A Shelby Mistress

Sickness

"There! Perfect my sweet boy" Aurora cooed sweeping the soft brush through Charlie's hair one last time before placing it back in the draw and kissing a rosy cheek. Adjusting the little white collar around his neck and buttoning up his cardigan, Aurora took him in her arms and headed for the door. Both were now ready for the day and Aurora had things she wished to discuss with Tommy. So far she'd only let Mary know of her plans and agreeing that the idea was wonderful Aurora felt confident enough to put it towards Tommy.

"Good morning Miss Hayes" Francis greeted her on the stairs, gently tickling underneath Charlie's chin as they passed by one another.
"Good morning Francis, is Tommy still in his office? I rose early to catch him" Aurora smiled hoping she hadn't missed him. Each day he woke earlier than the one before and she would lay there and listen to his footsteps making their way around the other room, her stare fixated on the ceiling waiting for sleep to take her yet it would never come and in the end she would get up and go wake Charlie for the day.
"Yes Miss Hayes, he's gathering his things before he makes his way to the Digbeth office" Francis answered, running the dusting cloth along the stair bannister with a small sweet hum.
Knowing she only had a minute to reach him, Aurora fixed Charlie on her hip and sped up her steps, her heels clicking against the floor loudly which Tommy would definitely hear approaching and in her luck would wait for her to arrive.

"Good morning mouse" She heard him call out from the office as she made her way through the drawing room. Seeing that his door was open, Aurora made her way inside without knocking, greeting him with a cheery good morning and handing Charlie over to him. Seeing him with his son was one of her greatest joys, they were so good together. This was a man who had been so terrified he'd turn out like his own Father and in the end truly hadn't needed to worry, Tommy was something his Father could never be, a wonderful parent.
"What can I do for you two?" Tommy asked taking a seat at his desk and running his fingers through Charlie's freshly brushed locks, ruining Aurora's work with a bright smile, his cheek resting gently against the small boy's.
"I have an idea and I want to present it to you like a client would. I've been thinking about it since the night you attended the Russian party and I believe it would be wonderful" Aurora began watching Tommy's eyes flicker up to meet hers, his attention on her face waiting for her to proceed "The Grace Shelby Institute For Orphaned Children will open in a few days and I know time is short but I think it would be nice to have Grace there. You commissioned a bench in her honour to be placed in the gardens and to add to it I think we could perhaps have a small memorial inside the institute, a picture or a painting in a large frame for all to see. We could decorate a corner of the building and fill it with her favourite flowers, changing them each time they begin to fade and in the middle of those flowers have her portrait resting there for all to see. The children are there because of Grace and I think they should be able to know her and know how much she cared for the youth of Birmingham"

Tommy studied her face closely taking in her pale skin and dark bags that decorated her under eyes. The lack of sleep was beginning to wear her down, not just on the inside now but despite it all, her beautiful eyes were gleaming in happiness and her bouncing knees told Tommy she was greatly excited about her idea.
"It's a wonderful idea mouse, I'll see to it that it happens. She loved roses, we could have white roses" Tommy smiled back causing Aurora to let out a small squeak of victory before she covered her mouth and giggled.
"White roses sound beautiful Tom" She grinned clapping her hands, her laughter growing louder as Charlie copied her actions, his own excitement building even though he remained unaware of what they were discussing.
"Do you have a dress picked out?" Tommy questioned curiously knowing Aurora hadn't left the house to go shopping in a while. Often times he offered to have some fitted for her but she refused informing him that she didn't have need for new dresses especially when she spent so much time on the floor and in the grass with Charlie. It seemed to Tommy that Aurora wasn't aware she was going to be attending the event.
"For what? What's wrong with me clothes?" She murmured with a small confused frown looking down at the dress she was wearing today. He'd mentioned her attire quite a lot lately and Aurora was beginning to believe he had an issue with the way she dressed. Not everyone could afford expensive clothing like Tommy nor did people want to spend silly amounts of money on material.
"I meant for the opening of the institute mouse, the way you dress is perfectly fine" He chuckled in return humoured by the offence dripping from her tongue.
"Oh I didn't think I was goin'...I..I didn't know I was invited" Aurora stuttered out playing with her fingers nervously. Grace wasn't here anymore and still Aurora found herself trying not to cause offence to her memory. The institute was hers, Aurora didn't want to walk through the halls and see the children Grace would never be able to.
"You're family, why wouldn't you be there?" Tommy shrugged attempting to take the pencil Charlie had snatched off the desk from his strong little hand before the papers resting below were destroyed. There was nothing stronger than a baby's grip especially when the baby was holding something they shouldn't be.
"Are you certain Tommy? I could always visit at a later date when the children are settled in"
She planned to give more donations to the institute so her visiting at a later date would be fine. Aurora would pour every penny she owned into those children if it made them happy.
"I want you to be there Aurora so does Charlie, please come. Let's have the whole family together for once" Tommy smiled reassuringly finally managing to get the pencil out Charlie's hand and standing up he leant over the desk and placed the boy back in Aurora's arms. Staring down at Charlie, Aurora resisted the urge to refuse the invitation due to the troubled feeling building up in her stomach. Something didn't feel right to her but lifting her head, Aurora gently nodded gratefully.
"Ok Tommy I'll come, thank you"
She'd sealed her decision as soon as she looked at Charlie. She wouldn't lose sleep over it either, after all she didn't sleep now.