Chapter Forty-Five
Marie was not so pleased to hear of Annie’s decision when she got back, but Annie would not be swayed now.
Ruth was more than happy to be in complete charge of the shop and as Annie trusted her implicitly, she could see no problems there. But Nancy was a different matter, and she frowned when Annie told her she would be moving back to Nuneaton.
‘In that case, there’s somethin’ I’d like to ask yer,’ she said tentatively.
Annie raised a curious eyebrow. ‘Go ahead then, I don’t bite.’
‘Well, the thing is me an’ Jamie half expected yer to do this an’ we thought that if yer did decide to go back, we may as well go ahead an’ get wed as soon as possible.
The problem is, I’m not of age yet an’ you’re me legal guardian so we’d ’ave to ’ave your permission. How would yer feel about that?’
Annie looked concerned. ‘But you’re still very young,’ she pointed out. ‘What if things don’t work out with Jamie?’
Nancy chuckled as she fondled Alfred’s floppy ears.
‘Yes, I am young,’ she agreed. ‘But like you I spent me early years shut away in the work’ouse an’ although I might look younger than I am I ’ad to grow up quick.
All I ever really wanted were a family of me own, an’ I’ve found that in Jamie.
I know he’s the one fer me. I couldn’t find anyone I could love more if I searched the world over.
We wouldn’t want a big do, o’ course. Just a short service at the registry office.
As I told you before Christmas, his parents ’ave already said we could stay wi’ them till we found somewhere of us own to live, so what do yer think? ’
Annie stared at her for a moment before answering quietly, ‘I think that if this is what you both really want then you should be allowed to go ahead. But, oh . . . I’m going to miss you so much!’
Nancy smiled. ‘But it ain’t as if you’ll never see me again. I’ve no doubt you’ll be poppin’ back regularly to check on the shop an’ see Marie. We’ll still see each other often.’
Annie nodded. What Nancy had said was true, although she was still young in years, she had a grown-up’s head on her shoulders, and she and Jamie did seem perfect together.
‘In that case, yes I’ll give my permission, and I also think I can help you out for somewhere to live because if me and Adam are going home then our rooms above the shop will be empty. You and Jamie could live there if you wanted to?’
Nancy’s pretty face lit up. ‘That’d be perfect, an’ it would mean we could keep an eye on the shop when it were closed, not that I think we’re gonna ’ave any more problems now that Reggie is locked up.’
‘So, when do you want to get wed?’ Annie asked.
Nancy smiled. ‘We thought in the next couple o’ weeks. There’s no point in puttin’ it off cos we only want a small weddin’, nothin’ grand. That way hopefully you’ll still be ’ere to attend. Jamie said if yer were in agreement he’d go an’ book it today.’
And so Annie found herself with yet another wedding to organise for yet another winter bride. She also had to pack her and Adam’s things, and make sure everything was set up for Ruth to be able to run the shop without her. It looked like the next couple of weeks were going to be busy.
Two days later she read in the newspaper that Reggie had been sentenced to hang the following month, and shivers ran down her spine.
But at least justice was finally going to be done for the poor women whose lives he had taken so cruelly.
Funnily enough, now that he was no longer a threat, she’d had no concerns about living in London, but the decision to spend more time with her son and move back to Nuneaton had been made and she wasn’t going to change it.
She informed Nancy that she was going to leave the rooms above the shop fully furnished and Nancy was thrilled.
The house that Annie had taken on a short-term lease in Nuneaton was furnished anyway, and when she found somewhere she wanted to buy she’d decided she would treat herself to new things that held no memories.
It was going to be a brand-new start for them.
She immediately started to search for an outfit for Nancy. She had insisted she was quite happy to get wed in something she already owned but Annie was having none of it.
‘It ain’t as if it’s going to be a big posh do, after all,’ she said.
But Annie was determined. ‘Even so you’re still going to be a bride and I want you to feel special.’
While Nancy took Adam for a walk in the park one day, Annie visited one of the big fashion warehouses that she favoured, and returned with three outfits, any one of which she thought would be perfect. Nancy and Adam were still out when she returned and she could hardly wait to show them to her.
When she did, Nancy’s eyes filled with tears, but they waited until Adam was in bed before Annie insisted Nancy try them all on.
She looked so beautiful in each one that it was hard to choose.
