Buyouts, Hostile Takeovers & Matchmaking (PG-13/R)

[BlueSabby]

Title: Buyouts, Hostile Takeovers & Matchmaking (or why making charts isn't condusive to matchmaking)

Disclaimer: We still have not acquired the WB in our numerous possessions. Therefore, we don't any of the characters within the story either. But, we think you knew that already.

Challenge Requirements:

The Father Knows Best challenge. (Inspired by Fiona's A Clean Pair of Eyes)

Simply put, Lionel and Gabe play matchmaker for their kids. I only have two requirements. 1) Chloe and Lex can't already have feelings for each other. and 2) Gabe and Lionel should refer to each other by thier first names. Any rating.

STUFF TO KNOW!!!: This is AU for two reasons, namely 1) It's set in the future. We're 8 years down the line from now time (season 4) and 2) Some stuff never happened: Lionel didn't kill his parents, therefore never tried to kill Lex, or Chloe or Gabe and never went to prison either. This is Lionel-Light.




A/N:Sabby: We couldn't help ourselves and started another fic. It just happened, really. This is the answer to Imps Father Knows Best Challenge. WIP people, no regular updates ahead of you. Enjoy

A/N: Blue: Welcome to BHT&MMOWMCICTMM. The idea of Gabe and Lionel joining forces was too good to pass up. And look, we've got a bitching title, too! And no, we were not high when we came up with it. Just tired. Happy reading!


Prologue

The huge mahogany table was covered from one end to the other with all of the data that Lionel Luthor had collected in the past few weeks. The data had been acquired swiftly but quietly. There were those around him that could not be privy to what he was researching. Or else, the merger that he was trying to rig would fall apart.

But, he was determined that he would have the upper hand in this matter and that the end result would be one that he had determined. He wasn’t getting any younger and that thought was driving him to press on where others had told him to temper his vigor.

Perhaps ‘others’ was not the appropriate word. There was only one other man with whom he was engineering this with. However, at this particular point in time, Gabe Sullivan did not appear to be on board with the pathway that Lionel had set up for them.

Yes, it was aggressive. But that was the way that you got something that you wanted. One didn’t sit idly by and pray to a god that most likely didn’t exist and then expect to get what was desired. A man had to go out and get it. Lionel was used to getting what he wanted. And, this merger was the most important of his career.

Gabe shook his head, looking at yet another of the multiple charts on the table. He'd agreed to work with Lionel, combine their forces and minds to get the end result. If someone had told him about a year ago they'd work towards the same goal, he'd have had them committed instantaneously. As it was, they were sitting here, in Lionel's office, planning a union that would change both their lives and influence that of others, inevitably throwing them together for better or for worse.

“Lionel, I know that waiting is not the way to go, but don't you think that this,” he threw the chart onto the desk, “Is a little too extreme? I mean, this is not a corporate buyout, where you don't leave the participants a choice,” he stated carefully.

Lionel leaned back in his chair and regarded the man that was standing before him. Clearly, Gabe didn’t fully comprehend what they were doing. “Gabe, we need to go after this with all that we’ve got.”

He rose out of his chair and picked up the chart that had just been unceremoniously heaved onto the table. The chart was well put together, color coordinated and had cost a great deal of money. But that wasn’t the point. The point was that it would work. It had to work because Lionel would not accept defeat.

“This,” he said, waving the bound papers around, “dictates our battle plan. The people that we are dealing with are not just going to roll over and do what we advise them to do, we both know that.” He gave Gabe a pointed look, almost daring the man to disagree with him.

“Everything that we do must be extreme.” He threw the chart back on the table and then circled the table, taking in all of the information that they now had at their fingertips. “Besides, the involved parties have already had years to make their choices. They are just clearly incapable of making the correct choices. Which is where we come in.”

Lionel smirked at his partner in crime. Gabe needed to realize that this would not be an easy road to tread and that they would have to play dirty and cheat in order to win.

Gabe heaved a sigh, pinched the bridge of his nose and got up of his chair. He took the few paces towards the wet bar and turned over a glass.

Turning back to Lionel, he got a shake of the head, then turned back towards the bar, pouring himself a generous helping of scotch. After the first sip, the pressure behind his eyes eased up a little. It galled him to say it, but Lionel did have a good point. The task at hand was far from the usual business deal, and there was much more at stake. The people involved were all stubborn to distraction and almost incapable of being budged. Lionel and he were pretty much the irresistible force trying to bring together two immovable objects. Something had to give.
”I just don't feel comfortable with this. We're trying to force something together. What if it ends up breaking instead of melding together like it's supposed to?”

This was why the plan would work. Between the two of them, they would think of everything. All possible outcomes, obstacles and details that separated would have eluded them.

“If you didn’t feel comfortable with this, some part of you at least, you would not have agreed to it.” Gabe needed to get over feeling as if he was doing something wrong. They might not know it, but both parties should thank both he and Gabe for getting involved in the scheme.

Lionel shrugged at his last question. “They have broken apart numerous times in the past with various skirmishes, threats and general irritability that they both seem to display. But some force keeps them coming back to one another. We’ve both seen it happen time and time again.” Gabe continued to sip on his scotch. He was rather proud of himself for introducing the man to a good bottle of the alcohol. He had finally broken Gabe of his beer preference almost altogether, too.

“If some catastrophe befalls the two parties, and I’m almost sure it will at least once, we will deal with it and move on.” Lionel looked at his watch, he had another meeting in ten minutes. Which meant that he and Gabe needed to leave in five in order to get back to the main part of the building.

The room that they were now in was in the basement of the building and guarded twenty four hours. Another fact that Gabe thought was too much but it comforted Lionel to know that no one other than himself or Gabe could gain access to their command center. Plus, if one were going to have a surreptitious command center, it should be in the basement away from prying eyes.
Looking again at Gabe, he said, “You know that this will cause us migraines and a great deal of discomfort before we reap any direct benefits.”

Gabe couldn't help snorting, then downed the drink in one go. “You better buy stock in Advil, as far as I'm concerned,” he muttered.

This didn't sit well with him, but he knew that there really was no choice. They'd have to get through this, come hell or high water, and make it work. It was for the best of all parties involved. There would be no going back once it officially started and, according to the general index of the plan it would take months before they succeeded, and that was the most positive calculation.

With a sigh he placed the glass back on the bar and nodded towards Lionel. “Ok, let's get this show on the road.”

Lionel grinned over at Gabe. He was certain that once the wheels began to turn that the other man would see that he was right.

As they walked towards the door, Lionel clapped the other man on the back in encouragement. “Don’t worry, Gabe. I’m sure that once Chloe is in love with Lex, and vice versa that all of this will have been worth it.”

Lionel spared one last glance into the room as the door closed. The table was covered with personality reports, compatibility charts and, perhaps most importantly, gullibility scales. Yes, this was a job that only a madman would tackle. Or, perhaps, two.

[lexchloe]

:yay: :yay: New fic !! new fic!!! Very interesting start. Love the idea of Gabe and Lionel working to bring Chloe and Lex together. Can't wait for more.

[Nadia_]

Yayyy!!!!! New fic \o/ And a great one as far as I can see! Lionel and Glabe playing matchmaker, it's just too funny! There's no doubt I would not be able to drink readind this ... :hehe:

[chrisrose]

Cool idea! This fic takes me back to the time when I actually liked Lionel. Sure he's ruthless, but I think the Smallville writers went too far when they had him try to *kill* Lex and Chloe. So, y'know, thanks for pretending that never happened. :)

[hfce]

:lol: First of all I cant believe you guys are starting another one. And second Lionel and Gab matchmakers to their kids. Their two stubborn, minds of their own kids. Good luck. :lol:



Hope :)

[Blackberry]

hahaha that's so awesome~! :D Lionel and Gabe - mad matchmakers~!!!!!

Ooooh I can't wait to see where this goes~!

Brava~!

BB

[autumngold]

Chloe and Lex don't stand a chance with both Lionel and Gabe working toward their union!! :biggrin: This story makes me so happy!! I can't wait to find out how Lionel and Gabe's plan is going to work!! Will Lex and Chloe fight them every step of the way? Hope you update soon!! :yay: :chlexsign3: :yay:

[Impress]

:yay2: squeee....!

Can I say how excited I am that y'all took this challenge?.... :yay:

Fab start my darlings. I so can't wait to read more.

Oh and I like the title.

[peepsRfun2eat]

:yay: hee love the start

can't wait for more!

[Zannie]

I'm so glad y'all are taking up that challenge--I thought it was one of the most intriguing concepts I've seen.

And how much do I love Lionel treating this like a business deal: with all of his charts, and files, and research, and business jargon.

But what is this about no regular updates? *mutters obscenities under her breath.* Hmph!

More soon please?

[Queen Of Tact]

Looks like this is going to be another great fic u 2... I also have the feeling i'm going to be after u 2 for updates.... I can't wait to read more....


CC

[randa]

this one is gonna be fun, i can tell already :biggrin:
ill be watching for those random updates!



randa

[asharnanae]

:biggrin: this looks to be another classic in the makeing!!! :blinkkiss:

[tiger04]

I can't wait to see where this goes. I hope that you will update with more soon.

AT

[ruafair]

Well it's from the two of you, so of course it's gonna rock... And the first chapter has got me hooked already.... Plus extra points for the title :D

[June]

I love that this is Lionel Light. As much as I hate Lionel, it's just one of those love-hate situations.


The room that they were now in was in the basement of the building and guarded twenty four hours. Another fact that Gabe thought was too much but it comforted Lionel to know that no one other than himself or Gabe could gain access to their command center.

It's like mission impossible... Gabe and Lionel style.

I am so looking foward to seeing more of this story.

[buffiy18]

Yay, a new story from you guys! Very interesting premise. I am excited to see what it entails. :chlexsign2:

[bluengreenswmer]

I love the fics where Lionel isnt the MB he is, but a scheming chlexer. Its awesome. So, naturally, I love the fic, and I can't wait to read another chapter.

[vardaquareien]

*squeeing madly* A new Bluesabby fic!!! *squeeeeeeeeeeeeeee*

*clears throat* Ummm I am quite pleased at the prospect of reading another creation by the two talented authors of this story. Do please continue.

*runs away squeeeeeeeeeeing wildly and spinning - yes lots of spinning, spinning and dancing ...and clapping, and maybe just a little bit of jumping. Maybe. And squeeeeeeing, did I mention squeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeing?*

[carebear72884]

Wait a minute, a Gabe-Lionel working together to bring chlex together, what a great plot, and it is written by BlueSabby?!? This must be my day, I am so exited.
Great start, I love how Lionel is treating it like a business merger, thats too funny, I can totally see him doing it.
I love the part where Lionel changed Gabes taste in alcohol too, great stuff BlueSabby. I can't wait for more, you ladies are the best.

[eurydices falling]

Bluesabby strikes again! :clap:

[bluebrise]

Great beginning, I can't wait for the scheming to begin!

[planetcal]

Love the story can't wait to see what Lionel and Gabe have instore for Lex and Chloe!

[Augustine86]

Gabe-Lionel... Mmm... There is a lethal combination if I ever saw one!

Don't you dare stop, Sabby... And you too Blue! Or I'll... hunt you down and force you to finish. And just cause I'm petit don't think that I can't! (Tries looking menacing and random passer-by laughs).

Oh, well, I tried. Now you finish it and all's better.

:chlexsign1:

[mimi71884]

:yay: :yay: :yay:

HOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOORAY!

get ready for a wild ride!!! :huh: :huh:

I can't wait-- *can't wait*-- for you guys to update. I'm looking forward to meeting your chlex in this! I'm already loving the complicity betw. Gabe and Lionel ...

Soon please??!


:chlexsign4:


PLEASE?

[fussy_wuzzy]

Lionel spared one last glance into the room as the door closed. The table was covered with personality reports, compatibility charts and, perhaps most importantly, gullibility scales. Yes, this was a job that only a madman would tackle. Or, perhaps, two.

I don't know why, but I absolutely love the idea of there being gullibility scales.

That was a great start and I'm looking forward to your next update.

[Addie]

:biggrin: I love this fic so far - Lionel and Gabe are too funny. Update soon please.

[BlueSabby]

A/N: Sabby: Ok here be an update. Some hatching and lots of Gabe and Lionel and, yeah enjoy!

A/N: Blue: And on with the show....... You got yourself some Lex, but no Chloe yet. However, that's not important right now. You've got scheming Lionel. Enjoy!



Two months ago:
Keeping his face impassive was a talent that Lionel had honed years ago. However, his son always seemed to be the one to test it the most. Yet, he was able to remain looking aloof when he heard of his son’s plan to marry again. The man in question sat across the desk from Lionel. As he digested the unhappy news, Lionel wondered if it was some sort of plan that Lex had hatched in order to induce him into having a heart attack.

“Her name is Skylar? Charming, Lex. And, which of the finer establishments with a pole did you find her in?” As soon as his son was out the door he would run a check on this woman, both of them knew it, but he found that it was best to get as much information out of Lex sooner rather than later.

Lex's eyes narrowed dangerously at his father. What was his problem, anyway? It wasn't like Lex was looking for true love or anything. He just wanted to get the hell over the damn marrying business and get on with his life. It wasn't his fault that the women he ended up with didn't manage to cope with him. He'd tried. The reason he went for the lower end of the food chain was that he didn't trust a smart woman not to try to kill him for his money.

So he'd gotten married 5 times within the last 4 years, subsequently to Candie, Bunnie, Fyre, Daisy, and Angel. None of the marriages had worked out and the alimony bills would be killing him if three of the five hadn't decided to marry again. Ironically enough two of the three had gone for business partners of Lex's.

“I met her at the Metropolis art gallery, dad. She happens to have a very sweet personality and seems not to mind the fact that I have various important obligations.”

“She’s sweet,” Lionel queried incredulously, his rancor right on the surface. Sweet was not something that Lex would be able to abide by. Also, if that was the primary word that his son chose to describe her, it was actually code for ‘dumb as a post.’

While Lex’s life was his own, or Lionel tried to pretend so every now and again, it was also tied up with his own. Putting aside what Lionel knew what was best for Lex, there was also the prestige of the Luthor name to think of.

It had already taken numerous hits with the cut-throat business deals, the fact that Lex seemed to marry indiscriminately and the constant malarkey that Lucas partook in. Lionel was worried about the name carrying on. Or, more specifically, what the next generation of Luthors would be like.

He was not about to have imbeciles for grandchildren, he simply would not abide by it. Lionel had worked far too hard, both inside and outside the lines of the law, to have his empire torpedoed by the progeny of his son and some simpleton with the name of Skylar.

After Lex’s thirtieth birthday, he had hoped that his son would straighten out and fly right. However, he had subsequently gotten married to women with stripper names that were not even spelled properly. It was time for the boy to grow up whether he was ready for it or not.

“Did she enjoy all of the pretty colors that she saw?’ Lex would do what he wished so Lionel would get in the digs while he could. He knew that it only made Lex more resolute in his decisions, but the compulsion was too great to resist.

Lionel rose from his desk and poured a hefty helping of scotch into his glass. “Your obligations are of no concern to her because she cannot comprehend them. She will only view your job as something that will give her more time to shop and fuck whatever various members of the help that she can find.”

The liquid burned its way down his throat. That should be enough for Lex to storm out of the office with a biting comment on his lips. After that, Lionel would be forced to come up with a plan to stop his son. Both of their futures were dwindling away before Lionel’s eyes.

Thankfully, Lex’s past few wives hadn’t been homicidal so Lionel didn’t think he had that to worry about. Just the weak, dim genes that would be passed on to his grandchildren.

Then there was the fact that Lionel fully believed that powerful men needed a formidable woman to keep them on their toes. The stupidity that Lex surrounded himself would eventually catch up with him.

Bottom line: this cycle needed to be put a stop to. And, if Lex was unable or unwilling to do it himself then Lionel would step in himself.

Lex's jaw clenched involuntarily at his father's dig. Of course Skylar hadn't shown any particular knowledge about any paintings or sculptures, but that wasn't the point. If he wanted intelligent conversation, he'd look for a person who shared an interest, not a wife.

Frankly, he'd had enough of this conversation, and even more of the constant meddling of his father's where his personal life was concerned. It was tiresome and annoying. “Interesting you should bring that up, dad. Considering your loose definition of matrimonial fidelity. What makes you think I care?”

