Chapter 6:

Oops, Look What Happened!

If this happened in an old movie, or even in a different time period, I'd be swooning right now, because that's just what ladies do, Kate thought, because this is far too intimate. We're partners. Friends. What's happening? Why am I not resisting him?

Castle sensed her change in mood, so he continued to press her. Gathering courage, he pulled her even closer, as if it were even possible. He watched her eyes turn a darker shade of green as he did so, and noticed the slight change in her breathing. Slowly, he ground himself against her, watching her fight her body's natural reaction to his attentions.

Slowly, he leaned toward her, licking his lips. His intent perfectly clear to her, she swallowed harshly. Although she knew that any sort of intimacy between them would ultimately change everything, she wasn't sure she could gather the strength to push him away if she tried.

Oh God, she thought. He's going to kiss me.

Her eyes fluttered shut, and she turned her head away at the last possible second so his kiss landed on her cheek. That didn't seem to deter him too much though, for he quickly moved on to her neck, alternating between suckling and nibbling gently, leaving a trail of fire as he did so. She tilted her head to the side, ultimately giving him better access. She wanted so badly to give in to what they both wanted, to grab handfuls of his thick hair and press his lips to hers. She knew now that she was being seduced, and wished she had the courage to explore that. Before she realized it, he was back on his lazy journey to her lips, but again she shifted her head away from him.

Frustrated, he groaned and gently moved to her earlobe, taking it between his teeth and gently nibbling, soothing it afterwards with his tongue. Kate was aware of his hot breath fanning her ear and the side of her face.

"Why won't you let me kiss you?" he asked, trying to keep the frustration from his arousal out of his voice as much as possible.

Her eyes snapped open then, but she purposefully avoided eye contact, knowing that if she looked at him, her resolve would crumble. As much as she wanted him, she wanted something more than just sex. She felt that she had had enough of that in her lifetime. As much as she knew Castle would be more than happy to do whatever she wanted, she still couldn't figure out what exactly was stopping her.

She gently put a shaky hand on his chest, pushing so that there was some semblance of space between them. She needed space to be able to formulate a proper, coherent response.

Finding her voice, she finally answered him. "I can't. It's too intimate."

Castle jerked away from her then, as if she had slapped him. Her words surprised him, but he realized that he should have seen that coming. However, what she had said still stung. She had allowed him to touch her, kiss her neck…and she hadn't stopped him. How was any of that any less intimate? A wave of irrational anger and sexual frustration swept through him, and he grit his teeth against it.

"Too intimate? What the hell, Kate? If it were too intimate, you wouldn't have enjoyed it. Tell me you didn't, and I'll call you a liar. I know exactly what you were feeling."

""You think I don't know that I was enjoying every bit of that?" she challenged, still not wanting to meet his eyes. "I know I did. But it can't happen."

"Why not?"

She bit her lip in frustration. Castle watched that single movement, wanting nothing more than to take that cherry red lip between his own and soothe it with his own lips and tongue. He willed himself to refrain from doing so, because he knew that's not what she wanted. He'd probably end up on the floor if he tried.

"Because we're friends. Partners. If we were to start something, my judgment would automatically be compromised. I could lose my job, and you would have to leave. It would never work. Do you honestly think that I would risk what we have right now just so we could have a little fling?"

"You don't know that for sure unless you tried. Obviously you're too chicken. Let me tell you how the story would go if you let it…we'd go to work like always, keeping a low profile so you can keep your dignity. At night, I'd treat you like the queen you are. I'd make you dinner every night, rub your feet after a long day of running around in those high heeled shoes of yours. I'd worship every inch of you, mind, soul and body…with my own. The best part? You'd let me, because you'd be enjoying every minute of it."

"That's why it's just a fantasy, and nothing more, Castle. What happens if I let my guard down for a second on a case and you end up getting hurt because of it? Remember Rathbourne? You can't tell me that it won't ever happen again. I know for a fact that my emotions would be clouded because I'd be so focused on you, and not him. I need to be able to focus. And I can't do it with you looking at me like that."

