Abiding Ink (Inked in the Steel City #4) by Ranae Rose

the little cutout in the front of her dress.
    Not that he stared. He’d leave stuff like that to Dr. Asshole, Anthony – whatever. Instead, he focused on her face. Little dots of light glowed in her dark irises, reflections of the Christmas lights that were strung all around. She was beautiful, and she looked happy…
    Until the doctor came around again.
    “Mind if I cut in?” he asked, though the song hadn’t even ended yet – the refrain was still playing, slowly fading.
    A tiny dent appeared in Mallory’s lower lip, and her gaze flickered back and forth between Tyler and the doctor. Obviously, she didn’t want to dance with her boss. She probably didn’t want to offend him, either. That was fine, because Tyler was more than willing to do it for her.
    “Yeah, I’d mind,” he said, freezing but not removing his hands from Mallory’s body.
    Irritation wrinkled the doctor’s brow and doused his continual smile.  “He’s awfully possessive for someone you just met, Mallory. I don’t know—”
    “He’s not possessive. We’re having a good time,” she said. “We’ve only had one dance and I—”
    “I know possessive when I see it,” the doctor cut her off.
    Anger flared inside Tyler, the same sense of irritation that had been smoldering in his gut ever since the doctor had first touched her. It tripled when the doctor reached out, touching Mallory’s shoulder again, looking like he intended to pull her away from Tyler.
    There was no way in hell.

CHAPTER 4
     
     
     “Back off,” Tyler said, “and show some respect. Just because you’re her boss doesn’t mean you have the right to touch her.”
    The doctor’s eyes narrowed. “And just because you managed to talk her into being your date doesn’t mean you can tell me what to do. Consider your volunteering days at the hospital over. I don’t need someone like you around my staff or my patients.”
    It wasn’t the punishment the doctor seemed to think it would be – Tyler had only volunteered in the first place because of Kassie. But Dr. Anthony’s attitude was a thorn in his side – one that went deep and hit a nerve. “That’s ironic, coming from someone who treats his nursing staff like they’re names in his own private little black book.”
    The doctor’s face reddened. “Mallory, you can do better than this. A lot better.” Spinning on his heel, he walked quickly away, toward the bar.
    The music had picked up, filling the place with a lively tempo. A few people were dancing, but most were just staring. Whether they’d been able to hear the conversation that’d just occurred, there was no telling, but it was obvious that Tyler had pissed the party’s host off.
    With the doctor gone, Tyler finally met Mallory’s eyes again. They were wide, her expression pained. “Maybe we should get going.”
    “Yeah.” Something sank inside Tyler, as heavy as an anchor. “Maybe we should.”
    Outside, it was snowing. Fat white flakes swirled around the doctor’s perfect house, making it look like a scene from a calendar, a perfect portrait of December. Tyler and Mallory left it behind, striding together through the cold in silence.
     
* * * * *
 
    Mallory walked in on an argument – something that never happened. “Mom?” she called, stepping into the kitchen and pulling the apartment door shut.
    Her mother was in the living room, on the phone. She frowned, and already, the fire in her voice seemed to be fizzling. Looking up, she gave Mallory an acknowledging nod.
    Mallory sat her purse and a couple grocery bags on the counter, then shed her coat as a sense of trepidation filled her. She’d only been gone for forty-five minutes. What had gone wrong?
    It didn’t take long for her mother to end the call.
    “Who was that?” Mallory asked.
    “Your father.”
    Mallory cringed inwardly. “What did he want?” Her father didn’t usually call her mother. Instead, he called her. A creeping sense of guilt struck her as she thought of