A/N: Yes, I'm breaking my own rules for the Mistletoe Challenge by posting this second chapter for 'Christmas Ringtones' but the story was just clamoring for Elsie's view of the relationship. I hope ya'll enjoy it.

Disclaimer: I don't own them and I don't receive any monetary gain from writing about them. I'm just glad that I get to play with them once in awhile and I promise to return them to ITV and Mr. Fellowes in time for the Christmas Special! ;-)

CHRISTMAS RINGTONES

Chapter 2 - What are You Doing New Year's Eve? by Harry Connick Jr.

Elsie stretched and pulled on the flannel pyjamas that he had given her for Valentine's Day earlier in the year. She smiled to herself as she thought about him going into Victoria's Secret by himself. She could just imagine the young and pretty salesgirls flocking around him, assuming that he was there to shop for a much younger girlfriend and ready to spend his money on anything they suggested. The one thing she knew that they didn't was that he would have arrived having done his homework.

She had taken to wearing his flannel pyjamas when she stayed with him and he had two complaints about that. First, that his pyjamas were becoming permanently creased at the ankles and wrists due to the fact that she had to roll them up so far in order to keep from tripping in them. Second, that he could never find her in them because there was so much extra material. He liked being able to touch her and feel her body under his hands.

When she opened the box on Valentine's Day to find the red flannel pyjamas covered in hearts nestled in the decidedly pink VS tissue paper, she was not surprised in the least. They were a perfect fit and it didn't take long to notice that his hands would find their way to her bottom to caress and hold her close whenever she wore them.

She walked over to his computer and clicked on the Pandora icon to start the Christmas music playing in the background. Harry Connick, Jr. was singing 'What Are You Doing New Year's Eve' as she padded over to the breakfast bar and hoisted herself up onto one of the tall bar stools so she could watch him preparing breakfast.

He prepared simple dishes but always with the freshest ingredients and the highest standards. He would lay out his utensils to have them at the ready and he would get the sexiest little frown on his face when he was working with knives and concentrating on chopping ingredients. He tried to teach her to cook on more than several occasions but she didn't have the patience to learn all the cuts and stirs and ways of preparing things…and she still couldn't boil water to save her soul. But Charles was patient and kind and she had learned to slow down and enjoy good food and good wine with him. For her part, she would clean the kitchen and load the dishwasher, usually while he lit the fire and turned the music on so they could snuggle on the sofa in the evenings.

He turned to look at her and caught the ghost of a smile on her face. "Something amusing?" he asked as he turned his attention back to stirring the scrambled eggs.

"Just admiring the view," she said checking out his bare shoulders and the way his Dockers hung from his hips and hugged his bum. "Should you be in the kitchen without a shirt on?"

"You just said that you were admiring the view," he exclaimed reaching for a plate to put the eggs on.

"I wouldn't want you to mar that beautiful chest," she teased him.

"I'll be careful," he snorted and placed the eggs in the oven to keep warm while he finished the toast and poured the coffee.

She still had no idea what it was that he saw in a corporate power maven such as herself. He of the wry wit and the impeccable taste…his attention to detail was one of the traits that she so loved about him. He always did his homework and knew the small details whether it was contract work or finding out that she liked chocolate covered strawberries for her birthday.

-o O o-

Since they'd come together as a couple, they had also become a bit of a tag-team at work. Rather than stay late at the office on Fridays as they had done individually in the past, they would pack up their contracts and pending paperwork and spend a few hours on Saturday morning tying up loose ends for the next week. They would rise early, even having spent most of the night before making love, and she would make the tea while he scrambled the eggs. After breakfast, she would wash while he dried and then he would sit at his desk while she spread out on his sofa.

The first time it happened, she'd taken to pacing the floor and muttering under her breath as she read through the contract submitted by Strallin, Inc. After the third time that she passed his desk, he reached out and took hold of her hand.

"What's the matter?" he asked looking up at her from his deskchair.

"There's something wrong with this contract but I can't quite put my finger on it," she said in exasperation.

"Let's have a look at it, love," he reached out and took the contract from her.

"Here's the problem," he said after spending a few minutes reviewing the contract language. "They've modified the boilerplate."

"What?" she asked with a puzzled frown on her face.

"Right here, by changing the language in this standard clause, they've effectively transferred all risk for non-payment by the vendor back to Izzie and Violet's Boutique. Oh-ho!" he exclaimed suddenly. "You've also got to get this one changed otherwise, Izzie's is responsible to make all payments with no fee schedule or repayment plans required of Strallin."

"Charles," she said coyly running her hand behind his neck and her finger around the outside of his ear. "Would you mind taking a look at the rest of the contract language?"

An hour later, she was beginning to regret having asked the favor when his full attention was buried in the paperwork. When all was said and done, he'd found five more modifications that were not in her client's best interests and she never again scoffed at his getting lost in the minutiae. Soon he was reviewing all of her contracts. In return, she found ways to stop by and observe his clients through the glass walls of the main conference room. She would then send him texts regarding personality, body language and eye contact that he could use to his advantage during negotiations.

