Chapter Twenty Five

Henry had a plan. He certainly hadn't set about to make it, but everything had fallen into place at the same time. There was no way he could ignore the incredible timing and not put it together. The opportunity was perfect. Or he thought so at least. The big question was what Elizabeth would think. He hadn't dared to even hint at his idea yet. After setting the next set of dishes in the sink, Henry glanced over at Elizabeth. He wasn't sure she would like his idea in any way, so he wanted to bring it up when she was in a good mood. It was the only way he would even have a chance of convincing her if she hated his idea, and he suspected she would.

"You might as well just spit it out, Henry," Elizabeth said without looking up from her washing.

He startled and looked over at her. Still she didn't look up, but he had no doubt she was paying attention. She'd already proven she'd been paying far more attention than he'd originally thought. He certainly hadn't been trying to give anything away. Even his glance in her direction had been relatively innocuous. Or at least he'd thought so.

"What?"

Elizabeth dropped her wash rag into the sink and turned to Henry with her arms crossed over her chest and her hip resting against the counter.

"Oh come on, Henry. I know that look. That's the "I want to say something, but I'm scared to spit it out" look. You always think you manage to hide it."

"I don't hide it. I just don't use it when I think you'll notice."

"That's hardly a distinction," she returned with a smile. "And by the way, I noticed. You might as well tell me."

She had a point, and she'd been in a decent mood that evening too. Henry glanced at the last few dishes in the sink and decided they could wait. He grabbed his wife's hand and pulled her away from the kitchen. Elizabeth trailed along behind him with an amused smile. She had no idea what this could be about. When Henry took a seat at the kitchen table Elizabeth joined him.

"I was invited to speak at a university religion convocation next month, and I want you to come with me."

"That's wonderful, Henry! Congratulations. What university is it for?"

"Does the fact that you're asking mean you're considering coming?" he asked hopefully.

"I don't really think we're at the point of me considering it since you haven't shared some of the most important details. For instance, you never answered my last question. What university?"

Some of the excitement seeped out of Henry's expression and a slightly sheepish smile took its place. He purposefully hadn't mentioned exactly where his speaking engagement was going to take place. There was good reason for that too. Elizabeth would certainly find problems with the destination. One specifically was a problem of oceanic proportion.

"The University of Salzburg."

Elizabeth's jaw dropped open. The second she'd seen the shift in his facial expression she'd known he was going to give her an unusual or long distance location. He wouldn't have been uncertain about revealing where he was going if it hadn't been, but Elizabeth hadn't been expecting something quite this extreme.

"As in Austria?" she asked incredulously.

"Yes. Austria."

"The country?"

"Um, pretty sure that's the only Austria I know."

Elizabeth glared at Henry and socked him in the arm. He jumped and rubbed the spot where she'd connected.

"Ow. What was that for?"

"You really need to ask?"

No, he hadn't really needed to ask, but she shouldn't have needed to confirm he was talking about Austria the country either. That should have been obvious even without his facial expression as a clue – and he knew she'd read it. He wasn't going to say that though. He had some level of self-preservation. Left with no other recourse, he shrugged.

"Henry, that's amazing and I would love to go with you, but I've only just been cleared to fly domestically. It's not like we even know how that's going to go."

It definitely had the potential to not go well. While she'd been medically cleared to fly, her doctors had highly advised she always travel with a medical professional whenever she went a long distance for work. If she went with Henry it wouldn't be work related, but since it would be both a longer trip and international she had to assume the whole medical professional thing should still be applied. Of course none of that would matter if she wasn't allowed on an international flight. Whether that would even happen was still up in the air.

"The thought of me even going on a trip overseas right now is kind of crazy."

"The trip is still a long way out. You'll have more than enough time for some national test flights before then. It's enough time for the State Department to hire a doctor for you too."

Which Russell had already told her they were planning on doing whether she wanted one or not.

"Ugh. Don't remind me. I hate the fact that I'll have to take a doctor with me wherever I go."

"Why? I'll feel a lot better while you're traveling if I know someone's there to help if something happens. And it will be someone that knows you and your condition."

Elizabeth's forehead wrinkled. She could see that point of view, but having a doctor around would also be a constant reminder that she was sick. Of course she would still have other reminders of that without a doctor constantly nearby. There was another minor resistance point to bringing a doctor with her on every trip too.

"You don't think it's a jinx?"

"No, babe," Henry laughed. "Now will you come with me? Salzburg really is an amazing city. Aside from the University having an incredible theology department, there are 35 churches. In one city. It's incredible. One of them, the Mulln Monastery, if I remember correctly, was the birthplace of beer. To think, it could actually be called a spiritual drink."

