Oh, how Alida would have loved to catch "the silent swear." It was one of her favorite transgressions to punish. Staas doubted she understood the aborted motion though, and anyway she was distracted by Ira's help. Which was not all that welcome, it seemed. "Don't get tommy-toe on it!" she said in horror, even though the tomato was long gone from his fork.
Staas hushed her and merely smiled over at the Bosko siblings. "It's not actually that hard, just remember to stand back. And maybe dismantle the smoke detector in your kitchen." It was the one safety precaution he ignored, though he had all his others hooked up and routinely checked. "Still, Ira, don't you dare try. Let your papa or Ori do the cooking, please. Theo, wipe your fingers on your napkin please, and use your fork," he added, barely even taking a beat between subjects.
Theo grinned his sheepish grin, which he knew damned well was so cute he often got away with whatever it was he was supposed to be sheepish about. But he also put down the piece of steak and enthusiastically wiped his hand across his napkin before picking up his fork, so Staas counted that as a win.
"Ori, do you get much of a chance to cook? Or is it mostly the school cafeteria for you?"