Looking for Love

"For the first time ever Looking for Love will feature a celebrity bachelor…author Richard Castle!" Caskett AU #castleficathon2018 entry

12 Chapter + Epilogue


Chapter 1

Gazing at his reflection in the dressing room mirror, Richard Castle combed his fingers back through his hair, trying to make sure it was fluffed just right. The hairdresser had combed it too flat for his taste, and though she'd dubbed it to be perfect, if he was going to be seen on national television he had to make sure it was just right. If it wasn't, he was sure to hear about it both in the press and from his mother and daughter, though the latter two were the only opinions he cared about.

"Well, Richard, if I'd known you looked this good in television makeup I would have insisted you wear it more often."

Castle spun around to face the smirk of his publisher-slash-ex-wife and matched her expression easily. "Very funny, Gina."

"I'm serious." She strolled forward and dusted her hand across the lapel of his black suit jacket. "You look good."

"Good enough to have a dozen women fawning over me in barely more than an hour?"

"I'd say so." She straightened his black silk tie, and then took a step back to scan him head to toe. Once satisfied with his appearance, she bobbed her head. "You ready for all this?"

A blip of laughter escaped his lips. "Bit too late for me to say no, isn't it?"

"Indeed, but please feel free to answer honestly."

He exhaled heavily as he turned back around and picked up the red rose seated on the table in front of him. After pinning it to his lapel, he turned back around and gave her his classic for-the-press smile. "Well, who wouldn't want to fall in love with twelve women selected at random while on national television?"

She scoffed. "Please. Like your playboy heart isn't loving this."

"Playboy heart…yeah, something like that," he muttered before gazing around the room to see where he'd dropped his water bottle. He found it slumped over against the back of the loveseat in the cramped room. Taking two steps forward, he snagged it, then brought it to his lips to finish off what remained of the liquid.

By the time he tossed it into the trashcan, Gina was at his side again. "I know you're still hesitant about the cameras, but you'll soon forget about them, I'm sure."

He arched a skeptical eyebrow. "Forget that they're watching me every second of every day? Doubtful."

"Well then," she smiled and pressed her hands flat against his chest, "if you must: remind yourself about that half-million-dollar check that's not resting comfortably in your bank account. Not to mention the new readers and thus book sales this publicity will bring in. I'm telling you, Richard, Storm's swan song will be one for the record books."

"As long as your happy, Gina. Now, if you don't mind, I'd like to spend some of my last camera-free moments by myself."

She leaned in, kissed his cheek lightly, brushed her thumb over the spot and then said genuinely, "Good luck, Richard."

After bidding her goodbye, Castle walked into the small adjoining bathroom in his dressing room and used the facilities. As he washed his hands, he caught a glimpse of himself in the mirror and realized that he…well, didn't look like himself. Yes, the foundation makeup and other products altered his appearance by erasing blemishes and freckles and making everything seem smooth, but it was more than that. The part of himself he didn't recognize was below the surface.

What the hell had he been thinking when he let Gina talk him into a reality dating show?

Actually—he hadn't been thinking; he had been drinking. And perhaps doing a bit of wallowing. He'd been in a vulnerable place and she, being his former spouse, knew exactly what buttons to push. Ultimately, he'd agreed to get her to stop badgering him and go away. He'd regretted it the next day, which surely would have been enough time to back out, but then he hadn't wanted to deal with her negative reaction and merely figured it would be five weeks out of his life; how bad could it possibly be?

Truth be told, there was certainly a point in his past when simultaneously dating twelve women (and getting paid to do it!) would have sounded like the best thing ever, but those days were long gone. While they might have briefly returned after his first divorce, after his second failed marriage he was certainly looking for something more serious than a television show could provide. He didn't believe it was impossible for him to find love on the show, simply unlikely.

Upon hearing a knock at the door to his dressing room, Castle stepped out of the bathroom and called out, "Yes? Come in," loud enough to be heard through the door. One of the perky female PA's he'd previously met poked her head in the door and said, "Twenty minutes until call time, Mr. Castle."

"Thank you," he said to her. She nodded and inadvertently caused the headset to fall down over her eyes. She scrambled with it for a moment before slipping out the door, leaving Castle with a smile at the amusing display.

Taking a seat on the couch, he decided he was taking this entire situation far too seriously. Would he find his third wife in the next five weeks? Most likely not, but that wasn't the point. The point was that he needed a change and being the bachelor on the tenth season of Looking for Love would certainly be it.

