When Lucifer talked about a lodge Chloe had in her mind something slightly more grand that this. After all this was Lucifer Morningstar wasn't it? He did big, brash, expensive, yet this was more of a log cabin, if you asked her opinion on it and Chloe was happily surprised that he chose somewhere so, just, well like something she would pick for a little holiday for her and Trix.
As he placed her gently on the ground, having taken them effortlessly from the heights of Lux's balcony, Chloe's legs wobbled and she almost fell as the heavy soled ankle boots she was wearing settled into the snow. Snow?!
"Sorry", she whispered, hands planted on his chest for stability, blinking and feeling a more than cool breeze assault her. "That was a bit of a head rush all that...flying..." She blinked again, trying to clear her head of the million thoughts that were running around it. Flying. In the arms of an angel. Flying...Could you get altitude sickness on Devil Air? It felt like she had been smacked over the head with something as her brain struggled to comprehend what had just happened. She had flown. With her arms around an angel's neck as he held her tight to his chest.
"Maybe I should have experimented with a shorter flight first..." Lucifer mused, taking in her rather stunned expression and a little upset with himself for being so blind to her wellbeing. He pulled out a set of keys from his pocket as she held onto his arm.
"No, no, its fine" Chloe breathed, eyes fluttering open and closed as she took in their surroundings; heavy as they adjusted to the early morning light. She had actually fallen asleep as they soared over the city from the balcony at Lux, nestled into the warmth of the huge faux fur hood on her coat and his shoulder. Chloe would admit that she actually had no idea how long they had been up there for but the sleep she had was rather satisfying. Either that or maybe she had been unconscious and she could expect brain damage from the lack of oxygen from the height! Chloe didn't know and frankly didn't care right now. They had left in the early morning long before dusk and it was still not light; the sky a smoky grey blue all around them. Once she found her voice again, Chloe had one question. "Where are we?"
Lucifer smiled. "Welcome to a rather exclusive village just outside Vail" he said, gesturing around them at the vast landscape.
"Colorado?!" Chloe spluttered as her head swung from left to right, still hanging tight on his arm. The sky was that cross between night and day and they were so high up over the world. Down below she could see the lights of a village and they were just surrounded, surrounded by crisp, bright and white freshly fallen snow.
"Of course, Colorado, Detective. I fancied some snow" Lucifer replied, but he was unsure of her reaction. "Do you object?" He was still half holding her up and wondering if he had done right because it had to be that way. It had to be right.
"No, no of course not", Chloe replied, letting go of him and shoving her hood off so she could look around properly. This place was beautiful. There were no other words to describe it and no wonder he found a spot up here. He certain did like the finer things in life and this was certainly one. "I thought you meant Yosemite or something. Not here. It was just a surprise". She finished with a self conscious giggle.
"You know I don't do things by halves Detective" Lucifer smiled as he handed her the keys. "Go on then. After you", he encouraged, gesturing towards the wooden door of the cabin that was lit up, glowing and nothing but welcoming.
Carefully Chloe took the keys and trudged maybe ten feet, kicking off snow from her boots as she stood in front of the door. She looked one more time far over the lights of the village and she knew without asking why he had chosen this place. She turned the key in the door, hearing it creak and stepped a few paces in until he closed it behind them. Warmth immediately hit her as she revealed an open plan downstairs with a sitting room and a fire already crackling away on the hearth that he must have stoked before he came back to her. Their bags were on the floor at the back of the couch where not so long ago he had left them and indeed made sure that fire was roaring away for them.
All the way to the right along the back of the cabin stood a table and chairs which flowed into a kitchen to their left. Chloe saw a closed door that she assumed was the bathroom. There was also ladder to the left too leading up to a platform on wooden stilts covering the entire back of the upper floor over the kitchen and dining room. On it a futon bed lay, buried under silver, grey and white blankets, comforters, furs and wools. As her eyes wandered to the right of the bed there was also a free standing clawfoot bath tub at the other end. She did not need a tour because it was all laid out in front of her and the 'lodge' was tiny but rather perfect. It was so different to the silks and satins, dark woods and low lights of Lux.
