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

It hadn’t taken Rob long to start bringing extra muffins or donuts or whatever with him on the days Gabe was there at opening. Not even bothering to glance away from the paper, Rob lifted his hand enough to wave in response to Gabe’s, “Good morning,” and nudged the small paper bag nearer to Gabe with his foot.


“Awesome. Thanks,” Gabe murmured happily. There was nothing better than sugar and caffeine in the morning, as far as he was concerned, except maybe pancakes. He grabbed the bag and put it on the counter, then pulled out the chocolate-chip muffin and took a huge bite, making a muffled sound of dismay when he spilled crumbs on the counter. “You don’t normally come in on the weekend.” Rob almost never did, in fact. He spent as much time as he could with his family.


“Aida’s at a sleepover. She won’t be back until dinner,” Rob explained. He smiled ruefully. “And Danielle’s putting in a new flowerbed.”


Chapter 31