Thanks to all of you who are giving this little story a chance! I'm a late bloomer in the Castle/Caskett fandom but I've fallen in love with Rick and Kate falling in love with each other on so many levels.

The idea for this story is based on a couple of things: 1) In S5E3 'Secret's Safe With Me' Castle teasingly asks Beckett about her 'kinky' past and she admits - "I have that box, too..." And 2) Don't we all know that Kate had more going through her mind than catching murderers when she told Castle early on that: "There is one wild...kinky thing that I do like doing..."

I hope you won't mind me taking a few liberties as this short story goes along. A) I haven't read any of the actual Derrick Storm or Nikki Heat books - but they are on my wish list! and B) Forgive my mind for going off track with Detective Beckett's kinky side. I can't say this is an AU story, but will admit that perhaps it's not as Caskett-esque as the show would have us believe.

Just fyi, this one is 'M' rated for a reason.

Not Just the Dance: Kinky
Chapter One - Unveiling

Kate Beckett blushed.

It was a rare occurrence for her but it happened from time to time. She realized it had happened more since Richard Castle had come into her life - well, truly into it.

She had become aware of the author long before actually meeting him. Katherine Beckett had been introduced to his writing about a year or so before her mother's murder. Castle's book detective, Derrick Storm, had served as a bit of a fantasy for younger Kate and she appreciated the mystery that the writer provided.

All-in-all she would admit to just about anyone that she was a fan of the book character, the series and yes, the writer as well.

And following her mother's horrific, untimely death, Kate Beckett buried herself in those Derrick Storm novels. As Storm found and punished the killers that he faced, she pictured herself finding and punishing her mother's murderer.

Her father, a few select friends, and even one ex-boyfriend were aware of her Derrick Storm fascination. The character's perseverance and tenacity; his wit; his roguishly handsome charm; and even some of his egotistical cockiness had pulled her through some of the darkest times of her life.

Kate was quite sure she hadn't expressed that to Richard Castle when she first asked for his input on the New York murder case that mirrored one of his books. Nor had she told him about it during the first four or five years that they worked together after he weasled his way into consulting for the NYPD. (Of course he only consulted with Kate Beckett…)

Even after her near death experiences; finally letting down her walls and admitting her true feelings for the author; and even after agreeing to marry the man, she still hadn't allowed herself to express that part of her life to him.

But with the box currently in her hands, she realized she was on the verge of telling him this chapter of her story. The only caveat was…this box held both the story of what Richard Castle had meant to her long before they truly met…and trinkets that belonged to the kinkier side of Kate Beckett - and in some cases the two topics collided…thus, her blush.

She knew, like opening Pandora's box, opening this one would likely send her fiance's mind into overdrive. The common sense side of Kate Beckett only hoped she'd be able to eventually reel Richard Castle back from Fantasy Land.

And just like that she was flicking her short, manicured thumbnail against the lid of the weathered Doc Martens boot box and debating for the four thousandth time if she wanted to share the contents with Rick.

"Come on, Beckett," his voice had gone from encouraging, to curious, finally to this whine before she climbed out of bed and went to the depths of their walk-in closet where she had done her best to hide this particular box when she had moved into Rick's loft.

They had spent the past 90 minutes cuddling, kissing and caressing one another following a delectable dinner for two which included a seductive discussion about libido-enhancing foods like oysters, wine and chocolate covered strawberries.

That last little delicacy had brought them into the bedroom with a gourmet box of the treats that Kate had picked up on her way home from the precinct. Rick grabbed two cans of whipped cream from the fridge and an unassuming red and white striped gift bag that he had picked up on his way home.

The two of them had teased each other over the past week about the anniversary of their detective/consultant partnership. They each recalled various cases that had crossed Kate's desk when Castle had first become part of the team.

Rick had had no qualms about reminding her of their trip to a sex toy store and the sex lair where Mistress Venom was supposed to be their focus. Those reminders had come at work, in front of co-workers…and then again when she was seated at her desk and his hot breath had whispered in her ear, "You know you can take me back there anytime. Although we've already shared spankings at home…"

Kate had kept her cool - well, except for the burning in her cheeks… and the sweat that somehow formed on her chest… and the heat that caused her thigh muscles to flex and squeeze together at even the thought of some of their sexual escapades.

