The illustrious billionaire

chapter 2

spoke in a low drawl, his accent so faint that it was barely detectable. He

lounged back in his seat and lifted an eyebrow in expectation. ‘I agreed

to give you ten minutes. The clock starts now.’

Unprepared for such an unsympathetic approach, she gaped at him.

‘You were serious? You really meant it when you said I could only have

ten minutes?’

‘I’m a busy man. And I never say anything I don’t mean.’

He obviously wasn’t going to make this easy for her.

Flustered by his total indifference to her dire predicament, she took a

moment to gather her thoughts. ‘All right. Well, you know why I’m here.

Five years ago your company lent me the money to start up my business.

Now you want to foreclose on the loan.’

‘Don’t waste time stating irrefutable facts,’ he advised in a silky tone,

his eyes flickering to the clock in an explicit reminder of his terms. ‘You

now have nine minutes remaining.’

She felt a flicker of panic. He was completely unreceptive. She was

wasting her time. ‘The business is important to me. It’s everything.’

Immediately she regretted that impulsive confession. Why would he be

interested in the emotional stake that she had in the business?

Clearly he was wondering the same thing because his bold brows drew

together in a discouraging frown. ‘I’m interested in facts and figures.

And you now have eight minutes remaining.’

She flushed and forced herself to plough on. Don’t get emotional, Grace.

Don’t get emotional. ‘As you know, I started a chain of coffee shops with

your investment, but they’re not just coffee shops.’ She dropped her hands into her lap so that he couldn’t see them shaking. ‘We don’t just

sell a cup of coffee, we sell a whole Brazilian experience.’

‘And just what constitutes a “Brazilian experience”, Miss Thacker?’ He

lingered over the words and she bit her lip, refusing to allow him to

intimidate her.

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 unsettle her. ‘This is a business meeting, Mr Cordeiro,’ she said

defensively, ‘so I chose my clothing accordingly. I didn’t think you’d take

me seriously if I was wearing a pair of combat trousers.’ Pride prevented

her from confessing that both the shoes and the suit had been purchased

specifically for this meeting.

Suddenly she felt like an i***t for thinking that what she wore would

make a difference to a man like him. Clearly she should have saved her money.

He was watching her closely. ‘You mean you thought that a pair of

sexy heels might make me change my mind about pulling out of the

investment.’ His voice was soft and deadly. ‘You may have

misunderstood my reputation, Miss Thacker. I keep my women and my

business separate.’ His gaze shifted to hers and she stared at him, unable

to speak or move, caught in the dangerous heat of his gaze. Her body felt

as though it had turned to liquid and a strange and unfamiliar warmth

spread across her pelvis.

His women.

A clear vision filled her head and she saw Rafael Cordeiro lying naked

and bronzed on white silk sheets, his body damp after an excess of

physical activity, an exhausted and deliriously grateful girl lying limp

and sated by his side.

The vision shocked and unsettled her and she looked away for a

moment, concentrating on the lush green of the jungle instead of the

diamond-hard glint of his eyes.

‘Miss Thacker?’ His sharp prompt made her start and she turned her

head and gave him a desperate look, hating herself for wondering how

those long, bronzed fingers would feel on her flesh. What was the matter

with her? She wasn’t the sort of woman who mentally undressed men

the moment she met them.

Especially not men like him.

He wasn’t going to yield or compromise, she could see that. There was

no softening, no gentleness and not a trace of warmth or humanity. For a

terrifying moment she felt her confidence begin to crumble. The horribly familiar waves of panic began to engulf her and she dug her nails hard

into her palms and looked away from him, staring at the trees for a

moment while she struggled for composure.

You can do this, Grace, she told herself desperately. You don’t need him

to make it easy for you.

Since when had anyone ever made it easy for her?

Her entire life had been a struggle to prove herself and she wasn’t

expecting this encounter to be any different.

She used a precious thirty seconds of her time in calming herself and

then she spoke. ‘I wore the heels because they seemed right with the

suit,’ she said calmly, fighting against the sudden tension in the

atmosphere. ‘And you owe me another minute of time.’

He leaned back in his chair, his eyes narrowed. ‘I do?’

‘Yes, because that’s how much time you just wasted talking about

women’s clothing.’

There was a long, pulsing silence and then he inclined his head. ‘You

still have eight minutes remaining.’

Grace started to breathe again. ‘Good. The only thing I want from you

is an opportunity to present the facts. I came here because I want to

change your mind.’

She wished, desperately, that he wouldn’t look at her but his gaze was

unrelenting and she found it almost impossible to concentrate. The

connection between them was electrically charged.

Did he feel it too? Did he feel the heat and the rising tension?

‘I’ve already told you that I don’t change my mind ‘You also told me that you wanted facts and you haven’t had them

yet.’ Her heart was thudding so hard she was certain that he must be

able to hear it. ‘You promised me ten minutes, Mr Cordeiro. My ten

minutes isn’t up.’ And she was blowing the whole thing, she knew she

was. It was all very well pretending to be confident but her knees were

shaking, her hands were shaking, she was saying all the wrong things,

letting one superior glance from those dark eyes turn her into a

stuttering wreck. And he obviously recognised the effect he was having

on her because he gave a silky smile.

