Hello wonderful, wonderful readers...to any and all who are still reading "Before I Sleep" I swear I am still writing it! I got stuck on the next chapter and it is driving me insane then I got sidetracked with Grad School applications...

in the meantime - I was able to finish a couple little one-shots...so hope you all enjoy.

Disclaimer: yeah we all know they are not mine...

I got no reason to get out of bed – cause I, I got no better place to be than right here

Saying goodnight in the morning, stealing a kiss without warning

Doing whatever we're wanting to, baby

Making this minute a moment, falling in love on a Saturday morning

A Saturday morning with you, oh with you

"Saturday Morning" by Hoku

~~XX~~XX~~XX~~

The waning sunlight plays off the windows of the apartment buildings surrounding Kate's position where she stands on the corner. Her breathing hitches just slightly in her chest – she begins to feel the pin pricks of pressure, the fist just beginning to grip into her gut, her lungs sputtering to take in oxygen - and she closes her eyes; focuses on her breathing. Keeps telling herself the glint is just the sun – not rifle scopes- just the sun. She is safe. She left the reminder on Bracken's left check that gives her a heady sense of satisfaction every time his face comes onto a television screen and she is safe.

She takes a deep breath in and out and opens her eyes, narrowing her field of vision to the sidewalk in front of her. She catches a glimpse of them as they crowd into the black town car – hints of twin ginger heads as they disappear and her phone vibrates in her hand.

Coast is clear

Three simple words and her heart begins to beat faster, her pulse thrumming in her throat as she begins to move fluidly to the front door of his building. One month, he said. Alexis and Martha are heading to Europe for a month to celebrate Alexis' graduation and that leaves a month of no sleuthing around – one month where he does not have to sneak into her bed at night and back out before the sun rises or vice versa. One month of just them – together. And she cannot help the giddy excitement that stirs in her heart, her stomach, taking over her senses; even if she does go back to work in two weeks which creates a whole new slew of problems she just does not want to consider right now.

She walks through the front door, his doorman smiling at her genuinely.

"Ah, Miss Beckett, it's so nice to see you again."

"You as well, Eduardo!" she responds with a smile that never seems to leave her face these days.

She pushes the UP button to call the elevator and watches as the numbers above the steel doors light up in descending order tracking the movement of the unit closer and closer to the ground floor. She thumbs the green icon on her phone and types in her lock code then composes a quick message back to him: On my way up. Her phone vibrates as the bell dings and the doors open. She moves forward slipping inside and relaxes against the back wall of the car then thumbs open the message: Isn't that supposed to be MY line? ;) She rolls her eyes and locks her phone before slipping it back into her pocket.

She slips out when the doors open and sighs when she realizes the door into his loft is opened just slightly for her. She pushes the door open and crosses the threshold of his loft, kicking off her shoes as she closes the door and turning when she hears his footfalls on the wooden floors coming towards her. He skids into her, clumsily wrapping his arms around her waist as she turns and faces him.

"What are you doing, Castle?"

"I was trying to be stealthy and sneak up behind you…"

"A – I am a de-tec-tive," she punctuates each syllable with a sharp staccato tone and a sight nod of her head making him grin like a fool, "and B – you don't walk softly enough to be stealthy. I could hear you." She places both of her hands on either side of his face and pulls him closer to her allowing her lips to glance off his quickly – soft, teasing, a promise of all the things to come. She moves her hands from his face to rest on his broad chest for just a moment before she pushes him out of her personal space and pulls the strap of her leather overnight bag off her shoulder and shoves it into his arms.

"Are we being a bit presumptuous, Detective?" Castle counters with a cock of his eyebrow eliciting that closed mouthed grin with her eyes just slightly narrowed from her that always makes his head spin.

