Page 60 of The London Girls
‘Florence,’ he said gently.
‘William!’ she said, realising she was speaking in a very high-pitched voice as she tried to calm herself. She immediately started to fret whether they’d have enough food or not. With rations it was hard to invite others over, and it certainly wasn’t going to be a feast for so many people, even though they’d been able to secure the piece of mutton. But this was Jack’s son; she needed to pull herself together, secret or no secret. ‘It’s so lovely to meet you, William. Where are my manners. Please come in and shut that door behind—’
‘Move aside, let a girl in out of the cold, would you?’
Ava. Thank goodness for her confident, forthright friend arriving home. She was exactly what they all needed to make things less awkward. She’d get a handle on the situation.
‘Merry Christmas!’ Ava said. ‘You must be Jack?’
‘Yes, this is Jack and his ... ah, well, this is his son, William.’
Florence watched as Jack held out his hand to shake Ava’s, but he turned back to her straight after, when Ava dropped down to speak to William, something Florence would have done herself if she weren’t so shocked.
‘Florence, this is for you,’ Jack said, passing her a bottle of brandy.
‘Thank you,’ she managed, still finding it hard not to stare at the child.
‘I would have rather given you flowers, but none of the gardens we passed, well ...’
‘Wintertime, huh?’ Ava said with a shrug as she stood, once again defusing the awkwardness.
‘Florence, I should have told you, but until yesterday I didn’t even know he’d be with me, and we haven’t exactly seen much of one another lately,’ Jack said quietly, moving closer to her as Ava chatted away with William, taking the boy’s hand as they started to walk towards the kitchen. ‘I ... he’s ... I don’t know where to begin.’
‘I thought you’d told me everything,’ she whispered. ‘But instead you’ve kept this secret all this time? You had so many opportunities to tell me!’
Anger pulsed through her. She’d thought she and Jack had told one another their deepest darkest secrets! She’d thought they knew everything there was to know about what the other had been through.
‘Florence, this isn’t easy for me,’ he said, stepping closer as he lowered his voice. ‘It’s complicated.’
She wrapped her arms around herself, not sure what to think. ‘Where has he been all this time?’
‘With my sister,’ he said, looking uncomfortable. ‘In the countryside.’
‘I honestly don’t know what to say,’ she said. ‘Other than I wish you’d trusted me enough to tell me.’
‘He’s the only thing I have left,’ Jack said, running his hand through his hair as he stared down at her. ‘For months after the fire, I could barely look at him. I felt such guilt that he was having to grow up without his mother, and every time I saw him, all I could see was the child I’d lost.’
‘So you sent him to live with your sister?’ she asked quietly.
‘I told myself I was sending him for his own safety, but really it was because I couldn’t stand to see him without his mother and sister.’
Florence blinked away tears, taking Jack’s hand without even thinking about it as she saw the pain in his gaze. It also struck her just how much she’d missed being with Jack each night in the ambulance. ‘Well, I’m pleased you brought him with you,’ she said. ‘It was a shock, that’s all, but I’ll get over it.’
Jack opened his mouth, as if he were about to say something, when a gentle knock at the door interrupted the moment.
‘I should answer that,’ she said, stepping back and letting go of his hand as she turned to the door. When she opened it, she found Olivia standing there, wrapped in a wool coat and holding a plate. ‘Olivia!’ Florence forgot all about Jack then, other than to quickly pass him the plate as she ushered Olivia in, closing the door behind her before giving her a hug. She wrapped her arms around her friend and held her, not letting her go for a long moment. Itput everything with Jack into perspective; his secret had shocked her, but Olivia was here, and that was all that mattered.
‘It’s so good to see you,’ she said, finally releasing her. ‘I didn’t know if you’d come, if it was too soon after ...’ She sighed. ‘After everything.’
Olivia looked pale, and Florence gently touched her shoulder, keeping her hand there.
‘I almost didn’t come,’ Olivia said.
‘Well, I’m so glad you’re here. You’ve made Christmas for me.’
When Olivia smiled, Florence sighed with relief, realising she’d most definitely done the right thing in inviting her.
‘I suppose I don’t need to tell you how strange it is, to have your life turned upside down but have everything else continue as normal around you,’ Olivia said, unbuttoning her coat.
