by Rosie Clarke
‘I want nothing more than to be with you and Jenny,’ Ben said as he touched the tip of her nose. ‘I love you so much, my darling, but I have to do my bit, to fight if need be, because I love you – which is why every man in this country is going to want to fight eventually, for their loved ones. We shall do it to keep the Germans from dropping bombs on you and sweeping in here to make you all suffer the humiliation of defeat.’
‘Yes, I know,’ Sally said and she did. Every woman in Britain was feeling the same way. They understood why their men needed to fight and they were going to support them any way they could. It was a time for women to stand up and be counted, to stand as sisters and friends to keep the country going through the rainy days ahead. ‘You’re not to worry about the store, Ben. Jenni and I will do whatever is necessary – and we’re in a good position because of the standing loan she made us…’
‘Yes, it might have been worse had she not done that,’ Ben said. ‘I’ve spread myself a bit thin financially. Maybe I shouldn’t have taken the extra premises on at a time like this…’
‘If you hadn’t, we should’ve lost it,’ Sally said. ‘We’ll manage, Ben. You’ve done all the hard work – getting the plans through and selecting the builders, electricians, keeping them at it until it was done. I know that isn’t easy…’
Leaving the office together, Sally carrying Jenny in her arms, Ben led the way to his car and drove them home to the flat, where Sally put her baby into her cot and smiled. Jenny had fallen asleep on the way home and was still sleeping peacefully.
In the sitting room, they returned to the conversation they’d had in the office.
‘As I was saying, you’ve done all the hard work at Harpers, Ben. I could never have sorted all that out as well as you did…’
‘It’s easier here than in America. Back home, we often have to bribe them to get them on site – but here it was straightforward once the contracts were signed with my present builder. And that was thanks to Mick. If he hadn’t put me right, we might never have got started. Still, it’s worse back home. You’re more civilised here, fewer gangsters, I think.’
‘Oh don’t,’ Sally said with a shiver. ‘That’s the last thing we need…’
‘You have them, hidden in the shadows, but I was lucky. Mick put me on to a good bloke and we’ve had no trouble or threats to walk off and so we’ll be finished in time.’
‘Wonderful.’ Sally put her arms about his neck, looking up at him.
‘You’re wonderful,’ he murmured and kissed the end of her nose. ‘I know I’m lucky, but I’m glad you have good friends, Sally. If anything happened…’
‘No,’ she said at once. ‘It won’t – don’t say it, don’t think it…’
‘It has to be said,’ Ben told her. ‘My shares, this place, all of it is yours –and Jenni has her shares, so she’ll always support you. I know you’ll do whatever you have to… and it is what I would want. I don’t plan on not coming back, but if it happens, you should know…’
‘I want you not the rest of it,’ she said, not wanting to listen.
‘I know,’ he murmured against her ear. ‘What do you say we have an early night?’
Sally lit up as she gave herself up to him, feeling the surge of wanting and need. ‘I thought you would never ask,’ she murmured as he swept her up in his arms and carried her through to their bedroom. She loved her work at Harpers and all her friends, but when he was away she would miss this, miss the togetherness and the lovemaking that gave her so much pleasure.
‘How do you think Jack would feel about selling the hotel to his manager if he had the chance? He could reinvest his money in something else after the war – something with Ben,’ Sally asked Beth when they had coffee together in her office a week or two after Ben had gone to his training camp. They had fallen into the habit of meeting twice a week so that they could talk and exchange news without impinging on their busy lives. For Sally at least the friendship had become ever stronger, especially now that Ben wasn’t there when she got home at night. The apartment seemed empty without him, even though she had their darling daughter to care for.
‘I’m not sure,’ Beth said. ‘I’ll speak to him when he comes home on leave. I think it may be soon now.’
‘How do you manage without him all that time?’ Sally asked sympathetically. I find it hard and Ben has only been away two weeks. He phones me most evenings and he’ll be back at the end of the week – after that he will be based in London for a while, though he has to travel all over the country sometimes.’
‘You should be pleased that Ben is in logistics for the moment,’ Beth said. ‘At least it will stop him getting white feathers. Those stupid women will leave him alone once he’s in uniform.’
‘Do you think they have any idea of the harm they cause?’ Sally frowned. ‘Fred had one the other day – at his age!’
‘I know and it is ridiculous, but they think they’re doing their bit to rally the men into making the sacrifice the country needs.’ Beth laughed. ‘Fred thought it was funny and told her he was very flattered but his country didn’t need old men like him cluttering up the army.’
Sally gurgled with laughter. ‘Yes, that’s what he said to me,’ she said. ‘He showed me a postcard from Mr Marco. Apparently, he’s enjoying his training and somewhere on the south coast. Fred says it must be bracing, to say the least…’ It was well into October now and cold at night.
Beth nodded and shivered. ‘I love the coast when it’s warm, but the wind can be bitter this time of the year. It’s still autumn, but it feels like winter…’ A frown touched her brow. ‘Have you heard anything from Maggie? It’s ages since I had a letter. Marion Kaye says she had a card three weeks ago. Maggie said she was working hard but might get leave shortly – but since then no one has heard anything…’
‘You don’t think she has been sent overseas?’
‘Normally they get leave first,’ Beth said. ‘I know Maggie is stronger than you’d think – but I worry about her. Rachel says she is tougher than we know, but I still remember her the day we first met, so shy and unsure…’
‘Yes, she was,’ Sally agreed, ‘but she isn’t any more, Beth. I’m sure you’ll get a card or a call soon to say she’s coming home on a visit.’
