A/N: This is a piece I wrote especially for fuzzydream's birthday in August - not only is she a fellow writer, she is my fellow fangirl and we spend many an hour squee-ing over potential A/B headcanons. Modern!AU, and there's a chance you'll recognise it from a certain universe...

Sadly, I don't own Downton Abbey, in the 1920s or otherwise.

Saturday Night, Sunday Morning

It had happened again.

They had made plans to go out this night – or rather, Anna had made plans for them. The restaurant was booked over a week ago, the tickets for the show surprisingly good considering they'd been on sale for a while. Robert and Cora would leave their doors open just for friends to have a late drink or two. In her head it was entirely mapped out, and she was rather pleased that there had been no hitches.

Of course, that was until John had showed up early at hers. It was his fault entirely. Though she supposed she could have tried a little bit harder to resist his hands upon her waist and his lips leaving a path of kisses from her mouth down to her collarbone. He had looked up into her eyes with a glint in his own before he unfurled the white towel from where it was wrapped around her body, and from then all she could remember was the tightening that increased in her stomach the longer his fingers stroked against her skin and sheer, absolute bliss.

She sighed against the pillow that was cast at an errant angle, her body still recovering from being brought to the pinnacle of pleasure more than once. It was a surprise she had just about been able to make sense of; she hadn't been capable of that before, but John was nothing if not wholly attentive to her every need and desire. Lying next to her, he looked relaxed and worn out and more than a little bit pleased with himself. Anna somehow found the energy to bring her hand to his face, tracing her fingertips at his jaw and feeling the new growth of stubble that was waiting to emerge from beneath.

"John Bates," she breathed heavily, "you do realise how much money I've wasted on tonight?"

Smirking, he gently took hold of her wrist and kissed each of the pads of her fingers in turn.

"I think you might agree that there are some things that money can't buy."

Even with the start of a smile pulling at the corners of her lips, she was determined to try and argue. However as soon as his mouth began to move along her arm any threads of argument she was formulating vanished. Her yelp echoed upon the walls of the bedroom as his tongue caressed the fine creases at the inside of her elbow. His chuckle was warm as it petered out against her skin.

She knew she couldn't possibly stay annoyed with those eyes, and certainly not with his tender touch as it travelled over the curve of her thigh. Leaning in, she tilted his head towards hers and sucked briefly upon his bottom lip before capturing them both in a kiss both sweet and passionate. John's fingers tangled carefully in her hair, and he let out a little huff as Anna pulled away, their kisses still lingering in the space between them.

"I am being serious, though," she said as her head landed back upon the pillow, one hand remaining entwined with his. "We can't keep doing this, as nice as it is…"

"Nice?" he turned with a slightly stunned expression on his face. "I was hoping for a better adjective than that."

Anna giggled, squeezing her fingers tighter in the spaces against his.

"After that, I think you've left my vocabulary rather wanting," she purred, before setting her face a bit straighter. "We should make time to actually leave the house though. People are going to get ideas when we don't meet them after we said we would."

John sat up suddenly, causing Anna to follow suit. His chest was more exposed to her now, and she couldn't help but stare at the dark hair that was spread across it, feeling her knees weaken even in this position.

"Let them talk," he exclaimed, and Anna was pleasantly surprised by how bold and carefree he was. A smile burst on his face as he tucked some of her hair over her shoulder, his flow stopped for a moment or two as he appreciated her silken locks. "If anything, it'd be stranger the other way round. Why should I be social when I have you?"

She smiled at that, not denying that it felt more than good to have a man who lavished so much of his attention upon her. John had confessed that he was completely smitten with her, and through the blushes that rose to her head she knew that she felt the same way about him. She might not have had a great deal of experience, but you didn't need experience to know when you had fallen so much in love with someone.

"Next week, then," she vowed, stroking her hand at the back of his neck. "You've got to promise you'll make the effort."

"Saturday nights haven't been my scene for a good while," he whined a little. "I was perfectly happy with a good book, then Match of the Day. Before you, that is."

