FRIENDLY REMINDER THAT THIS FIC IS RATED M.


PROPINQUITY
CHAPTER NINE


"Have I told you yet that I love this dress?" Castle husked a few nights later as he scooted closer to her. They were in his limo, and Castle's hand skimmed along her knee, to flirt with the short hemline of her cocktail dress.

Kate shifted closer, trailed her hand up his arm to curl around his neck. "Yes, but you can definitely tell me again," she teased, her fingers brushing the hair at his nape. "Better yet," she continued, hiking her thigh over his and smudging her lips against his stubbled jaw, "why don't you show me?"

Castle let out a low growl and turned his head to capture her lips with his, his hand trailing up her thigh, gripping her ass to pull her onto his lap. He groaned and pulled his head away when her hips rocked against his. "We shouldn't right now."

Kate gripped his shoulders and ground her hips into his. "You're probably right." She moaned when his fingers slid beneath her panties, where she was already hot and slick and ready, and she couldn't stop her hips from rolling. "Shit, Castle." Her hands snuck between them and grabbed his belt, but before she could unbuckle it the car rolled to a stop.

"Shit," Castle swore, and he helped her scramble off of his lap. He took a few deep breaths and ran his fingers through his hair.

"Good thing your slacks are loose," Kate teased, palming him, and giggling at his sharp inhale. She leaned into him, her hand dangerously high on his thigh. "We'll finish this later," she whispered with a nip to his earlobe. She slid away from him when the car door opened, and pushed him out, following close behind.

They walked past the handful of reporters lining the short red carpet, Kate a step behind, resisting the temptation to lace her arm, or hand, through his. "Who are we here for again?" she asked as they walked through the door.

"Alex Conrad." Castle reached back and took her hand, tucked it into the crook of his arm. "He's an up-and-coming author, they call him 'the next Rick Castle.' And you know how I feel about a good party."

"Richard."

Kate felt Castle freeze at the sound of his publisher's voice, and she swore under her breath before they turned to face her. She felt his bicep flex under her hand, and she gave it a gentle squeeze.

"Gina," he returned, his voice cool. "Good to see you."

Gina crossed her arms, and Kate didn't miss the way her eyes flicked to her hand on Castle's arm. "You've been avoiding my calls. Busy writing, I hope?"

"Actually, yes. I've been working on that new project I told you about a few weeks ago."

Kate's head snapped up to look at him in surprise. New project? She vaguely recalled overhearing him mention he'd been thinking about a new character, but that had been several weeks before. She had no idea he was actually writing it.

"I hope you haven't forgotten that your contract is for Storm, not for a different character."

"Don't worry, Gina," Castle said with a finality to his tone, turning away from her. "You won't be disappointed."

Gina grabbed Kate's arm before she was able to walk away, and Kate nodded at Castle to keep going.

"You two look pretty cozy," Gina said pointedly, a raised eyebrow accenting her tone. "I just hope he's not getting too…distracted."

"You hired me to improve his public image, Gina. So let me ask you, has he been on Page Six lately, for acting out?" Kate asked, crossing her arms. "Has he been arrested, or gotten caught in any compromising positions?" When Gina just pursed her lips and glared, she continued. "No. I'm accompanying him here as part of my job. So if you'll excuse me, I have a client to be with."

She found Castle at the bar, where he handed her a martini. She hesitated for just a moment before downing the whole thing in just a few swallows, and when Castle just stared at her in surprise, she stole a sip of his scotch. "Thanks, Castle."

Castle smirked. "What did Gina have to say?"

"Oh, she was just worried that you might have your priorities mixed up," she explained after giving him a look. "She thinks I'm a distraction."

Castle motioned for another martini for her. "She's mistaken, just so you know. You're not a distraction. You're an inspiration."

Kate studied him for a few moments while she sipped her drink. He was smiling at her, an honest smile, and she didn't see any of the smirk or teasing glint that was so often present in his features. "So," she finally said, "new project? New character?"

Castle grinned. "Yep. And that's all I'm prepared to say at this point." He took her hand and pulled her away from the bar. "Come on, there's a few people I want you to meet."

The next couple hours passed by more slowly than she'd ever experienced. Castle introduced her to various authors, both represented by Black Pawn and not, including a few whom he affectionately referred to as part of his "poker club." She barely registered the conversations she was a part of; her focus was completely on Castle. His hand on her back when he guided her towards someone, his arm brushing hers, his gesturing hands as he spoke. Her mind kept wandering to the way his thick fingers could make her feel, how they curled inside her while his thumb worked at her, how he could make her scream with just a few well-placed nudges. And her eyes kept glancing at his mouth, her mouth watering when his tongue would dart out to wet his lips, and she wanted that tongue and those lips on her, in her, around her.

