New Arrivals at Mulberry Lane

by Rosie Clarke

‘Able left me a lot of money,’ Peggy said. ‘It’s at the lawyers and in an account I can access when I want. I haven’t yet, because I hoped Able would come back, even though I know it won’t happen – but if I can’t live with Laurie, I shall find a business I can make my own.’

  ‘You’re a wonderful cook, Mum. You could set up a tea shop anywhere…’

  ‘Yes, perhaps,’ she admitted. ‘I’ve had my eye on the old bakery for a while now. I could have a shop and a small tea room in that place…’

  ‘That’s a wreck…’ Pip looked astonished. ‘It would cost several hundred pounds to make that fit to use…’

  ‘I have quite a bit of money,’ Peggy said. ‘I would’ve kept it for the twins, but if I need it I shall use it to make a home for all of us – somewhere you and Sheila can come and stay.’

  ‘I shan’t stay here again unless Dad’s gone back to where he was…’

  ‘I doubt he will. I think he left under a cloud, though he can’t or won’t tell me what happened. Laurie is back for good and he’s made it plain he owns this place and everything in it.’

  ‘That isn’t fair, Mum. You’ve kept this place going for years. People made it their local because of you and your food – any lawyer would say you were entitled to half or a big chunk of what he owns anyway.’

  ‘What is that, Pip? He has a bit of cash in the post office and very little stock in the cellar. We make a profit after we pay the Brewery’s rent and the bills, but not much these days. I could claim some of that cash in the post office, but I don’t need it. At the moment, Laurie is saying he wants to make a go of it and I’ll give him his chance… perhaps we can manage to work together for the sake of the family.’

  ‘You’re a saint, Mum.’ Pip grinned at her. ‘I’m glad you’re independent of him – and I’m delighted that you like my Sheila.’

  ‘I do. I think she’s a lovely girl,’ his mother said and kissed him. ‘I’ll try to bring your father round, Pip – but if I can’t, I will sign your form, my darling. The last thing I want is for you to be estranged from your father, but he can be a bit of a fool and stubborn. He isn’t a bad man, just a selfish and sometimes thoughtless one.’

  ‘Yeah, and I’m stubborn too,’ Pip said. He stood up and hugged her. She protested that he was too strong and he laughed. ‘Not a boy anymore, am I?’

  ‘No, you’re a man and you do a man’s job,’ she said. ‘I’m proud of you, Pip…’ They heard Fay shriek and Peggy got to her feet, but Sheila poked her head round the door.

  ‘I’ll see to her, Peggy. You have a nice sit-down and talk to Pip…’

  ‘She’ll make a good mother,’ Peggy said, ‘but not too soon I hope. I can’t keep up with all the knitting. What with the twins and Maggie…’

  ‘We both want kids but not just yet,’ Pip replied. ‘Sid is popping in this evening for a drink and I want a word with him…’

  ‘I’ll tell him to come through and you can entertain him in private.’

  ‘I think I’ll go down and visit Jan in Devon while I’m on leave,’ Pip said. ‘It’s ages since I’ve seen her and I should like to see Maggie. I bet she’s grown…’

  ‘She is growing fast. I haven’t seen her for nearly eight months now, but Janet says she’s had to make new dresses for her again… It has done your sister good being with her friend, Rosemary. I think she is learning to live again after her husband’s loss and Janet will see that – and she will learn from it. And I know she’d love to see you.’

  ‘When I visited last time, I didn’t know what to say to her.’

  ‘It takes time to recover from bereavement. Janet felt it more because she woke up and found him cold in her bed, when she’d thought he was getting over it – but in time the horror of it will fade.’

  ‘Perhaps Dad was right then – he said it would’ve been better if she hadn’t married Mike.’

  ‘That is rubbish,’ Peggy admonished. ‘If something awful happened to your Sheila, you wouldn’t think it was a pity you’d ever met her, would you?’

  ‘No, I’d just wish I’d had her longer…’ Pip nodded. ‘Yes, that’s what I thought – but I wasn’t sure Jan would ever get over Mike’s death.’

  ‘Some people don’t, of course, but I think your sister is stronger than that – she’s very like Laurie in some ways. I think she’s tougher than any of us realise. She didn’t behave like a wilting lily when Mike died, she got angry – angry and bitter, but she sounded less bitter when she last wrote to me. I think she’s beginning to come to terms with her loss.’

