Two Guys, a Girl and a Pizza Place
The two young boys sitting alone at the table in the corner quietly doing their homework was the first thing Richard Castle noticed when he walked into Sal's, his favorite hole-in-the-wall pizza restaurant. The second thing was the wonderful aroma wafting out of the brick oven, making his mouth water.
"I'll be with you in a second!" A female voice called out from somewhere under the counter just as his stomach let out a ground-rumbling growl and Rick's cheeks flushed red at the idea that maybe she actually was responding to the sound.
A string of muttered curses drew his attention away from his embarrassment and his curiosity had him leaning over the counter only to see two jean-clad legs sticking out into view. A bang followed by a louder expletive caused him to jump back, the boys at the corner table tittering into their palms at the scene.
"Can I help you?"
The question made him jump again, his attention drawn once more to the voice behind the counter. He turned from where he had been giving the boys an amused glance to see what could only be the most beautiful woman he'd ever seen staring back at him, locks of hair falling messily around her face and brushing her shoulders.
"I, uh..." He stuttered and she quirked an eyebrow at him in response, jade irises piercing his soul. She definitely wasn't Sal.
"Pizza," He spit out finally. "I'd like some."
"That is generally why people enter pizza places, yes," she retorted, a tolerant yet amused twinge of a smile playing at her lips.
"What type?" She prompted again after he failed to continue after another long moment.
"I, uh, yeah," he started again, a hand running through his hair. So many words, sentences, phrases clouded his brain on a daily basis and they all managed to fail him now. "What do you recommend."
"Well..." the goddess of a woman replied, drawing out the word like she was talking to a daft child rather than a full grown man. "The Greek is my favorite. If you like vegetables anyway."
"Yeah, um, yeah. That sounds good," he managed, forcing a smile onto his face. He came face to face with beautiful women everyday so what was it about this woman that had him all tied up in knots?
"Okay, just give me five minutes." She responded scooping two slices off the tray and sliding them into the fire.
His eyes surveyed the room as he waited, back leaning against the counter. The couple that had been at the table near the door had since left, leaving only a young family of four sitting snugly in the small lone booth and the two little brown haired boys at the table in the corner. His eyes landed back on the boys, watching as the smaller of the two leaned over to the other, whispering something back and forth. The older one scrounged around in his backpack, pulling out two slightly mashed sandwiches, holding one out to whom Rick assumed to be his younger brother, the small boy wrinkling his nose in response. With a slight huff the older boy shifted out of his chair, shuffling across the room with his hands shoved in his pockets, shoulders hunched.
"Momma?" His soft voice sounded and Rick watched, a single eyebrow raised, as the woman behind the counter turned in an instant, her expression soft. He wouldn't have pegged her for much older than mid-twenties, barely old enough to have a child let alone two.
"What up, baby?" She responded though.
"Sammy is hungry and the sandwiches got smashed in my bag. Can we have some pizza?"
She sighed, two fingers coming up to pinch the bridge of her nose, bottom teeth sinking into her bottom lip. After a moment of hesitation though she nodded. "Go check my purse, see how much cash I have."
The boy scurries away as Sammy, perking up, wiggled excitedly in his seat. The boy pulled a wallet out of the purse that had been sitting next to his backpack, quickly thumbing through it, but Rick watched as his expression fell, the boy pushing back out of his chair, wandering to the counter slowly.
"There's only three." He said in a low voice.
"Okay, well you two can split a piece." The woman responded.
"What about you?"
The woman's eyes darted to Rick who quickly averted his gaze but not before he caught an embarrassed glimpse of green.
"I'll be fine, baby. I'll eat when I get home. Now go on, finish your math, your dad will be here soon to pick you up for the night."
Rick hung his head, a single foot swinging out, scuffing against the old worn wooden floor. He watched out of the corner of his eye as she took the bills from her wallet, ringing up a single slice of cheese pizza. Pulling his phone from his pocket, he glanced down at it before turning back to the counter with a small smile.
"Hey, I just got a text that my daughter will be home for dinner after all, do you mind adding two slices of cheese to my order… oh, and a side salad?"
She eyed him for a moment before giving a short nod. "Yeah, no problem."
He pulled a twenty out of his pocket when the to-go boxes landed in front of him. Taking his change, he shoved the entire wad down into the tip jar without even looking at it. He was halfway to the door with the food when he stopped short, pulling his phone out of his pocket. He may not be the best actor, but he might as well at least try to make it convincing.
"Shoot," he stated as he turned back glancing between the counter and the table. "My daughter just told me she already ate. You boys think you can take care of this for me?"
The kids nodded eagerly, Sammy licking his lips as he eyed the box.
Rick leaned in conspiratorially. "Maybe your mom would like a slice and the salad too."
