One Step at a Time (30 page)

‘I’m glad you didn’t wait. It was lovely.’ She peered at his watch. ‘What time is dinner? I’m starving.’

They stretched out on the bed, completely at ease with each other, and laughed as John told her he was ravenous as well.

It was a perfect start to the honeymoon, and their life together.

26

For four days they didn’t give the war a thought, refusing to listen to the radio or buy newspapers, but as soon as they arrived back home, reality rushed in.

‘They’ve joined up,’ Mrs Dalton said when they were all sitting down with a cup of tea in front of them.

Howard stirred sugar into his tea. ‘We told you that’s what we were going to do.’

‘I know.’ Mrs Dalton looked sad. ‘But I was hoping you would wait a bit longer.’

Ben shrugged. ‘No point, they’ll get us eventually, and this way we can go in together and, hopefully, stay in the same unit.’

Amy gazed at them, worry gnawing at her, and whispered, ‘I’m going to miss you. When are you leaving?’

‘In three weeks.’ Ben frowned. ‘Will you be letting our rooms, Mrs Dalton?’

‘Certainly not!’ She was scandalized. ‘This is your home, and the rooms will be there for you whenever you want them. I know you’ll be spending time with your parents when you’re on leave, but everything will be just as you’ve left it.’

‘That’s good of you.’ Howard leant over and kissed her
cheek, making her glow with pleasure. ‘It will be a comfort to know this is all still waiting for us.’

‘It isn’t a question of being good.’ She tried to pretend she wasn’t touched by the gesture of affection. ‘You are all my family.’

‘What are you going to join?’ John asked.

‘Army.’ Ben smiled at Amy and then glanced back to John. ‘You mind you take good care of our little girl while we’re away.’

‘You can be sure of that.’

‘What are we going to do about the shop?’ Amy couldn’t imagine not having the boys around all the time. Why did there have to be a war when everything was so perfect? Emotion clogged the back of her throat.

‘The lease runs out in a few weeks and it won’t be worth renewing it.’ Ben pushed his hair away from his eyes. ‘I’m sorry, Amy, I know how you love the shop, but we’ve got to put our plans on hold for a while. And you’ve got a husband to look after you now.’

‘And when the war’s over we’ll open a bigger and better shop.’ Howard pursed his lips. ‘This is only a temporary setback.’

‘Of course it is.’ Mrs Dalton turned to John. ‘And you needn’t worry about Amy being on her own in the shop, because I’ll help to close it down.’

‘Thank you, Mrs Dalton, that is a relief to know. And what about you, Ted?’

‘I’ve already joined the ARP, and I’m going to try
and keep my bookshop going.’ Ted’s expression was grim. ‘Got to do something to help.’

‘And I’m joining the WVS – Women’s Voluntary Service.’ Mrs Dalton had a determined air about her. ‘They need drivers, Amy, so would you consider it as well? With John’s permission, of course.’

‘Well, I’d like to do something.’ She curled her fingers around John’s hand. ‘What do you think, darling? I won’t if you don’t want me to.’

‘I think it’s a good idea. I shall be working shifts at the hospital, and without the shop you’ll want something to do, won’t you?’

Amy nodded and smiled her thanks.

‘Right, that’s settled then.’ Mrs Dalton bustled around clearing the table. ‘Now we’ve all got something useful to do for the war effort. Let’s hope it doesn’t last too long.’

‘Amen to that,’ they all muttered.

When the time came to say goodbye to Ben and Howard, Amy hugged them, refusing to cry. There were families doing this all over the country at the moment. Children were being evacuated and sons and fathers were joining the forces. It had to be accepted as a way of life now, hard though it was.

‘I’ll keep everything clean and tidy for you to come back to.’

‘Not too tidy.’ Howard grinned. ‘It won’t look like home if you do.’

‘Don’t you take any chances, Amy.’ Ben gave her
a stern look. ‘If things get rough at any time, you are to stay in the shelter.’

‘I promise, and you be careful as well, both of you.’

Ben suddenly laughed. ‘I don’t know why we’re making all this fuss. We’ve got basic training first and then we’ll be home on leave. I’m leaving my car for you to use, if you can get petrol. That’s bound to be one of the first things to become scarce.’

John managed to arrive before the train left, so they were all there to see them off. They waved until the train was out of sight.

