I rang the bell incessantly. “Answer the fucking door, Marcus.”

He’d asked me to come here after the meeting; I would’ve thought he’d at least have the good grace to be expecting me. The car was in the drive and none of his drivers had heard from him, so I knew he was home. I slammed on the door hard enough to rattle the seams. “Come on, you twat.”

I dialled his number and tried calling. It went straight to voicemail, again. What the hell was he up to?

I looked up at the grand Clapham house as I stepped back down the path. It stood in a prominent central position with views over the common. There was no way I’d get through the windows unnoticed. It had houses on either side so I couldn’t get to the back door without garden hopping. The large bay windows showed no signs of life.

Walking back to the front door, I tried the bell again. A faint shadow appeared at the top of the stairs through the opaque glass and I knocked on the door harder. “Finally.”

The shadow approached and Marcus shouted through. “Alright, don’t break the fucker down.”

“I wouldn’t have to if you’d fucking answer it.”

He flicked the latch, and the door opened. The sound of thrash metal greeted me before he did. Marcus answered in just his jeans. Deep scars laced his chest and intricate tattoos wove each of them into a maze of black and white skin. I’d asked him about his scars before but he’d changed the subject. From the look of them, there wasn’t a pleasant story behind it. I didn’t broach it again.

He laughed as soon as he saw me. “What the fuck happened to you?”

“Olivia Romano.”

He chuckled as he started back into the house. I shut the door and followed him to the kitchen. It was a massive room. Fitted out with black gloss units and top of the range appliances. A kitchen that would be the envy of any world class chef, yet, it was probably never used a day in its life. Marcus wasn’t the domestic type. He pulled two glasses from a cupboard, retrieved a half empty bottle of bourbon from the counter top, and stood opposite me at the centre island.

“How did it go? I mean,”—he gestured at my shirt—“apart from the obvious.”

“As expected, more or less. They’re after contacts and stock to cover the Manchester shipment. I take it that was your doing?”

“Of course.” He held a hand over his chest and took a theatrical bow.

I chuckled and shook my head. “You stole their shipment just to get me in a meeting with them?” When it came to business, he was nothing if not creative.

He poured the glasses and slid one over. “It worked, and we get extra stock to boot. Win, win.”

“If it hadn’t worked?”

His eyes creased with amusement. “Then we would incur the full terror of Gian and go ahead, anyway.”

I huffed. “Remind me never to cross you.”

“You never would.” He took a sip then smiled. “So, which do you think? Not that I haven’t already worked out the answer.”

“Olivia is the one to go for, definitely.” Her face flashed into my mind, and I imagined the satisfaction I’d get from breaking her. I couldn’t wait to thank her for the meeting we had this morning.

“Knew you’d say that. I’ve heard she’s… spirited.”

I laughed and gestured to my shirt. “That’s one word for it.”

“Okay. Make your arrangements to pick her up.”

“She’ll need a lot of work.” I raised my glass to him and took a sip, savouring the heat and thought of what was to come. “But it’ll be so much fun.”

He cleared his throat and glared. That comment annoyed him. “This isn’t about you getting your rocks off, y’know? There is a reason behind it.”

“I know, but… win, win.”

He shook his head and stared into his glass. “She’s not like the other girls.”

“You can say that again.”

He looked back up with a stern scowl. “I’m serious. Take her, but don’t hurt her. And don’t touch her.”

Why would he say that? He’d never questioned my training tactics before. “You know me, Marcus. I only take things as far as they make me.”

“I trust you, Aaron, but be careful with this one.”

“Consider me cautioned.”

He grabbed the bottle and headed towards the kitchen door. “Come on, I’ve got some friends I’d like you to meet.”

I followed him out of the kitchen and up the sprawling staircase to the first floor. The music grew louder as we climbed. He opened the door to one of the back rooms and gestured me inside.

As I walked in, I was greeted by the cooing of three semi-naked girls draped over the sofas lining the walls of the room. A blonde in a pink basque and stockings laid with her hooker heels up against the back and smiled. The two brunettes lounged in their underwear studying me with interest. By the look of the half empty glasses and bottles that littered the place, the four of them had been partying all night.

“Who’s your friend?” The blonde called over the music to Marcus.

“Aaron, meet Tinker bell, Trixy and TeQuila.”

“It’s Tamara, Roxy and Bailey,” she laughed.

He scowled at her. “No one fucking cares.”

I turned to Marcus and raised an eyebrow. “This is why you turned off your phone?”

He shrugged. “A guy’s gotta relax somehow.”

I sighed and headed over to the far sofa. It was the only one unoccupied. Marcus moved a girls leg, sat on the one next to mine and pulled the glass coffee table towards him. The open bottles and half drunk glasses shook as he dragged it closer. In the centre was a small, ceramic bowl filled to the brim with cocaine. He picked up a credit card, scooped out a fair share and racked up lines. I knocked back the rest of the bourbon and placed the glass on the table, spotting the remote for the MP3 player as I did. I grabbed it and eased down the volume. The girls moaned in protest.

“Shut the fuck up,” Marcus snapped at them, then looked at me and gestured to the lines he was cutting. “Are you partaking?”

