[Completed] Buyouts, Hostile Takeovers & Matchmaking (PG-13/R) [Archive] - Page 4 - NS Forums - Your number one site for Chloe and Lex (Chlex)

BlueSabby

7th January 2006, 19:03

A/N:Sabby: Guess who's back..back again...Sabby's back...tell a friend (Sorry Eminem, couldn't resist!) So, now that I got that out of my system. Here's the next chapter, the next fortune cookie the next squabble and tension and all around good stuff and another break that'll have you biting your nails and cursing us. Enjoy! *G* and thanks for all the wonderful feedback so far. You guys are really awesome and we appreca..appreciate (damn) every line. MWAH!

A/N: Blue: More trouble ahead for Chloe and Lex. Enjoy

“Friendship is a lie that fearful lovers stand behind.”

Lex shook his head and expelled a sharp breath through his nose. He was definitely going to have a word with MaiMai. Out of morbid curiosity he opened the last fortune cookies, leaving the crumbs on the plate as he picked up the tiny slip of paper.

All it said in Mai's tiny, cursive script: “Try again,” he read out loud.

Crumpling it up he threw the piece of paper to join the others on the floor, again shaking his head.

“I'm sorry about this, Chloe,” he said. “This is obviously MaiMai's idea of a joke.”

He took a swig from his wine glass before explaining. “She's the grand daughter of the shop's owner and has had a crush on me for quite some time. It seems she's gotten it in her head to play matchmaker now.” He shrugged.

Chloe nodded. “Nice to know that I’m not the only one with meddling friends and parents.” But it was hard to imagine a young woman having the balls to do this to Lex. She decided that she liked this MaiMai, even if she had made things a little weird.

“And don’t worry about it,” she said with a wave of her hand, “I know that you have no intention of matching with anyone anymore.” She took another sip of her beer, downing the rest that was left in the bottle.

“Just make sure you warn the next woman who opens the rigged cookies,” she gave him a small smile and then got to her feet.

She was about to go into the kitchen when she heard the phone ring. If only she could remember where she had put it…..

Lex was looking off to his right and Chloe remembered that she had placed it between two boxes in his general vicinity. She walked over to where he was sitting and got down next to him, moving the boxes aside before finding the phone.

“Hello?” Chloe listened and smiled. “Hi, Dad. Yes, I’m settling in fine.” Her strap was doing its whole obeying the force of gravity thing again. “Um, next Wednesday. For a week.” She looked around and said, “No, I don’t have a pen. I don’t even know where they are.” She heard her father chuckle and then speak again. “I can remember Tuesday at seven without having to write it down. And it’s the one we discussed, right dad? Nothing more.” Her father didn’t say anything. “Dad,” she said in a warning tone.

Lex listened to the one sided conversation with growing interest. Obviously she was talking about her trip to Chicago when she referred to the following Wednesday, however as the conversation continued, things got confusing.

What was with next Tuesday, a meeting with her father perhaps? And what was the whole 'the one we discussed thing' all about. He hated overhearing phone conversations when he didn't get to hear the other end as well. Obviously what ever Gabe had said or hadn't said last had put Chloe in somewhat of a snit.

He watched her get up and start to pace and wondered if he'd have to bear the brunt of her obvious frustration after she'd hung up with Gabe.

“You ok?” He mouthed the words up at her as Chloe turned towards him.

Chloe nodded at Lex as her father tried to tap dance his way out of answering her question. “Dad, I don’t have time for you to get your story straight right now. I will be here on Tuesday and the desk and chair that arrive had best be the ones we discussed not ones that are hundreds of dollars more. Do you understand?”

She opened her mouth when her father blatantly pretended that he couldn’t hear her anymore and hung up on her. She took the phone away from her ear and then hung it up as she sat back down next to Lex. “I cannot believe the nerve of that man,” she huffed.

If Lex had known it was as easy as hanging up the phone to get things his way, he wouldn't have had the conversation about the couch with her in the room. Of course he didn't tell Chloe that, but merely shrugged a shoulder to show his helplessness with the situation.

“I guess he just wants the best for you and won't let anything stop him,” he said evenly.

Gabe had a way of showing his daughter how much he cared. And even when it was about money, it was clear that the important thing was actually not the money itself, it was the thought behind spending it. Gabe wanted only the best for his daughter and would stop at no expense.

“I suppose,” Chloe said dryly. She hadn’t expected Lex to take her side being that she was sure he would have done the same exact thing. “I swear, though, I have half a mind to send the damn thing back if it’s as expensive as I suspect it will be.”

It wasn’t that Chloe didn’t think she deserved these things. She just didn’t want her father blowing all of his money on her. A little was allowed but she suspected that he and Lex would unknowingly be playing the game of which one could spoil her more.

“I don’t even want to think what would happen if you two joined forces,” she said, scowling over at him.

Now there was a thought worth contemplating. They'd already done it once before, of sorts, when Lex had helped the man buy a beautiful kimono dress for Chloe and get her to accept it. He wondered if Gabe would be willing to help him with the task of getting her to accept his help with the decorator. Jean Pierre wasn't exactly inexpensive, but his taste was immaculate.

“Why is it so hard for you to accept that people want to do something nice just because they like you,” he asked, ignoring the scowl on her face.

She was really insufferable about that and Lex would have to slowly wean her off that habit. It wasn't that he wanted to turn her into a money digging siphon, he just didn't think he'd be able to fight her tooth and nail every time he wanted to buy her a small gift.

“It depends who you’re talking about,” she said, bringing her knees up to her chest and wrapping her arms around them. That caused both damn straps to slip but she’d fix them after she made her point to Lex. That was more important.

“My father would literally spend every penny in his bank account on me if I let him,” she said in an exasperated tone of voice. “I think he thinks that he didn’t give me enough growing up. Which is not true. It almost feels like he’s making up for something that he feels he did wrong when I was younger.” She shook her head. “I’ve explained to him that I don’t need the gifts but it doesn’t make him stop.”

“And part of it also has to do with the fact that I can take care of myself.” She looked over at Lex. “Now that I can take of myself I want to actually do that. Besides,” she said, looking away from him, “if you get used to other people taking care of you, it gets dangerous.”

Lex understood that, but it still seemed to him like Chloe was going absolutely overboard with that credo. Accepting one or the other gift would not turn you into a depended creature void of any and all self sufficiency. It took a lot more than that.

“Do you really think that accepting one or the other gift from a friend will make you dependent on them?” He shook his head. “You're much too strong a person for that to happen.”

She did have a point in her argument with Gabe though. If the man really went completely overboard in trying to give her what he thought she needed and then some, it was a good thing that Chloe set some boundaries.

“I won't argue about the point with your father. But honestly, when it comes to me,” he quirked a grin. “Without trying to sound like a snob now, I don't think I could spend all my money, even if I tried.”

Chloe laughed and ducked her head. “You’re not a snob, Lex.” She placed her hand on his shoulder and said, “You’re an elitist snob,” with mock earnestness.

Lex gave her a small glare and she squeezed his shoulder once before saying, “The point isn’t how much money you have. It’s that you should be spending it on something that you want. Not just throwing it around for the sake of spending it. And, I know, I know, you want to do this but,” she paused.

He had a point and she didn’t want to dismiss it out of hand. She did have trouble taking things from people. “I’ll work on it regards to you, ok?”

Lex assessed her calmly before he spoke. “I can accept that,” he said evenly. After all it was something to start with. “But if you don't watch your comments,” he pointed a finger in the direction of her nose then turned it towards himself, “This elitist snob is going to do nothing to help you with unpacking your boxes. Be warned.”

Of course the threat was an idle one since he didn't intend to leave Chloe alone with the tedious task of lugging around heavy boxes and putting things into place. He wondered how she'd even managed to get everything over to the new apartment in the first place. Hopefully, she'd had other friends to help her with that.

Chloe nodded slowly as she smiled at him. “I believe that empty threat, I really do.” There was no way in hell that Lex would just get up and leave when there was so much work to be done. Even if the work wasn’t his own, it was not in his genetic makeup to do so.

She leaned a little further forward and said, “Though, I could see said elitist snob informing me that I was unpacking in an improper fashion.” Chloe cleared her throat before doing her best imitation of Lex. “Really, Ms. Sullivan, don’t you think it would be more prudent to start with that box first.”

“So, in order to stave that off,” she leaned away from Lex and pulled herself to her feet. “You’re just going to have to help me.” She held out her hands for Lex and he quirked an eyebrow up at her. She shrugged one shoulder, “Just showing my elders some respect and offering to help them to their feet.” In order not to laugh at the glare Lex was shooting her Chloe had to bite down on her bottom lip. Muttering under his breath, Lex took her hands.

He gripped her fingers tightly, and for a moment deliberated pulling her down, but the only thing that would accomplish was that she'd end up in his lap and that was not what he wanted. Too many bad romantic moments in too many bad movies had started that way.

Instead, he kept hold of her fingers but got up without using them as leverage and only pulled at the last moment, when his momentum was already settled. He let go of one of her hands, sending her spinning until her back was to his chest.

“I'm not that old and you know it,” he commented sharply then pushed her away from him with a firm shove to her waist. “Now let me in on your system.”

Chloe was aware that he was not that old. But, when he got too smug for her liking something had to be done about it. There were enough people in the world that kissed his ass and asked how high when he mentioned the word jump and she wasn’t going to add to that tally.

She’d been impressed by his little move but made no comment on it. Chloe surveyed the room and said, “The boxes are grouped by what room they are supposed to be in.” She thought about what stuff was crucial to get unpacked.

“I’ll take these here,” she said, waving in the general direction of the boxes that were for her bedroom. “You can start with those,” she said, turning around and pointing to the boxes at Lex’s feet. They should be the ones for the living room. Nothing too embarrassing for him to find in there. “Please,” she added.

Earlier, she had brought out a pair of scissors to open the boxes. She grabbed it for herself and then looked around until she found her Swiss Army knife. She slid it over to Lex and then hunkered down by her boxes.

Lex flipped open the knife and set to work. He cut through the tape on the first box and opened the flaps to find it full of books. Nodding to himself he picked it up and lugged it over to the boards that had already been mounted on the walls.

Realizing that his jacket would only be getting in the way, he took it off. Gazing down at his shirt he decided he might as well make it a little more work fit. He removed the cufflinks and put them on the low coffee table then rolled up his sleeves in an orderly fashion. Properly dressed he went back to the next box. More books and again a short trip to the boards on the opposite wall.

The third box held framed pictures folded into old newspaper. “Do you want the pictures to go anywhere special?”

Chloe looked up from where she was sitting. She had tucked her legs under her and was busy at opening all of the boxes. She wanted to get a visual of what had to be lugged into her bedroom before moving it all.

She had seen Lex going back and forth to the book cases and was pleased to see that he carefully arranged the books by the author’s last name. Her first roommate hadn’t understood why it was so important to her that the books be in order. Just a pet peeve of hers that she insisted on.

Being that she had packed a few boxes of pictures, she wasn’t certain which ones Lex had. But, she didn’t have a plan of where any of them should go at the moment. “You can just put them on top of the bookshelf for now,” she said.

Chloe liked to have pictures scattered over her apartment. She didn’t believe in having them in one centralized space. Besides, she had bought some new frames so some of them would be taken out and hung instead of sitting on a shelf.

“Okay, then,” he said and lugged the box over to the other two with the books. That left another three boxes still sitting in the middle of the room.

He opened the next one to find several table cloths and settings, a few small serving dishes and what looked like candle holders. Things like that obviously were going in a closet or bureau of some sort, so he put the box aside at an empty wall for now.

Moving on to the next box, he slid the knife across the line of duct tape, a little surprised when the box moved easily under his hands and something inside rattled. Arching a brow he opened the flaps. And closed them right away.

Stoically ignoring what he'd seen he moved on to the next box and sliced through the duct tape with a quick movement, then cautiously pulled one of the flaps open. More books and some folders, obviously some work related things. Thank goodness.

Lex picked up the box and carried it to the other three boxes already under the boards. He continued storing the books on the shelves in alphabetical order, forcing himself to ignore the box he'd left pretty much in the middle of the room.

“Hamilton, Hemmingway, Kafka,” he muttered the names of the authors under his breath, “King, Kingsolver.” He chuckled as he looked at the assortment. There was just something intrinsically wrong about classical literature ending up next to horror stories and what had to be romance novels.

Now having some idea of what needed to go where, Chloe looked back up at Lex and smiled as he put her books on the shelves. He hadn’t made a comment about her reading material but she could feel that he wanted to. Lex was obviously on his best behavior.

Chloe got to her feet and picked up one of the boxes. “I’m going to start carting this stuff into the bedroom. Let me know if you run out of things to unpack.” She looked around the room and said, “Ok, not very likely. Call me if you need something.”

Thankfully she had already unpacked her clothes so there wasn’t any chance of Lex getting a box full of her underthings. That might put a damper on their friendly evening.

Once in her bedroom she looked around and smiled. Part of her still couldn’t believe that she got to live there. Then she reminded herself that she had earned it with her hard work.

Lex had wanted to tell her to move 'the box' but somehow he hadn't managed to get the comment to pass his lips. Instead when Chloe was out of the room, his eyes went back to the inconspicuous cardboard container and its most unexpected contents.

He took a deep breath and looked away, stoically returning to sorting the books. However, soon enough the last book was in place and the pictures had been lined up neatly on the upper bookshelf. There were still five other boxes in the room. They stood closer to the kitchen, so Lex assumed they kept utensils and appliances.

His eyes went back to 'the box'. It was ridiculous that his curiosity was killing him. He wasn't interested in that aspect of Chloe's life and surely there wasn't anything in the box that Lex hadn't already seen and most likely used. Still, his eyes kept being drawn back to the box.

Finally, he was fed up with it and went back to the box he'd been pretty much staring down at odd intervals. He flipped open the flaps and looked inside. Sure enough, the box was filled almost completely with toys. He shook his head as his eyes fell on handcuffs lined with leopard print fur. A small leather blindfold, a string of beads and latex gloves were tangled together on one side and Lex's brows rose.

“Kinky,” he muttered with a smirk.

Pawing around a little he found various dildos and vibrators in different sizes. Obviously, Chloe had accumulated quite a selection over the years. He pulled out one of the longer dildos and curled his fingers around the girth.

“Holy,” he breathed.

Placing the rubber shaft back in the box he shook his head. No reason to get a complex about it. But the mental images where quite something different. He should not be thinking like that. Friends didn't think of friends like that. The pictures popping into his brain were definitely not friendly material.

Yet, he couldn't stop looking at the contents of the box, wondering what else he'd find in there. Leather shackles and clamps where all it took to convince him to stop looking at once.

Flipping the box shut once more he got up from the floor. Lex took a deep breath and adjusted himself in his now decidedly more uncomfortable pants. He tried cleaning his thoughts by mentally repeating the mantra 'Friend, not fuckbunny'.

“Jesus,” he whispered.

The conversation they'd had during one of their dinners came back to him. She'd said she was into experimenting and that she enjoyed sex to the fullest but.

“Damn,” he drew the one syllable out somewhere between awe and shock.

Even after only a few minutes of pacing back and forth in her room as she put things away Chloe was a little winded. She had to get back to the gym and it needed to be soon. As she looked around the room she was pleased to see that it was taking shape quite nicely.

The smile was still firmly on her face when she went back into the living room. It faded when she saw Lex standing in the middle of the room. He had the oddest look on his face and Chloe couldn’t place it.

“Lex,” his head shot up quickly and he raked his eyes over her body once before looking back at her face, “what’s….”

And that’s when she noticed the box sitting in the middle of the room. It had been opened but she couldn’t see what was inside of it. What could Lex have….

Chloe gasped when she remembered the one box that she had packed and not labeled. How could she have forgotten about that one?

She looked back at Lex, trying to find some words to say, and then noticed something else about him. There was quite a noticeable bulge in his pants. Things had just gotten even worse. She didn’t want to look away from him like some embarrassed virgin but she couldn’t look at him when he was in such a state.

Especially because of why he was in such a state. She wanted to tell him that it was normal for him to react because of the items, wanted to make a joke, wanted him to stop staring at her like he was before she lost any semblance of self control that she had.

Lex stared back at Chloe and for a moment everything seemed to freeze. There was no way she didn't know what he'd just seen after her eyes went from him to the box back to him and down his front. That's when he knew his pants hadn't concealed his state in the slightest.

He'd also once again broken his ground rule of not looking when she'd entered the room and found it hard to ignore the flush on her skin or the slightly disheveled hair. Lex was trying really hard to come up with something, the awkwardness of the situation being one he hadn't encountered in a long time.

However, his usually intelligent brain couldn't come up with anything. Not one witty repartee or soothing comment, nothing to break the damn tension in the room. This was hell.

Clannadlvr

7th January 2006, 19:20

Oh, HELL yeah!!! Fabulous moment, ladies. It's great to see Lex with his feathers ruffled...I can't wait to see where this leads! (I'm sure more awkwardness, but maybe somthing more as well?)

Gaia

7th January 2006, 19:46

That was just soooooo and tooooooooo funny!!!!Brilliantly made as always and yet so amazingly good. The tension in the room will have to stay for a while and it will most likely end in a really harsh way for Chloe..or it could not but that is all up to you:D
Update fast please.!!!!

Kikina

7th January 2006, 20:15

Great awkward moment, love it.Can´t wait to see what happens next, either they laught it off or ... :hankpank: (turns pink "What, girl can dream, can´t she?) at least a slight kiss or tender touch, pleeeeease?Anyway, I´d love to see how you solve this.Please update soon(ish) ;)

hfce

7th January 2006, 21:48

:rofl:That was hilarious I can't stop laughing. :rofl: And Mai is a hoot figures she would trick them. :rofl: Sorry I can't stop laughing. Lex looking at her toys. That was to much and having a reaction excuse me but :rofl: This made my day thanks guys. :D

Hope :)

zho9

7th January 2006, 22:29

That was too good! Could not stop giggling childlishly while reading the last half of this update.
I love how Chloe can surprise and unsettle Lex so easily.

“Kinky,” he muttered with a smirk.:devil:
I thought he was going to find a dildo and maybe handcuffs, but damn! Kinky is right! Clamps?!? (aware am being slightly prudish, but like Lex, did not see this coming)
Love all the tension and hope this does not end too badly for either of them.
Cannot wait for the next installment!

BellaMR

7th January 2006, 22:36

I loved this update! I can't believe that Chloe forgot about THAT box. That should have been the first one to be put away so the contents can quickly be put to use :yeahbaby:
Poor Lex! He was trying so hard to be good (sorry for the pun). Chloe and her slipping straps will be the death of him yet.

kimmie

8th January 2006, 02:23

Kinky Chloe!!! Lex is speechless, I can't believe it!!! A speechless and horny Lex now is the time to make your move Chloe!!! Please tell me someone's gonna make a move sometime soon!!!

Kimmie

a1ex17_r

8th January 2006, 02:26

You're killing me!
I outed myself as a lurker for you!
Update please

Kit Merlot

8th January 2006, 04:10

This was a great update, and I'm glad that Lex is now the one who's sweating out his attraction to Chloe--Good stuff:D

petoonya

8th January 2006, 04:48

I love the update! Ha ha, Lex found something that he probably didn't want to find. Now he HAS to face his feelings! I can't wait to see what Chloe's reaction to his findings will be. Thanks for the update!

darkangel

8th January 2006, 05:40

This is funny. I wonder how they will get out of this tense moment. Lol. Poor Lex. Next time he would not be so nosy.

bluengreenswmer

8th January 2006, 06:22

Hilarious!!!!

Friend, not fuckbunny<<<<<<<HAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHA

......ok....done now....

update soon, por favor

smugirl

8th January 2006, 06:50

Great story... Anxiously awaiting the next update.

georgee5

8th January 2006, 07:44

To quote Clannadlvr:

Oh, HELL yeah!!!

I think that those three words are all my now ChLex smut-filled, and kinky, mind can "cum" up with! ;-)

Clannadlvr

8th January 2006, 08:25

I think that those three words are all my now ChLex smut-filled, and kinky, mind can "cum" up with! ;-)

*snerk*

*grins*

chril1

8th January 2006, 11:26

actually if i was lex i think i'd be pretty afraid right now

but it was a brilliant chapter as usual

lea
xxx

sylvia

8th January 2006, 12:51

So, Lex with a hard on, unbearable levels of UST, and a box full of sex toys just waiting to be used. What's the obvious solution, Chloe? *hinthint*

Can't wait to see how both of them try to get out of this situation intact. Update with another great chapter soon, please!

meg20

8th January 2006, 16:52

That was awesome chapter, would really like to know how they are going to solve this situation, I sure hope for some yummy ways but I don't want to get my hopes up much!!!

dreamerjules

9th January 2006, 03:44

OMG! That was brilliant. Masters of the cliffhanger. But be kind and don't leave Lex, or us, hanging for long.

star del mar

9th January 2006, 06:27

I can't see this ending well. And I'm thinking that it's either going to make them jump each other (not likely but I'll hope) or they're going to get into a HUGE fight because I'm thinking that Chloe's not going to take to kindly to Lex having seen all her toys. Lex...see? All the good stuff you're missing :) I cannot wait to read more, great update!

Steph*

deia

9th January 2006, 16:32

Poor Lex! These sorts of situations are the things that make me happy I'm not a guy! And now things have just gone and gotten worse for them. I'm afraid if they don't decide to invest in a relationship soon their friendship will get too stilted and they'll start drifting apart even if just out of mortification....trust me I've seen it happen! Anyways lvoed the update and can't wait for you to come back with more though I have no idea how they're going to work this one out...besides the obvious solution of course!

senay-jor

9th January 2006, 23:49

I can't wait for Lex's response...what excuse could he possibly make up for his "condition"? I hope Chloe doesn't get too mad. I want it resolved. I am loving this...but I really want to see them get together. Great writing!!

SinnerSaint

10th January 2006, 05:54

I laughed so hard I actually hurt myself a little. That was totally great. I can't wait to see how the huge box of sex toys conversation goes.

squash

10th January 2006, 05:55

I don't know if I'm going to be able to make it til the next update...that was just too wonderful for words. In the meantime, as I wait patiently for the next bit, I'll just think about great that was. As always, that was perfectly done!

Kikina

10th January 2006, 19:30

Guys, I don´t know about you, but I am in a serious need of an update here, PLEEEASE ?!? :blinkkiss

summer_enchanted

12th January 2006, 01:41

Great new chapter, seriously can't wait for the next one!!!! :)

lilybite

12th January 2006, 10:32

Laughed or rather snorted out loud at this one. The embarresment the snooping the result. Maybe more to come on that one .

Thanks guys great story
Love it
Lily

Addie

14th January 2006, 00:26

That was too funny, great update guys.

BlueSabby

14th January 2006, 17:26

A/N Sabby: The long awaited resolution to the problem with 'The Box'. But of course peace and tranquility can't be maintained when dealing with those two. Do have fun and leave us more of the much appreciated feedback.

A/N: Blue: Here are our two heros muddling through embarrassment. For now, at least. Enjoy.

Chloe wished that Lex would say something because she had nothing at the moment. She couldn’t even string a sentence together through the humiliation that she felt. Her strap fell down her shoulder and she quickly fixed it again, watching as Lex’s eyes were drawn to the movement. His gaze lingered on her shoulder and then focused on her face again.

She cleared her throat, realizing that she was going to have to be the one to speak first, and said, “I’m sorry, I didn’t realize….”

But she trailed off there. She didn’t know how to finish the sentence. Quickly, she crossed the room and knelt by the box that was close to Lex’s feet. The flaps were blessedly closed but she flushed even more when she realized just how many things were in the box.

Feeling Lex’s eyes watch her every move, Chloe glanced up at him through her hair but he had schooled his face into a blank expression. His eyes were a different story and she looked away quickly.

Lex willed himself under control and tried to suppress the things he'd found out by accident. This couldn't be good for their friendship. He had to forget he'd ever seen that and pretend that nothing was amiss. He could do that. Hell, he'd been trained to do things like that.

“I'll just go,” he cleared his throat when his voice came out raspy. “Unpack those then,” he said as he walked towards the other boxes. “They're for the kitchen, I assume,” he half asked as he pulled out the knife he'd stored in his pocket.

Chloe just nodded because she wasn’t able to find her voice at this point. This had to be the most humiliating experience of her entire life. She wondered what Lex was thinking about her now. He wasn’t a sexual prude but still…

She picked up the damn box and walked quickly out of the room with it. She shut her bedroom door after her and placed the box on the bed before opening it. Before moving, she had gotten rid of some of her toys. ‘But not enough.’ There were still plenty of items in the box. Lex now knew what she was into.

It would have been vastly different if they had a friendly conversation about sex, like they had the other night, in regards to what they liked and disliked. But this was something different altogether.

Chloe tore her eyes away from the box and sat down on the bed, putting her head in her hands. She had to get ahold of herself before going back out there and she didn’t want to take too long. Lex was already horribly uncomfortable.

She ran her hands through her hair and then stood up again. She took the box and shoved it into the closet. Taking a deep breath, she opened the door and walked back into the lion’s den.

Lex had heard the movement behind him as Chloe had vanished back in her bedroom and had mentally prepared himself to have to go in there. He'd been sure Chloe would hide out in her embarrassment and just wait for him to go away. Which he had no intention of doing.

Instead, the lock clicked once again as the door opened and Chloe came back into the room. She didn't meet his eyes at all and was fiddling with her hands in front of her, chewing her bottom lip to shreds. The tension was thick enough to stifle all air in the room.

Lex could feel his temper rising with the helplessness that this entire situation seemed to force on them and after he took another deep breath, it snapped. He threw the knife, blade first, into the lid of one of the kitchen boxes and wheeled around on his heel with a curse, to face Chloe.

“Listen, this is by far the most awkward situation one can imagine,” he started as he raised a hand towards Chloe. “But we're both grown people and neither of us is anything even closely resembling innocent anymore.”

Lex took another step towards Chloe, realizing he'd probably scared her with his outburst. He softened his tone. “So yes, I saw your toybox and it had an effect on me and it's so awkward even I would like the floor to open beneath my feet and swallow me whole.”

He took a breath through his nose and shook his head, then forced himself to look straight at Chloe. “But I don't want this to be a reason for us not to be able to look in each others eyes anymore,” he stated silently.

When Chloe still didn't react, he managed to beat the Luthor inside him into submission enough to add a soft, but insistent: “Please.”

What Lex was saying made sense. And it actually touched her that he seemed to care enough to say everything that he was telling her. But, she was still the humiliated one here. ‘So, you’re just going to throw away your friendship with him because of it?’

The answer to that was a definite ‘no’ but Chloe knew that it would take at least a few minutes, at the very least, for her to get over this. She knew that her face was still red and she had jumped slightly at Lex’s quick movements.

Her usual reaction was to distance herself as much as was possible when something like this happened. But Lex wasn’t going to allow that.

She nodded and realized that she was still looking at the aforementioned floor which was doing neither of them a favor by remaining in one piece. Chloe looked back up at Lex and said, “Ok, Lex.”

They still stared stupidly at one another for a beat before Chloe went to retrieve Lex’s knife. She silently handed it back to him and realized that the air was still very charged. With what, she wasn’t sure.

“No throwing knives,” she said. “With both of our track records with danger you’re lucky that it didn’t boomerang back and magically knock us both out.”

Lex fiddled with the knife for a moment before looking up at Chloe with a half smirk on his face. “And that would have been a bad thing, right?”

The tension was still there, but he could feel it slowly decreasing as time moved on. Hopefully they'd be able to get past this. Lex really hoped that someday they would be able to laugh about this entire situation, looking back.

“Do you sometimes get the feeling that somehow, we never get a break,” he voiced the thought that had abstractly been running through his brain for a while now.

Chloe chuckled and ran a hand through her hair. “I’m inclined to say ‘yes’ to that question.” She went back into the living room and dragged a box back into the kitchen. She opened it and murmured, “But I think I’m getting the shorter end of the stick this time.”

Sure, Lex had gotten excited about her toys. But he was probably putting the toys in someone else’s hands in his fantasy. Somehow her situation seemed worse to her.

“And, I suppose it’s saying something that neither of us has been knocked unconscious or kidnapped in the past few years.” Moving out of Smallville had thankfully cut down on that happening.

“True,” he admitted, “But that's not exactly what I meant.”

He started taking plates out of the box on the table in front of him and freeing them from yet more newspaper to pile them in the middle of the table. “I actually meant when we're together,” he made a vague motion with his hand, “Things just seem to keep happening.”

There really was no better way to sum up all the unusual situations and moments that seemed to occur whenever Chloe and him ended up in the same place together.

“You mean broken elevators, photo spreads, fake illegitimate children, tiny cars, fights in a secret lab and boxes full of vibrators?” When she listed part of what had happened to them in the past few months she had to agree with Lex. Their combination seemed to throw the universe off its axis.

“I suppose you’re right,” she said, rising off of the floor but not looking at Lex. She had thrown in the last situation hoping to break the tension but she wasn’t sure if she had just made things worse. Lex was very still and silent behind her.

“The only way to see if it’s the mixture of the two of us together is to separate and see if strange things keep happening,” she commented. Though, that would happen soon enough when she went to Chicago. “If you wanted to be scientific about it,” she finished as she turned back around to Lex.

He didn't like the sound of that, at all. Chloe was not seriously contemplating pulling away from him now just because of this? It wasn't an option.

“I have enough things to be scientific about in my life,” he answered evenly, shrugging a shoulder. “No reason to add another one.”

Hell if he had to, he would find a way to get back on even ground, even if that meant humiliation for him. It was understandable that Chloe felt somehow more affected by this entire situation, but seriously it was awkward for both of them and he just wanted to get past it. In any possible way.

Time to change the subject. Lex wracked his brain for something and remembered that Chloe was about to take a trip to Chicago for some thing or another to do with her job.

“Do you know where you're staying yet in Chicago?”

“No,” Chloe said, wondering what was going on in Lex’s head. He had looked as if he was puzzling something else. But he didn’t seem to want to share it with her so she wasn’t going to push it.

“From what I’ve been told it’s some huge, ostentatious place with gold and crap like that all over the rooms.” Chloe had seen pictures of the hotel and it looked very upscale and not too bad. But some of the decorating was going a little far.

“I know that it’s near the convention center and around all of the local hot spots, clubs and bars so that’s something.” She gave him a smile before turning back to unpacking the glasses.

She didn’t tell him that it was the night life that she was looking forward to. She was bringing one of her toys but hoped that she wouldn’t have to use it. These things did serve the purpose of making contacts but there were always crazy stories about people from different papers fucking like bunnies.

Lex nodded as he went over to stow the plates in on of the cupboards. “Chicago's supposed to have a pretty good Jazz scene, but I don't know if you're into that kind of thing,” he commented absently.

Then he wanted to kick himself for his choice of words. Hopefully, Chloe hadn't noticed. Of course the chance was slim to none, so he ploughed on.

“Anyway, it'll pretty much force us to prove or disprove the theory.”

“I’m sure I’ll be able to get into trouble without you, Lex,” Chloe said as she moved onto placing the silverware in the container that went inside the drawer. “I did it before I met you so I don’t see why the trouble won’t persist once we’re not around one another.”

“Besides,” she muttered to herself, “it’s been far too long since I’ve gotten into trouble.” And by trouble Chloe meant in bed with a hot man for meaningless physical pleasure. Unless Lex had dog ears, though, he wouldn’t have heard that.

Lex's gaze jerked over towards her at that last muttered comment. He'd barely heard it, but it stirred something uncomfortable within him. On one hand, he hoped that the trouble she was talking about had nothing to do with broken bones and hospital visits. On the other hand, the possibility that she was talking about trouble that had to do with hard to explain bruises and sore places. He shook his head, clamping down on the thought and placing cups in a neat line on a board.

“Just be careful,” he said instead, “I don't want to have to take an unscheduled emergency trip to Chicago.”

The idea of that definitely didn't appeal in the least. He'd rather she came back the way she'd left. Untouched and in one piece. As long as he didn't have to worry, maybe he'd be able to find some relief for the tension that had been building over the last few weeks. He'd really have to try and get laid, sooner rather than later.

Chloe shook her head and rolled her eyes as she shut the drawer. Even her father didn’t talk to her like that anymore. He had given up on trying to get her to promise to be careful.

She turned around and leaned against the counter and was surprised to find that Lex was looking at her expectantly. It appeared as if he actually wanted her word on the issue. She held out her right hand, the fingers curled towards her palm and the pinky extended. “We’ll pinky swear on it.”

When Lex looked at her askance, she explained, “In the Sullivan household, it’s the highest form of a promise. But, you have to promise to keep your skull out of the way of flying objects and that you’ll try not to get tied to a chair.”

Lex looked back at the extended finger for a moment then up at Chloe's face. She was dead serious, which was amusing, considering he hadn't gotten a concussion in, well since he'd left Smallville permanently if his memory could be trusted.

“That shouldn’t be a problem,” he said as he stepped closer and extended his own pinky, gripping hers firmly.

“No dangerous investigating, no breaking and entering and,” he was tempted to say 'no hooking up with complete strangers', but he knew that would be taking it too far. “Don't take candy from strangers,” he rephrased it instead.

Chloe quirked an eyebrow up at Lex as she moved her hand up and down. She grinned and said, “Depends what type of candy they’re offering.” She was thinking of all of the free yummy drinks she’d be able to try out at the conference. The open bar looked very promising.

Lex glared down at her and she laughed. “I promise I’ll be careful, Lex.” She let go of his hand and said, “Besides, I haven’t needed to be bailed out of jail in the past few years.”

“And it better stay that way,” he muttered darkly, wondering if he should give her the business card of his main lawyer anyway.

Chicago wasn't that far away, but it was still a two hour helicopter ride and Lex didn't relish the thought of getting a call at 3 am being told he had to pick her up from the police station. “But you will call me if there is anything, right?”

The thought that Chloe might not call him when something happened was even worse than the prospect of a 3 am wakeup call. He'd rather know and be able to do something than find out a week after the fact.

Chloe considered the question. Honestly, she didn’t think Lex would be the first one on her list. Her father would most likely be the one that she would call. Now, the question was whether or not to be honest with Lex. He was studying her face and she was fairly certain that he would be able to tell if she was lying.

“If there is anything that you’d be the best suited to handle I’ll call you.” It was an honest answer and Lex seemed satisfied by it. He nodded once and turned back to the cabinets. She looked at his back and wondered at how they had come to this point of Lex being the one that she would call when she was in trouble.

“So,” she said, switching the topic, “how will you ever fill the hours while I’m gone?” Chloe picked up the empty box and threw it in the vicinity of the rest of them.

Work, more work, casual sex if he got lucky, and yet more work. That was the plan at least. However, he had a feeling that mentioning the part about the casual sex might not be a good idea considering the recent change in their situation.

“Pretty much the same way I always do,” he answered. “Paperwork and acquisitions. Charities, maybe I'll start a fundraiser if I get too bored.” He shrugged. “Any ideas what would be a good cause?”

Not that he'd seriously do that, there were enough charities and fundraisers in his name already. Figuratively speaking, since most of them were in no way related with the Luthor name, he'd made sure of that.

“How about the ‘Send Lex on a vacation’ cause?” Chloe knew that she could hold her breath on that one until she died and it would not happen. Her father was getting to be a little like that as well. Just work, work, work all the time. Maybe it was something in the air molecules in LuthorCorp.

“You could have a telethon and all,” she said. She swept her eyes around the room and saw that most of the items had been unpacked. It had taken much less time with two people working together. “I might even donate some of my new found wealth to it.”

Lex chuckled and put away the last glass from the bottom of the box, than leaned back against the counter crossing his arms loosely over his chest.

“Not a chance, I'm afraid,” he said as he looked over at Chloe. The strap of her shirt had once again fallen down from her shoulder.

He was tempted to move it back up to where it belonged, but touching her wouldn't be a good idea at the moment. The tension seemed to have vanished for the moment, but Lex was sure it could rear its ugly head anew at a moment's notice if he made the wrong move.

“But I'll think about taking a vacation if there's ample reason for it.”

Exactly mimicking Lex’s stance and tone, Chloe asked, “Please define for me the phrase ‘ample reason’ so I’ll know it when I see it.”

Actually, if Chloe knew what would cause Lex to take a much needed vacation she’d make sure that it would happen. She didn’t care what it took or who she had to get in cahoots with, come hell or high water, she would get Lex to relax in some place that wasn’t his house or within the Metropolis city limits.

Lex thought about it for a moment. The problem was, he had no idea what such 'ample reason' might be. The last time he'd taken a vacation, well set out to take a vacation, had been honeymoon with Helen. He hadn't bothered with such traditions after that the honeymoons that followed with subsequent spouses had been weekends. Back to work on Monday like clockwork.

His taste for exotic island resorts had been permanently cured and he couldn't really see himself trying to do nothing anywhere. He was much too used to being high strung. Oh he could relax, but only in short increments, not for weeks straight.

“I'll let you know when I find one,” he answered with a shrug. “For now at least, there isn't.”

And that much was true. He had work to do and in his free time he would go find someone to bed. Oh and there still was his project, but he didn't need a vacation for that. “I've gotten a bit further, working on the Aston by the way. Have I told you that?”

“Excellent diversionary tactic, Lex.” It was impressive to see the way in which Lex could change the topic. “But, because I’m interested in the kitty car I’ll let you get away with it.” She pointed at him and stressed, “For now.”

She walked over to the fridge and peered inside. After moving a few things around she found what she was looking for. The bottle of champagne was now properly chilled and fit for consumption. “Can I tempt you,” she asked.

Lex's brows jerked up in surprise as he looked at Chloe's back side, his gaze automatically sliding up from her behind to the strap that was still hanging off her shoulder. His eyes closed as the images of earlier assaulted his mind and he had to push them away forcefully.

“You certainly can,” he muttered under his breath before he raised his voice. “Depends on what you are offering.”

Chloe had heard all of what Lex had said and a slow smile spread across her face. It seemed as if she wasn’t the only one that sometimes couldn’t control their mouth. Now the real question was if Lex could handle another joke at this point after everything that had happened tonight.

“I’m offering you what’s right before your eyes, Lex,” she said, dropping her voice a little. Then before his eyes continued to bug out of his skull she moved the bottle of champagne and held it out a little. “Champagne?”

For a moment the breath had stalled in his throat. He was just a man after all. He knew she was attracted to him, that she wanted him and she'd calmly stood there. Stood there, while he was trying to fight the most inappropriate images in his mind, and offered him 'what he saw' and what he'd seen at the moment was her barely clothed body with that infernal strap still hanging off her arm and then. A bottle of champagne.

He took a deep, fortifying breath and stepped closer to her, reaching his hand out to take the bottle from her. Looking down at her shoulder, he glared at the strap and slowly, deliberately moved it back to where it belonged. When his eyes met Chloe's again, he forced his voice to sound neutral.

“You're playing with fire, Chloe.” He took a step back, then another one. “And I for one don't want you to get burned.”

