Falling in Love at a Coffee Shop
Castle decided to not to wake Kate up when the taxi dropped them off in front of the building. After paying the driver, he scooted out of the car, taking Al's hand to help her out onto the sidewalk.
"Stay there while I get Mom from the other side, okay?" he asked, waiting for Al to nod as she tried to hide a smile.
Kate weighed next to nothing as he slipped his arms under her knees and back. The driver only grinned as he drove off with a little wave back at the trio. Eduardo opened the door for them, winking at Al.
"You wear your mother out, Miss Beckett?" he asked, walking ahead to press the elevator call button that Al raced him to, hitting the up arrow with a smile.
"No, Rick made her tired at work. She's sleepy."
"I can see that." The man nodded toward Castle. "You got these two under control?"
With Kate's head lolled against his shoulder, Castle tried to move as little as possible so as not to wake her. "Oh, I think it's the other way around; they've got me securely under their thumbs. Have a good night, Eduardo."
"Night, Ed!"
"Good night, Mr. Castle, Miss Beckett."
What Castle really wanted to do was pinch himself. Or scream like one of his crazy fangirls. But both would have to wait since he was far too distracted by Al, bouncing next to him and making the car wiggle, and the soft curl of Kate's breath against his neck. The moment was too surreal to break it apart with a squeal.
He had to carefully maneuver to get his key from his pocket without dropping Kate on the floor.
"Where's Mom gonna sleep?" Al asked as she watched Castle kick the door closed behind them.
He scanned the room, wondering the same question. There was the couch, but if he let her sleep there, then where would he and Al play? There was a guest room upstairs but he wasn't sure he wanted to risk the stairs; visions of tripping and crushing Kate beneath him made him strike that idea immediately.
"Let's put her in my room. We can close the door so we won't wake her up," he whispered.
Al pushed the doors open ahead of him. Castle laid Kate on the bed, tugging her shoes off. Not a moment after he dropped the heels onto the floor near the bedside table, the woman curled into a ball, hugging the pillow to her cheek as she sighed.
Castle scooped Al up under her armpits and deposited her on his shoulders. "Don't hit your head on the way out."
He closed the door until it was only cracked open as they went back into the living room.
Al wrapped her arms around his forehead, resting her chin on his head. "Can we make a fort again?"
"Duh," he said, holding onto her legs as he zigzagged through the study before tossing her onto the couch. "Let's get building, partner."
Kate woke in the dark. She blinked, trying to place exactly where she was but the room was unfamiliar. Using her elbow, she propped herself up on the pillows. They sunk in around the joint so she had to shift again. Still fully dressed save for her shoes, she was on top of the bed, the sheets and comforter tucked in beneath her.
As her eyes adjusted to the dim lighting, she could make out a thin line of light from the cracked door. It illuminated a bit of an armchair shoved into the corner of the room near the windows. A closet door was open next to it, the interior too dark for Kate to make out any of the items inside.
It wasn't her bedroom; that much was clear.
She pushed her hair out of her face as she swung out of the bed. The hardwood floor under her bare feet was warm as she moved toward the line of light. She recognized the study from the bookshelves but the rest of the area was just as dark as the bedroom. The only sound was the main menu music to The Little Mermaid, transporting the loft to a world under the sea.
"Al? Rick?"
No response. As she rounded the bookshelves she saw why.
Under a fort built using the couch cushions as walls and blankets as the roof were her daughter and her friend. Both were fast asleep, Al using Castle's arm as a pillow. Kate leaned her shoulder against the shelf on her left, holding her elbows as she watched the two.
"You're awake."
His voice made her start, squinting toward him to see that he was looking at her. "It appears that way, doesn't it?"
"Give me a second," he said. Then she tried to hide a smile by pursing her lips together as he carefully extracted his arm from under Al's head, replacing it with a throw pillow. Somehow he didn't knock down a single cushion as he crawled out from the fort. Kate got a glimpse of his abs before he pulled his shirt down. "Talk in the kitchen."
She followed him over, pausing to check on Al. The girl was well and truly out, not moving even when Kate brushed a hand over her cheek. In the kitchen, Castle was pouring out coffee for each of them.
"You made a fort with my daughter," she said, sliding onto one of the barstools at the counter, wrapping her hands around the warmth of the mug.
He sat next to her, their elbows bumping into one another, his thigh pressing against hers. "And carried you to the elevator."
"How gentlemanly of you."
Castle hummed in agreement, taking a sip of his coffee. "I should be rewarded."
Kate nudged him with her fist, grinning. "You are all about rewards, aren't you? Someone runs on operant conditioning. You do something manly, I give you a kiss. Repeat."
"Whatever works," he muttered, tilting his head toward her. "So?"
"So what?"
