For the Good of the Family

Dinner

I grew more nervous each time I checked the clock. Bonnie will be here any minute and the food is not ready yet. The lamb steaks and onion gravy are done but the roasted potatoes still need more time. I set the table for the two of us, seating us side by side instead of on opposite ends.

I spent too long with Ada and Karl when we left the shops. My poor nephew is so lonely with just his nanny for company. Charlie's probably the same, I'll bring it up in the next family meeting to have the Tommy and Ada's sons all kept together when their parents are away. The two nanny's could work together to boys entertained. Arthur's boy is too young to play with his cousins yet but I imagine he'd like the company.

I fidgeted with the table cloth trying to keep calm. I tidied the house yesterday so there was nothing to clean as a distraction. My blue dress was perfect, no reasons to waste time changing. Again. For the fifth time.

Just I was checking the potatoes again, there was a knock at the door. I reached for the gun I kept in the drawer by the entrance before opening it to reveal Bonnie. He was wearing a new chocolate brown suit, and a black coat that matched his Blinder cap. "The uniform suits you, come on in." Deep breaths Olive, having a handsome husband is a good thing. You could be marrying his father instead.

His voice was soft as he greeted me. "You look beautiful today Ms. Shelby." He rolled his cap and stuck it in his coat pocket before pulling off his coat.

"Thank you. You don't need to call me that, you know? Olive or Livy is fine. Unless you're going to call me Mrs. Gold for the rest of our lives." I said as I took the coat from him, hanging it and the coat rack next to my own fur lined black coat.

"Your home is very green, Ms. Shelby." He said with a cheeky grin, stoping just before the rug.

"I didn't choose anything in this house, except for the plants, Tommy picked it all out when I was living in America. I think he may be colorblind." I defended myself against the horrid clashes of green, brown, gold and red around the living and dining area. Most everything in the house is new, the furniture, the trinkets, even the wallpaper. All of the light fixtures were bright shiny gold, standing out sharply against the olive green wallpaper. Why did he choose an itchy emerald green couch and the ugliest brown rugs I've ever seen?

"I think you may be right." He still didn't move from the edge of the rug. "Should I take my shoes off? We always take our shoes off when we get in the Vardos."

A wave of affection shot through me. "Not in this house Mr. Gold. We probably should when we move to the country though, so I won't have to clean the rugs as often." I stepped past him to return to the kitchen. "Feel free to look around, I need to take the potatoes out of the oven."

"The food smells amazing." He moved around the living space on silent feet. Out of the corner of my eye I could see him looking at the framed photographs above the fireplace. "Are these your horses?"

"No, those are the winners of the Derby since the Blinders took control of the track. My stallion Juniper is at Arrow House, I haven't seen him since before I left for Boston. I didn't have time to visit him before Tommy forced us to return to Small Heath. Do you have a horse?" I took the potatoes out of the oven placing them onto the stove top where I'd been keeping them rest of the food warm.

He nodded quickly, his eyes sparkling a warm honey brown. "A big mare called Patchwork. Dad has her mother so they look almost the same but my girl's got less white on her head than old Griselda does. We nicked them from a farm up north a couple years ago. They're big and stocky, good for pulling the wagons and hauling bodies." He made his way through the living room, moving around the table to look at the display of gold patterned dishes. "Did Tommy pick these too?"