A/N: Thank you so much for the reviews on the last chapter! I've never gotten so many!!! Don't worry, Robert and Cora will be back together soon, but I wanted to shake things up a little bit before they got serious!! I've got two exams tomorrow and one on Thursday, and after that I will be done with revision for a bit so I will hopefully be able to post more often, I know I neglected this story for a while but thank you for sticking with it! I can't believe I've written fourteen chapters and people are still reading. It means so much!!
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TRIGGER WARNING: MENTIONS OF MISCARRIAGE
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I wake up the next morning and my social media is flooded with pictures of Robert with this woman. I cringe as I refresh the page, desperate to see anything that isn't Robert related. My head hurts from last night's crying, but I push through it and get ready for work. Alana has left a small itinerary for me to follow today, as she's taken a personal day. My day is back to back meetings, which should take my mind off Robert and his new girlfriend. I head upstairs to the conference room early, and I'm sitting at the head of the table, with the appropriate documents lined up in front of me, when I hear a light knock on the door. I glance up, I should have another five minutes before the clients arrive. I frown, it's not the clients, but Rosamund.
"Hey, Cora," she greets me, opening the door. The pictures of Robert with the woman flash to the forefront of my mind as I see Rosamund's face.
"Hello," I manage.
"Do you mind if I sit in on this meeting? It's been a while since I've seen you in a meeting, and you know I like to keep on top of things like this."
"Of course," I answer, even though I don't think I can take the added pressure of having my boss watch my every move today.
"Besides, this deal looks really interesting," she says, with a smirk, and I smile too. I had forgotten how easy Rosamund was to talk to. I stand up to let her sit at the head of the table, but she frowns, putting a hand up. "Oh, don't move! It's your deal, I'm only here because I'm interested in this deal. But I'm telling Duke that I'm here because I want to see how you've settled in, so we'll pretend that's why I'm here." I smile and look down at the documents in front of me. I can feel her studying me, and I wonder what's she going to say next when the clients arrive, causing us to put any personal conversation on hold.
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The meeting is concluded successfully, and I feel a buzz of adrenaline as the client signs the company in his name. I can't judge Rosamund's mood, as she has a very impressive poker face, but the clients seem delighted with the deal. Rosamund and I shake hands with the clients, and they take their leave. Rosamund and I are left sitting in the conference room, and I turn to her to express my delight.
"That went so well!" I exclaim. She smiles slightly.
"It did. Well done. You've really improved at bartering." I blush.
"Thank you." She pauses for a few seconds, frowning.
"I don't mean to intrude," she begins, and my heart jumps as I think about the possibilities of what she could say next. "But are you alright? I know that's a very openended question, but you don't seem yourself."
"I'm fine," I say, too quickly. Her frown deepens.
"Cora, you've seen me cry. In this very room, actually." I laugh despite myself, throwing my head back in amusement.
"I don't want to cry."
"Believe me, I didn't want to cry in front of you then, either. You barely knew me." I smile, I still have no idea what her panic attack was about that day, and I really want to ask her. I pause, unsure if I should. She gets the hint. "What do you think set me off?" she asks, amused. I frown, I don't really know if this is the kind of thing you guess about, but she seems genuinely curious, so I answer.
"I assumed it was something to do with the client, you said you knew him?"
"Mmm."
"I didn't guess much else, because I didn't want to assume, but I noticed you flinch when he offered his hand for you to shake." Rosamund smiles faintly.
"He probably thought I'd turned into a such a snob. I was so cold, and rude. I used to be so different with everyone, happy, in boarding school. That's where I knew him from." I nod. "He was a trigger... It wasn't him, just the things he reminded me of." I nod, unsure of what to say. Her smile reappears as she looks at me again. "Now, I told you what was bothering me then, can you tell me what is bothering you now?" I bite my lip.
"It's Robert," I answer, surprising myself with my admission. She nods knowingly.
"Do you love him?" she asks. I look away from her as I reply.
"I don't know. I thought I did, actually, I was sure I did, but now I have no idea. It doesn't matter, he doesn't care about me, he made that very clear." I glance back at Rosamund, who is frowning.
"What?"
"When he walked out of my apartment." Rosamund goes to say something, but stops herself.
"That's not what he feels happened, but I need to stop meddling. Oh, Cora, if you knew the lecture I would be subjected to if Robert knew this conversation was taking place." I smile, very faintly. What does she mean? What does Robert think happened?
"It's irrelevant, Rosamund, because he's moved on." Her frown deepens.
"Not to my knowledge." My chest tightens with irritation, does she think I haven't seen the photos all over social media of Robert and his new girlfriend out for dinner with her and Marmaduke?
"I've seen the photos, on social media," I tell her, my voice taut with surpressed anger. Her frown disappears quickly, and she smiles softly.
"Darling, that's Mads with us. Marmaduke's sister. Madelaine. My sister-in-law." I release a breath I didn't even realise I was holding. I feel so stupid for believing the tabloids. "She came with Marmaduke and I from Scotland when we came back a few days ago, she's here for work and she's staying with us. The photos make Mads and Robert look a lot cosier than they were. Marmaduke and I were behind them and I can promise you that he only placed his hand on her back to offer her support because she was wearing heels and we were walking on cobbles."
"And inside? In the restaurant?"
"Robert's arm being around Madelaine's shoulders didn't mean anything." I nod. The woman was Rosamund's sister-in-law. Marmaduke's sister. The relief shoots through me.
"Thanks," I say, quietly, and she smiles again.
"I'm going to say something, because I really can't help meddling. Robert has a temper to rival mine. He also finds it hard to open up, like me." I nod. "I'm not saying you were wrong to push Robert to reveal his feelings, because you weren't. Also, from what I heard, you handled it very gracefully. Marmaduke can tell you, when it comes to things like that, I like to fly off the handle." I smile. "Robert got hot under the collar because I believe he actually cares, and he hasn't cared about anyone before. And before you ask, no, he didn't care for Jane. Robert needs someone to put up with his temper and to look past his faults and mistakes, like Marmaduke does for me. It's also different for Robert, because he will inherit the Earldom when my father dies. He needs a wife beside him." I frown, that's what her mother said yesterday.
"Why?" I interrupt.
"Why does he need a wife?" Rosamund asks, and I nod. "It's a stressful life. He needs someone, a partner, a friend, to be by his side, to keep him company, to provide him with support. He also needs an heir, preferably multiple." I frown.
"But can't your children be his heirs?" Rosamund's face pales, and as soon as I've asked the question, I regret it. She bites her lip.
"Marmaduke and I can't have children," she says, bitterly. "It's not his fault, it's mine. Everytime we conceive, I lose it." I feel awful for asking the question.
"I'm so sorry, Rosamund, I had no idea." She glances at me, her gaze having drifted to the wall.
"Don't worry," she answers. She blinks quickly, and composes herself. "I'm fine." Rosamund glances at her watch. She smiles softly. "I've interfered enough now, and I was supposed to meet Marmaduke five minutes ago. I'll see you. Good work on the deal."
"Thanks," I answer, and she walks out of the conference room.
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A/N: Thank you for reading! I really didn't want Robert to get with anybody other than Cora, and I don't think it would have been very in character for him to move on like that, (if we just ignore his idiotic behaviour with Jane in canon), but again I wanted to add some drama! Reviews are so appreciated!!