Jake and Reece Castle absolutely adore their father. She knows it from the start and it only becomes more apparent with each passing day, each milestone they accomplish. She wouldn't say the twins favor Rick, just as she wouldn't refer to them as 'momma's boys' either. No, Jake and Reece don't seem to have favorites between her and Castle, appreciating both parents rather equally for such a young age.

Though, at the moment, Jake isn't too big a fan of Mommy or Daddy.

Kate huffs as her son scrambles away from her, toddling across the living room floor of her dad's cabin and crashing into Grandpa Jim's knees.

"Good job, bud," her dad praises, hefting Jake up into his lap on the sofa. He earns a pleased giggle from the boy and a clap of his hands. Jim grins back at him. "This one's just like you, Katie."

She huffs at the glittering amusement in her dad's eyes. "Don't remind me."

"Too independent for your own good, right, Jakey?" Jim asks the boy who is already squirming to return to the wooden floors. "Don't look so worried, honey," her father chides with a laugh while Jake gets to his tiny bare feet. He wobbles towards his mother, but she knows better than to reach for him, attempt to steady him.

The older of her two boys is definitely more like her when it comes to independence, stubbornness, and she knows to expect a fuss if she deters Jake from walking on his own.

"You started walking at nine months, so did Lily," Jim reminds her.

"I know," Kate finally sighs, mussing the golden brown locks of Jake's hair as he stomps past her. He's squealing with delight at the sound of his bare feet slapping against the floor. "He's just so rambunctious. Lily was careful, graceful even, and Reece…" She glances towards the window that offers a glimpse out onto the porch, the world of white outside where Reece and Castle have detoured for a more private toddling training session. "Reece is still cautious, unsure of himself."

"He's getting better, though," her dad comments with another grin, casting his gaze to the kitchen. "Just not quite as quick and headstrong as his brother."

Kate hums her agreement, but her attention lingers on her husband, the infinite patience in his eyes as he guides Reece along the length of the front porch while their son clings to Castle's finger.

"Do you mind keeping an eye on Jake for a few minutes, Dad?" Kate asks, not having to wait for his nod of reply to start for the front door, snagging her coat on the way out.

The winter air is crisp but lacking its usual bite, eliciting a gentle shiver once she steps out into its chilled embrace, but her thoughts on the temperature quickly fade. Castle glances up at her arrival, his nose tinged pink along the tip, Reece's matching as he follows his father's gaze upwards to see her.

Rick chuckles at Reece's gasp of delight upon her joining them. Their son's tiny digits curl tighter around Castle's middle finger and tug.

"Someone's excited to see Mommy," he chuckles. Kate descends to her haunches on the opposite end of the porch, grinning up at Castle as they begin their slow trek towards her.

"It's mutual. I was starting to miss you two," she murmurs, extending her arms as Reece draws closer, leading Castle across the wooden planks in baby steps. "Also started worrying about you both turning into popsicles."

"Is that an indirect way of saying there will be hot chocolate in our near future?" Castle inquires, his eyes flying down to Reece when he sways in a moment of uncertainty. Only a few small feet of space separate him from Kate now.

"Come on, sweetheart," she coos with a smile. "Just a couple more steps, you can do it."

Reece's brow creases in concentration while he places one foot in front of the other until he finds his rhythm again, releasing the safety of Castle's fingers once he's made it into the circle of Kate's arms.

"That's got to be a new record," Castle applauds from behind him. Beckett hugs their son close to her chest and rises with the beaming little boy in her arms.

"Good job, Reece! We're so proud of you, baby," she praises, smattering a flurry of kisses to the grinning apples of his cheeks just to hear the release of his laughter. Her own joins to blend with their son's when Castle leans in to mimic the gesture, bombarding Reece's cheek with kisses before his lips migrate to feather along the skin of hers. She catches her husband by the chilled edge of his chin before he can pull away, staining her smile to his cold lips.

"You're a really good father," she mumbles, words he already knows, has heard countless times from her before. But after watching him work so persistently with their son, whispering endless encouragements into his ear, and picking him up each time he falls, she can't help speaking the truth again. "Just in case I hadn't said that today."

Castle cups her skull in the cradle of his palm, holding her like something precious even as he buries his fingers in her hair. The drop of Reece's head thudding against her chest has them drawing apart, just enough to glance down at their son curling his fingers into the lapel of her coat and smudging his cheek to her collarbone.

"Come on, let's get you two inside," she murmurs, nudging her nose to Castle's cheek and pressing a kiss to the top of Reece's head. "Jake will probably crash from exhaustion soon too and I'll see what I can do about getting you some hot chocolate."

"Brilliant plan," Castle grins, opening the door for them both and following her back into the cabin, grunting when Jake comes careening into his father's shins. "You were saying about Jake and exhaustion?"

Kate chuckles, unable to help the amusement as their son beats his tiny fists against Castle's legs in excitement, nonsensical babble spilling from his lips. "Okay, so maybe not."

"You're just full of energy today, aren't you, Jake?" Castle rumbles, bending down to sweep their son up from the floor, hoisting him high above his head to elicit a rupture of laughter from the boy. "Let's give Grandpa Jim a bit of a break, huh? Stick with Daddy while Mommy puts your brother down for a nap."

Jim smiles and shakes his head at the four of them from the kitchen, fixing one of the childproof locks on the cabinets that Jake must have tampered with.

"Still a good plan," Kate muses, swaying into her husband's side to brush a kiss to his cheek. "I'll put Reece down in Dad's room for now, then I'll come find you with some cocoa."

"Woman of my dreams," he sighs, propping Jake against his chest and starting in the opposite direction towards her old bedroom.

