Chapter 4

Past.  

5 years ago...  

Angela's whole body ached as she stood alone in the chilly weather on the training grounds. The sky was still dark. She couldn't even get proper sleep because of that damned man. 

She used to take a day off from training if her body hurt this much because of the last sparring but today she couldn't do that because of her jerk of a trainer. What did he think of himself? Just because he was huge and had colossal strength, he expected her to be the same as him.  

She was young and still trying her best. What did he expect?  

Angela shifted her weight from one foot to another. The cool breeze swept past her hair as she breathed slowly rubbing her arms. Thank God, she was wearing a hoodie otherwise she would've frozen to death by now.  

She glanced at the time, and it was 5:15. He was late. His audacity to command her to be on time and didn't even bother to show up on time.  

Last night after tending to her wounds she called Hunter and fought with him. She complained about why he made Luca her trainer and the nerve of him to drop the call saying, 'he was busy, and I shouldn't disturb him on his honeymoon.' 

Angela noticed a sweeper cleaning the place as he gave her a confused look. After a couple of minutes, he decided to approach her.  

"You're early, child. The training grounds open at 6." He spoke.  

Angela's face flushed. What was she supposed to say? Her vengeful trainer ordered her to be there at five or else he'd make her day a living hell.  

"My trainer told me to be here at five. Please, don't worry about me." She said politely.  

The man gave a slight nod and continued cleaning the place.  

Angela glared toward the palace; he was nowhere in sight.  

A frown settled on her face as she stomped into the gym. She was the only person there.  

Trying to remain calm she began her day with the warm-up. She was doing cardio when trainees began to show up one by one. Once there were a few trainees around her, she felt more comfortable.  

Angela stepped out of the gym for the lap. He was still not there and now it was getting on her nerves.  

Once she was done with her lap. She grabbed a sipper and chugged the water down when she noticed Connie and Nolan showing up as they gathered their students.  

She checked the time, and it was 6. Angela was about to ask Nolan to train her when she noticed Luca approaching her from a distance.  

He looked cold and gloomy. His signature look that he carries all the time.  

She stood there with her arms crossed over her chest and a death glare donning her eyes. She was scowling.  

Luca came to a halt in front of her and regarded her with a casual look.  

"Are you done with your warmup?" He was two feet away from her. Both of his hands were tucked in his pockets.  

"You're late." Her voice was thin, and she was tapping her foot on the floor. Anger would be an understatement. She was fuming.  

One hour! He wasted one whole damn hour. She would have slept more and felt so much better. It was such a pain to get up so early and get to the training grounds in such icy weather.  

"So?" he asked, raising a slight brow at her.  

"So! Why did you make me come here at five when you showed up at six." She gritted through her teeth. Her eyes were fiery, and her lips sealed in a thin line.  

"So, you were on time?" 

"You told me to be here at five. What did you expect?" She fumed.  

"Considering you're a brat, I thought you wouldn't comply but it's good that you did. We can now proceed with your training. If you're done with the warm-up, come to the gym. I'd like to see how you exercise." He said walking away from her towards the gym while she stood there glaring daggers at him.  

"He's cold," Kevin popped up behind her.  

"I want to kill him so badly." She hissed. Kevin laughed, throwing his head back and covering his eyes with his hand.  

"Am I joking?" She gritted setting him with a glare.  

"Of course, you are. Look at him then look at yourself. He could kill you with a single flick of his finger on your forehead. What are you high on?" Kevin grinned.  

She wanted to smack him so bad but her smacking on Kevin only works when he wasn't looking.  

"Just shut up." 

"I believe he has some beef with you?" Kevin asked.  

"Beef? I don't know what sort of beef-" She shut up recalling that kitchen incident.  

"If he wants to be a pain in the ass then fine, I can show him the same enthusiasm." She said smirking and Kevin stopped grinning.  

"Don't. Don't even think about pulling any pranks on him. He looks mad enough. What if he kills you in his fit of rage?" Kevin had a dead serious look as he asked that.  

Angela frowned. "You need help." She spoke.  

"Help?"  

"Yup, because you're a coward." She mused and walked away from him as he yelled after her that he wasn't a coward.  

Luca, who was standing inside the gym, watched their whole interaction through the glass wall.  

Angela stepped inside the gym and there were a few trainees there.  

"Here, can you punch this?" he asked, pointing his thumb at the punching bag.  

