“Here you go, Hannah,” Norman said, handing over her parka coat and her shoulder purse. “Ross had to run back out to the inn. Somebody beeped him and he said it was important. He told me to tell you he’ll touch base with you later tonight or first thing tomorrow morning.”

“Okay,” Hannah said, pushing aside a little twinge of disappointment that Ross hadn’t come to tell her so himself.

“If you’re ready, I’ll load Moishe.”

“I’m ready,” Hannah said, standing up and letting Mike help her into her coat. The little nap she’d taken had done her a world of good. She wasn’t at all sleepy, but she certainly was ravenous and she could hardly wait to get home and make something to eat.

Twenty-five minutes later, as Hannah climbed the stairs to her condo, she sniffed the air. Unless she was hallucinating, someone was having Chinese Food for dinner. She turned to Norman, who was right behind her, and asked, “What do you smell?”

“Chinese. Somebody’s having hot and sour soup, kung pao chicken, house special chow mein, pork fried rice, scallops with fresh mushroom, shrimp and snow peas, and one duck’s web plain, without the special soy sauce.”

There was a yowl from the cat in his arms and Norman laughed. “I think the Big Guy knows all about that last menu item.”

“He does. Whenever I order takeout Chinese, I always get one duck’s web without the special soy sauce for him. He loves to chew on it and chase it around on the kitchen floor.”

“So I heard. That’s why I ordered all that stuff, and asked your sisters to pick it up on their way here. I hope you don’t mind.”

“Mind?” Hannah’s stomach gave a mighty growl. “I don’t mind at all. You may have saved my life.”

“If you’re tired, we’ll leave,” Michelle offered, gathering up the white boxes that sat on Hannah’s big, round coffee table, closing the lids, and preparing to stash them in Hannah’s refrigerator.

“Actually

” Hannah paused to take stock of her mental state. “I’m not tired anymore. I think I got about twenty minutes’ sleep waiting for Mike to finish interviewing Ross, and it took the edge off.”

“Sometimes a twenty-minute nap is all you need,” Andrea said. “I read it in one of my parenting magazines.” She stopped and began to frown. “You’ve got to promise not to tell Tracey I said that. I have enough trouble getting her to bed at a reasonable hour as it is.”

You mean Mrs. McCann has trouble getting Tracey to bed, Hannah thought, but she remained silent. There was no way she’d take such a nasty shot at her sister.