**Hope this posting rate is better! Again, thank you all for your reviews, follows, and comments! Next chapter will be the last in Mexico and then we'll get back to NYC and the rest of the gang and story! There's some mild sex in this chapter but I tried to keep it within the "T" rating. Hopefully, I succeeded. As always, I own no rights to Castle or ABC.
OOMPH! Castle's body twisted in mid-air and his back hit the mat hard, as he looked up stunned. The images of the bikini-clad women from the beach earlier prancing around in his imagination were definitely gone, having been replaced by the pain shooting up his back and the air leaving his lungs. God, he had thought the running with Ronnie had almost killed him, his T-shirt drenched with sweat and his body aching all over afterwards. But no! Then Ronnie had suggested he needed some self-defense classes, some CQC (Close Quarters Combat) lessons and with his friend, he realized there was no point in arguing with him. "C'mon Ricky boy, no time for resting. Let's do it again." Castle groaned and picked himself off the mat in Ronnie's personal gym. "Yeah, easy for you to say, Ronnie. You've been doing this shit for years and I'm the one eating mat each time. When do I get to do the tossing around?" Ronnie smiled and chuckled at his friend's annoyance and flushed face. "That hip toss there is what you should do when an attacker rushes you, you grab and turn away from him, using his momentum and weight to throw him to the ground. Once there, he's at your mercy. Ricky, you've got to learn this stuff, especially when you accompany those detectives of yours. God forbid somebody gets past them and rushes you. I can't believe they let you tag along all this time and they've never even given you basic self-defense courses." Castle wondered about that too, not that thankfully he had been in many hand-to-hand combat situations since shadowing Beckett. Well, there had been the jewel thief who landed on the hood of the car while he was otherwise occupied, pretending he was a cop. That punch had stung but at least he had gotten a cool shiner and a story out of it.
Castle got to his feet. "Hey, Ronnie, give me some credit. I tackled a trained assassin just as he was about to shoot Kate, remember? And I knocked him out cold before he could react." Castle hoped Ronnie would ease up on him for that or give him some credit, but his friend's serious face, told him otherwise. "Rick, you got lucky, that was more adrenaline than anything. Seriously, that guy could have hurt you...bad. Now, watch, listen, and learn, as I teach you the hip toss again." Ronnie pantomimed the movements: the position, the grab, the positioning of the legs, and the toss. Upon being prompted, Castle rushed him and again and again he ate mat. Ronnie smiled as helped Castle up, "Good, tomorrow we'll see if any of this stuck and you'll do the tossing. Now, on to the next lesson. When you want to take an opponent down quickly with the least amount of resistance or because he is armed, you turn to Krav Maga. Quick and hard fist or elbow strikes to your assailant's vulnerable areas, like the throat, groin, knee and elbow joints. If done right, this will stun your opponent long enough to incapacitate him or to run away, if you feel it's too dangerous to stay." Castle's panicked look on his face made Ronnie laugh out loud. "Calm down Rick, I'm just going to teach you the techniques, not actually hit you." Castle looked relieved, he didn't think his body could take any more punishment. In fact, he had never worked out this hard in his life. He wasn't one for having a muscle builder's body, he preferred the lean look. And as for self-defense, he was more a lover than a fighter. But he was glad he was learning. These tips could save his life one day and worst case scenario, even if he never used them, at least he could show them off to his mother and Alexis. Half an hour later after going through some Krav Maga strikes and Muay Thai kicks, Castle was exhausted. Ronnie, on the other hand, was still fresh and wanted to continue but relented upon seeing Castle's sweat-drenched face. Rick had even more admiration for his soon to be 50-year old friend. The man was truly a bad-ass and he was glad he was on his good side.
