Page 58 of Only Be Mine

John made a noise of pain. “Are you sure you don’t want something else? I just downloaded the latest from Katy Perry…”

I smiled beneath the blindfold. “Remember,” I said sweetly, “anything I want.”

He chuckled, then reached over and took my hand, threading his fingers through mine like he’d done it a thousand times and still wanted to do it a thousand more.

“I’ve got you,” he murmured, giving my hand a squeeze. “Just trust me.”

Something in my throat tightened.

Trusting John was easy.

It was the rest of the world that had taught me not to.

We drove.

The music played.

I tried to focus on Alanis and not the fact that my entire existence had turned into darkness and engine noise and the steady, grounding weight of John’s hand in mine.

At some point, the road shifted. The truck slowed, stopped, turned. I could feel it in the tilt of my body, the change in the way the air moved around us. The cold pressed through the door seams. The scent changed too - less neighborhood, more open night.

My heart kept trying to sprint ahead of me.

About four songs later, the truck stopped for real and the ignition clicked off.

Relief flooded my chest so fast it almost made me laugh.

I reached up for the knot. “We there?”

“Yeah,” John said. And then his hand caught mine, stopping me. “Leave it on. Just a little longer.”

I groaned, “John.”

“Please,” he said, voice soft in a way that always disarmed me. “Just a little longer, I promise.”

I exhaled hard, like I was giving up something important. “You know I’m only doing this because I love you.”

He made a sound that might’ve been a smile. “I know.”

The door opened, and cold air hit my legs. John slid out, then came around and offered me his hand.

He took it the moment I gave it, then kissed my knuckles once, lingering.

“Careful,” he said. “Step down.”

I let him guide me out of the truck, and the world turned into sensation instead of sight. Gravel under my boots, wind teasing loose strands of hair, distant voices somewhere ahead.

When he kissed my cheek, I felt it like a promise.

Then he led me forward, slow and careful across what felt like a long stretch of pavement. The noise grew louder. A crowd. People talking, laughing, shouting.

My nerves spiked.

“Wait here,” John said suddenly.

His hand slipped away and my entire body went on alert.

“John?” I called, immediate panic clawing up my throat.