Castle and Beckett made it home around seven-thirty, and both were ready for sleep. They weren't surprised at all to see Shane up with RJ and feeding him his breakfast at the kitchen table. It was quite a sight to see the bad-ass ME making funny faces at the toddlers as he finished feeding him, but more than anything, the pair of them just wanted to sleep.

'Morning, guys,' Castle said in a voice strained from fatigue.

'Mumum! Daddy!' RJ gulped down his last mouthful of oatmeal and grinned. 'Bibs?'

'The babies are here, and everyone is absolutely wonderful and very tired,' Beckett told her son, coming over to give him a kiss.

'How big?' Shane asked, wiping RJ's hands and mouth.

'The boy, Leo, he was six pounds two, and his little sister Trini is five pounds eleven. Both delivered naturally, no surgery.'

'Ow.'

'Meredeth's a rockstar, Javier said she swore her way through it and came out the other side just fine, if a little tired.'

Shane made a 'ya-think' noise in his throat. 'You look like you could use something to eat and a nap, so I'm going to take this guy for a walk down to that bagel place you two like keeping in business and get a baker's dozen while you two crash for a few hours.'

'Shane you don't have to,' Castle started but the ME shook his head as he unfasten RJ from his highchair.

'Nope, no protests. I got your back. Give Mommy and Daddy a kiss, RJ. They've been up way past their bedtime.'

'No.' RJ sounded scandalized and all three of the grown-ups laughed.

'What do you say you and I hang for a little and let them have a nap.'

'Yea nap!'

'I'll take that as a yes,' Shane laughed, and went up to the nursery to get RJ's coat while Castle and Beckett just stared at each other in the kitchen.

'Well, I guess that takes care of that. You up for a cuddle?'

'Hell yes.'

They lurched upstairs to their room, shut the door to undress. Neither one bother with pyjamas, they simply flopped into bed in their undies, and spooned tight against each other. When Beckett's head finally hit the pillow the tears she'd held onto from the hospital room began to flow.

'They named their babies after us, Rick,' she murmured, weeping as she turned over to face him; she wasn't at all surprised to find the traces of tears on his face either. 'I can't think of any bigger honour in the world than that.'

'Neither can I.'

'True they changed them up a little but those babies were named after you and me because our friends love us so much.'

'Shh, shh, it's okay, Katie, just rest.'

'Okay.' Trying to follow his advice, Beckett closed her eyes and finally stopped fight the pull of sleep.

A little while later, after she'd taken RJ for a visit to the hospital just for herself to see her friend, Beckett returned home to find Castle setting up for a cards' night.

'What's all this?'

'This is a break for my boy, Espo. He's been pushing himself very hard and he needs a little time-out. You know he hasn't left the hospital at all this time around? Not like when Tessi was born?'

'Does that surprise you?'

'Not really.' Castle shrugged, opened his chips case. 'Are you taking RJ with you when you go for your girls' night with Meredeth or is he chilling with the big boys?'

'He gets time with the big boys tonight. Meredeth's feeling pretty overwhelmed herself, as you can probably guess, so we're having a girls' night in her hospital room and that means the only babies there are the ones she just pushed out.'

The laptop began to blip-blip on the kitchen table and Castle pushed the button to answer Alexis' Skype call. 'Hi, honey,' he called as he began to set up his poker table. 'How's things on the other side of the pond?'

'Good, just got in from baby shopping for Meredeth. Check these out.' Alexis held up two pairs of baby-sized Wellington boots, one in dark blue, the other in dark red. 'Aren't they so cute? I figure by the time they're about six months and starting to walk hanging onto things, they'll come in handy.'

'They will.'

'Oh, and these too.' Alexis held up a pair of navy blue baby-sized t-shirts that had stars dotted here and there on them. 'It's the constellation Libra since that's the twins' zodiac sign. I got one for Tessi too for Aries. They're all the baby rage over here, and they're made of bamboo instead of cotton so they're extra soft and wear like iron.'

'I'm sure they'll love them. Oh, and Lex.' Castle stopped what he was doing so he could be as face-toface with Alexis as possible for what he had to say next. 'You don't need to get Shane to babysit and volunteer for us, he's a busy guy too.'

'What do you mean?' She blinked, a little confused.

'I mean asking him to look after RJ for us when he's just come off shift and that kind of thing.'

Now Alexis smiled in her patent, patient way she'd honed to perfection when dealing with her father. 'Dad, I haven't asked him to do any of that. It's all him.'

'Really?'

'Yeah, really. He's told me how he's been spending time with my little brother because he loves RJ, and because it makes missing me suck less.'

'That's so cute.' Beckett joined Castle in talking to Alexis, saw her happy shining face in the image frame. 'So long as you two aren't webcamming if he's here and RJ's awake.'

'And on that disgusting note, I'm going to bed. Tell RJ I love him and I'll talk to him soon, okay?'

'Okay, love you sweetie.' Castle waved at her, pleased when she waved back.

'Love you too, guys.'

Alexis ended the call; once she did, Castle straightened up to give his wife a stern look. 'If you and our daughter are going to discuss whether or not she is webcamming with Shane, please tell me first so I can go stick my head in the freezer, or the oven, or possibly a pot of boiling vinegar.'

'What, like you've never done that before?'

'No,' Castle shook his head emphatically, 'and I really don't want to believe that there are things like that on this planet that I haven't tried and Alexis has.'

'This is a daddy-blinders moment isn't it?'

'Uh-huh and it's making me thankful that there are some third-watch officers of New York City coming here to lose some money to me, lest I feel like the king of the Castle castle again.'

Beckett laughed, wrapped her arms around her husband's waist. 'On that cheerful note, King Castle, why don't you go and make sure our son has had his dinner while I go put the finishing touches on my present for Meredeth?'

'Okay.'

Castle wandered over to his son's playpen where RJ was giving his beloved stuffed rabbit hell that would put a WWE wrestler to shame. 'Whatcha doing

'Pin.'

'Playing?'

RJ nodded. 'Up?' he asked, holding his arms aloft to his daddy, who obliged him and freed him from his playpen. 'Pin?'

'Daddy's friends are coming over to play cards tonight, and you get to join in. But don't tell Mommy okay?'

RJ nodded once more, held a finger to his lips. 'Ssssss.'

'That's right, it's our little secret.'

R&R&Enjoy.