Page 33 of Hunted Hearts
Her stomach flipped. She was used to audiences, used to crowds—even used to the flash of cameras. But this was different.Personal. These were Theo’s people. Hisfamily.
The door opened, and cool air charged in. Juliette smoothed a hand over her hair and stepped out. She tucked her sweater around herself, her heels crunching on the gravel as her gaze darted over the waiting group…
Then flashed to her name in neon lights anchored on the porch railing.
Just her first name, in the same script as all the signs that traveled with her to various concert halls. The neon pale blue cast a circle on the shrubbery, and across the rough leather boots of several men standing there waiting to greet her.
She wassoout of her element, standing here in a long gown and high heels. The only thing country about her right now was her favorite cardigan sweater wrapped around her, and even that was cashmere.
A woman with a glossy sheet of dark hair stepped forward first, her smile easy and warm. “We don’t have a balcony for Juliette,” she said, voice lilting with humor, “but we do have a really nice porch.”
Juliette blinked. Shakespeare. Of course.
She turned her head in time to see Theo pinch the bridge of his nose. Their gazes met, and they groaned in unison.
“Thanks, Willow,” Theo muttered. “Juliette, my sister Willow.”
Willow’s grin widened. “I’m so thrilled to meet you. Of course I’m a big fan, but you probably hear that all the time.”
Juliette found herself smiling at the woman’s genuine warmth.
“Actually, the sign was Aspen’s idea. She does all the special touches for fancy moments—she’s got connections like you wouldn’tbelieve. She and Colt are still in Tahoe, but when she heard Theo was bringing you here, she had this whole setup rush-shipped.”
Juliette’s brows shot up. “How…? Who evenhasthose kinds of connections?” Her assistant wouldloveto get her hands on whoever this Aspen person was. If she could pull together areception like this in a few hours, she could probably solve world hunger by breakfast.
One by one, Theo introduced his brothers and sisters-in-law, but no way could she keep track of everybody’s names.
It was…a lot. A warm welcome, yes, but overwhelming. Juliette had already spent the entire day in a blur—evacuation, security briefings, the private jet. Now here, in a world so far from hers it may as well have been another planet.
By the time Theo guided her inside and down a long hallway with a polished wood floor to a guest room, she was barely functioning. He set her bag by the dresser and turned to her.
“You’ve got to be pretty beat. But you can relax. You don’t have to worry about security here.”
She nodded but only once, because the room was starting to spin from her exhaustion.
He raked his fingers through his hair and murmured something about sleeping as long as she liked, but she barely heard him. The bed looked like heaven, and the second her body hit the mattress, sleep claimed her.
The sound of thumping woke her what felt like only minutes later—low, rhythmic, deliberate. She blinked at the soft light seeping around the curtains. Dawn filled the sky.
It took a moment to process the sound. Hard rock music blasted through her wall, along with the tap of feet on the floor.
Theo was jumping rope.
Ofcoursehe was already awake, already working his body like they hadn’t both crawled off the same flight after surviving the same chaos. Was he human? Or some kind of relentless automaton wrapped in muscle?
Her phone screen glared brightly up at her when she reached for it, the time far too early for her liking. She groaned and opened her shopping app, half on autopilot as she found theitem she was searching for. But when she went to check out, she realized she didn’t even know the ranch’s address.
Frustration pushed her out of bed. She threw a silk robe over the panties she slept in.
The scent of coffee drifting through the house lured her down toward the kitchen, where another woman stood at the counter, dark-haired and poised, pouring sugar into her own steaming mug.
The woman turned, her smile bright. “You must be Juliette.”
She gave her a gracious smile and nodded.
“I’m Aspen.”
“Nice to meet you.”
