by Jaci Burton
"These delays are costing the homeowners money, Jeff."
"I agree, Harmony, but there's nothing I can do if they keep changing their mind about finishes every third day. First they wanted black granite for the countertops. Now they've decided on marble. So we have to cool our heels and wait for the marble to come in, which, by the way, is back-ordered. I had no choice. I had to send the crew on to another job. Everything else in the house is on hold until we can install the counters."
Harmony took a deep breath, then nodded. "You're right. You're right. I'll talk to them."
"Great. And when you do that? Tell them if they change one more thing in the house, it's going to set back the final date for move in."
"I'll do that. Thanks for being so patient about this."
Jeff shrugged. "I'm used to it."
She finally noticed Barrett standing there and turned to him with a smile. "Good morning. You ready to see your house demolished?"
He returned her smile while he shook Jeff's hand. "Hopefully just the inside parts."
Jeff laughed. "Promise you we'll only take the pieces out that are supposed to come out. You're welcome to wield a sledgehammer if you'd like."
"No thanks. I'll stay out of the way and leave it to the experts."
"What?" Harmony said. "This is typically where all the homeowners want to dig in and destroy something."
"I've done plenty of renovating at my parents' house. I've slung my share of sledgehammers in my lifetime. I'll pass."
"Then come enjoy the destruction," Jeff said. "But if you change your mind, the sledgehammer is yours."
Barrett grinned. "Thanks. Or maybe Harmony will want to take a swing."
"Ha." She held up her cup. "I'll just sip and observe."
"My crew's already in the house and I'm heading that way," Jeff said. "Come on in when you're ready."
Jeff disappeared inside, while Barrett cocked his head to the side, taking in Harmony's black dress with white polka dots, along with her high heels. He tried not to notice her sleek, long legs or the way the dress cut across her breasts.
Too late. He already noticed.
"You're wearing that to a demo?"
She laughed. "It's not like I'm going to actually be doing the demo."
"Yeah, but it'll be dusty and dirty in there."
"Trust me. I know my way around a renovation. I'll stay out of the dust zones."
"Maybe you should wait outside. Or better yet, not be here."
Her lips quirked. "Trying to get rid of me, Barrett?"
"Nope. Just trying to look out for that pretty dress you're wearing."
"You noticed my dress."
Her smile nearly knocked him out. It was pure sex and promise. Damn her for being so desirable without even trying.
"I noticed your dress could get dirty. That's all."
"Uh-huh. Sure you did." She linked her arm through his. "Come on, hot stuff. Let's go inside and take a look at the magic happening."
They walked through the front door and into the main living area, which so far, was unscathed. All the action seemed to be happening in the back of the house, mainly in the kitchen.
"Come on this way," Harmony said, leading him into the dining area. "We'll be out of the way in here, but we can still watch."
Jeff had a crew of four in the kitchen, and as Barrett sipped his cup of coffee, he watched them do a total teardown in a matter of a half hour, from removing appliances to ripping out the cabinets and the countertops. Next to come up was the hideous floor.
"Impressive."
Harmony grinned. "I told you Jeff and his team were good."
Jeff came over. "We're about to take this wall down, so you two might want to either back away or make yourselves scarce. It's going to get dusty in here."
"That's our cue to leave," she said. "Thanks for the show, Jeff."
"Yeah, it was fun to watch," Barrett said. "Kitchen already looks larger."
"This whole place will look bigger in a few days once we take out some walls and flooring and start cutting out for windows."
Barrett nodded. "I'll check back in, but I don't want to get in your way."
"You won't be in the way," Jeff said. "It's your house. Come by anytime."
"Thanks."
He and Harmony walked outside.
"Do you want to come to my office so we can go over some design plans?" she asked.
"Sure."
He followed her over to her office and pulled in front of a nice storefront that had the name of her company--Evans Interior Design--etched on the front.
He met her at the door and opened it for her.
"Thanks."
Inside was an explosion of fabrics and tiles and books spread out on a large tabletop.
"Oh, you're here."
A young woman, probably around the same age as Harmony, approached her. She was petite, with dark hair pulled into a high ponytail and a gorgeous smile that she leveled in his direction.
"Rosalie, this is Barrett Cassidy. Barrett, this is my assistant, Rosalie Juarez."
Rosalie grinned and held out her hand. "I know who you are, Mr. Cassidy. I'm a big fan."
"Call me Barrett. Nice to meet you."
Rosalie nodded and turned her attention to Harmony. "The countertops are in on the Robinson project. I called the contractor to let them know. Delia Spring also called and is interested in doing a living room redesign. I told her you'd get back to her."
Harmony nodded. "Thanks, Rosalie. Can you get back to Delia and make an appointment with her? I think I have time tomorrow morning but double-check my calendar."
"Will do."
Harmony motioned to Barrett. "Come on back to my office and we'll go over some design features."
Her office was located in the back of the shop. Her desk was neat and tidy, with a laptop and pens and a pad of paper.
"Have a seat," she said, closing the door behind them.
The office had windows on all sides, and was spacious enough even for him. He pulled up a chair and instead of sitting behind the desk, she grabbed her laptop and pulled up the chair next to his.
