man (later revealed to be the father he never knew) handed him a copy of Ian Fleming's Casino Royale at the New York Public Library when he was ten years old. He also claims to have been kicked out of all of New York's finer academic institutions at least once, and to have picked up speed reading while spending his days as a child in the New York Public Library. Castle has been married and divorced twice. His first wife was Alexis's mother, Meredith (Darby Stanchfield), an impulsive, free-spirited actress, and red-haired like her daughter. She and Richard occasionally meet for a sexual liaison, causing Richard to refer to her metaphorically as a "deep-fried twinkie" (something that is a treat on occasion, but to have it every day would kill you) when she contemplated moving back to New York. His second wife was Gina Cowell (Monet Mazur), his publisher, a role she continues after their divorce. Castle and Gina became involved again, briefly, when she spent a summer with him in the Hamptons supervising his second Nikki Heat novel, but they soon ended their relationship. Castle has sole custody of his daughter, Alexis. As a result of his own experiences being raised by a nanny, he insisted on raising her himself, made easier by the fact that he works from his large loft apartment shared with his mother. Alexis sometimes seems more mature and responsible than her father, parenting him. Richard takes great care of her, but also likes to play with her. Castle also plays regular poker games with fellow authors James Patterson, Stephen J. Cannell, Michael Connelly, and Dennis Lehane. When Cannell died in 2010, a fictional mystery writer was invited by Castle to the game, but a seat was left empty in their friend's honor. He also mentions being friends with Jonathan Kellerman, Wes Craven, and Stephen King. In the fifth season, Castle finally meets his father (portrayed by James Brolin), whom he learns is a spy when he helps him rescue Alexis when she was kidnapped. A Russian enemy of Castle's father seeks revenge for the Russian's murdered wife, so he kidnaps Alexis to lure him out. His father has been checking in on him, his mom, and Alexis their whole lives. At the end of the final fifth-season episode, Castle proposes marriage to Beckett just as she prepares to reveal her decision on a Washington,