Finally, she couldn't take it anymore. When Castle excused them from a conversation with some editor whose name she didn't even remember, she grabbed his arm and tugged him towards a hallway she'd spotted earlier. "I need to talk to you," she snapped at his question of where they were going, and when she noticed a door that said Supply Closet, she turned the knob and pushed him inside.

"What are you-"

She shut him up with a shove against the door, and when her mouth met his in a frenzied, frantic kiss, he gripped her hips and spun her around, trapping her against the wall. She moaned when he dropped to his knees and nudged her underwear to the side, drawing a finger through her folds and circling her clit.

"Holy shit you're wet," he breathed against her, and she had to cover her mouth so she could muffle her groan when his breath washed over her. He nudged her thigh, curling his hand around her hip when she draped it over his shoulder, and when his tongue pressed against her clit, she shuddered and dug her heel into his back.

"Fuck, Castle, get up here," she gasped, but he just shook his head against her and slid two fingers inside. A few well-places thrusts, and a press against that spot that he'd found their first night, and she was gone, one hand finding purchase in his hair, the other pressed against her mouth.

She opened her eyes to find Castle on his haunches, staring up at her, a grin on his face. She held her hand out and helped him up, pulled him in for a kiss. Her tongue swiped against his, and her hands dropped, found him hot and hard through the fabric of his trousers. Before she could turn him around against the door, though, the knob rattled, and they froze.

"Shit," Castle whispered, his eyes wide, and she giggled into his shoulder as she dropped her forehead. "You have a story to explain this?" he asked, glancing down at himself.

Kate felt her face flush. "You're the writer," she teased back, but she was careful to avoid brushing against him, lest she make his growing problem worse. She adjusted the strap of her dress. "Follow my lead, and try not to look like you just got me off," she added, carding her fingers through his hair to tame his locks.

Castle's fingers followed her path, then reached under her skirt to adjust her underwear back in place. "You've been wanting that all night, admit it."

"Shut up." Kate gave him one more look, and, running her fingers through her hair, and hoped she looked presentable enough that it wasn't completely obvious that something had happened. She gripped the strap of her dress, and opened the door to find one of the workers standing in the hallway, looking very confused. "Sorry," she said immediately, her tone apologetic. "I had a wardrobe malfunction. Is there a back door? My strap came undone, and we couldn't get it to stay together."

The young lady gave her a soft smile. "Of course, miss. This way."

Kate pushed Castle when he started to follow her. "No, you go out there, say goodbye to Gina so she doesn't think you just skipped out. I'll meet you in the limo."


She had just sat down in the limo when Castle joined her, and they'd barely pulled from the curb when she slid towards him and grabbed his belt. They'd already been interrupted twice; no more. She wanted him inside her, to just fuck her already, and her fingers stumbled over themselves as she tried to undo his belt.

Castle chuckled, a low sound that sent heat right to her core, and he helped her undo his pants, was just able to nudge his boxers past his hips and slip a condom on before she was on him, around him. They groaned together when she sank onto him, underwear pushed to the side, and rolled her hips. "Anxious?" he managed to gasp.

Kate reached behind her to unzip her dress, the straps sliding down of their own accord, the front getting caught at the soft mounds of her breasts. "I've been wanting this all night," she admitted, her fingers interlocking at the nape of his neck and pulling him towards her chest. Her head fell forward on a gasp when his chin nudged her dress aside and his mouth covered her breast through the lace of her bra.

They froze when the limo came to a stop; through the haze of her arousal, Kate vaguely recalled telling the driver to take them to her apartment, since it was closer. But before she could scramble off Castle's lap, he reached over to the button for the partition between the front and the back, and cracked it open.

"Just drive until we tell you to stop," he called out, and at the driver's "Yes, sir," closed the partition and brought his mouth to her other breast.

She managed to rock against him, her fingers digging into his jacket for leverage as she moved her hips. She cried out when the car hit a bump, causing Castle's hips to jerk and his cock hit her even deeper, and one hand drifted to press against her own clit.

"I got it," Castle mumbled against her chest, and he batted her hand aside, his own thumb applying the stimulation she so desperately needed.

Kate could feel herself climbing, her hips moving uncontrollably, and when Castle's teeth grazed her nipple, she cried out, hips jerking as she held his head against her chest, and she stilled on top of him. She vaguely registered his cry of release, the feel of him pulsing inside her, the shuddering exhale as he relaxed underneath her.

Castle told the driver to take them back to her place, and he zipped up her dress, gave her a smirk when she took off her underwear. He swiped them from her hands and stuffed them in his coat pocket with a wag of his eyebrows. "Uncomfortable?"

