All I Want for Halloween

by Marie Harte

  She wanted the same thing, a lot more than she should. She hadn’t been lying when she’d told him she didn’t want a boyfriend. So why was her first thought upon waking about him, and her last thought in bed about sex with him? She wondered what he was doing, how his deal with the TV show had gone, wanted to call just to talk.

  “Talk about what?” she muttered as she threw together ingredients for their Shrieking Snickerdoodles. Late Friday afternoon, the crowd had thinned, but she knew they’d be slammed this weekend. Green Lake had moved up their usual Halloween festival to the second weekend in October this year.

  Pumpkin carving for the little ones, face painting, crafts, a hayride, and a hay bale maze. They did it up for the kids. Add to that the beautiful fall weather, sunny but crisp, and the orange, red, and yellow leaves falling. Like a freakin’ postcard. The scent of apples and cinnamon filled the back room as they worked on a new cider recipe Elliot planned to unveil tomorrow. Sadie and Theo would work a tent at the festival, and she actually couldn’t wait. It was no wonder Halloween was her favorite holiday, fall her favorite season.

  Gear her favorite person.

  “Ack. I have to quit thinking to myself.”

  “Um, isn’t that counterproductive?” Rose asked, patting her slight belly as she watched Sadie with concern. “If you don’t think to yourself, who do you think to?”

  “Oh shut up, Pollyanna,” Sadie said, not unkindly. She’d been calling Rose that since her sister’s fourth birthday. “We can’t all be married to the best guy on earth, having the best baby in the universe.”

  Rose smiled, her beauty a feminized version of Elliot’s. She looked just like their mother—black hair, light-green eyes, beautiful with a petite frame that all but screamed I’m gorgeous and fragile, want me from afar. Sadie’s sister was the ideal woman, in Sadie’s opinion. What Sadie would never be. During her adolescence, she’d gone through a bitchy, jealous phase. But it hadn’t lasted.

  Sadie loved her sister too much to make her cry. And as the oldest, she’d had it drummed into her head to protect her younger siblings. After their mother passed, she’d been even more dedicated to helping them. She’d thoroughly vetted Joe before allowing him to marry Rose, even if Rose thought the engagement had been her and Joe’s idea. And Elliot… Sadie had given up on his love life, at least until he showed some sign of being ready to commit. She’d thought Jason might finally be The One, until she’d caught him and Elliot fighting over the dumbest things and watched Jason play the martyr.

  Um, no. Elliot deserved a straight (gay) shooter. She grinned openly.

  “What? Are you still thinking to yourself?” Rose asked.

  “I try not to think as much as is humanly possible.”

  “You’re right about that,” Elliot said as he joined them in the back. “So are you sticking around tonight, Rose?” They were late decorating the shop, and it was past time they Halloweenified—Sadie’s word, thank you very much—Sofa’s.

  Sadie answered for her sister. “No. She’s been on her feet too much and her back hurts.” Before Rose could refute that, Sadie pointed out, “You rub your belly like that and frown when your back aches.”

  “Oh right,” Elliot agreed. “Go home, slacker. We can decorate without you.”

  “No way.” Rose frowned. “It’s family tradition.”

  “Fine. But you have to sit down and not complain about everything I do wrong. Or I’ll tell Joe you refuse to take time off,” Sadie warned her. “He’s a pain in the ass. He’ll make you sit one out.”

  The mulish set to Rose’s mouth told Sadie she’d won this round. She and Elliot high-fived.

  “You’re both so immature.” Rose flounced out toward the front and yelled at Theo to move away from the register because she could “count change while pregnant, by God.”

  Sadie shared a glance with Elliot. “A little snippy, isn’t she?”

  He nodded. “I get the impression Joe is coddling her too much. Why don’t you talk to him about treating our sister like a woman?”

  “Huh?” She grabbed the dough from the mixer and starting rolling cookie balls, then setting them on trays. Elliot joined her.

  “Rose and Joe need a date night.” At her blank look, he sighed. “To act like adults and do all the adult kissy things you and my secret boyfriend, Gear, have been doing.”

