by Jaci Burton
Bianca waved to him. Drake got up and came over.
"I'm sorry to tell you that you missed lunch today," Greg said with a curve of his lips. "It was really good, too."
"Please don't tell me that you had mac and cheese on the menu today," Barrett said.
"Okay, I won't mention it."
"Now I feel even worse. What are the kids working on today?"
"They're learning Excel. I'm always amazed at how fast these kids can pick up programs. In so many ways, every generation is smarter than the one before."
"That's great. I'm glad we can teach them useful skills."
"And keep them off the streets at the same time," Drake said.
"Yes."
They left the room and moved down the hall. "We have a swimming coach from one of the high schools working with them on lifeguard lessons next week at the pool. We already have a waiting list for that. The counseling sessions are going very well with many of our students. I think you'll be pleased with the progress."
Barrett nodded. "I've read the monthly reports, Greg. I couldn't be happier with how the center is operating."
"I agree," Drake said. "The kids are happy, the community is happy, and we sure are."
"Good. I hope you plan to stay awhile and interact with the kids. I know they'll be thrilled to spend some time with you."
"That's what we plan to do," Barrett said.
They spent the next several hours joining in different activities, from arts and crafts to computers to old-fashioned board games. The kids put Drake and him through their paces.
Near the end of the day Drake and Barrett joined a number of the kids outside for a game of flag football. They divided into teams, with Drake and him on opposite sides. Barrett really loved that the girls were playing, too. And from what he'd seen when he'd peeked into the basketball game in the gym earlier, these girls were athletic.
He and Drake had a great time going against each other, not surprisingly, since they were both so competitive. So were the kids, but there was a lot of laughing as he and Drake knocked into each other during their game. Barrett blocked him hard and pushed him back, and Drake shoved Barrett to the ground.
Drake held out his hand for Barrett, who glared at him. "Flag football, remember?"
Drake grinned. "Oh, yeah. Must have forgotten that."
By the time their makeshift game was near the end, they were tied. Now Barrett's sense of competition had really set in. He huddled with his kids.
"We've got this. Their defense is weak. I've got the blocking. Ray, you toss it to either Layton or Rachelle, whoever is open."
They all nodded and broke the huddle, then set into game formation. At the snap, Barrett went hard after Drake, shoving him to the ground.
"Goddammit, Barrett," Drake said through clenched teeth.
Barrett just laughed, helped haul Drake to his feet, then they watched the play unfold.
Ray had tossed the ball to Rachelle, who was running like a sprinter on fire down the field toward their makeshift end zone.
She scored and everyone cheered. Hell, even the other side cheered for her.
"Girl's got some speed," Drake said.
"She sure has."
At the end of the game they all came together. "You played tough," Drake said. "You're all athletes, and you should be proud of yourselves."
Barrett took in the grins on their sweaty faces. "Come on. Let's go get something cold to drink."
He slung his arm around Drake as they followed behind the kids. "I'm exhausted."
"Me, too. And what the hell was up with that hit, man. My hip hurts."
"Baby."
"Kiss my ass."
Barrett laughed as they made their way back into the center.
They cleaned up a little, got something to drink, and found Greg.
"Those kids will wear you out," Greg said.
Drake nodded. "They sure will. But we had fun today."
"They appreciate you stopping in. And so do we. You're welcome anytime."
They shook hands with Greg, then headed out to the parking lot.
Barrett felt exhilarated. "Now I'm ready to take on the world."
Drake laughed. "Good. Come back to my place."
"I need a shower first."
"Okay. Go shower, then meet me at my place."
"All right. See you in a few."
He drove to his condo, took a quick shower and put on clean clothes, then went to Drake's. He rang the bell and Drake answered. He'd already showered and was dressed.
"I can't believe you're ready."
"Whatever, man. Doesn't take me long to look this good."
Barrett rolled his eyes.
Drake grabbed his keys. "Come on. Got an errand to run, then we'll go grab something to eat."
"Sounds good. All that kid play made me hungry."
Drake headed downtown, which was strange, because they never went downtown to eat. But he was game for whatever Drake had in mind. Maybe he had a meeting with someone and he had to do it downtown.
Drake pulled into a parking garage in some upscale building. He parked and shut off the engine, then turned to Barrett. "You should come upstairs with me."
Barrett shrugged. "Sure."
He wondered who would meet with Drake after five p.m., but it wasn't his gig. He was just along for the ride--and the food that was going to come after.
They rode the elevator to the fifteenth floor to the law firm of somebody somebody and somebody whose names Barrett immediately forgot.
"Got a meeting with your lawyer?" Barrett asked.
"Not exactly."
The receptionist was gone for the day, and Drake seemed to know where he was going, since he turned left down the hall and went right to the door of--
Uh-oh. That name on the door looked familiar.
Levon Powell.
A very good-looking man dressed in a very expensive suit sat at a very expensive desk. He was on the phone, and when he saw Drake, he said, "Let me call you back."
Levon stood, then smiled. "Drake. What brings you here?"
"You know why I'm here. It's about Harmony."
"What about her?"
This was so not a good idea. Barrett wanted to be anywhere but here right now.
