Page 125 of Cruel Prep (Princes of Ravenlake Academy 1)

I slide to the edge of my stool and roll our hips together. “I love you.”

Her expression softens, and then she is against me, her lips finding mine, and we lose ourselves in the kiss.

I stand up and scoop her off the floor, setting her up on the countertop, and she wraps her legs around my waist. We kiss until I’m hard and pressed against her thigh, until she is moaning into my mouth and rolling herself against my length.

Suddenly, Lily breaks away again, her hands on my chest.

I groan. “Come on, baby. We’ve talked enough.”

She laughs and shakes her head. “Cora and her friends found me today in the hall.”

Some of the heat in my belly dissipates. “What happened?”

“We were walking towards each other, and I didn’t move out of her way. I forced her and her friends to part around me,” she says. “But when they did, Cora bumped my shoulder and made me drop one of my books.”

“Then what happened?”

I’ve seen firsthand that Lily can take care of herself, that she can fight her own battles, but I still can’t help but plan out my revenge in the back of my mind. If Cora doesn’t respect her, I’ll make sure she learns to.

No one is going to disrespect my girl.

But Lily’s face breaks into a devious smile, one I’ve rarely seen from her. “She picked it up for me, apologized, and then tucked tail and practically ran away.”

The angry fire in me eases back into lust, hot at the idea of Lily commanding such respect. “Smart girl.”

“She’s learning,” she says with a shrug. “Everyone was nice to me all day. No whispers behind my back, no rude comments about my mom—nothing. I finally feel like I belong here.”

I lean down and nip at her neck, tired of not tasting her. “Because youdobelong here.”

“And,” she adds, curling away from me and pushing on my chest, trying to get some space, “I talked to my mom after school, and she told me she has a meeting with the principal tomorrow to talk about a promotion.”

I school my expression into surprised interest. “Oh, really? Great.”

“Yeah,” she says, eyes narrowed. “The promotion comes with a significant raise, too. And since my mom has only been there a few months, it seems pretty sudden.”

“Hm. She must do good work.”

Lily stares at me, her eyes combing over me until finally, she pokes a finger into my sternum. “What did you do, mister?”

“Nothing!” I hold my hands up in innocence. “I didn’t do anything.”

She raises an eyebrow at me, crosses her legs, and then wraps her arms around her chest. “No touching until you spill.”

I sigh. “I didn’t do anything … mostly. Just one conversation.”

“With who? About what?”

I sit down on the stool and sag forward. “My father was the biggest donor at the school and now that he is gone, there was a significant financial hole to fill. So, I went to Principal Cooprider and told her I would continue the paymentsifshe made your mom head of maintenance operations.”

Lily’s mouth falls open. “Why did you do that?”

“Why do you think?”

“Because you feel bad for us? Because we’re poor and need help?”

I bark out a laugh, and Lily snaps her attention to me, suspicion and confusion warring in her features.

“No! Because I fucking love you, and I want your mom to love me, too. I figure it will be a lot easier for her to like me if I prove I’m going to take care of both of you.”

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