Chapter 32 - Punch drunk love

"So, Castle, how's that foxy wife of yours doing? She still got that smokin' bod after being preggers?"
Rick gritted his teeth and kept his focus on a spot on the ground.
Don't let him get to you. Don't let him get to you. Don't let him get to you.
His lungs were burning, sweat was dripping into his eyes, his shoulder ached, his knee had a nasty grass burn and Joey Asshat was playing mind-games, making risqué comments about Kate.
His wife and mother of his child. Well, children. She was a mother to Alexis-
"You're a lucky man, Writer Boy. She's hot. Long legs, nice ass. Very nice ass," his direct opposition continued to taunt.
He dug his hand further into the patch of grass, feeling the dirt under his fingernails.
The bulky, bald-headed man was treading lightly, very lightly.
Ryan had warned him about this. He had shrugged and grinned – he could take friendly hazing and a few jibes. He was a guys' guy. He could do the shoulder clap, laugh at crass jokes and take things on the chin. Apparently, a friendly game of football didn't exist between the rival cops. Win at all cost.
But this? Targeting Kate to get under his skin? For a lousy little football game?
That was crossing a line. A major one. It had started out as a joke about him being the obedient puppy-dog tag-along, the fumbling writer, the plucky sidekick. He laughed it off; they were just trying to get to him. Somehow, however, it had become more biting. More inappropriate. More about Kate.
And if it didn't stop soon, he was going to do something stupid to wipe that grin off Officer Dipshit's face.
"Forty-two! Ninety-nine! Seventy-five!" Esposito shouted the play, his face contorting in concentration. He was sporting a busted lip and a few scrapes and bruises.
Lanie was going to kill him.
Yeah, Rick thought, definitely not just a friendly football game. He glanced at Joey Asshat/Officer Dipshit, who was still grinning at him, and felt his jaw clench involuntarily.
Yep, he was so going to do something stupid soon.
Very soon.
But if the dumbass just kept his mouth shut, then maybe, maybe he could stay cal-
"I bet she's great in the sack."
Oh.
Oh, hell no.
"Hut! Hut!"
So much for staying calm.

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"This is nice," Alexis sighed as they sat down. After a number of hours shopping, the three Castle women ended up at the small, intimate street café that Kate had discovered a few months ago while being out with Lizzy.
"Yeah, it is," Kate replied with a smile, taking Lizzy out of her pram. The 10 month-old whined and wriggled in her mother's arms. She was tired, hungry and, as a result, cranky.
"Okay, okay. Calm down. Mommy's gonna give you something now," Kate placated, rummaging through the baby bag. "You're just as impatient as your father."
Alexis chuckled, got up and took Lizzy from Kate.
"Hey Kiddo, you giving your mom a hard time?" Lizzy watched her big sister with rapt attention, her small mouth slightly agape. She was standing in Alexis' lap, bouncing up and down, babbling and groping at her sister's red hair. She was totally entranced by the colour.
Lizzy let out an excited squeal and giggled. Both Kate and Alexis laughed. A few minutes passed with each of the adult women placing their respective drink orders and the miniature one (finally) enjoying a little bit of yoghurty delight. Of course, not without getting it smeared all over her chubby cheeks.
"Oh baby girl, you're making such a mess," Kate complained with a laugh as she wiped down her daughter's face, who promptly squirmed away from her mother.
Alexis chuckled and shook her head. "Oh, you are so totally like Dad. It's kinda scary," the young red-head commented with a smile.
"Tell me about it," Kate responded with a lopsided grin.
"He's already bought her a laser tag outfit, hasn't he?"
The older woman threw her head back and laughed.
"No, not yet. But he has made her sit with him and watch Star Wars." She paused for a moment, an amused and sentimental smile blooming over her features. "They were both asleep thirty minutes into the movie." Kate had walked in on them - Lizzy on top of her father's chest, drooling all over his shirt and Rick on his back on the couch, holding his daughter in place with a large hand on her body, also drooling.
Ridiculously adorable.
Alexis shook her head and smiled. She hugged the little body in her lap and planted a smacking kiss on Lizzy's cheek, causing the 10 month-old to laugh in delight.
"Oh lil' sis, you're doomed to becoming a Star-Wars-fencing-laser-tag-playing-geek like me." Alexis placed another kiss on top of Lizzy's head. "But believe me, you'll never have more fun." Kate picked up the longing, the wistful tone in Alexis' voice. She reached out and squeezed the younger woman's arm. Their eyes met and Alexis, with Lizzy still bouncing in her lap, offered her stepmother a small smile.
"I remember when I was about ten or eleven, I begged him for Star Wars light-sabers for weeks. I was completely obsessed, just like him of course."
"Of course," Kate said with a smile.
Alexis grinned while Lizzy grabbed the necklace around her neck and tried to feed herself with it. "Anyway, on my birthday Dad woke me up at like five or six in the morning, absolutely giddy with excitement. He proceeded to drag me downstairs and into his office. I was still half-asleep, but when he pulled out the light-sabers, I totally freaked. I was so excited. We ended up playing for hours, running all over the place. He called himself the Jedi Master and me his student."
Kate laughed. "I can only imagine the two of you." She paused for a moment. "He made the light-saber noises didn't he?"
Alexis smiled sheepishly. "We both did. But in my defense, I was only ten or eleven."
Kate grinned. "You know, I still catch him sometimes - fighting off some unseen forces, complete with the noises. He still thinks he is a Jedi Master. Ridiculous man. He's even tried to get me to do battle with him. I refused, obviously."
Alexis looked down at her adorable, blue-eyed baby sister. "Well, now he has a new playmate to play with."
Kate groaned. "I'm doomed, aren't I?"
The younger woman glanced back at her stepmother. Her friend. Her confidant. "Yeah, 'fraid so, Kate. You don't stand a chance." They grew quiet for a few moments, sipping their drinks and watching Lizzy making friends with a butterfly. She was giving little shrieks of delight as the colourful insect flapped away slowly. Of course she had tried to grab the small animal to inspect it with her mouth. Everything still went to her mouth, much to her parents amusement and alarm. Just the previous week she almost sucked on a bar of soap.
The three of them sat and watched the world go by before Alexis checked her watch and glanced at Kate again. Her expression growing slightly serious.
"Hey, do you think Dad survived the game?"

