Twisted Kingdom: A Dark New Adult Romance (Royal Elite Book 3)

I’m being kidnapped.

How does someone react when they’re kidnapped?

It’s not like I have the manual or something. Considering my relationship with Aiden, I should’ve probably bought the thing.

Deep down, I knew he’d do this someday. I knew he’d give the world his middle finger and whisk me away on his black horse.

Like an old-fashioned kidnapper, Aiden tied my hands in front of me so they’re lying on my lap. He also covered my hands with a blanket so no one would see what he’s done.

I should be thankful he didn’t strap my mouth with duct tape. But then again, that will draw people’s attention and Aiden is too smart for that.

The car speeds into the distance like a wrecking ball. Aiden’s complete concentration is on the road. There’s no tick in his jaw or a twitch in his left eye.

If I didn’t know better, I would say he appears serene. Peaceful even.

Oh, who am I kidding? There’s no such thing as peaceful with Aiden. Not when I’m sure he heard all about the engagement.

For the past hour or so, I’ve been thinking about what to say, but I’m distracted by his scent and sheer presence.

I’m lost in how his dark jeans tighten around his muscular thighs and how his grey pullover brings out the metal colour of his eyes. His hair is dishevelled in a sexy bedroom kind of way, though some tiredness is wearing down his expression.

I heard the flight from China to England is more than twelve hours. He must be exhausted. Still, I relish in the fact that he came to me first.

He crossed the seas for me.

Despite the circumstances, the breaths I take are deeper, cleaner, and so damn liberated.

The itch to hug and kiss him writhes inside me like I’m possessed. I want to run my fingers through his hair, feel his slight stubble against my cheek, and let him own me.

All of me.

I had an epiphany during this separation and the subsequent marriage proposal with Ronan. I’ve always belonged to Aiden and he’s always belonged to me.

It started ten years ago and has been ongoing since.

I was just too stubborn — and scared — to admit it.

The fact that Aiden’s not saying anything about the engagement is putting me on edge.

Aiden’s silence is a lot worse than his words. His silence is the calm before the storm and the wind before the hurricane. It’s feeling your limbs shake right before an earthquake.

The road becomes deserted the longer we travel. I thought he’d take me to the Meet Up, but we left London altogether.

“Where are we going?” I ask.

“A kidnapper doesn’t tell their victim where they’re going.”

I resist the urge to roll my eyes. “You know I had nothing to do with the engagement.”

Silence.

“Dad only asked for my opinion.”

“What was your response?”

“I haven’t told him yet.”

“So you’re considering it.”

Shit. I didn’t want him to get to that conclusion. “Of course not.”

“You know what’s the difference between you and me, Elsa?” His voice is rough, commanding, and hard. “I’m all in, but you always have a foot out. Even when we’re together, that brain of yours is always thinking of an escape plan.”

His words hit me harder than they should.

That’s it.

All this time, I’ve always fought the idea of Aiden and me — even subconsciously.

“You didn’t give me strong reasons to trust you,” I whisper. “It’s not like I resisted you without a reason.”

“Are we playing that game? Because I had a stronger reason to hate you.” The calmness of his voice draws chills over my skin and down my spine. “You reminded me of the woman who destroyed my childhood, but I didn’t let my hate win. You let your distrust win every fucking time.”

“Aiden —”

“I chose you, Elsa.” He cuts me off, gripping the steering wheel so tightly, his knuckles turn white. “I chose you over my mother’s memory, my father, and everything I fucking know. But you never chose me.”

“I wasn’t going to agree to the engagement.” My voice trembles despite my best efforts to remain unaffected.

“You didn’t refuse either. If it were me, I would’ve done it on the spot.”

“Like you did with Silver?”

“That was fake and it happened long before you came along. It meant fuck all and you know it.” His eyes meet mine, dark, hard, and almost black. “But you were biding your time. You are thinking about something that should be non-negotiable.”

“I was thinking about a way to refuse without hurting my dad. I finally have him back, and I can’t cause him or his company any harm.”

He barks a humourless laugh that scrapes over my skin like daggers. “Your father, the company, your new family. They all come first. Where do I fit into your list of priorities, Frozen? Am I a fucking afterthought?”

“That’s not true.”

How the hell do I tell him that my world revolves around him when he’s so frustrating right now?

Damn him and the way he gets under my skin.

“While I was on the other end of the world, thinking about ways to come back to you sooner, you were thinking about your engagement,” he hisses the last word as if it leaves a foul taste in his mouth.

“I was thinking about you, dickhead! I was thinking about how my life is an empty shell without you in it. I was re-reading your texts in class because I couldn’t stop missing you. I had to run in the rain like a lunatic because of thinking about you. So don’t sit here telling me that you’re an afterthought, Aiden. If you were, I wouldn’t be in so much pain right now.”

