Reign of a King (Kingdom Duet #1) by Rina Kent

“Aurora. My name is just Aurora Harper now.”

He remains motionless like a mountain. “I see you’re killing your association with Maxim Griffin.”

Black images assault my head. The cries. The shouts. The assault of the angry crowd.

My bottom lip trembles and I trap it under my teeth to put a halt to it.

“Don’t.” I wrap a hand around my waist and hug myself. The old scar is way underneath my clothes, but I feel the burn as if it’s happening right now.

“Don’t?” he repeats.

“Don’t say his name.”

“That doesn’t erase him from existence.”

“Just don’t. Stop it.”

“I might consider it if you tell me something.”

“What?”

“Where have you been, Clarissa? I mean, Aurora.”

“Why should I tell you?”

He tilts his head to the side, watching me for a few seconds without blinking. Being under Jonathan’s brutal scrutiny is like kneeling in a king’s court, waiting to be judged.

“You think you can show up out of nowhere, at my son’s wedding, no less, and pretend like nothing happened?”

Yes.

But now that I hear it in that haughty, almost condescending voice, I feel like I was being childish for ever thinking that.

“Let’s pretend we never met,” I try in my soft tone.

“I don’t pretend.” He steps closer, purposefully invading my personal space as if it’s his God-given right. “So how about you tell me what the fuck you were doing with Ethan?”

“Nothing.”

“Try again, and this time, don’t lie to me. If you do, I’ll take it as in you’re ready to bear the consequences.”

I could lie to him and get myself out of this pinch, but that will only take me so far. I might not have seen Jonathan in person for twenty years, but his name can’t be escaped in this country or even in the international business scene.

He’s an investor. A commander. A ruler.

If he sets his sights on something, there’s no stopping him until he either gets it or ruins it.

Black or white. There’s no grey in his dictionary.

And for that reason, I need to tactfully slip out from under his radar as smoothly as I was trapped within it. I crossed the enemy’s lines by mistake and now, I need to find the safest way out.

I suck in a deep breath. “Business.”

“What type of business?”

“Just business.”

“Did you not hear me ask what type of business it is? I do not like repeating myself, Aurora.”

Damn him and the authoritative way he speaks. It’s like he expects everyone to fall at his feet with a simple command.

I might not want to provoke Jonathan on purpose, but I will not get on my knees in front of him.

Not now. Not ever.

I’m done with kneeling for a lifetime.

“It’s nothing that concerns you.”

“Nothing that concerns me, but it concerns Ethan. Correct?”

“Yes.”

“No.”

“No?” I repeat with a confusion that must be written all over my face.

“You’ll end whatever business venture you have with Ethan.”

“Why would I do that?”

“Because I said so, wild one.”

Is he fucking kidding me? He’s not. I know Jonathan isn’t the type who jokes around, but does he honestly believe I would follow simply because he ordered?

So what if he has power? It’s not absolute. Nothing and no one is.

I lift my chin. “And if I say no?”

“Then we’ll do it my way.” A small smile lifts his lips. His sensual, well-proportioned lips.

And now, I’m staring at his lips.

Stop staring at his lips.

I lift my gaze to his and the whole image is clear. He’s not even smiling, and it’s downright menacing. This is the look of a man who’s preparing for a battle.

A man who’s so used to war that peace bores him.

And I’m another battlefield in his path of conquering.

So no, it’s not a smile. It’s a declaration of something sinister and potent.

“Why would you care who I do business with, Jonathan?” Last time I checked, he wasn’t my guardian.

“You think you can skip me in my own territory and choose someone else to do business with? And not just anyone, but Ethan. What’s your message there? Are you trying to challenge me?”

“No.” That’s the last thing I want.

“Then why didn’t you come to me?”

“I don’t like mixing familial affairs with business.” And I hate him for the way Alicia died. If I didn’t know he would overpower me, I’d punch him in the face and relieve the tension I’ve been carrying for eleven years.

“The only family I have has the King’s last name. You’re not my family, wild one. Never was. Never will be.”

“Mutual.”

“Glad we agree on that front. Now, you’ll cut off any contact or communication with Ethan — including Agnus.”

“That would be a no.”

“Did you just tell me no?”

“Yes, Jonathan. I don’t know what your deal is, but you don’t get to tell me what to do.”