It only takes a moment for the memory of everything that had happened last night to come back to her on waking, and with it comes renewed embarrassment at her actions and the lingering sting of Lucifer's rejection (not to mention a slight headache from the wine). Her face heats up with shame where it's still pressed against Lucifer's bare chest, his arms wrapped solidly around her as they had been the previous morning. But this morning she feels more awkward than content, and completely unready to face him just yet.

Checking his breathing to see that he actually is asleep this time (and not just faking it), she carefully slips out of his arms and off the bed. It only takes a moment to locate her stashed jeans, throwing them on beneath Lucifer's shirt before slipping out of the room. As embarrassed as she is, she's reluctant to remove this reminder of what had happened. It still smells like him, and it's ridiculously soft against her bare skin. She almost considers not giving it back, and just when did she become that girl who steals her boyfriend's clothes?

Boyfriend? It seems like a ridiculous word to apply to Lucifer, but she doesn't exactly know what they are right now. Lovers? They've barely gotten past second base. And they're certainly not really married. They're partners - which is about as much as her brain can handle right now.

Without totally planning to, she realizes she has wandered all the way down to the woods behind #47, the forest still somewhat dark in the early dawn. She absently looks around for anything they might have missed earlier, not really expecting to find anything but happy to focus on anything besides her nebulous relationship status. Her life doesn't revolve around Lucifer.

But of course, speak of the devil, and he shall appear.

"You know you're not as stealthy as you think you are, though I'll certainly give you points for style." His gaze falls to where his shirt is still wrapped around her, sans bra. She shivers a little in response, but fights to urge to cover herself. He's apparently managed to find another shirt for himself in the meantime, and somehow this makes her even feel more exposed in front of him.

She decides to ignore his last comment. "I just needed to clear my head a bit, thought I'd take a walk."

"Into the woods behind an empty murder house?" He challenges.

"I thought we might find something we missed before."

Lucifer gives her a look like he's not buying any of this, but he holds his tongue and falls into step with her when she resumes walking. Together they travel further into the trees in an awkward silence, moving away from the houses behind them. Though of course Lucifer can only stay quiet for so long.

"So, is there anything you wish to tell me this morning?" He looks over at her expectantly.

Even with her head still a little fuzzy, she knows what he's getting at, but it's much too early for this conversation. So instead, she goes for the next best thing.

"Thank you."

"Whatever for?" He turns to her, eyes questioning.

For a brief moment she thinks this is part of the game, another attempt to get her to say what he wants her to. But his expression is entirely sincere, and so she answers honestly.

"For helping me get to bed last night, I obviously wasn't at my best."

"It was my pleasure, Detective." He offers back with equal honesty, and the suggestion of something much deeper. "And for the record, you are always at your best. If perhaps not always at your most coordinated." He nudges her gently, and she does her best not to blush at the memory of struggling with her bra. Or the memory of how he didn't struggle at all.

They fall into a more companionable silence this time, and Chloe actually does try and observe their surroundings for some new clue - though the likelihood of finding anything out here is practically nil. At least it gives her something to focus on other than the man walking next to her, or the way his hands keep brushing against hers as they walk.

They continue deeper into the woods, nearly out of view of the houses behind them. Something glints beneath the foliage over to her left, and she goes to take a closer look. She's in the middle of inspecting the object (no more than a shiny rock) when a nearby rustling catches her attention, just behind where Lucifer is standing. It's instinct more than anything that has her reaching for weapon - sadly, only a can of keychain mace - but she's never been more thankful for those instincts when she discovers the source of the noise.

"Lucifer, I need you to move away from those bushes very, very slowly…" She breathes out slowly and deliberately, willing him to listen to her, just this once.

"Whatever for? What are you…" He looks back over his shoulder and whatever reaction Chloe might have expected him to have, it's not laughter.

"Are you really about to pepper spray some poor cat?" He throws her a pointed look before approaching the animal.

"That's a fucking mountain lion, Lucifer, get away from it!" She hisses as he crouches down beside it.

"She's a sweet girl, that's what she is." And Chloe thinks she may never understand this insane man or the weird power he has over everyone else, including, apparently, large predatory cats, because the thing is just sitting there, letting Lucifer rub its chin like some sort of overgrown housecat. She thinks it might even be purring.

"What are you, like the Beastmaster or something?" Chloe remains safely at a distance, knowing better than to approach the thing herself.

