Kings of Linwood Academy - The Complete Box Set: A Dark High School Romance Series

by Callie Rose

  Clothes rustle behind me, and I spin in Linc’s arms just like I did in the pool that night, finding River shirtless too. His full, plush lips devour mine as he shoves his pants down, kicking them off without breaking our kiss.

  My bra is unsnapped, my panties slipped over my hips, and then all three of us are stumbling toward the bed, desperation finally beginning to speed up our movements.

  I crawl up onto the soft comforter, but before I can lie down on the mattress, Lincoln’s arms swoop in to wrap around my ribs. Like he did at the courthouse, he holds me tightly to him, my back to his front. Only now, everywhere we’re pressed together, it’s skin-to-skin. I can feel his cock against my ass, hard and ready, and it makes arousal leak from me, slicking my pussy.

  River kneels in front of me, all three of us on our knees, and when I feel his cock against my stomach, something flares to life inside me.

  Certainty.

  Want.

  Before I met these boys, I never knew I wanted this. That I needed it. That I craved it.

  But I do.

  “Fuck, Harlow. I’ve fucking missed you.”

  Linc’s voice is a low growl in my ear, and I nod, draping myself against him as River drops his head to trail his lips across my neck and collarbone, over the swell of my breasts. My nipples peak, and Lincoln and I both watch River draw one pink bud into his mouth, watch him bite down gently, trapping the hard nub between his teeth as he laves it with his tongue.

  Shit. Fuck. Shit.

  My pussy throbs, and I start to breathe harder and faster, arching my back to give more of myself to the boy in front of me.

  When he finally draws back, my skin is flushed with arousal, and cool air hits my wet nipple, making a shudder move through me.

  Lincoln keeps one arm banded around my ribs as his other moves lower, sliding over the swell of my hip to find the spot at the apex of my thighs. He groans when he slips a finger inside me, teasing my entrance with his touch.

  “Goddammit. You’re so fucking wet,” he whispers.

  River must read his lips, because his gaze moves downward, tracking over my bare chest and stomach to where Linc is touching me. His gray eyes darken like a storm cloud about to unleash a torrent of rain.

  “You’re so beautiful, Harlow. You’re perfect,” Linc mutters in my ear, and I can hear something in his voice that makes my heart tighten in my chest.

  I don’t know quite what it is, but it sounds almost like… awe.

  Like worship.

  Like tenderness.

  Like this means so much more to him than sex.

  His finger slips out of me, his hand trailing back up my body as he kisses the side of my neck, and I don’t know where I find the fucking balls to be so bold, but I slide my own hand down to take the place of his, feeling what he just felt. The arousal these two boys have brought out in me.

  River makes a choked noise when I slide two fingers into my pussy, and I watch him watch me, my breath coming faster as lust and excitement flood me. I’m not exactly shy about sex, but something about touching myself in front of the two of them feels so… intimate.

  I slip my fingers deeper inside my channel, hooking them a little as I withdraw them, gathering the wetness that coats them. Then I reach out and wrap my slick hand around River’s cock, and both boys let out noises that I feel down to the very core of me.

  “Jesus… Oh, shit.”

  River bites his lip, his chest rising sharply with deep breaths.

  I feel Linc fist his cock behind me, and then he finds my pussy and presses into me slowly. It’s not an angle I’m used to, but it feels amazing. I lean forward a little, giving him better access as he begins to thrust shallowly. Wrapping one arm around River’s neck, I kiss him as I stroke his dick with my other hand.

  Lincoln holds onto my hips, keeping me steady as we move together, the three of us shifting and adjusting our rhythms to match each other.

  The harder Lincoln fucks me, the harder I stroke River’s cock, and the harder River kisses me. We’re all spurring each other on, and I’m coming undone, floating away in a blissful haze of sensation.

  I didn’t know.

  Even when I craved it, I didn’t know it would be like this.

  Like being enveloped, overtaken, losing myself in something bigger than just me.

  “Fuck, Harlow. Fuck. Fuck.”

