Oops! This image does not follow our content guidelines. To continue publishing, please remove it or upload a different image.
THE ARROW HOUSE CHRISTMAS, 1923.
CATERINA WAS MISERABLE, but at least she looked pretty while being miserable, or at least that's what Lizzie kept assuring her while she was combing her hair for the inevitable disaster that was bound to be the Shelby family dinner.
She tried to dissuade her anxiety with a tall glass of gin as she fixed her appearance before she was needed downstairs to greet and mingle. The brunette stared at her reflection in the carved mirror. Why was she so nervous to host the very same people she saw daily? Perhaps it was the elusive woman that would make her first appearance tonight, the woman Arthur insisted on making his wife.
Ever since they permanently moved to the Arrow House, Tommy and her hadn't had the opportunity to herd in all the family members for drinks and hearty food that was the pride of their newly employed head chef, a brother of Antonio Tavolieri, owner of the restaurant that was the front of Caterina's business for years.
The hostess' heels clicked soundlessly against the carpeted stairs just as the first arrivals pushed through the great arch of the entrance hall, the unmistakeable voice of John Shelby booming from the door.
"Fuck me, which big cock did you cut for this one, Tommy? Looks like the fuckin' palace in here," John chewed on the toothpick, the thin piece of wood perpetually stuck between his teeth.
One of his arms was slung casually around a heavily pregnant Esme, both of them dressed in velvet finery and gold chains that would have looked positively tacky on anyone else but them. The new flow of the company funds suited them exceptionally fine, allowing them to move from the cramped house in Small Heath and into a spacious cottage with enough land for their children to explore.
"John," hissed Esme, elbowing him straight between the ribs. "Watch your bloody language in front of the kids." She gestured to the flock of children, all in festively red clothes already amused by the thick tinsel wrapped around virtually every pole and pillar in the house.
Tommy didn't bother to hide the satisfied smirk on his face as he patted his younger brother's shoulder, "Comes with the territory, brother."
He rarely voiced the pride that surged in his chest every time he observed the rapid rise of his family fortune, all thanks to his clever scheming, and his girl's natural knack for business.
The brunette in question stopped at the bottom of the grand staircase, hands on her hips. "Oi, you little rascals! Watch where you put your sticky hands, capite?" She warned them with mock harshness, a smile playing on her painted lips. The rowdy six froze momentarily before bursting with laughter, and racing each other past the woman and into the sitting room.
