Let's Sleep On It
By
UCSBdad
Disclaimer: I still don't own Castle. Rating: M Time: Between Seasons Two and Three
"We'd also like to know about your new deal with a New York gallery. We've heard it's going to put you on the map, so to speak." Castle said.
"DuBois and Poole are a well-established and prestigious gallery in Manhattan. They've been anxious to expand to the Hamptons for some time now. We signed a deal in which I would represent them in the Hamptons recently."
"How recently?" Kate asked.
"A week ago Sunday."
"Hmm!" Castle said under his breath. "If someone found out that Lisa was…"
"I had no idea that the little tramp was blackmailing people!" Angstrom yelled. "Why would I take a chance like that? I have a profitable business…"
"With your main rain maker now, sadly, no longer available. On the other hand…"
Angstrom cut Castle off. "I did not kill her!"
"Where were you between four and seven AM on Tuesday?" Kate asked quietly.
"I was at home, in bed, asleep."
"Anyone that can confirm that?"
"No, detective. I slept alone."
"Too bad." Castle said, nodding his head. "Motive, no alibi…"
"What are you implying?"
"Implying?" Castle said with a puzzled look on his face. "Did I imply anything, Beckett?"
Kate shook her head. "No, I heard no implications. You were just summarizing the evidence we developed here today. Should there be implications, Mr. Angstrom?"
"Of course not!" Angstrom screamed.
"Why are you so upset?" Castle asked. "You should learn to relax. Maybe take up knitting. It's very restful."
"Knitting?" Beckett asked as they left the Angstrom Gallery. "What do you know about knitting?"
"My mom took up knitting when she was in some indie movie years ago. There were these long pauses while the director and the screenwriter fought."
"How long did she knit?"
"Oh, fifteen, maybe, twenty…minutes."
Kate laughed. "You had me going there, Castle.
Rick leaned over and kissed her swiftly. "I love to get you going, Kate."
"Be careful of what you wish for."
"I already have what I wished for."
Once back at the police station, they spent the afternoon going over Angstrom's books and the photos found in Lisa's room.
Kate closed the last of Angstrom's spread sheets. "Nothing useful here. He made a nice profit from his sales, but I checked sales to women against those to men and there's no great difference. At least not enough to prove blackmail. And there are no obviously over inflated sales prices."
"What kind of a gallery owner doesn't over inflate his sales prices?"
"You're now an art critic?"
"I may not know much about art, but I know what I like." Castle replied primly.
"You like nudes, Castle."
"I like you nude, Beckett."
"Maybe you'll see some of Beckett's early pink period if you've found anything in those photos."
"Lisa was a discerning collector of the male of the species. She collected the Golden Throated Attorney, the Puff Bellied Stock Broker, the Pin Striped Banker and had a surprising liking for the Juvenile Jock."
"Young men?"
"Several. They may have been just to cleanse her palate, so to speak. After a steady diet of chubby, out of shape businessmen, a nice well-muscled young man would have been refreshing."
"Could you identify any of them?"
"About thirty, I think. Including most of the men on her list."
"Should we ask Chief Brady for help with the others?"
"We might want to wait on that. These are local movers and shakers. Brady is a political animal, I know. He isn't going to want to get anyone involved he doesn't have to."
"This is a murder investigation." Kate said sharply.
"And our suspects should be the men on her list that we're pretty sure are being blackmailed. The rest we'd just embarrass and piss off Brady."
"I don't like it."
Rick shrugged. "Welcome to small town New York. Brady could kick us off the investigation and would if he thought we'd get him in trouble. Then who'd solve the murder." Rick smiled. "We could accidentally release all of the photos on line. Oops! Terrible accident. We're so sorry."
Kate returned his smile. "Thanks, but no thanks. That would be illegal and unethical."
"Ah! You do have a flaw. You are not perfect, Kate Beckett."
"Wanna bet?" She said in a low, sultry voice.
Castle checked his watch. "About dinner time? How about I barbecue tonight? I have some really nice filets. We can do corn on the cob, too."
"Oh, you silver tongued rascal, you." Beckett said.
Castle, complete with a chef's hat and an apron that read, "Will Cook for Sex." did the honors. Martha, Alexis, and Lanie all snickered as Kate flirted shamelessly with the chef.
