"Mrs. Blakely, thank you for coming in. I'm Captain Beckett, this is Detective Esposito," Kate greeted the victim's wife. The woman looked up from her seat as Kate led Esposito into the interrogation room. She appeared both scared and grief-stricken; her eyes were pink and puffy from crying over the loss of her husband - or the reality that she had killed him.

Kate refused to let sympathy for the situation cloud her judgement. The woman was still a suspect for the murder. Looks were definitely deceiving in many instances, her experience had taught her that. She had seen supposedly grieving widows end up being cold-hearted killers numerous times.

"You can call me Anne. Please tell me you have some leads on who killed my husband."

Offering her a slight smile, Kate opened her notebook and scooted her chair in as far as her pregnant belly would allow. She picked up the pen from the table, twirling it between her fingers as she took a deep breath. Schooling every action, she had to push her emotions aside and simply stick to the facts.

"We're looking into every possible angle, Mrs. Blakely," she explained, as Esposito cleared his throat. He suspected her; his stiff posture and narrowed eyes confirmed it. Hopefully he could play it cool and not make the woman apprehensive.

"When was the last time you spoke with your husband?"

"Two days? Maybe three?" Her voice cracked on the last word, each syllable filled with regret. Kate sat quietly, just observing as her detective continued the interview. If Anne really was the killer, she would need to play the good cop to his already blatant bad cop attitude.

"That's a long time to not speak to your spouse…" he scoffed, his tone lighting a fire in Anne Blakely's eyes.

"Don't judge me. Have you ever personally known a CPA? It's tax season. With all the long hours he was working, I'm lucky I spoke to him at all."

Esposito eyed her for a moment, as if he was contemplating the wife's response, before he appeared to accept it and moved on. "Where were you earlier this morning?"

"Wait. Where was I? What are you trying to say, Detective?" She was already on the defensive. This wasn't good. There was no way they'd ever get anything useful from her at this rate.

"Detective Esposito is just trying to go through a timeline," Kate said, lifting her hand to motion toward him, trying to placate Anne. "It's standard procedure. We're sure you had nothing to do with it."

The woman's shoulders relaxed and she rested her forehead in her hands, before looking up and shaking her head with a sigh. "I'm sorry, Detective. I know you're just trying to do your job. It's been a long day."

"Understandably," Esposito said with a sharp nod.

"This morning I was still in Long Island at my parents' house."

"Your parents' house?" Kate asked, curiosity spiked by the information.

"Yes. My kids and I have been staying there for the last couple of weeks," she paused, her lips turning down in a frown. "Since I found out about Jake's affair."

Esposito looked at Kate, eyebrow arched, before looking back toward Anne. "So you knew?"

"Of course I knew," she said, a sad laugh slipping from her tongue. "He was never great at keeping secrets."

"So you were separated?"

Anne offered them a small nod as she squeezed her eyes shut, holding back tears. "It was a temporary thing. He promised he was done and wanted to make things right before the baby was born."

"And did he - make things right?" Kate asked, trying to hold onto her skeptical nature, but Anne's story seemed so genuine.

"He was trying, but sometimes after the trust is broken, it takes more than half-hearted effort to fix things. It was a slow process with his stress from tax season, but I wanted us to be a family. And now…"

Mrs. Blakely's voice caught in her throat and the rest of her statement fell silent. They still had to check her alibi, but Kate felt for this woman. She was left to raise her kids alone with only the memory of a broken marriage left unrepaired.

Her mind continued to drift, completely engrossed in her own thoughts and away from the interview. She had very little in common with Blakely's wife and she couldn't be more grateful in that moment. Her marriage was far from perfect, and Castle had been getting under her skin lately, but he was truly a good man with a generous heart.

And right now, she couldn't ask for more.

The firm knock on the door pulled Castle from his thoughts. He was wracking his brain for an idea, any idea that would be worthy, and every time he came up short. It was as if the more he dwelled on finding the perfect gift, the less he could think of anything even remotely acceptable. Pulling at the handle, he swung the door open to find Jim standing there with a sympathetic look on his face.

"You sounded panicked on the phone, Rick. How can I help?" he asked, walking into the loft, shrugging off his coat and draping it on one of the stools in the kitchen.

"I want to make tomorrow special for her. After everything we've been through this past year, it needs to be perfect." Castle balled his hands into fists at the memory, still so fresh, the images of her bleeding out on the floor where he currently stood.

Jim seemed to sense his uneasiness and moved to sit down on the couch in the living room. "It's just a trivial holiday, son."

Castle shrugged, joining his father-in-law, easing down next to him. "Maybe, but I like to make each holiday special for her."

