John lurked in the shadows of the dimly lit alley taking refuge behind an overfilled dumpster. The stench of today’s lunch beckoned feral cats and vermin to scurry out of their warm holes to scavenge at their neighborhood buffet. He secured the black beanie over his ears trying to shield himself from the cold front approaching as he checked his watch for the third time.
“Who decided that I get to stand in the cold while you keep watch inside a warm car?” asked John. “You gotta give me something buddy. It’s getting chilly out here.”
Steve sat parked across the street of the shabby motel with his binoculars fixed on the location of their latest subject. “I’m not sure what’s going on. He should have arrived by now. Damn it, we may have to go to plan B.”
“Well, make it snappy. I’m freezing my balls off out here.” John could feel his body starting to stiffen in response to the frigid air. What he would do for a warm cup of coffee and a cuddle with Marlena right now. He missed her madly and couldn’t wait until this case was closed. It had taken a few twists and turns, pushing the end date well after her birthday and he hated it more than anything. He was going to make it up to her, but in the meantime here he was standing in a freezing alley, following up on a lead that their person of interest was going to be at this location.
An old Buick sedan pulled up and parked in front of the bungalow of rooms toward the back of the dilapidated motel. “Hold on a second. We got something here.” Steve zoomed in and could see the exhaust escaping from the dark colored relic as the trunk popped open, lifting up and obscuring his view. “Damn, it. I can’t see him. The trunk is blocking my view.”
“Well try using your good eye.” It was a low blow and John knew it, but he felt it was fair game considering he was standing outside in near freezing temperature. They were brothers at the end of the day and as long as it never involved their families, low jabs were fair game.
Steve couldn’t help but smirk at the wise crack. The eye jokes never got old. “I guess I did tell your wife to shoot you. My bad.” Suddenly Steve saw a glimpse of the driver disappear into a motel room while the car remained idle. “Room 112. It’s him he should be in and out. He goes in, picks up the drop and he’s off.”
They waited pensively for well over 5 minutes and the man never came out and yet the engine continued to run idle. John shivered and called it. “Plan B.”
“—I’m on it!” Steve reached for the phone and within seconds John could see the motel manager leaving the office and walking over to room 112. He knocked several times but no one ever answered so he let himself in with the key. As soon as the door sprung open, Steve had a clear view of the subject. He was on the floor near the door with his finger clutched to his chest. “I’ve got good news and bad news. You can get your ass back in the car.”
“—and the bad news?”
“That was the bad news. The good news is, our subject has appeared to have had one too many hoagies. Looks dead. He’s not going to be dropping off anything tonight. You can celebrate Marlena’s birthday with her after all.”
John looked at his watch and realized if he timed it right, he could be in Chicago just in time to watch Marlena lecture and surprise her. He dashed down the alley back to the warmth of their vehicle and peered over to the motel they were surveying. The manager walked back and forth speaking into the phone. Whatever happened, nothing more was coming from this guy tonight and the client would be very happy indeed.
Marlena sat in a makeshift holding area off to the side of the lecture hall. She was the last of a line of keynote speakers invited to speak at an annual conference that she’d previously declined to attend. When John learned that his case wasn’t going as planned, they agreed that she could accept the invitation to speak at the last minute. She glanced at her phone to check the time and to see if John had tried to reach her. He had been out in the field for the last 2 days and his calls were annoyingly short and sporadic. She knew that he hadn’t called considering she checked her phone every minute, but she was hopeful that she could hear his voice before she went on. She scrolled past a photo of him cooking her breakfast last week. It was her latest favorite because she felt it showed the true color of his eyes.
Just as she was about to put the phone away and glance at her notes, it buzzed with her favorite picture illuminating the screen. “Hi sailor!”
“What are you wearing?”
Marlena looked down at her slacks and matching blazer. “Hmm, your favorite Yankee t-shirt.”
“Ooh and nothing else?”
“Nothing else baby.” She giggled like a giddy schoolgirl and turned to garner privacy as if she weren’t alone. She missed him like crazy and although he’d come home most nights, it was usually after she’d fallen asleep. “How’s the case going?”
“It’s looking really good. I just wanted to call you before you went on—give you my love and support.” They both sighed and fell silent, longing to be close. “According to my watch, you go on in about 37 minutes.”
“Yes and then there is a Q&A after.”
