Page 9 of Christmas Magic

With a muffled clink, Cora unwrapped her silverware from the paper napkin in front of her. “Lucian’s costume should be historically accurate. The society must have photographs of the Santas who’ve taken part in past events and holiday parades in Cat’s Paw Cove. In the archives, there may be some pictures dating back to the late nineteenth century.”

Closing her eyes, Roberta shook her head. “There’s nothing Victorian about Lucian. He won’t look the part.”

“We need to do what’s best for the society.”

“We do. In this instance, though—”

“Having a buff young man as our Saint Nick? We will see an uptick in renewed memberships. Those ladies who’ve delayed renewing their dues will be fighting each other to hand us checks.”

Roberta frowned. “I don’t know….”

“I do.” Cora lowered her voice. “How many times in the past six months has the board talked about the society’s dwindling bank account?”

Concern darkened Roberta’s gaze. “That’s true. Restoring the Guinevere and turning it into the Shipwreck Museum did cost more than we’d budgeted.”

“A fair bit more. Then there were the additional expenses we hadn’t anticipated, like hiring a full-time security guard and fixing the wooden walkway up from the Boardwalk.”

Roberta made a small sound of distress.

“Unless we want the organization to fold….”

“No! We must preserve the history of this town for the younger generations.”

Cora fought not to smile. “Exactly. Since what we’ve done in the past is no longer working, we must try a new tactic. Lucian is it.”

Roberta’s lips parted, as though she was about to protest.

The young waitress approached their table. “Here we are.” From a laden tray, she unloaded two mugs of coffee, a small jug of creamer, and their desserts. “Enjoy.”

Roberta set out her silverware and dropped her napkin into her lap. “This looks wonderful.”

“It certainly does.” Cora stirred cream into her coffee and then pushed the jug across the table to her friend. “It will be fun to have Lucian at our party. He will ‘spice things up,’ as the saying goes.”

“Yes, well, you still need to ask him. He might not be available. Then what?”

Cora sank her fork into the cake. If Lucian agreed to be their Santa, she make sure she worked in extra walks before the party. “While Lucian’s turned us down when we’ve asked him before—”

“He does have a busy job, and William’s away right now. He’s been traveling more lately.” Roberta put a forkful of pie into her mouth and moaned in delight.

“We haven’t really told Lucian how desperately we need his help.”

Roberta dabbed her mouth with the napkin. “Desperately is a rather strong word.”

“Is it? We’ve been careful to keep the society’s financial situation hush-hush, but maybe we should tell Lucian the truth. He’s the gallant sort, so we’ll insist how noble it would be of him to help us.” She couldn’t hold back a smile. “Yes. When we’re finished here, you and I will go to the shop together and talk to him.”