jobs.’
‘Lucky they are to have you, Willie Morgan.’
As the days lengthened, the sisters’ world widened. They weren’t as free as when their father was alive but they found time for a little fun: life had to be more than work and sleep. Bertie and Beryl met Myfanwy from school at least once a week and they were able to go dancing again. Through the dancing, Gareth became more relaxed with them and after many false starts invited Cecily to go to Cardiff for a meal. Ada hid her disappointment and promised to wait up.
‘No need,’ Cecily laughed. ‘I’m a big girl now!’
‘I couldn’t sleep, knowing the big front door wasn’t bolted. Best I wait and make sure everything is safe before we go to bed.’
They planned to go on the bus. Gareth chose the route that wandered through several small villages rather than the direct service most people preferred. ‘Nice to have a leisurely drive,’ he explained vaguely. The bus went via the beach in one direction, further inland on its return. Cecily was curious but accepted Gareth’s plan.
She suspected, though, that the bus into Cardiff and the meal so far away was partly so they wouldn’t be seen by anyone who knew them, saving him the embarrassment of people knowing about their date. He really was a shy man. She wondered whether his mother knew, or if he had concocted some tale about an appointment with a business friend, to saveher destroying his confidence by warning him about taking out one of the Owen girls.
Cecily did not love Gareth. She hardly knew him apart from as a dancing partner and occasional customer, but there was something appealing about him, and when they danced she wanted nothing more than to spend the hours with him. He was a different person on the dance floor. He lost his shyness and talked amusingly and with confidence. Yet, when they met outside the world of the shimmy, the Charleston, the polka and the foxtrot, he was hardly able to string a few words together.
After weeks of being so involved with building the business, the thought of a bus ride and a meal were something to look forward to and she chose her dress with care. She decided on a slim-fitting, button-up coat reaching to mid-calf, the buttons threatening to bruise her knees as she walked, but so fashionable it was worth the risk. She chose Cuban heeled shoes, a cloche hat, and a handbag in the same dark green as the shoes. The coat was mauve and had buttons in the same green as the accessories. Ada was impressed when she saw her ready to go out.
‘I’d never have chosen green to go with that mauve coat but it looks very smart.’
‘Auntie Cecily, you are beautiful!’ Van said in awe. Then she added cheekily, ‘Except for the hat, mind. It looks like a bucket for coal!’
Gareth was due at seven, but it was almost eight when he knocked the shop door. Ada went to let him in and the bell jangled its disapproval. Cecily had removed her hat and was sitting, her feet free of shoes, on a stool close to the fire. Gareth puffed in, his face red with embarrassment, bending forward in his anxiety at being so late.
‘Mam had a turn,’ he blurted out. ‘Sorry I am. But we still have time, if you haven’t changed your mind.’
‘If you hadn’t turned up, Gareth, I would never, ever have considered accepting an invitation again.’
‘Sorry.’
Ada walked to the door, a wide smile disguising her dismay at seeing her sister and Gareth walking side by side up the hill to the bus stop.
‘Come on, Van,’ she said to the little girl who had been allowed to stay up to see Cecily in her new clothes. ‘We’ll have a game of Snap before I tuck you in.’
When Van was in bed, Ada picked up some knitting and turned on the wireless for entertainment from Savoy Hill. She hoped to hear her favourite, John Henry, with his wife Blossom, a popular comedy act. In his lugubrious voice he told stories abut married life. And the audience laughed as soon as he began in a low voice,
‘Lucky they are to have you, Willie Morgan.’
As the days lengthened, the sisters’ world widened. They weren’t as free as when their father was alive but they found time for a little fun: life had to be more than work and sleep. Bertie and Beryl met Myfanwy from school at least once a week and they were able to go dancing again. Through the dancing, Gareth became more relaxed with them and after many false starts invited Cecily to go to Cardiff for a meal. Ada hid her disappointment and promised to wait up.
‘No need,’ Cecily laughed. ‘I’m a big girl now!’
‘I couldn’t sleep, knowing the big front door wasn’t bolted. Best I wait and make sure everything is safe before we go to bed.’
They planned to go on the bus. Gareth chose the route that wandered through several small villages rather than the direct service most people preferred. ‘Nice to have a leisurely drive,’ he explained vaguely. The bus went via the beach in one direction, further inland on its return. Cecily was curious but accepted Gareth’s plan.
She suspected, though, that the bus into Cardiff and the meal so far away was partly so they wouldn’t be seen by anyone who knew them, saving him the embarrassment of people knowing about their date. He really was a shy man. She wondered whether his mother knew, or if he had concocted some tale about an appointment with a business friend, to saveher destroying his confidence by warning him about taking out one of the Owen girls.
Cecily did not love Gareth. She hardly knew him apart from as a dancing partner and occasional customer, but there was something appealing about him, and when they danced she wanted nothing more than to spend the hours with him. He was a different person on the dance floor. He lost his shyness and talked amusingly and with confidence. Yet, when they met outside the world of the shimmy, the Charleston, the polka and the foxtrot, he was hardly able to string a few words together.
After weeks of being so involved with building the business, the thought of a bus ride and a meal were something to look forward to and she chose her dress with care. She decided on a slim-fitting, button-up coat reaching to mid-calf, the buttons threatening to bruise her knees as she walked, but so fashionable it was worth the risk. She chose Cuban heeled shoes, a cloche hat, and a handbag in the same dark green as the shoes. The coat was mauve and had buttons in the same green as the accessories. Ada was impressed when she saw her ready to go out.
‘I’d never have chosen green to go with that mauve coat but it looks very smart.’
‘Auntie Cecily, you are beautiful!’ Van said in awe. Then she added cheekily, ‘Except for the hat, mind. It looks like a bucket for coal!’
Gareth was due at seven, but it was almost eight when he knocked the shop door. Ada went to let him in and the bell jangled its disapproval. Cecily had removed her hat and was sitting, her feet free of shoes, on a stool close to the fire. Gareth puffed in, his face red with embarrassment, bending forward in his anxiety at being so late.
‘Mam had a turn,’ he blurted out. ‘Sorry I am. But we still have time, if you haven’t changed your mind.’
‘If you hadn’t turned up, Gareth, I would never, ever have considered accepting an invitation again.’
‘Sorry.’
Ada walked to the door, a wide smile disguising her dismay at seeing her sister and Gareth walking side by side up the hill to the bus stop.
‘Come on, Van,’ she said to the little girl who had been allowed to stay up to see Cecily in her new clothes. ‘We’ll have a game of Snap before I tuck you in.’
When Van was in bed, Ada picked up some knitting and turned on the wireless for entertainment from Savoy Hill. She hoped to hear her favourite, John Henry, with his wife Blossom, a popular comedy act. In his lugubrious voice he told stories abut married life. And the audience laughed as soon as he began in a low voice,
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