So I just finally sat down and decided to join in on all the Ficathon fun. I really like a lot of the prompts (but not all of them) so I'm going to make this a series of stand-alones and hopefully have enough words to qualify for the Maxificathon. So here's to giving it my best shot. Enjoy!

Prompt One: In "Hedgefund Homeboys" Castle convinces Beckett to come on Alexis' DC trip as an extra chaperone.

"Please," Castle asked, not for the first time and, most likely, not for the last.

"No," Kate said, probably for the thousandth time that night, as she turned down her covers, getting ready for bed. Her phone was balanced between her shoulder and left ear as she listened to him beg and bribe. She stopped him right in the middle of an offer to buy her a personal airline, called 'Air Beckett'. "Castle," she interrupted, "I'm not going to DC with you and Alexis."

"Beckett, please!" he practically whined. "Mrs. Davis got sick and if you don't come, then the trip can't happen and then Alexis will be just so upset because she's been waiting for this trip for so long and—"

"Castle," Kate interrupted again, "I have work. I can't just leave town last minute."

"Nice try," Castle replied. "I already called Montgomery and he told me that he gave you the weekend off and you're not on call so you have absolutely no reason not to go."

"How do you know I don't have plans," Kate asked, sitting down on her bed. There was a moment of heavy silence and Kate could practically see his look of disbelief, that infuriating eyebrow raise… "Ugh," she said, "fine. I don't, but that doesn't mean—"

"Beckett, please," Castle asked, starting to sound desperate. "Don't do this for me; do it for Alexis. I know you like her more than me, anyway."

"Well, that's true…"

"Hey!"

"Well, you're the one that brought it up. Anyway, to be honest, I only like her more because she's quieter. At least, it seems that way since I never really see her…"

"Oh, she's quieter," Castle insisted. "When she was little, she was like a mouse; I had to check up on her crib every couple of hours to make sure she was still there."

"Sounds like my kind of kid…"

"So you'll do it?"

"No."

"Come on! Please! I'll stay away from the precinct for a week if you do!"

"A month," Kate countered.

"Two weeks," Castle replied.

"Deal," Kate sighed, figuring one night in DC was a pretty good deal for two weeks of peace. "Now will you please let me get some sleep?"

"Of course!" Castle exclaimed and Kate could practically see the look of boyish excitement on his face. "We'll be there tomorrow at seven to pick you up!"

"In the morning?" Kate asked.

"I'll bring coffee."

"Damn right you will."

When he picked her up the next morning, Kate was practically dead on her feet, leaning heavily against the door when she opened it to his smiling face.

"Good morning, Detective!" he said, brightly.

"Coffee," she growled, holding out her hand. Castle laughed and handed her a hot pink thermos. At her raised eyebrow, he sighed.

"It's my mother's," he informed her. "Alexis has mine down in the car." Kate snorted and unscrewed the thermos, taking a nice long sip, sighing in contentment. "Can I take your bags?" Castle asked, stepping inside.

"Bags?" Kate asked. "We're only staying for one night."

"Two," Castle corrected. "We get back on Sunday morning." Kate groaned.

"I have to spend two nights with you and a bunch of chatty teenagers?" Kate whined.

"Sorry," Castle said with a shrug. Kate rolled her eyes and handed him the thermos, picking up her overnight bag and dragging back into her bedroom.

After packing another pair of underwear and a new outfit for Sunday, she rejoined him in the living room, where he was trying to subtly look around.

"Let's go," Kate sighed, exchanging her bag for the thermos and leading the way out of her apartment, making sure to grab her keys on the way out. Castle followed her, allowing her to lock the door before leading her down the hallway to the elevator.

When they got down to street level, Kate spotted the minivan taxi, where Alexis's red hair was fanned out against the back window. Castle smiled fondly at her as he placed Kate's bag between theirs in the trunk and walked around to open the door for Kate, who slid in next to the sleeping teen.

