Part 3 (2/2)
Hannah added up Rhonda's bill. Once it had been settled; she expected Rhonda to leave, but Rhonda slid onto a stool at the counter.
”The house isn't much,” she confided. ”I don't blame Norman for wanting to tear it down. It'd cost more to remodel than it'd ever be worth. It's a nice piece of property though, and you'll love the view. I hope you and Norman will be very happy in your new home.”
Warning bells rang in Hannah's head. She knew she had to tread carefully. Rhonda wasn't the biggest gossip in town, but she was definitely a contender. ”It won't be my home, Rhonda. All I did was design it with Norman.”
40.
”But I thought...” Rhonda stopped speaking and began to frown. ”When Norman told me he was building the house you designed for the contest, I just naturally a.s.sumed that... You aren't going to marry him?”
”No.”
”But you'll never find anybody nicer!”
”That's probably true.”
”Then why won't you marry him?”
Hannah sighed. Rhonda had the persistence of a door-to-door salesman. ”Norman hasn't asked me.”
”He hasn 't? ” Rhonda looked shocked, but she covered it quickly and reached out to pat Hannah's hand. ”Don't lose heart, dear. I know you're nearly thirty and all of your friends are married, but I'm sure Norman's just waiting until the house is built. As a matter of fact, I'm sure that's what he's doing.”
Hannah decided that it was best to change the subject. She was tired of being on the defensive about Norman's failure to pop the question. ”Congratulations on the sale, Rhonda. Are you planning to do something special with the money?”
”Yes. I'm taking a real vacation for the first time in my life and it's a dream come true. Thanks to Norman I can afford it now and I booked the ticket last night. I leave Monday morning for Rome!”
Rhonda's eyes lit up and Hannah caught some of her excitement. ”That sounds wonderful. How long are you staying?”
”Two glorious weeks! That should give me enough time to see everything I've always wanted to see.” Rhonda reached for her purse and slung it over.her shoulder. ”I've got to run or I'll be late to work. If I don't see you before I leave, bon voyage”
Hannah bit back a grin as Rhonda slid off the stood and walked toward the door. Bon voyage meant ”good voyage” and she should have said it to Rhonda, not the other way around.
LEMON MERINGUE PIE MURDER 41.
Once Norman and Andrea had left, Hannah manned the counter in the cookie shop while Lisa went back to the kitchen to work on their Independence Day cookies. When the predictable lull came at eleven-thirty, Hannah stepped back to the kitchen to see the results.
”What do you think?” Lisa asked, putting the finis.h.i.+ng touches on the last tray of cookies.
”They're perfect. No one would ever know they're recycled.”
”I gave a couple of my mistakes to Freddy and Jed.” Lisa motioned toward the pantry where Freddy and his cousin were hanging the new shelves that Hannah had bought. ”I'll deliver our cookie orders if you want to stay here.”
”That's fine with me. Did you mention that ceiling fan?”
Lisa shook her head. ”No, I forgot all about it.”
”I'll tell them. This would be a good time to fix it.”
A few minutes later, the ladder had been set up in the cookie shop and Freddy steadied it while Jed climbed up to look at the defective fan. He yanked the pull cord, but the blades didn't move. Then he loosened the screws on the hub and peered inside.
Freddy looked anxious as he watched Jed overhead and Hannah put her hand on his arm to rea.s.sure him. ”Don't worry, Freddy. I'm sure Jed can fix it.”
”But I'm the one that did that fan,” Freddy sounded every bit as upset as he looked. ”I must have done it wrong.”
Jed looked down at his cousin. ”No, you did it right. The wires came loose, that's all. It could have happened to anyone. I'll fix it and it'll work just fine.”
”But I should fix it,” Freddy insisted. ”It's my fan and a man's got to stand behind his work.”
Jed smiled and Hannah could tell that he approved of what Freddy had said. ”You're right, buddy. I'll come down and you can fix it. Hold the ladder like I taught you, okay?”
”Okay. I'm holding it, Jed.”
42.
As Freddy gripped the ladder tightly, Hannah realized that he looked different. His hair was shorter and his clothes were clean, but there was another change. Freddy was dressing better now that Jed had moved in with him. Instead of donning the baggy green trousers and old work s.h.i.+rts that had belonged to his father, Freddy now had jeans that fit him and cotton knit s.h.i.+rts with a pocket in the front. He even had new work boots that had replaced his battered old tennis shoes.
”Good job, Freddy.” Jed stepped off the ladder and patted Freddy on the back. ”That ladder didn't move an inch.”
”Nope. I held it real tight, just the way you taught me.”
Jed walked over to his toolbox and removed a rubber-handled screwdriver and a roll of black electrical tape. ”Where's your tool belt, Freddy?”
”Gotta think...” Freddy stared up at the ceiling for a moment. ”It's in the pantry, Jed. You told me to take it off when it b.u.mped you.”
”Right. Go get it, then. You're going to need it to carry tools up the ladder.”
Hannah waited until Freddy had gone back to the kitchen and then turned to Jed with concern. ”Are you sure Freddy should be working with electricity? It's pretty dangerous.”
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