For All-I-Need, and anyone else who wanted to see this scene. I didn't have a place for it in Spiral Bound, so I'm posting it here as a separate one-shot. Hope this is what you had in mind :)
Thanks to teelduo for the cover art!
Disclaimer: Not so much. But if you want to give me part ownership for Christmas, you'd be my favorite person ever!
Sweetest Words
(Spiral Bound Chapter 68.5)
September 2014
Her palms were sweaty. Her heart was racing. And she was nervous. Really nervous. It wasn't the first time she'd stepped out in public with him, by far not the first time she'd faced the media. But no matter how often this happened, she was never going to become accustomed to it, because the potential of having every word overheard, every action caught on camera, was always a source of stress in situations like this. Add in the fact that there was a diamond ring on her finger that very few people knew about, and she could only hope none of the scenarios that had made appearances in her dreams last night would actually play out.
She felt Castle squeeze her hand as the driver opened his door, tensed as his fingers slid out of hers and he exited the car. He knew she wasn't keen on events like this, knew his touch helped steady her, though her tight grip on his hand usually faded once they cleared the red carpet. But he could tell she was feeling uncomfortable and out of her element tonight, knew he needed to take the lead even though she always managed to charm the press despite her distaste for the publicity.
But he knew her tells, knew that right now, she needed their connection.
"Ready?" Castle asked as he ducked down and extended his hand to her, guiding her out of the limo. She twined their fingers tightly together, stepped out of the car.
As she set foot on the red carpet, Kate was immediately blinded by the flashbulbs, overwhelmed by the onslaught of voices calling out to them. There were fans asking for autographs, journalists and reporters looking for exclusive information on the soon-to-be-released novel. Man, she'd forgotten how crazy people could be at events like this.
"Relax," Castle murmured into her ear, linking their arms together and guiding her inside, ignoring the pleas of everyone lining the red carpet. He could feel the tension beginning to fade at his touch, kept a firm grip on her as they escaped the worst of the crowd and stepped through the front doors of the venue. "You've got this."
They entered the party arm in arm, were greeted almost instantly by a very chatty Paula. She leaned in to press a kiss to Castle's cheek, nodded to Kate in the cool and detached way to which she'd become accustomed. She didn't dislike the woman, per se, but they rarely saw eye to eye and Kate always had the feeling Paula wasn't thrilled with Castle's increased preference for privacy.
"About time you got here, there are people waiting to see you," she began, voice all business as usual. Truthfully, all Kate wanted to do was hide out in a corner with Castle and a glass of wine, out of the limelight, but she knew that wasn't an option.
Without warning, Castle's arm was pulled from Kate's as his publicist guided him away from her, already rattling off a list of attendees and happenings, leaving Kate standing awkwardly just inside the door, completely out of place amid this crowd. She wandered around the edges of the room, waving hello to a couple of familiar faces along the way and striking up brief conversations, but mostly attempting to shrink into the background.
Thankfully, Lanie appeared by her side after about ten minutes, wrapping Kate's fingers around a glass of wine and dragging her off to the side.
"Oh, thank God you're here," Kate breathed, taking a sip of her wine and glancing around to double check their privacy. Castle was still nowhere to be seen but she did catch sight of Ryan and Jenny across the way, raised an arm in their direction.
"Some entrance you made with Writer Boy," Lanie smirked, completely ignoring her words.
Kate rolled her eyes. "Yeah well, I didn't exactly have a choice."
"Maybe so but that doesn't mean you had to show up looking like that." Lanie gestured to her.
"Lanie, I'm not..."
She was cut off as Lanie held up her hand. "Nuh uh, don't even say it. You look gorgeous, and I have to say, there's been this glow about you ever since he put that ring on your finger."
Kate smiled, eyes dropping to the gorgeous jewelry glittering on her left hand. "Yeah," she murmured, completely smitten.
"Speaking of," Lanie said a moment later and Kate turned in time to see Castle making his way towards her, a smile mixed with a grimace on his face.
"Hey," he panted as he stepped up to her and wrapped an arm around her waist, pulled her to him possessively.
"Hey," she murmured, leaning into his warmth as he brushed a kiss to her cheek. "How are things going?"
He shrugged, loosening his hold. "You know how Paula can be. People to say hello to, reporters wanting an interview. The usual."
Lanie stepped back, melded into the crowd for a moment, far enough away to not intrude on their conversation but close enough to overhear everything, and they were so caught up in each other that neither noticed Lanie's disappearance.
"Has anyone noticed yet?" Kate asked.
"Not so far, but you know they will. Paula's releasing our statement tomorrow."
"Okay," she murmured.
From across the room, someone called out Castle's name, a voice sounding suspiciously like Paula's once again. He sighed, loosened his grip on Kate's hand. "I have to go."
Sometimes she'd work the crowd with him but tonight she wasn't necessarily keen on meeting and greeting hundreds of people, especially with their recent engagement. Thank goodness for Lanie, and she was sure Martha and Alexis were here somewhere as well and would gladly come to her rescue.