"Do I get a kiss? For being manly and carrying you to the loft and then entertaining your daughter by singing along with Ariel until she fell asleep on me?" He raised a brow with a grin. "That's an awful lot for one man. I should get at least a peck on the cheek."
Kate again tried to hide her smile, pulling her lower lip between her teeth for a moment as she spun the mug on the polished granite counter. "Listen, Rick. I need to… Can…" She took a deep breath. "I know I asked you before but…"
She knew what she was trying to ask but the words weren't cooperating. They tangled up in her chest and she kept trying to find the right one but it disappeared in with the rest as soon as she grabbed it up. So instead, she looked up at him, hoping he would read her eyes.
"You want to define the lines of this," he said, waving a hand between them .
He got it. Thank goodness he got it. But his reaction, what he said about their could-be relationship, is what Kate was truly frightened of. Friends, she could settle with – Al would be more than happy to simply spend time with him and Kate could live with that. More than friends scared her. But he had stuck around so far and she sensed that he might be willing to wait for her to open up the little piece of her heart that had been locked away five years ago.
Castle let go of his mug and took her fingers from hers, the heat from hers transferring to him. "Kate," he said softly, drawing her eyes up to his. "I want whatever part of your lives that you're willing to let me into. If that means that we get together for coffee once a week, the three of us, after work, I'll be happy. If you want to try something more, then we'll try that." With their hands still joined, he lifted them up to smooth his thumb over her cheekbone. "Whatever you want, Kate, I'll give it to you."
Kate found herself moving into the motion. "Come on a date. With Al and me." When his eyes widened, she stumbled over her words as she tried to explain herself. "I mean, if 'we' happen, I want Al to be okay with it. Because as much as I like you, Rick, Al's my daughter. She'll always come first."
"Okay."
"Okay?" she asked as he rubbed his thumb over her knuckles.
He smiled softly. "Okay. I'll go on a date with you and Al." Castle took a sip of the coffee, still grinning while watching her from the corner of his eyes. "But you better make it worth it. Not every day that the girl gets to ask the guy out."
Kate floundered, her mouth opening and closing. "This is the twenty-first century, Mr. Castle. Women can ask men out any time they like. But I can assure you, this date will be like none that you have gone on before."
"Oh, of that I have no doubt." He set the coffee mug on the counter, turning to her with a brow raised. "Now, about that kiss…"
She gave his hand a little tug toward her as she turned her hand over, scraping her short nails over his palm before curling around his fingertips. She leaned forward until her nose brushed his. Just before their lips met, she pulled back. "I'll owe you."
"You are a tease, Katherine Beckett," he murmured as he watched her calmly take a sip of her coffee. "Better be some kiss to make up for that."
"Hope the suspense doesn't kill you."
"I'm sure I'll find some way to survive."
Kate glanced over at the television screen. "We should hit play again or something. Hearing the same song over and over is going to make me never want to see that movie again." She got up, releasing his hand and pulling hers from under his warm palm. "Want to watch something else or go with silence?"
He wandered behind her, watching unashamedly as she bent down to eject the DVD from the player. "I was always a fan of Robin Hood. It's only on VHS though."
"Old school. I like it," she said, shaking the disc on her finger. "Where's the case?"
Castle tossed it to her as he dug out the tape of Robin Hood. "The couch might be uncomfortable without the cushions. Put the tape in and I'll get some pillows."
Kate slipped the VHS into the player just as Castle emerged from the study with an armful of pillows, blankets, and a pair of black heels. "These are yours. Figured you'd be more comfortable napping without the possibility of stabbing yourself." He dropped them next to the couch before arranging the pillows so they could sit at ease.
She crossed her legs as she sat, smiling as he settled just close enough that he could brush his fingers over her knee. As the rob-from-the-rich-give-to-the-poor fox on screen started to whistle with Little John, she turned to Castle. "Thank you."
"For what?" he asked, brow furrowing as he looked away from the TV.
"For… everything." She swallowed, letting her fingers twine with his on her knee. "It's been a long time since I've been able to do this. Just let go."
Before she could stop him, Castle tugged her so her knee hit his thigh as he let his lips press against hers. He was able to feel her gasp of surprise before he sat back. "Any time, Kate."
She touched her fingertips to her lips, smiling behind them. "That doesn't count as my kiss. Just so you know."
"Oh, definitely not. I expect you to be the instigator in that one."
"Quiet!"
Both Kate and Castle blinked. A head of tousled brown curls popped up from within the fort, glaring back at the adults. "Trying to watch Robin Hood."
While Castle tried to stifle a laugh, Kate nodded solemnly. "Of course, Al. We'll be quiet now."
Al grinned. "Morning, Mom!" Then she disappeared into her fortress.
"When's our date?" he asked quietly so as not to disturb Al.
Kate shrugged, reclaiming his hand. "How about Saturday?"