Castle had rounded her desk, sat down in the somewhat ratty chair that had become his perch years ago, and asked her if she wanted some coffee.

The day after that Rick had pulled up an inappropriate website on Ryan's computer, feigning 'research for a case' and pulled Kate into a conversation about sexual positions and whether or not some were possible.

Kate had steeled herself for that discussion and gave herself a pat on the back for enduring it without blushing. And, as they wrapped up the so-called work-related conversation she found a way to retaliate, tapping her finger on the monitor screen and whispering into Castle's ear, "I can lift my leg higher than that…"

She had to bite her bottom lip, but grinned from ear to ear when she heard him gasp for air, knowing she had sent his mind into overdrive.

And the week had culminated with the two of them on the private side of the interrogation room feeling each other up and down and kissing like two horny teens under the bleachers - not caring about suspension or parents being contacted.

That session had ended with Castle requesting another trip to that sex toy shop and Kate telling him, "I already have all the toys I need…" Punctuated by her small hand palming his bulging crotch until they both groaned and forced themselves apart.

Now after teasing each other with potential uses for the remaining strawberries and whipped cream, Rick had brought up that subject again.

"I like toys…you know that." His fingers made quick work of the few buttons on her shirt.

"Do you think I might enjoy your toys?" His entire face took a curious, boyish turn, even as he swept her top off her shoulders leaving Kate in just her bra and the lacy boy shorts she had chosen to wear under her slacks to work that day.

"I think you might enjoy my toys, and everything in my kinky box, a little too much, Castle," she had attempted to squelch his hopes.

But he persisted. And here she currently stood with that kinky box in hand, blushing and looking at the love of her life sitting anxiously on their bed in only his boxers.

"You really do have a naughty, kinky box, Beckett?" Rick's eyes were wide with amazement and hope.

Kate shrugged a shoulder, begging the redness to leave her cheeks although she already knew that Rick adored the bit of shyness and embarrassment that sometimes seeped into their sexual play. She was actually quite sure she had seen him blush a time or two as well which was somewhat refreshing.

She slowly walked to the bed and carefully put the box on her side of the mattress. Rick fully expected the slap on his hand when he reached for the lid.

"My box!" Kate shooed his fingers from the top and then slowly lifted one corner, peeking in to see the contents before fully revealing them to her lover.

When she finally, fully took the cardboard lid off the box, she almost ceremoniously slid it underneath the bottom of the container and then took a deep breath as she peered at the items on top.

Castle looked in as well and then patted the bed for her to come back in and sit beside him. He was slightly taken aback as the first thing to meet his eye was a copy of his fourth Derrick Storm novel, Storm Front.

—-

"What's this?" He gingerly reached into the box thinking she would smack his hand away again.

Instead Kate allowed him to grab the hard-bound book but she made sure several random, loose pages stayed behind covering the box's other contents.

Rick looked towards her as he opened the front cover of the book. His fiancee scooted a bit closer to him and pointed at the signature inside the book.

"To Kate - Stay curious, the mysteries of life are yours to solve. Love, Rick Castle"

He read the inscription which was obviously written in his handwriting.

"When did I sign this for you? I thought you only had the Nikki Heat books signed by me," he grinned before noticing Kate's shy, closed-lip smile also reading the words.

"This is the book that came out after my mom was killed," she began explaining and gently pulled the book from Rick's hands. She ran her fingertips over his words and then flipped the page and looked at the dedication which was a lovely tribute to his mother and daughter.

Watching the consideration on her face, Rick stayed quiet and simply waited for Kate to continue.

"Once we got through the funeral, Dad and I went up to the cabin and pretty much locked the doors for a month. I had read your first three books and enjoyed them. I took them with me to the cabin and when Dad started drinking I stayed in my room and just lost myself in Derrick Storm and solving the cases with him. Over those few weeks I probably read those three books at least three or four times - each," she nodded and flipped a few more pages of the book in her hands.

Kate took a slow, somewhat shaky breath and attempted to give Rick a genuine smile. He mirrored with his lips pressed together in a positive, loving line and again kept his mouth shut, asking her to keep sharing.