"I'm simply the Lord of Hell, and unlike humans, animals have no reason to fear me. To them I'm just another angel."

Chloe has no clue what to make of any of that, but quite frankly this whole situation is totally surreal. "So, what, all dogs go to heaven? Or all cats, then?"

"More or less. It's not as though animals can sin. Especially not this lovely girl." He coos, rubbing its ears as it playfully grabs at his arms and hands. She finally lets the arm holding out the mace fall to her side.

"Really, because I'm pretty sure cockroaches definitely belong in the 9th level of hell." She lets out a choked laugh, feeling a touch of hysteria creeping up on her.

"There aren't any levels to Hell, just many different doors. Dante may have been a great poet, but he certainly wasn't a prophet." And it's times like these where she really can't tell if he's joking, his grin holding no trace of humor. "But the beasts that do live there are far worse."

She can't think of any good response to that other another awkward attempt at a joke. "Yeah, but could they survive a nuclear winter?"

"Let's hope we never have to find out." After a beat he turns his attention back to the mountain lion, and Chloe simply watches him with the animal for several long moments. He almost looks...sweet. And it tugs at her in a strange way, a small echo of what she felt when she watched him playing with Trixie. He's unexpectedly gentle with the giant cat, and she realizes he's less guarded here as well, in a way he never seems to be around other human beings. Except around her , her traitorous brain chooses to remind her. Though at least the thought chases away the last bit of embarrassment over last night's behavior. She's not the only one who's letting down some of their walls here.

The sound of a nearby car manages to spook Lucifer's new friend, sending it running back into the forest. Lucifer just stands up casually, as if nothing out of the ordinary has happened. But then Chloe catches sight of his left arm, and she moves over to inspect it.

"It scratched you!" She exclaims, holding up his arm as if to offer proof.

"Did she? The noise must have just startled her, I barely felt anything." He responds, seemingly unconcerned. And while the marks aren't that deep, tiny pricks of blood dot along the long scratches.

"I still need to look at it, and we're definitely going to need some neosporin." She concludes.

And if she doesn't realize she's still holding onto his hand the whole walk home, Lucifer neglects to remind her.

When they return to the house, Chloe goes into full on Mom-mode, scouring every room for a first aid kit - though ending up with little more than a washcloth and a bar of soap. And Lucifer, clearly humoring her, sits patiently on the bathroom counter and allows her to wash away the small traces of blood from the scratches. She half expects him to be a baby about it, in the grand tradition of romantic heroes battling wild beasts and then wincing when the heroine nurses his wounds, but he just smiles back at her whenever her eyes dart up to his face. Perhaps she had overreacted a little to the injury, but she won't apologize for worrying.

"Well I wish we had some band aids or something but it seems like you'll live. Despite your complete and utter lack of regard for your own safety." She huffs out, tossing the soiled washcloth aside.

"I was never in any danger, Detective, nor were you. Though I wouldn't advise approaching her again on your own." He cautions her seriously, as if she needs to be told not to try and pet a fucking mountain lion . She almost laughs at his earnestness.

"No chance of that happening, her razor sharp teeth and claws are a pretty good deterrent."

"I wouldn't say that, I think I like my woman with claws." He challenges, eyes turning darker as she meets his gaze.

"Even if you get scratched?" She quirks an eyebrow at him in disbelief, but she can't help responding to his words and the intensity of his expression

"Especially if I do. Don't think I don't still feel your claw marks on my shoulder, kitten." His voice rumbles into her ear, making Chloe suddenly very aware of their proximity.

"I…" Chloe sputters, torn between embarrassment and disbelief. "Sorry, I...is it really that bad? I can…" She tries to signal that he should turn around so she can check on him.

"While I do thoroughly enjoy having you play nursemaid, I was actually hoping more for a repeat performance." He grins, finally standing up and moving towards her. Chloe instinctively takes a step back, only to meet with the very solid wall behind her.

"You want me to scratch you?"

Lucifer's hand goes up to stroke along her jawline, leaning further into her as he answer. "What I want is to see you in rapture , and so mindless with pleasure that you can't help but leave a mark."

Chloe shudders at his words, the sound of them making her feel wild and reckless and very, very wanted. She reaches out tentatively to run one hand carefully around the scratches on his arm, sliding her hand up and back around to his shoulder, tracing her nails lightly along the path they had followed the previous morning. And she definitely doesn't seem to have really hurt him. Quite the contrary, actually. She knows she's not imagining the small shiver she feels in response to her touch.