  The room fills with the soft noise of Linc’s hips colliding with my ass, our staccato breaths, our groans and whimpers.

  He feels so big from this angle, like he’s hitting places inside me I’ve never felt before, and when his cock thickens and swells inside me, I choke out a gasp, abandoning River’s lips to bury my face in his neck.

  “We’ve got you, Low. We’ve always got you.”

  River’s words are soothing, but his voice is just as strained as Linc’s, and his dick feels like a steel rod in my hand.

  He’s close. So close.

  But I’m closer.

  The feel of the two boys surrounding me, filling me, becomes too much to bear, and an orgasm crashes through me like a tidal wave. Lincoln curses, slamming into me again and again, and I force my hand to keep moving up and down River’s hard length, channeling all my focus into making him come too.

  I want to feel him come.

  They finish at the same time, and as they do, their bodies converge on mine, pressing me flush between them, not an inch of space between us. River grunts against my hair as his cum coats my stomach, and Lincoln’s cock jerks inside me as he groans out his release.

  For a blissful, perfect moment, we all freeze. Time seems to stop while they hold me tight.

  Then Lincoln slowly pulls out of me, and we all tumble to the bed like we’ve gone boneless. My stomach is a sticky mess, so I lie on my back, my heart tapping out a heavy drumbeat against my ribs.

  Linc props himself up onto his elbows, leaning over to look down at me. A dark shock of hair falls over his forehead, and his amber eyes are almost the color of honey right now, warm and sweet.

  “Jesus fucking Christ. Where did you come from, Low?”

  “Arizona,” I offer weakly, and he chuckles before leaning down to kiss me, soft and slow.

  “You okay, baby?” he murmurs against my lips.

  I don’t know if he’s talking about the sex, Judge Hollowell, my mom’s trial, or all of it, but I nod anyway. Because I am. Nothing is fixed, none of my problems have disappeared, but the trapped animal feeling is fading. I feel less violently desperate.

  Lincoln gets up to grab a towel from the bathroom, and River tucks a strand of hair behind my ears and kisses me until Linc gets back. We clean ourselves up a little, then we all get dressed.

  But now that the adrenaline is leaving my system, I feel so damn tired. Too tired to move. When I crawl back onto the bed, the guys don’t question it. They just crawl up after me and lie down on either side of me, holding me between them as my eyes drift closed.

  And I sleep.

  I’m not sure how long I’m out, but when I open my eyes again, the light filtering in through the windows is dimming. The steady, even sound of breathing surrounds me, and I figure Linc and River must have fallen asleep too—until I look up and find a pair of gray eyes watching me.

  “Hey,” I whisper.

  “Hey, yourself.”

  “Did you sleep?”

  “Nah.” He shakes his head, his voice quiet too. Linc is asleep—I can tell by the way his breathing hasn’t changed.

  “So you just watched the two of us sleep?”

  River’s smile makes him look dazzling and boyish. “Does it make me sound like a weirdo if I say yes?”

  I grin back. “Nah.”

  “You doing okay?” He scoots a little closer to me on the bed, and I hook a leg over his as he rests a hand on my hip.

  “Yeah.” I draw in a deep breath, relishing the fact that I can, that my lungs will accept oxygen again. “It’s just—I don’t know. Sometimes it feels like everything that’s happening
is… inevitable. As if from the second we saw Iris die, there was no way to stop any of this. It’s like that “sliding doors” thing, where each little decision you make sends your life careening off in a new direction. But I’ve never felt that so strongly as I do now. I can pinpoint the exact moment my life went from whatever it would’ve been… to this.”

  His tongue darts out to lick his lips as he considers my answer, his gaze serious. “Do you wish you could take it all back? Undo it?”

  I hesitate.

  Do I?

  Tears burn the backs of my eyes, and I swallow, my throat suddenly going dry.

  It’s a simple question without a simple answer.

