Into the Limelight
By
UCSBdad
Disclaimer: Truthfully, I do not own Castle. Rating: K+ Time: Episode 6-12
Author's Note: Just something I thought up from the promos for 6-12. Definitely AU.
Kate Beckett was unhappy, and when Kate Beckett was unhappy, Richard Castle was unhappy.
"Kate, I'm sorry. I just don't see what I could do about it."
Kate ignored him and kept pacing back and forth across the living room of the loft. "What's the matter with these people? Has world peace suddenly broken out? Has hunger and disease disappeared? Are all the politicians in DC cooperating? Isn't there anything going on in the world more important than whether Richard Castle is getting back together with one of his ex-wives?"
"It has been kind of slow, news-wise, Kate. It'll all blow over. Soon. I'm sure."
"Meanwhile I have to walk down the street with you with some moron with a camera asking you whether it's Meredith or Gina you're marrying."
"It's you, honey. I'm marrying you. I love you."
Rick sounded so unhappy that Kate broke off from her tirade. "I know, Rick. I love you too." Then something occurred to her. "But Meredith! I could kill her! How could she talk like that?"
Rick shrugged. "Meredith loves the limelight. Put her in front of a camera and she'll talk forever."
"Oh, she talked, all right!" Kate snapped. "About how happy you two were. How she loves you and Alexis still. She hardly knows Alexis! And then she had to tell everyone what great sex you two had together. Even after the divorce."
"Kate, sex with you is far better. No comparison. Ten Merediths, a hundred Merediths couldn't compare. And at least Gina didn't say much."
"Oh, no. All Gina could manage was, "No Comment." Couldn't she have just said that you weren't getting married?"
"Gina probably thought that was enough." Kate stopped in front of Rick and Rick put his arms around her. "Kate, I know you're a very private person. You don't like being the center of attention, but as my wife, that'll come with the territory. But I promise you that I'll do my best to keep you away from the press, the photographers, the paparazzi and everything else. I promise."
Kate rested her head under Rick's chin. "I know you will. And I appreciate it. But people think of me as the real Nikki Heat. That can be hard to live up to, as I've found. You've been in the public eye for all of your adult life. You enjoy it, and you're good at it. I just freeze up and grunt my replies."
"You do not. You're just terse."
"Terse?" Kate giggled. "That's one word for it."
"I remember the first time I was in the public eye, as you put it. I was fifteen and mom took me as her "date" to a Hollywood premiere of a movie she was in. I was terrified. Luckily, no one paid the slightest attention to me."
"I doubt that." She teased.
Since Kate had calmed down, Rick decided he'd risk telling her something.
"Paula called me about this. She's booked me tomorrow night on WHNY, the Kristina Coterra show."
"What!" Kate yelled. "That bimbo who tried to shove her boobs down your throat right here! What was Paula thinking? How could she…"
"She doesn't know about us. No one but family and close friends do. She thought it would be good publicity to let everyone know that Rick Castle is still single. And I am, until September, that is."
Kate took a step back from Rick. "If she touches you, I'll rip her arms off. If she asks you out, you are not available. Ever! You will not…" Kate stopped, stepped back into Rick's arms and put her head on his chest. "I'm acting like I don't trust you and I do. Sorry. It's just that…"
"You've been madly in love with me since the first day we met."
"Dream on, Castle."
Rick kissed the top of her head. "And I won't mention a word about us. I'll keep us a secret until the last possible moment."
In the bullpen the next day, Kate became aware that Esposito and Ryan had been whispering together for several minutes.
"What is it?" She asked testily.
"What?" Espo said as innocently as he could.
"What don't you want me to hear?"
Ryan smiled. "Busted again. I told you she'd catch us."
"Um. Beckett?' Esposito began. "Are you aware that Castle is going on the Kristina Coterra show tonight? The same Kristina Coterra that basically attacked him when you two were together, but didn't want anyone…"
"I know. And we agreed that he should go out with her." She lied. "So that people wouldn't think we were together. He just hadn't planned on her showing up at his place and…"
"Jumping him." Ryan finished for her.
"Yeah. But Castle isn't going to do anything. Tonight is just a chance to set the record straight. He's single and not marrying an ex-wife. He just won't mention he's marrying me in September. It's nothing. No one really cares about it anyway."
"You haven't seen the poll on Channel Six?" Ryan asked.
"The poll? On another channel?"
Espo turned the volume up on the TV in the bullpen just enough for them to hear. A young man in a suit and tie was on the air. "Which one should he marry? Meredith, no question. She's smokin' hot, and she's an actress. Can't beat that." The scene changed to a young girl, just in her teens. "Well, if he won't marry me, he should marry that Tina, the blonde. She is so sophisticated. And cool." They went back to an announcer. "And so the Castle Channel Six marriage poll now stands at Meredith, 67 percent, and Gina, 33 percent. Be sure to vote online at…"
Espo turned the sound off.
"I'm not in the poll?" Kate fumed. "I'm his muse, the inspiration for Nikki Heat. I'm in that damned video clip. I'm walking right beside him."
Epso and Ryan struggled not to laugh.
"Look, you two just forget about this. Castle will set the record straight on this tonight and it will all be over. Now what about the financials I asked for? Did you expect to find it on Channel Six?"
While feigning disinterest in the whole subject, Kate did get video feeds of the news from the local TV stations on her computer. What she saw did not make her happy. Every major news station in the city seemed to be in on the "which ex-wife will Castle marry" marathon. Even the Spanish and Chinese language stations seemed to be in on the act.
