She wasn't even in his loft yet, just standing in the elevator, alone, and she was madly twirling loose hairs around the fingers of one hand, while playing the tips of her other against the hem of her sundress. She hoped she wasn't overdressed, she hoped her personality showed up, today, she hoped she didn't end up looking a fool, she hoped…she hoped he still loved her, at the end of it.

Breathe in, and out, and in…shaky. Her knees wobbled, body unable to keep from swaying back and forth on the height of the light purple open-toed pumps that cushioned her feet, and kept her heels off the ground. The elevator pinged, the doors opened, and she – remained in the box, cold as stone. Frozen. She'd been frozen before, with Castle, in fact. If she could survive a locked freezer, she could manage to step out of this elevator. One. Two. Three…she stepped.

Now moving over the threshold of the elevator and onto the plush carpet of his floor, she brushed out imaginary wrinkles in her plain pastel dress. One would even say that it was a lovely, light cherry colour, brushing her thighs about three inches above her knees, loose and breathing. She checked to make sure the V in the neck wasn't exposing too much flesh for the occasion as she continued walking, running her thin fingers over her hair, reassuring herself that the bun at the back was loose and unprofessional, but holding up, and in place. Easter with the Castles. She could do this. She tucked some loose hair behind an ear with one last step and one deep, deep breath, raising her arm to buzz the apartment, when the door flew open, and she was more or less run over, stumbling backwards, and oh God, did she need her gun? Although – she was caught, caught by the arms of the aggressor, pulled back to a partially upright position, catching the man's horrified eyes, narrowing her own.

"Where do you get off on-"

"-Look I'm sorry, miss, I'm in a bit of a rush. Name's Reggie – are you Ricky's guest? I'd have to say so, I think I've seen you around, before. Look I don't usually smack people down and run, but my niece is about to be born and I can't miss that kind of crap. If you're hurt, I can give ya a ride – but I really gotta get to the hospital snippety snap." The man was walking, almost jogging away from her, rushed smiles and waving, and then gone behind the door that lead to the stair well. She was fine, she was fine, just…the number next to the door she'd almost buzzed was a 5, not a 3.

"Oh." She stepped away from it, still open, embarrassed that she was so nervous that she'd make a mistake like this. "Pull it together, Kate, or this will be a really long day."

Before she'd even taken an entire stride in the direction of Castle's door, it too opened. Richard Castle walked handsomely out of his home in an eye-accenting blue button-up, dark slacks, and a brown coat, dressed feet coming to a halt upon catching a glimpse of her in his hallway. His eyes ravaged her, but quickly came to meet her gaze, such a sparkling, powerful blue in the mid-morning light that caught him like a headlight from the open loft to his left.

"Kate!" She smiled in response to her name, cautious.

"Heading out?" An eyebrow piqued, arms free at her sides. She took several brave steps towards him, lessening their physical distance. He watched her with restrained awe, his hands raising as if to pull her in closer (where she should be), played off as pocketing his hands, instead.

"No. Well, yeah. But I didn't forget I invited you to Easter, we were just running out of Peeps and small jousting weapons…" His forehead wrinkled, but he hadn't let her down. She laughed, the wide smile warming her entire face and more.

"Not a problem. You want me to…?" It was strange, being in his territory. Usually it was she who gave out the orders, but today, she was completely under his hand.

"Stay, of course! My mother and Alexis are up and about. I shouldn't be more than…thirty minutes? You can time me." And he too, with a fumble of words, was rushing away from her, waving his hand in farewell, but she didn't –

"Castle?" He stopped, and turned back around to face her, his lips poised in question. When she didn't speak, he padded back to her, closer than before. She still looked up to him in these heels, and she basked in the closeness of his body. She desperately wanted to touch it…anything to be near him. "Pick me up some purple ones." And the Beckett beams washed over Castle, him merrily returning her grin.

Before he could rush away, she halted him once more, by stepping into him, so that her arm could easily reach up, barely brush his cheek, and stroke the short hair around and behind his ear. Something raged in her as he sucked in a breath, incredibly still, eyes wide and confused. "Take this with you." With those words, she pulled from behind his ear what appeared to be some wadded up cash. He didn't take it, like she thought he would, so she reached into his jacket pocket, and settled it there, knuckles incidentally massaging the flesh above his hip. When she was done with him, she stepped away, amused with his sudden silence, his surprise.

"M-magic trick?" He swallowed once, reclaiming control of the muscles in his face, nodding his head.

"Learned it with the ice cubes. Clock is ticking." Her eyes narrowed, flirtatious this time, as she stepped assuredly into his loft, leaving him alone in the hallway with a look on his face as if he'd just been punched in the gut.

That women. The things she put him through…damn, Rick. He needed to pull it together. Otherwise this was going to be one hell of a day.

Who was he fooling? Kate Beckett was spending the entire day with him - no matter what, it was going to be one hell of a day.