huggable. It was difficult to keep from squeezing him until his ribs cracked. Everyone wanted to love on Bill. Normally, I denied myself the pleasure of hugging my father. It was undignified and weak. Tonight, was a different story.
As much as I wanted my son to see me respect my own mother so he would respect Elle, I wanted him to see me show my father affection. I wanted Luke’s affection—not the fake kind. The real deal was all I would settle for. And I would earn it starting now.
Bill hugged me back, and I rested my head on his shoulder.
“I killed my daughter,” I whispered.
“No, son. She killed herself,” Bill contradicted me. “Your mother told me everything.”
“Then why do I feel bad?” I asked.
Bill smiled and touched my face. “The circle of life is not for the fainthearted. At some point in every life, a person has a choice of path to follow. When Immortality is on the table, there are far too many paths to choose from. Wrath chose the wrong path over and over. Madness took her, and her fate was set.”
I sighed and let his words sink in. I would not leave my six other daughters in the Basement of Hell. The chance of madness taking them was high if they burned in fire for centuries. Wrath had been a lost cause for thousands of years. The others? Maybe… maybe not. I would give them a chance. They would still suffer a punishment, but it wouldn’t cause permanent damage.
Of course, if they pulled anymore deadly shit, all deals were off.
Elle walked into the center of the guests who still remained and cleared her throat. “We had wanted to announce this at the party, but…”
“But things did not go as planned,” I finished her sentence, joining my lover and gazing at the people around me.
I wished my brother was still here, but I would phone him tomorrow. My mother and father were here. Elle’s mother remained. Murry was trailing Elle around like a puppy. I seriously hoped he wasn’t afraid of the dark and would ask to sleep with us. It would be very bad form to electrocute the Dragon.
Astrid, Ethan and Samuel had yet to leave. Lizard, Martha, and Jane were present and, presently, in the act of a lewd public display of affection. Turning away so I didn’t have to zap them, I scanned the rest of the group.
Steve Perry, Dr. Ruth and Fred Rogers stood slightly outside the circle of family and watched with smiles on their faces. I was fully aware it would be very simple to coerce the lead singer of Journey into being my best friend after what had happened tonight, but I chose not to. He would always be my favorite singer in the Universe. That would remain unchanged. But I was tired—tired of games. Tired of cheating. Tired of lies. If I were ever to become friends with Steve Perry, it would be because both of us sought the friendship. Plus, it was delightful stalking him. Hell, I might not even like him if I got to know him. Doubtful, but possible. Of course, the altruistic attitude that had infected me would be gone tomorrow after a marathon of sex and a good night’s sleep.
It wouldn’t do to have a nice Devil.
Today had been beautiful. Today had been devastating. Tomorrow was a new day—a fresh start. Punishments must be doled out and chaos must be encouraged. A vacation would be lovely, but there was no rest for the weary… or the evil.
“It’s definitely an understatement about the plans going awry,” Mother Nature said with a pout. “I didn’t even get to pole dance for the guests.”
“Maybe some other time, darling,” Bill said as he took my mother’s hand in his and squeezed.
“Or not,” I added with a grin as my mother shot me a glare. “Elle, would you like to do the honors?”
“Yes, Lucifer. I would,” she said, smiling down at the sleeping child in her arms. “You will announce his first name. I shall announce his middle name.”
“He has a middle name?” I asked, confused.
“He does,” Elle assured me.
“Are you sure?” I asked, growing concerned.
“Very,” Elle replied.
“How sure?”
“Very, very, very sure,” she said as her eyes flashed in warning.
Shit. It was going to be bad.
“As you wish,” I said. “Our son’s name is Lucifer, but we will call him Luke.”
“Beautiful,” Sadie said. “It’s a perfect name.”
“For a perfectly wonderful and naughty little boy,” Mother Nature added with a