7. Chapter 7
Chapter seven
W ith her father safely tucked into his bed and a raging hangover waiting for him in the morning, Eliza returned to the car and slid into the passenger seat. Judas watched her intently as she sat still and silent, staring out at the cloudy skies through the windshield. He wondered what she was thinking, but didn’t have long to contemplate what was going through her mind.
Without warning, Eliza howled out her frustration in a bellowing cry. Clenching her fists, she pushed her tight palms into her eyes and laid her head against the headrest of the passenger seat. Judas didn’t react and didn't ask questions. Five minutes spent with Paul was more than enough to make him want to scream as well. Eliza had been doing this her entire life. He was amazed by her patience but did wonder why she wasn’t always screaming at the top of her lungs in absolute disgust at the man-child who raised her.
Forever thinking of the part she played in her father’s world was exhausting for her. Taking a moment to fully express her feverish disgust was therapeutic. When she was finished, she took a steadying breath. She pursed her lips, closed her eyes, and seemed to completely recompose herself. It was like magic how she was able to just let it all slide off her and return to the prim and proper lady her father expected from her, so instantaneously. Judas was certain he’d never been so fascinated by another living creature in all the years he'd lived. Eliza was a puzzle and, though he knew he shouldn’t, he desperately wanted to put all her pieces together to see her as the full masterpiece he already knew she was. He wanted her in ways he had never dared to want another person. He was more and more certain with every passing moment that he had to have her, consequences be damned.
She looked over at him sitting behind the wheel watching her. She noticed while he waited for her to return, he had removed his jacket and rolled the sleeves of his shirt up to his elbows. The muscles of his forearm flexed as his fingers traced the stitching of the steering wheel. Their eyes locked and a spark of attraction flickered again.
The interior of the car suddenly grew very warm and he wanted to reach out and touch her. He didn’t. But he wanted to.
Eliza wanted his touch, as well. She felt exposed and vulnerable after letting a stranger see into her imperfect world. She worked so hard to keep their family dysfunction quiet. She was constantly on the defense, fighting off compromising situations her very public father always wound up in. She was tired and the way his eyes looked into her made her want to give up the whole charade and let him hold her until it all went away. She didn’t even know him, yet she wanted to lay herself bare for him. Tell him all her secrets.
“I’m sorry,” she offered. She could only imagine what he was thinking after her outburst. She was certain he thought her out of her mind.
“You’re allowed to express any feelings you have,” Judas told her with as much sincerity as he could fill his words with hoping she knew and believed him.
It worked and his tenor filled her with warmth. Suddenly, the confines of her alter ego were suffocating. She clawed at her now too tight updo until every tendril of blonde hair was free around her shoulders. She began to tear at her lacy top, desperately needing to be free of its confines. She sat quietly in just in her tank top and pants, feeling a little more like herself.
Judas even more enraptured to see her morph into a truer version of herself, couldn't help but run his eyes over every inch of her exposed skin. His eyes came to an abrupt stop on a sliver of color not quite hidden beneath her skimpy top. He was surprised to find the brilliant green of what looked like a snake.
“Do you have a tattoo?” he smirked.
Eliza blushed, instinctively pulling her shirt down to cover the evidence, “My secret rebellion against dear old dad.”
Judas laughed, “You are a constant surprise, Eliza.”
She laughed as well, fully relaxing for the first time in as long as she could remember. She lifted her top to reveal the delicate lines along her ribcage and trailing down toward her hip. It was truly beautiful. Shades of vibrant green and deep black were placed so perfectly that the entire snake seemed to shimmer and shine like it was alive. Its rounded off head pointed its nose just under her right breast as the body curved into an intricate S-pattern down her side.
Without even realizing what he was doing, Judas reached out and ran his fingers along the coiled snake. Eliza trembled at his touch and he felt goosebumps rise on her skin. He quickly pulled his hand away as they stared at one another for a long moment. Pulling himself together, he turned his attention to the windshield and put the car in drive. Eliza typed her address into the GPS as he pulled out of her father’s long driveway. The silence between them felt tense but only because it was so loaded with the chemistry building between them. Without even realizing it, they both were thinking the same thing at the same moment: that resisting the temptation of one another might be more than they could withstand.
“So why a snake?” he asked, desperate to fill the space with conversation that might drown out his thoughts.
A giggle bubbled up from Eliza, “Because I couldn’t think of a single thing that would make my father more mad than a literal serpent.”
He smiled, “So what did he have to say about it when you showed him?”
