27. All That Is Nearest And Dearest(1)

"Julia, don't run," Beckett said, going after her daughter though she was running herself.

"Louis said it was going to happen fast when she started," the girl said.

"The legs are out," Louis said, smiling at them, turning from the foaling stall he was standing in front of. "I'm glad you hurried. And Happy Thanksgiving."

"Happy Thanksgiving," Castle said, catching his breath as he'd run after his wife and their daughter.

"Oh… wait, you said the sac around foal-" Julia said, peering in at Lottie who was laying down.

"I was about to go in," Louis said, putting on gloves at that point. "You'll have to stay here though."

Frowning for a moment, Julia nodded before she watched him go into the stall and she murmured, "She should be okay right?"

"She's been doing well so far," Louis said before he knelt against the door to the stall to keep an eye on the mare.

Beckett, as they settled in to wait, glanced at her daughter every so often to make sure she wasn't too disgusted by the process. But Julia looked more concerned than anything else and she whispered to her, "This is how it works sweetie."

"I know," the girl whispered back to her. "But this isn't how it is for women right? For humans?"

"Not exactly," Beckett said softly. "But the basics of it are."

"That I know… now," Julia said, smiling at her parents. Looking back, she saw that Louis was speaking in Irish to Lottie while he touched her side lightly and she couldn't help saying, "It's okay Lottie, he's helping with your foal."

Beckett was concerned her daughter's voice was going to be too much, but the mare seemed to be alright as the foal's head was beginning to leave her body.

"Cailín éasca… éasca," Louis was saying as the mare was raising her head.

"What did he say?" Julia whispered to her parents.

"Easy girl," Castle said first. "And he repeated the word easy."

Nodding, Julia turned her attention back to her horse and saw that more of the foal had come out. She was digging her nails into her palms as the process continued until finally Louis was helping with the amniotic sac around the foal as its back legs were slipping from Lottie. She wanted to ask what it was but knew that the mare was going to be focusing on its baby.

"Now I can tell you," Louis said with a smile as he walked out of the stall with Castle opening the fence for him once he was sure the placenta had left Lottie with no problems. "You have a colt."

"Oh! Wait… now?" Julia asked.

"He's known since we got her," Beckett said. "We thought you wouldn't want to know until now."

Julia thought over that for a moment before she nodded and she smiled saying, "Okay, but I didn't know you could tell."

"Should you have more horses now you do know," Louis replied with a smile. "I'll be back after I wash my hands; keep an eye on her while she's cleaning him."

Before the young man could even finish that, Julia was peering over the railing, watching as Lottie was cleaning the colt. "Ooh… he's so cute," she breathed happily. The colt was dark and she wondered; when its hair was clean and dry; if it would be the same color as Lottie or its father. "What color was its… sire?" she asked her mother.

"Seal brown," Beckett said. "But it looks like it might follow Lottie and be bay colored." When Julia nodded, she then said, "And you know you need to name him."

About to speak the girl paused before she said, "Um…"

"You don't need to do it this second, but we need to get it before we leave since they'll be filling out the paperwork for us," Castle said.

Julia nodded before she said, "Sure… we're going riding, aren't we? And then you?"

"Yes, we'll leave soon," Beckett said. She wasn't surprised when the girl was about to react when they noticed the colt was beginning to stand.

"Good," Louis said as he hurried back at Castle's call. "That's exactly what you want to see."

Though she wanted to point out that the colt was still struggling, Julia nodded briefly and looked back into the stall. It took a couple more tries but after the fourth time the colt was standing on its legs. "Hi Helios," she whispered, waving to the newborn.

"Helios?" Castle asked her.

Smiling Julia nodded and said, "He was born as the sun was coming up."

"Good choice," Beckett said, looking at her father's watch and seeing it was by then nearly seven thirty-five.

"If Josa doesn't like the name she can change it though," Julia said. "This isn't my colt."

"No, but I get the feeling she would like it," Castle commented.

"Is he trying to get milk?" Julia said as she noticed the colt was nosing around its mother's side.

"He is," Louis said. He glanced at the girl and saw her biting her lower lip before he said, "Don't worry, if he takes a bit I'll head in to help but we need to give him a little time. You said Helios?" At Julia nod he smiled and said, "Then I'll help Helios." He looked back at the colt to check on it and said with a smile, "Interesting choice."

"It kinda goes with Alexander the Great," Julia said. "And Julius Caesar… you know, the names of my parents' horses.""That's true… Helios was the middle name of one of Cleopatra's sons," Louis said, thinking for a moment. "So you'll stick with royalty."

"It depends on what Lizzy will name her horse whenever she gets one," Julia said quickly. "But I wasn't thinking of a queen for Lottie," she added with a smile. "But that was a queen's name."

Beckett was listening to the two with a smile on her face before she noticed that Helios was trying again to nurse from his mother. When he succeeded she said, "It looks like he's doing well sweetie."

"Yeah," Julia said with a sigh. She then looked at her mother and said, "What about everyone else?"

"It's still early," Castle said as he was checking his watch. "Should we head for our ride? They'll start arriving once we get back."

"Sure," Beckett said, looking at their daughter who was still watching the colt. "Sweetie?" she said, putting her hand on her shoulder.

"I know," Julia said with a sigh. "We'll be back Lottie, Helios." She tore herself away and then went with her parents over to the building that had their horses in it, wondering what her mother would do once they saw Alex and Julius.

Seeing the two stallions' heads were sticking out from their stalls, Beckett started to jog over to Alex and hugged him around the neck once she reached him.

Hearing her mother murmuring in Irish, Julia smiled and then looked at her father asking, "Are you-"

"I may joke about it but don't worry, I'm not jealous," Castle said, smiling as his wife kissed Alex's forehead. They went closer and he said, "I'm guessing he's happy."

Stepping back and allowing the stallion to raise and lower his head, Beckett smiled herself as Julia giggled and she said, "I think so. And Julius?"

Going to his horse, Castle wasn't surprised when the stallion was raising and lowering its head. "Alright, we'll go for a ride now," he said before the two were whickering. "Who will Julia ride?" he asked as he went into the stall to prepare Julius.

"I think Sapphire," Beckett said, looking back out at their daughter.

"Sure," Julia said, knowing who she was talking about already. "But Mom, when can I take Lottie?"

"I'm afraid you'll have to wait until Helios is weaned," Beckett said as she set a saddle blanket on Alex's back. "And that's about six to eight months."

Sighing Julia said, "I read that in my book about horses. But I was hoping it wasn't true."

"Sorry sweetie," Beckett said before she was setting the saddle on Alex. She looked back out at Julia and said, "When you turn twelve I'll let you go on your own to her to get her ready."

"Really?" Julia asked.

"Yes, but not until you've been riding Lottie for a while," Beckett said, getting the bridle ready. "Alex," she said when the horse was whinnying. "Do you want to go on a ride or not?"

Julia laughed softly and then said, "I can't wait to get to do that…" She had been about to say she wished the mare hadn't been pregnant when they'd gotten her, but she was watching as her mother took care of the bit-less bridle she used.

"Okay," Beckett said. "Rick," she said.

Hearing the hooves of a horse before her father could reply, Julia looked back at the entrance and saw that Louis was there with Sapphire, ready for the ride. "Oh," she said, walking carefully over to him. "How'd you know my parents wanted me to ride her today?" she asked as she used a step and swung her leg over the saddle.

"Just a guess," Louis said with a smile. "What if the others come in?"

"Have them wait for us," Beckett said, on her saddle and riding out from the stable with Castle on Julius behind her.

"I'll do my best," Louis said. "Have your radios?"

"We do," Beckett assured him.

"Thanks Louis!" Julia called before she was directing Sapphire into a trot. Once they were on the trail she said, "Can we go faster?"

"No galloping," Beckett replied. "Canter and then we'll go to the field to let them all run."

"Oh good," Castle said, moving to ride next to his wife as Julia was ahead of them. "I can tell Alex wants to go."

Beckett smiled and said, "He can tell I want to."

Julia wanted to look back at them and tell her mother that she needed to run in the field with Alex before they were all going to do that. But she had to focus on where they were going to and carefully led Sapphire into a canter until they reached the creek. When they'd stopped the horses she groaned and said, "Do I have to?" as her parents were getting off Alex and Julius.

"Yeah, let them have a break," Castle said as he was standing next to her to help her down. He helped her and once she was on the floor watched her go to the edge of the water before she was rubbing Sapphire and Julius' necks. He went to his wife, on the other side of Alex and took her hand, squeezing it tightly before she spoke in a low voice though she was talking in Irish.

"Cúramach," Beckett said, telling him careful. When he looked at her she said, "I can tell."

