'Lex.'

'Mm.'

'Lex, sweetie, I gotta go.'

Shane kissed her bare shoulder to try and wake her up, and was equally happy and disappointed when she woke, because it meant he got to see those beautiful blue eyes flutter open but only for a moment, as he dressed and went to work. He tossed back the covers, and began to dress; behind him he heard Alexis stir, sit up.

'You want coffee, Shane?'

'Sure.'

Alexis slipped out, padded into the kitchen in her t-shirt and shorts. It was such a new feeling to be in a relationship like this, with a mature man and not a hipster-loser like JP. No, no, she admonished herself, she wasn't going to make a comparison chart between the two, because in her mind there it was like comparing a station wagon to a Maserati.

As the coffee dripped through, she found his favourite travel mug and was debating whether or not he might like a breakfast burrito like her father made when he came out of the bedroom.

'Top shelf of the pantry,' he told her and Alexis found a portioned-out Tupperware box of cereal. 'I keep it on hand when I'm called in early. Lanie lets me use her bar fridge to keep some milk stashed so I can eat when I don't have time to at home.'

'Okay.' Disappointed to have their first intimate morning together cut short, but understanding why, Alexis set aside her own coffee cup she'd poured. 'I should get dressed then, getting going.'

'No, no here.' Shane reached into his bag, handed her a key on a thin green lanyard. 'My spare key. You can give it back to me next time I see you.'

Alexis grinned; she'd never been given a spare key before. 'Okay. Maybe I'll do some shopping, and I'll make you dinner this time, then we can have a bite before heading to my place, since I know you're playing poker with my dad and company tonight.'

'And maybe,' Shane returned, walking with her to the door, 'you can be my dessert.'

'Even better.'

The body Shane had been called in to examine so early was his body he'd tagged from the night before, scheduled for autopsy that morning, and while he knew that it was Ryan and Esposito who'd tagged the homicide the previous night, he looked up from his autopsy and gulped a little when he saw that Alexis' father had joined them. The unbroken eye-contact that lasted just a little longer than necessary told Shane everything he needed to know. He fumbled a little with his words, but Ryan didn't pick up on it as he as in full detective mode.

'Morning, ah, Castle. How's it going?'

'Fine, Doctor Weaver.'

'What's our victim's story?' Ryan asked, ready to make notes while Esposito took a call from one of the CSU techs.

'Councilman Owen Kissinger, fifty-four, had his ass kicked but good. All the hallmarks of a guy who couldn't pay his loan shark off except for that.' Shane jutted his chin to the evidence bag on the counter beside his work table which Ryan picked up and was studying. 'In my experience, a spine-twister's going to take everything of value before he gets physical and that is one honey of a Rolex.'

'You sure it's not a fake?' Ryan asked, and Shane nodded.

'My old man got me the real-deal when I graduated medical school, I know the difference. Truth is, the best thing I can do right now is head back to the lab, check this guy in so I can have a look at him under the lights and the scope to be of more help.'

Shane's cellphone rang, and his mood brightened considerably when he saw it was Alexis. 'Hey.'

'Hey, I sent you a message, how does pasta strike your fancy?'

'Yeah, I got your text, sounds great. I'll see you around four. Bye.' Shane hung up the phone, saw Castle had an impossibly neutral expression while Ryan was in full teenager mode.

'Hot date?' Ryan teased him and did a double take when Shane squirmed a little. 'What, you got a lady?'

'So the uniform says he responded to a nine-one-one to this location and the doorman says the last person he let into the building was just after two last night so our skell had to leave by another door,' Esposito said, walking back into the autopsy room as he consulted his notes, then looked at the faces - Castle implaccable, Ryan eagerly teasing and Shane a little embarrassed. 'Did I miss something?'

'Shane's got a girl,' Ryan all but sang it, and the ME's face turned bright pink. 'Tell us about her.'

'I'd rather do my job and save the conversation about my woman for cards tonight,' he fenced off, knowing that if he went into full guy mode in front of Castle, heads would roll.

