31 Stride of Pride

Lily

“Do I look like you just blew my mind in the bathroom?” Lily asked, fixing her smudged lipstick.

She didn’t think it was obvious…but perversely, she rather wanted it to be.

Bel grimaced slightly, adjusting himself in his pants. A fresh wave of desire pounded through her veins like a drum.

She’d repay him soon. He might have noble compunctions about where she ended up on her knees, but she didn’t.

“Not going to lie to you…yeah, a bit. I’m not mad about it though.” Masculine pride dripped from every word.

“Me neither.” She bumped him with her hip. “Ready to do the stride of pride?”

“Wait, is my ass ‘prince’ quality today or just ‘decent’?”

Lily leaned back to get a better look.

Mmm.

She smacked it. For science.

His tail tip twitched.

“Seems pretty princely to me.”

“Sweet.” He rolled his shoulders. “Shall we?”

“Ten metaphorical bucks says that we are not the only ones missing from our tables when we get back,” Lily said, heading for the door.

Bel reached around her to open it. “Not only that, I’ll get specific. Fifty says Asmodeus is long gone.”

Lily laughed and shook her head, stepping out into the dim hallway, ignoring the line of people and suspicious number of couples. “Fifty says he’s still there. Sariah seemed pretty intent on making him suffer. Lovingly.”

“Fair point,” Bel said, weaving his wicked fingers through hers. “But Asmodeus can—and will—carry her.”

They stepped to the side to avoid a collision with a pair of well-dressed male souls who practically ran towards the bathrooms, sexual energy crackling between them.

Things in the bar had grown palpably more desperate than before they’d left. The trivia rounds seemed to be more of a background occurrence than the main focus, and there were more than a few empty chairs at previously full tables. Lily fought to smother her giggles with marginal success.

She lost the battle entirely when she spied her table.

The Fae woman was gone, her chair sitting at a haphazard angle. Muriel had a pair of men, not souls but Afterlife denizens of some kind, flirting with her at once, while Angel made eyes at a particularly pretty woman with flawless dark skin. Persephone was notably absent from her seat, which had been carefully tucked back in to the table.

Sariah, Aphrodite, and another woman from the Summerland were the only ones at their table paying any kind of attention to trivia. Sariah, apparently unbothered, seemed to have elevated ignoring her husband into an art form. Bel’s team had, for the most part, clearly given up the ghost of focus as well.

“That’s fifty bucks, big guy.” Lily cackled, nodding to where Asmodeus sat with his elbows braced on the table, hands folded as if in prayer and pressed to his mouth as he stared at Sariah with such heat it was a wonder her dress hadn’t simply caught on fire.

Bel scoffed. “Does that look like a man who is mentally present in any capacity?”

“He might be thinking with his other head, but he is still, technically, here.”

“In lieu of fifty bucks, how about I take you on a date?”

“Deal. But only if there’s food involved at some point.”

“Princess.” Bel pressed a hand to his chest in affront. “I’m a growing boy, of course there’s going to be food at some point.”

Lily grinned at him just as Lucifer glanced their way and did a double take, reaching over to smack Gregorith’s arm in excitement.

“Don’t look now, but I think Lucifer just realized we were naughty in the bathroom.” She nodded at them. Where Lucifer seemed almost childish with glee, Gregorith remained reserved, a raised eyebrow his only outward reaction.

“ Naughty is such a strong word,” Bel said smugly, flexing his hand at his side. “We were perfectly polite. You even said please—more than once, if I remember right.”

Her cheeks flamed. She swatted him as he laughed.

She loved that laugh.

He held out his fist. “Stride of pride, princess.”

“Damn right.” She bumped his fist with her own and smacked his ass for good measure. “Go get ’em, champ.”

She returned to her table to catcalls and whistles, dropping into a curtsy and raising a manicured middle finger.

Aphrodite smirked, propping her chin on a hand. “He didn’t even mess up your hair. If you didn’t look so blushy and satisfied, I’d be disappointed for you.”

“As it is, I’d say that’s a skill,” Angel put in, glancing away from the woman who was nearly on her lap.

“He’s very courteous,” Lily murmured into her drink, blush spreading to her ears. This was about you, princess. For you.

“That,” Sariah said cheerfully, “is the face of someone who is going to be absolutely useless for the last round of trivia.”

“Unless it’s about sex,” Aphrodite said.

“If it’s about sex, then someone needs to go find Persephone. Something tells me she’s getting an education right now.”

Lily swirled her glass. “Probably more of a refresher course.”

“Never”—Aphrodite leaned across the table—“underestimate an immortal’s creativity. Eternity presents a good opportunity to try lots of new things. And get shockingly flexible.”

