Falling in Love at a Coffee Shop
"Plans for tonight?" Castle asked, setting her mug of coffee at her elbow before sitting next to her desk.
Kate picked up the mug after spinning the handle around so her palm was completely against the porcelain. "I have a date." His face, even from the corner of her eye, is completely shocked. Mouth gaping, eyes wide open, brows furrowed. She played with the idea of drawing out the minor torture that she could inflect upon him with the simple statement but he started opening and closing his mouth as if he could not find the right words. "With take-out food, my pajamas, and my boyfriends Ben and Jerry."
"Not sure I like you having two other boyfriends," he muttered around his own cup of coffee.
She reached over and patted his cheek with a smile. "Oh, calm down, Castle."
He was silent as she went back to filling in the report form for the case they had just closed. "So, why're you spending the night in the company of Vermont's finest rather than with that charming daughter of yours?" he asked, leaning his chin on the heel of his hand and studying her carefully. It used to be creepy, the way his eyes seemed to memorize her facial expressions but now it was almost comforting. Like he had her back.
"Al's going to a sleepover for her friend Maria's birthday. Got the place to myself."
He scooted closer, his breath curling over her cheek. "Care for some company, Beckett?"
"Are you really inviting yourself over to my place tonight?" she asked in disbelief.
"Uh…" he started, searching her face for a sign that she was joking. Of course he finds nothing; she's trained for this. Plus she likes playing with him when she got the chance. "Yeah. Kinda."
Kate nodded, sat back into her chair with a smile. "That's tough. Pedro's coming over."
"Pedro?" he exclaimed, bolting out of the chair. "Who's Pedro?"
Most of the bullpen had stopped, eyes turning in the direction of Kate's desk while trying to look like they weren't actually staring. The uniforms rushed back to work when Kate glared but Ryan and Esposito continued to gawk. She even saw Montgomery peeking out through the window of his office.
Kate shrugged, turning back to the D5 on her computer. "My Spanish lover."
"Your what? How could you- I mean, why would you go and- Beckett?" Her last name came out as a strangled whine as Castle sat back down in his chair, running a hand through his hair.
She got up, grabbing her mug. "I need coffee. Want some?"
Castle was back on his feet jogging after her in a flash. "Hey! You didn't answer anything!"
He shut the break room door behind them, crowding her up against the peeling linoleum counter, his hips holding her in place.
"Castle…" she warned. They had rules, rules that stated that none of *this* was to happen at work. The steel in her voice was wavering and weak, melting slowly from the heat of his body so very close to hers.
"Tell me, Kate," he murmured softly into her ear, visible since she had clipped her hair back in a lobster clasp after the wind had tangled it.
First name. Another broken rule.
"Go away," she returned, giving him a firm push on his shoulders.
The motion just made him sway closer, a foot between hers and a knee wedging between her thighs. "Kate…"
Then she went ahead and broke the rules further. Standing on her toe tips, heels of the sneakers she had worn in to work that day lifted off the ground, Kate brushed her lips over his cheek before whispering, "You are such an easy mark, Rick." As he stood in shock, she ducked out of his arms to calmly pour her coffee. "Want some?" she asked, holding the pot up between them.
"None of that drek," he said, starting up the espresso machine without looking at her.
Kate leaned her hip against the counter, mug held in both her hands despite the heat coming off the porcelain, and watched him steadfastly avoid her gaze. "Rick, what's wrong?"
He shook his head. "Nothing."
"Liar."
That had him turning, finally meeting her eyes. "What?"
"You're lying. Seriously, Castle. I was teasing, joking." Kate stepped closer to him, snagging his wrist when he moved back from her. "Answer me one question. Do I seem like the type of girl to cheat?"
Castle shifted, linking his fingers with hers. "No. No, you don't." He took the mug of coffee from her hand, put it on the counter before pulling her into a hug. "Sorry for overreacting."
"Want to come over tonight? Make it up to me?" she muttered against his shoulder with a smile.
"I'd love to," he responded. "Here," he said, handing her coffee back before taking his espresso from the machine. "Let's go finish your paperwork."
Kate followed, grinning. "You're gonna help me with paperwork?"
"Oh, did I say that? I meant, 'you come on and finish your paperwork while I watch you and whisper encouragements'. That's what I meant."
"Mmm… You know. Pedro would help me with my paperwork," Kate said with a wink.
He glared.
They left early from the precinct – Kate had to swing by her apartment to pick up the bag Al had packed for the sleepover before heading to the school to drop the bag off with Al, Maria, and her mother Gianna.
"Can we stop for coffee?" he asked, a single level of excitement from bouncing in the passenger seat.
"No."
"What about on the way back from the school?"
"Maybe."
That appeased him for the route from her apartment to Al's preschool. Instead of chatting her ear off, Castle played with the radio station, changing songs every time he didn't like the song. They went from Top 40s to R&B to rock. Each time, Kate heard him singing along under his breath, even to the Tchaikovsky that he seemed pleased with on the classical channel.
Gianna had gathered the group of girls heading to Maria's party together, a barely contained bundle of bright t-shirts and shorts next to the playground. Kate parked across the street, reaching back for Al's lime green and pink duffel bag but Castle had already snagged it, looping it over his shoulder as he jogged across the road.
"Where's my girl?" he shouted, bending down to catch Al as she ran toward him.
Kate hung back at the edge of the gaggle of girls, watching as Castle settled Al on his hip. Al was waving her hands, fingers barely missing his face as she gestured. Then Kate saw Al's eyes shift off of Castle's face and search the crowd until she yelled, "Mom!"
