"So I was thinking-" Richard Castle began, quickly cut off by his female companion on their way from the latter's car to her apartment.
"That's a dangerous pastime," she interjected playfully. "I knew it wasn't right for a man to write. Soon he starts getting ideas and thinking…" Ticking the items off on her fingers, she trailed her thoughts into nothingness, waiting for a clever retort. Castle simply rolled his eyes.
"Thanks, Lefou. May I finish?"
"Be my guest," she offered, extending her hand as an invitation.
"I was thinking," he continued, his voice a mixture of annoyance and amusement, "that since we are only having one drink tonight, it shouldn't count as the real date." Kate sighed.
"Why am I not surprised?" she asked, rolling her eyes and shaking her head as she began to pick up her pace toward her apartment building.
"Because great minds think alike. Anyway," he muttered as he jogged forward to catch up, "we should just call this the pre-date and then-"
Kate heard the debacle before she saw it and spun on her heel immediately. A deep, rumbling laugh erupted from Beckett's chest at the sight before her. Richard Castle had been soaked, seemingly head-to-toe, by an enormous puddle splash caused by a passing semi truck. She had luckily been far enough ahead of Castle at the time and escaped the incident completely dry.
"Good thing my dress was in a garment bag," she muttered, pointing to the slender object hanging over his arm. Katherine couldn't help the enormous smile that played upon her face.
"I like that you care so much for my wellbeing that your first concern is for your dress. My tux may be ruined, if you were wondering." Richard's tone was all fun and games, even if his words sounded petty and spiteful.
"I'm sure you have another," Kate offered. "Besides, you have enough concern for the both of us, I'm sure."
"Ouch, Kate. You wound me." Feigning pain, Castle attempted to juggle the objects in his arms and wring water from the edge of his jacket.
Instead of responding, Kate simply flashed Rick one last smile before turning on her heel and entering her apartment building, her eyes rolling at him of their own accord.
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Dropping her keys on a small table, Beckett entered her apartment. "What can I get you?" she asked of Castle as he closed the door behind him, careful not to drip mucky water onto her rug.
"Oh nothing, thank you." Castle removed his jacket and then looked around the room quizzically, unsure of where he should place it within the pristine living space. Kate stopped dead in her tracks, pirouetting to face Rick.
"You're kidding me, right?" Her eyes flashed in irritation as she took in the pitiful sight of the man before her. Noticing the bar counter to his left, Castle quickly draped his jacket across it.
"Nope," he told her, quickly making his way into the kitchen itself. "I don't want you to lift a finger. Relax, please. I will get us some wine if you have it." Castle turned and raised his hands as if to demonstrate that he was ready for anything.
"Castle, I'm perfectly capable-" Kate began, only to be cut off by Richard as he leaned his body across the bar in front of him.
"I know you are, Katherine. I never said you weren't. I simply suggested that since you were so adamant about getting home tonight, I allow you to relax while I prepare the drinks that I insisted on having. Doesn't that sound fair to you?" Katherine closed her eyes and attempted to rub the annoyance out of them before responding.
"Sure. Fine. Whatever. I'm going to change then, if that's alright with you." Looking at the man in front of her, Kate couldn't help but wonder how he could still look so ruggedly handsome after being splashed by a passing truck. His hair was tussled from the numerous times he had run his fingers through it in an attempt to remove any excess water. His wet shirt clung to his chest and she found herself wondering what it would be like to peel it away for him.
"Well personally," Richard retorted, pulling her from daydreams. "I like you just as you are and don't think you should change yourself for anyone," a small smile played at the corner of his lips as he continued, "but if you feel so inclined, go right ahead. Just don't go blonde." Castle rose his eyebrow playfully, waiting for Beckett's retort.
"I was referring to clothing, Castle, and I haven't been blonde since I was ten and don't feel like returning to that." Kate chewed her lower lip, mentally chastising herself for revealing yet another piece of personal information – one that the author before her would no doubt latch on to.
"Wait," he exclaimed, eyes wide, "you used to be blonde?" Castle braced his hands on either side of himself on the counter before raising his body to take in her gaze. She rolled her eyes dramatically, wholly for his benefit.
"Yes, Castle, a lot of people had blonde hair as children." Castle stopped for a moment, seeming to think about her comment before responding.
"I didn't," he told her in a very matter-of-fact tone. Kate nearly laughed then and had a great deal of trouble holding it in.
"Well aren't you special?"
"Can I see?" As Richard said this, he sidestepped around the counter and moved forward to where she was standing, leaning toward her intently. Kate pulled her upper body quickly backward, a look of bewilderment etched on her face.
"I'm not blonde anymore." Beckett chewed lightly on her lip as she took a lock of hair between her fingertips. Castle laughed out loud and stepped closer to Beckett once more.
"Really? I had no idea!" Chuckling again, he reached out to take a tress of her locks into his own fingers, reveling in its velvety texture. "No, Katie," he murmured, "I was referring to pictures of your youth. Do you have any?" Kate's breath caught in her throat as Richard's played across her features.
"Yes," she whispered as soon as her breath found her once more, "but you will never see them." Somehow discovering her resolve, Beckett released her hair and used the newly empty hand to push Castle away by the chest.
"Sure. Fine. Whatever." As Castle rolled his eyes, he attempted the hide the smirk that made its way to the corners of his lips, but failed. He quickly turned and walked away toward the kitchen, leaving Beckett standing in her living room, utterly perplexed. "Red or white?"
