by Rosie Clarke
*
‘I couldn’t let Annabel down when she needs me,’ Beth said into the phone. ‘Please explain to your mother that I would have loved to come, Drew, but I can’t leave the hotel for the moment.’
‘She will be disappointed,’ he said and sounded annoyed. ‘She told me I should have brought you with me. If you hadn’t gone home first you wouldn’t have been roped in to help.’
But Beth would have felt dreadful, would have wanted to help in the circumstances. ‘Yes, I would,’ Beth said. ‘I should have had to come back if Annabel asked. I owe her everything, Drew. I couldn’t be selfish now, not when she is relying on me. She had to go to Georgie and I have to stay here.’
‘Yes, I do see that,’ he agreed albeit reluctantly. ‘It’s just that I’m disappointed. I’m missing you terribly, Beth.’
‘I’m missing you too.’
‘Do you think you could find work nearer London? I’m likely to be posted not far away for a while. I’m needed for training the raw recruits for the time being, they tell me. If you were in London I might get to see you more often. It will be ages before I can get down to Torquay again.’
‘I’ll try. I was thinking of joining the women’s services…’
‘If you do that they could send you anywhere.’ He hesitated, then, ‘You’re a decent driver, aren’t you?’
‘Not bad,’ she replied with a smile. ‘Why do you ask?’
‘I happen to know someone who needs a reliable driver permanently. He’s attached to the War Office – it’s all hush-hush and you would have to be vetted, answer a lot of personal questions, but if I can swing it, you will be posted in London for the duration. Shall I have a word?’
‘Yes, please,’ she said, suddenly breathless. Her vague doubts melted as swiftly as they’d come. ‘Do you think I would be suitable?’
‘You can type and do shorthand as well, can’t you?’
‘Yes, I learned all that at college.’
‘That might just swing it your way. It won’t be a cushy number, Beth – Pearson is the devil to work for, demanding, expects you to be ready at the drop of a hat and put in extra hours if he needs you. He’s fair though and you’ll get your time off. It would mean that we could be together when I can get a few hours off. I might be able to come up for the odd evening, drive back in the early hours.’
‘I would like that, Drew.’
‘So would I,’ he said. ‘I can’t promise, but if you get an official-looking envelope in the next couple of weeks you’ll know what it is.’
‘Oh, I do hope it happens,’ Beth said on a surge of excitement. ‘It sounds interesting and different, just the kind of thing I would enjoy.’
‘That settles it then,’ Drew said. ‘The sooner I can fix it up, the better. I can’t wait to see you again. I’ve never felt like this about a girl before.’
‘I feel the same about seeing you. It’s silly I know, but I want to be with you all the time.’
‘Me too. Damn this war! I shall have to report for duty as soon as my leave is up, but if you’re in London I can wangle a few hours now and then. I wasn’t happy about it when they told me I was being seconded to training raw recruits but now I’m rather glad.’
‘Drew, I…’ Beth heard the bell ring in reception. ‘I shall have to go now. One of the guests needs help.’
‘I’ll ring you this evening at about eight. In fact, I’ll ring you as often as I can. I think I’m in love with you, Beth.’
Beth’s heart raced. She wanted to tell him she felt the same way, but he’d put the phone down immediately. She couldn’t get him back because she didn’t know the number. Besides, the man in reception had rung twice for attention already.
Going out to the reception area, Beth hardly knew how she managed to answer and deal with a rather disgruntled guest who had arrived without a booking.
‘It’s always best to telephone first, sir,’ she told him respectfully. ‘I’m afraid we’re fully booked at the moment.’
‘What a nuisance! You were recommended to me and I’ve come out of my way to stay here.’ His dark eyes glinted with annoyance.
Beth ran her finger down the register. ‘We shall have a free room on Saturday, but that’s only for one night.’
‘No use to me,’ he muttered. ‘It’s just not good enough, that’s all I can say.’ He was a tall man of spare build and wearing a dark business suit, his hair almost black and slicked down with water to lie flat on his head, his eyes a cool grey.
