'It's your turn to change him.'

The brilliant blue eyes of his younger brother gleamed with amusement. 'I don't think so.' Stringfellow Hawke said with a laugh.

Saint John wrinkled his nose and held the child out in front of him over the dining table which was strewn with a large number of documents. 'He's your son.'

'Who you volunteered to look after while Caitlin took a bath.' Hawke shot back.

Saint John grimaced. 'I got shot protecting him.' He pointed out. It had been only a couple of weeks since he had taken a bullet that had allowed their friend Jo Santini to get Nicky to the safety of Airwolf, the world's most technologically advanced and only mach capable helicopter, during a hostage situation at the Lair. His shoulder had healed nicely; it was only a flesh wound and he'd had worse.

Hawke sighed and reached across to pluck his young son from Saint John's grasp. 'You know that excuse is going to get old real quick.'

'But I intend getting full use out of it before it does.' Saint John quipped as he followed Hawke over to the sitting area and watched as his brother quickly and expertly dealt with the diaper. 'You have that down to a fine art.' He commented when Nicky was cleaned up.

'Yes, I do.' Hawke tickled his son's tummy and was delighted when Nicky blew him a drool bubble. He wondered if there some weird parenting quirk that made it adorable instead of gross.

'You know I'd be happy to take him next week.' Saint John offered, lowering himself to the floor to join in playing with the baby.

'Nah.' Hawke shook his head. His warm blue gaze met his brother's hazel eyes. 'Marella's looking forward to having Nicky.' The dark-haired Hawaiian intelligence agent would be Nicky's godmother and took her impending responsibilities seriously.

Saint John made goo-goo faces at his nephew. 'Michael does know he's in for the infamous baby test, doesn't he?' He asked referring to Michael Coldsmith-Briggs III, Marella's fiancé and Hawke's close friend.

'The what?' Hawke asked with a short laugh.

'The infamous baby test.' Saint John repeated.

His brother looked at him blankly.

'You know,' Saint John said impatiently, 'when your girlfriend arranges to look after a friend's baby with the express purpose being to see how you deal with it.'

'Deal with it?' Hawke's eyebrow quirked upwards.

Saint John gestured. 'Look after it…the baby.' He sighed. 'You know what I mean.'

Hawke picked up his gurgling child and cradled him as he started to whimper.

'He's hungry.' Saint John said identifying the stubborn set to Nicky's mouth. 'I'll get the bottle.'

Hawke let Saint John dash off to the kitchen to retrieve the bottle and warm it as he kept Nicky from a full blooded scream that would no doubt bring his mother running. His wife Caitlin deserved a break. She had just gone back to work and had admitted the schedule of juggling a home, a baby, a husband and a job was tiring. She had even joked that her mother might be right after all; that staying at home as a full time mother was a good idea. Hawke knew her well enough to know it was just that; a joke. Caitlin wasn't suited to staying on the sidelines anymore than he was. He patted Nicky sympathetically as he began the first really earnest cries.

'Come on, little guy.' Hawke crooned. 'Uncle Saint John's almost got your bottle ready.'

'Here.' Saint John handed Hawke the bottle and the bib at the same time.

Hawke neatly turned Nicky in his arms, deftly positioned the bib, tested the liquid and had the teat of the bottle in this son's mouth in a couple of experienced moves.

'You see,' Saint John said as he settled back against the sofa, his legs stretching out on the hearth rug, 'you would pass the baby test with flying colours.'

'I don't think there is a baby test.' Hawke said as Nicky sucked enthusiastically on the bottle. 'Maybe it's just you they were testing.'

'There is a baby test and I'm telling you, Michael is facing it next week with your kid.' Saint John ran a hand through his short light brown hair. It wasn't as short as Hawke's but it was short enough. It amused him that they both preferred the militaristic style of their army experience.

'Marella already knows Michael would make a good father.' Hawke said defending his friend. 'He has Angelina.'

'But didn't you tell me he didn't know about Angelina until she was what…ten?' Saint John's eyes twinkled. 'I'm telling you; she's testing his baby skills.' He waved a hand at Nicky. 'I mean have you ever seen Michael pick up Nicky?'

