Darkness Before Dawn

groan. "Are you ready?"
    "YES! YES!" she screams, making me grip her hair tighter.
    "Tell me you're mine, Blake," I murmur, feeling her shiver at my breath against her ear.
    "I'm yours," she pants.
    "Fuck yes," I growl, dropping my hand from her waist and bring it around her to pluck her nipples, taking her over the edge.
    "Only mine," I groan as I unload inside her while she screams profanities.
    She sags against the bed when I let go of her hair. I push inside her one last time, before leaning down and kissing her neck and down her back.
    "Did I hurt you, baby?" I whisper against her spine.
    "No," she says, muffled against the sheets. "I think I'll survive."
    I smile against her and slide out, picking her up and walking her to the bathroom.
    "Shit, we're so late!" I mutter when I look at the time on the nightstand.
    "So worth it," she replies against my chest. "Thank you for helping me start off my birthday with a bang."
    I give her a confused look because of her choice of words, but then smile widely, realizing that maybe my girl is finally letting go of her tainted past.
    "I love you," I say in response as I kiss her head.
    "And I love you," she says. "Only you," she continues, sighing against me.

 

    After the tenth huff and eye roll, I let Cole cover my eyes with a blindfold.
    "Thank fuck!" he says in an annoyed tone once the bandana is secured on my face.
    "Shut up," I reply before sagging into the seat of his Escalade.
    "Just relax, baby. We'll be there before you know it," he says, turning on the ignition and pulling out of our parking spot, after voicing that he had to wait for Spencer to trail behind us.
    He turns up the radio and laughs when I groan at his choice of station, which is ESPN radio, as usual.
    "Can you let work go for one day and listen to music like a regular person?" I complain.
    "I was getting to that!" he says with a laugh before changing to some dance-y Nas song that I immediately start to bob my head to, picturing him doing the same thing.
    When Ludacris comes on the track, Cole starts rapping along and for the remainder of the song, I forget that I have my eyes covered and stop trying to figure out where we're going. I have my suspicions, though. The last time Cole blindfolded me like this was years ago. We went to a Bed and Breakfast, and with all the little hints that Becky and Aimee have been dropping lately I think he may be proposing to me soon. I smile as I think about the romantic gesture and how lovely it would be for him to take me back there and propose in a place that means so much to me. That was the first time we spent the night together in every way, and warmth fills me at the thought.
    "Are we far?" I venture to ask after the fifth rap song plays.
    "Not too far, no," he replies taking my hand in his and placing a kiss over the top of it before lacing his fingers through mine and placing it on his lap.
    I take a breath and tuck my feet under me, tapping my feet together before I sigh in boredom again. When the song switches to an R&B song I've never heard I stop tapping my feet and smile at the soothing voice coming from the speakers. My smile broadens when Cole kisses my hand again and starts to serenade the beautiful words to me, happy tears filling my eyes. He raises his voice even louder, making me giggle as I picture how he must look. We reach a red light as the song comes to an end and I find myself pouting, which he laughs at before leaning in for a kiss.
    "What song was that?" I ask, smiling against his lips.
    He backs away with a chuckle, eyes twinkling before he winks at me. "Adorn. Apparently I can give Miguel a run for his money."
    I laugh along, but make no reply. As much as I loved that he sang it, Cole cannot give a professional singer a run for his money...period.
    "You definitely get an A for effort," I reply, biting down on my lip before falling into a fit of uncontrollable laughter when he starts poking and tickling my side.
    We banter for a while, before Cole turns on an unpaved road and announces that we've reached our destination. He lets go of my hand and unties my bandana, letting it fall to my lap. I blink rapidly to clear the tiny dots from my vision, knitting my eyebrows together as I look at the deserted roads around us, trying to figure out where we are. My eyes stay trained on the profile of his face as he pulls onto a dirt road, admiring his golden skin and the way his turned up mouth showcases the dimple on his cheek. When I see him