"You think I can't tell with the way you're holding my hand?" Castle shot back. He breathed out heavily when she squeezed his and he said, "Then we should probably keep going."

"Good idea," Beckett said, speaking in English. "Julia are you ready?" she then called to their daughter.

"Yeah, the horses are done," she replied. "And telling secrets," Julia added, smiling when she looked at her parents and saw the surprise on their faces.

"Alright," Beckett said, knowing she was talking about the horses touching their noses together. "I'll hold Sapphire for you."

Julia went over to the mare and climbed up onto the saddle before she held Sapphire steady while her parents were getting onto their stallions. As she had before, she rode ahead of her parents and was going into a canter very shortly after they'd started down the path again.

"Slow down Julia," Beckett called when they were closer to the stables. When she saw the girl had Sapphire at that pace the path widened and she and Castle moved Alex and Julius over to ride on either side of her. "When we get home-" she began.

"We can play outside, right?" Julia interrupted her.

"You didn't let me finish," Beckett said in mock annoyance.

"She didn't even really let you start," Castle commented.

Glancing at her husband for a moment, Beckett then said to their daughter, "You can play. And you can play outside but just on the grass or by the trees."

"No beach?" Julia said. When her mother shook her head she said, "Okay. But what about the mashed sweet potatoes?"

"You'll take care of those," Beckett said.

"You'll be able to," Castle said. He saw the hesitation on the girl's face and he asked, "What's wrong?"

"Is there anything else I can do?" Julia asked.

"There is, but we do have guests remember," Beckett told her.

"I know," Julia replied. "But… maybe something else?"

"The rolls," Castle commented.

"Okay," Julia said eagerly.

"That's fine," Beckett said in amusement when the two looked at her. "For now though…" She wasn't surprised when they turned ahead of them and saw that they were nearing the field. She was going to tell Julia to go with her before the girl was speaking first.

"Go Mom," Julia said.

"You can-" Beckett started to say.

"No, really," Julia told her. "Go around on your own, it's better for Alex."

"You're not saying anything?" Beckett directed to her husband as he was climbing down from Julius to open the gate to the field.

"Nothing needs to be," Castle replied easily. He smiled as she sighed and watched her ride Alex inside before her legs were nudging the sides and the two were taking off into a gallop.

"She didn't really fight," Julia said to her father as he mounted Julius again.

"I think she really wanted to go," Castle said.

"Didn't Skye and Mary talk about going to some stables by Universal?" Julia said after they'd called out to her mother once she'd passed by.

"It was too far and we ended up being too busy," Castle replied. "And I wonder if your mom really would have wanted to go on another horse."

"She has before," Julia pointed out. She smiled when he shrugged his shoulders and then patted Sapphire's neck before Beckett was going by again. Glancing at her father for a moment, she couldn't help smiling at the way he was staring after her mother. For a second, she wondered if she should let him know he was doing that but decided it didn't need to be said as her mother was slowing down at that point as she was nearing them again. "Was that fun?" she asked before her mother noticed that Castle was still staring at her.

"Of course," Beckett said. "You want to go with me?"

"Sure," Julia said, nudging Sapphire forward. "How many times?"

"Just three," Beckett said. "Rick you'll come with me after."

"I don't need to," Castle said immediately.

Smiling Beckett told him, "I'd like you to." After he had nodded, not surprised at the flash in his eyes in response, she turned and she and Julia started to go faster as they were going around the outside of the field until they were galloping. Though she trusted her daughter, she was watching the girl to make sure they didn't get too close. After they'd gone around three times, she had them slow down until Julia was going out and her husband coming in. They rode around a little more than she had with their daughter and when they slowed down she told him, "D'fhéadfá a fheiceann tú," which meant she could see him.

"I don't know what you mean," Castle said, speaking in English and expecting a look from his wife for that. He was startled when she merely smiled, and he was tempted to ask her why she was looking at him like that when she spoke.

"Beidh cithfholcadh orm," Beckett commented under her breath though she knew he would hear. It meant the phrase 'I will need a shower' and she had emphasized the word will. She wasn't surprised seeing her husband's shudder in response, but she said, "I think everyone's here guys," in English to distract them.

Julia turned Sapphire; so her parents wouldn't see her smiling at their exchange though she hadn't heard anything and had just watched them. She went over to where she could see everyone else and she called out as soon as she was close to them.

"Was the baby horsie born?" Eliza asked her big sister eagerly.

"It was, come see," Julia said. She thanked Louis for taking Sapphire's reins and got down with her father's help. "Oh… do I need to-" she said as she recalled the need to get the horse rubbed down and brushed.

"Santiago is here," Louis told her. "He'll take her."

Nodding Julia said, "Tell him thanks."

"I will, go on and show them," Louis said.

Going to her little sister, Julia took her hand and then said, "Where are Gram and Grandpapa," since it was just Alexis and Eliza with the McDouglases.

"They're staying with your baby sister," Skye explained. "And my dad."

"They want you to take pictures though," Marie commented.

"I will," Beckett said with a smile when Julia turned to her. They walked over to the stable and she said, "Don't run over there," to Eliza.

"I won't," the little girl said, trying to contain her excitement. "Is it a boy or a girl?" Eliza asked her sister.

"I'll say when I tell you the name," Julia replied before they were reaching the stall. She watched her sister looking in at the colt and wasn't surprised at the look of awe on her face at the sight of it.

"Oh… Jules, did you give it a name?" Eliza asked.

"I did," Julia replied. "And his name is Helios."

"That's pretty!" Eliza gasped, keeping her voice quiet so she wouldn't scare the horses. "That's really Josa's horse?"

"Yeah," Julia said before she realized their parents weren't with the group behind them.

"They went to take care of their horses," Alexis explained to her.

Nodding, as she wasn't surprised they had done that, Julia moved out of the way for the others so they could see the colt as well. She took Eliza's hand and they walked together to the entrance of the building telling her, "I saw Helios being born and everything."

"Oh… was it scary?" Eliza asked.

"No, just funny to see," Julia said. "But he's cute huh?"

"Yeah… why did you ask me that?" Eliza said.

Smiling, not surprised her sister had realized there was a reason why she'd asked what she had, Julia said, "It's gonna be Josa's horse."

"Yeah," Eliza replied. "She can't ride yet."

"Oh good, I thought you would be mad about that," Julia said.

Eliza; spotting their parents coming over to them; shook her head firmly before she smiled widely and ran over to them to hug them.

"Hey sweetie," Beckett said, picking her up first.

"Hi!" Eliza said eagerly. "Did you have a fun ride?"

"It was, want to go on a pony?" Beckett asked her.

"Yeah!" Eliza said eagerly.

"What did you think of Helios, before we go?" Castle said as he took the little girl from his wife and hugged her.

"He's so cute! Josa will love him," Eliza said with a wide smile.

"She's right," Mary said as they were walking over to them. "That's is a beautiful animal."

"You two don't want to ride?" Beckett asked the women.

"I'm good, still tired," Skye said with a smile. "Are you riding again?"

"No, just Eliza," Beckett said as Castle was setting their daughter down so he could get a pony for her. "What about your girls."

"Just Eliza," Skye echoed before she smiled. When she saw the surprised expression on her friend's face she explained saying, "They want to head back to your home and play."

"Okay," Beckett said with a nod before she turned to see that Castle was coming back with Louis. She smiled at the pony the latter was leading and Eliza next to her jumping up and down. "Who got her boots for her?" she asked her oldest.

"Your dad," Alexis said. "He was the only one who could grab her and calm her down."

"That's not a surprise," Beckett said quickly and with a smile on her face before she turned her attention to helping Eliza onto the pony. Once she was seated she said as she led her daughter to the corral they were near, "I'll let you ride by yourself a little sweetie."

"Really?" the little girl asked happily.

"Really," Beckett said. She then let her take the reins and said, "Nothing faster than a walk."

Nodding, since her mother was talking to her seriously, Eliza then nudged her heels gently into the pony's sides to get it walking forward. She was watching the fence of the corral to gently tug on the reins to keep the pony walking alongside it and she went around several times until her mother was telling her to stop the horse. She waited until she got around to her again and stopped at Beckett, looking up at her with a smile. "Was that good?" she asked.

"Very," Beckett said, taking the pony back outside before stopping it. She let Castle help her dismount before she said, "Let's go wash our hands and then head home."

"Time for dinner?" Eliza asked.

"To make dinner," Castle corrected her with a smile.

Eliza giggled before she walked with her parents to the nearest stable and she waved to the others as they passed.

As she and her husband were washing up, Beckett was going over what they would need to do for their meal before she felt him grabbing her hand. "What?" she asked, looking behind them to see their daughter was leaving the building.