"I think" Lucifer started, standing immediately behind her as the temperature change from outside to inside caused her to yawn, "maybe you should have another nap and I can go down into town to purchase us some breakfast? Say yes, Detective?" Chloe nodded instead but he got his answer. Her eyes were actually closing again; the only sleep she had actually had in this last 24 hours was on the 'flight' and the warmth from the fire was almost overwhelming.
Chloe felt his arms go around her shoulders and a kiss pressed onto the crown of her head, before he released her and tapped her on the ass. "Go on upstairs. I won't be long". He got a murmur of agreement from her and with that he was gone, the door clicking shut behind her. Chloe yawned again, casting her eyes around the simple cabin again, smiling to herself.
Stepping forward she picked up the smaller of her bags; the one that had all her toiletries and pyjamas and yeah, she need a nap again. It was not as though she had work or a child to attend to and this time, it was time to herself. As she slung the sports bag over her shoulder the ladder creaked as she made her way up to the platform above.
Putting the bag down Chloe realised that along the whole of the back of the upstairs were floor to ceiling windows which gave her a most spectacular view of the mountains; mountains that were deep, deep in that heavenly – oops - snow. Pine trees littered the landscape too and putting her palms flat on the glass, Chloe closed her eyes imprinting the image in her head. Completely unbidden, a tear crept out and slipped down her cheek before she swiped it away. "Stop it" she whispered to herself. "He's coming back. He said so". Chloe swallowed and decided to explore a little more upstairs before she took her nap, stripping off her navy blue padded coat and dropping it on a wicker chair.
Walking across the platform she ran her fingers over the rim of the white porcelain bath before she looked up at built in wardrobes on the opposite wall and another little door. She pushed it and found a small room with only a toilet and a sink.
Turning away her attentions they led her to the bed, and picking up her coat again she took her cell phone out of the zipped pocket inside. No messages, no calls, no nothing. She looked at the clock on her phone. 5.07am. No wonder she was tired, but where the hell – oh no, not that word; jeez - oh crap, that's even worse – where was he getting food at this time of day? Chloe shook her head and decided not to be concerned. This was a man that could probably conjure up a swimming pool in the Sahara after all so she let it be.
She was about to lie down when she remembered something from last night. Flipping through her phone she found the photograph that Trixie had insisted they take. Chloe, Trixie and Lucifer like a little happy family, just like Maze had said, except the adult's smiles...Chloe sighed. There was something missing; in her eyes and his and she knew perfectly well what it was. Quickly she flicked away from the picture and dropped her cell on the bed.
Taking off her boots and socks and turning her attentions to the now, Chloe lowered to her knees onto the vast futon and fell face first, scrambling up the bed in amongst the luxurious blankets and furs. Burying herself underneath them all, she breathed in the smell of freshly laundered sheets letting her muscles relax as much as they could these days and burrowed further down until she was, in effect, buried. She was, however, still feeling too tense to sleep and Chloe spun her phone back upright in her hand opening up the relaxation app that Maze had uploaded long ago. She had not used it in a while but there was no harm in trying, was there?
By the time Lucifer had made it down to the town and back, she was out cold, drowned in her haven of blankets.
Lucifer opened the door carefully, a package – French Crepes from his favourite baker - in his left hand. Mr Vinchenzi was always on hand for Lucifer Morningstar - he was paying his debt off in food and neither the Devil nor the baker objected. The lodge was quiet apart from a soothing male voice and it caused Lucifer to hesitate. For a second he was confused feeling a flash of something he could not place before he followed the noise. As he reached the top of the ladder, Lucifer put the box of food on the floor and saw the source – her cell phone - and for some strange reason felt relieved the voice was only that. He shook himself. Oh come on Morningstar, you've only been gone twenty minutes at best! Would she really? Since when was the Devil insecure? Yeah, since he knew he was leaving her behind again.
