‘Hey, excuse me,’ Peta said cautiously, looking up at the two heads talking over her. ‘Can I join in this conversation?’

‘Of course.’ Marcus’s brows snapped together as Ruby’s eyes widened. The waif wasn’t a victim, then.

‘He has to see me,’ Peta was saying. ‘I have an appointment.’

‘An appointment with Charles means nothing if he figures there’s the least chance you might not be able to pay,’ Marcus told her. ‘And pay well.’

‘He has to see me,’ she repeated. ‘He’s my cousin.’

Silence while they took that on board.

‘Charles Higgins is your cousin?’ Ruby asked, and Peta nodded. She didn’t look too pleased about it, though. In fact, she looked as if she’d prefer the relationship didn’t exist.

‘He is. Worse luck.’

‘But you have to make an appointment to see him?’ Marcus didn’t understand.

‘Yes.’

‘You’re running really late, Mr Benson,’ Ruby said warningly, but Marcus had heard enough.

To say he disliked Charles Higgins would be an understatement. He detested the man. The word around town was that the man was utterly unscrupulous. He and his equally unscrupulous associates had rented office space here when Marcus had been in Europe; Marcus had been really annoyed that the man had been granted a twelve-month lease, and given the least excuse Higgins was out of here. He was trying to manoeuvre it now. But meanwhile… This girl would get nowhere with him. He knew that.

So did Ruby. He could read it in her face.

So, the best thing they could do for this girl was to clean her, feed her and give her a ride back to whatever cheap accommodation she was using.

But…

But.

He’d hurt her. He’d made her life difficult when it was already impossible. He could see that. There was real desperation in her eyes.

He knew enough of Charles Higgins to guess that the girl would be being screwed. He had no idea how-all he knew was that it was true. She was alone and bereft and he’d hurt her.