Montgomery Ink Legacy Box Set

Chapter 1

Chapter 1

Leif

“N ot only did you convince me to somehow go on a blind date, it became a double date. How on earth did you work this magic on me, cousin?” I asked Lake as she leaned against the pillar just inside the restaurant.

Lake grinned at me, her dark hair pulled away from her face. She had on this swingy black dress and looked as if she were excited, anxious, nervous, and happy all at the same time. Considering she was bouncing on her toes when usually Lake was calm, cool, and collected, was saying something. “I asked, and you said yes. Because you love me.”

“I might love you because we’re family, but I still think we’re making a mistake.” I shook my head and pulled at my shirt sleeves. Lake had somehow convinced me to wear a button-up shirt tucked into gray pants, I even had on shiny shoes. I looked like a damn banker. But if that’s what Lake wanted, that’s what I would do.

Lake might technically be my cousin, even though we weren’t blood-related, but we were more like brother and sister than any of my other cousins.

I had siblings, as did Lake, but with the generational gap, we were at least a decade older than all of our other cousins. That meant, despite the fact that we had lived over an hour apart for most of our lives, we’d grown up more like siblings.

I loved my three younger siblings and talked to them daily. Unlike some blended families, they were my brothers and sister and not like strangers or distant family members. I didn’t feel a disconnect from the three of them, but Lake was still closer to me.

Probably because we were either heading into our thirties or already there, where most of our other cousins were either just now in their early twenties or still teenagers in high school. With how big we Montgomerys were as a family, it made sense that there would be such a widespread age group. That meant that Lake and I were best friends, cousins, practically siblings, and sometimes the banes of each other’s existences.

We were also business owners and partners and saw each other too often these days. That was probably why she convinced me to go on a blind double date. But she had been out with Zach before. I, however, had never met May. Lake had some connection with her that I wasn’t sure about, and for some reason Lake’s date had said yes to this double date.

And, in the complicated way of family, I had agreed to it. I must have been tired. Or perhaps I’d had too many beers. Because I didn’t do blind dates, and recently, I didn’t do dates at all.

Lake scanned her phone, then looked up at me, all innocence in her smart gaze. “You shouldn’t have told me you wanted to settle down in your old age.”

I narrowed my eyes. “I’m still in my early thirties, jerk. Stop calling me old.”

“I shouldn’t call you old since you’re only a few years older than me.” She fluttered her eyelashes and I flipped her off, ignoring the stare from the older woman next to me. Though I was a tattoo artist, I didn’t have many visible tattoos. Most of mine were on my back and legs, hidden from the world unless I wanted to show them. I hadn’t figured out what I wanted on my arms beyond a few small pieces on my wrists and upper shoulders. And since tattoos were permanent, I was taking my time. If a client needed to see my skin with ink to feel comfortable, I’d show them my back. My body was a canvas, so I did what I could to set people at ease.

But I still had the eyebrow piercing and had recently taken out my nose ring. I didn’t look too scary for most people. But apparently, flipping off a woman, growling, and cursing a time or two in front of strangers probably made me appear too close to the dark side.

“Yes, I want to settle down, but this will be awkward, won’t it? Where the two of us are strangers, and the two of you aren’t?” I wanted a life, a future, and yeah, one day to settle down with someone. I just didn’t know why I’d mentioned it to Lake in the first place.

“If it helps, May doesn’t know Zach, either. So it’s a group of strangers, except I know everybody.” She clapped her hands together and did her version of an evil laugh, and I just shook my head.

“Considering what you do for a living and how you like to manipulate things in your way, this makes sense. Are you going to be adding a matchmaking company to your conglomerate?”

Lake just fluttered her eyelashes again and laughed. Lake owned a small tech company that made a shit ton of money over the past couple of years. And because she was brilliant at what she did, innovative, and liked pushing money towards women-owned businesses, she owned more than one company at this point and was an investor in mine. I wouldn’t be surprised if she found a way to open up a women-owned matchmaking company right here in town.

“It might be fun. I can call it Montgomery Links.” Her eyes went wide. “Oh, my God. I have to write that down.” She pulled out her phone, began to take notes, and I pinched the bridge of my nose.

“You know I trust you with my actual life, but I don’t know if I trust you with my dating life.”

Lake tossed her hair behind her shoulder as she continued to type. “Shut up. You love me. And once I finish setting you up, the rest of the family’s next.”

“Oh, really? You’re going to get Daisy and Noah next?” I asked, speaking of two more of our cousins.