Tomorrow night, he was going to go out and get laid by the first blonde that happened to cross his way. He would get this out of his system and then this friendship would continue and things would be alright when Chloe came back from Chicago after she had likewise gotten it out of her system.

Chloe had not expected that reaction from Lex. An admonition for her words or a joke was one thing. But the way he had looked at her and what his words communicated was something else. She was also cursing the reaction that her body had given when he had touched her.

Lex was still watching her carefully and had to have noticed the chill that ran down her body and what it did to her chest. She shook off the feeling and ran a hand through her hair trying to get back on steady ground. It was difficult when Lex had basically let her know that her interest was not returned in any way.

“I’ll get the glasses,” she murmured. Turning away from him, Chloe said, “Why don’t you take the bottle out into the living room, I’ll be there in a sec.”

Lex didn't say anything in answer, knowing that all Chloe really needed was a moment alone. His statement had hit her hard and he knew it, but she had to understand where he was coming from. He wouldn't do anything to deliberately hurt her and casual sex between friends never worked out.

He took the bottle with him into the living room and opened it with as little fanfare as possible. Lex hated the fact that the tension was back now because of a stupid joke. But he hadn't known how else to react. It was the only thing he'd been able to do. Give her fair warning and then give her some space. It was a good thing after all she would be going out of town for a week. The distance could only help.

Chloe ran a hand over her face and braced her hands on the counter as she took a few deep breaths. It was easy for Lex to say that he didn’t want anything to affect their friendship. He wasn’t the one that kept making an ass out of himself. Getting away from him would be good for her.

It would put things in much needed perspective. She was making a lot of new friends at work and maybe she wouldn’t need to rely on Lex so much. She could only hope so. There were feelings stewing inside of her that she would have to deal with sooner or later. They had to go away….she couldn’t take doing this to herself. Again.

It was one of the reasons that she hadn’t gotten into a real relationship in years. If your emotions weren’t involved, they couldn’t get trampled on.

She heard the cork pop from the other room but was hardly in a celebratory mood. Broody and sulky, yes. Fun, no. But, she’d have to muddle through it.

She was certain that both of their schedules were full enough to warrant her and Lex not having to see one another before she left. When she got back, she’d make a fresh start of their friendship. Her lack of contact with the opposite sex had to be partially to blame for this.

Lex looked up as he heard footsteps and watched Chloe coming in from the kitchen. The smile on her face was obviously fake and he hated seeing it there. He kept watching her silently as he filled the two flutes with the sparkling liquid.

Why did things have to be so awkward when it should be so simple? He wanted to reach out to Chloe and soothe her in some way, but that wouldn't achieve anything right now. Only push her buttons further.

Slowly he raised his glass. “What should we drink to?”

“Excellent question,” Chloe observed as she tried to think of something that was appropriately cheesy and vague as toasts often were. “Well, new beginnings and experiences.” Her voice went up at the end, making her statement more of a question than anything else.

She had a new apartment, job and was going to have a new experience at the conference being that she was presenting. But, that didn’t really apply to Lex. “Then again, that would mean leaving you,” she tilted her glass towards him, “out of the toast.” She shook her head. “Rather rude of me.”

Lex chuckled and shook his head. Sometimes she was rather predictable, but he found himself liking that aspect about her. The fact that he could count on her trying to get out of an awkward situation with slight humor.

“Well, I can handle not being the center of attention on occasion,” he said with a quirk of his lips. “And this night has been mostly for you. So,” he trailed off as he thought about the focal points of the evening.

“You’re right,” Chloe said as she touched her glass to Lex’s, “you’ve had enough toasts in your name.” She took a quick sip of the champagne and was pleasantly surprised to find that she enjoyed the taste of it.

She put her glass down and inspected the label. “This is actually drinkable. My boss must really like me,” she murmured. He had given it to her at the end of the day as a welcome to the team sort of thing.

Lex smirked and cast a glance at the label. She was right, the brand and vintage wasn't half bad. Maybe a bit dry, but at least not fickle.

“It's palatable for sure,” he commented haughtily, knowing it would earn him a 'snob' comment from Chloe and hopefully a real smile.

He watched her closely when she looked up at him, actually holding his breath for a moment. This friendship between them was important to him and he wouldn't let anything or anyone get in its way. Not even himself.

Chloe snorted into her drink at Lex’s comment. Unfortunately, the action caused the bubbly liquid to go up her nose. She quickly put the glass on the table as her eyes started to tear up and she unconsciously flapped her hands in front of her. “Ow, ow, ow.”

Once the worst of it was over, she put her left hand on her nose and looked over at Lex accusingly. His shoulders were shaking and he was doing his best not to laugh at her. “This is all your fault.” Instead of the scathing tone that she was going for she sounded like a four year old.

Lex willed his amusement under control and met her gaze steadily. He was immensely relieved that he'd gotten not only a smile, but actually a real laugh out of her. Even if it had ended up being more of a bubbling snort.

“Would you believe me if I told you that that was not my intention,” he asked. She simply glared at him. But it wasn't all that effective while she was still holding a hand over her nose.

And really, it hadn't been. Not like that. But it was still damn funny. And even through the annoyance, he could see that her mood had lifted considerably again.

He put his glass aside and went to the box with tablecloths that he'd put aside earlier in the evening. He'd seen a few cloth tissues in there as well. Lex pulled one out and went back to hand it to Chloe.

“You might want to clear your nose,” he commented.

“Do you know how much those cost,” she asked as Lex tried to hand her one of the fancier napkins that she had just bought. She knew that she could just wash it but that was hardly the point. With one last glare at Lex she marched into the kitchen and tore off a paper towel.

After blowing her nose she felt marginally better and went back to where Lex was standing in the middle of the room. “I’ve really got to get a move on with the furniture situation,” she commented.

At least her sheer stupidity had made things less awkward between them. That was good to know. The next time she did something stupid she knew how to fix it.

Lex was still looking at the napkin. Maybe he really was an elitist snob, because, looking at the piece of cloth, he really didn't see that it could be worth much. His gaze jerked back up to Chloe as she spoke.

“Well, as soon as you contact Jean Pierre, things will get done in a snap, I can guarantee you that.”

The man was a dervish when it came to decorating places. Lex had gotten a migraine more than once from arguing with the pesky, little French over one thing or another when it turned out that he had a taste polar opposite from what the gangly man considered 'fitting' for him.

Chloe looked over at Lex. There was something a little strange in his tone. “I don’t think that I wholly like the sound of that,” she said. The thought of what sounded like some French guy coming in and trying to bulldoze over her wasn’t very appetizing.

Then again, he had never dealt with a Sullivan so he might be in for a surprise.

Lex smirked before he picked up his glass and drained it in one long swig. Just the thought of Jean Pierre was threatening to make the vein in his temple throb.

“Don't worry about it, I'm sure things will go over smoothly.” He'd make sure of that. “You'll be sitting in a fully furnished apartment before you can say 'A Chorus Line'.”

~~~

As soon as his tongue made its way into her mouth, Chloe knew things were all wrong.

Kit Merlot

14th January 2006, 18:50

Excellent chapter!

I liked Lex's warning to Chloe, that her flirting with him was dangerous. She now knows that he isn't unaffected by her, and he isn't going to let his attraction to her ruin their friendship. I love this;)

But dear GOD, whose tongue is in Chloe's mouth?!

Louie

14th January 2006, 19:41

She's in Chicago and trying to be with someone else right. That's what the last line is from. *hope, hope, hope* cause then she might realize that there is no one but Lex for her and start actively persuing him. *hope*

Clannadlvr

14th January 2006, 19:44

Oooh, interesting! Great way to amp up the tension and keep it sustained. Curious to see who Chloe tries to hook up with to get her mind off of Lex!

masensimar

14th January 2006, 20:08

Really good.

bluengreenswmer

14th January 2006, 20:13

Who's god damned tongue is in her mouth???

You MUST tell us soon.....or pitchforks and torches may be involved...

Kikina

14th January 2006, 20:18

Chloe wished that Lex would say something because she had nothing at the moment. She couldn’t even string a sentence together through the humiliation that she felt. Her strap fell down her shoulder and she quickly fixed it again, watching as Lex’s eyes were drawn to the movement. His gaze lingered on her shoulder and then focused on her face again.

She cleared her throat, realizing that she was going to have to be the one to speak first, and said, “I’m sorry, I didn’t realize….”.

Awkward, but great.Love the tension :blinkkiss

Work, more work, casual sex if he got lucky, and yet more work. That was the plan at least. However, he had a feeling that mentioning the part about the casual sex might not be a good idea considering the recent change in their situation.

Well, I get your point, but if I may express my opinion, I think there´ll be nothing casual about sex with Lex Luthor(don´t you agree? :D ) Now the only thing I have to do is get thoughts about it out of my mind...need a cold shower :grin3:

As soon as his tongue made its way into her mouth, Chloe knew things were all wrong.

Feeling hopeful, let them take it slow, but a few touches and kisses can´t hurt, can they? :yeahbaby:

Can´t wait for another update,this one cartainly made my day.Thanks.

hfce

14th January 2006, 20:44

Ok that was a great update. I am glad they got past it but what was that last line? Come back here girls I need to know.

Hope :)

zho9

14th January 2006, 20:50

WTF? Whose tongue is in Chloe's mouth?!?

Otherwise, great chapter. I was actually tense just reading it and waiting for some sort of explosion to occur. I'm glad it didn't happen. It's great that their friendship means so much to both of them.
Can't wait for the next update.

petoonya

14th January 2006, 22:38

Great update! I really enjoyed how they dealt with the awkwardness. What a weird situation to be in. Can't wait for the next update, and to see whose tongue is in Chloe's mouth!

planetcal

14th January 2006, 23:20

Wow great update! Please come back soon and update!

Who's tongue is in chloe's mouth?????? You can't leave us hanging at that part!!!!!!

BellaMR

15th January 2006, 00:12

You know, you had a perfectly good ending for the chapter, then you threw in that last line. Are you trying to give us all a complex.
Great job on the rest of the chapter. I'm glad the tension was alievated before Chloe went to Chicago. Now, what trouble will she get into while there so that Lex can come and rescue her?
I'd love to see Chloe working with Lionel to get Lex on a vacation. She did imply that she would do anything or partner with anyone to see in happen.

senay-jor

15th January 2006, 15:24

I'm certain it will another guy's tongue but I hope Lex walks in and gets jealous (and pissy). I love it!! Can't wait for the update.

celticangel

15th January 2006, 15:31

Can't wait for the next part. Update soon!!!

welshy

15th January 2006, 16:15

That was a lovely update, I hope there's going to be more soon

meg20

15th January 2006, 16:52

Cool update!!!
I'm glad that they'll do anything to keep their friendship and it helps them through embarassing situations. Hope that Lex will have trouble to get Chloe out of his mind when he wants to fuck some other blond and it stops him!!!

dreamerjules

15th January 2006, 17:37

Loved Lex putting Chloe in her place. When will those two silly kids realize that they're all ready more than friends and just go for it? But then, you'd have to wrap up the fic. Double edged sword there. Dangit.

kcsgirl82

15th January 2006, 19:14

That was an awesome update. What's up with the ending, who's tongue is in Chloe's mouth, is it Lex's, and if not who's is it!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!
What's going on with Gabe and Lionel, haven't heard about them in a little while!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!
P.S. I hope it is Lex's tongue in Chloe's mouth, I can't wait for them to get together!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!
Please update again soon!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

star del mar

16th January 2006, 05:18

Holy God! I can't believe you stopped there! I need to know who Chloe is making out with, it can't possibly be Lex because if she was kissing him I'm thinking that everything would feel pretty good :) But they did pretty well, yea there was some tension but they made their way through it...not without some more sexual innuendos but those are always enjoyable anyhow. Great update! I can't wait for more.

Steph*

teejei

17th January 2006, 07:00

EGAD!

you girls KILL me. you know that, right?...right?!...good. :grin3:

now who the hell's tongue is in Chloe's mouth?! HMMM?! :wth:

darkangel

17th January 2006, 20:59

Can't wait until teh next post, this one was great.

randa

19th January 2006, 05:24

so it keeps getting better and better!
and that last line...WOW! that was a doozie!!

k, i gotta go...so more soon. and i mean soon!

awesome as always

randa

tiger04

19th January 2006, 06:32

I love this story, and love it even more everytime I read it. I can't wait to see what is going to happen. And what was up with that last line? please come back and update again soon.
AT

arkakitty

20th January 2006, 18:58

Loved the updates :) I really can't wait till the next one is uplooaded :) Please more soon.

BlueSabby

21st January 2006, 19:23

A/N:Sabby: So this is a monster because yea, there was really no other way to stop it...you'll see. But it should be fun. There's also the answer to "Who the hell is it?" and some more stuff. Also: Beware of the french! And leave feedback *G*

A/N: Blue: You know you've done a good job when you have readers asking who a tongue belongs to. That answer, and much more, awaits you in this next chapter.

She pushed away from him, which was made a little difficult being that he was currently on top of her but she persisted and he rolled away from her.

“What’s wrong,” he asked, a little out of breath. Chloe looked over at Gregory and started to shake her head.

“I’m sorry,” she said. And she really was. They’d had a lovely conversation down at the bar. After her presentation, which had gone so well that she’d gotten a standing ovation, she’d been beating the men away with a stick.

When she had seen the tall, well dressed man approach her, she knew that he was the one who she’d be taking back up to her room.

They’d made the perfunctory small talk and done the required amount of flirting before she had leaned into him, run her fingers over the back of his hand and then motioned that he should follow her. She liked being back in control. It suited her.

Even knowing that there were cameras all over the hotel didn’t deter either of them from getting started as soon as they were in the elevator. Gregory’s hands were making all of the right moves but Chloe found that she wasn’t getting all that aroused.

Perhaps it had to do with the fact that she had unbuttoned his shirt and her hand had encountered a thick mat of hair. But she had dated guys like that before so it didn’t make much sense that she would be repulsed by it.

She dragged him to the door of her room, fumbled with the key card and then yanked him in after her. Maybe if she did things quickly it would make it easier.

They stumbled over to the bed and he started to kiss her neck. She moved under him, trying to get comfortable but could only feel the kisses on her neck that made her skin feel as if it was trying to detach itself from the rest of her body.

When he had moved on top of her she had frozen for a moment. After calming herself down, she had taken his head in her hands and drawn him in for a kiss.

That was when her body had started to let her know that this was not what it wanted.

“Chloe, what’s wrong,” Gregory repeated the question. He looked confused and Chloe couldn’t blame him for it. She didn’t even know what was going on with her.

“I..I..,”she stammered out. She couldn’t believe that she was going to say this. “I just can’t.”

He looked over at her as if she had lost her mind. “Really, cause you seemed very into it downstairs.” He ran one of his hands over her arm. “Maybe it would help if we went slower?”

It was all Chloe could do not to slap his hand away. She shook her head. “That’s not going to help.” He looked very disappointed. “I’m sure if you go back downstairs you won’t have any trouble finding another companion for the evening.”

He rolled away from her, mumbling something under his breath, and then stood up. He glanced down at her. “I wanted you,” he stated clearly.

“It’s not going to happen,” she said. When she looked up at him she really couldn’t believe that she was turning him down.

“I could have you coming in three minutes flat and then again two minutes after that,” he stated matter of factly.

A phrase like that should have done something to Chloe….but she didn’t feel a thing. When she didn’t say anything, Gregory said, “No? Ok, well, it was good to meet you Chloe. And congratulations on presentation.”

With that, he walked towards the door and out of the room.

Chloe flopped back on the bed and wondered what in the hell was wrong with her.

~~~~
He hadn't seen Chloe again before she'd gone off for Chicago which had probably been a good thing. Still he'd been preoccupied the first two days after their evening at Chloe's new apartment. Too preoccupied to go out and follow through with his plan.

Tonight however he'd made a conscious effort. He'd gone to one of the clubs and things had worked out smoothly as expected. At first.

There had been a slew of women to choose from on the dance floor and up on the balcony and Lex had let his gaze roam over the crowd seeking specifically for a blonde. It hadn't taken long to find one. He'd approached her with a cosmopolitan and introduced himself.

Predictably, her eyes widened at the name and she gave him an appreciative once over. A predatory smirk curled his lips as he returned the favor. She was tall, maybe a bit too much so, with long, slim legs that ended in high heels.

Her cleavage was not to be missed in the almost indecently cut dress she was wearing and the rest of her figure shapely, if not overly toned.

They engaged in some trite conversation for a while, heavily underlayed with innuendo. Some of which seemed to fly right over her head, a fact that didn't exactly please him but didn't really deter him much either.

Soon enough the touching started and he found himself with her chest pressed against his arm and her eyelashes batting prettily, if not effectively, up at him. Her lips were a stained red smear over uneven teeth. Lex turned his gaze away from her mouth, determined to ignore that little tidbit.

When she suggested, predictably, that they leave for some place more quiet he agreed readily enough and led her out of the club and to his Porsche. She goggled at the car for a moment before settling in the passenger seat. She fiddled with the bottom of it for a moment, obviously trying to adjust it and failing. Lex stifled a sneer. He reminded himself that intelligence was not prerogative in a one night stand.

They reached the next hotel soon enough and as soon as the elevator doors slid shut behind them, she was on him. Long arms slung around his neck in a deadlock and her lips crushed against his as she plastered herself to his front.

He brought his arms up around her waist to brace himself, noticing that the flesh under the dress gave softly under his touch. He opened his mouth to the kiss, and let her tongue invade his mouth. She started exploring with a ruthlessly intensity.

This was good. One of her hands made its way down his back to settle on his ass. Okay, not good exactly, decent enough. The other one started slightly scritching at the back of his neck with long tapered nails. Well decent wasn't actually the right word. Passable? She pressed her pelvis into his with maybe a bit too much force. Not quite. The hand on the back of his neck went up to cradle his naked scalp. Oh bollocks, this was bloody awful!

He used his hands on her waist to push her away, releasing a gasp as she was finally forced to break the extensive lip lock. Lex nervously licked his lips and shook his head, forcing himself to not look at the mouth that he'd just been kissing.

”Listen, I...”

He didn't know how to say this. He'd never been in a situation like this before. He had turned down countless women, yes. But this was the first time that he'd taken a woman out of a club with every intention to fuck her and then changed his mind in the damn elevator on the way to the hotel room.

“This isn't going to work,” he said decisively.

It just wasn't doing anything for him and just the thought of sleeping with this woman seemed wrong on some really basic level. He had no idea why he hadn't seen it before.

“What,” her voice had a really annoying shriek to it, now that it wasn't underlayed with the noise of pounding club music. “You're kidding, right?”

He looked into her eyes and could see that she was more disbelieving than anything. Did he look like he was kidding?

“I assure you, I'm not,” he answered without inflection.

The arms around his neck released as she stepped back and stared at him with wide brown eyes. He hadn't even noticed the color before. His gaze flew up to her hairline for a moment and sure enough she wasn't a natural blonde. For some reason, that annoyed him.

“Listen, I'm sorry,” he trailed off as he realized that he didn't even remember her name. “You can keep the hotel room for tonight. Order whatever you want.”

He stepped around her and pressed a button for the floor after the next. “But I'm not coming with you.”

“What?” She shrieked and Lex had to stifle a wince. “You can't do this to me! What the hell is wrong with you?” Her gaze slid down to his beltline and she looked up with a cruel glint in her eyes. “Can't get it up, is that it?”

Lex just shook his head and looked at her without emotion. “Not for you,” he said coldly as his gaze slid over her calculatingly. “Not for this.”

She was still goggling at him with wide, disbelieving eyes as the doors slid open with a soft 'ding' and he stepped outside the elevator.

“Goodnight,” he said to the closing doors.

~~~
Chloe had taken a shower and tried to puzzle things out. It just didn’t make any sense, her turning away such a delectable man. Especially after the dry spell that she had had. Her body was more tense than it had been in the past few years.

She continued to think about why it had happened as she put on her pajamas. She had hoped that some time away from Metropolis would give her the freedom to do what she had wanted to but she hadn’t been able to go through with it.

She’d just have to try again tomorrow then. Maybe drink a little more and psych herself up for it. If she didn’t get laid out here things would get worse when she got back home and around Lex. Chloe had attributed her reactions to him on the fact that she hadn’t gotten any attention in far too long. So, something needed to be done about that.

Frankly, she was too exhausted to get herself off so she just padded over to the bed and slipped between the sheets. She saw that the red light was blinking on her phone and she picked it up to get her messages.

One from her dad and three hang-ups. She’d call her dad in the morning and tell him how it went. Then, tomorrow night she was going to get lucky.
~~~
Lex had returned home on a direct route, his mind working frantically all the way. He slammed the door closed behind him and stalked straight through into the kitchen to pour himself a large drink. Water, ironically enough. Not that he didn't long for something stronger, but he'd tried his best not to act compulsively about alcohol after Smallville.

He flopped down on his couch and stared into the empty fireplace. What had happened to him? He'd been dying to get laid for several weeks now and he was convinced that it was pretty much the only cure to the tension between himself and Chloe. Yet, he had passed on a perfectly good chance not an hour ago.

Granted, the woman hadn't been flawless, but damnit since when did a casual fuck need to be without flaw for him to take her to his bed. None of the women he'd fucked had been perfect. It had never mattered before.

He couldn't fathom why he'd been so repulsed at the idea of sleeping with that woman. What worried him deeply was the fact that the thought of trying again tomorrow night repulsed him even more. He was obviously out of practice. Or something.

He was also full of nervous energy and had no idea what to do about it. Without thinking, he reached for the phone and dialed the number. After two rings the machine clicked in, letting him know that she wasn't there.

He stabbed the disconnect button with a low growl and took another swig from his water. He'd already called her three times that day. If he let himself think about it, it seemed a little weird. Still, he'd gotten the machine every time and was just trying to get through to her personally. No such luck as of yet and Lex Luthor was above talking to answering machines when it wasn't strictly necessary. And it wasn't in this case.

He could feel the need to move like an itch under his skin and Lex got up to pace around his living room. This was stupid. It was absolutely ridiculous and something would have to be done about it.

There was no reason he should be all up in a tiff about the fact that he'd turned down a ditzy fake blonde who had offered herself up like a cheap all-you-can-eat dinner. Casting a glance at his watch, he noticed that it was well past two in the morning.

