by Rina Kent
So it’s back to the writing cave for me.
Feel free to follow or connect with me on social media, I always love chatting to people who enjoy my books — and even if you didn’t, I’m always willing to listen and learn.
Thanks again, it’s been a pleasure :-)
Esme x
Lawless Kingdom
Natalie Bennett
Lawless Kingdom Blurb
One town.
One school.
One illicit affair that will span a lifetime.
* * *
You can never truly know someone.
Not even the ones you love.
* * *
What started as the best summer of Rhiannon Clermont’s life ended with her world being flipped completely upside down. All because she got entangled with Judas Barron, blue blood, and heir to a severely twisted and cutthroat society.
* * *
Now forced to be part of a savage coterie harboring sinister secrets, their mutual hatred for one another breeds a lethal lust and the sickest kind of infatuation.
Note From The Author
While Lawless Kingdom is grey and very tame compared to my usual works, it should be noted that this book contains scenes with explicit steam, crude language, and some graphic violence with an objective HFN ending for this manic couple. If that isn’t appealing, you may want to skip this one. If you’re into that and also like heroines with backbones and extreme anti-heroes you love to hate, read ahead to meet Rhiannon and her Judas.
I hope you enjoy them! <3
Playlist
(Spotify)
Megan Thee Stallion—Hot Girl Summer
XXXTENTACION—Royalty
Juice WRLD—Armed And Dangerous
Lizzo—Truth Hurts
Charlotte Lawrence—Wait Up
Kehlani—Nights Like This
Olivia O’ Brien--UDK
Summer Walker—Playing Games
YUNGBLUD--Parents
J Cole—Power Trip
Bishop Briggs—Tempt My Trouble
Portugal—Rich Friends
Camilla Cabello--Liar
Melanie Martinez—Drama Club
Kelsea Ballerini—Homecoming Queen?
Ellie Goulding—Hate Me
Post Malone—Take What You Want
Olivia O’ Brien—We Lied To Each Other
Lykke Li—Late Night Feelings
Lana Del Rey—Cinnamon Girl
Lil Tecca—Love Me
Ellie Goulding--Flux
Drake—Mob Ties
Ella Mai—Trip
Melanie Martinez—High School Sweethearts
Bishop Briggs--Baby
Halsey—Graveyard
Ed Sheeran—South Of The Border
It wasn’t pretty.
It wasn’t sugary and sweet.
Nevertheless, it grew into something bigger than either of us expected.
He could’ve had anyone.
I could’ve been free.
The moment he chose me, we became an endless, infinite us.
One town. One school.
One illicit affair that would span a lifetime.
If ever asked why I stayed, why I chose to love him back. That was inevitable.
If I didn’t love him, no one else would.
Chapter One
Rhiannon
It looked like something out of an 80's horror flick. I glanced at Mom and saw my inner thoughts reflected on her face. She never was any good at hiding her true feelings.
Our eyes met, and we shared a look behind Dad's back, my tawny clashing with her cornflower. Neither of us said anything, though. Raining on his parade would be the equivalent of stealing a child's candy. It had been a long time since he was this cheery and animated. We both knew his happiness was long overdue.
So, despite our new home looking as if it were ripped straight up out of Amityville with the massacred ghost of the past lingering inside, Mom and I both smiled, swallowing down our negative opinions.
"After a fresh coat of paint and some lawn care it'll look brand new!” Dad raved like a used car salesman.
I didn't know about all that, but the whole being positive thing had Mom and I agreeing anyways. He waved his hand in a come-hither motion and started walking again. "Let’s go, I wanna show you the inside."
Mom and I followed behind him, making our way up the overgrown drive. I looked around, noting how much land we had now compared to our old place that had barely had space to plant flowers.
Fields in desperate need of a mow and peppered with dandelions stretched out on either side of the farmhouse, running into a thick tree-line. There were no neighbors for a good five minutes in either direction, making the area extremely peaceful. I liked that so much more than the sound of a busy city.
I avoided the handrail that bridged the connection to the wrap-around porch. It didn’t look sturdy enough for me to try and hold onto and I wasn’t trying to test it out by seeing if I would fall onto my ass. The white paint was flaking enough as it was. Touching the thing would only make it worse.
Dad pushed open the large double doors and led us into a square foyer. I took in the space pleasantly surprised. The inside was nothing like the out. There was a nice aroma of lemon pine-sol from a recent cleaning, and the soft breeze coming through the open windows with beams of natural sunlight had the horror movie vibe diminishing rapidly, replacing it with a classic ambiance feel.
Packing boxes were piled all over the place along with the furniture that had arrived a day before Mom and I did. Clearly, Dad was leaving her the task of piecing the house together, which was probably for the best.
"I know it needs some TLC.." he trailed off, losing some of his enthusiasm in the face of our elapsed silence. Mom swooped in to recover it, wrapping an arm around his middle.
