The Kingmaker (All the King’s Men Duet, #1) by Kennedy Ryan

“Powerful, gripping, unflinchingly honest and sensuously gorgeous writing.”

— Kristan Higgins, New York Times Bestselling Author

The Kingmaker, the first book in the addicting All The King’s Men Duet, from RITA ® Award-winning author Kennedy Ryan, is available now!

Title: The Kingmaker

Series: All the King’s Men Duet, #1

Author: Kennedy Ryan

Genres: Multicultural, Romantic Suspense, #Enemies2Lovers

Release Date: October 28, 2019

𝙋𝙤𝙬𝙚𝙧. 𝙋𝙖𝙨𝙨𝙞𝙤𝙣. 𝘽𝙚𝙩𝙧𝙖𝙮𝙖𝙡.

𝗥𝗜𝗧𝗔® 𝗔𝘄𝗮𝗿𝗱-𝘄𝗶𝗻𝗻𝗶𝗻𝗴 𝗮𝘂𝘁𝗵𝗼𝗿 𝗞𝗲𝗻𝗻𝗲𝗱𝘆 𝗥𝘆𝗮𝗻 𝗱𝗲𝗹𝗶𝘃𝗲𝗿𝘀 𝘁𝗵𝗲 𝗲𝗽𝗶𝗰 𝗳𝗶𝗿𝘀𝘁 𝗶𝗻𝘀𝘁𝗮𝗹𝗹𝗺𝗲𝗻𝘁 𝗼𝗳 𝘁𝗵𝗲 𝗔𝗹𝗹 𝘁𝗵𝗲 𝗞𝗶𝗻𝗴’𝘀 𝗠𝗲𝗻 𝗗𝘂𝗲𝘁.

Raised to rule, bred to lead and weaned on a diet of ruthless ambition. In a world of haves and have nots, my family has it all, and I want nothing to do with it.

My path takes me far from home and paints me as the black sheep. At odds with my father, I’m determined to build my own empire. I have rules, but Lennix Hunter is the exception to every one of them. From the moment we meet, something sparks between us. But my family stole from hers and my father is the man she hates most. I lied to have her, and would do anything to keep her. Though she tries to hate me, too, the inexorable pull between us will not be denied.

𝘈𝘯𝘥 𝘯𝘦𝘪𝘵𝘩𝘦𝘳 𝘸𝘪𝘭𝘭 𝘐.

The Kingmaker (All the King’s Men Duet, #1)
by Kennedy Ryan © 2019

“What do you want?”

The look he pours over me is hot oil, burning me even through serviceable layers of cotton. His heated perusal caresses my face, sluices over my breasts and hips, and then pools at my feet.

“Oh, that you won’t ever get again,” I say, my voice a soft, certain promise. “I don’t screw liars. I’m particular that way.”

“Never say never,” he drawls, tilting up my chin with his finger.

“Nev–”

He crushes the word between our mouths. It falls apart in the scorching, sweet tangle of lips and teeth. With one hand, he digs his fingers into my hair. The other splays across my lower back, his grip on me almost convulsive, urging me up and closer. I’m in stasis. I’m completely startled by the kiss, unable to respond. I send a desperate message to my brain.

Move. Pull back. Push him away.

But the urgent glide of his hand down my spine to cup my ass melts my thoughts to liquid and they swim in my head. I can’t pull back, and all hope of resistance dissolves when he presses his thumb to my chin, prying me open. He stalks my tongue, hunts down a response, licking and sucking and groaning and growling. His hands tighten on me until I strain up to seek him, yanking his hair, pulling him even closer.

“Dammit, Nix,” he mutters between kisses. His hand wanders down my neck and across my shoulder, and cups my breast, twisting the nipple through flimsy barriers of cotton and lace. He shoves up my skirt, pulling my legs wider, and pushes my panties aside, his fingers invading me. My body remembers this mad craving that claws out of my bones—that wants out. That wants him. Under his rough touch, my body blooms and my hips rock.

“That’s it,” he says, taking my earlobe between his lips.

My head falls back and I moan. It’s so damn good. His touch awakens me. His hands, his kisses bring me to life. It feels like I’m taking my first deep breath since we were last together, and it fills my lungs, seeps into my pores.

“I missed you,” he says, sucking my lips and kissing the corners, quick, hungry. “I’m sorry. Baby, I—”

“Stop talking.” I reach between us to loosen his belt, catching his zipper and dragging it down, dragging him out. “Shut up.”

5 iScream Cones

“The harder I have to work for something, the harder I take it.”

Yes, I read the synopsis, but I still had no clue what I was in for. The title makes perfect sense now that I understand what it means. I wish I could tell you…not really. That would be a disservice, it’s the experience of the slowly unraveling story that feeds the hunger inside, right? The need to understand, to feel, to experience, to question, to hate, to fall. And nothing could feed my addiction better than my dealer, Kennedy Ryan.

Their parents are enemies. His father took what didn’t belong to him and she can’t forgive him. But, the son, she’s drawn to him against her will. “It’s laughable to think that he could camouflage his driven nature and be something that he’s not.” He doesn’t agree with what his father did to her family. He’s determined to blaze his own trail and make a name for himself that’s not connected to the family business. He doesn’t need any distractions and she’s the biggest one of all.

They walk away from each other time and again but somehow keep ending up at the same place. She’s still fighting against the attraction she feels for him. “—his spirit is still wild, howling on some frequency I shouldn’t be tuned into, but I am.” She refuses to let herself give in to what she truly wants, the ghosts from the past not allowing her to move forward.

Lordy, those two hard-headed, amazing characters gave me a mental workout. I’m exhausted from yearning so hard. I liked them too much to give up on the happily-ever-after I envisioned. Their chemistry is so intense that I can feel it through my Kindle. I don’t know what the future has in store for these two, especially after what just happened. I can’t wrap my head around it, and my jaw is still on the floor. I’m beyond anxious to get my grabby hands on The Rebel King. The line forms here…

A RITA® Award Winner and Top 25 Amazon Bestseller, Kennedy Ryan writes for women from all walks of life, empowering them and placing them firmly at the center of each story and in charge of their own destinies. Her heroes respect, cherish and lose their minds for the women who capture their hearts. She is a wife to her lifetime lover and mother to an extraordinary son. She has always leveraged her journalism background to write for charity and non-profit organizations, but enjoys writing to raise Autism awareness most. A contributor for Modern Mom Magazine, Kennedy’s writings have appeared in Chicken Soup for the Soul, USA Today and many others. The founder and executive director of a foundation serving Atlanta families living with Autism, she has appeared on Headline News, Montel Williams, NPR and other media outlets as an advocate for families living with autism.