PROPINQUITY (noun):
affinity of nature; similarity

CHAPTER FOUR

AUTHOR TURNING THE PAGE ON HIS PAST?

Last night in New York City, author Richard Castle attended a fundraising event for the Daughters of the American Revolution, also delivering the keynote speech. He spent most of his time chatting and smiling with several ladies who attended, but none of them accompanied him home.

Instead, he was spotted sharing a limo with Kate Beckett, the PR consultant who was hired to improve his image.

If the rumors are true, it looks like she's doing more than just that. Could she be the one to finally tame him?

"Son of a bitch."

"Come on, Kate. It's not that bad."

"Not that bad?" Kate rolled her eyes. "I have a reputation to uphold. If people start thinking that I'm going to jump in bed with my clients, they'll wonder if that would get in the way of me doing my job. I can't have that. I've worked too hard to get where I am to have some media assumptions fuck it all up."

Lanie shrugged. "It'll be fine, Kate. Your reputation is rock solid. I don't think you have anything to worry about." She grinned. "Besides, he'll be photographed with another woman soon enough and they'll forget about you."

Kate shot her partner and best friend a look as she wore a trail in front of her desk. "No, they'll just assume he's stepping out on me and that I can't rein him in."

"Kate-"

"I don't know what to do, Lanie. Last night at the dinner he was almost...sweet. Normal. Flirty, yes. But he wasn't off getting wasted or picking up hookers."

"Paid escorts."

"Whatever. My point is, I thought that maybe he was getting the picture. But when I called him this morning to let him know the Ledger was going to print a redaction he just laughed and asked if I was afraid of a little publicity." She grabbed a bottle of water from the sidebar against the wall. "He's absolutely infuriating. This whole thing is."

This was not the first time she'd been in the paper. Her clients were all high-profile, and if she was out with one of them, her picture almost always ended up in the paper. It was also not the first time that she'd been labeled as the girlfriend; it was, however, the first time she'd felt this annoyed about it.

Where the hell did they get off insinuating that she and Castle were an item? She was a professional. She didn't sleep with her clients, ever. Not while she worked with them, not even after. She'd built her reputation on success and professionalism, which was one reason Black Pawn had hired her. The last thing she needed was for some gossip rag to start making false assumptions. Reputation was everything in this world, in every world. She'd seen that with celebrities, with friends, even with her own family.

"You what?!"

Katie was woken by the sound of her mom's voice, loud even from the living room of their large apartment. She glimpsed at the clock when she rolled over and quietly groaned. 3:27am. If she had to guess, her dad had just gotten home.

Again.

She really shouldn't eavesdrop; she had a presentation in just a few short hours during first period, and she had to do well. Otherwise her mom would kill her for getting a bad grade, especially since it was English, which had always been one of her better subjects.

But she couldn't resist. So she slowly opened the door, twisting the knob slow enough so it didn't make a noise. She stayed along the wall, expertly avoiding the floorboard that creaked, and tucking herself against the wall at the end of the hall, where she could hear her parents perfectly.

"How the hell could you let this happen, Jim?"

Katie peeked around the corner. Her dad was sitting at the kitchen table, his head in his hands, shoulders shaking. Her mom, on the other hand, was on the opposite side of the kitchen, as far from him as she could get. Even from here, Katie could see that she was crying.

What the hell had happened?

"I'm sorry, Jo." Her dad's voice was quiet and trembled; it was nothing like the strong, firm way he usually sounded.

He'd been going out more and more after work, getting home later and later, so Katie hadn't been surprised when she'd gone to bed and he wasn't home yet. She knew it upset her mom; going out after a successful - or not successful - case was practically a job requirement, but Katie had a feeling that her dad wasn't always being joined by anyone else. And over the previous month he'd come home drunk almost every night.

But tonight felt different.

"I didn't mean for this to happen."

Johanna scoffed, and Katie saw her roll her eyes, a trait that had been passed onto her. "But it did happen, Jim. Scott called me, did you know that? He called because he was worried about you, about how you'd take it. He told me that he'd told you to just come home." She crossed her arms. "But of course you had to go to the bar."

"Wasn't just at the bar," Jim protested quietly. "Walked around first. Tried to clear my head."

"No, but you ended up there, drinking your night away, instead of coming home to your family. That's the same shit that caused this. I've tried to shelter Katie from this. But you were drunk at a deposition, Jim! Do you know what could happen?"

"I didn't think-"

"No, you didn't think!" Katie heard a sigh, then the cabinet door open, the clink of a glass and the water faucet being turned on. "I'm going to bed. You can figure out how to tell our daughter that you lost your job. And tomorrow we're looking into rehab."

"You've arranged for what?!"

Kate's eyebrows flew up at Castle's outburst. She hadn't expected any resistance; she'd arranged a visit to the children's section at New York Presbyterian Hospital, but as soon as she's mentioned it his face had hardened. The ever-present twinkle in his eye had immediately disappeared, and he'd frozen, the hand reaching for a coffee mug suspended in mid-air for a few moments as he'd simply blinked at her.