Alexis stirred long enough for her head to flop onto Kate's shoulder. The detective's eyes widened but she made no effort to move out of the way, her own head falling to Alexis's and she closed her own eyes, a soft smile tugging at her lips.

Castle smiled at the two women, settling in for the short trip to the airport.

He was practically carrying them both when they got there, Kate on one arm and Alexis on the other, their cabbie gracious enough to follow them with their bags. Castle tipped him heavily as they checked their bags, grinning at the woman behind the counter who gave him a little, "aw," when Beckett gave a cute little snort against his neck.

They met with a couple dozen other teens and chaperones, half of whom were about as awake as Kate and Alexis. The leader of the group, Mrs. Adamson, checked them off on her list and thanked the sleepy Beckett for agreeing to chaperone on such late notice. Kate nodded, offering a sleepy smile, still leaning on Castle's arm. Alexis had embraced a few of her friends and the girls were all huddled on a bench, sharing their thermoses of coffee; Alexis's and Paige's.

They waited about an hour until their flight was called and while the students had the pleasure of sitting in Economy Comfort, Castle had upgraded the chaperones' seats to First Class, with all of them taking turns checking on the kids throughout the duration of the trip. It was less than two hours long so they got up every twenty minutes and the chaperones who didn't would take the next flight.

In DC, they found their hotel with ease and Kate and Castle were assigned a full floor, in which their charges would fill about five rooms, meaning twenty kids under their care; eight girls and twelve boys.

But, probably the most alarming fact, they would also have to share a room. Granted, it had two beds, but still…

Why the hell had she agreed to this?

"Trust me," Castle said, as if reading her thoughts, "I'll be a perfect gentleman." At her raised eyebrow he held his hands up in surrender. "I wouldn't try anything with my daughter sleeping two doors down."

"Oh really?" Kate laughed. "Your love life would suggest otherwise."

"Well," Castle said, "usually there's a full floor between Alexis and…I'm just going to stop talking now. But, seriously, I wouldn't do anything untoward, Detective. Cross my heart." He made a crossing gesture over his heart, causing Beckett to roll her eyes, but she said no more; just plopped down, face-first, onto her chosen bed. "You know we have to go on a tour in an hour, right?"

Kate moaned, flipping him off over his shoulder. Castle just chuckled and shook his head.

"Why are there so many fucking things to see in Washington, DC?" Kate groaned as they entered their room later. "Why can't this just be where the president lives and let that be that?"

"Because then there'd be nothing else to do in this city," Castle replied, sitting down on his bed. "And we wouldn't be here."

"Hallelujah," Kate said into her pillow.

"Hey, you were having fun," Castle pointed out. "I saw you laughing with your group."

"Yeah, well what do you expect when your fellow chaperone gets winded going up the steps at the Lincoln Memorial?" She honked out a laugh into her pillow when she saw him pout childishly. "Cheer up, Castle," she said, "I'm sure it could happen to anybody…who was out of shape."

"I am not out of shape!" he practically squeaked. "I just…haven't…gone jogging in a while."

"Jogging?" Kate snorted, turning her head to look at him. "When have you ever gone jogging?"

"I used to go all the time, especially after Alexis was born and I gained all that 'daddy weight'. I only stopped about a month ago."

"Why?" Kate asked.

"I started following you," Castle said, as if it were the most simple thing in the world.

"We haven't had that many cases," Kate pointed out, "and, besides, most of them involve some sort of physical activity so—"

"Can we just agree that I need to jog more off the job and go to sleep please?" Castle begged, lying back on his bed.

Kate chuckled, before groaning as she forced herself off the bed. "Need to take a shower first," she said, making her way towards the bathroom.

"I could wash your back for you," Castle offered. At her answering glare, he shrugged. "Sorry," he said, "force of habit."

Kate rolled her eyes, grabbing her bag and headed into the bathroom.

