Falling in Love at a Coffee Shop
She picked him up outside the coffee shop, smiling as he handed her the cup of coffee once he buckled the seat belt. He knew her order by now without asking, claiming that, as a writer, he was trained to pick up on details of life that others would skim over without a second thought.
"It's getting warmer, you know." Kate glanced over at him, tilting her coffee cup so it wouldn't splash out the top as she took the corner. She raised a brow, asking him 'So?' without using any words. "Don't you want to switch over to iced coffee or something?"
Defiantly, Kate took a sip of the latte, the still-hot liquid scalding her taste buds. "I like it hot."
"Yeah, but even when the sidewalks have the ability to cook eggs?" Castle asked, close to whining.
"Rick, it's barely even spring. I don't think the city is going to get hot enough to cook anything in the next two months. Plus," she said, putting the cup into the holder between them, "that whole cooking-eggs-on-the-sidewalks is an urban myth."
"Not true. I did it a few years ago. Except I made cookies instead of eggs."
Kate laughed, shaking her head. "Of course you did…"
"What? They were delicious. Absolutely delicious and I had no one to share them with."
Stuck at a stop light behind taxis and an SUV with a thundering bass, she took the moment to look over at him. "You weren't with…?"
"Meredith?" Kate nodded, pulling her lower lip between her teeth. "Yes, I was. But she was doing theatre. I was all alone with a batch of cookies. Ate them all in a single night while fighting through the last few chapters of Kissed and Killed. The stomach ache was worth it."
"That explains so much. The baking scene between…" Kate trailed off before saying the name, focusing on the road and hoping he wouldn't bring it up.
He did. Of course he did. "Oh my God, Kate! Did you name Al after my Detective Alexandra Jones?"
"No." It doesn't come out with the right amount of conviction to make it stick. Castle raised both his brows, smiling over at her. "I didn't! Besides, that book came out after Al was born. I've got an alibi."
"So, Al was born before 2005." He was thinking out loud more than talking to her but Kate still took a deep breath. Personal territory.
She decided to share. "2004. Mid-October."
He took a sip of his coffee, the ice sliding against one another as he stirred it with the straw. "It was cold that year here, wasn't it?" Kate glanced over and he shrugged. "I was in Los Angeles. Meredith was in a soap opera out there and it was easy for me to just up and move for the year."
"Yeah. It was cold." Kate still remembered the strange feeling of being cold but still boiling hot from the extra little body she was carrying around under her coat and scarf and multiple layers of sweaters. "I'm sure the weather in L.A. was lovely though."
"Sunshine and prime surfing."
Kate scanned the parking spots outside the precinct for an empty one and snagged the lone spot right outside the door as a marked car pulled out. "You surf?"
He snorted, getting out of the car and heading toward the precinct to open the door for her. "Yeah right. I'm more comfortable in a library than out facing waves with just a piece of fiberglass to depend on."
Peters tried not to let his mouth hang open as Castle and Kate walked by. It had been almost two months of Castle following Kate around like a loyal puppy and the desk sergeant still was not used to seeing the author in the precinct.
"Hey, Peters!" Castle called as they waited for the elevator. He'd admitted to Kate that he liked teasing the older man, either over his book choices or just for his own amusement. "Good book?"
Kate saw that Peters was reading the first book in the Hunger Games series. She'd read that one in a single night after putting Al to bed. It wasn't Peters's usual fare but they were good. Really good. She leaned against the wall next to the elevator, watching as Castle and the sergeant chatted about the plot. She was surprised that the two hadn't created a precinct book club yet with the amount of time they spent discussing various novels and short stories.
"Castle." He looked over, trailing off mid-sentence about the use of a dystopian society. "We've got a suspect waiting upstairs. Talk about the Games with Peters later, okay?"
He jogged over to get into the elevator before the metal doors closed. "You've read The Hunger Gamesbefore?"
"They're not just for teens, you know," she said, flipping through her phone messages to avoid looking at him. "The new one will be out this fall. I've pre-ordered."
"So many layers to you, Miss Katherine Beckett," he muttered as they stepped off into the bullpen.
"Beckett!" Esposito was standing next to his desk, waving a file over at them. "He's waiting in interrogation for you."
