So as promised here is the next chapter uploaded :) Hope you guys like this.

Rick was stood in the kitchen and was staring at Kate shaking his head for what seemed like the millionth time to him that day.

"No there is nothing cooking."

"You're sure about that?"

He looked at her as if to say really? "I'm 100% positive Kate there is nothing."

She looked at him and then around the living room where she was currently sitting. "Well there's something in here."

"Kate, I have bleached the side's, cleaned this house from top to bottom there is nothing!"

"Well you would say that."

"I don't have too, I'm being serious!" He looked at her. "Jeeze I know they say you're senses are heightened during pregnancy but this is a joke!"

"At least you don't have to deal with them."

"If you're like this here I dread to think about what you're going to be like at a crime scene."

Alexis came downstairs dressed for the party along with Ashley. "Are you guys still arguing?" She asked.

"No." Rick said looking at Alexis. "Kate just refuses to listen."

Alexis rolled her eyes at them both.

"Hey I saw that." Rick said.

Alexis and Ashley went to sit on the couch along with Kate. "So did you both have a good afternoon with Ashley's parent's?" Kate asked.

They both nodded and then turned when Rick came in and started looking around the room.

"Rick? What are you doing?" Kate asked.

"It's your fault." He turned to her.

"What did I do exactly?"

"You've got me paranoid. I can sense something." He looked around suspiciously.

"Oh you're just imagining things."

"Oh so now it's me imagining things, but when it was you oh no…it wasn't true."

"How do you cope with them both?" Ashley asked Alexis smiling.

"Oh I think it's cute." Alexis replied. "Sometimes I pretend I'm on a beach listening to the sea."

"Is there room for one more?" He laughed slightly.

"Well it depends who it is." She smiled.

They both looked back at Kate and Rick who was still walking around the room looking behind everything he could see. Before Rick could say anything else there was a knock on the door, he looked at Kate and then walked to the door.

"Oh hey guys come on in." He moved aside and Lanie and Esposito came first.

"We the first one's here?" Lanie asked.

"Yeah." Rick said. "Help yourself to whatever it's all about somewhere." He pointed to the alcohol first which was set up on the kitchen counters.

He then moved back into the living room and then moved a few things around, Esposito watched him and then Lanie watched him before turning to look at Kate.

"You lost something bro?" Esposito asked.

"Huh? What?" He looked up.

"You look like you're trying to find something."

"I am." He replied.

"What?"

"I don't know yet."

"Right…" Esposito then looked to Kate who simply shrugged her shoulders.

A few minutes after they arrived there was another knock on the door. Kate was the one who answered it.

"Good evening guys." She let Jenny and Ryan come in. "Can I interest you in a drink?"

"Yeah sure." Ryan agreed and Jenny simply nodded, Kate went and fixed them a drink.

Ryan looked to Esposito and Lanie. "Hey guys."

They smiled back in response. "Hey Ryan dude, look at Castle. I think Beckett broke him."

Ryan looked at him questioningly but nevertheless looked towards where Rick had now moved onto the kitchen. He was just about to ask what he was doing when Kate turned to him and handed them each a drink.

"Don't ask."

"You broke him didn't you?"

"Oh please if I did I'd be asking you to help hide the evidence."

"That's true."

Kate moved to stand in front of Rick who immediately stopped what he was doing. "Right okay I believe you."

"Really?" He asked.

"Yes."

"Do I get an apology?" He grinned.

"Don't push it."

"Understood."

After an hour the party was in full swing, Roy and his wife had arrived half an hour later after Ryan and Jenny claiming they needed to sort things out with the babysitter. Rick had put some music on and even though Montgomery, Esposito and Ryan weren't drunk they were quite happily stood in the middle of the room singing along with it. Lanie, Jenny, Kate, Roy's wife and Martha were discussing various topic's from Martha's play to how ridiculous the boys sounded. Alexis and Ashley were dancing along with the music while Rick looked on from the kitchen. He had gone to get another drink and spared a look out the window.

"Hey guys." He said.

They all looked at him.

"Look." He pointed to the window. "It's snowing."

They all watched and moved to the window to get a better view.

"Well isn't that nice?" Lanie said.