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"Bro, Beckett is so going to have your ass," Esposito commented with a wry smile, his own lips busted and his cheek sporting a bruise. They were at the Old Haunt, enjoying a few beers with some of the boys in the aftermath of the game/fist-fight.
Rick glared at him with his still normal-looking eye. His was nursing his left one with his cold beer. It was probably going to black by the next day.
But it was cool and manly.
And, hopefully, his wife would find it incredibly irresistible... Nah, that was wishful thinking on his part.
"Yeah well, Lanie is going to skin you alive. At least I'm already married. You're the one getting married in a month's time and looking like that." The smirking detective's face instantly fell.
Ryan nodded. "That's true, man. I'm glad I'm not you." A large grin appeared on his uninjured face. "In fact, I'm glad I'm not either one of you." He only had a few scrapes and grass burns.
"Oh come on, I was defending my woman's honour!" Rick protested.
"I don't think Beckett would like you referring to her as your woman, Castle," Ryan replied with a grin.
"Well, she is, isn't she, Honey Milk?" The grin fell off Ryan's face. "And I made sure that Officer Dipshit knows that nobody talks about my woman like that," Rick replied with a hint of indignation.
The other man, next to the mystery writer, laughed and shook his head. "Officer Dipshit. Very appropriate, Castle," the fair-haired, 40-something John Carter commented. He paused before continuing. "Listen man, I'm sorry about him. He's a real douche. Nobody at the 34th really likes the guy."
Rick waved him off. "It's not your fault the guy is an asshole with little-man-syndrome."
The other man grinned. "No probably not. But I should have done something."
"Wasn't necessary - I jumped you to it," Rick said with a small smile. He took a sip of his beer before continuing. "Besides, I think I should be the one apologizing for starting a brawl."
John laughed. "It's not a brawl if it only involves two guys throwing punches and the other guys trying to get them off each other."
"Well, Esposito did get a punch for his troubles," Ryan pointed out.
"Just, please, make sure that Lanie knows I got into a fight to save your ass, Castle."
"Hey, I was doing perfectly fine before you intervened."
"I gotta say Castle, your not too bad for a writer," John said with a grin.
"Thank you," Rick replied with a satisfied smiled.
"Your wife taught you well."
The writer's face fell comically.
"Oh burn!" Ryan laughed.
Rick only returned a lopsided grin. "Yeah well, what can I say, she's a good teacher."
"A good boss," Esposito commented.
"A very good detective," Ryan added.
Rick smiled softly. "An even better woman." He raised his glass. "Well, gentlemen, I propose a toast. To the women in our lives."
The other three men raised their glasses. "Hear, hear!"

