Page 136 of Cruel Prep (Princes of Ravenlake Academy 1)

He brings his hands up in front of his face. Takes one step towards me. Feints high with the jab, then tries to bring that big old roundhouse through again. Trying to take my head off.

If I were anyone else, the feint might’ve fooled me. I might’ve eaten that roundhouse right to the chops.

But I’m not anyone else.

I’m Caleb Wilson. I own this fucking ring.

Time to teach him who’s in charge.

I duck under the roundhouse. It goes whistling over my head like a meteor.

Then, two lightning-fast punches to his gut. The wind whistles out of his lungs. He doubles over, giving me that big, ugly face as a perfect target.

Another uppercut.

Two crosses, one right and one left, send his head snapping in either direction.

Blood flies. Sweat drips.

And then he hits the turf.

He’s out cold before he lands. And I’m already turning to the crowd, mounting the rope, hands held high in victory.

The crowd was deafening before. Now, they’re like a sonic boom. Packed to the rafters, chanting my name.

“Ca-leb! Ca-leb!”

I’m famous here. Undefeated prizefighter, the surefire bet who never loses.

If only they knew what the rest of my life is like.

* * *

“Do you train every day?”

The card girl isn’t one I’ve seen before, and I don’t know her name.

More to the point, I don’t need to know her name. She is just the girl who lets the crowd know which round it is. There isn’t a need to go into further detail.

“Most days.” If football practice and beating down idiots who come for me and my friends counts as training, then definitely.

She drags a finger from my shoulder to my bicep and pokes at my arm. “That’s hot.”

Sheis hot.

Her denim shorts are so tight they look painted on, and her tits are bursting out of a low-cut tank top. Barely-there clothes are the wardrobe for any card girl, which is why I’ve slept with most of them.

Another perk of the business.

“Wait while I pick up my money, and I’ll show you how hot.”

She gnaws on her plump lower lip, and I know she will service me just fine. I don’t need to connect with her on a spiritual level. I just need a place to put the adrenaline still pulsing in my veins.

I need a release, and there’s no reason we can’t be that for one another.

She nods, and I hold up a finger as I turn away.

A few people stop me as I make my way to the kitchens, congratulating me on another win, but most people steer clear.

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