Reece is already dozing against her chest by the time she enters her dad's bedroom, easing her son onto the soft surface of the comforter covered mattress and barricading the area around him with spare pillows in case he rolls. She rarely has to worry about that, though; Reece sleeps like a rock.

She leaves him with a whisper of her lips to his forehead, a quiet click of the door shut, and heads for the kitchen with a recipe for hot chocolate on her mind.

He noticed Jake's fascination with watching him shave just a few weeks ago. Kate has been working odd hours since returning to the precinct only a handful of months ago, still trying to determine a schedule that allows her to be home as much as possible. Or at least in time for dinner with him and the kids.

It was one of the first times Rick was home alone with the the boys and Lily at night and he didn't mind, still doesn't mind, but it did sometimes mean he would have to stop in the middle of whatever he was doing to retrieve a baby. Like while he's shaving.

He dropped the razor in the bathroom sink and jogged up the stairs to pluck Jake from his crib. Jake was wide awake that night, fussing and showing no signs of stopping from the boy's shared room while Reece was still sleeping, so Rick carried him down the stairs with him, through his and Kate's room, and back into the bathroom. The entire time, half of his face was covered in the foaming white shaving cream.

Jake stared at his father with eyes blown wide from the moment Castle eased him up and out of his crib.

"Daddy's just going to finish up with this and then we'll get you something to snack on, buddy," Rick promised him, but Jake's awed gaze remained on Castle's unshaven cheeks and jaw.

Of course, Jake was not content to solely watch and Castle's face went unshaven for another day. Just as he assumes it will once again.

"Do you want me to look like a mountain man?" he huffs when Jake arches on his toes at Castle's side now, realizing why they're in the bathroom at the sight of the now familiar shaving cream bottle. "I haven't been able to shave in days, mostly because of you."

Jake bounces impatiently and smacks his palms to the wooden front of the sink's cabinets. Castle chuckles, hoists the boy up to perch in front of him on the sink's edge, secured by the brace of his father's body. Rick squeezes a small amount of shaving gel into his palm, lathering it up between his hands and watching Jake's excitement grow.

He holds out one of his palms, lets his son dip his tiny fingers into the fluff of the cream consuming his hands. He can't help grinning when Jake paints his fingertips to Castle's cheeks, his wide smile exposing the scattered emergence of baby teeth that have been keeping them all up at night.

It isn't long before Jake becomes a little over zealous in his face painting, though, managing to scoop larger amounts from Castle's palm and transferring it to the side of Rick's neck with quick slaps that have the white cream exploding between them. Onto Rick's chin and landing like confetti across Jake's surprised face, all over their clothes.

Castle gasps for dramatic effect and Jake giggles, high-pitched and delighted, clapping his hand to his father's jaw.

"Not a fair fight, Jakey," Castle huffs, stroking his index finger down Jake's nose. He watches the boy's eyes attempt to cross, apparently able to see the scoop of shaving cream now decorating the tip of his nose.

Jake erupts with laughter, nearly trembling with amusement. and Castle does too, can't help it. And that's how Kate finds them.

"I think I'm going to have to reheat the hot chocolate," she chuckles, meeting his eyes in the mirror with the amusement shimmering gold in hers. "What on earth are you two doing?"

"Jake likes to help me shave in the mornings," Castle explains, sighing as Jake begins creating white handprints on the t-shirt stretched across Rick's chest. "Believe it or not, he can be helpful. When he wants to be."

"You do this all the time?" Kate inquires, setting the steaming mug of hot chocolate down on the nightstand next to their bed. She drifts into the bathroom to place her hands at Rick's waist, finding Jake's gaze over his shoulder. He feels her smile bloom against his nape when Jake's foamy hand reaches out towards her, the toothy grin still claiming his lips.

"Whenever he wakes before his brother, yeah. Though, there are times when this happens and that's why-"

"You've had a lot more stubble lately?" she finishes, her voice a husk that sends heat down the flesh covering his spine.

"Yes," he swallows as his wife presses against his back to allow Jake her index finger.

"I'm missing things," she sighs suddenly, her cheek resting against the rounded edge of his shoulder while Jake happily waves his trophy of her pointer finger.

"Kate," he murmurs, turning his head just enough to dust his lips along her temple, but she ducks away from him.

"Shaving cream, Castle," she chuckles, shaking the white foam from her hair with her free hand, but she's still grinning as she comes around his side, guided by Jake's unrelenting claim on her hand.

"You're missing tiny things, moments that occur all the time, ones you'll see eventually. But you're always around for the big things, the important things. Just like you were with Lily," he reminds her, lifting one of the hands he had on Jake's hip. The splay of his opposite palm on the boy's side and Kate's grip on his hand keeps their son safe and upright on the edge of the sink, allowing him to reach back to cover his wife's hand, squeeze the fingers draped over his waist. "You're working so hard to be a brilliant mother and I can promise you that you're succeeding."

Kate's eyes flicker up to meet his, a tender smile twitching on her lips.

"Wash that stuff off your face - both your faces - so I can kiss you," she murmurs, already ducking forward to blow a kiss against Jake's cheek, earning a delighted giggle that preludes a soft coo at his mother's touch.

Kate always says the boys are smitten with him, just like Lily is, but he doesn't think she has any idea how much their children absolutely adore her.

"Hurry up, Castle. I just talked to Alexis and she and Lily will be home from their trip to town soon," she informs him, snagging a washcloth and running the faucet at Jake's back. She douses the rag in warm water before patting their son's cheeks, cleaning off his nose. "And your hot chocolate's going cold."