"Well, lucky for you, your wife knows a thing or two about interior design.”
Dad grinned and kissed the top of her head. I watched them for a minute and smiled, loving their love. As they started to discuss where to place what, I wandered off to explore on my own.
I didn’t inherit my mother’s knack for decorating.
It wasn’t so bad that I would dare mismatch colors—say orange with purple, but I failed in every way possible when it came to arranging furniture.
I flopped down on to my bed after moving it for the third time and pulled my cell from my back pocket. There were two text from Dax and six from Audrey. I skimmed over hers first, deciding to just call instead of reply. As the line rang, I shut my eyes and sighed, letting the sun from a large bay window warm my face.
“About damn time, Rhia!” her breathy voice blasted through my speaker.
“You knew I was going to the new house today. I’ve been busy.”
“Doing what? Pretending to arrange the furniture?”
She knew me too well. I laughed, picturing the smirk she would be sporting.
“So, have you spoken to that boyfriend of yours? He’s back in town now, right?”
There was a rapid clicking sound in the background which more than likely meant she was in her closet, shoving hangers around in search of an outfit. I rolled onto my back and opened my eyes, staring up at the swirled ceiling.
“He said he was, but I called you first. Why? What did you two conspire on now?”
“Nothing,” she replied too quickly and with way too much innocence.
“Audrey.”
She sighed dramatically. “Okay. I may or may not have told him we would be attending a small get together tonight. And now he may be meeting us there even if he didn’t want to.”
I had a flashback to three weekends ago when she said almost this same thing. That ‘small get together’ ended with me being so drunk I thought I’d died. I wound up commandeering the bathroom of Matthew Hartley.
I slept in his tub, waking to the not so glorious sound of him peeing.
I learned some valuable lessons from that experience. Mainly that Everclear is dangerous
and needed to be avoided like the plague. And Matthew, with his beautiful face and mouthwatering body had a penis the size of a Frito. It was an injustice to all the high-school cheerleaders I now knew had faked it for him.
“Did you forget I swore off parties for the rest of the summer?”
“Oh, come on Rhia. There’s only three weeks left of break. And you’re my best, best friend. If you don’t come with me, who will?”
“One of your other friends.”
She huffed. “I don’t have any other friends. I have acquaintances that serve a purpose.”
I laughed again, shaking my head at her. What she said was mostly true though.
Audrey could party like no other, but she wasn’t huge on adding new friends to the small list of ones she already had. Pretty sure there was a song about that.
“Dax will be there,” she repeated as if I hadn’t heard that the first time.
A groan unfurled in the back of my throat. This was what happened when your boyfriend and your best-friend were also friends—by default. But him being there wasn’t really an incentive. Dax and I could easily have hung out together at my house.
My parents weren’t oblivious to anything I did. In fact, they were damn laid back and lenient when it came to me. Some would say too lenient, especially went it came to Dax. I just…had kind-of wanted some space from him. He’d been away at his Dad’s the past two weeks and I still felt like I could use a break.
Yeah, from him. Forever.. A small voice whispered. I ignored it.
I wasn’t sure if it was right or if I wanted to deal with the look on my parents’ faces when I told them. They adored Dax like the son they never had. Audrey, however, would rejoice.
Friends by default meant they tolerated one another. The two of them weren’t exactly on the path to becoming best buds. Like this party I was unsure about.
I was supposed to be here unpacking for the day, but I knew if I said I wanted to go out Mom and Dad wouldn’t care. They’d just tell me be safe and call if I was going to be late. See. They were pretty cool, right? Which is why I’d never taken their trust for granted or abused it.
For example, if I started doing drugs or got knocked up my mother would kick my ass and lock me away until I was thirty. Father would massacre all other parties.
Losing both to the justice system wasn’t worth it.
So, aside from some green every now and then, I stayed far away from all other substances and made sure I never missed a dose of my birth control.
Just the thought of birthing a child made me shudder and break out in hives. I was only eighteen, but that was old enough for me to be convinced I’d only ever be a super-cool auntie to Audrey’s kids and have zero of my own. I’d be good with a fleet of dogs.
I looked around my room at all the boxes I still needed to unpack and began mapping out a plan of action. “Where’s the party at?” I asked Audrey.
“Somewhere magical.”
“Really?” I drawled. “I could just ask Dax, you know?”
“He won’t tell you either. Now get your shit together and meet me at my house. We need to prep,” she commanded. I started to protest but she was already hanging up. I really hated when she did that.
“Bitch,” I huffed, navigating back to my inbox to read Dax’s messages.
Saturday, July 22nd, 2019
Dax: Hey. I’m home. 4:45 PM
Dax: What R you doin 2night? 5:31PM
I frowned at the screen. Shouldn’t he know what I was doing?
Me: The same thing you are.
I text him back, and then hopped up to begin the search for one of my duffel bags.
When I got to Audrey’s, I parked my Soul beside her Macan, noting her mother’s car was absent from the driveway.
