*A/N: I'm back. Sorry for the long break, but I got caught up in writing SOLID GROUND and wanted to focus on that. So this chapter is more of a setup for the next up, and provides hints to the melding of the Season 2 premiere with the A&J universe. Since I've been gone for so long, I've taken the liberity of writing up a recap summary of the previous chapters. I re-read so you don't have to.
Recap Summary
Taking Martha's advice, Castle told Beckett about the leads he'd uncovered after he looked into her mother's case, which she'd specifically told him not to do. Beckett was angry, hurt, and disappointed by this, and accused him of betraying her trust and digging into the case to get all the gory details to use for Nikki Heat's backstory. This last accusations angered Castle, and he tried to explain why he did it, that he wanted to help and bring her closure, because he understood her, knowing that she could never fully embrace her life until she found closure. Beckett told Castle she needed time to process everything and he agreed to give that to her.
When Kate arrived home after their fight, she tried to relieve the stress by drinking a cup of tea and taking a long soak in a bath, but that didn't work. She then went to the loft, where Castle was alone drinking away his sorrows, and jumped him, pushing him back into his office where they then have hot angry rough sex against the edge of his desk.
Afterwards, Castle asked Beckett what it meant, and she informed him that it was just sex, that she just needed sex to relieve the stress, and that for the foreseeable future, while she comes to terms with his "betrayal", that's all she's going to need from him. She confirmed that they weren't over, that they were not breaking up, that they were just putting their renewed romantic relationship on hold. So Castle, desperate to still have her in his life, in whatever way he could get, reluctantly agreed to a 'friends with benefits' kind of arrangement with her, on the condition that if he feels that they are falling into a dangerous pattern of with no end in sight he can call her out on it. Beckett agreed to his addendum.
3 weeks into their arrangement, which included Castle being banned from the precinct, Martha cornered Castle and called him out on what he and Beckett have been doing. She informed him that Jim Beckett was also aware of what the two have been doing. Castle was mortified, but continued to reassure his mother that he loved Kate and was not giving up on repairing the damage and building a life with the detective.
After 3 months of their 'friends with benefits' arrangement, Castle had grown tired and frustrated. From his point of view, their weekly rendezvous have turned into meaningless and unfulfilling sex, where they practically just go through the mechanics of having sex—no kissing, no looking each other in the eye, and no soft caresses, unless the touch had a function towards physical arousal or stimulating sexual pleasure.
Discouraged with the lack of any forward progress in their relationship, Castle issued an ultimatum to Beckett when she arrived at the hotel suite for their weekly rendezvous. He informed her that if she wanted to have sex, then she would have to finally start talking to him. Incensed, Beckett accused him of breaking his word by denying her sex, and blinded by her anger, declared that if he wouldn't give her what she wanted, then she'd find someone who would. Hurt by her words, Castle left, leaving Beckett to pick up the pieces and take responsibility for repairing the damage, if that was her wish.
2 weeks later, during one of their family dinner nights, after the pizza had been eaten and the kids were watching a movie, Castle and Beckett finally talk things out. They decided that they couldn't keep carrying on like they had over the summer and that it was now time to try and work things out. Castle then declared his intention to kiss her, to seal the deal, as it were. Just before they kiss, Alex interrupted them, wanting to ask his Mom if he could have a soda. There was a moment of awkwardness before Beckett told Alex he could have a soda. After Alex left, returning to the living room to watch the movie with his sister, Castle turned back to Kate and kissed her before she could change her mind.
Another 2 weeks later, Kate was growing frustrated with the slow progress in the repairing of her personal life. And she also began to realize how much she missed working with Castle at the precinct. After an exhausting day at work, Kate returned to her apartment to find Jim cleaning the dishes. As she heated up leftovers and ate a late dinner, Kate talked with her father about the mess of things she'd made in her relationship with Castle, and how she was still waiting for an actual apology from him for digging into her mother's case. Jim encouraged her not to give up. Before going to bed, Kate checked in on Alex, who woke up to ask her about her kiss with Castle, wondering if his parents were going to get back together.
A couple of nights later, Beckett called Castle, asking him to meet her for coffee before her shift started. He agreed, and the next morning he went to the diner to meet up with her. When Kate arrived, she confessed to him that he was it for her, he's her one-and-done. They agree to start over. And then they kissed, both happy to be on the same page.
Alexander & Jane: Interlude – Chapter 12
"Too early," Castle grumbled, rolling onto his side and grabbing the pillow, bunching it up around his head, hopeful that it would block out the shrill noise of his cell phone's ringtone.
The ringing stopped after a minute, and he sighed in relief, turning to lie on his back. His hand absentmindedly drifted across to the other side of the bed, only to feel cold empty sheets. He frowned in confusion, fairly certain in his half-awake state that there should be someone occupying the right side of his bed. It took him a moment to remember that the warm body he was expecting to find wouldn't be there. At least, not yet. Though soon… yes, very soon.
