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mean?”
    “On one hand, I feel better that it’s not just me my mother is avoiding. On the other hand, I feel worse because if both Delores and I think there’s a problem, then there probably is. I wonder if it would work to come right out and ask Mother what’s wrong.”
    Hannah shrugged. “You can try it if you want to, but I doubt she’ll tell you anything. Mother tried that and Carrie just said she’d tell her when the time was right.”
    “What does that mean?”
    “I don’t know.” Hannah took the meatloaf out of the refrigerator and sliced it. She put the slices in the frying pan with a bit of butter, turned the burner on medium, and clamped on a cover. “I’ve got a bowl of Sally’s Summer Salad. Do you want some?”
    “Sure. I’ll dish it up for both of us.” Norman took the container Hannah handed to him and spooned the broccoli and cauliflower salad into two bowls. “I was just wondering…I know it’s a lot to ask, but…” Norman stopped and swallowed hard. “It’s just that I really need to know what’s going on. It’s not like Mother to cut me off from her life this way.”
    “That’s true.” Hannah flipped the slices of meatloaf and clamped the lid back on. Carrie was the type of mother who’d always wanted to manage her son’s life and that meant being a nearly constant part of it. It was one of the reasons Norman had built the house Hannah had designed with him and moved five miles away. Norman had once told her he felt like a boy who had to report everything to his mother when he’d lived in the same house with Carrie.
    “There goes the timer,” Norman said, sprinkling some salted sunflower nuts on top of their salads. “Do you want me to take out the biscuits?”
    “Yes, if they’re golden brown on top. If they’re not, give them another minute or two. And don’t turn off the oven when you take out the biscuits. I’ll turn it up to five hundred degrees before we carry our plates to the living room.”
    “Five hundred degrees is a really hot oven.” Norman sounded quite proud of himself for knowing that. “Are you planning to bake something else?”
    “I thought I’d mix up some Hot Fudge Sundae Cakes for dessert. They only bake seven minutes and they’ll be ready by the time we have our second cup of coffee. You’re going to love them.”
    “There’s no doubt about that since they contain two of my favorite things.”
    “Hot fudge and cake?” Hannah guessed.
    “That’s right. But getting back to what we were talking about before…will you help me?”
    “Of course I will.” Hannah didn’t even stop to consider that she’d broken one of rules she lived by. She’d promised to do something without finding out exactly what it was.
    “Thanks, Hannah. I knew I could count on you.”
    Hannah gave him a smile and then she asked the important question, hoping her promise wasn’t one she’d live to regret. “What do you want me to do?”
    Norman looked very uncomfortable for a moment and then he blurted it out. “I want you to help me spy on my mother.”
    EASY CHEESY BISCUITS
    Preheat oven to 425 degrees F., rack in the middle position.
    3 cups all purpose flour (pack it down in the cup when you measure it)
    2 teaspoons cream of tartar (this is important)
    1 teaspoon baking powder
    1 teaspoon baking soda
    1 teaspoon sea salt (regular table salt will also work)
    ½ cup salted softened butter (1 stick, 4 ounces, ¼ pound)
    ½ cup shredded strong cheddar cheese
    ½ cup shredded Asiago cheese _*
_ (or blue cheese, Havarti, etc.)
    2 large eggs, beaten (just whip them up in a glass with a fork)
    1 cup sour cream (8 ounces)
    ½ cup milk __
    ½ cup grated Parmesan cheese for a topping (use real Parmesan cheese–it’s so much better than the type in the green foil can.)
    FIRST STEP
    Use a medium-size mixing bowl to combine the flour, cream of tartar, baking powder, baking soda, and salt. Stir them all up together. Cut in the salted butter just as you would for