Taking a deep breath, he forced himself to calm down and went towards the bathroom. Tension still coiling inside him, he took a short, perfunctory shower and got ready to go to bed.

~~~
The call had been very unexpected but welcome none the less. As soon as the smooth cadence of the voice had filled the other end of the receiver, Jean Pierre had gotten excited. Mr. Luthor had impeccable taste and an unending bank account. An unbeatable combination.

The circumstances of the job were also intriguing. He was to meet Mr. Luthor at the door of an apartment and the two of them would work on the space together. Highly unusual. Jean Pierre was used to being given a key and his space. But he was informed that Mr. Luthor wanted to be involved with all of the details.

The part of town that held the apartment was by no means shabby but he did not see why Mr. Luthor had acquired another space so close to his office which held a living space. He intended to get to the bottom of it.

Mr. Luthor was waiting for him at the specified apartment and led them both inside. Jean Pierre looked at the space with a critical eye.

Lex closed the door behind them and gave Jean Pierre a moment to get 'acquainted with the space' or whatever nonsense it was that the interior decorator did when he first entered an apartment and made weird noises or clucked his tongue.

Chloe would probably kill him for this, but he couldn't help it. He'd gotten the key to her apartment from a reluctant housekeeper after a bit of cajoling, a bit of threatening and quite a bit of money. Lex would make sure the housekeeper was fired and replaced with a trustworthy one after everything was done in the apartment.

It had taken him the better part of the night to mull over his situation and about half an hour to make up his mind what exactly to do to distract himself. He'd called Jean Pierre as soon as he'd gotten the key from the housekeeper.

“This is the apartment of a friend of mine,” he stated smoothly as he stepped further into the living room.

As far as he could see, Chloe hadn't done much of anything after he'd left and before she'd gone off to Chicago.

“She's away on a business trip until next Wednesday and I want this apartment to be ready for her when she returns.”

Jean Pierre listened to Mr. Luthor’s words and nodded along in the appropriate places. He walked around the living room and looked at the copious amounts of pictures that were dotted throughout.

In all there was a small blonde woman. He did not remember blondes being to Mr. Luthor’s tastes so the man had gone through some sort of change since the last time he had needed his services.

She was pretty enough with a dazzling smile. The woman was downright gorgeous in one picture with an older man who was perhaps her father…..or her husband, one could never tell these days.

“Your friend must be very good in bed,” he said, distractedly.

He always spoke his mind and his clients knew that they would have to hear his opinion on every matter as they worked through a design. If not, they were free to go elsewhere. He did not press Mr. Luthor much usually, he had no desire to end up on the business end of a gun, but the one statement needed to be said.

Lex swallowed a shocked noise. He'd not seen that coming and was quite sure he must have misheard.

“Pardon,” he asked sharply, fixing the smaller man with a steely gaze.

Surely, Jean Pierre was pretty outspoken, but he would not have the audacity to suggest such a thing. Only, the man was looking back at him guilelessly.

“I assure you that there is nothing untoward about the relationship. We are very good friends and our relationship is strictly platonic,” he stressed the last word. “So I suggest you refrain from any further such comment.”

Suggestions were all well and good but Jean Pierre did not take to them well. Besides, he did not fear the wrath of Mr. Luthor….just yet. And there was something going on here that was too curious to let drop.

“I apologize,” he said. He was quiet for a beat and then added, under his breath as he left the room, “She must be the best you’ve ever had.”

Lex narrowed his eyes and growled low in his throat. At this point, he had to remind himself that he actually needed the man's help to do this and that the reason he was here in the first place was to distract himself from his failed attempt at getting laid.

“I am not going to repeat myself Jean Pierre,” he raised his voice to let it carry into the kitchen.

Taking another moment to calm himself down, he waited for the French to reappear. He wanted to get started as soon as possible. There were a lot of things to do and if they weren't done by the time Chloe came back from Chicago, they probably never would be.

Jean Pierre had clearly heard Mr. Luthor’s instructions and the man was very serious. But, the tone made him smile to himself. It seemed that the idea of this woman in his bed did something to the man. He would back off a little bit but still not drop the topic altogether.

He scanned the kitchen and opened the drawers, cabinets and even the refrigerator in order to get a better idea of the inhabitant of the apartment. The woman, Mr. Luthor’s ‘friend’, appeared to be very different from the man that he could feel glowering at him from the living room. He wondered how they had met and how the affair had started.

Finally done with the kitchen, Jean Pierre walked back out into the living room. “Could you describe your friend a little please, Mr. Luthor?” The man looked at him dubiously and Jean Pierre said, “I need an idea of what she is like in order to do my job properly.” Plus, it would be interesting to see how the man described the woman.

Lex clamped his mouth shut tight as he thought about this for a moment. How did you properly describe Chloe in a handful of words? There were two or three obvious ones, but they didn't grasp her entire character.

“She's feisty,” he started, “Has her own mind and is used to getting her way.” Looking around his gaze caught on one of the pictures.

Chloe was center spot, wearing a Princeton t-shirt of some sort. Surrounding her was what looked like about half of the football team. He smirked.

“She's a fun-loving person, outgoing, energetic. She's very intelligent, perceptive.” He remembered the night she'd come to him about the article that could have broken his neck, figuratively speaking. “Loyal.”

He took a couple steps around the room and looked out the window, his eyes following the cars lazily going past seventy stories below.

“I don't know what her favorite color is, but it should be something light,” he commented absentmindedly. “And we are going to need to get the original measurements, material and plans for my couch. I promised she’d get one exactly like mine.”

His hands found their way into his pants pockets as he thought a bit more on Chloe. He wanted this apartment to be perfect when she came back from Chicago.

“She works hard, but that doesn't make up her entire life. She takes kick boxing lessons and she's damn good at it. Maybe a work out area in her office would be a good idea,” he mused.

On that note, he turned around, his gaze going back to fix Jean Pierre, “Which reminds me that something needs to be done about the light-switch in that room. It's on the opposite wall from the door, which is unacceptable.”

Cocking his head to the side, he couldn't think of anything else for the moment, not sure how to reveal more about Chloe's character without telling the whole story, which he had no inclination to do.

He didn't think that Jean Pierre needed to know about her preferences when it came to food and drink, either. No wine, no wiggling food. He'd forgotten about that first one when she'd paid him the surprise visit to drop the bomb. He remembered.

“Is there anything else you need to know?”

Jean Pierre had listened to the impromptu speech that Mr. Luthor had made. The man clearly cared a great deal for the woman who inhabited this apartment and had done a fine job of describing her personality to him.

He shook his head and then said, “I think that you’ve done a fine job of describing your,” and here he came dangerously close to uttering the word lover, “friend to me.”

The inclination to squeal and giggle like a school girl at the idea of Lex Luthor in love with this woman was almost overwhelming. Almost. Jean Pierre would handle all of the arrangements himself. He usually farmed out some of the smaller things but not this time.

Keeping his clients happy was of optimal importance, it was what kept them coming back. He had been working for Mr. Luthor for a few years now and had no intention of letting go of this client. Especially since there could be more money to be made once Mr. Luthor let nature take its course and added an heir to his line.

If the man spent so much money on himself and his lover…well, there was no telling what he would do for his children. “I’ve already brought some fabrics for you to look over. Do we have an idea about what type of furniture we’d like in the space?”

Mr. Luthor followed him as he peered into every room. When he got to the office, he said, “Yes, this is not a proper set up. Anyone could be lurking in a dark corner.”

Once in the bedroom, he was pleased at what he saw. “Very impressive bed,” he commented without much inflection. He took a step back, “A little masculine for such an attractive woman but from what I’ve seen she likes her space, no?” He looked over at Mr. Luthor, not really expecting an answer.

Lex looked over the bed, now pristinely made, remembering the last time he'd been in the room. Chloe's clothes had lain on the covers while she'd given him the grand tour. At the mention of space he reminded the things that had happened between them whenever they'd gotten in close quarters.

“She can make do in tight space, but yeah she usually prefers things to be open I'd say,” he commented absently.

Standing in the bedroom he also reminded something else. The reason why Chloe had kept a distance before she'd gone off to Chicago and why he'd tried to get laid before she came back. His eyes widened marginally as Jean Pierre kept stalking through the room. He could only hope she'd put the box out of sight.

The closet was a good size but Pierre thought that they could do better. He had taken the liberty of pulling the blueprints of the apartment and knew that there was a great deal of space behind the closet wall. If Mr. Luthor allowed him to do so, he would knock it down and give his lover a walk in closet.

No woman could resist one and he knew that Mr. Luthor would be thanked mightily for it. Over and over again. He unceremoniously yanked the door to the closet open and stepped inside.

He carefully ran his hands over some of her items of clothing, nodding in approval. The woman had good taste but price tags did not appear to be important to her. It was obvious that she wasn’t a slave to what the trite, glossy magazines told her was in style.

Jean Pierre attempted to continue onwards but his motion was hampered by a closed box on the floor. Annoyed, he pushed the box out of the closet and started to inspect the back wall.

Lex had already opened his mouth to protest when the box came slithering over the floor towards him. Before he said anything, he grabbed the box and picked it up, thinking fast. Since the bed had already been approved of, it was probably the safest place for now.

He pushed the box under the bed and draped the comforter back over it before he followed Jean Pierre into the closet. The man hadn't done this at his house and he damn well wasn't going to go snooping around Chloe's apartment.

“Just what do you think you are doing,” he asked sharply.

Had Jean Pierre not been busy puzzling out the closet he might have been intimidated by Mr. Luthor’s tone of voice. However, his thoughts were occupied with bearing walls and whether they had enough time to give Mr. Luthor’s lover, whose name he would ask for in a moment, the closet that she deserved.

“The plans to this apartment indicate that there is unutilized space behind this wall,” he knocked on it and looked at Mr. Luthor through the clothing, “and I was investigating to see if we could knock it down in order to give,” he paused and then said, “your friend a walk in closet.”

“And, if you don’t mind my asking so, what is your friend’s name?” It wasn’t crucial that he knew but it made things seem less formal to him. He liked to think that he knew the people that he was imbibing with the perfect living space.

Since Lex was already getting a headache from the way Jean Pierre paused every time before he said 'friend', he didn't think it could hurt to let the man know.

“Her name is Chloe,” he said simply, ignoring the man's comment about the closet.

He didn't even know if Chloe really wanted such heavy reconstruction done on the apartment. Added to that, she was only renting it. She hadn't actually bought the place. “And I'm not sure we'll be able to pull down walls or anything that intrusive. She's only a tenant, not the owner.”

Lex supposed he could buy the building himself, but even for him that would take longer than a week and something told him that if he actually went that far and Chloe found out, she'd never speak to him again. Which was not the plan.

Jean Pierre was disappointed by this knowledge. He had been looking forward to a good renovation complete with new racks and a place that would house all of the shoes that Mr. Luthor’s Chloe had.

Shaking his head and clucking his tongue he said, “That is truly a shame, Mr. Luthor.” He turned back to the wall and gave it one last knock. “Please let your Chloe know that I did my best to give her everything the space allowed.”

He made his way out of the closet and looked around for a moment. “Mr. Luthor, the box that was in the closet?” He did not see it anywhere in the room. “I like to leave things the way in which I found them.” Order was very important to Jean Pierre and it distressed him when things were out of place.

“I'll take care of it later,” he stated smoothly, “Don't worry about it.”

Seeing Jean Pierre opening his mouth, he cut the man off before he could get a chance. He walked over and purposefully took the smaller man by the elbow and started leading him back out of the room. “Why don't we go back to the living room. I'm interested to find out what your talented mind has come up with by now, closet space aside.”

There was no chance that he'd let Chloe be embarrassed, even without her knowledge, in front of someone else. Jean Pierre had quite enough nonsense going on in his mind without any further material.

Jean Pierre let himself be manhandled and thrown out into the living room only because it seemed as if he had no other alternative. Mr. Luthor put up with his eccentricities but the line was now drawn.

Once in the living room, he took his arm away from the other man and then turned towards him. “Based on what you’ve told me I want to do a mix of classic good taste with a dash of flamboyance thrown in.” He looked around the room at the number of colors warring for attention.

“Chloe clearly likes some color in her life but I also see hints of neutral tones that are a base that we can work with. A warm, natural color for this room and varying colors for the rest.” When he saw concern flicker over the other man’s face he held up his hands. “Nothing too ostentatious, just something to give the apartment the kick that Chloe possesses. Classy with hints of fire in her.”

He noticed the pictures that were scattered around the room. “I want to integrate the photos in the numerous rooms, anchoring a visual palate along with the colors.”

“For the office, perhaps a heavy bag and mat for her to work with. The kitchen will be outfitted with state of the art chrome and the counter done in marble. I would like to get her new glasses, plates, utensils etc. so that they all match. I know a funky artist who will be more than happy to oblige in that area.”

Jean Pierre knew that this woman would want offbeat things around her apartment while maintaining the class that she also possessed. It was a fine balance and one that he intended to perfect.

“The bedroom will be the oasis in the midst of her apartment. A wall installation for votive candles and new bedding for the bed. I think that darker colors for the sheets and pillows would offset the rest of the light in the room. She needs a bigger mirror for the vanity and I would like to put in a huge chair in which she can relax. I would like your permission to rip out the existing tub and give her a huge, old fashioned clawfoot big enough for two.”

He had noticed that her bathroom had huge fluffy towels and bathmats. This woman wanted to relax in that room and her tub would not do for that. “Also, I would like to be able to enlarge some of the windows, as well. I’m sure that will be fine with those in charge of the building. This beautiful creature,” he said, picking up a picture of Chloe with various other people, “needs light. It radiates out of her.”

Lex had lost track of what the hell Jean Pierre was going on about somewhere around the 'votive candles'. He caught the important bits and pieces though. Bigger windows, clawfoot tub, new sheets. He could deal with that.

“That sounds good,” he stated, already mentally adjusting his schedule to fit in a meeting with the owner of the building. “But remember, everything has to be done by Wednesday morning, next week.”

He had no idea how long some of the things Jean Pierre had suggested would be taking if normal workers were involved. “Money isn't an issue.”

Lex tried to imagine what her apartment would look like when everything was done. Then he tried to imagine the look on Chloe's face when she saw her new and improved apartment. Well, before it turned to murderous rage when she realized what it must've cost. He winced. Best not to think about it.

Another thought occurred to him then. He remembered the phone conversation he'd overheard at the beginning of the evening, before things became extremely awkward.

“Another thing, some things that are already in the office were specifically brought in by her father, those need to stay.”

He realized that moment, that he'd probably have to call Gabe. He didn't know if the man had any other plans for his daughter's apartment and there was a good chance that she'd given him a key. Lex hadn't seen any houseplants, but one could never be sure that Gabe wouldn't pop in to check up on the place. It would be better if he explained his motives to the man beforehand.

Lex couldn't help the automatic sneer that twitched over his lips. Sure, Gabe had been very nice when they'd bumped into each other in China Town and he was good to work with, but how would the man take it that Lex Luthor was taking over the decoration of his only daughter's new apartment?

“I will need a list of the items that are not to be touched as soon as possible,” Jean Pierre said. He could work around the pieces that needed to be kept. He did not usually like to do so but he could do it. Thankfully, Chloe did not have anything that was horribly offensive to him.

“And I will also need to know if it is crucial that they remain where they are currently.” Sometimes just moving a piece changed the way it worked in a space. “All of what I need to be done can be accomplished by Wednesday, Mr. Luthor.”

They had yet to discuss his fee but he did not think that would be a problem. He was pricey but worth it, in his opinion. And unlike a lot of others in his field, he did not gouge his clients while paying his workers nothing. Bad business idea, that was.

“In fact,” he said while looking around, “I believe that it will be done by Monday afternoon or Tuesday. That way you can make any last minute changes that you deem fit.”

Lex's brows rose at that brave statement. Jean Pierre had always worked fast, but an extreme make over in less than a week? That seemed a little out there.

“The couch that I want has to be custom made from scratch, are you sure this won't be a problem,” he confirmed.

If it was, it wouldn't be one for long. He hadn't been kidding when he said money wasn't an issue. Lex wanted to do this for Chloe and partly, or more than partly, he wanted to do this for himself. It gave him an excuse not to be out there and having a repeat performance of the night before. Maybe he'd try again in a few days, if he had the time.

“It shouldn’t be,” Jean Pierre said, honestly. When numerous designers worked together there had to be some sort of understanding between them. “Just put me in contact with the company and we will sort out a schedule so the painting is not going on at the same time as the couch is being moved in. If it is to be a big piece,” and by the look on Mr. Luthor’s face, it was, “we will paint this room first thing and then design around it.”

He got the feeling that this couch was to be the focal point and was very important to his client. “Now, furniture?”

Lex nodded in answer, knowing that the man was only reiterating his first question. “I'll be able to let you know tonight which pieces have to stay or if there's anything else specific that needs to be taken into consideration. Will that be soon enough?”

He had no idea what else, other than the desk Chloe had spoken of on the phone. And he vaguely remembered something about a chair. The rest was anyone’s guess until he'd spoken to Gabe which he wasn't going to do until he was back in the office.

“That will be fine, Mr. Luthor,” Jean Pierre said warmly. He could not wait to get started. This would be a fun project, indeed. It was a welcome change to have a job that wouldn’t be overly stuffy. Most rich people had very pedestrian taste and sometimes it was difficult to tell the jobs apart. This would not be the case here.

“I will get started right away with some of my orders, if you don’t mind.” He took out his cell phone and estimated how many workers he would need, what shift times he should schedule them in and how soon everyone could arrive.

Lex nodded more to himself as he turned around to cast another glance over the apartment. He only hoped that Chloe didn't have anything other than the box lying around that she didn't want to be found.

”I'll leave you to your work, then. I should be back early in the evening.”

Thankfully he knew that he could trust Jean Pierre's discretion. He wouldn't abuse the trust put in him and Lex was pretty sure that when he got back later today a good bit of work would already have been done.

Bracing himself mentally for his next task, he left the man behind in Chloe's apartment and made his way towards LuthorCorp towers. It wasn't a long drive, but it would definitely be a tense one.

emnorth2002

21st January 2006, 20:46

LOL!!! Please, please, *please* tell me that you're going to be writing out the conversation between Lex and Gabe! Oooh, and the conversation Gabe has with Lionel, afterwards. *snicker*
:-)
Em

darkangel

21st January 2006, 21:29

Poor Lex, poor Chloe. no sex for either of them.

zho9

21st January 2006, 21:57

Yay! Love Saturday updates from Blue and Sabby.
It's great that Chloe and Lex can't bring themselves to sleep with other people but they need to figure out why that is and soon!
Can't wait for the Gabe and Lionel take on this.
Also, love how Jean Pierre can see quite clearly that Lex is in love with Chloe.

Kit Merlot

21st January 2006, 22:26

Awesome update!

Jean Pierre is an extremely smart man--he noticed right away that Lex was in love with Chloe:grin3:

I loved that Lex got Chloe's housekeeper to take a bribe to get the key to her apratment, but now he's going to have the poor woman fired because she isn't trustworthy. How very Luthorian of him.

How is Chloe going to react when she comes home to find her place totally redecorated? I can't wait for that;)

And just as a side note: I'm glad that you have both Chloe and Lex unable to have sex with other people. They are both affected by the other's presence and the attraction and intense feelings are being played out by both people, and not just Chloe.

Great work!

star del mar

21st January 2006, 23:38

Wow, Lex is really going all out but getting the much needed distraction is probably worth it :) I wish they would both just give it up already! They're madly love with each other, now they just have to admit it. And of course Lex has to make it out alive since he is redecorating Chloe's apartment without her knowledge, lol. I can only imagine what that's going to be like. Great update!

Steph*

flower

22nd January 2006, 00:36

Owh, this is wonderful! I ca'n't wait to read what Jean Pierre has done with the place, or how Chloe would react!
Please update soon!
Flower

hfce

22nd January 2006, 03:28

First thank you for not letting Chloe and Lex go through with it. I can't stand anyone else but Chlex together. :D So Chloe is kidding herself if she thinks she can do it again. LOL!! Lex is going to get a lashing from Chloe when she sees her apartment. EEK!! I can't wait to see her eaction when she sees her new apartment. I am jealous I would love to live there.
Great update girls. :clapclap:

Hope :)

petoonya

22nd January 2006, 03:36

Thanks for the update! This fic is panning out so greatly. I can't wait to see what happens when Chloe gets back ,and what her apartment will look like. Glad to see Lex and Chloe are recognizing their feelings for one another. Can't wait till next time!

meeaz

22nd January 2006, 04:19

now why aren't chloe and lex as perceptive as Jean Pierre? hopefully, though, and soon, too, they'll realize they love each other, but we can only hope though? and i so loved Jean Pierre-very funny and insightful!

Clannadlvr

22nd January 2006, 09:51

woot! Oh, I can't wait to see Chloe's reaction to Lex's surprise.

BTW, I particularly liked this little tidbit:

"Lex just shook his head and looked at her without emotion. “Not for you,” he said coldly as his gaze slid over her calculatingly. “Not for this.”"

*snerk* Oh, so lex...

kirt30

22nd January 2006, 16:33

i love this story so much but when are they going to get together

BellaMR

22nd January 2006, 22:02

Please don't let this story end with the untimely death of Lex Luthor. The Chlex here has so much promise, but I have a feeling he is going to bed a dead man anyway. It will definately be exciting though.

Great job on this update!

smugirl

23rd January 2006, 07:46

I really can't wait for Chloe to get home, so I can see what you have planned next in terms of Chloe/Lex interaction. Great story.

meg20

23rd January 2006, 12:27

Can't wait for the next chapter to see what happens and I hope you put in some good parts about Lex discussing Jean Pierre's plans with Gabe and after that some Lionel&Gabe interaction. I hope that after Chloe gets back and finds out what Lex has done, there will be some fun trouble for Lexy.:grin3:

Also can't they just make a compromise that they sleep with eatchother like one time so they can get the lusting out of their system (they are disillusioned, but hey a good excuse as any) and ofcourse there has to be set some rules like they have to maintain their friendship and can't act akward afterwards!
This is just me dreaming!!!:P

georgee5

23rd January 2006, 15:58

We haven't had a Gabe/Lionel interaction in a while. It seems to me that after Lex speaks with Gabe, there will be quite the little Pow-Wow. I kind of like the Lionel in this story, even though he is a manipulating (magnificent) bastard. I hope that somehow he and Lex will be able to mend their troubled relationship, if even a little bit.

dreamerjules

23rd January 2006, 19:25

Cannot wait until the Lex&Gabe conversation. Which you have to show. And the Lional&Gabe conversation following that one. And Chloe's reaction.

This... is about as good as chocolate.

campbti

24th January 2006, 18:29

How fun. Wow she is going to be so mad, but hopefully happy that he wanted to dote on her so. Loved the description of each of their difficulties. Fabulous. Hopefully they will soon realize what it is that they need. Can't wait for the Gabe discussion and relating it to Lionel.

Kikina

24th January 2006, 18:44

Update soon please, I love this ! :D :grin3:

arkakitty

24th January 2006, 21:19

Ohhh she's going to throw a fit once she comes back oO
And let him take the wall down, it's Luthor in the end ;)

Love the story and can't wait for the next part :)

Charlie

25th January 2006, 20:33

I was just going to join the chorus - whose tongue is in Chloe's mouth - when I, to my happiness, found another great chapter of this story. Keep up the good work

katieandjason

25th January 2006, 23:47

I have just read this entire story in 2 days and I am in love. LOVE, I tell you, LOVE!!! I almost died of laughter picturing Lex with a Siamese, and all conversations involving a tricked-out mini-Aston and said Siamese again almost did me in.

I am so glad to see them progressing so well on their own, but very frustrated with their inability to let go of the friendship and move on to something more. Stupid Lex with his stupid blindness, and stupid Chloe with her stupid insecurity! Although, I will admit to being a little excited, b/c I can't wait to see what Celeste and Lionabe will come up with to force the issue. :D

Now, you two. It seems that you have been losing your motivation on this story. Unacceptable. I pity the posters here from the beginning b/c of the delays they have had to endure. I, however, refuse to allow that to continue! It is obvious that begging gets us nowhere, while flattery would get us our own two-person-claw-footed tub. Therefore, I shall commence with the asskissing.

Only a story this witty, interesting, and fun could be written by the two of BlueSabby. You deal with insecurities and human emotions, but always make sure to interject enough humor and lightness to keep the reader from becoming bogged down. You are rather like TBS for NS. :D Also, you have created a build-up for Chloe's return quite masterfully. 1 - We all know she is going to be returning without any release of tension and will be even more stressed out about why that is. 2 - We all know Lex is going to be in the same boat. 3 - She will be looking forward to arriving at her apartment and just being alone for a little while and relaxing. 4 - Lex will be waiting for her at her apartment for her reaction. 5 - She is going to go through the roof over the control taken from her in regards to decorating her own apartment. 6 - Lex is going to go through the roof at what he considers her overreaction. 7 - Given the tension in the room they will either end up fuckig like bunnies or thinking that the friendship is over. So please, oh wonderful, creative, and incredibly talented writers, please refind your inspiration and give us many updates quickly. Thank you humbly. ;)

BlueSabby

28th January 2006, 18:20

A/N: Sabby: So, for all of you who've already been on the edge of their seats waiting for the Conspiration of Gabe and the Lex, here it is...also, more JP for those of you who dig the little French guy and yea, Chloe's about to come home. Also, huge thanks again for all the precious feedback. We love the one liners as much as the long ones (KatieandJason, smart of you, very smart *hands you a cookie*) Have fun and leave feedback again!

A/N: Blue: Ahead is loads of talking. Most of it amusing so we think you'll like it. Speaking of amusing, it's nice to see that katieandjason has figured out how to get updates from us.

Gabe cast a glance over at the pile of paperwork that sat on his desk. It didn’t appear to be getting any smaller and he had already been at work for two hours. But he thought that had more to do with the fact that Lionel kept pestering him than the pace at which he worked.

There had been another meeting in the morning. Under discussion had been their children’s aborted attempts at ‘connecting’ with another person. The man that Chloe had taken back to her room had left less than two minutes after he entered and Lex had fled the no name hotel three minutes after entering it.

Even though nothing had come of it, the fact that the children had attempted such a thing bothered Gabe. Well, the fact that Chloe had done such a thing, to be more specific. It was one thing to accept that your child was sexually active. It was quite another to see photographs of her picking up a stranger at a bar.

Lionel had beamed at the good news and kept calling him to rehash the details that they knew. Gabe had put his secretary on strict instructions to not put Lionel’s calls through. He was waiting for a carrier pigeon to appear with a note.

There was a buzz from his phone and his secretary said, “Mr. Sullivan, Mr. Luthor is here to see you.” Gabe sighed and was about to tersely inform his secretary that he would not be seeing Mr. Luthor when she said, “Mr. Lex Luthor.”

Gabe looked curiously at the phone and waited a moment before pressing the intercom button and saying, “Please send him in.”

This was odd. He wasn’t working on any projects that dealt with Lex in the slightest. He didn’t allow himself to hope that it would be about Chloe.

When the young man entered the room, Gabe stood up and extended his hand. “Hello, Lex, what can I do for you?”

Lex took the proffered hand and shook it firmly then settled down after Gabe had resumed his seat behind the desk. This was going to be the oddest talk he'd ever had, he was quite sure of that.

“Gabe, it's good to see you,” he started, trying to get the pleasantries over with first. “How have you been?”

Lex had thought the entire way to the office how to approach the subject but there was really no subtle way to do it. At least the man already knew that Chloe and him were friends.

While Gabe had often seen Lex dodge a question, he had never seen the man do so in such a poor fashion. He supposed that Lex was just being polite but his body language immediately clued Gabe into the fact that something was up.

“I’ve been doing fairly well,” he admitted, answering Lex’s question. Being that Lex knew that he and his father were working on numerous projects he thought it would be ok to add, “Your father might drive me to kill him, but other than that,” he shrugged, “I can’t complain. And yourself?”

If Lionel was here he would most likely try to take to grilling Lex but Gabe found that it was better to be subtle in such a situation. He’d allow Lex to get to his business in his own time.

Lex smirked at Gabe's statement, knowing fairly well what his father was capable of doing to a person's sanity. Eerily enough, aside from the odd conversation, his father had kept pretty much out of Lex's life in the past few weeks. Thank goodness for small mercies.

“Pretty good,” he answered Gabe's question, “As far as business goes, at least.” He hadn't meant to add that.

It was something about Gabe's open face and relaxed stance as he waited patiently. That was what had caused him to say more than he wanted. Better to get straight to the point.

“I didn't come here for business, though.”

And this is where his pride reared its ugly head and posing a simple request became in explicably difficult. “How's Chloe doing in Chicago, have you spoken to her?”

Keeping one’s face neutral when all you wanted to do was grin like a damn fool was very hard indeed. Lex was here to discuss Chloe, plain and simple. God, Lionel’s head was going to explode. Gabe had to clear his throat to keep from laughing at that visual.

“I heard from her this morning and she said that her presentation went very well,” he didn’t even bother to hide the pride in his voice at that tidbit of information. Chloe had been so excited by it and had given him the blow by blow of the conference.

Now, he had to decide if he wanted to test Lex or just let things lie. When he came to his decision he realized that he had been exposed to Lionel for far too long.

“She says that the people are very nice and that she’s been making some interesting acquaintances.” It was innocent enough and Lex could interpret it in any way that he saw fit so Gabe didn’t feel too badly about it.

“Ah,” he said nonchalantly, not sure what to think.

Well that wasn't true, he knew exactly what he was thinking. She'd obviously gone and accomplished what he'd failed at. Of course she wouldn't have told it her father that way, but he was pretty sure those acquaintances weren't strictly platonic. He remembered too well Chloe's comment in the kitchen about 'getting in trouble'.

“Well that's certainly good to hear,” he said with a smirk.

Actually, the thought twinged him uncomfortably for some reason, but he didn't examine it closer. “We saw each other last week, before she went. Her new apartment is much more fitting than the last, I think.”

There, that was putting a few things out of question and into the open. If Gabe hadn't known before, he knew now that the two of them knew each other well enough to be at each other's homes.

“Oh, most definitely,” Gabe said, hoping that Lex would attribute the pleasure in his voice to Chloe’s new living arrangement. Not the fact that Gabe could tell that Lex was keeping himself in check at the mere thought of Chloe with another man.

Again, Gabe felt Lionel’s influence on him when he sincerely wished that Lex would call Chloe on this when she returned. He really shouldn’t try to make trouble for his only child but he could rationalize it by the fact that he was only trying to help her in the long run.

He could tell that Lex was still being a little stiff with him, most likely uncertain as to how he would react to Lex being over at Chloe’s apartment. He decided to put him at ease with that one.

“Don’t tell Chloe that I said so, she’ll just get her feathers ruffled for no reason if she knows that I’ve said so, but it pleases me that you two are friends.” He leaned back in his chair and looked at Lex. “It comforts me to know that there is someone else on her intelligence level that she’s close with. Some of her other friends through the years…”

The face that Gabe made wasn’t for Lex’s benefit at all. When he thought of the people that Chloe used to surround herself with, both boyfriends and other people, it unsettled him. He shook off the thought and continued, “I hope I haven’t overstepped my professional and fatherly bounds by saying so.” He smiled over at Lex.

“Not at all.” Lex shook his head, lifting a hand slightly.

His mind automatically wandered to the one friend Chloe and he had ever had in common. No use dwelling on that one. He was on a mission.

“We talked about some of the things she wants to do with the apartment,” he said carefully. “After she talked with you on the phone that evening.”

Now was the time to ask and Lex was tired of stalling. It needed to get out there so he could move on with his plans.

“I was wondering,” he looked at his hands for a moment before squarely meeting Gabe's eyes. “I offered her the services of my interior decorator. I want to do this as a favor to her, but we both know how she is about accepting gifts.” Here came the crucial point. “Would you help me get things done before she returns?”

That was not how he'd meant to ask the question but upon reflection, Lex decided that it might find a better reception if Gabe became actively involved, instead of just sanctioning the project and giving some information.

Reaching across the table and kissing Lex was not an option so Gabe pretended to mull over Lex’s proposition. He could not believe the good fortune that was being showered on their project within the past few days.

He knew that Lex equated doing this for Chloe as showing how much she meant to him. Gabe was actually touched by the gesture. Chloe would surely fly into a rage when she saw that he had done so but Gabe had no intention of dissuading Lex.

“She is rather bad at accepting things from people,” he agreed. “And I’m sure that the place does need some sprucing up. So,” he paused again, hoping that it seemed as if he was thinking about his options.

“I think that our only choice is to get it all done before she returns.” He gave the younger man a wide grin. “You do realize that we will both be in deep trouble when she returns. Various death threats and possible blunt objects thrown at our heads?”

Lex suppressed a wince and smirked back at Gabe across the table. “I'd rather not be thinking about that until it actually happens,” he admitted.

Of course he knew that Chloe wouldn't be happy, well not about the fact that he'd paid for everything, but he liked to think that once she got over her issues in that regard, she would see it as what it was. A gift from a friend who cared.

“So, in case there are no imminent projects, would you come back with me to her apartment later today?”

He kept Jean Pierre unmentioned for now. Lex found it worked best to be thrown into cold water with that man. There was seriously no way to prepare somebody beforehand.

Gabe had quite an amount of work to catch up on. But it had to take a backseat to this. It was his only daughter’s future happiness that was at stake, after all. He knew that if he explained to Lionel why things had to be given to his assistants the other man would have agreed that the work had to be farmed out.

He didn’t think Lionel would mind him cutting out of work for a few hours in order to bond with Lex. They were to be family, after all. The hard part would be explaining to the man that he was not about to tap his daughter’s apartment. Maybe he wouldn’t tell Lionel until after the visit.

“I’d be happy to help in any way I can, Lex,” Gabe said warmly. He was curious to see what Lex had in mind for Chloe’s apartment. He wasn’t sure if he would be able to ascertain anything of the man’s feelings for his daughter from what couch he had picked out but the information couldn’t hurt. Besides, he didn’t need any information other than the fact that Lex had come to him for help.

This marriage was a done deal.

~~~
Lex stood in the open doorway to Chloe's bedroom, staring at the scenery in front of him. This wasn't possible. Jean Pierre had always been a little eccentric, but he'd also always hit the mark. Not this time.

“Jean Pierre,” he raised his voice enough to carry into the living room.

He couldn't believe the man had done this. As if the disaster in the living room hadn't been enough. Well, maybe disaster was putting it a little too harshly, but there had been a...well he couldn't describe it in other words than a 'shag rag' in front of the small fireplace in the living room.

Jean Pierre had been very nearly finished when Mr. Luthor had stopped by. Two hours ago. Now he was on the phone with his various minions letting them know that they were on standby.

His clients usually loved the little additions that he threw in. He remembered Mr. Luthor being pleased the first and second time he had decorated a space. However, things had gone a little differently this time.

This space was close to being his best work but Mr. Luthor did not appear to agree. He had immediately pointed out that he had not requested a fireplace. While true, Jean Pierre did not understand the point of the statement. The fireplace was a gift because Mr. Luthor had been such a loyal customer.

He had looked slightly chagrined at that comment but had explained that Chloe might think it was a little overboard.

At that point, Jean Pierre knew that he was in trouble and waited for Mr. Luthor to see the bedroom.

It was what they had discussed. Almost. He had taken things a step up and spared no expense on making the room as luxurious as possible. The highest Egyptian threat count sheets, deep colors of the finest paints and a lighting schema to rival that of the Metropolis Museum of Art.

The room was tasteful but had an erotic undercurrent. It had been a hard balance but Jean Pierre thought that it would be perfect for Mr. Luthor and his lover. Yes, he claimed that the woman was not his lover but the rich were synonymous with lying.

It was ridiculous. Plain and simple. But not ridiculous in an even slightly amusing way. The room looked like the damn honeymoon sweet of the Waldorf Astoria. The lighting could have been straight out of a playboy movie and the worst was the bed.

The bed was decked out in the most decadent sheets - the fact that he owned the very same set in a slightly different color aside - and on top of that, literally, there were two things that were simply inappropriate. He was a friend. Strictly platonic and no suggestion or subtext or undercurrent to that position whatsoever. At the moment, Lex had to sincerely stifle the urge to wrap his hands around Jean Pierre's throat and squeeze the little French ferret until he squeaked.

“This is unacceptable,” he grit out, pointing at the dark blue negligee and the heart shaped box of fine pralines on top of the damask comforter.

At least the man wasn’t commenting the room. Jean Pierre had suspected that those additions would get him into trouble. But he had not been too worried about it.

“I thought the color would compliment Chloe’s pale and delicate skin,” he said, simply. He knew that wasn’t the point that Mr. Luthor was attempting to make but could not help himself.

Lex did not allow his mind to even go there. Friends, platonic friends. No undercurrents. Why couldn't he have gotten laid when the opportunity had presented itself? Why had he then refused after the first failed attempt to try again? He took a deep breath.

“This is no appropriate gift, coming from a friend,” he enunciated every word clearly. “Chloe would not appreciate it, so,” he exhaled slowly, then took another breath. “Remove it and the box.”

He would not leave chocolates and a damn negligee on her bed. It was going to be hard enough resisting his damn impulses when she got back from Chicago. The last thing she needed was to think he actually wanted
to start something with her. Which he didn't. Not like that. Because he didn't do relationships anymore. And Chloe was not going to be a one-night-stand.

“If you say so,” Jean Pierre remarked. It was clear from his tone that he did not agree with this choice but he did not wish to be throttled by Mr. Luthor. At least not tonight. He was rather tired.

He picked up the two items and murmured to himself, “Such a shame, she really would look lovely in it.” He ran his fingers across the delicate silk as he left the room. He decided to let Mr. Luthor explore the bathroom on his own. If something else was found to be objectionable he knew that he’d be called back in.

The only thing that the man could possibly have a problem with were the bath and shower gels that were in the room. They were not of the best quality, those were under the sink, but rather the ones that Chloe used on a day to day basis.

Lex willed himself to calm down as soon as he was alone in the room and strode on to the bathroom. If he found even one single scented candle in there, or incense, heaven help Jean Pierre because there would be no mercy.

He opened the door slowly and peered inside. On first glance, things seemed to be in order. Lex stepped fully inside. A few bottles were lined up on a neat shelf above the large clawfoot tub. New towels, hanging on a newly installed warmer. A new mirror above the sink, more elegant than the original one had been with silver framework.

Turning around to leave, his gaze fell on the partially open door and the robe hung up on it. The deep blue silk robe. Lex closed his eyes and pinched the bridge of his nose. He took a deep breath, then reached out to remove the robe from the hanger. The silk slid through his fingers like water. Finest quality.

He grit his teeth and stalked out of the bathroom, making his way straight into the living room. Jean Pierre stood squarely in the middle of the room, once again on the phone with one of his lackies, Lex assumed. He didn't care.

“Remove this as well,” he snarled and pressed the robe into the other man's hand.

“But sir,” he protested, uncaring to the conversation that he was supposed to be having with his second in command. “The other item I understand but this…getting rid of this is preposterous.”

The poor woman who lived here did not treat herself in the manner that she deserved. “Chloe is obviously a practical woman who buys only what she needs and rarely what she wants.”

“I was trying to give her a few things to spoil her with.” Mr. Luthor looked unmoved.

He held the robe out to Lex in close to a beseeching manner. “For the love of god man, it’s only a robe.”

Lex took a deep breath. “It's the robe that is obviously meant to go with the negligee,” he explained slowly. “And since she won't be getting the negligee, she won't need this particular robe, either.”

If the man wanted to get her a robe, he could get her something that didn't scream seduction. What was wrong with a nice, comfortable, warm terrycloth robe, anyway? “Get her something appropriate, if you insist on spoiling her.”

Slowly but surely, Lex was reaching the end of the rope. His patience had not only worn thin, it was by this point practically nonexistent. Added to that, he now would have to go through the rooms again, to make sure there weren't any surprises waiting in the office or the kitchen. At this point, he didn't trust Jean Pierre as far as he could throw him.

To Jean Pierre’s eyes the robe was appropriate. There was no cut out in the material to display key body parts. In fact, the robe reached past the knees on a shorter woman. Mr. Luthor was being very silly about the whole thing. Jean Pierre made a mental note to ensure that Chloe would get the gifts.

He knew that Mr. Luthor must want her to have them. His client would be leaving the apartment soon in order to let Jean Pierre finish the job. He was certain that he had some presentable boxes and tissue paper that was perfect for wrapping. Chloe would receive her gifts.