And then Lucifer's lips are suddenly on hers, pressing her back into the wall, tongue already demanding entrance into her mouth. She gladly opens up to him, tilting her head up to meet him full on while both her hands go to grip at his shoulders. Lucifer groans deliciously into their kiss when her fingertips dig into the muscle there, and she smiles at his reaction. He quickly gets back a little of his own, drawing out a gasp from her when he moves back to nip at her ear before mouthing at her neck.

His hands slide down over her sides, tickling at her ribs and running over her hips, before reaching to grip her thighs. She takes the hint and with a little hop she manages to wrap her legs around his waist, his arms catching her easily and holding her up as if she weighed nothing. She catches sight of the two of them in the mirror - her legs hooked over his hips and her hands gripping his taut back, Lucifer's mussed head tucked into her neck where by now he's certainly left a mark, and her own face is flushed and lips kiss-swollen. She looks...ravished. And they're still wearing all their clothes - far too many clothes, really.

"Bedroom?" She murmurs, breath coming out a little shaky.

Lucifer responds with another little nip to her throat before pulling back to face her. "Mmm, I do like where your head is at." He smiles.

Still supporting her as if she were weightless, he moves to carry her the short distance to the bedroom, never once taking his eyes off of her. She half expects him to kiss her passionately even as her carried her, but somehow this is even more intense. Chloe barely notices when he stops at the edge of the bed, only becoming aware of their surroundings when he finally lowers her gently onto the sheets. She gazes up as he moves over her, strong arms supporting his weight as he settles above her.

She waits for him to lean down for another kiss, but instead he just continues looking down at her in expectation, gently stroking her hair from her face.

"So will you finally admit it now?"

"Admit what?" She asks honestly, brain still a little fuzzy from their kiss.

"Don't play coy with me, Chloe." It comes out as more of a plea than a demand, and that is when she realizes what he is asking. It's the same question he was asking this morning, the one he's asked her many times before in so many different words.

"I said it last night." She reminds him, partly teasing and partly to stall.

"Yes, when you were so inebriated you couldn't even find your own pajamas." His tone is light but she can see the beginnings of a frown making its way onto his face.

"Are you really going to make me say it again?" Her hands reach up to run along the back of his neck, hoping to distract him, but he remains intent.

"A man does like to hear it." He attempts a grin, but it's not quite convincing. And she realizes he's practically begging her at this point, as much as he can allow himself to, and that's when she knows she's going to give in.

She lets out a sigh, feigning being put out by this whole thing but Lucifer catches on immediately, and already she can see his expression turn hopeful once more.

"I like you." There she said it. Now they can move on.

But no such luck - Lucifer's grin has returned full force, though he is obviously not fully satisfied with her to-the-point confession. "And?"

"And don't push it buddy. I said I like you." She sighs again, before continuing on once more. "I like being with you. I like having you as my partner. I even like living in this stupid house with you and pretending to be a normal couple and eating breakfast with you everyday. Are you happy now?"

"Very ," he admits easily, finally leaning down to kiss her again. Chloe luxuriates in the freedom of the moment, feeling as though a weight has been lifted from both their shoulders with her admission. She allows the kiss to stretch out for several long minutes, before deciding she'd like to get some answers of her own. Lucifer doesn't resist when she reverse their positions, pulling back to ask the question that has been bothering her all morning.

"So then what does that make us exactly?"

"Are you asking if we're going steady now?" He chuckles, and she smacks him lightly on the chest. He isn't going to make this easier on her, which she knows she probably deserves, but she also knows she'll drive herself crazy with wondering if she doesn't find out now.

"I'm asking what I am to you. Am I just your partner or one of your girlfriends or what?" Apparently the mention of other women seems to quickly put an end to his teasing. He sits up beneath her, drawing her roughly back against him.

"You're mine." He practically growls, his eyes darkening.

Her's are rolling. "How very neanderthal."

"If it makes you feel any better, Betty Friedan, I'm just as much your's." And it does, actually. "But I believe you already knew that."

"Hmm, maybe I did. But a girl does like to hear it." She teases, throwing his own words back at him.

"Why you little minx..." His roguish grin belies the accusation, and their lips meet once more, their kiss feeling oddly like laughter.

