by Joan Jonker
‘Ay, what about her mother’s friend?’ Betty was putting her poor chair through torture as she made several attempts to part it from her backside. ‘Here’s me, all glamorous in me French navy with a white spot, and I don’t get a look in!’
‘Betty, you look adorable.’
The big woman preened herself. ‘I knew yer thought that, but were too shy to say it. That’s why I gave yer a gentle hint. I’ve got a feeling that, deep down, yer fancy me. And I wouldn’t be the least bit surprised if I opened me door one night to see yer standing there with a pleading look in yer eye, asking, “Do yer take lodgers in, Missus?”.’
‘Oh, Mam, yer look lovely.’ Katy’s face glowed with pride. ‘Mrs Edwards, come and see me mam’s dress.’
Molly came to stand beside her young assistant. ‘She’s been on pins waiting for yer to come in. I’ve been hearing nothing but this dress since Thursday, but now I know why. It’s real bonny, Dot, and it doesn’t half suit yer.’
The arms were folded and the bosom hitched up as Betty glared at the woman behind the counter. ‘Ay, missus, how about telling me I look nice? Me what buys me regular quarter of walnut toffee and helps to keep a roof over yer head.’
‘You always look the picture of elegance, Betty, so I suppose we take yer for granted. I’ve never see yer look anything short of perfection, from yer head to yer toes.’
The doorbell tinkled and Katy smiled when she saw who the customer was. ‘Hello, Mrs Fitzsimmons, ye’re early today. But I’m glad yer are ’cos now yer can meet me mam.’
The little old lady smiled to reveal her toothless gums. ‘I don’t need to be told that, queen, ’cos ye’re the spittin’ image of each other. Now I know where yer get yer good looks from.’ She shuffled across the shop floor to where Dot was standing with a smile of welcome on her face. ‘Yeah, alike as two peas in a pod. And I bet yer’ve always got a smile on yer face like yer daughter has. She brightens my day, does young Katy, she’s a little cracker and I bet ye’re proud of her.’
Dot couldn’t resist bending to kiss the wrinkled face. ‘I am proud of her, sunshine, and of me son. I’ve been blessed with two good’uns.’
The shop door tinkled again and all eyes turned to see Rita Williams and Dolly Armstrong struggling to get through the narrow entrance with their arms linked. ‘Yer’ll break that ruddy door one of these days,’ Molly called. ‘And if yer do, I’ll send yer the repair bill.’
Rita had an answer on her lips, but the sight of Dot struck her dumb. And as John, standing on the side-lines with Colin, was to say later, he’d never seen anything so funny. She squeezed her friend’s arm, and when Dolly looked at her to see what she wanted, Rita rolled her eyes several times towards where Dot was standing. Then both women stood and gawped.
It was Katy who broke the silence. ‘And here’s the terrible twins. Good afternoon to you, ladies.’
Rita shook herself free of Dolly’s arm and drew herself to her full height. ‘Hello, queen, I see yer’ve got all yer family here today.’
‘Yeah, it’s me mam’s birthday. Doesn’t she look marvellous?’
‘Oh, Happy Birthday, Dot.’ Rita’s eyes lighted on John and she asked herself, who do they think they’re kidding? There’s definitely something fishy going on between these two, it’s sticking out a mile. The trouble was, Dot Baker never stood gossiping in the street like normal neighbours did, so they couldn’t get to the bottom of her. ‘Ye’re all dressed up like a dog’s dinner.’
Katy was ready for her. ‘Ye’re only jealous, Mrs Williams. Anyway, I bet your dog doesn’t get a dinner what looks as good as me mam does.’
Dolly Armstrong found her voice. ‘No, it doesn’t, queen, ’cos she hasn’t got a bleedin’ dog. She can’t stand them, won’t have one near her. I have to lock our Rover in the kitchen when she comes to our house.’ Delighted that for once she wasn’t the butt of everyone’s laughter, she went on: ‘I’ll let yer into a secret, queen – our Rover’s terrified of her. I don’t have to lock him out, he scarpers as soon as he hears her voice.’
Oh, she’s not getting away with that, Rita thought, winking at Dot. ‘I take that back. Yer don’t look like a dog’s dinner, yer look like the cat’s whiskers.’ She turned and gave a sharp nod of her head to Dolly. ‘There yer are, yer can’t crack any jokes about that because yer’ve not got no bleedin’ cat.’
