Sorry updates have been so spaced out lately! I tried to develop another character besides Kate & Rick this chapter, so I hope you like it! The next few chps. will fast-froward, so we get different parts of the twins growing up. Enjoy & review! :)
Time flew by, and before Kate knew it, it was just a month before the twins' first birthday. She had absolutely no knowledge when it came to throwing a birthday party for two babies, but when she asked Rick he just mumbled something incoherent. He was more worried about their other child – in 2 days, Alexis was bringing her new boyfriend home for dinner.
"Worried about the dinner?," Kate asked, sitting down next to Rick on the bed. The twins had gone to sleep a few hours ago, and the house was quiet. Rick nodded.
"I just… I want him to be right for her, you know? I want him to like us and for us to like him, and for him to treat her right. A lot of people meet their future spouses in college, you know," he said seriously. "There are statistics."
Kate smiled softly and kissed Rick's cheek. "We didn't. In fact, if you weren't such a goofy, obnoxious little child, we never would have met."
"Thanks?," Rick said, confused. Kate took his hand.
"I'm just saying, you find love in unexpected places. Don't jump to the conclusion that at twenty years old, Alexis has found The One. It took me 32 years."
"And it was so worth it, right?," Rick asked with a wink. Kate nodded and kissed him, cradling his chin in her hand.
"Yes, it was."
xxxx
Dinner was an hour away, and Rick was going crazy. He had changed his outfit 3 times.
"Rick!," Kate had scolded after the third outfit-change. "Stop being such a teenage girl!"
She held Stephen in her arms, bouncing him up and down gently. He was already dressed in a little button-down shirt and jeans, with cute socks that looked like tiny Converse sneakers. Adrienne was sitting in the play pen in the living room, wearing an adorable pink dress Alexis bought her and happily playing with a stuffed bunny.
"Even the twins are being more low-maintenance than you," she finished, setting Stephen on their bed so she could adjust her silky maroon tank top, black blazer, and jeans. She put her hands on Rick's shoulder and smiled.
"Besides, you always look handsome, no matter what."
"But do I look intimidating?," Rick asked, very seriously. "I don't want to look like a pushover. I want this guy to know who he's gonna have to answer to if he hurts my daughter."
Kate bit her lip. "Umm… intimidating? Not really. But definitely charming."
Rick's face fell and Kate kissed him.
"Aww, don't worry honey. We can just tell him that I have a gun."
"But that's emasculating," Rick grumbled, walking over to the bed and picking up Stephen.
"Mommy's trying to make daddy look like a wimp, Stevie. Yes she is."
Kate just laughed and followed Rick out into the dining and living room area. She checked on Ade in the playpen, and then took Stevie from Rick and put him in the playpen too. Rick moved around the kitchen, setting up some chips and salsa.
"Can you believe we'll be doing this for Ade one day?," Rick asked Kate. She sat on a barstool and chewed her lip.
"Ughh, I don't even want to think about it. She's my baby!"
"I know," Rick said. He looked over at the twins and smiled. "Think about how I feel. That used to be Alexis, sitting over there, playing with stuffed animals and watching cartoons."
"Aww," Kate said, smiling at him. "You're such an old man!"
"Oh ha ha," Rick said, making a face. The doorbell rang and he stared at Kate, eyes wide, like a deer in the headlights. When he didn't move, she got up to answer the door.
"Alexis, hey!"
"Kate!" Alexis threw her arms around Kate and kissed her on the cheek. She drew back and put her hand on a young man's shoulder. He was tall, a younger, scruffier Eric McCormack with a great smile.
"Kate, this is Daniel."
Kate smiled warmly and held out her hand. "Hi, Daniel. I'm Kate, Alexis's.." she paused, never having introduced herself a stepmom before. Daniel smiled and shook her hand.
"..she's my mom," Alexis finished, smiling at Kate. "Should we go inside?"
"Oh, yeah!," Kate said. She laughed. "Come on in, guys."
"It's nice to meet you, . I've heard wonderful things from Alexis," Daniel said, following Kate and Alexis into the foyer. Rick was standing there, a slightly dorky smile on his face.
"Daniel, this is my dad, Rick," Alexis said. She glanced at Kate nervously, and Kate just took her hand and squeezed it. Daniel and Rick shook hands.
"It's great to meet you, . From what Alexis has told me, you're a pretty awesome guy."
Rick softened up and smiled. "Well, thank you, Daniel."
A gurgling noise and some incoherent babbling came from the living room, and Kate went to check on the twins. She picked up Ade and rocked her back and forth in her arms. Alexis joined her and picked up Stephen.
"This is my little sister, Adrienne, and my brother, Stephen," she said to Daniel. He grinned and kissed Ade on the cheek, then ruffled Stephen's hair.
