"How are you feeling?" Polly asked setting a cup of tea before Rosemary, this was not the most ideal situation but there was little that they could do about it with the boys so far away.
The days seemed to fly by now, with little news or any idea of when the war would be done.
The very idea that Thomas might not make it home in time to see the birth of his first child troubled Polly, with each passing day she feared that Rosemary could be left a widow at any moment.
"We are well," Rosemary assured her, a hand resting on the steadily growing bump that seemed bigger and bigger with each passing day.
The thrill of feeling her baby moved was only overshadowed by the regret that Thomas could not be here to feel such things; her letters often spoke in the developments that he was missing at home.
Rosemary had been surprised by Polly's sudden invite for tea but she was happy to come and see her; it was better than being stuck in the house alone on her day off.
There was not that much work at the store these days and Rosemary found herself spending time home alone trying to prepare for the birth of her first child.
There was so much to be done and Victoria had been more than helpful in that regard, she was throwing herself into aiding her eldest in preparing her home for the arrival.
The birth of Robert had only made Victoria even more determined to have everything prepared for Rosemary to deliver at home with little left to chance.
Polly sipped on her tea and stared at Rosemary, she had put a lot of thought into this and if she were not desperate then she would not be considering it; she needed help and there was no one else she could trust with this.
Arthur, Thomas, and John were away fighting in the war, Ada was doing what she could, Martha had her hands full trying to manage the three children while her husband was away and Finn was much too young to be involved in this.
"I need help running the business," Polly said firmly, she knew it was a lot to ask and she was certain that Thomas would throw a fit if he knew what she was doing but there was no one else that she could trust with this.
Rosemary was a Shelby now and with work slow at the shop, people were cutting back on such expenses and it meant that more often than not she was pottering around the house.
Polly did her best to offer support when she could, she knew that Yvette had moved in to stay with her sister to help around the house but extra work before the baby arrived would not hurt.
There were bills that would need paying, items that needed buying and the baby would add extra expenses that had yet to make themselves known.
"It's not much work... just running the office and doing some filing, paperwork, nothing that you don't do now," Polly informed her, sipping on her own drink, watching Rosemary over the top.
Polly had sworn that she would take care of things when the boys had left, she wasn't going to let them down and she would keep things running as smoothly as she could with them gone.
Rosemary blinked a little taken back that Polly was asking for her help, she had assumed that she would turn to Ada or Martha instead of her first especially since she was a newcomer to the family.
In fact, Thomas had done his best to keep her in the dark about what his family actually did; he insisted that it was for the best just in case he upset the wrong person.
"Ada's taking some nursing classes and does what she can... Martha, well you've seen how busy she is with all those children of hers," Polly continued clutching at her cup as she stared at Rosemary, this was a big ask but she was sure that she was making the right decision.
It would put extra money on the table for Rosemary, the work would require her to sit most of the day so she wouldn't strain herself and it freed Polly would be able to work on things that would bring in more money.
"Okay, what do you need me to do?" Rosemary asked after a moment, her eyes searching Polly's face but it would take a better woman than she to read what was on Polly's mind.
Any extra cash was a good thing, the nursery needed decorating and there were baby things that she needed to buy; plus, Rosemary couldn't stand being home all day.
***
Staring down at the letter that he was writing, Thomas frowned trying to think of something that he could say to his wife without fear of revealing anything that he shouldn't; he could not believe how long it had been since he had last seen her.
The months since he had come away to France had not been easy and seemed to drag especially now that they all knew that this war was not going to be over as quickly as anyone had thought.
Leaning against the side of the tunnel that he had been digging, Thomas closed his eyes as he tried to picture what Rosemary would look like now; he wondered how big she had gotten with her pregnancy.
He wished for nothing more than the chance to return home to her, he hated that they had been parted for so long already and there was no end in sight.
The stories that she told him of feeling their baby move, the blanket that her mother had made for the baby as well as the slow progress of the nursery only served to make him miss home even more.
"Any news from Rosemary?" Freddie asked sitting down across from Thomas, he leaned his head back against the wall as he stared at his friend who seemed completely lost in thought.
It truly had surprised him how devoted Thomas seemed to his wife, he had never seen his friend like this before and Freddie had to admit that he was rather jealous of the fact that he had found someone.
Letters always seemed to arrive for Thomas from his wife and family, they seemed never ending while Freddie barely received any; he almost wished that he had married before he had left Birmingham.
"Not recently. Things have been rather quiet," Thomas murmured, he loved reading about all the new things that she was experiencing with her pregnancy and he wished that he were there to experience it with her.
The war might not have reached home but the affects were still there, Rosemary wrote of how little work she had now that so many men were away fighting.
Ignoring the itch that his clothes created, Thomas jotted down what he could about his days here; he knew most of his words would be crossed out if he revealed too much.
There was no need to frighten Rosemary especially in her condition, he knew that the things that he witnessed where not something that he could share with her.
His wife was a kind soul, better than he deserved at any rate and Thomas swore that he would do anything in his power to keep her from harm.
"When's the baby due again?" Freddie asked curiously, he had never thought that Thomas would be the type to settle down and start a family; he had always assumed that he would spend his days as a single man.
Hell, he had been convinced that they'd both spend their days chasing ladies that had no interest in them and spending a pretty penny on those that they could.
After everything that had happened with Thomas's father and how he had walked out on his family; there had always been a part of Thomas that had always been responsible for his younger siblings.
"Early May," Thomas replied thinking about how quickly that was approaching, he very much doubted that he would be home when his first child would be born.
Tiredly closing his eyes, Thomas could not help but think of his child, he hoped that they got Rosemary's beautiful eyes; he was looking forward to going home to his family when this nightmare was over.
"Not long then... doubt we'll be back home," Freddie mumbled softly, though Thomas still heard him and he had to agree; he wished it were not true and he could return home for the birth of his child but it was not possible.
The two of them were silent as they thought about home, it seemed such a long time since they had been there and the war claimed more and more lives around them.
Thomas looked down at the letter, his fingers brushing against the material that he held wishing that he had more to write to her; he wished that he could tell her about what was happening here.
However, orders were orders and there was little that he could say to her that would not be crossed out; they wanted people at home to think that the war was going well.
Looking down the tunnel, Thomas stuffed his letter back into his pocket as he got back to his feet; he had to get back to work and he knew that there was little that could be done by sitting around, it was not going to get him home any quicker.