'Doesn't the photography club take its own pictures?'
'Yes, but they asked me to come as backup. They want a shot of Mr. Purvis getting pelted for the yearbook.'
'I guess things haven't changed that much.' Hannah was grinning as they walked inside the warm-up tent with their sugary burden. 'When I went to high school, we were al: ways trying to get embarrassing pictures of our principal. You'd better not get too close to the action or you'll get a face full of snow.'
'I know. That's why I'm using a telephoto lens,' Norman explained, handing his boxes to one of Mrs. Baxter's students and following Hannah out to get more cookies.
After they'd carried in the last of the boxes that Mrs. Baxter had ordered, Hannah asked Norman to walk her back to her truck. When they arrived, she opened the passenger door. 'Get in for a minute, Norman. I need to talk to you.'
'Okay.' Norman slid into the passenger seat and Hannah walked around to get in on the driver's side. Once she was settled, Norman turned to her. 'What is it, Hannah?'
'I did something this morning that you might not like, but I had your best interests in mind,' Hannah told him, and then she gave him the details of the story she'd planted with Larry Kruger.
'I wish you hadn't done that,' Norman said when she was finished. 'I rather fancied myself as bait. Is there any way you can retract that story?'
Hannah shook her head. 'No way. I'm sorry if you don't like it, Norman, but I have enough to do without worrying about you.'
'You were worried about me?'
'Of course I was. I was scared stiff that you'd go out and do something really stupid!'
The moment the words left Hannah's mouth, she wished that she could call them back. She'd completely forgotten about tact and what Lisa had advised her to say. She expected Norman to climb out of her truck and refuse to speak to her ever again, but all he did was grin.
'You're not mad?' Hannah asked him.
'I wish you'd asked me first, but I'm not mad. Actually, I'm quite the opposite.' With that comment, Norman pulled her into his arms and hugged her hard. And then he tipped up her head and kissed her. For a moment, Hannah was so startled, she almost resisted. Then nature took over and she found herself enjoying Norman's kiss thoroughly. Her instinct was to throw her arms around his neck and keep him right there in the front seat of her truck for a long, indefinite period, but before she could act on her impulse, Norman pulled back to smile at her.
'See? I'm not mad,' he said, reaching out to tweak her nose. Then he opened the door and climbed out of her truck. 'See you later, Hannah. I need to get some shots of Mr. Purvis inspecting those snowballs.'
As Hannah drove off, she was smiling. She felt comforted, and warm, and more at peace than she'd been in days. But then her thoughts turned to Mike and she began to frown. She'd enjoyed Mike's kisses in the past, and she'd also enjoyed Norman's kiss. There was one big difference between the two. Mike's kisses made her feel sexy, on the verge of something slightly dangerous and very exciting. And Norman's kisses made her feel sexy, and natural, and good all over.
Hannah sighed. It was impossible to compare Mike and Norman. Mike was the man of her dreams, and Norman was the man of her wide-awake hours. And every time she tried to choose one over the other, she ended up wanting both of them.
Lake Eden Park was a hubbub of activity when Hannah arrived. Several shuttle sleighs were just arriving, and Hannah loaded herself up with boxes and carried them carefully through the crowd.
'The cookies are here!' one of Mrs. Baxter's girls called out as Hannah entered the warm-up tent. She rushed over to take the boxes and motioned to two other girls. 'Come on. Let's go help Miss Swensen unload.'
With four of them working, the unloading didn't take long. On the trips back and forth to her truck, Hannah learned that the girls had opened their concession thirty minutes early, they had already gone through three urns of coffee and one of hot chocolate, and every one of their customers had asked when the cookies would arrive.
'Here you go, Miss Swensen.' One of the girls handed Hannah a hot cup of coffee without asking. 'Thanks for the cookies.'
Hannah left the tent intending to go straight back to her truck, but she changed her mind halfway there. It wouldn't hurt to check out the site to see which area they'd be using.
The family snowman contest would take place in the center of the park. As Hannah walked closer, she saw that the individual squares had been marked with brightly colored rope tied to ski poles. Each area was tagged and Hannah found theirs, number fifteen. It had a good-sized drift of snow in the center, and Hannah figured they'd have more than enough to make a man-sized snowman.
As she turned to leave, her eyes were drawn to a tall, familiar figure in a maroon sheriff's-issue parka. It was Mike, and he was talking to a woman she didn't know, a gorgeous platinum blond in a bright-red ski outfit. Under normal circumstances, Hannah would have walked over to say hello, but these weren't normal circumstances. She was just turning to go in the opposite direction when Mike spotted her.
'Hi, Hannah!' A huge grin spread over Mike's face and he waved his arms.
Hannah grinned back. She didn't want to, but she couldn't help it. There was something about Mike's grin that was contagious.
'Come over here for a minute,' he called out, motioning to her. 'I've got someone I want you to meet.'
'Of all the people in all this snow, I have to run into him!' Hannah muttered, borrowing heavily from Casablanca. If Mike meant the blond, and she was sure he did, Hannah didn't want to meet her. On the other hand, they knew she'd seen them, and to ignore them would be rude.
''Hannah Swensen, this is Kristi Hampton,' Mike said. 'Kristi was Mrs. MacIntyre's personal beautician.'
'Glad to meet you,' Hannah said without meaning it.
'Likewise,' Kristi responded, but she didn't give Hannah more than a fleeting glance before she turned back to Mike.
'Is it too late to enter the contest? I don't have family here, but I could recruit you.'
'Sorry, I'm working.' Mike looked a bit embarrassed, and Hannah could see why. Kristi had her hand on his sleeve and was stroking it like the owner of a prized stallion.
'So, Hannah,' Mike said, turning to her, 'why are you here?'
Hannah smiled. It didn't hurt to be friendly, and Kristi had worked for Connie Mac. Perhaps she could learn something. 'I just delivered cookies to the warm-up tent. I've got extras in my truck if you and Kristi haven't had breakfast.'
'Thanks, but I never eat breakfast,' Kristi said with a sultry gaze at Mike, 'unless I've been up all night. And I already had my breakfast. Besides, I have to watch my carbs.'
'I don't, and I could use a cookie,' Mike said.
'Well, that's different.' Kristi patted Mike's arm. 'You men have to keep up your strength.'
Mike smiled and removed her hand from his sleeve. 'Excuse me, Kristi. I'm going to walk Hannah to her truck. I have to talk to her about something private.'
Hannah's eyebrows shot up as Mike grabbed her arm and they set off at a fast pace across the snow. She had all she could do to resist the urge to turn back and thumb her nose.
'I've got two pieces of news for you, Hannah.' Mike's grip tightened on her arm. 'Is Miss Burkholtz still staying with you?'
'Yes, she is. Is that against the law?'
'Of course not. It was nice of you to take her in. I just wanted to tell you that Bill and I worked late last night doing interviews with Mrs. MacIntyre's staff. I drew Kristi, and she was very cooperative.'
I'll just bet she was, Hannah thought, but she didn't say it. She just waited for Mike to go on.
'I wanted you to know that Miss Burkholtz is in the clear.'
Hannah almost forgave him for the sultry look that Kristi had given him. 'That's great! Just wait until I tell her.'
'One of the maids that Bill interviewed said she saw Miss Burkholtz leaving the hotel at ten minutes to twelve on the night that Mrs. MacIntyre was murdered. And Kristi told me that she saw her pull into the parking lot at the inn at ten.'
'And since my shop is twenty-five minutes from the inn, Janie has an alibi?'
'That's right. Kristi was just leaving the parking lot, and Miss Burkholtz took the spot she vacated. I checked
