I know what you're probably thinking. Did I seriously post a second chapter on one of my stories? I know that many have you have realized (or at least begun to suspect) that I have a slight issue with (or irrational fear of) multi chapter stories, so you're probably pretty surprised about this right now. Not as surprised as I am, I assure you.

But yeah, I don't know. It just kind of... happened. So thank you to all you amazing readers who reviewed the previous chapter, because you really played a big part in bringing this about. But I'm going to say right now (with almost complete conviction) that there will not be another chapter after this one. This is it. Already the idea of writing a fic with three chapters is giving me heart palpitations, and not of the good kind haha.

Anyway, I'll remind you that, as usual, all comments and suggestions for improvement are most welcome. And if any part seems out of character, please let me know straight away (and be specific!) so I can fix it.

Enjoy.

"Hey, Ryan," Esposito asked slowly, looking up from his paperwork with a contemplative expression. "You thinking what I'm thinking?"

Turning to meet his partner's eyes, Ryan grinned and answered, "I think I am, Esposito."

Esposito returned the grin, looking over towards the door to the stairwell.

"Because I'm definitely thinking that Castle and Beckett have been listening to that message for a very long time."

"A very long time," Ryan agreed, eyes glinting. "What do you reckon is going on? You don't think they're…" trailing off, he raised his eyebrows.

Esposito frowned at him. "Dude. That's rank. And you know Beckett would never do that at work."

Ryan spluttered, looking appalled. "Oh, dude, gross. I was saying that they might have been making out, that's all," he clarified hastily, his face scrunching up in disgust. "God, you're such a cretin."

Esposito laughed. "I know what you meant, bro. You're just way too easy to mess with."

Ryan sent him a glare before looking back at the stairwell door, his expression suddenly pensive.

"You don't think she heard, do you?" he asked slowly, seeming lost in thought.

"Dude, how could she have possibly heard that? She's still in the damn stairwell."

"No, that's not what I meant," Ryan said suddenly, turning to face his partner. "I'm talking about before. In the interrogation room. You don't think she was watching us question Castle, do you?"

Esposito cocked his head to the side, considering it.

"Hell, it's possible. The briefing with the Chief wouldn't have taken that long, so she definitely could have gone into the Ob room while we were still doing the test," he said, thinking hard. "She seemed pretty normal when she came into the break room though, right?"

Ryan shrugged and nodded at the same time. "Yeah, but this is Beckett, remember? She's got a better poker face than most professional poker players."

"You got a point there. So, it's possible she was watching, which means she probably heard everything," Esposito said, then grinned slyly. "Hell, dude, this couldn't have worked better if we'd planned it."

"I did kind of consider telling her to watch," Ryan admitted, and Esposito laughed.

"Yeah, me too. But I couldn't do it to Castle," he said, then added with a grin, "even if it would have been for his own damn good."

"Really though, even if she was watching," Ryan began thoughtfully, "do you really think she'd actually do anything about it?"

"What? Castle not only admitted that he was in love with her, but that he wanted to marry her, and you seriously think she could have listened to all that and still pretended it never happened?"

He shot Ryan a disbelieving look. "Dude, I thought you were supposed to be the smart one."

"Hey!" Ryan responded indignantly, lightly backhanding Esposito on the shoulder.

"Look, all I'm saying is this," Ryan explained earnestly, "we've all – and I'm including Beckett in this– known for a long time how Castle feels about her. And yet nothing has happened, has it?"

Shaking his head, he added, "Seriously, I think Castle's waiting for her to make a move that might never actually happen."

Esposito was frowning now. "So, what, you don't think she loves him back?"

Ryan shook his head again, more insistently this time.

"No, I think she does," he assured his partner quickly, then explained, "what I'm saying is that I don't think she'll ever act on it."

"Seriously, dude, explain this to me, because I really don't get it," Esposito said, looking perplexed. "If he loves her and she loves him, where's the problem?"

"It's not that simple, bro," Ryan said, then sighed, looking at him with a sympathetic expression.

"Honestly, I think Beckett's scared because she really does care about Castle. So, say the two of them did get together; what would happen if they had a big fight? Or broke up altogether? Or, as unlikely as it seems, what if Castle eventually lost interest and moved on?"

Seeing that Esposito still looked baffled, Ryan exhaled softly.

"She'd lose him completely," he said patiently, then explained, "by just staying as friends, she can be sure that he'll stay in her life. So, I'm not saying that Castle and Beckett will remain only friends because Beckett doesn't love him. I'm saying it's because she does love him."

For a few moments Esposito simply looked at him blankly, then frowned.

"That's stupid."

Ryan gave a quiet laugh. "I hear you."

For a few moments they were silent, Esposito still staring in the direction of the stairwell.

"You reckon we could open the stairwell door without them seeing us?" he asked suddenly, and Ryan raised his eyebrows, looking uncertain.

"Well, I dunno. Maybe. But really, is it worth your life to find out? 'Cause you know she'd kill us if she caught us."

Esposito exhaled heavily, cocking his jaw in grudging agreement. "Yeah, you got a point."

