Olive nodded, but from what Ruby had told her and bearing in mind how beautiful her sister was, she doubted it. Certainly on Edward’s part, anyway. A man didn’t travel all the way up from London every two minutes just to see his sister as Ruby had intimated. And Ruby hadn’t really answered her question as to whether she liked Edward in that way, which spoke volumes. ‘So you think you’ll look for shop premises when you go back, even with the slump getting worse?’

‘It’s time,’ said Ruby simply.

Their mother brought Alice through to the kitchen in the next moment so there the conversation ended, but as Ruby got to know her niece a little better, her last words to Olive were at the forefront of her mind. Coming home, seeing her mam and da and especially Olive, had settled something inside her. The next stage of her life had to begin. The thought terrified her as much as it excited her, but sink or swim, it was time.

When Ruby left the house for the train station the next day it was snowing again, big fat flakes that settled on the previous ice and snow and made walking even more treacherous. It had been an emotional leave-taking and even her father had shed some tears, and it was him Ruby was thinking of as she waved once more to her mother, who was standing on the doorstep, before turning the corner of the street. Her head down and her thoughts with her father, she almost jumped out of her skin when her arm was taken and a deep voice said, ‘Hello, Ruby.’

‘Adam!’ Putting her hand over her heart, which was trying to leap out of her chest, she said weakly, ‘I didn’t see you there.’

He didn’t say he had been standing watching the house since six o’clock that morning when he should have started his shift, or that he had lain awake all night since Olive had told him Ruby was home on a flying visit. He knew, of course, that Olive wouldn’t have said anything but for the fact that Alice had talked about her Auntie Ruby when they’d been having their evening meal. He stood looking at her, his gaze taking in her clothes, the way she held herself, but most of all the face that haunted his dreams. She was even more beautiful than he remembered, but of course four years had passed. The girl had turned into a woman.

‘How are you?’ he said huskily.