"The last week we were up there, I went to pick up groceries and saw some interview with you on the television at the local market. I stopped to listen because you were talking about the fourth Derrick Storm novel, this one, and the release date and they were listing the dates and locations of your book signing tour. One of the locations was at a bookstore just a block away from dad's law office," she swallowed. "That's when I decided that I was done hiding at the cabin. I decided that I wasn't going to lose my father as well as my mother. And I was determined to get a signed copy of your latest book."

She smiled at him with a slight shrug of a single shoulder. "I bought this copy the day they went on sale and I was in line at 8:00AM the morning of your book signing. I waited in line for nearly two hours."

Rick chuckled lightly and interjected, "Sorry about that."

Kate shook her head with purpose. "Don't apologize. I saw two sides of author Richard Castle that day. I saw the playboy who really did sign his name to a few women's chests."

"I'm surprised you stayed in line," Rick added.

Kate rolled her eyes, much as she had on book signing day. "At that point I chalked it up to the women. Well, they were college aged girls, much like I was. But all of them gave off that flirty, sorority, kind of vibe. I figured they were using your signature to make their boyfriends jealous or like some trophy with their other frilly friends."

"Tell me I didn't ask any of them out," Rick mentioned seriously.

Kate laughed and shook her head, "No. That's probably what kept me from jumping out of the line…"

Rick tilted his head at her claim, knowing all too well, at this point, that her determination would've kept her there no matter what. "What was the other side?" He asked curiously.

"The other side I witnessed was the writer who listened to male and female fans as they told you about their favorite parts of your books. They told you how they thought Storm should've solved the case…what they thought of his love interests. And I think a couple of them even asked you to read stories they had written. For those folks you weren't cocky or egotistical. With them you were kind and grateful. You took time with them and made them feel like their thoughts were important to you."

"I've always been grateful to my readers, Kate." He laid his hand palm up on the bed between them and was happy when she placed her hand in his. "I know without them - you - I wouldn't have anything. My success is only because of them." He squeezed her hand, lifted it to his lips and placed a kiss against her knuckles before pointing back at the book. "What did I say to you?"

Kate took a deep breath and turned back to the front cover. "I had thought all night, after buying this, about what I would say to you. I had forced Dad to come back to the city with me and was desperately trying to get him to go to AA for help. There was still so much of my mom's stuff in the house that all of those feelings, the loss, was raw and open again. And I just wanted a few minutes to be outside of reality."

She pulled her hand from Rick's and wiped away a tear that snuck out of her eyelid. She laughed and shook her head. Sitting there in her underwear, Rick in a pair of boxers, both of them anticipating a play-filled sexcapade; instead found themselves in a rather deep conversation about their first meeting.

"You don't really want… Castle, you weren't wanting a story when I pulled this box out of the closet," she stalled.

"No, you're right," Rick nodded before reaching his thumb toward her face and wiping another drop from her other tear duct. "But you can't stop there, Kate. What did you tell me? What did I say to you? Do you remember it vividly? Because right now I sure wish I did."

Kate took a deep breath, "I'm pretty sure I told you that I had a personal mystery that I was trying to solve. It helped me to read about Derrick Storm because he saw things differently - made me look at things differently. And, I appreciated the thought you put into your characters."

"You asked me if I needed help solving my case," Kate ducked her head at the memory. "And for a moment I thought you might just offer to help," She leaned over and pressed a light kiss to Rick's lips. She pulled back and pressed her own together as she looked into his eyes. "But then you signed the book and you told me that writing had helped you through some really tough times in your life. You encouraged me to write down important things about my mystery. You told me to write my story and it would help me find my answers."

They sat looking at each other for another moment before Rick's eyes looked toward the ceiling and then toward another wall of the bedroom and then down at their hands that had somehow become joined again.

"Well that was no help at all," he finally declared. Kate's lips dropped open, ready to chastise him until he leaned in closer to her and placed a kiss on her cheek. "Surely you didn't listen to that awful advice," he added.

Kate pulled away just enough to look into his eyes, "Were you lying to me? I thought writing had helped you through some rough spots in your life."

"Oh, I wasn't lying about that, no, absolutely, writing has been my comfort zone for years. But suggesting that you do that?" He added a bit of a 'pfft' with a puff of air through his lips.

