Sitting in Tommy's office, Elizabeth waited for her husband to return after he had told her that he had business to attend to. She knew that he was going to see the MP who had ordered the job in Chinatown, he had told her that morning that he needed to talk to him. She also knew that he was acting as an informant, relaying messages to the secret service to gain military contracts for the business. Then again, with the mess they were currently in, they needed as much money as possible.
The sun was slowly setting and Elizabeth moved to her feet, drawing back the curtain and looking outside, the sight of the Thames greeting her. She leaned against the wall and closed her eyes, letting out a soft sigh as she folded her arms. She went into her own thoughts then, wondering how they had come to this. Elizabeth had known finery during her life, but she had been willing to let it all go for Tommy. She was prepared to let everything go for Tommy. Her love for him was worth it.
Losing in her own thoughts, she didn't hear Tommy sneak back in. He closed the door quietly and hung his jacket up on the coat rack. He pulled at his waistcoat and adjusted his tie against his shirt. He managed a small smirk as he stubbed his cigarette out and went behind his wife, wrapping his arms around her waist and startling her. He chuckled as she swatted his hand.
"You scared me."
"I guessed," Tommy responded, still smirking. "Yer alright, Liz?"
"I am fine," she promised him. "I was just daydreaming. Did you talk to that man?"
"I did," Tommy said. "He only had some of the money and not all of it. I set 'im straight."
"I don't want to know," Elizabeth said, moving to hold on his hands as he bent down and kissed her on the neck once, his chin going to rest on her shoulder. "Can we head back to the flat now?"
"Yeah," Tommy nodded his head once at her and she turned her head to the side, kissing him squarely on the lips for a brief second, managing a soft smile as he let his forehead brush hers, a hand going up to hold her cheek. "We're alright, Liz, eh? We're alright."
"We always will be," Elizabeth promised him. "Come on, I am starving and would quite like some dinner."
"Anything for yer," Tommy told his wife, but before he let her go, the door to his office opened wide.
"Mr Shelby, you received a…oh…sorry," the man spoke and Tommy let go of his wife, chuckling to himself as he saw his secretary enter the room. "I can come back later."
"No, it is fine," Tommy said. "This is my wife, Adam."
Elizabeth looked to the young man and smiled. He seemed on edge and eager to impress. Dressed in a fine suit with slicked back hair, he looked nothing like she had imagine he might. She held her hand out and he took hold of hers.
"Pleasure to meet you, Mrs Shelby," he said.
"Please, call me Elizabeth," she urged him. "Nice to meet you, Adam."
"Adam, you get going for the night. I will lock up here. I am on the way out."
"Yes…Mr Shelby…the letter from Churchill, I'll leave it here," Adam said and then placed the letter onto the desk. "There was one other thing, Mr Shelby. You had a meeting set up with a journalist from the Times. He used to work for the Birmingham Mail. He is outside."
"Right." Tommy sighed, remembering that he had asked for that meeting.
"How long will you be?" Elizabeth asked from him.
"Not long," Tommy said and she nodded.
"I can wait outside for you to finish," she said and Tommy nodded once. "Just promise me that you won't be too long, okay?"
"Promise," Tommy assured her and bent down to kiss her once more.
He watched her leave through the door with Adam talking to her, passing by Mr Levitt as he walked into Tommy's office. Tommy didn't ignore the way the man looked at his wife as she walked on by, knowing what he was thinking. Tommy had an idea why the man was here. Holding his hand out, Levitt offered to shake Tommy's hand, but Tommy motioned to the chair.
"Mr Shelby, Mr Levitt from the London Times."
"Have a seat," Tommy urged him as Adam closed the door. Pulling a cigarette out from his holder, he lit it up and sat down at his desk.
"Do you remember me, Mr Shelby?" Levitt asked and Tommy placed one hand on his stomach and shook his head.
"No," he said simply.
"Once in Small Heath, I saw you burning photographs of the King," Levitt said and Tommy didn't care for where this was heading.
"London Times," he spoke. "You've done well."
"As have you, sir," he responded. "Your wife out there, I remember her from many years ago. She was a Kimber, was she not? Before you married her she was part of the Kimber family?"
"Yeah," Tommy said. "She was."
He had no intention of dragging his wife into any of this business. His wife was innocent and he intended to keep it that way. He didn't want some journalist snooping around in her business. Liz would hate that.
"I sent you a list of questions," Levitt said, sensing the tension.
"I misplaced them," Tommy replied, taking a drag on his cigarette as Levitt nodded once.
"I see," he responded. "Well, you are a busy man. I am sure that is easily done."
"Yes," Tommy replied. "All I remember is that your questions were very interesting to me, but I did wonder why you were so interested about my private life with the questions."
"Well, traditionally, journalists tend to take no interest, but in the modern times readers are beginning to want to know more about the men who represent them, particularly so since American readers insisted on the same thing."
"Is that right?" Tommy asked.
"It is," Levitt said. "Well, gentlemen…we tend not to pry into their business."
"Well, I am not gentleman," Tommy responded.