After dinner the five sat around the dying embers of the barbecue.
"Castle, do the Hamptons need a good ME?" Amie asked.
"You actually like it here?" Castle teased.
"It has its moments." Lanie said airily. "If I could get a little place like this one, complete with a sexy chef…"
"He's spoken for." Beckett said, softly.
"Very spoken for." Castle added.
"I'm flexible."
"So's Kate." Castle said, dodging a slap from Beckett.
Lanie sighed dramatically. "I suppose I'll just have to go back to drab, boring New York City tomorrow. Bodies are dropping like flies, but homicide's best detective team is nowhere to be found. What shall I do?"
"If you're trying to make me feel guilty, you're not." Kate laughed.
"Not even close." Castle added.
After dinner, Rick and Kate went to the office to consider their next move. "We'll have to talk to the men on Lisa's list. They're certainly the ones she was blackmailing." Kate said.
Rick shook his head slowly. "Every one of these guys is wealthy, really wealthy. They have whole law firms on speed dial. When we show up asking questions, they'll lawyer up so fast we won't know what hit us. We'll get nothing but, "My client declines to answer your questions and if you aren't charging my client with anything, we're out of here.", and away they'll go. And our case with then."
"What choice do we have?"
"We have to find a weak one. Someone we can break before the others get wind of where our investigation is going. Then we can use the weak one to break the rest."
"Good in theory, but in practice..?"
"I suggest we sleep on it."
"Sleep?"
"Well, we should go to bed." Rick said, with a waggle of his eyebrows.
"I like your thinking."
Once in bed, Kate snuggled up to Castle. "I don't remember the last time I was this happy, Castle."
"Me either."
"When my mom was murdered, I put up a wall around myself. I didn't let anyone in. I don't know how you did it, but you just strolled past that wall like it wasn't there.
"I have no idea how I managed it, but I'm overjoyed that I did." Rick slid her tee shirt over her head and off. He kissed her fully on the lips and then headed south. He concentrated on her left boob first, licking it and then taking her nipple into his mouth and flicking it with his tongue until it was fully engorged. Then he stroked her left boob with his hand and moved his mouth to her right boob to repeat the pattern. "I love your boobs, they're perfect." He whispered.
Kate moaned. "They are not. They're small and they're starting to sag. My legs and my butt are my best features."
"No, your boobs are perfect. They're perfect because they're part of you and you're perfect."
"Liar." She giggled. "You said earlier I wasn't perfect."
"I was wrong. You're perfect, Kate. Absolutely perfect."
"You lied to me, then. I may never forgive you." She whispered.
"What can I do to make it up to you?"
Kate spread her legs widely. "Keep going the way you were." She breathed.
Rick kissed his way down her stomach until he got to the vee of her legs. He blew lightly on her, then she felt his tongue touch her. "Rick! Oh, yes. Rick."
He continued to tongue her, then nipped at her clit with his teeth.
"Oh my god!" she moaned. Her hands found his head and she pushed him against her harder.
He moved his hands to the inside of her thighs and stroked her lightly. Then he reached around and cupped the cheeks of her perfect ass. He squeezed very gently, but kept squeezing while tonguing her.
Kate arched her back. Rick looked up to see her boobs moving back and forth on her chest. They are perfect. He thought to himself. Just like she is.
"Rick! Now! Please!" She gasped.
Rick gave a final nip at her clit and moved back up her body, kissing every inch of the way. She grasped him and pulled him gently inside her. She wrapped her arms around him and squeezed as tightly as she could, then wrapped her legs around him. As he moved slowly in and out of her, he kissed her, pushing his tongue into her mouth to let her taste herself on his tongue. He began pushing deeper and harder into her as she thrashed beneath him. Finally, they climaxed and Rick pushed himself as far into her as her could go and she pulled him to her with all her strength.
Rick lay panting on top of her. "God, woman. That was world class sex. That was absolutely the best I ever had. Nothing could top that."
Kate laughed. "The next time will top it easily, Castle. And don't you ever forget it."
They were interrupted by the sound of clapping coming from Lanie's room and they dissolved in giggles.