Cinnamon Roll Murder

“Come on in, Norman,” Hannah said. “I’ve got fresh coffee.”

“Great.” Norman hung his jacket on the hooks by the back door and took a stool at the stainless steel work island. “I’m glad you called me, Hannah. I was just about to pick up the phone and call you.”

“Oh?” Hannah delivered his coffee, and then she sat down on the stool across from Norman. He looked so serious, she felt a little weak in the knees.

“This is serious, Hannah,” he said.

I can see that, her mind said, but her mouth was so dry that all she could do was nod.

“I’m not Diana’s father.”

Uh-oh! her mind flashed a warning. Had Norman found out about the paternity tests they’d run? Was he about to tell her he’d never forgive her for interfering in his life?

“Did you hear me, Hannah?”

“Oh, yes,” Hannah said in a voice that trembled slightly. “How did you find out?”

“I had the lab run a paternity test, and I got the results in the mail yesterday. With my DNA, I couldn’t possibly be Diana’s father.”

“You ...” Hannah stopped and swallowed hard. She took a deep breath and started again. “You sent in a sample and they ran a paternity test?”

“Of course I did. You didn’t think I’d simply accept Bev’s word for it, did you?”

“I ... I didn’t know.”

“Well, you should have known. Give me a little credit, Hannah. I wasn’t born yesterday. I thought it was odd that she waited that long to tell me about Diana, and I decided I’d rather be safe than sorry. As it turned out, I would have been sorry. Very sorry.” Norman stopped and reached out for Hannah’s hand. “Are you okay?”

“Yes. Yes, I’m okay.” Hannah took another deep breath. “Did you tell her yet?”

“I drove to Minneapolis and told her last night. Of course I had to find her first. She wasn’t at her mother’s house, and Diana wasn’t sick. She lied to me about that, too.”

“Did she tell you who Diana’s father really was?”

“No, and I didn’t ask. That doesn’t really matter.”

Hannah made a snap decision. There was no reason to give Norman the name of Diana’s father. “It doesn’t matter to you?”

“No. What matters is that Bev lied to me, and she tried to trick me into marrying her.”

“Then ... you’re not getting married tomorrow?” Hannah asked, just to make sure.

“That’s right. I’m not getting married tomorrow. I haven’t told anyone else, Hannah. I wanted to tell you first.” Norman reached out and captured her other hand. “I love you, Hannah. I always will. We were so good together before all this happened. Do you think that with a little time ... we can get back to being us again?”

Hannah wasn’t sure she could speak past the lump in her throat, but she knew she had to try. “We never stopped being us,” she told him. “Even when you were with her, I never stopped believing in us.”

They sat there, hands clasped, for a long moment, just breathing the same air and being together. And then Norman gave a deep sigh.

“I’d better get over to Granny’s Attic,” he said. “I have to ask Mother and Delores to activate the gossip hotline.”

“Why?”

“I want them to tell everyone in town that the wedding’s canceled. I don’t have the list of addresses Bev used when she sent out the invitations, and I know it’s impossible to contact everyone. So I’m going to go down to the community center tomorrow to tell anybody who shows up that there won’t be a wedding.”

“But can’t you just put a notice on the door?”

“No. I have to be there. It’s the right thing to do, Hannah. If people show up, they’re going to want to know what happened.”

“And you’re going to tell them?”

“Not all of it. They don’t need to know the details. I’ll just say that we decided to call off the wedding, and that Bev left Lake Eden and she won’t be back.”

Hannah wasn’t sure what to say. As far as she was concerned, Norman was the bravest man she knew. Most people who found themselves in a similar situation would put a sign on the door, and hide at home with the curtains drawn. “You’re not going down there alone, are you?” she asked.

“Yes. I cancelled the wedding, and it’s my responsibility.”

Hannah thought about that for a moment. Norman had a point, but greeting people at your own canceled wedding would be the height of humiliation. “You’re not going to go down there alone,” she said, making another snap decision. “I’m going with you.”

“But you don’t have to. Really, Hannah. I’d love it if you came with me, but I can handle it alone.”

“No, you can’t.”

“Why not?”

Hannah gave him a little smile. Things were getting back to normal again. “You don’t know your way around the community center kitchen. And somebody’s got to put on the coffee.”

CHOCOLATE CARAMEL PECAN BARS

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

4 one-ounce squares semi-sweet baking chocolate (or the equivalent – ? cup regular chocolate chips will do fine.)

? cup butter (1 and ? sticks, 6 ounces)

1 and ? cups white (granulated) sugar

cup (2 Tablespoons) caramel ice cream topping

3 beaten eggs (just whip them up in a glass with a fork)

? teaspoon salt

1 teaspoon vanilla extract

1 and ? cups flour (pack it down in the cup when you measure it)

1 and ? cups chocolate chips (that’s ? of a 12- ounce package—I used Ghirardelli)

1 and ? cups pecans

Prepare a 9-inch by 13-inch cake pan by lining it with a piece of heavy-duty foil large enough to flap over the sides. Spray the foil-lined pan with Pam or another nonstick cooking spray.