She emerged half an hour later, wrapped in a fluffy bathrobe. Castle, who'd gotten changed and situated in bed while she washed, looked up as she entered the bedroom, his eyes popping open.

"Put them back in your head, Castle," Kate said, opening the robe to reveal a baggy t-shirt and a pair of shorts that went to her knees. Castle blushed, visibly.

"Sorry," he said, looking away. Kate grinned, slipping the robe off and grabbing her brush, combing through her hair with it, before climbing under the covers and sighing as she sunk into the soft mattress.

They were silent for a moment before Castle spoke:

"Do you always wear clothes to bed?" he asked.

"Castle," Kate warned.

"Sorry," Castle said. "I have no filter."

"I've noticed," Kate replied. "And no." She smiled at the ceiling when she heard him choking on nothing. "You're so easy," she laughed.

"You have no idea," Castle replied, with a tiny cough. Kate rolled her eyes.

"Goodnight, Castle," she said, turning on her side, facing away from him.

"Goodnight, Beckett," he replied, softly, turning off his bedside lamp.

The next morning, Kate woke up to the sound of running water, coming from the bathroom. She poked her head up to check the time and found it was a quarter to seven; they were expected down at breakfast by nine before they had to leave for a tour of the White House and then go on some lame duck tour in Baltimore.

She closed her eyes, intending to sleep for at least another hour, but then the pressure in her bladder caused her to push herself up, stretching out her limbs as she stood, padding towards the door.

She knocked twice.

"Yeah?" Castle replied, his voice echoing off the linoleum.

"Are you almost finished in there?" she asked. "I need to use the bathroom."

"One minute," Castle replied; "just rinsing the conditioner out of my hair."

"Of course you would use conditioner," Kate mumbled to herself, grinning.

When Castle emerged from the bathroom, his bottom half was wrapped in a towel, his top half glistening with water. Kate couldn't keep her jaw from dropping and he noticed the wide-eyed stare.

"Eyes back in your head, Detective," he said as he walked by, making his way to sit on his bed, drying his hair with a smaller towel. Kate rolled her eyes, slamming the door as she entered the bathroom.

When she came back out, Castle was still sitting, half-naked, on the bed. He now had on a pair of sweat pants and was watching cartoons on the television, laughing to himself. Kate's eyes darkened as she watched a few stray drops of water trail down his abs.

And, just her luck, Castle looked up at her at that moment, while her eyes were still glued to his chest. He grinned, teasingly.

"See anything you like, Detective?" he asked. Kate didn't even blink and while she wanted to deny it, she found herself without any words. So she stayed silent.

Castle, surprised, but wanting to tease her just a little more, stood, walking towards her. "I'll take that as a yes," he said, his voice deep and rumbling as he approached, testing her resolve, more than expecting her to retreat.

But she didn't. In a move that surprised even her, Beckett reached out and touched his chest, her fingers catching several drops of water. Castle inhaled sharply and the quick intake of breath seemed to be the thing that snapped Kate out of it and her green eyes met his blue, her cheeks flushed with a mixture of embarrassment and…

"Kate…" Castle husked, looking down at her as his own hand raised, moving towards her cheek, his palm warm against her skin as he cupped it.

"Castle," she said, trying to shake her head, but his hand held her steady, his thumb tracing over her bottom lip.

"Tell me you want me to stop," he whispered, leaning in. "Tell me that you don't want this and I'll back away. Tell me, Kate."

The use of her first name for the second time in less than a minute was the last straw for Beckett and she leaned in, attacking his lips with hers, her arms immediately wrapping themselves around his neck.

Castle received her, gratefully, moaning into her mouth as one of her hands raked through his hair, tugging slightly as she pulled him back towards his bed, laying herself down on it as she pulled him atop her, her hands immediately going for his sweats as he situated himself.

"Kate, I—"

"Shut up, Castle," Kate growled against his lips as her hands reached around to grasp his ass, grinding her hips up into him. Castle moaned, his own hands reaching for her shirt, pushing it up and cupping her bared breasts, making Kate moan in turn.