"They're really cute, " he said, smiling at Kate and Alexis. "I have a 3 year old sister," he said to Kate.
"Really? That's great!," Kate said. "These two are my first foray into parenting, so we'll see how that goes."
The three of them laughed and Rick joined in as he approached, holding a bowl of chips and salsa. He put it on the coffee table and took Stephen from Alexis so they could all sit down.
'That's not completely true, Kate," Alexis said. She looked at Daniel and smiled. "You raised me for the last 3 years."
"Yeah, Alexis was telling me how much of a role model you've become to her since you and Rick met," Daniel said. He looked at them. "How did you guys meet? Alexis said I should ask you."
Kate and Rick looking at each other and smiled. Kate turned to Daniel and said, "It's a funny story, actually. I arrested him at one of his book parties."
"Really?"
"Yep. For conspiracy to commit murder," Kate said with a laugh. She kissed Rick's cheek. "And here we are, nearly, what? 6 six years later?"
Rick nodded, a warm smile on his face. "The mystery writer and the homicide detective. It's like a really good movie."
"A wonderful movie you never want to stop watching," Kate said, leaning her head on Rick's shoulder and hugging Ade. "Life can be very unexpected sometimes, as you will find out."
Daniel smiled. "That's great, that you guys have such a romantic love story. I was telling Alexis the other day, I'm sort of a hopeless romantic."
"Really?," Rick asked. He put Stephen back in the playpen and then took Ade from Kate. "Well, tell us more about yourself, Daniel. Major, hometown..."
Daniel laughed. "Well, I'm a Psychology major with an English minor, and I'm from Chicago. I have three siblings: an older brother, a sister in high school, and my baby sister."
"That sounds fun," Kate said. "Rick and I were both only children. I bet growing up with other kids to play with was super fun."
"It was," Daniel agreed. "And it really taught me a lot about the importance of family."
This intrigued Rick. "Really? Do tell us more."
Alexis tugged on Kate's sleeve and gestured to the twins. Kate's eyes lit up.
"Oh! Rick, it's bedtime for the twins. Alexis, would you mind helping me put them to bed?"
"No at all, Kate," Alexis said with a smile. She took Adrienne from her father as Kate picked up Stephen. Alexis smiled at Daniel and Rick.
"You guys have fun, we'll be back."
Alexis and Kate went down the hall and into the twins' room, shutting the door behind them. Alexis smiled at Kate mischievously, the look on her face almost a carbon copy of that signature Rick Castle grin.
"This will be interesting."
They gossiped about Daniel while they put the twins in their pajamas and changed their diapers, and Alexis told Kate a few details about the relationship that she would never tell her father.
"Can I tell you a secret?," she asked Kate as she tucked in Adrienne, who was wearing a cute set of floral pajamas. Kate nodded, kissing both twins on the cheek before pulling Alexis down to the floor to sit with her.
"You're a little too big for me to put you in my lap in the rocking chair, but this is almost as good," Kate said with a smiled, patting the space in between her legs. Alexis grinned and sat in down, leaning against Kate. Kate brushed Alexis's shiny red hair away from her face.
"What's up?," she asked softly. Alexis bit her lip and took a deep breath.
"I think that Daniel and I might, you know..."
Kate smiled, like she had a secret. Honestly, she was thinking about her first time with Rick. Whenever she thought of her first time, it just suddenly fast-forwarded to him, as if there had been no one else.
"Do you think he's the right guy?"
"Yes, I really do. We've been together for almost 2 months, and he's really sweet to me… I'm not saying tomorrow, but it feels right."
"That's important," Kate said. She hoped she was doing this right. "I think that when the time is right, you'll know. And Daniel seems like a special guy who really cares about you."
"He does." Alexis smiled, her eyes bright. "I just… when I look at him, I feel so... different. I get that feeling you only read about, or see in movies…"
"All the songs make sense," Kate whispered.
"Exactly! And when he looks at me… I feel like myself. Which sounds really cheesy, but there's no other way to see it."
"He makes you feel special," Kate said, nodding. She kissed Alexis's hair. "I'm so happy for you, sweetie. I know your dad worries a lot, but that's just because he loves you. Neither of us have any doubt that you are a mature young woman who makes good choices."
"Thanks, mom," Alexis whispered, turning around to hug Kate. They sat there in each other's arms for a while, the girl who never had a real mother and the woman who spent her whole adult life missing her mom and wondering if she could ever be as wonderful of a mother as Johanna Beckett.
xxxx
Two months later, Kate and Rick were lying in bed at 11 am. It was Kate's day off, and she intended to be as lazy as possible. Rick was writing, pounding away at the keys on his laptop, and she was lying on her stomach, doing a crossword puzzle in the back of the Sunday Times. It wasn't often that the twins slept later than they did, and they were taking full advantage of it.
