Double Fudge Brownie Murder (Hannah Swensen series Book 18)

by Fluke, Joanne

  “Come here and let me hug you. It’s been way too long.” Ross held out his arms and Hannah went into them. There was no way in the world she’d refuse his invitation. She’d secretly wished to hear it during college on more than one sleepless night, knowing that he was right down the hall in the apartment building on Muscrat Lane. Then there was his trip to Lake Eden when he was producing Crisis in Cherry-wood, his independent film. He’d been distracted and stressed most of the time he’d been there, busy with the production, the amateur actors he had directed, and the murder that happened on the set. Of course she’d seen him after that, hurried visits when he had passed through Minneapolis on his way to somewhere else, but regrettably, they really hadn’t had much time together. And deep in the night, when she was alone, Hannah had admitted that she wanted time with Ross to see if the sparks she’d felt so long ago could be coaxed into flames.

  “You’re wearing it!” Ross touched the blue sapphire ring he’d sent her from Australia and Hannah was delighted that he’d noticed. She’d worn it almost constantly since she’d received it. The color of the stone reminded her of his eyes. And then his arms were around her and it was like they’d never been apart. She was keenly aware of the clean scent of his aftershave, the heat of his cheek next to hers, his strong arms around her. Had Ross missed her every bit as much as she’d missed him?

  She wanted their hug to last forever, but a voice with a really bad Southern accent intruded. “Hey, y’all!”

  Hannah looked over to see a man in an obviously fake Elvis wig staring at them. “Who’s gettin’ married here anyway? I thought it was them two.” He pointed at Delores and Doc. “But now I think it might be you two.”

  Hannah felt herself blushing. Had they hugged too long? But then Ross laughed and she laughed, too. “It’s them,” she said, pointing to Doc and Delores. “We just haven’t seen each other for a long time.”

  “A very long time,” Ross said, smiling down at her. “Much too long to suit me. But we’re going to have time to catch up now. I’m in the suite right next to yours and I’m here for three days.”

  That was exactly how long she’d be there! Hannah felt the smile spreading across her face again. She really did want to reconnect with Ross. Perhaps nothing would come of it, but it was good to have friends.

  “Okay then.” The Elvis impersonator turned to go. “I’m goin’ inside. Y’all come in soon now.”

  “He’s not the minister, is he?” Delores asked just as soon as the man in the Elvis wig had left.

  Hannah had trouble keeping a straight face. She didn’t dare look at Ross. He’d heard Delores’s question, and if they made eye contact, Hannah knew she’d laugh out loud.

  “No,” Doc answered Delores. “He’s the videographer. We’re going to take a DVD back to Lake Eden with us and play it at our wedding reception.”

  “I don’t understand.” Delores glanced at Ross. “Why didn’t you ask Ross to do it? He’s a professional.”

  “Because Ross is a professional best man tonight and I don’t want anything to distract him from his duties. I’ve been waiting for years to marry you and nothing is going to stop me.”

  “Oh,” Delores sighed, snuggling closer to him. “That’s so romantic. Let’s go get married. And let’s ask them to play ‘Love Me Tender’ for our wedding song. It’ll go perfectly with our videographer’s wig. And then, right after we’re married, let’s hurry right back to the hotel and . . .”

  “Lori!” Doc warned.

  Delores gave the little giggle that delighted all three of her daughters. It made their mother sound as young as a teenager.

  “Don’t be silly, Doc.” Delores patted his arm. “I was just going to suggest that we all go out to dinner. I feel like caviar and some more of that wonderful champagne of yours.”

  “How about Cold Duck and anchovies?” Doc grinned down at her as he asked the question.

  “That’s fine with me.” Delores didn’t hesitate, not even for a second. “I don’t care what we have as long as I’m your wife when I eat and drink it.”

  Hannah’s legs trembled slightly as she walked down the aisle of the little chapel. This could be your wedding, her mind told her. You could be the bride and Ross could be your groom.

