Impulse Part II

I am new to fanfiction so I forgot to put this in last time:

Disclaimer: I do not own Castle, simply borrowing its beautiful characters!

I was over whelmed by the response to this story; it makes my day to know that people liked it! Here is the next installment! Hope you all enjoy. Minor rating change to T, by the way. Just thought I'd let you know!

They're all staring at Beckett who is listening attentively to the voice on the other side of the phone, all of them hoping for the fairy tale ending. Or what's left of it anyway. 'What?' she asks eagerly. 'Okay,' she says with a straight face, 'Thank you'. She turns to the men who are all on the edges of their seat. Kate hangs up the phone and sighs in relief. 'They found them,' she states. Castle brings his hands to his mouth like he was in prayer and mumbles a 'Yes!' under his breath. With that, the tension seems to evaporate and dissipate within the room. She informs them of the current situation but it all sums up to the fact that the mother and child will be all right.

Espo grabs his coat and hand gestures Ryan to come with. 'Come on, let's go pick 'em up,' he says in his haste to leave the precinct. 'Do we really have to go pick them up in Ethica?' Ryan whines. He follows any way, too happy to let the road trip ruin the mood.

Kate takes her seat and laces her fingers together, bringing them to rest on her mouth. She releases another breath she hadn't realized she'd been holding in. Then Castle speaks up and she notices the contemplative look he wears.

'Even as a hostage, I help you solve murders… Beckett, I think… I think you have the perfect partner.' He states, evidently proud of the evidence he gathered during this case. She smirks and can't resist teasing him. 'Yeah, except he doesn't like doing paper work,' she adds with a critical tone, but with a smile none the less. 'Touché,' he reluctantly admits. She looks at him adoringly but he misses it, lost in his own thoughts.

She isn't sure where they stand but she does know one thing; she's not letting him go that easily tonight. She spent the better half of the day thinking she might not get the chance to see him again. After their passionate reunion in the bank, they hadn't had time to discuss what it meant to them. Having an active case to solve and the boys constantly surrounding them had been an active distraction. However, they were now alone and she knew she wasn't ready to let him go for the night. 'So, Old Haunt? I'll buy you a drink,' she suggests tentatively.

'No,' he replies easily and she's momentarily crestfallen. 'But I'll do you one better,' he finishes and her heart flutters at the suggestion. He asks her to accompany him home for a family dinner. She doesn't even think twice about accepting his invitation.

They share a cab and Castle gives the driver his address. As he turns back to look at her, he finds her already staring. She blushes and averts her gaze as a shy smile covers her lips. He tilts her chin up with his index finger and looks straight into her eyes. 'Do you know red suits you beautifully?' he asks referring to her flushed cheeks. It's sappy and incredibly sweet at the same time. It's all she thought she didn't want. Now she realizes it's what she craves. From him. Only him.

Their faces are so close she can feel his breath caress her cheeks and she closes her eyes leaning into him. For the second time today, she closes the distance between them and this time he responds instantly. It's electric as their lips meet and they move together at a languid pace. She can feel his hand brushing a strand of her hair behind her ear. He pulls back slowly and grins at her. They're breathless and when they open their eyes, Kate sees his have gone a shade darker. He grins at her and shifts his eyes to the cabbie before bringing them back to her. He doesn't want them to be thrown out of the cab for inappropriate public display of affection.

She lets a small laugh escape her lisps and settles back into her seat. Castle slips his hand on her thigh and she grabs hold of it. She wants the connection. She feels like a teenager all over again. The skin beneath his hand is burning even with the layer of clothing that separates the skin to skin contact.

When they arrive in front of his apartment, Castle pays the driver and leaves a generous tip. Kate is waiting right beside him and she drags him towards the elevator. They haven't relinquished each other's hands. As the doors chime and open they step inside. The doors close behind them and he is on her in less than a second. Her back hits the left wall she half sighs, half moans as their lips lock. It's passionate and fiery. Her hand reach up and tangle is his hair while his grab her waist. He slips his tongue inside her already parted lips and moans at the sensation. She can feel her heart thudding in her chest and wonders if he can hear it too.

They eventually come up for air as the elevator dings. They share the same oxygen as they breathe, their mouths still only centimeters from touching. They glance at the open doors and Kate smiles, looking back at him taking in his disheveled hair and swollen lips. She reaches out and combs it back into place as best as she can.

He brushes her cheek with his hand and then drops it to take hold of hers again. He leads her towards the loft. Once they've reached the door he looks back at her and asks, 'Are you ready?' She nods in response and he opens the door.

She passes the threshold and Martha is on her, 'Oh, Kate! Oh darling, you can join us you great and beautiful creature, come in!' she exclaims enveloping her in a motherly hug. She leads Kate towards the kitchen and as soon as she sees the feast laid out before her she can't help but praise the women. 'Oh wow Martha! You… you really… outdid yourself!' she struggles to find the appropriate words. The older woman seems pleased. 'I did, facing death demands celebrating life, tonight we feast!' she says referring to their near death experience.

