Miracle At the 12th Precinct

CHAPTER 31

TITLE: Everything's Gonna Be Cool This Christmas

DISCLAIMER: The Castle characters do not belong to me. They belong to ABC. And they can have Sal too.

Down at the precinct…

Salvatore Ianuzzi got lucky. He cut a sweet deal with the Feds in return for agreeing to testify against Eddie Mangosa, who he claimed was the conspirator of the bombing. Sal would still be serving time for his crimes, but his request for protection would be granted, along with a shortened sentence if his testimony paid off. Sal was just a two-bit thug. What the Feds were really interested in was pinning the bombing on a formerly untouchable, Eddie Mangosa. They had all they needed on his brother, Drago, but their goal was to take down the entire Mangosa family empire once and for all.

Castle and Beckett sat down across from Sal who was now fully prepared to cooperate.

"From the beginning, Sal." Beckett instructed, hitting play on the recorder. "For the record, please state your full name."

"Salvatore Carmine Ianuzzi." He replied, leaning back in his chair.

Beckett got right down to it. "Who hired you to plant the bomb in Henry Jenkins' apartment?"

"Eddie Mangosa." Sal replied. "I mean, Edmondo Mangosa." He corrected.

"But isn't it true you actually are employed by his brother, Drago Mangosa?" Beckett asked.

"Yeah, I mean, yes. I work for Drago." He said. "But Eddie, he was pissed. He said he needed my help."

"When did Edmondo hire you? And to do, what, exactly?" She asked. "From the beginning, Sal."

"It all started the day after Carlos Mangosa's body turned up cold. Carlos hadn't been around for a couple days. Apparently, nobody thought too much about it, and when I say "nobody" I'm referring to the two imbeciles who were supposed to be protecting him, BB and Vinny. Low and behold, next thing you know, the cops, they come across the poor guy out in the swamps.

I get to work the next day, and Drago's in his office, behind closed doors, with Edmondo, BB, and Vinny. I can hear all the yelling even through the door. Me, I take a seat outside in the hallway, minding my own business, like usual. All of a sudden out comes BB and Vinny with their dicks hanging between their legs as they leave. They don't close the door all the way. Me, I keep my mouth shut and wait to be called in. I am not looking forward to it. I can hear Drago and Eddie fighting, arguing about some bullshit story BB and Vinny just fed 'em about how their brother, Carlos, got himself whacked by some old broad who'd run him over, and how they've been trying to find her since. Now Edmondo, keep in mind he's the smarter of the two, he don't believe a word those fuckers told them, and he's hell bent on revenge. Eddie says no matter how it happened, BB and Vinny - they should have had Carlos' back - that's their fucking job, and he wants to know why the fuck they didn't report it since Carlos had been missing for so long. A very good question, in my opinion. Just sayin'.

Drago, who by default is now my new boss, buys into their crap, which is shocking, even to me. But with his brother just killed, I'm thinking guy ain't straight in the head or something. Anyway, Drago swears he'll take care of it, says he'll find the pricks responsible for offing Carlos. He tells Eddie he shouldn't worry himself about the messier side of the family business. He should stay out of it, keep his hands clean, go back to minding the books. This pisses Edmondo off even more.

It gets worse when Drago starts defending the two idiots. He starts spouting some bullshit about how BB and Vinny were like brothers to Carlos, on account of them all growing up together, and how they would never lie about something this serious. Right from the get-go I catch on, Drago tends to turn a blind eye when it comes to these two imbeciles.

So Eddie tells Drago he wants BB and Vinny gone, like gone-gone, but Drago says no way. Things get heated with him reminding his little brother who's now in charge. Drago tells him he don't like his attitude, and out of respect for their dead brother, Eddie's gonna have to learn to live with it – the two morons get to live. Me, I'm thinking Eddie's made some valid points – it'd be doing the world a favor, if you know what I mean. These were my very thoughts when Eddie stormed out, slamming the door behind him.

He sees me sitting there, can tell I heard the whole thing and catches my eye. I express my condolences for his loss and tell him if there's ever anything I can do to help him out, all he's got to do is ask. He doesn't say anything at first, just sorta looks me over, but then he thanks me before he takes off. In that one small moment, I like to think we reached a mutual understanding; BB and Vinny – their services are no longer needed, but mine, maybe were. Comes as no big surprise when Eddie calls me a few days later, asks me to meet him down at his office. So I go. And he says he's got a special job for me, one he felt I was uniquely qualified for, but also he didn't want his big brother knowing nothing about it. I promised to keep my mouth shut.