Getting up from his own chair, he made his way towards the door. “This discussion is over. Since you didn't bother showing up the last four times, I'll see you after we get back from Bahli.”

He made his way out of the office at a normal pace, closing the door behind him in a polite manner. Five years ago, he might have slammed it shut, but he was not a child anymore.

~~~~
Lionel walked aimlessly around the offices of LuthorCorp. He could see that it unsettled his employees but he paid them no mind. When tasked with a puzzle, he had to keep in constant motion in order to figure out the best course of action.

Lex was going to continue to get married until he got himself killed or bankrupted his personal fortune with all of the alimony he was forced to pay. The solution was to get Lex a wife that that would neither make an attempt on his life nor leave him. Not an easy bill to fill.

He turned a corner and nodded at various employees as he made his way through the hallways. There was a constant chatter in the air that he enjoyed a great deal. People going about their business ensuring the stability of the company…and of his own wallet. If only Lex could do the same for him.

So, he had to find his son a suitable wife. One that wouldn’t be offput by the fact that Lex had been married seven, now going on eight, times. She would have to be intelligent and able to put up with Lex.

A brief frown marred his face as he continued on his stroll. These attributes would be difficult, if not impossible, to find. He also was not in the mood to deal with a vapid twenty year old as a daughter-in-law so he ruled out women that were young and impressionable who could be molded into what Lionel needed for Lex.

The somewhat familiar voice, full of a tone akin with what he had been using with his son in the beginning of their conversation, wafting over to him from the opened door of an office caused Lionel to pause in his stride.

“Teddy?” Gabe paused to take a deep breath and resign himself to the situation, again. “And which bar did you pick that specimen up in?” Heaving a heavy sigh, he shook his head, pushing away the papers in front of him with disgust. “He's cute,” he couldn't help sneering at that. God, if that was the only qualification needed these days to be fit to date his daughter, the world was coming to an end. “Yes, I'm sure it's not a problem for him to go along with your schedule considering he's likely sleeping the entire day while you do your work.”

Impossible. Just downright unacceptable. He'd never gotten too involved with the dating habits of his daughter, but the vast array of men she had been through within the last four years was slowly but surely pushing Gabe to the brink of his resolve, and sanity. Something would have to be done.

“No, honestly, I am not happy about this, Chloe. You deserve better than a bartender at a run down shack at the seedier side of town.” He closed his eyes as the voice of his daughters reprimand washed over him in a fit of temper. “No, it's not my life and yes, you are an adult, but I wish you'd act accordingly and actually make some adult choices for a change.” Another flurry of words and then the dial-tone.

“Great,” he mumbled to himself.

They'd talk about it again, in the evening, when both their tempers had cooled down and they could talk about it level-headed and reasonable. That didn't do anything about the fact that Gabe wanted to take something and throw it against the wall though. “God, dammit!”

“Why do I get the distinct feeling that you were talking to your daughter, Gabe?” Lionel had stood in his employee’s doorway for the tail end of the conversation and the other man hadn’t noticed.

If Gabe was anything like himself when he was arguing with the stubborn ass that was his son, everything else seemed to fade into the background. That could be the only explanation for why Gabe hadn’t noticed him lurking about. Lionel regarded the other man and thought about the words that he had gritted into the receiver of the phone.

“Has she decided to pursue another relationship that you don’t approve of?” Lionel was truly interested in Gabe’s predicament. The two of them had spent numerous hours in meetings together. Afterwards, they would sometimes complain to each other about their children’s ineptitude in the romantic realm of their lives, never getting into specifics. It was a sort of competition between them. Though, with Lex’s marrying tic, Lionel always won.

Now, Lionel realized that the answer to the Luthors’ problems had been right in front of him the whole time.

Chloe Sullivan had always been stubborn, head strong and infuriating. She was also terribly quick witted, intelligent and had grown into an incredibly attractive young woman. These attributes would suit Lex very well. Which is probably why his son had never made any overtures in that direction.

Gabe jerked up in his chair, surprised to find his boss ambling into his office, a smirk pasted on his face. “Teddy,” he grit out the name. “She met him in a bar and he's cute, they plan to move in together.” He shuddered.

Why Chloe never had managed to find a man in her own league was frankly, beyond Gabe. She dragged in the most horrible candidates and it never lasted longer than a couple of months. He'd seen each and every one of them and his reactions had ranged from simple disgust to pure astounded incredulity.

“Lex?” He dared to ask, having heard a rumor from his own secretary and knowing for a fact that the younger Luthor had had a meeting with his father that morning.

Lionel walked over and parked himself in the chair across Gabe’s desk, crossing one leg over the other. “Her name is Skylar. Apparently, she’s sweet.” The word came out sounding like ‘bitch.’ Lionel ran a hand over his face. “My grandchildren will most likely take three years to discover their own feet what with the rocket scientists that Lex marries.”

Trying to give Gabe some hope, he said, “At least your Chloe only lives with them.” He paused and tilted his head to the side, as if considering something, “Perhaps we should introduce Teddy to Skylar. I think that they’d be perfect together.”

Lionel looked at his watch and then asked, “Is ten thirty in the morning too early to start drinking?”

Gabe had winced in sympathy at the description of Lex's newest acquisition. The man had a point, though. So far, at least Chloe hadn't even considered marrying any of the turds she dragged in. The last question threw him off a little, making him wonder what the right answer would be. On the one hand, the man in front of him was his boss and drinking during office hours was not in any way legit. On the other hand. Teddy and Skylar.
“Can I offer you a beer?” He got up from his chair and crossed to the small fridge next to the door that led into the small en-suite bathroom.

It was just incomprehensible that both their children would be so blind as to hook up with people that were clearly not of their own league. The handful of women Lex had married in the last few years had been so far below, it hurt. The younger Luthor was a passionate, ruthless business man who thrived on challenges and spoke his mind, not afraid to venture into risky territory if there could be benefits to it.

A small smile quirked at the corner of his mouth as he thought of another person with quite similar attitude. It was a shame that she wouldn't look in the direction of someone like Lex instead of the mostly brainless, lazy couch potatoes without any potential ambitions.

Lionel rose out of his chair, his mind made up now on the issue. Lex and Chloe’s poor choices had driven both himself and Gabe to drink at work. This was unacceptable. If they could not make the proper choices on their own, well, it was a parent’s job to correct their children’s behavior.

“Gabe, how many times do I have to tell you that that swill is beneath you?” Gabe stopped in his motion to open the mini-fridge. “Much like Chloe’s choice in men, if you’d allow me to draw an over the top parallel.”

He stole a glance at the man’s desk and saw that it was littered with work. But this took precedence over anything. “I have an excellent bottle of scotch in the office. I just received it as a gift. I’d like you to join me for a drink.” He paused and then said, “There is a certain delicate matter that I’d like to discuss with you.”

Lionel couldn’t help the smirk that appeared on his face. It was brought about by imagining the reactions of both of their children’s faces if they knew what he was up to.

Gabe closed the door to the fridge and turned around. Seeing the expression on Lionel Luthor's face just then, a cold shudder slithered down his spine. This was not good, in any way shape or form. And the worst was, he couldn't even begin to fathom what the man was up to now, but he had this nervous inkling that it had something to do with what they'd just been talking about, and that he was going to be involved, like it or not.

“Alright,” he answered slowly, looking at the taller man with as much suspicion as he dared, “I'll just sort out the reports and close the file.” Walking over to his desk, he did just that, avoiding the other man's gaze for a moment, trying to figure out what the devious bastard could be up to now.

On the upside, he'd be treated to scotch, which was never a bad thing. Usually he favored beer, but that was because familiarity made habit and since he couldn't often afford a good scotch and was in no way inclined to put up with the cheap stuff, just to have any.
~~~~
Instead of sitting across from Gabe, Lionel had chosen to take the one of the chairs next to him in his office. He knew that the other man was wary of what was going on because of his body language and expression.

It would only go downhill from there once he explained what he wanted to happen. However, Lionel had a feeling that it would only take a little cajoling to get the man on his side. He decided to use the name ‘Teddy’ as much as he had to.

Once they were both seated and Gabe had taken a few sips from the drink, Lionel spoke. The most direct way was best.

“I would like for Lex and Chloe to marry.” He paused. “Each other, that is. What are your feelings on that?” Lionel made sure to deliver the line once Gabe had swallowed his last gulp of the liquid.

Gabe was thankful he had swallowed already, so he only choked on his own intake of air. He couldn't help stare at Lionel incredulously, sure he must've heard wrong there, because there was no way Lionel Luther had just said what Gabe thought he'd said.

“Come again?”

Lex and Chloe? The two had hardly met after both of them had left Smallville and went separate ways, Chloe to college in New York and Lex to Metropolis to start business. And Lionel honestly wanted them to get married? Proposed it like it was just a matter of signing a contract between himself and Gabe. Like they were two emperors somewhere in the Dark Ages drawing up a marriage contract for the benefits of two countries.

“With all due respect, Mr. Luthor,” he shook his head, “Have you lost your mind?”


“Gabe, this is the last time that I’m going to tell you to call me Lionel. Consider it an order if it makes it easier on you.” They had to get formality out of the way between them, it was a first step to working together on this.

He took another sip of the scotch. It really was an excellent bottle and he made a note to get some more. “And, while Lex’s escapades have caused me more than a few gray hairs, I can assure you that my mind is still in tact.” Lionel placed his glass back on his desk.

“Think about it. Our children keep finding their Teddys and Skylars. Their relationships never work out because the people that they are choosing to let into their lives can’t even begin to understand them.” He spoke forcefully, allowing just the slightest emotion to color his voice.

“They both find people who are lesser than they are. All of the ex-Mrs. Luthors are idiots while Chloe keeps dating troglodytes. If we allow them to continue on in this way,” he shrugged, “we both may lose our minds.”

He studied the man, who appeared to still be speechless. “I know what you’re thinking. That Chloe is an obvious step up for Lex but the same may not hold true for your daughter. Lex respects her, that much I know. And, for Lex, that is very unique. I think that we can help them to build on what they have to get to something that they could both prosper from and enjoy immensely.”

Gabe shook his head. In theory it all sounded good, but in life? That was a whole different matter entirely. It just didn't seem feasible that there was a way to play matchmaker. Not with these two. Downright impossible. And work on what they have? He took a deep gulp of his drink, relishing the burn and the warmth settling in his stomach.

“Build on what they have? They don't have anything, Lionel. I don't even remember the last time they met face to face, do you?”

Pinching the bridge of his nose, Gabe leaned back in his seat. “Don't get me wrong, in theory it sounds good. Hell I'd be all for it to have Chloe finally get with someone who is worth her time and effort, but this is just impossible!”

Not to mention the fact that when Chloe got wind of it, and she would get wind of it if there was anything going on, there'd be hell to pay. Gabe was sure that the same held true for Lex.

So, Gabe wasn’t totally opposed to the idea. It was a pleasant surprise. Now all he would have to do was convince him that it was a brilliant idea.

“They build on what they had when they were both in Smallville. As I’ve told you, I know that he respected her. And, if you’ll forgive me for saying so, I know that my son wasn’t blind to her physical attractiveness.” Lionel knew that he had to be careful here. Fathers were very protective of their daughter’s virtues and he knew that Gabe would be no exception.

Moving on quickly, Lionel said, “I do know that their dealings were usually amicable…until one of them was too obstinate to listen to the other one. Then things quickly went down hill.” Lionel said the last part almost to himself. He had studied up on all of the people that Lex came into contact with in Smallville and Chloe had been no exception.

He shook his head. “I think that it can be done. It may take some doing but I do believe if they would just open their eyes to the possibility then half of the battle will be over. And,” a certain devious sparkle appeared in his eyes, “if both of us were to come down hard against it,” he shrugged, “I believe that we both know what will happen.”

Gabe's brow arched as he regarded Lionel carefully. Again, the man did have a point, the two had gotten along in the brief time that they had interacted in Smallville. Still, it seemed highly unlikely. He didn't give Lionel's comment about the physical attraction a second thought. He wasn't naive by a long shot and whatever virtue Chloe might have had at some point was surely long gone and buried.

He could see though, that a plan was already taking shape in Lionel's mind and from the effort the other man put into convincing him, Gabe was sure he wouldn't let it go until he'd gotten his will. It was somewhere between ridiculous and downright horrifying. “So you want to convince our children to start a relationship, using reverse psychology? First pushing them together, then forbidding them to see each other just to make sure they go through with it?”

Yepp, definitely ridiculous and downright horrifying.

Lionel chuckled. “Not exactly. I think that we both know that if either of our children catch a whiff of us having a hand in it then the plan will be over before it really begins.” Lionel grabbed his drink and downed it and then motioned for Gabe to do the same. He took the two empty glasses back over to refill them.

“I propose that we just make sure that they interact with one another and let nature take its course. With a little help from us, that is.” He poured two more drinks and then sat back down next to Gabe, handing him his glass.

“We’ll play it by ear and see how much encouragement either or both of them will need. I don’t expect it to happen overnight or easily but I do believe that they got their tenacity from somewhere. I assure you that I can be just as stubborn as my son, Gabe. And, I see some of Chloe’s bull headedness in you, as well.”

He took a sip of his drink. “If we join forces, I am sure that we will come out the victors in this. And, therefore, our children will as well.”

Gabe took a healthy swig of his drink, contemplating his options. Either, he could sit by and watch his daughter make her way through an endless array of Teddies, Tobies, Markies and other various -ies. Or, he could go along with Lionel's plan and at least have a shot at finally seeing his daughter with a man worthy of her. Looking at things from that angle, there really was no question. Consequences be damned.

“I believe you got yourself a deal, Lionel.” He raised his glass towards the other man and finalized the deal, hoping that the end-result wasn't apocalyptic in effect.

A true smile broke over Lionel’s face. “Excellent. I promise you won’t regret it, Gabe.” Reconsidering his words he said, “Well, you may and at many points in the next few months, but I’m certain that we’ll get the desired result.”

Lionel clinked his glass against Gabe’s. “To the happy couple.”

[asharnanae]

:biggrin: WONDERFULLL!!!! man oh man, I have never in my life seen such a great convo between the two, and this premis is just fab! please post more as soon as ya can! :blinkkiss:

[lexchloe]

:worship2: :worship2: that was a totally excellent update. Bring on the matchmaking

[autumngold]

Go Lionel and Gabe!! Chloe and Lex don't stand a chance!! Excellent update to your wonderful story!! I can't wait to find out about the first part of the plan!! :yay: :chlexsign1: :yay:

[hfce]

Oh I so love this. Why cant this happen on the show? :crygreen: :crygreen:



Hope :chlexsign4: :chlexsign4:

[psychgirl81]

This is just so great. The whole idea is just so amusing and I love the interactions between lionel and gabe. I can't wait to see how they go about actually putting their plans into action.

[sylvia]

Ahh I LOVE this chapter! There isn't enough of Gabe and Lionel on the show and to see a story where they're the main characters alongside Lex and Chloe is a real treat. I love the dry, witty tone you have both parents taking on, and the premise is brilliant. Update soon please!!

[star del mar]

Lionel and Gabe are too funny! I thought that the whole chapter was hilarious, especially all of Lionel's scheming but this by far was my favorite line...


“Her name is Skylar? Charming, Lex. And, which of the finer establishments with a pole did you find her in?”


It tickled me, LOL. Anyway, loved the update!!!

Steph*

[Impress]

scheming Lionel and scheming Gabe. fab my dears. This whole story is just fab so far. need more soon.

[catsmeow]

Wow! This is just a cute, AMAZING idea, and now that it's out there, I don't know how I lived without it.

Pure awesomeness. :worship2:

[ldydee81]

wow this fic is so great. hummmmmmmmmmmmm and the only thing that could possibly make it better is?????????? :chlexsign1: of course. so please hurry and update again soon. and implement that genius plan of lionel and gabe's. i'll be waiting

[vardaquareien]

Whoohoo luvin' the Gabe 'n the MB interaction. Luv the idea of their respective progenies driving them both to drink together in the middle of the day at work! :hehe: I can imagine being the sole parent of either Lex or Chloe would be driven to drink fairly regularly.

