"What does it say, Lanie?" Kate's chewing on the edge of her fingernail while she paces back and forth in front of the bathroom door. As soon as she'd taken the pregnancy test she handed it over to her best friend immediately; unable to even hold the white stick any longer, too afraid of the possible sign that would pop up.

But the past fifteen minutes have been agonizingly slow. Complete torture. Her pulse has increased each minute, her heart thumping beneath her rib cage and the sound traveling up to her ears to cause a deafening sound that has her suddenly feeling nauseous.

Kate comes to a halt as Lanie emerges from the bathroom, the smallest of smiles on her face as she holds out the pregnancy test towards her and Kate sucks in a breath as she reaches out. "Congratulations, sweetie." Lanie says, reaching out to grip and squeeze Kate's arm.

Tears immediately emerge, falling from her lids as a gasp slips from Kate's mouth as she takes in the double lines on the pregnancy test. A hand is immediately covering her mouth, eyes glued to the test before her hand drops, cradling her stomach as her gaze travels down, her chest rising as she takes in her flat belly.

"What am I going to do, Lanie?" Kate swallows, a few tears escaping and cascading down the frame of her face as she falls to the edge of the bed, still clutching the pregnancy test.

"Well, for starters… You might want to tell the father." Lanie sits down next to Kate, pressing her palm to Kate's back as she begins to move her hand in small circles.

The father. Kate had been so consumed on whether or not she was pregnant that she hadn't even given any thought about the father of her child, and suddenly she's dropping the pregnancy test in her lap as her face falls into her hands. "Oh, god." She mumbles, heart beginning to thump even harder beneath her ribs.

There was only one man she'd slept with. It had happened shortly after her apartment blew up, tensions were high and words were shared and before either of them knew it; Kate had ended up naked in Richard Castle's bed. She fled in the morning of course. Her place had just blown up and she was still searching for that son of a bitch who had tried to kill her, she couldn't possibly focus on what this meant for her and Castle. So, she put it to the back of her mind, didn't mention it, and after that day… Well, he hadn't brought it up either. Kate didn't see the point in saying anything and ruining the partnership that they had.

She'd been so consumed and caught up in her own thoughts that she hadn't even heard Lanie speaking. "Earth to, Kate? Girl, where'd you go?" Kate's head lifts, gaze landing on the woman beside her who's face reeked of concern.

"M' sorry, Lanie. What did you say?" Kate's brows pull together, hands lifting to tuck her loose curls behind her ear.

"Well, I said, what are you going to tell Demming?"

Kate's eyes couldn't help but widen at the mention of the man she'd currently been falling for; someone she really could see herself being in a committed relationship with.

A groan falls from her lips, head tipping back into her hands as she huffs, lips forming into a pout. "Oh, god. I'm going to have to break up with him, aren't I? I mean… who in their right mind would want to date a girl who's pregnant with another man's baby?" Kate looks up for some guidance from her best friend, but Lanie's expression is complete shook; one she hadn't expected and had only seen when Kate had shown up an hour ago, to tell Lanie she might be pregnant.

"Whoa– Wait a minute… You're telling me that Demming isn't the father? But… Who then?" Lanie pauses, her brows furrowing and Kate can feel the nauseous feeling in her stomach coming back as the realisation washes across Lanie's face, eyes widening as her head whips back in Kate's direction, a wide smile creasing her lips. "Don't tell me…"

Kate sighs, brows pulling together tighter as she rises to her feet, teeth sinking into her bottom lip. "Yes, Lanie. It's Castle's."

"So, when are you going to break the news to him?" Lanie's brow raises, arms folding across her chest as Kate shoots her a look and takes a hold of her arm, pulling her away from the others.

"I haven't had the time to tell him!" Kate confesses, though that's a lie. Castle has been by her side all day, has even been going on to her every second about coming up to the Hamptons with him for the weekend. If she was honest, she'd been too distracted about the fact that this was his last case that she hadn't even thought about spending the weekend away with him or breaking the news of her pregnancy to him. Her heart was breaking at the very thought of not getting to see him every day; of not being able to theorize with him. And she knew the second she told him she was pregnant that everything would change, and Kate wasn't sure she was ready for everything to change just yet. "Besides, I haven't seen Tom yet, and I want to break things off with him first before I go telling Castle you know what." Her voice goes low, head leaning in closer to Lanie because there's no way Kate is taking any chances with somebody over hearing and broadcasting her news before she has the chance to say anything.

"I'll let you off this once, only because I see Demming coming." Lanie speaks, gaze moving past Kate and Kate's head whips around to the see the tall brunette approaching her, wide smile and all and Kate can't help the tight knot that begins to emerge and settle in her stomach as a sad smile washes across her face.