Dutifully, he responded, “Whatever you say, Mr. Luthor.”

~~~
By the time Chloe made it back to her apartment she was utterly exhausted. Her group had taken the red eye and had been told that they were to take the day off. It was a nice gesture and one that Chloe was grateful for.

She hoisted her bag to a more comfortable position on her shoulder as she got out her keys. All she wanted to do was grab a hot shower and flop into bed.

Though at this time of morning, 3 a.m., it was more likely that the bed flopping would occur before the shower.

Chloe was excited that she was back home. She’d get to enjoy her apartment and she found that she was actually looking forward to Lex’s gift of a decorator. Now that she had money it would be enjoyable to make her home exactly the way she wanted it.

It would be nice to pick out what she wanted in her place and watch it get transformed before her very eyes. But, first she would sleep the sleep of the dead.

Almost immediately after shutting the door to her place she knew that something was wrong. It smelled different. She flicked the light on.

Her bags dropped unceremoniously to the floor and she heard something break in one of them. She gasped and all she could do was look around.

She knew it was her apartment but her mind was having difficulty accepting it. Everything was different. Part of her could recognize that it was utterly gorgeous and pretty close to perfect. But it was a small part of her mind that was quickly pushed to the side.

Her eyes fell on the couch that was so much like Lex’s and her lids narrowed. It was bigger than his and took up more of the floor space because it was L shaped. She could not even imagine how he had found it, how it had gotten there and how much it had cost. She could feel herself starting to get angry.

The feeling only intensified as she walked through the apartment. The whole place had been redone while she was gone. She hadn’t given him permission to do that. She hadn’t given any input to the process. She especially hadn’t given him a fucking key which meant that he had basically broken into her place again.

She started walking faster and faster through the place. The kitchen was all chrome and marble and her father would have been salivating had he been standing next to her. She ripped open the cabinets and saw that even her dishes were gone. The ones that had replaced them were colorful and obviously hand made with care. Chloe slammed the door shut before she threw them against the wall.

Her pictures had all been given new frames and were scattered at odd places along the walls. The bookcases were new and everything was properly organized.

She stalked to her bedroom and found that she was actually gasping at what she saw. Her bed remained but not much else. The colors were deep and evoked a sensual feeling….somehow. She touched the sheets on her bed and knew that they had to have cost thousands of dollars. Lush pillows were at the head of the bed and the wood had been polished. In the corner sat a huge leather chair that she could fit three of herself into.

One wall had wrought iron votive holders complete with candles and faux iron ivy on the edges. A box of long stemmed matches was on her new bedside table.

Chloe ignored the white box that sat on her bed tied with a blood red ribbon. She wouldn’t be surprised if Lex had left her a box of money, too.

The bathroom was totally different. Like the rest of the place it appeared that the window had been made larger, she had a huge tub and the light color scheme made the room appear bigger. Thankfully she noticed that her hair and body products had not been replaced. Another white box sat on the sink. Perhaps some gold bullion for her.

Her heart was hammering in her chest as she left the bedroom. The hall bathroom was just as bad as the rest of the place and when she walked into her office, she knew that she wasn’t going to be able to maintain herself.

The light switch had been moved.

She had clearly told Lex that she was no fool and would see to it herself. But he had moved it anyway. There was a heavy bag hanging in the corner but that was not what she wanted to hit.

When her eyes landed on the desk and chair that her father had bought her she thought she just might scream. Both of them had gone against her wishes. She had been perfectly clear and rational when she had spoken to them about what she did and did not want but the fuckers hadn’t given one good god damn about it.

They had merely swept in and taken over the place that she lived. Even through all the rage running through her, she could feel the twinge of hurt. They just didn’t understand that this was the first truly beautiful place that she lived in and she wanted to be the one to pick out all of this stuff.

Instead, they had done their manly duty and taken over. She was going to kill both of them. Soon.

She walked back out into the living room and looked around. After a moment she said, “Where the fuck is the fucking phone?” She couldn’t even fucking find anything in this fucking place.

Once she found it she was even angrier to see that Lex had put himself at number one on her fucking speed dial. She pressed the button and waited for the fucker to pick up his fucking phone.

She heard the mumbled greeting and was very happy to know that she had woken him up. “Alexander Joseph Luthor, what in the fuck did you think you were doing?”

Lex's eyes peeled open sleepily, as he stared at the phone. Why was Pamela calling him at 3 am and since when did she curse? Wait, Pamela had been dead for over 10 years now, so who the hell would be calling him at the dead of night to curse him out?

“Chloe,” he muttered questioning, his brain not fully awake yet.

“Yes,” she hissed. “It’s me. And I’m standing in my newly decorated apartment wondering what the fuck went through your chrome domed skull that made you do this.” She started to pace back and forth, noticing things that she hadn’t seen before. It was making her sick so she just closed her eyes.

'Chrome domed...?' Lex grunted and rolled over, preparing himself to leave his bed to get up and make coffee. This would obviously require his full mental capacity. “You don't like it,” he mumbled as he rubbed a hand over his eyes. “Did JP pick the wrong color scheme?”

He pushed the blanket aside, sneering as the cold night air hit him. “Hold on a second,” he muttered into the phone.

Lex tossed the cordless onto the mattress for the moment as he hunted down a t-shirt. When he'd finally located one on the chair across from his bed, he put it on, then crawled back onto the mattress to retrieve the phone. “Kay,” he said.

“Wrong color scheme,” Chloe practically shrieked. Lex couldn’t possibly think that what he had done was ok. He had to have known that she would react this way. Or else he didn’t know her as well as he liked to think.

“It’s not the fucking colors, Lex,” she said, pacing at a greater speed. “It’s the fact that you did this behind my back. I cannot even imagine how much of your money you poured into this place. How could you do all of this without my permission? I’m not one of your women Lex, you don’t get to set me up in the manner that you want!”

She kicked the couch. “This fucking couch probably costs more than two years worth of rent in this place. What were you thinking when you did this?”

“Hmm.”

Full sentences weren't really his forte before his first coffee. The only exception to that rule were live or death emergencies. He didn't think this was one. “Like the couch,” he asked, “thought the extension was a good idea,” the last few words were mumbled around a yawn as he padded into the kitchen.

Mechanically going through the motions of preparing the coffee, he put the phone aside, still clearly hearing Chloe's tantrum. Part of him was amused that he hadn't even had to push the speaker button.

“No, I don’t like the fucking couch, Lex!” It made her crazy that he was clearly not taking her seriously. Yes, he had just been woken up but it wasn’t a good enough excuse for her. She was mad as hell and he was treating the situation with the gravity that it deserved.

And, what, did he really expect her to back up his brilliant thought to make the couch bigger. Chloe started to realize that she couldn’t talk to him right now. Didn’t want to hear his voice anymore. It was making her nuts.

“I mean,” she looked over at the thing and tried to find something wrong with it. She knew from an objective view that it was a thing of beauty and looked dangerously comfortable. That if one sat in it they might lose the will to actually get up. “It’s….it’s….”

“Oh,” he voiced.

The coffee spoon dropped from his hand as his eyebrows dropped in a frown. “I'm sorry, thought you'd like it bigger, when friends come to visit or something,” his tone dropped in desolation.

Everything else had been JP's work, with restriction by Lex and suggestions by Gabe. The couch had been entirely his thing to set up for her. He'd thought it would be the one thing she wouldn't be angry about. “If you want, I'll have it removed and you can have mine,” he offered.

The coffee wasn't nearly done, either. Lex gave in to his baser instincts and immersed himself into sulking.

This she couldn’t take. The tone of voice that Lex was using was breaking her heart…along with his offer that she could take his couch. He was the one in the wrong and she found herself almost apologizing to him for what she had said. The world held no rhyme or reason.

Lex had apologized to her but didn’t seem to understand fully why she was so upset and she was the one feeling badly? There, now she was getting her anger back. That emotion was easier to deal with.

“I can’t talk to you right now,” she said honestly and then hung up the phone. After a moment she walked over to the cradle and slammed it down. She picked it up again and slammed it once more for good measure.

She was exhausted but couldn’t possibly stay here. Some of her coworkers had talked about going out as soon as the plane landed. She was certain that she could catch up with them.

Chloe fished her purse out of the bags that were still by the door and started to look for her cell phone. A few hours away from the situation would help. She’d deal with her father and Lex accordingly at a later time.

Lex stared blankly at the phone for a moment before he put it down on the counter. This was not good. He knew that, but somehow all that penetrated his brain at the moment was that Chloe didn't like his couch.

When the coffee was done, he poured a large cup and settled down on one of the barstools. He leaned heavily onto the counter, sipped his coffee and stared into the darkness of his living room. Hopefully things would look better in the morning. Well morning was only four hours away. Maybe they'd look better in the afternoon, then.

Kikina

28th January 2006, 19:41

She stalked to her bedroom and found that she was actually gasping at what she saw. Her bed remained but not much else. The colors were deep and evoked a sensual feeling….somehow. She touched the sheets on her bed and knew that they had to have cost thousands of dollars. Lush pillows were at the head of the bed and the wood had been polished. In the corner sat a huge leather chair that she could fit three of herself into.

Well, one can only imagine what Lex and Chloe could do together in her bedroom :hankpank: Sorry, couldn´t help myself (feeling embarrased :wub: )

“It’s not the fucking colors, Lex,” she said, pacing at a greater speed. “It’s the fact that you did this behind my back. I cannot even imagine how much of your money you poured into this place. How could you do all of this without my permission? I’m not one of your women Lex, you don’t get to set me up in the manner that you want!”

Well, she could be one of his women (well, in her case I think Lex will make her THE ONLY ONE), but that´s your thing to decide, cannot wait how you write them out of this :grin2: :grin:

When the coffee was done, he poured a large cup and settled down on one of the barstools. He leaned heavily onto the counter, sipped his coffee and stared into the darkness of his living room. Hopefully things would look better in the morning. Well morning was only four hours away. Maybe they'd look better in the afternoon, then.

Cannot wait for their first meeting after her coming back.Hope the sexual tension is still there.Could be interesting to see some verbal judo occur :puppydog:

Anyway, good job, cannot wait for your next update, as this totally made my day :clapclap: :clapclap: :clapclap:

zho9

28th January 2006, 23:02

This chapter had me LOL the whole way through. So many great lines... especially some of what Gabe was thinking.

Lionel had beamed at the good news and kept calling him to rehash the details that they knew. Gabe had put his secretary on strict instructions to not put Lionel’s calls through. He was waiting for a carrier pigeon to appear with a note.

Keeping one’s face neutral when all you wanted to do was grin like a damn fool was very hard indeed. Lex was here to discuss Chloe, plain and simple. God, Lionel’s head was going to explode. Gabe had to clear his throat to keep from laughing at that visual.
That is a great visual!
I especially loved this line:
Reaching across the table and kissing Lex was not an option so Gabe pretended to mull over Lex’s proposition.
:rofl: :rofl: :rofl: :rofl: :rofl:
Poor Lex, doesn't think Chloe liked his couch, but, I'm confident all will be forgiven...eventually.
Once again, great job!

Pam

28th January 2006, 23:25

I just love this story. Great update!

flower

29th January 2006, 00:01

Owh! I just love this update!

petoonya

29th January 2006, 02:44

Poor Lex, Chloe is mad at him for trying to help. He is so cute when he is half asleep. :-D I understand her point. I would have wanted to help contribute, but I hope her and Lex patch all of this up soon. Can't wait for the next update!

hfce

29th January 2006, 03:25

Oh that was bad :eek: but this was funny as hell
At the moment, Lex had to sincerely stifle the urge to wrap his hands around Jean Pierre's throat and squeeze the little French ferret until he squeaked. I can imagine Lex doing that to him and :rofl:to funny. Chloe needs to calm down and see it as a nice gift. I know I would. :D Great job girls. :blinkkiss

masensimar

29th January 2006, 04:50

Love the update

Clannadlvr

29th January 2006, 07:20

Oh, poor Lex! While I completely understand Chloe's initial freakout- this is just the sort of thing she would find heavyhanded- I just can't help but *wibble* a little for Lex.

Great update!

BellaMR

29th January 2006, 08:40

Poor Lex, she didn't like the couch. I hope Lex can drag himself out of this mess.
I'm worried, though, that Chloe might get into trouble while out with her friends. She'd better not find someone else to share that new bedroom with.
I can't wait for the next update!

sylvia

29th January 2006, 16:26

Oh dear, disaster strikes again. I can see where both Chloe and Lex are coming from, but honestly, those two are way to stubborn for their own good. It was Lex's fault this time, though. But Chloe's rejecting the couch was harsh. Heh.

Loved the Lex/Gabe bonding scene. It was interesting to see Gabe having the upper hand for once. But I miss Lionel! Hope to see him appearing soon.

Update soon, please! I need to see them (kiss and) make up!

Kit Merlot

29th January 2006, 16:50

Excellent update!

I can completely understand Chloe's anger, but most of all, her hurt, that both Lex and Gabe went behind her back, and bought her things to decorate HER apartment without consulting her first.

This is where she lives, and she should be able to approve everything.

I know that Lex's heart is in the right place, but Chloe doesn't need to be bought off to be his friend. She likes him for who he is, and not what he can buy her.

I am completely on Chloe's side, but I am hoping she doesn't stay angry at Lex for too long. I'm sure he'll figure out a way to get her to forgive him;)

Gaia

29th January 2006, 17:13

Chloe ignored the white box that sat on her bed tied with a blood red ribbon. She wouldn’t be surprised if Lex had left her a box of money, too.

Had to laugh with that one. Poor JP- he really thought Chloe would find it thoughtful. She'll kill him when she finds out what's it it:D

When her eyes landed on the desk and chair that her father had bought her she thought she just might scream. Both of them had gone against her wishes. She had been perfectly clear and rational when she had spoken to them about what she did and did not want but the fuckers hadn’t given one good god damn about it.

Now that I don't get. Lex said that those had to stay. What was Jean Paul thinking....about a bonus-for doing the opposite of what he was told? This is Luther. Lex Luthor we are talking about!!

She walked back out into the living room and looked around. After a moment she said, “Where the fuck is the fucking phone?” She couldn’t even fucking find anything in this fucking place.

Now that was funny. It also kinda made me think about Extreme Makeover:Home Edition- Do they tell the family where the phone is?:D

star del mar

30th January 2006, 04:58

Ok so I knew Chloe would be angry, but holy crap...she was really riled. Granted I can understand that she feels like they invaded her space and they took away the chance for her to create the space that she is going to live in but, Lex was just trying to be nice. I think that most of the time he doesn't really know how to say certain things so he demonstrates what he's feeling instead. What a mess, he was trying to be a good friend and I think it kind of backfired. He and Gabe are in for a good chewing out :) Great update!

Steph*

katieandjason

30th January 2006, 05:43

hey there. just want you two to know that I have a 5 page review that the silly site isn't letting me upload in any way. So as soon as it lets me post it have lots of printer paper ready!

darkangel

30th January 2006, 21:31

Oh gosh, he thinks that she does not like his couch. Poor lex and chloe. I can't wait til she finds the negligee.

Susan S

30th January 2006, 22:28

The image of a sleepy Lex, unable to follow Chloe's rant is great! I can so understand where Chloe is coming from on this issue. The fact that both Lex and Gabe, for their own reasons, ignored her wishes on this matter has got to hurt her. I can't wait to see what happens next.

Susan S

meg20

31st January 2006, 12:26

Loved this update, I'm so glad you put Gabe in it and the part where Gabe had the urge to kiss Lex was so :rofl: also having some more JP was fun, this man never lets anything go if he has got an idea, even goes against Lex' wishes.
And Chloe got so angry - that was so lovely - and Lex' only problem was coffee and the idea that Chloe didn't like his couch - poor Lexy:P
I can't wait for the next chapter, it should be fun and hope you put some Lionel into some next chapter. I'm so excited!!!:D

carebear72884

1st February 2006, 02:19

great job girls. I don't know how long it has been since I read this story, but considering I was on page 13 or something and it is at 44 pages now, it has been way to long.
As always, I love your work.
More soon, I can't wait, and I promise to read it on time and give proper feedback. I can't possible give decent feeback on all that I just read, it would take forever.
:D
PS: is the smut coming soon? this is rated nc-17 you know.

georgee5

1st February 2006, 04:11

I totally feel for Chloe. It was not the reaction I expected, but to be honest, would probably be how I would feel. It's like the first time you feel like an adult and then your parents go and question your decisions. Chloe had reached that stage and Lex snatched it away from her. I'm almost thinking that this belongs in the Angst category because it seems like they will never be able to get through their differences to make anything other than a friendship work.

deia

2nd February 2006, 02:53

Oh poor Lex. I can see where Chloe is coming from but still, she did ask for the couch! Anyways amazing, brilliant update! I'll be definetly looking for more!!!

randa

2nd February 2006, 06:22

as always, that was amazing. chloe's reaction was absolutely perfecct and lex in the morning im pretty sure was my favorite part.

AND a bigger couch...im so jelous:yeahbaby:

more soon

randa

katieandjason

3rd February 2006, 19:57

*munches on cookie while reading update, ends up spraying screen and keyboard with cookie bits* Note to self, don't eat and read. Tricky authors with their tricky cookies.

Oh god. Lex is so dead. And Gabe is only two minutes behind him!

The feeling only intensified as she walked through the apartment. The whole place had been redone while she was gone. She hadn’t given him permission to do that. She hadn’t given any input to the process. She especially hadn’t given him a fucking key which meant that he had basically broken into her place again.

So not only did he steamroll over her personal life, he violated her privacy as well. Ooopsie!

She started walking faster and faster through the place. The kitchen was all chrome and marble and her father would have been salivating had he been standing next to her. She ripped open the cabinets and saw that even her dishes were gone. The ones that had replaced them were colorful and obviously hand made with care. Chloe slammed the door shut before she threw them against the wall.

Good self control there, I probably would have flung at least a plate. And a glass... definitely a glass, it would leave such a nice resounding crash.

Her pictures had all been given new frames and were scattered at odd places along the walls. The bookcases were new and everything was properly organized.

Great! So some absolute strangers came into her house while she was gone and organized her bookshelf. I would feel the need to move, no lie.

She stalked to her bedroom and found that she was actually gasping at what she saw. Her bed remained but not much else. The colors were deep and evoked a sensual feeling….somehow. She touched the sheets on her bed and knew that they had to have cost thousands of dollars. Lush pillows were at the head of the bed and the wood had been polished. In the corner sat a huge leather chair that she could fit three of herself into.

One wall had wrought iron votive holders complete with candles and faux iron ivy on the edges. A box of long stemmed matches was on her new bedside table.

Chloe ignored the white box that sat on her bed tied with a blood red ribbon. She wouldn’t be surprised if Lex had left her a box of money, too.

The bathroom was totally different. Like the rest of the place it appeared that the window had been made larger, she had a huge tub and the light color scheme made the room appear bigger. Thankfully she noticed that her hair and body products had not been replaced. Another white box sat on the sink. Perhaps some gold bullion for her.

:rofl: :rofl: :rofl: Love the lines about boxes of money and bullion! But damn... a bedroom and bathroom are really personal. And a whole crew of people came in, picked out sheets, moved her clothes, went through her cabinets, and chose products for her private life. I don't think I could use a bath gel that some stranger picked out for me after rummaging through my stuff to see what I liked. It would be like bathing with an absolute stranger. Even though he's not physically there, his presence is. Creepy.

TBC due to stupid computer

katieandjason

3rd February 2006, 19:58

Her heart was hammering in her chest as she left the bedroom. The hall bathroom was just as bad as the rest of the place and when she walked into her office, she knew that she wasn’t going to be able to maintain herself.

The light switch had been moved.

She had clearly told Lex that she was no fool and would see to it herself. But he had moved it anyway. There was a heavy bag hanging in the corner but that was not what she wanted to hit.

When her eyes landed on the desk and chair that her father had bought her she thought she just might scream. Both of them had gone against her wishes. She had been perfectly clear and rational when she had spoken to them about what she did and did not want but the fuckers hadn’t given one good god damn about it.

:ecstatic: Ooooh! She's started cussing!!! Come on, guys! Chloe already has a complex about feeling inferior, and so you two do THIS!? 'Hi, you were out of town and we wanted to do something nice for you, so instead of arranging to have a catered meal waiting for you when you arrive home hungry and exhausted, we completely take over a very personal aspect of your like. Love us!' :irefuse: Not a good idea, guys. Just sayin'.

They had merely swept in and taken over the place that she lived. Even through all the rage running through her, she could feel the twinge of hurt. They just didn’t understand that this was the first truly beautiful place that she lived in and she wanted to be the one to pick out all of this stuff.

I hear ya sweetie!

Instead, they had done their manly duty and taken over. She was going to kill them both. Soon.

And here's the complex. Glad you could make it.

She walked back out into the living room and looked around. After a moment she said, “Where the fuck is the fucking phone?” She couldn’t even fucking find anything in this fucking place.

Insult, meet Injury.

Once she found it she was even angrier to see that Lex had put himself at number one on her fucking speed dial.

:eek: Lex! You're kidding! I didn't think you'd be that stupid! You programmed her phone?! While you're at it, why don't you organize her dayplanner and schedule her some naps?

Lex's eyes peeled open sleepily, as he stared at the phone. Why was Pamela calling him at 3 am and since when did she curse? Wait, Pamela had been dead for over 10 years now, so who the hell would be calling him at the dead of night to curse him out?

“Chloe,” he muttered questioning, his brain not fully awake yet.

Ok, that was just too damn cute and funny. But, again I say oopsie. It might have been better for him to ignore that 3am phone call. Lex=:coffee:

TBC due to silly compute malfunction

“It’s not the fucking colors, Lex,” she said, pacing at a greater speed. “It’s the fact that you did this behind my back. I cannot even imagine how much of your money you poured into this place. How could you do all of this without my permission? I’m not one of your women Lex, you don’t get to set me up in the manner that you want!”

A couple things here. It surprises me that she went off on the money issue instead of the invasion of privacy thing. The former is much more inconsequential that the latter, though still a big deal. Also, she hasn't opened the boxes yet, and reading that comment about not being one of his women tells me that when she does it'll be the straw that breaks the camel's back. She won't know that they are courtesy of JP... and when she calls Lex on it JP's meddling with come back to haunt him. At least I hope so, and I want ringside seats when it does b/c that little guy irritates the french out of me. :D

Mechanically going through the motions of preparing the coffee, he put the phone aside, still clearly hearing Chloe's tantrum. Part of him was amused that he hadn't even had to push the speaker button.

Dude, you are so dead. And all I'll be able to say in your eulogy is "He didn't take an infuriated Chloe seriously. Can't help a guy with a deathwish."

This she couldn’t take. The tone of voice that Lex was using was breaking her heart…along with his offer that she could take his couch. He was the one in the wrong and she found herself almost apologizing to him for what she had said. The world held no rhyme or reason.

Lex had apologized to her but didn’t seem to understand fully why she was so upset and she was the one feeling badly? There, now she was getting her anger back. That emotion was easier to deal with.

:rofl:

“I can’t talk to you right now,” she said honestly and then hung up the phone. After a moment she walked over to the cradle and slammed it down. She picked it up again and slammed it once more for good measure.

She was exhausted but couldn’t possibly stay here. Some of her coworkers had talked about going out as soon as the plane landed. She was certain that she could catch up with them.

Chloe fished her purse out of the bags that were still by the door and started to look for her cell phone. A few hours away from the situation would help. She’d deal with her father and Lex accordingly at a later time.

Oh no. Oh no oh no oh no oh no. Not good. So she's going to be even more tired, given time to let all the ramifications of their actions hit her, and be egged on by her friends' indignation on her behalf. :nono: Sooo not a good situation.

Lex stared blankly at the phone for a moment before he put it down on the counter. This was not good. He knew that, but somehow all that penetrated his brain at the moment was that Chloe didn't like his couch.

When the coffee was done, he poured a large cup and settled down on one of the barstools. He leaned heavily onto the counter, sipped his coffee and stared into the darkness of his living room. Hopefully things would look better in the morning. Well morning was only four hours away. Maybe they'd look better in the afternoon, then.

Great. So Lex will be cranky too, offended by what he considers her ungratefulness which is only used to cover the hurt he feels at the apparent rejection of something personal, ie his couch, and given time to plan how to defuse her... which we've all seen how that goes.

I cannot WAIT for the next update!!! The sparks are just going to fly, and I am on the edge of my seat to see where you two evil geniuses are going to take us. Will it be into the bedroom or into the office? The one with the punching bag. ;)

And I have to say, I usually don't leave feedback with breakdowns and quotes. I'll summarize and write what I loved and am looking forward to. However, this update was so funny and so full of things I wanted to mention that I broke down and did the quote thingy. And since I only average one a year, I thought you should know that I spent mine on yours. Because I enjoyed it that much. :D

arkakitty

4th February 2006, 12:14

Loved the chapter =) I knew she would be angry as devil himself =)
Oh please more soon =)

BlueSabby

4th February 2006, 22:16

A/N: Blue: Ok, in this chapter we've got Lex, Chloe, Gabe and Lionel.....all in *one* room. That's right, people, we're breaking out the big guns. Enjoy and thanks for all of the lovely feedback.

A/N: Sabby: What she said. And of course there's more fighting and bickering and no smoochies. Sorry guys, maybe another time *G* Enjoy anyway though.

Chloe did not have time for secretaries informing her that she could not see her father. There were two of them outside of his office explaining that he was in an important business meeting. Well, she was his blood and her yelling at him was far more important. They weren’t about to tackle her so she just brushed past them and opened the door.

She paused when she saw who this meeting was with. ‘Goodie, two birds with one stone.’ That way she could get this done quickly and then go back, well, somewhere to sleep. She’d been up since last night and it was now close to noon.

Her cell phone had been going crazy all morning, both her father and Lex had been calling her, so she had turned it off. She would speak to them when she was good and ready and not a moment before.

“What is wrong with both of you,” she asked without preamble. She heard one of the secretaries close the door behind her as she stared down her father and Lex. “I mean, is it something chemical or do you both just totally disregard anything and everything that I tell you?”

Gabe had been out of his seat the moment Chloe had stormed past the threshold. He knew that it was not a good idea to approach her right now, but Lex had told him about the phone call last night and he had to do something, or all their work would be for naught.

“Sweetheart, please calm down,” he said in a soothing voice. “Why don't we all sit down. Lex and I really want to explain things to you.”

Lex had taken a step back when Gabe had approached his daughter. Chloe looked livid and in the harsh light of day, decorating her apartment didn't seem like such a good idea anymore. He'd gotten his will, but what if Chloe wouldn't get over her issues? What if she used this as a reason to end the friendship between them completely? That was not what he wanted, at all.

“Chloe, this really wasn't meant to upset you,” he stated from behind Gabe.

Chloe held her hands out in front of her in order to keep them where they were. It didn’t matter what their intentions were. They had done what they had and now had to face the consequences. Neither of them was stupid and both proclaimed to know her so it was almost unbelievable to her that they would try to defend themselves.

“Just don’t,” she said, looking between the two of them. It was hard to decide which one of them she was most upset with. “I told you what I wanted and what I didn’t. Both of you. But,” she shook her head, “you just couldn’t accept my wishes. What gives either of you the right to barrel through my place, making it into what you wanted?”

She honestly wanted to hear what they had to say to that question.

Lex shoved his hands in his pockets, preparing to have to explain himself, but again, Gabe cut him off before he could start. He let the man speak, thankful for a minute longer to stall and come up with an answer that wasn't a flat out lie, but not the full out truth, either.

“Sweetheart, like Lex said, we didn't do this to upset you. And we didn't turn your apartment into something we wanted,” he defended their decisions. “We tried to give you what you deserve, which is in simple words, only the best.”

Gabe willed his daughter to see past her anger to understand what the intention behind the project had been. He'd known the moment Lex had entered his office to ask for his help, that it was all about Chloe. The younger man really only had Chloe's best interest at heart.

Lex stepped closer, though not close enough to warrant any sudden moves on Chloe's part.

“Chloe, we both honestly wanted to do this for you. You wouldn't agree to anything and when you were gone, I thought it would be a nice surprise to come back to the perfect apartment.” He took a breath, another step closer, and continued. “Of course we both knew that you'd be upset about us spending money on you, but don't you understand that it's not about the money?”

And it wasn't. The money had never been a question in his mind. He'd wanted to give Chloe a present, for several reasons. Of course there also was the fact that this little project had given him the perfect excuse not to go on another unsuccessful prowl for casual sex.

“Don’t you understand that it’s not about what you wanted to give me but about what I wanted,” she asked Lex, ignoring her father for now. “The perfect apartment is one that I have a say in, Lex.”

She looked away from him and said, “Did you honestly think that I would just say ‘thank you’ and be glad that you disregarded our deal?” She looked back over at him and said, “After the first time you went into my apartment uninvited I thought that you had learned your lesson.”

When she glanced over at her father, she was surprised to see that he had not reacted to that tidbit of information. “And what I deserve is to be listened to,” she added, her anger coming back again.

She knew that they would explain their actions but neither of them seemed to think that what they had done was very wrong.

“But that deal was nonsense,” Lex exclaimed.

He'd sworn to be reasonable, but being yelled at and put down for something that someone else would have seen for what it was - a gift from him - didn't exactly help with that.

“You wouldn't allow either of us to give you any of the things you deserve out of some twisted complex and now you're trying to make us feel guilty about it by acting as if you'd had full fledged plans for the apartment when a week ago, you put restrictions on yourself left and right.”

Sure, he could understand that Chloe was disappointed in not having had a hand in things, but if she had, the apartment wouldn't even resemble the beautiful home that it was now. “Be honest, if you had been able to call the shots at all, you would have ended up compromising over every little thing instead of having the apartment you really want.”

Out of the corner of his eyes, he could see Gabe stepping back. Part of him felt uncomfortable, afraid that he would be up against two opponents in the near future, if the other man decided to defend his daughter.

Gabe crossed his arms over his chest and let Lex take the brunt of the argument for the moment. What he'd said about Chloe was true. She had a way of restricting herself in everything. Sometimes he had the feeling that his daughter had deep sitting issues. Like she thought she wasn't worth somebody's attention or their affection. That she wasn't worth spending money on. Sure she liked to blame it on the fact that he spent too much, but that wasn't true. He was a reasonable man and he knew what he could afford. A desk and office chair would hardly put him in the poorhouse.

“Oh, I see,” Chloe said in a calm tone of voice, “so this whole thing is my fault. Of course it is, how could I have been so blind to think that what goes into my apartment is my choice? I should just let my rich friend and daddy pay for everything!”

She wasn’t one of those people and never wanted to be. Chloe knew that she was oversensitive about accepting gifts but this was over the line. Her father’s gift, fine. On another day that might not have upset her. But Lex had shelled out over six figures for that place..which was unacceptable.

Advancing on Lex she said, “You’re right. It’s my fault for not thinking it’s ok for you to break into my apartment again and take over. My mistake.”

Lionel had snuck into the office about a minute ago. He had come to see how the meeting between Gabe and Lex had gone. And to pump Gabe for more information about the progress in Chloe’s apartment.

When he had heard her raised voice behind the door his second question had been answered. The secretaries had looked at him carefully as he opened the door and made his way into the room.

The argument looked in full swing and also appeared to be rather serious. Chloe was very upset and both his son and Gabe appeared as if they were trying to diffuse a bomb.

When he heard Chloe’s last words, he said, “Well, I’m glad that you’ve realized that now, Chloe.” The comment wasn’t terribly witty but anything to get her to stop attacking Lex. He could see that his son was trying to control himself.

Lex's gaze immediately jerked towards Lionel, his building anger projecting fully onto the man now. “Don't you dare talk to her in that manner,” he seethed. “Stay out of it!”

This was an argument between himself and Chloe and he wouldn't have his father of all people butt in and make things worse than they had to be.

The raised eyebrows and surprised expression on his face did not have to be faked. He knew that Lex was upset by the whole situation but he didn’t think that his son would snap at him in such a manner. It meant that he really cared. It was only by biting on the inside of his cheek that Lionel was able to keep from smiling.

“I most certainly will not stay out of it,” he answered smoothly. “Chloe herself just said that she realized that she was wrong so there is no need to get so emotional about things, Lex.”

Lionel could tell that Chloe was still enraged but he could also see that she was listening carefully to him. She might not fully be processing his words but she would later and he wanted to make full use of his time in this room.

“She had probably remembered that grand, over the top gestures are the only way that you know how to relate to those that are in your life.” He kept his tone neutral and straightforward. It was a slight dig but also the truth so Lionel figured that he was doing the least harm that was possible.

“Isn’t that right, Chloe,” he asked, hoping that he sounded as if he was trying to be helpful. He could see that Gabe clearly thought he had lost his mind but ignored the other man for a moment. Their children were never going to solve this with other people in the room.

The only option was to ensure that they got to speak about this alone. Being that Chloe had a penchant for leaving a room when she was pressed about something that she didn’t want to discuss….well, this was the obvious course of action.

Gabe's eyes jerked back and forth between Lex, Lionel and his daughter. This situation was definitely about to reach its climax. He knew his daughter and there was no way she was going to take this remark in any positive way. She was more likely to give a loud and unmistakingly insulting retort and then storm out of the room.

Part of him was convinced that was exactly what Lionel was aiming for, but Gabe wasn't sure it was a good idea. Chloe was prone to hold on to a temper longer than any other person he'd ever known, and she could hold a grudge infinitely if she wanted to. The last thing Gabe wanted was to find themselves back at square one when it came to Chloe and Lex. By now, he sincerely regretted getting carried away in decorating her apartment.

At Lionel's barb at Lex's habit of taking things over the top; a voice in his head couldn't stop from commenting sarcastically, 'Gee, wonder who he got that from.' Still, he kept his mouth shut, his eyes staying fixed on Chloe as his daughter's face slowly suffused with color. He winced uncomfortably, knowing that time on the ticking bomb had just run out.

Lex's eyes widened as he watched Chloe's reaction to Lionel's words and at that point he went as far as to wish he'd let his father die under that damn pillar all those years ago.

“Chloe,” he voiced softly, reaching a hand out towards her.

He was going to make Lionel pay for this. It wasn't that he hadn't been right, but damnit, he had to see that Chloe would feel even more ganged up upon and that it wouldn't do anything but make the situation worse. Now she would probably never listen to him and he'd have to spend weeks trying to get her to forgive him, if she ever did.

She ignored Lex for the moment. One Luthor at a time was enough for any girl to handle so she turned her attention back to Lionel. “No,” she said, “that’s not right.” What Lionel had said held a kernel of truth but he had a lot to learn about his son.

“Lex has a myriad of ways to show that he cares. You’ve just probably never seen them because you’re so short sighted.” And why was she defending Lex now? Things had gone further than she had intended. She just wanted to come in here, scream, and then leave.

“But if that is how he relates to those in his life he must have learned it from you.” She looked Lionel up and down and said, “So what about you, there any expensive gift you've got for me shoved in your pants!"

The moment she said the words she realized her mistake. Her hand flew up to her face and covered her mouth. That had not come out the way she had meant it.

Lionel knew that he should behave himself but that comment was too good to pass up. He felt a Cheshire grin overtake his face. “That depends on what you're looking for, Chloe.”

Her eyes widened even more and he slid his hand into his pocket. His fingers wrapped around what they found and he fluidly tossed it over to Chloe.

She reacted instinctively and caught it gracefully. It was a gold plated pen with obvious worth and weight to it.

Looking back up at Lionel, she recognized the smug and amused look on his face all too well. Lex often wore it when dealing with her. She couldn’t stand this anymore. Pen still in hand she said, “I’m done here,” and then stalked out of the room.

“Chloe,” Lex exclaimed and reached out, barely missing her as she stormed out of the room.

He turned his eyes to his father, barely suppressing a growl of fury. “You,” he ground out.

But he couldn't find the right words and didn't have the time for them anyway, so he just did what he had to do. He stormed past his father and set out on the hunt after Chloe. He wouldn't let her get away like that and be angry at him for god only knew how long. He'd make this right, even if that meant having everything removed from her apartment and starting from scratch with it.

“Chloe!” He called out for her again as he chased down the hallway after her.

After his son hastily left the room Lionel allowed himself to smile. He looked over at Gabe, who was glowering at him, and said, “Before you say anything I just want you to know that that,” he pointed at the open door, “was the exact outcome we needed.”

Gabe ran a hand through his graying hair and shook his head. By the end of this he'd either be completely white or going bald. Of course he knew that it was good in Lionel's mind that Lex had stormed after her. The problem was, that from Lex's side it might be a good sign, but from Chloe's side? It could make things a hell of a lot worse.

She'd always had the habit of running out when things upset her too much and then she'd sit and stew. If you were family, you could approach her after a good while and sort things out. But Lex wasn't family, yet. He knew his daughter had feelings for him, but where those feelings enough to forgive and forget? This really had been a bad idea.

He shook his head and looked up at the other man, fixing him in a stern gaze. “Let's just hope that my daughter cares enough that it won't make things worse,” he stated darkly.
~~
When the elevator dinged, letting her know that she was on her floor, Chloe walked into her hallway and was unsurprised by the figure standing by her door.

She had heard Lex calling after her but had ignored him as she made her way to the stairs. Sure, it was over 50 flights but she knew that Lex would see it as a sign to leave her be. Besides, it had given her some time to think.

It had also exhausted her. She still hadn’t slept, had gone out with friends after an all night flight and had a fight with three men in an office. Chloe was ready to pass out.

However, it appeared as if she had something to deal with first.

Lex was leaning against the wall that was opposite the door to her apartment.

Chloe took her keys out of her pocket and opened the door. She left it open and heard Lex step into the living room and shut the door. She threw her keys on the table in the entrance way….or at least she threw them where the table used to be.

They clattered to the floor and she sighed before wearily picking them up. As she made her way further into the living room, she placed them on the coffee table before taking off her suit jacket and plopping down on the couch. Her shoes came off next and she stretched out.

Opposed to Chloe, Lex had taken the elevator down and went straight to the garage. He'd driven over here directly, knowing that this was the place Chloe would return to, since she had no other choice. Or at least, so he hoped. When he'd beaten her to the apartment, he'd settled down to wait and it hadn't taken longer than twenty minutes for her to appear.

He'd followed her silently into the apartment and something uncomfortable had twinged in his guts when he saw her throwing the keys down where a little table had been before Jean Pierre had changed the whole decor. He'd put most things that the man had decided to get rid of in storage. Lex decided he'd get that table back where it belonged.

He watched Chloe plopping down on the couch sans shoes and jacket and noticed that she immediately buried into it, like she'd done at his place. That made a small smile twitch at one corner of his mouth. She did like the couch after all, even if she was angry about it at the moment.

“I'm sorry for what my father said,” he started without preamble.

Of all of the things that Lex chose to focus on…..

Chloe found it slightly ridiculous at the moment and chuckled before she said, “Don’t be. I think, and it kills me to say this, that he was the only one with any real perspective in the room.” The fact that the man had tried to help was curious but she’d make a note of it and investigate why later.

Lex grimaced, but stepped closer to Chloe, sensing that it might be okay to approach her. At least she wasn't screaming anymore. That was a start. He'd do anything to make this up to her. As long as she didn't decide to throw him out of her apartment, and her life.

“And, I'm sorry that you're so upset about all this,” he said slowly, taking another step closer. “That was really not why I did all this,” he motioned around the apartment with a vague hand gesture.

Maybe now that they were alone, he could give her a little more truth, but not too much of it. It wouldn't do to give her the wrong impression. He'd only tell her more if it became absolutely necessary.

Chloe sighed and pinched the bridge of her nose. “I know, Lex,” she said tiredly. He had tried to do something nice for her and look what happened. He clearly didn’t understand why she was so upset but she did know that he would not have done this if he had thought that it would upset her this much.

“I just wanted to do this myself,” she said by way of explanation. “I was looking forward to it because it was going to be the first time that I could afford to do this with my own money. I was excited.”

She sat up and moved over on the couch to where the two pieces met, forming a small nook. She shoved her body into it and then gestured for Lex to sit down next to her. Maybe if she explained things better he would understand.

“So when I can in here and saw this,” she swept an arm around the room, “it was like that opportunity was taken from me.”

Lex settled down on the couch, leaving a little space between them so he could turn to face her. She'd given the same reason before, but in the heat of their argument, he hadn't even considered it. Honestly, he hadn't thought that it would be something important to Chloe, to furnish the apartment on her own. It was much simpler to let somebody else take care of things like that and only have to restrict them when they got a little overzealous.

“I didn't consider that,” he admitted. “I thought it was just that you couldn't accept a gift the normal way, so I thought it would be smart to sneak it past you, that way you'd have to accept it.” He shrugged a shoulder and looked up at Chloe, hoping she understood now and didn't blow up at him again.

It felt like they were at least getting somewhere. It didn’t mean that they would necessarily understand one another completely but as long as they could keep talking to each other rationally they’d be able to get past it. It was funny that Chloe had that much faith in that.

Chloe closed her eyes and let her head flop against the couch. “You’re partially right about that and we both know it.” They had already had one conversation about her gift issues so she wasn’t about to rehash all of that now.

“But,” she added and opened her eyes and looked at Lex, “that still didn’t give you the right to do this. It’s stunning, Lex, don’t get me wrong, but still…” she shrugged, unable to complete her sentence.

Lex had the decency to look chagrined, even though he still didn't quite understand what the big deal was. But the important thing was that he understood it was a big deal.

“Listen, if you want to, we can get rid of whatever you don't like,” he offered. “And I still have most of your things in storage so nothing is really lost,” he added, “Well except for the plates,” he amended.

Jean Pierre had obviously had to make sure those plates could never be used by anyone ever again. They'd been unceremoniously dumped in a huge container with the debris of the old windows.

“We’ll see,” Chloe said noncommittally. She really did think that the apartment was gorgeous, there were just certain things that she didn’t really like. Then there was the fact that she didn’t want to be reminded about what her father and Lex had done every time she came home. But she couldn’t imagine how much time, money and energy Lex had put into the place. It would be a shame to demolish it all.

At least Lex had had sense enough to not throw out all of her belongings. There were a few things that she knew she needed. Pieces that she’d picked up over the years that she still loved. Maybe by putting them back the place would feel more like home to her.

She still couldn’t believe that all of this had been done in less than a week. Lex’s personality would have dictated that he supervise the whole project. Which brought up an interesting question. “Didn’t you have anything better to do for the last week?”

This was the part were things might just get a bit complicated. Without telling the truth, it might be difficult to answer that innocent question.

“Not precisely,” he answered, “Of course I had enough work during the day, but doing this gave me a good excuse to take a breather every once in a while.”

Which was true, but not the whole truth. He'd not only spent his days at the apartment after all. More than once, he'd fallen asleep on the very couch they were sitting on. Too wrung out from extended arguments with Jean Pierre, he'd simply crashed and not woken up until the next morning.

“Oh,” Chloe said, softly. So this had been a distraction for Lex from the rigors of his every day work schedule. She knew that it shouldn’t make his gesture any less grand but the thought, apparently erroneous, that he had thrown himself into this full throttle had warmed something inside of her.

“Well, I’m glad that this project was able to distract you from the stress at work.” There was no malice in her words. Actually, his admission made things easier on her. If he hadn’t really cared all that much about what was done here, other than the couch, it wouldn’t be too difficult to set things back. If she decided that that was what she wanted.

Lex watched her face fall at that admission and knew he'd said the wrong thing. Fuck all, what would have been the right thing to say here? He'd thought it was a good enough explanation but apparently it wasn't. The way she'd said 'distract you from the stress' rung weird in his mind.

“Yeah, distraction is one way to call it,” he tried for a joke, “Jean Pierre drove me nuts those last 6 days.”

He shook his head, remembering the conversations and arguments, and the migraines. “Believe me, I didn't want that fire place put in, or the new windows,” he said. “That man is a menace, if I'd let him he would literally have torn down an entire wall in this house for the sake of a closet.”

Lex would not mention the robe or the negligee for that matter. He was glad that Chloe would never have to know about those. “And then there was some highly inappropriate stuff. For a man that was supposedly working for me, he surely was working against me rather a lot.”

A smile broke over her face at Lex’s harried tone. Maybe it hadn’t just been a side project to keep his time occupied after all. “Oh, did the scary, French designer give you a headache. Poor thing.” With her last two words she ran the back of her fingers over Lex’s cheek. “Now I know how to keep you in check. Jean Pierre, you said his name was right?”

Lex caught her hand before it could retreat and shot her a mock glare. Truth was, the fact that Chloe was willing to touch him again, he was out of the deep. Her touch may have been a bit unsettling in its nature, but the important thing was that she'd touched him at all.

“Don't even think about it, Chloe,” he warned, “The man has some funny ideas in his head, and if he's giving me a migraine, I'm sure he'd be giving you an aneurism, trying to deal with him.” Giving her hand a squeeze, he drove the point home, “He wanted to put a shag rag in front of that fireplace.”

Chloe knew that Lex was very serious about this. He had his serious, ‘I’m truly warning you’ face on and it made Chloe’s smile widen. Even the mention of a shag rug couldn’t deter her from seeking out a man that could make Lex this batty.

She shrugged one shoulder, trying to ignore the fact that Lex was still holding her hand and their fingers were entwined now, “I don’t know, maybe a little shag is just what this place needs.”

Lex froze at those words but forced himself to relax. He shook his head and pasted a smirk on his face. “Trust me, it isn't, you have too much style for that.”

Of course with that thought came the one of his own failed attempt at getting laid. He'd actually taken a second try two days ago, but this time, he hadn't even been able to bring himself to pick a woman out of the crowd. They all were incredibly flawed for some indiscernible reason.

“Ah, the good old compliment trick. I’m quite familiar with it myself,” she said with a grin. “And I don’t have too much style for a good shag. Just so out of practice that I’d probably pull a muscle or four.” She was overtired. That could be the only explanation for blurting something like that out.

Lex didn't even process the line completely before he'd found himself muttering, “Sounds familiar,” under his breath.

Hopefully, Chloe hadn't caught that. She didn't need to know about his failed attempts and knowing that he hadn't gotten laid would surely lead her to ask. If any deity was on his side, this would be the time they granted him a time out.

She looked pretty surprised at her own admission, so maybe she had been too caught up to hear the muttered comment.

“Well, let's put that in the category of things I didn't necessarily need to know,” he said out loud.

Inwardly though, he was relieved that he hadn't been the only one who hadn't gotten laid.

Chloe very maturely stuck her tongue out at him. “If we’re friends you had better get used to hearing about my love life.” She paused and then murmured, “Or lack thereof at the moment.” Lex was looking at her dubiously.

“What? Maybe you’ll be able to give me some insight to the human male that will give me the edge in a different way then I’m used to having it.” Chloe knew how to control a man using sex and seduction but if she was going to get back into being in real relationships, that wouldn’t get her very far.

“And I’m all for reciprocity so I’ll help you out with ensnaring women,” she said enthusiastically. “Because I heard that little comment of yours. So, spill. How is it that the devilishly sexy Lex Luthor can’t find himself a woman these days?”

carebear72884

5th February 2006, 00:13

yeah lex? how is that? I want to know.
damn, no more to read. that is just mean!!!

Great update. More soon.

meeaz

5th February 2006, 00:44

i vote that lex's reply should be "because the only woman i want to shag is the one i'm currently talking to."

and then, my life would be sweet! great update!

Gaia

5th February 2006, 00:44

You stopped there? THERE? Now we have to wait at least a week to get an answer!!! ..now that's just mean.....
Anyway- I get Chloe's point of view, and Lex's and Gabe's, but the little present from JP is still to be discovered!
Update fast so we get Lex's respond to that question as well as Chloe's for the gift:D

zho9

5th February 2006, 01:23

This is how much I love this story... All I've read the from this latest update is the A/N from Blue and already have a huge grin on my face:D

A/N: Blue: Ok, in this chapter we've got Lex, Chloe, Gabe and Lionel.....all in *one* room. That's right, people, we're breaking out the big guns. Enjoy and thanks for all of the lovely feedback.

Finally, all four of them in one room! Okay, on with actually reading the chapter.:D :D :D :D

Kit Merlot

5th February 2006, 02:16

Wonderful update!

I'm glad that Chloe got to tell off Lex and her dad, but I'm also kind of glad that Chloe's on her way to forgiving Lex:D

And I do adore it when they do their flirty bantering/verbal judo thing. For me, it's the highlight of all your stories:grin3:

hfce

5th February 2006, 06:40

That was a great update as usual. I loved it. I am so glad Chloe was able to calm down. I understood why she was angry but she went a little over the top. But I love how you are forshadowing Chloe and her men. Once she gets married to Lex she will have three strong minded men to deal with. :D

Hope :)

flower

5th February 2006, 10:27

Wonder what he's gonna say...

bluelila

5th February 2006, 14:58

You can't just stop there. I wonder how lex is going to get out of answering the question?

dreamerjules

5th February 2006, 15:53

Wonderful update. Personally, I think Chloe was perfectly justified in her reaction. It's her home. She needs to be the one to determine what it looks like inside. Of course, I can see Lex and Gabe's points as well.:yeahbaby:

Now, about this upcoming conversation. Can't wait. Or rather, I will be waiting impatiently for the goodness that is this fic. Thanks guys.

meg20

5th February 2006, 15:57

That was the best ever and so glad Chloe caught his muttering and questioned him about it!!! Hope that we get some delicious results in the next chapter!!:hug::clapclap:

Kikina

5th February 2006, 18:47

Great update, wanna know what Lex answers, if he answers, that is .... Could they at least kiss, pleeeease ? :blinkkiss

star del mar

6th February 2006, 00:34

They made up! I can't really say that I was expecting that so quickly but I guess it's a good thing to see that they care about each other enough to hear what the other has to say even if it isn't fully sinking in, they're both a little too stubborn for their own good :) I cannot wait to see how this conversation is going to go...I hope all the secrets come out, lol. Great update!

Steph*

arkakitty

6th February 2006, 18:37

Ohhh I can't wait to see his reaction =)
This was (as always by the way), a brilliant update =)

darkangel

6th February 2006, 21:52

Lol, loved that last line.

BellaMR

6th February 2006, 22:11

Lex has been caught. I hope he's at least a little honest and doesn't give some lame excuse about working on the apartment.

I'm glad all four people made it out alive in the beginning scene. and to think that Lionel's needling comments about Lex could actually be helpful. Chloe defended Lex.

Great job.

Xebeche

6th February 2006, 22:26

Oh, I want to see how Lex wriggles his way out of this. Although I'd much prefer Lex wriggling out of his clothes:p I'm sure we'll get to see that at some point as well, right? Right?! ...notthatimgettingdesperateoranything...

campbti

7th February 2006, 23:06

great update, I love lionel's little tidbits and lex telling him off. i hope he is able to understand how much it meant to her to be able to do this herself.

georgee5

8th February 2006, 01:02

Wonderful update! I did not think you could do, but having Lionel show her reason worked for the best. And Lex leaping to her defense? SWOON!

kirt30

9th February 2006, 23:42

more please

BlueSabby

11th February 2006, 17:06

WARNING: THIS CHAPTER CONTAINS NC-17 MATERIAL.

A/N: Sabby. Well, this is what you've been waiting for...only not. And of course there's lots of talk before we get there. But enjoy anyway *g* And yea, feedback! We love feedback! and we appreciate every single one.

A/N: Blue: Warning: Smut ahead. Yeah, I know, tragic, isn't it?

Lex groaned and covered his face with his hands. Well that answered the question of how many deities were working in his favor. Damnit, what was he going to tell her now? That he couldn't get laid because for some reason his standards had risen to an unattainable level?

“What's the reason you didn't find anyone in Chicago,” he asked back neutrally.

There was just no way he could give Chloe the entire sordid truth. She'd misinterpret it and then things would inevitably go downhill again.

Chloe raised one eyebrow at Lex. He was deflecting her question and putting it back on her. Fine, she’d answer first but only after making sure that she’d get her answer as well. “I show you mine, you show me yours?” When Lex’s face remained impassive she said, “I’m going to need either a yes or no on that one, Lex.” He paused and then nodded.

“I didn’t have any problem finding someone,” she said a little testily as she sank back into the blissful couch. “I had a problem following through with it.” It made her mad that she still couldn’t place why it had happened.

“True, I only tried twice but they were both disasters.” Chloe untucked her feet from under her and placed them on the coffee table as she enjoyed a good stretch. Her back popped as she arched it and she extended her arms as far back over and behind her head as she could get them.

“They were both objectively attractive, intelligent men,” she said, analyzing the situation, “that I had fairly decent conversations with. It was when they were back in my room that things went….awry.” That was the best word that she could come up with under the circumstances.

Lex's brows raised. His curiosity was peaked as Chloe relayed her story. It was eerily similar to his own. Except for the part about the intelligence. Something twinged uncomfortably at the thought of Chloe alone in her hotel room with a strange man. Reasonably, he knew she could defend herself if anything untoward happened. Ironically, that wasn't quite what he was worried about. It was just the part of 'alone with' and 'man' that somehow didn't sit well.

“Awry, how,” he asked.

Chloe glanced over at Lex and noticed that he looked very interested in what she had to say. He had thrown one of his arms over the back of the couch and had scooted a little closer to her. “Well, things were progressing the way that they should have,” she started.

She tried to look at what happened from an outside perspective. “Neither of them rushed me or did anything that was out of line. It just felt…” she shook her head as she tried to explain herself.

Problem was that she had no idea what the fuck had really happened, either. “Wrong, somehow,” she finished. That was the best that she had. “It was like once I felt their hands on certain parts of my body and they started to really get into kissing me,” she shook her head. “I felt like I just had to get them away from me.”

Lex was looking back at her with a blank face. “I know, I know, it doesn’t make any sense.”

That just hit way to close to home. He'd had the exact same problem with the woman he'd taken to the hotel on the first try. She'd draped herself all over him and he'd felt suffocated. Not to mention the bad teeth.

“Actually,” he answered, “It does.”

He reached a hand up to run it over the back of his neck as he remembered the unwanted touch. She'd actually tried to slither her hand up over his head. He scrubbed his hand over the skin a little harder.

“I didn't even make it to the hotel room,” he finally admitted with a sigh. “Left her in the elevator after I told her it was not going to happen.”

Chloe quickly brushed away the nauseous feeling that the image of Lex with another woman evoked in her. She had no right to feel that way and wasn’t going to indulge herself in such things.

She was very surprised at Lex’s confession, though. It made even less sense than her debacle. “What set you off?” Maybe if they could both figure out what had gone wrong, they could keep it from ever happening again.

Though, if she didn’t like a man touching her, sex was going to be very problematic.

“Did she say or do something that repulsed you?” She could see if a woman had said something crass or made an over the top move, Lex would have turned her down. “And, did you try again?”

Lex ignored the last question for the moment, collecting his thoughts and trying to remember why exactly he'd not been able to go through with it.

“Ultimately, it was her trying to run her hands all over my head,” he began.

But he'd already had serious problems with the woman before that happened. He'd felt uncomfortable the moment she'd started kissing him. “She had horrible teeth,” he commented, “And kissed like she was trying to give me a tonsillectomy.”

Slowly the picture came together once more as he remembered what he could of that evening and the woman. “In close quarters, everything just seemed to come together to create the wrong picture, if that makes sense,” he repeated Chloe's last words.

Chloe nodded along with Lex. It was just strange that he hadn’t noticed what was physically wrong with the woman before he had decided to take her to a hotel room. “Bad kissing is definitely a turn off,” she said, thinking back to the one actual kiss that she had shared with Clark.

“At least you realized it before things got any further,” she said, hoping to sound encouraging. But knowing that it wouldn’t make Lex feel any better. She knew that he had to be confused about what had happened. She looked back over at him and asked, “You don’t like having your head touched?”

He smirked, not surprised that she'd snag on that particular part of his explanation. Sooner or later, the freak part of him always ended up being topic of conversation. But with Chloe, he didn't actually mind so much. This was actually the first time he had to try explaining this aspect, though.

“Ok, you know the back story to this particular alteration, so you probably know that there's not many follicles left on my body,” he started.

He realized that he'd possibly have to reach a little further out to make his point “Do you shave or epilate?”

The topic of conversation was getting a little weird, even for Chloe. But she knew Lex was only asking to explain himself better. “I usually shave and then get waxed every now and again,” she said, pulling a face at the memory of the sharp pain.

Lex nodded and went on with his explanation. “You know how sensitive the skin is, just after,” at Chloe's nod, he continued. “Now, imagine someone touching you. Most people don't exactly take care of their hands as much as they should.”

He winced as he remembered some incidents until his head had become a strict no touching zone. Sometimes, he was very thankful that some people were actually disgusted by his mark of freakishness enough to not want to touch his scalp.

“Greasy hands, sticky fingers, sweaty palms, unkempt nails,” he ticked the points off on his fingers. “Nothing of which feels anything resembling nice on naked, sensitive skin.”

“Now that you’re saying all of this, it makes sense,” Chloe said as she took in the information that he was giving her. It probably got more than annoying to explain to the women that he was with to keep their hands off of it.

“I’m sure you get sick of telling your girlfriends and wives to keep their hands to themselves with that particular area,” she commiserated. “I’m sure that some of them don’t take it very well.” A few of the women that Chloe knew of would have been downright offended at the very idea of Lex telling them what they could and could not do. Even if it was his body.

“Actually,” he said giving a nonchalant shrug, “Some of them didn't wanna touch it to begin with and I don't think I had to explain myself to any of them in years,” he scratched his neck again, “Apart from that woman, that is. She was the case of unkempt nails,” he added.

Out of curiosity, he glanced down at Chloe's hands, which was when he realized that he was still holding on to one of them. He wasn't sure if that still fell into the realm of platonic friendship. But if it wasn't she would have pulled away already, wouldn't she? Her nails were pretty short, but clean and looked well kempt. His gaze traveled back up to Chloe's face and he smirked.

“So what exactly was so wrong about the guys you tried to hook up with,” he asked, to get the topic away from him.

Chloe tried to think of what was wrong with either of them but couldn’t really come up with anything. It wasn’t as if she required anything extraordinary out of a one night stand. “Nothing. There wasn’t anything wrong with them,” she said, exasperated with both the situation and herself.

“The first guy, Greg,” she explained, “he was tall, dark and handsome. Good sense of humor and knew what he was doing.” He hadn’t been the one that she’d had a problem touching her with. “It was once we were on the bed and he started to put his tongue in my mouth…” she shuddered.

“And I just pushed him off and told him to leave. Too bad, too,” she muttered, “he had some parting words that made me almost regret it.” She’d been so keyed up at that point that she didn’t just want an orgasm, she needed one. But that hadn’t happened.

Lex's brow arched at that comment, but he wisely kept his mouth shut, hoping that Chloe would continue and maybe get to the bottom of the problem if she kept thinking about it. Maybe figuring out what her problem was would help him solve his own.

Still, he hoped she wouldn't get too deep into details, because they still gave him an uncomfortable twinge. He forced his mind safely away from any mental imagery Chloe's words might invoke.

When Lex remained quiet, Chloe took it as a sign that it was safe to go on. “That was a picnic compared to the next time.” It had been two days ago and Chloe had been determined to get back on the horse, so to speak.

“Costas didn’t even get that far,” she said. At least with Greg she allowed him to touch her.

“He started to,” Chloe paused, knowing that she was being silly. It was Lex and was her friend and friends talked about these things. And they were both adults. “He was touching my chest,” she finished, “and, I don’t know how it happened. I don’t even remember thinking that I was going to do it.”

She looked up at Lex. “I slapped him across the face.”

Lex simply looked at her for a moment. “You,” he made a very ineloquent hand motion.

Looking at her face, he knew she wasn't joking. She'd slapped a man she'd been planning to take to bed, for touching her chest. Strangely, under the hilarity that was building up in his chest, there was also a zing of pride. He chuckled uncomfortably, at a lack for words.

“Well, I can imagine he didn't react very pleased at that,” he finally said.

“No, he didn’t,” Chloe said. She remembered the utterly shocked look on his face. “He asked me if I was out of my mind and why I had done it. For a second I think he might have thought I was into the rough stuff.”

She remembered how mortified she had felt at her actions. “I mean, I picked him up and initiated all contact. What in the fuck is wrong with me?”

Looking over at Lex, she said, “You may not want to get married again,” she pulled a face while saying that, even though she wasn’t aware of it, “but I had planned on trying it at least once. I don’t see how that’s going to be possible if I won’t even let a man touch me.”

Lex knew she still didn't like his plan to stay safely away from a serious relationship. The face she made every time it came up made it clear. However, he could see she was seriously upset about the fact that she couldn't find it in herself to have a one-night stand. Curiously, Lex didn't mind.

“Chloe, you don't know that,” he tried to soothe her anyway, “Maybe those were just the wrong guys,” he shrugged a shoulder. “And you weren't even looking for anything serious with them, so it's a completely different matter.”

“Don’t you see that the fact that they were only one night stands makes it worse?” She had thought a lot about it and had come to the conclusion that she was totally and utterly fucked.

“How so?”

She sighed and got ready to fully explain things to Lex. “The reason that I’ve been doing this stuff for the past few years was because I wasn’t ready to set myself up to possibly get hurt again. The men that I’ve been with…Roger, Tristan, Nelson, Kenneth, Adam, Zach, Quincy, Teddy and all of the rest of them. They were disposable and didn’t mean anything to me. If I won’t let one of those guys touch me, what are the odds that I’ll actually let someone I care about do so?”

It was what she was most terrified of. That she’d screwed herself up so much that she had pissed all over any chance she had at a normal relationship.

Part of him was caught up marveling the fact that Chloe apparently remembered the name of every single man she'd had ever had sex with. The number wasn't that outrageous. They added up to less than a hundred. Something Lex couldn't claim for himself.

However, Chloe was working herself up into a full fledged panic over this. She seemed to be thinking that she'd become untouchable for some reason, which was not the case. Lex had proof of that and he was going to set her straight.

“You care about me, right,” he asked rhetorically. The exasperated look she gave him was enough to make him continue. “So the problem you're afraid of really isn't one.” To emphasize what he was insinuating, he gave the hand he was still holding in his a short squeeze.

Chloe had completely forgotten that she was holding Lex’s hand. She looked down at their hands and just stared at them a minute, her eyebrows coming together as she concentrated on an explanation.

The only plausible one that she could come up with not a good one. At all. On any level. In any universe. What this pointed out was that she could touch Lex and not even notice it but every other man’s touch made her want to crawl out of her skin.

She could feel panic start to rise up in her. If that was true it meant that she wasn’t just attracted to Lex…it meant that she had feelings for him.

Chloe could feel Lex watching her so she knew that she was going to have to school her features so he wouldn’t read the blind panic that she was feeling on it. “I don’t really think that one has to do with the other,” she said, finally finding her voice.

“I’ve known you for years so there is a level of comfort there that I won’t find with anyone else,” she explained. It wasn’t too bad an explanation. Hell, it might even be the truth. “So unless I end up with someone that I’ve known since high school,” and they both knew there was only one other man that fit that description, “I don’t think what is happening here will readily transfer.”

Lex kept hold of her hand, giving it another reassuring squeeze. He had no idea why she was panicking even more about the fact that he could touch her than she'd been about the fact that she couldn't be touched at all.

“We didn't know each other that well back then, Chloe,” he reminded her softly. “In fact, I don't think we ever spoke more than a handful of words at a time.”

He wished that had been different, knowing her now. The age-gap hadn't stopped him from being friends with the farmboy, so it wouldn't have been a reason not to pay attention. “But I have to admit, I did read the Torch rather religiously,” he said with a smirk.

Chloe found herself easily smiling back at him. “You know, it’s rather unfair that I can’t stay mad at you. And when you say things like that it makes it downright impossible. Do you write these things down to pull them out at crucial points?”

Before Lex could give her some arrogant as hell answer, Chloe yawned. She pulled her hand away from his and covered her mouth. “Excuse me, I haven’t gone to sleep since last night yet,” she explained.

Lex was clearly not pleased by this fact so before he could start lecturing her she said, “I know, I know. I’m going to rectify the situation directly.”

She leaned over and put her right hand on his left shoulder before giving him a quick kiss on his mouth. She figured it was the best way to communicate that he was truly forgiven. Plus, she just really wanted to do it.

Only to prove a point, though. The last time she had thought about their kiss for days after. But she had rationalized that it had to do with the fact that it was the first time she kissed Lex. Chloe was certain that doing it again would make her realize that it wasn’t a big deal.

Try telling that to her body, though. It appeared to be supersensitive to the feel of Lex’s lips against her own. Unable to stop herself, she kissed him briefly again.

Chloe pulled back a little and asked, “You can find your own way out, right?” Lex merely nodded at her and she said, “OK, I’m off to bed then.”

She got off of the couch and made her way to the bedroom, getting her heart beat back under control.

Lex sat on the couch frozen. She'd kissed him. Twice. It wasn't the first time she'd done this, but it still had the same completely baffling, unsettling effect. Again, he'd let it happen. The good thing was that he knew for sure now, that he'd been forgiven for the apartment disaster.

On the other hand, these kisses, innocent as they were, had left him hard. Which was not a good thing. His dick hadn't even twitched in mild interest when the strange woman had plastered herself all over him, but two simple pecks on his mouth had left him very uncomfortable in his pants.

Swallowing, Lex got up from the seat. He adjusted himself and thanked whichever powers that be that Chloe had been too tired to notice. This wasn't good. He needed to get laid, right now, to get this out of his system. Running a hand over the back of his neck, he made his way out of the apartment.

To hell with it all, he was going to go out tonight and find himself some pretty - natural - blonde and fuck her seven ways into next week. He'd get this out of his system if it killed him. When the door to Chloe's apartment slammed closed behind him, he winced, hoping that he hadn't just scared her half to death.

“Fuck,” he hissed and hastily made his way down the hallway and towards the elevator.

