Page 29 of The Spitfire Girls
Lizzie glanced over at Ruby. ‘Come on, let’s go.’
But Ruby was still looking out the window, and seemed a million miles away. ‘Sorry, I was ...’ Her voice trailed off.
They stepped out and Lizzie linked her arm with Ruby’s as they waited for the driver to get their overnight bags, wondering for the first time what her roommate might have lost to the war. ‘You’re thinking about that man of yours, aren’t you?’ she whispered.
Ruby laughed, resisting her at first, then leaning in and keeping their arms linked. Then she grabbed hold of Polly so the three of them were lined up in a row. ‘So she’s not only a better flyer than me – she’s a mind reader now, too!’
Lizzie rolled her eyes. She’d been watching Ruby fly, studying her whenever she could, and although she might be more experienced, Lizzie was no longer so confident that she was the best flyer at Hamble. If Ruby wasn’t as good as her yet, she was a close second, and she knew there’d be stiff competition between them to finish top of the class. They all took their bags and walked the short distance to the Savoy.
‘So tell me about him. When’s this fella going to make an honest woman of you?’ Lizzie asked, as they all dodged right around some fallen debris from a building that had recently been hit near their hotel.
‘After defying his mother, I’d say we’ll be having a quiet ceremony, just the two of us, once the war is over,’ Ruby replied. ‘Ifwe get married at all. We’ll say our vows and get on with our life, I suppose.’
‘Oh Ruby, surely he’ll come around. Did the old bat really give you a four-week ultimatum?’ Polly asked.
‘She certainly did.’
‘The whole thing sounds unromantic, if you ask me,’ Lizzie said. ‘Sorry, but after everything, if you both survive the war and things go back to normal, you deserve a big celebration, don’t you think?’
‘Lizzie! Leave her alone!’ Polly cried.
‘Americans,’ Ruby muttered. ‘They warned us about you, you know? Brash and bold, that’s what we were told, and you haven’t disappointed.’
Lizzie tipped her head back. ‘Well, I wouldn’t sayboldexactly, would you?’
Ruby gave her a look before bursting into laughter with Polly, the two of them leaning their heads together like it was the funniest thing in the world. ‘And for the record, I didn’t ask for your opinion on our wedding plans! Honestly, you seem to be an expert on everything!’
‘Ladies,’ said a handsome soldier with his dark hair combed back, holding the door to the hotel wide open for them.
Lizzie gave Ruby a nudge and smiled demurely as he passed by, before they all erupted into laughter again.
‘You’re the most terrible influence,’ Ruby said, still smiling as she wiped the tears from her cheeks. ‘Absolutely terrible, Lizzie, you know that?’
‘But I’ve made you want to beat me, haven’t I? The only thing you can blame me for is giving you some stiff competition in the sky.’
‘Or being a total pain in all our behinds,’ Polly moaned.
Ruby gave Lizzie a hard stare. ‘We’re off duty, Liz. I don’t want to talk about who’s going to get the first flight, not while we’re here. May wanted us to be friends and all get along, so that’s exactly what we’re going to do.’
‘Okay,’ Lizzie said, running her finger across her lips as if she were zipping them shut. ‘No work talk.’
Lizzie gazed at her surroundings, admiring the beauty of the glamorous, much-loved hotel. This was the one place in London that had surpassed her expectations; even with bomb damage it was still as elegant as ever. For one glorious night they’d be sharing a room here instead of in another family’s home. If that meant not talking about who was going to get that first flight, then so be it.
There were already people waiting in a line to check in, so she sat in one of the big chairs and gestured for the other two to do the same.
‘You know, the second night I was here the Wailing Willy went off, warning of an air raid, and I had no idea what was going on,’ Lizzie told the other two as they sat down. ‘I eventually emerged in my dressing gown and was given a good telling off, but I’d decided to just hide under the covers and pray for the bloody best.’
‘Ha, listen to you now!’ Polly said. ‘You sound like a proper Brit, and you haven’t been here more than a few months.’
Lizzie supposed she had picked up some of the weird British sayings, like calling the air raid siren a Wailing Willy, but there were other things about being in England that she’d never get the hang of. Like the time she’d asked for the restroom and been taken to a room torestin, with no toilet in sight. Or some of the other unusual sayings that didn’t make any sense. But it was the look of things and even the taste of things that she still found particularly foreign. At home she was used to corner drug stores with soda fountains and clean cafes with good food. And the ice creams? Ugh, she’d tasted one just before their production was banned – they were deemed not to have any food value during wartime – and it was disgusting. More like old dishwater compared to the smooth, silky taste of ice cream back home.
‘So where are we going tonight?’ Ruby asked. ‘What’s the plan once we’ve taken our bags up?’
Lizzie shrugged. ‘We’re going wherever we can find handsome men, eat a good steak, and dance the night away.’
Ruby shook her head, smiling. ‘You haven’t forgotten that I’m a promised woman, have you?’
‘Doesn’t mean you can’t have a little fun,’ Lizzie said with a wink. ‘God knows he will if he gets a night out on the town somewhere, and, Polly, you’re single, aren’t you?’
