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

“Yeah.” Jake rubbed the back of his neck and stared down at his own feet. Gabriel’s feet were narrow like the rest of him, but they were long and high-arched. Elegant, Jake supposed, if a foot could be called that. Jake’s were blunt and flat and wide. Soldier’s feet, as ordinary as the rest of him. He had no idea why Gabriel would want him, especially since he knew Jake was completely fucked in the head. “I’m really sorry I woke you up. Your neighbors probably think you just murdered me.”


Gabriel laughed like he really thought that was funny. “Considering how loudly Hype plays her music when she stays here, I’m sure the screaming was a nice break for them.” He put his hand on the nape of Jake’s neck, rubbing his thumb back and forth. “Do you…want to tell me what the nightmare was?” Then he added quickly, “You don’t have to. I mean, you can if you want. It’s just, sometimes talking about this stuff helps it go away.”


Jake quirked his one mobile eyebrow. “That ever work for you?”


Chapter 45