  “You’re okay with this, aren’t you?” Ross asked her quietly.

  “Oh, yes!” Hannah said, glad that he hadn’t guessed what was on her mind. “Mother and Doc are a perfect match.”

  When they parted ways at the altar, Hannah walked left to take her place next to her mother and Ross walked right, to take his place next to Doc. Michelle and Andrea came next, walking down the aisle together, and they took their places next to Hannah on their mother’s side.

  The moment they had all finished their short journey and taken their places, Mendelssohn morphed into vintage Presley and the strains of “Love Me Tender” filled the little chapel. Hannah exchanged glances with her sisters and all three of them began to shake with suppressed laughter. Then Ross gave an audible chuckle, Doc began to laugh, and Delores giggled.

  “Cut it out, everyone!” Delores hissed in an effort to silence them. “Just thank your lucky stars that Carrie isn’t here or we’d have to sing it!”

  That did it. Hannah, Michelle, and Andrea could no longer hold in their laughter. All three of them remembered the night that Delores and Carrie had won the karaoke contest in Anoka with their exceedingly unmusical rendition of “Bye, Bye Love”.

  Doc turned to the minister who was staring at them and looking confused. “It’s been a long day,” he explained. “And it’s going to get even longer. Let’s start.”

  The minister turned toward the photographer, who was snapping photos of the wedding party at the altar. “Pull the plug, Hank.”

  It took a moment, but then there was silence in the chapel and Hannah drew a breath of relief as the minister began to read the familiar wedding ceremony.

  Delores’s response was first. She turned, looked at her daughters and smiled, and then looked up at Doc. “I do,” she said in a loud, clear voice.

  Doc was next and he did the same, but he reached for her hand and brought it to his lips right after he promised to love her and cherish her.

  Hannah thought of her father. She believed that if he knew, he would approve. He’d loved Delores with all his heart and she had loved him. Then Hannah glanced at Ross. He was smiling and as she watched, he blinked several times. There was no doubt that he was as happy about this wedding as she was. She reached up to brush a tear from her cheek and saw that both of her sisters were brushing away tears. It was a beautiful wedding. It was a beautiful marriage. Hannah was happy that her mother had found a love like this for the second time in her life.

  “Hannah!”

  Hannah blinked and came back to the present with a start as Michelle called her name. “Yes, Michelle?”

  “I thought you didn’t like caviar.”

  “I don’t.”

  “Then why did you just eat four toast points loaded with caviar and sour cream?” Andrea asked her.

  “I did that?”

  “Yes,” Delores looked amused as she confirmed it. “We all watched you eat it.”

  Hannah was shocked. She hated caviar. Surely she’d remember it if she’d eaten the expensive delicacy she’d often referred to as nothing but little fish eggs! “Then I guess you’d better cut me off. I must have had too much champagne.”

  “That’s not it,” Delores told her. “You haven’t even taken a sip and we’ve already refilled our glasses.”

  “Oh.” Hannah glanced toward the door of the restaurant, wondering what was taking Ross so long. They were dining at one of the gourmet restaurants in their hotel and Ross had gone back to his room to make a quick phone call.

  “I was like that when I fell in love with Bill,” Andrea said, exchanging glances with Delores and Michelle. “Falling in love makes you very distracted.”

  “I’m not falling in love!” Hannah glared at her married sist
er. “And now that the subject has come up, I’m not too happy that all of you set me up. You all knew that Ross was going to be here and you didn’t tell me. I don’t like being left out like that.”

  “But we wanted it to be a surprise,” Delores explained. “We all thought you’d be happy to see Ross.”

  “I am. It’s great to see Ross again.”

  “Well, that’s a relief.”A male voice spoke directly behind her and Hannah felt her face turn as red as the bouquet of roses on their table. Ross was back. And he’d heard everything she’d said.

  “You don’t know how many times I almost told you I was Doc’s best man,” he said, sitting down next to her and taking her hands in his. “When we talked on the phone last night, I came very close to spilling the beans.”

