Okay, so there are some little parts in this chapter that dont really have anything to do with anything but i felt like adding them in just because. I know this kind of seems slow paced but i have written other stories where i end up going to fast and they end bad so i am trying to keep this slow and steady. Hope you like it.
"Holy shit! It's freezing out here." Esposito said as they exited the airport. They had just spent the last forty five minutes arguing with the rent-a-car people. Apparently they didn't arrive in time and they gave the car to someone else. Now they had to find a different way to get to the hotel.
Kate looked from side to side. No taxi's. She spotted an express check baggage worker and thought she would ask him if he knew how they would get to where they are going.
"Wait here." She said to the boys as she jogged over. The cold wind bit at her ears and nose. "Excuse me?" She said to the guy. He looked up at her looking as cold as she already felt. He had wavy dark brown hair that stuck to his head because it was wet. He had brown eyes and a little bit of frozen stubble on his face. "Do you know if there will be any more taxi's coming by tonight?" She asked. He smiled at her as if she said something funny.
"I take it you're not from around here." He said and she shook her head. "Well, in this weather all the taxi drivers are staying in, but there should be a bus coming by in about twenty minutes. Where do you need to go?" He asked.
"The Holiday Inn Express on 200 North 2100 West." She said. Again he smiled.
"That's about two blocks from here. The bus will take you there." He said. Two blocks, why take the bus? She thought to herself.
"How long is it walking distance?" She asked.
"You don't want to walk from here. You'll be frozen by the time you get there. If I were you I would wait for the bus." He said.
"Okay, thanks…" She looked at his nametag. "Jason." She said.
"No problem." He said and then he brought his hands to his face and blew into them to warm them up. Kate walked over to the boys who were all shivering.
"We can go inside; we've got twenty minutes until the next bus." She said.
….. … …. ….. ….. … … …..
They all got situated at a little table with hot chocolate and waited. After about five minutes they all kind of stopped talking. They were cold and tired so there wasn't much to be said. Kate pulled the case file out of her carry on. She laid it out on the table to read up on the family history. She had planned on doing that on the plane but she had fallen asleep.
After a couple minutes she felt someone's eyes on her. She was going to snap if it was Castle. She looked up and saw Jason.
"That's gross. Is it real?" He asked pointing to the picture.
"Uh... yeah." Kate said. She quickly closed the file. "Did you need something?" She asked.
"Oh, yeah, the bus is here." He said shaking his head as if he was trying to shake away the memory of the picture.
"Okay thanks." She said.
"Yup." He said and then turned to leave. Then he turned back, his expression different. "Aren't you Richard Castle?" He asked.
"I am indeed." Castle said. He acted so normal when strangers recognized him.
"Then you must be… um… the chick Nikki is based off of huh?" He asked Kate.
"Uh… yeah, detective Kate Beckett." She said. He shook his head.
"That totally explains the picture." He said and then he turned and left. Kate was surprised he didn't ask for an autograph from Castle like everyone else.
… …. …. …. …. ….. …
Kate unlocked the hotel room door and they all walked in. Ryan flipped on the lights and the suite was lit up. There was a small kitchenette to the right and a bathroom to the left. They walked into the living room. There were two doors in the living room. One opened up to a room with two queen sized beds and the other to a king sized. Ryan and Esposito claimed the room with the two beds. They had their own bathroom so they were set. They said goodnight and shut the door. That left one big bed for Kate and Castle.
"I'll sleep on the couch." Castle said after a few minutes of awkward silence.
"You don't have to do…" He cut her off mid sentence.
"It's fine Beckett." He said. He set his stuff down next to the couch and looked at her. After a few moments of her not budging he grabbed her stuff and took it to the main room.
"Castle I can sleep on the couch. It doesn't bug me." She said.
"So can I." He protested.
"You got us first class; you should get to sleep in a bed." She said.
"I will, the couch has a pull out." He said. A few moments of angry glaring later Kate gave up. She relaxed her shoulder's and sighed, plopping down on the bed.
"Fine, but if we are here for longer then one day we will switch on and off." She said. He smiled in triumph and agreed. Then he did something that had Kate frozen in place. He walked over and kissed her on the forehead. He didn't seem to realize what he was doing. He quickly backed off and wouldn't look at her.
"Sorry, uh, force of habit, you know, with Alexis." He said and then walked to the door. "Good night." He said and left, closing the door behind him.
When she heard the door click she let out the breath she hadn't realized she was holding. At first she felt angry. But then she smiled remembering the way his lips felt only moments ago. They felt soft, sweet. What the hell are you thinking! Her mind shouted.
….. ….. …. ….. ….. ….. …. ….
Castle sat down on the couch and watched her door. He hadn't meant to do that. It really was just a force of habit. He was used to kissing his daughter goodnight. Sure he didn't think of Kate like a daughter in any way, but still. He closed his eyes and laid his head against the back of the couch. You're slipping man. Don't do something to screw this up. His mind told him. He had been struggling lately not to tell Kate how he felt. How she made him feel. The more time he spent with her the more his feelings grew. He had been trying to ignore them. Telling himself that if he acted on his feelings he might hurt Kate, and that was the last thing he wanted to do. He had to trust himself before he could do anything that dangerous, and lately, he didn't trust himself. Mainly because he knew what he was feeling ran deeper than just lust, and it scared him. He was so used to being able to keep people a safe distance from him ever since Kyra with his party boy act. But Kate squeezed through the cracks. She got in and was now stuck. He couldn't get her out no matter how hard he tried.
But he would have to try harder. If he wanted his relationship with Kate to last it would have to stay the way it was. Just friends.
Pretty please review. It would make me very happy.
