Another Home,
Another Love
Gwen Kirkwood
Contents
Title Page
ONE
TWO
THREE
FOUR
FIVE
SIX
SEVEN
EIGHT
NINE
TEN
Copyright
ONE
Rosemary scanned the letters in the college mail box. Only a few more weeks and I’ll be home for good, she thought. Her heartbeat quickened. Her course in horticulture had given her fresh ideas but there would be storms ahead with her mother. If only they could agree. Her face broke into a smile as she recognized the handwriting on one of the envelopes. It was a letter from Tania, her best friend and the nearest she had to a sister. When she was younger she had spent all her spare time at Bengairney Farm, with Tania and her brothers, Samuel and Alexander Caraford. Her mother had been too preoccupied with her ambitions to bother where she spent her time then but things had changed. Catherine Palmer-Farr had restored Langton Tower, her husband’s ancestral home, and transformed it into a successful hotel and conference centre and she was determined that her only child should only associate with people she considered her own class.
‘This is 1973, not 1873. Why can’t she accept I shall never be the demure young debutante she craves?’ Rosemary thought as she opened her letter and settled down to read it.
Dear Rosie,
I hope everything is going well for you. You will be taking your final exams soon but we all know you will do well. At Christmas we talked about a joint celebration for my twenty-first birthday on the 15th May and your eighteenth on the 30th. Both dates are mid-week so Mum has suggested making a family dinner on Saturday the 19th. I do hope you will be able to get home for that? Alex and I will need your support. ‘You Know Who’ has invited herself. We thought Sam’s interest was waning but Lidia is still mooning all over him. Brothers! Grandpa Oliphant and Granny Caraford will be coming.
Mum suggests you and I could have a dance as a joint celebration, when we finish college. We could hire the village hall. I don’t want anything grand. I need to earn some money after all these years of studying to be a teacher. Perhaps your parents are planning to invite the ‘County Set’ to a posh party at Langton Tower for your birthday?
Let me know what you think but please, please try to come to the family dinner party. Do write soon and good luck with your exams.
Love, Tania
Rosie grinned as she folded the letter. She doubted if her parents would even remember it was her eighteenth birthday and Tania understood how much she hated socializing with the kind of people her mother would consider ‘suitable’. Tania’s parents, Megan and Steven Caraford, always treated her like another member of their happy family.
Douglas Palmer-Farr met Rosie off the train at Carlisle on the Friday evening before the dinner party. She was surprised to see he was driving her mother’s little Austin car instead of his Jaguar.
‘I thought you might like to drive us home to keep in practice,’ he said, after greeting her with a hug and a kiss. This was a surprise too; her parents were not demonstrative. Rosie had often wished they were when she was younger and needed comfort or reassurance. She had sought that from Granny Oliphant who had always been ready with a hug and comforting words, even though she was not related to Rosie at all. Her husband, John Oliphant, worked at Langton Tower managing the gardens and grounds. He was waiting until Rosie took over so that he could retire. Rosie couldn’t remember a time without the Oliphants. She loved them as dearly as Samuel, Tania and Alexander.
‘Did you think I’d have forgotten how to drive, Daddy?’ she teased as she negotiated the evening traffic out of Carlisle.
‘No, I know how capable you are. I’ve persuaded your mother to let you have this little car for your eighteenth birthday. You will be able to drive yourself back to college on Sunday.’
‘You’re giving me Mum’s car?’ Rosie squeaked in excitement, turning to look at him, then swerving to get back in line.
‘Not if you jump about like that!’ Her father pretended to grip the edge of his seat in fear. ‘Yes, the car is yours, but you’ll have to budget to pay your own petrol,’ he warned. ‘We’ve bought an estate car to collect food or wine between hotel deliveries.’
‘That’s super. I can’t believe it. Can I go back in it on Sunday? I wouldn’t need to leave until the afternoon.’
‘So long as you’re not too tired after the party.’
‘It will not be very late. It’s a family party but Tania wants me to be there too. Her Grandma Caraford will be eighty-three this year.’
‘Bengairney has always been your second home. I believe the Carafords regard you as one of their family by now.’
