The Affair

Intense

While talking to the station, Roman happened to look on her desk and spotted the broken picture frame. He picked it up and stared at the picture. It was their wedding day. It was a good thing he wasn’t superstitious, otherwise that could be considered a bad omen.

With the frame still in his hand, Roman hung up the phone and turned around. “Doc, what happened?”

Marlena was mortified. The idea of Roman holding the evidence of her and John’s recent tryst in his hands was almost too much for her to stomach. The memory of him making love to her on her desk, thrusting in and out of her as hard as he could; made her weak in the knees.

John sensing her distress came to her rescue. “Roman is everything alright at the station?” He hoped Roman’s answer would give her enough time to gather her composure.

Roman’s gaze shifted from Marlena to John. For the briefest moment he thought he saw a look of panic on her face. “No; I was hoping to spend a little more time with Doc, but it seems that’s not going to happen. I have to leave shortly. Guess we’ll just have to wait until tonight.” Feeling something wasn’t quite right, but not able to put his finger on it, Roman once again looked at Marlena and waited for her answer.

John’s question had given her the time she needed. She was ready to answer Roman. “It was my fault. I was looking for a file and I inadvertently knocked over the frame. I’m so sorry.”

Roman felt awful. He hadn’t meant for his question to come out as an accusation. “Doc, I wasn’t blaming you. I just wondered what happened.” The feeling that something was off was quickly forgotten.

“It’s ok Roman; I know you weren’t blaming me.” Marlena couldn’t believe the situation she found herself in. She knew Roman thought she was apologizing for the broken frame; but it was so much more than that. It was everything she had done and for everything she would continue to do. Even as she stood there with Roman in her office she couldn’t help herself. She loved John with all her heart and she wanted him to make love to her again.

John stood there quietly. Besides walking away from Marlena and the children when Roman came back, this was one of the most difficult things he had to do. He hated standing there pretending he wasn’t in love with Marlena, when all he really wanted to do was tell Roman the truth. But as difficult as it was for him he knew it was much harder for Marlena. And with that in mind, he stood there silently, watching the woman he loved pretending to love another man.

Still feeling a bit remorseful Roman attempted to make it up to her. “Doc, don’t worry about the frame. I’ll pick up another one.” Roman glanced at his wrist watch. “Doc, I hate to do this but I have to leave. I’m supposed to be at the station right now. Walk me to the elevator.” He took her hand and began walking to the door. As he approached John he put his hand out. “John it’s good to see you and I guess I’ll see you around.”

“Good to see you too Roman.” He shook Roman’s hand. “Marlena if you have a few minutes I’d still like to go over a few things with you.”

“As a matter of fact my next patient canceled so I have a little time. I’ll be right back. Make yourself comfortable.” As they headed out the door she glanced backwards at John. Just seeing him standing there waiting for her to return caused her heart to beat just a little faster.

Finding Diane at her desk she stopped to talk to her. “Diane I’m going to walk my husband to the elevator and I’ll be right back. While you were away from your desk, John Borne stopped by. He’s waiting for me in my office.”

“Does Mr. Borne need anything Dr. Evers?”

“I don’t think so but you can check.” Roman and Marlena made their way to the elevator in total silence. Each preoccupied with their own thoughts; Roman busy making plans for later and Marlena anxious to get back to John.

Diane rose from her desk and knocked on the door. “Excuse me Mr. Borne but I was wondering if you needed anything while you’re waiting for Dr. Evers to return?”

Immersed in his own thoughts, John was startled when he heard Diane’s voice. “I’m sorry, I didn’t hear you.”

“I was wondering if you needed me to get you anything Mr. Borne.”

”Uh, no thanks, I’m fine.”

“If you think of anything just let me know. Dr. Evers should be back shortly.” With that Diane closed the door and returned to her desk.

As soon as the door closed, John collapsed on the couch and loosened his tie. If Marlena kept liqueur in her office he’d pour himself a drink. He leaned back into the couch and closed his eyes. The image of them kissing replayed in his mind. Roman was back in town. Not only was he back, but he was more in love with Marlena than ever before. What were they going to do? John couldn’t sit still. Maybe if he moved around he could come up with a plan. He always thought better on his feet so he stood up and began to pace back and forth in her office.

