After a few weeks of working on several complex murders, Dr. Hobson got to remove her gloves and scrubs and stay in civilian, non-medical apparel for a few consecutive days, by choice. She needed a break mentally and physically from bones and the morbid quality of her work. Laura wanted Robbie to take off with her, but he could not. The burdens of leadership, yet he thrived in the role. Laura was proud of Robbie and his role as Acting Chief Superintendent.
Laura had spent a life time pursing her own interests and was comfortable being on her own. Then she and Robbie became a couple, moved in and shared a life together. Now Laura missed him when he was not there, with her.
Laura enjoyed watching Robbie work. The affable DI, everyone's friend; but you would not want to be interrogated by the man. She knew, she'd been on the receiving end of his questioning, and DI Lewis was good. Robbie was clever, fun and a gentleman. They enjoyed working together, most of the time.
But now Laura got to bring home Robbie, too. They shared meals, gardening, a bed and, on occasion, a canoe ride. Yet, she still did not tire of his company. He was interesting, witty and a deeper thinker than Morse or most others gave him credit for. She knew it. James and Lizzie knew it as did Innocent. Robbie was interesting and fun, willing to try new things. Would she characterize Robbie as adventurous? Perhaps, it depended on the setting and the people involved.
If you wanted adventurous, James was the person to look at. First the ministry and then on to police work with a music career on the side. Plus that walking trip he had taken to and from Spain. Laura had hoped he would have made that into a YouTube video, but with him being in law enforcement that was deemed to not be a particularly wise thing to do.
James had pretty much grown out of his stoic period and got on better with others and the concept of "adulting" better than he had previously. Robbie had been a big help to him in those aspects of developing James' sense of self and his confidence.
In thinking about James and Robbie in such introspective ways, Laura realized she was bored and needed something to do. She wanted something fresh and different – not extreme sports, extreme gardening or extreme tattooing, just something different, interesting and positive.
Laura remembered that Robbie had mentioned something about James' sister Nell wanted to start a business of some kind, but that she was not getting much encouragement from her brother James. Laura had Nell's phone number, so she decided to call her up and find out what Nell had in mind doing. Laura felt that she could at least be a sounding board for Nell and give her some encouragement. Maybe she could even help her out. Maybe.