Another Chance
Chapter 55
You two are the luckiest players I've seen, except for one," the yeoman purser says as he examines Kate's and Rick's poker machine printouts.
"Oh, who's our competition for the smile of the gambling gods?" Castle asks.
"Can't give out names, the young man replies, "but he's not part of a family, single passenger, single cabin. Haven't seen him anywhere but here. He probably picked the wrong cruise to try to meet someone. You know what they say, lucky at cards, unlucky at love."
Castle pulls Kate to him, pressing a kiss to her cheekbone. "Well, that sure doesn't apply to us. I can't think of two people luckier at love. I hope whoever the big winner is, finds some happiness too."
"Uh. Huh. He should try the luau tonight. Usually, any singles we have, show up there."
"Sounds like fun," Castle agrees.
"Aletha seems fascinated by this," Castle notes as the baby in the carrier he's wearing regards the dancers gyrating to the rhythm of the drums.
Kate's eyes scan the room. "That's great, Castle, but can you spot the guy we saw in the casino, anywhere? I don't see him."
"I don't ei… no, wait, I think that's him just coming in now isn't it?'
"You're right, Babe, it is."
"With the outfit he's wearing, it looks like the only pockets he has are in that linen jacket. He was playing the poker machine right-handed, so his card is probably in his right pocket." Castle grins at her, "I'm familiar with your pickpocketing skills. You think you can lift it?"
"Probably, but the hard thing will be putting it back."
Castle grabs a paper parasol topped drink from a passing server. "Leave that to me."
The rum, coconut and pineapple juice make a spreading stain on Mr. Lucky's jacket. Castle gushes with apologies as Kate plays at trying to sponge off the mess with a cocktail napkin while slipping the card to Castle. "So, sorry," Castle repeats. Listen, we have some great wipes in our diaper bag. They can get out almost anything. I'll be right back."
Castle makes a beeline for his table and when the crowd of revelers shields him from sight, quickly scans the card Kate lifted. Grabbing a pack of wipes, he returns to his soaked victim and passes the card to back to Kate. Taking some wipes from Castle, she manages to slip it back in their quarry's pocket under cover of a continuing cleanup.
Aleta begins to fuss as the music takes on a more syncopated beat for a limbo contest. "I'm sorry man," Castle apologizes yet again. "We're going to have to take off. This little one has already been quiet for longer than we thought she'd be, but if we don't get her away from the festivities now, she'll be up all night. Valet services are included in the fare, so your steward should be able to get that spic and span for you. So far, the ship's done wonders for us." He points to Aletha. "Babies can pose quite a challenge to keeping clothing in decent shape, but they've been up to it."
Kate can't stop giggling as they return to their cabin. "That was fun. And Aletha started crying at the perfect time."
"She is the offspring of the Beckett-Castle team. I just hope she calms down sometime tonight."
Kate lifts the infant out of Castle's carrier. "I'll feed her, and we'll see what happens. What did you get off that card?"
"I haven't had a chance to look yet." Castle thumbs the switch on his phone and the QR app lights up the screen. "This is a lot like our scans were. Name, account number, cabin code, but ooh, there's an extra code here. That must be what made the machine pay off like that. This is great. We know who he is. We know where he's staying. We find a time he's out, maybe in the casino again; we can search his cabin and discover what he's up to."
"What if he locks his door?"
"The codes on our cards were the same as the one we use to unlock our cabin. His will be too. Piece of cake!"
"An illegal piece of cake."
"And picking – um- Robert Crockett's pocket wasn't? Besides, Kate, we're on the high seas. The Captain is the law, and he likes us. Still probably better if we don't get caught."
Kate rolls her eyes. "Yuh think?"
Esposito can feel his jalapeños repeating on him as he checks out the price of lessons at the Smirnov studio. That was some promotion Lanie got! But there are cheaper places, ones that specialize in the Argentine tango. There's even one run by a stripper he took on a ski trip with the Ryans. Lanie is already happy with the new sparkly stuff for her hair and his promise to go along with her dancing, at least some of it. And with his moves, he'll be a quick study. He and Lanie will be heating up the floor together in no time.
Trixie's dancing school is in the Bronx, in the commercial district. It figures. Smirnov must be paying a sky-high price for floorspace in downtown Manhattan. In the other boroughs, rents can be more reasonable - if any rents are reasonable in New York. The place is nice, with a hardwood dancefloor probably as good as anything at Smirnov's.
Trixie looks fantastic, sexy in black like she just came up from Argentina or something, but she's all business and assigns Esposito to a teacher named Cheryl. His instructor doesn't look or sound Latina, any more than Trixie does, but she has the moves. She also reminds him of his old wrestling coach. No nonsense, no excuses, just do exactly what I tell you. She starts by lecturing him about his posture. Damn! This better be worth it.
Castle mimes wiping sweat from his brow after laying a sleeping Aletha in her crib. "Talk about overstimulation! I'm putting luaus on our not-to-do list. Getting her to sleep took a lot out of me, especially since there's no space to walk with her in here. I don't remember the last time I bounced up and down that much - upright, anyway. My knees are tired."
Kate begins to unbutton her light cotton top featuring carefully designed pleats that give Aletha ready access to her premium source of nourishment. "Not too tired I hope, now that she's down for the count, I was looking forward to a little party of our own. If you need to rest your tired joints, I can always be on top."
"Not that you need an excuse. I've always said that you were very good at bossing men around. That's not a complaint, merely an observation." He unfastens his brightly colored Hawaiian shirt and lets it slide to what little floor there is, then steps out of his shorts and briefs. "OK cowgirl Kate. Feel free to mount your trusty steed. All I ask is that you spare me the spurs."
Kate runs the tip of her index finger down the middle of his chest, before following the same path with her tongue. "Oh, Castle. I have other ways to get you to take me where I want to go."
He reaches up, framing her face in his hands to bring her lips to his. "Katherine Beckett-Castle, I'm counting on it."