Double Fudge Brownie Murder (Hannah Swensen series Book 18)

by Fluke, Joanne

  Mix in the flour, baking soda, and then the vanilla extract.

  Feel the container with the chocolate/butter mixture. If the mixture is not so hot it might cook the eggs, add it gradually to the batter, beating continuously.

  Take the bowl from the mixer, give it a final stir by hand, and find a scooper or a spoon to use to fill the muffin tins. (Lisa and I use a #2 scooper down at The Cookie Jar.)

  Fill the muffin tins ¾ full.

  Drop a rounded teaspoon of the filling into the center of each cupcake.

  Bake at 350 degrees F. for 30 minutes. Take the pans from the oven and let the cupcakes cool on a wire rack or a cold stovetop burner. Do not remove the cupcakes until they are completely cool. (Rhanna says that this may take some willpower on your part because they smell SO good!)

  Rhanna’s Note: These cupcakes are so good you will want to eat more than one, but they are very rich. They are great for picnics!

  Yield: 20 to 24 yummy cupcakes that everyone will love.

  Chapter Five

  “We knocked on your door, but you didn’t answer,” Andrea said when Hannah met her sisters for breakfast the next morning.

  “What time was that?”

  “Eleven-thirty. Michelle and I couldn’t sleep so we decided to go for a midnight swim.”

  Hannah didn’t see any reason to lie about where she’d been. “I didn’t answer because I wasn’t there. I was still in Ross’s suite.”

  “You were?” A broad smile spread over Michelle’s face. “Good for you! I was wondering if that’s where you were.”

  Andrea’s eyes narrowed. “And just what were you doing in Ross’s suite?”

  “Watching his latest projects. He brought DVDs of the short films he’s going to use for his interview at KCOW Television and he asked me to critique them.”

  “So you were critiquing Ross’s films until midnight?” Michelle asked, looking disappointed.

  “Not midnight. We didn’t finish until after two in the morning.”

  “That’s not very romantic!” Michelle complained. “You should have told Ross you’d critique his films today and talked him into going to the grotto pool for a midnight swim.”

  “That does sound lovely, but I couldn’t suggest that.”

  “Why not?” Andrea asked, and then she started to frown. “You brought your bathing suit, didn’t you? I reminded you to bring it.”

  “I brought it, but all the shaping panels died and went to elastic heaven. Believe me, if Ross had seen me in that swimsuit, it wouldn’t have been romantic!”

  “Then we’ll go shopping right after breakfast,” Andrea decided. “We’ll get you a gorgeous, sexy, new swimsuit.”

  “Okay, but that’s a tall order.”

  “Not in Las Vegas. They have everything here.” Andrea pulled her phone out of her purse. “I’ll check online right now and find out where we should go.”

  Michelle was silent for a moment, watching Andrea operate her phone and then she turned to Hannah. “Let me get this straight. You were in Ross’s suite until two in the morning and all you were doing was watching his films?”

  Hannah gave a little smile as she thought of a way to neatly sidestep the question. “I can’t answer that, because a lady never tells.”

  “Not even her sisters?”

  The smile on Hannah’s face turned a bit mischievous. “Not even her sisters,” she said.

  “You really look great, Hannah. That swimsuit is a knockout on you. How about a nice tall lemonade?”

  “I’d love one,” Hannah said, smiling at Ross.

  “Andrea?” Ross asked.

  “Yes, please.”

  “Me, too,” Michelle said even before Ross could ask her. “I’ll go along and help you carry them back.”

  “Told you!” Andrea crowed, just as soon as Ross and Michelle were out of earshot. “Aren’t you glad you bought that suit?”

  “Yes. My checking account isn’t, but I am.”

  “And aren’t you glad I talked you into going for the dark teal instead of that boring black one?”

  “Yes. This is much better.”

  “All right then!” Andrea looked pleased as she dipped her foot in the water. “Isn’t this a real treat? There’s no place in Lake Eden where we could wear our swimsuits now and dip our toes in water that wasn’t almost frozen.”

