Double Fudge Brownie Murder (Hannah Swensen series Book 18) by Joanne Fluke Read Free Book Online Page B

snapping photos of the wedding party at the altar. “Pull the plug, Hank.”
    It took a moment, but then there was silence in the chapel and Hannah drew a breath of relief as the minister began to read the familiar wedding ceremony.
    Delores’s response was first. She turned, looked at her daughters and smiled, and then looked up at Doc. “I do,” she said in a loud, clear voice.
    Doc was next and he did the same, but he reached for her hand and brought it to his lips right after he promised to love her and cherish her.
    Hannah thought of her father. She believed that if he knew, he would approve. He’d loved Delores with all his heart and she had loved him. Then Hannah glanced at Ross. He was smiling and as she watched, he blinked several times. There was no doubt that he was as happy about this wedding as she was. She reached up to brush a tear from her cheek and saw that both of her sisters were brushing away tears. It was a beautiful wedding. It was a beautiful marriage. Hannah was happy that her mother had found a love like this for the second time in her life.
     
    “Hannah!”
    Hannah blinked and came back to the present with a start as Michelle called her name. “Yes, Michelle?”
    “I thought you didn’t like caviar.”
    “I don’t.”
    “Then why did you just eat four toast points loaded with caviar and sour cream?” Andrea asked her.
    “I did that?”
    “Yes,” Delores looked amused as she confirmed it. “We all watched you eat it.”
    Hannah was shocked. She hated caviar. Surely she’d remember it if she’d eaten the expensive delicacy she’d often referred to as nothing but little fish eggs ! “Then I guess you’d better cut me off. I must have had too much champagne.”
    “That’s not it,” Delores told her. “You haven’t even taken a sip and we’ve already refilled our glasses.”
    “Oh.” Hannah glanced toward the door of the restaurant, wondering what was taking Ross so long. They were dining at one of the gourmet restaurants in their hotel and Ross had gone back to his room to make a quick phone call.
    “I was like that when I fell in love with Bill,” Andrea said, exchanging glances with Delores and Michelle. “Falling in love makes you very distracted.”
    “I’m not falling in love!” Hannah glared at her married sister. “And now that the subject has come up, I’m not too happy that all of you set me up. You all knew that Ross was going to be here and you didn’t tell me. I don’t like being left out like that.”
    “But we wanted it to be a surprise,” Delores explained. “We all thought you’d be happy to see Ross.”
    “I am. It’s great to see Ross again.”
    “Well, that’s a relief.”A male voice spoke directly behind her and Hannah felt her face turn as red as the bouquet of roses on their table. Ross was back. And he’d heard everything she’d said.
    “You don’t know how many times I almost told you I was Doc’s best man,” he said, sitting down next to her and taking her hands in his. “When we talked on the phone last night, I came very close to spilling the beans.”
    Hannah thought about that for a moment. “I knew there was something you wanted to say. I just had that feeling. I should have asked you. I was about to, but then you said you’d see me soon and I thought you were planning a trip to Lake Eden.”
    “I am. I’ll be in Lake Eden in a week or two. I’m setting up an interview at KCOW Television. They’re looking for someone to produce some original material for them.”
    Delores looked surprised. “I didn’t know that! You didn’t mention it when we talked on the phone.”
    Hannah began to frown. She hadn’t known that Ross and Delores had kept in contact. Delores had never mentioned it to her.
    “Ross told me last week,” Andrea admitted, “but he asked me to keep it under my hat until he knew for sure about the interview. So I did.”
    “You could have told me,” Michelle turned to Ross. “We Skyped last week