Aurelia Cruz is a well respected club owner and madame in London, but she has things she holds very sacred and sacred things that hold her.
Thomas Shelby is a Birmingham gangster making his way up in the business world, and is trying to expand busin...
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A few days later Aurelia was contemplating Thomas' offer to go to the grand opening. "Ada?" She asked as her friend sat in the chair on the other side of her desk eating a sandwich. "Hm?" Ada asks chewing her food while looking at her friend. "Your brother invited me to the grand re-opening of The Garrison in a week." It wasn't at all a question but still Ada knew the underlying query. "Which brother?" She asked praying it wasn't Thomas, that sweet Arthur invited his friend from London to the opening. "Thomas." Aurelia said knowing Ada was cautious of Thomas and her. "Aurelia you're a grown woman and while, yes I want to protect you from how truly heartless my brother can be and how dangerous getting close to him is, but I can see he's already curious about you and you him." Ada admits with a sigh. "Then I won't go. You are right, I don't even know what I was thinking." Aurelia shakes her head trying to shake out the thought of showing up in Birmingham like it was dirt off an old coat.
Ada looked at Aurelia and she thought of Pol's calls and letters. Her aunt divulging how Thomas smiles more, he has these phone calls around dinner that make him seem more human than he's been since war. Ada's noticed some things in Aurelia as well, she blushes when she looks at the floral arrangement on her desk. Cala lilies, beautiful cala lilies with a small card that read: 'Thank you for the medicine.' In her brothers own handwriting, Aurelia said it showed up an hour after his departure from the club. "Go to the opening." Ada said suddenly. "Wh-" "Go, you'll regret it if you don't, and you'll get to meet my aunt Pol who I'm sure is one more week away from storming over here to meet you herself. Who knows maybe, maybe Thomas isn't as cold as I made him out to be?" Ada tried to sway her friend.
"Why is everyone incessant on Thomas and I having feelings for one another? I just wanted your opinion because if it was dangerous then I was better off at home with Marianna." Aurelia still trying to deny her attraction to Thomas. "Aurelia, you're going I will drag you myself and have Mrs. Goodwin watch her cause she'd agree with me that you need a night of fun." Ada said firmly. "I'll ask if she can watch her, but I make no promises." The madam said to her friend. When Aurelia got home later that day she realized she didn't know what she would wear to the grand opening and this panicked need to look stunning drew her to the phone to call her dress shoppe where she gets all her night life gowns for work.
"Hello, Mrs. Imperiali? It's Miss Cruz from The Haven." She said talking to the shoppe owner. "Oh! Aurelia, darling! How wonderful to hear from you!" The older woman says cheerfully through the phone. "Thank you, ehm I was wondering if you may have a dress in store that I could look at for a business trip I'm taking?" Aurelia asks blushing at her fib. "We just got a new shipment of dresses the other day. I'll set aside some I think you'd like, and you can come in tomorrow and have a look for yourself?" Mrs. Imperiali suggests. "Perfect I'll see you tomorrow around one o'clock." "Bye- bye, dear!" The older woman said, and Aurelia breathed out in relief that she has that taken care of but still she was making excuses in her head. 'You're going there for business, that's all.' 'You need a new gown anyway, really.' Each excuse covering the truth that she wanted to look nice for Thomas.
It was elementary and completely foolish to want to look nice for him, she should want to look nice for herself and herself only but now there's this sliver of her that wants to look nice for him. To have his lapis hued eyes roam her body until the warm feeling of his stare burned her skin. There was a time where she begged to be unseen, to blend into the furniture of her home so her husband wouldn't find her and would leave her be. Aurelia nearly scoffs at the thought and the idea that enters her mind so often makes its way back to send Steven divorce papers and truly rid him from her life completely. Their legal tie would be severed, and they can go on about their lives with Aurelia continuing her life as a businesswoman and mother. He could find out about Marianna if she files for divorce and then she'd truly be stuck with Steven.
The familiar knock on the door breaks Aurelia away from her aching thoughts. When she opened the door Mrs. Goodwin had a wince etched to her face; Marianna had tears in her eyes and a cut on her lip with scraped up knees that left blood on her tights. "What happened?!" Aurelia asked as she scooped up her baby girl who started crying into her mother's shoulder. "It w-was th-e kids i-in my c-l-lass." The muffled voice of the crying four-year-old said. "It happened when I was picking her up. Some of the kids in her class had stopped her and then started pushing her a bit. Marianna punched one of the boys in the face after he said something about you but one of the girls pushed her forward and Marianna bit her lip and fell. I got there in time to get them away from her but..." Mrs. Goodwin told Aurelia the whole story and the mother was calm, partly to calm her daughter but also because she didn't need Marianna to see how enraged she was. "Thank you, Mrs. Goodwin I'll handle the school tomorrow. Tell Dougie I'll be in late and don't worry I'll take Marianna to school in the morning." Aurelia said.
When Mrs. Goodwin left, and Aurelia cleaned off Marianna's scrapes and cuts she had to talk to her daughter. "Amor, I need you to tell me exactly who did this, okay?" Aurelia brushed her daughters curls out of her face wiping a few tears that silently fell as Marianna's breath still hiccupped every so often. "It was my whole c-lass momma." The little girl hiccupped, and Aurelia nodded but still she wanted names. "What about the boy you punched? What is his name?" Aurelia asked bringing a cup of water to her daughter's mouth. After a sip Marianna answered. "Elliot Thackery. He called you a bad name and I got angry." She said and Aurelia was proud that her daughter stood up for her especially against a boy. "What did he call me?" Aurelia asked and she could see how her daughter didn't want to say the word either because it was a bad word or because it had been aimed at her own mother. "He called you a whore." Marianna's voice was quiet almost not wanting her mother to hear the bad word. "Okay. I'll talk to the head of the school about him. What about the girl who pushed you?" Aurelia asked next. "Nancy Turner."
