She wakes the next morning with Castle at her back, his arm slung low at her waist and his face nuzzled into the curve of her shoulder. Kate smiles softly, tracing her fingers over the hand draped across her stomach, splayed possessively over her abdomen. She would stay, revel in the warm press of his body and the subtle glow of sunlight spilling onto her sheets, if she wasn't in need of a trip to the bathroom.

Without waking him, she slips free of his hold and tiptoes to her bathroom. She snags the dress shirt folded neatly on the edge of her sink, fingering the expensive, maroon material. She really shouldn't tease, not after last night, but the temptation of seeing his reaction wins out and she sheds the oversized t-shirt and leggings she had worn to bed and slips his button up on instead, rolling the sleeves up to her elbows and working only three of the middle buttons into place.

When she returns from the bathroom, he hasn't moved, still peacefully asleep, and she exits her bedroom without making a sound, heading to the kitchen in silence and starting the coffee machine.

She'll give him a morning he'll never forget.

The rich smell of dark roast coffee coaxes him awake, the aroma close and calling for him. His eyes flutter open to streaks of sunlight slipping through thick curtains and it's then that he remembers exactly where he is.

Castle sits up just as Kate is coming through the bedroom doorway, two steaming cups in hand, and nothing but his shirt on her body.

"Hey," she greets with a smile he could only describe as dazzling. She's always beautiful, but today with the soft waves of her hair framing her face, the morning sunlight kissing her cheeks, the fabric of his shirt wrapped around her body - she's left him speechless.

"Morning," he finally manages, sitting up for the coffee she holds out for him. "How long have you been up?"

Kate eases down onto his side of her bed, next to his hip, and sips her coffee while she shrugs. "Maybe half an hour."

"And you, uh - had to change?"

Her eyes glitter with mischief, her lips quirking with the hint of a devious smirk, and now he knows her reasoning for the wardrobe change. She wanted to fluster him and it's worked effortlessly.

"It looked comfortable. I figured I would just try it on," she replies with another shrug of feigned innocence.

Castle decides to play along, setting his barely touched coffee down on the nightstand and leaning forward, skimming a hand up her arm, up to her shoulder.

"It definitely fits well," he concedes, toying with the collar, brushing his thumb along the skin of her throat, following the swallow that descends down the pillar of her neck. Kate watches him from beneath the hood of her lashes, questioning his motives and how far he'll let this go on.

Maneuvering the covers from around his waist, he draws her closer, stealing her near empty coffee mug from her fingers and depositing it next to his.

"I have the day off," she mentions, biting her lip and fiddling with one of the few buttons she actually bothered to fasten.

"Oh?" Castle grins, but his heart is pounding as she rises on her knees before him and his hands curl around her hips, feeling the defined bones beneath the thin material of his shirt. "Me too."

She chuckles and cradles his face in her small hands, splaying her fingers wide over his skin.

"How's your jaw?"

He flexes the site of his injury by reflex, winces at the twinge of pain, but it isn't nearly as bothersome as it was the night before. "Sore, but it wouldn't prohibit me from any activities," he murmurs, waggling his eyebrows and she grins softly as she touches her fingers to the bruised skin.

"Castle?"

He realizes his eyes have been grazing the exposed skin of her thighs and he shoots her an apologetic look, but she shakes her head before sinking down, into his lap. The pressure of her, the snug fit of her body, sets his skin aflame.

"Last night, when you showed up at my door and heard Josh, you looked hurt," she murmurs, her eyes shining with apologies. "And resigned."

The latter observation surprises him, causes the wildfire in his veins to dull as he meets her gaze. He wouldn't deny that hearing her ex-boyfriend inside her home had unsettled him, but he thought he'd had a better poker face in front of her.

"Did you think I was going to take him back?" she questions, her brow furrowed deep, her eyes luminous but confused and beseeching.

"I wasn't sure, Kate," he admits, and he can see that it hurts her, the lack of faith, but it isn't her fault, she isn't the one who instilled the trust issues. "The first girl I ever loved," he starts with a sigh, squeezing her hips. "She left me for better opportunities, a better life. My first wife cheated on me with her director. My second wife… well, I'm not even sure how I screwed that one up, but the point I'm trying to make here is that I - I'm used to being more of a second choice." He shrugs, determinedly not looking at her, zeroing in on one of the still-fastened discs on his shirt instead. "I trust you, I even… you know how I feel about you, but I wouldn't have been surprised if you chose a world saving doctor over-"

The ferocity of the kiss she presses to his mouth rocks him backwards, the pillows behind him the only thing keeping him upright, but she pulls away a moment later, traps his skull between her hands, forcing him to look at her.

"I am not those women, Castle," she says, her voice firm and fierce, how she usually sounds at the Twelfth where she's always in command. "And you will never be my second choice."

His heart swells, and he feels stupidly unmanly for it, but his eyes sting too, and he buries his face in the warmth of her neck just until the threat of tears recedes. Kate's fingers comb through his hair as she presses her cheek to his temple.

"I told you, Castle, I just want you," she murmurs, lips brushing the shell of his ear. "You're-" Her breath catches for just a moment, but she exhales steadily, calms whatever part risked panic at the admission she's prepared to give. "You're it for me," she whispers, like it's a secret. "Only you, no one else."

Castle lifts his head, finds her watching him with a hesitant smile. Her fingers slip from his neck, down to her own chest, where she closes her thumb and index finger around the highest button of his shirt, sliding the disc free of its fastening. He doesn't stop her, only waits until she's reached the final button and the shirt hangs open, giving him only a glimpse of the silk skin hiding beneath.

His hands venture past the opening, skimming her sides, splaying over her ribs, devoting the soft curves, the warm skin and arches of bone to memory. He'll memorize every second, every sound and sight, love her with eyes wide open.

Kate shrugs his shirt from her shoulders, her pale skin shining in the sunlight, and he wants to tell her he loves her, but he swallows the words, just in case. Just in case she isn't ready. But then she leans forward in his lap, all of that bare skin pressing against him as she rests her forehead to his.

"Love me, Castle."

For a second he can't breathe, his heart seizing in his chest, but it's only a moment, and he forgets about regaining oxygen in favor of taking her mouth. She moans, soft and yearning, and curls her fingers around the edge of his t-shirt, tugging it upwards. The shirt flies over his head, towards her dresser, and he cradles her jaw in his hands, holds her steady as he leans in to kiss her once more, but stopping when their lips are just a breath apart.

"I already do."

A/N: Friendly warning, the next chapter will be rated M.