Laura had to admit she was surprised by Callen's choice of hotel for the night. Unlike the somewhat seedy roadside motel he'd selected last night, tonight he'd picked an all-suite hotel near the airport that appeared to cater more to business travelers than families on vacation.

He'd also surprised her when he stopped at a park to let the kids run around a while. He played catch with Cooper - and where had he picked up the gloves and ball? she'd have to ask him, sometime - and then pushed Lila on a swing and supervised both children when they joined a game of kickball with some other kids, giving Laura a small break that she hadn't realized she'd needed. She supposed it was more don't run, walk, but wouldn't deny the pleasure she felt in a few minutes of less responsibility, a few minutes where she could pretend they were what they looked like and forget that they were on the run.

When they finally settled into their hotel after dinner, both Cooper and Lila were too excited to sleep, so Laura found a movie they might enjoy on the hotel's in-room TV and left them to that before checking on Nathaniel in the crib the hotel had provided and joining Callen in the suite's living room where he sat reading a newspaper he'd picked up from a bench at the park.

He looked up when she sat next to him. "How are they?"

"Watching a movie," Laura told him. "Which means they'll be asleep soon."

Callen chuckled at that. Before he could return his attention to the newspaper, she said, "You're good with them."

"If I am it's because you've done a good job with them."

"No, it's more than that," Laura said. "I've never seen Lila take to anyone the way she took to you. And Cooper relaxed with you very quickly, too."

For a moment, Callen looked like he wanted to deflect her words. Then he said, "Why do you think that is?"

Laura hadn't expected that question, or anything like it, and she had to think about it. While she thought, she rose and started the coffeemaker to heating water for tea. The simple action distracted her just enough that she found an answer.

Finally, she turned back to Callen. "Because you're so much like Clint."

Callen raised one eyebrow. "Except for the part where I don't go around with a bow and arrows."

"You're terrible at accepting compliments, you know," Laura told him, then turned back to pour hot water into two cups. "I mean your heart - your mission, your purpose, and how you go about it. That's a lot like Clint."

Callen remained silent while she finished steeping their tea and brought the cups to the sofa, offering him a cup and settling beside him with her own.

"How are you?" he asked.

"Better. Thanks for today."

He didn't respond, other than regarding her seriously, almost as if he were examining her.

She blew out a breath. "I'm holding up." It was true enough, as far as it went.

"You sure?" Callen prompted.

"Why do you ask?" Laura hated the defensive note in her tone and tried to cover her unease with a sip of her tea.

"Just confirming," he said easily, and she wondered if it were really that simple.

Once she wondered, she had to ask. "Why are you confirming?"

"Because tomorrow's going to be a long day," he said. "A long day and a half, really, and you'll be dealing with the kids mostly by yourself."

Laura nodded. That she understood. "You'll be too busy watching for threats."

"Exactly." Callen took a sip of his own tea. "So if you're not holding up, I need to know."

Laura let out a long breath. "I am. Or I think I am."

"Big difference."

"Yeah." She leaned back on the couch, letting her eyes drift closed. "I can't say it's easy, leaving everything behind, knowing I may never go back. But if the choice is between losing things and losing Clint… There's no choice. Clint wins, every time."

"I hope he knows he's a lucky man."

Laura chuckled. "If he doesn't, you remind him when we see him, okay?"

"Nope," Callen said and Laura couldn't summon the energy for a glare.

Instead, she just rolled her head to the side to regard him curiously. "Why not?"

"Because he'll want to know how I know, and there's no good answer to that question."

That didn't make any sense - of course there were good answers, like, "You get to know someone pretty well when -"

No, that wasn't good because that would lead to, "Just how well do you know her?"

Laura tried half a dozen other answers in her mind, and they all ended up with embarrassing questions. Not that Clint had shown any jealousy before, but this was different. This was a shared high-adrenaline trip in intimate circumstances - under normal circumstances, Laura would never share a hotel room, even a suite, with a man she barely knew.

In these circumstances, even Clint might feel challenged when it came to their relationship.

Her eyes prickled with threatening tears, and Laura squeezed her eyes shut in an attempt to hold them back. Callen had been right to ask how she was doing, and she hadn't lied when she said she was holding up, but that didn't mean she wasn't close to the edge.

She heard a soft thunk, and then strong hands were taking her mug from her. She couldn't bring herself to care.

"Turn around."

Even as soft as it was, Callen's tone carried a command, and Laura shifted so that she faced away from him. A moment later, she felt his hands at her shoulders, rubbing and kneading and stroking, and not just her shoulders, either, but her upper back and upper arms.

Gradually, she relaxed under his ministrations. Clint used to give her massages like this, usually on mornings after he returned from a mission, after they'd reaffirmed their marriage and she could finally let go of the stress of his absences.

She'd never try to convince him to quit the work that meant so much to him, but she'd been grateful when, after the Ultron fiasco, he'd chosen to hang up his bow.

Callen's massage seemed to go on forever, and Laura wondered idly whether his endurance carried over into other activities … and then reminded herself firmly that she shouldn't be wondering such things, idly or not.

Finally, Callen's hands stilled at her shoulders. "Better?" he asked quietly.

"Mm-hm." Laura opened her eyes and looked over her shoulder at him. "Sit back?"

He blinked, apparently puzzled for just a moment, then sat back against the corner of the sofa. Laura sat up, then leaned back against his chest, letting her head rest on his shoulder.

"Is this okay?" she asked.

"Very okay." He wrapped his arms around her, their weight reassuringly comfortable against her stomach. "Relax, Laura. I've got you."

Yes, she thought drowsily. Callen reminded her far too much of Clint.

A

G woke with a crick in his neck and a lightness in his heart he didn't remember feeling since - the good days with Tracy? Or maybe those few months with the Rostoffs?

Whenever it was, it had been far too long since he'd felt this good. He lay still on the sofa, keeping his eyes closed and Laura's warm body close against him.

One thing he knew about this feeling was that it never lasted long. He'd enjoy this time as long as he could.

Almost before he finished the thought, the sound of Nathaniel's morning fussiness - and how did G recognize that after only a couple of days? - made Laura stir in his arms.

"My turn, babe," she murmured, patting his arm before climbing to her feet, staggering slightly as she made her way to the bedroom.

She returned a few minutes later, Nathaniel suckling at her breast in contentment.

I'd be pretty content, too, if I were doing that.

The thought had barely formed before G shoved it deep down inside. This was Clint Barton's wife, the mother of Barton's children. He was escorting her, and her children, to her husband. G had no right to be thinking those thoughts.

"Sorry," Laura murmured - quietly, because Cooper and Lila were still asleep. "I wasn't awake -"

"No," G said more sharply than he'd intended. He blew out a breath at her shocked expression, and said again, more gently, "No. Don't apologize. It was what it was."

Even from this distance, he could see Laura swallow, see the confusion in her eyes.

He understood. He was wondering what more would have been like, too.

Their gazes held for long moments before Laura nodded and turned away.

G ran a hand over his face. This morning's shower would be a cold one.