The next two weeks flew by, but it was a sad time for Amy as she packed up the unsold items in the shop and took them back to the house. The pictures were stacked in Ben’s studio, and she couldn’t help wondering how long it would be before he was back, standing by the easel, brush in hand and a frown of concentration on his face. The sculptures and pots were carefully packed in boxes and piled in the corner of Howard’s workshop. Gazing around the empty room, Amy sighed deeply. What happy times they had spent in here. She was going to miss them both dreadfully. How glad she was to have John, and know that he wouldn’t be going into the forces.

That evening she sat down and wrote a letter to Ben and Howard. It was still difficult for her to do, but she knew they understood about the mistakes, which wouldn’t worry them at all. John was working nights for the next week and she couldn’t settle
without him beside her, so it didn’t matter how long it took her. Mrs Dalton would do the envelopes for her in the morning.

With the shop now closed, Amy and Mrs Dalton joined the WVS; as she was a driver, Amy was given a huge welcome.

‘You’re just what we need. Come with me.’ Mrs Porter, a woman of imposing stature who was very expert at giving orders, sailed out of the hall they used as a meeting place and stopped by a battered old van. ‘We’re going to convert this into a tea wagon. Think you can drive it?’

‘Erm…’ Amy looked up at her face and didn’t dare refuse. ‘Yes, of course.’

‘Splendid! Run it round the block and see how it feels.’ After thrusting the keys in Amy’s hand, she sailed off again on some other errand of importance.

‘Shall I come with you?’ Mrs Dalton had pinned her badge on to her coat and was wearing it with pride.

‘Please.’

After pulling the seat as far forward as it would go, Amy just managed to reach the pedals. She then started the engine and edged her way, very cautiously, up the road. Much to her relief it wasn’t as difficult as she’d feared, and she was grinning with confidence by the time they arrived back at the hall.

‘Well done!’ Mrs Dalton climbed out. ‘Ben would be proud of you.’

‘I hope they come and see us when they’re on leave and don’t spend all their time with their parents.’

‘They will, my dear. Our house is home to them, and they’re bound to want to spend a few days with us. They’ll be eager to get at the paints and pots again after being away.’

‘Of course they will.’ Amy walked back into the hall with Mrs Dalton. ‘I miss them so much.’

‘We all do. Will John be home tonight?’

‘Yes, thank goodness, and he will be on days for the next two weeks.’

‘That’s something to look forward to then.’

Amy nodded. It certainly was. During the day she could keep busy, but the nights dragged when John wasn’t there. It was amazing how quickly she had become used to having him beside her, and the thrill of having him reach for her in the night to love, or just hold in his arms. She loved being married to him, and wished sometimes that he didn’t have to work such long hours. But she was being selfish. Many women didn’t know when they were going to see their husbands again. She was very aware of this and was careful to be grateful for every second they could spend together.

For the rest of the afternoon they had lessons on First Aid, how to make tea in the large urns, and all sorts of information deemed useful for when the fighting began.

On arriving home, they found Ted in the kitchen, reading a newspaper and wearing a tin hat and an
armband with ‘ARP’ on it. They both burst out laughing at the comical sight.

‘What’s so funny?’ he asked, his lips twitching with amusement.

‘Why are you wearing a tin hat indoors?’ Amy spluttered again.

‘I’m just trying it out for size, and I’m about to go out on fire-watching duty.’

‘But there aren’t any fires.’

‘Not yet, Mrs Dalton, but we’ve got to be prepared.’ He winked at them. ‘We’ve got a dartboard though, and I’m getting quite good.’

John arrived then. ‘Good Lord, is there a raid on?’

‘He’s got to be prepared.’ Amy giggled and wrapped her arms around her husband. Nothing much seemed to be happening with this war, and it was easy to make light of it after the concern at first. ‘Finished for the day?’

‘Hmm.’ He whispered in her ear: ‘A whole night together, but first I must eat. I’m starving.’

‘It won’t take me long to get dinner. The casserole only needs warming through while I cook some potatoes.’ Amy put the vegetables in a bowl and glanced at Ted and Mrs Dalton. ‘Do I cook for four?’

‘Not for me, Amy.’ Ted picked up his gas mask. ‘I’m off for the night.’

‘I’m not stopping either. You two have some time on your own.’ Mrs Dalton left with Ted.