Rick looked up from his laptop at his wife and grinned. She was so completely absorbed in her puzzle that she didn't notice his carefully raise his foot and give a little kick to her butt. She craned her neck, her hair whipping around her face as she determined where the kick had come from.
"Hey!"
"What?," Rick asked, feigning innocence. But his boyish grin gave him away.
"What was that for?"
"Well, your butt is just right there, and you were so consumed with the crossword…." Rick trailed off. "It's a very nice butt, have I ever mentioned that?"
"Yes. But if you do that again, I'll shoot you," Kate said sweetly. "K, honey?"
"K."
"And if you don't like this outfit, I have a pair of flannel pjs I can wear…," Kate threatened, teasing him. By outfit, she meant black lace panties and one of Rick's white undershirts. And it was one of Rick's favorite outfits, so he left her alone, smiling to himself as he started to write a similar scene into his newest Nikki Heat book.
"Dad? Kate?"
Alexis's voice came from the foyer. Rick looked at Kate in confusion.
"Was she going to babysit today?"
"Nope," Kate said, shaking her head. She sat up, placing her crossword on the nightstand. "In the bedroom!," she called to Alexis. Rick closed his laptop and put it down, crossing his pajama-clad legs on top of the comforter.
Alexis entered the room in a cute summer dress and sandals. She looked nervous.
"What's up, honey?," Rick asked concernedly. "Is everything okay?"
"Yeah, I just… I just came from school. A meeting with my advisor, actually."
Kate looked at her. "Alexis…?"
Alexis took a deep breath. "I'm going to spend the fall semester in England. At Oxford, actually."
"Alexis, that's wonderful," Kate said, smiling at her and then shooting a sideways glance at Rick. Rick's face was neutral, and he cleared his throat.
"Dad?," Alexis asked nervously.
"I'm really happy for you, honey," Rick said, his face breaking out into a grin. "I'm… I'm really going to miss you, we all will. But I know how much you want this."
Alexis squealed and jumped onto the bed, squeezing her dad in a huge hug. Kate smiled, watching them.
"Kate, get in here," Rick said. Kate wrapped her arms around Rick and Alexis.
"Thank you thank you thank you," Alexis said to her father, kissing him on the cheek. Rick smiled.
"But you need to check in with us twice a week," Rick said, before Alexis continued to do her happy dance. Alexis just smiled and kissed her dad again, sitting down on the bed.
"Promise," she said with a grin. She leaned against Kate and Kate stroked her hair while Rick and Alexis worked out specifics. She would leave in a week, and be back just before Christmas.
"I'm so excited," Alexis said to her dad and Kate, grinning ear to ear. "This is going to be amazing."
"I'm happy for you," Kate said, smiling like a proud mom. Which she was.
One of the twins started to cry and Rick groaned.
"I'll do it."
He slid off the bed, running his hand through his hair. Alexis laughed.
"I bet my dad totally romanticized my childhood over the last few years. Probably forgot about the crying and screaming."
Kate nodded. "Oh, you bet. But neither he nor I would change a thing."
Alexis nodded. "Hey, Kate? Remember that talk we had when Daniel came over for dinner?"
"Yeah."
"Thanks again. He and I have been doing really well."
Kate smiled. "First love. That rollercoaster is one I still remember very well."
Alexis grinned.
"What are you guys going to do while you're at Oxford?," Kate asked gently. She knew how hard distance was on Alexis and her first serious boyfriend, Ashley.
Alexis bit her lip. "I didn't want to tell my dad, but Daniel is going too. Turns out we both applied for the English program without the other knowing. He wants to rent an apartment together while we're there, and I think it will be really fun. But do you think that's moving too fast?"
"I think you should follow your heart," Kate said, hugging Alexis. "It's the only thing that never lies."
"Thanks," Alexis said. "Wow, you're starting to sound like my dad."
"Who is?"
Rick same back in the room, holding Ade in his arms and rocking her back and forth. Kate winked at Alexis.
"Kate," Alexis said, getting up off the bed. "When she talks about being a mom… she's gone from hardened cop to marshmallow-soft mommy."
The three of them left, and then Alexis walked towards the bedroom doorway. "Daniel and I are going to lunch, but I'll call you guys later." She placed a little kiss on Ade's forehead and waved to them as she left.
Rick watched her go. "My baby is all grown up." He looked down at Ade. "Don't you dare grow up that fast," he said to her. "Or I won't pay for college."
Kate laughed and put her arm around Rick's shoulders. "Easy, daddy."