Page 51 of One-Star Romance

Angus paused, clearly at war with himself, before bursting out with, “But Trent has no vision!”

“Do you really need vision to run the store?” Rob asked as they maneuvered the mattress down a hallway to the back door, sounds of the party trickling in from the front of the house.

Angus gaped at him. “Yes! Do you think my father would’ve expanded up and down the whole turnpike without vision? Futon technology is constantly evolving, and people’s needs change, and you’ve got to be able to stay plugged in. Like with futons for pets—you know that one-third of people in the US own a dog now? That’s a whole emerging market, but Trent doesn’t think it’s a good idea—” He cut himself off, his face red with exertion and passion as they carried the mattress outside. “I gotta calm down. If my dad wants to give Trent the business, he’ll give Trent the business.”

“He could give you the business,” Rob said mildly.

“No, I am my own man! I’m not some joke who needs his father to hand him a career—” Angus cut himself off, opened the door to the truck, and shoved the mattress in, none too gently.

“Hey,” Rob said. “Who’s calling you a joke?”

Angus waved his hand through the air, facing away from Rob. “Nobody.”

“Angus,” Rob said, stepping around to look his friend full-on, grasping his shoulder. “Tell me.”

“Oh, sometimes the guys at the office make little remarks, but it’s all in good fun.” Angus rubbed his hand across his face. “Sorry, I’m tired. It’s been a lot, with Christina, and things only getting more intense at work. But intense is good. The boss is giving me more responsibility because he knows I can handle it.”

“If you want to talk about it…” Rob began, but Angus shook his head firmly and switched on his familiar smile.

“I want to talk about you, and why you’ve been in such a good mood all night!”

Rob could not tell Angus about the engagement just yet. Angus would immediately tell Gabby, which would be fine—Gabby could keep a secret. But he would also be so obvious about it with Rob during the rest of the party—beaming at him, ruffling his hair, putting an arm around both him and Zuri, and starting to cry—that everyone would figure out something was up. Rob had never been able to tell Angus exciting secrets. (On the other hand, if Rob ever had a truly devastating secret—say, he needed Angus’s help in burying a body—he would trust Angus with it, though the effort of holding it in might destroy Angus entirely. Not that Rob would ever secretly bury a body. If, in some unlikely and horrific scenario he accidentally killed someone, he would report himself to the police.)

“It’s just nice to see you,” Rob said.

“Aw, buddy,” Angus replied, “same here. And it’s always good to spend time with Zuri too. I want to get to know her even better.” He brushed his hair back, sending it sticking up into the air. “Okay, I should go back into the party.”

Rob’s phone began to buzz. His parents, calling to say hello. (Well, his mother calling and putting it on speaker as she sat next to his dad. Sometimes Rob wondered, if his parents got divorced, would his dad ever take the initiative to call him again?) “I’ll see you back inside,” Rob said, waving Angus off, then answering the call. “Hello?”

“Hi, sweets,” his mother said, while his father called out, “Hello there.”

“How are you guys?” he asked, and as his mother began to tell him about a lecture they’d attended the other night, and his father interrupted to talk about the fancy dinner they went to with the guest speaker afterward, Rob thought that maybe he could tell his mom and dad. The exciting news was a battering ram inside his mouth, fighting to burst out into the open.

His parents would be thrilled. His dad and Zuri had gotten along swimmingly when they all got together in the days after Christmas last year, just as Rob had known they would. Professor Kapinsky had come away impressed by her research. Zuri had plenty of questions for him about making a life in academia.

Meeting Zuri, Rob’s dad had given his son something so rare: total approval, no notes. Rob could get used to that feeling.

“And how are you?” his mother asked. “How was the christening?”

“The christening was nice,” he began as he walked from the driveway into the backyard, pacing on a little stone patio that bordered the house. Sounds of the party hummed in the background. “Angus is very proud. You should see him, he’s a natural father. And I’m great, actually. Zuri…”

But, no, it wasn’t right to tell his parents without Zuri. They would wait to call together when everything was official.

“Zuri got some good news on one of her papers being accepted into a journal,” he finished.

“Oh, that’s wonderful,” his mother said.

“What’s going on with your research?” his father asked, and Rob rolled his eyes. “You know you need to publish regularly if you want tenure.”

“I am aware,” Rob said. God, his dad couldn’t even be bothered to say something nice about Zuri’s achievements? He’d surely react less dickishly to their engagement. If he didn’t, Rob wasn’t quite sure what he’d do.

“Please give Zuri our congratulations,” Rob’s mom cut in.

“Yes, tell her and Angus that they should send us some pictures of the baby,” his dad said.

“What?” Rob asked, something catching in his mind.

“No,” his mother said in a more muffled voice, “not Gabby. Zuri, his girlfriend.” His mother spoke back into the phone. “Sorry, the reception is a little fuzzy.”

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