“Mom, I’m fine,” Dakota assured her as she tucked yet another pillow behind him. “Can I please have some coffee?” he begged her, folding his hands together in a plea.
“Fine, but only one cup and then you sleep. How’s your pain level?”
“Can’t feel a thing.” He grinned.
“Good.” She turned and headed to grab his coffee.
“Hey Mom?”
“Yes?”
“I love you.”
“I love you too, Dakota. Now sit still.”
When he woke, Anastasia had been gone. Tony said she had gone out to try and figure out what was going on, but he knew she hadn’t wanted to face him. She had a bad habit of turning away when things got hard. He was going to have to explain to her that wasn’t going to work for him anymore.
They had packed up and left to continue his care in his apartment. It definitely paid to have a mom who was one of the best doctors on staff.
“This place astounds me,” Tony said as he walked around Dakota’s room, lifting every unrecognizable item and inspecting it.
“Yeah, the last time I was here this place was nothing but rubble.”
“What is this?” Tony asked, pointing at the TV that hung on the wall to the bedroom.
“It’s a television.” Dakota picked up the remote and turned it on.
“How did they get inside of it?” Tony asked in awe.
“They aren’t inside of it.” Dakota laughed. “It’s happening somewhere else and then gets broadcast to the television.”
“Broadcast?”
“The images are sent through cables and they appear on the TV.”
“This makes no sense to me,” Tony said as he stared at it.
“I’m not explaining it very well either. I am honestly not even sure how exactly it works.”
When Vincent’s face filled the screen, Tony jumped from the bed, unsheathing his sword.
“Wait!” Dakota yelled at him.
“He is here!”
“No, it’s a broadcast, remember? Don’t skewer my TV, Tony.”
Vincent’s voice came through the speakers, and at the sound of it, Dakota’s stomach churned.
“You have made a positive change in your lives. Thank you for electing me as your next leader. Together we will move forward in this world and ensure a bright future.”
“What the hell?” Dakota and Tony said at the same time.
“It gets worse.” Anastasia had come in without them noticing and stood facing Tony. She avoided any eye contact with Dakota.
“How so?” he asked.
“He was elected mayor,” she said through gritted teeth. “Apparently the previous one stepped down and the ones that followed kept committing suicide. Then suddenly Vincent shows up and is the one who not only brought Seattle back to its former glory and returned its people, but is the only one who hasn’t died mysteriously.” Anger filled her voice, and Dakota could see that her body was shaking. “Then very quickly he managed to move up the chain of command.”
“How did he get them to elect him?” Tony asked, watching the television.
“He has brought the Trepidos here.”
“That explains it. With them here, he could take over the rest of the world as well. Magic is not practiced openly here, and most of the population believes this is the only world out there,” Dakota explained.
“Gage is here, he will explain the rest,” Anastasia cut in, and then stepped to the side of the doorway.
“Gage?” Jealousy burned in Dakota’s chest, and he pushed it aside when Gage stepped around Anastasia.
“Hey Parker! Man, it’s good to see you.” He reached out his hand and Dakota took it.
“You too. What else do you know?” he asked, cutting to the chase. The last time he had been around Gage, he had made some very unpleasant comments about Anastasia, and Dakota still hadn’t brushed them off.
“Shortly after I ran into Anastasia, Vincent came and found us. He told us that he had only wanted to help our world, to bring us peace, and the Brutes had taken advantage of his kindness and ravaged the city. He swore he would put it back to the way it was if we wanted. The only thing he wanted in return was our allegiance and our word that we would allow him to lead us. We explained to him that we would be grateful and would gladly tell others of what he did, but that it was impossible for us to be the sole reason he was put in power. We didn’t think he would be able to put everything back.
“He told us to let him handle the logistics of it, that all he wanted was our promise we would follow him. So naturally, we agreed, ready to get the beasts out of our city, and right before our eyes he rebuilt everything. Within minutes, the entire city was just as it had been before. It was so insane.
“Within a month he had been moved up to the White House. It was unbelievable. The President actually stepped down, as did every single other government official. No one understands it. There were riots at first, of course. People wanting to cause trouble, but suddenly everything calmed down and has been calm ever since.”
“So he is leading our country now?” Dakota asked.
