One Rainy Day (43 page)

‘I think you did the right thing,’ Andrew said. ‘I know John Sutherland, not as a friend but through business transactions. And he is not a man I could be a friend to. His father is a gentleman, but unfortunately the son is anything but. Anyway, you are better off away from him. And with a good reference, you will soon find other employment.’

Andrew argued with his conscience. Should he offer to help? For he could, and would love to offer her a position in his office. But he knew any offer would be turned down flat, and could even break their fragile friendship. ‘I have no doubt you will not be long out of work.’ He laughed, hoping what he was about to say would be taken as a joke. ‘Have a word with my sister. She’ll help. She’s quite the little businesswoman when it suits her. If she was the one looking for a job, whoever interviewed her would take her on just to stop her talking. My father is putty in her hands.’

‘Peter could get me a job immediately, so I wouldn’t need to be out of work at all. But I prefer to be independent. I do have my pride, you know.’

‘Don’t forget you promised to visit my office for tea and cakes,’ Andrew reminded her. ‘Come in with Charlotte one day, and let me know your news. I would like that.’

‘I will, I promise.’ For the first time since they’d set foot on the dance floor, Poppy looked into his face. ‘And if I have landed a job, the cakes are on me.’

‘Peter didn’t seem very happy tonight, seeing you dancing with Andrew,’ David said, hanging his coat up in the hall. ‘He asked me who he was, and was he taking you out. I’d say Peter is very jealous.’

‘What did you tell him?’ Poppy asked.

‘What could I tell him? I don’t know much about Andrew, except he has a lovely sister. I really enjoyed myself tonight, thanks to Charlotte. She’s really very funny.’

Eva came in from the kitchen. She’d had a kettle of water on the boil for twenty minutes, so there’d be a hot drink ready for when they came in. ‘All I heard was that you had a good time, David, but Peter didn’t. So while I’m pouring the tea out, fill in the rest of the story.’

David pulled out a chair and sat with a satisfied smile on his face, rubbing his palms together. ‘I had a whale of a time. Charlotte is a great girl. She’d be the life and soul of any party.’

Eva put the cups of tea down in front of them, then drew out a chair for herself. ‘Now, who is Charlotte, and who was the Andrew you said Peter was jealous of? It’s all very confusing.’

‘Andrew and Charlotte are the brother and sister who knocked me over that day when it was raining. I’ve bumped into them a couple of times. Our office is very near to theirs,’
Poppy said. ‘I don’t know Andrew very well, but Charlotte has become a friend of mine and Jean’s, as you know.’

‘And why didn’t Peter like you dancing with this Andrew?’ Eva asked. ‘I thought he was back with his old girlfriend?’

‘He’s getting there, Mam, but it’s not going to happen overnight. It’ll take time, but Kate will win him round, and she deserves to. Peter is used to dancing with me, but he’ll get over it. That’s why I asked David to come with me tonight, so Kate could get a look in. I was surprised when Charlotte and Andrew turned up, but I was glad to see them, for it relieved the tension.’

‘I wonder if Charlotte will come to the Grafton again, Poppy?’ David asked. ‘Let me know and I’ll come along, just for a laugh.’

‘I doubt she’ll come again, David. And don’t get too fond of her ’cos she’s way out of our league. I’ve grown very fond of her myself, but I know it won’t last, our friendship, ’cos I couldn’t keep up with her social life.’

‘Money isn’t everything, sweetheart. It shouldn’t come between friends,’ Eva said. ‘One person sits in the front stalls in the picture house ’cos that’s all they can afford. Another person sits in the dress circle ’cos they can afford it. But there’s no reason why those two people can’t be friends.’

Poppy could feel her tummy churning as a voice in her head told her to get on with it. ‘I’ve got some news, Mam and David, and it’s not good news.’ She saw her mother and brother look startled, and was quick to assure them, ‘Oh, it’s nothing serious. No one has died! But it’s not good news, either. I gave a week’s notice today, and I’m leaving my job next Friday. And as I haven’t got another job lined up, I might not be able to put in the usual housekeeping money until something turns up. I’m all right for this week, and next, and
I’m hoping not to be out of work for long. But I can’t say for certain.’

It was David who asked, ‘How and why did that come about, sis? You’ve never given any hint you were thinking of leaving so soon.’

‘I wasn’t. It just happened. My pride wouldn’t allow me to stay there.’

Eva put a hand over one of Poppy’s. ‘You must have had good reason, sweetheart. Why don’t you tell us, and get it off yer chest. A trouble shared is a trouble halved. And me and David are here for yer. So tell us what brought it about.’