John stood in the hangar of the private airport lounge watching the pilot shake his head no in the distance. Crestfallen, he looked at his watch and then over to the cake and flowers he had picked up along the way. He just wanted to be with her. “Well, do me a favor, call me when you are done. I want to hear all about it.”
“—Aww, ya do?”
“Of course I do. I love everything about you.”
“Tell me about your case, what’s going on?”
“Steve and I just got a huge break. I’ll tell you all about it when you call me later?”
“I’d like that.”
“Followed by… a little phone bone?”
Her eyes widened. She was shocked. She was flustered albeit flattered. “You are incorrigible.”
“Don’t forget charming—I need to be charming.”
“And charming. I love you darling.”
“I love you back. Also, there’s a storm coming in. I don’t want you out and about.”
“There’s a closing dinner tomorrow night, but I might skip it and come home.”
“Please don’t do that. My schedule fouled things up so I want you to finish your conference. I promise that I will make up for not wrapping this up sooner. I have to go honey. I love you.”
And just like that, she felt complete. She didn’t need her notes anymore. Her presentation covered topics that she knew like the back of her hand. She hung up the phone and looked at her favorite photo of him once more for good measure longing to hold him close.
John hopped into his truck on a mission to get to her tonight. With the storm approaching rapidly, the jet was grounded and outbound flights were being delayed if not cancelled thwarting his plans to crash her presentation. Still on a mission, he set on the open highway with the cold front on his tail. In 3 hours and with a little luck, he’d give her a birthday celebration she’d never forget.
“Your explanation on psychological & psychiatric theories of crime was riveting Dr. Evans.” Marlena always seemed to underestimate how renowned she was. John had been telling her for years that she was too modest for her own good. She’d given up on finishing her dessert as she was approached and complimented nonstop. “And happy birthday.”
Marlena took a sip of her tea before she engaged. “Thank you so much.” She was flattered beyond words. Her birthday was tomorrow and although she didn’t make it a big deal, not spending it with John this year was a slight disappointment. To be honest, any day that she didn’t spend with John was a disappointment, but she knew their day would come. They had made semi-retirement a science and outside of a few scheduling wrinkles, it had been blissful. She looked at her watch and realized the lateness of the hour and her promise to give John a call. She anxiously made her rounds to bid her colleagues farewell and proceeded to head back to her hotel.
Marlena’s journey back to her room was brutally cold. Snow had begun to fall which was considerably early this year. All that she could think about on the long elevator ride up to her cozy yet well appointed suite was how nice it would be to be sitting fireside with John. Chicago was an exciting and vibrant city and yet all she could think about was getting home.
Just as she exited the elevator, a pair of young lovers passed her, oblivious to the world as they hugged each other close and shared a private laugh. Marlena knew that laugh all too well as she’d had one earlier with John and could only imagine the flirty words whispered into the woman’s ear.
She finally saw her room and swiped her key to the dimly lit suite. She had managed to snag a room with a view and could appreciate watching the snowflakes whisp past her window. After kicking her shoes off and taking a seat beside the window, Marlena grabbed her phone and gave John a call. It had been well over three hours since they’d spoken and she really needed to hear his voice. There were certain times she felt the need to display clingy tendencies and it usually happened when she had gone days without seeing him.
“You didn’t forget to call me. How did it go?”
She smiled and brushed her hand through her hair and pulled her feet into her chest to get cozy. The snow was starting to really fall and brush across the window. “I would NEVER forget to call you and it went extremely well. I ran into a few familiar faces and had a good time catching up. Someone must have done their homework and read my bio because they wished me a happy birthday.”
“Aw damn it, Doc. You know I wanted to spend the day with you. You know I’m going to make it up to you, right?”
“Honey, it’s just 1 day of 365. It’s ok, so long as you make it up to me.”
“You know I will and in the meantime, I had something special sent up to your room.”
Marlena sat up with excitement and perched on the edge of her seat like a kid on Christmas Eve. “A John Black surprise?”
“Meh, the best I could do in light of the weather and lateness of the hour. I hope it puts a smile on your face until I can kiss it.”
“Oh baby. Just hearing your voice has a huge smile all over my face. You tend to have that effect on me.”
“After all of these years?”
“After all of these years, it just gets better and better.”
“So, what are you wearing?”
“I told you, your favorite Yankee t-shirt.”
Suddenly there was a knock on the door. Her heart skipped a beat as she scurried to answer. “Honey, your present is here.”
