About mid afternoon she saw his tall figure coming along the lane, the two youngest Harris children hopping alongside him. They were carrying home-made shrimping nets. The soldier was bending his head slightly to one side to listen to their chatter whilst a small smile played on his mouth. Watching them, Esther moved towards the gate. He looked up and saw her and raised his hand in greeting. His smile broadened, crinkling the laughter lines around his eyes. It was impossible not to return his smile.

‘Georgie and Alice are taking me shrimping.’ His blue eyes danced with merriment. ‘We wondered if your little girl – Kate, isnt it? – would like to come along.’

‘I’m sure she would. Please come in a moment.’ She opened the farm gate and they followed her into the farmhouse. ‘Would you like a drink of milk, Georgie – Alice?’

‘Yes please, missus,’ they chorused.

Esther turned to Jonathan Godfrey. ‘Please – sit down. Can I offer you anything – a glass of home-made wine perhaps?’

‘Thank you – as long as I’m still sober enough to wield a shrimping net!’

The children giggled and the sound of their laughter brought Kate downstairs from her room.

‘You comin’ shrimpin’ with me an’ our Alice an’ Mr Godfrey?’ Georgie asked her, a rim of milk on his upper lip.

There was pleasure on Kate’s face, but then it faded. ‘I – I ain’t got a shrimpin’ net.’

The Harris children exchanged glances. ‘Ya can borrow ours,’ Georgie offered generously. ‘We can take it in turns.’

Kate brightened again and as Jonathan stood up, she slipped her hand trustingly into his. ‘Can Danny come too?’ her piping voice asked and smiled winningly at the tall man, her red curls dancing.

Jonathan glanced at Esther. ‘Danny? Who is Danny?’

Before Esther could answer, Kate spoke for herself. ‘He’s my friend. He lives at the Point – in the big boat.’

‘You know, mester. He was playing cricket with us this morning.’

Above the children’s heads, Jonathan exchanged a glance of wry amusement with Esther. Laughing, she said, ‘It sounds as if you’re in great demand.’

‘He’s bin teaching me an’ Danny to bowl overarm, ain’t ya, mester?’ Georgie turned back to Esther, awed admiration in his tone. ‘He’s played cricket afore the war with a proper team in Lincoln.’

‘Fancy!’ said Esther, dutifully echoing the young boy’s respect.

Kate was tugging at his hand. ‘Well – can Danny come too?’

‘Of course he can.’ Jonathan looked again at Esther. ‘I’ll take good care of them,’ he promised her.

As she watched them go, Esther felt disappointed that she had not been asked to join them. Just for once, she thought forlornly, she would have liked to have left her work and responsibilities for an hour or so and joined in the childish games on the seashore.

Suddenly, she felt very much older than her twenty-two years.