Rick dragged his butt to his room, where after a quick shower, he sunk into his room's hot tub, allowing the jets of water to soothe his aching muscles. God, he really was out of shape and he was sure he would be returning home to New York with a leaner body, assuming he survived Ronnie's boot camp. But then what? Could he stomach the sight of seeing Kate everyday...with Josh? Could he just go back to dating random women? If anything, his run today had told him his body still reacted to women positively, even if his head wasn't in the right frame of mind. Yeah, he had no idea what he would do but that was an issue to worry about for another day. Right now, he was on vacation and the mantra was one day at a time and to live it to the fullest. After his soiree in the tub, Castle took a nap, till 1:00 pm, when Ronnie picked him for lunch. He was surprised when he saw they were having lunch on a catamaran. "Ronnie, did you win the lottery and not tell me?" Ron laughed, "No, a friend of mine lends it to me when he doesn't have the boat booked for tourist cruises. We in the tourist business stick together. I use it to go fishing, so hop aboard." Castle obeyed and after a hearty lunch of steak and potatoes, grabbed a beer, a rod, and joined his friend. The sun was beating down hard and Castle put on some sunscreen to fight off any potential sunburn. The two friends sat quietly, enjoying the beauty and tranquility of the sea. Castle especially loved the clearness of the ocean water. It was as if looking into a pool. You never saw that in NYC with the Hudson River or any other body of water nearby. No, this water was pristine and gorgeous.
Eventually, Ronnie spoke up. "Rick, I know you're feeling down about this Kate thing, but it's Friday night. I think we should go to a bar tonight, to get you out there having fun. I know this place, a hole in the wall that the locals not tourists frequent. I think you'd havea blast there. What do you say?" Castle hesitated in answering, looking out to the sea for answers. He couldn't live his life waiting for Kate. He had made a decision to let her go, and while it still hurt, he had to move on and make the best of it. "Yeah, Ronnie, okay, let's do it. But my Spanish is pretty bad, so you're going to have to give me a refresher course. Deal?" "Deal, buddy!" Castle smiled, as the two clinked beer bottles. Over the next few hours, Ronnie taught Castle how to say the basics in Spanish: the numbers, alphabet, colors, and the basic phrases of "Como estas?" (How are you?), "Quiero beber" (I want to drink); "Eres linda" (You're pretty); and the most important one of all, "Donde esta el baño?" (Where is the bathroom?).
By the time the duo returned to the mainland, it was almost 6:00 pm and Ronnie left Castle to go check with his assistant at the jet-ski business to review the day's profits. He promised to pick Rick up at 10:00 pm. Castle went back to his room, ordered an early dinner and watched TV. He got on the internet to brush up on the day's news and called his mother to check in. Thankfully, everyone was surviving along fine without him and his loft had not yet been trashed by his mother's theater friends, though he suspected she had something planned for Saturday night and the thought alone made him shiver. As 10:00 pm approached, Castle showered and came out to look in the mirror and see he was acquiring a nice tan. He picked out some nice dress clothes, black slacks with black shirt. He passed on any cufflinks or watches but sprayed on his expensive cologne. He packed his cell phone and wallet and was ready when Ronnie picked him up dressed in khakis and a polo shirt. He smirked upon seeing Castle, "Ricky, I did tell you it was a hole in the wall, right?" Castle retorted, "Sorry, but I have to look good wherever I go."
Half hour later, Ronnie and Castle entered the La Taberna, which was packed by local Mexicans and a handful of tourists, looking for the "real" Mexican experience. Castle immediately noticed he was overdressed for this place but he decided not to allow that to bother him, as he followed Ron to the bar. Immediately, upon seeing Ron, the bartender and a few of the locals yelled, "El Asesino!", as they high-fived the Navy Seal and passed him a beer. Ron took the cheers in stride, "Muchachos, este es mi amigo gringo de Nueva York, Rick. Le dicen la ballena blanca!" The bartender looked at Rick, snickered a little upon seeing his attire, but as Ron had vouched for him, said "Welcome, Rick!" The rest of the locals screamed out "Ballena blanca!" As Castle shook hands and ordered some tequila, he looked at Ron and asked, "Why do they call you the Assassin? Do they know you're a Navy Seal?" Ron tried hard to hide his smile, as he gulped his beer. "Actually, no. It's because the ladies fall dead at my feet. You can say I've earned the nickname." Castle groaned, as he took his shot of tequila. "We'll see how you do now that I'm here, Assassin!" Both friends laughed. "By the way, what are they saying when call me ballena blanca?" Ron patted Castle on the back. "I kind of let it slip that you're known as the White Whale!" Castle coughed up some of his drink. Ron quickly walked away, leaving a stunned Castle. "Be right back, buddy!"
