A/N: This was inspired by a minor detail in another story of mine and I just couldn't get the idea out of my head. So, enjoy!
Isidore Levinson was sitting at the head of the breakfast table at his home in New York. Snow had begun falling early that morning, so the fires were stoked with extra wood and were crackling more boisterously than usual in the background of all the morning activity throughout the house. Usually, Isidore enjoyed a quiet breakfast alone before heading into his office to sort through the mountains of paperwork that were ever-present on his desk. Martha was always fast asleep well into the morning hours, and ever since Cora had married last winter he had been the lone Levinson left at the table each morning. But this morning was a bit different; this morning in early January, he had a new breakfast companion—Robert Crawley, Viscount Downton, his son-in-law of just over a year.
His daughter had arrived yesterday evening for a visit with the young man in tow, and he had been nearly silent since his appearance on their doorstep, standing uncertainly behind Cora. He liked the young man, he did, but that did not change the fact that he had brought about the relocation of his daughter—his much beloved only child—to the other side of an ocean. And he was just so quiet; not like the men Isidore was used to entertaining over raucous dinners and wild parties each weekend. Looking over at the boy who was staring down at his breakfast plate rather intently, he was about to attempt some conversation when Cora strolled into the room with a smile and sat down next to her husband.
"Cora, my dear! You're a sight for sore eyes. What are you doing up?" He smiled widely at his lovely daughter; though he was slightly put off by the amorous expression he noticed her husband was gazing at her with.
"Well I couldn't have you scaring Robert away before lunchtime, Father!" Cora giggled and glanced at her husband, who had been unusually quiet since their arrival the night before.
He gave her a small smile and tried to reach for her hand under the table without her father noticing. Robert may have been heir apparent to an earldom, he may have been well educated and well spoken, and he may have been a grown man, but he was quite intimidated by Cora's father. The man was a rather imposing figure, Robert thought. He hadn't spent much time with him last year before the wedding so he didn't notice then, but now that he and Cora had since grown so much closer, he suddenly—irrationally—feared that her father knew Robert was slipping into bed with his only daughter each night. He felt the older man's eyes on him the night before when Cora's parents had showed them to their rooms: two rooms next to each other, which coincidentally did not have an interior door connecting them. It was as if her father was daring Robert to even try to sneak out of his room and over to Cora's. Cora had caught him alone in the hallway after dinner and pleaded with him to just come to her room but he had refused—insisting they abide by her parent's rules. Robert would have liked nothing more than sneaking into Cora's room, but he was convinced the second he stepped out into the hallway, some sort of alarm would go off and her father would come out and likely kill him right on the spot. Instead, he had spent a miserable night alone in a cold foreign room staring at the ceiling and wishing they were back at home in their nice, private bedroom. He snapped back to attention at the sound of his father-in-law's voice across the breakfast table.
"Ha! Nonsense Cora, I'd never scare him off."
"Oh, sure you wouldn't," Cora replied with a skeptical glance.
"Oh, come now. I'm not so bad," He smiled at his daughter once more before clearing his throat and directing his attention to his still silent son-in-law.
"So, Robbie my boy, how do you like New York so far? Quite a city, no?"
Cora stifled a giggle and turned to see her sweet husband looking up with a bewildered expression, clearly afraid to give the wrong answer. He paused for a moment before plastering a faint smile on his face and offering a tentative answer.
"It's very…uh, large."
"You bet it is! They don't make 'em like this in England." Isidore let out a loud guffaw as he stood up and began walking out of the room. He stopped at Robert's chair and clapped him enthusiastically on the shoulder.
"Cora you'll have to take him downtown while you're here; nothing like the bustle of downtown to keep you busy and get you energized."
"Yes, maybe later." Cora murmured as she watched her father walk out in the direction of his office. Unless she removed the second 'w' from downtown, she knew Robert wouldn't want to go anywhere near it. They were much safer in the house, uptown on Fifth Avenue that vaguely resembled the homes in London; that is, if a home in London were decorated in ornate gold tones and had one too many flashy pieces of art on the walls. She may have gotten Robert to agree to the trip, and he may not have complained, but if she brought him downtown he'd probably hop a boat right there in the harbor and head back to Downton.
