She surprises him at his loft around six, an hour before he's supposed to pick her up at her place.

She fidgets with her dress as the door swings open, pictures him with a few buttons of his shirt undone, a tie open and loose against his chest. A vision of a man in love.

"Couldn't wait another hour to see me?" he asks with a grin as he leans his body against the doorframe, twisting the ends of his tie with his fingers.

She rolls her eyes. "Not quite. Thought I'd spent a little time with Alexis before we go," she says softly. Even though their alone time had been lacking lately, she hadn't spent much time with the little girl, either. Not since things had gotten so hectic at work.

His eyes lighten in that way they do when Kate mentions her, like he still can't believe they're their own little convoluted family unit.

"You gonna stand there or are you gonna invite me in?" she asks, raising an eyebrow. He startles, stepping aside to let her float through the doorway.

"She's upstairs," he tells her as she brushes past him, grazing her fingers light and easily against his arm. "Hang on," he growls quietly, wrapping a hand gently over her wrist. She squeaks a little in surprise as he tugs her to him, clutches his arms for purchase. His hands slip over her jaw as he presses his mouth to hers, hot and fierce.

"You look stunning," he breathes in a murmur against her lips. She smiles into the kiss, her fingers curling over his ear.

"Not so bad yourself, stud," she rasps, sliding her palm over his warm, exposed chest. Her body sags into his on a sigh as his lips find her neck, soft and nipping.

"Castle," she hums breathily, can't help the way her hand travels to one of his nipples, eliciting a deep groan that travels through her core.

"We'll never make it out if we keep this up," she points out, yanking at her lip with her teeth as she tilts her head to give him better access. God, the things he does to her.

His hands tighten at her waist, his thumbs scraping against the lace. "I'm okay with that."

She lets out a light laugh. "Liar."

He grumbles something against her skin before she's missing the smooth glide of his lips against her clavicle, her ear, her temple. She lets out a slow breath, calming herself as her forehead rests against his chin.

"Go play with my kid," he says gently, pressing his palm to hers as she tangles their fingers. She smiles, allows her mouth a quick sweep against his cheek before she drops his hand and makes her way up the stairs, leaving him breathless and happy in her wake.

Now pleasantly flushed, she raps on the young girl's bedroom door, peeking her head inside. She lies on her bed, her nose adorably stuck in a book, her feet raised and kicking behind her ponytail.

"Hey, sweetie." Her curious blue eyes poke out behind the book as Kate steps into the room. The warmth seeps into her eyes, fills Kate's heart up as she carefully places the book onto her bed.

"Kate!"

Kate kneels down beside the bed, wrapping her arms around the redhead in a fierce hug.

"I missed you," Alexis sighs. Oh.

"I know, Alexis. I've missed you, too. Work's been really crazy lately." She presses a kiss to her hair.

"Daddy missed you too," Alexis confesses, slipping from their embrace.

Oh.

Kate swallows roughly. "I missed you both. Just gotta work on finding a balance."

Alexis smiles a little, seems satisfied with Kate's answer for the moment. "You look really pretty," she says, eyes widening slightly in awe as she takes in Kate's dress. "Daddy says he's taking you dancing," she says wistfully. "I wish I could go dancing."

"That's why I'm here, silly girl. So we can have our own dance party before your Dad and I go out."

Alexis grins in delight and Kate almost past herself on the back for her quick thinking. She flicks on Top 40 on Alexis' small radio, fighting a cringe as a synthesized pop beat filters through the speakers.

Alexis wrinkles her nose. "Mind if I change it?"

"Please," Kate laments dramatically. Alexis giggles, fiddling with the stations until she finds an old pop-rock station that's more Michael Jackson than Britney Spears.

Kate takes Alexis' small hand in hers and spins her in a twirl, relishing her squeals of delight.

"Can you moonwalk?" Alexis asks her, eyes shining excitedly. Before waiting for a response, her feet move flawlessly across the floor, an MJ protégé.

"Don't tell me your Dad taught you that?" Kate asks. She can't quite wrap her head around Richard Castle dancing like a smooth criminal.