"Oh, so I'm second in your heart now, kid?" she asked, taking Al from Castle when the girl reached out.
Al planted a kiss on Kate's cheek before cuddling her head into her mother's neck. "Love you, Mom."
"Mhm," Kate said, resting her cheek against Al's head. "Ready for your sleepover?"
"Need my bag," Al said, poker face in place as she pulled her head back to look at Kate.
"Which Rick has."
Al squirmed out of Kate's arms, tugging on the strap of the duffel bag. "Thanks, Rick!" When Kate just stared at her daughter, Al hugged her arms around Kate's knees. "You too, Mom."
"Go back to your friends, kid. Rick and I will pick you up at Maria's house tomorrow afternoon." Kate leaned down and pressed a kiss to Al's hair. "I love you, kid."
Al stopped and wrapped her arms around Castle's legs. "Bye," she said before bouncing off to Maria's side, bumping into another girl with blonde hair.
Castle linked his fingers with Kate's as they headed back to the car. "We gonna have our own sleepover?" he murmured before they broke off to get into the vehicle.
She turned the key in the ignition, shrugging. "Totally. I'll get dressed in one of those skimpy nightgowns, strap on my garter, and have a pillow fight with you." The slack-jawed expression on his face was worth every word. Kate laughed, shaking her head a little. "Seriously, Rick. All I want to do is eat take-out Italian in a pair of shorts and a tank top while watching a movie."
"Guess that works, too," he said, reaching over to trail his fingers over the back of her hand. "But there's always time to get you out of those pajamas, right?"
Kate hummed noncommittally. "We'll see, won't we?"
"New goal for the night." He braced his hand on the back of her seat, leaning over and taking the risk of kissing her on the mouth. "Get Kate Beckett out of her pajamas."
They did stop at the coffee shop after Castle called in their order from the Italian restaurant a block from her apartment. After the argument over who would pay, Castle let Kate run in and grab their coffees and two of the huge, soft chocolate chip cookies they loved as long as she let him pay for the dinner. She handed him the cups and white pastry bag before driving the last few minutes back to the apartment.
The apartment was steaming from sitting with closed windows for the entire day. Kate dropped her keys on the kitchen counter with her purse before running around the place to open those windows and let the barely-there breeze ruffle the pile of bills on the coffee table. Castle unpacked the Italian lasagna and side order of meatballs, pulling down plates from one of the cabinets and two sets of forks and knives from a drawer.
Kate paused, half-sitting on the back of the couch as she watched him transfer lasagna from the foil take-out container. In her kitchen. Like he belonged there. Sometimes it hit her and made her want to run in the opposite direction. This was not one of those times.
"I'm gonna change." When Castle moved to follow her with a wink, Kate stopped in the hallway, glaring. "You stay there. I'll never get into my pajamas if you weasel your way into the bedroom."
"Oh, but wouldn't you want me to weasel my way into-"
"Out, Rick!" she shouted with a smile that gave away her true feelings.
Five minutes later, she snuck up behind him in a long fitted tank and a pair of boyshorts. Snaking her arms around his waist and hugging herself against his back, Kate pressed an open-mouthed kiss to the curve of his neck. "Hey, handsome."
Fingers wrapped around her wrists, he brought her left hand up to kiss the heel of her palm. "Hey yourself. Ready for…" When he turned around, the words trailed off. "Oh my God, Kate."
"What?" she asked, moving around him to pick up her plate and fork. "You've seen me naked. This shouldn't be a shock."
"But I'll never, ever get used to it." He watched her walk from the kitchen to the living room, dropping onto the couch with a huff of breath that zipped through him. "Don't really want to, now that I think of it." Castle followed, sitting closely next to her.
"You're such a guy," she muttered, stabbing a quarter of a meatball and eating it. "All about the body."
He trailed a series of hot kisses up her bare shoulder. "I do adore your mind. More than your body, actually."
"Stop and eat your dinner. Kisses later."
"Oh so there will be kissing," he grinned.
"Maybe not even that if you don't shush and eat." Kate shook her head. "Goodness, you are worse than Al with eating dinner."
Castle took her plate from her, setting both of them on the coffee table before he gave her a push on the shoulder so she was stretched out on the couch under him. Before she could protest, he kissed her, running his tongue along the seam of her lips. She opened her mouth, letting him stroke his tongue along the roof of her mouth on a soft moan. Her fingers crept up, curling around his bicep as his lips travel down her jaw to her throat.
"Rick… dinner."
He hummed against the base of her neck, savoring the shiver that raced through her. "Later."
Kate turned her head to the side, trying to focus her mind on something other than how good it felt to have his fingers tightening around her waist, inching the tank top up so her stomach was bared. "Castle," she huffed out even as he trailed down to the thin skin of her chest. "Food's gonna get cold."
"We'll nuke it," he muttered against her collarbone, fingers dipping under the waistband of her underwear. "I do love you, Kate."
"Love you too, Rick. Now pick either sex, small talk, or food or I'll pick for you."
"Oh, definitely sex," Castle said, tugging her tank top over her head. "We can eat after."
Kate hooked a leg over his thigh and before he could stop her, she had flipped them. She grinned down at him, her hair falling out of her ponytail and tickling his face. "Here or in the bed?"
Looping his arm around her waist and tugging her down onto his chest with a hard exhale, Castle captured her mouth. "Here. Definitely right here."