~~~
An hour and a half after Lex had gone Chloe still couldn’t fall asleep. She wanted to tell herself it was because she still had adrenaline in her system from her trip, the drama with her apartment and the fight at LuthorCorp. It had nothing to do with the fact that she was vaguely turned on and that it had everything to do with Lex.

She turned over onto her stomach and spread out in the bed, trying to get more comfortable but it didn’t do any good. It didn’t help when Lex’s smiling face popped into her head. She growled in frustration and wished that she had some sleeping pills in her place.

After another few minutes she turned onto her side and faced her closet. The door was ajar and she could see a box sitting on the floor. Not just any box, the box that Lex had found last week. Chloe quickly turned over and away from the box. She couldn’t….she just couldn’t….it would be wrong.

Unfortunately, her body was telling her that it was a very good idea.

~~~
About two hours after he'd left Chloe's apartment, Lex stormed into his house and slammed the door shut behind him. He was livid, frustrated and, to his great annoyance, still hard. He'd went to the first club he could think of that was close to Chloe's apartment. He'd been all set up to get laid. He'd been practically throbbing with energy.

Not one. Single. Fucking. Natural. Blonde. He snarled as he slammed his jacket down on the couch. He'd been informed that it had been Red Night at that club. Which meant that there were a slew of redheads, a good chunk of cheaply died brunettes and a handful of bottle blondes with red streaks.

He'd stormed out and not even realized that instead of the next club, he'd headed right home. By the time he noticed, he'd already pulled onto the exit to his area. He'd been doing double the speed limit in his rage. Through all of this, his fucking erection had stayed firmly in place.

If he didn't know better, he'd think somebody had slipped him a fucking Viagra pill. Ripping his shirt off, he headed for the shower. He would get rid of this problem, one way or the other. Lex was outraged at his body's reaction.

“Two fucking kisses,” he ground out as his shoes went flying across the room. “Two fucking innocent kisses!” The socks followed.

Remembering what had happened made the situation worse and Lex forced himself to think of something else. It wasn't the first time he'd had to find relieve this way. It was no big deal. This wasn't about Chloe, this was about the fact that he couldn't get laid, and somewhere along the line had somehow acquired a strange fetish for natural blondes.
~~

The room seemed overly hot and maybe that was what was keeping her from sleeping. Chloe slipped off her shorts and, after another moment of deliberation, her shirt as well. That made her feel a little better…until the expensive sheets slipped over her skin.

It felt amazing against her body and she imagined that Lex would have sheets very much like these in his bed. Chloe failed to notice that her breathing had started to become shallower.

Yes, Lex would have sheets like these. Ones that felt like a caress every time you moved. And speaking of moving…Chloe felt her hips undulate a little on the mattress.

Her hand brushed against her thigh and she gasped. This was ridiculous. She was a grown woman who could decide to control herself if she wanted to. She imagined Lex’s voice whispering in her ear to let herself go. To give herself what she wanted.

She slid her hands under the sheets, down past her breasts, brushing through her pubic hair and to the juncture of her thighs. She was already wet and her two fingers slipped in without any resistance. A low, guttural moan was ripped from her throat. Her hips had already started moving against her hand.

“Oh. Oh. Oh.” The small noises reverberated in the room as she rocked her hips and moved her fingers deeper inside of her body.
~~

Lex stepped under the spray of the shower and hissed as the hot water hit his skin full force. For a moment he braced his hands on the wall and just let the stream beat down on him, soothing the stiff muscles in his shoulders and back. A soft grunt slipped past his tightly clenched jaw as his body slowly relaxed.

He cracked his neck and slowly removed one hand from the cold tiles, still bracing himself with the other. Without playing around, the hand went straight for his cock, the fingers closing firmly around the hard shaft. His eyes closed on a blissful sigh as he gave a firm stroke from bottom to top.

As his fist tightened around his cock and fell into a comfortable rhythm of twisting strokes, images started to flash before his closed eyes. A pair of shapely legs in high heeled shoes, disappearing under a flowing skirt. Soft hips swaying gently to a soundless beat. Eyes firmly closed, Lex bit down on his bottom lip and stroked faster.

~~~

Chloe spread her legs wider and added a third finger. Her other arm made its way to the headboard and held on. She could feel her orgasm approaching already and knew that she’d need at least one more after this one to take the edge completely off.

She tried not to think about Lex. She tried to think of every and any other man but it wasn’t any use. He wouldn’t know so what did it matter?

Her fingers plunging into her pussy quickly became his as she closed her eyes. He was whispering how hot she was, how badly he wanted her, that she should come….

“Now,” she croaked out, hearing Lex’s voice instead of her own. Her thumb found her clit and she failed at remaining quiet as she came hard. Her hips kept moving and she groaned Lex’s name.

Once her body stilled, she extracted her sticky hand from her body. She shifted on the mattress and moaned again. The first orgasm had been big but she needed more. Chloe looked over at the closet and threw off her sheets, her decision made.

~~~~

The water kept pounding onto his back in a warm caress as he got immersed in the snap shot images running through his mind. As he swept his own thumb over the head of his dick he saw delicate, pale hands motioning fluidly, fingers relaxed. Short, clean nails, one of them jabbing at something as the hand formed a fist, the index finger extended and pointing out something, or pointing to someone.

His grip tightened around the base of his cock, staving off the feeling that had crawled up at the base of his spine. He wanted to draw this out, now that he had a fantasy to work with. He let the images take him where they wanted as pleasure curled up low in his belly. Giving the head of his dick another swipe with his thumb, he imagined long arms, curling around his neck. Not clinging like a vine, but loose and gentle, barely resting on his shoulders.

He imagined touching the skin and feeling the softness of it under his fingertips. The curve of a naked shoulder and a thin strap hanging loosely on the bicep where it had slipped down. Lex groaned and forced his hand to slow its strokes.

~~~

Chloe stalked over to the closet and then sank to her knees and impatiently reached for the box. She dragged it out a little and pawed through its contents. Chloe certainly didn’t need any lube. She could feel some of her wetness trickling down her inner thigh.

Finding the biggest vibrator she had, Chloe made her way back to the bed. She didn’t need to check on the batteries because she had put fresh ones in all of her toys before the move. They had also been cleaned again just for good measure.

She tried not to think about what had brought her to this point. She focused on the fact that she hadn’t had sex in months now and needed the release. It was only because she had kissed a man, it had nothing to do with the fact that it was Lex. She tried to forget that it was his voice, his face, his bed and his hands that she was thinking of.

After taking a deep breath, she slowly moved the huge vibrator over her opening, teasing herself a little bit. The way that she imagined Lex would tease her while nibbling on her neck. Making her beg for him.

She arched against the hardness that was between her legs and slid the tip over her clit. Her hips bucked up urgently and Chloe decided to forgo the slow route. She eased the toy inside of her and then flicked the button on the base to the slowest setting.

A low groan filled the room as she moved her hips and her hand in counter point. She imagined the weight of a man pressing down on her, their skin sliding against one another’s smoothly as he moved over her. She tried valiantly not to think of a face attached to the body.

As her hips picked up speed, Chloe was able to flick the switch on the vibrator. She bypassed the medium setting and hit the highest one that caused the toy to move more powerfully and twirl in varying directions.

In her mind’s eye, she wrapped her legs around the man and drew him further inside of her. The toy plunged deeper into her body and she arched upwards. His hips were moving against her, pushing her down onto the mattress with force. Not overpowering her but showing her that he could….he just refrained from doing so.

After a few more pumps she felt the tension starting to coil in her lower belly. Her moans were getting louder and she was panting heavily by now. Lex was moving her legs up on his body, changing the angle of his penetration. She levied her hips up and Lex massaged at her clit. It was the last piece she needed to push her over the edge.

~~~

Soft, round breasts encased in a red, lacy bra raising and falling with the breath on a chest sheened with sweat. Beneath it a smooth expanse of skin, exposed completely from ribs down to the waistline of low riding pants that had to sit just barely above the pubic line. A cute little belly button in the center of a flat stomach.

Lex felt the tension coiling in the base of his spine again and this time he let it come. He tightened his fist and sped up his strokes, the water allowing his hand to glide easily over the sensitive flesh. The images in his mind shifted again to a pale neck, arched to give him access, to soft bowshaped lips, begging to be kissed. A moan rumbled in his chest and the tension coiled tighter, ready to snap. Brilliant hazel eyes looked back at him from behind his closed lids and Lex realized with complete shock who he'd been imagining.

Even as his eyes flew open, he could see Chloe's face looking back at him as his orgasm ripped through his body. With a yell caught between shock and pleasure, he came against the cold tile of the shower wall, still seeing Chloe's face smiling back at him softly, those bowshaped lips still begging to be kissed.

He slumped forward against the shower wall, his breath still coming in harsh pants as he shook his head in denial. “No, no, no,” he whispered then growled against the wall in his face. Softly, he banged his forehead against the white tiles as the water kept running down his back, washing the evidence of his failure down the drain.

~~

The shame at calling out Lex’s name would come later. For now, Chloe focused on the pleasant feelings that were coursing through her body. Her hips moved a few more times for good measure before her body finally stilled and she tried to catch her breath.

She silently shook her head back and forth as she berated herself for what she had just done. It was wrong on numerous levels and she wasn’t sure how she could face Lex after it.

But, thankfully, the exhaustion caught up with her. She was emotionally and physically drained. She slipped the toy from her body and reached for some tissues on the bedside table. After cleaning it off enough for now, she let it drop to the floor.

Chloe hugged the sheets to her body and hoped that she could erase this memory permanently from her head. Her eyes slipped closed and her breathing evened out. Lex’s face was the last image that flicked through her mind before she fell asleep.

meeaz

11th February 2006, 17:52

well, at least they're one step closer to lionel and gabe's plans.

great job girls!!!

darkangel

11th February 2006, 19:02

They are both too stuborn.
The should have been together already.

Gaia

11th February 2006, 21:06

well, at least they're one step closer to lionel and gabe's plans.

So true. Can't wait till they actually admit what they feel for each other!!!
:D
Next part please:)

star del mar

12th February 2006, 07:16

Well I have to say that was pretty damn good for two people that were nowhere near each other :) the imagination is a wonderful thing...now if they would just get it on already! Geez. They're killing themselves. I know Lex doesn't want to admit it but he has the hots for Chloe and there isn't anything he can do about it now, they're both in too deep. I wish they would just realize how good they are together and I must say that I am a sap at heart...the hand holding was too cute. Great update!

Steph*

hfce

12th February 2006, 08:18

Damn I need a smoke after that smut scene. Its amazing how two people who are smart like them. Are dumb as rocks when it comes to having feelings for eachother. LOL!! This line says it all:

Chloe hugged the sheets to her body and hoped that she could erase this memory permanently from her head. Her eyes slipped closed and her breathing evened out. Lex’s face was the last image that flicked through her mind before she fell asleep. and this line by Lex:

Lex was outraged at his body's reaction.

“Two fucking kisses,” he ground out as his shoes went flying across the room. “Two fucking innocent kisses!” The socks followed.

Idiots you have fallen for eachother. :D

Hope ;)

Charlie

12th February 2006, 13:52

Good, very good. They're one step closer to the real thing

georgee5

12th February 2006, 15:53

Soooo... Chloe go to sleep... but whatever happened to Lex? Is he still banging his head (the upper one ;-) against the shower wall?

Pam

12th February 2006, 15:53

agree with the others. one step closer, but still not close enough.

Graet update!!!

Kit Merlot

12th February 2006, 17:37

Excellent update!

Chloe's always known that she was attracted to Lex, but now Lex has realized that he's also attracted to Chloe.

This is a wonderful development:D

Clannadlvr

13th February 2006, 07:22

I...

you...

That was just...

*overloads*

Wow.

wow wow wow wow wow.

FANTASTIC use of spacing switched pov to rachet up the tension. And I really loved how you used failure and weakness as counterpoints for Lex and Chloe respectively.

Also?

That was freakin' hot.

Fantastic chappy!

meg20

13th February 2006, 15:15

Hot, but still not there jet, oh why oh why!!!

tigroon

14th February 2006, 21:59

thanks for the update. I don't have ADSL right now so I'll save the chapter to read it later off-line...

jem

15th February 2006, 00:03

wow.... hot stuff, but im sure the ACTUAL event will be hotter... PLEASE UPDATE SOON!!!!! im gonna wait til it happens... lol... i see you online sabby! are you posting??

shelyra

16th February 2006, 05:54

Great story!!! Can't wait for the next update. I want to see which of them actually makes the first move.

arkakitty

16th February 2006, 19:52

oO That was it? Oh come on.... please put the next chapter online soon =)
I can't wait to see how they are going to react, when they meet again xD It's going to be all awkwardy =)
Love it =)

katieandjason

16th February 2006, 21:21

Come on, ladies! What's going on with the two of them?

So they are getting off to thoughts of each other, Lex knows Chloe likes him, and Chloe has noticed his physical reaction to her before. PUT THE PIECES TOGETHER ALREADY!

Geez, now I feel like Gabe and Lionel. Sheesh.

Update, I need more of your excellent writing and amusing perspectives. I've got a little fic to nurture, and you two are inspiration. :D

gecko

17th February 2006, 14:55

i've missed alot since the last time i read this story, but omg i love it, great work i can't wait to see what happens next time chloe and lex are alone in the same room together. great work ladies!

randa

18th February 2006, 04:08

absolutely amazing. everyting is getting so tense and i love how the plot is playing out. although, my absolute favorite thing of all is chloe's version of the couch. i trying to figure out how to get one of my own......

i cant wait for the progression of this story.

randa

Kikina

18th February 2006, 15:15

Love it! Cannot wait for antoher update and hopefully another Chlex kisses (with tongues, pleeez) ;) Hope they´ll solve the sexual tension between them soon :D

Addie

18th February 2006, 19:44

Another great update. I cant wait for the next one.

Xebeche

19th February 2006, 22:00

Loving it! Now if we'd just get another update? Please?

marcela

20th February 2006, 01:02

Oh man, I spent yesterday the entire day reading this thing, and it's soooo good! please pretty please update. I'm dying to know what lex will do about this, and how will he act towards chloe. it's funny cause I'm reading "nameless" too, and there Lex loves her, and she doesnt realise she loves him too. so it's kind of cool reading about two sides of the coin. talk about john hughes movies all over....man, I gotta rent sixteen candles again. lol really addicted to this story, pleeeeease update.

BlueSabby

20th February 2006, 17:28

A/N:Sabby: So, not our usual saturday update but *shrugs* an update. And again you get both the daddies and the 'kids'. Enjoy and feedback is loved, coveted and stowed away with the cookies as usual.

A/N: Blue: Many numerous strange conversations abound in the next chapter. Enjoy.

By the time Chloe made it to her father’s office the next day it was well past seven in the evening. He had left her numerous messages on her work and cell phone and she had called him back…finally.

They’d made a dinner date in order to discuss what had happened yesterday. Chloe wasn’t looking forward to another fight so she’d let him apologize once more and would then drop it.

She’d brought a change of clothes with her to the office and had changed before walking over to LuthorCorp. Her favorite pair of jeans and an old sweatshirt might not be at the height of fashion but Chloe would rather be comfortable then look like a supermodel.

Her makeup had also been washed off before coming here. The whole transformation had made her feel much better after the hard day at work.

It didn’t surprise her that the LuthorCorp building was still a beehive of activity at this hour, so she was surprised when the elevator was empty once she stepped inside of it.

That changed on the 14th floor. Lionel Luthor boarded and smiled down at her. “Chloe, so glad to see you back so soon.”

She watched as he turned away from her and stared straight ahead. She’d given yesterday a lot of thought and had come to the conclusion that Lionel had played her expertly. She just couldn’t figure out why he’d done so.

To hear Lex speak of him, and from everything she knew about their relationship, she didn’t know if Lionel would be inclined to help Lex mend any fences.

“Thank you, Lionel,” she said, simply.

She wanted to let it go at that and just ride up in silence but her curiosity wouldn’t let her do so. “That was a nice move you pulled yesterday, by the way.”

Lionel had been surprised to end up in the same elevator with Chloe. He'd known she would be visiting with her father after Gabe had finally gotten a hold of her, but hadn't expected to actually run into her. He was even more surprised that she would actually approach him about yesterday, but obviously, Chloe Sullivan wasn't only feisty when surrounded by allies. He was most pleased. This trait was very becoming of a future Luthor.

“Thank you, Chloe,” he smirked as he cast a half glance down at her. “I trust you appreciate your gift, now?”

He knew she would catch on to the subtle innuendo. He couldn't care less about the pen he'd given her and she should know that. Though it had been one of his better moves, he had to admit. The look on both her and Lex's faces had been priceless. On the other hand, the way his son had looked at him before he'd stormed out and after Chloe had made something inside him crack just a little bit more.

The talent of making her nuts with a few well placed words must be deeply embedded in the Luthor genetic code. That wasn’t what she was talking about and Lionel knew that. What’s more Lionel knew that she knew that. He was just trying to bait her. And, dammit, it was working.

“The pen is lovely,” Chloe said as she leaned against the back of the elevator. “I’ve mounted it on the wall and have made a shrine to it. However, I was referring more to what ramifications your gift had on the situation.”

Lionel's brow rose in inquiry as he turned towards Chloe. This was interesting. Why was she trying to tell him there had been 'ramifications' when he'd been informed by Celeste, just this morning, that Lex and Chloe had in fact made up and parted on good terms after they had both went into Chloe's apartment. Thankfully, the new one was easier to spy on. Lionel had managed to buy the house across from it and secure an apartment for Celeste's people on the same floor as Chloe's.

“I wasn't under the impression that there was anything that would have an effect on the situation as it was,” he stated smoothly. “I was merely making an observation when I entered the room.”

“Uh huh,” Chloe said, in an unconvinced tone. Lionel wasn’t very good at playing innocent. He had known exactly what he was doing when he had made the comment and thrown her the pen.

She hated to admit it but her temper was pretty predictable. She didn’t think that he had done it merely to get rid of her. No, Lionel had known that Lex would chase after her…somehow.

Lionel had wanted them to be on good terms again. She just couldn’t figure out why. Unless it was the simplest answer possible. That he knew they were friends, her father might have mentioned so, and didn’t want them fighting.

Chloe turned away from him and watched the numbers increase. “Thank you,” she said softly. She didn’t know what would have happened, how much worse it would have gotten, if Lionel hadn’t interceded.

Lionel was taken aback by the sincere tone of voice in that simple statement. He couldn't remember the last time somebody had sincerely thanked him for anything. A smug smirk curled up on his lips as the elevator gave a soft chime, announcing their arrival on the 52nd floor.

“You're welcome, Chloe,” he said in a normal volume as he stepped out of the elevator. “I will be seeing you, then.”

This plan had to work. This girl was perfect for his son and he'd give away his entire stock in soy to random people on the street if she didn't have feelings for Lex. From here on out, it was just a matter of time. Of course, time was still of the essence, so he would talk to Celeste as soon as possible and see if anything could be arranged to help matters along.

Chloe nodded and suppressed a smile at his acknowledgement of her words. She had expected a trademark Luthor nod and nothing more. “It would appear as if it’s inevitable.”

As she was looking at Lionel, she noticed Lex walk from his office and across the hall. He didn’t have appeared to see them and the memory of last night came flooding back. Chloe knew that she’d have to deal with it. But, she was all for putting off seeing Lex for as long as was possible.

“Have a good night, Lionel”, she said, turning around and walking towards her father’s office at a brisk pace.

Lionel's brows furrowed in confusion as he watched Chloe's eyes widening marginally before she told him good bye and practically bolted away down the corridor to her father's office. He cast a look over his shoulder just as Lex came out of one of the managers' offices. His son narrowed his eyes at him for a moment before briskly walking back into his own office and closing the door.

He looked at the closed door for a moment, then back down the corridor where Chloe had went. Shaking his head he snorted out a breath. What the hell was going on now? He was almost positive Chloe must've seen Lex, but wasn't sure if Lex had noticed. But why would Chloe bolt like that when he knew for a fact that things were alright between her and his son?

Lionel knew that trying to get that information out of his son would be like pressing water out of stone. Once more, he would have to rely on Gabe. The man had become an invaluable asset in so many ways it was a good thing he would become family soon.

Chloe wasn’t proud that she had turned tail and ran but what else was she supposed to do? Be a man and face Lex? She didn’t think so. At least not with some prep. Besides, he had looked really busy. ‘You are such a pussy,’ she reminded herself.

She knocked on her father’s door and then entered in one motion. She saw him with an attractive older woman and said, “I’m sorry, I didn’t realize you were in with anyone.”

Celeste smiled over at Chloe and smoothly put her files back in the envelope. It wouldn’t do for Chloe to see what she had. Celeste hadn’t even planned on showing Gabe them but Lionel had insisted.

They were the heat scans of Lex leaving her apartment last night. They had shown him in a certain biological state that had excited Lionel and he had told her that Gabe was to see them as well.

There had been a great debate as to whether Celeste should be seen outside of the basement area. When she had pointed out that Lionel had already set up a cover job for her and she’d been up to their offices before, he had grunted his acquiescence.

“That’s alright, we were just finishing up,” Celeste said when Gabe remained silent. He might be in a slight panic so she decided to step in. She extended her hand, “I’m Celeste.” She purposely left her last name out of it.

Chloe looked at the woman and decided that it was time that she and her father had a little chat. He protested that there was no one in the office who was female, in his age range and attractive. He was a damn liar.

“I’m Chloe Sullivan, progeny of that man,” she said, indicating her father. She noticed that Celeste wasn’t wearing a ring on her finger. Yes, a discussion was going to be had.

“It’s very nice to meet you,” Celeste said, honestly. She felt like she already knew the young woman. “I’ve heard nothing but good things about you from Gabe.” She leaned forward and mock whispered, “Any of them true?”

Chloe smiled at the woman, liking her immediately. “I’d say they were true but he does tend to exaggerate.”

Gabe had heard the exchange from his spot and stepped in as soon as Chloe started to put herself down. “Now, you know I never have to exaggerate when it comes to you, sweetheart,” he said as he stepped up to Chloe to pull her into a hug.

Turning back to face Celeste, with one arm still around his daughter he grinned. Chloe was in for some praising. He liked doing this, not only for the embarrassment factor, but also simply for the reason that maybe if she heard it often enough, Chloe would finally start believing it and get a little more self-esteem behind the bravado.

“Princeton graduate, hot-shot reporter, regional kickboxing champ and the most beautiful girl in town,” he rattled off the most important points as he grinned at a slowly reddening Chloe and then back at a smirking Celeste.

“Oh and have I mentioned, she really loves her dad and would forgive him anything. Even the most stupid things.” It was the perfect opportunity to plead his case. As long as Celeste was in the room, Chloe wouldn't be too hard on him, especially while she was between embarrassed and flattered. “Say, getting a little overzealous in decorating an apartment.”

Chloe could feel the blush that was coloring her face but she wasn’t going to let her father use her embarrassment to his advantage. She looked over at Celeste and said, “Most of what my father said is true,” she craned her neck to look up at her father, “but he was making less sense towards the end.”

She was fully prepared to move on from the apartment debacle but they would first have to discuss it a little more. Celeste chuckled at the two people standing before her and said, “I have a feeling that this is my cue to leave.”

Celeste looked over at Gabe and said, “We can go over these in more detail tomorrow.” She glanced at Chloe and smiled, “It was nice to meet you, Chloe. Remember to keep your father in line.” She smiled at both of them and left the room.

Chloe watched the woman leave her father’s office and waited another few seconds before squirming away from him and punching him gently in the shoulder. “You are now in even more trouble than you were before.”

Gabe winced and rubbed the spot on his shoulder as he took a few steps towards his desk to settle down against it.

“I can live with being in trouble, if I know I'll be forgiven,” he said with a hopeful look towards Chloe. “You know Lex and I really didn't think we'd upset you this much, right?”

He'd heard the basics from Celeste before Chloe had entered the office and she'd just been about to show him some pictures he had a feeling he really didn't want to see. Best not to think about it too much and get to the important part of earning his daughter's forgiveness.

Chloe shook her head, not wanting to discuss that right now. “I’m not talking about the apartment thing now. I’m talking about you holding out on me where Celeste is concerned.”

Her father looked confused and she couldn’t blame him for it but she didn’t want to give him a chance to think of an excuse. “I am constantly asking you if there are any suitable women around here for you and you keep telling me no!”

“Uhm,” he stammered, taken aback that Chloe had so completely changed the subject on him.

When he saw the gleam in those hazel eyes, he knew he had to backtrack, fast. She was going to try and hook him up with Celeste if he didn't.

“Well, that's because there's no suitable woman who's also available,” he answered, hopefully not too late.

“I didn’t see a ring,” Chloe quickly retorted. Her father could read her like a book and the street went both ways. She could see him trying to cook up a scheme to throw her off of the track. “Besides,” she said causally, “no woman that’s with anyone that serious would be standing so close to you.”

It wasn’t as if the woman was hanging all over her father but Chloe was a big believer in body language. Celeste had been leaning towards her dad when it wasn’t necessary and her voice had also been warm and open. Plus, the fact that her dad was protesting had to mean something.

Gabe rolled his eyes. If Chloe wasn't way off base, that could have been a valid point. Unfortunately for her, they were talking about Celeste Guyan.
“Sweetheart, she was just showing me files,” he protested exasperatedly. “Never mind the fact that there doesn't always need to be a ring for a relationship to be serious.”

Even though, Celeste didn't exactly look like she even allowed herself something remotely like a romantic relationship. Well, if he went by what he'd seen of her the first few weeks. Her attire had changed a little, as had her attitude over the last month. Still, there was nothing, and Chloe better not get it in her head to try and start playing matchmaker. That was his job.

Chloe was unconvinced. “No, there doesn’t have to be a ring but I’m telling you that that woman isn’t dating anyone serious.” Maybe there was another reason her father didn’t want to date her.

“Don’t you find her attractive,” she asked. If her father didn’t there was nothing to be done about it…except get his eyes checked.

Gabe leaned back on his hands, his mind inadvertently turning to that one evening a while ago he'd actually caught Celeste off guard. She'd looked extremely attractive then.

“Physically, yes,” he answered. “But believe me, physical attraction is not the main thing I am looking for in a relationship.” He turned his gaze on Chloe, pushing the issue of being 'the daddy' aside for the moment to speak frankly. “We both know where mere carnal attraction will get you.”

Crossing her arms over her chest she said, “I can’t believe you just disparaged my character like that,” in mock seriousness. “Ok, so you find her physically attractive but she’s got the personality of a troll, got it.”

She flopped down in one of her father’s chairs and looked up at him, “Funny, she didn’t strike me as that type. She struck me as warm, funny and interested in you.” She clucked her tongue, “Definitely not the type you want to ask on a date, you’re so right.”

Gabe actually rolled his eyes before he looked down at his daughter. “Chloe, she doesn't have the personality of a troll,” he explained.

Far from it, a troll was too blunt and not in any way attractive. “More like, the ice queen,” he said.

He vividly remembered the time he'd first faced her, the cold demeanor and arrogance. Definitely not his type. Sure she'd toned it down a bit for the time being, but Gabe didn't trust this change too much.

“She's got her moments, but mostly you wouldn't want to spend more than five minutes alone in the same room as Celeste Guyan. You can actually feel the temperature drop sometimes.”

He'd had quite enough of this discussion so it was time to turn the tables and get the topic back onto Chloe. The sooner the better and it would hopefully help to get the ridiculous idea out of her head, too.

“Enough about me,” he said, holding up a hand to emphasize the statement. “You haven't told me yet how it went in Chicago. Does the windy city love you, now?”

Chloe grumbled something about haphazardly switching topics under her breath but didn’t proceed on with the line of questioning. Her father was just as stubborn as she was and wouldn’t talk about it if he didn’t want to. Chloe just hoped that she had planted the seed in his head.

“Daddy,” Chloe said in the tone of voice that she usually reserved for very small children, “everyone loves me. Don’t you know that?”

Her father chuckled and she said, “It went very well. I made tons of contacts and stole a very nice robe from the hotel that will look lovely in my new, highly expensive bathroom.” She gave her father a significant look.

Gabe lifted his hands in a gesture of 'Don't look at me'. He'd taken care of the kitchen mostly, and of course the actual 'office' half of the office room. Lex had been after JP's hide for pretty much everything else.

“That's great sweetheart,” he said. “No wait,” he paused for effect then pulled his face into a frown. “Stealing is bad, you shouldn't have done that,” he intoned in a stern voice. “Which color,” he asked in stage whisper a moment later.

Chloe laughed. “Very good parenting there, Dad.” She got up out of the chair and said, “Now, it’s time to feed your child so she doesn’t waste away to nothing. And, not that I’m condoning what you and Lex did, you both spoil me unnecessarily, but I do love my chair and desk. Thank you.”

She kissed her father on the cheek and he grinned over at her. “But no doing something like that again,” she said.

Gabe pushed away from his desk to bend down and place a kiss on the crown of Chloe's head. “Never again, promise.”

He was glad that this fight had been resolved. Of course he'd feared far less for himself than he had for Lex. Apparently though, she'd made up with Lex before she'd even gotten to him. Which was quite alright and a good sign in Gabe's opinion.

“But actually, I can't feed you quite yet. I still have to get a couple files and instructions down to marketing but that shouldn't take too long.”

He could see Chloe's face fall at the thought of being denied food for much longer. “You can wait here and I'll be back in a flash.”

“But what if I perish from vitamin deficiency before you come back,” she asked. She was starving and knew that her father would get sucked into some inane conversation with his coworkers before getting back to her.

Then she remembered the break room. There had to be something to snack on in there. “You go and drop off your stuff, I’ll be down the hall if you need me.” She didn’t think she needed to explain where she’d be, her father could figure that out.

In the past ten or so minutes the place had emptied out a little but there was still the background hum of people on the phone and doing their work. Chloe pushed the door to the room open and said a surprised “Hey” when she saw Lex standing by the fridge.

Trying to act natural and not notice the toned arms that were on display for her perusal because Lex had rolled his sleeves up, Chloe said, “Glad to see I’m not the only one foraging for food at this hour.”

Lex stiffened up the moment he heard her voice. He hadn't gotten the unpleasant memory out of his mind yet and had actually been looking forward to having a few days of work to cool down and get it out of his head.

Apparently, the fates were pissing on him again. “Hey,” he turned around with a smirk on his face.

It immediately fell from his face as his eyebrows scrunched in question. Why did Chloe look so uncomfortable?

“I'm actually just making a cup of coffee,” he answered her comment. “Bit of a break before the next phone conference.”

When Chloe spoke she could have sworn that Lex had flinched at her voice. But, that was impossible. Why would he be mad or unhappy to see her? Unless it was about how she had chosen to say goodnight to him. That, coupled with what she had done after he had left, made Chloe even more uneasy. But she would force her way through this situation.

“Aren’t time zones annoying,” Chloe commented. It was true that Lex could have a conference set up for eight but it seemed more likely that he was dealing with someone overseas. She thought she remembered her Dad mentioning something about a big deal with Japan.

She sat down at the table and looked back up at Lex. He was watching her carefully and she couldn’t think of a reason why. Then a possibility struck her. “It’s always strange to see a woman without her face on, eh?” She patted down the top of her head and asked, “My horns aren’t showing, though, right?”

“Hm?” The sound came out before he could stop himself.

He had no idea what Chloe was talking about. Face, horns? He had a feeling this was not a 'been to the hairdresser' deal, though. What the hell was she on about?

The confusion on Lex’s face was apparent and would have been charming under other circumstances but there was something weird going on. Some vibe that Chloe couldn’t place. She was acting as natural as possible but it wasn’t working.

“No makeup,” she explained succinctly. She wished that she had something to do with her hands. She placed them on the table and then folded them in her lap. Lex was still standing at the fridge with the door open and looking at her. It was starting to make her a little uncomfortable. Why did she have to go and kiss him? Again. Twice.

“Oh,” again with the vocal chords bypassing the brain.

Lex cleared his throat and turned back to the fridge to finally take the milk out and place it on the counter then closed the door. “Do you want a cup, too?” he asked Chloe over his shoulder.

This was uncomfortable and the images that had flitted through his brain last night were insistently nagging at the back of his brain. Which was why he was trying not to look at Chloe too directly. He'd have to get this out of his system first.

Yes, something was definitely wrong. Lex was refusing to look at her. And he was doing that answering her with one word thing while being all formal. She looked down at the table and ran her fingertips over a stain left by a coffee mug.

“No, thanks,” she said. “My Dad should be back soon and we’re going out to eat.” Lex didn’t make a comment and Chloe couldn’t take it anymore. “Are you mad at me because of last night?”

She was almost afraid to look up at him but she couldn’t stop herself from doing so.

“No,” Lex whirled around spilling the coffee he'd just poured into a cup over his hand and immediately cursed a blue streak.

God fucking dammit. Of all the moments he should have been cool and collected he had to go and make a complete ass out of himself, right now. If he was mad at anyone it was himself and his absolutely inappropriate reaction to two fucking innocent kisses that she probably hadn't even been really aware off.

Glad to have something to do, Chloe got up and grabbed some napkins off of the counter. She took the mug out of Lex’s hand and started to help him when he snatched his hand away from her. “Sorry,” she murmured, handing him the rest of the napkins.

Lex might have said that he wasn’t mad but something was off with him. Last night, they’d been fine and now he couldn’t even look at her and didn’t want her touching him, either.

Lex tossed the napkins into the trash and blew a little on the red spot that had formed on his hand. It gave him an excuse to collect his thoughts for a minute and get over the newest embarrassment.

When he'd finally gotten his shit together, he looked up at Chloe. She looked about ready to run from the room and he had a feeling that he'd somehow gotten across the completely wrong message.

“Look, I'm not mad at you,” he said, meeting her eyes stoically. “I'm just,” he shook his head and went for the lie. “Not having a good day.”

Lex wasn’t lying to her, at least she didn’t think he was, but he was still being rather cold to her. He might not be mad at her but he was still acting weird. “Oh,” Chloe said stupidly, “I’m sorry.”

She watched silently as Lex cleaned himself up. “You missed a spot,” she said, pointing at his shirt. There was a small stain on his collar, of all places.

Lex pulled the collar away from his shirt, looked at the stain and closed his eyes to count to ten. Just fucking peachy. He took a deep breath and opened his eyes back up.

“I amend that statement,” he growled. “I'm having an all around insufferable day. And now I have to change my shirt.”

This was just too much to take. Seriously, who could expect him to be a functional person, with inappropriate thoughts running around his mind, the person he was having those inappropriate thoughts about right in front of him and a fucking coffee stain on the collar of his D&C dress shirt.

The growl that emanated from Lex’s throat should not have caused the reaction in Chloe’s body that it did. And if he started to take off his shirt, not likely but the thought still crossed Chloe’s mind, she’d have to get out of the room very quickly.

“I’d offer to help but I doubt that I can do anything to make you feel better,” she said in a commiserating tone. Maybe it was just best to leave Lex alone.

Unfortunately, that again innocent offer caused a whole slew of dirty images in his mind coming in full Technicolor. Lex shook his head, not trusting his mouth to say the right thing if he opened it.

He took a deep breath through his nose and met Chloe's eyes. She was chewing her bottom lip to bits and looking at him as if she was waiting to be struck. That wasn't good. She shouldn't be scared of him.

“I'm sorry,” he bleated out.

When had apologizing become a run of the mill thing for him, anyway? “I'll just go put a different shirt on.”

He put a hand on the collar to cover the stain and went for the door. “Tell your father I said 'hi',” he offered as he made his way out.

Lex wasn't escaping. He had to put a different shirt on. And if he might take a little longer finding it and changing, say long enough for Chloe not to be there anymore when he returned, it was pure coincidence.

Chloe stood rooted to her spot for a full minute after Lex had left. He had practically run away from her. He had been uncomfortable from the first second that she came into the room and had taken the first out that had presented itself.

She sat down at the table and put her face in her hands for a moment. She sat back up and took a few deep breaths, attempting to sort out what had just happened. But she couldn’t come up with anything that made any damn sense.

Lex wasn’t mad at her, that much was clear. But what she had done had affected him in some way. Did he not want to be around her because he thought that she would push him for a relationship? Did he pity her?
“Argh!”

Chloe closed her eyes and tried to block it from her mind. She knew that her father would be back soon and she didn’t want to have to tell him what happened or lie about why she looked strange.

Collecting herself, she opened the door and made her way back to her Dad’s office
.

Kikina

20th February 2006, 18:39

Great chapter, love the awkwardness :blinkkiss

Gaia

20th February 2006, 18:45

Stupid Lex..honestly. Making our Chloe feel bad..
But a great update:D keep them coming:)

hfce

20th February 2006, 19:14

Oh no it was going so well. I love the conversation between Chloe and Lionel her future father-in-law. :D That was priceless. LOL!! I also loved how perceptive Chloe what is going on between Gab and Celeste. I so hope Gab opens his eyes to her.

Good job girls. :clapclap:

Hope :)

BellaMR

20th February 2006, 20:18

Loved the chapter.
I can't wait to see Chloe trying to set up her dad with the woman being paid to set her up! That will make for some interesting stories to tell the grandkids.
Lex has got to get it together. I wonder if there is still a camera in the break room so Celeste can analyze their conversation.

katieandjason

20th February 2006, 21:15

Heh heh heh. I just have a mental image of Lex and Chloe walking down the figurative path, happy as clams, when suddenly out pops mini Lionel and Gabe and *shove*! They go stumbling off their comfort tracks and are completely off-kilter. Courtesy of this update. :D

Also, I love this line...

Apparently, the fates were pissing on him again.

So. Perfect. for showing Lex's mental state. :rotfl:

campbti

20th February 2006, 23:34

Why is it so hard for us to communicate...Very funny. Love Lionel, and now Chloe can bother Gabe about Celeste.

angelines

21st February 2006, 03:11

love it more soon

Kit Merlot

21st February 2006, 04:52

This was an excellent update!

I love that now that Lex has realized that he's attracted to Chloe, he can't even look at her. What, is he afraid he'll rip her clothes off?!

star del mar

21st February 2006, 06:41

Gah! What a freaking mess. Obviously there was going to be some awkwardness but Lex and Chloe are just taking it to a whole new level, the other person isn't supposed to know that you feel all weird! I just hope that in the long run it doesn't ruin their chances of getting even closer...if you know what I mean :) And I liked Chloe's turn at playing matchmaker for her Dad, I think he deserves to have a good time. I'm excited, I can't wait to see where this goes. Great update!

Steph*

Clannadlvr

21st February 2006, 08:15

Bwhahah! I LOVE how uncomfortable they are around each other now because you just know that something is going to have to "give" in this situation.

Also?

"This girl was perfect for his son and he'd give away his entire stock in soy to random people on the street if she didn't have feelings for Lex."

Lionel certainly means business!

gecko

21st February 2006, 18:36

loved it, loved the interaction between lionel and chloe in the elevator and how he was confused when chloe and lex saw each other, loved how chloe was talking to her dad bout his love life, and the uneasiness between lex and chloe in the break room. cant wait for the next chapter. great work!

meg20

22nd February 2006, 13:30

Lovely chapter!!!
Poor Lex couldn't get his act tohether, I hope he won't try to ignore Chloe too much or she'll get worried!!!
Loved the Lionel and Chloe meeting in the elevator!!
And Chloe trying to hook her father up with Celest should be fun!!!

smugirl

26th February 2006, 03:48

This is such a great story; I can't wait for the next update. I'm torn between wanting to beg you to get Chloe and Lex together and just hanging on for the ride which I know will be great. Keep up the great work. :)

BlueSabby

26th February 2006, 19:43

A/N:Sabby: Hello, lovely fiends, here is the next part and more conversation. We're back to the not so X-rated parts of the story. You know what they say about rivers in Egypt. Anyway, enjoy!

A/N: Blue: Here's where they bang out what happened between them....but not in the way that you'd all like. Enjoy!

Dinner with her father had gone relatively well. He had asked her once if she was ok but she had just explained that the stress of the last few days had caught up with her. He seemed to buy it and the night had proceeded as planned. They had annoyed one another, made fun of other people sitting at the tables around them and eaten way too much.

She had a meeting with an architect in the morning to discuss why DeHaven’s work was so lauded in the field but it wasn’t until ten so she could actually get some sleep tonight.

After putting her doggie bag in the fridge, Chloe made her way to the bedroom. She took off her shirt and spotted the white box on the huge chair in the corner. She’d taken it off of her bed last night and hadn’t thought much about it.

Even though she had made up with Lex, she hadn’t been ready to open the gift that he had obviously left her. Or the one that she had found in the bathroom either. But maybe that was why he was cross with her? That he had given her something and she hadn’t said anything about it?

She rolled her eyes. Women did that, not men.

The box that was originally in the bathroom was the first in the pile. She set it on the bed and pulled on the red ribbon. That Chloe found was actually silk. She attempted to fold the red scrap of material and then pulled the top of the box off. After fighting with the tissue paper, she saw a deep blue robe nestled in the box.

The material was exquisite and Chloe couldn’t wait to put it on. She knew that it would feel amazing on her skin.

She eagerly picked up the second box and gave it the same treatment. When she saw what was waiting for her in it, she stopped moving.

The other item of clothing was made of the same material but it would cover much less of her body. It was a demure negligee but it was still a negligee. Chloe literally had no idea what she was supposed to think about this gift.

It could be that Lex had thought nothing of giving her something like that. That they were a set and he’d bought both of them together. Yes, that had to be it.

Before she could change her mind, Chloe got up and started to disrobe. She just wanted to make sure that it fit. And, boy, did it….

The color set off her skin well, the cut made her legs look longer and her breasts were practically put on display by the nightie.

She ran her hands over the material and couldn’t imagine how much this and the robe had put Lex back.

It would be only proper to thank him for the gifts. But she knew that it would be a strange conversation to have with Lex. And there was already something wrong between them.

It was a little past 11 and Chloe didn’t want to wake Lex at home. She decided that leaving a message on his work phone would suffice. It had nothing to do with the fact that she wouldn’t actually have to talk to him. She wasn’t avoiding the conversation.

The material wisped against her legs as she walked over and grabbed the phone. She quickly dialed Lex’s office number and waited for the voice mail to pick up. She took the boxes off of the bed and put them back in the chair so she could lie down. She stretched out in the bed and froze when she heard Lex’s voice, his actual living voice, pick up.

