One Step at a Time

by Beryl Matthews

  Ted was sixty-eight, so he would stay at home, but there would be no chance of that for the boys. She gazed at them and her heart ached. They would go for sure. Thank God John was in a profession that would be needed here.

  The shop door opened and the man filling her thoughts at that moment strode in. Rushing over, she kissed him. ‘Oh, John, have you heard the news? Is there really going to be a war, and will we have our wedding before it begins? I’ll be so sad if our wonderful day is spoilt…’

  He placed a finger on her lips to stop the worries pouring out. ‘Shush, darling, nothing anyone does will spoil it for us. Whatever happens we shall be married, and we’ll face the future together “for better or worse”, as the ceremony says.’

  ‘Of course.’ She smiled then. ‘I’m just being silly and selfish, aren’t I?’

  ‘No you’re not. Everyone’s worried.’ He draped an arm around her shoulders. ‘Ben, the vicar wants us to have a rehearsal for the ceremony, so can I take Amy away for the rest of the day? This is the only time I can get off to fit in with the vicar’s plans.’

  ‘We’ll allow it, even though she’s only just arrived.’ Ben gave her a teasing smile. ‘But don’t think you can make a habit of this flitting in and out.’

  ‘No, Ben.’ Her laughter was back. They were all worrying about nothing.

  She had such an expressive face, John thought. It was easy to gauge her emotions, and the rapid changes in them. When he’d walked into the shop, worry had been etched on her face for all to see, yet with just a few encouraging words she’d been back to her usual happy self. Matters on the political front were looking grim and he was glad he’d pushed her into an early marriage. The boys had told him that they were going to join up immediately after the wedding, and if he hadn’t fallen in love with Amy, he would have been doing the same thing. The army was going to need all the doctors and nurses they could recruit, but he wasn’t going to leave Amy. He had promised Ben he wouldn’t. Both the boys loved her like brothers and felt responsible for her. Ben, in particular, was possessive, concerned with her happiness and wellbeing, and had taken him aside one evening to make sure his little girl was going to be looked after and not left alone. And he could understand Ben’s concern after he had told him the full story of her father, and how they had found her, forlorn and rejected, beside her mother’s grave. He could see what a deep impression that had made on the big man. It must have been heartrending.

  John smiled to himself as he remembered how Ben had been acting like the stern father, but John had come away with a much better understanding of the depth of feeling Ben had for Amy. Their relationship had puzzled him in the beginning, but there wasn’t anything sexual about it. Ben really did look upon her as a little sister who needed to be loved and protected. The rest of them in the Chelsea house also loved her, and he knew how easy that was. He had taken one look in her gorgeous eyes and fallen so hard it had literally taken his breath away.

  In a little over two weeks she would be his wife, and he would make her happy. He loved to see her smile.

  The rehearsal didn’t take long, and when the vicar was satisfied they knew what they had to do, he let them go.

  John helped Amy into the car as they left the church. ‘Mother’s expecting us for tea.’

  ‘Oh, why didn’t you tell me? I would have brought her a vase or something.’

  ‘You don’t have to give her something every time you come.’ He started the car and headed for his house.

  ‘But I like to give her things. She’s nice.’

  ‘She thinks you’re nice too.’ He cast her a quick sideways glance, wondering how she had come out of her past so untainted by bitterness. She had a generous, loving nature, and he was the lucky man who had won her heart.

  He would make damned sure she never regretted marrying him.

  25

  The pact with Poland had been signed on 25 August, and seven days later Germany invaded Poland. Britain called for an undertaking from Hitler to withdraw his troops. Everyone held their breath.

  On Sunday 3 September the whole nation gathered around their wireless sets, waiting for the Prime Minister to speak.

  Amy held tightly to John and Ben’s hands, praying as she had never prayed before. Her prayers had been answered when she had been in danger of being homeless and unloved. Please God, she implored silently, stop this madness and I’ll never ask you for another thing.

  At eleven-fifteen they all leant towards the wireless as Chamberlain began to speak. Amy listened with mounting horror as he said: ‘I have to tell you now that no such undertaking has been received and that consequently this country is at war with Germany.’

