Wedding Cake Murder (7 page)

Let your cookie dough rest in the bowl on the counter while you prepare your cookie sheets. Either spray them with Pam or another nonstick cooking spray or line them with parchment paper.

Hannah’s 2
^nd
Note: If you use parchment paper, the cookies will be easier to remove after baking. Then all you have to do is pull the parchment paper, cookies and all, over onto a wire rack.

When your cookie sheets have been prepared, roll the cookie dough into one-inch balls with your hands.
(Lisa and I use a 2-teaspoon scoop to do this down at The Cookie Jar.)

Hannah’s 3
^rd
Note: If the dough is too sticky to roll into balls, chill it for a half-hour or so before you try again.

Place the dough balls on the cookie sheets, 12 dough balls to a standard-sized sheet.

Use the tines of a fork to make a crisscross pattern on top of each dough ball, flattening them a bit in the process, the way you would for peanut butter cookies.

Hannah’s 4
^th
Note: If the fork sticks, either spray the tines with Pam or another nonstick cooking spray, or dredge the fork in a little flour.

Bake your Chocolate Almond Crisps at 375 degrees F. for 8 to 10 minutes, or until the edges just begin to brown.
(Mine took 8 minutes.)

Take your cookies out of the oven and let them sit on the cookie sheets for 2 minutes. Then use a metal spatula to transfer the cookies to a wire rack to cool completely.

Hannah’s 5
^th
Note: When Sally and Dick Laughlin host their Oktoberfest celebration at the Lake Eden Inn, I always help Sally bake these cookies for the guests. If you
substitute white chocolate chips for the regular chocolate chips, the cookie tastes a lot like marzipan, which is a candy or almond paste that is a popular ingredient used in desserts, cakes, and cookies in Germany.

Yield: A batch of Chocolate Almond Crisps will make approximately 5 to 6 dozen delicious cookies.

Chapter Five

W
hen the door swung closed behind Michelle, Hannah wondered whether her sister was right and she’d made a mistake. But before she could decide, there was a knock on the back door. Norman was here.

Hannah walked to the door on legs that trembled slightly and pulled it open before she could change her mind. “Hi, Norman,” she said, not meeting his eyes for fear she’d start to cry. “Sit down and I’ll pour you a cup of coffee. There’s a platter of Chocolate Almond Crisps on the workstation that Michelle baked this morning.”

“Thanks, Hannah.”

Norman sat down on a stool at the workstation. As she poured the coffee, Hannah sneaked a glance at Norman’s face. He was far from relaxed, but he didn’t look as miserable as Grandma Knudson had led her to believe. She began to feel slightly hopeful. Perhaps they could remain friends, after all.

She carried their coffee mugs to the stainless-steel table and set them down. Once she’d noticed that Norman had already taken a bite out of his first cookie, she took a deep breath and plunged in. “I have something to ask you, Norman.”

“I know. Your mother told me. The answer is yes.”

“Good!” Hannah gave him a relieved smile. Perhaps this wouldn’t be as bad as she’d thought it might be. “Then it won’t bother you to be in the wedding party?”

Norman just stared at her for what seemed like a full minute to Hannah. He looked positively incredulous.

“Of course it’ll bother me! I love you, Hannah. You know that. And you’re going to marry someone else. There’s no way I can ever be happy about that! Everybody in Lake Eden thinks I’m suffering from a broken heart, and they’re all dead right!”

Hannah gave an audible gulp, she was so surprised. She’d never heard Norman sound that vehement before. It was obvious that his emotions were running high and she’d have to tread very carefully.

“I know. Grandma Knudson told me. I should have said something to you earlier, talked everything out and maybe you’d feel better about it, but I just . . .”

“Maybe I’d feel better about it?” Norman repeated, interrupting her. “Maybe I’d feel
better
about it? I can’t believe you said that! Are you living in a different universe, or something? There’s no
better
, Hannah. The only
better
would be if you’d marry me!”

Hannah felt the tears well up in her eyes. Norman was furious with her. He’d probably never speak to her again. She’d lost him forever, and she didn’t think she could bear that.

