I've always thought of Castle as a love story first and foremost. If I were a writer on the show, I'd toss the procedural crime drama to the curb and focus on the relationship between Castle and Beckett with the COTW as the supporting story. This is me venting my season 6 frustrations.

Please review! This is my first fanfic, and I would love the feedback.

The clock on the microwave read 6:55. Early morning light began to filter in Richard Castle's NYC loft as the weak, winter sun fought to break through the low hanging clouds. With the threat of snow on the horizon, Castle was happy to be tucked inside his home. Now if only he could stay there.

He turned his gaze to the bedroom where Beckett still lay sound asleep. Thankfully an early morning homicide hadn't pulled them out of bed in the middle of the night, but with Becket on duty today, the luxury of lounging around inside would have to wait for another day.

Castle reached his arms up, feeling his body protest as he leaned forward to stretch out his back. Sometimes he worried that his age was starting to show. It took him a lot longer to recover from an all-nighter at the precinct, or an all-nighter with Kate for that matter, than any all-nighter he used to pull writing his first few novels. He liked to tell himself any man would need a while to recover from a night with Kate Becket, but his stiff, aching body was starting to tell a different tale. Maybe it was time for him to get back to the gym.

As he leaned into the refrigerator to pull out the makings of an omelet he heard faint footsteps echo into the kitchen. Imagining a sleepy Kate stumbling in still donning her pajama short shorts and slippers made him smile.

"So what will it be this morning, breakfast in bed or we could just go back to bed and," Castle spun around with a cheesy grin plastered across his face that quickly changed to mortified when he saw the woman standing before him in the kitchen.

"And good morning mother." Caste leaned casually into the counter in an attempt to look as nonchalant as possible. He needed a stance that read 'I didn't just ask my own mother to go to bed with me.' Martha Rodgers either hadn't heard him or was unfazed by his admission.

"Assuming chocolate, marshmallows, or any kind of gummy candy is not on the ingredient list count me in" she countered. Martha plopped down on one of the bar stools as her son resumed rummaging through the fridge.

"I'm pretty sure I was banned from making creative breakfast entrees after the smorelett incident of 2012. Or was it the hash brownie incident? I still stand by my brownie and hash browns mash-up. I just think some of us have more refined pallets than others."

"You call it refined; I call it the pallet of a 5-year-old." Martha pushed back in her seat and held her hands up in a 'just-saying' gesture. As much as she enjoyed showing her son her love and support over the years, she treasured these lighthearted moments where she could tease him a little.

Castle picked up a tomato off the counter and held it out to her. "You like tomato. I like tomahto."

"Potato, potahto. Tomato, tomahto. Let's call the whole thing off," Martha belted out, eager to turn any available opportunity into an impromptu performance.

"Aren't you up awful early for a Friday? Castle asked hoping to avoid his mother's rendition of the rest of the song. "And what's with the suitcase?" He nodded toward the bag sitting at the base of the stairs. "Secret weekend getaway?"

"I'm up awful early for any day of the week," Martha sighed "but I promised Alexis I would take the train with her to Philadelphia. She wants to attend a talk by some hot-shot biochemist at the University of Pennsylvania this afternoon and we thought it would be fun to turn it into a girls' weekend."

This was the first Castle was hearing about any of this. "She didn't mention to me that she was going to Philly." Castle looked genuinely hurt by the omission.

"Darling you seem to keep forgetting that she's not fifteen anymore. Not to mention you two still haven't completely mended the bridges since the whole thing with Pi." At the mention of his name Castle's face scrunched up in disgust. "Right there, Richard," she continued pointing at his face. "Reactions like that aren't helping anything. Whether you like the guy or not, Alexis does. You just have to let this play its course."

"That doesn't mean I have to be happy about it," Castle whined.

"If you want Alexis to keep you updated on trips to Philly then yes you do. Or at least not be so disgusted by it." Castle knew his mom was right. But he wasn't about to admit that out loud. "So moving on to a happier topic," Martha continued "have you and Katherine set a date yet?"

