‘Of course. Is everything all right? Your mother isn’t worse, is she?’
‘Actually, she is. But it isn’t that I need to speak to you about. Come and sit down.’
He pulled out a chair and joined her at the table where she was shelling peas.
‘So, what is it?’ he queried.
‘It’s about Charity actually.’ She went on to tell him about Charity running away to wait for her young man to join her. ‘The thing is though, she’s just found out that he’s switched his affection to her friend. He won’t be joining her now.’
‘That’s very sad,’ Eddie said as he scratched his head. ‘What a rotter. And she couldn’t have been a very good friend either.’
‘No, and that isn’t the worst of it. You see Charity is going to have a baby and is now afraid that you’ll throw her out. She’d have nowhere to go.’
‘Oh dear!’ He sighed before saying, ‘I admit I wasn’t thinking of having another child about the place when I took her on. But she is a good little worker. The children like her too.’ He thought for a moment and then an idea came to him. ‘How about we do up the little cottage at the other side of the orchard and Charity and the baby could live there? It’s been empty for a while. That way she could carry on working here with the child.’
‘I think that’s an excellent idea.’ Maureen was thrilled that he had been so understanding. He was such a good man. ‘Shall I ask Charity how she feels about it?’
He nodded as he rose to go back to work. ‘By all means. But now I must get on.’
Maureen smiled as she watched him leave.
Chapter Sixteen
‘You mean he’ll allow me to stay here?’ Charity could hardly believe it when Maureen relayed what Eddie had said. She felt as if a huge weight was being lifted from her shoulders.
‘He certainly will. I can take you to see the cottage if you like?’ Maureen offered.
Charity nodded eagerly. At least now she would have a home for herself and her child. They set off soon after with Tilly and Simon running beside them. After passing through the orchard, Charity saw the cottage in a little clearing. The garden was overgrown but the cottage itself looked sturdy enough.
‘It’ll probably be very dusty inside,’ Maureen warned as she took the key from her apron pocket. They entered a large kitchen cum sitting room and Charity looked around. As Maureen had said, it was very dusty but she liked it immediately. A small parlour led off this room and a staircase led to two bedrooms upstairs.
‘We could have this cleaned and ready to move into in no time,’ Maureen said as they moved from room to room. ‘And there’s an outside toilet and a wood shed just out there. Everything you need.’
‘It’s lovely,’ Charity agreed. ‘And so kind of Eddie to do this for me.’ And yet deep down she dreaded living in one place. She had enjoyed her time on the farm because of Eddie’s kindness. She had made a good friend in Maureen and she had grown fond of the children, but she missed life on the road and sometimes felt like a caged bird. Until now it was all she had ever known and she had loved it. She had imagined she and Luca in their own trailer moving from place to place. But that would never happen now. She would grow old here in her drab clothes. There would be no more bathing in the river. There would be no more dancing around the campfires. No more whittling wood into clothes pegs to sell in the villages they passed through. But she would have Luca’s child and that would have to be enough.
Over the next few days, Charity spent every spare minute she had preparing the cottage. She cleaned the windows until they gleamed and washed the curtains. She polished the furniture until she could see her face in it. The floors were swept and mopped and cobwebs were dusted away.
Maureen made the old brass bed up for her with fresh sheets and blankets and Eddie fetched an old crib down from the attic for the baby. At last, her new home was ready to move into.
On the same day Maureen informed her that the circus had left the town. And on that day Charity’s heart broke afresh. She could picture Luca with Scarlet sitting beside him as they took to the road. She tried to push the images aside but it was easier said than done. Even so, she was grateful to Eddie for giving her a place to live. Things would have been so much worse if he had turned her out.
‘I’ve no doubt a pretty girl like you will find another love once the baby’s here,’ Maureen tried to comfort her.
Charity smiled sadly. She knew that what she had felt for Luca was a once in a lifetime love. It would never come again. From now on she would give all her love to his child.
Chapter Seventeen
The circus had reached Nottingham. As Luca helped erect the big top his heart wasn’t in it. He usually enjoyed his job but now he felt empty. He had been so sure that he and Charity had a life together to look forward to. The one time they had come together had been so special, and there had been no regrets on either side. He loved her so much. Even giving up the circus to be with her had seemed a small price to pay. Now, he was struggling to understand how her feelings could have changed so quickly. She had never seemed to be a material person and he couldn’t imagine her being happy staying in one place. She had loved her life on the road as much as he had. She had even left her family to be with him. So what could have changed her mind so quickly? But Scarlet had been adamant. He had studiously avoided her since she had passed on Charity’s message. Now, he wondered if she was being entirely truthful. She had made no secret of the fact that she wanted him. Could she have lied to get him for herself?
He paused in the act of hammering in a tent peg and looked around. Scarlet was outside her trailer. As she saw him looking towards her, she tossed her head and frowned. Since not getting what she wanted from him her infatuation had clearly turned to disdain. He didn’t mind that. At least she wasn’t following him about anymore. He had even seen her flirting with some of the other circus men. With a shake of his head, he tried to concentrate on what he was doing, but it wasn’t easy.
It was the middle of the afternoon when he knew what he must do. Tonight, he would speak to his parents and be honest with them.
His chance came late that evening as the last of the fair-goers trickled away.
‘Mother, I need a word.’
Kezia was just about to enter her trailer but she turned to smile at him. ‘Of course, Luca. Come in. I am just making cocoa for me and your father.’