She was probably at some HOA meeting or gathering all the ingredients to bake cookies for the first PTA get together. I loved her like a second mom, but the woman was more than a little hands on when it came to stuff like that.
I didn’t bother knocking and since my friend had an issue locking her damn door, I was able to walk right inside. Chilled air and silence greeted me, the clinical colors of the house amplifying both.
I kicked my flip-flops off and made a beeline for the stairs, jogging up them with my tote bag slung over my shoulder. The swirled marble floor was cold beneath my feet. I preferred a more simplistic look. Not that I would ever live in a house this big or be wealthy enough to make that decision, I’m just saying.
My steps carried me to a solid white door that had rap music blasting from the other side of it.
Again, I didn’t bother knocking. I flung it open and grinned at the sight of Audrey practically naked in front of her floor length mirror. Hazel eyes found mine and her face lit with a smile.
“What do you think?” she pointed one manicured nail at her honey blonde locks.
“About what?”
“Um, my hair.”
I lifted a brow and stared at her. “Audrey, it literally looks the same as it always does.”
She gasped as if I’d offended her and turned around, hands on her hips. “Do you know how long I spent curling this shit?”
“I hope not too long.” I laughed, walking towards her massive canopy bed.
“Whatever. What did you bring to wear? Because I love you and everything, but what the hell do you have on?”
“You mean this isn’t what’s in right now?”
I ran a hand down my body, cupping my right cheek where a faded imprint of the word Juicy sat.
“It was fashionable for our mothers. That’s where you got them, isn’t it?”
I scoffed. My mom was the size of a twig with zero assets. I on the other hand had plenty of both. We looked nothing alike. Sometimes I swore I’d been adopted or something because I didn’t really look like Dad either. And then there was the most obvious difference between us, being they, both looked nothing other than white.
Popping the button on my bag, I dumped the contents onto Audrey’s magenta bedspread. She strode over in all her silk under-garment glory and snatched up my dark cameo skirt.
“Ohh, I love this on you. Makes that ass look even more fantastic.”
That wasn’t why I’d chosen it. Not really. Okay, maybe it was a little bit.
I was a firm believer that if you had it, flaunt it. Female body empowerment or whatever.
“So,” --I snatched the mini skirt from her--“where are we going?”
“I told you already. Some place magical.” She studied my black bodysuit and nodded to herself as if to confirm something. Before spinning on her heel. She walked across the room and disappeared into her closet.
“If you’re referring to Virtue, please spare me.”
Her responding laughter carried through the air. I wasn’t amused. Virtue was a secluded hilltop in the woods. Someone had started calling it that after a dozen girls were taken there to give away their virginity because apparently risking it all in the back or front seat of a car was romantic.
It was such a ridiculously stupid concept in my opinion.
I didn’t think it mattered much where it went down, but the how it went down. Unless you were at church or something. That’d probably be a bad idea.
Anyways, now it was used for nothing more than hooking up. I’d never been there personally. My virtue ship sailed two years ago and nothing about the experience had been sweet. It was brutal. Bloody, filthy, and exhilarating.
It’d been the one night I felt free, and at the touch of a stranger. The events that led up to us coming together in such an unchangeable way, could never be discussed or spoken of if not between the two of us. But I hadn’t seen him since, and I never got his name. If that made me a slut, so be it.
“Look.” Audrey appeared in the closet doorway just as I was about to take a stroll down memory lane. In her hands was a camisole crop top that matched my skirt.
“We can color co-ordinate.”
“Is that thing going to securely hold those bea
n bags attached to your chest?”
She flashed me a mischievous smile. “Who says I want them to be secure?”
“If your dignity could speak, probably her.” I began gathering up my few items so that I could get ready.
“Have you heard from Dax?” she asked, changing the subject.
“Oh, yeah. He asked me what I was doing tonight. Won’t he be there? Wherever there is.”
She made a sound under her breath that I took as a yes, but suddenly she couldn’t seem to hold my eye.
“Okay. Spill. What the hell is going on?”
“We should get ready.” She moved from her closet to the attached bath and shut the door, completely ignoring my question.
“Audrey?”
“I’ll tell you in the car!”
I stared at the sole barrier between us, debating if I wanted to throw a fit and demand she tell me whatever it was that had her acting cage-y. We didn’t usually keep secrets from one another, especially where boys were concerned.
The one I held close to my heart was more for her safety than anything else. Plus, I trusted Dax, for the most part. The way she was behaving made me start to wonder if I’d been wrong in doing so because this obviously was about him.
That was ridiculous, though. Wasn’t it? If you trusted someone then it shouldn’t take something this trivial to doubt them. Then again, it wasn’t as if the two of us had some epic teen love thing going on. Maybe I was searching for any viable excuse to just be done with this.
I tried shaking off the funk that came on the heels of these thoughts, but it was too late.
A tiny seed of suspicion had been planted.
Chapter Two