Just at that moment, the stairwell door opened, and they both watched avidly as Beckett casually walked out, heading for her desk. Castle was nowhere to be seen.

Immediately, the two of them were out of their chairs, crossing the room to stand beside Beckett's desk, arms folded.

"So, what was on the message Alexis left?" Esposito questioned her as she sat down.

"And why were you gone so long?" Ryan asked suspiciously, before she'd even had time to answer.

"And where's Castle now?" Esposito added, glancing back towards the stairwell door as he spoke.

"You guys practising interrogation techniques or something?" Beckett asked dryly, sending them both an amused look.

"You practising evasive manoeuvres or something?" Esposito shot back, fixing her with his best bad-cop stare.

Beckett simply raised her eyebrows, her expression revealing nothing.

"So, what exactly is it that's got you two so worked up?" she asked mildly, leaning back in her chair and looking totally at ease.

Frowning, the two partners shared a quick glance before looking back down at her.

"What was on Alexis' message?" Esposito asked again, studying her face closely for some kind of tell. Her eyes were maybe a little brighter than usual, but other than that, her expression didn't tell him a damn thing.

Beckett shrugged. "Some of her friends got into a little trouble with the law, and she wanted to ask me for some advice. And she assumed I'd be with Castle, so she thought could tell him about it at the same time."

Ryan and Esposito exchanged another quick glance. Dammit, she made it sound so believable.

"So why were you gone so long?" Ryan asked, watching her through narrowed eyes.

"Because Castle called Alexis back, and I was speaking to her," Beckett said archly, as if it were quite obvious. "He's still on the phone with her now."

Before either of them had the chance to question her further, they heard the stairwell door open behind them. Turning simultaneously, they stared scrutinizingly at Castle as he emerged from the stairwell, his phone still held to his ear.

"Yeah, I know, Sweetie," he said affectionately, crossing the floor towards the desk. Approaching the others, he added, "Yep. Gotta go."

Pausing beside the desk, he looked down at Beckett.

"Okay," he said into the phone, then, "Love you."

Esposito and Ryan glanced from one to the other, suspicious. Were Beckett's cheeks just a shade pinker than before? They followed Castle as he rounded the desk and took his seat, placing themselves in front of him and adopting stern expressions.

"So what was on Alexis' message, Castle?" Ryan asked, watching him closely.

Castle's eyebrows lifted just a fraction. "Some of her friends did something stupid and she wanted to tell me about it before I found out from someone else," he said, then added, "why?"

Immediately Esposito picked up the lead.

"You were gone a pretty long time."

Castle looked amused. "You guys obviously don't know many teenage girls. There are a lot of words in their vocabulary, but "brief" and "concise" are not among them."

Ryan and Esposito shared a frustrated look, then dropped the act.

"Look, guys, we know something happened," Esposito said impatiently, looking from one to the other. "You may as well just tell us."

Castle and Beckett looked at each other, looking convincingly confused.

"You know what they're talking about?" Castle asked her, and she shrugged.

"Beats me."

"Aw, come on, guys," Ryan pleaded, "just tell us. Please?"

Castle and Beckett simply looked at them blankly, and Esposito groaned in frustration.

Ryan tried another tack. "Okay, well, if something did happen, you would tell us, right?"

"You know, guys, as much as I'm enjoying this little chat, I do have a lot of paperwork to finish," Beckett said suddenly, then added, "and I'm sure you two do as well. So either get to the point or get moving."

Looking down at her desk, she began pulling out files, flipping through one and then another.

Defeated, Esposito sent her an irritated look. "You know Lanie's gonna tell me anyway."

Beckett didn't look up. "Tell you what?"

Esposito opened his mouth to give a cutting retort, but stopped himself as he saw the Chief approaching.

Pausing beside the desk, Montgomery let his gaze travel slowly over the four of them, his eyebrows lifting just a fraction. Clearly choosing not to comment on the unusual arrangement, he turned to Beckett.

"How are those reports coming, Beckett?"

"Almost done, sir. They'll be on your desk within half an hour."

Nodding his approval, he turned to the two other detectives, giving them a penetrating look.

"There some reason you two are over here instead of finishing your own paperwork?"

Shifting his weight awkwardly, Ryan sent a quick glance at Esposito before answering sheepishly, "Well, no," then adding hurriedly, "Sir."

"Then I'd suggest you get your butts back over there and get to work," Montgomery said curtly, raising one eyebrow as if daring them to argue.

Throwing Castle and Beckett a look of utter vexation, Esposito stalked back over to his desk, Ryan following close behind. Taking their seats, they grabbed a few files and feigned concentration until Montgomery had stopped watching them and disappeared back into his office.

The moment he was gone, they looked back over at Castle and Beckett, who appeared to be sitting contentedly in a companionable silence as Beckett worked. Grumbling and shaking their heads, Ryan and Esposito dropped their gaze back to their work, but were interrupted almost immediately as their phones suddenly vibrated simultaneously.

Looking down at their screens, their faces broke into matching scowls as they read Castle's message.

Isn't payback a bitch?

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And thanks for reading!