But there remained that treacherous whisper:If he still wants me…
‘Is everything all right?’ Mulligan asked.
‘Hmm?’ Bobby pulled herself together. ‘Sorry, Squadron Officer. I hadn’t expected it today, that’s all.’
Mulligan sighed. ‘Come here a moment, Bancroft.’
Bobby hesitated, then went to sit in the chair on the other side of the officer’s desk.
‘Did I do something wrong, ma’am?’ she asked.
Mulligan fixed her in a stern, but not unkind, gaze. ‘That was what I wanted to ask you.’
‘I’m sorry?’
‘Well, never mind. Is he steady, this young man you’re marrying?’
Bobby thought about this. It wasn’t a word that would have been used to describe the Charlie Atherton she had met eighteen months ago, but he had changed a lot since then.
‘I believe he is, now he’s in the RAF,’ she said.
‘And you love him?’
Bobby was rather taken aback by this question. Had Mulligan called her over to give her a talk on the facts of life? She felt the colour rising to her cheeks at the thought.
‘Very much,’ she said quietly.
‘Good. Good.’
Mulligan fell silent, seemingly lost in thought. Bobby remembered what Carol had said, about the RAF officer Mulligan had been involved with who had ditched her for someone else. It was hard to imagine their stern, pinched-faced commandant in love.
‘Am I to go back to work, ma’am?’ Bobby asked when Mulligan had been quiet some time.
Mulligan roused herself. ‘Not yet. I need to speak to you about something.’
‘What is it?’
The officer met her gaze. ‘Bancroft, I received a request this morning from a young man regarding you and your friends, although I got the sense it was you he was mainly concerned with. The sort of young man it can be hard to say no to – at least, he seemed to think so,’ she said with a tight smile. ‘I did say no to him, however. I’ve been alive too long to fall for the charms of overgrown schoolboys who think they can twist any woman they meet around their little finger. Do you understand?’
‘I’m… not sure.’ Bobby assumed the overgrown schoolboy in question must be Ernie King, although she couldn’t guess where the conversation might be going.
Mulligan shuffled some papers. ‘You’re a steady girl, Bancroft. I’ve been keeping my eye on you. You didn’t want to join the WAAF and you didn’t want to spend your time typing letters and orders, but you’ve tried hard to do the job that’s in front of you, just as I asked. I can see this way of life comes harder to you than to the others, yet you’ve given it your utmost. You aren’t one of those giggling idiots who join up just to chase men.’
‘That’s a little unfair,’ Bobby heard herself saying. That was almost certainly overstepping the bounds between officers and other ranks, but she couldn’t help feeling defensive of the other women.
‘Oh, I don’t only mean your friends,’ Mulligan said, waving a dismissive hand. ‘They’re all like that when they get here, particularly the younger ones. For many, it’s the first taste of freedom they’ve had in their lives. They soon settle down. Some of the best WAAFs I know spent their training period acting like it was the last days of Rome. But I can tell you’re not oneof those, Bancroft. You’re intelligent, you work hard and you’ve got your head screwed on.’ She met Bobby’s eyes. ‘So I’d hate to see you fall under the spell of some handsome peacock with a glamorous accent practically on the eve of your wedding.’
Bobby laughed. ‘Oh. I know what you… no, it isn’t like that between Ernie and me. I suppose it is Flying Officer King you mean. We were friends, before. In my civilian life, I mean.’
Mulligan frowned. ‘Friends?’
‘Yes. Just friends, nothing more. He was billeted in my village and we worked together to produce a pantomime for the children. I saw him in our lecture yesterday and he wanted me to meet him in the NAAFI to swap news of mutual friends, but I told him it wouldn’t be allowed.’
‘This is the true state of affairs? He hasn’t made any… propositions? I know he’s become a favourite among the other girls.’
‘That’s truly all. I know the other WAAFs think I’m greener than grass, but I grew up with two brothers and worked in an all-male office for years. Believe me, I’m savvy enough not to fall prey to some wolf.’
For perhaps the first time since she had known her, Bobby saw the commandant smile.
