Matthew's suspicion was first aroused as soon as he saw Mary walking towards him from the servant's section of the house. The fact that his wife was looking even more stunning than usual in a new blue dress, he assumed it was new as he would surely remember this one, would have distracted him immediately from his suspicions. Except there was that glint in her eyes, that mischievous crook to her smile and that playful lilt within her voice. Even if they hadn't been married a whole year to this day, Matthew Crawley would still know his wife was up to something. The only thing he had to figure out now, was what.
As Mary leant towards him to kiss his cheek in greeting, he leant closer to give her a proper kiss, something he always looked forward to on his return from work. But she moved back as he moved nearer, the mischief twinkling in her eyes growing. He narrowed his own at her, but kept his voice calm as he said pleasantly, "The day was much the same as usual, my dear."
His eyes narrowed further as he stepped towards her again, trying not to frown when she moved away again. Whatever she was up to though, it would have to wait. Smiled brightly again, he whipped his right arm from behind him, which he'd carefully kept out of sight, and watched as the beautiful face of his wife broke into a huge grin as she looked at the offering before her. A dozen or more brightly coloured flowers, carefully picked out by the kind woman at the stall in Ripon market and thankfully surviving their journey home. Red and yellow carnations spilled out over elegant pale pink lilies and soft green ferns and yellow tulips complimented the white chrysanthemums dotted throughout the bouquet. But the splendour of the flowers was nothing compared to the radiance on Mary's face as she leant down and drew in a heady breath mixed with the beautiful scent of the blooms. "Happy anniversary, my darling Mary."
"Oh Matthew, they are beautiful." As she reached out to take them, he kept his own hold and used them to pull her closer. This time, when Matthew leant his face towards her, Mary did not step away and he was rewarded with a kiss, the flowers gently crushed between them. A moment later, Matthew pulled back and reached behind him once again, pulling a small stem out from beneath his coat, which had been carefully concealing the final present. He held it out to her now, a single red rose just beginning to open into bloom. Her smile widened further, but Matthew also noticed a slight glimmer of guilt crossing her face and his suspicions were further piqued. He pushed them to the back of his mind though as he gently ran the blood red rose down her pale face, tracing it over her smile. He grinned as he saw Mary shiver at the touch and reached towards her free hand, cupping the rose between them as he leant down to her once more. "I am so very pleased you like them, Mary," he whispered into her ear. "Though I think I am now expected to say something eloquent like, but their beauty pales into insignificant in comparison to you." He smiled at his final words, his voice playfully poetic as he pulled away just enough to see her eyes roll and her lips curl into a smirk, trying to hide her bashful smile.
"You must only say things like that, dear, if you actually mean them. And your words must actually have a trace of eloquence within them."
"Then I must take them back at once!" Matthew teased, his eyebrows raising in alarm for a moment, but before Mary had chance to retort, he suddenly captured her lips with his own.
Mary's surprise quickly silenced her and gently Matthew gripped her wrist holding the bouquet and pulled it away from them, stepping closer as he did so. He guided the flowers to the small cabinet in the hallway and released their hold. With both their hands now free, he wrapped them around Mary's waist and deepened the kiss, the rose pressing tightly against Mary's back. It was only a few moments later that Mary's own hands snaked their way around his neck, drawing him even closer so their bodies were now crushed together. Smiling into the kiss at his wife's enthusiasm, he ran his hands up her back, tracing the path the rose had taken with his fingertips across her cheek before threading them through her hair. Mary sighed at his touch, tilting her face upwards to further deepen the kiss. As Matthew's fingers carded through her hair, he suddenly felt resistance and a moment later, Mary suddenly pulled away with an audible gasp of pain.
"Are you alright?" Matthew asked worriedly, feeling the loss of her warmth as much as his guilt as she stepped back away from him. She looked more perplexed and anxious than anything else and he looked down at his hands in puzzlement, surprised to see a sticky smear of what looked distinctly like cake icing on the fingers. "Mary, what is this?" His brows rose in confusion as his earlier suspicions came back to haunt him.
They further increased as his wife shifted nervously on her feet for a moment, before her face changed into a dazzling smile and her voice brightened suspiciously, "Nothing, of course Matthew. Just something in my hair!" She reached up to pat her hair, as if that was explanation enough, before stepping further away, her smile faltering slightly.
"Mary?" Matthew stepped towards her, his eyes narrowing and his voice suspicious as he tried to close the space between them.
Mary reflected his movements by stepping away, maintaining the distance, and sweetening her smile. "Yes, dear?"
"What is it you have in your hair?"
"Nothing of course, dear. Now, these flowers had better be put in some water." She brushed past him and reached towards the bouquet, careful not to touch him and avoiding his narrowed eyes. Mary also plucked the rose from his fingers, hanging limply now from his side, before turning away. She ignored his last questioning entreaty as she headed back towards the kitchen, calling over her shoulder, "Dinner will be ready soon and we don't want to keep Mrs Bird waiting."
A heavy sigh escaped Matthew's lips as he watched her leave, shaking his head in resignation. He knew she was up to something alright, but it seemed he would have to wait to find out just what it was.