Tess crept down the stairs and into the bakery, walking as lightly as she could. She could hear her the muffled voices of Alfie's men. She paused when she heard a man cry out in pain.

"So, you thought you could feed Sabini information, hm?" a loud THUD echoed against the brick walls before another wail from the man. "Thought you could spy on Alfie Solomons? Thought you could feed him information and that I wouldn't find out?"

Tess didn't have to see what Alfie was doing to the man to know it was brutal. Her heart began to race as she pictured herself in the man's place. She was so lost in her own terror that she missed Alfie's instruction for Ollie and Benjamin to take the man and drop him outside the doors of Sabini's club. She hearing thier footsteps, she quickly hid behind a barrel. The men passed, dragging an unconscious man between them.

Tess began to stand, watching after the men and released a sigh of relief that they hadn't seen her. Deciding it would be in her best interest to sneak back upstairs, she went to move but the hem of her skirt had gotten caught on the barrel. She looked down to unhook it from the wood and jumped when she saw a pair of dark blue eyes staring at her.

Alfie stood with a straight face and slowly raised one eyebrow, as if asking, "what are you doing?"

"Um. Sorry, I- um. I n-needed to ask you a question. About your… washing. About your washing." She nodded as if it would help her very poor case. At this,

Alfie raised both of his eyebrows, signaling for her to ask her question. "D-do you, um… have a favorite shirt? I, uh, accidentally ruined one of your shirts and wanted to make sure it wasn't a favorite because it's ruined now." Tess rambled on until Alfie cleared his throat and began walking toward his office.

Tess knew she was supposed to follow but after seeing the state the other man was left in, she thought about running. Problem was, she didn't have anywhere to run to and Alfie owned the streets in Camden Town so she would be caught regardless. Slowly making her way to Alfie's office, she began trembling in fear of what was going to happen next.

Alfie sat behind his desk and leaned back in his chair, intertwining his fingers and setting his hands in his lap as he stared at her. Tess sat in a chair across from him, her nervousness causing her to bounce her knee up and down. Alfie stared at her, unblinking while she looked everywhere in the office except at him.

"Tess." Was all he said before she burst into tears.

"I'm sorry! I didn't know what to do! I wasn't sure what I was going to do with the information! I-I… I'm really very sorry! Please don't do me like that man."

Her voice got quiet on the last sentence as frightened tears rolled down her cheeks.

Alfie searched her face for a moment before he leaned forward. "And what information did you gather watching me?"

"That you don't like spies."

"No. I don't." His eyes never left her face and his expression hardened. "And yet, here you are. Watching me. Gathering 'information' that may or may not be passed on."

"I'm sorry." she whispered just before her chin quivered and she bit her lip to fight back more tears.

"Who hit you, Tess?" He asked.

Tess shook her head.

"Tell me."

She lifted her eyes to meet his as a new wave of fresh tears spilled down her cheeks. "I don't know. My cousin owes them money." she sniffed. "He gave me to them to even his debts and they found out I worked for you. They told me they wanted information and if I didn't give it to them when they returned they would do God only knows what to me."

"Why did you lie?" He asked earnestly. "I can help you, Tess."

"You can. But that doesn't mean you would." She asked as she wiped her face.

"Of course I would have helped you if you had come to me. But instead you lied and sent me all over fucking England trying to find out the truth."

She looked up at him, trying to understand what he was talking about.

"Of course, I went searching for the truth." He said exasperatedly. "I help the people I care about and I knew you were fucking lying about your spill down the stairs."

Tess couldn't help herself. She scoffed and shook her head. "Care about? You said so yourself. I'm just a notch in your bedpost."

Alfie signed and ran a hand down his face. "Look, when I said that, I was trying to push you away. Look at your fucking life, Tess. What are you doing getting involved with a guy like me? I'm fucking dangerous and I do bad fucking things. You are young, you are used to a very different life."

"You don't know anything about my life." She interjected. "And who I get involved with isn't up to you. It is my decision."

Alfie leaned back in his chair and gave her an exasperated look. "And look where it's gotten you. Fucking abused by some racketeers because you work for me. Imagine what they would do if they knew I fucking you or that I would like to do so on a regular basis. Men like that take what others care about and use it against them."

