Because ink is permanent, she told herself. Just like she’d thought the idea of Jake being in her life would be. Yet unlike the ink on her skin, she could feel him slipping away, fading into a forgotten memory.
And she didn’t like how she felt about that.
Didn’t like it at all.
Chapter Three
Border Gentry ran a hand over his shaved head and forced himself not to get on the back of his bike and head in the other direction. He’d come to Denver for a legitimate reason, but he’d also come because he knew at his age, he had to stop trying to outrun his demons.
They just kept finding him and showing him the bottom of a bottle with no end of misery in sight. And since Border didn’t want to end up in a ditch from exhaustion or death from booze, he was on the outskirts of Denver, helmet in hand, and the weight of a whole lot of living on his shoulders.
He still couldn’t quite believe it had been over fifteen years since he’d been home.
Home.
Odd word choice for a place that had tried to kill him more than once—though he’d faced his mortality in countless other places in the time he’d been gone, so really, his fate couldn’t be the reason he was worried about coming home.
He’d left behind his best friend, the one man who Border had let see inside him. The one man he’d loved yet had never told. He’d had two years of tortured bliss with Jake Gallagher, and had run from it when things got too tough; when the idea of who he could become if he didn’t get away from his father scared him more than the idea of being alone.
Border pushed those thoughts from his brain and threw a leg over his bike as he secured his helmet. The vibrations of the engine went through his legs and up his back as he started the bike and let out a breath. He was calmer now, the bike an extension of him that had always made him feel a little more whole. Idiotic thinking on his part, but when he was younger, he’d latched on to the idea as hard as he could.
Though he wore leathers as well as gloves and a full helmet with facemask, the wind was a cruel mistress, slapping at him as he made his way down the road. There wasn’t snow or ice on the ground, but it was far too cold for him to be riding like this. His truck was at another compound, and he couldn’t pick it up until the next morning. So, for now, he needed a warm meal and a place to sleep before he figured out the next step of his far too vague plan.
Step one of that plan: don’t die.
Step two: find Jake.
Step three: keep the girl safe.
Step four: repeat step one.
Step five: figure out what the fuck to do with his life.
Pretty easy, if he thought about it. The lights of a bar he’d been to a couple of times when he was younger shone in the darkness, and Border’s stomach rumbled. He could use a bite to eat before he found a motel to crash in. He pulled off the road and into the parking lot, his body shaking from the cold.
When he walked into the bar, he found it mostly empty except for a few people. It was too damned cold for most sane individuals to be out on a weeknight. He sidled up to the bar and prayed they still served food. He thought he remembered they had, but it had been too long for him to be sure, and frankly, everything always changed.
Always.
“What can I get you?” the large man asked from behind the bar.
“You still serving food?” Border asked.
The man nodded and pointed at a menu. “Yep.”
Border quickly glanced at it, his stomach rumbling loudly. “I’ll have a Coke and a cheeseburger. All the fixings.”
“Fries?”
“Sounds good.” Really fucking good since his mouth was already watering. He didn’t care if it tasted like shit at this point, he was so hungry.
“Make that two, Bob,” a man said from behind him before taking the seat next to Border.
Border turned and blinked. “Storm? Storm Montgomery?”
Storm smiled wide, looking pretty much the same as he had all those years ago. Sure, there were a few lines around his mouth and eyes, and he’d gained a few more muscles, but he was still big, bearded, and a Montgomery.
“Border Gentry,” the other man said. “It’s been too fucking long. I almost didn’t recognize you.”
Border stood up and hugged Storm, hitting the other man on the back a few times. “Of all the bars…”
Storm rolled his eyes. “I live close to here actually, so I should be the one saying that.”
The bartender handed over two Cokes and shook his head before walking away without a word. Border lifted his brow at Storm before holding up his glass in salute. Storm held up his glass too and snorted.
“Bob doesn’t like it when we don’t order booze,” Storm said in answer to the silent question. They each took a drink, and Border gulped half of his down. He needed the sugar since he was so freaking tired.
“I’m on the bike so I’m not about to drink,” Border said.
“Yeah. I have to work early, but this is the closest place for food around my house, and Miranda won’t let me come over to eat all of her food anymore.”
Border lowered his brows. “Miranda’s the youngest one, right?” There were three Montgomery girls on Storm’s branch of the tree if Border remembered. All of them had M names, so they were M&Ms to Daddy Montgomery.
“Yep, and she’s an adult now and everything. Married.”
Border’s eyes widened. Things sure did change quickly. “Fuck, I was gone a long time.”
“Yep. Meghan’s been married twice since you left.” Storm’s eyes clouded. “The first one was an asshole who is now in jail, but he gave her two kids that are fucking amazing so…yeah. Now she’s married to Luc. Did you ever meet him?”
Border shook his head. “I only met you and Wes, actually. But it’s hard to forget the Montgomerys since y’all know each other so well and constantly talk about one another. Plus, don’t you have like a hundred cousins?”
Storm laughed and shook his head. “Well, it’s true we’re multiplying like crazy. And not all the cousins live near here, but we still see them from time to time. Oh, and Maya’s the other sister, by the way. And the only female one not married. You never met her?”
