Love Octagon
by Felicia Rogers
Published by Astraea Press
www.astraeapress.com
This is a work of fiction. Names, places, characters, and events are fictitious in every regard. Any similarities to actual events and persons, living or dead, are purely coincidental. Any trademarks, service marks, product names, or named features are assumed to be the property of their respective owners, and are used only for reference. There is no implied endorsement if any of these terms are used. Except for review purposes, the reproduction of this book in whole or part, electronically or mechanically, constitutes a copyright violation.
LOVE OCTAGON
Copyright © 2012 FELICIA ROGERS
ISBN 978-1-936852-96-3
Cover Art Designed by ELAINA LEE
Edited by EM PETROVA
To my family and friends…
Prologue
Kevin stood ramrod straight at the front of the crowd. Everyone in the room was staring at him. His breath came in short, rasping gulps. He reached for his throat. The purple silk cravat, which lay upon his chest, was crooked. Yeah, that was it. He wasn’t a bundle of nerves. He didn’t have cold feet. Tidiness was the problem.
“Don’t be nervous,” said Mark, his best man.
Kevin nodded, causing sweat to roll down his neck and under his collar. Sure. “Don’t be nervous,” he says.
“Hey, what are you two whispering about?” asked Jerry from the corner of his mouth, a smile plastered on his face.
“Kevin’s nervous,” said Mark.
“I am not nervous.”
“Psst, men, you need to be quiet. The service is about to start.”
“Sorry.”
“Humph,” the reverend replied, pulling his shoulders back.
Jerry shot the reverend a hard look before turning to face Mark. “Why is he nervous?”
“Who wouldn’t be nervous? The poor soul is giving his life away. He’s going to be tied down to one woman for the rest of his days. No more shopping around for other models. This is it.”
Jerry shook his head and rolled his eyes. Kevin concurred. Mark was out of his mind. After all Kevin had been through, he knew beyond a shadow of a doubt this was what he wanted. More than anything he wanted to be “tied down.”
Kevin whispered, “It can’t be as bad as when there were seven.”
“What?” Mark asked.
Kevin cleared his throat. “Nothing. I didn’t say anything.”
Mark shrugged. In a hushed tone, he began arguing with Jerry over the institution of marriage. Kevin kept his gaze riveted on the back doors. Tom and Fred walked into his line of vision as they escorted guests to their seats. All smiles and welcomes, they had taken to the job like ducks to water. He’d worried they would be angry when they didn’t get to stand up with him. But they hadn’t been angry—they’d been pleased. Tom’s tendency toward conspiracy kept him from wanting to be displayed in front of the crowd. And Fred… Well, Fred, he wanted to meet women. Kevin and the others were all for this goal.
Looking around his two friends, Kevin wondered when the ceremony would start. How long did the groom have to stand and wait? He would’ve thought he’d have learned some patience by now. With what Kevin had been through the past year, he should have acquired the patience of Job. Old habits die hard, he guessed.
The three men shifted from side to side. A person could only stand in one place for so long before he got dizzy. To have something to do, Kevin bent his head and stared at his feet.
Then the sound of music filled the air. Not just any music, but the music. It was the “Wedding March.” Lifting his chin off his chest, Kevin focused on the back of the room.
The entire congregation stood and stared down the aisle. At the door was the most beautiful creature; she appeared as his own personal angel. Beside her was her father, his face beaming. Clearly this was a proud moment for them both. Kevin watched the unspoken emotions playing across their faces. One day he would be able to look at his wife and communicate in such a way. They would grow together, learn together, love together.
How had he been so blessed to know this woman? How had it all begun? Some fell in love with a simple glance. Some dated for years and years before realizing they loved one another. Some never found “the one.” But for Kevin, love had come in the strangest of ways. One might say it was like being hit by a bolt of lightning. Or that it was a miracle. Whatever the case, his life had changed forever just one short year ago. It was a week of vacation he would never forget.
As his mind focused back on the scene before him and his future wife took her first step down the aisle, Kevin whispered a breathless, “Angela…”
Chapter One
Friday, October 5th
One Year Earlier
The day started like any other day for Kevin. Get up, drive to work, do the job, and wait. Then came the brief time he and the other workers looked forward to: break time. Fifteen minutes of sitting with the guys and hanging out around the water cooler—or the break room, as it were. Fifteen minutes of jawing about trivial things. Fifteen blissful minutes without some customer jumping on his back or down his throat. One of these days he wouldn’t be on the call floor. He would work his way up to some cushy position where he could sit back in an office—not a cubicle. He would be the boss.
With this pleasant thought in his mind, Kevin walked into the break room. There they were, Mark, Jerry, Fred, and Tom—the guys. Feet were propped up on tables, chairs, and every available elevated surface. Soda cans were popped open as laughter filled the room.
The guys weren’t the only ones on break, however. In the opposite corner sat Angela. Angela Jones. A newspaper was clutched in her hand, and a pencil tapped against her pearly white teeth. Click, click, click.
During her breaks, she worked the daily puzzle. That day, as she pondered the words, her glasses slipped down her nose, and Kevin caught a glimpse of her chocolate-colored eyes. Despite the florescent-lit room, her hair shone like the color of honey.
