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“Thanks. Another option to make it affordable is to find a roommate.”

Jack’s hands clenched the steering wheel. Was he mad I was thinking about finding a roommate? Was he jealous? That didn’t make any sense. Why would he be jealous? It didn’t matter. I wouldn’t move in with a roommate. I couldn’t trust someone I didn’t know. Hell, I barely trusted the people I knew. “But I’m not sure I could. You know? Move in with a total stranger.”

Jack’s hands relaxed and he let out a breath before replying, “Yeah, I get that.”

Jack grabbed his range bag and a long black case out of the back before walking around to open my door. I hadn’t waited, so he opened the back door and grabbed my tote bag instead.

“That’s a mighty big pistol you got there.” I said as I stared at his long black bag.

He grinned. “It’s a rifle. I need to zero my new scope before we leave today.”

“Right, of course, zero your scope.” I had no idea what he was talking about.

“I’d be happy to explain what it means during lunch.” Jack grinned and winked.

It took about thirty minutes for me to get through the process of picking up my gun. Jack dropped his bag off in a classroom and came back just as Grant wished me a happy belated birthday. I thanked Grant and prayed Jack hadn’t heard him. He didn’t say anything while we walked back to the classroom, so I assumed he hadn’t. Relief washed over me. I didn’t want Jack to make a big deal out of it.

Jack took my gun apart for me, explaining each step along the way. It shocked me how easy it looked. I thought there’d be a million pieces. He put it back together and told me to try. I failed. It wasn’t nearly as easy as he made it seem. I finally did it, with a lot of help from Jack.

Jack had reserved side-by-side lanes, instead of the quieter, private training lane we used before. He told me he wanted me to get comfortable shooting with normal range noise, and I could shoot without him hovering over me. He said it like it was a bad thing; him being right next to me. It wasn’t. I wasn’t sure I was ready to do it alone, but he assured me he was right next door if I needed him. He asked me if I had any questions before leaving me alone.

I can do this.I have to do this if I’m going to use a gun to protect myself.

Chapter 27

Jack

Meg took her time, her shooting rhythm slow and controlled. I listened to her shot cadence and did a mental clap when I heard the smooth rhythm of a controlled pair with a well-manipulated trigger reset. Glancing at her target, I could see she was still dropping her shots low left. I made a mental note to help her correct it later.

I shot a couple of mags through my back up ankle gun, to remind myself what it felt like, before switching over to my Glock 19 and practicing head shots on a hostage target.

I peeked around the lane divider in between mags to check on her, grateful she was focused on practicing and didn’t notice me.

After thirty minutes, I uncased my rifle so I could zero my new scope, a tedious but necessary task.

After a stretch of silence from Meg’s lane, I stepped back, intending to lean over and check on her and almost bumped into her. This time, I was the one who was too focused to notice her standing behind me, watching me shoot.

“All done?” I asked.

“Yup, out of ammo.” She reached over and grabbed one of her targets. “What do you think?”

“Looks good.” I was glad she was smiling. She seemed nervous when I picked her up. I hadn’t been sure if it was because she was getting her first gun today, or about seeing me after last night. I didn’t want to think it was because of me. “You want more ammo? I’ve got plenty.”

“No, I’m good. Thanks.”

“Alright, give me a few minutes to finish up and we can go grab lunch.”

“Okay. Does it bother you if I’m watching?” She asked.

“Nope, I didn’t even know you were there.” I turned back to the bench and finished my mag. I placed the rifle on the bench and turned to Meg.

“You want to try it?”

“Um, I don’t know. It seems complex.”

“Nah, it’s just like your pistol,” her eyebrows shot up in disbelief. I winked, “Like a big pistol. It’s easy, I did all the hard work already. All you need to do is point and shoot. I can help you.”

Meg hesitated. “Maybe next time.” She stepped back and watched as I cleared the rifle before packing it up.Next time. I liked the sound of that.

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