Forever

A long day

All the Shelby's looked at Tommy and he took a deep breath.
"She's a Changretta. A fucking Changretta."He yelled.
"I will handle it." Polly said.
"You better or I'll fucking handle it myself."
"What are you going to do, Thomas? Kill a pregnant woman? That's my grandchild." Polly yelled.
          "And what about my baby?" He yelled.
His eyes widened as he got closer to her.
"They didn't think twice when they shot Scarlett and killed my baby." He screamed.
They all looked at him. Tommy rubbed his eyes and and then stormed out. Scarlett got to their house and walked in.
          "Bella." Scarlett called out as she walked up the stairs.
          "Isabella."
She ran out of her room and Scarlett bent down and hugged her.
          "Hi mommy. Do you want to play?"
          "I would love to. I'll be right there."
Bella ran off and then Scarlett went to Myles' room and picked him up. She held him up in the air and he smiled.
          "Hi, my sweet boy."
She kissed his cheek as she held him and then she went to play with Bella. They played for a while. Scarlett was staring at the ground when Bella got her attention.
          "What's wrong, mommy?"
She snapped out of it and smiled.
          "Nothing...I just missed my babies today."
Bella smiled and hugged her mom. Scarlett held them tight. The Changretta's took one baby...they weren't taking anymore.
"I missed you too." Bella said.
Bella pulled away and looked at Scarlett.
"Do you have to go back tomorrow?"
"It's my job, Bella." She smiled.
"But I like it when you stay here."
"Bella."
"Please don't go. Stay here with me." Bella said as she fell into Scarlett.
Scarlett closed her eyes as she held the two. Ash ran in and barked. Bella let go and looked at him. He licked her face and ran out. She laughed as she chased him. Scarlett looked at her son.
"Well I guess it's just you and me, Myles."
He reached out and touched her nose and she smiled. Scarlett talked to him and he just made baby noises as he smiled. They were excited to see what his first word was going to be. They may even have a little bet on it. Hours went on and night fell. Dinner was just placed on the dining room table as Finn and Isaiah walked in. The two boys were always together, which meant Isaiah was always at the house.
"Finny!" Bella yelled as she ran to him.
"My favorite girl." He said as he picked her up.
He hugged Scarlett and then tickled Myles, making him laugh.
"MJ." Finn said.
Scarlett smiled because she knew that's what John would have called him.
"Can't eat dinner at your own house?" Scarlett joked.
"I like the food here."
He kissed Scarlett's cheek.
"And no one at home looks like you." Isaiah added.
Scarlett pushed him away as everyone laughed.
"Sit down and eat while you still can." She said.
"You don't have to tell me twice." Isaiah said as he sat down.
Everyone ate and then Bella pulled Isaiah away to show him her new dollhouse.
"Is Tommy still at the office?" She asked Finn.
"I don't know where he is. He stormed out after him and Pol got in a yelling match."
Scarlett raised her eyebrows and then Finn told her what they were yelling about. He could see the worry on her face, so he grabbed her free hand.
          "He'll be okay. He's just upset and doesn't want anyone to see him like that, so he had to clear his head."
She gave him a small smile and then he got up to find Isaiah. A while later, Scarlett put Myles down for bed. She walked into hers and Tommy's room to see Bella passed out in the bed with Ash right beside her. Scarlett smiled and then walked to the bathroom. She put a swimsuit on because she knew she wouldn't sleep until Tommy got home. Scarlett looked at herself in the mirror.
          "What are you going to do, Scarlett? Are you just going to walk away from what your grandfather and father built from nothing? Or are you going to be that monster your mother always knew you were?"
She dropped her head as she leaned against the counter.
          "How do I walk away from my life's work? From something I love. How do I be a good mom if I stay?" She whispered.
She shook her head and then grabbed a towel as she went downstairs. Scarlett grabbed a glass and a bottle of whiskey. She pinned her hair up as she got in the heated pool. About an hour went by and a few full glasses of whiskey. Tommy walked out right as she was getting out of the pool. He wrapped the towel around her and pushed a loose piece of hair behind her ear.
          "Why do you always do that?" She asked.
          "So I can see your face."
He gave her a look as he put his hand to her forehead.