~~~

Lex had actually been jerked from a light snooze when the phone rang. He'd spent the better part of the day trying to avoid thinking about anything other than business. Being the second in command of an international business corporation was unsurprisingly very useful in that regard.

Casting a glance at the clock on the wall, his brows furrowed in confusion. He picked up the call anyway.

“Luthor.” His voice sounded a little scratchy, so he decided to get some water from the fridge.

Chloe tried to remember if the phones in LuthorCorp had caller ID. Her father’s did so she assumed that Lex’s would as well. Which meant that she just couldn’t hang up now. “Oh, hi, Lex,” she said.

“Um, it’s Chloe.” God, why was she turning into an idiot now of all times?

“I didn’t think that you’d be there.” She had to rally in this conversation. Things were going very badly. “I just wanted to thank you for the gifts but didn’t want to wake you at home so I thought I’d leave a message.”

Lex stopped dead halfway across the room. He'd not known what to expect from a phone call past 11 pm, but this had definitely not even made his list. Sure, Chloe hadn't really right out said thank you before, but he'd not expected one, either. After all, she'd made it pretty clear that she wasn't pleased about his changes to the apartment.

Lex chuckled a little uncomfortably and continued his short track to the fridge. “You're welcome, though, I thought you wanted to change things again,” he half stated, half asked as he pulled out a bottle of water.

Chloe was a little confused by Lex’s words. When she stopped to think about them, she clarified what she meant. “I wasn’t talking about the apartment itself. I was talking about the two other things.” She paused and then added, “In the boxes?”

Lex took a swig from his water, still trying to puzzle out what the hell Chloe was talking about. Two other things. In boxes. There were no presents for her that he'd left that would fit into...

He almost choked on his drink, coughed then wheezed 'I'm gonna kill him' but what came out sounded more like 'mgunklim'.

JP had put the fucking negligee into a box. He'd put the fucking negligee and the fucking silk robe into a box and given it to Chloe against his expressed orders. The French would die a gruesome, horrible and most of all painful death as soon as Lex could arrange it.

“Chloe those,” it was on the tip of his tongue to apologize for her finding those 'presents' when the tone of her voice and the fact that she'd thanked him actually penetrated his cranium. “You like them?”

Not for the first time that night Lex sounded odd. She really wanted to ask him what in the hell was going on with him but knew that it wouldn’t get her anywhere. He’d just stonewall her if he didn’t want to talk about it. And it was very clear that he was keeping whatever was wrong to himself.

She rolled over and propped herself up on the plush pillows and said, “They’re very beautiful, Lex, of course I like them.” Had he really been worried about that? Sure, they were an odd choice for one friend to give to another but Lex wasn’t thinking along those lines.

Chloe ran her fingers over the strap of the negligee and said, “The material doesn’t feel like anything else I’ve ever worn. Do you know if it’s imported?” Now that she had some money she might be forced to splurge on items such as the one that she was wearing.

Lex didn't really know, but he knew Jean Pierre and could make an educated guess. “From Europe,” he answered the question.

It still baffled him that Chloe claimed to have feelings for him, yet she didn't see anything wrong with him giving her goddamn sexy nightwear for a present. And those garments had been sexy. Just lying on the bed they had been and he did not want to even want to think how they must look on Chloe. Of course his mind translated that message into sending him images he did not need to be having.

Lex groaned and retreated to his chair, sinking into the leather in an undignified slump. “I'm glad you don't think they're too inappropriate. I didn't want to,” he trailed off, looking for the right words. “Make you feel uncomfortable.”

Finally Lex was actually talking to her. She felt something loosen inside of her. She didn’t like feeling on edge around Lex. She smiled and said, “I know that you don’t think of me that way, Lex.”

Chloe ignored the sharp pain that accompanied the statement. “And, it’s impossible to feel uncomfortable in this thing, I’ll have you know.” She maneuvered her body so she was now under the blankets. Last night she hadn’t fully enjoyed her bed. She’d been otherwise occupied.

Lex closed his eyes and pinched the bridge of his nose. Unfortunately, parts of him did think of her just like that, which was not good. Especially now that he knew she was actually wearing that negligee.

“That's,” he cleared his throat, “Good to know.”

If he could have blushed, he would have. He had to adjust himself merely because of the mental image of Chloe in a fucking nightgown. This was beyond mortifying.

Lex’s voice was a little strained and Chloe had to check a sigh. She had thought that they were getting back to the comfortable way that they were with one another. Apparently, she had been wrong.

She didn’t want her actions to sabotage what they had. They had already established that Lex wasn’t mad at her for what she had done. But that didn’t mean that he was ok with it, either.

“Lex, can you please tell me what’s wrong?” She didn’t hear anything from the other end of the line so she just pressed on, “Ever since last night you’ve been acting strangely. Is it just in my head or is there something that we need to discuss?”

Her heart rate had picked up slightly. This was not a conversation that she wanted to be having but if they couldn’t get past whatever was going on now….well, their friendship would take a hit from it.

'Fuck!' He'd hoped that Chloe would let it slide at the 'bad day' explanation, but obviously that hadn't fooled her, even though it was part of the truth.

Lex didn't know what to do now. If it had been anyone else, he would have lied through his teeth, played it cool and pretended like nothing was amiss. Unfortunately, Chloe wasn't anyone else. She was his friend. His only friend, which made matters worse.

Staring at the water bottle in front of him he was still trying to figure out what to say when he heard Chloe emit a defeated sigh, followed by his name. If he didn't say something soon, she would probably give up on him completely. Lex didn't want that.

“Yes,” he said, grabbing the bottle and taking a swig to get himself a few more seconds. “It's got nothing to do with you personally, Chloe. Really.”

She had to believe that. If she believed it, maybe he could convince his mind to let go of the silly notion as well. Which it was, just a silly idea that sprouted from the fact that he hadn't had sex in way too long.

“It's simply the fact that I'm a little on edge lately and,” he trailed off.

At least Lex had admitted that there was something that they needed to talk about. But him insisting that it didn’t have anything to do with her was a little confusing. Along with the admission that he was on edge. How were the two related?

“So there is something that we need to discuss but it hasn’t anything to do with me?” Chloe tried to sit up a little straighter in the bed and give Lex all of her attention. Lex grunted what she thought was a yes but said no more.

She would obviously have to pull it out of him. “You weren’t mad at what I did. But, it affected you in some other way?”

Chloe hoped that they wouldn’t have to play 20 questions but if that was what it took……

She put the information that she had in some type of order. Lex wasn’t mad. But her kissing him had done something. But it didn’t have anything to do with her. And he was on edge. There was a headache just waiting to happen in this conversation, she could feel it.

Lex groaned, hating the fact that he'd obviously have to explain himself better if he wanted Chloe to understand what he was referring to, yet couldn't just flat out say it because it might get the wrong idea in her head.

“Chloe, when I say 'on edge' I'm not talking about a psychological problem,” he tried to clarify.

Well actually, it could be considered a psychological problem to jerk off to images of your supposed friend American Beauty style. Seriously all that had been missing were the rose petals. Though, he couldn't really see Chloe being as gaudy as that.

“You just happened to be the trigger that brought that particular problem to the forefront again.”

Of course that put him firmly in the corner of royal goober. But it was the truth, well part of it. And he told himself that he'd been stuck in that corner before the particular incident, anyway. He collected comics and had his own basement lab. He could admit it to himself, if not to anyone else.

Again with the piecemeal explanation. Chloe wanted to tell Lex to just clearly explain what was going on but she knew that it must be difficult for Lex to even talk about what was going on so she didn’t want to push him.

It wasn’t a psychological thing. Which only left a physical problem. But she had seen Lex today and he didn’t have any marks on him and hadn’t been limping or complaining about anything.

So what type of physical problem could be triggered by her…..

Rage was something that she often brought up in him but that wasn’t physical. The kickboxing had been physical but if he had gone out and gotten himself hurt that way, she would have been able to see it on him today.

She was about to ask Lex another question when she caught sight of herself in the mirror. The blankets were around her waist but she could still see how what she was wearing made her look sexy. Physical problem….she was the trigger for….on edge….

Jesus, it couldn’t be that. And if she tried to ask if it was that and she was wrong she’d be mortified.

“Lex,” she said, “does your problem have anything to do with, um, well, not having a girlfriend for a while now?” It was the best way she had to ask the question.

Finally, the fucking coin had dropped. Jesus, wasn't she supposed to be smarter than that? She usually was. He'd been half a second away from just spitting out 'You gave me a fucking boner simply by kissing me'. Thankfully, it hadn't gotten that far.

“Yeah,” he gritted through his teeth. “So like I said, it's nothing about you personally and I'm sorry if I gave you the feeling it was.” And I really would appreciate it if Hades opened his gates and let me through, right about now.

Chloe really had no idea how to handle this. For a moment. Then she remembered that she was an adult and Lex was her friend and that it wasn’t a big deal. “Lex, it’s not…” Saying it wasn’t a big deal wasn’t a double entendre that she wanted to make right now.

“It’s a perfect natural reaction to certain stimuli,” she reasoned out. “Like you said, you’ve been on edge lately and haven’t, well….” ‘Gotten any in awhile,’ her brain supplied.

She ignored the strange way that knowing that she had turned Lex on was making her feeling. He had made it pretty clear that it didn’t have to do with her, it had to do with the fact that she had all of the right woman parts. Then she was busy ignoring the way that that piece of information was making her feel.

Lex was still being quiet and Chloe could only imagine how embarrassed he was by having to admit that to her. There was only one way that she knew to make him feel better…she thought.

“And you know that you’re not the only one that’s been on edge lately, either,” she stated. Hell, the man had found her box full of toys, that had been pretty damn embarrassing. Of course, that hadn’t had anything to do with him generally or specifically so it wasn’t exactly the same.

Taking a deep breath, she added, “Or the only one who was on edge last night.”

Lex hissed in a breath as a new slew of mental images crashed through his mind. The ridiculous 'birds and bees' platitude she'd given him had given him somewhat of a respite, but of course she wouldn't stop there.

No, she would try to make it better and make it just that much worse, because knowing what he had done and knowing that she had went straight to bed before he'd even left her apartment, it really didn't take a genius to figure out what two and two added up to.

“Chloe, do me a favor,” he stated glibly. “Let's change the subject.”

Chloe realized what a bad mistake she had made and said, “Oh, I’m sorry. Um, oh, my father has found a way to get himself back into trouble.” Yes, talking about her father would sure put a stop to whatever thoughts they were both having. “I keep asking him if there are any women at work for him to date, and he keeps saying no. And then, I met this woman tonight who would be perfect for him. Can you believe his nerve?”

She knew that this would be a safe area. Lex would make fun of her for getting involved, she would defend herself and stuff could go back to normal.

“He says that she is not a possibility. Gave a list of reasons. Didn’t listen to any of them.” Chloe kicked off the covers and made her way to the bathroom, taking the robe with her. She hung it up on the back of the door before saying, “Do you think telling him that I want a Mommy is too over the line?”

Lex shook his head at himself and the empty office around him. Trust Chloe to be able to actually change the subject on demand. And this was as good a subject as it could get. Definitely no danger there.

“You're not child anymore, so I don't think he'd buy it,” he answered her deadpan.

Thinking about it, he hadn't actually seen Gabe with any woman that would be appropriate dating material. There was Janice from the archives, but as far as he knew, she was engaged.

“Do you remember her name? What did she look like? I can't think of anyone on the regular staff that'd fit the criteria.”

“Maybe she’s new,” Chloe asked, helpfully. “Her first name was Celeste but she didn’t tell me her last name. She’s a redhead, relatively tall and maybe upwards of 10 years younger than my dad. She’s a fox and he’s going to date her.”

God knew that Chloe needed a project so she didn’t have to go out and find herself a man. Her mind was made up and she would just harp on it until her father caved and agreed to it. And that was that.

Chloe had wandered out into the kitchen and turned out the lights before going into the living room. She flopped down on the couch but decided that it wasn’t the best idea in the outfit she was wearing. She realized it a little too late. As she got up, she hissed as her skin became unstuck from the leather.

She rubbed at the skin just below her ass as she said, “I think that once my father sees I’m not going to give in, things will go quite smoothly.”

Redhead, older than him and a fox? He sure would have noticed that. So he'd never met that woman in the office. That was a little unusual, but not exactly worrying. Sometimes his father set out to hire new people and the personnel department just went ahead, working like a well oiled machine. Still, usually he knew within a week at the latest about any new addition where it concerned the top floors. And Gabe definitely was dealing with top floor-business only. He'd look into that once business picked up again tomorrow. Well, today, he amended in his mind as he caught the time on the wall.

It still amused him, though, that Chloe was trying to hook up her father. Especially considering the way she'd complained about Gabe trying to do the same thing for her.

“Chloe, don't you think your father should make the decision of who he wants to date,” Lex cautioned.

“Of course not,” she answered. How could Lex be so silly? “I let him do that for years, Lex. And it didn’t get him anywhere. He would always say that there was no on that he was interested in.”

She flicked off the lights in the living room and made her way back to the bedroom. “I can buy that for a year, maybe two, but he hasn’t gone out socially in…” She tried to think of the last time and couldn’t. “Well, ever, it seems.”

“Besides,” she said, “I have to listen to him drone on and on about how the men I choose aren’t suitable so it’s only fair that I get to do this.”

Lex frowned at the phone. Why did he see trouble brewing ahead? More importantly, should he warn Gabe? The man worked for him after all and he had helped him with Chloe's apartment. Okay, he definitely wouldn't help Gabe out of this one.

“If you think that's a good idea,” he said vaguely.

However, the thought brought him back to the fact that he didn't know that Celeste. Which was just a little suspicious.

“But, you should try and find out a little bit more about this Celeste first,” he answered. “Her last name would be a good idea for starters.”

If Chloe could get that information, it would be much easier and take a lot less time to find out everything else concerning the woman. Lex realized he hadn't told Chloe yet that he didn't know anything about this mysterious Celeste.

“Because I’ve never met that woman before and I usually know every person that comes in contact with personal on the executive management level.”

Chloe smiled at Lex’s tone of voice. He was so paranoid. “Do you think she’s some sort of mole, Lex? Don’t worry about this, I’ve got it all under control.” Lex was silent on his end.

“Lex, I want your word that you’re not going to stick your nose where it doesn’t belong.” He was silent again. “Don’t make me have to full name you again, I’ll do it.”

Still nothing from Lex. Chloe made a growling sound in the back of her throat. “Lex, stay out of it. I don’t need your help on this one.” Still nothing. “Fine, I’m hanging up on you then.” More silence.

With a huff, Chloe depressed the end button on her phone and tossed it onto her bed. He could be so infuriating when he wanted to be.

Lex stared at the phone as the dial tone sounded from the receiver. He couldn't believe she'd just done that. He'd only been teasing her with his silence. Well, for the most part, since he actually would check Celeste out. And she'd just hung up on him.

His eyes narrowed as he punched in her home number with a vengeance and waited. She picked up on the first ring.

“Don't you ever just hang up on me again,” he growled. “And I will check her out,” he added. “Because I like to be informed of what is going on under my very nose.”

“Under your very nose,” Chloe asked, incredulously. “You didn’t even know who she was until I told you!” She tried to ignore the way her body was reacting to Lex growling at her. Since when did she become one of those ‘Me Tarzan, you Jane,’ women?

“This doesn’t concern you, Lex,” she said. “It’s between me, my dad and this mystery woman. I assure you that it won’t affect your company.” Her body was still not behaving so she had to assert herself. “And I will hang up on you whenever I damn well please when you’re being insufferable. Just like you would to me.”

“Now are we going to keep fighting or what? I need to know so I can go into my office to punch the heavy bag if necessary after we get off with each other.” She paused. “Off the phone with each other,” she clarified.

Lex took a deep breath and willed himself to let go of the topic. He would check this Celeste woman out and find out if his father was up to the gills in something behind his back once again. Seriously, how could Chloe be surprised that he was suspicious when something happened in the office that he didn't know about?

“We're not fighting,” he said with finality.

He also forced himself to ignore Chloe's slip of the tongue. Back to the topic. “And if it doesn't concern me, the last thing I'll do is get in your way.”

“Fine,” Chloe grumbled, upset that something might get in the way of her dad and Celeste getting together. “I hope you do know that if she is a spy and you have to cart her away that you’re wrecking my father’s only shot at true happiness.” She made sure to infuse as much drama in her voice as was possible.

Plus, if the woman was sent there for some ulterior reason, she’d never hear the end of it from her father. She crawled back up her bed and flopped down on it, delighting in the way that the sheets and comforter cradled her body. “Not that this is excusing what you did or means I condone you taking over my apartment, but I must say that I definitely appreciate your choice in the bed furnishing, Lex.” She sighed happily.

Lex nodded then shook his head, willing away the mental images that tried once again to assault his mind. “You're welcome,” he said neutrally.

Interestingly enough, the only image that came to mind anyway, was his own bed at home. A sure sign that Lex was bone tired, if the ache in his shoulders and neck wasn't.

He cast another glance at the clock on the wall. It was almost one in the morning.

“Talking about bed furnishing, I'm afraid I'll have to hang up on you this time around,” he grumbled, rubbing his neck.

Chloe had forgotten that she had called Lex at the office. She really worried about the hours he kept. The man was going to get himself so overtired that he’d make himself sick.

“That’s perfectly fine, Lex,” she said. After another moment she added, “You work too hard and don’t get enough sleep. I wish that you would take better care of yourself.”

“Yes, mom,” he mumbled while he shut off his laptop.

It was sweet that she was concerned about him, but also sometimes quite annoying. She'd been the one to call him in the first place. Not that he'd thought about going home at that point, but that didn't matter.

“Good night, Chloe,” he said a little louder, already getting up from his chair.

She had stuck her tongue out at the phone when he called her ‘mom.’ After placing it back in her mouth she said, “Night, Lex.”

Chloe put the phone back in the cradle and made herself comfortable. She and Lex had been able to work through another problem without resorting to yelling. Would wonders never cease?

cnl2003

26th February 2006, 20:17

God I love this fic! Thanks so much for updating, I can't wait to read more!

masensimar

26th February 2006, 20:57

keep going

cwong

26th February 2006, 21:24

fabulous update

carebear72884

26th February 2006, 21:39

yay! More soon!!

arkakitty

26th February 2006, 22:19

Loved the updates =) But they just don't get it >.< I wish for them to be happy together soon.....please

Pam

26th February 2006, 23:31

another great chapter!!!

hfce

26th February 2006, 23:45

I love this fic it is hilarious. LOL!! The french man was right she loved the present. LOL!!!

campbti

26th February 2006, 23:45

that was a really cute argument, i can't help it they are adorable, if not REALLY dense. can't wait until lex starts snooping around about celeste, should be fun if chloe and lex decide to turn the tables on gabe and lionel although i think this should strickly be only after they realize they HAVE to be together... can't wait for another great chapter.

BellaMR

27th February 2006, 01:21

This was a fabulous update.
I can't wait for Lex to investigate Celeste. I wonder if Chloe will remember that Gabe actually said her last name. If he used her real name instead of the identity set up for her cover, there could be real trouble. What fun!!

Susan S

27th February 2006, 01:36

That was great! It should be extremely funny to see what happens when Chloe starts trying to get Gabe and Celeste together. Lionel's reaction to it should be as good as what's happening between Lex and Chloe. I can't wait to see what happens next.

Susan S

georgee5

27th February 2006, 04:23

... she said. After another moment she added, “You work too hard and don’t get enough sleep. I wish that you would take better care of yourself.”

“Yes, mom,” he mumbled ...

Please, don't give me an Oedipal (sp?) complex when it comes to Lex. That man is already messed up enough that I feel messed up due to close contact with his thoughts!

And, Yeah BlueSabby for another wonderful chapter.

star del mar

27th February 2006, 04:30

Dammit! Lex is going to start looking into things and one and one aren't going to add up and he's going to figure out the whole plan! Grrr, he and Chloe are supposed to get together before they figure everything out...what a mess. But at least Chloe and Lex are talking and I'm actually surprised that it wasn't more awkward, lol, it could have been a lot worse. I can't wait to see where this all goes. Great update!

Steph*

meg20

27th February 2006, 14:39

That was a great update!!!
i'm glad that they were able to act normal, even if it is only trough phone!!
Good work and give us another chapter soon!!!;)

Kit Merlot

1st March 2006, 04:37

Wonderful update!

Lex's reaction to his attraction to Chloe is superb, and I like that Chloe now knows that she does have power over Lex--Beautiful:D

And how long will it be before Lex and Chloe figure out who Celeste is? And what will the fall out be concerning Gabe and Lionel?

senay-jor

5th March 2006, 00:48

Nice update. I can't wait for Lex and Chloe to get together. This is so good but I know more chaos will ensue as Chloe tries to play matchmaker for her dad. I like that Lex is staying out of it for now. I look forward to your next update.

Louie

5th March 2006, 01:11

lovely chapter even with the fraudian slips and the possible(acourding to gerogee5) fraudian parental grossnessis. Can't wait to see Lex try and get info about Celeste and what she does.

kimmie

5th March 2006, 02:14

Please update soon, i'm dying to know what happens next!!!

kimmie

SinnerSaint

5th March 2006, 05:07

This is such a good story ! I love how they are both struggling with the same thing, completely unaware that they are both suffering from the same malady.

Krysia

5th March 2006, 10:12

Poor Lex and Chloe I hope they don't have to suffer much longer and can get together soon. Also I wonder what Lex will do about Celeste, because there is no way he will be able not to know who she is.

kirt30

5th March 2006, 16:05

please update soon

Addie

5th March 2006, 17:28

cant wait for another update

Goldielocks

5th March 2006, 17:51

awesome

Xebeche

5th March 2006, 19:02

Soooo...shouldn't it be time for our regularly scheduled update? Not that I'm checking constantly for it or anything.

randa

8th March 2006, 02:06

that was awesome girls. i love awkardness and that was some great stuff.

kuddos for using the word goober, and if yuo didnt use it, my mind might have seen it (this stupid cold got me great drugs)

more soon, cause i always seem to get impatint when it comes to the updating of htis story

randa

bluengreenswmer

8th March 2006, 03:57

Now, our normal Saturday update is 3 days past due.... I may have to go crazy on both your asses if we're deprived of an update....please?????

katieandjason

8th March 2006, 20:39

Hey! Ladies! Where you at?! My wit is drying up and my sense of humor is thinking of leaving me, and it's all your fault! I need an update, because no one likes a stupid Katie with no sense of humor.

So please, help a reader out. UPDATE!!!

zho9

9th March 2006, 16:40

Looks around...."Update? Where are you, my sweet, lovely, funny little Update?"

Louie

9th March 2006, 20:11

Jeez, I think you've spoiled everyone. It's like they don't even realize that were really lucky you ladies update almost every week. I say relax and spend all the time you need (as long as it's not months).

BlueSabby

11th March 2006, 16:25

A/N: Sabby: Those of you who guessed that Lex would look into Celeste...have a cookie! Everyone, enjoy the update and let us know what you think. We still love every line of feedback we get.

A/N: Blue: Long time no see....according to some of you. Here's the next one. Hope it makes up for no update last week. Enjoy

Lex had slept like a stone as soon as he'd hit the mattress an hour after he'd hung up on Chloe. There was something to be said for pushing until complete exhaustion. No dreams, for one.

Now he was back in his office, nursing his fourth cup of coffee and trying to make sense of the blurry little numbers on the paper in front of him. Something with calculations and a lot of plusses and inclining lines on excel tables. Production department? Who cared?

