The Girl from the Tanner's Yard

round, without losing our home. Thank heavens Lucy will soon be gone; at least she’s one less mouth to feed, although we will be her wage down and all.’ Dorothy looked anxiously around her; nothing ever went simply in their lives, it seemed. ‘Talking of our Lucy, Adam Brooksbank and she will soon be here. She said to expect him coming down to see us about eleven this morning. He wants to do things properly and ask for her hand correctly, she said, and she assured me that he is honourable. He’s worried about me perhaps thinking he’s too old for Lucy, and he’s here to put me right, so she said. But he’ll not change my mind over that – he is too old and he can’t change that fact, no matter how much brass he’s got.’ Dorothy folded her arms and looked out of the bedroom window. ‘I know I’ve moaned about the smell of the yard, but we’ve had some good times here, and I don’t want to leave.’

‘Well, you are going to have to. And you are going to have to accept Adam Brooksbank as one of us, and wish them both the best. I’ll keep my ears and eyes open for somewhere to move to, but it might mean the five of us living in a one- or two-bedroomed house; it can’t be nowt grand.’ Bill put his arm round his wife. She moaned enough, but only when things were not right, and he wished he could do right by her more often.

‘Oh Lord, Lucy’s here – I can hear their voices in the kitchen. Does my hair look alright? Is my apron clean? I’ve got to look tidy for him, now that I know he’s seen the Queen and been honoured by her,’ Dorothy flapped.

‘It doesn’t make him any different from the man you spoke to before. He knows what we are. He isn’t marrying our Lucy for her money or, if he is, he’ll be sadly disappointed.’ Bill laughed at the panic on Dorothy’s face.

‘She’s got a full wedding chest; she’s been making quilts and cushions and rugs since she learned to sew. I hope he isn’t thinking of a dowry, because we can’t offer him a penny, especially now.’ Dorothy sighed.

‘He’ll not be here for that. He just wants our blessing, and then they are going to see the parson at Haworth. Now, come on. Don’t worry, something will sort itself out regarding the house. Let’s go and give those two love-birds our blessing, and welcome Adam to the family – money or no money.’ Bill squeezed Dorothy’s hand tightly. ‘Things will take a turn. Our luck will change – it has to.’

Lucy looked nervously around her. At least the house looked tidy, her mother had made an effort, and baby Bert was asleep in the old drawer that served as a cot when he slept downstairs. Where Susie was, she didn’t know and, quite honestly, Lucy didn’t care, seeing as Susie had been the cause of a weekend of heartache, after giving her secrets away. And she knew the boys were at school.

‘I can hear my mother and father upstairs. They’ll be with us in a minute.’ Lucy smiled as Adam sat down at the table and looked around him.

‘I know it sounds daft at my age, but I feel nervous about asking for your hand, even though I blurted it out like a fool when I was talking to your father about my love for you.’ Adam glanced round the room. Providence Row was not the best of houses to live in. It looked neglected and crumbling, and he noticed a stain of damp down the back of the kitchen wall.

‘You’ll be fine. My father is in awe of you holding the Victoria Cross, and my mother has come round to me wanting to leave the family nest. I’ll be so glad to leave here – not only because I’m marrying you, but because this house and yard are just terrible to live in. The smell and the damp get to you after a while.’ Lucy noticed Adam looking around him and comparing his now-spotless house to this one, and she hoped he wasn’t thinking twice about marrying a lass from such a humble background.

‘I can understand that. I’ve been wondering if—’ Adam cut his sentence short as Bill and Dorothy came down the stairs, with Bill smiling at him and Dorothy, as ever, reserved in her outward show of feelings.

‘Now then, Adam, it’s good to see you.’ Bill held out his hand and Adam shook it. ‘Put the kettle on, Mother, and butter us all one of those scones that I smelled you baking in the oven this morning.’ Bill sat down at the table, along with Lucy and Adam, and watched as Dorothy quickly made cups of tea and placed a plate of newly baked scones on the table, the butter dripping down the sides of them from their warmth.

‘You know there was no need for you to be this formal. After all, you made you intentions well known the other evening, and I think we all know how you both feel about one another, after this weekend’s upset. Your mother didn’t realize it was that serious between you, so she’s regretting being a bit hard on you both.’ Bill looked at Dorothy.

‘Yes, I didn’t realize that you, Adam, felt that strongly for our Lucy. I thought it was simply her dreaming and fantasizing. After all, you are her employer, and there is an age difference.’ Dorothy was determined to say what was on her mind as she looked across at the two lovers.

‘Mother!’ Lucy blushed and looked at Adam with concern.

‘I can understand your worries, Mrs Bancroft, but believe me, I do love Lucy. And hopefully my age will be an advantage to us in having a good, stable marriage. After all, I’ve my own farm and I am not short of money. She will not want