It was such a silly, stupid, little thing in the grand scheme of everything that it shouldn't have bothered her and she was trying, God, was she trying, not to let it.

After snapping at Ryan and Esposito for what had to be the fifth time in less than an hour, she realized she was failing miserably.

The stack of paperwork tormented her from its place in her in-box, which was still far, far more full than her out-box, something she was doing her best to remedy. She'd been at it for a few hours now and concentrating was becoming a problem.

The morning had started out like every other morning lately. She woke in Castle's bed, had coffee with the people that were quickly becoming a family to her. She'd read the paper, showered, gotten dressed. All very normal, just like every other day.

Except that it wasn't just any other day and the thing that was really bothering her was that Castle hadn't remembered. Rick hadn't said a word to her to indicate that he even knew the date or that it was supposed to be important. For a man that claimed to know her so well, how could he forget something like that? How could he possibly overlook the fact that it was her birthday?

Neither Ryan nor Esposito had said anything either. If it hadn't been for a phone call from Lanie on her way in to work, she would have believed there was some kind of conspiracy going on.

She'd never been one for making a big deal out of the day. Growing up, her mother was the one that made the day special. She made all the plans, made a cake, bought presents, even arranged some memorable parties when she was very young. Kate clearly remembered a clown at one. But since her mother's death the day hadn't ever been what it once was. Still, a nice little, 'Happy Birthday' wasn't too much to expect.

"We're all going down to the deli on the corner for lunch. Want to join us?" Ryan asked, temporarily occupying Rick's chair. That was another thing that was bothering her. Before they'd made it out of the apartment that morning, Morgan had called and Rick was there now, doing God knows what. She hadn't heard a word from him since he'd gone his separate way on the sidewalk outside his building. She didn't like leaving him alone with her. But she had been due in court that morning and there was no help for it.

"Just bring me back something," she answered, not bothering to look up from her computer. "I really want to get through all this paperwork today."

"I really think you should come with us. You need a break," he pressed and she glanced at him suspiciously.

"I'm fine, really. Just bring me my usual. I'll eat it here." She told him.

He gave a defeated a sigh and left her, shaking his head sadly.

A moment later, Esposito slipped into the now empty chair with a look of exasperation on his face. "Come out to lunch with us. It's our treat," he offered.

"I'm really good here. I'm not even hungry right now."

From a couple of desks over, Victoria Gates put her hands on her hips and sighed just as Ryan had only moments before. "Oh for God's sake, they are trying to be subtle. Just get up and come with us."

Kate finally looked up, noticing for the first time all people standing in a messy circle around her desk. Ryan was shifting his weight from one foot the other nervously. Esposito had his arms crossed over his chest glowering at her in disapproval. Gates still had her hands on her hips and a look of utter vexation on her face.

And now Lanie was stepping out the elevator with a package in her hands.

"Are we doing this?" she asked, looking from each of the people in turn. When her eyes found Kate she sighed loudly. "Let me guess, she's being difficult."

"Of course she is. She's always difficult." Esposito said narrowing his eyes at her and deepening the furrow between his brows.

"Is that supposed to be your scary face?" she asked with a chuckle.

He frowned immediately and dropped his arms to his sides. "It was, yeah."

"I do not want to go to a restaurant so you can have the entire wait staff embarrass themselves on my behalf," she announced, surmising the plan and trying to put a stop to it.

She looked around at everyone again, all her friends. The only thing missing was her family, her Dad, Rick, Martha and Alexis.

"Just come on. I won't let them have anyone sing to you. Let us take you out of lunch," Lanie pushed, insistently.

She glanced at the empty chair beside her desk. "I should wait for Castle to come in. I wouldn't want him to miss out."

"Where is he again?" Ryan asked, stepping a little closer to her and closing the circle around her.

"He had an errand to run, but he said he'd be in when he was done."

"Alright, we'll give him half an hour to get here. Then we're taking you to lunch with or without him." Gates made the decision for the group.

All but Lanie dispersed from her desk area, off to find something to do for the next few minutes.

Her friend took up Castle's chair like she always did when he wasn't already in it. It was something of a war between them. Or maybe the fight over the chair was just Lanie's way of telling Rick that he might be her best friend now, but he wasn't her only one. He would have to share.

She handed the box she was holding over and Kate accepted it with a gracious smile. "You didn't have to get me anything. You know I don't really do birthdays."

"I know, but I do, so deal with it." Lanie told her.