Castle joins in, 'Where's Alexis?' Martha motions towards the other room. He excuses himself and even though, she doesn't want to let him go, she knows it's for the best. Martha kindly offers her some wine and she accepts; a smile illuminates her face.

As Martha pour's her glass, she glances at the younger women and smirks. 'So, in the bank today, that was quite the show of emotion,' she comments and Kate feels her face get hot. 'Yeah, we, um… Well we're…' She's desperate to find the words that could describe the situation her and Castle are in right now but she's afraid the English language hasn't supplied any. What was taking Castle so long? She needed him right now. Oh, jeez, she thought, how am I supposed to explain this to his mother?

She tried again, 'What I meant to say was-' Martha cut her off. 'There's no need to be embarrassed dear, I was just being nosy. It's an actor thing; we tend to want all the details. I can assure you that I'm pleased about this… change in the nature of your relationship with my son. In fact, from what I recall, I might have won the bet!' Kate breathes a sigh of relief. Thanking whatever power is looking out for her up there. Wait, what? A bet?

'Martha what bet?' she asks. 'Katherine dear, for a detective, you don't seem very observant. I'm talking about the precinct bet of course; the one about you two getting together! It's been on for years!' As soon as she got back to work, she was going to kills the guys for letting this happen. She would even bet her bottom dollar that they set it up. Martha keeps talking. 'You know Katherine, maybe that's part of the reason you two have been holding out all this time. Richard's not very good at telling people how he feels. He often shows people through his actions, hoping that it will be sufficient. It's pretty ironic seeing as he's an author and expects others to voice their opinions! Anyhow! Listen to me, rambling away! How have you been doing dear?'

Kate is glad for the change of subject but doesn't quite put aside what Martha said. As they make small talk, she thinks about what she said. Through his actions. Well, that could mean coffee every morning, kicking down the door of her flaming apartment to get her out alive, holding her close so that she doesn't freeze to death inside a freezer. She thinks of all those things they've been through that they never talked about. Maybe they should. Talk about it that is. God knows it would do her some good to talk to someone other than Lanie for once.

At last Castle reenters the room with Alexis and she hands him his glass of wine. They smile at each other. Castle thanks her for saving his life she tells him that there's no need, that they're partners. She'll always have his back. Then he adds in a teasing tone 'Yes, some of us more than others of course.' He leans in to brush his glass to hers but she pulls back. 'Wait, what's that supposed to mean?' she asks, raising her eyebrows. He looks at her and smirks, 'Only that this is the eighth time you've saved my life and I've saved your life nine times.' She can't believe it! How the hell does he even know that? 'Okay, first of all,' she starts, 'I can't even believe that you're keeping score, and secondly there is no way that you've saved my life more than I have yours. Nine? Please.' He looks at her with a stunned look. She turns away and heads towards the kitchen for dinner. 'Well let's review, shall we?' he asks. He follows her to the dinner table and starts recounting their near death experiences. 'The first time, I distracted that mad gun man with a champagne bottle, and yes, that was a save, even you admitted it. The second time, the serial killer put a bomb in your kitchen while you were taking a shower. I had to breathe the hellish flames to pull you out of your bath tub.' On a side not he adds, 'Won't be forgetting that anytime soon…'

She feels herself redden. What is it with blushing today? She remembers that very well, and she's knows he's referring to the fact that she was naked at the time. For some reason, that heats her cheeks even more. She really needs to get a hold of herself. Maybe she should see a doctor, this can't be normal. She listens attentively as he continues to tell his tale of his 'knight in shining armor' moments with the NYPD.

Alexis notices that love struck look Kate has been staring at her father with all night. She's actually relived. It worried her that Kate might not give in to the feelings she had for her dad. At least one good thing might have come out of this freaking bank explosion.

Keeping the conversation going while they eat is not a problem. They are all still pumped with the adrenaline the day has supplied. As they talk, Kate finds herself missing the contact she and Castle had been sharing earlier. She finds herself slipping off one of her shoes and touching Castle's foot. He stiffens and hits his knee on the table noisily. Kate gives him a questioning look feigning innocence. The two other women are oblivious as to what is going on and simply continue eating. Two can play at that game, he thinks. He does the same with one of his shoes and caresses her foot. She clears her throat and he is glad to see that she is as affected by him as he is by her.

Slowly she decides to get bolder and lifts her foot to graze the inside of his thigh. He shifts in his seat, unable to keep still and notices that she's still eating her food, not even looking at him. That little minx, he thinks! He squeezes his legs closed forcing her to look up at him. A smile is threatening to escape her lips as the corners of her mouth begin to twitch. It's all he can do not to kiss her senseless right then and there.

A/N: More to come! I can't promise weekly updates but I'm not done here. Thanks for the reviews; they are greatly appreciated as well as everyone who has taken the time to read this story! Any suggestions are welcome. Feel free to PM me anytime.