Disclaimer: Not mine!

Chapter 10

What's eating Jordan Shaw?

Rick stepped out of the elevator, and saw Jordan standing by the front doors looking out the window at the street without really seeing anything. He walked up next to her, and placed his hand on the small of her back. "Hey you ready to go?" she nodded. "the restaurant is just down the street do you want to walk or would you like to take a cab?"

"It's nice enough outside, lets walk." she said in a uncharacteristically soft voice as she pulled her rain coat around herself.

"Grate. Lets go." He opened the door, and held it for her. They walked about a block when the silence became too heavy for Rick. "So what's going on with you? Any thing new? Your not in trouble with the burrow right?"

"No work is fine. I just had to take the two weeks off because of the kidnapping. It's standard procedure to take time off after thing's like that." she tried to sound flippant but she failed miserably.

"So your work life is fine, there not giving you a hard time about the whole getting kidnapped right?"

"No, it happens to the best of us. There just glad that I'm alive."

"We all are. You gave us a scare when you didn't make it home that night. We thought we lost you until that whack job called." he looped his arm around her shoulders.

"Why don't you just ask me?" she said as she leaned into his side.

"Okay, what's troubling you?"

"My marriage is in the toilet. My husband is leaving me for his secretary. She's a twenty-eight year old perky little blond bitch. He said after the kidnapping that he couldn't live the lie of our marriage any more." She said sarcastically as she started to cry. He stopped walking and hugged her. He rubbed her back as she sobbed.

"What about your daughter, I'm sorry I didn't get her name, or now that I think about it anything about her. Tell me about her." he said, knowing from experience that, in the massive shit storm that is divorce, talking about the good that came out of the marriage takes some of the edge off.

"Her name is Kelly, she's fourteen, she will be graduating eight grade in two months. We were talking about high schools for the fall. she's smart, and full of energy. She's great. I have no idea how she turned out the way she did. I was always on a case somewhere and Sam… Sam was an ass. He had a problem with drinking back six years ago. I guess the credit goes to my mother, she raised her from little, but she died two years ago, and now I have no idea what to do." she sobbed into Castles shirt.

"It's okay Jordan, it's going to be okay. Where is Kelly now?" he asked

"She's staying at my apartment downtown, but we can't stay there for long. It's not even mine. It's an FBI safe house for god sakes. The bastard took the house. He had the audacity to kick his daughter out too. Rick he took my fucking house because he said his name is on it."

"It's okay Jordan. Where is Kelly's school?"

"She goes to the Stevenson's academy right here in Manhattan." she said confused. They started to walk again.

"I struck a deal with the land lord of my building for a the unit next to mine for Kate, but she moved in with me. It's a two bedroom apartment half furnished. And it's a secure building. He said that he would come way down on the price because Kate's a cop. I'm sure that he would offer you the same deal." he said in a rush. You could see that he was thinking three steps ahead.

"Wow. Hold up. How much are we talking about here Castle?" she asked. She liked the idea of a secure building. But price could be a factor. "I might make a lot more than a cop, but I'm still a civil servant." she reminded him.

"Let me talk to the owner, and see what he says. Like I said he is willing to go way down on the price because it makes the other tenants feel safer knowing a law enforcement officer is living in the building. Plus if you live there Kelly could spend time with us while your away on cases. I also have connections at York Prep. My daughter Alexis goes there and I just donated new computers to the school, so if she wants it would be easy to get her in."

"That's all great but like I said how much?" she asked. While thinking about the School. Kelly had expressed interest in going to one of the high class prep. schools in the city.

"Well the deal we had worked out was she would get the apartment at a tenth of the going price. It fluctuates but the first months rent was only like $2,000." he said airily. They were at the restaurant by now and Castle asked for a table in the back.

"I can't afford that! Not with school fees, and well you have a teenaged daughter so you know how much money it cost to raise them, I mean if I made the kind of money Sam makes I could afford it, but not on just my salary." she said shaking her head.

"How about if you made half his salary?" he asked with a evil smile.

"Yeah, I guess?" not understanding were this conversation was going.

Rick pulled out his iPhone and flipped through his contacts. "Do you have a divorce attorney yet?"

"No, he just kicked us out two days ago."

"Okay, hold on." he tapped his screen twice and put the phone up to his ear. "Yes this is Richard Castle, I'm looking for Barbra Walker. Sure I'll hold… Barbra? Hi it's Rick Castle, no I don't need your services. No I have a friend here that's just been kicked out by her soon to be ex, and she needs to take him to the cleaners. Yes he cheated, hold on. Jordan, you didn't cheat on him did you?" he asked looking up.

"No, I've never cheated on him." she said looking around. she hated to disclose such details in public.

"No she didn't. did you sign a pre-nup?" he asked her. She shook her head. "No pre-nup. Yes it should be an easy case, that's why your going to do it at a fraction of what you normally charge. No I don't want to hear it. She's an FBI profiler. She stops serial killers for a living. I think she deserves a break on the price. That's what I want to hear. Thank you Barbra I owe you one." he hung up the phone and looked at Jordan. She had a glazed over look in her eye's.

"Did you just hire a divorce attorney for me?" she asked with an edge to her voice.

"No I just got the best divorce attorney in the country to take your case for free. Your welcome. Now you said that Kelly is at home right now?" he asked ordering the grilled tuna stake when the waiter came around.

"Yes, she said she was going to do some homework and then watch some TV. Why?" she asked she also ordered the tuna.