Dolly was congratulating herself on her sharp wit when she said, ‘No, it’s sad, that is. We used to have a cat, Tiddles, but we haven’t seen hide nor hair of her since the first day you came to our house. She took one look at yer and ran hell for leather out of the back door, never to be seen again.’ Then, to add to her delight, she remembered a word she’d heard once and thought how clever it was. But she’d never had the occasion to use it, until now. ‘Yer seem to have a profound effect on animals, girl.’
The loudest laughter came from Rita. ‘Is that why yer tortoise has been in hibernation for the last four years? Oh dear, oh dear. I’m going to have to buy a collar and lead for yer, so I can keep yer in check.’
‘No need to do that, girl, I’ll save yer the money,’ said a straight-faced but exhilarated Dolly. ‘Yer can borrow our Rover’s.’
Two more customers came into the shop and Molly moved with reluctance to the other end of the counter. ‘Come on, Mrs Fitzsimmons, let’s get you done and dusted.’
The old lady’s smile covered everyone. ‘Thank yer for cheering me up. I’ll be laughing at that until it’s time for bed.’ She shuffled to where Molly was waiting. ‘Just a pennyworth of snuff, queen.’
‘We’ll have to go, too,’ Dot said, before smiling at the two neighbours she usually avoided like the plague because they were the worst gossip-mongers in the neighbourhood. But she could see now why her daughter thought they were hilarious. ‘Mind you, I could listen to you two all day, you’re so funny. It’s no wonder our Katy looks forward to yer coming in the shop.’
The two women grew six inches upwards and outwards. ‘She’s a good girl, is your Katy,’ Dolly said. ‘We’re very fond of her, aren’t we, Rita?’
‘Yeah,’ Rita agreed. ‘There’s only one thing wrong with her, she won’t let us fight in the shop. She makes us wait until we’re outside, and by that time we’ve forgotten what we were arguing about in the first place.’
‘Well, it’s been a pleasure.’ Dot turned to Betty and frowned. ‘I’ve never known you so quiet, sunshine, yer haven’t opened yer mouth. That’s not a bit like you.’
‘I know me limits, girl.’ Her friend grinned. ‘I’m not daft enough to try and compete with a double act. Unfair competition, that would be.’
Katy saw John leading Colin to the door and called, ‘Which picture house are we going to, Mr Kershaw?’
‘It’s your mother’s birthday, Katy, we go where she wants to go.’
‘We’re going to see something that will make me laugh, not frighten the life out of me,’ Dot said. ‘William Powell in The Thin Man, that’s just up my street.’
Rita and Dolly exchanged glances that said this might be the time to glean a juicy tit-bit. ‘Are yer all going to the pictures, then?’ Rita asked hopefully.
Old crafty boots, Dot thought, always fishing for gossip. She smiled sweetly. ‘Yeah, and John’s bringing his lady-friend.’
John pulled Colin through the door and passed the window of the shop before letting his laughter rip. ‘Your mother had the last laugh, there, Colin. I think she’s adorable.’
‘And lovable, Mr Kershaw. Yer do think she’s lovable, as well, don’t yer?’
‘Man-to-man, son, yes, I do think she’s lovable.’
Colin made up his mind then that he would try and arrange things so his hero and his mam were thrown together more. But he was thwarted that afternoon as his mother stuck to Betty’s side like glue. She made sure she sat in the same seat as her on the tram, and on the ferry the two women leaned against the rails nattering while John and the boy walked the decks.
He had a bit mo
re luck in the pictures, pushing himself in the row after Billy and Katy, but he might as well not have bothered for all the good it did him. It was a comedy film, and nobody wants their hands holding when they’re splitting their sides laughing at the antics of a dog that was cleverer than its owners. He sighed when they came out of the cinema, consoling himself that he might have more luck tomorrow, when they went to Southport. And there were still two weeks’ holiday ahead of them; anything could happen in two weeks.
‘It’s been donkey’s ages since I came to Southport. Well, yer can tell how long, I was only courting Ted at the time,’ Dot said, her tongue licking the side of the ice-cream cornet where the melting ice was running. She was wearing her new dress again and she’d have a fit if she got a stain on it. The children were walking ahead as she strolled down the pier with John.