Breaking up with Tom wasn't going to be easy. She liked him, she really did. They clicked together well and he understood her job, he got it and that made things so much easier. But, Kate knew she couldn't be with him; not with the current situation she was in. She was carrying Castle's baby, and whether she wanted to admit it to herself or not; she liked Castle a whole lot more than just some friend.

"It's not just this weekend we're talking about, is it?" Tom speaks, coming round to stand in front of her as Kate's head shakes, a lump forming in the middle of her throat as tears slowly start to burn the rims of her lids. "No" She speaks, gaze lifting to finally land on him.

"Was it something I said, Kate? Something I did?" He looks so down, like some puppy who's been kicked and it kills Kate, really pulls the knot inside of her tighter and she can't let him think he's done anything wrong, that he said something wrong. Because he's perfect.

"No – You're great, you're really great and I like you." She speaks quietly, teeth pulling at the edge of her bottom lip as she refrains from letting the tears in her eyes betray her and cascade down the frame of her face.

She tears her gaze away from him, unable to look at him any longer as she looks out into the bullpen through the blinds. "It's just that I don't think that this is what I'm looking for right now." It's not as if she was lying to him, she wasn't. She wasn't looking for this right now. Wasn't looking to be in a situation like this, and if things were different; if she wasn't carrying Castle's baby and didn't have strong feelings for him; then she wouldn't be breaking up with Tom, she'd be going away with him this weekend.

"Well, what is it that you're looking for, Kate?" His gaze burns into her and she swallows the lump in her throat hard, head turning, gaze dropping from his as her tongue slips out of her mouth, moistening her lips as tears continue to burn the rims of her lids and her gaze soon travels back to the bullpen.

What she's looking for – she doesn't know. All she knows is she's going to be a mother; that she's going to be having Castle's baby and she wants to at least try, for not only herself, but for her child. She likes Castle, really likes him and if he wants to take her away for the weekend; then he wants to try something with her. She's not stupid, he might go on about no funny business, but she sees the way he looks at her when he thinks she's not looking and she knows he feels something for her.

Going away together would be the perfect time to tell him she's pregnant. It would just be the two of them around, no prying eyes or ears and they could deal with this just the two of them; together privately.

"Oh, look whose off duty" Castle's voice fills the air as she enters the room, and she can't help the way the edges of her lips cure up in the slightest as she pulls the top of the beer off, only now realising that she can't in fact drink alcohol.

"Yeah, well, Castle, I'm not all work." She smirks, coming round behind Lanie.

"Don't get into a drinking contest with her, she can take you." Lanie speaks, gaze lifting to land on Kate as her brows soon raise and she gives the girl her famous knowing look.

"Oh, I don't need a drink to take him." Kate's smirk grows wider, brow kinking as she looks back at Lanie. Because it's true, the first time they took each other; they were both completely sober. Though Kate can't help the small laugh that bubbles out of him at Castle's reaction, he's surprised and it makes her heart tingle at the fact that she caught him so off guard. Because flirting; that's not something they've done properly since they slept together. Their relationship had been slightly strained; not that anyone had noticed, but slowly they'd been coming back full circle and if Kate was going to accept his offer to go away with him and then break the news to him that she was pregnant, she could flirt a little; give some playful back and forth.

"Castle, do you have a second?" Kate leans down, voice quiet as she looks into his baby blue eyes.

He accepts and the edges of Kate's lips curve as she turns round, lets him go ahead of her as the duo head out of the room and Kate closes the door behind her; not needing the others to hear them.

"What's up?" Castle says so casually, coat hanging over his arms and Kate's a little lost for words now, the beer in her hands acting as a device to distract herself as she grips it tightly and takes a deep breath.

"Look, I know that I'm not the easiest person to get to know. And I don't always let on what's on my mind. But… this past year working with you… I've had a really good time." The lump she'd had in her throat from breaking up with Tom had returned and the tight knot in her stomach began to tug as her pulse quickened, thumped beneath her rib cage, the sound causing a deafening one in her ears as her cheeks begin to heat up.

"Yeah, me too." Castle speaks, smiling at her and the edges of Kate's lips can't help but pull up as her gaze drops momentarily and the tight knot in her stomach soon dissolves into ones of butterflies and the thumping of her heart progresses into small skipping of beats.

She takes another breath, chest rising quickly. She hadn't planned to tell him right now, but with the way he's looking at her, and with what she's feeling. It seems like the best time, so she goes for it. Waits for her entire world to change. "So, I'm just gonna say this an-" Kate doesn't even get the chance to say what she'd prepared as the sound of a woman's voice calling Castle emerges asking him if he's ready as she comes to stand by Castle's side, his arm hooking around her waist and the butterflies quickly dissolve, that tight knot returning as Castle introduces his ex-wife and Kate forces a smile hand reaching out to take Gina's as she shakes in and Kate swallows the lump in her throat, brows pulling together.