"The only thing it reminds me of is how many people we manage to find once the snow has disappeared." Kate said watching it fall to the floor.

"Way to spoil Christmas for me Kate." Rick said.

"Oh you didn't need my help to spoil it. You're a kid you'll get over it."

He watched her. "Just for that you're sleeping on your own tonight."

"Well that's good I was planning on doing so."

He shook his head and stared out the window. No matter what Kate told him she couldn't ruin the magical effect the snow had on him. As a kid he had always loved it, since it was the one time a year he would normally get to spend some quality time with his mother. She would go and help him make a snowman, or spend hours having playing in the park having various snowball fights. As he had gotten older it hadn't stopped although he would go with friends. He had spent quality time with his mother though, bringing her the ice packs for a recovering hangover. She had somehow always managed to make Christmas magical for him though. Rick looked to Kate and smiled, he reached over and took her hand in his. She squeezed his hand and then moved closer to him leaning her head on his shoulder.

"So you think we should tell them?" Kate asked Rick quietly.

"Tell us what?" Lanie asked looking at them.

"Seriously Lanie that's just weird." Rick told her.

"Hey it's not my fault I have really good hearing."

"You're not the only one." Rick commented looking at Kate.

"Maybe it's just the women in your life." She chuckled looking back at him.

"Right seriously. Don't change the subject." Lanie glared at them. "What do you want to tell us?"

Rick looked at Kate and then nodded. "Okay then so, me and Rick have some news." Kate started.

"You're getting married aren't you?" Lanie asked excitedly.

"No." Kate said.

"Well that's disappointing. You aren't leaving are you?"

"Lanie let me talk." Kate rolled her eyes and then laughed slightly at her friends enthusiasm. "So me and Rick…" She paused looking at them. "We're having twins."

Everyone stared at them unable to say a word.

"Twins?" Esposito said.

"Like actual babies?" Ryan said after.

"No guys, like little chimpanzees." Rick said sarcastically. "Yes like babies."

"Oh my god that's so awesome!" They both said.

"We're going to have little detectives running around." Ryan said amused.

"You think we'd be able to give them our paperwork?" Esposito laughed.

Jenny, Roy and his wife congratulated them as Esposito and Ryan continued their discussion about what they had planned. Kate looked at the group and was thinking it was quiet, if anything it was too quiet. She looked at Rick who had the same expression on his face. He looked to the corner and looked confused, Kate followed his direction of site and came face to face with Lanie who held a hand over her mouth.

"Lanie?" Kate asked.

"Mm hmm." Lanie said.

"Are you okay?"

She nodded her head.

"You're sure about that?"

She nodded her head again.

"Do you want to say something?" Rick asked confused as to why she was in the corner like this, instead of giving out a high pitched squeal and hugging Kate as she usually would be when she was happy for her.

Lanie looked at them both and shook her head.

"Why's that?" Kate asked.

Lanie slowly moved her hand and opened her mouth but no words came out. But as Rick had expected there was a squeal of some sort followed by an "Oh my gosh guys! I'm so happy for you!"

She hugged Kate and then turned to face Rick. "Well look's like you got it in you huh writer boy."

"You are unbelievable Lanie." Kate laughed.

"I thought something was off because you've not had any alcohol tonight. Wait what about all the cocktails I kept giving you at the work party?"

"Let's just say I don't do cocktails well anymore." Rick said. "But you sure do know how to pick em."

"Well I've had pretty years of drinking practice." She laughed at them both. "So how far along are you?"

"About ten weeks." Kate said. "We went to have a scan a couple of weeks back after our trip to the Hampton's."

"Do you have a picture?" She asked unable to hold the smile.

Kate laughed but nodded. "Yeah come on I'll show you."

They both walked into the living room and he looked to Ryan and Esposito who were still coming up with idea's as to what they could do with them. "You guys really do have a feminine side don't you?"

They both stared at him. "Well I love kids." Ryan said. "I come from a big family."

Rick looked to Esposito. "What's your excuse?"

"I just love babies because they don't talk back to you. Plus you can tell them your biggest most darkest secret and they won't tell anyone."

He looked at them both again, he prayed for the day they had kids of their own. "Fair enough."