Three days later, Castle was well launched on the downward slide into man-flu. Luckily, Kate was feeling much better.
Alexis had come by with a bag of clothes and toiletries. She'd taken one look at her father, dumped the bag, blown him a kiss from the doorway, and fled. Kate couldn't blame her. Castle had skipped the 'pale and interesting' stage, and barrelled straight into 'sweaty and semi-delirious' for much of the night, which meant neither of them had got much sleep.
She left him in bed, and went to make a cup of coffee. She opened the living room curtains to reveal another muggy, rainy day. Before Castle had completely flaked out, he'd helped her to organise her files into neat stacks, and made her promise not to touch them until she was completely well. She eyed them as she went past, acknowledged their pull on her, resisted it, and carried on to the kitchen.
Her own virus had departed, leaving a deep tiredness in its wake; partly a result of the illness, partly a reaction to the turmoil surrounding her. In truth, she was grateful for the temporary buffer between her and reality. But here, in the eye of the storm, it was calm, at least for now. She inhaled the scent of the coffee. Castle had got her onto the good stuff, for which she would forever be grateful. She opened the window, and soft, warm rain ghosted over her face and arms. She closed her eyes and practised grounding herself in the present moment, as Dr. Burke had taught her.
Well, apparently she wasn't that calm, but at least she'd tried. One less thing to feel guilty about. She finished her coffee and went back to check on Castle.
He lay on his back, pale as death, but smiled when she walked in. She sat beside him and picked up a glass of water and some cold medicine.
"Hey. How're you doing?"
"Thirsty."
She put the first pill into his mouth and helped him drink it down. He looked relieved.
"Thanks," he said, and downed the next, along with the entire glass of water.
"You're dehydrated." She took the thermometer from the bedside table and put it in his mouth, then went to get a damp washcloth from the bathroom.
When she returned, he grinned.
"What is it?"
"The thermometer just brought back a happy memory."
When he'd taken her temperature very accurately. "Oh, I see. Well, this is a different thermometer." Gently, she wiped his face and chest with the washcloth. Out of the corner of her eye, she noticed that, lower down, the sheet was beginning to tent. She looked at him. "Really?"
"Can't help it. Love you. I feel better."
"Oh yeah?" She took the thermometer from his mouth, and read it. "Your fever seems to have broken. How do you feel?"
"Exhausted. And..." He swallowed.
"In need of some relief?"
He nodded.
She considered. "Would you like me to suck you, Castle?"
His blink was so comical, she almost burst out laughing, but the evidence of his enthusiasm was undeniable.
"I... uh..."
She smiled. "Shh."
She turned back the sheet, unbuttoned his pyjama pants and boxers, and took a moment just to enjoy the sight of him laid out before her. How often had she dreamed of this?
For the first time in several days, color rose to his cheeks. "Kate?"
"Sorry, just admiring the view," she smiled.
"Same here," he said. "Love to see you in my t-shirts."
"I love wearing them."
"Especially when they say Nerd Machine."
"I have no idea what that is."
He smiled. "You will."
"Spread your legs, Mr. Castle."
He blinked up at her. "Do you know how hot that sounds?"
"And yet." She looked pointedly down at his legs. Which then obediently spread. "Thank you."
She pushed the covers off him and over to the side. "Lift your hips."
He did, and she pulled his pants and boxers down and off. She settled herself between his legs and gave him a lick and a little nip on his upper thigh. He gave a strangled laugh, and his cock jerked. Just to be evil, she licked him again, higher this time. He groaned.
She loved this; just the two of them playing, pleasing each other.
Time to put him out of his misery. She had to steel herself a little for this; it was a first for her. She grasped his cock and took it into her mouth. His hips bucked a little before he stopped himself, and she pulled back.
"Sorry," he said. "I'll try to keep still."
"Don't be sorry, I'm glad it feels good. I've... uh, I've never done this before, you can probably tell."