‘Yes. I shall be able to drive Papa Oliphant there and back for once, instead of him taking me to Bengairney, as he has done all these years. Oh Daddy I do appreciate it. I didn’t think you’d remember it was my birthday.’
‘Of course I remembered. I’ve missed you, Rosemary. I’m glad you decided to follow your heart.’
‘Wh-what do you mean, “follow my heart”?’ For a second she thought her father had guessed her most secret dream.
‘I mean you have had the courage to choose your own life in spite of your mother’s ambitions for you. You’ll be home soon instead of spending years at university, and maybe never returning. I shall be glad to have your cheery company again.’
‘I’m looking forward to getting on with managing the gardens. I have lots of new ideas. Mr Hudson, one of my lecturers, has compiled a list of gardens and nurseries for me to visit and there are weekend courses too. I intend to go on learning you know – as Papa Oliphant has done all his life.’
‘Yes, John is a good man. He’s proved himself knowledgeable and adaptable over the years. He’s missed your company. He says you’re like a ray of sunshine, but I hadn’t realized how much I missed you until you went away to college.’ Rosie reflected on this conversation many times and was thankful her father had revealed his inner thoughts.
On Saturday morning Tania arrived at Langton Tower to collect Rosie. Her eyes were sparkling.
‘We’ll go for a cup of coffee in Binns first. I know it’s a family party but I’ve booked a hairdo for both of us with an old friend from primary school. Betty has opened her own salon and—’
‘A hairdo?’ Rosie’s blue eyes widened. ‘Gosh, I can’t imagine anyone taming my mop. I’ve never been to a hairdresser. Mother trims the ends when it gets too long. Tania I-I don’t think I—’
‘You’ll be surprised what Betty can do. I told her you had curly blonde hair. “Oh lucky girl”, she said. Please give it a go, Rosie, to please me?’ Tania begged. ‘Betty will thin and style your hair, that’s all. She’s going to have a go at putting mine up to make me look more elegant. I’m determined we must look our best tonight so I need your support, Rosie.’ She sent a pleading glance to her young friend. ‘I’m sick of Sam’s girlfriend preening and patting in every mirror. I told Mum she should take them away.’
‘She does seem a bit vain,’ Rosie agreed, tugging her own hair.
‘A bit? She thinks we’re all country bumpkins. Please don’t look so worried, Rosie. Betty’s salon is new and quite small. She will be glad of our custom. I know you’re pretty enough without all this but it’s just for this evening. Lidia Blade is even worse now she’s moved to this area and got work in a chemist’s shop.’
‘All right. I’ll give it a go. I can always wash it when I get home if I don’t like it. I’d planned to wear my new jeans with flared bottoms and stud trimmings. I’ve got a new top too but Mother says they’re not suit
able for an evening dinner party, “Even if it is in a farmhouse,” ahem!’ She pulled a face as she mimicked her mother’s snooty attitude. ‘She has bought me a new dress for my birthday but she says I must wear it tonight. She sent to London for it.’
‘Oh gosh,’ Tania knew Mrs Palmer-Farr liked to organize everybody. Rosie didn’t stand a chance of getting her own way. ‘What’s it like?’
‘I can live with it to keep the peace. At least it’s a nice colour – a sort of mid-sky blue. The style is so simple there’s not much I can criticize, but it hangs on me. The length is just above my knees.’ Tania concentrated on parking the car on the Whitesands.
‘There,’ she said with satisfaction. She turned to look at Rosie. ‘I could lend you a necklace and you might be able to trim your dress with a belt. We could look for one in Binns or Barbours.’ She gave a mischievous grin. ‘You could hide it in your bag until you get to us.’
‘So I could. A belt would pull it up a little. Mum has a lapis lazuli necklace. It’s the right colour and it’s not as though I’m wanting to borrow her diamonds. I’ll ask her. Thanks, Tania. You’ve cheered me up – except for this hairdresser experience. I’m still not sure….’
‘You’ll be fine, Rosie. Don’t worry.’
‘What are you wearing, Tania?’
