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Black Hawk Tattoo

Toronto, Canada, 2006. A few months after the worst year of the Iraq war.<br><br>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.<br><br>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.<br><br>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.

Aundrea Singer · LGBT+
Not enough ratings
123 Chs

Chapter 85

“The brunette in the middle. Seb got the other walk-in. His friends are just waiting for him down here.”

“Okay, thanks.” He went over to introduce himself and find out what the woman wanted, hoping it would be something small and uncomplicated. But he took one glance at the binder she and her friends had open and started shaking his head.

“Hi. I’m Gabe. I’ll be the one tattooing you, but I’m not inking an astrological sign unless it’s going to be somewhere on your body where no one will see it.”

The brunette blinked at him. “Why not?”

“Because all anyone is going to think when they see ink like that is either you’re dumb or unoriginal because you got the same tattoo as forty thousand other Virgos. I mean, you’re going to be forty one day, eh? You should get a tattoo that doesn’t make it look like you can’t remember your own birthday.”

“Who asked you?” one of the brunette’s friends snapped at him.