Title: Waking the Dragon

Pairing: Castle/Beckett

Rating: M

Spoilers: 3X13 Knockdown

Disclaimer: Castle, its characters, and all related content are the property of ABC. No copyright infringement is intended. Only hotness.

Chapter Seven

Rick couldn't tell if the lurching feeling in his stomach was nerves or just the motion of the elevator. It was a hail-mary, going in to the 12th. A different man might give Kate her space, give her the time she needed to come around on her own, if she came around at all, but he couldn't afford to do that. He'd been on the wrong side of Kate's cold shoulder before. Plenty of times. He'd have to get in her face if he wanted her to talk to him again.

Hopefully the truffles from Barney's would soften the way.

The elevator doors opened to a familiar sight. His home away from home, everything just like he left it. Ryan had his back to the elevator, but something made the young detective turn his head as Castle stepped out. Ryan's face lit up, and the 12th precinct turned into a slow-motion movie scene, everyone rushing to greet him with handshakes and huge smiles like some sort of returning hero.

He laughed and made small talk, but his sight kept darting over at Kate hunching over her desk. There was no way she'd failed to notice his entrance. Not with this sideshow. After he'd done an acceptable amount of catching up, he politely excused himself and turned in the direction of Kate's desk. The distance seemed to lengthen before his eyes. He felt like he was walking into pit of vipers, but he knew they guarded a priceless pearl. One he'd sought for too long to be cowed. He leaned into his fear, and forced his feet to move.

She didn't look up until he stopped in front of her. He wanted to put his arms up in defense, as if lasers would shoot out of her eyes. But, to his surprise, she looked calm. Not exactly happy to see him, but not angry, either. "Hi Kate."

She leaned back in her chair. Her mild facial expression gave the impression of a smile without actually being one. "Hi Castle."

He had no idea what to say next. He hadn't exactly rehearsed this. He'd been expecting her to lay into him, at which point he planned to grovel shamelessly. That was as far as he'd gotten. "Did you get my voice mail?" He knew it was a stupid question before it even left his mouth.

She squirmed in her chair, then picked up her pen and looked back down at her work. "Yeah, I did."

She did. Of course she did. He'd known she had, but just wasn't returning his call because…she was mad. Wasn't she? At the moment, he didn't know what to think. He sank into the chair beside her. His chair. "Here, I uh, I brought these for you."

He set the box on the desk, avoiding any sudden movements.

She looked at it, and a smile softened her eyes. "Thanks. That was really nice."

Nice? "Uh, do you want to talk?"

Kate winced. "There's nothing to talk about."

Trying to shut him down. So the real Kate was in there somewhere. "Let me rephrase that. I'm going to talk."

"Castle, don't-"

"I wanted to apologize." He glanced around to make sure no one was in earshot. "I was out of line. I hope…" Just say it, even if you don't mean it. You do want her to be happy, even if it's not with you. "I hope…I haven't caused any problems between you and Josh."

Kate sat in silence for what seemed like an eternity, watching him with her eyebrows drawn. No reaction whatsoever. In that space of a second, self-doubt pressed in on him.

"I'm breaking up with him."

It took Rick a second to register that she had spoken. Her expression hadn't changed at all. "I'm sorry; I thought I just heard you say you're breaking up with Josh."

"Yes." Still the same stoic face.

He just sat there, gaping like an idiot, while he processed what she just told him. Thoughts raced through his mind. Was this on his account? Had he finally turned Kate's head? Should he feel guilty? Because he didn't. "Why?"

She glanced downwards, and took a breath before looking back into his eyes. "Because it's not enough."

All the air seemed to leave the room. It was a direct response to a question he'd asked her days ago. She wanted more. More than what Josh could offer her. Did that mean him? If they weren't in the middle of the 12th, he'd gather her into his arms right now. But they just stared at each other, neither able to look away. "What would be?"

She turned away, wetting her lips. "I don't know, Rick. I don't know what I want right now. I just…" He fought the urge to smooth back the lock of hair over her ear. She took her time looking back up at him, and when she did, the look in her eyes made blood rush to his groin. "I just…want to see."

Rick's mouth fell open once more. Heat smoldered between them as they looked at one another. Kate wanted him. She wanted to give this a chance. The need to hold her became almost unbearable. "When does he get back?"

"A week."

A week? He couldn't make it that long. Not when they were so close. He'd waited a long time for her, but now even one more day seemed impossible. "I want to see you."

She gasped a ragged breath.

"I won't push you, Kate. I just…need to be near you."

She looked away. Her vein was standing out on her forehead. That only happened when she was feeling something very strongly. "Okay."

His heart soared. He felt like pinching himself. He had to get himself under control…they were in the middle of the 12th.

She pushed back in her chair. In a flash, her demeanor changed. She was watching something over his shoulder. He turned to see what it was. A woman had just entered the building. Older, civilian.

Kate stood. "I have to go, Castle. That's the vic's wife."

He didn't want to let her leave. He had the fleeting thought to ask her if he could sit in, but knew immediately how inappropriate that would be. He'd be doing it for all the wrong reasons. He let her walk past him, even though he wanted to touch her somehow. "I'll call you."

She glanced at him as she headed towards the front. There was a vulnerability in her eyes he wasn't used to seeing from her, as if she was frightened by the uncertainty of it all. He'd never loved her so much. As she walked out of earshot, he whispered, "Don't worry, Kate. I've got you."

PS: Just an FYI that I'll be participating in NaNoWriMo this year which means I'll be putting this fic on hiatus for the month of November. I'll be putting up at least one more chapter though before the end of the month. I'll try to make it a good one.

PPS: 10/30/11. Okay, my husband has put his foot down and has insisted that I take a break from writing for the next two days since he basically won't see me and won't get to do anything fun with me for the month of November. I can't really blame him for wanting some time with me before I disappear. So, sorry guys. Chapter 8 will wait. Hey, that rhymed.