‘Once we got married we could never afford to come. There were too many things we needed to buy for the house.’ She glanced sideways. ‘He was very houseproud, was my Ted, and the house was like a little palace with all brand-new furniture.’
‘Your house is nice as it is, Dot.’ John sighed inwardly. Was this her way of warning him off? Or did she really not know how he felt about her? ‘As soon as you walk through the door you can feel its warmth and comfort, and the love there is in it.’
‘Ye’re very poetic, John, yer know all the right words to say.’
‘Not true, Dorothy. There are some very easy words I have great difficulty getting out.’
‘I don’t believe that. What sort of words?’
‘For instance, “I like you, do you like me”?’
‘Are you pulling my leg, John Kershaw? Yer say there’s some words yer can’t get out, and then yer go and say them!’
‘But you didn’t answer them, did you?’
‘I didn’t know I was supposed to! Say them again.’
‘I like you, do you like me?’
‘Of course I like yer, yer big daft nit! I wouldn’t be here now if I didn’t like yer.’ Dot popped the end of the cornet in her mouth and quickened her pace. ‘Come on, let’s catch up with the children.’
If I didn’t know her better, I’d think she was teasing me, John thought as he hurried after her. But I’m not going to give up. I’ll stay around until the day she tells me straight out that she doesn’t want to see me any more. He crossed his fingers, hoping that day would never come.
But six months later, John was no further advanced and his fingers were still crossed.
Chapter Twenty-Three
The glowing coals and the dancing flames in the O’Connors’ grate had baby Trudy chuckling and clapping her tiny hands. ‘She only sees a proper fire when she comes in here,’ Mary said, bouncing the child up and down on her knee. ‘We’re lucky if we get a flicker out of the few coals we have on, and with this cold weather it’s freezing in our living room.’
‘I’ve told yer, sweetheart, there’s no need for you and the baby to sit in the cold. It’s more than welcome yer are in here, and isn’t it true that the fire eats no more coal whether there’s two or ten people sitting in front of it.’ Maggie held her arms wide as she crossed the room. ‘Come to yer auntie, me darlin’, and let me have a cuddle.’
Trudy’s arms and legs were waving excitedly. She was a pleasant child, always smiling and contented. Only Mary knew that in her own home, when her father was in, there were no smiles on her pretty face. Young as she was, she had learned that any noise she made would bring forth loud, angry shouting which frightened her.
‘Yer get more like yer mammy every day, me darlin’, so yer do.’ Maggie held the child out and pretended to waltz with her. Faster and faster she twirled, much to the delight of the baby who was chuckling loudly. ‘It’s bonny yer are, too, me darlin’ – sure, can’t I feel yer getting heavier every day?’
‘Her legs are strong,’ Mary said, a proud, loving smile on her face. ‘Sit her on yer knee, Maggie, facing her, and see how she tries to stand up.’
Maggie sat down and put a hand under each of Trudy’s arms to stop her from falling backwards, and gasped in surprise when she felt two tiny feet digging into her tummy as the baby tried to stand up. ‘Well, I never! Will yer look at that, now? Won’t yer Uncle Paddy get a surprise when he knows? The day’s not far off when he’ll be holding yer little hand and walking yer down the street, and won’t he be the proudest man in Liverpool?’
‘She’s advanced for her age, isn’t she?’ Mary sat back, basking in the warmth, comfort and love she could feel all around her. She felt more at home in this house than she ever had in her own. The daily visits here, and to Dot’s, were the highlight of her days. Even at the weekend she never missed. Tom had tried to stop her in the beginning, threatening to do all sorts to her. But she’d ignored his threats and walked out with the baby. He still snarled and made sarcastic remarks, but he’d never lifted a hand to her. ‘Remember, she’s not six months old until next week.’
Maggie was holding on tight as Trudy bounced up and down on her lap. She loved the child as if she were her own, and it showed in the delight on her face. ‘Will yer be getting a Christmas tree for her? Sure, her eyes would pop out of her head, so they would, if she saw a tree all decorated with tinsel and coloured balls. She’d not understand the meaning of it, but she’s all there in the head, she doesn’t miss anything.’
‘There’ll be no tree, Maggie, I’m afraid. My husband thinks that Christmas was invented for men to get drunk, not to give their wives extra money for food or presents.’
