castle | 𝑑𝑒𝑒𝑟𝑖𝑛𝑔𝑡𝑜𝑛 𝑖𝑛𝑏𝑜𝑥.

[ it hadn't been her plan either, to lower her guards so quickly if at all; she would've been more than content to just let things float between them on a backbone of corny jokes and occasionally inappropriate innuendo, but certain situations had rendered the need for sincerity here and there. she can't exactly point to a specific moment when things changed, only that they have, a series of events leading them up to tonight and this conversation where it's all too easy for her to dip towards more dangerous territory. ]

Mmhmm. [ she's flipped the device to the speaker option so she can rest it against her chest, the sound of his voice closer to filling the room now as she lounges across the couch. ]

You caught me. That's what I've been doing all along. Cozying up with coffee and compliments just to see if it'll get me a free extension on the house.

[ he should watch himself more, especially considering the trail of accidents that led them into more intimate scenarios, wet kisses and warm grazes of skin.

even if they'd mutually agreed to move past it, that wouldn't be enough to steer them from repeats if they got too caught up in moments like these.

and frank has about a thousand reasons why he can't have that happen. ]

Shit, I always knew you were up to something, Judy. And there you've been, pulling my strings and wrapping me right around your finger.

[ he says it with a tease in his voice, but it makes her fall silent for a second, wondering if for all their efforts to keep this conversation light and friendly they may have inadvertently struck a little too close to home.

she didn't count on any of this. and now that it's happened she doesn't really know where to go from here. ]

You said it, Harry, not me. [ but she does laugh, in spite of herself. ] Is it working?

[ he finds his own silence, gaze caught suddenly within the emptiness of his mug, tilting it as the remaining drips of coffee encircle at the bottom.

it's a sought out distraction, and he wonders if he should brew a fresh pot to jolt his senses again. ]

If it was, I'd be on your front porch right now with a fresh plate of fries, wouldn't I?

[ which he isn't. not yet. ]

Hmm. Good point.

[ though there is that temptation, however small, to crane her head up and over the sofa towards that front door — even if she knows he won't be standing there. ]

Guess that means I'll just have to try a little harder. What are we up to now, basic bribery?

[ and maybe it's from that simple comment that he purses his lips in brief thought; when he turns around, instead of going to that coffee pot, he finds himself turning on the fryer. ]

You've offered a few mugs my way so far. Might have to start uping the price.

Alright, fine.

[ she won’t operate under the assumption that the eventual crackling sound in the background has anything to do with her special request, just like she’s already ascending the stairs to change out of her clothes into something less bar-scented, leaving the device on her bed while she tugs on a clean shirt and a pair of sweatpants. in her mind, nothing but a brief night of vegging awaits — and maybe a glass of whiskey before bed. ]

Name it.

[ if he wants to adjust the terms of their agreement, the least she can do is give him the first choice on their new exchange rate. right? ]

[ he manages a balancing act, shoulder keeping the phone tucked next to his ear while he sets up the frying, not switching to speaker on account of how he might need hear her over the boiling.

he also hears a faint shuffling on her end, but doesn't think too deeply about the source, distracted with making sure he nails the recipe on his end.

but he's quiet for a moment, taking a pause to consider his answer. ]

... how about a drink?

[ not of the coffee variety. ]

[ she doesn’t exactly hold her breath, half-distracted as she is with tossing her dirty clothes into a corner of the room and tugging her shirt on over her head, but there is a longer pause where she wonders if she has somehow gone too far — or, barring that, if someone’s walked into the diner and he’d had to hang up without saying goodbye.

but the crackling in the background clues her into his continued presence and when he finally speaks up she smiles, not sure where her expectations had traveled to but not complaining about where reality has taken them. ]

Okay. Easy. [ thank god it hadn’t been him asking her to help assemble a new table or something. a drink she can handle. ] When?

[ he doesn't know why that ended up being his answer, not prone on seeking out a drink that casually, not here. but when she asks for an alternative, nothing prepared on his lips prior, it's the first that comes to mind.

but when she responds easy, accepting without hesitation, his lips curve into a small smile. ]

Whenever you want me.

[ oh. oh.

and here she’s been under the impression that his definition of a drink would consist of... well, exactly what it sounds like taken at face value. maybe she offers him a glass of something stronger rather than a cup of coffee after he finishes fixing the latest broken appliance here, or maybe it happens when she’s behind the bar, on a night she definitely hasn’t encouraged him to stop by in any sense.

but now she’s questioning if it might actually stand for something else, and her teeth worry at her bottom lip for those few seconds before she gives in — to the late hour, to the direction of this conversation, to all of it. ]

How about now?

[ his tongue curls to lick over his lip without notice, a subconscious swipe as he think about what she says, how it follows in response to his own answer. and he knows everything that's wrong with it, why he should reject the offer, knowing it could steer the implications elsewhere if he doesn't. ]

I'd, uh, have to close up here.

[ which is the window he has as an excuse to escape this. but he realizes he'd already developed his own reason for going over there before she even asked.

this really was becoming dangerous. ]

Give me twenty minutes.

