Doc Bennett hung up abruptly and Hannah was left holding a dead line. As she hung up on her end, she uttered a phrase she’d never use within Tracey or Bethany’s hearing, even though Bethany was too young to understand it and Tracey had probably heard it before, and then she turned to Moishe. “They’re ganging up on me. What am I going to do?”

Moishe gave her a wide-eyed look that Hannah interpreted to mean he didn’t have the foggiest idea. She reached down to pet him, but before her hand connected with his orange-and-white fur, the phone rang again.

“Uh-oh,” Hannah breathed as Moishe’s ears flattened against his head and he started to bristle. Her kitty caller I.D. wasn’t infallible, but nine times out of ten that bristle meant her mother was on the phone. When Moishe’s tail started to switch back and forth like a metronome, Hannah reached for the phone. Her mother was nothing if not persistent. If she didn’t reach Hannah at home, she’d wait and call her down at The Cookie Jar. “Hello, Mother.”

“You really shouldn’t answer the phone that way,” Delores gave her standard greeting.

“I know, but you’d be disappointed if I didn’t.”

“Perhaps,” Delores conceded. “I need to talk to you about something important, Hannah. And I want you to know that normally I’d never interfere

”

But, Hannah provided the next word. She knew it was coming, although she chose not to say it aloud.

“But Carrie just called me and we have a situation on our hands. Do you know that Norman’s down at Hal & Rose’s Cafe right now, slogging down coffee as fast as Rose can pour it?”

“No,” Hannah answered truthfully.

“Well, he is. Rose called Carrie to tell her. She said she tried to get Norman to go easy on the coffee, but he said this could be the most important day of his life and he wasn’t about to sleep through it.”

Hannah groaned. “Norman thinks I’m going to give him an answer today?”

“It’s not just today. Carrie says he’s been like this every day since he proposed. And to make matters even worse, Mike’s down there too. He’s sitting right across from Norman in the back booth, matching him cup for cup.”

“At least it’s not beer for beer,” Hannah commented, grinning slightly.

“Shame on you, Hannah Louise! That’s not one bit funny and you know it. I’ve done my very best to keep mum, but this time you’ve gone too far. I didn’t raise you to be cruel!”

“Cruel?” Hannah was shocked.