AU: 7x07 (Once Upon a Time in the West) happens season 4. I know, it seems SUPER random and out of character (especially Beckett) but my brain would. not. let. it. go.
"Life is a series of natural and spontaneous changes. Don't resist them - that only creates sorrow. Let reality be reality. Let things flow naturally forward in whatever way they like." - Lao Tau
Let Reality Be Reality
Part Two
Castle tensed the next night when Beckett slid into bed behind him. They hadn't said a word about what had transpired the night before, only speaking about the case when around others and sitting in uncomfortable silence when alone.
He tried to keep his breathing steady and pretend he was asleep, but when he felt Beckett's hand on his waist he grabbed it. "Kate, what-"
"Shut up, Castle," she said quietly, her breath hot against his neck. She wrenched her hand from his and pushed it under his boxers, wrapping her fingers around his already hard length. She smiled. "Got a head start, cowboy?"
Castle groaned. He'd managed to be civil all day despite her parading herself in a skin-tight, all black outfit, but as soon as they'd retired for the night he couldn't get his mind off of how she looked. And now, with her hand stroking him, he wasn't sure how long he'd last.
This could be over embarrassingly fast.
No way. He didn't know what this was, what had possessed Kate these past couple nights. But he'd be damned if this would be a one, well, two-time thing. Castle gripped her wrist, stilling his hips and her strokes and turning around to face her. He kept her wrist in one hand and leaned up on his elbow so he was looking down on her. "What are we doing, Kate?"
Beckett stared at him in the moonlight, his hair mussed. She wanted to run her fingers through it, caress his cheeks and feel the day-old stubble against her skin. She wanted to love him like he loved her, wanted to gaze in his eyes every morning for the rest of her life. Finally she felt the wall around her heart crumble.
Maybe gone forever.
"I don't know," she finally managed to choke out around the lump in her throat. Where did that come from? She cleared her throat. "I don't know what this is. I just know that I want you." She curled her free hand at the nape of his neck and tugged, her lips meeting his in a slow kiss that she quickly deepened.
He moaned as her tongue met his; this was literally a dream come true, Beckett kissing him of her own volition. Not an undercover kiss, okay he knew technically they were undercover right now, but this kiss wasn't under that guise. This kiss was very real.
She tugged her wrist from his grasp and threaded both hands through his hair and down the wide expanse of his back, pulling him on top of her.
Castle settled between her legs, his hips nestled perfectly at hers, and covered her moan as his hardness came into contact with her core, separated only by thin layers of cotton. He wanted desperately to be naked, skin on skin, and Beckett seemed to have the same idea when she gripped the hem of his shirt. He broke their kiss, trying to catch his breath. "Kate-" he groaned. "Wait-"
Her hands made their way back under his boxers and she cupped his ass, rolling her hips up to meet his. "No waiting, Rick," she panted into his ear.
"I don't – God, Kate, stop – I don't have anything," he finally managed to get out, pulling away, resting his weight on his hands.
Kate opened her eyes, dark with arousal, a mischievous glint in her eye. "Open the drawer," she commanded, nodding her head towards the nightstand.
Castle did to find a box of condoms. He gave her a look. "Did you bring these along?"
"No." Kate worried her bottom lip with her teeth. "I bought them today." She leaned up and gave him a chaste kiss. "I want this. I want you."
Castle sat up with her as she took the box from his hands and opened it. As she reached for his boxers, though, he placed his hands over hers. "Kate, I need you to know – if we do this, I can't go back. To before. If you're not sure, if any part of you doubts, we can't. It might kill me, but I'll leave this bed and pretend like nothing happened if that's what you want."
"No." Kate shook her head. She pulled his shirt over his head and threw it to the floor, followed with hers. "No going back. I want you. I love you, Rick. I love you."
She repeated herself even as he kissed her again, swallowing her words as he lay her back down. He trailed his lips down her throat, pausing at the spot below her ear that he'd discovered the night before, making her moan and thrust her hips towards his. He chuckled against her skin when she gripped the waistband of his boxers and tried to push them off.
"Do you want something?"
Beckett swore and tugged his ear, forcing him to look at her. "Take them off, Castle."
Castle grinned and moved his way down past her throat to her chest and stopped when he reached her scar. He shifted to one elbow and traced over the puckered skin with a finger, then dusted a light kiss over it. He moved his attention to her breasts then, lavishing one completely before moving to the other. Kate whimpered when he trailed his hand down her stomach to sneak under her shorts, and he started when all he felt was her heat.
Castle sat up between her legs, started. "Why, Detective, you seem to have forgotten your underwear."
"Castle. Shorts. Off."
He slid hers off slowly before standing up and finally – finally - taking his off. Beckett sat up, her eyes glued to his erection, and she reached out to stroke him with a tentative hand. He groaned and closed his eyes, leaning into her touch as she explored, but he stopped her before she went too far. "Kate – I need-"
Beckett rolled the condom over him and he nestled himself between her legs once more, an experimental finger telling him she was more than ready. They both moaned when he slid inside, him putting more weight than normal on his forearms so he didn't crush her.
"You okay?"
"Yes. Just move, Castle."
Her voice was little more than a whisper and he moved inside her, slowly at first, letting her get used to him. He moved faster when she grabbed his ass and tilted her hips, allowing him to change their angle and go in deeper. They moved together, hips in perfect harmony, lips and tongues clashing as they brought each other closer to release.
"Castle – I'm close – are you-" Kate panted in his ear, his face buried in her neck. Her eyes slammed shut and she threw her head back in the pillow, unable to suppress the cry when he reached between them to rub his thumb against her.
Castle looked up at her cry, smiled at the look of pure bliss on her face as she came around him. He slowed his hips to let her recover, even though he was almost there himself. She finally caught her breath and opened her eyes, the flush on her cheeks deepening when she saw his intense gaze.
He brushed her hair out of her face so he could look in her eyes. "I love you, Kate."
Kate locked her ankles around his thighs and kissed him, moving her hips as she did so, making him groan. "I love you too, Rick. Always." She caressed his cheek as he moved in her again, quickly setting the pace. She moaned when he tucked his arms under her thighs, lifting her knees towards her chest, opening her more for him. "Yes – Castle – there-"
"Fuck, Kate."
Their words were lost to grunts and groans as he thrust inside her, rhythmic movements soon giving way to jerks and shudders and he stilled first, his release coming a split second before hers.
He had enough presence of mind to roll to the side so he didn't crush her when he collapsed, his full weight landing on the mattress. Kate curled against his side, one hand tracing circles over his heart. She was fairly certain she could stay like this forever.
Castle took her hand in his and raised it to his lips, brushing them against her knuckles. "Be right back," he muttered into her skin, and retreated to the restroom.
He was gone mere moments, but by the time he climbed back into bed, Kate was on her stomach, head half on her pillow and half on his, fast asleep. Castle chuckled and simply lay on his side, facing her, brushing his fingers along her hairline and the slope of her ear. He finally settled his arm around her waist and pulled her close, and the two of them slept soundly, wrapped in each other's arms.