Two years! God, he hoped she was joking.
Now that this tension between them was so magically healed he could wait with renewed patience, but not renewed resolve. No more holding back, no more almosts. She had been so raw, so open, so un-Beckett-like with him it took his breath away and terrified him at the same time. He hoped he could live up to her.
She'd gone home an hour ago, kissing him once again, enough to get him through the night, enough to tide him over until he could see her again. Confirm this day, confirm their words.
There had been so many moments when he didn't think it would happen for them. Their story. So dark, so dangerous, but he was so drawn to it, and for a writer, the unpredictability of it was enchanting, thrilling, morbidly fascinating. He never wanted it to end. After all, how could it end predictably? How could they ever go back to where they started when so much had happened? So much had been both voiced and unspeakable. A new day had to come. It was inconceivable for this optimist, that this darkness would swallow them, that the world would not set itself aright once again. This story, their story- like she had said, it was 'us' now and not just 'me' – their story would always stay with him. It meant something, even when he didn't understand it – even when she was a mystery he was never going to solve. It stayed with him because they had each had so many, many chances of turning back, only they hadn't. They were holding on to something, some good that neither yet recognized but both knew was worth fighting for, was worth the temporary surrender, the temporary pain, the temporary disappointment for a chance to be more than who they were when they found each other.
That day had finally come.
He spent a sleepless night thinking about the day, how ugly it started, how beautifully it ended, what it all meant.
Esposito poked Ryan," looks like mom and dad made-up."
"Yeah, wonder what that entailed."
"Dude."
Castle stepped off the elevator with a tray of coffee in one hand and a bag in the other. She looked up as he handed her the first cup. Then, grinning like a fool, he proceeded to place another cup on her desk, followed by another.
She knew what he meant.
"Hey how about sharing the love Castle," Ryan called from his desk even as Esposito elbowed him.
"Come and get it, I wouldn't want it to go cold," Kate said, eyes on Castle.
Castle sat in his chair as the guys grabbed the extra coffee. " Thanks Castle." Neither moved away from the desk immediately.
Esposito cleared his throat.
"So, anything we need to know about?" Kate shot him a look as he continued, "about the case?"
The inability of either time or the case to move forward was killing Castle. His anxiety over the next steps with Kate, the idea of sleeping together distracted and dismayed him completely.
At 5:30, he met Esposito's eyes across the bullpen a little longer than he'd intended. Kate seemed her usual engaged self, pouring over a stack of bank records, she hadn't looked up in half an hour.
"Beckett? Ryan and I are going to visit Mitchell down at Riker's in the morning, see if he'll talk." Esposito lingered in the doorway.
Kate couldn't resume her earlier concentration when both men were focused on some kind of response from her.
"Okay, I guess we can pick this up in the morning."
Castle tossed Esposito a grateful look.
"Let's get out of here Castle."
Half an hour later they were sitting in a secluded booth at a favorite dinner haunt.
Two seconds after the waitress took their order, he slipped out from his side of the booth and squeezed her into the corner on her side, putting his hands on the back of her neck and kissing her with intention.
"Been waiting all day to do that."
"Mmm, me too," she responded, stroking a finger down one of his cheeks.
"Castle, I know you're distracted, I am too, we need to figure out what to do about that."
"Mmmm Kate," he wiggled his brows, "I know what we could do about that."
She laughed, "not that, well, yes that, and work, what do we do about work Castle?"
He shifted back and considered her.
"What do you think Kate? You think we are going to start this . . . this something that I have been waiting for . . ."
"We've been waiting for," she corrected.
"We've been waiting for all these years and it's not going to affect our work for a while? We've had so much darkness Kate. I want light, light and beautiful with you, so everyone can see."
"Castle, I don't want us to draw attention to ourselves. Gates . . ."
"I can handle Gates."
"She already thinks you are a distraction to me. Let's not be stupid and give her a reason to make things difficult."
"And she knows I have been helpful too, I don't want to talk about Gates, I want to talk about us."
"So, I was thinking. . ." So many times he had started that sentence over the years.
She smiled at him, one of her dazzling, unbridled, you-make-me-happy smiles.
"I was thinking that this weekend you aren't on call."
He paused but she didn't change expressions.
"And that means that for forty-eight whole hours, you don't have any distractions and I don't have any distractions, so maybe we could distract each other?"
"Hmm," her eyes still smiled but her expression turned more serious, "I'm not really in the mood for a distraction," she cooed, moving her face closer to his.
"You, you're not?" He stammered.
"No Castle, I'm more in the mood for a conquest. You in the mood for a conquest, Rick?" The last syllable of his name was said mere centimeters from his lips and with force.
"Here you are, folks," their waitress came with their drinks.
Castle turned to acknowledge her before turning back to Kate.
He gave her one of his goofy faces, lips pouting.
"I've had enough of the tease Kate, I can be one of your conquests. Please, let me be one of your conquests."
"Ha," she gave him a quick peck on the mouth before pushing him on the chest. "Go sit on your side before all this innuendo gets out of hand."
He reluctantly moved to the opposite side of the table, immediately moving to rest his leg against hers, needing to have physical contact with her.
"Okay, I've been thinking too," Kate said leaning her face against her templed hands, "and this is how it is going to go. You are coming to my place on Friday night Rick. Pack a toothbrush and I might keep you this weekend."
He swallowed and mirrored her position, "A kept man Detective?"
"Oh no Rick, I said I *might* keep you, that all depends on you."
"Kate Beckett," he said grabbing her hands in his, "your sword play is soooo sexy. I don't know if I can make it until Friday."
"You just keep showing up Rick, I'll take care of the rest."
A/N: I don't know what the hell I'm doing.