Living With Mr Shelby

Chapter Twenty

I paced back and forth in my room. Everyone in Danny's house was silently sleeping except me. The fear of what could happen to Tommy was driving me mad. Every time I attempted to sleep I saw his beaten face in Freddie's hands, his eyes on me. 

Without thinking I stumbled from my room in the darkness and found my way through the house heading to the same place I had the last time I was at Danny's. I stopped when I reached the wall that stood either side of the bridge and stared down at the water, we had heard nothing from Birmingham and to make matters worse Poll was missing as well as the others.

Ada and her son had been reunited by Esme who had managed to escape the attack with a few of the Peaky Blinders wives. Most had followed Esme to the Lee family, knowing that they would be able to move at the first sign of danger rather than risk the discovery of Danny's home and being caught. The Lee's had passed on the message to Danny that Sabini's cousins had sent the hit using their connections in the police force revealing that Tommy hadn't dealt with the problems in London properly and If I wasn't so worried about him I would have been furious. Polly had told him not to do it, that he should push Sabini off the Shelby's territory and push no further or something like this would happen.

I ran my hand through my hair thinking back to the time when my biggest problem was getting a flock of sheep to move to a new field. I wondered if I should have taken up my Uncle's offer to travel with him when Billy Kimber first arrived for me but my stubborn determination to outsmart the irritating man had landed me right in Tommy's way. Tears replaced Tommy's usual caress as they trickled down my cheeks, breaking my composure allowing me to drop to my knees and sob into my hands.

Quiet crunching of gravel forced me to silence my sobs and even my breathing in an attempt to gain my usual calm manner while I stood still unable to face the person approaching me.

"Rosie, I know I shouldn't be out here but I can't sleep... I just see him lying there..." I trailed off attempting to hold in a fresh wave of tears that shook my body. I gripped the wall and looked down at the water wanting to feel fine but knew that I wouldn't or at least I couldn't until I knew Tommy was ok. My eyes widened as familiar arms wrapped themselves around me. The scent of whisky and cigarettes surrounded me as his fists gripped the fabric of my nightgown.

"I'm not there anymore." He whispered, his voice cracked and weak. I turned in his arms and looked up at him, his face was bruised and cut. He flinched as I gently placed a hand on his neck reminding me that he would be bruised and broken all over.

"You stupid fucking Blinder." I whispered letting the tears fall freely, he swallowed and looked hurt but when he tried to pull away I gripped him tighter. He waited for me to work through the feelings that were churning inside of me as if they were at war with each other. He smiled slowly as if he knew what I was coming to realize making me even more infuriated. I pushed his hat off his head in one brave movement and moved to kiss him but stopped.

"I'm not breakable, you know I helped win a war." He muttered realizing that I didn't want to hurt him more. I chuckled at his bold statement and let him lift me off the ground by my waist so I was his height. Without any more thought I pressed my lips to his, savoring his taste as he kissed back hungrily. I was soon set back on the ground as our embrace deepened and his left hand found its way to the base of my neck while his right pressed on the small of my back forcing us to be as close as we could. When we pulled apart he was looking down on me with the same burning gaze that began to feel like a loving protection than a controlling fixation.

"What did Freddie tell you?" I asked Tommy as he linked his fingers with mine allowing the night to hide his open affection as he smiled widely at me.

"He reminded me of what I'd asked your Uncle." We stopped on Danny's picturesque porch as the sun began to climb its way into the sky and rid the world of the cold dark night.

"What exactly did you ask him?" I asked with my eyes narrowed suspiciously as I wondered just what the Blinder had planned. He rummaged through the pocket on the inside of his well-worn grey jacket and pulled out a simple silver band with Romaine words carved into it.

"I asked if I could marry you, he told me if I was brave enough to ask him for your hand in marriage like an old fashioned gentleman, I'm brave enough to go through with it and live with a woman filled with modern ideas." I giggled as he looked down at my hand which he was now holding tightly as if letting go would mean losing me.

"It's so pretty." I whispered as he let me hold the ring. He gently took the ring back and slid it onto my finger grinning triumphantly as it fitted perfectly. Before I could say anything Tommy kissed me deeply but this kiss was different from all the others. It wasn't one to prove he owned me or that he'd missed me. It was a kiss that told me he was mine for as long as I would have him.