he returned to his unit to give in his notice of intention to leave the army by buying himself out of his contract. He knew that because of business commitments she would have to return to the USA on a regular basis, but he didn’t mind, as the cottage in the idyllic peaceful countryside was something that he had always dreamed of, and they planned to be together permanently as soon as it was feasible for her to settle down.
The sergeant major had tried to persuade him to change his mind, all to no avail. He even had Peter in front of the commanding officer; who strongly hinted that he would promote him if he decided to change his mind, as the last thing that the officer had wanted; was to lose a good soldier.
All this had fallen on deaf ears. Peter had been determined to leave and nothing or no one would change his mind.
Seeing that no amount of persuasion would work, the commanding officer had finally agreed and signed the papers that would allow Peter to be a civilian again.
Once the papers had been signed, it was just a matter of waiting until the record office made it official. Peter had carried on with his duties as usual until he’d received his notification that within seven days, he would be out of the army.
His mates had given him a leaving party and presented him with a tankard engraved on the side was the crest of the regiment and his name. Not wanting to show his sentiments, he’d simply filled it with beer and shouted; “cheers” and everyone had joined him in a chorus of one of the famous regimental songs.
As he stood outside the barrack gates, he watched the soldiers, some of them his mates, carrying on with their duties as if he’d never been there. He pulled himself erect, and then smiling to himself, gave his regiment one last salute, before turning and heading towards the railway station.
Being stationed up north, the train journey was not long. Sarah had said she would meet him at the station in Leeds, where they could get a taxi to the cottage.
He looked out of the window as the train gradually pulled up in front of the platform. Getting up from his seat, he headed towards the door, bending his head to look out of the window in search of her. Alighting to the platform, he looked around, but there was still no sign of her. His heart sank; he’d imagined she’d be waiting for him with open arms. With a sigh, he made his way to the exit. He stopped; in front of him was the most beautiful woman in the world.
