It was Almost a Good Day

by Tanya Reed

Disclaimer: Me no ownie Castle.

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Kate Beckett felt herself smiling as she filled out paperwork. It had been a great day. Castle was on vacation with his mother and daughter, for one thing, and she was enjoying the feeling of working alone. That wasn't the only thing that made the day a good one. Being able to hear herself think was just a bonus.

The best part, she decided, had been meeting Lanie for lunch. The food had been delicious, and several young, attractive men had smiled at her.

Besides lunch, she hadn't been assigned any new cases, the judge had issued her a search warrant she had been waiting for, she had solved a case, and she had a great evaluation with Captain Montgomery.

Even the paperwork wasn't too bad. It was going by quickly, and it looked as if she might even get home early. It would be heaven to take a nice long soak with a Richard Castle novel in her hands.

It didn't even seem strange to her that she was indulgently enjoying her time away from him and yet that time included burying herself in his imaginary universe. Dereck Storm had been her companion in relaxation for a long time. At least Dereck, unlike Castle himself, never tried to talk her ear off. Plus, Castle was still her favorite author, now in more ways than one.

Kate chewed on the back of her pen as she thought about Castle's return. She had to admit to herself that no matter how relieved she had been to see him go, she'd be even happier to have him come back home. Things were kind of dull without him.

"Hey, Beckett," Esposito said, coming up to her desk.

She flushed a little at being caught thinking about Castle. "Yeah?"

"I'm going for sandwiches. Want one?"

"No, I'm still full from lunch, but thanks."

"No prob." Then his eyes narrowed, and he stared at her for a moment.

"What?"

"Nothing." He grinned.

Definitely odd, Kate concluded as she watched him head to the door. Still, she didn't want to think about Esposito. She wanted to get her paperwork done so she could go home and pamper herself. It always took her at least an hour to decide which book she wanted to read again. No matter how many times she'd read them, it was still hard to choose. Silently, she laughed at herself. Sometimes, she felt like such a fangirl. At least she'd been able to keep that fact from Castle. If he ever found out, he'd be insufferable. She might just have to kill him—and then who would write her favorite books?

Kate shook all thoughts of Castle out of her mind and hurried to finish her last page.

"Uh...Beckett?" Ryan's hesitant voice made her look up from the last blank space.

"Huh?"

"Are you okay?"

She frowned. What kind of question was that? She turned it over in her mind, trying to figure out why he had asked it.

Finally, at a loss, she answered, "Sure."

"Oh. Okay." He got about halfway through a turn and stopped. Facing her again, he asked, "Have you looked in a mirror today?"

Kate dropped her pen and her hands went to her face. Fingertips grazed cheeks and nose. "Why? Do I have ink on my face?"

"Not exactly."

"Then what is it?"

His gaze flitted down and then back up to her eyes. At first, she thought he was looking at her chest.

He must have seen the storm clouds rolling over her features because he said, "Your shirt."

"What's wrong with my shirt?"

Her own eyes glanced down as he replied, "It's buttoned wrong."

A feeling of horror went through her. Her mouth opened slightly as she thought of all the people she had talked to that day. Captain Montgomery. Judge Markway. Esposito. Lanie. A million other people. Her face colored as she thought of the smiles she had been getting.

Her hands dropped from her face to her shirt, and she could feel its crookedness.

"Oh, crap."

"It's not so bad," he told her. "It's hardly noticeable."

Somehow, she doubted that. All those people, and not one had bothered to tell her about her shirt. Her face burned hotter as she filled in the paper's final blank.

"Really," he repeated, as if by saying it he could make it so.

Kate glared at him so fiercely that he made a hasty retreat. When he was out of sight, she got up and grabbed her jacket. At least she was basically done for the day, and she wouldn't have to face anyone until the morning.

Scowling, she roughly zipped the jacket to the top to hide the offending shirt. As she reached for her purse, one thought filled her mind.

What a lousy day.

The end