          "You feel like you have a fever. Do you feel alright?"
          "I'm fine. It's probably just the warm water."
They walked to the deck and sat on their porch swing.
          "Are you okay? Finn told me what happened after I left."
He poured a drink as he talked.
          "Just a long day. I needed to clear my head...and find myself."
          "Did you?" She asked.
He nodded.
          "I didn't until I got home. Whenever I get lost I always look for you and not myself."
Scarlett gave a small smile as she looked down. Then she leaned against him.
"What about you? Are you okay? Your first day back wasn't so great." He said.
"Do you think it's time for me to retire?"
"Retire?" He laughed because he thought she was joking.
"I think it might be time for me to throw in the towel. Walk away from the business."
He looked at her because he knew she wasn't joking now.
"After one bad day?"
"It's not just one bad day, Tommy. I mean when was the last time we had a good day? When was the last time our lives weren't threatened or someone was killed?"
"The Scarlett I knew years ago would never even consider this."
"Yeah, that Scarlett didn't have kids and a husband then."
"You can't leave the business. We need you there. I need you there. You're too impactful to just walk away."
Scarlett sighed as she pulled the towel tighter.
"Tommy."
"Scarlett, you're too smart and you've worked too hard your whole life to just give it up. You can't."
He said as he raised his voice.
          "What about our kids? They look up to us. They watch what we do. What kind of role model am I for them?"
"What Greta said got in your head, didn't it?"
"Yes." She said as she got up.
"Since when do you care what people think?"
"I don't, but was she wrong? What if I miss out or they resent me because I work?"
          "You're a great mom. That would never happen."
Scarlett was pacing in front of Tommy. Today everything just kept building up and it just seemed never ending for her.
          "Yeah? Bella looked at me today and asked me not to go tomorrow. She begged me to stay here with her."
Tommy closed his eyes and took a deep breath.
          "Maybe my mother was right in that letter she left. No child should have to grow up around me. I'm no mother. I mean I threatened a pregnant woman today. Some fucking role model." She laughed.
She looked at Tommy as she stopped pacing.
"I....I don't know what to do. I want to be a better person. I want our kids to be proud of their mother. How can they proud of this? But how can I walk away from something I've worked for my whole life? All of my father's hard work..." She shook her head.
She put her hands on her head and closed her eyes.
"I...I just...I don't know if I can do this anymore."
Tommy grabbed her hand and pulled her back on the swing. She sat beside him and he pulled her legs over his lap as he put his arm around her.
"Scarlett, look at me."
          "I threatened a pregnant woman too. Some parents we are." He joked.
She looked up and he ran his hand over her face.
          "We do this for a living so our kids never have to. What we do on the job has nothing to do with the love we give them, okay?"
"It's just been a long day." She said sadly as she leaned her head on his chest.
He stroked her face.
"I know, but tomorrow is a new day. We will take some time and figure this out." He said.
"How about we take tomorrow off and just spend it with Myles and Bella." He added.
"I can't just not show up after my first day back."
He lifted her chin and they made eye contact.
"It's our kingdom, Scar. We can do whatever we want."
"Well would the king like to go to bed?"
He looked her up and down.
"He would." He said as he picked her up and carried her inside.
They got upstairs and Tommy saw Bella and Ash asleep in their bed. He picked Bella up and she slowly woke up.
"Daddy, why weren't you at dinner? Were you at work?"
He gave her a sad look and then took her to her room. Tommy came back in the room a while later and Scarlett looked like she was asleep.
"Ohhh I know you did not fall asleep." He said as he started to get in bed.
He lifted up the covers and saw that Scarlett was naked and then she laughed. He got close to her.
          "Maybe I should retire too. I can't take Bella asking me questions like that."
          "See." She said as she lightly kissed his lips.
He looked into her eyes.
"Prefect way to end a long day." He smirked as he got on top of her.
He kissed her and then kissed her neck.
"I know what will make you feel better." He whispered.
He kissed down her body and then kissed her thighs. Tommy put his arms under her thighs and pulled her closer by her hips. Scarlett started to breathe hard as she gripped Tommy's hair.
          "Tommy." She moaned.
He smirked and just kept going.