"White please. There's a bottle chilling on the door of the fridge." Pulling her lower lip between her teeth, Katherine spun toward the small apartment's only hallway and headed for her bedroom. Lazily swinging the door closed behind her as she made a beeline for her bureau, Kate failed to notice it bounce slightly open once more, leaking much more than a sliver of light into the dark hallway.
"Where would I find a corkscrew?" Richard's muffled question wafted down the apartment to where Beckett stood before her bed, pulling clothes quickly from her slender frame and dropping them to the floor.
"Top drawer to the left of the sink," she called back to him as she pulled a pair of Soffee shorts up her legs.
"Ah, perfect," she could hear him indistinctly mumble as he clamored around her kitchen. Hearing his footsteps echo down the hallway, she quickly donned a t-shirt from her college crew days. The shirt mentioned an invitational regatta on the Schuylkill River and Kate couldn't help but smile in remembrance of her time spent at Temple University. The good days, when she still rowed, when her family was still functional, when she was truly happy with her life. "Here you are det-" Castle began as he pushed her bedroom door fully ajar with his arm, careful not to spill any of the freshly poured wine in his hands. "Sorry."
"For what?" Kate was obviously perplexed by Rick's apology, not understanding what he could have done wrong enough to feel the need to apologize. This thought led Kate to another: the fact that 'I'm sorry' means the same as 'I apologize' – unless you are at a funeral. She couldn't help but laugh at the senseless humor, which seemed to, in turn, mystify the man before her.
"Intruding," he clarified, gesturing toward her with a wine glass. She quickly took it from him and brought it to her lip.
"Castle, I'm fully dressed," she informed him before taking a larger drink than would be necessary were her wine of higher quality.
"I wouldn't be so sure," Rick snickered, his eyes lingering over the large expanse of bare leg before him. His eyebrows rose in a mocking manner. He was obviously not disgusted by the sight.
"Shut it, Castle," Kate warned, taking a gentle swipe at his head with her free hand. "I haven't done laundry in a while, okay? This is what I've got left," she informed him, gesturing up and down her body. "Running after murderers really sucks up a lot of my time." A shit-eating grin appeared on Richard's face and Katherine knew that whatever comment he had in store for her would not be the most tasteful.
"You know, if you would prefer, we could both just get naked, then you wouldn't have to sully anything else." At the raise of her eyebrow and the scowl on her face, Rick sensed the need to add something. "I'm just thinking of you here." Kate scoffed.
"Of course you are. Thanks, Ricky, but I'm fine in this. Would you like to change?" Beckett crossed her arms and took another large 'sip' from the glass in her hand, waiting for his response.
"Into what?" he asked, glancing hurriedly around the small room.
"Oh," she chuckled, "I was referring to your personality." This time it was Castle who rolled his eyes.
"Haha, you're so funny. Have your parent's tried boiling you?" Downing the remainder of his wine in one large gulp, Castle placed his empty glass on the top of the bureau before him.
"What on earth have you been reading?" Following Richard's lead, Beckett too tossed back her wine and placed her glass next to his, leaning against the large piece of furniture, careful not to jar the jewelry box which housed her mother's ring and her father's watch. When she was home, she was safe. She no longer needed the reminder of the life she saved and the one she couldn't. Here, she just needed to be herself, whatever that meant.
"Watching, actually, but that's not the point. Point is, I am feeling quite constricted and wet in this penguin suit and would very much like to get out of it." As if to prove his point, Castle began to remove his tie once more and loosen the collar of his once crisp, white shirt.
"Like I said, Castle," Beckett replied, pulling the black tie from his grasp, "It's laundry day, so sorry, but I have nothing to offer you."
"How do you feel about boxers?" Katherine laughed, crossed one arm over her torso and braced the elbow of the other atop it, gesturing with the tie she had just stolen from him.
"Trying to raise your sperm count?" she wondered aloud, her own version of a shit-eating grin plastered on her face.
"Nope, one child is enough at the moment. What I meant was," he enunciated, reaching forward to grab his tie back, "would it upset you if I just took the tux off?"
"As long as you keep something one, it's fine by me. I don't want to see your little friend tonight." Kate replied promptly, possibly too rapidly to formulate any full thoughts about the matter, throwing all caution to the wind.
"Okay," he declared, clearly happy to have gotten his way, "we can just save that for later." With a quick wink, Castle began to remove his clothes, starting with the almost see-through white shirt, his eyes never leaving Beckett's.
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End of Chapter Notes:
That's all for now folks. Tune in next time to see what happens with our lovely duo. Right now I am sitting with the puppy on my lap, knowing full well that it is after midnight and that I need to get up in the morning to 'work', that the internet is down so I have no way to post this (and I share it with the neighbors who are asleep so there is no way to fix it until tomorrow – the internet that is), but afraid to go to bed because my puppy is a traitor and I don't want the ghost who possessed me last night to come back. I feel like she has been following me all day and I don't want to go through that again. A girl needs her beauty sleep damn it! And I know what you are thinking, and no, I am not crazy, I swear. I was literally possessed last night. And don't get me wrong, I wasn't so sure I believed in this whole ghost thing before, but after last night, there is no more confusion left in my body. You know how your mother always told you to keep your feet tucked under the covers at night? Well, there is good reason for that, I tell you. I think that's how the ghosts get in. So my personal advice? Use your blankets. And wear socks too. A little extra protection can't hurt. It's worth getting overheated in order to keep your body to yourself.
PS: I went and sat out front on the sidewalk and stole someone's internet at one am just so I could post this for you. That is how much I love you all. Plus, I'm still avoiding sleep.