They'd been looking for one of the drug dealers that might have been wrapped up in the current case. He'd been good at hiding despite his size; his jacket said he was nearly six foot three. When Kate had left yesterday, the boys had told her that they'd keep looking at some of the man's usual hideouts, try and get a lock on his location. They must have been successful.
Kate dropped her jacket on the back of her chair as Esposito brought the file over. "Where'd you find him?"
"His favorite bar, celebrating the death of his rival. He spent the night in the tank sobering up. And he's all yours." As she smiled at him and moved to walk toward the interrogation room, Esposito caught her lower arm. "Beckett, you sure you want to do this alone?"
"What's the big deal?"
Castle came around her to stand next to the other detective. "The guy is nearly a half a foot taller than you. Plus he's seriously pumped and angry. He could throw you against the wall by lifting his pinky finger." He exchanged a glance with Esposito. "Let one of us in there with you."
Kate pushed past the two men, plucking the file from Esposito's hands. "Quit playing the macho man routine. I'll be fine."
The man was pacing inside the interview room, watching the reflective surface of the mirror carefully. He couldn't see into the observation room but the man kept trying to see through the window, flashing gross smiles of his grimy teeth at the watching people.
"Good morning, Mr. Albertson," Kate said, shutting the door behind her as she circled to the side of the table with one chair. She didn't sit, not ready to give him more of an advantage than he already had over her.
He didn't reply with words. Instead, he snorted and Kate wouldn't have been surprised to see steam come out of his nose like an angry bull.
So, Kate smiled sweetly, ready to play that game with him. "My detectives picked you up at a bar. Any reason you were there?"
"Cause I wanted to be," he grunted, circling the table. A predator.
"Yes, well, two days ago, one of your rivals turned up dead, Mr. Albertson. We chatted with the drug task force." Kate calmly clicked her pen on, flipped the file on the table open, and looked up at the towering man. Then she slid onto the table to watch him. "They say that the other man, a Mr. Denzel Hert, was killed in a method they had seen before."
Albertson crossed his arms but Kate could see the fists he was making. "So what?"
"Your method, Mr. Albertson. Hert was killed the same way you killed three other men that tried to step in on your turf." Kate picked a photo out of the file, placed it on the table for him to see.
The photo had been taken at the crime scene. The man in it was missing an ear, part of his nose, and his front teeth. Lanie had confirmed that all of the body parts had been taken while the man was still alive. Then his throat had been slashed from side to side. The photo still showed the drying blood under his neck.
Albertson didn't so much as glance at the photo. "Big deal. Plenty of people could've done that."
"But they didn't," Kate said, standing with her back to the mirror. The man paced in front of her, his arms brushing hers as she watched him carefully. "It was you, Karl. Not someone else."
"Bitch, it wasn't me!" He broke as he yelled, turning in a flash to shove Kate against the mirror.
Kate felt her head connect with the glass, saw bright bursts of light behind her eyes. Albertson was jerking her forward, prepared to push her back against the wall when Kate heard the door open. The man was off her in an instant as one of the boys, maybe both of them, grabbed him.
"Kate!"
She heard Castle call her first name through the ringing in her ears. But she didn't move. She didn't trust her feet to carry her steadily without letting her fall by the time she reached the door. Instead, she braced herself on the little ledge of the mirrored window and tried to find her balance, taking stock of the injuries she could feel. There was certainly going to be a pair of bruises on her elbows from where they met the glass. She lifted up her free hand and tried to feel the back of her head.
"Here, I got it."
Kate felt Castle's arm wrap around her waist, shielding her body as Ryan and Esposito strong-armed Albertson out of the room. As soon as the huge man was past them, Castle eased back. Kate tried to hide the little give of her knees without him nearby. She attempted a smile.
"Exciting day, huh?" she said weakly.
Then winced as he gingerly pressed his fingers to the back of her head. "Looks like you've got a cut back there, Kate. Come on," he said. He took her hand, giving her a little tug out of the interrogation room.
She didn't try to free her hand as he sat her at her desk. Some uniform handed him a first aid kid. When Kate reached for it, Castle batted her hand away.