  Hannah was about to agree with her when she thought of one place where swimsuits would be entirely appropriate. “Oh, yes there is. There’s one place in Lake Eden.”

  “There is? Where’s that?”

  “Under the dome in the penthouse suite at the Albion Hotel Condos. You told me yourself that the dome was climate controlled and the pool was heated in the winter.”

  “You’re right! I wish we could talk Mother into buying it before that corporation does. There’s something about that deal that I just don’t like.”

  “I don’t know anything about any deal. You didn’t mention it to me. Did someone make an offer?”

  “Not someone. It’s some thing. According to Howie, it’s a corporation that calls itself Nightlife LLC. The name just sounds . . . ” Andrea paused, searching for the right word. “It just sounds off to me, if you know what I mean.”

  “Nightlife LLC,” Hannah repeated the name. “I see what you mean. It sounds like the type of corporation that runs an after-hours club, or an escort service.”

  “I know. That’s what I said to Howie, but he told me not to worry, that it wasn’t like that at all. He also said I’d be very pleased when I found out who owned the corporation, but that’s all he’d tell me.” Andrea paused again and looked thoughtful. “Wait a minute. Do you think Nightlife LLC could be Ross and some of his movie investors? He said he wanted to move to Lake Eden. And he probably knows a lot of people with money.”

  “He does, but I really don’t think they’d be involved in anything like Lake Eden real estate. Ross has talked about his investors. Most of them are from New York and Los Angeles and they’re only interested in financing projects in the entertainment industry like plays, independent films, and concerts.”

  “Heads up,” Andrea said as Ross and Michelle approached, each of them carrying a cardboard tray with two drinks on it.

  “Here you go,” Ross said, handing one lemonade to Hannah and the other to Andrea. He took his lemonade from Michelle’s tray and sat down next to Hannah. “I had them put a little something extra in it.”

  “Liquor?” Hannah asked, wondering how a drink this early in the day would affect her.

  Ross shook his head. “Raspberry syrup. That makes it a type of pink lemonade, but the common pink lemonade has grenadine or cranberry juice. I thought raspberry would be better.”

  Hannah took a sip. “I like this a lot better. I’ve had pink lemonade made with cranberry juice, but never with grenadine.”

  “What is grenadine anyway?” Michelle asked. “I know they put it in tequila sunrises and it’s red. Is it cherry?”

  Hannah shook her head. “No, it’s made from pomegranates. There’s an aftertaste to grenadine that I’ve never liked.”

  “But you like tequila sunrises, don’t you?” Ross asked her.

  Hannah shrugged. “I don’t know. I’ve never had one.”

  “I can fix that,” Ross told her, “But only if you promise to bake that tangerine cake you made the last time I came to Lake Eden.”

  “My Tangerine Dream Cake?”

  “That’s the one. I really like tangerines.”

  “I’ll be glad to make it for you. I love to bake that cake.”

  Ross looked pleased. “It’s a deal then. I’ll look forward to it almost as much as I’ll look forward to spending more time with you.”

  Hannah saw Michelle exchange a look with Andrea. She wasn’t sure what it meant until both of them picked up their towels and waved as they went off to take a dip in the pool. Her sisters were giving her time alone with Ross. She had to remember to thank them.

  “How about meeting me
at the cocktail bar an hour before we’re due to have dinner with your mother and Doc? I want to find out if you like tequila sunrises.”

  “I’ll be there,” Hannah said, and then she hoped she hadn’t agreed too quickly. Someone had once told her that a woman shouldn’t be too eager. If she agreed too quickly, the man would get the idea that she didn’t have any other prospects.

  But you do have other prospects, her mind corrected her. You’ve got Norman and Mike waiting at home in Lake Eden.

  “Why so quiet?” Ross asked her. “Are you having second thoughts about trying that tequila sunrise?”

  “No, not at all. I love to try new things.”

  “Me, too. I guess we both have adventurous spirits.”

