Homecoming (32 page)

‘You still look a bit peaky, love,' Martin said, as Lily hung away their coats. ‘Why don't you go on up. I'll be right behind you as soon as I've talked to Jack.'

Too tired to argue, she followed Brian up the stairs.

‘Jack's sleeping.' Martin slid into bed besides Lily ten minutes later.

‘It's not like him to go to bed early.'

‘He's not actually in it, more like on it and still dressed.'

‘He'll freeze.' She winced as the full length of Martin's icy body embraced hers.

‘No, he won't. I took a blanket from the airing cupboard and covered him with it and, before you start worrying about the bedspread, he'd taken his shoes off.'

‘Do you think it's a good idea for Helen to meet this woman tomorrow?' she asked suddenly.

‘I honestly don't know, love. I suppose it could go either way,' he replied. ‘Send Helen rushing to the divorce courts or possibly galvanise her into talking to Jack again.'

‘I suppose it's too much to hope that it will do any more than get them talking.'

‘Even I can't be that optimistic.' Pulling her tight against him, he kissed the back of her neck. ‘Can we forget Jack and Helen and concentrate on us for the next half hour?'

She shivered as his fingers closed around her breasts. ‘Do you mind if we wait until after you're warm?'

‘Moaning Minnie.'

‘That's me.' She turned and kissed his lips, feeling strangely light-headed again.

‘You're fantastic,' he complimented, as she wrapped herself around him.

‘Because I warm you when you're cold?'

‘Among other things,' he answered. ‘But I mean it, Lily. I don't know what I'd do without you. Jack and Helen's problems have made me realise just how lucky I am to have you.'

‘Not that I'd forgive you either if you had done what Jack did.'

‘But after he told us about it, you said you could understand how it happened.'

‘Helen and I agreed tonight that there's a world of difference between understanding and forgiving. So if you've any intention of straying …'

‘Not from this bed.' He kissed her again. ‘You're stuck with me, Mrs Clay.'

‘I hope so,' she whispered, thinking of her secret, ‘I really hope so.'

Chapter Seventeen

Sam ran up the outside steps of the basement and opened the door to Judy's car just as she was about to hit the horn for the second time. ‘I wasn't sure you'd come.'

‘Neither was I, after the way you behaved last night.' She barely waited for him to close the door before putting her foot down on the accelerator.

‘I'd had a few drinks.'

‘I noticed.'

‘You objecting to me going out with the boys now?' he questioned tetchily.

‘You can drink Swansea dry for all I care. It's what you do with yourself afterwards that concerns me.' She braked suddenly at a set of traffic lights, jerking them both forward.

‘Christ! You're even driving angry.'

‘Can you blame me?' As she turned to glare at him, the driver behind them blasted his horn.

‘The lights have changed,' Sam informed her curtly.

‘So I see.' She slammed the car into gear and drove off. Before they had travelled fifty yards, the car behind pulled out and overtook them, forcing her to swing over sharply.

As the driver drew alongside he slid back his window and shouted, ‘Bloody women drivers!'

‘Judy! For Christ's sake, let him go,' Sam shouted, as she revved up speed.

‘You saw the idiot. That was dangerous.'

‘As my mother's taken the trouble to cook Sunday dinner for us, I'd like to be alive to eat it.'

Realising that Sam had brought out the worst in her, yet again, she slowed the car and headed for the junction that led to Neath Road.

‘Look, Judy, about last night –'

‘If we're going to discuss last night, I think we should start with the way you behaved when I called in on Lily.'

‘Don't you mean Brian?' he corrected.

‘No, I do not. I called to see Lily.'

‘Who wasn't there,' he pointed out, lowering his voice.

‘I wasn't to know that beforehand,' she said irritably. ‘I'm not psychic.'

‘But you stayed to have tea with Brian.'

‘Martin, Jack and Brian.'

‘It wasn't Martin or Jack who invited you.'

‘It was Brian,' she agreed, ‘and I might not have accepted his invitation if you hadn't told me I couldn't.' Fighting anger, yet again, she glanced across to see him sitting as tense and grim-faced as she was.

‘He was flirting with you and you were loving every minute of it.'

‘How many times do I have to tell you that what little there was between Brian Powell and me has long since been over?'

‘Shout louder, why don't you?' he goaded. ‘You know damn well I've a king-size bloody hangover.'

‘Good!' As soon as the retort was out of her mouth, she regretted being so petty and childish.

‘Fine bloody day this is turning out to be.'

‘And whose fault is that?'

‘Mine,' Sam replied icily. ‘Everything is always my bloody fault, isn't it, Judy?'

She couldn't let the remark pass. ‘This time it is, Sam.' Ten strained minutes later; she sneaked a sideways look at him again. He was sitting back in his seat, a pained expression on his face as he squinted into the bright morning sunlight. For once she found herself in total agreement with him. It was turning out to be a ‘fine bloody day' and she couldn't help feeling that the worst was yet to come.

