The Teashop Girls Read online

  ‘But she has a point,’ Rose said. ‘Katie cannot walk down the aisle without a veil and headdress.’

  ‘I’d be honoured if you would use mine,’ a timid voice said from the doorway, as Joyce Hannigan walked in carefully carrying a white box. She laid it on Miss Tibbs’ bed and took off the lid. ‘This was mine when I married Mr Hannigan ten years ago,’ she said as she pulled out a long white lace-edged veil and shook it out. ‘It’s as good as the day I was wed,’ she said, with a tear in her eye. ‘It was the happiest day of my life, apart from when our Pearl came along. There’s a headband of silk flowers that my mother hand-stitched to go with it.’ She passed the veil to Rose before delving back into the box and producing the delicate headdress, as the women all gasped at the intricate details in the stitching.

  ‘Oh, it’s beautiful, and – and you would allow me to wear it for my wedding?’ Katie asked, almost unable to speak.

  ‘I would have offered my gown as well, if it hadn’t been pulled apart to make a christening gown for Pearl. I still have the rest of the fabric, as I couldn’t bear to part with it.’

  Anya looked at Miss Tibbs, and the two women nodded at each other. Anya spoke first. ‘It is only right, with Joyce being so good as to lend you of the head cover, that little Pearl is part of the wedding – do you not think?’

  Katie nodded enthusiastically. ‘I’d thought of asking her to be a bridesmaid, but with so little time and no money for dresses I felt it best not to mention it. Now I feel awful,’ she said sadly.

  Anya clapped her hands. ‘We have the time; that is, if Joyce will trust us with the material from her dress?’

  Joyce beamed. ‘Pearl will love being part of the wedding. She has never been a bridesmaid before. I’ll fetch the fabric now.’

  ‘Are you sure about this? The wedding is only twenty hours away,’ Katie said with a trace of anxiety.

  Miss Tibbs shrugged her shoulders. ‘My dear, it can be done with ease. Anya will help me with the cutting and then I shall do what I can this evening and finish the dress tomorrow. There is one stipulation.’

  ‘Anything at all,’ Katie said.

  ‘You need someone to walk you down the aisle tomorrow, and I would like to offer my services. It is a little unusual, but those of us without family should stick together at times like this.’

  Katie fell into Miss Tibbs’ arms and sobbed. ‘I’d be delighted.’

  ‘I thought Miss Tibbs had a sister?’ Lily whispered to Rose.

  ‘Me too – I wonder what happened to her?’

  Lily’s lips twitched as she fought off a laugh. ‘God only knows. I don’t think Miss Tibbs knows what truly happened in the past, or what she has made up.’

  ‘It’s as good a day as it can be at this time of year,’ Flora said as she stood inside the church door. ‘No snow, and the choir boys have done a good job clearing the steps so the bottom of Katie’s dress won’t get mucky.’

  ‘Jack told me that he and his mates swept the paths this morning before they headed to the pub for some Dutch courage,’ Rose said, shivering even though she still had her best coat draped around her shoulders. The snow in the churchyard and on the roof might look pretty, but it was damned cold, she thought to herself.

  Flora looked alarmed. ‘I do hope they only had the one. We don’t want drunken sailors in church, do we? Now, I’m going to take my place in the pew. Mildred is a little uncomfortable wearing a dress, and I don’t trust her not to pop home and come back wearing a boiler suit. That was a joke,’ she added, seeing the shocked look on her daughter’s face. ‘I must say, I feel quite honoured to be thought of as the mother of the bride. It’s good that everyone pulled together for poor Katie and Jack, what with them both being orphans,’ she added, reaching into her handbag for a clean cotton handkerchief.

  ‘Friends are as good as family any day; better, in some cases,’ Lily said, thinking of her stepfather. ‘Before I forget – a Mrs Peabody came into the teashop yesterday. She and her husband own a grocery shop?’ she added, as Flora didn’t seem to recognize the name. ‘Mr Peabody is off to join the army today, and she said as how you told her that Anya was looking for part-time work.’

  ‘Oh, of course. Gladys Peabody. She’ll be run off her feet with Bert leaving her. I’ll let Anya know, although she was really interested in working at Lyons with you girls. Now I must be off. I’ll take young Pearl here and have her sit at the back of the church until Katie and Miss Tibbs arrive. The poor child looks frozen to the bone,’ she said, taking Pearl’s hand and leaving the two friends alone.

