In The Hamptons

I began this story as a fun, little piece for Memorial Day, based on Castle's tweet a few weeks back that he wanted to head to the Hamptons for the holiday weekend. And what better way to start off a new relationship than with a few days at the beach? However, my "simple" story kept going, and a brief one-shot started turning into a multi-chapter story that covers a lot more than a few days of sand and surf. Hope you enjoy …

Rated M for future chapters.

Disclaimer: Not an ounce of ownership to be had – but that doesn't make me love them any less.

The house was not what she had expected. Based on the interior design of the loft, she'd expected his house in the Hamptons to be all sleek angles and polished metal and glass. Instead, he pulled up in front of a stone cottage-style two-story that looked to be at least seventy-five years old. In fact, compared to many of the homes they'd passed on their way, it was undoubtedly among the oldest by several decades.

"Surprised?"

"A bit, I admit," Kate said. "But pleasantly. It's gorgeous, Castle."

"Thanks. It was love at first sight. I came out here looking for one of those flashy modern condo-style places closer to town, but I took one look at this place, and had to have it. The fact that it was right on the beach just sealed the deal."

His face glowed with that infectious, boyish pride that she had once found so annoying and now was completely enamored by. My how things change, she thought.

The house was so quintessentially East Coast that the diablo red Ferrari they pulled up in seemed both anachronistic and stylistically out of place. An old-fashioned Woody station wagon would have suited the driveway much better. The property was located on the eastern edge of Montauk, fairly removed from the epicenter of the social scene in Southampton and East Hampton. The house was steps from the ocean, and was surrounded by trees and wildlife. Kate was enchanted.

"How long have you owed it?" she asked with genuine curiosity.

"About ten years. Alexis loved going to the beach so much that it just seemed easier – and cheaper – to have somewhere we could come anytime we wanted, instead of making reservations or renting a different house or condo when the whim struck."

It was Memorial Day weekend, and getting Kate to agree to a week away had been far easier than Castle had feared. That fear, he admitted, was likely based more on habit than anything else these days. Rarely in the past four years had he been able to get her to agree to anything without her acting as though he was devising some plot to seduce her, which admittedly, he occasionally was. But not all the time. And even though there were a few times she agreed to a movie or dinner with him – more so in the past year – the reality was that he had become pretty conditioned to expect a refusal, or at the very least, an argument. So when she said, "That sounds wonderful," to his "casual" suggestion that they go the Hamptons for Memorial Day, he still did a double take.

And she had called him on it.

"Why do you seem surprised I said yes?"

"I'm just not used to getting that answer from you without using a crow bar."

She smiled guiltily, and admitted, "It's something I've been working on."

Things were still so new and so tentative between them. Even reaching out to clasp her hand sent an uncontrollable thrill shooting through his system. In the three weeks since she'd shown up at his door, soaking wet and trying to make up for every mistake they'd both ever made, life had taken on a surreal quality. They'd made love with such ferocious tenderness that night, holding fast to every kiss and caress as they'd given in to four years of longing. He'd worked so hard to commit every second of that night to memory, and he could still close his eyes and feel his fingers move along every inch of her skin for the first time. A hundred kisses later, he could still feel her lips on his that night, so eager and soft, trying to cram years' worth of emotion into each second. It was a night that he knew would change his life forever.

Finding their new rhythm had proven a novel and interesting challenge. Waking up with her in his arms had been a dream come true. Making breakfast brought familiar banter that affirmed they were still "them." When she'd left to go back to her apartment after their second night together, he felt like his heart had left his body to accompany her. But he knew she needed time to adjust. So did he. She knew he needed time with Alexis. Which he did. And she was only gone for one night, but his bed never felt so empty. And when he'd shown up at her place to take her out for lunch the next day, they never made it past the island in her kitchen before she was wrapped around him with their clothes tangled and scattered to accommodate the frantic pace of their lovemaking.

And so it went, day after day, learning how to handle the blaze they'd ignited. Any fear that being together would cause their feelings to flare and burn out was quickly proven wrong. If anything, each kiss, each touch, each time he moved inside her, only added to that fire and helped it grow.

The only hitch had been her job – or rather, her lack thereof. While she'd had no further communication from Gates, neither to confirm nor contest her resignation, Ryan and Esposito, who himself was still on leave, had been relentless in their pleas for her eventual return. The most she could offer them was a promise to think about it, which she did. Castle, meanwhile, had remained uncharacteristically silent on the matter, telling her to let it be for now, that there was no rush to make a permanent decision. Kate had decided he was right. They had enough going on, and call it newfound intuition where he was concerned, but she knew this wasn't a wedge or a time bomb like other things they never talked about. When they were ready, they would discuss it.

Back in the present, Castle took her hand across the span of the front seat, their eyes meeting intently, confirming their thoughts were running parallel. It had been an amazing few weeks, and now they had the house and the beach to themselves – at least until Alexis arrived on Monday. But that still gave them almost two full days alone together. Whatever would they do?

"Come on, let me show you around."

They climbed out of the car and grabbed their scant luggage. Castle already had most of his stuff here, and he'd assured Kate she wouldn't need much more than her bathing suit and a few pieces of casual clothes. Still, she managed to cram quite a lot into a deceptively small bag. Then again, some of it didn't exactly have a lot of material.

The house was a perfect balance of authentic period décor and modern convenience. The original wainscoting in the dining room offered a tasteful contrast to the sleek stainless steel appliances and granite countertops in the kitchen. Gleaming hardwood floors flowed seamlessly from foyer to family room to kitchen, while the expanse of floor-to-ceiling windows that ran from room to room along the back of the house provided a virtually uninterrupted view of the beach and ocean. Her first sight of it took Kate's breath away.

"There are three bedrooms upstairs, including a master suite with a full bath and second-floor balcony overlooking the water. Two other bedrooms share a bath. There's a full bath off the kitchen, and a shower outside, off the deck, so you can wash off the sand before coming in."

"I gotta say, Castle, I'm impressed. I think I could get used to this."

"See, I told you that you should have come out sooner. Then again," he said, coming up behind her and wrapping his arms around her waist, "I'm actually kind of glad you've never been here before."

"Oh yeah? Why's that?"

Moving her hair to the side, he began nibbling at her neck, sending delicious shivers up her spine. "Because, it would have been my own personal hell to have you here, in a bathing suit, lounging on the deck, wading in the surf, and sleeping under my roof, and not be able to touch you like this. I wouldn't have survived."

His mouth was so warm on her skin, causing her to melt backward against his chest. Thank goodness he seemed to be having an easier time standing up than she was. "To be perfectly honest, I don't think I would have either."

"See Detective, I knew you couldn't resist me. Maybe we could have been doing this long before now."

Her voice was low and breathy as she struggled to formulate a coherent reply. "I guess we'll never know. And I told you, Castle, I'm not a detective anymore."

"Doesn't mean I'm not going to call you that. It's still sexy as hell."

To prove his point, he let his fingers roam to the hem of her shirt, then lift it slowly over her head.

Struggling to focus with his hands skimming up her torso and grazing her breasts beneath the sheer bra, she uttered, "I think it's time you showed me that master suite you were bragging about."

She felt him lean in, and she turned her head just enough for her lips to meet his over her shoulder. She could practically see the electricity crackle between them. "I think you're right," he said, taking her hand and leading her toward the stairs.