Page 76 of Hunted Hearts
“I see them,” he muttered. “What the hell are they doing here?”
“They paid five hundred dollars each to spend a few minutes talking to Juliette before she performs.”
“Over my dead body,” he gritted out, watching the couples approach.
Denver took hold of the situation by stepping in front of Theo and forcing him to meet his stare. “Theo, you’re going to let them into the room. It’s in the plan.”
“Fuck the plan.”
“Denver, get hold of our brother before I come down there and wring his neck myself,” Colt said into both of their comms devices.
Denver’s brow hitched upward. “Quit glaring at the people. You’re going to scare them away.”
“Good.”
“Listen to me. We’re going to smile at these people and allow them into Juliette’s dressing room. We have to leave her alone so we can set the trap.”
Theo sliced a hand through the air, his agitation running off the charts. He pushed past Denver, his shoulder thudding into his brother’s hard one as he planted himself firmly in front of Juliette’s door.
The two couples moving toward them had been chattering with an excited air. But when they saw Theo standing in front of the door, their talk faded to silence.
He leveled the first of the men in his stare. Theo outweighed the guy by fifty pounds of muscle and could crush him with a single blow of his fist if it came to it. But he didn’t exactly give off a dangerous vibe either, dressed in his sleek suit and polished shoes, his hair slicked back.
He shifted his attention to the second man, equally sleek. He oozed wealth with his designer watch, but Theo knew that criminals came from all walks of life. He’d seen it too many times in the military to trust so easily.
The men looked uncomfortable but said nothing. One of the women wearing an elegant red gown stepped forward.
“We’re here to meet Juliette.” She spread her hands out in the shape of the sign that spelled out Juliette’s name in lights as if she was drawing it in the air.
This one had to be Juliette’s stalker. The one who entered her dressing room in London and swapped her pills, then later sent flowers with a scorpion concealed in the blooms.
He took a menacing step toward the woman, but Denver clamped his hand on his shoulder. Hard. His fingers bit into the muscle.
“Of course,” Denver said before Theo could send the group back to their seats. “Do you have your VIP passes?”
“Right here.” The woman reached into her red beaded bag and withdrew four small passes that Aspen had printed out back at the ranch. They were professional enough to become souvenir collectibles.
Theo reached to take the passes, but Denver grabbed them before he could. He gave the passes a cursory glance before clenching tighter on Theo’s shoulder.
“We’re going to let them into the dressing room now,” he muttered.
Theo inflated his lungs to bursting and let the air out in a hot gust. He stiffly stepped away from the door.
When Denver rapped lightly on it, Juliette’s voice came muffled from within.
“Yes?”
“The VIPs are here to see you.”
A beat passed, and suddenly the door swung inward. Juliette stood there in full dress, her makeup impeccable despite not having her artist here. She’d pinned her hair back on the sides, with a few loose tendrils floating around her delicate jaw.
Her stare panned over the group before landing on Theo. He took a step toward her, but Denver blocked his way.
“Hello! Would you like to come in and sit down?” Juliette breezed out to cover the moment. She flung the door wide, and the gentlemen ushered their dates into the room first.
Juliette turned her head, and her warm glance stroked over Theo before she closed the door.
Theo raked his fingers through his hair. “I don’t like this.”
