With all of the ideas tumbling around in my head, it was difficult to know which one to work on next. But I finally decided to go with my most recently posted story. I'm planning to finish this story before working on the next chapter for Bachelor Auction. (But I think I have the date figured out, although if anyone wants to give me any ideas, I'd love it). Then The chapter(s) for Teasing Castle and then FINALLY the 'What About Lanie' chapter for 'Pheromone, My Lovely/Detective.' Although my muse doesn't always cooperate...
Disclaimer: Nope, still don't own it. Until Kate says 'ILY' to Castle, you can rest assured the show does NOT belong to me.
It was over. Kate hadn't been this glad for a case to be closed so quickly in a long time. But it had been no ordinary case. Castle had been there every time she turned around. At least his nine-year-old on a sugar rush attitude had irritated her enough to keep any lingering attraction at bay. Every time-and there had been far more of them than Kate would ever admit to, even to herself-the kiss had popped into her mind, the man had done something to remind her why it could never happen again. He'd started talking to Lanie because he got lonely. He walked into a potentially dangerous situation after Kate expressly told him to stay in the car with nothing more than a joke about having never been a scout for an explanation. He didn't take her, or her job, seriously.
But it was over now. The murderer was in holding and Castle was-
Sitting in her chair. Rifling through files on her desk. As if he had every right to be there.
Kate rushed over and snatched the folder out of his hand.
"What are you doing?" she demanded to know.
"It's a novelist habit," he explained, "go through other peoples' mail, check in their medicine cabinets…."
Kate had a feeling it was more of a Richard Castle habit than one that all novelists indulged in. "Why are you still here?"
He rose from the chair and turned to grab something that had been on the desk beside him. "I just came by to give you this," he said, holding out a white box with blue flowers dotted all over it. "Something to memorialize our brief partnership."
As if Kate would ever forget it.
She took the box but simply held it in her hands as she gave him an assessing look. With this man, the item inside could be anything. If it was lingerie, he was going to be in big trouble.
"Don't look so suspicious. Go on, open it."
Knowing she wouldn't get rid of him until she did, Kate took the box from him and took off the lid. Her expression told him in no uncertain terms that she was doing this only to humor him.
But then she looked down and saw that it was a copy of his latest novel. It wasn't even available in stores for another few weeks.
"I got you an advanced copy," he said. "I even signed it to you."
Kate opened the book to the title page where she saw Castle's familiar scrawl. Familiar because of the other signed book she had gotten years ago. Another thing he would never know about.
"Not that you're a fan," Castle deadpanned.
It was difficult for Kate to look away from the words he had written. In the days that he had been following her, it had been easy for her to push to the back of her mind the fact that it was her favorite author that was shadowing her. But holding the book in her hands, seeing the words written by his own hand, woke up her inner fan-girl. There was no better gift he could have gotten her.
"Thanks, that's actually kind of…sweet."
Her voice was steady, hiding the depth of emotion swirling inside her. For a brief moment she wished she was another type of person, one who could adequately express how much this one gesture meant to her.
"Well," he said, and Kate could nothing more than repeat the word. He really had just stopped by to give her the book. Maybe she had misjudged him. "It was nice to have met you, Detective Beckett."
Kate nodded her acknowledgement, wondering at the twinge of disappointment she felt. She wanted him to leave. Things needed to get back to normal, which meant him with his socialites and debutants and her with her paperwork.
But he was leaving. Once he was gone, she would never see him again. Kate knew that the most she could hope for was that he might have a minor character in his next novel that may have a characteristic or two of hers.
This was real life, not some epic love story.
But wait, what was he doing?
Castle leaned towards her, coming closer and closer until his soft lips brushed across her cheek.
Kate's breath caught in her throat.
His lips were so soft, so gentle, against her skin. Just like when he had kissed her under the mistletoe.
Was he telling her that he knew, that he figured it out?
The touch lasted for little more than a second before he pulled back. She wasn't sure what the look in his eyes meant. The look was the most serious one he had ever given her. There was no smirk, no glint of humor, just…what?
Castle broke the contact and started walking away before she could figure it out.
It was then that Kate realized that her pulse was racing and she still faintly felt the press of his lips even though the distance between them grew with every footfall she heard.
He had kissed her.
Her.
Not a passionate kiss, not a romantic kiss, not even on the lips-she would be eternally grateful for that-but it had been a kiss nonetheless.
Why?
She turned, her puzzlement clear in her expression.
Castle wasn't slowing down or turning his head to look at her and give her a clue.
He was acting as if it was it was just another everyday occurrence for him.
Kate turned back toward her desk and set down the box she'd forgotten she was still holding. She sat but was unable to turn her attention back to her work quite yet.
She supposed it made sense. He was a rich playboy, after all.
Who probably assumed that she had no interest in him whatsoever.
Kate smiled at how wrong he was. She just had a stronger willpower than most.
She rolled her eyes, slightly shaking her head. As much as he had annoyed her, Castle had certainly kept things interesting. From the time she had interrogated-
Wait a minute.
What file had he been looking at?
During his interrogation he had asked her for copies of the pictures of the crime scene, a request she hadn't taken the least bit seriously.
"He didn't," she thought aloud, only half-believing the words. Not even Castle would go that far, would he?
She took the folder from the top of the stack and opened it, hoping her suspicion was wrong.
"Oh, he did!"
That did it. Favorite author or not, he couldn't be allowed to tamper with evidence.
Now he was chasing a suspect?
"Castle!" Kate shouted, "no!"
Of course he didn't listen to her.
The man was going to get himself killed.
Kate hadn't even gotten all the way down the stairs when she heard a thud and a soft groan. Relief flooded her when she saw that although Harrison had Castle in his grasp the writer was still alive. But that didn't mean he was uninjured.
"Castle, you okay?"
"Yeah, except this psycho here needs a breath mint."
He was fine.
And once again not taking the situation seriously.
"Harrison, you know what's bugging me?" Castle said. "If you were that deep in debt, why didn't you ask your father for the money?"
She couldn't believe it. A murderer was waving a gun around inches from his body, and Castle was asking for the man's backstory?
"Castle, you are not helping!"
But he didn't stop, spinning a theory, filling in the blanks like it was one of his books.
Kate didn't take her focus from the suspect. The way Castle's mind worked to build a story fascinated her, but now was not the time.
Harrison was getting more and more agitated. Kate knew she might have to shoot him to get them out of this.
"Harrison, let him go," she ordered, giving him one more chance. "It's over."
"It's not over!" Harrison cried. "Drop the gun or I swear to God I-"
Kate curled her finger around the trigger, waiting for a chance to get a clear shot when Castle swung his cuffed wrist. The metal made contact, hitting Harrison in the forehead.
"Tell me you saw that!" Castle cried excitedly as the other man fell to the ground.
Kate watched for a moment as Castle hopped around after stepping on a sharp piece of debris. She then went over and knelt next to the unconscious man.
"You're going to put that in your report, right?" Castle wanted to know.
She didn't bother to answer, merely asked for her handcuffs back. Once she had the cuffs securely around the suspect's wrists, she turned back to Castle.
Unable to control the impulse, Kate placed her open palms against Castle's chest and shoved. Immediately she regretted it. Not because he got hurt; no matter how mad he made her she would never physically injure him. But now she knew how muscular his chest was and her treacherous hands were tingling from the brief contact.
She was glad that having Castle shadow her on a case was only a one- time thing.
Otherwise her attraction to him could become a serious problem.
I thought about putting the next scene in this chapter since we'll still be in season one (and that's all the 'spoilers' I'm giving :) ) but I felt this was the perfect ending. And it made it so I could post it tonight.