"Don't know, Castle, you could always see what's IN the bag before making that assumption…" she says as she crosses her arms lightly over her chest, her face curiously neutral. He hates her poker face, and he loves it…he kind of wants to kiss it off her right now – shove her back up against that door and kiss her until he leaves her gasping for air…

"Castle?" her voice wrestles him back to the moment and he meets her eyes, her grin widening to encompass her entire face – eyes bright, teeth white, eyebrows just barely raised. He clears his throat in an attempt to be nonchalant and reaches to open the bag. Before he gets the zipper halfway undone she steps into him and grabs the bag from him…

"Hey…wait…what are you doing?" He fumbles as she slings the bag back over her shoulder and strides purposefully towards his bedroom.

"Why don't you come find out?" she calls back to him as she disappears behind the door. He sucks in a shaky breath and follows.

~~XX~~XX~~XX~~

She swears she stumbled over to the windows and closed those damn curtains at some point last night. She swears it. Still here she lies in the cocoon of his Egyptian cotton sheets, feeling like she is luxuriating in heaven except for the ray of sunlight that is relentlessly bearing down on her face. She can see the rays of light even through her eyelids it is that bright. She sighs heavily and reaches a hand over to lay it on the other side of the bed finding it cool to the touch. Not cold, but cooler than it should be. She cracks open an eye and takes in the red glare of the numbers of the alarm clock – 8:45 – ugh. On a Saturday, while she is on leave, NOT cool.

She turns her head to the empty space beside her and takes in another deep breath. She closes her eyes once again allowing her body to stretch, groaning in the process as sleep melts from her muscles. She hears the exhalation of breath and her eyes slide open landing on his form silhouetted in sunlight next to the bed. And she is not going to lie – it takes her breath away. Just the sight of him standing there, that light smile on his face, his eyes bright blue in the morning haze, clad only in those silk boxers she likes so much, and carrying two ceramic cups that smell deliciously sinful even from here – she cannot help but feel overcome. She smiles sleepily at him and his face breaks open - love spilling from every surface so that she wonders how in the world she fought it, fought him, for as long as she did.

"Morning." She says, her voice lazy and soft, still laden with sleep.

"Morning." He responds, setting the mugs of coffee on his nightstand and leaning into the center of the bed to press his lips to hers. The kiss is soft and quick, closed mouth and feather light but still sets a slow burn alight in her veins. She sighs as his lips leave hers and finds her body effortlessly canting towards him as he places another kiss to her temple.

He reaches toward the cups on the nightstand and hands one to her. She shifts on the bed so that her back is resting against the headboard and allows the sheet to pool in her lap as she takes hold of the cup. She grins as she raises the cup to her lips and takes a sip knowing full well that he is staring at her chest.

"Nothing you haven't seen before, Castle."

"Just appreciating the view, Beckett…" Kate raises an eyebrow at him and places her coffee on the nightstand next to her then turns, her eyes meeting his.

" Want to appreciate a little more thoroughly?"

"Thoroughly?"

"Up close?" Her body shifts of its own accord as he sinks onto the mattress next to her – his body sliding easily toward her. It's amazing how incredibly spry he is, how playful he can be.

"What are you grinning at?"

"You…how quickly you move when there's sex involved."

"Only sex with you….and I think you just called me old and slow…"

"Never…old man…" She teases. In a swift movement he settles himself between her legs, her knees framing his hips with his forearms on either side of her face. His face is mere millimeters from hers as he slowly paints her face with light kisses. His lips brushing over her eyelids, her cheeks, her temples, the corner of her mouth finally resting at the soft spot just under her earlobe. He runs his tongue over the jut of her jaw and continues his trek downward leaving a wet trail from her ear to her collarbone.

"You were saying?" His voice vibrates against her skin.

"Hm?" She opens her eyes and is met with his starling blue gaze fixed on her. She holds in the gasp that wants to erupt from her chest and places a hand on his chest – felling the hypnotic rhythm of his breathing, his heartbeat, against the soft skin of her palm. He raises his eyebrows at her and she bits her bottom lip as she narrows her eyes at him. "Shut up."

She wraps her arms around his neck and pulls him into her letting their lips meet and all other thoughts but him and her and this moment fade away.