“Speak for yourself. I was flexible. Once. Now I’m pregnant with the child of a walking beefcake, which is great, but said child is currently kicking me in the ribs,” Sariah said, pressing a hand to her side and shifting to a more comfortable position.

“And your point is?” Aphrodite asked.

“Downward facing dog got me into this, but downward facing dog is not going to get me out of it. Save yourselves. Screw fitness. Eat cake. Multitask and eat cake off of your partner, especially if you don’t want to worry about dishes.”

“Now feels like a great time to mention the many perks of being a lesbian,” Angel said.

“Eating cake off of your husband is probably just a different road to the same result,” Lily pointed out.

“True,” Sariah said, rubbing her side. “But at least there’s cake. Now, shut up and focus, we are not going to lose at trivia.”

* * *

They lost at trivia.

Unsurprisingly, the top three spots were swept up by groups of asexual beings and souls who had wisely teamed up with each other. Lily’s team—which they’d brilliantly named just as the alcohol had kicked in—had done respectably well, all things considered.

Team PigBenis beat the guys’ team, Something Equally Stupid, which was really all they cared about. Especially after several more rounds of drinks.

The first-place team was announced, followed by an en masse scraping of chairs and stools and a collective burst of movement as people rushed to end an evening of teasing.

Asmodeus simply appeared by their table, picked up a smug Sariah with extreme care, twisted away, and disappeared through the crowd. Lily hadn’t even seen him leave his table. He’d just been a blue-gray blur.

Aphrodite winked at Lily, demurely finishing her drink before she stood and spent an inordinate amount of time adjusting her dress just so, all while Hephaestus hovered patiently behind her. Not rushing, not saying a word, just watching her with reverence and enough heat to forge something. The moment she smiled at him and offered her hand, he towed her away with a speed belied by the presence of his cane. Angel winked at Lily and turned her full attention to the woman kissing down her pink neck.

Lily went to throw back the remnants of her bright blue drink, but paused to watch, impressed, as a four-armed, green-skinned being pushed a male soul wearing a three-piece tweed suit backwards onto a table, one hand tugging his shirt out of his pants.

A wall of heat pressed against her back a moment before Bel’s palms came to rest on the table on either side of her.

“This was about when I bowed out last time. Orgies aren’t really my thing,” he rumbled.

She downed her drink, carefully setting the empty glass on the table and tilting her head back to look up at him, ignoring the way the world spun slightly. “But you’ve tried it?”

He shrugged, dipping down to kiss her chin. “Once, barely into my time in the army. I like all genders and most positions, but it turns out I’m not fond of sharing. You?”

“I got propositioned by a couple once. They were a part of a swingers’ club and old enough to be my parents. I turned them down, then spent a month reevaluating my entire life, because apparently, I was the kind of person creepy old swingers wanted at their parties.”

“ Or you were just hot, and they had eyes and no boundaries. How old were you?”

“Twenty-three. And I was at work too. Orgies are intriguing in theory, but frankly they seem like a lot of work. If I wanted to disappoint multiple people at once I would have talked about my reading habits at Thanksgiving.”

Someone started moaning behind them.

They looked at each other.

“Time to go?” she asked.

“Time to go,” he confirmed, making room for her to get up.

The Hallway was full of chatter, the asexual folks and the less desperate catching up with each other and laughing. Lily slid her arm around Bel’s waist, careful not to brush his wings, hugging him as they walked. His arm was a pleasant weight around her shoulders, fingers tracing idle patterns on her upper arm.

Lucifer stood apart from the crowd, deep in conversation with an unfamiliar woman, their deadly serious expressions completely at odds with the jovial atmosphere of the night. Lily frowned and slowed, the haze of the alcohol lifting slightly.

Bel squeezed her shoulders. She met his eyes.

“Keep walking.” He shook his head. “It’s nothing for tonight.”

Her chest tightened as a tendril of anxiety wormed in, but she nodded and turned her head forward, focusing on not falling in her heels. They’d seemed like such a fantastic idea sober. And while slightly drunk in the bathroom with Bel.

I regret nothing.

Firmly drunk and walking home, however…her feet didn’t hurt, but the heels might not have been the best idea.

“Speaking of your reading habits,” Bel said with a grin, his eyes glassy but coherent enough. “I must say, I’ve been taking notes.”

“On which one? Is it the tail one?”

His mouth dropped open. “There’s a tail one ?”

“No…”

“You’re a terrible liar.”

“I’m a fucking fantastic liar. I’m just slightly drunk.”

