After Maison Blanche

Chapter 12

John and Marlena lay on a blanket in the small courtyard garden. The sun was going down, casting an orange glow over them. She couldn't imagine feeling any happier or more content, than she did then. She slid her hand under the lapel of his robe, allowing her hand to gently brush over the coarse hair on his chest, and she whispered, "We need to go home soon."

"I was thinking that this morning," he replied. "I was going to say something, but you distracted me."

"I distracted you?" she laughed. "John Black, all I did was walk out of the bathroom in a bathrobe."

"See?" he said, shivering at her touch. "A distraction."

Marlena was quiet for a moment, and then she said, "You never told me you owned the penthouse. You said, you had a friend who cut you a deal on the rent."

"I don't own the penthouse, Doc...you do," he told her.

"What?"

"I bought it for you and Belle. It's in your name."

"John! That must have cost...oh, my G-d!" she exclaimed, propping herself up to look at him.

John smiled up at her, with a sexy smirk, "Rather presumptuous on my part, don't you think?" His eyes glanced over her face, and trailed down her neck to where her robe gaped open slightly.

Marlena stared at him, tracing her fingers over his beard, "What if I'd refused to live there?"

"I wasn't going to let you refuse," he said. "It was beautiful, something you would have picked for yourself if money was no object. I worked with an interior designer. Doc, every piece of furniture in that place was picked out because it somehow reminded me of you. I bought it when I found out you were pregnant."

Hearing him say that broke her heart a little. If they'd known then, that Belle was his daughter, what choices might they have made? Marlena stared at him in awe, "You did?"

"I was hoping..." he said. "G-d, I was hoping so much that the baby was mine. That maybe, we'd get our chance...We didn't. I kept it anyway, just in case, and I was glad it was ready when you needed it."

Marlena stared at John with tears welling in her eyes, "You are such an amazing, wonderful, man."

~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~

The room was dim, lit only by a couple lamps. Abe, Shane, Bo, and Roman had all gathered in Shane's hotel room to discuss closing up the New Orlean's portion of the case. Stefano was dead. Celeste was going to be receiving psychiatric care. Soon, Gina's DNA results would be in. Abe handed Shane two files, and sat down at the round table where the other men were already seated, "I haven't had a chance to look through them yet. They were only available an hour ago. The whole damn town, everything within twenty-five miles of Maison Blanche, is scared to death of Stefano DiMera. I'm still not sure they think he's dead. No one was willing to say anything, except for this new doctor that recently came on staff. He made copies, and gave me these. "

Shane laid John's file down on the table, and he glanced through Marlena's first, "It backs up what we saw on the videos from Stefano's home, and the photos of the bruising and bite marks on her body corroborate that as well."

"She let that fucking lecherous old man put his hands on her, so she could steal keys to free John?" Roman sneered, looking over the file. "Marlena hates Stefano. But, for John Black she'll let him do this to her body?"

Abe took the photos from Roman. He didn't want Roman looking them over, and judging Marlena for what she did. No one could ever know how they might react in any given situation, unless they were there. Abe said, "She despises Stefano, but Marlena would walk through hell for John. Roman, you missed a lot in those seven years you were gone. Marlena and John, they dealt with the KGB, Victor Kiriakis, the ISA, and Orpheus. I've watched you since you came back, and as much as I hate saying this...you're stubbornness, and your refusal to acknowledge her relationship with John, it led to your marriage problems."