Judging Judas (Tarnished Saints Series Book 3) (12 page)

That playfulness he’d seen in her the other day at her antique shop was back in her eyes and everyone seemed happ
y as they walked down the aisle. That is, until they got to the back of the church and he saw J.D. just glaring at him, standing next to her new friends.

Suddenly, Judas didn’t feel so co
nfident. Knowing that now he would be living in the same house as J.D., things were going to get very complicated indeed.

Chapter 11

Laney felt the wedding night jitters as they pulled up to
their new house after the reception.

“Sorry you have to ride in th
e squad on your wedding day,” Judas told her.

“It’s fine,” she said, flashing him a nervous smile. “I just hope J.D. doesn’t get in
to trouble driving my car tonight.”

“Was that your idea that she stay overnight with her new friends?
After all, I can tell you that the people she’s with aren’t exactly known for having the best reputations.”

“No
, it wasn’t my idea. She didn’t want to be here to hear the headboard thumping against the wall is what she told me. And believe me, if it wasn’t our wedding night, I never would have agreed to her sleeping over at Charolette Burnham’s house. I’ve heard some questionable things about that girl since I’ve been here.”

“She is kind of the town floozy,” Judas told her.

Suddenly Laney realized she was being too judgmental. After all, wasn’t J.D. considered the town floozy back in Big Rapids since she ended up pregnant at sixteen? Just like Laney had as well. “I’m sure it’s not as bad as we think,” she said, reaching up and clutching the crystal hanging from a chain around her neck. This usually gave her a sense of security, and she took a few deep breaths to calm herself.

“Well look at it this way,” he said, turning off the engine and leaning over and giving her a peck on the mouth. “At least we know she’s not going to get pregnant.”

“That’s supposed to make me feel better?” she asked with a grin.

“That’s supposed to let you know she’ll be just fine. Now for a woman who says she doesn’t worry, it seems that’s all you’ve been doing all day
long.”

Judas
got out of the car and walked around to her door, and Laney realized he was right. She had been worrying. But not really about her daughter. She’d been worrying about spending the night with him.

What if the sex
wasn’t as good as it was all those years ago? Maybe he wouldn’t be turned on by her kisses any more or he might think her boobs were saggy after having nursed a baby for nine months. And heaven forbid, she wasn’t going to be able to hide her silvery battle scars - her stretch marks. She wiped the sweat from her palms against the sides of her dress and took a deep breath and released it, reaching up and once again playing with her crystal, rolling it around in her fingers.

“Well, come on,
what are you waiting for?” he asked her, standing there with the door open, leaning one arm on it lazily, looking so very masculine in every way. He had his uniform on a hanger having stopped at the station to get it on the way over so he’d have it in the morning. In his other hand he held onto his duffle bag with his gun and everything else he’d need for work in the morning. “Oh, I know why you’re waiting. I almost forgot.”

He
hooked the hanger onto his duffle bag and put the strap over his shoulder. Then he reached down and scooped her off the seat and lifted her into his arms, causing her to squeal.

“What are you doing
?” she asked.

“Just carrying my bride over the threshold of our new house.” He closed the car door with his foot and hurried up the steps, shifting her in his arms and causing her to slip.

“Don’t drop me,” she cried out.

“I need the keys. They’re in
my front pocket.” He looked at her and raised a brow, and his face glowed a warm orange in the porch light.

“And you are telling me this . . . why?”

“I need you to get them for me. You can probably reach better.”

“No, I can’t
. Now just put me down and get them yourself.”

He did as instructed and seemed to have a hard time getting the keys out of his pants pocket. When she looked down and saw the bulge straining against his zipper she knew why. He just cleared his throat
and unlocked the door and went to pick her up again.

“Really, I’m capable of walking.”
She opened the door and walked inside and he followed.

Once inside the house, he leaned
over and kissed her. “We’re married,” he told her in a soft voice.

“Yes, I know,” she answered just as softly.
There was an awkward silence and then they both started to talk at the same time, and ended up laughing.

“Go ahead,” he said. “Ladies first.”

“I just wanted to say, I’m a little nervous for some reason,” she admitted.

“Yeah,” he said with a nod of his head. “Me too. It’s been such a long time, Laney.”

“Too long,” she said, noticing the look of sadness wash over his face.

“If you want to slow it down and . . . wait . . . I’ll understand.”

Time stood still and she drifted back to when they were teenagers. They’d both been young and wild and willing to do anything crazy. They hadn’t thought twice about their actions then, and J.D. was proof of it.

“I feel as if I want to be young again,” she told him.

“You’re only thirty-four, sweetheart, not ninety,” he said, running his hand over her hair and pulling her closer in a hug, wrapping his arms around her.

“Do you ever wonder what it would have been like if we’d gotten married that day when we were just teenagers?” she asked.

“Every day.” He leaned forward and kissed her once again. “But we can’t live in the past. We need to move forward.”

That
brought her back to her senses, and all apprehension left her. His words were very wise indeed. And this is the same thing she’d always told her clients when she led her meditation and self-awareness classes to live in the now, not the past. It was exactly what she needed to hear.

“
So did you want to carry me to the bed or are we going to stand in the hallway talking all night?” she asked with a large smile.

“You’re not going to have to ask me again,” he said, scooping her up and rushing her to the bedroom, depositing her on the bed.
Then he put down his duffle bag and hung his uniform on the closet doorknob. The light from the hallway spilled into the room, but it was still very dark. He reached for the bedside lamp but she laid her hand on his arm and stopped him.

