I'm so so so sorry this chapter has taken like a month to come out, but my brain decided to just forget what words were every time I tried to write it x

"Fuckin' hell Ava, how much are you bringin', love?" Alfie frowned as she lugged her bag down the stairs. "We're only goin' away for two days."

"Well, you wouldn't tell me where we were going so I had to pack for every eventuality, didn't I?" she answered curtly. "Now are you going to help me or just stand there watching?"

"Fuckin' slave driver, you," Alfie pretended to pout, reaching out and taking the bag from her. "Jesus woman, you got a dead body in there?"

"No but I might do by the end of the weekend if you don't stop whingeing," Ava teased playfully, glancing around to make sure nobody was watching before kissing Alfie on the nose.

"Now, now, there'll be plenty of time for that, you two," Leia appeared carrying Yana's finished lunch tray and chuckling when Ava blushed as red as a tomato.

"I'm just going to say goodbye to babushka then I'll come out to the car, ok?"

"I might have made it there with this beast of a bag by the time you're done," Alfie smirked. "See you later, Leia. Appreciate this, yeah."

"No problem at all, Mr Solomons," Leia bobbed into a sort of timid curtsy before heading into the kitchen.

"Are you sure you're going to be alright with her on your own?" Ava followed Leia into the small room, fastening her coat and reaching for her handbag from the kitchen table.

Alfie had sprung this surprise trip on Ava only a few days before, explaining that he had already enlisted Leia to stay with her grandmother all weekend, and that Mrs Ziesmann would pop in as well. They had all decided that Ava deserved a break away, and only Alfie and Mrs Zee knew that this was all part of Alfie's plan to give Ava the perfect proposal that she would never forget. And one that she would hopefully say yes to as well.

"We'll be absolutely fine, I promise," Leia smiled. "I've got some nice things planned for us to do and keep her occupied, so all you need to worry about is having a good time."

Even as Leia said the words though they tasted like ash in her mouth. Each time she saw Alfie and Ava so happy together it reminded Leia just how further away she was from getting her baby boy back. Oscar had been enraged when he found out Alfie and Ava were going away for the weekend, and Leia had been forced to reassure him that she would use the time they were away to snoop around Ava's home for anything that might prove useful to their plan.

"Ok, well I'm going to go and say goodbye to her before I lose my nerve and decide I can't leave her," Ava gave a wobbly smile. "Alfie said he's left you the number of wherever it is we're staying next to the phone, so you can call anytime day or night and I'll answer."

"Yes, yes," Leia waved her off. "Now just go and have a lovely time."

"You're such a love," Ava suddenly reached forward and pulled Leia into an unsuspecting embrace. "I'll be sure to bring you something nice back."

As Leia watched Ava disappear into the living room to say goodbye to her grandmother, she was filled with guilt. Ava was a lovely person, inside and out, and she was someone Leia would have liked to be friends with. But that could never be, and Leia had to distance herself emotionally so that she could go through with destroying Ava and Alfie's relationship.

"Ava, wake up."

Ava opened her eyes to find Alfie gently shaking her awake. The sun was high in the sky indicating that it was around midday and Ava wondered how long she had been asleep for.

"Ava, we're here," he smiled, brushing his lips against hers. "You slept nearly the whole way, you lazy wench."

"Sorry," she grinned impishly. "I always fall asleep on long journeys."

"Well, I didn't mind to be honest," he smirked as she yawned and stretched her arms. "I quite enjoyed the peace and quiet really."

"You trying to say I talk too much?" Ava pretended to pout.

"Well, you said it love," Alfie winked.

"So, are you going to tell me where we are now?"

"Margate," Alfie grinned, reaching for Ava's hand. "Me mum brought us here a few times when we was kids and I always loved it. Just makes me feel nice, you know. It's so quiet and calm, and the sounds and the smells of the sea make me feel peaceful. One day when I'm old and grey, I wanna retire here and live out the rest of my days."

