by Deborah Carr
That afternoon, Florence left Jesse to meet with Amy at the dressmaker she had booked to visit.
Madame Mallet welcomed Florence and after a brief discussion about the design of the wedding dress Florence wanted, she made a sketch.
‘Is this the sort of design you are imaging?’ The dressmaker held up a piece of paper showing a dress with a rounded neckline with what appeared to be a pretty lace border. The long sleeves had cuffs of lace and rows of lace frills in the skirt. There was a slight bustle and a train falling from it and pooling on the floor behind.
It was. ‘Yes, that’s slightly different to what I had in my mind, but it’s even better.’
‘Good.’
Madame Mallet took her and Amy through to her storeroom and presented her with a selection of white materials.
‘They are all so beautiful,’ Florence sighed, feeling a little overwhelmed. She picked up and studied the fabrics for a second time. ‘It’s difficult to choose just one.’
‘We can use one for the outer garment, another for the frills of the underskirt and then we have some Nottingham lace for the neckline and cuffs of your dress. It is the best.’
‘Her future husband is from Nottingham,’ Amy said. ‘And so including lace from there will have a significance too.’
‘Ah, I see. Then we must find the very best that I have to complement your dress.’
Florence thought of Jesse and how happy he was going to be to see her in her dress complete with Nottingham lace. She was certain he would love the dress Madame Mallet had designed for her.
They took some time to work through the choices, but finally, Florence was satisfied and so they agreed a cost. The seamstress set about measuring Florence while her young assistant wrote down her measurements in a small notebook.
‘You are tall with a slim waist,’ Madame Mallet said. ‘You will look splendid on your wedding day and I’m certain your husband will be very proud.’
She hoped Madame Mallet was right.
Later that afternoon she met Jesse for tea at the Pomme d’Or.
‘I can’t believe how much we’ve already arranged and in only one day.’ She sipped her tea happily. This is what she had imagined happening last year, before her parents had insisted on their delay.
Never mind, she thought; at least they were free to make their preparations now. Her parents might have refused them their choice of marrying in the place that they had hoped, and her mother’s refusal to attend was still like a pinch to her heart, but she was determined not to let their choices ruin her and Jesse’s special day.
Jesse reached out and took one of her hands in his and gave it a gentle squeeze. ‘Now we need to decide who will be our witnesses for the ceremony. Do you know who you will ask?’
‘I’m asking Amy,’ she said, thinking back to how supportive her younger sister had always been of everything she’d done.
‘Good choice.’ He took a bite from one of the slim cucumber sandwiches.
‘How about you?’ Florence asked. ‘Will you ask a friend from the mainland to travel over?’
After swallowing his food, he sat thoughtfully. ‘I am unsure who to ask. All my friends are very busy with their lives. However, there is a man with whom I’ve become friendly during my stays at the hotel,’ he explained. ‘He comes to the hotel for morning coffee, most days. We’ve sat together on quite a few occasions and had many discussions on business and how we see the future panning out both on the mainland and here on the island. His name is John Blampied.’
‘Do you think he’ll agree to do it?’
Jesse shrugged. ‘I don’t know, but if the time feels right when we next speak, I’ll ask him then.’
Everything was coming together. Now they just needed to hope that nothing happened to disrupt their plans.
Chapter 35
Florence woke to the sound of seagulls outside her window and the sun streaming in through a gap in her floral curtains. She stretched languorously. It was her birthday and only four and a half weeks until she would be marrying Jesse. She would need to get up soon if she was to make the second fitting of her beautiful wedding dress before work.
She sat up and rubbed her eyes gently. Already she could tell that this dress was going to be exactly as she’d hoped. The fabric was perfect and today she would see the folds of the skirt and bustle at the back of her dress and how they appeared on it.