Still smiling against her lips, he pushes her to lie back once more - this time with her head at the foot of the bed, adding to the pleasantly dizzy feeling she's currently experiencing. Her fingers reach up to dip beneath the fabric of his collar, seeking out the warm flesh there and tracing distractedly along the back of his neck. His own fingers do not remain idle for long, reaching down to slowly unbutton her shirt (his shirt, she reminds herself). And she's never had anyone start from the bottom of the shirt, and for some reason it's slowly driving her crazy. His pace is maddening, tugging each individual button free before running his fingers over every inch of newly exposed flesh, the borrowed shirt slowly parting beneath his hands.

His fingers trace along her ribs and the underside of her breasts before loosening the final button, sitting back to watch as he peels away the sides of the shirt. Chloe resists the urge to turn away from the intensity of his gaze as he reveals her bare chest, body unconsciously arching into his hands. His eyes linger on her breasts, and she can feel her nipples tightening in response. He eventually leans down to plant a kiss at the very center of her chest, nuzzling gently along the line of her sternum. Her nipples are already peaked and aching from the indirect stimulation, but he continues trailing kisses everywhere except where she wants him. His hands caress the flat plane of her stomach, trailing goosebumps into their wake. But it's not enough. Chloe arches up into him, making small noises that she hopes will encourage him to get on with it.

Finally his hands glide upwards to cup her breasts, mouth following quickly behind. As he pulls first one nipple and then its twin into his his mouth, Chloe's hands rush to grip at his hair, holding him firmly in place. She accidentally tugs the soft strands in her hand a little too roughly at the slight hint of teeth against her breast, but Lucifer only moans against her flesh. She repeats the action, drawing out an actual growl, which she can feel vibrating through her entire body. Distantly, she can hear a buzzing noise from the direction of the nightstand, where her phone still rests, but she is thoroughly distracted by the circling of Lucifer's tongue around the peaks of her breasts. And then his lips are on hers once again, her bare chest pressing up against the rough fabric of his shirt in a way that leaves her aching for him, heat pooling between her thighs.

She can feel his answering hardness pressing up against her center, and unconsciously grinds herself upwards, trying to relieve the throbbing between her legs. Her thighs shift further apart, drawing Lucifer further into the cradle of her hips as she brings her legs up to wrap around his waist once more. There's far too much clothing into the way, but the rough fabric provides some much needed friction against her aching clit as they continue rocking against one another. Her hands are still flexing against his scalp, tugging once more at the strands and earning some delicious noises from Lucifer that are quickly swallowed up in their kiss. Her moans are now fairly a constant as well - between the movement of their lower bodies and the feeling of Lucifer's tongue battling with her own, and the way his hands grip along her sides beneath the fabric of the shirt that she still hasn't fully removed.

Eventually she feels his hand tugging at the button of her jeans, fingers dipping below her waistband and running along the edge of her panties. When they start to travel further downward, she reluctantly breaks their kiss, "wait..."

He immediately halts the actions of his wandering hands, pulling back with a sweetly confused expression. "What is it?"

"You were literally just petting a wild animal with those hands." She reminds him. He lets out a small chuckle, seemingly relieved that this is her only issue.

"Well I didn't put my mouth on it…"

"Well obviously, but what does that….oh!" The question dies on her lips when Lucifer bends down to trail his lips along her stomach, down to where he is now tugging her open jeans over her hips. She nearly moans at the realization of what he intends to do to her. But her stupid phone buzzes again.

"Ignore it…" he mumbles into her waist, where his teeth are currently scraping at her hipbone, making a very good case for just letting it go. But she knows she's can't.

"What if it's work? Or Trixie?"

Lucifer groans into her stomach, hands dropping down to her sides, but otherwise not moving for a moment. Finally, he sits back, allowing her to tug up her jeans and reach for her phone on the nightstand. He doesn't let her go far though, already pulling her back into his lap as she opens her voicemail. Apparently there are several missed messages.

"Most of the calls are from Ella, she wants me to come down to the station to look at something." She relays to Lucifer, who is currently doing his level best to keep her distracted with little kisses along the line of her throat.

"I'll come with you then." Chloe smiles at his new eagerness to help, but the next message makes her frown.

"Ugh, and apparently the developer is dropping by in like an hour, probably to try and kick us out of the house so she can move in another family. A real one. I need to talk to her about extending our stay for another day or two."