‘Helen is picking me up in Mansel Street in a hour and I have to wash and dress, Marty …' Lily stifled her laughter, as Martin grabbed her by the waist, pulled her back into the bed and tickled her.

‘I am not going to let you go.' Leaning over her, he pinned her down on the mattress and kissed her.

As she kissed him back, she sensed him relaxing. Moving quickly, she slithered sideways out of the bed and landed on the floor with a bump.

‘Did you hurt yourself?' Lying on his stomach, he peered anxiously down at her.

‘Not much.'

‘I could kiss whatever it is better.'

‘No fear, you'd pull me back in there.' She retreated to the other side of the room and opened her chest of drawers.

Martin settled back on the pillows and watched her.

‘It's not fair of Helen to drag you off. I'll be lonely.'

‘You could come with us.'

‘I'd cramp your style and Helen's.'

‘Probably.' She removed a set of underclothes from a drawer, closed it, opened the next one down and took out a suspender belt and pair of stockings.

‘I hope the sacrifice of what could have been our day is worth it.'

‘It will be if I manage to persuade Helen to at least talk to Jack.' She flicked through the clothes in her wardrobe. Settling on a dark green woollen sweater and a straight black skirt, she held them up in front of her. ‘What do you think?'

‘Are they new?'

‘Sometimes I think you wouldn't notice if I went around naked.'

‘I'd prefer it, provided no one else was about.' He picked up her nightdress from the floor and threw it at her. ‘Just in case my brother or Brian is up.'

‘I was going to put on my dressing gown, unlike some people I could mention.' She smiled playfully. ‘I can't wait until Judy, Katie, Helen and I get together for our next gossip. After what Judy saw yesterday, we can compare notes.'

‘You lot don't talk about things like that, do you?' he asked, horrified.

‘No more than you men,' she teased, and ran out of the door.

As Judy pulled up outside Ena Davies's terraced house, the curtains twitched in the front parlour. Like most valley matrons, Ena regarded the room as sacrosanct, opening it only for what she regarded as state occasions, such as funerals, weddings, christenings, and entertaining the chapel minister to tea. She had shown Judy the room the first time Sam had taken her to his home, but only from the passage, and the fact that she was in it now watching for their arrival, suggested she was agitated.

Resigning herself to a day of bickering with Sam and fencing words with his mother, Judy opened the door. Ena appeared on the doorstep before she'd had time to lock the car.

‘You're late.'

‘It's not half past eleven yet, Mam,' Sam said. Judy's mouth tightened.

‘Mrs Richards and the girls have been waiting for over half an hour to show Judy the bridesmaids' dresses.'

‘You didn't tell us they would be here.' Judy pocketed her car keys.

‘Well, there's no need to waste any more time hanging around out here talking about it.' Ena ushered them into the house and down the passage that led to her back kitchen cum living room.

Half a dozen giggling girls of varying sizes from tiny through medium to large – one in particular was very large, Judy noted sympathetically, having suffered a weight and spot problem in her own early teens – spilled out to meet them.

‘These are Sam's cousins, Judy.' Ena took charge of the situation, while trying not to pretend that she was loving every minute of it. ‘Susan, Christine, Anne, Gillian, Wendy and Pamela.' She grabbed the nearest girl, a two-year-old who wriggled out of her hand. ‘All of you say hello to your new Auntie Judy.'

Overwhelmed by the noise, Judy mouthed, ‘Hello,' feeling that any attempt to shout above the din would only make things worse.

‘Mrs Richards, this is Judy Hunt, our Sam's fiancée.' Ena pushed Judy towards a small round woman wearing a pair of bright pink, plastic National Health spectacles.

‘Pleased to meet you.' Judy extended her hand. Before Mrs Richards could shake it, she lost her balance and fell on her as Pamela shoved Wendy into her back.

‘Now, Pamela, behave,' Ena warned severely, ‘or you won't be allowed to put on that beautiful dress Mrs Richards has made for you.'

Pamela looked suitably chastened until Ena turned her back, then she poked her tongue out at Judy. Suppressing a laugh, Judy glanced over her shoulder at Sam who was backing down the passage.

‘Now Judy has finally arrived, you can all go upstairs and put on the dresses, nicely now,' Ena cautioned, as the girls and Mrs Richards dutifully trooped past Sam to the stairs.

‘If you don't need me for anything, I'll nip down the rugby club for a quick one.' Sam went to the front door.

‘Must you?' Judy pleaded.

‘A man's entitled to a bit of relaxation after working hard all week, Judy,' Ena admonished. ‘There's no need to hurry back, Sam. I'm not going to have dinner on the table much before two with everything that needs to be done here. Not even if Judy helps me.'

Ena's last remark was one too many for Judy. ‘I think Sam should stay.'

