Castle/ Beckett one shot: 4x16 "linchpin"

Embarrassed and ashamed, Castle sauntered out of the NYPD where both he and Beckett had been dropped off. Those awful, hurtful words rang in his head:

"You're a reckless, immature, self-centred jackass!" Sophie's voice would not stop yelling in his mind. Beckett had called him, not wanting him to walk off. She wanted to talk to him but, clearly, Sophia's tone and sharp tongue had upset him far too much. He didn't even look at Beckett. It wasn't that he was upset with her; she had tried to defend him after all. Perhaps he just didn't want to feel weak around her, because she always seemed so strong.

Beckett's soft hazel eyes followed his figure as the sun began to set in the sky above New York. He was headed to central park; no doubt to sway on the swings and reflect for a while- he did that quite a lot. Beckett knew that he wanted some peace, so she left him to it although another thought crept into her mind. At first, she shunned the idea. But then, what else could she do on this case without him? Smiling secretly to herself, she turned around and walked down the crowded pavement, deeper into the city…

An hour or so later, and the sun had disappeared beyond the horizon and a clear sky of black velvet and tiny gemstones had slowly come into view. Castle had finished relaxing in the park, despite it being summer, there was a slight but sharp chill hanging in the air. He couldn't wait to get home in the warm, perhaps drink some wine; forget about Sophia and have an early night.

Upon opening the door, he noticed some lights on. He could hear his mother humming upstairs- most likely something to do with her drama school- and he could hear Alexis chatting on the phone to one of her friends. Not wanting to interrupt either of them, he made his way into his bedroom, shrugging off his coat. As he entered, he noticed a petite figure sitting on his bed…

"Hey Castle." She greeted casually as if they had just passed in the street.

"Beckett?" Castle was stunned, "W-what are you doing here?" He asked. Placing one of his books down, she stood, brushing a large section of her silky hair over her shoulder with her fingers. Castle pondered if she was doing it out of comfort or if she was flirting with him. He continued to stare blankly at her, though a tiny smile appeared on his lips.

"I was just concerned for you, that's all." Beckett shrugged. She walked towards him slowly. He noticed she had changed- wearing a knee-length summer dress. It was pure white with a large pattern of a black rose fashioned on each side. She was wearing sandals too, looking much more girly than she often let on.

"Thanks." Castle replied quietly, turning around to hang his coat on the back of his door.

"So how are you?" Beckett questioned gently.

"Ok."

"Really?" Beckett raised one eyebrow, knowing he was lying, "I've been a detective for about eight years Castle. You should know by now you can't lie to me." She added simply. This caused him to turn round. She saw the very faint appearance of tears in his eyes. Yes, she was right. Sophia had really got to him.

"Ok fine. I'm not ok. I thought that, Sophia remembered me and wanted to be friends- I didn't realise she was just using us. She's changed, Beckett." He explained as he walked over to an office chair in the corner- he rarely used it because he was always typing in his study nowadays. He sat down, spinning around in a full circle before touching his foot to the floor to stop the motion. Beckett sauntered forward.

"You know she's wrong right?"

"What?"

"You know she's wrong. You're not a reckless, immature, self-centred jackass". Beckett told him, resting a comforting hand on his shoulder. Castle glanced away, wondering if Beckett was being truthful or if she was just being kind. His eyes fixed at her hand, resting on his shoulder. He felt his breath quicken.

"Well, maybe you're immature…" Beckett reconsidered and this caused Castle to smile and laugh ever so slightly. He looked back at her again.

"I think you light up the room to be honest. You really know how to have some fun." Beckett nodded seriously, "Don't let her get to you. She doesn't know you like I do."

Castle was fixated now. Hypnotised by Beckett. Had she really just said all those wonderful things? It wasn't him dreaming again. Beckett hovered there, in front of him. Neither of them moved- they were almost frozen in time. Beckett could feel this longing inside of her. Castle did to.

Before he could stop himself, Castle shot forward, capturing Beckett's lips with his own. She tensed- this had happened before, only under more desperate circumstances. This wasn't undercover work like last time, this was Castle giving in to his feelings for her and her deciding whether to accept it or not. She had known for about 10 months now that Castle was in love with her. She had remembered every single detail of when she was shot down, right until her petrified eyes closed and she lost consciousness. She had felt bad, lying to him, but the thought of a man actually loving her so much that he held her in his arms as she faded away with tears streaming down his face almost scared her. No one had ever shown that much affection for her. No one. So she had tried to forget it, tried to erase it from her memory, but the more she tried, the stronger the memory seemed to become. She could feel her heart pounding fast. She took the chance that she had been given and kissed Castle back, running her hands through his hair as she sat on his lap. It was just as well that they both had good intentions because just as they finished their passionate kiss, Alexis walked in.

"Dad?" She asked as she saw a women sitting on his lap, unaware of who it was. Beckett turned her head and Alexis's mouth dropped open. The three people said nothing. When both Castle and Beckett thought matters couldn't get any worse, Martha walked in.

"Oh!" She exclaimed simply, shocked to see her son finally getting some luck with the woman he had adored since their very first meeting. She put her hands on Alexis's shoulders and steered her out the room.

"Sorry Richard, sorry Kate. Do… um… continue." Martha mumbled and shut the door to give the pair some privacy once again.

Beckett turned back to Castle.

"You know, I should be going…" She blushed bright red.

"You don't have to!" Castle told her, grabbing her wrist.

"Oh please Castle, you're daughter just caught us making out in your bedroom, do you really think I should stay any longer?" Beckett asked as she slipped off his lap and removed his hand from her wrist.

"I'm glad we finally…"

"…yeah, me too." They smiled at each other, and then Beckett grabbed her jacket and left without another word. Castle grinned to himself. What a wonderful end to an originally awful day…