Chapter 18 3xC
"Ughh..." Beckett groaned as Castle made a U-turn, looking on both sides of the streets for the restaurant, obviously lost. "And this is exactly why I don't let you drive. You get lost and then refuse to ask for directions."
"I swear I know the way," he argued. "I've been there a few times."
"Seriously. Ugh, I'm just going to call Ryan and ask him how to get there." She hit the speed dial on her phone and waited for him to pick up. He did after three rings and they had a short conversation in which he gave them clear directions to the restaurant.
"Thanks. See you there."
As they pulled into the parking lot 5 minutes later Beckett remarked, "See. That wasn't so hard now was it?"
"I was close..." Castle defended.
Beckett rolled her eyes at him. "You are absolutely incorrigible." They exited the car simultaneously and started towards the restaurant.
He turned to her and flashed her a meek grin.
"Oh, by the way..." Castle began as they walked side by side. "This probably isn't the best time to tell you, but I wanted to at least give you a heads-up in case Ryan makes any side remarks."
"What is it?" She was curious as to his random change of topic.
"Ryan kind of, well, caught me as I was leaving the women's bathroom."
"He WHAT?" Beckett stopped in her tracks, mortified. "You have got to be kidding me," she glared at him.
"Bad timing I guess."
"Oh my god..." she lamented. "I knew it was a bad idea..."
"You seemed to be enjoying yourself at the time," Castle remarked smugly.
The comment earned him piercing daggers from her eyes. "How much did you tell him?"
"Well I didn't say anything to him explicitly..." A small wave of relief washed over her. "But he kind of inferred." The shame came crashing back in a tidal wave. "He looked at you then back to me and just said, 'nice'."
She groaned in response. "We are never doing that again. Ever."
As they were deep in this scandalous conversation, they didn't notice a car coming near them. Esposito drove up to the two, having just arrived in the parking lot along with Lanie.
"Yo," he called out to them. "You two done making googly eyes at each other? I'm starving."
"We're not... Ugh!" Beckett exclaimed and stormed into the restaurant.
"Javier," Lanie castigated, swatting at his arm. "Let them be. Stop teasing them."
"Hey, nice to see you Lanie," Castle greeted. "I'll catch you guys at the table in a moment. Gotta do some damage control right now," he motioned in the direction that Beckett went.
Castle jogged to catch up to Beckett and grabbed her arm, pulling her aside to talk.
"What?" she said in a harsh tone, obviously highly annoyed.
"Hey," he looked at her earnestly. "I'm sorry, Kate." She began to soften at the sincerity of his voice. "I didn't mean for any of this to happen. Next time we'll follow your rules. I promise, okay?" he finished gently.
Beckett sighed, knowing that he was right. She was the one who inadvertently directed Ryan to the restrooms while Castle was still in there, not knowing that Ryan would actually go over to talk to him.
"Yeah, okay. I know it's not your fault that he was by the restrooms right as you were leaving. And I'm the one who initiated the rule breaking anyways," she admitted.
"So I'm forgiven?" he asked with a hopeful glint in his eye.
She couldn't stay mad at that face, no matter how hard she tried. "Yes," she smiled as she kissed him briefly. "You're forgiven," she sighed.
They ventured into the dining area and scanned the room, spotting Ryan and Jenny sitting at a table reserved for six. He motioned them over and Rick and Kate walked the distance together.
"Finally, you made it!" Ryan exclaimed.
"Yeah, finally," Rick chuckled.
"You guys remember Jenny, right?" he asked, re-introducing his girlfriend who was sitting next to him.
"Of course. It's great to see you again," Kate answered cheerfully.
"Oh and there's Esposito and Lanie," Ryan commented as he spotted the couple coming into the dining room. They quickly joined the party and sat down next to each other.
"Well, isn't this cozy," Lanie declared to the group after they ordered and the waiter brought them wine. "I didn't expect this to be a triple date."
"This is more of a casual get together, really" Ryan corrected.
"Oh, you two are a couple?" Jenny asked, referring to Rick and Kate. The last time she had been at the precinct, they had insisted that they weren't an item.
"We're umm..." Rick glanced sideways at Kate. "Sort of."
"That's great," she smiled genuinely.
"I am so glad they finally got together," Lanie chimed in. She received odd looks from the pair. "What? It's about time. You two have been dancing around each other for about two years now. Can't you see that you're perfect together? Rick and Kate. Castle and Beckett. Caskett."
"Caskett?" Esposito asked.
"It's a portmanteau of their last names. If you put them together, it makes the word Caskett. It's their couple name."
"Huh. Isn't that fitting," Ryan added. "Because you guys solve murders together."
"And what about you two?" Kate asked, trying to shift the conversation off of them. "Esposito and Lanie. You guys are a new couple too."
"And therefore deserve a couple name," Rick finished for her. He thought for a moment, combining words in his head. "I've got it," he declared. "Esplanie. No, no. Lanito!"
The whole table laughed heartily at the made up names.
"Esplanie," Esposito chuckled. "I like it." He leaned over to kiss Lanie on the cheek.
"So Rick, Kevin and I are huge fans of your novels," Jenny said in Castle's direction.
Castle gave Ryan a goofy grin at this tidbit. "Really now? I didn't know Ryan here was such a fanboy."
Ryan shot him a disapproving glare.
"We both love your books," she spoke on behalf of him. "What's it like being a best-selling author?"