  ‘I hope so, Mum. I’m very fond of Jan, even if we don’t always get on.’

  ‘I know,’ Peggy said and smiled at him. ‘You’re a lovely lad, Pip. You deserve to be happy.’

  *

  Peggy went down to the kitchen. She was sorry that Pip was leaving sooner than he’d planned, but it was better than having constant quarrels between him and his father. She’d been afraid Laurie would refuse his permission and she’d learned better than to go straight into the attack. It was best just to leave it for a while. Laurie would think things through and maybe he would realise the futility in denying a man what he wanted, because Pip certainly wasn’t a boy now.

  Laurie looked at her as she started preparing the scones and shepherd’s pie she was making for the pub lunch, but Rose entered the kitchen a few minutes after her and began to cook their breakfasts. There was sufficient bacon in the pantry to make a nice meal for all of them as well as some ripe tomatoes for frying and some mashed potato that would make a delicious bubble and squeak with the cooked cabbage that Peggy had set aside the previous day.

  ‘Are you thinking of staying with us long, Miss Marchant?’ Laurie addressed Rose formally as she was slicing the tomatoes. ‘I’m sure Peggy was grateful for your help while I was away, but I’m not sure how long we shall need help here – after all, we have Nellie, and there are women who come in part-time…’

  ‘Laurie…’ Peggy was distressed that he’d spoken to Rose as if she were a stranger. ‘I promised Rose a job for as long as she liked…’

  ‘Well, I’m not sacking her,’ Laurie said. ‘I suppose you could let Nellie go – but we don’t really need two cleaners now I’m back.’

  ‘Rose is a lot more than a cleaner,’ Peggy said, holding on to her temper by a thread. ‘She cooks and looks after the twins, as well as helping in the bar.’

  ‘Well, perhaps part-time then,’ Laurie said. ‘She can cut her hours to, say, three hours in the morning. We’re not making enough profit to employ two women full-time, Peggy…’

  ‘Mrs Tandy might give me a couple of hours or perhaps I could get a job at the hairdresser’s…’ Rose looked uncomfortable. ‘I’ll find somewhere else to stay as soon as I can…’

  ‘That’s a good idea, Rose,’ Laurie said. ‘We shan’t throw you out – but we really can’t take in everyone who needs a place to stay. Peggy has a generous nature, but it’s as well I’m back…’

  ‘What is the matter with you?’ Peggy demanded as Rose slipped from the room, leaving the breakfast uncooked. ‘You’ve upset Pip and now you’ve upset Rose. I don’t know you anymore, Laurie. You don’t seem to care about anyone.’

  ‘Surely, you can manage to cook and look after the twins, and do a few hours in the bar when they’re asleep. It’s either her or Nellie – you can’t keep them both now I’m back. You can cut the hours for both if that makes you happier – but you’ve been taking in all and sundry from what I hear: Tilly Barton, some woman called Helen, her daughter Sally, Nellie and now this girl…’

  ‘Helen did her share of the work while she stayed here.’ Peggy flared up at the injustice of his accusations. ‘Tilly was only here a few days, and Sally one night. Surely I can have a friend to stay in my own home?’ She glared at him. ‘Who has been stirring up trouble, I’d like to know?’

  ‘No one in particular, but I’ve been hearing what a generous woman you are to everyone. It has to stop, Peggy. We’ve no more than anyone
else and we need to make up for all we’ve lost because of the war.’

  ‘I’ve always given a free drink occasionally and you’ve never complained before.’

  ‘One free drink is all right, I do it myself – but you can’t cook meals for neighbours and give your food away. I’m back now and I want to see this place making a profit again.’

  Peggy bit her lip. Laurie had a point in a way, because she did help anyone in need, but it was only in a small way, and people helped her – it was give and take and he ought to know it. He did know, but he was just letting her see who was boss. Laurie was obviously in a bad mood because of the quarrel with Pip. She would just let it all blow over and see if things got better – and if not then she would investigate the old bakery premises a bit further. In fact she would make an appointment to view it one day soon; in the meantime, she’d take a look through the back windows of the bakery, because the gate to the yard wasn’t locked.

