It was more than a little weird to go with him into the precinct the following morning, Meredeth thought. She'd been in the 21st precinct when she'd lived in Yorkville for researching the Lady Hawk novels but there was a difference between that and official police business, and there was most definitely a difference between police business and police business involving Esposito.

They rode the elevator to his floor and stepped off to a cacophony of voices, ringing phones and other incidental bangs and clangs. She felt her writer's radar begin to circle, plot forming in the recesses of her brain. The smell of burned coffee and too many people in too small a space, the dull industrial colours, the-

'Meredeth.'

She blinked, saw Beckett and another woman in a pressed grey suit standing beside her desk. Filing away the details she'd been tracking, she put her game face on. 'Morning, Beckett.'

'This is Adrianna Renault from the DA's office, she's taking statements on the Bodega stalker case, and she'll be preparing you for your court appearance, should it come to that.'

'Nice to meet you Meredeth.' Adrianna had aquatic blue eyes and well-tanned skin, and a handshake firm as iron. 'I thought you might be more comfortable talking here rather than my office. Mind if we snag a conference room, Kate?'

'Not at all.' Beckett pointed to one of the rooms on the other side of the wire-mesh wall. 'Just holler if you need anything.'

Meredeth went to step away from Esposito, the natural instinct to kiss him undermined by not wanting to embarrass him at work, but found her elbow caught in his hand and his lips pressed against hers in a quick peck on the lips before he headed to his desk. Fighting the blush that wanted to creep up her neck, she shouldered her bag and marched with her back ramrod straight after the sharp lawyer.

Esposito watched her go, admiring her courage. He remembered how furious she'd been when they'd arrested Raines, literally spitting mad she'd been so naive. Despite her tendency to be quippy, she would give the prosecution what they needed. Settling into his desk, he pulled up the information on the case they'd caught the day before and set about compiling information.

Two and a half hours later, while he was at the murder-board with Beckett constructing a timeline from statements, the unmistakable tip-tap of stiletto heels echoed behind him on the floor. He turned, saw Adrianna heading for the break-room. 'Be right back,' he said hastily to Beckett as he took off for the break room as well.

'How it go?' he demanded as nonchalantly as possible; his tone made Adrianna smirk and shake head.

'At least let me get one mug of the infamous Richard-Castle-donated espresso machine coffee. The stuff back at my office is two steps up from swamp gas.'

She brewed an espresso, adding boiling water to it for an Americano before turning to Esposito and addressing his question. 'She handled herself well. Didn't embellish, didn't downplay, just told it straight, if a little shaky. She's anxious about doing things right, and still kicking her own ass she didn't pick up on there being something sinister about Raines.'

'I know, but that's Mere.'

'We should be done within the hour. There isn't a lot more I can do until we have a court date confirmed from Hathaway by next Monday.' Adrianna sipped. 'Oh my God, the rumours are true. Coffee that doesn't taste like it was filtered through a septic tank. This will go nicely with her cookies.'

Now Esposito's head snapped up as he made himself and Beckett straight black coffee, heavy on the cream in his. 'Cookies?'

'Yeah, she brought in cinnamon-pecans to snack on while we worked. You're very spoiled having a girlfriend who is such a good cook.'

'I didn't get cookies,' he groused, yanking open the refrigerator door to replace the cream. 'I sleep with her, and she didn't bring me any cookies.'

'Aw, poor Detective Esposito.' With that, Adrianna took her coffee and headed back to the conference room while a now very cranky Esposito went back to the murder board and glared at it so hard his fellow detective thought he might burn a hole in it.

'Problem?'

'No it's nothing.'

'Okay, then let's focus. Lanie's report puts the death of the actress, Simone Greer, at approximately ten last night, while the agent, Julia Thomas, was killed at shortly after midnight. Both were killed the same way, single slash to the throat with the same weapon, which means our killer did Greer, then laid in wait to do Thomas.'

'Security vid from the front door and elevator, plus the door man himself, says that whoever did it had to have used another door to leave because there's no one on the cameras coming or going between eleven forty-one and one-oh-three last night. Friggin' cookies.'

'Excuse me?' Beckett slanted her eyes sideways to Esposito, saw the grouchy expression he'd worn since returning from the break-room.

Not realizing he'd said that last bit aloud, he swiped the back of his hand across his mouth. 'Adrianna said Meredeth brought in cinnamon-pecans for them to snack on while they worked through the details of her deposition.'

'So? Meredeth's cookies are delicious and everyone knows Adrianna's got almost as big a weakness for baked goods as you do for chocolate.'

'Still, I think I should get some cookies, too. After all, I'm the one who-'

'Who what?' Amused at the little bit of levity on a Wednesday morning, Beckett turned to study her detective and saw he wasn't just cranky but actually pouting. 'You think because she keeps you warm at night that means you should get first crack at the Meredeth Bakery?'

'I'm just saying-'

'Hey, have you tried one of these?' Castle wandered up, half of a coaster-sized golden biscuit in one hand, a coffee in the other. 'Meredeth gave me one before she started up with Adrianna again. They are like round baked bites of heaven.'

Beckett took the cookie from his hand, and because she was in a mood to prove how childish Esposito was being, turned around and bit into it with gusto. 'Mmm-mmm. Now that is a cinnamon-pecan done right. Want a bite?'

'You're mean, you know that? Pure evil, plain and simple. Besides, I don't even like pecans in my cookies.' He shoved off Beckett's desk, rolled up his sleeves as he stalked back to retrieve a file from his own. He was staring so hard at the paper, he didn't register the body standing beside him until a slim hand reached out and tapped his shoulder. 'For God's sakes, Beckett, enough! I don't' want the damn cookie!'