There was something he'd been wanting to do sometime today. Lex took another sip of coffee and pushed the thick file away from him. He'd seen enough. Files, something about files, he thought. That's when it hit him. He wanted to check out that Celeste woman that Chloe had mentioned on the phone last night.

Picking up the phone, he dialed through to the personnel department. It took four rings until someone finally picked up.

“Hello, Jody. It's Lex,” he greeted as pleasantly as possible. “Listen, I'd like to know if we've been hiring anyone lately on the managerial level, say within the last couple of weeks?”

The answer made his brows shoot up. “We haven't? Alright, could you look up for me when the last time was. There's a new face around and I'd like to give them a proper welcome. I'd hate for them to think they aren't recognized around here.”

As a stream of gushing, whimsical words flowed back at him over the line, he smirked victoriously. “Three employments the latest about six months ago?” His brows furrowed as suspicion started to crawl down his spine. “Send the files up, right away.”

Waiting for the confirmation, his hand latched onto a pen and started drumming it in a staccato beat against the edge of the table. Something was fishy. “Thanks, Jody,” he ended the call and hung up.

The pen was still drumming rhythmically against the edge of his desk when the door to his office opened and some pimple faced office help dropped the files in front of him before running off as fast as humanly possible. Lex was sure if he'd looked at the help directly, the poor teenager would have squeaked.

Shaking his head, he grabbed for the files and opened the first one. Bob Sanders, marketing. He gave it a cursory glance but didn't bother wasting more time on it that strictly necessary, he'd met the man before. The next file was a blonde woman in her late twenties. Marcy Keagan. Secretary for Jake Fletchley. Ah right, Susie had gone into maternity leave and been replaced for the time being. Throwing the file aside, he picked up the last file. Hit. Celeste Miller.

The pen started tapping again as he started to absorb every minor detail of the file, looking for an inconsistency, something that didn't add up, anything that sounded the least bit suspicious or off. According to the file she was working directly for Lionel. Official job description: public reception research and costumer service. His brow arched. What was Lionel aiming for this time? It stank of one of his father's out of the way projects.

Other than his suspicions where Lionel was concerned, though, there was absolutely nothing out of the ordinary about Celeste Miller. Chloe's description had been fairly accurate, except the woman wasn't his type. Something about her eyes and the sharp angles of her face.

Lex closed the file and put it aside. The pen that had been steadily tapping the edge of his desk stilled between his fingers. Absolutely nothing fishy. So, he guessed he could let Chloe go ahead with her matchmaking plans in good conscience.

His gaze was drawn back to the calculation sheets he'd put away to do his impromptu research. With a sneer he picked them up and went back to looking at blurry little numbers and inclining lines on excel tables.

~~
Sometimes Chloe felt as if she spent more time at LuthorCorp than at her own job. The interview with the architect Virrusont had gone well this morning. She was finally starting to see what DeHaven had done that was so different from everyone else.

He seemed to grasp the way that an actual business worked and designed a building around it. She wondered if anyone had ever checked to see if the man had attended a managerial school or something of the like.

She had done some more digging on the man but had only been able to trace him back to when he popped up in Metropolis. Sure, there was information on what schools he had attended. But when she contacted them, they had no record of him every graduating….or taking classes. The whole thing was rather strange. She loved it!

Her next step had been to contact the contractors and construction workers that had been at the site of the LuthorCorp Towers. Thus far, she’d found a few but loads of them had moved to other states or told her that they could be of little help. Apparently, DeHaven wasn’t at the site much. It made sense because Lionel had supervised everything but something about it didn’t sit well with her.

Then there was the symbol. DeHaven didn’t sign anything, just scrawled some symbol at the bottom of everything. She had put it into every search engine but hadn’t come up with anything. It wasn’t a character from any of the known languages and she couldn’t arrange it to spell out anything.

All in all this assignment was turning out even better than she had expected. It took some time away from her other work but her editor didn’t mind. He knew that he’d get a week’s worth of articles out of it and people were obsessed with anything Luthor.

Since starting at the Sentinel all of Chloe’s articles had been published. One of them even above the fold. This was why her father had summoned her here today. He wanted to go shopping for frames for her articles so he could hang them in his office. He was such a stalker.

She nodded at people that she recognized and her father’s secretary informed her to go on in, he was expecting her. Her dad was on the phone and he held up his finger, telling her it would be just one more minute.

Lionel had spoken with her once about DeHaven so maybe it was time to see if he could be anymore help now that she had more information. Lex would be vehemently opposed to the idea, most likely, so she would go through official channels to get an appointment with his dad. Then she’d tell him. Then she’d duck and cover.

Chloe was close to something, she could feel it, but she just couldn’t tell what. A mysterious architect whose work was revered by all in the city had just up and disappeared. He had no past, no one knew where he presently was and he didn’t appear to be focusing on any future projects.

Her father finally ended the call so she turned around, “I’m an important reporter, father, my time is money, you just can’t keep me waiting like this.” She shook her head. “Really, I would think that you’d know better.”

Gabe shook his head at her antics and rounded his desk. “You're getting far too uppity since you have this new job.”

She hugged him tightly while rolling her eyes. She ignored his comment and said, “So, is the lovely Ms. Guyan around anywhere?”

Her father glared at her, but she ignored him as she pretended to look around the office for the woman. She looked behind his curtains and was crouched on the ground, looking under his desk, when she heard a familiar voice.

“Are you looking for something specific or just checking to see if our cleaning crew does their job properly,” Lex asked with a smirk on his face as he stepped into the room. “Because I'm sure that you won't find random women in your father's office.”

He'd overheard her comment and was surprised that Chloe was already going wild with her plan to set her father up with a new woman. Apparently she'd lost interest in Celeste and was now moving on to sombody else. Somebody named Miss Guyan. Great, another name he hadn't heard before.

Chloe glared up at Lex from her position on the floor. She ignored the smile that her father was poorly trying to veil by fake coughing and addressed her friend, “No, Lex,” she said his name testily, “I’m not looking for random women. I’m looking for one specific one.”

Lex crossed the short distance between them and held a hand out to help her up. He was greatly amused by Chloe's stint of immaturity, wondering if she would never grow out of that particular habit.

However, he was a bit confused as to the way Chloe had phrased her statement. If he didn't know better, he would think she was still talking about Celeste, but that wasn't possible, unless... Unless something was fishy after all. Lex's eyes narrowed.

“The foxy lady you told me about on the phone, Celeste?” he inquired smoothly, still holding on to Chloe's hand as she stood facing him.

Chloe’s mouth quirked at Lex’s use of the term ‘foxy lady’ and she could see that it was having the same affect on her father. She was successful in not laughing and responded, “They are one and the same. So, do you think that it should be a June wedding? That will give me,” Chloe counted in her head, “about nine months to plan. I think that should be enough.”

Realizing that his daughter and future son in law were in cahoots, Gabe knew he'd pulled the short straw and that the wisest decision was retreat. Well, escape actually. But that was semantics.

“I'm not listening to this, because I have work to do,” he raised a hand in good bye and retreated backwards from his office. Planning to go straight to Lionel and tell him about that little tidbit. The man would probably crack up.

“Bye, Dad,” she said absently as her father left the room. She’d have to find him after she was done with Lex but she was certain that it wouldn’t take too much time or energy on her part. Usually when she called and he was unavailable, he was with Lionel.

Chloe noticed that Lex still had her hand in his. “What are you going to make me do to get my hand back,” she asked while smiling slowly.

Lex barely noticed Gabe's near flight from the room, too occupied with the fact that Chloe had just confirmed his suspicions. So Celeste Miller was actually Celeste Guyan. He didn't doubt that it had to be this way around, because why would the woman give a false name?

He was jerked out of his thoughts by Chloe's question and brought his gaze back to her face, simultaneously letting go of her hand. He hadn't even realized he was still holding on to it. “Chloe,” he stated slowly. “You might wanna reconsider those wedding plans.”

Even though she got a sinking feeling in the pit of her stomach from Lex’s tone and words Chloe decided to ignore it. Instead she said, “Why, you’re too busy the whole month to be my escort? Or is June bad for marriage karma?”

She had to do this, she didn’t think that she wanted to hear what Lex had to say. She just knew that he was going to pee all over her excellent idea of hooking her father up with Celeste.

Lex didn't really listen to what she was saying, his mind running in overdrive already. He had to find out who Celeste Guyan really was and what she was really doing for his father. It could be anything and, knowing Lionel, whatever it was couldn't be good.

“I have to go,” he said sharply, already stepping away and towards the door. “I'll call you tonight.”

They couldn't talk about all this here, definitely not as long as he didn't know what was really going on. Chloe would call him paranoid for this, but he'd learned the hard way not to assume anything when the opponent was his father. The man was literally capable of stepping over dead bodies and so much worse.

“I'm sorry, Chloe,” he said as he turned around and headed straight back to his office, where his laptop was waiting.

Chloe looked after Lex, her mouth open. The man was making no sense to her whatsoever. And that feeling in her stomach was now slowly spreading through the rest of her body. If Lex was literally running off to do something…something that he needed to talk to her about later tonight…it couldn’t be good.

She shook off the foreboding feeling she had, or tried to, and went to seek out her father. It didn’t take long. His secretary called Lionel’s and Chloe was informed that her dad would be right down.

~~
Gabe found Lionel behind his desk, going through some papers. The man literally was a working machine, only taking time outs to work on their special project. It was time he took a break.

“Chloe and Lex are in my office,” he started without preamble. “I uhm,” now he wouldn't say 'ran away' exactly, “Thought it best to give them some room to themselves.”

He wondered if their children where still discussing the whole matchmaking thing. It really wasn't fun to be on this end of it. Sure, Celeste was attractive, but she was definitely not in his league. Where had that thought come from? Gabe didn't usually give a toss about such things as social standing. He knew his own worth. That wasn't really the issue anyway. There was nothing between him and Celeste and Chloe shouldn't be playing matchmaker; that was the point.

Lionel immediately put his work aside and looked over at Gabe. The man looked less composed than usual. If their children had started kissing passionately in front of him, he would have had a different reaction so that couldn’t be it.

“And why would that be, Gabe,” he asked while motioning to the chair across from him.

A sigh burst from Gabe's mouth. He should have known Lionel wouldn't leave it at that. Well, at least the man would get a laugh out of this. “You're not going to believe this,” he stalled.

At Lionel's expectant look, he took a deep breath and confessed in a rush. “Your son and my daughter are in cahoots and they're trying to play matchmaker between Celeste and me.”

This was defying sense and logic and the laws of all that was realistically possible. It was simply ridiculous. Gabe chuckled and looked up at Lionel, waiting for the man's reaction.

“Well,” Lionel said evenly, his face expressing no emotion, “that’s,” he paused before finishing, “excellent.”

A slow smile spread across his face. It widened when he saw how displeased Gabe was by his words. He leaned forward and said, “The fact that they’re working on something so personal is very encouraging. Especially since the help is needed.” He gave Gabe a significant look. “She is quite attractive.”

Gabe narrowed his eyes at the other man. Laugh it up, poodle, he thought. “I wonder if you'd say the same if it wasn't me in this predicament,” he growled.

This wasn't fair. He'd escaped from Chloe and Lex, only to be ridiculed by Lionel. Well, at least the man wasn't going to take part in hooking him up. He was too focused on the project. “At least they're getting along nicely,” he said and shook his head. Then he remembered something else. “They were even holding hands when I left.” He grinned.

Lionel’s thoughts immediately centered themselves on this new piece of information. “Holding hands?” It seemed so very much unlike Lex that he found it difficult to believe. But he was still pleased to hear about the development.

“How did that happen?” He wanted to know who had been the one to initiate it. He’d been very patient recently and if things didn’t progress at an acceptable rate he was going to be forced to step in soon.

Their children had fought, made up, become friends, defended one another, kissed and were currently holding hands. Shouldn’t things have turned physical by now? Lex was not one to deny himself what he wanted. Unless…….yes, it had to be that. Chloe meant a great deal to his son and he did not want to jeopardize their relationship.

It would figure that Lex would choose now to do the upstanding thing.

Gabe shook his head, remembering the scene in his office. “Chloe was goofing around in my office,” he said then continued with air quotes around the next word. “ 'Looking' for Celeste under my desk.”

He leaned back in his chair, getting comfortable for the moment, now that the subject wasn't on him anymore. “Lex helped her up and, believe it or not, they both just kept holding on.” Gabe's brows furrowed. “Now that I think about it, I'm not sure they even realized what they were doing.”

Lionel nodded and wrote some notes down on a piece of paper. He was interested in seeing if their body scans at a ‘resting’ stance when they were near one another had changed at all. The first ones that had been taken months ago, according to Celeste’s experts, had indicated that there was no change in either of them when the other appeared.

He tore off the note and handed it to Gabe. “This isn’t urgent but I’d like you to give it to Celeste the next time you two come into contact.” Gabe was about to argue with him when Lionel’s phone buzzed.

“Of course, I’ll send him right down.” He hung up the phone and gestured to the paper that he still held in his hand. “Chloe is ready for you, I’d make sure this is tucked away safely on your person before you two go shopping.”

Gabe snatched the paper from Lionel, not bothering to hide his glare as he took it. If the man wasn't his boss and wouldn't be family, hopefully in the near future, he'd have told him where to shove that piece of paper.

Instead he shoved it into his pants pocket and gave Lionel a last withering look. “I'll be sure to give it to her tonight, at the meeting,” he stated coolly.

Outside in the hallway, he shook his head. Why did everyone suddenly team up against him now? This was not supposed to happen. He was supposed to be the matchmaker not the match.

~~~~
Five hours, three secure phone calls, fifteen pages on the internet and about twenty thousand dollars later Lex knew everything there was to know about Celeste Guyan. And he didn't like it. She was a professional, alright and whatever her father had hired that woman for, she'd probably achieve the goal. That woman had worked for heads of state, CEOs of international business moguls and even the one or other member of royalty. Not always doing legal jobs.

Lex's blood was already running cold, part of him succumbing to the learned paranoia that whatever Lionel had hired Celeste for, it would have to do with him and have the potential, if not the explicit aim to make his life hell. So far, he hadn't been able to find out what it was, even from his best contacts, which didn't help the paranoia at all.

He had to know. But of course, he had to call Chloe first and warn her to keep her father away from that woman's clutches. That thought stopped him in the middle of the living room. Why would Celeste even be around Gabe in the first place? Could it be possible that Chloe's father was somehow involved in all this? No, it had to be simply cover work for Lionel's scheme. If Celeste Miller didn't give the impression of doing a job, people would get suspicious.

Still, he had to tell Chloe about this, warn her to keep an eye on that woman and to make sure Gabe didn't get involved with her any further than he already was. Nodding to himself, he picked up his cordless and dialed the number. He paced back towards the veranda doors as he waited for Chloe to pick up the phone.

From her position on the couch Chloe stared at the phone. She was feeling rather lazy and the phone was all the way down by the foot of the couch she was lying on. Groaning dramatically, she stretched out and snared the ringing item.

She looked over at the clock as she pushed the ‘on’ button. It wasn’t terribly late but she knew that there was only one person who could possibly be calling her. “This had better be good, Lex,” she said, with a smile on her face. “I was all comfy on my amazing couch and you made me move.”

Lex clamped his mouth shut on the blunt truth that sat on the tip of his tongue and forced himself to play the game. “I'm terribly sorry for the inconvenience, Chloe,” he answered in a mock chastened tone.

She needed to get her ass over here, as soon as possible, so he'd have to find a good reason to get her to agree. “I was wondering if you might want to come by my house tonight, there's something I want to show you that I think you'll be very interested in,” for the sake of eavesdroppers he laid the suggestion on thick. Even with his phone definitely not being tapped, there was still a chance someone might have tapped hers or be listening in a different way.

Chloe held the phone away from her ear and stared at it, blinking. It sounded like Lex and had been speaking like him…until the last innuendo laden comment. But she doubted that her Lex would start out a conversation that way. Especially after what they had just been through.

She wanted to ask him if he was feeling alright, if he had ingested anything that glowed green or if he could provide her with some proof that he wasn’t a pod person. In the end, she did none of those.

After bringing the phone back to the crook of her shoulder she said, “Oh, and what might that be,” in a neutral tone. However, she had noticed that she had already risen out of the couch in search of her shoes. Yes, must be sort of fake Lex that had that much control over her from just a phone conversation.

Her voice came back in the same suggestive tone, but Lex could hear a slight tremor under it. She'd kill him if he kept going with the innuendo laden conversation only to turn around and drop a bombshell in her lap. So it was time to tone it down.

“Well, remember the idea that you gave me a while ago, my little side project? It's almost done now. And I know you'd really like to see this.”

She’d found her missing sneaker under the opposite end of the couch and sat back down to put it on. This was making more sense. Lex was finally done with the kitty car and didn’t want to flat out tell her that. He was just playing with her.

“Is that so,” she asked, slowly. “Well, I suppose that it’s technically in my job description as your second in command to come over and check it out.”

Chloe didn’t think that there would be much traffic at this hour so all she needed to do was get a cab and tell him to step on it. She couldn’t wait to see the car. Chloe could only imagine how overboard Lex had gone and how proud he would be to show it to her.

He wouldn’t betray anything to her but she knew that her opinion mattered to him. That thought gave her an uncomfortable feeling so she pushed it away. “I’ll be there as soon as I can. Bye, Lex.”

Lex was relieved as he hung up the phone. Good, Chloe was coming. Now all he had to do was wait until she arrived so he could tell her the bad news. It was a good thing that he'd actually found some time to work on the car in the last several weeks in between work, Chloe's apartment and sleeping way too little.

So he hadn't had to lie when he told her that his project was already done, however, he'd use that to calm her down after he'd told her the bad news.

Lex cast a glance at the clock on the wall, his fingers tapping rapidly against the outside of his thigh. From where she lived now, she'd be able to get to his house in 30 minutes at this time of night, if she drove like he did. He hoped she did.

~~~
It seemed as if most of the lights in Lex’s house were ablaze when Chloe arrived. It had taken longer than she had expected. Some of the cabbies had refused to go out to the burbs. So, it had taken closer to an hour rather than the 30 minutes she had anticipated.

She rang the doorbell and Lex answered it rather quickly. She arched an eyebrow up at him and said, “Anxious to show me your project?” Chloe smiled up at him and felt uneasy for some reason. He looked like he always did….but something was a little off.

His body was tense but his face was open and calm. The difference between his body and his face was what was disturbing her. Lex stepped to the side and she entered his house.

He closed the door behind them and made sure to keep a calm facade, even though he was ready to lay into her about taking half an hour longer than he'd hoped. He was also slightly surprised that she had been taking a cab instead of her own car. If this became habit, every damn taxi driver in town would soon know where Lex Luthor resided.

“Well, you're the only one I can trust with this after all,” he stated smoothly and completely truthful. Only, he wasn't talking about the model car as Chloe still believed. “Do you want a drink?” he asked as he made his way towards the hallway that led past the kitchen to the basement door. He did not intend to waste time on pleasantries.

Being that Lex was making a beeline for the basement area Chloe figured that he wanted to show her the car as soon as was possible. If he was totally done that meant that she’d have to go shopping for a cat. She’d done some research on the breed that she wanted but hadn’t contacted any of the breeders or gone to the pet stores. She was opposed to pet stores and the breeders only had litters at certain times so it might be a problem to get the perfect cat for Lex, but she’d manage.

“No,” she said, taking off her coat and throwing it over the back of the couch, “I’m good. Take me to your lair.” She was watching Lex closely but she couldn’t figure out what was going on with him.
The words almost stopped him in his tracks as a completely unexpected visual shot through his mind that could have come straight out of one of the seedier scenes in a James Bond movie. Taking a deep breath, he willed the image away and concentrated on the task at hand. Unpleasant news. Very unpleasant news and a problem that might occupy his thoughts for quite a while until he could figure out what Lionel's new henchman, or woman in this case, was up to.

“Follow me,” he ordered briskly and made short work of going through the procedures to open the door to his basement. His mind was already working over the best way to start the conversation once they'd finally closed the door behind them and were in a safe environment to talk. He'd had an hour to prepare and still couldn't come up with a subtle way.

Once in the basement Chloe looked around for the car. She half expected it to be on a raised platform with a spotlight on it. She saw nothing of the like. She also did not see a tarp covering something car shaped. Her brow knit together as she continued to search the lab.

Lex must have it stored somewhere. She turned back to him and asked, “Do I have to say the secret password or something to take a gander at it?”

He was hovering by the lockers with his hand on one of the lab benches. She saw that there was a small stack of papers under his hand but they didn’t look like the schematics of the car.

Chloe got a sinking feeling from the way he was looking at her and the fact that the car was nowhere in sight. “Lex, what’s going on?”

Lex held the files that uncovered everything he'd been able to find about Celeste in his hand and still didn't know how to start this conversation in a good way. The only one there seemed to be was blunt and straight forward.

“I didn't ask you here because of the car, Chloe,” he started as he stepped up to her, careful to still keep a little distance between them. “I asked you here because of Celeste Guyan, known to the personnel department of LuthorCorp as Celeste Miller.” Without further words, he held the stack of files out towards Chloe.

BellaMR

11th March 2006, 16:53

Poor Chloe! She's going to think that her dad is getting dragged into some underhanded scheme by Lionel. I wonder if she'll try to get information from Lionel when she is interviewing him about the architect. Or maybe she will just rough him up a little for being such a jerk and continuing his secret plans. Hopefully Lex can find something to make her feel better.

Thanks for updating this again. I really missed you girls last week.

flower

11th March 2006, 18:19

Yes, an update! About time too!
Loved it, so please update soon!

sylvia

11th March 2006, 18:52

The plot thickens. Yummy. I love this story so much. :)

katieandjason

11th March 2006, 19:30

*happy dance! happy dance!*

That was AWESOME!!! Count on Lex and Chloe to take one chance encounter in an office and turn it into MI3. I wonder how long it is before the Plan is sussed out by the inquisitive duo.

Oh! And Lionel & Gabe's little meeting was hilarious! I have a feeling those heatscans are going to show an entirely new developement. :D

Don't you think Chloe should have figured out by now that Lionel is DeHaven?

Krysia

11th March 2006, 19:33

Lex's blood was already running cold, part of him succumbing to the learned paranoia that whatever Lionel had hired Celeste for, it would have to do with him and have the potential, if not the explicit aim to make his life hell.
I loved this part, I wonder if he will change his opinion once he knows what exactly Celeste does. I also wonder what the plan , for Lex and Chloe, will be now that they know there is something about Celeste. As always a great chapter! :)

hfce

11th March 2006, 20:19

That so was not the way to start it Lex. :rolleyes: But it was a great update. I love all the Gab teasing but he and Lionel are going to get it once the kids figure it out. EEK!!! More please I need to see how Chloe reacts. Oh one more thing I like to ask. Is DeHaven no other than Loionel Luthor just a thought. :D

Hope :)

Clannadlvr

11th March 2006, 21:16

Ouch! He's certainly going to burst Chloe's bubble...

Louie

11th March 2006, 21:53

*grumbles stupid computer at my first message*
(tries to remember what was written)
Chloe's really being slow on figuring out this DeHaven thing, though I suppose her mind is on other things fairly often. (hmmm, what else) Lex is so pairnoid, yes Celeste must be working there to get to you even though she's been working there for months and you've never even met her, silly man. (and I beleve all that's left is) That was a lovely update, thank you.

star del mar

12th March 2006, 06:24

Uh oh, I have the feeling that Chloe is not going to be too happy...about Lex's snooping and as to how Celeste Guyan really is, what a mess. Damn Lex being all nosy. I see Lionel and Gabe's plan either going completely awry or up in flames. Between this and the DeHaven mystery this story just keeps on getting better and better! And I can't wait to see the beginnings of the kitty car :) Great update!

Steph*

arkakitty

12th March 2006, 15:43

Oh oO That was a nice chapter =) BUT I really want them to just realize what's going on underneath their noses xD But it is going to be so funny, once they realize xD Ohhh what's even more funny is the innuendo that Lionel and Co can so easily misinterpret....ehehehehehe

gecko

12th March 2006, 16:28

great update, can't wait for the next one, and how lex and chloe each react to this new news and what it does to lionel and gabe's plans.

dreamerjules

12th March 2006, 22:11

Excellent update. Waiting impatiently for Lex and Chloe's reactions to the matchmaking scheme. The Dads will not be happy about it at all. Wonder who Lionel's going to blame.

Susan S

13th March 2006, 03:51

I love that Lionel thinks that Chloe and Lex trying to set up Gabe and Celeste is a good idea. I am extremely curious about what is in the note he gave Gabe. I do think that if Gabe and Celeste end up together, then Lionel needs for someone to play match maker for him, too. I would love to see more about the cat car.

Susan S

Kit Merlot

14th March 2006, 03:29

Okay, this was a cool update.

I liked that Lex was not only worried and protective of Chloe, but also of her dad--and Gabe's seeing Lex holding Chloe's hand was sweet.

Now, I have a weird theory about this mysterious DeHaven person: could Lionel and DeHaven be the same person?

meg20

14th March 2006, 12:45

This was fantastic!!!
Lex is totaly paranoid, wonder how Chloe reacts to all that Lex has dug up, maybe she'll do her own digging!!
Loved how even Lionel ganged up on Gabe.
Can't wait for more!!!:D

SinnerSaint

16th March 2006, 07:07

Even though Lex meant well , I still have this feeling that Chloe is going to throw a huge hissy fit. Hmm.....maybe it could lead to angry kissing ?

randa

20th March 2006, 00:55

and 49 pages later i am still in love with this story!
and what will lex's discovery lead to...umm....

arkakitty

21st March 2006, 21:28

oO update ... please?

bluengreenswmer

21st March 2006, 21:46

oO update ... please?

^ What she said!!

carebear72884

21st March 2006, 23:33

Hey girls nice update. Sorry if I don't leave comments enough. I have fallen out of habit of being here all the time. More soon though! I can't get enough.

katieandjason

22nd March 2006, 17:08

Hiya Ladies! I've been gone a week and return to nothing new. That makes me sad. Very very sad. I understand that real life does, in fact, actually matter, but really! You two are great together, and this story is fantastic! Wouldn't it be much more fun to hash out Chloe's reaction to Lex's papers and then move on to some kitty-car conversation? I thought so too. :D

BlueSabby

25th March 2006, 18:11

A/N: Sabby: So, something for the fiends again. Real Life is sometimes too busy for updating forgive us. Enjoy the discussions that are about to abound. Oh and leave feedback again. You've been so good about that, keep it that way *g* toodles.

A/N: Blue: We've got characters flying all over the place. Sadness, intrigue and just a tad of flirting...enjoy

He watched as her face went through several different expressions in a short span of time. Confusion, disbelief, anger, suspicion. Lex steadied himself for an outburst of any kind.

Without saying a word, Chloe took the proffered files and then put them down on the lab bench in front of her. She pulled up a stool and ignored the voice inside of her that was livid with Lex for doing this. She could be mad at him later.

Slowly, she went through all of the material that he had given to her. A picture of Celeste’s driver’s license with her real name. Employment and tax records. Lex’s hand written notes with information he had to have come by illegally.

The woman had worked for various governments in the past years staging coups and had worked doing espionage for big businesses as well. Chloe didn’t see any notes on what she was doing at LuthorCorp so Lex obviously hadn’t figured that out.

Was she hired by his father? Hired by people meaning to bring down LuthorCorp? Chloe carefully placed all of the papers back in the files the way that she had found them. She stood up from the stool and leaned her hands on the bench in front of her. She honestly didn’t know where to start or what to say.

“I guess my taste in mates, whether they be my own or for someone else, doesn’t change.” She looked over at Lex and said, “We need to find out what she’s doing at LuthorCorp.”

He approached her cautiously, not sure if Chloe was prone to lash out when she was like this. Lex had never seen her so eerily still, the tension coiled under a thin veneer of calm. That was more his thing to do. Keeping his eyes on her, he took another step until he was leaning against the lab bench beside her, his movements restricted. Part of him was scoffing at the fact that he acted like Chloe was some sort of skittish animal.

“My father hired her,” he stated slowly. “She's working under his direct command and the only other person she's been interacting with as far as I can tell is your father.”

He didn't know what to say to her self-deprecating remark in choice of mates. Lex would have liked to turn it into a joke, but she'd taken that option out of his hand through her choice of words.

Chloe sharply looked up at Lex. “My father?” Her father was of no consequence to Lionel. Why on earth would he hire Celeste to spy on her dad? It made no sense. Something else had to be at the bottom of this.

She shook her head. “Lionel can’t possibly be using Celeste in some nefarious way with my dad. He doesn’t have or know anything that would be of great worth. Something else has to be going on.”

Lex had approached her slowly and cautiously, no doubt remembering what had happened the last time they were in the room. But Chloe felt no urge to throw anything at Lex. It would take up too much of her energy. What she felt was the overwhelming need to get out of the room. Once Lex was close to her, she took a step away from him.

Chloe was trying to be rational. Lex had looked into Celeste and had found something major on the woman. But it was still going to take some time to get past the fact that he had her investigated.

“I’ll do some digging,” she said, almost to herself. She had to come up with a plan and fast. The more time that went by without them knowing what the woman was up to, the more damage she could do with….whatever it was that she was doing.

Getting into the woman’s office would be problematic being that she didn’t know where it was or whether she even had an office. She didn’t see a home address in the file but maybe Lex was keeping that piece of information to himself.

“Was there anything else,” she asked, looking up at Lex. She wanted to sort this out as soon as possible and there was no time like the present to start.

“Chloe, you don't have to do this,” Lex said, keeping his voice as neutral as possible.

Of course whatever she uncovered could be of help, but he knew that this wasn't a simple case of investigation, since Chloe was personally involved in the matter from several angles. Seeing the look on her face though, Lex knew that there would be no arguing about the point that she would investigate this.

What unsettled him was that she looked about ready to storm out of his house and he knew for a fact that she was angry with him. She'd asked him not to investigate Celeste and she thought he'd gone and done it out of spite. That was not the case and he wanted this cleared up, right away, before she got any funny ideas in her head.

“I didn't investigate her right away,” he started, waiting to see what Chloe's reaction to that would be. It would determine how he continued this train of conversation.

Chloe didn’t want to get into this right now. She wanted to start to get to the bottom of Celeste so she could put aside her feelings about Lex’s involvement in the whole thing. She shook her head, “It doesn’t matter, Lex,” she lied.

Of course it mattered to her if he had gone and disregarded what she had told him. But, in the long run, he had been right to do that….even if she hadn’t wanted him to. What mattered now was getting to the bottom of this. And what in the hell did ‘right away’ mean?

She tried to drop that line of thinking when she felt herself getting angry again. That wouldn’t get them anywhere. Even though her brain was telling her one thing, her mouth was doing something else. “And what do you mean by right away?” She paused and then said sheepishly, “I guess it does matter.”

Lex smirked a little to himself, but hid it instantly when Chloe looked back up at him. By the way she'd asked, he assumed he had a little time to explain this and didn't need to rush to the point, possibly causing a misunderstanding.

“After our talk the other night I was a bit peeved, because I didn't know about someone that seemed to have been working right under my nose for quite a while already,” he started, holding the answer she wanted to have back for the moment until he got to it in chronological order. “So the next day, I called the personnel department and asked them for the files of anyone who'd been employed to our floor within the last six months and ended up with three files. Two of them I knew and had already exchanged words with and given the welcome and it's good to have you here spiel,” he continued as he relaxed against the bench.

“I wasn't kidding or exaggerating when I told you I know everyone that works on the same level as your father. I do know them, because I make it a point to have at least welcomed them here and checked them out, know the basics about them and so on,” he said as he looked at Chloe, hoping she got where he was coming from with this.

This is where he got to the point of actually answering Chloe's question about what 'right away' meant. Hopefully it would come out the way he wanted it to. He crossed his ankles in front of him and made sure to keep Chloe's eye contact as he continued speaking.

“So anyway, file number three was Celeste Miller. I read through it, found nothing unusual, put it away and made a mental note to introduce myself to her at some point.”

A smirk on his lips, he cocked his head to the side. “I was half prepared to start helping you with that hair brained plan of setting up your dad,” he admitted.

“It wasn’t hair brained,” she said. So far, Lex hadn’t done anything too crazy. At least he didn’t just disregard what she had told him out of hand and gone and done whatever he had wanted. She had peaked his interest in the woman and he had just followed it. “I’m sure the plan would have gone swimmingly if she wasn’t a spy or whatever the hell it is that she is. But, go on.”

Her anger was starting to dissipate, thankfully. She really didn’t like it when she was in a mood because of Lex. It seemed so trite.

Lex gave her a skeptical look before he continued. He really couldn't see Gabe Sullivan letting himself be hooked up like a teenager. The thought was almost as ridiculous as thinking about anyone trying to hook up Lex himself.

“In any case, I let it lie and when I came to Gabe's office,” he paused, not quite sure why he'd come to the office in the first place. It had simply been that he'd heard Chloe's voice from the hallway and followed it there. He shook it off and continued. “And heard you speaking about her as Ms. Guyan instead of Mrs. Miller, something just didn't seem right. Why would she work under two different names, why would the wrong one be in the personnel files? Your father wouldn't lie to you, so I was sure Miller was the fake.”

Lex trailed off once more, since there really wasn't much more to say on that situation. Chloe had been there, she must have seen the change in him and if not exactly known what it was, that it was important.

“After I left the office, that's when I started investigating her, because I was worried. There was something seriously wrong and this woman has obviously gotten close to Gabe, so I had to find out more.”

He couldn't risk letting something like this slide and that it was Chloe's father made the matter even more important. She was his. Friend. She was his friend.

“As soon as I got everything together, I called you here,” he went on stoically. “This is the only place where I know we won't be overheard.”

Chloe couldn’t argue with Lex’s logic of the situation. If she had been him, she knew that she would have done the same thing. She sighed and ran a hand through her hair. “I just didn’t want him to be alone,” she murmured. She had been so damn sure about her dad and the woman for some strange reason. Just went to show how off her judgment of people was.

“Thanks for protecting my dad,” she said, looking back at Lex. Sure, her working at LuthorCorp was not a good sign but he hadn’t mentioned that as being behind his digging into her past. “Do you have any theories as to what’s going on?”

She turned so she could hop up on the bench and be more at eye level with Lex. “If she’s been hired by your dad and only works with mine…..” she trailed off, trying to think of what they were missing.

Shaking her head again, she said, “Every project my dad has worked on in the past few years has involved your father. So what is Celeste doing? It can’t be work related.”

Lex had been wracking his brain with that same problem for almost six hours before he'd called Chloe. What she said made sense, but if it wasn't business, what was it then. For some reason, he was reluctant to let go of the idea that it was business, anyway.

“It's not like my father to do anything that doesn't involve business in some way or another,” he said as his brows furrowed in thought. “Maybe Gabe isn't involved directly, he could just serve as a cover for Celeste,” he mused.

Chloe hopped off of the table. “Well, whatever it is, we’ll figure it out.” She was glad of the fact that she had her Sentinel security pass on her at the moment. Sure, the guards were already accustomed to her showing up at odd hours but this way they didn’t have to break protocol to let her in. Maybe the newspaper database would have something on her. Not likely, but one never knew.

She was determined to find out what the woman and Lionel were up to. If they were doing anything untoward that involved her father…..

It was strange for Chloe to realize that she hoped Lex and she were wrong. That way her father and Celeste could live happily ever after and she could still go on finding Lionel strange and slightly amusing at times.

Lex leaned further back against the table and cracked his neck. Sometimes his life was a piece of shit. Now he had to figure out another ploy by his father and the only one to help him was Chloe, who had hoped that the woman involved in this ploy might end up being 'the one' for Gabe.

“Yeah, the sooner the better,” he answered Chloe's statement.

Casting a glance at his watch, his brows furrowed. It was pretty late and he hadn't eaten anything since. Breakfast, most likely. Turning back to Chloe he wondered if she had.

“Have you eaten,” he asked.

Chloe had eaten hours ago and was hungry now but she couldn’t let that deter her from what she needed to do. “I have,” she said. Her mind was caught up in what archives she could search at work for the devious Ms. Guyan.

“But thanks for the offer,” she added. She didn’t really want to leave Lex but she needed to get started on this project right now. “I think that I’m going to stop by the office and do a little digging. I’ll call you if I find anything, ok?”

Lex nodded, accepting the rebuttal. He knew that Chloe wouldn't let anything deter her from her mission. Still, it would have been nice if she'd stayed a while. Letting the thought go, he pushed away from the work bench and made his way back up the stairs, knowing Chloe would follow.

“Take the files with you, but make sure they're not seen. Be careful, and don't trust anyone with this,” he rattled the points off before he opened the basement door.

“So, what do you think of it,” he asked as if he'd shown her a model car instead of proof that something was foul in the state of Denmark. “It should be done within the week,” he continued.

“I can’t believe the progress that you’ve made on it,” Chloe said in an excited voice. “Pretty soon you’re going to have to get a cat, you realize that, right?” She slipped on her coat and turned back to him.

Lex shook his head as he reached out to smooth the lapels. “Maybe,” he stalled, “After all it would only be half the fun without it, wouldn't it?”

He let go of the coat and took a step back to lead her towards the phone to call her a cab. The car was indeed almost done, but he knew Chloe wouldn't have been able to appreciate it, not with everything else they both had on the mind at the moment.

“Next time you come over, it'll be ready,” he said before turning his attention towards the phone to give instructions.

After he hung up he turned back around. “You're lucky. Cab should be here in five minutes.”

“I’ll hold you to that promise about the car, you know?” She pointed a finger at him and smiled slowly. “If not, you just might have to find yourself another lovely assistant to take over the world with.”

She walked towards the door and looked out one of the small windows that were next to it. She knew the cab companies sometimes just gave a random time that the cab would show up in so she wanted to be ready when it came.

“I'll make sure it is done and polished when you arrive,” Lex stated seriously.

He watched as she kept peering out the window, looking for the taxi. He had no doubt a few years ago, she would have been bouncing on her heels as well. It brought a smile to his face. Of course it wouldn't do to let her know all that.

“Call me when you get home,” he said as he heard a car pulling up outside.

“Will do,” she said, leaving out the part where she wouldn’t be home for hours Then again, maybe that wasn’t the best course of action.

“It might be a few hours, though, so no yelling at me for waking you up,” she added.

The car honked and, without thinking, she rose up on her toes and kissed him squarely and quickly on the lips. “I’ll talk to you soon.”

It was only once she was in the cab and pulling away from Lex’s curb that she realized that she had kissed Lex automatically. As if it was just how she said goodbye to him. She stowed that thought. She had more important things to worry about.

Lex shook his head and returned to the phone to order some pizza. She'd actually bounced on her toes there before she'd practically bounded down towards the taxi. The thought that she would be spending most of the night doing research wasn't exactly positive.

