Page 131 of Love Letters on Hazel Lane

She opened the wardrobe doors now, wondering what to wear this evening. It was a Friday evening, which could only mean one thing: Scrabble club. But tonight was no ordinary Scrabble club.

If only she’d thought sooner, she could have popped into the hospice shop one lunchtime to see if they had anything suitable. It would have been nice to wear something special that evening.

Too late now though, she glanced at her watch. They’d already be closed.

Although… well, there was the Scrabble dress. She’d bought it because she liked it, never imagining she’d have the occasion to wear it, but there would never be an evening more appropriate for the quirky pinafore than this one.

She slipped off her work clothes, put on a plain T-shirt and pulled the Scrabble dress over it. It was a perfect fit; it showed off her curves, curves she was proud of. She took out the new lipstick she’d treated herself to the previous week and put a little on, smiling at herself in the mirror.

‘Because I’m worth it,’ she said to herself with a smile.

And she believed it. Well, sort of. She was halfway there. It wasn’t the new lipstick that made her feel that way. It wasn’t Razz either. Yes, he made her feel loved but she knew now that self-worth was called self-worth for a reason; it was something you had to find within yourself. She was getting there; a lifetime of believing herself inferior wasn’t going to change overnight.

If you’d told her a few months ago that she’d walk into a party – because tonight was a sort of party, wasn’t it? – wearing such an eye-catching and unusual dress… well, she’d never have believed it. She’d always sought to blend into the background, to go unnoticed, but walking into the school hall in this outfit would be sure to attract attention.

And it did. Every head turned as Jo walked in. She hadn’t realised there’d be quite that many heads either.

The original members of the Scrabble club were all there, along with lovely Mrs McCardle and several other new members. Mr Morgan and most of the other teachers were in attendance. And the Pop! Productions crowd and Caroline, with her rather large bump. Jo had never imagined she’d see people from her old workplace here in her new one. Annie was handing round trays of her letter-tile biscuits. There were a few people whom Jo recognised as parents of children at the school, and Linda had already managed to find one of the single fathers and was flirting desperately with him in one corner. And everyone – well, except for Linda – seemed to stop talking as she walked in.

She felt self-conscious. On second thoughts, the dress had definitely been a mistake.

But then Leona suddenly appeared at her side and said, ‘Jo, I love that dress. You look fantastic.’

Within seconds, a small crowd gathered round her; Mrs McCardle oohed and ahhed over the fabric, and Razz said, ‘I’ve never seen you in a dress before. Wow. Just wow.’

‘It’s a lovely dress,’ said Cosmic and immediately blushed, the colour of his cheeks clashing dreadfully with the orange of his hair. Perhaps he’d never paid a compliment to a woman before.

‘Thanks, Cosmic,’ said Jo, ‘and Malcolm, before you ask, I think it’s covered on my contents insurance.’

Malcolm laughed. He looked a little less geeky when he laughed.

Jo spotted Kate in a corner, chatting with Emily, Matthew and a tall, athletic man whom Jo presumed must be Ludek. She excused herself and went over to them.

Kate looked at Jo in astonishment, and then at Emily.

‘You’re wearing my dress,’ said Emily.

‘Your dress?’ Jo didn’t put two and two together.

‘I donated it to the hospice shop.’

‘And I bought it.’

‘What a weird coincidence,’ said Emily. ‘Have you worn it much?’

‘This is the first time. I nearly wore it to the festival but I hadn’t quite got the bottle.’

‘Wow,’ said Kate. ‘I’d never clocked before that you two are such a similar size. It looks like it was made for you, Jo, when in fact, it was made for Emily.’

‘It was this dress that made me move to Hebbleswick,’ said Jo. ‘I know this sounds ridiculous, but when I saw it in the shop window, I thought it was a sign from the Universe that this was the place where I should be.’

‘You sound like the Bouffant,’ said Kate. ‘But maybe it was a sign. Look how it’s worked out for you here. You found Razz. You’ve organised a festival and landed yourself a new job.’

Jo laughed. She wasn’t sure she believed in signs anymore. Or rather, it wasn’t so much she didn’t believe in them; she didn’t find she needed them. For the first time in her life, she trusted her own judgement when it came to making decisions.

‘And all thanks to a dress,’ Kate said triumphantly. ‘Which means, all thanks to me.’

‘You? You mean, all thanks to Emily. If she hadn’t donated it…’