Kate unwrapped the tasteful wrapping paper from the box and pulled the soft pink cashmere sweater from the it. "It's beautiful, Lanie. You shouldn't have done this."

"So where is Castle?" Kate opened her mouth to answer but Lanie waved her off before she got the chance. "I know the official story. I want the real one."

"I don't know exactly where he is," Kate lied. "But he said he would be in today."

"What did he get you?"

"Nothing and I'm not expecting anything. He knows how I feel about birthdays. I'm sure he's trying to respect that." Kate told her, still trying to convince herself that it was his reason for ignoring the date.

"Uh-uh," Lanie muttered under her breath.

"What does that mean?" Kate asked, tucking the sweater carefully back into its box and sitting it aside.

"It means that Castle lives for crap like this. Don't be surprised when you find out he's got something planned," she explained.

Kate shifted. "I've already talked to him today and he didn't so much as wish me a 'Happy Birthday'. I think he may have forgotten."

"Who forgot what?" Ryan asked, butting his nose into the conversation.

"Kate thinks Castle forgot it was her birthday. I don't buy it," Lanie answered, giving him a sideways glance.

"Castle doesn't forget stuff like that. I'll bet he's got something big planned. Espo, do you think it's likely that Castle forgot her birthday?" he called to his partner who was scanning over something on his computer.

"Not a chance," he replied without hesitating or bothering to look up from his work.

"See? He didn't forget." Ryan said decisively as if Esposito's opinion settled the whole thing.

"It doesn't matter if he did. I don't care," Kate answered.

"Call him and find out whether we should wait for him or not," Lanie suggested.

Kate rolled her eyes and dug her phone out of her jacket pocket to make the call.

The sound of his voice mail answering caused her concern to grow, but she managed to hide it from the people around her who knew nothing of what was really happening in her personal life with Rick.

She left a short message telling him to call her. Then she glanced towards Gate's office and found the woman sitting behind her desk. She gathered up an armload of paperwork. "I need to get these signed. Don't you all have better things to do than worry about what Castle is planning?" she said, before getting up and heading off to Gates.

Once inside the office, she shut the door behind her and slumped into the chair in front of the desk. "He's with her and now I can't get him on the phone," Kate announced immediately.

Gates took off her glasses and narrowed her eyes at her. "You let him go off alone with her?"

"I had court this morning and she called just as we were leaving. I didn't have a choice."

"Do you need to go find him?" Gates asked.

Kate thought about that for a moment. How would she explain it to him, her leaving work to go track him down just because he didn't answer his phone when she called? He knew nothing of her suspicions about Morgan. She would come off looking like some desperate, needy girlfriend who freaked out just because he was out of touch for a moment. "I can't go tracking him down. How would that look?" she answered finally.

"But he's with her and we already know she's up to something. Is it a good idea to just leave him to fend for himself? There's no telling what's going on right now. What if she's using the Scopolamine on him?"

These were exactly the questions Kate had been struggling with all morning. Still, she couldn't see a way to make it not suspicious for her to go after him. Then a new idea occurred to her and she grabbed her phone and pushed the number that would connect her. "I can't hunt him down, but I know someone who will without thinking twice." She told Gates.

Martha answered on the second ring and it only took Kate a moment to explain the situation to her.

"Oh Dear," Martha replied. "Of course, I'll find him. You sit tight. I'll call you as soon I do."

Kate hung up and was in the middle of stashing her phone back in her pocket when it started to ring. She glanced at the screen before answering it.

"Happy Birthday," her father told her before she even had a chance to say hello.

"Thank you, Dad. That's really nice of you."

Gates picked up her glasses and went back to the paperwork in front of her, giving Kate a bit of privacy.

"I hope you haven't made plans. I'd really like to take you out to dinner tonight," he said.

"That's sound good. I'll see you around six?"

"Six it is. I'll see you later."

Once she hung up, she replaced her phone in her pocket and settled back in her chair. "He forgot," she said and she couldn't explain why saying that out loud made her stomach clench just a little.

"Who forgot?" Gates asked, looking up and once again setting the glasses aside.

"Rick. He forgot my birthday."

"Are you sure he isn't just playing with you, pretending to ignore it while he bakes up some elaborate plan for later?"

Kate leaned forward and rested her elbows on her knees. "I considered that, but the thing is, he's like a five year old, keeping secrets like that drives him crazy. There is usually some hint, some sign that gives him away."

"Well, forgetting something like that isn't like him at all. I don't know him that well, but I do remember Ryan's birthday. I had to put a stop to it before there was a full-fledged party going on in my squad room. I can't imagine that he wouldn't do the same or more for yours."