What really angered her was a commercial by Kristina Coterra for her program that night. Coterra, in a low cut top smiled sultrily at the camera. "Tonight I will find out from Richard Castle himself which ex-wife he'll marry. And," she practically leered at the camera, "if he won't answer, perhaps I can offer myself as an alternative. See you at nine."
Within half an hour the Channel Six poll had Kristina and Meredith running neck and neck with Gina a distant third.
Kate checked her watch. Almost three o'clock. She grabbed her coat and headed for the door.
"Beckett? Where are you going?"
"Out." She snapped.
"What are Ryan and I supposed to say if Gates asks where you are?"
"Tell her I'm preventing a murder." And she was gone.
At eight o'clock, Kate pulled her car up in front of the WHNY studios. She hoped Castle hadn't gone in yet. Then she saw him getting out of a cab, just down the street. She jumped out of her car and ran towards him.
"Hi." She said.
"Kate, what are you doing here?" Castle noticed that she had on more that the bare minimum of makeup that she usually wore and he could see that she had a dress on under her coat rather than her usual pants.
"I've come to be on the Kristina Coterra show with you." She said, very determinedly.
"I thought you hated being in the media?"
Kate took a deep breath. "I do, but I hate people trying to pair you up with someone else worse. Especially I hate Kristina Coterra trying to grab you. When I was dressing I saw her latest ad for tonight. She practically promised to seduce you on camera. You're mine and I want everyone to know it." She took his arm. "Shall we go in?"
"You're sure about this? Really sure?"
"As sure as I am that I want to marry you. Besides, it'll be no secret in another few months. What difference will it make if everyone finds out now?"
Rick smiled at the love of his life. "Let's go surprise Kristina."
"Oh, I'm going to love this surprise."
The two walked through the station and got to the broadcasting studio. Rick saw Kristina talking to one of her producers and waved to her. Kristina immediately walked over to Rick. "Rick how good to see you again." She leaned in and kissed Rick's cheek, completely ignoring Kate.
"You remember Detective Beckett, don't you? From the time at my loft?"
Kristina did not remember Detective Beckett fondly and only nodded in her direction.
"I've been Shadowing Beckett for years now, researching for Nikki Heat."
"How nice." Kristina said coldly.
"Anyway, since all of this uproar about my upcoming marriage, I thought I'd introduce my fiancé on your show."
Kristina looked around. "Wonderful. Where is she? I don't see either of your exes."
"Ahem." Rick held up Kate's left hand so that the engagement ring was clearly visible. "Meet my fiancé, Kate Beckett."
Kristian panicked as she saw her whole carefully prepared program, involving herself, Castle's two ex-wives and no Detective Beckett going down in flames.
"Just think," Rick said happily, "I'm marrying my muse, the real life inspiration for Nikki Heat and you get to scoop all of your competition.'
"All of my competition?" Kristina suddenly felt much better about this turn of events. "Excuse me, you two should get into makeup. I need to talk to my staff. See you later, Rick."
Kate watched Kristina's retreating figure. "That wasn't as much fun as I had expected."
Promptly at nine o'clock the camera focused on Kristina Coterra. "Good evening, New York. Do I have news for you! Tonight we not only have world famous author Rick Castle, who as you will know has been the subject of much speculation about his marital plans," the camera's view widened to include Rick, "but we have his lovely fiancé, Detective Kate Beckett of the New York Police Department. As all Castle fans will know, she is the real life inspiration for Detective Nikki Heat. Please tell us, Kate, how did you meet Rick?"
Kate stared at the camera for a second, fortunately smiling broadly, then spoke. "It was after the murder of a young lady, Allison Tisdale." Kate proceeded to tell the story of the Tisdale murder in a manner that was grim, gritty, occasionally funny and which gave Rick a far easier time than he might have expected from Kate.
Suddenly the program was over and Kate found herself and Rick saying goodbye to Kristina. "Rick, I always thought you were a great guest to have on, but I may replace you with Kate in the future. She's golden. A star. No wonder you're marrying her."
Kate left the station happy that it was over and happy that she had done well, apparently.
When they walked into the station the next day, Kate saw Captain Gates standing outside her office with a frown on her face and her hands on her hips. "Detective Beckett! Mr. Castle! My office, now!"
Kate closed the door behind her as she walked into Gates's office. "Sir, I know that I should have cleared my appearance with the department public relations officer, but…"
"But you didn't. However, that's not why I called you in here. The Chief was watching last night. Apparently a large number of high ranking officers watched as well.
Kate's heart sank. "Sir, I apologize…"
"They loved you." Gates said briskly. "They thought you were the best PR this department has had since the Nikki Heat books. Apparently the public thinks the same. The department has had requests for you two to appear on just about every TV station in the city and a few elsewhere, in addition to print and radio requests. I understand some of the major network's late night talk shows want you two on as well."
"I'm afraid this was a one shot deal, sir. I'm a detective not some sort of walking advertisement for the department."
"That's what you think. You now report to the department PR officer, Captain McElroy. He's got you two scheduled on Midnight in Manhattan for tonight. He'll brief you on your further assignments. Now, you two head for One Police Plaza."
Rick and Kate stood rooted to the spot.
"Go now!" Gates added.
As they headed for the elevator, Kate took Rick's hand. "What have I done?"
