THE PLAN
Chapter 4
Johanna caught up with her daughter at breakfast the next day. "So, how was your date?"
"It was great!" Kate replied and looked in the fridge for something to drink.
Johanna dug for information. "Great, hmm? What was the greatest part of it?"
Kate opened her mouth to tell her, but then she closed it. There was no way she would tell her mom he was willing to wait for her to have sex.
She poured herself some orange juice. "I kicked Castle's ass playing shuffleboard."
Johanna stared at her daughter. "I'm sorry, did you say shuffleboard?"
"Uh-huh. I have homework to do. Gotta go." Kate took her OJ with her.
"Shuffleboard?" Johanna muttered to herself.
"Hey, babe. Do you play shuffleboard?" Johanna asked her husband.
"Shuffleboard? Not if I don't have to." Jim looked puzzled. "Why?"
"Katie played shuffleboard on her date with Rick. She said it was her favorite part." Johanna still didn't get it.
"Did she win?" Jim asked.
"And she's willing to do her homework without me bugging her," Johanna told him.
"Stop the presses!" Then Jim looked in the direction of Katie's room. "Maybe she's sick."
"Perhaps. That, or it's Rick," Johanna offered. Then her eyes opened wide. What if her baby had sex with him?! "Excuse me." She left Jim and hurried to Katie's bedroom.
She closed the door. "Katie, we need to have a talk."
Kate didn't see about what, but... "Okay."
Johanna decided to rip the band-aid off. "Did… Did you have sex with Rick?"
"WHAT? NO! We did not have sex." Kate was fuming.
"You're happy, and you're doing your homework without me bugging you about it. You can tell me, sweetie. Did you have sex with Rick?"
"No, Mom," Kate told her again. "We did not have sex. He's…he's actually very sweet. He told me he was willing to wait until I was ready. No one has told me that before. No one."
Johanna opened her mouth to say something then closed it. "That's great, honey. I'm happy for you. Just be ready when you tell him you are. And I don't want to know when you lost your virginity."
"Thanks, Mom… I think." Kate scrunched up her face at the last part.
Johanna left her to her homework and made sure the door was open.
"So what did she say?" Jim asked.
"Girl stuff," Johanna replied.
Jim shook his head. "Meaning I should leave it to you, like always."
Johanna kissed his cheek. "That's why I married you."
Jim's eyebrows shot up. "I thought it was because you loved me."
"That too." Johanna kissed him on the mouth this time.
~oo0oo~
Kate called Castle that night.
"Hello, talk fast because I don't have a lot of time," Rick said.
Kate frowned. "You don't?"
"Kate, hi. And no, I don't have a lot of time to talk. Is it important?"
"No, it's not important," Kate told him. "I just wanted to talk, but I guess I can call you later."
"Good. Gotta go, bye." He hung up on her.
"Bye," she told her dead phone. "Well, that didn't work out." She sat back on her bed and sulked.
~oo0oo~
Kate didn't call him again, and Castle didn't call her. That was until Saturday.
"Hi, is this a good time?" Kate asked.
"Lucky for you, I have all day. What's up?" Rick inquired.
"I was wondering if you wanted to date me all day again? You get to pay for it," Kate told him.
"Oh, I get to pay for it? You're the one asking for a date, but I pay for it?" Rick challenged her.
"Yeah, I'm not rich like you are," Kate told him.
"Hmm, let's see." Rick checked the time. "It's already almost 8 o'clock. Would 9 work for you?"
"That would be great. Are you willing to have another all-day date? Please?" Kate asked.
"What we do this time will be up to you since I haven't had time to plan anything." Rick waited for her response.
"DEAL! I can think of something for us to do." Kate thought she could manage it. She hoped she wasn't in over her head.
"I hope so because it's all on you. See you in an hour." Rick ended the call.
"YES!" She had victory. But she needed to figure out what they could do all day. "MOM!"
~oo0oo~
There was a knock on the door. "Thanks, Mom," Kate called out as she grabbed her coat and answered the door. "Right on time. Ready to go?" Kate joined him outside and closed the door.
"What's first, since this is your date," Rick asked.
"Burger King," Kate told him. "Since you love it so much," she said with a smile.
"That I do," Rick admitted, and they flagged down a taxi.
They both got the same as last time. "What comes first? Or second, since this is first." Rick wondered what she had up her sleeve.
Kate grinned at him. "It's a surprise."
