AllFreeNovel
Share Us
“Guys, this is Ryan Kavanaugh.” As Gabe introduces the men, they step forward to shake my hand and say nice to meet you. “This is my father, Larry. My uncle Frank. His son-in-law, Charlie. His sons, Frank Jr. and Nolan. Owen, of course. And last, but not least, this is my grandfather, Billy.”
His grandfather, with his hair salt and pepper, but again, good-looking for his age, clasps my hand between his worn ones. “It's nice to meet you, darlin'. Gabriel didn't tell us he was bringing a pretty, young thing to distract us. I may be retired, but I can out-shoot any of these boys any day. You'll see.” He winks, and I laugh, but my stomach is a mess of angry bees. Gabe didn't tell them I was coming?
“Gramps, leave her alone.” Gabe chuckles. “You all knew she would be here. Today is her first time shooting.”
“Is that so?” Frank says with a smile.
I nod and Owen chirps, “Let's see what you got, girl.”
“How about y'all go warm up first?” Gabe saves me. I don't want to be the first person to shoot with them here.
Why I expected to have an ally in Gabe's father, I don't know, but he's not one because he locks eyes with me and says, “Owen's right. Ryan should go first.” He's looking at me like I've done something wrong already. Have I?
Gabe looks at me. “Ready?” His eyes are an open question. I can back out if I want. I told him that I might.
But I'll be damned if these men, especially his father, will intimidate me.
“Yes.”
Gabe reloads the shotgun, and all eyes are on me as we walk to where we were standing earlier. When I glance over my shoulder, the men are in a line, arms folded over their chests, watching from about ten feet away. All except Owen. He looks like he has faith in me.
Gabe's lips brush over my ear as he stands behind me. “Ignore them, Ryan. They're testing you, but you've got this.” Gabe hands me the gun before walking to place another can on top of the post. I didn't even see him grab it. Gabe walks back to me, smiles, and puts my earmuffs back over my ears. He steps aside. This time, even though he's not as close as before, I know he's there.
I take a deep breath before lifting the gun into position. It doesn't feel right on my shoulder, so I adjust it until it's sitting at the right spot. There's no way I'm going to miss this, so I take my time. My hands, which were shaky, are now steady. I'm calmer than ever. I turn off the safety and move my finger, hovering near the trigger as I hear someone faintly laugh behind me.
Once I zone in on the middle of the can and feel sure of myself, I pull the trigger. My shot is dead on as the can bursts. A thrill runs through me. I cock the gun to toss the empty shell and push the safety back on before turning around to see seven stunned men and a grinning Gabe. My eyes briefly land on each man until I reach Larry, his father.
With a glare towards him, I ask, “Satisfied?”
The men burst into laughter, a faint smile on Larry's lips. Gabe walks over, takes the gun, and gives me a kiss as I remove the earmuffs.
“You're amazing,” he whispers, before taking my hand to lead me over to the guys. “We were here only an hour before y'all, and she hit every can with the shotgun. I don't know how, but she's good with that one and the others.” Pride seeps from his voice.
“I'm up,” Owen declares, picking up a gun from one of the picnic tables and walking to take aim at the target on the board.
“You've never shot before?” Frank asks me.
“No. I've never been around guns before today.”
Charlie, the son-in-law, comes over to shake my hand. “You did great. Don't worry about them. They made me do it when I first started coming too.”
I give him a sweet smile. Larry still hasn't said anything, and he doesn't. Not until Owen returns and Gabe goes to put up a new target to shoot. How evil. He waited until Gabe wasn't around. Larry doesn't come over to me, he just speaks to me from the next picnic table over.
His eyes narrow, and the men turn away from watching Gabe when he asks, “If I may, how old are you, Ryan?”
Gulping, I glance at Gabe. He looks so hot and manly holding the gun in his hands. I turn my attention back to Larry. “Nineteen, but I turn twenty later this month.”
“I knew it!” Owen says from next to me. He decided to come sit on the same bench as me. “I knew you were younger than Gabe, younger than he led on anyway.”
My age has all the men's attention. Uh, oh. Is my age really a problem? That makes me the second youngest person here thanks to Owen.
“Gabriel is a little old for you, don't you think?” Larry asks.
“If I did, would I be here?” I see a hint of surprise flash before his eyes narrow at my words. Shit. I don't need to push him into hating me further. This was a bad idea. I shouldn't have come. My parents don't think I'm good enough. I shouldn't have thought that Gabe's would be any different. And his dad is supposed to be the open-minded of the two. His mother would definitely hate me. A shot sounds, but I barely hear it.
Frank clears his throat as if that would ease the tension I feel. “Are you from around here?”
“No. I'm originally from Asheville, but I came here for college. I'm a sophomore,” I add as if that will help anything. It won't because I've already ruined what chances I had at making his father like me. My age, and most likely my smart mouth, stands in the way.
