Castle deliberately kept his pace moderate as the cafe came into view. He glanced at his wristwatch, and saw that it was 11:26AM.
The sidewalks were teeming with people. The temperature was still a little low, but the sky was the brilliant, cloudless blue of a perfect Fall day.
The collar of his long wool coat was turned up at the back and his hands were in his pockets, plumes of breath billowing out in front of him, but he forced himself not to hurry.
Within another minute, he reached the door of the cafe and gratefully stepped inside. The place was fairly busy, but there were still a few empty tables dotted about. He glanced around but he couldn't immediately see her. The cafe was L-shaped, and he walked over towards the far windows, bringing the rest of the seating into view – and there she was.
Beckett was sitting at a table about halfway along, in a quiet area that looked out onto a side street. Sunlight poured in, painting a bright band across the small, circular table, and she was looking down at her phone. She was wearing a cream turtleneck, and he could see her a purple tartan scarf folded over her coat on one of the free chairs.
He smiled, taking a moment to just look at her, then started walking towards her. He made it about halfway before she glanced up, and a wide smile appeared on her face.
She stood up as he approached, and before he could even say hello she laid one palm against his cheek and kissed him tenderly.
His arm curled instinctively around her back, holding her in place, and he returned the kiss like a drowning man finding oxygen at last.
Finally, he thought.
They were interrupted by the sound of someone discreetly clearing their throat nearby, and she looked around to see a waiter standing a respectful distance from their table, staring intently down at the two menus he was holding.
She flushed slightly, then looked up at Castle. He was smirking.
She slid her hand down to his chest then let it fall away, and she sat down again. Castle unbuttoned his coat and folded it over a chair, then took the seat closest to her, sitting next to her instead of across the table.
The waiter deposited the menus with a smile, then took their drinks order and hurried away.
"Fancy meeting you here," he said.
She perched her chin on the heel of her hand, her elbow resting on the table, and simply smiled in response.
After a moment, she reached across with her other hand and intertwined her fingers with his, looking down at their joined hands.
"That was a long morning," she said.
"Oh?" he replied, running his thumb across her knuckles.
She shrugged with a casualness she didn't feel, but he saw the flush return to her cheeks.
"I woke up and I was thinking about you right away," she said. "It's… crazy how much I missed you today. I'm a mess."
He smiled, squeezing her hand. "Tell me about it. It's not a bad thing."
She nodded. "So did you get some writing done?"
"Yeah, a couple of hours," he said. "It helped. But I've been fidgeting for the last hour or so."
"Why?" she asked bashfully, and he tilted his head slightly to one side.
"Wanted to see you," he said.
Her gaze dropped to their joined hands again, and he could see the pleasure on her face at his admission.
"Get up to much yourself?" he asked, and she looked up at him.
"You might say that," she replied. "Lanie called me."
His eyebrows barely twitched, but she could see the spark of curiosity in his eyes.
"Mm," he said. "How's she doing?"
Beckett laughed. "You're not going to ask me what we talked about?"
"I was leaving it up to you," he said, a lopsided grin forming on his face.
"It was… an interesting conversation," she said.
Beckett was considering cleaning out her fridge when she heard her phone ringing. It was only a little before 10AM, so it was unlikely to be Castle again.
She picked the device up and saw that it was Lanie, and a buzz of excitement ran through her as she tapped the screen to answer the call.
"Hey, Lanie," she said.
"Hey yourself," Lanie replied cheerfully. "How's things? You didn't call me yesterday."
"You didn't call me either," she replied, with a teasing note in her voice.
"I didn't know if it would be a good time, after I left you and Castle in the bar."
"We just shared a cab home," Beckett said.
"Oh," Lanie replied. Beckett could hear the frustration in her friend's voice. "So no further forward, huh?"
Beckett paused for a couple of seconds.
"Kate?"
"I… wouldn't say that," she replied at last.
"Oh?"
The sudden interest in Lanie's voice was easy to hear, and Beckett walked over to her couch and sat down, curling her legs up beneath her.
"Do you remember the case where there was a murder before the wedding of Castle's college sweetheart?"
There was a brief pause as Lanie's memory worked. "Yeah, more or less. Name started with a K. Turned out not to be the groom after all, and they went ahead with the wedding."
"Exactly. So, after Castle got home the other night, Kyra called him. Having some troubles at home, and wanted to come over."
"Shut the front door. I will kick his ass."
Beckett couldn't help but laugh.
"Seriously? This isn't funny anymore."
"No, no, listen. He didn't let her come over, but they met for lunch the next day – yesterday. Then he came over here so we could talk."
"I'm listening."
Beckett told her all about the conversation with Castle, and how she had told him about her feelings for him.
"Oh my god, Kate. What did he say?"
"He… we talked about the timing. He had doubts about whether I'm really ready."
"I can see why he would."
"Yeah. But he said he's still in love with me."
Lanie sighed. "No kidding, girl. That's wonderful."
Beckett smiled.
"He said we could take some time, and I said I didn't want any more time."
"…And?"
"And… he kissed me."
"Finally!"
"And then he invited me over for dinner with his family."
She told Lanie about the difficult conversation with Alexis, and her friend wisely remained silent. She knew that they both agreed with most of what the girl had said.
"Then we had some time together after Martha and Alexis went to bed."
"And you made the most of that time, I hope."