"Just this," Castle told her before he kissed her. He kept that gentle before she was wrapping her arms around him and he deepened things before they were clinging to each other.

"Wait," Beckett said, stopping him. "We have to go home."

"Yeah… let's go," Castle said as he realized they had their shower still. He took her hand before he could kiss her again and they walked together out to their family and friends so they could get home and begin their Thanksgiving festivities.

"Here," Beckett was saying to her husband, reaching for his shirt. She was smiling as he stood still suddenly; on the threshold of the bathroom; and watched her unbuttoning his shirt before it was opened. She pushed it off his shoulders when she'd finished, and she took his kiss as he was left in his undershirt. She then pulled away before she said, "Come on."

Castle let her pull him into the bathroom fully and he said, "I feel weird."

"Then take it off," Beckett said with a smile. She looked on as he was doing that and stepped forward the second he turned his head to toss the white shirt aside. With him distracted she opened the fly of his trousers before he was gathering her up in his arms.

Kissing her as passionately as he could, Castle slipped his hands underneath his wife's shirt and once he held her back he was bringing her flush against him. "Love…" he breathed against her lips. "You're fucking incredible.""So are you," Beckett said in pleasure at his touch. She was pulling off her polo shirt then, having to regrettably step away from him, and she then tossed it aside before she was removing her trousers. She was relieved when her husband was divesting himself of his own pants and undershirt, leaving themselves in their underclothing before she couldn't stop herself.

Ready for his wife, Castle pulled her into his arms and held her tight before he kissed her hungrily. Their tongues were meeting shortly after that and they were fighting together for some time. When their need to breathe became too great they parted and he was gasping for air as she was grasping at the bulge she had caused in his boxers. "Kate," he groaned.

Beckett didn't say anything to that, instead reaching up behind herself for her bra so she could get it off which she managed until she was grabbed by her husband again. "We need to hurry," she told him, stopping him from kissing her again.

Though he didn't want to admit it, Castle let her go and he watched her go to the shower before she removed the last of her clothing. He followed rapidly seeing her naked and he took off his boxers before slipping inside the stall with her. As soon as he stepped in he was in his wife's arms, kissing her hungrily again as they stood together underneath the water.

When they had stopped, Beckett stayed close to her husband and whispered, "Just our hands love."

Nodding, Castle kissed her again but kept it short as he wanted them to start which they were doing with him pushing her back against the wall. "My goddess," he breathed to her huskily as they were staring at one another. Beckett was cupping his face and he leaned down enough to kiss her with a brief brush of his lips before he pulled back. Reaching down, he gently rubbed at her sex, finding her clit and focusing on that for a while as he watched her reaction. He wasn't sure what exactly he could do after that just yet, when she was grabbing his wrist and telling him.

"At the same time?" Beckett said. She wasn't surprised to see the conflict on her husband's face before he kissed her, and she knew he was agreeing. While they were doing that she reached down to him and grasped his erection before he was pulling away from her with a curse.

"Love…" Castle started to say before he trailed off and then reached down to her. He rubbed at her sex while she was running her hand over his length before he used both his hands as she'd begun doing. He kissed her again, but it was quick as he was trying to keep pleasuring her while she was doing the same to him as well. "Do you want me to-" he started to say after they'd been doing that for some time.

"Yes," Beckett said, knowing what he wanted already. She gasped when she felt his fingers slide down to her folds and he was rubbing over them at first. He did that for longer than she was expecting and she was going to move him when he did that himself. She bit at her lower lip and let go of him so she wouldn't squeeze his length as his fingers slipped within her. When he started to move them, she was holding onto his shoulders and she told him, "I can't…"

"Don't worry," Castle said. "I'll help you first."

Though she wanted to ask him about his wording, she was instead saying, "No, don't kneel," as he was doing that in front of her.

"I'm fine," Castle said.

"But…" Beckett started to say when he was going straight to her clit suddenly. She cried out as his tongue was playing with the nub and she felt heat shoot up her body from that. Her hands went down to him in reaction and she threaded her fingers through his hair before his fingers were working on her as well. She wasn't sure how long it took exactly, but it was very shortly after that she was hitting her back against the tiles as she cried out his name. She could feel his tongue slipping around on her, what seemed like everywhere, though she soon came out of her daze to realize he was rubbing it through her folds. That realization aroused her slightly; though she was recovering from her ecstasy; and she reached for her husband to get him up off the floor. "Do not stop me," she told him.

"I-" Castle started to say before she was on her knees and grasping his member. He couldn't speak then, her mouth taking him swiftly and her tongue quick to begin moving over him. He was reaching down to her hair and threading his fingers through the locks before he was swearing as her hands were working along with her mouth. "Fuck… Kate I won't… you're going to make me come," he hissed as he was clenching his teeth together hard. But she wasn't stopping and he was letting her pull him over the edge as he'd been aching to for some time by then. He called her name once and reached for the wall behind him so he wouldn't pull at her hair accidentally. When he came to himself after the haze of pleasure she'd had him in he tried to get her to stand when she slapped at his hands.

Only when she was sure she was finished did Beckett allow her husband to help her up and she wrapped her arms around his neck before they were falling into a deep kiss. She would have smiled at the way he held her; tightly but not too intimate; but their tongues were rolling together until they were slowly parting. "Hmm, that's it until Monday," she told him with a smile.

Sighing, as he knew they needed to turn their attention to their dinner, Castle brushed his lips to hers and said, "It's going to be hard to resist you but… we'll be-" before she kissed him and stopped him.

"I'll make it worth it," Beckett said when they had finally parted, a slight smile on her face.

"Me too," Castle said before he was smiling himself as she was laughing. "Let's…" he started to say, not finishing as he was leading her over to the water so they could stand under it together.

Beckett was relieved when her husband focused on them both washing their hair and bodies and only briefly kissing her. She knew that if he started something she would do anything he wanted and she really wanted to wait until Tahiti for anything more intimate than what they'd had. When they'd finished, she allowed him to dry her and she made sure to do the same to him before they went out into the bedroom and she was going straight to the dresser.

"Kate, that's my-" Castle started to say when he saw she was opening one of his drawers. He stopped himself seeing that she was taking out one of his spare braces and he said, "I'll-"

"Put it on now," Beckett told him firmly.

"I will," Castle said, taking it and removing his towel. He was hoping his wife was watching him but saw that she was going to the closet. Sighing he then shook himself and turned his attention to his brace to pull it on as quickly as he could. He dressed before his wife was coming into the bedroom; dressed herself; and he said, "You were going in there fast."

Giving him a brief look, Beckett took a moment to speak before she said, "I didn't want to risk it."

"I'm still confused as to how me putting on my brace does that," Castle said after thinking that over for a moment.

Shaking her head, Beckett went to the bathroom and wasn't surprised to see him walk by her in the mirror. "Look, we have family and friends here."

"Sunday isn't that far away," Castle said as he set down his comb. "Though I'm still not happy with Monday."

"Neither am I," Beckett said with a nod, knowing he was talking about the girls' first day at school. She was relieved as well since he was turning the conversation from them and she added, "But if we brought this up with Julia again," before looking at him in the mirror.

"Why do our daughters have that much hold over us?" Castle asked her, finished getting ready but staying in front of his sink.

"Our oldest has had that hold over you for twenty-six years," Beckett commented. "Did you ever figure out why?" She smiled when her husband shook his head and then started to braid her hair swiftly before she tied off the end. Looking back up in the mirror she commented, "You're not that quiet."

"Believe me when I say I wasn't intending to scare you," Castle commented. He had her turn to him and said, "I'm fine. Really." He wasn't surprised when she shifted in front of him and he said, "If you want me to jump around or… over the bed I can do that."

"Don't," Beckett said, rolling her eyes as she was fighting a smile at the same time. She patted his chest before she was taking his hand saying, "I want to make sure Julia's ready."

"Go ahead, Alexis was talking about helping," Castle said, letting her lead them out into the bedroom. They went together out into the hallway in time to see Julia leaving her room a second before she spotted them.

"Hey, I am gonna change later right?" Julia asked, walking over to them.

"Yes, your sister shouldn't be dressed for dinner," Beckett said, checking her hair as she knew her daughter had put it up into a ponytail herself.

"Did you wash behind your ears?" Castle asked.

"Dad," Julia said in mock annoyance.

"Come on, we need to get started," Beckett said before the girl stopped them.

"Wait, what about a horse for Lizzy?" Julia asked. "She's the only one who doesn't have one."

"We'll take care of that another day," Castle said. When the girl frowned at first him and then his wife he glanced at Beckett before saying, "Would you mind if she had a full-blooded Andalusian?"