"Like what? This is how I've always looked at you."

"You're full of shit."

"Such language, Detective! A lady would never say such things!" Castle exclaimed in mock horror.

"Lucky for you, I'm not quite a lady. Now, if you'll excuse me, I have to get home. We have another long day ahead of us."

It was then that Castle chose to advance on her, slamming her almost roughly against the door. He grabbed each wrist, kissing the pulse on each of them before pinning them above her head. Kate struggled weakly against him, trapped like a caged animal. Castle took a moment to relish in their position, feeling her pulse race faster with each passing second underneath her creamy skin.

"Castle," Kate warned, voice sounding strange. "Back off."

"You have something of mine, Kate. I want it back."

"What?"

"My sanity. All I can think about at night is doing this!"

Before she could protest, his mouth was crashing down on hers, effectively erasing any argument she might have come up with. When she finally reacted, she struggled weakly against him, trying hard not to give in to him. However, her body soon became a traitor, and her mouth opened on a moan. Castle's tongue immediately entered her mouth, beginning a dance with her own. She tasted like the sweetest of forbidden fruits to him, and he couldn't get enough. Their kisses quickly grew from hungry to purely animalistic in seconds, as if they both wanted nothing more than to devour the other.

Picking her up while still pressing her back to the door, Castle parted her thighs so that he could situate himself between them. His erection went from half-mast to fully engorged in seconds, and he pressed himself against her core in order to try to alleviate the pressure.

When Castle picked her up, Kate had no choice but to wrap her legs around his waist in order to keep herself from crashing to the floor. Castle had completely ignored her wishes for them to stay platonic, and they were quickly headed for a purely animalistic fuck against the door. It occurred to her then that she really didn't care what happened between them. It felt so good to be touched this way, and she hadn't been touched with such intent in ages. He knew just how to touch her to get her whole body humming for him.

A soft cry ripped from her throat then, as Castle hit a particularly sweet spot. It seemed that she was vibrating for real now.

Wait…vibrating? Her foggy mind registered, causing her to struggle anew. She broke the kiss, panting heavily.

"Castle, I think your phone's going off."

"What?"

"Your phone. It keeps vibrating."

Putting her down and reaching for his phone, the enormity of what had just transpired hit him. It was as if someone threw him in a pool of ice cold water. He immediately looked to her to apologize, but she had moved shifted away from him. He cursed himself silently, and opened his mouth to speak. However, before he could find the words to say, his phone buzzed again.

"Castle," he said roughly, trying to hide his anger from his voice.

"Whoa there, Writer Boy. What's got you all riled up? You and Beckett have another fight?" the familiar voice of Lanie asked.

"No, I was just in the middle of something. What's up?"

"Well, I won't keep you. I was actually wondering if you had heard from Kate today. We were supposed to be going shopping while you had your rehearsals today, but she never called. She's not answering her cell, nor is she at her apartment."

"She's with me."

"Oh?" Lanie couldn't hide the intrigue from her voice.

"It's not like that. We were just going over details about the case."

"Well, when you're done, tell her she needs to call me. We need to reschedule our shopping date as soon as possible!"

"All right, I will. Have a good night."

After hanging up with Lanie, Castle turned to find Kate still standing with her back to the door, a shaky hand gently running over her lips.

"Kate, I.."

"Don't. Just don't, okay? I told you this would happen, but did you listen to me? No!"

"What exactly do you think happened, Kate? Because I think we kissed, and we both enjoyed it. But if you're referring to something else, feel free to enlighten me, because I'm confused."

"This can't happen again. Ever." Kate looked at him, pleading. "I can't do this."

A/N: Damn Lanie for interrupting an incredible Casketty moment! GRR! Anyway, thank you to all of the reviewers from the last chapter, and all of the new readers who have favorited this story! My email is still getting blown up with alerts from you guys! Keep them coming, I love them! I would especially like it if I got some stellar reviews from this chapter….where do you think they'll go from here?