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All he wanted was a breath of fresh air. He stood in the dark, on the edge of the light pouring out from the library and the darkness of the street. He had his hands in his pockets, thinking about smoking. The only good thing about smoking was it gave people something to do with their hands. Non-smokers were resigned to standing around with their hands in their pockets, pretending to wait for a bus that was never coming.
He saw Beckett coming out of the light like a goddess. Her dress was shimmering blue sequins and her hair was up. She was gorgeous beyond description on a normal day, but when she made the effort? She was a danger to a man's knees. He imagined she'd left a lot of men kneeling in her wake. No matter how she was dressed up, inside she still saw herself lounging in her apartment in an old faded jersey and tights. She didn't believe the woman in her mirror was gorgeous, she was just... the woman in the mirror.
Kate's arrival was marked by the sound of her heels striking pavement. He turned, stunned again by her beauty as she joined him outside. She smiled apologetically for intruding on his quiet, still nervous even after he admitted escaping for the same reasons she had. It was his benefit, a fundraiser for the children's section of the library, but even he had a limit to how much adoration he could take. He just needed to take a moment for himself without cameras, or scribbling his name inside covers of books.
He invited her to wait with him, and she accepted. They stood with their backs to the wall for almost ten minutes. He kept his eyes down, inadvertently staring at her shoes. They were red, shining even in the dark. The heels were dangerously high, her foot delicately angled so that she was balancing on her toes. Earlier he'd noticed that her stockings were the kind with the seam running up the back. God, he loved those stockings. He discussed his smoking option, and she pointed out that she could just hold onto her clutch bag. She offered it to him and he refused to hold a purse just to occupy his hands. When he finally decided it was time to go in, he stepped in front of her and asked how he looked.
She reached up and tugged on the ends of his bowtie. He hadn't thought about being cheeky with the tie, he just liked how it looked. The smile on Kate's face when she saw him wearing it had made the effort worthwhile. She straightened the tie, then rested her hands on his shoulders. She stared up at him and repeated his question. "How do you look... surprising."
It wasn't a sexy word, or a powerful word. But somehow it made their kiss inevitable. Her hands slid from his shoulders to the base of his skull as he put his arms around her. She seemed fragile and small inside his arms, his hand flat on her back as her body arched against his. He pushed his tongue into her mouth and she parted her lips to allow it inside.
She lifted one leg and hooked it on his hip. Her dress had fallen back and he ran his hand along the inside of her thigh as she pushed against his tongue with hers. She shifted her weight, pressing herself against the growing length at his crotch. She dropped one hand from his head, raking her fingers down his chest to find his zipper. She tugged it down and pulled his cock out. The cool air touched him and he broke the kiss to suck in a breath.
The hand at the back of his head was still holding her purse, and she dropped it. "Rick." Her shuddered at the sound of his name on her voice. "Here." She handed it to him, but he didn't understand. Her eyes were dark, the eyes of a jungle cat facing down her prey. "Condom."
He fumbled one-handed with the clutch and dug around until he found the familiar square package. A part of him briefly wondered what, exactly, she had planned to happen at this fundraiser. He dropped the purse and Beckett leaned forward to rip the wrapper with her teeth. Castle reached down and eased the rubber over the tip of his cock. He stroked it into place, both of them panting. He braced one hand against the wall, the other guiding himself forward.
Kate's eyes slowly closed as he filled her. She held tight to him, eyes closed and lips parted as she moved against him. He thrust gently, fighting the urge to go as fast as he wanted. He moved his hand on her thigh, her knee still against his hip, her hands running up and down his chest. He called her Kate, liking the sound of it enough that he said it again.
She said his name and leaned back against the wall as she came. He kissed her neck, pressed himself tight against her. A few seconds later, her fingers stroking the hair at the nape of his neck, he grunted and came as well. They held each other for a moment longer before they separated. He took off the soiled condom, taking a handkerchief from her without comment before tucking himself back into his pants. She adjusted her dress, touched her hair, and casually looked to make sure they were still alone. She cleared her throat and smiled at him.
They decided to go back inside separately. He waited a thirty-count before he followed her, feigning casual boredom as he found Alexis and his mother. Martha held out her hands as if making a grand discovery. "There you are! We've been looking all over for you. Where did you go?"
He caught Kate's eye through the crowd and couldn't help smiling. "Just needed a little fresh air."