Free Inked in the Steel City Series by Ranae Rose Page A

hoping to be promoted to a position as a junior loan officer.” She smiled at the thought of her own private cubicle. “I guess you could say that I like working in finance though.”
     
    “Oh yeah?”
     
    She nodded. “Working with money is easy. If you run into a problem, there’s always a way to solve it. All the counting and calculations…it must sound really boring, but there’s something satisfying about knowing there’s always a method that can be used to reach a solution.” Unlike real life, banking was organized and formulaic. For the past three years she’d been striving to achieve that same balance and sense of comfort at home, despite how difficult it was to truly control one’s life.
     
    “I can imagine that,” he said. “When I’m tattooing I sort of get into this zone where I’m not really thinking about anything else. When I’m in that state, I know the piece is going to turn out great.”
     
    She nodded. Applying permanent artwork to someone’s body wasn’t exactly the same thing as cashing someone’s check, but she appreciated him trying to bridge the gap between their vastly different jobs. “That sounds great too. Too bad I don’t have a lick of artistic talent or I might just consider trying my hand at something more creative.”
     
    He smiled. “You mean Jess is the only one who inherited the art gene?”
     
    “She must have gotten it from her father. Our mother can’t draw her way out of a paper bag.”
     
    He didn’t say anything, but his eyebrow arched, unintentionally reflecting the question he was probably too considerate to ask.
     
    “I mean, we haven’t seen her lately,” Mina clarified. “We’re estranged. She’s spent the past few years in and out of jail, which is why I was able to get custody of Jess. Truthfully, I don’t even know where she’s living.”
     
    “Sorry.” Eric took a sip of his water. “I didn’t mean to dredge that up.”
     
    “It’s not a big deal. Her absence is no loss, to be honest. The day I was granted custody of Jess was the happiest day of my life.”
     
    The flan came and disappeared quickly – Eric hadn’t been exaggerating, it was amazing – but when it was gone, her stomach felt somehow empty, as if the bottom had dropped right out of it. She rose from her chair reluctantly after Eric paid the bill and followed him out into the night, leaving the restaurant’s spicy scents and lively music behind.
     
    He opened the door for her and she drifted through, feeling as if her stomach were full of butterflies instead of fajitas and flan. His touch was feather-light, so that at first it barely registered when he pressed his fingertips to the small of her back. Despite his delicacy, a bolt of awareness shot through her, leaving her feeling as if she’d been struck by lightning. Her entire body tingling, she allowed him to walk by her side, his arm brushing her shoulder as he staked a quiet claim on her.
     
    He maintained contact as they walked the short distance to the parking garage where they’d left his car, and when they stepped into the building and headed toward the elevator, her stomach flip-flopped and her nerves buzzed. When the elevator opened, it was empty. They stepped inside, alone together. The light-headedness that struck Mina had nothing to do with the sudden movement and everything to do with the kiss Eric pressed against her lips.
     
    The lingering fajita spices leant a pleasant heat to his taste, which she experienced in full when he slipped his tongue inside her mouth, searching for hers. She gave it to him, her inhibitions melting for at least a moment. She was still avoiding underwires for the sake of her tattoo, and her nipples pricked against the thin shelf bra that was built into the cami she wore beneath her shirt. Eric placed his hands on her hips, pulling her against him. She gave in to the seductive press of his firm body, relaxing against him as he leaned against the elevator wall. He