Cruel King (Royal Elite #0) by Rina Kent

His white shirt becomes complete see-through, sticking to his muscles like a second skin.

And he’s smiling.

It’s not one of his cruel fake smiles. This one is genuine like he’s… happy?

The view grips me by the gut. My heart pumps so loud, it’s a miracle he’s not hearing it.

This posture. This same posture.

I’ve seen it somewhere.

But where?

“The rain,” Levi whispers, still closing his eyes. “My father taught me to feel the rain.”





19





Levi





You make me lose control and you’ll pay the price for it.



* * *



Watching Astrid in my space, my compound, stirs a strange part of me.

I lean back against the counter with a glass of vodka in hand as she sits on the sofa right opposite me.

Drying her hair with a towel, she watches our surroundings like a curious kitten.

Aiden and I have kept the place simple with just a few sofas, two poker tables, and a bar. In short: all the fun Jonathan won’t allow us at home.

While Astrid drinks in her environment, my gaze keeps flickering to the way her wet white shirt turned transparent. Her half-naked milky, full tits push against the fabric. They’d fit fucking perfectly in my palms while I —

“You own this?” she asks.

“Technically, Aiden does. In reality, I do.”

“That doesn’t make sense.”

“A lot doesn’t.” I'm still ogling her tits and their gentle bounce every time she moves her hand up and down.

“Like you and your cousin? You guys are weird.”

“How so?” I ask absentmindedly.

Astrid finally follows my field of vision and crosses an arm over her chest as a blush creeps up her neck. “Pervert.”

Fuck me.

I never thought I would ever enjoy seeing a girl blushing, but Astrid is the exception to all rules.

She’s her own rule.

I smirk at the way she glares at me, but even her anger is cute when it’s mixed with embarrassment.

The princess can fight whatever we have all she wants, but I already set my sights on her. She can run, but I’ll catch her every time.

Hell, I’ll enjoy every minute of the chase, too.

There will be no escaping the king’s grasps in his kingdom.

The moment I saw that sorry fuck touch her, I saw black. The kind of black that Jonathan has been doing everything in his might to erase from my life.

But then, the most fascinating thing happened.

Astrid stood up to Jerry and put him in his place with such eloquence and strength that it turned me speechless. The pitch-black mood dissipated without me having to put any effort to stop it.

I don’t think she noticed it, but at that moment, she looked exactly like her father when he’s putting down his political enemies in the House of Lords.

What? I might have googled her and watched a few videos of her dad on YouTube.

“Why do you think Aiden and I are weird?” I ask, needing to keep her talking.

The way her lips roll around the words reminds me of how I claimed her mouth and how much I want to repeat it over and fucking over again.

Before I claim other parts of her.

Soon.

So soon.

“I don't know, I just feel it.” She buttons her jacket concealing my view of her tits. “You’re obviously the devil in disguise.”

“Why in disguise?”

“Because you appear perfect and gorgeous on the outside.”

“Perfect and gorgeous, huh?”

“That wasn’t a compliment. It only means that you’re not on the inside.”

“Still, you think I’m perfect and gorgeous, yeah?”

The slight blush creeping up her cheeks is all the answer I need.

“Whatever. You only look that way because you inherited some Vikings’ genes — which is super unfair by the way. I should’ve been the one who inherited some.”

“Why?”

“Mate! Have you seen them? They’re super badass.”

“You’re doing just fine without the Viking looks, princess.”

“Yeah, right.” She rolls her eyes. “Anyway, back to you and your cousin. You’re the devil and Aiden seems suspiciously too normal.”

I laugh, my head tipping back. “If you think I'm the devil, you should search for a higher position for Aiden.”

She mulls my words over in that busy head of hers. “Does it run in the family? Being abnormal, I mean.”

My jaw clenches, but I mask my reaction and smile. “Sure thing. If it makes you sleep better at night to know we’re all defected, then go right ahead.”

“You don't have to be a dick about it.” She stands, throwing the towel to the side. “I'm trying to figure out why Dad hates you guys so much when he thinks all those negative emotions are beneath him.”

“Maybe Lord Clifford isn’t such a saint after all.”

She lifts her chin. “Or maybe your family wronged him. I witnessed first hand how cruel a King can be.”

Jonathan is the type who destroys anyone who crosses him. It’s weird that he’s choosing to remain tight lipped about his grudge against Lord Clifford.

“Take me home.”

I abandon my half-full glass of vodka and approach her in steady steps. “Repeat that without the order part.”