72. 74: Wednesday

74

Castle rubs at his hair and squints one eye in the mirror.

"Dad?"

He steps out of the bathroom and towards his daughter, meets her halfway and gives her a hug. "Hey, haven't seen you today. Where-"

"Actually, I went back to work at the morgue with Lanie."

"You did?" He leans back and stares at her, then closes his mouth, remembering what Kate said about not treating Alexis like Alexis. She's an adult too. "You did. Wow. Okay. How was it?"

"Good," she says quickly and then her brow furrows. "But Dad. How will - is Kate okay with me being there?"

Castle wonders what she means - in what way is she concerned? "Why wouldn't Kate be okay with it? Kate doesn't have a say in-"

Alexis laughs and shrugs him off, shaking her head. "No, no. Not like that. Just that I'm doing the job while she. . .doesn't have hers. I guess."

Castle shrugs. "Don't know, Alexis. Why don't you talk to her about it? She's coming over here for dinner."

Alexis nods slowly. "Yeah. Okay, I can do that. But Dad, if she's upset, what do I do?"

"It's up to you, Alexis. This is your life. If this is something you want to do, then you make your case. Just like you made it to me. She's not unreasonable. All that much."

Alexis smiles slowly at that and then lifts up on her toes and hugs him hard. "Thanks Dad."

The look on Castle's face when he opens the door should warn her, but she just shrugs it off and accepts the hug he gives her, kissing him before he pulls away.

"What'd you do today?" she asks, letting him guide her to the kitchen.

"Gina was being a harpy so I-"

"Come on," she says, shaking her head a little at him. "She's nice enough."

"Anyway," he cuts in. "She was being a nag-"

"Not really any better."

"-she was though. In email, but then when I got back, phone calls too. So I went to Black Pawn and let her harass me about the book."

"Oh, yeah?" she smirks. "And you managed to survive. Big strong man-"

"You say that like it's not true," he gasps, eyes widening at her.

She nudges his hip and rolls her eyes. "Pour me a drink, Castle."

"Yes, ma'am."

Alexis fidgets. She knows she's doing it, but she can't help it. She thought her dad would bring it up to Kate and kind of smooth the way for her, but he hasn't. It's just like any old dinner with the three of them, like it has been all summer.

Kate's been extra polite though - smiley, if that's a word - and she looks relaxed. She's laughing at Dad and swiping spaghetti sauce off his chin, shaking her head at him.

It's now or never, and Alexis has always had a personal motto that she won't back down from the things that make her afraid. She goes right for them. Because of her dad, because he's the kind of man who admires that, and Alexis has always been a daddy's girl.

Since she can remember, so many things made her afraid. The big slide on the playground, the high dive at the pool, flying alone to visit her mom, learning to drive, speaking at her graduation - Alexis is that kind of person. She knows it. But she looks each fearful thing straight in the eye and goes right after it because that's what her father has taught her.

No fear. No regrets.

Take the risks for the things that matter.

"Kate," she starts. "Kate, I went back to work at the morgue. With Lanie."

Kate startles, her fork falling to the plate, and she throws a look at Alexis's father. As if for help.

Huh. That's interesting.

"With Lanie," Kate says slowly.

She lays out her case, just like her father suggested. "I really like the work. And it's not just interesting, it's important too. It's like I somehow can help, something bigger than myself, something that means more than just me. So Dr. Parish says I can keep working with her while I'm in school."

Kate nods. "Okay."

Alexis twists her hands under the table and shoots a look to her father. He's taking a sip of his wine, totally leaving it up to her.

How is she supposed to ask this?

"I wanted you to hear it from me first," Alexis says finally.

Kate glances over at Alexis's father too, then back to her. "Well. Thank you?"

Okay. So. This is awkward. "I - you're okay with that?"

"Okay with what?" Kate has both hands on top of the table. "With you working?"

"At the morgue."

"What does it have to do with me?"

Alexis catches her breath at that, blinks.

"No, sorry," Kate says quickly, a tendon showing in her forehead. "I'm sorry. That sounds - that isn't what I meant. Um. Thank you for telling me. And thank you for being concerned about how I feel, but Alexis, I'm not - it's not up to me to tell you what to do."

Alexis feels the grin snake across her face because first her father and now Kate.

"Well, you do give good advice," Alexis says slowly. "But I meant more - I don't want to upset you by working with the medical examiner's office."

"Oh," Kate says quickly. "Because of me quitting."

Alexis nods.

"I don't mind. I don't mind at all. And - that's thoughtful of you, Alexis, but this is your life. Your choice. Oh, unless your Dad. . ." She trails off and glances to Alexis's father.

"He's fine with it," Alexis says, smiling at them. "You're both fine with it. Good."

Kate nods back.

Alexis grins and picks up her plate, moves to take it to the sink. "I'm going to bed. I have to be there at 6 tomorrow. Good night, guys."

"Can I stay tonight?" she asks him softly, standing in the doorway of his loft right before she meant to go.

She really did. She meant to go.

He blinks in surprise but reaches out and tugs her into him, shutting the door as she comes.

"Do you need to ask?"

"I think so," she says quietly. "Now."

"You can stay as long as you like-"

She lifts her head and sees him biting back his words. For her. Because of her. She doesn't want that. The time for waiting, for holding themselves back from each other is over. "Don't stop there."

"Well, we just had a fight about me thinking I own you, Kate, so-"

"Being sweet isn't the same."

"Really?" he huffs into her neck. "Feels exactly the same."

"Well. I'm a handful. You knew that."

He laughs again and hugs her a little harder. She nudges her nose against his and kisses his cheek, slides her hands around his waist.

"I did, yeah. All that leaping tall buildings, weight of the world stuff."

"Sucks, doesn't it?" she smiles against him. His hand moves up and down her back, slowly, and she shifts a little closer to him.

"No, Kate, doesn't suck. Because sometimes when I act like an idiot, you think it's sweet. And since I act like an idiot a lot, that means there are lots of chances-"

She squeezes his waist to shut him up. "You really don't, you know. You're much smarter than you look."

He does laugh at that, brushes his mouth against her forehead. "Well, thanks?"

"And right about now, a smart man would take me to bed, Castle."

He grins at her, slides his hand around to hers. "Let me prove how smart I can be."