"Well, all things considered, it actually was pretty good advice. I bought a journal before I left that book shop; went home with my signed copy of Storm Front and wrote down everything I could remember Raglan telling me and Dad about Mom's death. And then I wrote down important things that Mom had told me that kept popping into my head. And I wrote down some of my anger and frustration that I was feeling for my Dad at the time."

At that Rick pushed the box from between them, scooted closer to his fiancee and took her into his arms. Her back leaned against his chest as he curled his arms around her elbows and intertwined their fingers. Without a word he encouraged her to tell him more.

"After a day or two of holing up in my bedroom, reading and thinking and writing, I took that journal to my dad and made him read a few of those pages when I thought he was sober enough to think straight," Kate held her breath at the memory and nuzzled her temple against Rick's cheek as she recalled Jim Beckett sitting at their kitchen table with a bottle of scotch beside him, bloodshot eyes trying to focus on his daughter's handwriting.

"I stood right there with my arms crossed while he read what I had written. Castle, it was one of the scariest moments of my life. I didn't know what he might do. I kinda figured he would tell me to get out of the house, to leave him alone and just let him drown his misery." Kate pulled his arms more tightly around her, happy to be in his embrace while reliving these particular thoughts.

"But if I know your father and how much he loves you, it broke his heart to read your words and it got through to him, didn't it?" Castle asked softly with a kiss against the shell of Kate's ear.

Kate sniffled and gave a sad little laugh that began to turn the story around. "He asked when I'd gotten so smart. He got up and poured the rest of that bottle of scotch down the drain. And then he asked me if I really meant all of the curse words that I had included in my journal."

"Did you?" Rick asked curiously and felt Kate's head nod slowly against his own.

"He still has that journal, Rick. He keeps it tucked into his bedside table. He's told me on several occasions he has pulled that out, turned to the pages that I made him read that night, and read them again and again. Dad says it reminds him of how deeply hurt I was - the fact that I put those words…vulgar, defensive words…on paper in my thoughts about him in those moments… He never wants me to hurt like that again."

Kate turned in his arms and breathed in deeply, gaining comfort by sharing this with the man she loved. She felt the toned muscles in Rick's arms, shoulders and chest wrapping around her, their bare skin melding together at every point except where the lace of her undergarments separated them.

In the next moment she tilted her face upwards, seeking his lips to join with hers. "Castle," she whispered before he pressed his mouth to hers for a kiss that poured out her gratefulness.

As the minutes went by Rick felt her smiling against his lips. Their tongues continued to probe and tease each other, lips kept smacking gently together and hands wandered without frenzied intentions…at least not yet. But when he felt her grin, Rick leaned his head away from her and looked down at the gorgeous upward turn of her mouth.

"What?" He wondered.

"You really had no clue that I was a fan of your books when we met the second time? I mean, when you came into the precinct Javi and Ryan had copies of your books on their desks," Kate's voice took the turn of a curious little girl.

"Oh," Rick placed a kiss on the tip of her nose, "I noticed the stamps inside the covers "From the Library of Kate Beckett". But I was having too much fun with you on so many other levels."

"I really did think you were an ass, you know. Maybe not the first time we met. But between that book signing and our second meeting I learned quite a bit more about you. Your womanizing and some of the comments on your website…I mean do you - did you- go in and read some of the invitations that women and men put on there?" Her face crinkled a little as she recalled a couple of people asking him to Storm their Castles…

"But that's not why you were upset with me when we met that second time, was it?" Rick dared to ask for the truth. "Yes, you were investigating a murder and yes, said murder - murders - were based on my fictional ones. But you were angry with me for killing Derrick Storm, weren't you?"

Kate tensed at his question. They both knew it was true, but she had never shared with him why it really upset her so much. She turned her back towards him again, even though their smooching had laid them both down on the mattress. Her head was pillowed by his bicep and she pulled his other arm around her like a blanket against her rib cage and stomach.

"After what I told you earlier, you can guess that Derrick Storm was an important character in my life. Each new book you wrote, each mystery he solved, each dilemma he worked himself out of… he was like a role model, even a really good friend in my life, Castle. He was a link to my Mom in some ways. And when you had him die…it was like reliving my mom's death. It really, really did hurt my heart."

