‘Here we are then.’ Harry drew the car to a halt and switched off the engine. ‘Let’s go and see what Matron has in store for us tonight, shall we?’

She nodded numbly as he hurried round the car to open the door for her and went to report for duty. Thankfully their paths didn’t cross again that night, which was a relief because she was busy torturing herself with visions of another girl on Richard’s arm.

Her mother was grinning like a Cheshire cat when Holly got home the next morning. ‘Walter and I have decided that we’re going to get married this summer,’ she told Holly joyously. ‘To be honest, we had intended to wait until next year but then, we thought, we’re not getting any younger so why not just go ahead and do it? We thought July would be a nice month for a wedding and we’d like you to be our matron of honour. And Florence and Katie will be bridesmaids, of course. What do you think, sweetheart?’

‘I think it’s a marvellous idea.’ Holly was genuinely pleased for her. It was time her mother had a little happiness.

‘Oh good, we were hoping you’d approve,’ Emma trilled. ‘We’re going to go and try to book a date at Chilvers Coton Church this afternoon and then Walter thought it would be nice if we had a little reception in the Bull Hotel in the marketplace afterwards. We don’t want a big wedding though,’ she rushed on. ‘Just very close friends and family. Walter is talking about a honeymoon in Venice afterwards.’

Holly felt a lump form in her throat as she saw how happy her mother was. She looked ten years younger suddenly but she knew that she would miss her. She had been the most constant person in her life up to now.

‘I hope you’ll both be very, very happy,’ she told her as she held her tightly and she meant every word.

Chapter Thirty-Three

By May Alice was sporting five teeth and was back to her normal smiling self, much to everyone’s relief. The flu epidemic that had swept through the town was also over and with the better weather upon them the people of Nuneaton were feeling much more optimistic.

In addition, Holly and Dr Phillips were getting along much better now, and she had eventually agreed to have an evening out with him, but, as she had warned him, only as a friend and he seemed to have accepted that. Up to now anyway. If she was honest, though, Holly would have gone so far as to admit that she’d grown quite fond of him, but not in the all-consuming way she had felt about Richard. Her heart still ached for him, but knowing that she had done the right thing gave her some consolation.

Holly’s grandfather, though, was not feeling quite so optimistic. ‘There is a lot of unrest abroad,’ he said gravely as he and Holly sat together in the garden reading the newspapers one evening after dinner. ‘I fear that it may lead to a war.’ He and his granddaughter had finally grown close since Holly had returned home and it thrilled him that he was able to converse with her on any subject from history to politics. He wondered now why he had never realised what an intelligent girl she was before.