Robin leaned around Strike to see an agitated Matthew bending down to Sarah's ear. Even as she watched, Sarah met her gaze, eyes widening in sudden surprise. Crimson bloomed on her face as she looked away fixedly. Strike meanwhile was cheerily pushing two full glasses of wine her way. She spared him a quick thanks before returning her gaze to watch as Matthew continued hurriedly muttering at Sarah. That Matt was upset was blatantly obvious- but she had never seen him look so disconcerted.

"What the hell did you say to him?" Said Robin distractedly.

Strike's mood was dampened suddenly by the idea that Robin would resent him for his spiteful interference. The very last thing he wanted was to cause her pain. He cringed inwardly at the sudden vision he had of the rest of the holiday spent awkwardly with her family while she shut him out in anger. He would deserve it, he thought- if he had misread her was quiet as he watched her with trepidation. After a few moments of tense silence Robin turned back to look at him, chewing her lip on reluctant amusement, eyebrows raised.

"Strike!" she said, breaking into an incredulous smile at the look of guilt on his face, "You didn't hit him, did you?"

"NO!" said strike added quickly, but after a moment he added, "He never gave me an opportunity to make it look like self defense."

She let out a shocked laugh at this.

"I've never seen him look that uncomfortable. What on earth did you say?"

"I asked him how Sarah liked Masham." said strike evasively, relieved to see that she was laughing again, "And I congratulated him on finding someone that deserved him."

He intentionally left out how he had dug the other man by pointing out just how much his ex-wife was thriving without him. That was for his own private enjoyment, he thought. Robin sucked in a breath groaning inwardly,

"I bet he hated that." said Robin, "He has alway had this thing about being the butt of a joke. He doesn't like to be laughed at and to be honest I think you laughing at him would be a special kind of hell for him." she sipped her wine conversationally and added, "He's always hated you, did you know that?"

"Ah, that's sad." Said strike relaxing into their conversation, " If he wasn't such a prick we might've gotten on."

Robin laughed at that,

"You've always been a little too outside the box for him." she elaborated, "He secretly wants to be the center of attention, and you are pretty effortlessly more interesting than he is without trying. What with being in a war, losing your leg not to mention your parents or your job..." she trailed off a bit before she finished "I think he also blamed you for being something of a bad influence on me."

"Well, I am a terrible influence. He's not wrong about that." said Strike with a grin, "Case in point- Look at you out drinking with a miserable, one legged twat on Christmas eve instead of enjoying time with your family."

Robin threw back her head in a laugh that sent a pleasant shiver down Strike's spine. She looked completely unbothered at now and he indulged his vanity just slightly to think that her happiness was partially his making. He liked the idea very much.

Inwardly Robin was reflecting how pleasant this evening was turning out to be. The pub was full and noisy and despite sharing the space with her ex-husband she was feeling light and more festive than she had in years. The warm glow of alcohol and good company was filling her with a quiet contentment that she had not felt in some time.

Robin shrugged as she sipped her wine,

"You're better company than my mother. At least you don't badger me about taking care of myself."

"I think if I were a better Partner I might try to look after you a little more." said Strike seriously. "You have a habit of ending up on the wrong end of a knife."

Robin shot him a look look of annoyance,

"You'd never say that about one of our male employees." Every now and again she sensed from Strike the urge to protect her from what he himself would look on as occupational hazards. She did what needed to be done, and sometimes that meant taking a risk.

He frowned at her in irritation-

"You know you might consider that you are not just an employee."

"Fine," she conceded, " A partner then- and If I were a man I doubt you'd- "

"Robin!" Strike interrupted, "I'm not sexist, and I think you're more than capable of handling yourself. You've proven that." Be honest, Strike thought, just say it, "Have you ever paused to think that I would be losing far more than a business partner if I lost you?" He shook his head, "I think I've done more than enough to prove to you that I trust you and that I think you're very good at what you do."

His heart began to beat faster, that wasn't all of it- he could say much more if he had the courage,

"You are…. More than my partner, Robin." holding her gaze earnestly, Then in frustration "Do I seem like the kind of man that crashes in on the intimate family Christmas of one of my work mates? You're a detective, and a bloody good one. Do some detecting here…"

Robin felt a swell of emotion fill her insides like heat. She was suddenly unable to look at him as she absorbed the impact of these words. The truth was, a part of her had felt this was a sign that he was, for inscrutable reasons, seeking some sort of intimate relationship with her. In the past, she'd only known Strike to pursue a woman with the singular purpose of casual shagging, and the occasional hot meal. Since that was not possible with a Woman who was a legal partner in his livelihood, she'd imagined herself as off limits to his libido.

The last time he had hinted that he wanted more from their relationship, she had unintentionally refused his kiss after that perfect evening at the Ritz. Then, she felt she couldn't risk his change of heart in the cold and sober light of day. She had long since come to the realization that she was in love with him. She loved him in a way that was totally unlike the love that she had had for Matthew. She felt that there was a thing that existed between that was unlike anything she thought was possible. They were two sides to the same coin and any romantic relationship with Strike would be… significant- at least to her. And now…. When she looked at the entirety of this trip, she had to confess to herself that she knew that he wasn't the kind of man to casually accept an invitation to a friend's family holiday. He preferred solitude to any kind of social situation that meant he needed to make an effort to be more acceptable to the people he was with. He fundamentally resisted artifice- even if it was offensive it do so.

This was nothing so clumsy as a drunken kiss that could be written off as foolish overindulgence.