Free Double Fudge Brownie Murder (Hannah Swensen series Book 18) by Joanne Fluke Page A

ordered them in advance and gave us three.”
    “Okay. Let me go work on that. I’m sure they’ll have some at the front desk.”
    Hannah was thoughtful as she watched Ross walk away. Had that been a flicker of jealousy she’d seen on his face when she’d mentioned Norman’s name?
    “Whoa!” Michelle said, raising her eyebrows. “Ross didn’t like it when you mentioned Norman.”
    Andrea nodded. “I caught that, too. And I agree. I think Ross was jealous.”
    Hannah didn’t say anything, but she felt a tingle of satisfaction. If Ross felt the way she hoped he did about her, he should be a bit jealous or at least a bit uncomfortable when she mentioned a former boyfriend.
    Former boyfriend? The rational part of Hannah’s mind picked up on her phrasing. Does that mean that Norman and Mike are out of the running and Ross is in?
    Hannah ignored the question. There was time to think about things like that later when she was back in Lake Eden. Instead, she decided to address something else that was bothering her. “Mother’s worried about what I’m going to tell Mike and Norman when I get home.”
    “She’s not the only one!” Andrea said and then she sighed. “It’s like Great-Grandma Elsa used to say. Don’t put all your eggs in one basket. ”
    “Mother feels the same way. And it didn’t help that you told her I was in Ross’s suite until after two in the morning.”
    Andrea looked horribly guilty. “I’m sorry, Hannah. That was my fault. It just slipped out and then there was no way to take it back. It all started when she asked about our midnight swim and why we didn’t invite you to go along. I told her we were going to, but you didn’t answer our knock on your door.”
    “That’s exactly how it happened.” Michelle defended her older sister. “She said you might have been sleeping, but Mother didn’t buy that for a second. She said you’d always been a light sleeper and her guess was that you were still with Ross. And then she asked Andrea, point-blank, if she knew where you were.”
    “I couldn’t lie to her.” Andrea sounded sorry and guilty at the same time. “I’ve never been able to lie to Mother. I just wish she’d asked Michelle instead of me.”
    “Would you have lied about it?” Hannah turned to Michelle.
    “Probably. But Mother would have caught me at it. You know what it’s like to be grilled by Mother.”
    “Oh, yes. I know. And believe me, I can understand how the whole thing happened.”
    Andrea looked hopeful. “Does that mean you’re not mad at us anymore?”
    “I’m not mad at you. I told you I understood. I just wish Mother would mind her own business and let me take care of mine.”
    There was a silence and then Michelle cleared her throat. “Maybe I shouldn’t ask this, but what are you going to tell Norman and Mike? They’ll see the wedding pictures. Doc’s having posters made to display at the party. They’ll see that Ross was Doc’s best man.”
    “I’ll cross that bridge when I come to it,” Hannah said, sounding much more confident than she felt. “There’s no reason I should feel guilty about spending time with Ross. Mike’s dated plenty of other women and Norman was going to marry Doctor Bev. I don’t have an exclusive relationship with either one of them.”
    “That’s true, but you haven’t dated anyone else . . . have you?”
    Hannah laughed. Michelle had sounded very tentative when she’d asked. “No, I haven’t dated anyone else. But that’s only because I haven’t found anyone I want to date.”
    “Until now,” Andrea pointed out. “Is Ross the one, Hannah?”
    “I don’t know. All I know is I really like to be with him. Ross and I have been friends for a long time. I lived down the hall from Ross and Linda for over three years when we were all in college. We got together at least four times a week, sometimes more.”
    “But you were dating Bradford Ramsey when you were in college,” Michelle pointed out.
    Dating