“Ha!” she cried out with the most beautiful smile Judas could imagine, “I didn’t have the guts to show him. I must have known I wouldn’t since I put it somewhere he would absolutely never see.”
Judas glanced at her as he drove, “You really think he would be that mad? So mad that you can’t show him?”
“Oh, most definitely,” Eliza said with a sigh, “He would never forgive me. Your body is a temple and all that.”
Judas felt an unexpected pang of intense protectiveness for her. He itched to fight this man who couldn’t love this amazing woman, his own daughter, sacrilegious tattoo and all, “I’m sorry,”
Eliza waved off this apology, “It’s fine. That’s just who he is. Set in his ways and stubborn.” She shrugged her shoulders and changed the subject, “What about you, Mr. Christian? Any tattoos of your own hidden under there somewhere?” She bit her lip at the thought of his flesh beneath what remained of his suit.
He caught her flirtation from the corner of his eye, “Please, call me Judas. And no. My body is a temple and all that.” He smiled at her as she giggled. “I have a feeling my family wouldn’t approve either.”
“If your body is a temple, you should decorate it as you please,” Eliza replied.
He slowly depressed the brake at a stoplight before turning to look at her, “I suppose you’re right. What should I get?”
Unable to withstand the intensity of his gaze, Eliza moved her eyes back to the road, “Hmm… Well, that depends. What’s important to you?”
This question sent Judas’ mind racing. What was important to him? He didn't know. He rarely took the time to know anyone well enough that they might ask anything like that of him. How would one answer a question they hadn’t considered in literal eons?
“I’m sorry if that was too personal,” Eliza said softly, seeing the wrinkle forming between his eyebrows.
“No, not at all,” he responded before pressing on the gas. “It’s just that no one has asked me anything like that in a very long time and I’m not sure how to answer.”
“Well, we’re a good four minutes away from my apartment. I have time,” she said and they shared another laugh.
“I guess,” he said with hesitation, “Honor. Home. Doing what’s right.”
Taking his answer in, she found herself appreciating the man more and more with each passing second.
He shook his head, “That’s a stupid answer, sorry.”
“I mean, it would be hard to pick a tattoo for those things,” Eliza said with a laugh before reaching out to place a hand on his arm, “but I can’t imagine anything better to hold near and dear.”
Hearing her words of affirmation to his inner thoughts and feeling her hand gently on him knowing the only thing between them was his shirt sleeve sent waves through his body that sent him reeling, just like every time before. He wasn't sure he had ever felt that kind of… what?
Contentment?
Joy?
Understanding?
Whatever the emotion was, he never wanted to stop feeling it. It put warmth through his entire being. It made him glad he had lived as many years as he did just to have felt what this moment gave him.
“Thank you,” he said, looking directly into her sapphire eyes, “Thank you.”
Giving him another smile, Eliza motioned towards the buildings that surrounded them, “This next one is me. Thank you for your help tonight. I appreciate all of it more than you know. Especially, the chance to talk and just be myself. I don’t get to do that very often.”
Pulling into a parking spot just outside her building, Judas was disappointed that the night was coming to and end. He reminded himself that he had a job to do and he would have to ignore any spark he may have felt and any desire to sweep her into his arms. He settled for taking her hand, still resting on his arm, and kissing her soft skin. It sent electricity through them both and Eliza hesitated leaving the car. She could stay with him forever. She wanted to, but she couldn’t. She knew they were something that just could never be for so many reasons, no matter how many times tonight she had tried to convince herself otherwise.
Instead, she climbed from the car and gave a wave as she walked away from him. He watched her jog up the stairs toward her apartment door, and felt a giant hole in her absence. Watching her go was like watching the last golden rays of sunshine fade into dusk. He would be crazy to chase after her. He barely knew this woman. He couldn’t reasonably follow after her for just another moment of her presence. He just couldn’t. She would think he was insane.
‘Are you happy now, Yesh? Is this what you wanted? You fucking sadist.’
Throwing the car door open, Judas jumped from the seat and raced toward her as she opened her apartment door. Reaching her, she stared at him in stunned silence.
He stood as near to her as he could and leaned his body towards her, completely lost in temptation. Resting one hand on the door behind her, their faces were so close they nearly touched noses. She was breathless. He was overcome with need.
His voice heavy and sultry with want for her, “Are you still into doing things that would make your dad mad? Because I thought of a way to really piss him off.”
