“They shoot bullets, don’t they?”
“Of course.”
She grabbed the first gun and the clip. “Then I’ll be fine.” She turned to walk away, and Neil placed a hand on her arm, stopping her.
His grip was firm at first, and then softened when she met his hazel eyes. “Eliza shoots a .38. That’s a .45 and will knock you clear across the room when you squeeze the trigger.”
She couldn’t remember what Eliza shot, but apparently, Neil did. Gwen glanced at the gun.
“I’m not leaving here without a gun, Neil.”
His hand barely rested on her arm now, but he didn’t move away.
“Fine.” He let her go, knelt on the floor, and opened another drawer. He removed a black case, opened it, and proceeded to place all the guns, clips, and extra bullets inside.
“I don’t need them all,” she said.
He cocked his head to the side. “You need to leave with the right one. You won’t know what that is until you fire all of them.”
“Oh.”
They stayed for lunch, appeasing Mary, and then drove to an outdoor shooting range tucked in one of the many canyons of the California mountains.
The range was relatively quiet and it didn’t take long to realize that she was the only woman there. A couple of men sent her an appreciative glance, but after noticing Neil at her side, quickly looked away.
The concrete ground was littered with shell casings, making it difficult to walk in high heels. Once they entered the area where the guns were being fired, Neil handed her ear protection. The sounds of the blasts were muffled, and Gwen had a hard time hearing what Neil was saying.
He set up their guns at the far end of the run and rested his hand on the counter. “I want you to try this one first.” It was the largest revolver in Blake’s drawer.
Its sheer size intimidated her. “Why that one?” Did he want to scare her away from guns?
“It’s the easiest to shoot.”
She huffed out a laugh. “I doubt that.”
“I take my weapons seriously, Gwendolyn, and would never lie to you about them.”
The fact he used her full name made her question her doubt.
She glanced at the gun and decided to own up to her lack of knowledge. “I’ve forgotten how to open and load it.”
Neil brushed against her and picked it up. He pressed a button and swiveled out the round chamber in the middle. “There are six shots.” He picked up the bullets, one at a time, and added them. “Once it’s loaded, it’s live. You don’t have to pull this hammer back to shoot, but if you do, it helps with accuracy.”
“How does it help?”
“It takes more pressure on the trigger to fire the weapon than one of these guns.” He pointed to the guns with clips. “The added pressure messes with your aim, unless you’re a good shot.”
He handed her the weapon and nodded toward the targets on the field. Unlike the paper targets she’d used before, this range was full of swiveling metal that made clanging noises when hit.
The gun felt heavy in her hand. Heavier than the others.
Neil hesitated before moving into position behind her. He wrapped his arms around hers, holding her hands in his over the gun as he positioned them to his liking.
She swallowed. The thick feel of him holding her, even like this, made her breathless. The desire to lean into him made her dizzy. But she refrained. Every other time he’d been close to her, she’d practically jumped in his lap.
Not anymore. It was Neil’s turn to make the moves. That is, if he wanted to.
She wasn’t sure why he brought her to the range, outside of his instruction. Of course he could have suggested an instructor if he wanted to keep his distance.
But that wouldn’t have been Neil. He didn’t allow anyone to do what he did better.
“Ready?” His voice was muffled.
“What?”
“Are you ready?”
She nodded and closed one eye to see the target at the end of the barrel.
Neil cocked the gun and released her hands. He inched back, but she still felt his body against hers.
She focused on the beat-up red rotating triangle, sucked in a breath, and squeezed the trigger.
The blast kicked her back into Neil, but it wasn’t that bad. In fact, it was better than what she remembered about Eliza’s weapon.
“Did I hit it?” She hadn’t paid attention.
“No.”
Now that she knew what the gun would do, she cocked the hammer herself, took aim, and fired.
The triangle zipped in a circle.
She glanced up at Neil, whose eyes smiled even if his lips didn’t.
She fired again and hit the same target twice.
Neil pointed farther out on the range. “Shoot there.”
The second set of targets took a couple of extra shots to hit. But soon she found herself plucking away at them as if she’d done so for years. Excitement shot up her spine.
One corner of Neil’s lips lifted.
You really are sexy when you smile.
“Try it again. Without cocking the hammer.”
She concentrated harder, her tongue poked through her teeth as she fired the weapon. Sure enough, she missed her target, but at least it wasn’t off in the bushes, which made her feel good.
They went through several rounds with both revolvers before Neil moved to the pistols. The smaller one felt like Eliza’s but Gwen’s accuracy wasn’t as good. After a few shots, Neil took the gun in his hand, narrowed his eyes, and squeezed. His arms didn’t so much as move with the kick. He missed his target.