Page 56 of Cruel Academy (Princes of Ravenlake Academy 2)

Nothing has changed.

And so it didn’t. We spent a few days in the weight room, Caleb stepping into my space only to help me lift the weighted bar back onto the rack. My arms shook and trembled with the effort, but Caleb grabbed the bar with one hand, his muscles barely flexing.

Caleb seemed so normal that I was embarrassed by how flustered the kiss left me.

Clearly, it was nothing. Something normal in Caleb’s life, barely worthy of a second thought.

Yet, my body rebels at the mere sight of him. Whether in the middle of Finn’s living room or across the hallways in Ravenlake Prep. It feels as though my insides are magnetized to him.

I assumed Caleb felt nothing at all, but now, as he grabs my wrist and corrects my form, shifting my fingers and joints into the proper position so as not to hurt myself, I see the strain in his jaw.

His eyes flick from my hand to my body and back again, unsure where to settle. And when he is done, he takes an exaggerated step away from me even though I’m going to have to close the gap to repeat the move.

He has been doing the same thing for the last half hour. We are now over halfway across the room from where we started.

Soon, he’ll hit the wall behind him.

I close the gap with two quick steps and thrust the palm of my hand up towards his nose, twisting my body as I go, ensuring the force comes from my entire body and not simply my arm.

Caleb nods his approval wordlessly and motions for me to repeat the move again.

“What if my arms aren’t free?” I ask, swiping an arm across my forehead to wick away the sweat gathered there. “What if an attacker approaches me from behind?”

“We aren’t there yet,” he says sharply.

“Shouldn’t I understand the basics of everything in case I am attacked—that way I have a chance? Otherwise, I’ll be an expert at front-facing attacks, but be doomed if someone comes from behind.”

I feel I’m making a good point, but I’m also just bored with fake nose jabs. I want to learn something else.

Caleb’s only answer to my question is a quick shake of his head and two words. “Not yet.”

“Why not?”

Caleb’s brow furrows, and my insides pull towards him so strongly I actually stumble forward half a step.

Daily football practice is turning his skin a tantalizingly golden color. New freckles dot his nose and cheeks and the sun is bleaching pale streaks in his light brown hair.

He was gorgeous before.

Now, he’s something even more than that.

He was my enemy before, too.

What is he now?

He sighs, and I mimic his sigh with one of my own, earning myself a glare that, despite its intensity, sends a warm blush into my cheeks.

“Come on,” I whine, my lower lip pouting out. “You can’t tell me the repetitive nose jabs and eye gouges are fun for you. Teach me something interesting.”

“I’m not teaching you for my entertainment. It’s for your benefit. You asked for this, Cochran.”

I roll my eyes. “Okay,Master,but there’s no reason this arrangement can’t be pleasurable for both of us.”

I don’t realize the double meaning of what I’ve said until Caleb’s jaw clenches and his eyes dart towards the floor.

“That’s not why we’re here.”

It’s why everyone thinks we’re here, though. Whispers have been following me at Ravenlake Prep for weeks. Everyone has bought into the story that I’m “servicing” Caleb at his convenience.

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