Nancy nodded as she nibbled at the dry roll. ‘You should have seen it before the blitz. St Luke’s was lovely.’ She paused ruefully. ‘We lost so many buildings in just a few days. Most of the rubble has been cleared away now, but you could hardly walk around because of the bricks and stones and glass, and the smell, oh boy, you don’t ever want to come across such a thing again. Burning and all that.’ She sighed at the memory of that terrible, frightening time, and then grew quiet, figuring that if Trenton and his men were over here, then they would most likely be called to take part in equally grim scenes, or possibly worse. She had better shut up – the men came to the canteen to take their minds off such things, not to be reminded of what they were about to face.

‘Everyone says it was a great city,’ Trenton said.

‘Still is,’ Nancy replied robustly. ‘There’s nowhere better, and you’d better believe it. We might not have that church or our cathedral, we haven’t even got a proper John Lewis any more – that’s a store, a lovely big department store – but you won’t find our spirit’s been broken.’

Trenton smiled even more broadly and nodded in approval. Nancy couldn’t help notice he had very fine hands, with tapering fingers and clean, square-cut nails. She wondered how strong his grip was, or how delicate his touch could be. Maybe if he were to touch her … She shook the thought from her mind. ‘You said it, Miss Kerrigan,’ he agreed. ‘That’s what everyone tells me. The people of Merseyside won’t be beat.’

‘No, sir.’ Nancy swiftly wiped the last of her roll around the dregs of the soup and popped it into her mouth. She was too hungry to leave any food, good-looking staff sergeant or not, but then she shook the crumbs from her fingers and swiftly pushed back her hair. She flashed him her best Rita Hayworth smile.

‘So how does a person get to see the real Liverpool?’ Trenton asked now. ‘I can’t say how long I’m around for, but I kinda think I should get to know the city while I’m stationed here.’

Nancy pushed her bowl away and sat up straighter. ‘Well, the WVS has been known to run tours. Just short ones, as a way of helping our visiting servicemen find their way about the place.’

‘Ah.’ Trenton nodded. ‘See, that’s sort of what I had in mind, but as I already know my way about, I was looking for something more … customised. Something special. The Liverpool most visitors don’t get to see, that kind of thing.’

Nancy nodded, enjoying the way this was going. ‘I think I get your drift, soldier.’ She looked him right in the eye. ‘A personal guided tour, you mean? Was that what you were after?’