12.20.10 I'll be honest. This isn't my best or favorite chapter. Beckett is very OOC and there's a slightly different, little backstory for Castle. However, I've had laryngitis for over a week and bronchitis, for sure, since Thursday. Maybe you're not interested in excuses, but I feel like I got ran over by a semi about 3 or 4 times; so, any revisions will wait. Sorry. Enjoy! ~BC

"Let me take your coat," Castle said, shutting the loft door behind them and leading Beckett further inside.

"Thanks." Without argument, she handed over the garment. Watching him, she nervously crossed her arms as she observed.

"Well, we've got chocolate, vanilla, and strawberry," he stated, moving around her into the kitchen area and making a beeline for the freezer. "Then, we have an assortment of toppings: chocolate syrup, hot fudge, caramel, marshmallow sauce, sprinkles, and whip cream. Oh, and, maybe gummi bears unless Alexis ate the last of them."

"Jesus, Castle," she commented, rolling her eyes.

"Hey, don't knock it 'til you try it," he defended. Pulling bowls from the cabinet, along with a plethora of spoons, he began to set up an all-out ice cream buffet.

"Chocolate," she finally ordered after observing him through most his work.

He complied by scooping out a generous helping of chocolate ice cream and eyed her as he doctored up the bowl to his own specifications. A drizzle of marshmallow sauce went first and then he pulled a pack of Oreos from a cabinet. Crumbled Oreos topped the sundae with a few shots of whip cream.

"No comments until you taste it," he told her, sliding the bowl over to her. "It's Alexis's favorite."

Beckett eyed him as he began to make his own sundae and took a tentative bite. Surprise lit her eyes and she began to dig into the chocolaty concoction. "This is really good," she enthused.

"You don't need to sound so shocked," he stated, a fake pained look on his face. "I am known to have good ideas from time to time."

"Poor thing," she mocked, stretching across the counter to pat his cheek. "It'll be okay; I won't tell the boys if you cry because your feelings are hurt, Ricky."

"You know, when I was, I think, seven, Mother was in a show for a summer that toured up and down the East Coast. There was this woman in the cast, Tabitha, and she never called me anything, but Ricky," he said while moving around to take a stool. "I hated it and it drove me crazy when Mother encouraged it – it wasn't tough, ya know? She even got her daughter who watched me during the rehearsals and shows doing it." Rick stopped long enough to take a few bites of ice cream. "Tabby actually passed away just before Alexis was born. Meredith would only agree to Tabitha for a girl if the boy option would be Richard Junior, called Ricky." He let out a depreciating laugh. "Mere was always good at hitting where it hurt when she wanted to get her way."

"I'm sorry, Castle," she admitted, laying her hand on his forearm. Squeezing gently, she went back to eating her ice cream and let him think in peace.

"Well," Castle said after he had let most of his ice cream melt.

"My mom was the one who started calling me Katie," she told him, locking him in place with her words. "Dad told me she used to call me Katie-bug when she talked to me while she was pregnant. That nickname came out occasionally too, but by three she was almost strictly calling me Katie. Most people stop with time, as you grow up, but she never did. Then, after she was…gone, Dad couldn't bear to call me Katie and I didn't want to hear it. It freaked the crap out of one of my college roommates the way I snapped after she jokingly called me that."

"Oh, Kate," he started, but held his thought when he realized she still had more to share.

"Lanie never called me that when we first became friends, but she got to witness the fall-out from when Will did. I held it together through the rest of dinner, but managed to skip out on the rest of the evening. I barely made it in the cab before I broke down – made the poor cabbie feel sorry for me – and showed up at Lanie's just like that. I think that her being around for that made me okay with the few times she's let it slip." Meeting his eyes, she swiped at the stray tear that escaped. "I'm sorry; I'm being a horrible guest."

"KB," he stopped her, with a hand on her wrist as she started to move away. "I'm glad you told me. Really. And, I know nicknames are sacred." When she wouldn't meet his eyes again, he desperately searched the room in hopes of finding a distraction of any kind. "There's a Bogart marathon on still, I think. Want to see which movie's playing?"

"I guess," she gave in with a shrug.

This was definitely not the Kate Beckett that Richard Castle knew. In hopes of shaking her from this rather unsettling mood, he guided her to the couch and flipped on the tv. "Ooooo, Maltese Falcon. Aesome!"

Kate perked up as the movie continued, finally adding in comments and occasionally quoting lines.

"Bogart much?" Castle finally questioned.

"Jealous, Castle?" she teased, scooting close enough to gently elbow him in the ribs.

They sat on through the end of the movie, barely moving except for a quick bathroom break – for Beckett - and to grab some wine – on Castle's part, and seamlessly merged into watching Casablanca as well. They grew weary, but watched on.

*CaStLe*CaStLe*CaStLe*CaStLe*CaStLe*CaStLe*CaStLe*CaStLe*CaStLe*CaStLe*

"Gram. Hey, Gram!" Alexis whisper yelled as she poked her Grandmother.

"What? Oh, morning, Kiddo," Martha greeted. "Guess finding that box really wore me out. I was going to head back to Chet's as soon as I found it," she said more to herself than to the young girl.

"Later, Gram. Right now, you need to come see this," she urged. Pulling her grandmother by hand, Alexis led the way downstairs as she motioned for the still talking woman to hush.

Martha quieted as she realized that there were two very different types of shoes laying near the couch. She tiptoed close behind her granddaughter to peer at the occupants of the couch.

Beaming, she watched her granddaughter do a silent happy dance before leading the girl back to the stairs. "Get ready," she instructed. "We'll head out for breakfast and leave the lovebirds in peace. Let's just hope she leaves your father alive when she figures out where his hand is."

*CaStLe*CaStLe*CaStLe*CaStLe*CaStLe*CaStLe*CaStLe*CaStLe*CaStLe*CaStLe*

Let me know how you felt about it?