Chapter Two
A few weeks had passed since that night. Kate would go back to the club once or twice a week, depending on her mood, but every time she did go, it kept reminding her of him.
It sucked.
She had such a great time with him. She might have even thought of doing more with him than just dancing, but Al seemed to have saved her from making that mistake. Jerks, the both of them.
Rick was so attractive and the way he was looking at her that night. . .it was intense.
She felt a hand grab her rear end.
"Ricky! I see you're talking to the beautiful lady I was dancing with." Al said, resting his hand on Kate's ass nonchalantly - as if he did it all the time.
Rick saw her discomfort and knew she would be able to take Al down in a heartbeat with the vibe she was giving off. He had to get Al away from her - for Al's safety, not because he wanted to be alone with Kate again.
Yeah, he had to keep telling himself that.
"Al, buddy, you're trashed. Let me call you the car service, so they can take you home." Al was swaying back and forth, leaning more and more over Kate.
"Car service? Why can't you drive me home, you have a car."
"No, I don't. I didn't plan on driving tonight. You know what happened the last time I drove drunk. It took a very long time for you to pay me back for that ticket."
"Fine then. Let's go," Al huffed, but still made no move to leave. He started sniffing Kate's hair instead.
She was at the tip of her breaking point.
"Not us, you." Rick glanced at Kate. He saw her tense up and with the look she was giving off, he could tell she was getting ready to do some damage – a girl can only take so much from a drunken groper.
Al leaned closer to Kate, his body touching hers. She was just about to explode, when Rick stood up and took Al's arm off of her.
He whispered to Al harshly, "Look, she's not interested. Don't force it."
Al looked at Rick, then Kate, who had taken a few steps away from Al. "Oh, I see. You want to have a go at her. Now that I struck out, you want to step up to bat."
"Al, you're drunk. Go home." Rick said in a hushed tone.
"The night is not over, Ricky. I still have a chance with that fine tail. You haven't won the bet yet."
There is just no getting through to him when he is like this. "Okay Al, you win. Go home and sober up, I'll see you tomorrow."
"Whatever." Well that worked. Al turned to Kate, "Nice meeting you darling. Too bad you won't get an encore of our little dance."
"How ever will I live with myself," Kate replied dryly. Rick had to suppress the urge to laugh.
Al took what was left of Rick's drink and chugged it down, before leaving them alone once again. Rick sighed and turned his attention back to Kate.
"I apologize for that, you don't deserve to be treated that way," Rick shook his head.
"I'm used to guys hitting on me. But if your friend touches me again, I will have to dislocate his arm."
She had the most innocent face on; Rick could not help but smirk at the threat to his friend. He was fairly certain that she would not carry out on that promise.
Maybe it would be better for all of them if she never saw Al again.
A moment passed and Kate was too curious to let it go, "So, you two made a bet? What was it – who could stay sober the longest?" There was a playful glint in her eyes.
He did not want to talk about it. What was he supposed to say, "We made a bet to see if Al the Sex God could get in your pants?" No way, he had to steer clear of this topic of conversation.
"It was nothing, really. Do you want to dance again? I like this song."
"Oh, you're avoiding it. Must be juicy." Kate pursed her lips. "Come on, tell me. Can't be that bad."
"Actually, you're the one person I cannot tell." His eyes were darting from hers to his hands.
Kate hesitated. She is the one person he cannot tell? Obviously it is about her then. Maybe it was when Rick was at the bar with Al, before he came over to dance with her. Before he came to dance with her – was that the bet? To dance with her? But then Al came back and still tried to hit on her.
Rick could see the wheels turning in Kate's head.
Not good.
"What, did you guys bet on if I would go home with one of you tonight?" Her face was mixed with disgust and incredulity. The nerve of some men was just unbelievable.
"No, no. I said he couldn't because you would not go for someone like him." Rick tried to defend himself, which also made his voice go up an octave to high.
Kate let out a resigned sigh, "It was nice meeting you, but I think I should go. Thank you for the drinks."