“Pounding the Fuzzy Navels, were we?”

“I don’t like that mental image. And no, I didn’t want to tempt you beyond reason.”

“You existing is pretty damn tempting, princess.”

“And yet,” she said, squeezing him a little, “you wouldn’t let me return the favor. Like a chivalrous asshole.”

He chuckled.

“I’ve been thinking about it,” she informed him. “I’ve been making plans.”

“Oh?”

“Yep. Involving your cock and my mouth.”

He choked and missed a step.

A woman who was even drunker than Lily pointed at her with enthusiasm. “ Yes! Get it, girl!”

“I’m trying!” Lily said, then blinked. “I like your dress.”

“I like your dress.” The woman beamed. Her partner shook her head, smothering her laughter as she tried to tug the woman away. “We’re friends now!” the woman called.

“Yeah we are!” Lily grinned, looking up at Bel. “See, she knows what’s up.”

Bel muttered something under his breath about something being up, a little smile on his face.

The Hallway grew quieter as they walked. Most realms operated on a fairly similar schedule, and it was generally night within them. Lily spied a certain arch and tightened her grip on Bel.

“What’s wrong?” he asked, halting.

Lily opened her mouth, then closed it again, hating the slimy, dark sensation oozing over her skin, through her insides. Her chest had been so peaceful and full lately that the sudden hollowness was all the more jarring.

“Lily?” he asked gently, moving to see her face more clearly.

“Have you ever been to Heaven?” she asked, tearing her eyes away from the gleaming, hideous perfection of the arch and focusing on his handsome face.

“A few times. The souls there are nice, but a demon in Heaven can be a little jarring for even the nicest people, yeah?”

“That’s bullshit,” she muttered.

“True. I also don’t like that much gold. I’m clearly more of a make-it-black kind of guy.”

“You’re trying to cheer me up.”

“Yep. Is it working? Or do I need to start removing clothes?”

She squinted at him. “Yours or mine?”

“I haven’t decided yet. Your shoes look uncomfortable. Incredibly sexy, but uncomfortable. However, I have more clothes on, so we have more to work with there.”

“Mm.” She glanced over his shoulder to the arch and sighed. “Seeing the arch to Heaven makes me feel small. Wrong. Like I’m this walking sinful flaw, and it’s only a matter of time before someone notices. Which I know is bullshit, but I can’t stop feeling that way. I hate it.”

Bel nodded slowly, gazing down the Hallway while he seemed to consider his words. “You’re not alone in that. It’s shitty, but I’ve heard some souls talk about feeling the same way. That thinking, what they teach you, is wrong. You know that, and I know you know that, but sometimes it helps to have a reminder. You created and run the Hellp Desk in Hell . No one, not even Heaven or God or the Universe itself, gets to make you feel inferior, because you’re not.”

Lily wished her head wasn’t so fuzzy. She rested her hands on his hips, toying with the embroidered edge of his tunic, savoring the solid strength beneath her palms. “You’re making it very difficult to remember that I’m not supposed to have my way with you at the moment.”

He arched his scarred eyebrow, a deliciously cocky smirk settling on his lips. “Princess, I think you’re a horny drunk.”

“Well, yes, but you’re not helping. I keep thinking about what happened in the bathroom and my plans and you’re right here. See my problem?”

He groaned, stepping a little closer. “Let’s not talk about what happened in the bathroom, or your plans. If we do, I’m going to embarrass myself.”

“You could embarrass yourself into my—”

He clapped his hand over her mouth with a laugh. “Let’s get you home, Lils.”

She shot a sour glare at the gleaming arch as they passed, then refocused on other plans that, sadly, did not include Bel naked.

“I have a proposition for you,” Bel rumbled a few moments later.

“Go on.”

“As much as I would love to explore other things tonight, I don’t think we should. We’re both drunk, and in no position to decide anything that important. So. We’re not having sex. Yeah?”

“Yeah.” She definitely wasn’t pouting.

“However, I want to be with you. I don’t want to just drop you off at Paradise. Would you like to stay with me? Fair’s fair. I’ve seen your home, you are more than welcome to come see mine. Or we can stay at your Paradise. Or I can take you home. Whatever you want, obviously. But you’re invited. To my home, I mean.”

Lily hid her little grin. He was…rambling. It was cute.

“I’d love to see your home. And while we agree, no more hanky-panky tonight, making out can be really fun. I wouldn’t be mad about making out like teenagers with you.”

“Deal,” Bel answered quickly. “Want me to sneak you in a side door so we get the full teenage experience?”

“How about we strut in like adults and then go full tonsil hockey?”

“Never call it that again. But yes.”