Here is the warning- this chapter is most definitely rated M. Smut to ensue

This is your warning, if the rating raising wasn't warning enough. And it's in bold so don't act like you missed it.

I want to thank Emily for all the support and general awesomness- you are kind of amazing.
And thanks to Bugg for help with the title- the credit goes to you, deary.

And now,

Distance Diminished


Kate rode the elevator up, arriving with a happy 'ding' at the twelfth floor. She strode out with a certain air of confidence- her confidence. The confidence she hadn't realized she had been missing until she got it back. Neither Castle nor the boys, who were lounging at the desks, open box of pizza between them, failed to notice her newfound assurance, and they all looked up, taken slightly aback. She sat down in her seat, swatted Castle's feet off of her desk, and grabbed a piece of pizza. "Ryan- I want you to cross reference Matthew Gregory with military records- Navy SEAL, to be specific. Espo- go talk to Lanie, I think she may have something you can do." She delegated.

"Didn't you just get back from Lanie's?" Esposito asked.

"Yes," she replied, unclear of the problem. "Did you misunderstand the order?" she asked back, biting into her pizza nearly violently. In her periphery, she saw Castle grin. She had stupidly forgotten to get Lanie's findings while she was down there. Both Ryan and Esposito leapt up, disappearing into work. When she was sure they were out of earshot, she turned to Castle. He was still grinning like a small child. "What?" she asked, taking another bite of her lunch.

"I've missed you," he replied, simply, his face lighting up. She had to brake the eye contact she hadn't realized she was holding to bite her lip, suppressing the smile that threatened her demeanor.

"Castle," she began. Her voice was low, so low he had to scoot closer to hear. Despite her serious tone, her eyes had the sparkle. The sparkle they had been missing the past few days. "If we are going to do this, I need you to lighten up," a small grin broke on her face.

"I can't believe you, Kate Beckett, just told me, Richard Castle, to lighten up," he said, shocked.

"And afterwards we can go ice skating in hell," she quipped back, smiling, happy he was taking her advice. The serious Castle was great, but now she needed to smile. She needed to laugh. He laughed out loud at that, but again his face sobered.

"What's the wager?" he asked her. She blushed, and felt as if he could see right through her. His response put her off- it was as if he was in on the whole poker analogy. She just smiled at him.

In her mind, she pushed all of her metaphorical chips to the middle of the metaphorical table.

-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x

"You did what?" Lanie asked, her exclamation exceeding the acceptable decibel level for the morgue. "I told you to up the ante, not go all in!"

The scene was all-too familiar- Kate, opposite her on a steel exam table, laying, ankles crossed and her head propped up by a roll of sanitary paper towels supporting her neck.

Lanie, cross-legged on another, rolling a Rasinette around in her mouth.

"I'm going to start charging you by the hour, you know," she said, matter-of-factly, earning an eye roll from Kate.

"Do you want to hear the story, or what?" Kate asked, bringing with the simple question another wave of déjà vu. That shut her up, as she just leaned in closer and popped another chocolate covered treat in her mouth. "So he asked me…."

"What's the wager?"

She smiled at him, biting her lip, almost as if in anticipation. It was then she decided what to do- her mind had been made. The day droned on, this, that, the other thing and another dead end in the case. It was maybe eleven when Castle convinced her to go home. He helped her into her coat without much trouble, and they made their way onto the city streets. He asked if she's like to take a cab, but she declined, preferring the cool night breeze on her skin.

"Let's walk," she proposed, and he smiled his agreement. His hand brushed against hers- once, and innocent accident, a mere hazard of their swinging arms. The second, however, or the third- those were deliberate passes. She realized this and shoved into his shoulder, pretending to be annoyed by his antics.

"What?" he asked, innocently, as he stumbled and regained his balance. She slipped her hand in his anyways, lacing her fingers with his. They walked like this, draped in the comfortable silence and the pleasure of one another's company. The walk seemed to last forever and yet only seconds- but at long last (or far too soon?) they reached her door. Castle turned to face her, not letting go of her hand. He didn't think he was ready to.

"We've been here before," he told her, earning a small smile.

"Yeah," she replied, internally kicking herself for her lack of creativity. "We have." He took a tiny step towards her, bending his head, lips aiming for hers. He froze in his advance when she placed a hand on his chest. He looked hurt and took a step back as he got the wrong impression. Kate desperately needed to amend that.

"No," she began, using that hand to pull on his lapel, bringing him closer. "Don't get the wrong idea." She said, eyes locking on his. "I've been thinking Castle."

"Might want to get that looked at," he told her, still wary. She socked him in the arm, playfully. Leave it to him to ruin the moment.

"I've been thinking a great deal," she sucked in a deep breath. She needed to say this. "I like you, a lot Castle. Scary a lot. And I've decided I'm okay with that."

"So you're giving me permission to like you?"

