'This is so cool! I can't believe we get to do this again!'

'And the best part is I get to see this one live. Babe, when are the pizzas getting here?'

'Soon, Honey-Milk. Would you like a dozen roasted eggplants as a snack before they arrive?'

'Sure, you wanna barbecue them for me, Castle?'

Lanie giggled at the tumbling conversations in Castle's living room. She'd worked the day shift of the holiday Monday while her friends had only been on call and Ryan, the lucky duck, had actually had the whole day off. While she'd originally been cranky, the news the previous Thursday that Meredeth would be going on The Late Late Show With Craig Ferguson again on Monday night had been the carrot getting her through the day, especially considering that Dave was on call and had been called in just an hour before. She'd been so looking forward to having him come to another group thing.

Instead, she focused her energy on making Honey-Milk a fruit plate; the woman, it seemed wanted nothing but fresh fruit and pizza during the late stages of her pregnancy. And not just apples and oranges - Ryan had been making stops on his way home every night to the Korean fruit market to pick up various treasures like , papayas, star-fruits, dragon-fruits and in one very weird request, a basket of kumquats. She brought it over to her friend, then settle in on the couch beside Alexis and her boyfriend Patrick.

'Hey check it out.' Because she was partially lying down with her head propped up by pillows, Honey-Milk balanced the plate flat on her belly, the grapes jiggling as the baby moved around. 'I got my own built-in TV tray!'

'I don't think Dell-slash-Abby likes being put to work already,' Ryan told her, take her snack and setting it beside her calcium rich orange juice as the doorbell rang. 'And that would be the main course.'

Beckett went to the door, paid for the four boxes of pizza. 'One large Hawaiian, one large cheese, one large vegetarian, and one personal meat-lover's,' she told Castle, passing him the small box. 'Knock yourself out, Rick.'

They dove into their slices as the witty Scottish presenter began to opening monologue; the only sound heard in the whole house was the chewing of pizza as they watched.

Hey speaking of better the second time around, my very dear Twitter and email-pal Meredeth Coleman is here, yes she is, and instead of having her interview interrupted by her boyfriend texting her this time, she's just brought him along instead! Where is he, where is...oh what? Okay, he says he's right over there, but he doesn't want any cameras on him until she comes out to talk to me. Well, la-dee-da, Mister fancy pants.

'Of course he'd be in the audience,' Ryan said around a mouthful of peppers and onions and cheese. 'Think he'll go up there with her?'

Beckett shook her head. 'Nah, I don't think so. For all his comfortability around big groups of people and being able to talk to anything that'll talk back, public speaking terrifies him.'

'Seriously?' Castle looked at her with incredulity.

'Oh yeah. He had to give a demo on finger-printing to a group of fifth-graders who came to the precinct on a class trip and before they got there, he said 'Excuse me while I go vomit.' I thought he was joking until I saw him leaving the men's room.'

'Who'd have guessed that one?'

'Why do you think he was drinking so much before he made the toast at our wedding?' Ryan pointed out. 'Oh, hey, hey, look we're back!'

Conversation once again halted like a button had been pushed. All eyes focused on the screen as Craig began his introduction of their friend.

My first guest tonight, well she's done a lot since she was last here last October. Can you believe it's been that long? She's had another Lady Hawk book come out, she was in Bombshell magazine, and she's been working on the production of the first Lady Hawk Book into a miniseries. I know, I cannot wait for it either. She's beautiful, she's brainy, what the hell's she doing here? I'm kidding, I know why she's here. Meredeth Coleman, everyone!

Castle's loft erupted in noise as they cheered for their friend, watched her walk on screen in a lovely floral top, black pedalpushers and wedge sandals.

Hello my New York friend, I must say you are looking very West Coast and summery.

Thank you, I've been shopping in Santa Monica earlier today, I went with Javi to the raceway on the weekend, so it was my turn today and we hit the boardwalk and pier this morning.

That's so cute, you trade off things like that?

Well, yeah, it's part of that newfangled compromise thing. I dunno, some people say it's what you need to make a relationship work, so we're giving it a try.

And as I understand, you two are actually on his vacation right now, right?

We are, and I nearly didn't come because I was like, no, I'm not letting work interfere with it, and he said, are you, you know f-'n kidding me? It's the Shark Week guy, so I was like, okay, we'll fit that in.

'Yeah, like Esposito would have let her pass that up,' Castle scoffed, earning a considering look from Beckett. 'Esposito knows the friendship she has with Craig is hard to find with a media personality, there was no way he'd have let her miss it.'

'Quiet, they're still talking!' Lanie shushed him.

So what all have you done on your vacation so far?

Well, we spent all day Saturday at Six Flags in Jackson New Jersey, and I have to tell this story, I can see him over there shaking his head and laughing at me, but it's just too funny, I have to share. We were like, let's do something different for Fourth of July weekend, we're not going with our friends to the Hamptons like we did for Memorial day because one couple is having a baby very very soon, another has to work so it's just- the timing's not right this time around. I was like, hey, this is something we haven't done before, let's go to Six Flags!

You'd never done that together?

Well, when you start dating in October, going to theme parks is a little trickier, but I think we're also going to Disney-Land on our way back from San-Francisco later in the week. Anyways, we get to the park, and I'm so stoked, I can't wait to go on all the coasters, and I can sense Javi's a little apprehensive but I think, okay, he's gone parasailing, and hangliding, and for his birthday, we went flying with test-pilots so it's probably just anxiety over waiting. Then we get on our first coaster, The Batman, which is an inverted track so your feet are dangling loose. We get on, we get our belts checked and we start going up the ramp. I'm looking around at the scenery and I'm like, isn't this awesome, baby, but all I get is a very stiff 'uh-huh' and I look over and he's like this.