"Yeah, we spoke the other day. Looks like you finally tracked him down." Kate speaks rather lightly, lips pulling together and shrewing to the side as she tries to make small talk and ignore how close Castle and Gina are standing.

Gina speaks of going and Kate can't stop herself before the word is slipping from her own mouth. "Going?" She can feel her heart changing back to the rhythm of thumping beneath her rib cage as Castle replies to her and tells her they're going to the Hamptons and there's a lump forming in Kate's throat as tears begin to burn the rims of her lids. "For the weekend?" She can't help but feel jealous, and slightly betrayed when Gina goes on about staying on top of him and the innuendo that's there as Gina and Rick share a look and Kate feels completely sick to her stomach. She turned him down and he went running off to his ex-wife. It makes her feel like she doesn't mean anything to him, that she was nothing more than somebody to keep his bed warm.

Kate can't help but shake her head and clear her throat as she swallows the lump in her throat, and maybe it's the anger bubbling inside of her but she can't stop herself from speaking. "I'm sorry, I didn't think the two of you got along." She smiles, trying her hardest not to laugh as she looks from Castle to Gina.

Her smile is quickly fading as the two's voice remain quiet and soft, going on about speaking for hours on end and Kate needs to get out of this conversation now. She needs to go throw up and possibly cry and not have anybody see her become an emotional wreck all because of Richard Castle. Though she'll definitely try to convince herself that her being this way is due to the hormones of pregnancy.

Kate's mind tunes out for a moment, focusing on the fact that she's pregnant with Rick's baby. She's carrying his baby and she feels sick at the very thought of conceiving his child when it seems to her that she's nothing more than somebody he can get frisky with and really, Kate should've known better.

Castle's speaking and she tunes back in just in time to hear what he's saying and not make a fool of herself.

"Yeah, I wanted to say… have a great Summer." Her body spins slightly on the spot, brows pulling together tightly as she fights back the tears threatening to betray her and fall down the frame of her face. Her lips pull together tightly, a lump blocking her airway as she looks at Castle.

"You too. And like you said… it's been really great." He's smiling at her, looking so nonchalant like he hasn't just stepped on her heart and crushed it while showing off his new yet old arm candy on the side of his arm.

"Yeah." She speaks out a little breathless, trying her hardest to smile at the two of them as his arm sticks out, struggling with Gina gripping it and Kate wants to throw up, she needs to right now. It's like autopilot, the way her hand sticks out and takes a hold of his and she has to bite the inside of her bottom lip hard, to the point of almost drawing blood just to refrain herself from gripping his hand too tight or falling to her knees and breaking down and really, she hates these hormones already because this is so unlike her. She does not let a man do this to her; let alone some man child.

The loss of contact isn't unnoticed by Kate as his hand retracts and he's waving to the side and that's when Kate's see her colleagues watching them and oh, god were they watching this entire time? Did they see the scene unfold before them? Can they see the hurt and pain written across Kate's face? She can see Lanie looking at her sympathetically and she snaps her gaze away, unable to look at any of them because she'll definitely start crying.

She watches Gina and Rick walk away arm in arm, swanning off out of the bullpen and her brows pull together as her heart drops to her stomach and she can't stop herself from the words that spill out of her mouth like vomit, and she really wants to kick herself. "See you in the fall?" She's chewing on the inside of her gums, and she doesn't know why she's even remaining hopeful, she's already decided on the kind of man she thinks he is but when he tells her he'll see her in the fall, there's that little skip in her heart and her head shakes, a bitter and quiet chuckle escaping through her lips as she bites and pulls her bottom lip into her mouth, head dropping as the tears burning the rims of her lids betray her, a few falling down her cheeks as she stares at the ground, fingers gripping and tapping against the beer bottle.

She hears the door click and soon the warmth of a hand at her back, she doesn't look up. Doesn't need to know who it is, because she can see Lanie's body in her view. "Sweetie, hey." And no, she can't take this comforting, can't take the sincere and sorrow laced behind Lanie's words and the feel of her hand rubbing small circles against her back it's going to make Kate lose it and she will not stand here and cry and let everyone around her know that the reason for this is because of Richard Castle.

So, Kate swallows the lump in her throat, pushes her beer into Lanie's hand and quickly spins on her heels as she makes a break for the bathroom. Because if she's going to cry, if she's going to lose it; she'll do it without prying eyes or ears.