Bake at 350 degrees for 12 to 15 minutes. Cool on the cookie sheet for 2 minutes and then remove them to a wire rack to cool completely.

These freeze really well if you roll them in foil and put them in a freezer bag.

Yield: This recipe makes approximately 8 to 9 dozen cookies, depending on cookie size.

Hannah’s Note: Mother’s friend Carrie just loves these when I use one cup of butterscotch chips and one cup of milk chocolate chips.

Chapter Six

“Okay, so what’s going on with Lisa’s aunt?”

“Andrea?”

“That’s right. Bill just called and told me you brought him some goodies. And while you were there, you told him that Lisa’s cousin ran away from home. Is that true?”

“Well, actually…”

“I didn’t think so, especially when Bill said you asked him some questions about underage runaways. So where are you keeping her?”

Hannah glanced over at Candy, who was helping Lisa transfer several pans of freshly baked cookies to the glass jars they used for display. When the phone had rung at seven-thirty in the morning, she’d answered it assuming that it was her mother. Instead it was Andrea with a mouthful of questions.

“Right here.” Hannah gave a little sigh. She thought she’d done a fine job of convincing Bill and Mike that her questions were purely theoretical. “Bill’s on to me?”

“No, Bill’s not on to you. I’m the one who’s on to you. You never could fool me, Hannah.”

“Not even second-hand?”

“Not even then. So what gives?”

Hannah sighed and stretched the phone cord out so that she could step into the coffee shop for more privacy. Even at a young age, Andrea had always known when Hannah was trying to pull the wool over her eyes. At the same time, Andrea was fiercely loyal to her family. If Hannah told her about Candy and asked her to keep it a secret, Andrea wouldn’t say a word to anyone.

“Two nights ago, a homeless girl broke into my shop to get out of the cold. I left her some food last night and managed to catch her. I told her she could stay here and I promised that I wouldn’t call the cops. I’m pretty sure she ran away from home.”

“And she’s underage?” Andrea asked.

“Norman and I both think so.”

“Norman saw her?”

“We had a date last night and he helped me catch her.”

“Some date!”

Hannah chuckled. “Well, that wasn’t all we did. We went out to dinner first.”

“Good. At least it wasn’t a total waste. So what are you planning to do with her?”

“Keep her and try to find her mother. She said her father’s dead and that rang true.”

“You’re going to try to do it by yourself?”

“Yes. If I turn her over to the authorities, they’ll just put her in the county home.”

“That’s true.” Andrea gave a little sigh that smacked of resignation to Hannah. “Okay, I’ll help you. It’s almost like a murder and we already know we’re good at solving those.”