Kate sat back quickly. "This is silly. I don't even care that he forgot. I don't do birthdays. It shouldn't be bothering me this much."

"It bothering you because it's so out-of-character for him. He's not acting like himself and we both know who's responsible for that," Gates surmised knowingly.

"What am I supposed to do if Martha can't find him? Do I go looking for him myself?"

Victoria sat back in her chair and narrowed her eyes. "If it was my man out there with that woman, I'd already be looking for him."

She left the office feeling no better than she had going into it. In fact, now she was questioning her judgment in letting him go off after Morgan like she had. Maybe she should have argued with him. Maybe she should have tried to persuade him to wait until after court so she could go with him. She was trying to play it cool where the other woman was concerned. She didn't want Morgan to know that she knew she was up to something.

Rick was a smart man. He saw things that people normally didn't and his time with her had made him suspicious as well. If she fought him over Morgan, it would raise red flags for him. He knew her well enough to know that she wasn't the jealous type. He'd know that she thought something was going on.

"Something is bothering you," Lanie guessed when Kate hadn't said anything for a long while. "Tell me what's happening. I know something is."

Kate almost waved her off without thinking about it. They had agreed to keep their relationship outside of work to themselves. Gates was the only one aside from his family that knew about them and that hadn't been intentional. Rick didn't even know that Gates knew about them. So many secrets and lies, they were building up faster than Kate could keep track of them all. She hated secrets. She hated lying to her friends, keeping things from them. And Lanie knew something had changed between them. Kate had been very foggy on the details, but her friend knew there was something different.

"Have lunch with me tomorrow and I'll tell you everything," Kate told her friend. "It's not something I can talk about here."

"How about drinks after work?" Lanie pressed, not wanting to wait on her dose of gossip.

"I'm having dinner with my father tonight."

"Call me when you get home. I'll come over and I'll bring liquor."

Kate shook her head. "I'm not sure I'll be home tonight."

"Where else would you be?" Lanie asked, leaning towards her and suddenly her eyes flew open wide and a smile took over her entire face. "I knew it! Kate Beckett! How could you keep something like that from me?"

Kate put her hand up to hush her friend before she alerted Ryan and Esposito. "We haven't told anyone about us. We're trying to keep it under wraps. So lower your voice."

Lanie nodded and sat back but the grin didn't slip from her face. "How long?"

"A while. It's complicated though. I'll tell you all about it tomorrow," Kate explained in hushed tones.

Lanie nodded in understanding. "Alright. I'll let it go for now, but I'm going to hold you to that lunch tomorrow. I want details. None of that, 'it's complicated. I can't talk about it' bull."

Her cellphone rang and Kate grabbed for it and answered it quickly.

"I'll have to let you in on a secret that no one else knows in order to tell you what I found out," Martha informed her.

"Alright. I promise your source is safe with me. Where is he?" Kate assured her.

"I tracked his cellphone. He's at her apartment and he's still not answering his phone. It's on, but he's not picking up."

"That's a little weird, right? That he's not answering his phone for either of us is strange. Maybe one of us really should go over there." Kate told her, more thinking out loud than anything else.

"I'm almost there now. I'll find out what's going on."

"Martha, I don't think that's a very good idea. This woman could be dangerous. I don't want you in the middle of it," Kate argued.

"If she's dangerous that all the more reason for me to get my son away from her. I'm not leaving him there with her so she can do God knows what to him. Trust me, Kate, I can handle myself."

"No, you can't." Kate was already on her feet, gathering her purse and heading towards to elevator. "Go home. I'm leaving now. I'll find out what's going on and let you know."

Lanie was trailing right along behind her and Gates caught her eye as she passed her office and gave her a nod.

"How are you going to explain knowing exactly where he is? I'm his mother. He can't be that mad at me for long. But if he finds out you are tracking his cellphone he'll be livid. He'll think you don't trust him." Martha replied.

"I'd rather him think I don't trust him than think I'd allow you to put yourself in danger. Now go home. I'll call you in a little while."

"I'm not going home, but I will wait for you to get here." Martha compromised.

"Alright," Kate answered. "I guess that's the best I'm going to get." She was in the parking garage now, making her way to her car with Lanie still hot on her heels. "Just stay out of sight."

"Ten-four, Detective." Martha returned in a mock professional clip.

Great, now I've got two of them pretending to be cops and trying to get themselves killed, Kate thought with a roll of her eyes.