  “Yes. Some parts of it, I’d give a fucking limb to undo. I’d give anything. But other parts—”

  I break off and move even closer to him, feeling the warmth of his body and letting his rich scent infuse my senses. Resting my hand on his chest, I gaze into his deep gray eyes, their color as variable as his moods.

  “Other parts, it would kill me to give up.”

  “Me too,” he whispers, a tiny smile lifting his lips.

  I sigh. “I don’t know how so much bad came with so much good. I hate that they came hand-in-hand.”

  River’s smile slips away, and his expression grows serious. Determined. “Harlow, we won’t let the bad win. We’ll fix this.”

  He means it. I can see it in his eyes.

  I don’t answer. I just lean into him, finding his lips with mine.

  We breathe each other’s air as we slowly peel off our clothes for the second time today, unhurried and soft as Lincoln sleeps beside us. Then River rolls me onto my back and settles himself between my legs, and when he slides inside of me, our gazes lock.

  We move together like the tide cascading up and down a sandy beach.

  Perfect.

  Natural.

  Easy.

  When I come, I wrap my arms and legs around him, pulling him as close as I can.

  And because I know he can’t hear me, I whisper words I shouldn’t say.

  We fall asleep again, and when we wake up, it’s almost eight o’clock. I feel groggy and a little disoriented—I’m not really much of a napper—but I feel better too.

  Something has shifted inside me, turning helplessness into determination.

  It’s not over yet.

  Lincoln leads the way downstairs with me and River right behind him. As we step off the west wing stairs and head toward the door to the motor court, Mr. Black rounds a corner, catching sight of Linc.

  “Lincoln, do you have a min—” He stops when he sees who’s with his son. “Oh, Harlow. How are you? How’s everything with your mom?”

  My blood seems to thin. Those are almost the same words Judge Hollowell spoke to me, and even though I know now that our suspicions about Lincoln’s dad being Iris’s killer were false, it’s hard for me to let go of that fear.

  With all the lies and betrayal, my circle has grown smaller and smaller. I trust the kings, and I trust my mom and Hunter, and that’s about it right now.

  “It’s okay,” I say, not offering any more information than that.

  “That’s good. I hope everything works out. Let me know if there’s anything I can do.”

  “I will, thanks.”

  As we’ve been talking, Lincoln has slowly positioned himself between me and his father, not cutting us off entirely, but making sure distance remains between us. I know he doesn’t suspect his dad of being a murderer anymore either, but the relationship between them is complicated, to say the least.

  When I glance back at Mr. Black, it strikes me how tired and worn out he looks. I guess fending off a conniving maid who deliberately got pregnant to try to screw him out of his money and marriage is wearing him down.

  It also sent him running into Judge Hollowell’s camp in an effort to improve his social standing.

  “Well, I won’t keep you,” Samuel says, putting on his usual air of joviality, although it’s easy to see it’s a lie. “But Lincoln, when you have a moment, could you come find me in my study? I’d like to have a word with you about something.”

  “Yeah. Sure.” Linc’s dark brows pull together, wariness crossing his features before he inclines his head toward me and River. “But I’ve gotta drop them both off first.”

  “Of course. No rush.”

  His dad nods at us and heads back the way he came. I glance at Linc as we resume our course toward the motor court.

  “Any idea what that’s about?”

  “No.” His jaw works, and I can feel his internal tempo speed up with agitation. “But I’m sure it’s not good. Everything around here has been a shit show lately.”

  I slip my hand into his and squeeze, and he looks down at me, his expression softening for a second. But the agitation doesn’t leave him as we get into his car and pull down the driveway.

  He’s dealing with a lot right now, and I hate to add to his stress. But there’s something I’ve been thinking about ever since we woke up, and I need to say it.

  “We can’t wait any longer.” I speak up as we near Dax and Chase’s house, turning in my seat to let River see my face. “We need to find some connection between Iris and Hollowell. And if we can’t find this Waverly girl, then we need to look into our other options.”

  Linc shoots me a sidelong glance before his gaze moves back to the road. “No. Following Judge Hollowell, getting anywhere near him, is too dangerous.”