"Nope," Julia said quickly. "Is that what you're waiting for?"

"Yes," Beckett said. "Now let's go before we have to order pizza for dinner."

"That would be cool," Julia said, taking her father's hand so they could go down the stairs.

Beckett wasn't surprised to hear her husband teasing their second oldest before she realized her phone in her hand was vibrating. She turned it on quickly and then said to Castle and Julia, "I need to talk to Skye for a second. About the apples."

"We'll be in the kitchen," the latter said before he led his daughter down the hall.

Turning to the backyard; knowing that everyone except for Josie and her father were there; Beckett was about to go to the door leading out when the investigator came in.

"This way," Skye said in Russian before she went over to the family room. "I'm guessing; by that look on your face; you got the e-mail."

"I saw the first line," Beckett replied once they were in the room. She opened it and swiftly read it before shaking her head, "I told-"

"It's two outfits for spring," Skye commented. "And I was going to suggest she take them out here."

"She said no?" Beckett asked in surprise before her friend was looking at her phone.

"Ah… London," Skye replied. "She… well you'll be there for the recording, right?"

"It's planned; yes," Beckett said. When her friend looked at her she sighed saying, "You said I'd do it already didn't you?"

"I wasn't about to do it on my own," Skye scoffed. "Again, two outfits, two pictures. Our daughters won't be in them and we're in the pictures together."

Breathing out Beckett said, "Alright. Will Mary be allowed to go."

"Haven't told her yet," Skye said. She saw the expression on her friend's face and said, "Oh, don't pretend you know me."

"But I do," Beckett replied, a slight smirk on her face. "Rosie."

"Piss off," Skye said in mock annoyance before they were starting to laugh. "Okay, so you're in the kitchen with them then?"

"I am, but we're sending Julia out soon," Beckett replied as they left the room.

"Anything we can do to help?" Skye asked.

"We're fine," Beckett said. "But we will need to add the leaf to the kitchen table before we have our food."

"They'll notice," Skye commented in Irish.

Shrugging Beckett said, "I don't think they'll care in the end."

"I'll see you in a bit, bloody cold out there," Skye said.

"Welcome to New York," Beckett replied. She smiled when her friend stuck her tongue out at her before going to the backyard and she headed to the kitchen where she saw Julia was watching her.

"Why did Skye stick her tongue out at you?" the girl asked.

"It's because they're sisters," Castle commented.

Giving her husband a look, Beckett said, "It was just a joke. Is the water boiling?"

"Yeah, finally," Julia said, rolling her eyes. "Why can't I cover it?"

"You know already," Beckett said wryly. "Ready to put the pieces in?"

"Yep," Julia told her simply. "Dad let me cut them myself."

"I told you your mom told me to," Castle commented.

"Be careful," Beckett said, bringing over the cut sweet potatoes to Julia. "Did you get everything washed?" she then directed to her husband as he'd gotten the vegetables for side dishes out.

"Yeah, I left you the cranberries," Castle said, slightly distracted as he was peeling the last potato he needed.

"That's last," Beckett told him, watching Julia at the same time. "I'll work on the rolls then."

"And me?" the girl asked.

"You can go out and play," Beckett said.

"But that's not fair for the two of you," Julia said in protest.

"We'll be fine; it's not the first time we've done this," Castle said.

Julia did her best not to frown and she turned her attention to the rest of the pieces of sweet potatoes before she started to stir them. Since she had made the dish so many times before she knew what she needed to do and when and was soon mashing the orange vegetable until it was ready. "The best part," she said happily as her mother walked over to her with the bag of mini marshmallows.

"Don't sneak any," Beckett said sternly. She sighed when Julia was just smiling at her and she leaned over, kissing the side of her head.

"Mom," the girl said with a laugh before she was shaking the sweets on top of the potatoes. "Okay… it's ready."

"So is the colcannon," Castle said, finishing his dish he'd been working on.

"Isn't it weird we have two mashed potato dishes of some kind?" Julia asked her parents as she was washing her hands.

"We'll have others," Beckett replied. "Now go outside."

Julia wanted to protest but she knew her mother wouldn't let her before she said, "Thanks for letting me help!" When her parents said goodbye to her she ran out of the kitchen to go to the door outside, pausing to put on her boots and coat.

"Hi," Mary said as she saw Julia racing over to her and Skye.

"Hi, listen," the girl started to say. "My parents are making a couple other dishes and they're alone."

"We'll go in," Skye said. When Julia looked at her in surprise she smiled and told her, "We'd been planning on it; feel a bit guilty they're on their own."

"Oh… thank you," Julia said in relief.

"You're welcome, head out and play now," Skye began.

"Or fly your kite," Mary said. She smiled when her wife glanced at her out of the corner of her eye and then said, "We'll head in now but tell your sister."

Nodding, Julia raced down to her siblings and friends to join them in flying their kites in the wind above the beach.

"Should you have told her when we're going in?" Mary asked her wife in Japanese.

Shaking her head Skye said, "Leave them be for now. Kate'll kill me if we head in without giving them a few minutes." She smiled when her wife laughed softly and then glanced back momentarily to the kitchen before looking at the kids again with Mary.

"You're right," Castle said, looking out the window down at the two women after Julia had left them. "I'd say… ten minutes?"

"Maybe," Beckett replied, cutting the last green bean and putting it into a bowl with all the vegetables she'd cut for the medley her husband was going to make. "Hey Dad," she said as he was coming down the hall. "Is she okay?" she added as she'd seen Josie in his arms.

"She just woke up," Jim said. "And weren't you going to serve snacks?"

"We will in a little," Beckett said, looking at the clock on the wall. "Rick?"

"Getting it," Castle said as he was in the fridge. He took out a long platter and then a container saying, "Could you call them in, in about ten minutes?"

"Sure," Jim replied. "Is it alright-"

"Go ahead Dad," Beckett said with a smile, watching him take a celery stick. When he left them for the parlor; to let Josie look outside at the kids she knew; she said to her husband, "Are you sure?" speaking in Irish.

"I promise you, my knee is fine," Castle said, cursing himself for the second time for kneeling on the shower floor. "We should have done that after… on our bed."

Shaking her head Beckett said, "I should have stopped you."

With a brief shrug, as he was checking on the turkey, Castle said, "And I should have stopped you. We're both stubborn and we'll most likely continue to be."

Sighing, Beckett wanted to tell him not to kneel like that again, but she was very aware he wouldn't know what he'd do in Tahiti, so she merely nodded at him. "Is everything ready for later?" she finally said.

"Yeah," Castle replied, looking over their side dishes. "Good thing too, I'm starving."

"Pervert," Beckett said simply and swiftly before she heard her father calling to the others outside distantly. They washed their hands before she was going to the door first, watching the kids coming in. "Dad-" she began when he handed her Josie.

"I'll take care of the coats," Jim replied easily as he went to Eliza first.

Beckett, watching him, turned her attention to Julia who was coming in and taking off her own coat. She was going to apologize for her having to come in so soon, but her daughter was speaking first.

"Don't worry," Julia told her mother. "We'll play tomorrow. It's supposed to be sunny still, right?"

"It will be," Beckett said with a nod. She watched her second oldest hang the coat and then told her, "Don't forget to wash your hands."

Nodding, Julia went to the kitchen with everyone and took her turn to wash her hands before she going to the table where the vegetables were. "We can go back outside now, right? After we eat," she asked her father.

"No," Beckett answered before Castle could say anything. "It's almost sunset and it'll be getting colder."

"Really?" Kathleen asked, looking outside.

"Yeah, you didn't think it was getting dark for no reason, did you?" Julia asked with a smile.

"It doesn't get dark this early back at home," Marie said.

"What time does it get dark in California?" Eliza asked.

"She's kidding," Skye said, shaking her head. "It's only about… a twenty-minute difference."

"Sorry," Marie said with a smile as her friend looked at her. "But really, it's early still."

"That's the bad part about winter," Julia said, not surprised when her little sister nodded in agreement.

"Okay," Mary said. "That's enough for now, you won't be hungry for dinner."

"Thanks for the vegetables," Kathleen said, her sisters saying the same after her. "But what can we do now?"

"Go to the family room and decide," Skye said. "We're staying with you two," she told Castle and Beckett.

"We know," the latter said. Beckett smiled at her when she looked slightly startled and said, "We guessed."

"Anything we can help you with?" Mary then asked.

"Well… the rolls need to go in the oven," Castle began.

"Cranberry sauce?" Mary said.

"I take care of that," Beckett said before she looked at her husband.

"Oh, okay," Castle said with a sigh. "You guys know how to make risotto."

