Well, my lovely Coberts, Christmas is upon us! And so, in the spirit of giving and receiving (sadly, yes, pun intended) I offer my contribution to our Holiday Fanfic Exchange. I hope you enjoy this and all the other amazing stories that are out there.
Prompt: In London on their first Christmas together, Robert takes Cora shopping and finds the part where she tries on the new frocks far more intense than he realized.
December 1889
"Well you look rather glum, don't you remember it's the holiday season?"
Robert looked up from his book to meet his sister's amused expression. She flounced down on the settee beside him and curled her feet up before looking at him expectantly, waiting for some sort of response.
"I'm just a bit bored," he explained. "I wasn't planning on coming down to London, but I thought that Cora and Mama shouldn't be left alone."
Rosamund nodded empathetically. "Certainly not, though she could have stayed with Marmaduke and I."
"She has only lived here a few months. I didn't feel it was right to send her off alone and to a strange house," he explained, looking down absently at his book once more. Truthfully, he had only come to the library because Cora had taken up residence in the other sitting room and he had wanted some quiet. He had not been particularly interested in traveling to London so close to Christmas but Cora had needed a frock, or something, and his parents were making the trip anyway. Only three and a half months married, they did not speak as often as he knew they should, and if the state of their affairs was at all unclear, the assignment of two adjoining bedrooms upon their arrival at Grantham House certainly cleared up any questions on that score.
It wasn't as though he and Cora argued. It was much the opposite, actually. They simply did not speak. Well, they spoke in the mornings sometimes, when they passed in the hall. And they spoke in the evenings, when seated across the table at dinner. And then there were the nights. They spoke quietly, in hushed awkward tones in her bedroom before settling in to do what they both felt obligated to do.
He hated it. The whole process of it. Not Cora, of course, just the horrid process that made him feel as though he was using her. She was beautiful, so very beautiful, and they way she clung to him when they finished was enough to break his heart. He hated feeling so very guilty, and so he had taken to just staying in his dressing room most nights. And their trip to London was no exception. They had spent the first two nights apart and he did not foresee a change in those arrangements for the duration of their stay.
Rosamund was still eyeing him curiously and finally just pulled the book from his hands with an amused giggle. "What is wrong with you?" She inquired.
"Wrong with me?" Robert looked at her bewilderedly, and reached for his book, but she hurled it across the room.
"Why aren't you spending your time with Cora? You know she is sitting in the room opposite this one, probably wondering why her husband always hides from her!" Rosamund laughed once more and swatted his arm.
"I highly doubt she notices that I'm not beside her. It's not as though we customarily spend our afternoons together." Robert reasoned.
"Oh, right, of course you're correct, darling brother. I'm sure when Cora pictured her first holiday season as a married woman, she envisioned spending it alone. Or shopping with her mother in law. And worst of all, sleeping alone at night!"
Robert blanched at Rosamund's last assertion. "How…how on earth do you even know that?"
"Maids gossip, Darling. How on earth is it that you're sleeping apart after only nearly four months?" Rosamund frowned slightly, showing a bit more concern.
"We never—we never began spending the nights together," Robert mumbled, reddening slightly as the words slipped from his mouth.
Rosamund's eyes widened and she tried to stifle a gasp. "You mean you still haven't…?"
"God, Rosamund. Don't be so crude. Of course we have. We just don't spend the night together." Robert frowned more deeply and stood to retrieve the book Rosamund had flung, but she grabbed his arm before he could make it even an inch.
"Robert, I'm not trying to be crude. I know you married her because you felt you would be saving Downton, and saving the family, but in doing so you've put her life into your hands. You are responsible for her and her happiness now. Stop behaving like such a child. Do you really dislike her that much?" Rosamund stood and released his arm, searching his face for some sort of reaction. He only frowned once more and sat back down, dejectedly, before meeting her critical gaze.
"Of course I don't dislike her, how could anyone dislike Cora? She is beautiful and kind and far more interesting than anyone I've ever met. I just—"
"Well, you just what?" Rosamund interrupted, sitting back down and patting his shoulder reassuringly.