Castle quickly busied himself with whisking eggs and chopping up onions. If there was one topic he liked to discuss least of all with his mother, it was wedding planning. It wasn't that he disliked thinking about his impending wedding; it was quite the opposite actually. When he was by himself he thought about it all the time. About what Kate would look like in her dress. About smashing cake into face and then playfully wiping it off. He was constantly daydreaming about their first kiss as husband and wife, and when no one was looking he would close his eyes and sway back and forth. He imagined holding her close, the touch of her soft skin under his hands as they glided across the dance floor, the rest of the room fading into the background.

It was talking about it with his mother that made him uneasy. As much as he appreciated her enthusiasm, he couldn't help but worry that she would silently be making comparisons between this wedding and this marriage and his other two. The thought filled him with shame.

When Castle didn't respond Martha pressed on. "The reason I ask is because I have an acquaintance, well she's really more of a good friend, whose business is to plan weddings. I ran into her the other day and mentioned you were getting married and she told me I had to beg you to let her plan your wedding. She's done all sorts of celebrity couples' weddings, and while I know you don't technically have the same celebrity status as some of her other clients…," she emphasized the word "technically."

"Okay, okay," Castle interrupted. "If this is your sales pitch you better stick to acting." He reluctantly pushed a fluffy veggie omelet across the counter. "I don't know. I mean I don't think Beckett would really be into the whole planner thing."

"What wouldn't I be into?" Beckett walked into the kitchen, her interest piqued at the mention of her name.

"Omelet?" Castle waved the spatula at the frying pan on the stove. He really hoped his mom would just drop the subject.

"Oh Katherine darling, come sit down next to me." Martha tapped the seat next to her. Kate walked over to the chair, her eyes fixed on Castle who was pretending to be occupied by rolling an onion back and forth between his hands. "I was just telling Richard about my wedding planner friend. Her name is Sandy. She plans the most exquisite weddings. Anything you want, she can make it happen." Martha's eyes momentarily shifted out of focus and a small smile tugged at the corner of her lips. Kate could only imagine what sort of elaborate scene was playing out in Castle's mom's imagination. "Now I know how busy you are at work so I thought this might be the perfect opportunity to relieve some of the stress of planning. What do you say?"

"Oh gee Martha. I…" Beckett dragged out the 'I' as her gaze shifted between Castle and his mom. She was stalling, and she wasn't even being coy about it. Castle had moved on to cracking eggs into the pan, pretending he wasn't party to the conversation. It was moments like these when she really wished they were on the same page with all this wedding stuff, but they had barely talked about it since he proposed that day on the swings. Enjoying the engagement was one thing; being in denial that an engagement ultimately led to a wedding was another.

"You know Rick and I haven't actually discussed much about the wedding yet. Do you think it's a little premature to be meeting with a planner?"

"Richard?" Martha looked to her son hoping she could use her mother's guilt to sway his opinion.

Castle looked up from the stove. "I'm going to have to go with what she said."

Martha threw up her arms in exasperation. "You two don't plan on letting this engagement drag out as long as your courtship now do you?" If anyone was going to get right to the point of the matter it was Martha Rodgers. Whether she would do it tactfully was another story. "You two are perfect for each other. I see it. You see it. Hell everyone around you sees it." Her voice took on a softer tone as she leaned forward placing one hand on her son's hand and another on Kate's arm. "Call me a romantic, but I just want to see the happily ever after already."

"You know Castle it couldn't hurt to at least get some ideas," Becket proposed. She saw a glimmer of hope flicker in Martha's eyes and felt her grip tighten around her arm. "Maybe it will be good to get the ball rolling on this."

If Castle had a soft spot for anything it was for the people he loved. Alexis. His mom. Kate. He could tell how excited his mom was at the prospect of the wedding. How much it would mean to her to see her son happily married. He could also sense how reluctant Beckett was at the idea of meeting the wedding planner. But why wouldn't she be. They really hadn't said much about the upcoming event. An off-the-wall joke, a casual innuendo when a homicide happened to drag them into a church, but nothing serious. Despite all her reservations though, here she was agreeing to the meeting to make his own mom happy. He didn't think it was possible to love her anymore than he already did, but everyday she surprised him.

