"Robert, it does not matter!" Cora said annoyed. She was packing her suitcase for the first part of the book tour. They would start in Newcastle and from there go further down the country. She would have to stay in small local hotels to make sure there was enough time to get her much-needed rest. Even though she was feeling a lot better, Dr Clarkson had insisted on her doing things at a slower pace.

"Of course, it does matter!" Robert crossed his arms in front of his chest. "We need to know who spread these rumours as soon as possible!" He turned his back towards the window that he had been looking out.

Cora sighed, since that afternoon in the tearoom, Robert had insisted on finding the culprit. Unfortunately, O'Brien was away on a holiday, so Carson did not have the chance to ask her about it. It was a strange thing in Cora's eyes, that the butler had to have this talk and not Robert. "Robert please, as soon as she is back, we will know. We are not going to call her while she is away."

"She is our employee; we can call her whenever we want."

Cora took some dresses and folded them so they would fit in the suitcase. She wanted to look cute, and at the same time hide her belly. For now, there was nothing to see, but there would be a slight bulge at the end of the tour. "Can you let it rest until she is back?"

"Definitely not." Robert said in a harsh tone.

Cora sighed again and sat down on the settee that was placed at the end of the bed. Absentmindedly she rubbed her temples, a slight headache was bothering her. "It does not change anything when we know today or next week." She looked up and saw Robert standing close to her all of a sudden.

He rested his hand against her face. "Is it wise that you are going on this tour?" He had a concerned look on his face.

Cora lifted her hand and rested it against his. "It would be better if you joined me." Said Cora in a roguish voice to tempt him to forget about O'Brien.

As if he was struck by lightning, he pulled his hand back. "You know I cannot do that. I am needed here, why would you ask that of me?"

"Robert?" Cora said shocked, she had not expected him to react like this. "I know you are needed here; I am just saying that I would have loved to have you with me on this trip. I know you cannot, I was not asking you to choose between your father or me."

Robert let out a deep sigh and stepped back towards the window. With his hands on his back, he stared outside. "I do not like the idea of you travelling while somebody is out there to hurt you, and you are at the same time recovering and pregnant."

Cora was not sure how to react. She could not postpone this tour. It would hurt the sales numbers, and she would be too far into her pregnancy or could already have the baby. This was the best time, and Dr Clarkson had said so himself that she was healthy enough to go. She got up from the settee and stepped towards Robert. She slid her hands in between his arms and body towards his tummy. Pressing herself against his back. "Everything will be alright."

Abruptly Robert stepped away from her. "No, it will not." He replied and left her room.

Cora could cry, what had she done wrong? Why was Robert so unkind? She understood that he was worried about her, but she was a grown woman.

Cora woke up with a weird feeling. She turned on her side and stretched her arm. Robert's side was empty and cold. She opened her eyes and saw that he had slept there. It was a relief after yesterday afternoon and evening. He had not said a word to her besides the necessary things.

She had hoped to talk with him before she had to leave, but as usual, he was shutting her out. She pushed the duvet away and got up. In about two hours her taxi would be here. She rested her hand on her belly, she was slightly nauseous, but she knew that if she waited a bit longer with getting up, she would feel better.

She was lucky that her morning sickness was not bothering her. At least something that went smoothly.

A knock on her door. "Who is it?" She said.

"Mrs. Hughes Milady. Can I come in?"

A very kind-looking woman stepped into Cora's room after she replied. Gold blond hair tucked away in a braid that was wrapped up to her head. She was wearing a dark dress that looked like a uniform. "Since O'Brien is not here to help you, I thought I could." She looked at Cora and raised her eyebrows. "I am so sorry Milady. You are not even dressed. Please excuse me." She wanted to leave.

"No, no." Cora stopped the woman from walking away. She had seen her before, but this was the first time they had a real interaction, and she did not want to give her a bad feeling. "I am a bit slow these days in the morning, you could not know that I was not dressed."

"Are you feeling alright?"

Cora realised just in time that nobody knew about her pregnancy, she almost misspoke. "I am feeling as alright as I can be. Thank you."

Later than she normally did, Cora went downstairs. Mrs. Hughes had brought her something to eat in her room. She had a sharp eye, Cora realized, and had noticed that she was feeling nauseous.

"There you are." Robert's voice sounded loudly in the great hall.

Quickly Cora managed a smile on her face when she noticed that they were not alone. She let Robert kiss her cheek. "Good morning."

"Good morning, look who arrived." He stepped aside and Rosamund came into view.

"Rosamund!" Cora exclaimed. "What are you doing here?"

"Robert told me you were going on the book tour on your own and I knew that I could not let that happen." She pulled Cora close and gave her a tight hug. "I did not come on my own, Marmaduke and Peter are also here. But I brought another surprise. Marmaduke and Peter are not joining us, but somebody else is."

"Tada. Surprise." Sorcha stepped around one of the pillars.

Cora started to cry; she had missed her friend. "Oh Sorcha, how sweet of you to come all the way to Downton."

"I am not saying no to this amazing adventure. The three of us on a road tour, it will be amazing."

Robert's hand came to a rest on Cora's back, and he leaned close to her. "We could use this opportunity?"

"We said we would wait?" Cora replied when Rosamund and Sorcha had walked to the drawing room, whipping her tears of her cheeks. "Robert." Cora rested her hand on his arm. "We are still in the first trimester."

"And what are you going to say when they notice you are not drinking?"

"I just want to keep this for ourselves. I want to be sure Little Bean is healthy and alright. And on top of that, I love our little secret. I will say that the doctor advised me to stay off alcohol because of the medicine." She started to walk towards the drawing room.

Robert grabbed her hand and pulled her back. "Wait." He said while wrapping his arm around her lower back. "I have to apologise for last night."

Cora looked up at him. He was genuinely looking upset, but she was not ready for his apology. This was not the first time he ignored her after he got angry.

"Cora." He started when he noticed she was not willing to listen. "I know I messed up, again. I should not have ignored you when I came to bed. But the thought of you being so far away makes me anxious, very anxious."

"I am not that far; I am not leaving the country."

"Still, you would be on your own, with these stupid headaches that are still present and carrying a precious load."

"Is that why Rosamund is here? Did you call her?"

Robert's cheeks coloured. "I did, she was the only one I could think of that could make me feel less anxious about you being on that tour."

Cora felt her heart soften, he was a very caring man and got easily overwhelmed when things were concerning her. She raised her hand and brushed over his cheek. "I promise you that the minute I do not feel well, I will come home."

Robert leaned his head against her hand. "You promise?"

"I promise." She got on her tiptoes and pressed a kiss on his lips. She was startled when something touched her leg, and when she looked down, she saw Peter. He had crawled towards them. Quickly she bent down and picked him up. She lifted him in the air and twirled him around. "Where did you come from?" She asked while pressing her nose in his neck. Peter squealed from joy.

"Peter was wondering why his aunt and uncle took so long to come and greet him. So, he went looking for you." Rosamund said with a mischievous smile, she stood in the doorway to the drawing room.