Unwilling Bride: The 1V5 Love Drama novel Chapter 220

“These five credits might be the easiest’ll ever earn in college! It’s just physical training. No brainpower required!”

“You really don’t mess around when it comes to rewards,” Laurent said, letting out a short laugh. “I’ll coach you, sure. get in return?”

Ava’s voice jumped. She couldn’t believe he was using this as leverage. “Seriously? You’re actually charging me?”

Laurent raised a brow. “Time is effort. Effort has value. Like you said, model cadet three times means five extra credits.

“And when the final drill comes up, every base picks one rep. Only one girl gets that spot here. That’s another five credit: want in?”

Ava hesitated. She bit her lip and thought for a second. “Here’s the thing. I’m flat broke. I’ve got nothing on me. Can I owe

one?”

That was all Laurent needed to hear. He nodded right away. “Fine. But I’m holding you to it. Don’t forget what you just pro He glanced at the clock. “It’s too late to shoot tonight. I’ll take you to the range tomorrow. But hear me rrow. Just because y my wife doesn’t mean I’m cutting you any slack. You can walk away if you’re not serious. I don’t babysit quitters.”

Ava only cared about those credits. She wasn’t backing down. “I’m serious! I’ll take it! I’m ready to be whipped into shape, M Caswell!”

She even gave him a full salute. She meant it.

Laurent reached out and lightly patted her head. “Get some rest. You’ve got morning drills.”

“Yup. Good night!” Ava grinned and waved.

Much later, when he had her pinned during training, cashing in that promise she owed, Ava glanced at the dying light out the window and finally realized just how deep she’d buried herself.

The moonlight was strong. She kept glancing up at it without meaning to.

Bruno saluted Laurent as they passed, watching the two walk side by side under the streetlamps.

The girl was clinging to the guy’s arm, chatting away. He leaned down a little to listen, nodding as she talked.

Bruno looked up at the sky. Same full moon, same sugary scene. And still, he was the only one on base who knew the truth. He peeked over at Ivan, who smiled dumbly like always, and felt a deep wave of jealousy.

The indoor shooting range was smaller than the big open field. There wasn’t a soul inside. It was dead quiet.

Laurent had her strap on the full gear and laid her standard-issue pistol on the bench. “Take a few shots. Let me see where you’re

at.”

He stepped back and folded his arms.

Ava inhaled slowly. The grip felt different. It was smaller, thinner. Probably a new model

She used the same standing form Cavalli had shown them in class. She raised the gun and took aim. But she didn’t fire. A minute

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Chapter 220 Pointers

passed. Then two. Finally, she pulled the trigger.

She fired five times in a row, no pause between them. Her hands stayed steady, and her breath didn’t hitch.

When the last bullet landed, she exhaled again and turned toward Laurent.

He didn’t flinch. “Your grouping’s too wide. You’re off-center.

“But your posture’s solid. You held your own under pressure.

He grabbed another pistol and walked back to the lane. “Watch this. I’m only showing you once.”

Ava’s eyes widened. She leaned forward, absorbing every move like her life depended on it.

The pistol barked again and again in sharp succession. Every single round slammed dead into the center ring.

“You catch that?”

Ava blinked. “Every one of yours hit the bullseye. But that’s overkill. I don’t need to be that good.”

Laurent gave a small laugh. “You’re not supposed to hit that level in a few nights. Even the best take years.”

+20 F

He stepped behind her and reloaded her weapon before passing it back. Then he adjusted her grip, placing his hands over hers with measured pressure.

He stood just behind her. Not too close, not too far. His eyes stayed on the target in front. “Clear your head. Don’t overanalyze. You freeze too long, you lose the shot. The second you lock in, pull the trigger.”

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Chapter 221 Gun Training

He guided her hand as she squeezed the trigger. Ava locked her eyes on the target and watched it jerk.

She didn’t even have time to react before two more shots hit. The moving target got smacked again.

Laurent stepped away and returned to his original spot, “Do it again.”

She fired a few more rounds. Her aim fell off. She frowned, clearly annoyed.

“Everyone’s sloppy at the start. Stop stressing yourself out. The pressure throws off your timing. Just breathe and shoot.

“If that doesn’t work, picture the target as someone you can’t stand.”

A face surfaced in her mind. It was twisted and ugly, blurred around the edges. But she knew those eyes. When she looked the target, that face was staring right at her.

She fired without a second thought.