  Hannah thought about that for a moment. “I knew there was something you wanted to say. I just had that feeling. I should have asked you. I was about to, but then you said you’d see me soon and I thought you were planning a trip to Lake Eden.”

  “I am. I’ll be in Lake Eden in a week or two. I’m setting up an interview at KCOW Television. They’re looking for someone to produce some original material for them.”

  Delores looked surprised. “I didn’t know that! You didn’t mention it when we talked on the phone.”

  Hannah began to frown. She hadn’t known that Ross and Delores had kept in contact. Delores had never mentioned it to her.

  “Ross told me last week,” Andrea admitted, “but he asked me to keep it under my hat until he knew for sure about the interview. So I did.”

  “You could have told me,” Michelle turned to Ross. “We Skyped last week and you didn’t mention it.”

  “I know. I just didn’t want to jinx the interview. I really want that job. If I get it, I’ll be based in Lake Eden. I’d like to live there.”

  “Even after living in Hollywood?” Hannah was amazed that anyone would want to leave the entertainment capital of the world and come to sleepy little Lake Eden.

  “Especially after living in Hollywood.”

  Hannah was still puzzled. “But you seemed to love it. And everything sounded so exciting when you talked about the studios and the people you met. Won’t you be bored in Lake Eden?”

  “Lake Eden’s not boring, not with you and your family there. The fast pace out there is getting to me, Hannah, not to mention the high cost of living. A steady job with a steady income sounds like heaven to me about now.”

  “But . . . you have friends in California. You talk about them all the time.”

  Ross shrugged. “That’s true, but I have friends in Lake Eden, too. There’s you, your whole family, and Doc. And there are all the people I met and liked when I produced the movie in Lake Eden. I just hope I get this job, Hannah. Lake Eden is where I really want to be.”

  Hannah didn’t say anything. She was too afraid to even breathe. It sounded as if Ross wanted to come back to Lake Eden because of her, but she didn’t want to ask in case she was wrong. There would be time for a more private conversation later, after the dinner and when they were alone. But would they ever be alone?

  “I’m going to have the duck,” Michelle announced, shutting her menu with a snap. “How about you, Andrea?”

  “Chicken Cordon Bleu. I love that and I want to find out if it’s as good as Sally’s.”

  “Red meat for me,” Doc said, turning to smile at Delores. “How about you, Mrs. Knight?”

  Delores laughed. “For just a second there, I thought you were talking about your mother. I’m going to have to get used to my married name. The new Mrs. Knight will have the ginger-artichoke salad, salmon en croute, and a German Chocolate Cupcake for dessert.”

  “They have German Chocolate Cupcakes?” Doc’s face lit up in a smile. “I love German chocolate cake.”

  “So do I,” Ross said, turning to Hannah. “You used to make a great chocolate cake when we were in college.”

  “Then you’re bound to like German Chocolate Cupcakes,” Hannah told him, “since cupcakes are little, individual cakes.”

  Michelle turned to the dessert page and held it up. “Look. They have a whole cupcake menu. I’ve never seen so many different kinds. It looks like they have a cupcake for every kind of cake.”

  “Except one,” Hannah corrected her.

  “Which one?”

  “I bet you won’t find angel food cupcakes on that list.”

  “They’re alphabetical.” Michelle looked at the top of the page. “You’re right, Hannah. They don’t list angel food cupcakes. I wonder why they don’t have them.”

  “They don’t have them because it takes a special type of pan to bake an angel food cake. I’ve seen cupcake-size Bundt pans, but I’ve never seen cupcake-size angel food cake pans.”

  “But couldn’t you make them in regular cupcake pans?” Andrea asked her.

  “I’m not sure, but I don’t think it would work. Angel food cake needs that tube in the middle of the pan so the cake will bake evenly.”

  “I understand that. But Bundt pans have tubes in the middle. I’ve even got some.”

