Disclaimer: I do not own anything Peaky Blinder related, that belongs to the series creator Steven Knight.

Face Claim for Rosemary Parker: Celina Sinden.

Chapter Two: Sunday Education

"I promised Mary that I would help her in the shop," Rosemary lied once the service was over and they had stepped out of the church, the two of them walking side by side with Rosemary's younger sisters following behind them. There was no way that Victoria Parker would ever allow her to leave if she guessed that Rosemary was intending to travel to the Shelby home and it was a fight that Rosemary knew would only end in her being forbidden to see Thomas. Victoria did not approve of the fact that her eldest daughter was courting a man like Thomas Shelby; she was sure the nice baker boy that worked with her husband would be a much better fit for her.

"I shan't be late," Rosemary promised with a smile, she was sure her mother would be far too busy fussing over Colleen to notice that she was missing anyway. Her younger sister had married two years earlier to a boy whose family owed the local corner shop, he worked there and had been very respectful to Victoria and Robert when he had asked for their blessing.

Colleen had only recently announced her first pregnancy and Victoria had been thrilled, she gushed over her second born and was focused on making sure that everything was prepared for when the baby was born. Victoria raised an eyebrow at Rosemary, it was unusual for her to work on a Sunday and she was sure that Rosemary would have mentioned such a thing before now especially when she knew that there was Sunday dinner to prepare at home.

"She's working on a wedding dress and there was a little accident after the bride-to-be took it home and she's getting married in a matter of days," Rosemary continued to lie, she felt horrid for doing so especially after stepping out of church but it was the only way that her mother would allow her to leave and she would get to spend time with the Shelby family.

Victoria nodded her head, she could not deny Mary such help when a woman only got one wedding day; she was sure that between the two of them that they could fix such a problem fast. A smile filled Rosemary's face and she was glad that her mother had agreed, it wasn't like Victoria would come to the shop and check what was happening anyway when there was much to be done at home.

Since Rosemary had started working at the shop, neither of her parents had stepped inside content that their eldest daughter had found decent work in their area; a good job like that was hard to come by. Especially when she was helping them pay for things, her extra pay packet allowed them to pay for some repairs to their small house and put food on the table when things had gotten difficult over the winter.

"Send my regards to Mary," Victoria insisted before she turned her attention back to Colleen and talking about her first grandchild; the baby would arrive in late January of next year and there was much to be done. Robert Parker frowned as he looked at Rosemary, he had a feeling that she was not being completely honest with them on where she was going.

Not that he could prove that she was lying to them, he would have much to say to her if he discovered that Rosemary had been spending more time with that Shelby boy. It was bad enough that the second boy had dared set his sights of Rosemary and she had entertained his fancy for a time.

Rosemary watched her mother and sisters walk away before she started to leave the church, if she were quick enough then she would be able to catch up with Polly and Ada as they walked home from church. Not looking back at her father, knowing very well that he was watching her walk away; Rosemary clutched her coat close to her as she hurried along not wanting to make the entire trip to the Shelby house alone.

Robert frowned and made a move to follow Rosemary when Victoria called out to him; he sighed guessing that he would have to let his suspicions lay a little longer. He nodded to Peter wishing that Rosemary would find a good man like him; he wanted someone who would keep her safe and she would not have to fear anything from.

Colleen had been extremely lucky when she found Peter, she had found someone quickly and they were already expecting their first child; his first grandchild that he could brag about with his friends when he went down to the pub.

Stepping into the cramped, cluttered kitchen of the house that he had grown up in, Thomas could not help but smile at the sight of Finn reading with Rosemary's help; he was pleased to see that she had come just like she had promised. It was not easy being together, but it was worth it when they had moments like this and it made him think of a future that he had never considered before. There were whispers that came to his ears and he did not like what he was hearing, there was something coming, and no one was sure just what was going on; the last thing that Thomas wanted was to be caught unawares.

"Tommy," Finn shouted snapping Thomas out of his thoughts, he smiled at the sight of his second eldest brother surprised that he had come here when he was meant to be working. It was always nice when his siblings were home, despite the rather large age gap between them all; there was a eleven-year age gap between him and Ada that made it difficult for him to have siblings to play with.

Rosemary's brown eyes snapped towards him surprised that she had not heard him come in, she was sure that Tommy was the only man in the world that could creep up on her like that. Leaning against the door frame, Thomas looked more at ease than he had done in a while and Rosemary could only imagine what was going on inside his mind right now.

"Don't mind me… finish your lesson with Rosie," Thomas insisted wanting his brother to get the best help that he could with his schooling while he had the chance. There was time for fun later and Finn had to at least be able to do the basics, he would need that later in life even if he did come and work with the rest of the family.

Finn nodded his head before turning his attention back towards the book that he had been reading with Rosemary; he wanted his brothers to be proud of him when they heard him read. Listening to Finn read, Thomas smiled knowing that his brother would hopefully have a better life than he and the others had done after their mother had died and their father left time.

It was good to see his reading improving, Thomas knew the boy had problems concentrating when Polly tried to get him to do so and would rather be running around the streets playing than in the kitchen learning his reading and writing. It was strange to think that so much had been put upon him and Arthur when there had not really been anyone else around to step up for them; they had only had their Aunt Polly to count on when their parents were gone.

Rosemary peered up at Thomas as he moved away from the door frame and headed back out into the hallway; she watched him leave guessing that he had work to be getting on with. Turning her focus back to helping Finn, Rosemary knew that things had been good for a while now and her friends had even teased that Thomas might be planning to take the next step with her.

They had been together for a year now, despite all the warnings that she had gotten that it would be better to ignore him or tell him to get lost; they had made it far longer than anyone had guessed. Just as Thomas was about to step out of the front door to head back to the office, he felt a hand catch his arm pulling him to a gentle stop; he was not surprised to find that it was his Aunt Polly.

"She's a good girl Tommy… you could do a lot worse," Polly mused with a small smile, she had overheard him talking with some of the boys the other night and she was sure he would not waste much more time. Rosemary made him happy and that was all Polly cared about, she wanted nothing more than to make sure her nephew didn't do something stupid that could ruin that.

The biggest problem that seemed to stay his hand was the fact that Rosemary's parents would never approve of such a match. Polly had noticed how Victoria looked down her nose at her when they were at church and she wondered just who Victoria Parker thought she was. There was no need to worry about food shortages in the Shelby household and Polly had even sent what could be spared home with Rosemary when things got a little tough during the winter.

Robert did not make a lot of money at work and Victoria did not work at all, there were seven of them living in that house with only three of them bringing in rather small pay-checks. Raising an eyebrow at his aunt, Thomas did not say a word before walking out of the house to get some business done.

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