‘We are only a small hotel, sir. I am sure you will find a nice room in Torquay itself.’
‘If I’d wanted to stay there I wouldn’t have bothered to drive out here.’
Beth remained silent as he left. She couldn’t give him a room she didn’t have; besides, if that was a sample of his manners she was glad she hadn’t been able to oblige.
The telephone rang and she answered eagerly, hoping it might be Drew, but it was another guest confirming a booking. After that two more guests arrived at the desk to ask questions and it was a while before Beth had a moment to herself.
Had Drew really told her he was in love with her? It was almost too much happiness to take in. He had been careful not to rush things on their last night together, but even a few hours apart had made them both realise how strong their feelings were for each other.
*
The letter Beth had been hoping for came sixteen days later. It was brief and to the point, almost curt, and asked her to meet Mr Arnold Pearson at his office in Westminster in two days’ time. It also contained a questionnaire that she was requested to fill in and take with her.
Two days! Beth was stunned. She hadn’t really believed it would happen, although Drew had seemed confident when he rang her. He was officially back at the training camp now, finding it frustrating as he struggled to teach raw recruits to become soldiers.
‘Some of them are still wet behind the ears,’ he’d told Beth. ‘It’s dangerous to let them loose with a gun, let alone ammunition.’
‘I expect they will do better once they get used to it. It’s excitement and nerves.’
‘Yes, I know. Anyway, I’ve had a word with Arnold. He’s fed up with having temporary drivers and wants someone permanent, as I told you. He’s a sort of cousin, so he listened when I told him about you. Not that he would do me any favours, but he knows I wouldn’t recommend anyone who was likely to let him down.’
‘You know I wouldn’t do that,’ Beth replied instantly.
Only now it looked as if she might have to do just that! Annabel hadn’t come back from the visit to Georgie and Shirley had reported for duty at her training base. Beth could hardly walk out and leave them in the lurch. But if she didn’t keep this appointment she wouldn’t get another chance.
She was frowning over the letter when Paul came into the office.
‘Something wrong, Beth?’
‘Oh, Paul.’ Beth looked guilty. It was on the tip of her tongue to say everything was all right and then she changed her mind. If she didn’t do it now she never would. She handed him her letter. ‘I know it’s difficult at the moment, but I really do want this job.’
Paul read it through and then looked at her thoughtfully. ‘How did you find out about this?’
‘Drew recommended me. Mr Pearson is a sort of cousin and he needs a permanent driver and it helps that I can do shorthand as well, apparently.’
‘That isn’t the only reason you want the job, is it? Drew is based just outside London, I think?’ He smiled as she blushed. ‘Well, of course you must take this chance, Beth. We can manage here until Annabel gets back. I can hold the fort and I’ll ask Shirley’s mother to come and give us a hand. I had mentioned it to her and she said she wouldn’t mind a few hours. We shall have to find a little army of part-timers to keep us ticking over until things settle down again.’
‘Oh, Paul, you are a darling,’ Beth said, her face lighting up. ‘I was feeling dreadful about leaving you, knowing how things are at the mo
ment.’
‘We’ll manage,’ he said. ‘I can do a bit in the office and greet guests if necessary, and I dare say Annabel will be back before too long. She said she was thinking of returning this weekend, so it will only be a few days at most.’
‘Oh, that’s good. How is Georgie? Annabel said she was feeling very low when I asked her on the telephone the other day.’
‘I think she is beginning to feel a bit better. It will take time, of course. Annabel has told her she is always welcome to stay here – and I know Jessie and Harry Kendle have told her the same.’
‘Staying with friends is nice for a while,’ Beth said and looked serious. ‘But it isn’t the same as being at home. Georgie will need time to get used to Arthur not being there, but I’m sure she would rather be at home. She loves that old house and the garden.’
‘Yes, I’m sure you’re right,’ Paul agreed, thinking what an observant, caring girl she was. ‘Well, we shall miss you around here, Beth, but it’s good for young people to be independent and see a bit of the world. Keep in touch and come and visit us sometimes, won’t you?’
