Rule of a KingdomKingdom Duet Prequel
Rina Kent
Rule of a Kingdom Copyright © 2020 by Rina Kent
All rights reserved.
No part of this publication may be reproduced, stored or transmitted in any form or by any means, electronic, mechanical, photocopying, recording, scanning, or otherwise without written permission from the publisher. It is illegal to copy this book, post it to a website, or distribute it by any other means without permission, except for the use of brief quotations in a book review.
This novel is entirely a work of fiction. The names, characters and incidents portrayed in it are the work of the author’s imagination. Any resemblance to actual persons, living or dead, events or localities is entirely coincidental.
Also By Rina Kent
Remorse (FREE)
ROYAL ELITE SERIES
Cruel King
Deviant King
Steel Princess
Twisted Kingdom
Black Knight
Vicious Prince
Ruthless Empire
Royal Elite Epilogue
KINGDOM DUET
Rule of a Kingdom (FREE)
Reign of a King
Rise of a Queen
LIES & TRUTHS DUET
All The Lies
All The Truths
TEAM ZERO SERIES
Lured
Crowed
Ghosted
Shadowed
Misted
Team Zero Boxset 1-3
HATE & LOVE DUET
He Hates Me
He Hates Me Not
To the alluring villains.
Author Note
Hello reader friend,
If you haven’t read my books before, you might not know this, but I write darker stories that can be upsetting and disturbing. My books and main characters aren't for the faint of heart.
To remain true to the characters, the vocabulary, grammar, and spelling of Rule of a Kingdom is written in British English.
Rule of a Kingdom is a short story prequel of a duet and is NOT standalone.
Kingdom Duet:
#1 Reign of a King
#2 Rise of a Queen
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Blurb
His kingdom. His rules.
My name is Jonathan King.
They call me ruthless, brutal, and heartless.
It’s all true.
Power is my chessboard and people are my playthings.
I might appear like a refined gentleman but I’m the villain of this story.
Everyone who defies me belongs on their knees.
Including her.
Playlist
Trouble – Coldplay
Your Own Funeral – The Striped Bandits
Machine – Imagine Dragons
Never Say Never – The Fray
Castle of Glass – Linkin Park
Numb – Linkin Park
Darkest Part - Red
Evil Got a Hold – Cut One
Mr. Sandman – SYML
Echo – Jason Walker
Inside – Chris Avantgarde & Red Rosamond
You can find the complete playlist on Spotify.
1
Jonathan Past
Those who bow down after defeat don’t know how to grab power by the throat.
They don’t know how to make their enemies fall and never get up again.
Power isn’t about winning. It’s about never losing. It’s about one win after the other to the point that suffering a loss becomes a foreign concept.
Power is snatching the first move in a chessboard so the opponent always follows your lead, not the other way around.
I lean back against the chair in my home office, my fingers cradling a glass of cognac. My friend, Ethan, stares at me through the laptop. His shoulders are tense under his English cut suit and his chestnut brows draw over cobalt blue eyes.
“Well played, Jonathan,” he grits out before taking a sip of his own drink.
I allow my lips to twitch in a smirk. “Crushing you is always a pleasure, Ethan.”
“Just because you won this bid doesn’t mean you crushed me. I’ll win the next.”
“Keep telling yourself that.”
Ethan and I have known each other since university days. If you ask me how we gravitated towards one another, I wouldn’t be able to pinpoint the exact moment. All I know is that we share the same tendencies, the same competitive streak, and we’re even attracted to the same types of women.
That’s why we ended up married to our respective wives. Or in my case, it’s one of the reasons.
My relationship with Ethan started as a camaraderie of sorts, a friendship, since we understood each other the best. However, it’s now some kind of a rivalry. Neither of us likes to lose and we don’t pull punches to make sure of that fact.
“Come to Birmingham.” He tilts his drink in my direction. “I’m setting up a poker table.”
“Pass.”
“You don’t want to win?”
“I only gamble when I can have a sure win.”
“When did you become such a bore, Jon?”
“Since I started beating you at your own games.”
“Fuck you.”
“Where’s your lap dog Agnus?” I pretend to search behind him. “Is today his appointment with the vet?”
Ethan sighs heavily and slides his glass of whiskey on the table with distaste. “For the thousandth time, I told you not to call him a dog or I’ll stop playing nice.”
That’s exactly why I do it. Ethan doesn’t like anyone badmouthing his childhood friend, Agnus, since we were in university. He barely shows any agitation unless it has to do with his family or Agnus.
A sound of the door opening comes from his side before Agnus appears into view, carrying a little girl with braided blonde hair. “Daddy!”
Ethan stands up and takes her from Agnus’ arms, a huge grin on his face. “How’s my princess today?”
Elsa, Ethan’s daughter, grins and waves a red chocolate packet. “Agnus bought me Maltesers!”
“He did?” Ethan stares at his second hand before focusing on his five-year-old girl. “You shouldn’t eat so much chocolate or it will rot your teeth.”
“It’s supposed to be our secret, Elsa,” Agnus whispers to her.
“Sorry,” she grins. “We won’t tell Daddy next time.”
“You’ll hide things from me, Princess?” Ethan tickles her tummy and she breaks out in giggles.
We’re supposed to talk about a project we’ve been envisioning with the Japanese, but if his daughter is in the picture, he’s out.
He turns so sappy when it comes to his wife, children, and Agnus.
I’m about to end the conference call when Agnus steps in front of the camera. His bland features greet me with no expression at all. Even his pale eyes are almost washed. I stare back with a smirk, knowing how much he gets offended on Ethan’s behalf whenever I ruin his plans.
Without saying a word, he ends the call,