  She’d made inquiries and knew that the lawyer looking after it was prepared to let it for a very small rent, but it would need a lot of doing up – and it might be better to buy if she could get it cheaply. Yet it was a big step so she would wait and see if things calmed down a bit before making the change, but a peep in the windows wouldn’t hurt.

  *

  Laurie went through to the bar, which Nellie had already been in and cleaned. He knew she did a lovely job and he didn’t really want Peggy to get rid of her, but he didn’t want Rose in the house. She was young and attractive and her body was seductive – and, to tell the truth, he was tempted. However, he realised that he couldn’t afford to get involved with another woman under Peggy’s nose, because that would be pushing things too far. As Pip had told him, his wife would surely be entitled to a slice of whatever he owned.

  He’d felt humiliated at being asked to leave his job and bitterly angry with Eileen for writing that foul letter. He’d been tempted to give her a good hiding, but that would most likely have ended in a prison sentence for him, so he’d simply packed his bags and come home to The Pig & Whistle. Except that it didn’t feel like it used to. Peggy had made it her own. Everyone told him how marvellous she was, how she’d taken folk down the cellar during the Blitz, giving them food and drinks to help bolster their courage while the bombs rained around them.

  In truth, Laurie was jealous and angry. Peggy had managed without him, but he knew he couldn’t run the place without her. She and Nellie and Rose were like a family, and even Pip was on her side – telling his own father that his mother was entitled to half of everything if they split up. Laurie felt like something the cat had dragged in and he didn’t enjoy knowing that everyone thought the world of his wife.

  Laurie was damned if he was going to walk away and make things easy for her. Peggy hadn’t taken him back to her bed yet, but he thought she might in time – but not if she knew— Laurie shut the thought out. The letter he’d taken from Reg only the previous day burned a hole in his pocket. It was Peggy’s letter, meant for her eyes only, and he’d read it. He’d opened the seal of the thin envelope, which had come all the way from America, and he’d read what it said, every telling word.

  It was sod’s law that this letter, written several months earlier, should finally make its way here just as he had come home. If Peggy knew what was in it, he thought she would leave him instantly – and he couldn’t run this damned place without her.

  He supposed he was a fool to try and get Rose out, because if Peggy left she might have taken over the cooking – but she didn’t like him. He’d sensed it when he’d stared at her in her bathrobe, which was opened at the front and revealed white skin and a hint of delicious curves. Her unspoken rejection stung his pride and it had made him cruel in the kitchen. After the quarrel with Pip, he’d wanted to lash out and hurt someone and Rose happened to be there. Besides, even if he’d been wrong to believe Rose was asking for it, he had no thought of apologising.

  Peggy wasn’t going to leave, not yet anyway. Laurie had no intention of ever giving her the letter. As long as she never knew the truth, he was safe. Once the war was over, things might change, but by then the pub would be on an even keel again. The customers would be used to him and not devoted fans of his wife – and he could find a girl to cook and clean and work in the bar. As for that bloody American’s brats, well, he would just ignore them. Seeing Peggy fussing over them made him angry, but so far he’d hidden it. Better folk should think them his than lose face in the lanes.

  He looked at the range, his hand curling about the thin paper in his pocket. It had been sent airmail, which made it unusual. Supposing Reg mentioned it to Peggy and she asked where it was? He couldn’t say he’d burned it. He might lie and say he’d never seen it, but would she believe him or Reg?

  He would keep it hidden for the moment – and he’d find a way of getting round Reg. He’d tell him it had contained bad news and he’d kept it from Peggy for that reason… Yes, that might work, because Reg had a soft spot for Peggy. If he treated him to a few free drinks, got the chatty postman on his side, Peggy would never learn about the letter that had come from America – the letter that might make her decide to leave him.