He tells me he thinks BB and Vinny are skimming the books, but that he can't go to Drago about it until he has more proof. And what with all the grief, Drago ain't listening to nothing he tells him at the moment. Me, I suspect, if anyone's skimming, it's all BB. Guy's a real shyster, don't got no morals, and is just the kind of complete moron to think he ain't gonna get caught. Vinny, on the other hand, well he's just plain stupid. Anyway, Edmondo says with Carlos gone, it's time to clean house, dump the dead weight, for the good of the organization. Personally, I couldn't agree more, but of course, I hesitate since it would be morally wrong to go behind Drago's back."

Castle stole a look at Beckett and tried not to laugh. She looked as though she wanted to hit the guy.

"So he asked you to get rid of BB and Vinny and plant the bomb. How much money did he pay you?" Beckett asked, running out of patience.

"A shit load, but I like to think of it as a bonus." Sal continued. "He says, with those two gone, it puts me in a higher position. I'd be Drago's new number one."

Beckett's lip curled at what little value he put on someone's life.

Sal squinted his eyes at her. "Hey, don't look at me that way...job comes with more than a few perks, I tell you. So anyways, I help him and I get me a promotion. A well-deserved one I might add. I agree to nose around, tail 'em, report back what they're up to. What can I say - he can be very persuasive. Come to find out, BB either spends most of his time over at Off Track Betting playing the ponies or he's on his phone with his bookie – not that I begrudge him this - play a little myself. But that's neither here nor there. Vinny, on the other hand, that fat fuck don't do shit all day except eat and watch TV from what I can make out. Why the hell Carlos kept the two of them on the payroll this long, I'll never know – that there's just bad business.

So I'm following them around for weeks - they never spot me. I hear this and that. Then I'd report back to Edmondo. This worked out well for me since Drago pretty much asked me to do pretty much the same thing. He didn't really trust them either, but he's still not thinking they offed Carlos. I think he's just wondering if they were getting a little too old to watch his back. BB and Vinny messed up your boy Tommy pretty bad a couple times too, but they always let him go afterwards. What was really weird though, was that BB met with the kid, Tommy, a few times on his own. That's when I smelled a rat.

I report their shenanigans to Eddie and I tell him mostly it's been BB meeting with the kid alone and not with Vinny – it gets him thinking. Something don't sit right. Even with all the come to Jesus meetings they had with Tommy, Eddie says the kid still owes large on his note - they ain't collected hardly none of it and the mother's still a no show. He starts thinking there ain't no mother." Sal cleared his throat. "Can I get a drink of water?"

Beckett nods and turns to the mirror, knowing they're listening. An officer brings a glass of water in right away, and Sal quickly takes a few gulps before starting up again.

"Now where was I?" Sal asked.

"You were talking with Edmondo." Castle offered, hanging on the edge of his seat and taking mental notes for his next book. "He thinks there's no mother and that BB's up to no good."

"Oh yeah, right, thanks." Sal replied. "So Edmondo tells me he's got a plan. He wants the kid gone, but he don't want me to just take the kid out, like a normal person. Instead, he wants me to plant a bomb in the kid's apartment. I don't know why he's got it in so bad for the old guy Tommy lives with too, but he does. I figured he's got his reasons. I insist I don't do the bomb thing anymore...way too messy, but he won't hear none of it – starts threatening me I'd better do it or I would meet an unpleasant death. Whatareyougonnado? I don't got no choice.

He reminds me he wants BB and Vinny gone too, and gives me this gun he said he got from Drago's office safe. Says BB shot some guy Jimmy with it awhile back, but the cops never nailed him for it since they couldn't find it. Apparently, Carlos had it and kept it in his safe all these years as leverage to keep BB in line in case he ever got out of control. This is a beautiful development.

Eddie tells me to plant the gun in the kid's apartment along with the bomb. Bomb goes off, cops find the gun, they finger BB, if he ain't dead already he gets framed for it, most likely along with his not so little buddy, Vinny, courtesy of the NYPD. All wrapped up, nice and neat. Meanwhile, Eddie's hands stay clean.