“Maybe. Of course, Sebastian’s the only one of the younger group that seems to have a serious girlfriend.”

I nodded, speaking of our other familial business partner. Sebastian was still a teenager, though in college. He had wanted to open up Montgomery Ink Legacy with me, the full title of our company. There was a legacy to it, and Sebastian had wanted in. So, though he didn’t work there full-time, he was putting his future towards us. And in the ways of young love, he and his girlfriend had been together since middle school. The fact that my younger cousin was better at relationships than I was didn’t make me feel great. But I was going to ignore that.

“You’re not going to start up a matchmaking service, are you? Or maybe an app?”

“Dating apps are ridiculous these days, they practically want you to invest in coins to bid on dates, and that’s not something I’m in the mood for. But maybe there’s something I can try. I’ll add it to my list.”

Lake’s list of inventions and tech was notorious, and knowing the brilliance of my cousin, she would one day rule the world and might eventually cross everything off that list.

“Oh, here’s Zach.” Lake’s face brightened immediately, and she smiled up at a man with dark hair, piercing gray eyes, and an actual dimple on his cheek.

Tonight was not only about my blind date, but me getting the lay of the land when it came to Zach. I was the first step into meeting the family. Oh, if Zach passed my gauntlet, he would meet the rest of the Montgomerys, and we were mighty. All one hundred of us.

“Zach, you’re here.” Lake’s voice went soft, and she went on her tiptoes even in her high heels as Zach pressed a soft kiss to her lips.

“Of course, I’m here. And you’re early, as usual.”

Lake blushed and ducked her head. “Well, you know me. I like to be early because being on time is late,” she said at the same time I did, mumbling under my breath. It was a familiar refrain when it came to us.

“Zach, good to meet you,” I said, holding out my hand.

The other man gripped it firmly and shook. “Nice to meet you too, Leif. I know you might be the one on a blind date soon, but I’m nervous.”

I chuckled, shaking my head. “Yeah, I’m pretty nervous too. Though I’m grateful that Lake’s trying to look out for me.”

My cousin laughed softly. “You totally were not saying that a few minutes ago, but be suave and sophisticated now. Or just be yourself, May’s on her way.”

I met Zach’s gaze and we both rolled our eyes. When I turned toward the door, I saw a woman of average height, with black straight hair, green eyes, and a sweet smile. I didn’t know much about May, other than Lake knew her and liked her. If I was going to start dating again after taking time off to get the rest of my life together, I might as well start with someone that one of my best friends liked.

“May, I’m so glad that you’re here,” Lake said as she hugged the other woman tightly.

As Lake began to bounce on her heels, I realized that my cousin’s cool, calm, and collected exterior was only for work. She was bouncing and happy when it came to her friends or when she was nervous. I knew that, of course, but I had forgotten how she had turned into the mogul that she was. It was good to see her relaxed and happy.

Now I just needed to figure out how to do that for myself.

May stood in front of me, and I felt like I was starting middle school all over again. A new school, a new life, and a past that didn’t make much sense to anyone else.

I swallowed hard and nodded, not putting out my hand to shake, thinking that would be weird, but I also didn’t want to hug her. I didn’t even know this woman. Why was everything so awkward? Instead, I lifted my chin. “Hello, May. It’s nice to meet you. Lake says only good things.”

There, smooth. Not really. Zach began to move out of frame, with Lake at his side as the two went to speak to the hostess, leaving May and me alone.

This wasn’t going to be awkward at all.

The woman just smiled at me, her eyes wide. “It’s nice to meet you, too. And Lake does speak highly of you. Also, this is very awkward, so I’m so sorry if I say something stupid. I know that your cousin said that I should be set up with you which is great but I’m not great at blind dates and apparently this is a double date and now I’m going to stop talking.” She said the words so quickly they all ran into one breath.

I shook my head and laughed. “We’re on the same page there.”

“Okay, good. It’s nice to meet you, Leif Montgomery.”

“And it’s nice to meet you too, May.”

We made our way to Lake and Zach, who had gotten our table, and we all sat down, talking about work and other things. May was in child life development, taught online classes, and was also a nanny.

“I’m actually about to start with a new family soon. I’m excited. I know that being a nanny isn’t something that most people strive for, or at least that’s what they tell you, but I love being able to work with children and be the person that is there when a single parent or even both parents are out in the workforce, trying to do everything.”