After finalizing his divorce a year prior, Castle had sat down to do what he did best: write another tale featuring his fictional golden goose, Derrick Storm. He quickly found, however, that writing Storm had lost its luster. Thus, he'd made the decision to kill off his leading man and turn his attention to a new story and a new character that would reinvigorate his passion for crafting stories. Unfortunately, that new character remained elusive to date.

Instead of writing, Castle had spent most of the prior five months sleeping in, playing video games, and surfing the internet. To his mother, daughter, and publishers, he insisted it was all under the guise of research, though none of them believed him. He really had thought that after a few weeks of rest, his brain would concoct a new and exciting idea. Then, as time wore on, and that didn't happen, he grew concerned that maybe his talent with the written word had withered away and maybe he wouldn't be able to write any more best-sellers.

Though it may have been slightly irrational, that fear was part of the reason he agreed to the reality show. He hoped the whirlwind trip through a variety of picturesque Caribbean locations would get his creative juices flowing. Or, a least, give him ideas for future scenes in future books…if only he had a new character—or a new muse to inspire him.

Grumbling to himself, he stood from the couch and walked over to the mini-fridge to snag a soda. He took a few sips and tried to push away the stomach-clenching thoughts of his future career out of his mind. He needed to put that concern on the back burner for the moment and focus instead of the new task he would soon face: meeting and remembering the name of twelve beautiful women.

Well, he supposed, there were worst things he could do with a Friday evening. Worst things indeed.


"Okay, Miss Kate; you're all set," the makeup artist, Paulo, informed her with one more swipe of a brush over he left cheekbone. "Now try not to smudge. Remember: dab, don't wipe if you cry."

"Ah, thanks; I'll remember." Kate Beckett forced a polite smile as Paulo departed, though she new there was approximately zero percent chance of her crying that evening. She had never been a fan of public crying and when "public" in this case meant a production crew plus the three and a half (give or take) million viewers at home, she certainly intended to keep herself in check—not that she was overly concerned. When it came to crying, she generally only did so out of sadness or frustration, and she did not anticipate any extreme emotions other than annoyance that evening.

"Oh, wow, Kate—you look gorgeous!" A passing production assistant said to her while giving a dramatic thumbs up.

She muttered out a thank you before gripping the arms of her chair until her knuckles began to turn while. She couldn't delay it any longer; she had to turn around and look at herself and she was already bracing for the worst. She'd seen how much heavy-duty makeup they'd plastered onto her face. For the cameras and lights, they'd told her. She understood and had been well aware that television, movie, and theatre makeup was always far more aggressive than everyday-wear makeup, but she still struggled with the concept that she was actually there, about to appear on a TV show. A TV dating show, no less.

"I am going to kill you, Lanie," she muttered to herself for the tenth time since her plane landed in Miami, where the first episode of Looking for Love was being filmed.

Blowing out a breath through her lips, Kate spun around in her seat, and tried not to let out an audible gasp at what she saw. The person in the mirror before her was undoubtedly gorgeous, but it also, most definitely, was not her. They'd dyed her maroon-toned hair back to brown (admittedly, the maroon had been a mistake, but this brown was nearly black; it was too dark). Her eyebrows had been filled in using a dark pencil and the fake eyelashes they'd glued on her face looked borderline absurd. Of all that they'd done, the only thing she liked were the lips. Though she never would have used such a siren-red tone, she thought it looked good and made a mental note to have Lanie help her pick out a similar shade once she was back home.

"Oh boy…" She sighed out to herself after a full minute of taken it all in. Though she had suspected it before, now she knew for certain: this was going to be a long five weeks. Assuming she made it that long. Hell, just that evening was going to feel so long it would probably feel like five weeks! God, she was such a fool for letting Lanie talk her into this!

Even three months after the fact Kate still wasn't sure what had made her agree to Lanie's suggestion she make an audition video for the show. True, the night had involved far too much wine, but even that wasn't an excuse. Everything her good friend had said to her had been completely accurate. Kate's love life had been in a funk ever since she broke up with her FBI beau Will Sorensen the prior year. Though she dated here and there, her luck seemed non-existent. Most nights, she didn't mind that. She had never been one to need a man at her side and her job was more than fulfilling. Still, waking up alone every morning had begun to wear on her which was why she'd given in to Lanie's pushes, figuring there would be no real harm in it.