"You're right. Let's schedule the meeting," Castle agreed.

"Well alright then, it's settled!" Martha exclaimed. She ran over to the couch to retrieve her purse and pulled out a business card. "Here's her card. Sandy Schulman. Elite Events. She'll be expecting your call." Martha grabbed her suitcase and wheeled it over to the door. "I've got to run you two. I'll be back on Sunday." Just as she was about to shut the door behind her Castle yelled out.

"Wait. What do you mean she is expecting our call. You didn't te-"

"Sometimes mother knows best," Martha interrupted him as she pulled the door closed behind her.

"Mother. Mother. We're not done here," Castle shouted at the closed door. He knew she couldn't hear him, but his dramatics were for Beckett and himself as much as for his mom.

With the loft to themselves, Castle walked around the counter to where Kate was still settled on the chair. He loved the way she looked first thing in the morning. Her hair slightly frazzled. Her face untouched by any makeup. She had a relaxed posture that disappeared the moment she walked into the precinct or onto a crime scene. This first-thing-in-the-morning Kate seemed carefree and unburdened. He wished there was something he could do so that she would always feel this way.

Castle leaned into her back, wrapped his arms around her torso and rested his chin on her shoulder. He felt her lean back against his body and for that moment everything felt right. "Thank you," he said sincerely. "I know going to see," he grabbed the business card off the counter, "Sandy Schulman isn't really your idea of a good time, but I appreciate that you want to make my mom happy."

Beckett wriggled to loosen his grip and spun around on the stool to face him. She smiled up at him and leaned in to gently kiss his lips. "And I would like to eventually get married," she added as he leaned down to place another kiss on her forehead. In the moment of silence that followed all sorts of questions started to percolate in Beckett's head. Why hadn't they talked much about the wedding? Was this indicative of some sort of hesitation on Castle's part? Was he just bored with the idea of a wedding given his two previous marriages? Why must she read into everything regarding the two of them? This second-guessing, this reading too much into things, it wasn't her. She was all about letting the facts speak for the themselves. So why was she ignoring them now?

"What's on your mind?" Castle asked, sensing the wheels turning in Beckett's brain.

Beckett thought for a moment about how she wanted to respond. They were supposed to be an open book now, what after the DC interview debacle, the I know you said I love you mishap, and all the other secrets they kept from each other over the years. But she didn't want to make an issue out of a non-issue. "It's nothing, really," she mustered.

"Clearly there's something up. Let me guess." Castle paused and raised his hand to his chin, stroking an imaginary beard like he was deep in thought. "I got it. You're mad I stole the covers last night and took up more than the normal 20% of the bed I'm allotted?" He looked at her playfully like he was mock interrogating a suspect. Beckett brought a hand to her mouth trying to conceal the smile that was threatening to give away her amusement. "No. That's not it. I know. You've decided that you hate all the artwork in the loft and want to replace every last piece with white boards so that you can work from home? You know Lioness still hasn't quite adjusted to his new vantage point in my office."

"Yes, but I've adjusted wonderfully to him not glaring at me while I sleep." Castle wrapped his hands around hers and wiped the class-clown smile from his face.

"Seriously Kate, you know you can tell me anything." Becket thought for a moment about how to best word her concerns, but before she could come up with anything they just came spilling out.

"I guess I'm just worried that the reason we haven't started planning the wedding yet is because you're having second thoughts. Or because you've been there done that and it's old news." Beckett couldn't believe she had just said that out loud. Giving voice to her fears just highlighted how incredible ridiculous they were. She couldn't bring herself to look into Castle's eyes.

Castle stood there, his hands still wrapped around hers, feeling the blow of what she just admitted. He felt awful that something he did, or didn't do for that matter, had made Becket question his intentions. Him not wanting to marry her. The idea was so far-fetched he almost laughed. There was nothing in the world he wanted more than to marry her. To be her one-and-done. He wondered how long she had been worrying. How long had she been too afraid to say anything? It broke his heart thinking about it.

"Kate look at me." He waited for her to meet his eyes. He could see her muscles tense slightly like she was about to get hit with bad news.