Border shook his head. He’d never met Maya, but he’d sure as hell heard about her, and not from Storm.
“She’s still best friends with your man, Jake, you know.”
Border nodded slowly. “That I know.”
Storm let out a breath. “So, you talk to Jake, then?”
“Not as much as I used to.” Border wrapped his hand around his glass. “I lit out of here pretty fast.”
“I noticed.” Storm paused. “I never mentioned it to Jake, by the way, the fact that we knew each other. Wes didn’t either. I mean, you talked about him, and so I knew shit about the two of you, but we didn’t know him then. It wasn’t until Maya showed up with him by her side later on, declaring them best friends, that I put two and two together.”
“Small world,” Border said slowly. “That we’d all know Jake and each other but Jake not know that we know.” His brain hurt just thinking about it.
Storm shrugged. “We hung out at the same places.”
“And you Montgomerys breed like bunnies so it’s not like it’s that hard to find one in the entire city of Denver.”
Storm flipped him off as Bob set their meals in front of him. “Thanks, man.”
“Yeah, looks great,” Border added honestly.
Bob just grunted and walked off without answering.
“Friendly,” Border said with a smile.
“You know it,” Storm said as he took a bite of his burger.
Border did the same and actually moaned aloud. Flavor burst on his tongue, surprising him enough that he almost choked. “Holy shit. I don’t care if Bob doesn’t speak. I want to have this burger’s babies. You think that could happen? Because I’m in love.”
Storm snorted, his mouth too full to answer for a minute. “You can try, but I’d just eat it and order a
nother one if you’re starving.”
Border nodded and took another bite. He’d have savored it, but he was so fucking hungry, and this burger was manna. All perfect grease and cheese and burger glory. He licked his lips and finished the thing in no time at all before he went to the fries. They were still hot, salted just right, and damn near perfection.
“I don’t remember the bar food here being this good before,” Border said after he took the last bite. He barely resisted the urge to suck the salt off his fingers, instead wiping them on the napkin. If Storm hadn’t been there watching him, he might have licked the paper in the basket.
“Bob got a new cook a few years ago,” Storm explained, wiping his own fingers on his napkin. “Increased business nicely for those that actually know about it. Bob doesn’t do much advertising.”
Border shrugged. “With a burger like that, he doesn’t need advertising.”
Storm grinned. “Agreed. It’s usually busier in here, but its shitty weather outside and a weeknight. Which leads me to ask why the hell you’re on that bike.”
“I’ll get my truck tomorrow,” he said with a sigh. “I was too hungry to keep going tonight and find a motel.”
Storm raised a brow. “You drove all the way out here without a place to stay? And with what, a few things in your saddle bags?”
“The truck’s with…people I know.” He wouldn’t exactly call the compound a place full of friends, but at least they weren’t the ones he was on the lookout for. “I’ll get my clothes and shit sent to me from my storage locker when I find a place I’m comfortable enough in to stay for a bit. I’ve slept on shittier things than a motel mattress before.”
Storm studied him and frowned. “You ever going to tell me why you left? Where you’ve been all this time?”
Border shook his head. “If I do, it won’t be until after I talk to Jake.”
“So that’s how it is?” Storm asked.
“That’s how it always was.” The other man knew a little bit of Border’s and Jake’s past so he didn’t have to hide it. He just didn’t want to tell Storm everything. That was for Jake…if the other man even wanted to hear it. Border had fucked up years ago, but it had been for good reason.
Over the years, he’d tried to keep in contact with Jake with letters, calls, and texts. Only, as time passed, Jake grew more distant, the calls going shorter, the replies terser. Border’s fault, he knew, but maybe he’d figure out a way to make it a little better. Plus, if he were honest about his true intentions, he wanted to know who Maya was, other than Storm’s baby sister. Jake talked about her like she walked on water after she’d kicked some guy’s ass. There had to be something more going on there, and Border wanted to know what it was—even if he didn’t have a right to know.
Bob came by and took their baskets, sliding the bill on the bar top without a word. Wordlessly, Border reached to pull his wallet out of his pocket.
“Don’t,” Storm said. “I’ve got this. A welcome home present.”
There was that word again. Home. Maybe one day it wouldn’t be like a punch to the gut just to think it.
“Where you headed?” Storm asked as they made their way to the door.
Border zipped up his leather jacket and sighed. “A motel I guess.”
Storm narrowed his eyes. “You know where he lives now?”
There was no need to explain who he was. Border shook his head. “I never got the new address after he moved the last time.” That had hurt like a bitch, but he’d known it was his fault.
“Follow me and I’ll show you the way.”
“I shouldn’t,” Border said slowly. “Not yet.”
“He finds out you were here for a full night without seeing him and he’ll get pissed.” Storm went to a large truck with the Montgomery Inc. logo on the side. Border had forgotten the family had its own company. Two, if he remembered right. Montgomery Ink for the tattoo shop, Montgomery Inc. for the construction company.
“He’ll be pissed if I show up now.”
“Then let him get pissed you’re back, not that you’re back and you didn’t bother to see him.” Something passed over Storm’s eyes, and Border lowered his brows.
