Her Master's Collar (On the Hunt) Read Online Free PDF

he’d just stepped from the shower. He appeared relaxed in dark-green linen slacks and a flawlessly tailored tunic. But she knew him well enough to know better. Under the surface, he was all business. No doubt he’d scoped out the lounge as soon as he’d entered. He could probably tell her where every exit was and even identify anyone he saw as a possible threat.
    “Sure. Have a seat.”
    He accepted the tea as he sat across from her. “Is the suite large enough?”
    “It’s gorgeous. I think I could fit my entire studio apartment just in the bathroom.”
    “Good. If it wasn’t, I was going to suggest you look at the other suites on our floor and see if any of those meet your specifications.”
    She hesitated as she reached for her drink. As she blinked slowly a few times, Roland offered nothing. She couldn’t decide if he was playing some kind of joke on her. She cocked her head to the side, curious. “You didn’t?”
    “I did.” He smiled wickedly around the rim of his glass. “Renting out all the rooms on the floor was the easiest way to guarantee our privacy and safety while we’re on board. Don’t worry. I’ll stay in the room across the hall when it’s feasible. If things change, however, I suspect the very plush couch in the living area of the honeymoon suite is quite comfortable.”
    Damn right he’d sleep on the couch. “Do I get to know the plan now?”
    “We travel as tourists to the Victoria Crater Resort, and once we arrive, we’ll head over to the last-known transmission location from the team. A cave near Arsia Mona, I believe. There are a cluster of volcanoes nearby. Very hot tourist destination.”
    “My guess is you’re banking on the fact so our presence won’t seem that out of place.” Hearing their destination caused a small twinge of guilt in her stomach for not keeping her company abreast on Earth. But she was paying for the best. To complain about getting just that would be absurd.
    It still plucked her nerves to have hired Elite in the first place. She’d trained her men to prevent these kinds of situations, but yet—here they were. The one person she thought she’d never team up with again was Roland Asher. After she’d gotten over her initial hurt and anger when he’d left, she’d vowed she would never think about him again or his place in her life.
    Or rather, his absence.
    Yet here she was pretending to be married to him.
    His glass clinked softly against the clear table. “Probably better to get as much rest as you can now while things are calm.”
    She glared at him. “It’s very annoying that you feel you need to explain the simplest of tasks about traveling in space. I’m not a novice. If I had my way, I’d fly on every single mission we’re hired for. I built this company from nothing. I am more than capable—”
    “I’m just trying to—”
    “Yes, I know what you’re trying to do, Roland. Finley is more than welcome to take the couch if you feel I need looking after.” She folded her arms and glared at him.
    A vein jumped on his forehead. “I just wanted to let you know—”
    “Why did you leave?” she blurted. Within seconds, a sinking feeling spread through her stomach. Oh, how she wished she could take that question back. The timing was horrible, but her temper had gotten the better of her. Damn him for getting her this worked up.
    Roland’s brow furrowed. “Do you really want to do this now?”
    They were supposed to be a couple completely in love, but what other choice did she have? “Your crew needs to count on your undivided attention. I don’t feel as if you’re giving it to them because of me. I really don’t want to do this now, but until we do, tensions are going to make all of us uncomfortable.”
    She finished off the last of her tea while he tapped his fingers against the arm of the chair. His eyes lost focus for a long moment before he finally spoke. “Maybe for right now, it needs to be.”
    “In other words, you’ll