He lifted his head from the pillow and looked down at her. "Really?"
She let him slip from her mouth. "I just wanted to do something you'd like, that wouldn't be too much effort for you."
"Oh, Kate." He sat up, pulled her up to him, and kissed her. "Thank you."
"You're welcome," she smiled, feeling a little shy. "Now come on, lie back down."
His hand cradled her head as she took her time teasing him, tasting him, getting used to the feel of him on her tongue, and how much of his length she could take. He murmured and gasped encouragement and praise, and she revelled in the power she had to please him. His breathing was harsh, and despite his efforts, he was thrusting into her mouth now. It was obvious this wasn't going to last long.
He tapped her urgently. "Kate, I'm going to..."
She knew he meant for her to pull away, and appreciated the warning, but suckled harder, pushing her tongue into his slit. He cried out, and bucked hard beneath her. She reached down between her legs and covered her middle finger in her arousal. She brought it up to where he could see. His eyes widened as her hand disappeared between his legs, using her own lubrication to slide her finger deep into his anus.
He came with a shout, warm spurts filling her mouth. She swallowed as fast as she could, and kept sucking gently until he stilled, and his softening cock slipped free of its own accord. Semen ran down her chin, and she wiped it with the back of her hand.
He must have seen it, because he gave a little moan. "Oh, Kate."
She lay between his legs, head pillowed on his thigh, eyes closed. A little proud of herself, a little embarrassed. He shifted beneath her as he sat up.
"Hey." He rubbed her back. He waited until she looked up. He was smiling, and there was so much love in his eyes. "Are you okay?"
She nodded. "Are you? Was it...?"
His eyebrows lifted. "Oh, it was."
"I mean, I know it probably wasn't as good as..."
"Kate. It was the best." He grinned. "And no one's ever done that thing with the finger before. I thought I was going to explode."
"Really?"
"Really. But it was because it was you doing it, because you wanted to do it for me. That's what made it so great." He leaned down, and kissed her.
"Can you taste yourself?" she said.
"Yeah. But I'd rather taste you." He pulled her up to lie alongside him. His hand skimmed up her leg and dipped into the apex of her thighs.
She parted her legs, and she felt the sweet intrusion as he pushed a finger in, drew it out, and brought it to his mouth. She stared, transfixed, as he sucked it clean, and he laughed, which made her laugh.
"All right, Ms Beckett, how about we take care of you now?"
"It's okay, Castle. You're still pretty sick."
He raised an eyebrow, and grinned. "Make me forget, then."
"All right." She did need that release. She sat up and straddled his thighs. "I'll do most of the work, but you can feel free to chip in."
She reached between her legs and began indulging herself. His eyes were fixed on her hand as it worked, and she felt him stir beneath her. He fumbled the bedside table drawer open, and pulled out a condom.
She stripped off his t-shirt and he sat up. His warm mouth covered her nipple, and he began to suck in earnest. She moaned and thrust hard against him. His hand slid between their bodies, over hers, and took control of her strokes.
She felt his cock pressing insistently between her legs, and rose up long enough for him to sheath himself before she guided him into her entrance, and slowly sank down, savoring every bit of his presence inside her. They both let out a long moan. Suddenly his finger pushed into her mouth, and she began to suckle it. The double penetration took her higher than ever.
Gently, she pushed him until he lay flat on his back, his hands steadying her hips as she fucked herself on him. He gazed up at her with wonderment in his eyes. She raised her arms, ran them through her hair, and gave herself permission to make some noise.
Castle made some noise of his own, and slipped his finger between her folds to bring her over the edge. She came with a high, keening wail, squeezing him hard as he bucked up into her, all control dissolved.
He continued to thrust as she came down, and soon she felt him tense, could have sworn she felt the warm pulses of his release deep inside her. She collapsed onto his still-heaving chest. He wrapped his arms around her, and laughed softly. Moments later, she was laughing too.
End.