In The Hamptons

Sorry for the long wait. Life keeps getting in the way. But I hope this proves worth it.

Disclaimer: Not an ounce of ownership to be had – but that doesn't make me love them any less.

Chapter 4

The sun was barely peaking over the horizon when Kate opened her eyes and stretched like she'd slept for the better part of a day. Her muscles were limber and thrumming with the aftereffects of making love to Castle for most of the night. It was still such a thrill to look over and see his sleeping form next to her. The first time they'd spent the night under the same roof, though far from together, when a serial killer was using Nikki Heat as an outlet for his psychosis, she'd told Castle she wouldn't hesitate to shoot him if her bedroom knob even looked like it was about to turn. Even then, she'd been convinced his only goal was to get her in pants, and she wasn't about to give him the slightest encouragement – even if she fell asleep watching that door with more hope than irritation. But she must have played her part well because it didn't budge. Nor did any other knob over the years – at his loft, or in L.A., or even metaphorically when they were handcuffed together for twelve hours just six months ago. Not once did he make so much as one overt, sincere effort to pursue her in any way. And each time, it got a lot harder to convince herself she was relieved – and not maddeningly frustrated – by his distance.

Now, there was no need for distance. She could stroke his back, caress his cheek, and kiss his lips at her whim. She had complete and open access to all of him. She could ask him any question, interrupt any activity, and touch any part of him, and he welcomed her with open arms. When she apologized for breaking his concentration during an intense writing session, he'd brushed it off and said Nikki always took a backseat to the real person. When she got up the nerve to ask him about his marriages, they'd talked for two hours while he related every detail of the past twenty years of his life. In the past three weeks, nothing about his life had been off-limits to her. She didn't know whether he would have always been that forthcoming if she had had the courage to ask before, or if he was trying to show her that he really was all in. And for a woman whose every adult relationship had been defined by half-measures and who constantly played tug-of-war as she struggled against too much commitment, she found that the more he offered, the more she wanted to offer back. It was stark yet welcome proof that if she in fact had been looking for someone to dive in with, in every way possible, she truly had found him.

Holding on to that thought, and noticing that the sun was painting the water with warm pinks and oranges, she reached over and began brushing his hair from his face. The simple gesture still left her a little awestruck.

She had something she wanted to share with him, but she didn't know if he'd be up for it. While she could still sleep mornings away with the skill of any nocturnal teen-ager and grumbled as much as anyone else when a body dropped at five a.m., she considered herself a bit more of a morning person than Castle, especially when it came to exercise. But she really couldn't resist. Her body was vibrating with energy – and it was all his fault. He made her come alive in so many ways, and for once, she was going to return the favor.

"Castle … Castle, wake up." She rubbed his shoulder and leaned over to whisper in his ear, using her tongue to stroke the soft lobe.

Slowly he began to stir.

"Kate, wassa mattr? Waz wrong?" he mumbled, rousing barely enough to open his eyes.

"Everything's okay, but would you mind getting up with me. There's something I want to do that I haven't done in a while. And I want you to come with me."

Somehow the words penetrated his foggy brain. There were very few things he considered worth doing before the sun had its first coffee of the day, but when it came to Kate, he wasn't going to miss one opportunity to share something with her – especially when she was asking him.

Fifteen minutes later, he was very nearly regretting his decision.

The beach stretched out for miles both east and west, and Kate was determined to start the day running straight into the sun. Castle had never been much of a runner, though he could admit he usually felt pretty good afterward. Kate, however, thrived on the intensity and adrenaline. So if she wanted to run along the beach at sunrise and wanted him with her to watch she sun climb over the water, then he'd forgo his bed and his coffee to do it.

But he'd make her pay for it later, he thought wickedly.

The first mile was the hardest. His calves screamed in protest, his arches rebelled against the unstable terrain, and his lungs begged for more air than he could suck in. It was sheer hell, and it didn't help that Kate looked like she jogged off the page of a Nike ad, with her hair in a braid and her legs stretching out of loose, lightweight shorts. Though it was just before six and the temperature was still shy of 70, they both knew how quickly the sun and humidity would start to climb.

The end of the second mile brought them to the edge of Camp Hero State Park, and already, their shirts were damp with sweat. A mile after that, they were at the tip of the island, and the sun was well on its way across the sky.

"Damn, Castle, I'm impressed," Kate said between lungfuls of air.

"Yeah, well, you should be," he gasped. "Why do people do this to themselves?"

"Because it's good for you. Gets the blood pumping."

"So does sex."

Her laughter cost her too much oxygen, and she doubled over trying to get more. Once recovered, much to Castle's amusement, she quipped, "Make you a deal Castle. You beat me back, and we can burn some calories your way."

"That's assuming I make it back."

"You will, I promise."

"And what if you win?"

"Well, you'll still probably get sex, but we come back here for round two tomorrow."

"You drive a hard bargain, Detective, but I accept," he said as he took off past her on his way back down the beach, determined to at least present a solid challenge to her superior ability. For a while, they kept an even pace, but Castle had the distinct feeling Kate was toying with him. His suspicion was confirmed when she took the lead by a few meters then stripped off her damp shirt in the warming sun, leaving him to gaze at the sexy stretch of her black sports bra across the muscles of her back. It was enough to convince him that he could chase her back to Manhattan if it meant peeling that spandex scrap of cloth from her body.

His muscles were finally loose and warm, giving him a greater stride and not as much resistance. So when Kate started to pull away even more as they hit the last mile, he gave her a few meters to lull her into a false sense of security. They both knew she could out-distance him in a speed race, but he hoped her ego would be her downfall. It also helped that he was more familiar with the island and could better gauge the distance to his property.

