His hands caressed her breasts, palmed her nipples before he pinched and tugged. She nearly begged, it felt so damned good. But she didn’t need to beg because he sent one of them down her belly, petting over her pussy before he parted her, sliding the pad of his middle finger over her clit until she reared back, arching, taking him deeper as she came.

It wasn’t more than two gasped breaths until he joined her on a growl of her name. On and on until she could do nothing but fall to the side and pillow her head on his chest as they worked to get their breath back.

“What did you say? Alma?”

He kissed the top of her head. “I called you Alamah. It means . . . something close to beloved.”

She smiled against his skin. “Aw, that’s lovely. So lovely I won’t even be grumpy with you over ruining my blouse.”

“You’re so beautiful I couldn’t wait. I tell myself I will. But then I’m reduced to a starving man and you’re a buffet and all I can do is gorge and gorge.”

Man, he was so good at that. A woman could get used to all those compliments. And that body, too.

Chapter 15

TOSH had tried to work. Had checked his messages and read through a ton of email. Read several bills. And all throughout, he couldn’t stop thinking about the entire situation.

He’d put a call in to the president’s chief of staff, requesting a meeting. Marlon Hayes was courting disaster. Not just for Others, but for everyone. If this Magister . . . thing . . . could simply evaporate Others, what if it decided to put attention on humans too?

Listening to these turned witches and mages seemed an incredibly bad idea. Junkies and criminals? People like that would only be interested in what was good for them. Hayes was banking the future of the country, of all Americans, hell, of everyone on the planet on this plan.

He picked the phone up and dialed home.

His grandmother picked up. He knew she’d still be awake. She was a night owl and caught up on all her shows on the DVR after his grandfather went to sleep.

“Hey, Grandmother.”

“Toshio, I was just thinking about you. I saw you on television yesterday after the bombing. I’m glad you’re all right. Is your friend, the witch who saved all those people, okay?”

“I was scared to death when I saw how badly injured she was. But she’s better today. She used a lot of magick to help the bystanders.”

“She’s a good friend to have. Someone with courage like that. Your grandfather and I are very proud of you for doing this.”

“This?”

“All these laws to put Others in camps and take away their rights. It’s not what this country is about. You need to continue to stand up and say so. We didn’t raise your father to be silent in the face of injustice, and he and your mother didn’t raise you that way either.”

“We made mistakes sometimes.”

“America? Oh yes.” She laughed. “Lots of mistakes. Hurt people. But each time we learn something else. We learn to stand up and remember what we are supposed to be about. We may fall down from time to time, but it’s always those voices, the ones like yours, who refuse to be silent in the face of oppression, who make the biggest difference.”

He’d needed to hear it. His parents were supportive. His siblings too. They’d all been outspoken on the issues with Others and human rights in general. Over his whole life. But it was scary as hell to stand up sometimes when it felt like everyone else disagreed. When people were willing to kill Others and those who supported them simply for wanting to exist.

“You’ll be home for your grandfather’s birthday dinner?”

“Yes. I will. I may be bringing someone this time.”

“Really? Tell me about her.”

“It’s Delilah Sperry.”

“Oh, the pretty senator from Illinois. I like her. She’s got smart eyes.”

“She does. I finally made a move after sort of having a crush on her for the last year.” Probably longer. He’d met her at a freshman senate mixer when she’d first been elected and had liked her instantly. But he’d been dating someone at the time.

“There’ll be plenty of food and we’ll be so happy to see you. It’s been too long.”

His family lived in Sacramento, and while he’d been in town a lot over the last months, he’d only been able to stop in for brief periods before he’d had to get back on the road again.

But family birthday parties were sacrosanct. Having so many family members in the military and now that he was in the Senate, they all tended to travel a lot. But they all made every effort to get back for birthday dinners, especially his grandparents, who knew how to throw a big party. Delilah would like it.

He heard movement in the room next door and realized she’d come back from the meeting at Cascadia.

“You’re all right?”

“I’m fine. Grandpa is fine. You stay safe, do you hear me?”

“I do. And I’ll see you soon. I love you.”

“I love you too.”

He hung up and jogged into the bathroom to brush his hair and teeth, knowing she’d be knocking on his door soon.

As he thought, she tapped on the connecting door a few minutes later and he let her in, smiling at the sight of her in jeans and a T-shirt instead of a suit.

“Come in. I have some beer in ice and I’ve already decided what I want from the room service menu.”

She sent him a smile. “Hungry are we?”

“God yes. I cheated and ate some crackers while answering what feels like a million emails.”

“I have no idea where you put it.” She looked him over before she picked up the menu to scan it.

“Nervous energy, I guess. I’ve always had a fast metabolism.”

“One of the plusses of being a shifter.” She grinned and he couldn’t help it, he leaned across and kissed her. Her initial surprise washed away as she opened to him, kissing him back until the taste of her dizzied him and he pulled back.

“I love your grin.”

“What made you finally make a move? First, before you tell me, order food because I am also starving.”

He grabbed the phone and ordered their dinner.

“Twenty minutes they say. I was just telling my grandmother that I’ve had a crush on you for the last year. Maybe longer. Okay, probably longer. Like since the first time I met you.”

“Freshman senatorial mixer. You had on a gray pinstripe suit with a navy-blue tie. My first thought when I saw you was that you were even hotter in person than you were on television. And then that you had great hair. Then I remembered you were dating some pretty face who read the news on cable. I questioned your taste for a while.”

He snorted a laugh. “Yes, at the time I was dating someone. Casually. Then I guess I let the fact that we’re both in the senate keep me from making a move for a while. But I realized after Molly was nearly killed that it was stupid to hold back any longer. We don’t know when our last day will be and you were a regret I didn’t want to have.”

“I told my sister two weeks ago that if you didn’t hurry up and make a move, I was going to.”

“I’m almost disappointed I didn’t wait for that. Want a beer?” He indicated the ice bucket.

“Yes, god yes.”

He liked the way she moved. Graceful and powerful all at the same time. She sat on the small couch, clinking her bottle to his when he came to join her.

“How did the meeting go? Or I mean, if you can tell me.”

She licked her lips. “Before I tell you anything about the meeting I want to say this. There will come a time when you have to pick a side. That time for me came tonight.”

“I’ve already chosen the side of the Others. I’ve spent the last months doing nothing but working on this cause.”

She shook her head. “That’s not what I mean. Toshio, this . . . Things aren’t . . .” She sighed heavily. “This has moved past bills and speeches. We’ve tried that. They’ve responded with multiple attempts to murder anyone speaking out and by killing innocents all across the globe.”