Can't wait to see what plan they come up with to get the two together. I liked Lionel's observation that Teddy & Skylar sound perfect for one another. ;)

Lovin' this fic & can't wait for more!

[mimi71884]

“To the happy couple.”



LOL. :devil: MUAHAHAHAHAHA!


You guys are fabulous. I'm so amazed that you're making a Chlex story out of the interaction of two other characters!! hehehehe. I cannot wait to see what it is Lionel and Gabe have planned. Should we give those two conspirers a name? Gabonel. Lionabe. lol. I like Lionabe. hehehehe sounds... ferocious!

Lex and Chloe won't know what hit them!!! :wub:




:chlexsign4:

[peepsRfun2eat]

:yay2: :yay2:
Wonderful chapter and now I can't wait for another update.

[Cassandra Jean]

Chloe and Lex don't stand a chance with Lionel and Gabe teamed up against them!

This is great, I love this story! Bring on the next chapter :worship2: :worship2:

[Susan S]

This is great! I loved the interaction between Gabe and Lionel. I can't wait to see what happens when they start putting the plot into action. I also think Chloe and Lex need to figure it out and give them all sorts of grief before finally ending up together.

Susan S

[SinnerSaint]

Okay, this story intrigues and terrifies me at the same time. I am scared of the combined forces of Gabe and Lionel. Truly frightened. Yet hoping for soem Chlex , so I will conquer my fear. ;)

[niala85]

I really enjoying this fic. I can't wait to see Gabe and Lionel in action - I agree that Chloe and Lex don't have a chance.

Can't wait for the next part and to see what happens

[chril1]

woohooo


more more more

love lea
xxx

[gyhardin]

I love the deviousness of Lionel here... makes him somehow endearing. Please, ma'am, I want more?!?

[Gaia]

Lionel and Gabe.....this will be very interesting....
Update please asap.

[cwong]

Like Gaia said the combo of Lionel and Gabe will be very interesting. Totally hilarious so far.

[fussy_wuzzy]

I absolutely adore Lionel in this fic and I can't wait to see how he and Gabe go about getting their way. Great chapter!!!

[June]

A true smile broke over Lionel’s face. “Excellent. I promise you won’t regret it, Gabe.” Reconsidering his words he said, “Well, you may and at many points in the next few months, but I’m certain that we’ll get the desired result.”

Lionel clinked his glass against Gabe’s. “To the happy couple.”

can I just tell you both how much I adore this fic. Lionel and Gabe coming together to get their children hitched. I love it. Bring on the next update.

[Nadia_]

*Grinning* I'm loving scheming Lionel and Gabe! I was like: GO!MB! GO\o/


He was not about to have imbeciles for grandchildren, he simply would not abide by it. Lionel had worked far too hard, both inside and outside the lines of the law, to have his empire torpedoed by the progeny of his son and some simpleton with the name of Skylar.


I Love that line! I can totally see MB saying something like that!

I _almost_ take pitty on Lex and Chloe, but nahhh is going to be too funny!

Please guys, keem the chapters coming!!!!

[randa]

reverse psycology is a wonder.
loved this new addition and im so cant wait for the next part

randa

[ElizabethV]

Wow- Lionel and Gabe working together as matchmakers for Chloe and Lex.... I never even imagined something like this before. It's very creative! :) I really enjoy the approach Lionel seems to be taking, and of course the 2 fathers interacting is highly amusing. I love the story so far! Hope you can update soon!

[mimi71884]

PLEASE PLEASE PLEASE UPDATE THIS!

It's so great! I can't wait to see where this matchmaking goes.

Much strategizing and organization must be occuring!!

[Katharina]

The first two chapters are great. Can´t wait to read more....

[ColumbiaBlue]

*bounces* New BlueSabby Fic, new BlueSabby fic!!!!!!!!!! WOOT! Love it so far! Gabe and Lionel conspiring with each other to bring Chloe and Lex together? Priceless. Perfect. So damn funny. I can't wait to see how all this is going to play out!!!

More soon!

~Manda

[mimi71884]

AH! so long without an update! too long!

I want to see Lionabe strategizing and plotting!! ;) ;) ;)




PS> lets get to the CHLEX R-rated sections ASAP!!

[Gaia]

Pleasepleasepleasepleasepleasepleasepleasepleasepl ease
Pleasepleasepleasepleasepleasepleasepleasepleasepl ease
Pleasepleasepleasepleasepleasepleasepleasepleasepl ease
Pleasepleasepleasepleasepleasepleasepleasepleasepl ease
Pleasepleasepleasepleasepleasepleasepleasepleasepl ease
Pleasepleasepleasepleasepleasepleasepleasepleasepl ease
Pleasepleasepleasepleasepleasepleasepleasepleasepl ease
UPDATE!!!!!!

[tiger04]

Pleasepleasepleasepleasepleasepleasepleasepleasepl ease
Pleasepleasepleasepleasepleasepleasepleasepleasepl ease
Pleasepleasepleasepleasepleasepleasepleasepleasepl ease
Pleasepleasepleasepleasepleasepleasepleasepleasepl ease
Pleasepleasepleasepleasepleasepleasepleasepleasepl ease
Pleasepleasepleasepleasepleasepleasepleasepleasepl ease
Pleasepleasepleasepleasepleasepleasepleasepleasepl ease
UPDATE!!!!!!

what gaia said!!!!!!!!!!!

[BlueSabby]

A/N: Sabby: So here be the next chapter with extensive appearance of the significant others. Be warned *G* Enjoy!
i
A/N: Blue: Another update for you utterly demanding addicts...but you know we love the begging so keep it coming. Some new characters for you...I'm sure you'll *love* them. *G*


Still frustrated from his little 'chat' with Lionel, Lex made his way through the morning traffic and towards the outskirts of the city. Every time he got stuck waiting in front of a red traffic light, he wondered why he'd chosen to move into a house on the outskirts of town instead of living in the city center. At night, when the silence fell over said house and he actually found a good five hours of undisturbed sleep, he'd usually remember.

About an hour after leaving, he finally pulled into the driveway of his simple two-storey home, leaving the Aston in front of the garage. Barely inside the front door, he was greeted by a yapping, slobbering bundle of nerves, jumping up and down in front of him, happy to see her new master.

Skylar must be still in bed. Narrowing his eyes he shook the small oversized rat that claimed to be a dog from his ankle and made his way through to the kitchen, intent on a cup of coffee, the little pest fast on his heels until he kicked her out into the back yard. He hated that creature. If Skylar insisted on keeping it, Lex would make sure to accidentally leave the front door open one evening.

Stuffing the powder into the filter, adding just enough water to make the outcome liquid, he flipped on the switch of the coffee maker and sat down on the counter, flipping through mail and the business section of the newspaper. Checking his watch, he surmised he had about twenty minutes, or well as long as the coffee aroma took to permeate the air before his fiancée got up.

His assumptions were proven correct. He'd barely gotten to poor the first cup of coffee when her voice drifted over to him from the open doorway leading into the kitchen.

Skylar had distantly heard Lex come in. She had just woken up but wasn’t ready to actually get up. She didn’t mind that he had to leave at the god awful hour of eight in the morning as long as he didn’t disturb her.

When she smelled the coffee her stomach rumbled and she begrudgingly kicked the blankets off of the bed. The maid would take care of that later. She walked over to the chair that held some of Lex’s clothes from the day before and slipped one of his shirts on.

In their first month together he had been practically insatiable but now she felt that he had lost interest. That was fine by her, she already had the rock, but she thought that she should at least make an attempt to get him back into bed. For appearance’s sake.

Also, it might help her to convince Lex that they should move out of this house, if one could even call it that, and back to the city. She was used to the night life and society parties and was beginning to become bored with the domesticity that she felt creeping up on her.

The suffocating feeling had deepened last night when Lex mentioned that he needed to have children sooner rather than later. Children were a lot of work, even with the team of nannies that she assumed that they would have, and would severely put a crimp in the way that she led her life. While she was pleased that she wouldn’t have to be step mother to any little brats from Lex’s first few marriages it would have taken the pressure off of her.

But, she wouldn’t think about that now. There was another art opening this evening, the artist was an old fling of hers, and she had to persuade Lex to take her.

She made sure the first few buttons of the shirt were undone and then leaned against the kitchen doorway. She didn’t clear her throat before speaking, she thought it sounded sexier when it was deeper like it usually was first thing in the morning.

“Morning, honey. How’s your father?” She knew that it was a sore subject but she didn’t really know what else to say to him. She rarely did now that she stopped to think about it.

Before he could answer, she looked around the kitchen and then asked, “Where’s Shim Shim?” The puppy loved Lex and Skylar found it odd that she was nowhere to be seen.

Lex suppressed the sneer of disgust at the endearment, and even ignored the lack of tact when she once again asked him the one thing he did not want to talk about. But when she mentioned that damn annoying creature, he couldn't help the sneer and a low growl. “Good morning. Your dog,” and he was using that term very widely, “Is in the backyard doing her business.” 'And hopefully getting maimed by the neighbors cat,' he didn't add. “Sleep well?”

Casting a quick glance at her, he noted that she was wearing his discarded shirt from the day before. He'd been sure all her clothes had been moved here already, considering they'd been living together for over a month, or was it? However, he thought it wise not to comment.

Taking another sip of coffee, he waited for her to join him at the counter, going back to perusing the morning paper.

Skylar made a noncommittal noise and wrapped her arms around Lex’s waist. She pressed a kiss to his neck before resting her forehead against his back. “Yes, but I missed you this morning.” She ran her hands along his sides.

She hoped that this wasn’t the wrong move. Lex’s moods were difficult, if not impossible, to read and she always found herself apologizing for what she had said or done. But, she would put up with his eccentricities.

This relationship was the best that she had ever had. Her parents were over the moon that she had landed Lex. Being born Penelope Skylar Schultz meant that she had a certain pressure placed upon her as to whom she could and could not marry.

Lex was mostly good to her and wasn’t into the hardcore drugs that her last few boyfriends had inhaled almost daily. She attributed it to the fact that Lex was almost a decade older than she was. They made good companions and were a good match, in her opinion.

Lex tolerated the clinging and incessant nuzzling while still going through the finances section, his mind only half listening to whatever Skylar was saying. When her fingers started to unbutton his shirt, however, he covered her hands with one of his, halting the motion.

“You know how it is, Skylar. When business calls, you can't just say 'excuse me, but my fiancée requires my presence',” he soothed his words with a quick peck to her temple, then went back to reading the newspaper.

It wasn't like she wasn’t attractive, or that she didn't know exactly what to do with her mouth and hands, but somehow Lex had lost interest somewhere around the moment she'd made the mistake to call him Lexie-pooh. A one time slip that would not occur again. He'd made sure of that.

It also irked him that she was still not agreeing on the subject of children, even though he had been sure she would be amenable to the idea when she'd told him all he never wanted to know about her little cousin Jim, or was it Jackie? Something that was the name brand of a whiskey.

It was not like he was gagging at the thought of having to take the responsibility for an offspring, but he had to face facts. He was 32, his father had expectations and while he usually did pretty much anything to antagonize Lionel Luthor, he did see the sense in continuing the Luthor line, with his very own twist to it, of course.

“So, have you decided yet what to do with your day? I'm only stopping by for a while, since I've got business in town in about 2 hours and probably won't be back before tonight.”

Skylar could feel the pout form on her face out of habit. It had worked with every other man in her life, but Lex seemed to be immune to it. Plus, he hated it when she tried to manipulate him. She thought it was a holdover from his other wives.

Quickly, she wiped the look off of her face. “Well, I’m going to Yoga and Pilates as usual. My mother also wants me to stop by so we can go over what flowers I want for the big day.” She smiled up at Lex as she stole his cup of coffee and took a sip from it.

“Though, knowing my mother, it will turn into a whole day argument.” Felicity Schultz was almost as scary as Lex’s dad was. Almost. “But, after that I was hoping that you’d go with me to an art opening.” She started to rush her words.

“It starts at nine and we’d only have to make a quick appearance. The artist is an old friend of mine.” Neither of them discussed it, but both she and Lex knew what ‘old friend’ was code for.

The way that their social circle worked both she and Lex had run into more than their fair share of old friends that they each had.

Lex's eyes narrowed as he took the cup back from Skylar. “Haven't we talked about that?” He slammed the newspaper shut and got up, finishing the cup in one long pull before getting himself a new cup.

Another opening, this time the 'old friend' was hers. Lex didn't particularly care for the incommodity of yet another jealous ex making thinly veiled threats and throwing around ill-advised barbs lacking in creativity and effect. It was quite bothersome. Not to mention the fact that he'd seen just enough 'art' to last him for a life time. One more yogurt cup plastered against a canvas with finger paint and he'd lose all interest in the entire subject permanently.

“I told you I'd be working late today. I'm afraid you'll have to go on your own. You can invite your mother on a shopping trip, distract her from the flower arrangements and I'll make sure my limousine will get you there and pick you up whenever you want.”

And that was his final opinion on the matter. If she had one smart bone in her body, she'd accept it and move on. Maybe they should have a talk about this, figure out an arrangement or something, but at the moment, Lex wasn't interested in compromises, he simply wanted to be left in peace after dealing with his father yet again. Shouldn't the bastard be happy Lex was actively trying to fulfill his wishes and settle down? Instead he got harped on for his choices in women.

Dammit, it wasn't easy to find a woman that was smart, ambitious, attractive, had a sense of humor and on top of all that wasn't actively going for his money or trying to kill him. Lex had to make concessions, so he did.

The tone of Lex’s voice told Skylar more than his words did. He was in no mood to argue or even discuss the matter any further. She would be attending the art opening alone or with her mother.

Sighing and not bothering to hide it she sat down at the kitchen table. This was one of the times that she almost felt compelled to ask Lex if he actually even liked her all that much. It wasn’t a subject that would get them anywhere so she retasked her mind to something else.

“You don’t need to bother,” she said, sure to smile at Lex so he didn’t think she was cross with him, “I’m sure that my mother’s driver will be able to take me and pick me up. It makes more sense that way.”

Besides, she was certain that once her mother caught wind of the fact that Lex had refused to come with her, she would get an earful. And, even though Lex assured her to the contrary, she wasn’t positive that Lex’s limos weren’t bugged. It was just better to use a family car.

“Hmm, alright,” Lex was inhaling his coffee deeply, glad that he didn't have to bother with Skylar more than necessary.

A scowl flickered over his face at the thought, but he quickly suppressed it. This was not how he had imagined his life turning out when he was younger and still holding a glimmer of hope that maybe he didn't have to become a carbon copy of his father. Alas, it seemed it wasn't meant to be, so he'd have to deal. Judging for himself, he didn't do too badly. Skylar had no reason to complain and he treated her with as much respect and politeness as possible at any given time.

Putting his empty mug aside, he crossed the kitchen, briefly pulling his fiancée in with his hands around her waist and catching her lips in a kiss, his exploration of her mouth thorough, if devoid of any further intentions.

Pulling back, he gave her a small smirk when she looked up at him with slightly glazed eyes. “I have to go now. I'll see you later tonight, have a good day and give your mother my regards.”

