Needed put a little fluff up while I deal with the intensity that is How to Survive and the mess they've made there.


Waking up beside Castle was something Beckett enjoyed, even more so than she let on. There was nothing quite like waking with her face buried in the soft male scent of his t-shirt or the feel of his hand resting motionless against her back as he slept.

Since little noises often woke the detective in her, most the mornings they spent at his place or hers started out this way.

This morning on their little island was nothing different, as she heard a sea bird call flying over. Kate worked her face more fully in his chest before she sighed. She found it hard to believe they were on the same planet when she compared the vast differences from New York to the tiny piece of land. When Castle's hand twitched at her back slightly, she suspected he was probably waking as well.

Her hand trailed his chest and he hummed in response. A mix of sleep and pleasure, rolled into a soft sound that was unique to him. It was as her hand closed around his morning erection that he let a more conscious noise free.

"Morning," she whispered quietly as she tugged his shirt up and placed a kiss on the warm skin beside the hair trailing from his navel.

"Yeah," He all but croaked as her hand worked magic, bringing his body to full arousal.

"Did I wake you?" Kate asked with a hint of tease in her voice as she pulled him free from his boxers and slid lower on the bed to straddle his legs.

He meant to protest the control she'd captured, but all that came from his lips was a strangled groan when her mouth closed around him. Kate worked him gently in the most amazingly agonizing way. His hips lifted of their own accord when she slipped him deeper and he vaguely heard noises that he wasn't quite sure came from his own throat. One of her arms slipped forward, pinning softly across his hips to hold him in place.

"Sorry, sorry." He whispered as his hands fell softly to her head, scooping the fallen pieces of hair up so he could watch her slid him in and out of her mouth. She hummed her acceptance of his hips and they jerked despite her forearm. When nothing more than a string of softly spoken profanity seemed to come from his lips, he pleaded with her to stop. "Becks." He urged, pulling up at her shoulder gently.

In response, Kate rose up onto her knees. The silk of her underwear rubbing against the rough hair on his leg. His eyes lingered over her breasts and wordlessly she pulled her thin tank top over her head and sent it flying across the room. Castle grinned like an idiot, though it was short lived. She bent slowly forward and allowed the hair on his body to cause friction against her nipples in a calculated move. The feeling was impossibly erotic.

Her mouth captured him again with her mouth and drew her hand up to cup and roll his balls. His hips flew up and he begged, "You've got to stop."

Beckett's head shook ever so slightly, before she increased the pressure. Castle found himself quickly on the brink of an intense orgasm. His brain and body fought over prolonging the pleasure and just letting it go.

His body betrayed him before his mind had been willing to end things. "Kate!" he warned, an instant before his body let go.

Kate was smiling at him, smug with power, when he regained the ability to open his eyes. She retrieved a tissue from the night stand for the what remained of the mess and tossed it into the small garbage can beside the bed.

"That was not necessary. Amazing, but not necessary," Rick muttered.

"I wanted to." Kate explained, pressing a soft kiss at the side of his mouth and rolling from the soft bed.


Rick wanted to snorkel out near his little cave in the afternoon. Kate protested and suggested they take the time to explore the rocky coast on this side of the island. He's reluctantly agreed, and pouted as they headed down the path towards the boat. They brought the supply delivery off the dock and tucked it beside the path, after checking to be sure there wasn't anything immediately perishable. During this process, Castle found a small sand crab devouring one of the previous nights spilled dry peas. The tiny crab was no bigger than a silver dollar, but crunched small pieces of the freeze dried veggie off undeterred.

Castle snapped a photo of him and the meal, laughing with promise to send the photo to Alexis when they'd found phone reception.

They'd ventured along the coastline. The shore was rocky, but here and there were open stretches of sand. When they approached the second sandy clearing, Kate spotted the half buried steel ring.

"Look," she pointed.

"It's a fire pit," Rick added with awe. "We've got to build a fire."

"Tonight," she promised.

"You always say no."

"I do not. I'm just saying, think of the stars while we sit out here."

Rick smiled and pulled her over for a kiss. "We can make out like teenagers at a bonfire." She rolled her eyes, but didn't protest.

Together they scooped and removed the sand from the pit, stopping when they reached the blackened material from previous burns. They found some dried driftwood and went up into the brush and trees to collect a few dry and fallen branches. With a nice little pile of firewood for the evening, they headed back to the path from the dock to the house.

During the wood collection, Kate had spotted a banana tree. It had a surprising amount of small bananas hanging and with a little stretch upward she was able to yank a chunk free from the portion that was going ripe. They were nothing like the ones she bought in the corner markets in New York. Everything from size to the yellow tone was different, but with the promise from Vivianne, she knew they'd be good.

"I'm starving," Rick complained, while eyeing the small bunch of bananas, having not eaten a full breakfast. They'd just nibbled on snacks and leftover supplies as neither had wanted to head down to the dock for their basket.

"We'll have lunch," Kate promised as they headed back.

They made lunch together, which was oddly enjoyable thanks to the reappearance of a mini loaf of bread and the small bananas they'd found. There was a variety of fruits stuffed into the basket as well, and Kate was grateful they'd shoved the basket in the shade so nothing had mushed. Rick had laughed as they'd experimented with some round purple fruit that had been labeled as a star apple. They'd laughed over the horrible thick and rubbery skin, but enjoyed the soft inside and the beautiful little star pattern of seeds inside.

The afternoon was perfectly wasted on their quiet shore. Castle waded through the water, seeking treasures within the sand. He'd found them too. Little bits and pieces of things the sea had returned to shore. One of his finds included a piece of coral he swore looked like a garden gnome, though Kate didn't quite see it. He'd also dropped little pieces of stone and shells nearby her chair as Kate sat reading one of his other books.

Twice, Kate caught him staring off towards the section of sea that contained the little reef and cave. However the book kept her attention unless he was splashing to shore with another find.

With a glance towards shore to be sure she wasn't looking, Rick slipped a sea worn piece of green glass into the pocket of his swimming trunks. It was the perfect shade of green and the shape made him wonder how it had ever broken in such a way. There was something special about it and his mind wore circles around its possibilities.


Before dinner, Castle had transferred the little piece of glass into the pocket of his khaki shorts. It burned inside his pocket as he thought of ways to pull Marcus aside and ask for a favor.

Now, after they'd all eaten, a group of 6 sat laughing at the bar. Robert and Caroline still lacked their tans, but an older couple with heavy New Zealand accents laughed along with them. Rick placed a kiss on the warm skin at the juncture of Kate's neck and shoulder. When he wasn't batted away for the public display, he decided she was involved enough in the conversation to slip away.

He passed quietly to the end of the bar and drew Marcus over.

"I found something in the water. I want to give it to Kate."

"Oh?" Marcus asked and Castle pulled the glass from his pocket. The other man took it with reverence and turned the tiny piece in his palm. "A heart."

Indeed, the shape resembled a heart. It was stretched thin and curved and the pointed tip curved down into what must have been the bottom edge of a bottle. It was a far cry from juvenile, looking as if someone had crafted purposefully. The curve was shockingly feminine, yet strong to have survived the beating by sand, tides and storms to smooth its bite. A truly amazing feat produced by the sea.

"I want a hole here," Rick explained, "And for it to be on a long chain. Can you bring it in somewhere?"

"I'm to bring those two back in two days," Marcus provided, indicating towards the pair from New Zealand. "I know someone who will do it justice."

"Thanks." Castle slipped a few bills his way, before walking away with a simple, "Tell me if you need more."

Kate had watched the interaction, not sure what it was they hid between them, but it made her smile that Castle tried so hard to keep it secret.