All I Want for Halloween

by Marie Harte

  Her father’s opinion meant something to Sadie, and knowing her father thought him not good enough for his daughter had scared the crap out of Gear. He worried that Sadie might take Tony’s opinion to heart and kick him to the curb.

  He couldn’t lose her. Sadie was amazing. Loyal, sexy, tough, funny. He loved everything about her. Even the way she stole his food and made fun of his name. She’d started calling him Gear Shaft after overhearing him talk to Chains the other day. God knew how she’d torment him if she ever found out what the M in Harrison M. Blackstone revealed.

  Some part of him wanted to watch her find out. To see her glee and have all her attention as she picked on him, then soothed his wounded ego with kisses and brownies. The woman fed more than his appetite for sweets. She fed that need inside him for someone special who’d understand him. Complete him.

  “I’m a Hallmark card. Fuck me.” He drank his coffee, both pleased and worried that she’d insisted on staying home last night, wanting some space.

  Damn it, he wanted to wake up with her. She’d left a few things behind the last time she’d stayed the night. Some dirty socks, a hair band, but still. Proof she’d been here, with him. He’d hidden the band in his nightstand and tossed the socks in his hamper with his clothes. As if they belonged there, always.

  Tired of feeling dopey and out of sorts, he dressed and met Thor in an industrial area he’d been scouting for where to set up shop.

  “I like it.” Thor glanced around the building. “It’s been used as a garage before, so you’re probably set on the zoning and permits. The lease isn’t so bad, and the location is ideal. It’s like grunge central down here.”

  In an area of the city that was up and coming, but mostly limited to car shops, an outdoor foot court, and some trendy industrial-type clothing stores, Gear thought he’d found his new site. Hip car chic, he’d overheard the neighbor say when recommending the place.

  “Yeah, the last owners owned a garage, and they’re willing to kick in some of the old equipment if we want it.” Gear had kept some of what he’d had at Madnezz, but not much. “The more expensive items like a motorcycle lift, tire changer, air hydraulic repair press, those are nothing next to the cost to build a separate area for paint. Especially with proper ventilation, insurance…” He mentally ticked off item after item. After his experience with Motorcycle Madnezz, he knew he’d been looking at over fifty grand, easy, to get started. But he wanted to do it right, if on a small scale.

  And he needed clients for that. Right now, he could work on orders in his personal garage, but only small jobs. He needed to set up shop, and his hunger to do so felt good.

  “Are you going to take it?” Thor asked.

  “I think so.” Gear nodded, the pressure that weighed him down easing as he made his decision. “It feels right.”

  Thor clapped him on the back. “I’ll go get the agent back in here to sign some papers.”

  An hour and a half later, after Thor had thoroughly looked over the documents, Professor Brain had declared them fit for signing, with no hidden addenda to screw Gear over, and Gear signed his name and accepted the keys.

  “Wow.” Thor grinned. “That was fast. It’s yours. Right now.”

  Gear blew out a breath. “Yep. All mine. And the first thing I need to do is—” He struck the notion of call Sadie and let her know when Thor said, “Buy your brother some lunch, because he really is almighty and powerfully hungry.”

  “Yeah, that.” Gear smiled and walked his brother down the block to the food court. Over a dozen food trucks encompassed the small square, with picnic tables and even an overhead canopy to protect from Seattle’s wet weather.

  After ordering some fish tacos, they settled down to an overcast afternoon.

  “I’m thinking about joining that gym you’re going to,” Thor said out of the blue.

  Gear just stared at him. “Why?”

  “I think I should make group fitness a part of my daily activity.”

  “Ah, okay.”

  “What is it? Jameson’s Gym, right? In Green Lake? It’s a little out of the way for you, isn’t it?”

  “Sadie goes there.” Gear shrugged. “I’m cool with it.”

  Thor gave him a knowing look.

  “What?”

  “Where do you see this thing with Sadie going? You talked about having children, Gear. You’ve never, ever expressed a desire to have a family in your thirty-three years.”