‘Nervous, Miss Thacker?’

‘Of course I’m nervous …’ She spread her hands in a gesture that

pleaded for understanding—some concession on his part. ‘In the

circumstances, that’s understandable, don’t you think?’

At that precise moment, he was in the driving seat and she was

standing in the road waiting to be run over.

‘Absolutely.’ His voice was as hard as his gaze was unsympathetic. ‘In

your position I’d be quaking in my boots and I’d be using every trick in

the book to try and save myself, even down to the high heels, the

innocent smile and the shiny hair. Go for it, I say.’

‘I don’t understand what you’re implying.’ Did he realise how

uncomfortable she was in the shoes and the heels? Did he know that

she’d been trying to impress him?

‘I’m saying that your business is in serious trouble, Miss Thacker, and

I’m the only one who can save it so I don’t blame you for using every

trick at your disposal to try and turn the tide. But I ought to warn you

that it won’t make any difference. I won’t extend my investment and as far as I’m concerned you deserve everything that’s coming to you.’

His callous lack of sentiment was like a vicious punch in the stomach.

‘How can you say that? How can you be so uncaring?’ She forgot her

resolution not to get emotional. ‘This isn’t just about me. If Café Brazil

goes under then lots of people are going to lose their jobs.’

‘And you’re terribly concerned about other people’s welfare, are you

not?’

There was something in his tone that increased her feeling of unease.

Why did she have the sense that there were two conversations going on

here? One above the surface and one below. ‘Yes, actually. I think being

an employer is a big responsibility. You can’t just hire and fire people.

I’ve been very careful about not recruiting more staff until we were sure

that the business could support them.’

He raised an eyebrow. ‘Very laudable, I’m sure. So what went wrong,

Miss Thacker? If you’re so careful, then why are you here? Why isn’t

your little business raking in the cash as we speak?’

‘Our operating costs were higher than we’d estimated,’ she said

honestly, frowning slightly as she caught the cynical gleam in his eyes.

‘Among other things, refurbishing ten of the coffee shops cost more than

we planned. But we’ve addressed that and I have lots of ideas for the

future.’

He watched her for a moment and the atmosphere thickened between

them. ‘You’re very determined,’ he said softly. ‘Just how desperate are

you?’

Grace stared at him, her mouth dry. What did he mean by that? ‘I care, Mr Cordeiro, if that’s what you mean.’ Refusing to be daunted, she

took a deep breath and gave a shaky smile. ‘I still have five minutes left

to persuade you.’

She reached for her briefcase and removed the papers that she’d

stowed carefully inside. Rafael Cordeiro was a man incapable of emotion

so she had to appeal to a different part of him. He was a figures man so

she’d give him figures. ‘You won’t continue your investment because, so

far, you haven’t seen a profit. But the cafés are doing well. Speculate to

accumulate, isn’t that what they say?’

‘Do they?’

She flushed and forced herself to carry on and not be put off by his

bored tone or the dangerous glint in his eyes. ‘We’re breaking even now

and we’ll soon be making money.’

‘Is that right?’

Something in the way he was looking at her caused her feeling of

unease to rocket. ‘Once we start making money you’ll also start making

money …’ Her voice tailed off as she saw the grim set of his mouth.

What did it take to make the man smile? ‘I’m going to be completely

honest here. It’s taken longer than I thought it would and the figures

aren’t what they should be. The cafés are all so busy that I can’t

understand why we’re not already in profit.’

‘Can you not?’

Faintly encouraged by his smooth tone, she decided to be completely

open. ‘I probably made a few mistakes at the beginning. Our operating

costs were too high. Much higher than I planned. I paid more for things

than I should have done. Now that we’re expanding, it’s easier to negotiate good deals. Give me a bit longer. You won’t regret it.’

‘I already regret it. I don’t like the way you do business, Miss Thacker.’

Shocked, she stared at him. ‘You mean, because the business has been

slow to take off? All right, I accept that, but give me a little longer. I

have loads of ideas that I want to talk to you about. I know that I can

make Café Brazil profitable.’

‘But at whose expense, Miss Thacker?’ His softly spoken question

made her frown.

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 she saw the chill in his eyes.

He held out a hand. ‘Show me the accounts.’Her heart lifted. There was hope, after all. Why would he want to see

the accounts if he wasn’t considering extending the loan? She hastily

opened the case, hating the fact that her hands were shaking slightly.

She was on the spot and he was trying to catch her out. It was like being

back at school again. Back in that hideous torture chamber where

everyone was just waiting for her to fail.

You’re stupid, Grace Thacker. Thick. Concentrate, you brainless girl.

Taking a deep breath, she reminded herself that she wasn’t in school

now and that she’d come a long way since those awful days.

And she wasn’t going to fail.

