Hello, dear reader. Thank you for checking out another chapter! For all of you who put me/my story on your Alert and Favorite lists, thank you thank you thank you. I get SO excited when I see emails like that. On with the show...

Half an hour later, they were downstairs in the lobby, wearing their beach clothes under shorts and…well, neither actually had swimwear under their shirts. Rick addressed the clerk behind the front desk. "Pardon" he began, in perfectly accented French. "On a besoin de transportation a la… plage." He slid a glance sideways at Kate, who was actually standing with her mouth hanging open. After the desk clerk nodded and hurried off to fulfill Castle's request, he reached out and gently pressed her chin upward.

"Don't look so shocked. It's a necessity, when you travel as I do, to learn how to ask to have transportation arranged. I can do it in at least half a dozen languages. That, and 'where's the bathroom'." He winked at her and reached for her hand. He glanced out the large windows and noted a car with the Chateau logo rolling to a stop in front of the doors.

"Impressive response time…"he murmured.

"Monsieur ? Votre voiture est arrivée," said the clerk, gesturing to the car.

"Merci."

They walked hand in hand to the car, where the driver extended his hand to assist Kate. She shifted her beach bag to the other hand, put her indignant feminist persona on mute and graciously thanked him, allowing him to assist her into the car. Rick followed and looked at her, incredulous.

"Amazing. You'll take help from a total stranger, but not from me!" he pouted.

"It's a cultural thing, and besides, he's not the one withholding information from me."

They chatted with the driver, Jean, once they discovered that like many in the hospitality industry, he had been given English classes as part of his job training. When they arrived at their destination, Kate stepped out eagerly, gasping at the gorgeous, vibrant azure of the sea that stretched before her. Eventually she noticed that Rick had not followed her, but rather, was engrossed in some conversation with Jean. She looked over her shoulder, deciding that if he was up to more plotting, she'd indulge in some pre-emptive payback.

"RICHARD!"

His head snapped up at Kate's tone. She never, ever EVER called him that. That was reserved for his mother and Meredith, both of whom managed to turn it into a combination of scold and swear. Kate had perfected that admirably.

He kept his eyes on her, waiting to find out what he had done to merit that tone. She stood with her hands on her hips.

"There are NO topless people here!"

Biting the inside of her cheek to keep from smiling, she watched him grow pale, craning his neck around her and Jean. Even the driver turned around, his brows knitting in confusion.

"What? Really?"

"No….Gotcha!"

"Ohhhhhhhhh…" He growled at her. "Just you wait, Katie."

He shook Jean's hand and scooped up his own beach bag, stocked with sunscreen, a change of clothes, and the outrageously fluffy towel provided by the hotel. They ventured onto the soft sand and selected thick-cushioned chaise lounges with an umbrella nearby. He made quick work of shucking his t-shirt and cargo shorts. It turned out his bathing suit was of the form fitting variety. It was possible, Kate mused with a bit of a lascivious grin, that she'd be the envy of the beach in more ways than one.

He fished in his bag and found the bottle of sunscreen, slathering himself while standing in the shade of the umbrella. When he was finished, he looked expectantly at her.

She'd been watching him carefully, impressed so far by his lack of gawking. She had already surveyed the beach and discovered that though there were a few women with bathing suit tops, most were nude to the waist. She accepted the bottle of lotion he offered.

"I'll do your back if you'll do mine." He turned his back as he said this, so he didn't see the discomfort on her face. Yes, she had accepted his dare, and he wasn't likely to let her live it down if she went back on her agreement, particularly since it would mean spending her beach time in her shirt. It was just that now that the moment had arrived, she had lost some of her confidence. She concentrated on rubbing the sun block into Rick's back.

When she was finished, murmuring "All done", she turned her attention to her own legs. Next she hunched forward and applied some of the lotion to her chest under the blouse. It was more prone to sunburn, even though she had dared to indulge in topless sunbathing once or twice at their Hamptons house. She glanced up once, to catch the crestfallen look on Rick's face.

"I can see that you were hoping to help me with this part, too." At his eager nod, she shook her head gently and dropped her voice to a murmur. "First of all, I can reach my chest just fine. Second, this beach is not THAT private, and I think we might actually strain the limits of what Europeans consider proper public behavior." Eventually she was done, bringing her to the moment of truth.

Rick watched her hesitantly fiddling with the buttons on her blouse. He sensed that his verbal input would not be welcome at the moment. Finally she released one button, then another and another, until she was bared. He smiled at her, taking the lotion from her and coating her back. "Okay" he declared. "Time for a swim." He decided that she needed to be distracted from her discomfort, and he had the perfect solution. He picked her up and strode toward the water.

"What are you doing?" she demanded.

"I just told you, time to…get wet." The warm Mediterranean water lapped at his ankles, then his shins, then his knees, as he went deeper and deeper. She struggled, squealing.

"I can get there on my own."

"Oh but my darling, this is a full service honeymoon. And by the way, if you're looking to attract attention to yourself, shriek a little louder." Finally when he was in above his waist, and her bottom was skimming the sea surface, he gave her a wicked grin. "Well, you're a little wet, might as well go all the way." With no further warning, he bent his knees and dropped them both below the surface. Only then did he let go.

"Why did you do that?" she asked.

"Well, for starters, because it was fun, not to mention revenge for your little gotcha earlier. But the second reason was to take your mind off your shyness, while giving you the chance to ease into this. Or out of it, as the case may be. You can stay under the water, concealed, for as long as you want, until you get more used to the idea."

