A/N: It's a Two-fer weekend! Not likely to happen again, but with NaNoWriMo just around the corner, I wanted to get this up while I was in the mood. I shall do my best to try to post a new chapter every week, but if NaNo gets behind, well... no promises. Thanks to all with kind words and follows and reads. Y'all the bestest a writer could hope for. Please continue to R&R at your leisure.

The Nanny = nope, still not mine. boo.

'Listen, Maxwell, I have a lead and I intend to follow through even if means being pretend hitched to the baboon for a few more days,' CC said into the phone as Niles worked on packing their bags. The last sentence earned her a glare that she ignored. 'It may be nothing, but this could work out to be very worthwhile.' Excitement at the prospect of gaining a new investor and getting a few vacation days some place she had never really explored had replaced most of CC's ire toward Niles.

Back in New York where it was barely breakfast time, Maxwell said, 'I agree, CC. What was the name again? I'd like to have my people look into it.'

'Lord Henley,' CC said, annunciating each syllable so nothing would be lost in transatlantic translation. Niles motioned vehemently for the phone. CC twirled out of reach. Niles motioned more insistently. 'Hold on, Maxwell. The baboon wishes to speak.'

Niles yanked the phone from CC's hand. 'Eustace Cruikshank, sir. His daughter is named Isabella. It's my understanding she's the current Lady Henley and they may have connections to the some very old money. Their residence is Dunburn Manor. It's located near Windermere in the Lake District.'

'The name does ring a bell. Thank you, Niles,' Maxwell said. He hesitated before adding, 'Not that I don't condone this diversion, but the sooner you get back the better.'

'The Fines have taken up residence, have they, sir?'

'Yes. But, no hurry. Well, some hurry. Do you suppose you could have this business sorted and return no later than Wednesday?' Niles could hear the desperation in his employer's voice.

'I'm sure we'll be back as soon as we're able, Mr. Sheffield,' Niles said cheerily. 'Saturday at the latest. Say hello to Miss Fine for me, and tell her I have plenty of juicy gossip for her when I return.' He handed the phone back to CC. While he had been distracted on the phone, she had rooted through his carefully packed bag. With a sigh and a roll of his eyes, he returned to carefully packing his clothes, tuning out Babcock's chatter as he finished the task at hand.

'Oh, no worries,' CC said into the phone. 'Niles assures me he knows where we're going. He mentioned Bath. We'll try to call tomorrow or the next day if that's convenient.'

'Yes, please do,' Maxwell said. 'And CC, try not to dawdle. I'm not sure I can manage much longer without the butler to distract Miss Fine's family.'

'Uh huh. Bye bye,' CC said. She hung up the phone and looked at the bags which were now immaculately packed. She took a tour of the room to make sure neither of them had missed anything. Niles was still wearing the suit from brunch, minus the coat which was currently held over his arm. CC actively avoided looking his direction, searching for anything else to distract her thoughts from the butler. She had changed into something more travel friendly, a light blue sweater and slacks, having had the foresight to bring some extra clothes. 'You're not going to wear that the whole week, are you?' she asked, finally looking at Niles.

'Hardly, Babs,' Niles said with a smirk. 'I enjoy seeing you flustered. Like you, I also came prepared, but I'll change on the other end.'

'I'm not flustered, Niles,' CC protested. 'I may be slightly distracted, but no one flusters CC Babcock, especially not a bloated butler.' She marched from the room forcing Niles to follow with the bags. He did not trust the bell boys enough to let them take care of their luggage such as it was. He also had a feeling CC would find it amusing, him in his fancy suit, carrying their bags.

'I'm not bloated,' Niles said as he looked down then sucked in his stomach. 'Better lay off the sweets, old man.'

'Can it, Bell Boy. I'm not in the mood.'

In the lobby, Niles said, 'Just admit you find me attractive and I'll leave you alone.' CC stopped. She turned, set her eyes at his feet, and then moved her gaze upward very slowly to appraise every inch. Her breath hitched several times. 'Thought so,' Niles whispered in her ear as he walked past her to the waiting taxi. He missed her shudder while he was loading the luggage.

:p:P:p:P:p:P

Niles was glad the trip between London and Bath was uneventful. They needed some downtime to decompress. The British transit system was running efficiently. The hotel he called before leaving London had their room ready for them. The room was larger than the last and even had a couch. Niles was not relishing the idea of another night on the floor. He was still feeling the effects of the previous night.

Once everything was square with the room, Niles took CC to one of his favorite dining establishments that was off the tourist routes, glad to find it was still there. They passed the evening in a relative truce, the hurry-hurry of London having given way to a quieter locale. Neither was feeling particularly cheery, but the morning's events and the change of scene helped them lose some of the tension. CC savored a third glass of wine while Niles had another beer. They looked an odd couple to anyone paying attention. Niles had kept the suit the entire day, though he ditched the coat in the hotel, and looked perfectly relaxed and perfectly put together. CC, however, appeared frumpy and tired from travel. She, however, did not care. The only person she knew was Niles. He was certainly unbothered at the moment.

'There are worse people I could be stuck with,' CC said. 'I can think of several I would prefer, but you're not bad company, Niles.'

'You must be drunk, Babcock.'

'A little,' she said with a laugh that seemed to loosen her whole body. 'Not that anyone would blame me after the weekend I've had.'

'I doubt they would. I don't.'

'Don't tell me you're not at least buzzed, butler. That's your fourth by my count.'

'Oh, I am slightly. I just don't feel the need to announce it to the world. But don't worry, I can still get us back to the hotel for the night.'