"Well, I wasn't exactly a party animal myself," Anna replied. "But I wasn't a hermit either. I know Gwen wonders when I make excuses about not showing up for something."

He looked at her with eyes that held a touch of hurt. "I'm not stopping you."

"I know you're not, silly beggar." She kissed him again, her fingers sinking into his hair. "And believe me, I know that for every second I was somewhere else, I'd be wishing I could have spent the time with you instead."

That made him happier, and Anna felt his smile in the pit of her stomach. He never smiled like that for anyone else but her, and nothing in her life had made her prouder.

"You know, I remember reading a line in a book not that long ago," John stretched out across the sheets, slipping an arm around Anna's waist as she snuggled in closer to his side, the heat of their skin meeting. " 'Lust is Saturday night, love is Sunday morning'."

Anna pondered the quote for a while, drifting her hand over the hair on his chest before letting it settle upon his stomach. "Well, I'd better hope you don't leave me stranded when I wake up tomorrow."

He rolled onto his side, cupping the side of her face with his large palm. She loved the feeling of feeling lost against his touch, safe and completely sound.

"Never," he uttered softly but sincerely. "If heaven and earth only knew how much I love you, Anna Smith."

"As long as I know, that's enough for me," she smiled wide, eyes fluttering shut in anticipation of his lips upon hers again. She didn't have to wait very long, yielding to let him take the kiss deeper.

In a swift move, he shifted so that he was above her, and Anna giggled as she looked up at him, tracing the flickering flames of desire in his hazel – or were they green instead? – irises.

"But first," he growled between planting kisses upon certain patches of her skin, "there's some more of Saturday that we still need to take care of."

John heaved a lengthy sigh, finally admitting defeat and opening his eyes after trying to hold onto fitful remnants of sleep for the last hour or so. He turned in the bed cautiously, not wanting to wake Anna who was dozing soundly at his side. Several years on and he still found himself utterly amazed that he was able to spend every morning and night like this with her, the most beautiful woman that existed. Such a simplicity, but something he treasured above many other things in life. There was a faint mark from where she must have burrowed herself against the pillow during the night visible on the cheek that was facing upwards, and he resisted the urge to lay a couple of kisses on the softness of her skin. Wiping the sleep from his eyes he wore what he was quite sure was a daft grin upon his face, regarding his wife with rapt fascination.

Her eyelids blinked open as petals blossoming on a flower and she made the sweetest sleepy murmuring sounds he had ever heard, gaping a yawn that didn't make her any less gorgeous.

"Good morning, Mrs Bates."

"Morning," she replied, her voice raspy as it was still coated with sleep.

John dipped his head down as she nudged hers off the pillow slightly, closing her eyes half in anticipation of their kiss and half in hope of a little more slumber.

The sweetness remained savoured on his lips as he lay back down next to her, combing her hair with his fingers as they settled in a spooning position. John smiled to himself, more than content to rest in this way but also as he took notice of the atmosphere in the house.

"Do you hear that?" he whispered in Anna's ear, leaving a small kiss upon her neck which made her wriggle against him.

"What?"

"Precisely," he uttered lazily, revelling in the silence that still reigned, other than the regulated sounds of their breathing. With three children, it was something of a phenomenon that they hadn't risen and started competing loudly for their parents' attention. Although he would never swap their darlings for the world, John was keen to make the most of the precious peace and quiet that remained.

Anna shifted again, curling her body and settling so she was face to face with her husband.

"They must still be tired from George's party last night," she reasoned, sounding much more alive now. "The twins will probably nap until lunch, at least."

"I'll check on them in a bit, but for now, my love, I think we should use this to our advantage." John chuckled as he noticed Anna raising an eyebrow at him from where she lay, blinking when he kissed the tip of her nose. "I might finally be able to make that Sunday morning breakfast in bed I've been promising you for an age."

"Mmm, that'd be nice," Anna smiled, stretching her arms a little as she slowly sat up.