Putting aside his own stupidity he regarded her with a smile. Chloe had buried herself so well in the blankets that all he could see was the top of her dark hair, wrapped up in a messy bun and her bare feet and ankles sticking out at the other end. If she did not need all the sleep in the world he might have snuck across and tickled her but this time he refrained.
He stepped up the last few rungs of the ladder and picked the food up again, this time to put it on a small cabinet. Following her, Lucifer shrugged off his coat, shoes and socks and crawled onto the bed, trying to actually find the rest of her as he picked his way amongst the fur and wool and failing quite miserably. Chloe stirred, so instead he just lay beside her, lifting the blanket she had over her face, fairly sure she mustn't be able to breathe properly under there. He had shut his eyes for barely thirty seconds when he felt her move. "Luce?" Her voice was heavy with sleep.
"Yes Angel?" he whispered.
"S'okay, just checkin' it was you", Chloe replied, barely able to form a sentence.
"Course it's me", he replied with a quiet laugh, the comment ripe for a flirty response but he stopped himself. "I've got crepes..."
"Chocolate sauce?" she mumbled.
"And raspberries" he smiled as she woke a little more and Chloe sat up, rubbing her eyes. She stopped the app and shifted so she was facing him as Lucifer was still lying down, his head propped up on an elbow. "Are you hungry?" he asked.
"A little" Chloe replied, leaning down again so she could kiss him; a lazy, slow, sleepy kiss. Lucifer positively purred as her fingertips explored the stubble on his jaw before she withdrew. "Let's eat downstairs though. I don't want to get chocolate sauce on this bed".
He smiled. "Okay. We can make a mess in here with something else later", Lucifer suggested. This time it was not full of innuendo but Chloe tutted and pushed him in the chest as she untangled herself from the blankets. She shuffled off and turned to go down the ladder backwards as he moved off the bed too and followed her down.
They sat on opposite sides of the dining table working their way through the freshly cooked and still warm breakfast, when Chloe noticed, through the small window, another building at the back. "What's out there?" she asked, waving a piece of torn crepe in mid air. It just looked like an outhouse.
"That" he said, following the line of her hand, "it's, erm, it's a hot tub".
She gave him a 'really?' look with one raised eyebrow. It was not a look of interest; more of cynicism. "Don't look at me like that" Lucifer replied, dipping a raspberry into some left over sauce. "I had it put in before you became..." He stopped realising what he was about to say would seriously cut off his privileges for the weekend. "Before I met the real Chloe Decker. Not the one with her tits out on the television". He winked at her.
Chloe sighed. That was probably a veiled compliment underneath there, somewhere. She pushed her plate towards him, still with a half crepe on it. "Eat that. I don't want it to go to waste".
"Sure?" he asked carefully, and saw her nod pushing the plate a little further towards him. Chloe got up, half deliberately to avoid any further conversation about her eating habits but also to take their bags upstairs to unpack. He was about to take hold of the leftovers when he paused. "Chloe?" he asked, causing her to hesitate at the use of her real name. "Before you go, bring over that smaller bag of mine?"
A palpitation bumped against her breastbone as she picked up the tan leather holdall, bringing it over to him. From it he took a thick envelope and Chloe looked at him with concern. "Can you sit down again? We just need to..." he asked, gesturing at the package on the table. She sat down back where she had been before and watched him push the envelope over the table to her.
"Lucifer..." she warned, not going to pick it up or open it. It looked too formal, too legal and part of her brain was screaming at her to be terrified of what might be in there; of its meaning to him and her. To them, even.
"No" he responded, shaking his head. "Just in case, Chloe. Its not a Will or anything ridiculous like that but I didn't order my affairs last time" Lucifer continued, almost knowing what she was going to say next. "This was all done before I knew I was going to see Dad; when I came back and when I finally realised I wanted to commit myself to you properly". She was about to speak when he interrupted her. "It's not everything. Just a few things that, well, other people could use. Property, trusts for you, our Beatrice, Charlie. It's things I would have given them and you anyway in time, but my trip has rather precipitated you knowing about them".