  Hannah almost burst into laughter. Most people thought she was too cautious and no one had ever called her adventurous before. Perhaps she was changing. And if she was, it was all because of Ross. “Perhaps that’s true,” she said, smiling at him over the rim of her pink lemonade glass.

  Hannah was getting dressed for dinner when there was a knock on her hotel room door. “Just a minute!” she called out, slipping the top of her pantsuit over her head and slipping on her shoes before she answered the door.

  “Mother!” she said, surprised to see Delores standing there. She’d expected that the knock would be from Michelle, Andrea, or Ross.

  “May I come in?” Delores asked.

  “Of course. There’s nothing wrong, is there?”

  “Not a thing. I’m supremely happy. You don’t have to worry about me, dear. It’s you that I’m concerned about.”

  Uh-oh! Hannah’s mind warned her. Something’s up! “What is it, Mother?” she asked in a voice that was much calmer than she felt.

  “It’s Mike and Norman. Have you heard from them since you left?”

  “No, they haven’t called me.” Hannah felt her heart beat faster. “Is something wrong with Moishe?”

  “Oh, no dear. Everything’s fine as far as I know. I just . . .” Delores stopped and looked terribly uncomfortable as she handed Hannah the bottle of champagne and the glasses she was carrying. “Pour us a glass. We’re going to need it. We’re going to have a mother-daughter talk.”

  That was enough for Hannah. She took the bottle and filled two champagne flutes. She didn’t plan on having more than one sip. She wanted her wits about her, and she had a date with Ross and a tequila sunrise in less than thirty minutes. But her mother obviously had something serious on her mind.

  Delores took the chair Hannah indicated and accepted a glass of champagne. She took a sip and sighed heavily. “Doc thinks I’m borrowing trouble and I shouldn’t interfere, but I told him I just had to come and discuss things with you.”

  “What would you like to discuss?” Hannah asked, even though she really didn’t want to know. There was no way she was looking forward to the forthcoming conversation.

  “Well, dear . . . I think it’s best to be blunt and jump right in. I’m very concerned about what you’re going to tell Mike and Norman about Ross.”

  “When I tell them what about Ross?”

  “When you tell them that you were in Ross’s suite last night until two in the morning.”

  “Those rats!” Hannah muttered under her breath, taking the one sip of champagne she’d allotted herself for this mother-daughter talk. “Andrea and Michelle must have run right up to the honeymoon suite and blabbed everything to you.”

  “Well . . . not exactly, dear. I called them and asked.”

  Hannah took a deep, calming breath. “Why did you do that?”

  “Because I was concerned about you. I didn’t want you to do anything rash.”

  “Really, Mother! I’m a grown woman over thirty. What I did or didn’t do in Ross’s suite is none of your business!”

  “I know that, but I just wanted to ask what you planned to do about Mike and Norman.”

  Hannah bit back another angry retort. “I’m not planning to do anything, Mother. What’s happening here? Are you trying to manage my love life?”

  “No! I never wanted to do that! I was just concerned, that’s all. And I’m glad you’re having this . . . this little interlude with Ross. But I don’t want you to be swept overboard.”

  “Swept overboard? You’re the one who’s going on a cruise, not me.” Delores gave a small smile, but Hannah could tell that her mother wasn’t really amused. “What exactly do you mean by being swept overboard, Mother?”

  Delores gave a deep sigh. “I know that you refused to accept Mike’s proposal. And you didn’t accept Norman’s proposal, either.”

  “That’s true.”

  “They both wanted to marry you, Hannah. And perhaps you were right in not agreeing to marry either one of them. That’s not for me to say. But I just want you to be sure that this thing with Ross is going to be what you really want.”

  “What thing?”

  “I know you, Hannah. I’m your mother. I’ve known you longer than anyone else on the face of the earth. I just want you to be careful that you don’t make a mistake you’ll regret. I probably did this mother-daughter talk all wrong, but I had to try. And now I have to go. Doc’s waiting for me. But before I leave, there’s one more thing I have to say. Think long and hard before you mention Ross to either Mike or Norman.”