Rick watched as she brushed past him to head for the exit.
It took him a full four seconds before he rubbed his face, hard, and spun around to chase after her.
….
Rick did not see her when he finally got onto the street. Of course it is crowded the most when he has to search the street. He scanned the pedestrians and drunks when he saw brown curls duck into a cab.
She was pissed. She shouldn't be though; all men are the same. They have one goal and that is to try and take what they think they can have.
If she wanted to dance she should have just stayed home and turned the music up to the maximum volume. It wouldn't be the same though, plus her pesky neighbors would report her for the noise.
As the cab pulled away, she chanced a glance behind her. What she did not expect to see was a sullen Rick standing there, helpless to her departure.
He shrugged off a girl, who was grabbing his shirt. His brow furrowed and his lips pressed together.
Right before the cab turned the corner she could see he was mouthing something to her, however, the distance between them made it difficult to see clearly.
Rick watched the cab reach the corner and said the only two words he could muster up before she completely left him -
I'm sorry.
Maybe she overreacted. Maybe she should have gotten the whole story. Oh well, it is too late now anyway. He probably forgot about her and moved on to the next piece of meat he and his buddy could get their hands on.
…
Rick had not forgotten anything-
Not her hair, not her eyes. Not the way she moved with him – against him.
He was sitting in his newly furnished loft, thanks to his increasing book sales. No one was home at the moment. Alexis was with her grandmother spending God knows how much of his money. He did not mind though. She deserves it after all the hard work she has put into her schoolwork. Besides, he knows Alexis only buys essentials… unlike his mother.
Rick wanted to go stake out the bar and wait for her to come back, but honestly how creepy does that sound. It is not like he wants to see her in a smoky place that reeks of drunks anyway. He wants to go somewhere more intimate. Somewhere where Al will not get in his way again.
His laptop had just been sitting there for over two hours. The blinker was taunting him. He had written so much the previous week that he was now out of ideas. Fed up, he closed his computer little too hard and stood up. He needed a breather.
When he took his coat off the rack, he decided that he should take his notebook with him. There is always something to write when he is outside watching others interact. It is even better when it's from his personal experience, but watching something secondhand has its benefits.
Rick walked down the street; thankfully not many people were out at this time. The little café on the corner has the best coffee in the city, so he definitely had to make a pit stop there.
The line was a bit long, so he decided to get his seat first before they were all gone. He hates when he gets his coffee first and has nowhere to sit.
Making his way to the now shorter line, he orders a coffee and two cookies. Behind him, the door's bell rings indicating that someone just came in - a man and a woman by the sound of their voices.
Rick turned towards his table and started walking back to it. With his back facing the counter, he still heard the woman's voice from his seat.
She had such a complicated order that the young barista had to ask the woman to repeat herself three times. She must be a new employee.
The lady asked for a cookie as well, but was soon let down.
"Sorry ma'am, we're out of cookies. If you want you can wait about ten minutes for the fresh batch," the barista said apologetically.
"Aw man, I was really craving them," she said more to herself than to anyone in particular. "No it's OK, we have to leave soon anyway," the lady replied solemnly.
Rick looked at his untouched cookies. Well, it is not like he will miss them. Half of the time he never eats them with his coffee. And yet, for some reason, he always buys them. He made up his mind and took the still wrapped cookies towards the counter, where he saw the woman waiting for her beverage.
Hmm. . .nice hair.
He tapped her shoulder, "Excuse me, you can have mine if you want-"
She turned around making him stutter. He recognized those eyes, that bone structure, even her eye shadow.
Kate.
"I haven't touched them," he finished softly. Well this certainly makes things interesting. He goes outside to clear his head and now his mind is so far from clear.
Rick did not know what to do with his hands. He held up the cookies again in offering.
The man standing next to her began to stare, "Everything alright Beckett?"
Beckett. Kate Beckett. Nice flow.