"Yeah?"

"Yeah," he nodded, lifting Ava's hand and kissing it. "And I brought you here because this place is special to me and so are you."

"You're such a softie, aren't you?" Ava smiled leaning forward to brush her lips against Alfie's.

"Hmm," Alfie murmured, pulling her onto his lap and running his hands through her hair.

He deepened the kiss and growled when Ava's centre ground against his hardening cock. Their tongues fought each other for dominance and Alfie's hands moved down to hold on to Ava's waist. When his thumb brushed over one of her nipples, she groaned. Alfie could feel how wet she was even through their clothes and he realised they were going to have to stop before this got too far. Pulling away from the kiss, he brushed his lips against Ava's nose and smiled, rubbing her hip with his hand.

"I love you," he mumbled.

"I love you, too," Ava smiled, touching his cheek fondly. "Thank you for bringing me away. This place looks beautiful."

"That's why I bought it, didn't I?" Alfie brushed his nose against hers. "Bought it a few years back because I loved it so much and apart from Cyril here, you're the only other person what I've ever brought here."

Cyril, upon hearing his name, jumped in between them from the back seat and began to lick Ava's face excitedly while his wagging tail hit Alfie in the arm.

"Right, why don't you get the mutt inside and I'll grab the bags?" Alfie suggested, digging a brass key out of his pocket and giving it to her.

"Come on Cyril," Ava stepped out of the car and bent down to scratch Cyril's back. "Come on then, gorgeous boy. Shall we go inside?"

The cottage was beautiful. Nestled behind golden sand hills topped with lush green grass, the cottage had a beautiful view of the beach. It was the sort of place that one could hide away from prying eyes and feel completely alone yet comforted at the same time.

It was obvious that Cyril had been here many times before because the second the door was open, he headed straight into the kitchen where there was food and water waiting for him. Everything was decorated so beautifully. Alfie's home back in Camden was lavish yet lacking in anything that really spoke of Alfie's character. Ava always imagined that he had just kept the house however it was when he acquired it, never really bothering to add his own touches to the place. But the cottage spoke of Alfie everywhere she looked; from ornaments to rows upon rows of books. It was quirky and nothing quite matched, yet at the same time it all went together perfectly.

"There's a woman what looks after the place; cleaning and what not," Alfie appeared. "I told her we was coming so she's got some food in and that. Always makes sure there's somethin' waitin' for Cyril when we get here as well. Spoils him rotten, she does."

"Who can blame her?" Ava smiled as Cyril scoffed up his food like he had never eaten before. "So, are you going to show me around then?"

"Of course, milady," Alfie winked, holding out his arm. "Follow me."

The cottage was a lot bigger than it looked from the outside. The kitchen had doors that opened out into a sweet little garden area with a table and chairs. The living room was large but cosy with a roaring fireplace for the winter months and a lovely little conservatory at one end to enjoy the beautiful skies from the comfort of the house.

Upstairs, Alfie showed Ava around the three spare bedrooms, two of which came with their own bathroom, and finally he showed her his room which had a balcony overlooking the sea.

"So I'm the first one to stay in Alfie Solomons' boudoir, eh?" she teased.

"Yeah, well no," Alfie scratched his head awkwardly. "I mean you're the first one to stay here, yeah, but you don't have to stay in here. What I'm tryin' to say is that if you'd rather have one of the spare rooms, that's alright by me."

"It is?"

"Well yeah," he nodded. "I don't want you to feel uncomfortable, do I?"

Ava turned and nestled herself into Alfie's side, breathing in that smell of pipe tobacco and rum that lingered on him constantly.

"Alfie, you sleep beside me every night when we're at home," she murmured.

"Yeah, but that's different, aint it? I mean, Yana's there in the next room."

"How's that any different?" Ava chuckled. "I came away to spend this entire weekend with you, and I don't want to sleep in different rooms. I want to sleep in your arms like I always do."