[ she’d been prepared for the work excuse — because she remembers, as soon as the words had left her mouth, that the place is usually open all the time, but whether or not that meant he’d have to stay all night and into the morning is its own separate question. and so she’d anticipated a polite turning down, flipping her phone back to rest between ear and shoulder as she’d readied herself a drink downstairs.

apparently, now she needs to grab a second glass. (good thing she’s got time to clean one.) ]

Okay. [ and time to toss at least one fingerful of whiskey back before she loses her nerve. ] I’ll put the liquor on.

[ the diner tends to have full hours on the weekend, which meant keeping its doors open straight into morning, but with the town as small as it is, actual customers before six didn't come around so commonly. it makes it easier for him to pick one choice over the other, though he can't say that it had been the ultimate factor in his choosing.

the timing works out anyway, pouring the cooked fries onto a sheet within a styofoam container. ]

Hope I'm not interfering with your plans.

You? Nah.

[ although he might be able to hear that squeak the kitchen sink always makes when the faucet’s being turned on; guess who left a sink full of dirty dishes sitting there and doesn’t have a second clean tumbler to offer? that’ll be fixed soon enough (and she can just pretend she’s been leaving the rest to soak otherwise.)

that, plus the brief exhale she makes after swallowing a sip of whiskey. ] It was just going to be me and Jack over here but I’m pretty sure he won’t mind being the third wheel.

[ he can hear the dishes running on her end, just as does a quick wash himself with the fryer, looking over the appliances to make sure everything's shut off (last thing he needs is to set the place on fire while he's gone).

with those last steps in mind, he chuckles with the phone tucked at his ear, to-go container in hand when he grabs his keys. ]

Well, I can't make any promises I'll make for better company than Jack. Don't really have any party tricks for good entertainment.

[ the last thing she wants is to leave him with the impression that she’s gone to any great effort to clean up for his arrival, especially when he’s seen the place in a state of disarray more often than not — and tonight isn’t any different, shouldn’t be any different, other than the part where it is. ]

I’m sure you’ll think of something. [ again, it’s a comment she makes all too breezily before she has the chance to fully consider it, but once it’s out there, she can’t bring herself to feel bad about it, tucking the bottle under her arm and holding a glass in each hand while she shuffles back to the sofa to sit in wait. ]

[ and she might hear that slight rumble of a car being started, which might call him out on those proclamations of his distrust towards a certain gift he'd recently received (though really, can she find any proof it's the same car, hmm). ]

Think I might know a thing or two that can impress you. [ as with most of the conversation, it's a response that happens without thought, a slip of the tongue that seems to be in rhythm with the rest of their exchanged words, something neither of them are doing well to fight off. ]

[ it’s definitely not something she’s going to be able to let slide without calling him out on it — because it’s her, and it wouldn’t be her usual method of teasing to not give him a little crap along the way. (it sure as hell sounds like the car he mentioned, at least from the sounds of that engine — better make sure you’ve switched to hands-free, frank.) ]

Guess I’ll have to be the judge of that. [ god, she’s just going to blame the mature hour for what keeps coming out of her mouth, because she hasn’t had nearly enough whiskey to justify this. ]

I don't know. I'm pretty confident in what I've got to offer.

[ he'll have set that phone on speaker for the sake of driving, but with one hand on the wheel, the other is still too busy rubbing over his mouth, as if maybe the gesture might help with controlling the words that are coming from it. ]

Well, damn. Why’d it take me this long to have you over for that drink, then? I’ve been missing out this whole time.

[ the grin is probably audible in her voice, that tension in her words because all of it feels wildly off-course from where they started — and yet she’s almost compelled to see it through, every last part of what could turn out to be a really bad idea. ]

Well, I couldn't be caught spoiling you. Can't have people thinking you're my favorite customer.

[ is she? that's definitely not what he's saying. not that he isn't having to press his lips tight together when he cracks a grin, one that's almost out of disbelief of their playful banter, a step different from their usual, but still fairly consistent with their brand. ]

Maybe not. But I am the one who makes sure you have your work cut out for you.

[ home repair, that’s what they’re talking about, or at least toeing the line between that subject and something else now — which isn’t necessarily out of their normal realm of joking, but adopts a different connotation in light of everything else. the fact that he’s on his way over. the fact that she’s waiting for him with drinks poured.

speaking of, maybe she’ll take another small sip while she’s still on the line with him now. ]

Yeah, you've definitely been keeping me on my toes. I sure don't get enough sleep either with how much you work me.

[ home repair. obviously. clearly.

and he's nearing her place now, the trip far shorter than if he had to go on his own feet, especially with the lack of any sense of traffic at 4 in the morning (not that the roads get too busy in the first place). any chance of turning back seems to be last this far along, though he's left any consideration of that possibility long before he'd even left the diner. ]

[ an audible snort, half of which gets muffled with her mouth against the rim of her glass. ]

Please, you can’t even blame me for that much anymore, Mr. 9 to 5. [ he’d been the one to snag that extra gig at the diner to begin with, thus ensuring that a good chunk of his waking hours would now be spent serving fries and milkshakes.

she does straighten somewhat when she hears the rumble of an engine from down the street, leaning forward to set her glass down for the time being. ] Feel free to block the truck in. [ it’s not like she’s planning on going anywhere after this, and it’ll be her way of ending the call by then, leaving him to pull into the gravel driveway. only once she hears the footsteps coming up the front porch does she remember that rotted-out floorboard and she rushes to warn him, throwing open the door and leaning out across the threshold. ] Don’t forget the — uh, the bad wood, right there.

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