A/N: This is my second try at chapter 20. I thought the original was hilarious, but apparently I was the only one. So I took it down a long time ago and I took a while… a long while, to figure out what to do with this one. And to get over my embarrassment that everyone seemed to hate the original. Hopefully you'll like this one much better…

Kate was on her way to meet the guys at a suspect's apartment to question her about her alibi, when a vision in a shop window halted her. She stood staring for a long moment when a text from Esposito came through asking if she was going to be there soon. Kate tore herself away from the little boutique, but came back as soon as her interview was over, telling the guys she had some business to take care of before she could meet them back at the precinct. Her purchase was totally not 'her,' but Kate thought Castle at least would appreciate her efforts.

They ended up working late that night, so Kate sent Castle a text saying that she was sorry, but she was too tired to wait up for him to come over, and that she would see him tomorrow. To mollify him somewhat, she added that she would have a surprise for him that she was sure he would "get a rise out of."

When Kate finally let herself into her apartment, it was well past midnight and the time, as well as the events of the day, could be seen in the way her shoulders drooped and her eyes barely opened again after each blink. It had not been a bad day per se, just... busy. And she did not have her twelve-year-old, sugar addict to lighten all the heavy moods of interviewing the victim's family and friends. Kate sighed a bit, a small smile pulling at one corner of her mouth, when she realized how much fun Castle brought to her job and now to her personal life. He was such a happy, joyful person to be around, it almost made up for the fact that he took nothing seriously and had the behavioral traits of a child. Kate knew he could be serious and adult-like when the situation absolutely called for it, but she dismissed that; Kate was thinking about the things that had made her fall in love with him in the first place at the moment.

She fell asleep before she could see whether or not Rick replied to her text.

XXXXXXXXXXXXXXXX

The next morning, Kate checked her phone as soon as her eyes opened, hoping for a message from... her boyfriend, she thought with a smile.

Good morning, Detective Tightpants, the message began and Kate laughed, recalling how much he seemed to love her leathers. Sorry I missed your text last night, but I fell asleep pretty early. You wore me out this weekend!

Having been presented the perfect opportunity to tease him, Kate texted him back. Aw, you poor thing. Your age must be getting to you... After our weekend together, I felt GREAT ;-)

:-/ I'm not sure whether to feel insulted or proud of myself... Came his quick reply.

Both, she quickly sent off. Laughing, Kate started over then, finally greeting him for the day. Good morning, Big Rick, she quickly tapped out, lounging in her bed while she thought of the day ahead and the new dress she planned to wear just for him. If you liked my leather pants, you should see the red ones. They're not leather though, they're lycra and something sparkly. Maybe I'll show you sometime.

I can be at your place in five minutes! he replied mere seconds later.

You better not be! I'm leaving for work in five minutes, she fibbed.

:-( Fine, I'll wait for tonight. Is the tight, red lycra my surprise?

No, it's something even better. But don't try to get it out of me, because I WON'T be telling you what your surprise is. You'll just have to see me tonight to find out.

Please tell me you're not working late again? I don't think I can stand the suspense all day.

I'm HOPING we will close our case today and if we do, I'll be home early. Maybe I could come to you? I'll bring dinner even.

And spend the night at my place?

Sure, as long as you don't plan on SLEEPING.

I can think of a few ways we can entertain ourselves... just bring your sexy self and an open mind.

You have no idea how open my mind can be ;-), Kate typed up and sent but before Rick could reply and start what she was sure would be a naughty session of sexting, Kate quickly typed a second message. I gotta go now, honey. I'll see you tonight. 143 Kate took a deep breath, unsure about adding the numerals to the end of her text and about calling Castle 'honey.' Did she really want Rick to know how sentimental she was capable of being? But he already knew she loved him, so what was the harm in reiterating now and then, even if it was text code instead of actual words? She had to be quick to get her message to Rick before he could reply, so she hit send and finally climbed out of bed.

Rick however, could not let her have the last word- or number as it were. Seconds later Kate got another text that made her smile happily. Love you, too sweetheart. See you tonight.

