WHAT ON EARTH WAS SHE DOING HERE?
The helicopter swooped low over the trees and Grace felt her stomach roll.Beneath her lay acres and acres of lush tropical rainforest, the canopy forming a dense green umbrella that sheltered and concealed the exotic mysteries of the forest floor. At any other time she would have been captivated by the wild, breathtaking beauty of her surroundings, but she was far too tense to think about anything except the meeting that lay ahead of her. The meeting and the man.What on earth was she doing dressed in this ridiculously hot, scratchy suit, flying over the top of the Brazilian rainforest to throw herself at the mercy of a man who apparently didn’t know the meaning of the word?Rafael Cordeiro.Brilliant, dangerous, damaged. So many words came to mind when thinking of him, none of them tame or soothing. Shockingly wealthy and wielding more power than kings and presidents, he was reputedly so clever with figures that the financial press had likened him to a walking computer. Which didn’t bode well, Grace thought gloomily as she clutched at her seat, given her allergy to technology.Beneath her, the trees parted and a swollen river snaked through a deep gorge and plunged over rocks in an explosion of white froth. ‘Hehas properties all over the world—’ she turned to the pilot, seeking answers to the questions bubbling in her mind ‘—so why is he living all the way out here?’The pilot kept his eyes on the treetops. ‘Because the world won’t leave the man alone. He likes his privacy.’Which fitted with what she’d heard about him. Ruthless, unemotional, unsentimental—the list of unflattering adjectives went on and on. Considering the man never gave interviews, there was no shortage of information on him. ‘He’s a loner?’‘Well, I wouldn’t exactly call him soft and cuddly, if that’s what you’re asking, not that women seem to mind. Being bad and dangerous just seems to bring them flocking. That and the power. Women can sniff out power from a hundred paces. Power and money.’ The pilot fingered the controls and then glanced towards her. ‘You don’t look like his usual type.’His usual type?Wondering how anyone could possibly mistake her for a billionaire’s girlfriend, Grace almost laughed. ‘I have a meeting with Mr Cordeiro. His company put up the original investment for my business.’ And that investment had changed her life. ‘He’s what they call a business angel, but I expect you know that, given that you work for him.’‘Angel?’ The pilot convulsed with laughter and the helicopter swooped alarmingly close to the treetops. ‘Rafael Cordeiro—angel?’‘It’s an expression. It means that he invests in small businesses that interest him.’ And he’d been interested in hers. Until recently. The sick feeling in her stomach was suddenly back and Grace lifted her briefcaseonto her lap and stroked the surface, trying to solder her fractured confidence.The pilot was still laughing. ‘Angel. I don’t know what he does to make his money but I can tell you one thing,’ he fiXed his gaze on the horizon and fiddled with the controls, ‘the man is no angel.’Refusing to let him frighten her, Grace straightened in her seat. ‘I don’t believe everything I read in the papers.’‘Obviously—’ he glanced towards her and the smile on his craggy, weathered face was faintly pitying ‘—or you wouldn’t be here. I can see you’re a gutsy girl with a mind of your own and that’s good, it will get you a long way out here in the jungle.’‘There’s nothing gutsy about attending a business meeting.’‘That would depend on who you’re doing business with.’ The mountains rose and dipped and the helicopter swooped through a green- clad valley. ‘And where. Not many people have the courage to visit the wolf in his lair.’Despite her determination to keep an open mind, Grace felt her mouth dry. ‘You call him the wolf?’‘Not me. That’s what everyone else calls him. I just call him the boss.’ His hands shifted on the controls and the helicopter lost height.Losing her stomach and her nerve, Grace closed her eyes briefly and tried not to also lose her lunch. She’d never been any good on roller coasters. ‘I’m sure Mr Cordeiro is a very reasonable man.’‘Are you?’ He fiXed his eyes on a spot far below them. ‘Then you’ve obviously never met him. Hold on. We’re going down.’‘Going down?’ Grace stared at him in alarm, her worries about sickness and the dangers of Rafael Cordeiro momentarily eclipsed by that less than reassuring statement. ‘Do you mean we’re landing or we’re crashing?’But the pilot didn’t answer. His eyes were narrowed and his jaw clenched as he played with the controls. For a moment it looked as though they were going to plunge into the trees and then, at the last minute, a small landing pad revealed itself and he lowered the machine down, landing like a giant insect in what seemed like a ridiculously small gap between the trees.‘Not crashing, then.’ Grace gave a wobbly smile and let out the breath she’d been holding. ‘I had a mental image of carnage.’‘If you’re meeting with Cordeiro then there’s going to be carnage.’ The pilot flicked a switch in front of him. ‘I’ve seen grown men in tears after five minutes with him. Take my advice and fight your corner. If there’s one thing the boss hates, it’s wimps. Welcome to the Atlantic rainforest, Miss Thacker. One of the most endangered little ecosystems on our planet.’‘You’re leaving me? Here? In the middle of nowhere?’ Grace turned her head and looked out of the window and only then did she see the lodge—a building that seemed to consist of nothing but glass domes and smooth, weathered wood, it blended into the forest so cleverly that it seemed almost to have grown naturally amongst the trees. ‘Oh.’ She looked at the walkways suspended high above the forest floor. ‘It’s stunning. Amazing.’The pilot was laughing to himself. ‘Rafael Cordeiro—angel.’ Stillchortling, he wiped a hand over his forehead and removed the beads of sweat. ‘Out you get and keep your head down until you’re clear of the blades. I’m flying back to Rio to pick up a package and then back to São Paulo.’Grace sat glued to her seat, unwilling to abandon her last link with civilisation. ‘You’re not waiting? He said I could only have ten minutes…’And it was completely ridiculous to have travelled all this way just for ten minutes, but what choice did she have? It was that or give up and there was no way she was giving up. Her one hope was that he’d agree to give her more time because she knew that ten minutes was never going to be enough time to dig herself out of the hole she’d fallen into.‘If there’s anything left of you when he’s finished, I’ll come back and pick up the pieces. Take the walkway over there to the left and, whatever you do, don’t stray off the path. This is the jungle, not a theme park. Watch out for the wildlife.’‘Wildlife?’ She’d been too busy worrying about the meeting to even think about wildlife. She glanced dubiously into the dense forest that surrounded them. Some parts were in total shade whereas in others the sun penetrated the thick canopy of trees and was channelled onto the forest floor like spotlights. Was it her imagination or was it all moving? ‘You mean insects?’He gave a wicked smile. ‘Over two thousand different species at the last estimation. And they’re just the ones we know about.’Trying not to think about all those legs scurrying towards her, Grace smoothed her skirt over her knees and wished she’d worn trousers. ‘Andsnakes?’‘Oh, yes, there are snakes—’ his grin widened as he glanced towards her thoroughly inadequate shoes ‘—and then there are the giant anteaters, jaguars and the—’‘OK, I think I’ve heard enough,’ she said breathlessly, interrupting him with a shaky smile. Any moment now she’d be clinging to his arm and begging him to fly her home. ‘I’m sure Mr Cordeiro wouldn’t live here if it were that dangerous.’The pilot threw back his head and laughed. ‘You obviously don’t know the first thing about him. He lives here because it’s that dangerous, baby doll. He has a low boredom threshold. Likes to live life on the edge, so to speak.’Baby doll? The careless way he’d diminished her to nothing irritated Grace sufficiently for her to forget her nerves. All her life she’d been patronised and underestimated. All her life people had doubted and dismissed her. And she’d proved them wrong, over and over again. She’d fought against the odds and she’d succeeded.Until now.Now she was in danger of losing everything she’d worked for. And she wasn’t going to let that happen.This was probably the most important fight of her life and she was going to win. She had to win. And to win she had to forget that she was probably the worst person in the world to be given the responsibility of talking numbers with the Brazilian billionaire with the computer brain. She had to forget everything except the consequences of losing. And thepeople depending on her. If she failed then they lost their jobs, it was as simple as that.If Rafael Cordeiro called in his loan, then it was all over.The humid, oppressive heat wrapped itself around her like a thick, suffocating cloak and she pushed a damp strand of hair away from her face, her eyes drawn upwards, following the straight lines of the trees that rose to such impressive heights. It was like being in a remote, exotic paradise and it was hard to remember that cities like London and Rio de Janeiro even existed. ‘Isn’t he afraid, living out here?’‘Cordeiro?’ The pilot chewed on a piece of gum and gave a grim smile. ‘He isn’t afraid of anything.’Knowing that if she heard any more about the man she wouldn’t have the courage to face him, let alone fight her corner, Grace stumbled out of the helicopter and discovered that her legs were shaking. At that precise moment she would have been hard pressed to say whether she was more afraid of the jungle or Rafael Cordeiro.In a world obsessed with celebrity and image, he treated the notion of both with something approaching contempt, rejecting every invitation to talk about himself. And he didn’t need to, because everyone else did the talking for him. The papers were full of curvaceous blondes who’d been persuaded to ‘tell all’ for the right amount of money. And so the whole world knew about his relentless pursuit of his billions, his prowess as a lover and his determined refusal to indulge in ‘happy ever after'.Once. Once he’d done that and the news of his glamorous wife’s departure from his life after less than three months of wedded bliss had filled the newspapers with stories that had lasted longer than themarriage.He’d been impossible to live with. He’d ended their relationship by email.He was only interested in making money. And more money.The speculation had been endless but if any of it was to be believed then Rafael Cordeiro was little more than a machine and she knew, she just knew, even before she had to fight for her business, that he was going to be just the sort of man that brought out the worst in her.She wouldn’t look at him, she promised herself. If she didn’t look at him she wouldn’t become tongue-tied or stammer. She’d just pretend that she was in her small sitting room at home, talking to the mirror as she always did when she had an important presentation to memorise.Grace felt her stomach lurch again and this time the feeling of sickness that enveloped her had nothing to do with the helicopter and everything to do with her past. At times like this—times that really mattered—the memories rolled up behind her like a giant wave, waiting to engulf her.For her this was the ultimate test. And she wouldn’t fail. She just couldn’t.Too much was at stake.There was no reason to be afraid of Rafael Cordeiro, she assured herself as she stroked a hand over her straight, formal skirt and forced herself to move forward onto the wooden walkway that was suspended above the forest floor.His personal life, no matter how dark, wasn’t her concern. This meeting was about business and, whatever murk hovered around theman, he was a businessman, like her father. When she showed him her plans for taking the business into profit, he’d be positive. He’d change his mind about calling in the loan. She would save everyone’s job and then she could fly home and leave the jaguars, the snakes and the billionaire Brazilian businessman to their jungle hideaway.If you are reading my book right now, I say thank you so much. Much love 💖
The tropical heat made her suit stick to her body and suddenly she realised just how woefully ill-prepared she was to meet this man. She wasn’t even comfortable in her clothes. Stooping to free the spindly heel of her shoe from the careless bite of the wooden planks beneath her feet, Grace clutched the briefcase in her hand and suddenly wished she’d gone over the figures one more time in the helicopter.But what difference would that have made? With the help of her father, she’d committed them to memory. There was nothing in her briefcase that wasn’t already fiXed in her mind.Jerking her shoe from the jaws of the walkway, she regained her balance and straightened.And saw him.He stood directly in front of her, as dark and dangerous as anything that might have prowled out of the jungle, his body completely still, his eyes watchful.And he was watching her.Entirely unprepared for the physical impact of the man, Grace ceased to breathe. The helicopter, the rainforest and all her
Grace turned her head and squinted into the dense forest that surrounded them. With the helicopter gone she was suddenly aware of the constant background noise that enveloped them. Jungle sounds. Yelps, calls, shrieks, chirping and warbling. It was as if the whole forest was alive. ‘It sounds as though someone is being murdered out there.’ Laughter in her eyes, she looked back at him, seeking to build an emotional connection and falling at the first hurdle.There was no connection. No answering smile. And it was impossible to know what he was thinking because his face revealed none of his thoughts.‘You’re afraid of the jungle, Miss Thacker?’ His tone was less than encouraging. ‘Or is it something else that is making you nervous?’Something else? Like the fact that her whole life was on the verge of being ground into the dust, perhaps, or the fact that she was alone in the rainforest with a man who obviously disliked the entire human race?There were so many things to make her ner
This was her baby, she reminded herself. She had all the answers she was going to need. ‘People who come into our cafés are given far more than a shot of caffeine. For as long as it takes them to drink their coffee or eat their lunch, they’re transported to Brazil. With your initial investment we opened twenty coffee shops across London. We’re ready to open more, but not if you withdraw your support …’ She broke off and rose to her feet, needing to pace. She couldn’t sit across the table looking at that handsome face. She couldn’t concentrate. ‘Do you mind if I walk around? I’m not great at sitting at tables and if I only have a short time I have to be comfortable or I won’t be able to make the most of it.’His sardonic gaze slid to her feet. ‘Frankly I’m amazed you can stand, let alone walk around. I see you gave careful thought to the footwear that would be most appropriate for a visit to the rainforest.’Trying to keep her thoughts together, she refused to allow his sarcasm to un