Elizabeth smiled at him. He was absolutely adorable when he got onto religious topics like this. While they held no interest for her at all, his excitement over them was always a pleasure to watch. He wasn't going to be able to convince her to go no matter how much he tried though. There were simply too many problems with the idea. Before Elizabeth could put a stop to his highlights of Salzburg churches speech, he veered off to another area.

"If that's not enough, the city is also known for its connection to Mozart and the filming of the Sound of Music."

Intriguing, but she still couldn't go.

"Henry," Elizabeth said softly before he could go any further. "I was off work for three months and I haven't been back that long. Even if I was cleared to fly, do you honestly think the President is going to approve me taking more time off?"

There was very little chance of that in her mind. She wasn't sure if she would feel comfortable doing it either. To leave again so soon would be asking a lot of her staff, and she wasn't sure she was willing to do that simply to spend time with Henry. It wouldn't be fair to them. They'd had to carry a lot of extra weight on their shoulders while she'd been gone even with Deputy Cushings there. She couldn't thrust all of the work back on them again. They didn't deserve it.

"I think it depends how you phrase why you're going. If it's a test run, can he really deny that's a good idea?"

A test run. Elizabeth eyed him curiously, beginning to actually consider his idea for the first time. If there was a legitimate reason for the trip, her staff would be more than willing to cover for her. They had been incredibly understanding since she'd returned. Honestly, they probably wouldn't have protested her going even if the trip had simply been for pleasure. She was the one that had a problem with the thought of going away and leaving them with all the work. Of course she didn't necessarily have to avoid work completely if she went with Henry. He would be busy sometimes. She could easily work from her hotel room and video-conference with her staff. They'd done it before. The need for a test run trip also held quite a bit of merit.

"Alright, convince me. Why do I need a test run?"

Henry's hopes soared, but he forced them down so he could focus on the pure logic behind his suggestion. That would be what swayed her more than anything else.

"Don't you think your first overseas trip should be as non-stressful as possible? That way if you have complications from the flight it won't matter as much. There won't be any demanding need to make you rush your recovery, and you'll learn how long that will actually take. That's rather important to know. Once you do know you can plan out how much extra time you'll need before an important event. Personally I'd rather you decide the fate of the world when you already know your lungs will hold out after the flight."

"I'd prefer that too."

Henry also made some very good points. Almost every overseas trip she went on was critical. Her appearance alone had the potential to ruin her entire trip. A missed appointment definitely would. There would be no way to know how her body would react to a long flight without taking one. That fact gave good credibility to the idea of taking a test run.

"Give me the details about when and how long. I'll run it by my pulmonologist and Conrad. There are no promises though, Henry. Either one of them could put a pin in this idea of yours. My staff could too. They have the right to an opinion about this since they'll have to pick up the extra slack again while I'm gone."

A bright smile lit Henry's face and he leaned forward to kiss her. He trailed his hand over her hair and let the kiss linger. When he pulled away his eyes were dancing.

"I figured you would put a pin in my idea."

"I did consider it," she laughed as she leaned against him. "But you managed to convince me. Now I just have to do some more convincing. Maybe whatever magic you used to get me on board will rub off on everyone else too."

Elizabeth's eyes flickered up to Henry. A coy smile pulled at her lips and heat burned in her eyes. Henry lifted an eyebrow curiously. He knew what that look meant, but wasn't quite sure where she was going with it considering their topic of conversation. Either way, he was definitely interested.

"If I do manage to do that convincing, are we taking the kids?"

Henry laughed. He was going to speak at a religious convocation and his wife was trying to turn it into a romantic getaway. Not that Henry thought there was anything to complain about in her idea. He just found it rather ironic.

"Nothing says we have to take them. Stevie has work. Ali's in college and constantly swamped with her course load. Jason's in high school, and we both know getting him to finish all his homework on a normal basis is near impossible. I don't see good things happening if he tries to catch up on a week of missed work. Really, it would probably be better for everyone if the kids say home and we go alone."

"It would certainly be the most responsible thing to do."

Had she used a different tone of voice she could have sold that. As it was, Henry knew her too well and couldn't help but laugh.

"You're terrible."

Elizabeth rolled her eyes and snuggled against his chest.

"Hardly. After everything that's happened, I think I deserve this. You do too."

Henry couldn't really deny that. They'd been through so much in the last few months. Getting the chance to spend some time alone together would do them both good.

"Now if only I could get rid of that doctor," Elizabeth grumbled.

Henry snorted.

"Not a chance, babe."