‘Yes, of course,’ Beth said. ‘Thank you for understanding, Paul. I hate letting you down but…’
‘You want to go and it’s only right you should – and as for letting us down that is nonsense. Annabel offered you the job here so that you would have security, but she expected you would leave sooner or later.’
Beth blushed faintly but was saved from replying by a bell in reception. Had Paul and Annabel been aware of her restlessness?
Perhaps she should have spoken out ages ago, instead of keeping it to herself.
*
Beth smoothed the narrow fitting skirt of her best navy blue costume. She had dressed with care for this first interview, her shoes polished until she could see her reflection in the soft leather, her hair done up in a neat twist at the back of her head, instead of allowed to brush on her collar as she normally wore it. She was wearing a small pair of gold clips on her ears that Paul and Annabel had given her one Christmas, and a neat wristwatch. She carried a tan leather briefcase containing her exam results and certificates from college, also her driving licence.
‘Will you come this way, Miss Rawlings?’
A young man in a neat navy pinstripe suit came to beckon her from the waiting room. She followed him down a rather narrow, dark corridor to a room right at the bottom marked private.
‘Just knock and wait,’ the young man said. ‘When he’s ready he’ll come to you.’
‘Oh – thank you…’ Beth swallowed hard, her knees beginning to shake as she rapped the door once, then hesitated and did it again in case her first wasn’t loud enough. Nothing happened. She waited for five minutes, then knocked again, more loudly. There was no answer. Glancing over her shoulder, she looked for help as to what she ought to do next, but finding no one she took a deep breath and opened the door to look inside. A man was sitting at the desk, legs stretched out on the desktop, his head bent and seemingly asleep. Beth was momentarily stunned. What on earth did she do now? Wake him up or go back outside and wait? How long was she supposed to wait?
‘Either come in and shut the door or go out,’ an irritable voice came from the man at the desk. ‘There’s a draught and it’s cold enough in this damned place for a start.’
Beth shut the door. ‘I’ve come for an appointment with Mr Pearson,’ she said. ‘I knocked several times and I wasn’t sure what to do.’
‘You were told to wait, I believe?’ His eyes snapped open suddenly and Beth felt something like an electric shock run through her as she realised that she’d seen him before. He was the guest who had turned up at the hotel without a booking; the one who had been most annoyed because she didn’t have a room to offer him. Her heart sank. What chance of getting the job now?
He was sitting up now, staring at her, his mouth pressed into a firm thin line. ‘So, you’re the girl Drew is interested in, are you?’ She blushed but didn’t answer, convinced that he would send her on her way. ‘Cat got your tongue?’
‘Drew and I are friends for the moment,’ Beth said, recovering her composure. Her head went up, unconsciously proud. ‘He told me he would recommend me for the job, but perhaps I made a mistake.’
‘Not a coward, are you?’ Arnold Pearson barked at her. ‘You’ll be no good to me if you can’t take a bit of stick, girl… What was your name?’ He looked at the papers in front of him, shuffling them and then frowning. ‘Beth Rawlings. Says here you can drive and do shorthand. And you’ve been passed by the gods above – no communist tendencies at college or anything like that apparently. So I suppose I’ll have to give you a try. Sit down and take a few letters, and then we’ll see.’
Beth sat on the chair he indicated. Since he had offered nothing, she took a pad from her briefcase and a sharp pencil, poised and waiting for him to begin. He gave a nod of approval and she realised she had passed some sort of test.
For the next twenty minutes he dictated at breath-taking speed. Beth’s pencil flew over the paper. She could barely keep up with him, but somehow she managed it, and when he finally finished, she saw that he was giving her an odd look.
‘Got all that, did you?’
‘Yes, I think so, sir.’
‘Arnold,’ he corrected her. ‘Or Mr Pearson officially – can’t stand all that sir stuff. That’s why I didn’t want more army drivers; they bore the hell out of me!’
‘Yes, Mr Pearson,’ Beth replied. ‘Would you like me to type these up now?’