Groaning, Castle rolled back onto his side, putting his back to the empty side of the bed, trying not to dwell on the fact he'd spent yet another night alone in bed. It was his own damn fault, really. So he shouldn't be the one complaining. He was the one that had called an end to their 'friends with benefits' arrangement. But he had a very good reason. Right? Yes. He need. He just couldn't remember it right now in his half-asleep stupor.
Closing his eyes, he tried to fall back into that sweet bliss of sleep once more, silently praying that his subconscious would conjure up images of a deliciously naked Kate Beckett for him to do naughty things to in his dreams. But his attempt to return to dreamland was once again interrupted by the shrill sound of his cell phone. Cracking an eye open, Castle glared out at his nightstand as the offending electronic device continued to ring and buzz. He didn't want to answer it. He just wanted to stay curled up under the covers for another hour or two… or three.
It could be Beckett, his inner voice supplied, but he knew it wasn't. But it could, his subconscious persisted, much to his chagrin. He growled in frustration. Even though he was pretty sure that it wasn't Beckett calling, he couldn't let it pass by in case if it really was her calling. It had only been a couple of days since they decided to start anew, so things were still fresh. And he didn't want to run the risk of messing things up so soon by ignoring her call. Shaking his head, Castle pushed up on an elbow and stretched an arm out to snatch his phone.
"Rick Castle," he answered, voice gruff and rough from sleep.
"Finally," came a nasally high voice. "I thought you'd never answer."
Castle groaned inwardly and slumped back down onto the bed, pressing his head back into the pillow, glaring up at the ceiling. Now he wished he'd followed his original intent and ignored the call. "Good morning to you, too, Paula," he ground out.
"Are you still in bed?" his agent hooted out.
"I had a late night," he replied, his eyes flicking over to the empty space in bed beside him, once again wishing Kate were there.
Paula chuckled. "Some pretty young thing wear you out or something, old man?" she teased him.
"No," he grumbled, scrubbing a hand up and down his face, feeling disappointed that his late night wasn't a result of that kind of activity with a certain brunette detective. "I was alone last night."
"Really?" she clucked her tongue, clearly not believing his assertion that he didn't have some young buxom bimbo wrapped up in the bed sheets with him.
Castle snorted. "If you must know, I was writing," he informed her.
"Nikki Heat?" Paula questioned, not doing a very good job of hiding her astonishment. "I thought you'd drained that well dry. Didn't that detective kick you out?"
"Yes, she did," he bobbed his head, rubbing his forehead and closing his eyes. "But inspiration hit. And you know me, when I get in the zone, I block everything else out… including the clock."
There was a slight pause before his agent spoke again. "Oh my God," she shrieked, her high-pitched voice piercing up into the high decibels. Castle squinted his eyes in pain and held the phone away from his ear. "You dog! You snagged her… didn't you?" She laughed, delightfully. "And here I thought she'd hold out forever, and leave you sexually constipated. I almost thought I was going to have to take care of you myself like I did back when that Jane woman left you," she declared, though he couldn't help but notice that longing lilt in her voice, as if she had been hoping she'd get another round with him.
Castle groaned inwardly, reluctantly recalling the incident all those years ago. Paula Haas was a great agent, but he wouldn't really call her a friend, by any stretch of the imagination. He'd hired her immediately after Meredith had cheated on him. And not long after that, he'd met Jane (a.k.a. Kate Beckett) and when that relationship had fallen apart, it had been Paula who had to pick up the pieces immediately afterwards.
She was unashamedly easy, and didn't care what others thought of her promiscuity. And she was a predator, always on the prowl for another hunk of meat. Back then, after Jane had left him, Castle had been easy prey, and it hadn't taken that much effort for him to become ensnared by Paula's lascivious claws for a brief fling. Though, thankfully, it had just been a quick blow and hump in a supply closet at a book signing, and not some long torrid affair.
"Once was enough, Paula, don't you think?" he said.
"Speak for yourself, big boy," she crooned. "You've got the goods, and know how to use them. Not many men do. And trust me, I know. So I wouldn't object to another go. If only you weren't all hard for that detective, I could give you a good time, Ricky."
"Paula…," he ground out in warning.
"Right," she replied. "So, how was it? Was your reserved and stoic muse a wild tiger in bed? I bet she was. She's too confident in herself not to be. I bet she's a little kinky, too. She's way too by the book; I just know she'd let loose in bed and does all sorts of wild things. Come on, Ricky... give me some details. You know you want to. Now's not the time to be modest. You've never had problems sharing all the juicy details in the past. Why stop now? Or was this one different?" She chuckled softly. "Oh my, Rick… she was the initiator, wasn't she? So… how was it to be the conquest instead of the conqueror?"
"Dear god, Paula… enough!" Castle hissed out, raising his voice and sitting up, rubbing his temple with two fingers, already getting a headache from having to listen to her nasally high voice. She may be a great agent, but it was almost painful to have long conversations with her. "Please, don't talk about Beckett that way. She's not like that."