Florence got out of bed and touched the light cotton fabric on the dress that she had chosen to wear for her birthday dinner and betrothal meal at The British Hotel in Library Place, which Jesse had arranged for her family and his new friend John Blampied that evening. She was delighted that Lily had also accepted her invitation. She was now very much becoming part of her family and at sixteen was growing up to be a delightful and self-assured woman.
Florence looked forward to Jesse seeing Lily in a grander situation than when he had originally met and rescued her from her father. Lily had grown so much since then and, although Jesse had spoken to her once or twice when he popped in to see Florence at the shop, it had only been for the briefest of occasions.
She was relieved her parents had agreed to attend the meal. It wasn’t as much as she had hoped from them, but it went a little way to show that despite their reservations about her marriage, their attendance at the meal did prove to her that her mother did not have an issue with Jesse as a person.
She was also looking forward to meeting John Blampied. She had heard a little about him, but if he was Jesse’s choice as a witness then that was good enough for Florence.
Jesse understood that she was to be working all day. She didn’t mind too much. The shop was busy and she was to be seeing him that evening, so she was fairly happy to wait until then.
Florence was in the middle of showing a customer some of the best fountain pens when she spotted Mrs Wolstenholm arrive and make a bee-line to her father who was handing change to a gentleman.
‘Mrs Wolstenholm, how can I assist you today?’ her father asked.
‘My maid advises me that your daughter, Florence, is to be married.’
‘That’s correct.’
Florence’s heart raced. She couldn’t imagine why Mrs Wolstenholm wanted to discuss her forthcoming nuptials, or what business of hers they might be. She smiled at the lady next to her and unscrewed one of the pens to show her the fine gold nib, hoping that she didn’t notice how distracted she was by Mrs Wolstenholm’s conversation with her father.
‘His name is Mr Boot, I gather?’
There was a pause before her father answered. ‘Yes, it is.’
‘I’ve never heard of him. He isn’t local, I assume?’
Her father cleared his throat and noisily straightened a notepad and pen on the counter. ‘He has shops in Nottingham and more recently Sheffield.’
She sniffed. ‘He is a shopkeeper?’
Florence tensed and saw that the woman next to her had stopped studying the pens to listen to the conversation.
‘He is rather more than that, Mrs Wolstenholm,’ her father replied, his tone clipped. ‘As well as his increasing number of shops, he also now employs a pharmacist to dispense prescriptions.’
Florence tried to focus on the pens in front of her, but couldn’t help wondering why her father was telling Mrs Wolstenholm so much about Jesse. He was never usually one to share information about people and he sounded as if he was trying to impress her, which was not like him at all.
‘Does he indeed?’ she said. ‘It sounds to me as if your daughter has done pretty well for herself, Mr Rowe. You must be relieved that she has finally found a husband?’
There was a long silence before Florence heard her father’s footsteps across the wooden flooring as he marched over to the shop door and opened it. She turned to stare at him, his eyes narrowed.
‘Good day, Mrs Wolstenholm,’ he said holding the door and waiting for her to leave. ‘As far as I’m concerned my daughter’s happiness is the most important thing, not your opini
on of the husband she has chosen. I’ll thank you to take your custom elsewhere.’
Mrs Wolstenholm gasped and shot a steely glare in Florence’s direction, as if she had been the one to insult her. ‘I will never visit this establishment again,’ she said her face flushed as she stomped out of the shop.
Florence couldn’t think of a thing to say. She stared at her father as he quietly closed the door and turned to face the customers still in the shop.
‘I apologise if any of you feel I spoke out of turn just now and hope that none of you were offended.’
No one spoke. Florence’s customer picked up one of the pens and studied it. ‘It’s about time someone put that harridan in her place,’ she whispered.
Florence looked over at her father, but he was already serving someone else.
Later that day she finished serving one of several customers and showed the woman out of the shop. It occurred to her that she hadn’t seen Lily for a while.
‘Lily? Are you there?’ There was no reply.
Florence stopped moving to still the rustling of her skirts and listened intently, certain she had heard something, but unsure what. It was sobbing and it was coming from the storeroom. She hastily locked the shop door and flipped over the sign to say that they were closed before running to the storeroom to see what had happened.