Rick placed a gentle kiss against her shoulder, a soft one against the curve of her neck and pulled her more tightly against him. "I never imagined…I'm sorry, Kate."

She took a deep breath and nodded, accepting his heartfelt apology.

"It hurt me too," Rick admitted, "I was letting go of a guy who had been my life for years. I wrote Derrick Storm before anything truly serious came into my life. He was born before Alexis. He saw me through both of my marriages and divorces. But I started realizing that Storm was my excuse."

He placed a kiss against the top of Kate's head as she rolled over in his arms to place her cheek on his chest. Once she was adjusted and pressed a kiss against his pectoral muscle, Rick breathed out slowly.

"Meredith really was not around once Alexis turned three. My daughter kept me grounded but when Meredith mentioned that we should move to the West coast, I used my books as the excuse to stay here in New York. The city was my inspiration to write Derrick Storm. She told me she needed to be in California to make her career work so I told her to go. Alexis and I had a support system here that Meredith couldn't match in LA so my little girl and I…and Derrick Storm stayed here.

By the time Alexis was four my first divorce was final. At that point the Storm novels were taking me farther than I ever thought possible and getting to know my poker pals just spurred me on with more ideas for stories.

Writing kept me from trying to find any sort of serious relationship because I was putting my heart and soul into the fictional life. When Gina came along we were arm candy for each other and what better way to promote my books than by truly being in bed with my publisher?"

He felt Kate cringe at the mention of his second wife. It really had been a marriage of convenience. Other than additional publicity and a year or so of monogamy, Rick had a bit of trouble remembering why the two of them had reached the point of marriage.

"She was a slave-driver when it came to writing, Kate. I mean I understand deadlines and I respect them but creativity can't always be put on a schedule, you know? You know how I work."

Kate laughed a little and rubbed ticklish circles against his stomach.

"Alright, fine, you know how I like to avoid work," Rick conceded. "She made me want a break from writing Derek Storm and that pissed me off. So I decided I'd be more likely to meet my deadlines without her cracking the whip over my shoulder."

"I thought you liked cracking the whip?" Kate teased lightly which earned her a poke to the ribs.

"I'm trying to be serious here," Rick commented and she again placed a kiss on his chest and settled in once more to keep listening.

"After that I convinced myself that the only relationship that was more important to me than writer and character was father and daughter. So especially when Mother moved in with us, my focus was on developing Derrick Storm even more deeply."

"Enter the playrooms, one night stands, no emotional attachments?" Kate wondered out loud.

Rick nodded against the top of her head. "Alexis was old enough that I certainly didn't want to bring women home with me. So with Mother here watching her, or a babysitter from time to time, I had free roam. And that was fine until Alexis was a teenager and in middle school. At that point Derrick Storm wasn't helping me deal with the real world problems that were popping up. He was my excuse for avoiding the issues."

"So what changed?" Kate asked, knowing he would spell it out for her.

"I had a Derrick Storm weekend planned. Women at my beck and call; a yacht leased for a weekend of fun in the Hamptons," he tensed as he remembered the chain of events. "Meredith was coming to town and wanted to spend the weekend with Alexis. Alexis was 6th or 7th grade and kept asking me where I was going to be for the weekend. She wasn't stupid, she knew my party weekends were basically x-rated and I wanted her nowhere near them. But this time she kept asking to come with me.

I blew her off and told her that I needed to promote the Storm series and she needed to spend time with her mother, enough said.

The next thing I knew I was getting a frantic call from Mother saying that she couldn't get in touch with Alexis nor Meredith and the school had called asking if everything was okay because Meredith had picked Alexis up right after school started that day with passports in hand when they asked for her identification.

Meredith had taken her to Italy with plans to stay for a month. She had hired a tutor and was going to disenroll Alexis from school so they could reconnect. Alexis left me half a dozen messages asking me to help her…asking why I was letting her mother take her away because she didn't want to go."

Kate felt the tension growing in his body and lifted herself up onto an elbow to look into his face. Rick shook his head at her with a sad smile.

"Turns out I had ignored messages that Meredith had sent to me laying out her plans. And with her flightiness she assumed no news was good news and she could pick up Alexis anytime and just go. I was so wrapped up in Storm and my own weekend that I had no clue. I was always involved in Alexis's life, always…but that one weekend turned into the end of Derrick Storm.

