Home Front Girls

she passed them over. It looked like water with a slice of lemon floating in it.
    ‘What is it?’ Dotty asked, mortally aware that she was showing her ignorance.
    Annabelle sank down onto a chair at the nearest empty table and after lighting a cigarette she told her, ‘It’s a gin and tonic. Try it. After a couple of those, you might even start to enjoy yourself.’
    Ignoring the sarcasm, Dotty dutifully did as she was told before wrinkling her nose.
    ‘Ugh, I’m not sure that I like it,’ she said. It certainly wasn’t as pleasant as the champagne that Robert had bought her in London.
    ‘It’s an acquired taste,’ Annabelle told her as her eyes scanned the dimly lit room for likely prey.
    There were a lot of people already on the dance floor and Lucy asked innocently, ‘What dance is that they’re doing?’
    Annabelle sighed inwardly. These two were going to take some educating, that was a fact. ‘It’s the jitterbug.’
    Lucy giggled and winked at Dotty. ‘Well, they all look like they’ve got a touch of St Vitus’ Dance to me.’
    Annabelle shook her head in exasperation. Some people were very hard to please.
    They had been sitting there for a few moments when Annabelle suddenly dug Dotty urgently in the ribs.
    ‘Don’t look now,’ she hissed, ‘but there’s a chap heading this way and he isn’t half-bad. I think he’s coming to ask me to dance. Watch and learn.’ She straightened her skirt and gave him a simpering smile as he stopped at their table.
    ‘Good evening, ladies,’ he said politely, and then leaning towards Lucy he asked, ‘May I have this dance, please?’
    Annabelle’s face fell a foot as Lucy gaped up at him, but then Dotty nudged her and she self-consciously got to her feet and followed him onto the dance floor, glancing over her shoulder as if imploring her friends to rescue her.
    ‘Actually he wasn’t that nice-looking when he got up close, was he?’ Annabelle said peevishly as she lit another cigarette.
    All three of them were asked to dance on numerous occasions as the night progressed, but the first chap who had asked Lucy to dance commandeered her whenever he could.
    Lucy began to look more and more flustered, particularly after he had taken her onto the dance floor for a slow waltz.
    ‘That chap has got more hands than an octopus,’ she complained towards the end of the night. ‘I’m going to say no if he asks me to dance again.’
    Annabelle grinned. ‘Well, at least he’s keen,’ she commented.
    Lucy crossed her arms and scowled, and sure enough, minutes later her admirer turned up yet again.
    ‘Sorry, I was just about to go to the ladies powder room,’ Lucy told him, snatching her bag and standing up.
    ‘Then perhaps I could wait for you to come back,’ he responded cheekily.
    Ignoring his comment, Lucy put her nose in the air and began to sail past him, but he made the mistake of trying to take her elbow and she rounded on him furiously.
    ‘Why don’t you just leave me alone!’ she said as he backed away. ‘Go and find some other poor girl to maul. She might enjoy it, but I certainly don’t!’
    ‘All right, keep your hair on,’ he said, looking acutely embarrassed, and turning on his heel he slammed away through the tables.
    ‘Crikey, that was a bit of an overreaction, wasn’t it?’ Annabelle said in amazement, aware that people were staring at them. ‘The poor chap was only trying to be friendly.’
    ‘Perhaps I don’t want to be friendly,’ Lucy retaliated. ‘What gives him the right to maul me about? All blokes are the same, that’s the problem, and I don’t want any of it. And now if you don’t mind, I’ve had quite enough of this shop window. I’m off.’ And with that she marched towards the ladies cloak room leaving Annabelle and Dotty no choice but to pick up their bags and follow her. Lucy had always seemed such a placid girl that they could hardly believe the outburst they had just witnessed.
    Lucy didn’t even look at them as she handed in her ticket and collected her coat. The girls hastily got their coats too and ran after her, but by the time they reached the outer door, Lucy was already striding furiously away.
    ‘Here – hold up there! Where’s the fire?’ Annabelle struggled into her coat and set off at a trot with Dotty hot on her heels. Lucy had nearly reached the end of the road by the time they caught up with her, and grabbing the sleeve of her coat Annabelle panted, ‘Whatever’s the matter with