Eleanor started, she had been so fascinated she hadn't heard Hannah come in. She smiled sheepishly, "Caught me gawking. They're fine looking men, quite an enjoyable sight watching them swim laps. They've been at it for a hour." When Hannah's eyes widened, she hastened to add, "Oh, no! I haven't been watching them for an hour."
"Uh huh." Hannah joined her at the glass doors.
"They've been pacing each other. Oh my!" Eleanor let out a gasp of admiration as both men pulled themselves out of the pool.
Giggling, Hannah reached over and pushed Eleanor's jaw up by the chin. They both enjoyed the view as the men dried themselves off.
"They're watching us," Colby said in amusement as he glanced over to Don. "Eleanor seems interested in you, Don. How are you going to handle it? Since things aren't certain with Robin?"
Lips quirking in amusement, Don cut Colby a glance. "I don't think it's any of your business."
Colby shrugged good-naturedly.
As they came through the glass doors, Eleanor said, "Breakfast is warming on the sideboard. So anytime you're ready." She was glad her voice was steady. She watched a little wistfully as Colby kissed Hannah.
"We won't be long," Don said gently. He'd noticed the wistful glance. "Come on, Colby. You can leave her alone for 20 minutes!"
Colby smirked as he headed up the stairs with Don.
"I'm sorry, Eleanor," Hannah said apologetically, "If it bothers you, I'll tell him to stop."
Eleanor shook her head, "No, I think it's sweet. It's more than lust, isn't it?"
"Mmm, yeah, I think so. Although lust is a big part of it. He's a healthy man," Hannah laughed. Her expression softened, "For my part, I still can't quite believe how lucky I am, that he stayed with me, through the tears and the tantrums, through the physical therapy. I don't know that I would have made it without him."
A soft smile lightened Eleanor's wistful expression, "There's something in his eyes when he looks at you. Like he can't quite believe how lucky he is, either. Does he feel guilty that you got shot?"
"I... don't know. I've never even thought about it." Hannah was quiet as she looked out over the back gardens.
Male laughter carried into the breakfast area from the stairs, and the men weren't far behind.
"I'm starving," Colby announced as he headed directly for the buffet on the sideboard.
"Me, too," Don wasn't far behind him.
Laughing, the ladies joined them.
"This bacon looks different," Don commented, "And we don't usually have tomatoes at breakfast."
Eleanor laughed, "Yes, even breakfast is quite different here. That's back bacon, a little more meat and a little less fat in it than the streaky bacon you're used to in the States."
After a short silence while everyone dug into their breakfast, Eleanor said, "I thought we would go to Stonehenge, and the Salisbury area today, if you're up to it. Then I'll run you back to London in the car."
"That sounds good, Eleanor, thanks for showing us around like that. I really appreciate it," Don thanked her.
The smile that Eleanor bestowed on him was not lost on either Colby or Hannah.
-----
"The hamper with your picnic lunch is in the boot, Miss Eleanor," Alfred told Eleanor as they finished up their breakfast.
"Thank you, Alfred. That will be all today, I think. We'll dine in London tonight."
It didn't take very long for them to get packed and bundled in the car. Don decided to ride up front so that Colby and Hannah could sit together in the back.
"What will you and Colby be doing in London? Hannah mentioned that you'll be working, but she wasn't sure what it entailed."
Don smiled at her, "The FBI has a Legal Attaché program that does a great deal of coordination between the FBI and any overseas leads, but it's become particularly important in support of our counterterrorism efforts. One of the Legat's responsibilities is training classes for the local police for these efforts. The London office is fairly central, the training classes this month will be attended by police from all over Europe. We're focusing mainly on the areas where new Legat offices will be opened in the near future."
"Won't you miss the investigation side of things?" Hannah asked curiously.
"I'm sure they'll be more than happy to use and abuse us in addition to the training classes," Colby said dryly. "We don't have jurisdiction here though, so it'll mainly be checking out leads and evaluating information."
"Something we could probably use Charlie for," Don mused as he looked out the window at the passing scenery.
-----
"Old Sarum is really just ruins now, but it's an excellent example of a motte and bailey castle. The motte is a mound of dirt that the castle is built on. This dirt is usually dug up from a trench that eventually becomes the moat. The bailey is a lower level of additional space that's adjacent to the motte. Most domestic buildings would be located there, like the stables, or kitchens. The buildings on the motte were originally built of wood, but as you can see from the ruins, they were eventually replaced with a stone tower. Oh!" Eleanor slipped as she tried to climb up a small grassy incline.
Don caught her before she fell, and held her close to his chest. He looked down at her as he murmured, "Careful."
Eleanor's lips parted, and for a moment, she thought he would kiss her. But he straightened up and tucked her hand in the crook of his arm. "Right, um, the view is lovely from up here. But you can also see why this place was ideal for defense. In 1219 the bishop moved his cathedral to New Sarum, now called Salisbury Cathedral. And Old Sarum subsequently fell into disuse."
"It's beautiful here, Eleanor," Hannah was thrilled at the serenity of the place. "I could sit here all day and just sketch all of this."
"I think you'll find a little more to sketch at Salisbury Cathedral, which is our next stop." Eleanor smiled at Hannah's obvious enjoyment. "But we'll give you an hour or so to sketch."
-----
As they drove on to Salisbury Cathedral, Eleanor asked, "Did you bring formal attire? The US Embassy is famous for their parties. You'll probably be attending just to, what's the phrase, 'scope out' the people from other embassies!"
"Do you think so?" Colby looked at Hannah, smiling. "You might get some dancing in after all, Hannah."
She smiled as she curled up against his chest, "It'll be good practice, anyway."
Don looked amused, "I didn't know you danced, Colby."
"Yeah, well, Hannah decided to take dance classes because the physical therapist recommended it as a way to strengthen her legs. I just couldn't see letting another man put his arms around her. So I signed up as well."
Laughing now, Don commented, "So that's why you take off like a bat out of hell some evenings?"
Colby chuckled, "Yeah. I have to get there on time because of this one guy. He keeps trying to partner with Hannah. I swear I'm going to have to tear him limb from limb one day. He undresses her with his eyes."
"Like you don't!" Hannah laughed.
"That's different," Colby replied indignantly.
Everyone burst into laughter at that. "Just how exactly is it different?" Eleanor asked in amusement.
"I belong to Hannah."