Alright, well this is my first time writing a Castle-fic, even if it is a one shot so please go gentle with me. It's hopefully alright, there's not a lot to it but I have hope. Please let me know what you think.
*EDIT: So I'm just going to put all of my one shots in one place which will be forever known as here. This is a short little thing based on "Nikki Heat". Most of these will be continuations or insigths just because I like writing those. I also tend to go back and edit things once they've been published but nothing will change, just grammer and the occational word, no worries. 3 Please Review!
Disclaimer: I am a couple bucks away from owning Castle but not just yet.
Kate watched as Rick slowly wrapped his arms around Natalie, the kiss moving in neither direction. As the elevator doors closed, she continued to stare at the spot where they had been, unsure as to what to do. She felt something rise up and wrap around her chest and she pretended that she didn't immediately recognize the familiar ping of jealousy. But why should she be jealous? She wasn't dating him; they weren't a couple; she was just his partner. And what was he thinking, kissing her, anyways? Didn't he have Gina? She did not just spit at his publisher's name because that was what jealous women did and Kate Beckett was not a jealous woman – especially not of Rick Castle playboy extraordinaire. He was egotistical, completely insensitive, a womanizer, totally immature and, now, a cheater.
But he could be so selfless sometimes. All of those instances where he had tackled her to the ground as a bullet had come flying at them from a suspect; she remembered when they had first met, how selfish he was and – as much as it pained her – he had grown. He wasn't as self-absorbed as he used to be. All of those moments when he had stayed by her side – or stepped aside – when she was dealing with something particularly difficult in her life. He always seemed to know what she needed, even if she didn't. She hated to admit it but he knew her very well – better than most – and he loved to rub it in her face by being mister sensitive right when she needed him to be. Of course he wasn't always the perfect gentleman but that wasn't too bad either. She just wished that he didn't flaunt his relationships around whenever he slept with one of his bimbos. But come to think of it, she hadn't seen – or heard – of many conquests lately. Even before he was dating Gina, his scandalous liaisons were becoming few and far between. There were a few close calls but she was beginning to wonder if his playboy attitude was merely a publicity stunt. After all, hyper maen-children are not exactly the most appealing so what possibility was there that he was actually a womanizing man-whore? Very little. She could, however, imagine him as the kid in the candy store that he truly was, jumping around, trying all of the different sugary treats. If she was honest with herself, he really had grown up from the moment they first met. She especially loved watching him with Alexis. The few times she had seen them together made her feel almost privileged. He was a good father and she knew that but that didn't stop her from loving his inner child that poked its head out every chance it got. He made her life fun and, as a cop with an excessive amount of baggage, she needed fun.
Him as a cheater, though? She couldn't find something to love in that. That was the deal breaker. Regardless of who he was with, she had always considered him to be faithful – especially after Meredith – but she knew very well that the kiss she had just witnessed was anything but platonic.
Right about now, they would probably be jumping into a taxi together, headed towards her apartment – Alexis would be at his home – and that was as far as she could get. Her mind – or her heart – wouldn't let her go any farther than the front door of Natalie's apartment despite knowing that Rook and Nikki would go a lot farther than that.
Finally willing herself to look away from the offending images, snapping her jaw shut, Kate busied herself with adjusting and readjusting the pile of papers on her desk blinking away frustration – not tears, she told herself. Oh who was she kidding? She was jealous as hell of Castle and her body-double. If she hadn't known better, she would have sworn that it looked like her and Castle lost in a lip lock but of course it wasn't and she certainly didn't want that so why was she suddenly blushing? Oh that's right – Maddie's words suddenly hit her upside the head – she was hot for Castle.
It was a few moments after the elevator doors closed completely that Rick finally regained his senses. What they hell was he doing? Oh that's right, the lower half of his brain reminded, you're kissing the love of your life. But these weren't Beckett's lips – not that he'd ever tasted them before – and this wasn't Beckett's body – that he knew for certain – but she looked so much like her and even… he inhaled subtly and caught the slightest whiff of cherries. Groaning, he allowed himself one more moment of make-believe bliss before using the hand on her upper arms to push her just far enough for their lips to part. She looked immediately stunned but he could still see lust in those eyes – the ones that weren't her's – and she kept her own fingers lost in his hair. She tried her best "smoldering Beckett" look – though she would never tell him that was what she had named the attempt at seduction – and let a smile play at her lips.
"Come home with me?" She whispered a breath away from his lips. He stared down at her for a long moment, weighing his options. He could go home with her – it's not like he and Gina were on the greatest of terms at the moment – but could he do that to her? Would it feel the same knowing that she was only pretending to be Nikki and she wasn't real? The real one – the one he wanted – was back at the precinct most likely having a mental breakdown from having two people shadow her; one who hadn't answered the other's request. With a grateful smile, he finished his previous task of pushing her away.
"Not tonight." He spoke as the elevator doors dinged open and he hurriedly made his way to find an empty cab. No way in hell was he sticking around to explain his actions. Usually, when beautiful women threw themselves at him, he never resisted but lately, he would always get this weird pinch in his neck and he would remember that it would be wrong to do things like that. So he settled for twiddling his thumbs all the way back to his own apartment until the driver pulled up and Rick paid for the ride.
As he rode the elevator up to his apartment, he kept trying to figure out why he had rejected Natalie's advances. He wasn't a cheater but he and Gina were one slap away from breakup as it was so that wouldn't have mattered. Could it be…? He suddenly hit the emergency stop button and as the elevator came to a full stop, he backed himself against the wall.
He was in love with her.
Truly, madly, deeply in love with Kate Beckett. It was the only logical explanation. He couldn't be with other women because he was already in a committed relationship with a woman who wouldn't ever acknowledge his affections. Simple as that. Taking a moment to collect his thoughts and get over the initial shock of a long awaited confession, Rick caught his breath and pushed the button for the elevator to continue its ascent up to his loft. But this time, his eyes were glowing just a little bit. He didn't care if it looked like an afterglow, he was going to relish in the feeling of seeing everything clearly. He knew that as soon as he went back to the precinct, everything would go back to normal but maybe normal was exactly what he needed. It wasn't like this was anything new. He had known for a long time that he was indeed hot for Beckett.