Title: For What It's Worth

Summary: Beckett thinks she has a problem, and turns to Lanie for help. Is it actually a problem, or is she making a mountain out of a molehill? Caskett.

Rating: M – adult situations, you have been warned. No, seriously, if you don't like smut, or reference to it, go no further.

Disclaimer: The usual. Sadly.

Author's Note: Of all the random things, this one was inspired by that very fetching grey turtle-neck Beckett wore in 'Close Encounters of the Murderous Kind' (3x09) to cover up the definitely-not-a-hickey. Other than that, I have no idea where this one came from. I know this is a tad OOC, but hey, I wanted to write it, and the muses didn't complain. Hope you all get a kick out of reading it! (Don't forget to feed the plot-bunnies nice warm reviews, folks!)

NevynR

Finishing her coffee, Beckett glanced at the clock. 9:15am on a Monday morning, she thought, time to do this. Leaving Castle in his chair looking like he was playing with his phone, Becket made her way down to the morgue to see Lanie. Knowing that it would be best to dish the dirt sooner rather than later, she smiled a secretive little smirk as she walked down the hall, hips swinging, and a bounce in her step.

She pushed the doors to the morgue open, and found their resident ME finishing off some paperwork. Glad that she wasn't going to have to talk to Lanie whilst she was busily cutting up a body, Beckett pulled out a chair and sat down next to her friend, wincing slightly. Looking up, Lanie addressed her.

"Hey girl, how was…" She stopped, peering at Kate's face. Seeing the cheerful (and slightly guilty) look, she went on. "Damn, somebody got a little something on the weekend! Spill!" A blush staining her cheeks, Beckett responded.

"Why do you think I am down here first thing on a Monday, Lanie? I knew it'd be easier to let you in on it first, rather than have you find out later and give me grief about it… besides…" She paused, biting her lip. "I think I might have a problem…"

"What did you do? Or more to the point, who? Don't tell me you got back with Motorcycle Boy?" Chuckling, Beckett shook her head.

"No, so not going back there, Lanie. As for what, well, let's just say I think you can guess."

"Okay… So, not Josh… Hang on, what problem?" Still nibbling on her lip, Beckett looked down, a blush creeping up her cheeks as she muttered.

"I think I'm addicted..."

"What! What is it, Kate? Booze? Drugs?" Her eyes wide open, Lanie searched her friend's face, trying to find out what the hell she was going on about, but the next words out of Beckett's mouth completely floored her.

"Him. Sex. Sex with him... I don't know!"

Her words hung in the air for a few seconds as Lanie tried very, very hard to make sense of what she'd just been told. Gathering her thoughts, she replied.

"Okay, you're going to have to be a bit more specific here, honey... who are we talking about?" Still looking down, Kate muttered under her breath.

"It was Ri... Castle, okay?"

"You mean you and Castle... you know... on the weekend?"

"No, Lanie. Castle and I... you know... pretty much all weekend." Seeing the astounded look on her friend's face, Kate went on. "If you must know, this morning was the first time either of us even got a chance to put clothes on since Friday night."

"So he's...?" Lanie almost fell off her seat at the throaty chuckle that made its way past the detective's lips, and the expected eye-roll was not forthcoming, being replaced instead by her eyes half shutting, lids fluttering as Kate briefly lost herself in recalling the events of the weekend.

"Oh yeah, he's definitely not bragging when he makes all those comments, Lanie. Writer-Man can back them all up, and then some." Seeing the still stunned look on the her face, Kate decided to give her the full story. "After you guys left the Old Haunt Friday night, we kept drinking for a while. He asked me to dance, and we did, and things just went from there... We caught a cab back to his place, and made out like horny teenagers all the way. God, we were so... We didn't even get inside the loft when we... I'll never look at that elevator the same way again." She relaxed slightly as she continued, tucking a strand of hair behind her ear. "Lord knows where that man got his stamina from, but we barely made it inside before round two, against the door, and again on the kitchen bench." She paused, thinking. "I think round three was either the couch, or the floor next to it, then there was the stairs, and then the bed. Several times... then the shower, and the bed again and I think we passed out after that."