By this time, Roman and Marlena were standing side by side in front of the elevator. Without warning he turned, pulled her to him and kissed her. His lips instantly parted and his tongue sought entrance to her mouth. At first she stood there stunned with her hands at her sides. A few seconds passed before she realized she needed to respond to his kiss in order to prevent him from becoming suspicious. Maybe she could pretend it was John she was kissing. With her eyes shut tightly she imagined it was John standing before her, John’s lips on her lips and John’s arms around her body. And just like that, she was kissing John. Slowly her arms wrapped around him.

Roman was delighted and surprised at the same time. Any other time she would not have kissed him so passionately in public. Public displays of affection weren’t usually her style. Deciding to take full advantage of the situation, Roman’s hands began to gently rub her back.

That was all it took. The spell was broken. It wasn’t John she was kissing, it was Roman. It wasn’t John’s touch, it was Roman’s. Marlena instantly pulled away.

Roman stood before her with the biggest grin on his face. “I’m sorry Doc, I got carried away. It’s just that I’ve missed you.”

Marlena didn’t know what to say. It was entirely her fault. She should have never pretended Roman was John. “No Roman, it’s my fault.”

“To tell you the truth, Doc, I’m really not sorry. I love you and I don’t care who sees us. I missed you more than you will ever know. I can’t wait until we’re alone tonight.”

Knowing Roman expected them to make love later that night filled Marlena with dread. He couldn’t wait until they were alone and that was the last thing she wanted. And suddenly it came to her. They wouldn’t be alone. The children would be there. If there was one thing she was sure of, it was Roman’s love for their children. “Roman we won’t be alone. The children will be home and so excited to see you.”

“I know; I can’t wait to see them. I was talking about after they’ve gone to bed.” He pulled her closer to him, putting his arms around her waist once again. “As much as I want to spend time with them, I can’t wait until I have you all to myself.”

Marlena felt awful. Her husband was so happy to be home and the only thing on her mind was how she could get out of being alone with him. She couldn’t let Roman leave thinking she would be home early. “Roman I know you’re excited to be home and I’m glad you’re back, but to tell you the truth I’m not sure what time I’ll be home.” Seeing the look of confusion on his face she continued, “What I meant to say is that my schedule is full today. The only reason we’ve had this time together is because my patient canceled at the last minute. I wasn’t expecting you home so I booked a full day. I’m not sure what time I’ll be finished.” It wasn’t all a lie. She did have a full schedule. The lie was she would delay going home as long as possible.

Clearly disappointed but understanding her situation Roman replied, “Well that’s what I get for trying to surprise you.” The elevator doors opened. Seeing it was empty, he stepped in and pushed the button to hold the doors open. “Since you have a full day I’ll pick up the kids from mom and pop and we’ll be waiting for you when you get home. That way I can spend some time with them and that will leave more time for us later on.” He leaned over and gently kissed her lips. “Bye Doc. I love you.”

“Bye Roman, I’ll call when I’m on my way.” As soon as the elevator door closed, Marlena quickly made her way back to her office.

John stood in front of her desk holding the wedding picture of Roman and Marlena. They both looked so happy and so in love with one another. It reminded him of his own wedding day to Marlena. He had never been so happy or in love with someone in his entire life.

When Marlena entered her office she saw John standing in front of her desk holding her wedding picture in his hands. Marlena walked up behind him, put her arms around his waist and leaned into his body. Before he could turn around, he heard her say, “That was a life time ago.”

“For you it was a life time ago, for him nothings changed. Roman loves you today just as much as he did in this picture. I hate pretending that you and I are just friends. I feel like such a hypocrite.”

“John turn around and look at me.” Slowly he turned to face her. “I hate this as much as you do but we don’t have a choice.”

“Doc he wants you. He wants to make love to you tonight. What are you going to do?”

“I don’t know. I’ll think of something.”

“Marlena you have to have a plan; unless….”

“Unless what? What are you trying to say?”

“Doc I know you love me; there’s no doubt in my mind. But maybe you still have feelings for Roman.”

“Of course I still have feelings for Roman. We have a history and we share children together. A part of me will always love him, but I’m in love with you.”

“In my heart I know this, but it was so hard watching him kiss you and touch you.”

