George had promised homes for heroes and the government was encouraging builders by giving them grants to build them. George meant to have a slice of that, but to do that, he had to have a viable business. A strong pair of shoulders, a few brushes and a handcart hardly qualified, which was one of the reasons he had invested in the van and found a yard which he could call business premises. You couldn’t run a business from a small terrace house with no front garden and only a narrow back entry.
‘Do you live locally?’ she asked.
‘Yes, Melsham born and bred. Doesn’t my accent give me away?’
‘I didn’t notice your accent particularly.’
He was pleased to hear that: he had made a great effort to eradicate the Norfolk accent he had grown up with; it didn’t help when trying to impress the people he had to do business with.
The music ended and he took her arm to escort her back to her table. There was no sign of her father. ‘I meant it, you know,’ he said, sitting beside her.
‘Meant what?’
‘That I want to see you again.’
She laughed, unnerved by his intense gaze. ‘You’ve got a nerve…’
‘If you don’t ask, you don’t get,’ he said. ‘I’ve nothing to lose.’ He paused and looked closely at her again. ‘Have you? Anything to lose, I mean.’
‘No, I suppose not.’
‘Would you like me to fetch you a glass of wine?’
‘Yes please.’
She watched him go. It was difficult to tell his age but she surmised he must be in his late twenties. He had lost the slimness of youth, if he had ever had it, and was well developed and self-assured. A big man in every sense. He paid for the wine and came back, carefully carrying two glasses through the throng of people who crowded at the edge of the floor, waiting for the band to begin playing the next dance.
She thanked him and began to sip the bubbly wine. ‘Don’t you have a partner?’ she asked as he resumed his seat.
He smiled. ‘Now, would I have brought a girl with me when I intended to ask another out?’
‘You came with that intention?’
‘Of course. I thought I’d made that clear.’
She laughed in an embarrassed way. ‘I don’t know what to make of you.’
‘I saw you in Cambridge and heard you talking about Melsham and decided I’d like to get to know you. It was no good mooning about because I hadn’t the gumption to do anything about it, was it? I go for what I want. Always. Do you blame me for that?’
He didn’t seem the sort of person to moon anywhere. He was a pushy, overconfident young man who fancied his chances. ‘No, I suppose not.’
‘Then have dinner with me on Saturday evening.’
‘I don’t know…’
‘Dinner, nothing more, just a meal. At The Crown. I’ll book a table, shall I?’
‘So long as you understand I’m not making any kind of commitment.’
‘Of course not. I wouldn’t expect you to.’ He rose to go. ‘I’ll pick you up at seven.’
She didn’t tell him her address: he was bound to know it.
The Crown, once a coaching inn, now a busy hotel, occupied a prominent position on Melsham marketplace. The town had once been the agricultural centre of the region and had a larger-than-average market, more triangular than square. At the apex stood St Andrew’s church. On one long side there was a row of shops in differing styles of architecture, none of which was outstanding. On the other stood the town hall and beside that a terrace of handsome Georgian houses, one of which was a doctor’s surgery, another a solicitor’s, and the remaining two George was going to convert into flats. The base of the triangle consisted of the railings and gates of a small park, in front of which stood a stone cross on a plinth to commemorate those who had fallen in the war, and nearby was a pool where the old village pump had once dispensed water to the inhabitants. Barbara hardly spared it a glance as George ushered her into the hotel.
That first dinner was spent learning more about each other. She told him about her mother and how miserable she had been when she died. ‘It was her heart,’ she said. ‘I never guessed…’
‘I am sorry,’ he said, putting his huge hand over hers.
‘It was six years ago and Dad and I have come to terms with it now.’
He told her he lived with his widowed mother in a terraced