“I’m not delusional. I know I can’t restrict you to only the compound all the time,” he added, his gaze steady on mine. “It wouldn’t be fair. I’m not going to completely take your freedom away just to make myself more comfortable.”
“Good,” I said immediately, relief flooding my body.
He paused for a moment, seemingly gathering his thoughts.
When he spoke again, his voice was still quiet but charged with urgency “But I’m also not going to pretend being unprepared is acceptable or that this world is safe for you.”
I held his gaze, realizing he wasn’t trying to scare me. He was just … telling the truth.
“You’re planning for something before it’s happened.”
“I’m planning for somethinginevitable.”
What an ominous thing to say.
“I don’t need you to become someone else,” he continued. “But I do need you to be capable of handling yourself if something goes wrong.”
I opened my mouth to argue but snapped it shut again because, annoyingly, he was right.
I exhaled, tilting my head slightly. “You’re worried.”
“About your safety? Always. But mostly, I’m being realistic.”
I sucked in a sharp breath, and a tiny part of my heart softened.
“Okay.” I nodded.
He blinked once, like he hadn’t expected it to be so easy. “Okay?”
“Yeah.” I shrugged lightly. “You’ve made a compelling case. Slightly intense delivery, but overall strong argument. So, what’s your plan?”
“We’re gonna teach you how to shoot.”
My mouth dropped open. “Like … a gun?”
“No, a fucking crossbow.” He shot me a flat look. “Of course a gun.”
I grimaced. “Do you think that’s a good idea?”
His mouth twitched, barely but I saw it. “I guess we’re about to find out.”
“Okay.” I blew out a breath, trying to hype myself up. “Okay. Teach me.”
Relief flashed across his face, quickly replaced by something darker and more possessive.
“Good girl.” He leaned down and pressed a quick kiss to my forehead. “Let’s go.”
Then he reached for my hand again, as if it were instinct, and pulled me with him as we continued walking.
“Where are we going?” I asked, eyeing the path as it curved away from anything looking remotely domestic.
“You’ll see.”
After a few more steps, the foliage began to thin and opened up into an area of the compound I hadn’t been shown during the grand tour. I was a little miffed about that. I liked to think I had earned full access privileges by now.
The space ahead of us had clearly been deliberately cleared. The ground was flattened and covered in packed dirt and gravel, and it was bordered by high concrete and reinforced steel. There were targets set up at varying distances — some paper and some metal — and the faint, unmistakable smell of gunpowder lingered in the air as if it had become part of the place.
A shooting range.