I slipped my hand between her thighs from behind to widen her stance a little and she released a breath, then looked over her shoulder with reddened cheeks. The gun was still positioned facing the target.
"Get yo' head out the gutter, baby. I'm just fixing your stance. And don't lean back. The gun has a recoil. You want to let that come into you."
She rolled her eyes and turned back to face the target.
I stood back up and showed her how to load a bullet into the chamber.
"Whenever you're ready, pull the trigger. Remember, shooters stay controlled. Take a deep breath, release it, then pull."
Solana nodded and stood still for a moment. I looked over her form and her hands one more time. I wanted her as safe as possible. She placed her finger in front of the trigger, letting me know she was ready.
"Slow squeeze. Don't jerk it."
The shot cracked through the field and Solana jerked backward. "Okay, that wasn't as bad as I thought. But I missed the target completely."
I smiled and walked back up behind her.
"You did just fine, baby. Nobody expects you to be John Wick on the first try. That's why you keep coming back to practice and build your confidence."
Solana nodded and turned back to face the target. I covered her hand with mine again and adjusted her aim.
"When I let go, stay positioned right there. Then go," I instructed.
"Okay."
I released my hold and took a few steps back. Soon after, she pulled the trigger and hit the center of the target.
"Oh my gosh! Did you see that?" she asked, then pointed the gun toward the ground away from her body as she turned to face me with a big smile.
I smirked as I strolled over and readjusted her stance.
"Practice, baby. My grandad used to bring me out here all the time when I was a kid."
"I have to hear all about that. But I want to try again."
I could tell she had gotten more confident.
"Go ahead. I brought enough rounds for you."
I watched her intently. I wasn't sure about this before, but watching her regain her confidence made it clear this was the right call. My baby needed to take her power back.
There wassomething scary yet empowering about holding something that could serve to protect or take a life. I never wanted to be placed in a position where I’d have to do either. But I also knew that wasn’t always how life worked, and the cards I’d been given were leading me right to that.
Duke had stood beside me, correcting me every now and again as I shot at the target, but always encouraging. It felt like we had been there a while, but it hadn’t been that long. I also didn’t want our time together to go to waste. So after we finished, he made sure the gun was on safety with no bullets in the chamber, then put it away.
We decided to head back into town and sit at the park in the center for our picnic. I didn’t want to get back to the bakery too late. Duke helped me lay out my pretty pink checkered blanket against the trunk of the tree we decided to sit beneath.
A few kids were running and playing in the distance. I couldn’t help but smile. I returned my focus to pulling the contents from the basket and placing everything in front of Duke and me.
It wasn’t anything special, just a few sandwiches and chips. But I made sure to add a few new recipes I was considering for my menu. I wanted him to be my deciding factor on whether they made the cut or not. He smiled and rubbed his hands together at the sight of the cakes I’d brought, then reached out to touch one so I popped his hand.
“Uh-uh. You have to wait until after you eat.”
Duke’s brow rose and a smirk adorned his handsome face.
“Sweets, you know I’m a grown ass man, right?” he asked.
I ran my eyes over him with a smile, then met his gaze again.
