AUTHORS NOTE: So the point of this was to have a solid storyline. A moment between bros to talk out some shizz but that's not what the imagination bunnies wanted so this is what we have! I hope you enjoy all the same. Obviously based off "Knockdown" and I know that Ryan didn't actually get a bruise from the punch but poetic license please!

DISCLAIMER: I don't own the characters

[I'm Sorry, Bro]

Standing in his kitchen, Ryan winced as he pressed his hand to the already bruising section of his face from where Esposito had punched him. They'd not spoke about it afterwards. They'd sent Beckett the brief text message about the captain then they'd gone their separate ways in anger. They'd never done that before but even after crashing against the van, the anger and the hurt radiated between the two of them. Esposito was loyal, always had been and probably always would be even with the facts facing them. Ryan should have known better than to push the man.

Splashing cold water over his face, Ryan moved away from the sink and jumped when he saw Esposito standing behind him. "I really need to get that key back off you," he joked lightly before moving over to the fridge and grabbing hold of two bottles of beer before moving them through to the living room.

"You wouldn't take that key from me," Esposito commented lightly as he accepted the bottle handed out to him and sat down on the edge of the red sofa, his thumb playing with the beads of condensation running down the edge of the bottle. Ryan could sense that something was playing on his partner's mind but he didn't want to push, not again. A comfortable silence washed over them. The only sound being that of the beer moving around the bottle when Ryan took a swig.

A few minutes had passed when Ryan finally broke the silence, "you're going to make that beer go warm and I can promise you that warm beer isn't tasty, bro." He joked slightly not expecting Esposito to break down in tears at his comment. He put his bottle down on the table next to the sofa and slid over to his partner, his hand squeezing his shoulder as he looked into his partner's face. "Javi," the revert to first names making the situation a lot more personal, "what's wrong?"

"He lied to us," he whispered through his tears as he looked away from Ryan's prying eyes. "The captain for all these years..." he whispered but stopped as he shook his head. "He was like a father to us all but yet now I find myself wondering who I can trust especially after..." the sentence ended but Ryan knew what Esposito had meant. His old partner had betrayed him and then now for the captain to do it too. Ryan moved off the couch and knelt in between the man's legs, his hands taking hold of the man's face so that he would have to look at him.

"Hey, you can trust Beckett and Castle. Esposito, they'll always have our backs no matter what because we're family and the captain will always be our family too, okay?" He then ran his hand over the short cropped hair and smiled sadly. "But most importantly, you can always trust me. No matter what happens we're always going to have each other's backs because that's what partners do and I've never had a partner that I love or admire as much as I do you, okay?" Esposito looked down at the man and smiled through his tears, Ryan's thumbs wiping away at the tears as they fell across his fingers.

Reaching out, Esposito hooked his hand at the back of Ryan's neck and nodded his head. "I understand, partner." He promised before looking at the purpling mark that he'd caused on his partner's face. Leaning down, he licked his tongue lightly across the wound before pressing a kiss to the corner of Ryan's lips. "I'm sorry," he whispered against his lips and Ryan released the breath that he didn't even realise that he was holding as he looked into his partner's eyes.

"Well I got a lucky punch in," he lied knowing that there was no way he'd actually hurt Esposito, "my skin just bruises like a peach." He calmly pointed out as Esposito's fingers lightly traced along the mark, his heart aching that he'd been the one to mark his partner but he couldn't help but snort at the statement his partner had said, his head shaking slightly.

"You're such a woman, bro." Esposito laughed causing Ryan to punch his shoulder lightly before he caught his partner's bottom lip in between his teeth and nipped on it causing Esposito to gasp slightly, his hands reaching out to rest against Ryan's shoulders. "I really am sorry though. I shouldn't have took it out on you..."

"Rather than me than some ass who got in your way at the bar," Ryan muttered slightly and Esposito looked up at him. He had never mentioned being in a bar but he also knew that Ryan knew him better than he knew himself. "You only ever come over here at this time of night when you've had a drink or two at the bar." Ryan joked moving to stand up, his hands running along the length of his thighs innocently as he looked around awkwardly for something to do in his own apartment.

"That's not..." Esposito tried to argue but gave up and the look on Ryan's face showed that he understood what Esposito struggled with. "I'm sorry for everything, bro."

Ryan glared at him, "stop apologising, you idiot." He demanded before grabbing hold of his beer bottle and finishing it, a droplet of beer escaping the corner of his lip and dribbling down his chin. He had just been about to raise his wrist and use his sleeve to wipe it away when Esposito stood up and grabbed hold of his wrist, his gaze one of steel as he watched the droplet move down Ryan's smooth jaw. He just watched it for a few seconds before he leant in and licked the droplet away with his tongue, his hand moving to curl into Ryan's luscious blonde hair before leaning back and smiling at him.

