"I have been thinking."
Looking up from his work, Tommy watched on as his wife moved into the study. She closed the door behind herself and went to take a seat across from Tommy. Placing his pen down, he removed his glasses from his eyes, pinching the bridge of his nose while watching his wife.
"What about?" he asked her.
She tucked her hair behind her ears and Tommy leant back, hands clasped on his stomach.
"About what it is I want to do," Elizabeth admitted to him, folding one leg over the other. Resting her elbow on her thigh, she dropped her chin into her hands. "I love my job, Tommy, but I am hearing some stories from another school…about children who are being mistreated."
"I see," Tommy mused.
Ever since Elizabeth had returned home, she had continued going to work at the school, claiming that she needed a sense of normalcy. Charlotte had also gone back to school, seeming much happier in herself now that she was back home with her mother and father together. But Elizabeth had seemed different. It was almost like she wanted something to throw herself into. She was constantly covering classes and thinking up new, innovative ways to teach the children.
"Well, it is just wrong, Tommy," Elizabeth said to him, moving to her feet and dropping her hands to her hips. She seemed incapable of sitting still. "The stories are terrifying, truly. They are rumoured to be abusing children, locking them up in cupboards when they misbehave. How can anyone treat a child like that? Some of them are as young as five."
Tommy sighed and drummed his thumbs together. "What do yer want, Liz?" he asked from her.
Moving to perch on the edge of his desk in front of him, Liz grabbed hold of the desk behind her, looking down to her husband. "You are the MP for this district, Tommy," she said to him. "Can you not do something? Can you not raise the issue? Perhaps it needs investigating."
"I will see what I can do," Tommy told her.
She smiled. "Thank you," she said. "I wanted to try to get in contact with some of the parents of the children and see if they can maybe provide evidence. I suspect if no one has complained then the children might be too scared to say anything to them."
"Are yer not busy enough?" Tommy asked from her.
Elizabeth's brows furrowed at hearing him ask her that. Shaking her head, she gripped tighter onto the desk. "Tommy, they are children," she whispered to him. "If what is happening is accurate then…if no one does anything…then what will change?"
"Is that all this is?" Tommy asked from her, moving to take hold of one of her hands, his fingers lacing through hers as he sat up, leaning forward slightly. "Eh, Liz?"
Elizabeth let out a shaky breath and looked him in the eye. Tommy wondered what had been going on with her. She had always enjoyed work, but never had she been obsessed with it, but recently he had been concerned. She seemed to work more than he did.
"I'm finding things difficult," Elizabeth admitted to him. "I don't know why I am finding them difficult, but I am having trouble sleeping…every time I try to sleep I think about everything that has happened and I know that it is ridiculous. Everything that has happened in the past, but I can see it so clearly whenever I think about it."
"What like?" Tommy asked her.
"That night in Sabini's club," Elizabeth began, "the night when Charlotte was taken…the fear of Changretta killing you…and then whoever those men were and what they were going to do if Finn hadn't walked in. I keep thinking about everything we have been through and that feeling of dread just stays in my stomach."
Moving to his feet, Tommy kept hold of his wife's hand as he moved his other hand to her chin. Curling his fingers underneath it, he kept her gaze on his as he bent slightly so he was at eye level with her, his forehead pressed against hers.
"Why didn't yer say?" Tommy enquired from her.
Shrugging, she chewed on the inside of her cheek. "You have enough to deal with without my ridiculous insecurities."
"They are not ridiculous," Tommy promised her. "Liz, never think that, alright? Everythin' about yer is important to me. Do yer understand me?"
Nodding once, she looked him in the eye. "It never goes away, Tommy," she whispered. "That feeling of fear never leaves me alone and the only way I can make it stop is by working. It is the only time I focus on something else and I…I think I understand how you feel to a certain extent. You get bored when you do not work. I worry."
"We're a pair, Liz," Tommy said to her. "But things will change, alright? I promise yer that things are goin' to change. We can work through this together."
"Okay," Elizabeth agreed with him.
Tommy moved to kiss her on the forehead before wrapping his arms around her. She clung tightly onto him as he dropped his chin to the top of her head, both of them enjoying the peace and quiet.
…
Tommy was investigating Moores School, just as Elizabeth had asked him to. Tommy had let his wife become involved, writing letters to the parents and asking them for their input as the investigation continued. They had sat together in his office and Elizabeth had spoken, dictating what needed to be said on the typewriter to Lizzie. Lizzie had sat there diligently, not entirely enthralled with now seemingly having to work for Elizabeth.
"Come on," Tommy urged from his wife as he grabbed his coat on the Friday evening. The letters had been sent out and Tommy was due to meet the school board on Monday to discuss matters further. Elizabeth had been in the midst of looking over his company's finances, plans in her mind for funding some kind of charitable school.