‘You’d better let me read them when you’ve finished; I need to see you got it right – then you can drive me to an appointment.’ He pointed to a desk in the corner. ‘That’s yours. Oh, and you’d better sign this…’ He pushed a sheaf of papers at her. ‘It’s the secrecy thing. If you breathe a word of what goes on outside this office they cut your head off…’ His grin made Beth sigh with relief. Perhaps he was human after all. ‘They’ll have my guts for garters if I let you get out without signing it.’
Beth signed after reading the first few lines, and he nodded, taking it back from her and glancing at her signature.
‘Readable, that’s more than most around here. Get that typing done in double quick time, Beth. I’ve got to see the Prime Minister in forty-five minutes.’
‘Yes, Mr Pearson.’
‘Oh, and Beth…’ He gave her a penetrating stare as she looked at him obediently. ‘Wear your hair down the way you usually do. It suits you better than that thing at the back of your neck.’
Beth was blushing furiously as she sat down at her desk, head bent over the typewriter. So he had remembered her from the hotel and that was his way of telling her. His manner was a mixture of surly bear and childish glee, and if Beth hadn’t wanted this job so badly she would have told him what he could do with his typing!
*
‘Are you sure you’ll be all right now?’ Annabel asked as she hesitated with her hand on the car door handle. Georgie seemed cheerful enough, but there was no doubting Arthur’s death – and the revelations about his feelings a few days beforehand – had knocked her for six. She felt worried about leaving her alone. ‘Why don’t you come and stay with us for a while? You know we would love to have you.’
‘There’s no sense in running away from it,’ Georgie replied and smothered her sigh. ‘It was good of you to come and you’ve helped me over the worst of it, Annabel – but I have to face up to things. Arthur has gone and he isn’t coming back. I shall probably go down to see Geoffrey in a few days; as you know, he wanted to go back to school after the funeral, but he’ll be feeling miserable. I shall take him out to tea and talk to him, perhaps go to the school rugby match and a cowboy film in the afternoon, but he would rather be at school with his friends, and I think he is better off with them for the moment. I want to take him to the kind of thing he shared with his father, but he’s like Arthur – he may not let me at first. I wanted to take him to that cricket match the day after the funeral, but he went w
ith some friends of his father – told me he knew cricket bored me…’
‘It’s not easy for either of you.’ Annabel kissed her cheek. ‘Well, if I’m going, I had better make sure I catch my train. Paul is holding the fort for the time being, but he can’t do it forever.’
‘So, Beth made the break at last then?’
‘Yes, it seems like it. Paul says she didn’t like letting us down, but that’s silly. I didn’t expect her to stay if she wanted to do something else. I’ve never tried to run her life for her!’
‘No, of course not,’ Georgie said and smiled inside, because Annabel organised everyone without meaning to. However, she’d been grateful for her friend taking over these past couple of weeks and knew that without her she would have found it impossible to cope with the funeral and her son’s overwhelming grief. ‘You were just trying to make things easy for her, but she’s young and wants to try her wings, I expect.’
‘It’s because of Drew, of course,’ Annabel said. ‘I’m so pleased she’s found someone at last.’ She crossed her fingers, pecked Georgie on the cheek, picked up her suitcase and set off in the direction of the platform. ‘See you soon! I’ll phone you when I get home – and I’ll let you know if I hear anything from Hetty.’
‘Yes, do that, love. I hope she comes home soon – we’re all concerned for her.’
Georgie waved to her, then went back to the car and got in. She sat for a moment staring into space before starting the engine. There was no point in moping, because she couldn’t change anything.
She headed the car towards her home, and then changed her mind. There was no rush to go home now that she didn’t have to get back to see to Arthur’s dinner. She could go shopping, call in at the library and even have her hair done if she felt like it.
For the first time in ages she was free to do whatever pleased her. She wasn’t quite sure how she felt about that just yet. She was still missing her husband and would feel it more than ever when she got home, going into an empty house. Not that she was frightened of being there alone; she loved the house and all its creaks, and the garden was her pride and joy. But Arthur had always been around, coming in for his morning coffee and afternoon tea, and she had already found his loss harder than she would have expected.
