Free Peach Cobbler Murder by Joanne Fluke

the door.
    The sight that greeted Hannah’s eyes made her smile. There was a deliveryman standing at the front door and he was holding a bouquet wrapped in gold paper. His bright blue truck had a familiar logo painted on the side and Hannah knew he was from Bouchard’s Bouquets, the florist based out at the Tri-County Mall.
    As Hannah headed for the door to let him in, she wondered if she ought to tell him to move his truck. Main Street had nose-in parking and he was parked parallel with the curb, occupying three full spaces. Then she remembered that Mayor Bascomb and the Lake Eden city council had given Herb a full day off to get ready for the wedding and he wouldn’t be giving out traffic tickets today. Since they hadn’t hired anyone temporary to fill in for Herb, the deliveryman was safe.
    Hannah made short work of opening the door. It wasn’t often that anyone sent her flowers. “Come in and warm up. Are those for me?”
    â€œIf you’re Hannah Swensen, they are.” The deliveryman stepped inside and handed her the bouquet. “The guy that called in the order said you were closed today, but you’d be here anyway.”
    â€œWhich guy was that?”
    â€œKingston. It’s on the card.”
    Hannah’s smile grew wider as she reached for the card, but she didn’t open it. She’d wait until she didn’t have an audience. “How about a cup of coffee, Kyle?” she asked, reading the name that was embroidered over the florist’s logo on the breast pocket of his parka. “I’ve got a pot on in the kitchen.”
    Once Kyle had been seated at the workstation and taken his first sip of coffee, he gazed around the kitchen. “Nice big place you’ve got here. My wife, Judy, would go crazy for ovens like that. She’s always saying hers is too small. You’re not baking?”
    â€œNot today. I’ve got some cookies from yesterday if you don’t mind eating day-olds.”
    â€œI don’t mind,” Kyle assured her. “I’ve never been in here myself, being from Elk River and all, but a lot of people say you’ve got the best cookies. When the Lake Eden Gulls played the Elks last Friday night, your coach brought our coach a bag of your Walnuttoes.”
    â€œI didn’t know that!” Hannah was pleased and she made a mental note to thank Jordan High’s new head coach, Drew Vavra, the next time he came into The Cookie Jar. “Do you like strawberries, Kyle?”
    â€œThey’re my favorite fruit.”
    â€œGood,” Hannah said and headed for the walk-in cooler. “We made Strawberry Flips yesterday. Let’s see how you like them.”
    The light coating of powdered sugar had melted into the cookie during the refrigeration process, and Hannah dusted the cookies a second time. It made them a little sweeter, but Kyle looked as if he had a sweet tooth. Then she carried the plate to the table and waited for Kyle to taste them.
    â€œMmm, good!” Kyle said after his first bite. “These look like the strawberry tarts my mother used to bake, but they’re smaller and they taste a lot better.”
    â€œBetter not let your mother hear you say that!” Hannah warned him, prompting a discussion of how mothers always wanted their children to like their cooking best.
    Kyle had a second cup of coffee and ate another three cookies as time ticked away. Hannah knew she had to get to work soon. Once the peach cobbler was baked, she had to run out to the Lake Eden Inn to deliver the wedding cakes and consult with Sally about when to frost them.
    â€œWould you like to take the rest of these cookies with you for the road?” Hannah asked him in an effort to nudge him out the door.
    â€œYou bet!” Kyle took the hint and stood up while Hannah packaged the cookies. “I’d better get a move on or the truck’ll cool off and the rest of my flowers will freeze. That bakery