Reaching into the case, she pulled out the neat pile of papers that her

father had carefully collated and handed them to him.

He flicked through the pages with lean, bronzed fingers. ‘This is still

your five minutes, Miss Thacker. Keep talking.’

Didn’t he need a moment to concentrate?

Envying the ease with which his eyes skimmed the figures, taking

them all in at a glance, she looked away and tried to forget he was there

as she outlined her plans for the future. She told him about the new sites

she’d found, about her plans to extend each café.

Revealed her dream.

And received no reaction from him. He picked up a pen, made a few

notes, flicked over the page and then finally lifted his gaze. ‘I admire

you, Miss Thacker.’

From the ashes of disappointment she felt a warm glow of hope. ‘You

do?’ ‘Yes. I always admire people with nerve.’ He fingered the papers in

front of him and she could see the strength in his hands. ‘In the

circumstances I would have expected you to be hiding on the opposite

side of the globe.’

Grace pressed her shaking knees together. ‘Hiding?’

‘I’m not a very nice person when I’m crossed.’

She had the distinct feeling that she was missing something. ‘Then I

won’t cross you,’ she said lamely, the friendly smile dying on her face

under his cold gaze. ‘The accounts should show you that the business has

huge potential.’

‘These accounts show me that you’re very busy.’

‘Very.’

‘But not making a profit.’

She pulled a face. ‘Not yet.’

‘Interesting, don’t you think, that you’re busy and yet you’re not

making a profit?’

Grace stared at him. ‘I suppose that’s the nature of business. It

sometimes takes longer than you think to get off the ground. If you look

at the figures you’ll see that we’ll soon be in profit.’

‘I’m well-acquainted with the figures, Miss Thacker.’ He dropped the

accounts on the table. ‘And I only have one question.’

One question?

Grace straightened in her chair, feeling a wave of relief. She’d braced

herself for hundreds of questions all exploring the company accounts in

minute detail. And she’d been dreading it. ‘Please ask your question.’ She gave him a sunny smile and he watched her for a moment, his eyes fixed

on her face.

‘Tell me, Miss Thacker, how do you sleep at night?’ 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 s*x 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 was fortunate for him, and unfortunate for her, that his speciality

was greedy, unscrupulous women. Had that not been the case, his

suspicions wouldn’t have been roused and he would never have

discovered that Café Brazil wasn’t what it claimed to be and that Grace

Thacker was a long way from being the caring, magnanimous employer that she pretended to be.

The fact that she had the nerve to turn up here and beg him to keep

pouring money into her little scam was yet another testament to her

greed and lack of conscience.

In normal circumstances he would have allocated one of his staff to

sort out the problem, but in Grace Thacker’s case he’d decided that he

was going to deal with her personally.

Looking at her polished nails and shiny hair, he felt a slow, burning

anger build inside him. She looked pampered and secure and it was

quite obvious that she didn’t know the meaning of the word hardship.

Did she have any idea how it felt to be cold and hungry? Did she know what

it felt like to try and sleep without a roof over her pretty little head?

No, of course she didn’t. Why would she?

He was willing to bet that the biggest struggle in her life so far had

been deciding which heels to wear with which outfit.

When she’d contacted him, requesting a meeting, his initial reaction

had been to refuse. Why waste his time on her? But then he’d decided on

a different approach.

Retribution.

Grace Thacker had shattered lives and was about to shatter more.

She should be made to face the consequences of her unscrupulous

behaviour. She should be made to suffer. He hadn’t decided how yet, but

he was working on it.

And looking at her now, dressed in a suit that had undoubtedly cost an

obscene amount of money, wearing shoes that shrieked of s*x, expecting him to extend his loan in her business, he knew he’d made the right

decision.

Just how far, he wondered idly as he admired her slender ankles and

the soft curve of her calf, was she prepared to go in her attempts to

persuade him? It was a pity for her that he never allowed his s*x life and

his business life to overlap because the chemistry between them had

been live and electric from the moment she’d caught her heel on the

walkway. She’d stooped to release her shoe and that action had allowed

him a tempting vision of lacy white bra and creamy cleavage. Her silky

sheet of blonde hair had swung forward over her face and her lips had

parted in a soft gasp as she’d struggled not to lose her balance.

For a moment the anger simmering to life inside him had been

overwhelmed by a surge of masculine lust so intense that it had

bordered on the painful.

And then she’d noticed him. And had clutched at her briefcase like a

lifebelt. That gesture alone had been sufficient to quench his libido and

remind him of the reason she was here.

Money.

Aside from the shiny hair, the tempting cleavage and the long legs,

Grace Thacker was no different from any other greedy woman.

Dark memories swirled up from the recesses of his mind but he pushed

them away with ruthless determination, instead turning the full force of

his anger onto Grace Thacker.

No wonder her father hadn’t come, he thought bitterly. They

obviously hadn’t wanted anything to dilute the pure, virginal image she

presented in her white shirt and her clean, shiny hair. If she’d been