Angela's brows furrowed. That was the dumbest question. Of course, she can. She wore the gloves and took her position in front of the punching bag. Angela threw a few punches, and he observed her silently. After a couple of punches, she stopped and faced him. "What should I do next?" 

"You have the worst form I've ever seen." He said, and her jaw ticked.  

She thought he was mocking her and would insult her but all of a sudden, he stepped closer and took a position beside her. The way his muscles flexed had her gulping.  

He was jacked.  

"Do it like this." He said and she followed him.  

He punched the punching bag, and it rattled badly sliding a few inches back. Angela licked her lips when she found him looking at her. His eyes said now it was her turn.  

She imitated him and punched the bag. The bag barely even flinched. 

Angela stilled when he stepped closer, and his fingers poked at her lower back causing her to arch. She wasn't breathing as he grabbed her wrist with his forefinger and thumb and adjusted it into the proper position. He stepped further closer, grabbed her waist with the tip of his fingers, and helped her to a proper position.  

"This is the proper posture," he said, his hot breath fanning her ear causing her hands to fist as he stepped away from her. "Focus on one point and I want you to deliver all your strength at that exact point. Use your lower body to gather more strength in the punch. Make it more impactful." He instructed, watching her while standing beside the punching bag.  

Angela didn't realize that she was holding her breath as she inhaled deeply.  

She did as he told her and punched with all her might as the bag slid a few inches back and a huge smile caressed her lips.  

"Did you see that?" she asked, grinning. "It's just okay. You need to be strong enough to rip this bag with a punch." 

"What?" She stared at him dumbfounded.  

"You need a lot of training to reach there." 

"You talk as if you can do that." 

Luca stepped closer, causing her to step back. He positioned himself and then punched the bag so hard that not only did it rip but the lock broke and it slid back to the end hitting the wall.  

Every single person in the gym paused and gaped at the cause of that loud noise. Angela had her mouth open wide and her eyes resembled saucers as she gaped at the tortured punching bag which was ruined.  

She couldn't help but shuddered recalling the punch that was about to land on her last night but he stopped. God saved her. She was even more scared of him now.  

"You're a girl and still young. I don't expect this same level from you but if you stayed disciplined and worked hard. You'll achieve it in a few years." He said, shoving his hand in his trousers.  

Her eyes shined when she heard him. "Really?" 

"Yeah. It's all about hard work." He said and walked over to the weight training area.  

"Do you lift?" He asked.  

"I don't." 

"Well, you're starting from today." 

Luca guided her and refrained from touching her. He would take the position and she would imitate him. The gym session was the toughest. It was like she never knew how to use anything at the gym at all before what Luca taught her today.  

"Very well. Let's go. We'll have ten sparring rounds. You'll attack in five and dodge in five." He said walking ahead of her.  

She was already spent but the sparring was still left. Angela had the urge to request him to let her off for today. She was dead tired, and her muscles were sore but a part of her told her he wouldn't listen and just mock her.  

During the gym session, she realized how serious and focused he was on the task. It was like he put his weird animosity toward her aside and was training her wholeheartedly. But she couldn't say if he would be that kind out of their training session nor did she want to check that.  

If they could coexist through their training, then she'd gladly accept it. After all, it was no joke. She was being trained by the best fighter in both kingdoms.  

They took their positions, and she noticed a few trainee girls who were taking a break watching them curiously. No. Scratch that, they were watching him. They were the vampire girls. Most of the trainees were vampires and only a few of them were werewolves that were sent to the vampire kingdom to train for better agility.  

Angela had to coax her parents to let her train. Thankfully Xander agreed otherwise her brothers would've never agreed.  

"What do you want first? Attack or defend?" Luca's deep voice brought her out of her daze.   

"Attack," she said quickly. She didn't want to make a fool of herself in front of those girls.  

"Alright. Attack." He said and she was still distracted looking at those girls who were giggling and whispering in each other's ears and then blushing.  

She frowned.  

What were they blushing for? 

Angela was so consumed by them that she didn't notice when Luca prowled over to her. A whiff of his strong scent had her head snapping in his direction and she stiffened, finding him standing in her space glaring down at her.  

He was so big that all he could see was his chest. She had to crane her neck to meet his eyes. This man was too intimidating.  

"I don't tolerate non-serious behavior, Angela. This is your first and last warning. Now get back in your f*cking senses and attack." He growled lowly causing her to flinch.