Hawke opened his mouth to say yes and closed it again. In all honesty he couldn't remember an instance when Michael had actually picked up Nicky voluntarily. He'd held him once shortly after the birth when Hawke had shown Nicky to the spy for the first time but he had handed him back to Caitlin pretty quickly. 'OK.' He allowed. 'You might have a point.'

Saint John nodded enthusiastically. 'I definitely have a point. There's no way this isn't a baby test especially now Michael's popped the question.'

Hawke shrugged. Marella had accepted Michael's proposal and the happily betrothed couple were making wedding plans for the summer along with Michael's daughter who was thrilled with her new step-mother-to-be and with the prospect of being a bridesmaid. Hawke figured the former was just nudging the latter for which Angelina was most thrilled about.

'You know I can't believe Michael snagged himself someone that…'

Hawke shot his brother a look.

'Hot.' Saint John ended with a smirk.

'You should see some of his other aides.' Hawke commented as he set the bottle down, rearranged the bib over his shoulder and patted Nicky's back until he gave a satisfactory milky burp. 'Michael's always had an eye for beautiful, intelligent women.' He settled Nicky down again with the bottle. 'Besides you're just jealous.' He teased.

Saint John sighed. 'You're right. I am.' He rubbed a hand over his hair and wondered at his sudden unguarded moment of honesty.

'You are?' Hawke looked over at him.

Saint John shrugged. 'I'm not getting any younger, String.' He gently clasped one of Nicky's waving hands. 'I'd quite like one of these myself.'

'You kinda need to find yourself a woman first.' Hawke pointed out lightly.

His elder brother rolled his eyes. 'Yeah. I kinda figured that for myself.'

'You have anybody in mind?' Hawke asked mildly curious at his brother's admission.

Saint John sighed as Jo drifted into his consciousness. He shook his head as though it would shift the image of the pretty blonde pilot. Jo was like a sister to him, he told himself firmly; besides, she and their mutual team-mate Mike Rivers seemed to have something going on between them. They had been real close since Mike had gone undercover as a German pilot just after Christmas and Saint John wasn't about to get in the middle of it and screw it up for them. 'Not really.' He murmured. He tried a smile. 'You got the best woman going.' He said diverting the topic a little.

'Yes, I did.' Hawke said contentedly. He and Caitlin had their first wedding anniversary coming up and while the past year had been challenging on many fronts, he truly believed their marriage was the reason they had survived everything life had thrown at them, including losing his beloved mentor and surrogate father, Dominic Santini, in a horrific helicopter explosion.

Saint John grinned. 'I take it she still doesn't know what you have planned?'

'Nope.' Hawke said. He had something special in mind for their anniversary and knew it was driving his wife nuts that he wouldn't tell her exactly what; he wanted it to be a surprise.

'It's a great idea.' Saint John said. 'By the way, I've been meaning to ask if you had photos of the wedding?' He asked casually as if it weren't a big deal that he hadn't seen any pictures of his brother's wedding beyond the framed shot of the bride and groom on the mantel.

'Back cupboard by the radio.' Hawke answered absently his attention on Nicky. 'There's an album.'

Saint John levered himself off the floor and pottered back to the kitchen to grab a couple of beers. On the way back he dived into the cupboard and dragged out the album Hawke had mentioned. He placed one bottle by Hawke while he sat in one of the easy chairs and flipped through the pictures. He stopped at a snapshot of Dom with his brother and Caitlin. It was an outtake and had the older barrel-chested man with his arms open wide, his face split almost in two with a gap-toothed grin, reaching for the smiling couple who were reaching back for him for a group hug. Saint John's fingers brushed across the happy faces.

Hawke looked over as he set Nicky down in his baby carrier and reached for the beer. His sharp eyes caught on the picture that had captivated his brother's attention. 'It's a great shot.' He commented. 'I've been meaning to have it framed.'

'You should.' Saint John said with a heavy sigh. His serious hazel eyes met his brother's. 'I'm sorry I wasn't there.'

Hawke's blue eyes shifted a little; his expression became guarded. His brother's decision not to contact him for sixteen years was still a prickly topic. On one level, Hawke understood his brother's desire for freedom and independence; on another, he couldn't quite forget the heartache of not knowing if his brother was alive or dead. Their past closeness as brothers was something they were striving to recover but they'd made good progress especially since Nicky had been born. He knew Saint John was waiting for a reply and he sighed. 'So am I.' He said gently without a shade of accusation or recrimination.