"Luce" she whined, moving the envelope back towards him. "I can't...It's your money. Your things. I don't want...I don't want to take off you". Her face was crushed with worry, unable to keep eye contact with him as she felt so awful that he would even consider giving her, well anything.
"You can and I insist you do" he responded, leaning across the table and taking up her hands. "Don't open it until after I've gone to see Dad". He squeezed her fingers, trying to impress on her how little choice she had. The legal papers were all signed. He had hoped to do this later on this weekend but equally that envelope would be lingering at the back of his mind all the time if he didn't do it now. At least with it now out in the open, as it were, he could breathe slightly easier and if they need to talk then they could talk.
"Okay" she replied, giving up. She didn't want to start an argument when they had only just got here. Chloe got up again and leant down, kissing him. "Thank you". She would put the envelope in the bottom of her bag and try to forget about it for now. Nothing was going to ruin her memories of this; whatever was lurking there for her and Lucifer watched as she picked up both of their remaining bags and started up the stairs again. It had gone better than he expected but sometimes a quiet, accepting of news Chloe Decker was worse than the tornado she could turn herself into when she was mad.
He quickly ate the rest of the crepes - both hers and his - as he listened as she wandered around upstairs, hearing the creak of the floor as she moved, drawers opening and closing. Putting the plates in the dishwasher for later, he found a radio station letting the music filter up to her above and it sounded at one point like she was dancing. It made him smile and he was just about to join her when all of a sudden, her cell, that was on the dining table buzzed into life. It was a message. From Dan.
"Detective, you have a message from the other Detective" he shouted, picking the cell up and walking towards the bottom rung of the ladder. One or two steps up he stopped as she appeared at the top, a couple of t shirts of his in her hand.
"What does it say?" she asked.
"Your message Detective" he replied, walking up a few more steps and holding out the cell. "I might be a lot of things but I don't go poking around in other peoples phones".
Chloe put the t-shirts on the bed and sat on the top rung, Lucifer creeping closer to her as she was handed the cell, and so he was standing between her knees. "It's just Trix" she replied scrolling through the message. "She scraped her knee running down the path to the car and they're going to the zoo today".
"Is she alright?" Lucifer asked. The look on his face was rather urgent and she saw his concern.
"She's fine. Kids fall over all the time, Luce. I've lost count of the amount of scrapes and scratches she'd had over the years. She's had bangs on the head, tripped over and knocked a tooth out on the coffee table when she was three...a scraped knee is nothing to worry about. Dan says she is okay". He nodded but she saw the unremitting look he had on his face. "Luce, I know all this domesticity is alien to you, but a bit of a bump because she probably fell over her own feet is nothing to worry about. I trust Dan to tell me if it was something more serious, but if it makes you feel better, maybe you speak to her tonight? Okay?"
He considered her words and ducked his head, nodding. "Can I ask you something?" Chloe said all of a sudden and he looked back at her, expecting her to continue. "Why do you call her 'our' Beatrice, like she's yours and mine?"
Lucifer breathed in and out, sliding his palms up and down the sides of her thighs. In truth he had no real idea why he did it. It just made him feel better; more connected. "Because... because I am the Devil, Detective. No matter how much I might have put the practice what would have normally fertilised half of Los Angeles, I can't have...I cannot create life. I can destroy it, but I cannot create it. I'm not your normal man in case you've missed that part Detective"
Chloe giggled. "I know."
"But it's fine" Lucifer continued. "I can't protect Beatrice all the time but she is an extension of you. Therefore she is mine".
"And you will continue to look after long after Dan and me are gone", she continued, leaning forward and placing her palms on his cheeks.
"I will. Up there or down there, wherever I will always make sure she is safe". Lucifer and she knew she could take him at his word.
Chloe pressed her lips together. The thought of leaving Trix, dying one day and him keeping tabs on her child or even her grandchildren if her baby chose to have them, overwhelmed her and she stared at the ceiling as she started crying. "No, no, no, no, no" she immediately started as he took another step up, ready to hold her. She was not turning his affection away but telling herself off. "I told myself no crying this weekend, so no crying". She cleared her throat and let him brush the tears away. "Lucifer?" she asked, as the radio continued to filter around them. "Can we dance?"
