Chapter 19

Gram and Bridie insisted on taking Jo dress shopping in town the following morning. The Christmas party was on Sunday.

Jo liked the town. It wasn’t as colorful as Kinsale, but it resembled it with the row houses of shops. She was surprised at the number of dress shops in town. There were at least five small shops, each with two windows flanking a central entrance. Most windows featured mannequins dressed in lovely outfits: dresses—or “frocks” as Bridie called them—or coats, hats, and scarves.

“Let’s go in here,” Bridie said, opening a door to one of the shops before Jo or Gram could offer an opinion.

Jo didn’t know who was more excited about her accompanying Ian to his Christmas party: Bridie, Gram, or herself. She had to admit to a flurry of nerves as well. She’d never been to a proper Christmas party. She’d only known the day affair for the employees of the shop she’d worked at, but it had always seemed lackluster at best.

But this party, she was excited about. And nervous. She’d been spending a lot of time with Ian, and it had turned out better than she could have anticipated.

Although Gram and Bridie said nothing, Jo suspected they knew something was up. She did not miss their raised eyebrows or their pointed looks. And any time Ian’s name was mentioned, they seemed to study her for her reaction.

Ian’s grandmother took control of the dress-finding situation, and Jo was glad to let her. Bridie told the saleswoman that Jo needed a frock for a Christmas party.

The woman rested her chin between her thumb and index finger as she contemplated Jo. Finally, she announced, “With your hair color, I’d say something in green. Or even navy.”

“Definitely,” Bridie said.

“It’ll bring out her eyes,” Gram said. “They’re one of her best features.”

Jo laughed. The saleswoman showed Jo to a dressing room and said, “I’ll be right back.”

While she waited, Jo could hear the two elderly women outside her dressing room, whispering and giggling about someone back in the day named Johnny O’Hare. Jo shook her head and found herself laughing along with them.

When the saleswoman returned with five dresses on her arm, she eyed Jo’s bra and underwear. “And maybe some foundation wear?”

Jo’s shoulders caved in embarrassment. The bra, though decent enough to hold the girls in proper place, was old. She wore comfortable cotton underwear her grandmother would have been proud of.

“Do you need stockings too?” the woman asked.

“Um, yeah, I didn’t bring any. I didn’t think there’d be a need,” Jo said.

“No worries, I’ll get some,” the woman said with a smile. “Try those on and see how you get on.”

Jo slipped on the first dress, a green print number, but immediately dismissed it because it was too tight in the bust. She quickly stepped out of it and put on the second dress, but she couldn’t get it over her hips.

“Ugh,” she said. She looked at the size and frowned. That was a size too small.

She didn’t hold out much hope for the third dress but tried it on. The simple navy wrap dress fit like a glove. Jo studied herself in the mirror and liked how it accentuated her curves.

She stepped out of the dressing room for the opinions of Gram, Bridie, and the saleswoman.

“Oh, Jo,” Gram said, “you look beautiful.”

“I think we have a winner.”

And so it was agreed. That was relatively painless, Jo thought. In addition to the dress, she purchased undergarments and pantyhose. When they walked out of the shop, Bridie said, “Let’s go next door and we’ll get a pair of shoes.”

“Sure, why not?” Jo said. But the visit to the shoe shop turned into an exercise in entertainment as Gram and Nana got a fit of the giggles reminiscing about cycling to some dance when they were eighteen.

“And remember that Tomas Gilligan?” Bridie asked with a moue of distaste.

Gram scowled. “He thought he was God’s gift to women.”

Bridie said to Jo, “He chased us all around the countryside that night on his bike.” She shook her head as if the memory was unpleasant.

“What did you do?” Jo asked, curious about this stalker.

“We ‘ditched’ him!” Gram said, and Bridie erupted in a howl of laughter.

Jo and the saleswoman looked at them, curious.

“We hid our bikes behind a hedge and jumped in the ditch!” Bridie explained.

“It was almost getting dark. But our frocks and our shoes were covered in mud and muck,” Gram said with a grimace.

“But remember he went by on his bike, ringing that stupid bell?” Bridie asked, exasperated.

“And we had to cover our mouths because we were laughing so hard!” Gram recalled.

“He was a right eejit!” Bridie said, shaking her head.

“Whatever happened to him?” Gram asked.

“He ran afoul of a bull,” Bridie said, raising her eyebrows. “Wasn’t even forty.” She made the sign of the cross and added, “May he rest in peace.”

“That’s a shame,” Gram said, crossing one leg over the other and folding her arms across her chest.

“Is it?” Bridie asked, and the two of them started laughing again.

Once Jo managed to try on and buy a pair of shoes, the three of them left and went to a little café for tea and scones.