He stared at her. "I thought you hated surprises?"
"I hate getting them, not giving them," Kate corrected him.
"Oh." Rick glared at her, and Kate just smiled sweetly.
~oo0oo~
"Okay, what's at Bryant Park?" Rick asked her.
"It's called Ride Bumper Cars on Ice at Bryant Park. It's kinda like normal bumper cars, but it's on ice," Kate told him.
"Bumper cars?" Rick quizzed her.
"You've never heard of Bumper Cars?" Kate watched him shrug. "You're strange, Castle. Really strange."
Kate read the sign that listed when it opened. "Darn! We have to wait until 11 o'clock." "I guess we wait."
~oo0oo~
I mean, regular bumper cars are exciting all on their own. But when the icy rink is added to the mix, you'll slip, slide, and crash more than ever before as you enjoy one of the best New York City.
Kate started out trying to hit Castle as much as possible. It turned out she was hit the most, but she was laughing her ass off.
"That was fun!" Rick exclaimed as they left the rink.
"Fun for you," Kate pouted. "You hit me more than I hit you. I still don't know how you did that."
"What's next on your list?" Rick inquired.
"New York Botanical Gardens. You'll love it." Kate flagged down a taxi to take them there.
~oo0oo~
It turned out to be a lot bigger than Kate had thought it was. It was January, so not totally the perfect time to visit but still nice. They decided to stop at Pine Tree Café for something to eat for lunch. It was grab and go service with outdoor seating in the cold.
It was fine since it wasn't that cold. Still, they spent three hours touring the Gardens.
"That was nice," Rick said agreeably.
"I'm sorry," Kate apologized. "I didn't expect it to take so long."
"It's fine, really. It was nice overall. So what's next since it's…" Rick asked since he didn't have a watch.
"A little after 5, almost 5:30," Kate said. "What's next. Right, we need a taxi."
"117 Macdougal Street #1267," Kate told the driver.
"Do I get a clue?" Rick questioned her.
Kate gave him a clue. "Get ready to laugh your ass off." Not that it helped Rick all that much.
"Comedy Cellar?" Rick had no idea what that was. He paid the $17 per person to get them in and found out there was a two-beer minimum.
~oo0oo~
Rick found they had to share a table and there was barely any place to stand up. They were packed in that tight. But eventually, he was laughing his ass off. Though the two beers he had might have helped.
It was 7:30 by the time they exited that place. They chose not to eat anything since Kate said she had plans for them.
"284 Third Avenue, Brooklyn," Kate told the taxi driver.
"So, do I get a clue now?" Rick asked.
"Nope, not this time. But you'll love it. I hope." Kate didn't say the last part out loud. This one had come from her mother. She had never been here.
They were right on time since she had made reservations before leaving home. Rick read the sign out front. "Claro."
"They serve Mexican food," Kate said, which didn't help Rick all that much, but he went with it.
FOUR-COURSE DINNER $78
They ordered margaritas and waited for their dinner to show up.
Kate
glanced around worriedly. "I think I'm underdressed, Castle."
"Nonsense, Kate. If they didn't approve of how you dressed, they wouldn't serve us. Think nothing of it. Besides, I think you're beautiful." Then, he took her hand and kissed it. That got Kate to blush a little.
"Wow." Kate watche
d as servers delivered meals to people around them. "It looks wonderful."
~oo0oo~
"That was good, and I'm stuffed." Kate held her stomach to emphasize the point.
"What's next?" Rick ask
ed her.
"It's almost 10 o'clock, and we have two hours to kill before the next event. I don't know. Any suggestions?" Kate would let him choose.
"Two hours
, huh?" Rick thought about it.
Kate corrected herself. "Maybe more like an hour and a half."
"We could go to my place," Rick suggested. "Watch TV while we wait. Have coffee."
"Sold!" He had her at coffee.
~oo0oo~
"You know where the media room is, so make yourself comfortable while I make the coffee," Rick told her after they entered his place.
It gave Kate a chance to find something worth watching while she waited.
"Coffee, my dear." With a flourish, Rick handed her the cup.
"Thanks." Kate inhale
d the coffee's aroma. Then she sipped it. "Mmm, it's good. I can't quite place it, but it tastes wonderful. Oh, and I found us something to watch."
Rick sat next to her. Close enough that they were touching. He sat there silently, trying to keep his mind on watching TV.
