“With a shortbread crust?”
“Yes, but let’s modify the crust by adding shredded coconut.”
“That sounds good to me. Coconut and orange are great together. Shall we use the crust from my Lovely Lemon Bars?”
“Yes. I think it would be even better with coconut in it. You’ll have to cut the coconut up really small though. A lot of people don’t like to get coconut stuck between their teeth.”
“You’re right. And I will. I’ll put shredded coconut in the food processor and use the steel blade the way I do when I make Rose’s Coconut Cake.”
*
A little over an hour later, Hannah and Michelle stepped into the elevator in the Albion Hotel. Hannah was carrying an almost cool pan of Orange Marmalade Cookie Bars. “Can you get out your key card?” she asked Michelle.
“I’ve got it.” Michelle pushed the card into the slot and pressed the proper button for the penthouse.
“What time is it?” Hannah asked her.
“A quarter after three. I just hope it’s not too late for Mother to invite Stephanie over for tea.”
“It’s not too late. The mayor has a council meeting scheduled for six tonight. I read it in the Lake Eden Journal. They’re hearing concerned citizens speak about the new parking garage the mayor wants to build to handle city vehicles.”
“Where does he want to build that?”
“On the way out to the cemetery, but August Rahn is objecting because it’s right next to one of his pastures and he says the traffic will upset his cows and reduce the volume of his milk. From what I heard in the coffee shop this morning, August has several of his neighbors to back up his claim about milk production and it could be a long meeting.”
“Stephanie doesn’t go to the meetings, does she?”
“Of course not. It’s beneath her.” The elevator doors opened and Hannah got off to find Delores waiting for them.
“Oh, good! You’re here. Come in, girls.” She turned back to look at Hannah. “What are you carrying, dear?”
“Orange Marmalade Bar Cookies. I’m hoping you’ll serve them when Stephanie comes over for tea at five this afternoon.”
Delores stopped short to look at Hannah in confusion. “Stephanie Bascomb? But I haven’t invited Stephanie to tea!”
“Not yet,” Michelle took over. “But Hannah and I are hoping you will. You’re wonderful at getting information out of people, Mother. And Hannah really needs some information from Stephanie.”
Delores laughed. “Flattery will get you everywhere, dears. I think I know exactly what you need, Hannah. You want me to ask Stephanie if she knows the name of Tori’s business manager.”
“Precisely, Mother. If anyone can get that name, it’s you. And there’s no one else who knows it except Stan Kramer and he’s out of town until Monday.”
“I see.” Delores led the way to the climate controlled garden and gestured toward a table and chairs. “Sit down, girls. I have a nice bottle of white wine for you . . . unless, of course, you’d rather have coffee.”
“Hannah will have a glass of wine with you, Mother,” Michelle spoke for her older sister. “She needs to relax a little. I’ll have coffee it it’s made. Or water. Either will do just fine. I’m going to drive us back to Hannah’s condo when The Cookie Jar closes and I’d rather not drink.”
“I raised very smart girls,” Delores said, preening a bit. “You’ll like this wine, Hannah. Dick Laughlin recommended it highly. Doc and I had it the last time we went out to the Lake Eden Inn and it was superb. And there’s bottled water in the cooler, Michelle . . . unless you’d rather have coffee.”
“Water’s better when you’re thirsty. And I am,” Michelle said, opening the cooler and taking out a bottle.
“Would you like a glass for your water, dear?”
“No, thank you, Mother. The bottle’s plastic and it’s perfect for out here.”
“I know. Doc makes sure the cooler is full every morning. He says I need to stay hydrated. When you reach a certain age . . .” Delores stopped and looked slightly embarrassed. “Of course I’m not there yet, but I humor him anyway.”
“Do you have any champagne chilled?” Hannah asked her mother as she accepted the glass of wine.
“Of course, dear. I always have a bottle in the refrigerator. And it just happens to be Stephanie’s favorite. I’ll call her right now and invite her for five. I believe Ricky-Ticky has a council meeting tonight.”
“He does,” Hannah said. “Thank you, Mother. If anyone can find out who Tori’s business manager was, it’s you.”
Delores looked determined as she went off to make the call while Hannah and Michelle waited in the penthouse garden under the dome. “I wish we had time to go swimming,” Michelle said. “It’s so nice to swim in Mother’s pool.”
“I know. It’s especially wonderful in the winter when you’re relaxing in the pool or the Jacuzzi and snow is falling outside on the dome. This is a gorgeous place to live.”
“It really is. And Mother deserves it. I know how much she enjoys it and she does a lot of entertaining out here.”
The two sisters sipped in silence for a moment and then Michelle began to laugh.
“What is it?” Hannah asked her.
“I just had the craziest thought. I wonder if Mother and Doc ever go swimming out here without bathing suits.”
“Really, Michelle!” Hannah was shocked, but she did her best to cover her reaction. “To tell the truth, I’d prefer not to think about that.”
Michelle looked slightly ashamed of herself. “You’re right. I shouldn’t have said that. But I’d really like to know if . . . never mind.”
Hannah felt tremendously relieved when Michelle changed the subject and began to talk about the kinds of cookies they could mix up before they left work for the night. They were just discussing the advisability of baking something fancy, like Christmas Lace Cookies, when Delores came back to the garden.