DISCLAIMER: I don't own.
He watched her from across the room. The lights were low, casting shadows and soft silhouettes, but she was bright and daring, her curves wrapped up in a sensual red dress, her hair falling in lax rivulets over one shoulder, keeping the sight of her bare back unobscured. She came in on the arm of another man, but she was solo now, in the middle of laughing at something the woman standing with her said and his heart thumped faster, his insides growing warm. She was such a vision. He couldn't look away. For this reason, when she glanced around the room, she caught his gaze easily and her posture straightened, her dark eyes drinking him in. He gulped visibly, his fingers clenching the glass of the scotch he'd been sipping for the past half hour.
It hadn't been on his mind to come to this event, but the boys badgered him, convincing him with the notion that this kind of party was right up his alley. It had been his suggestion for all his friends to attend, but he didn't think to show. To be truthful, parties and galas and special events no longer held his interest. He preferred the quiet nowadays. He'd become more refined and he had the people in his life to thank for that.
"Enjoying yourself?"
He started at the voice over his shoulder, swiveling around to catch sight of the sultry smile on her face. The low lights around the room sharpened her features, and he could see the way her eyes darkened as she gazed up at him through her lashes. He cleared his throat. "Enjoying myself more now that you're here."
"I've been here," she laughed softly.
"Now," he corrected. "Before, you were over there." He gestured with his glass toward the woman she'd been chatting with.
She flicked her eyes over her shoulder before resting her gaze back on him. "I thought you weren't going to show."
"Is that why you brought a date?"
Her smile widened, the tip of her pink tongue poking between her teeth. "I wouldn't call him my date."
He hummed noncommittedly, bringing his glass to his mouth and taking a rather large sip. Her hand came up and brushed the lapel of his blazer softly, drawing his attention to the touch. His eyes found hers and he noticed her hazel orbs darken further. "Don't think I didn't see the woman hanging on your arm when I walked in. Where's your girlfriend now?"
He rolled his eyes, internally shivering at the sensation of her running her fingers from his lapel to his forearm to his wrist. She pulled the scotch from his hand and, with her eyes locked on his, brought the glass to her lips, and downed the rest of his drink. He bit back a groan at the sight of her sultry mouth and the bobbing of her throat as she swallowed. "You can't do that here."
She licked her lips slowly. "Do what?"
"You know exactly what," he husked, his body canting into her space. "People will start to notice."
"Hmm, like your girlfriend?"
He groaned. "She's not my girlfriend."
"No? Looked pretty cozy to me."
"It's for publicity. Once my agent heard I was attending the party, she came up with the idea to make a grand entrance with one of this month's most eligible bachelorettes. She thought it would help increase my book sales by dating a representative from a well-known book review company. Pretty insulting, if you ask me, since my book sales are still quite high. I don't need to talk up my work or advertise reviews."
"Hmm, so where is Bachelorette Number Six?"
"So, you know who she is," he grinned.
"I may have looked her up."
"And why would you be bothered to do that?"
She shot him a pointed look. "When a woman is arranged to go out with my partner, I like to be informed of who she is."
"And that is precisely why I know your chiseled plus one is a member of the FDNY. Mr. September. Courtesy of Lanie, I presume?"
"I think he should have been one of the summer months, but yes. Lanie knows quite a few interesting people."
"Interesting?" he mused. "Interesting as in you're interested in how defined his six pack is?"
"No more interested than you are in what color number six's underwear is."
"I bet I can guess what color your underwear is," he tossed at her, his eyes slowly scanning down her body, then back up to her face.
She pulled her bottom lip between her teeth and gave him her own onceover. "Why don't you follow me and find out?"
He stared after her as she walked away. It didn't take him long to follow, though, and she led him down a dark corridor, away from the partygoers. His mouth went dry at the sway of her hips, slow and seductive. The hallway was dark, but not dark enough to press her against the wall right then and there. They would definitely be arrested for indecent exposure. She turned to her left and pushed open a door to a small, empty banquet room.
Perfect.
She strolled across the room to the large window on the opposite wall while he locked the door behind him. "The moon is so full tonight," she sighed, gazing up at the inky night sky illuminated by moonlight and scattered stars. "I love how magical it looks."
"Since when do you believe in magic?"
"I believe in the everyday magic of life. You know that." She tossed a smile over her shoulder and noticed his smooth walk towards her.
"What else do you believe in?" He was right behind her now, close enough that his chest brushed the skin of her back. Her body hummed at the close proximity and she turned to him, her face coming up just mere inches before his. The light from the moon danced in his eyes, slid across his face. He was so breathtaking.
"Us," she breathed, her voice sounding strained by the desire building within her; the way it always did in the sensual presence of him, when she knew what he was thinking just by the look in his eyes and the feel of his touch.
His lips came down against hers, soft but deep, muddling her thoughts with his wonderful kisses. One arm circled his neck, gripping onto the collar of his shirt while the other slid up his back, fisting the fabric at the base of his spine. He growled low in his chest, pressing her closer into him, as though he could never get her close enough.
These moments they get, stolen and forbidden like magical fruit, tasted so sweet and sinful. On the one hand, the thrill still gets to them, but on the other, they both wished it didn't have to be this way. He couldn't wait for the day he could kiss her before everyone and she dreamed of the moment she could grasped his hand and pull herself into his side, head touching his shoulder.
"We should get back," he murmured, smearing a kiss to her chin. "Can't have Mr. September thinking you've run off on him."
"Hmm, yes, and Number Six must be frazzled without her arm candy."
"I thought she was mine," he teased.
"Just don't come back with cavities. If I have to give you a root canal, I'll be doing it without Novocain. And very sharp instruments."
"Trust me," He leaned down to smack a kiss to her pursed lips. "The only places my mouth will be in contact with are parts of you."
She hummed skeptically. "Keep in mind, my date may have that very same idea."
He growled and pulled her in for a very possessive and delicious kiss, one that had her toes curling and her body flushing. She moaned when he used the hand at her ass to grip her tighter. She swiped her tongue over the roof of his mouth and nipped at his bottom lip in parting. "When I take you back to your place tonight, the only mouth you'll be thinking of is mine."
She brought her fingers up to trace his kiss-swollen lips. "I already do."
The smile he gave her had her pulling him back for one last mindboggling encounter before finally parting ways. She was the first to move toward the door, but turned back just as her hand came in contact with the knob to catch sight of him readjusting his jacket and hair. "Oh, and Castle?"
He turned to look at her.
"I'm not wearing any underwear."
The slack-jawed look on her boyfriend's face as she exited the empty banquet room had her smiling the rest of the night.
FIN.
I find it's rather difficult to write Castle fanfics. Major applause to the writers who get it just right. Be kind.