Kate didn't say anything. She knew she wasn't ready for sex yet. Not that she didn't want sex. It was just that Kate didn't want to spoil whatever this was with sex.
~oo0oo~
Kate checked the time. "We should go."
Once they were downstairs, they flagged down a taxi. "323 Sixth Avenue," she told the driver.
This time
, Rick didn't ask for a clue. He was content to leave it to Kate since he trusted her.
Rick caught a glimpse of the sign. "IFC. It's a movie theater."
Kate
nodded. "The midnight movie. It changes, so I don't know what's playing." Kate let him buy the tickets, much like he purchased everything on their date.
"The Swimmer. Think it's better than Mouse Hunt?" Rick inquired.
She shook her head. "Probably not. That movie's going to be hard to beat."
~oo0oo~
Kate apologized at the end of the movie. "I'm so sorry. I didn't know it was a chick flick."
"It was…nice
," Rick told her.
Kate winced. "That's code for you didn't like it, but that's okay."
~oo0oo~
It was almost 2:30 am by the time she was home with Castle. "I had a good time."
"So did I. It was nice. I especially liked the
Claro. The food was wonderful."
"Yes, it was," Kate agreed. It looked like he wasn't going to kiss her, so she kissed him. It was a wonderfully long kiss.
"Night
, Castle."
"Night." Rick watch
ed her enter the house before he left to go home.
Kate stood with her back to the door and smiled dreamily. The date had gone well. Not great, but it was pleasant. The kiss was even better. She touched her lips, remembering how he kissed her.
She had homework to do tomorrow
, but that was okay. It was worth it.
~oo0oo~
In the morning, Johanna asked, "How was your date, Katie?"
"It was nice
," Kate said and sat down to her breakfast.
Johanna frowned. "That's it? Just nice, not great like before?"
"Castle's idea of an all
-day date worked out to be better than mine," she admitted to her mother.
Johanna patted her hand. "I'm sure yours was fine."
"Yeah."
Still, Kate was bummed.
"Eat your breakfast, then start on your homework," Johanna told her. "I know you have some."
"Yeah
, I have a lot." But it was worth it.
~oo0oo~
Kate waited two days to call Castle. "Hi." She was upbeat about talking to him.
"Better talk fast, I'm on my way out," Rick said in a rush.
"Oh, sorry. I guess I'll call back later?" Kate quizzed him.
"That would be good. Bye." Rick hung up on her. Again.
Kate put the phone down and flopped down on her bed. "Another bust." She couldn't help but wonder what he was up to. Or was he trying to avoid her?
No
, that wasn't it. They'd gone out on an all-day date, and it had been fun. There was nothing Castle did that said he wasn't interested in her. He had even kissed her. No, that definitely wasn't it. So what was he up to? Because he was going out and lived in Brooklyn, she would never make it there to follow him. So that was out. She wondered what he would be doing this late in the day?
~oo0oo~
She didn't call again and didn't talk to him until Saturday morning when she called him. She had homework, but she could handle it all on Sunday.
"Hi, Castle."
"Your timing sucks. I'm headed out and will be gone all day and tomorrow. I'm sorry if that interferes with your plans," Rick said apologetically.
"Oh. No, no
. You're not interrupting anything. I'll talk to you later then."
"Gotta go, bye." Rick hung up on her.
"Bye
," Kate told her dead phone. "MOM!" She needed to talk to her.
Johanna came into her bedroom. "You bellowed?"
"Is Castle avoiding me? I call
, and he's always on his way out. Now he's going to be gone all weekend. Did I do something wrong?" Kate felt tears beginning to well up.
"Oh, Katie." Johanna hugged her. "I'm sure it's just that he had someplace to be and doesn't have time. He is a successful author, after all. He may have things he has to do. It's not you, sweetheart. Promise." Kate wiped her tears and sniffed. "I'm sure it's just that, Katie. Give him some time. It'll all work out." Johanna hugged her again.
"Maybe." Another tear ran down her cheek.
~oo0oo~
She didn't call him for days. Then it happened. "KATIE, PHONE!" Johanna yelled.
Kate walked toward her
, not expecting anything. Johanna held her hand over the phone. "It's him," shewhispered as she handedKatie the phone and moved away to give them some space.
"Hello?"
"Kate
, I'm calling to apologize. I'm sorry for being gone whenever you call. I don't have a good excuse, and I know it was important to you."
"That's okay
, Castle."
"I'm also calling to ask you out to dinner on Saturday." Rick waited, hoping she would say yes.