Rick risked a quick look to the counter to see the woman staring back at him, a single hand resting on her hip, teeth biting the inside of her cheek. She glared at him with a mixture of annoyance and amusement. With a small smile he turned back to the door, wishing the boys a good night. He glanced back through the window before turning the corner to see the woman rounding the corner with three glasses of water as the boys cleared away their books, dinner set out in front of them.
The next afternoon Rick rounded the same corner, his eyes peering through the window of their own accord, hoping to catch just a glimpse of those green eyes that had been haunting his dreams the night before. The boys were once again perched at the corner table in the otherwise vacant eatery, pencils pressed to their notebooks, heads bent. But there was a stiffness to them, something strange about how neither writing utensil moved. Rick's gaze wandered up to see the same woman behind the counter, her jaw stiff, brow creased in anger as she exchanged words with the man in an ill-fitted suit across from her.
Rick glanced down at the two paper cups of coffee gripped in his hands. He was late for a meeting with his publisher, but the clench in his gut told him that this was more important.
The man's fist hit the counter suddenly, causing the woman to jump back slightly before regaining her composure and Rick was through the doors without a second thought.
"Oh, come off it, Kate, it's not a big deal." The guy retorted as he reached up to loosen his tie.
"It is a big deal, I don't want her around my kids."
"They're my kids too and she's my girlfriend."
"Yeah, well maybe you should have thought of that before cheating on me with her in our bed."
"Is everything okay in here?" Rick chimed in as the door closed behind him. The woman, Kate's, eyes caught his and a red flush raced up her neck, coloring her cheeks.
"Fine," she growled out.
"Yeah, it's fine." The ex responded as well, turning his back on Kate to look at the kids at the table. "Come on Ethan, Sam. Time to go."
Rick watched, standing awkwardly with his two coffees, as the boys gathered up their belongings and shuffled out the door after their father as Kate watched quietly from behind the counter, a streak of flour painting down her cheek.
"Love you, be good for your dad," she called after them as the door swung shut. "And Trixie."
"Can I help you?" Kate continued her attention directed to him now, one signature eyebrow raised.
"I, um," Rick stuttered. He really needed to work on expanding his vocabulary around this woman. He looked down at his hands awkwardly. "Coffee?"
She eyed the single cup he held out to her. "You came in here to bring me coffee?"
"I, uh, well, no." He replied. Taking a deep breath he willed his tongue to actually do its job. "I was actually on my way to meet my publisher, I'm a writer by the way, that's why the publisher, and well I saw you through the window and I just wanted to make sure everything was okay…"
Her eyebrow rose even higher during his stuttered speech, something he had thought would be impossible. "So you're offering me someone else's coffee?"
"No, well yes, technically."
"Thanks but I'm good. And I don't need your charity or your rescuing." She turned away from him, aimlessly wiping down an already clean spot on the counter.
"I didn't," Rick responded pausing his denial to take a deep breath, taking a step closer to the counter. "I'm sorry, I didn't mean to insinuate that you did. I'm Rick by the way. Please take this caramel macchiato as a token of my apology."
She finally reached out to take the drink with a small roll of her eyes. "Kate."
"It's nice to meet you, Kate."
"You too," She replied, taking a sip of her drink, moaning slightly as the creamy espresso hit her tongue. "Thanks."
"So, not to sound too cliche, but what's a girl like you doing in a place like this?"
"Really?" Kate snorted. "You write for a living, and that's the best you can do?"
Rick chuckled, shaking his head. "I just, I like you. Think you're interesting. I'm normally smoother than this."
"Oh, I'm sure."
His face split into a wide smile at her sass, winning a small one from her in return. "The stack of law books back there on the counter, I'd guess… third year?"
"Observant."
"Hazard of the job. Mystery writer."
"Ah. I don't get the chance to read much fiction."
"Am I right?"
"Third year, yes. Columbia. Took this job after I kicked that lovely gentlemen out to help make ends meet."
"So…" Rick started, taking another half step forward, Kate watching him expectantly, her teeth sinking adorably into her lower lip, but the chirp of his cell phone cut off his next statement. "Shoot, I have to go. That meeting. She'll ream me if I'm late again. I guess I'll see you later?"
"I'll be here," Kate confirmed.
"Oh, and Mr. Castle?" She called after him. "Vanilla lattes are my favorite."
Rick's smile widened. He hadn't told her his last name.
A/N: See, it IS possible. Cute fluff just as promised. ;) Based on the tumblr prompt from toomuchwineornotenough: AU where KB is a struggling single mom of 2 boys working part time at a pizza place to make ends meet. Castle starts buying pizza daily, then bringing her coffee every morning.
Thank you to Fembot77 for the title and Kate Christie as always for the beta. We will be having margaritas with our pizza.