Chocolate Chip Cookie Murder (Hannah Swensen #1)(75)

“But I do. I’d really like to have it, Norman.”

Norman took the photo and examined it with a critical eye. “Let me reprint it for you. I can do some tricks with the negative in my darkroom.”

“No, it’s just fine.” Hannah snatched the photo out of his hands. “I like it just the way it is.”

Andrea stared at her. “You want to keep the one with your arm cut off?”

“If it was good enough for Venus, it’s good enough for me.” Hannah shot her sister a warning look.

“I could center it differently, cut off that table, and enlarge it to a head shot of the two of us,” Norman suggested. “If I can do that, would you like it?”

“Of course I would. But I want to keep this one anyway.”

Norman just shrugged and turned to Andrea. “How about you? Would you like copies of anything?”

“I’d love to have these.” Andrea handed him two prints.

The bell over the door tinkled and Sheriff Grant walked in, followed by the most intimidating hunk of man that Hannah had ever laid eyes on. He was tall, well over six feet, and he had reddish blond hair, piercing blue eyes, and a mustache. He looked as fit as an athlete and only the deep lines in his face kept him from being classically handsome. There was a buzz of conversation from the customers at the tables and Hannah could understand why. He was the best-looking man to hit Lake Eden in a month of Sundays.

“It’s him!” Andrea nudged her. “That’s Mike Kingston.”

“I know.” Hannah grinned. Her sister had stated the obvious. Mike Kingston was with Sheriff Grant. Who else could he be?

“Hannah.” Sheriff Grant strode over to the counter. “This is Mike Kingston. He’ll be joining the department on Monday.”

Hannah swallowed hard. She’d never been uncomfortable around men before, but Mike Kingston was an exception. The moment she’d seen him, her pulse had quickened and she found she couldn’t meet his eyes. She took a deep breath, willed her voice to be steady, and said, “I’m glad to meet you Deputy Kingston.”

“Mike.”

His voice was deep and warm, and it matched his size. Hannah felt a purely physical reaction she hadn’t experienced since her two-timing professor had invited her to his apartment. She turned quickly to perform the introductions, praying that no one would guess what effect just being in the same room with Mike Kingston was having on her. “This is my sister, Andrea Todd, and here’s my niece, Tracey. And this is Norman Rhodes. He just took over his father’s dental practice in town. I know you’re in a hurry, so I’ll just zip in back and get those cookies for you.”

As Mike Kingston turned to shake hands with Andrea and Norman, Hannah made her escape to the bakery. Once she was safely behind the swinging door, she ducked into the bathroom and splashed some cold water on her face. If just meeting Mike Kingston was this much of a jolt, how was she going to handle their pizza dinner tomorrow night when she’d actually have to talk to him?

Never one to run away from a problem, Hannah decided that there was no time like the present to confront it. Mike Kingston would think that she was crazy if she ducked into a different room every time he came into The Cookie Jar. She marched out of the bathroom, picked up the box of the Black and Whites for the open house, and pushed back through the swinging door to the front of her shop.

Mike Kingston turned to smile at her and Hannah’s breath caught in her throat. She hoped she wasn’t staring at him like a teenage groupie who’d come face to face with her favorite rock star.

“It’s really nice of you to bake these cookies for us, Hannah. Sheriff Grant said that you do it every year.”

“I do.” Hannah was relieved. He didn’t seem to have noticed how flustered she was and that was good. “I cater your summer picnic, too. It’s a bring-your-own-steak barbecue out at Eden Lake and I provide lemonade and cookies.”

“That sounds good. There’s nothing like a barbecue out at the lake.”

“We’d better get going, Mike.”

Sheriff Grant turned to his newest protégé, and Hannah could see the admiration in his eyes. He had to look up. Mike Kingston was at least six three, and Sheriff Grant was a good four inches short of the six-foot mark. The newest member of the Winnetka County Sheriff’s Department made Hannah feel petite, and she’d never felt petite before in her life.

“See you later, Hannah.”

Mike Kingston gave her a wave and Hannah smiled. He seemed perfectly nice. She had nothing against him personally. But she was prepared to despise him if Bill didn’t get his promotion.

“Nice to meet you, Norman.” Mike nodded to Norman and then he turned to Andrea. “I’m looking forward to working with your husband, Andrea.”

“That’s my daddy,” Tracey piped up.

“I know.” Mike Kingston leaned down and whispered something in Tracey’s ear.

As Hannah watched, her niece’s eyes widened and then she gave a delighted giggle. “Really?”

“I promise.” Mike nodded. “But it’s a secret until tomorrow night. I’ll bring it then.”

The minute the door had closed behind them, Andrea turned to Tracey. “What did he say?”

“I can’t tell you.” Tracey was all smiles. “You heard him say it was a secret. But you’ll find out tomorrow night when we have the pizza.”