XXXXXXXXXXXXXXXX

"A little help here, Ryan," Kate ground out, as she struggled to subdue the man whose back she was currently kneeling on.

"You got this one, Beckett," Ryan replied happily, showing no intention of helping her. "Besides, I'm busy."

Kate glared up into the cell phone camera lens that soon-to-be-deceased-when-Kate-finally-got-this-dirtbag-in-cuffs-and-then-murdered-the-other-dirdbag-videotaping-her-takedown, Detective Kevin Ryan held trained on her. When the guy beneath her squirmed some more, Kate stopped glaring up at Ryan, shifted her bare knee so she was kneeling on the guys hands, and fished in her jacket pocket with a now free hand for her cuffs.

The part that annoyed her the most was the view that Ryan most likely had and the fact that she was still panting heavily. Kate did not have the biggest chest by any means, but in her low cut top and her push-up bra- not to mention her accelerated breathing after chasing this guy for a couple blocks- Kate felt like she was going to spill out of her dress. And Ryan was standing over her. Looking down. While she bent forward- toward the camera- over this guy as she finally handcuffed him. It might not have been so bad if every inhaled breath did not push her breasts to the very limit of her low neckline! But she was taking too damn long to calm her breathing and this guy would not hold still!

Kate, having finally wrangled the metal bracelets onto the squirmy little worm, put her hands on his shoulders to hold him down and leaned over him even further. "If you don't stop fighting me, I'm going to put you in holding with a tranny hooker who would just love to spend some quality time with a pretty boy like you. And then I'm going to 'forget' to fill out your booking paperwork for a couple hours." Well, that made the young skin-headed, homophobe finally sit still.

Pushing off the kid's back, Kate half stood, half bent over him to pull him up awkwardly by one arm. Esposito conveniently pulled up to the curb just then and as Beckett shoved their suspect into the back seat, she questioned the other detective over her shoulder; "How long have you been filming me on that stupid phone, Ryan?"

Finally pressing stop and lowering the device, Ryan smiled and said, "Since you came flying around that corner with about three yards of see-through sundress trailing behind you. You know, even after working with you for years now, I'm still amazed every time you chase down a suspect in those crazy heels and never once manage to break or twist anything."

Kate gave him a sarcastic smile as she stalked toward him. Come closer and I'll find something to break or twist… she thought murderously. Instead of saying it aloud, she ordered, "Give me your phone, Ryan."

Ryan's face turned so quickly and comically to 'alarmed' that Kate might have laughed if she were not currently in Intimidating A Dirt Bag mode. Taking a step back, sensing danger probably, Ryan quickly brought his phone up, hit a few buttons and then offered it to Kate. He even had the nerve to smile as he held up the offensive little device.

As Kate snatched the phone from Ryan's grasp, Esposito rounded the front of his car to join the other detectives on the street. He thought about making one of his signature witty remarks to the man in the back seat of his car, but decided that- after being chased and apprehended by a supermodel in a sundress and four inch heels- any further humiliation would be considered police brutality. He was distracted when his phone started buzzing and seconds later he was fishing it out. He pushed a couple buttons as he approached his partner, but stopped dead when the video began to play. "Dude!" he said, then watched the entire three minute video in slack-jawed silence. "Now that's hot!" he concluded.

When Kate activated Ryan's phone, she saw a 'Message Sent' notification and her suspicions about what Javi was watching were confirmed.

"Fine," she snapped, approaching the two men as she drew up to her full, intimidating height. "Keep your stupid little video. But if I see it anywhere on the internet, I swear... meter maid will look like a promotion after the place I'll have you sent."

"Sure thing, Boss," Espo agreed easily, somehow unaffected by her blustering.

"Yeah, we would never do something like posting this video on the World Wide Web for all the internet to see," Ryan agreed facetiously.

"Show it to a few friends maybe," Espo turned to Ryan to discuss the possibilities.

"Like some guys in vice, you think?" Ryan agreed, turning to face his partner and effectively cutting Kate out of the conversation.

