Her paperwork is almost complete, only a few signatures needed before she can put it all away and consider the case to be officially closed, but Kate finds herself distracted – again – by the way she and Castle have been flirting recently. She supposes there is nothing inherently different about their exchanges, but every quirk of his lips, every roll of her eyes, and every moment of repartee between them carries the welcome weight of the afternoon they'd spent together just a few weeks ago. Now there's an undercurrent of soon in everything they say and do, something truly electric and oddly precious happening as they prepare for whatever awaits them.
Undeniable arousal has her shifting in her desk chair as she recalls his comment about conjuring up soapy images and the suggestion that he was picturing her; she couldn't help but do the same, her mind all too willing to supply a fitting fantasy. A night when she'd be in the shower, her own practiced hands coasting over her curves as she'd watch the trail of body wash left behind. He'd surprise her then, joining her in an effort to help or distract or thoroughly derail any progress she'd made, but she'd only pretend to be bothered by the interruption. Her contented moan would give her away soon enough, happy to let him guide her under the water and rinse her hair, and happier still when he'd bite at her neck and start a chain of events that would certainly make them late for their dinner reservation.
She drags herself from that reverie, but immediately slides into another, remembering the moment they'd shared when their theories had been exhausted and he'd suggested they sleep on it, only clarifying after her wide-eyed stare that they'd sleep separately. What had startled her was that she'd found herself interested in more than the idea of sex with him, craving the feeling of his arms tucking her into the cove of his resting body, a tired tangle of limbs that she'd generally avoided in past relationships in favor of asserting her independence even overnight. She'd long ago accepted sex with Castle as a near certainty, but the desire to share a bed with him the rest of the night was new, and in that second, she'd realized she wouldn't be afraid of surrendering her personal space to him, confident that he'd reestablish the emotional and physical boundaries whenever she might need them again.
Blinking back more daydreams, she looks up to see him approaching her desk, an envelope in his hand. She's overwhelmed before she even opens it, timidly grateful at the idea of him giving her a present for no reason at all, but she has to fight back a gasp when she sees the autographed Temptation Lane cast photo. The memory is too strong to keep to herself any longer and she practically quivers with it.
He leans forward, curious as always, so she responds with a nervous laugh and a story that she never expected to be sharing with him. She confesses about her tonsils and her mom and their ridiculous marathon of trashy television, but he's seemingly enchanted by her tale. Even when she offers him the opportunity to tease her relentlessly, he dodges it and reassures her instead, steadfast in his support of every facet of her life as it's unveiled to him. Before she can thank him again, he goes on.
"The boys are headed to The Old Haunt for a couple of drinks and I said I'd go with them. You wouldn't want to join us, would you?"
She smiles, bright and honest. "Actually, I'd love to."
When they arrive, they spot Ryan and Esposito in a booth at the back corner of the bar, beers already in front of them. Castle offers to get her drink if she'd like to go sit down, but her eyes linger a few extra moments as he greets one of his bartenders, his staff's enthusiastic reaction to his presence bringing a proud smile to her face. When she eventually continues across the room and waves to the boys, Espo raises his eyebrows in question but doesn't say anything; she's sure both detectives have figured out that something has changed about the relationship she has with her shadow, but they've been blessedly quiet about it.
By the time Castle strolls over with their beers, she's already shrugged out of both her coat and her suit jacket and slid into the booth. After he sets the bottles on the table, he pauses to remove his jacket, then gives her the added delight of rolling his sleeves up to his elbow. There's no way forearms should have any significant effect on her, but it's difficult not to stare and she draws a long swallow from her beer in an attempt to act normal. This is nothing more than a night out with her friends.
And the man who is entirely more than that.
Within a few minutes, she's feeling decidedly calmer, laughing as Castle teases Esposito about having a new crush on a soap opera actress, in spite of his relationship with Lanie. That reminds them all of Ryan's "freebie five" list, Natalie Rhodes, and the almost-disaster when he'd been preparing to propose to Jenny, so they have fun joking about that for a while. Eventually the conversation comes around to Castle's celebrity crushes, and finally Kate's, so they take their turns coming clean until four empty bottles have the boys going to fetch another round.
"I'm not one of your celebrity crushes?"
Oh. Oh. She has not had enough alcohol to properly answer a question like that and she can't even attempt to hide the blush the crawls across her cheeks. "Um, I was just thinking of-I mean, for a long time I-."
He curls his hand around her arm, and that doesn't help at all, his handprint bypassing her shirt and searing her skin. "Hey, Beckett?"
It's only then that she realizes her gaze is locked on his grip, so she takes a deep breath and meets his eyes, forcing as much innocence as she can manage and nodding for him to continue.
"I was just giving you a hard time. You look like you're having flashbacks to a high school pop quiz, but I wasn't expecting an actual answer." He chuckles and pulls his hand away just as Espo and Ryan return with more beer, and she's grateful for the drink she immediately cradles with her palms, the icy bottle a sharp contrast to the warmth she longs to accept from the man next to her.
