The Mechanics of Mistletoe - Liz Isaacson Page 0,58

he said. “I don’t know what to do.”

“I know Harlan,” Jeff said. “I can call him real quick.”

Sammy spun toward her other mechanic, “What?” slipping from her mouth, but Jeff already had his phone at his ear.

“Harlan, hey,” Jeff said, a fake smile on his face and that quality screaming from his voice. “I was thinking of coming down there tonight with my tasting group. How busy is it?” He paced away from Sammy, and she exchanged a glance with Logan.

“I’ve never heard him talk like that,” Logan said.

“Tasting group?” Sammy asked, her eyes wide.

“They do those at the cider mill,” Logan said.

Their eyes met, and Sammy saw the same shock in Logan’s as she had running through her. “Can you see Jeff doing that?”

Logan scoffed, and it quickly turned into a laugh. “No, I can not.”

“Oh, a big party already rented it?” Jeff said, his voice getting close again. “That’s too bad. What time will they be there? Could we come right now?” He faced Sammy and Logan, his eyes bright and wide. “It’s dead? Not even one lane being used.” He grinned, and the cunning Jeff shone right through.

“Great,” he said. “Sammy’s on her way then. If you need me to pay for the extra half-hour, put it on my tab. Or….” He lowered his voice and turned his back on Sammy and Logan. She instinctively edged forward to hear him, but she couldn’t.

A few seconds later, Jeff said, “Right,” and turned back to her. “You can go now, Sammy.”

“Or what?” Sammy asked, her curiosity firing on all cylinders.

“You have a tasting group?” Logan asked, stepping next to Sammy. “And a tab at the bowling alley?”

Jeff looked between the two of them, swallowing as he paled slightly. The three of them looked at each other, and they burst out laughing together.

“All right,” Sammy said, shoving her phone at Logan. “Call Micah back and tell him we’re good. Jeff—”

“I have Micah’s number,” Logan said.

Sammy extended her phone toward Jeff. “Call Bishop and tell him we’re okay, that we can get in early.”

He took her phone and started swiping while Sammy ran over to the sink and started washing up. She needed to change her clothes and fix her hair and put on lip gloss. Her mind ran in a dozen different directions, and her pulse pounded in that vein in her neck. Slow down, she told herself. It doesn’t have to be perfect. It’s just a birthday, and he’s already said it’s the best birthday he’s had. It’s going to be fine.

“I’m just going to change real quick,” Sammy said, pulling a couple of paper towels from the dispenser and turning back to her mechanics.

“Bishop said Zona ‘accidentally’ bumped the cake into the door, and she made Bear go back to the house so she could fix it.” Jeff grinned, Sammy’s phone still pressed to his ear.

“Oh, good one,” she said, starting to relax.

“You’ve got time,” Sammy,” Logan said. “Micah did text Bear about stopping by, and he said he would.” He looked up from his phone. “Micah said he wanted Bear to do it before too long, because their baby is fussy today, and Simone wanted to put him to bed and then go to bed herself.” Logan grinned at her too. “Bear said he’d come before he went to the bowling alley.”

Sammy’s heart filled with gratitude for the people helping her to make this the best day of Bear’s life. She smiled, emotion surging up her throat. Logan and Jeff put down their phones, and Sammy crossed the garage to them.

“Thank you,” she said to them. “For helping me with this. For being great mechanics around here, and for being my friends.” She looked at them, the surprise in their eyes not hard to see. Awkwardness descended on the three of them, and she sort of lunged at them to form a three-way hug.

“I don’t tell you guys enough how amazing you are, and how much I appreciate everything you do for me, and that you’ve done for me, both professionally and personally.”

“Sammy, you’re a great boss,” Logan said. He stepped back and smiled at her, the motion easy and the mood lightening. “I love your shop here, and everyone loves you.”

She nodded, because she didn’t need the compliments.

“You really like this Bear guy, don’t you?” Jeff asked.

Sammy smiled at the older-brother tone in Jeff’s voice. “I really do.”

Jeff relaxed, his smile pulling somewhat at the corners. “I’m glad, Sammy. You deserve someone good to take care