‘Lily?’ she asked, finding her friend crouched down in a corner, her hands holding a crumpled handkerchief over her mouth to stifle her sobs.
Florence’s chest contracted in horror. What on earth could have happened? She crouched down next to her friend, reaching her arm around Lily’s shaking shoulders.
‘Whatever’s the matter, Lily? Are you hurt?’ Her heart raced at the thought of Lily’s father returning to his old behaviour. Surely he hadn’t come into the shop while Florence was focusing on something else and hurt the girl? She would have noticed, wouldn’t she?
Lily took a few gulps of air and seemed to be calming slightly.
‘It’s all right,’ Florence soothed, pulling her own handkerchief from her skirt pocket and wiping Lily’s eyes. ‘Take your time and then tell me what’s happened. I’m sure we’ll find a solution to whatever it is.’
Lily blew her nose and slowly calmed down.
‘Right,’ Florence said, helping her friend to stand, ‘tell me.’
‘You’ll think I’m selfish,’ Lily said between shuddering breaths.
Florence doubted it very much. ‘Go on.’
When Lily didn’t speak, Florence took her face in her hands and smiled at her.
The younger girl took a deep breath. ‘It’s just that you’re leaving Rowes, and even Jersey, and I don’t know when I’ll ever see you again. You’ve been so good to me, you and your family, so I’ve no right to behave like this.’ She gave in to a fresh bout of crying and Florence, understanding her sentiments, and her feelings of losing a dear friend, hugged her tightly.
‘You’re not selfish. You have every right to feel this way.’ She held Lily away from her, her own tears now threatening to escape. ‘I’m going to miss working here and especially working with you.’
‘You are? But you’re goin’ to have such an exciting life with Mr Boot.’
‘I hope so, but that doesn’t mean I won’t miss you, Lily. You’re my friend. I’m used to seeing you every workday here and on Sundays at chapel. It’s going to be a big change for me too, and I have to admit that, as excited as I am – and I am – I’m still frightened about all the changes I’m going to have to make.’
Lily’s eyes widened in astonishment. ‘You are? But you’re the bravest woman I know.’
Florence frowned. ‘I doubt that very much.’
‘You’re really going to miss me?’
‘I said so, didn’t I?’ she said, smiling. ‘But you’re going to stay on here at Rowes and take over from me. You’ll do a brilliant job. I’ll be back here. Jersey’s my home and it’s also where my family live. We’ll see each other again, I promise.’
‘Truly?’
‘Yes. Now we’ve both got to be brave,’ Florence insisted, aware that she was trying to persuade herself as well as Lily. ‘I’ll have to get used to my new home and way of life, and you’ll continue to learn everything you can about being a shop assistant. Who knows what you’ll achieve in your life, Lily?’
Lily smiled and wiped away a stray tear. ‘You’re right, Florence. We have to be brave. Who knows, I might even come and visit you one day in Nottingham?’
‘Good,’ Florence said, honestly, ‘I look forward to that day.’ She spotted someone at the door peering into the shop. ‘I think we should stop talking about this now and serve that poor customer,’ Florence said, hugging her dear friend.
They parted and Lily walked away.
After the customer had left, Lily said, ‘I wonder what he’s bought you for your birthday present?’ She straightened two picture frames at the back of the window display. ‘If your engagement ring is anything to go by then he will have chosen something very special.’
‘I think it will be a necklace,’ Amy said, grinning at Lily conspiratorially.
‘Neither of you know, so don’t insinuate that you do,’ Florence said, aware that Amy was almost as excited as she for the evening to begin.
‘You can all stop chattering and get on with tidying this place and restocking the shelves,’ their father said as soon as the shop was clear of customers. ‘We won’t have time to stay behind to prepare the shop for opening in the morning, not if we need to leave to get ready for your meal tonight, Florence.’
