Post Knockdown. NSFW.

A storm rolls in that night.

A storm to match his mood. Angry. Booming. Thunder shakes windowpanes, lightning slashes through the sky. Fat raindrops soak him to the bone as he prowls, walking it off, hands clenched into fists, shoved deep in his coat pockets as he fights the memory.

The touch of her lips, the sound of her moan, the smell of her skin. He growls at it all, hunching his shoulders and dipping his head low.

He'd kissed her to fool the guard but he'd only ended up fooling himself.

He knows how he feels, knows how much he wants her, possibly loves her. What he didn't know was that she wanted him back. Didn't know until she'd pulled away, eyes hazy and aroused before she dove back in, fiercely gripping his shoulders, pressing her whole body against his.

And then she was gone just like that. Guard down, obstacle removed, moment lost.

Then Hal Lockwood had pointed a gun at her head. Fucking Hal Lockwood thought he could take her out with a single bullet to the brain.

Hell no.

"Thank you. For having my back in there."

He will. Always. Even when she goes home without him, even when she ignores the sparks between them.

Even when she still chooses Josh over him.

He'll always stand by her.

Partners.

He bumps into another pedestrian in his distraction, the guy's "watch it, buddy," shaking Castle loose from his inner brooding.

"Sorry," he mumbles, looking up to catch sight of a street sign.

He recognizes the building next to him instantly, has walked past it a million times before, and he really isn't surprised his feet have carried him back without any conscious thought.

Drawn to her in every way, moth to flame, he can't get away, can't shut it down.

Or maybe he could have, maybe before, but not now.

Not now he's held her close. Not now he's tasted her.

He craves it again. Like the blood of a fresh kill, his need for her is all consuming, burning him from the inside out.

She's there in the window when he looks up. Solemn. Still as a statue. Another bolt of lightning strikes, the flash illuminating her face as she stands turned toward the stormy skies.

She doesn't see him, doesn't know he's watching, and he thinks it should feel wrong. It should feel voyeuristic. But instead he just feels...more. More of everything.

More angry, more maddeningly frustrated, more protective. He points his nose up, a whiff of her scent floating in the wind, and he breathes her in, closing his eyes with the force of it.

It changes suddenly, deeper, darker, an unattainable longing he's been denied up until this point, but no more.

No more.

His gaze snaps back to her figure in the window, and his lips part in a brutal grin. He's done letting her run from this, from them.

He kissed her. She kissed him.

They kissed.

Dusting her fingers over her lips, she closes her eyes, lost in the memory. She's still rattled from the rest of the day, exhausted and wrung out from fighting with Josh again, but there's a buzz under the surface of her skin.

The steady thrum of need coursing through her, keeping her awake, her senses heightened, her heart racing. She wants him.

Castle.

Josh had been here when she'd finally gotten home, a surprise that had been anything but pleasant. It hadn't taken him long to figure out she was distracted and why.

"Castle. Castle. It's always Castle. I can't be in a one sided relationship. I'm done, Kate."

Probably for the best. She'll never love him like he'd wanted or deserved.

Her eyes fly open at the three sharp raps on her front door, and she turns away from the window, eyebrows furrowed in confusion, heart racing in anticipation.

Only one person knocks like that.

Sure steps take her to the door, steady fingers flipping each lock until she can swing it wide open, her suspicions confirmed when she sees him there in the hallway.

One bandaged hand is planted against the door frame, the other shoved into the front pocket of his jeans, and damn he looks good. Except...

"You're wet."

He grunts something that could be a laugh before his blue eyes land on her, the intensity surprising.

And arousing.

"It's raining," he says, stepping into the apartment, one hand landing on her hip as the other slams the front door closed, and she rolls her eyes. Duh.

His palm burns through her old t-shirt, the cotton so worn and thin that it might as well not even be there for all the barrier it's providing, but she pushes it down, his touch and what it's doing to her, shoving him away as she spins on her heel.

"What are you doing here?"

He advances despite her actions, tracing her steps as she walks to the kitchen. She grabs the kettle from the stove top, halfway through filling it with water when she feels him step up behind her.

