pleasure but an even greater feeling of 'how the hell did this happen?' straight to her gut. While she'd never regret the split-second decision the previous night, she was hoping they'd have a little time to keep it to themselves before declaring it to the world and enduring the harassment their friends would be sure to provide. She hopes whoever is standing, waiting behind the door will be gentle. Hopes it's someone she doesn't know, so Rick can do the honors when he returns from changing.

Apparently she's pissed off some higher power because none other than the world's most intuitive M.D. is staring back at her when she pulls on the knob and the door is finally ajar.

"Girl!" Lanie squeals, hugging Kate tight and jumping up and down just a little bit. "Congratulations!"

How the hell...?

"Lanie, Hi." Kate smiles shyly. "How the hell did you know? You've been here two seconds!"

"You brushed away your hair as your opened the door. No way I'd miss that sparkle on your finger. You're not the only one trained to notice things, you know?"

Kate shakes her head and laughs along with her friend. "Fine, we did it. Last night, in the office of a sleepy judge, with nothing more than Martha and Alexis as witnesses. It just seemed that after everything that had happened last week, it seemed like the right thing to do. Enough wasting time. Know what I mean?"

Lanie snorts. "Yeah, you two would never waste time.."

"Shut-up, Lanie."

"Six days, Miss Beckett.. err.. Mrs Castle. Wow, that will take some time getting used to.." Lanie shakes her head and finally proceeds.

"Anyhow..six days. Six! You realize I said six months right? This wasn't some sort of New Year's resolution to agree with me and take my sage advice was it?"

"Please. Says the woman who is still denying herself happiness with Javi."

That comment earns her a raised brow. "Touche, Mrs Castle."

Kate smiles and goes on, "I guess I just finally saw the light. Or maybe realized the lack of light there would be without him in my life. All I could think about while he was stuck in that garage was 'what-ifs' and 'if-onlys'. I didn't want to spend any more time wondering."

Lanie makes a series of "Awww"s and clucking noises as they make their way through the loft and towards the kitchen. Kate chuckles at the still slightly dazed look on the medical examiners face.

Imagines she's probably still sporting one of her own.

"Come and have a drink of wine already. Rick is just getting changed and I know Martha and Alexis will be happy to see you."

Rick emerges and enters the kitchen at the same time they do and is greeted with a tight hug and a quiet, "It's about time" from Lanie.

Kate suddenly isn't worried at all about revealing their marriage to the world.

It's good, it's right.

It's about time.

A/N: Well. There you have it. I realized as I wrote this that I have probably a good three or more chapters I could write for this story but also that this is a perfectly fine ending as well. I'm going to mark it as complete but maybe add more if it comes to me or if it is greatly requested. I slammed this out with absolutely no beta-ing and a sad lack of coffee. If there are any glaring mistakes or murdering of the English language, please feel free to point it out.

I apologize for the ridiculously long delay in posting this. I know I promised a few days, it's been a few weeks. Bad Ky.

If you're in the mood for something different, come check out my newest fic, "Percolate". You can find it on my profile. ;)

And so, there you have it. My smut, turned case-file, turned Christmas, turned fluff fic. As complete as it's going to get. For now.

Thanks for reading and staying with it throughout it's many twists and turns. You guys rock my socks!