The sound of her father's office door closing could be heard in the dining room, and as soon as it clicked shut Robert squeezed her hand and turned to face her with a grin.
"…Robbie?" He asked, unable to contain a chuckle.
Cora gave him an apologetic smile and leaned over to kiss his cheek. "I think that means he likes you!" She said brightly.
"Why don't I believe you?" He asked sarcastically. Cora only grinned in response, and he couldn't resist leaning in to kiss her softly on the lips. She sighed and enjoyed the kiss for a moment before leaning into his ear to whisper: "I missed you ever so much last night."
"Oh, did you?" Just as he was about to kiss her again though, they heard a noise coming from the doorway behind them.
"Ahem." It was Cora's father, standing behind them, clearing his throat and glaring at him. Robert leapt up out of his chair, red-faced and stuttering an explanation. His father-in-law only frowned and walked back over to the table.
"Forgot my newspaper…" he said, picking up the paper, glancing at his daughter, and walking out without another word.
Robert sank back into his chair and looked at his wife. "Lord, Cora. I don't think I am going to survive this trip."
"Good lord, Martha. I don't think I'm going to survive this visit."
Isidore sank into a chair in the corner of the sitting room and looked up at his wife's amused expression. He had just finished telling her what he had witnessed after breakfast, and she had only laughed and told him perhaps he should knock next time before entering!
"Oh, leave them alone dear. Don't you want Cora happy?"
"Happy, yes. But…well, I don't want that Englishman thinking he can take advantage of her!"
"You have quite a flair for the dramatic, dear. I highly doubt Cora felt taken advantage of. Have you noticed how she looks at the boy? He's all she talks about."
Isidore frowned at his wife and took a long sip of the drink she had poured for him before responding. "Well you're no help."
"Our daughter is happy. Please don't get in the way of that."
"…Fine," he grumbled, taking another sip.
"And need I remind you whose idea it was to take Cora to London in the first place?"
"Oh, here we go again. Forget it, forget I mentioned anything. I have work to do."
Martha rolled her eyes at her sulking husband and kissed his cheek before wandering out of the room. "Choose your battles, dear." She had called over her shoulder, "I let you put them in separate rooms, now at least give them a bit of peace during daylight hours!"
Later that evening after a quiet dinner, Cora and her mother had retired to the sitting room to chat and Robert had been led into her father's office to have a cigar. He had walked the length of the hallway to the office at the end of the hall with much trepidation. He felt as though he was walking toward the guillotine, and there was absolutely no way out. He was convinced Cora's father was going to bring up the scene he had happened upon earlier that morning, and Robert had spent the afternoon trying to come up with a plausible excuse. His creative streak was not exactly in working order though, and he had failed to come up with anything even fairly believable. When he closed the office door behind him, he was sure he was going to pass out.
Much to his bewilderment, his father-in-law had only offered him a cigar and began chatting about the new business he had invested in. They chatted politely for a long while about the current business markets in America and England, and he inquired about Downton and Robert's family. After several minutes Robert relaxed into the large leather chair and found he actually enjoyed chatting with Cora's father.
There were many places Isidore would have rather been, than where he actually was, in his office with Robert Crawley. He had begrudgingly agreed to have a cigar with him after Martha had threatened to have him sleep on the sofa in their room if he didn't act more hospitably to their son-in-law. After talking with the young man for nearly an hour, he actually found himself enjoying the conversation. The boy was well spoken, and well versed in the current business affairs of both England and America. Perhaps he wasn't so bad after all. If he did make his little girl happy, perhaps he could get used to his presence. He absolutely could not sleep in Cora's room though, absolutely not. The conversation gradually slowed, and Isidore finally excused himself for the evening, leaving Robert to finish his drink.
At the other end of the hallway, Cora and her mother had been chatting as well. After filling Cora in on all the current New York society gossip, and grilling her for details about her husband and his family—especially that mother of his—they had relaxed in front of the fire for a while, sipping their drinks. Martha had been the first to break the comfortable silence in the room with a tentative question she had wanted to ask ever since Cora had arrived the day before.
