Jim was also smiling as he left Raffles, for he knew Elsa would have liked to move things on between them, and it would have been awkward if she hadn’t been worldly enough to realise it would have spoilt the friendship they’d forged over the months they’d worked together.

He liked her very much, for she reminded him of his Peggy, both in looks and character, and could be just as fierce when thwarted. If he hadn’t been married to Peggy, then he might very well have taken things further, for he’d enjoyed kissing her that time. However, life was full of lovely women and it could get hazardous when his flirting was taken seriously and he had to talk his way out of difficult and often embarrassing situations.

He left Raffles for the last time, his hopes high that there really would be a position for him with the Legion, for it was work he knew he’d be good at, and at the same time he would gain enormous satisfaction from doing something worthwhile.

He drove back to the billet to find the place in chaos with men doing their last-minute packing and dashing in and out for one final drink or shopping expedition.

Jim ran up the stairs, hoping he wasn’t too late to catch his old pal Jumbo before he left. Going into the room they shared, he saw Jumbo, resplendent in his kilt, filling yet another suitcase with linens and bolts of material.

‘Good grief, Jumbo, you must have bought up the entire market,’ he exclaimed.

‘Well, I’ll need all this and more to make a proper home for Myfanwy, and everything is so much cheaper here than at home,’ he replied, tying a label to the handle.

‘Typical penny-pinching Scotsman,’ teased Jim, digging him in the ribs. ‘Why not parcel it all up and post it back?’

Jumbo looked at him in wide-eyed horror. ‘D’ye ken how much that would cost, Jim?’

Jim laughed. ‘I have a fair idea, as I’ve posted enough stuff back home to fill a ship.’ He slapped the other man’s shoulder. ‘Come on, you’ve time for a couple of beers before you have to leave for the port. I’m buying,’ he added with a wink.

‘Och, Jim, you go too far with your teasing. But I’ll happily drink with ye one last time.’

Jim helped him load everything into the back of the army truck which would take it all to the docks. There was a bustle of pent-up excitement in the air as the Scottish contingent prepared to leave, and Jim warmly shook their hands and wished them a good journey as he probably would never see them again.

Jumbo refused to let his precious bagpipes out of his sight, so he carried them under his arm as they set off for the bar on the corner. They settled at a small table in the dark little bar that was cooled by several large fans hanging from the low ceiling. They drank beer with whisky chasers; talked about the good and bad times they’d shared over the past few years; toasted the comrades who hadn’t made it back, and then discussed Jumbo’s plans for a house-warming party once he and Myfanwy were settled.