Chapter 3

"Are you feeling more yourself?" Mrs Hughes asked as she gave her patient his medicine that evening.

"A bit," he admitted before turning a little sombre. "I still can't get over it." The news of Miss Swire's death had broken several hours earlier and it had shaken the entire household.

"I'll hope you won't pretend you liked her now," Mrs Hughes told him, raising her eyebrow at him.

"I didn't want her here Mrs Hughes, I'll admit, but I had no objection to her being happy somewhere else."

"She didn't deserve to die," Mrs Hughes agreed.

They both turned thoughtful. It had hit home for both of them how lucky Mr Carson had been to come through it.

"I wanted to say thank you, Mrs Hughes, for taking care of me."

"Your thanks aren't really necessary," she told him.

"I disagree."

"Your disagreeing with me? Well I'd say you were definitely feeling more yourself," she teased.

He allowed himself a small smile at her teasing. "You shouldn't tease. I am extremely grateful. You have gone above and beyond the call of duty to see me well."

"I don't see it as a duty Mr Carson. You and I are friends, are we not?"

He smiled. "We are that… and as such, I think I would like it if you called me Charles." She didn't reply at first; caught off guard by his request. She felt a blush rise in her cheeks. As the silence lengthens, he felt the need to fill it; to justify his request. "Only when we are alone…" She raised an eyebrow at this; teasing him. It is he who blushed then. "What I mean is when there are no other members of staff present… I'm not implying that we should be alone in any way that is improper." Not that I wouldn't like to be alone with you more.

"I know. I think I would like that Charles…" she replied, trying out his name cautiously. It will certainly take some getting used to! "Can I ask what's brought this on?"

"The way you have cared for me… I think you have earned the right to use my Christian name. In fact, I think I insist on it."

That wasn't the real reason, merely an excuse. The truth was that he had had a lot of time to think while he had been cooped up in this room. Ever since he was forced to face the prospect of his leaving Downton to accompany Lady Mary to Haxby Park, things had been different between Mrs Hughes and himself. Something had shifted.

She had said she would miss him; and that had led him to wonder what it would be like without her in his life. When he thought of not working with her, not seeing her every day, he had been quite startled by his feelings on the matter. He realised that he would miss her too. Terribly. The more he pondered this, the clearer things became. He discovered, much to his astonishment that he, Charles Carson, was very much in love with Elsie Hughes.

Once he had discerned his true feelings, he had endeavoured to find out if there was any chance that they would be returned but he hadn't had any luck. Mrs Hughes was a hard woman to read. Until now. He had spoken to Anna earlier and she had been very eager, to inform him about Mrs Hughes' devotion during his illness. He had protested at first, for fear of embarrassment but, Anna had persisted and on reflection he was glad she had. Hearing how Mrs Hughes had refused to leave his side, had spurred him on to make a decision. Asking her to use his Christian name was him taking the first tentative step to advance their relationship. He was 'testing the water', so to speak.

Seemingly satisfied with his initial answer, Mrs Hughes replied, "In that case I must insist that you call me Elsie."

"Are you quite sure?"

"Certainly. It would hardly be fair that I call you Charles, yet you still refer to me as Mrs Hughes."

"No, I suppose not," he agrees. "Elsie," he murmurs with a smile.

They conversed for a few more moments, about trivial things, both revelling in the new found intimacy; the use of each other's first names, before Anna interrupted them with a request from Lady Crawley.

She left after relaying the message from her Ladyship allowing Mr Carson and Mrs Hughes to say their goodbyes in private. She placed her hand over his larger one, and squeezed it gently. "I'll pop back and check on you once I've locked up. Do try and get some rest… Charles."

In the corridor, Mrs Hughes had to take a moment to compose herself. The relief she felt that Mr Carson was recovering combined with the recent development between them, had both overjoyed and terrified her.

After a few minutes, she chided herself. Stop acting like a foolish girl! Nothing's really changed. But that was the problem, nothing much had changed, but on the other hand everything had.

A week the following Sunday, nine days after becoming unwell, Mr Carson ventured downstairs once again. He knocked lightly on Mrs Hughes' pantry door and entered, closing the door behind him. As he hoped, he found her getting ready to leave for church; fixing her hat and scarf.

Seeing him through the mirror, her face broke out into a smile. "Charles, you're up!"

"I am and I would very much like it if you would allow me to accompany you to church this morning." He offered her his arm and she took it, a slight blush colouring her cheeks.

"Are you sure you're feeling quite up to this?" she checked.

"Quite sure."

"Very well. Lead on Charles."

They walked a few steps behind the rest of the staff, all of whom had been glad to see Mr Carson up and about again. When they arrived at church they sat next to each other in the pew as usual, but this week they sat that little bit closer, sharing copies of the hymn and prayer books. They weren't close enough that it could be deemed improper, but there was a noticeable difference.

During they prayers they prayed silently, both thanking God for the other. Mr Cason, thankful that Mrs Hughes had shown such care and devotion to him, and Mrs Hughes, thankful that Mr Carson made a good recovery.

