Detective Katherine Beckett placed her badge and gun in the glove box of her car, locking the compartment before stepping out of her vehicle. She wasn't a detective tonight, merely a friend. Shielding her eyes from the mid-day sun, Kate took a moment to register just how huge this house was. Castle's ex-wife hit the jackpot when they'd split up. Gina was attracted to wealth like a moth to a flame, and it was no surprise that upon realizing that Castle had been successful with his new Nikki Heat novels, the blonde woman had reappeared into his life and their flame had supposedly been rekindled. The detective couldn't help but wonder what else the manipulative woman had managed to take from him…

Kate jumped upon hearing the familiar buzz of her cell phone, her train of thought cut short. She answered without bothering to check the caller ID.

"Beckett."

"You always sound so angry when you say your name like that. No note of good humor, or an upward inflection, or anything."

"Castle..?"

"See?" He bellowed with unusual enthusiasm. "That! Say your name just like that."

"I don't have time for this right now, Castle." Kate shuffled from one foot to the other, unable to rip her gaze from the spectacular garden and running fountains in Gina's yard. "What do you want?"

"You just seemed…irritated when you left the precinct. I wanted to make sure you were alright. Maybe you wanted some company?"

She rolled her eyes, a lump in her throat at the irony of the situation. "Not today. I'll call you about the case tomorrow."

Before he could object (as she knew he would), Kate hung up and placed her phone back into the pocket of her jeans. The writer had spent most of the day gawking over his newfound affection for the attractive blonde that had waltzed back into his life. It had become a nuisance to the case they'd been working on, and she had done her utmost to get away from him before her obvious distaste of his infatuation spilled over her wall of apathy. Gina wasn't right for him, and since Richard couldn't see it, Kate had taken it upon herself to make things right.

The detective's heels clicked against the cobblestone path as she made her way to the entrance of the manor. She took a deep breath, and rung the doorbell. It took all of three seconds for a high-pitched voice to wash over through the intercom. "Come in!"

The door creaked open, and Kate poked her head inside, unsure of whether or not it was appropriate to walk in unannounced. With a foot planted outside, the natural brunette called out into the large, empty house.

"Come on iiiiiin, detective!" The sound of a female voice rose to an uncomfortable octave, and Gina appeared from one of the grand rooms branching off of the main entryway. Her blonde hair was matted to the sides of her face, her body wrapped in an expensive-looking white bathrobe, and a delicate smile possessing her lips. "What a surprise to see you here, detective. Is Richard alright?"

"Castle is fine," Kate responded through tight lips. "You know, it probably isn't a good idea for you to let just someone walk into your home. I could have been anyone."

Gina smiled. "I saw you on the monitor, but I do appreciate the concern."

Right. Yes, of course. The generally calm and collected detective was at a loss for words, smiling at the other woman and unable to vocalize an appropriate response. She didn't like this woman, and was making it more and more obvious that something was wrong. Kate shook away her unresolved feelings, and assumed the confident role that she was so very used to maintaining. "May I speak with you, Ms. Cowell? I won't take up too much of your time, I simply have a few questions."

"Wow..." the woman exhaled softly at the tone of Kate's authority, shifting her weight and cocking her hip. "Don't bother yourself with formalities, detective. Please, call me Gina."

"Gina," the name rolled off of her tongue smoother than anticipated. "How long have you known Castle?"

"Oh, so this is about Richard?"

"I'm not implying anything, nor am I working under the assumption th-that..." The blonde woman shifted her weight once more, the hem of her collar dipping open to reveal white, creamy flesh. Kate's focus drifted lower to the subtle swell of chest visible through the opening of her bathrobe, and concentration began to dilute, "...the, umm, assumption that you're to b-blame f-for anyth... Ms. Cowell. Please fix your robe."

Nonchalant, Gina glanced downwards at her open robe and smiled, grabbing her breasts through the material and shaking her shoulders comically. "Detective Beckett! Am I embarrassing you?"

"Ms. Cowell..."

"Oh, alright." She conceded with a grin, fixing her attire. "I'll behave, detective. Don't bring me to the holding cells."

Jesus Christ, what does Castle see in her? She's a living Barbie. "Umm, I wouldn't. Ms. Cowell, aside from being his publisher, what do you stand to gain at the eventual rise Castle's fame? You two have known each other long enough for you to be able to determine the approximate destination of your relationship, is that correct?"

"Relationship?" Gina furrowed her brows. "Richard and I aren't in a relationship."

Kate's heart skipped a beat. "You're not..? I was under the impression that-"

"He has money in his wallet and I have an ass in my pants? Basically." Despite the nature of the conversation, the blonde woman's perky tone was maintained, and she wore a good-humored expression. "Besides, most of the time all he does is talk about you, anyway. I think we could become very good friends, you and I. That is, seeing as I feel like I already know you inside and out!"

The detective's train of thought left the station once more as she contemplated all the subtle hints the writer had planted throughout his little infatuated speeches. Of course. Akin to the end of an investigation, the pieces of the puzzle were beginning to fall into place, and a smile suitable to a schoolgirl's crept it's way onto her lips. Castle had managed to sneak his way into her mind (as he always did) and create a false sense of jealousy just to prove a point. Oh, Castle.

"So you two never got back together after the divorce? What about the Hamptons?"

"I got a five star suite, and he got a five star fuck. Simple." Gina moistened her mouth before biting her bottom lip and smiling. "Castle never really interested me in the first place, actually. But these last few months, with the things he's told me... I've gotten to know you, detective. You're quite something."