Tears began to roll down her cheeks. She simply couldn’t help it. And then she felt his hand cover hers.

“I’m sorry, Hannah. I didn’t intend to make you cry. It’s just that I really thought you’d marry me someday. And now I know that you never will. It’s eating at me like a cancer. It’s just not worth getting up in the morning, or going to work, or anything now that I’ve lost you. Heartbroken is the wrong word. I’m in mourning for the death of my hopes and dreams for the future.”

Hannah squeezed his hand. “I feel the same way, Norman. I’m not sure I can bear it if I lose you. But I have to marry Ross. I love him so much that I don’t think I can breathe without him in my life. But I love you, too!”

They sat there, clasped hands stretched across the counter, both miserable and grieving. And then Norman did something that shocked Hannah so much that her head snapped up from its bowed position. He laughed!

“It sounds like we’re both in a h . . . h . . . heck of a fix,” Norman choked out, and then he started to laugh hard again.

And despite the fact that Hannah felt a bit like the end of the world had arrived, she found herself joining in Norman’s laughter. “Are we c . . . crazy?” she managed to gasp.

“Certi . . . certifiable,” Norman said, forcing out the word between gales of laughter.

“They . . . they should lock us up in the funny farm,” Hannah answered, beginning to wonder if she could ever stop laughing.

“So . . . what are we . . . going to do?” Norman asked.

“I don’t . . . don’t know. I can’t . . . think. My stomach hurts . . . too much . . . from . . . laughing!”

“Are you guys all right?” Michelle stood in the doorway, staring at them. “We heard you laughing all the way in the coffee shop and I came to find out.”

“We’re fine,” Norman said, still chuckling.

“Yes, we’re . . . we’re fine,” Hannah echoed. “There’s nothing to worry about, Michelle.”

“Okay, then.” Michelle didn’t look convinced. “I’ll go back in and tell Lisa. We were really concerned.”

“I guess she was expecting the worst,” Hannah said to Norman.

“It
was
the worst, but our senses of humor got the better of us. I’ll be in the wedding party, Hannah, and I’ll pretend to be happy for you. I know you weren’t happy about it when I was going to marry Bev, but you were nice to her even though you didn’t like her. This isn’t the same situation. I
do
like Ross. I just don’t like the idea of you marrying anyone but me.”

“Ross likes you, too,” Hannah said, and then she took another deep breath. I have to ask you this . . . do you think that we can still be friends?”

It took Norman a long time to respond. It was obvious that he was thinking it through. “I think so. I’m not completely sure, but I know I’m going to try.” He took another deep breath and then he reached out for her hand again. “I love you, Hannah. I’ll never stop loving you. If anything ever goes wrong and you need me, don’t hesitate. You can always come to me.”

“What do you mean, Norman? What could go wrong?”

“I don’t know. Life is uncertain except for one thing. And that one thing is that I’ll always be there for you. Please, Hannah. I want you to remember that.”

“I’ll remember,” Hannah told him. “I promise, Norman.”

The hands of the clock on the kitchen wall seemed to march forward in double time as Hannah filled several display jars for the coffee shop, mixed up a batch of Cherry Winks and baked them, put on a fresh pot of coffee, and prepared another plate of Chocolate Almond Crisps for Mike’s arrival. Before she’d entirely recovered from Norman’s visit, there was another knock on the kitchen door.

Hannah sighed. Mike was here. Why hadn’t she scheduled his visit for tomorrow instead? Perhaps Michelle was right and she really was a glutton for punishment.

“Hi, Hannah,” Mike said, stepping into the kitchen. “So who’s my partner for the wedding party? Andrea, or Michelle?”

“Andrea.” Hannah poured coffee for Mike and moved the plate of cookies on the counter between them. “I paired Norman with Michelle.”

“How about Bill? Won’t he feel left out?”

“No. He was worried that if both of you were in the wedding party, there might be some kind of emergency call at the sheriff’s department and neither one of you could go.”

“Good thinking.” Mike took a cookie and bit into it. “These are good. What are they?”