Looking up from where she sat at the other side of his desk, she pinched her brows together. "Where are we going?" she enquired from him.
"We're goin' out for the evenin'," Tommy said to her.
"But Charlotte-"
"-Charlotte will be safe at 'ome," Tommy said to his wife. Elizabeth had been keen to get back home ever since the incident had taken place. She was usually the one who took Charlotte to school and picked her up. She never let their daughter out of her sight when they were home. Tommy had told her that Finn would pick her up from school that Friday. Elizabeth had insisted that Finn called the office when they were back at the house.
Finn had dutifully done that, giving Elizabeth some relief. Tommy knew that he needed to do something to help his wife. Both of them could not keep living the way that they were. Both of them were so wrapped up in their own insecurities that Tommy wanted to help them break out of it. He wanted some sense of normalcy.
"Tommy, where are we going?" Elizabeth asked from him as he grabbed her coat. Standing up, she let him push it onto her body. He tugged her hair from the collar and she spun around to face him.
"It is a surprise," Tommy said to her. "I 'ave Frances lookin' after Charlotte and she will be okay, Liz."
"I don't understand," Elizabeth said as Tommy took hold of her hand and began to leave the office.
"When was the last time we did anythin' for us, Liz?" Tommy asked his wife. "When was the last time we were just together? We need to forget about work…everythin' else…just be us, alright?"
Elizabeth gulped, but she nodded. "Okay," she agreed, not entirely certain what he had planned.
Tommy bid goodnight to Lizzie on his way out, urging for her not to stay too late. Elizabeth let Tommy take the lead, but instead of moving for the car, he kept on walking down the pathway. The air was fresh and the sun had slowly begun to set over the rows of buildings. The streets were still quite busy and Tommy greeted anyone who spoke to him, recognising his distinct face.
"Right, what do yer want?" Tommy asked from his wife as they stepped into a corner shop and he looked at the rows of jars of sweets on the back wall.
"Mr Shelby, sir," the shopkeeper spoke, standing behind the wooden shop counter. "It's a pleasure, what can I do for yer?"
"Whatever my wife wants," Tommy said to her.
Elizabeth looked amused. "What are you doing?" she enquired from her husband.
"Pick the sweets," Tommy urged from his wife. "Yer goin' to need a bag for where we're goin'. No more questions."
Tommy watched as her lips quirked upwards and she picked out different sweets from different jars. Tommy watched her as she conversed with the shopkeepers. Finally, she finished and took the brown paper bag while Tommy paid for the purpose. Keeping hold of it in her hand, she walked with Tommy out of the small shop.
"So are you going to tell me what is going on anytime soon?" she wondered.
"You'll soon see," he promised her. "Come on."
Walking by his side again, Elizabeth stood still once Tommy stopped moving. Looking up to the cinema, Elizabeth then looked back to Tommy as he nodded once. "Yer choice," he said to her. "Pick whatever film yer want to watch."
"We're going to the cinema?" she checked with him. "Tommy, we have never been to the cinema together."
"Aye, I know," he said to her. "And that is why we're doin' this. We're spendin' time together and away from everythin' else."
Elizabeth pecked him on the cheek. She chose the film and Tommy paid for the admission. Walking into the empty cinema screen, Tommy took a seat just in the middle row. Sitting down, he shrugged out of his coat as Elizabeth did the same. She placed her coat on the empty seat next to her while Tommy removed his gloves, dropping them on his own coat. Sitting down, Elizabeth placed the brown paper bag on her lap and searched for a bon bon. She popped onto into her mouth and turned to Tommy.
"I feel like a teenager," Elizabeth said to him.
"Well, if yer weren't the wife of a respectable politician then I'd be more inclined to act like a teenager," Tommy said to her.
She looked confused as she continued chewing on her sweet and Tommy grabbed one from the bag too. "Am I supposed to understand what that means?" she wondered from him.
Tommy chuckled. "I guess that yer were too prim and proper to know what the majority of teenagers got up to in the back row of a cinema," Tommy said to her.
Her eyes widened. "Seriously?" she asked him, turning to look to the back as he chuckled. "I had no idea."
"Oh yeah," Tommy whispered.
"Wait," Elizabeth said, swivelling her upper half around to look to him. "You did not partake, did you?"
Tommy shrugged. "Long time ago," he said to her. Her eyes widened as she moved to face the front again, reaching for another sweet. Tommy continued to look entertained as he watched her. Reaching his hand out, he grabbed another sweet. "Don't tell me yer jealous of some sixteen year old girl who I 'ad a quick fumble with."
"Of course not," Elizabeth said. "That was years ago before you met me…just…well…wondered what it might be like to have a fumble in the back row."
