Lemon Meringue Pie Murder Part 5

51.

The door to The Cookie Jar opened and Mike walked in. He looked determined, like a man on a mission, and Hannah watched his eyes rove over the customers that lined the tables in her small shop. When he spotted her behind the counter, he strode up to her quickly. "We need to talk."

"Okay. What is it?"

Mike shook his head. "Not here. Let's go in the back and send Lisa up here."

The switch was accomplished with a minimum of fuss and Hannah motioned to a stool at the workstation. "Sit down, Mike. Do you want a cup of coffee?"

"No. Am I too late, Hannah?"

Hannah glanced at the clock. "Actually, you're early. Andrea said you'd be in about noon."

"Not that! Am I too late?"

"Too late for what?" Hannah asked, genuinely puzzled.

"Don't play games with me, Hannah. Bill told me all about Norman's new house."

"Oh, that!" Hannah did her best not to smile as she met Mike's eyes. He was jealous, pure and simple. The green-eyed monster had sunk its claws into the most handsome man in Lake Eden. Of course Mike didn't have any reason to be jealous, but he didn't know that, and Hannah was enjoying his discomfort too much to tell him quite yet. "Is there some reason why Norman can't build on that property?"

"Not that I know of."

"But you seem upset."

"Of course I'm upset! I was only gone for three days and when I come back, I find out that Norman's building your dream house!"

"It's our dream house," Hannah corrected him, "Norman and I designed it together."

"Then you're going to marry him?" Mike asked, clenching his fists.

"No," Hannah said, knowing that she'd milked Mike's jealousy for all it was worth and any more would be cruel.

52.

"Norman's just building the house, that's all. It doesn't have anything to do with me."

Mike exhaled with an audible whoosh and Hannah could see that he was relieved. "But that house is too big for Norman, isn't it?"

"Four bedrooms, three baths."

"That's what I mean. What's he going to do with all that room?" Mike began to frown. "Do you think he's going to ask you to marry him when it's finished?"

Hannah laughed. "If I knew that, I'd set up a hotline and rake in the cash as a telephone psychic."

"What if he does? Will you say yes?"

"I don't know."

"Well, you can't!"

Hannah's heart jumped up into her throat. Was Mike about to propose? And how would she feel about it if he did? "Why can't I?"

"Because you'd never be happy with Norman. Promise me you'll tell me right away if he asks you."

"What good will that do?"

"I don't want to get blindsided. Promise me, Hannah."

"I promise," Hannah said. What else could she say? She didn't like to see Mike looking this miserable.

"Then everything's still status quo with us?"

"Status quo," Hannah repeated, beginning to smile as she wondered what that was, exactly.

Mike got up from his stool and pulled Hannah to her feet to give her a hug. "I don't want to change anything. Everything's great just the way it is."

And then Mike kissed her. It was a long, sweet kiss that was just beginning to kindle into a blaze when Hannah heard someone open the back door.

"Hannah? I just wanted to ask you about..." It was Andrea and she stopped abruptly as she saw what she'd interrupted. "Sorry. I'll come back later."

Mike motioned Andrea in. "That's okay. I was just leaving. If you see Bill before I do, tell him I'm going home to LEMON MERINGUE PIE MURDER 53.

take a quick shower and put on a fresh uniform. I'll catch up with him at the station after lunch."

"What was all that about?" Andrea asked after Mike had left.

"Nothing much." Hannah shrugged, leaving it at that. "What did you want to ask me?"

"It's about Tracey's costume." Andrea eyed the cookies that were cooling on the baker's rack. "Are those Almond Kisses?"

"They're for my catering job, but I baked extras."

"Then I can have a couple?"

"Of course." Hannah watched as Andrea grabbed three cookies. "What were you saying about Tracey's costume?"

"I need to know what kind of shoes the Statue of Liberty wears."

"Really big ones," Hannah quipped, but Andrea didn't look amused. "I think it's sandals, but I'm not positive."

"How would I find out?"

"Run down to the library and look it up in the encyclopedia. There's bound to be a picture."

"Good idea. I asked Janice c.o.x, but she wasn't sure either. I'm going to dress Tracey up as Lady Liberty. Won't that be cute?"

"Tracey would be cute in any costume."

"I know, but she really wants something with a crown. Is she right-handed?"

"Probably," Hannah said, a.s.suming that Andrea was asking about Lady Liberty and not her daughter. "The torch goes in the right hand, if that's what you're asking. You're not going to put Tracey in green makeup, are you?"

"No. The green's just tarnish anyway. I wonder why they don't polish her up. She'd look a lot better."