  “You mean that what happens in Vegas stays in Vegas?” Hannah repeated the line from the Las Vegas commercial that had run on KCOW Television.

  “That’s trite, but yes. That’s exactly what I mean. I really have to go, Hannah. I’m very glad we had this talk.”

  Hannah walked her mother to the door, reminding herself every step that her mother only wanted the best for her.

  “I love you, dear,” Delores said, reaching out to hug her eldest daughter. “And I want you to be as happy as I am. I’m just worried that you’re going to get caught up in all this whirlwind wedding fun and burn your bridges behind you. Ross may not be for you. You don’t know yet. Please don’t make any snap decisions.”

  “I hear you, Mother. And I won’t make any decisions at all unless I’m sure. And I’m not sure yet, so you and Doc can relax.”

  “Thank you, dear. Dinner is at seven. Doc told me he has a surprise for us.”

  “I’ll be there,” Hannah promised before she closed the door behind her mother. She turned around, made a face at the full-length mirror that hung on an adjacent wall, and walked off to pour the rest of her champagne down the sink in the bathroom.

  “I’ve got to talk to you about something, Hannah. Everybody’s really trying to push us together, aren’t they?” Ross looked very serious as he faced her across the tiny table in the cocktail bar.

  “Yes, they are and I wish they’d stop.”

  “So you don’t want to be together?”

  “It’s not that!” Hannah shook her head so hard that her unruly red curls bounced. “I just don’t like to be pushed. I hate it when people try to manipulate me.”

  “I understand perfectly.” Ross reached out to take her hand. “I don’t like it, either. Unless, of course, I want to be manipulated.”

  “Do you want to be manipulated?” Hannah asked and then she wished she hadn’t.

  “In this case, I don’t really mind. I’ve always been crazy about you, Hannah. You knew that way back in college. Remember how we used to get together and watch vintage movies?”

  Hannah smiled. “I remember.”

  “And do you remember who used to come up with the right movie quote most of the time?”

  “You did.”

  “And you did. As I remember, we were tied for the championship of movie quotes when you left college.” Ross stopped speaking and took a sip of his drink. “It wasn’t any good after that, Hannah. I missed you too much. It just wasn’t right with only Linda.”

  “But you loved her.”

  “I thought I loved her. But once you’d gone back to Lake Eden, I realized that Linda wasn’t the woman I loved. It was you, Hannah.”

  Hannah
didn’t say anything. She couldn’t. She just stared at him in utter disbelief.

  “Don’t look at me like that. It’s true. I loved you way back then, Hannah, and it took me too long to realize it. By the time I did, you were gone.”

  “But you and Linda were engaged.”

  “I know. I made promises to Linda and I knew she’d never understand if I didn’t keep them. I promised her that we’d get married when we graduated.”

  “But you didn’t.”

  “No, but that wasn’t my decision. Linda wanted to wait. She wanted to try to make it as an actress. And she did. And then she fell in love with Tom Larchmont and married him.”

  “How did you feel about that?”

  “I was hurt . . .” Ross stopped and took a deep breath. “And I was relieved at the same time. I knew by then that it wouldn’t have worked. I was grateful to Tom for coming along and asking Linda to marry him. He kept me from the worst mistake of my life.”

  “But Linda loved you.”

  “She did, way back then. But we were kids. And when we grew up, our feelings for each other changed. We didn’t know much about love and commitment back then. We were discovering things, living in the moment. You did the same, Hannah. You were living in the moment with Bradford.”

  Hannah took a sip of her tequila sunrise. It was good, but then she pushed it aside. “It’s true. Some of it was good, and some of it was bad, but I guess all of it helped us to grow up.”

  There was a silence between them, but it wasn’t uncomfortable. Hannah finally broke it by squeezing Ross’s hands. “I’m glad we talked about all this.”

  “So am I. The politicians are always talking about transparency. I want everything to be transparent between us, Hannah. No secrets, no lies, just us.”

  “Just us,” Hannah repeated. And then she leaned forward to meet him across the small table to share a kiss to seal their promise.