FACE TO FACE
CHAPTER 5
"Um, Rick?" she asked hours later, as they rested on her new - and newly christened - sheets.
He stirred, his chest rising under her head with a deep inhale. "Hmm?
Kate shifted to lay next to him, and tucked her hand under her cheek so she could gaze at him. "Can I ask you something?" she started, her hand drifting across his stomach.
He curled his fingers around her wrist, putting a pause to her exploration. "You just did," he teased, the playful lilt in his voice apparent even through the exhaustion.
"You know what I mean." She hesitated for a moment then, after taking a deep breath, just went for it. "The parties."
Rick opened one eye and trained it on her. "The swinger parties?" he clarified.
"Yes," Kate nodded. "I'm just curious, do you still go? I mean, I know you went with your ex, but…" She let her voice trail off, desperate for his answer, but kicking herself for even asking the question. What happened at those parties was none of her business, especially since Rick had told her the other day that he was clean.
Rick sighed and turned to face her. He tucked a lock of hair behind her ear and leaned forward to press a kiss to her mouth. "No," he whispered, his lips brushing over hers. "That was always her scene more than mine," he continued. "I went along with it because I thought it would help us stay together. Obviously I was wrong. Don't get me wrong, they were a lot of fun," he added with a smirk. "But no, I'm a serial monogamist. When I'm with someone, they're the only one."
"I'm the same way," Kate said, feeling relief wash over her. "One night stands aren't my thing."
She wasn't sure why it was a relief that Rick didn't sleep around. He had that reputation, but that was apparently the persona adopted for the public. If women - and plenty of men - thought they might have a chance with him, they'd buy more of his books, and attend more events. It made sense from a business standpoint, and obviously it had served him well. But a small part of her had been jealous at the thought of an unknown number of women being intimately familiar with his body.
She trailed her hand down his arm, tangled her fingers with his when she found his hand. "So, uh," she started, then took a deep breath and met his inquisitive gaze with her hopeful one. "What does that mean for us? For this?"
Rick squeezed her hand. "It means that, as long as we're together, we're exclusive." He lifted their joined hands and brushed his lips against her knuckles. "And I'm willing to do whatever you'd like."
"Whatever I'd like?" she teased, her eyebrows lifting.
Rick smirked and narrowed his eyes. "Oh yeah," he almost growled. "Anything."
She shifted closer and hooked her ankle around his. "Why, Mr. Castle," she purred, feeling her whole body flush at the way his eyes darkened. Oh, he liked hearing that. She tucked it away for another time. "Are you saying that I can explore my kinks with you?" His cock stirred against her thigh, and she tugged her hand from his, curled it around him, stroked him to life.
He rolled his hips, slow thrusts into her hand. "I meant if you want me to get tested again, or what protection we should use," he clarified in a low voice. He let out a strangled groan when she gave him a gentle squeeze at the base of his cock. "But yes. Fantasies, kinks, whatever you want. God, Kate," he groaned, "you're such a fucking tease."
She chuckled and resumed her strokes, quickened her pace as he continued to thrust, as his breath quickened and his eyes fell shut. He reached out and gripped her waist, his fingers digging into her skin as his breath stuttered and he jerked, spilled his release between them.
As his breathing slowed and he seemed to doze off Kate snuck to the bathroom to grab a washcloth, dampened it with warm water. Bringing him to orgasm, as he had with her so many times over the previous few days, certainly got her worked up, as she felt the familiar tugs of arousal between her legs. But she ignored it, since she needed to return to work early the next morning if she had any chance of catching up on what she'd missed. And another sex filled all-nighter wouldn't help.
Rick pulled her into his side after she cleaned off the evidence of his pleasure and tossed the washcloth in the hamper. He gripped her hip and held her close, and she snuggled into his side and fell asleep.
"Oh, Ka-ate."
She looked up from her computer at the sing-song call of her friend's voice, blinked away the shadows of the deposition she was reviewing. "What's that?" she asked, pointing at the large flower bouquet that Lanie held.
Lanie shoved aside a pile of folders and sat the vase on the corner of the small desk. "To Kate," she read, plucking the card from the middle, "I can't wait for this weekend. R." She propped her hands on her hips. "Who's R?"
Kate's whole body flushed as the memories of the previous three days came flooding back. She and Rick had parted that morning with a lingering kiss and promises for more. As much as she wanted to stay wrapped in the cocoon of pleasure that she and Rick had created, the pile of work that greeted her upon her return to the firm reminded her that she did, in fact, have a demanding job.