  Chapter 12

  ‘You don’t have to leave, Rose,’ Peggy said as she entered the girl’s bedroom and saw her packing later that day. ‘Laurie was just in a bad mood because he argued with Pip. I’m not going to sack you – but I may have to cut your hours…’

  ‘That’s all right, Peggy,’ Rose said. ‘I liked living here with you – but I’ll be honest, I don’t like your husband. I popped over the road and asked Mavis if she had a spare room and she has. Mrs Ross is going to move into her uncle’s flat so I can have hers when she does. Until then, I can have the box room at Mavis’s house. It’s very small, but it means I can stay here in the lanes. I’ve got two mornings a week at the hairdresser’s helping Ellie, and Mrs Tandy said she would like to give me some work but can’t afford it – so I’ll try somewhere else in the lanes…’

  ‘You might try the bakery round the corner, Rose. I think they need a girl on Saturdays. I was hoping you would stay with me, because I have an idea for the future, but I’m not ready yet…’

  ‘I’ll still come in and help for a few hours if you want – but I think it’s best I don’t live in…’ Rose’s cheeks were pink and she couldn’t meet Peggy’s eyes.

  Peggy looked at her in silence for a moment. ‘Yes, I understand, Rose. Well, if you can come four mornings a week to help me with cooking and the twins. I hope you find something nearby if you need more hours…’

  ‘I’ve been saving most of my money so I’ll be all right for a while,’ Rose said. ‘I’m really sorry, Mrs Ashley. I did like it here.’

  ‘I’m still Peggy to you, Rose. I hope we can be friends – despite my husband?’

  ‘Yes, of course we can,’ Rose agreed. ‘It’s only that he – reminds me of someone. His temper and his black looks… just like my dad.’

  ‘Is that all, Rose?’ Peggy looked her in the eyes. Was Rose telling her the truth? Surely Laurie wouldn’t try to seduce her under their own roof? If he had, he was disgusting! She could scarcely believe he’d sunk so low and yet Rose wouldn’t lie.

  ‘He – he looks at me too much…’ Rose’s face was flaming. ‘Please don’t hate me, but I don’t want to sleep under the same roof…’

  ‘Did your father look at you like that?’

  Rose nodded and looked down at the floor. ‘Sometimes, yes. He never touched me like that – but he wanted to and it made me feel awful…’

  ‘Yes, I do see, Rose,’ Peggy smiled and squeezed her hand sympathetically. Peggy wished she didn’t have to leave; she would rather Laurie had stayed in Scotland but he was here and there was nothing she could do. ‘You’ll be all right with Mavis. Anne has been happy there, but she and Kirk will have more privacy in her uncle’s flat – of course it’s hers now. She might sell it and try to find somewhere closer to the lanes and the school when she gets around to i
t…’

  ‘I’ll come down now and help you in the kitchen – and then I’ll take my case over the road later.’

  ‘No, you take it now,’ Peggy said. ‘You can come in at nine o’clock in the mornings and leave at twelve. That’s three hours, four days a week. I’m sorry I can’t make it more, but Laurie is the boss…’

  ‘He’s not the one people like,’ Rose declared outspokenly. ‘Oh, they’ll slap him on the back and say they’re glad to see him back while he buys them free drinks, but you’ll see – if you ever leave, he’ll only have a few old men to keep him company of an evening…’

  Peggy nodded and left Rose to finish her packing. Laurie’s behaviour made her angry but for the moment her hands were tied – and it was difficult to believe that the husband she’d once known and loved could have changed so much. Was Rose imagining it – or was Laurie really so lost to decency that he’d embarrassed a young girl he ought to have protected as one of his staff?

  Sheila was carrying the twins downstairs; she’d dressed them both and they were laughing. Peggy would miss her when she went back home – and she would miss Rose, but Laurie had known that she couldn’t part with Nellie. There had been no contest. A choice between them must always mean Nellie came first, because they’d shared too much. Still, it would mean more work for Peggy, even if she didn’t serve in the bar as much – and she’d miss that too, because all her customers were her friends.

  *

  Rose looked round the tiny room and sighed. It was nowhere near as nice as the room at Peggy’s pub. However, she couldn’t stay at the pub, not when Laurie Ashley looked at her the way he had. She’d never dreamed he would be like that, but the looks he’d given her had sent shivers down her spine.

  Rose wasn’t interested in men who looked at her like that. Laurie Ashley wasn’t the first. Her father had sometimes touched her arm in passing, his eyes conveying a message he would never dare to speak. Rose had felt sick when he looked at her in that way, because she’d believed he was her father; it was only when she’d read her mother’s diary after her cruel death that she’d realised Roger Martin was just the man who had married her mother when Rose was on the way, though he’d always spoken of himself as her father – but that was just to discipline her, to make her do as she was told.