"I'm so..." the forbidden statement was finished off with a crushing kiss, Ryan's hands grabbing hold of Esposito's hips and pulling him as near as they could and the bottle of beer just fell to the floor neglected. The kiss was one of anger and passion with an aggressive combination of teeth, tongue and lips. Esposito's grip in Ryan's hair tightening but it did nothing but cause the man to release a whimper into the man's mouth and for his grip on the hips to tighten more as they pushed at each other until they ended up in Ryan's bedroom.

Falling back on the bed, they ended up a tangle of limbs as the kiss softened slightly and their hands fought with each other's shirt buttons. The overwhelming need to touch burning flesh too high to ignore. The kiss ended when they both needed breath but Ryan's lips nipped patterns along Esposito's jaw as the man overpowered him so that he could straddle him, his fingers lightly drawling along the patterns of his muscles. Pulling away from Ryan's lips, Esposito followed his finger with his lips before latching onto one of Ryan's nipples and biting down on it, hard, causing Ryan to buck up off the bed and his head to roll back between his shoulder blades as Esposito's fingers continued south.

"Javi," Ryan moaned breathlessly as Esposito cupped him through his dress pants and pressed down with the heel of his hand. Ryan let out a guttural cry, his hips bucking up off the bed causing his erection to rub against that of Esposito's which in turn caused his partner to groan and omitting vibrations across Ryan's nipple. "Please..." he pleaded not wanting to take it slow this time, he just needed Esposito as much as it seemed Esposito needed him and before Ryan knew it, the pair of them were lying naked on the bed while Esposito lazily kissed him as a distraction before slowly slipping a finger into him.

The sting burnt but Esposito swallowed every gasp of discomfort as he kissed his partner, his free hand running leisurely through the blonde waves as he whispered sweet nothings in between the kisses. It wasn't long before Ryan was moving back against the finger, wriggling as a blunt act to what he wanted. Esposito just grinned, muttered something about Ryan being a pushy bottom before slipped in a second finger and started to stretch him. Ryan glared at him but the glare suddenly dissipated when Esposito's fingers brushed against that sweet spot that caused Ryan's body to tremble with pleasure, his head rolling back again as he thrust up against his partner and his name coming out in a pant.

Esposito was leisurely stretching Ryan into a hot mess when Ryan suddenly blurted out, "Javi, will you just move already?" and took hold of his partner's cock in his hand and squeezed it a little harder than what was necessary but it got the message across and Esposito fixed his position so that he could slowly push into Ryan's hole, his lips taking hold of his partner's again so to distract him once more from the discomfort. Esposito didn't move, his lips just teased Ryan's as he waited for the pain to go away and to be replaced by the pleasure. He knew when that was because Ryan's hips bucked and he cursed followed by the short demand of "move" which caused Esposito to grin as he did just that. He pushed into his partner, his smile wide as he hit the spot in the first attempt causing Ryan to push off the bed and call out his name. He decided not to mention him being a god, yet. He was too busy enjoying the feel of being inside Ryan's warmth.

Together they set up a rhythm, Esposito's hand taking hold of Ryan's cock and stroking him along with it but he could tell from the warm flush spreading across Ryan's milky white chest that it wouldn't be long before Ryan hit completion and as if psychic, it only took a few pumps before Ryan spilt his load between the two of them. Esposito moved half a dozen more times into Ryan before he too achieved his release and he crashed down onto Ryan's chest. He took a few moments before he looked into his partner's eyes. "Do you know one of these days we're going to do this properly?" He teased sliding out of his partner, reaching up and pressing a kiss to his lips before moving through to the bathroom to get something to clean them up with.

"I'm sorry," Ryan said with a twinkle in his eyes causing Esposito to throw the cloth at him. "It's just I enjoy the quick rushed primal sex that we share but if you'd rather we take it slow and do it with music and candles then I can make sure that's available next time you decide to come over," he teased cleaning himself off before winking at his partner.

"Hey, I am so not the woman in this relationship." Esposito pointed out before lying down in the bed. "Snuggle?" He asked causing Ryan to look at him, his eyebrows raised.

"So the woman, bro." Ryan teased but cuddled up all the same, his smile warm as Esposito leant in and pressed another soothing kiss to the bruise on his face before pulling him close. He listened to Ryan's breath even out to that of a sleeper before whispering,

"I really am sorry. I'll never hurt you again," he promised as he ran his hand through the blonde waves once more before resting his head against the pillow and closing his eyes, allowing sleep to take him over.