Free Peach Cobbler Murder by Joanne Fluke

said, I volunteered to work during the wedding, but I can make the reception. Save the first and last dance for me? I’ve got something special for you and I’ll follow you home.
    At least Mike wasn’t taking Shawna Lee to the wedding. Hannah let out a relieved sigh. And it was nice of him to volunteer to work so the deputies who’d known Lisa and Herb all their lives could attend the ceremony. The second half of his note pleased her even more. It meant that he wasn’t taking Shawna Lee to the reception either, since he wanted to dance the first and last dance with her and follow her home. And what was the something special he was going to give her?
    Hannah gave a little shiver of excitement as she considered the possibilities, none of which she would have discussed with anyone other than herself. then, rather than spend her morning speculating on something that night or might not come to pass, as pleasant as that speculation might be, she headed to the freezer to get the peaches.
    She’d taken all of two steps before the phone rang. Hannah turned around to glare at it balefully, but she reached out to answer. It could be Mike and if it was, she wanted to thank him for her roses.
    “Hannah? I’m so glad I caught you!” It was Lisa and she sounded panic-stricken. “You haven’t made your peach cobbler yet, haven’t you?”
    “Not yet. What’s the matter?”
    “We’ve got a problem. I just found out she’s bringing her peach cobbler.”
    “Who is?”
    “Shawna Lee. She called the Lake Eden Inn to tell Sally she wanted to bring three pans for a wedding present, but Dick answered the phone. And when she asked him if there was room for her cobbler on the dessert table, Dick checked the diagram of the table that Sally drew up and he said there was a spot for peach cobbler right in the middle of the table.”
    “And it was my spot?” Hannah asked, guessing the rest.”
    “You got it. I just got off the phone with Sally. She offered to throw out Shawna Lee’s peach cobbler and serve yours in stead, but your looks different and Shawna Lee’s bound to notice. Do you think I should just bite the bullet and call Shawna Lee, and tell her not to bring her peach cobbler?”
    “You can’t.”
    “Why not?”
    “Because it’s a wedding present,” Hannah said, remembering her mother’s advice to be gracious about accepting gifts, even if you didn’t want them. “If you want to be polite, you’re going to have to accept her peach cobbler with a smile and thank her. I haven’t started baking yet, so I’ll just forget about bringing mine.”
    “But we like yours better!”
    “I know and I’ll bake it for you any time you want it . . . just not today. There’s enough trouble at big weddings without asking for more.”
    “That’s true. Aunt Ruth’s called three times to complain about the seating arrangements. She thinks she should be at the head table.”
    “But that’s just for the wedding party, and the bride and groom’s immediate family.”
    “I know, but she doesn’t think Dad should be sitting with Marge. She said it’s bad enough that everyone knows they’re going to be living in the same house, and appearing at the head table as a couple is just rubbing it in.”
    “I think your Aunt Ruth needs a nose-ectomy. Then she couldn’t stick it where it doesn’t belong.”
    “That’s funny!” Lisa said, and promptly burst into giggles. “Just wait until I tell that to Herb.”
    Hannah felt good as she signed off and hung up the phone. she’d given Lisa good advice about the cobbler, and she’d made her laugh in the midst of what sounded like crisis mode at the Herman residence. As far as Hannah was concerned, big weddings were more trouble than they were worth. You could think things out very carefully and do your best to plan for any contingency, but some guests always ended up with hurt feelings before the day was over.
    “No big wedding for me!” Hannah said, heading to the walk-in