“Chocolate Almond Crisps. Michelle made them this morning.”

“From your recipe?”

“No, it’s hers.”

“Michelle’s a good baker.” Mike finished his first cookie and took a second. “You said Norman was paired with Michelle for the wedding. Is he okay with being in the wedding party?”

Hannah chose her words carefully. She wasn’t about to describe Norman’s reaction to her marriage with the man who had been Norman’s rival for her affections. “I saw Norman earlier and he agreed to do it.”

“But was he
okay
with it?”

It took Hannah a moment to answer. Again, she knew she had to choose her words carefully. “Norman said yes when I asked him. He said he likes Ross.”

“So do I, but that doesn’t mean I’m totally okay with you marrying him. It’s just there’s not much I can do about it except kidnap you and hold you hostage.”

Hannah smiled. There was very little chance of that happening. “You can’t do that,” she pointed out. “Kidnapping’s illegal and you’re a cop.”

“True. There’s one thing I want you to promise me, though.”

“What’s that?” Hannah held her breath, waiting for Mike’s answer. She hoped he’d ask her to promise something reasonably simple so that she could say yes.

“Promise me that if Ross ever does anything to hurt you in any way, you’ll let me know right away.”

“Mike!” Hannah was flabbergasted. “Ross would never hurt me!”

“Maybe not. But if he does, I want you to tell me right away. Will you do that, Hannah?”

“Yes, I promise,” Hannah said. She was convinced that Ross would never hurt her. He loved her. He’d told her so, and he’d shown it in countless other ways.

“Just don’t forget what you promised.”

“I won’t forget,” Hannah said, but she was puzzled. What possible reason could Mike have for asking her to promise such a ridiculous thing? There was only one way to find out. She had to ask him. Hannah looked up, met his eyes, and asked, “Why did you ask me to make that promise? Do you have some reason to think that Ross might hurt me?”

Mike frowned slightly. “No. I don’t have anything concrete, but there’s something about him that’s . . . I’m not sure how to say this, but there’s something that’s not quite right. It’s a feeling I have.”

“A suspicion?”

“Not exactly. It’s not as strong as a suspicion. It’s not even really a hunch, but it’s something that makes me twitch.”

“Is that the cop in you talking?”

“Maybe. All I know is that I’ve been a cop for a long time and I’ve developed some kind of a sixth sense about some people, a little prickling at the back of my mind. I get the feeling that something about Ross is a little off-center, but I don’t know what it is.”

Hannah felt very uncomfortable. Norman had asked her to come to him if Ross ever hurt her and she’d promised. And now Mike was talking about Ross, and it was clear he was worried that Ross wasn’t the wonderful, honest, caring man that he truly was. What was going on in the minds of the two men she cared for so deeply?

Even with her mind racing through the possibilities at top speed, it took a few moments. Then Hannah understood, and it was all she could do not to smile. Both Norman and Mike were jealous. That was all it was, coupled with the fact that they didn’t know Ross as well as she did. She’d gone to college with Ross, lived just down the hall from him, and spent hours socializing with Ross and his college girlfriend. She could point all that out, but she wasn’t about to tell Mike that he was just jealous. Mike would simply deny it. She’d let him think that his cop’s sense was working overtime. It was simpler that way.

“Can we still be friends, Mike?” Hannah asked him, reaching out to pat his hand.

“Sure.”

“And you’ll come over to see Ross and me?”

“You bet!” Mike gave her his most devilish smile. “You always make too much food, Hannah, and you’re a great cook. Somebody’s got to make sure you don’t have to put away all those leftovers.”

When Mike left, after finishing three cups of coffee and the whole plate of cookies, Hannah sat down at the workstation again. She was tired, bone tired, and she could hardly keep her eyes open. She hadn’t slept well last night, and today had been riddled with tension-filled events. She wanted to drive home and fall into her bed to sleep for a week, but she couldn’t leave work now. It was almost time to lock the street door to the coffee shop for the day and begin mixing tomorrow’s cookie dough. She still had work to do before she could leave for the night.