Chapter 3

August 1901 Part III

Robert smiled as he watched Cora walk down the steps of her London home, daintily pulling her gloves onto her slender hands. Gently, Robert took her hand as she reached the bottom step, his heart fluttering slightly at the smile she gave him at the action.

Fluttering? No, he reminded himself. It is just tea. Just tea with a friend…with Cora. But still, he couldn't help but think how awfully pretty she looked when she smiled. From what he remembered, she looked even prettier when a soft blush accompanied that smile on her porcelain cheeks.

They walked toward the car, Cora's hand still in his as he helped her in before getting in himself. The drive to the tearoom passed in a comfortable silence, with the odd exchange of small talk here and there. It wasn't a very long drive, however, and soon he was helping her out of the car. In front of them was not a tearoom, as Cora had expected. "What is this?" She asked with a small laugh and a smile, looking around at the beautiful gardens in front of her.

Robert's smile grew as he watched her, offering his arm to her. "It's a tea garden, your grace," he said teasingly, smiling as she took his arm. "This one just opened recently. I've heard wonderful things about it. And it is a positively lovely day. I thought it was the perfect place to take you."

Cora watched him as he spoke, fighting the urge to give him a small kiss of appreciation on the cheek. It may have been appropriate in public in America, but not here. Not in England, and certainly not with the man she had fallen in love with at her season only to discover that he would be marrying someone else. He would be marrying someone else when she had thought he was going to ask her. "It's lovely," she said softly as they sat at a table by some rose bushes. "Thank you for bringing me here," she whispered, smelling one of the roses.

"It's my pleasure," Robert said with a smile as the waiter brought tea and some cakes over for them. "I'm just glad you like it." He took a moment to admire Cora as she smiled sweetly at the waiter and gave him a soft 'thank you'. She was still just as sweet as he remembered her to be.

"I heard about your wife a few years back," Cora said in a sad tone as she poured herself some tea. "It must have been awful, I'm sorry," she said sympathetically as her eyes came up to meet his. "You must have loved her a great deal."

Robert gave her a sad smile and took in a deep breath. "I grew to love her," he said quietly. He really hadn't loved her at first, not at all. She was his mother's choice, not his. "Actually…our marriage was rather a strained one. We got along for the first few years, but then we grew apart when we still didn't have any children. It was difficult, and then we were told after years of trying that she wasn't capable. Then one day we found out she was pregnant, already nearly four months along." He paused, fiddling with the spoon beside his teacup. "It was in her…her sixth month that the accident happened and the baby came early. She died in childbirth, along with our daughter." The only thing his mother could speak of after that was she didn't even have the decency to conceive a son when she finally got pregnant. "We finally were happy, and then she was taken from me."

Cora watched him sadly as he spoke before reaching across the table and taking his hand. "Well…it sees we have the tragic loss of our spouses in common," she whispered, looking down to their hands.

"I was at his funeral," Robert said quietly, tearing his eyes away from the spoon he had been fiddling with and meeting her eyes once more.

"You were?" Cora breathed softly. She hadn't known that. Of course, she hadn't recognized him in the park the other day at first, despite him looking familiar. Even if she had recognized him, however, she hadn't particularly been present enough at the funeral to recognize the people around her. She had been grieving.

Robert nodded at her question. "He was a good man, I've had the pleasure of having luncheon with him once or twice when we were both in London. We've spoken at a few balls as well."

He watched her teary smile, his heart aching slightly for her. The man had only died a little over a year ago; of course she was still in pain. "He was a good man, and an even better father," she whispered. "Poor Peter hasn't been the same since he passed away." She was quiet for a moment, turning to study the roses and then taking in a shaky breath as she looked back to him. "It just started out as a…a cold. It was even diagnosed as a spring cold. And then the cough got worse until one day he could no longer catch his breath. It was pneumonia…the doctor had caught it too late and he told us there was nothing he could do."She shook her head and closed her eyes. Despite how painful it still was for her to speak of her husband's death, she found that speaking about it to Robert had help her somewhat…it was as though a weight had been lifted off her shoulders.

"I can only imagine how difficult it was for your boys to lose their father," Robert said quietly.

Cora opened her eyes at those words and then gave him a sad smile. "They were inconsolable for a little while," she answered. "But William, the sweet boy, felt that being the eldest he should step up and help his brothers. I caught him crying one night in bed, and I told him he didn't have to be strong for them yet." She stopped and then looked down before smiling slightly and looking back up to him. "I think they really enjoyed meeting you. You made quite an impression on them the other day, you were all Michael could speak of."

Robert chuckled softly at those words, the mood of the conversation shifting slightly. "They're charming boys, very polite," he said with a smile. "Your nanny did a wonderful job."

At those words, Cora laughed softly and shook her head. "I mostly raised them actually," She said quietly, smiling at Robert's look of surprise. "I didn't want to alienate my children, and I became even more invested in them after my husband died. They still have a nanny that watches them occasionally and helps me at times, but she's been with me for years…she know how I prefer to do things, and she respects it."

Robert couldn't help but be impressed by her confession. She certainly wasn't like other women of her station. She was still proper, and still a lady, but to find a duchess who actually completely raised her children herself…he found it admirable, and it only made him like her more.

The rest of their visit passed in pleasant conversation, mainly exchanging happy memories of their past marriages—no matter how brief on Robert's side—or discussing Cora's children. Soon, they were back at the house, Robert walking her up the steps to the front door.

"Thank you for such a lovely day, Robert," Cora said softly as they stopped at the door. "I haven't had one quite like it in some time."

"It was my pleasure," Robert said softly. "I enjoyed it just as much…in fact, I would like to invite you for dinner before my mother and I return to Downton. She was having a small dinner party."

Cora's face fell slightly at those words and she let out a small sigh. "Well, actually," she started hesitantly, Robert's face falling at her tone. "The children and I are closing up the London house and returning to the countryside tomorrow. But it is my understanding that Downton is also in Yorkshire, am I right?" Robert's eyes lit up with curiosity at those words and he nodded slowly. "We mainly reside in Carlton Towers in northern Yorkshireduring the fall and the winter. We generally go to Arundel in the summer. Perhaps we can still see one another once in a while. I'm sure the boys would love to see you again."

Robert smiled once more at those words and nodded. "That would be lovely," he said. "I would like to see your children again." He paused and looked down to his hands for a moment, nervously. "Perhaps…I could write to you."

Cora merely smiled at those words, her hand going to the doorknob. "I would like that," she said softly, giving him one last smile before slipping inside.

Thank you to everyone who reviewed! To be honest, I am not entirely sure whether the Duke of Norfolk stayed in Carlton Towers in Yorkshire more often, or Arundel Castle, but for the purpose of this story, I thought it would be best if she lived in the one nearby him for majority of the year.