“Not just ours. Some of the other countries have handed themselves over to him as well.”
“So he is in charge of all of our weapons systems and our armies?” Elizabeth asked.
“Unbelievable,” Tony said as Gage nodded.
“How did this happen?” Dakota asked.
“The Trepidos, I imagine,” Anastasia added. “Think about it, what is a better motivator than fear? Then there’s the fact that most can’t even see them. They are the perfect invisible little manipulators for Vincent.”
“This is unbelievable,” Elizabeth said in shock.
Gage nodded. “It’s good to see you again, man, but I need to get going.”
“I’ll walk you out.” Anastasia turned to follow him, and Dakota felt another stab of jealousy. Gage had always had a thing for Anastasia. He was probably thrilled that she was back now, and wearing all leather.
“I’m glad you found him,” Gage said to Anastasia once they were in the hall.
She nodded. “How are your wife and daughter?”
Gage beamed. “Doing great. Izzy is incredibly happy to have chocolate milk again.” He laughed happily. “And Zoey is pregnant.”
Anastasia smiled as the pride for his family sat plainly on his face.
“It was an accident, but a happy one.”
“I’m very happy for you, Gage.”
“I’m happy for you, and Dakota as well. He has been in love with you forever, and I’m glad you two have each other. See you later.”
Anastasia nodded and then turned back to the apartment.
“Can you give Anastasia and me a moment?” Dakota asked Tony and Elizabeth when Anastasia came back in.
“Sure. Come on, Tony, I’ll show you my apartment.”
“You live nearby?”
“Right across the hall.”
“Good.” Tony swept her off her feet and carried her out. Dakota heard the lock on his front door click and then turned his attention to Anastasia.
“When did you run into Gage?” he asked, jealousy dripping from his every word.
“When I was on my way to the docks to rescue you.” She hid her smile.
“I’m sure he was thrilled to see you.”
“I’m sure he was.” She paused. “Especially since he, his wife, and his daughter were all being attacked by a trio of Brutes.”
“Wife?”
“Gage is married, Dakota—happily I might add, or I assume so anyways, since they have a daughter and another kid on the way.”
“Well, I feel like an ass.”
“You should.”
“Why should I?” he asked, defensive. “You haven’t given me any reason to believe you are in this relationship.”
“I know.” She sat next to him on the bed. “I want to get married.”
“Excuse me?” He sat up straighter and looked into her blue eyes.
“I want us to get married. I love you, Dakota. You have been the only one for me my entire life. There was never anyone else, and I don’t ever want to lose you again.”
“You want to get married.” He said it slowly.
“Yes.”
“You’re sure?”
“Absolutely.”
“You understand my confusion, seeing as how not two days ago you told me that you couldn’t be with me, that I was a distraction.”
“I’ve been wrong before.”
He grinned. “Then let’s do it.”
“Really?” she asked, somewhat surprised.
He reached for her and pulled her down to him. He took her mouth in a feverish assault and buried his hands in her hair. His mouth on hers brought her blood to a boil. She wrapped her arms around him and he rolled her over, grunting mildly.
“You okay?” she asked, her hand brushing his bandages.
He brushed her hair out of her face and kissed her softly. “Never better.”
He kissed her again, and she felt his fingers brush the skin under her shirt. She leaned back and pulled it over her head. She watched his breath catch in his throat, and it made her blood race even faster. He ran his fingers over her bare skin and brushed one of her breasts. She shuddered and gently lifted his shirt.
The bandages caught her eye, and she looked at his face to look for any sign of pain, but all she saw was passion in his eyes. She very gently lifted his shirt over his head and ran her hands down his muscled chest. She stood and removed her pants then moved to straddle him. She ran kisses down his neck and to the waistline of his shorts. She teased the skin where his shorts sat until he was groaning, and then she slowly pulled his shorts down. He moaned and she ran more kisses down his abdomen and his legs.
When she took him in her mouth he sighed, and she felt her own blood respond to his pleasure. Anastasia ran her tongue back up his stomach and he took her mouth again. As she slowly lowered herself onto him, he lifted his hips to meet her, and when they did she felt her body sigh with relief. How could she have ever believed he was a distraction? How had she ever thought she could walk away from him?
She began to move and he gripped her hips. She drove them both up and then over, and when they fell, it was together.