“You cawwy us,” Rosie said.
He liked that she wasn’t asking but knew she could count on him.
“I won’t get tired,” Junie said. “We went on lots of hikes with Wiver.”
“Then maybe you’ll carry me,” Tank teased.
Junie and Rosie giggled, and Leah looked at him like he was the best thing she’d ever seen, and damn, he liked that a hell of a lot.
Zeke touched the back of Aria’s hand as she put ink into her tattoo gun. “You want to join us for the hike?”
Aria looked at Tank and Leah, and with a small smile, she shook her head.
“Okay,” Zeke said softly, holding her gaze and running his fingers over her hand for only a second before moving them. “Maybe another time.”
They made plans for their hike, and as Aria began cleaning Zeke’s arm, Tank quieted the girls and explained what she was doing. Junie watched Aria’s every move, while Rosie bounced on Tank’s lap.
“Aria, how did you get into tattooing?” Leah asked.
Aria glanced up. “I’ve always been into art. Painting, drawing. I went to art school for a little while, but it wasn’t for me, and then Zeke introduced me to Tank.”
“Do you enjoy the work?” Leah asked.
Aria nodded as she got ready to start on Zeke’s tattoo.
Zeke cocked a grin. “She gets to put her hands on me. Of course she likes it.”
Aria rolled her eyes, her cheeks blushing.
“Let’s keep this PG, Zeke,” Tank warned.
“What’s PG?” Junie asked.
Zeke chuckled. “Yeah, Tank. What’s PG?”
Tank wasn’t about to go there. “How about we get started on that tattoo?” He explained to the girls how the tattoo gun worked and answered a handful of questions, which prompted him to give them a warning. “I never want to catch either of you trying to use anything sharp on yourselves or anyone else. Got it?”
The girls nodded.
“I’m serious. Junie, Rosie, look at me.” They met his gaze. “I want you to make a promise to me and your mother that you will never use anything sharp on yourself or anyone else.”
“I pwomise,” Junie said.
Rosie bounced on his leg. “Pwomise!”
Zeke gave him an approving nod, and Leah, the person who mattered most, leaned closer and said, “Thank you.”
When Aria started tattooing Zeke’s arm, Junie whispered, “Does it hurt?”
“Sometimes,” Tank said quietly. “But Zeke’s tough, and Aria is an excellent tattooist. She’s super careful.”
Junie watched intently, mesmerized by the process, while Rosie made buzzing sounds.
Leah put her hand on Tank’s back and whispered, “I don’t think I could ever get one.”
“Baby, you don’t ever need to. I’ll be the canvas for your stories.” Their eyes connected, the emotions humming between them obliterating the sound of the tattoo gun.
Tank had hated staying at the firehouse last night. He had barely slept, like all the years before he and Leah had come together. Only it wasn’t the ghosts of his past keeping him awake at night. It was thoughts of Leah and the girls. Making love with Leah had changed him, shattering everything he’d thought he knew about sex and himself. Mornings had become special, sharing secrets with Leah and snuggling with the girls. He’d never thought he’d need anyone, but he’d never known that taking care of the three of them, hearing them laugh, holding them when they cried, and knowing they were safe could fill him with such happiness. And now that Leah was making a memory blanket for his parents, seeing her meticulously and thoughtfully piecing together his family’s keepsakes drove those feelings deeper.
Leah leaned against him, drawing him from his thoughts. “Look at them. They’re loving this. Thanks for bringing us here.”
“Anything for you and the girls.”
Cait came down the aisle, and Junie whispered loudly to her, “We need to be quiet while she makes his stowy.”
“Good idea.” Cait touched Leah’s arm, whispering, “I’m so happy to see you and the girls again. Tank’s been keeping us up to date on how you all are holding up, and all the cute things they do.”
Leah eyed him curiously. “I’m glad I got to see you again, too.”
Didn’t she know how proud he was to be in their lives?
Junie touched the tattoos on Cait’s arm. “You have lots of pwetty stowies.”
Tank looked at Cait apologetically. Even though it had been years since she’d been abused, he knew it was moments like this that brought it all rushing back. Cait patted his shoulder, letting him know it was okay.
“Some are prettier than others.” Cait leaned down, speaking closer to his ear. “I never thought I’d see the day. This looks good on you.”
Pride swelled inside him.
“Leah,” Cait said quietly, “Gia told me that Junie wants to be Tank when she grows up.”
“I wanna be Gia,” Junie said.
“What?” Tank said more harshly than he meant to.
Everyone else chuckled.
“I wanna wear her clothes for Halloween,” Junie said.
“Oh boy.” Zeke chuckled. “This ought to go over well.”
“We’ll get you all fixed up for Halloween, sugar.” Gia strutted over from her workstation and leaned on the half wall. “You’ll be the cutest tattoo artist for miles around.”
Junie beamed.
Tank glared at Gia. “There will be no mouths on her shirt.”
“Yes, Papa Tank.” Gia rolled her eyes.
“Papa Tank! Papa Tank!” Rosie threw her arms around his neck, and Junie joined in the Papa-Tank mantra.
Everyone laughed except Leah, the surprise on her face rivaling the warmth in his heart.
Chapter Sixteen
THE REST OF the week passed with more ups than downs, more bedtime stories than Conan Gray songs, and more laughter than tears. It wasn’t easy, but they were finding their footing. Leah’s crying jags came and went the way they had for the previous couple of weeks, with no rhyme or reason, but they hit less frequently. It was hard to believe that River had been gone for a little more than a month. Leah had been forced to move his guitar so the girls didn’t break it, but she’d felt like she was moving River out of the living room, which had swamped her with sadness. When Tank came over after work that evening, he’d taken one look around the living room and had known the missing guitar was the cause of her tears. He’d relegated her to a hot bath and had taken the girls and gone straight to the music store, where he’d bought a guitar wall mount. That evening he and the girls hung River’s guitar on the living room wall. When she’d said people would think she was nuts, or making a shrine to River, he’d said, Fuck them. River’s part of your lives and he always will be. If you want to see his guitar every day, then you’re damn well going to. After the girls had gone to bed, he’d led her into the bedroom and held her. They’d lain in the darkness wrapped up in each other, talking about River, her father, and Ashley. They’d laughed and they’d cried. It was moments like those that allowed them to soothe and heal their deepest wounds.