"Right," Alfie nodded, unable the massive smile that was about to split his face in two. "Well, now that's settled, why don't I fix us up summit to eat quickly then we can go for a walk?"

"I think that sounds perfect."

It was a beautiful day. There was a breeze but the sun was shining with the hopeful promise of spring on its way. With it still being too early in the year for most people to be thinking of going away, the beach was mostly deserted apart from a few people walking their dogs, which meant they had the entire of it pretty much to themselves.

Ava had taken off her shoes and was paddling in the cold water with Cyril while Alfie watched on from the shore and shook his head at her antics.

"Come on, Alf," she shouted. "It's not that cold."

"Why do your legs look fuckin' blue then?" he shouted back.

"That's just your terrible old man vision making you see things," she stuck her tongue out. "Anyway, I'm from the north; this is practically a warm day to me."

Before Alfie could say anything else she screeched as Cyril leapt at her without warning, knocking her onto her bottom where he then pushed her so she lay flat on the sandy shore and he could lick her to death.

"Oi," Alfie shouted, taking off at a sort of run in order to save Ava from the freezing cold water. "Piss off, you little bugger."

He yanked Cyril away by his collar and helped Ava to her feet. Her thin coat and dress were soaking wet but she had the biggest smile plastered to her rosy face.

"Thought you said it weren't that cold," Alfie frowned, touching her ice cold hands.

"It isn't," she pulled a face. "Although, I think if I don't get home and get into some dry clothes I might change my mind about that."

"Well, it would serve you right to be honest," he muttered, pulling off his coat to wrap around her. "But I actually am quite fond of you so I'd prefer you to stay alive for the near future I think."

"So kind of you to say, Alf."

By the time they reached the cottage, Ava was so cold that she was shivering so Alfie ran her a nice hot bath and told her to go and relax for a while. The real ceramic bath was a luxury she had never experienced before, and she wasn't certain she could ever go back to the metal bath in front of the fire ever again.

"You alive in there?" Alfie's muffled voice sounded through the closed door.

"No, I think I've died and gone to heaven," Ava sighed. "Can we take this bath home with us?"

"You do know I've got a bath even bigger than this at my place, don't you?" Alfie chuckled. "You can just come and use it whenever you want."

"In that case, I'm moving into your bathroom when we get back and never ever leaving."

"Alright, well we'll discuss that, yeah? Right now though, I'm anxiously waitin' for you to get dressed so I can take you out for dinner cos my head feels like my throat's been cut. In fact, I can feel myself wastin' away as I stand here."

"Well if that's the case, I can safely stay in here for at least another few hours until you're in danger of becoming dangerously thin," Ava smirked to herself even as she stepped out of the bath and wrapped a huge fluffy towel around herself.

"You trying to say I'm fat?" Alfie asked indignantly.

"You said it, love," she grinned, echoing his words from earlier and pulling open the bathroom door.

Alfie swallowed and fingered his beard as his eyes took in Ava's scantily clad attire.

"Fuckin' hell," he muttered.

"What?" she asked innocently but the mischievous look in her eyes gave her away.

"You know what," Alfie narrowed his eyes at her, reaching out to run his fingers along the bottom of the towel where it just about reached her knees.

"I thought you were hungry," she murmured, chewing her lip as his hands skirted up in between her thighs.

"Yeah, I am," Alfie growled, his eyes darkening with lust. "But I reckon I might have a little snack before we go just to keep me goin'."

"This place is beautiful."

Ava sat down on the chair the waiter pulled out for her and smiled at Alfie. The restaurant overlooked the pier and they were the only two patrons. Unbeknown to Ava, Alfie had paid the owner a handsome sum to keep the place closed for the night apart from him and Ava, and he could feel himself sweating already as he thought about the very important question he had for her.

The waiter brought them some drinks and then when he had taken their order, he left them alone. The restaurant was mostly in darkness apart from the candles dotted about on all of the tables and the mood was calm and peaceful.