Poppy began her tale with standing outside the office block waiting hopefully for Jean to arrive with good news about her interview. There was no sound or movement from Eva or David until she came to the part where she’d decided she couldn’t sit and listen to her friend being ridiculed, insulted and sworn at. Then David said, ‘Good for you, Poppy. You did what any self-respecting person would do. If I’d been there, I’d have lost my temper and thumped him one.’

‘David is right, sweetheart,’ Eva said, ‘except about thumping your Mr John. Violence never solves anything. But I’m glad you kept your dignity. I wouldn’t have wanted you to work with such a dreadful man, so I’m glad you handed your notice in. And don’t you worry about money. We’ll manage fine.’

‘I’ll give extra every week so your money won’t be missed, Poppy,’ David said. ‘I don’t spend much on myself, and I’m on a decent wage.’

‘It won’t be for long,’ Poppy said with determination. ‘I brought the
Echo
in with me earlier, so I’ll have a look down the job vacancies. And I’ll go to the Labour Exchange and see if they know of jobs going.’

‘Ask Charlotte’s father,’ David said. ‘He may help. He must know plenty of firms.’

‘No!’ Poppy shook her head. ‘I will not ask Charlotte, Andrew or their father for help. I’ll get there on my own. I was determined to learn shorthand, and I stuck with it. And I’m just as determined to become a private secretary, and I’ll do that as well, you’ll see.’

‘Of course you will, sweetheart.’ Eva wasn’t saying it just to bolster her daughter’s feelings; she was certain in her own mind that Poppy’s struggle to learn shorthand wouldn’t be wasted. She wouldn’t be out of work long, not if Mr Jones gave her a good reference. With that in her hand, and a smart appearance, she shouldn’t have a problem. ‘Put it out of your mind for now. It’s time for bed. You’ve had a hard day, but yer’ll feel better in the morning after a good sleep.’

‘Don’t you worry about me, Mam. I’m no shrinking violet, I’m tough. It’s Mr John you should be worried about, because it will be all round the offices why we gave our notice in. His father is bound to know by now, and he’s not going to be very happy about the way his son runs his office. I bet he gets a good ticking off, and he won’t be able to answer his father back. He’ll have to stand there and take it. Like Jean’s had to for so many years.’

‘That’s enough now, sweetheart, because if yer go to bed with an active brain yer’ll never get to sleep.’

‘I’m on my way, Mam, and I will sleep because I’m tired.’ Poppy gave her mother a kiss, then leaned over to David. ‘Thanks for coming to the dance with me, our kid. It was a good thing really, with Charlotte and Andrew turning up out of the blue. I’m glad they did, because now when I talk about Charlotte you’ll know what she’s like. So here’s a whopping big kiss to say thank you.’

‘I should be thanking you, our kid, because a game of cards seems dull in comparison. And seeing as it’s Saturday tomorrow, when you and our mam don’t go to work and I only do a couple of hours, how’s about me taking you both to the pictures? A little outing for the Meadows family.’

‘Oh, that would be nice,’ Poppy said. ‘I’ll look forward to it. What do you say, Mam?’

Eva chuckled. ‘As soon as you two go to bed, I’ll wash these few cups, then get the
Echo
out. I’ll look down the list of cinemas, and see what’s on. If we don’t all favour the same film, we’ll toss for it.’ She waved a hand towards the door. ‘Off you go. Goodnight and God bless.’

Sunday morning the family were having a leisurely breakfast while reading articles in the
News of the World
. Eva had the first few pages, Poppy the middle section and David the sports pages near the back. ‘Liverpool got beaten yesterday,’ he informed them. ‘Lost by one goal.’

Aren’t you glad you weren’t there, son?’ Eva asked, a smile hovering around her mouth. ‘It’s bad enough reading that your favourite team lost, but it must be heartbreaking to have to stand and watch them.’

‘Ay, just look at this,’ Poppy said, holding the pages between her two hands. ‘They’re advertising television sets for thirty pound. They’ve come down in price from last year. The cheapest then was fifty pound, going up to a hundred. It would be nice to have one, to see what’s going in the world. And they have plays and films on.’ She lowered the paper. ‘When I’m working, and getting a decent wage, shall we save up and buy one?’

‘I’m all for it.’ David sounded eager. ‘They have football on as well. The day after the game, of course, but at least you can
watch it in comfort. Standing in the Kop when it’s cold or raining is no joke. It takes a very loyal fan to go to every home game. So I’m all for clubbing together to buy a television.’

‘Whatever you two decide, I’ll go along with,’ Eva said, folding her pages of the paper. ‘It will be nice for me when I go on part time, having the afternoons with me feet up and being entertained.’ She pushed her chair back, passed the paper to David, and began clearing the table. ‘We’re having roast beef for dinner, and I’ll do a Yorkshire pudding.’