But that ain't all. There's a bonus in it for me if I can get BB and Vinny to the apartment when the bomb blows. Turns out, getting the two of them there ain't as easy as you'd think. I had to get a little creative." He tapped his temple with his pointer finger alluding as to how smart he is. "What was news to nobody was those two, they fucking hated each other. To tell you the truth, I'm not sure how they didn't kill each other years ago. Me, if I had to work side by side with BB every day - it'd be done already. Anyway, I get Vinny alone at the bar one night and I talk him up. We get to commiserating over what an asshole BB is. We had a lot to talk about. Vinny, after a few drinks, he's my new BFF and agrees with me that BB's up to no good. After one or two more, I very smoothly start asking him about the elf kid, Tommy.

Vinny tells me it ain't the kid's fault that Carlos is dead and feeds me some drunken, cock and bull story about the crazy old broad, the kid's supposed mother, we should all be looking at. They've been trying, but apparently, they still can't find her. Me, I'm with Eddie – I don't think there is no mother either, but I play along. I think Vinny's just got a soft spot for the kid and the old man. Knowing Vinny, he probably believes the old man's actually Santa Claus or something. Jesus, what a putz, right?

Anyway, I digress... From his drunken ramblings, I conclude Vinny wants BB gone even more than Edmondo cause all he talks about is retiring already and how much he hates the guy. So I offer him a way to screw with BB. I tell him about a certain gun that has recently come into my possession. I don't tell him how I got it, mind you, and he's so wrecked he don't think to ask. I ingeniously convince him to plant the gun in the kid's apartment, and to hide it real good so it don't get noticed real easy. This way Vinny can hold it over BB's head, or rat him out to the cops when he's good and ready or whatever. Maybe he gets to retire knowing BB's rotting away in some jail cell. And with BB out of the picture, grandpa and the kid are safe.

I implore him to have some fun with it - drive BB nuts. Tell him that the gun's missing from the safe because Tommy stole it so he could use it against him. He agrees I'm a fucking genius and takes the gun. A few days later, he tells me he planted it just like we'd talked about, and convinced BB that Tommy must have mysteriously gotten it, and now BB's all freaked out and on a rampage out looking for it. We shared a few laughs.

So I continue to tail them. Everything's going according to plan until BB and Vinny up and nab the kid the very night the bomb was set to go off. They brought him over to the Golden Tavern, a dive bar they frequent. They take him in through the back but come out a while later leaving the kid behind. The two of them take off, and I curse them for screwing up my chances at a bonus. I never saw the kid come out so after waiting a few I go inside to see what's up. It looked like they may have had him tied up. There's a chair, some rope, but – no kid. He's gone. And no one up front saw him leave. Where did he go, you ask? I wondered the same thing, but then again, I had someplace else to be so I couldn't wait around to find out.

I went over to the building where the elf lives, kept a safe distance, mind you, and waited for the fireworks show to start. Low and behold, BB's car is there, and it's empty. They must be inside. Jackpot - I'm thinking maybe I'll get that bonus after all. But then he and Vinny come storming out of the building, hop in the car, and drive away all in a huff. Bonus, gone again. I don't know what went down inside, but they were freaking out big time. A professional, I tried not to fixate on my personal financial loss. Next thing I know, the elf-kid's back and running into the building. Things are looking up."

He paused, got a starry-eyed look in his eyes. "Wasn't much longer after that, the place blows. It was beautiful, and I have to admit, some of my best work. Anyway, I'm watching the commotion when out runs Tommy. You just can't kill some people; lucky bastard. He takes off, and I try to follow, but end up losing him, what with all the smoke and stuff. That was the last I saw of him. The next day, Eddie pays me and reminds me to keep my mouth shut. We go back to business as usual. I act like I don't know nothing - like it never happened…"

XXXXXXXXXXX

After the interrogation was over, Castle and Beckett stepped outside the room and met with the rest of the team who'd been listening in from the observation room.

"Nice work, Detective." Jordan complimented Beckett, who thanked her.

They watched as two of Jordan's agents escorted a chained Salvatore Ianuzzi, their last piece of the puzzle, back to holding. He smiled creepily at them as he passed by, seeming to bask in the attention.

"That is truly one sick puppy." Castle commented, as Sal disappeared from view. "It makes me sick to think he's practically getting away with the whole thing."

"Yeah, he is, but he gave us Eddie, Castle. And lord knows what else Eddie's responsible for." Beckett added.