Right.

It was particularly stupid of her, the daughter of two lawyers, not to read any of the fine print before submitting her audition video. Somewhat in her defense, she figured there was a less than one percent chance of being chosen. In fact, being selected never once entered her mind; she thought of the whole thing as a goof. Then, much to her horror, three weeks later she received an email stating that she was a finalist and that she needed to submit some more information. She politely declined, asking to be removed from consideration, and only then was informed that by submitting her video she was contractually obligated to continue with the show if selected. At that point, she panicked, and contacted her father, but after reading over the legal verbiage she provided him, he agreed she had no choice but to continue with the show, lest she face a lawsuit.

"Oh c'mon, Kate; how bad could it possibly be?" her friend Lanie had asked in-between bouts of hysterical laughter once Kate confided in her that she had been chosen for the show. When Kate had arrived in Miami and stepped into the hotel ballroom where the other eleven women were congregated her worst fears had been confirmed; it was worse than she ever imagined it could be.

Her fellow contestants all seemed unbelievably thrilled to be there, vying for the attention and devotion of an unknown man. In that respect, Kate was the outlier, but it was more than just that. Though she had no official confirmation, from a visual sweep alone she determined herself to be one of the oldest in the group if not the oldest. Though normally she was from the "age is just a number" camp, she feared she wouldn't have that much in common with women who appeared barely old enough to drink (legally). Seeing as they were in a competition, she doubted they needed to be best friends, but they would be spending a lot of time together over the next few weeks.

Then again, there was always her backup plan. If the bachelor seemed too undesirable to her or if the whole experience was beginning to feel more torturous than tolerable, Kate had known all along what she would do: act like a total asshole. Surely, that would result in the unknown bachelor sending her packing. True, it wouldn't stop her coworkers from teasing her or even perhaps people recognizing her on the streets, but it would be better than suffering. If and when she had to enact such a plan remained to be seen. As she had promised Lanie, she was determined to at least get through the first night with an open mind. After that, she would assess.

"Okay, ladies. Gather 'round, please."

Upon hearing the director's announcement, Kate stood, and tip-toed her way towards the front of the ballroom while balancing in sky-high red stilettos. She gathered with the other eleven women and waited patiently for whatever instructions she was about to receive.

"Now is everybody excited?" the man asked. All the women but Kate cheered; she fought to roll her eyes. "Excellent!" he continued. "We're about one hour until show time, which means I can finally reveal to you that this season—our tenth season—we're doing something extra special. For the first time ever Looking for Love will feature a celebrity bachelor!"

The group erupted into squeals while Kate groaned and fought the urge to cover her face with her hands. A celebrity bachelor?! God—it was getting worse!

"I'm sure you'd all like to know who this celebrity will be, right?" the director teased. After receiving encouragement from the crowd, he announced, "This season, the bachelor will be… author Richard Castle!"

While the group seemed largely baffled, Kate actually felt her face flush. So the man for whose attention she would be vying was not an arrogant actor—or a washed up one. He was instead one of her favorite authors; a man she'd met once before, though she very much doubted he would remember as it was during one of his very popular signing events several years earlier. That changed things, didn't it?

Kate let both of her hands settle over her stomach as it began to flutter with nerves. She shut her eyes and quietly cursed herself. Being nervous was positively absurd. What, at best, could come from their time together? She could probably have a nice meal with him and maybe (oh god) he would try to kiss her after. Other than that? Nothing. She couldn't even tell him what she'd wanted to and been unable during the book signing about how much his books meant to her because even though they would (presumably) have some alone time to talk, that time would be filmed by cameras and thus they would not truly be alone and she had no interest in sharing such sentiments with the world.

Still, with Richard Castle as the bachelor she had to admit to being moderately more interested in the experience than she had been before. At the very least, she would have some very good stories to tell Lanie when she got back home. As for what happened in between now and then, she would just have to see.


A/N: First and foremost I must thank Dee, Joan, Lou, & Lindsey on twitter for their prompt/conversation that inspired this story - and everyone else who enthusiastically contributed/encouraged me

I'd also like to say that I absolutely despise the show The Bachelor and have only watched 1 season of it because i think its kind of gross. This being said I really did enjoy the challenge of putting KB & RC in this environment and I hope you enjoy it too!

Also thanks to Travis for the cover art!