Living With Mr Shelby

Chapter Nineteen

I had seen the odd man three more times, the first was at Charlie Strong's he was discussing shipments coming to Birmingham from wherever it was he lived. The second had been at the Garrison where he danced with myself and Ada. The third was when Tommy pinned him up against the wall outside our flat threatening to have the man killed.

"Lola stop walking away!" Tommy yelled down the street after me once he had dropped the man and let him scurry off. I refused to listen to his order and continued to stomp away as fast as I could. Once I'd reached our front door I yanked it open and hurried into my room before Thomas could catch me. I didn't understand why he'd been so horrible to the man he wasn't doing me any harm. We were becoming friends, I pulled my blankets over my head as Tommy stormed in the room.

"Lola." Tommy's voice was softer now as if he realized he'd been foolish, when I didn't reply he tugged at the blankets around me and he soon managed to unravel me from my cocoon of blankets, enough to see my face.

"What." I whispered almost in tears, Tommy frowned for a moment before pulling his bottom lip through his teeth and adjusting his hat.

"I don't want any men near you." He said decisively leaning his elbows on his knees as he crouched down to look at me.

"Why." I asked unsure if my voice would hold or crack and allow me to break into tears, Tommy didn't reply instead he pressed his lips to mine and pulled me up a little so he could turn his head. I gasped as he pulled my blankets away and felt his fingers find their way to the ribbons that held my dress close to my body which soon fell away from me as his warm hands caressed my waist through the light petticoat I had on underneath.

Tommy rolled us over swinging my legs either side of his and bringing me back down to him so he could continue our kiss. His left hand found its way back to my waist while his right began climbing up my thigh, I began to panic unsure how far I wanted to take our intimacy.

"Tommy." I pulled away. His face was blank but a flicker of disappointment blazed in his eyes. He looked away from me before sliding his hands behind his head, his foot tapping my wooden bed frame as he thought deeply. I pulled my dress around me in an attempt to keep the cold evening air that swirled down the chimneys from biting at my skin waiting for Tommy to do something.

He surprised me by pulling my dress tight and loosely tying the ribbons back together before stopping and looking up at me, his eyes caressing me in a way the Thomas in my dreams had touched my skin.

"Poll says I take after my father... that I have a devilment inside me." Tommy muttered watching me carefully, I smiled fondly recalling Polly telling me how Thomas' father had met his mother. Poll had been sitting with her sister watching the water by the river waving at the boatmen as they passed. The young Shelby began whistling to her and trying to catch her eye, messing around with his brothers and falling into the river. She was so worried that he'd hurt himself she bravely climbed across the boats jumping the little gap between them to help one of the men pull Thomas' father into his boat.

"But you care about people like your mother." I whispered making the edges of Tommy's mouth for his usual smirk. He sat up causing me to fall down into his lap and I could see what Polly meant by devilment. His eyes were dark with a hunger that made me shift uncomfortably while his jaw clenched as if he was physically holding himself back.

"Poll can't keep her mouth shut." He said with a deep chuckle followed by a rough kiss which was pressed against my lips. I kissed back for a moment, forgetting myself before pulling away, squeaking slightly as he pulled my bottom lip though his teeth causing his eyes to darken further as a new look washed over him. I pushed Thomas away, roughly abandoning my room in an attempt to clear my head but he followed me, pulling me against his chest pressing playfully gentle kisses on the exposed skin of my neck.

When I crossed the kitchen and began to walk to the living room I glanced back seeing Tommy stood with a sly smile on his lips as if he were waiting for an opponent to make a move before deciding on his own. I glared at him trying to decide if he would advance again or wait to see what I would do. I knew he expected me to go into the living room and that he would copy his last move, after all unlike him I was predictable. I caught him by surprise and crossed the room pulling him down by his collar forcing him to step into me as I pressed my lips to his rivaling him in a way he would have never expected.

"Whose devilment have you inherited?" Tommy whispered, pulling away just as I felt I couldn't let him go. He had returned to his gentle self, the Tommy that only I had the pleasure of seeing. I smiled and pretended to start talking while turning him around so I could push him away from me and shut my door between us.

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"You look happy." Polly said as her nephew walked past him the next morning. The man stopped and looked at her and pulled a face as if she were thinking about whether he was happy or not. He nodded and continued to look for his brother. The Blinder had to admit while he was disappointed he had lost control of himself he was satisfied in finding the rebellious side of Lola, a thought that had a genuine smile on his face for most of the day.

When Thomas returned from Arthur's office he found Lola stood in the middle of the kitchen staring out of the window with a blank expression on her face and a dazed look settled in her eyes.

"I promise you the view stays the same no matter how long you stare." Tommy muttered feeling a rush of amusement flirt with his body as Lola jumped and turned to face him; her plump lips parted and her eyes wide. She thumped a delicate fist against his chest in an attempt to scold him but only received rude remarks about being a prime example of why men do the fighting. It was as if her time with him had taught her nothing of the games he liked to play with her. She followed his retreating figure across the kitchen in an attempt to land another blow on him allowing him to manoeuvre them so he had trapped her.

Tommy could see the thought of kissing him play through her mind and he convinced himself she was about to when gunshots echoed through Birmingham. He swallowed and stormed to the window seeing police attempting to round people up and grunted irritably. Lola grabbed her coat and a hat that hid her face as if she'd been practicing in case something like this happened. Fists pounded at the first door and the pair hurried through the house to the side door, a loud thud and heavy footsteps told them that whoever wanted entrance to the house would soon have their wish.

"Lola, go to Danny's... now and don't you dare come back." Thomas said firmly pushing Lola through the door slamming it loudly. Shouts could be heard through the city as the police descended on the Blinders in waves. Lola found Ada waiting for her at the last bus stop on their street, a place they had arranged to meet up in case of an emergency. A commotion in the street caused Lola to turn around and Ada had to hold onto her to stop the girl from running up the street as the officers pulled a bloodied Tommy from the house and dropped him on the floor.

"Ada I can't leave him." Lola whispered as Freddie ran towards Tommy attempting to take out a few officers while looking directly at them as if he knew they would be there. He tilted a half conscious Tommy's head towards us and for a second Lola saw fear in his eyes but when Freddie whispered something in his ear it was replaced with the fierce Shelby hatred that Lola had come to know meant nothing but trouble for those who caused it.