"So I think a quick toast is necessary," Castle said, sitting at one end of the table. "Here's to the holiday, and spending it with friends and family."
"Cheers," Beckett said, tapping her wine glass against his. She felt a small hand tugging her sleeve and she looked down at Julia asking, "What's wrong sweetie?"
"Do I do that too?" Julia said, peering up at her.
Castle smiled as the little girl tapped her glass with her mother and grandfather and he said as they began to eat, "Do you know what you're going to draw yet for your assignment Julia?"
"Give her a little more time to decide," Beckett said. "It's still Thanksgiving."
"I know what I want to draw now Mommy," Julia said.
"Really? What is it?" Beckett asked as she pushed some of Julia's hair behind her ear.
"When I was riding on the horsie with you," the little girl said proudly.
"That's a good idea," Alexis said. "Since you had so much fun doing that."
"It is," Beckett said. "I'll help you draw it this weekend okay?" Her father then started to ask Julia about school that week, and she turned to Castle, talking with him while the others focused on her daughter and Alexis.
When the meal had ended, Castle and Beckett cleaned up while they were watching Julia sliding around the floor since she was wearing tights and had taken off her shoes.
"You better be care-" Castle began to say when Julia suddenly fell down. "Ful, well, I tried," he said to his girlfriend.
"She's okay," Beckett said with a slight laugh as Julia's giggle reached them. "Sweetie, why don't you go and put your slippers on now okay?"
"Do I have to?" Julia said, jogging and sliding to her mother.
"Yes, I'll take you," Beckett said.
"Actually, I'll take her," Alexis said. "And then we can put your bag in my room okay?"
"I feel like some fresh air," Castle said when their daughters had gone to his room. "Care for a stroll around the roof?"
"Sure, do you want to join us Dad, Martha?" Beckett directed to the two who were sitting at the table still, playing with a deck of cards.
"No, no, I don't want to bundle up until tomorrow when I brave the cold and possible snow to make my rounds among the boutiques," Martha said, waving her hand.
"I'm fine Katie, I'll keep an eye on Julia when she comes down," Jim said as Castle helped Beckett into her coat.
"Tell her we're not going to take that long," Beckett said. "And she needs to stay in where it's warm." She waited for Castle to put on his coat before they headed out, putting on their gloves and scarves as they went to the elevator. "Any reason you wanted to come out here?" she asked when they were on the roof and leaning against the side, looking out at the view.
"Just wanted to have a little of this, but not in front of your daughter," Castle said, taking out a bottle of champagne he'd kept hidden in his coat.
"Nice, glasses?" Beckett asked before he pulled them from an inside pocket. "Well, that would explain why you kept your coat open even though it's freezing."
"Kept the champagne chilled though," Castle said, opening the bottle before he poured out the liquid into the glasses he'd set on the edge. "To your first Thanksgiving with Julia," he said after they were each holding one of the flutes.
"You mean our first Thanksgiving with Julia," Beckett said with a smile at his toast.
Castle parted his lips as something struck him, in the way she had worded that, and tried to speak as he could see Beckett looked a little concerned.
"What is it?" she asked, touching his arm.
"No, just, realized you're right," Castle said, shaking himself then. "Cheers."
Beckett was certain there was more to it than that, but she decided not to push the matter as they took a sip of the drink. "It was a nice one," she said. "Though really, it's not over, we just took a break."
"Still, I figured it would be better to do that on our own than have Julia ask what we mean by the phrase first Thanksgiving," Castle said.
"I know, I should thank you for inviting my dad since we're talking about that," Beckett said.
"Would he have celebrated with you and Julia if we hadn't had dinner?" Castle asked.
"I'm not sure," Beckett said. She took another sip of champagne and then said, "I was shocked he decided to come actually."
"I am too," Castle said. "When I mentioned today I didn't really think you'd agree to it. I honestly thought you'd want to celebrate just the three of you."
"Well, our family is extended," Beckett said with a slight smile. "And you are supposed to spend the holiday with the ones you love."
"It's a suggestion, but I appreciate you taking it," Castle said, smiling.
"That and I think Julia would have wondered why we weren't celebrating with you," Beckett said. She smiled back at him as he took her glass and then pulled her closer to him. "But I've been enjoying today, which is saying a lot."
"I'm aware of that, and I'm happy to have made the day a good one," Castle said. "You're referring to our ride I'm guessing."
"Of course," Beckett said. "You know that I've always seen riding as something I did on my own. When I was younger with my mom we'd ride together, but when I was older, I was off on my own in the park."