"We'll start by going over a few items you'll need to select. Once I get an idea of your likes and dislikes, we'll take a look at some of the samples we have out in the showroom."
"Sure." He wasn't thrilled about being here and having to do this, but Harmony had told him on the phone that she wasn't going to pick his countertops or his flooring or paint color, so he was going to have to do it.
Fortunately, she had everything organized, so it went pretty fast. They were out in the showroom within an hour, where he chose the type of granite countertop he wanted, along with the flooring and backsplash--with Harmony's guidance, of course.
"I think you'll be happy with the porcelain tiles," she said, as she finished making notes in her tablet. "They have the look of hardwoods, but with your pool and all the rain we get, they'll hold up better."
"Agree."
"I think we'll wait on paint color in the kitchen and living area until the floors go down and the appliances and counters are in. It'll give us a better feel for how the space looks."
"You would know best."
She smiled up at him. "Why yes, I would."
He picked up his phone to check the time. "So are we done here?"
"Why? Anxious to get away from me?"
"No, actually, I have a thing to do today."
She arched a brow. "A thing?"
"It's a team thing. Not really a team thing, since I'm the only one doing it today."
"Okay, Barrett, you're being vague."
"Sorry. It's a community outreach program for at-risk teens. There's a facility near the stadium that the team supports."
"Oh, okay. I know that one well. Drake's involved with it, too. He's spoken there a few times. Great program. Are you giving a talk over there today?"
He nodded. "Yeah. Some of the kids are in a summer program, so I'm going to talk with them about sports--and
grades. I figure if you talk about sports to them, they might actually listen to how important school and grades are."
"That's fantastic. I'd love to go with you. I know the coordinator there."
"You do?"
"Yes. We went to college together. And we can grab some food while we're out."
He liked how she'd inserted the "we'll eat together, too" part of the day. "Are you sure your schedule will allow that?"
Her lips curved. "Still trying to get away from me?"
"No. I just don't want to make you late for any appointments."
"Trust me, Barrett. I know exactly where I'm supposed to be at any given time. I've got time for this. Plus, I want to see what you do with these kids."
He shrugged, knowing he wasn't going to get out of bringing her along. "Sure. Let's go. It'll be fun."
More time with the seductress in her sweet dress, while he tried not to ogle her sexy legs in front of middle school kids.
Yeah, it'd be about as fun as a hard-on with no relief in sight.
Ten
Harmony knew she'd backed Barrett into a corner by inviting herself along to the community center. But she'd actually wanted to go. She hadn't seen her friend Lachelle in a long time. Both of them had hefty schedules, plus Lachelle had eighteen-month-old twin boys, so trying to get a night out with her friend was nearly impossible these days.
So when she walked through the doors of the community center, she couldn't help the smile on her face or the way she leaned into Barrett. She was so excited to see her friend.
"Lachelle and I were roommates freshman year at Florida State," she said to Barrett as they waited at the front desk. "We became friends right away, and were inseparable through all our years of college together."
Barrett grinned. "Like Drake and me."
"Yes. Exactly like that. Though she majored in social work and I did interior design. We didn't exactly have sports in common like you and Drake did."
"Your brother and I didn't share the same major. Drake did media studies and I did political science. The difference in our majors had no effect on our friendship. I think Drake and I would have been friends even if we hadn't had football in common."
Harmony adored how much Barrett loved her brother. It was one of the things she admired the most about him. He was loyal to Drake, and Drake hadn't experienced much in the way of loyalty and friendship growing up. There were the guys in gangs who had claimed to be his friends, who wanted him--no, more like coaxed him--to be a part of what they considered their brotherhood. To someone like Drake, who had been displaced and had grown up fatherless, that kind of male leadership had appealed.
Mama had told him absolutely not and had told him she'd kick his ass. Fortunately, he'd had football to focus on, to keep him honest and straight. Along with Mama, who had been fierce with her love as well as her discipline.
Once out of high school and into college, he'd had football, his studies and loyal friends like Barrett to keep him focused.
She was grateful.
"He's lucky to have someone like you in his life."
"I don't know. I've always felt like the lucky one."
Harmony got an inkling right then of why Barrett was so hesitant to do anything with her. Barrett had to know how protective Drake was over the family, and especially her. Barrett was also protective of his friendship with Drake and wouldn't want to do anything to jeopardize it. And she'd never want to do that, either.
But he was also going to have to understand she was her own woman, with a life separate from her brother's.
It was going to be a dilemma.
"Harmony."
She turned to see Lachelle walking toward her. She didn't know how her friend did it with everything going on in her life, but she was gorgeous, with her long black hair in dreads and her painted red lips and her long legs encased in a sunny copper dress. She looked as bright and beautiful as she had back in college.
"Girl, it has been too long," Harmony said.
Harmony embraced her friend in a tight hug.
"I know," Lachelle said. "Totally my fault. Between Davis and the twins and work, I'm buried. I'm so sorry I had to cancel our girls night out a few weeks ago."
"Don't even worry about it. Next time we'll do a playdate on a Saturday with you and the kids. I want to see them anyway."
