"Finally," she said, closing the door to her room behind her and leaning back against it with a satisfied sigh. "You dismissed Bates as I asked, didn't you?" she eyed her husband, turning to her now with a borderline smirk.

"Yes, and though he is a married man now, he did give me a rather curious glance."

"Too bad for Bates," she smiled, eyeing him up and down. "Oh, Robert," she murmured, walking towards him slowly until she was close enough to rest her hands on his chest. "I meant it earlier - you don't look so bad yourself. In fact . . . I have to admit this ensemble of yours does quite the trick on me."

"Does it now?" he asked, pulling his arms around her as she shivered closer.

She reached up a hand to pull off her feathers and tiara, throwing a mental apology to Baxter for the inconvenience, before flinging them to the settee and shaking her head. His hands moved to find pins that held her curls in place, throwing them carelessly to the floor until he could card his hands through her hair without impediment. She leaned back into his hands to smile up at him.

"Yes, Robert, it does," she kissed him softly, beckoning him more fully into her embrace as he kissed harder, seeking the pressure and fullness of her lips. "You look incredibly handsome. Drove me near to distraction all evening."

"Shall I keep it on for you then?" he asked playfully, nipping at her neck.

She pulled back and eyed him in mock thoughtfulness. "Intriguing idea, however, all these medals and the sword and such get in the way of the things I have in mind for you - " she stopped to laugh when his eyes went wide with curiosity. "I do love you in all your hard-earned decoration, my only love, but let me help you out of it, hmm?" she whispered, and moved her hands to his waist, slowly unbuttoning his belt and helping him shrug out of it. "There, dearest," she continued, running her hands up his chest. How did he manage to become more handsome each year they were together? She wound her fingers behind his neck to pull him in for a kiss, feeling his own arms tighten around her waist before inching upwards to pull the neckline of her ballgown down.

She smiled into their kiss, feeling his fingers along her shoulders and collarbone. "That is not how to undress a lady, Robert Crawley."

She felt his hands still against her skin before realigning the edges of her clothing to where it ought to be, dragging the sleeves up her shoulders.

"I beg your pardon, my ladyship. Please lead the way," he asked when he was finished, stepping backwards to sit upon the settee, looking at her meaningfully.

She gazed down at him, noting the slight challenge in his eye. "Of course, my lordship." She placed a foot into his lap. "If you would be so kind as to help me with my buckle. To begin."

He chuckled for a moment before realizing she was quite serious and reached to begin fumbling with the clasp on her shoe as she removed her jewelry and tossed the various pieces onto the vanity.

"And now the other one?" she asked again, when he had finished, placing her right foot in his lap.

Once he had discarded the shoe and looked up at her for the next instructions, she leaned forward, bending her knee and drawing her face nearer to his as she bunched up the hem of her dress. "My stockings, sir. I believe you've seen me roll them down a few times. Please be diligent in your efforts."

She watched in silent satisfaction as his eyes glazed over just a bit, his hands reaching up under her dress to find where her stockings began, stroking the underside of her thigh before unsnapping the garter belt, rolling them gently down her leg, one by one, while she pulled her dress up and over her head, leaving her in her chemise and underthings.

"And now?" he breathed, drawing his hands up the backs of her calves. Her bare feet and legs felt delightful against the carpet and the fabric of the settee, drifting against her husband's very formal court attire.

The beautiful colors and medals were shining in the firelight, making his features stand out more clearly. His eyes looked intoxicatingly blue and beckoned her closer. She could see his chest rise and fall as he tried to control his breathing in the wake of her effort at seduction. His fingers opened and closed into fists at his sides, awaiting her instruction, and she held back a grin to see the obvious evidence of his arousal. His hairline might not be exactly where it had been thirty some years ago when they'd married, and he sometimes secretly complained that the middle of his jacket was too tight - the maids must have washed it improperly and shrunk it somehow - but God, Cora knew she grew more attracted to him and loved him only more deeply every year.

She stepped forward to place one knee on each side of his hips upon the settee. "And now . . . " she leaned forward until her lips hovered next to his ear. "Take me, Lord Grantham." She kissed the shell of his ear and let her warm breath linger. He made a sound deep in his throat, and she felt him shift under her hips and grip her bottom closer to him. "I am your lady," she continued, "and I want you to take me."

Something between a yelp and a giggle passed her lips in a quite unladylike way when he stood quickly from the settee at his words; her body firmly in the grip of his strong arms, until he tossed her unceremoniously onto the bed behind her. He quickly stepped out of his shoes and pants, peeled off his socks, and then unbuttoned his decorated jacket rather slowly, setting it down much more carefully than he had thrown the other things about the room. She bit her lip to watch him slow his motions to do so, knowing how much it meant to him. Dear, dear Robert.

