She was gutsy and willing to just say the way things were when it helped her case. She wasn't afraid to stand up to him and fight for what it was that she apparently wanted. Paul's smile was widening ever so slightly without his realizing it. Lumen was quite a woman especially considering that she had just watched someone she was considering as a lover die, come back to life, and she had almost been killed herself. Her stretch was a little to much though Paul wasn't above watching her figure with an appreciative gaze. "Fine, you're welcome to stay here. It might even do me some good to actually have someone around the house to chat with on occasion." Paul was beginning to realize something. Lumen might make a good ally and a good friend and that was probably more important in the long run than some momentary pleasure in the bedroom.

Standing up, Paul left the drinks laying where they were and walked over to Lumen, purposely coming close enough to make the situation at least a touch intimate. Sure, he could sense the tension in the air and he was enjoying it for the moment, but he could also see that Lumen was getting tired. Unfortunately, thanks to his resurrection, Paul wouldn't be getting any sleep that night. He was as fresh as a daisy and would be staying up without any rest. "Just remember one thing for me. If you think you need any help and for some reason you don't feel like using the police, ask me. I have my connections in the underworld, I know the streets, and I've got the experience to be pretty good in a fight. If you need help, just ask." He said quietly, his expression serious and his voice intense. He did not want Lumen to go get hurt just because she was to proud to get help so he was making sure that she knew he was there. Besides, other than trying to meet up with a certain immortal man, Paul really didn't have anything on his schedule.

"And since that's out of the way... there's one thing I've been wanting to do tonight." The intensity was still in both his voice and his eyes before he leaned down to plant a kiss on Lumen. She could obviously turn away if she wished but he had to test the waters to see exactly what Lumen was looking for. Had things changed since she learned he was a mutant too or were things still simmering under the surface?

>>"Fine, you're welcome to stay here. It might even do me some good to actually have someone around the house to chat with on occasion.

Lumen smiled, a genuine smile. Nothing forced. She felt the tension in her shoulders lessen just a little and the touch of anxiety that had been bothering her lightened. She had a safe place to sleep tonight. This morning. Whatever. She'd need to fix that sleep schedule before it got too crazy.

"Well, thank you." she replied. "Don't let me twist your arm."

He got up and stood closer to her for a moment as if to emphasize his point.
>>>"Just remember one thing for me. If you think you need any help and for some reason you don't feel like using the police, ask me. I have my connections in the underworld, I know the streets, and I've got the experience to be pretty good in a fight. If you need help, just ask."

"I'll keep that in mind." did he mean underworld crime or underworld death? Maybe when it was more appropriate she'd ask him what happened when he died. Or maybe she was too chicken shit to want to know. "Im pretty good at taking care of myself, just like you, it's how we survive." she put her hands on her hips.


>>>"And since that's out of the way... there's one thing I've been wanting to do tonight."

Before she could say boo Paul was leaning down toward her face and suddenly things slowed down and she knew what was happening and where it could go. Did she want it to go that way? A big part of her body and libido said yes, she really really did, while a small part of that body cried no, really really tired. Her mind was alert and aware weighing the pros and cons. Her heart. Her heart was of Riori. Could a kiss and something more from Paul possibly quench that?... well.. that was the point of trying after all wasnt it? The whole reason for the date? Could Paul replace Riori for her or at least blot him out for a while? She wouldn't know if she didn't try.

She held her fingers up to stop Paul mid air and looked directly into his eyes while his lips hit her hand. "You get one. For right now. I ain't easy... but I have fun too. " She gave a mischievous you're-only-getting-a-kiss-but-it's-going-to-kick-ass kinda grin. The she pulled her hand away and stood up on tip toes to kiss him long and hard. She might have even ended with a daring bite to his lower lip just to prove her point and help him remember it was a good thing she was staying here despite his comfort for being alone.

She pulled back after what seemed like a few minutes but could have possibly been a few seconds, breathless. "Okay lover boy. Some of us may have been reborn again but others need some sleep before the sun comes up."

The fact that Lumen stopped his kiss before it could land so that she could make a smart remark made him grin ever so slightly. She was definitely one of the spunkier of all the women he'd even met and he was glad that she wasn't an easy woman that just fell into bed with whatever man kissed her. It meant that if something did eventually happen then there was a chance it might actually be something special that meant something instead of just a fun romp in the sheets.