'It looks like it was a great day.' Saint John commented moving on from the picture of Dom to other shots of the couple and their wedding guests. He stopped again; this time at a formal shot of Hawke with Dom and Michael either side of him. He grimaced feeling his regret bite a little sharper. If he had been around, it would have been him stood beside his brother and not the spy, he thought. He rubbed his chest absently. He and Michael weren't quite as adversarial as they had been when they had first met but he still didn't trust the spy, still resented the other man's place in Hawke's life. He snapped the album shut and took a deep breath. 'I didn't see any shots of your bachelor night.' He commented. There had been a couple of loose snaps in the album of Caitlin's bridal shower.

Hawke shrugged. 'Wasn't any.'

'What did you do?' Saint John asked curious.

'Went fishing.' Hawke said succinctly. He sighed at his brother's pointed look and gestured with the bottle. 'Dom and Patrick organised a camping trip up the mountain.'

Saint John's lips twitched. 'Sounds perfect for you.'

'It was.' Hawke admitted. 'Just Cait's Dad, her brothers, Michael, Doc and Dom.'

'Doc?'

'A friend of mine. Bush pilot, used to be a medic in the army.' Hawke said easily. 'He's in Africa at the moment doing some volunteer thing.'

'So you had a good time?' Saint John asked.

'The first night was good.' Hawke said casting his mind back.

'And the rest?' Saint John probed.

Hawke gestured again. 'Kinda got overtaken by us getting hijacked by some guys.'

'Hijacked?' Saint John's eyebrows shot up.

'A plane went down near the stream. There were two guys who were delivering false id papers to some fugitive up at Rachino Pass.' Hawke explained. 'They pulled guns on us. I had to fly them up there in the chopper while they bust up the communications equipment the guys had and left them stranded.'

Saint John frowned. 'What happened?'

'I got away but got in a knife fight, got stabbed in the leg and ended up waiting for a rescue on the side of the mountain for more hours than I care to think about.' Hawke said in a matter-of-fact tone that belied the sheer terror and danger of the events. 'Almost didn't make it to the wedding.'

'Damn.' Saint John said quietly.

Hawke pulled a face. 'Cait and Dom rescued me in the Lady with Doc. It worked out.'

'Not really the bachelor event you want to remember.' Saint John said wryly.

Hawke took a long pull of his beer.

'You know,' Saint John began conversationally, 'we could take a trip up the mountain.' He pointed at Hawke with the beer bottle. 'Give you a second attempt at it.'

Hawke lowered his beer slowly. His blue eyes were on his brother's hopeful expression. 'I'm not sure, Saint John.'

'Aw, come on.' Saint John said.

Hawke sighed. 'I didn't really want a bachelor thing back then, Saint John.'

'It'll be fun. You, me. We'll invite Mike and Jason, he could do with something to take his mind off everything. I tell you what, I'll even invite Michael.' Saint John encouraged enthusiastically.

Hawke wasn't immune to his older brother's pleading expression; it had been years since Saint John had used it on him but he was dismayed that it worked just as effectively as it had before. 'OK,' he said reluctantly and held up his beer to stop Saint John's delighted response before it got started, 'if you can convince Cait.' He couldn't see his wife being too eager for them to repeat the trip given the previous outcome.

Saint John smiled far too smugly for Hawke's comfort. 'OK. Deal.' He leaned back in his chair. 'I can convince Caitlin.'

'Convince me of what?'

Both men turned at the Texan accent and smiled at the sight of the redheaded pilot on the stairs to the main bedroom. She was dressed in jeans and one of Hawke's sweaters, her red hair hanging in a wet ponytail over one shoulder. She made her way over to them and slipped into the seat next to Hawke on the sofa. She leaned over and checked on the baby before she snuggled up to her husband and snagged his beer for a quick drink.

Hawke tugged her closer. 'Saint John wants to give me another shot at a bachelor night and take me on another fishing trip.'

'Oh?'

Saint John stepped in quickly seeing the anxiety flicker across her freckled face. 'I figure he deserves another chance at one given how his last one got so screwed up.'

'Sure.' Caitlin said slowly. 'But another fishing trip? He did tell you he almost died on the last one?'