  ‘Now we’re alone, can I ask why you’ve had a smile on your face ever since you returned home?’ Lily asked.

  ‘I have no idea what you’re getting at,’ Rose said. ‘It’s a happy occasion and I have a new job to look forward to, that’s all.’

  ‘So Ben’s going away hasn’t upset you at all? I thought the pair of you were getting close?’ Lily asked as she looked up the road to see if the bride was in sight.

  ‘I don’t know what you mean,’ Rose said quickly.

  ‘Aha! I wondered if he was the reason for your smiling face. I take it you two became a little closer . . .?’

  Rose felt her face start to burn at Lily’s words. Even though they’d been friends since childhood, she was embarrassed to reply. Allowing a couple to step past them into the church, she wondered to herself how much she should tell Lily about her intimacy with Ben. Some things couldn’t be shared with others. ‘I don’t think this is the right place to be discussing such things,’ she hissed, as another of Katie’s guests passed them with a greeting.

  Lily raised her eyebrows in amusement. ‘So something did happen. Who’d have thought it?’ she grinned. ‘Did you, erm . . .?’

  ‘If you must know, I have strong feelings for Ben, and he’s a real gentleman. He’s kind and thoughtful, and I feel good being with him. But he’s gone away, and goodness knows when I’ll see him again – so what’s the point of imagining what could be?’

  Lily just smiled thoughtfully as Katie and Miss Tibbs arrived in a car. It had been loaned for the occasion by one of Mildred’s many contacts, and was driven by Jack’s old school friend. The girls sprang into action, helping their friend prepare for the slow walk down the aisle to marry her Jack.

  The service was beautiful, with some of the Nippies who weren’t on duty coming along to watch the bride wed her groom, as well as people who’d cared for both Jack and Katie when they lived in the children’s home. Jack’s side of the church was filled with people he knew from when he was training to be a carpenter, as well as the smartly dressed sailors.

  When it came time for the vicar to ask who gave Katie’s hand in marriage, it was not Miss Tibbs, who had led her down the aisle, but Rose and Lily who spoke out, causing much mirth amongst the congregation.

  After the register had been signed, the blushing bride and groom walked up the aisle as man and wife. They exited the church just as the snow started to fall once more. One of Jack’s sailor friends produced a Box Brownie camera, and the guests huddled together for a few quick photographs before they froze in their finery. Then came the rush to get back to Sea View to toast the bride and groom.

  The rest of the day went by in a flurry of fun and laughter until it was time for Katie and her husband to head off for a weekend in Broadstairs before Jack had to leave for his ship. There were tearful goodbyes amongst the girls, as all three knew their lives were moving in different directions.

  The residents of Sea View collapsed in Flora’s living room once the last guest had departed, looking round them at the leftover food and piles of washing-up that were calling for their attention.

  ‘I suggest we change out of our finery before we make a start on all of this,’ Rose said. ‘Why don’t you leave young Pearl where she is, Joyce? It would be a shame for her to wake and be alone,’ she said, nodding to where the youngest bridesmaid was flat out on the settee.

  ‘She can’t be very comfortable,’ Flora said
. ‘That old settee is as hard as nails and it’s seen better days. I’ll get a blanket and see if we can make her a little more comfy.’

  The women all departed to their respective rooms to return in their day clothes with sleeves rolled up, ready to do battle with the washing-up. They laughed when Mildred appeared in her boiler suit. ‘What’s your problem?’ she sniffed. ‘It’s clean and it’s comfortable. I was glad to get out of that dress, I can tell you. It’ll probably be the first and last time you’ll see me in one.’

  ‘You looked very nice,’ Flora said, shushing Lily, who was still laughing. ‘I hope we have a photograph from Jack’s friend to show how good we looked in all our finery.’

  Mildred looked horrified. ‘I never want to see myself in a dress, so please don’t put it on show.’

  ‘It’s all right, Mildred. You were with me at the back. Remember, the sailor man asked for the tall people at the back, so we stood with the men,’ Anya reminded her.

  ‘Thank goodness,’ Mildred huffed as she picked up a heavy tray of crockery to take to the kitchen. ‘Who’s washing and who is drying?’