"That's easier said than done. Remember when that citizens group got the idea to clean the dome on the county courthouse? They dropped it in a hurry when they found out it would take three years and cost a fortune."

"Time and money. They're always the deciding factors.

54.

I'd better run, Hannah. I'm short on time this morning, and I'll be short on money if I don't get out to CostMart in time for their white sale. I'm picking up new towels for the bathroom. Ours are practically in shreds. Is there anything you need while I'm there?"

"Thanks, but I can't think of anything I..." Hannah stopped speaking as her neck gave a twinge. She reached up to rub it and sighed. "There is one thing. Remember when we went shopping last year and I bought that new pillow?"

"The goose-down?"

"That's the one. I need a second pillow just like it."

Andrea's eyes narrowed. "But you already have one. Does that mean you're contemplating ... uh ... sleepover company?"

"No, it just means that Moishe keeps stealing it. And every time he does, I wake up with a stiff neck. I'm going to give him mine and get a new one for myself."

"You really ought to train him not to do that."

"That's impossible. Cats train their owners, not the other way around. It took Moishe a whole year, but he's trained me to buy a new pillow."

Andrea laughed. "Okay. I'll pick one up for you, but it might be expensive. The last time I priced them, they were over fifty dollars."

Hannah sighed. She'd forgotten that goose-down was that expensive. She didn't really want to sh.e.l.l out an extra fifty dollars, but it would be worth it for a pain-free neck. "Just get it, whatever it costs. I can spend fifty dollars for a pillow, or I can spend fifty dollars for a chiropractor. At least with a pillow, I won't have to go back for another adjustment."

Almond Kisses Preheat oven to 350 degrees R, with rack in middle position.

1 !/2 cups melted b.u.t.ter (3 sticks) 2 cups white sugar (granulated) 1 teaspoon vanilla 1 teaspoon almond extract 1/8 cup mola.s.ses (2 tablespoons) 1 1/2 teaspoons baking soda 1 teaspoon baking powder 1 teaspoon salt (if you use salted almonds, cut the salt to l/2 teaspoon) 1 1/2 cups finely ground almonds (grind them up in your food processor with the steel blade- they don't have to be blanched) 2 beaten eggs (just whip them up with a fork) 4 cups flour (no need to sift) 13 oz. bag Hershey's Kisses (or small squares of milk chocolate) Microwave the b.u.t.ter in your mixing bowl to melt it. Add the sugar, the vanilla, the almond flavoring,

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and the mola.s.ses. Stir until it's blended, then add the baking soda, baking powder and salt. Mix well.

Grind up the almonds in your food processor. Measure after grinding. Add them to the bowl and mix. Pour in the beaten eggs and stir. Then add the flour and mix until all the ingredients are thoroughly blended.

Let the dough firm up for a few minutes. Then form it into walnut-sized b.a.l.l.s and arrange them on a greased cookie sheet, 12 to a standard sheet.

Cut the Hershey's Kisses in half (from the top down, so that each half has a point and a base). Press the halves into the middle of your cookie b.a.l.l.s, cut side down. They'll look pretty on top as a yummy decoration. If you want to splurge a little, press a whole Hershey's Kiss into the center of the dough ball, base down and point sticking up. (If you do splurge, you 'II need double the amount ofHershey 's Kisses. If your kids help you unwrap the Kisses, you should probably triple the amount!)

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Bake at 350 degrees F. for 10 minutes, or until the edges are just beginning to turn golden. (Don't worry- the Hershey's Kisses won't melt.) Cool on the cookie sheet for 2 minutes and then remove to a wire rack to finish cooling.

Yield: 10 to 12 dozen cookies, depending on cookie size. (If that's too many, just cut the whole recipe in half. And if you have any Kisses left over, the baker deserves a treat!) (Norman says these cookies taste the way he always wished marzipan would taste.)

Chapter Five.

This is a nice location," Hannah commented, stopping her truck as close to the front door as she could get.

"You can see the lake from here."

"You'll be able to see it even better when I prune the bottom branches on those pines." Norman hopped out of Hannah^ truck and opened the door for Delores.

"It's a nice little house," Delores said, taking Norman's arm and heading for the front door. "It's almost a pity to tear it down, but I suppose it's much too small for you with only two bedrooms. Once you make the smallest one into an office, there's no room at all for..."

"Houseguests," Hannah interjected quickly, shooting her mother a warning glance. Now was not the time to fish around for a proposal.

"Yes, guests," Delores looked slightly embarra.s.sed. "Well, I'll go straight to work. I don't want to keep you two out here all afternoon."