She pushed him off after a few moments and Castle started to back away, apologizing profusely, before he saw her lift her shirt over her head and throw it to the side, before pulling him back down, this time aiming his head at her breasts. Castle took the hint and immediately latched on, tonguing one nipple and making her cry out in ecstasy.

Kate continued to push at his sweatpants, focusing all her energy on getting them off of his body as Castle's hands and mouth mapped her upper half. She internally rejoiced when she got the pants over his ass and felt him, hard and heavy, against her hip.

"Castle," she moaned, "my shorts."

"Hm?" Castle asked, lips vibrating against her breast. Kate shuddered.

"Take off my shorts," she said. "Take them off, now."

Castle nodded, his hands abandoning her chest for the cotton garment around her waist, pulling them down her hips, along with her panties, and tossing them over his shoulder, his lips landing on her thigh and kissing up, over every curve of her body until he reached her lips, pressing his against them in a slow, sensual case.

When they pulled away, Castle pushed his own sleep pants the rest of the way down his legs, discarding them, before settling himself between her legs.

"Are you sure?" he asked her, his eyes searching hers. Kate nodded, firmly.

"Yes," she said. Her voice was confident, strong and sure. Castle nodded, placing one more sweet kiss on her lips as he entered her, causing Kate to moan into his mouth.

Castle paused, giving her some time to get used to him, before starting a slow and easy rhythm, his lips attached to her collarbone, nipping and sucking as he moved in and out.

Kate sighed, wrapping her arms and legs around his body, clinging to him as she urged him faster, harder, in his ear. Castle's hips picked up speed and Kate's nails raked down his back, her legs tightening around his waist. She raised her hips to match his, thrust for thrust, sighing and moaning with each one, getting closer and closer to the edge.

"Castle," she groaned in his ear, "I'm so close. So close."

"Me too," Castle grunted back. "Me too." His thrusts picked up, one hand slithering down between their bodies to circle her clit. Once, twice…

Kate threw her head back as she came, her mouth gaping open on a silent gasp as she fell over the edge, her nails raking down his back. Castle's hips pistoned into her then, getting faster and faster until he, too, fell over the edge, his lips attaching to hers to silence his own moans, which Kate happily swallowed.

He collapsed onto her then, holding himself up on his forearms, his forehead falling to her shoulder, their chests pressed together as they caught their breath.

After a few moments, Castle fell to the side, one of his hands snaking down to meet hers, interlacing their fingers. To his surprise, Kate didn't fight him, squeezing his hand as she, too, caught her breath, her naked chest rising and falling as she relaxed.

"That was…" Castle started, for once the writer in him failing.

"Yeah," Kate agreed, sighing. Castle grinned.

"I guess neither of us had any idea, huh?" he teased. Kate let out a soft chuckle.

"Mmhmm," she said, before turning her head to look over at the clock. "We still have over an hour until breakfast," she said. "I'm gonna sleep a little more, 'kay?"

"Uh, okay," Castle said, his eyes widening as she turned to him, draping herself over his chest and cuddling against him. He smiled softly as her nose nudged against his neck. He wrapped his arm around Kate's waist, reveling in this new side of her.

The alarm had gone off half an hour before breakfast, giving them both just enough time to get cleaned up and dressed and throw their dirty laundry into the bottom of their bags. They shared a few looks as they dressed, a couple shy smiles and innocent brushes before making their way out to rouse their charges.

Kate's girls were easy, already up and putting the finishing touches on their makeup and hair. But Castle had to go in and physically drag most of the boys out of bed, throwing their clothes at them and yelling like a sports coach to get them ready for breakfast. The prospect of food did the trick and they both marched their respective groups down to the hotel breakfast bar, allowing them to mingle with their friends as they filled their plates, again sharing heated looks and grins, sitting closely as they ate.