‘Then yer must bring her in here on Christmas Day, spend the day with us.’ Maggie hugged the child and rained kisses on her. ‘We’ll have a grand tree, so we will. And wouldn’t it make my Paddy’s day to have yer both here?’
‘I wouldn’t impose on yer on Christmas Day, yer have us every other day of the year. But thanks for asking, Maggie.’
‘Impose? It’s a favour yer’d be doing us, me darlin’, and that’s the truth of it. Since we came to England, me and Paddy have spent the day on our own. We’ve neither kith nor kin, so having you and Trudy would be like having a family. It would make all the difference, give us a reason to decorate the room and have a tree. It’s a big favour yer’d be doing us, Mary, and I’m saying that from the bottom of my heart. But I know things aren’t easy for yer, and I wouldn’t want to cause trouble between you and yer husband.’
Thinking of the cheerless room, with a tiny fire burning in the grate, no food to put on the table and not a sign or a word to make it a special day, different from any other, Mary decided quickly. ‘We’d love to come, if you’re sure yer want us.’
Maggie’s face lit up, then she looked anxious. ‘Would yer not get in trouble with yer husband? Sure, I’m selfish enough to want yer, and so would Paddy be, but not if it means yer suffering for it.’
‘I’ll probably be cursed from here to hell and back, Maggie, but I can stand verbal abuse, it just rolls off my back now. He won’t lift his hand to me, hasn’t done since I had the baby. And it’s her I’ve got to think of; she’s the most important thing in my life. Her first Christmas should be spent with people she loves and who love her. I’ve put up with years of squalor, poverty and a loveless marriage, but that was my own doing, it’s what I chose. But Trudy didn’t choose Tom Campbell for a father, so I don’t see why she should suffer for my mistakes. She’ll have enough to put up with when she’s old enough to walk. I can’t be with her every minute of her life to stop those who will skit and make fun of her. So while she can, I want her to have as much happiness that life can give her.’
Maggie sighed. ‘Does Tom know about her leg?’
‘I haven’t told him; we don’t even pass each other the time of day. I haven’t even told me mam, yet, because we don’t know how bad the limp is going to be and I don’t want her to worry any more than she has to. But as to my husband, yer can rest assured that he’ll be the first to poke fun at her.’
‘He’d better not let Paddy hear him, or John. Not unl
ess he wants to end up in hospital with two broken legs.’ Maggie noticed the baby had stopped bouncing and was looking at her questioningly. ‘Will yer look at this one? She wants to know why I’m not smiling, don’t yer, sweetheart? Sure, she’s quick to sense things, right enough, so I’ll put the smile back.’ She gazed across at Mary. ‘I’ve never been a violent person in me life, with me fists or with me tongue, and that’s the God’s honest truth. But if it came to Tom Campbell getting a hiding for hurting you or the baby, I’d not shed a tear for the man.’
‘In two days, it will be exactly one year since I first came in this house.’ John had his long legs stretched out and Dot had to step over them. ‘I can remember it clearly, can you?’
Dot looked at him with surprise. ‘What made yer think of that?’
‘Because it was the day that changed my life. I came in here carrying Colin, expecting to put him down, explain what had happened, and be on my way. Instead I’ve been here nearly every day since.’
‘Are yer bragging or complaining, John? Or did yer think it was a bit of useless information I should know?’ Dot lifted his feet to straighten the rug in front of the hearth, then she let them drop, ‘Anyway, how d’yer mean, it was the day that changed yer life?’
‘You’ve changed my life. You and the children. Before I met you, I used to spend every night in the house on my own.’
‘Oh dear, shall I get the violin out, John Kershaw, so yer can go all dramatic on me? It does help to have violin music in the background.’
Colin looked up from the comic he was reading. Why couldn’t his mam make an effort to be nice to Mr Kershaw? He’d done all he could to help his hero but none of it had worked. Twelve months now, and they were still just friends. In that time, he’d had a birthday and so had Katy. They’d both got good presents, better than other years, but the present they would both have liked was his mam realising she was fond enough of the big man to let him court her. ‘I wouldn’t have thought of it, Mr Kershaw, but I’m glad yer reminded me. The day I ran into your bike was a good day for all of us, wasn’t it, Mam?’