"I fear I've proved rather a disappointment," he murmured, studying his hands in his lap. "I don't know how to be a proper husband. I can't even carry on a conversation with her without getting flustered. Imagine how ridiculous I'd look if I told her that I thought she was wonderful and beautiful and how I think she deserves a far better husband than me." He sighed once more and finally looked back at his sister.
Rosamund edged closer to him and wrapped her arms around him in a tentative hug. A gesture of familial affection that was not often passed between Crawleys, he seemed surprised, but a second later relaxed in her embrace. "Robert," she finally replied gently, "I think you must try to spend some time with her, time without the family and servants and everything else. It's been nearly four months, so it's not as if you have nothing to go on. It'll be Christmas soon, and you both should be happy when you spend your first holiday together."
"I suppose you're right. Perhaps when she and Mama get back from the dressmaker I could—"
"No." Rosamund interjected once more. "Go now, Robert! Don't make her spend another afternoon alone…or worse, with Mama."
Robert nodded and stood, looking up just as his mother entered the library, in some act of either sheer coincidence or fate. She looked annoyed, not an unusual expression for her to wear, and she was dressed to go out.
"Where is your wife?" She asked, eyeing her children curiously. "We're going to be late for our appointment at the dressmaker."
Robert turned more fully to face his mother and took a deep breath to fortify himself for the coming ordeal. "I'll take Cora out today, Mama."
Violet, not one to often show her emotions, felt her mouth drop open slightly. "You are going to take Cora to the dressmaker and sit there as they put the final touches on her Christmas gown?"
"Yes, sorry for the change in plans." Robert replied simply. He smiled at Rosamund, who was grinning widely, and then at his Mama before striding out of the room in the direction of the other sitting room.
"Are you ready to go?" He strode into the small sitting room to find Cora all bundled up for the cold, and clutching her small handbag. She looked up at him incredulously and stood as he paused beside her chair.
"Yes, I've been waiting for your mama. I'm sorry; did she send you to fetch me? I hope she didn't interrupt your afternoon."
Robert shook his head and offered his arm, which she tentatively took, curling her fingers around him and leaning in closer. "I am taking you, actually." He replied.
"You're taking me? But I—" She paused, looked up at him, and nodded slowly. "Alright, then. Shall we go?" She grinned, clutching his arm even tighter and not caring to inquire as to why he would be escorting her.
Robert nodded once more, leading her out into the foyer and out to the waiting carriage. The carriage ride through London to the dressmaker passed in relative quiet, but Robert felt his heart pounding the entire time. He had reached for Cora's gloved hand as soon as they sat down and she had allowed him to hold on, even putting her free hand over their clasped ones. She only smiled softly and leaned into him a bit more. He studied her face and watched as she looked out the window, smiling at the holiday decorations and absentmindedly squeezing his hand every few minutes. When they pulled up to the dressmaker nearly twenty minutes later, the two had been resting comfortably against one another for quite a while and both looked a little sad to see their ride was over.
They were ushered into the shop with the flourish one would expect for a future earl and countess. The young woman running the shop directed Cora to a back room and Robert to a chair a few feet away where he could sit and wait.
He sat for nearly fifteen minutes looking around at all the curious items in the shop before he heard Cora's soft giggles coming from the back room. He strained to hear and he could make out she and the shopkeeper discussing the latest fashions and some garish gown Lady Marabale had worn to some event the previous month.
It surprised him when he realized that he could picture the exact expression Cora would likely be wearing as she laughed and gossiped with the other woman. It surprised him even more when he realized he was grinning, simply from thinking about his wife in the other room.
Several minutes passed as he continued to listen until his curiosity finally got the best of him. Standing from his chair quietly, he took a few cautious steps toward the dressing rooms, following the sounds of Cora's voice. After only one wrong turn, he found himself right outside the room Cora was in. A thin fabric curtain separated him from the women but he could hear Cora's voice clearly now, and when he turned a bit, he realized he could see them in the reflection of the small room's mirror.