'Yeah, we'll meet you at your place around eight.' Esposito slapped his shoulder, then headed out with Ryan; Castle waited a beat until they were gone before he spoke. When he saw Shane's face, all he could do was shake his head.

'Shane, you're going to have to tell them, especially if it gets really serious when Alexis moves back to go to Princeton.'

'I know, and I'll tell them tonight, but I have no idea what to even say.'

Castle patted his shoulder in support. 'If my daughter can stand-up to me and I don't lose it, you can handle The Wonder Twins.

That afternoon, when Shane got home, he found Alexis had indeed made an early dinner; she knew her father well and would put out all sorts of things like sandwiches, crudites and beer for poker night so a little meal beforehand would be a most welcome feast.

They ended up eating it much, much later than Alexis thought they would, owing to the fact that he'd come home and they'd tumbled into his bed for 'dessert first', as Shane had so cutely put it, and seconds. The pasta had been stone cold but neither one gave a damn, at least until they realized it was almost seven and Alexis wanted to get a shower before heading to her place. However, all that hot water and close proximity to each other had given way to more kissing and they once again lost track of time. When they finally got it together and were actually cleansing their bodies, Alexis cocked her head to the side as she noticed the bottle beside Shane's shampoo.

'Why do you keep a bottle of lemon juice in your shower?'

'Why do you think?'

'Well, seeing as your a man living independantly, I would guess it's there from habit, though to what purpose I am not quite sure.'

'Think, what are citrus scents most commonly used in?'
Alexis pondered it, then turned to face him. 'They are used in aromatherapy and cleaning products because people associate the scent with cleanliness, and you're a pathologist around very strong, pungent smells, so the lemon would help you cleanse off the odors of bodies and autopsy fluids and chemicals.'

'Gold star for you,' Shane smiled, then leaned in to kiss her. 'Mmm, love it when you're wet like this.'

Alexis giggled as she felt her hormones sing a happy little song when his mouth hit hers. 'Dirty, dirty boy. But it will have to wait because you're on your way to my place for poker, and don't even touch that one,' she added when she saw him open his mouth, 'and I need time to let my hair dry a little.'

She gave him one last juicy kiss before she stepped out of the shower-stall and wrapped the towel around her body; Alexis managed to wait until she was in the bedroom before she did a happy little wiggle and began to dry off. It was so decadent feeling, to shower with her boyfriend after making love with him in the middle of the afternoon and then head out for the night. She wondered what Sloan would have to say about it when they met for drinks that night.

Dressed with her hair tied up in a chignon, Alexis slapped on a little makeup and had her purse ready to go when she heard the knock on the door. Going to answer it, she checked the Judas peep and felt her stomach tie itself into a square knot as she heard the water shut off.

Opening the door, she faced the music in the form of Kevin Ryan and Javier Esposito. It was a toss-up who was more surprised, and the two-headed monster ended up winning that prize when Alexis opened her mouth first.

'Uhhh,' was all she could manage. 'Hi?'

'Alexis, what are you doing here?'

Before she could answer, Shane's voice carried from down the short hallway into the open space of the living room, giving the answer all of them already knew.

'Listen, sunshine, I'm all for a hot shower, but seriously, you...' he trailed off as he walked into the room wearing just his towel, saw the two detectives standing there and Alexis looking like she'd had an anvil dropped on her head. 'Ah, hi, guys, you're early.'

'I texted you,' Esposito said stiffly, 'and I can see why you missed the message.'

'Yeah, I was...occupied.'

Alexis looked at him, back to the detectives. 'Would you like to come in or wait in the hallway?'

'Hallway,' they chorused and Alexis politely closed the door, then all but flew into Shane's bedroom where he'd tugged on pants and was selecting a sweater from his closet. 'Well, that's one way to tell them.'

'Yeah, it is. Should I turn on the video app on my phone during the poker game to record their reactions?'

'Oh that'd be fun, but no. Conversation in a poker game is as good as guys' confessional and I won't ruin that code.'

'What a lady.' Shane found his sweater of choice, then pulled Alexis in for a steaming kiss that made her blush red as her hair. 'C'mon, we better go before those two have a pair of anneurysms. Each.'

R&R&Enjoy