"What's the matter?" Ava asked as their meals arrived.

Alfie was unusually quiet and it concerned Ava. Usually she had a job to get him to stop talking, but the past twenty minutes had been spent forcing painstaking conversation out of him.

"Nothin'," he shook his head, pulling at the collar of his shirt. "Is it hot in here or is it just me?"

"Er no, I think it might just be you," Ava frowned. "Are you feeling ill or something?"

"No no," Alfie shook his head. "Reckon I just aint used to being all gussied up like this, you know."

"You do look very handsome tonight, Mr Solomons," Ava smiled, taking in his freshly combed hair, trimmed beard and rather smart shirt and trousers.

She loved the rugged and almost messy way Alfie looked but it certainly didn't hurt her eyes to see him dressed up like this every now and then. In fact, she felt a little self conscious about the emerald green dress she wore because she wasn't certain it was dressy enough for this little chic place.

"And you look beautiful, don't you?" Alfie reached over and took her hand. "You always look beautiful actually."

"Even when I wake up in the morning and my hair's sticking up all over the place and my breath smells like the River Thames?"

"Yeah, I'll give you the breath bit," he teased, his eyes twinkling. "But as for the other bit, I love seein' you all frayed from sleep. Your hair sticks up like a little halo around your head and your face is all relaxed. You're perfect."

Ava didn't say anything else; she couldn't. All of a sudden she felt overwhelmed with emotion. Less than a year ago, she had been living a dull life back home in Manchester wondering if she would ever meet someone who would sweep her off of her feet, and now here she was with one of the most infamous gangsters in London wondering how she was fortunate enough to have someone like him love someone as dull as her. He was handsome and witty and could easily have his pick of women yet for some inexplicable reason he had settled on her for now, and she couldn't imagine the rest of her life without him.

"Ava, did you hear me?" Alfie's voice broke through her thoughts.

"Hmm?"

"You was in a world of your own, I think," Alfie smiled. "I was askin' if your food was alright."

"Oh yes," she nodded. "It's lovely."

"Good, good," Alfie nodded, before clearing his throat. "Well, listen the reason I brought you here tonight, and well, away this weekend really, is to ask you summit important."

"Ok," she frowned. She couldn't tell, judging by the strained expression on Alfie's face, whether it was a good something or not.

"Now, I don't want you to feel like you have to say yes, but it would mean everythin' in the world to me if you did."

"Right."

"So, uh…" Alfie got up from the table and walked around to her. "Right, Ava Hirschman would you, uh… would you… would you like to help me open up another centre like the one for your grandmother?"

Alfie cursed himself internally as he took himself back off to see his seat. You absolute fuckin' coward, Solomons. Fuckin' stupid piece of bastard fuckin' shit.

"You brought me all the way here for the weekend just to ask me that?" Ava frowned.

"Uh yeah," Alfie muttered. "I thought if I sprung it on you at home it might seem like you had to give me an answer straight away, whereas if we were here you could think about it a little and see if you really have the time for it."

"Oh," she eyed him strangely, taking a sip of her drink. "Well, that's very thoughtful of you. I would most definitely love to help, but as you say, it's just a question of whether or not I can find the time what with babushka."

"I thought as much," Alfie nodded, his hand rubbing at his beard in an attempt to keep from shaking too much. "Well, now that we've got business out of the way, we can just enjoy the rest of our meal, yeah? I'm thinkin' I might have some of that sticky toffee puddin' for dessert. What about you?"

"I hadn't really thought," Ava answered, still unable to shake the feeling that something wasn't quite right with Alfie.

He was all jittery and… nervous? It was most definitely concerning but she didn't want to bother him by asking again he was alright.

"Take a look at the menu and see what you fancy, yeah."

She nodded but as her eyes perused the sweet delights that usually had her mouth watering, all she could think about was Alfie's strange behaviour.

