“And I’ll look for that photo of those cheeseburger cookies,” Hannah exchanged promises, “right after I make dinner for Mike.”

“You’re fixing dinner for Mike?” Andrea, who was sitting at the counter talking to them both, looked confused. “I thought he was pulling a double.”

“He is,” Hannah told her. “He called me a couple of minutes ago and said he’d only have forty-five minutes once he got to my place.”

“That’s not much time for dinner,” Lisa commented.

“What are you making?” Andrea asked, and Hannah noticed that she looked a bit worried.

“Something quick and easy. And something substantial with plenty of calories. Whatever it is, it’s got to carry him through another eight-hour shift.”

“Substantial? Calories?” The worried expression on Andrea’s face intensified. “And you’re going to eat dinner with him?”

“Of course. But stop looking so worried. I’m having a diet meal. I promise I won’t even touch anything that’s left on his plate when he leaves.”

“That’s good!” Andrea gave her an approving nod. “Did he tell you why he’s pulling a double?”

“No. I just assumed that somebody was out sick.”

“Not exactly. Bill called me earlier and told me all about it. Rick Murphy’s taking compassionate leave, and everybody’s taking turns filling in for him.”

“What’s wrong?”

“His wife’s in the hospital. She went into labor last night, and she almost lost the baby. Doc Knight’s got her on strict bed rest.”

Lisa sighed deeply. “I hope they weren’t fighting about Ronni Ward.”

“You heard about that,” Hannah commented. She wasn’t surprised, but if the news had reached The Cookie Jar, people were definitely talking. No wonder Bridget had been so angry with Ronni at Bertanelli’s!

“Of course I heard. All I have to do is walk around with the coffee carafe and I hear everything that’s happening in Lake Eden. I heard all about Bridget confronting Ronni only ten minutes after it happened.”

“How?” Hannah was curious.

“A couple of Jordan High seniors were talking about it. The girls were here, and one of the boyfriends was texting his girlfriend on her cell phone.”

Hannah winced. She wasn’t sure which offended her more, the fact that all the Jordan High kids were sending text messages with improper spelling and no punctuation, or the fact that texting was fast becoming accepted as a word.

“I heard her telling her friends about Mrs. Murphy and Ronni,” Lisa went on. “There was something about a food fight and how they’d better not go out there for pizza for a while, but I’d been standing there for too long and I had to move on.”

“Invisible waitress trick,” Hannah said to Andrea. “It works every time.”