"I think you know, Kate," he growls in her ear, the rough sound sending a shiver down her spine.

Setting the kettle in the sink before she drops it, she spins around, her gaze forced up due to her lack of shoes. He towers over her like this, the breadth of his chest making her feel small, protected, like she could curl up against him, hide from the rest of the world.

"I broke up with Josh."

It's not what she'd intended to say, hadn't planned on telling him at all, but now it's out there. She's set the truth free, and she doesn't regret it.

His eyes flash with the knowledge, and that makes her brave, makes her think that maybe, just maybe, they can make this work.

"I'm not sorry. He's not what you need."

"Oh, really? And what is it that I need?" she asks, confidence forcing her spine straight until her body slightly brushes his.

He plants both hands on the counter behind her, leaning in so their noses are barely an inch apart, and she fights the temptation to close the distance, to give in before he says it.

"You know. I know too."

"Mmm. What are you gonna do about it?"

"Don't tempt me, Kate Beckett. I answer that question and there's no going back."

He's so close she can feel the rumble of his words in his chest, the puff of air across her face, and she pushes into him, aligning them from head to toe as she whispers against his lips.

"Answer me."

Her back slams into the concrete counter, his hips pressing her into it, into him, and she lifts one leg around his thigh, her other knee weakening when he pins her just right. The taste of him is dizzying, his tongue invading, possessing, without the hesitation from earlier, and it's perfect. It's exactly what she's been craving since the moment he stopped her from grabbing her gun tonight.

Oh, who is she kidding? She's been lusting after him since the moment they met, since the moment she first saw his photo on the back of one of her mom's old books.

Richard Castle.

And now he has one hand up the back of her shirt, the other gripping the meat of her thigh, tugging her impossibly closer, and she can hardly breathe. He drops both hands to her ass, lifting her up to the counter before he rips her shirt clean off, buttons scattering everywhere.

"Hey!"

"I'll buy you a new one," he grunts into the soft spot under her ear, touching his tongue to her skin as he pops the clasp on her bra and tosses the plain garment to the side.

She groans when he cups her breasts, squeezing and pinching her nipples in time with nips of his teeth, and she rolls her hips, desperate for some sort of friction, for more of him. Always more of him.

Her hands move of their own volition, popping one button at a time until she can get to the skin of his chest. He shrugs his wet shirt off, the temporary loss of his touch making her whine in a way she'll completely deny later.

He wraps both arms around her waist, scooting her closer to the edge of the counter until she's balancing precariously, forced to twine her legs around him. His grip is strong when he takes her weight completely, his mouth coming back to find hers as they move through her apartment.

"Bedroom. Back - oh fuck, Castle - back that way."

She shudders and stutters trying to direct him, but her brain has turned to mush with his hands everywhere, his mouth in places she's only imagined. And it's so much better than she'd imagined.

He bumps into a wall, the surprise tightening his grip on her to the point of bruising, and she gasps, the sharp jolt of pain absolutely doing it for her.

"I'm sorry, Kate."

He releases her immediately, both her legs dropping to the floor before she collapses, and the rush of cool air shocks her back to reality. The inch of space he's put between them the exact opposite of what she wants.

"No. No. Don't…" She grips his belt loop, tugging him back until he rests his hands on her waist. "Don't stop. It's good. I liked it."

"Fuck. Kate." He buries his face in her neck, pushing her against that same wall as he licks a path across her collarbone, biting hard on the edge of bone, and she feels it straight to her core. "You can't say shit like that and expect me to keep it together."

Keep it together? No. She doesn't want that, doesn't want soft and hesitant and gentle. Fuck she broke up with her boyfriend because she wanted the passion and ferocity she's caught a glimpse of tonight. She wanted more of the fire Castle had lit, more of something she'd never had, never would have had, with Josh.

"Don't keep it together. Let it go, Castle."

She reaches for him, puts one palm against his cheek while the fingers on her other hand comb through the flop of hair on his forehead. It's a tenderness she didn't mean to show, but now it's out there, and the dazed, happy expression on his face is totally worth it.

