Robina knew it was a bit of a shitty thing to do to her thirteen year-old son with his thriving social life but the look on her husband's face the night before when he'd come home so turned around about being supportive of his friend pushed her into action.

Thus when she woke Saturday morning she didn't bother waking Gil up since he was obviously exhausted from a long week at work and neither of her children were the early bird she was, Robina wasn't concerned about the amount of noise she made in the kitchen. She knew the weaknesses of all her family when she wanted them to do something for her. With her prince turning into a young man, it was straight through the stomach - just like Gil, TJ had a weakness for pancakes. Not simply plain pancakes either, he loved the designer kind full of chocolate or cheese or fruit. But Robina knew her baby boy as only a mother could and went for the kill-shot.

Ten minutes later, TJ had followed his nose down to the kitchen and was scratching his belly as he yawned. Robina wondered if he knew just how much he'd picked up from Gil though they were not biologically related.

'Something smells good,' he said sleepily, going for the cupboard to get a glass for juice. 'You making a full English, Mom?'

'No, just a little something for you and me, since we haven't gotten to spend a lot of time together lately. I've had a lot of deals on the go and I like to make sure I take time for my boy.'

'Cool. Juice?'

'Love some.'

Robina flipped the pancakes onto two plates, brought them to the table along with the fixings. She unfolded her napkin, watched TJ pick up the jar of lingonberry jam and the creme fraiche, slathered generous portions onto his cakes. He gave a little sigh of enjoyment.

'So good, Mom.'

'Good, I was worried I'd goofed on the baking soda and-'

'What do you want?'

'What?'

TJ gave his mother a look. 'Mom, it's nine am on a Saturday and you got your ass up to make me pancakes?'

'That's one, TJ,' Robina told him; thanks to hockey, the boy had developed a light swearing habit and Robina had told him he got five a day before he had to put a dollar of his allowance into the swear jar. 'And why should I want something?'

'Because the last time you made me pancakes on a Saturday morning you wanted me to babysit for Kelley, oh Mom, no!' TJ screwed up his face in understanding and disgust. 'Come on, it's Saturday, there's a bunch of people who want to go to the movies, and Kari said she wanted me to buy her popcorn!'

'I know, TJ, you have your friends and your girlfriend so I will make you a deal. You babysit Kelley tonight and you can have Kari over for a date next Friday night. Your father and I will be here, but I'll make arrangements for Kelley to have a sleepover at a friend's so you and Kari can have some privacy.'

'Where are you and Dad going?'

'It's a surprise,' Robina replied, cutting into her own pancakes. 'Not that I don't trust you, but it's a grown-up thing.'

'Sex thing,' TJ muttered, turning the same shade as the jam on his pancakes, and Robina laughed.

'No, TJ, not a sex thing.' Though that's where the night will end when you're sound asleep, she added silently. 'Just that not all plans of adults are meant to be shared with their children.'

'Sex thing. If I give Kelley a bath, do I get to rent an R-rate movie to watch with Kari?'

'R-rated movie? Are we talking sex, violence or language?'

'I was hoping we could watch Pulp Fiction. I heard some of the guys on the hockey team talking about it.'

'That's fine. You give Kelley a bath, you get to watch Pulp Fiction.'

TJ grinned, shoveled in more pancakes. 'What do I get if I play Barbies with her?'

'A big hug,' Robina replied. 'My son the Shylock, always working an angle. Eat your pancakes.'

'Daddy, wake up!'

'What is it, Kelley?' Gil groaned, saw Kelley bouncing up and down on the bed where her mother would normally sleep.

'Mama says it's lunchtime and she is going to surprise you with something.'

'Is it Ritalin for you?' He grabbed her around the waist as he sat up, tickling her ribs and making her shriek like a banshee.

'Ah, no! No! No! Daddy, knock it off!' Kelley squealed in breathless delight. 'We're wasting surprise time!'

'Okay then. Let's go find out.'

Holding Kelley's hand, Gil let the girl tug him towards the stairs and he found TJ and Robina in the kitchen with one of Gil's favourites - lasagne. Rain or shine, summer or winter, lasagne never failed to make him feel at his most zen state. The casserole of it was on the table along with a basket of rolls and the syrupy-sweet lunchtime wine they occasionally let the kids have a sip of. Robina had been a little freaked at first by the idea of it, but when they'd all gone to Rome in the summertime to visit Gil's family and she'd seen children as little as two have a sip of their father's beer or mother's wine and so she'd relented.

'Smells good, baby,' Gil said, giving Robina a kiss and eliciting groans from both their children. 'TJ, seriously? You're thirteen and you have a girlfriend.'

'I don't!' But TJ knew his protest was just for form's sake. 'Mom, tell him the surprise already.'

'Yes, tell me this surprise, since you didn't last night like you said you would,' Gil implored her and Robina relented.

'Fine. We are going to see the Marlins-Mets game tonight from box-seats behind home plate at Shea Stadium tonight.'

Gil's hand paused on the lift dug deep into the lasagne dish and he looked at his wife with questioning hope. 'Don't toy with me, Robina Mae.'

'It's true. As a thank-you for the deal I brokered with Moses Zeffirelli on his book's manuscript, he let me have use of his partner's box tonight. It's catered and it includes private mini bar as well. And the best part, it's going to be just us. No other people in the box, you and me only.'

'Really.' Gil caught the sparkle in her eyes, the subtle flick of the brow. 'That does sound like fun.'

'But aren't games more fun when you have more people to play with?' Kelley asked with the innocence of a child, and TJ rolled his eyes - a common reaction to most everything these days - and hoped he didn't embarrass his six year old sister.

'Sometimes adults like to have alone time when they go out, Kell-Bell.'

'Oh.' Kelley frowned at her lasagne, then scoop some up. 'I still think it'd be more fun with more people.'

'Well you and me will have fun just the two of us tonight,' TJ said, understanding he had his responsibilities to fulfill as the big brother. 'We're going to play Dance Party Six tonight, and maybe watch the Aladdin movies too.'

'With popcorn and Seven-Up?'

'Sure. But only one Seven-Up or you'll be bouncing off the walls.'

Gil laughed as he listened to his children; they sounded like their own version of an old married couple. Or perhaps Penny and Sheldon from The Big Bang Theory minus the uber-nerd science speak. 'That's nice of you to volunteer for babysitting your sister, TJ.'

'Right, volunteering. No sweat, Dad,' he replied, eyes flicking over to Robina.

'Just make sure Kelley's in her pyjamas by seven-'

'Lying down by eight, lights out eight-thirty, I know the drill. Can I call Kari and tell her I'm not going to the movies tonight?'

'After lunch.'

When they'd finished eating and Gil and Robina were left in the kitchen to tidy up, he dried his hands on the towel and wrapped his arms around Robina. 'Best wife ever,' he told her, kissing her neck. 'But what's up with TJ and you today?'

'What do you mean?'

'I mean our son kept looking at you like he was reciting a line.'

'Mostly because I bribed him into babysitting tonight.' Robina told him how she'd bribed TJ with pancakes and the promise of a movie night with his little girlfriend. 'You don' think that's too much is it?'

'Are you kidding? TJ will have Kelley bathed, manicured and singing in Swahili if he thinks it'll get him bonus perks of his date next week.'

'My boy on a date.' She gave a mock sniffle. 'So grown up.'

'I was also thinking that since we're grown up too...' Gil trailed off, murmuring a suggestion in Robina's ear that had her eyes going wide. 'If you're interested.'

'Absolutely.'