  Sadie flushed. “Oh. Well, I don’t think they should do that. Might not be safe for the baby.” Elliot’s brows rose, and she snickered. “Secret boyfriend, huh? You wish.”

  “You’re damn right. I can’t believe you snagged the man.” He quieted as they worked, then blurted, “So what’s the deal? Are you dating, just shagging, or what?”

  “Saying the word shagging does not make you an honorary Brit.”

  “I know,” he said sadly. “At least I don’t try to fake an accent. Pierre’s was horrible.”

  “That didn’t last long,” she said of his relationship with Mr. GQ.

  “It wasn’t supposed to. And stop trying to change the subject. What’s up with you and McHotPants Biker Guy?”

  “I’d say that’s a mouthful, but you’d just run with it.” Sadie ignored Elliot’s wide grin. “I don’t know. We had a great time Wednesday night. He texted and called. He wants to go out again.”

  “Go out as in…?”

  “You know. Bumpin’ uglies.”

  “Which is all you want from a man, if I’m not mistaken.” He seemed to be looking at her a little too intently. “Right?”

  “Right.” Wrong. No, not wrong. He’s just a great lay. With an awesome smile. A personality that totally meshed with mine. A—Stop it.

  “When are you seeing him again?”

  “I don’t know if I am.” The disappointment that followed pissed her off.

  Elliot wisely refrained from saying any more. Before long, the store closed. Rose went home to get Joe, an honorary Liberato by marrying into the family. Elliot and Sadie remained behind, tugging down the shades in the large windows to keep the shop’s decorations a surprise. They even pulled the shade on the door, to mask what locals had come to claim was their favorite part of the holiday—Sofa’s Spookville.

  “So who are you seeing now?” she asked her brother.

  “No one.”

  She feigned a heart attack. “Seriously? It’s been at least six days. Shouldn’t your boy parts be shriveling up from disuse?”

  He flatly stared at her. “You know no one likes you.”

  She guffawed. “Poor little Elliot, all dressed up and no one to bone.”

  “Hey, at least I don’t go around bitch-slapping people.”

  She shook her head. “Again, the insults. Just lame.”

  He groaned. “I know.” He hid his face over his arms on the table. “I can’t come up with anything clever around you lately. It’s embarrassing.”

  She laughed at him. “Lightweight.”

  Someone knocked on the glass door.

  Elliot sprang up as if powered by springs. “I’ll get it.” He raced to the door and let Gear inside.

  Wait. Gear?

  “Hey, man. How are you?” Elliot’s secret crush asked.

  “Great. How about you?” Behind Gear, Elliot looked at her and made kissy faces.

  Asshole.

  “I’ve been better. Been getting the cold shoulder from your sister.” He gave her a sad face. “Way to make a guy feel bad about himself. Dodging me. Ignoring me. What? I didn’t give you enough orgasms?”

  She felt her face heat up and threaten to explode. Next to Gear, Elliot laughed so hard he cried.

  “Awesome. You’re invited here anytime. Want a cookie?”

  Gear brightened. “Sure. What do you have?” He followed Elliot, passing right by her. He said nothing but gave her a pat on the butt, then continued to ignore her.

  She watched
in astonishment as he and Elliot chatted like old friends.

  “Um, you know he has a secret crush on you, right?” she told Gear to embarrass her brother.

  Gear nodded. “He told me. Can’t fault the guy for good taste.”

  Elliot flipped her off.

  “What are you doing here?” she asked, blunt as always.

  “Elliot invited me to help decorate the place. Since Halloween’s my favorite holiday, I had to say yes.” He paused. “Plus my sister was bugging me to pick up my parents from the airport, so I needed an excuse to stay away.”

  “Seriously? You at an airport? Wouldn’t that be like holding rancid meat out to hungry wolves?”

  He frowned. “Wait. I’m rancid? More like prime rib, I’d think.”

  She sighed. “Answer the question.”

  “My sister isn’t happy with me right now, so yeah, she’s trying to dangle me like bait to click-happy photographers and fans. She also thinks I’ll look like the good son doing favors for my family, and that if I’m shown in public more being friendly, it’ll help my cred.”