"Metaphorical dancing or music dancing?" he asked. Now this time it was full of innuendo and a raised eyebrow to assist.
"I like this song" she said, tuning into what was being played on the radio. "I know it's silly but..."
Lucifer backed his way down the ladder and Chloe turned and followed, wrapping her arms around his neck. It was cheesy she knew but as he swung her around, this was, for however long this song lasted, a little slice of her own personal heaven on earth. Safe, comforted and laughing her heart out with the man she loved as she was spun around off the floor. Another memory in the bank for her, even though Lucifer had hesitated. She had to remember who he was; how vulnerable he actually was to her and just how different their lives had been.
Three songs later and when the music changed to some 'terrible composition' has Lucifer had put it, they slid onto the settee and for a little while they were just quiet, watching the flames of the fire as it crackled away. The unpacking was forgotten for now.
Chloe was resting her feet on his lap, his hand wrapped around her ankles, but their peace this time was interrupted by Lucifer's cell, buzzing away in his pocket. He pulled it out to be greeted by photograph of the offspring's bloodied and scraped knee and a 'thumbs up' emoji. "She's your child now" he said bluntly holding up the picture to her. "If I could breed I would never produce spawn that photographed her injuries and texted them. No class whatsoever".
Chloe laughed and took his cell and sent an 'are you okay, babe?' text, signing it off as 'Mom' just in case Trixie thought it was Lucifer. A reply was almost immediate and Chloe frowned. "Did you teach her to say it 'stung like a bitch'?!" It was the loophole swearwords all over again and she passed him the message to see. Indeed, the offspring had written it and he was quite pleased it was all spelt correctly too.
"Might have", Lucifer replied, quickly sending her a return 'thumbs up' emoji followed with a devil. He just about to send the message when Chloe withdrew her legs and kicked him hard in the thigh.
"Ow Detective!" he exclaimed. It did actually hurt. "Your offspring will hear worse as she gets older. She will say worse too." He pressed 'send'.
Chloe sighed, getting up so she could cuddle up closer to him rather than use him as a foot rest. Her head was on his chest. "I know she's nearly a teenager not a toddler, but ...it just makes me realise how things change". His arm went down her back, resting on her hip, sliding under the elastic of the track pants she was wearing, the scar on her skin underneath his fingertips.
"Is that alright now?"he asked, tapping on her skin. She had not complained to any pain for a long time.
"Yeah" she replied, "it's been perfect since Raphie...well you know".
Lucifer smiled. "He will look after you both you know. You have access to weapons. He can be your hostage. Exchange me for Dad's precious Right Hand Angel if things get a little sticky..."
"Luce..." she warned. "Don't joke about things like that".
"I know, I know" he responded. "Just he will take care of you both".
Chloe nodded and rested her palm on his abdomen. They were both watching the flames in the fire now and it was almost hypnotic, and Chloe felt herself drifting again. Her body was exhausted and it would take her under whether her mind liked it or not, but if she fell asleep here she knew her back would regret it. She shifted out of his embrace and stood up, holding out a hand giving him little choice of going with her back to her cocoon of blankets and fur. He made a little surprised noise as he was hiked out of his seat and she started to climb the ladder, him following shortly after.
"Stop staring at my ass" she mumbled.
"I have no choice but to stare at your arse, Detective. As much as it is delightful, peachy if I must say, it is also in my face..." he replied dryly.
She made it to the top of the ladder trying to keep a straight face. The whole place was quite warm now the fire had been going for a while so instead of falling back into bed, no actually crawling as that futon was a long way down, Chloe pulled off her trackpants and jumper, leaving a vest top for extra warmth and pants. The fur was so, so comforting against her skin and not paying attention to Lucifer or what he was doing she burrowed her way back in. Seeing daylight again after pulling the sheets from her face, she found him.
"Aaaand, yes just as I thought..." she announced. He was standing the window stark bollock naked, arms folded and with a trail of clothes behind him.
