A/N: Lou, thank you for the prompt. Your ideas get my creative juices flowing. ;)
My beta, Katherine, is the reason why this story is coherent. You should check out her amazing stories, if you haven't already (The-KLF).
Disclaimer: Don't own them.
Prompt: Post-couple adorableness (Beckett comes home and finds Castle in a ridiculous situation "for research").
Proper incentive
She groans when she checks her watch for the fifth time in as many minutes. Time seems to be dragging today. They have no new case and, important as going over cold cases can be, she'd really prefer a fresh one.
Not that she wishes anyone dead. She's just so bored.
Normally on days like these, Castle is there, keeping her entertained with his outlandish theories as they go over the old files. But he has a deadline coming up and Gina left a rather colorful message on his answering machine yesterday, so they agreed that he should stay home and write.
He tried to convince her to call in sick and stay in bed with him, saying he needed her for inspiration. She was tempted – his wandering fingers made sure of that – but in the end she rationalized he wouldn't get much writing done if she stayed.
Now she can't wait to get back home and continue where they left off.
She sighs, glances at the time again and is happy to see that it's now almost five. She closes the folder, gets up and heads over to the archives to return the file. When she gets back at her desk, she turns off her computer and gathers her things.
Ignoring the comically raised eyebrows of her partners, she strides to the elevator. There's no need for them to look so surprised. It's not like it's the first time she's left work on time. The last time was just…
Um…
The point is, it's not the first time. And now she simply wants to get home, take a long, hot shower and enjoy a glass of wine cuddled up with Castle on the couch.
Maybe she'll get him to tell her a story. Something to knock the boring out of her day.
Kate turns her key in the lock and pushes the door open. The loft is unusually quiet and Castle is nowhere in sight. She calls his name as she takes her coat off and hangs it in the closet.
She hears a thump coming from the direction of their bedroom and she's immediately on high alert. Automatically, her hand drifts to her hip, resting with caution over her gun as she sweeps the living room with her eyes. Nothing seems to be out of place, so the noise probably isn't caused by an intruder. Still, she toes off her heels and creeps quietly towards the office.
Clearing the study as empty, she continues to the bedroom. She quickly checks the room and the ensuite, but finds nothing.
Suddenly, she hears the thump again, but this time it's accompanied by the sound of muffled shouting and she turns her head to the direction of the noise. The closet.
Kate tiptoes closer and listens carefully. Yes, there's definitely someone in there. She draws her gun and holds it steady in one hand. She grabs the handle and yanks the door open.
Kate's not sure what she expected to find, but this was definitely not it.
A giggle escapes before she has the chance to stop it and the narrowing of his eyes tells her that he doesn't appreciate her amusement.
But how could she not find this funny? He's standing in the closet, wearing nothing but boxers and wrists taped together around the clothes rack. The reason for his silence is the piece of duct tape covering his mouth.
"Castle, what are you doing?" she asks as she holsters her gun.
His answer is muffled by the tape and she quickly reaches for his face. Her nimble fingers manage to peel a corner loose in no time and she says, "Okay, on the count of three. You ready?"
He nods and then closes his eyes, preparing himself for the pain.
"One… Two…" she counts and then rips the tape as fast as she can. She winces at his scream and lifts on her toes to press a gentle kiss to soothe the stinging skin of his cheek.
"So…" she starts, stretching the word, and looks at him expectantly.
"So, I got this idea for Nikki and wanted to see if it would be too easy for her to get out of the situation. Alexis was here, so I asked her to help me," he says, looking like there's nothing wrong with the story.
"And she agreed to tie you up in the closet? Just like that?" she asks incredulously.
"Yeah. This isn't the first time I've needed her to get me in sticky situations for research. Although…" he says frowning, "she wasn't too happy about the almost-naked part of this particular re-enactment. I think her eyes were closed most of the time when she was taping my wrists."
"Uh-huh," she says, not quite sure if she finds this whole situation hilarious or adorable. But one thing is for sure – she certainly isn't bored anymore.
"Yeah, so I thought if I could just get the tape off my mouth, I could use my teeth to release my wrists. But no matter how I tried, I just couldn't get a corner loose. Eventually I just got hungry and tired, so I decided to wait until you got home," he explains and tries to pull his wrists apart.
Her eyes are instantly drawn to the flexing muscles of his arms and suddenly she really notices his state of undress. Hmm… This has possibilities.
Slowly she runs a single finger from the top of his sternum all the way down to the waistband of his boxers, pausing on the way to dip in his belly button.
She can see the small goose bumps erupting in the wake of her finger and delights in the shiver he doesn't even try to hide.
"Be- Beckett?" he asks and she can already hear a hint of arousal in his voice.
Instead of replying, she takes a step back and begins to unbutton her blouse.
When there are no more buttons left, she takes another step back and sheds the shirt, letting it drop carelessly on the floor.
Another step back and she has undone her pants. She keeps her eyes trained on his face the entire time and sees the way the tip of his tongue peeks out to wet his lips.
She lets her slacks pool around her feet, revealing a lacy, deep purple thong that matches her bra perfectly. She sees him take in the sight of her and her eyes flick down to the prominent tent in his boxers.
When her gaze returns up, his eyes – now the color of midnight – are fixed on her face.
She smiles seductively and takes another step back.
"Aren't you forgetting something?" he asks and pulls at the tape around his wrists again.
"Nope," she says with a smirk. "I was just thinking…" she trails off.
"Thinking about what?" he asks and she's glad to hear that there's no hesitation in his voice. He's enjoying this almost as much as she is.
The next step back takes her out of the closet and she reaches her hands to the clasp of her bra, unhooking it deftly. Peeling the garment away from her chest slowly, she watches as his eyes follow its path. When the piece of underwear is completely off, she holds it up, letting it dangle from her right index finger.
He can't seem to decide where to look, his gaze tracking a delicious triangle between the bra, her chest and her face.
"I was thinking that maybe you weren't able to free yourself because you lacked the motivation. Maybe you just need a proper incentive," she drawls and flings the lacy piece of clothing in his direction.
It lands at his feet. He looks down and then slowly drags his gaze from her toes back up to her eyes. The look he gives her holds a promise of wild and dangerous things and it causes arousal coil tight in her lower abdomen.
She takes another step back, this one making her disappear from his line of sight, and calls, "I'm going to take a shower. There's this one spot on my back that I simply cannot reach. Could you help me with it? If you're not too tired, I mean."
While she speaks, she pushes the thong down her legs and throws it towards the closet, making sure that it lands where he can see it.
Just as she turns, Kate hears him groan and then the sound of him attacking the binds with his teeth.
With a kittenish smile adorning her face, Kate saunters to the bathroom. She turns on the shower and adjusts the water temperature. She leans against the counter while she waits for the water to warm up.
There's a sound of tape ripping and she closes her eyes as a shiver of excitement runs through her.
She hears his hurried steps and then he's there, his hands gripping her waist, pulling her against him. He bends his head down to her neck, playfully biting the tendon and she can feel the evidence of his arousal against her stomach.
"Not so tired after all, I see," she teases even as her hands tug his boxers down, urging him to hurry up.
He lifts her on the counter and steps out of his underwear and into the vee of her legs.
"Never. Never too tired for this," he growls and urges her to hold on. When her legs are wrapped securely around his waist, he picks her up and carries her to the shower, closing the door behind them.
End.
Thoughts?