"You broke up with her."
"Yes, I did."
"Why?"
Levon tilted his head to the side. "I think that's between Harmony and me."
Barrett could feel the tension emanating off Drake. "You messed with my sister's feelings. You hurt her."
Drake advanced, and Levon held up his hands. "It wasn't like that. It was a mutual breakup."
Barrett needed to put a stop to this. He grasped Drake's arm. "Drake. Let's go."
"You stay away from her," Drake said.
"Hey, I intend to. We're finished."
"Hell yes, you are. And if you ever speak to her or come near her again, we're going to have a problem."
"Man, we don't have a problem. It's over. Mutual, remember?"
Barrett could tell Drake was pissed at Levon and wanted to get physical with him. He felt the need to step in, so he laid a gentle hand on Drake's chest.
"Like Levon said, it's over, right?"
Drake nodded. "Yeah."
Barrett sent an apologetic look Levon's way, then waited for Drake to walk out the door before expelling the breath he was holding. When they got into the elevator, he turned to Drake. "What the hell was that all about?"
"That was about my sister. I needed to make it clear to Levon that I had my eye on him, that no one messes with Harmony."
"From what I gathered, they were over and it was a clean break. No harm no foul, ya know?"
"Whatever. It pisses me off when men think they can fuck over a woman and there are no consequences."
He had no idea what to make of this. "I think Harmony is fine about the breakup."
Drake turned to him as the elevator doors opened. "He dumped her, man. What kind of asshole does that?"
Barrett resisted the urge to laugh, knowing the level of anger his best friend had. "Honestly? Lots of guys."
They walked out to Drake's car. "Well, that's not cool. And now he knows to stay away from her."
Barrett got the idea that Levon wouldn't be going anywhere near Harmony ever again. Not that he ever planned to anyway.
He loved Drake like a brother, and had for a lot of years. But sometimes he didn't understand his best friend. He was so overprotective of his sister. As far as he understood, Levon might be a jerk, but he hadn't hurt Harmony physically.
He'd never go after some guy who had broken up with his sister, Mia. Not unless the guy got physical with her or hurt her in some way.
At least he didn't think he would. Then again, Mia had never talked about anyone she dated.
Maybe this was why. He had no idea what kind of reaction he would have if he knew anything about his little sister's dating life. But he didn't believe he'd be over the top like Drake. Sometimes relationships broke up. That's just the way it went. And you got over it.
Harmony seemed okay about it.
Drake's phone rang and he picked it up on his car speaker.
"Yo."
"Are you out of your fucking mind?"
Harmony's voice. And she didn't sound very happy with her brother.
"Dunno what you're talking about," Drake said.
"I just got a call from Levon, and he said you came to his office and threatened him."
"Not true," Drake said. "I had a chat with him."
"Drake. Seriously. What the hell did you say to him?"
"Hey, I'm near your place. We'll stop by."
"Drake."
He hung up on her, then turned to Barrett and grinned. "She loves me."
"I don't think she loves you very much right now, man."
"She will when I explain it to her."
Barrett understood siblings, since he had plenty of them.
This should be interesting.
Within ten minutes they rolled into Harmony's town house complex. Drake parked and they got out and went to the door.
Harmony answered, still in her work clothes.
She looked good. He didn't want to notice how sharp she looked in that dress that outlined her curves.
"You are insane. Hi, Barrett," she said, as she held the door for them to come in.
"Hey, I was just protecting you."
She shut the door behind her as they walked in.
"I do not need you to protect me. Not now, not when I was a teenager, not ever."
Barrett followed the two of them past the living area and into her kitchen. He noticed she had paint supplies in her bathroom, and the white bathroom was now being painted a shade of green.
"Redecorating the bathroom, Harmony?" he asked.
"What? Oh, the paint. Yes. I'm changing the color."
Drake's lips lifted. "She paints or redecorates whenever she's upset."
"I do not. And don't change the subject. What the hell were you thinking storming into Levon's office like that?"
"I was thinking of punching him in his smug, asshole face. But I didn't. I just told him to stay away from you."
She let out a long sigh. "He has every intention of staying away from me, considering we just broke up, idiot. And you scared the shit out of him."
"Did I? Good. Then he'll leave you alone."
"He threatened to call the police, Drake. I had to talk him out of that and I told him you would never come near him again."
"He's a pussy."
She rolled her eyes. "You need to stay out of my life, out of my business, and most especially my love life. I don't know how many times I need to tell you that I'm an adult now and I can take care of myself. Can I make that any clearer to you?"
"Okay, fine. You know if Levon had any balls, he'd have told me to go fuck myself and we'd have thrown a few punches and everything would have been okay."
Barrett tried not to snort at Drake's twisted sense of logic.
Harmony raised her hands in the air. "Really? Really, Drake? I don't even know what to do with you. That's the most uncivilized, barbaric, ridiculous thing I've ever heard. You have to stop interfering in my life."
Harmony's voice had gotten progressively louder.
"Okay, okay." Drake went over and put his hands on her shoulders. "I'm sorry. It won't happen again."