"I noticed that eating lunch was not included in that list. Do you think she would like to spend the rest of her day out shopping with Kate, Alexis, my mother, and Kate's friend Lanie. I'm sure there about ready for lunch, they could swing by the house and pick up Kelly." Rick said as he took a bite of his tuna.

"Um, well if it's not too much trouble, I guess." she was so off balance that she couldn't get her footing back.

"You call Kelly and tell her to get ready, and I'll call Kate and update her on the whole situation." he pulled out his phone and called Kate.

"Beckett."

"Kate it's me Rick, have you guys had lunch yet?"

"We are just leaving Lyn & Steve's to get some thing now, why?"

"Can you guy's swing by Jordan's place and pick up her Daughter Kelly and take her with you. She might need the company."

"Yeah I guess. Rick what's going on." She sounded confused and agitated.

"Jordan's Husband kicked her and Kelly out and he want's a divorce. If Jordan's shaken up by it I can only imagine what Kelly's going through. So I want you guy's to take her with you, and if she spots something she likes get it for her. Tell her uncle Rick is paying for it. I'm going to stay with Jordan, we have a few stops to make."

"That's fine Rick, just put her on the phone." Castle looked up at Jordan and she was just hanging up her phone. He handed his phone to her and said "Kate" when she looked at him questioningly. She took the phone.

"Jordan" she said.

"Jordan, it's Kate, I'm so sorry about your marriage, and you don't have to worry about Kelly we'll make sure she has a good time. But I need to ask you a few questions first." Kate was using her interrogation voice now.

"Ask away."

"The first thing I need to know is are you attracted to Rick?"

"Um, maybe. Hold on I can't answer you sitting at the same table as him let me move to the Ladies room." she got up and hurried to the bathroom. Once safely inside she answered the question. "Yes I think he's great, he's charming and funny, and he just solved almost all of my problems in an hour. I got up this morning dreading the rest of my life, but he comes in to the bullpen like a knight handing out shining armor. And he hugged me, and told me he would make it all better…""I knew this was going to happen." Kate sounded resigned.

"What are you talking about?"

"you love him too, and he's going to pick you and…" "Wow hold on there just one minute. I don't love Rick. I like him, you know, as a friend. I would never come between you and him. I knew that you two had something going on." Said Jordan, as she took a look at her self in the mirror and made a face. She needed to wash her hair desperately.

"It's actually kind of new." Replied Kate with a smile.

"Well what ever it is I'm not interested in coming between you two. Besides you have nothing to worry about. He's totally in love with you. I saw that just from spending time with you two on the case. I also think that I'm going to swear off men for awhile after what my bastard Husband did to me. In fact Rick might be the only man I could stand to be in the same room with for the next few weeks."

"He told me. I'm sorry about that Jordan, I really am." Kate sounded sincere.

"Thank you. I knew we were growing apart but I never expected to be thrown out of my house, or Kelly for that matter. This is going to be hard on her. She was kind of close to her dad, but he said his girlfriend didn't want Kelly around…" Jordan started to lose her composure.

"It's okay we'll look out for her today. And later you guys are invited to. Hold on, Alexis? What do you guy's do on Saturday nights? Right, o that sounds cool, so it's like Thursday night? Jordan?"

"Yeah?"

"You and Kelly are invited to Pizza night at Castle's castle. He said you guy's had a few more stops to make did he tell you what they are?" "No, in fact this is the first I'm hearing about it. I'll go ask him." Jordan walked back to the table and sat down across from Rick. "Rick? Kate want's to know what stops we're making, and so do I."

"Did you give her the address to pick up Kelly?"

"No, that's a good catch, Kate can you take down this address," she gave the address and Kate got the Ladies into the car she then gave the address to the driver and they were moving. Rick asked for the phone back.

"Kate I'm taking Jordan to meet my Divorce Attorney, then I need to go car shopping for Maggie, and then I need to talk to the landlord of our building to see if we can get Jordan the unit next to us."

"Your putting her up next door?"

"No I'm not paying, I'm just going to see if I can talk him down on the price to something she can afford. This way, when she's out of town on a case Kelly can come over if she needs anything." he reasoned.

"That's a good idea, it was very thoughtful of you Rick. Why are you going through all this for her though?" Kate asked in a flippant way, but Rick knew that his answer was important to her.

"I don't know. Call it one divorced parent looking out for another. Plus you said it your self I have a soft spot for damsels in distress."

"Well we'll see you at home later. Alexis tells me it's pizza night. Bring Jordan with you."

"I will. I'll see you later. I love you Kate."

"I do too." Kate hung up and Rick looked up to find Jordan with a smile on her face.

"I think it's cute. The way you say you love her. it's like young love." she sounded bitter.

"Your just jaded right now because of your ex. It will pass in time, but for now do you have a car or was that FBI property?"

"The SUV was, but I have my off duty car with me, why?"

"Because I don't have a car so it looks like your driving." they finished there lunch and walked back to the precinct. They approached the lot. " which one is your's?"

"The dark green '07 mustang."

"Nice, it's good that your coming along with me, I have to buy a car for a girl, and have no idea what to get her."

AN: I think this is good place to state that though I'm a caskett shipper, I'm also a huge Rick/Jordan shipper. I don't know what it is, but I like her. I think it has a lot to do with the fact that I think Dana Delaney is hot. Don't get me wrong, I think Stana is cute, but she's a bit on the thin side if you ask me. Like I said I'm a Caskett fan, but there was a part of me that wanted Rick to fall in love with Jordan as she cried on his shoulder. I'm still playing with the idea of writing a Rick/Jordan love story. I'd call it Federal Heat, corny I know, but it would be fun. I still might write it. Besides that I have nothing. So until next time, TBH