With the other side of the booth balancing them out once again, they are back to their typical banter and inane discussion of precinct gossip. Castle excitedly asks Ryan whether he and Jenny have set a wedding date yet, and a passionate debate ensues between Espo and Castle about which one of them should be Ryan's best man; Castle points out that he's been through two weddings of his own and would have valuable experience and advice to impart on a nervous young groom, but Esposito simply argues back that Ryan's his damn partner.
Two beers down and Kate's suddenly brave enough to lean into him and whisper, "You know, if you're not tied up with best man duties, you'll probably have more free time to spend with your date."
Her tongue intentionally snaps on the last word, the t sound crisp as it falls from her mouth, and it causes him to ramble breathlessly. "Ryan, you should definitely make Espo your best man. He's your brother in blue and I'm just a civilian and I'll be very happy as a guest who can enjoy the ceremony and reception from the comfort of my seat alongside whomever I'm lucky enough to have as my plus one."
Esposito sits back, pleased to have won that battle and ignoring Ryan's stammered disclaimer that he may be forced to use a relative instead. Kate merely looks at Castle, happy to have thrown him in the same way she's been spinning since they arrived at the bar. It's still so new, whatever it is they're doing, her nerves alight and her heart threatening to soar without her, but she's comforted by the idea that she still puts that look on his face; it's the expression she saw before she sauntered away from their first case together, and she won't tire of it any time soon.
"Speaking of my wedding, if I still hope to have one, I should probably get home to Jenny."
Ryan nudges Esposito to let him out of the booth, and Espo moves as he nods in agreement. "Yeah, Lanie's waiting for me, too."
"Next time we have drinks, you guys should invite Jenny and Lanie to join us." The words are out of her mouth before she realizes she's essentially suggesting a triple date, but she does her best to shrug it off. "It would be fun."
She's grateful when the boys don't make a big deal out of it, saying their goodbyes without any of the teasing she probably deserves, then leaving her alone with Castle. He taps the neck of her empty bottle with his, the clink of the glass voicing the question before he does. "One more?"
"Yes, please."
She accepts the new one from him a minute later and watches as he slides into the opposite side of the booth; she's disappointed that his body is no longer next to hers, but can't complain about the view. They make small talk as they drink, groans and grins bandied about when he brings up her mother/daughter soap opera marathon again. Then she playfully scrapes her foot along his shin after he shares a Martha story that leaves him embarrassed and her near tears from laughing so hard. She exchanges it for a mortifying moment of her own, telling him about the time a game she'd played at a teenage slumber party had been wilder than she'd expected and how she'd been unable to look her mom in the eye for days after Johanna had heard about it.
They're having fun and she's certain she could sit with him for hours, trading family stories like this, but her third beer is gone and she has to work in the morning, so she decides to do the responsible thing. "I should probably go home and get some sleep."
Somewhat unexpectedly, he doesn't put up a fight, scooting clear of the table and rising to help her with her jacket and coat instead. She slides her arms through the sleeves and closes her eyes at the shiver that travels the length of her spine when he helps tug her hair clear of the collar. It's intimate in a way that makes her seek more, her back arching toward his touch; if her inhibitions were any lower, she'd almost certainly turn in his arms and allow him to hold her close.
"Will you let me escort you home?"
Telling him he doesn't have to do that is her inclination, never great at accepting anything resembling help, but she knows this is as much for his peace of mind as for any other reason. "Sure, Castle. Thanks."
He finishes putting on his own coat, then waves goodbye to the bartender on their way out. They're able to hail a cab right away, relieved to get out of the cold so quickly, and he rattles off her address as they get settled in the back seat. They fall silent then, looking out their respective windows as the city passes them by, but she has to bite her lip to stop from making a satisfied sound when Castle slips his hand over hers in the small space between them. He doesn't attempt to thread his fingers between hers, drawing some sort of line he won't force her to cross, but it's a comfort nonetheless and a connection she's loath to break when they eventually pull up to her building.
She's not surprised at all when he asks the driver to wait a minute so he can walk her to the door – nervous, yes, but not surprised – and she shuffles across the sidewalk while he catches up to her.
"Thank you, Kate, for coming out with me tonight. I had a lot of fun…even later in the evening, when you were far too amused at my expense."
"Ah, come on now. You weren't exactly silent when I was sharing my own embarrassing stories."
He nods and glances over his shoulder at the cab. "So…I'll see you tomorrow?"
"Mmmhmm. And I'm sorry I didn't mention you as a celebrity crush earlier," she whispers. Then, with a burst of courage or stupidity, she steps forward to kiss his cheek and breathe against his skin. "But that would have been a massive understatement."
She reaches for the door, a shy smile adorning her face as he can do nothing but stumble backward toward the waiting cab, struck dumb by her confession. It's still not everything he deserves to know, but she promises herself she'll get there.