When he saw the blue steps that led from the beach to his closest neighbor's secluded property, Castle turned up the speed. He knew he had about two hundred yards to catch her. His plan seemed to be working, until her instincts kicked in and she glanced back to see him coming up fast. Immediately, her stride lengthened, and he saw his advantage waning. Within seconds, they were in a full sprint, and Castle was shocked to find that his longer stride was helping him gain the last few feet. But it wouldn't be enough. So with nothing left to lose, he watched her start to slow down in victory before grabbing her hand as he ran by and dragging her away from the steps and straight for the surf.

"Castle! What are you ... no! Don't you dare! CASTLE!" She twisted and pulled until he pivoted their positions so he could tackle her into the water in a massive bear hug.

They were immediately knocked back by the force of a cold wave against their overheated bodies. It was at once bitterly painful and refreshingly invigorating. Kate came up sputtering salt water and tried her best to glare at the man sitting in the sand, with the receding water swaying against his chest and a fool's grin on his face.

"Tell me that didn't feel good," he challenged.

She sloshed over to him and plopped down in his lap with her legs straddling him. Both of them were just far enough into the water for the waves to break well away from them and then roll gently over their legs and hips. "Not the point," she muttered, failing miserably at appearing anything less than playful.

"You liked it," he smirked.

How had she ever resisted him? Grateful she no longer had to, she pinned him to the sand and was kissing the salty water from his lips like it was fine champagne. The tide continued to lap around them, but their focus was only on each other. Kate's knees and hands pressed into sand as she straddled his hips and leaned over to continue her assault on his neck. Finally getting the chance to act on the fantasy that carried him the last two miles, Castle pushed his thumbs under the tight band of her sports bra and watched as the wet material pulled away from her skin, revealing breasts that were already tight and pebbled from the cold water.

Kate inhaled sharply from both shock and arousal, and then she darted quick glances in every direction. She would hardly consider herself an exhibitionist, but the feel of the water and the allure of Castle beneath her overrode all reason. Besides, his property was secluded, and not a soul could be seen anywhere. Why not live a little?

His hands were fast and eager on her body as she rubbed suggestively against him, feeling him harden against her.

Finally, logic penetrated his brain long enough for him to gasp, "Kate, we can't. Kate … sand ... bad."

Unfortunately, acting on that reason proved much harder, and Kate wasn't sure how he expected her to make sense of his words with his fingers brushing against the sensitive peaks of her breasts and then sliding along her wet torso and down her thighs to slip into the leg of her running shorts. The heat he found at her core was volcanic compared to the coolness of her exposed skin, and she convulsed around him when his fingers found her.

"Rick," she gasped.

It took some finesse, and despite the threat posed by sand that often made sex on the beach anything but sexy, she managed to free him from his shorts. Moving aside her own shorts and underwear, she lowered herself directly onto him. It was elicit, erotic, utterly overwhelming, and so very hot with the cold water rushing up against them in a rhythm that matched their own.

With so many sensations, and so many risks, intensity was far more important than stamina. Kate employed every trick she knew, rocking and sliding against him, until Castle gripped her hips with enough force to bruise and held her still while he rode a final wave of uncontrolled release.

If not for the cold water, Kate could have remained next to him on that beach all day, and by his lack of mobility, she suspected he felt much the same. But the sand that had felt so wonderful abrading her skin moments earlier suddenly felt harsh and irritating, making her think fondly of the shower waiting thirty yards away. Leaning over to press a hot, open kiss to Castle's slack mouth, she stood up and clasped his hand, pulling him after her.

"Best. Run. Ever."

"Told you it would be worth it," she tossed over her shoulder, leading him to the outdoor shower head at the foot of the deck. "Please tell me this thing has hot water."

Castle nodded absently before turning her around to face him and lowering his mouth to hers. "Kate, I say this with all sincerity, that was the most erotic experience of my life."

Kate's smile started out shy but blossomed with wanton pride. "Well, we might be finding sand in weird places for the next week, but – "

"—it was worth it," he finished.

They both stripped off their wet clothes and tossed them onto the deck. Naked and sandy, with a combination of drying sweat and salt water making their skin sticky, they both stepped under the warm spray. Shampoo and body wash would come later, via a much longer and more relaxing interior shower, but just the feel of the clean, warm water rinsing everything away, including some latent aches and pains, left them both clean and refreshed.

But Castle could not bring himself to let her turn the water off until he'd taken full advantage of having her wet, limber body against his a little longer. After four years of waiting, he knew he would never get tired of being able to pull her flush against him, run his hands along her back, cup her bottom and pull her against him, stroke her jaw, and dip his mouth to taste hers. She denied him nothing. She retreated from nothing. She might have held back and hidden behind walls for far too long, but when she decided to go for it, she committed in every possible way. And Castle was awed by it.

"You can't possibly …" she trailed off when his mouth covered her ear.

Pulling back, he chuckled softly. "You shouldn't be surprised anymore by what you do to me, Kate. But no, I just want to feel you against me."

"I think we can manage that."

They stood there under the spray kissing and touching until the water started to run cold. Reluctantly, they turned the shower off, grabbed towels from the outdoor closet, and padded naked up the steps, past the leftovers still sitting out from the night before and into the house. It wasn't yet eight o'clock.

Upstairs, the unmade bed was simply too inviting to resist, and they both collapsed on it with dramatic flair. Within minutes, the only sound in the house was their shallow breathing.