They finally entered her bedroom, and despite the overabundance of sensations surging through her, she was somewhat nervous. He stopped at the edge of the bed, and she lowered her legs, dropping her feet to the floor. She resumed her attempt to free him of his shirt, and this time she was successful. He let go of her, momentarily stepping back as he slipped his arms out and let the shirt fall to the floor. 

She got a glimpse of John’s naked torso, and he was utterly magnificent. His golden skin covered the well-defined muscles of his abdomen. His muscular shoulders tapered down to a narrowed waist, which gave way to that sexy V that sank below where his slacks hang. He has a slight sprinkling of hair on his chest, and then below his belly button, amidst tightened abs, he has a sexy little trail of hair that disappeared beneath his waistband. If her hormones weren’t raging already, the sight of him alone would have sent her system into overdrive. She dragged her gaze back up his torso and met his eyes. He looked back at her, eyes drugged with desire, inflamed with lust. A sexy grin spread across his mouth as he pushed off his shoes and removed his socks before approaching her again. He raised his hands to her face and framed it, his mouth on hers in a slow, tormenting kiss that had her pressing into him. His hands slid from her face, down her shoulders, and made the slow descent down her torso until fabric gave way to the bare skin of her thighs. 

 

“God, Marlena, I want to feel your skin on mine.” His fingers played with the hem of her dress momentarily before grabbing it and slowly lifting. “Feel your body beneath me.” 

His words were hypnotic. 

Inviting. 

“My cock buried in you... I couldn't stopped thinking about you while you were gone..” he murmured against her lips before he leaned back a fraction, his eyes never leaving hers, to pull the dress over her head. She started to take her high heels off, but John reached down to grab her hand before she could reach her shoe. 

“Uh-uh,” he told her, smiling lasciviously. “Leave them on.” 

 

She sucked in her breath, insecurities rearing their ugly head as she stood before him in a bra, a scrap of lace as an excuse for panties, and her stilettos. “I think—” 

“Sh-sh-sh,” he whispered against her lips. “Don’t think, Marlena. The time for thinking is over.” He stepped them backward, the back of her knees hitting the bed, and he slowly laid her down, his mouth still lacing her with kisses. 

“Just feel,” his husky voice demanded of her. One of his hands cupped the back of her neck while the other roamed slowly down to the black lace of her bra and over her rib cage before starting the path back up again. 

A moan escaped her lips. 

 

She needed his touch like she needed her next breath. “Let me look at you,” he whispered, leaning back on his elbow. “God, you are beautiful.” 

She froze at the words, wanting to hide the scars Stefano inflicted that marked her abdomen, wanting to twist away so that she was not asked, not reminded. 

She did none of that, though. 

Instead, she reminded herself to breathe as his eyes wandered down her body. She knew the moment he saw them; shock flickered across his face before his eyes flashed back to hers, concern etched in his brow. 

“Marlena? What—” 

“Not now,” she told him before she reached out and grabbed his neck, yanking him to her in a demanding kiss that obliterated all sense of control. Quieted all questions before they could be asked. A carnal passion ignited within her as she took hold of him—kissing, caressing, digging fingernails into his steeled skin. A feral growl came from deep within him as his tongue skimmed a trail down her neck. 

He palms her breast, slipping the finger beneath the lace and pushing the cup below it. His mouth teased on its descent down before closing over the tight bud of her nipple. She cried out in ecstasy as he laved her breast, sucking it into his hot, greedy mouth. His hand assaulted her other breast, rolling her nipple between his thumb and forefinger—blurring the fine line between pleasure and pain. His acute attention to her sensitive buds mainlined a fire to her center. 

 

It clenched and throbbed, silently begging him for more to push her over the edge. She shifted beneath him to try and ease the building ache, but the craving coil was so intense that her breath panted out erratically. She tangled her fingers in his hair as he moved from her chest, sucking, kissing, and nipping his way down her abdomen. She fisted her hands in it and grated in a sharp breath as he deliberately laid a row of kisses along her worst scar. 

 

“So beautiful,” he repeated to her as he continued his tormenting descent. He stilled at the top of her panties, and she could feel the smile form on his lips from his mouth pressed against her skin. He looked up at her, a mischievous grin lighting his face. “I hope you’re not overly fond of these.” 

She didn’t even have a chance to respond before he ripped the panties off of her. A low satisfied purr came from the back of his throat as he trailed a finger down.

“I like this,” he growled at her, his finger tracing below the fabric, “and I like this even more.” 

Her breath caught as he slipped a finger between her folds, sliding it slowly back and forth. 

 

“Oh God,” She groaned as she gripped her hands into the bed sheets, ecstasy detonating in sparks of white-hot flashes behind her closed eyelids. John sucked in an audible breath as he slowly slipped a finger into her passage. 

“Marlena,” he groaned, the break in his voice as he said her name betrayed his control. “Look how wet you are for me, baby. Feel how tight you grip me.” 