She shrugged and leaned back in her chair. "No one," she lied, hoping Lanie would let it go.
She should have known better.
"Bullshit." Lanie propped her hip on the edge of the desk. "You call out sick, something I've never seen you do, not even when you have cramps so bad you can barely move. You come in this morning oozing that 'just got laid' look." She pointed an accusatory finger in Kate's face. "So, three things. What happened to Chris, who's R, and did you really play hooky just to get laid?"
Kate opened her mouth to respond, but before she could, her computer pinged with a meeting reminder. She dismissed it and grabbed a client folder, a fresh legal pad and pen, and pushed back from her desk. "I gotta go, Lanie," she said, grinning at Lanie's frustrated groan. She shrugged. "Don't blame me, I didn't schedule this deposition."
She expected Lanie to corner her at the end of the day, so when she heard her friend's familiar steps approach a little after seven, she saved what she was working on and shut down her computer. She should stay later and try to catch up more, but she knew that Lanie wouldn't let her, so she shoved her laptop in her bag to take home.
"You're buying," Lanie announced, hoisting her bag high on her shoulder. "It's your punishment for holding out on me."
Kate chuckled as they headed towards the elevator. Although they never shared details, they both knew that Kate was much more comfortable financially than her friend. As a result, she often paid when the two of them went out, so she would have even if Lanie hadn't demanded it.
"What do you want to know first?" Kate asked when they slid into their regular booth at their favorite Mexican restaurant.
Lanie slid the bowl of chips close to her and dipped one in the provided salsa. She didn't answer right away, simply chewed and contemplated, and grabbed another chip after swallowing. "Chris," she finally answered. "When we hung out a couple weeks ago, you two looked happy. What happened?"
Kate's shoulders stiffened at the mention of her ex. She hadn't told Lanie about her and Chris's brief foray into swinging and group sex, and she didn't plan to, so she gave her the sanitized version. "He was cheating on me."
Lanie swore under her breath. "Bastard. I hope you cut his dick off."
Kate snorted and reached for the margarita placed in front of her. "Not exactly," she chuckled, "but I did kick him out. And I bought new sheets and stuff, too. He is out of my life." When Lanie just raised her eyebrows and took a long drink, she leaned forward and put her elbows on the table. "What's that look for?"
Lanie shrugged and tried to look innocent, but Kate knew her too well. "Nothing," she lied. "Just glad you didn't put up with that shit is all."
Kate leveled her gaze at her friend, but when Lanie didn't elaborate, she continued. "To answer your next question, R is someone I met recently, and we spent a few days together."
Before she could fend off another interrogation their food arrived, and they ate in silence and ordered more margaritas. Judging by the looks Lanie kept giving her she had more questions, but Kate didn't offer anything more. She knew Lanie would press for details when she couldn't stand the wait.
"So," Lanie began as they started on their margarita refills, "what are you not telling me?"
Kate shrugged, trying to look innocent. "Nothing." When Lanie just threw her hands in the air and groaned in exasperation, she laughed. "Okay, fine. I will tell you that R stands for Rick. But I don't kiss and tell, you know that," she teased, trailing her finger along the margarita glass.
She drew her bottom lip between her teeth as her mind wandered to that very morning, when Rick had woken her early with his head between her legs. She'd returned the favor in the shower, with the water at her back and his fingers tangled in her hair.
"Excuse me."
Lanie's voice tore her from the memory, and Kate cleared her throat, gave her friend what she hoped was an apologetic look. "Sorry."
Lanie raised her eyebrows. "You were thinking about him, weren't you?" She leaned forward again, a smirk on her face. "I know you don't kiss and tell, but you gotta give me something. You skipped work to get laid. Don't argue," she continued, interrupting Kate, "I can tell when you're lying. He must have a magic dick to get you to miss work. Is it naturally ribbed for your pleasure or something?" When Kate almost choked on her drink, Lanie shrugged. "Look, if you won't say anything, I'll just make shit up."
Kate shook her head, but smiled. Sure, Lanie could be a little much. But it would feel good to talk to her. "He's not naturally ribbed for pleasure, no," she teased, leaning forward so she could lower her voice. The restaurant wasn't busy at that late hour, but she still didn't want to be overheard. "But he knows how to use it." She paused. "Well, and other body parts. Like, you know."