"Do you know Detective, there is a family of deer out the back?" he asked, not looking back her.
"And I am sure they really love seeing the Devil's jewels this time in the morning..." Chloe patted the bed. "Get in Lucifer".
He smiled and walked back to her, crawling in and settling, pulling her back to his front and close to him. "Do you think we can get away with this all weekend? Just staying in bed?" she asked, eyes closing and sinking into the warmth.
"If we agree between ourselves not to disagree or tell a soul, then yes" Lucifer replied. "Care to make a deal with the Devil?" Chloe flung a hand at him and he took it to shake on their agreement before behind her she felt Lucifer pull her even closer taking her cocoon with him and, safe and warm, she fell asleep again. Once he was sure she was asleep and her breathing was even, it was only then that Lucifer closed his eyes.
However long later, Lucifer was fairly sure he was wasn't quite dreaming. He was half asleep, splayed out on his back, no detective in his arms, but for some reason it did not alarm him that she was no longer there. He could feel his own limbs, he wasn't in Hell and he felt rather content if you were to ask. Lucifer was comfortable, warm and if you promised not to laugh, the Devil was cosy. Carefully just in that in-between state between sleep and wakefulness, his once cold heart was full. Even with all of those bodies that once used to grace his bed, he had never felt this accepted. All these years, chasing other people's tails and he had finally, finally come to recognised it was only one he wanted.
He shifted his knee; the fur blankets smooth against his skin. There was a reason he spent so much money on the comforts of life and waking up like this was one of them. Stretching his arms out though, he was definitely alone as he started to surface even more. Seems the Detective was no longer in bed with him but he couldn't hear her moving about either. The radio was still playing downstairs, shifting to what sounded like a news programme but everywhere else was quiet.
Lucifer sat up on his elbows only to see her, stretched out on the floor in the bedroom on her stomach, looking through the vast floor to ceiling windows at the snow that was starting to fall in fluffy flakes. She was wearing a pale pink jersey dressing gown and a pair of red and white striped fluffy slipper socks with some bobble contraption dangling from them. "I must say Detective" Lucifer started, his voice hoarse with sleep, "you know how to turn a devil on".
She looked at him looking at her feet. "They were a present from Trix last Christmas, they keep me warm and if you don't like them you don't have to look". It perhaps came out a little harsher than she intended, but this was her and her daughter. She went back to watching the snow fall, her nose almost pressed to the glass, and the family of deer that were still wandering about outside.
"Are you quite alright Detective?" Lucifer asked eventually. He had no idea how long she had been out of bed but her eyes were no more red –rimmed than normal. He wondered whether he had managed to upset her with the comment about the socks, still not quite knowing where the line had been drawn.
"Yes of course" she replied before out of the corner of her eye she watched him crawl over to her; thinking he was about to lie down and join her, except he didn't. The next thing she felt were feather light kisses raining down on the back of her knee. Chloe flinched, ticklish and barely missed kicking him in the head with a slipper sock. "Lucifer, stop it".
"Hmmm?" he replied, her feeling one of the socks being slowly pulled off her foot.
"We are being watched" Chloe offered, as he frowned. Who on earth would be up here?
"What?" Lucifer responded, flinging the infernal striped thing down the ladder so it landed downstairs.
"Watched..." she said, pointing a finger towards the window at the family of deer that were outside, wandering through the snow.
Lucifer crawled closer to the window, looked down and smiled. "I very much doubt they can see you. It's only a few deer, dear".
"Ha ha" Chloe responded sarcastically before she moved to lie on her back, propping herself up on her elbows as he went back and attacked the other sock. "Close the blinds". He looked at her genuinely curious, the other sock half off her foot. "I know your...well you don't have any inhibitions, but I do. I don't do voyeurism" Chloe responded.
"It's a deer, dear", Lucifer replied. The other sock was launched and it went the same way as its mate. "I doubt it is bothered by a touch of naked flesh".