Since her long glare went ignored by both men- who used to be intimidated by that very same glare, damn it!- she turned and stalked away, heading back down the block toward her own car. Maybe it was a bad idea, all around, for her to wear a dress to work. Not only did suspects think they could run away from her- and actually get away- but her subordinates treated her like… well, like they were not afraid of her anymore and that damn well could not continue.

As she walked, Kate realized she still had Ryan's phone and that had to be the Detective in question running after her because just then he called, "Beckett, can I get my phone back?" When she ignored him and just kept stalking back to her car, he called shrilly, "Please?"

Kate hit play on the video and watched as she chased down the skinhead kid, then took him down, and finally subdued him. All while wearing a frilly little yellow and white sundress with big pink and green flowers all over it. When she had put it on that morning, she had thought that adding a black leather jacket might make it just a little tougher looking (and maybe give Castle some happy little memories of their bike ride the other night) but watching the video now… the leather only gave her the added appeal of looking badass and tough but soft and feminine all at the same time. Which was great! … for a date with Rick or something, but not so functional at work.

"Come on!" Ryan called again, interrupting her musings and his plodding footsteps sounded loudly as he ran to catch up with her. Before he reached her though, Kate quickly hit some buttons on his phone and then turned it off.

Without greeting him or offering his phone back, Kate quietly spoke as they continued the walk to her car, "Seriously, don't post that anywhere." She did not even look at him as she spoke, unsure she wanted him to see what she really felt about the idea of everyone at the precinct seeing that little clip. There were already certain things she had to deal with, being (an attractive) female in a male dominated profession, she really did not need the added attention that that video would garner.

"I wouldn't," Ryan assured, frowning at the side of Kate's head.

"Espo…" she argued.

"He wouldn't either. Look, if it really bothers you, I'll erase it…"

"No," Kate quickly cut in, not wanting Ryan to think she was being… well… a girl. "I've got my own ammo to tease you guys with. I wouldn't want to deprive you of one of the few things you've got against me," she joked more lightheartedly than she had been, all without looking at him. Then she finally offered Ryan back his phone.

"Yeah, we mostly just planned on teasing you with it. Maybe taunting Castle when-" suddenly, Ryan broke off, remembering only after he stuck his foot in his mouth that the last time any of them had seen the author, the dumb ass was walking away from Beckett with his arm around some bimbette. You could actually see the heartbreak in Kate's eyes as she watched Castle walk away from her, not knowing she had broken up with Tom specifically so she could spend the weekend with Castle. But Ryan was not supposed to know about any of that (and Lanie had threatened all kinds of nasty, painful things on Ryan and Esposito should Kate ever find out what she had told them).

To Ryan's surprise, when Kate finally turned to look at him, there was a mischievous smile lighting her face. "He'll be very disappointed that he missed it, won't he?"

"Maybe I should forward it to him?" Ryan suggested in an attempt to get a rise out of her and then waited for Beckett to threaten him, glare at him, or even strike out at him in some small way.

But Kate just smiled. "You do what you need to do to feel like you have the upper hand here," she replied in a tone that suggested she knew she had the upper hand either way but was going to allow Ryan, with all his fragile male ego, to believe he had bested her.

Well, that took all the fun out of it! Ryan frowned- pouted, honestly- and stuffed his phone into his jacket pocket as he and Beckett got into her car.

XXXXXXXXXXXXXXXX

Kate managed to work it so she was alone in the elevator when they finally returned to the precinct and the first thing she did, as soon as she got the chance, was call Castle.

"Did you get my surprise?" she asked by way of greeting as soon as the call was picked up.

"I'm still watching it!" Rick replied and by the sound quality of his voice, Kate could tell he was on speaker phone- probably so he could watch the video and talk to her at the same time on his fancy pants phone. "As soon as I can manage to pause it for a second, I'm going to figure out how to put it on the big screen!" he added happily.

"I didn't even have to ask him to record that. Then I stole his phone and sent the video to you," Kate sounded proud of herself for how well that had worked out, all without giving up the game and letting the boys know too soon that she was with Castle now.

"So you still haven't told them about us?" Castle asked, surprising her by taking their conversation on a much more serious track than she had anticipated.

"Not yet…" Kate replied hesitantly.

"When?" he insisted.