 

She arched her back, shoulders pressing into the mattress as his finger leisurely circled inside her, grazing over that sweet spot deep along her front wall before deliberately withdrawing, only to start the exquisite process again. “The things I want to do to this tight little pussy of yours,” he murmured as she felt his other hand part her again. His blunt words turned her on. Incite feelings she didn’t expect. 

She writhed beneath him as the room's cool air hit her wet folds. 

“Look at me, Marlena. Open your eyes so I can see you when my mouth takes you.” 

It took everything she could to snap out of her pleasure-induced coma and open her eyes. He looked up at her through hooded lids from between her thighs. “That’s it, baby,” he crooned as his head drifted down until she felt the warm heat of his mouth as it captured her nerve nub while slipping two fingers in her. She cried out, throwing her head back as a raging inferno blasted through her center—taking, possessing, building. 

 

“Look at me!” he growled again. 

 

She opened her eyes, the eroticism of watching him watch her as he pleased her was more than she'd ever known. His tongue laved lazily back and forth, over and around, as his fingers continued their delicious internal massage. He withdrew and then pushed back in, his fingers leisurely rubbing her walls. She bucked her hips up against him, begging for more pressure as she tinkered on the edge of losing her sanity. 

 

“Oh, Doc, you are so responsive,” he praised. “So fucking sexy.” As he replaced the warmth of his mouth with the pad of his thumb, the tempo and friction of skin on skin were precisely what she needed. 

He slides up her body as his fingers continue their mind-blowing torture on her, his lips kissing, nipping, and licking until he reached her face. Making her want like she’d never wanted before. “Let go, Marlena,” he demanded with his erection pressing deliciously into her side. “Feel again, sweetheart,” he murmured as her hands wrapped around his shoulders, fingernails scoring his sweat-ridden skin. The ball of tension mounted, begging for release. 

 

She buckled her hips wildly against him, his fingers increasing their tempo, rubbing, penetrating, driving her into a rapturous oblivion. “Come for me, Marlena,” he growled as she reached the edge and screamed out in release, as her orgasm exploded within her, crashed around her, and rippled through every nerve and sinew in her body. 

 

Her muscles flexed reactively, clamping down on his fingers, causing him to groan at the sensation. “That’s it, baby, that’s it,” he crooned as he helped her ride out the rippling waves of her climax. 

As he left it, she felt the bed dip, causing her eyes to fly open. He looked down at her, satisfaction on his face and desire in his eyes, as he slowly unbuckled his pants. “You are breathtaking,” he praised as she watched him, struggling to catch her panting breath. 

“I can’t figure out which is hotter, Marlena, watching you come or making you come.” His eyes sparkled with his lustful thoughts. “I guess I’ll have to do it again to figure it out.” He flashed a wicked grin at her, full of challenge. Her muscles coiled tightly at his words, and she was startled that he had her so worked up that her body churned to come again. 

 

She bit her lip as he pulled his pants down with his boxer briefs, his impressive erection springing free. He smirked at her as if he could read her thoughts and crawled on the bed with his lean, firm thighs. He grabbed one of her splayed feet by the heel of her shoe and laced a row of kisses up her calf, stopping at her knee to caress his fingers at the sensitive underside before continuing the dizzying ascent of his mouth up her thigh. He stopped at her apex and kissed her lightly there, swirling his finger gently over her center, tickling, taunting, testing. 

 

She gripped her hand in his hair. 

“John,” She panted, his slight touch on her sensitized flesh almost more than she could bear. He looked up at her as he planted another kiss on her lower abdomen. “I just want to make sure you’re ready, sweetheart,” he replied, pulling a wet finger from her core. “I don’t want to hurt you.” 

 

A dozen things flitted through her mind as she watched him slip his finger into his mouth before flashing a devilish grin and humming in approval. He predatorily crawled the rest of the way up her body, his eyes never leaving hers, and covered her mouth with his, his hand palming her trussed-up breasts, his cock pressing into the V of her thighs. Emotions swirled within her as the dizzying pleasure surged again. He parted her legs with his knees and pushed himself up off of her to sit back between her thighs. 

Her mind buzzed. 

She’d been so overcome with everything in the past week. His eyes flashed to hers, desire, lust, and so much more swarming within them. “Tell me what you want, Marlena.” She stared at him until her eyes were drawn down to watch as he ran his fingers over her delta and gradually parted her. She sucked in a breath in anticipation. 

“Tell me,” he growled, “Tell me you want me to fuck you. I want to hear the words.” 

 

She bit her bottom lip, watching as he laid his length against her cleft. He stilled, and she looked up to meet his eyes. She could see him trying to rein in his control, the vein in his neck prominent as he stared at her, waiting for her words. 

 

“Fuck me, John,” she whispered as he slowly pressed the blunt tip of his cock into her entrance. She tensed at the thought of accepting him, the sensation of him stretching her channel to its limits, and the slight pain from it telling her that she was alive and here in this moment with this sublime man. 

 

“Oh God, Marlena,” he moaned as he pulsed slowly in and out. “You feel so good. So damn tight,” he hissed, rubbing his fingertips softly up and down her inner thighs. “I need you to relax for me, baby. Let me in, sweetheart.” 

