A bottle of wine begs to be shared. [ OTA ]

[hell_ofa_thing]

It was, perhaps, not the most likely of sights: a seasoned FBI profiler, serving wine to various patrons. This wasn't just any wine bar, though; he was particular about wine (fussy, Emily would say), but this place mostly met his standards, and the people who tended to frequent Veritas had good taste, too, otherwise he would have left a while ago.

Comments

[ruggdlyhndsome]

Honestly, Castle needed a glass of wine.

Having Beckett back in town was a double-edged sword. He loved her for sure, but they were still in a place where little arguments and bickering caused them to not wish to speak to each other for a few hours. Everything was so tentative and it was stressful. Having his mother and daughter here was equally comforting and stressful.

He sat down at one of the tables in the wine bar and perused the menu. This was nice. So many different choices.

[hell_ofa_thing]

Being a profiler meant he was attuned to the nuances and subtleties of human behavior, and he could read people pretty well when they came into the bar. Sometimes people wore their emotions very plainly on their face, and just about anyone could guess what was going on in their mind. But Rossi liked to believe he was far, far better at gauging the feelings of those with more of a poker face.

The man who came in and took a seat had a neutral expression, but there was a little stiffness in his shoulders that spoke of tension. It could go different ways in a wine bar: people came in just to have fun and enjoy, to relax after a long day, or to dull the pain and stress.

"I prefer reds, but I'm Italian," he offered, as he approached. He could help narrow it down, though, even though he had his obvious biases.

[ruggdlyhndsome]

Castle smiled and looked up at the man who had spoken.

"I like chianti when I eat Italian food, though if I'm just drinking wine alone, I usually prefer white..."

He glanced down the list of chardonnays.

[hell_ofa_thing]

He wasn't opposed to white wines, though he tended to utilize them more when he cooked, rather than actually drinking any.

This man liked chianti and Italian food, though, so he obviously had good taste.

With complete confidence, Rossi pointed to a chardonnay. "You'll like this one."

[ruggdlyhndsome]

Castle nodded, deciding to trust his suggestion.

"Let's go for it then."

He handed the menu back to him.

"I usually drink wine with food, not on its own."

[hell_ofa_thing]

They didn't really have full meals here, but obviously they had some food. This particular wine was perfect paired with shrimp scampi, or any grilled whitefish, none of which they had.

"It goes well with sharp cheeses," he offered as he took the menu back. They did have that, at least: cheese, crackers, fruit.

[ruggdlyhndsome]

Castle held up his hands.

"You know what? Don't hold back. I'll take the cheese too."

Because why the hell not? Treating himself was fun.

"I wish you had some cigars."

[hell_ofa_thing]

He liked this man a lot already. Cigars? He often thought the same thing, being here. A cigar lounge would be perfect somewhere in this village.

"That's what I like to hear," he smiled approvingly, grabbing the bottle of chardonnay he'd agreed to, and putting in the order for the cheese plate. "There's nothing quite like a good cigar and a glass of scotch."

[ruggdlyhndsome]

"You're absolutely right."

He closed his eyes for a moment, thinking of his old haunt back in New York and how many scotches and cigars he'd had in the place.

"I could go for a scotch but I should probably just settle for wine right now."

[hell_ofa_thing]

That look was interesting; Rossi had his own fond memories tied to cigars and scotch, and thinking of enjoying both made him miss Aaron, not for the first time since he'd been here.

"As long as I've been here, I haven't met anyone who has an appreciation for both," he remarked. He poured the glass of chardonnay, and nudged it over to the man. And then he stuck his hand out. "I'm David Rossi."

[ruggdlyhndsome]

Castle shook his hand.

"Rick Castle. Pleasure to meet you."

He smiled. The older man had an interesting quality about him, something that made Castle want to know more.

"I know you're supposed to be working now, but.. care to join me for a quick glass?"

[hell_ofa_thing]

Rick.

He'd heard that name before, from Martha. Though she hadn't mentioned her son's last name. There were a lot of people in the village, it could be a coincidence. But Martha loved wine, too, and her son would naturally have equally good taste. And Rossi tended not to believe in coincidences, even ones as small as this.

He was an intriguing guy, and the offer was tempting, and really, wine wasn't like hard liquor. He smirked.

"I'm Italian, I don't say no to a glass of wine." He poured himself a small glass of merlot.

[ruggdlyhndsome]

The fact that he was Italian was fairly obvious, from his dark skin, to his name, to the way he dressed. His suits were well put together, expensive. Castle wondered if he was Mobbed up.

"I'm Scots-Irish, so.. draw your own conclusion."

He smiled. At least that's what mother was. He had no clue whom his father was, let alone what heritage he had.

[hell_ofa_thing]

In another life, he very easily could have been Mobbed up, which was precisely why he'd made the decision long ago to join the Marines, knowing that his life was possibly heading in that direction. Given what had happened to Ray, he knew he'd made the right choice.

"Then it's no wonder you appreciate scotch," he concluded, taking a sip of his wine. "You play poker, right?" He knew the answer to that, already.

[ruggdlyhndsome]

Castle smiled. Either Castle was being incredibly obvious or this guy was reading him very well.

"I've been known to."

He sipped his wine.

"Mmm, good choice."

[hell_ofa_thing]

Well, of course, he was just that good. There were so many things about a person that gave away their interests, their various likes and dislikes, and most people had no awareness of just how much they said without saying anything at all.

"Poker goes well with cigars and scotch," he remarked with a slight smile. "This is one of the few white wines I like."