I WOKE UP with Ellie’s beautiful face inches from mine; she was lying on my arm. Smiling, I scooted closer to her, grabbing my cell phone from the side table and checking the time. It was only six thirty, which meant I had another couple of hours with her at least.

I sighed and let my eyes drag over her. Ellie made me forget all the things that had happened to me. She made me want to be good enough for her.

In her sleep, she stirred and pressed her face into my chest, moaning an unintelligible word before she sighed and snuggled even closer to me. Tangling my fingers in her hair, I kissed the top of her head. As I lay there, I couldn’t stop thinking about what a pile of shit my life was. Today was going to be incredibly hard; I needed to find another twenty-five bucks somewhere so I’d have enough to pay my rent tomorrow morning. The car I’d fixed wasn’t due to go to auction until Wednesday, if that even made a profit at all. I’d been foolish. I’d wasted all week on something that might not even work out, chasing a pipe dream when I should have been looking for a solid, guaranteed income.

I refused to go to Brett for the money; I refused to owe anyone anything. If I had learned anything from my shitty life, it was that the only one you could depend on was yourself. I needed to get the money, get a job, get the hell out of this hellhole, and be a better person. Maybe then I would deserve a shot at the beautiful thing lying in my arms, because I sure as hell didn’t deserve her at the moment.

I brushed her hair off her face, pushing it over her shoulder so I could see the hickey on her neck. Grinning proudly, I dipped my head and kissed it, pulling back quickly when she stirred.

“Hey, what time is it?” she mumbled, planting a soft kiss on my chest.

I frowned distastefully, wondering how she could do that with all of my scars there. She didn’t seem bothered by them at all. “It’s about quarter to seven.”

She smiled and pulled me closer, kissing me gently. “Good morning,” she whispered against my lips.

“Good morning. Sleep all right?” I asked, hoping she hadn’t heard the fight that had started outside at about three o’clock this morning.

She nodded and yawned. “Yep, you tired me out. I slept like the dead.”

“Well, I slept like the dead, too,” I lied. In all honesty, I had barely slept last night. I’d kept a vigil into the small hours of the morning, listening avidly in case someone broke back into my room so I could protect Ellie if needed. A little bit of tiredness today was nothing if it meant she was safe.

She pulled me closer to her, running her hands up my back, fingering the scars there. The curiosity was easy to see on her face, so I kissed her before she could ask me about them. I didn’t want to talk about it, not with anyone.

* * *

An hour and a half later, we were dressed and ready to leave. I watched as she leaned over and began making my bed.

“Ellie, why are you making my bed?”

She shrugged and finished straightening the pillows. “Habit, I guess. It’s one of my mom’s rules at home, the bed has to be made, room tidy, blah blah blah,” she mocked, waving her hand dismissively.

I laughed and grabbed her so we both fell onto the bed. “Well, I like an unmade bed. Want to help me mess it up again?” I smiled at her suggestively, loving the feel of her body under mine. Touching her and kissing her seemed to be all I could think about. I was almost turning into an addict.

She laughed and grabbed my wrist, looking at my watch before she shook her head. “I need to get to school, sorry. Maybe another time,” she offered, arching one eyebrow. My insides danced with happiness because I would get to see her again. The agreement was: sex, no strings. What man would turn down an offer like that from a girl like her?

I sighed dramatically. “Come on then, little girl, let’s get you to school,” I mused, pulling her back up. She laughed and let me drag her from my room to my truck. This place didn’t really wake up until midmorning, so there was no one around.

As we pulled into the parking lot of her school, she unclipped her seat belt and scooted closer to me. When she leaned in and kissed me, I put my hand on the back of her head so she couldn’t pull away. Kissing Ellie was incredible and I would happily do it all day if she would let me.

I pulled away when we were both breathless and kissed the tip of her nose. “So, do I get your number this morning?” I asked hopefully. She nodded and held out her hand for my phone. As I passed it to her and watched her type her number in, I couldn’t keep the smug grin off my face.

She pushed the phone back into my pocket, patting it teasingly. “There you go, stud. Now you can give me a booty call whenever you want.” She winked at me as she climbed out of the truck and then sashayed off through the parking lot.

People immediately swarmed around her, begging for her attention. Boys and girls, they were all trying to talk to her. She didn’t look too comfortable with the attention; the easy smile that she’d been wearing all morning was replaced by an obviously fake one. Judging by the way other students were crowding around her, she was some sort of queen bee at her school.

I frowned, more than a little surprised that she would want me to drive her to school in my crappy truck if she had some kind of image to uphold. As I pulled out, she waved good-bye. A smile slipped onto my face just because she’d acknowledged me in front of her friends.