When Rick met the man's eye, he almost peed himself. He was Hispanic and a bit shorter than Rick, but he was giving off the most intense death glare Rick had ever seen. Is that her boyfriend?
Rick could not help but feel a pang of jealousy. It has been weeks since their first encounter, so it is possible she found someone.
"Yeah, everything is fine Esposito," she said, while still looking at Rick.
"Take the cookies, Kate. I wasn't going to eat them anyway." His hand was still stretched out.
He saw her eyes widen for a fraction of a second, as if she didn't expect him to remember her name.
She finally took the cookies, brushing her fingers lightly across his. Sending an electrical pulse throughout her body.
"Thank you," she said quietly still looking into his eyes.
Esposito's phone began to ring, "Excuse me…talk amongst yourselves," he joked.
Kate started fiddling with the cookie wrapper, still no sign of her coffee.
"So what brings you here?" She started in a tone filled with confidence and control.
He smiled at the effort, "I just wanted to get some fresh air, maybe write."
"You write? Amateur or you actually know what you are doing?" She had met her fair share of men who thought they were the next Stephen King. She was tired of coming across so-called writers who do not even know how to begin a story.
"Well, I'd like to think so. My readers haven't complained yet. Book reviews are a different story, though – most of them are great." He started grinning at her. No reason not to be proud of his work.
"You're a famous writer aren't you," she said embarrassed.
"Pretty much, yeah," his smile did not falter. "I'm kind of a big deal."
"Which genre?"
The young barista finally brought Kate her coffee. She must have still been confused about the order. Rookies.
"Murder Mystery-"
"Wait a minute. Rick. . .Richard Castle?" she practically shouted it. How did it not click sooner?
His smile widened, "So you do know me…"
Kate narrowed her eyes, "I know of you."
"Oh no you don't, that wasn't the reaction of a person just in the know. You have read some of my work haven't you?" He leaned in a little closer to her, "Tell me Kate, what is your favorite book to curl up in bed with?"
He watched as she looked down to the floor. Apparently there was something more appealing on the ground than looking at him and talking about his books.
She met his eyes again, coffee still in hand.
Rick could not look away from her, especially since she was only a few inches away from him. He realized the man had not returned yet. Must be some phone call.
"Your boyfriend seems like a nice guy."
Her brow furrowed, "Who?"
"The guy you are with."
She started shaking her head, "We just work together. No boyfriend."
His mind started doing cartwheels. No boyfriend. Free to woo her without the possibility of having a very buff dude threatening to kill him.
A man cleared his throat next to them. "Why don't you guys get a table or leave, you're kind of in the way of the rest of us getting our coffees."
Like there is not enough room for them to walk around us, Rick thought. "Would you like to sit down? I have a table right over there." He led Kate into that direction without waiting for her answer. Apparently people needed to get their coffee.
When they reached the table, Rick pulled out her chair waiting for her to sit. She looked at him skeptically.
He rolled his eyes, "Yes, I'm the kind of guy who pulls out a woman's chair for her. Don't be so surprised."
"Well after that night, I'm not sure what kind of guy you are." She settled her coffee on the table and ripped open the cookie wrapper.
He sat down and shifted his seat closer to Kate. When his eyes flicked up to hers, he decided to shift back to his original position.
"Look, I'm sorry. Al was a jerk, I was a jerk, and I have no excuses. You deserved better than that." It was time to get rid of this tension between them.
She waited a moment and could see the sincerity in his eyes.
"Rick, it's not your fault. You two were looking for a good time, I should've known."
"No, I wasn't looking for a good time. That's not me."
She gave him an incredulous look.
"Ok, it is me, but not with you," he corrected.
She raised her eyebrows, causing him to sigh and rub his face.
He met her eyes and saw she was holding back a laugh. His face blanched, and that seemed to do it. She let out a laugh, which he took to be teasing him.
"Ha ha, very funny." Her face began to sober. "Please, don't let me interrupt the hilarity of my embarrassment," he added.
