'What do you mean?' Hannah asked.
'Whenever our mothers start trying to push us together, I rebel like a teenager.'
'So do I,' Hannah admitted. 'Mother suggested that I call you today, and I didn't. It wasn't that I didn't want to call you, it was just that I didn't want to give in to her.'
'That's exactly what I mean.' Norman looked very serious. 'I think we should stop letting our mothers influence our behavior. We'll do what we really want to do, even if they suggest it first.'
Hannah nodded. 'That's a great idea, but there's one drawback.'
'What's that?'
'It requires that we act like adults.'
Norman chuckled. 'Do you think that we can handle it?'
'Of course. The next time Mother suggests I call you, I'll call you.'
'Good for you,' Norman said, looking pleased.
'And then, when Mother starts preening because I followed her advice, I'll just stick my tongue out at her.'
* * *
'Why don't you order something different, Andrea?' Hannah suggested, closing her menu and handing it back to the waitress. 'You always have baked chicken.'
'I like baked chicken.'
'Whatever,' Hannah sighed. 'At least try Sally's cream of radish soup. It's wonderful.'
Andrea shook her head. 'I'm sticking with the Caesar salad. It's perfect with baked chicken.'
Hannah shrugged and gave up the fight. She'd come out to the inn for dinner after all, but it hadn't been her choice. The phone had been ringing as she unlocked the door to her condo, and it had been Andrea in an absolute panic, Could Hannah please have dinner with her? Janie had canceled, Bill had paged her to say he'd be late, and she'd been sitting at a table in the dining room all alone. After a few minutes of pleading, Hannah's sisterly compassion had won out.
'They have excellent wine by the glass, Hannah.' Andrea interrupted her thoughts, 'Would you like me to pick out a nice chardonnay for you?'
'No, thanks. I'm so tired, it would knock me right under I the table.'
Andrea had the grace to look slightly guilty. 'I probably shouldn't have called you, but I just couldn't face sitting here all alone. You understand, don't you?'
'Yes, I do,' Hannah said. As the most popular girl at Jordan High, Andrea had always been surrounded by admirers, She had grown accustomed to being at the center of attention, and the prospect of eating dinner in a restaurant alone was anathema to her.
'Oh, good! There's Bill!' A happy smile spread over Andrea's face and she stood up to wave. 'I thought they'd be much later than this.'
'They?' Hannah glanced over at the entrance and felt a delicious tingle when she spotted Bill's partner and boss, Mike Kingston. He towered over Bill, who was almost six feet tall, and most of the women in Lake Eden said that Mike was the best-looking man in town. With his dark blond hair and rugged physique, he reminded Hannah of the capable, fearless early settlers who had carved out a niche for them- selves in the Midwest.
'Don't they look great in their uniforms?' Andrea asked.
'Yes, they do,' Hannah responded, hoping she didn't sound too breathless. Mike always had this effect on her. Then she realized that Andrea hadn't been surprised to see Mike, and her eyes narrowed. Andrea and Bill were always trying to set her up with Mike. 'Did you know that Mike was coming?'
'Bill said he was going to ask him, but I wasn't really sure.'
'Did you plan this dinner to throw the two of us together?'
'Of course not!' Andrea looked perfectly indignant. 'I invited you this morning, remember? And Janie was supposed to be here, too. I just thought we could all have a nice time together.'
Hannah still wasn't sure that Andrea hadn't played matchmaker. After all, she'd learned from an expert, their mother.
'Smile, Hannah,' Andrea urged. 'You want Mike to think you're happy to see him, don't you?'
Hannah smiled. That part was easy. Seeing Mike always made her smile.
Two hours later, Hannah unlocked the door to her condo for the second time that night and headed straight for the phone in the kitchen to exercise a little damage control. Once Mike and Bill had joined them, one thing had led to another with surprising rapidity. Sally had moved them to a secluded table by the big rock fireplace, the ambience had been romantic and intimate, and Mike had flirted with her outrageously. Hannah had stayed much longer than she'd planned, and that had turned out to be a big mistake.
Hannah wasn't sure when Delores and Carrie had come in, but they had been eating their main course when Mike had walked Hannah through the room on her way out. It was obvious that Norman had told them she'd refused a dinner date with him, because neither mother had spoken to her as she passed their table with Mike. If scathing looks could kill, Hannah knew she'd be toes-up on the floor of Sally's dining room right now, deader than the sardines she'd been planning to eat for dinner.
'Norman?' Hannah was pleased when he answered the phone on the first ring. 'I wanted to catch you before your mother got home. I need to explain.'
'Explain what?'
'I had to go out to the inn, after all. Andrea had a dinner date with Bill, but he called to say he'd be late and she talked me into driving out to keep her company. Then Bill showed up with Mike, and Andrea asked him to join us.'
'Okay.' Norman sounded perplexed. 'Why did you call to tell me that?'
'Because our mothers showed up and saw us together. I knew they'd tell you, and I wanted to get to you first.'
'It's okay, Hannah. I know you go out with Mike sometimes.'
'I know you know, but I didn't want you to think that I refused to go to dinner with you and then turned around and went out with Mike. I figured that if I didn't explain it, you might be hurt . . . or maybe even jealous.'
'I wouldn't be jealous. We don't have an exclusive relationship and you can go out with anyone you want to. Besides, I like Mike. He's a nice guy.' Norman paused. 'Hannah?'
'Yes, Norman.'
'How about coffee tomorrow morning? I have to be at the Ezekiel Jordan House early, and I could stop by The Cookie Jar.'
'That's fine. I'll treat you to a blueberry muffin.'
'Great. I'll see you then. And thanks for calling, Hannah. It was very considerate of you.'
Hannah was frowning as she hung up the phone. Norman hadn't been jealous-not even a little. Hannah guessed she should be glad that he wasn't, but it was real blow to her ego.
-6-
Hannah's headlights cut two converging tunnels through the darkness to illuminate the stop sign at the corner of Main Street and First Avenue. She was early, an hour ahead of her normal schedule, but she felt good about giving Lisa the morning off.
Nothing was moving as Hannah drove through the silent business district of Lake Eden. Norman's dental clinic was locked up tight, Hal & Rose's Caf' was dark, and there was only a dim security light shining through the front window t of the Lake Eden Neighborhood Pharmacy. The town was still slumbering, but Hannah was alert and ready to go to work. This was the opening day of the Winter Carnival, and the cookies they'd baked yesterday wouldn't last through the day. She had to bake more and deliver them to the warm-up tents.
Instead of driving down the front of her block, Hannah turned into the alley and passed the back of Claire Rodgers's dress shop, her neighbor to the north. Claire had mentioned that she planned to open Beau Monde Fashions early this morning, but early for Claire was a whole lot later than early for Hannah. No one would want to buy designer dresses or Winter Carnival wear at five-thirty in the morning.
Hannah frowned as she turned into The Cookie Jar parking lot, and her headlights flashed across the rear of the building. The back door of her shop was slightly ajar.
