A girl is taking charge.

Caterina
_________

The sun was just beginning to set whenever Thomas and I stepped out onto London's busy streets.

From what I had gathered, apparently all went well between Alfie and Thomas, for when they emerged from the confines of the office, they parted ways with a strong shake of hands. We left on good terms, and when Thomas wasn't looking, Alfred didn't fail to remind me of tonight's love making by pinching at my bum. Of course Ollie witnessed the inappropriate contact and snorted a laugh while I tried my hardest not to slap the both of them. Men and their cocks never ceased to amaze me.

And in the spirit of new friends, Alfred offered Thomas a basket of bread- actual bread, this time- to take home as a gift. Of course Thomas made a show of accepting the offering, but the second we were out of sight, he plopped the basket into my arms without looking if I would catch it or not. And luckily I did.

Now we stood at the edge of a sidewalk, out of the way of any passerby's. As usual, Thomas leaned against the lamppost with a cigarette between his lips, meanwhile I stood beside him, devouring the warm, flaky bread like it were my last meal.  

Thomas let out a snort, "if you don't slow down now, you'll end up eating the basket as well."

I paused mid chew, and looked up at him with incredulous eyes.

"I will have you know that I have not eaten in days, Mr. Shelby. So excuse me if I am a little hungry." I retorted.

He exhaled a steady stream of smoke out in front of him, letting out a dry laugh.

"A little is an understatement, Caterina."

Crumbs fell from my lips the moment I prepared to verbally slap Thomas, but to my surprise, he pushed off the post the second a familiar looking woman stepped up onto the sidewalk in front of us.

"Ada," Thomas called out, stepping in her path.

I watched as Ada's nostrils flared in annoyance at her older brother.

"How the fuck did you find me?" She snapped, "what, are you reading Polly's letters?"

The both of them stopped walking.

"Polly showed me the letter." Thomas explained, "look, you think you're safe because you've moved flat, but you're not. Polly thinks the same."

By now I had finished the loaf I'd been working on and wiped at my mouth, stepping into view. Ada's eyes widen for only a second when she beheld me standing beside her brother, but otherwise kept her anger focused on Thomas.

"When will you understand? I just want you all out of my life." She sighed, moving to step around us both.

I instinctively moved in her path, and grabbed a hold of my friend's arm.

"Ada," I pleaded, referring to our blue and black faces, "look at us, eh?"

She reluctantly met my eyes, but otherwise didn't move her arm from my grasp. Her Shelby blue eyes looked down at me carefully.

"It'll happen again," Thomas warned from beside me.

Ada grimaced, "yeah, well, next time I'll be ready. In fact, I want them to try again-"

She pulled her arm free and rummaged through the bag that hung at the crook of her elbow, and pulled out a gun. I let out a surprised laugh, Ada was definitely a Shelby after all.

"-'cause I'll shoot their balls off."

Thomas readily pushed the gun down, "Ada, put the fucking gun away," he hushed.

But Ada was having none of it, instead she again tried to step out of our way.

"Get away from me, I'm late for work." She growled.

Thomas held out his hands, "all right, fine."

The lower his voice grew, the more willing Ada was to listen. She stopped fidgeting for a moment and looked at the both of us. I tried not to frown at the sight of bruises on her pretty face and instead offered an apologetic smile.

Thomas moved to pull something out of his coat pocket, "just take this." He said, holding out a weathered piece of paper at her, "take it."

Ada peered down at it and took it into her hands, unfolding it carefully.

"Where you're living now is right on the edge of Sabini's territory. And all the coppers round there work for him." Thomas said, shoving his hands back into his pockets.

I watched Ada pull out what seemed to be a house key, and weighed in in her palm.

Thomas continued on, "I've got a lot of money coming in that I can't put through the banks. My accountant says the best thing is to buy property for cash and put it in the name of a family member."

By now Ada looked up at him again, her mouth agape in silent shock.

Ada breathed out in disbelief, "a house? A whole house?"

"It's all yours." Thomas nodded, "four stories, eight bedrooms, kitchen, scullery, and rooms for a maid if your political conscience will allow."

Ada pursed her lips slightly, looking past Thomas for a moment as if weighing her options. Her cautious eyes met mine again before turning the key in her hand, and meeting her brothers gaze.

I chimed in, "at least go have a look, eh Ada?"

Silence hung in the air between us for a moment before Ada finally nodded and stepped around us, only pausing as her shoulders brushed mine.

"Will you join me tomorrow, Rina?" Ada asked quietly.

A small smile grew upon my lips and said, "of course."