  I shrug, not backing down. “Maybe. But we’re reaching the point where playing it safe is just as dangerous. If we sit back and stay safe for much longer, he’ll win anyway. We need to do this.”

  Lincoln’s hand tighten on the wheel, and River speaks up from the back seat. “Low, if Hollowell sees you anywhere near his house, or even near his office, he’s gonna figure out that you know.”

  He’s right. I know that. I can’t stop picturing the way he looked at me when I stepped out of his hold at the courthouse—the slight tilt to his head, the assessing look in his eyes. He’s probably already suspicious.

  But we’re out of options.

  I glance from Lincoln’s hard profile to River’s concerned, intent expression, turning in the seat even more to face him.

  “We won’t let the bad win. You promised.”

  10

  River caves first. Then Lincoln.

  When I tell the twins the plan after I’m dropped off at the Lauders’ house, they’re both even more adamantly opposed to it than Linc and River were.

  But eventually, they agree too.

  It may be stupid and dangerous, but what I’m coming to realize is that we’ve just been dealt a really crappy hand—and there’s no changing that fact. We don’t get to swap cards or ask for a redeal. All we can do is play our hardest and bluff like hell.

  All five of us ditch school the next day. I’ve given up worrying if my grades suffer or I flunk out of school. I don’t want to stress mom out, but in the big picture, it’ll be worth it. I’d rather cause her short-term stress and get her out of prison than play the good little student and graduate from Linwood with straight A’s and a parent behind bars.

  Judge Hollowell is presiding over a case, and we were able to get the schedule of the trial by calling the county clerk’s office. The good news on that front is that we know exactly where he’ll be and when.

  We arrive at the courthouse in the late morning, when we’re sure Hollowell will still be in the building.

  Because we need to find his car.

  Based on the number of vehicles in the Black family’s motor court, it’s not unreasonable to think that Hollowell has more than one. And it seems unlikely that he’d drive the same car he murdered Iris with to work every day. But we have to start somewhere, and this is easier than our next steps will be.

  We find a small lot around the back of the building with designated parking for the courthouse staff, and my heart drops a little when Chase points to the little placard that reads Judge Hollowell.


  The car parked in front of it is a light metallic beige.

  It’s the right size and shape, but the wrong color.

  “It was shadowy on the road. There were hardly any streetlamps on that stretch.” Chase lifts his eyebrows, although even he looks unconvinced by his words. “Maybe the car just looked dark because everything around it was dark.”

  “No.” I shake my head, my heart in my throat. “It was dark. Black or blue or gray. I don’t know which, but not this.”

  It’d be a waste of time to try to convince ourselves this could be the one when it clearly isn’t. Which means we have to keep looking.

  The second, harder part of our search is a lot more risky. If Judge Hollowell were to see me at the courthouse, he probably wouldn’t think too much of it. But if he sees me hanging around outside his house, I’ll be lucky if the worst thing he does is call the cops.

  We all pile back into Lincoln’s car, and I give him Hollowell’s address. He starts to drive, but about halfway there, he veers off course.

  “Hey.” I look up from the GPS on his phone, which rests in my lap. “You turned the wrong way.”

  “No, I didn’t.” He keeps his eyes on the road, and I notice the interior of the car has gone very quiet. “You’re not coming with us.”

  “What? Yes, I am! I—”

  “No, Harlow.” Now he does look at me, his amber eyes blazing intently. “Camping out outside Hollowell’s house is stupid enough as it is. But if we get caught, I’m not having you with us. We’re teenage boys; we can say it was some senior prank or something. But you’re not coming with us. I’m dropping you back off at school.”

  “I—”

  “This isn’t up for negotiation. Either we go alone, or no one goes at all.”

  Fuck. My stomach clenches into a knot so hard and fast I feel like I ate a lump of cement.

  I get why they don’t want me there. I do. But it wasn’t supposed to be this way. I was the one who was supposed to be gambling with my safety as we pushed harder for answers, not them.