Special thanks to deeedeee for her help with this chapter.

Elsie put the kettle on the stove and went through all of the cupboards to see what was there. She hadn't had any use for her old tea set at Downton, so it had stayed on a shelf, but she was glad to have it now. She found a tea tray on a low shelf, placed her tea set on it, and opened a small basket that Mrs. Patmore had given her. By the time she had put some of the shortbread on the tray, the kettle was boiling and Elsie took it off the heat and filled the teapot. She checked one more time to make sure everything was in place, before carrying it to the parlor. She found Charles looking out the window.

"The tea is ready, darling," Elsie announced.

He turned to her with a smile. "Thank you." He took the tray from her and set it on the low table in front of the settee and they both sat down. Elsie prepared his tea and then her own.

"It's lovely, Charles," she complimented him. "You've chosen the perfect home for us."

Charles kissed her cheek. "I'm so glad you like it."

Elsie turned to meet his gaze and couldn't look away. The brightness of the sun was muted only slightly by the light-colored curtains and she could see things she had never noticed before. The lines on Charles's face, some deep and some shallow, indicated a man of many emotions. Yes, he had frown lines, a product of his occupation, but he also had smile lines. In the dim light of their evening meetings, Elsie had never noticed the true color of his eyes, and when they met during the day, she could never study him as she would have liked. Where before she had known his eyes seemed a brownish color, now she could see that they were hazel - brown and green with little flecks of gold. Elsie wondered what he was thinking as he scrutinized her face just as closely.

Charles was mesmerized by her as his eyes caressed her face. He had known she had blue eyes, but in the sunlight they were much brighter than he had seen them before. Even during the day, the downstairs area was not as light as their new sitting room, and he had never seen them looking the way they did now. Next, his eyes were drawn to her lips. He knew those lips well - had felt them touch his skin - and he could see them perfectly well even in the shadows, but in the lightness of the sitting room, they were more alluring than ever. However, he felt like he was under some kind of spell and, even though he wanted to kiss her, he stayed still, aside of taking an occasional sip of tea.

Elsie couldn't help smiling at him. She had been happy to find that Charles loved her, happy when they married, and happy when they made love. This moment, however, rivaled all of the others for the happiest of her life. She sat beside her husband, not touching him, and drinking a cup of tea, and she felt more contented than ever before. There had always been an underlying uncertainty and anxiety at Downton, but now they were together as they truly should be and the closest thing to a worry Elsie felt was knowing that she would have to visit the grocer soon to stock her kitchen. At last they were free.

Charles returned her smile and reached out to touch her face. His thumb came to rest gently on her lips and he caressed them so softly she almost wasn't sure if he were touching her at all. He was touching her, however, and she could feel her heart pounding in her chest. Elsie still couldn't bring herself to break the spell by moving. She wasn't even drinking her tea anymore and it grew cold in the cup she held.

Charles was the first to break eye contact. He took her cup from her and set it on the table, along with his own. He reached for one of Elsie's hands, kissed the back of it, and then the inside of her wrist, before placing her hand on his chest. He then did the same with her other hand. With his hands covering hers, he slowly bent to kiss her tenderly. It was a slow and soft kiss, but it left them both breathing unsteadily. In the light of day, Elsie could see that her husband's pupils were dilated, something else she had never noticed before. At last she moved, touching her forehead to his. "I love you, Charlie," she whispered.

He laughed, soft and low. "I wondered when you might call me that."

"I told you I'd save it for a special occasion. This is a special occasion, isn't it?"

"Yes, of course. But I had thought you might use it on our wedding day."

"I had to call you Charles at the ceremony and after that I simply forgot," she explained.

"Well it doesn't matter now," he told her. "The name is yours to use as you please."

"Thank you, my dear," she replied. "I'll put this tray away." Elsie took their tea things back to the kitchen before returning to the sitting room.

"Will you sit on my lap, Elsie?" Charles asked, reaching out for her.

She smiled and did as he asked, resting her head on his shoulder. "You smell so good, Charlie."

"So do you, darling. It drives me a little mad how nice you smell."

"Good," she whispered in his ear. "I like you a little mad."

They sat together like this for quite a while, neither speaking nor moving - only breathing. The windows were closed, but the birds just outside could still be heard singing their springtime songs. Charles began rocking Elsie from side to side and she was lulled almost to sleep by her warm and comfortable surroundings. He trailed his fingers slowly up and down her arm, but when they strayed up her neck and into her hair, Elsie jumped.

"What are you doing?" she wanted to know.

Charles pulled his hand away. "I'm sorry, Elsie. I was just-"

"It's all right, my dear. I don't mind. I was just a little startled."

"You were nearly asleep, weren't you?" he asked.

"I was," she admitted.

"Perhaps you'd like to go to bed?" he suggested.

"What do you mean by that?" she wondered.

"It can mean whatever you want it to. A bed is a very versatile piece of furniture."

Elsie laughed, shaking her head. "Why are we having this conversation, Charlie?"

"What do you mean?" Charles was confused.

"We both want the same thing, but we're avoiding it for some reason."

"Nerves?" he suggested doubtfully. "It doesn't seem likely. It's not as though this is new to us."

"We're not used to being alone together during the day," Elsie pointed out. "It's… different somehow."

Charles nodded. "That is true."

"But perhaps we would be more comfortable in bed," she remarked. "One way or another."

He smiled. "Lead on, then, my love."

To be continued…

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