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A few more loud bangs from the shotgun go off, and cheering follows. Whoever is shooting managed to shatter one of the clay pigeons.
“PULL!” Two more clay pigeons launch and both are shattered.
“That’s most likely Swank who just took those shots. Other than me, no one has beaten him. Not from a lack of trying, mind you, but Swank and I started shooting skeet when we were ten,” I say to the group.
As we get a little closer, Deacon sees us first. “Finally, someone who can put this guy in his place.” He motions his thumb toward Swank, who yells, “PULL!”
“Boom!...Boom!”
I wave to the men and yell, “I’m not shooting today, but Anna wanted to give it a try! Are you guys all right with letting a lady invade your ‘guy’ time?”
Swank removes his eye and hearing protection and lies the over-under double barrel shotgun on the table so that the barrel faces toward the water. “So, you want to let your fiancée play with the big boys. Do you think she can handle it?”
“I don’t know, Swank. That’s why she wants to try,” I retort.
Everyone’s eyes widen in surprise when they hear the news. “You’re engaged? Congrats, Man! It’s about time you moved on,” Berkowitz says, truly happy for me.
“When’s the big day? You’ll make sure to have it in the off-season so we can attend the wedding, right?” Deacon asks.
Anna slips her arm around my waist and smiles wide enough that all her teeth show. “We haven’t set a date because we want a long engagement. I know that we haven’t known each other long, but it was enough time to recognize a good thing when we saw it. We didn’t want to wait to commit to one another.”
Swank grins when he hears that. “It’s nice to know you aren’t rushing into anything. A long engagement is a wise decision. I thought you would be walking down the aisle next week at the rate things were going between you two.”
I give him a little shove. “You don’t have to worry about that. We may have rushed into an engagement, but we plan on taking our time getting to know one another before we get married.”
“Well, let’s see what she’s got!” Swank shouts.
I go through the mechanics of the gun quickly, even though Anna is more than capable. I can’t wait to see her in action, but we have to lull Swank in first.
When Anna picks up the gun, she swings it around toward the guys, forcing them to all jump backward. They ignore the fact that the gun is pointed at the ground or that her finger is nowhere near the trigger.
Jessie sniggers, “Aiden, maybe you should give Anna a lesson on gun safety! I doubt she’s ever held a shotgun before.”
I load the weapon for Anna, and she watches intently, pretending to soak up the information like a sponge. Once that’s done, I explain that you don’t aim at the target but a little in front. “This is just a single-station skeet range, but the machines are automated and can rotate to mimic all the positions for competition. We usually keep it set to one station since most of the guys only shoot when they come here. Are you ready to give it a go?”
“I think so.” Anna stands on the pad, holding the gun like an amateur. “Is this when I’m supposed to say ‘pull?’” she asks.
Penny yells, “Yes!”
Anna readjusts her stance, although it’s still awkward. “PULL!” The first clay pigeon goes flying, and she takes a shot, missing it by a mile. Then, the second, which she also misses.
After failing to hit the clay disks a few more times, I approach her and “help.”
I press my body against her back and move the hearing protection off her ear. Then, I take my time as I slide my hands slowly down her arms until they reach her wrists. I caress her fingers as I guide them into the correct position. I give her instructions using a husky tone, smiling when her body trembles. She might be faking a lot right now, but her reaction to me isn’t one of them. “Ready?” I ask.
“Uh-huh.”
I turn away so I don’t yell in her ear, even though I’ve replaced her hearing protection. “PULL!”
Anna once again misses the clay pigeon but hits the second. “I think I’m getting the hang of this!” she shouts.
Swank crosses his arms, “Beginner’s luck.”
Anna slowly reloads and stands on the pad again, ready to fire. Once again, she hits one of the two disks. “I bet I could take you on, Swank.”
Swank guffaws, “You can certainly try.”
I pull out a one-hundred-dollar bill and slap it on the table. “I’ll wager on it.”
