working girl » tommy shelby.

chapter two

The man finished in a matter of minutes, his stamina going out of the window because of the amount of booze he had drank. Rosie was content at this, feeling a little happy that the first customer was over and done with quickly. His body was sweaty and smelt bad by the time that he had finished and even after he had left, the smell of Gin loitered around the room. Rosie attempted to open the window but it was still broken and after a few attempts of trying, Rosie gave up and laid back on her bed. A feeling landed in her stomach and Rosie swiftly felt sick and mortified, just like she did every night. It was a never ending cycle that was becoming harder to break and it would only be a matter of time before Rosie was like the other girls, completely tied to the job and downhearted. Rosie couldn't understand how some of the girls enjoyed it – probably because the job gave them a home and decent money.

Usually, men turned down the chance to be with Rosie, largely because of how new she was. When speaking to Lauren, she had learnt that men who visited the brothel stayed with the same women every time they visited and most of the time, they just wanted to speak about the problems that they were facing - war, relationship issues, addictions and loss of happiness. Rosie sometimes stayed awake at night and prayed that she would get a man that would pay money just to release their problems, it saved her a lot of work and helped the men in the process.

After another half an hour of waiting and sorting herself out for the next man to enter her room, Rosie decided that she would have her cigarette break early. She got up from the messed-up bed sheets and out of the door before walking down the hallway to Lauren's room. She lightly pressed her ear against the door to check if Lauren was with a customer.

"Why are you listening in on them fucking?"

Rosie jumped away from the door, her heart racing due to being scared by the loud voice. She turned to face the man who had spoken to her and recognised him as John Shelby. A toothy grin was on his face as a toothpick hung from his mouth. Rosie shook her head and waved her hand in front of his face, not wanting to get involved with his good-humoured behaviour. John used to be a regular but his visits became less frequent. If he ever saw Rosie on his visits then he would always speak to her and be kind to her, unlike some men who did nothing but shout abuse.

"You know I'm only playing, love. Do you know where Rachel's room is?" he asked. "No-one told me that Louise had left so I'm going to try Rachel, heard good things."

"Go down the hallway and then turn left, it's the door that's painted brown," she told him. Rosie wrapped her arms around her body when she felt John's stare. The boss had told her that she needed to flaunt her body off if she ever left her room when the brothel was open, but Rosie didn't want to do that, believing that it would only attract men to her meaning that she would get more customers. She needed the customers, Rosie knew this, but at the same time, she didn't want them.

"Thank you, love," he said before walking away.

The sounds coming from Lauren's room became louder and Rosie realised that she would have to go for a cigarette break on her own. It was something that she hated doing because she didn't know if men would be lurking around the corner, getting ready to take advantage of the lonely woman but if she stayed close to the entrance, then she would be okay.

Rosie's heels clicked along the wooden floor as she made her way through the reception area. All the men laid eyes on her, watching her move with confidence which was fake and plastered on for effect. The boss watched her from afar with a smile, finally happy that Rosie was becoming more comfortable in her surroundings. At least that's what she thought. The loud drunken chatter that was coming from the men's mouths became silent as they all watched Rosie was desire. She was a beautiful woman with brown hair falling down her back, a petite figure and eyes that held a thousand stories, but those stories were for people who cared, not for random men.

One person that was paying extra attention to Rosie was Tommy Shelby – it was his first time in the God forsaken place and he hoped that it would be his last. He was sat in the corner of the room as he waited for his brothers to finish with their women. Not one part of Tommy wanted to be here, but he had been dragged along by Arthur and John who claimed that it was an experience. Tommy simply laughed at their attitudes and told them that he wanted no involvement but still, he ended up going along to see what the rave was about. Tommy felt uncomfortable as he sat in the reception room. Women came up to him and sat on his lap, their strong perfume radiating off their bodies as they tried to lure him up to one of the rooms, but he shrugged them off and claimed that he was taken which was a lie.

He couldn't help but me fascinated by the woman who was walking through reception. Never in his life had Tommy seen a more beautiful woman and for a second, his heart stopped. Tommy thought that he recognised the women for a brief moment, but he put the thought to the back of his head as he watched the other men drool over her. Without a second thought, Tommy pushed himself up from on top of the sofa and followed her footsteps, curiosity becoming too much.

He found her pressed against the wall, failing to light a cigarette in the windy weather. Tommy chuckled to himself as he watched her face turn from calm to frustration. "Do you want some help?" he asked, slowly walking over to her. The young woman looked frightened for a moment as she stared ahead at Tommy, a million thoughts running through her mind all at once. Slowly, she nodded her head and handed Tommy the cigarette. "There you go, darling."

Rosie took the cigarette from Tommy's fingers and placed it on her mouth. "Thank you," she said, her eyes never making contact with Tommy's. She hoped that he wouldn't recognise her. It had been so long since the two of them had met and a lot of things had changed from then. Tommy practically owned Birmingham and Rosie had become nothing.

"So, what are you doing here?"

"I think you know the answer to that one," she replied, sighing slightly. "What are you doing here?" she asked sarcastically.

"I'm not here to fuck anyone if that's what you think," he answered, a smirk on his face. He walked over to Rosie until he was by her side, his back resting against the wall like Rosie's. "I'm keeping an eye on my brothers. Can't trust them nowadays." Tommy quickly glanced at Rosie and shook his head as he tried to think of where he had seen her before. "I know you."

Rosie replied instantly, her voice full on worry and fear. "No, you don't. I haven't been living here very long."

"Really? Seems like you have a strong accent to me."

"I'm from the other side of Birmingham..." Rosie trailed off before flinging the cigarette end on the floor. "You have never seen me before in your life, trust me."

Tommy was about to speak and argue the case, but Rosie walked away without another word. Tommy watched her once more as she walked through the door, her eyes never looking at Tommy's.