With another peck to her forehead, he made his way out of the kitchen, mentally getting ready for another hour of traffic, back into the heart of the city to play the scion of LuthorCorp.

~~~~
After fighting briefly with her door, Chloe threw her keys into a ceramic bowl on the coffee table as she slouched into the couch. The phone call with her father was still on her mind. She had slammed down the phone a few times for good measure after hanging up on him. The ruckus didn’t seem to bother Teddy, he was still passed out in her bedroom. They’d had another one of their all night marathon fuckfests so she really couldn’t blame him.

Still needing to work out some of her violent energy, Chloe had gone to the gym. She had been taking kickboxing for the past year and she found that it calmed her down. Usually.

She was just so sick of her father trying to control who she went out with. Yes, he was allowed to have an opinion. Yes, he was allowed to express it to her. But, who was he to judge who she dated? His track record wasn’t the best.

Shoving down the guilt that the thought brought up Chloe went into the kitchen and pulled the door to the fridge open. She grabbed a bottle of water and chugged it down.

Her father just didn’t understand that when you were the way that she was and a woman that the right kind of men didn’t exactly come flocking to you. There were the arrogant asses that wanted to ‘tame’ someone like her. The ones that were scared off by her. The ones that thought that they could fix her and make her more docile. It drove her insane.

So Teddy wasn’t exactly Forbes’ man of the year. He had other attributes. But, it wasn’t as if she was going to discuss them with her father. She didn’t want to give the man a heart attack.

Chloe could take care of herself. Sure, she missed having an actual conversation or debate with someone, but that’s what her work colleagues were for. Some part of her knew that her choices in men was an overcompensation for not getting the hot guys when she was in high school, but it was her own life dammit and she would do what, and who, she pleased.

Tossing the bottle of water in the recycling bin, she caught some movement out of the corner of her eye. It was Teddy, finally awake at noon. Sure, he was slothful but his abs more than made up for it. “Good morning.”

Teddy ambled into the kitchen, stretching his well worked muscles and scratching his belly before he spotted Chloe at the fridge. “Hey babe, had a nice work out?”

He sauntered over and pressed a kiss to her cheek then immersed himself with the contents of the fridge, looking for some OJ. He wasn't sure why Chloe insisted on doing this fancy kick boxing thing, instead of just going to some aerobics, but since it gave her buns of steel, he really couldn't complain. And damn she was extremely limber and bendy.

Finally finding what he was looking for, he poured himself a glass before leaning back against the fridge, ignoring the chill of the cold metal on his bare skin.

See, this was what her dad didn’t get. The men that actually had a brain often didn’t care what was up with her. And, while Teddy wasn’t the most eloquent of men, he did listen to her when she spoke.

The fact that you could bounce all sorts of change off of his body was a definite bonus. “Yeah,” she said, hopping up onto the counter. “I needed to get some of my aggression out some way. You were still asleep.” She shot him a devious grin.

The joke of who had more stamina was a running thing with them and they both enjoyed ribbing each other. “I think that pretty soon I’ll be able to move up to the next class. Ben was very impressed with my performance.” She smiled remembering the look that was akin to fear that had crossed his face with her last roundhouse.

Teddy grinned as he made his way over to the counter and positioned himself between Chloe's bouncing legs, placing his hands on either side of her butt on the surface. “Really? What'd you do to him, break a rib? Knock him out,” he teased as he leaned closer to her lips.

The guy had to be a wimp if it was either of the two. He could admit that Chloe definitely had some muscle strength going, but the idea that she'd hold up in a serious fight was still a tad ridiculous in his opinion. The five foot two power bundle might get a good punch in, but a Stallone, she was not.

Still, it definitely was a turn on to watch her get down and dirty with the sandbag she kept in the bedroom. Her breasts bouncing with every move, a trail of sweat slowly running down the center of her spine, eyes glowing with malice. Teddy was already feeling his cock sit up and take notice, so he brought his lips down to Chloe's at the same time as his hands closed on her ass and pulled her closer to the edge of the counter.

When his erection was pressed tight against her lap, he groaned and eased out of the kiss long enough to murmur suggestively, “Wanna take a shower?”

Chloe hummed as she guided Teddy’s head to her neck. She gasped when he started to nip at her neck. “I think that I can be persuaded to join you, yes.” She closed her eyes and moved closer so she could feel him better.

She never got sick of feeling how aroused she could make him within a matter of minutes. Chloe ran her hands up and down his back and then let out a rather undignified squeak as she felt herself being dragged off of the counter. She wrapped her legs around Teddy as he carried her. Not to the bathroom, but to the bedroom.

He laid her down on the bed and, as Chloe pulled off her shirt she asked, “Did you get lost?”

Teddy grinned as he shoved his hands under her rear and hooked them into the waistband of her sweat pants, pulling them down. “Not bloody likely,” he muttered as his eyes fixated on a tasty inch of smooth, tanned belly peeked out from under the shirt. Diving down, he nipped at the soft flesh, teasing the little belly button with his tongue before blowing a raspberry straight into the sensitive skin.

After Chloe had calmed down from her squeeing giggle fit, he grinned sharply up at her, “Just a change of plans. Fuck first, shower, later.”

With that he hooked his teeth into the waistline of her panties, tugging harshly. When the stubborn material wouldn't budge, he decided to cheat and engaged his hands to help.

Chloe leaned back and let Teddy take charge. Sex with him was always a good time and he attended very well to her needs. As soon as she was ready, he plunged into her and Chloe clutched onto his shoulders. They moved against each other gasping and teasing until they each found their release.

Teddy’s plan of a shower was thwarted when he fell asleep soon after they were done. Chloe turned on her side and looked at him. He made her happy for now and she wasn’t about to let anyone’s opinion of him sidetrack her.

She got up out of the bed and went to the shower. At least this way she’d actually get clean instead of having awkward sex against the tiles. The bed was much better, in her opinion.

Grabbing the shampoo she thought about her last few boyfriends. In college, she had actually tried dating men that were up to her level. But it never worked out once they realized that she was smarter than they were and not afraid to show it. None of them could take up the gauntlet that she had thrown down.

After a few relationships like that, she had had a fling with a rugby player. Chloe had found it very enjoyable and not taxing at all. She thought that she would grow out of it after college, but it hadn’t happened. Much to her father’s displeasure.

Putting the argument with her dad out of her mind, Chloe instead focused on what she had to do today. She had a freelance project that she had to bang out and then she’d go into the office and see what new asinine assignment had been thrown on her desk. She knew that she had to pay her dues but if she had to go to one more mindless charity event, she couldn’t be held accountable for her actions.

She’d leave a note for Teddy and call him later at the gym to see what his schedule for the day was like.

Her life may not be turning out the way that she had imagined it but she was content for now. And, it was enough.

[June]

It wasn't like she wasn’t attractive, or that she didn't know exactly what to do with her mouth and hands, but somehow Lex had lost interest somewhere around the moment she'd made the mistake to call him Lexie-pooh. A one time slip that would not occur again. He'd made sure of that.

That was just hilarious... Lexie-pooh. Oh my god. Just... too funny.

Loved the looks into Lex and Chloe's lives with their significant others. How they're happy, but the could be happier... and in enter Gabe and Lionel (my two favorite men right now) to make it better.

Ah, this just keeps getting better and better.

Love it.

[hfce]

I didnt care for the other two people. But I did enjoy why Chloe and Lex are so called content with their lives. I can't wait to see what the father's have up their sleeves. :D


Hope ;)

[Zannie]

Some part of her knew that her choices in men was an overcompensation for not getting the hot guys when she was in high school, but it was her own life dammit and she would do what, and who, she pleased.

This bit strikes me as so real.

I really like how this story is progressing, and you all did a great job setting the situations up with Chloe's and Lex's significant others. Great update.

[lexchloe]

Not loving the significant other's much expecially Skylar. Can't wait for Gabe and Lionel to work their magic.

[star del mar]

Geez, they're with some real winners aren't they? So glad you updated but what a mess!! Lionel and Gabe's plan needs to go into action NOW :) Can't wait to read more!

Steph*

[autumngold]

I definitely think it's time for Lionel and Gabe to step in and work their magic!! At least Chloe realizes her relationship isn't serious, but Lex needs to stop giving his airhead bimbos rocks!! Thanks so much for the excellent update!! Can't wait til you wonders post more!!

[chril1]

oh yeah baby

lexie-pooh? i think not my friend/fuck buddy/fiancee...whatever

love lea
xxx

[niala85]

Lexie-pooh

Oh whats that I see flying there - are there goes Lex's image of a tough business man.

I introduce to you the son of the Devil himself - Lexie-pooh. I quiver with fear lol

Just brilliant.


So Teddy wasn’t exactly Forbes’ man of the year. He had other attributes. But, it wasn’t as if she was going to discuss them with her father. She didn’t want to give the man a heart attack.

:) I don't see any daughter having that convesation with a father.


He could admit that Chloe definitely had some muscle strength going, but the idea that she'd hold up in a serious fight was still a tad ridiculous in his opinion. The five foot two power bundle might get a good punch in, but a Stallone, she was not

I think Teddy need's to feel how much Chloe's punch can pack.

I can't wait to see the impact on their lives when Gabe and Lionel get started. Excellent chapter. Can't wait for more.

[Impress]

you know, I like the fact that at least somewhere they acknowledge they are missing something. and while the Chlexer in me shudders at the thought of them with other people, I enjoyed the glimpse into their respective lives. Great work my dears. More soon.

[asharnanae]

magnificent. even if it wasnt chlex, seeing chloe and lex in there own lives was still great!

[mimi71884]

OH! an update! an update! an update! Oh, oh my.

:( with clingy snobby bimbo who's going to (hopefully not) marry our Lex

and

:( with non-Chlex smut involving horny Teddy.... EEEEEeeew. :P

But, i shan't (!) complain, for an update is an update, regardless!
I loved it loved it, you guys always write Chlo and Lex so well. I like how they both realize that what they have isn't really what they truly want or had hoped for. hopefully they will (with the help of lionabe!) find it in each other.

FANTASTIC WORK!!

[BlueSabby]

A/N: Sabby: So here you go fiends! An update! And Chlex interaction! And no significant others anywhere! And I swear it's the coke that causes all the exclamation point abuse! Enjoy! Oh and! Feedback!

A/N: Blue: So we actually have some Chlex interaction in this one. But, don't worry, the Lionabe isn't going anywhere. By the way, I *love* that name. Props to mimi71884.

Chloe had been putting this off for the past week but she knew that she would eventually have to face her father. He had invited her to lunch to catch up, as he put it. She really knew that it would be an inquisition about her life, that she was throwing it away and how long did she really think she could go on doing this with these men. It was the same conversation with every boyfriend. Her father got progressively more blunt with her. He wasn’t the pushover that he used to be.

She smiled at his secretary, Jane, and she motioned for Chloe to go right on in. Her father was on the phone but he smiled at her and waved, indicating that he wanted her to sit down. She did so and watched as her father discussed some important matter on the phone. The past few years had been good to him. He had advanced in LuthorCorp, seemed to be happy with his work and hadn’t gotten soft looking like so many other middle-aged men.

Maybe she’d try to convince him that he should focus on his own romantic life instead of butting in on hers. The subways had been running slowly today and her father’s office was on the other side of town. She’d been so busy at work that she hadn’t really had the chance to munch on anything. Hence, she was famished. Hence, her father needed to speed up his phone call.

Gabe watched his daughter on the other side of his desk, fidgeting a little in her seat and pressing a hand to her stomach. His brows arched up in question as he answered yet another yes or no question to the person on the other end of the line.

“Excuse me, if you could hold on for one minute,” he spoke into the phone when there was a short pause in conversation.
“Sweetie, this might take a while, why don't you go to the break room and get yourself a snack, I'll be with you as soon as I can,” he told her quickly before returning to the conversation.

This was just like him. Invite her to lunch and then get sidetracked by a project. But, that was one of the traits that Chloe found endearing about him. To others, she would hem and haw that it was annoying, god forbid her father found that out. He’d never stop working.

She nodded and proceeded to the break room. This was something that she was used to. Poking around the tricked out small kitchen cubicle while her father tried to get off the phone with people who didn’t care that he needed sustenance in order to continue answering their annoying questions.

Even this room looked expensive. Lionel Luthor’s decorators did a good job of making every space in the building look imposing. The fridge gleamed and there was a top of the line small stove and a microwave as well. The fridge was stocked every morning and Chloe opened it, looking for something to tide her over until her father was done.

As soon as Chloe had closed the door behind her and Gabe had counted to ten, a wide grin came to his face. This might actually work and he couldn't wait to see the outcome of this first little stunt.

“Lionel, she's on her way to the break room now. Time to send Lex on his way,” he spoke into the phone.

“I understand,” Lionel said, smoothly. Lex was sitting across from him, not even bothering to hide his annoyance. He couldn’t blame his son. He had called him in telling him it was an emergency but still had yet to speak with him.

When Lex had arrived, Lionel had already been on the phone with Gabe. But Lex would never leave the office, admitting defeat to Lionel that he had been played.

“I will ensure that what you need will arrive within the next five minutes. I fully comprehend the delicacy of the matter, yes.” He paused again as Gabe made up some other covert talk just to keep him on the line. “Would you mind holding for a moment?”

He pressed the hold button on the phone and then addressed Lex. “Son, why don’t you go and get some coffee? I’m sure that your time would be better spent doing that then just watching me carry out my business. Unless you think that it might help you with your own work?”

Lex's face stayed smooth, even as he envisioned several gruesome and gory scenarios of bringing his father's life to an end with his bare hands. “I was under the impression that you needed my assistance in an emergency, but since that is obviously not the case,” he left the sentence dangle in the air, knowing there would be no answer forthcoming.

“I'll see you later, dad,” he sneered on his way out, cursing his birthname for the umpteenth time this week.

What was it with those ridiculous ploys, just to keep him on his toes? He had more important things to do than run to his father's heels every time the old coot snapped his fingers and asked for his attention. But still, he ran non the less and it was getting tiresome. Like so many other things.

Irritatingly, coffee sounded like a good idea. At least it would help him get a bit of energy back from the boring drone of his father having a business conversation with some lackey. Mind made up, he made his way to the break room, since he couldn't be bothered to go all the way down to the ground floor and across the street, just for some Starbucks flavor.

He swung around the corner into the doorway to come to a complete stop as he saw a familiar face sitting at the table inside. “Hello.”

He hadn't seen her in years, but she hadn't changed all that much since her days in Smallville. Her hair was a bit longer, her clothes a little less loud and, he cocked his head to the side, she'd obviously lost a few pounds. He briefly wondered if he'd ever seen her after her high school days, but he couldn't remember for the life of him if that had been the case. Surely he'd remember, wouldn't he?

Chloe looked up from the paper that she had been reading when she heard someone address her. Giving him a little smile, she had never had anything against the man standing before her like so many of her friends and the inhabitants of Smallville, she replied, “Hello Lex. Come here often?”

It was a poor attempt at banter, but she was woefully out of practice so it would have to do for now. Knowing that he wouldn’t be put off by it, Chloe took stock of Lex Luthor. She hadn’t seen him, in person that was, in ages. Couldn’t even remember the last time she’d spoken to him.

He looked better in the flesh, as was not always the case with those that were spread across the society pages. A little put out by the tense set of his jaw, but otherwise he was still the attractive older man that Chloe remembered.

Lex's brow quirked at the clichéd pick up line as he made his way to the counter where a fresh coffee pot was already made. He opened and closed some cabinet doors on the hunt for a mug as he answered.

“Obviously, not often enough, considering the pleasant surprise,” he opened yet another cabinet, finally finding and taking out a mug with the LuthorCorp logo. “And the fact that the last time I was up here, the mugs were over there.” He pointed to the cabinet on the other end of the row he'd just gone through, then made his way back to the pot and filled up the mug to just under the brim.

Taking a sip, his lips curled up in a smirk. Strong enough to grow hair on your chest. “Perfect,” he commented absently.

“So what brings you here? Visiting with your father,” he asked in his normal tone, settling down at the table across from Chloe.

Chloe had watched Lex’s smooth movements as he hunted for a cup to put his coffee in. Whenever the man moved, it always seemed without effort and graceful. She remembered thinking that when they both lived in Smallville as well.

She nodded before pushing the paper a little further away from her. She had the terribly rude habit of only half listening to someone if the printed word was in front of her. She honestly wanted to know how Lex was, not that he would tell her, and didn’t want any distractions.

“We’re supposed to go out to lunch,” she said by way of explanation. “But my father finds it, shall we say, difficult to not answer the phone if he’s in the office. Even if he knows that whatever twit is on the end of the line will cut into our time.”

Chloe leaned back in her chair and crossed her legs. “I’m assuming from your demeanor that you’re also here to see the male half of your gene pool?” Lionel had always been one of the few, if not only, people that could crawl under Lex’s skin and cause him to have actual expressions on his face.

Lex's lip curled in disgust and he took another sip of the coffee. Then it actually registered with him how she'd phrased her sentence. “Interesting assumption, but what makes you think that this is anything but my usual demeanor?”

It was a bit unsettling that someone who hadn't seen him in years could apparently read his face and actions and know exactly what was bothering him. Definitely not good, his mask must be slipping. “I'm merely here for a cup of coffee before a meeting that will probably take several hours with no break in between.”

Ok so that was a lie, but he'd made sure his expression was neutral and would look into whatever had given him away in the first place. It couldn't have been his hunt for a cup. He'd not been hurried in any way, had he?

~~
Lionel grinned at the laptop that both he and Gabe were currently hunched over. They were watching the security feed from the room, looking for anything that they could use in their fight to do what was best for their moronic progeny.

“She certainly has his number, Gabe. And,” he leaned closer to the screen, “it’s driving him insane. I’m sure he’s now working over what movement he didn’t execute properly that would lead her to make such a statement.”

He felt downright gleeful at the prospect of that little slip of a girl getting to his son in such short order. He clapped Gabe on the back, “Damn fine job of raising her.”

~~
Chloe ducked her head and bit her lips to make sure that she didn’t smile or worse, bust out laughing. It wouldn’t be polite. But, damn if Lex’s tone and defensive words weren’t amusing to her.

