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I growl. “Are you insane? You don’t know if he’s armed or what he’s—”

“Lonny? He’s not armed. He’s an idiot, and I let him walk all over me once. I’m not letting it happen again.”

She’s lucky I’m so into her. In the circles I run in, you don’t touch a man’s pistol.

“Have you ever used a gun before?”

She’s already walking toward the front door. “A little. My dad had guns, but I’m just going to wave it around, anyway.”

This is dangerous, really fucking dangerous. We shouldn’t be waving guns around recklessly. That said, I get the part where she needs to stand up for herself, so I pull the gun I keep strapped to my ankle and follow behind her quietly. If need be, I’ll shoot around her and make sure she’s safe.

Her little hand swings open the cabin door, and she storms outside, screaming the fucker’s name. It’s not the approach I’d take, but I admire her passion for violence.

“Lonny, get the fuck over here, you piece of fucking shit!”

The man who’s been circling the house comes into view. He’s not drunk or high, but he looks emotionally unhinged by the way he carries himself. Well, that and the fact that he’s snooping around private property. That’s another thing folks wouldn’t dare do up here. Most people understand that property on this mountain is protected by force. “You belong to me, Dot. I don’t know what kind of shit you’re pulling here, or who the fuck this asshole is, but you need to come home.”

She waves the gun at him.

Jesus, fuck.I make a note to myself to keep the guns locked up in the future.

“You have three seconds to leave and never come back or I’ll shoot. Not one of those leg shots, Lonny. I’m not fucking around. I’ll shoot you in the face, and I won’t blink an eye.” Her tone is ragged and rough.

Seeing this asshole makes me want to haul up and punch him in the throat, but I push back the urge and let Dot do her thing. This is going to be really hard.

I want her to get the satisfaction she needs from this moment, but I also need this fuck to know who she belongs to, who’s protecting her, and what he’s fucking around with should he decide to do something stupid and come back again.

The man makes a mistake. He doesn’t trust Dot’s anger. He doesn’t trust that I’ll fuck him up.He takes a step forward.

I shoot into the air as I stare at the man. “That’s your warning. The next one goes in your head. You want a choice, or you want me to make it for you?”

He narrows his brows and glances toward Dot. “This is what you want? You want a fuckin’ barbarian?”

She grins and leans against my chest as I hold aim on the man. “Yeah, it is.”

I’ve never had my heart go so warm holding a gun before, but here I am, holding my girl against my chest while I aim it at a man’s head.

Lonny takes off into the woods and I don’t get the feeling he’ll be back again. Though, if he does, I’ll make sure no second chances are given.

Dot turns toward me, tips up onto her toes, and kisses my lips gently. “See, I handled it. I’m a hero.” She holds her gun out to me, her finger still resting on the trigger.

I take the weapon from her hands gently, and tuck it into my jeans before brushing my fingers through her hair. “I think maybe I’m going to keep these locked up.”

She smirks. “What? Why? I want to learn!”

We step back into the house, and I lift her into my arms, carrying her toward the bedroom. “You want to learn what?”

“How to use a gun. Come on! It’ll be fun. You can take me out back and teach me all kinds of things.”

I lay her back on the bed and kiss her lips gently. “Okay, but let me eat first.”

She lifts her hips up into mine and grins. “Yeah, okay. You can… yeah. You can eat first.”

Epilogue

Dot

Five Years Later

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