THREE

As Kate Beckett slid into the back of the black town car that evening and sat beside her world famous writer companion, she could not help but feel the slightest bit deflated. This, she decided, was her exact fear come to life. Her gut told her this could happen, but she just didn't listen.

"Wait until you see what's next," he told her with an obnoxious grin.

She plastered a half smile on her face and looked over to him. "Oh…we're not going home?"

"Of course not! The night is young!" He informed her before telling the driver they were ready to go to their next destination.

Kate sighed, pulled her sweater tighter around her shoulders, and rested her elbow against the door of the car, using it to prop up her head. The night had begun with so much promise—too much, perhaps.

Before she'd left Castle's apartment the night before they'd agreed that Saturday night would be their first official date. Castle insisted that he couldn't wait another second and Kate agreed. Despite having broken up with Josh barely twenty-four hours earlier, she was ready to begin the dating stages with Castle.

Truth be told, her heart hadn't been in her relationship with Josh for quite some time. Due to their equally busy schedules, they did not even see each other all that often. Plus, she wasn't embarking on a new relationship with a random stranger. Her background with Castle could fill a book and quite literally had—two, in fact.

Saturday night Kate curled her hair and pinned it at the back of her head. She felt butterflies swirling around in her stomach as she painted on her eyeliner and lipstick. She'd changed her mind on what she was wearing half a dozen times before settling on a navy blue dress that came just above her knee and a cream-colored cardigan over top since the dress was sleeveless and they were still in the early stages of spring.

Before leaving her house that night she checked her lipstick in the mirror by her front door and noticed for the first time just how large of a grin she was wearing. Going on dates did not always excite her—first dates, in particular. With those, there was more generally uncertainty and awkwardness than excitement, but not this time; not with this guy. She already knew what she was in for—or so she thought.

Castle picked her up promptly at seven for their reservation at an elite New York eatery. It was the kind of place where it was absolutely impossible to get a table on one month's notice let alone one day's. Unless, of course you were Richard Castle…and you used your connections with the mayor to get a table. Naturally, the beginning portion of their evening was spent with Kate teasing him for not being celebrity enough to snag their exclusive (albeit cramped) seat.

For Kate, the excitement of the evening began to fade away the moment she looked at the menu. For the most part she considered herself someone who had an open enough mind to be a decently adventurous eater. However, in practice, being an adventurous eater seemed better in theory. As she skimmed down the list of entrée choices, it seemed each of them had something that made her crinkle her nose in displeasure. Suddenly, she was craving a greasy burger from Remy's more than ever before.

As Castle waxed on about wine parings and the elegant atmosphere, Kate continually reminded herself that her partner was not always this much of an obnoxious egomaniac and could be sweet and kind and make her laugh more than anyone else. Just as she was scraping off the bizarre tasting sauce from the top of her fish, Kate was startled by a violinist approaching the table and serenading them both to a tune. She smiled politely while Castle grinned like a fool and kept nodding encouragingly in her direction.

After paying for their exorbitantly expensive meal with his AmEx Black card, they made their way to the waiting black town car, which was presently taking them to midtown where presumably more of their date awaited them.

"Excellent—we're here!" Castle announced when they pulled up in front of a nondescript row of office buildings, most of which were entirely abandoned at that hour on a Saturday night. He exited the vehicle, walked around to her side and opened the door for her.

"And where," she asked as she stepped out of the car, "exactly is here?"

"Just wait—just wait!" he said, pulling his iPhone from his pocket and double checking the time. "Wait…one minute and fourteen seconds."

"Okay?" she responded with confusion. She watched as Castle counted down the remaining time on his phone and then, with a gleeful expression, pointed down the street.

Still perplexed, Kate followed his gesture and saw a previously dark building begin to light up. One by one, lights appeared in windows and, when they were all illuminated, they displayed two words, one atop the other: Rick and Kate.

When Kate turned back to him, Rick's joyous expression turned to a crestfallen one. "What's wrong?"

Kate sighed and lowered her chin. "Castle…we need to talk."

He felt his face flush at the dreaded phrase. Quickly, he reviewed everything in his mind. Fancy meal—check. Great wine—check. Romantic music—check. Romantic gesture—double check! Everything had gone exactly as he planned. "What is it?"

"Can we talk in the car?" she requested. He nodded, opened the car door for her, and then joined her inside. Once he was seated, she continued. "It's just…this was a very Richard Castle date and I don't want to date him. I want to go out with Rick."

Castle blinked at her, looked down at his lap and then back up at her. "I don't understand."

Kate reached out and put her hand on his. "Castle, I am not an actress or a singer or a celebutante-slash-model or whoever else you've dated. I don't need wined, dined and impressed. I just want to spend time with you—you, just you. Not celebrity you."

"But…it was our first date. I wanted it to be great!"

Kate let out a half annoyed breath. "Castle, think—really think. You know me. Am I really the type of girl who wants to see her name on the side of a building?"

He considered this. Meredith would have loved her name on the building. Gina certainly would have been amused. So would many of the others he dated but Kate… "Oh," he concluded sadly.

"Yeah."

Castle grabbed her hand and brought it up to his lips. He kissed her knuckles twice before looking at her. "Kate, I'm sorry. I just wanted to make this night unforgettable."

"I know, but-"

"But you would have been happier if we had dinner at my apartment and I spelled your name out with M&Ms?"

She chuckled, wondering why spelling her name had to be involved at all, but then informed him, "Yes, that would have been much better."

"So, the question remains—will you give me a chance to make it up to you?"

Kate faked deep thought for a moment merely to tease, but then smiled. "I'd say that's a distinct possibility."

Castle leaned over and gave her a quick kiss. "Excellent."