  “You have cupcake-size Bundt pans?” Hannah couldn’t help but be amazed. Andrea baked quite a few types of whippersnapper cookies. They were her specialty. But as far as Hannah knew, Andrea had never baked a cake, not even from a mix.

  “I have them, but I’ve never used them. You know I don’t bake cakes or cupcakes.”

  “Then why did you buy them?” Delores, another non-baker, asked the obvious question.

  “I didn’t buy them. Bill’s aunt gave them to us for a wedding present.” Andrea turned to Hannah. “Do you want them? I’ll never use them.”

  “Sure. Thanks, Andrea.”

  “Okay. I’ll check to make sure they’re not scratched or anything when I get back home, and then I’ll bring them down to you at The Cookie Jar.”

  Hannah was puzzled. “How could they get scratched if you’ve never used them?”

  “I let the girls play with the pan in the sandbox. Tracey made mud pies for Bethie that looked like cute little cakes. She even decorated the tops with dandelions. Bethie must have thought they were real cakes because she tried to eat one, and Tracey had to stop making them.”

  Hannah glanced at Ross. He looked every bit as amused as she was. He reached over to drape a casual arm around her shoulder, and Hannah felt a shiver of anticipation. She wanted to be alone with Ross, to find out exactly how he felt about her. Was it friendship or something more? It was all very confusing and she felt a bit unraveled as she took her first sip of champagne. Perhaps she’d better look at the menu and figure out what she wanted to order for dinner. That was a lot easier than attempting to plan out the rest of her life.

  GERMAN CHOCOLATE CUPCAKES

  Preheat oven to 350 degrees F., rack in the middle position.

  Either spray two 12-cup muffin tins with Pam or another nonstick cooking spray, OR line the cups with cupcake papers.

  Jo Fluke’s Note: This is another one of Rhanna’s recipes. She also gave me the Pear Crunch Pie recipe in Devil’s Food Cake Murder.

  The filling:

  8 ounces cream cheese, softened to room temperature (the brick kind, not the whipped—I used Philadelphia cream cheese)

  1 large egg, beaten (just whip it up in a glass with a fork)

  cup white (granulated) sugar

  ½ teaspoon coconut extract (optional)

  cup semi-sweet chocolate chips (I used Ghirardelli’s)

  ½ cup chopped pecans (measure after chopping)

  teaspoon salt

  Hannah’s 1st Note: There is no frosting on these cupcakes. (It would be overkill!) But some people might miss the coconut that is found in the traditional German Chocolate Cake. If you miss the coconut flavor, add the coconut extract to the filling. If you don’t, don’t.

  In a small bowl, beat the cream cheese, egg, and white sugar together until they are smooth and creamy. Add the coconut extract, if you decided to use it, and mix it in thoroug
hly.

  Stir in the chocolate chips, pecans, and salt.

  Set the bowl aside on the counter while you make the cupcake batter.

  The Cupcake Batter:

  4 ounces Bakers German Sweet Chocolate

  1 cup (2 sticks, 8 ounces, ½ pound) salted butter

  4 large eggs

  1 and cups white (granulated) sugar

  ½ teaspoon baking soda

  1 cup all-purpose flour (pack it down in the cup when you measure it)

  1 teaspoon vanilla extract

  Break the squares of Bakers Sweet German Chocolate in half. (They’ll melt faster that way.)

  Cut each stick of butter into 4 pieces. (They’ll melt faster that way.)

  Place the chocolate and the butter in a microwave-safe container. Microwave it on HIGH for one minute. Wait for one minute and then stir to see if the chocolate has melted.

  If the chocolate has not completely melted, microwave the butter and chocolate for an additional 30 seconds. Wait a minute and then stir. Repeat if necessary. Set the chocolate/butter mixture aside on the counter or on a cold stove burner to cool to room temperature.

  Hannah’s 2nd Note: You can also do this in a small saucepan over low heat on the stovetop if you wish.

  In a large bowl, beat the eggs until they are light-colored and fluffy.

  Add the sugar gradually and beat it in thoroughly.