“Rick said they’d been fighting about Ronni. Jessica got really upset, and he thinks that’s why she went into premature labor. He feels horribly guilty about it.”

He ought to if what I heard is true, Hannah thought, but of course she didn’t say it. She said nothing and waited for the floodgates to open and Mike to go on.

“Nothing happened, you know. Ronni told me that. She said Rick had a little crush on her, but she handled it without hurting his feelings.”

“Oh?” Hannah said, but she thought something different. And just how did she do that? her mind queried.

“She told him he was very attractive, but she never dated married men,” Mike answered her unspoken question.

I’ll bet! Hannah’s mind said sarcastically, but her mouth said, “That’s good.”

“I thought so. But you know how young guys are. They think with their…uh…libido and not with their brain.”

“Right.” Hannah removed the sausage from the oven, cut it into serving-size pieces and paired it with the six small potato pancakes she’d fried for Mike. Once she’d grabbed the coffee carafe to pour more into his mug, she headed out to the coffee table to deliver his dinner.

“That sure smells good,” Mike commented, staring down at the plate Hannah placed before him. “What kind of sausage is that?”

“Polish. I got it from Florence, and she said it’s handmade at a tiny sausage factory near Red Wing. And those are potato pancakes. Help yourself to sour cream, or applesauce, or both.”

“Thanks, Hannah.” Mike clearly wanted to dig in, but he looked up at her instead. “What are you having?”

“Chicken breast and salad, but don’t worry about me. I’ve got all night to eat. Just start and I’ll fry you up another batch.”

“Okay,” Mike said, forking a piece of sausage and popping it into his mouth. “You’re the best, you know? Sometimes I wish you’d taken me up on that marriage proposal. Then I could eat like this every night.”

That was the reason he’d asked her to marry him? Hannah’s eyebrows approached lift velocity. But she wasn’t being fair, and she curbed her impulse to make a sharp retort as she headed off to the kitchen to fry up another batch.

LAZY POTATO PANCAKES

3½ cups frozen hash brown potatoes

2 eggs (2 extra large or 3 small)

1/4 cup grated onion (or 1/2 teaspoon onion powder)

1 teaspoon season salt

1/2 teaspoon black pepper

2 Tablespoons cracker crumbs (matzo meal or flour will also work)

1/8 cup butter (1/4 stick, 1 ounce) for frying

1/8 cup good olive oil for frying

Toppings for the Table:

sour cream

applesauce

cherry sauce***

blueberry sauce***

apricot sauce***