"You know already we do," Skye said simply.

"We're planning on having squash risotto with the side dishes," Castle told them. "I have the recipe here."

"We'll take care of that," Skye said quickly. "Just show us the paper."

Beckett was smiling at the two women as they were swiftly working, as they'd done when they were cooking back in Santa Monica. But she turned her attention to what she needed to do as they were running out of time before dinner started though she and her husband were talking to each other and the two women while they were moving around the kitchen together.

"Kate?" Castle said, knocking on the door of their room. Since he was alone he opened the door and walked inside before he saw her stepping out of the bathroom.

"What?" Beckett asked as her husband walked over to her.

"You look amazing," Castle said as he reached her. He gathered her in his arms and pulled her close, not surprised when she wrapped her arms around him in turn. They kissed, deeply at first, before he recalled she'd stop him soon for dinner and he slowed things down. He was relieved when she followed him, and they parted slightly breathless before he nuzzled her nose with his and said, "I'm thinking what I just said."

Laughing softly Beckett said, "Thank you. Hurry and change though."

"Are you staying?" Castle asked, not letting her go though he knew he should.

"I'm going to get Josie," Beckett replied, letting go of his neck so he would let her go. "But we'll come back."

"Thank you," Castle said before they shared a brief kiss and then watched her go. He let his gaze linger on her legs until she was out of sight and shook himself before he went to grab his shirt.

"Can we go with you too Mommy?" Eliza was asking Beckett as she was taking Josie from Martha.

"Alright, but what about your guests?" Beckett said.

Julia wasn't surprised when her little sister looked at her questioningly and said, "They're fine if we go with you for right now."

Beckett didn't say anything, merely made sure that Josie's sweater was on straight before she heard the chime for the door in the gate ring.

"We'll get it, come on girls," Martha said, smiling at her daughter in law before she led them out of the room.

Leaving herself, Beckett went the opposite direction and into the master bedroom where she saw her husband was just leaving the bathroom. "Interesting timing," she said with a smile, letting him take the baby.

"She looks so cute," Castle said, groaning when Josie grabbed at his nose and then hair as she was laughing.

"I'm not sure if that means she approves of you or not," Beckett said, trying her hardest not to laugh as she watched her husband struggling with the baby as Josie was grabbing at him again.

"It's my best shirt for dinner sweetheart," Castle said to the baby, finally lifting her up above his head as she was laughing again. He lowered her to hold her on his hip and when she merely looked at him with wide eyes he told his wife, "Okay…"

"We should go; they're here," Beckett told him, using that as a distraction as it was becoming more and more difficult not to laugh.

"Wait," Castle said, reaching for her and grabbing her hand. He pulled her to him and they kissed sensuously, their tongues just rubbing against each other before he had to let go of her. "She's eager to eat," he commented since Josie had started to move in his arm.

"And you," Beckett said simply before her husband was giving her a look. She smiled at him and led the way out of the room before they went downstairs. "Thanks for coming," she said as she saw the Watersons and Lennoxes walking down the hall.

"Mom," Julia said, going over to her. "Thanks for inviting them!"

"You're welcome," Beckett told her. "How is it being back?" she asked, sharing a quick hug with Genevieve.

"Great," she said with a smile. "But Peter is ecstatic to be back in his room and at the house."

"I'm not surprised," Beckett replied. She then greeted Isaac and Clive and said, "Dinner is ready, we just need to get everything out and then we can get our food."

"I'll take Josie," Martha said, going over to them.

Once the baby was set with her grandmother, Castle and Beckett were then getting everything ready in the kitchen. Skye joined them while the older kids were getting the two tables set and once they had everyone was getting their food though they had to take turns since Josie needed to be held.

"Since we're in two different rooms," Castle was saying when they'd finished and were gathered around the kids' table; which was the kitchen table. "I'll say my toast here. Happy Thanksgiving and we're all grateful for being together tonight and this season of Dancing With the Stars which ended with Skye and Derek as champions. Sláinte."

"Sláinte," Beckett said with a smile, tapping her cup to her husband's first. She did the same with as many of the others as she could before she said to their daughters, "Behave yourselves," jokingly.

"I agree, no food fights," Skye said, looking at hers and Mary's daughters.

"We'll keep an eye on them," Alexis said with a smile.

"What? I wouldn't start a food fight," Louis said in mock annoyance. He smiled when his girlfriend looked at him and said, "We'll watch them."

Going to the dining room, Castle put Josie in her highchair between himself and Beckett and sat with the others before they began to eat. He looked at the table, which only had the adults there and he said, "I wonder if it was a good idea not to have some of the younger kids here."

"They'd have a riot," Mary said with a laugh.

"At least Alexis and Louis are there," Genevieve was saying.

"Is he responsible?" Isaac said.

"Oh, we didn't tell you," Beckett said standing up and getting her phone that was on the credenza behind her. "Julia's horse's pony was born today."

"It's…" Genevieve started to say as she was looking at the pony.

"A colt, Julia named him Helios," Castle said with a smile.

"And Louis was there for the birth," Beckett said.

"He… really?" Isaac asked in surprise.

"He has a doctorate," Martha commented. "And a way with horses."

"Then I guess he'll be good with the kids too," Isaac said, smiling. "And now I can say it; this food is excellent."

"He's right, who made the colcannon?" Skye asked.

"I did, but Kate is really good at it," Castle answered.

Smiling, Beckett said, "Luckily we're all competent cooks."

"But we didn't make the risotto, that was Skye and Mary," Castle pointed out.

Smiling as the others were complimenting them on it, the latter said, "It's their recipe but thanks. I hope our kids are enjoying it."

"And not just eating the marshmallows on the sweet potatoes," Skye said with a smile. "That Julia made."

"I'll check on them," Beckett said as she stood. She wasn't surprised when Genevieve and Isaac protested but she merely smiled at them before walking down to the kitchen.

"Hi Mommy!" Eliza said, seeing her mother first.

"Hello sweetie," Beckett said. "And everyone else," she added with a smile, squeezing Julia's shoulder. "Are you enjoying the food?" She couldn't help laughing after her initial surprise as the kids all started to talk at the same time. But she was able to tell they were saying yes and she said, "Good, if you want seconds make sure either Alexis or Louis are with you."

"Mom," Julia said quickly before she could leave. "Did you tell Peter's mom and Clive's dad about Helios? I told them," she said, motioning to the boys at the end.

"I did, they think he's cute," Beckett said. "And remind me about the pictures after dinner so you can show them." When her second oldest nodded she smiled at all the kids and went back to the table. She wasn't surprised when the other parents were looking at her and said, "They're eating. Talking too," she said after pausing when they could hear the kids laughing together. "But they're eating everything."

"Even the vegetable medley?" Isaac asked. "Clive's iffy on some of them."

"He is," Beckett replied. "They all are which I'm going to credit Alexis and Louis with since they've had luck feeding their siblings."

After they were eating for a bit Genevieve asked, "You two are leaving again."

"Yeah," Beckett said with a smile as she looked at her husband. "But it's just for a few days. Are you guys planning on taking trips in the future?"

"Not at the moment; not until summer… or Spring Break," Isaac said. "Though Clive told me you were heading to Mexico City."

"Did he explain to you about the show?" Skye asked.

"Yeah… so… you can actually do that," Isaac said.

"To be honest it's not doing anything," Skye replied. "It's what I can see."

"And… Julia too," Genevieve said.

"Yes, but we'll also go around the city a bit," Skye said.

"That'll be fun," Mary said. "The kids will love it."

"And you'll be safe?" Isaac asked slowly.

"It's not that dangerous, there are millions of people there and they're fine," Skye said after taking a drink of her wine. "Plus, it's like any other city. And the people are very nice. And the food is amazing too." She noticed that both Genevieve and Jim were looking hesitant and she was going to tell them what she knew what they were thinking when the latter was talking before her.

"Have you ever eaten bugs?" Beckett's father asked. "I've heard they can be good. And full of protein."

"I have," Skye said with a smile. "Escamoles since I'm not quite sure about crickets yet… perhaps next time."

"What are those?" Isaac asked in confusion.

"I don't know if I should answer that," Skye commented, looking at all the plates.

"We're already talking about bugs," Martha said. "And we know they're not part of dinner here."

"Ant eggs," Skye said with a sigh. "It was part of a dish and I didn't know until after the fact that I ate them."

"And were you… sick?" Genevieve asked.

"No, they were safe to eat," Skye replied. "But if I want to do that again… I'll see when we go."

"Don't mention that to kids," Beckett said with a laugh.

"Already have, I'm sorry Josie," Skye said in a mock apology to the baby who was hitting her hand on the tray of her highchair.

