"Do you think the pool is any cooler than the air in here?" she asks.

"I don't know. The water is probably like bath water in this heat. The ocean might be refreshing though."

"But the sand," Kate whines, "it'll be like walking on hot coals and flip-flops don't offer the best protection. We may as well just take a cold shower."

"I'm game for that," he tells her, lifting his head off of her shoulder.

She sighs. "Later. That requires me to move again. It's too hot to move."

He laughs at that, settling back down against her. "So we're going to stay in here for a while then."

"Well you don't have to keep sitting on the floor," she says, her fingers ruffling through his hair once more.

"But you like the company."

"I do. But you can still keep me company by sitting on the couch."

He shakes his head. "The couch is too hot. I swear it's cooler here on the floor. That whole thing about heat rising and all."

"That whole thing?" Kate parrots back. "You're the one who wrote a book called Heat Rises."

"Well yeah, but it's not like it was about the scientific principle behind it."

"No, it's about your detective with a stripper name."

"You're still mad about that? It's been eight years, Kate. I thought you had accepted Nikki by now."

She laughs, her fingers slipping out of his hair to toy with the shell of his ear. "I have accepted her. Doesn't mean I still can't think her name sounds like a stripper."

"Exactly how long did you spend in Vice?"

She laughs again. "Just a rotation in my rookie days. But there's nothing illegal about strippers. You're thinking of hookers."

"Blame the heat," Castle shrugs. "It's making me confuse words."

Kate hums, resting the hand not dancing around his head on her stomach. "Maybe you should let me name him."

"Hey now I'm great at names. I develop them for a living."

"We're not naming our son after one of her your book characters."

"Who said we were? I have no intention of naming him Derrick or Jamison. But you know what? James is pretty cute..."

She squeezes his ear. "We'll keep talking."

He leans away from her, stretching his back. "I think I'm getting too old to sit on the floor."

"You gonna play with our kid standing up?"

He pulls his toothbrush and toothpaste out, watching her inthe mirror as he brushes his teeth. Watches as the curling ends of her hairstraighten out with every brushstroke. There's still a bit of a natural wave toit when she finishes, but it's not nearly as curly as it was when the air wasdrying it. She pulls a hair clip out from one of the drawers, but then pauses,probably realizing she should put a shirt on first before she finishes herhair.

As she moves back out to their bedroom, he wonders what heused to keep in all of these bathroom drawers before she lived with him. Mostof them are filled with her things now. He turns to turn the shower back on forhimself, letting the water temperature adjust as he watches her dress from hisspot. She hops around, wiggling her hips, as she pulls up her skinny jeans. Henever knew watching someone put on pants could be so comical until he met her.It makes him wonder what she'll be like when she's pregnant some day and stilltrying to fit her old pants around her baby bump. He looks forward to that.

She walks back toward the bathroom, still buttoning up herblouse. Castle drops his boxers and just for a moment, Mrs. Castle returns asshe eyes his naked form in appreciation. But he steps into the spray of the shower,and she picks the hair clip back up, continuing her transformation intoDetective Beckett. With the top layer of her hair securely pinned up, shereaches for her makeup bag and rifles through its contents.

He watches her through the glass of the shower as sheapplies each layer to her routine. He doesn't think he's ever watched her applymakeup this intently before, seen what all goes into it. She fills her cheekswith air as she swipes blush over them, must be for contour purposes orsomething, but she still looks ridiculous nonetheless. Ridiculous in anadorable kind of way, that is. Her eyeliner goes on dark and thick today,another ridiculous expression crossing her face as she widens her eyes andopens her mouth to put on mascara. He's not sure why her mouth has to be opento do that, but he's never put on eye makeup before so what does he know?

She wipes a nude colored lipstick across her lips and he'sreminded of the bright red one Mrs. Castle had worn last weekend just for hisbenefit, just so she could leave it all over his skin and around his -

"Babe, are you riding to work with me or waiting untilwe get a call about a body?" she asks, fluffing her hair with her fingers.

"Go ahead, I'll meet you there later," he tellsher. "Besides I'm craving a bear claw this morning."

He sees a twitch of excitement flash across her face."Bring me one?"

"Of course."

She nods, moving back to the bedroom and sitting on the edgeof the bed to zip up her boots. He's not sure why she left the bathroom dooropen. Martha and Alexis haven't moved out yet and them walking in on him in theshower is the last thing any of them need. Maybe she's noticed him watching herthis morning, wanted to let him continue while he washes his hair.

Castle finishes up in the shower and steps out, wrapping a towelaround his waist. He runs another one through his hair, catching her completethe transformation as she clips her badge to her waist. She fascinates him.Always has.

"See you later," she calls over her shoulder asshe turns to leave.