*

When they’d eaten and washed up, they went into the sitting room to listen to the wireless for a while, and tell each other what they had been doing. John always wanted to know everything she had done and he told her about some of the funny things that happened at the hospital, leaving out all the distressing parts of his job.

Sitting comfortably on the settee, John pulled her towards him and gave a deep sigh of contentment.

‘Tired?’ she asked, looking up at him.

‘No.’

‘Oh, good.’ She snuggled close and listened to the deep rumble in his chest as he chuckled.

‘Christmas is only seven weeks away and I was wondering what this year will be like. Everything is so uncertain, isn’t it?’

‘It is, my darling.’ John squeezed her shoulder. ‘And it’s most unlikely that Ben and Howard will be here, so we can spend Christmas with my parents, if you like? I should be able to get a couple of days off.’

‘That would be nice, but I wouldn’t like to leave Ted and Mrs Dalton on their own.’

‘What about one day with my parents and one day here?’

‘That would be perfect.’ Amy hugged him. ‘You’re such a sensible man.’

‘I know. That’s why I married you.’

She nibbled his ear. ‘Let’s go to bed.’

27

The New Year came in quietly, and by March 1940 everyone was calling it the phoney war. Quite a few of the children who had been evacuated to the country were returning, homesick for their families and the familiar streets of London. City-born and -bred, many of them found the open countryside a strange place. But Amy didn’t care how phoney the war was. All those she loved were safe, and that was the most important thing to her. Two weeks ago Ben and Howard had arrived home on embarkation leave, and they’d had the most riotous party to send them on their way. No one knew exactly where they were going, of course, as troop movements were kept secret, but it was almost certain they were joining the British Expeditionary Force in France. They looked wonderful in their uniforms, and Amy had disgraced herself by sniffling as she’d hugged them before they had boarded the train. She had told herself that she wasn’t going to cry, but hadn’t been able to help it. Mrs Dalton had been dabbing her eyes as well.

John was still working long hours and after a busy night would come home exhausted and collapse into bed to sleep, but he soon recovered. After a long
shift like that though, they always had a couple of days together. They were blissfully happy and every day she counted her blessings for having such a wonderful husband – and in-laws. John’s parents were frequent visitors to the Chelsea house now, and she and John went to them for lunch whenever John had the time off. Amy loved them; it was no wonder John was such a lovely person with parents like that. As soon as the war was over they were planning to have a large family, and John’s mother and father didn’t hide their wish to have grandchildren.

The war was the only cloud on Amy’s horizon, but as the months went by without much happening, she began to relax. Some women in the WVS were saying that it would be over by Christmas, but when she had told Ted that, he’d just shaken his head, saying that was what everyone thought in the last war. As gently as possible he had urged her not to pin her hopes on that.

On 10 May, Winston Churchill replaced Neville Chamberlain as Prime Minister, and Germany invaded France. The phoney war was over.

The next couple of weeks were a worrying time as the Germans moved further and further into France, and Amy prayed that Ben and Howard were safe.

John was home on 26 May, and it was late in the afternoon when an ambulance screeched to a halt outside the house, and Harry Tenant, the doctor who had been their best man, ran in.

‘All hell’s been let loose, John. We’re needed.’

‘What’s up? What’s happened?’ Amy called, but John had jumped aboard the ambulance and roared up the road without stopping for an explanation.

Mrs Dalton joined Amy on the step. ‘They’re in a hurry.’

Pursing her lips, heart thumping, Amy said nothing. She hadn’t liked that air of extreme emergency.

While they were still standing there in stunned silence, Mrs Porter arrived in the van, rather out of breath. ‘Just grab your hats and badges. We’re needed.’

Amy and Mrs Dalton collided as they both tried to get through the door at the same time, but it only took them a few minutes to join Mrs Porter. They had known the WVS would go wherever help was needed, but the war had been almost unreal until this moment. It was terrifying.

‘Where are we going? And what the hell’s happened?’ Mrs Dalton straightened her hat, which had been knocked askew in their haste.

‘We’re needed at Dover!’

‘Dover!’ Amy and Mrs Dalton spoke together, looking at each other in alarm.

‘Just got word. Our army is trapped on the beaches at Dunkirk and they’re trying to bring them home by boat. It’s a dreadful mess evidently.’