All My Tomorrows by Ellie Dean Read Free Book Online

hiccuping with fury at not being fed, but had become fascinated by Ron’s sweeping eyebrows. She made a grab for one and held on, broke into a beaming smile as he winced, and gave it a hefty tug.
    ‘To be sure, the pain is worth it to have no more crying,’ Ron groaned as the tiny fist took a tighter hold.
    ‘You should have let Fran give them a trim when she offered,’ said Cordelia with a glint of humour in her eyes. ‘It’s your own fault they stick out like that.’
    ‘Did I hear my name being taken in vain?’ Fran came into the kitchen, her auburn curls dancing about her shoulders in disarray as she plumped into a chair at the table and reached for the teapot. ‘That’s a fair hold she has on you there, Uncle Ron,’ she said and laughed. ‘Are you sure you’ll not be letting me trim them brows?’
    Ron tried glowering at her, but didn’t quite manage it, for he was trying not to laugh as he fended off the tiny pugilist who seemed determined to batter him.
    Peggy sank into her chair by the fire and lit a cigarette as the little Irish nurse and her father-in-law teased one another. Just being at home in her kitchen and sitting down was enough to restore her. ‘Is Suzy back yet?’ she asked.
    ‘Aye, that she is, and in a terrible lather upstairs, worrying the life out of herself about what to wear to this awful dinner at Doris’s.’
    Peggy told them about seeing Doris earlier. ‘It’s just so typical of my sister to give out such an invitation with no notice and expect everyone to jump. I’d better go up and have a word with Suzy. Warn her what to expect.’
    ‘I t’ink she already has a fair idea, Peggy, and she’s girding her loins to prepare for battle, so she is.’ Fran giggled. ‘What I wouldn’t give to be a fly on the wall in that house tonight.’
    ‘It’s not funny, Fran,’ said Rita as she came stomping into the room in her heavy waterproof trousers, thick boots and moth-eaten WWI flying jacket. She dumped her rain-soaked goggles and leather helmet on the table and poured a cup of tea. ‘Doris can make things very sticky for Suzy, and she’ll have to be on her guard all night. Just be thankful it’s not you.’
    ‘To be sure, Anthony’s a lovely wee man, but he’s not my type. One look at Doris, and any girl worth her salt would be running for their lives, so they would. Suzy deserves a medal.’
    Peggy watched as Rita discarded the sodden jacket and the two girls drank the stewed tea. Fran was from Ireland and, like Suzy, was a nurse at the hospital. Rita was a local girl who’d come to live at Beach View after she’d been bombed out, and now drove fire engines for a living when she wasn’t organising motorcycle races out at the old track. Fran’s blue eyes and wild autumnal hair were in direct contrast to Rita’s sleeker black curls and dark eyes – and although their personalities were very different, they seemed to rub along without too much falling out.
    Peggy gave a sigh of contentment as she settled into the fireside chair and enjoyed not having to do anything for a few minutes. The stew was in the oven, the potatoes cooking on the hob while Ron fed Daisy her mashed veg and warmed her bottle in a jug of hot water. Left to her own devices, Peggy could have nodded off then and there.
    ‘Right,’ said Ron as he handed Daisy and the bottle of formula milk over to Fran. ‘I’m off to open up the pub. I’ll be back for me tea, and then I’ve got a Home Guard meeting at the church hall.’
    As he left the house with Harvey trotting at his heels, the kitchen was invaded by Sarah, her younger sister Jane, and the rather pale-looking Suzy. ‘I think I’ve settled on the right thing to wear,’ she said distractedly, ‘but it’s awfully hard to know what an intimate family dinner really means in your sister’s house.’
    Peggy eyed the sleeveless black dress with the sweetheart neckline and the lovely cut that skimmed the material over the girl’s narrow hips to