Laurent saw her entire vibe change. When she lowered the gun, he spoke again. “You holding a grudge or something?”

She didn’t look at him. Her tone dropped. “Kind of.”

“Against whom?”

“I don’t know,” she said.

She reloaded and went right back to it.

An hour ticked by. Laurent finally checked the time. “That’s enough for tonight. You’ve got drills first thing tomorrow.”

She lowered the gun. “If you’re not around later, can I still come in?”

“Sure.”

They packed up quietly. As they finished, Laurent glanced at her again. “Ava, don’t know what’s happened to you. But if you ever want to talk, I’ll listen.”

She froze for half a second but didn’t say a word.

“Let’s head out.”

“Yeah.” She gave a small nod and walked forward. Then, something warm rushed through her. It hit fast. It wasn’t light

Her stomach sank. Of course. It had to happen now. She’d carried tampons around for two days with nothing. The one time she didn’t have one? It struck out of nowhere.

Laurent’s expression shifted. Years in the field had trained his senses to catch the scent of blood immediately

“You’re bleeding?”

She whipped around. “No. Don’t say another word.”

1/3

She spun and started moving.

He grabbed her wrist. His voice sharpened. “Ava.”

She glared at him. “Let go. It’s just my period.”

He looked down. The lights overhead made everything clear. It was already-soaked through.

She wanted to sink into the ground.

“Seriously? You’re still looking?”

He blinked and pulled his eyes away to look at her face. “Right. Let’s go.”

There wasn’t a thing he could do about this.

She rushed ahead. He followed but stayed behind a bit. Then, he picked up speed, pulled off his jacket, crouched down, and around her waist. “Come on.”

She stiffened. That move had caught her off guard.

“If someone sees you like that, you’ll want to crawl into a hole.”

“Or maybe I should just carry you.”

“No! I’m walking.”

He still had his black vest on under the jacket. She tugged at the knot he’d made. “Your jacket’s gonna get ruined.”

“It’s laundry. I’ll live. If you need to, take the day off tomorrow. Stay in and chill.”

She shook her head. “I don’t need time off.”

She didn’t cramp up. The shooting drills weren’t too bad. She could manage.

They walked down the road together. The moon lit the street. Wind swept over their faces. She tightened the jacket around her. “Aren’t you cold?”

“I’ve trained shirtless in worse.”

He reached for her hand and held it firmly.

୮

They were halfway to the dorm when someone came walking from the other side. She stiffened the moment she saw him. “Major Caswell, it’s kind of late. Were you-” The guy froze. His eyes locked on them, and he shut up instantly. He was stunned.

Laurent barely glanced at him. “Colonel, I’m walking my wife. Keep moving.”

He kept Ava close and didn’t let go. Her shoulders were tense. She didn’t even know what kind of face she was supposed to make

Once they were out of earshot, Jasper muttered under his breath. “So, that’s what’s up. Makes sense now.”

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Chapter-221 Gun Training

+20 Free Coina

Ava had only been at it for two days, but she was already leveling up. Everr Ivan took notice. To him, she was quiet, never said anything pointless, and powered through everything. The girl had guts.

“D’mn, Ava. Did you pull an all-nighter or something? You’re killing it,” Zoey said.

3:36 pm

M

”

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Hapter 222 Improvement

Chapter 222 Improvement

Noelle gave her a confident thumbs-up. “You’ve definitely improved. You used to heskate every time, but now you’re a

decisive.”

Naomi jumped in right after. “That’s not even the srazy part! When I saw you at the range earlier, you looked like the tar you off. Your whole face was cold-so not like you.”

Ava secured her rifle and looked over at them. “If that counts as training, then yeah. It was a last-minute crash course.”

Zoey cracked up. “Okay, Ava, are you trying to be funny now? What, did some ghost sniper show up in your dream and giv tips?”

The three of them kept laughing, not even trying to hold back. Ava looked at them quietly, thinking to herself that someon had given her guidance.

On the way back, Ivan told the group they’d be issued their Holobands that night, but they’d need to return them first thing morning.

After two straight weeks of isolation, everyone was about ready to lose their minds. The second he said it, they started shoul singing, and freaking out. One girl even ran up and kissed Ivan on the cheek.

That triggered even more laughter from the group. Ivan froze in place, touched his face, and looked completely horrified.

Ava saw the chaos and couldn’t help laughing too.

Later that night, after her shower, she powered on her Holoband. The notifications came in nonstop and filled the screen withi seconds.

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