A/N: Due to a system glitch, Chapter 3 did not post correctly for about 48 hours. Please make sure you've read Chapter 3 prior to this chapter.

Disclaimer: Currently between dreams, still rated T+!

With a gasp, Beckett's eyes flew wide open. "Oh ... My ... GOD! CASTLE!"

She froze, totally immobile. She could see the city lights reflected outside her hotel room's window. She could feel her wet hand resting on Castle's equally wet hand on her stomach. Her other hand was beneath her raised t-shirt, cupping her breast. Her underwear was soaking in the front, and pressed against Castle's erection behind her.

Beckett was beyond embarrassed; she was mortified. Everything she'd been working towards, all that they had become as partners, could be unraveled by this. She hadn't had a sex-charged dream since she was a teen, and silently cursed her bad luck and characteristic bad timing. She had no idea how long Rick had been awake, how much of a willing participant he'd been to her self-gratification. She growled, "Castle, what did you do?"

"What did I do?" His voice sounded half warm and sleepy, half outraged. "Well, let me see. I came in here to lend support to my partner after a horrific nightmare. I laid down beside her per her request. I fell asleep. I then awoke when I heard my name, and found my, er, front being used as a scratching post, while my right hand was being used as a sex toy. Long before I had a chance to say or do anything, I found myself watching my best friend call my name while she was in the throes of what appeared to be an, um, extremely pleasing moment. Since then, I have been doing nothing but replaying that vision in my head on an endless loop." He paused, then asked her innocently, "Why, what have you been doing?"

She was in no mood for humor. "God, Castle, I'm so sorry."

"No, Kate, I get it. You were dreaming. No one has control over their subconscious, no matter what Sigmund says. I will add, it's heartening to know that I'm not the only one who dreams about their partner."

Well, maybe a little humor wouldn't hurt. "I'm sure Ryan and Esposito do it all the time."

"Oh, Beckett, that's terrible! I may need therapy to remove that visual from my head."

"Castle, what you need to do is remove this morning's … activities … from your head. Completely. I know, at least I hope, we are heading towards 'something', but this can't be used as a shortcut. You are way too important to me as a partner and friend to screw this up."

"I understand, and I think I might agree."

"I mean it, Castle. No mention of this to anybody or each other. No innuendo. No inside jokes. No pauses or smirks or eyebrow lifts. This morning never happened."

Castle was quiet for a moment, reassuring her that he was giving it earnest thought. He sighed. "Detective, sometimes you take all the fun out of things. But, for the sake of our partnership and your peace of mind, not to mention our lack of future should you shoot me dead, there will be no echo of this morning's glorious activities going forward. From the time we left the ballroom until breakfast tomorrow, we'll consider this to be our very own private 'free fly zone'."

"Thanks, Castle" she sighed in relief. She knew she could trust him with this. She already trusted him with her back, her life, and her pathetic excuse of a heart. So now she would trust him with her honor. Their future. She finally moved from her frozen position, taking her left hand from under her t-shirt and plumping her pillow. She settled back down and wiggled herself into a more comfortable position.

Even without Castle's groan, she couldn't help but notice Castle's huge erection, still nestled firmly between her cheeks. Poor guy. That had to be, at the very least, both uncomfortable and maddening. She imagined what she could do to alleviate his discomfort. Apparently, instead of a release from her sexual tension, this morning's dream had just whetted Kate's appetite. She imagined alleviating his 'problem' some more. She felt her wetness pooling within her, her stomach coiling with desire. The more she imagined, the hornier she got. The hornier she got, the more she imagined. She started to think about the novel rules they'd created for this morning, their own 'personal free fly zone'. Knowing neither were likely to fall back to sleep anytime soon, she decided, for once in her life, to throw caution to the wind. She exclaimed, "Oh, what the hell!" as she threw off their covers and rolled out of bed.

Castle leaned up on an elbow, his hair adorably ruffled. "Kate?" he asked.

"With you in a minute, Castle." Her back to Castle, she straightened her thigh length t-shirt, then shimmied out of her sodden panties, tossing them in the corner near her overnight bag. She walked around to Castle's side of the bed, and sat near his thighs.

Castle turned on to his back, raised himself on both elbows, and looked at his partner. "Kate? What is this?"

