Mrs Boots. Deborah Carr

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СКАЧАТЬ Thank you for permitting me to continue our friendship through correspondence now that I have returned home to Nottingham.

       I was sorry to cut short my trip and miss further outings with you to experience more diverse parishes in Jersey. I am still taken aback by the beauty and the difference in settings on such a small island. From the pretty cobbled back streets in your town to the expanse of sand and sea from the bays of Grouville and St Ouen. I can understand more fully now the reasons why my sister Jane enjoyed her visit so very much.

       I was sorry to have to say goodbye to you and your parents. You and your family were very gracious in welcoming me and ensuring that my stay on the island was such a memorable and life-affirming one.

       The business that I returned to Nottingham to deal with is now well underway. We have been developing our manufacturing facilities on Island Street and have come up against a few issues. It is a little more serious than I had presumed, but that is nothing unusual. Business always has its ups and downs, and very often unexpected events happen when you least foresee, or wish, them to.

       I fully intend to travel back to Jersey as soon as I am able to take time away from my business. I hope that I may enjoy the pleasure of your company when I do. I have so much yet to experience of the island, and maybe we could attend a concert or a dance, or, if you would prefer, I could ask your father’s permission to take you out to dinner.

       Yours sincerely and very best wishes,

       From your good friend,

       Mr Boot

      It had only been two days since Mr Boot had left on the ferry but already she missed his company. She had only known him a short time and hadn’t expected him to make such an impact on her life. She needed to write a reply to him but hadn’t managed to finish a letter that she was happy enough to post.

      Florence had turned down a couple of invitations from Albert since Mr Boot’s departure but was beginning to feel unkind to cancel their latest pre-arranged engagement to visit the Theatre Royal to attend one of the shows.

      Albert was a kind man and a good friend. She didn’t want to let him down again, so when he had popped in from the tea merchants earlier that day to deliver some tea for her mother, she had agreed to go with him and several other friends to a poetry reading.

      Florence went up to the living room and offered her mother some assistance making supper.

      ‘No, thank you,’ her mother said. ‘That won’t be necessary. We’re only having pork chops and boiled potatoes. It won’t take a moment to prepare and will be ready shortly.’

      Her mother came out of the kitchen, drying her hands and taking off her apron. ‘Amy mentioned that you received a letter in today’s post.’ She didn’t look very happy and Florence knew that her mother assumed it could be from Mr Boot.

      ‘Yes, that’s right,’ she said. ‘I’ll quickly go to my room and freshen up.’

      Not wishing to wait a moment longer, she ran upstairs. She wasn’t sure what to write in reply but did not want to delay her letter to him in case he thought her uninterested in their correspondence. If she hurried and wrote back to him, he would probably receive it in the next day or so. She sat at her desk. Taking a piece of her favourite cream writing paper, she picked up her pen and began to write.

       27 Queen Street

       St Helier

       Jersey

       Channel Islands

       4 September 1885

       Mr J Boot

       16–20 Goose Gate

       Nottingham

       Dear Mr Boot,

       Thank you very much for your letter. I, too, enjoyed our outings and wish that you did not have to cut short your holiday on the island and go home to the mainland at such short notice.

       I am happy to hear that you plan to visit us again. I will endeavour to make a list of the places you might like to see and the best places to enjoy a pleasant meal, or a dance. But there is still so much of the island that I have yet to show you.

       You also haven’t been to the north of the island, which is a little more dramatic than the south, with cliff faces that are breathtaking to look at. We could probably take a horse-drawn taxi out to the splendid breakwater at St Catherine’s.

       Please send my best regards to Jane; I hope that she is well.

       With best wishes,

       Yours sincerely,

       Your friend, Miss Florence Rowe

      She heard her sister leave her bedroom next door and walk down the creaky attic stairs to the main landing for supper. Then her mother’s voice called for her to join them. She was unsure if her sister would come into her room for a quick chat before they went out for the evening. Florence quickly folded her letter and slipped it into an envelope, and wrote Mr Boot’s name and address on the front.

      She met up with Albert and her friends for their evening out. It was pleasant enough, although her mind kept wandering to Mr Boot and his letter. She had posted her letter on the way out and could barely wait for his reply to reach her.

      Several days later, after surreptitiously checking the post each day, Florence was delighted to spot a letter on the mantelpiece. Her father would have opened his own mail by lunchtime and her mother rarely received mail from anyone. Excitement bubbled in Florence’s stomach. This letter had to be either for either herself or Amy. She walked over to the mantelpiece and picked up the envelope. It was indeed addressed to her.

      She couldn’t help feeling surprised that his letters to her had come to mean so much and so quickly.

      Florence didn’t want her mother to see that he had written again. She didn’t like to keep things from her family but didn’t see the point in causing her mother any consternation if it wasn’t necessary. She and Mr Boot were merely friends after all, weren’t they? she thought.

      Finally, it was her half an hour lunch break, and Florence made an excuse and raced up to her room to read her correspondence.

       16–20 Goose Gate

       Nottingham

       7 September 1885

       Miss Florence Rowe

       27 Queen Street

       St Helier

       Jersey

       My dear Miss Rowe,

       How splendid of you to СКАЧАТЬ