Poppy rubbed her tummy. ‘Goody, goody. I love Yorkshire pudding with plenty of gravy.’

When the knock came on the door, Eva looked down at the dirty dishes in her hand and the tablecloth littered with crumbs. ‘Oh, dear, this is probably Marg. I’ll take these out while one of you brings the sauce bottle and jam out. And the other, whip the tablecloth off the table and shake it in the yard.’ When the second knock came, she shouted, ‘Hold yer horses, will yer?’

‘Look at the state of me in my dressing gown,’ Poppy moaned. ‘I don’t care who it is, I’m opening the door in it. If they don’t like it, they can lump it.’

‘Ay, queen, I heard that.’ Marg Boden brushed past. ‘And I wouldn’t care if yer were in yer nuddy. It wouldn’t put me off me dinner.’

Eva poked her head into the living room to see her neighbour pulling a chair out for herself. ‘Don’t make yerself comfortable, sweetheart, ’cos you ain’t staying for dinner. The piece of beef I’ve got will not stretch to four people.’

‘Oh, I won’t be staying until dinnertime, queen, ’cos I’ve got to get me own dinner on the go. We’re having lamb with mint sauce, and veg of course.’ She winked at Poppy and David before adding, ‘I promised Ally I’d just have one cup of
tea, ten minutes’ chatter, then go home. Is that all right with you, queen?’

Eva came in drying her hands. ‘Do I have any choice, Mrs Boden? It seems not, for we were all set to lounge around for the whole day.’ This was a fib of course, but neither Poppy nor David contradicted their mother, as they sat and waited to be entertained by their neighbour. They only had to wait a few seconds.

‘Say that again, Eva Meadows.’ Marg narrowed her eyes to slits. ‘Did you just say that the three of yer were going to hang around all day in yer dressing gowns?’

Eva nodded. ‘That’s what I said, sweetheart. There’s nothing wrong with your ears.’

‘Well, you lazy buggers!’ Marg looked from one to the other. ‘Yer should bleeding well be ashamed of yerselves! Not only do yer not go to church, but yer can’t even be bothered looking respectable. The neighbours will think ye’re running a house of ill repute.’

David managed to get an expression of innocence on his face. ‘What do you mean, Marg? What is a house of ill repute? I never heard of that before.’

Poppy copied him. ‘Neither have I! Do you mean like Florrie, over the road? I know her house is untidy.’

‘Don’t act the bleeding goat! Who do yer think ye’re trying to kid!’ Marg sat back in the chair and crossed her legs. ‘If all this is because yer can’t be bothered making me a cup of tea, and yer think I’ll take the hint and slink back home, well yer’ve got another think coming, queen, because I came for a purpose, and I ain’t about to move me backside until I’ve done what I set out to do. So now you know.’

Eva stood by the table looking thoughtful. ‘I’ve forgotten what yer said yer’d come for now, so remind me.’

Marg held up three fingers of her left hand, and ticked them off with the index finger of her right. ‘Cup of tea, ten minutes’ chat, and ask Poppy if Sarah can go to the Grafton with her and David again on Tuesday. Now they are easy enough to understand and agree to. So get the ruddy kettle on, and stop messing about.’

‘All right, sweetheart, keep yer hair on. I’ll put the kettle on. That’s number one and my job. David can keep you chatting until the tea’s made. That’s number two sorted out. And number three is Poppy’s turn. She’ll answer the question about Sarah and the Grafton.’

Marg let out a deep sigh. ‘All that for a ruddy cup of tea. I ask yer, was it worth it?’ She winked at Poppy before raising her voice. ‘The least she can do is put a couple of biscuits on the saucer to make up for the time she’s wasted.’

It didn’t take Eva long to make the tea, and soon they were seated round the table with a plate of assorted biscuits in the centre. After dunking an arrowroot biscuit into her tea, and lifting it quickly to her mouth before the end fell off, Marg turned to Poppy. ‘Would you mind taking Sarah with you to the Grafton on Tuesday? If it intrudes on yer love life, then just say so. Sarah won’t be upset. I mean, yer don’t want a hanger-on if ye’re with a boyfriend.’

‘I haven’t got a boyfriend, Marg,’ Poppy said. It had to come out sometime, so it may as well be now. But she wouldn’t go through the whole saga of Peter and Kate, for whatever they decided it was their business, not a source of conversation for people who didn’t even know them. ‘And I’ve got another surprise for you. I handed in my notice at work on Friday, and I leave next Friday.’