  Elliot coughed. “No. You’ll still manage to come off as a bigger asshole than you are.”

  “That’s what I told her.” Trust Gear not to be offended by the truth.

  Damn it. She liked him. “Yeah, you’re right. But this is—”

  “Usually family decorating night,” Elliot interrupted. “We’re all big fans of Halloween. Used to decorate the house like crazy when we were kids and Mom was alive. So now we do the shop real big.”

  “Oh, I should go then if it’s a family thing.”

  “Yes,” she said at the same time Elliot said, “No, we’re expanding tradition. Last year we let Joe help.”

  “Joe?” Gear’s eyes narrowed on her.

  “My sister’s husband,” Sadie growled. Oh, Elliot. When I get my hands on you… She knew exactly what her brother was up to. The meddling gigolo liked the idea of her and Gear hanging out and wanted to give the guy a chance. Was he nuts? Talk about a bad pick. Gear just broke up with his fiancée. He had relationship disaster written all over him. And the press wanted to rip him apart. Yeah, perfect boyfriend material, Elliot.

  Not that Sadie was looking for a boyfriend. Though it would help if she stopped thinking about it every time Gear entered her mind’s eye.

  Gear frowned. “I don’t know. Maybe I should go.” She started to nod when he added, “I think my being here is bothering Sadie. See, she’s hooked on me, and I scare her, so—”

  “What?” Sadie glared. That didn’t sound like Gear. Then again, he liked to speak the truth. God, could he see what she’d been trying so hard to ignore?

  “Yeah.” Elliot sighed. “She’s usually fearless, but when it comes to a guy she really likes, she has a tendency to—”

  “You know what? Stay,” she barked at Gear, feeling stupid and embarrassed—again—and not sure why excitement seemed to dominate her other emotions. “I would have talked to you, but I wasn’t sure what to say on the phone.” Okay, that sounded weak, even to her. “But I didn’t invite you tonight because I thought my baby brother would throw a fit. We usually just have family. But this will be fun.” She arched a brow at Elliot, pleased to see his frown.

  “I really hate being referred to as a baby.”

  At the same time, she and Gear both said, “Ah.” She turned to him.

  “I use that same tone to annoy my brother and sister. You know, Elliot, you’d love my baby brother and baby sister. You all have so much in common.”

  “Dick,” Elliot muttered.

  Sadie couldn’t help laughing. She and Gear did seem to have a lot in common. And then there was the sex…

  “I’ll get the cider,” Elliot said. “We’ll have it with the cookies while we celebrate.” He went into the back, and soon his Halloween track started playing.

  Sadie smiled, then locked gazes with Gear, and her smile froze while her heart did a tap dance inside her chest.

  He wasted no time. Gear walked right up to her, dragged her into his arms, and kissed the breath out of her. “Such a pain in my ass,” he growled. “Next time, pick up the damn phone.”

  She growled back, “Next time I will,” and meant it.

  Gear laughed and hugged her. “You crack me up. Now, angry woman, let’s see these amazing decorations that even my sister knows about. I heard her mention Sofa’s Spookville to my brother the other day but had no idea they meant you guys.”

  “When we bought the shop five years ago, it was right around Halloween. We made a major celebration out of it and decorated in a big way. The kids loved it, and so did all of our customers, so we decided to make that our big thing every year. We still make a big deal out of the winter holidays, and we sell a ton during Christmas and Hanukkah. It’s always a toss-up between what sells most, Elliot’s apricot rugelach or my gingerbread cats.”

  “Cats?”

  “They fly better than reindeer, but they’re harder to control. It’s a long story.”

  “Ah, I’ll take your word for it.”

  She grinned. “But Halloween is just fun. Monsters and sweets and decorations and costumes.” She leaned closer to whisper, “And sex and brawls at parties.”

  He drew in a breath when she nipped his earlobe and in a low voice replied, “Unless you want me to fuck you right here, with your brother watching, I suggest you not do that again.”