Without a second of hesitation, Eliza smiled up at his beautiful face and pulled him to her. Tangling her fingers through his long hair, she kissed him with a passion neither of them had ever felt before. When their lips collided, it seemed as though the earth shifted beneath them. Hunger overcame them.
They were all hands, grasping for whatever hold they could get on one another. Tearing each other’s clothes off before they were even through the door.
The sound of her needy breaths against his ear set his soul on fire.
The feel of his lips on her skin sent waves of pleasure through to her core.
Neither of them had ever felt more alive than they did in those delicate seconds.
Judas pushed her away from him, “Are you sure this is okay?”
Eliza stared at him, eyes crazed and body aching for him. She crashed her mouth back into his and pushed him against the wall. Pressing her entire body into his, she felt his hardened need against her. Yes, this was okay. This was the most beyond okay thing she had done in years. She more than wanted this. She needed it.
Judas tangled his fingers in her hair and ran his other hand along the length of her body. His arm wrapped around her waist and pulled her tighter against him. She moaned against his lips and he growled his response. Not another second wasted, he grabbed her by the thighs and lifted her body off the floor. Wrapping her legs around his waist, he carried her to the counter behind them.
The cold granite against her skin was jarring, but not enough to bring her out of the fever dream. Judas locked eyes with her as he used one skilled hand to unhook her bra and slid it down her arms. He placed a hand against her bare chest pushing her back onto the counter. With her lying before him, back arched against the frigid stone, Judas tucked his fingers beneath the waist of her slacks and the elastic of her panties. Slowly, he slid them down her legs and let them fall to the floor. Completely exposed before him, she was the most beautiful thing he had ever laid eyes on. His eyes met hers again and she bit her lip.
“In all my years, I never dreamed of seeing something this glorious before me,” he whispered, apparent awe overtaking his voice.
His words made her tremble and she begged for him, “Touch me, Judas. Please, put your hands on me.”
Never glancing away from the deep pools of her eyes, Judas ran one finger slowly from her chin, down her throat, between her breasts, down her stomach, and finally between her thighs. He opened her and felt her wet need for him. With painful slowness, he circled the sacred bundle of nerves with his finger then plunged it inside of her. She cried out at his touch and he felt all judgment and reason leave his body.
His free hand unbuttoned his slacks and they fell to his feet, freeing him. Without hesitation, he pressed his length against her.
Eliza reached for him, clawing for him, desperate to feel him fully possessing her, “Please, oh, God. Please. I want to feel you.”
Judas obeyed and penetrated her completely. Pressing against her inner walls, he filled her. Both moaned in absolute ecstasy. Eliza rose from the counter and wrapped her arms around his neck. Their bodies pressed together, Judas thrust into her again and again with a thirst that was completely foreign to him. He'd had a hundred women before, but not like this.
He needed to find release in her like he’d never needed anything. More than he needed water in the desert of his homeland. He had to feel this glorious woman wrapped around him in every conceivable way.
Eliza continued to cry out with every pounding thrust. She had never experienced anything quite this primal. She never had anything that wasn’t polite sex. Missionary, lights off, and gentle movement. It had gotten the job done, or so she thought, but this was otherworldly. Her entire world was on fire feeling him inside of her.
As his pace quickened, she clung even tighter to him and felt her own body's rhythm match his urgency. She felt flames climbing within her, threatening to consume her. She threw her head back as she cried out his name, “Judas!”
His lips claimed her throat and he was sure it would leave a mark, but he wanted it to. He wanted to claim her body as his. He had to know that she was his. He wanted the entire world to know. Eliza was his.
He could tell she was close to falling over the edge of orgasm as her muscles tightened around him and she trembled with each movement.
He wanted to be sure that she left this encounter devoted to him and ordered her, “Look at me. I want you to look at me when I make you cum.”
Eliza gasped but obeyed. As she stared into his eyes, he placed one hand between their bodies and rubbed her sensitive bundle of nerves with skill. He continued pushing into her as his fingers glided through her wetness. All the while, he watched her.
As her skin flushed red.
As her mouth cried out for him.
As her eyes rolled back in complete loss of control.
He watched her.
She had become his complete undoing and he crashed his lips onto hers while spilling his orgasm into her. They rode the wave of pleasure together until they were both left panting, dripping with their own pleasure.
Eliza, completely spent, laid her body back against the counter again and stared up at this beautiful man standing between her thighs, still sheathed inside of her.
“Holy shit,” she breathed, “This cannot be real. You have got to be a god or something.”
Judas couldn't help but laugh at her statement. If she only knew.