She knew that Lex had to know what she was doing but she still cleared her throat before speaking. While she didn’t doubt that most people wouldn’t be able to tell that something was up with Lex, he seemed to have forgotten what she was trained in.

When one was out for the truth, you had to look for small tells. Most people had some common ones but everyone had their own little tics that would alert you to the fact that they were lying, nervous etc. The tone of Lex’s voice told her all she needed to know.

His movements had been smooth but he had closed the cabinet a little too forcefully than was absolutely necessary and when he spoke to her, the first words were tight. He had to relax after what had just happened with who she assumed was his father.

Clearing her throat she said, “Sorry if I stepped on any toes. I just assumed that if you were here and a little annoyed, which the vigor with which you shut the cabinets communicated to me, that only your father would be the cause of it.”

She shrugged her shoulders and then paused. Her thirst for knowledge always got her into trouble and could see that happening but couldn’t stop it. She leaned forward a little and asked in a conspiratorially tone, “Was I right?”

Lex contemplated her for a minute, head cocked to the side. A small smirk twitching at the corners of his lips, he leaned in as well, bringing their heads even closer. He could see she was waiting for an answer the moment her eyes lit up and for some reason the table was rocking slightly under his elbows.

“No comment,” he said smoothly, then flashed her a grin, all teeth and sharp edges before he leaned back in his chair.

“You bastard,” Chloe said. Though, she supposed that the malice usually associated with the words was not conveyed due to the fact that she was laughing. She crossed her arms over her chest.

“You had fun doing that, didn’t you? You know,” her voice took on a lecturing tone, “it’s not very nice to lead a girl on.” Chloe noticed that her knee, that was bouncing up and down from her energy, kept hitting the table, causing it to bop up and down. She ceased her motion and looked back up at Lex.

That damn smirk was still affixed to his face. If anything, it had gotten even wider. “Shut up, just shut up.” She wasn’t even sure of what Lex would say to her, but she didn’t want to hear it.

~~

Gabe almost whooped when he watched his daughter’s reaction to Lex. Her knee was going 50 miles an hour and her whole demeanor was coiled and ready to pounce. Thankfully the way the two cameras were set up in the break room, he could clearly see the motion under the table from one angle.

“Oh, he's got her flustered, alright. She hasn't twitched that much since that time she was trying to make an impression on the interviewer from Princeton,” he turned to shoot a lopsided grin at Lionel, then quickly returned to watch the ongoings in the break room.

~~

Lex grinned and relaxed even further into his seat, taking a sip of his coffee to distract from the expression on his face. He didn't even remember the last time he'd had that much fun. Back in Smallville, the two of them hadn't gotten to talk very much or often, but their verbal judo had always managed to brighten a dull day. It made him wonder what had happened to the girl since those days. Where she'd gone with her life.

“So, where did you end up? Last I heard from you was right after graduation and you were planning to go to,” he paused, trying to remember the tidbit from the conversations he'd had with Gabe before his work had taken him back to Metropolis and he'd lost contact with his former plant manager aside from the occasional hello in passing, “Princeton, right?”

Chloe nodded. “Yup, the hallowed halls and ivied walls of pomp and circumstance. And of pompous asses, of course.” She bit down on the comment that he would have fit right in there. Somehow, from the look on his face she guessed that he knew what she was thinking.

It was unsettling but not in a bad way. It had just been way too long since she’d had a conversation with a man in a non work related situation who actually seemed to be able to keep up with her.

“It was a good time. I especially enjoyed the Rugby team.” Chloe managed not to cringe at the last sentence she had let slip. It was an accident, well, more of an instinct actually. It was what she always told people about her time there.

No one really wanted to hear about how hard it had been. All of the cramming she had to do, idiotic assignments to prove herself, being so far away from her father or anyone else that might actually care about her. Chloe’s first two years had been miserable. But, she had never complained about them. She made jokes as a defense mechanism and people usually accepted it.

But, she could see from the look in Lex’s eyes that she didn’t have him fooled. The silence continued between them but Chloe made no move to speak. It didn’t bother her that he continued to study her. Nope, didn’t bother her at all.

Lex wasn't sure how to react to her comment about the Ivy League university he himself had attended. True the major populace of the student folk had belonged in the category of spoiled and pompous, but it somehow rankled, because he got the feeling that she'd put him in that category, too. Yepp, the Luthor stigmata at work again. Well, it should be interesting to see how she'd deal with the comeback.

“I was more partial to the fencing team, being a member myself,” he commented dryly, holding her gaze, “Rugby just seemed a little too much brute strength and too little technique to me.”

He found himself wanting to ask which house she'd been in, and how it had been for someone who had to have went there on a scholarship to fit in with the crowd and make it through the strenuous experience without loads of money to back them up and grant them an acceptable status within the ranks of the students.

Instead he opted for a simpler question. “What was your major?”

~~

Gabe cocked his head to the side, watching the interaction on the screen and the myriad of facial expressions he'd never seen on the Luthor scion’s face before. Coupled with the comments Lex was making, and the tone of voice he was using...

“Is he hitting on her?” He wasn't sure, but it sure looked like it. Somewhat.
“We can only hope so,” Lionel said, dismissively. For a man that had agreed to persuade his daughter to date someone, Gabe was acting rather strange about what would have been a good turn of events. “Now, be quiet.”

~~

Chloe’s gaze didn’t waiver as Lex questioned her. She was surprised at his comment about the fencing team…which was most definitely not a comment about the fencing team. But, she tried not to let it show. Lex was famous for turning on the charm with women at the drop of the hat so why would she be any different?

“Journalism.” She stated it simply and then said, “I’m surprised that you forgot our numerous attempts at interviews.” Cocking her head to the side she added, “Then again, I suppose you could think that it was a passing phase with me. But, I made it through and am actually employed at a paper in town.”

She was proud of that. Numerous people either hadn’t made it out of the program or couldn’t find internships or jobs at any of the papers. True, she didn’t have a byline on the front page but she knew that she would have to be patient and just keep plugging away.

Lex shrugged a shoulder, casually. “I wasn't sure if the desire would last, since you tended to get in way over your head and had to have a certain farmboy with a hero complex get you out of trouble.” The certain farmboy being a person he did not want to dwell on, nor anything that went with it, thank you very much.

“In any case, I'm impressed. It's not easy these days to make it through University and get a job so soon after.” He didn't ask which paper, not wanting to offend the woman in front of him or get her into an uncomfortable position if it happened to be a mud-rag.

He remembered Chloe Sullivan as a very proud person, something she'd most surely inherited from her father, who wouldn't even consider society dirt as actual journalism. Always going for the big stories, the extravagant theories that still somehow might be provable. “So you're permanently in Metropolis now, that's good to know.”

Lex had no idea why he'd just said that, but it did ring true, even to himself. Maybe he'd run into her again, get a bit of interesting conversation in or something. “And outside of work? What's your choice of entertainment these days?”

Back in Smallville it had been meteor mutants and chasing down stories. Now that she actually made a living of chasing a story, and considering there weren't any mutants in sight in Metropolis, he wondered what she did with all the free time. Why he wondered, again he had no idea.


~~
“He’s intrigued by her.” Lionel whispered the words, wondering why he was doing so. He looked over at Gabe. “It’s been so long since he’s been around a woman with an actual head on her shoulders that he can’t stop himself from asking questions. He usually doesn’t do that.”

Lionel wondered what the grandchildren would look like. And, if Chloe would allow Lex to give them names that began with ‘L’. He frowned briefly when he considered the idea that Chloe wouldn’t go for that or, worse, not want them to be named Luthor.

“He’s showing his hand more than he usually does. Letting her know that’s he’s interested.” Lionel once again leaned closer and studied Chloe. “And, she’s picking up on it.”

~~

This was an unexpected turn of events. She and Lex had exchanged pleasantries all that they had needed to. But, it seemed as if he truly wanted to know what she was up to and what she did in the big, bad city after hours.

She paused before answering him. If she started talking about Teddy it might seem like she was telling him to back off….even though he wasn’t doing anything wrong. And, it might change their conversation.

~~

Gabe nodded silently along, listening to Lionel's comments. True, the younger Luthor was asking questions, keeping the conversation between them alive. Chloe looked like she actually had to think before she spoke, something that hadn't happened in a while. He wondered if she'd be telling him about her liaisons or if she'd gloss over the fact that she'd went out and dated her way through several dozen men in the last few years.

“She's thinking about her answer, and thinking hard,” he commented. “I guess she's trying to come up with an answer that won't make him back off right away. She likes this conversation.” Gabe was amazed and he briefly let himself entertain the thought of somewhere down the line.

With these two, it would be like watching the soccer endgame of the World Cup. Always on the edge of your seat and waiting for the next disaster or success. Their children would probably learn to debate before they learned to walk in a straight line. A small grin on his face, Gabe seriously hoped this would work out.

~~

“Well, after that trouble comment of yours, which I’m letting slide cause I’m so kind, I think that you’ll be glad to hear that I kickbox in some of my spare time.” She ran a hand through her hair. “And, based on the number of times you got roughed up, I do believe that I could kick your ass.”

Seeing the amused look on Lex’s face Chloe said, “Hey, I’m serious. I may not look it but I am fierce.” She glared at Lex. “Stop smiling at me like that.” When Lex continued to do so, Chloe sighed and then got to her feet.

“OK, come on.” She took her fighting stance and made a ‘bring it’ motion with her hands. “I can’t believe that you’re going to make me beat you up at your office, but so be it.”

Lex was seriously amused by the fact that a simple smile from him could rile her up like that, when she jumped to her feet and dropped into an, admittedly professional, fighting stance his brows rose. Was she serious?

“Now, I wouldn't be much of a gentleman if I hit a woman, now would I?” He made no move to get up from his seat, yet, regarding her slowly.

Even though, he had to admit the idea of a little sparring was tempting. He'd never been one to underestimate a woman and her capability of kicking ass if need be. Sadly, most women were too concerned with the shape and perfection of their nails or outward appearance in general to even give something like self defense a shot. He watched appreciatively as Chloe's stance fortified and he got a glimpse of her shape outlined under the clothes.

Standing up, he purposely moved into her personal space, opening the button on his jacket before he leaned in, correcting the angle of her elbow, just slightly.

“And it would hardly be a fair fight, considering where we are and that I'm not exactly dressed for the occasion,” he added.

Both points were nothing but the truth. Fighting in a closely tailored dress suit fit for show, and in a kitchen with limited space no less. He'd lose simply for the fact that he couldn't move properly and that his opponent was small, and from the looks of it limber enough to use it as an advantage over him.

~~

“Kiss her,” Lionel hissed. He was surprised at how downright desperate his voice sounded. Then again, he would have had to be full of desperation to have actually hatched this scheme. This scheme that now didn’t seem so stupid.

Chloe had challenged Lex. Something that always raised his son’s hackles. ‘If not something else,’ his brain piped up. But that comment he would not voice. At least not with Chloe’s father at his elbow.

Lex was trying to intimidate Chloe, to show her that he was bigger and stronger than she was. He would never do that with one of his other weak willed and bodied women.

“Just do it, dammit.” Neither of the figures on the screen moved. He tried a different tactic. “Kiss him.”

Lionel's outburst made Gabe turn his head sharply, catching the other man in an unguarded moment with an actual expression other than derisive arrogance or imperious wrath on his face. 'Wow, Lionel Luthor anxious'. Then his eyes turned back to the screen where Lex was closing in on Chloe and his daughter was tightening her fist, pulling back.

“He'll be lucky if she doesn't punch him in the face. She's not far from it,” his face scrunched up, in preparation for the blow.

Lionel turned his attention to Gabe. “You really don’t see what’s going on, do you?” He waved his hand towards the screen. “This, no matter how odd it may seem to us, is foreplay to them.”

He looked back at the screen. “It’s a dance that they are doing, it’s only a matter of time until one of them cracks.” He considered the two people that they were discussing. “Hopefully one of them will before we’re both dead.”

~~

Chloe looked up at Lex because she found herself physically unable to look away. “Firstly, you’d be hitting an adversary, not a woman.” Though, it delighted her to know that Lex could see that she was a woman. Few people from Smallville would place her in that category. “Secondly, using fashion as a defense never got anyone off the hook with me.”

However, she did put her hands down. “If you’re scared of losing, just say so.” She knew that she was baiting him but she just couldn’t stop herself. It was too much fun to watch Lex’s reactions.

Lex's eyes narrowed slightly. He knew he was being baited and he knew he could come up with some good line to brush her down, or get out of this, but at the moment, he wanted to see how she'd react if he didn't. Wanted to see just how for the astute Miss Sullivan was willing to take this.

“Alright,” Grinning sharply at her, he turned around, closed the door to the break room and flicked the lock in place.

[asharnanae]

oh ho ho!!!!! now this is just a fab piece of writeing!!! you had me bounceing in my seet and positively tripping overmyself in an effot to read more quickly!!!!

MAGNIFICENT!!!!!!!! :D

[hfce]

NO!!!!!!!!!!!! How can you end there. Just when we were getting to the good part. I want more. I want to see the fight. I want to see Chloe kick his ass. !!!!!!

Despite you guys being cruel in ending it. I really enjoyed the fire between those two. You can see that they are starving for it. The way Lex is flirting with her and how Chloe is eating it up. I love it.


Hope :)

[autumngold]

Thank you for the wonderful update!! I love how Chloe didn't mention Teddy and Lex hasn't even thought of Skylar!! Maybe they don't realize it but the sparks are flying!! I wish that they would listen to Lionel though, he has the right idea!! He and Gabe are the best in this story!! I can't wait for more!!

[fussy_wuzzy]

Wow, great chapter. I can't believe you ended it there, though.

[LarkLuthor]

Wow! Lovely, lovely! Go write more... I don't care about "real life", it's not as entertaining so you don't need any time for it...

Lark

[lexchloe]

Squeee!!! Awesome update. Really enjoying the flirtatious verbal judo between Chloe and Lex. Love that they can both read eachother so well. How cute are Gabe and Lionel being all concerned about their kids. I'm hoping though that Chloe and Lex don't end up getting too hot and heavy with them watching cos that would be very very wierd!! Can't wait for more.

[Nadia_]

This fic is so much fun!!! You were ebil to stop there, but Im still happy and smilling... The banter btween them, Lionel reactions! I just love this!




“Alright,” Grinning sharply at her, he turned around, closed the door to the break room and flicked the lock in place.

Can't wait to see how that goes...Update soon!!!

[squash]

OMG OMG OMG that was so much fun to read, I WANT MORE

[Tehzo]

This is a very interesting and novel story so far. Even though it's impossible that Lionel and Gabe would ever be in this situation I can easily imagine them being like this by the way their written. The interaction between them is intriguing :D. I really love that they're written so well in character. And this is definitely one of the best verbal judos I have ever read. Chloe is still her spunky self but I can also see the maturity she's come to possess over the years since Smallville. Lex is his rightful self and I guess I could call it his...more-than-usual looseness, it helped convey his intrigue in Chloe. It was great that Lionel and Gabe could immediately pick up on what Lex and Chloe were feeling. It gave me more insight on Chloe and Lex and also showed that Lionel and Gabe really know what they're doing.

Again because I just liked it so much :), I really enjoyed Chloe and Lex's verbal judo!! Eagerly waiting for the next chapter!

[star del mar]

That was great!! I can't decided whether I want Chloe to actually hit him or not, lol. But they've noticed each other again, yay! Update soon

Steph*

[June]

“Kiss her,” Lionel hissed. He was surprised at how downright desperate his voice sounded. Then again, he would have had to be full of desperation to have actually hatched this scheme. This scheme that now didn’t seem so stupid.

...

“Just do it, dammit.” Neither of the figures on the screen moved. He tried a different tactic. “Kiss him.”


God that just cracked me up.

I loved the Chlex banter in this chapter, it was entertaining and very hot to say the least. I can't wait for more of this.

I think I love gabe and lionel just as much as I love chloe and Lex.

[Béatrice]

Poor Lex. If he beats her, it's bad for him. If he doesn't beat, it's bad for him.

Please more...

[Addie]

That was great! Cant wait to see what happens next, update soon please.

[randa]

you ended it just like that, in the middle of their sparring?! you both are so evil! loved it all. and gabe and lionel's spying was hilarious.

more soon

randa

[niala85]

You ended it there!!! Come Back!!!!

Oh Lex! What are you thinking?!


no matter how odd it may seem to us, is foreplay to them.”

I would love to see this conversation between Gabe and Lionel. :)


“It’s a dance that they are doing, it’s only a matter of time until one of them cracks.” He considered the two people that they were discussing. “Hopefully one of them will before we’re both dead.”

Oh my, with those two stubborn asses it might who knows how long it will be.

Brilliant part.

Can't wait for the next part and see how Gabe and Lionel react to this.

[Gemkat5]

:eek: NOOOOOOOOOO!!!!!!! you CAN'T leave it like this! PLEASE!!!! Come Back! Please?

*takes calming deep breath*

Ok, you DID say that you wouldn't have regular updates...... but this is too good to just leave it like this! I love the Lionel/Gabe! My favorite lines so far are:


Gabe couldn't help snorting, then downed the drink in one go. “You better buy stock in Advil, as far as I'm concerned,” he muttered.


Lionel turned his attention to Gabe. “You really don’t see what’s going on, do you?” He waved his hand towards the screen. “This, no matter how odd it may seem to us, is foreplay to them.”

Second to that, I love the introduction of Chlex. This is going to be one hell of a ride! But then this is a BlueSabby fic so of course it'll keep me on the edge of my seat! :D

Just don't wait too long to give us more! This is terrific!

[welshy]

This is just brilliant, I hope there's going to be more

[squeezumstang]

***snickering like a mad woman*** oh shit. that was too funny!

[teejei]

...but somehow Lex had lost interest somewhere around the moment she'd made the mistake to call him Lexie-pooh. A one time slip that would not occur again. He'd made sure of that.
call him every other endearment, but LEXIE-POOH???!!!

my. god. *cringe* good thing Lex made sure it didn't happen again. *shiver*

[drina]

So many fic to read, so little time to do so...but I definitely can't pass up on a Blue-Sabby collobration fic. Read up to the 2nd part so far, but it is great, as usual. Love the sardonic nature of this fanfic. heehee, Lex married 8 times, that just kills me.

That was fantastic! i can just imagine Lionel and Gabe huddling together to look at the screen. :rofl: Too funny for words!

[BlueSabby]

Sabby: A/N: We now return you to your regularly scheduled program as our infamous couple builds up some more tension to release it explosively (Without sex, mind out of the gutter, kids!)

Blue: Ding! Ding! Ding! In this corner, Chloe Sullivan....In this corner Lex Luthor. Ok, so the game is on. Enjoy!

Moving back to the table, he started pushing it out of the way as far as possible, against the cabinets, which gave them a room of about 6 by 13 feet, if he judged the length of the room correctly.

