“Hold your fire. Guns down.”

The man that had checked Owen for weapons grabbed my arm and pulled me against his chest. I wasn’t sure if he was intending to use me as a human shield or if he thought having control over me equaled control over Owen. If it was the latter thought then our ruse wasn’t worth playing any longer. Hoping that wasn’t the case I fought against him, but I couldn’t break away. Owen’s eyes darted to me before lowering his gun. With a few quick movements he dropped the clip and kicked it across the room before flipping the gun over in his hand and bringing the butt down across the kneeling man’s temple. The bodyguard crumpled to the floor with no sound. Owen calmly set the gun down on the table next to him before putting his hands on the back of his head.

“Well, you always did enjoy making an entrance.” A man stepped down the stairs around the armed guards. His hair was lighter and his eyes were blue, not the bright green of Owen’s, but there was no denying they were brothers. They shared the same nose and body build, but there was something softer and more metrosexual to Marcus. As if he had polished off all of Owen’s rougher edges. I’m sure he had meant to give himself a more relatable, relaxed businessman vibe, but instead he looked oily and untrustworthy.

“I’ve always known how to get your attention.” Owen lowered his arms. “We need to talk.”

“I’ll bet you have a lot to say.” Marcus tucked his hands into his suit pockets and smiled.

Owen didn’t respond, just looked at his brother with a steady gaze, and I wondered what was going through his mind. Regret? Curiosity? Anger? All of those? Maybe remorse? His features were settled into a blank look as if he was completely unfazed and unbothered by everything going on around him.

“Take the girl downstairs.” Marcus looked over at me. His eyes ran over my body in a slow perusal. “Contact Maria’s people.”

“Who is Maria? What the hell do you want with me?” I struggled against the man holding me, my voice coming out in pants. The thought of being taken somewhere called the ‘Stables’ made my blood freeze. “What are you going to do to me?”

“Relax.” Marcus smiled at me, but it didn’t reach his eyes. “We’re just holding you for a little while. If you’re still here by dinner, I’ll even invite you to dine with me.”

“Who is Maria?” I yelled again as I fought the man trying to take me out of the room.

“She stays until we have a deal.” Owen never took his eyes off his brother and I tried to curtail my panic. He wouldn’t let them hurt me. He wouldn’t, I reminded myself. “I’m not the brother that put a price on the other ones head.”

“Fine. She stays.” Marcus looked at the men on the stairs. “He wouldn’t kill me. Leave us.”

“Sir?” The man holding me dropped my arms and I almost fell to the ground. He obviously didn’t agree with his boss’s decision. I pushed myself back into a standing position and jerked further away from the man. Owen still didn’t look at me and I was glad. I’m not sure why I did it. What possessed me to do it. Maybe it was the need to do something, the need to point my fear in some direction. Maybe it was to try and make our cover story look even more real. But no, I didn’t give it that much thought. I just took a step forward and slammed my fist into Owen’s side as hard as I could.

“You’re an asshole!”

He ‘oofed’ under his breath but barely moved. Marcus on the other hand laughed while the men with the large guns dropped them to their sides and filed out of the room.

Owen still didn’t look at me, which scared me. He wasn’t angry, or confused. He looked bored, as bored as his brother. Who could be bored in the middle of a situation like this? People were just waiting to shoot us—or worse.

“You really brought her here to trade?” Marcus walked toward me and ran his eyes over my cleavage and down my backside. I turned to keep him in my eyesight, afraid of what he might do if I couldn’t see him. There was lust in his eyes, but worse: there was calculation. Like a farmer at market, judging a new cow. He trailed his fingers down my arm and across my stomach. “Had a bit of fun first though, huh? Told her sweet nothings, took her for a ride, and then brought her here to me. I knew you were a cold fish, brother.”

I glared at Marcus even though my stomach was rolling. I told Owen I trusted him and I knew he had a part to play. I wouldn’t freak out just because Marcus seemed to be buying it.

“Why did you put a price on my head?” Owen stepped away from me as if he thought I might cling to his arm.

“You were in my way.” Marcus shrugged. “I needed the girl. And you had her.”

“You put a five million pound bounty on my head to collect a forty thousand dollar profit? Not buying it,” Owen said.

“Worth it not have to deal with you,” Marcus spat.

“You could have called.” Owen raised an eyebrow.

“What? And play Russian Roulette with your sweet conscience? No.” Marcus leaned against the wall with one shoulder. “No. I needed something that would ensure you would bring her in.”

“Who set up the contract?” Owen kept his hands at his sides as if assuring Marcus that he was harmless.

“Local business woman.” Marcus picked up one of Owen’s knives from the table and looked it over. “She’s quite the entrepreneur.”