My chest heaves with the raw breaths and the strain of my words. I turn my head in the other direction, not wanting to look at him.

The car swerves into a dirt road. We bump for a few seconds before coming to a screeching halt underneath a tree. If it weren’t for the seatbelt, I would’ve toppled over.

Still refusing to acknowledge him, I stare out into the distance. The flaming of my cheeks spreads to my entire body like a rapid-fire.

Aiden places two fingers under my chin. His touch is rough, yet gentle at the same time.

I jerk away. “I’m mad at you right now.”

“I told you. We can be mad at each other while I touch you.”

When he grips my chin again and turns me to face him, I’m ready to give him a piece of my mind. The hunger on his face stops me. It’s tangible and raw, so raw my own hunger responds in kind.

A jolt of want zips through me and deep longing grips me in its merciless clutches.

“You missed me, huh?” His metal eyes shine, almost becoming black.

“Maybe.”

“Maybe is good enough.” He pauses. “For now.”

His thumb grazes my jaw, and I feel it straight in my peaking nipples and slick core.

My breath catches, but that’s not the only thing abnormal. My heartbeat is palpitating like crazy. I’m not sure if it’s because of my illness or Aiden’s touch.

His fingers tilt my chin up and he captures my lips in a slow, soft kiss.

This isn’t the time to be soft.

I don’t want him to be gentle and take his time with my mouth. I want him to own me. I want him to fuck my brains out like he can’t breathe without me just like I can’t breathe without him.

Manoeuvring my bound hands, I loop them over his neck. My fingers grip strands of his hair as I push my tongue up the roof of his mouth, demanding more.

With a groan, Aiden is on top of me. His hard muscles flatten my chest, nearly suffocating me.

He’s too much.

Too raw.

Too… real.

He fiddles with something on the side of the seat and we both topple backwards.

My eyes flutter closed as I kiss him, my fingers toying with the hairs at the back of his neck. Our breaths mingle together, rough and unrestrained like a symphony. I arch my back and slowly roll my hips against his pelvis.

That earns me a groan. Deep, and animalistic.

“Fuck, sweetheart. I need to be inside you,” he grunts and yanks at his belt, nearly ripping it off.

“I’m going to hurt you.” His blackening eyes slam into mine like a challenge.

“Y-you will?” I ask in a small, trembling voice filled with excitement and thrill.

“Oh, I will.” He grins, but it’s still intense. “And you’ll like it.”

He yanks my skirt up and my underwear down. I don’t know how he’s made it inside of me, but he has. The brutal thrust stretches me open. I don’t only feel the fullness in my pussy, it’s ramming straight to my belly, all deep and hard.

I grip the back of his neck for balance, my body arching off the seat.

His thrusts turn merciless, and true to his words, it does hurt. It hurts so good. It’s the pleasurable type of pain only Aiden can give me.

Like last week when I continued feeling him inside me for days. Every time I moved, every time I sat down, or ran, he was a constant reminder inside me.

“I’m addicted to you. I’m obsessed with you. I’m mad about you.” With every word, he hits my most sensitive spot.

My whimpers and moans tremble and vibrate off his throat with every pound and every touch of his lips against my heated skin.

He feathers kiss after a kiss to the curve of my jaw, the corner of my mouth, and the tip of my lips. He licks them, devours them, feasts on them.

My ears ring and my limbs quiver with the force of my pleasure. The orgasm rips through me like a heatwave, violent and uncontrollable. It’s not about the pleasure of the body anymore. It’s about the one who’s bringing me said pleasure.

The damning realisation hits me.

I’m screwed.

There’s no way I’ll be able to live without Aiden King.

Tears barge to my eyes as his body stiffens and his cum coats my inside. He collapses atop of me, his entire weight covering mine

It’s not tears of sadness. No. They could even be tears of happiness. They might as well be tears of acceptance.

Aiden props on his elbows, breathing heavily atop of me, the rise and fall of his chest vibrating on my skin. He licks my tears. One by each one.

“Don’t cry.”

He said it a long time ago, didn’t he? That it hurts him when I’m hurt.

I stroke the hair on the back of his neck and we remain like that for what seems like forever.

For a moment in time, it’s just me and Aiden shielded from the world.

I even forget that we’re in public and some passing cars might have seen what happened in full detail. Hell, even if they didn’t see, they would’ve noticed the shaking of the car due to Aiden’s rough thrusts.

Truth is, I couldn’t care less about what they saw.

The only thing I care about is the person atop of me, protecting me from the world.

“Now what?” I murmur after a while.

“Now we go back to where it all started.”