Tommy chuckled at hearing her as the doors opened and more people walked in before the screening began. Moving to whisper into her ear, Tommy's voice remained low. "Don't tempt me," he demanded from her. "You wouldn't want to ruin our reputation, would you?"
"I suppose not."
"Tonight," Tommy promised her. "You deserve better than a quick fumble, Mrs Shelby. I'll see to that."
Elizabeth smirked. "I look forward to it."
…
Tommy couldn't remember when he had last seen Elizabeth smile as much as she was. After the pictures they had walked to a pub, for once not the Garrison. He had ordered a whiskey and she had drank an orange juice. They had spoke about anything other than business or work. Tommy had made her laugh, watching her beam as his own lips quirked. He had insisted on dancing when the band struck up, despite the fact that he never really danced. As the clock struck eleven, they had made their way back to the office and picked up a car to drive home.
Walking into the manor, Elizabeth looked to see Frances in the hallway. "Frances," she greeted her. "Is everything okay?"
"Yes, Mrs Shelby," Frances said as Tommy closed the door behind him. "Charlotte went to bed with no problems. She should be fast asleep. I wanted to wait before I retired to make sure you were home safe."
"You needn't have," Elizabeth said, hanging her coat up on the rack as Tommy did the same. "Anyway, thank you, Frances."
"Pleasure, Mrs Shelby," she responded. "I am going to check everything is locked up and then head to bed."
"Thank you, Frances. Goodnight," Elizabeth said.
"Night," Tommy grunted out.
Waiting until Frances had disappeared, Tommy wrapped his arms around Elizabeth's waist. She rested her hands on top of his. Turning her head over her shoulder, she looked back to him and quickly pressed her lips to his. "Thank you for tonight," she whispered.
"Anythin'," Tommy whispered against her mouth.
"I mean it, Tommy," she said to him. "Tonight was just…it was good…for both of us."
"I know," he said to her. "And there are goin' to be more nights like it, Liz. After everythin' that 'as 'appened, we're goin' to be a family, alright? We're goin' to make more time for each other…to be us."
"I love you, Thomas Shelby," Elizabeth said and kissed him again.
Turning around in his grip, Elizabeth moved her hands to his shoulders, holding onto his suit jacket as he grabbed her waist, guiding her backwards. She pulled back after a few moments as his hands tugged her shirt from her skirt.
"Tommy…the bedroom is upstairs," she reminded him.
"That is for later," he mumbled. "Right now I 'ave other ideas."
"Really?" she whispered as he opened the door to his study.
…
"Morning."
Tommy greeted his wife as she woke up slowly. She held the covers to her chest as she sat up and he carried a cup of tea in his fingertips. Placing it down on her bedside table, Tommy sat down as Elizabeth blearily rubbed her eyes.
"You're dressed," she observed.
"I am," Tommy said to her. "I was thinkin' of takin' Charlotte out for a walk this mornin' and lettin' yer rest."
"Hmm," she hummed. "That sounds nice. Is Charlotte awake?"
"Already eatin' breakfast," Tommy chuckled. "Listen, Liz, I know I said last night that things would be different and I promise yer that they will be, but I 'ave to go to London for a while after the meetin' at the school on Monday."
"Alright," Elizabeth agreed with that. "Why?"
"Business in Parliament," he said. "And I 'ave to meet Mosley."
Elizabeth nodded. "I see," she said. "Tommy, we haven't really talked about what happened that day those men…well…you know."
"I know," Tommy said to her. "I still have men lookin' into it."
"Well," Elizabeth said in a low voice as she reached for her cup of tea. "You don't think that Mosley could have been involved, do you? You seem to think he knew about your plan to have him assassinated. What if those men were a warning message? Or he had the Billy Boys send them?"
"Possibility has crossed my mind," Tommy promised his wife. "And that is why I am keepin' an eye on 'im."
"I think it is just one reason why you should get away from him, Tommy," Elizabeth responded.
"If it was 'im," Tommy said to her. "Then he is goin' to pay, alright? No one lays a finger on you and gets away with it."
Elizabeth smiled sadly and took a sip of her tea. Placing it back down, she grabbed his hand. "And I appreciate the sentiment," Elizabeth said to him, squeezing his hand. "But he has outsmarted you before. Who is to say he will not do it again?"
"I've got smarter," Tommy promised his wife. "I will sort this. I promise yer."
"Just be careful," she urged.
Bending down, Tommy kissed her softly and then pulled back. "I'll be careful," he promised, "because I 'ave yer and Charlotte to think of."
"You had best not keep her waiting too long or else she will become impatient," Elizabeth said.
Tommy chuckled and nodded. He kissed his wife goodbye and went to find his daughter.
….
A/N: Do let me know what you think!
