The Promise by Lesley Pearse Page A

long time.
    ‘I got Papa’s chauffeur to teach me while I was in Sussex,’ Miranda said airily. ‘I thought with so many men going off to the war, there might be an opening for a woman. Motor cars are very hard to start though, you need brute strength to crank that handle. I’ve been reading up on how they work too. I don’t want to look foolish if it breaks down.’
    ‘I’m so pleased you are sounding so organized and optimistic,’ Belle said.
    ‘Well, you know who I have to thank for that,’ Miranda replied, raising her eyebrows. ‘Now you’ve told me your news, perhaps there’s a way I can repay you for all you did for me. I could mind the shop if you wanted a rest or to go somewhere.’
    Belle was touched. ‘That’s very thoughtful of you,’ she said. ‘But I think I’ll be giving up the shop well before the baby arrives.’
    ‘Oh no!’ Miranda exclaimed. ‘You can’t, you are so talented and everyone loves your hats so much. Can’t you get a nursemaid in?’
    ‘I’d never do that,’ Belle said in horror.
    Miranda laughed. ‘No, I don’t suppose you would. But I fared much better with a nursemaid than I would have done with my mother.’
    ‘There is one thing I must ask,’ Belle said. ‘Are you really all right? I don’t mean ill or anything, but have you got over it?’
    Miranda’s face clouded over. ‘I had a few days when I felt weepy and sorry for myself,’ she admitted. ‘But it was better when I got down to Sussex. I went on walks, busied myself learning to drive, and visited some of Papa’s tenants. I’ve never done that before; I think what happened to me opened my eyes to the real world. They were probably astonished that I was showing an interest in their gardens, children and whether or not the roof leaked. Some of those people are so desperately poor, it made me realize that I wasn’t so badly off.’
    They chatted until it was time for Belle to close the shop. As she was locking the door behind them, Miranda put her hand on Belle’s arm and squeezed it. ‘I hope Jimmy doesn’t join up, but if he does, remember you’ve got a friend in me.’
    Belle knew that night as she and Jimmy got into bed that he had made up his mind. The bar had been quiet and he’d been up and down the stairs, sitting for a few minutes with her but saying nothing, then going back down. She guessed by his strained expression that he wanted to talk, but was afraid of it turning into a row. Belle was aching to get it all out in the open, but she knew Jimmy well enough to be aware that he liked time to weigh up situations for himself, and if she pushed him too hard now, she might regret it.
    But now, as he curled his body around hers just as he always did, she could almost hear his brain whirling with conflicting emotions.
    She knew he wasn’t afraid for himself, only of leaving her. She knew too that if she cried and pleaded with him, he could be persuaded out of it. But was it right to do that when he felt it was his duty to go?
    Belle guessed that he was very aware that the Railway didn’t really need both him and Garth to run it, especially now that so many of their once regular customers had already left for France. He probably felt guilty each time he heard that someone else had enlisted when he was young and healthy and had no good excuse to stay home. A baby on the way certainly wouldn’t be considered a valid excuse for not enlisting, as most men distanced themselves from the whole thing and left it to their wives’ mothers and sisters to offer support.
    Belle knew too that Jimmy would make a good soldier; he was brave, strong and intelligent. Other men liked him and she had no doubt he’d soon get promoted because he had the qualities needed for leadership.
    However terrified she was that he might be wounded or even killed, one of the things she loved most about him was his honourable nature. She didn’t like to see him in turmoil, trying to balance what he perceived as his duty