"I couldn't help it. You're adorable when you're trying to defend yourself. That hole was just getting deeper and deeper."
He leaned across the space between them and took her hand in his.
"I'm adorable to you? Adorable is something you tell your little brother." He squeezed her hand slightly.
"How about cute?" She says, leaning closer, flipping her hand so they are now palm to palm.
His fingertips started gliding along her palm, a gentle caress. She swallowed a felt like a frog in her throat. . .the things he can do to her.
His voice deepened, "I don't think 'cute' is the right one either."
Her lip slipped between her teeth, drawing his attention to her mouth.
"Rugged?"
"We can work with that. Any more adjectives you can think of?"
Oh, how she likes having him this close to her. He had a bit of scruff on his jawline and his hair was in a fashionable ruffle.
"Hmm, I seem to be drawing a blank." She started moving her fingers against his palm now just below his wrist, down to the curve of his fingers.
He cleared his throat, "I think you can conjure up one more." His breath was now ghosting over her lips.
"You know what you are?" She whispered.
He let out a throaty moan for her to continue as his eyes flickered to her lips.
She was so close to his face, they were almost sharing the same breath.
"Impetuous," she said plainly. She sat back in her chair, her hand now free from his.
He slowly straightened up, "Tease."
Just then Esposito made himself known with a cough. "That was Lanie on the phone, I'm going to head back now."
"Oh, good. Results came back?" She stood up and grabbed her coffee off the table.
Rick looked between the two of them, as he got to his feet. He doesn't want her to leave yet. Especially since he still did not get her number.
Esposito looked at Rick's hopeful eyes. "I can fill you in later, Beckett. You don't have to cut this," he pointed to Rick, "short."
Rick could kiss him right now.
"I'll call you if we make any headway," Esposito said as he started walking towards the exit, ignoring Kate's objections.
Kate stood there wondering how she lost the control to make her own decisions in her life. When she turned back to Rick, she saw he was staring at her midsection.
"What?"
"You're a cop?" He asked, pointing at her now unhidden badge on her belt. Just when he thought she could not be any sexier. Chasing down criminals, handcuffing them. Bet she has good experience with handcuffs.
She closed her coat, "Detective, actually."
"Well, you are just full of surprises Detective," he flashed this charming smile.
She leaned in close so she could whisper in his ear, "You have no idea."
When she pulled back, she saw his eyes darken once more.
"Um, I'm going to head back now. We have this case I'm hoping to close as soon as possible."
"Sure, I understand." He reached for her abandoned cookies on the table and handed them to her.
"It was nice to have seen you again, Rick," she held out her hand.
"That's it? A handshake and a farewell?"
"Not what you were expecting?"
"Well, I would have written it differently, I must say."
She bit her lip as he pulled out a pen and ripped a piece of paper from his notebook.
Was he really going to write it?
He took her hand and placed the paper inside, closing her fingers around it.
"Call me sometime. I'm sure we can continue this over dinner next week."
She stared at their joined hands for a moment before she smiled and answered, "We'll see."
Kate began to stride past him when she felt his hand wrap around her elbow and pull her back, launching her into his chest. She barely had a second to figure out what was happening before his lips were on hers - molding, sucking, fighting for control.
Her hand grabbed the nape of his neck, bringing him closer to her. One hand tangled in her hair, while the other grazed her hip, and squeezed it firmly. She let out an audible moan that should only be reserved for the bedroom.
A good ten to fifteen seconds passed by when they realized they were still in the coffee shop, making out like a couple of horny teenagers.
Reluctantly, Rick pulled away from her soft, swollen lips, and smudged lipstick.
"I'll be expecting that call, Detective," he rasped out.
With that, he made his exit, leaving her standing there in shock.
Yeah, he will definitely get that call.
the end.
A/N: So sorry for the long wait. Hopefully you all liked this and hopefully I didn't blow it. Any thoughts or feedback whether positive or negative is appreciated! Side note, I changed my name from TogetherWeRead to ZemerGuri.