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An hour later...
His eye was already starting to turn to a darkish purple shade. He touched it and winced. Well, at least it was rugged and kinda roguish. Yeah, Kate would dig it.
Eventually.
He rolled his shoulder; it still felt sore and stiff. He lifted the towel that was tied around his waist to check the nasty grass burn on his knee. It was not pretty.
Rick sighed as he looked at his reflection in the bathroom mirror again.
He was getting old. The extra lines on his face, the few gray hairs sticking out - which Kate said made him look more distinguished - and the fact that his eldest daughter was finishing varsity just confirmed it.
Okay, so maybe that was a little dramatic, but still. He had to keep up with a baby girl and a young, hot, fit, extremely flexible-
Rick heard the sudden cacophony of noise and chatter, a smile automatically tilting his lips upward. He winced again and touched his eye. He idly wondered if Lizzy was going to start crying once she saw her horribly disfigured father-
Okay, so Kate was right - melodrama was his middle name.
Just as he stepped out the bathroom, he heard Kate's voice at the other side of their bedroom door. "Yeah, Lex, you can give her some of that. Thanks," she said opening the door. Rick quickly turned around and pretended to be searching for a shirt in the drawer.
"Oh, hey," Kate greeted, surprised.
"Hey," he returned without turning around to face her.
There were a few beats of silence before he felt her lanky arms snake around his bare waist. "You know, if you just waited a little longer, I could have joined you, Stud." Her voice was low, throaty and just too damn sexy. He needed a cold shower now. She placed a kiss on his injured shoulder and felt him stiffen in response.
"Hey, you okay?" From sex-goddess to concerned wife in five seconds flat - it made his head spin.
Finally, Rick turned around and smiled sheepishly at her. "Just a few scrapes and bruises, Honey."
Her eyes widened and she stepped away from him, taking in the bruised jaw, busted lip and swollen, black eye. "Holy shit! Rick, what the hell happened to you?" The tone of her voice was a combination of shock, concern and anger.
"Just a little bit of football. No big deal." He shrugged his injured shoulder and winced.
Her jaw clenched. "Castle," he heard the warning in her tone and sighed, walking over to the bed.
"It was just a misunderstanding between me and another guy. No big deal, I promise." He didn't want Kate to know about the snide and inappropriate remarks Asshat had made about her.
She watched her husband for a long moment before sitting down next to him. "Yeah, this looks like no big deal," Kate said softly, gently tracing a finger over his eye and down to his busted lip. She placed a soft kiss on his mouth. "Damn it, Rick. This is why I didn't want you to do this."
"Don't worry, Babe, football season is over for me. I was only picked for one game anyway. Besides, I can't afford to injure these babies," he held up his hands and grinned.
Kate sighed. "Too late, Rick. And, by the way, this isn't funny." She took his right hand and rubbed a finger over his bruised knuckles.
"Oh." Her brow was furrowed as she looked at his hand. He decided to lighten the mood. "But hey, you can't deny the fact that you find my injuries sexy. And irresistible. It's kinda roguish, don't you think?" She glanced back up and raised an eyebrow, amusement flickering in her eyes for a moment.
Only for a moment.
"No, Castle, I prefer your boyish, uninjured face. It's kinda difficult to recognize my husband beneath all the bruises." She paused for a moment, her face etched in concern as a hand traced along his jaw. "Maybe we should get you to a doctor."
He shook his head and proceeded to leer at her, inching nearer until he felt her breath wafting over his cheek. "I only need you to nurse it better. Please, nurse it better, Beckett," he whispered leaning in to kiss the corner of her mouth. But before he could ravish her, Kate got up and walked towards the door.
Rick blinked and watched her in bewilderment. She didn't want him to kiss her.
Huh.
"Rick, if you hadn't noticed, I'm kind of upset with you right now."
His face fell and he stood up. "Kate-"
She sighed and dragged a hand through her hair. "Just get dressed, okay? We'll put an ice-pack on that eye downstairs." She paused before opening the door. "And so help me, Castle, if Lizzy starts crying once she sees you."