"What kinds of things has he told you...?"

"That you're the most driven woman he's ever met," she never broke eye contact as she spoke, inching closer to Kate with a hand holding her bathrobe shut, "and that he wakes up in the morning eager for someone to be killed just so that he can give you a cup of coffee."

Oh, Castle. Oblivious to the hungry gaze her partner's ex-wife was roaming over her, Kate's lips twitched into another childish smile at the thought of Castle's elaborate plan to be with her. The Nikki Heat novels, the not-so-subtle sexual innuendos, the inadvertent danger that had skimmed him time and time again... it had all been for her.

"It's a little morbid, of course, when you think about it," Gina continued, her blue eyes piercing and alive. "But Richard has always been a morbid boy. He's so immature sometimes, I can't stand it. You, on the other hand... so down to earth. So operated and controlled, and so very passionate about what it is that arouses your curiosity."

The detective's thoughts came to a halt upon coming to terms with the low octave that Gina's pitch had taken on. Only then did she realize the sultry way the blonde had managed to position her hips, cocked against the threshold of one of the massive rooms that her manor contained. Her bathrobe was untied, held shut by the loose fist that Gina held between her breasts. Kate took an unexpected step backwards, her heart thundering in her chest and her mind racing; she felt naked without her gun and badge.

"What drives you, Katherine?"

"Ms. Cowell, I'm going to have to ask you to step ba-"

"Gina." She corrected the brunette, inching closer again until Kate's back was pressed against the large wooden doors by which she had entered. "Please, call me Gina."

Her blonde hair had begun to dry in curled locks, descending along her neck in a messy yet appealing fashion. The detective licked her lips, unable to stop the pounding of her pulse against her temples as Gina's eyes pierced through her like a knife. It was unnerving. The fashion in which this woman had managed to render her mouth dry and her muscles tight was like nothing Kate had ever experienced.

"Ms. Cowell," her tone was authoritative and unwavering, unlike the butterflies in her stomach. "I came to see you today to discuss your partnership with Castle. He doesn't deserve t-to be taken advant-ta...age-"

A sly expression engulfed Gina's otherwise innocent allure as the detective's words fumbled. Castle's publisher had let her arms fall to her side in the most casual manner possible, the slightly damp robe falling loose enough to make Kate's breath catch in her throat. The blonde licked her lips again, hungry and determined.

"I think I know what drives you, detective." She stepped forward one last time to press her body against the brunette's front, and Gina's pupils visibly dilated upon feeling her prey try to step back but hit the back of her head against the door instead. "You spend too much time focusing on what it is that others want, that you don't have time at the end of the day for yourself, do you, love?"

"I..."

"Shh." The blonde leaned in and pressed her soft lips to Kate's for but a moment. "I'll take care of you."

The detective's mouth hung open, her eyes wide and her heart still thumping like a jackhammer. What just happened, exactly?

"Hmm." Gina's confusion was apparent across her brows, even as she bent her knees to let her breasts trail down Kate's stomach and back up again to rest against the other woman's chest. "I do have to admit, I didn't think Detective Beckett would be so passive. You disappoint me."

Before Kate could utter a word of protest, she once more felt the warmth of lips pressed onto her own. Gina wasn't as gentle as she had been before, and the detective could feel the force of the other woman's body rise up against her torso as the blonde woman cupped Kate's cheeks in the palms of her hands.

A warmth spread through Kate's body, despite her unmoving lips and stiff posture. She felt a scalding fire, threatening to loosen every fiber of resolve she held dear to her, burning its way down her chest to make itself comfortable between her hips. The brunette held her breath, unmoving, waiting for the other woman to pull away but silently begging her not to. Unable to control her body's movements, Kate's hands rose to hover just above Gina's hips and she simply held them there, feeling the heat radiate from the other woman's body.

Gina pulled away, her lips lingering just an inch away from Kate's for but a second before she distanced herself enough to be able to look the other woman in the eyes. At that moment, the brunette's hands twitched into a clenching motion, the tips of her fingers digging into the blonde's waist. Immediately subsequent to her body's mishap, the detective removed her hands to place them behind her back, her eyes going wide with an unknown feeling as Gina grinned.

"You have absolutely no idea how long I've wanted to do that, Katherine." At that point, her bathrobe had fallen open enough to expose her entire front; the detective didn't dare take a better look than what her peripherals offered. "Although... I had no idea you were so shy. Is the Big Bad Wolf scared to take a bite, mmm?"

Gina giggled, trailing her finger down and between Kate's cleavage, never breaking eye contact. She bit her lip, and whispered, "I taste really good, I promise."

Kate's mouth hung open, her breath unable to leave the security of her lungs. There was a subtle, yet exciting thrum of heat coursing through her, its presence arousing her senses in ways that were unfamiliar to the detective. Castle seemed to elude her thoughts, the notion of anything right now other than the gorgeous blonde woman before her seemed irrelevant. The consuming prospect took over her mind, and the brunette bit her bottom lip.

"Any more questions, detective?" Gina's pupils were dilated, and her lips were red and swollen. "You seem... at a loss for words."

Again. Please. She couldn't bring herself to voice the request, as much as she desperately wanted to. Kate's body was frozen in place, her muscles strung tight enough to cause a slight discomfort. One more time. Please.

TBC?

A/N: I'm really not sure what happened to my muse, but I'm starting to think she's dead somewhere in the back of my mind. I'm not sure if I want to keep this piece of (very unlikely) fiction going or not, so if anyone has any ideas... let me know! Because my creativity is dwindling.