At last he pounced upon her on the bed, dragging her chemise down her slim frame and tossing it aside. He pulled away all her underthings as she laughed, "Robert, darling!" And he bent over her, smiling, kissing her collarbone, her breasts, her hip bones before dipping between her legs. She propped herself up on her elbows to watch but felt her head grow heavy as she pushed her hips forward into his kiss and her neck lost its strength as she called out the name dearer to her than any other.

She glanced down at him, his grey curls damp from his exertions and her touch, a smirk dancing on his normally stoic English face as he watched her coming undone. His strong shoulders marked with scars from battle, a few freckles, the muscles cording with effort to hold her hips in place against his mouth. "Robert," she whispered breathlessly under his touch as he continued to pleasure her. "I longed for this all day," she admitted.

He stilled momentarily before looking up at her. "I long for this every day. I long for you every single day," he punctuated his remark with a pressing kiss to each of her thighs before returning his attentions, eyes locked on hers as she rolled her hips and then felt her whole body undulate before him in release.

She distantly felt and heard the way she panted his name as she crested over the waves coursing through her body. She sank back onto the bed and as feeling and awareness returned, feeling a momentary sense of embarrassment over what she was sure was a volume too loud. And she wasn't exactly sure what she might have said when her hands had been gripped tightly in Robert's hair, her eyes locked on his as long as she could stand it, her hips lifting automatically from the pillow he had dragged under them to give himself better access.

But his face came into focus above her as she recovered, and his look could have only been described as "triumphant." His eyes sought hers, and she struggled to focus as she felt his hands on her thighs, heard him tell her "Cora, I need you, I need you," and then as she nodded, felt him slide so easily inside her, and they moaned in unison. There it was, the feeling of completeness she had wanted.

She clung to her husband as well as she could, feeling the rush ebb and flow within her, feeling herself come more into focus and participate more as he moved against her. She arched her back and dug in her heels, feeling the delicious pressure of him against her until he finally cried out. She wrapped her arms around him - holding them both to the earth as he came back down from the stars. Her name was a breath on his lips and she rolled with him as he settled onto his back.

"What a night, dearest," he said at last, pressing a kiss to her sweaty brow.

"Indeed," was all she could manage, snuggling back against him, warding away the cold.

"You were marvelous, you know," he whispered, kissing her forehead again. "Tonight. Always. In all ways."

"I can hardly see how," she snorted against his chest. "I was so nervous. The Queen! The King! If only my father had been alive to see."

"But Cora, don't you see what it all means to me?" he asked.

She pulled up to look at him. "Whatever do you mean, Robert?"

"Well, I - " he began before swallowing.

"Robert?" she asked softly.

He looked hard up at the ceiling as he continued. "Can you imagine letting anyone else present our daughters in court?"

"Absolutely not," Cora snorted quickly before she even realized what she was saying. "Oh, I mean - " she added softly before he interrupted her.

"But my family asked you to step in and help with Rose -"

"And you!" she interjected softly. "They asked us to help. They were leaving for India and - "

"Darling," he shushed her, bringing his hand over hers. "Lets not pretend. Shrimpy and Susan were asking you to raise their daughter. They could have complete confidence, because they'd seen how well you'd done with the three of ours. The most intelligent, clever, beautiful daughters to ever grace this planet."

"You might be exaggerating, and you're surely biased, but go on if you must." She sniffled a little in his arms.

"Cora - I think about all you've left behind to come live with me - " she moved to shush him but he held his hand against her lips to let him continue. "And there have been many moments when I was proud to be your husband, and I have always loved being your husband. But when my family asks you to raise a daughter as their own," he shook his head as if to clear some of the emotion threatening to overpower him. "And you do so so willingly, and you do it so well . . . darling, I can't tell you how much it means to me. I wish - no," he stumbled for a moment. "I simply can't tell you what it means to me."

He ended his speech and let his hands fall, let his hands holding hers fall against their sides before he said the one last thing he knew he could say.

"Cora - you hold the world together for me. I love you."

She looked into his eyes as he laid his heart before her, and she knew that all she felt was the same. Tears threatened to spill but she took a deep breath and shook them away, reaching to run her fingers through his hair.

"I love you, Robert. I love you so very much."

They looked into each other's eyes for a few moments, and then she pressed her lips to his again.

"Oh darling, darling!" she whispered against his ear as he held her, taking her beneath him, and Lord and Lady Grantham spent the rest of the night finding ways to show that love to each other again.