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Alexis scolded her father and Lizzy did cry when she saw him. After being convinced that he was indeed her father and not some hideous monster, she did calm down and became fascinated with his purple/darkish eye. So after a few minutes of relaying and watering down the tale of how he got his injuries, normalcy returned to the Castle household. He and Alexis played a few intense rounds of chess while Kate was bathing Lizzy. Later, after apologizing to his wife while she iced his eye, Rick and his women ended up in their bed, watching the Wizard of Oz. Kate and Rick were lying on each end with Alexis in between them and Lizzy snuggled on top of her mother's chest, sound asleep thirty minutes into Dorothy's adventure. A few minutes later, Alexis was also dozing off.
"They have no stamina," Rick said, brushing a strand of hair away from his eldest's face. "I'm a little disappointed. I mean this is a classic and my offspring just... fell asleep."
Kate laughed softly, rubbing her baby girl's back. "Well, knowing you, I'm sure Alexis has already seen this about a million times and as for this one-" she planted a kiss against her daughter's head. "-I'm sure there will be other opportunities to introduce her to the wonderful world of Oz."
"And Star Wars... again," Rick added and Kate rolled her eyes.
She glanced at him again and smirked. "Of course Gone with the Wind is also a necessary addition."
He groaned softly. "No."
Kate grinned at him. "Oh, absolutely. And of course, every Barbra Streisand movie."
"Don't you dare."
She shrugged and lifted an eyebrow. "What are you going to do to stop me, Kitten?"
He playfully narrowed his eyes at her. "Well, if it weren't for my injuries and for the fact that both my daughters were present, I would be tempted to tackle and pin you to the bed... And then proceed to thoroughly punish you."
She smiled and rolled her eyes.
"Of course. But how's that going to stop me from exposing our daughter to Barbra Streisand?"
"It's probably not going to stop you, but I might get a son out of the deal to do manly stuff with," he shot back casually.
Kate's eyes widened and she huffed out an incredulous laugh. "W-what?" She all but sputtered. Rick grinned in glorious victory.
She was so cute being all flustered.
"You know by pinning and punishing I actually meant-"
"-Yeah, I got that. Your mind always goes to the gutter. But how the hell did you go from that to you having a son?"
He was still grinning and she was still adorably ruffled about the bizarre turn of their conversation. It was made even more bizarre by the presence of the two daughters in their bed.
Rick sat up. "Honey, when a man and a woman love each other-"
"-Shut up, Castle," she grumbled quietly. "FYI, that is not happening anytime soon."
"What? The baby-part or the sex-"
"Okay, seriously," Alexis suddenly said, sitting up. "Please, Dad, do not finish that sentence. I've been scarred enough already."
Rick's face fell in horror and Kate burst out laughing, the sound waking Lizzy. Before she could say anything or be properly embarrassed, her phone rang. Her 10-month started to whine and whimper at being so rudely awakened.
Kate grabbed her phone. "Lex, would you?"
The young red-head smiled and took a sleepy Lizzy from her mother.
"Hey, Lanie," Kate greeted, stepping out of the room.
The three remaining Castles continued to sit on the bed. "So, a baby brother, huh?" Alexis said after a while, an amusing glint in her eyes.
"Uh, not- not yet. I was just joking. Ruffling Kate's feathers."
"I know, Dad. But that would be great. Imagine a little Rick Castle running around. That would be so adorable. Oh man, I'd pay to see you and Kate chasing after him!"
Rick chuckled softly. "I'd love that. Although, I don't know if my old legs would be able to run after another one." He grinned at his daughter. "Remember how I used to chase after you?"
A large smile erupted over the young red-head's face. "Yeah. Good times."
"Good times," her father echoed. The grew silent for a few moments. "You grew up too fast," he said sadly, tucking a strand of hair in behind her ear.
Alexis rolled her eyes. "Oh come on, don't get mushy on me now."
"What? It's true. You did grow up too fast. If I had my way, you and baby bird here would both stay little and not grow up and get to know boys and want to leave your father to go off to college and someday marry some guy-"
"Dad, you're still my number one guy. You'll always be," Alexis said before giving her father a peck on his (uninjured) cheek.
He smiled at her. "Good answer." Lizzy yawned and rubbed her eyes.
"I think it's time for someone to go to bed," Rick said, rubbing a hand over Lizzy's back. "Come Sweet Pea, let's get you to bed." He took her from Alexis and turned to the red-head. "You wanna read her a bed-time story with me?"
"I'd love to."