  Ted turned the wireless off and there was utter silence in the room. Amy, stunned, watched the sun stream through the window and shine on all the people she loved. What did the future hold for them? Certainly hardship and danger; anything else she didn’t dare contemplate. But she had faced grief and tough times before and, if necessary, she would do so again. Step by step they would get through this, and she mustn’t be selfish, thinking only of herself.

  Lifting her head she spoke huskily as emotion clogged her throat. ‘Ben, Howard, you must do what you feel is right, and if you miss our wedding, we’ll understand.’

  Ben stood up and gazed out of the window at the empty street, then turned back to face her. ‘No, it’s only twelve days away. We’ll be there, won’t we, Howard?’

  ‘Nothing is going to make us miss it.’ He smiled. ‘We’ll make it the best damned party we’ve ever had. We might even let Amy have two glasses of champagne!’

  ‘Hold on a minute, that’s taking things too far.’ Ben joked, relieving the tension and making them all laugh; even if the mirth was a bit shaky.

  With that settled she faced John. ‘I desperately want you to stay here with me, but I know the forces will be looking to recruit all the doctors they can find, so if after the wedding you want to join up as well, I won’t make a fuss.’

  ‘No, my darling, I won’t be doing that. The hospital has already asked me to stay with them. We are going to be needed here as well.’

  Tears of relief gathered, but she doggedly refused to let them fall. This was not the time to show weakness. The thing they had feared was upon them and would have to be confronted. She wasn’t going to act like a silly, selfish child and make things more difficult for her men. They must see that she could handle whatever was thrown at them. She said calmly, ‘I’m so relieved. Thank you.’

  Gas masks were being issued to everyone and Anderson shelters delivered to those who wanted them. The boys insisted that Mrs Dalton should have one and immediately set about digging a deep hole in the middle of the lawn.

  The next day the shelter arrived as promised and Amy and Mrs Dalton watched them put it together.

  ‘I’m not sure I want to sleep in a hole in the ground.’ Amy grimaced at the thought.

  Ben stopped what he was doing, swiping his arm across his face to wipe the sweat running down, and glared at her. ‘The first sign of bombs dropping and you’ll get in here, my girl.’

  ‘Yes, Ben.’ She yelped when he lunged for her, and darted behind the apple tree for safety.

  ‘Are you attacking my future wife, Benjamin Scott?’ a stern voice said.

  ‘John!’ Amy ran towards him, laughing. ‘He was going to dump me in the hole because I said I didn’t fancy sleeping in there.’

  ‘Is that so?’ John gave Ben a sly wink and she was lifted off her feet by both of them and lowered into the hole.

  Standing with her hands on her hips, she gazed up at them. ‘And how am I supposed to get out of here? Shouldn’t there be steps, or something?’

  ‘Give us a chance.’ Howard did his best to look offended. ‘Once we get this monstrosity fixed together we’ll know where to put the steps.’

  John reached down as Amy held up her arms and lifted her out. Then he said seriously, ‘You’ll use this if it’s necessary, Amy.’

  ‘I
promise, darling, I was only joking.’ Since war had been declared the atmosphere had been strange, as if everyone was determined to keep laughing. ‘Are you staying for dinner?’

  He made a show of considering this. ‘What have you got?’

  ‘Lancashire hot pot.’

  ‘Then I’m definitely staying.’

  ‘Oh, good.’ Her face lit up with pleasure. ‘I’ll go and do extra potatoes.’

  The day before the wedding, Amy went to stay with John’s parents. Ted and Mrs Dalton were also given rooms in the house, but the boys and John were staying at a neighbour’s place just along the road.

  ‘Can’t have you running into John,’ Mrs Sterling declared. ‘It’s unlucky for the bride and groom to see each other before the ceremony.’

  John laughed at his mother’s superstition. ‘I don’t believe that. We’re going to have a lovely, lucky marriage, aren’t we, darling?’

  ‘Absolutely.’ She could only see happiness for both of them – war or no war!

  *

  The ceremony was to be at eleven and, after she’d dressed, Amy was suddenly overcome with nerves and reached for a chair.

