I looked round the lounge again, thinking of happier times with my parents and with Billy. ‘Coming,’ I said.
Mr Gold was hurrying up the path, looking a little flustered as Mrs Gold and I went to meet him. He came into the hall and looked up at us where we stood on the stairs. ‘It’s all arranged,’ he said a little breathlessly. ‘It’s all done.’
‘Really?’ Mrs Gold clapped her hands. ‘You saw him?’
‘I did.’ He reached into his inside pocket and pulled out a letter. ‘This is for you,’ he said holding it out.
I went down the last few stairs and put my suitcase on the floor so I could open it. My heart was fluttering because I recognised the writing on the front of the envelope. It was from Harry.
“My darling Elsie,” he’d written. “Well, isn’t this a turn-up for the books? Just this morning I received your letter telling me you are expecting. I’m so pleased, Elsie.”
My breath caught in my throat as I read the words. I’d been worried he’d be cross or – even worse – indifferent. But of course he was pleased. He was a lovely man, wasn’t he?
“And then, as I was thinking about how I would ask you to marry me first chance I got, I was called into the flight sergeant’s office and given emergency leave to go to Liverpool.”
‘What’s this?’ I said looking up at Mr Gold. ‘What does this mean?’
He grinned at me. ‘Harry’s got twenty-four hours. That’s all I could arrange, I’m afraid. But it’s enough to get him to Liverpool and back.’
I looked at Mrs Gold, where she stood on the stairs looking thrilled to bits, and then at Mr Gold, and then back at the letter.
“Will you marry me?” Harry had written.
‘We’re getting married?’ I said in wonder. ‘Are we?’
‘If you want,’ Mr Gold said. ‘It’s not strictly legal, but we’ll sort out the paperwork when you’re safely in Ireland. But only if you want to.’
‘No pressure,’ Mrs Gold added. ‘Do you?’
I could hardly believe how I’d gone from wretched despair to absolute happiness in just a few hours. ‘I do,’ I said.
*
And after that it was like a whirlwind. Mrs Gold and I got on the train at Euston and we were soon speeding our way up north. I’d left London before, of course. I’d been to Pevensey and Hastings, and I remembered going to visit a great-aunt who lived near Hever Castle, but I’d never been to the north of England before. It was hard to tell where we were because the station names had all been removed, and it was often slow going as we stopped to allow a goods train to go ahead of us. But we eventually reached Liverpool, dusty and dirty. Mrs Gold had the address of some rooms where we were to stay and to my relief – because I was tired and starting to feel more than a little queasy – they weren’t far from the station.
The landlady let us in. She was wearing a dressing gown and had her hair in a scarf. She obviously knew Mrs Gold because they kissed hello and she didn’t ask any questions about who we were or why we were there. Instead, she showed us to a basic room with two hard single beds, and said: ‘Lav’s down the hall. No baths. No smoking in the bedrooms.’ She looked at us both with a steely glint in her eye. ‘No men.’ Her accent was strong and I had to concentrate on what she was saying, though I got the impression she was doing the same when I spoke.
She turned to go and then winked at Mrs Gold, pointing in her direction. ‘And you,’ she said. ‘Behave.’
‘Never,’ Mrs Gold said, flopping on to one of the beds.
The landlady went off down the hall and I watched her go,peeling off her housecoat to reveal a smart skirt and jacket underneath. A few minutes later we heard the front door slam and I looked out the window to see her leaving, bag tucked under her arm and her hair in victory rolls. I turned to look at Mrs Gold with a quizzical look but she just shrugged. ‘No questions, darling.’
*
I was to meet Harry off the train at lunchtime the following day and I found I was sick with nerves. Mrs Gold said she had something to attend to, so I went by myself. I had to sit down on a bench because my legs were shaking so much and the smoke and heat in the station made me light-headed. Harry’s train was due just after twelve but it was gone one o’clock and I was beginning to worry he wasn’t coming. Maybe he’d changed his mind, I thought. Maybe this was all a huge mistake. We barely knew each other. I let out a small sob. I was pregnant and alone. What was I thinking?
Or maybe something had happened? I thought, my mind flitting from one awful scenario to another. Had he been flying last night? Was he hurt? Was he dead? Feeling my palms beginning to sweat, I tried not to panic. I gulped some deep breaths, working out a plan. I didn’t know where Mrs Gold had gone but I knew where the church was, where we were supposed to be getting married later. I checked the large clock. In just a couple of hours from now. What if we missed our slot? I took another deep breath and shut my eyes for a second, steadying myself.
And when I opened them again, there he was. Standing right in front of me, in his blue uniform, his cap under his arm. My Harry.
He opened his arms wide and I stood up and fell into his embrace, all of my worries and fears vanishing as we laughed and kissed and spoke over each other.
‘You look so pale. Are you eating enough? You have to eat for two now,’ he told me, stroking my hair and looking at me.
‘I thought something had happened. I was so worried. Are you all right?’ I babbled at the same time.
Eventually we stopped jabbering nonsense and simply gazed into each other’s eyes.