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Fifteen minutes later...
"What did Lanie have to say?" Rick asked when his wife returned. He was already in bed, once again nursing his eye with a pack of frozen peas.
She smiled at him, her expression soft. His brow furrowed for a moment. "What do you think?" She replied climbing under covers. "Let's just say that Javier Esposito is lucky to come away unscathed. She was furious."
Rick chuckled. "Oh man, I can only imagine. We warned him."
Kate lifted his arm and tucked herself against his side, her head coming to rest on his chest. Rick smiled and kissed her temple. "Is Lizzy asleep?"
"Yeah, Alexis and I read her a bed-time story and tucked her in."
"Okay, good. Thanks." Kate smiled as she absently traced patterns on his chest. "I love you," she said quietly, meeting his gaze.
He smiled at her. "I love you too." He pressed a kiss against her forehead. "I take it I'm forgiven?" He ventured after a few silent moments.
Kate shifted to look at him and smiled. "Yes." She leaned up and kissed him gently before returning to her original position. When she started fiddling with the hem of his shirt, he knew something was on her mind.
He always knew.
"Hey, what's up?" Rick tilted her face upwards.
Kate took a breath. "Lanie told me Esposito had gotten involved in the fight because he had to physically pull you off the other guy," she said softly. "He told her that he had never seen you that angry." Rick's eyes shifted away from hers.
"Kate, I-"
"-He told her that the other guy was saying things about me and that you snapped," she interrupted and his eyes snapped back to hers. They watched each other for a few moments. "You defended my honour, Castle." Slowly a grin bloomed over her features.
He gave her a shy, lopsided grin. "Yeah well, nobody talks about my woman like that."
Kate lifted an eyebrow. "Your woman? Excuse me, Mr. Castle, but-"
He silenced her with a hard, hot and possessive kiss; plunging his tongue into her mouth without warning.
Richard Castle the Adorable Goofball and Sweet Husband was wonderful, but Richard Castle the Commanding Man and Demanding Lover was erotic and intoxicating and, oh, just so damn hot.
"My woman," he informed her breathlessly, his lips still hovering over hers.
Kate laughed breathlessly, dropping her head to his shoulder. "Caveman."
He grinned and squeezed her. "Your caveman."
She looked at him again, trailing a hand over his cheek and up to his injured eye. "Yeah, my caveman." Kate kissed him softly. "But no more football for you, Honey. Even though I find this-" she touched his eye. "-incredibly sexy-"
"I knew it!"
"-I prefer you without the disfiguration." She patted his cheek.
He smiled at her. "Noted."
After giving her husband one more lingering, sweet kiss, Kate settled against him once more. They lay in content silence before Rick started fiddling; he had something on his mind.
She always knew.
"Something you wanna share with the class?"
He paused for a moment. "Just one question, Kate."
"Mmmm?" she responded lazily.
"After enduring such a trying day and suffering injury in order to defend your honour-" She smiled, already knowing where this was heading. "-don't I get a reward or something?"
She sighed and turned to look at him. "What do you want, Castle?"
He leaned down and pressed a kiss just below her ear, her skin tingling at the sensation. "Oh, you know what I want, Beckett." His voice was low and husky; Kate bit her lip to suppress a whimper as he sucked on her earlobe.
He pressed another kiss in her neck. "I want you to wear a golden Princess Leia bikini for Halloween."
Kate burst out laughing, slapping a hand against his chest. "You are ridiculous."
He smirked. "And you're hot and bothered right now, aren't you?"
"Shut up, Castle."
"I want you too, Babe."
"Don't call me Babe. And you're not getting lucky tonight."
"Aww, come on Snookums. I defended your honour today and got beaten to a pulp because of it."
"If you call me Snookums again, I'm going to hurt you."
"Promise?"
"Yes."
"Can we use the cuffs this time? Remember my safe word is apples."
"Get the light, Castle."
He flashed her a dirty grin. "Snookums, if you wanted to see my light-saber, you only had to ask."
Kate flashed him an equally dirty grin filled with carnal promises. Suddenly, she was leaning over him, her chest pressing against his and her knee strategically placed between his legs.
"Rick," she moaned into his ear. His mouth went dry, his pants tightened. "I warned you." She took his earlobe into her mouth. "To not call me that ever again. But you don't listen, do you? Do you know what happens to boys who do not listen?"
His breathing was ragged. "Th-they get punished."
"Yes," she breathed, her hand sneaking up to his ear.
"Apples! Apples! Apples!"

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Go on, go on, come on leave me breathless

Tempt me, tease me until I can't deny this

loving feeling, make me long for your kiss

Go on, go on

Yeah, come on...

Lyrics at the end are from the Corrs' song "Breathless".