A/N: This is just a short scene that I thought of after watching 2x22. Which was definitely one of my favourite episodes by the way. Aside from the spoilers from 2x22 there are also slight spoilers for 2x17, but not really much. I hope you'll like it! The Heart Wants…
Castle leaned at the doorframe of the break room where Kate Beckett was just getting coffee. She hadn't noticed him yet and he decided to go over to her. While her coffee mug was filling up, he came up to her from behind and started talking in her ear, "So… Castle babies, huh?"
Out of surprise she almost jumped at the sound of voice and quickly turned around. "What?!"
He had a smug grin on his face. "You know. What Madison said during that interview earlier…"
Her expression quickly changed from a surprised one into a look quite similar to one of horror slightly mixed with embarrassment as she widened her eyes. Of course he just had to bring that up. Actually she had kind of been hoping that he'd let that one slip but who was she kidding. Still, she wasn't going to let him have the upper hand so she decided to play coy, like she did often in this little 'game' of theirs. "What about it?"
"Nothing really." She heard him say to her own relief, but then saw that he wasn't done yet.
"Just…" He said and stared into her eyes intently, to let her see his sincerity at that moment, "I think you'll make a great mother one day." He saw her swallow and her eyes never left his. He really meant it. He was just hoping that he'd get to be there when she would be one.
"You− You really think so?" She asked, for once letting a slight vulnerability show in her voice. Ever since she found out that agent Shaw had a kid, she'd been thinking about it herself too. If it could be a possibility for her as well. Also, the memories of her mother saying the exact same thing to her one day, after she had proudly told her about how good babysitting their neighbor's daughter went, came back and added to that vulnerability.
Castle smiled and assured her, "Yeah, I really think so."
She smiled almost shyly back at him and was about to say something when she saw Demming out of the corner of her eyes, waiting with her coat.
Castle seemed to have noticed it too and decided it was probably time for him to leave. "Just remember…" He started and pushed a crumpled note into her hands. With a nod goodbye, he left. She even saw him manage a polite smile for Tom, who was now standing at the entrance of the break room.
Quickly she unfolded the note to see what is said. The heart wants what the heart wants, was written in his surprisingly neat handwriting. She folded the note into her pocket and walked towards Tom.
"Hey" He greeted her.
"Hi." She replied and feigned a smile, although she wasn't really in the mood for smiling to him. She took his extended arm and looked aside to see Castle standing on the other side of the break room and she caught his eye before he looked away and walked out of the precinct. But it was too late. She had already seen the hurt look on his face.
Something deep inside her twisted and her heart was painfully aching. It was the same feeling she had when she saw Castle and Madison on their date. She hadn't expected it then, nor had she expected to feel it now.
The whole time that one sentence kept playing trough her mind, 'The heart wants, what the heart wants.'
Was it reason enough to risk it? She honestly didn't know.