  ‘Don’t sit down!’ John’s mother caught her arm. ‘You might crease the dress. The car will be here in fifteen minutes.’

  ‘Right.’ Amy smiled at the mothers with pride. Mrs Sterling was elegant in cream, and Mrs Dalton resplendent in pale blue. ‘You’d better go now or I shall beat you to the church.’

  John’s mother picked up her bag and slipped her arm through Mrs Dalton’s. ‘Come along, Jean, we’ll just have time to see that the men are doing their jobs properly.’

  ‘Jean?’ Amy smothered a giggle. ‘Gosh, I’ve never heard Mrs Dalton’s Christian name before, Ted.’

  ‘It’s rarely used.’ Ted picked up her bouquet of roses and handed it to her. ‘They seem to be getting on well, don’t they?’

  ‘Yes, and that’s nice. I think they’ve had a marvellous time making the arrangements together.’

  ‘I’m sure they have. Ah, here’s the car.’

  John watched Amy walk towards him, his heart beating erratically. When he’d bribed her to go to the café with him, on the promise of buying a painting from the shop, he had decided then that she was going to be his. And soon she would be.

  He heard his best man, a colleague from the hospital, whistle softly through his teeth.

  ‘No wonder you were in a hurry, John. She’s really something, isn’t she?’

  Without taking his eyes off Amy, John nodded. Harry Tenant was a paediatrician and a damned good one. He’d never seen Amy before, but had readily agreed to be his best man. John could have asked Ben or Howard, but it hadn’t seemed right somehow.

  He reached out for her hand as soon as she was close enough, and felt a thrill as her delicate fingers tightened around his. This petite girl always declared that she wasn’t pretty, but in his eyes she was the most beautiful woman he had ever seen.

  After smiling at him, she turned and gave her flowers to Mrs Dalton who was in an aisle seat, and the ceremony began.

  Everything went as they had rehearsed it, but this time it was for real. They both spoke clearly, without hesitation, secure in their love for each other.

  It had been necessary to restrict the amount of guests attending the church because it was so small, but everyone present sang the hymns with enthusiasm.

  Soon the vicar was saying that they were now man and wife, and John wanted to swing Amy round and round in sheer joy, but he managed to restrain himself and kiss her briefly. He would rectify that when they were alone at last.

  The signing of the register came next, and he watched her, his hand on her shoulder, knowing this was going to be the hardest part for her. Ben had told him that if she was nervous or flustered she found reading or writing became even more difficult.

  She made a perfect job of it and he was so proud of her, but he didn’t miss the quiet sigh of relief when she put down the pen.

  ‘Well done, my darling.’ He spoke softly. ‘That was excellent.’

  Her smile at the praise was radiant, and once again he blessed the day he had walked into their shop in the King’s Road. He had bought a painting and a vase, but he’d found something far more precious: the girl he wanted to spend the rest of his life with.

  Amy couldn’t believe it was all over and she was now Mrs Sterling. The ceremony had gone in a flash, or so it seemed, and the part she had been worried about hadn’t been a problem. She had been afraid that nerves would make her mess up signing the register, but she had managed it quite well by taking her time. How she had improved since her school days.

  Taking John’s arm, they walked out of the church and into the sunshine. There had been concern that the outbreak of war would have put a damper on this day, but it hadn’t. Nothing could.

  After the photographs had been taken they all went back to the house where more guests were waiting for them. A mouth-watering buffet was enjoyed, then the speeches, toasts and cutting of the cake. Amy had never seen so much food in her life, but was too excited to eat, and she only sipped her drink.

  ‘This must have cost a fortune,’ she whispered to John. ‘I had no idea it was going to be so lavish. Mrs Dalton wouldn’t tell me what they were planning.’

  ‘Don’t worry about it, sweetheart.’

  ‘But I do. I paid for my dress, but Mrs Dalton wouldn’t let me give her anything towards the other things.’

  John led her away from everyone to a quieter place in the garden. ‘I can see this is going to fret you, so I’ll explain. This wedding has been a joint effort. My parents have supplied the drink and some of the food; Mrs Dalton the rest of the buffet. Ben bought the cake, Howard paid for the cars and Ted the flowers. They all insisted.’

