Home Front Girls
Page 39
‘Come on, luvvie, Mrs P said bossily, taking charge. ‘You an’ the little ’un come along wi’ me, Julie. We’ll get some grub an’ a drink, eh, an’ leave these three to catch up, shall we?’ she suggested and after flashing a smile at the girls the woman followed her willingly with the little girl trotting happily along behind them, watching the other children playing boisterously in the street.
‘It seems like such a long time since we met, doesn’t it?’ Dotty said musingly as the three old friends stood hand in hand watching the celebrations.
‘Yes, and so much has happened to all of us since the night of the Blitz, hasn’t it?’ Annabelle replied. ‘I can still remember that night as if it was yesterday. There were so many stars in the sky that night, weren’t there? But what’s been happening to you, Lucy?’
‘Well, Julie took me in and gave me a job in her hair-dressing business as well as a home. She trained me and I’m a fully qualified hairdresser now,’ Lucy told them proudly and as her eyes strayed after Julie, Annabelle saw the loving look in them, and a novel idea suddenly occurred to her.
‘She’s a widow, isn’t she?’ she asked innocently.
‘Yes, she is, but to be honest I don’t think she was happily married,’ Lucy confided to them both. ‘Her husband was the most terrible brute, and like me I don’t think she’s too keen on men any more, although they did have a lovely daughter, as you can see. Little Tamsyn is a real poppet. I adore her.’
‘Well, just so long as you’re content, that’s all that matters,’ Annabelle answered and they then went on to discuss everything that had happened to them all, including Annabelle’s engagement to Joel. Lucy was thrilled to hear the news.
‘I knew you two would get together eventually if I got out of the way,’ she said, then added hastily, ‘but that wasn’t the only reason I went, of course. I could never have been truly happy here. And in Cornwall I got a brand new start.’
From across the road, Miranda and Mrs P were viewing the reunion with smiles on their faces. Joel had taken Julie and Tamsyn off to watch the fireworks that were being lit at the end of the road, and Robert had gone with them, taking his own two children.
Mrs P remarked casually, ‘They seem very close, don’t they? Lucy an’ Julie, I mean.’
‘Yes they do,’ Miranda answered, understanding exactly what the other woman was trying to say. ‘But you know what I think Mrs P? Live and let live. None of us knows where love is going to strike, and as long as they’re happy, who are they hurting? After all that Lucy went through, she deserves to grab her happiness where she can.’
Mrs P nodded sagely in agreement. She loved the girl as her own daughter, and was overjoyed to see her coming to life again. ‘Who would have thought it though, eh?’ she said pensively. ‘All three of ’em had secrets in their pasts that they’ve had to deal with one way an’ another, but I reckon they’ve come through wi’ flyin’ colours, an’ I think they’re better people for it. Since the night o’ the Blitz they’ve turned from slips o’ girls into young women. And now we’ve got a weddin’ to plan. But then they do say every cloud has a silver lining.’
‘I know,’ Miranda said, beaming. ‘And I think I can guess who Annabelle will be choosing to be her bridesmaids. But come on, Gladys, I don’t know about you but I could murder another glass of that home-made wine. I’ve got no idea what’s in it, but it’s working a treat.’ And arm in arm the two women set off for the makeshift Victory Day bar at the end of the street.