She kisses him hard, slicks her tongue against his as she snakes her hand down to his pants, cupping him through the rough denim. He jerks against her touch, hissing, and she waits for his eyes to meet hers.

"I want you, Rick."

He groans, her words doing him in. He's a word man, language such an intricate part of his life that he can't help but be affected by it. And those words from her mouth? Well, he'd honestly thought he'd never be here, never be this lucky, and to hear her say it, unashamed and eager, absolutely destroys him in the best way.

He needs her naked now.

Dropping to his knees, he traces the line of her bare waist, touching his lips to the smooth stretch of skin between her navel and her jeans. He feels the quiver of her muscles, smiles into her skin as his gaze drifts up to find hers focused solely on him, her eyes dark and feral.

He pops the button on her pants, tugging them down her thighs and tossing them to the side until there's nothing but a thin scrap of lace separating him from what he wants. Trailing his fingers up the backs of her legs, he tucks each thumb under the elastic of her thong, pressing his nose to the hollow of her right hip.

He can smell her. The heady, musky scent of her arousal hangs heavy in the air, and he breathes it in knowing he'll absolutely never get enough of this. Of her.

Her hips dance under his ministrations, the muscles in her thighs quivering each time he breathes out, and he opens his mouth over the fabric barrier, touching his tongue to the wetness seeping through. He moans at the first taste of her, the tangy flavor working over his taste buds, and he feels her hands comb through his hair, tugging at the strands until he looks up at her.

"Castle, if you don't start touching me in the next two seconds I'm going to kick you out and take care of it myself."

"Patience, Kate," he chuckles, delighted by the breathy tone of her voice and the glare that he assumes was supposed to affect him in some way. "It may come as quite shock to you, but there are some presents I prefer to…" he pauses to nip the line of skin where her thigh disappears beneath her underwear and breathes the last word into her, "savor."

Kate groans what he thinks might be acceptance as she thumps her head back against the wall, her fingers never losing their grip on his hair. But he doesn't mind. It feels nice, having her close, directing him, and he gives her what she wants, finally removing that miniscule bit of lace and dragging his tongue between her folds.

"Oh, god, Castle."

Hearing her say it feeds right into the jealousy and anger he'd been trying to get away from before he'd ended up here, and he can't stop the grin. He gets to be the one doing this to her, teasing her, pleasing her, and Josh is not.

Castle is a lucky bastard and he has no plans to waste this opportunity.

He licks another long line through her center, scraping his teeth over her sensitive skin, and her whole body shivers in response, her legs widening to allow him better access. Dipping two fingers into her, he finds that rough spot on her front wall and massages it slow and dirty. She shudders, lifting her right leg to bend over his shoulder, dragging him closer, and he latches onto her clit, sucking and nipping in time with the movement of his fingers until she's crying out, her nails digging into his skull as her climax rolls through her body.

Her left knee gives out, and he catches her, easing her to the floor as she comes down from the high, her green eyes watching him with satiation and a hint of mischief.

She leans toward him, her nose nuzzling his, and his eyes flutter closed.

"Castle?"

"Hmm?"

He's lost in her, the whisper of her voice, the warm puff of her breath, and the gentle touch of her hands on his thighs, keeping her balanced while she nibbles on his ear.

"Your pants are soaked and ruining my wood floors."

"Oh, shit."

His eyes fly open at that, reality crashing back in as he jumps up, but he pauses when he hears her quiet chuckle. She stands, graceful, unashamed, and trails one fingernail down his bare chest, allowing it to catch on the waistband of his jeans.

"Maybe you should take these off, throw them in the dryer, and meet me in bed."

And then she's gone, gloriously naked and strutting down the hallway to what must be her bedroom. He stands there, thoroughly distracted by the sway of her hips until she stops in the doorway, turning her head to peek over her shoulder.

"Today, Castle."

Look out for part two soon-ish. Thanks for reading. xo

K&J, all the love for you both.