She sat down on the sandy bottom, in water up to her neck. He sat next to her, pulling her into his lap. She swiveled so that she could wrap her legs around his waist. He pulled her down for a kiss, pressing her up against him. This move served to intensify his arousal, and she could feel the change immediately. She blinked down at him, and he grinned sheepishly. "Told you."

For a few moments, he shared her aversion to standing up. After they talked for a while, they both decided they needed to relax. She stood up slowly, watching only him. He rose to stand beside her, and hand-in-hand they headed to their chosen lounge chairs. They sunned themselves for a while, then threw their shirts on and headed to the beach-side café for lunch.

They shared a plate of asparagus and goat cheese spring rolls with a roasted red pepper dip. Next it was shrimp kabobs for her and a lamb gyro for him. They split a lemon frozen yogurt for dessert. As Rick was finishing his last spoonful, he jerked his head in the direction of the bath house.

"We should go get cleaned up and ready…"

"Ready for what?" she asked suspiciously.

"I told you this morning. Shopping."

Realizing she'd played her stubborn card already, she merely nodded.

When she returned from the bath house in a pastel floral top and white shorts, Rick had to suppress a cough. The outfit was so much more care-free and girly than he was used to seeing on her. He had a good feeling that maybe she would be more open minded than normal during their shopping trip.

Kate caught him appraising her, and gave him a once over of her own. She nodded approvingly at the denim shorts he had paired with a white short sleeved button down, accented with a plaid-like pattern in a blue that matched his eyes.

A honking horn drew her attention away, and she could see Jean waving at them from a navy blue sedan. Once they were settled in the back seat, Jean drove them west, using coastal roads for as long as he could, until he reached Nice. He dropped them off in the heart of the shopping district, promising to return for them in a few hours.

They strolled down Avenue Jean Medecin. Rick kept a careful eye on Kate, watching for signs of interest as she looked at the displays in various shops. He sensed that getting her here was as much strong-arming as she would tolerate from him. When her gaze lingered over the mannequins in the window of Galleries Lafayette Nice Massena, he held his breath. She glanced at him, hesitant. He nodded reassuringly and strode forward to open the door for her.

They made their way to the women's department. Kate bit her lip and turned in a slow circle. Deciding that she might feel more comfortable without him breathing down her neck, Rich approached her.

"I'll tell you what…" he whispered in her ear. "I'm going to go check out the men's department. Be back in…twenty minutes?" She nodded absently.

When he returned she was just emerging from the changing room, looking around uncertainly. At the sound of his whistle, her head came around and she blushed. She inspected her reflection in the full length mirror. She'd found a smartly tailored dark gray suit, but the purple blouse she wore with it made for a look that was far from drab. She smiled at him and held up a "just a minute" finger. She disappeared into the recesses of the dressing room and returned in a tan dress, a red scarf around her neck, and oversized sunglasses perched atop her head.

"Which do you think?" she asked.

"Both, of course. Silly woman." He was careful to make his tone playful, not condescending.

She hesitated, but she really did like both outfits. Grudgingly she nodded, and before she had a chance to change her mind, Rick had the apparel paid for and packaged. He added the shopping bags to his own, bearing the handful of shirts and ties he had indulged in.

On the way out, Rick paused at a lingerie display, taking in the collection of colors that seemed to have been liberated from a bucket of rainbow sherbet. He crossed to where the deeper jewel-toned hues graced the walls. His gaze was drawn to a mannequin garbed in a bluish purple gown. The top was a halter of Brazilian lace. Stitched to it was an expanse of a matching colored mesh that loosely fit the definition of a 'skirt', given that it was slit right up to the bottom of the halter. Oh yes, that would do nicely.

He turned to regard Kate. "May I?" Shocked that once again he was asking permission, she raised an eyebrow. He hastily continued. "Not that your collection isn't impressive already, but I would love nothing better than to see you dressed in this, for me."

The throaty way he ended his request had her blushing all over again. When he phrased it like that, how could she possibly deny him, or herself for that matter. Nodding, she wordlessly found the correct size and pressed the hanger into his hand.

Jean picked them up later at the pre-arranged time and place, returning them and all of their parcels to the Chateau. Surprisingly, Kate had loosened up after the first store, and she made a few more selections with far less hesitance. That evening they dined in the five star restaurant downstairs, Kate in her new dress, Rick in one of his new shirts.

Afterwards they had their appointments for his-and-her relaxation massages. They lay on parallel tables, facing one another. At first, neither of them found it particularly relaxing, watching their partner being attended to by a person of the opposite sex. Each tried to stifle their pleasured moans, lest the other feel jealous. Somehow, though, they came to silent mutual agreement to enjoy it, and each began to make mental notes about what felt good, so that they might repeat it with each other at some later point.

The next couple of days flew by. They spent time at the beach and exploring the village. Thanks to a generous tip or two, Jean had essentially become their personal chauffeur, and he showed them views not normally experienced by tourists. Too soon they were packing for their next leg. They had had to purchase an extra suitcase for their new clothing.

Jean met them in the lobby and carried their luggage out to the car. He set off, again following coastal roads. Kate looked around, confused, when she saw he was not headed to the airport. "Where's he going?" she asked. Rick refused to comment, preferring to let the surprise reveal itself, and surprised she was when Jean pulled to a stop at the boarding ramp of a rather large cruise ship.

So, off they go on another leg of their journey. Thank you for reading so far. Now please take 30 more seconds to hit the "review" button and tell me what you thought? Pretty Please?