It took a week to get my baby girl back and when I did she wouldn't even look at me. If Mother hadn't been here to play mediator I swear Alexis would've moved out. She hated me and Meredith. Meredith went back to California and didn't give it a second thought other than being thoroughly pissed at me for ruining her time with Alexis. But our daughter was so distraught over missing school and me letting her go that she made the trip miserable for both of them.

In the first five days that Alexis was back home and not talking to me, I completely revamped the novel I was working on. I snuck into her room that Friday night and left her the unedited copy of Storm Fall. She finally came out of her room Sunday morning, brought the stack of papers to my room and tossed them on the bed by my head to wake me up.

She asked me why I killed him. And I told her it was because Derrick Storm wasn't my priority. Derrick Storm was a character that didn't matter to me anymore. I told her that she was my top priority and I promised that I would never let something like the Italy debacle happen again."

Kate placed a hand flat on his chest, feeling his heartbeat beneath his warm skin. "And that brought her back to you?" The look on her face conveyed the seriousness of her question.

"It still took time, but when Storm Fall went to the publishers she knew I was serious. We had some very long talks about both of our lives, about our feelings about her mother, about her grandmother living with us…I think that's when we had the sex talk as well. It was a very informative time…for me!"

Rick smiled up at Kate who eyed him just a little skeptically. "You aren't just blowing smoke here, are you? I mean, I just bared my soul to you, Castle. You didn't just sit here and make up that story, did you? You've been known to do that before." She allowed her fingertips to dig into his chest to apply uncomfortable pressure.

He lifted a hand in the air quickly, "No, I swear to you, that's the truth. Even the part about the sex talk. One of the scariest times of my life, Kate. Killing off Derrick Storm was a decision that was more important to me than either of my first two marriages - Alexis not withstanding. But even with my reasoning, I can understand now why it hurt you and why you were angry with me about it."

Kate bent down and placed a kiss on his lips, "And now, knowing what led up to your decision, I can understand why you did it. And I forgive you."

Rick smiled at her genuinely and then placed one hand on her cheek and used the other to pull her down on top of him for a deeper kiss. Each felt the other breathe in and out, relaxing, enjoying and understanding one another just a little bit more.

When Rick rolled them over and began peppering kisses along her jawline, Kate took the chance to ask another question that had been burning in her mind for years.

"So, this Nikki Heat character…you really hadn't thought about writing more mystery novels until you met… me?" her questioning turn took a higher pitch with the personal interest that she had so avoided as he began writing that series. It also didn't hurt when his lips reached the sensitive pulse point below her ear.

"Nope," he answered with a whisper and then went back to work on that same spot.

"What was the first thing I inspired you to write?" The question became a little breathy when he added the force of his tongue tip to the beat of her blood flow.

He stopped his actions for a split second, "Sex scene," were the two words Kate felt against her neck before attempting to squirm away from him.

"I inspired you to write a sex scene when we first really met?" Her voice had a little more intent to it even when he reattached his lips to her skin.

"You were hot…you are hot," Castle hummed as he began working a line with his mouth that brought blood toward the surface. "Sexy, Detective Beckett…"

Kate grinned, now pleased with the effect she had had on him from the beginning apparently. Still she insisted, "Castle, stop." She pushed on him until his glazed eyes looked into her face and grinned a lopsided, hazy smile. "You know that's not where I like you to leave your mark."

"Yes, Detective," he breathed heavily as his eyes looked from her face toward her chest and the bit of lace that she was still wearing. "But Kate," he looked back at her face for a moment and bit on his bottom lip coyly, "what else is in your box?"

The raised eyebrows and lip bite were the teasing kind that sometimes made her roll her eyes. This time however she quirked her eyebrows at him and licked her lips. "Make out with me for a few more minutes and I'll share a little more with you. I think you'll like the next story…it's pretty hot."

Rick's lips returned to hers, Kate's arms wrapping around his neck to pull him closer. His fingers inched their way under the waistline of her panties and sat over the smooth juncture where her hip met her upper thigh.

The next round of heat began with the moan that slipped from Kate's lips and the squirming that never ceased to spur them both into hickey-creating activities.