Chapter 5

Octobert 2, 1901

For a month such as October, the day seemed to be an unusually lovely one, particularly for England. This couldn't have made Robert happier, for it meant he and Cora could go for a picnic rather than spending another ordinary day simply having tea together in her drawing room as they had been in the recent gloomy weather. He suggested exactly that when he arrived at her door with a picnic basket he had requested their new cook, Mrs. Patmore, prepare for them.

So there the two of the were, out somewhere in the fields of her estate under a tree, on a picnic blanket, eating their luncheon together. It hadn't been his plan until he had seen the sky that morning. It had been a plan he had entirely kept from his mother, since he knew she didn't approve. He didn't want her judging Cora and sending him disapproving glances, nor did he want her sending Cora anymore biting remarks. Whether she liked it or not, he needed a new wife, and he was almost positive he was officially courting Cora. She was the one. She had been the one even when they first met. But back then, he wasn't sure he saw Cora for anything more than her money, and he was almost certain he wouldn't have immediately realized his true feelings for her.

"It really is a beautiful day," he heard Cora's lovely voice say in a peaceful tone. The children were currently in lessons, so it was just the two of them for the day, something that rarely happened.

He gave her a soft smile, the hand that was resting near hers moving to gently caress her knuckles with his thumb. "It certainly is," he whispered softly. Just as beautiful as the woman next to me, he thought. In fact, she was even more beautiful. The most beautiful thing he had ever laid eyes on.

His actions made Cora freeze for a moment and her breath catch in her throat. In all the time they had spent together, their touches had been limited to her simply take his arm on walks, nothing much more. But his—his thumb caressing her knuckles—she found she liked it. Loved it even. And despite their minimal touches, she found that it felt like the most natural thing in the whole world. It felt like something that was meant to always happen between them.

However, for Robert, her silence and her apparent shock was rather worrying for him, and he immediately began to second-guess his actions. He had stepped out of line too soon. They hadn't been seeing one another long enough, suppose she found it odd, or even inappropriate, that he was caressing her hand almost intimately? Perhaps he shouldn't have… "I-I'm sorry, I didn't mean…" he started slowly, starting to pull his hand away from hers.

"No, it's fine," Cora interrupted quickly, giving him a smile and gently pulling his hand back to its previous position. "I like it. You just caught me a little bit by surprise. But you don't have to move your hand."

Robert took in a shaky breath and nodded at her reassuring words, giving her a soft smile. That smile…that smile made her heart melt. He was such a sweet, kind man. The more she saw of him, the more she found she was falling in love with him. She had thought she had been in love with him all those years ago, but now…now she felt it so much stronger, especially when she watched him with her children. The love she had felt back then simply seemed trivial to what she felt now. "Robert, I…" Cora started slowly, but trailed off after a moment, second-guessing her idea to tell him how she felt.

"I want to discuss something with you," Robert said softly at the same time she started to trail off. Those words, for some reason, caused Cora's heart to sink, but she said nothing and gave him a tentative nod. She watched as he took in a nervous breath, and that only made her even more nervous. Clearly this was serious if he was so nervous to speak with her about it.

"Since my wife died, I've been told by everyone that I need to find a new wife," Robert explained quietly. He didn't have an heir, they told him. He wouldn't ever have an heir unless he remarried. "But I didn't want to…not for a long time, despite them telling me I could never secure an heir without a new wife. I didn't care, for I didn't want to marry simply for that fact alone anymore. I had already married simply for money. And then I met you for the second time. After that, I did care, because I had found someone that it could be about so much more with…"

Cora's eyes widened at his words and her breath caught in her throat once more. "Robert," she breathed softly, a small smile turning up the corners of her lips. "Are you asking me to marry you?"

Robert gave her a smile and kissed the back of her hand softly. "Not quite yet," he responded quietly, his lips still against her hand. "But I know you are the one I want to marry eventually, whether mama approves or not. I want to do it right and continue to court you for a little while longer, though. I do not wish to rush anything just yet." Because I love you, he added in his head, but he found he did not have the courage to say it out loud. He wanted to, oh how he wanted to say it out loud, but for some reason, he simply couldn't yet.

Cora let out a small laugh and squeezed his hand gently. "I would love that, Robert," she whispered. "I want to marry you too. And I completely agree with you decision." She went quiet for a moment and then let out a shaky sigh. "Your mother, though, she doesn't like me. That was clear from last night, and when we first met. Are you sure she'll…"

"It doesn't matter," he assured her, squeezing her hand gently again. "It is not her decision. It is mine. And I choose you. I intend to make that clear to her." He stared into her eyes for a few moments, wanting nothing more than to kiss her. After a moment, however, he blinked and fought back the urge. "I apologize for her behaviour, by the way. She had no right to say those things. She doesn't know you."

A smile lit up Cora's face at those words and Robert felt his heart speed up. That smile…that smile was the smile he loved. And that smile would soon be all his. Somehow he knew she reserved that particular smile only for him. Letting out a slow breath. He slowly raised his free hand to gently caress her cheek. Slowly, his thumb trailed over her bottom lip, and his eyes came up to meet hers.

Those lovely blue eyes were gazing up into his and the beauty of them made his heart stop momentarily and his breath catch. "Cora…" he breathed quietly. "May I…would you mind terribly if I kissed you?"

That caused a small smile to grow on Cora's lips and she shook her head in response. The two of them simply watched one another for a few moments more, Robert still gently caressing her soft cheek. Her skin was more soft than he could even imagine, and he couldn't help but glance to her lips and wonder if they were just as soft. They looked it. After a few moments, he leaned forward and pressed a tender kiss to her soft lips. Just as he thought, they were just as soft, softer even, than her skin was. Kissing her felt like the most natural thing in the world, almost as of the two of them had specifically been made simply to kiss only one another.

It was with great reluctance that Robert pulled away after the kiss lasted a few moments longer than was appropriate. He gave her a soft smile and gently caressed her cheek once more. "Lovely," he whispered softly. "Have I ever told you how impossibly lovely you are?" And he wasn't just talking of her beauty. She truly was a beautiful person both inside and out.

He relished at the blush that rose in Cora's cheeks, a smile growing on his own lips. "Not directly, no," she breathed softly, a small laugh escaping her.

Robert chuckled with her and pressed a tiny kiss to her lips. "Well you are," he whispered. "Quite lovely. The loveliest I have ever met."

I figured this seemed a perfect place to end this chapter. I didn't plan for this chapter to be purely fluff, but that was what happened. And I apologize profusely for taking so long to update. I was finishing up a spring course (which I got an A- in, happily) and I'm also preparing to move into an apartment in a week. But I'm all finished packing for now and I'm heading to my hometown for a week so I should have more time before my summer courses started next week. I hopefully should be able to get one more chapter up this week. And thank you for all the reviews on the previous chapter!