Kevin focused his gaze on her movement. Whenever she concentrated, she had a habit of twisting her hair around her first two fingers. Would she do it now?
Before Kevin could observe her actions, his thoughts were interrupted. “Hey Kevin!” Jerry yelled, motioning him over to the table and offering him a seat.
“How’s it going on the floor today?” asked Mark. He worked in the technical department of the call center, solving computer problems. When a computer was on the blink, Mark was the one responsible for troubleshooting. Kevin couldn’t help but be jealous. He spent his time at work placing orders and haggling with irate customers. Truth was, Mark enjoyed one of the benefits of getting a college degree—more money and less boredom.
“Not bad,” Kevin answered.
“I hear someone’s taking some time off.” Jerry leaned in closer and whispered, “Planning on spending any quality time with your girlfriend Angela?”
Kevin was used to the good-natured ribbing. They’d pestered him for details ever since the one time he’d taken Angela out. But he hadn’t given in then, and he wasn’t likely to give in now. It was none of their business how the date had gone.
“No, man,” Fred piped up. “He ain’t using his time off to date no girl. He has big plans, right? You’re flying to Paris or going to Cancun or something, right? Go ahead; tell them I’m right.” Fred leaned back in his chair with a smug look.
Boy was Kevin about to burst his bubble.
“Well, I do have plans, but nothing along those lines. I was thinking I’d use this week to do some things around the house. I mean, I haven’t mowed the yard in so long it looks like a jungle. Then I have a gutter, that is constantly leaking, that I need to fix. Then I need to redo some
of the pavers on my patio out back. Not to mention all the things inside the house.”
Kevin noticed their astonished faces. Tom spoke first, breaking the spell. “You know what? I was watching one of those talk shows the other day.”
“Oh no, here we go again. Either it’s Dr. Phil with some word of wisdom or Jerry Springer where someone got the snot beat out of them. Next, he’ll be quoting words of wisdom from the tabloids. Like last week when he claimed there was a monkey man running through his yard.”
Tom sat up straighter. “Hey, now! The monkey man story was true. Scientists proved the whole thing! And I didn’t say it was in my yard. I said the creature was in my neighbor’s yard. You need to listen better. One of these days you are going to wish you’d listened to old Tom. Now hush, and let me finish. Sometimes it is impossible for a man to get a word in edgewise around here. Anyway, as I was saying before I was so rudely interrupted, I was watching this talk show and there was this guy and he was saying how all he does is sit around on his can because his wives do everything.”
No one said anything and Tom began to look frustrated. “Didn’t you hear me?”
“Yeah, we heard you. You said his wife does everything.” Jerry shrugged, apparently not understanding why it was such a big deal.
“No, I didn’t say his wife did everything; I said his wives do everything. The guy had like ten wives or something. He said he had one for every chore! Now if you had some women, then you could just sit back and relax on your vacation. Your wives would just take care of everything. They’d do all the cleaning you were talking about, and then you could go on some exotic vacation. That’s the ticket.”
Mark said, “Sure. Sounds great. Kevin could have one to cook the meals, one to clean the house, one to make the money, one to spend the money, one to have the babies—if you know what I mean—one to take care of the yard, and then one as a spare. Hey, how many did I say, like seven? Yeah, seven gives you one woman for every day of the week!”
“Sure, what a plan,” Kevin agreed. “I’ll just run out and find seven women and hook up real quick so they can stay home this week and clean for me.” Kevin shook his head and rolled his eyes. Honestly, his friends were crazy.
Jerry clasped his hands together tightly. “Well I think if you want more than one wife, you should have to live with all of them at the same time. Like Solomon of old”
“Oh, wisdom from one who knows. By the way Jerry, when do we get to meet this mystery wife of yours?”
Jerry shifted in his seat.
Nothing more was said on the subject as the break bell rang and each of the men stood up and headed back to their stations. Before they left the room completely, Mark asked, “So are we on for tomorrow night?”
“I’ve done my part,” said Kevin.
“Good. That means you didn’t forget the food like Tom did last time.”
Tom drew his eyebrows downward. “Well, excuse me, Mark. But I don’t use sticky notes to remind myself, I don’t have my parents to remind me, and I don’t have a wife.”
Fred asked, “And how did Kevin remember?”
“Who knows? Who cares? I’m just glad we are getting together for the barbeque. We do it so little nowadays.” Tom shot a sideways glance toward Jerry, but he was already gone down the hallway and back to his station.
No one spoke as they headed out into the hall. As he walked through the opening of his cubicle, Kevin glanced over his shoulder at Angela. Her head was still bent as she studied the black words written on the paper in front of her.
Kevin wondered what she thought of the guys and their conversations. They had discussed everything from getting together to the benefits of polygamy. Shaking his head and snorting under his breath, he thought, Seven wives, indeed.
Chapter Two
Saturday…
Morning, the first day of his weeklong vacation, and Kevin had overslept. Which was okay. This was the first day. He could take it easy today. He might lay back and watch a couple of games on the tube. No manual labor needed to be accomplished. There was plenty of time for such an endeavor later.
