His voice was so humble, so pleading, that Patty found her eyes filling with tears. He was so different from Toby, such a good and loving man – what was the point in keeping him waiting? In her secret heart, she had known for ages that Darky meant more to her than almost anyone else, and when their lips had met she had realised that her feelings for him were real love, the sort that went on and on, growing deeper with every passing year. ‘Yes please, Darky, I’d love to marry you,’ she said in a small and slightly shaky voice. ‘But there’s one thing you must know first. It’s – it’s about Merrell’s father.’
‘It doesn’t matter; I don’t think I want to know,’ Darky said. ‘The only thing that matters is that we love one another and we’re going to marry. I love Merry, you know, and I’m mortal fond of Maggie, so it won’t be any hardship to take them into our family.’ He had recaptured her hand and now he squeezed it gently, leaning across to brush her cheek with his lips. ‘What I’m trying to say is that Merry’s beginnings are really none of my business because I wasn’t around at the time. She’ll be our little girl just as though I were her father. Can you understand that?’
Patty moved across the seat and cuddled against him. ‘You must be the kindest man in the world, Darky Knight,’ she said dreamily. ‘Accepting another man’s child is never easy – God knows, I see enough examples of how such children suffer in my work – but you are willing to take it all on board, aren’t you? Even when you think I’ve been in love with some feller and have let him … well, let him father Merry … you don’t reproach me or hold it against the child.’ She turned in his arm to look up into his face, her eyes suddenly mischievous. ‘But how will you feel, my love, when I tell you that Merry isn’t mine any more than she’s yours? You see, her mother died giving birth and the father couldn’t cope with the tiny baby and wanted me to put her in an orphan asylum. Only – only she was so small and sweet that I couldn’t bear to let her go, so I kept her and now she’s as much my own as though she had truly grown inside me for nine months.’
Darky stared down at her, his eyes rounding in astonishment. ‘She ain’t yours?’ he asked incredulously. ‘But – but …’
‘No, she isn’t mine, though I couldn’t love her more if she was. In fact, Darky, she’s Maggie Mullins’s baby sister. You see …’
By the time the story was told, the cab was cruising through open country, though the occupants only had eyes for each other and scarcely noticed the passing scene. Patty had also seized the opportunity to tell Darky all about Selina and her own childhood in the Durrant House Orphan Asylum and this brought out all Darky’s protective instincts and made him hug her so tightly and kiss her so passionately that she actually saw the driver tilt his rear view mirror in order to keep an eye on the proceedings. As they drew apart, she nudged Darky. ‘This isn’t really the time or the place,’ she whispered, indicating the driver’s stolid back with a significant glance. ‘And shouldn’t we be heading for home? I’m sure your mam and Merry will have returned from their shopping trip by now and they’re bound to wonder what has become of us.’
Darky nodded reluctant agreement and leaned forward to tap on the glass panel which separated them from the driver. ‘Thanks, mate. Now will you take us back to Ashfield Place, please?’ he said loudly, as the little panel shot back. ‘Only don’t hurry yourself. We shan’t be missed for another half-hour at least.’
The driver, grinning, turned his cab when the next opportunity occurred and headed back to Liverpool once more whilst Patty, bathed in a glow of happiness, decided that she must ask one vital question. ‘Darky, can I ask you something?’ she said rather timidly. ‘It seems very brassy of me but I feel I need to know.’
‘You can ask me anything you like,’ Darky said contentedly. ‘Fire ahead, my darling.’
‘It’s – it’s about Alison,’ Patty said shyly. ‘I know how much you loved her and I know how terribly you’ve missed her and mourned for her, but you’ve never said what she looked like, or what sort of a person she was. Your mam scarcely ever speaks of her either. I – I’d feel happier if I knew a bit more.’
For a moment, she thought that Darky was not going to reply, for he sat staring straight ahead, his eyes fixed almost blankly on the back of the driver’s head. When he spoke, it was gently and without a hint of resentment. ‘She was small and very pretty, with reddish-gold hair and a great many freckles,’ he said reflectively. ‘I know her eyes were greenish-hazel and I know she had a soft, Scottish accent, but the truth is, Patty, that we weren’t married for very long, barely nine months, and she’s been gone almost six years now. It’s difficult for me to remember much detail, to tell you the truth. She was a very quiet girl and meek, never arguing or putting forward an opinion of her own. I – I’ve sometimes wondered how we would have gone on if she’d lived, because since her death I’ve realised that pretty, biddable girls ain’t really for me. I like a woman with spirit, who’s got opinions and convictions of her own, someone who doesn’t agree with everything I say but who will answer back and fight for what she believes is right.’ He turned to smile at her. ‘In fact, I want a fiery blonde, who can shout as loudly as I can and who’ll stick to her guns and force me to back down every time I’m wrong.’
Patty sighed deeply. ‘So long as you aren’t marrying me as – as a sort of Alison substitute,’ she said dreamily. A thought suddenly occurred to her. ‘You know when we tell folk we’re getting married, they’ll immediately assume that their worst suspicions were right and that you really are Merrell’s father.’
‘Then we’ll let them believe it,’ Darky said, grinning. ‘Not that we’ll be in Ashfield Place for very much longer, my love. As soon as I have worked out my notice at Levers and got my own business established, I’m going to rent a cottage in a smallish village. I know you want to continue with your job, but once the babies come that won’t be possible. But if you’re set on staying in Ashfield Place for a few years, I can always tell me boss I’ve changed me mind.’
Patty drew in a deep, ecstatic breath. ‘A cottage in the country,’ she breathed. ‘We could have a dog and a cat and I could keep hens – I’ve always wanted to do that. Oh, and Darky, could we have a garden? A proper one with currant bushes and apple trees … perhaps even an orchard!’ She glanced shyly up at him. ‘The country’s a proper place to bring up children, wouldn’t you say?’
At this point, the cab drew up in Ashfield Place. The driver put Patty’s case down on the pavement and Darky helped her tenderly from the cab. He paid off the driver and then put a proprietorial arm round Patty’s waist and led her towards the iron stairs. ‘Provided it’s a home with love in it, children can be happy almost anywhere,’ he said gently. ‘But if you want a country cottage with a big garden, then that’s just what we will have, even if we have to wait a while to get it.’ He began to lead her up the stairs, still with his arm firmly about her. ‘My, what a surprise for me mam when I tell her our news,’ he said contentedly. ‘You’ve made me the happiest feller on earth, Patty.’