"I won't," Castle insisted, taking out his mug, and turning his gaze from Kate to focus on making his coffee. "I won't do it. You'll have to find something else."

"They're kids, Castle," Kate argued, leaning forward against the counter, leaning her elbows on the granite surface. "Kids. In the hospital. How the hell can you say no?"

Castle shrugged. "By saying no. Look, I feel bad, I really do. I'll send the hospital a sizeable donation. But I will not set foot in that building."

"Why not?" she pushed. Her minor in psychology had taught her how to read people, and he was hiding something. His brow was pinched, and his motions were slightly jerky, not fluid like usual. He was a big man, tall and broad, but his mother had been an actress and a dancer, so he did have some natural grace that showed in his movements. But there was none of that this morning. "Come on, Castle. Why not? What do you have against it?"

"Nothing." Castle slammed his mug onto the counter, causing some coffee to splash over the rim and Kate to jump. He turned to her, and Kate took an impulsive step back when she saw the fire in his eyes. "I don't have anything against going. But I. Won't. Do. It. Period. End of story."

Kate raised her hands in surrender. "Alright, fine. Let me make a few calls, set something else up." She grabbed her phone and headed back towards the door. "Keep your phone on. I'll call you in a bit."

She called Lanie on her way back to the office. "I need to get in touch with someone with the NYPD Widow's and Children's fund. Can you call Javi, get a name and number for me?"

"You got it."

"Thanks. I need to stop for coffee." Kate slid into her waiting town car and instructed her driver to take her to the closest cafe. "I'll be back in a little bit."

Her phone rang again when she was just getting her coffee; after a quick glance at the caller ID, she rolled her eyes, but a smile on her lips as she answered. Took her long enough. "Hi, Mom."

"Katie, I just saw the paper. Is it true?"

"You know better than to trust everything on Page Six, Mom." Kate slid into a free table in the corner, away from prying ears. "I went with him to keep him from making an ass of himself, that's all. We are not now, or ever will be, together."

"Yeah right. You did actually see the picture, right?"

Kate pressed her passion against her forehead, trying to counteract the headache that had been forming for most of the morning. "Yes, Mom, I saw the picture."

It had been taken when she and Castle were leaving the DAR dinner; he'd held the limo for open for her, and had made some smart-ass comment about finding another tombstone to pee on. She'd chuckled in spite of herself, and the photographer had managed to snap the brief moment where her face was split with a wide grin. To make it worse, Castle was staring at her, a smile on his face as well, and the two of them looked positively happy.

No wonder people thought they were together.

"You can't look at it and say people are completely off-base." Kate could hear the smile in her mom's voice even over the phone. "The way that man was looking at you? Katie." Johanna tutted. "Just keep an open mind, okay?"

"I'm hanging up now, Mom."

"Whoa, hang on," Johanna interrupted. "Did he not actually like the publicity? I figured with his reputation, he'd be thrilled to be linked in the tabloids with you. Your nose is about as clean as they come."

"Now that you mention it, he did act weird when I saw him this morning." Kate settled back in her chair and took a sip of her latte. "I arranged for him to go to the Children's Hospital, and he completely flipped out. Said he absolutely refused, wouldn't even talk about it. I mean he's a complete jackass, but to refuse to visit sick kids?"

"Maybe he just doesn't like kids?" Johanna offered. "No, he's good with them at his signings." She paused. "I don't know, Katie. Look, you're doing a great job. He'll get there."

"What are we doing here, again?" Castle asked the following weekend as he fiddled with his bow tie.

Kate sighed in exasperation and reached across the seat. Her nimble fingers untied the knot, then worked on retying it before they arrived at their destination. "It's the NYPD Widows and Children's Fund. They raise money for-"

"The loved ones of police, fire, first responders, and the like, who are killed. I know where we're going. I just don't know why."

"Well, after you so gracefully bowed out of the hospital," Kate responded, sarcasm dripping from her words, "I needed to arrange something for you to save face."

Castle huffed. "Which we wouldn't have to do if the hospital hadn't leaked it."

"I took care of that." The hospital had been less than thrilled when she'd had to tell them Castle wasn't coming as promised. Luckily, Lanie was close friends with the Chief of Pediatrics, so she was able to smooth things over, to a point. The large check Castle wrote did a lot of damage control as well. But attending this benefit would earn a lot more bonus points. Plus, it was for a good cause.

The limo pulled to a stop just as Kate finished straightening Castle's tie, and she steeled herself for the onslaught of cameras and reporters. She could handle them, of course, but she had to be careful not to give them any more reason to think her and Castle were a couple. So she deliberately kept her eyes off of him, no matter how much she wanted to stare at him in his tux. It was perfectly tailored to fit his broad shoulders and slim waist, and she was sure his ass looked good too. But there was no way in hell she'd look...at least, not with all these reporters around.

She'd sneak a peek later.

"Mr. Castle, are you and Ms. Beckett seeing each other?"

"Mr. Castle, why are you supporting this particular cause?"

"Mr. Castle, what happened with the children's hospital?"