"Well, I found it impossible to ignore the elephant in the room, so to speak." She looked pointedly straight down at his erection beneath his pajamas.

Castle smirked. "Elephant?"

With the covers off, it was easy to see that she wasn't the only one to have had an orgasmic dream this morning. The still wet stain above his crotch went all the way up to his waistband. "It looks like I wasn't the only one to get excited. It appears 'Little Ricky' got a little stimulated this morning."

"Really, Kate? From elephant to 'Little Ricky' in the space of five seconds? That's a little harsh, even from you." Castle was pretending to pout, but his eyes were clearly laughing.

Beckett snorted. "Man up, Castle." She reached over to the night stand and grabbed the still damp washcloth she'd tossed there a couple of hours ago, handing it to her partner. "Here, clean up. I'll be right back, and then I need to talk to you."

Beckett went into the bathroom and turned on the unforgiving light. She washed her hands, then filled them with cool water and rinsed her face. She saw her reflection in the mirror, and was not impressed. Her hair was wild, her eyes puffy from her earlier tears and lack of sleep. She stared into her reflected eyes, psyching herself up for the upcoming encounter. It was eerily similar to how she prepared for a particularly tough interrogation, a parallel that would probably bother her if she gave it any thought.

As she turned back to the room, she could see Castle settle on his back. She turned off the bathroom light, relying on the indirect light still spilling through the partially opened bedroom door. She went over and sat on the bed overlooking Castle. She repeated, "Rick, I need to talk to you."

Castle was propped up on some pillows, neither lying down nor sitting up. Alerted by the use of his first name, he raised an eyebrow. "What would you like to discuss, Kate?"

"You misunderstand me. Not discuss, but talk. Tell. I have things I think you need to know, about . . . how I feel . . . and stuff. Stuff that happened. Your declaration of a 'free fly zone' has inspired me, and I don't think I could become any more embarrassed tonight if I tried. So, assuming my courage doesn't totally desert me, this is probably the best opportunity I'll ever have . . . for this."

"Kate, you're actually alarming me. Don't you want to hear my side as well, about … this? About how I feel . . . and stuff?"

She rolled her eyes. "Oh, Please! Rick, I already know how you feel. I think the whole world knows how you feel."

"You do?"

"Castle, you're about as subtle as a supertanker explosion ..." For good measure she added, " … In the dark ..." And to make sure he got it, she smiled and said " … with fireworks … … on stage … … in front of a packed house … ... with full orchestra ... … totally nude …"

"OKAY! I got it! I'm lacking ninja stealth capabilities when it comes to my feelings for my partner and best friend!"

"So, I'm going to ask you to listen. Hard. I'm not nearly as talented as you are with words, especially when describing … my feelings … intangibles … the indescribable."

"Hard, huh?" The Castle smirk. "Okay, I'll be quiet. Tell me about . . ." he made a motion between the two of them " ... this."

At his mention of 'hard', Beckett looked behind her at his pajamas. The stain was gone. Matter of fact, so were his drawstrings. However, the bulge was still very evident. Her stomach coiled some more, warmth permeating her body and face. She turned back and asked him, "Castle, did you put your pajamas on backwards?"

He looked around, as if contemplating escape. A half smile escaped. "Maybe."

She ran her fingers through her hair. "God, Castle!" Beckett contemplated him through squinting eyes. She said slowly, "Castle, this is very important to me. What I want is your solemn word that you won't say a word the rest of the night. Not one syllable until breakfast and coffee arrive tomorrow. I'll even buy, but no talking! At all! Not a peep!"

He looked at her for a few seconds, than nodded.

She continued to stare at him. "All night. I mean it. This is going to be tough enough without your verbal detours and puns. No matter what happens, no matter what you hear, no talking! Swear?"

He looked very worried about her last statement, but still lifted his right hand and extended his pinkie. She chuckled. Sometimes, he was more of a teen aged girl than Alexis. Actually, the word 'sometimes' could be argued. She extended her pinkie, interlinking them and 'pinkie swearing'. She stood up and walked to the foot of the bed. She reached down, grabbed the bottom of his pajama legs in each hand, and as Castle gasped, with one mighty jerk pulled his pajama bottoms off.