He was a billionaire. Surely the fact that she hadn’t yet given him a financial return on his investment couldn’t be that much of a problem? ‘I realise that you’ve given us an enormous sum of money but we will pay it back with interest as the business grows. I’d really appreciate an opportunity to go through the figures with you and show you our plans. I really hope that when I’ve given you a full picture of where we’re going with Café Brazil, you’ll agree to extend your investment.’‘Why would I do that?’‘Because you’ll see that it’s worth it for you.’ She lifted her briefcase onto the table. ‘If you withdraw your investment then the company goes under, it’s as simple as that. And if the company goes under—’‘You lose your enviable lifestyle.’She frowned slightly, thinking of the fourteen-hour days she’d been putting into the business. Was that what he meant? ‘I’m certainly lucky to have a business that I love,’ she said, venturing a smile and then withdrawing it instantly as s
THE sunlight poured through the windows and Rafael Cordeiro watched as the colour fled from her cheeks.Your game’s up, beauty, he said to himself, wondering how she could have been so naïve as to think that he wouldn’t discover what was going on in her company. Not that she hadn’t been clever, because she had. The numbers added up. Most people wouldn’t have spotted what he had.Most people didn’t have his lack of faith in human nature.At first glance her accounts appeared to reveal nothing more than a business that was slow to get off the ground. And her apparent desire to be friendly and chatty was a strategy that might well have succeeded with a man less cynical and experienced with her sex than him. Grace Thacker came across as engaging, enthusiastic and refreshingly open.A different man could have been impressed by her admission of disappointment that her business should have been in profit by now.A different man might have allowed himself to believe in her innocence.It
‘I hadn’t planned on sightseeing.’‘I’m talking about visiting the fazenda. The coffee farm that supplies your chain. It’s right that you should know more about the product you sell.’ He watched her carefully but she simply smiled and the smile put dimples in her cheeks and made her seem even younger.‘I couldn’t agree more. I’d love to visit the coffee growers. My father insisted on doing that bit when we originally set up the deal. What a great idea.’Ignoring the dimples and the sudden heat in his loins, Rafael suddenly wanted to laugh.For sheer bald front, you couldn’t fault her. By now she had to be wondering just how much he knew about her and yet there wasn’t even a flicker of guilt in her eyes. Or concern about his proposal to take her deep into the jungle. She just stood there in her perfectly cut Armani suit, balancing on four-inch heels, as if tramping through the Brazilian rainforest was something she’d packed for and which she frequently did in her spare time.She c
Her confidence lasted as long as it took her to join him at the table.He’d changed into a dark shirt and a pair of lightweight trousers. In the fading evening light he looked masculine, sexy and totally unnerving.‘Sit down. Drink? Caipirinha?’She looked at the fresh, exotic-looking cocktail he was drinking. ‘I’d better not.’ She smiled at Maria, who was hovering. ‘Something non- alcoholic? Juice would be lovely.’Rafael gave a faint smile. ‘Keeping your wits about you?’Grace waited until the drink was in front of her and they were alone before she replied. ‘You’re very angry with me, aren’t you?’ Hating tense atmospheres, she decided on the direct approach. ‘I know I’ve made mistakes but everyone does when they start in business.’‘Do they?’ He was relaxed and in control, his handsome features displaying not a flicker of emotion, and she watched with a growing feeling of helplessness.How did you communicate with someone like him? Someone who lived his life through facts and
Forcing herself to concentrate on something other than him, she lifted the cup to her lips, sniffed and gave an appreciative sigh. No matter what the stresses, coffee always soothed her. ‘That has to be the best smell in the world.’‘I’m glad you think so. That coffee comes from the local fazenda that supplies your business.’She sipped. ‘It’s delicious.’ Perhaps the owners of the fazenda would add their plea to hers because if her business closed down then they’d have to find a new buyer for their coffee. ‘I’m really looking forward to my visit.’‘Good.’‘Well—’ she placed the cup back down on the table ‘—we seem to have spent the entire evening talking about me, which is very boring. What about you? Were you born and bred in Brazil?’‘I don’t understand what possible relevance my heritage can have on the survival of your business,’ he said softly, his accent strangely thickened. ‘Take my advice and concentrate on the things that matter.’‘I just wondered about you, that’s al