‘I’ve got a new dress too. It’s red cotton with straps and a little matching bolero with white piping. Mum thinks it’s a bit short but I like it. We’ll be able to wear our jeans for our dance, if we ever get it organized when we both finish college. Come on, let’s get our coffee and have a look at the hats in Binns. I love trying them on, even though I’m not buying one.’ She giggled, then sobered as they found a table overlooking the High Street. ‘Do you remember Struan Ritchie?’
‘Er sort of.’ Rosie frowned in concentration. ‘Wasn’t he in your year at the Academy?’
‘That’s right, and we were at Edinburgh University together. He finished his BSc in agriculture last summer. We’ve been writing to each other while I’ve been doing my teacher training. I went to his twenty-first birthday party in January, during the Christmas holidays, so he’s coming to mine tonight.’
‘Oh ye-es?’ Rosie’s eyes twinkled.
‘We’re just good friends,’ Tania protested, ‘so there’s no need to look like that. We’ve known each other ages. Dad and Sam like him. His sister, Pamela, is eight years older and lives in Australia. Sam is a bit envious because the Ritchies own their farm and we only rent Bengairney.’
‘They’ll be like Mr Turner at Martinwold then? Your father always says he is the most up-to-date farmer in this district,’ Rosie said.
‘The Ritchies are building a milking parlour and a new dairy with a bulk tank and a huge shed to house the cubicles for the cows in winter. Dad says Mr Ritchie was wise to wait until he knew Struan would be carrying on the farm. His mother wanted him to have an office job, but he loves the farm.’
‘Mmm – ve-ery suitable,’ Rosie teased, her eyes full of mischief.
‘Rosie! There’s nothing serious. But he is one of the nicest people I know. He understands I want a career and I need to earn some money before I think of settling down and he needs to get some practical experience now that he’s learned the theory – his words, not mine. Besides we’re too young to consider marriage yet. His father was forty but I wouldn’t want to wait until I was that age.’
‘Meanwhile it’s good to have a friend to discuss things with, Rosie nodded. ‘I’ve missed Alex for that. But don’t tell him I said so. I love him like a brother, if I’d had one, but I can’t imagine him as someone I might want to marry. Do you understand, Tania?’
‘Yes, and so does Mum. She thought you were wise to make a break when you both finished school. We guessed he was getting too serious. Mind you, I’d have loved you to be my sister-in-law, Rosie. I hope Alex makes a better choice than Sam when he does get a girlfriend.’
‘Lidia is stylish. She’s so tall and slim.’ Rosie was unaware she sounded wistful. She was five feet three and she had always wanted to be tall and statuesque.
‘She’s only half an inch taller than I am but she looks more because she’s so skinny,’ Tania said. ‘We’ve always been such a happy family. I wish I could like her, but I’ve tried and I can’t.’
‘So you do think they’re serious?’
‘I fear brother Samuel is playing with fire if he’s not, and I wouldn’t like to see him get burned.’ Tania had learned a lot about life during her three years at university. Her parents thought moral standards had begun to fall during the war but she guessed they had no idea how much freedom girls had now they could get oral contraceptives and indulge their passions. She suspected Rosie was still ignorant about such matters, but she thought Lidia Blade would make use of the new woman power.
The two girls enjoyed their coffee and scones and shared a huge cream cake between them, amidst much laughter and licking of fingers. Afterwards they wandered around the store, trying on hats and examining the dress materials.
‘We’ll both be earning soon then we’ll be able to come shopping and choose our own clothes,’ Tania said.
‘Maybe. I lie awake some nights thinking of all the things that could go wrong with the gardens.’
‘Grandpa Oliphant is sure you’ll do well. He says you have an instinct for growing things.’
‘I shall need to do bookkeeping and records for the tax man, and pay wages and National Insurance. Then there’s the electricity for the big greenhouse, and maintenance and buying and selling. The grocer in Darlonachie says he will take our surplus vegetables to sell. I thought I might start keeping hens again like Granny Oliphant used to do. I could sell the eggs to Mother for the hotel. The manure is rich in potash so it will be good for the onions and the fruit bushes.’