"No," she replied, hand flattening on his rock solid chest once again, stepping a hair closer. "I'm giving myself permission to like you back," she told him, before angling her mouth upward and crashing her lips onto his, her other hand threading through his hair, holding him against her.

Castle's arms snaked around her waist and she let him pull her flush against his body. God he felt so good. It took every ounce of self-control to break the kiss, but she hung in his arms, looking up at him, a silly smile on her face. "Come in," she said, coming out as half-question, half-order.

"Kate-" he began, worry clouding his eyes.

"No, it's okay," she assured him, reaching up and kissing him as if to prove this. "I'm sure."

She had her confidence back.
And he found it hot as hell.

He let her lead him into her apartment, the space pitch black but for a little light spilling in from the street lights below. The room was semi-illuminated by the orange-y tinge- just enough so that neither of them bothered with the lights. She was a head of him, tugging him along by their interlocked fingers, until she stopped and he didn't.

Their bodies collided with force and they both tumbled to the safety of the couch. She had landed beneath him- he had the quickness of mind to throw his arms out, catching himself with a hand on either side of her head so he didn't squash her. "Smooth," she muttered, teasingly.

"I was never a 'tuck-and-roll' kind of person," he informed her. She was so small under him.

Although he would never say so out loud, he liked that.
Although she wouldn't, either, she did too.

She could just barely make out his features- the orange illuminated his lines- his nose, his brow, his jaw-his lips. But the black shadowed the rest. She craned her neck and kissed him again, the taste of him addicting. "I've been thinking, too," he said, between the long, lingering pecks.

"I thought I heard some rocks knocking together," she told him, not stopping her ministrations. He pulled away, feigning hurt. This only lasted a send before he missed her touch and returned to her.

"What do you want, Kate?" He asked her, planting a kiss under her jaw as she arched towards him.

"Isn't it kind of obvious what I want?" she asked. He continued his caress but did not answer.

He wanted to hear it.
Then again, so did she.

"I want you to love me," she whispered, so softly he almost missed it, which was saying something, considering their current propinquity. He lifted his head to catch her eyes with his. They were sparkling emeralds even in the dark- laced with what looked like ribbons of amber and gold and desire.

"I do love you," he told her, sincerely. He felt her grip tighten around his neck.

"Then prove it to me," she whispered back. God that was maybe the sexiest thing she had ever said to him. He crashed his lips onto hers, unable to hold back anymore.

Shirts went flying, and in a flurry of denim and cotton, the rest of their clothes joined them in a pool on the floor. He was relishing her body- with his eyes, with his hands, with his mouth and with his own. He explored the new facets of her revealed to him for the first time, taking time to appreciate every part equally. He kissed trails down her neck and chest, spending adequate time and attention to each breast before continuing his journey.

He kissed up her legs and midriff, carefully avoiding her center. The sounds she was making encouraged him- the small gasps she made when he hit a particularly sensitive area, the moans she released when he nibbled on those spots, the sighs she let out when he paused to take her in. "Castle," she loved this but she was getting impatient. She needed him.

He returned to her mouth, caressing her lips with his own, softly. "Are you sure?" he asked, one more time. She nodded, but then, upon realizing he probably couldn't see that, she spoke.

"Yes." And with the utterance of that simple syllable he was lifting one of her long legs around his waist and entering her.

She let out a gasp of something like surprise mixed with amazement and satisfaction. How long she had waited to be right here, wrapped up in everything that was him. His leisurely pace quickened and soon he was bringing her to the edge, his given name spilling from her lips as she came. It was not long before he was joining her, one last cry of ecstasy hanging in the air.

They were just two people- two shadows.

The only sounds between them were the sounds of heavy breathing and the ambience of angry cabbies blaring their horns from the street. He rested his damp forehead on hers, a smile breaking the silence. Only one of his smiles could be that damn loud. She could only mirror his expression.

"That was…" he began, unimpressed with his lack of creative adjectives.

"Yeah," she finished for him. "It was." Her lips met his in one last, longing reunion before she let her head fall back to the couch. After a few more minutes of just silence and staring and silence, she spoke again.

"I love you, too."

"You said what?" Lanie's interjection jerked Kate out of the memory. The silly grin on her best friend's face did not escape Lanie. When she did not answer, another question happened. "What now?"

"That's what I asked this morning," Kate replied, her smile still etched on to her face.

"What now?" she asked, rolling over in his arms to face him. At some point in the night they had made it to her bedroom, which is where they were now laying, sheets twisted around their entwined legs.

"First things first," he said, nuzzling her neck, his scruff rough against her soft skin, earning a bright smile and a small laugh. "Let's do dinner. With Alexis." It was more or less a question. After a moment's thought, she nodded, pressing her lips to his bare chest.

"I think I'd like that."

So if you've made it this far that means I did something right.
I would love it if you dropped a line and told me about it in detail.

I would kind of love it a lot.
I am a review whore, and I'm not going to deny it.

I need them to breath, true story.

Stay awesome?

sof