The last question had Kate stopping in her tracks. How did they- "Mr. Castle won't be answering any questions tonight. He's here to support-"

"No, Kate, it's fine," Castle interrupted, lifting a hand. He turned to the reporter who asked the question about the hospital and spoke directly into the microphone, leaving no room for doubt as to his words. "Unfortunately, I was unable to honor my commitment to visit the children at the hospital for personal reasons. While I deeply regret it, my reasons will remain private. I made a donation in lieu of my visit, and while no amount of money can ever replace the pain and suffering that those families go through, hopefully it can help the hospital make the stays just a little bit easier. Thank you."

Kate just stared as Castle turned and walked into the building. She blinked for a few moments, ignoring the commotion around her, before the same reporter knocked her out of her reverie.

"Ms. Beckett, what do you have to say about rumors that you and Mr. Castle are an item?"

Kate glared at him for a moment before answering. "Those rumors are just that, rumors. Mr. Castle and I are not seeing each other except in the capacity of work. Good night."

She looked around for Castle as soon as she made it inside, and saw him talking to Lanie, Lanie's boyfriend Javi, and another man she didn't recognize. She gave a disapproving look to the champagne glass in Castle's hand, but he took a small sip, instead of throwing the whole glass back like she'd expected.

"Just the one glass," he explained, tipping it towards her in greeting.

Kate lifted an eyebrow. "I'll hold you to that. Hey, Lanie, Javi."

"Hi, Kate," Javi greeted her warmly. She'd only met him a couple times; he and Lanie had been on again-off again a few times, but he seemed nice enough, if a little commitment-phobic. Then again, Lanie liked to keep her options open, so maybe they were a perfect fit.

Kate turned to the stranger. "Hi, Kate Beckett."

"Roy Montgomery." The handshake was firm, but not overpowering, and while he exuded professionalism, Kate sensed a niceness to him as well. He seemed approachable. "Captain of the Twelfth precinct. It's nice to meet you."

"Likewise," Kate responded with a nod. "I think my mom's worked with you before. Johanna Beckett?"

Roy smiled. "I thought you looked familiar, besides what I've seen of you in the papers, of course." He winked. "Rumor has it you might actually be taming Mr. Wild Child here. My precinct was a bit of a circus after your naked horse riding stunt, Mr. Castle," he teased, turning his attention to the writer.

Castle flushed. "Well, those days should be over," he admitted, stuttering a little. "Riding a horse while naked is not as fun as it sounds." He turned closer to Roy, putting his hand on the other man's shoulder. "You know, since we're talking, I was wondering if I could run something by you, about some potential characters I'm thinking of writing…"

Kate tuned him out and turned her attention to Lanie and Javi. As much as she struggled, and at times despised, working with the man, she still enjoyed his books, and didn't want to be spoiled about anything. "Has he behaved himself so far?" she asked both of them, and received nods in response.

"He was only in here a couple minutes before you joined us," Lanie pointed out with a shrug. "He couldn't have gotten into a lot of trouble, especially when he'd have to deal with you."

Kate scoffed. "Yeah, because I've had so much influence on him." She caught movement out of the corner of her eye and turned to find Castle waving his arms animatedly while talking to Captain Montgomery, and she just stared at him for a few moments. He had a smile tugging at his lips, his eyes shining with excitement she hadn't seen before, and when he turned his head and saw Kate watching him, his face brightened. Kate felt a blush creep up her cheeks; she hadn't seen a guy look that happy around her in years, not since Will had left.

"Kate!"

She turned to see Lanie staring at her, amusement written all over her features. "Hmm?"

Lanie rolled her eyes. "Okay I know you have standards, which are admirable. And you know I wouldn't normally tell you to go for it with a client. But if you don't jump his bones soon, you're going to give yourself an ulcer."

"Lanie."

"I'm just saying! Javi, will you go get me a drink?"

"You got it. Kate?"

"Nothing, thanks though." She turned back to Lanie as soon as Javi was gone, and found her best friend with an eyebrow raised and a smirk on her lips. "What?"

Lanie crossed her arms. "We've been friends a long time, Kate. I know your tells. Will left what, two years ago?"

"Three," Kate mumbled.

"Three! And have you been with anyone since?"

"There was that one guy-"

"Yeah, Mr. Didn't-even-leave-his-number. And that was over a year ago. You're overdue. And the way Castle looks at you?" She continued before Kate could interrupt. "He likes you, Kate."

"Yeah, right." Kate broke down and grabbed a champagne flute when a waiter passed by and downed it in one drink. "He just wants to add another notch on his bedpost."

"You say that like it's a bad thing." Lanie took the empty glass from Kate's hand and handed it to Javi when he returned with his drinks. "Just think about it, okay?"

"Yeah, whatever." She watched as Lanie and Javi walked away, presumably to either mingle or dance, leaving her alone with her thoughts. First her mom, then Lanie? Worst thing was, she wasn't entirely against the idea.

Good Lord, what was wrong with her?

A/N: As always, many thanks to Callie for her beta/encouragement/pom poms! And thanks to you readers for spurring me on!