"Esposito wants to figure it out on his own," Kate argued and on anyone else, that particular tone would have been labeled 'whining.' "Even if he doesn't know what 'it' is yet."

"They think I left you, don't they?" Rick asked quietly, remembering what Kate had told him about breaking up with Demming so she could go with him to the Hamptons.

"N- … yes." Remembering Ryan's reaction to slipping earlier and mentioning Castle's name, the Detective obviously thought Castle was a taboo topic at the moment. She sighed in resignation and said, "Fine. I'll start dropping hints."

"Hints?" Rick asked incredulously.

"Hints that are as subtle as a runaway train?" she amended.

"Fine," he agreed, sounding reluctant though Kate knew he was smiling.

"In the meantime," she offered brightly, realizing that Castle's presence did not need to be kept secret and it would be much easier for the guys to figure it out if they knew he was in town. "Why don't we tell them that you're in New York and you never left with your ex?"

"Sure," he said happily. "Do you want me to come by the precinct?"

"No, you still need the break to work on your book. But we'll figure something out."

"Okay."

"The doors are finally opening on the world's slowest elevator, Honey. I got to go."

"All right, I'll see you tonight. I love you, sweetheart," Rick added, wondering just where the limit was to her sappiness.

Apparently it was pretty high today, because even though he knew she was already entering the bullpen, she still smiled and said, "You too."

"I got to tell you that I'm lovin' the 'Honey' thing," Rick added quickly before she could hang up.

"I'll keep that in mind," she replied, laughing. "Bye."

As she approached her desk, the guys turned to stare at her from their perch near the murder board.

So Kate smiled and told them, "That was the new puppy." She gestured with the phone to indicate who she had just been talking to. "He just learned to speak."

Instead of swallowing the lie this time, both men frowned in suspicion and began to wonder if Kate hadn't been lying to them all along about getting a new puppy. But if it was not that, then… what was going on with her lately? And why was she so smiley? That was definitely odd.

Kate had not even pulled her chair away from her desk when Captain Montgomery leaned out of his office door and called out tersely, "Beckett! My office. Now!" The man had obviously been watching for her arrival.

When she glanced back at the other two detectives, she sent an inquisitive look their way, asking without speaking, What did I do this time?

Almost as if they had actually read the question in her mind, Ryan and Esposito both shrugged at her in response. They were just as confused by Montgomery's ire as she was. It had been a while since Castle's influence had led her to do something stupid on the job. So, knowing she could not be in too much trouble- she had not done anything this time!- she shrugged as well and headed to the Captain's office.

Kate had barely closed the door before Montgomery snapped, "What the hell is this?"

After a quick glance to the paper held in the Captain's hand, Kate replied, "A picture, Sir?"

"It was sent to me this morning by some very 'helpful' officers over in traffic enforcement," he explained in a derisive way. Obviously he did not really believe that the officers in question were actually trying to be 'helpful.' "Care to explain to me just what the hell is going on in this photo?"

As Kate stepped closer to the desk, Montgomery held the picture out so the Detective could take it to get a better look. What she saw had her gasping and her eyes going wide; it was a traffic-camera shot of her and Rick tearing through the streets of NYC on her Harley. "Castle and I… we just… I mean, that was just…" Kate stammered.

"What?" Roy snapped in confusion. Then, when he realized what she was sputtering about, he scoffed and said, "I don't care what you and Castle do in your free time. But I will not have one of my Detectives flouting the law so flagrantly." With an accusing finger, Roy jabbed toward the picture of her and Castle. "You ride that machine again in my city, you wear a helmet. Understood?"

Kate was able to prevent her mouth from gaping open in surprise, but only just. Quickly scrambling to collect herself, Kate nodded. "Yes, Sir. I will."

"And for heaven's sake, Beckett, stop running red lights!" he complained in a tone that said he could not believe she had done something so careless.

Kate nodded again, but this time had to hide her smile. "Yes, Sir."

Roy sat down at his desk then, satisfied with her promise, but Kate hesitated.

He had already begun sifting through papers and forms, so Kate said, "Um… Sir?"

Roy looked up at her again. "Yes, Detective?"

