Cate spied some chocolates in a tin and reached for them, deciding she might need a treat over the coming days. Dunkirk might be pretty, but she had no illusions about what they were heading into. No matter how well their British soldiers were faring, war was war, and she couldn’t imagine how many wounded she would soon be tending to.

Once they’d paid, Lilly linked arms with her, and they went straight back out into the bright sunshine. Cate forced herself to put Charlie from her mind and just enjoy the day. Worrying about his whereabouts or wishing he were there wasn’t going to do her any good.

“Which restaurant?” Lilly asked. “We could drink wine and eat snails if you’d like?”

Cate laughed. “Trust you.” She giggled, never having had so much freedom in her life before, and certainly never imagining she would be travelling abroad.

“What, are you nervous about the wine or the snails?”

Cate shrugged before they burst into laughter again. “Both!”

They bent their heads together as they walked and Cate couldn’t wipe the smile from her face as they marched up to the first restaurant.

“Table for two?” the maître d’ asked them from the door in heavily accented English.

“Merci,” Lilly said, and Cate noticed the way she smiled, fluttering her eyelashes at the handsome Frenchman.

“I think you wanted to come here for more than the food,” Cate whispered as they sat down.

“We’re not all engaged to be married,” Lilly teased. “Although I won’t tell my brother if you decide to enjoy the view a little.”

Cate just smiled at Lilly, happy to be in her shadow. Lilly was like the brightest flower in a garden, always radiant, her smile easy and her eyes always alight with mischief. And as their wine arrived and the smell of French fries wafted from the table beside them, Cate wished she could capture the moment on film so she never, ever forgot it. Because even with Charlie miles away from her, it was one of the best afternoons of her life.

Dunkirk, she thought, as soldiers strolled past in small groups, talking and laughing as if they didn’t have a care in the world. I’ve never seen anywhere so beautiful.

CHAPTER ONE CATE

CHAPTER ONE

CATE
CALAIS, FRANCE, MAY 1940

Cate stared at the scene around her, wishing her head would stop pounding. She’d never heard a noise like it; German planes were roaring in the distance now, but when they’d flown over less than a minute earlier, the sound had been deafening.