There was something about her smiles first thing of a day that he loved even more, full of promise that they'd only get more enchanting as the day went on. And now he noticed a certain look in her eyes, one that he hadn't quite been expecting but wasn't going to complain about. He had wondered for a few moments whether he'd simply been dreaming, but the way she had started to play with the hair at the nape of his neck and then when she kissed him full and with an intensity that made his blood surge in his veins, he was left in no doubt.

"But, Mr Bates, I think I'd prefer it if you stayed exactly where you are."

Her fingers had dipped to outline the v-neck of his top, dancing upon the hair that poked free. John thrilled at the way her eyes had lit up, and then his gaze was drawn to the perfect arch of her lips.

"Is that so, Mrs Bates?" She was teething her bottom lip as she nodded her head, and he didn't know how much more he could take. "Well, I'd certainly hate to disappoint."

Her giggles landed upon him as he drew her closer with one hand on the back of her head, the other seeking out her hip underneath the covers and finding she had already hiked up her nightgown as his fingertips sought bare skin. The happy surprise made the kiss deepen almost on instant, and hearing her moan into his mouth caused shivers to prickle all over him.

Tender caress followed sweet stroke upon each other's lips, John was just about to settle Anna down upon the mattress when the door to their bedroom creaked upon its hinges.

"John," she murmured in a second when their mouths weren't connected.

"Hmmm?"

They jumped apart when a little figure bounced herself on the bed.

"Mummy, Daddy, wakey wakey!" Immie let out a shriek that made both of her parents wince as she continued to bounce on her knees, her blonde hair floating around her shoulders.

Anna scrabbled from beneath John as he lay upon his side, pulling the covers up over both of them to protect their modesty.

"Isn't it a bit early for you, poppet?" John smirked at Anna when he noticed that half past eight wasn't early for their daughter at all.

"No, Daddy," she replied brightly, clambering on top of him with a force it wouldn't have been expected could come from a six year old. "Can we go to the zoo today? You promised that if it wasn't raining that we could go, and I checked and it's really sunny."

She smiled widely, revealing the gap where she had lost a tooth only days ago.

"Well, we'll have to wait for your brother and sister to wake up," he answered, before realising he could hear a few more sounds.

"I already woke them up!" Immie exclaimed proudly, completely innocent to the chaos she might have caused.

John groaned lowly, casting a look at Anna before he heaved himself out of bed to go and check on the twins. He only hoped that they wouldn't be too cranky, knowing that it was poor Anna who would have her work cut out trying to placate them both. It was to his great surprise that he didn't have to make it very far, as both babies had crawled into their room. Immediately his heart swelled to see the curious smiles of the twins, who made them both proud and rather worried with the speed at which they were learning.

"Look at you two," he uttered, lifting Phoebe first and kissing her chubby little cheek before he placed her onto the bed, then doing the very same with Daniel.

John let out a chortle as both of them clambered their way over to where Anna was sitting up, hands and legs patting enthusiastically against the bed. They were enamoured with their mother, just the same as he was, falling more in love with her every day. Immie was grinning at her baby brother and sister, being ever so gentle as she stroked her finger against Daniel's cheek.

"Hello, my little loves," Anna cooed, settling Phoebe in the crook of her arm so that she could caress Daniel's dark hair at the same time, giving them both the attention they craved. While Phoebe gazed up at her mother, Daniel was happy to be taken by his father instead and began to giggle happily as John tickled and grabbed at his tiny feet. Immie joined in with the laughter, scrabbling to take her place in the middle of her parents' bed.

Anna and John locked their gazes in silent wonder at the scene that had been created, the three perfect examples of their love with them, all remarkably peaceful but completely content. John's hand reached to smooth the mop of dark hair that matched her brother's on Phoebe's head before he bent to kiss his wife chastely, hearing his youngest children gurgle with delight as he did so.

The five of them spent a long and perfect Sunday morning snuggled in the same bed, a good job that it was big enough to fit them all.

There was not the slightest doubt in both of their minds; Sunday was their favourite day of their week, as it was what love truly meant.