Then Kevin remembered the guys. They were coming over for a barbeque today. One day after work last week, he’d gone and picked up the amount of food they would need. And it was a good thing, too. Even though he didn’t have to start the home repairs today, he still needed to clean up a few things. Now after sleeping late, he was running so far behind he would be lucky to clear a path to the bathroom before they arrived.
Kevin pulled himself out of bed, grabbed jeans and a T-shirt from a pile on the bedroom floor, and dressed quickly. Passing by the bathroom mirror, he wondered if he should take time to shave. The five o’clock shadow lingering on his cheekbones made him more distinguished, right?
Bending his chin down to the right and angling his head upward and to the left, Kevin attempted to swoop back his hair. But the thick, light brown strands weren’t long enough, making the move look odd even to him.
After deciding to leave the stubble and to stop worrying about his hair, Kevin glanced around behind him, checking to ensure no one was looking. He laughed to himself at his silliness. He lived alone. Who could possibly be watching? However, he checked anyway, and when he was positive he was alone, he raised his arms in a flexed position.
“Now that’s the ticket.” Biceps bulged against the black T-shirt. Sticking his chest out, Kevin twisted sideways. “Yep, the pecs are getting bigger. I’m awesome. The women dig me. But they also think I’m crazy for talking to myself.”
Kevin snapped out of this self-worship. For the next little while, he shoved and pushed all the stray items from the hallway into some dark corner or closet. When he finished, he stood at the back door in the kitchen and looked around. Now, there was line of sight from the kitchen, down the hall, all the way to the living area. One of these days, he would own a nice grand home with a dining room, but for now this was it. The house didn’t look quite so bad with all the doors closed and the main thoroughfare clear of debris.
For this evening’s event, he had moved everything needed to cook the meal to the backyard outside. This way the guys wouldn’t have to actually go in the house to help him retrieve anything. Kevin didn’t want them snooping around his clutter. But just in case they did go inside and stumble upon something, he had an idea. When they arrived, he would tell them to ignore the mess. That always worked everywhere he’d gone.
Upon entering, the homeowner would casually announce, “Oh, please ignore my mess.” And everyone would politely answer, “What mess?” They all knew the place was a filthy pigsty, but they couldn’t hurt the host’s feelings, so they pretended to see nothing. The plan was sheer brilliance.
Sighing deeply, Kevin pulled his shoulders back and strutted. What did he care about his messy house? Pride escalated at his ability to maintain such a home without the cockroaches taking over. His shoulders fell forward. Best to keep it this way, and keep the men out. If they went back and told his mother, boy, would he be in trouble.
Around six o’clock, Kevin’s buddies began to arrive. Mark was first. He was a serious man and punctual without fault. He always arrived precisely thirty minutes earlier than he was told. To remember all his appointments and responsibilities, he used sticky notes. Their friends often joked Mark’s wallpaper was made of nothing but sticky notes. The excuse given for Mark’s bachelorhood was that a woman could never follow his time schedule. Kevin believed it.
Then there was Fred. He dreamed big. But he’d never actually done anything. Never went anywhere. He lived with his parents and worked in the credit department at the call center. He was constantly encouraging the guys to go places and do things so he could live vicariously through them. He’d suggested hiking in Hawaii, a cruise to Alaska that ended in sleeping on the ice, and once he even tried to encourage Kevin to open a modeling agency. When his buddies enjoyed life, he did as well.
Next was Jerry. He worked in the complaints department. He was a religious man who atte
nded church regularly with his wife. Sometimes he acted completely obsessed with Kevin being with Angela. When Jerry wasn’t receiving calls about broken items or products not in stock or countless other complaints, he was dwelling on how Kevin and Angela had dated. Kevin had shared nothing about their one date with Jerry, which was most likely the problem. But whatever the case, Jerry knew what their kids would look like, how many years they would be married, and what their complaints against one another would be.
And last but not least was Tom. Tom was the strangest one of the bunch. He was the one who watched the talk shows and took them to heart. He read the supermarket tabloids religiously. He was gullible. In high school, a couple of football players had taken him “snipe hunting.” They took him out into the woods with a flashlight and a feed bag and left him there. They told him he wasn’t allowed to return until he caught the thing. Tom was there all night looking for it. He wasn’t about to admit he didn’t know what a snipe was. After the episode, Mark, Jerry, Fred, and Kevin had pity on the poor boy and took him under their wing. Tom clearly needed protection.
That afternoon when everyone arrived, they sat out back around a fire pit waiting for the food to cook. Iced tea in his hand, Kevin looked around at his friends. His shoulders were tight with tension but fortunately no one had commented on the lack of yard maintenance. He’d barely had time to straighten the interior of the house, and he’d completely forgotten the outside. Biting the inner part of his mouth, he waited.
“This is good. I feel like we haven’t gotten together in a long time,” said Fred.
“And why is it you feel this way?” asked Tom, looking covertly at Jerry.
“Well, some of us had to go and get responsibilities. Imagine running away and getting married, and we weren’t even invited. I still can’t believe it.”
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