  “Well, not to you.”

  Thor just looked at him.

  He groaned. “I’m really, really into Sadie. It’s so bizarre, but I feel like I’ve known her forever. I don’t like being without her. And I have a bad feeling I’m more into her than she’s into me.”

  “Does she know how you feel?”

  “Are you nuts? I just met the girl. I don’t want to be that guy who comes on too strong and freaks her out. The creepy one she tells all her friends about.”

  “Sadie doesn’t have any friends.”

  “How do you know?”

  “Elliot and I talked about you two, as well as the catering job he’s doing for the university. He thinks you’re good for her, that you’ll get her to at least be a little bit more social. Though honestly, you two are a bit too much alike.”

  “Too much?”

  “Well, you spend as much time with me as you do your garage heathens. Like Sadie, you’re all about work.”

  “Heathens?” Gear chuckled. “Anyway, that’s over with. Now I just have you, my lucky little brother.” He slapped his brother on the back and had to smile at the audible oomph he heard. “Okay, so we don’t have a lot in the way of friends. We both love our families.” He frowned, thinking about Sadie’s pain-in-the-ass father.

  “Otis and Orchid like her a lot.”

  “Yeah, well, that might be where Sadie and I differ. Her dad hates me.” He gave Thor the rundown on his one and only Liberato family dinner.

  “That’s harsh.”

  “Then why are you smiling?”

  Thor laughed. “Because I can see it, you sitting there, trying to make a good impression. Her big, bad dad having it in for you no matter what you did or said.” Thor laughed again. “Did he really use the word defiler in a sentence? I have to meet this guy.”

  “Yes.” Gear deflated. “It’s bad enough her dad doesn’t like me. She thinks I’m just okay. We have great sex.”

  “TMI, dude.”

  “But nothing I do impresses her. She’s not a fan of the show. She doesn’t care about money.”

  “Which is actually good for you, because once you get the shop up and running, you won’t have much.”

  Gear scowled. “Not helping. Shit. There’s got to be something I can do, something I have, that will show her how much I like her.”

  “Maybe that’s your problem. You ‘like’ her. I bet if you told her how cute and ‘likeable’ she is, she’d be all aflutter.”

  “Ass.”

  “Seems to me like you love her. Say it.”

  “I will when I’m ready.” Nerves made him feel like he’d eaten something sour.

  Thor shook his head. “Accept your emotions. Being in tune with yourself doesn’t make you gay.”

  “I never said it did.” Where the hell had that come from?

  “I know, but you and Otis are always trying to out-macho each other. God forbid you be less manly and more compassionate.”

  “Do you have a point to any of this?”

  “Not really. I just like criticizing you.” Thor gave him a wide smile. “Actually, I think you should chill out. Take your time and let this good thing you have going with her flourish into a long-term relationship. For some reason, you seem panicked that you like her more than she likes you and that somehow that’s a disaster after… How long have you been dating? Three whole weeks?”

 
“Feels longer than that,” Gear muttered. “Look, I can’t help it. She makes me nutty.”

  “But in a good way, I think.” Thor shrugged. “It’s been a while since my last serious relationship, but I can tell you that shared core values and an ability to communicate are what make it work. Even when Evelyn and I broke up, we talked it through, and we’re still good friends today because of it.”

  His brother’s sexuality confused the hell out of Gear, because Gear had only ever been into women. Yet, Thor’s ease with himself and who he wanted to be had always been more important than anything else about him. Truthfully, Thor seemed a lot healthier emotionally than Gear had ever been. I am so not telling him that, or I’ll never hear the end of it.

  “You’re weird, but I love you.” Gear shook his head. “It’s unnatural for a guy to be so mature and comfortable in relationships at your age.”

  “Um, Grandpa, I’m only four years younger than you.” Thor huffed. “Though I sometimes think I live in dog years. I’m actually more like two hundred and three.”