I nodded, taking a sip of my beer. “I get you completely. With how my parents worked, I was lucky that they were able to get childcare within the buildings. Since they each owned their own businesses, they made it work. But my family worked long hours, and that’s why I ended up being the babysitter a lot of the times when childcare wasn’t an option.” I cleared my throat. “I’m a lot older than a lot of my cousins,” I added.

“Both of us are, but I’m glad that you only said yourself,” Lake said, grinning. She leaned into Zach as she spoke, the four of us in a horseshoe-shaped booth. That gave May and me space since this was a first date and still awkward as hell, and so Lake and Zach could cuddle. Not that that was something I needed to be a part of.

“Oh, I’m glad that you didn’t judge. The last few dates that I’ve been on they always gave me weird looks because I think they expected a nanny to be this old crone or someone that’s looking for a different job.” She shrugged and continued. “When I eventually get married and maybe even start a family, I want to continue my job. I like being there to help another family achieve their goals. And I can’t believe I just said start a family on my first date. And that I mentioned that I’ve been on a few other dates.” She let out a breath. “I’m notoriously bad at dating. Like, the worst. Just warning you.”

I laughed, shaking my head. “I’m rusty at it, so don’t worry.” And even though I said that, I had a feeling that May felt no spark towards me, and I didn’t feel anything towards her. She was nice and pleasant, and I could probably consider her a friend one day. But there wasn’t any spark. May’s eyes weren’t dancing. She wasn’t leaning forward, trying to touch my hand across the table. We were just sitting there casually, enjoying a really good steak, as Lake and Zach enjoyed their date.

By the end of dinner, I didn’t want dessert, and neither did May, so we said goodbye to the other couple, who decided to stay. I walked May to her car, ignoring Lake’s warning look, but I didn’t know what exactly she was warning me about.

“Thanks for dinner,” May said. “I could have paid. I know this is a blind date and all that, but you didn’t have to pay.”

I shook my head. “I paid for the four of us because I wanted to be nice. I’ll make Lake pay next time.”

May beamed. “Yes, I like that. You guys are a good family.”

“Anyway,” I said, clearing my throat as I stuck my hands in my pockets. “I guess I’ll see you around.”

May just looked at me, threw her head back, and laughed. “You’re right. You are rusty at this.”

“Sorry.” Heat flushed my skin, and I resisted the urge to tug on my eyebrow ring.

“It’s okay. No spark. I’m used to it. I don’t spark well.”

“May, I’m sorry.” I cringed. “It’s not you.”

“Oh, God, please don’t say that. ‘It’s not you. It’s me. You’re working on yourself. You’re just so busy with work.’ I’ve heard it all.”

“Seriously?” I asked. May was hot. Nice, but there just wasn’t a spark.

She shrugged. “It’s okay. I’ll probably see you around sometime because I am friends with Lake. However, I am perfectly fine having this be our one and only. You’ll find your person. It’s okay that it’s not me.” And with that, she got in the car and left, leaving me standing there.

Well then. Tonight wasn’t horrible, but it wasn’t great. I got in my car, and instead of heading home where I’d be alone, watching something on some streaming service while I drank a beer and pretended that I knew what I was doing with my life, I headed into Montgomery Ink Legacy.

We were the third branch of the company and the first owned by our generation. Montgomery Ink was the tattoo shop in downtown Denver. While there were open spots for some walk-ins and special circumstances, my father, aunt, and their team had years’ worth of waiting lists. They worked their asses off and made sure to get in everybody that they could, but people wanted Austin Montgomery’s art. Same with my aunt, Maya.

There was another tattoo shop down in Colorado Springs, owned by my parents’ cousins, who I just called aunt and uncle because we were close enough that using real titles for everybody got confusing. Montgomery Ink Too was thriving down there, and they had waiting lists as well. My family could have opened more shops and gone nationwide, even global if they wanted to, but they liked keeping it how it was, in the family and those connected.

We were a branch, but our own in the making. I had gone into business with Lake, of course, and Sebastian, when he was ready, as well as Nick. Nick was my best friend. I had known him for ages, and he had wanted to be part of something as well. He might not be a Montgomery by name, but he had eaten over at my family’s house enough times throughout the years that he was practically a Montgomery. And he had invested in the company as well, and so now we were nearly a year into owning the shop and trying not to fail.

I pulled into the parking lot, grateful it was still open since we didn’t close until nine most nights, and greeted Nick, who was still working.

Sebastian was in the back, going over sketches with a client, and I nodded at him. He might be eighteen, but he was still in training, an apprentice, and was working his ass off to learn.