It was only after he'd hung up the phone again and settled in to wait for his pizza that it occurred to him that Chloe had kissed him again. This time it hadn't done anything inappropriate to his libido. His mouth curled in a grin. Maybe he was finally getting over those inappropriate feelings.

~~~~

It wasn’t that Celeste wasn’t glad for the job that she had been given. On all points it had been a different experience that could teach her a lot about what she usually did. She just wasn’t used to caring so damn much. She usually didn’t get invested in the outcome as anything more than a feather in her cap. This one didn’t follow the natural rules.

She looked at her watch, knowing that even though the meeting didn’t start for another ten minutes both Lionel and Gabe would be arriving shortly. That was why she had come 20 minutes early. Thankfully, Lionel didn’t stand on ceremony when it came to their private meetings. If he had, there was no way that he would have found her t-shirt and jeans ensemble appropriate.

But once she was relegated to the basement, she always changed back into clothes that didn’t feel like they were sucking the life out of her. At least her hair was almost dry after the quick shower she had taken after going to the gym.

She heard one of the men entering the office and looked up from the scans that she had on file. “Hello, Gabe,” she said, agreeably.

He stopped short in the doorway as he took in Celeste's outfit. Jeans and t-shirt, the image he had of Celeste as she usually dressed didn't overlap with this at all. He shook his head to clear it and finally answer the woman's greeting.

“Hi, Celeste,” he closed the door behind him even though Lionel would surely be bursting in any moment. “You're here early,” he couldn't refrain from the comment, still slightly taken aback by her outfit.

Stepping closer, he offered the note that Lionel had pressed into his hand earlier in the day, “Oh, Lionel wanted you to have a look at this.”

Celeste took the piece of paper and was glad that she had already run the data that Lionel was asking for. It had been difficult to get ahold of some scans of the two of them together in the past few weeks but she had managed to do so. They didn’t really show anything all that interesting but if Lionel wanted to take a look at them, he was more than welcome to.

“Thanks, Gabe,” she said, putting the note back on the table. “I’ve got the data Lionel wants, thankfully. At least that’s one thing that won’t set him off,” she finished with a smile. She truly liked Lionel, but he could be overly intense and driven when it came to Lex and Chloe.

She sat down in one of the chairs, crossed one leg over the other and then looked up at Gabe. “How is Chloe’s new job going?”

Gabe was taken by surprise a little at the question, not used to inquiries that didn't directly involve Chloe and Lex as a couple. However, Celeste's interest seemed genuine and he never missed out on a chance to gloat when it came to his daughter.

“Oh she's taken to the new environment like a fish to water. Her editor loves her, she's not being bugged with 'cat stuck in tree' stories and she's still working on the long term assignment about the architect that designed these buildings. She's finally being paid what she deserves and I think she's found the job of her life if things stay so well.”

Gabe sincerely hoped they would. Chloe radiated happiness whenever she talked about her job and he hadn't seen her smile this wide in all the time she'd worked for her old newspaper. She hadn't been happy there. Now she was and Gabe had a feeling that if things worked out, Chloe's business life wouldn't remain the only thing making her that happy.

“I have a feeling now that her business life is as good as settled, it'll be easier to find happiness in her private life as well.”

Gabe literally lit up when he was talking about his daughter. Unbeknownst to her, Celeste was smiling broadly at the display of affection. “Her pieces do seem to have a certain vitality that they lacked towards the end of her other job. She’s very talented,” Celeste remarked honestly.

“I’d say that you must be very proud of her but that’s already apparent,” she added. “You’ve done a fine job with her, Gabe. No matter what happens in other parts of your life, no one can take that away from you.” Now Celeste was thinking of what her accomplishments in the field had gotten her.

An expensive apartment, more money than she knew what to do with and a strange power over the gods of business. But nothing that really mattered. She had made her choice and now she had to live with it. She often told herself that.

Gabe was looking at her strangely so she was actually happy to see Lionel enter the room. The man’s stride broke as he looked at the two of them for a moment but it passed so quickly that she wondered if she had imagined it.

Even as Lionel entered the room, Gabe couldn't break his gaze from Celeste's face. One moment the most beautiful smile had been aimed directly at him, making the outside corners of the brown eyes crinkle a little, the next moment her face had fallen into a wistful expression, lips drawn tight after she'd uttered the compliment. For an instant, he wondered how lonely it must be in her position, but the moment broke when Lionel closed the door.

“Lionel,” he turned to the other man, not sure if he was glad or annoyed that the moment had been interrupted.

It was on the tip of his tongue to ask if he had interrupted anything but Lionel thought better of it. He knew if he made a remark about the moment that he had obviously walked in on that Gabe would be all the more hard to convince that he should make a play for Celeste.

The way that things were going it looked as if Lionel was the only one in their merry bunch that would end up uncoupled.

“Gabe,” he said. He seated himself at the table and said, “What do you have for us now, Celeste?”

Putting aside the strange feelings that were churning in her gut, Celeste pulled out the scans that Lionel had requested and her updated reports.

hfce

25th March 2006, 19:56

Man that was good. I am so glad Chloe put her first instinct away and listened to Lex. Thank the Lord. :rofl: Lex got lucky this time. I can't wait to see what Chloe finds out. The fathers better be prepared because they will have two pissed off kids when they figure it out. ;) Especially since Lex said this line:
He really couldn't see Gabe Sullivan letting himself be hooked up like a teenager. The thought was almost as ridiculous as thinking about anyone trying to hook up Lex himself. Like I said the fathers better hide. :D

arkakitty

25th March 2006, 23:33

Yahay an update =)

I love this chapter. But really how no electricity at all today? tsk tsk tsk... but anyway I liked the chapter.

You think she is really going to get him the cat xD I can imagine him staring at the car and the cat in it xD

Would be hilarious. I wonder though how Celeste is going to cover this up...Lionel will be angry when he finds out.... =)

More soon please. I will even give you a cherry on top ;)

Kit Merlot

26th March 2006, 06:38

Excellent update:D

I like the imagery of Chloe and Lex vs. Gabe and Lionel--who will come out the victor?

And I also like that Chloe's going into supersleuth mode, now that she thinks Celeste is out to hurt Gabe.

This fic continues to ROCK!

star del mar

26th March 2006, 09:20

I'm actually a little surprised that Lex was able to talk Chloe down so fast, lol, I would have expected a token fight but I'm glad that she actually listened to him. He wasn't looking into things just to be spiteful but because he genuinely wants to make sure that Gabe is ok and that Celeste isn't some industrial spy...little do they know :) I'm not sure yet if I think investigating is a good or bad thing yet, I'll have to wait and see and I love the interaction between Celeste and Gabe. If they don't end up together I think I'll be a little upset, lol. Great update!

Steph*

sylvia

26th March 2006, 14:24

The way that things were going it looked as if Lionel was the only one in their merry bunch that would end up uncoupled. Heh. I wonder... it would be fascinating to see what you ladies could come up with as a match for Lionel. Fascinating in a sick sort of way, that is.

So glad that Chloe didn't explode and cause another of their fights. Looking forward to their reactions if and when they find out that it's not business after all.

Do update soon!

Susan S

27th March 2006, 03:34

That was great! I loved the interaction between Gabe and Celeste there at the end. The Chloe/Lex interaction was incredible also. I wonder if Chloe will remember to start looking for a cat with everything that is going on?

Susan S

SinnerSaint

27th March 2006, 04:40

I am so glad that Chloe didn't lose it and take everything out on Lex. This chapter , was of course awesome and it goes without saying that I am anxiously awaitng more.

BellaMR

27th March 2006, 16:15

Gabe and Celeste are so cute. I hope Chloe doesn't kill Celeste before they have the chance to hook up. I think Chloe should put her on the spot and invite her out to lunch next time she runs into her. I can see the grilling she would give Celeste. Fun Fun Fun!

I'm glad that Chloe kept her eye on the ball and didn't explode on Lex for investigating celeste. She saw that he was truly trying to help out of concern for her father. How sweet.

Keep up the good work girls!

meg20

27th March 2006, 17:09

I'm happy about the way Chloe handled this and nice to have some daddies in this!!!

Xebeche

1st April 2006, 19:41

Soo....any chance of an update in the near future?

randa

3rd April 2006, 20:23

so we all know there is going to be some sort of fallout...and i cant wait!!

i m hoping for an update soon:P

randa

mimi71884

5th April 2006, 04:49

AH!

Please update soon, we didn't get out saturday dose!!!

can't wait to read more!

arkakitty

6th April 2006, 18:15

It is nearly...well nearly Saturday ... does that mean we get two chapters? ;)

dreamerjules

9th April 2006, 16:32

Okay guys. I get you have real lives and writing doesn't always go as smoothly as one would like, we (your devoted audience) desperately miss our updates. Even just a note from our beloved authors would be appreciated.

BlueSabby

9th April 2006, 17:55

A/N: Sabby: Sorry for the long wait. But I'm sure you'll enjoy this chapter. Lot's of Chlex interaction and....stuff.

A/N: Blue: So, here loads of what you've been waiting for. See, good things come to those who wait...and wait...and nudge...and beg...and then wait some more. Enjoy and let us know what you think.

Chloe breezed into her father’s office, new blender that would fit perfectly with his décor and the mixer she had bought him months ago securely in her arms, and was happy to see that he wasn’t there.

In the past two days she hadn’t gotten much sleep and was generally in a rotten mood. She had barely spoken with Lex because they were both digging up things on Celeste, she had hit a wall with the DeHaven story and she had run out of dental floss this morning.

She placed the blender on her father’s desk and then walked over to the door, gently shutting it. She wasn’t certain was she was looking for but she’d know it when she saw it.

The tech guys that a contact had put her in contact with had given her a simple to use gadget that would pick up any video or audio feed that was being piped somewhere else. The sleek, black piece of plastic made nary a beep as she swept it through the office.

However, they said that she would have to be close to the bugging equipment for it to work. She slowly made her way around the walls of the office and then decided to move on to her father’s desk. It would make sense for Celeste to give her father a ‘gift’ that she knew would be stored in his desk. That way it would pick up everything in the office.

She felt slightly guilty for going through the desk drawers but she reminded herself that it was for her dad’s own good. There was no evidence of any electronic equipment.

Chloe did find what appeared to be a steel locked box. Her brow furrowed as she looked at the box. It was highly unlikely that there was anything in there that would be used for surveillance. However, she believed in being through.

It had a keypad on it. Chloe tried a few dates. Her father’s birthday, her birthday, her father’s lucky numbers but none of them worked. She then started using the day she graduated high school. Nothing. College. Nothing. After trying the date when she and her father had celebrated her moving out and finding a job, the box snicked open.

She smiled at how good she was but it died on her lips when she saw what was on top of the pile of papers in the box.
~~~
Lex's gaze narrowed as he bent closer over his work, steadying his slightly trembling fingers. Three hours of sleep, nine hours of work and about a gallon of coffee weren't a good enough combination anymore. He doubted they ever had been. Still he wanted to get this done and it had to be perfect.

Somehow, he managed to get the tiny screw into the hole before his eyes crossed and pulled it tight before it could fall out again. He huffed out a breath when the damn bugger finally set. Now if everything was wired correctly, it should suffice to push the green button on the remote control. His lips curled upward in a satisfied smirk. Done. He was finally done.

With a careful hand, he lowered the miniature hood and painstakingly polished away any remaining fingerprints from the forest green coating. Perfect. With another scrutinizing gaze to make sure the interior was still perfect and pristine white leather, he nodded to himself and stepped back. This was his best project ever. Chloe would be thrilled.

The sound of the doorbell over the speakers was almost enough to make him jump after long hours of complete, undisturbed silence. Shaking his head at himself he shucked out of his lab coat and made his way upstairs. A glance spared at his watch told him it was past 7 in the evening. He had a feeling who this might be. Seemed he would have to put the phone call he wanted to make off for a little while longer, after all.

He swung the door halfway open, already speaking before he even looked at the person standing on the other side. “Mrs. Bleecher, really I appreciate what you're trying to do for me, but I told you I do eat regularly and I am not in need of,” his voice trailed off as he saw that it was actually Chloe standing on his doorstep. “Hello,” he uttered with a self-mocking smirk. Seemed he wouldn't have to call after all. “Do you have a sixth sense?”

Chloe had considered calling Lex instead of just showing up. But not for very long. This was the sort of thing that could only be discussed in person. Besides, she wanted to be with Lex when this news was delivered to him. He wouldn’t take it well and she knew that she had to stop whatever his first crazy plan to deal with this was.

Her strategy might backfire on her, though, being that she felt as if she might vomit at any second. Chloe had a few hours to deal with the new knowledge but it still made her physically ill.

Lex was looking down at her, she saw his face transform from one of good humor to concern rapidly. She snorted at his question. “Most definitely not.”

Her etiquette forgotten, she brushed past him into the house and took her coat off, placing it over the back of the couch carefully. She ran a hand through her hair before turning around and said, “Out of curiosity, what am I psychic about?” Chloe was forestalling the inevitable. After telling Lex what she had found out she wasn’t sure how much time they would spend together so she was milking these last moments of peace for everything she could.

Lex could she Chloe was positively vibrating with something that she tried to get her mind off. Unfortunately for her, he knew that it wasn't anything good. Otherwise she would never be acting in the way she was and trying to change the subject was a dead give away.

“Doesn't matter,” he answered glibly as he crossed the distance between them. Lowering his voice he tried to meet her eyes, unsettled by the fact that she seemed to be ready to jump out of her skin. “Tell me what's wrong,” he demanded softly.

“OK,” she murmured. She gently took Lex’s hand and sat down on the couch. His eyes were boring into her and she didn’t know what to say. She hoped that she was done crying. That had taken up about half an hour earlier and she didn’t want a repeat performance.

“I found out what Celeste is working on.” She looked over at Lex. “Your father might have hired her but my father is working with her, too.” Chloe reached for her coat and took a photocopy out of her pocket. She’d left the original where she’d found it.

Silently, she handed it over to Lex. He was just about to open it when she laid her hands over his and tried to find something to say. When no words came, she released his hands and leaned away from him.

From the way she acted, whatever was inside that folded paper must be frightening. Lex still felt the pressure of her fingers where she had gripped his hands tightly and Chloe had obvious been fighting for words, but unable to come up with anything. He felt a tingle of dread slowly creeping down his spine.

Squaring his shoulders, clenching his jaw in preparation, he flipped open the folded paper and looked down. And blinked. Narrowing his eyes, he stared at the black and white photocopy of what had obviously been a high quality picture. Of himself and Chloe. The night at the club, the first time Chloe had breached the barrier of his personal space, even if it had been just a hoax then. He remembered the dress, even though he couldn't see its color now and he remembered exactly how it had felt to be so close to her.

“Where did you find the original of this,” he asked, even though he had a feeling he already knew the answer.

Somebody had photographed them and by the looks of it, this was not a cheap shot by some paparazzo. This was a professional's work. Had they been followed ever since then? Where there more pictures? Had they managed to invade Chloe's apartment, his house?

“In my father’s desk,” she said, simply. She found it best to try and be objective about the situation. “I went in there looking to see if there was an audio or video feed and I found that,” she gestured to the picture he was holding now.

“Your father, Celeste and my father have been following us for months,” she said. Chloe could hear emotion filtering into her voice but she couldn’t stop it. “We’re their fucking project.”

Lex closed his eyes as something in his jaw actually cracked from the pressure his molars were exerting. Too many thoughts were chasing through his head at once to keep a tight hold on them, broken snippets flashing through. Can't believe he'd... the audacity to treat us like....that he would sink so low....what the fuck was the man thinking....didn't he know what kind of hurt he'd inflict....doesn't he care a fucking lick...[/I]a fucking project[/I]

At the point, he couldn't even discern anymore which of the two men he was thinking about, only caring about the certain knowledge who of the two of them was responsible for this as sure as the night was black.

“I'm going to kill him,” he didn't even hear his own voice for the rush of blood in his ears. “This time, I'm going to kill him.”

Even though Chloe had expected this reaction from Lex, the tone of his voice scared her. She saw that his hands were shaking slightly and that he had crumpled the piece of paper in his hands.

“No, you’re not,” Chloe said, easily. “That would be too good for him. For both of them.” Lex looked back up at her. Perhaps surprised by how calm she was being about the whole thing. Of course, she’d had time to think this over.

“Just imagine how pleased they probably are with themselves right now.” She imagined them smoking cigars, chests puffed out as they slapped each other on the back in congratulatory glee.

“How they look over pictures, reports, charts and whatever the fuck Celeste Guyan has given them about us.” It made her sick to even imagine what sort of information had been culled about her. Things that had been passed on to her father. Things he had no right to know.

“If we blow up and kill them both we won’t get what we deserve for this. Revenge.” She sounded like a cheesy bad guy from a gangster movie but she didn’t care. “For the first time in what appears to be a long time, we’ve got them right where we want them.”

Lex took a deep breath and tried to will his temper under control. Chloe's soothing words didn't appease him in the least. Well, not much anyway. He wanted blood and he wanted to bathe in it. This must've been what Alexander felt like shortly before he ended his father's reign.

“I for one want to see Lionel Luthor six feet under, unmourned and quickly forgotten,” he stated coldly.

He was seething with the knowledge that all the time Lionel had been trying to warm his way back into his son's life it had only been for the purpose of spying him out. Typical. What did he get out of this though? Why try and hook him up with Chloe? Worse than that, why would Gabe play along? It surely explained why the other man was so quick to accept him and grant him permission to practically overhaul Chloe's apartment.

From Lionel it was no surprise that nothing was holy and that every border, every personal or public limit could be breached or flat out discarded like so much rubbish. But Gabe? How could the man do this to Chloe?

“I don't know how he roped your father into this, what kind of blackmail he's using,” Lex paused, willing himself to keep his voice at room level. “He's going to pay for this, dearly.”

Lex still wasn’t getting it. There was no reason for her father to have that picture in his desk unless he was an active participant in the whole thing. “Lex,” she said patiently, “I don’t think your father had to do anything but encourage my dad to go along with this.”

“The only way he would have that picture,” she pointed at the partially crumpled paper still in Lex’s hand, “in his office was if he wanted it there.”

Chloe had thought a lot about the way her dad had acted in the past few months. “There is other evidence, as well. As soon as you and I started to hang out with one another, he got off his soapbox about the men I date while gently asking about you and prodding me about how we got along.”

She fumed at the thought of her father storing up all he had found out from her and then reporting back to Lionel and Celeste. Yes, he would be put through the wringer for what he had done. But she needed Lex’s help on this.

“It might be easier for you to blame your father for all of this but he’s not alone in his deceit.” She looked over at Lex and said, “We were both used and I for one intend to fight back.” She hoped to keep the focus on their parents because then she wouldn’t have to think about the actual manipulation that had occurred.

The fact that she and Lex were now friends wasn’t purely a choice that they had made. It wasn’t coincidental that they had met up again, she was certain of that, and their relationship would now always bear the mark of that fact.

Lex couldn't believe that Gabe would actually do something like that to his daughter. The entire scenario had Lionel written all over it, but what Chloe said did indeed point to the fact that Gabe Sullivan was a willing participant in this scheme. Unbelievable.

He still wanted to kill Lionel for overstepping the boundaries as far as he had this time, but rationally, he knew that it was not going to happen. He was barely thirty, well alright thirty-three, but in any case, he did not plan on going to jail because of that rat.

“What do you suggest,” he asked Chloe while completely crumbling the photocopy in one hand, sliding the other into the pocket of his pants.

If she had a plan for a good revenge all cooked up, by all means, he would at least listen to it. Should it not be harsh enough, he'd surely come up with something once he put his mind to it coherently.

Chloe leaned back on the couch. After she’d stop crying at her apartment she’d come up with a goal that she’d never had before in her life. She wanted to hurt her father as much as she could. She wanted to hurt him because she’d been used and manipulated and what he had done had been plain wrong. But she mostly wanted to hurt him because she had felt so stupid. And because his interference tainted what she and Lex had.

How many of their get-togethers, their conversations and their movements had been guided by the other men and Celeste? Chloe was the one in control of her life and to have her father step in as if he knew what was best for her…..it was unacceptable.

“It’s really quite simple,” she said. “Since they are so keen on seeing us get together, get married, move into a place with a picket fence and have me squeeze out a few kids, we do the opposite.”

They couldn’t be too over the top with it or their fathers might think something was amiss but with both of their personalities she didn’t think it would be too hard.

“We start fighting again, swear off each other and date other people. Meanwhile, we watch them squirm as they see what’s happening and observe how they try to ‘fix’ it only to make it worse.”

Lex narrowed his eyes as he thought over Chloe's proposition. It took him a moment to fight down the instinct that was stating quite loudly 'No!', but when he focused on his scorn and lust for revenge instead, he had to admit it was the perfect plan and would do the most damage.

“That would mean that we'd have to cut contact almost completely after a certain point,” he cautioned. “We can't risk having them get suspicious.”

He didn't like that part at all. The only part he liked less was the one about dating other people. But if it had to be done for the greater good, he'd have to find a way to actually bear the presence of a sycophant for a few hours and make a play at charming the pants off her. Proverbially speaking.

“I know,” Chloe said, her stomach did not like this part of her plan but it had to be done. “But I don’t see that we have another choice to get what we want.”

In all honesty, the day had been such a rollercoaster that she wasn’t sure what it was that she wanted anymore. Her friendship with Lex was complicated, delicate, annoying and rewarding and she didn’t want to have to sacrifice it. But their parents couldn’t win. Neither of them could live with that.

“And seeing each other to plan things is going to take a lot of doing, too. I’m sure that our moves are being followed.” She felt a little sick again at the thought of her father going along with this. He must have lost his mind.

“Which means that we should do it all now.” The implication was clear. This was to be the last real night that they had together. After this, they’d both have to work at setting the wheels in motion to destroy what they built for the past few months.

Lex nodded in agreement, even though the plan to storm LuthorCorp and behead his father with one of that sad replica of a Japanese katana he kept in his office looked better and better in his imagination.

“Alright, let's go to the basement,” he said, kicking into business mode.

It was the safest place in the house, even though the chance that someone had bugged the other rooms was pretty slim. Nobody could have gotten in without triggering the alarms and getting a few unpleasant surprises.

He threw the crumpled paper to the floor and held his hand out for Chloe to help her up from the couch. The thought that they'd probably not see each other for quite a while after this night didn't sit well with him at all.

Once again, Lionel was responsible for destroying what little luck Lex had in his life without even blinking. If he hadn't hated the man already before, he would, starting this moment.

Involuntarily, his eyes scanned over Chloe's face, trying to memorize it as she took his hand and got up from the couch. They'd been off to a rocky start, and a sordid part of his mind wondered what their fathers had made of that fact.

It had been pure chance that they kept running into each other, or so he'd thought. What if it had all been arranged? Carefully constructed and planned by Lionel and his new lackey Celeste? Lex didn't want to believe he was that predictable and easily controlled.

They silently made their way down to the basement. Chloe now knew that some part of her had hoped that Lex would refuse to carry out her plan. Damn their fathers, what they had now was theirs and they wouldn’t give it up. But that hadn’t happened. They were both far too stubborn to accept being puppets.

She held on a little tighter to Lex’s hand once they were down in the basement. Chloe knew that she would have to let go but was finding it difficult. When she caught sight of Lex looking at their hands, she quickly let go.

Her eyes scanned the room and she gasped. Sitting on a raised platform on one of the lab benches was a miniature version of an Aston Martin. “You really did it,” she said as she exhaled. Their plan to make a plan momentarily forgotten, Chloe approached the car but was careful not to touch it.

“Lex, it’s perfect.” The awe in her voice was pure, she didn’t have to act like it was one of the most beautiful things she’d ever seen. It was obvious that he’d put in painstaking hours to get it that way.

“I just finished it when you showed up on my doorstep,” he said as he watched Chloe practically swoon over the car.

It was a good thing that he'd put in the hours to finish it today, since it now looked like Chloe would never have gotten to see it otherwise. It was her project as well, she'd come up with the idea, so Lex was glad she'd at least seen the finished work once.

“I put in all the extras we talked about,” he added as he stepped closer, shoving his hands in the pockets of his pants once more. “The Toys 'R' Us clerks in the mall are rumored to have a betting pool now.” At Chloe's questioning eyebrow he continued. “Half of them think I've got a kid somewhere and the other half is putting their money on insanity.”

Lex didn't mind, they'd been the best option to get the extra toys, so he had no qualms buying things that other people considered toys. It wasn't his problem that they couldn't see the full potential of them.

“I wanted to go with silver first, but I liked the green coating better.”

As long as they kept talking about the car, they wouldn't need to talk about the plan, which gave him a little more time before he had to let his friend go, probably for good. Lionel really needed to suffer a painful, grim demise. Feeling the indifferent mask on his face slipping, he forced himself to push the morose mood aside.

This was not the first time he'd dealt with cleaning up the mess his father left him, he would get through this and move on. He craved a scotch. More precisely, a bottle of it, maybe two. At least a hangover would be a good excuse for feeling miserable in the morning.

Chloe took a small step back, her elbow brushing up against an unidentified part of Lex. She noticed that he didn’t step away from her so she surmised that she wasn’t the only one who needed the contact. “I think it was the right choice,” she agreed.

She turned slightly to look at him. “And why didn’t I get to go one the shopping trips with you? I would have liked to see the looks on the clerks’ faces when you asked for certain items. I have a perfectly good digital camera made for occasions like that.” She smiled gently at him and then went back to inspecting the car.

The detail that he had put into it was amazing. She always knew that Lex was driven and when he set his sights on a project, he went all out. But the car was miles better than she had thought it would be. “When you throw yourself into something, Lex, you really do make it the best,” she commented.

He shrugged one shoulder, but couldn't help the smile that tugged at his mouth. That kind of compliment didn't come to him often, it gave him a pleasant sense of satisfaction, moreso than acquiring any old company or stock trade, if he was honest.

“It's part and parcel of being a,” he almost said Luthor but corrected himself at the last moment. “Perfectionist,” he said instead.

Chloe's body was still brushing against him in odd places when she moved, but somehow he couldn't be bothered to step aside. Lex had gotten used to her being in his personal space, so much so that it seemed almost off when she was keeping her distance.

“I'll probably take it out for the first ride tomorrow.”

Not really, though. Tomorrow he would be trying to deal with the fact that his friendship with Chloe was a thing of the past and that homicide was not a possible option, however tempting it looked.

She really wanted to see that. Could imagine how highly complicated the remote control that Lex had made was. It probably had a handful of buttons, a few toggles and an emergency switch to shut the thing down. But she wouldn’t get to see that.

A feeling of hatred for her father came over her swiftly. If he had minded his own business then she wouldn’t have to cut off contact with Lex. Never mind the fact that she wouldn’t have been friends with him in the first place.

“But you’re still missing something,” she said, turning around to face him. He still hadn’t backed off and their bodies remained in contact. “One very important item, I’d say.”

His eyes flew back to the automobile, checking it over once more as his mind went through everything that had gone into it. There was even a spare tire in the trunk, right next to the pipes that shot oil from little torpedo chutes next to the rear license plate. Granted, it was only olive oil, but he wouldn't want to get in trouble with law because of his toy.

“What,” he asked baffled, for the life of him unable to think of anything that might be missing. “Ejectable seat, missiles, machine guns, rotating license plates, oil jets,” he rattled off under his breath, going over the extras once more for good measure. “Remote control is over there and the batteries are already in.” He titled his head down so he could look properly at Chloe. “What did I miss?”

“Ejectable seats,” she repeated with glee. He had gone all out and crazy. She loved it. “Lex,” she said slowly, “you’re missing the most important thing that goes in the car, dear.” His eyes narrowed down at her when she used the flippant term of endearment.

“Don’t you remember the whole way that this got started?”

“Oh,” he exhaled shortly.

Of course he remembered how all this had started and it was the reason that there actually was just one singular, enlarged seat in the car that covered that ran from back to the front of the dashboard.

“Well, I was a little too focused getting the car done to think about getting what's supposed to go in it,” he stalled.

Lex wasn't sure if he really wanted to get a pet. That was awfully domestic, wasn't it? And he was still single after all and a single guy with a cat, now if that didn't look weird, he didn't know what would.

Then again, he thought about the rest of his house, thought about the fact that he'd make a damn good movie villain. Last but not least, he thought about the fact that Chloe would soon be gone from his life, leaving him once more friendless. The fact that a properly vicious cat in the house would most likely take care of any future sycophants who owned a furry, yapping rat that called itself dog, was really just an added bonus.

“I'll see if I can get one, soon.”

“Good,” Chloe said with a nod of her head. If she knew anything about Lex, she knew that he would get even more distracted playing with the bells and whistles on the car and ‘forget’ to purchase a cat. Come hell or water high, he’d have one though. Even if she had to pay someone to deliver it anonymously.

“I’m sure that little Thor will love his homecoming gift,” she smiled even wider as the small lines between Lex’s eyes appeared. The lines got deeper when she said, “Maybe I can knit him a little, evil beret that he can wear.”

For a moment, Lex toyed with the idea of actually lifting his hand and wrapping it around Chloe's throat. Just to shut her up, not to do any permanent harm. That she still insisted on that ridiculous name was plain irritating. Of course it was probably the reason that she still insisted on it.

“I will not call my cat Thor. My interest in Norse mythology isn't great enough to warrant that.” Unclenching his hand at his side he continued, smoothly. “And I would never have guessed that Chloe Sullivan is into as quaint a hobby as knitting. Isn't that something for little old ladies and spinsters?”

“That’s very stereotypical of you, Lex, don’t you think?” She knew that he was getting back at her for calling his cat Thor. But that was its name and it was a shame that Lex clearly didn’t understand that.

“I’ll have you know that it’s a very good hobby for stress relief….well, until you realize one of your stitches was wrong and have to unravel the whole damn thing.” She muttered the last part of her statement. She had almost gone into a rage the last time that had happened.

“Besides,” she shrugged one shoulder, “at the speed I’m going, I just may end up as a spinster so at least I already have the correct hobby.” There wasn’t any self pity in her voice, if anything it was filled with good humor. As long as she could keep making jokes, she wouldn’t have to think about why it was that they were down in the basement.

Lex chuckled and shook his head lightly. He could just imagine Chloe in the midst of a loose unraveled heap of wool, cursing over a missed stitch and using the needles to stab the enemy. “We really need to get you something better to do,” he decided, “You're too pretty to end up as an old spinster.”

He couldn't imagine Chloe ending up alone though, his luck would surely have it that she found the man of her dreams the moment she walked out of his door and forgot all about the annoying science geek slash business mogul that had been her friend.

Lex resolutely ended his internal pity party. They had to work on a plan and set it in motion. What was it they said, that a clean break hurt less and healed faster? Well, they would see about that.

He finally forced himself to take a step back and address the issue they had come down here for.

“Chloe,” he started. When he saw the confusion in her eyes, he softened his tone. “As much as I wish this was just a normal night, I think it's time we start working on our plan.”

His earlier compliment was forgotten as Chloe nodded in agreement. “I know,” she murmured. “I just…,” she trailed off. She didn’t want to make things even worse between them with some declaration about how much he meant to her but she felt as if she should say something.

She took a deep breath and let it out. “I’m sorry it has to be this way,” was the only thing that she could come up with. “So, how do you think it’s best to torpedo our friendship?”

~~~~
Lex closed the basement door behind them silently and followed Chloe through the hallway into the living room area. Once more, probably for the last time, he called a taxi that would be there within the next five minutes.

There wasn't much left to say, now that their plan had been set up and thought out. He hated Lionel with a passion and resented Gabe for putting his daughter through this. Chloe hadn't said so in as many words, but he could see that on some level this hit her harder than it did him. Lex at least had learned over the years to put nothing past Lionel. For her it was a brand new experience to be cold bloodedly manipulated by her only parent.

He crossed the distance between them and helped her into her coat, pulling her hair out from under the neckline and smoothing out the lapels when she turned around. To think that their fathers had managed what their own hotheadedness hadn't was ironic.

“I'll see you tomorrow, then,” he said with a smirk.

Chloe nodded as she shoved her hands into the pockets of her jacket. The air that hung around them was heavy and she didn’t think that she was the only one who was having difficulty with what they had to do.

Their plan was well thought out and she knew that they’d both do their best to execute it properly. That was the real problem. There was no going back for either of them at this point. At least their fathers would be miserable, too. Chloe tried to think of another way to make them pay that they hadn’t already come up with.

When the cab honked outside, she thought of one. But she wasn’t certain if Lex would go for it. He reached for the doorknob but she put her hand over his to still the movement. “Lex, we want to make this as bad for them as possible, right?”

The muscle in his jaw ticked as he nodded silently. Part of him still wanted to go down the road of torture and death, but since that wasn't possible, anything that came close to that would have to do.

Her hand was still covering his on top of the door handle and he wondered what she was planning as he searched her eyes. She seemed to be deliberating something that she wasn't sure about. Whatever it was, she had his complete support at this moment.

“Whatever you want,” he offered in a low voice.

What she wanted was for this whole mess to go away. But that didn’t seem likely at this juncture. And she sure as hell didn’t want to have to suggest what she was about to but that couldn’t be helped, either.

“The more joyous they are about their plan working, the worse it’s going to be when it backfires,” she said. Lex merely nodded at her so she went on. “I’m sure that they’ve been happy to see the way that I usually say goodnight to you.”

She was positive that people were stationed outside of Lex’s house to observe them. It made sense and was something that she would have done if this was her little pet project.

“So, I think that our nightly ritual should be a little more involved this time.” Chloe wasn’t suggesting that they put on a show, just maybe a little more contact. But she waited to see Lex’s reaction to her suggestion.

Lex searched her eyes once more, trying to gauge the reaction she was hoping for. He didn't know if it was such a good idea to get more 'involved' as she'd put it. The feelings she'd as good as confessed where it came to him where surely still there and he remembered all too well what had happened to him the last time she'd kissed him. It was playing with fire.

“Are you certain you want that?” he asked, keeping their gazes locked.

“No,” she answered, honestly. “But if we’re going to do this Lex, we should do it properly.” Her voice picked up more strength as she went on. “I want them to think that they’ve got us right where we should be. I want them thinking that they’re both geniuses and then I want the world to come crashing down on them in a big way. I want them to feel like we do.”

Lex nodded in acknowledgement, feeling her words resounding inside him. If he'd ever wished for something in his life, he wished that things were different. That he could simply send Chloe home to her nice apartment, call her in a day or two and enjoy their friendship. Have something stable in his life that was not determined by business and its rules.

“Let me open the door, then.”

He waited until Chloe took her hand from the knob to turn it and open the door wide enough to allow the cab driver, and whoever was hiding out there, reporting back to their fathers, to see everything that was about to transpire.

As he bent down towards her and brought a hand up to cradle her cheek, he wanted to apologize, but instead simply muttered 'goodnight' before pressing his lips against hers, lingering for a few moments to make the illusion more credible.

This was nothing like the other innocent kisses that shared, and Lex was convinced he could feel the difference. It tasted of deceit, loss and anger. Not what he'd imagined at all when it came to kissing Chloe. Oh yes, Lionel would pay.

Chloe knew that the camera wouldn’t be able to show it, but Lex’s body was held almost stiffly against hers. She pressed her lips against his and it felt mechanical, as if she could be kissing anyone. This was not the last memory she wanted of them together.

Their parents had ruined their future and tainted the past but Chloe wasn’t going to allow them to piss all over the present if she could help it. Her hands were resting lightly on Lex’s shoulders and she pulled him a little closer, increasing the pressure on his lips.

She felt Lex move his hands from her face down to her hips and she wrapped her arms around his back. Chloe broke their kiss and leaned her forehead against his chest for a moment before tilting her head back up and kissing him again.

Lex was surprised when Chloe changed the tune of their second kiss completely. Sadly, it wasn't for the better. The mechanical feel was gone and he'd let himself relax into her touch the moment she'd pulled him into a quasi hug. This kiss didn't taste like deceit anymore. It tasted like Goodbye.

As the kiss continued, Lex felt something inside of him snap. Consequences be damned, he wanted this, her, right now. At least this one time. He tightened his arms and pulled her fully against him, using the surprised gasp she gave to slip his tongue into her mouth.

With a half turn, he had her pressed up against the open door, forgetting all about people watching, revenge plans and goodbyes. Just for this. One. Moment.

Chloe found herself reciprocating to the kiss before her brain had realized what had happened. She felt the doorknob jabbing into her lower back uncomfortably but that sensation was nothing compared to the ones that Lex was creating.

She tried to raise herself up a little on her toes to force more contact between their bodies but Lex held her hips in a death grip. Instead, sensing what she wanted, he pulled her even closer. Chloe heard the small noises she was making in the back of her throat but couldn’t stop them.

Her tongue was exploring the inside of Lex’s mouth when he unexpectedly pulled away. She didn’t have time to process that fact before she felt his mouth and teeth on her neck. Chloe threw her head back and then weakly gasped his name as he gently bit down on her skin while sliding a strong thigh between her legs.

Lex inhaled her scent deeply, trying to memorize it as his hands memorized the curves of her body. He pulled the leg that could deal a decimating kick up and around his hip, gliding his hand over the denim-clad skin and muscle. If he'd known it would be this hot, he would have given up weeks ago.

He ground himself against her as he pulled back from her neck to claim another kiss, biting her bottom lip before soothing the sting with his tongue. The noises she was making went straight to his cock, and he wanted nothing more than to pull her back into the house and slam the fucking door shut behind them.

That's when the horn of the taxi broke through the haze with a loud blaring sound. Lex pulled out of the kiss with a shuddering breath, hissing a curse under his breath.

Lex’s arms were still loosely around her body and Chloe was glad of that fact. She honestly didn’t know if she’d be able to stand without their support. For a moment she briefly considered flipping off the cabbie and dragging Lex back into the house to finish what they had started.

She looked up at Lex and was happy to see that he looked as out of sorts as she did. She leaned against the door and Lex let go of her. The cabbie honked his horn again and Chloe lost it. “We fucking know! Shut up!”

Turning back to Lex she ran a hand through her hair which had somehow gotten mussed. Her chest was still heaving and she knew that she must look very undignified now. Lex’s shirt was wrinkled and he was glaring in the direction of the cab.

Instead of saying any of the numerous things that she wanted to, Chloe merely said, “Goodnight, Lex,” before pulling him down to her once more. Their mouths were insistent on one another’s but she pulled back before they got into trouble again.

“Goodnight, Chloe,” he answered softly as he pulled back from her entirely.

It was for the better, he tried to tell himself as Chloe turned away from him and made her way to the taxi. It wouldn't have been good to start something now that they had to act on their plan.

When he closed the door behind his back, it hit home. What's they'd done. It was absolutely against his plan. He couldn't believe that he'd let himself be carried away like that. He'd almost pulled her back into the house and straight to the bedroom.

Lex shuddered at the thought. It was almost as disconcerting to notice that the shudder was only part shock intertwined with arousal at the mental images that his brain provided without asking.
“I hope he dies a fucking painful, humiliating death. Preferably after years of public humiliation,” he gritted out between his teeth before exhaling a long breath.