"Rest assured," Jordan reminded him, "Sal will be off the streets for a long time – even with the deal he made. And he'll spend the rest of his days looking over his shoulder."

"He's not the only one going away." Ryan said, drawing their attention to the federal agents escorting a cuffed Drago and Edmondo Mangosa across the floor. Both men's expressions remained neutral during their short walk to the elevator despite the sudden and thunderous applause from officers and agents on the sidelines who paused to celebrate the mutual efforts of both teams responsible for taking down the two crime lords. Even Captain Gates stepped out of her office for a look and cracked a satisfied grin. She was looking forward to having the Mayor off her back.

Drago and Edmondo Mangosa were charged with attempted murder, kidnapping, and conspiracy. In addition, after warrants were issued and their homes and offices were searched, teams found sufficient evidence of racketeering and fraud along with an arsenal of weaponry at both locations.

Edmondo took most of the heat for the bombing which had caused the deaths of four civilians and injured over forty people. Against his lawyer's advice and in a fit of rage, Edmondo confessed to motive for his actions – revenge for his brother, Carlos' death at the hands of Breanna Frost and her family.

As for Drago's boys, Vinny and BB, agents had already begun transporting them to separate government facilities. In exchange for his confession, Vinny Costa would begin his early retirement, albeit behind bars, compliments of the deal he'd cut with the DA.

Bernie "BB" Balboa was formally charged with the murder of Timothy Jones, the shooting of Jimmy Russo, fraud and racketeering, as well as the assault & battery, and kidnapping of Tommy Frost.

Once the Mangosa brothers left the building, it was back to business as usual and Jordan's team began clearing out, dismantling their make-shift headquarters on the opposite end of the floor.

"How are your agents, Detective Shaw?" Beckett asked Jordan, referring to the two downed agents at Castle's loft.

"Evans, the agent working in the lobby – unfortunately, he didn't make it. He was shot at close range." Jordan didn't blink. She tried not to show how much his death had affected her. "Johnson, the agent guarding Castle's door, he's going to be alright." She replied. "He's got a nasty concussion and will be hospitalized for a few days, but he's expected to recover fully."

"So, what happens next?" Castle asked, leaning against Beckett's desk and crossing his arms.

Jordan's eyes were steely. "Justice, Castle. Now we watch the Mangosa kingdom crumble down around their knees. They can lawyer up all they want, but there's more than enough evidence to prosecute the whole lot of them, including Detective Esposito's new girlfriend."

All but Espo snickered at her comment while he covered his embarrassment by shooting Ryan a dirty look.

"Don't worry, Detective." Jordan assured Espo. "Breanna Frost was charged with obstructing justice, drunk and disorderly conduct, resisting arrest, and we'll tack on the murder of Carlos Mangosa if we ever miraculously come across a flying red sled. Don't hold your breath on that last one. Regardless, you won't have to see her again anytime soon. Unless you want to, of course."

"Thanks, but no." He replied, blushing. "I'm all good."

"And what about Tommy and Kris? Are they now free to go?" Castle asked, practically holding his breath.

"While we do have their statements, they may be called to testify in court, but it's unlikely." Beckett answered. "They've both been cleared of the bombing, Timothy's shooting, and of any credit card fraud scam. There's not enough on the credit card scanner to prosecute Tommy even if we wanted to." Beckett deferred to Jordan, to ensure she was in agreement. "Agent Shaw?"

"As far as I'm concerned ," Jordan replied, smiling. "Thomas Frost is a free man. The same goes for Kris and Holly, who are now safe, I might add, in no small thanks to the hard work of the fine men and women of the 12th Precinct -"

"Yes!" Castle exclaimed, cutting her off for a high-five with Ryan.

"…and their writer." Jordan finished.

Castle turned to Jordan. "You are SO going in my next book!"

"I look forward to it Castle, but remember, I'll be reading." She said, secretly bemused and flattered by his antics. Not that she'd ever admit it.

"Understood." He replied. "She'll be sassy, tough as nails, and highly intelligent!"

"And...?" She said, with raised brows.

"And fully clothed...at all times." He promised.

"She'd better be." Jordan muttered, checking her watch. "Well I should be going. I must tend to our many new prisoners…and their respective psychiatrists. And then I'm going home – back to the family I haven't seen in days. Not to mention, I haven't even started my Christmas shopping yet." She turned to each of the men, making eye contact. "Gentlemen. Always a pleasure."

