Chapter One - Mother Knows Best

Summary: This is how I envisioned the conversation between Rick and Martha after Undead Again. Loved the episode and can't wait for Always!

Acknowledgments: As always Luv2sk87, you are awesome, thanks for making my stories better and smacking my fingers when I put in too many 'as'.

Disclaimer: Castle belongs to Andrew Marlow and ABC, this story belongs to me.

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The weather in New York this year had been unusual. Days of abnormal warm temperatures mixed with cold, dark nights. It was one of these cool nights that found Rick sitting in front of a roaring fire in his loft, slumped on the leather sofa, with his hands steepled and a glass of his favorite scotch resting on his forehead. He had been sitting here since Alexis had gone to bed. The zombie get up long put away, his laptop open beside him with a chapter of Frozen Heat done. It was just him and his thoughts and man what thoughts.

'She loves me. I've been acting like a total jackass for three weeks and somehow she still loves me,' He thought, astonished. It took his mother telling him he was acting out, and why, to make him see the light and decide to stop working with her. 'Yeah, like that was ever going to happen. That would be like not breathing'. He smacked the glass against his forehead.

"God damn it, I've been such a fool," He murmured, pulling the drink down to his lips and draining it. Growling, he slammed the empty tumbler onto the coffee table in front of him and covered his face with his hands.

"Richard…are you all right?" Martha asked as she walked down the steps and over to her son.

"Yes…I'm fine, go back to bed." He said, waving a hand toward her voice.

"Last case with Beckett a little harder then you thought, hum?" Martha dropped onto the coffee table in front of her son and pulled his hands off his face.

He laughed to himself and looked at his mother with an expression on his face she couldn't quite read. "Not my last case…I'm going back tomorrow."

She smiled softly and squeezed both his hands. "What happened darling? Yesterday you were convinced that the best thing to do was to cut ties."

"I found out I was wrong about a lot of things and that you were right. I couldn't turn off how I felt any more than I could stop myself from wanting to be with her. And yes I guess I was subconsciously trying to hurt her but I was wrong." He drew in a deep breath. "She's been seeing a therapist since the shooting. She's been trying…trying to get herself together for…for us." He looked at his mother, astonishment on his face. "I'm pretty sure that she loves me too." He pulled a hand away from his mother and slammed it on the arm of the sofa, "I've been awful to her these last few weeks."

"Sweetheart, you were hurting. Yes, she lied to you but you should have told her you heard and asked her what was going on." She caressed his cheek with her free hand.

"I know that now. Trust me when I say I will not be making that mistake again in the future." He smiled and squeezed her hand. "It's just never been like this for me before. When I found out about Meredith and the director…I just did what I had to do. No it wasn't easy but…Mom, this thing with Kate, it felt like my heart was being ripped out of my chest."

She stared at him for a moment then sighed, "That's how true love is. It can make you the happiest you've ever been in your life one day and the worst the very next. But trust me darling, it will be worth every second you have waited. Have you worked everything out?"

"No, still a work in progress but we are headed in the right direction now." He paused and smiled, then pulled their joined hands up to his lips and kissed her hand. "Thank you Mother."

"Whatever for?" She asked puzzled.

"For being here when I needed you and helping me figure this whole thing out on my own without interfering." He stood up and pulled her with him. "Not saying I told you so."

She gave him a crooked smile and poked his nose with her index finger, "Who said I wasn't going to say I told you so? Hum?"

"Oh, by the way, that brilliant daughter of mine, finally made her decision about where she is going to college…Columbia. She told me right before she kicked my ass playing laser tag. Though to be fair to me, it was a lot harder playing in zombie garb. It really slowed me down."

"Whatever you say Richard," Martha said as she slowly turned toward the stairs.

"I got to dress up and play a zombie for work, found out Kate really does care about me, and that my daughter is not moving across the country all in twenty-four hours…on a whole, I'd say that's pretty awesome day. Oh and I got a chapter of the new book finished and emailed off to Gina."

"That's wonderful…Good night sweetheart." She called over her shoulder, walking toward the stairs.

She heard his phone ring and turned to watch him eagerly pick it up. "Missing me Detective?" She heard him croon and laughed to herself as she went up the stairs. 'I guess mother really does know best.'