Page 93 of The Truths We Seek

“You need to eat, so you’re going to eat. Pull up the maps and find the nearest diner.” She does as she’s told and puts the location into my phone, rerouting the GPS. “There’s a good girl.”

I wink at her and her cheeks spill red.

Oh yeah, that’s a look I love on her.

And one I intend on seeing again and again.

CHAPTER TWENTY-FOUR

QUINN

NINE MONTHS LATER

Life being this way was something I never thought possible. When I look back over the last few years of my life, I realize Tommy saved me, time and time again. He continues to save me every single day. And that’s exactly why I’m adding this ink to my skin.

This buzz of the tattoo gun as I lie back and let the artist paint on my skin is something I’ve missed. When I first started decorating my body, it was to hide the parts of my past I didn’t want people to see. I remember Tommy’s disapproving gaze when I told him my why. He didn’t think I should hide the parts that made me who I was, but he never stopped me. He even helped me pick out a few designs that I tweaked to make more me.

Then it turned into a sort of therapy. The scratch of the needle a nice kind of pain that helped not only hide my past, but quieted my thoughts.

It’s been too long since my last, and I’m fairly certain that the guys are a little miffed that Tommy will grace my skin permanently before they do, but I also know they understand.

The sword wrapped in sunflowers that will grace my thigh is everything Tommy is to me: the strength, the hope, the loyalty, the resilience. All things he gave me, all things he just was. And he’d probably call me soppy if he knew what I was doing, but he’d also have that light of pride in his eyes.

If I close mine, I can see that look clearly and it makes me smile.

A smile that, a few months ago, I didn’t know if I’d have again.

After everything with Trent and the people I thought were my parents, I broke. The pain of losing Tommy hit me like a ton of bricks all over again, because he was the best dad I could have ever hoped for, and Trent took that from me. Just like the people who called themselves my parents took my mom from me.

They took Tommy from me too.

Finding that out stole the breath from my lungs.

He was my uncle.

Truly my blood.

I actually had family who cared for me, even if I didn’t know it in the time we had together. Hell I didn’t even know he had a sister, but I guess I understand why he didn’t talk about his family. Losing people, reliving that... it hurts.

Even when you talk about the good times. It still hurts, just in that bittersweet kind of way.

I’ve seen pictures now, Rory helped me go through the storage container we discovered Tommy had... in my freaking name. The little sneak. But it was full of so much stuff that reminded me of him, and so much more that taught me things about him I never knew.

And the photo albums…

So. Many. Photos. The man was a hoarder, he just hid it well, apparently.

“Alright, darlin’, you’re all done. Go take a look in the mirror then we’ll wrap it up.” The guy’s southern drawl reminds me of Denton, that poor sweet baby angel of a lawyer. Which reminds me, I owe him a drink... and a free pass for him and his buddy to the basement.

Might just ask Hunter about that, I already know Meyer is not the man to ask. Especially since HellScape is his last true business baby now. The Knights... well, I’m still a little fuzzy on all of the details, but the guys are, mostly, legit now. It’s been a bit of an adjustment for them all, and it’s not like we don’t still basically have an army back at the compound... but it’s a smaller army. Meyer insisted that they still have enemies, so security is still a must. Plus, it’s not like they haven’t dived into a dozen other ventures still.

Turns out I’m not the only one who gets bored of sitting around.

I hop off the table and head over to the mirror. The smile stretching my face almost hurts as I take in the beauty of the new ink on my leg.

Tommy.

I contemplated adding his name to the hilt, but I can visualize his eye roll, which is why I decided against it.

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