Mesmerized by the sight before him, he couldn't help but watch. Cora was standing in only her chemise and the skirt of her dress as the young woman wrapped a measuring tape around her waist, right below her breasts. Cora looked relaxed as she chatted with the woman, and made small movements as the woman directed her. He couldn't help but notice the curve of her body beneath her chemise, and thought it most irritating that he was only allowed to see her in the dark of her bedroom at night. Though, of course he was lucky he was even granted that, considering how bumbling he seemed around her all the time.
When the woman finished making her measurements, she began unbuttoning Cora's skirt, leaving her standing on the dressing room pedestal in just her underthings. The deep red skirt, obviously fashioned for the Christmas holiday, was left on the floor beside her and Robert turned back around the corner quickly as the woman exited the room and wandered off in the other direction. He peeked back in the room to see Cora now sitting on the pedestal, gazing down at her hands. As he watched, he realized she was playing with her wedding ring. He watched as she slid it on and off her finger a few times before popping it back on and looking down at it with a wide grin. He had a fleeting thought to enter the room, and nearly did, but something stopped him. He watched Cora stand, looking as beautiful as she always did, and he fought a strong urge to burst into the small room and kiss her breathless, back her against the wall and show her how very much he wanted her, and wanted to be close to her.
It was just a fleeting idea, though, and fleeting ideas were not best acted on.
Robert backed out of the dark hallway, leaving Cora to finish up and made his way back out to the front of the room. He sat down and replayed the scene in his mind. And to his utter embarrassment, realized that apparently it would not be a fleeting thought, as his body had begun to react rather pronouncedly to the brief show he had been treated to. He considered walking outside for some fresh air, but just as he stood, his overcoat now discreetly shielding his…problem…Cora appeared in the doorway to the main room, looking at him with a smile, and the dressmaker two steps behind her.
"All finished!" She exclaimed cheerfully, impetuously holding out her hand to her husband. Robert looked down at his overcoat, then to her outstretched hand, and wished he could just disappear. He knew the day was about to take an unfortunate turn. Ignoring her hand completely, and the utterly crestfallen look painted across her face as he did so; he cleared his throat and turned to the dressmaker.
"Are we settled, then?" He asked calmly, willing himself not to look at Cora's face. He was not particularly good at willing himself to do things, though, and he looked out of the corner of his eye. She was looking down at the ground, red faced and frowning. She looked horribly embarrassed that he had turned down her gesture of affection.
The dressmaker simply nodded and promised to have the gown sent to the house by the next evening. Giving their thanks, Robert motioned at his wife and headed toward the door, hoping she would follow behind him. She did, and she followed him wordlessly back into the carriage as well. They sat inside, as they had done only an hour earlier, but the air had changed. Cora sat as far from him as she possibly could, and kept her eyes fixed out the window.
"Would you like to go for tea?" Robert ventured, after a few moments of painful silence.
Cora glared at him, looking angrier than he had ever seen her. "No, I would not," she replied coolly.
Robert nodded slightly and turned away, utterly embarrassed and frustrated that yet again he had ruined what could have been a perfectly lovely day with his wife. It was a wonder she hadn't up and left him already, as he was terribly awkward and apparently could not even control himself on a simple outing in town. When he turned back cautiously to look at her, and saw a lone tear escape down her cheek, he knew, suddenly, that it couldn't simply end this way. He could not have yet another false start with her. She deserved so much more and he knew that he could give it to her. Sitting up, he gave the driver an address and asked him to take them there immediately.
Cora whipped back toward him with another frown. "Could we please go back to the house?" She asked, her watery eyes betraying her harsh tone.
Robert took her hands, silently praying that she wouldn't reel them back and slap him, and squeezed tightly. "Cora, I am so very sorry about my behavior back at the shop. Please, please give me one more chance?"