“I’m so sorry you saw that.” She pulled him to her. “When Roman came in my office I thought it was you. I knew you left your keys and you would be back for them. I thought you were trying to surprise me. It wasn’t until I felt his arms go around me that I realized my mistake. After that, he kissed me and I didn’t know what else to do.”

John stepped back from her and ran his fingers through his hair. “Don’t you see? That’s my point. You weren’t expecting him and look what happened. What would you have done if I hadn’t forgotten my keys and interrupted you? Doc, when we were married we made love in your office all the time. Hell, we made love right before he came in. After being gone, I know what’s on his mind. How are you going to put him off?”

Once again Marlena closed the distance between them. “John, listen to me.” She took his hand and led him to the couch. “What Roman and I had is completely different from what you and I have.”

“What is it you’re trying to say? I’m not following you”

“John, Roman came into my life under completely different circumstances. I needed a protector. Eventually I fell in love with him. But with you it was completely different. I was immediately drawn to you.”

Before she could continue John interrupted, “I was drawn to you too. From the first moment I saw you, there was something there.”

“And after I realized you had no idea who you were, I tried to convince myself that the reason I was drawn to you was because you needed my help. When we went to West Virginia and found quote ‘proof’ unquote you were Roman I told myself that deep down inside I must have known all along who you really were.”

“I remember everything about the time we spent in West Virginia. I was in love with you and it killed me to think that I might be Stefano.”

“Even when I thought you were Stefano I wanted you. I would have given myself to you right there on that mountain top if you had asked. John, do you remember the first night we made love? How nervous we both were? How you couldn’t remember anything about our past life?”

“I remember.”

“After we made love, you apologized because you didn’t remember the way it used to be between us. There is something that you need to know, something I have never said before; something I never wanted to admit before.”

“What’s that Doc?”

“John that first time was so completely different from anything I had ever experienced with Roman. That night was the most wonderful and completely satisfying night I ever had. That night and every other night we spent together was always amazing. Even after you had the ‘break through memory’ with the strawberries and whip cream it was still different from what I had before.”

“Doc, what exactly are you trying to say?”

Marlena’s face turned a slight shade of red. She took a deep breath before she continued. “I don’t want to go into details so I’ll just say this: Before Stefano took Roman away I loved him with all my heart and our relationship, I mean the physical part, was always fine. I never had any complaints. Follow me so far?”

John nodded his head and spoke, “Ok.”

“But when you came into the picture things changed.” Before he could say anything Marlena continued to speak, “John you are an extremely passionate man; in fact more passionate than I have ever known. From the very first time we made love I have felt that passion. I have never loved or desired a man the way I do you. The things I do with you, the things I want to do to you are things I would never have imagined. You said it earlier; we made love in this office all the time. That’s something that only you and I did and still do. Whenever I’m with you it doesn’t matter where we are, all that matters is that I’m with you. What I feel for you, I have never felt for anyone else. So what I’m trying to tell you is whether you interrupted us or not, Roman and I would have never made love in my office because we never did and we never will. That’s not who he and I are. Now do you understand what I’m trying to say?”

“I think so.”

Trying her best to keep the exasperation out of her voice she asked, “What is it that you’re not getting?”

Smiling at her he replied, “Doc, I’m more of the hands on type.” He moved closer to her on the couch. “Tell me if I have it right. You’re saying this would have never happened.” He began at the base of her neck and slowly worked his way up towards her mouth. He alternated between gentle soft kisses and capturing her skin between his lips using just the right amount of pressure, hard enough for her to feel him yet soft enough so as not to leave a tell tale mark on her. His hands worked in unison with his mouth, slowly working their way up her body.

The second she felt his breath on her neck, her arms automatically went around his neck instantly pulling him closer to her. Any previous aggravation she felt was quickly replaced by the undeniable desire she had for him as his hands moved slowly up her body. A low moan escaped from her lips.

The sound of her moan made his heart beat faster. What began as teasing became an uncontrollable desire to make love to her. His hands were poised at her breasts, ready to run his fingertips across them; anxious to see and release them from her clothing. John continued kissing and nuzzling her neck until at last he reached her mouth. He wanted nothing more than to lose himself in her kisses; but he wouldn’t. If he didn’t stop now he wouldn’t stop and they would both give in to their desire. As much as he wanted her, now was not the time. They still needed to decide what to do about Roman. Slowly he pulled away from her.