  “Hey, math whiz, ease up on the thinking and just eat, would you? You’re making my head hurt.” It’s bad enough I can’t stop thinking about screwing up with Sadie. Under his breath, Gear reminded himself to be cool and take it day by day.

  “Yep. Talking to yourself. That’s the beginning of the end for sure.” Thor shook his head. “Next round of tacos is on me, Bro.”

  Sad when a guy’s little brother made the most sense.

  After Thor left to head back to school, Gear made a few phone calls. The first was to Smoke.

  “You still want a job?” he asked the taciturn mechanic.

  “Yep.”

  That was Smoke. He spoke when he had something to say, not a fan of idle chitchat.

  “I’m opening up a shop. Small. Two-, maybe three-man operation. I need help setting everything up. You in?”

  “Pay the same?”

  “Probably less until we’re on our feet. I’d give it six months.”

  “I give it three. I got messages for you from four of our old clients wanting new bikes. Not the new Motorcycle Madnezz bikes. Yours.”

  Gear had a few warm fuzzies from knowing he was still in demand. “Cool. Text me the numbers.”

  “Done.”

  “So if I was to add another guy, what do you think of Chains?”

  “You mean Francis?” Smoke taunted.

  Gear heard some swearing in the background. “Oh, is he there?”

  “No. I like talking about him because he’s so much fun to be around.”

  “Asshole.” That was Chains, all right. More inventive cursing behind Smoke, then Smoke’s raspy laugh.

  “He’s okay, I guess. I mean, he’s a pussy in a fight. But he’s useful in the shop.”

  “Right.” Gear did the math. “I’m thinking you and I start up. We bring Chains in on a contractual basis for certain designs. Then, once we have enough cash flow, maybe we do full time. You get that, Chains?” he asked, knowing Smoke would have put him on speaker for his buddy to overhear.

  “Yeah,” Chains answered.

  Smoke rumbled, “Not gonna take that long to be rolling in orders, unless your new shop is something Sahara would like.”

  “No way.” Gear knew what Smoke was talking about. Madnezz had started out small and thrived. Then Sahara—and Brian—had taken them big at the behest of the studio. He’d never liked so many people around, getting in his space, around his things. “And we’ll have one boss—me.”

  “Works for me.”

  “I’m good,” Chains added.

  “Then we’re done. I’ll call you next week to kick things in motion.”

  “Right.” Smoke hung up before Gear could.

  With his employees in place, a shop to fill, and plans to be made, Gear cycled through his list of contacts, wondering about putting out a heads-up about his new business. But Iris had taken him through his first launch. He should probably use her again. Not just because it made sense, business-wise, but because if he didn’t, she’d pout and grow generally unbearable, forcing him to grovel, apologize, and act sorry for not thinking of her.

  He called and left her a message.

  Feeling better about life, he sent Sadie a text, because he couldn’t stop himself.

  She answered back right away with congratulations for getting his head out of his ass, finally.

  Gear laughed. “Oh yeah. I’m definitely gonna marry that one.”

  * * *

  Sadie put her phone back in her pocket, smiling. Gear seemed in good spirits. About time he made up his mind to start again. She knew better than most that indecision could be a killer. Back when she’d been attending a community college to get her culinary arts certificate, she’d worked while studying and taken two years to get her one-year certificate.

  But she’d done it on her own and was proud of the fact. Then came the question of what to do with her skills. She’d wasted the next three years working in diners and small restaurants, and eventually found herself in a bakery. Three years spent wavering about cooking choices and not going forward.

  Then she’d found a love of baking, something she’d always had, really, and taken it to the next level. She’d attended classes at South Seattle to specialize as a pastry chef, then found herself not liking the extreme attention to detail. She’d hated not being able to fudge with recipes, everything so exacting. Another year spent meditating on what she wanted to do. Then, by chance, she’d found a career at an up-and-coming restaurant downtown. She’d been lauded for her desserts, because they tasted delicious and were comforting. Not designer, but filling and soft on the palate.

