‘But hate me, Rhiandra. Hate me if it makes it easier. Hate me if it keeps you with me.’

Hailey Jade - you are pushing yourself onto my favorites list with this series.
I loved the first one, but this one is even BETTER. I love Rhi and Draven and their chemistry is so much fun to read. They’ve got this like strangers-friends (ish? Like friends of convenience if that makes sense) - to lovers to enemies and then like enemies with benefits and then just enemies again and i LOVE it. I’m also getting some fated mates vibes with the way Rhi describes the pull she feels for him? but I might just be reaching for that bc I want them to be together so bad haha

‘Someone has taught you that you don’t deserve to take up space,’ he said. ‘And it wrecks me everytime I see you shrink yourself down into some box you've been told you need to fit.’

I loved how Draven continues to lift Rhi up and how he keeps encouraging her to be vicious and take what she wants and what is owed to her. Whether that is taking control of the men in the council like the Queen she is, to getting her vengeance on the men who had assaulted her in the past. He does have his own agenda, but when we got his POVs, it almost seems like he’s adjusting it to include a way to keep Rhi and avoid hurting her.
When I got to the end I was so close to crying, villains almost always have my heart, but these two have totally stolen (and broken) it. I genuinely have no idea where Hailey is planning on taking these two next, but if they *don’t* get their happy ending, I will riot. If that happy ending is them actually burning the world around them for each other, I would be totally okay with that. They deserve it, just let them be happy