‘If you and Mother can come tonight, Father, don’t you think you could persuade her to come to the wedding, too?’ she pleaded, determined not to give in to the tears caused by the hurt her mother’s decision had caused her. ‘It would make my day complete to have her there.’
He smiled at her sadly. ‘You know your mother almost as well as I do. She makes her decisions, and, whether we like them, or even understand them, she is not one to change her mind. It’s your future she worries about. This meal is about your birthday, and—’ he hesitated ‘—your engagement.’ He closed his eyes and shook his head. ‘I’m sorry. I have tried to persuade her.’
She forced a tight smile. She didn’t want him to have to witness her pain. It wasn’t his fault that her mother was still refusing to attend the wedding.
In truth Florence was glad to have work to do to keep her from getting over excited at the thought of the evening ahead. She couldn’t wait to sit next to Jesse with all their family present. Jesse had arranged for a carriage to collect them from Queen Street for the short ride to the smart hotel at Library Place. Lily, excited at the opportunity of another ride in a carriage, had offered to meet them outside the shop just before the carriage was due to arrive.
She and Jesse had decided earlier that her father should sit at the opposite end of the table to him with her mother sitting by his side. Lily suggested that she sat Amy next to John Blampied. Jesse had mentioned that he was a widow of two years and she hoped that if he and her sister had a mutual attraction that maybe her sister would then be able to celebrate a wedding of her own.
She had tried to find out more information about Mr Blampied from Jesse, but as with all men, he was hopeless when it came to giving an opinion on the suitability of another man.
Florence and her family stepped outside to find Lily looking very grown up in a new dress. She had confided in Florence that she had bought it second-hand and her mother had helped her make the necessary alterations to get it to fit her.
‘You look very beautiful,’ Florence whispered as her father locked the front door. ‘That navy material suits you.’
‘Thank you.’ Lily smiled. ‘Our neighbour came to help me with my hair. Do you think it looks all right for this evening?’
‘It looks perfect,’ Amy said, before Florence had a chance to reply.
‘It does.’
They settled down in the carriage. It was a bit of a squeeze a
s Willie was with them too. Adelaide and Francis were making their own way there after Francis had insisted that the short walk would suit them both, especially on such a pleasant evening. She was determined to enjoy these moments as much as possible. This was her birthday and celebration of her and Jesse’s engagement. She was determined to enjoy every moment of the evening and not allow herself to think ahead to the wedding and the absence of one of the people closest to her. She was not going to allow that person’s choices to take away the joy of her evening.
Jesse was at the hotel awaiting their arrival. She smiled lovingly at him as the carriage stopped.
‘You get out first, Florence,’ her father said, giving a brief wave to Jesse. ‘I see that your future husband is eagerly awaiting your arrival.
Florence smiled and took Jesse’s proffered hand, holding it tightly as she stepped onto the small metal step and onto the pavement.
‘How are you?’ Jesse asked quietly as they waited for her family and Lily to follow suit.
‘Excited and very, very happy,’ she said honestly, holding his hand, aware of the gold band of her engagement ring pressing against her middle and little finger on her left hand
They greeted each other and went through to the restaurant to take their seats. The sommelier came to the table and Jesse explained that none of them drank alcohol, apart from maybe his friend who they were waiting to arrive.
At that moment, a man walked in through the restaurant door and up to their table.
‘I believe this is the Boot–Rowe table,’ he said loudly. ‘I am John Blampied. I’m delighted to meet the lady to whom my good friend is engaged to be married.’ He took Florence’s hand and raised it towards his lips as he bowed. ‘My felicitations to you both.’
Florence stared into the man’s kind eyes and liked him immediately. Jesse was a good judge of character and Florence’s instincts told her that Jesse had been right about John Blampied.
Jesse then introduced the tall, smart man who Florence gauged to be in his early to mid-forties. She glanced at her sister but saw no interest in her eyes. Never mind, she thought; there was still time.