"Well perhaps you can go to the station and I can remain here to try and convince her?" He offers just as easily.

"And just how do you plan to do that?" She eyes him suspiciously.

"Jealous, are we? Green is a very good look on you, Detective. But no - I was simply planning to be my charming self." He grins with mock innocence. Chloe arches her brow and crosses her arms in front of her, but this only serves to draw Lucifer's attention back to her breasts. "Perhaps after a cold shower," he groans.

Chloe leaves him to his cold shower (half wishing for one herself), and heads into the station after quickly getting dressed. Ella practically drags her over to the CSI department the minute she walks through the door.

"You said you had a way to narrow down our suspect list?" Chloe asks as Ella guides her over to her computer.

"I think so. We now have some really good data from our analysis of the crime scene." She's pulling up photos and bloodstain analysis, which doesn't really answer Chloe's question.

"Any results on those DNA samples yet?" She suggests.

"It's only been like 2 days, this isn't tv. It's not like we even have anything to compare it to yet anyway." Chloe's hopes dampen a little bit, but Ella still seems excited about something. "But what we do have is a better estimate of the time of time of death and when she bled out."

Ok, that is pretty good news. "So we know the exact time now?"

"Well not exactly, but…" Ella pauses for a moment. "Let me back up a bit. So what we do know is that she died at some point on that Thursday evening, even though we don't know the exact time, and was later moved to a secondary site, likely by car. Which means our killer had to leave through the front gates, and pass by the security camera."

"But we already went over all the security footage - half the neighborhood was driving out on Thursday night and Friday morning. Without an exact time we don't know who it might have been."

"Yes but now we know the body was stashed for at least 16-24 hours afterwards, based on the amount of blood we found by the side of the house, which means…"

"Which means someone moved her on Friday night, not Thursday." Chloe jumps in, realizing what Ella has been trying to get at - they've been going off the wrong footage this whole time.

"And sometime between about 4 pm and midnight, which is a much narrower time frame." Ella's excitement is obvious, but Chloe isn't ready to get her hopes up after so many false leads.

"How narrow?"

"There's only 4 cars seen leaving The Palisades between those hours, so I thought you might want to take a look at them with me." Ella offers casually, trying not to look too pleased with herself.

"Ella this is great!"

The other woman's smile breaks out widely in response to Chloe's praise, and she quickly pulls up the security footage - already cued up to 6:14 when the first car exited the gates. The footage is a little grainy in the evening light, but the driver can easily be made out.

"I think that's Sharon. Maxine's wife." Chloe adds, before realizing Ella probably has no idea who any of these people are.

"Is she on the suspect list?"

"Not really, she barely knew Vidya. Plus look in the backseat." There's a small arm holding a soccer ball just visible behind Sharon, clearly belonging to her son.

"I'm guessing going to a body dump isn't really a family bonding experience, huh?" She offers with her trademark morbid humor.

"Not a very fun one, at least."

"Ok, so we can probably rule her out. Next car is at 6:47." She quickly fast forwards. "Do you recognize her?"

Chloe spends several minutes studying the face in front of her, but she doesn't recognize it the woman at all. "Not really, maybe she's one of the nannies? But I don't think she's dragging a body along in that tiny hatchback." That's two cars ruled out.

"Good point. Ok, let's move to 7:42."

This time, she identifies the driver immediately. "That's Richard Isaacson, and his wife Bunny. We did consider them on a possible affair angle, but there's no real evidence there. Plus they're leaving together, and it looks like they're just going on a date." Bunny's elaborate cut out dress doesn't really seem the thing for lugging around a body. That's three down.

"So that just leaves one more car, at 10:55. I realize we probably should have started there, I mean what else is going on out in the boonies at 10:55? It's gotta be our killer."

"Just cue it up." Chloe is suddenly impatient to see their suspect's face. The tape plays.

"Oh but that's…" Ella frowns in recognition.

"That's Angela Palmer." Chloe finishes.

"The developer lady? Was she even on the suspect list?"

"No, I mean she doesn't technically live in the neighborhood. And she was the one who set up this whole investigation for us, and she's…" Her eyes widen with sudden understanding.

"She's what?"

"We kept her apprised of the investigation, she knows everything we've found. And she's meeting with Lucifer at the house right now!"