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The Boss: A Cozy Romance 78
‘AREN’T you going to the gym any more?’ Rhiannon asked two days later. ‘This is the third day in a row you’ve missed.’ Georgie scrubbed at her red eyes. ‘I don’t want to run into Ben-Break- Your-Heart Blackwood,’ she said. ‘I’m going to switch my membership to another gym.’ ‘Poor you,’ Rhiannon said, as she stroked Georgie’s head. ‘He really did a good job on you, didn’t he?’ Georgie blew her nose and tucked the sodden tissue into her bra, joining the others for a lumpy potato effect. ‘I’m so dumb when it comes to dating,’ she said. ‘I’m not going on another date for siX months, I swear it.’ ‘That’s a long time, Georgie.’ ‘I don’t care,’ she said as she got to her feet. ‘If I so much as look at a man with a view to dating him, I’m going to donate a thousand dollars to the hospital research foundation … no, make that five thousand dollars. That should make me think twice before I fall into the same trap again.’ ‘Wow, that’s a lot of money,’ Rhiannon said. Georgie set her shoulder
The Boss: A Cozy Romance 1
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 h
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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
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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
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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
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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
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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
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‘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
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The Boss: A Cozy Romance 78
‘AREN’T you going to the gym any more?’ Rhiannon asked two days later. ‘This is the third day in a row you’ve missed.’ Georgie scrubbed at her red eyes. ‘I don’t want to run into Ben-Break- Your-Heart Blackwood,’ she said. ‘I’m going to switch my membership to another gym.’ ‘Poor you,’ Rhiannon said, as she stroked Georgie’s head. ‘He really did a good job on you, didn’t he?’ Georgie blew her nose and tucked the sodden tissue into her bra, joining the others for a lumpy potato effect. ‘I’m so dumb when it comes to dating,’ she said. ‘I’m not going on another date for siX months, I swear it.’ ‘That’s a long time, Georgie.’ ‘I don’t care,’ she said as she got to her feet. ‘If I so much as look at a man with a view to dating him, I’m going to donate a thousand dollars to the hospital research foundation … no, make that five thousand dollars. That should make me think twice before I fall into the same trap again.’ ‘Wow, that’s a lot of money,’ Rhiannon said. Georgie set her shoulder
The Boss: A Cozy Romance 77
‘ONE hundred, two hundred, three hundred—’‘Stop,’ Rhiannon said as Georgie counted out the hundred-dollar bills the following morning. ‘I have something to confess.’Georgie let the next note flutter to the table. ‘What?’ Rhiannon bit her lip. ‘I’ve been seeing someone.’ Georgie’s eyes went out on stalks. ‘You have?’Rhiannon nodded. ‘I was going to tell you a couple of days ago but I wasn’t sure if the guy felt the same way about me. We weren’t really dating …. sort of catching up.’ She gave a little grimace and added, ‘Sorry.’‘Who is it?’ Georgie asked. ‘Anyone I know?’ ‘Jules Littlemore.’Georgie gaped at her. ‘Jules?’‘Why are you so surprised? He’s a really decent man. I know he’s a couple of years younger than me but I’ve always liked him and when he kissed me I sort of … fell in love with him.’‘I’m really glad for you, Rhiannon,’ Georgie said. ‘Jules is a great guy and perfect for you when I think about it.’‘So you’re not angry at me?’‘No,’ she said, smiling at he
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BEN answered the door with a towel hitched around his hips, his hair still dripping from his shower.‘Oh … sorry …’ Georgie bit her lip and tried to keep her eyes north of the border. ‘Um … I picked a bad time to drop in on you.’‘Not at all,’ he said, stepping aside to let her in. ‘I just got back from the gym.’ He closed the door and added, ‘I thought I might have seen you there. You didn’t hang around at the hospital so I thought you’d gone straight there.’‘I’m so sorry I didn’t keep our appointment,’ she said. ‘I got a bit distracted by … by something that happened just after I left you with Mr Tander.’He frowned as he looked down at her. ‘Jonathan Tander didn’t have another go at you, did he? I left him with the hospital chaplain in the relatives’ lounge. Did he somehow track you down again?’She shook her head and cupped her elbows with her crossed-over hands. ‘I had a bit of a run-in with Richard DeBurgh … well, not exactly a run-in, more of a misunderstanding … of sorts
The Boss: A Cozy Romance 75
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 had to force his eyes to stay fiXed on Georgie’s face as she opened the door at his summons. She was dressed in a knock-out pink dress that skimmed her slight curves and highlighted the healthy glow of her skin. Her hair was loose about her shoulders, its sun-kissed light waves full of body and bounce, making his fingers twitch yet again to reach out and thread through its silkiness. Her perfume drifted towards him, a different one this time. It was a subtle but totally intoXicating scent that reminded him of sun-warmed honeysuckle.‘Hannah is waiting in the car,’ he said by way of greeting, not able to think of anything else on the spot. ‘She had a good day today. Thank you.’Georgie followed him towards the lifts. ‘I had fun, too,’ she said. ‘She’s a lovely girl and great company.’He stabbed at the lift button without looking at her. ‘I can’t help worrying about her,’ he confessed with a small frown. ‘She’s lived in the country all her life. She’s not as street smart as city
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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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BEN had seen Emma Stanley’s MRI scans two weeks ago but there had been considerable change in her condition since then. The young siXteen-year-old track and field star had a tumour on her lumbar spine, which thankfully was benign, but that didn’t mean she was out of the woods by any means. The tumour was pressing against the cauda equina, causing numbness in her buttocks and weakness in her legs.Surgery was the only option but there were huge risks involved, especially as imaging had shown the tumour was extensive and its removal had the potential to cause damage to multiple nerve roots. She had fallen several times over the last few days and her parents had panicked and contacted him directly rather than wait until Monday to see him in his public clinic, as he had advised them to do.Ben sat Emma and her parents down in his office. Taking his own chair, he began to run through the risks. ‘I know we’ve talked through all this before but as Emma’s symptoms have worsened it won’t hur
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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.
The Boss: A Cozy Romance 70
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
