“That’s what they said,” Michelle reported.
Hannah and Norman exchanged amused glances. Both of them knew about Earl’s current feud with Mayor Bascomb, and Carrie had never been fond of the mayor’s wife, Stephanie.
“Something smells really good,” Mike commented.
Hannah suspected that he was changing the subject, but she responded anyway. “It’s Chicken in Cabernet Sauce in the slow cooker.”
“And that’s not all,” Michelle said. “I smell something with strawberries.”
Hannah gave her youngest sister an approving nod. “Your nose is correct. I just took an Ultimate Strawberry Bundt Cake out of the oven.”
“What kind of frosting are you using on it?” Michelle wanted to know.
“I thought I’d try a Cool Whip White Chocolate Frosting with strawberry extract and a couple of drops of red food coloring to make it pink. Then we can call it Cool Whip Strawberry Frosting. And I think I’ll decorate the top with strawberries.”
“Fresh strawberries?” Norman asked her.
“No, Florence doesn’t carry them this time of year. We’ll have to make do with frozen strawberries.”
“That’s okay,” Mike said quickly. “I like frozen strawberries.”
Since Mike liked everything that could be classified as food, Hannah wasn’t surprised. “I’ll have to wait for the cake to cool before I can frost it,” she explained. “And the Chicken in Cabernet Sauce needs at least another twenty minutes in the Crock-Pot. Would you like an appetizer while we wait? I’ve got cheese and crackers.”
“And I’ll make Mike’s Busy Day Paté,” Michelle offered. “Mother gave us some groceries to bring with us. She was afraid you’d run out of food before the blizzard was over.”
Hannah avoided meeting Michelle’s or Norman’s eyes for fear she’d burst out laughing. With Mike as a member of their little blizzard survival group, running out of food was a distinct possibility. Instead of replying, she beckoned to Michelle and both sisters went into the kitchen.
“Sorry about barging in on you like this,” Michelle said once the men headed for the leather couches and began to talk.
“That’s okay.” Hannah went to the refrigerator to get out the cheese. “Actually, I’m glad to have company.”
“But it was nice being alone with Norman, wasn’t it?”
“Of course it was, but I’m a marri . . .” Hannah stopped herself from saying the words married woman. She knew she wasn’t married, at least not legally, but she still thought of herself that way. “Never mind.”
“That’s okay,” Michelle said, giving Hannah a little hug. “I know what you were going to say. It’ll probably take a while to get back to thinking of yourself as single.”
“Hannah?” Mike called out from the living room.
“Yes, Mike?”
“If you’re not too busy in there, could you come in here a minute? I have something important to tell you.”
“I’ll be right there,” Hannah said, but instead of heading for the kitchen doorway, she turned to give Michelle a questioning look.
“I don’t know,” Michelle said with a shrug. “Mike didn’t mention anything important to me.”
“How about Lonnie?”
“Nothing. The only thing we talked about was the storm, and then Mother called and wanted us to come to the penthouse.”
“Then I guess I’d better go in to see what Mike wants,” Hannah said with a sigh. “I just hope it’s not more news about Ross. I’ve talked about him enough today.”
Chapter Four
“Sit down, Hannah,” Mike instructed, gesturing toward the couch. “Mayor Bascomb called me and he wanted me to get in touch with you immediately. He said he tried to call you, but he couldn’t get through. That’s one of the reasons I asked Earl to lead us out here.”
Hannah drew a sigh of relief. At least Mike’s important news didn’t involve Ross! “What did the mayor want, Mike?”
“He said he got a call from the head of programming at KCOW-TV this morning.”
“On a Sunday?”
Mike nodded. “Yes. He said it was important and then he asked me if I could contact you. That’s one of the reasons I came out here with Michelle and Lonnie.”
“What did Mayor Bascomb want?”
“He wants you to host a series of interviews to be filmed at The Cookie Jar.”
“That sounds interesting.”
“It is and that’s not all. KCOW is going to rerun the movies that are set in Minnesota at a Minnesota Movie Festival. And the festival will be held right here in Lake Eden. The mayor wants to know if you’ll agree to host those interviews or whether you’d rather not do it. He also asked me to remind you that having KCOW-TV’s movie festival here would do wonders for the businesses in Lake Eden.”
Hannah began to smile. “Of course I’ll do it. It should be fun.”
Mike held up his hand. “Don’t jump in quite yet, Hannah. I’m supposed to tell you that KCOW-TV is running a marathon of the movies right before the festival, and they’re going to ask their viewers to call in and say which movie they liked best.”
“Oh.” Hannah felt her anxiety begin to grow. “Are they going to run Crisis in Cherrywood?”
“Yes, they are. And they’re going to invite all the movie producers, including Ross. They got his number and called him this morning.”
“And . . . what did he say?” Hannah asked, giving a little gulp of dismay.
“Ross wasn’t there. His wife answered the phone and they left a message for Ross to contact them.”
Hannah swallowed again, this time with difficulty. “Do you think Ross will actually come here to Lake Eden to be interviewed?”
“Your guess is as good as mine, Hannah.”
Hannah did her best to stay calm. “What if Ross comes here for the interview?”
Mike shrugged. “If Ross shows up here, it won’t be pretty. I heard some people at church talking about what they’d like to do to him. Nobody in Lake Eden likes him now. As a matter of fact, some people actively hate him for what he did to you.”
“I know, but do you think anyone would actually do anything to . . . to hurt Ross?”
“It’s a distinct possibility.”
“What do you think they’d do?” Hannah held her breath, waiting for Mike’s answer.
“They might fight with him, punch him a couple of times for hurting you.”
“But would they actually . . . kill Ross?”
Mike thought about that for a moment. “Maybe, but I doubt that it would go that far.”
Hannah drew a relieved breath. “That’s what I thought. Do you think someone should warn Ross that he might get hurt if he comes back here?”
“Yes.” Mike gave her an assessing look. “Do you want his home number so that you can warn him?”
“No! I meant what I told you the last time we talked about Ross. I never want to speak to him again!”
“Then who do you want to do it?”
“I . . . I’m not sure. All I know is that I don’t want to do it.”
“How about me? Do you want me to warn him?”
Hannah gave a little nod. “Yes. That would be best, Mike. And it might be best to do it in an official capacity and not as my friend. That way your warning would carry more weight.”
“I agree. I’ll call him from the sheriff’s station as soon as this storm stops.”
Hannah was so grateful, she felt like throwing her arms around him and giving him a big hug. “Thank you, Mike,” she said instead. “It’s not really Ross that I’m worried about. It’s just that I’d hate one of my friends here to get in trouble for fighting with Ross . . . or even worse.”
“I understand.” Mike glanced over at Lonnie and Norman to see if they were listening. Then he turned back to Hannah. “You still love Ross, don’t you.”
It was more of a statement than a question, and Hannah knew she had to be honest. “It’s hard to stop loving someone, even when you know it’s impossible. I still love Ross and I wish that things could be different, but I know I can’t ever be with him again.”