‘And George is amenable to that?’

She hesitated. ‘He gets frustrated that we are so far apart. And I do miss him. I wish he would come down south more often. Last year we only saw each other three times. But we write and speak on the telephone.’

‘Why can’t he come down more often?’

‘Clearly it’s too dangerous, and besides, he may be sent to Italy soon. They need supplies of medicines and foods.’

There was a pause. ‘Do you trust him?’ Tommy asked.

‘Of course.’ Crawfie dropped her gaze. ‘But – well, the other day I mentioned, as a joke more than anything, that the postmistress in the village told my mother that she had seen him out with a girl on his arm. I am sure she did it out of malice. Anyway, I chose the wrong time. George had had a drink and flew off the handle. It’s his work. It is too stressful and I shouldn’t have asked. He told me that I have too much time on my hands and need to do something for the war effort myself.’

Tommy was not impressed. ‘What does he think you are doing here, for goodness’ sake? Going to tea dances and galleries?’

She sighed. ‘No, but – and you’ll laugh at this – I thought he might have a point, so I went to the Women’s Royal Navy Service recruiting office to see if they would take me.’

Tommy’s eyebrows had shot up into his scalp. ‘What on earth for?’

‘To do my bit – and I like the uniform.’ She laughed. ‘Very shallow of me, I know, but I think I have been turned down anyway. In the box asking who my employer is, I wrote Her Majesty the Queen. That was a couple of weeks ago, and still no papers.’

Tommy threw back his head and laughed aloud. ‘They will refuse you entry on grounds of insanity!’

‘I know!’

Wiping his eyes, Tommy nodded to Crawfie’s glass. ‘But you will get married?’

‘Yes. I want to be Mrs Buthlay very much but …’

‘You want to stick with the job until it’s finished.’

Marion nodded.

Tommy stood up. ‘One more for the road?’

‘Not for me. I told Alah I would be back in the nursery for tea. The Princesses are out tonight at a dinner dance at Eton College, so it’s just the three of us.’

‘They are growing up fast.’ Tommy shook his head. ‘Margaret is what – thirteen now?’

‘Almost. And Lilibet eighteen.’

‘Goodness. I saw her the other day in her ATS uniform, looking like a real duck.’

Marion smiled. ‘Doesn’t she? Every morning, Jackson brings the car round to chauffeur her to Camberley Barracks. Do you know, she is being taught how to strip a lorry’s engine and put it back together again? Margaret is very jealous. She desperately wants to join up and have her own uniform. When she saw Lilibet in hers, she said it was the ugliest thing she had ever seen, out of spite.’