She looked at him, he harsh expression immediately fading, and nodded tentatively after only a second. "Alright," she murmured.
And a brief moment later, his one last chance presented itself. The carriage pulled up to a posh townhouse in Eton Square, something incredibly new and fashionable and somewhere his parents were not often seen. Cora did not ask where they were, and simply took his hand when he helped her out of the carriage and led her up the stairs. She watched as he knocked on the heavy wooden door and waited until a butler opened it, looking rather surprised to see him.
"Viscount Downton, my apologies. Mr. Painswick and Lady Rosamund are not in; in fact I believe that they are at Grantham House—" The man explained.
"Yes, yes they are. I just—may we come in?" Robert asked, ushering Cora into the foyer as the butler stepped back.
"Yes, of course. Shall I have them summoned from Grantham House?"
"No, that is not necessary. If you could perhaps get a note to my sister, that would be wonderful, though," Robert explained.
Robert wandered right into the small sitting room off the foyer and located a blank sheet of stationary and pen. He scribbled a short message and handed it off to the footman that had been summoned to carry out the task. "I'm quite sure my sister and brother in law will not mind us waiting for a reply in the library," Robert said, smiling kindly at the butler.
The young couple was led into the library where a fire was already crackling and the curtains were opened to show off the spectacular winter day. The room was warm and comfortable and impeccably decorated by Rosamund, who had chosen each decoration with painstaking care. Cora sat tentatively on the settee, having never seen Rosamund and Marmaduke's home, and simply studied the fire. The couple sat in silence, once again, for nearly an hour before the footman returned with a response from Rosamund.
"What does it say?" Cora asked quietly, looking up from the fire. Though she was curious, it was getting rather late, and dark, and she was hoping to return home at some point for dinner. Robert handed her the note and watched as she unfolded it.
Of course. It said simply.
"What does it mean?" Cora prompted.
To this question, Robert blushed slightly and took the seat beside Cora on the settee. "I asked Rosamund if we could perhaps use the house for the evening." Robert explained. Sensing Cora's utter confusion, he attempted a better explanation. "I just thought we could perhaps use some time away from my parents and the servants and the house."
She shook her head confusedly once more.
"I just want to talk to you." He finally replied, barely above a whisper.
He hoped that would make it clearer, that he wanted to patch things up between them, but Cora suddenly looked incredibly nervous.
"What do you want to talk about?" She replied, in a voice higher and more hurried than her own.
Before he could begin to apologize for the incident at the shop, Cora stood and began to pace in front of the fireplace.
"Cora—"
"I'm sorry, Robert. I'm so very sorry." She interrupted, looking down at him. "I know you aren't happy and I know I haven't adjusted terribly well, but I—I am trying, I'm trying so very hard and I think you're so wonderful, that I just—" She paused, mid sentence, realizing the words that had just spilled from her thoughts. Her face turning a bright red, she covered her mouth and murmured another apology.
"Cora, please, God no, this is not at all about you. I wanted to apologize," Robert murmured quickly, taking her hands and guiding her back to the settee. "And I don't want you to think you cannot be honest with me," he added.
Cora nodded, wiping her eyes with the back of her hand, as she settled back against the settee. "Alright."
"I want to apologize," he began again, searching her eyes for the fortification he suddenly needed. Somehow, beneath the pain etched across her face, he found it almost immediately, and continued. "I am sorry for how my parents, well, my mother has behaved toward you. I am sorry for how distant I've been since the wedding. I am so very sorry about how unhappy you must be with me most times. And I am incredibly sorry for not taking your hand in the shop earlier today. But most of all, I am sorry that none of my apologies will really be enough."
Cora sat, stock still, watching him for a long moment. He was not sure if she had even heard him, until she threw her arms around him and embraced him tightly. He felt her shoulders heave against him as she let out a long breath, and a few seconds later she released him, smiling slightly. "Perhaps, it is enough?" She asked, looking hopeful.
"No, it isn't, but I promise I will do my very best to make sure it is."