‘You’ll be fine, Rosie, and you’ve always worked hard,’ Tania reassured her as they made their way to a side street and Betty’s hairdressing salon. She was pleasant but efficient and Tania was relieved when she put Rosie at her ease, then left her to look through the Hairdressers’ Journal while she trimmed her own hair. Out of the corner of her eye Betty noticed Rosie kept turning back to the same picture.
‘Excuse me a second,’ she whispered to Tania and stepped across to Rosie. ‘That’s the “Euro Look”,’ she said, pointing to the picture. ‘It would suit you beautifully and I think your hair will lend itself to that sort of style.’ Rosie burst out laughing.
‘You’d never make mine look that elegant in a million years.’ She sobered. ‘It looks expensive.’
‘I would thin and style it, then do the new blow dry to smooth it out to curve around your face in a loose wave. That will be about….’
‘This is Mum’s treat, Rosie. She’s given me the money,’ Tania called. ‘Remember this is your eighteenth birthday celebration as well as my twenty-first.’
‘Oh…’ Rosie looked up at Betty. ‘Do you really think mine will look like that?’
‘I reckon you’ll look twice as pretty,’ Betty smiled. ‘Most of my customers would envy your natural blonde colour as well as your curls. You have a lovely complexion too. I should think Tania’s brothers will be head over heels in love with you tonight,’ she teased. Rosie blushed.
They chattered on while Betty’s young assistant answered the telephone and swept up the trimmings. Rosie was scarcely aware of being transformed from a curly-headed urchin to a glamorous young woman. Betty advised her what shampoo to use and how to style her hair herself while it was still damp.
‘You really need to come in for a trim about every six weeks, if you want to keep the style.’ She smiled disarmingly. ‘I would be glad of your custom. I’m just starting up my own business too, like you.’
‘I’m going back to college on Monday. I shall not be back until we finish in June,’ Rosie said, ‘but I’ll come then. We’re going to have a joint dance, aren’t we, Tania?’
‘Yes, we are. You must come too, Betty, and bring your boyfriend. Is it still
Bruce?’
‘Yes it is. We’re saving up to get married, but we’d love to come to your birthday dance. How about if I give you both a hair do as my gift?’
‘Och we don’t expect gifts!’ Tania and Rosie said in unison, then burst into laughter.
‘I’d like to do that,’ Betty insisted. ‘Regard it as advertising. You’re both lovely models, and such a contrast when you get your long chestnut tresses arranged so elegantly on top of your head, Tania.’
‘All right, that’s a bargain,’ Tania agreed.
‘I wish you success with your business,’ Rosie said.
Catherine Palmer-Farr didn’t see Rosie until she was dressed to go to Bengairney and for the first time she realized her daughter was an elegant young woman.
‘I didn’t know you were having your hair done, Rosemary. It’s beautiful.’
‘Mrs Caraford paid for Tania and me. We went to a salon called Betty’s. She was at school with Tania and she has just started on her own.’
‘You must get me the address. She has made a good job. You suit your new dress too.’
‘Thank you. Could I borrow your blue necklace for tonight? Please, Mother?’
‘The lapis lazuli? Of course you can. There’s a bracelet and earrings too. You can keep the set. It will match your blue eyes and I never wear it. I can’t believe how grown up you look.’
Douglas was smoking his pipe in the family parlour. ‘Your mother is right, Rosemary,’ he said, eyeing her with pride. ‘I can’t believe I have a beautiful young lady for my daughter. You’ll be breaking a few hearts tonight. Which of the Caraford boys will it be, I wonder?’
‘Oh Daddy! Alex is like a brother to me, at least how I imagine a brother would be.’ Her father nodded but he noticed she had not mentioned Samuel Caraford being like a brother. He liked the Caraford boys but he doubted if such a match would ever get Catherine’s approval. She preferred to move in more exalted circles with the Wilshaws who still owned several farms, including Bengairney, or the Braebourne family. They still considered themselves superior, even though their fortunes had dwindled as much as his own. Catherine had high ambitions for Rosemary and he guessed she would soon start introducing her to eligible sons in the county. He hoped Rosemary would be discerning enough to recognize the more pretentious of them.
Another Home, Another Love Page 1