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cemetery.

    Jo had only a few appointments on Thursday, but by Friday, she had clients up to her ears. She didn’t mind the work; the money she earned would help with the family’s household expenses. But she did mind that her last customer of the day, Mrs. Waterman, had taken it upon herself to ferret out all she could about George Brooks.
    Jo was in the process of fitting Corinne with a long rat so that her hair would coil atop her head, when the Dragon Lady asked, “So, Josephine, who was that soldier you were with outside the church at the Firestone funeral?”
    Jo wasn’t surprised by the question. The Dragon Lady was known for sticking her long nose in other folks’ business. “His name is George Brooks. He’s staying with Mrs. Oswald.”
    “I’d never let a daughter of mine go anywhere near a soldier. I would think your mama would be more discriminating.”
    “It isn’t as if he’s courting me, Mrs. Waterman. I met him at Mrs. Oswald’s on Sunday along with everyone else from the church.”
    “All the more reason your mama should be wary. How much do you know about him?”
    Jo kept her mouth shut and concentrated on fitting the rat. When it was finally positioned, she pinned it down. A few more touches and she was done. She handed Mrs. Waterman the hand mirror, then stepped back to await her comments.
    “This looks very good, Josephine. The color matches very well, don’t you think?”
    “Yes, I do.”
    Jo was handed back the mirror. The very short and very wide Mrs. Waterman then stood and picked up her handbag. She took a moment to count out what Jo was owed, and added a five-cent tip. Jo stuck the coins in the pocket of her apron. “Thank you, Mrs. Waterman.”
    “You’re welcome, Josephine. Between you and me, I wish my Bert had fallen in love with you. Granted, you were quite the handful growing up, but now you seem to know where you’re going. Sadly, I can’t say the same for Gertrude.”
    Jo came quickly to her best friend’s defense. “You aren’t being fair to Trudy, Mrs. Waterman. Trudy is an intelligent young woman, and she loves Bert very much.”
    “She’s too flighty for my liking.”
    “Bert loves her, as well.”
    Jo dearly hoped Mrs. Waterman wasn’t intent upon breaking off her son’s engagement because it would break Bert’s heart, but Mrs. Waterman had nothing further to say, it seemed, because she put on her coat and walked to the door, saying, “I still don’t think you should be seeing a soldier. You wouldn’t want folks talking about you and him all over town.”
    “No, ma’am, I wouldn’t.” Jo could just about imagine what would happen should Mrs. Waterman ever get word of Trudy’s sudden infatuation with Dred Reed. Whittaker was a small town. Gossip was one of the few entertainments offered. In fact, when she and Trudy were younger, gossip had been their whole life, but now that they were older Jo had no desire to be the subject of falsehoods and innuendos.
    Mrs. Waterman went to the door. “Remember what I said, Josephine.”
    “Yes, ma’am. I will.”
    And she was gone.

    After church on Sunday, the Bests once again led the caravan to Mrs. Oswald’s. Out in front of the house, Cecilia set the brake, then turned to her daughter and said, “So, tell me about this George.”
    Jo’s eyes shot to Belle, but Belle looked off across the fields. “Well, I don’t know much.” Jo rattled off the list of “George facts” she’d told Belle previously.
    Cecilia listened, then said, “He seems to be a nice young man.”
    “I thought so, as well.”
    “All right, then, let’s go on inside.”
    Jo was surprised to have gotten off so lightly. Letting out her pent-up breath, she let her mama and Belle go ahead so she could wait for Trudy.
    Once they were out of earshot of their mamas, Trudy whispered excitedly, “Do you think Dred is still here?”
    Jo shrugged. “What about Bert, Tru?”
    Trudy waved her hand dismissively. “He and his mama went to