"So did you mind me joining you?" Castle asked.
"Believe me, if I didn't want you to go with me, I would have made sure you didn't," Beckett said, smiling again. "But I think we should definitely do it again, next year though, and in warmer weather."
"Definitely," Castle echoed, nodding. He smiled at her and then said, "Speaking of that, we should probably head back inside?"
"Not yet," Beckett said simply, cupping his cheeks in her hands and pulling him to her. She wrapped her arms around him when their lips met, and felt his circle her, bringing her flush against him; or as much as he could with the extra layers they'd put on. Still, it did not detract from the kiss, and when they parted to breathe she pressed her forehead against his, wanting to repeat the action shortly.
Castle wanted the same thing, but when he moved to press his lips to hers, he felt something wet on his cheek that startled him, making him open his eyes and look at Beckett, seeing she was looking up. "Oh, they weren't kidding," he said when he saw tiny flakes of snow drifting down around them. "I thought you were crying for some reason. We'd better go back in."
Beckett followed him inside, and when they stepped into his loft she smiled when Julia ran over to them. "Wait! Wait sweetie, I think I'm pretty cold, let me get my coat off," she said, stopping her before the little girl could hug her.
Julia hopped from foot to foot until her mother embraced her, picking her up in her arms. "Why did you go outside Mommy?" she asked.
"We just wanted some fresh air," Beckett said, kissing her cheek. "It's starting to snow Dad," she said as she went over to the table.
"Heavily?" Jim asked. When his daughter related it was only light flakes at that point, he nodded and said, "I think I can stay for a little longer."
"What do we do now?" Julia asked as she sat on her mother's lap as she sat at the table.
"Play cards would be the obvious thing," Castle said as Jim was shuffling a deck.
"What would Julia do though?" Alexis asked.
"Actually there's a game I know, it's from Spain," Jim said. "I picked it up on my trips. It's pretty simple and would help her with counting," he said, directing the latter to his daughter.
"Will we be exchanging money?" Beckett asked.
"We could just use chips without putting money behind them," Alexis suggested.
"Alright, for a little," Beckett said.
After Castle had gotten the chips, he had remembered dessert, and the game was delayed for everyone to get something to eat before they gathered back around the table. "So what's the game called?" Castle asked as Jim was shuffling the cards again.
"Cinquillo," Jim replied as he started to deal. "At its basis is the five of coins; this is a Spanish deck of cards. That's set down first, then it goes higher or lower from the five, or if you have another five of the cups, clubs or swords then you put that down and play from that, the object being getting rid of all your cards."
"Sounds interesting," Castle said. "And the chips?"
Jim waited to answer until everyone was looking at their cards and then replied, "We go around the table clockwise from me, and if you have the five of coins Katie, put it down, if not, you need to pay a chip."
After Beckett had set down the five of coins, the game continued, her father answering some questions here and there. Alexis ended up winning that game, collecting a number of chips before she shuffled and then dealt the cards again. As they started a second game, Julia was a little anxious, and she climbed down from her mother's lap to stand next to Castle, looking at his cards.
At first, Beckett didn't think much of Castle whispering to her daughter, but when Julia started to run back and forth between them, she realized what was going on. "Castle," she said, getting the attention of the others. "Are you teaching my daughter how to cheat?"
"What? No, I'm just telling her to… get some exercise," Castle said.
"He's wrinkling his nose, that's his tell," Alexis said with a smile.
"I know, Julia, come here sweetie," Beckett said. When she had run back to her, she put her daughter on her lap and slapped Castle on the arm with her cards. "Don't do that please," she said, though she was smiling.
"Yeah, got it," Castle said. "Sorry though, I've got a terrible hand."
"Mommy, was I bad?" Julia asked in a whisper as the game continued.
"No, I was," Castle said before Beckett could reply. "You're not really supposed to do that, but I knew it was wrong, so it's my fault."
"I'm sorry Mommy," Julia said, looking up at her.
"You don't have to apologize, Castle did," Beckett said, kissing her forehead. "So don't worry okay?"
"Kay," Julia said. "Are you winning Mommy?"
"Let's see," Beckett said, kissing her forehead again and smiling as her daughter giggled happily in response as they looked at her cards together.
"I'll see you on Sunday night for dinner," Jim was saying as he put on his jacket and scarf at the door nearly two hours after they'd begun to play the card game. "I hope you'll let me see that picture Julia, if you finish it."
"She will," Beckett assured her father with a smile. "Get home safe Dad."