‘Yes, I expect so,’ Beth agreed. ‘I know I’m no relation, but she feels like my little sister.’
‘Yes, I know,’ Sally said, ‘but we have to let go, Beth love. Maggie chose her own path and we can only hope it leads her back here one day.’
Maggie was feeling desperately tired when she came off duty that day, walking from the hospital in the drizzling rain to the nurses’ home. She’d been scrubbing floors until her hands were sore and her back ached enough to make her feel as if she could weep. So far, she’d done nothing remotely helpful to the wounded men and she felt miserable. Why on earth had she given up her lovely job at Harpers for this life?
Shaking the raindrops off once inside the gloomy hall, she sighed and looked at the letter rack above the table. Everyone’s post was placed here for them and nothing was in her rack. Her heart sank and she felt lonely and abandoned. Wearily climbing the stairs to the small room she shared with Sadie, Maggie had never felt more miserable. It seemed that her friends from Harpers had forgotten her…
When she suddenly saw three letters waiting for her on the bed in her room, Maggie’s eyes stung with sudden tears. She hadn’t been forgotten after all!
The first she picked up and tore open was from Beth, wishing her luck and telling her how much she missed her. She devoured it hungrily and went on to the second, which was from Becky and much the same, only it was filled with Becky’s news and her longing to share it all with Maggie. She ended it with a tender message from her heart:
You are my dearest friend and always will be. You’re one of Harpers girls even though you’ve left us. I miss you so much, Maggie dearest, and I want you to come home to us safe.
Rachel is writing soon and sends her love.
I think she’s a bit worried about William. She hasn’t had a letter from him for weeks. I do hope nothing awful has happened. No, I’m sure it hasn’t; it’s just the post is so poor from over there. I’m making friends with the new junior at Harpers. I like her a lot – but I love you, Maggie. I do wish you were still here…
Maggie’s tears flowed now and she could hardly see to read her third letter, which was from Sally Harper.
Dearest Maggie,
I thought I would just tell you how much everyone at Harpers misses you. Your friends do, naturally, but everyone else is thinking of you too, asking if we’ve heard how you’re getting on. Here, we’ve lost a lot of our young men to the war, but we’re taking on more young women who are eager and willing to serve. We all have a sense of purpose and of belonging, because we know we’re needed to keep the home fires burning for our men to come back to. I truly believe that Harpers’ girls will see us through this terrible period.
Never forget, Maggie, dearest, you are one of Harpers’ girls. You belong here and will always be one of us. We couldn’t do without you and we all love you. Write to us soon and let us know your news. And come back to us safe!
Your true friend, Sally Harper.
Maggie stared at the letter and suddenly she no longer felt the sting of her hands or the pain in her back. She was smiling as she thought of the store she loved and all the people there and knew they were all pulling together to get them through this awful time. Maggie couldn’t be with them, because she’d chosen to help the wounded men – and some of those men would be Harpers’ men, or men just like them. She was doing her bit to keep Harpers and all her friends safe and now she felt proud. Even if she was just a skivvy for the moment, she was playing her part – just as all the girls were who were keeping Harpers going while the men fought.
Maggie smiled as Sadie entered the room and grinned at her.
‘Yer got your letters then,’ she said. ‘I brought them up for you because letters from home are so important – especially when yer down.’ She chuckled. ‘It’s been a rough day, ain’t it?’ She glanced out of the window. ‘Bugger never seems to stop raining!’
‘Yes, it has been a rough day and, no, it never seems to stop raining recently,’ Maggie said and then started to giggle. ‘But we’re tough – we can take it.’
‘Yeah,’ Sadie agreed. ‘We East End gals can take anything.’ She laughed and flung herself down on the bed. ‘The dragon sister has been breathing fire down my neck all day, but I don’t care – I’ve got you for my friend and that’s why I’ll be all right… If we stand together, they can’t break us…’
Maggie smiled inwardly as her friend popped a mint humbug in her mouth and offered her the tin. She accepted one and sucked happily. It was true for the young women learning to be nurses that the hard times and rainy days could not break them if they stood united, and it was true for Harpers’ girls, too. They would all do their bit and see it through to the end of the war, however long and however hard…
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About the Author
Rosie Clarke is a #1 bestselling saga writer whose most recent books include The Mulberry Lane series. She has written over 100 novels under different pseudonyms and is a RNA Award winner. She lives in Cambridgeshire.
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First published in Great Britain in 2020 by Boldwood Books Ltd.
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Copyright © Rosie Clarke, 2020
Cover Design by The Brewster Project
Cover Photography: Colin Thomas
The moral right of Rosie Clarke to be identified as the author of this work has been asserted in accordance with the Copyright, Designs and Patents Act 1988.
All rights reserved. No part of this book may be reproduced in any form or by any electronic or mechanical means, including information storage and retrieval systems, without written permission from the author, except for the use of brief quotations in a book review.
This book is a work of fiction and, except in the case of historical fact, any resemblance to actual persons, living or dead, is purely coincidental.
Every effort has been made to obtain the necessary permissions with reference to copyright material, both illustrative and quoted. We apologise for any omissions in this respect and will be pleased to make the appropriate acknowledgements in any future edition.
A CIP catalogue record for this book is available from the British Library.
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Paperback ISBN 978-1-83889-154-1
Large Print ISBN 978-1-83889-752-9
Ebook ISBN 978-1-83889-156-5
Kindle ISBN 978-1-83889-155-8
Audio CD ISBN 978-1-83889-241-8
MP3 CD ISBN 978-1-83889-749-9
Digital audio download ISBN 978-1-83889-153-4
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