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battle zones but that they could use her on the farms howking tatties.
    Peggy made no comment on Josie’s news that she would be leaving to go down to live and work on a farm in East Lothian. She was, however, put out because since she had had Luke, who was now nine, and Daisy, now five, she had relied on Josie to watch over them when she was out gallivanting with Paddy. Paddy, unlike Peggy, did comment on Josie’s leaving. She was surprised and tears bubbled up in her when he said, ‘Now remember you are my little princess. I’m your daddy and I’ll kill any man who doesn’t do right by you.’

    * * *

    Two weeks later, Josie joined the team on a Tranent farm. Three of the lassies were young, though not as young as Josie, who had advised them she was seventeen but was small for her age. Her short stature, she confided to them, was because she had been born three months premature when her mother had been frightened by a bogeyman. Feeling sorry for her, the girls immediately welcomed her into their circle.
    Time off for the girls was usually at the weekend. ‘How would you like to go up to Edinburgh with us on Saturday?’ enquired Senga, who had appointed herself leader of the pack.
    Noting that Josie seemed wary, Hetty quickly added, ‘We don’t go drinking and whooping it up. Oh no, we go to the canteen at the east end of Princes Street.’ Hetty stopped to ensure she had Josie’s full attention before disclosing, ‘That’s where all the soldiers, airmen and navy boys, who are mostly on embarkation leave, go to for a sandwich, a cup of tea and a wee birl around the dance floor with any of us lassies that turn up.’
    ‘Hetty’s right there,’ Julie butted in, before adding, ‘and just think, Josie, ours might be the last lassies’ faces they’ll see before they … are … no more.’

    On entering the canteen, Josie could see that the main room was packed with young men representing all the branches of the forces and nationalities engaged in the conflict.
    ‘Good to see you,’ the canteen manageress said to Hetty.
    ‘Just love to come and help you, Mrs Duff,’ Hetty replied, grabbing Josie by the arm. ‘And this here is Josie, our new pal, and she wants to help too.’
    Mrs Duff’s smile radiated towards Josie. ‘And what would you like to do, dear?’
    Josie shifted uneasily. ‘Wash dishes or I could sweep up.’
    Mrs Duff, Hetty and Senga laughed in unison. ‘No, my dear,’ chuckled Mrs Duff. ‘Someone as pretty as you we need to entertain the boys.’ Josie was surprised when she then bent her head towards her to whisper, ‘Now some of our lads are not able to read or write very well, so you could help there by reading or writing their letters for them.’
    Eyes widening in alarm, Josie shook her head vigorously. Truth was, not only were some of the men not as literate as they should be, but neither was she. Noting her unease, Mrs Duff quickly asked, ‘Could you take on changing the records on the gramophone then?’
    Looking over towards Julie, who was jiving with an airman, Josie nodded enthusiastically before responding, ‘Yes, and I can dance too!’ Then, to Mrs Duff and Hetty’s amusement, she sashayed across the floor in time to Glenn Miller’s ‘In the Mood’.
    The winding up of the gramophone and the changing of the records, however, couldn’t be done by Josie because she was just too busy dancing with her many admirers.
    During a short interval, a fair-haired man sidled up to her. Josie was delighted to see him because, like herself, he was on the short side. Staring long and hard at him, she noted that he was at least half a foot taller than she was. Sniffing, she thought, Aye, he’s the right height for me, right enough, but measuring a mere five and a half feet he would be considered by most to be on the small side for a man.
    Roy Yorkston was obviously short in stature; however, he did not see this as a disadvantage and he pushed aside the other men who were anxious to