"I guess she's telling you to stop," Isaac said as Castle was taking the baby out of her chair and sitting her on his lap. "That brings back a lot of memories," he then commented with a smile. "You're lucky to have done this three more times."

Beckett shared a glance with Skye; sitting directly across from her; and then said with a slight smile, "You've got a lot more to go with Clive still. But Rick and I have been wondering if he's going to keep dancing?"

"I'm not sure," Isaac said, scratching his cheek. "He's really enjoyed it so…"

"And Mari?" Genevieve asked.

"No, he's not at that stage yet," Isaac said with a laugh. "He's fine dancing with Mari but he's really looking at her like a sister."

"They do tease each other," Skye said, as she'd noticed it being around the kids so much for the past three months.

"They do," Isaac replied. "If you will excuse me, I'd suddenly like to check on my son, and get more of the turkey."

Beckett; left alone with her husband as the others were going for seconds and to see the kids; took his hand across the corner of the table and said, "You're going to do the same aren't you?"

"I've had crickets," Castle said. He smiled at his wife's expression and explained saying, "I've been to Mexico City too remember. It was at a market and they had spicy and not spiced. I tried both and the spicy was a mistake, but it wasn't too bad plain."

"Plain crickets," Beckett stated instead of asking. She smiled slightly when he nodded and then said, "Well… since you liked those lollipops that tasted like soap and the haggis in Scotland… You're well on your way to hosting your own travel and eating show."

"Oh no," Castle said. "I'm not leaving without you."

"Then you're staying home," Beckett said, standing up. She leaned over and they shared a brief kiss on the lips before she said, "What would you like?"

"I'll tell you myself," Castle said, getting up. He wanted to kiss her again, but his mother and Skye were coming back into the room and he instead followed her out to the kitchen. "Hey, how're you all doing?" he to the kids. When they were all answering at once he nodded and said, "Okay, I'm glad you're enjoying yourselves."

"Is Josa having a good time?" Julia asked, smiling at the baby as she was walking back to the table with her plate.

"She is," Beckett said after the baby babbled briefly. "Are you going to get anymore after these plates?" When the girls shook their heads she said, "Then take your plates to the sink and come into the dining room."

After their middle daughters had nodded, Castle followed his wife to tell her what he wanted. When she had her plate ready, they walked back to the dining room and he said to the baby, "I need to put you back in your chair, but someone will carry you once we're finished eating." He took her laugh as assent and took her to the highchair, setting her in before he sat to eat. He and Beckett started talking with the others about their plans until the McDouglases needed to leave and they would head to Tahiti as they finished their meal.

"Where's the toy Josa?" Julia was asking the baby with a smile.

"Can she find it?" Fleur said.

"Hold on," Julia told her before they watched the baby looking around herself. She then pushed the foam sphere she'd been playing with over to her and watched Josie grab it once it was next to her knee. "Good job Josa!" she said, hugging her and laughing when her baby sister did.

"Dessert's ready," Castle said, walking up to the doorway of the family room where the kids were with Martha and Jim watching them. "Bring Josie," he told Julia.

"Sure," she replied before standing and leaning over to get the baby. "Oh, I don't think you can take this with you," Julia told her baby sister as she was still holding the sphere.

"Let me tickle her," Eliza said, hurrying over to help. She started to tickle at Josie's neck, making her smile before she managed to get the sphere and they were walking with the other kids and their grandparents.

"You guys can have a slice of both pies," Castle told the girls. "But very small pieces."

"Did Mommy say it was okay?" Eliza asked hopefully.

"I did, but I'll cut the slices for you," Beckett said firmly.

"I want both," Julia said, turning her head as Josie was grasping at her cheek.

"Do you want me to take her?" Martha asked with a smile.

"No, it's fine," Julia said while they were watching her yawning. "When does she have to go to bed?"

"Soon," Castle said since his wife was cutting the apple and pumpkin pies they had. "Kate-"

"Here," Beckett said, giving two plates to the girls. "We're eating here but wait and sit at the table."

"Okay," Eliza said happily, carrying her plate carefully over to the table and setting it down.

"What do you want Rick?" Beckett asked her husband.

"I'll take care of it," Castle said simply. He was glad when she let him take the knife she'd been using, and he cut two pieces of pie. "Love?" he asked her.

Shaking her head and smiling, Beckett said, "I'll take that."

"Why are you lot playing with knives?" Skye asked, having been watching the two as she'd been dishing out the other two pies for her family.

"Not that kind of playing," Beckett said in Irish. She glanced at her friend and smiled before she got her slices of pie and said, "Are we ready?" looking around to make sure everyone had some of the dessert.

"Yeah," Peter said.

"Go ahead and eat," Castle said laughingly as the other kids were laughing. He and Beckett had gone to the table; as his father in law had put Josie in her highchair; and they were eating while watching the baby. "Don't," he said with a smile to Eliza as she was pretending to feed Josie some of the apples in her slice.

"Sorry Josa," the little girl said with a wide smile. "Daddy says no."

"Abababa," Josie babbled before she was yawning widely.

"We'll put her to bed when we're finished," Beckett said, smiling at the sight of the baby growing more obviously tired.

"We'll take care of the dishes," Skye said.

"You-" Castle began to say before he was interrupted.

"We are guests," Isaac said, as he and Genevieve had helped Skye and Mary with the dinner dishes.

"And you're giving us leftovers… for some reason," Genevieve said.

"We had a lot of food," Beckett then said. "But thank you for wanting to do that for us, it helps."

"Do we need to?" Clive asked.

"No," Isaac said, shaking his head with a smile. "But behave please."

"They'll be fine," Skye commented. "And they're done, girls. Plates to the sink if you please."

While the guests were taking everything into the kitchen, Castle and Beckett looked on while their parents and then daughters kissed Josie goodnight before Alexis turned to them.

"No bath tonight?" the young woman asked her dad and mother.

"Tomorrow, you guys can give it to her," Beckett answered. She took the baby and said, "We'll be back down once she's set. Stay here Max, Molly," directing the last to the dogs as they were watching them. She led the way up the stairs and when they were at Josie's room she turned to her husband.

"What?" Castle asked, slightly surprised at her stopping and turning to him.

"Go ahead," Beckett said, handing Josie to her.

"Stay with us?" Castle asked as he took the baby.

"Yes," Beckett said, unable to help smiling at that. She followed him inside before she paused and then turned. "I thought I said stay."

"Can you really say no to them?" Castle asked, smiling as he watched the Setter and Hound come into the room. "And they are Josie's."

"Alright," Beckett said with a slight sigh before she went to the dresser and got the baby's pajamas for that night.

"No leaves for her?" Castle asked.

"You're lucky this one was on top," Beckett said wryly as it had a pattern of pine trees over it with little foxes in between them.

"Yeah, Christmas is coming Josie," Castle said, smiling at the baby as he was taking her sweater off. "And your first one this year."

Beckett was smiling herself, at the baby reaching for Castle and gurgling at him before she smiled. "She takes after you," she told her husband with a smile.

Glancing at her, Castle said, "It doesn't matter if she's like you Kate."

Shaking her head Beckett kissed his cheek as she took the baby's outfit to put in the hamper and told him, "She'll love Christmas, her sisters will help her with that."

"If not me?" Castle asked, changing the baby's diaper.

"If not you," Beckett echoed as she walked back to him. Once Josie was in her onesie she said, "Let me take her." Holding the baby Beckett said, "Your first Christmas is also going to be your first British Christmas."

"Actually, that's for all of us," Castle said, sitting on the edge of the bed as she had gone to the rocking chair.

"Do you mind?" Beckett asked him.

"No, she'll be fine with her mom," Castle said. He couldn't help laughing softly at the look she gave him and then said, "Did you notice they haven't asked about it yet?"

"We just got home yesterday," Beckett reminded him. "Just give them a little time."

Nodding, Castle looked on as Josie's eyes were soon closing and he stood once his wife had to lean over to press his lips to the top of the baby's head. "I love you sweetheart. Sweet dreams," he whispered before they walked together to the crib.

"I love you too Josie," Beckett told her. "We'll play with you inside tomorrow. But for now, sweet dreams." She kissed Josie's temple tenderly and then set her down in the crib, making sure she was well covered before she and Castle stood there, watching their daughter fall asleep.

"Come on," Castle told her, taking her hand after he realized they'd been there for a while. He let her get the web cam on before they stepped out into the hallway, leaving the door open just enough for the dogs. "Wait," he told her when they were passing Eliza's room.

"Rick," Beckett said simply though she didn't try to stop him.