Lastly, she turned to Beckett, shook her hand. "Detective Beckett, I'll be in touch to tie up the loose ends. And please remember my earlier suggestion…be sure to let me know if you ever need a recommendation."

Beckett nodded and smiled back. "I will, thanks. It was nice working with you again Special Agent Shaw. We couldn't have closed this case without your help. It was truly a team effort."

Jordan nodded in appreciation and smiled back. "Until we meet again then." She began to leave, but then hesitated and turned back around. "Oh, and Castle?"

"Yes?" He replied.

"Be sure to say goodbye to Kris for me."

Castle poorly hid his surprise, especially when she'd finally referred to Kris by his real name and not Henry Jenkins, his alias. "Absolutely. Will do!" When she had turned and he thought she was safely out of earshot he quickly added, "Jordie", prompting Beckett to take a swat at his arm.

"I heard that..." Jordan sing-sang over her shoulder before finally walking out of their lives once more.

"Ryan, Espo?" Kate said. "Would you guys mind finishing up with Tommy Frost? Make sure we have everything we need from him. And give him an update on his mother."

"No problem." Espo answered for them both. "Should be about an hour until we're done with him."

"Have him wait for us downstairs. We'll pick him up on our way out. "

"Got it." Ryan replied.

When the boys were gone Castle could wait no longer. "So, what was that all about?"

"What?" Beckett replied, casually.

"What Jordan said…about a recommendation."

"Oh, that." She sat down at her desk and eyed the mountain of forms to complete. "It was nothing." She said, brushing it off.

He sat in his usual chair and studied her, not buying her answer for a second.

His silent pouting became a noisy distraction. "She thinks I'd make a good FBI agent, is all." Beckett said.

"Oh." He replied, recalling a similar conversation with Jordan. His only surprise now was that Jordan actually confronted her about it. He sat back in his chair, stared straight ahead contemplating the ramifications of such a career move. It was hard to imagine Kate Beckett doing anything but kicking ass in her current capacity for the NYPD, although of course he could envision her running the place one day. He studied her, trying to gauge her interest to the suggestion. "Jordan mentioned that to me as well. Is that something you'd really ever consider?"

"Oh, I don't know Castle. Never say never I guess, but honestly, I've never really given it much thought." She skipped a beat before asking, "Why? Don't you think I'd make a good agent?"

"You're kidding right?" He replied, looking at her like she was nuts. "I mean, of course you would. You're Badass Kate Beckett. There's nothing you can't do. Duh."

She chuckled at the nickname said with such conviction. "Thanks. That means a lot. And who knows, maybe someday. But for right now let's get back to work, or rather, let me get back to work." She examined the mountain of paperwork on her desk. "One of us should."

"Cute." He chuckled, although he didn't deny the implication.

"What do you say, once Espo and Ryan are done with Tommy, we head back to the loft?"

"Excellent. We'll have a celebratory dinner!" Castle agreed, thrilled by the idea of a party until he remembered the shambles his apartment had been the last time he'd seen it. "Right after I clean up the crime scene." He wasn't about to let a ransacked apartment get the better of him. This was a red-letter day – after all, they'd saved Santa Claus from harm, put Timmy's killers behind bars, and squashed a crime family. He leaned back in his chair and smiled. "And so ends yet another successful case."

"Ha. Maybe for you Castle, but I still have to deal with all of this." She gestured to the piles of paper covering her desk.

"Yes, but as we've previously determined…you can handle anything so it will be a breeze. Oh, hey, now that we've been given the official green light I suppose I should call Kris and Holly with the good news! And finally let Mother and Alexis know it's safe to come home again." He pulled out his phone and did just that. They were all beyond ecstatic and Castle promised Kris and Holly they'd be bringing Tommy home to celebrate. His mother and Alexis would be returning home the following morning.

While Beckett worked, Castle spent his time inviting the boys and Lanie to the party that night, and then made a few calls to the caterer and cleaning crew he usually brought in to work his parties. Once everything was set, he plopped himself in his usual chair beside Beckett. "Good news. The gang's all in for tonight. Everything's been arranged."

"Great. But I'll have to stop by my apartment to grab a change of clothes." Beckett said, checking to see if anyone was listening.

"No problem. We have some time."