"Castle, I can handle it. It's not a broken bone or anything," she protested as he unlatched the plastic box. Before he could push her out of the way, Kate plucked out Advil, some gauze, and ointment. "Here." She shook out four of the pills and downed them without a sip of water. The throbbing would start soon enough and she wanted to get a head start on tampering it down.
He tilted her head forward, dabbing at the small cuts on the back of her head gently. Kate bit down on her lip so she wouldn't wince as he shifted her hair to get at some of them, smoothing the ointment over the scrapes. "There," he said, moving his fingers from her head. "You should probably do something with your hair so it doesn't keep brushing over them."
As he went toward the bathroom to throw away the rubber gloves he had put on and wash his hands, Kate put her hair in two braids. She always thought it made her look like a little kid, like Al, but if it would help air out the cuts she'd put up with it.
Ryan appeared around the corner as she ran a hand over her cheek, trying to refocus herself. "You okay, Beckett?"
"Yeah. Just a few little cuts and some bruises." She nodded back toward where the lockup was located. "He secure?"
"You bet." He propped a hip against her desk, snapping the first aid kit closed. "Sorry about that. He shouldn't have been-"
Kate waved him off. "You didn't have a chance. He was fast for his size." She looked up, gave Ryan a little shove on his shoulder. "Go write it up. I'll be fine."
Castle came back, alternating between walking and jogging. "You should go home, Kate."
"Really, Castle. I'm good."
He didn't look convinced as he lowered himself into the chair next to her desk. Castle placed the cup of water next to her hand, nudging it closer to her so the porcelain hit the back of her wrist. "Drink this. Then go home." Steel had entered his voice this time as she raised the cup to her lips. "Take the afternoon."
"Alone in my apartment?" Kate said, looking over at him from the corner of her eyes. "That's almost as painful as sitting here doing paperwork for the rest of the day."
"I'll come with you."
That had her blinking, not sure if she was surprised or shocked or just really wanted the company. "Castle, I-"
"No. It's decided." He got up, holding her jacket up for her to slip her arms into the sleeves. When she sat at her desk, watching him carefully, Castle tapped her shoulder. "Up, Kate. Coat on so we can get out of here."
She knew her mouth was hanging open but she stood and let him help her into the coat, swatting his hand away before he could button it. "I can handle buttoning my own jacket, Castle." She was just about to round the barrier between the elevator and the bullpen when Montgomery called out for her. "Sir, I'm taking the rest of the day. I'll be back tomorrow."
"Rest up, Detective. Keep an eye on her, Castle."
Kate glared a little at her captain as the elevator doors closed. She turned to face the wall, resting her forehead against the cool faux wood paneling. She sensed Castle at her back and waved him off. "I'm fine. Just… settling myself."
He hovered on the walk to the car, nipping at her heels on the short walk. When Kate reached into her pocket for the keys, he jingled them from behind her. "I picked your pocket when we were in the lobby. I'm driving you home."
And he didn't give her a chance to grab them back. So Kate slipped into the passenger seat, careful not to let her head fall back against the headrest, and watched Castle adjust the seat and mirrors before pulling out. The cuts were small but she could feel the swelling around them puffing up the back of her head making every movement a little tender.
Again, she didn't let him help her into the building or unlock her front door. Kate dropped into her couch, pulling her knees up to her chest. She heard Castle rummaging around the kitchen until the clink of ice was heard followed by him pouring something.
"Here." This time it wasn't water he was handing her. He'd found the stash of whiskey she hid in the cupboard above Al's reach.
But she pushed it away, shaking her head. "No."
Castle sat on the couch next to her, putting the tumbler on the coffee table. "Well, it's there if you need it." He watched her place her chin on her knees, looking at the blank TV screen. "You sure you're okay?"
"I'm good, Rick. This is nothing compared to some of the messes I've gotten into." She smiled a little, glancing at him. "So, you've got me alone in my apartment. This count as a date?"
He shook his head, brushing hair back from her face from where it had escaped one of her braids. "No. Trust me, Kate." She looked over, saw the seriousness lying under the teasing in his eyes. "You'll know when we're on a date."
Kate was sure she would.