Cora nodded tentatively and leaned in to press a gentle kiss to his cheek. She blushed slightly when she pulled away and lowered her eyelashes a bit.
Robert was just about to lean in and kiss her properly, but as if she had another thought, she pressed her palm to his chest to stop him, searching his eyes before speaking.
"Why didn't you take my hand, in the dress shop?" She asked softly. "Were you…are you embarrassed of me?"
Once again wishing he could simply disappear into the settee, Robert shook his head madly, grasping her hands tightly and pulling her against him. "God no. Of course not. Cora, I—well, it's rather embarrassing…" he began.
"Please, tell me," she entreated, still grasping his hands, looking incredibly unsure of herself, but more worryingly, incredibly unsure of him.
Robert knew he had to explain himself, and knew that Cora would likely laugh at him for the rest of eternity once she heard his ridiculous explanation. Nevertheless, she was still waiting for a proper response, and so he gathered up his remaining courage and attempted one.
"I was in the front of the shop, you see, and I overheard you laughing in the back. I…well I thought I would go check to see if you were nearly finished, and I saw you from outside the dressing room," he began.
"You were watching me?" Cora asked with a slight frown.
"Yes, I suppose I was, but just for a moment. Well, when I saw you standing there, I started to feel rather…"
"I don't understand," Cora prompted, furrowing her brows as she looked at him in a most unnerving manner.
Robert, finally knowing there was no more tactful way to explain himself, simply took a very long deep breath and tried one final time. "When I saw you standing there, without—without your dress on, my body…er, reacted, and so I used the overcoat to cover myself." He felt a most uncomfortable blush creeping up his neck and wished he could simply run right home, as he was about to pass out from the utter embarrassment of it all.
Cora sat silently, processing his words for a brief moment before realization washed over her, and her eyes widened slightly, and she bit her lip. "Oh…"
Robert stood, faster than he had ever stood before, and let go of Cora's hands in a quick motion. "Shall I ring for tea, now?" He asked, in a rather loud and awkward tone.
Cora stood as well, and took his hands once more. Very slowly, she leaned up and pressed a kiss to his lips, lingering for far longer than he had anticipated, as he was finally forced to pull back from a lack of air. "I wish you would have told me," she murmured. "I could have helped."
"Helped?" Robert managed to croak, closing his eyes as he felt his body beginning to react once more. It was as though even his body was against him, not allowing him to express himself properly. Each time Cora got close to him, he lost any sense of control and once again he felt it slipping away rather quickly.
"Yes, I could have helped." She repeated softly. Before he could answer, she kissed him again, this one even longer and filled with more passion than he was expecting. When he felt her tongue brush against his lower lip, working its way into his mouth, he felt his knees buckle in response.
They tumbled back down onto the settee, Robert hovering above Cora as she tried to undo his shirt buttons. She was rather good at it, and did so without ever having to break their heated kisses. By the time she made it to the last button, his lips were working their way down her neck and he shrugged it off onto the floor, desperate to get right back to his wife. Cora groaned with pleasure as he began unfastening the hooks on the side of her dress, but he was not exactly skilled at undressing his wife, yet another fact he was most embarrassed to admit, and so after several frustrating minutes, Cora broke away and stood, quickly undoing the buttons herself, and letting the dress float to the floor. Robert moved to stand, to allow Cora to settle beneath him again, but she held up a hand and smiled.
Grasping his shoulders, Cora maneuvered him down against the couch so he was lying flat against it. Without another word, she climbed on top of him and kissed him once more, letting her hands roam down his sides as she straddled him, sending an electric current through his body. He had absolutely no idea what was happening, but he was quite sure he never wanted it to end.
He tried to flip Cora beneath him once more, as he felt the pressure in his groin tightening almost uncomfortably, but she remained fixed above him, her lips making their way down his abdomen as she slid a bit lower, kneeling on the settee between his legs. When she reached for the closure to his trousers, she grinned up at him before finally undoing them and helping him get them off. He was just about to pull her back up when she slid down even lower and pressed a kiss to his stomach, alarmingly close to the region of his body that felt as though it was about to explode.
