Chapter Thirty Five
"Here you are, at last!" Margaret reached Isobel with her arms spread wide and enveloped her in a hug "It's so lovely to see you both" She kissed Dickie's cheek.
"Steady on Old Girl! Don't want to scare them off!" Hugh shook hands with Dickie and kissed Isobel's cheek. "Let them get a good drink inside them before you smother them!"
"Thank you so much for having us" Isobel smiled at them both warmly "Just the chatter on the train about everything the younger ones have planned has worn me out! It's a relief to be here."
"I hope you don't mind, but we've arranged to go to Rosamund's for dinner" Margaret looked worried.
"Not at all!" Isobel reassured her "But it would be nice to have a little rest first."
Hugh chuckled "Of course. Rosamund is expecting us about 7.30, so we've plenty of time."
"But tea first? I imagine it's been quite the trip." Margaret led the way into the Drawing Room.
"I for one would love a cup of tea." Dickie admitted "And you can tell us all about what you've been up to these last couple of weeks."
-TW- -TW- -TW-
Tim gave the address to the cabby, then turned to his fellow passenger as the vehicle moved off "Thank you for agreeing to come tonight"
"It doesn't mean anything. It's not a promise of anything" Julia warned "I just didn't fancy cooking for myself. Where are we going anyway?"
"I wanted you to meet an old friend of mine. We were at school together and he's helped me face some truths about myself this last couple of weeks. I owe him a lot" Tim explained.
"Oh, I see" That wasn't what Julia was expecting at all. "Where are we meeting him?"
"We're dining with him and his wife, at home" Tim admitted "Jem had a bad accident just after the war. He was an engineering officer in the Navy and something happened with one of the boilers. I've never asked him the details, but I know he received the Albert Medal for his actions. He was pretty badly injured, so walks with a cane, and his scars mean he prefers not to go out in public very much."
"His poor wife. Is he still an engineer?" Julia wondered aloud.
"I don't know. We haven't really discussed it. I doubt he could work at sea anymore and I'm sure he was medically discharged." Tim looked out of the window and said quietly "I should have asked." He shook his head at his own selfishness.
The cab pulled up outside a pleasant looking house. Tim helped her out and led her to the front door, which opened without him needing to knock.
"Good evening Sir, Miss. Can I take your coats?" The Butler moved to assist Julia with her coat. "If you would follow me please. You are expected"
Julia glanced at Tim as they were led through the house to a family room at the back. He seemed a little nervous. As they entered the room the occupants stood.
"Good Evening" A well-dressed woman came towards them "I'm Belinda, and you must be Julia?"
Julia smiled "Yes. Thank you so much for inviting me to your home."
"You're very welcome. Come and sit down and tell us a bit about yourself." She showed Julia to a chair near the fire "I'm sure Tim has left out plenty of details."
As she sat, Julia looked to the other occupant of the room who had so far remained silent. He was watching Belinda carefully, so she could only see half his face. It was a handsome face, and Julia thought no more of him as she chatted away. Drinks were served, and before long dinner was announced.
"Shall we go through?" Belinda stood "I'm sure Tim will be happy to escort you."
Tim offered his arm with a smile, and as they turned to follow the others to dinner Julia noticed that the gentleman was using a cane and leaning heavily on Belinda's arm. She caught a glimpse of the scarred side of his face, which gave her a jolt, but also prepared her for sitting with him at the dinner table.
"Have you been in this house long?" Julia asked as they sat down. "It's lovely. Does it have a garden too?"
"It was my parent's house" Jeremy spoke for the first time "My father died during the war, and my mother couldn't bear to live here without him. She lives on the coast now, somewhere she can see the sea from her sitting room window" He smiled slightly at the memory of the cottage.
"I'm sorry about your father" Julia said gently "Tim said you were an engineer. Was he an engineer too?"
Jeremy was quiet for a moment. "I'm sorry" Julia started to worry "Don't talk about him if it upsets you."
"No! It's alright" He smiled at her "I was just thinking that it's been some time since anyone asked about him. That's all." He turned to Tim "Do you remember father?"
"I remember him being a tall, stocky man with a huge beard!" Tim pulled an awe-filled face "But then I think we were still at school then, so maybe he wasn't as big as I remember him being?"
"He was 6 foot 2, I think, and he was always very proud of his beard. I remember him saying that the reason he grew it in the first place was a competition with his brother one summer. When Uncle Paul couldn't grow a full beard, he decided to keep it!" He chuckled "They were always trying to best each other."
"That must be a male thing" Belinda commented "My brothers were always competing against each other. Anything and everything became a competition." She rolled her eyes, causing chuckles from everyone "Often my mother would use it to her advantage though: I specifically remember a very quiet Sunday afternoon when she started a competition to see who could stay quiet the longest!"
"I'm an only child, so I don't have any stories to share of sibling childhoods" Julia smiled "It must have been fun growing up"
"Well, yes" Belinda started "But I was the only girl with four brothers, so it was a very male household. I remember when I went to school, I thought lots of the girls were quite boring because they didn't climb trees or play cricket, and I never did get the hang of why one dress was so much better than another!" Julia laughed with her "I think my mother was surprised when I chose to study nursing, as it seemed such a typically female profession. I don't think she would have been surprised if I had declared I was going to be a polar explorer."
