"Come now," she heard his voice rumble softly behind her, as he stood at the binnacle. "It's a glorious day, even with a slight chill in the air. Surely we might enjoy a quiet walk together?" Eyes shining, even without looking his direction, Carolyn Muir allowed herself to imagine all that he might intend in that 'quiet walk'.
"My dearest Captain," she said to the air in front of her, "the children are already all too aware of the 'private' time we spend together, and especially Candi is beginning to make assumptions." Moving quickly to her side, he said softly into her ear, "It isn't an assumption, if she's right," grinning to himself as he watched her quiver with anticipation at his approach. "Very well then," he continued, moving in front of the desk, stopping to look intently into her eyes. "That's a very minor barrier. Take that furry pest with you and say you are driving up to Pillar Point to enjoy a dog walk, and to gain a bit of inspiration for your latest creative effort. Surely that might set the hounds of inquiry aside for a while?"
Nodding to herself, she picked up Scruffy, and to his happiness, plopped him onto her lap and began scratching his ears thoughtfully. "The dog? You want me to use Scruffy as a 'beard'? Seems unfair to make him be the scapegoat for my deserting my family AND my work, when you're the one who wants us to have a, what did you say, 'quiet walk'?"
Smiling, he nodded toward the curly haired dog, "So Scruffy, what do you say? How about a walk?" Shooting out of Carolyn's lap, the dog scrambled down the stairs, and they heard him barking and dancing happily at the front door.
"That's dirty pool," Carolyn growled, with a twinkle in her eye. "Come now Madam, you don't have the heart to disappoint someone who is so excited just to be with you, do you?" Standing, she walked to the closet, and pulled out her jacket, "And is that Scruffy or you?" she said as she slipped quickly out the door and down the stairs.
"Rather both, I should think," the Captain laughed, delighted to have gotten her entire attention. He paused at the window, watching Scruffy fly into the front seat of the car, and waving as Carolyn gave him a departing smile as she started up the road to their favorite private retreat.
As she disappeared from view, he heard Martha and the children gathering in the parlor. "How in the world do you expect to start a fire that way," Martha scolded. "I don't think we can," Jonathan offered, "you know the chimney is broken. We haven't had a fire in a long, long time!" "We wouldn't ask if it weren't kinda cold," Candi offered, "you think Claymore could get it to work?"
Sighing, Martha picked up the phone, "Asking Claymore for help is always a risk, but let's give it a try, shall we?" Before he had to face his ersatz nephew again, the Captain disappeared, to wait at Pillar Point, for what surely would be a most rewarding morning.