I shook my head.

“Well, you’re a real fucking buzzkill today, aren’t you?”

“I’ve got to go out. One of us works around here.”

“Are you heading back to the farm?”

“No, I need to stay here tonight. I’m heading into town to watch our new girl.”

“You installed the tracker?”

I threw my hands up. “Who are you fucking talking to? Of course I did. That was the whole point,” I laughed. “Actually, she couldn’t have made it any easier. Her phone was on the table, the Bluetooth was switched on. All I had to do was search and press instal. Even you could’ve done it.”

He smiled. “I love it when a plan comes together.” Picking up the straw from the table he took a line. Then pushed the table back to the centre as he squinted his eyes and pinched his fingers against the burn in his nose. “Your turn, girls.”

They rushed to their knees and crowded on the floor, giggling while they held back their hair and shared their cut.

He sat back and ruffled his greying hair. “What happened with the shirt?”

I threw my head back and laughed hard as I remembered. “You’re gonna love this. Milena proposed that she would get you in the Syndicate, as in, to combine efforts and take on Europe.”

His chin dropped as he huffed. “You’re fucking kidding? She said that?”

“I shit you not. The whole we’re stronger together spiel.”

He shook his head. “I wish I could’ve been there for that.”

“It gets better. Olivia had no clue she was going to do this. She ranted at her sister in the middle of the club.”

“At which point, you wind her up to make things worse. Yeah, I’m getting the picture.”

I kissed my teeth and cocked my head to the side. “I may have dropped a comment or two, you know me.”

“And it didn’t end well for your shirt.”

I laughed. “No, she threw her drink over me and walked out. She’s… interesting.”

He gave me a wry smile. “She’s a handful.”

“Nothing I can’t handle.”

He glanced around the room before turning back with narrowed eyes. “Is she hot?”

“You wouldn’t believe.” My head sunk to the back of the sofa and I closed my eyes as I pictured her. “She’s stunning. Long, brown hair, olive skin, these fucking knowing green eyes that look like they’re hiding the filthiest secret.” I turned back to Marcus. His expression was more serious than I expected. “What?”

“Sounds like you’ve got a thing for her.”

I screwed my face and huffed. “Nah, she’s just fucking hot.”

He raised an eyebrow. “Really?”

“She’s just stock, same as any other. A little more entertaining is all.”

“Yeah, you’ve got me convinced.” The sarcasm dripped from his voice.

“I don’t have a thing for her, Marcus. When have you ever known me to be interested in a woman like that? They’re commodities. I find them, I break them, I sell them. End of story.”

He raised his palms. “Okay.”

I could tell from his tone he still wasn’t convinced, but I wasn’t going to argue with him. I knew what she was, nothing but a means to an end for Marcus, and a price tag for me. It didn’t mean I couldn’t enjoy her a little more than the others. Finally, I’d found a girl who would be a challenge.

One of the brunette girls crawled over to Marcus and knelt between his legs, stroking her hands down his thighs. “Have you got a thing for me?”

He leant forward and ran his hand through her hair before pulling her head back. “I’ve got a thing for all off you.” He kissed her before letting her go. “Sorry, Aaron. Time to leave you.”

I flicked my fingers towards the door. “Have fun.”

He pointed to the girl between his knees and the blonde laid on the opposite sofa. “You and you, with me.”

The girls got up and followed Marcus out of the room. The girl left on the floor rolled up to her knees and studied me with a mischievous grin. “I guess that means I’m with you.”

She walked over and stood between my legs, twirling her hair as she smiled. She was attractive. The light brown hair curled off her shoulders, and her deep brown eyes glinted as she glanced me over. Her body should’ve been more than enough to turn me on, but it didn’t, not yet.

Her hand dropped and traced her breast before flowing over her stomach then between her legs. “Do you want to play?”

A smile formed on my face, but I said nothing. It was unnecessary, I doubt she would have taken no for an answer.

She leant forward and placed her hands on the back of the sofa, looking down on me as she licked her lips; pulling out all the stops to seduce me. Her legs moved one by one to either side and she straddled my lap, lowering to grind against me. She ran her hands over my chest and hovered her mouth inches above mine.

I let my lips brush against hers. “Are you sure you want to play?”

She held my eyes and nodded with a teasing smile.

I grabbed her neck with both hands, and her eyes widened with surprise. In a fraction of a second, the realisation struck that she was in above her head.

I threw her weight to the side, positioned between her legs and pinned her to the sofa. My grip was firm enough to hold her, but not enough to restrict her breathing. It didn’t stop the panicked clawing at my arms as she struggled against me, fear replacing the shock in her wide eyes. I lowered, trailing my lips over her soft skin as I drank in the smell of her floral perfume.

She did nothing for me, I was already bored with her.

Sighing, I released my grip, sat up and gestured to the door. “Go find the others.”

She scrambled to her feet before running out of the room.

I picked up the bourbon from the table, refilled my glass and knocked it back. It wasn’t like me to pass up such an opportunity. Normally, she would’ve been perfectly entertaining, but I wasn’t interested. I put it to distraction and turned my thoughts to the coming evening. To where I would find Olivia.