"I should bloody well think so! You are lucky you didn't give him a heart attack, girl..."

"Oh, I think he's fit enough, Lanie. We woke up around ten or so... Well, actually I woke him up... I have no idea what came over me, but I've never... woken a guy up like that before..." She blushed, a wicked little smile on her face. "Mind you, I think I could get used to that... Anyway, there were another few times in bed, then another shower... You know he has gas hot water in there? You can't actually run out of hot water, thank God, because we were in there over an hour..."

"Well, I guess that explains how come you are sitting a bit carefully there, hon. You are a bit sore, I take it?"

"Just a bit, yeah..." She grinned. "But it was so worth it..." Eyeing the detective, Lanie had a very hard time keeping the grin off her face. Finally giving up, she hugged her friend.

"Now, why don't you tell me what you meant about you thinking you're addicted?" A trace of her earlier embarrassment crept back into her voice as Kate answered.

"Well, the first couple of times were... amazing. But the rest? It just never seemed to get old, Lanie. Every damned time was better than the one before, and I stopped counting when I passed round twenty or so. I did things..." She swallowed, and went on. "I did things I've never done before, because I wanted to, and when he..." Another shudder coursed through her as she thought back. "Lanie, I know at times I like being... aggressive, but I never knew how good it could feel letting somebody else take control like that... God Lanie, am I turning into some kind of pervert, just because I came when bit me?"

"He what?"

"He bit me..." Kate pulled down the collar of the grey turtle-neck shirt she was wearing, and showed her the perfect set of teeth-marks where her neck met the muscle of her shoulder. "He wove his fingers through my hair, and tightened his fist. Not rough, but firm... He pulled my head back to the side, and I just... melted. Then he bit me, and growled. I've never heard a noise quite like it, Lanie, it was deep and primal and I could feel it through my whole body and just like that, I.. you know." Her breathing a little rapid, Kate's cheeks flushed slightly as she described it. Grinning at her friend, Kate continued. "It was almost as good when I did it back to him..."

Her mouth hanging open, Lanie tried to gather her thoughts. Shaking her head, she finally found her voice.

"For what it's worth, Kate, I don't think you're addicted... I think you've finally found somebody who pushes all your buttons in just the right way. From what I can tell, you two seem to be making up for lost time with a vengeance!"

"I don't know how long we can keep going at it like energiser bunnies, Lanie, but I know he's coming back to my apartment tonight, because Alexis and his mother are home today, and I for one don't want to make that kind of racket where they can hear, and the chances of keeping the noise down is pretty much non-existent."

"You're seriously going to take him home tonight, and go again, after all you two have been doing all weekend?" Beyond dumbfounded, all Lanie could do was gape at her friend.

"Pretty much... the cab ride into work was a little... heated, and it's all I can do to try to keep my hands off him, Lanie. All I can do is think about dragging him off to the archives, or a closet somewhere, hell, even the showers would do if nobody came in for a few minutes... I'm just hoping we don't have a body drop today, because the only way I think I am going to get through the whole damn day is by focusing very, very hard on paperwork, and maybe taking a cold shower every hour or so..."

"Damn, girl... I think you might actually have a problem... Given the way you two have danced around each other the last three years, I think the only way you are going to get this under control is just to get it out of your systems, and hope like hell it settles down into something approaching what passes for a normal sex life amongst us mere mortals... Until then, get used to being sore and tired, and don't forget to eat properly. All that exercise, you know..."

"So you are telling me that in your professional medical opinion, we should just eat up, keep screwing each other senseless, and hope for the best?" Blushing, Lanie nodded.

"I wouldn't have put it quite like that, but yes." Grinning, Beckett stood up and left the morgue, glancing back over her shoulder as she pushed the door open.

"Thanks Lanie! I'll catch you up in a few days!"

Barely halfway back to her desk, Beckett caved. Ducking into the storage closet, she pulled out her cell phone and closed the door, texting an invitation to a certain author as the door clicked closed.

*Storage closet near morgue, code 105, need backup ASAP*