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Author: Danny Walker
last update Last Updated: 2022-09-10 07:25:42

THEY walked without speaking, but were spared an awkward silence by the chorus of birds and frogs chirping and monkeys chattering, the now familiar rainforest sounds that provided a constant accompaniment to their physical efforts.

Occasionally Rafael glanced over his shoulder and looked at her but his gaze didn’t linger and she wasn’t even sure why he was checking on her because she had the distinct impression that he wouldn’t have minded if she’d fallen head first into the river that now bubbled cheerfully alongside the path.

Clearly he was wishing himself alone in his rainforest hideaway.

She’d made the mistake of trying to reach out and touch his deep, dark secrets and, like an injured predator, he’d given her a warning.

Keep your distance.

Don’t come too close.

So keep her distance she would and she wouldn’t go too close.

They’d visit the fazenda as planned, walk back to his lodge and then he’d give her his answer about her business. And whatever that answer was, she’d lea
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Sham Klepsvik
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  • The Boss: A Cozy Romance   13

    ‘What are they saying?’‘They’re telling you that the coffee is grown in shade in the forest. In that way none of the forest is destroyed and the trees fiX nitrogen in the soil which helps the coffee bushes grow.’ He broke off as Filomena spoke to them. ‘She says that keeping the trees prevents erosion and protects the coffee from the harsh weather. The natural sugars increase and enhance the flavour of the coffee.’‘And the fallen leaves provide nutrients and help prevent moisture loss from the soil.’ Grace smiled and nodded. ‘Please tell them that I understand the benefits of shade-grown coffee. Every café has a wall devoted to telling that story. People enjoy their coffee knowing that they’re preserving a small part of the rainforest.’‘A marketing goldmine, I’m sure.’ A flicker of contempt in his eyes, Rafael studied her for a moment and then turned and spoke quietly to the woman. She responded immediately with lots of hand-waving and glances towards her husband. Voices were ra

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    She intended to find an answer to both questions just as soon as she’d persuaded Rafael Cordeiro that she was innocent.But did it really matter what he thought of her?What really mattered more than anything was that these people, these gentle, hospitable people, thought her guilty.And perhaps, in a way, she was guilty, she thought miserably as she sifted through the sparse facts at her disposal.True, she hadn’t taken the money but it was her business, her accounts, and she hadn’t noticed that anything was amiss.Racked with contrition for the fact that they’d suffered because of her, she tried to work out what she could do to make amends. Impulsively she dropped to her knees and took Filomena’s hand in hers.‘I will find out what’s happened and I will repay the money we owe to you. Your family will not suffer,’ she promised, her voice shaking with emotion. She turned her head and spoke to Rafael, her voice fierce. ‘Translate for me.’His eyes were cold. ‘I don’t believe in g

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  • The Boss: A Cozy Romance   15

    THE walk back through the rainforest to Forest Lodge was charged with tension, the atmosphere between them snapped taut after the outpouring of emotion at the fazenda. And that was hardly surprising, Rafael said to himself as his long legs swallowed up the distance. Women were never at their best when they’d been found out. And Grace Thacker had been well and truly found out. There was no more hiding. Her fraud was exposed, the consequences of her actions thrust in her face. With him standing over her shoulder and Filomena crying, she’d had little choice but to express guilt and remorse and she’d done it most convincingly. In fact, she’d been extremely convincing. If he hadn’t known it to be impossible, he would have thought that the accusations levelled at her had come as a surprise. Indeed, her shocked response and her almost remarkable display of self-condemnation had both been sufficiently compelling to have him on the verge of reaching out with words of comfort and support. He

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  • The Boss: A Cozy Romance   16

    Glancing over her shoulder, Grace tried to memorise the way back to the lodge. And then the trees seemed to open up and the path widened. And there, in front of them, was the pool. Grace caught her breath in surprise and delight. The frothy white waterfall poured over the rocks above and spilled into a large pool bordered by huge boulders and tall ferns. Surrounded by trees, exotic plants and birds and butterflies of every conceivable colour, the pool water gathered up the evening light and sparkled as though a million precious jewels lurked beneath the surface. ‘It’s beautiful.’ She glanced around her and Maria nodded. ‘It’s safe, but not at night-time. And be careful walking back to the lodge. It’s very easy to take the wrong path. Turn left and then right.’ Grace was looking at the pool. The walk through the jungle and the shocking revelations about her business had left her feeling drained and exhausted. It would be a relief to strip off, cool down and relax. Then, perhaps,

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  • The Boss: A Cozy Romance   17

    RAFAEL WAS ALREADY seated at the table when she arrived on the terrace. He had a drink in his hand and his blue shirt was open at the neck and revealed just enough bronzed male flesh to draw her eyes for longer than she would have liked. Even dressed casually he looked cool, sophisticated and way out of her league.She scanned his handsome features and her heart bumped crazily against her chest. What was it about him that had such a powerful impact on her?She didn’t know and she didn’t understand it. But she knew that whatever had scarred him in the past, however bad his experiences had been, she didn’t want him to think her guilty of fraud.She hadn’t intended to bring the subject up again but how could she not? No matter how hard she tried to push the whole thing away until tomorrow, the guilt kept intruding. ‘You must think I’m awful,’ she said impulsively as she slid into her chair, ‘taking money from those people. I know that I’m sort of guilty because it’s my company but I w