Levitt went quite then, seemingly unnerved by Tommy. Not that Tommy could blame him for feeling that way. Tommy could be quite condescending and unnerving when he wanted to be, particularly to those who he didn't like so much. Tommy let him squirm for a few brief moments.
"Mr Shelby, living in Birmingham it was hard not to know your name and your reputation. So when I saw that you had been elected as a socialist, I-"
"-You judged me," Tommy said, interrupting him. "You judged me based on my achievements and the fact that I worked hard to get where I am."
"It is impressive how you went from a bookmaker to a socialist politician…a bookmaker who was in business with Billy Kimber, a man who mysteriously died and whose sister you married."
"Is that a question?" Tommy asked from him.
"No one was ever charged for his death," the man said, "yet there were whispers in society that he had been cruel to his sister…that she had been dragged back to live with him during the war. Some said that he hit her."
"And?" Tommy asked, grinding his teeth together and knowing where this was going.
"Odd," Levitt said, "that as soon as you come back from the war and find her that her brother dies…a woman could only take so much, I would imagine, or perhaps her lover wanted revenge."
"What are you implying?"
"Nothing, Mr Shelby," the man responded with a firm shake of his head. "I am merely curious."
"Yeah, well, I do remember your questions now and yer weren't the only one who was curious," Tommy said, the anger clear in his voice as he spoke to the man. Yer see, I asked a colleague of mine to carry out some research and he told me some very interestin' things about yer. I can't recall of the top of my head, but I do remember that I know where yer live…Michael Levitt…I think it is Maida Vale, correct?"
"Correct," he responded.
"An apartment opposite the station and yer unmarried, but yer do enjoy walks in the park…sometimes with other men," Tommy said to him, leaning back in his chair and looking as Levitt squirmed in his chair. "I'm old fashioned, Mr Levitt," Tommy said to him. "I believe that private lives should be private. Not everyhin' modern is good, is it?"
"Perhaps not, Mr Shelby," Levitt said.
"Perhaps not," Tommy echoed back to him. "Now, I want yer to get up and leave my office. I want yer never to contact me again. I want yer to leave me alone and never, ever, talk about my wife again, do yer understand me?"
"I believe I do, Mr Shelby."
"Good," Tommy said and moved to his feet, going for his coat and shrugging into it. "Now, I believe we're done here."
Tommy watched as Levitt moved to his feet and swept from the room. He kept his eyes on him as he left the door open, Elizabeth sat on a chair by the door. Moving out from his office, Tommy looked down to his wife and she arched a brow up to him.
"Did that go well?"
"As well as I had hoped," Tommy informed his wife with a nod of his head. "Yer ready, Liz? We can go back to the apartment."
"Ready."
Moving to her feet, she took hold of his hand, holding his fingers inside of hers before leaving the office for the night.
….
Sitting in bed, Tommy held his wife to him. They had both changed and decided to head to the bedroom. While at one time Tommy would have jumped at the opportunity to have Elizabeth alone and in bed, he knew that it was too soon for that. It was too soon for both of them to act in such a manner.
"I 'ave to tell yer somethin'," Tommy informed his wife as she kept her arms around his waist, her head drooping on his shoulder and her eyes closed. He watched as she peered up at him, her eyes wide and Tommy moved a hand, stroking her cheek softly. "I didn't want to tell yer earlier because I didn't know how yer would take it, but yer goin' to find out eventually."
"What is it?" she enquired from her husband.
"Ada is pregnant," he said and her mouth gaped.
"What?" she asked, moving so that she could sit up and look Tommy in the eye. "What do you mean she is pregnant? She is not married."
"Yer such a traditionalist," Tommy said, his thumb roaming over her cheekbone gently. "I know, but she is pregnant and she is tryin' to keep it under wraps. She doesn't want anyone to know, Liz."
"How do you know?"
"I know 'er doctor."
"Tommy," Elizabeth rolled her eyes. "That is intrusive."
"Maybe," Tommy agreed, "but I found out. I 'ave an idea who the father is."
"Who?"
"Colonel Ben Younger."
"The man you inform to?"
"Very same," Tommy nodded his head and reached for his cigarettes, lighting one up as his wife went back to resting against him and he wrapped an arm around her shoulders, holding her tightly to him as he let her close her eyes and take it in. "The child will be mixed race, Liz…born out of wedlock. People will talk."
"I assume she is keeping the child?"
"As far as I know," he replied to her and she kept her eyes closed. "I just…I know that might be 'ard, Liz."
"No," Elizabeth shook her head, still not opening her eyes. "If Ada is happy then I am happy for Ada. I…just because I cannot have anymore children does not mean that you have to feel bad and keep these things from me."
"Still," Tommy muttered softly, "I don't want to upset yer."
"I am fine," Elizabeth assured her husband, not entirely certain if she was telling him the truth. A part of her felt jealous. She felt jealous that Ada could have another child. Karl was going to have a sibling, something that Charlotte had wanted.
"Yer sure?"
"No," Elizabeth whispered, knowing that they both had to be honest with each other. "I don't know, Tommy. I don't know."
"Yer don't 'ave to know," Tommy promised her. "We both don't 'ave to know."
….
A/N: Do let me know what you think!
