14

Rick wasn't in a tux, but the finely tailored suit was just as gorgeous. He looked like he belonged on a red carpet. And the look he was giving her made her a little weak in the knees. Like he belonged on her, or in her. Oh, stop it right now, Kate Beckett, or we'll never make it out the door. But so what?

She'd left the precinct exactly on time so she could get ready for their date. He'd left early with a wink and a smile. As soon as he disappeared behind the elevator doors, she sagged back into her chair, expecting the boys to saunter over and the teasing to begin.

But they didn't. They just made sure they didn't bring up anything new so she wouldn't feel obligated to stay late. Any ideas they had could be saved for the next morning. She saw them jotting notes on Post-Its and knew exactly what they were doing for her. At five o'clock on the dot, she smiled a Thanks, guys, and they both nodded back a You're welcome, have fun.

It was only an hour and a half later, and the business casual was replaced by semi-formal. And oh-so-sexy. His broad shoulders and chest were accentuated by the square-shouldered coat. She took a deep breath to steady herself. "You look good." But I wouldn't mind ripping your clothes off right now. "Your tie matches my dress."

"That is why you asked me to wear it, right?" He placed his hand at the small of her back to lead her out the door and almost flinched when he touched bare skin. Oh, damn, the dress is backless. How am I supposed to keep my hands off of her? He picked up her coat and held it for her, pretending to not be as affected as he was.

At the street, they reached his car and he watched the grin spread across her face. He didn't offer the keys, and she (surprisingly) didn't ask. This was a date, not police business, so he got to drive. She even let him open her car door. But her soft "mmm" when she sank into the seat, made him wish he'd called a limo instead so he could focus on her, not the road. She didn't know what to do with her hands – she normally had the steering wheel keeping them busy, so he had never known how many times over the years she had wanted to place her hand on his leg – so she reached to the touch-screen radio controls. Then she held her clutch tightly to stop herself from doing what she wanted… which would probably cause him to wreck his car.

"Where are we going for dinner?" She knew it would be good.

"Colicchio & Sons. Five stars, and close to the Bowery, so we won't miss anything." Please don't be mad that I'm going all out. You're worth it.

"Sounds delicious. I've heard great things about it." He's so cute when he's nervous.

He smiled and nodded and was thrilled that she didn't seem uncomfortable. She wasn't just squeaking by on a meager public servant's salary – her wardrobe and nice apartment proved that; so she either got a nice life insurance settlement from her mother or had a trust fund (she did grow up with affluent parents in Manhattan, after all). But she didn't have near the resources he had, and he never wanted to make her feel like he was trying to buy her affection.

She was more used to nice things and nice places than he realized, though, and she would be comfortable no matter what they did as long as he was with her. One day, maybe soon, she'd let him in on that secret.

The restaurant was nice, with brick walls and shelves of wood for the fired ovens; elegant but not pretentious. The menu had the best seafood and steaks and wine, listed not by type of food, but by which course they're served in, and no prices. The aromas were mouth-watering and the flavors divine. Rick told her about the different charities the place supports, and that's why it's one of his favorite places. Plenty of places have good food, but not many are good companies run by good people.

And Kate melted just a little more.

They laughed and talked, about Alexis, about Esplanie, about their childhoods. Not about any of their shared experiences, just interesting things they'd never shared before. First date material. He reached for her hand across the table, making her blush at his touch.

When the waiter came to ask for their dessert order, Rick declined, saying they had dessert plans for later.

Kate laughed. He was so obvious.

The waiter's eyes flicked down to Kate, and he said, "Very good, sir," with the smallest of smiles.

She excused herself to powder her nose. She almost didn't recognize the woman in the mirror. She looked different. Happy. She looked happy. She reached in her clutch (past the gun, badge, zip-tie, and phone) for her lipstick, and smiled again into the mirror. A lady stepped up next to her to wash her hands and complimented Kate's dress.

"You're here with Richard Castle, right?"

"I am." The question made Kate nervous.

But the lady smiled. "I've seen him enough at social events to know his reputation." Oh, this can't be good. "But I've never seen him look at anyone the way he's been looking at you tonight."

Kate stood there, stunned. She bit her lip. "Really?"

"Really. Have a wonderful time tonight. He's a great catch. But by the way he's been looking at you, he thinks you're a great catch, too." The lady fluffed her hair and left with a smile. Kate was still stunned.

The valet was pulling the car up to the door as they stepped outside – the waiter had called for the car- so they only had a moment's wait in the cold. But Rick took advantage of it and wrapped his arms around her, looked into her eyes, and asked if she was enjoying herself.

"I am." And I'm enjoying you.

"Your car, sir." The valet held out the keys for Rick and opened the door for Kate.

The valet grinned dumbly at the gorgeous brunette with the long legs climbing into the Ferrari before she thanked him and he shut her door.

"I think you've got a new fan," teased Rick, sliding his hand onto her thigh as he pulled into traffic.

She'd normally have a smart-aleck reply, but all her thoughts were stolen by his warm palm on her skin. She sucked in a breath and was glad she had time to shave.

The throaty purr of the engine was the only sound while he drove down 14th to 4th to the Bowery Ballroom. His hand slid higher, he couldn't help it, until she forced herself to stop him. It would be a bad, bad thing for her to be caught by some uniform with her dress pushed up and his pants pushed down and her riding him in the front seat of his zillion-dollar car. And if his hand went any higher, she'd have to have him, so she put her hand on his to still its ascent and looked out of her window.

But he felt her getting warmer and heard her breath become ragged and he knew how much she wanted him.

He pulled into a parking spot in a deck, and she still didn't look at him. He walked around and opened her door, offering a hand to help her out, then kissed her fully as soon as she stood. She moaned into his mouth while he pressed her against the car. He stepped between her legs to press even closer, she clenched at his back with both hands, he ran his fingers up into her hair and sucked at her bottom lip; then he stepped back, glassy-eyed and breathless. He let his hands fall to join with hers so that only their foreheads and hands were still touching, and whispered, "It's time for the concert to start."

A/N: Please review! They're addictive like this board thread (delete the spaces):

http:/ /the12th. proboards. com / index. cgi ?board=fanficsandfanvideos&action=display&thread=64