"That deer, dear is not seeing my boobs". Chloe was really quite serious about it and she moved her legs away from where he had been about to wander his fingertips over her calf. She heard a half-irritated sigh but by now she had realised that it was not from anger, but the plain fact he did not really understand why she might be bothered. That might happen in time though, once he understood, so for now she left it.
Taking in her demeanour and realising he must act, Lucifer crawled along the floor and opened the bottom drawer of the cabinet by the bed. He pulled out a small white portable device and pressed the button on it. Round them the blinds whirred and slowly slid down the windows, blocking out all kinds of wandering eyes. "Happy now, my dear?" he asked still playful but dropping the device on the floor. "It seems the dear deer can no longer leer..."
Chloe smiled and sat up. "Thank you Lucifer". Her voice was serious, no longer with that element of a tease.
"That's..." he started, hesitating. "That's alright Detective. That was alright wasn't it?"
Chloe tipped her head to one side. For such an old being, he was so young. "I'm going to sound like I'm lecturing a kid" she muttered to herself before she raised her head. "There was something that made me uncomfortable and you put aside how you felt and, well I don't feel uncomfortable any more".
"Oh" he responded, rubbing a thumb on her knee. "That is good".
"Luce... " Chloe started, shifting a little bit closer to him. "I know you didn't do relationships before me, but it is okay to make mistakes. I will never hate you. I've never hated you".
"You didn't make much of me when we met" he offered with a smile. What a cocky git he was then; still was now, but now he thought first.
"I never hated you" she repeated, pushing him by the shoulder as he shuffled back onto the bed. "You annoyed me; you made me angry and at times I wondered what planet you were from, or if something had happened to you as a child to make..." Chloe swallowed, sitting on his legs as he settled on the bed. "I thought you may have been abused. Whether all your acting out was because you... because of that and your Dad did abuse you in a way, but I think, now I get to know you, I can see beyond that". She breathed in. "I can see how lost you were".
"Are" he corrected her as she took hold of his chin and raised it to force him to look at her. "But you are my path home, Chloe", Lucifer continued, gently touching her temple. She was his light, his redemption and please Father let it be so this time. Give me this chance!
"And it took me far too long to come back to you Lucifer and I am sorry about that". It was not a new confession by any means but she needed his absolution.
"But you did" he responded. "And that is all that matters". Chloe nodded carefully. "You can ask me anything about Hell if you want, my fall, you deserve to know. You should know". Chloe looked down and she pressed her lips together. "Detective? You don't have to...I just thought your might like to. You are curious by nature and I can't imagine you haven't thought of one thing you might like to ask the Devil?"
He smiled at her and she breathed in through her nose. "I never asked you so many things" she started. There was one question though that troubled her more than anything in the world and it made her heart hurt. He asked, so she would tell. "When your skin changes, is it painful?"
Lucifer laughed to himself as she shifted about on his lap, getting more comfortable. He didn't expect that question but should have known that this angel on earth would ask it. "It did", he offered, recalling those sensations from long gone. "I mean they are burns, Detective, but they don't now. It just feels like, I'm warm, tingling. Much like now". Chloe looked down realising he was sporting just a little bit of sexual interest in her.
"Oh for..." she responded, rolling her eyes and dropping his chin. "Go on then..." she continued, giving him a sharp shove of the shoulders so he had no choice to lie down . "I was trying to have a serious conversation with you Lucifer but your anatomy has other ideas."
"Then don't sit on my lap, Detective", he replied, his voice deliberately dropping lower as she undid the belt of her dressing gown. "You know you can't do that around me in my naked and vulnerable state. The solution about what to do about it is rather clear though".
"If you're vulnerable then, should I ideally be doing this?" She dragged a nail from hip to hip, leaving a faint red line behind it. Chloe watched his skin turn pink and for a second, briefly she realised the power she had over the Devil himself. She could hurt him; not that she would but Chloe Jane Decker could hurt one of the most powerful beings in the world yet here he was, lying underneath her, smiling and just about ready to indulge her every desire. Chloe looked up from the red mark and straight to his eyes.
How she managed to look innocent and seductive at the same time, Lucifer would have to ask. In a while though.