Rainy Days for the Harpers Girls , livre ebook

Boldwood Books - Rosie Clarke

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209 pages

English

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From the bestselling author of The Harpers Emporium and The Mulberry Lane Series.

1914 Oxford Street, London - There are hard times ahead for the Harpers Girls...

It is two years since Harpers Emporium opened its doors and life is good for Sally and Ben Harper as they look forward to the arrival of their first child.

Beth Burrows is settling into married life with Jack and is gradually recovering from her miscarriage and Aunt’s tragic death.

Harpers welcomes some new faces and they all become part of the daily life at the busy store.

However, whilst the sun is shining on the streets of London, dark clouds gather over Europe as war looms threatening rainy days for the girls…

A heart-warming saga following the lives, loves and losses of the Harpers Girls. Perfect for fans of Nadine Dorries, Pam Howes and Dilly Court.

What readers are saying about Rainy Days For The Harpers Girls:

'Oh how FANTASTIC to be back with the Harper girls'

'As with the rest of the Harper's series this was a great read'

'Absolutely loved Rainy days for the Harper's girls. It ended before I was ready for it to'

'The writing is outstanding'

'I've enjoyed all the Harper Girls books. Another one you can't put down'

Sujets

Special Interest

Siblings

Historical

Centro comercial

Interest group (disambiguation)

Friendship

Sibling

General officer

Historical fiction

Weather

City Life

General

Shopping

Sagas

Family Life

Romance

Informations

Publié par	Boldwood Books
Date de parution	02 juin 2020
Nombre de lectures	0
EAN13	9781838891565
Langue	English

Informations légales : prix de location à la page 0,0022€. Cette information est donnée uniquement à titre indicatif conformément à la législation en vigueur.

Extrait

Rainy Days for the Harpers Girls
It’s war boys!

Rosie Clarke
First published in Great Britain in 2020 by Boldwood Books Ltd.
Copyright © Rosie Clarke, 2020
Cover Design by The Brewster Project
Cover Photography: Colin Thomas
The moral right of Rosie Clarke to be identified as the author of this work has been asserted in accordance with the Copyright, Designs and Patents Act 1988.
All rights reserved. No part of this book may be reproduced in any form or by any electronic or mechanical means, including information storage and retrieval systems, without written permission from the author, except for the use of brief quotations in a book review.
This book is a work of fiction and, except in the case of historical fact, any resemblance to actual persons, living or dead, is purely coincidental.
Every effort has been made to obtain the necessary permissions with reference to copyright material, both illustrative and quoted. We apologise for any omissions in this respect and will be pleased to make the appropriate acknowledgements in any future edition.
A CIP catalogue record for this book is available from the British Library.
Paperback ISBN 978-1-83889-154-1
Large Print ISBN 978-1-83889-752-9
Ebook ISBN 978-1-83889-156-5
Kindle ISBN 978-1-83889-155-8
Audio CD ISBN 978-1-83889-241-8
MP3 CD ISBN 978-1-83889-749-9
Digital audio download ISBN 978-1-83889-153-4

Boldwood Books Ltd
23 Bowerdean Street
London SW6 3TN
www.boldwoodbooks.com
Contents