"I'm not sorry," Castle replied as their arms were coming around each other. He leaned down, capturing her lips with his own and giving her a sensuous kiss.

Holding onto her husband, Beckett responded to him swiftly and they spent some time like that until they parted. "We-" she started to say before they turned as someone was coming up the stairs.

"Mommy, Daddy! Are you gonna come and play?" Eliza asked eagerly, doing her best to keep her voice down.

"Right now," Castle said, letting his wife go. He went to their second youngest and picked her up saying, "Are we playing UNO again?"

"No, Life," Eliza said with a smile. "And we're gonna play in pairs. You and Mommy are together."

"That would stand to reason," Beckett commented when her husband turned to her as she was coming down the stairs. "Who are you playing with?" she asked once she was on the first floor with them.

"With Jules," Eliza said.

"I thought you might play with Alexis," Castle said.

"She's gonna play with Louis," Eliza said, her brow furrowed as she wondered why her father hadn't known that already.

"Rick," Beckett said.

"Yeah, that stands to reason too," Castle said quickly before they went into the family room. He quickly noticed the game wasn't on the coffee table and said, "We're playing in the dining room, aren't we?"

"With this many people?" Alexis asked her father. "We didn't want to go there yet so you wouldn't think we'd left you."

Gathering around the dining room table, the twelve that were playing the game started at one end of the table while the others were watching and having a drink. They were cheering the game players until it ended and once Castle had totaled up everyone's money he announced the winner.

"It doesn't need to be dramatic Dad," Alexis said, shaking her head.

"Okay, then Kate and I won," Castle said.

"That's not fair," Clive said jokingly. "You two are way past us in real life."

"Yeah, you have four pegs in the car behind you already," Peter said before they were all laughing.

"Okay, let's get another game," Beckett said when they had calmed down. "One that everyone can play."

"Not me," Liam said. "I'm keen to just watch you all."

"I'll join him," Jim said.

"Me as well," Martha said. "But what could you really play with seventeen people?"

"Charades," Castle said quickly. "For kids though of course."

"Do we have to do that here?" Ivy asked. "It's a small room."

"No, we'll go to the family room," Julia told her. "We need space to act."

After they'd gathered in the family room; and Castle and Beckett had checked on Josie; they divided into three teams two with six each and one with five and Julia and Eliza got the game board set up.

"We're first!" Fleur said happily, with Skye and her sisters.

"You have a verb," Castle said when Iris, who was going to act out the first word.

"Can you find it?" Mary asked, with the Watersons, Lennoxes and Louis on the second team.

"This one?" Iris asked, pointing to the second word on the card.

"Yeah," Julia said since she was showing her. "That's not cheating is it?" she asked her team; her parents and sisters.

"No, it's okay to do that," Beckett assured her. "Ready?" she asked as she was holding the hourglass. When the little girl nodded, she turned it over and they looked at her to see what she would do for her word.

Iris started to skip around in front of the others, her cheeks growing red, before she heard her twin cry, "Skip!" "That's it," she said with a laugh.

"Okay, roll and then it's the Castles' turn next," Skye said, looking apologetically at her friend, smiling when Beckett shrugged.

"Do I go?" Eliza asked.

"Of course," Alexis said. "The youngest is going first in the teams."

Nodding, Eliza took a card and looked at the word she needed to act before she looked at her parents.

"Can you do it?" Beckett asked.

"Yeah," Eliza said a little nervously.

"Go," Beckett said before she turned over the hourglass. She looked at the little girl and saw that she wasn't moving, making her frown a little before she glanced at her husband.

"Blinking?" Julia guessed since she could tell her sister was doing that. "Blink! It's blink!" she then said when Eliza looked hesitant. When her sister squealed and hugged her tightly, she laughed before she said, "That was close."

"Clive?" Isaac said to his son.

"Yeah," the boy replied as he got a card.

"Will you be able to do it?" Peter asked him.

"I will," Clive said, nodding. "I can start," he then said to Beckett.

"Go ahead," she told him, turning the hourglass.

Feeling her little sister grabbing her arm, Julia smiled as she could tell what her friend was doing as he jerked forward but wondered if the rest of his team would be able to guess too.

"Throwing up?" Peter asked. "What?" he said when his friend gave him a glare. "That's what it looks like!"

Watching the boy make the motion again, Louis and Peter both said, "Sneeze!"

"Good thing you put your hand to your nose," the former said to the boy. "Otherwise we wouldn't have known that was a sneeze."

"I forgot the first time," Clive admitted sheepishly.

"What do we have next?" Kathleen asked since it was hers and her team's turn next.

"It looks like… a noun," Castle said. When no one said anything he asked, "What?"

"Do the youngest know what that is?" Martha called to her son.

"Oh, it's an object," Castle said. "Just an object in this case since it would be hard to do a name too."

"Are you ready?" Skye asked Ivy.

Beckett, in the time it took for the little girl to get her card, looked in on Josie again and saw that she was alright. She felt her husband taking her hand and squeezed it tightly before they entwined their fingers. She looked with him as Ivy took her turn, smiling as the kids were obviously enjoying themselves as the game continued.

November 26 th , 2020

Happy Thanksgiving diary!

I get to write in you for a second day in a row which I haven't done in a long time (now I'm home I'll be able to do that a lot more often) but it can't be for too, too long since it's almost my bedtime.

So this morning Louis got a call from the stable owner Charlie that Lottie was just going into labour (I know there's no u in that word, but they spell it this way in England and Canada… and it's my diary too!). I went with Mom and Dad and we were racing to get to where Lottie was in the… I think it's called a birthing stall. It's weird (and I stopped for a second 'cause I'm not sure if it's okay I write this) but when we got here you could see the legs sticking out of Lottie's… back. But luckily it didn't take her too long to give birth (Mom said for humans sometimes it's more than like a half hour) and she had a colt! So Josa's going to have stallion to ride when they both grow up.

I named him, since Josa's still so little, and I decided to call him Helios. It means the sun and has to do with the god Apollo who brought the sunrise with his chariot. And it's kinda a royalty name like our other horses' names are since Cleopatra's second son's middle name was that. I think, if Helios had been a girl, I would have called her Selene (that's the moon and that was her only daughter's middle name and Helios' twin). But Helios is fine and so cute, and I can't wait to see him again!

I got to ride with Mom and Dad and got to gallop in the field outside there before we went to see everyone. They went to see Helios, but Josa wasn't there since it was cold. I asked Mom and Dad later and they said we might take her in the spring… which is so long but Mom reminded me that Helios needs to grow up and so does Josa. And it needs to get warm too, but when I told Josa all about her horse I whispered to her that I would tell her everything about him and take videos with my camera. And then she laughed, and I hugged her tight, my sister is so cute I couldn't help it! But she's a McCollough definitely, I can tell already!

After Lizzy got to ride a pony on her own (she's doing better and better, I heard Mom tell Dad on the way home she should be able to start on mares next year once she's six and taller. But she's not going to be alone for a while of course, like me) we went home and then we kids got to play. Oh, I almost forgot, I took a shower and so did Mom and Dad we smelled like our horses (I'm going to need to wait until next summer to ride Lottie… :( I know Dad wouldn't like me to put that but that's how I feel. That's a looong time to get to ride my very own mare, but Mom did remind me Lottie's a new mother and she had to wait to get back to riding herself so she wouldn't get hurt so it's the same for Lottie). But when I finished my shower I saw they'd been kissing; their lips were all weird. I'm just saying that 'cause I'm so happy they're still in love like that. So the kids played outside and I made the mashed sweet potatoes while Mom and Dad were starting on the side dishes.

Oh, and I forgot, Peter and Clive had dinner with us and their parents! Mom and Dad divided them since it would just be each kid and parent on their own, Mr. Lennox doesn't have any family and Ms. Waterson (actually she told us tonight it's going to be Sayer which was her name before she got married and it'll be Peter's name too) doesn't either. So at least we got to see them again. Dinner was really good and since there were so many kids there we ate at the kitchen table that was made bigger.

After dinner Mom and Skye told us that Stella wants them to take pictures again for her collection, for her spring collection. Just two pictures but still, that's so cool that Stella thinks my mom and my aunt (yes, I'm calling her that though it was a past life) are good models and

"Julia?" Beckett said, walking into the room then and seeing her daughter at her desk.

"Hi," the girl whispered, looking at her.

"Finish your entry okay?" Beckett asked. "If you have to you can add what you missed tomorrow."

Nodding, Julia turned back to her diary and started to write furiously to head back to her bed.