My day was spent walking around trying to find a job. I went into every single store, bar, restaurant, and office, trying to find something, but there was literally nothing, not even cleaning toilets. As the day dragged on, the worry built.

I sat in the park and considered my limited options. There was no other solution I could come up with. I couldn’t lose the place I was living. Sure it was dank and nasty, but it was better than sleeping in my truck. Gritting my teeth indignantly, I pulled out my phone and called Ray.

“Hey, Kid!”

I put my head in my hands and squeezed my eyes shut. This needed to be done. “Hey, Ray. Listen, I need some help.”

“What’s up?”

“I need money.”

“Sure, how much you need?” he asked.

“I don’t want to borrow money, Ray. I have no idea when I’d be able to pay it back. But I need to get my hands on some cash, quickly.”

“I’ll lend you some, you don’t have to worry about paying me back, just spot me when you can,” he offered.

I shook my head. I couldn’t owe anyone; that wasn’t going straight, in my eyes. Even owing Ray I would feel a debt. I needed to do this on my own.

“Ray, I don’t want to borrow money. I was actually wondering if you could call Jensen and set me up for tonight?”

He gasped. “No fucking way, Kid. I’m not doing that! Those things have moved on a lot since you last saw one. No way. Nope!”

I’d known he would react like this. Ray’s cousin Jensen ran an illegal fight club every night. People bet on the fights and the fighters got paid to enter. Just entering would be enough to pay my rent. I didn’t even need to win, just get the shit kicked out of me for a few minutes.

“Ray, I need this. Does he still run it or not?”

“Kid, seriously, you know I’ve always hated those things. The fights now are brutal; it’s not just a couple of guys wanting a bit of spare cash anymore. These guys that enter, they really want it, they want to win. I’ll lend you what you need,” he protested.

“Look, thanks for the offer, but please can you call Jensen for me? I need this to happen tonight if he still does it. If you won’t do it, then I’ll have to find him on my own. C’mon, Ray, do this for me?” I nervously ran my hand over my almost nonexistent hair. I had no idea how to find Jensen myself, so I prayed Ray would help get me in.

“Kid, you know you’re gonna get fucked up, right?”

I frowned. “Yeah, I know, totally fubar. How much they pay now? It still thirty bucks for weekday fights?” It was a shame it wasn’t a weekend; weekend fights were higher profile and paid a lot more, but I’d take what I could get.

“It’s fifty now, I think. The rules have changed, there are no rules,” he said quietly.

I winced. That didn’t sound good at all. There always used to be a “no hitting in the balls” rule—I quite liked that one.

“Okay, will you call him for me and get me in?” Please say yes, please say yes.

He sighed, and the line was quiet for a while before he answered, “Yeah, okay. I’ll call you back.”

I breathed a sigh of relief. “Thanks, man.” He disconnected the call and I sat back on the bench, feeling my stressed muscles starting to relax.

By now it was almost four in the afternoon, so I decided to text Ellie.

A minute later she replied.

I smiled at the kiss at the end, loving that she actually cared enough to ask about my day. After sending back a quick lie that I’d had a good day, I headed to my place and flopped on the bed, waiting for the phone to ring and for Ray to tell me good news about the fight that night.

* * *

At a quarter to ten, Ray picked me up. He used the excuse of wanting to see his cousin as a reason to go with me, but in all honesty, it was probably so he could drive me home in case I was too messed up to drive myself. The whole journey there he tried to convince me not to do this, but I just ignored him, trying desperately to change the subject.

When we pulled up at the venue, an underground parking lot, I followed behind Ray, needing him to introduce me to his cousin. I’d met Jensen only once, so he probably wouldn’t remember me. I’d grown up a lot since I last saw him.

I vaguely recognized Jensen when Ray stopped next to him and gave him a man hug. After they’d exchanged pleasantries, Jensen motioned toward me. “This your boy?” he asked.

Ray nodded, gripping my shoulder, looking like he was in pain for letting me do this. “Yeah, this is the kid, Jamie Cole.”

A smirk crept onto Jensen’s face. “I remember you. You were the only thirteen-year-old I ever let enter one of these. You made me a fortune that night. Every single person bet against you, so I raked it in when you kicked ass.” He held out a hand for me to shake.

I nodded. I’d needed money then too, different reasons but still no other option, just like now. “Yeah, thanks for letting me in tonight, I appreciate it.” This was short notice; fighters usually had to put their names down and wait to be chosen, so I knew Ray had called in a favor for me.

“No problem. So, you know there are no rules now, right? Anything goes. Fight ends when you tap out or are unconscious. Eight guys, four fights, the winners from each fight then enter a semifinal. You get a hundred bucks if you get to the semi. The two winners from that go on to the final round. If you lose the final it’s two hundred, if you win then you get five. Feel free to bet on yourself, too,” he explained, shrugging.