“Well put your robe on and go get it.”
Marlena opened the door and saw John standing there smiling, holding a cake covered in whipped cream and strawberries forming the shape of a heart. A lone candle flickered in the center as the wax began to melt.
“Happy Birthday Doc.”
True to form it was the quintessential John Black surprise that took her breath away. It was yet another simple gesture mixed with the impossible the way he always managed to pull off without a hitch.
“—John,” she whispered so low that he could barely hear as she struggled to speak past the lump in her throat. She stood in the doorway over the moon and transfixed on his piercing blue eyes. “What are you doing here?”
“Make a wish and I’ll tell you all about it, pretty lady.”
There was no better way to bring in the stroke of midnight than soaking in a hot and steaming bath for two. John found himself feeling the hour as Marlena fell back into his chest and slunk down until the lavender scented suds crackled just beneath her chin.
“This feels amazing,” said Marlena as she tightened John’s arms around her waist and pushed her back into him. “Your chest is without a doubt my sleep number.”
He had to concur that this was bliss and the best way to thaw the chill from his bones. “We have to do this more often.”
“Take baths together? We do.”
“I mean unplugging from the rest of the world, held up in a cozy little love nest.” This is what it was all about. Sure, he loved his career and the thrill of being a leather dressed crusader. But at the end of the day there was nothing better than watching the steam rise from the surface of her naked and supple skin.
She took her leg and casually tossed it over the edge of the tub, capturing John’s lecherous leer. He couldn’t resist the urge to run his hand up and down the smoothness of her wet thigh as the suds continued to dissolve and share a glimpse of the treasures that lay beneath.
“The views from this place are amazing.”
“I’ll say.” His hands began to wander and explore beneath the water, caressing her flesh and inching toward her exposed nipples.
The feel of him touching her with his brazen hands, cataloguing every curve and dip, was one of her favorite sensations. Sometimes she’d add a layer of excitement to the interlude by trying to guess where his hands would venture next. Without fail, she would brace herself for one sensation, only to be pleasantly surprised by another. It had never gotten old or redundant, resembling subtle nuances of the first time.
After washing a full day’s work from their bodies, John chivalrously stood up first to retrieve Marlena’s towel, looking forward to drying every inch of her. Taking the oversized towel and kneeling at her perfect form, he methodically slid the plush Egyptian cotton across her body making sure he didn’t miss a spot.
The sight of him face to face with her center, so close that he could almost taste her, coaxed the hairs on her arms to stand to attention and encouraged him to leave his position of worship.
“You spoil me and I love every moment of it.” She toweled the dampness from his chest and then swaddled him by wrapping the towel around his shoulders. She looped her fingers around the edges and pulled him close for a wet lingering kiss. It was aggressive. It was forceful. It was all things leading to naughty acts and mind blowing sex.
“How about some dessert? It’s well after midnight which officially makes it your birthday.”
“I’d like that. So long as you feed it to me.”
The strawberries were sweet. The whipped cream was airy. Cuddled on the sofa with a view of Chicago’s snowing backdrop, John and Marlena made their own cozy fire with the exchange of hot wet kisses in between the mundane musings of leisure plans for the future.
“—So, any idea how we should spend our day tomorrow?” John plucked a strawberry from the top of the cake sitting beside them and swiped it across a peak of fluffy whipped cream. He brought it up to her mouth and rubbed the symbolic dessert across her parted lips. She bit it without hesitation making the sweet nectar trickle down John’s wrist. Her greedy mouth stopped it in its tracks as her tongue swept up his forearm.
“I am thinking we can order more strawberries and do more of this.” She leaned over and hooked her finger into a dollop of cream and sucked it off seductively, swirling her tongue around the tip.
“Great minds think alike. I took the liberty of extending your stay for a few more days Mrs. Black. We can stay in and get it in or we can be out and about. It’s all about you.”
“Ooh, all about me? I like that. I love that.” She grabbed another strawberry and sunk her teeth into its juicy flesh, holding it firmly in place. She turned to him to nibble from her mouth, knowing that he wouldn’t stop once the berry was consumed. The sounds of him smacking and tasting her fruit, was suggestive of what was to come.
Marlena laid on his chest with her ear resting comfortably as the sounds of John’s heart beating soothed her. She closed her eyes and nuzzled into him as her cravings for dessert called. “Feed me more.”
