She patted his cheek. “Where’d you disappear to?”
“Out back. Your vegetable garden is looking healthy.”
“And don’t think of running off with my tomatoes.”
He laughed. “You know me so well, Mama Diane.”
“Yes, I do. You hungry?”
“Always.”
“You boys are always hungry. Dinner will be ready soon.”
“Thank you.”
He winded his way over to the sofas, where there was a fierce game of war going on. At least on the television. Drake was in the middle of the action, killing aliens along with Bubba Sinclair and Lionel “Mean Man” Taylor, both part of the Tampa defense. It was almost always defensive players over for dinner on Thursday nights when they were in town.
Defense was king. It’s why he’d always loved being part of a defense. Keeping the other team from scoring was what he did best.
And all these guys were beasts.
He loved them as much as he loved his job.
He couldn’t wait for the season to start. Tampa was going to kick some ass this year.
Barrett watched the battle until a skirmish was completed. During a break, Drake leaned back on the sofa, tilting his head back. “You want in on this?”
“No, I’m good.”
“Afraid I’ll kick your ass?”
Barrett laughed. “I think you know better than that.”
“Oh, I do, do I? Get said ass over here and let’s see who’s better.”
“You all turn that off now,” Mama Diane hollered. “Dinner’s ready.”
In an instant, the game was turned off, and so was the TV. They all gathered in the oversized dining room at the huge table—one of Mama Diane’s few requests once she’d acquiesced on the new house.
It was stuffed pork chops tonight, one of Barrett’s favorites, along with green beans, amazing mashed potatoes and baked apples.
Barrett made it a point to sit next to Drake, and as far away from Harmony as possible.
She shot a smirk in his direction when she took her seat at the opposite end of the table, as if she knew exactly why he’d chosen that spot.
She could think what she wanted to. The farther away Harmony stayed, the better.
He concentrated on his food, and the conversation about this season.
“Where’s that fine boyfriend of yours, Harmony?” Mama asked.
Harmony lifted her chin. “We broke up.”
“What? Why?”
Harmony focused on her dinner. “From what he told me, it was more about his business, and he didn’t have much time to spend with me.”
Barrett watched Drake lay down his fork. “Wait a minute. Levon broke up with you?”
“Yes, Drake. He broke up with me.”
“What the—” Drake, ever mindful of the no-cursing rule in Mama’s house, restrained himself. He picked up his fork and waved it at Harmony. “I need to have a talk with that man. Tell him how to appreciate what a fine treasure he had in you.”
Harmony leveled a glare at Drake. “No. You do not need to interfere. It’s over between Levon and me.”
“Did he hurt you?”
“He hurt my feelings. That’s about it.”
“Then I’ll have a talk with him.”
“No, you need to leave it alone, Drake.”
Drake looked over at Barrett. “I’ll be having a discussion with Levon.”
The one thing Barrett knew about Drake was that he was extremely overprotective of Harmony. Yet another reason he would never get involved with Harmony.
Not to mention the guy code.
Fortunately, the conversation soon turned to football.
“Look, we started out strong last season, and finished weak,” Drake said. “We’ll have to do better even before this season starts. Drafts and free agency helped, and we’ve all worked hard getting our bodies ready during the off-season.”
“Everyone’s healthy this year,” Mean Man said. “That’s gonna work to our advantage.”
Barrett nodded. “I’m ready. We’re all ready. We’re solid going into summer workouts.”
“I don’t know about the rest of you, but I’m itching for the upcoming season,” Mama Diane said. “I can hardly wait for the games to start. How about you, Harmony?”
Harmony nodded. “Absolutely. Wouldn’t miss it. I expect you guys to be good this year.”
“We’re always good.”
She shot a look over at Barrett. “Prove it.”
The guys all laughed.
“She’s looking at you, Barrett,” Drake said. “There’d better be some takeaways.”
Barrett met Harmony’s gaze. “There will be.”
“I’m counting on a strong defense this year,” Mama Diane said.
The conversation continued over dinner—and after—when the guys piled into the kitchen with the plates and bowls to clean up.
The one thing everyone understood was, if you came for dinner, you were responsible for cleanup.