'Speaking of,' CC said. She let out a yawn. 'What say we call it a night.'

It was still early, but they were both exhausted. Niles paid the tab. True to his word, he had no trouble guiding her back to their residence for the night. Ever the gentleman, he let her take care of whatever practicalities she needed to do before bed before he did so. When CC exited the bathroom, Niles was nearly asleep on the couch.

'You don't need to stay there tonight, Niles,' she said. He rubbed his eyes and stretched to stay awake long enough to get changed for bed. 'I can share. Just sleep on top of the covers.' She crawled into bed, careful to only disturb the easily accessible half. When he was prepared for bed he crawled over her to the other half which abutted the wall. If he was surprised by her magnanimousness he didn't show it. He settled on the opposite side of the bed. 'What are you? Five?' CC asked at his having crawled over her when he could have started at the foot of the bed.

Niles chuckled. 'Hardly. Good night, Miss Babcock.' He rolled over so his back was to her and fell fast asleep. She was not long behind. By morning they had gravitated toward the middle of the bed facing each other, his arm thrown over her body protectively. Both awoke as the alarm sounded and ignored the intimacy of the moment other than to quickly roll away from each other.

:P:p:P:p:P:p

The truce held for the next several days. Niles played tour guide for CC since he was more familiar with their locale. He found, to his surprise, she was a willing tourist. Being on vacation lightened their otherwise barbed bantering so that the zingers took on a gentle, teasing tone rather than the cutting commentary they were prone to. Neither was entirely in their element and the cloud of uncertainty regarding the Henley situation still hung over them.

On Tuesday, Niles discovered how naturally CC's hand fit in his when she clutched onto him during a tour of the famous landmarks of Bath. He had done what he could in terms of showing her the off-the-beaten-path places, but when in Rome so to speak… well, she wanted the full experience so he acquiesced. 'Don't get used to it,' she said when he looked at her questioningly. They were in a particularly crowded space. 'I don't want you to wander off and leave me. I still don't know my way around,' she said.

'I wouldn't dream of it,' Niles protested. 'Well, I have dreamed of leaving you, but usually the dog park is involved, and I've saved Chester from you clutches.'

'Chester!' CC said. 'Oh, wait, he's with Nanny Fine. He's fine. Right?'

'I'm sure Miss Fine is taking good care of him, CC. We can ask next time we call.'

'You know, I thought I was the only one who dreamed about saving a poor animal from a wonton female.'

'You've dreamed of me?'

'No. Maxwell,' CC said in a tone that suggested the answer should have been obvious.

'Oh please. We both know that's a ship stuck in dry dock forever.' Niles gripped CC's hand tighter and pulled her closer as the tourists filtered out the door of the baths behind them.

She licked her front teeth in annoyance. 'What does that mean?'

Niles shrugged. 'He didn't give you a glance before Miss Fine arrived. He certainly hasn't looked at you since.' CC let out a reluctant sigh. They followed the crowd out then split away. She did not want to publicly have this conversation even though everyone who was not Niles was literally a stranger to her. He continued speaking. 'Tell me you believed at any point Mr. Sheffield expressed interest in you as a woman and not as a secretary or business associate?'

'What, no joke about me being a man?' That one had grown old a long time ago and yet Niles still insisted on dropping it on her from time to time.

Niles stopped, uncaring they may be in the way of someone else on the pavement. He turned to look at her and released her hand. When she looked at him, really looked at him for maybe the first time ever, she saw the seriousness in his eyes. CC was not prepared for this version of Niles, but the Niles of this trip was never meant to be the one that worked for Mr. Sheffield as a butler. The whole weekend was a hint of what husband Niles could be for the woman who managed to snag him. CC had a hard time meeting his gaze.

'The woman I see in front of me – yes, woman – doesn't need to throw herself at an aloof widower who could never fulfill her. She is strong, independent, witty, and deserves someone who will excite her. Just take a moment and look around you once in a while, Babcock' He took a step back when it looked like she might kiss him which grounded them again.

After a moment during which she scuffed the pavement with her shoe, she said, 'Maxwell is pretty boring, isn't he?' She looked around and noted that people were wandering past as if they were not there. 'We should get back to the hotel and give him a call.'

'To see if he has any information,' Niles said.

'Yes, that,' CC said a bit forcefully.

They returned to the room, the truce starting to slip. CC left Niles to the phone calls while she contemplated room service or going out for dinner.

'Babs, someone wants to speak to you,' Niles said. He handed her the phone. She heard a lot of barking from the other end. Niles motioned for the phone to be returned to him. She reluctantly handed it over. 'Thank you, Miss Fine,' Niles said. 'Now let me speak to Mr. Sheffield so we can all get on with our day.'

After getting information from his employer, Niles informed CC that Eustace Cruikshank's money looked legit. Following a brief consultation with her, he called over to Dunburn Manor and spoke with the butler to finalize arrangements.

'Tomorrow we'll take the train to Windermere,' Niles told CC. 'It will take a good part of the day, but no need to get up too early. We'll have time for breakfast in the dining room. The butler has assured me Lord Henley will send a car to take us to the estate Thursday morning. Apparently her ladyship passed on word of our potential visit. His lordship is eager to meet us.'

'Well, some good news finally,' CC said. She opted to stay in for the evening with a bottle of champagne, whatever gossip Niles the yenta could pass on, and to try to figure out how to appropriately address everyone. She was having a hard time wrapping her head around all the titles everyone had.

As with the previous two nights they fell asleep on opposite sides of the bed and woke wrapped in each other's arms in the morning.

End Part 4