my_own_advocate | Lucifer's Mansion, Wednesday Night

Duke laughed softly at Lucifer’s enthusiasm. It was adorable, and Luce was going to get a kiss for it when he returned.

“Don’t mind if I do.”

Lucifer had, perhaps, made a bit too big of a charcuterie board. Especially with the extra deviled eggs, and the fancy ocean blue mock-mojitos to frame the board.

But why not go overboard if you could? Truly? Overkill was his middle name, wasn't it? So to speak.

He swept all of it together, got a balanced tray to put the drinks in, took off his jacket and his shoes, and then swept back towards the stairs.

This was going to be a perfect date night, damn it.

"Lucifer Overkill Morningstar" did have a certain ring to it, didn't it?

Duke laughed again when he saw the board, and yes, he was absolutely sitting up from his sprawl across one of the loungers, anticipating being able to grab that kiss without upsetting the balance.

"You never disappoint, babe."

Lucifer leaned in gingerly to take his prize from Duke's lips, grinning. "I thought we should celebrate our first date night in swimming pool paradise."

"As Tavi would say, briyon." Duke tilted his head, only pulling away an inch or two from the kiss. "Or she'd ask why a pool needs celebrating. Either way."

Lucifer sighed. "Yes, well, sometimes there are benefits to having you to myself," he said, "Rather than dearest Octavia offering color commentary."

"Good thing you can have me both ways," Duke said, teasing, leaning in to kiss Lucifer's neck next (he'd get to that charcuterie soon, he promised). "Or . . . really, just about any way you want me."

Lucifer chuckled, low in his throat. "After dinner," he murmured, "Which I'm going to wind up tipping into the pool if you're not careful..."

"Well, we can't have that," Duke said, pulling back to fully appreciate the charcuterie. "So. What have we got?"

"Mainly just the classics," Lucifer said, setting it down between them. And then putting each mocktail down with care, as well. "Mortadella, prosciutto, sopressata, chorizo on this end. Chevin, Edam, manchego, camembert, and a good aged Gouda over there. Obviously the baguette I baked here a few hours ago, with a number of spreads. I am especially fond of the aioli. There's onion marmalade for the cheese, and some pickles, and... well, the rest speaks for itself, really."

Duke set about stacking a bread slice high before Lucifer even finished speaking. "This looks amazing," he said. "And fresh bread!"

He was much more of a chef than a baker; it was a whole lot easier to improvise with sauces and soups when on the high seas than on something like bread.

"You're spoiling me."

He did not sound disapproving, no.

"What's the point of date night without a little spoiling, hm?" Lucifer asked, grinning.

(He also just felt the most comfortable doing so, but sh.)

"Well, thank you," Duke said, closing his eyes as he took a good whiff of the gouda. "I for one fully approve of your style."

"I also made us some mocktails," Lucifer added, picking up his drink. (He was undecided on whether he wanted to spike his own.) "Blue Ocean mojitos. Utilizing only the finest in non-alcoholic Blue Curaçao syrup."

"Of course they are," Duke said, picking up his own drink to take a sip. "You wouldn't use anything but the best non-alcoholic Blue Curaçao syrup."

"Nothing but the best for either of us," Lucifer chuckled, and smiled at him fondly.

"How was your day?"

Duke hummed happily, both in agreement to Lucifer's declaration, but also in enjoyment of the flavor of his drink.

"Good," he said, once he'd finished enjoying his sip. "I took the OceaNyx out around the island, just for the hell of it. It was cold, but gorgeous."

"Just for a tour?" Lucifer asked. "Or did you... linger?"

"I . . . took my time?" Duke said. "I feel like you're trying to make a joke about lingering that I am not quite getting."

"No, just trying to prompt more detailed sailing stories out of you," Lucifer admitted. "You do love it dearly."

"I do," Duke agreed. And as he put together another stack of food from the board, went into a description of the water and the wildlife he'd been able to spot in the preserve from the boat.

"Like I said: cold, but gorgeous."

"I think I'll prefer it when it's warmer," Lucifer chuckled. Creature of LA that he was. "But it certainly sounds like you enjoyed yourself."

He took a bite.

"I know you were hoping this would help."

"I did," Duke said. "And . . . I've been hoping everything would help. Do you mean the pool?"

"Taking more trips on the boat," Lucifer said lightly. "By yourself."

"Right, sorry." Duke shook his head with a small laugh at himself. "Yeah. It really seems like it is. I love you guys so much, but I really am used to spending way more time by myself, you know? It's nice to get out and away for a little while, here and there."

"Oh, I'm hardly going to guilt you about it," Lucifer said, raising a hand. "I'm just glad to hear you're finding ways to make life work for yourself."

