Toronto, Canada, 2006. A few months after the worst year of the Iraq war. Gabriel Navarro splits his time between his job slinging ink at the Atlantis Ink tattoo parlor, and working on his master’s degree in fine art. Gabe is twenty-two, sure of his beliefs and his artistic integrity, and na?ve enough to think he’ll never have to compromise. And then one night Jake MacLean walks into the shop and changes everything. Jake Maclean is twenty-eight and a veteran American Army pilot. He's been staying with his ex-pat sister in Toronto while he tries to get his life in order. The problem is, he can't. After his disastrous final mission in Iraq, he's overcome with anger and survivor’s guilt, trapped in a losing battle to atone for a failure he’s sure can never be forgiven. Left without hope, he decides to have his memory of the mission tattooed on his back, with the condemning words: God Will Judge Me. He doesn't expect to fall for the tattoo artist. Gabe falls just as quickly and deeply for Jake, though Jake's reluctance to talk about what happened frustrates and worries him. Gabe knows Jake isn't doing well, but accepting Jake’s claims that he's "fine" is far easier than dealing with the frightening truth. But soon it’s horribly clear Jake can’t control his panic attacks or flashes of violence, and he's getting worse. If Gabe can’t help him face his demons, Jake is headed for a crash -- and there’s every chance he’ll take Gabriel down with him.

Black Hawk Tattoo

“I know.” Jake smirked a little, then clasped Gabe’s arm, completely serious. “Thanks, Gabriel. I really appreciate all the work you’ve put into this.”


“You’re welcome.” Gabe realized a moment later he’d probably been looking too long and dropped his gaze before he did anything he shouldn’t, like try to kiss him.


“Okay, then.” Jake let go of Gabe’s arm and walked to the apartment door and opened it, standing in front of the stairs. “I guess I’ll see you on Saturday.”


“Yeah,” Gabe croaked. “Wait!” he added immediately. “I forgot—sorry. You, uh, you shouldn’t drink alcohol for about twenty-four hours beforehand. It’ll make you bleed, too.”


“Right. Sure.” Jake smiled, but it looked like he was dredging it up from somewhere. “Take care.”


Jake shut the door behind him. Gabe could hear the thumping of his footsteps down the stairs.


Chapter 30