When the men returned, Mrs Hammond said to her son, ‘David, haven’t you forgotten something?’
‘No, I wanted to do this when you were all here.’ Pulling a small box out of his pocket he stood in front of Becky, and took hold of her left hand. ‘I hope you like this. It was my grandmother’s.’ He slipped a beautiful solitaire diamond ring on her finger. It fitted perfectly.
Becky gazed at it in wonder, speechless.
‘We can get something else if you don’t like it.’
‘It’s stunning, and I love it. I’ll be honoured to wear your grandmother’s ring.’
‘It looks lovely on you. Now let’s go and break the news to your family.’
Chapter Thirty-Seven
They had chosen the right time to call on Becky’s parents because everyone was there except Bob. Alice immediately noticed the ring on Becky’s finger and smiled her approval. With so many of them there the front room was crowded.
David was ready to tell them about the engagement but stopped when it was obvious his daughter could no longer contain her excitement, and was about to blurt it out. He bent down and whispered in her ear, and she grinned, nodding vigorously.
He stood up again. ‘I’d better do this quickly, as our daughter is bursting to tell you herself. I am proud to tell you that Rebecca has today agreed to be my wife.’
Becky’s parents hugged her and shook David’s hand, obviously delighted with the news. But something David had said was ringing in her ears and nearly brought tears of joy to her eyes. He’d said ‘our daughter’.
‘I’ll take good care of her,’ David assured them.
Bill nodded. ‘The most important thing is that you love her, son. You make sure you do.’
‘You can have no fears on that score, Mr Adams.’
Mr Hammond was already pouring out a small amount of champagne for everyone to have a little for a toast when Sara launched herself at Becky’s parents. ‘Can I call you Grandpa and Grandma number two now?’
Everyone laughed at that and Becky’s parents readily gave their permission.
‘And I’ll be your uncle and Alice will be your aunt,’ Will told her.
‘Ooh, will you come and visit me?’
‘Of course,’ Alice told her. ‘We’ll all be family soon.’
Sara spun round to face Mrs Hammond. ‘I’m going to have an auntie as well, Grandma.’
Bill tapped the table for silence. ‘Let us raise our glasses and wish both couples a happy and long life together.’
When the glasses were drained, Bill turned to his wife. ‘Mavis, put the kettle on and let’s all have a nice cup of tea.’
Mrs Hammond walked out to the kitchen with her mother, and Becky guessed they would be talking about the wedding. She was quite happy to leave this with them for the moment. They could discuss the details later.
‘I wish Bob could have been here,’ Becky said to his mother. ‘Have you heard from him?’
‘Yes, he’s staying in the navy, and seems quite settled with Helen. He said they will marry one day, but are in no hurry.’
‘I’m not surprised. He loves the sea, and I’m very happy for him.’
Everyone was moving around the room talking to each other, and finally Alice was able to catch up with her friend.
‘After all the ups and downs of the war years, it’s good to be able to look to the future, isn’t it?’
Becky nodded. ‘We can never know exactly what the future has in store for us, but the uncertain years are behind us and we can move on with our lives at last.’
A week later, when Bob and his girl, Helen, had also arrived home, they held a proper party to celebrate the engagements. Greg and Hal were still in the country waiting to be shipped home, and they were also able to join them.
Bill Adams once again took on the role of toastmaster. ‘We have already wished the happy couples the best for the future, but today I would like to propose another toast. Please raise your glasses to everyone here, and those sadly no longer with us. Friends and heroes, every one.’
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About the Author
BERYL MATTHEWS was born in London but now lives in a small village in Hampshire. As a young girl her ambition was to become a professional singer, but the need to earn a wage drove her into an office, where she worked her way up from tea girl to credit controller. She grew up in a family who all loved to read, and books have always been an important part of her life. She had always weaved stories in her head, but never written them down. After retiring she joined a Writers’ Circle in hopes of fulfilling her dream of becoming a published author. With her first book published at the age of seventy-one, she has since written eighteen novels.
By Beryl Matthews
Hold on to Your Dreams
The Forgotten Family
Battles Lost and Won
Diamonds in the Dust
A Flight of Golden Wings
The Uncertain Years
The Day Will Come
Copyright
Allison & Busby Limited
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London W1T 6DW
allisonandbusby.com
First published in Great Britain by Allison & Busby in 2010.
This ebook edition published in Great Britain by Allison & Busby in 2016.
Copyright © 2010 by BERYL MATTHEWS
The moral right of the author is hereby asserted in accordance with the Copyright, Designs and Patents Act 1988.
All characters and events in this publication other than those clearly in the public domain are fictitious and any resemblance to actual persons, living or dead, is purely coincidental.
All rights reserved. No part of this publication may be reproduced, stored in a retrieval system, or transmitted, in any form or by any means without the prior written permission of the publisher, nor be otherwise circulated in any form of binding or cover other than that in which it is published and without a similar condition being imposed on the subsequent buyer.
A CIP catalogue record for this book is available from the British Library.
ISBN 978-0-7490-1873-3
The Uncertain Years Page 29