god is a woman (arthur shelby.)

thirteen.

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Despite his initial reluctance to side with Rowan, there was absolutely no way he would've coped without her. He was all over her like a rash every second they were together, and whenever they weren't he would go into his shell and become moody. She was an antidote to misery and his primary source of serotonin.

"I have a job to get to." She sighed as she lay flat out on his bed, Arthur peppering her bare chest with kisses.

"Stay here and do nothing with me." His words were muffled as his lips travelled down her abdomen.

"If you let me go now, I'll repay you for all of this later." She smirked.

He immediately disconnected his mouth and her skin and lay next to her. She quickly took the opportunity to get up and dressed, hurling some clothes on as fast as she could. Arthur observed her, eyeing up every love bite and scratch that he'd given her as a sense of pride washed over him.

"I'll see you this evening, yeah?" She asked and placed her hat on her head.

"You'd better keep your promise!" He indignantly reminded her.

Rowan rolled her eyes before replying. "Yes, you horny bastard."

He waved her goodbye and she shut the door behind her. Her body felt as if it was on fire, she could still feel his lips burning into her stomach and every else. Painfully, she knew that she had feelings brewing for him, but she suppressed them as best as she could.

Arthur had decided that he would let what Rowan said fester in his head. He hoped that Grace didn't know about the attack on Billy Kimber and that all would go plain sailing, but of course he still had doubts. Tommy was so deeply in love with Grace, he'd let anything slip to her without even realising what he'd done.

Rowan walked down the long road to her milliners. Her mind ran wild as she observed all the daily activities of the residents on the street. Exhausted mothers were hanging out laundry whilst their hyper children ran rings around her. Fathers left for work, leaving their wives to care for the house. The idea of becoming a housewife for the rest of her life made Rowan retch. She wanted to experience and do anything and everything, she wanted to live the best life she could possibly imagine and knew that she wouldn't find it scrubbing pots in the kitchen.

Shouting of her name pulled Rowan away from her thoughts. Mariah Shelby was leaning out of a window, grinning as she saw her new friend walking below.

"Rowan! Are you deaf?" Riah screeched from the top window.

"No! I think the whole of Small Heath can hear you." Rowan yelled back and blocked the sun from her eyes with her hand.

"You and I need to have a catch up, when are you free?" Riah asked.

"Maybe tomorrow? I've got work today!" Rowan bellowed.

The two girls were earning disgusted looks from the others in the street, who looked upon them as though they were common scum. Luckily, neither of the girls gave a shit about what the others were thinking about them.

"Fine." Riah rolled her eyes. "See you then slut."

Mariah disappeared and slammed the window down behind her. Rowan chuckled at her friend's brutal honesty and stupidity.

Rowan continued walking to work, absorbing her surroundings in peace. As she turned a corner down into a narrow pathway, she collided with the one person she never wanted to lay eyes on ever again.

"Rowan." Polly coughed awkwardly and straightened her skirt out, which Rowan had crumpled as they crashed.

"I need to go." Rowan choked and tried to push past Polly, the cheek that she slapped was stinging despite it being fully healed.

"No, stop." Polly blocked her off with her arms. "We need to talk."

Rowan felt sick to her stomach as she started to panic. Being around the Shelby family was making her anxiety levels rise, even when nothing sinister was happening.

"I'll leave Arthur alone I promise, it's just that he wouldn't leave me alone and I have no self control so-" Rowan rambled.

"I'm sorry." Polly swiftly shut her up.

Rowan was taken aback as she saw the genuine apology.

"I'm sorry?" She asked in disbelief.

"No, I'm sorry." Polly sighed. "So, so utterly sorry."

"Sorry?" Rowan asked again.

Realising the scene was turning into a farce, Polly explained her statement.

"I was wrong. You did nothing wrong. What I did to you in the Garrison was despicable, but I was blindsided by rage. I'm sorry." Polly looked disappointed in herself as she recalled the night in the pub.

Rowan paused to think for a second before she opened her mouth again.

"I understand you're a religious woman, so God forgives you. Thank you for admitting to your own mistakes, that means a lot. You're more of a woman than me." Rowan chuckled.

"The way you handled the situation was admirable. Perhaps I should be more like you." Polly contemplated.

"Can we start over again? I'm Rowan Campbell, Inspector Campbell's adopted daughter who wants nothing to do with him and would happily push him into a meat mincer." Rowan held her hand out for Polly to shake, which she did so with a smile.

"Polly Shelby. I would be the one operating the meat mincer." They shook hands firmly.

"How did you find out it wasn't me?" Rowan asked honestly. "And how did you know it was Grace?"

"How did you know it was Grace? I'm looking for her right now." Polly was incredibly confused.

"She and my father have been working together. She a two-faced bitch that I wouldn't trust as far as I can throw her." Rowan explained as if it was nothing. "Tommy is so in love with her he can't see past her beauty."

"She's baited our my family so that they're in incredible danger. They could die today." Polly held her composure. "I'm about to murder her."

"Is Arthur in danger?" Rowan hesitantly asked.

"They all are. Every last one of them." Polly sighed.

"Grace is in the Garrison. Move quickly, she and my dad are leaving soon. They're getting the train to Liverpool and leaving for Ireland as soon as they can." Rowan told her. "Good luck."

"Why aren't you traveling with them? Are you staying?" Polly enquired.

"I'm hiding from the both of them. If I see either of them again, I can't be held responsible for my actions." Rowan felt anger rise inside of her.

"Me neither, but we're women. We don't fight with weapons or fists, we fight with words. There is nothing more dangerous than a woman with a sharp tongue."

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a/n: i just planned out the next few chapters and boy are you lot in for some excitement x