"I'll be alright, I'll call you tomorrow and see how your day goes at the museum," Jim said, hugging his daughter tightly. He then picked up Julia who kissed him on the cheek saying, "I hope you had a good Thanksgiving."
"Yes Grandpapa, when is Sunday?" Julia asked eagerly.
"Soon, but don't forget you've got three days to spend with your mom, she doesn't have to go to work and you don't have school," Jim told her, smiling with Beckett when the little girl clapped her hands eagerly.
"Say goodnight Julia," Beckett told her daughter. "Your grandpapa has to get home before it snows any harder."
"Do you have to?" Julia asked.
"I do, but I will see you Sunday," Jim assured her. "Goodnight Julia."
"Night Grandpapa," Julia said seriously before she kissed his cheek again and hugged him around the neck as he hugged her back. He set her down and then shook Castle's hand thanking him for inviting him to dinner.
Locking the door after Beckett's father had left; Castle turned to her and said, "Went pretty well I think we can say for sure now."
"Yes, but we don't really need to keep doing that every time we have a successful get together with our parents," Beckett said as Julia ran over to Alexis and Martha who were sitting on the couch.
"True," Castle said slowly. "So," he said quickly before Beckett could ask him what was wrong. "What do we do now?"
"She needs to head to bed," Beckett said, turning with him to walk to the couch.
"But Mommy," Julia said softly from where she was sitting on Alexis' lap. "Alexis is going to play the game with me."
"Which one?" Beckett asked.
"Cut the Rope?" Castle said. When Julia nodded, a wide smile on her face, he returned it with one of his own and told Beckett, "I think I should get that game for your tablet, so you two can play when me or Alexis aren't around."
"That would be nice," Beckett said. She then directed to Julia, "I'll let you play for ten minutes, and then you really need to go to bed sweetie."
"Thank you!" Julia said happily before she turned her attention back to the tablet.
"So Kate, I would love to know how you got into riding," Martha said, sitting back down after refilling her glass of wine.
"It's a long story," Beckett said with a slight smile as she knew Castle was glancing at her. "But I think I can condense it to ten minutes." She quickly related how she had started to ride horses and her half season on the Stanford Equestrian team. She didn't mention riding a horse for the first time with her mother, as she didn't really feel comfortable bringing that into the conversation.
"It's a shame you weren't able to get more into that," Martha said when Beckett had finished about leaving the team, being very vague about the reason. "From what I saw earlier I believe you would have gone very far."
"In the cross-country I think," Beckett said. "That was always my strongest event, but dressage and show jumping-"
"Show jumping you could have done great in," Castle said. "You did incredibly well today, and you haven't ridden a horse in how long?"
"It wasn't like I was prepared to go to the Olympics," Beckett said, checking her watch. "It's more of a hobby really." She stood up then and said, "Okay, Julia, it's been ten minutes."
Sighing deeply, Julia let her mother pick her up, and she waved at the others over her shoulder as Beckett took her upstairs. As she was being changed for bed she said eagerly, "That was fun Mommy."
"Good, I'm glad that you enjoyed it," Beckett said with a smile as Julia pushed her hair off her face before yawning.
"Yeah, when can we do it again?" Julia asked.
"At Christmas I think we can," Beckett said absently as she tried to get her daughter to lie on the bed so she could tuck her in. "Come on sweetie," she said, getting slightly impatient.
"But I didn't say goodnight to them," Julia said, slipping off the bed.
"Okay, okay, just put on your slippers before you- Julia!" Beckett said, calling her name as her daughter ran out of the room in her bare feet.
"That wasn't too bad," Alexis was saying to her father as she sat down next to him on the couch with some hot chocolate.
"Oh I know, it was pretty fun," Castle said. "Christmas dinner should be nice too."
"I'm surprised you're planning on doing the present exchange on Christmas morning instead of Christmas Eve," Alexis said with a smile.
"Well, since we're celebrating with-" Castle began to say before he fell silent. When his mother and daughter looked at him in surprise he then smiled and turned towards the stairs. "Your mom's not going to be happy Julia," he said as the little girl's bare feet were the first thing he saw as she descended.
"I forgot to say goodnight," Julia said after she had carefully made her way down the stairs. She ran over to Martha and hugged her saying, "Goodnight."
"Goodnight kiddo," Martha said, pinching her chin gently to the little girl's happy giggle. "I'll see you in the morning before you leave I'm sure."
"Night Alexis," Julia said, hurrying over to her. "Thank you for showing me the Snoopy show today."