"You're happy, aren't you Darling?" She looked over at her lovely daughter, who had never looked more beautiful or content, and hoped she would get the answer she so wanted—not only for her sake, but for Cora's as well.
Without hesitation, Cora smiled, and confirmed what Martha already suspected. "Yes, I'm happy Mamma. I love him, you know…" she added quietly, blushing slightly, having never said it out loud to anyone but Robert; and even that had been a somewhat recent development in their relationship. She liked the sound of it, and made a mental note to saw it aloud more frequently.
"Oh, my darling. That makes me so happy," Martha answered. All she had wanted was for her daughter to be happy. Though she had spent much of the last year wondering if she had ruined Cora's life by leaving her to fend for herself in a society that couldn't possibly appreciate the daughter she had raised, she immediately felt the weight lifted when she knew Cora really did love him. Content, they both relaxed and watched the crackling fire flicker about in the fireplace. Once her second glass of brandy had been drained, Martha stood with a yawn and said goodnight, leaving Cora who wanted to stay and watch the fire for a few more minutes. She wasn't quite tired yet, and if she wasn't going to find Robert in her room that night either, she really had no desire to go up just yet.
Cora stood as the fire began to die down, left her empty glass on the table, and wandered out into the hallway to head upstairs. Just as she began walking, she heard a door click open behind her, and she looked down the dimly lit hallway to see her husband leaving her father's office—alone.
"Robert, what are you still doing down here?" She whispered as she walked toward him, and they met midway down the hall.
"I was on my way to bed," he whispered back, smiling at his wife. He leaned in slightly so he wouldn't have to raise his voice, and he caught a faint trace of the lavender perfume she always wore. It was absolutely intoxicating, and he suddenly had trouble forming another coherent sentence, as Cora gazed up at him.
"Did my father go up yet?"
"He did, several minutes ago."
"Are you tired?" She asked.
"Well, it has been a long day…"
"Pity," she murmured, looking up at his handsome face again. "I'm not at all tired." He didn't have a chance to respond before she had looped her hands around him and leaned up to kiss him.
He knew it was wrong, of course it was wrong. They were at her parent's house, in the hallway no less, and it was certainly not an appropriate location for an amorous encounter. But when Cora pressed herself more deliberately against him and kissed his neck, he had trouble remembering all the reasons why it was such a bad idea. They were alone, everyone was in bed, and they were married for god's sake! What could be the harm…?
He tossed out the last semblance of propriety he had and pressed Cora up against the wall to steady them a bit. She smiled flirtatiously at him as she helped him remove his dinner jacket and began untying his tie and undoing the tiny shirt buttons that trailed down his chest. When she undid the last button he kissed her again, with more passion than he had allowed in the last twenty-four hours, and moaned as he felt her reaching for the clasp on his pants.
"Wait…" he whispered, and pulled back slightly, "We're not quite evenly matched, here." And with that, he began undoing the small hooks going down the back of Cora's dress. She bit her lip and groaned as he undid the last hook and his hands finally met bare skin. She arched her back and felt herself being pulled even tighter into his embrace. With the hooks of her dress free, she easily shrugged out of the arms of her gown so it floated halfway down her body, only the skirt still up. The bright while lace of her petticoat seemed to almost shine in the darkness of the hallway and she could feel Robert reaching for the straps of that as well, as he kissed his way down her neck. They were so caught up in the present circumstance that they never heard the light sound of the maid's footsteps, coming to make sure the fire was out in the sitting room. She happened upon the young couple just as Cora was reaching down again to unfasten the button on Robert's pants.
The young woman was never expecting to happen upon Miss Cora and her new husband in the dark hallway of the downstairs of the house, half-clothed no less, and so she screamed in surprise and dropped her candle, splattering wax all over the rug Martha had just had imported from France. Cora shrieked and simultaneously covered her mouth to try and prevent anyone else from coming to investigate. Robert had backed away and was furiously trying to do up all his buttons as the maid profusely apologized and began trying to wipe up the mess she had made on the floor. Cora, not realizing her dress was half off, stood still backed against the wall, wide eyed for a brief moment, not sure what to do next.