"It's the best job I could ask for. I feel like it's more play than work, really. I'm essentially getting paid for doing what I love most, letting my imagination run free and writing about it."
"Did you always want to be a writer?"
"Well as a young boy, I already had a wild imagination. And I was quite bookish at that age, so I'd say the combination subtly molded me into a writer. It was a natural course for me to follow."
"You, bookish?" Beckett snorted.
"As hard as it is to imagine," Castle said sarcastically. "I wasn't always this suave, literary rockstar. My days were spent in the public library, exploring the works of Dickens and Sir Conan Doyle."
Beckett smiled at the image of a young, innocent Castle with his nose buried in a book.
"It's not that hard to imagine," she teased.
"Your latest book Heat Wave was my favorite by far," Jenny added. "And Nikki Heat is based on Detective Beckett right?"
"Indeed."
"If I may ask, what drew you to her as your lead character? Why did you choose her as your inspiration?"
Castle paused for a moment. "I didn't choose for her to be my inspiration," he revealed.
"Really?" Jenny inquired.
His answer also caught Beckett's attention who now gawked at him, a puzzled look crossing her features. If he didn't choose her to be his inspiration, then who the hell did?
Castle placed his hand over Beckett's and met her eyes. Blue locked with green and he held her gaze, telling her everything with just a look. "She inspired me."
Dammit. He could make her swoon with just a couple of words.
Beckett felt heat rush to her cheeks and she turned a slight shade of pink. Thankfully no one else noticed her blush except for Castle, who continued to gaze at her lovingly.
"When I first met her, I knew she was a mystery I'd never solve." Beckett felt like he was talking directly to her.
"Infinitely intricate and complex," he continued. "Smart, strong, and not to mention extremely sexy. Everything I could ask for in a main character for a series."
"And as his girlfriend," Ryan added as an aside.
Only Esposito heard the comment and snickered at it.
"Why did you pair her up with Rook and have her get involved romantically with him? Aren't murder and romance on opposite ends of the spectrum?"
"I can see what you mean. But I incorporate the romance because it adds to the mystery and the suspense of the novel. In the words of Oscar Wilde, 'the mystery of love is greater than the mystery of death.' Plus, the age old advertising trick: sex sells."
And just like that, the immature playboy was back in a heartbeat. His masterful ability to make her heart flutter with a gaze while sounding extremely profound and intelligent, then to steer the conversation to sex was beyond her, but it was one of the things who made him who he was.
By this time, the waiter had brought out their food and served each of them their entrées. They all indulged eagerly in the fine cuisine.
"Mmm, this is delicious" Jenny delighted. "How's your pasta, Kate?"
"Mm, amazing."
"Can I try some?" Rick whispered to her. She nodded and wrapped some pasta around her fork, moving to feed him. He accepted the sample eagerly, engulfing the pasta in one bite and savoring the taste. Kate wiped some sauce from the side of his mouth with her napkin.
"What do you think?"
"Hmm, I like yours better than mine," Rick frowned.
"Yours looks pretty good too."
"Try some?" He reciprocated the action, feeding her some pasta from his plate.
"Mm, that's delicious too," she decided. "Switch?" Kate offered.
"Hmm, let's just share," he grinned.
"Ugh," Esposito groaned from his side of the table.
"What?" Kate asked, disturbed from her food sampling with Rick.
"Seriously. Whispering together and feeding each other? You two are that couple?" he emphasized the word. "Disgusting."
"Disgustingly cute," Lanie defended. "Don't mind him. Continue," she added, unfazed.
Kate blushed and solved the dilemma efficiently by placing a generous portion of her pasta onto Rick's plate.
The group spent the rest of the night chatting and teasing each other about their significant others, especially Rick and Kate. They also got to know Jenny better, everyone taking a liking to the girl who finally domesticated Ryan. She was the first to leave as she had to wake up early the next morning for an appointment. Bidding the group adieu, she gave Ryan a kiss and departed, leaving five in the group.
Right after she had gone, Ryan restarted the conversation with an important announcement.
"Hey, I have something to show you all," he said excitedly. He dug into his pocket, producing a small black velvet box. Snapping the box open, the four of his good friends were made witness to what hopefully would soon be Jenny's engagement ring.
A round of congratulations was offered to Ryan, who was boldly taking the next step by declaring his love and pledging to spend the rest of his life with one woman. All caught up in the midst of the happiness and good cheer, they ordered some champagne to celebrate the moment, animatedly toasting to a long life and lasting love for the couple.
As the night dwindled to a close, the friends eventually departed and went their separate ways. Rick took Kate by the arm and led her out of the restaurant into the warm, late-spring evening.
"I can't believe Ryan is going to propose. I'm really happy for him," she smiled as they walked together.
"I know. Me too," he added.
Rick stole a glance at Kate, with love and purpose brimming in his eyes. He hoped that maybe one day he could make her his in the same way, to have and to hold, to love and to cherish forever.
I don't need anything but you and me
'Cause in your company
I feel happy oh so happy and complete
A/N: So… my goal of finishing this fic by the end of summer didn't happen. D: Eh… I'll find time to write during the year. Btw, almost at 100 reviews :DD. Just like the title of this fic… hehe. And if you didn't understand the name of this chapter, 3xC, it's obviously a reference to the ep title "3xK," but in this case the C stands for couples (b/c they're on a triple date).