Something in Duke unknotted. There'd been such drama about his sailing to the Bahamas on his own -- due in no small part to his usual barrelling ahead -- that he'd started to worry that he'd get the same reaction every time he wanted to set out on his own. Even when it just meant going out around the island on his boat.

He'd known that was silly. But he hadn't known it.

"Thank you," he said softly, tempted to lean in for another kiss, though his hands were full of charcuterie. "I am going to let you ravage me so hard tonight."

He would have anyway, yes.

"Well, I will do my best to live up to that," Lucifer said.

He sounded faintly surprised.

"Are you all right?"

Duke nodded, giving Lucifer a little smile. "I guess I was kind of . . . nervous. About how you guys would respond to me taking the boat out alone. It's silly, I know, but. . . . Brains are pretty silly, when you get right down to it."

"I just want you to be happy, love," Lucifer said, mouth curving faintly. "We already share our lives. I don't need to be joined at the hip with you every moment of every day."

"Right. And I know that, but. . . ." Duke shrugged. "Wouldn't be the first time lately that what I 'knew' turned out all wrong."

He would be working on trusting his own senses again when it came to what his partners wanted and meant for . . . well, probably a little while, yet.

"Fair enough," Lucifer said. He reached out to touch Duke, run his fingers along Duke's temple as he pretended to push his hair aside. "You belong on the water," he said. "I'm happy to see you indulge it."

Duke turned his head to try to catch Lucifer's hand with his lips. "You're right. And it feels good to get to do it."

Lucifer's mouth curved at the feel of Duke's lips. "I thought we could take it slow tonight, ravaging or not," he said. "A skinny dip in the pool, to begin with."

"I never say no to a good skinny dip," Duke said. He leaned his head against Lucifer's hand for a moment longer, then turned it again to pop his latest stack of meat and cheese and bread into his mouth.

Lucifer chuckled. "I know," he said, leaning back so he could enjoy his own food. "It's one of my many favorite things about you."

"I know it is," Duke echoed in return. "But I won't stop you if you want to go into detail about how much you like my naked, wet body being on display."

"You're just so free with it," Lucifer said dreamily. "So little shame."

"This body is the result of decades of hard work," Duke noted, preening a little. "What's to be ashamed of?"

"Absolutely nothing," Lucifer said, and took a moment to enjoy a piece of cheese. "You're wiry and svelte in all the best ways."

Was he leering? Yes, of course.

"Mmm. 'Svelte'. That's such a good word," Duke mused. He tilted his head thoughtfully. "After our swim, maybe you can swaddle me up in a towel?"

He'd been reading about swaddling for therapy, and was thinking idly about how it might work for a fun restraint as well.

Lucifer perked up. "Ooooh," he said. "We do have some particularly large beach towels, don't we?"

“Of only the softest organic cotton,” Duke confirmed.

"Good to wrap you up with," Lucifer mused. "And make you ride me."

Duke was too bloody beautiful, was the thing. The mental image would haunt him regardless of whether they followed up on it.

“Ooo.” Duke grinned. “We come up with the best ideas, don’t we.”

He’d be picturing it himself. Their skinny dip was going to be terribly distracted.

That was part of the fun, wasn't it?

"We are very good at sexy ideas," Lucifer agreed. "And relaxing ideas in general."

He stole a piece of sausage from the plate with a very filthy smirk.

It absolutely was.

"I'd say we could teach courses," Duke said, "but that would be, like. The opposite of relaxing."

"Absolutely no teaching for us," Lucifer agreed. "That sounds like a waste of precious time we could spend having more sex in interesting configurations."

“We’ve both put our time in enriching young minds,” Duke observed. “We’re retired.”

Lucifer chuckled. "That we are," he said, and sipped his mocktail, and beamed at Duke with a mad amount of affection in his eyes.

"You also had that furniture idea, didn't you?" he added.

Duke blinked, needing a moment to follow where Lucifer was going. Then his eyes went wide.

“Yes,” he said, delighted. “Yes I did.”

Lucifer sipped his drink. Carefully.

"You and Octavia talked, right?" he said. "About... sharing?"

Duke tilted his head and wobbled his hand. "Sort of. We talked more about how you two got started with the kinkier stuff. And what she gets out of it. We didn't, like, decide how much we should share with each other or anything, though."

"Hm," Lucifer said. He sighed. "She and I did something like that once," he said. "That's all."

"Hot," Duke said, lips quirking in a fond smile at the thought. "We'll have to all talk together sometime. About what we might want to try with the three of us. Now that I'm a little less . . . hair-triggered."

"Mhm," Lucifer said. He sipped his mocktail. "There's no guarantees all of your kinks are compatible, of course. But I do think there's... some fun wiggle room for us all."

Lucifer's Mansion, Wednesday Night

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