Nova's POV

"This is going to be the toughest mission you've had yet!" Alex yells as we all line up in the gym. "You'll need to work together, or else you will die!" Beside me, Grayson scoffs. I elbow him in the side not that it has any effect on him. He peers down at me and I give him the look.

"This gang is dangerous don't underestimate them. There tactical and always have a plan so you need to be prepared." Alex walks down the line as if he's pacing. "As you can see there are new people here, so get to know each other."

I look down the line of people and see around five more new faces. I groan when I see Elizabeth standing with them, she's gonna be a pain in my ass.

"We'll be flying you to California in two weeks' time so before then train harder than you ever have before." He stands in front of us with his arms crossed.

"Go!" He yells and people begin to rush all over the place.

"This is bullshit." I look up to Grayson to see him scowling.

I sigh and look around at everyone grabbing weapons and hitting the mats. I narrow my eyes at the new people just walking in here as if they own the place. "Agreed," I mumble.

"Nova, I need your help." Kelly comes up to me with Nathan following behind her. He's still here?

"What's up?" I walk away from Grayson and towards the mats with Kelly next to me.

"I need to learn how to shoot." I stop and look at her as if she's crazy.

"Kelly, do you not remember how terrible you were?" I chuckle. She groans and stomps her foot like a child.

"I'm sick of being this scared girl, I wanna be like you and fight. All I do is sit back and nearly have a panic attack." She gives me her puppy dog eyes that always breaks me.

"Fine! Although, I would like to say I don't think you sit back and do nothing." I pat her shoulder while she rolls her eyes at me. "Alright, this way." I walk over to the weapons, the wall covered with every gun I could think of.

It's a beautiful site.

"Let's just start easy." I pick up a small Glock 19 and hand it to Kelly. She feels the weight of it in her hand turning it around admiring the steel.

"Okay, it doesn't seem too bad." I chuckle just waiting for her to implode when she actually fires it.

"Okay now come over here." We walk up to the firing range where I set up a new target and hand Kelly some headphones. "I've kept it close, to begin with so don't put too much pressure on yourself." She nods her head.

"Just focus on actually hitting the target consistently." I watch as she holds the gun up terribly. Her stance is all off and her shoulder is going to kill when she fires. "Wait," I say and walk up to her.

I take her non-dominant hand and place the pistol in it. I spread part of her thumb and index finger, placing the gun in the center. I wrap her other finger around the grip of the pistol and secure her grip by wrapping her thumb around the grip. "Apply enough pressure then relax," I say. She does as I say and I watch as her hand then relaxes.

"Now place your finger on the trigger, don't shoot." She does as I say focused. "Now wrap your dominant hand around your hand to give it support."

"Your feet should be shoulder length sort with the foot opposite your dominant hand about a step past the other foot." I nod my head as she does what I say. "Good, now lean forward slightly with your knees bent, making sure you're firmly balanced. The elbow of your dominant arm should be almost straight and your non-dominant elbow should be flexed at a slightly obtuse angle." She huffs but does it after taking her time. "Your dominant arm must be in line with the handgun and pointed at the target."

I notice her breathing is everywhere and that could affect her shooting. Putting my hand on her shoulder I calm her down. "Take slow breaths. Control your breathing." She takes slow deep breaths.

"Good. Now shoot." I step back and watch as she closes her eyes takes a deep breath then shoots. The bullet flies through the air and hits the target bored. It's not a bullseye buts it's dam good for a beginner.

"Great job!" I cheer.

"Wow." She breaths, slowly putting the gun down.

"Right!" I smile getting all giddy. Kelly's going to be so badass and I can't wait.

"Nova, get your ass over here!" I turn my head and see Ethan waving me over.

Confused, I walk up to him where he greets me with a smile. "What is it?" I ask, narrowing my eyes at him suspiciously.

He swings his arm around my shoulder pulling me into his side. "Don't look at me like that." He avoids my anger at hung eyes and drags me to the matts.

"Hmm, what are you up to?" I ask detaching myself from him and getting into stance. Ethan copies my moves still sporting the same mischievous grin.

"Nothing. Now are we going to fight or what?" Wanting to wipe that stupid grin off his pretty-boy face, I make the first move. I know we should always wait for our enemy to make the first move but I just need to take him down a notch.

I form my hand into a fist and swing it, he dodged it but doesn't see my other hand flying towards his stomach. I punch him in the gut making him groan bending his forehead. "Thank god I didn't eat!" He groans, clutching his stomach.

I let out a loud laugh watching him groan. He shakes his head and takes a deep breath getting back in stance. We circle each other for a while, my eyes scan his body for any weakness. I know his left side is his weak side but he'll know I'll go for it.

He flashes me a grin that makes me question him by raising a single brow. The next thing I know, my body crashes on the floor nearly knocking the wind out of me. Ethan holds my hands to the side and he presses his knee to my thigh, holding his arm over my neck. "Looking good down there." He whispers.

My heart speeds up and I swallow my dry throat as I look into his dark eyes. He flashes me a smile, his straight white teeth starting to bug me the tiniest amount. "Yeah, well I can't say the same to you." I sassily reply making him gasp.

"I look good all the time, sweetheart." I smile even though the use of a nickname leaves a bitter taste.

It's not the same.

"Who told you that?" I snort, rolling my eyes.