“What? What aren’t you telling me?”
Storm shook his head. “Not my place to say, but Border? Be careful, okay? Jake’s my friend now because of Maya, but you were my friend first. Even if you left us without a word.” With that, he got into his truck, and Border sighed.
He got on his bike and started the engine, knowing this was going to be a cold ass ride, even without the bitter wind. Thankfully, it hadn’t started raining or throwing sleet yet, but from the taste in the air, he figured it would be soon.
Border followed Storm out of the parking lot and to the highway. They drove for a few miles before taking an exit that was familiar to him. The Gallaghers had lived off this way, and it seemed Jake hadn’t moved too far away from them.
They went down a few more streets before ending up at a large ranch house. It was early enough that the lights were still on, and suddenly, Border had the urge to gun his bike and get the hell out of there.
Storm waved out the window before leaving him alone at the curb with rocks in his belly and dread sliding its way down his back. What the hell had he been thinking? He should have ignored Storm and gone off to a motel before gathering up the courage to see Jake.
Now he was stuck here unless he drove away like a fucking coward. And he was a fucking coward when it came to Jake. He always had been. Though the one time he’d thought he was stronger, he’d ended up leaving. If he hadn’t, he’d have become the man he hated, the man who had tried to mold him in his image.
Border rolled his shoulders and got off his bike, trying not to throw up the burger he’d just eaten as he made his way to the front door. The place looked lived in, but taken care of. He knew Jake’s brothers worked in building restoration, while Maya’s worked at Montgomery Inc. in construction, so it shouldn’t have been much of a surprise that the place looked like someone took care of it.
He didn’t know why he kept thinking of Maya as living there, but from the way Jake had always talked about her, it just seemed right. The fact that he felt that way and still found himself there spoke volumes about his mental state at the moment.
Border didn’t know what he wanted, why he was there, but he knew he had to be there. Call him a fool, but he knew it.
He let out a breath and knocked on the door, knowing he was either making a huge mistake or on the path to what he should have done all along.
When the door opened, he felt as though the breath was knocked out of him.
Holy hell.
In all these years, he’d never seen Jake. He’d spoken to him and written to him, so he knew the way the man wrote, knew the way he spoke and how his voice was deep and went straight to the core of him.
But he’d never set eyes on him.
He’d changed.
And for the better.
He was big, tall, and broad but slender all at the same time. Muscle-bound, but with a sleekness that spoke of artistry and made Border want more. He wore a white tee and jeans with no shoes and looked hot as hell. Ink covered Jake’s arms and peeked out from the collar of his shirt. When Jake blinked and ran a hand through his messy hair, Border swallowed, mesmerized by the movement and the way Jake’s shirt rode up just enough to show Border a peek of flat stomach and ink there, as well.
Jake had been pretty when he was younger. Hot even. Now, he was sex on a stick and a fucking man.
“Border?” Jake croaked. “You…you’re here.”
Border nodded, stuffing his hands in his pockets. “Yeah.” He cleared his throat, forcing himself not to toe the ground like some kid, nervous as hell. “I’m here.”
“Jake? Who is it?”
The soft voice behind Jake brought Border’s head up. He met Jake’s green eyes and hoped to hell he hadn’t made a mistake. He would have thought after fifteen years, the connection between th
em would have faded, but for some goddamn reason, it had only intensified.
At least, for Border.
Jake, while a little paler than he had been a few moments ago, didn’t look like he felt anything other than confusion, maybe a little anger. Was it all one-sided? Had Border fucked up again?
Instead of moving toward him, instead of reaching out and giving him a hug like he wanted to, he stood there on the small porch and tried not to look like he was desperate. He’d lived a hard life, and had grown up into a man he’d thought Jake would be proud of, but as soon as he saw that face, as soon as he looked into those eyes, it was as if everything had been washed away and time stood still.
“Jake?” the soft voice said again, worry in her tone.
Jake cleared his throat. “It’s an old friend,” he finally said.
Border let out a breath. “Is that Maya?” he asked, not knowing why he did.
Jake looked confused for a moment before shaking his head. “No…”
A blonde woman came up to Jake’s side and pressed into him. Jake wrapped his arm around her shoulders and kissed the top of her head.
For some reason, the sight felt like a blow to the chest. Who was this woman? He thought Jake was with Maya, or at least on the way to being so. Border would have been fine with that, though he didn’t know why he felt so certain about that fact. Nothing made sense, and now he knew he’d make a fucking mistake by coming here.
“Hi, I’m Holly,” the woman said. “Did Jake call you Border?”
He nodded and held out his hand like an idiot. He wondered what Jake had told her about him, if anything at all. He was pretty sure Jake had mentioned him to Maya, even in passing, but he’d never heard of this Holly. And what the hell? Why did he feel he had a right to be included in Jake’s life? He’d left fifteen years ago. He shouldn’t be so fucking hurt over the fact that he didn’t know what the hell was going on.
“Hi, and yeah, I’m Border.”
Holly took his hand and shook it before looking over her shoulder at Jake. “Are you going to let him in, or is he going to sit here on your porch for the rest of the night.”
Ink Enduring (Montgomery Ink #5) Page 4