There’s nothing for it but to do it, Hannah repeated one of her great-grandmother Elsa’s favorite sayings in her mind. She forced a smile on her lips and told herself to Always look on the bright side, another one of her great-grandmother’s favorite sayings. They would have eaten already and saved her some leftovers. And Andrea certainly couldn’t finish a whole jug of wine by herself . . . or could she?

As she neared the door of her condo, Hannah could hear voices and laughter coming from inside. She stopped at the door and raised her hand to knock. Then she dropped her arm to her side again, feeling rather foolish about what she had been about to do. It was her condo. She owned it. She didn’t have to knock on her own door!

Just then the door opened and Michelle stood there looking as cute as a button in white shorts and a royal blue top. “Hi, Hannah. I thought I heard you coming up the stairs. Kick off your shoes and go make yourself comfortable on the couch while I pour a glass of wine for you. We’ve got food, too. I came back here at noon and put dinner in the Crock-Pot and Andrea brought her new whippersnapper cookies. They’re really, really good.”

Hannah walked in and greeted everyone with a smile. Then she went straight to her spot on the couch and sat down. Her earlier ruminations seemed silly in retrospect.

As usual, Hannah was the filling in a Mike and Norman sandwich, sitting between them on the middle cushion, but tonight she didn’t mind at all. It might have had something to do with the fact that Norman started rubbing the kinks out of her neck while Mike spread some of his Busy Day Pate on a cracker for her. Michelle came in to hand her a chilled glass of wine and a full plate of food, and Hannah felt her spirits rise from the soles of her feet all the way up to the ceiling. She had thought she was bone-tired, but now she was beginning to feel happy and full of energy. What a great welcome! It was wonderful to be home with the people who loved you. As the conversation flowed around her and she ate Michelle’s excellent dinner, she felt renewed and refreshed.

“Try my new cookies, Hannah,” Andrea urged her. “They’re called Golden Raisin Whippersnappers and I really like them.”

Hannah’s eyebrows shot up in surprise. “But you don’t like raisins.”

“I know, but I like these cookies. I think it’s the golden raisins. It’s the brown ones I don’t really like.”

Hannah reached for a cookie and took a bite, chewing and swallowing quickly. “These are great, Andrea! They’re as light as air and they have just the right amount of sweetness. Is that cinnamon I taste?”