"Dinner?
This Saturday?" Kate wasn't sure she heard him right.
"Yes, dinner. You'll need to dress up, it's going to be fancy." And again, Rick hung up on her.
Kate st
ood there staring the phone in her hand. "MOM!"
~oo0oo~
It was almost 7 o'clock Saturday evening. Kate was sitting there working on her makeup. She didn't hear the knock at the front door, but Johanna did. Jo walked over and answered the door. "Rick! You're early." She knew Katie wasn't ready yet.
"How early?" Rick asked.
"Maybe about 15 minutes. I hope." She only thought that last part. "Don't you look handsome."
Rick smiled at her. "Thank you."
"Come in
, and I'll see where Katie is." Johanna stepped aside to let him in and went to check on Katie.
"Rick's here." And Johanna saw the look of surprise and panic on Kate's face.
"NOW?" Kate yel
ped.
"Hurry up and finish, and your dad and I will keep him company," Johanna said, leaving her to finish.
"Maybe 10 minutes
," she told Rick. "Can I get you something?"
Just then, Jim came into the livingroom. He knew about the date. "Rick! You look great."
"Thanks
, Jim. And no thanks, Johanna," Rick said.
"Where are you going tonight?" Jim asked him.
"JIM! Give us a moment
, Rick." She took Jim by the arm and escorted him into the kitchen.
"What? It was a simple question." Jim didn't see the harm in it.
"Do not ruin this for our daughter
," Johanna whispered furiously. "She's finally found someone she actually likes, and I like him."
"I… Fine." Jim gave up.
"Good, now be nice." Johanna walk
ed back into the living room, where Rick still was standing.
"I'll just see how Katie's coming." Johanna hurried to her bedroom. "Don't you look nice, sweetie."
"Thanks, Mom." Kate smiled, pleased with how she looked. "Zip me?" She turned her back on her mom, and she zipped her dress.
"Have a good time," Johanna told her and watched her leave the bedroom and go into the living room.
"WOW!" Rick was speechless. He thought she was beautiful before. Now she was absolutely gorgeous.
Kate blushed. She felt like she had never felt before.
Rick held out his hand to her. "Ready to go?"
"
Wait! I forgot my clutch." She hustled past her mother, into her bedroom, and snatched her clutch off the dresser. She checked to be sure she wasn't missing anything else, then hurried back to Castle. "Ready."
"Have a good time, you two!" Johanna watched them leave. "Our little girl is all grown up, Jim."
"Yeah
, and that's what worries me," Jim said and he wasn't kidding.
Kate saw a limousine parked outside. "You got a limo?" She could hardly believe it.
Rick
looked worried. "Is it too much?"
"No, it's fine. Really. It's sweet of you, Castle."
The driver g
ot out of the car and opened the door for both of them. "Thank you."
Kate looked around as she sat next to him. "Maybe this is a bit too much. You didn't have to do this, you know."
"Yes
, I did, Kate. I like you." Hearing that from him got her to smile finally.
Kate leaned back and enjoyed the ride. She had never been in a limo before.
The car
came to a stop and the driver got out and opened the door, helping her to get out gracefully. "Thank you."
"The Daniel! Castle, this is too much. It's so expensive!" She was careful and said that last part very quietly.
"Nothing is too expensive." Rick t
ook her hand and guided her inside.
"Oh, my." Kate was taken aback by how lovely it was. Her dress was nice enough though she still felt underdressed for this place.
They were immediately seated and given a menu. Kate t
ook a look. "Castle, a three-course meal costs $295. The optional wine pairing is $215," she whispered.
"Think nothing of it." Rick knew he could afford it many times over. They could eat here daily if he could get her to agree to it.
"Think nothing of it?" Kate knew she was out of her element. She was a burger
and fries kind of girl, and this was not that, not even close.
"We'll have the three-course meal with a wine pairing of your choice," Rick told their server and handed him the menu. Kate did the same.
She sat there calmly. Not that she was calm. No, it was just an illusion.
"Relax, Kate. These are just people who are eating what you're eating. Take that couple over there. Tonight is probably the one and only time they'll be here. So please, relax."
"I'm relaxed. …I am
!" Kate was lying through her teeth and was afraid Castle could sense it.
Rick studied her. "Should I kiss you to calm you?"
"What
? No! That won't be necessary. I'm calm…er," Kate said and grinned at him.