Not bad, even if I do say so myself, Flora thought the following Sunday as she stared around the living room in the new house. Jimmy, Sam and Ernie had been carrying the furniture from the rooms above the café into the new abode all day and now that everything was in place it was beginning to look like home. The curtains that Hattie had stitched were hanging at the gleaming little windows and a cosy fire was burning in the grate after one of Sam’s friends had kindly come round to sweep the chimneys for them. A brightly coloured rag rug lay in front of the hearth and the brass fire irons gleamed in the glow from the flames. The second-hand sideboard had been polished till Flora could see her face in it and upstairs, Colleen and Jia Li were busily making the beds up. They would have a bedroom each now, luxury indeed after being used to being crammed into one room. Hattie and Bai were there too sorting out the kitchen as Flora plumped up the cushions on the sofa. At last everything was done and all their things were put away so Hattie pottered off to the kitchen to make them all a nice hot drink and some sandwiches as they hadn’t had time to cook that day.
‘I don’t know how I shall ever be able to thank you,’ Flora told Ernie, Jimmy and Sam sincerely. ‘You’ve all worked so hard. We could never have done this without you.’
‘Hey, no problem, we’ve had a blast. Just give us a free meal whenever we come by and we’ll be happy,’ Ernie told her with a grin. In actual fact he’d quite enjoyed transforming the little house. It now sported a newly painted red front door that boasted a shiny brass knocker and all the window frames had been painted white, giving the house a whole new appearance.
‘That goes without saying,’ Flora promised him and wondered why she wasn’t feeling more thrilled. After all, she owned her own house now, albeit a very cheap one, and she ran a very successful café, yet as Christmas approached the yearning to see her family again grew stronger by the day.
‘So why don’t you just go home for a visit?’ Hattie had suggested a few days before when Flora had admitted to her that she was feeling homesick. ‘Me an’ the others are more than capable of keepin’ the café going.’
As tempting as the thought was, Flora shook her head, although she didn’t tell Hattie why. How could I ever go home now after what I’ve done? she asked herself daily and the answer was always the same. You can’t! You’ve let everyone down and there could be repercussions even now. And then, of course, going home would involve a sea voyage and she wasn’t sure she’d ever be able to set foot aboard another ship as long as she lived. Every moment of that terrible night on the Titanic was etched into her memory and she still had recurring nightmares about it.
Hattie appeared from the kitchen then carrying a huge tray and everyone found a seat, some of them on the floor because there weren’t enough chairs.
‘I reckon you’ll be really comfy in here,’ Hattie said as she glanced around at all their hard work. ‘I could quite happily live here meself now, though I’d never have said that when you first bought the place. I was worried that you’d bought a pig in a poke but everything’s turned out fine and dandy.’
Jia Li and Bai didn’t even hear her. They were sitting in the corner jabbering away to each other, oblivious of everyone else in the room, which was just as Hattie thought it should be.
Colleen was sitting with her legs curled under her in one of the old wing chairs, staring off into space, and as Hattie glanced at her the smile slid from her face. Poor girl, she was clearly still heartbroken over her Will, and Hattie just wished she could get her hands on him for two minutes. She’d show him what for, all right, for breaking the poor girl’s heart. And then there was Flora. Oh, she always put a brave face on, and almost worked herself into the ground on a daily basis. But why? Hattie wondered. What was it she was hiding or running away from that made her push herself to the limits? She actually knew very little about how Flora had ended up in New York, but she hoped that one day Flora would trust her enough to confide in her. There was obviously something niggling away at her. Meantime Jia Li’s wedding was drawing dangerously close so, looking towards the girl, she said, ‘I hate to interrupt you lovebirds but I was thinking that now we’ve got you all safely moved into here we should be going into town tomorrow, Jia Li, to get the material for your wedding dress. We’ve less than two weeks to go to the wedding so if you want me to make it we have to get our skates on.’
Jia Li blushed prettily as Bai took some money from his trouser pocket and pressed it into her hand. ‘Buy what you need,’ he urged but Jia Li shook her head.
‘You not need give me money. Flora pay me wage each week and I have my own.’
‘No matter, we use what money we have between us to furnish rooms above the café,’ Bai insisted kindly so the girl reluctantly slid the little wad of dollars into her pocket.
‘How about we slip off after the dinnertime rush?’ Hattie suggested.
Flora nodded. ‘That will be fine and take as long as you need to, don’t rush. Me and Colleen will manage.’
When Hattie and the men finally departed, Colleen went up to sleep in her new bedroom for the first time while Flora slipped round to the café to make sure that everywhere was securely locked up. Jia Li and Bai were still snuggling on the sofa and chattering quietly to each other when she got back so after wishing them both goodnight she too retired to bed and fell asleep almost as soon as her head hit the pillow. For the last few weeks she had barely had a second to herself. If she hadn’t been working in the café she had been working on the house but now, hopefully, things would slow down a little and she’d have a bit more time to herself.
As planned, Hattie and Jia Li left after lunch the next day and set off for the shops. Once there Jia Li looked through bolts of material until she found just what she was looking for.
‘This perfect!’ She held the soft, sea-blue satin out for Hattie’s inspection and when she nodded, Jia Li sighed with pleasure as she stroked the silky folds.
‘So what sort o’ pattern were you thinkin’ of?’ Hattie enquired as they stood waiting while the material was carefully cut and wrapped.
‘Very plain.’
