Little Lamb [Tommy Shelby/Alfie Solomons]

I don't mind

Agnes wasn't sure what she was doing there, sitting at Mr Shelby meeting with Mr Solomons, allegedly to take notes. There wasn't much to take notes of, the two men were surprisingly quick in making dealings and solving problems. Of course, they would bicker at one another every time, but it seemed like something they had grown used to overtime. And so did she, to be honest.

It had become a recurring situation after that fateful meeting the two men had the day Lizzie didn't come to work. She had been so nervous, not used to going into her boss' office or dealing with him personally. Lizzie was the one who dealt with Mr Shelby, she was the one who was used to how he liked things, not her. Especially not when Mr Solomons was around. Nobody was allowed near the room, just Lizzie. Agnes remembered how nervous she felt when Lizzie called in sick, explaining to her how she was supposed to deal with things in her absence.

She remembered that her heart was in her throat when she entered Mr Shelby's office. Agnes tried to be as quick and undetectable as she could, but it was of no use. She expected that Mr Shelby would be the one to notice the sudden change of employee, but it was Mr Solomons who called for her. Surprisingly, she felt at ease under his gaze, he was polite and curious in his questions, almost warm. Something Agnes didn't expect from the rough-looking Jew.

It was Mr Shelby's gaze that made a chill run down her spine. His cold glare and detached tone of voice wasn't something she was used to.

Agnes mostly worked far away from the head of the company. She had been admitted by Mrs Gray—Polly—mostly to help around with what was needed. That meant making phone calls, taking care of diary's, even the numbers, sending and receiving letters... and taking Lizzie's place when she needed to. It had happened only once, in a day that Mr Shelby wasn't even in the office. On that fateful day, luck wasn't on her side.

Mr Solomons had greeted her on his way out while Mr Shelby barely acknowledged her presence for the rest of the day.

That was one of the reasons why she was rather surprised when Lizzie informed her that Mr Shelby had personally requested her to be present at his next meeting with Mr Solomons.

Saying that Agnes was nervous would be an understatement—she was absolutely terrified. Lizzie had laughed at her behaviour while making her some tea, assuring her that everything would be alright. Still, she sat in the chair placed at the right side of Mr Shelby's desk as stiff as a post, trying not to fidget with the pen in her hand.

The meeting went surprisingly well after the initial shock. She just observed with eyes cast down onto her notepad most of the time, while the two men discussed business. Her first impressions remained the same as the one's she had during the brief meeting from the other time—Mr Solomons was mostly friendly, while Mr Shelby remained distant.

Things started to develop after that. In the next meetings, Agnes began to feel more at ease, knowing what she was supposed to expect. There was one time when the two men disagreed over one topic and their voices started to raise, but as soon as the disagreement began it ended, and Agnes could swear that for the first time since she first met Mr Shelby, she saw the man crack a half-smile.

After some time, Agnes concluded that she was kept at the meetings mostly to keep them company than anything else. For what reason, she never understood, but she wasn't in place to complain. Agnes liked her job, liked the little freedom it gave her and she didn't intend on giving it up.

"There she is," Mr Solomons voice reverberated through the walls, "the only reason why coming to this fucking hell whole is tolerable, uh."

Agnes blushed, smiling slightly as she looked to the ground.

"Mr Solomons."

"Alfie, love," he corrected, "you may call me Alfie."

She raised her eyes to meet his gaze. He was standing almost beside her, hands resting on the backrest of the chair in front of Mr Shelby's desk. The blue-green of his eyes warm and inviting.

"Alfie," she repeated unsure.

"Hum, that's it. Good girl," he laughed, pulling out the chair and sitting down.

A strange feeling washed over her and Agnes had to shake her head to get back her focus. When she straightened herself, taking the pen from the desk, she met Mr Shelby's eyes observing her. She felt trapped in his gaze, unable to look away from him. It lasted only a few seconds, but it could have been a lifetime. Agnes was brought back to reality at the sound of Mr Solomons'—Alfie's—chuckle.

Swallowing and taking a deep breath, she tried to focus on her task.

"That would be all, Agnes. You can take the rest of the afternoon and go home," Mr Shelby announced at the end of the meeting.

She nodded, gathering her things and getting up from her chair with a shy nod to each man. When she was almost at the door, Alfie called her name. She turned around to see if they needed anything else to find both of the men staring back at her.

"Shalom, little lamb."

Agnes blinked rapidly trying to gather her thoughts.

"Alfie," Mr Shelby spoke in a warning.

"It's okay, Mr Shelby," she caught herself answering before she could stop herself, "I don't mind."