"You're welcome, I'm glad you had a good time," Alexis said, hugging the little girl.
"Did you?" Julia asked.
"Very much," Alexis said, nodding.
"Say goodnight to Castle now sweetie," Beckett said, having come down after her daughter.
"Can you come with my mommy and me?" Julia asked him shyly once she had reached him.
"Of course," Castle said, standing up. "Why don't I take you up?" he asked. When she didn't answer, only held her arms up towards him, he smiled up picked her up, swinging her onto his hip. "Geez, your feet are freezing Julia," he said, touching them as he followed Beckett up the stairs. "That didn't make you cold?"
"Little," Julia said.
"I was going to let you come down," Beckett told her. "You just needed to wait for me to help you with your slippers."
"Too long," Julia replied, giggling when her mother looked back at her. "Do I have to sleep? Can't I stay up as long as you?" she asked as Beckett took her and laid her down on the bed.
"You'll be asleep really quickly," Castle said.
"And you'll be warmer up here too, and with Stitch," Beckett said as she tucked the doll under the covers next to her daughter.
"I'll see you tomorrow Julia," Castle said, leaning over so she could kiss his cheek. "Goodnight," he told her as he kissed hers.
"Night," Julia said. "You are coming to the museum?"
"I definitely am," Castle said. "Got an idea right now, why don't we try and scare your mom-"
"And how is that going to work when I'm right here listening to you?" Beckett asked, cutting him off as she gave him a look.
"I had to give it a chance," Castle said, shrugging as Julia giggled slightly at their exchange. "Okay, so we won't scare her, but we'll still have fun I'm sure."
"Yeah," Julia said. "Night."
"Night Julia," Castle said again before he went to the doorway to wait.
"Mommy, can we ride the horsie… Asturias," Julia began, going slowly over the horse's name so she wouldn't stumble in the pronunciation. "Like before again?"
"Yes," Beckett said. "And yes you can learn to ride a horse like I did, but it might be hard to do that and take your dance classes."
"I want to do both Mommy, pleeeease?" Julia asked.
"Okay," Beckett said, laughing slightly. "But we need to wait a little for you to get taller before I let you learn to ride."
"How can I get taller now?" Julia said.
"You're going to need to wait sweetie," Beckett said. "You'll grow taller when your body does it on its own."
"What if I stretch a lot? My arms and legs and then I'm tall?" Julia asked, reaching up as far as she could with her right arm.
"I don't think so, but you'll grow taller," Beckett assured her. "Actually, you have already."
"How do you know?" Julia enquired interestedly.
"Because we've measured you remember, and I've had to buy you new clothes since the summer," Beckett said. "In bigger sizes than your old clothes."
"Oh, that's good, I'm glad," Julia said. "I want to ride just like you Mommy."
"I know, and I'm proud that you want to do that. But I hope you want to ride because you like it," Beckett said. "Especially now that you've ridden a horse."
"Yeah, I love horsies, more than ponies, and I want to jump and ride in the park like you and Castle did," Julia said excitedly.
"You will, but for now," Beckett said, tucking the covers back around her. "You need to get some sleep." She leaned over and kissed her daughter's forehead before they shared a kiss and she murmured, "Sweet dreams Julia, I love you." She had to smile when the little girl mumbled something, "Mommy," being the only thing she could understand. But she knew Julia had likely said I love you, so she stood up so she could sleep. Walking to Castle, she closed the light, and watched her daughter sleep for a little, only the light from outside letting her see her daughter's cheek and her lips pursed up slightly as Julia squirmed before calming down. She felt her boyfriend's hand on her waist, and turned to close the door before they went down the stairs to where Martha and Alexis were sitting together on the couch.
"I could use some coffee," Castle said, looking at Beckett. "Not really ready for sleep yet."
"That would be nice," Beckett said with a smile.
"And is she fast asleep?" Martha asked.
"She is," Beckett said. "Had to talk her into sleep, but she got there."
"How is she doing?" Alexis then said. "If it's okay for me to ask?" she added quickly.
"It's fine, you're her friend and I know you're worried after what happened last week," Beckett said. She waited a moment, to see if Castle was finished in the kitchen and saw he was walking over with two mugs in his hands. "I took her to her doctor Tuesday afternoon, right after ballet," she began, thanking him after taking her coffee and drinking a little. "And explained what had happened, the drawing, her nightmare."
"But she seems to be fine," Martha said. "You would never know seeing her today that she had any problems at school."
"The doctor agreed," Beckett said. "And she thinks it's most likely because after this past case, I was able to spend time with Julia. She suggested I should do that in the future, should something like it happen again, if I'm able to manage it. But she told me too, that this could have been a lot worse if we haven't been helping Julia realize what my job entails exactly. And also have told her that though it's dangerous, I take care of myself."
"As do Richard, Esposito and Ryan," Martha said.
"Yes, her doctor is really happy that Espo and Ryan have gotten to know her too," Beckett said with a smile. "Having 'uncles' who also work with me helps her feel better, and Julia said during the appointment that she knows they watch out for me. And of course you," she said, turning to Castle.
"A surprise, since I don't carry a gun," he said. "But I'm glad she understands I still do."
"She, Julia's doctor, suggested that if she continues to have problems worrying about my safety at work, that I take her in to the station one day," Beckett said, slowing down at the end as she became thoughtful.
"Does she remember being at the Precinct before?" Castle asked, quickly understanding why she had done that.
"I don't think so, remember, she's forgotten her mother, so I don't think she remembers anything before I brought her to my apartment," Beckett said. She took a deep breath and started to speak, but then hesitated, feeling Castle taking her hand.
"You think she'll remember her mother if she goes to the Precinct," Alexis said.
"Yeah, I think I'll have to talk to her doctor after the holiday," Beckett said. "Is it wrong of me to not want her to remember?"
"Not at all," Martha said in a firm tone of voice. "You are that child's mother to her and to yourself. But if there's the off chance she remembers her mother, I think she might understand what happened. She's incredibly bright; she picks up on lines much faster than some of my students. I'm almost tempted to have her join in some readings, or just make her the prompter. But Kate, I know you're worried that she might remember the fact you are not her biological mother. However, you've adopted her, given her your name and made her your child. Regardless of the fact you did not give birth to her, I believe, very strongly, she will love you as much as she does now if she ever remembers."
"I hope you're right Martha," Beckett said, smiling a little. She then sighed and said to Castle, "I hate being so unsure of myself. It's been happing too much since I adopted Julia."
"Well, you were kind of thrown into motherhood," he replied. "And really, there's nothing that can prepare you for becoming a parent. You just do the best you can as you go."
"Very true," Martha said. "It's even harder when you're a single parent, but I think you'll do well."
"My dad likes to joke that being a cop will probably be easier than being a mother," Beckett said with a slight laugh. "But I'll see about that."
"I believe that is my cue to make my exit," Martha said, standing up. "I've said my monologue for the night, so I will say goodnight."
"Goodnight Martha," Beckett said as Castle and Alexis wished her a goodnight as well. She then finished the rest of her coffee and asked his daughter, "How's Max doing?"
"He's good," Alexis said. "He always asks how Julia is now when we see each other. He has a niece around her age, Julia reminds him of her. But he told me yesterday that his family's going to Hawaii for the winter break next month."
"Interesting, have you thought of a gift to give him?" Castle asked.
"It's still a month until we were planning on exchanging gifts Dad," Alexis said.
"But you've already started to think about it," Beckett said, glancing at Castle and then his daughter.
"I have some ideas," Alexis conceded. "And I'll work them out on my own. I'm heading up to my room. I'll try not to wake up Julia. Goodnight Beckett, night Dad."
"Night," Beckett said, smiling as she watched the young woman go up the stairs. "I'm impressed," she said, looking at him.
"You could tell I was fighting the urge to suggest gifts," Castle stated. When Beckett merely smiled and stood up, he laughed and followed her saying, "Am I that easy to read?"
"After spending almost six years around you, you've become easier to read, not easy, but easier," Beckett said. "And I know how you are when it comes to Christmas."
"Speaking of that," Castle said, closing his bedroom door behind them. "How are you feeling?"
"About what? Christmas?" Beckett asked in surprise.
"Yeah, I'm still not sure what exactly you want to do concerning celebrating it," Castle replied.
"I'm not planning on working, you know I have those same two weeks of Julia's winter break off," Beckett said. "And as for celebrating… I'd like it to be as normal as possible. Just, please watch it with decorating."
"That's why I asked you," Castle said.
"Have you ever celebrated in the Hamptons?" Beckett said.
"A couple times, but when Alexis was much younger," Castle said. "Do you mind going out there?"
"No, actually I was relieved when you suggested it, it would be harder to really do anything here in the city," Beckett said. "Since I know already that Ryan and Espo want to give Julia a present; it's much easier to have a lunch the Saturday before we leave, and then be able to celebrate together without worrying if anyone sees us together in the park or any place in the city for that matter."
"You have a point," Castle said. "I just thought Julia would enjoy going back, instead of being cooped up in your place or mine."
"It'll be her first winter she can go outside," Beckett said with a smile. "I'm planning on giving her skates."
"Great, there's a pond in the Hamptons where people usually head out to skate when it's frozen enough. And I can finally see you skate," Castle said.
"I'll probably be concentrating more on making sure my daughter doesn't hurt herself trying to learn," Beckett said with a slight smile. "But to go back to our brief discussion about decorating," she said as she stepped up to him and wrapped her arms around him. "I would like to have some say in it, Julia and I actually."
"Great, I'll be glad to have your help," Castle said. "It's kind of late though, to talk about decorations."
"Almost eleven, that is late," Beckett said, checking her watch before she felt his lips on her cheek. "We can wait to talk tomorrow," she then said, turning back to him before they kissed, and hard. She clung to him a little before they pulled apart to breathe, and she let him pull her over to his bed.
Holding Beckett's hands in between them as they kissed again, Castle trailed down to her neck when they had parted, and took a chance in nipping slightly at her skin. When he got the loud sound of a breath being sucked in, he moved away from her, and carefully pulled off her blouse before they were kissing while she unbuttoned his shirt.
Beckett was fairly certain that the room had been a touch chilly when they'd first entered it; as the snow was falling a little heavier outside; but as she and Castle made their way onto the bed finally undressed, her skin was burning. Each pass of his hands and lips on her bare body was making her shake, and she followed him as he lay back. She was a little startled when he pushed her back up, but quickly realized what he was telling her. She kissed him again, holding onto his arms so he couldn't make her sit up on her knees. As they were struggling a little between one another; something they were both familiar with doing from time to time; she straddled him with her knees and finally allowed herself to sit up as he held onto her tightly.
Letting Beckett bend over again once they were coupled together, Castle ran his hands up and down her back, grunting slightly into her mouth as she suddenly began to move. He quickly started to react, and from the way her mouth slid off his lips to press her cheek against his own, he knew she was feeling the same way. He slid his fingertips over her skin, partially to; hopefully; arouse her more than she already was, but also because he enjoyed the action, the slight tense of her muscles right under the skin adding to his own desire he was already dealing with.
Sitting back up as she was almost panting to get her breath back, Beckett felt Castle shifting on the bed below her, and glanced back over her shoulder, seeing his legs had bent slightly. She could then feel him thrusting up against her, making her gasp out his name slightly. His hand reached up, and pulled her hair that had fallen over her shoulder off her breast, and she had to gasp as he cupped it firmly. She moved his hand from her, and let him grab onto the small of her back before she bent over again. But that time she only briefly kissed him before she moved back up and quickened her pace, his grip on her indicating that he was enjoying the difference.
Watching her, Castle could feel his self control slipping away every time their bodies met. He tried to ignore it, but seeing her moving on him, the way her body was reacting to each strike of their hips together, it became harder and harder to do so. Luckily it wasn't a negative; trying not to reach the inevitable end; and he let himself enjoy raking his eyes up and down his girlfriend's form before she was suddenly cupping his cheek and he had to react, hoping she wouldn't stop him.
Reaching down, Beckett grabbed Castle's arm tightly as he turned his head and proceeded to kiss around her palm and fingers. She wasn't too taken aback when his lips pressed in a neat line, three times in quick succession before he was suddenly going off, as if he was trying to cover as much of her skin as possible before he was stopped. She let him do that for a while longer, then slowly pulled her hand away from him, and set her hands on his chest for better control.
Groaning out loud, Castle's fingers entwined together as he held onto the small of her back, watching her and feeling his body reacting swiftly to her. As he inched closer towards the edge, he hurriedly moved his right hand in between them, and proceeded to carefully let his fingers explore the junction of her legs. He felt her tense above him, but didn't stop, even as her hand clamped down on his wrist. He almost thought that she was going to stop him, but she proceeded to move him faster, making his fingers roll around in a circular motion, as opposed to the up and down way he'd been going before. He breathed out heavily as his fingertips grew damper, and he sped up his own thrusts against hers as they locked gazes unexpectedly.
Her breath seeming to leave her for a moment, Beckett nearly gasped as she lost control of her body in that instant, the distraction of the intensity in Castle's eyes enough to let her forget that she was almost fighting to keep from reaching her climax. But the ecstasy that ran through her entire body, making her think again that she was burning up, was enough to make up for the fact. She was somewhat aware of Castle joining her, but it took her a while to realize they had both experienced that end so close together; not until she had stopped shaking from the unexpected force. "Castle," she breathed as he pushed himself up.
Wrapping his arm around Beckett tightly while his other hand supported his weight, Castle kissed her deeply, feeling her fingers running through his hair before he fell back to the bed. Breathing out deeply he said, "You're not trying to exhaust yourself?"
"It would have been a lot more intense if that's what I was aiming for," Beckett said, getting her breath back and feeling stronger. "But that reminds me, did your little experiment work out?"
"What do you mean?" Castle asked, putting one hand under his head as the other held onto the small of her back. He hoped he was playing off her question in a nonchalant way, but the look she shot him at that made him blanch inwardly before she spoke.
"I'm not stupid Castle," Beckett said. "I'm assuming though you've decided me like this looks better right?"
"I knew you'd likely figure out what I was doing," Castle began his answer slightly defensively. "And I don't know, you looked pretty amazing when we were riding in the park. But this has its merits too, so I like how you look but for different reasons since they're different situations."
"Nice save," Beckett said, before she smiled and got off of him. She was a little surprised when Castle quickly sat up on his knees then, and she wrapped her arms around his neck as he held her against him, kissing her deeply. She responded quickly, and when they slowly parted she pressed her forehead against his as he bowed his head.
Nuzzling Beckett's lips with his own, Castle moved them to lie down on the bed. He made her turn so she was facing away from him, and carefully ran his hand down her side from her hip to her thigh; as far as he could reach. He listened to the sound of their skin meeting, and kissed her shoulder as she pressed back against him. "So you're not mad at me," he whispered into her ear then.
Laughing slightly, which was a little difficult as he was caressing her skin, Beckett answered, "I'm pretty sure you would have known if I was." She turned her head back slightly and placed her hand on his cheek so they could kiss. She tensed up somewhat as he grabbed her leg, and draped it back over his before he slid into her; recovering enough from the surprise of the moment to help him. Their kiss had long since ended, and she was facing away from him again, waiting for him to start thrusting inside her. But when he didn't move she became a little worried, and glanced back at him. "What are you doing?" she asked.
Castle didn't answer, instead leaned down and kissed her jaw as far as he could towards her chin. While he was doing that; to distract her; he reached in front of her and cupped her left breast in his hand. When she jerked at his thumb rolling around her nipple he held her steady with his other hand, making her stop. The look she gave him made him wonder for a moment if he was going about things the wrong way. But when he thrust into her; only once and as hard as he could; her gasp was enough of an assurance to continue his idea as far as she would let him, which he soon went back to.
Beckett was a little unsure at first of what Castle had in mind, but as time passed and he did little but touch the front of body, she wasn't really planning on complaining. Though she was slightly frustrated by his lack of movement; only every so often would he move, differing in pace so she had no idea how he would thrust; she was enjoying his exploration of her body, immensely, and she went along with it. She couldn't exactly do the same for him, but she would reach back and touch him, or push on the back of his head, so they could kiss. She lost track of time quickly, as she wasn't and didn't want to pay much attention to it, just taking pleasure in the experience. All she knew was that it was taking a long time to feel that she was even close to climaxing.
Trailing his lips down Beckett's shoulder, Castle could feel her skin was moist, and he began to move against her, not stopping that time. Her hand, which was on the back of his head, suddenly grabbed onto him tightly, and he groaned into her shoulder as she quickly moved with him. He only hoped that whenever they stopped, she wasn't going to be angry at him. But he started to think a little more positively when she turned her head, and they kissed deeply before he pulled away enough for their breath to mix in between them as they were both panting heavily.
It felt a little like Castle's hand was everywhere at once on her skin for Beckett as it went a little crazy on her front. The feeling of his fingertips echoed long after he had moved on, and she tried to focus on where he actually was. But it became too much, everything starting to build up for her, and when he began to stroke in between her legs she forgot about everything but that. It led quickly to her reaching back to him again, and clutching at the back of his neck; the first thing that she touched as her body arched back against him. His heated kisses pressed against her collarbone and her neck added to the already strong waves of pleasure that found every inch of her body yet again. But that time she felt her orgasm was a lot stronger, and she could barely even react vocally as Castle's other hand held her tightly against him as she felt him joining her.
Trying not to bite her, Castle groaned against the side of her neck as they stayed together like that for what felt like an eternity until he felt himself calm down, and sensing from Beckett's sudden limpness, she had calmed as well. He kissed where his mouth had been before he pulled away from her as she lay on her back.
"I didn't think you'd be interested in tantric sex," Beckett said as their eyes met.
"I wasn't, I was just trying that out," Castle said. "Should we try that again?"
"Sure, but," Beckett said, placing her hand on his chest. "I think we need to space out the times we do that."
"Fine with me," Castle said before he leaned down and kissed her hard before he grabbed her and pulled her on top of him as he lay on his back. "I'd say we celebrated pretty well this year."
"Are you thinking of how we're going to next year already?" Beckett asked with an amused smirk.
"Not really, I was just thinking we should make going for a ride a tradition," Castle commented, watching her closely.
"I like that idea," Beckett said. "Especially with my new boots. Which really Castle, you did not need to buy for me."
"I wanted to," Castle said.
"They're a Christmas gift right?" Beckett asked.
"No, but it's also a gift for myself, since now we can go riding together," Castle said.
"I really never thought you'd be the kind of guy to be into horses," Beckett said.
"When I was wonder I did read a lot of books about knights, King Arthur especially," Castle said. "That was before I got into James Bond. But I loved the whole knight thing, riding into danger with your horse as your only companion. And then it just went to liking horses, but that grew less and less as I turned to spies and writing."
"And it was the Olympics that made you interested in it again," Beckett said. "Why? I watched the coverage last year too, but I'm not sure what could have caught your eye."
"Just seemed interesting to me," Castle said with a shrug. "First thing I saw was the dr…" he began before stopping. When she just looked at him expectantly he covered her mouth with his hand and finished saying, "Dressage, and it fascinated me that the riders; the women especially; could handle a horse so well. And I just realized why you like riding."
"Why?" Beckett asked, taking his hand off her mouth.
"Control," Castle replied. When she rolled her eyes in response he quickly said, "Don't try to deny it, I know how you are, and riding puts you in charge. Well, that and the feeling you get riding like we did earlier."
"You enjoyed that," Beckett said with a smile as he ran his hands over her sides. "You are right, I'll admit it," she finally conceded. "But I do like taming something that's otherwise wild, not so much that it loses that part of itself, but that it becomes tame enough for me."
"Are we talking about you and horses, or you and me right now?" Castle asked.
"Horses, there's no chance I could do that with you," Beckett said.
"That's very true, but here we are," Castle said, making a sweeping gesture with his hand.
Shaking her head, Beckett kissed him before saying, "Let's change the subject because we could likely go all night with that."
"You want to sleep?" Castle asked, holding his hands clasped over the small of her back.
"No, I wanted to go back to those boots," Beckett said quickly. "You do know I'll need to pay you back right?"
"We'll see," Castle said nonchalantly.
"We'll see?" Beckett echoed, giving him a look.
"I meant that in the context that you possibly could, not I'll stop you," Castle said. "You really think I could do that?"
"Thank you, but I'll have to see what I can come up with," Beckett said. "Luckily Christmas is coming up," she said as she lay on her back, slipping from his hold.
"You don't have to do anything over the top," Castle quickly said as he lay on his side next to her. "It can be… simple," he said, the volume of his voice going down as he ran the backs of his fingers over her cheek. "You know I love you right?" he asked as he cupped her cheek, his thumb rubbing along her lower lip slowly.
"I'm aware of it," Beckett replied with a smile before she grew serious. "I love you too. And simple will work great for me," she said before she threw her arms around his neck, pulling him down to her. They kissed deeply again before she wrapped her leg around him and they began to make love again. While she had a feeling that it was partially to go back to how they normally were, when they began to increase the intensity of their movements together at nearly the same time there was the simple fact that they wanted one another. She had a feeling that something had changed with their celebrating that holiday together, though she couldn't really explain to herself why. She only knew that instead of having the old fear that had used to follow her with previous relationships; she was ready to see what was going to happen with hers and Castle's relationship; almost eager but she wouldn't admit that to herself.
She pulled Castle to her lips at that moment; thinking of them and their relationship; and kissed him deeply, trying to convey what she wanted and what she felt with that simple action as he responded with the same intensity she had. She then went a little wild, moving around so she was above him, wanting them to meet each other equally as they always did; and they made love ardently, making good use of the expanse of his bed to explore one another.
When they had finally climaxed nearly in sync some time later, they lay close on their sides, breath mingling together. They were both tempted to speak, but found it unnecessary, as Castle and Beckett were aware that they did not need to. It was a comforting thought, and they quickly fell asleep after a deep, lingering kiss, oblivious to the small storm outside the room, only each other and the pleasure they had given one another willingly.