"Like what?"
"Like you," he gritted through clenched teeth, angry.
"Rick Castle, are you calling me a slut?" she asked in feigned indignation.
"If the shoe fits," he grumbled under his breath. Silence met him on the other end of the line. Castle pursed his lips, momentarily wondering if he'd gone too far in defending Kate's honor. Though it wasn't like what he'd said about Paula wasn't true. Still, she didn't know the whole story.
Castle had to remind himself that his agent wasn't aware of the link between him and Beckett, let alone that Beckett's son was, in fact, his. She'd questioned him once about why the detective's son had a room at the loft, and why he was always busy doing "family activities" with the Becketts. He'd simply told her that he was being a friend, and that sometimes Detective Beckett needed someone to look after her son, and he'd volunteered to help out. Luckily for him, preparing the promotional material for Heat Wave had distracted Paula to the extent that she didn't notice all the inconsistences in his tale.
Beyond that, Castle had also done a very good job of keeping it all away from prying eyes, mostly because he knew how much Beckett valued her privacy. Only their families and friends at the 12th precinct knew the truth about their past relationship and how Alex Beckett connected them. Paula had no idea that Kate was Jane and that Castle was working at rebuilding and rekindling that relationship.
After an exceedingly awkward pause, Paula laughed. "Okay, I grant you that," she conceded, not at all offended, unashamed of her promiscuous lifestyle. "Besides, she's way too uptight to be getting any that frequently. She probably caved to your charms because she was in desperate need of a good fuck and what better fuck than with a dashingly handsome mystery author known for his abundant sexual appetite."
"You make me sound like a man-whore," he said, half-smirking.
"Well, you are, Ricky," Paula said, soothingly, in that way she does that sounds more like she's placating her sensitive client than anything else. "You parade around for the press and sell yourself. Nothing to be ashamed about. You're good at it. Really good! Why do you think your books sell?"
"Because they're compelling reads," he offered lamely.
"Ha, God no!" Paula laughed. "Sex. Sex sells, Ricky. And you, my ruggedly handsome friend, are sex on two legs."
"Yeah, I try," he chuckled, but then pursed his lips and drew down his brow. "But seriously, Paula, I'm alone. And I was writing last night."
"Okay, okay," his agent surrendered. "But you want my advice. Grab that woman and just fuck her brains out. From the few instances I've met her, I'm positive she's in desperate need of that."
Castle couldn't help but grin, knowing he'd already done such with Kate Beckett, but he kept that to himself. "I'll see what I can do," he said instead.
"You do that," Paula replied, as if she was issuing him a direct order. "On a related note, I've got some news for you… it involves the detective, as well. It seems news of your detective roleplaying has gotten out. Cosmo would like to do a feature article with you and Detective Beckett."
"Oh… um… that's…"
"Amazing! I know! It'll be great press for the book, and the NYPD, I might add," Paula interrupted him. "I'm already setting it up. I'm thinking we should do a photo spread along with it. Don't worry about anything. Leave the details to me. I'll contact the NYPD public relations department and arrange everything. You just deal with that pretty detective of yours and see if you can get her to play nice for the camera. I know she can be a bit of a tight-ass."
Oh, yeah, she's got a tight ass, Castle thought to himself, for a moment falling back into his memories of running his fingertips along the perfectly firm curve of her rear. It had been way too long since he'd had last stroked his fingers over her bare skin, or touched her in an intimately way. The last time they'd had sex—which was during their 'friends with benefits' arrangement—had been over a month ago. Their recent relationship reboot, as it were, hadn't yet progressed beyond handholding, soft caresses, and some pretty intense kisses.
He needed to remedy that as soon as possible.
"Yeah, yeah," he fumbled out, only just remembering that he was on the phone with his agent. "She doesn't really like the press. Thanks for the heads up. I'll see if I can smooth things before the interviews."
"You do that," Paula said. "And while you're at it, see if you can 'smooth things' out in other ways. Bye."
She hung up before he could respond. He stared at the phone and ground his teeth in frustration. Castle really didn't need Paula's help in reminding him about the lack of a certain brunette detective in his bed. It had been extremely difficult for him to put down that ultimatum, suspending their hotel rendezvous. Kate was an addiction to him, one he constantly craved. And now, after more than a month without being with her in that more intimate of ways—even if the summer had all been meaningless sex, it had still been sex with her—Castle was starving for some Kate Beckett. He wanted to hold her in his arms, kiss her, and make love to her. That's all he wanted.
Putting the phone back on his nightstand, he looked at the digital alarm clock. It wasn't too early to start making plans. He'd need to make some calls first, though… make some arrangements. And he needed to do that now. Shifting his legs over the edge of bed, he stood up, and smirked, heading for the ensuite bathroom. Oh yes, if everything went according to plan, he'd have Kate Beckett thoroughly sated and mewling softly in content in his bed by the end of the day.