“I hope you're prepared for bruises, because this is going to be a seriously tight fit,” he smirked as he took of his jacket completely and threw it on top of the table to his right.

Pulling the shirt out of his pants, he slowly started to unbutton the cufflinks, waiting for her reaction.


~~

Lionel was on his feet now. “Will someone just grab someone for god’s sake?” His son was disrobing in front of Chloe and she hadn’t turned away from him. They were now alone in a locked room together. A locked room that no one was to get within twenty feet of. Lionel had spoken with a few security guards to ensure that.

“There’s a table right there!” He was already frustrated with the children and this had been going on for only twenty minutes. In his state, he had forgotten that Gabe was in the room.

Gabe was now dividing his attention between watching the children and Lionel. For a surreal moment, he wondered if Lionel might be a fan of soap operas or weekly dramas. He sure seemed to get thoroughly emotionally invested in the happenings. Or maybe it was just the fact that this was the future of his own family, happening there in that room.

“I think I'll get us a scotch,” he said slowly, as he got up from the chair, turning his face away from the screen where Lex was now in the process of removing his tie. “If this is foreplay, I seriously don't. Want. To know.” He shook his head as he poured scotch generously into two tumblers.

When he returned, he wondered if it was such a good idea that things seemed to be moving so fast. At this rate, Lex might end up just the next man on Chloe's list of 'have hads.'

~~

Chloe watched as Lex prepped the room, so to speak. She actually couldn’t believe that he was going to go through with this. But, she supposed that she should know by now that Luthors were full of surprises. That was driven home as she watched Lex start to unbutton his shirt. She was at least successful at not gulping at the action. Or the innuendo of his last comment.

She shrugged as she slipped out of her jacket and threw it on the table. “Trust me, I’m used to it after the past year of training.” If Lex was going to get comfy it only made sense that she’d do so, as well. Besides, she should strip down to an approximation of what actual fighting gear was. At least she hadn’t worn a skirt.

Not even hesitating, Chloe pulled her sweater over her head. She was wearing a white tight tank top underneath it but quickly got rid of that as well. She didn’t want anything even remotely binding on her body. In a perfect world, she would have worn a bra with more support but she hadn’t expected to be fighting Lex in a kitchen. So, she was wearing a red number that was more sex kitten than ass kicking.

Lex's brows rose when she actually went through with it; but he wasn't willing to back down. Her comment suggested that she had a little more than her mouth to back herself up, so he'd be careful to expect at least some training. Considering the mild flaws in her stance earlier, he was sure she was a worthy opponent, but not over the top.

When a sweater landed next to him on the table to which he had turned to discard his shirt, he turned back to find Chloe down to her jeans and 'Wow'. Lacy red number of a bra encasing a set of really nice breasts.

It took him a second to get with the program as he took in her appearance, this time without the distraction of a sweater or pretty much anything in the way. Definitely attractive. He shot her a smirk as he got into fighting stance opposite her, facing her from about 2 foot away. "Rules," he enquired blandly.

If Lionel hadn’t been watching his son so closely, he would have missed it. He didn’t know if Gabe was watching Lex or Chloe and wasn’t about to make a comment about it. But, his son had definitely checked out Chloe’s….attributes.

~~

It was very hard for Lionel not to make mention of that. However, he didn’t think Gabe would take kindly to him pointing out the fact that his son was checking out Chloe.

Gabe's eyes had widened as his daughter slammed her shirt on the table, leaving her in nothing but her pants and a red bra. “I can't believe she just took of her clothes!”

He didn't know how to feel about that other than outraged and trying to suppress the urge to storm down into the room, make her get dressed and take her home, grounding her until she hit thirty. Nevermind the fact that she was 26 and had lived in her own apartment for the last 7 years.

The urge didn't subside in the least when he caught Lex checking her out. He clamped his jaw shut, grinding his molars. A quick glance to the side showed him Lionel obviously satisfied with the development and he had to stamp down even harder on the urge to tell him to shut up. When Lionel opened his mouth to retort, he gave up. “Not. A word,” he ground through his teeth before retreating to the wet bar for yet another drink.

~~

“Well,” Chloe said, thinking. There wasn’t a lot of space in the room so they would have to be careful to not injure each other accidentally. “I’d say no hits to the face, neither of us can probably afford to have to explain away a shiner.”

Eating lunch with her father was already going to be a pain in the ass. What with the litany of questions about Teddy that she was destined to face. If he saw even a mark on her, he might get the wrong idea.

“Even though it’s not proper technique (and author has no idea what in the Christ she’s talking about here) I’d say try to stay away from backing either one of us into a corner.” She looked up at Lex, who had the gall to look regal in just a wifebeater and his dress slacks. “Cause, it wouldn’t be much of a fight once that happened.”

Chloe slipped off her shoes and pushed them under the table with her foot. This may not be as easy as she had first thought. She could see that Lex’s stance was proper and he had obviously been trained at some point in his life. She had thought that that was just a line he fed to Lana.

Well, she’d pay the price for her assumption if need be. But, she thought she could at least hold her own with Lex. True, he was much more muscular than she first thought. And, she didn’t doubt that he was quick, but she thought she was faster.

“Think that about covers it,” she asked as she pulled on the waist of her jeans. She hadn’t worn a belt and they were a little loose on her.

Lex got rid of his shoes and socks as well, after Chloe took off her own. There wouldn't be much space for extensive leg work. He'd be insane to try for a round-house inside the range they were given. Chloe's legs were shorter, but even she would risk knocking herself off balance if she tried.

When he straightened back up and got into position, Chloe was already in fighting stance and Lex smirked at the small hint of glee lurking in her eyes.

“Very well, then,” he nodded shortly and followed it immediately with the first punch, aiming low for the waist.

She had left herself open for that one. Chloe liked to feel out someone the first time she fought them. Some opponents started out aggressively hoping that she would fold under their blows while others would start slowly and then work their way up to full blows.

The force of the blow still surprised Chloe. Then again, she should have learned by now to never be surprised where Lex was concerned.

“Nice hit,” she acknowledged, unsure if Lex could even hear her. It was mostly for her, anyway. She couldn’t break the habit of talking when she fought.

As her feet shuffled back and Lex advanced Chloe tried to get him off balance. She threw a left that caused Lex to tilt his body away from her fist and then followed with a quick right.

Lex barely dodged the right with his arm, but it gave him the opportunity for a direct punch to the stomach when she left herself open for a split second too long. Her punches were forceful, not as much as a male opponent's would have been, but her forte was obviously speed. He'd learned not to underestimate that ability in a fight.

His assessment had cost him a second and left him open for a swift punch to the chest. Switching his stance he retaliated with a forward kick to the hip.

When Lex connected with her hip Chloe was glad that a woman’s center of gravity was lower than a man’s. Had she had some different equipment, she definitely would have gone down.

The hit rotated her body a little and she used it to her advantage. Continuing along in her motion, she was able to just eek by Lex as she spun in a full circle. She put her hands back up as Lex turned to face her. Chloe’s smile widened and she pumped her eyebrows up and down twice before throwing a punch to his solar plexus.

Lex caught the punch with both hands, using the force she put behind it in his favor to send her off balance again, catapulting her past him and following it through with a back kick to her ass. 'Correction, her very nice and firm ass,' he noticed as he turned fully to face her, their positions now reversed.

“Good form, Sullivan,” he commented.

Usually, Chloe was a very hot tempered person. That much was a well known fact. When she was fighting, however, she was able to distance herself from her emotions. That was what she found so freeing about it.

Besides, it only got in the way of thinking clearly when she fought. Yes, later she would probably be irate that Lex had literally kicked her ass. But, for now, she wanted to make sure that the ass kicking wasn’t total.

“Glad you approve,” she said in a clipped tone. Her eyes flitting around the room, she eyeballed the measurements. Her next move would be a dangerous one that might not work but if it did the payoff would be worth it.

Chloe advanced on Lex and attempted to hit him with a full roundhouse that would strike him directly in the chest.

Lex had watched her eyes flit over the room as he'd waited for her next advance. He had a very good idea what she was up to, but there was no way she was able to pull this off, the chance was practically nil.

A quick session of jabs sent him into a short retreat and he was sure.

“Chloe you might not wanna,” but he didn't get his sentence out completely before the blow came.

“Fuck!”

Chloe's body went into a graceful turn, her leg coming up to execute the round-house but the place between fridge and table was too small. The leg made it over the table but her elbow connected with the fridge, sending her off balance with a jerk and falling straight for the floor.

Lex didn't even think about what he did, but the moment she connected with the fridge, his left arm that had been up to dodge the blow grabbed her leg and he pulled, getting his other arm around her waist and catching her before she could land face first on the linoleum.

~~

Lionel saw that Gabe had recoiled from the laptop as Chloe executed her gutsy, if albeit semi-foolish, move. He winced as he was clearly waiting for the sound of his daughter’s body hitting the ground.

“Buck up, Gabe. Lex has her.” He elbowed the man standing next to him and gestured to the screen.

Gabe let go of the breath he'd been holding, looking at their children tangled up in a very awkward position that resembled a perverted version of the old movie-classic 'sweep and dip' “Good thing he caught her,” he said relieved. Then muttered darkly, “Because I'm gonna kill her for that stunt.”

When she'd told him she was going to learn self-defense and kick boxing, he'd been proud. Until the first time she'd showed up with a shiner. Now that he knew what had probably caused that and other injuries, he wanted to strangle her for being so reckless.

~~

Chloe’s elbow was throbbing. She had jobbed it pretty well on the fridge. But, that wasn’t the problem. The problem was that her face was planted squarely in Lex’s chest. This was not supposed to happen.

She hadn’t been able to carry off the move, that was all well and good. She’d taken a chance and she’d lost. But, Lex had caught her. That was unacceptable.

After getting her footing back Chloe pushed away from him, perhaps a little too roughly. But, now that there was a respite in the fighting her emotions were coming back.

Angrily, she looked up at Lex. “Why’d you go and do that?” When you were a woman learning any sort of fight technique you were always treated differently and it grated on Chloe’s nerves. She wanted to be the best fighter that she could and would not stand for being coddled.

It got her ass kicked more times than she could count. But, she always felt better after a well earned ass kicking than when an opponent would go easy on her.

Lex cocked his head to the side, refusing to react outwardly to the ire she was displaying. “I seem to remember you saying something about 'no shiners',” he commented dryly.

Truth was, he had no clue why he'd done it. He'd just reacted on an instinctive level when she'd been about to smash face first into the floor and probably hit her leg on the way down.

Lex had no idea why she was getting so worked up about it, either. He'd given her a fair fight and this could have taken a lot longer if she hadn't made the mistake to try for a round-house. They were pretty evenly matched and he'd have loved to find out who came up victorious in the end. Winning because the other person beat themselves was stale and Lex was too used to that kind of victory.

“That’s true,” Chloe said, conceding his point. “However, the no shiner rule was applicable to either myself or yourself smacking the other person in the face.” She was more angry with herself than with Lex and tried to tame it down a few levels.

During the past few years, she had made a concerted effort to not let her anger get the better of her. Also, to not take it out on innocent bystanders as well.

Sometimes she was successful and others times….not so much. “It doesn’t apply if one of us made a move that didn’t work out. If I was some other person you were fighting you would have let me fall.” Chloe leaned against the table. “It’s only cause you felt bad about the whole thing that you caught me. I don’t need anyone to go easy on me, Lex.”

Okay, now Lex was confused, because Chloe was not making any sense at all. He set his jaw, taking a few steps closer to the obstinate girl.

“First of all, I don't think I would have gotten into an instantaneous fight with anyone other than you,” Because really, he'd outgrown that with his wild youth over a decade ago. “And second, what the hell should I be feeling bad about?”

He'd go home with a couple of bruises and a damn high adrenalin count, from his perspective, there was nothing to feel bad about there. Shit, he hadn't felt this good in months. Of course Chloe's attitude was slowly but surely irritating that high out of him. Go figure.

“Anyone other than me, what in the hell is that supposed to mean?” Chloe’s voice was now doing that whole high-pitched, indignant, girly thing that she hated.

~~

Lionel groaned and rubbed a hand over his face. “And things were going so well.”

“And, secondly, you felt bad that poor little Chloe was going to hurt her girlself. And, even though it was supposed to be an equal fight, you couldn’t let that happen, could you?”

Gabe took a healthy drink from his scotch, then sighed into the glass. “Had to happen, she's doing the compare and judge thing,” has said, shaking his head. “Maybe if he gives her a thorough ass-whooping she'll be happy.”

In her teenage years, Chloe had always complained to him that she was seen as just 'one of the boys'. Now it was completely the other way around and she seemed to be hell-bent on earning that title. It was completely out of whack.

When Lex just glared at her and blinked Chloe took another step closer to him. She wasn’t going to let herself be intimidated by Lex. She’d given that up long ago. And, who cared if her shrink told her that this type of behavior was overcompensating for the fact that the whole Clark thing had messed her up so much that she had to always be strong….or at least pretend to be.

“Well, don’t you have anything to say? And, don’t give me a ‘Good day, Ms. Sullivan’ and then stalk out of here.”

Lex usually complimented himself on always having the right words to say without falling back into clichés or crude phrases. However, there were always exceptions and this was one.

“That is such a load of bullshit, I can't believe you actually think that,” he dead-panned.

When Chloe's head jerked back in shock, he continued. “There's nothing little about you and believe me, if I'd wanted to molly-coddle you I'd never have let it even come to a fight. This was a sparring match, we were pretty even there, you slipped and I reacted. Don't think for one minute I wouldn't have loved to see your ass hit the mat.”

His words were definitely having an effect so he kept right on going, the adrenaline resurfacing and it felt just too good to stop.

“Mat being the operative word. And since we're not in a fucking gym, and you could have been severely injured smashing into a hard floor face first, not to mention the edge of the table, I reacted,” he put an emphasize on the word as he repeated it. “The way you're going on, it could give the impression you want to have a pair of balls just to get them kicked thoroughly.”

It was pathetic, really. She was a very pretty woman with a very hard punch, but apparently, she was also fucked in the head. A shame that.

Realizing there was nothing more to say, he turned around and pulled his shirt back on, starting to button it up with every intention of leaving the room before he had to listen to more of this 'Treat me like a man, because I can't deal with being a woman' “Bullshit,” he muttered out loud again, snapping his cufflinks into place.

Chloe chuckled and shook her head at Lex. She wasn’t laughing at him, per se, just the situation. They had agreed to have a fight and now they were fighting. After not seeing each other for years, she had pissed him off within a matter of minutes.

It was also a little ironic that Lex didn’t understand the compulsion Chloe had to prove herself to people after all of the messes with his father. It was one thing that she had thought they had in common all those years ago back in Smallville.

Picking up her tank top and sweater Chloe said, “I’m sorry I made the wrong assumption about your motivations. I guess it’s just easy for me to lump you in with every other person I’ve fought that’s gone easy on me. Which infuriated me. I know it’s not fair that I did so but,” she shrugged, “I can’t help it sometimes.”

She sat down on the chair and bent over to retrieve her shoes. Apologizing was still a new concept to Chloe. But, she knew that when she was in the wrong she had to admit it. First step to recovery and all.
Whether Lex accepted it or not remained to be seen but when she didn’t hear him leave the room, she took it as a good sign.

Her elbow was screaming at her by now and it occurred to her that she should, and could, take care of it right away. After putting her shoes back on, she walked over to the fridge hoping that the ice trays would be full.

Lex turned back around, leaving the top button of his shirt undone and smoothing down the front of his jacket. He watched Chloe's backside as she rummaged through the fridge, shaking his head at himself. His outburst had been surprising, but dammit, it was just too irritating sometimes to deal with the 'fairer' sex.

He'd forgotten how much worse it could be with Chloe Sullivan. Even as a teenager she'd had a tendency to raise his hackles within a few minutes flat. He supposed that was a reason why he'd avoided her most of the time.

“Apology accepted,” he answered smoothly, then took a glance at his wristwatch. 'Damn,' “But I'm afraid I'll have to wish you a good day now anyway, since I have some business that needs attending to.”

He'd thoroughly ignored the time while in here and even though he'd just planned on a quick coffee, somehow more than an hour had passed.

He got his socks and shoes on as quickly as possible, then straightened back up and made his way to the door. “Say hello to your father for me,” he offered as he unlocked and opened it.

Why wouldn’t they have any ice in a fridge this big? It made no logical sense whatsoever. Then Chloe saw that some idiot had covered the ice trays with their frozen…well…it might have been chicken at some point in time.

Taking out the tray and cracking the ice loose Chloe turned back to Lex. “Will do. Hope your meeting with your dad,” she still stood by that assumption, “goes as well as can be expected.” She went over to a drawer and rooted around until she found a dishtowel.

Chloe bundled some ice up in it and then applied it to her elbow hissing when it made contact with her skin.

As Lex turned to leave Chloe said, “And, hey, if I don’t see you for another few years,” she smiled at him, “good luck with your new bride. If you get a gym mat that you didn’t register for, you know who it’s from.”

Lex chuckled under his breath, turning his face towards her with a half smile firmly in place. “Thank you, I'm sure we'd both find good use for that gift,” he answered.

Skylar would claim it for her Pilates exercises within five seconds flat. The woman had a strange obsession with that....was that even a sport?

“Bye, Chloe.”

Chloe said goodbye to his retreating back as she sat down at the table. Thankfully her sweater would cover the mark from her father but Teddy was another matter.

Her father. Crap, he was probably looking for her.

Chloe quickly set the furniture back to where it had been and then dashed out of the room. She refused to run but if her father had been looking for her he might be a tad annoyed at her disappearing act.


~~

Pressing the power button on the screen, Lionel thought about what they had both just witnessed. Their children were most definitely attracted to one another. But, that had never been a real concern. The problem was going to be to get them to have a conversation that didn’t end in some sort of fight. Well, that and getting rid of the people they were currently attached to.

“So, that went well.” Lionel injected some humor into his voice.