  ‘Oh.’ Amy’s eyes misted. ‘They didn’t tell me. Everyone’s been so kind.’

  ‘That’s because they love you.’ He kissed her firmly. ‘I have paid for the church and the honeymoon.’

  ‘Are we going away? You’ve been very secretive about what we’re doing.’ Now she was excited again. ‘Where are we going? I’ve never been away for a holiday. Are we going to stay in a guest house or hotel?’

  He waited for her questions to stop, highly amused. ‘I was going to take you to Paris, but I changed my mind after war was declared.’

  ‘Paris!’ Her eyes opened wide. ‘Have you been there?’

  ‘Yes, several times. It’s a fascinating and beautiful city. I’ll take you there when the war’s over.’

  ‘I’ll keep you to that.’ Slipping her arms around his waist, she smiled up at him. ‘So where are we going?’

  ‘I’m not telling. It’s a surprise, but’ – he glanced at his watch – ‘go and change and we can slip away, hopefully without too much fuss.’

  ‘All right.’ She went upstairs to the room she had used last night, being careful not to trip over her long dress. Mrs Dalton had laid out her going-away clothes, as she called them, on the bed.

  Mrs Dalton followed her. ‘Let me help you out of your dress. You looked so lovely today. John’s a lucky man.’ She chatted away happily as she removed the headdress and veil, then the dress.

  Amy gave her a hug. ‘Thank you for arranging such a lovely wedding, and the food was wonderful.’

  ‘We all pitched in.’ Mrs Dalton was flushed with pleasure. ‘Had to see our little girl married in style, didn’t we?’

  She bustled about packing the dress carefully in a large box, and then left Amy to wash and put on her new outfit.

  Everything was new, right down to the underwear, which was silky and delicate. Amy couldn’t help comparing it to the garments they made in the factory all that time ago, but these were much better. Her dress was pale lemon with a narrow ribbon of white lace around the neck and short sleeves. She had also gone mad and bought a beige woollen jacket in case it turned chilly, and a hat to match. It all looked very smart, and she was glad she had saved her money so there had been enough in h
er old teapot to buy all this. Especially now they were going away! She couldn’t resist a little jig of pleasure. She had thought he had something planned, but he had stubbornly refused to tell her anything.

  With one last glance in the mirror, she made her way downstairs again, to find John waiting for her. ‘How long are we going for?’

  ‘Four days is all I can manage.’

  ‘Oh, I’ll need to take more clothes with me.’

  ‘It’s already done. Mrs Dalton packed a case for you and it’s in the car.’

  ‘Well I never! You have all been keeping secrets, haven’t you?’

  Hearing a chuckle behind her, she turned to see Ben and Howard waiting.

  ‘I should slip away now, John,’ Ben said. ‘While everyone’s still eating and drinking.’

  Amy hugged both of them, then whispered imploringly, ‘Don’t leave until we’re back, will you?’

  ‘We won’t,’ Ben promised. ‘You both enjoy yourselves, and don’t give anything else a thought, will you?’

  ‘We won’t.’ John took her arm and they crept out of the front door.

  If they thought they were going to slip away unnoticed, then they were mistaken. The car, festooned with ribbons, had a large notice on the back – ‘Just Married’ – and a string of tin cans tied to the bumper.

  John muttered under his breath as he caught hold of Amy’s hand and made a dash for the car. ‘Quick!’

  Their effort to avoid the confetti was useless; the guests had formed a solid line all the way to the car. Running the gauntlet, they were smothered from head to toe in brightly coloured pieces of paper.

  John bundled Amy in, shut the door firmly and rushed round to the driver’s side. ‘Don’t open the window!’ he shouted as he leapt in the car.

  But it was too late. Amy, thoroughly enjoying the fun, had wound down her window to wave at everyone. Her mistake instantly became obvious as a hand shot in and filled the car with confetti.

  Putting his foot down hard, John roared up the road, the cans clattering behind, and the wedding party shouting at the tops of their voices.