Falling Free

-Four-

Alfie couldn't stop looking at his new wife during the simple, and somewhat awkward, dinner they were forced to sit through. The Shelbys sat on one side of the room and the Jews on the other, while the newlyweds sat between them all, both looking as though they wished they could be anywhere else. Occasionally, one of the Shelbys would say something to bring a smile to Niamh's face but it wasn't genuine; it was forced and it never quite reached her eyes, and Alfie found himself wishing he could see how a real smile of hers would look.

His men hadn't been lying when they had been gushing over looks because she was absolutely fucking stunning. But not in the way most girls were. Her cheekbones were well defined, and perhaps on someone with a less rounded face they might have looked harsh, and her eyes were deep set and framed with the longest lashes he had ever seen. Her upper lip was perfectly shaped but the bottom one looked to be almost slightly turned down although it didn't make her look miserable, merely perhaps serious. The colour of her eyes was the colour of the sky on a sunny day in Margate and he realised that a lesser man could be in danger of losing himself in them.

Alfie found himself wanting to talk to her; to ask her about herself but she stared down at her plate of roasted pheasant as though she was waiting to find all of the answers to the universe there and so he didn't disturb her. Besides, her family were watching the pair of them like fucking hawks and even though he was good at pretending not to give a fuck, the truth was that it actually awkward as hell. Ah well, there would be plenty of time for talking later when they were alone, and as he shifted uncomfortably in his seat Alfie realised he wanted more than just talking. Fucking hell... what was wrong with him? He never felt like this about a woman, especially not one he had just met. Probably some sort of fucking gypsy magic. And then it hit him. She was new and she was pretty. Alfie liked new toys but he soon got fed up with them and cast them aside. Give it a few days and the novelty of her would wear off and he could go on as he had initially planned; with cool disinterest. He couldn't deny though that a part of him considered playing the old marriage consummation card so he could have his wicked way with her and get her out of his system quicker, but for some reason he just knew he couldn't do it. She was a fucking Shelby for crying out loud, yet she didn't seem like the rest of them.

After dinner, the Shelbys blessedly decided that there was no need to stretch the reception out for any longer than had been truly necessary and they began to retire to their rooms one by one. Out of convenience, everyone would be staying for the night and leaving after breakfast in the morning. If Alfie had his way, he would have left the second the vows were done but his men had been allowed a couple of drinks in honour of the celebration and a few of them had arranged for some female company for the night. Besides, even though Niamh was now legally his property, he didn't doubt that the Shelbys would have had something to say about him dragging her off to her new home before they had the chance to properly say their goodbyes.

Eventually, the horribly gaudy, posh dining room was empty aside from the two newlyweds and the tension in the air crackled awkwardly.

"I aint much for wine as a rule but this one aint too terrible to be fair," Alfie muttered finally in an attempt to make some sort of conversation.

Niamh looked up in surprise when she realised he was talking to her and then felt immediately stupid. Of course he was talking to her given that they were the only two people left in the room.

"It's alright," she shrugged, taking a small sip and setting it down with a thinly concealed grimace.

"Yeah, on second thoughts it tastes like crap if I'm bein' honest. These rich folk don't have much taste, do they?"

A hint of a smile played at Niamh's lips as Alfie blatantly mocked the very person who had hosted this wedding dinner for them- at no expense to either party- and she realised that she quite liked the way he spoke. He was gruff yet there was an almost animated lilt to his voice that was intriguing.