She looked up at him through lowered eyelashes, a very slight blush coloring her cheeks, before tentatively letting her hand grasp him intimately, something he had only ever dreamed of her doing. She ran her fingers over him, almost curiously, as she had watched him do a few times, before leaning down a moment later and replacing her hand with her mouth—eliciting a loud, pained moan from her husband as she continued her delicate attentions.
Robert writhed in pleasure beneath his wife and involuntarily arched his back, his fingers digging into the fabric of the settee. The mere sight of Cora, of his wife, kneeling before him doing things he had only read about in a few colorful gentlemen's magazines, was enough to send him right over the edge. "Cora…you…don't…have…to…do," was all he managed before releasing another groan.
Cora smiled, seemingly pleased that her attentions had such an effect on him, and finally she released him for a brief second and inched her way back up, until her body covered his. She sat up slightly, straddling him once again as he finally thrust his body into hers, sharing a mutual gasp of pleasure with her as they finally joined together.
Robert thrust into his wife almost frenziedly as she arched her back and threw her head backward, moaning with pleasure as well. He reached up, letting his hands explore her body in a way he never had allowed himself before, and felt Cora shudder as his fingers curled around her waist, steadying her as he continued to push into her. "Oh, God, Robert…" She groaned in a low voice that was almost unrecognizable. He continued to thrust into her, feeling waves of pleasure course through his body as she murmured his name over and over.
A few moments later he felt her tense against him, releasing one final breathy gasp before collapsing on his chest. He followed her release a few seconds later and finally stilled his movements, wrapping his arms around his wife and holding her against him. They remained like that for untold minutes, until it finally dawned on him that they were lying unclothed, in the afterglow of their passions, on his sister's settee in the middle of her library. Robert gently brushed away a strand of hair from Cora's forehead and pressed a light kiss to her neck. "Perhaps we could have that tea now?" He murmured against her soft skin, breathing in the delightful scent of her perfume.
She nodded against his shoulder and moved to sit up, smiling sheepishly as she gathered their discarded garments from the floor. She caught a glimpse of herself in a mirror hanging on the wall, and was rather surprised at the sight. Wearing only her chemise, her skin was flushed a light pink color and her hair was incredibly mussed and sticking out in various directions. But when she caught sight of Robert grinning at her, running his hands through his own mussed hair, she realized she had never felt happier than she did in that moment.
"Could we take our tea upstairs?" Cora asked, her voice still breathy and imbued with the pleasure of their heated coupling.
Robert happily agreed and reached out for Cora's hand as he stood from the settee, leading her out of the library. "I suppose we'll have to purchase Rosamund a new settee," he mused as they climbed the stairs to the top floor, eager to situate themselves in one of the bedrooms.
Cora giggled lightly in agreement. "I suppose so, though I would argue that we put it to very good use."
Just reaching the door to the first guest bedroom, Robert captured Cora in another kiss, pressing her gently against the wall. "Very, very good use." He released her and took her hand once more, leading her into the room before closing, and locking, the door behind them. When Cora flounced down on the bed and crooked her finger at him, beckoning him forward, he knew their tea would be delayed for just a bit longer.
Hours later, after tea, more murmured apologies and promises, and a few more very scandalous words and moans passed between them, Robert and Cora found themselves curled into one another beneath the thick coverlet, exploring for the first time what spending the night together actually felt like. Cora felt safe in her husband's arms, safer than she had in quite a long time, and Robert felt, for the first time since their wedding, that he was needed.
It was not long before they both drifted off to sleep.
Cora's dreams were filled with holiday merriment and a fresh excitement for the days to come.
Robert's dreams were filled with images of his wife and a very comfortable settee.
When he woke the next morning, he resolved to buy his new favorite piece of furniture from Rosamund and have it sent up to Downton as soon as possible.
He anticipated it finding a very happy home in their library, where they could put it to very, very good use.