#296

Three words prompt: Castle, Jake, Reece

— ANONYMOUS

It's the first time Kate will be leaving him alone with the twins for the night. She has a mother-daughter thing with Lily at the Russian Tea Room, complete with slumber party, and his two girls are upstairs packing, their dark heads together.

He's not sure he's ready for this. There was no problem with Alexis, taking care of his poor mother-orphaned baby daughter all by himself. And Lily's arrival, poorly timed as it was, never confounded him; Lily has always been such a presence in their home that she can't be overlooked or missed.

But these boys. They're something else.

At six months old, they have such disparate needs, such wildly different personalities, that they seem to be more than merely double. Twins are exponential. They multiply rather than merely add one more integer to the equation.

Reece will be fussy and then Jake wants to roll off the play mat while Rick isn't looking. And when he catches Jake, Reece is crying for some reason he's missed. He'll try to console Reece, picking him up to hold him close, and Jake is squalling like he's been insulted.

It's nonstop. One goes one way, the other another.

He can't do this.

He's not ready.

All night alone? He needs another pair of hands for this. He needs-

"You got this."

Rick jerks his head up ands finds his wife standing at the threshold of the office turned nursery. He gives her a weak smile and she slips inside the room, stands quietly beside him.

"I don't got this," he whispers.

The babies are still asleep, the last hour or so of their afternoon nap. Jake can't be woken by mere conversation, but Reece is the one who has trouble staying asleep. Trouble falling asleep too.

"You're going to be fine," she murmurs. Her arm slides around his waist, palm warm through the material of his plaid shirt. "Just fine, Rick."

"I'll be outnumbered. I've never been outnumbered before."

She chuckles softly, but he's not saying it for laughs. Kate's lips brush his jaw, her hair tickling his ear. "You? You don't know the meaning of outnumbered. You never give up."

"I'm giving up," he whispers fiercely. "I need a tag team. Tap in, Beckett."

She laughs at that, loud enough that Reece squirms. They both step back instinctively, as one, and her hand comes to his, squeezing. "Tap in when Lil and I get home tomorrow morning. Besides, how do you think I'll feel, surrounded by ballet princesses?"

"Speaking Russian," he mutters. "Your whole Russian culture and language class is at this thing, and you love that Lily adores it. So don't give me that."

She hides her smile and tugs him out of the room so they can talk more freely. He goes only because staring down two sleeping babies is making him lose his nerve.

Kate laces her fingers through his, pulls him to the living room where her bag is already packed and ready. She reaches up and strokes through his hair, a thumb rubbing against his eyebrow. "I'd say you looked as tense as a feral cat, but you're more teddy bear these days."

"And you've used that line before," he murmurs. Her lips twitch and she lightly kisses him with that mouth.

He takes a deep breath, sliding his arms around her.

Once the baby powder smell is out of his nose and the hum of the lullaby machine is a distant memory, his body releases some of its tension, his shoulders come down.

"That's better it," she says softly. "Much better. You okay?"

"Yeah. Panicked for a second."

"Mm." She cups the side of his face for a heartbeat, and her eyes on his suddenly grow serious, flinty. "Don't let anything happen to my babies, Rick Castle." She pats his cheek, a little harder now. "You hear me?"

"That's so encouraging, Beckett. Thanks a lot."

"Mommy! Where'd you go?" Lily's voice carries from her bedroom.

Kate gives him a beaming smile and calls back to the girl. "Downstairs, sweetheart." She lifts on her toes to lightly kiss his lips. "They better have all their little fingers and toes when I get home."

"Jeez, woman." He grips her by the hips and tugs her hard into him, glaring down at her. "Way to really build up my confidence there."

"Just messing with you," she smiles. Another light kiss as if to soothe, but he claims something deeper, fiercer. He needs it. He needs her passion and certainty not her tease.

She always has been unmerciful.

He doesn't want her any other way. She demands better of him, even now, even in this.

And that's how he knows he'll survive the night alone with the boys.

—–

A/N: This will be the last prompt fill on this story post. I'll create a new Vignettes 2 because I've noticed that ffnet gets very confused with the chapters and posting and reviews, etc. Since it's getting difficult for even me to see these on, for example, Pocket Fic, I'm assuming you guys are having trouble reading on your phones as well.

But, never fear, I have more posted on tumblr. Current number is 319. If you have a three word prompt, you can always go to my tumblr site (writingwell dot tumblr dot com) and submit it anonymously, which means you don't need a tumblr account to ask for more.

Also, check out my Amazon author page (Laura Bontrager) for my new book Formerly Known As.