They watched as Meredeth arranged herself in the chair so she was square to the audience, feet flat on the floor, arms cocked up like she was holding onto the over-the-shoulder safety harness of a roller-coaster. The live audience laughed as she clenched her jaw and squeezed her eyes shut. Craig himself was having a very hard time keeping a straight face as Meredeth continued her story.

He's just absolutely in his own little world, and I'm like, Javi are you okay? And no word of a lie, this is his response: Shh, not while I'm praying Mere, all those higher powers might not hear me if you talk.

In Castle's living room, everyone exploded in laughter, not so much at Esposito's phobia but at Meredeth's recounting of the story.

'Again, who knew?' Lanie squeaked out, swiping at her eyes.

'That's the strangest thing in the world. He's a good flier, we've flown down to Vegas before, so that makes no sense.' Ryan shook his head. 'Everyone's got their quirks, though.'

Did you manage to get through it without him wanting to kill you?

Oh yeah, that was the funniest thing, because after we got up the ramp, the rest of the ride, he was screaming his head off and having a grand old time. That sounds very dirty doesn't it?

I'm so glad you picked that out and not me, because I'd look a little creepy hitting on you in front of your boyfriend who looks like he could probably bench press me before breakfast

Well, hang because my story gets better, but...oh, are you sure? Javi over there says he wants to tell the second part of this because he tells it better. Do you mind if he comes up here and joins in?

Let's ask the audience, would you like to hear the embarrassing roller coaster story from Meredeth's boyfriend? I'll take that as a yes, now I want to give him an introduction, what's his full name?

Javier Esposito

And what does he do?

He's a cop

Very well. He's one of the Big Apple's boys in blue, and my lovely friend Meredeth's significant other. Please welcome Javier Esposito up to the stage

This time, the party in Castle's loft had no quippy remarks to make as they watched their friend come up from behind the cameras and warmly embrace Meredeth, giving her a sweet kiss before taking the seat of honour beside Craig and letting Meredeth move to the next chair over.

'No fucking way,' Patrick breathed, then winced as he felt a balled up paper napkin hit him in the head. 'Sorry, Mister Castle.'

'That's more like it.'

Beside him, Beckett wrapped her arm around his waist. 'He beat you to it?'

'Damn right he did.'

Good to have you on the show, young man, now let's cut down to it. You're at the park, you're on the coaster, you're praying to whomever will listen

Right, well, we were in line for a different coaster, and Meredeth was beside me, and she points out this thing in the distance, and I'd seen it on our way in, it's this green metal thing, it looks like a service high-rise of some kind, it's about forty stories or so in the air-

Forty six

Thanks, babe, forty six, and she wraps her arms around me, and says you brave enough for that? I was like, for what, and she says back to me, that's the King-Da Ka, think you can handle it? It was an actual roller-coaster, I sincerely thought she was joking at first

Did you nearly pass out?

I just looked at her and said are you crazy, she comes back with what if I paid you a million dollars

Would you do it if she paid you a million dollars?

I told her, you could dip yourself in chocolate, roll in toasted coconut head to foot and promise me the dirtiest deeds known to mankind on silk sheets and I still wouldn't get on that damn thing.

'Well, I guess we know why he likes chocolate macaroons so much,' Honey-Milk giggled.

Alexis picked up another slice of pizza from the box. 'I thought you said he doesn't like public speaking.'

'He doesn't.' Now Beckett sat up, studied the image of her colleague on screen. 'Is he drunk?'

'No way. Meredeth wouldn't let him do this if he'd been into the bottle,' Castle scoffed, polishing off the last of his own pizza. 'Maybe a nip of rum, but it'd take a lot more than a quick shot of Jamaican happy juice to get him that comfortable.'

Ryan ground his teeth in frustration as he began to think back to the email he'd accidentally seen. What if his boy was using this as practice for something a lot bigger? Yes, that had to be it. But was he even planning on doing it soon? Had he even looked at the bling? Was he even going to get a ring before he asked Meredeth or did he want to pick it out with her? Damn this was frustrating; here he was sitting on a big fat gossip egg and he couldn't bring it up with the one person he needed to grill without looking nosy and prying.

As the show went to commercial, Lanie got up to make tea for Honey-Milk and herself while the rest of them continued to debate Esposito's unexpected late-night appearance.

'Maybe she promised him that chocolate dipped sex if he did it,' Castle mused. 'Wouldn't put it past him, the two things he loves most in life are Meredeth and chocolate.'

Beckett shook her head. 'Maybe she threatened to stop cooking for him. It's cliche but the guy could burn a pot of boiling water without even trying. Kinda makes me wonder if Meredeth wasn't really behind his so called barbecue skills from Memorial Day weekend.'

'What if it's a little more romantic than that?'

All eyes turned to Alexis, as the pretty young woman blushed red as her hair from chin to scalp. 'I mean, what if he's going to propose to her soon, and he's using this as a practice run to work on his courage, without having to be drunk when he makes the biggest decision of his life?'

From in the kitchen, Lanie shook her head. 'Once again, a room full of cops and none of you came up with that possibility?'

R&R&Enjoy.