'Well, what are the odds of it happening again?' Saint John asked trying to cajole her.

'To him?' Caitlin looked at her husband fondly. 'Probably a dead certainty.' She finished dryly.

Hawke started to quietly chuckle.

Saint John took a deep breath; he was obviously going to have to bring out his ace. 'Shame.' He said sadly. 'I thought it would be nice, you know, as I kinda missed out the first time and I didn't get to do all that big brother stuff like arranging the bachelor party.'

Caitlin rolled her eyes. 'Please. Like I'm going to fall for that.'

Her brother-in-law plastered an innocent look on his face. 'What?'

'Saint John, my mother is the Queen of the Guilt trip so don't even get me started.' Caitlin retorted. She looked over at Hawke whose amusement of the conversation was evident in the small smile tugging at his otherwise impassive expression.

She realised he'd planned it so she would be the one to refuse Saint John; Hawke hadn't been keen on his bachelor night and had only been partially mollified at the idea of the fishing trip. She bit her lip. Despite Hawke's reluctance she knew it would be a good bonding exercise for the brothers. They had struggled with their relationship although Saint John's protection of Nicky had helped bridge some of the distance; Saint John had chosen to stay with them after his release from the hospital and the past week or so had felt like they were a real family.

Caitlin sighed and pushed a wet strand of escaping hair back into her ponytail. 'OK. If Hawke wants to do it, I have no objections.'

Hawke choked on the last gulp of beer. His blue eyes shot to his wife's accusingly.

She patted his knee apologetically as Saint John hooted with laughter.

'You'll have fun.' She said.

'Right.' Hawke muttered.

'That's settled then.' Saint John said pleased. 'We'll head up this weekend before you guys disappear for your trip.'

Caitlin looked around for something to change the topic given Hawke's disgruntlement. Her blue-green eyes glanced off the dining table. 'Did you find anything useful in the file Michael gave you?'

The Hawke brothers had realised that there was a possibility their parents were alive and in witness protection following Alan Hawke's involvement in identifying a Mafia mobster Angelo Cordelli and his henchman Edward Sallis as his father's murderer. The brothers were determined to find out the truth which had come into question after a Japanese pilot had claimed that Alan Hawke had died a mere five years earlier instead of in the boating accident as they had all previously believed.

Hawke sighed and followed her gaze back to the spread of documents. 'Nothing yet.'

Saint John grimaced. 'I don't see how all this information on the Cordelli's is going to help.'

Hawke rubbed his chin. 'We're going to have to find a way to bring them down if we're going to end this and make sure they don't come after us or our folks.'

'You do realise the Cordelli's are a major Mafia family?' Saint John said with a hint of exasperation.

'There has to be a weakness in their operation somewhere.' Hawke commented.

'What about Locke's info on Yahara?' Caitlin asked tangling her fingers with his.

Saint John's sigh was almost identical to his brother's. 'It's a lot of paper.' He said defensively.

'Which y'all been staring at all day.' Caitlin remarked amused.

'I don't suppose you could take a look?' Hawke said. 'You're a helluva lot better at this stuff than we are.'

'I just have more patience.' Caitlin said.

'That's what I said.' Hawke replied. 'You're better at this than we are.'

'Flattery will get you nowhere.' Caitlin remarked secretly pleased at the compliment. She patted his knee. 'You'd better get back to it while I put Nicky down.'

Hawke looked across at Saint John who gave him a bemused shrug and they wandered back over to the table.

Caitlin carried Nicky up and placed him back in his crib before she returned to the downstairs and made some coffee for them all. She curled up on the sofa and opened the book she had gotten half-way through reading in the bath. Her eyes flickered to the table and the quiet hum of conversation.

She'd take a look at the paperwork over the weekend while the men went fishing, she decided. There was always the chance that her investigative skills honed in her previous employment as a police officer might pick up something the two ex-soldiers missed. Maybe she'd invite Marella and Jo at the weekend, see if the women in general couldn't collectively come up with something, especially as the guys would be away. She smiled wryly. The fishing trip would be good for the brothers, she mused, just as the search for their parents was bringing the two men closer. She gave a satisfied nod of contentment at the sight of Hawke and his brother sitting closely together, both bent over the same document discussing its merits, before she returned her attention determinedly to her book.