Trust In Love

Ring of Confidence

"Oh, Tom! It's so.... "

"Beautiful?" He smiled and kissed her cheek.

"Expensive!"

"Oh, sweetheart!" Tom laughed gently and hugged her to his side.  She looked up at him, and he kissed her softly. "For you, nothing is too much. Just tell me one thing? Do you love it?"

She looked down at her hand. The princess cut emerald, with baguette diamonds on either side winked in the lights of the jewellers..... "I do."

There was a pause, and he whispered in her ear, "I can't wait to hear you say that for real darling." He kissed her cheek again and straightened up.  This time he spoke to the bespectacled man sitting on the other side of the small but glittering counter. "Would you be able to size it today? We'd like to have it for a special dinner later." He looked at Jennie again and her heart pounded, this was all so very real. 

The jeweller nodded and looked at the ring closely, as Jennie reluctantly removed it. "No problem Mr Hiddleston, it wont take long.  Would you like to pop back around 4 - 4.30?" He smiled, shaking both their hands. "Congratulations again, see you later on."

Tom stood and held out his hand, helping her to stand.  "Come on darling, lunch.  Time to go make Luke's charmed life just that little bit more challenging eh?" He winked and helped her slip her jacket back on.  "As for that dinner?  I think I know just the place.  We can stop off and see someone else very important to all this on the way."

"Oh?" Jennie was, at this point, just going with the flow.  Her mind couldn't really cope with much more.  In a good way, of course.

"Yep, time you met your prospective Mother in Law." he smiled at her immediate pale flush and little 'oh my' that escaped.  "Don't worry, she'll love you.  In fact, she'll probably love you more than she loves me!  You don't bring her dirty washing and tales of woe.  You, my darling, are taking on a Herculean task in agreeing to be my wife, and for that my mum be forever in your debt!"

They laughed and walked out into the sunshine of Hatton Garden. All around, jewellers and diamond merchants showed their goods in windows worth a large fortune.  Besuited guards stood at every - locked - door and there was an air of quiet wealth.  Despite some of the pieces being worth well into six or even seven figures, there was a quietly relaxed atmosphere.  Hatton Garden had been home to some of the oldest and most prestigious jewellers in the country.  Where else would he bring her.  His own precious gem.

Jennie and Tom walked along the street and onto the Underground.  The short hop to Covent Garden  meant they arrived well in good time for their lunch.  "Let's walk around the piazza?" Tom caught her hand and almost dragged her off.

"Wait... Tom.... Hang on..." she paused and he came to an abrupt stop. Turning back, his face was a mask of concern.  

"What's up?  You ok?  If you're feeling ill we can cancel..." his instant concern washed over her like a warm tide.  She smiled and shook her head. 

"No love, I was just thinking if you go wandering around in the middle of the day, it might not end too well for you.  What if people see us together?  Worse yet.. holding hands" she held up their perennially joined hands with a smile.

Tom instantly kissed the back of her hand and smiled broadly. "I certainly hope they do love.  I certainly hope they do. That's the whole point. I want us seen together, I want people to know I'm yours." his eyes shone and she was taken aback at the way he phrased it,  She was the one in charge. He...Tom Hiddleston... was HERS. She nodded.

"Ok, if you're game so am I.  Bring it on ! I have a handsome man attached to me at the wrist, so what's not to love."

"Just the wrist?" he squinted and looked at her cheekily.

"Yeeeess?" Jennie was a little uncertain where it was going but she'd roll with it.  

"How about here as well?" he yanked her flush against him and kissed her soundly.  Her head spun and her heart raced.  This was about as public as it got and Tom didn't seem to care.  She freed her hand from his and tangled both of hers in his hair, pulling him to kiss her harder.  

Finally they parted, breathless and bright eyed. "Oh my sweet little kitten has turned into a mischievous kitty cat then eh?" he grinned and she nodded.

"Oh darling, you have NO idea." 

As they walked off towards the bustling piazza a couple of people did a double take and there was the unmistakeable sound of shutters clicking.  Neither Tom nor Jennie cared, they were too wrapped up in their own love to feel afraid.

They should have been.

While love's young dream were away picking it's engagement ring, someone else was picking out the right words to put an end to their future.

Terry Anderson was a man with a monumental chip on his shoulder.  Now, he'd been told that in light of the fact their was insufficient evidence to corroborate his story, it was unlikely to stick.  His brief, Jack Landsbury, a rotund, sweaty little man  with a permanent scowl had been contacted by Messers Anderson, Smith and Clyde, KC.  The very best defence lawyers money - and influence - could buy.  If his client persisted in this charade, not only would he find himself in court on the all too provable charge of burglary, but he could add re-set of property, wilful destruction, entrapment, slander and perjury to the list.  Six months inside for petty theft would turn into years.  

"There is NO way I'm retracting my statement.  I'll look a fool at best, a conniving thieving bastard at worst. "he looked at the lawyer steadily.  "You've let me down.  You said I would get away with this. You said you wanted to help.  You said we was family.  You do know what happens to people who let me and my family down, don't you?"

The lawyer smiled, unfazed by the thinly veiled threat.  "Mr Anderson, calm down now, please.  If you don't mind, there is no need.  I AM on your side, I DO want to help. I need only make a couple of phone calls.  There are... associates... of mine that we can call upon to help us in situations like this.  Sometimes a more....unofficial but direct approach is required." he gathered the papers on the desk up and shoved them into a battered and well used brief case.  Standing, he indicated to the prison officer on the other side of the door he was ready to leave.

"So what DO I do?" Terry asked almost desperately as Landsbury went to walk out with no further comment.

Jack Landsbury had been a criminal defence lawyer for the underbelly of London since the Krays had gone inside.  There was nothing and nobody he didn't know.  Terry Anderson was a small time, small minded crook.  A bully and a coward.  If it hadn't been for the family connection, he would have left the little runt to it.  But blood was blood.  When his cousin had killed himself thanks to that little bitch foreclosing, he knew it would only be a matter of time before Terry waded in guns blazing.  Now?  Now he could keep him out the way and do it properly.  The old fashioned way. 

"Terry, you don't do a thing my son.  Not a bloody thing.  Just sit there, keep quiet and let me do all the talking.  You don't even take a shit without my permission. I'll tell you what to say and when to say it. Understand?" he smiled as he waited for the door to be opened for him. "I always thought you were destined to be a truly intelligent and fearsome player in our world....."

As the door closed with a resounding clang behind him, he added "even I can be wrong though it seems." he shook his head and headed off.  A pint and a sandwich first, no campaign of harassment was ever fought on an empty stomach.