"I don't think my parents expected anything of me, really" Julia mused "My father is quite traditional, so I think he just expected I would get married." She shrugged. "I think he was surprised when I took a secretarial course."
"I hope he didn't try to discourage you from being independent?" Belinda said, sounding a little affronted on her behalf.
"Oh, no! I think he's quite pleased really. He's a politician, so I think he quite likes having an independent daughter so he can sound like he knows what he's talking about when he discusses certain topics. Although" Julia raised an eyebrow and looked at everyone in turn "I'm not convinced he thinks we should have the vote."
Jeremy chuckled and shook his head "When I think back through all the women in my life, I can't understand why some men still think like that. If it wasn't for my mother, I never would have been an engineer."
"Really? I thought you were always bound for a career like that?" Tim asked, astonished.
"Oh no! My father thought the diplomatic or the civil service would be a good option for me. Engineering sounded too much like a hands-on, hands-dirty kind of job. He was not enamoured at all!" Jeremy informed him.
"But you were always fixing things. I remember you building that clock from scratch." Tim frowned.
"Do you know, I still have that clock" Jeremy smiled "It was my mother that convinced him to let me study engineering. Said it was just a form of science, and wouldn't affect my application to the civil service if that was what I decided after university." He leant closer to Julia "I think there was more said about it than that, but my mother was very tight-lipped about the negotiation process" Julia laughed with him. "He was somewhat mollified when I joined the Navy, I think."
As the evening went on, it was clear Jeremy relaxed with Julia more, and she was grateful. He was funny and had some wonderful stories. He encouraged her to join in the conversation and listened to her opinions. He and Belinda were lovely, and Julia felt she had made friends with some special people.
"I very much enjoyed this evening." Julia turned to Tim in the cab going home "Thank you"
"I wanted to spend time with you somewhere we could all be ourselves." Tim paused "I'm still trying to be true to myself and felt being with Jeremy would help that. I can't promise I will always manage it, but I want you to help me try to be the person I can be." He looked up at her meekly "Will you help me?"
Julia squeezed his hand and nodded with tears in her eyes "Of course."
-TW- -TW- -TW-
"Well, I have to say, although that was a fun evening those young people have left me feeling exhausted!" Margaret chuckled "Night cap anyone?"
"Yes please! I certainly need a drink!" Hugh said theatrically.
"Oh you! You've drunk enough already this evening to sink a battleship!" Margaret swatted at her husband as they led the way into the drawing room.
Behind them Isobel lent on Dickie's arm a little and said "Actually, a night cap and a chance to sit quietly would be greatly appreciated before bed." Dickie smiled at her. He saw her to a comfortable chair near the fire and went to get her a brandy.
"Well, they certainly plan to fit as much in as possible during their time here." Margaret observed "How much of it are you going to do?"
"Just listening to all their plans has made me feel old and tired!" Isobel complained "We have our own agenda while we're here, so we need to concentrate on that first. But I suppose we ought to join in with some things so as not to upset them"
Dickie gave her the brandy and sat down "I was actually looking forward to going to the pictures, but you don't need to come if you would prefer a quiet night. I know you're not fond."
"No, but I might join you for the dinner beforehand, especially if Tim will be there. I don't want him to think that I'm avoiding him" Isobel mentioned.
"I've seen The Lodger and you're in for a treat! I'd come again" Hugh added "Then the ladies could go home together after dinner?"
"That sounds like an excellent plan" Margaret enthused "They were really quite fun tonight, and I'd like the chance to see how they're keeping up with that schedule they've set themselves" She chuckled "But what about your plans?"
Isobel looked at Dickie "Well, the original plan for this week was Christmas shopping. I have a list, so we need to tackle that at some stage."
"And I need to see my solicitor while I'm here." Dickie added.
"And didn't you say there was a meeting for us to attend this week?" Isobel asked Margaret.
"Oooh, yes! That's Thursday morning." Margaret clasped her hands "And while I remember, I've invited a few people to drop in for coffee tomorrow morning. Will you be able to join us?"
"I don't see why not." Isobel agreed "I must admit, I was hoping for a slow start in the morning. Shall we shop tomorrow afternoon?" She turned to Dickie.
"Yes, let's" Dickie turned to Hugh "Do you have plans tomorrow"
"My escape plan is set - and you're in luck! There's room for an extra!" Hugh grinned "We can go to the club to catch up and then have lunch before you go on your shopping spree. Anything to escape all those chattering ladies!" He rolled his eyes dramatically.
"Enough of that! They always try to make you welcome.." Margaret started.
"I know that, my Darling. But they are all so serious about their causes, and their upsets, and just so earnestly worried about how I am! It's like having 20 versions of Nanny trying to coddle me all at the same time!" Everyone laughed at him "There's only so much I can take" He raised his hand to his forehead comically, looking put-upon.