On a whim, he pinched a sliver of the cake and brought it to her lips as she devoured the sample. “You are going to have to help me work off these calories ya know. Eating dessert after midnight isn’t going to be good for the waist line.”
“I’ve never had a complaint about your waist, but I’ll commit to making sure you burn off the calories and that’s a fact.” Their mouths collided once again as their hands explored the flesh beneath their matching terryclothed robes. She could feel his hands creep up her back as her robe began to slowly loosen exposing her pert nipples. His thumbs brushed across them as they stood up in search of more attention. Oh how she loved the feel of him. The sensation of his agile fingers kneading into her flesh ignited her loins as she could feel the heat starting to burgeon between her thighs. She could feel his growing arousal begin to cushion against her center as she vacillated on how naughty she wanted to be. There was something about John that always managed to coax her from her shell, inviting her to give in to the cravings of her body. He always made her embrace her inner freak and shed her reserved exterior. If the residents of Salem only knew how proficient Dr. Evans was in the bedroom when encouraged by the allure of John Black.
She reached for another heap of whipped cream and smeared it down John’s chest, stopping just below his belly button. He could feel her warm breath panting against his skin as she dragged her mouth along the creamy trail while glancing up to catch his lust-filled gaze. He knew what she was contemplating and braced himself for her to indulge in what he was preparing for.
He laced his fingers into her silver mane as she took him into the warmth of her inviting mouth, her tongue swirling around the tip of his length with skill and precision. The feel of her tongue sliding up and down his shaft while sucking and stroking him had almost convinced him that it was his birthday. His head fell back as he rested his hand on the back of her head trying his hardest not to explode. She was making it impossible as she took all of him into her mouth, plunging deep thanks to the aid of a relaxed jaw and deactivated gag reflex.
“MARLENA!” he screamed as he willed himself to hold back. It was her day and yet he felt like the guest of honor. “If you don’t stop…”
She didn’t want to stop. Pleasing him excited her and actually intensified her orgasm ten-fold. She could feel the wetness at the apex of her thighs trickle down ever so slightly as John’s erection grew firmer as he slid back and forth between her welcoming lips.
He was close to coming and growing weaker by the second, trying with all of his might to hold back. “Doc!”
She knew what she was doing by edging him toward the brink and then holding back. She was tormenting him and she loved watching him writhe with passion, subcombing to her sexual genius. For the love of him and in the privacy of their bed, she would do any and every naughty thing his heart desired. She lifted her head and brandished a naughty grin as the remnants of whipped cream decorated her cheek.
It was the opportunity he was waiting for, that chance to change positions and did so by pushing her back against the sofa, looming over her exposed form. He removed his robe completely and drove his head between her thighs to reciprocate in kind, although the pleasure was equally his. The aroma of her essence had him snared as he approached her folds, dragging his lips along her thigh until he reached her opening. Just the taste of her had him so hard that he thought he was going to completely blow his load before he even started.
His tongue darted up and down her welcoming folds as the acoustics of his ravenous appetite echoed across the room. The sounds of his moans as he snacked between her legs was maddening, beckoning her to tug at his hair and pull him deeper into her warm and wet recesses.
Oh how she loved the sight of him feasting on her snatch, anxiously awaiting for him to part her knees even wider before lifting her leg for more access. It was his tell, and she craved it because it always led to him plunging into her walls with any part of his body that he deemed fit.
“OH JOHN! Baby!” She was drunk with passion as her eyes slid shut with ecstasy. Arching her back and rolling her hips against his tongue had her on the verge as she hauled in a breath and tensed her core. She was close and he could taste it as the sounds of her moans were her way of begging for more.
His body truly missed hers as he held out for her first of the many orgasms he had in store, completely turned on by the feel of her body twisting and contorting thanks to the prowess of his tongue. “I love the taste of you.” It was the last thing she heard before the rapture of his love took over her, forcing her body to contort and twitch uncontrollably.
Breathless, euphoric and a glutton for more, her throbbing mound needed him now. “Let’s go to bed. I want to feel the weight of your body on mine. I want you to pound me with reckless abandon and tame my loins into submission. Can you do that for me—please?”
Without hesitation, he lifted her and fused his lips with hers swirling his tongue about as they made their way to the oversized bed and fell into each other’s arms. He devoured her in hungry kisses, suckling her tongue, her lower lip; seizing her every breath and replacing it with his own.