“I’d like to leave it dark.”

“All right. It’s more romantic and mysterious I suppose,” he answered.

“Of course,” she said, feeling bad that she wasn’t being truthful. But she didn’t want him to see
her less than perfect body, as well as the tattoo on her butt. Not yet. Especially since it was a tattoo of a spider, symbolizing her late husband. She’d never wanted to get it, but her late husband had talked her into it. He’d really wanted to brand her as his, she’d realized afterwards. And she so foolishly also got the words tattooed along with it saying
Laney loves Spyder
.

“Laney, you look so beautiful just lying there with the light spilling across your face.” He yanked at the knot on his tie, loosening it, then pulled it off and flung it onto the foot of the bed.

“You’re not so bad yourself,” she told him, looking up to him coyly.

He removed his shirt next, and she found herself gasping at the sight of his bare chest. His pecks as well
as his abs were incredible, and his arms were strong and contoured with delicious muscles.

“Like what you see?” he asked in a sultry, low voice.

“I do,” she admitted, licking her lips with her tongue to moisten them.

“Keep that tongue in your mouth for just another minute until I remove my pants.” He unbuckled his belt
, and before she knew it her eyes were glued to his bottom end as he bent over to remove first his shoes and socks and then his pants. He stood there now only in his bright, policeman-blue briefs. Her eyes drifted downward and stopped at his aroused form beneath the cloth, begging to be released.

“Your turn,” he said, and
her eyes snapped back up to his.

“My turn?” she asked, once again feeling like a scared virgin when she was around him. His hooded eyes drank her in, the blackness of his orbs turning a shade lighter and also softening in the process.
“Oh, my turn,” she repeated.

She scooted to the side of the bed a
nd dropped her feet to the floor, kicking off her heels. He straddled his knees around her legs, and held her there. Then he leaned over, reaching around her back to undo her zipper. Very slowly and seductively he slipped her dress down her arms, exposing her bare breasts.

“No bra?” he questioned with a slight upward turn to the side of his mouth. His voice almost seemed shaky if she wasn’t mistaken. Maybe he was nervous after all.

“It was too uncomfortable,” she told him, once again licking her lips. “I couldn’t . . . wear . . . one,” she answered slowly as he was running his fingers over her breasts and teasing her with an occasional flick across a nipple. She closed her eyes, reveling in the intimacy of it all, and when she opened them, she saw the top of his head, as he was bending forward and using his tongue to bring her to rigid peaks.

“You’re
teasing me,” she whispered, gripping her hands into his hair, restraining herself from crying out, it felt so good.

He stood
back up and took her arms, bringing her to a standing position. “You’re right,” he said, expertly slipping her dress down her body to lie in a swirl of satin around her feet. “We need to stop playing and get down to business.” He hooked his fingers in the sides of her panty hose, moaning in pleasure by the fact he could see right through them and she wasn’t wearing any underwear beneath them. “You’re the one teasing me now,” he mumbled.

He slid down her body to the floor, bringing her panty hose with him, and she stepped
out of them carefully. He reached up and took her buttocks in his hands, pulling her forward to nuzzle her hairless body against his cheek.

“I do love a good biki
ni wax,” he stated, kissing her on her most private spot.

A sensuous tingle
shot through her and her knees buckled and she fell to the bed. He used that opportunity to stand up and remove his briefs, and from her prone position his arousal was very prevalent indeed, even in the darkened room.

“Close the door,” she whispered, wanting it to be totally dark when they made love.

“J.D.’s not coming home tonight, so there’s no need.” He leaned over and kissed her, straddling her in the process. His hands gently caressed her shoulders, sliding down to fondle her breasts as his tongue shot out and entered her mouth.

He held himself up so as not to crush her under his body, continuing to kiss her while one hand slid down past her stomach and
fondled her womanhood, causing a shock of desire to spiral though her.

Her back arched up off the bed as he slipped a finger, then two inside her, and she felt her own liquid passion paving the way. Then he slid downward, placing kisses down her chest, only stoppin
g to swirl his tongue around her navel.

She knew where he was going, and she tried to stop him.

“Judas, come back up here,” she said, her breathing becoming heavy and labored.

“Not before I pleasure you more, Laney. I remember how much you really used to like this. And now because of your . . . grooming, this has got me even more excited.
”

His head was down below her waist, and he was picking up her legs and putting them over his shoulders. She remembered how frightened
she’d been the first time they’d tried this so many years ago. But he’d told her he’d heard about it from his older brothers and it was supposed to be very pleasurable. And it was. Then, as well as now.

She felt his talented tongue pleasuring her in ways she’d forgotten about for quite some time now. She moaned and closed her eyes, gripping her legs around his neck.

“I may have to put you in cuffs if you continue to try to choke me with those gorgeous legs of yours,” he said in a low voice, just before helping himself to more.

With her buttocks and back lifted off the bed she cried out in pleasure, squirming and wanting to feel him inside her now.

“Judas, please, I can’t wait any longer.”

He put her hips back down on the bed and spread her legs, looking downward and her eyes followed. There he was in all his glory seeming twice as hard and twice as big as she’d remembered him.

Then he started slowly, entering her in the usual fashion, and slowly pulled back out, probably just wanting to hear her moan again.

She reached out and
pulled him to her, and they danced the wedding dance of becoming man and wife. And then she let loose with years of pent-up emotions, crying out her ecstasy loudly, very thankful her daughter was not home.