‘Sit down and drink your tea before it gets cold,’ said Peggy, trying to be stern, but failing to hold back a smile.

‘I promised Charlie I’d look in on his match if I could,’ he replied, glancing at the clock on the mantel. He drained the cup of tea, patted a wide-eyed Daisy on the head and then reached down for the heavy bags. ‘Before I go, I’d better give you this lot,’ he said.

‘Presents!’ shouted Daisy, clapping her hands.

‘They’re not really presents,’ explained Bob, delving beneath his clean clothes to bring out several tins, numerous jars and a dozen carefully wrapped parcels. ‘Proper presents are for Christmas, so you’ll have to wait a bit longer.’

He turned to his mother. ‘Vi and I thought you’d appreciate a little extra over Christmas as the rationing is so tight now.’

Peggy and Cordelia gasped at the bounty. There was a home-cured ham and rashers of bacon; jams, chutneys, tins of cakes; home-made pork pies, apple pies and meat pies, and canisters of butter, cream and honey. There were even packets of tea, coffee and sugar, but the crowning glories were the iced Christmas cake and fruit-filled plum pudding.

‘Oh, Bob,’ said Peggy through her tears. ‘What wonderful, generous gifts. We shall certainly make great use of them, but I do wish Vi was here to join us for Christmas.’

‘I tried to persuade her to come, but she’s settled at Owlet Farm, and now there are children about the place again, she’s planning on a real family Christmas.’

‘We’ll be having one here too,’ said Peggy delightedly. ‘Frank’s coming with Betty and Brendon and their little boy, Joseph. Your grandad will be here with Rosie – and probably the dogs. And then there’s Jack Smith who’s on his own, and Danuta who is bringing her chap along too. I’m hoping Cissy will come down, but I’m not holding my breath.’

‘What about Anne and Martin?’

‘They’re spending the day in their own home with the children and then coming over here on Boxing Day. Suzy and Anthony are coming down to spend Christmas with Doris and John and they’ll be bringing little Teddy and Angela, the new baby, so it’ll be a full house here on Boxing Day.’

‘It’s a good thing I brought extra supplies, then,’ said Bob. ‘Sounds like you’ll be feeding the five thousand as usual.’ He grinned, pushed back from the table and retrieved his coat from in front of the range fire where it was in danger of getting scorched. ‘Enjoy putting it all away in that posh fridge, Mum, and I’ll see you later.’

24

Doris was in the same euphoric state as her sister, for like Peggy she’d been living with upheaval, dirt, dust and inconvenience for weeks, and now the work on the two bungalows was finished just in time for Christmas. She parked the car, but instead of retrieving her shopping and going indoors, she just sat there admiring the result.