Page 53 of Christmas Magic

“No baff,” Tim howled. “Noooooo—”

Molly picked up the kitten—so small he fit in the palm of her hand—and stood. Tim would definitely be having a bath and flea treatment, but those could wait a little while. “First things first. How about some food?”

Tim immediately stopped howling. His eyes brightened. “I am very hungry.”

“There’s plenty of dry kibble,” Galahad said. “He doesn’t need the fancy duck dinner.”

Molly frowned at the squire. “I’m going to give him the fancy duck dinner. He only has baby teeth. It will be easier for him to eat.”

The squire sighed. “Already, he gets special treatment.”

“Galahad—”

“Pretty soon, I’ll be freezing my ass off outside in the cardboard box.”

“Oh, Galahad, stop it.” Molly went to the storage room, set the kitten down on the floor, and opened a can of wet food.

“Oh, wow!” Tim rose on his hind legs. “That smewws sooooo good. Yum, yum, yum.”

“Settle down,” Galahad muttered from the doorway. “It’s just food.”

Rose, sitting beside him, huffed. “So says the cat who cries like he’s going to die of starvation when we run out of duck dinner.”

Molly set the dish down on the floor. Tim gobbled. “Yummmmm.”

“Come on, the rest of you.” Molly gestured for the other felines to return to the main part of the premises. The last thing the kitten needed was competition at the food dish.

“Shouldn’t we stay close to him?” Daisy sounded concerned. “He’s a growing boy. We need to make sure he eats all of his dinner.”

“Tim doesn’t need mothering,” Rose said.

“Of course, he does,” Daisy meowed. “He’s much too young to be without a parent.”

“Next,” Rose growled, “you’ll be wanting to wipe his tiny little chin.”

“Once Tim has finished eating, I’ll let the rest of you into the room again.” Molly pulled the door closed. She’d be sure to check on Tim in a few minutes. “Now I’m going to call the animal clinic. Hopefully I can get an appointment for Tim today.”

As Cora turned her Cadillac into the busy parking lot of Coquina Castle, Lucian studied the structure made of stone and seashells. Strands of multicolored lights trailed along the front of the building and small evergreen trees, decorated with lights and baubles, flanked the entrance.

“It’s not as I imagined.” He’d expected a fortress like the ones he remembered—with turrets, battlements, and an imposing gatehouse with a portcullis and drawbridge—not a building with low walls and no roof.

Also, he didn’t see a single knight or steed. Parents escorted children, some wearing red hats with white fluffy bits on the end, toward the way in. After slowing to allow a mother and two boys to cross to the other side of the road, Cora parked the vehicle and switched off the engine. “You must have been here before, Lucian.”

“A long time ago, perhaps.” He opened the passenger side door and got out. As he waited for Cora to retrieve her purse, he noted the large sign by the entrance that read: ‘Meet Santa and his Elves. 9 a.m. - 5 p.m. every day through December 20.’ Santa was obviously a man of great renown, for folk to travel to Cat’s Paw Cove to see him.

“Tell me, who is Santa?”

Peering into a small mirror, Cora smoothed her already-tidy hair. “He’s the one we’re here to see.”

“Santa holds court here?”

“Every Christmas. The locals really look forward to seeing him.”

The townsfolk came to pay fealty to Santa—as they would with a lord.

Anticipation flowed like mulled wine in Lucian’s veins. He very much looked forward to meeting Santa. At last, Lucian might get some answers to explain his current situation.

Cora dropped the mirror into her handbag then crossed to him and linked her am through his again. Her tighter-than-usual grip, however, reminded him that she had a past with Santa; one she hadn’t wanted to talk about. Jealousy kindled again, for if Santa and Cora had been lovers or betrothed, he didn’t want to go into the meeting unprepared.