"You know, Castle…I've been thinking...," She lowered her lashes before looking him straight in the eye. "How would you feel if I kept a few items of clothing over at your apartment? Just enough so I wouldn't have to keep running back and forth to my place to change so often."

"No. That's a terrible idea." He said, working to keep a straight face, immediately feeling guilty for teasing her when her face fell. "What I meant was - bring them all. Move in with me Kate." He wanted - everything, but he'd already made up his mind to wait patiently until she was ready. He gave her his biggest smile. Moving in to the loft with him would be major progress.

It felt completely right and the only word that popped into her head was, 'yes', but discussing their future living arrangements at her desk in the precinct where there were still about half a dozen people roaming the floor was neither the time nor place. She realized he'd stopped smiling, taking her hesitation for a 'no' and panicked. "Wait! I'm not saying 'no', Castle. Actually, just the opposite. But how about we talk about this privately? And I don't mean in the supply closet." She joked, thankful to see his smile return. The one that would be the death of her eventually - she was certain. If he kept it up, they'd never get out of there and back to the loft.

He tampered down the urge to kiss her, no matter the inopportune place and time. "Okay." He said, wiggling his brows. "But I have wondered if it locks from the inside." She rolled her eyes, as a force of habit, but wondered too, despite knowing they'd never live it down if they got caught.

About half an hour went by where Castle stepped away to make a few more calls, and then sat back down, keeping himself amused, presumably by playing on his cell phone. "Humph." He mumbled. "Damn."

He was frowning, seemed to be staring out into space. Something was obviously weighing heavy on his mind – either that or he was working out a complicated math problem in his head. "What's wrong?" Beckett finally asked. "Is it something with the case?"

"No – it's not the case. Nothing like that. I was just scrolling through my contact list. I'm trying to remember if I know any high ranking officials in the FBI. If I want to continue shadowing you I should probably start inviting one of them to my weekly poker games."

Beckett chuckled, shook her head, and then began packing up for the night. The rest would wait until the next morning. She was tired, and he looked like a kid waiting impatiently for his birthday party to begin. "I'm calling it. Let's get out of here." She said, gathering her things.

He thought she'd never finish. "Excellent!" He helped her into her coat before putting on his own. Together they walked towards the elevator where he impatiently kept pressing the down button then checked his watch. "We're running late. You grab Tommy, I'll grab the cab, then we'll head over to your place. I had my guy rent us a moving van and some movers – they're meeting us over there within the hour." Her mouth fell open, he saw the panic in her eyes, so he snorted, hiding his disappointment. He'd known it was a long shot. "Relax, Kate. Even I'm not that crazy…I booked them for this weekend." He chuckled.

She gave him an exasperated sigh, blaming his warped sense of humor for her racing pulse. "Oh, you're hilarious Castle."

They stood side by side, each lost in their own thoughts, waiting for the doors to open. Finally it arrived and they got in.

"Castle?" She said aloud, breaking their continued silence.

"Hmm?"

Setting her sights straight ahead, she grinned to herself. "Okay."

"Okay?" He repeated, slowly catching on, hoping beyond hope she wasn't messing with him. He lightly took her by the elbow and turned her to face him, reminding himself of her fairly decent game face.

She only nodded, all the while searching his baby blues for signs of regret. If she wasn't mistaken, all systems were a go. The musky allure of his cologne hit her senses when he dared to further infiltrate her personal space.

His voice was low and raspy when he asked, "Just so we're clear, you meant, 'okay, okay', right? You'll move in with me."

Never mind the cologne, if scientists ever came up with a way to bottle that sexy bedroom voice of his – she'd bathe in it. She graced him with a full-fledged smile, looked him right in the eyes and nodded. "Yes."

And with that one simple word, Katherine Houghton Beckett made Richard Edgar Alexander Rodgers Castle the happiest man on the planet.

The bell dinged and the doors opened, breaking them from their goofy trance. "Meet you downstairs." She cast casually over her shoulder with a sexy smile, sauntering off, leaving him to stand there alone, suppressing the urge to reel her in, kiss her hard, and seal the deal.

Instead he let her walk away, allowed the doors to close, smiled to himself, hands in his pockets, and bounced on his heels. For while there was no doubt in his mind she knew he was shamelessly, irrevocably putty in her hands, he couldn't wait to see the look on her face when the movers he'd booked showed up Sunday morning.