  Rose followed her to the kitchen, carefully carrying the remains of the wedding cake, which had been provided by Lyons. Putting it on the table, she picked up a tea towel and started to dry the plates as the affable older woman placed them on the draining board.

  ‘We don’t seem to get much time to chat these days,’ Mildred said. ‘Remember all the times you came out on my boat and helped me bring in the fishing nets? It seems an age ago.’

  ‘It does. There’s nothing better than the wind in your hair and sea-spray in your face. I must do it again soon.’ Rose smiled wryly.

  ‘You know I’ll have to get permission from the powers that be. They don’t let just anyone on a boat these days. You might be a spy,’ Mildred said as she placed another load of tea plates into the bowl and added more hot water from a kettle slowly whistling away on the nearby hob.

  ‘I think we’ve had our share of spies in this house. Have you heard any more about Mr Cardew? I’ve not had a chance to ask Mum.’ Rose knew that if anything had happened in the seaside town, Mildred Dalryple would be the person to know about it.

  ‘It seems your young man was right to call in the coppers. Cardew was up to no good. They’ve got him up in London now, and from what I’ve been told he’ll spend the rest of the war locked up so that he doesn’t get up to any more mischief.’

  Rose ignored the mention of Ben, although it was good to hear him referred to as her young man. ‘It’s a bit tame to say Mr Cardew was up to mischief. I’d say it was a bit more than that.’

  ‘He was talked into it by some chaps he knows at his bird-watching club. Cardew sang like a songbird in a gilded cage when he was carted off. Bloody good riddance to him! Thankfully they knew other residents weren’t involved. Imagine if you’d come home from London and we’d all been arrested for working for Hitler?’ she guffawed.

  ‘It doesn’t bear thinking about,’ Rose joined in with the laughter. ‘Imagine Miss Tibbs as a spy!’

  ‘What’s going on out here? I can hear you across the other side of the house,’ Flora said as she joined them. ‘I need my broom; there are crumbs all over my best rug.’

  ‘Mildred was updating me about Mr Cardew,’ Rose explained as she passed her mum a pile of dry plates. ‘These are the ones that go back into the dresser cupboard.’

  ‘What a daft old bugger,’ Flora said. ‘He should have kept to his bird-watching. Then, of course, it meant the billeting officer coming back, as he’d heard we had another empty room. It took all my powers of persuasion to convince him that young Lily was moving in, as he said she wasn’t homeless and could go back to living with her stepfather. I’d no sooner move her back there than dine with Adolf Hitler. Being under the same roof as that George Jacobs is not good for any young woman,’ she all but snarled.

  Rose, who had tried not to go to the house since Lily’s mum had passed, had to agree. George had always made her feel uncomfortable. ‘Does that mean you’ll have to give up the box room?’ she asked, although she had a feeling she already knew the answer.

  ‘I’m afraid we will have to, my love. We could store anything you don’t want to take with you in my room. I have plenty of space.’

  Rose felt a little miffed. She felt she’d lost her place in her own home, where she could hide away from the world if need be.

  Flora could see she was upset. ‘I suppose we could put another bed in with Lily,’ she said thoughtfully.

  Rose nodded glumly.

  ‘When do you expect to be able to move into your rooms in Margate?’

  ‘I could have moved in today, but with the wedding and just getting home last night, it was all too much of a rush. I start at the teashop the day after tomorrow. I can always catch the bus to and from work for a while, until I’ve moved into my rooms.’

  ‘We can’t have you doing that,’ Mildred said as she emptied the dirty water from the washing-up bowl and dried her hands on her overalls. ‘I don’t have to return the car to my friend until tomorrow afternoon, so we can move you to Margate tomorrow morning if you like?’

  ‘That’s very good of you, Mildred,’ Flora beamed. ‘With all this talk about petrol and God knows what else being rationed, it’s very good of your friend to lend his car to run Katie to the church and now to help our Rose move home. We must make sure to pay something. What do you say, Rose?’

  ‘It’s very kind of you, Mildred, and yes, I insist on paying him for this,’ Rose said, feeling as though everything and everyone was colluding to kick her out of her home.

  ‘She wouldn’t hear of it. We help each other out all the time. Think of it as my contribution,’ Mildred said.