My heart leaped in my chest. “So just for entering I get fifty, but if I win the three fights, I get five hundred?” I clarified. If I won the final, I wouldn’t have to worry about rent again for a while, even if the junkyard thing didn’t pan out.

“Yep. You interested?”

Hell yeah, I’m interested! My earlier plan was to enter and lose, taking the fifty, but five hundred bucks sounded like a lifesaver right about now.

I nodded eagerly. “Yeah, definitely. So, who am I up against?” I asked, looking around at the guys standing around waiting for the fights to start. Most people were here to watch; you could tell which ones were competing because they were standing off to the side trying to focus.

Jensen pointed out a fairly well-built blond guy. He was sitting on a chair, his narrowed eyes totally focused and hard; he wanted to win. “That’s Kurt; he’s a regular, pretty tough. Think you can beat him?” Jensen inquired.

I studied Kurt again, assessing him, weighing my options. From the way he was sitting I could tell he was arrogant, cocky, and overconfident. He thought he would win, no problem; he was probably well trained in some sort of martial arts, judging by the dragon tattoo on his upper arm.

But I could take him.

“Yeah,” I said confidently, watching a small smile spread across Jensen’s face.

ELLIE

As I climbed out of Jamie’s truck, the sweet taste of his tongue still lingered on mine. I actually didn’t even want to leave him; I wanted more of his time.

Closing the car door, I took a deep breath and made my way across the parking lot toward the school building, keeping my eyes peeled for Stacey so I could collect my books. People immediately swarmed around me, worse than usual. Today would be hard. This was the first school day since I’d broken up with Miles, and I wasn’t looking forward to seeing him at all. Girls and guys immediately started talking to me, wanting to know if it was true, had we broken up, were we getting back together, did I want to go out tonight … it was never-ending. I plastered on a fake smile while silently wishing I were back in the truck with Jamie; he was so easy to be around. When his truck roared to life behind me, I turned and waved good-bye, watching as he drove up the street.

Stacey came bounding over, hugging me excitedly. “Have fun, young lady?” she teased, grinning knowingly as she handed me the books and schoolbag that I’d left at her house.

“Lots of fun, actually,” I confirmed. She linked her arm through mine, directing me through the crowd of people who were still after the gossip about Miles. I smiled gratefully at her as we made our way to my locker, pretending not to see or hear the people whispering about me.

“So, are you seeing him again?” she asked once we were out of earshot of others.

I laughed and nodded. “Just casually, though. I told him I’m not interested in a relationship, which he was fine with.”

“What do you mean, just casually?” Stacey probed.

“Casual, no dating, just booty calls.” I grinned, chewing on my lip. I had always been the good girl, always done the expected—mundane, even—but this was something entirely new. The casual agreement with Jamie was thrilling and made me feel more alive than I had felt in ages.

Stacey squealed before bursting into a fit of laughter. “You? Seriously, that’s too funny! Little Miss Innocent making booty calls?” she choked out around her giggles. I nodded, laughing too. It did sound a little weird when you put it that way. “No wonder he seemed to like the idea, what the hell kind of guy is going to turn down casual sex?” she teased. “So, when are you seeing him again?” she pushed, obviously not finished hearing about him yet.

“No idea. We’ve exchanged numbers; maybe he won’t even call me …” I trailed off, frowning, disappointed at the thought.

“Are you kidding? Trust me, he’ll call!” She scoffed. “On another note, give me your phone, I have a song for you that you’ll love,” she added, holding out her hand for it.

Obediently, I dug my phone from my pocket and put it in her hand.

Stacey was always sending music to my phone; we didn’t really have the same taste so I just humored her most of the time. Suddenly a heavy arm draped across my shoulder. I jumped, looking up to see Miles just as he leaned in and kissed my cheek. I could feel all eyes on me again as the student body seemed to fall silent as one, eagerly watching to see what would happen.

Stacey shot me a sympathetic smile. “I’ll see you in class. Give you two some time to talk.”

I resisted the urge to groan as I watched her walk away, waving for everyone else to leave and go to class, too. Once we were alone, I discreetly shrugged his arm off and stepped back.

“I’ve missed you,” he said softly. “And you didn’t call me back all weekend.” He cocked his head to the side as he reached out, brushing my hair away from my face. I suddenly got flashes of Jamie doing the exact same thing, and how soft and cute he’d been last night.

I raised one eyebrow. “Miles, I told you Friday night—we’re done.”

He shook his head and stepped closer, taking hold of my hips and pulling me against his body. “Don’t be like that, baby. That was just a fight; we’ve had them before.”

“Miles, seriously, I can’t be in a relationship with someone who doesn’t trust me.” I put my hands on his chest, pushing myself back to get some personal space.