Gabe's jaw actually dropped for a second as he stared incredulously at his boss. Well? Well?! “Well?! They had about a ten minute talk before they started arguing, then they tried to beat the hell out of each other and to top it off, they parted ways without so much as exchanging a number or even trying to set up a date to meet again and my daughter just wished him luck with his fiancée without batting a lash.” He shook his head, pinching the bridge of his nose to rub the sting out of his eyes from watching the tiny screen too avidly for too long. “That most definitely did not go well, Lionel,” he voiced darkly.

Lionel picked up his own drink. “I’m not saying that they are set to run off to Yemen on their honeymoon, Gabe. It could have gone worse. There could have been no discernable spark between them.”

He walked over to his desk and sat behind it. “They got under each other’s skin. I promise you that that didn’t go unnoticed by Lex.” Lionel swirled around the alcohol in his glass. “This may just take a little time. Or,” he said fixing Gabe with a look, “we may have to take a stronger interest, shall we say, in their lives.”

'Yemen?' Gabe made a mental note to figure out what that was all about, but there were more important things at hand. “You're right, it could've been worse,” he followed Lionel to his desk, coming to a halt standing before it. “But not much,” he said, shaking his head and taking another sip of his drink. “I think we have to arrange a few more of these meetings, but we'll have to take it slow enough for it to seem coincidental. Maybe if they keep running into each other frequently enough, they'll believe it's destiny.” Gabe smirked as he remembered the younger Luthor was very wary of that term and all it's implications.

Lionel didn’t make another comment. He made an acquiescing noise but that was it. He had no intention of taking this slowly. He believed in striking when the iron was hot. And now that Lex had seen Chloe again it was best if they didn’t back off but took on the full court press way about this.

He’d make a few calls in the morning and get the ball rolling. When he noticed Gabe studying Lionel could see that the other man was a little scared at the look on his face. There was no need to be. Unless you were Chloe or Lex, that was.

[asharnanae]

HAHAHA!!!! OMG! damn this was fantastic! I loved the fight sequence!!! and the literal ass kick was a great touch!

But ouy of all of it, I think this has to be my fave bit! It so damn hard to choose who I like seeing best, Chloe and Lex, or Gabe and Lionel!


Lionel was on his feet now. “Will someone just grab someone for god’s sake?” His son was disrobing in front of Chloe and she hadn’t turned away from him. They were now alone in a locked room together. A locked room that no one was to get within twenty feet of. Lionel had spoken with a few security guards to ensure that.

“There’s a table right there!” He was already frustrated with the children and this had been going on for only twenty minutes. In his state, he had forgotten that Gabe was in the room.

Gabe was now dividing his attention between watching the children and Lionel. For a surreal moment, he wondered if Lionel might be a fan of soap operas or weekly dramas. He sure seemed to get thoroughly emotionally invested in the happenings. Or maybe it was just the fact that this was the future of his own family, happening there in that room.


CLASSIC!!!!!

oh man, this is one of those all time great stories! :D

[niala85]

“I think I'll get us a scotch,” he said slowly, as he got up from the chair, turning his face away from the screen where Lex was now in the process of removing his tie. “If this is foreplay, I seriously don't. Want. To know.” He shook his head as he poured scotch generously into two tumblers.

I think theres a very large chance that there won't be any scotch left in the US after Gabe and Lionel have gotten those two together.


Gabe's eyes had widened as his daughter slammed her shirt on the table, leaving her in nothing but her pants and a red bra. “I can't believe she just took of her clothes!”

He didn't know how to feel about that other than outraged and trying to suppress the urge to storm down into the room, make her get dressed and take her home, grounding her until she hit thirty. Nevermind the fact that she was 26 and had lived in her own apartment for the last 7 years.

:ROFL: Loved Gabe in this, brilliant chapter.

Can't wait for more

[fussy_wuzzy]

Lionel was on his feet now. “Will someone just grab someone for god’s sake?” His son was disrobing in front of Chloe and she hadn’t turned away from him. They were now alone in a locked room together. A locked room that no one was to get within twenty feet of. Lionel had spoken with a few security guards to ensure that.

“There’s a table right there!” He was already frustrated with the children and this had been going on for only twenty minutes. In his state, he had forgotten that Gabe was in the room.

So funny :). I loved Lionel's frustration with the kids. Wonderful update!!!

[LarkLuthor]

LIONEL LIKES SOAP OPERAS! :rofl:

Yemen? :P

Come back and update soon...:puppydoge :beg: :puppydoge

Lark

[tiger04]

that was a great update. I can't wait to see waht Gabe and Lionel will do next. please update with more soon

AT

[autumngold]

I can't wait to find out more about Lionel's devious plans!! How will he and Gabe contrive somemore meetings? And how will they get rid of Teddy and Skylar? I guess murder is out of the question? :) I love your update!! Can't wait for more!!

[oilily74]

great story.I really like the verbal "Aikido" between Lex and Chloe.And Gabe and
Lionel watching the match like "Waldorf and Stettler"(the old man on the balcony
at the Muppet Show)

[hfce]

:rofl:That was fantastic I loved it. Lionel is a genious and Gab needs to chill. Lex and Chloe just had a nice forplay before the hot sex. Yes :hankypank

Hope ;)

[Nadia_]

I lost de count on how much time I spend laughing with this! The image of Lionel watching a soap opera it's priceless!




Gabe's jaw actually dropped for a second as he stared incredulously at his boss. Well? Well?! “Well?! They had about a ten minute talk before they started arguing, then they tried to beat the hell out of each other and to top it off, they parted ways without so much as exchanging a number or even trying to set up a date to meet again and my daughter just wished him luck with his fiancée without batting a lash.” He shook his head, pinching the bridge of his nose to rub the sting out of his eyes from watching the tiny screen too avidly for too long. “That most definitely did not go well, Lionel,” he voiced darkly.

Poor Gabe! He will end up having a heart attack!


“Will someone just grab someone for god’s sake?”


“There’s a table right there!”

Impossible not to LMAO imagining JG saying that!


A quick glance to the side showed him Lionel obviously satisfied with the development and he had to stamp down even harder on the urge to tell him to shut up. When Lionel opened his mouth to retort, he gave up. “Not. A word,” he ground through his teeth before retreating to the wet bar for yet another drink.

The two are just hilarious!



Lionel didn’t make another comment. He made an acquiescing noise but that was it. He had no intention of taking this slowly. He believed in striking when the iron was hot. And now that Lex had seen Chloe again it was best if they didn’t back off but took on the full court press way about this.

He’d make a few calls in the morning and get the ball rolling. When he noticed Gabe studying Lionel could see that the other man was a little scared at the look on his face. There was no need to be. Unless you were Chloe or Lex, that was.

Is it too wrong not to feel sorry for them at all? *evil grin*

I don't know what will be next plan, but I think I already love it!

[meghan036]

I just came acroos this story and read it through. I can't remeber a story in which I laughed so much at. I almost fell off of my chair when Lionel was talking about them grabing eachother and that theres a table right there. Beautiful work you guys can't wait for the next update.

[welshy]

These is too good, can't wait for more

[star del mar]

Chloe and Lex getting naked together...hmmm. Sounds like a pretty good update to me :) It was great as usual and I love the fact that Lionel was so into it, lol. Now if they can just stay in one room and not beat each other up everything will be peachy keen. I can't wait to read more!

Steph*

[squash]

that was so funny and great and witty and just an all-around good time....i'm so excited for their next meeting:)

[Gemkat5]

::Applause!!!:: I loved it! Haven't seen each other in years and they end up half naked and sparring in a LuthorCorp lunchroom! Absolutely Fabulous!!!

Add this to the already great quotes:


Lionel groaned and rubbed a hand over his face. “And things were going so well.”



Gabe took a healthy drink from his scotch, then sighed into the glass. “Had to happen, she's doing the compare and judge thing,” has said, shaking his head. “Maybe if he gives her a thorough ass-whooping she'll be happy.”

Please don't leave us hanging too long!

[Béatrice]

That was great. That was hilarious. :D I want to read more. :)

[randa]

i absolutly love lionel in this piece. he's hilarious. and gabe's reaction to lione and to lex and chloe are so perfect.

and chloe and lex's 'fight' was great. now they really just need to go to lex's private gym and work som things out:yeahbaby:

more soon

randa

[summer_enchanted]

:nsparty: Really love this fic hope to see more soon..... :nsparty:

[squash]

I Want More....soon!

[Susan S]

This is too hysterical! I loved the banter. Gabe and Lionel were absolutely too funny. I can't wait to see what happens next. Just an after thought, what are they going to do if Chloe doesn't want to be married and have kids? She didn't seem all that interested in that when she was thinking after her kick boxing lesson.


Susan S

[LarkLuthor]

*a megaphone echoes throughout NS*

"Attention all fanfic fiends! Blue and Sabby's newest production is nearing a week since last update. As some of you may be aware, the basic rule of thumb before begging, bribing, and threatening should start in full is one week. This is your Lord of Fiends officially granting permission to begin 12 hours earlier. You may commence."

Lark

[BlueSabby]

A/N: Sabby: Even in Exile, I manage to snag some internet. So here's an update you fiends. ... Oh and Lark, no more yelling or trying to instigate mob hysteria, that's not very nice of you. We appreciate any and all feedback though *smirk*.

A/N: Blue: Another update, another opportunity to yell at the significant others of our favorite couple.

Chloe tried to stifle another yawn. It wasn’t just that this place was boring it was also that she was damn tired too. That, and no one else really deemed her worthy enough to speak to. All in all the gala art opening sucked big time.

As did the artwork, if you could call it that, that was all over the huge studio. Chloe briefly considered changing the focus of the puff piece that she had been assigned to into an expose about how artists got booked to these things.

Clearly, talent had nothing to do with it.

At least the free food was excellent. After finishing off another jumbo shrimp, Chloe downed the champagne. She’d need sustenance in order to get any decent quotes from the various society stick figures that were flitting about the room.

Edison Triton, a made up name if ever there was one, was already swamped by well wishers so he was out for now. That meant that she would be forced to make nice with some of the women, and there were quite a few, that were admiring the art.

As she walked by a particularly horrid sculpture Chloe thought she recognized one of the women who was looking at it. She just didn’t know from where.

Felicity Schultz regarded the 'piece of art', and she used that term very lightly, in front of her with an elegantly sculpted arched brow and a slight, dismayed twist to her lips. Why her daughter insisted on not only attending, but outright supporting these exhibitions, she couldn't fathom.

The artists were not only devoid of talent, but also in most cases of manners and respect. It was a very ungratifying past time to follow, to say the least.

Letting her gaze roam lightly, to find her daughter in the midst of the crowd and see if any other important people might be in attendance despite better judgment, her eyes caught a young blonde woman, standing close to her right. The moment the woman established eye contact, Felicity knew what she was.

It was almost impossible to escape a columnist once eye contact was established, but Felicity would try her damnest, none the less. She turned away from the woman in question and started to walk towards a larger group of business men she knew by association from her husband.

Though the message from the older woman was received loud and clear, Chloe didn’t let that deter her from following Felicity Schultz as the older woman tried to ditch her. She was curious as to why someone of her status would be attending this.

Yes, it was in a trendy part of town. And yes, supporting the arts was very big with those who had too much time and money on her hands. But, of all of the artists to support? Mrs. Schultz might be an ice cold bitch but she did usually have good taste.

Chloe did her best to look as if she were assessing each piece as she passed it by. However, when she remembered how much she had been ignored since the moment she set foot over the threshold, she gave up the ghost. It’s not like anyone would see that she was basically stalking another guest.

From her place beside a column with a plastic duck’s head atop, five thousand big ones if you were interested in making it your very own, she could see Mrs. Schultz worm her way into a group of people and then grab the arm of what turned out to be her daughter and lead her away from the group.

Her daughter who was marrying Lex. Until Chloe had caught sight of the woman, she had forgotten that little fact. It was ironic that Chloe had been sparring with Lex just a few hours ago and was now watching his fiancée getting a talking to from her mother.

Unable, or unwilling was more like it, to stop herself from doing so, Chloe circled around them and was able to remain unseen by them as she leaned against another horrid piece of artwork.

“Penelope, we need to speak. This is neither the ideal time, nor the ideal place, but since you refused to listen to me this afternoon, you give me no other choice,” Felicity began coldly.

She'd spent the entire afternoon with her daughter, making wedding arrangements. While essentially, she was all for the marriage between her daughter and Lex Luthor, there were still a few facts that did not sit well with her. The fact that the man in question had already been married seven times, for one.

“Mother, I’ve told you that I prefer to be called Skylar.” When she looked at her mother she saw that the woman was in no mood to have this particular discussion. Sighing, she said, “I thought that you liked Lex. You said it yourself, he’s very wealthy, has a good family name and travels in the same society circles as your friends.” When a waiter passed by them Skylar quickly took a flute of champagne off of his tray. She desperately needed it.

“I don’t understand why you’re trying to talk me out of it.”

Chloe knew that her mouth was hanging open and she should do something about it. She closed it, her teeth making a loud, dull noise and she tried to continue to eavesdrop on their conversation. She noticed that Skylar didn’t mention her own feelings, or what passed for them, towards Lex, but it didn’t surprise her. The rich were different.

Inching closer still, Chloe was thankful for the huge drapes that were hanging off a red glittered window frame with no pane in it that was going for a mere fifteen hundred dollars. The drapes kept her partially hidden but she could still hear the conversation very well.

“I am very well aware of what I said,” Felicity replied, casting a quick glance around to make sure nobody was paying heed to the argument that might be about to start.

Felicity hated public displays of any kind. “However, I am taking into consideration his past record and it has come to my attention that none of his former marriages lasted longer than two months at best.”

She had known before that the younger Luthor had been married several times, however when the full width of his history had been revealed to her, she'd been appalled at what she'd seen. Obviously, Lex Luthor was a filou and not good enough for her Penelope or the name and regard of the Schultz family.

“I will not see you get married to someone who doesn't respect you the way you deserve to be,” she stated firmly.

“Also, I've received word that someone else is interested in you. You remember Phillippe Contr' Vance? He attended the Polo game four weeks ago in New Hampshire,” she explained, waiting for her daughter to make the connection, god willing.

Skylar looked over at her mother. “Yes, I remember him but what kind of man would communicate his interest in an engaged woman? What does that say about his breeding, mother?”

She took a huge gulp of her champagne and hoped that her mother would drop the subject. The reason that she had even met and gone after Lex was that her mother had suggested it. Skylar thought that they made a good match and she could actually live with Lex.

He wasn’t the most demonstrative of men that she had ever met. And, they really didn’t have a whole lot in common or much to talk about. But, every marriage had its difficulties.

Her mother’s eyes were boring into her. She could feel them on her face. Her mother still said nothing and Skylar wished that the floor would open up and swallow her. She wouldn’t agree to this. It wasn’t what she wanted. The wedding was already being planned, she had found the perfect dress and a breakup would be a nightmare from a PR standpoint.

None of this mattered when her mother set her mind to something, though. She had learned that time and time again throughout her life. Skylar clearly remembered complaining that Lex was a cold fish months ago. But now, she stood on the brink of marrying him.

Felicity Schultz was a master manipulator, that much was clear. Chloe could see that the woman was still staring at her daughter with steely eyes. ‘No’ was not a word that the woman heard often.

It seemed that Lex’s taste in women had gotten worse. At least the crazies that tried to kill him seemed to be passionate about him in their own fucked up psycho way. This one looked at him as her ticket to a better society life. Then again, that may be what he saw in her too.

Even though Chloe had gotten much more practical since her Smallville days, the conversation still made her a little sick to her stomach. She had half a mind to call Lex and tell him what was going on. Then she remembered that she should mind her own business…and that she didn’t have Lex’s number.

Felicity's eyes narrowed on her daughter as she silently waited for the girl to come to her senses. When she was sure that Penelope had gotten the futile notion of resistance sufficiently out of her head she answered.

“Phillippe has expressed his interest in an entirely agreeable and morally unreproachable way and asked for your company at the annual ball held in honor of the foundation of his Charity Organization. You will attend and you will be on your best behavior. I expect you to be impeccably dressed and to come alone,” she stated with finality in a low tone. “Also, you will be at your most charming and if Contr' Vance makes a move, you will be appreciative as much as your education allows. If there is any chance that you will get a suitable husband instead of merely one that is acceptable, you will take it.”

She'd had enough of discussing this and the arrangements that had been made so far weren't bound to a particular couple. They could always be overthrown to suit the needs of Phillippe and Penelope. It even had a much nicer ring to it than 'Lex and Skylar'. Honestly, how someone could insist on replacing such history graced and respectful names with such common monikers was simply incomprehensible.

Skylar knew the tone of voice that her mother was using. Arguing would be a waste of time and she already had a headache. Besides, she supposed that she didn’t love Lex so she would be doing him a favor by leaving him.

The Count, from what she remembered, was quite pleasing to the eye and did have an affable personality. Skylar bowed her head and said, “Yes, mother. I’ll be on my best behavior at the ball. And don’t worry,” she said before downing the rest of her drink, “I’ll only end the engagement after the Count makes me a better offer.”

Chloe shook her head. It really was sad that way that parents used their children as puppets sometimes. What was even sadder was the fact that Skylar allowed herself to be used in such a manner. It was her life, after all.

Again, Chloe wondered if she should give Lex a head’s up on what was about to occur. That way he could be the one to break it off. Smiling, Chloe thought that it was a much better idea than doing nothing. She’d get some stupid quotes and then drop Lex a note. What it would say, she didn’t know, but at least he’d have some advanced warning.

Felicity was most pleased. She was absolutely certain that her daughter would be engaged with the Count in less than a month and Luthor's despicable history would not make more of an impact on the Schultz family than it already had. In fact, all connections would be forgotten as soon as news of the opulent wedding of one Penelope Schultz and Phillipe Contr' Vance would break.

“Excellent dear,” she smiled at her daughter and leaned in to mime a kiss to her cheek. “Now go and enjoy this little,” she barely resisted the urge to pull a face, “Soirée and I will see you Sunday for brunch.”

With that she turned around to leave, her mind already scheming for the changes in arrangement that would need to be made and the newspapers she would have to pay to turn a blind eye on the break up of Skylar and Lex. Thankfully the announcement of Lex Luthor getting engaged was about as big news as the monthly 'Flower Show' coming to town, these days.

