‘You could be right, Cordelia,’ said Peggy, ‘but they’d be lost without each other, so I hope this all blows over quickly.’ She set Daisy on her feet and the little girl ran straight to Cordelia and wrapped her tiny arms around her legs, smiling up at her winningly and asking for a biscuit and juice.

Cordelia dried her hands. ‘Ron should realise what a treasure he has in Rosie and stop behaving like an overgrown schoolboy,’ she said, hunting out a biscuit from the packet in the air-raid box that always stood by the door. ‘And knowing how Rosie feels about Gloria, I think he’s gone too far this time.’ She handed over the biscuit with a loving smile at Daisy, and then poured a little orange juice into a cup. ‘If you ask me,’ she said crisply, ‘he’s a fool.’

Peggy was used to hearing Cordelia being stern about Ron – it had become a sort of game the pair of them enjoyed, so she didn’t take much notice. She took off her coat and gloves and put her arm around Rita. ‘How are you, love? I didn’t expect you to be home yet.’

Rita hugged her back. ‘John let me off early as there wasn’t much doing, but he had me stripping one of the engines, so the day didn’t drag too much.’ Her face brightened. ‘And I got a letter from Dad. He’s trying to get some leave so he can come down, but I know how difficult things are at the moment, so although I’d love to see him, I’ll understand if he can’t make it.’

‘I’m sure he’ll do his best,’ soothed Peggy, kissing the top of her head. Rita would certainly benefit from a visit by her father, but with things the way they were, Peggy suspected his army duties would keep him away.

Rita went to fetch another chair from the dining room, so Peggy turned to Fran, whose copper curls were glowing in the firelight. ‘And what about you, dear? All those lovely letters this morning – have you heard from your family?’

‘Mammy was full of gossip about her neighbours and moaning about Da’s lumbago, which he uses as an excuse to get out of doing anything useful around the house.’ She grinned impishly. ‘He’s a lot like Ron, really. Full of Irish charm, and a magician at getting out of things he has no wish to be doing.’

‘And you, Sarah?’ Peggy asked, knowing full well there had been an air letter from Australia in the morning post, as well as an intriguing one bearing a US forces’ franking.