Moby...

Kate shifted from one foot to the other as she waited in the freakishly long line for the women's restroom. It was intermission of the Metropolitan Opera's annual fundraiser performance and in a couple short minutes the lights would flash for them to retake their seats whether her bladder was still full or not. She eyed the empty queue to the men's room across the way warily as she absently rubbed her still flat abdomen. She shifted again, blowing out a slow breath through parted lips. No one had told her the whole "having to pee constantly" thing would start so freaking early and the Spanx she had donned for this occasion were not helping matters.

Her mind wandered as she crept forward in line, one more woman exiting the door in the distance, considering wryly if shimmying out of the offending undergarment and slipping it into Castle's jacket pocket would be nearly as sexy as when she had done it with her lacy lingerie in the past.

Probably not.

She could always just throw them in the bathroom trash; it wasn't like she would be wearing them again anytime soon even in her new constantly bloated and puffy state. Nope, any future soirees requiring cocktail attire would be attended au naturale, so to speak.

"Richard Castle."

Kate startled at the sound of her husband's name falling from the lips of the woman standing behind her in line.

"Excuse me?" She replied as she turned, her curiosity piqued.

"Right over there, the mystery writer. The 'White Whale' so to speak, at least that's what everyone used to call him," the woman continued, a cocktail clutched in her gesturing hand. "I swear, that's one who just keeps getting better with age."

Kate followed the woman's gaze to where Castle stood chatting with a couple at the bar, his champagne and her flute of ginger ale, clutched in his hands, a strained smile on his face. Her eyes narrowed into slits as she looked back at the woman who was openly ogling her husband's rear. She looked vaguely familiar, and that God-awful nickname "The White Whale"; she had heard that somewhere before...

They grew wide again as her memory flashed back to that case seven years before, the woman found dead in a safe that had led them to be undercover at the benefit for the Metropolitan Academy Dance Theater- that gorgeous red Cinderella dress, laughing as Castle begged her to save him from being auctioned off to the highest bidder and this same exact woman randomly pulling her into conversation.

What was her name?

"I hear he married a cop," the woman continued. "It's a shame, a hunk like that shackled to a frump in pant suits and sensible shoes. I give it six months tops. Maybe I should go talk to him now, throw my hat into the ring."

Kate's jaw clenched as her eyebrows rose to her hairline, as the woman laughed at her own joke. Heat boiled up her spine. Her stomach rolled. Perfect time to add nausea to the mix.

"A frump, really? I heard she was stunning actually. And they've known each other for years. He even based his latest series of books on her. I'm surprised you don't know that, you seem to know an awful lot about 'the circuit'." The swell of anger caused the words to spill out of her lips before she could stop them, tears pricking at her eyes. Damn hormones.

The woman flicked her wrist holding her drink flippantly, waving off Kate's words, causing Beckett to rock backward slightly, staying safely out of the range of flying droplets of… Kate sniffed the air. Gin?

"Ugh. Who even reads books anymore?"

Kate's face twisted into an incredulous look. "You haven't read his books but you...?"

"Honey, with that booty and the amount of padding on his bank account he could be a deep sea fisherman and I wouldn't care as long as I had an unlimited credit limit."

And an unlimited bar, Kate thought glibly as she rolled her eyes. Maybe she could take her Spanx and shove them up this woman's -

"Kate!"

Kate's eyes snapped up to see her husband hurrying over to her, a mildly panicked expression on his face. She pressed her lips into a line, suppressing a smile. Despite his facade for the cameras, and adept talent for small talk, he really didn't like these events anymore than she did. Generally their united front, as they sipped champagne, people watched and made up stories about the various colorful patrons was what ultimately got them through the schmoozing and petty gossip. He had looked like a lost puppy being thrown to the wolves when she had sent him to get the drinks while she went to the bathroom.

Beckett resisted looking at the woman's face as Castle stopped in front of her and she intentionally flashed her wedding ring set as he pressed her flute into her welcoming left hand. She had never been so grateful for ginger as she had in the last month.

"Oh! Wrong one," Castle spluttered as he took a sip of his drink, deftly swapping their glasses before hers reached her lips. "That could have been bad."

The lights flashed suddenly in the 3-minute warning and Kate let out a sigh. This line could not move any slower if it tried.

"I..." Castle motioned to the hall where the other patrons were slowly making their way back to the their seats.

"Go ahead," Kate jumped in. "I'll meet you inside."

"Oh, by the way, we're having dinner with the Suttons next week. Sorry," he winced as he leaned in to kiss her cheek, his free hand patting her belly, an unconscious gesture he had adopted. "Pray for a murder."

Her face split into a smile as he stepped back. "I'll make sure I'm on call that night."

"Thank you!"

She watched, sipping her drink idly, as he hurried down the hall to their box.

"Oh yeah," Kate commented as she caught sight of the woman's slack jaw and wide eyes, before spinning slowly on the balls of her feet to face the front of the line. "I also heard she's pregnant. So I'm guessing she isn't going anywhere anytime soon."

A/N: Prompt: "Caskett goes to a fundraiser after they are married and Kate runs into the woman that called him The White Whale. She starts going on about Castle like before not knowing Kate is his wife now." - Filled as a gift to tshlw (Hope) for her generous contribution to YoungStoryTellers dot com slash ThankYouTerri.

See all the prompts and fills at ThankYouTerri dot tumblr dot com.

Twitter: aspen_musing

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Thank you to Kate Christie for the beta.