Stakeout
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He teases the closure on her pants, before throwing caution to the wind and unsnapping them. He lowers the zip painfully slow, the sound of the metal releasing almost deafening in the quiet car.
"Too bad we can't get a look at what he's up to in that office," Esposito laments through the crackle of static.
He's pulling his hand away like he's been burned, and she's closing her jeans and sitting up straight before either of them has a chance to think about it.
He finally breaks the interminable silence that has descended on them.
"You know, we could always pretend to be a drunk couple in love, sneak up on him?" he says, well aware of where her mind will go.
"Castle, he's already seen me, I just interrogated him in the precinct a few hours ago."
"Still, can we pretend to be a drunk couple in love?"
She gives him her evil eye. "Focus Castle."
Without looking at him, she does slide her hand over to his, letting his large fingers grip her smaller ones.
"So, Ryans' are having a baby," he starts.
"Yeah, I know right?" when the look on her face is unreadable, he knows she's thinking too hard, but she smiles at him, "Kevin will make a great dad."
"You ever think about it?"
There's a long pause before she answers, "Sometimes. Maybe. Someday," she stutters, "you?"
He considers her. Her mouth may be saying one thing, but her eyes are saying more.
"Yeah, I love being a dad. I'd do it again."
The words hang between them.
"Yo, Beckett, you wanna do this in shifts? No point in all of us being on alert," Espo's voice comes over the two-way.
"Sure, we'll take first shift." There's no way she's resting with all these thoughts circulating in her head.
"Cocoa?" He offers.
"You have cocoa?"
He seems almost offended, "How long have we been partners?"
"You never bring me cocoa, Castle," she reminds him.
She opens the basket, and sure enough - there's thermos sitting neatly amongst the various items inside. She's pulling it from the basket, when a flash of silver catches her eye. Straightening up, thermos in her hand, she tosses a condom foil onto his lap.
"Ever the optimist, hmmm, Castle?"
He simply shrugs. "As a Boy Scout, I was trained to be prepared."
"I highly doubt that's what they meant."
She focuses on unscrewing the top off the thermos and adds, "I also doubt you were a Boy Scout."
She ignores the forced gasp of shock, because she knows she didn't just offend him, and inhales the aromas leaving the now open thermos. She exhales happily. Cocoa.
His hand drops to her thigh as she sips, but it only lingers long enough to see he set the packet, which bears the brand name Big Boy, has been left to balance on her leg.
"You're pushing your luck there a little, don't you think, Castle?"
"Nothin' little about it, Kate," he smirks.
She quirks an eyebrow at him, a smile tugging at her lips.
He's ignoring her narrowed eyes as he kneads her hip with his thumb. He can't keep from touching her now. Alone, certain parts of her body out of view from others, he can't help but drop a hand onto her, apply pressure, caress. He's waited four years to be able to touch her, and he's making up for those years of having to keep his hands to himself.
Static crackles over the two-way and he flinches, snaps his hand back. She places the now empty mug back on top of the thermos, and turns to place it back in the basket. The movement shifts the foil from her lap, and it drops to the floor by her feet, forgotten. She sits poised, anticipating the words about to come through.
"We got movement. Look alert."
Just like that Beckett is out of the car, deftly closing the door with a soft click as she moves in a crouched position, hidden from their suspect in her stealth, moving along the street-side of the parked cars. He watches as Esposito and Ryan walk past his viewpoint, guns drawn.
"NYPD, hands up Conner."
Their suspect's hands are empty and they all notice.
"What did you do with the evidence?" Esposito starts, bringing the man's hands from behind his head to handcuff him.
"I want a lawyer."
"Look at that," Castle reaches out to pull a string of paper off the man's pants, "looks like a shredder job."
"Now what was so important that you would need to shred it at 2:30 in the morning?" Ryan says, patting down Connor's pockets. He pulls a wallet, and on flipping it over shows the rest of the team his discovery. A license belonging to their victim.
"I'd call that probable cause."
"So," Esposito says slowly, "I suppose someone should stay behind to collect the evidence. Not it."
"Not it," Kate and Castle respond simultaneously. All three looking at Ryan.
"Aw man, I found the license, and besides, Beckett you said after the last garbage search that you had the next one."
She looks at him incredulously, "I called not it. You want to break the rules of 'not it'?"
Castle is beaming at her.
"A little help, Castle?" Beckett is eyeing the dumpster, aware she's not going to get into it on her own. Her scar still pulls a little at times, although she won't admit that to Castle.
He doesn't question her abilities, happy to have an excuse to touch her. Linking his fingers together he holds them low for her. "Just don't impale me with your shoes," he warns lightly.
With her hands on the dumpster, and her foot in his, she pushes off the floor, and tugs herself up as he hoists. She finds a foothold, and clings to the side of the dumpster, poised to swing her leg over as though she is mounting a horse - when his hands connect with her ass and she almost loses her footing.
"Castle," she warns, though it's little more than a hiss.
"What?" He asks innocently, hands still on her. "I'm helping."
"That," she says, turning her head slightly to nod at his hands, "is the opposite of helpful." She regains her grip, and grunts. She eases a leg over, swings around, and drops down into the trash. Once inside, she turns and reaches over to help him as he hikes himself to the lip of the bin. There isn't innocence to where her hands touch him to assist.
"Works both ways Castle," she grins devilishly at him.
Castle groans, and hauls himself over on his own with a lot less grace than she managed, fights his way into the trash, sprawling and undignified among the piles of paper.
A disgusted sound leaves his lips as he straightens up.
Beckett laughs lightly. "It's just shredded papers, Castle, you'll be fine."
He grabs hold of her while he finds his balance among the piles of papers, and pieces of cardboard. He brushes her breasts, eliciting a small gasp from her.
"You did that on purpose," she tells him.
He holds both hands up in surrender.
"I didn't, honest to God."
He flicks his head around, checking they're still alone.
"This, however, is most definitely deliberate," he says, while cupping her right breast in his hand, soothing his thumb over her nipple through her shirt.
He leans into her, his eyes dark, his smile dangerous.
She breathes in a shaky breath, his hand warm against her, his thumb sending surges of arousal through her. But they can't, not here.
"Castle, focus," she warns.
"I am," he replies, his eyes fixed solely on her chest.
"On. the. documents."
"Oh." He drops his hand, almost sadly, and glances down. "Where's the fun in that?"
A/N: Castle and Beckett aren't the only ones having a little dirty fun at work. Don't worry, if AnnieXMuller or I are discovered writing this stuff at our jobs, we'll have more time for writing fanfic. Let the cow rioting (co-writing) continue! Next chapter is rated M.