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    The smooth lift of his eyebrows drew attention to the fact that she’d just revealed that she’d been watching him work.‘I couldn’t sleep that well last night,’ she confessed hastily, ‘and I was looking out of my window. I saw you. Working on the computer. Talking on the phone.’ Sleepless. Driven. What were you thinking of down there in the dark with only a flickering screen for company? What demons robbed you of sleep?‘I had work to do.’ But the cold brevity of his statement didn’t convince her and she sensed his withdrawal. Not physically. Physically he hadn’t moved. But emotionally, something had shifted. The simmering connection between them was damped down by something cold and remote and she knew for sure that he lived with darkness. Something dark and painful that haunted him and she knew that his wakeful night had nothing to do with work and everything to do with his own personal demons.Who had twisted his view of life?Was it his wife or was it more?She felt a flash of

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    Instead she felt the nip of his teeth and the flicker of his tongue against her shoulder and then lower, to the soft hint of flesh that he’d exposed for himself by lowering her dress. His hands, so firm and confident, slid up her body and settled just above her waist and she gave a soft gasp as he dragged both thumbs over the tips of her breasts. Her nipples strained, seeking his attention, and he gave a low laugh of satisfaction and slid his fingers inside the clinging fabric, just as he had in the forest. Only this time it was different.This time nothing was stopping them.The atmosphere pulsed with a heat that was almost unbearable and she gave a low moan as the burning in her body intensified to almost unbearable proportions.‘You feel so hot,’ he groaned, desire thickening his words and his accent, ‘so beautiful.’She hadn’t even felt his hands on the zip of her dress but they must have been there because a slither of silk descending from her body to the floor announced to h

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    GRACE awoke to the sounds of the rainforest all around her and opened her eyes with a smile on her lips.Was there any better place to wake up?She was on her side and Rafael was lying next to her in a careless sprawl, one of his legs trapping her to the bed, as if to prevent her escape. But she had no plans for escape. At that moment she knew that there was nowhere else she’d rather be. No other man she’d rather be with.Perhaps it was because they were both a little damaged, she thought, unable to resist stroking a hand over his shoulder. His skin was bronzed, a legacy of the sun and his Brazilian heritage, the muscle clearly defined and unmistakably masculine.He had an incredible body and it was obvious to anyone fortunate enough to look at him that he was a very physical man. A man with strength who pushed and tested himself.‘You’re staring at me.’She hadn’t even realised that he was awake. She moved her gaze from his shoulders to his face and saw that he was looking at h

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    GEORGIE didn’t leave anything to chance the next morning and left extra early so she could turn up on time in Theatre for Emma Stanley’s case. She had found it hard to sleep the previous night, thinking about the young girl who had so much at stake, not to mention Ben, who as Emma’s neurosurgeon had so much pressure on him to perform a miracle when the chance of one was not very likely.Linda greeted her as she came into the change room. ‘Tough morning this one,’ she said. ‘Ben’s really feeling it. He hides it pretty well but I’ve worked with him long enough to know the signs.’‘He told me about the case yesterday,’ Georgie said as she put her bag into one of the lockers. ‘It’s hard, what life tosses up, isn’t it?’‘Sure is,’ Linda agreed. ‘The parents are such lovely people who would move heaven and earth to get their daughter back to full health. I only hope Ben can pull this one off. Mind you, if anyone can, he can. He’s got that steely determination to succeed where others woul

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    BEN called Hannah on her mobile to arrange a meeting place and half an hour later caught sight of her and Georgie sitting on the grass near the Hyde Park fountain, a pair of ibis coming closer and closer for the crumbs Georgie was tempting them with.‘Even the animal kingdom isn’t safe from her natural beauty and charm,’he muttered under his breath as he made his way towards them.‘Hi, Ben, look what I bought,’ Hannah said, leaping to her feet and showing him her jeans and top inside the boutique bags she had in her possession.‘Mmm, very nice,’ he said. Swinging his gaze to Georgie, who was still sitting cross-legged on the grass, he asked, ‘What did you get?’‘Sore feet,’ Georgie said wryly, as she made to get up.He smiled and offered her a hand, pulling her up so strongly she tumbled forward into his arms.‘Ooh!’ she said breathlessly, her hands flat against the hard wall of his chest.‘That’ll teach you to wear those ridiculously high heels all the time,’ he admonished h

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    BELINDA BRONSON was coming out of the gym on Friday evening as Georgie was going in. ‘Just the person I wanted to see,’ she said, pulling Georgie to one side away from the cluster of members near the front door.‘I was going to say the very same thing to you,’ Georgie said with a little frown. ‘I got into heaps of trouble over talking to you about the Tanders’ accident.’Belinda’s expression turned cynical. ‘That kind of figures,’ she said. ‘I spoke to a mate of mine in Traffic—he must have pressed a few too many sensitive buttons. He told me Mr Tander is a legal eagle. Lawyers always think they’re above suspicion and that the legal system they represent and defend so volubly in court doesn’t apply to them outside it.’‘Yeah, well, he’s not just any old legal eagle,’ Georgie said. ‘He’s a high court judge. If he’s serious about going ahead with this, my career is over.’Belinda tapped her top lip for a moment. ‘You know, it might be worth having a deeper look into this,’ she said.

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    GEORGIE was totally exhausted by the time her list with Richard DeBurgh ended and she still had three more hours of on call before she could finally relax. Richard had been encouraging towards her but he was nothing like Ben in Theatre. Richard had a tendency to snap at the nursing staff if instruments weren’t handed to him quickly enough, and when a patient with a meningioma had a major venous bleed from the sagittal sinus he swore as his tension level rose, which made everyone feel on edge. At one point he bellowed at Georgie for bumping the microscope while he was suturing the sagittal sinus bleed, and although he had moved it himself, she knew there was no point in trying to defend herself.Linda Reynolds, the scrub nurse Georgie had met in Ben’s theatre on her first day, caught up with her in the female change rooms once the list was over.‘See what I mean about there being a waiting list to work on Ben’s lists?’ she said as she stripped off her theatre scrubs. ‘Richard is fine

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