"Aw, man, he told you? Cr--Darn. That's another death I'll have to plot out then," he said with a sigh and a smile.
Theo nodded so hard, his head was probably about to fall off his neck. "Yeah, 'cause me an' 'Lida are awesome!" He reached for his Daddy when Staas came close, and the hug closed up ranks for a moment, before Stass was on his way to the kitchen.
"Sure," Staas said easily, and reached over to flick the already-filled kettle on. "Tea is easy enough. Ira, can you get the coffee though? I'll take one too." He moved effortlessly through the kitchen, turning the heat up on the onions and mushrooms and adding the steaks to the pan.
After several minutes of reviewing the menu (to make sure there were no requests or necessary changes) as well as of idle chatter, the tea was poured and the steaks were browned, and Staas added brandy to the pan, before covering it with a lid. He looked at the kids, who were mostly bored with their conversation anyway. "Kinderen, ga kijk naar Sesamstraat, graag." He glanced at the screen, to make sure the pirated DVD he had of the Dutch Sesame Street hadn't run out. There just wasn't enough room for everyone in the kitchen at the moment. And anyway, things were about to heat up. Literally.
He sent a show-offy grin to the two left with him in the kitchen, grabbed his kitchen lighter, and said, "Ira, keep one eye on the kidlets, please," before uncovering the pan and setting the whole thing aflame.