The old classification took Hannah back a little, but then she remembered that Luanne was Michelle’s age, only twenty. Dean Lawrence, who was in his forties, would seem old to her. “He made a pass at you?” she asked.

“How did you know?” Luanne looked profoundly shocked. “I didn’t tell anybody.”

“It was a guess, but I figured it was a good one. From what I hear, Dean’s made a pass at almost every woman in town.”

“Even you?”

Hannah winced slightly. Luanne didn’t have to sound so incredulous. “Yes, even me. He’s a frustrated adolescent, Luanne.”

“You mean like the high school boys? When all they can think about is girls?”

“Exactly. Dean probably doesn’t mean anything by it. It’s just a game to him. And maybe they don’t mind his behaving like that in Hollywood.”

“Lake Eden isn’t Hollywood,” Luanne retorted, her eyes flashing with anger. “And I don’t appreciate grown men acting like high school boys.”

“Neither did some of the other women I talked to,” Hannah said, thinking about Lisa and how she’d almost poured hot coffee down Dean’s neck.

“Well

I guess it helps to know it’s not just me. And here I was, trying to figure out what I did to make him think I’d say yes when he invited me to his trailer. I thought maybe it was Suzie and the fact I had a baby without being married and all. But it’s just the way he behaves with everybody

right?”

“Just women. I think the guys in town are safe.”

Luanne gave a startled giggle. “Oh, that’s funny. Thank you, Hannah. You made me feel a lot better, but I still don’t want to get within ten feet of Mr. Lawrence. It’s insulting, you know? If he even looks at me crosswise, I’ll probably kill him.”

“Don’t do that. Just come and tell me. We’ll organize all the other women and run him out of town on a rail.”

“Do we even have a rail?”

“I’m not sure, but if we don’t, we’ll get one. Besides, he’s probably on his best behavior now that his wife’s in town.”

“I didn’t know he was married!” Luanne looked shocked. “He certainly didn’t act like he was. That poor woman! She must not know about what he does behind her back.”

“What makes you think that?” Hannah asked.

“Because if she knew, she’d either leave him or kill him, whichever one seemed better at the time.”