Summary
Highlights
Mandy and Jonah visit the elderly Victor Franklin, but he denies owning the book and mentions he only moved to the area four years ago. However, Mandy spots a yearbook, sparking a new idea: searching yearbooks for a Victor Franklin. They collect numerous yearbooks from local high schools to search through. Mandy and Jonah bond while discussing their Christmas traditions and their past letters to Santa, revealing Mandy's childhood wish to save her family's struggling bookstore.
Mandy shares with Jonah that Judith's father was a coin collector, prompting Jonah to consult a friend about tracing the coin, though it yields no immediate results. Jonah faces work pressure with a client's event, and Mandy offers to help with renovations. They work late, sharing a meal and building a stronger connection. Mandy invites Jonah to Christmas dinner with her parents.
Mandy discovers the valuable coin is missing, causing her distress and leading to a tense misunderstanding with Jonah, whom she briefly suspects. She later realizes the coin had actually fallen into a floor vent. Jonah apologizes to Mandy for the misunderstanding, and they learn that a 'Judith Lewis' was found in the yearbooks as Victor Franklin's cousin. They now focus on tracing Judith Lewis through marriage records, finding a 'Judith Lewis' married to a 'William Cross' in 1957. Mandy and Gabby continue their search, making calls to potential Judith Crosses while Jonah receives an early payment from the pastor, arranged by Mandy.
Mandy finally makes contact with Judith Cross's daughter. On Christmas Eve, Mandy and Jonah go to the town square to meet Judith at the tree lighting ceremony. They present Judith with the old book, the letter she wrote to Santa as a child, and the valuable coin. Judith is deeply touched, recalling her childhood wish to give the coin to her deceased father. The emotional reunion strengthens Mandy and Jonah's bond, and as the Christmas tree lights up, Jonah confesses his love for Mandy, wishing her a Merry Christmas.
Mandy, while sorting donations for a Christmas drive, discovers an old copy of 'A Christmas Carol' with a hidden letter and a coin. The letter, dated December 11th, 1947, is from a girl named Judith asking Santa to deliver the coin to her deceased father, a coin collector, who died in the war.
Mandy visits the church where the book was donated, hoping to find information about Judith. She meets Jonah, who donated the books after finding them in a back room. Jonah, a local contractor, offers to help Mandy find Judith, starting their search by looking for soldiers from the Everett area who died in World War II, based on the letter's contents.
Mandy learns from a coin expert that the 1895 proof coin is very valuable, potentially worth $30,000 in mint condition. She remains determined to return it to Judith or her family. Mandy and Jonah meticulously go through war records and yearbooks, eventually finding a lead: a 'Victor Franklin' named in the book, leading them to believe he could be Judith's father or brother. They find a potential Victor Franklin, aged 78, living in Everett.