His eyebrows knitted together and his eyes hardened as I moved away from him. “Screw that, Ellie! I love you. You can’t just call time on us because we have a damn fight!”

I shook my head. “This has been over for a long time, Miles, it’s just that neither of us wanted to admit it. I’m done playing around now and putting up with your shit. We’re over,” I stated, turning to walk off. Our relationship was long since dead; it had fractured and turned into something destructive a long time ago—around the time that he’d begun prioritizing his image and status over me, and when he took it upon himself to assume I was one of his possessions instead of his partner. We were broken beyond repair, and now I was finally strong enough to admit that I deserved better.

His fingers closed around my wrist, thwarting my escape. “No fucking way! We’ve been together for two and a half years, Ellie. You can’t just walk away.” He looked at me pleadingly, so I quickly averted my eyes. This relationship wasn’t good for either of us; he had to see that.

“I’m sorry, I really am,” I whispered.

Suddenly he let go of my wrist, stepping back and shaking his head. “This isn’t over. Not at all,” he stated confidently, touching his hair, making sure it was in that perfect style he prided himself on. “I’m coming over for dinner tonight with my parents, remember? This will all blow over, I promise. I love you, baby.” He kissed my cheek before turning and strutting off in the other direction, leaving me standing there utterly speechless.

I’d forgotten about him coming over for dinner tonight. Our parents were friends, so they regularly got together for fancy dinner parties and boring conversation. My parents adored Miles, as did all of the school, probably because he didn’t show them the dominant, angry side of his personality. He could certainly be charming when he wanted to be.

Groaning from frustration, I went to class. I’d just have to worry about dinner later. Maybe when I reminded my parents that we’d split up, they’d cancel their plans. In the back of my mind, though, I knew it wouldn’t work out like that.

* * *

My day passed much as I thought it would. The girls were consoling me, asking if I was okay. The boys asked if I was now free to date. All I’d wanted to do was go home and curl into a ball. Of course, I couldn’t do that, though; I had an image to uphold. People whispered wherever I went, but I kept my head held high. People looked up to me. I was the head cheerleader, and I needed to show people that I was still Ellie Pearce, with or without Miles Barrington.

Much to my surprise, there were no further incidents with Miles; in fact, I didn’t even see him for the rest of the school day.

When I finally arrived home after school and cheer practice, I slinked straight up to my room, firing up my laptop and then digging in my bag to find the ripped photo that I’d stolen from Jamie’s room while he was in the shower this morning. He hadn’t said much about it, but I’d seen how upset he was about it last night. He’d been totally devastated seeing the ruined photo of his sister—and that was when I’d devised my plan.

Just as I was scanning the two halves of the picture and saving them to my laptop, my phone beeped with a message from Jamie asking about my day. A smile twitched at the corners of my mouth at his thoughtfulness. I sent him a quick text back and then clicked on my laptop, opening up Photoshop.

When I was finished with it, I smiled proudly at my efforts. I wasn’t exactly a whiz at Photoshop, and the newly restored photo wasn’t perfect by any means, but hopefully Jamie would like it. I printed off a copy and then saved the image to a spare flash drive I found in my drawer so he could make more copies if he wanted. After, I headed to the shower.

When I was out and dry, I pulled on a pair of ripped jeans and long-sleeve fitted black top, leaving my hair down to dry naturally. I didn’t bother with makeup. There was no need to dress to impress tonight. Once I was ready, I headed downstairs to help my mother prepare dinner.

“Ellison, shouldn’t you get changed?” Mom asked, her tone disapproving.

Of course, she would request that I change. For my mom, everything was about appearances, money, and status. She believed you had to look your best at all times; she wouldn’t even do housework without a full face of makeup. It was one of the reasons she approved of Miles—his father was a big-time lawyer, and she liked that our relationship enabled her to associate with a different class of people. She was shallow, and I worked my hardest so that I would never end up like her.

My father, on the other hand, was incredible, and supported me wholeheartedly. I was a complete daddy’s girl. I could do no wrong in his eyes. His attention made up for the years of disapproving looks I’d gotten from my mother when I climbed a tree or played football with the boys instead of holding tea parties with my dolls.

“No, I’m fine in this. Do you want help with dinner?” I asked politely, ignoring her disapproving glare.

“You could chop those.” She sighed and motioned toward the vegetables. “You do know the Barringtons will be here in an hour, don’t you?” she asked coldly.

Bitch.

“Yeah, I know. You do know Miles and I have broken up, don’t you?” I countered, trying to mimic her hard tone but failing miserably.

She waved her hand dismissively. “You two will get back together.”

I didn’t say anything; let her think what she wanted. Tonight was going to be extremely awkward. Miles always did know how to twist me around his finger and get me to do what he wanted; I just prayed I was strong enough to say no this time.