an. Discomfort and guilt slithered down her spine and she quickly reminded herself that there was nothing in the contract that stipulated that she tell everything about herself. An

proximating its normal rhythm. She wanted to respond to his less than flattering comment about her company, but he didn’t give her the opportunity. Instead he strolled through the open door, leaving her to follow. No wonder his wife left him, she thought miserably as she followed him, carefully closing the door between her and the jungle. Or was he arrogant and cynical because his wife had left? As she pondered that question, it took her a moment to be aware of her surroundings but when she finally glanced around her she realised with a jolt of surprise that they hadn’t left the rainforest outside at all. It was part of the lodge. Following him through a huge glass dome, she glanced left and right, her attention caught by the profusion of huge, exotic plants that turned his home from amazing to spectacular. And through the glass, the rainforest, so close that inside and outside appeared to merge in perfect harmony. At any other time she would have been fascinated, but it was obvious from his less than encouraging body language that Rafael Cordeiro had absolutely no interest in her opinion on his choice of home. Making no attempt to put her at her ease, he led her into another large room and waved a hand towards a large round table that housed a state-of-the-art computer and several screens. Two phones were ringing but they both suddenly stopped, as if they’d been answered elsewhere. ‘Sit down.’ Technology, Grace thought, eyeing the phones. He clearly wasn’t as alone as he appeared to be. She sank onto the nearest chair and glanced around her in awe. Through giant hexagonal panes of glass, the lush, dense greenery of the jungle pressed in on them. ‘It’s amazing,’ she breathed, genuinely taken aback by the unusual nature of their surroundings. ‘It’s like sitting in a greenhouse in the middle of the forest.’ Her eyes slid to a patch of fern that she saw moving. ‘Do the animals come close? Do they know yo