Castle's Valentine Chapter 4, a castle fanfic

A/N: I'm really sorry about the delay in this. My computer crashed, taking everything I had with it. So I had to rewrite everything I had planned already. Hopefully I can set fire to my butt and have the next one up in another hour :)

Disclaimer: Do I really have to? I'm pretty sure none of us own it, as much as we would love to!

Tuesday, February 14th 2012

Castle woke to his door bell buzzing furiously.

'Alright, alright.' He mumbled, stumbling as he got out of bed. He rubbed his eyes as his shoulder collided with the door frame. Cursing, he made his way to the door.

'Mr Castle?' the young freckly boy asked, looking down at his clipboard.

'That's me.' Castle told him, coughing to clear his throat.

He handed him a cup of coffee and a heart shaped card. Castle frowned; this was not your normal delivery obviously.

'Sign here, please.'

Castle put the card under his arm as he signed for his unorthodox parcel. The young boy turned and left without another word.

'Hey, who is this from?' Castle called after him.

'Dude, read the card. Duh.' The teen told him, as if he were the stupidest man on the planet.

Heart shaped card... Oh, right. Valentine's Day. And he was alone. Well, not really. Kate had opened up to him a little more lately. They were having a dinner date on Friday, but he really wanted to be her Valentine, to show her how amazingly romantic he could be, showing her with all the love and affection she deserves. But no, she didn't want that. He was pushing too much and Kate just wasn't ready... yet.

Next year she'll be mine. He thought, trying to keep his sinking emotions from drowning in sadness. God, how he wanted her. Not just in a physical way, but in her heart, taking care of her, loving her, just with her.

Retreating back into the loft, he looked at the card curiously. He still got Valentine's Day cards from his fans, but they went through Hyperion, they didn't come straight to his home... Unless he had a stalker again. Either way, whoever this was sending him things, was not the woman he wanted. She was probably at her desk already, waiting for him to turn up with her coffee, and he wanted nothing more to sit there and watch her work, getting teased and poked fun at. But as long as he was around her, Rick was a happy man.

But what had his curiosity peaked, was the coffee. People don't send cups of coffee on Valentine's... People don't send cups of coffee on normal days. He took the lid off and inhaled the aroma. It wasn't his normal order, either, but... that smell. He knew that smell. It smelled like... no...

Rick's heart pounded in his chest, sending heat and warmth through his veins; without the help of coffee. He ripped open the envelope to read the card. Excitement was making him shake with anticipation. Maybe, just maybe...

It was a cheesy Valentine's card that a young teenager might buy for his first girlfriend. It was a simple red heart with "Be Mine" printed in cursive on the front.

Roses are red,

Violets are blue,

My coffee is sweet,

And so are you.

He laughed, rather hysterically. Of course he knew that smell. It was Beckett's normal order.

P.S. No rohypnol was harmed in the making of this coffee.

Why was she sending him a Valentine's present? She didn't want to see him tonight; she had made that abundantly clear yesterday. So why the gift? It wasn't your normal Valentine's but for him it was so much more special, because it was so very them. They never did anything the normal way, and it made everything so different and all the more extraordinary. It made him love her even more.

But she had no idea how much he loved her and what she meant to him. The one day of the year, that he might be able to get away with it – maybe as a friend, and without getting teased relentlessly by the boys – was today, and Kate didn't want to see him or have anything to do with him.

He took a sip of the coffee and revelled in the taste. This is what she had every morning when he gave her the caffeine hit she craved. Maybe she had linked the taste of this with him?

And she was right; it was sweet. Castle was fairly amazed that the coffee was still fairly hot.

Rick knew she was a mystery, but damn, today she was downright confusing! Hot and cold, and needed her to make up her mind. He scolded himself mentally for it. Kate would make up her mind when she was ready, he wasn't going to push her. Yes, he wanted her, but pushing wasn't going to get her at all.

Brushing his fingers through his hair he sighed. This woman was driving him crazy, and was surely going to be the death of him. But she was entirely worth it.

He gave in. Rick was determined that he wasn't going to call her this morning, even before he went to bed last night, he told himself he was not going to call Kate Beckett. But he wound up picking up his phone and pressing speed dial #2.

'Beckett.' She answered. Was that a smile in her voice?

'Do you have anything to do with a sour tempered teen on my doorstep with a coffee and a card?'

'I don't know Castle, did Alexis lock her keys out and you didn't wake up to let her in?' Yup, that was a smile. She was teasing him.

'You know what I mean, Detective.'

'I'm afraid you will have to be more specific.' Rick could picture her, sitting at her desk, smiling into the phone and maybe covering that beautiful mouth of hers with her fingers, playing with her lip.

'Well, I got a Valentine's card and a coffee on my doorstep.'

'Maybe you have a secret admirer?' Was that her bedroom voice?

Castle almost spit the little bit of coffee he had just taken into his mouth. Was she seriously trying to seduce him over the phone? It was her that sent the coffee, he had no doubt now. She was jealous when Serena Kaye came on the scene, and he was not interested in that woman. But Kate kept looking at Kaye like she wanted to kill, and looking at Rick like she wanted to stake claim. There was none of that in her voice now jealousy in her voice now. It was her.

'Then again, maybe they aren't so secret.' All her. His happy dance would have to wait.

'Whoever they are, they got my coffee wrong.' Rick was having trouble trying to play it cool. If she wasn't giving anything away, he was going to play along, which if he can read her correctly, is what she wants, and he always wants to give her what she wants.

'Oh?' she asked coyly.

'They sent me something that resembles yours.'

'Obviously, they aren't as observant as you are, Rick.'

His heart pounded in his chest again; she called him Rick. Kate doesn't call him Rick.

'Well, enjoy your coffee from your secret admirer.' Kate said, smile still evident in her voice as she disconnected the call.

He stood there, dazed. What the hell, kept running though his head on loop. Many possibilities were running rampant in his overactive imagination. Beckett was stolen by aliens, she was a sleeper agent, she was in love with him too. No, the first two were more likely than the last.

Castle shook his head, taking another swig of the coffee. He placed it on the counter and turned to get ready for work, when something caught his eye. Picking up the coffee cup, he slid off the sleeve and stared at it.

Just one of the many coffees I owe you, Rick.

A small heart was drawn next to his name.

This time his heart stopped. Maybe that third option was the more likely... He really needed to start that manual on her. That would be useful right about now, so he could go back and figure out what the hell was going on with her!

She told him she didn't even like Valentine's Day, and yet she's sending him gifts, that can only be described as Valentines-y.

Fine. All's fair in love and war, Kate. And you've made it a little of both.

Castle picked up his phone and started scrolling through his contacts as he begun to get ready for the day ahead... and braced himself for the version of Kate Beckett he would be facing. He looked at the clock and noticed it was almost eleven. Shit!

That's what he gets for staying up until three in the morning, typing furiously at his computer.

Wait, Castle thought. She didn't even mention that I wasn't at work, nor was she pissed off that I didn't bring her morning coffee to her. What the hell is going on?

He gulped audibly. He really had no idea what to expect of Beckett today.

A/N: Ok, so I'm not really sure about this chapter, and I really don't think I did Rick justice, but I'm just gunna have to go with it.