Bancroft - Peaky Blinders Reverse Harem x Reader

Chapter 47

I'm worried mother will know where I've been, but she's thankfully too preoccupied with Karl when I get home to notice that I don't smell of horses, or my clothes are more dishevelled than when I left.

"You need to hurry up and have children," she sighs as she rocks him to sleep.

I grimace as I take a glass of deep red wine from Ada's fingers. "Not bloody likely."

"There," Mother smiles, lying Karl in the crib as he's finally asleep. "Well, I'm off to bed. Don't you girls be up too late."

"How did it go at the bank today?" I ask.

She smooths her hair. "Oh fine, fine. The transfer should be sorted in a couple of days." She smiles thinly. "Goodnight."

Ada shoots me a glance as soon as mother's shut the door behind her and her footsteps have pattered away out of earshot. "Please be careful," she tells me.

My face stays blank as I drink. "Please give me some credit," I tell her. "Do you really think Tommy would have tolerated me for so long if I was an idiot?"

We stand and walk through to the office, where the telephone is. If it rings, it'll be late at night, and I'll need to answer before mother hears it.

"Is that what you're calling it now?" Ada muses. "Tolerated?"

"I don't know what else to call it," I say. "We never got that far... and then I made a huge mistake."

We sit on the magenta velvet chaise, side by side.

"He doesn't do well with mistakes," Ada says quietly.

"I can imagine not."

"So, you are going back?"

"Yes," I say. "Though there's every chance they might tell me to fuck off."

"Oh, they'll undoubtedly tell you to fuck off," Ada says. "Tommy tells me and Polly that at least twice a year. But at the end of the day, he cares about us. We're family."

"It'll take a lot to regain his trust," I say. "I need to sort myself out and know that I won't do this again. And then I need to show him I've changed. Not just him. John and Arthur, too. Even Michael."

"It'll take time." Ada rests a hand over my own.

"Have you got problems with any men in your life?" I ask her, hoping for a reprieve from my own. The wine's going straight to my head, and coupled with the exhaustion, I wonder if my eyes are as bloodshot as Ada's. We've polished nearly a full bottle.

She gives a small smile. "There's a man who wants to take me to dinner in the weekend. I'm terrified."

"Why?" I ask.

"Because I haven't been with anyone since Freddie," she sighs. "I don't think I even remember how to... well, how to do any of it."

"But surely you won't need to worry about all that after a first dinner," I say.

She raises her eyebrows and drinks.

"Right," I mutter. "Communist."

"I won't sleep with him," she says and shakes her head. "But a kiss would be nice. I'm just... out of practice."

We sit in silence for a moment before she speaks again.

"Maybe I could show you," she says quietly. "And you can tell me if I'm terrible. Only if you're comfortable, of course," she adds quickly. "I know I can trust you."

I'm suddenly aware of how soft her lips look, of how clear her skin is against her dark hair. "Okay," I tell her.

I can smell her floral perfume as she leans in, cupping my face in her hands and threading her fingers through my hair at the base of my neck. Our lips press together, and her lipstick tastes like cherries. We both hesitate afterwards, not pulling away, and when our lips brush once more, she parts mine with a soft flick of her tongue.

Before I know it, she's on top of me, and we're lying back on the sofa with our legs tangled. I can feel every curve of her body against my own, and the room is silent except for us exploring each other's mouths with our tongues.

She's softer and gentler than her brothers, her tongue more pointed, and there's something exciting in the unfamiliar feeling of a head of long hair falling over me as we kiss.

Neither of us are stopping, and for a moment, I think we're going to fuck on this sofa.

But then the phone lets out a trill. We both freeze, eyes opening and staring at each other in anticipation. The phone's ringing.

We sit upright. "Answer it!" Ada whispers, her lips red and cheeks flushed.

I pull the phone receiver, my hands threatening to shake. "Hello?"

I listen while Ada waits. She doesn't know what the phone calls are about, but she knows Polly's involved somehow, and she's smart enough I predict she can surmise a rough idea of what's going on.

When the man finishes speaking, I thank him. My heart is pounding in my chest, and I'm shaking with fury.

"Polly's number," I say to Ada.

She tells me, and I speak with Polly, telling her what she needs to do. She's all too happy to agree, and we bid each other Goodnight, with her promise that she'll call first thing in the morning.

"What are you up to?" Ada murmurs.

"You'll find out soon enough." I finish my glass of wine. "You and Karl had best leave first thing. I don't want you around if it gets messy."

"Okay," She says. Then, "we can give you a lift back to Birmingham. If you want to come up with me tomorrow."

I swallow. "It all depends on what Polly says in the morning."

Ada nods. The silence hangs between us for a moment as we push the matter from our minds.

"You're very good," I tell her, squeezing her hand in my own. "Almost too good. The man taking you for dinner won't be able to remember his own bloody name. I couldn't."

Ada gives a soft laugh, looking down. "And I can understand why my brothers have been acting crazy since the moment you arrived," she says. "Maybe I ought to move into that house with you all."

I smile, and then I sigh, lying down on the sofa again. Best I sleep beside the phone for tonight. Just in case.

Ada lies with me, and we're cuddled together in a feminine embrace.

"Can we cuddle for tonight?" She asks. "I miss having someone beside me."

I wrap my arms around her and I nod. "Me too."

And with a small sigh of contentment, we both fall asleep.