Author's Note-I have no idea where this came from really other than I was inspired late last night by the picture attached to this story, the credit for which lies solely and completely at the feet of Tammy van Coccinella at tammycoccinella dot tumblr dot com. I hope you like it. As for the rest of my stories, I'm working on them, I promise, it's just slow going at the moment due to RL. Enjoy. NYLF xx
Kate walked through the door and heaved a sigh as she hung up her jacket and slipped out of her heels with a hiss.
It had been a long day, made longer by the fact her husband had been in meetings all morning and had texted her around two, to say that he had a burst of inspiration and couldn't meet her for the late lunch they had planned.
She wasn't mad, of course not- he did her job so often that his frequently fell by the wayside, she couldn't begrudge him doing his own job for once- she could have just done with seeing him, touching him, being held by him. But she wasn't mad.
She sighed again, making the effort to push herself through their home, towards his office, hoping to find him.
She needed a hug. And then maybe a nap if he wasn't too busy to lay with her.
If he was still writing though, she'd settle for curing up on the couch in his office for a few hours.
She needed to be in his presence for a while to settle herself again.
She got as far as the office doorway before she heard his voice.
It wasn't unusual for him to talk to himself while he was writing, a trait she found unbelievably adorable, but this wasn't the mutterings and mumblings of her man in full flow.
"Ha! Take that! Now who's 'bringing it' bro?!" Castle laughed.
Kate frowned as she rounded the corner, until she saw him.
Curled up against the chair in his office, a pillow behind his back, was her husband, playing one of his games on the projector, his headset firmly in place as he traded smack-talk with, no doubt, random strangers in different countries.
Kate shook her head with a fond smile before tiptoeing past him into their bedroom.
A few minutes later, once she'd changed into comfier clothes and had taken her make-up off, Kate returned to the office, stepping around the back of the chair so she didn't block his view, before sitting down beside him.
She leaned in and pressed a kiss to his cheek before resting her head against his shoulder.
Rick leaned his head down and kissed her crown, his eyes never leaving the screen, before righting his head again and addressing his headset.
"Going off line guys, my better half is home."
Kate shook her head, turning her face into his shoulder to breathe him in. "Keep playing, it's alright." She murmured.
"You sure?" He checked, quiet and tender.
Kate nodded. "I'm okay watching you."
Rick smiled before straightening his leg closest to her and taking that hand off the controller long enough to slip it around her waist and haul her into the gap he'd formed between his legs.
Kate leaned back into his chest, content to rest against him as he went back to playing, his arms forming a solid barricade around her, making her feel safe, rather than trapped as it would have years ago.
"Looks like I'm staying." Castle said into his microphone, kissing the top of her head again, making her smile. "Yeah, she is awesome." He hummed lovingly, making Kate smile again as she curled up in his lap.
A few hours later, Kate finally became aware that she'd been asleep on his chest, only when he wrapped his arms around her and pulled her closer, humming softly in her ear.
"You done?" She murmured softly, making no effort to move other than to snuggle closer into his broad, warm chest.
"Yeah honey, I'm done." He murmured back, silky smooth and loving in her ear. "Rough day?" He asked quietly.
Kate nodded against his pectoral, rubbing her nose against his soft sweater several times before settling back against him. "Better now." She whispered.
Rick squeezed her gently. "I'm sorry. I should have been there."
"No." She hummed. "No it's okay. You had stuff to do."
Castle huffed a laugh. "Yeah, this morning. After I text you, I only ended up writing for a couple of hours before I wound up playing. I could have come in."
Kate smiled softly, tipping her head back to see him. "I don't mind. You need time to wind your brain down Rick, I get it." Her smile grew when he leaned down to kiss the corner of her mouth gently.
"I love you so much Kate." He murmured, close to her skin.
"Only 'cause I let you play video games." She replied sleepily.
Castle chuckled, the vibration of his laugh echoing in her chest, making her warm. "That too." He hummed. "You wanna sleep some more? I'm happy to come lay with you if you want? Seems like it's been one of those days." One of those days where she needed his contact. One of those days when if he didn't hold her while she slept, she'd be plagued with nightmares.
Kate shrugged. "Maybe in a little while. Are you hungry? I can cook you something if you want?"
Castle smiled. "If anyone is cooking tonight, light of my life, it will be the one who has done practically nothing all day, not the one hunting killers since before dawn this morning. But I'm not hungry yet, are you?"
Kate shook her head, her cheeks still pink from the endearment in the middle of his statement. "No. I, I don't think I will be tonight." She shrugged.
Castle sighed. "Kate, baby, you've gotta eat." He murmured, gently tracing the back of his finger down her cheek.
"I know. And I ate both breakfast and lunch today, and I promise I'll eat all three meals tomorrow but, Castle, I, no, not tonight, please."
Rick nodded, cupping her cheek and pressing a kiss to the frown lines in the middle of her forehead. "Okay. Not tonight. I won't make you eat Kate."
She smiled at him, so grateful that it made his heart stutter. "Hey Rick?" She asked after a moment.
"Yeah?" He breathed, still caught up in just how beautiful his wife is.
"Could you teach me?" The question fell from her lips quietly, accompanied by shy eyes and her lower lip being tenderised by her upper teeth, a nervous tick he rarely saw in the confines of their home any more.
"Teach you?" He asked confused, until he saw her eyes flick to the controller beside them. "Really?"
Kate nodded. "If you don't mind? I mean, I know we both have things that are personal and that we just want to stay ours but..."
"No, no Kate I, I'll teach you how to play if you want." The beautiful smile that split her face was worth it.
It wasn't even an hour later when Kate turned to him, that little smug, happy smile on her face as he let his controller hang from his fingertips, now useless.
His wife had killed him.
But it wasn't even that, that bothered him.
It was the fact that, half an hour ago, she didn't know what any of the buttons did, was still calling the joystick a 'doohickey' and jumping every time her controller vibrated.
And now she was killing him with advanced skill and accuracy.
But, as frustrated as he was about losing, he was really kinda proud of her.
There actually was nothing this woman, his woman, couldn't do.
He turned to her and poked his tongue out, making her giggle.
"You're very good at this." He murmured. "Are you sure you haven't played before?"
Kate shook her head. "Never. I just had a very good teacher." She smiled gently, looking up at him through her lashes.
He couldn't help it. Curling his arm upwards, he cupped the side of her head and drew her closer, slowly capturing her mouth and kissing her, all soft touch and loving devotion.
Kate granted him a whisper of a contented moan as her own hand came to gently clutch at his forearm.
"Come on." He whispered as he pulled away, leaning back in to kiss her quickly before taking the controller out of her hands and switching off the Xbox and the projector.
He took her hand and helped her up, cupping her cheek as his other hand slid around her waist, holding her for a few seconds, letting her settle the last of her jolted pieces back into their places. "Time for bed Mrs Castle, you've been up far too long."
Kate smiled softly and let him lead her to their bed.
He was right.
It was time for this day to end.