‘Don't be silly, Judy,' Ena contradicted.

‘It's Sam's wedding too. He should be involved.'

‘Not with the dresses.' Ena crossed her arms over her ample bosom and faced Judy. ‘It's bad luck for a man to see them before the wedding.'

‘That only applies to the bride's dress.'

‘It most certainly doesn't. Don't tell me that you're going to turn into one of those wives, Judy.'

‘What wives?' Judy asked, striving to control her temper.

‘Wives who won't let their husbands out of their sight or off the leash for a moment. Sam works hard –'

‘As do I,' Judy interrupted coldly.

‘Of course you do, dear,' Ena granted patronisingly, ‘but not for much longer. Do you need any help, Mrs Richards?' she shouted, as a crash followed by a scream and high-pitched giggling echoed down the stairs.

‘I am going to carry on working after I am married.' Judy gave Sam an imploring look.

‘And who is going to look after my son?'

‘The same person who is doing it now,' Judy suggested.

‘I really don't think it's done for a son to bring his washing home after he's married, or do you expect me to do yours as well?'

‘I don't expect you to do anything, Mrs Davies. There are plenty of laundrettes Sam can use in Mumbles and Swansea.'

‘Laundrettes! You expect my son to wash his clothes in a laundrette – in public!' Ena couldn't have look more shocked if Judy had suggested that Sam patronise a nudist colony.

‘I see no reason why not. Plenty of men do their own washing in a laundrette. My friends' husbands –'

‘I am sure that you and your friends think you are being very contemporary and modern,' Ena sniffed. ‘But my son hasn't been brought up that way.'

‘You brought him up to be idle.'

‘Judy, that was insulting to both my mother and me,' Sam warned.

‘It was meant to be truthful not insulting.'

‘Sam's right, it was insulting,' Ena concurred.

‘For the life of me, I can't think of one single reason why a man shouldn't do his share of the housework after he's married,' Judy said in exasperation. ‘John Griffiths and Martin do.'

‘John can afford to employ a cleaner and Lily does practically everything.'

‘She does not. I've seen Martin cooking, cleaning and washing up,' Judy contradicted.

‘Then the wife of this Martin, whoever she is, should be ashamed of herself,' Ena reproved.

‘Why?' Judy questioned. ‘She works all day in a bank.'

‘Auntie Ena, am I pretty?' Pamela flounced down the stairs holding the front of her dress up in two hands, revealing an underskirt of pink net. Three other prospective bridesmaids followed, all imitating her prancing walk.

‘The dress is very pretty, Pamela,' Ena qualified. ‘Well, Judy, as you're the bride, I suppose you'll have something to say about it.'

Judy stared in disbelief as the girls lined up on the stairs. ‘You bought the figured nylon.'

‘It was much prettier and cheaper than the satin so I thought I'd surprise you.'

‘And they're not made up in the pattern I bought,' Judy gasped.

‘Mrs Howells's daughter's pattern was much nicer.'

‘And ballerina length!'

‘As I said, much more suitable and practical than full length. They could trip over a long skirt and that would be a disaster in church.'

‘But these dresses look nothing at all like mine.' Judy visualised the elegant lines of her Tudor collared, lace crinoline, set against the fussy flounces of the girls' ballerina length, almost luminous pink nylon bridesmaids' dresses. She had given in on the colour on the understanding that the style and fabric would be the same as her gown, but instead of high Tudor collars, they had floppy Peter Pan collars, set off by large, inexpertly sewn bows and rows of pink buttons down the front.

‘If you had chosen the one I wanted –'

‘You wanted!' Green eyes blazing, Judy finally allowed her temper to surface as the girls and Mrs Richards retreated smartly back up the stairs. ‘Against my better judgement and in the interests of keeping the peace, I allowed you to talk me into having this menagerie of bridesmaids. For the same ridiculous reason, I allowed you to talk me out of buying the dresses I chose, on condition these were made up to match my dress both in pattern and fabric. I bought the patterns. I paid for the damn material. I paid to have them made by the dressmaker of your choice and you wreck –'

‘If that's all the thanks I'm going to get for putting myself out –'

‘If this is an example of you putting yourself out, Mrs Davies, please don't ever put yourself out for me again.'

‘Judy, you can't talk to my mother like that!'

Judy stepped back and looked from Sam to his mother who was standing, tight-lipped, white-faced and speechless for once. Pulling the glove from her left hand, she slipped off Sam's engagement ring and handed it to him. ‘Sorry, Sam, I should never have accepted this from you in the first place.' Opening the door, she stepped out into the street.

*……*……*

Lily stuck her head around the kitchen door and checked the time on the clock.

‘I've made tea. Would you like a cup?' Jack looked up from the
Sunday Pictorial
he'd spread out on the table. ‘You look smart. Are you going somewhere special?'