“Date sucked then?” Sebastian asked, and Nick just rolled his eyes and went back to work on a client’s wrist.

“I don’t want to talk about it,” I groaned.

The rest of the staff was off since Nick would close up on his own. Sebastian was just there since he didn’t have homework or a date with Marley.

“Was she hot at least?” Sebastian asked, and the client, a woman in her sixties, bopped him on the head with her bag gently.

“Sebastian Montgomery. Be nice.”

Sebastian blushed. “Sorry, Mrs. Anderson.”

I looked over at the woman and grinned. “Hi, Mrs. Anderson. It’s nice to see you out of the classroom.”

She narrowed her eyes at me, even though they filled with laughter. “I needed my next Jane Austen tattoo, thank you very much,” the older woman said as she went back to working with Sebastian. She had been my and then Sebastian’s English teacher. The fact that she was on her fifth tattoo with some literary quote told me that I had been damn lucky in most of my teachers growing up.

She was kick-ass, and I had a feeling that she would let Sebastian do the tattoo for her rather than just have him work on the design with me as we did for most of the people who came in. He had learned under my father and was working under me now. It was strange to think that he wasn’t a little kid anymore. But he was in a long-term relationship, kicking ass in college, and knew what he wanted to do with his life.

I might know what I want to do with my work life, but everything else seemed a little off.

“So it didn’t work out?” Nick asked as he walked up to the front desk with the clients after going over aftercare.

“Not really,” I said, looking down at my phone.

The client, a woman in her mid-twenties with bright pink hair, a lip ring, and kind eyes, leaned over the desk to look at me.

“You’ll find someone, Leif. Don’t worry.”

I looked at our regular and shook my head. “Thanks, Kim. Too bad that you don’t swing this way.”

I winked as I said it, a familiar refrain from both of us.

Kim was married to a woman named Sonya, and the two of them were happy and working on in vitro with donated sperm for their first kid.

“Hey, I’m sorry too that I’m a lesbian. I’ll never know what it means to have Leif Montgomery. Or any Montgomery, since I found my love far too quickly. I mean, what am I ever going to do not knowing the love of a Montgomery?”

Mrs. Anderson chuckled from her chair, Sebastian held back a snort, and I just looked at Nick, who rolled his eyes and helped Kim out of the place.

I was tired, but it was okay. The date wasn’t all bad. May was nice. But it felt like I didn’t have much right then.

And then Nick sat in front of me, scowled, and I realized that I did have something. I had my friends and my family. I didn’t need much more.

“So, you and May didn’t work out?”

I raised a brow. “You knew her name? Did I tell you that?”

Nick shook his head. “Lake did.”

That made sense, considering the two of them spoke as much as we did. “So, was it your idea to set me up on a blind date?”

“Fuck no. That was all Lake. I just do what she says. Like we all do.”

I sighed and went through my appointments for the next day. “We’re busy for the next month. That’s good, right?” I asked.

“You’re the business genius here. I just play with ink. But yes, that’s good. Now, don’t let your cousin set you up any more dates. Find them for yourself. You know what you’re doing.”

“So says the man who dates less than me.”

“That’s what you think. I’m more private about it. As it should be.” I flipped him off as he stood up, then he gestured towards a stack of bills in the corner. “You have a few personal things that made their way here. Don’t want you to miss out on them before you head home.”

“Thanks, bro.”

“No problem. I’m going to help Sebastian with his consult, and then I’ll clean up. You should head home. Though you’re doing it alone, so I feel sorry for you.”

“Fuck you,” I called out.

“Fuck you, too.”

“Boys,” Mrs. Anderson said, in that familiar English teacher refrain, and both Nick and I cringed before saying, “Sorry,” simultaneously.

Sebastian snickered, then went back to work, and I headed towards the edge of the counter, picking up the stack of papers. Most were bills, some were random papers that needed to be filed or looked over. Some were just junk mail. But there was one letter, written in block print that didn’t look familiar. Chills went up my spine and I opened it, wondering what the fuck this was. Maybe it was someone asking to buy my house. I got a lot of handwritten letters for that, but I didn’t think this was going to be that. I swallowed hard, slid open the paper, and froze.

“I’ll find you, boy. Oops. Looks like I already did. Be waiting. I know you miss me.”

I let the paper hit the top of the counter and swallowed hard, trying to remain cool so I didn’t worry anyone else.

I didn’t know exactly who that was from, but I had a horrible feeling that they wouldn’t wait long to tell me.