Peggy discovered that all the telephone lines were engaged, so reluctantly gave up the idea of trying to speak to her younger sister Doreen or Anne for now, and went back into the dining room to spend precious time with Cissy. Daisy was playing nicely on the hearthrug with Paula as Frank topped up glasses, handed round plates of sandwiches and got the gramophone going. Seeing him take on his father’s usual role as host, Peggy realised with a jolt that now Ron and his dog, Harvey were living at the Anchor with Rosie, their absence had taken a little of the shine out of the day. They would be sorely missed over the coming weeks and months. The only consolation was that Ron would be a regular visitor, for he had to tend his vegetable plot in the back garden, and continue helping her with the repairs to the house.

She took her refilled glass from Frank and sat down next to Cissy. ‘I’m surprised you haven’t gone into town with the others,’ she said.

‘I’ll go in later. For now it would just be lovely to sit with you for a while, if that’s all right.’

‘Silly girl. Of course it is.’ Peggy put her arm around her daughter’s slender waist, noting that she seemed thinner, but did look very elegant in the expensively tailored WAAF uniform that had certainly not been made in any factory. ‘It’s been so long since we’ve had more than a snatched hour together,’ she said on a sigh. ‘Still, it’s more than I’ve managed with Anne and the boys over the past five years.’

Cissy smiled. ‘You’ll soon have them all home, although Lord knows where you’re going to put them all.’

‘I’ll think of something,’ said Peggy. ‘It’s so lovely to see you, darling, but how did you manage to get away from the airfield?’

Cissy lit Lucky Strikes for them both and tucked the little gold lighter in her jacket pocket. ‘Cliffe’s all but shut down, and as I’ll be out of a job by the end of the week, they’ve let me come home until I’m officially discharged.’

Peggy regarded her beautiful daughter with some concern, for although she’d spoken lightly, there was a brittle quality to her smile. ‘But if Cliffe’s closing what will happen to all the planes still over in Europe?’

‘They’ll go to the bigger airfields along with the troop carriers and bombers.’

‘And how do you feel about leaving? I know how much you’ve loved being a part of the WAAFs.’

Cissy shrugged her narrow shoulders and tried to appear nonchalant. ‘I shall miss it dreadfully,’ she admitted. ‘But there’s nothing any of us can do about it – in fact a lot of the other girls have already gone home, so it’s a bit dreary up there now.’