Chapter 1

Chapter 2

Chapter 3

Chapter 4

Chapter 5

Chapter 6

Chapter 7

Chapter 8

Chapter 9

Chapter 10

Chapter 11

Chapter 12

Chapter 13

Chapter 14

Chapter 15

Chapter 16

Chapter 17

Chapter 18

Chapter 19

Chapter 20

Chapter 21

Chapter 22

Chapter 23

Chapter 24

Chapter 25

Chapter 26

Chapter 27

Chapter 28

Chapter 29

Chapter 30

Chapter 31

Chapter 32

Chapter 33

Chapter 34

Chapter 35

Chapter 36

Chapter 37

Chapter 38

Chapter 39

Chapter 40

More from Rosie Clarke

About the Author

About Boldwood Books
1

Could it really be almost two years since Harpers Oxford Street Store came into existence? Ben Harper opened one eye and watched as the wife he adored eased herself up from the sitting position she’d assumed on the floor. Sally had taken up a form of yoga to calm herself and bring health to her and her unborn child, due sometime in the first weeks of June that year, and, at first amused, Ben now enjoyed watching her as she breathed deeply and performed the gentle exercise routine she’d set for herself. She was so beautiful, the line of her arms serene and elegant as she went through the positions she’d taught herself from her library book. His wonderful Sally, the wife he’d never thought could be his, and now his reason for being.
Married the previous September, it was early March 1914 now and they’d been man and wife for nearly six months. She’d fallen for their first child soon after their wedding and was blossoming with every day that passed. Ben knew that he was fortunate to have her and, although the thought of being a father scared him, it also thrilled him. He would have his own son or daughter to follow on and inherit the store one day. Ben was filled with a desire to make Harpers the most magnificent emporium in London’s wonderful Oxford Street. Life was so good it terrified him, because he couldn’t believe his luck would last.
Sally had reminded him three weeks ago that the second anniversary of the store’s opening was coming up that month. Not that Ben had forgotten, but he’d let her think it, because he knew she had so many plans and he’d wanted to hear them. She and Marco, their talented and brilliant window dresser, had been planning the windows in secret for weeks.
A slight frown creased his brow, because he wasn’t sure his artistic friend had yet recovered from the loss of his young lover and companion, Julien. Theirs had been a deep and close relationship and Julien’s death was a tragedy. The more so because it was caused by a father whose pride wouldn’t let him understand that his son was different – and that was all it was really, Ben thought. Julien’s father had let his old-school morals and fear of scandal overrule his love for his son and now bitterly regretted it, though he blamed Marco. Ben wanted to shake the man and make him see sense, make him forget his stiff-necked pride, but he supposed that the family reputation would not allow it. If Julien’s father admitted the truth, then he must take responsibility for his son’s death.
Yet why had his prejudice caused him to ruin both his son’s and Marco’s lives? Ben pondered the question. People were not the same to look at, so why should they feel the same when it came to falling in love? Attitudes were changing and many would no longer condemn such a love, no longer see it as black and white. Ben did not understand why Marco had loved a young man rather than a girl, but he knew that love was real – as real as his own was for Sally. To lose Sally would leave Ben feeling empty and devastated and he knew Marco had suffered terrible agony and remorse over Julien’s death, blaming himself, though it was not his fault but another’s. Ben respected Marco both as a professional and as a person and he’d done his best to help his friend in every way he could since the tragedy that had devastated his life. Marco was quietly carrying on, living with dignity, his deep grief hidden from the world but there to see when you looked into his eyes.
Sally was standing now and looking down at him in the bed, her dark hair slightly longer than usual, with the morning light highlighting the hints of red as it waved on to her shoulders. Ben’s gaze dwelled on the curve of her stomach and he felt a surge of love and pride. It was his child she was carrying – a boy, Sally said, though she had no way of knowing, but for Ben, Sally was usually right. Her advice concerning the store was always good and, so far, she hadn’t put a foot wrong. Her own departments were the most successful, but trade was steady throughout the store and Ben had been busy with his own plans of late, secrets he hadn’t yet told his wife, because he needed to be sure and he wanted them to be a surprise. When he’d first heard that the tobacconist next door to Harpers Emporium, was to be sold he’d taken the first opportunity to view it. Although not a large property in itself, its relatively cheap price meant that he could just afford to buy it and expand the departments. Sally thought they needed bigger shoe and lingerie departments and Ben wanted a toy department as well as a confectionary hall and a florist. He’d already had meetings with the district council about the change of purpose for the flat above the tobacconist’s shop and it was there he would put the confectionary, next to the florists. The toy shop would be in the old shop, once it had been opened out, with as little disruption as he could manage. Sally could take the middle floor for whatever she wanted, when all the building work had finished. She was keen to build up her cosmetics department by importing some of the wonderful perfumes, creams and other toiletries that were becoming all the rage in New York.
Would she be pleased with her surprise or annoyed that he hadn’t told her of his plans? Ben hoped it would be the first and felt slightly guilty that he hadn’t shared earlier. He held out his hand and she took it, sitting on the edge of the bed and bending down to kiss him. She smelled gorgeous, of some soft flowery perfume she said she wanted to stock in the shop. Made by Yardley, now of Bond Street, London, the toilet water was an English product and well established. Sally had tried the whole range and approved it before ordering: soaps, talcum powder, bath salts and a light cologne for the store. Ben liked it too, thought it was very Sally and encouraged her to buy everything. He wasn’t sure how well it was selling yet, but he’d seen the discreet and pretty display on the ground floor, together with some special creams his sister Jenni had sent over from Elizabeth Arden’s store.
‘What are you thinking?’ Sally asked suddenly. He realised she was looking at him intently, a hint of mischief in her face. ‘You’re hiding something – I know it. Is it to do with the anniversary of the store?’
‘In a way,’ he said and laughed up at her. ‘You read me just like a book, don’t you?’
‘No, but I know when you want to tell me something and can’t…’
Ben laughed and caught her, bringing her down to him for a lingering kiss. ‘We opened two years ago in March 1912 and now it’s March 1914 – and today I sign for the premises next door to Harpers, which will give us over two thousand extra square feet of selling space…’
‘You got it!’ Sally gave a squeal of pleasure and flung herself on him, hugging and kissing him.