'Fine, then I'll take these home.'

The lidded Tupperware box slid into his field of vision, making him feel like an asshole. He turned to see Meredeth standing beside him, a curious look on her face. 'Sorry, Mere, didn't know it was you.'

'You really think I'd leave you out when I was baking yesterday? Such a man,' she chided him with such a sympathetically pitying voice he had to laugh at himself.

'Well Adrianna came in to the break-room bragging about your cinnamon-pecans.'

'Javi, I know you, you loathe pecans. Which is why I made these.' She lifted the lid on the Tupperware, and bit back a laugh when she saw the look in his eyes; it was the same look he got when he was in the mood for some loving. 'I know my baby, babe.'

'Are those double chocolate walnut squishes?'

'Oh yah, but those aren't just chocolate chips. Those are chunked Valrhona sixty-one percent cocoa baker's squares in there, so-' Meredeth was cut off when he cupped the back of her neck and pulled her in for a fierce, quick kiss. 'Well, if that's what I get for cookies, maybe we should get a room for this.'

She reached in her bag, pulled out another two containers. 'Spinach salad with mandarins and blackberries, and turkey club on homemade ciabatta bread and with house-made roasted garlic mayonnaise.'

'When you say homemade-'

'I mean Momo and I had the breadmaker out yesterday and were baking up a storm,' she filled in for him, noting that Castle had wandered over to look at the goodies. 'No drooling on my plastic-ware, Castle.'

'Esposito, go take your ten-ninety-eight with Meredeth.' Beckett had seen the way his face had lit up, couldn't help but feel a little jealous. She wished she was a skilled enough cook to make Castle so unabashedly delighted with lunch.

'You sure?'

'Yeah, I'll buzz you if I need you back.'

They ate in the break-room, where Esposito discovered she'd also brought her delicious French onion dressing for the salad. He knew it was chauvinistic of him, but the fact that Meredeth was such a damn fine cook was one of the many reasons he loved her so much. He'd never been one to eat his vegetables properly, and being a cop meant you usually grabbed what was handy and easy to eat while multitasking in the car or at the desk. Since he'd began dating her, he'd brought his lunch of her leftovers with him, tucked one of her baked goods in his pockets if he was going into the field. He remembered the first time she'd cooked at his apartment, she'd made enough chilli to feed the precinct and her answer of 'just trust me' was certainly a head scratcher. The next morning he discovered she'd divided the pot into reusable plastic containers, even put some in the freezer so he'd have it to eat later; Esposito had gone home that night after shift and without thinking twice took out a container of chilli and zapped it in the microwave. Only when he'd sat down in front of his TV with it to watch the hockey game had he realized he'd been looking forward to eat more of Meredeth's chilli as the silver lining of a long day.

Across the table from him, she ate her own sandwich, caught a drip of mayo with her tongue.

'Are we feeling less like the last kid picked for kickball on the playground?' she asked, watching as he bit into the first of his cookies, his eyes rolling in epicurean delight. 'I'll take that as a yes. You going to share with the other kids?'

'Not on your life. Castle got a cookie before me, Beckett called me a suck and Ryan's not here, so that counts him out automatically.'

'Where's he at?'

'Baby-doc's with Honey-Milk. They're getting to hear the baby's heart beat for the first time today.' Esposito paused to think about sweet, baby-faced Kevin Ryan and his equally sweet, fresh-faced wife becoming parents. It still floored him the conception had occurred in Castle's upstairs bathroom, of all places, on Hallowe'en. 'He's so excited, Mere, you know he's already bought the fetus a birthday present?'

'Really?'

'Yeah, a little NYPD onsie that says my heart belongs to a cop.'

Meredeth pressed a hand to her mouth. 'That is adorable. How's Honey-Milk feeling? I haven't talked to her since New Years.'

'Tired but good. I was thinking,' he added, reaching in for another cookie, 'can we put them on the list for the book launch next week? We've been working like crazy and I think they could use a nice night out.'

'Oh yeah, I forgot to mention to you last night, they're on the list, along with Lanie and Castle and Beckett.' Meredeth paused. 'Are we going to talk about my deposition thing, or do you want to save that for later?'

'Later. I want to hear about it when we can actually discuss it, not in the-' he checked his watch '-four minutes I have left on my officially sanctioned break.'

'Fair enough.'

Esposito covered her hand, squeezed it reassuringly. 'Adrianna said you were a rock star, and I have every confidence you'll be a great witness on the stand.'

'I still feel so stupid, though. How could I not have seen it?'

'Meredeth, enough. Time to stop beating yourself up on that one.' Now his tone was stern. 'You can't carry that guilt with you. You told Beckett and I was standing right there when you gave your statement that you only saw him when you had a problem with your equipment. You keep feeling guilty, you start thinking you should be psychic, that's a sure-fire way to never let it go.'

'I know that. But if I hadn't written my stories-'

'Then he'd have found another excuse to kill people. Trust me, I read the psych diagnosis. But if you're still feeling bad about it, talk to Beckett and Castle. They went through this with his books last year, a kind of killing-in-the-name-of.'

Meredeth nodded, considered his advice. It did make sense, as they were another mystery writer and cop combo at the Twelfth. 'I might just do that.'

'Okay.' He started to say more, kept his mouth shut when Beckett walked in. 'What's up?'

'We might have caught a break. I'll meet you downstairs in the garage, two minutes.'

As his colleague left the room, he grabbed a napkin and folded it around two of the cookies. 'Put the box on my desk. Thanks for lunch, babe.' He kissed her, leaving behind chocolate crumbs at the corner of her mouth. 'I'll see you tonight at your place. Love you.'

'Love you too.'

R&R&Enjoy.