One was in a very delicate coral-pink, the other a lovely shade of pale blue, but it was the ivory satin calf-length one that Nancy fell in love with.
It had a tiny jacket to match that fitted tight to the waist with a little peplum and the skirt had a floaty edge.
When she put it on and turned to face Annie with her eyes shining, tears filled Annie’s eyes. ‘That’s the one,’ she said in a wobbly voice. ‘Now we just have to find you a bag, some shoes and a hat to match. Come on, we’ll go downstairs and see if we have anything you like.’
They found some shoes and a bag almost immediately and then Nancy chose a hat with a little veil that was almost the exact same colour as her costume.
‘But all this is costin’ a fortune,’ Nancy groaned as she peeped at the price tags.
‘Of course it isn’t, and anyway you’re worth it,’ Annie told her. ‘And don’t worry, I’ll drop the shoes into the cobbler and get him to build the heel up for you.’
The wedding had been booked at the nearest registry office for eleven o’ clock in the morning on Friday, 18 January.
It would be followed by a champagne breakfast at Brown’s Hotel in Mayfair.
And when that was over, Annie had booked them into a hotel for a short honeymoon for two days.
On the day they were due to come home, she and Adam would be catching the train back to Nuneaton in the afternoon, so the newly-wed couple could move into their new home.
‘Thank you,’ Nancy said humbly as she stared at herself in the mirror. ‘For everythin’ . . . I reckon this outfit will knock Jamie out.’
‘It won’t be the outfit, it will be you,’ Annie told her. ‘You’re going to be the most beautiful bride.’
The day before the wedding there was a minor crisis when Annie found Ruth frantically searching the shop after closing.
‘I can’t find the shop keys,’ she told Annie worriedly.
Annie smiled. ‘All right, calm down, they’re bound to be here somewhere. Where do you normally keep them?’
‘On that shelf under the counter at the back, but I’ve checked and they’re not there.’
Annie joined in the search but half an hour later they still hadn’t turned up, and Simon had arrived to take Ruth home.
‘Look, don’t get worrying,’ Annie told her.
‘I have a spare set so I’ll give you those.
The others are bound to turn up.’ She shot away upstairs and gave the keys to Ruth before insisting that she get off home.
It had been a busy day and Ruth looked tired.
Annie wasn’t overly concerned. Ruth was usually so efficient and she was sure the keys would turn up eventually.
The day of the wedding finally dawned and as Annie had predicted, once Nancy was dressed in all her new finery, she looked stunning.
‘Are you quite sure this is what you want?’ Annie asked anxiously. ‘It’s not too late to change your mind and come back to Nuneaton with me and Adam.’
Nancy kissed her cheek. ‘I’m quite sure,’ she told her. ‘Meetin’ Jamie were the best thing that ever happened to me . . . next to meetin’ you, o’ course.’
‘In that case the car should be waiting outside by now, and I reckon we have a wedding to go to. Come on, we don’t want to keep the bridegroom waiting, do we?’
They rounded up Adam, who looked adorable in the little suit Annie had bought him for the occasion, and after she had handed Nancy a small posy of sweet-smelling freesias they went out to the waiting car.
Jamie’s eyes sparkled when he first saw his bride and his chest seemed to swell with pride as they took their place before the registrar.
The small room was full of the scent of the flowers Annie had put in there.
But Nancy and Jamie only had eyes for each other and might have been the only two people in the room.
The wedding went without a hitch and as Annie watched Nancy make her vows to her new husband her eyes filled with proud tears.
How far this self-assured young woman had come from being the poor little waif she had taken from the workhouse.
She just wished Monty could have been here to see her too, but she hoped that wherever he was he would be watching.
Marie and John, along with Ruth and Simon and Jamie’s family, were there to witness the joyous occasion and the atmosphere at the wedding breakfast was light and happy.
The meal was perfect and washed down with champagne that made Nancy’s eyes sparkle.
Finally a car arrived to take the star-struck couple to their hotel where they could begin their married life in private.
‘I think you should have been a wedding planner,’ Marie chuckled as they waved them off. ‘It was perfect! But now you must get Adam ’ome! He is almost falling asleep on his little feet.’
Annie chuckled. Marie was right, it had been a long day and so they said their goodbyes and headed for their homes.