Джоанна Флюк - Triple Chocolate Cheesecake Murder

“It’s Stephanie. And don’t worry about a thing, dear. I’ll take care of Richard for you and you’ll never hear another word about how he’s going to fire Bill!”

“I’ll see you out, Stephanie,” Delores said as she stood up. “And I really appreciate you coming here this afternoon.”

Hannah and Andrea exchanged glances after Delores had left the penthouse garden. “Do you think Mother invited her over here on purpose?” Andrea asked.

“That’s what it sounded like to me.”

“Because she was worried that I couldn’t deal with Mayor Bascomb?”

Tread carefully , Hannah’s rational mind warned. You know how fragile your sister is right now.

Hannah gave a little laugh. “It seems to me that you dealt with Mayor Bascomb pretty well on your own! At least it sounded like that from the outer office.”

Andrea smiled. “I certainly wasn’t planning on slapping him, but . . . maybe I shouldn’t admit this, but it felt really good when I did!”

“Stephanie certainly enjoyed hearing about it,” Hannah said.

“Do you really think so?”

“Yes, I was watching her and she looked really impressed.”

Andrea thought about that for a moment. “I think you’re right. And she convinced me that she was on Bill’s side. Do you think she’s really going to try to talk some sense into the mayor when he gets home?”

“Absolutely. But don’t get your hopes up too high, Andrea. Mayor Bascomb has a reputation for being stubborn.”

Mistake , Hannah’s rational mind told her. Now your sister’s worried again. You’d better think of some way to distract her .

“Let’s go in the kitchen and check on dinner,” Hannah suggested. “Bring your champagne, and you can finish drinking it there.”

“Okay.” Andrea picked up her glass and followed Hannah to the kitchen. Their mother’s penthouse kitchen was enormous, with two wall ovens, a fireplace against one corner flanked by a table and chairs, and two dishwashers. The stove was the best that money could buy, and the countertops were beautiful pink marble.

“I love this kitchen,” Andrea said, taking a seat at the table by the fireplace. “What are you making for dinner, Hannah? Whatever it is, it smells fantastic.”

“It’s Stroganoff Light.”

“Stroganoff Light? You mean, without all that wonderful sour cream?”

Hannah shook her head. “No, it’s just that I made it with chicken breasts instead of beef. Mother said she wanted a chicken dish tonight because Doc was gaining a little weight.”

Andrea laughed. “So you made stroganoff the regular way with mushrooms, and onions, and sour cream?”

“Exactly right.”

“And somehow you’re going to convince Mother that stroganoff is part of a low-calorie meal?”

“Oh, no. Not me. Since I did all the cooking, I thought I’d leave that part of it up to you.”

Andrea burst out laughing. “I think that’s impossible, but I’m pretty sure Mother will forget all about the calories once she smells your Stroganoff Light.”

Andrea’s cell phone rang and she pulled it out of her pocket. “It’s Bill. He’s probably calling to tell me he’s leaving work now.”

Hannah was on her way back to the refrigerator when she saw the expression on Andrea’s face.

“What’s wrong?” she asked, hurrying over to her sister.

“I understand, honey,” Andrea said. “I’ll see you when you get home, then.” She clicked off her phone and looked up at Hannah. “That unmitigated rat!” she said.

“Bill?”

“No, Mayor Bascomb. He just called Bill at the sheriff’s station and told him he wanted a detailed report of every citation and arrest Bill and his deputies made for the entire year!”

“But, Andrea . . . it’s impossible to do all that in one night!”

“Bill knows that. And I’m sure Mayor Bascomb realizes it, too. But you know Bill. He’s a stubborn, proud, Minnesota boy. He’s determined to deliver that report to Mayor Bascomb’s office by tomorrow morning.”

Hannah gave a heartfelt sigh. “So Bill isn’t coming to dinner?”

“No, he’s going to need all night to finish the list. He told me to stay and enjoy myself, but . . . I’m thinking I should go home, Hannah. I think the real reason Mayor Bascomb called Bill and made up this impossible task for him is because. . . I smacked him one. I just wish I could do something to fix things.”

“You tried, Andrea. And you did your best. Don’t start blaming yourself for this.”

“But if I hadn’t gone to see the mayor, he might have left Bill alone!”

Andrea’s voice held a note of hysteria, and Hannah knew she had to say something to calm her sister.

“Wrong,” Hannah said quickly. “Just answer this question honestly. Was Mayor Bascomb already furious with Bill when you entered his inner sanctum?”

“Well . . . yes. Yes, he was practically steaming!”

“Then it wasn’t anything you said. You tried to calm him down and talk him into reconsidering, but it didn’t work. If he’s angry with Bill now, it’s not your fault because he was already angry with Bill.”

Andrea thought about that for a moment. “You’re right. Thanks, Hannah. I feel a lot better about it now.”

“Good.” Hannah walked over to the enormous refrigerator and took out a springform pan.

“What’s that?” Andrea asked.

“Triple Chocolate Cheesecake for dessert. I just need to unmold it and decorate the tops.”

“Tops?” Andrea picked up on Hannah’s use of the plural. “There’s more than one cheesecake?”

“I decided to make three, just in case Mike showed up at the last minute.”

“Great! Then there’ll be enough for us. You said triple chocolate. Are there three kinds of chocolate in your cheesecake?”

“Yes, each layer is a different kind of chocolate.”

“Ohhh!” Andrea gave a little sigh of delight. “That sounds like heaven to me. What are you going to put on top?”

“A layer of sweetened whipped cream and chocolate curls. And if that looks too bare, I might just thaw some raspberries and sprinkle those on to add a little color.”

Andrea watched while Hannah unmolded it and decorated the top of the cheesecake. “I wish I could have some, but I think I’d better finish my champagne and go home. I wouldn’t be good company for anyone tonight.”

“You can take that cheesecake with you,” Hannah said. “I’ve got more that I’ll decorate for dinner. It’s a new recipe and I wanted to test it. I’ll dish up dinner for you and Bill, and you can take his to the station. He’s bound to get hungry and maybe the food will cheer him up.”

“I’m sure it will, especially if I give him a big slice of your cheesecake. Bill loves cheesecake.” Andrea got up from her chair and walked over to give Hannah a little hug. “Thank you, Hannah.”

“Are you sure you’ll be all right at home alone?”

“I’m sure. You always say that the endorphins in chocolate make everyone feel better, so I’ll just have two slices of your cheesecake.”

THREE CHEESE BACON BALL

(This is a no-bake recipe.)

Ingredients:

2 and ½ cups crumbled bacon ( I used Hormel Real Crumbled Bacon )

8 ounces brick cream cheese, softened (I used Philadelphia in the silver package)

¾ cup crumbled blue cheese

8 ounces finely shredded sharp white cheddar cheese

1 teaspoon brown sugar

3 drops hot sauce (I used Slap Ya Mama)

Hannah’s 1 st Note: If you can’t find finely shredded cheese, you can do it yourself with the food processor or with a box grater.