"Sounds like a plan. And then we'll leave the kids with Davis and we'll go have margaritas."
Harmony grinned. "An even better plan."
Lachelle turned to Barrett. "I'm sorry, Barrett. It was rude of me to ignore you."
Barrett gave Lachelle a wide smile. "Not a problem. I know better than to get in the way of two friends getting reacquainted."
"This much is true. Anyway, I'm so glad you came today. The kids are so excited to see you."
"I'm looking forward to seeing them."
"Then let's get started. Why don't you head to the gym, and I'll gather up the kids."
Harmony went with Barrett into the gym. Bleachers were set up and Barrett had a podium with a built-in microphone.
"Nervous?" she asked.
He let out a short laugh. "No. I've done this before. And I like kids. They're always honest and will tell you exactly what's on their minds."
She turned to face him. "So you prefer someone being forthright. Telling you what they want. What they're thinking."
"Yeah. Makes it easier, don't you think?"
"Absolutely."
She was about to tell him exactly what she wanted, but the doors opened and an influx of middle schoolers poured in.
Definitely not the right time. She stepped away so Barrett and Lachelle could take the podium.
Once all the kids had taken seats on the bleachers, Lachelle stepped up to the podium and the microphone.
"Good afternoon. As you know, we often have industry leaders and people who we feel can relate to what you're all going through. Today, I'm so pleased to introduce Barrett Cassidy, a player with our own Tampa Bay Hawks."
There was loud applause, and, Harmony noted, squeals from the girls.
She couldn't blame them.
Barrett came out from behind the podium.
"I speak loud enough; I don't think I'll need the microphone."
He got close to the kids and pulled out one of the metal chairs, sitting down in front of them.
"I'm not going to blow smoke up your asses and tell you all that I know what any of you have been through."
Harmony looked over at Lachelle, who shrugged at Barrett's use of profanity.
Whatever it took to reach them, she supposed.
"I didn't grow up in poverty, or in foster care, or homeless, or in any of the situations I know many of you have faced. I know a lot of you are sports fans, so you know my family name. You know who my father is, who my brothers are, and where I come from. I had it easy growing up. I got to go to great schools and an amazing college here in Florida. But I've known a lot of my brothers on the team who did grow up like you. And I learned a lot of my work ethic from them, as well as from my father, who did come from poverty. And he taught all of his sons to never take anything for granted. That it's not just all about sports and money and how to make a quick buck. It's about what's in your head as much as it is what's on the playing field.
"He taught all of us to pay attention, to learn, that using your head to get ahead is what's most important. Does that make sense to any of you?"
He got a lot of nods.
"Look, I know it may seem easy to steal, or to want to use your bodies or your hands and feet in whatever way you can to make money. But it's a temporary thing. If you want to be successful in life, the best way to do that is to use your brain. It'll last a lot longer than your body will."
"But that's not what you did, is it?"
Harmony tracked the voice, someone on the far top tier of the bleachers.
Instead of calling out whoever said it, Barrett said, "You mean because I chose football as a career?"
&nbs
p; There were a lot of nods and yeahs from the crowd.
"I can see why you'd think that. But if you look at my background, you'd also know that I graduated college with a 4.0 GPA. I graduated, unlike a lot of athletes, whose only desire in college is to see how fast they can get drafted into their professional sport. My degree is in political science. I know that my body will only last so long on the football field. I've known a lot of rookies who got injured their first or second years. Career-ending injuries, and all their dreams died on the football field. I'm smarter than that. I'm investing my earnings and I have a plan for my post-football career.
"It's important to think beyond who you are today to what you can do with your life. You maybe started out your lives with disadvantages, but that doesn't mean you have to stay down. You aren't a product of your past any more than I am. I had a great upbringing and many advantages. So did a lot of athletes. I've seen a lot of those athletes piss away those advantages on drugs, bad investments and bad decisions. Bad decisions can cost you your future. You're at the crossroads of your future right now. You're in charge of your lives right here. Today. Good choices and smart thinking can turn your lives around. All you have to do is make smart decisions. No one can live your life for you or make those decisions for you."
Harmony was so impressed. Barrett was doing an amazing job, letting these kids know that their futures were in their own hands, that they could do anything if they wanted to.
"He's very good at this," Lachelle whispered to her.
"Yes, he is."
"You'd be surprised how many athletes come in here and talk smack to these kids about sports, and how they need to be physically fit and get out there and play ball and it's all bs," Lachelle said. "That's not what they need to hear. They need to hear exactly what Barrett is telling them. To use their minds, to think about their futures."
Lachelle was right. Harmony had been surrounded by plenty of troubled kids growing up. She wished some of them had heard Barrett's speech. It might have saved a few from walking the wrong path.
Then again, she also believed in choice. And some of them were going to make the wrong choice no matter what.
Barrett took questions and there were a lot of them. He handled them all perfectly, and Lachelle stepped in and helped when Barrett didn't know the answers. Then he surprised all of them with tickets to one of the Hawks preseason games for them and their families. Everyone excitedly cheered.
It took Lachelle a while to get them settled down, especially since Barrett insisted on spending time chatting one-on-one with any of the kids who wanted to, which was quite a few of them.