"How are you?" she asked quietly, seeing Harry's face in profile over looking the Thames as Lucy chased the pigeons away, giggling all the while.

"I'm…" he tailed off as the word "fine" just couldn't come to his lips. He was as far from fine as possible. "Petrified," he supplied instead. "I'm petrified."

"Of what?" she asked calmly

"Failing," he said instantly. "Her mothers dead." Ruth glanced at the girl who was still chasing the birds. "I got a call last night. About half an hour after you left."

"Have you told Lucy?"

"Yes," Harry said. "But she doesn't really understand what dead means. How can I explain to a three year old that her mother isn't coming back? I don't know what to do, and Claire dying has made it a lot more difficult."

"I'm sorry," Ruth said, even though she wasn't really. She would personally suffer no grief from the loss of this woman.

"I'm sorry for Lucy," Harry said instantly. "Now all she has is me, and I'm… I'm just not enough."

"Harry…"

"I failed both my adult children," he said. "I know that. She only has me. Oh God, what am I doing Ruth? I can't be a father, and I have years of evidence backing that up before you argue the point."

There was silence between them, only interrupted by Lucy's laughs as she had taken to splashing in puddles. "Have you finished feeling sorry for yourself?"

"No," he replied, with half a smile towards her. She smiled back.

"All you can do Harry is take it one day at a time," she said quietly. "And try not to repeat your mistakes. You're not a stupid man. Infuriating and stubborn, yes but stupid no." He was silent thinking about this when she said something he was not expecting. "I owe you an apology."

"What on earth for?" he asked, facing her fully. Out of all the things he'd expected this was not one of them.

"George. I'm so sorry."

"Don't apologise, you don't have to…"

"I do," she interrupted. "I know things between us are never easy." He inclined his head in agreement so she ploughed on, trying to be brave, and speaking low to keep Lucy out of earshot. "But just the thought of you with another woman, even for one night is driving me crazy. So I wanted to apologise."

"You moved on," he said simply. She looked at him surprised, and not a little hurt that it didn't seem to bother him. "I'm not saying it didn't hurt Ruth, because it did," he said, continuing to explain. "But it wasn't wrong of you to try and find a little happiness."

"Was it wrong when I know how much it hurt you?" She had never been this forward with him and she blushed slightly. "I shouldn't have done it Harry."

"It was only once," he said, knowing, or guessing where this was coming from. "And she meant very little. I'm sorry that… its hurting you."

"Am I that transparent?" she asked with a smile that didn't hold much happiness.

"I've known you for eight years Ruth," he said, and there was no mistaking the sadness this time. "I can read certain things in your face. Its not clear to everyone, but it is to me."

She nodded, looking at the water when something occurred to her. "Harry, I…"

"Ooh, that's a really big boat!" Lily said approaching them with wide eyes. "I want to see it!" Harry already knew what that meant and lifted Lucy up into his arms so she was higher up. Ruth looked at the girl and saw very little Harry there. The eyes were most definitely his, but that was about it. She wondered if Lucy looked like her mother. She wondered if Harry thought of this other woman whenever he looked at his daughter. A thought that made her feel hollow.

"What were you saying?" Harry asked her.

Ruth shook her head. "It doesn't matter."

"Ruth…"

"No, it doesn't matter," she repeated. He sighed, but knew there was no point enquiring any further. Once she had decided not to speak, nothing he said would change it. Ruth looked at Lucy who was watching the river and smiled at the girl. Then her phone rang. She picked it up with a sigh. "No, I'll be right there," she said before disconnecting the call. Harry watched her with a curious look. "Dimitri's watching the Russians. He needs my help hacking in to their network."

"Couldn't Tariq…?"

"Yes, well I keep that information rather close," Ruth said. "It'll be quicker if I do it."

"Sure," he said.

"Oh are you leaving?" Lucy said, her wide eyes very much like her fathers.

"I have to go back to work," Ruth told her.

"That's not very nice," Lucy said.

"No, I suppose its not," Ruth agreed. This girl had been a source of a lot of her heart ache over the past twenty four hours but Ruth wasn't stupid enough to blame her. None of this was Lucy's fault, and no matter what Ruth thought, the girl had lost her mother. Ruth herself remembered vividly when her father died, and she wouldn't wish the loss of a parent on anyone. "How's your face?"

"It hurts," Lucy said looking at the ground.

"Well, you know what I heard is the best medicine for a brave girl with a poorly face?" Ruth said as Lucy studied her carefully. "Chocolate. If you ask nicely, I bet your dad will buy you some."

"Oh please!" she said turning from Ruth to Harry with a wide eyed pleading look that made a lump come to Ruth's throat. With that look on her face it was easy to see that she was Harry's daughter.

"I'll see you later," Ruth said quietly as she left for the grid. Harry watched her for a second but was distracted by Lucy's pleading.

"Alright," he said with a smile. "Come on."

"Yes!" Lucy said with satisfaction. "Thank you."