She stared at Drake. "I'd like to believe that, but I know it's not true. Please call Levon and apologize."
Drake laughed. "Not gonna happen. But I promise to not bother him again. Is that good enough?"
"I guess so." She sighed. "I'll call him again to reassure him. Which by the way, I do not want to do."
Drake shrugged. "You don't have to talk to him at all. I took care of it."
"No, you made it worse."
"I love you, baby sis."
She shook her head. "I love you, too. But dammit, Drake, you make me crazy."
Drake pulled her into a hug. "That's why you love me."
Siblings. Barrett shook his head.
Harmony stepped away from her brother and glared at Barrett. "And don't you stand there and shake your head. You were there with him and you let this happen."
"I take no responsibility for trying to control Drake."
"Whatever. You two get out of my house. I have painting to do."
Drake turned to leave and Barrett followed, then stopped to take a peek in the bathroom. "So you really redecorate whenever you're upset?"
"Out, Barrett," Harmony said.
He grinned, then followed Drake to his car.
Five
Harmony went over her schedule in her office. The space wasn't much, since she'd only been in business for a year, but so far, things had really taken off. Her calendar was full, she'd hired an assistant, and word had gotten out to local contractors that she was damn good at what she did, which meant even more referrals were coming her way.
Just the way she'd envisioned when she'd gone into business for herself. She'd interned with some of the best designers she knew, and she'd learned a lot. But in the end, she'd wanted her own firm. A risky move, for sure, but if there was one thing Harmony had in droves, it was confidence.
Which could end in her downfall, but failure wasn't a word she acknowledged.
"You've got a final walk-through with the Greens tomorrow afternoon."
She nodded at Rosalie, her assistant. "I've got that on my calendar. Did they install the crown molding in the living room?"
"I was over there this morning. Molding is in place and the trim painters are there. Kitchen is finished, master bedroom and bath have been completed. Everything on the checklist has been checked off. Oh, and Jeff called and said he'd meet you there this afternoon at three for you to do a walk-through with him."
"Perfect." Jeff Golan was one of her favorite contractors. He was no-nonsense, like her, and he got things done on time, which was why he was one of her favorites.
She'd also gotten a text from Barrett, which had actually surprised her. They were meeting at his house tonight, since he had practice today.
She knew he was reluctant about it, but nothing put the fear in a man like her mother.
She smiled at that. Even her formidable brother could be brought to his knees by one death stare from Mama.
Technically, she should bring a contractor with her tonight, but she wanted to make Barrett uncomfortable. What better way to do that than to come alone?
It would serve him right for not thinking of her in the first place. Did the man not know anything about her?
He was going to find out.
She handled her appointments, which lasted until after five. She still had time to head back to her town house and freshen up before she had to meet Barrett.
She looked in the bathroom mirror. Yes, and maybe change clothes, too, she thought with a wicked smile.
She went into her bedroom and opened the closet, choosing . . .
Oh yeah.
Definitely the red dress. Professional, but still one that would make Barrett take notice.
She'd make sure he wouldn't ignore her anymore.
She programmed the address of his house into the GPS in her car and headed out. The house was located near the west side of the bay, on the water. It was a gated community, so she gave her name to the attendant at the gate, who let her in.
The streets were well maintained with beautiful mature shade trees and well-manicured lawns. She drove down a few streets, made a left and found Barrett's house. She parked, got out and looked at the exterior of his home.
Incredible on the outside. It had a white stucco exterior and gray tile roof. The front landscaping was perfect--not overbearing yet not sparse, either, with a sizable front yard.
So far, so good.
She walked up the well-tiled path leading to the front door and rang the bell. Since there was a black Escalade in the driveway, she knew Barrett was already there.
He answered the door looking utterly delicious in brown cargo pants and a tight white T-shirt. She'd barely noticed him the other night when he'd come over with Drake, mainly because she'd been in panic mode and her focus had been entirely on her brother and his idiot move with her ex-boyfriend. Now, though, her attention was fully on Barrett.
It had to be a sin to look that damn fine.
"Hey," he said. "Thanks for coming." He held the door wide and she stepped in.
"It's my pleasure." She took a look around, tilting her head back to note the tall ceilings in the entry and formal living room.
"How are you doing after the other night?"
She rolled her eyes. "I don't even want to talk about my brother right now. Or possibly ever."
"Okay, then. I'd offer you something to drink, but I don't actually live here yet, so I've got . . . nothing--including a refrigerator."
She laughed. "It's okay. I'm fine."
She looked around the living room. "This is nice. Dated, but nice."
"Why don't you just walk through and do . . . whatever it is you do?" he asked.
Her lips quirked. "I'll do that. Thanks."
She made her way into the kitchen, which was spacious, but also had white laminate countertops and faded oak cabinets. And white appliances.
She grimaced. "The only thing this room has going for it is space. It needs to be gutted."
"Yeah, I'm not really happy with it, but the one thing I liked about it was the size."
She took photos and made notes on her tablet. "Do you cook?"
"I can cook. I'm not a great cook, but I know my way around a kitchen."
"Enough to know the difference between a gas stove, electric and an induction cooktop?"
