AN: This will be the last thing from me for a while. The constant stream of negativity regarding the content of the stories I choose to tell has really put me off fic writing. Thanks to everyone that has been supportive and kind. Later.
The music is soft, a gentle melody that hums in time with her heart, making her feel like it exists only for them, that no one else could ever hear it or appreciate it. Not like this. The notes fall perfectly in sync with their steps, the soft sway of their bodies a metronome for the bass line. He plays her like a fine instrument as they dance - one hand caressing her neck, applying the perfect amount of pressure to make her body sing when he strokes the other across the bridge of her spine. She sighs into his shoulder, fingers curling around the satin lapel of his jacket.
"Is that a happy sigh or an 'I can't believe I let Castle talk me into this' sigh?"
"Which do you think?"
"Well -" he spins them in a slow circle, warm breath washing over her skin - "I'm hoping for the former but since our sartorial choices and location are in direct opposition at the moment, I can't eliminate the latter as an option."
"You mean since we're dancing in the middle of your living room in formal wear?"
"Yeah."
Kate smiles, lifting her head to look at him. "It was a happy sigh, Castle." She presses her lips to his jaw, lingers. "A very happy sigh."
"So you're not annoyed that I made you put on this dress only to spend the night cooped up here?"
She lifts an eyebrow. "Made me?"
"That's not what I- What I meant was - Damn it."
Laughing, she drops her head back to his shoulder, wraps her arms more tightly around him. The sharp spice of his cologne mixes with the earthy scent of pine from the tree and she breathes it in, lets the smell coalesce into a memory, something she can hold inside her chest after the night is over.
"I know what you meant. And no, I'm not annoyed. I was just surprised but in really good way."
"Yeah?"
She shivers when his lips skim the sensitive skin behind her ear; nose pressed into the cascade of curls she'd left down for warmth when she'd thought their plans for the evening included the Mayor's charity ball and its outdoor patio. "Yeah, Castle. I like it here with you." She pinches the lobe of his ear, grinning when he retaliates with a nip to her jaw. "But -"
His hand slides from her neck, across her skin, until his palm cups her bare shoulder, fingers lightly stroking her collarbone. "What?"
"Why?"
"Why are we here and not in a packed ballroom with hundreds of people you don't know?" She nods, her hair rustling against his jacket. "Because I want this to be about us. I want to hold you as close as I want while we dance and not have to worry about photographers or rumors. I want to kiss you at midnight and not have to wait another two hours to pull you into my bed. I want to let this year - which has been one of the worst and best of my life - go in peace, with you by my side." Castle presses his lips to her temple, breath shaky in his throat. "I want you. That's all. Just you."
The lights from the tree shimmer in his eyes when she pulls back to look at him, runs her fingers over the sharp line of his cheek. Her thumb dips into the happy wrinkles at the corner of his eye when she cups his ear, brings his smiling mouth to hers. The music fades out as she kisses him, her tongue sweeping over his lips, her hand sliding down to tug at the knot in his tie, push the heavy tuxedo jacket from his shoulders. The heat from his fingers burns through the silk at her waist, lighting a fire that licks up her spine and twists through her ribs, setting her heart aflame inside her chest. Castle groans and pulls away, rests his forehead against hers.
"It's not midnight yet," he pants as her fingers flick at the tiny pearl buttons on his shirt. The hem of her dress lifts, his hands fisting tightly into the material when she drags her lips over his neck, dips her tongue into the hollow at the base of his throat.
"Well," she hums, pushing him back toward the door to his office, "you know what they say; whatever you're doing at midnight is what you'll end up doing all year. And to ensure that next year is a happy one, what I'd really like to be doing at midnight is -"
"Me?" His hands slide to her ass, tugging her hips into his as they shuffle toward his room.
"Exactly." She laughs as his back hits the doorframe, a strangled noise of surprise rattling in his chest. "You can still kiss me at midnight, Castle. Though," she leans in, lets her lips brush over his ear, "there's no rule that says it has to be on my mouth."