Sorry diary, I kinda lied when I said I have time to write. I was in bed before I snuck over to you, so I need to make this fast. We played games- Life that Mom and Dad won together and then charades that Skye and the McDouglas girls won- all together. The three youngest kids- Lizzy, Ivy, Iris and Fleur- went to bed and us older kids played Yahtzee that Clive likes before the Lennoxes and Wat- Sayers went to their homes. Then I played with the McDouglas twins, 'lexis and Louis a bunch of games of Clue before we had to come to bed (it was the Disney Clue for fun). And then I came to you.

I gotta stop, Mom's stroking my hair and now I really feel tired (if you were a real person, I'd hope you have a mom that makes you feel so safe just touching your hair like mine's doing right now). Oh no… I'm sorry about the blots diary, I yawned so wide just now my pen fell out of my hand. Goodnight diary, I'll try and write tomorrow!

"Sorry Mom," Julia whispered as she put her diary away.

"It's alright, I had a feeling you'd want to get back to that," Beckett told her. When her daughter, after standing up, turned to her and embraced her tightly she hugged her back and asked, "What's wrong sweetie?"

"Nothing," Julia said softly. "You're the best mom."

"Thank you," Beckett said, caressing her hair gently. "And you're a wonderful daughter."

"Best second oldest?" Julia asked as her mother led her over to her bed.

"Exactly," Beckett said before her daughter was laughing softly. She sat on the edge of the bed; Marie and Kathleen on an air mattress near them; and shared a kiss with the girl. "Get some sleep, you have a lot of playing to do in the morning," she gently admonished her.

"I know, thanks for letting me finish Mom," Julia told her.

"You're welcome, get some sleep," Beckett told her. Standing up she watched her daughter lay down and leaned over to press a kiss to her hair before telling her, "I love you sweetie."

"I love you too Mom," Julia replied, smiling. She watched her mother walk to the doorway, waving slightly before she rolled onto her side and closed her eyes.

Sure that her daughter would be sleeping, Beckett left the room for her own, closing the door behind her. "I was right," she commented when her husband looked back at her.

"She was writing?" Castle asked.

"I told you she would want to get back to writing almost every day," Beckett told him with a smile, walking around to her side of the bed. She took off her robe and then told him, "She was just finishing when I got to her."

"I wasn't disagreeing with you about her doing that," Castle said, raising the covers for her. "But I thought she might have written already and you would have caught her sneaking back into bed."

"That's the writer in you," Beckett commented. She wasn't surprised when her husband pulled her against him and she went willingly before kissing him on the lips. They both kept that brief and she pressed her forehead to his saying, "There's something I didn't tell you."

"About what?" Castle asked in surprise. He wasn't surprised when she got onto his lap and wrapped her arms around him. "I'm a little unsure about this."

"It could go either way?" Beckett asked him with a smile. She laughed briefly when he nodded seriously, and she leaned down so they could share a quick kiss. "It's not bad. I got another e-mail from Stella; so did Skye; she wants you and Mary to join us for one of the shots."

"You're still doing two?" Castle asked her.

"A third, the other two will just be us," Beckett replied.

"But…" Castle started to say. "Do you want me to be there? Could be just you and them." He realized what he'd just said and told her, "I didn't mean it like-"

"I know," Beckett said, pressing her fingers to his lips. She smiled when he kissed at them and she said, "It's up to you, Skye's going to ask Mary."

"In the morning," Castle commented. "Ow," he said with a laugh as she pinched his ear lightly. "Well?"

Shaking her head Beckett said, "Anyways, it's up to you," to change the subject.

"I'm fine with it," Castle said. "But… what am I going to wear?" he asked.

"She told us," Beckett said. "And sent a sketch of the four outfits."

Taking her phone that she'd grabbed, Castle looked at the picture she opened and frowned saying, "Mary?" as it was a floral print dress cut to wear in the spring.

"Mmm-hmm," Beckett said, kissing the side of his head gently. She watched him swipe over the picture and said, "Skye."

Nodding, since the sketch was of Capri pants and a shirt and blouse, Castle said, "I think it suits her." He swiped again and said, "Huh, never thought you'd wear-" before his wife pushed his chest gently to his laughter. "It's nice… she's thinking of starting a men's line, isn't she?" he then asked, looking at the trousers, shirt and blazer with a vest.

"Yeah, Skye said she's getting practice with her outfits," Beckett replied. She watched him swipe again and said, "It's like a… formal spring party she said," as hers and Mary's dresses were slightly more formal in cut.

"It's beautiful," Castle said.

"You're imagining me in it?" Beckett asked him with a smile.

"I am, tell her I'm in too," Castle said.

Beckett leaned over and kissed him gently before she pulled back and said, "I will, in the morning."

"Sleep?" Castle asked his wife."No, I wanted to read," Beckett told him, getting off his lap. She wasn't surprised when he stopped her and said, "And you?"

"Mind if I read to you?" Castle asked her.

"No," Beckett said with a smile. She got off his lap to get her book and once she was settled she gave it to him. As he started to read her book, about Elizabeth I, she leaned against him and listened to him as he read a few pages.

"That's it?" Beckett asked him.

"I think it's enough," Castle replied. "The text is too small to read this for long." He wasn't surprised when she was frowning at him and he stopped her from speaking by kissing her. They were quick, as before, and he was about to ask if she wanted to go to bed then when she covered his mouth with her hand.

"Would you even be able to sleep?" Beckett asked him.

Breathing out, as he knew she had felt how he'd reacted to her while they'd been kissing, and Castle said, "Not yet. But we have to sleep at some point."

"I know," Beckett said calmly. "Come here," she told him, taking his hand.

Though he knew already what she wanted to do, Castle followed her off the bed and got his robe and slippers on before they left the room and went over to Julia's room, looking inside to make sure their daughter was asleep. Seeing she was, flanked by Macca and JoJo, he led the way over to Eliza's bed and saw she was fine too, Rita and Rosie on either side of both her and Fleur. When they got into Josie's room though, the baby was whimpering, and he hurried ahead of his wife since he had an idea of why she was going to start crying.

"Thank you," Beckett told her husband, smiling at him as he proceeded to change the baby's diaper.

"That was just a guess," Castle said, slightly distractedly as he was focusing on Josie.

"Does she need another onesie?" Beckett asked, preparing to head to the dresser if she needed to.

"No, she's fine," Castle said, getting her new diaper set before his wife nudged him aside. He let her take over and then went to wash his hands after he'd gotten everything into the trash that he needed to. When he came back out into the room he said, "Is she asleep?"

"She is," Beckett said, smiling at her husband's surprise. "She's tired and it didn't take you that long to wash your hands," she told him teasingly. When he shrugged, she did her best not to laugh and she waited for him to kiss Josie before she did the same and set the baby into her crib. When she was satisfied their youngest was set, Beckett took her husband's hand and they went quietly back to their room where she closed the door again staying there for a moment. She soon realized her husband had remained close to her and she turned to him with a slight smile saying, "I thought the idea was to get some sleep?"

"How do you know what I'm going to do?" Castle shot back to her though he was wrapping his arms around her. He kissed her, as her arms about his neck tugged him towards her, and their tongues met briefly before they parted, and he murmured, "I'm afraid to do more than that."

"Then let's go and lay down," Beckett told him, letting go of him and pulling him after her to the bed. She let him get on it first as she turned off the lights before she followed, laying against his side and not surprised at all when he caressed her hair. "What do you want to ask me?" she eventually said.

Groaning Castle tried to turn his head to bury his face into his pillow as he said, "I hate you can read me."

"Ask Rick," Beckett told him, reaching up with one hand and running her fingers through his hair.

"Are your… are…" Castle tried to say before he hesitated.

"My breasts?" Beckett asked him with a smile. When he nodded she said, "They're fine, keep going."

Another groan left him and Castle said, "Would I be able to take them in Tahiti? If you'll let me?"

Leaning up, Beckett kissed her husband tenderly and wasn't surprised when he was responding to her swiftly. When they needed to part she then said against his lips as she smiled, "I want you to."

Holding himself tense Castle said, "I don't want to assume-"

"You're not, but I don't want you to hold-" Beckett told him.

"It's not that, I don't want to-" Castle began.

"Believe me, you're not forcing me," Beckett said, smiling again. "Luckily you take what you want-" He interrupted her, not by speaking that time but by his lips which she allowed, kissing him back as passionately as she could. When he laid her on her back she wondered if he realized he was proving he would take the initiative sometimes, but she soon forgot that as she was wrapping her arms and legs around him. As soon as she had done that she was gasping loudly and ending their kiss as he looked down at her worriedly.

"Are you-" Castle started to ask before she was drawing him back to her. He kissed her back deeply with a slight groan before their tongues were meeting in his mouth before he broke off to speak. "Kate… if we don't stop…" he said warningly.