A few drinks in him later, Castle was charming the pants off the bar, even in a foreign language, telling some of his tales of adventure with the police in New York with his captivating voice and style and even fabricating some parts, when it suited the story. It was no doubt Rick Castle was born to tell stories. It came so natural to him. Seeing his friend adapting to his surroundings, Ron was in the corner trying to hook up with a red-haired secretary. Meanwhile, Castle had attracted a small entourage of three Mexican women, all with black hair and quite beautiful, who kept calling him "Castillito" (Little Castle). Guess women enjoyed the company of a tall handsome man with a great sense of humor who dressed well in any country. As the night progressed, one of the women, by the name of Reina, had laid her claim on Castle and the other two backed off, leaving to find other suitors. She dragged Castle by his shirt onto the dance floor. Reina was a small thing, maybe 5'4 with heels, compared to Castle's 6'2 size, with beautiful cleavage, which Castle continuously peeked down to look at, though he had been caught a few times doing so already. But there was something overpowering and alluring about Reina that Castle could not shake. Perhaps it was her aggressiveness, as she rubbed on him during the slow dance. He was the prey and after waiting so long for Beckett, it felt good that a woman chased him for a change. Or perhaps it was her intoxicating perfume or her hazel eyes, which told Castle in no uncertain terms that she was his, if he wanted her. Or her gorgeous Latin accent that entranced Castle as she spoke to him in Spanish and though he understood less than 50% of what she was saying, he did not care. Even her broken English was mesmerizing. Or maybe it was the way Castle pictured in his mind lifting this little thing off the floor and grinding on her against the wall in some dark corner.
After the song was over, Reina led him by the hand outside and then into the alley next to the bar. The cool sea breeze snapped Castle back to his senses and he hesitated, stopping mid-stride. He couldn't do this. He wasn't this guy anymore. What about Kate? Reina looked confused at Castle and smiled, pulling him by the hand. "Vamos Castillito. You going to like this." She swayed her hips a little as she walked in front of him. Castle's doubts immediately disappeared, as his biology took over and he followed Reina to the alley. As soon as she spun around, he crashed his lips on hers, tasting the vodka and orange juice she had been drinking in the bar. His hands went to her ass and he picked her up, leaning her back against the wall. Through the lust-filled thoughts in his minds, Castle still thought of Kate and how he was somehow betraying her...by not waiting for her. His subconscious responded: She's with Josh, probably screwing right now. Stop being such a punk!
Castle focused on the present, his hands groping Reina's ass and breasts, as his tongue explored every nook of her mouth. Though it had been awhile since he had gotten any (not since Gina), it was just like riding a bike. You never really forget. He then dipped his tongue to her neck and Reina was moaning in Spanish, cursing if he understood what she was saying. She continued to grind her crotch on his, yelling "Mas" (more) over and over. Castle sucked on the side of her breast, causing Reina to grip his hair tighter, as she continued to make mewling sounds. Castle was desperate now and he pulled down his pants. Thankfully, he still had use of his reason and he went into his pocket for a condom. As he couldn't put it on and hold Reina up, he gently set her down. Reina's chest was heaving and she took the condom from him and winked, as she bent down. Upon seeing his member, she gasped a little. Castle smirked. Yeah, he was not small. It was another reason he was called the White Whale. He remembered the time Beckett had told him and Will Sorenson during the child kidnapping case to just drop their pants and get it over with and Rick had quickly jumped in, "I'm game." Reina snugly fit the condom on Rick, as Castle tried to wipe his thoughts of Kate away in vain. As he entered Reina, how he wished it was Kate who was moaning around him, screaming his name. Castle ignored the thoughts in his head and concentrated on his and Reina's pleasure. He was the White Whale after all! He had a reputation to uphold, even in a foreign country. He thrust and thrust at a steady pace, soon giving Reina a scream-inducing orgasm, before the pleasure in his body spiked, as waves of euphoria rolled through him.
As he slowly slid out of Reina, Castle felt light-headed but also a little disgusted with himself for thinking of another woman during the act. It had not been the best sex of his life, but he remembered Woody Allen's quote: "Even my worst orgasm was right on the money". Reina looked satisfied, as Castle moved to clean himself and dispose of the condom. She fixed herself up, combing her hair, though she still had that "just been fucked" look. Reina pulled Castle's face down to her and gave him a kiss on the lips, as she smiled and said "Good night Castillito" and stumbled to the sidewalk and got in a taxi minutes later, waving goodbye to him. Castle looked at the sky and shook his head. Looks like he had been used too this night, so there was no reason to feel guilty. He went back into the bar to find Ronnie and go back to the hotel.