Free Rose of Tralee by Katie Flynn

that; kids love a day at the sea.’
    ‘That’s ever so kind of Mona,’ Lily said at once. ‘But Sundays our Jack teks us somewhere, after we’ve been to church, that is. It’ll be the seaside this week, that I do know, for we’ve discussed it and I couldn’t disappoint him, queen. But thanks for the offer, it were a lovely thought.’
    ‘Why don’t you ask Rosie if she’d rather spend the day with ’er cousin? After all, she can see ’er dad any day of the week,’ Daisy was saying persuasively, and Lily was wondering how to refuse without causing offence when Rose burst into the kitchen. Lily turned to her daughter with considerable relief. ‘Manners,’ she said chidingly. ‘What’s up?’
    ‘There’s kittens next door,’ Rose said longingly. ‘The lady looked over the wall an’ said we could go an’ tek a look. Have we got time, Mam?’
    ‘Ten minutes, then we’ll be off,’ Lily said, glad not to have to admit that she had weakly agreed to have a cup of tea with her sister. ‘Shall I give you a shout?’
    ‘Oh Rosie, luv, your cousin Mona asked me to see if you’d go out wi’ her tomorrer,’ Aunt Daisy said, breaking into the conversation with heightened colour in her cheeks. She plainly considered that shehad been snubbed by Lily and was thus taking matters into her own hands. ‘She thought you might like a trip to New Brighton wi’ her an’ her feller.’
    ‘No thanks, Aunt, Sundays is me dad’s day off,’ Rose said with a promptitude which endeared her doubly to her embarrassed mother. ‘You don’t need to shout us, Mam. The lady’s bringin’ the box into the backyard, we’ll see you in the jigger as you leave Aunt Daisy’s.’
    ‘An’ we’ll come away wi’ you as soon’s we’ve seen the kittens,’ Ricky said, hovering in the doorway behind Rose. ‘We want to have a good go on the boats. Come on, queen, there’s six of em to see, you know!’
    ‘Why it makes a difference how many there are I can’t even begin to guess,’ Lily said as the two children scampered out of the yard and round to the next-door house. ‘Let’s mash the tea, Dais, an’ you can tell me what you’ve been up to this past week or two. And don’t be upset because of tomorrer, only Rosie loves to be wi’ her dad an’ five years is a big age difference, really. When they were younger I know they used to play together, your Mona an’ our Rosie, but Mona’s a young woman now and Rosie’s just a kid still. My goodness, this tea’s hot!’
    ‘So that’s your Aunt Daisy,’ Ricky said thoughtfully as the two of them crouched beside the cardboard box full of patchwork-coloured kittens. ‘She ain’t much like your mam, chuck.’
    ‘She’s ten year older,’ Rose explained. ‘An’ her old feller left her years back. Her gal’s growed up, an’ all.’
    ‘Your mam took your aunt cakes an’ that,’ Ricky said after a moment. ‘Don’t she have much gelt, queen?’
    ‘Yes, she’s gorra job an’ so’s her daughter whatlives wi’ her, me cousin Mona. But me aunt don’t bake,’ Rose said briefly. No lover of Aunt Daisy herself, she did not much fancy having to explain her to Ricky, particularly as she did not really understand Aunt Daisy herself, so she strove to change the subject. ‘If you could have one of ’em, which would you choose?’ She pointed to the kittens.
    ‘Dunno. Kittens is grand, but they grows into cats awful quick,’ Ricky observed. ‘An’ we’ve gorra cat – two, in fact. Ain’t you gorra cat, Rosie?’
    ‘No. Next door have got one called Socks – I like Socks all right, I wish she was ours. Though I’d like a dog, really. But a kitten would be next best,’ Rose said. ‘But these ones are too little to leave their mam, ain’t they?’
    ‘Yeah. The lady said another couple o’ weeks,’ Ricky reminded her. ‘I like the one what’s gorra black patch over his eye. An’ the one that’s nearly all white ain’t bad. But I tell you, Rosie, cats