‘Talk about cutting it fine,’ said Olivia as she kissed Ted goodbye. ‘I shall … oh Ted, are you all right?’

Ted had dropped suddenly, landing on his knee. He pushed his hand into his pocket and pulled out a small box which he opened and turned towards Olivia. ‘Toff, Liv, Olivia Campbell, you’re all these women to me, and I’ve been carrying this ring round for such a long time, just waiting for the day when I could finally ask you to be my wife. I wanted to wait until we found out what had happened to our baby. Little did I know when I got out of bed this morning that today would be the day that I could finally ask you.’ He beamed hopefully up at her. ‘Olivia Campbell, will you be my …’

Olivia squealed with excitement, drowning his last words out. ‘Yes!’ she cried ecstatically.

There was a ripple of applause from passengers who had stopped to watch his proposal. She looked at the silver band with a tiny blue stone which encircled her finger. ‘Where did you get it?’

‘It was Mam’s. Dad gave it to me when I told him we were back together,’ said Ted.

‘Your lovely father,’ said Olivia. ‘He’ll be made up when he hears about Jess and Dana.’

He nodded. ‘He certainly will.’

She smiled happily. ‘My darling Ted, I think I must be the happiest woman in the world right now, and once again it’s all down to you.’

He picked her up and swung her round before setting her down and kissing her softly. ‘I can’t wait to see you again, so that we can visit our daughters and spend some proper family time together.’ He smiled blissfully. ‘That’s going to take some getting used to – “our daughters”.’

She gazed into his eyes, which sparkled enticingly at her. ‘I love you, Edward Hewitt.’

The guard began to close the train doors.

Ted picked Olivia up again and carried her over to one of the carriages. Still holding her in his arms, he kissed her softly. ‘I love you too, my darling Toff!’

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‘Home is where the heart is, and my heart belongs to Liverpool. We wouldn’t dream of leavin’ our beloved city …’

August 1940

As the Luftwaffe swarm over Liverpool, Shane Quinn decides to move his family back to the safety of Ireland. But his only child, the beautiful Dana, would rather stay and serve her country than flee to a foreign land.

Determined to make it on her own, she joins the WAAF with newfound pals Patty and Lucy. There’s plenty of excitement to be had on a RAF station, even a chance or two at love …

But the stark reality of war begins to take its toll and the three girls soon discover they need their friendship more than ever. And when shocking news arrives from Ireland, Dana will realise the true importance of family.