"Katie loves you 365 days a year; she's not going to love you any less tomorrow if you get her the wrong colored long-stem roses."

"I wasn't going to get her roses..." Flowers were the last of his worries. Flowers were easy, but he still needed something more, a special something that would really make Valentine's day a day to remember.

"Good. She hates them," Jim said with a wink. "Always go with lilies."

"I do... and I will," Castle stammered. Damn, he was on edge today. Maybe a glass of scotch would help. Idiot, not in front of Jim. God, what was wrong with him today?

"I'm just teasing. You need to relax!" He was right. He really needed to relax.

"I know - I know, it's just making me a little crazy. She's been so hard to read lately. Normally she doesn't care about this sort of thing, but what if tomorrow is the one time she does and I drop the ball on the entire thing?"

Jim narrowed his eyes at him with a slight smirk playing on his lips.

"How long have you known my daughter? Do you really think she'd ever find fault in anything you would do for her on Valentine's Day?"

He was losing it, and he was incredibly lucky that Jim was so understanding. Kate wouldn't divorce him if he didn't get her the perfect Valentine's Day gift.

"No. I know you're right. It's just - perhaps this whole pregnancy is making me a little crazy too."

Turning toward him, Jim leaned forward and took a deep breath. "Even as a child, Katie always appreciated gifts that were sincere and real. Nothing over the top."

"She has never wanted anything extravagant from me, even when we were first dating. I guess I just needed a reminder."

"Or a slight kick in the ass," Jim said nudging his arm. "Keep it simple, son. Stick with what you know about her."

"Stick with what I know," he repeated to himself, as the perfect idea flashed through his mind. "Jim, you're a genius. Thank you!" Castle clapped his father-in-law's back as his lips stretched into the first honest grin all day.

"You're welcome." The older man chuckled, standing up to grab his coat and walk toward the door. "It looks like you'll need to go to the store again."

"Just a couple phone calls hopefully. You don't need to leave so soon though, I'm sure Kate won't be long."

"Even more reason for me to go. I don't want to make her suspicious," he mused.

"It was nice seeing you, Jim." Castle offered him his hand and the elder gentleman reached forward to pull him into a fatherly hug.

He pulled away after the brief embrace and gave him a warm smile. "We should all have dinner soon."

"I'll make sure of it. Have a good night," Castle said, waving goodbye and shutting the door. He had hoped talking to Jim would give him an idea, and he completely lucked out. Looking down at his watch, he prayed it wasn't too late to pull this off.

Hopefully his antique dealer could perform a miracle.

"Castle?" Kate called, clicking the front door shut and toeing off her boots.

"In the kitchen." The aroma of spices filled the air, welcoming her home. Her mouth was already watering from his latest culinary creation.

"Whatever you're making smells wonderful."

"Just a little something I whipped up for the love of my life who just so happens to be growing our child." He offered her a smile, placing his spatula down against the countertop, freeing his hands to gently caress her hips.

"Sounds just slightly strange when you phrase it that way," she teased, cupping his cheek in her palm while leaning forward to press a kiss against his mouth. She pulled away slightly and rested her forehead on his with a hum, brushing his nose with hers. "Sorry for being so grumpy lately. You're too good to me."

"Nothing is ever too good for you," he said, placing a quick kiss to her temple. "Did the guys close their case while I was gone?"

"No." She shook her head, reaching for a spoon for a quick taste from the skillet. "Espo just texted me while I was in the elevator. Traffic cams confirmed the wife's alibi, so they're back to square one."

"So the wife really was just an innocent spouse." He turned back to tend to their dinner on the stovetop as she leaned against the cabinets. "It's sad really. She has to pick up the pieces of her life now that he's gone when he was too busy having his cake and eating it too while he was alive."

"Having his cake..." she repeated, low, before her eyes flashed open and a grin stretched across her lips.

"Do you want cake?" Castle asked with a short laugh, returning his attention to her as he slung his arms around her waist, her belly pressed against him.

"No," Kate paused, looking sheepish. "Well maybe, but not what I originally meant. I think I know who the killer is... Something someone said in the interview this morning. It didn't piece together in my mind until now."

"Are you going back to the precinct?"

"No. I'm home with my husband. I'll text Espo back and let him run with my hunch."

"Why Captain Beckett, I really like this delegating side of yours," he husked before brushing a kiss on her cheek.

"Perks of being captain. I plan to enjoy the evening with the handsome man in my life," she said, pinching his side.

"Someone else joining us?" he teased, so she tossed the hand towel from the countertop at his face.

"Last time I give you a compliment."