"We talked some more. And kind of… made out like crazy."
Lanie whooped, and Beckett couldn't help but laugh at her friend's enthusiasm.
"Well, damn. Sounds like you two finally started moving forward. I'm so happy for you."
"I know," she replied. "I'm meeting him for lunch in a little while."
"And you're all looking forward to it, and you're gonna be just sickening about this."
She laughed again, feeling heat rise in her cheeks.
"Pretty much!"
"Ugh. Well, I'm jealous and I'm doing a happy dance here. You tell that man–"
"That he has to treat me right, or you'll smack him."
"You got that right."
"Consider me duly warned," Castle said.
They had ordered while Beckett was telling him about her conversation with Lanie, and now their food arrived right on cue.
By the time they'd finished their meals, it was almost 1PM. They were lingering, neither wanting the moment to end.
Castle sipped his coffee thoughtfully, staring out onto the street. The conversation had lapsed into a comfortable silence a minute or so before. He was pulled from his reverie when he felt her hand cover his.
"What are your plans for today?" she asked, and he shrugged.
"Nothing in particular," he said. "What about you?"
She shifted slightly in her seat, squaring her shoulders before she spoke. "I thought we could walk back to my place. There's something I want to show you."
He searched her eyes for the meaning of the statement, and he saw only openness and a raw honesty.
"OK," he said. He set his cup down and gently turned his other hand over to grasp hers, raising it to his lips. He pressed a kiss to the back of her hand, and she smiled widely, delighted.
"Rick Castle is a romantic," she said coyly. "I knew it."
"You have no idea. No idea."
They looked at each other in silence for a few moments then the waiter appeared again. Castle asked for the bill, and the young man departed.
Beckett withdrew her hand to reach for her purse, and he raised an eyebrow.
"I invited you to lunch," he said. "Let me get this."
She nodded her acquiescence after a moment, knowing how seriously Castle took his chivalry. "Thank you," she said, and he smiled.
A minute or so later, Castle became aware of a presence at his side, and glanced up expecting to see the waiter with the bill – but there was a young woman standing there. She was blonde, perhaps in her late twenties, and she was smiling nervously.
Fan, he thought, putting on his most disarming smile.
"You're Richard Castle," the woman said. It wasn't a question, but he nodded. "I knew it. Oh my god. I love you."
Beckett's eyebrows shot up, and she clasped her hands together to avoid clenching her fists. A part of her was amused at her own response, but a larger part was suddenly seething at this stranger's brazenness.
Get a hold of yourself, Kate, she thought.
Castle laughed uncomfortably, and the woman seemed to realise what she'd said.
"I mean, your books – I've read all of them. I love your work. I just wanted to say thank you so much."
"That's very kind of you, thank you – Miss…?" Castle replied, carefully keeping his expression warm and disarming, from years of practice.
"Oh, it's Rebecca. Nobody's going to believe this. It's so amazing to just bump into you like this!"
"Big city, small world," he said, glancing over towards Beckett and seeing the strained smile on her face. He cleared his throat.
"Tell you what," he said, reaching into his jacket pocket and pulling out a Moleskine notebook that he used to jot down notes about possible plot points whenever they occurred to him, "let me sign something for you."
He tore out one of the perforated pages from the rear of the notebook, took out a pen, and quickly dashed out a brief note and signature, then handed it to her.
Rebecca's eyes widened, unable to believe her luck. "Oh god… thank you! Thank you so much."
"Always a thrill to meet a reader," he said genially, extending his hand, which she took. He shook hands with her firmly, the smile never leaving his face. "It was a pleasure to meet you, Rebecca."
The woman was still dazed, glancing from Castle to the note clutched in her hand and back again. "Oh… thank you. I mean, it was a pleasure to meet you too. Thanks so much!"
He nodded gently, still smiling, knowing how these encounters played out. He wouldn't say anything more, and she would leave of her own accord in a moment.
Right on cue, she nodded – almost bowing – and threw another quick smile in his direction before hurrying off, clutching the piece of paper in both hands.
As if summoned by the scene, the waiter wandered over and deposited the bill with a murmur of thanks, then once again moved purposefully away.
Castle looked over at Beckett, who now had a tight but amused grin on her face. Her arms were folded.
He gave the barest shrug, his expression clearly saying Sorry – but what can I do?
She grinned, but her eyes were still slightly narrowed.
He leaned forward, putting one forearm on the table, and when he spoke his voice was low.
"Jealous, Detective?" he teased.
Beckett didn't have a name for the feeling that burst through her. It was part possessiveness, part amusement, and part mild annoyance, but mostly it was a need to touch him and make sure everyone knew that he was hers. The heat of it took her by surprise, and she pulled her lower lip between her teeth even as she reached over and snatched his hand from the table, pulling it towards her.
Castle's face showed surprise for a moment, then he saw how her gaze had darkened, and he noticed the flush in her cheeks.
His gaze flicked down to her lips at the same moment as hers did the same.
"Rick," she said, her voice barely loud enough to hear but also an octave lower than earlier, "we should go."
He hesitated for barely a second before pulling his wallet from his pocket, reclaiming his hand for just long enough to grab a few banknotes and drop them on top of the bill.
"Ready when you are," he said, not breaking eye contact.
She stood up immediately, grabbing her jacket without looking away from him, and tugged him towards the door.