 

She closed her eyes momentarily as the stretching burn faded to a full feeling. He pushed further, slowly, deliberately, until his cock was sheathed, rooted to tip by her velvet walls. He stayed motionless, allowing her body to adjust as he watched her. She could see his jaw clench as he tried hard to hold onto his control, and it was an invigorating feeling to know that she could push him over the edge. 

She clenched her muscles around him, gripping him reflexively as she pushed her torso up to allow her to see where their bodies were now joined as one. 

“Sweet Jesus, Marlena,” he warned, “you do that again; I’m gonna come right now.” She smiled wantonly at him as he slowly started to move. He pulled out to the tip and slowly slid his luscious length back into her. The feeling was exquisite, and she fell back on the bed, allowing the sensation of her slick walls being penetrated to take over. 

She wrapped her thighs around his hips as he started to pick up the pace. His muscles ripple beneath his tanned skin as he moves with her. His eyes flicked back and forth between hers and watched their union. She could feel the warmth spreading through her again as her body arched into the friction of his length, rubbing her patch of nerves inside. 

 

Her walls bore down on him, tightening around his cock as his rhythm quickened. He leaned over her, balancing his weight on his forearms beside her head, and took her mouth with his in a carnal, no-holds-barred kiss. 

Teeth nip, lips suck, tongues meld. 

She hooked her arms under his shoulders and tightened her legs around his hips, locking her feet at the ankles. She needed to get as close as she could to him. Needed him to be as deep as he could be in her. 

Needed to feel his sweat-slicked skin rubbing on hers. The pressure in her mounted to the point where she couldn't kiss him anymore because all of her focus was on the impossible wave that was about to crash down all around her. He sensed her tension, her nearing oblivion, and continued his punishing pace. He reached a hand down and slid it under her ass, pressing her pelvis further into his, grinding his against her, causing that slight friction she needed on her clit. Before she knew it, her world ignited. 

 

She arched off the bed, bucking her hips uncontrollably as the strongest orgasm she’d ever had spread through her center. she was thrown off the cliff and hurled into a never-ending freefall. The pleasure was so intense, bordering on pain, that she sank her teeth into his shoulder, trying to stifle it somehow. The wave crashed around her as John bucked into her a few more times before hearing him scream her name.

 

He tensed, his cock pulsing within her as he found his own release. His muscles jerked in torment as he let his climax tear through him before slowly relaxing. He buried his head in the curve of her neck, his breathing harsh like hers, his heart pounding against hers. Her orgasm continued to tremble through her, her muscles pulsing around him still within her. 

 

With each tremor, she could feel his body tense from his sensitivity and hear the soft guttural moan from deep within his throat. His weight on her was comforting, reassuring, and she forgot what a soothing feeling it could be. 

It had been a while since sex was like that for her. 

This earth shattered. This hedonistic. This unbelievable. 

 

They lied like this for a moment, silently coming down from their highs. He nuzzles her neck, laying a kiss over and over in the same spot, his sated body unable to move. She closed her eyes, unable to believe that she was there. That this gorgeous man was here with her again. She ran her fingernails lazily up and down his back, breathing in his earthy male scent. She winced as he grunted and slowly withdrew from her, the empty feeling unwelcome. 

 

“You okay?” he whispered to her. 

She nodded her head, trying to clear the worry from her eyes. He leaned in and kissed her. A kiss so gentle and affectionate that she had to fight back the tears because his tenderness disarmed her and stripped her to the core. When he opened his eyes, he stared at her for some time. She saw something flash through them quickly but couldn't decipher. He shook his head quickly and lifted her off of him before scooting off the bed without a word. He stood hastily, averting her questioning look, and ran his hand through his hair, muttering. 

“We have to talk about this, Doc.” 

 

“John..” Marlena closed her eyes and took a soothing inhale as he neared her. He grabbed her arm and turned her around to face him. There was still angst and determination in his face, but it was wrestling with a softness. One that might be sick of what happened to her under Stefano’s control. But as he pulled her closer, the darkness took over. 

She slid her hands up to his nape. “I have so many regrets, John. I can’t live with another.” Everything was dimly lit and a little chilly from the Salem winter night. But touching him there felt different. 

The cold was different.

The sensation under her fingers was different. But the pounding in her chest was identical. “Is this what you want, Marlena?” His hands were suddenly on her throat. His grip was tight. His skin felt like it was scorching hers.

“You want me to feel you again?” He knelt in front of her, pushing her onto her back. Once she was flat, he hovered over her. 

She had a hard time breathing. 

“Yes,” she finally answered. 

“That’s all you want?” 

 

Her mind took her back to the underground cage, to the cement floor. The nightmare and her reality were overlapping, and she couldn’t stop it inside her brain. But here, in this room, it was just them. 

Just darkness.

His exhales filled her with his scent, his body almost covering her. 

“I want more,” She said. 

He came a little closer and sucked her bottom lip into his mouth, his teeth grinding into it. He’d done that in the past. It had felt so good then; it felt even better now. 

“Love me.”