Sunday Morning
Chapters were due Monday - Monday, as in tomorrow - and he had barely finished outlining them. How he planned on having the last chapters ready to submit by tomorrow was beyond him.
"I don't hear fingers tapping on keys." Her voice was low. Sleepy. Seductive. And purposely so. He recognised that tone - he cherished that tone.
Slowly, he lifted his eyes from the screen in front of him, peaking over the top of his laptop. He loved how her hair was a fluffed mess first thing in the morning. Placing a finger to the top of his screen, he tilted it down to clear his line of vision. Wearing nothing but an old shirt - his old shirt - she looked radiant. Sleepy, dishevelled and positively radiant.
"Good morning, sleepyhead." He was smug. She sleeps like a baby, wrapped in his sheets. Or maybe it was because she was curled into his side. Either way, it was something they were both very quickly getting used to.
She smiled and sauntered toward him, lifting the screen once it was within reach. "I thought you said you finished?" She pushed on the back of his chair, swivelling it in her direction.
He pushed his palm flat against the back of her thigh, running it up under the material of her shirt and resting it on her hip. "I did say that. But only because I knew you wouldn't come over if you knew I hadn't."
He pushed his knees in between hers, pulling her hip toward him until she relented and lowered herself onto his lap. Her arms looped instinctively around his neck as his arms wrapped around her lower back, holding her close.
"Shame on me for trying to be a good influence."
"You, detective, are anything but a good influence."
She inhaled sharply, feigned shock. But she couldn't hide her smile as she pressed her lips to his, rolling her hips as if to prove his point.
"Mm, see? Why would I want to write when I could be doing this instead?"
"Sorry, babe. This will have to wait." She pushed on his shoulders, peeling her body from his.
"No..." he whined, gripping to the backs of her thighs, trying to keep her close. "You're such a tease."
She smiled at his accusation. "I have to go to work." She explained.
"We've got a body?" He perked up, like a dog hearing the word 'treat'.
"No..." She swivelled the chair back around so that he was facing his laptop again. "I've got a body. You've got writing to do."
"Tease..." he uttered to the air as she walked back to the bedroom to get dressed in one of the few outfits she had selected to keep at the loft.
He went back to staring at the screen, waiting for inspiration to strike, but... nothing. His mind was wandering... thinking up a million different places he would rather be right now. The Maldives, perhaps. He wondered if Beckett had ever been to the Maldives. Or Paris. He would take her to Paris. He would take her anywhere she wanted to go.
He looked toward the bedroom door, craning his neck to better his view. Beckett was standing by the bed, weighing up her choice of blouses. He thanked the powers above for his timing, as she slowly lifted the shirt over her head, exposing her bare back. The way her hair bounced as it fell from the material was hypnotic.
She turned to toss the shirt in the hamper, catching Castle practically breaking his neck to watch her as she undressed.
"Write!" She laughed at his dorky smile, pushing the door shut.
"Just getting inspired." He called out, hoping she would hear him. The laugh echoing from the other room told him she did. "Come on... be productive." He whispered to himself as he refocused on the laptop screen.
He tapped away at the keyboard, transcribing the string of thoughts in his head to words on the page. Just keep typing, he thought. Get words on the page, make it make sense later. For now... he just needed something. But the flow came to a sudden end. He needed a break from this... writers block.
He sighed, pulling himself from his chair. If he couldn't write, he would at least try to be productive in other ways. He plodded out of the office and toward the kitchen. Breakfast. That's productive.
He started with coffee, loading the machine with freshly ground beans before starting it up. As it did it's thing, he moved across to the pantry, browsing its contents for options. Something quick. Something easy. Something she can eat on the go.
He pulled a bag of bagels from the shelf, inspecting their freshness. Satisfied, he sliced one in half and popped it into the toaster. He moved to the fridge, pulling out whatever ingredients he could find and placing them on the counter. Cream cheese, peanut butter, blueberries, coconut shavings, jam. Surely at least one of these options would appeal to her.
The coffee machine sounded, signalling that it was ready. He grabbed a to-go cup from the overhead cabinet and filled it. He added a shot of vanilla syrup, stirring it in.
"That smells heavenly." She caught his attention as she made her way through the loft.
"For you." He placed the cup in her hands once she was close enough.
"Thank you." She blew into the small opening on the lid before taking a sip. "What's this?" She asked, noting the assortment of foods on the counter.
"Breakfast. Duh." The bagel popped in the toaster and he plucked the halves out, dropping them onto a small cutting board. He blew his fingertips that burned from the heat of the bagel.
"Just brushed." She apologised.
"Don't care. Coffee isn't breakfast, you know? You need actual food occasionally." He placed a hand around her coffee cup, pulling it from her grasp and placing it on the counter beside them. "I'll even let you off easy and halve it with you. Now, what would you like?"
She glanced over the food items again. "Peanut butter." She smiled when he reached for a banana, knowing she loved the combination.
She spread a layer of peanut butter on the first bagel half as he sliced up the banana. He grabbed the first half and began adding the banana as she started on the second half. Once both halves were decorated with the fruit, he reached into the counter drawer and pulled out an individually packaged towelette, placing it beside her coffee cup.
"Voilà." He took a step back, admiring the scene before him. It may have been a simple, two minute task but he would always enjoy their little moments of domesticity.
"You know, Castle, if you keep spoiling me I might just get used to it." She picked up her bagel, biting into the sticky-sweet treat.
"Spoiling you? This is barely a step up from burnt toast in comparison to my idea of spoiling you." His arms wrapped around her waist and she leant into him.
"Mm, what can I say? I like the simple things."
"Simple. I can do simple. How about... my place, in the Hamptons. Mai Tai's by the pool. A stroll along the beach." She took another bite. "A gourmet breakfast served to you in bed. And the best part... no getting called into work on a Sunday morning."
"Mmm, speaking of work... I really have to go."
He sighed, dropped his arms from around her waist and passed her the coffee from the bench. "This better not be a cool murder."
"Finish your writing and you can come find out." She blew him a kiss as she walked out of the loft.
He made his way back to his desk, plonking himself down into his chair and staring blankly at the nearly incoherent mess of words that filled the page. "You, my dear, have way too much faith in my abilities." He muttered, as if she were still in the room and able to hear him.
He highlighted the passage he had typed out earlier, deleting the entire thing. He tapped at the keys again, imagining a lazy Sunday morning scene where Nikki and Rook didn't have deadlines and dead bodies to interrupt them...