Unexpected Rush (Play-By-Play #11)(89)

“I’m pissed off about it because you didn’t have the decency to tell me you wanted to date my sister when it first started. I thought we respected each other. What did you do? Start screwing her and decide if it didn’t work out, no harm no foul? I didn’t need to know?”

Shit. He reached out for his friend. “Drake. It’s not like that.”

Drake slapped his hand away. “Fuck you. It’s exactly like that. I can’t believe you. I thought we were friends.”

Barrett mentally counted to ten. His friendship with Drake was important, and he didn’t want to get into a fight with him, but Drake wasn’t seeing things clearly.

“This is between Harmony and me. It always was. We wanted to keep it between us at the beginning. I’m sorry that hurts you. That’s not what I intended.”

“No, I know exactly what you intended. You intended to screw her, then screw over our friendship by not telling me you were seeing my sister. Hell, you didn’t even ask me what I thought about it. What the hell, man?”

Barrett threaded his fingers through his hair. “It really was between Harmony and me. I’m telling you now.”

“You’re telling me too late.”

Now Barrett was angry, and he knew it was the wrong thing, but goddammit, he didn’t need to ask Drake’s permission to date Harmony.

He stood. “Look. I know you’re pissed, and you have a right to be because I should have talked to you about Harmony when things first started up between us. But I didn’t need to ask your permission to see her.”

He started to approach, and Drake shoved him.

And that was enough. Barrett shoved back.

He was trying so damn hard to keep his cool. “Come on, man. We don’t need to get into this.”

Drake had a fistful of his shirt in his hands. “Fuck you, Barrett. You know what? I trusted you, and I don’t trust a lot of people. Damn you for violating that.”

“You can f*cking let go of me now.”

The door flew open and everyone spilled out, from his teammates to Mama Diane to the last person he wanted out here—Harmony.

“Drake,” Harmony said. “What the hell is wrong with you? Let him go.”

Drake sent a scathing look to Harmony. “Stay out of this.”

Their teammates got in the middle of them and pulled them apart.

“It’s okay,” Barrett said to them. “It’s okay. We’re okay.”

“Leave me the hell alone,” Drake said to the other guys.

But Harmony didn’t leave him alone. She shoved at Drake’s chest. “Are you out of your mind?”

“What is wrong with you, Drake?” Mama Diane asked. “Barrett is your best friend.”

“Is he? Ask him what he did to Harmony.”

Mama looked over at Barrett, then to Harmony. “What is he talking about?”

“Could we please not do this in front of . . . everyone?” Harmony asked.

“All of you, go inside,” Mama Diane said, shooing them with her hands. “This is family business.”

After she cleared the patio, she stood between Barrett and Drake. “Now, talk.”

“He’s screwing Harmony,” Drake said.

Harmony rolled her eyes. “It’s not like that, Mama.”

“It’s exactly like that,” Drake said. “And it’s been going on for months.”

“I told you that’s not how it is, Drake.” God, this had been such a bad idea. He should have gone to Drake’s house to have this discussion. They might have gotten into a brawl, but at least Harmony wouldn’t be embarrassed. “What happened between Harmony and me shouldn’t have been your business in the first place. I didn’t need your permission to do anything with her.”

Drake lunged for him, but Harmony stood between them. “This is ridiculous. It’s not the Dark Ages. I do not need you to come between me and any man.”

“He’s not the right one for you,” Drake said.

“Drake,” Mama Diane said, her voice low and warning. “Mind your words.”

“Really,” Barrett said, deciding he’d had just about enough. “And what makes you think that?”

“Because any man who would screw his best friend’s little sister has no honor. And she’s just as bad as you.”

And just about became more than enough. He moved around Harmony and went for Drake, pushing him against the wall and pinning him with sheer force of will and strength. “Do not ever f*cking talk about Harmony that way again.”

Drake threw a punch, connecting with Barrett’s shoulder. He felt the shock of pain, and retaliated with a punch of his own to Drake’s head. Drake shoved him hard and he fell, and suddenly Drake was on top of him.

He didn’t hear anyone else. It was only him and Drake rolling around on the ground together, shoving each other but not getting any more punches in, since they both had death grips on each other.

He finally heard Mama Diane yelling, and suddenly their teammates were on them, pulling them apart.

The first thing he saw when he was pulled up off the ground was Harmony, tears streaming down her face. Her friend Alyssa had her arms wrapped around her.

Barrett pulled free of his teammates, but it wasn’t Drake he wanted to go to. It was Harmony.