He looked down at Gentry, and from the second her eyes locked with his, she felt adrift at sea. His eyes were dark and mysterious, like a deep well where all the secrets of the universe could be found. He looked like a man who contemplated life to the fullest, to the detail. He was strong, he was stoic, and he was righteous. She could sense the goodness in him, despite his intimidating exterior.
“Thank you so much for stepping in,” Gentry broke in. “Seriously.”
“I don’t think those dummies would’ve pulled anything too crazy, but I’m glad we could get them out of your hair,” said Seth. “This is my partner, Lincoln, by the way.”
Gentry tilted her head to one side. “Partner?” she asked, confused.
Seth chuckled. “In crime.”
“More likeagainstcrime,” Lincoln said pointedly. “We’re cops.”
“Oh,” Gentry said, relieved. “No wonder you handled everything so well.”
“Oh, those guys? Hardly anything to handle there,” Seth joked slyly.
“Lucky for them they were smart enough to go quietly,” added Linc.
“I almost feel bad for the guys,” Seth said, smirking. “Your voice is so incredible I can hardly blame them for wanting to get a closer seat.”
“Truly, your talent is… well, let’s just say they don’t make them like you anymore,” agreed Linc. His dark eyes burned with heat, something akin to desire.
Gentry blushed again and looked away. What kind of spell did these guys have over her? Gentry was not shy. She was not a shrinking violet. And yet, Seth and Linc had her as twitterpated as a lovesick schoolgirl. But surely the attraction was all in her head, right?
“Thank you. I feel like I’d never be able to thank you guys enough,” Gentry said.
“I’m sure we could work something out,” Seth teased with a wink.
Lincoln gave him a quick, stern glance. “We’re just happy to see you’re alright.”
“Much better than alright, now that you two are here,” Gentry heard herself saying. She was shocked at her own forwardness—who was she? What were these raging hormones doing to her? Was she really hitting on two men at once? And not just regular men, but police officers who had just saved her life?
But before their three-way flirtation could go any further, the side stage door flung open with a dramatic crunch, and Ricky came rushing backstage. He hurried right up to Gentry and put an arm around her shoulders, squeezing her tight. He planted a sloppy kiss on the side of her head and started fussing over her.
“Geez, what a disaster!” he complained. “Those guys really put a damper on things, huh? But don’t you worry! This won’t have any negative effect on you or your career, I swear. I’m gonna make this right, Gentry. I promise.”
“It’s okay, Ricky. Really. It’s not your fault,” she assured him.
“Are you the owner, sir?” Lincoln inserted.
Ricky looked at the cops finally, like he had just realized they were there. “The owner? Oh no. I just work here. I’m Gentry’s manager,” he said, puffing up his chest.
Seth and Linc looked bemused by the manic, sleazy guy.
“And you must be the guys who saved my little songstress! Great work, boys. Can’t thank you enough. But if you’ll excuse us, I need to get Miss Gentry ready for the next set,” Ricky said, all very quickly. He began to steer Gentry toward the dressing room.
“It was nice to meet you!” Gentry called back to them.
“Same to you,” Seth said. “Hey, maybe we’ll come back. Say, tomorrow night?”
“That would be amazing!” Gentry gasped.
“Maybe next time there won’t be any rude interruptions,” added Linc.
“Uh-huh. One-time thing, for sure. Won’t happen again. You can tell everyone I said that,” Ricky insisted. “Anyways, it was nice to meet you boys. Have a good night!”
“Wait a minute,” Linc commanded. Ricky stopped in his tracks.
Linc came strolling up and handed Gentry a business card. It was glossy, with the name Officer Lincoln Granger on it, along with a phone number.