"About that picture- about Castle and me… we-"

"Kate," the Captain began, cutting off any explanations. "It's about damn time you two stopped dancing around each other and finally got it together." He smiled at her shock, her mouth now hanging open comically. It was like the entire team had felt it last Friday when Castle had walked away from her, but to see pictorial evidence that he had come back for Kate… The Captain was in a pretty damn good mood this afternoon, if only his people would stop gallivanting around the city in the wee hours, running red lights, and showing a complete disregard for helmet laws.

Unsure of what to say to that proclamation, Kate just laughed and turned toward the door. "Thanks, Captain," she mumbled on her way out.

"Oh, Detective?" Roy called, halting her move to open the door. When she turned back again, he said, "Be sure to tell Castle that if he breaks your heart… I'll break his legs."

Kate laughed again, though she had to wonder how serious the threat was… "Why do my friends and family… and boss-" she added, unsure that Roy would appreciate being classified as friend, or even family even though that was how she considered him- "keep threatening to harm Castle if he breaks my heart? And why do you all keep assuming he's going to break my heart? What if I break his?"

Roy was smirking now, but he shook his head at Kate as though disappointed. "Lots of people love you, Kate. And we don't want to see you get hurt. It's as simple as that. Plus, Castle's a big boy; he can take care of himself."

Her happy smile turned sentimental as well and she said, "Well, I can appreciate that. And while I appreciate the offers of violence too, I know how to handle Castle on my own."

"I thought there was no controlling the 'nine-year-old on a sugar rush?'"

Kate tried very hard not to smirk, but only just managed it when she said, "I have a new weapon against him that I never had before." While both their minds initially went someplace dirty- Roy grimacing and Kate's smirk finally forming- she concluded, "Do you know how well that man responds to the word please?"

Roy chuckled, charmed by the unexpected joke (and honestly a little relieved not to know more about anyone's sex life than he cared to), and Kate smiled. "Good luck with him, Beckett," he offered as a dismissal.

"Thank you, Sir," she said, smiling warmly at her boss and then finally leaving the Captain's office. But not before adding, "And thank you for having my back."

Kate had a lot to think about, but she had to do it quickly as she approached her desk. She could almost feel the stares the guys held trained on her and she had to tell them something. But what? And how much? At this point, she could not just come right out and tell them that she was dating Castle. It felt like giving up and she did not do that. But she could give them hints and help them to arrive at the right conclusion on their own. They were Detectives after all and if they could not figure out something this big, maybe they did not deserve to be cops.

With a wicked satisfaction, Kate decided and finally told the guys, "The Captain just wanted to yet at me a little. Remember how I mentioned the other day going for a late night drive?" When the guys nodded (even if they did not really remember) Kate told them, "Well, we got caught on a traffic camera running a red light." All three Detectives silently wondered if anyone else had picked up on her use of the plural pronoun as opposed to the singular.

"Oooo…" the guys chorused sympathetically.

"And neither of us were wearing helmets." Yeah, they had all heard it that time.

"Well, that was stupid," Esposito summed up succinctly, which drew from Beckett her signature glare.

"Where did you go?" Ryan asked.

"Nowhere in particular. It was three in the morning, so nothing was open. I just wanted to… go for a bike ride," she added with a casual shrug.

Kate wandered away then and when she was out of earshot, Esposito turned to Ryan and said, "She mentioned going for a ride Tuesday morning."

"Right," Ryan agreed, catching on and adding, "Only, she said she took the new puppy out for a drive."

"To put it to sleep, or something."

"Right… Are you beginning to wonder if there even is a puppy?"

"I bet there isn't! You can't teach a dog to speak!" When he realized that people actually do teach talks to 'speak,' he added, "Not to then have a phone conversation with anyway."

"I knew what you meant," Ryan said with a bit of humor in his tone. Until he got confused, frowned, and asked, "So, if she wasn't riding around with a dog- who shouldn't be on a motorcycle to begin with- who was she riding with two nights ago?"

They contemplated this new question for a long moment, wondering who it could have been and how they might figure it out for sure.

"The traffic cam!" They gasped in unison.