"Shut up," Kate mumbled as she slid off him, adjusting her skirt beneath her. She crossed her arms in mock annoyance, but let Castle tug her to his side and draw her lips to his in a soft kiss. Their mouths moved together, his hand at her jaw, and she curled her fingers in the lapels of his jacket as she canted into him.

She pulled away when the limo rolled to a stop, face surely flushed, and couldn't stop herself from smiling at the look of utter bliss on his face. "You wanna come up?"

"As if you even have to ask?"

She was careful to avoid eye contact with the driver; even with the partition up, it had to have been obvious what they'd been doing in the back. But Castle just thanked him and slid a few bills into his hand, and she slid her arm through his, let him lead her into her building. It wasn't smart, she thought as her head dropped to his shoulder, but she didn't care. The odds were low that there would be any photographers there, she reasoned, but she found herself gripping his arm tighter as they walked through the lobby.

Let them take her picture. Let them write the headlines that would inevitably be denied. She knew how she felt about him, physically and otherwise. She didn't care what anybody else said.

Her head snapped up from his shoulder at the thought. She should care; the number one thing Gina and Paula had said to her when they'd hired her was that sleeping with Castle could not happen. Because the last PR manager they'd hired had fallen hard for him after doing just that, and when he'd moved on to his next conquest, she'd been heartbroken and quit.

But Kate refused to let that happen. Her words to Gina earlier had been true: Castle hadn't had any bad press in weeks. His photo op at the hospital was slated for the following week, and she knew it could only be good for him, to show his sensitive and caring side. She'd witnessed it first hand a few times now, having accompanied him, and she couldn't help but feel herself falling for him even more.

Stop it, Kate, she berated herself as they got off the elevator and approached her door, but despite the pestering voice in the back of her head that told her this was a bad idea, she let him in and to her bedroom, disrobing each other on the way.

It wasn't until she was hovering over him, batting his distracting hands to the side, when she realized why her search for a condom was coming up empty.

"Fuck," she breathed, but it wasn't from his talented hands, even from the feel of him hard between them, trapped between her thighs. She closed her eyes. "I forgot to get condoms."

"It's fine, you're in the pill, right?" Castle gripped her hips and tried to nudge her above him.

"Hang on." Kate scrambled off his lap to sit on her knees, gave him what she hoped was a firm glare. "I'm on the pill, yes. And I know I'm fine. But…"

Castle propped himself on his elbows. "But what?"

"You kind of have...a reputation," she admitted after a long silence. When he just stared at her, his expression blank, she continued, nervous. "I'm not saying you...or that…I mean…" She brought her gaze back up to Castle only to find him smirking, light dancing in his eyes. "What?"

"Nothing," Castle chuckled, "you're cute when you're flustered."

Kate crossed her arms and cocked an eyebrow. "Cute? You're going to call me cute when we're horny and naked and lacking an essential piece of protection?"

Castle took her hand in his, lacing their fingers together, and tugged her to him as he sat all the way up. "You don't have to worry about me," he assured her, his voice soft, a hand coming up to frame her face. She closed her eyes and leaned into his touch, and his thumb stroked her cheek as he continued. "I just got tested a few weeks ago. I'm good."

"But…"

"I haven't been with anyone else since we started sleeping together, Kate."

Kate's eyes fluttered closed at his words, and she let herself melt into his touch for just a moment. "You're sure?" she finally asked, her eyes opening, brows furrowed.

Castle chuckled. "I'm sure. If it would make you more comfortable, I'll leave. I can show you the test results, whatever you want." He brought both hands down to sit on her knees. "I like you, Kate. I probably haven't done anything to show you that, but I like you, and I wouldn't want to hurt you."

Kate studied him for a few moments, searching his face for any sign of lying, or deception. But she saw none. He was being as honest as he'd been when he'd told her about the hospital, about how much visiting the kids meant to him. So she leaned forward, taking his face in her hands, and brought her lips to his. "I like you too," she admitted when they parted. "And I trust you."


"I want to tell you about something."

Kate looked up from her breakfast the next morning to find Castle staring at her, his expression blank, but something in his eyes that betrayed him. Her heart sunk; whatever he had to say, it was serious. She set her fork down and took a final sip of her coffee. "What's up?" she asked, her elbows on the table, trying to keep her voice calm.

Castle stood and held his hand out, led her to the couch when she took it. "You know that the hospital is important to me," he began, his thumb tracing circles on the back of her hand. "But I want you to know why."

Kate shifted and curled her leg beneath her, turning to face him. she was tempted to prod, or to guess, but she stayed silent, let him speak in his time.

"I had a daughter."


A/N: Thank you for your continued support with this fic!