“Hannah.” Judith extended her hand. “How lovely to see you.”

Hannah had the insane urge to reply that it was lovely to be seen, but she thought better of it. She searched her mind for something appropriate to say and pulled out a standard compliment. “You look lovely tonight, Judith. I had no idea that Claire had such wonderful dresses in her shop.”

“Claire?” Judith’s green eyes widened, and Hannah knew she’d just stuck her foot in the mud. “This isn’t from Beau Monde, Hannah. Billy designed it especially for me.”

“Billy?”

“Billy Blass. He’s a close personal friend of mine. And I see that you have a date this year. How nice.”

Hannah cringed and introduced Norman to the Woodleys, making sure to mention that Norman had arrived to take over his father’s dental practice. They chatted with the Woodleys for another brief moment and then they moved on.

“Billy Blass.” Norman chuckled as he took Hannah’s arm. “I wonder if he calls her Judy.”

Hannah laughed appreciatively. This party might be fun if Norman kept making jokes. She accepted a glass of champagne from a passing waiter and they wandered through the crowd for a few minutes, hailing the people that they knew. Then they walked over to view the appetizer table.

“Caviar.” Norman pointed to the black tapioca-looking substance in a large cut-glass bowl that was nestled in a larger bowl of shaved ice.

“It’s beluga,” Hannah informed him. “I asked last year and the waiter told me that the Woodleys wouldn’t serve anything else.”

Norman was obviously impressed because he accepted a caviar-laden toast point from the waiter and smiled in anticipation as he raised it to his mouth. Then he looked over at Hannah and froze. “I’m sorry, Hannah. I should have asked. Would you care for some caviar?”

“No, thanks. I know that beluga’s the best that money can buy, but I grew up right next to a lake. It’s still all just fish eggs to me.”

While Norman busied himself with the caviar, Hannah walked over to survey the rest of the buffet. She’d heard that Judith had hired the best caterer in Minneapolis. Hannah could believe that as she walked past evenly fanned slices of beef fillet, platters of Smithfield ham, a whole poached salmon on a bed of dill, and several massive plates of carved chicken and turkey breast. There was a silver platter of tender baby asparagus, each tip pointing outward to form a giant wheel with a silver pitcher of hollandaise in the center, and a large crystal bowl that was filled to the brim with glazed carrots. Hannah spared only a passing glance for the tiny red potatoes that had been steamed in their colorful jackets and the deviled quail eggs. Her area of interest was the dessert table.

The desserts were gorgeous. There were small bites of cake that were frosted and decorated with tiny edible flowers, an array of truffles on a platter strewn with rose petals, chocolate-dipped strawberries with their stems intact, and a large silver basket filled with sugar cookies. Her professional interest aroused, Hannah selected a cookie and tasted it.