"Castle I know it sounds silly. Let's just forget it."

"No. I need to tell you this. When I proposed to you I told you I wanted more. More commitment. More communication. More passion. More romance. More time. Even more struggles and arguments if that's what it took. I just wanted more of us. And the thing is, I love you so much, that there will never be enough "more" for me. Kate I can't imagine how I've lived this long without you in my life. I've never been with someone before that has simultaneously made me feel so complete yet so wanting that all I can think about is more." He paused for a moment to see if his words were sinking in.

Beckett sat there, trying to make something, anything come out of her mouth, but she was overwhelmed with feelings of love.

Castle continued. "What I'm really trying to say is that almost every thought I've had since I placed that ring on your finger has been about the day I can finally call you my wife." He exhaled deeply, feeling relieved to have cleared some of the confusion, but then realized that was only half of what needed to be said. "But I've been keeping my own kind of secret." Beckett shifted uncomfortably, but held her gaze.

"Go on."

"I've been terrified to bring it up because I thought if you saw how excited I was, it might scare you. Or worse, you might start making comparisons of your own between us and my previous relationships. And to imagine you doing either of those things, to imagine you feeling like you don't stack up, like you're my consolation prize…," Castle trailed off. He couldn't look at her anymore. He was too afraid to see a glimmer of agreement in her eyes.

Kate reached out and cupped his cheek with her palm. She pushed the stool back and stood up on her tip-toes so that they were almost eye-to-eye. Castle looked like he was about to cry and seeing him this upset made her throat tighten up. She leaned toward him, desperately pushing her lips against his, trying to keep the tears at bay. When they finally separated, she leaned her forehead against his; her breath hot and punctuated against his cheek. Being this close to him was sedative. Her breath evened out. Her heart stopped pounding, trying to escape her ribs. She was the first to break the silence.

"Castle do you remember when we were in the Hamptons that first time? You were giving me a tour of the house, and I told you I couldn't help but wonder how many women had gotten that same tour before. What did you tell me?"

A look of understanding spread across his face. "I told you that none of them were you."

"I haven't forgotten that." Castle could feel his whole body relax. Like a person geared up to fight or flight, adrenaline pumping, he didn't realize how tense he was until the danger was gone. For a moment they stood there in the kitchen, arms twined around each other, matching each other breath for breath.

"Do you smell that?" asked Kate, pushing away from his embrace. Castle was momentarily confused.

"What? I don't smell…" Castle remembered the omelet he had started cooking in the skillet. Oh God, how long had it been cooking? He sprinted to the stove, yanked the pan off and then searched around frantically for the spatula. Not being able to find it, he tried shaking the scorched contents into the sink. When that didn't work he gingerly poked at it with his finger, trying to loosen the black crisp from the bottom of the pan. "Hot, hot, hot, oh fuck that's hot." He waved his hand through the air and, giving up on trying to remove the omelet from the pan, opted to dump the entire thing in the sink and turn the water on. Smoke billowed up and filled the air around his head.

Beckett stood off to the side, feeling like a spectator to some new form of interpretive dance. She desperately tried to suppress her giggling, but the harder she tried the more it turned into a full on belly laugh. Castle spun around toward her doing his best to feign offense at her amusement.

"You could have tried to help you know," a boyish smile already tugging at the corner of his mouth.

"And miss that performance. I don't think so," she said through fits of laughter. At that moment Beckett's phone buzzed at her from the countertop. She picked it up and glanced at the message. "There's been a murder."

"We'll that's a buzz kill." Beckett rolled her eyes at him, but silently appreciated the levity he brought to the news. There would be plenty of time for seriousness once she walked onto the scene.

"Why don't we go get ready." Beckett said walking toward the bedroom. She paused just before disappearing behind the wall. "Oh and Castle, you're welcome to have at that omelet but I'm going to stop and get breakfast on the way." Castle smiled, enjoying his last moment of first-thing-in-the-morning Becket, before he headed off to join her in the bedroom.

This will be a multi-chapter story so stay tuned for much much more! Hope you all survive the long hiatus between now and January 6th.