It was his idea to approach their clients about working together as a team. He would do the leg work and the paperwork while she handled the personalities and the negotiations. Within six months they had closed mega-deals for three of their top five clients and had lured two more major clients away from Carlisle and Sons, their top competitor. It was a match made in heaven both at the office and at home.

-o O o-

"Huevos Rancheros, my dear," he said as he set her plate before her with a flourish.

He set several small dishes of salsa, grated cheese and sour cream up on the breakfast bar and then came to sit on the bar stool next to her. As he passed beside her stool, she reached out and ran her hand up his arm. He turned towards her and she stood up on the bottom rung of her bar stool which placed her at eye level with him. She slid her arms around his neck and pulled him closer so that she could kiss him and his hands slid around to caress her bottom as she knew they would.

"Mmmm…what was that for?" he asked as she hugged him close and drank in his scent, spiced sandalwood with a hint of muskiness from their lovemaking earlier this morning.

"Just for being you," she said happily kissing him on the nose as she sat back down on her stool.

"I'll try to be me more often if that's the reward that I get," he replied with a smile as they both picked up their forks and began to eat.

They ate in a companionable silence for awhile. Elsie looked down at the ring on her finger, not at all surprised that he had picked out something so perfect for her.

"When are we going over to Thomas' to pick up my things?" she asked, thinking about the gift that she'd gotten for him.

"I thought we might go up and have a shower first, love," he said seductively as he ran his hand under her pyjama top and massaged her lower back for a moment. "I thought we might head over there around three o'clock and we can stop by Luigi's on the way home."

"Luigi's?" she said quirking an eyebrow at him.

"When he heard that you would be staying over in Glasgow, he invited me to have Christmas dinner with his family. But when I told him that I was planning to spend the evening on a Skype video-call with the woman of my dreams, he insisted that I should stop by the restaurant around five o'clock and he would have dinner and dessert boxed up and ready to go so that I could be home in time for your call."

"That was sweet of him," she said as she hopped down and started to clear away the dishes.

DING-DONG – The doorbell rang through the house.

"Who the bloody hell could that be on Christmas day," he grumbled as he rose from his bar stool.

"I'll get it," she chuckled and turned towards the foyer.

His arms slid around her waist from behind as he pulled her back against his chest, "Not dressed like that you're won't, I'm the only one that gets to see the Venus de Milo in her pyjamas!" He leaned down to kiss the side of her neck as he turned her towards the kitchen and swatted her on the bottom.

"What's good for the goose is good for the gander," she laughed as she walked into the kitchen. "I don't want you advertising that Adonis physique of yours to the entire neighborhood. On with your vest!" she decreed with a cheeky grin.

He picked his turtleneck up off the floor as he moved through the foyer, pulling it over his head as he reached for the doorknob. The front porch was vacant when he opened the door. Glancing down he saw a suitcase, briefcase and handbag sitting just to the right of the doorway and stepped out to see who might have left them. He saw Thomas reaching to open the door of his car parked at the curb.

"Thomas," he called out and the younger man turned around to look at him.

"I was on my way over to my Gran's for dinner and thought I'd drop them off," said Thomas with a small shrug.

"Much appreciated," Charles replied.

"I'll be off then," said Thomas pulling open the door to his car.

"Thank you, Thomas," said Charles trying quell the emotion that cracked his voice slightly.

"No problem, it was on my way…"

"I meant for last night," he said interrupting the younger man, "for taking care of Els…Ms. Hughes…and bringing her home safely."

"She loves you, you know," said Thomas breaking the awkward silence.

"I know," he replied quietly.

"All she could think about was getting home to you," Thomas said looking down at the sidewalk. "Don't know why when she could have someone as good looking as I am," he snorted.

Charles appreciated the young man's attempt to lighten the mood. "Putting someone else ahead of yourself is the first step…there may be hope for you yet, Mr. Barrow," he said with genuine smile.

"Right, Mr. Carson," Thomas smiled in return. "See you back in the office then?"

"Happy Christmas…Thomas."

The young man got into his car and drove off with a wave. Charles turned and gathered Elsie's things to take them into the townhouse.

-o O o-

"Who was it," called Elsie from the kitchen.

"It was Thomas dropping off your things," he said as he started climbing the stairs to the bedroom.

"Really? That's so unlike him," she said drying her hands on a dishtowel and following him up the stairs.

"Maybe he was feeling in the Christmas spirit," he mumbled as he hoisted her suitcase up onto the antique steamer trunk that he kept at the foot of the bed. She watched as he undid the fastenings and opened the case so that she could unpack if she so desired. She stepped up and ran her hands under his turtleneck, settling around his waist from behind.

"Brrr! Your hands are cold," he murmured as he turned to take her in his arms and hold her close.

She stepped up onto the tops of his feet and placed her arms around his shoulders. She bent her knees and she could feel him stiffen slightly as he prepared himself to catch her under her bottom as she boosted herself into his arms and wrapped her legs around his waist. He pretended to go weak in the knees under her weight and lowered himself to the sit on the side of the bed. He lay back on the bed and held her close to him as he made long strokes down her back from her shoulders to her hips.