"Have I mentioned that you look absolutely beautiful?" he asked under his breath. His fingers trailed across the back of her black dress, long enough to be appropriate, but the low-cut neckline and tight fitted bodice accentuated her figure perfectly, bringing all kinds of inappropriate thoughts swirling into his mind. Pair that with black heels, the ringlet curls in her hair, and the smoky makeup outlining her eyes, and Castle was finding it very difficult not to drag her to a secluded area and show her exactly how sexy she was.
"Once or twice," Kate replied softly, smiling up at him.
His eyes twinkled as he returned her gaze, grinned broadly. "Just making sure you know."
Kate rolled her eyes lovingly, leaned into him as he pressed his lips to her temple. His fingertips trailed over her hipbones as he dropped his arms and stepped away into the crowd, mouthed an 'I love you' in her direction as he walked away.
She gazed after him longingly, only vaguely aware of the people milling about around her. Her eyes were still fixed on him as he erected his public persona once again, the one she wasn't overly fond of but accepted as a part of him for occasions such as this. It secretly melted her heart, the way his projected image dropped in an instant when he was with her. The way he showed her the parts of him that so few people truly knew.
The way he loved her so unabashedly even in front of the cameras, the soft touches and heated glances that weren't over the top displays of affection but held heaps of meaning for the two of them.
"He didn't, like, write his wedding vows as the dedication, did he?" Lanie asked offhandedly, interrupting her thoughts, and Kate whirled around in surprise, mild embarrassment coloring her cheeks as she realized she'd all but forgotten her friend's presence.
"I uh..." Kate stammered, shrugged her shoulders. "I don't know. He wouldn't tell me what he wrote."
"Well, what are you waiting for?" Lanie asked, pulling the wine glass from Kate's hand and giving her a gentle shove in the direction of the stand of books in the center of the room. "Go read it."
"Did you already look?" Kate asked suspiciously, turning back to Lanie.
"Just read it," the ME replied mysteriously, refusing to divulge.
Kate sighed, made her way through the throngs of people towards the books. It took a good ten minutes to make it to the center of the room, as she was stopped by about every second or third person, some reporters, some fans asking for her autograph, and some men who seemed oblivious to the ring on her left hand as they tried to strike up a flirtatious conversation with her.
As she approached the stand of books, though, the noise in the room died down slightly and she could feel multiple pairs of eyes trained on her, anxiously awaiting her reaction.
She stepped up to the stand, reached out for a copy of the novel. The picture on the front cover bore striking similarities to most of the books in the series, a single color with Nikki appearing only as a silhouette. Despite the fact that Kate hated the publicity she received as a result of her alter ego's lack of clothing on previous covers, she always admired the artistry of the images.
As she lifted Raging Heat, slid her index finger beneath the cover to lift it, she felt Castle step up behind her. A hand came to rest lightly on the small of her back, his breath playing over her ear, and she was reminded of the first time she attended a launch party, how she had been so overcome by his dedication to her in Heat Wave that their conversation turned into a petty argument because neither was willing to acknowledge what was, even all those years ago, already building between them.
She turned to the first page, eyes immediately finding the words in the center. It was addressed to her, just nine words, but utterly perfect.
"Castle," she breathed, eyes glued to the page.
His arm slipped further around her waist, holding her body to his. With shaking fingers, Kate closed the book, set it back on the display shelf. She turned in his arms then, lifted moist eyes to his.
"Okay?" he asked nervously, though why he was worried was beyond belief. It was evident to everyone in the room that Kate was completely enamored by his words, by him.
She leaned her forehead against his as her arms rose to wrap around his neck, guide his lips to hers. She kissed him softly, a feather-light brushing of lips, keeping it chaste in deference to their location.
"It's perfect," she whispered, but in the near silence of the room, her words traveled rather easily.
The crowd erupted then, flashbulbs going off from various angles, reporters shouting questions in their direction, and Kate was pretty sure she heard more than one person say the word 'ring.' But she and Castle ignored all of it, refusing to let anyone tarnish this moment as she allowed his beautiful words to sink in, warm her heart.
Pictures of this exchange were probably going to be splashed all over the internet tomorrow but, for the time being, Kate didn't care.
"Thank you," she breathed as they separated, so many emotions flowing between them. Castle reached up to tuck an errant curl behind her ear, trailed his hand down her arm to twine their fingers together, the heat palpable as it spread from his veins to hers.
Kate nearly shivered at his touch, her body thrumming with love and lust and arousal that she was trying very hard to suppress. God, he shouldn't be allowed to write things like this about her, not if he was going to make her wait to read them in a public place.
"How soon until we can get out of here?" she asked after a minute, keeping her voice soft.
Castle raised an eyebrow, lowered his voice. "Why Detective Beckett, did you have something specific in mind?"
She blinked up at him through dark lashes, eyes dripping with heady arousal. "What can I say, Castle?" she husked, far too sexy for a public place. "I guess I'm not the only one who serves as..." she leaned in, breathed the last word into his ear, "inspiration."
To KB – The stars above us, the world at our feet
