Mattie leaned back against Bodie, his arms around her as they sat on the bank of the Thames watching boats rowed by men in scarlet. Whenever they came to a swan, the boats surrounded it, lifted it out of the water, and took it to shore. She watched, fascinated, as the swan was carefully examined and then released. "And you tell me they do this every year?"
"Every year for hundreds of years." Bodie pointed to a group of cygnets following the parent swans. "They check all the swans on this stretch of the river."
"What are the rings on their legs for?"
"To show who they belong to. The unmarked birds all belong to the Queen."
Mattie shook her head. "I never thought of anyone owning swans."
"It's mostly for conservation." Bodie nuzzled her neck. "Did you know swans mate for life?"
She turned in his arms, but before he could kiss her, they were interrupted by Doyle. "I thought you'd be here."
Bodie scrambled to his feet. "What are you doing here?"
"Mattie and I have a dinner date."
She stood up, her eyes sparkling as if she were suppressing laughter. "Not until seven."
"I thought you were going to spend the day with me!" Bodie looked aggrieved.
Mattie smiled at Bodie. "Only until five." She turned to Doyle. "I wasn't expecting to see you until tonight."
"You know he brings whoever he's dating here?" Doyle waved at the swans. "Has he mentioned yet that swans mate for life?"
Bodie took a step towards Doyle and spoke in a low grating voice. "I suppose you think Dulwich Picture Gallery is better." He looked at Mattie. "He takes his dates there because he thinks it shows how sensitive he is, but he never talks about how Van Gogh cut off his ear or Gauguin deserted his wife and children."
Now Mattie did burst out laughing. "If it's all the same to you two, I think I'll go home now. Ray, you know you should have waited until seven, so now you can wait to take me out until tomorrow night. Bodie, I'll see you for lunch tomorrow." She gave them each a kiss on the cheek and strolled off, sitting down to look at the swans when she was about a hundred feet away.