Throughout the door, even, they shot grins at one another, their hands brushing as they lead their groups through the White House and then they sat a little too close together on the duck tour, their fingers locking as the kids all paid attention to the tour guide.

Alexis, however, noticed, watching as they shared a look that lasted just a bit too long to be normal. And, when they returned to their hotel at the end of the day, she confronted him about it.

"Dad," she said, once they got to their floor, "what's going on?"

"What do you mean?" Castle asked, calmly.

"You know what I mean," Alexis said, folding her arms over her chest. "You and Detective Beckett; something's different."

"Nothing's—"

"Don't lie to me," Alexis said, firmly, disapprovingly. Castle frowned, sighing.

"I don't know," he said. "I don't know what this is, but it's still really new, so…can we just…not talk about it right now? Maybe wait until we get home? Please?"

Alexis sighed, nodding. "Fine," she said, "but the second we get home, we talk about it, okay?"

"Okay," Castle agreed, nodding.

Alexis smiled, reaching up to kiss her father's cheek. "Good night, Daddy," she said, before walking past him to her room.

"Good night," he called after her, before heading towards his own room.

Kate was already there, sitting on his bed. She smiled when he walked in, leaning back on her hands and crossing one leg over the other.

"Hey," she said, seductively, her eyes tracing over his form hungrily. Castle swallowed thickly.

"Hey," he replied, giving her a lame little wave. Kate's grin widened and she stood, sauntering over to him and reaching for his shirt collar.

"You ready for a repeat of last night?" she asked, saucily, her lips landing on his neck.

"Uh…one…one minute," he said, reluctantly pushing her away. Kate's eyes were wide with confusion, searching his questioningly.

"What's wrong?" she asked.

"I…I just want to know what this is," he said, honestly. "What are we doing here?"

"I thought that was pretty obvious," Kate replied, her nose brushing against his.

"Uh…not exactly," Castle replied. "I just…I wanna know if this is just sex to you. Because if it is…I don't know if I can…" he trailed off, shaking his head.

"Why not?" Kate asked, backing away slightly. "You don't…you don't find me attractive."

"No!" Castle exclaimed, before shaking his head. "I mean yes! I mean…you know I find you attractive. More than attractive. You're…you're beautiful; the hottest woman I've ever seen; honestly. I just…I don't want just sex with you."

"Then what do you want Castle?" Kate asked, trying to back away, but Castle caught her with his hands on her hips.

"More," he said, simply. "Dates, flowers—for you, of course—hand holding, kissing, just…more than sex."

"I…I don't know if I can—"

"Yes," Castle interrupted, "you can. I know you can. Or, at least, you can try. That's all I'm asking; just one date, like a trial run, just to test out the waters, as it were. Please?" His eyes were begging her, his thumbs rubbing soothing circles on her waist. Kate searched his eyes, her heart thumping with fear.

She wasn't good at relationships—she'd never been—but it was even worse after her mother's death. The walls around her heart didn't allow for her to enter into any long-term relationships.

But the look in Castle's eyes—that pleading, puppy dog look—mixed with the swelling of her heart at the mere thought of being able to kiss him and hold his hand, freely, as his lover. The thought was enough to make her acquiesce.

"One date," she said, trying to remain firm, "but the boys never find out about it; especially if it doesn't work out."

Castle's smile could have lit up the night sky. "Deal," he said, softly, before leaning in and kissing her soundly on the lips. Kate responded with enthusiasm, her hands reaching up to cup his jaw as she moaned against his lips.

When she pulled back, it was with a bit of urgency. "Does this mean we can't have sex?" she asked.

Castle shrugged. "We already did it once; why not once more?"

Kate beamed at him, snorting out a laugh before planting another passionate kiss on his lips, the both of them falling to the bed in a tangled heap of limbs.

THE END

Next prompt will be up by next Tuesday (hopefully) so stay tuned!