  She felt invincible. Nothing like owning a powerful man with a nip to the ear. Then she wanted to brain herself for feeling anything because of a guy. When she’d gone head-over-heels in love with Adrian way back when, she’d thought a happily ever after was right around the corner. Then he’d screwed her over sideways for a shot at her then-friend Annette. But had Sadie learned? Noooo. Because five serious boyfriends and many years later, she still ended up with wackos and losers, her dinner-ditcher from a month ago a prime example.

  Just because Gear rang her bell not once, but every time—a half dozen, to be exact, because yeah, she was keeping track—was no reason to think he was anything more than a friend with benefits. She gazed into his eyes and felt herself falling down the proverbial rabbit hole.

  “What’s that look? You seem guarded.”

  “Isn’t that a big word for a motorcycle jockey?” she teased and stepped back.

  He snorted. “Funny for a woman who’s afraid of said jockey. Though I’m not averse to riding you. Ha. Okay, sorry, bad pun.”

  She grimaced. “That was worse than Elliot’s lame comebacks. And I’m not afraid of you.”

  “Uh-huh. Keep telling yourself that. But if it makes you feel any better, I’m afraid of you too.”

  She blinked. “What?”

  Elliot, the jerk, chose that moment to rejoin them. “You two done making goo-goo eyes at each other yet? It’s a little bit disgusting. Unless, of course, Gear feels like taking off his shirt while gazing lovingly at you.”

  They both turned to stare at him.

  “Such a little brother,” Gear said with a sigh.

  “Yeah, seriously annoying when he gets whiny.”

  “Hey.” Elliot gave a mock glare, then laughed at them. “You two are giving me the exact same ‘I’m annoyed’ look. It’s funny.”

  Gear opened his mouth to retort, then froze. “Is that Oingo Boingo on the speakers? ‘Dead Man’s Party’? That’s, like, my favorite song.”

  “It’s, like, mine too,” Sadie teased, except she really meant it. So weird that Gear happened to like the same things she did. And so suspicious.

  Elliot read her glare and held up his hands in surrender. “Hey, I didn’t coach him to say that. It’s not my fault you two like the same lame music.”

  “I could give him a noogie for you,” Gear offered. “Always works to piss off my brother.”

  “Hmm. That works on Elliot too. He hates for
anyone to touch his perfect, perfect hair.” They both stepped toward Elliot.

  Joe and Rose chose that moment to enter from the back. “Hey, guys. We’re here,” her sister announced.

  “Saved. Thank God.” Elliot pretended to cry while he hid behind Joe, a mountain of a man with a sense of humor that enabled him to tolerate not only Elliot, but Sadie too. For that alone, she liked him. But he treated her sister like gold. So she loved him like a brother.

  Introductions were made, and the shop took on new life, with orange, black, and purple all over the place.

  Gear laughed at something Joe said, and Sadie felt herself spiraling in a storm of hope, anger, disbelief, and happiness.

  “I am so screwed,” she muttered as she drank her cider.

  “Yeah? Well, so am I,” Rose answered next to her. “I just learned earlier today that we’re having twins.”

  Chapter 7

  Gear looked over at Sadie, who was hugging her pregnant sister and laughing like a loon. What the hell?

  Joe explained, “I think Rose told her we’re having twins.”

  “Ah. Congrats.”

  “Thanks. But then, Sadie could be laughing for any number of reasons.” Joe looked at Sadie fondly. “They’re all a little wacky, but such a fun family.”

  “Wacky, huh?” Gear wouldn’t call Sadie wacky. Sexy, angry, passionate, mean, lovely… Okay, not lovely in the conventional sense, but her personality happened to mesh with his perfectly. He hadn’t been lying. The woman freaked him out.

  “In a good way,” Joe hurried to add. “She and Elliot made me run the gauntlet to prove I was good enough for Rose. They’d do anything for each other. And they’re all really close. Hell, closer than my family. But that’s another story.” Joe sighed. The big, tall blond in the room, he didn’t quite fit in with the Liberatos. But Gear did.

  He was an idiot for comparing himself, he knew. Hell, Joe had married into the family. Gear was just a—what? A fuck buddy? A friend who gave Sadie sex? A mistaken hookup she was humoring until someone better came along?

  “So I have to know, the show…” Joe started.