  ‘A woman car owner? Fancy that,’ Flora said, looking surprised.

  ‘Do you really need all of this?’ Lily said as she pulled a box covered in dust out from under Rose’s bed. ‘I wouldn’t think you’ve opened it in years going by the muck on top of it.’ She pulled back the flaps and peered inside. ‘Why, they’re all your books from school. Why ever have you kept them this long – shall I put them on the rubbish pile?’

  ‘Oh no, don’t do that,’ Rose exclaimed, leaving a pile of knitted toys she was sorting out for Pearl and rushing to where Lily was sliding the box to the door to be taken away. ‘I have such happy memories of school, and my exercise books have all my stories and poems in them. I’d like to share them with my own children one day.’

  ‘You plan to have some, then?’ Lily asked, pulling the box back.

  ‘Oh yes, one day, when I have a nice home and I’m married.’

  ‘Lizzy Soames who was in our class already has two nippers and not a husband to be seen,’ Lily said as she brushed the dust from her skirt.

  Rose screwed up her face in distaste. ‘Just imagine not being married and having children. How she can hold her head up, I don’t know. As Mum would say, she’s no better than she ought to be. Katie and I crossed the road the other day just to avoid her.’

  ‘It’s not catching, you know. You have to . . . you know . . . before you can carry a kid.’

  Rose’s face dropped so much that Lily thought it would hit the floor. ‘I was right! You and Ben did . . .’ She stopped speaking as she saw tears forming in her friend’s eyes. ‘Oh Rose, he didn’t force you, did he? I’ll swing for him if he did.’ Lily rushed to her friend’s side to put an arm around her shoulders.

  ‘No, it’s nothing like that. It was wonderful, and he was a true gentleman.’

  ‘So he didn’t put pressure on you?’

  ‘Gosh, no. If anything, I encouraged him.’ Rose started to grin.

  ‘Why, Rose Neville. You are going to get a reputation like Lizzy Soames if you carry on like this,’ Lily joshed.

  ‘What’s all this laughter for? You’ve not been helping yourself to the leftover sherry, have you?’ Flora asked as she stood in the doorway.

  Lily raised her eyebrows at Rose as they both wo
ndered how long Flora had been there and if she’d heard anything. ‘We were just having a laugh about Rose’s school books. She wants to keep them, and I’m for throwing them on the bonfire,’ Lily said with a grin. ‘She can’t take everything with her to Margate.’

  ‘I’m not. I’m giving some of my dolls to Pearl. She can have the baby doll with all the clothes Miss Tibbs made for her, and also this golliwog. I have two, so one can stay here. But this I’m taking with me,’ Rose said, carefully opening a long cardboard box and lifting out a delicate china doll wearing a long pink silk dress. There was a small bunch of wax flowers attached to the doll’s ribbon waistband.

  ‘Oh, she’s beautiful. You’ve never shown her to me before,’ Lily said as she gently stroked the doll’s long chestnut hair.

  ‘It was a special gift from General Sykes for my birthday. Mum only let me have it in my room when I was old enough to look after it. I named her Genny after the General,’ she said, giving the doll a cuddle before wiping her eyes. ‘Gosh, I do miss him. I know it’s a silly thing to say, but I have better memories of him than I do of my dad.’

  ‘With them passing away in the same year, it would have been confusing for a ten-year-old’s memories. Would you mind if we packed her up carefully and stored her in the cellar where it is safe? It would be such a shame if she was damaged if there is an air raid. Goodness knows what will happen in this war, and as Ramsgate was bombed in the Great War, it could happen again.’

  Rose passed the doll to her mum, confused by the emotion she saw on Flora’s face. ‘But we should give these other dolls to Pearl,’ she said, trying to lighten to sad atmosphere.

  ‘That’s very generous of you. The child doesn’t have much in the way of toys, poor little cock. She’s woken up and running around as bright as a button after sleeping for a few hours. I don’t know where they get the energy, I really don’t.’ Flora rubbed her back. ‘As for these boxes of books – would you both be loves and take them into my bedroom? You can slide them under my bed out of the way for now. After that, come along downstairs. Mildred is making cocoa and we have some leftovers to eat, if you’re hungry?’ She turned to head back downstairs.