Pay For Your Lies

Pay For Your LiesRoyal Crown Academy Book TwoKhai Hara Copyright © 2023 Khai HaraCheckmate Copyright © 2023 by Khai Hara 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 personas, living or dead, events or localities is entirely coincidental. Contents Title PageCopyright1234567891011121314151617181920212223242526272829303132333435363738394041Epilogue A NOTE FROM THE AUTHORHello hopefully again friend,Rhys is probably my favorite of the three boys we know so far. I’m excited to get your thoughts and feedback and see if you guys love him as much as I do.His story isn’t as dark, but he is just as jealous and possessive of Rogue which results in him being rougher with the heroine than some might be used to. There’s also a very violent scene towards the end of the book. Please keep those possible trigger warnings in mind before you start reading.Also, neither main character physically cheats (kissing/sex) in this book, however together they definitely cross the line when it comes to Thayer’s previous relationship. Please be aware of this if any type of cheating triggers you.Happy reading!To the people who read my first book – you gave me the confidence to write another. Thank you.PLAYLISTCall Out My Name — TRØVESDream On — AerosmithCar’s Outside — James ArthurExtreme Ways — MobyTrainwreck — James ArthurNatural Blues — MobyBad Girls — M.I.A.Make Up Your Mind — Florence + The MachineIn This Shirt — The Irrepressibles In My Veins — Andrew BelleNo Right To Love You — Rhys LewisLove Again — Dua LipaTraitor — Olivia RodrigoWhat Once Was — Her’s 1 Thayer“Just like that, love. Fuck, you’re killing me.”The voice startles me. I straighten, standing upright from where I’d been bending over, stretching out my sore hamstring.Even before I turn, those words let me know who I’m about to come face to face with.I wish I could admit that his voice leaves me unaffected. That it sounds just like every other voice to me and doesn’t stand out in any way, but I can’t.The first time he spoke to me, his voice slipped into my ear and, carried by the tiny blood vessels in my brain, spread its irresistible, intoxicating poison everywhere it could.We were arguing, pretty much like we have been every conversation since we met, but it didn’t matter.He’d dirtied me forever with his voice alone.It's not because his voice is special to me that it’s made a home in my brain and fucked me from the inside every conversation since.No, no. He just has an exceptional voice, anyone would agree with me.It’s the kind of voice that gets an actor hired to record romance audiobooks; its silky, rumbly tenor able to get women around the world unspeakably horny with just a few carefully delivered words.But it’s also the kind of voice that can silence a room with barely a word uttered. The kind that people listen to.The kind they obey.Now, whenever I hear the rich tone, the velvety smooth British accent, and the rough, dry delivery, it lights me up like a battery.Add to this his quick wit and constant bantering and my poisoned brain powers to life, ready to engage.And that’s the worst idea in the world.For a few reasons, most notably that I have a boyfriend and Rhys’ words are rarely anything but obsessively filthy and, importantly,—I don’t obey.I turn and get confirmation that it really is him. He’s standing fifteen feet away from me, looking irritatingly attractive with his arms crossed over his chest and his hips casually resting against one of the metal dividers that separate the field from the spectator section with its rows of elevated bleachers.He watches me silently for a beat before unfolding his arms to reveal a hand clasped around a green apple. He brings it to his lips and takes a large bite, the crunching sound ripping the silence like a knife stabbing through a tapestry.“What?” I ask.The lazy open mouthed smirk he gives me as he chews his apple draws my gaze to his defined jaw.Annoying.“I didn’t mean to interrupt.” He says, the smirk morphing into his trademark playful grin. “I quite liked the view before.”It’s the smutty voice.That’s the only reason my body temperature heats ten degrees at his words.When I know I’m going to speak to him or interact with him in any way, I can usually control my reactions and try to keep a clear head.But right now I’m unprepared, and that’s a problem.I’d been miles away in my mind thinking about a biology paper I needed to hand in tonight and hadn’t braced myself for a potential interaction as my warm up was ending.I’m always the first on the field, doing extra stretches and warmups before the rest of the girls’ team joins me. I’m hoping to be named team captain, so I’m trying to lead by example.The boys’ team practices on the field next to ours, usually at the same time. I should’ve known I’d run into him as I was finishing up.Rookie mistake.Caught off guard like this, he has the upper hand. I need to get my wits about me asap before he senses the tiny opening this fissure leaves. I think people underestimate Rhys.Unlike his two best friends, he’s easy with a joke, a smile and a good time. While people don’t see him as weak, they seem to believe he’s more lenient than the others.I've only known him peripherally for a couple weeks but I’ve seen enough to know that’s a big time miscalculation on their part.I’ve yet to see any behavior that confirms what