Lanie propped her chin on her closed fist and grinned. "Like…"
Kate felt her face flush. "Let's just say I was not lacking in orgasms," she admitted.
"You did spend the last three days having sex!" Lanie almost squealed, leaning forward when Kate shushed her. She shook her head, a wide grin creeping on her face. "Goddammit, I'm so jealous. Okay, so where did you meet him, and does he have equally talented friends?"
Kate chuckled. "He's the acquaintance of a friend of Chris's," she explained, settling on the easiest, but most sanitized, version. "We exchanged numbers, not for any nefarious purpose since we were both in relationships when we met," she added when Lanie's eyebrows shot up to her hairline. "He recently got out of his relationship, I called him up after I dumped Chris, stuff happened."
"So he's your rebound guy?"
"I guess," Kate admitted after a brief hesitation. "But, uh, I wanna keep him around as long as possible." She glanced around to make sure no one was within earshot. "He's too good, you know?"
"So what the hell are you doing here with me?" Lanie waved her hand for the bill, and Kate grabbed it to pay. "You should be riding that dick every chance you get."
Kate's entire face went hot at Lanie's words, and she gave her credit card to the waitress when she came back. "If friction burns weren't a thing, I would," she muttered, clenching her thighs together. Rick had even suggested that she stay with him that week, so she wouldn't have to commute into Manhattan, but she knew the temptation would be too great to just fuck until she couldn't walk.
A few days apart would do them good, she'd convinced herself. Hell, considering she felt a keen sense of loss just knowing she wouldn't see him until the next weekend, it would probably make their coupling that much more intense.
"I'm-oh fuck!" Rick cried out as he pulsed inside her, gripping her hips, holding her against him as he pulsed inside her.
Kate trembled as she came down from her own high, squeezing him, pushing her ass back into the cradle of his hips to prolong her pleasure as much as possible.
She'd been right, she realized as Rick pulled out, pressing a soft kiss on her spine before collapsing at her side. Although they hadn't seen each other all week, they'd been in constant communication via text, and their messages had become increasingly more dirty as the week went on. They'd even tried to FaceTime, but she'd worked late every night and gone to bed as soon as she'd gotten home, and they were never able to connect. So, by the time she showed up at his door on Friday night, they'd both been so riled up, he'd bent her over the couch and had both of them gasping within minutes.
"Thank you for wearing a skirt," Rick muttered, his hand sliding under it and squeezing her ass.
Kate chuckled and, hoping that her legs would support her, pushed herself off the couch and stood. "I was afraid you'd just tear off my pants." She motioned towards the ruined scrap of fabric that had been her underwear. "I was probably right, considering."
Rick lifted his head and looked in that general direction. "What can I say? I really, really missed you."
Kate glanced at him over her shoulder as she retrieved her overnight bag from the door. They hadn't discussed how long she would stay, but she was prepared to go straight to work from his place on Monday.
She could feel Rick's eyes on her as she passed through the living room to his bedroom, so she added an extra shimmy to her hips, grinned at the groan that followed her. "Hey, have you had dinner yet?" she called out, dropping her bag by the side of the bed she'd previously occupied. She heard his footsteps behind her and she grinned, felt the cool air against her skin when he lifted her skirt.
His palms slid along her ass, cupping her, and she shivered at the touch, could imagine the sly grin that was probably on his face at her reaction. They'd both found release just a few minutes before, but already she was tingling, anticipating his cock, or his fingers, or-
She gasped when he nudged her feet apart, and he gave her a tug that was just hard enough that she fell forward onto the bed. She expected to feel his mouth between her legs, so when he suddenly broke contact with her skin she swore.
The mattress dipped beside her, and she turned her head to the other side to see him naked and lying on his back, his cock standing proud. He curled his fingers around the base, grinning when she stared at him, but when she licked her lips and moved towards it he put a hand on her arm to stop her.
"Come up here," he instructed, giving her a light tug.
She glanced at his erection. "You don't want me to-"
"Later," he interrupted. He propped himself on his elbows, his dark gaze boring into her. "Right now I want to taste you. And I don't want you to think about anything other than riding my face."
Her whole body went hot at his words and she felt a new flood of arousal coat her upper thighs, and she stood on unsteady legs, hooked her thumbs in her skirt.
"Keep it on." Rick quirked an eyebrow. "But feel free to take off your shirt if necessary."