"He wishes." Alexis rolls her eyes. "I've watched a lot of videos." She shrugs, as if it's as simple as tying a shoe.

"Will you show me?"

Alexis eyes her thoughtfully. "Only if you promise to be a better student than Dad," she teases.

Kate laughs, pressing a kiss to her forehead. So precocious. "Done."

When Castle finds them a short time later, they're stumbling in some modern version of the Electric Slide that Kate has a hard time mastering.

"You gonna be dancing on my toes all night?" Castle asks on a smirk. Kate glares as she slips her shoes back on.

"I'll have you know, Mr. Castle, that I happen to be an excellent dancer," she retorts, poking him in the chest.

"She's much better than you, Dad," Alexis pipes up. Kate raises her eyebrows, cocking her head. See?

"I'll have you know that my nickname in college was 'Lord of the Dance'."

Kate rolls her eyes. "Okay, Michael Flatley. Let's go before we miss our reservation." She throws Alexis a knowing look over her shoulder, winking as she watches her stifle a laugh behind her book.

"Just for that, I'm gonna tell Grams you want to be a very active participant in her next dramatic monologue."

Alexis lowers her book, narrowing her eyes. "You wouldn't."

"Guess you'll just have to wait and see," he drawls, wrapping an arm smoothly around Kate's waist.

Alexis lets out a low, dramatic sigh, pressing her porcelain face into the spine of her book.

Kate's mouth twitches and sometimes she can't believe this kind of relationship exists. She gets to see it with her own eyes, gets to love them while they embrace her, flaws and all.

She hugs Alexis goodbye before she leads Castle out of the room, corners him in the hallway with a firm palm splayed against his chest as she works her mouth over his lips. Her body sings deliciously as his thrums vibrate in waves through her body, his hands roaming and squeezing over her back.

"What was that for?" he asks, panting through swollen pink lips.

"I just love you," she murmurs softly, her fingers lingering at the line of his jaw.

His mouth finds her forehead as he lets out a slow breath. "Oh, Kate." He sighs. "I love you, too."

"We are not going to be those people, Castle," she protests as he holds out a forkful of spaghetti.

"What people?"

"The lovesick ones that feed each other in dimly lit booths in romantic restaurants." His face falls in a pout and maybe she can indulge him just this once. She rolls her eyes before wrapping her mouth around the delicious Italian pasta, moaning softly in delight. Mmm.

His eyes darken before her as he takes a long, cool sip of white wine. She smirks at his reaction, parting her lips as she gently kicks her shoes off. She edges her toes under the hem of his pants, her warm heel brushing against his calf. His eyes widen as he chokes on his wine, spluttering into a napkin.

"Jesus," he breathes as she tugs slyly at her lip. "If you want to make it onto that dance floor at all, Beckett, you'll withdraw your weapons of mass seduction," he growls.

A blush creeps up her neck as she lets out a light laugh, reluctantly sliding her foot out of the leg of his pants and back into her high-heeled shoe. She wants to dance, oh yes, she does, but the way he's looking at her now—

Oh. She has half a mind to drag him to the nearest restroom for a little rendezvous to tide them over until the end of the night. She can already feel his hot mouth crushed against hers, the slide of his thigh between her legs as his hand bunches her dress to palm at her backside.

"You're very flushed," he notes suspiciously, his eyes sweeping the length of her body. She lets out a weak laugh, wrapping her fingers tightly around her glass of cabernet. She takes a long sip, willing her body to calm down.

Plenty of time for that later.

"Let's go," she rasps, swiping the alcohol from her lips with the flick of her tongue. She shakily gets to her feet, feels the liquid humming in her veins, sending licks of fire through her senses.

"Where?" he asks, his voice low velvet, dangerous against the shell of her ear.

"A club where I can keep my hands on you all night," she says throatily, tugging nonchalantly on his tie. He groans, fisting his hands against the curve of her waist.

She leans into his ear, lets out a slow, hot breath against his skin. "Try to keep up."

In addition to DOS, I'm working on another multi-chapter fic called "Dissolution", which you can find on my page. It's a lot angstier (not sure that's an actual word, but), though I don't think you'd be disappointed if you gave it a shot.

Thoughts?

Olivia