The Sun Will Rise | T Shelby

sixteen

London Town was very different to how Angelina had imagined it. The buildings were taller and the streets busier, it had a different feel to it than Birmingham, which Angelina liked.

Angelina and Charlotte had come down to the capital for a weekend away. Lorenzo had given Angelina some money from God knows where, and told her to go and enjoy herself for a weekend. She didn't care to argue or ask where he got the money, and she needed a break to clear her head after Tommy had made her question everything that had happened since she set foot in England.

The sun was shining as the girls strolled through Covent Garden with their arms interlinked. Angelina had never seen a place so pretty, nor had she seen such beautiful markets. They had not been like this in Italy.

They passed the sellers and made their way to a small wine bar that Charlotte had been to on a previous trip, the two of them taking a seat in the corner and ordering a bottle of wine between them.

"Come on, Lina, smile."

Angelina rolled her eyes as Charlotte reached out and held her hand that was resting at the base of her wine glass.

"I'm sorry, I have so much going round in my mind right now that's all."

"I know," Charlotte smiled, "But that's why we're here, to clear your head by getting drunk!"

"Cheers to that."

The girls clinked their glasses and took their first sip of the overpriced white wine. They spoke for a while, Charlotte mostly listening as Angelina emptied out her mind to her, getting all her feelings about Thomas out into the open.

To Charlotte, it seemed like Angelina was in denial about just how much she actually liked the second eldest Shelby brother. Each time the Italian mentioned how confused his actions made her, she would follow it up by saying, 'not that I care', though Charlotte knew this wasn't strictly true.

A few glasses of wine later, a jazz band took to the stage and it was as if a switch flicked inside Angelina. She grabbed Charlotte by the hand and pulled her onto the small dance floor next to the bar, the two of them spinning around one another, dancing to the music amongst other people.

Charlotte had never seen Angelina drunk before, but she was happy that her friend was having a good time, the smile on her face making Charlotte's heart warm.

"Care to dance?"

A tall gentleman with a thick beard and heavy London accent appeared in front of the girls, but held his hand out only to Angelina.

Charlotte just laughed, twirling Angelina round so she was facing the man. She took a step back, only to be met with who she assumed was his friend.

Angelina looked up at the gentleman with the eyes she only ever used when she wanted to flirt. Even when drunk, Angelina knew how to play to her strengths.

"Your name, darling?" He shouted in Angelina's ear over the sound of the music.

"Angelina," she replied, smirking at him, "And yours?"

"Mr Alfie Solomons, at your service."

He shot her a grin that made her heart flutter before spinning her under his arm and pulling her body back close to him, his hands set firmly on her waist and hers around his neck.

"I say," He spoke again, "Your friend's accent is different to yours, where are you from?"

"Ah yes. I am from Rome, originally, but the two of us, we live in Birmingham."

"Is that so?" Alfie raised an eyebrow, licking his lips before moving them back to Angelina's ear, "I happen to know Birmingham well, where abouts are you from?"

"Small Heath."

A smirk fell onto Alfie's lips when Angelina told him where the two of them lived.

"Do you know a gentleman by the name of Shelby, by any chance, my darling?"

Angelina rolled her eyes at the mention of the name. She was in an entirely different city and yet she still couldn't escape Thomas.

"Don't talk to me about any of them."

Alfie chuckled, "Don't worry angel, I won't mention another word about them to you all night."

Angelina didn't remember leaving the bar, but she clung onto Alfie's arm the entire journey back to his home, turning over her shoulder the whole time to make sure Charlotte and Alfie's friend were still keeping up with them.

The four of them shared a drink in Alfie's home, the girls learning that Alfie made rum for a living. Angelina's first thought was that Thomas would've loved the rum, but she quickly got rid of the thought of him after another couple of drinks.

Thomas had made little to no effort to try and console Angelina after she saw him and Grace together just over two weeks ago. It seemed to Angelina like every time the two of them would get close, something always happened to push them even further apart than before. She accepted it as fate.

It wasn't long before Charlotte and the other gentleman who's name Angelina hadn't caught had disappeared into one of the bedrooms, leaving Alfie and Angelina alone.

Angelina liked Alfie's eyes. They were strong, his face was worn in and he looked aggressive, which was something that turned Angelina on. The way his arm cradled her shoulder as they sat together made her feel safe, protected. She enjoyed men who looked as though they could handle themselves. Though his accent was somewhat of a hurdle for her, having to guess what he was saying some of the time.

"So, so you know the Shelby's then?" Alfie said, slurring his words slightly.

Angelina narrowed her eyes, "You said no more talk of them, remember?"

Alfie smiled, tilting his head slightly and placing his hand underneath Angelina's chin.

"I remember, my sincerest apologies, darling."

He pulled her face closer to his, kissing her softly. Angelina gasped quietly at the feeling of his touch, inhaling the scent of his aftershave. He didn't smell the same as Thomas or Arthur, no, his cologne was stronger, the scent of cigars and alcohol wasn't stained on his skin like other men. Alfie smelled like what you'd imagine a bonfire at dusk on the beach would smell like, deep wood with open sea air.

She melted into him as his hands grabbed her harder, falling on top of him as he leaned back on the suite, her hands unbuckling his belt and his sliding the straps of her dress down her arms.

Angelina thought she would be washed over with guilt, only as she opened her eyes for a split second and saw the way Alfie was gazing at her with such hunger in his eyes only made her think or the guilt she saw in Thomas' the day in The Garrison with Grace.

She didn't care a single bit.

"Fucking hell," Alfie panted, brushing a strand of Angelina's hair from her face as he held her next to him, "You are something else."

Angelina said nothing, only smiling back at him with the same sultry eyes she gave him a few hours earlier.

"Be a darling and pour me a drink from over there, would you?"

He winked at her as she rose to her feet, walking over to the bar cart Alfie had in the corner of the room. She took two glasses and began pouring the two of them some whiskey.

As she placed the bottle back down, her hand brushed against a small stack of papers underneath another liquor bottle on the glass shelf.

She peered at it discreetly, her eyes being drawn to a picture sticking out from underneath. She glanced behind her, seeing Alfie laying with his eyes closed a few feet away, and silently pulled the paper from under the bottle far enough to see the picture.

She didn't have time to read what it said, but her heart had caught up with her when she saw that Thomas was the man in the picture.

"Everything alright?"

"Yes," Angelina said, pushing the cork back in the bottle and taking one last glance at the mugshot-like image of Thomas that Alfie had been keeping in his home, "Everything is fine."

an;
thank you so much for so many reads recently, I'm amazed people are enjoying this!!
-martials