Her pulse quickened as she drew her shirt over her head and dropped it to the floor, managed to climb onto the bed without falling over. She straddled his lap and gripped his cock, rubbing it through her folds, coating it with her arousal, grinning when he moaned. His hands curled around her thighs and he squeezed, encouraging her to move up his body.
She hiked up her skirt as she hovered over his face, used every one of her thigh muscles to slowly lower herself. When she felt his tongue on her she gasped, her hands dropping her skirt, falling forward to brace her palms on the bed. He gripped her thighs, his strong hands holding her still as he ravaged her.
She cried out when his lips found her clit and he sucked, one hand shifting so his fingers slicked through her folds. Her hips rolled, her thighs trembling as she hovered at the edge, until his fingers and mouth were too much and overwhelmed her, sending her soaring, her hand finding his head, holding him still as she shattered on top of him.
Her arms gave out and she collapsed onto her elbows, tried to catch her breath as he pressed his lips to her thigh, ran his tongue through her slickness. He prodded her folds and slid two fingers inside her, slow thrusts drawing out her pleasure, one orgasm rolling into another.
She vaguely registered his hand moving away from her, the sound of him stroking himself, felt the vibrations around her clit as he groaned. After a minute he gave her thigh one more gentle squeeze and he nudged her off him, and she rolled to her back, her chest still heaving.
Rick turned his head and smudged a kiss to her knee before pushing himself off the bed. She didn't move until he returned, and even then, only managed to crawl under the covers and curl her arms under her pillow. The busy week, not to mention the very satisfying orgasms, finally caught up to her.
Before Rick even gathered her in his arms, she had drifted off to sleep.
She woke to sunlight streaming directly in her eyes, and she squinted, blinking against the bright light, furrowing her brows in confusion. The sun shouldn't have been shining through her window that time of year, but as she rolled to her side and smelled the distinct scent of freshly brewed coffee, she smiled.
"Morning," came a low, gravelly voice from the end of the bed. "Coffee?"
Kate lifted her gaze and smiled, sat up and reached out her hand as Rick approached her. "Hi." She took the coffee from his hand and inhaled, breathing in the rich aroma of the beans, the subtle hint of vanilla. She looked up at him through her lashes as she took a satisfying sip. "You know my coffee preference already?"
Rick smirked. "I'm a writer," he pointed out. "I pay attention to details."
She took another sip and hummed with pleasure. "It's been, what, a week?" she asked, shifting over so he could sit by her hip. He rested his hand on her knee and leaned close, brushed his mouth against hers.
"I've watched you come more times than I can count," he rumbled, "but it's weird to know you like vanilla in your coffee?"
It was her turn to shrug. "Maybe," she teased, covering his hand with hers. She fell silent as she drank her coffee, aware that Rick kept his gaze on her, almost studying her. It was a little awkward, drinking with an audience, but it tasted so good she didn't even care.
He cleared his throat as she took the last sip, and she set the mug on the bedside table. "Hey," he started, "um, can we talk?"
Kate squared her shoulders, prepared herself for the worst. "That usually precedes something bad." When Rick widened his eyes in shock, she gave his hand an encouraging squeeze. "What do you want to talk about?"
"I know we both had recently failed relationships, and this started as a rebound thing, at least for me," he added. "But the thing is, I don't want that anymore. I like you, Kate." He smirked and flipped his hand, squeezed her fingers with his. "I don't go linen shopping with just anyone," he teased. "I like spending time with you, and I'd love to get to know you better."
Kate looked down at their joined hands and laced her fingers through his. "I feel the same way," she admitted in a quiet voice. She lifted her gaze back up to his and smiled. "Are you asking me to be your girlfriend?" she teased.
Rick chuckled. "Yes, I guess I am. Sorry I don't have a class ring to give you."
"Well, seeing as how it's not 1956, I think I'll be okay without one," she shot back with a smirk. She lifted her free hand to his cheek, lightly scratched his day-old scruff. "I know what's in the tabloids, but I want to know the real you."
"Yeah?" Rick's face lit up with a smile, but when he began to lean forward he paused. "It's not too soon after your breakup?"
Kate shook her head. "Not at all."
"Good." Rick leaned forward again, and their lips met, his tongue accepting the invitation of her open mouth. He shifted so he was hovering over her, and he curled his hands around her shoulders, nudged her down to the bed.