She was curled up beside him, draped across his bare chest like a fair silky blanket. Her blonde hair was so soft against his neck. He lightly played with the locks with one hand while the other rested on her bare back. She looked up at him with her stunning bright eyes and a mischievous smile on her beautiful face.

“What are you staring at?” she asked.

“Staring? Me?” he replied innocently. She gave him an incredulous look. “I’m just admiring you, sweetheart.”

“Oh come on EJ,” she laughed.

“Oh come on what?”

“You’re doing that sweet flirty British accent thing again…”

“You mean being myself?”

“Hardly,” she snorted.

“What is that supposed to mean?”

“EJ Dimera being sweet? Isn’t that an oxymoron?”

“That’s it you’ll pay for that one, Samantha!”

He gathered her into his arms and started tickling her all over. She laughed and squirmed in his arms.

“Stop!” she managed in between gasps of air.

“I don’t think so!”

He continued for a few more minutes before kissing her gently. She threaded her fingers through his hair and kissed back hard.

“You’re lucky that you’re a good kisser, darling…” he said playfully.

“Am I?”

“Yes.”

“Did you mean lucky or a good kisser?”

He simply looked at her with a smile.

“Come on! I want to know!”

He shook his head. She playfully hit him with a pillow.

“I’m not telling.”

“EJ-”

“No.”

“Please?”

“No, I’m sorry I can’t say.”

“Why not?”

“I’ve been sworn to secrecy.”

She laughed. “Sworn to secrecy?”

“Nothing you do will get the answer out of me!”

“Really?” she asked, accepting the challenge. She kissed him again and then pulled away only enough to look into his eyes.

“I think you know the answer,” EJ smirked.

She smiled victoriously and settled beside him in between his arm and his side.

“Do you regret last night?” he asked a little apprehensive about what the answer would be.

“No…do you?”

“You know I don’t. You’re the love of my life.”

“There you go with the sweet and gentle side…”

“What do you mean?”

“You have too many sides! One second you’re the caring father and loving man I really like and then the next you’re the angry possessive Dimera prince and Daddy’s go-to-guy!”

“I’m trying! I’m trying to break away from him! I don’t want his empire! You know how hard it is to change!”

“I do! I’m not saying I’m a saint by any means…”

“Look…” he said, recapturing his gentle tone from before he started their serious conversation. “I don’t want to be that man. I don’t want to be anyone that you disapprove of.”

She looked up into his eyes. “What do you want?”

“I want you, Samantha. I always have.”

“You have to understand how confusing it is for me to be with you. This man right here, the sensitive and gentle man, is the man I…”

“You...?”

“Was in love with once. He’s funny, smart, charming…sometimes, loving, and a great father. The other one…”

“Let’s not go into that.”

“Good idea.”

“I’ll change for you. I want to. I’ll be that man. I want to be that man. It’s hard breaking away.”

“It is…”

“If I do…”

“If you do?”

“Do you think that you could fall in love with him again?”

“I think that I’m starting to.”

He smiled and kissed her softly.

“Shall we go check on the children?” he asked.

“We should.”

They got out of bed and got dressed. He put his arm around her and they walked down the hall to the nursery, both ready to start fresh and break away from the past. That’s what their night had been about in the first place. Maybe their life could be about that too…

Let me know what you thought and if you want more! Thanks for reading, much love!