At the end of the meal, Ava turned down the offer of a taxi to get them back home to the cottage and opted to enjoy the fresh night air and walk instead. Before they headed towards the cottage, Ava asked if they could take a little stroll down the pier first because it wasn't too windy and there was something so relaxing about being the only people out and about at this late hour. She thought that perhaps some fresh air might help Alfie with whatever was wrong with him as well.

"Do you ever wonder what it must feel like to be a star?" Ava asked as she leant backwards against the pier railing and looked up into the clear night sky.

"You what?"

"A star," she repeated, not looking away from those little glistening specks. "Do you ever wonder how it must feel to shine so brightly and have everyone gaze upon you with such adoration? I mean, I don't think I know anyone who looks up at the stars and doesn't think them beautiful, do you?

Alfie looked at Ava, who continued to watch those stars with an almost childlike awe as her face was illuminated by the soft light of the waxing moon visible in the cloudless sky. He looked at her and suddenly all that fear and trepidation inside of him just fizzled away into nothing. It was funny really; he had spent weeks planning the perfect proposal that had felt almost too forced and the words refused to come out. Yet right now seemed even more perfect than anything he could have imagined.

"Ava," he said quietly. "Look at me."

She stood up straight and faced him, concerned by the husky tone of his voice and her eyes widened as he got down on one knee, barely grunting even as his hip screamed at him in agony.

"Alfie, what are you-"

"-Just let me get this out, yeah?" he held up his hand to quieten her. "You know, I'm shit with words and all that crap, but I know what's in my heart and I know that my life is nothin' without you in it. You're the first thing I think of when I wake up and the last thing I think of before I go to sleep, and then like some sort of witch, you manage to haunt my dreams all through the night, where before I used to just have nightmares about the war and other shit things. You make me wanna be a better person when it never used to matter one bit to me. You make me imagine havin' my own family what I can look after and worship the ground they walk on. More than anythin', you make me think of each day as a blessin'. Before you come along, I weren't scared of dyin', but now I'm terrified of not seein' your beautiful face every single day or holdin' you in my arms. Which is why, I want to know if you'll be my wife?"

Ava blinked and could only stare in shock at the ring Alfie held up towards her. She had never seen anything so beautiful in all of her life and she didn't know how to respond. She knew how she wanted to respond but for some reason her mind just couldn't seem to form the words.

"You want to marry me?" she finally got out in a whisper.

"No, the woman behind you," Alfie rolled his eyes, trying to lighten the mood with a joke as he got to his feet. "Of course I mean you. Ava, I'm crazy about you and I want you to be my wife."

Ava burst into tears and threw her arms around Alfie's neck, almost knocking him to the floor but he grunted and kept himself upright. Her mouth was against his, kissing him as though she needed him to breathe for her and her tears dripped from her eyes and onto his face, but he didn't care. They kissed and kissed until there was nothing left and then he finally set Ava down gently on her feet.

"Is that a yes then?" he grinned.

"Yes," she smiled, touching his face gently. "Yes I'll marry you, Alfie."

He slipped the ring onto her finger and she was shocked to find that it fit her perfectly. It was exquisite but not gaudy in the slightest.

"It was my mum's," he explained, taking her hand and kissing the ring. "She would have loved you."

"I'm sure I would have felt the same about her. She must have been an amazing woman to make someone like you."

"Dunno about that," he smiled almost embarrassed.

"I do," Ava brushed her lips against his once more, before peering down at the ring on her hand. "Is this real? Is this really happening?"

"It really is," Alfie grinned. "I don't know what I've ever done in my life to deserve you, but you can be certain I'm never ever lettin' you go now."

"Good cos I don't want you to," Ava beamed. "But I do want you to kiss me again."

"I reckon that could be arranged," Alfie smirked as he pulled her into his arms.

The stars watched down upon them as they sealed their engagement with loving words and kisses, and Alfie was convinced that somewhere up there, one of those stars watching was his mother.

I hope you're proud of me, Mum.