“Yes. I’ve also got you a real holster.” He held up a leather object. “Come here.”

I stood up and moved closer to him. I’d never worn a holster so had no idea where it went. I’d seen movies and might be able to guess, but what if I got it backward and couldn’t get the gun out when I needed it?

“Lift your shirt.”

“Excuse me?”

“Lift your shirt and unzip your pants.”

“Where exactly does this holster go?” I narrowed my eyes at him.

“It goes against the small of your back and I’d like a little space to slide it in.” I felt myself blushing again, and he smiled. He moved behind me to lift the sweater with one hand. “Now, undo your pants for me.”

“Since you asked so nicely.” Shaking my head I worked the button loose and pushed the pants open. His fingers grazed along the small of my back and I bit my lip. When he slid the cool leather against my skin I squeaked. “That’s cold!”

“Sorry.” After a little tugging, he stepped back and I buttoned the jeans.

“Not exactly comfortable.” I turned to look in the full length mirror to see if the holster was visible.

“You’ll get used to it.” Owen revealed a smaller, chrome and black pistol. “This is a nine millimeter. I think it will fit your hand a little better.”

I took the pistol and checked the chamber before leveling it in front of me. It did feel a little more comfortable in my hands, but I wouldn’t really know unless I fired it.

“Widen your stance.” Owen moved behind me and adjusted my shoulders. “This will give you the best accuracy.”

“I look like an idiot.” I was standing with my feet shoulder width apart and both arms out in front of me.

“That’s because you think you should look like they do in the movies.” Owen leaned closer to me as he reached around to adjust my arms. “Strong arms. You don’t want the gun to come back and hit you in the face.”

“So is this how you stand when you shoot?” I tried to not focus on the way his body wrapped around mine.

“Of course not.” He stepped back and I turned to look at him. “I can’t look stupid while I’m out killing people.”

“Gee, thanks.” I reached behind me and tried to put the pistol into the holster. The sweater caught on the gun and I fumbled for a minute before getting it safely put away. Well, safe was a matter of opinion. The gun was loaded, with one in the chamber, and currently pointed down my ass crack.

“You don’t want to be comfortable with them.” Owen was watching me with guarded eyes. “If you’re too comfortable you’ll take them for granted and that’s when you hurt yourself.”

“Or someone else.”

“That too.” Turning away from me, he loaded another gun before placing it in a shoulder holster for himself. He also attached a knife to his ankle, and stuck another pistol in the small of his back. He pulled a large gun out from the bag and checked the chamber and I felt my eyes widen.

“I’d love to see where you put that thing.”

“I bet you would.” He looked around the room for a minute before walking over to the bed. Flipping the mattress over he used a smaller pocket knife to cut a large gash in the fabric.

“There goes our deposit.”

“Can’t just leave this stuff out for them to find.” Kneeling down on the floor next to the bed he began pulling things out of his bags. As I watched the growing pile of ammunition and money, my mouth fell open.

“I don’t think all of that is going to fit in there.”

“Only some of it.” He began arranging things inside the mattress; his entire arm disappearing at one point. “We’ll carry some of it in the bag.”

“What, are we going to put it in a trashcan at a park?”

“There are worse places.” He winked at me and I didn’t want to think about where he might have hid things before. “But no. We’re carrying this with us for now.”

“Don’t you worry about someone realizing you’re carrying a gun? I mean, it’s a big deal here. It’s not like back home.” The gun on my back felt white hot against my skin. Like a beacon for everyone to see.

“People see what they want to see.” He shrugged into his jacket before slinging the backpack over one shoulder. “And most people only see stuff that concerns them.”

“What about the people who want to see someone carrying a gun?” I tugged my sweater a little lower and followed him out the door. “There are those out there, always looking for trouble.”

“Then you deal with it.” He moved beside me and leaned his head down. “Loosen up a little, Ava. Sometimes you just have to roll with things.”

“Easy for you to say. This is how you live all the time.” I shrugged and tried to calm my racing heart. It wasn’t fair that his breath on my ear would send goosebumps over my body.

“True.” He stood up straight and put a little distance between us. “This is how I live.” His words were firm as if reminding himself. My heart ached for the loneliness that had crept into his voice. It was faint, and I wouldn’t have noticed it if I hadn’t spent the last couple of days with him, but it was definitely there.

“But you’re right. I need to just roll with things a little better.” I smiled up at him. “That’s what I’m supposed to be doing anyway, right? Stop planning everything out and doing only the safe things.”