"They beat me because my cousin gave me up."

"Yeah, and I will fucking deal with that after I have dealt with them." Alfie assured her. "But it doesn't change the fact that you shouldn't have lied and you sure as hell shouldn't have been watching me."

Tess wiped her cheeks, removing the last of her salty tears. "I'm sorry."

Alfie shook his head and the two sat in silence with

Tess glancing her eyes up at him every few seconds as if she wanted to say something.

"Well go on then." Alfie insisted, knowing she had something begging to be voiced.

"You would like to do so on a regular basis?" She repeated, her expression changing from curious to wanting.

Alfie clenched his jaw. "Lamb, I would fuck you until you couldn't walk if I had it my way."

Tess swallowed. "I thought everything was your way in Camden Town."

"You are playing with fire." he told her in a low, rough voice.

"I like the glow." Tess explained with a shrug.

Alfie stood and slowly walked around his desk, leaning over to put his hands on the armrests of her chair. Tess swallowed and her lips parted as he invaded her space, his face inches from hers.

"Are you sure about this?" He asked, the intensity of his eyes resonating between her legs.

Tess nodded and squeezed her thighs together, her pulsating desire needing relief. Alfie didn't miss her movements and he slowly began to raise her skirt up and move to his knees in front of her. She raised her hips slightly as he hooked his fingers in the hem of her knickers and slid them down, never taking his eyes from her. He watched as her pupils dilated and her cheeks began to flush as the heat ran through her body with the anticipation of what he was planning.

Alfie grabbed her hips and pulled her to the edge of her seat, burying his face into her and grazing her clit with his tongue. Tess arched her back reflexively and cried out, her body having missed his touch and finally being rewarded for its patience. Alfie moved her legs over his shoulders as he began to devour her, licking up the pleasure that flooded her core.

Tess's legs shook at her buildup began and her cries grew louder. Alfie pushed her to the edge, stopping before she reached her peak. He pulled away from her and grinned menacingly at the sight of her frustration.

Her chest heaved, nipples hard and sensitive against the lace of her bra. She licked her lips, "why did you stop?"

"I like you like this." He answered as began to rise from his knees, putting his lips on hers and kissing her without remorse until she was moaning into his mouth as if his tongue was back at her core instead of her mouth.

When he pulled back she stood, her frustration refusing to be ignored. She pushed her body against his as he leaned against his desk and she began to undo his shirt as her lips found his again.

Alfie grabbed her waist and pulled her close, his erection fighting to reach her through his trousers. She rubbed her body against it, causing a low growl to work it way up his throat. He turned her around, lifting her and setting her on his desk as she desperately undid his trousers. Once freed, he positioned himself and eased himself into her slowly, knowing she her body still wouldn't be used to being filled.

Tess leaned back, moaning with her eyes closed as he stretched her.

"Please," she begged erotically. "Move. Please!"

He obliged, pumping into her slowly at first then faster as she cried his name.

"Alfie! Oh god! Oh fuck! Yes!" Her hands gripped the sides of his shirt as moved a hand to rub circles on her swollen bud with his thumb.

The moment his thumb reached its destination she exploded, her eyes rolling back and a strangled cry of passion escaping her.

Alfie tried to hold on as her walls tightened around him but the pulsations were too much and he shot into her with a guttural grunt.

He leaned over her, his arms supporting him shakily, completely spent. Tess remained on his desk reveling in the aftershocks going down her spine and continuing to vibrate through her core.

"Fucking hell." Alfie breathed, reluctantly removing himself from her and her quivering walls.

After taking a moment to compose themselves, Tess planted her feet on the ground and looked up at him.

"I am sorry, Alfie. Truly. I didn't-" She looked away, unable to hold his eyes. "I was afraid. I don't think I would have passed on the information but… I wanted to have it just in case."

Alfie put a knuckle under her chin and lifted her face to look at him. "If I thought I couldn't trust you, you wouldn't be in my house."

Tess offered him a small smile and nodded, burying her face in his chest and breathing in the scent of cigars, rum, and sex.

"Let's go upstairs and you can tell me every detail about those fuckers." He said, knowing when thier conversation was over, he would be taking her to his bedroom and making good on his promise to pleasure her until she couldn't move.