CHAPTER 41

Vacation was over. Already. Back to the Big Apple. Back to murders and new weird crimes. The team was laying down arguments in view of evidence and apparently there was a certain disagreement.

"Yeah well that doesn't make him a killer," Castle argued.

"Maybe not but it draws big suspicions on him. You can't tell me that going-"

Esposito was cut off by the short ringing of a cellphone. Someone just got a message. Castle reached for the phone in his pocket and started reading the message out loud.

"From Emily... You have..."he soon realized something was wrong. "Wait, I don't know any Emily... And... that's not my phone," he said.

"What are you doing with my phone?" Kate asked, recognizing it. She knew an Emily. "I've been looking for it for an hour!"

"I..." Castle started, confused, handing her back her phone. "Then where is mine?!" he asked looking through his pockets. "You have it?"

"No. You must have left it at my place," she told him.

Esposito and Ryan were standing, nodding, smiling as they were listening to Castle and Beckett being domestic.

"I'm sorry, I must have inadvertently took yours instead of mine," he sighed.

"You don't see the difference? Mine is white…" she rolled her eyes.

"Yeah well, it was easy to make a mistake. The whole room was a mess after last-" Castle bit his lip, avoiding the last word to get out. After last night... "By the way, you found my watch? The one with the blue face?"

"No, nowhere to be found. If you keep going like this, you'll have to buy everything in duplicate..." she shook her head, smiling.

"I know it's not my business but..." Ryan intervened. "One way to avoid forgetting something at each other's place and that would spare you from buying everything in duplicate would be... to have only... one... place," he said looking successively at them both.

"You mean like moving in together?" Esposito jumped in.

"Yeah, Javi, except I said it in a more subtle way..."

"You're right," Kate said. Castle did a double take, looking at her with his eyes wide open. Was she ready for this? "It's not your business. I've got a call to make," she said dodging the subject.

Castle watched her walking away while the boys silently approached. He startled seeing them so close when he turned round.

"So..." Ryan said, scrutinizing Castle. "A mess, huh?"

"After last... night? Is that it, Castle?" Esposito asked, pressuring him a little more.

"I... Hm... I had lost my watch so we looked for it everywhere," he nervously chuckled hoping they would buy it. "It's a Omega DeVille, it's worth more than two grands. I really need it back..."

"Nah..." Ryan said, looking at Esposito. "You won't fool us like that."

"It was something else entirely, wasn't it? Something that involved two consenting adults?" Esposito suggested.

It had. But Castle wasn't going to give them any details.

"Ryan," he said changing subject. "Were you serious about... having one place?"

"Well... You've been married twice buddy, you know that at some point the two people share one place and it definitely helps not losing some of your stuff."

"Yeah, I... I know that. I meant... you think we should?"

"I guess that's up to you. But it seems to be the next step of a serious relationship. Unless you don't think it's serious between you and Beckett?"

"No, I do! It is. I..." he said looking like he was seriously pondering the option.

"How far are you exactly?" Esposito asked.

"Keys?" Ryan asked.

Castle nodded. They had each other's keys.

"C'mon, you've been together for a year, bro."

"Not yet... it's been less than that."

"And flirting for four.." Esposito added

"It's been less than a year so… I just... I mean she loves her place so much, I love mine... If I ask her to move in, my mother's there too. And I can't throw her out. That would be heartless. I could never do that."

"Find a new place," Esposito suggested. "Either for you two, or for your mother."

"I don't know if... I mean Kate has already done a lot. More than in any other relationship from what she told me, but that's a big step. I don't know if she's ready for that."

"But you are," Ryan deduced.

"Well..." Castle started, but the look of Ryan and Esposito was a signal. She was back.

"What were you guys talking about?" Kate asked.

"My phone," Castle answered in a flash. "Esposito volunteered to track it down with-"

"No way we're using the public equipment to track your personal phone, Castle. It's most likely at my place. If you miss it so much, you can go fetch it," Kate suggested.

Castle stayed gaping for a second. He was hesitant as a though crossed his mind. If he went to get his phone, it would be the first time he would be at her place on his own.

"No, I'm good. With all this technology around nowadays, it's good to disconnect a little-"

"You're sure? I'll be here. I need to go see Lanie and then go through Franklin's alibi."

"I'm gonna... Yeah, we never know. I could get an important phone call. I'm gonna get it," he said before heading to the elevator.

"Okay. Let's go back to our suspect. Anything on his bank account?" Kate asked to the boys as if nothing had happened.

Kate had sent the boys interrogate another suspect while she joined Lanie at the morgue. She apparently had new elements to share.

"Where's Castle?" Lanie asked as soon as she noticed Beckett was alone.

"He forgot his phone at home. He's gone get it back."

"Which one?"

Kate stared at her for a moment, not understanding her question.

"He doesn't have multiple phones, Lanie," Kate chuckled.

"No, I meant which home? You guys always say we're going home or I'll meet you at home... But which one, we never know."

"Oh please, don't start!" Kate sighed. "The boys put you up to this?"

"No, why, they also brought up the subject?"

"Yes. And I really don't want to talk about it."

"Fine... but you'll have to. At some point. If you're serious about him, about you two..."

"What if... it changes the way we are together?" Kate frowned.

"You practically live together already. You spend the whole day together and you spend most of your nights at his place anyway, right?"

"Yes, but moving in means... no more personal space. Nowhere I can retreat if I want to be alone."

"Why would you want to be alone?" Lanie asked.

Castle was in bed, laid on his back. Kate's hand caressing his chest and playing with his fingers.

"What's on your mind?" Kate whispered seeing how concerned Castle looked. "We'll find that missing watch, I promise. I can ask my colleagues at the abduction department, see if they can do a… missing object appeal…" she joked.

Castle chuckled. He had totally forgotten about the watch. Something else was on his mind.

"Remember that time we joked about whose place we liked the most?"

"Yes," she said with a smile. "And I see where you're going... The boys and moving in together?" Castle looked her in the eyes. "You would like us to move in together?" she asked.

"Well... it's… I…." he stuttered before taking a deep breath. "I wouldn't be against the idea," he made it clear. "And it's... the next step in a relationship... if we want to move forward," he said looking at her. "I know it sounds scary, I don't want to pressure you or anything. Just... I just want you to know that if you're ready, and if want it... I'm here. Just let me know."

Kate couldn't retain a smile. It was a reassuring proof that he was in this for real, that he wanted to build something serious.

"Okay, I'll think about it," she said before giving him a soft kiss.

"I know we both love our respective place but-"

"I'll think about it," she repeated with a smile. "We'll figure this out."

"'kay…" he whispered with a smile.

To Be Continued...

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