The Newlyweds

"So, you were at Bletchley Park for a year." Robert whispered in Cora Levinson's ear, pulling her close. She smiled perfectly, as they moved across the floor. She was in a glittering dress and was the epitome of beauty. He had only met her an hour before, having been given orders to dance with his new "wife" for the night. Of course, it was a cover, purely to monitor suspected Nazis in Paris. But even Robert found that dancing with such a glorious woman in the Clair de Lune Hotel was far from just ticking a box on his paperwork.

"Darling, we promised we wouldn't talk about work tonight." Cora said, her blue eyes seemed to dazzle, her every action was effortless, his heart was racing inside of his chest, beating ten to the dozen. He took a breath but still found himself getting hopelessly and irrevocably lost in the moment. "You are right." Robert said, "I did promise, and you know I never break my promises." Cora nodded, their lips met in a kiss, it was soft and gentle, as if he had kissed her a thousand times before. Cora anchored herself as it broke. She'd had to kiss many men on surveillance missions before but none of them had been anything but textbook kisses. No enquires, no humour and certainly no chemistry between her and her pretend beau.

"If you kiss me like that again, I may let you break a few more." She chuckled, before diverting his gaze to the target of their observation. Alice and Hans Zeller.

"She's pulling the strings." Cora said confidently. "Absolutely." Robert agreed. "A low -level German scientist with no interest in anything bar botany and suddenly he's married to a Russian twenty- nine-year old with next to no background."

"How old are you?" Cora asks suddenly, feeling a need to know more about her "husband" of an hour.

"Twenty- four and you?"

"Twenty- three." Cora breathes out, as if he'd given her a perfect answer. "And where do my new in-laws think you are right now?" Robert asks. "In my apartment, in Paris painting."

"What do you paint?" he asks, spinning her around in his arms. "Anything that interests me."

Robert laughs, "Do I interest you?"

"In every possible way." She says without preamble. "Where do your parents think you are?"

Robert grins, "Teaching history at a local school which I actually do in between this."

Cora gleams. "I'm a teacher's wife. How wonderful."

"I could say the same about you darling."

"Please do." Cora elongates the words delicately. "Is she still watching us?"

"She doesn't appear to be. Why?" A rueful smile lights up Cora's face. "So, there's no excuse for you to kiss me again."

"Oh, there's every excuse for that." Robert assures before kissing her again, once, twice, three times before they break. "God damn." Cora manages. "We've definitely broken protocol." "There was a protocol? I promptly forgot it the moment we met." Robert chuckles.

"This isn't funny. If we're not careful this could get us killed." Cora bites back gently. "I agree, I feel as if I've been given stardust in the midst of vipers." Robert says wistfully.

"We're on the clock for the next two hours, after that, we could go to your hotel room?" It wouldn't look like anything but honeymooners getting an early night."

"Really?" Robert can't quite believe his luck. "Really." Cora assures.

They keep it strictly professional for the remaining time, in fact, right until the door of Room 238 closes. It isn't exactly a sanctuary, though he wishes he could shield her from this place. He'd take her home, to Downton, to Mama, Papa and Rosamund, if he could. He imagines them as they are now, kissing but, on the lawn with the sun glinting through her hair.

"Where are we?" Cora hums. "If we could be anywhere else other than here where would we be?" "Home." Robert breathes. "We're on the lawn on my family's estate."

"Ooh. How regal. Are you a prince?" Cora gushes as Robert kisses one of her cheeks, then the other. "Not quite, I am a viscount."

"A viscount. Do I need to curtsy?" Cora asks jokingly, earning herself another kiss. "Not at all."

"Good." Cora says. "I'd be terribly bad at it."

"So, was tonight supposed to be a one-off surveillance mission for you too?" Robert enquires.

"Uh-huh." Cora nods. "Though I'm leaving this out of my report."

"Me too. Though, I'd have to admit being reprimanded like this would be quite the way to go."

"Hmm." Cora strokes his cheek fondly. "Definitely."

They file their reports and spend the rest of the time meeting up whenever possible. In a quiet café just outside of Paris, he drinks coffee with no milk and Cora sips tea.

She's in casual clothes, a soft white shirt, blouse and bright red pumps to match her lipstick. "You look beautiful." Robert admires.

"Robert." Cora blushes furiously. "What? You are." Robert insists. Cora puts her hand over his and gives him a look she hopes communicates the same sentiment.

Holding hands in a park, when an unexpected shower of rain gets them. "Bloody hell." Robert curses, "I forgot to bring an umbrella." But Cora merely gives him a radiant smile and says, "I guess we'll have to run for it."

They do though, not before taking their share of rain-soaked kisses.

"Come home with me." Robert says, six months later, they are together in his apartment. a cosy little place in Loiret southwest of Paris. "Come home with me to Downton."

Cora looks up at him in surprise. "You're serious?"

Robert's expression doesn't change. He looks completely resolute. "You're asking me to go home with you?" Cora feels ecstatic.

"I'm asking you to marry me." Robert says wholeheartedly. "We'll build a home together. I don't have a ring, I couldn't trust that my grandmama's ring would survive the journey but if you say yes, it'll be on your finger as soon as we land."

Cora sobs, beaming. "Robert, I don't care about the ring. I'd marry you in a heartbeat."

They laugh and kiss over and over again.

By the summer of 1944 the glistening deep blue and diamond set ring rests happily on her hand as does a gold wedding band. They are back home in England and kiss contentedly on the lawn of Downton. If their families are unconvinced by the story they concoct saying they bumped into each other at a hotel, then they certainly don't voice it especially when they announce the next summer that Cora is expecting their first child.

By 1946, they are sitting on the lawn with their baby, Mary looking fascinated by her Mama's engagement ring while her Papa presses kisses into her Mama's hair and tickles his mischievous baby. "Mary, baby, look at Mama, that's it clever girl." Cora gushes, before turning to Robert. "Do you think we'll tell her one day? Her and her any other children we have?" "Maybe, if it is ever safe to. But, for now… let's just have a long and happy life together."

Cora agrees, snuggling further into Robert's chest. "Hmm. You, me, Mary, Pharaoh and Mary's little sister."

Robert's ears prick up as their puppy comes to play with baby Mary.

"Little sister? Cora, are you?"

"I'm pregnant darling." Cora says before being kissed so many times by Robert she feels giddy. "Oh, I love you Cora Crawley."

"I love you too." She replies. "So much."

I hope you enjoyed this story. It's very different from what I usually write.