Page 38 of Casey's Hero

“Don’t worry.” He held up a magazine full of bullets. “It’s not loaded. Show me what you learned.”

She turned the weapon over and pointed to the safety features. “That’s the trigger safety, the firing pin safety and the drop safety. I keep them on until I’m ready to fire the gun.” She cupped it in her hand the way the instructor had shown her with her finger alongside the trigger, not on it. “Once I’m serious about firing, I line up my sights.” She raised the gun and closed one eye. “When I’m ready to shoot, I disengage the safety features and squeeze the trigger.”

“You have the basics. Just remember…once you pull the trigger, you can’t take back that bullet.”

“I know,” she said. “I’ll be absolutely sure of what I’m aiming at.”

He took the weapon from her, slid the magazine full of bullets into the chamber and handed it back to her. “If you’re being attacked, shoot to kill. If you wing someone, it might not stop him. You’ll only make him mad.”

She nodded. “Hopefully, I won’t have to use this. You guys are the ones going into danger. Are you sure you don’t need to take this with you?”

“I’ve got him covered,” Reid said. “Rooster’s seen my collection.”

“I always thought Reid’s love of guns was overkill.” Teller stepped up behind Reid and clapped a hand on his shoulder. “Right now, I’m thinking he had the right idea. I mean, I own my own rifle and handgun, but he has all the bells and whistles.”

“Let’s get over there and formulate a plan,” Hank said. “I have a call out to a friend of mine who owns a boat.”

“What kind of boat?” Jacob asked.

“I’ll fill you in when we get there,” Hank said. “We only have a few short hours until dusk. We need to get moving.”

The men filed out of the house one by one until only Kalea, Casey, Hank and Jacob were left.

Hank held up his cell phone. “I’ll have this with me on silent. You have my number. If you need us, text.”

Kalea and Casey both nodded.

“You can ride with me.” Jacob tossed Hank the keys to his truck.

Hank caught the keys and left Casey’s apartment.

“Seriously, keep the door locked, and don’t go anywhere until we get back. I don’t like leaving you two unprotected.”

“We’ll be all right. Kalea and I took the same self-defense class. We have skills and code words we can use if we’re attacked at the same time.” Casey held up his gun. “And we have protection, should the need arise.”

Jacob took the gun from her and set it on the table beside the door. Then he took her in his arms.

Kalea cleared her throat. “I think there’s something in the oven I need to check on.” She performed an about-face and hurried into the kitchen, leaving Jacob and Casey alone in the hallway.

“I know we’ve only been together for a short time,” Jacob said, brushing one of the curls Mina had so carefully placedbehind her ear. “But I want you to know, I like you. A lot. And I don’t want anything bad to happen to you.”

She smiled up at him and cupped his cheek. “I like you, too. Please, don’t let those cartel dudes wreck your pretty face.” Casey winked at him. “Or any other part of you. I’m looking forward to that date we’re going on after the wedding.” She leaned up on her toes, cupped his cheek in her hand and pressed her lips to his. “I like kissing you.”

“You call that a kiss?” He gathered her in his arms and crushed her to him, his mouth descending to take hers in a hard, hungry kiss that left them both breathless.

When he set her back on her feet, he stepped away. “I’ll be back for more of that.”

Casey pressed her fingers to her lips. Her cheeks were a charming pink, and her eyes glazed with what he suspected was desire. “I’ll be waiting.”

Jacob left before he couldn’t. He took the stairs to the ground floor two at a time and jogged out to his truck, where Hank sat in the passenger seat.

When he slipped in behind the steering wheel, he turned to Hank. “Let’s get this done. I have a date with a pretty lady I’d like to get to know better.”

Hank gave him a crooked grin. “Thought there might be something going on between the two of you.”

“I hope so.” For the first time since he’d become a Navy SEAL, he was thinking past a single date or one-night stand. Casey was a beautiful young woman with drive, determination and fearlessness. She knew what she wanted and went after it. He understood her reluctance to date a Navy guy. It was very much the same reason he’d refused to get involved with someone for a long-term relationship. He’d be gone more than he’d be there. If anyone could handle that kind of lifestyle, Casey could. The question was, could he handle being away from her?At the moment, all he could think about was getting back to her as soon as possible.

“Just so you know,” Hank said, “I understand how hard it is to focus when you have someone you care about waiting at home.” He grinned and stared out the window. “I have two someones—Sadie and Emma. But they know how important it is for me to help others. It’s part of who I am. Sadie is one of the strongest women I know. She worries about me but doesn’t try to stop me from doing what I do.”

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