She nodded once again and without another word, Ada fell into pace with the people walking by the sidewalk. Thomas and I turned to watch her hat disappear within the crowd until she turned the corner and left.

I felt the weight of the world drop from my shoulders knowing my oldest friend didn't hate me after all, and was very much alive and kicking.

Thomas turned to look at me, "nicely done." He said, "will you be alright tonight? I have an errand to run and won't be able to pick you up until tomorrow."

My eyebrows twitched upwards, and I looked up at him with knowing eyes.

I grinned, "I'm afraid you underestimate me, Thomas."

He blinked, "hardly."

I huffed and looked away again, staring off into the crowd. I was afraid of what I'd see if I stared into those intense eyes long enough.

"I'll be more than alright here," I assured him, "I'll see you tomorrow at Ada's new house, alright?"

Thomas nodded, and in the corner of my eyes I swore I saw the beginnings of that lazy grin of his.

He had already begun to walk in the direction we came when he turned mid stride and called out, "don't forget to wear something nice for me tomorrow, Ms. Marino."

My head snapped in his direction only to see him jogging across the street dodging cars, and I felt the corners of my lips curl up in a shy smile. It seemed I was beginning to resist Thomas's subtle charm less and less with each passing day, which in turn, confused the hell out of me.  

For a while I watched him disappear across the street before I finally decided to move my feet in the direction of home.

⚜️

Our joining was fast and hard, and I was moaning Alfred's name long before our releases exhausted us both.

For a long while, we remained in our positions, with my legs flung over his shoulders, listening to the rise and fall of our ragged breaths pushing against our chests. As I lay there beneath him, I knew then that there was no other place I'd rather be than here, in my own home.

Then he gently removed himself from me, gingerly lifting my legs back down onto the sheets and fell beside me with a soft grunt. I turned on my side, resting my head on the pillow next to his and watched him lie on his back, his eyes fixed on the ceiling above us. The room was dark except for the moon which cast a white glow across the floor, enough for me to make out the outline of my lover's face.

I finally broke the silence, unable to take it any longer.

"What's on your mind, hmm?" I asked, reaching out to touch him.

Alfie didn't move as I ran a hand over his chest, tracing the swirls of ink I had memorized long ago. When he still didn't answer, I let my arm rest in the space between us, waiting.

"You're probably the best thing that will ever happen to me, yeah, and the thought of you not happening to me anymore scared the fuck out of me." He said finally, turning to face me.

His eyes seemed to glisten in the dark, and I felt his large hand curl over mine. Alfred pulled me closer until our naked bodies touched again and planted a series of light kisses onto my trembling hand. I tugged my lip between my teeth to keep from weeping.

"Don't you ever disappear like that on me again, eh? Ever." Alfie breathed, "I almost killed the bloke who told me what had happened."

I nodded once, scooting closer to him until I felt him drape an arm over me, pulling me into his broad chest. Alfie then traced his fingers up and down my bare back, sending shivers down my spine. It was oddly comforting.

"I am with you, always." I said, and meant it.

Alfie nodded, "good."

I reached out and framed his face with my hands, planting a tender kiss onto his lips. A heavy breath exhaled through my nose as I did so, relieved that I was back in the comforts of his arms, our bodies tangled in the sheets. I kissed him for a long while, until his patience grew thin and Alfie once again pushed himself onto me, prying my legs apart and wrapping them around his waist.

The kiss deepened and I allowed him to slip his tongue past the seam of my lips, caressing my own. A moan vibrated past my mouth as he did so, and before he could enter me, I gently gripped his shoulders and swung him over the bed so I was now on top.

Alfie let out a surprised grunt as I placed a palm to his chest, pinning him down.

"Bloody hell, Caterina-"

I shushed him by pressing my index finger to his parted lips, "I want to apologize for putting you through hell, Alfie. so please let me... just this once."

Something danced across his eyes and a half grin appeared upon his beautiful face almost immediately.

Was Alfred... turned on?

"By all means, love, take charge." His grin then grew wicked, "I expected nothing less of my woman."

I rolled my eyes, biting back my smile.

I then swung my leg over him, lowering myself deeper onto him than I ever had before. Alfie groaned beneath me, grabbing a hold of my hips with both hands. A smirk curled across my face at the sight of him so vulnerable before me, letting me take over. I had to admit, there was something just so attractive about a man who wasn't afraid to let his lady run things from time to time. It took a level of respect.

For I was his equal.

__________________
VOTE, COMMENT, & FOLLOW!

[ a.n. - since you guys have been so patient here's a lil snippet, hope you all enjoyed! ]
[ also, who do y'all root for? Team Thomas? or Team Alfie? let me know! ]