Part B: Chapter 32

***Jemila’s POV***

I woke up feeling sore, a smile on my face. The past few days have been great with Aidan, less of the talking and more of well you know where I’m getting at.

A knock on the door made me get up from bed and throw on one of Aidan’s shirts that was laying on the couch. I fixed my hair then quickly brushed my teeth before walking out of the bedroom and going to open the door.

“Hey,” Ivan said smiling, then I caught him looking at my legs and I felt heat creep up my face.

“Hey, what are you doing here?” I asked, pulling the shirt a little so that it could cover my knees but that was practically impossible.

Ivan rubbed the back of his neck looking anywhere but at my face. “Hmm, well I thought you would want to go for training or breakfast or something like that since Aidan is at work and I didn’t want you to be alone,” he said, stammering over his words. “That’s if you want but if you want to be left alone then I understand too because being alone is nice and all.”

I smiled, finding his stammering adorable but I didn’t see him like that. Ivan was someone I saw as a brother and friend and the fact that he had kissed me didn’t change how I saw him. “Come in, let me take a shower and change into something more appropriate for training,” I opened the door wider and he entered then I closed it behind him. “You can make yourself comfortable, I promise I won’t be long.”

Ivan nodded and then I left him in the living room as I rushed into the bathroom and took a quick shower. I was more than excited to go back to training and getting stronger. Anything that would help me forget everything that Carter had told me about my parents.

After I was done, I grabbed a pair of gray leggings with a gray sports bra then worn up my sneakers before tying up my braids into a rough ponytail. After I was done, I walked out of the room and into the living room where Ivan was sat on the couch looking uneasy.

“Let’s go and maybe after we can have breakfast, how does that sound?” I asked.

“That sounds lovely,” he replied and we both walked out of the house together and to the training room.

Once we got to the training room, Ivan made me do some warm-ups and stretches so that I wouldn’t strain myself during training.

“Make sure you do it for ten minutes and then we can get started,” he said, walking over to the lockers where he pulled out two towels before he walked over to the fridge. He came back with two bottles of water and placed them on one of the benches. “All set?”

I nodded as I finished up my last warm-up round. “Let’s do this,” I pumped my fists in the air which made Ivan laugh out loud.

“I won’t go easy on you this time,” he said, brushing his hair behind and removing a hairband from his pockets. “I hope you are ready.”

I laughed nervously as I watched him take his fighting pose, legs spread out just a few inches apart, hands raised. “Can we train with weapons for a change?” I asked, curiosity getting the better of me. “I’ve seen the other guys and even Aidan and Carter training with them so I figured we could give it a shot.”

Ivan seemed to be thinking it over because he didn’t give me an immediate response then finally he sighed. “Are you sure you can handle yourself? Using weapons in a fight requires a lot of training and concentration, much more than if you are doing combat.”

“That’s why I want to learn,” I replied.

“All right then, I’ll start you off with two wooden knives, let’s see how you handle yourself with those and then we will see how we can proceed.”

I watched as Ivan turned and walked to another door then he opened it and from where I stood, I could see different kinds of weapons lining the wall. He walked into it and retrieved three wooden knives.

“Catch.” He tossed me two of them while he remained with one. “Watch me carefully as I advance after you.”

I got this, I watched him take his usual stance but he held the wooden knife in front of him while he used one hand to block his face. I followed suit, but kept the wooden knives by my sides. Ivan charged, striking with his knife and I used the knife by my left and blocked his attack, but that didn’t stop him as he kept swinging and swatting and moving closer and closer, the attacks getting faster that I lost my footing and tripped over myself, landing with a loud thud.

Ivan laughed then extended his hand to help me up. “You did good up until you tripped over your own feet.” I stood up and dusted myself, playfully glaring at him. “Next time, try attacking, defence can only take you so far.”

“You were too fast and I couldn’t keep up,” I said with a huff.

“I was going easy on you, during battle you will be faced with multiple attackers coming at you from different sides and you have to fight them all or you lose your life.”

“Will I ever go to battle?”

“That depends on whether Aidan allows it but it’s not unheard off for Luna to be part of a battle and help protect her people,” Ivan said with a shrug. “But mostly Luna stays behind to watch over the children and ensure the safety of everyone who remained as well as taking care of the wounded.”

I sighed then sat on the floor. I was tired from the training and using two weapons didn’t help my cause. “That’s a lot to do.”

Ivan racked his fingers through his hair and then joined me on the floor. “It gets better with practice.”

I turned to face him, “can I ask you a question?”

“Shoot.”

“Do you also have some high position in the Carmichael Enterprise?”

A small smile tugged at the corners of his mouth and he laid back on the floor staring at the ceiling. “Yes but I don’t get to work from the office most of the time, all of us have some form of position. Aidan is CEO which I’m sure you already know, Carter is teh CTO, Shelly and Gerald are both board members and as for me, I’m the CFO but my duties sometimes clash with my Gamma duties and whenever they both aren’t here, I can charge and ensure everyone’s protection.”

“And I’m sure if you wanted something to do, Aidan could arrange something for you.”

I lay back down as well, watching the ceiling. Did I want a job? I wasn’t sure but I had to find out more about my past before I made such a big commitment.

“Ivan?”

“Yes?”

“When does the mating ceremony usually take place?”

I felt him turn his head and watch me but I didn’t turn my head. “Usually it only happens once a year during the fullest moon in winter,” he replied. “Why do you ask? Didn’t Aidan mention any of this to you?”

“I just have things I need to figure out before then, that’s all.”

The door to the training room banged open followed by Shelly’s voice. “Ivan, can we talk?”

Ivan got up, “I’ll see you later.” Then he was gone, leaving me alone with my thoughts.