Page 23 of Bride Under Contract

Grace screwed her eyes closed, determined not to be so pathetic. Only as they headed back for breakfast, instead of scanning the trees for signs of life, she was back to dreaming about Carter, barely noticing that the boat had slowed, as it often did when they passed longhouses.

‘He’s very well camouflaged...’ Felicity told them, and Grace realised she must have spotted something as they drifted.

Hoping, hoping, that she was finally going to see an orangutan in the wild, she was about to look up when she saw that Felicity was pointing downwards.

‘How old...?’ Randy asked as Corrin focussed her camera.

‘Perhaps six months...less than a year...’

It was then that Grace saw the tiny crocodile, possibly the length of her forearm, his shiny skin yellow and brown, much like the muddy river bank, his little jaw wide open as he bathed in the morning sun.

He was cute, Grace thought, and attempted a joke. ‘You know what not to do,’ she said.

‘What’s that?’ Felicity asked.

‘Smile...’

Nobody got Grace’s little joke about the old song warning people never to smile at crocodiles, so she sat there blushing as Felicity first of all blinked in bemusement and then addressed the group.

‘Saltwater crocodiles are a huge problem for the locals. Their dogs and chickens are easy prey, but also small children, fishermen...’

‘The Bennett family...’ Randy drawled. ‘Three killed...’

‘Well, we don’t think the crocodile directly killed all three,’ Felicity said, in rapid defence of nature. ‘It’s believed that the father drowned trying to save his wife and baby boy...’ She spoke on about the new hunting rules that were meant to deal with the threat. Then, ‘That little fellow might look sweet, but he can grow to more than six feet in length and has a life-span of seventy years.’

‘Bennett?’ Grace checked—because wasn’t that Carter’s surname?

‘Probably happened before your time,’ Randy said, then looked to their guide. ‘Is the Bennett place where you’re based?’

‘It is.’ Felicity nodded.

Grace was trying to listen as Felicity explained about her grant, and her research, and how she was based at Wilbur Bennett’s home, yet try as she might to concentrate, her mind kept drifting.

Was it Carter’s family that had been killed?

Randy confirmed that it was. ‘Saw him at the pool this morning—you should see the mess of his back.’

‘That wasn’t from the crocodile attack,’ Felicity intervened, but to no avail.

‘Shame he’s going to turn it into a film set,’ Randy said. ‘Though you can’t blame the guy for wanting nothing to do with the place.’

Felicity looked flustered, clearly trying to dampen the conversation down. ‘That’s just rumour and speculation...’

Things had moved way beyond rumour and speculation!

Arif had brought him up to speed.

‘I didn’t know whether to call,’ Arif admitted. Again.

Carter didn’t respond to those words, just poured another coffee as Arif spoke on.

‘I wasn’t sure you’d even want to know.’

‘Well, I know now,’ Carter retorted briskly. ‘And I’m on to it.’

They had discussed the issue for a good couple of hours, and Arif seemed less than reassured by Carter’s solutions.

‘Barristers, lawyers, attorneys...’ Arif gave a tight smile, clearly frustrated by the lack of direction and nervous about the path ahead. ‘The damage is happening now. We’ve even got some of the executives staying here at the resort, although they didn’t introduce themselves as such.’

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