Per her request, he had her pinned and ready to be plowed as he reached for his throbbing erection and rubbed it up and down her opening before entering her. He could feel her soft, warm body underneath him, as he caressed her thighs and slowly began to thrust inside of her.
She gasped at the feel of him deliberately stretching her as she adjusted to his girth. Digging her nails into his back and panting in his ear, she took refuge under the warmth of his body as he slammed into her with brute strength. She wanted to be ravaged. She didn’t need to be held. She wanted John kneading into her flesh with every surface of him. Her body salivated for him, leaving her so wet that she could hear the slippery sounds every time he drove back into her.
It was a memorable birthday as Marlena laid sprawled in the middle of a hotel bed having mind-blowing sex with a handsome gentleman that serendipitously knocked on her door. A gentleman who knew how to lift her legs to dig into her at the perfect angle. While she cherished the romance and sensual love making with John, there were also times when she wanted to be punished. She wanted to feel John’s powerful physique pull and push into her until she came again and again only to fall apart beneath him and build up again. Screaming. Panting. Calling out his name.
“JOHN! OH JOHN!” She was spent, her head was spinning as she gasped and held her breath.
“Breathe baby. Let it out and don’t fight it.” He could feel her slick walls quivering around his shaft as he dug deep into her gut to remind her whose it was. It was all his and always had been. He thrusted his pelvis into hers, forcing her to finally exhale. Forcing her to release. Forcing her to come. Forcing her eyes to roll back and shiver in his arms.
She melted beneath him, rolling on a sexual high and fiending for more; enjoying the jolt of John’s body crashing into hers. He laced his fingers with hers, and pinned them beside her head and watched her watch him as he slowed his hips down, grinding in circular motions into her. There was nothing like variety, the true spice of life. If he wanted to slow it down and make her come again, she would happily oblige. Who was she to deprive him of such a need?
“You feel so good. You always know,” she began before flinching from John’s stroke. “Oh my gosh you just know.”
He just stared deep into her eyes, dipping down to brush his lips across hers, once, twice. He was toying with her. Enticing her. Teasing her with desire for his withheld kisses until she couldn’t take it.
She needed him. She wanted him. She couldn’t prevent her hips from rising to meet his thrusts. She was pinned beneath him, her hips twisted; angled perfectly for him to brush against that spot that no other could find.
It was abundantly clear that John was the roaring fire that night as he warmed the room and danced in the darkness; sparking and growing larger after getting a bit more air. His performance was stellar and most memorable; the way he dug into her with long deep pumps. He was close but bound to an oath to please her in more ways than one as their drenched flesh collided beneath the sheets.
She could feel a powerful wave approaching, asserting itself with its brazen arrival; oblivious to modesty. Her climax wasn’t entering through the back door, but out front and in the open just so that it was clear. There would never be a question about who possessed the key to unlock her box, but they knew and needed to post a reminder.
“Whose is it?” He demanded an answer with each thrust as he plunged as deep as he could go, poking at her g-spot. Pushing her over the edge. “Tell me, whose is it?”
It was on the tip of her tongue, but she needed to feel him a little longer before responding. She needed him to pay for the title in sweat and he did. She could feel him inching closer to coming so she gave in to him with the answer that he already knew.
“It’s yours! Baby! Oh gosh, it’s yours! All yours!” She could shout it from the mountain tops now because he had just unlocked it with his master key.
It was all that he needed to hear and her body quivering was all that he had to see as they exploded in each other’s arms; tangled in wet sheets, breathless and pleased while gasping for air.
Yes, it was a memorable birthday filled with love, gifts and a litany of surprises. As she laid there in John’s arms staring at the ceiling and trying to cool down, she counted her blessings with him on the top of the list.
“I love you. This has been the best birthday ever.”
“I’m glad. You deserve it and more.”
“I agree, so what else you got?”
He reached for her and pulled her close, burying his face into the small of her neck. Even after hours of making love, she still smelled like lavender mixed with subtle notes of sex. She was forever his and he was forever hers.
“Well Doc, just for now, I’ve got nothing. If you give me a minute though, we can start all over again and this time, I will really dazzle you.”
She smiled and scoffed, because she knew him well. It would be seconds before he was fast asleep and spooning her from behind. It was another thing about him that she craved and that she loved, making everyday of her life feel like it was her birthday.
The Jarlena Journal 