He raised an eyebrow.

“You, of course,” she said, shaking her head.

“Oh good. I need every vote.”

Liz laughed and walked in front of him to cast her ballot. Brady took his own card from the poll worker and walked into the voting booth. He stared down at his name with a sigh. He hoped he never got used to the feeling of seeing his name there. It should never be commonplace to have the people vote for him. He wanted to win, but it was a privilege earned, not a right.

He filled out the card, punching his name last, and then exited the voting booth. A woman handed him an I’m a North Carolina voter sticker with a toothy grin. He slapped it proudly on his suit and then walked outside.

Liz was waiting for him. She looked giddy from the experience. “I just did my civic duty,” she told him triumphantly, pointing at her own sticker.

He leaned forward and whispered in her ear. “And here I thought you did that this morning.”

She blushed and smacked him lightly on the shoulder. “Brady Maxwell.”

“At your service.”

“Congressman Maxwell,” a reporter called, interrupting them. “Mind if we have a word with you?”

“Of course not,” he said amicably.

He walked over to where the reporters were standing and answered their questions. It felt good to be free. He had cast his ballot, and he had done everything that he could to ensure his victory. There were volunteers out right now trying to get people to the polls, and there would be people doing that until the polls closed.

He had a busy day ahead of him to get out the vote, but he did it cheerfully. If he couldn’t be out there with his supporters to get the word out, why would they bother?

The day passed in an exuberant blur. Everyone was in an incredible mood. The city was alight with the buzz of Election Day. Whether it was volunteers eager to help where they could or just the everyday citizen happy that the campaign signs would come down, their voice mails would stop being filled with chatter, and the television would be free of advertisements, there was something in the air that day.

It was nearly poll close when Brady and Liz retreated to headquarters to wait out the reports. Liz was exceptionally quiet and lost in thought as information came back to them from the field confirming his victory or loss of a particular precinct.

“So . . . where do we stand?” Liz finally asked. He realized that she looked nervous.

“We’re down,” he told her. He had seen the look in Alex’s eyes without even tallying what had come in.

“It’ll be a toss-up,” Alex corrected. “It’ll come down to the wire again. Hopefully we have the votes. You two should get ready for the party tonight.”

Brady nodded and Liz just chewed on her bottom lip. “What’s going on in that pretty head of yours?”

She turned her head from him and seemed lost in thought. “If you lose, it’s my fault,” she whispered.

“Is that what you’re worried about?” he asked with a laugh. He grasped her chin and forced her to look at him. “If I lose, it’s because the people of North Carolina in the Fourth District didn’t want me to represent them. That’s the only reason. Nothing you or I could do would change that. All right?”

“But . . .”

“No. I’m not going to let you take the blame. If I lose, it’s on me,” he told her earnestly. “But I haven’t lost yet.”

“I know. But . . .”

“Let’s wait until the final results are tallied and then start talking blame.”

“Sorry,” she said, shaking her head. “I guess I’m just worried.”

His hand brushed back into her hair and then he kissed away every worry in her head. She had become his rock, his strength. He could give her some of what she always gave him when he got stressed out.

When he pulled back, she was unsteady on her feet, her lips slightly swollen, and a blush crept onto her face. “How do you do that?” she whispered.

“What?”

“Make me lose myself so completely with you.”

“Only giving you a taste of your own medicine.”

She smiled up at him and he was lost all over again. He wasn’t sure how he had ever thought that he could live without that smile. He knew that tonight was a big night for them. They had come out to the public about their relationship in February, knowing the consequences that might await him in November. Tonight they would find out if those consequences materialized.

Brady changed into a fresh black suit and knotted a navy tie with tiny red-and-white polka dots around his neck. He hadn’t thought it would be possible for him to be more nervous about getting the results in the second time he ran for Congress than the first. He had been in such an overwhelming state of depression when he had won two years ago that even though he had been nervous, his thoughts had automatically turned toward Liz. Wondering if he should have gone after her, wondering what she was doing, wondering if he had made the right decision.

Now he was on the precipice at the end of his first term, and similar questions plagued him. He was glad he had finally gone after her, and he knew that he had made the right decision. He just hoped that hadn’t cost him his job. Not that he would change a damn thing if he could do it over. She was worth it all.

Liz appeared in the entryway in a knee-length purple pleated dress he’d ordered for her from New York, and her Jimmy Choos. Around her neck hung the necklace he had gotten her so long ago. Diamond drops in her ears and a massive diamond ring on her finger told that she was all his. She would always be his.

“Are you ready?” she asked, her nerves from earlier already dissipated. She looked like strength, wearing what she called his campaign mask as if she had invented it.

He had always said that politics was a perfect balance of openness and restraint. It was what he loved so much about Liz. She had restraint in spades, but when she let go, it shook his world. She did everything with such unbridled tenacity, and went after the things she wanted headfirst, with a self-assurance that he had seen in few people.

“Very,” he replied.

“We should go. Everyone is probably waiting.”

“I’m so honored to have you at my side,” he told her.

“Honored?” she asked, raising an eyebrow.

“Yes. You are the most amazing woman I’ve ever met,” he said, closing the distance between them. “It’s an honor to have you there with me.”