Hattie sighed with disappointment but didn’t argue. It was Jia Li’s special day after all and not hers.
‘To my ankle, split in one side to knee, small mandarin collar and short sleeves.’
‘But you’ll freeze to death!’ Hattie objected, ever practical. Jia Li giggled, all her former sparkle restored. Admittedly she still had times when she thought of the poor, innocent baby who had come too soon, but having Bai back in her life had gone a long way to helping her recover from the ordeal. ‘I wear shawl,’ she said, and Hattie sighed as Jia Li paid the shop assistant for the material.
Just two weeks before Christmas, Jia Li and Bai were married at a small ceremony in the register office. There were few guests, just Flora, Colleen, Hattie, Ernie, Jimmy and Sam but they all agreed that the bride looked radiant and the groom was so proud, he looked as if he might burst with happiness. The dress that Hattie had painstakingly stitched for Jia Li, working long into the night by the light of an oil lamp, was a triumph, despite Hattie’s former reservations. The simple shape moulded itself to Jia Li’s slim figure and with a white rose behind her ear that matched the tiny posy she carried, she looked simply stunning.
When the short service was over they all stood outside on the steps and the small congregation showered the happy couple with rice and rose petals, then it was back to the café for the sumptuous feast that Flora had laid on for them. There was even a wedding cake that Colleen had iced and decorated with sugar flowers and the café rang with laughter. Even Colleen seemed to come out of the melancholy mood she had slipped into since her break-up with Will.
‘Eeh, isn’t she just the most beautiful bride you ever did see?’ she whispered dreamily to Flora as she sipped at some champagne that Flora had bought as a special treat.
Ernie made a toast to the happy couple and wished them well for the future, which brought a tear to Jia Li’s eyes as she stared at her handsome new husband.
Looking at her friend’s radiant face, Flora had to swallow down her tears as she pictured Jamie as he had looked on the day she had told him of her decision to go to New York with Connie. It all seemed so long ago now and so much had happened since then but she still only had to close her eyes and she could picture every inch of his face as if she had seen him only the day before. I’ve been such a fool, she silently chided herself, perhaps we could have been married by now too if I hadn’t been so foolish. Then she plastered a smile back on her face. Today was Jia Li’s special day and she was determined that nothing should spoil it.
Over the last two weeks, since they had all moved into their new home next door, Bai had been busily buying bits and pieces of furniture for their rooms above the café, which he had carted there on a barrow each night after work, and tonight they would sleep up there as man and wife for the first time.
‘Wow! What a day,’ Ernie commented cheerily later in the afternoon when he and his friends spilled out into the yard to have a cigarette. Flora had gone to join them to get a breath of fresh air and she nodded.
‘It’s been lovely.’
The young men glanced at each other then as if there was something they wanted to say and it was Ernie who finally broke the silence when he lowered his voice to tell her, ‘Hey, Flora, I thought you might like to know that Huan got his comeuppance in more than one way.’
Flora frowned as she wrapped her arms about herself. ‘What do you mean?’
‘Well, after we gave him a bit of a lesson our sources’ – he tapped his nose – ‘tell us that he’s off to China as soon as he gets married. Seems his mom thinks he’ll be safer over there. So it’s a great outcome, wouldn’t you say? Jia Li will never have to worry about bumping into him again, although word is he ain’t very happy about it.’ He chuckled as he dropped his cigarette butt and ground it out with the heel of his shoe. ‘He won’t be able to get up to his tricks over there with his in-laws breathing down his neck, will he? All the bad things he’s done to Jia Li and other innocent girls have come back to bite him on the ass. And about time.’
Flora’s face creased into a smile. It was good news indeed. Now Jia Li wouldn’t have to be afraid every time she stepped out of the door.
‘I’ll tell her, but not today,’ she told the men. ‘Today is one that she’ll hopefully remember for the rest of her life and I don’t want Huan’s name tainting it. But thank you all again for looking out for her, and for me and Colleen.’
The men brushed aside her thanks with cheery grins and then went back inside to continue with the celebrations. Flora stayed outside a moment longer. Mention of Huan had for some reason brought back thoughts of Toby. The date of his wedding in January had been announced in the newspaper the week before, so it seemed within a matter of weeks, he and Margaret would be married. She smiled to herself. It was fairly safe to think that he was about to get his just deserts too. As was Margaret.
It was quite late by the time Hattie and the men left, and once the door had shut behind them, Colleen turned to Jia Li and Bai and said, ‘You two lovebirds get yourself away to your rooms. Sure, me an’ Flora can clear up down here.’
Jia Li looked uncertain. There were plates and glasses everywhere but neither Flora nor Colleen would hear of her helping them.
‘Go on now, get off with the pair of you.’ Flora shooed them towards the staircase. ‘You can both have a nice lie-in tomorrow with it being Sunday. I know I certainly will. In fact, I think I might get myself round home now. This lot will wait till morning. Come on, Colleen.’ She gave Colleen a sly wink and they quickly headed for the door.
‘You’re quite right, the dirty pots can wait,’ she said chirpily. ‘Night both!’
At the door she and Flora glanced back to see Bai sweep his new bride into his arms as if she weighed no more than a feather and disappear up the stairs with her. They had eyes for no one but each other and Colleen and Flora smiled wistfully at each other.
‘I don’t think we’ll have to worry about her anymore,’ Flora remarked as she unlocked the door to their new home. With an envious sigh, Colleen agreed. At least one of them had ended up with the man she loved!