She nestled her head in the crook of his neck and her eyes settled on the smallest bit of gold ribbon sticking up out of one corner of her suitcase. She sat up suddenly and scooted to the foot of the bed. He turned to lie on his side and propped his head on his hand so he could watch her. When she returned to kneel beside him she held out her hand to him and he could see a small box from Tiffany's tied with a gold ribbon.

"Hmm, great minds think alike," he said reaching out to take the box from her.

"Do you really think so?" she asked pulling the box back from him. He quirked an eyebrow at her as he turned onto his back and pulled her over to straddle his hips. "Do you really think that we've started reading each other's minds?"

"Elsie," he said with a chuckle, "I don't think we can read each other's minds. But I do believe that we go together, that we complete each other…that 'yin and yang' thing that you're always on about. We are on the same wave-length so it would only make sense that we would think along the same lines when it comes to something like a gift, especially a personal gift such as this." She silently held the box out to him.

He took it from her and pulled the ribbon off and tossed it towards her open suitcase. He paused to raise one hand to his brow and close his eyes as if trying to mystically divine what was inside the box. He opened one eye and gave her a cheeky smirk before he opened the box and felt his jaw drop. "But how…" he trailed off looking at her in surprise.

"I don't know," she said quietly shaking her head. "I just knew the moment that I saw it, it was the one." He looked back into the box in wonder at the platinum band with three channel set sapphires that was the mate to the one that he had given her. She reached over and slid it from the box and placed it on the third finger of his left hand.

"I give you this ring as a symbol of my commitment to our relationship…of my commitment to you," she repeated his words from earlier this morning. She heard her voice crack and could feel her heart pounding in her chest as she stared down at his hand as it lay in hers. This was the first time that she had ever made a commitment to someone else and it scared her.

"A bit terrifying isn't it," he said quietly, lifting her chin to look at him. She could only nod her head as her lip trembled. When she looked into his eyes, she saw nothing but love and understanding and she knew immediately that she had made the right choice. He reached out and folded her into his arms and held her tight for several long minutes.

She felt a shiver go up her spine as his hands moved from around her waist to ghost lightly up her sides and come to rest on her breasts. She had been surprised to find out that he was such a highly tactile and sensual lover. Touch and taste and scent aroused him to levels that she had not thought possible based on her experience with previous lovers. Before, it had always been about the struggle for power and dominance of one over the other…but with him, it was truly about becoming one in the experience.

They took their time undressing each other…touching and tasting and filling their senses until she felt the tension indicating that he couldn't wait any longer. She paused for a moment, letting him take the lead. This was something that she had struggled with when they first came together but she soon discovered that he could be a highly creative lover and that sharing the power only enhanced the pleasure for both of them.

She didn't know if he had been reading her mind at that moment but she smiled to herself as he guided her to kneel up close and facing the headboard of his sturdy oak four poster. In the past, a position such as this had always given her partner the upper hand but he never made her feel that way.

He knelt behind her and nudged her knees apart with his own and pulled her back onto his lap as he entered her from behind. He held her upright against his chest as he nibbled her neck and shoulders and his hands gave attention to several other places that soon had her moaning and writhing against him. The tender way in which he held her and whispered reminders of his love and desire for her made her feel young and powerful and from this position, it was she who set the pace and the rhythm.

Soon he leaned her forward to rest her arms and shoulders on the pillows against the headboard while he rubbed her back and hips and then it was his turn to set the rhythm for their lovemaking. As they both climbed towards their peak, he reached out and took hold of the headboard to leverage more power behind his strokes and soon she reached out and pushed against the headboard to leverage more power in her response. It wasn't long before this shared power sent them both tumbling over the edge. He wrapped one arm around her waist and lowered them down to rest on the bed. She loved the feeling of his weight on top of her and the feel of his body wrapped around her and she could feel the quivering of his muscles as he rode blissfully on the last waves of his pleasure.

He shifted slightly so that he could spoon up against her back, his left hand coming to rest on the outside of her thigh. She looked down at their hands as she found herself absentmindedly rubbing the back of his hand with her own. Their bands gleamed together in the low light of the single lamp that he had put on when they first entered the room. She marveled at how small her hand was compared to his and she was comforted knowing how gentle and reassuring those large hands could be. She felt him stretch behind her in the bed as he lifted her hand up so that he could lean over her shoulder and kiss the back of it where her band sat at the base of her finger.

"Happy Christmas, Love," he murmured as he pulled her closer and moved his hands to cup her breasts as was his habit when they slept. She giggled to herself as she heard him begin to snore softly in her ear. Falling asleep immediately after lovemaking seemed to be a trait common to all males, alpha or otherwise. She hugged him closer and snuggled in for a nap of her own.

The Real End – Happy Christmas One and All!

-o O o-

A/N2: Reviews are always a nice Christmas gift! :-)