Robert looked in the mirror. He could see the dark circles under his eyes. Since Cora had left, he had not heard her voice. She had sent him a letter, what had surprised him. In that letter she explained that she had problems with her phone and could not get it to work. She was trying to get a new phone, but her mother kept her very busy. He carried her letter with him, everywhere he went. He had made a small envelope with her letter and the two poems. He hoped to be able to write her back this afternoon. He adored her, she had made effort to find his address. Of course, she knew the estate was called Downton. But it still meant a lot to him that she'd put so much effort into making contact. She could have waited until she had a working phone again, but she'd gone to the trouble of trying! Oh, how sweet her letter had been, she had started quite formal, but the middle part had been rather exciting. He knew that no one should ever read that part, expect from him. She had made him blush while he read it.

"Sir Grantham?" Robert cringed. He had asked the staff to just call him Robert or Mr. Crawley, but they were trying all different ways to use some part of his title. He was officially the viscount of Grantham, but he did not like that title. He knew that he was higher in ranking than the people working here at Downton, but he did not like that feeling. His mother was the one who made it important. She cared about those things, while he only cared about making sure that the estate was running well. That meant there was enough work for many people, and it also meant that other members of the nobility came to their company when in trouble. And even that had changed, many came before there was even a hint of trouble. They wanted to be prepared.

It was weird to see the different interest between him and his mother. She had always made sure he followed in her footsteps, but she had failed. Even Rosamund did not care about her title. It must frustrate her very much that both her children were so different in their opinions. Robert believed that it was not wrong that there was a difference between people. It was how it was; some people were born into nobility and some people not. But the people that belonged to the nobility had to make sure that they shared what they had. That was why he loved Downton. He had moved to London, because his father was running the business and estate and there was not much for him to do. It also helped with the business, as many companies were settled in London. Meetings were not as time consuming as they were when he still lived in Downton.

There was a knock on the door. "Sir Grantham?" A young boy opened the door and looked at him.

"Can you wait next time for my reply! What is it boy?" He asked and realised his tone was not very friendly.

"Lady Grantham has send for you."

Robert made sure his tone was softer this time. "Thank you for telling me. Do you know where Lady Grantham is at this moment?"

"She is waiting in the library sir." He hesitated to walk away. "I am sorry for opening your door without waiting for your reply sir." The boy said while he looked down.

Robert quickly stepped towards him, he put his hand under his chin and lifted his head, so the boy was looking at him. "Never say sorry for something like that. It is something you were told to do. And I could have replied to your first knock. I am sorry for sounding this harsh." He let go of his chin and stepped back. He was still a child, why was he working already? He should ask his father tonight.

"You asked for me?" Robert started when he walked into the library. He stopped in his tracks, when he noticed that his mother was not alone. The blond-haired woman made him hold his breath. Why was she here again, he had told his mother that he was not interested.

"Isabella, I was not expecting you." He greeted her, while he took her hand. She leaned in to receive a kiss, but he refused. He walked to his mother and kissed her cheek. "Mama." He said, as it was the first time he saw her today and he was aware of her belief that it was important to maintain these standards of behaviour.

"Robert, please sit down. I was just telling Isabella about the artwork your father and grandfather collected, and I thought you could show her the collection?"

"I am not totally sure why you think I am the perfect person for that Mama." Robert started, he knew that he would get a good scolding once Isabella had left, but he could not take her interference anymore. He did not want to be with Isabella, and he wanted Violet to stop trying to get him to like her. "I do not know anything about the art works. Papa would be best to explain the works to her. Or maybe, she can look at the works herself?"

Violet gave Robert a deadly look and he knew that he had messed up. This would cost him a lot, he sighed. It was madness that he would get a punishment for this. He was old enough to make his own life choices. He got up and turned towards Isabella. "I need to apologize; my Mama has let you believe that I was available for marriage." He heard Violet gasp. "Technically I am still available, I am not married or engaged, but my heart is somewhere else. I never had any intention of marrying you, and I do hope that I did not give you the idea that I would."

Isabella blinked rapidly and Robert was scared she was going to cry. Quickly he turned around towards his mother. "I am going up to Papa, I promised him to show the numbers of last month."

His heart was pounding while he left the library. This was the first time in his life that he had stand up to his mother in this way. Yes, she had protested when he moved to London, but it had been different. This felt empowering.