Woman in White

Part 9

December 1, 2013
The Wedding Part 2
While their guests enjoy cocktail hour, Castle and Beckett take pictures with their parents and wedding party before they're left alone while Jim and Martha find their seats and their friends and Alexis enter the reception. Castle stares down at his wife and tucks a loose curl behind her ear, "Hi." She smiles up at him, "Hey there, Mrs. Castle." He replies before leaning down and pressing a kiss to her ear. "Your dress is beautiful." He tells her, "Thank you. I'm glad you like it." She whispers in his ear before kissing him.
      A few minutes later, the two are instructed to get ready and enter their reception. They intertwine their fingers as they hear the DJ on the other side of the door introduce them, "Ladies and gentlemen, it is my privilege to introduce your guests of honor: Richard and Katherine Castle!" The doors to the reception venue opens and the two walk in. Rick lifts their joined hands in triumph as their friends and family cheer for them. They enjoy the attention for a few moments and share a sweet kiss before the DJ starts playing tunes of Frank Sinatra and Coltrane as dinner is served.
       They had two dinner options: beef wellington with garlic roasted asparagus or a lemon, herb crusted salmon with a sun dried and oil pasta side. Castle got the beef wellington while Kate ordered the salmon and the two agreed to share. The writer gives his wife a suspicious look when he notices she's drinking water, "You didn't want a glass of champagne? Or red?" He asks. She shakes her head and smiles mischievously, "I want to be completely coherent for tonight." She says before raising her eyebrows. He smiles down at her and chuckles.
      Everyone is enjoying their dinners when Ryan and Esposito make their way up to the stage to begin toasts, "Good evening. I am Detective Kevin Ryan and this is my partner, Javier Esposito." Ryan introduces them, "Work partners!" Esposito makes sure to clarify which makes their audience laugh. "Right, yes, work partners. I won't take too much time so that Espo can give his toast as well, but I guess I'll start from the beginning. I first met Beckett when I transferred to the homicide unit back in 2007 and she really was a hermit." Ryan begins the speech.
      "I mean she rarely talked about anything other than a case and she was always the first at the precinct and last to leave. I remember Javi and I once thought she actually lived at the 12th cause it seemed like she was always there. Anyway, cut to March of 2009 and we get this case of a killer with a pattern that only Beckett recognized: a copycat murderer killing his victims the same way Richard Castle did in his famous mystery novels. When our captain informed us that we would have to question Castle, it was the first time I saw Beckett get slightly giddy in the two years I had known her."
     "Before long, we found ourselves in a unique situation with a new addition to our team who wasn't a cop. I, along with my partner and other members of the 12th precinct, got the privilege to watch their relationship blossom into what it is today and I can confidently say there aren't two people on this earth more deserving of love and happiness than Rick and Kate. So a toast to Mr. and Mrs. Castle. Congrats guys!" Ryan says. Everyone cheers and take a sip of their beverages.
      Ryan steps back as Esposito steps forward, "You can clearly which one of us is the more feminine energy." Esposito opens his speech making the guests laugh. "Um, I met Beckett a couple of years before Ryan in 2003, and I'm gonna be honest, we pissed each other off at first. Not as much as Castle pissed her off when they first met, but we weren't as close as we are now. We were both married to the force and were working hard to prove ourselves and in the process of that we stepped on each other's toes a lot."
      "We obviously worked out our differences and Beckett quickly became the little sister I never had. When Castle came along, there was a spark in her that I hadn't ever seen. I can truly say I've never known Kate to be happier than she's been with Castle and it truly is beautiful whatever they have. So, Kate, I'm so happy to see you happy and you deserve this. Rick, hurt her and I'll kick your ass. I love you both. To the Castles!" Everyone cheers and raise their glasses once again. They receive more toasts from Lanie along as Martha and Jim.
      They're both shocked, however, when Alexis gets up by the microphone. "Hello, good evening everyone, I'm Alexis Castle. I'm the daughter of the groom and new stepdaughter of the bride. Growing up, it was just my dad and I for most of my life. He always aided to me and my needs and everything else came second to that. And, when I first met Detective Beckett, I was drawn to her and went to her for advice a lot of times. But when they got together, I found it really hard to come to terms with."
     "And I realized that the reason it was hard for me was because it was the first time I had seen my dad become so serious about a relationship. But now I can say I am without a doubt so happy for both of them and so lucky that I got to witness their love story. Dad, thank you for loving me unconditionally and for always putting me first. Kate, thank you for loving my dad the way he deserves and for finally giving me the stable, maternal figure that I've always wanted. Congratulations. Oh, and a little sibling would be greatly appreciated." Alexis says.
      Castle and Beckett chuckle as they look at each other. Once everyone settles down, the DJ turns the music off, "I would like to invite the bride and groom to the dance floor for their first dance as husband and wife." He announces. The guests cheer as Castle and Beckett make their way to the dance floor hand-in-hand. The piano intro to the song they picked a few weeks ago begins to play: