Chapter 3

Kate woke up from a deep sleep, which was strange considering it took her forever to fall asleep in the first place. Her mind had been racing the night before, a cocktail of thoughts involving gangs and bodyguards and murder. But this morning she had woken up refreshed and ready to take on the world. Well, maybe a little too refreshed.

She sauntered out of her bedroom in her pyjamas with sleep in her eyes.

"Good morning, detective!" Castle greeted chirpily from the kitchen.

Startled, Kate reached to her hip for the gun that wasn't there. "Jeez, Castle," she said trying to catch her breath. "You scared the hell out of me!"

"Sorry, that wasn't my intention."

"No, it's okay," she reassured him. "I'm just not used to having company here, that's all." Once she had composed herself she asked, "Can I get you a coffee?"

"No need. I've just finished brewing some." Kate watched in astonishment as Castle worked his way around her kitchen as if he had been here all his life. He grabbed two mugs from the cupboard and poured. Holding one out to her, she accepted. "Oh, thank you."

Before any conversation could take off, Kate's phone began to ring. She could see the caller I.D. said Montgomery meaning one of two things; either the case has been resolved and Castle can leave her alone, or she hadn't been told the full story initially.

"Beckett," she answered.

The tone in her captain's voice as soon as he spoke told her everything she needed to know. It wasn't the good news she had been hoping for. Instead, Montgomery had officially placed her on paid leave until this was resolved. Before she could argue, Montgomery shut her down once again and ended the call.

"He couldn't have told me this yesterday?" Kate sighed.

"He knew that if he had said that to you yesterday in person you'd have shot him."

"And here I thought today was supposed to be a good day."

"You had plans?"

"I still do," she said, wrapping her cold hands around the warmness of the coffee mug. "I'm meeting a colleague for dinner tonight.

"Next time, you need to tell me in advance if you're making plans so I can arrange proper transport and care. Where are you meeting said colleague?"

"Relax. He's a cop. And we're going to some French restaurant. I'm not really sure where, but he's picking me up here at seven."

"Great," Castle said clasping his hands together. "I've never had French cuisine befo-."

"No," Kate interrupted. "No, you're not coming."

"Of course I am," he assured without hesitation. "It's literally in my contract not to let you out of my sight. The last thing I'm going to let you do is get whisked away by a strange man I haven't vetted." He could see by the look on her face that she was worried. "Don't worry! I'm here to protect you, not ruin your date."

"It's not a date," she corrected.

"Oh please," he scoffed. "The guy is picking you up, bringing you to a fancy restaurant. He'll probably bring some flowers to fulfil the cliché. By my calculations, detective, this is a date."

Chewing on the inside of her cheek, she refrained from snapping at him. Invading her home was one thing, but forcing his way into her dating life was a step too far. However she knew there was nothing she could do to change the outcome of this, so there was no point in arguing.

"Date or no date, if you sit near us or interrupt us in any way in this restaurant we will be having words."

"Noted," Castle obliged.

Later that night, Kate was preparing herself for her date. As inconvenient as this situation was, she was not rescheduling. There was no way she was going to let this put a halt on her love life. Yes, it was a first date but a good first impression is key to the start of a blooming romance. She had finally met a guy who she was genuinely interested in, a guy who was in no way threatened by her authority. She was not going to let a bodyguard ruin her chances with him.

Standing in front of the mirror, Kate adjusted her navy, figure-hugging dress so it sat on her hips just right. She ran her fingers through her hair ruffling it slightly to add to the volume, before running her palms down her body to smooth out any wrinkles in her outfit. Once her heels were on and her hair was perfect she made her way out into the living room.

"He's not here yet?" she asked Castle who was sitting on the couch focused on whatever he was reading on his laptop.

"Nope, haven't heard anything," he replied, glancing up momentarily at her. The glance turned into a double take when he caught sight of her. "Wow, you clean up pretty nice for a 'not-date'."

"It's only a first date. Nothing too serious."

"Hmm, I don't know," he grinned. "The colour of your cheeks right now are telling me otherwise. You must really like him."

"Well, I wouldn't go on a date with someone I didn't like now, would I?" she remarked.

"Smartass."

She had already said it before she realised how flirtatious it sounded. "I wouldn't call it smart, but the dress makes it look good."

Temporarily caught for words, Castle averted his eyes back to the screen and smiled. A series of knocks on the door snapped him from his little daydream. Castle hopped up from his seat and peered through the peephole. He instantly recognised the man from the file he had sent over the night before. After a few seconds of watching him through the peephole, Castle swung open the door.

"Tom Demming?"

"Yes?" Demming replied with unease.

"Come on in," Castle said, stepping aside so he could enter.

Demming stepped into the apartment to see Kate standing by the kitchen. "Hey! Wow, you look incredible."

"Thank you," she said as a beaming smile lit up across her face. "It's nice seeing you out of that work suit of yours for once."

"Ditto. I vote from now on you wear that dress to all our interrogations." This earned him a chuckle from Kate. He handed her a small bouquet of flowers. "You seemed like a lilies kind of girl."

"They're gorgeous, thank you," Kate graciously accepted and found an empty vase on the windowsill to store them in.

Demming smiled at Castle who was lingering at the door behind them. "So, word got around about your chaperone."

"Oh, right!" Kate scurried back to them. "Tom, this is Richard Castle. Castle, this is detective Tom Demming from robbery." They shook hands. "He's been ordered by Montgomery to follow me around, including our dinner."

"Talk about a third wheel," Castle chimed in with a laugh.

"But he's been told to leave us alone and sit at a separate table." She glared knowingly at Castle who was still smiling at his previous comment.

"Hey, I'm a third wheel not a cockblock," Castle added, winking at her date. Demming smiled coyly at the ground while Kate's face flushed with mortification.

Castle chauffeured them to the restaurant as it seemed like the safest option. He instructed the server to seat them towards the back of the restaurant at a table away from windows. Castle, however, sat by the window to give them as much space as possible while still having a clear view of his client. Even he would admit it was not a bad view.

"So, what's it like having a bodyguard?" Tom asked as they were coming to the end of their meal.

"Think of it like having a puppy," Kate said. "You can't eat alone, you can't sleep alone-."

"-But at least he's cute," Demming said finishing her sentence.

"Really?" she chuckled. "I didn't think he'd be your type." She glanced over to Castle who was sitting by himself a few tables over. Far enough to be out of earshot. "He's actually fine, so far. At least he has a sense of humour. That makes it a lot easier. I can't imagine being stuck to someone who has no personality."

"You mean someone like Esposito?"

"I am so telling him you said that," she laughed.

Demming took this opportunity to reach across the table and rest his hand on top of hers. Drawing little circles on her hand with his thumbs set off a frenzy of butterflies in her stomach. She took hold of his hand and squeezed gently.

"I'm so glad we finally did this," he said looking at her with a cute smile.

"Me too."

The moment was instantly interrupted when a glass shattered on the floor from the table next to them. Without hesitation, Castle leapt out of his seat and was by Kate's side in record time. He hunched over her using his body to shield her from any threat. He hadn't even noticed the glass on the ground, he had simply heard the noise and rushed to her side. He didn't have time to check whether or not there was a viable threat, he could not risk wasting valuable time.

"Jeez, Castle!" Beckett exclaimed from underneath his spread-eagled body. "What the hell!"

"It's okay, Rick," Demming said getting out of his seat and resting a hand on Castle's back. "It was just a glass." He picked up the remnants of what used to be a wine glass and showed it to him.

Castle quickly scanned the room to see many staff and customers staring at him in confusion. He straightened up and took a step back from Kate. "You can't be too careful."

"I think it's time we go," Kate said standing up from the table.

It didn't take him long to realise how enraged Kate was. Though she didn't say anything revealing, her eyes were shooting daggers at him. The one thing she had asked of him was to give them space and not interrupt the dinner. She didn't speak a word to him once they left the restaurant. He knew there was going to be an argument once they were alone in her apartment.

Castle walked ahead of them in the corridor of the apartment building. He wanted to give them as much time alone as he could considering he apparently ruined a moment in the restaurant. He unlocked her apartment and carried out his now routine examination of the place before she entered. Kate and Tom stood outside her apartment where they made awkward end-of-date small talk.

"Thank you again for tonight," Kate said standing in front of her date. "I had a really great time."

"Me too." Tom took her hands and slowly leaned in, placing a gentle kiss on her lips. He could feel the tension leave her body as she kissed him back.

"ALL CLEAR!" Castle shouted from inside the apartment, resulting in a startled reaction from the lovebirds.

Kate pulled back from the kiss with a smile. Her cheeks were rosy with joy, which she tried to hide by covering her mouth with her hand shyly. Tom said goodnight to her and made his way back to the elevator.

"Everything seems to be in order," Castle said as he arrived back at the door. "Where did superman go?"

Kate quickly composed herself and headed inside. "Home."

"Oh," Castle said sounding almost disappointed. Then with a smirk he added, "I assumed you two were having a sleepover."

"On the first date?" Kate questioned with a smile. "Exactly how low do you think of me, Castle?"

"I'm hardly one to judge," he admitted. "Is the reason you didn't invite him in because of me?"

"Do I need a reason?"

"No," he assured. "But you guys seemed to really hit it off so I just assumed…"

Deep down she knew she was still annoyed by Castle's actions in the restaurant, but it hadn't affected the outcome of the evening so she decided there was no point in arguing. For some reason, she found that she had a soft spot for him. Maybe it was because his actions were done out of good intentions, after all he was doing it for her own safety. She knew she couldn't be mad at him for that. But maybe a little teasing would be enough to get back at him. So she committed to it.

"Here's the thing about men, Castle," she said turning around to face him. Looking up at him, she realised he was a lot closer to her than expected. Perfect "The longer you leave a man wanting, the more tension you create." She quickly scanned her eyes up and down his body before continuing, "The more sexual tension you create… the better the sex will be."

Castle couldn't help but smile at the woman in front of him. He had expected her to bite his head off when they were alone, not seduce him. He knew she wasn't actually looking for this to go anywhere, she was just toying with him. But she was so close. He couldn't help noticing, just for a second, how gorgeous her eyes were. The way she was looking at him now was nowhere nearly as threatening as to how she was looking at him in the restaurant.

"I guess you've got us guys all figured out." He raised his eyebrows and looked down at her body. "Is this the part where you ask me to unzip your dress?"

"In your dreams," she chuckled with the tilt of her head. And with that she disappeared into her bedroom.