CROWNS ACADEMY || A Royalty's Academia Book Series #1

෴VOLUME [36]෴

Rai's POV

Liam was waiting for me at the villa when I got back, leaning against the marble fountain like some brooding romance novel hero. The second I stepped through the gates, his gaze locked onto me with unnerving intensity. 

“So,” he said, pushing off the fountain. “Seoul.” 

I smirked, swinging my bag onto my shoulder. “Miss me?” 

He closed the distance between us in three strides, his voice dropping to that low, dangerous register that made my stomach flip. “You were gone four days. With a prince.” 

I blinked. “Wait—are you talking about Joon, and aren't you forgetting Tinku?” 

His jaw tightened. “The one you almost blew up a lab with? Yes, that prince.” 

I burst out laughing. “Oh my god. You’re jealous, and for the record, that was Tinku, your sources lied to you.” 

“I’m not—” He cut himself off, running a hand through his hair in frustration. “Okay, maybe a little.” 

I stepped closer, grinning up at him. “Diliam Bloom, Crown Prince of the States, threatened by a guy who wears matching lab coats with his sister.” 

He scowled. “I read the reports. He’s a genius. And he—ugh—looks like a K-drama lead.” 

I pressed my lips together to keep from laughing. “You researched him?” 

Liam’s ears turned pink. “Shut up.” 

I couldn’t resist. Leaning in, I whispered, “For the record? I like my prince broody, possessive, and really bad at hiding it.” 

His eyes darkened. “Yeah?” 

“Mmhmm.” 

Then his hands were on my waist, yanking me against him. “Good.” 

Later that night, Liam cornered me in the astronomy tower at the school my secret spot.
Or so I thought

The second the door clicked shut behind us, he pinned me against the wall, his mouth crashing into mine. 

It wasn’t gentle. It was claiming. 

I gasped into the kiss, my fingers tangling in his hair as he nipped at my lower lip. “Still jealous?” I teased breathlessly. 

He growled, sliding his hands under my thighs and lifting me onto the observation desk. Star charts scattered as he crowded between my legs, his lips trailing down my neck. “You have no idea.” 

I arched into him, laughing. “I think I do.” 

His teeth grazed my collarbone, and I moaned. The sound went straight to his head—his hands tightened on my hips, pulling me flush against him. 

“Next time,” he murmured against my skin, “I’m coming with you.” 

I tilted his chin up, meeting his stormy gaze. “Deal.” 

Then I kissed him again, slow and deep, until neither of us could remember why we’d been arguing in the first place. 

.....෴.....

The sun-kissed sands of Israel greeted us like an old friend as we descended from the royal jet. The private airstrip gleamed beneath our feet, lined with crimson carpets and flanked by fluttering flags. Gold-trimmed black SUVs awaited at the runway’s edge. 

"Ah, Israel never disappoints," Liam mused, sliding his aviators down and winking at me. 

Lex bumped him playfully. "You just love any country with sun and royal treatment."