After the service, whilst Mrs Hughes was talking to the rector, Mr Carson spoke quietly with Anna. "Would you be able to oversee the house for the next hour or so?"

"Of course Mr Carson. Is there anything the matter?"

"No, not at all. I would merely like to take Mrs Hughes on a short walk; to thank her for the care she provided whilst I was ill."

Anna smiled knowingly. "I think that's a lovely idea."

"We'll be back before the family take luncheon."

"I'd expect no less," she replied with a grin.

As Anna and the others began to walk down the path through the church yard, Mr Carson joined Mrs Hughes and Rev. Edmondson. The vicar was pleased to see that Mr Carson was recovered enough to attend church and wished him well. When their conversation was over, and Rev. Edmondson returned into the church, Mrs Hughes was startled to see that they were the only two people left in the churchyard.

"Oh my, it seems we've talked for rather a long time. We must get back."

"Before we do… Elsie, would you care to take a walk with me?"

"But what about the house?"

"I have asked Anna to keep an eye on things for a short time," he informed her. "Please Elsie, there is something I wish to talk to you about." Once again her offered his arm.

"My, that does sound intriguing. Go on then, but not too long a walk mind; I've things to be getting on with and you shouldn't be overdoing it."

They walked from the church, through the village, down to the small brook that ran alongside the village. They stopped at a bench and Mr Carson sat, motioning for her to join him. She sat down next to him, pulling her shawl around her shoulders.

"Are you cold?" he asked.

"No, not really. There was just a slight breeze. How are you feeling? Really?"

"I'm much better. I'll be returning to my duties tomorrow as agreed."

"You will rest if it gets too much for you, won't you?"

"Don't worry Elsie. I'll be fine. I am fully recovered. And now that I am, I would very much like it if… that is… I was wondering if… I mean to say…" He clenched his fist; annoyed that he couldn't find the right words.

"Charles, what is it?"

He took a deep breath. "Would you allow me to court you?"

"I…I'd like that. Very much." She grasped his hand and he let out a breath he didn't even realise he was holding. He turned his hand over underneath hers, so their palms were touching, and interlaced their fingers.

"I have to admit though," Mr Carson admitted, "I'm not entirely sure how people of our age would go about courting. I fear we are a little old to 'walk out' together."

"Speak for yourself," she teased, with a giggle.

"I like it when you laugh; you don't do it enough."

"Well I shall endeavour to do it more."

"And I shall endeavour to help."

"As much as I hate to admit it, I do see your point about walking out." She paused for a moment considering. "What if we made up our own code of behaviour. I'm sure we can decide what is proper and what is not. We have enough experience, do we not?"

"That we do."

She glanced down at their clasped hands and gave his a gentle squeeze. "Would this be acceptable do you think?"

He tightened his grip. "I don't see why not."

With her other hand she reached up and stroked his cheek. "And this?"

He swallowed and she wondered for a moment if she'd pushed too far too quickly, if she'd been too forward. But he surprised her, turning his head and placing a kiss on her gloved palm. Sitting there with her, he couldn't remember ever feeling so contented. He mirrored her actions, cupping her face with his free hand, and leant towards her. Their faces were less than half an inch apart and as she spoke she could feel his breath skirt over her lips.

"I may be pushing the boundaries of propriety here Elsie, but I find that I can't seem to help myself. You must tell me if you find it inappropriate."

"Well you haven't really done anything yet Charles, but I'll be sure to bear that in mind. However, as we're making up our own rules, I think you would be on safe ground if you were to…" she swallowed, "kiss me."

Her consent given, he closed the gap between them, touching her lips with his own. She offered no resistance, so he deepened the kiss, pouring the depth of his love into his every move. His hand left hers and moved to her waist.

After a few moments she pulled away from his kiss, resting her forehead against his while trying to catch her breath. "I think we should stop now, or we will be pushing the boundaries of propriety."

"Yes, yes of course." He cleared his throat. "I apologise."

"You don't need to. I was quite enjoying it, I just don't think here, now is the best idea."

He smiled at her. "Right as always. My Elsie."

He stood, holding out his hand for her. She took it and allowed him to help her to his feet. She expected him to drop her hand once they began walking but he didn't. He held it until they neared the Abbey where, by mutual agreement to avoid becoming the subject of gossip, they parted. But not before Mr Carson had pulled her behind a large tree to kiss her goodbye. She was quite breathless when he pulled away and wondered if her somewhat wobbly knees would carry her back to the house.

Thankfully, they did and both she and Mr Carson made it safely into their respective pantries, filled with joy at the new path they were now travelling together.

Fin

A/N: Okay, I suck at endings, so I apologise if it seems a little lame. I imagine that I could probably have taken this fic much further but I'm so new to the fandom I feel like I need more time to get inside the world and the characters before I embark upon what I feel would be a rather lengthy project. Who know… I may possibly return to this at some point in the future. Never say never and all that jazz. But for now their story is finished… I shall leave it to you to imagine the rest, so long as you promise you'll give them a happy ending.

Thank you for all your comments/favourites. I appreciate them more than I can say. Please do leave one last review if you are able.