Page 65 of Captiva Book Club

Paolo shook her head, “I don’t know, but he’s clearly taking this Santa Claus thing to heart.”

Maggie looked at the bracelet charms to make sure they were all secure and that there were no stickers or tags on them. Each charm, a kitchen item or dish of food, dangled, making soft clinking sounds when it moved. With a soft cloth, she polished each one and then folded the red and green tissue paper around the shiny bracelet and placed it inside the box.

It was a perfect gift for Iris, and Maggie hoped Iris liked it. For Millie, Maggie bought a lovely new handbag made by a woman who lived on the island. It was unique in that it was one of a kind, so Millie would never encounter anyone with the same bag.

Oliver’s present was easy. Maggie had thought about it since the day he shared the story of the flood in Miami. She couldn’t wait to see his face when he opened his present, nor could she wait for Christmas to arrive.

She’d received texts from Beth, Michael and Lauren letting her know the details of their flight. The house was decorated perfectly thanks to Oliver and Paolo, and even Chelsea put a few finishing touches on the Christmas tree in the carriage house.

She was ready for their arrival, but there were still a few things she needed to do.

Claire and Ciara came into the Key Lime Garden Inn kitchen and pulled Maggie away from Iris and Oliver.

“Let’s go to your office,” Ciara said.

Maggie laughed all the way down the hall.

“What are you two up to now?” she asked, as Claire shut the door behind them.

“It worked. Our match-making efforts have paid off. Katie and Luke have gone for a walk on the beach and are going to Meredith’s wedding together!” Claire said, clapping her hands.

“What? How did you find all this out?” Maggie asked.

“Katie told me. Remember the other day when the rain came pouring down? Well, Katie and Luke were together down at the beach.”

“How did that happen?” Maggie asked.

“Luke called her,” Claire explained.

“Yes, but how did he get her cellphone number?”

“She gave it to him at the book club,” Ciara added.

“All we had to do was put them in the same room, and voila!” Claire said. “I think we’re really good at this. Maybe we could open up a match-making business or something.”

Maggie shook her head. “No way. This was a one-time thing. I’m out of the match-making business as of right now.”

“For heaven’s sake, why? We obviously know what we’re doing. How can this successful match be so bad?”

“I didn’t say it was bad, I’m just saying there is always potential for things to go wrong.”

Maggie reached for Ciara and Claire and guided them to the chairs. She then sat across from them.

“Listen to me. It’s simple. All we did was get these two unsuspecting kids to get together for a walk and one date. That doesn’t mean it’s a success. Anyone can get two people in a room and expect them to engage in some way. It doesn’t automatically mean wedding bells. You two need to come down off the clouds and get a reality check.”

“I’m not so sure Katie and Luke don’t already know what we were up to,” Claire said.

“What? How do you know that?” Maggie asked.

Claire shrugged. “I don’t know, it’s just something about the way Katie talked to me about the whole thing. I have a feeling they’re on to us.”

“Feelings don’t count. What do you say, Ciara? Has Luke said anything to you?”

Ciara shook her head. “Nope. Nothing…well, except when he asked me if I’d seen the wedding invitation because he thought he’d misplaced it.”

“You didn’t tell him you hid it from him, did you?” Claire asked.

“No, of course not. I’ve kept my mouth shut about all this. He and I haven’t talked about Meredith’s wedding or anything to do with Katie. I don’t think he suspects a thing, so if he doesn’t, that means Katie doesn’t,” Ciara added.

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