How do I keep a gun accessible but locked away from the kids?

My situation's probably common — three kids, wife is cautious, and I'm wondering how other people actually stage a home defense gun when it needs to be *both* accessible to me and genuinely secure from small hands.

We're not talking about a bedside gun — I mean something staged in a common area or hallway that I could reach fast in a worst case. But my oldest is seven and curious about everything.

I've looked at quick-access safes, but some of them feel slow when I time them. Others are bulky. And I want my wife to be able to access it too if I'm not home and something goes wrong — so whatever we pick has to work for both of us without fumbling.

What's your actual setup? Bedside safe, hallway closet, something else? And how do you handle the "wife needs to be able to use this" part without making it complicated?

Thanks.