Finally their lips met, firmly, and for quite a while they just explored one another. Her lips were soft against his but it was obvious that she had kissed before and knew what she was doing. There was no tentativeness just a firm knowledge of what she wanted and how she wanted to get it. It was the sort of partner that Paul enjoyed but all to soon she pulled away, leaving them both just a touch breathless.

"I was going to suggest that at least for this morning you go ahead and take the bed in the bedroom." Paul responded, forcing himself to quickly transition away from the kiss and back to the 'just friends' category. The kiss had been really, really good but as tired as Lumen was sleep was the best thing for her. "Let me just grab out of a change of clothes and then you can settle in for some rest. I might read or maybe I'll go jogging for a while... something."

Not bothering to wait for a response, Paul turned and headed into the bedroom, returning in just a few minutes with a pair of sweat pants, a pair of jeans, two t-shirts, a sweat shirt, two pairs of socks, sneakers, and a pair of boxers peaking out from where they lay sandwiched in between some of the other clothes. It was enough to allow him to decide between which activity sounded best without having to slip back into the bedroom. Lumen would have completely privacy which somehow Paul knew would be important to her. "Sleep well 'Lumineuse ange'***," Paul offered with a smile, using his French to give her a name that he thought was far more appropriate than her lover boy comment, "I'll see you in the morning."

(*** luminous angel)

Lumen was more than happy to take the couch and just crash. But Paul didn't give her a choice, he was gone in a flash and back even quicker. She gave him a lopsided sleepy smile. "Okay, just this once. But I am perfectly fine with taking the couch for the rest unless you successfully woo me in the week I'm here." she teased.

She rolled her eyes at the funny french pet name, but it did make her feel nice inside. At the very least, she had a friend in Paul. Maybe a friend with benefits if he was lucky, but it was obvious a friend none-the-less.

She meandered into the bedroom and sat her things down on the lone night stand. The bedroom was just as sparse as the rest of the place but she sunk into the duvet when she sat on the bed. She'd just put new clean clothes on but now she couldn't understand why. She slid them off into a neat pile on the floor and crept into the bed in her panties and bra. She laid there unmoving letting the weight of the blankets comfort her as well as the dark of the room. There was no sound but the smell of what was below in the bakery still met her nose. She was sure she'd wake up wide eyed in a few hours thanks to whatever they were cooking up.

She thought about everything that happened this week, analysing every detail. She decided the trip up must have come from the warehouse situation downtown. Only one of the men had been arrested and obviously not the key player if the next was after her. All the damn fault of a flash. She'd be certain her next camera had a function lock to prevent those things from happening.

Even though she was in Paul's bed and it smelled of Paul, her mind drifted back as it always did before sleep to Riori. She pictured themselves as children and she curled up into a ball on her side with her hands inside her knees for warmth. Riori would know what to do. At 6 he could be far more colder and calculating than she could 20 years later. 20 years, it had really been 20 years. The little girl inside her wanted to cry. She was fooling herself. Nothing could quench the gaping hole in her center that was her other half.

Finally fatigue over took her, and Lumen succumbed to sleep . For once she had a dreamless night.

"We'll see if you only stay a week or if it ends up being longer." Paul answer was quick, with a warm smile to go along with it, "And you having the couch after tonight is just fine by me."

After Lumen went into the bedroom and closed the door behind her Paul made his way over to the trash can in the kitchen. After stripping off his priestly garment and placing it in the trash he redressed in the running clothes and sneakers. Thanks to the smells already wafting up from the bakery below, he was already feeling hungry so he grabbed a granola bar from one of the cabinets and quickly ate it down before moving toward the door. Glancing around the room Paul was about to leave when he suddenly realized something. What if he took an extra long jog and Lumen got up before he got back? Making a quick decision he left a door key laying on the table where it would be easy to find and then headed out, locking the door behind him with one of his many spares. After only a brief warm up he was out on the side walk, running through the crisp winter morning.

Over the past few years, Paul had often run in order to tire himself out so that he couldn't think. It had just been easier if he didn't have to think about the pain he felt form Ashley's death. Since his talk with Katrina it had gotten easier and he had begun to find the joy of running once again but this morning he wasn't running just because he liked it. No, he was jogging to burn of energy and to keep himself away from the bedroom in his house... the bedroom where he knew Lumen was now sleeping. With teenager hormones flooding his system, it would have been all to easy to slip into the bedroom and see if something else could happen. But Lumen's trust was far more important and so Paul ran from the temptation... he ran until his mind and body were to tired to be tempted.