Chapter 280: You Just Shot A Gun For The First Time. How Does It Feel?

He guided her to the table and picked up the smallest handgun....a 9mm, sleek and manageable, the kind of weapon that could fit in a purse or a jacket pocket if needed.

"This is what you’re going to learn first," he said, placing it in her hands carefully. "It’s lighter than the others. The recoil is manageable. And it’s accurate at close range, which is all you’d ever need it for."

Eve held the gun like it might explode. Her hands were slightly shaking.

"It won’t bite," Dimitri said, his tone gentle despite the darkness of what he was teaching her. "It’s a tool. Just like a knife or a hammer. It doesn’t have intentions. It just does what the person holding it makes it do."

"That’s not very reassuring," Eve said.

"I’m not trying to reassure you," Dimitri replied. "I’m trying to teach you. Reassurance is a lie we tell ourselves. Reality is that you need to know how to use this because there are people in the world who would hurt you. And I need to know that if I’m not there, you can protect yourself."

He positioned himself behind her, his hands covering hers on the weapon.

"Stance," he said. "Feet shoulder-width apart. Left foot slightly forward if you’re right-handed. Knees slightly bent. Weight balanced. You want to be stable but mobile."

Eve adjusted her stance, and Dimitri guided her into position.

"Arms," he continued. "Bent slightly. Not locked. You want some give in the joints so the recoil doesn’t break your wrists. Bring the gun up to eye level. Look down the sights. See how the front sight and rear sight should align?"

Eve nodded, focusing on the target fifty feet away.

"Good," Dimitri said. "Now, squeeze the trigger. Don’t jerk it. Squeeze it smoothly."

Eve took a breath and squeezed.

The shot rang out in the basement, loud and sharp. The recoil kicked back, and Eve’s entire body flinched.

But the bullet hit the target.

"There," Dimitri said, a note of satisfaction in his voice. "You just shot a gun for the first time. How does it feel?"

"Terrifying," Eve said. "Empowering. Both at the same time."

"That’s exactly right," Dimitri said. "That’s the feeling you need to remember. That’s what’s going to save your life if it comes to that."

They spent the next hour going through basic mechanics. How to load the weapon. How to eject the magazine. How to clear a jam. How to understand the safety. How to recognize when the gun was ready to fire and when it wasn’t.

Eve was a quick learner. Her hands steadied as she practiced. Her aim improved with each shot. By the time an hour had passed, she was hitting the target consistently.....not perfectly, but well enough that Dimitri knew she understood the fundamentals.

"You’re good at this," he said as she lowered the gun.

"Because I had a good teacher," Eve replied, turning to look at him.

There was something in her eyes, a softness mixed with steel. She’d been afraid, but she hadn’t let fear stop her. That was the quality he’d always loved about her. That willingness to walk into darkness if it meant staying with him.

Dimitri took the gun from her hands and set it on the table. Then he pulled her close.

"I love you," he said, and the words carried weight.....the weight of everything he was teaching her, everything he was asking her to be capable of, everything he was asking her to survive.

"I love you too," Eve said. "Even when you’re teaching me how to shoot people."

"Especially then," Dimitri replied, and kissed her.

The kiss was different than the ones before. It was softer. More intimate. Less about possession and more about connection. His hands framed her face gently, and he took his time, tasting her, feeling her, reminding himself that this was what he was fighting for. This was what he was protecting.

When he pulled back, Eve was looking up at him with an expression that was equal parts love and concern.

"What happens tomorrow night?" she asked quietly.

Dimitri knew she wasn’t asking for details. She was asking if he was going to be okay. If they were going to survive this.

"We survive," he said simply. "Marco has a plan. I have a plan. And now you know how to use a gun if you need to. We’re going to be fine."

"Promise?" she asked, and there was a vulnerability in that single word that made his chest tight.

"I promise," he said, and he meant it. Because failure wasn’t an option. Because he’d already given her his word that he’d keep her safe, and Dimitri Valentino didn’t break his word.

He kissed her again, and this time it deepened. His hands moved to her waist, and he pulled her closer. Eve’s arms wrapped around his neck, and she pressed herself against him.

"We should probably get back upstairs," Eve said, but she made no move to pull away.

"Probably," Dimitri agreed, but he was already lifting her onto the nearby table, his hands sliding under her tank top.

"Dimitri, we just...."

"I know," he interrupted, pulling the tank top over her head. "I don’t care. I need you. Right now, I need to feel you."

Eve didn’t protest. Just wrapped her legs around his waist and kissed him deeply while he removed her pants.

He took her right there on the table in the basement of the safe house, with guns within arm’s reach and danger waiting outside. It was rough and intense and completely necessary, the kind of sex that wasn’t about pleasure but about connection. About reminding each other that they were alive. That they were together. That nothing could separate them.

When it was over, they lay tangled together on the table, both breathing hard.

"Tell me what’s going to happen," Eve finally said. "I need to know."

Dimitri considered lying. Considered softening the truth to make it easier for her to sleep tonight.

But Eve deserved better than that.

"Seven men are coming," he said quietly. "Professional soldiers. They’re coming to kill me. They’ll arrive around 1 AM tomorrow night via speedboat."

"And?" Eve prompted.

"And Marco and I will be waiting for them. We’ll stop them before they even reach this location. You’ll be safe here with additional security."