  Fast-forward to Adrian convincing her she could do better, which she hadn’t. Thank God Elliot had decided to buy Sofa’s. Because she’d finally found her niche. She hadn’t made millions and probably never would. But she loved her job. It had only taken her seven years to find her happy place.

  With any luck, Gear wouldn’t take that long.

  “Ahem.”

  “Sorry.” Sadie flushed, not usually prone to woolgathering. The shop wasn’t too busy, with the afternoon rush having just ended. So though the store was full, the counter only had the one woman waiting to order.

  “I’m in the mood for something light and sweet. What do you recommend?”

  “Hmm. Are you fruity? Fluffy? Prefer chocolate to vanilla cream? Or both?”

  The woman looked to be about Sadie’s age. She smiled, and something about her struck Sadie as familiar. “I like fluffy and creamy, and chocolate’s always a plus. Oh, and put a latte on my order too.”

  “Size and flavor?”

  “A small vanilla latte.”

  Sadie marked it down. “How about a cream puff? They’re medium-sized and not too heavy. I don’t like to use dense cream in them.”

  “You made them?” The woman gave her a suspicious look Sadie didn’t understand.

  “Yes,” she said slowly, wondering if she’d somehow offended the woman without realizing. “You’re not a fan of Marsha Concannon or Sahara Blankenship, are you?”

  The woman blinked. “Ah, no. Should I be?”

  “Nah. So what’ll it be?” After the lady ordered, Sadie said, “I’ll bring it out to you.”

  “Thanks.” The woman found a seat where she could study Sadie. And study she did.

  Once the woman’s order had been taken care of, Sadie took it to her, then sat at the table. “All right. Who are you and what do you want? Hey, you’re not a reporter, are you?”

  “What if I am?”

  “Then you can talk to Elliot. Are you with the Food Network?”

  “No. I did want to talk to you, though.”

  “Look, lady. I don’t do interviews. I’m not famous, don’t want to be famous, and have a full life based on donuts, cupcakes, and
cookies. So if you want to know about Gear Blackstone, go talk to him.” Sadie wanted to clock the woman in her perky face, but she managed to restrain herself and stood.

  “Wait.”

  Sadie paused. “You have two seconds to make my day.”

  “Very Clint Eastwood of you.”

  That the woman knew the actor made her rise in Sadie’s estimation. “One, two… And I’m done.”

  “I’m Iris.”

  Sadie knew that name.

  “Iris Blackstone.”

  Sadie sat back down, studying her. “Oh yeah. It’s your eyes. I knew you looked familiar.” Sadie smiled. “Hi. I’m Sadie.”

  “I figured that out.”

  “So what’s with the stare-a-thon?”

  “You are just like my brother.”

  “Thanks?”

  Iris laughed. “Yep. No wonder you two get along so well.” Iris studied Sadie as she sipped her coffee. “I wanted to meet you, but for some reason Harry has been keeping me away from you.”

  “Harry?” Sadie’s grin threatened to split her head in two. “He said only one person called him that, and he killed the guy.” Or words to that effect.

  “He lied. I’m the only one who sometimes calls him that.” Iris smiled. “He hates it.”

  “Yeah. He hates when I call him Harrison, too.” After a pause, Sadie decided to go easy on the woman. “What do you want to know?”

  “Not much. I wanted to get a look at you. I’ve heard from my parents and seen you on the internet. But aside from a brief glimpse of your skeleton face while you threw water on that idiot reporter, I couldn’t tell much about you.”

  “Not much to tell. I’m pretty much this.” Sadie pointed at herself, hoping she wasn’t disappointing Iris. Normally she’d tell a nosy body to pound sand, but this was Gear’s younger sister.

  They didn’t look all that much alike. Thor and Gear looked more similar than Iris and Gear. But the shape and color of the eyes was the same. Iris was tall and lithe, with straight dark hair, more brown than black, and a crooked smile that seemed charming. She was pretty, not cute, and had a weird vibe. A happy-happy, joy-joy aura of goodness and light. That part Sadie found annoying.