A/N: Castle POV.


Richard Castle loved to play poker. He prided himself on his ability to read people, and a person could reveal so much about themselves from the way they played cards. He had been able to forge powerful connections through his poker games, from his mystery writers group to the Gotham City game, and had even ingratiated himself at the twelfth precinct by offering to host their monthly game.

Beckett, Ryan, and Esposito had all been regular attendees, but the other seats were retained for guest players. Whereas Captain Montgomery had liked to play not only in Castle's game for powerful city officials, but his twelfth precinct game as well, Captain Gates had declined all their invitations. Detective Karpowski had played with them a few times, Lanie sometimes joined when her and Esposito were together, but LT, one of their favorite uniformed officers, was their most recurring fifth. Tonight no one from the station was available, so Mother was rounding out their group instead. As much affection as Castle held for her, he did not appreciate her participation. She had a knack for rattling him and announcing his tells to the table.

Tonight, Castle was noting strange behavior in his opponents that seemed to go deeper than just the card game. Firstly, his wife and his mother kept glancing at each other conspiratorially, a not entirely rare occurrence, but something that always made him nervous. Second, there was a tension between Ryan and Esposito that was uncommon between the best friends. The older detective seemed to be giving the cold shoulder to his partner who looked to be hoping for a thaw. The last oddity was that both women kept trying to suppress wry grins directed towards the Irish detective.

Whatever drama had taken hold of his social circle appeared to center around Ryan, who usually stayed above the fray when it came to gossip worthy scandals. He was the strait-laced one who reigned in the shenanigans and balanced out the chaos that rest of his team could be. Castle knew that meant now that the young man did have a secret, it had to be good. The writer was thrilled with the new mystery that had fallen into his lap, and he was determined to crack the case.

As Beckett began to deal the next hand Castle decided to subtly probe for information. "So, Ryan, what have you been getting up to recently?" he asked. "I feel like I haven't heard about anything outside of work from you since the holidays."

"Oh, um, nothing all that interesting really," Ryan shrugged, but Castle noted the way the young man looked at his cards instead of meeting his eyes when he answered.

Esposito scoffed at that before chiming in, "So you keep saying and yet you're always too busy to hang out."

"Have I ever told you about the time when Richard was six and he pulled his pants down in front of a mall Santa to request a second willy because he liked his first one so much?" Martha skillfully redirected the conversation.

"MOTHER!" Castle shouted in reprimand.

Fortunately, he'd spent enough time with his mother to be accustomed to this level of embarrassment, so it didn't impede his observational skills. He recognized that his mother had offered up that mortifying anecdote to divert attention away from Ryan. This intrigued Castle as there was no reason he could discern that would have his mother taking sides in a tiff between Ryan and Esposito. As far as he knew she didn't know either man well enough to have any loyalty to either one or even be aware of their arguments in the first place.

"Oh, darling, it's a charming story," Martha brushed off his complaint with a wave of her hand.

"Come on, Castle. If you want to be ashamed of something I can think of plenty of worse things you've done in the six years I've known you," his wife teased him.

Focus shifted back to the game, and nobody folded in the first round of betting. Beckett dealt the first three community cards, nothing promising given Castle's hole cards. All the better to devote his focus to figuring out the Ryan mystery. He needed to find another way to get the boys talking.

"So, Valentine's Day is next week. You got any plans with Lanie?" he directed his question to Esposito, wanting to keep his fact-finding mission inconspicuous.

Javier nodded, "I made us reservations at a romantic restaurant, but not too romantic. I don't want her getting any ideas about a proposal coming."

Everyone at the table let out a laugh at that. The couple had been skirting around committing to each other for years, but neither one seemed ready to pull the trigger. "What about you two?" the Hispanic detective returned the question, gesturing at Castle and Beckett beside him.

"Ha. You can't expect me to fall for that," the writer turned, pointing an accusatory finger at his wife. "I will not be tricked into spoiling the surprise."

"That was all Espo," the statuesque detective replied. "When I try to get it out of you, it'll work."

Castle folded during the second round of betting, but instead doubled down on his investigation. "So, Ryan, any Valentine's plans for you? Have you been getting back out on the dating scene?"

Ryan choked on the sip of beer he was drinking. Well, that's a yes, Castle thought. "Don't bother, Castle," Esposito interjected. "He hasn't even told me, and I'm his best friend."

"I didn't realize you knew," Ryan admitted.

"Of course I know, bro. Like I said, I'm your best friend," Esposito said clapping the younger man on the back. "That's also why you're supposed to tell me shit like this."

Ryan loosened his tie before explaining, "Look it's still new, but yes I am seeing someone. I just didn't want to jinx it since it's my first real relationship since the divorce."

A wave of guilt hit Castle for being so nosy. He'd been in Ryan's shoes before, and it was easy to feel insecure when what you thought was your fairytale ending crumbled. Castle was still curious about Ryan's girlfriend; he would just have to remember to be tactful going forward. He hoped this mystery girl was good enough for his friend. Ryan was a standup guy, always reliable and supportive, and he deserved someone just as wonderful.

"We're all very happy for you, Ryan," Beckett said, as usual the more gracious half of the couple.

"Does this mean you do have Valentine's Day plans then?" Martha asked, clearly having no qualms about being pushy, raking in her winnings from the hand as she did so.

"She's actually doing the planning for us," Ryan answered with a blush on his cheeks. "I just have to figure out a present for her before then."

The young man's face softened as he spoke of his lover. The relationship may be new, but it was clear to Castle that Ryan had already developed strong feelings for the woman.

"Just get her flowers and chocolates, man. Can't go wrong with the classics," Esposito suggested to his partner.

"I love you Espo, but it's a miracle you convinced Lanie to date you," Beckett shook her head at him before turning her attention back to Ryan. "Get her something that shows her you listen to her, that you notice the small things. All any woman wants is to feel seen and understood."

"Did you hear that, darling?" Castle was teased by his mother. "You still have a week to fix whatever you have planned for Kate."

Martha shuffled the deck and dealt the next hand. "I am a master of romance and seduction," Castle announced to his friends. "Prepare to be astounded by how well I know you," he warned his wife.

"I was thinking of getting her a new day planner. It's not a very romantic gift, but she's been complaining about how the one she has now is falling apart. Plus, organization and structure are sort of her things," Ryan told them. "What do you guys think?"

"It's so cute when two nerds fall in love," Castle jested winning a laugh from Esposito.

"I think that's perfect, Ryan," Beckett remarked earnestly, and Martha nodded beside her.

The game continued, Castle's desire for an interesting water cooler topic was sated but his curiosity was only further piqued. He'd both figured out and seemingly resolved the friction between Ryan and Esposito and learned about Ryan's secret girlfriend. As well-known as he was for the graphic murders he wrote, Castle was a sucker for a good romance. He would be keeping an eye on the Ryan situation to see how it unfolded. On the other hand, he still had no clue how his mother came into play. She would have to be subjected to further questioning in the near future. The mystery continued.


A/N: Sorry for the short chapter. I really struggled writing this one for some reason.