Page 25 of His to Have
While she had an innocent smile and a playful disposition, she was hiding a deadly skill set underneath. Her movements were soft, dainty even. Yet, each shot was calculated, and her eyes never missed a detail. It was just enough gentleness in her appearance that would fool anyone into underestimating her.
I leaned against the counter behind her, arms crossed, observing her stance. She was strong... confident... fierce. I couldn’t help but feel both impressed and a surge of pride watching her handle her business in the shooting range. My girl was deadlier with her weapon than I thought. Each shot rang out with a sharp boom, and followed with a satisfying crash as the bullets hit their marks.
“Hmm,” I hummed, realizing I shouldn’t have been so surprised by this revelation. After all, she was a Reed. And each one of thosemuthafuckaswas about their business.
The moment she emptied her last clip, she glanced over her shoulder at me, a smirk playing on her lips. “I told you I could handle myself?” She turned back around, refilling her magazine, and dotted two more targets. “Maybe next time, you’ll listen to me, instead of dragging me down to my brother’s gun range. We really could’ve saved this pointless ass trip.”
She tossed her braids to the side and lowered her Glock. All I could do was marvel at her.
Turning toward me with one perfectly arched brow, she said, “So you’re not going to say anything. Just stare.”
Bash snickered from the corner, arms folded, as he leaned against the wall. “Told you she was a beast in the range.” His smugness was written all over his face.
However, that didn’t stop Ayanna from shooting him an icy glare. “Don’t you have something better to do? Like keep daddy secrets... or is this him sending you here to make sure I go with the flow?” She was still pissed at him for not telling her about the arrangement.
He held his hands up, his smirk completely fading. “Chill, man. You know I ain’t here on no funny shit. And you know why I couldn’t tell you about the arrangement.” His eyes narrowed, then turned to slits. “You think I liked keeping that from you? I didn’t have a choice, Yanna.”
She scoffed. “There’s always a choice.”
“There is, but this choice was for the best. Trust me on that.”
There was a beat of silence, her gaze shifting back to the targets in front of her. Ayanna loved her brother, so I knew she wanted to accept what he was saying.
“You forgive me?” Bash nudged her shoulder. “You know you can’t stay mad at me for long. Besides, we both knew you was gon' end up wit’ that nigga anyway.”
Her head snapped over, and he gave her a look that said challenge him.
I stepped in before she really cussed his ass out. “There’s no need to argue about what everyone already knew.” I smirked, stepping closer to Ayanna and holding her gaze. “Even you, Amore.”
She wanted to argue with the truth, but chose not to, opting to roll those pretty eyes of hers. “Whatever.”
“Anyway... I told this nigga you were lethal out here.” Bash pointed at the moving targets. “But I guess seeing is believing.”
This was true. Bash told me Ayanna could handle a pistol fluently when he called earlier, asking to meet up at the range. He mentioned handling some business, but wanted to talk to both of us before we left town. The choice of location had me wondering if she even knew how to shoot, since she never had any real reason to learn.
She never handled street shit. The men she dated were rarely in the game. And outside of Bash, and me, she didn’t associate with many people who lived that kind of lifestyle.
I’d casually brought up the idea of getting her lessons when we returned to New York, but Bash interrupted me with a chuckle, insisting she didn’t need them.“Trust me, she knows her way around a firearm,” he said. “Taught baby girl myself.”
Watching her now, I realized he wasn’t over-exaggerating her skill set. She was a natural.
It wasn’t that I didn’t believe him, but I wanted to see it for myself. I couldn’t be with her every second of the day, no matter how much I wanted to. If any nigga or bitch thought testing her in my absence was a good idea, I had to know she could handle herself. She was about to be thrust into my world, face first witha bunch of slick-talking, ruthlessmuthafuckaswho wouldn’t hesitate to exploit any sign of weakness. Her intelligence and wits were already top tier, but I had to make sure her force matched her prowess —andmy own. She had the precision, the confidence, and the firepower to back it up.
“Yeah, you told me.” I ignored him and stepped closer to Ayanna.
Taking the gun from her hand, I checked the weight and slide, then aimed at the nearest target and pulled the trigger. Feeling the recoil kick back into my hand, I nodded in approval at the smoothness of her weapon. Then I handed the pistol back to her.
“Your grip’s solid, but your trigger pull needs work. You’re overcompensating.”
She narrowed her eyes. “Overcompensating? Last I checked, all my shots hit the target.” She gestured towards the row of targets. Every last one of them sported a cluster of perfect bullet holes. All dead-center. “See?”
“You did,” I agreed, smirking as I stepped behind her. “But your aim could be tighter. Let me show you.”
My chest brushed against her back as I adjusted her stance, my fingers gliding along her arm until they settled over her fingers. Her breath hitched when my hand covered hers, guiding her gently. A soft, involuntary groan escaped her lips, and I’m sure it wasn’t intended for me to hear. I couldn’t stop the smirk that tugged at my lips, particularly when I felt her shifting under my touch.
I leaned in closer, my mouth just an inch away from her ear. “Relax your shoulders for me, Amore.”
Slowly, she let out a breath, her shoulders dropping into a more relaxed posture. Her scent—peaches and vanilla—hit me as she softened against me. And the tension in her arms loosened, as her muscles responded to my guidance.