"Who needs to? Don't tell me you think I'm not good looking." A smile creeps up his face as he stares down at me.

"I've seen better." I shrug, hiding the smile that's slowly spreading.

He laughs and a pang of guilt hits me because when I said those three words only one person came to my mind. And I would be lying to myself if he wasn't that 'better' because Grayson Blackwell had ruined any men for me.

"You're breaking my heart." He takes his hand off from my neck to place it on his chest.

"Really?" He nods faking a frown. I chuckle with a roll of my eyes. "It's hard to break something that's not there." I move his hand to the other side of his chest where his heart actually lays.

He scoffs, "Same thing!" I chuckle and push him off me.

"Your starting to suffocate me." He narrows his eyes at me standing himself up.

"Please, I'm all muscle." He flexes his biceps making me roll my eyes.

My eyes catch Grayson who stares at me with cold eyes, any trace of emotion had vanished the moment he looked at me. My heart clenches at the sight, the thought that he could look right through me is heartbreaking. He turns away from me with the shake of his head and continues to punch the punching bag.

I turn away from him and bite my lip to stop the tears that threaten to fall. I shouldn't be getting upset, I only have myself to blame. I mean, I was the one who started this and finished it. I hate him.

So why does my heart hurt so bad?

"Hey, you okay?" I turn to Ethan who looks at me with worry.

I clear my throat and put on a smile. "Of course! I think I'm just gonna take a run, clear my head." I smile and begin to walk away.

"See you later, yeah?"

"Definitely."

As soon as I go outside I hit into a run. My feet smack on the soft dirt track, my legs striding as fast as they can go. My hands stay clenched as my arms move with my legs. I try to control my breathing, my chest heaving up and down as I try to control myself. I close my eyes briefly, concentrating on anything but him.

The wind blows across my face making my hair fly behind me creating a sense of freedom. The sound of birds chirping in nearby trees. The sound of the trees swishing against the wind is calming. The sun glowed down on me, warming my skin. I open my eyes again and trip over a root. I scrape my knee and hands as I protect myself from falling.

"What the hell!" I yell, turning myself to see my knee.

"I didn't mean to frighten you." Grayson kneels down, gently inspecting my knee.

"Who sneaks up on people like that?" I sigh, running a hand through my hair.

He grabs my hands and gently holds them in his hands, looking at the cuts that litter my palm. "I didn't want to disturb you. You looked peaceful." He mummers.

He peers up at me through his thick lashes, the sun shining on his eyes. He dark hair looks brighter in the sun, almost a navy blue. "I was." I sigh and stand my self up.

"Are you okay?" He asks to stand also.

"I'm fine." I scrape off the dirt from my legs and ass.

"See your fucking Langston." My head shoots up to glare at Grayson.

"What?" I spit, shocked by his change of mood.

"I didn't think you'd move on that fast." He runs a hand through his hair, glaring at me.

I laugh in face. "You think I'm fucking Ethan?" I ask through my laughs.

"I saw the way you looked at each other." He sneers, turning his back from me.

"The way we looked at each other? God, Grayson you've gone mad." I roll my eyes blowing out a breath.

He chuckles, still with his back to me, I see his muscles tense and I'm sure there is a scowl on his face. "Yeah, thanks to you." He turns around and glares at me.

"Me? Grayson, I finished the whole thing between us. What could I have possible done to you?" He stares straight into my blue eyes, his jaw clenching as his hand rubs down on it.

"I can't get you out of my head, you're all I things about. It's making me crazy; you made me crazy." He grips his hair as if it's physically draining him.

I stand there stunned by his confession. For once Grayson is opening up to me and for once I don't have anything to say. I can't believe what he's saying. How could he feel anything towards me? I look back up at him to see him already watching me with careful eyes. I open my mouth but nothing comes out. He steps closer towards me, his warm hand cupping my cheek.

"What are you doing to me, Angel?" He mummers our faces inching closer and closer.

I swallow, "What you're doing to me." I whisper, his nose skimming on mine. His hair tickling my forehead.

"We made a deal."

"Who cares?" I whisper as his lips brush against mine teasingly. He holds himself back. Back from me, to let me in, committing.

"You won't want to stay. It's dark here, I have so many dark nightmares that I would never dream for you." His forehead rests on mine, he close his eyes.

"I can handle it, Grey. Are you scared?" My arms wrap around his torso, he hugs me closer to him.

"Yes." He whispers.

"Why?" I ask.

He hesitates, his breath hitching. "Because I could lose you like I lost her." He opens his eyes and I see the pain in his eyes. "I can't do that again, Angel." His voice breaks. I'm so happy he's giving me something, although I hate to see him so broken, this is something.

"You won't lose me. I'm not going anywhere." I trace my index finger along his jaw.

"You can't promise me that." He shakes his head stubbornly.

"I won't, as long as you don't give me a reason to. I'm right here." I run my hand through his hair watching as he closes his eyes and rests his head onto mine.

"I can't lose you too."

The question of who he lost is on the tip of my tongue. But no matter how much I want to know, I don't ask. Grayson seems pained by whoever it is and I fear if I ask he'll just go back to pushing me away. So I keep my mouth closed and let him pull me closer to him. I rest my head against his chest, keeping the jillion of questions I want to know private.

Baby steps.

***