Disclaimer: Nope. Still don't own Castle.

[No Spoilers in reviews please...]

A/N: Apparently the worst that could happen is pretty bad...

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Beckett stepped back, dropping her hands from Castle's shoulders, voice cold and controlled, "What?"

Castle started to retorted, "I don't.."

She interrupted though, before he could get a word in; taking a small step back for him, voice starting to show clear irritation and exasperation, "You are overreacting! You come up with some wild and crazy theory.."

Castle spat back, venom creeping into his voice, feeling that his years of contributions were being dismissed, "Even you acknowledge Beckett, sometimes those wild and crazy theories are right!"

She snapped put a biting response to that, "This one isn't!"

"It's not even about a theory Beckett. What don't you get? You want to make us a secret again, you.."

Beckett could help herself, raising her voice, talking over him, getting her point in, "That's crap! It's not about secrets Castle, it's about your crazy imagination running haywire. Thinking you only got lucky, that if things and played out differently I'd have dumped you for the DC opportunity. That's what it's really about isn't it?"

"No, it really.."

"Of course it is!"

"Fine Beckett have it your way. You always do. Fine. True though isn't it? You whine about my crazy theory now; but it was a lucky case or we would be over right now!"

"What do you want me to say? If not for the right circumstances I might have decided to leave? Yeah it might have happened. So what?"

Castle simply gapped at her, shocked that she though so little of the idea of leaving them, whispering, "So what?"

She was focused now, the job, the worries, they didn't matter; she was convinced now even if she'd taken it she'd have ended up only one possible place anyway, "You know what it would have meant? I'd have ended up miserable, stuck in a job leaving me no time to live, no time for any relationships; not something I'd like any more, not after experiencing so much of life with you. I don't know how long it would have lasted, but I'd have come back. I wouldn't have been able to stay away, give up on us; it would never have worked out in the long run. I'd have come back to you."

He was shaking his head at that, clearly exasperated, "So I should be grateful that eventually you'd change your mind and realize maybe you needed a back up plan? That's what I am to you isn't it a backup plan for when your first idea falls flat!"

"First idea? First idea? This would be your third! Third marriage!"

"What's that got to do with this? They weren't you!"

"I'm going out on a limb here; taking a chance that we'll last when those failed."

"Taking a chance? You don't even know why they failed, you never bothered to ask!"

"Meredith told me..."

Castle barked out an incredulous laugh, "You spoke to Meredith! You asked Meredith why our marriage failed? You asked her rather than me? Unbelievable. I'm sure she span you a great story Beckett."

"She said.."

"Whatever! She cheated on me! Did she tell you that? Or she keep that bit a secret?"

Beckett was stunned by that disclosure apparently, face dropping all sings of anger, and voice softening noticeably, "Rick, no.."

"But you know about cheating and secrets don't you Beckett?"

She took a hesitant step back, unbelieving that he's bring that topic up again when they'd agree to leave it alone just minutes before, then snapped back at him, "I did not cheat with Vaughn!"

"Who said anything about him? You tell Josh about our kiss Kate?"

Josh? He was bringing up Josh? A man who ultimately had meant nothing meaningful to her, "You kissed me Castle! It was for a cover."

"The first one yeah, the second one? When you kissed me? Moaned? That was no cover kiss. You were into that. You tell Josh about it? Or keep another secret to make your own life easier."

She turned away then, unwilling to face him for this, started little agitated pacing steps, "You want to want to attack me for kissing the guy I was in love with?"

"That's rich! You want to go there? No I want you to face up to keeping the guy you say you're in love with secret from everyone; secret for Josh then, secret from everyone you could for the last year, and now secret again."

"That's not it at all! Castle I already told you, if it's public, then there's no plausible deniability. We might not be able to work together! Gates could throw you out of the precinct. I want to work side by side with you."

"Full circle? You didn't seem so concerned about working side by side with me when you thought DC was the place for you to invest your life."

"I told you that was a mistake! I turned the job down Rick!"

"I told you I don't want to be a secret or a backup plan! Don't I deserve more than that? I thought you agreed we both did, then back to the same old pattern at the first opportunity."

"That's what you think? That it's all just going to repeat?"

"Why not? It's the same thing over and over, déjà vu all over again! There always a roadblock or a new reason to end things. Always with the I'm just a cop why would Mr Millionaire Author want me, like it's so hard to believe? You didn't have a problem believing the billionaire wanted you. It's not that though is it? Never was; it was me you didn't believe in. Still is, that's why you want to keep it a secret."

Kate spun around to face Castle now, tone once again cold and controlled, "If that is how you feel about it, take it."

She thrust out her hand towards him, engagement ring sparkling on her finger.