Unfortunately, she didn't have time to ask Robert to help her, or even move out of the hallway, because seconds later her father came rushing down the hallway.
"What on earth is the commotion I heard all the way from the kitchen—" he stopped short as he looked up from the mess on the floor and realized the young maid was not alone. Mouth agape, he stood frozen in the middle of the hallway, and didn't even realize he dropped the cookie he had walked all the way to the kitchen for.
"Father, what are you doing down here?" Cora cried, while attempting to cover herself, rather unsuccessfully.
"What am I doing…" he paused, and looked at his son-in-law, and his gaze fell down slightly to his undone shirt buttons and open pant clasp. "What are YOU doing? He shouted, eyes wide, blood boiling.
Cora only stuttered in response, and looked over at Robert, who gallantly stepped out from the side of the hallway to meet his fate. He took one last look at his wife before breathing in deeply and looking her father in the eye.
"I apologize sir, we…well, clearly we, no I…clearly I have behaved incredibly inappropriately." He stepped forward slightly to position himself in front of Cora, who was still struggling with her dress. He at least wanted to shield her from her father's view.
Isidore held his hand up to silence his son-in-law. He respected the boy for taking the blame, but this was all just far too much for one day. God, Cora, his Cora wasn't a little girl anymore; clearly, she was far more grown up than she had been when she boarded a boat for London the year before. And with a downcast look at the two of them standing in front of him, it finally dawned on him—Cora wasn't just his Cora anymore.
"We can talk in the morning," he finally grumbled before turning around and trudging upstairs, wishing so very much it had all been just a disturbing dream, and the two of them were actually fast asleep in their separate bedrooms and beds.
Wordlessly, Cora took Robert's hand and led him upstairs a moment later; once they were sure they wouldn't run into her father in the upstairs hall. He looked rather shell-shocked and allowed her to guide him through the dark house back up to their rooms. Though he would never admit it, Robert was terrified that once he stepped inside his bedroom his father-in-law would be waiting there with some sort of powerful weapon. When they reached their doors, Cora held onto his arm and stopped him from walking into his bedroom.
"Don't even think about leaving me alone after that." She whispered.
Robert was in no shape to fight her, so he nodded and followed her into her room, making sure to lock the door behind him. He didn't dare try anything else that night, but it was quite soothing to hold Cora in his arms as they fell asleep, both wondering what would await them the next morning.
When Isidore walked into the dining room the next morning for breakfast, he was surprised to see his daughter and son-in-law already dressed and sitting at the table—looking quite nervous as they both stared down at their plates. He said nothing, and simply opened the newspaper and tried to ignore their presence, knowing it was only making them even more uncomfortable and nervous.
"Was Mamma very angry?" Cora finally asked, unable to sit in silence after several tense minutes had passed. She watched as her father let out a long sigh and folded the paper, putting it beside him as he eyed the young couple.
"Your mother is unaware of what actually happens in her hallways after dark; and it will remain that way since the three of us will never speak a word about last night after this. Understood?"
They both nodded in agreement and watched as Isidore unfolded his paper and went back to reading, as though nothing had changed. A few minutes later one of the maids came in and told Cora her mother had just woken and was asking to see her. Cora stood to leave, but paused and went over to her father and kissed him on the cheek. "Thank you," she whispered before following the maid out, leaving her father and Robert alone in the dining room.
As soon as Cora left the room, Isidore put his paper down again and looked at Robert. Before Robert could apologize though, he stopped him.
"I only want my daughter to be happy, Robert."
"Of course, as do I," he responded quietly.
"You make her happy."
"I hope I do. I want to, always."
"Alright then." Isidore nodded at him, the unspoken agreement clear. Robert would take care of his daughter, the child in whom he had placed all his dreams, love and pride in, and in return, he would not cause Robert any bodily harm.
The men sat in silence, eating their breakfast. Robert stood up once he had finished and was about to head back upstairs when he heard his father-in-law call him back.
"And Robert, just so we are clear, if you ever hurt my daughter, I will have you torn apart by wild dogs."