~~~~
It was almost 10 pm when Lex finally made it back home. Business had been stressful as usual and he was not in the mood for pretty much anything. Throwing his keys on the end table in the hall, he headed directly for the kitchen.

When he'd returned from his little sparring match with Chloe, his father hadn't even bothered to pretend there was anything they needed to discuss or made an attempt at keeping him in the office. He'd just vaguely explained that 'the situation has been resolved' and left it at that. Needless to say, Lex had been pissed.

The rest of the day had been spent going through board meetings and endless piles of reports, queries and projections until his eyes were stinging and his mind a hum of white noise.

Thankfully he didn't have to show up at that damn exhibition that Skylar had wanted to rope him into. In his mindset, he wouldn't have been able to tell the difference between the artwork and the buffet that was presented with it. With the art Skylar was keen on, the difference wasn't easy to tell with a clear mind, let alone one that was overstressed and understimulated at the same time.

Grabbing a bottle of water, he made his way back to the living room and through towards the wide glass veranda doors. Opening them slowly, he stepped into the cool night air, taking a deep breath.

At this point, he realized the absence of something annoying. Skylar's pet rat was nowhere to be found. Letting a pleased grin steal over his features, he didn't even wonder where the damn thing was, just fundamentally glad it wasn't attached to his ankles. Yes, life could be good. Sometimes.

When Skylar returned home she saw that Lex had already arrived. His suit jacket was thrown over the back of a chair and his tie was on top of that. The place was dark except for the one light in the hallway that they left on when either of them was out late.

She felt like a thief sneaking into a house that she was about to rob. She had never really felt at home in their ‘home.’ Now that she was thinking about it, her mother’s idea seemed like the best course of action for her to take. She wondered how she could have ever considered really marrying Lex.

In less than a week’s time they would be broken up. And, she wouldn’t miss him. Her mind fixed on the one thing that she would miss. So, she’d have to get as much of that as was possible before she put an end to their foolish decision.

She slipped out of her dress in the kitchen and then threw it over Lex’s jacket. Now she was pleased with her decision to wear no underwear that night. It would speed up the process.

The door slid open smoothly and Skylar could see that Lex was turned away from her in the bed. She didn’t know if he was asleep yet but checking the clock she thought that he may just have turned in. Slithering under the sheets, she scooted over to his body and placed a few kisses on his shoulder.

Lex's eyes narrowed, then closed completely in exasperation. Obviously, Skylar's sweet personality also kept her from developing any common sense. Her lips continued to travel over his shoulder incessantly and for a moment Lex wondered what would be the quicker way to gain peace. Ignore her, or fuck her and be done with it.

Feigning a grunt, he rolled over onto his stomach, hoping to deter her from her advances. He really wasn't in the mood for a fuck tonight, doubly so because he knew nothing would come of it. Skylar was still taking her pill and taking it religiously. Something they would have to talk about rather sooner than later.

Skylar pouted for a moment when Lex rolled away from her. But she knew not to take it personally. He wasn’t awake and his body didn’t know what it was about to get. If only she could get to the front of him, it would make things so much easier.

Scooting over to him, Skylar pressed her front to his back, her breasts flattening against his skin. She was practically laying on top of him now. She ran her fingertips over his arm and whispered his name.

All of the drinking coupled with the impromptu make out session with her ex, she figured it didn’t count because she was breaking up with Lex anyway and she hadn’t fucked him so she deserved some points for that, had made her horny. She was in a state where she actually wanted Lex badly.

Lex's eyes opened again, a low growl suppressed in his throat. Not only did Skylar not take the hint, she blatantly ignored the fact that he was obviously 'asleep' and tried waking him up for her own gratification. What was he? A sex toy?

“Get off me,” he stated lowly, “Now,” he added when she merely froze up instead of moving.

While she and Lex were never mushy with one another, they also never got very angry with each other either. Which is why the hard edge to his voice caught her off guard. After freezing for a moment she moved off of him.

She stared at his back and said, “Sorry, I just…I want you.” There was no need to be eloquent about it.

Expelling an annoyed breath in lieu of the snarl he actually wanted to emit, he turned around, regarding his fiancée, and he had to remind himself of that fact, through narrowed eyes.

“I've been up since 5 am this morning, I have worked till just after 9 pm, in between I had one hour of break,” 'Which I spent sparring with Chloe Sullivan,' he left out. “I came home after 10 pm and went to sleep around eleven, because I have to get up at 5 am again, tomorrow morning. It is now,” he cast a quick vengeful look at the alarm clock, “Two in the morning.” Rubbing a hand over his face he flipped onto his back. “Did it occur to you somewhere between wanting me and waking me up, that I actually need some sleep to function like every other person on this planet?”

It was then that he realized it wasn't actually an excuse. He was horribly sleep deprived and even if he'd wanted to sleep with her, he wasn't even sure he would have been able to deliver more than a quick fuck. He'd gotten maybe an hour before something had woken him up again, leaving him to stare at the drapes over the window facing his side of the bed.

Now Skylar was being a selfish annoying bitch and they probably would waste another few minutes on arguing before he could go back and try to catch some sleep. Lex contemplated simply retreating into the guest bedroom, but that would be undignified and pathetic. This was his house, dammit.

The doubt that Skylar had had hours ago about casting aside Lex seemed rather foolish right now. What kind of man didn’t want to make love to his fiancée? It just wasn’t natural. Lex might have been tired but she knew damn well that he didn’t require all that much sleep. Besides, if he had wanted to, he could have given her what she wanted and then gone in later to work.

Instead he had snapped at her. He’d regret that later when she left him high and dry. “I’m sorry I even bothered.” With a huff, Skylar flipped over and turned her back towards Lex. She was now looking forward to her date with the Count. Maybe she’d even fuck him at the event, her mother’s words of warning be damned.

Lex regarded her turned back with nonchalance then turned back onto his other side, facing towards the window. At the moment, he didn't care that Skylar was being prissy. He didn't give a damn that she sulked and he couldn't give a fuck less if she decided to play ice-queen for the next week or so.

Pulling the blanket higher he buried his face in the pillow and tried to get some sleep. He might not need more than a handful of hours to function, but he definitely needed more than a few hours to be a cordial human being. Which was the reason why he wasn't particularly liked by his employees on most days, he guessed.



~~~~~~
The sound of the front door opening and closing barely registered in Chloe’s mind. She was totally exhausted after her day. Between her early gym appointment, her whatever it was with Lex, the inquisition she had endured with her father and then the art opening…well, she just wanted to be unconscious for as long as was possible.

She hugged her pillow to her head tightly and winced at the bright light that went on behind her closed eyelids. “Awake still, turn light off.” She buried her face in the pillow, trying to get away from the offending light.

Hearing Teddy chuckle at her display was highly annoying. She might look and sound cute but he wasn’t the one that had to put in a full day. He could bartend starting at seven and come home at three a few nights a week and make enough money to not to have to work full time. The rest of the days he went to the gym in order to keep up his appearance. It was the reason that he raked in so much money.

The light finally turned off and she heard Teddy getting undressed. After a few moments, she felt the bed dip under his weight.

Teddy crawled up behind Chloe, spooning against the warm body of his girl. He was still hyped from work, which was a usual thing. After coming home it always took him a couple of hours before he could wind down enough to actually try and sleep.

Chloe's growl was so cute, he couldn't resist teasing her a little to get to hear it again. Plus, the way she looked, all sleep mussed and sexy. If he hadn't been aroused before, he was definitely starting to rise to the occasion now. Pressed against her back, he titled his hips forward, pushing them against her firm ass.

“Oh, does that mean you're too tired to have a go,” he muttered, leaning in to nuzzle against her neck.

Chloe rolled her shoulder hoping to get Teddy off of her a little. “Yes, that is exactly what it means.” She could feel that he was hard behind her but didn’t really care about that right now.

Usually she was up for anything at any time but she was just too tired. And, she really didn’t fancy just laying there in order to let him do whatever it was that he had in mind for her. Good sex was a blessing when you could get it but sleep looked much better to her.

Teddy was surprised when she shrugged him off with her tone as well as her body. That had never happened before. Chloe was insatiable when it came to sex. That's why they got along so well. What the hell made her act like an ice-princess all of a sudden?

Oh, maybe she just wanted to be persuaded a bit. He could do that. “Really, so you're saying you're not interested,” he asked in a husky voice, leaning closer again. “You don't want me to kiss your lovely neck and touch you, run my fingertips over all those little sensitive spots that drive you crazy?”

As he talked he snaked his arm around her waist, letting his fingertips just slightly graze over her belly and up to the underside of her breasts, then down again.

“You don't want me to bite down on your shoulder in just that spot,” he bit the spot he was talking about as his hand traveled south and into the waistband of her panties. “Take off your panties and slip my fingers right between your legs, stroking your sweet wet cunny,” he trailed off as his fingers started to do exactly that.

Chloe noticed that his accent got even more pronounced as he talked to her. A little trick that he often used that he probably didn’t realize that she picked up on. However, he should have noticed that she wasn’t even remotely turned on.

Instead of arousing her in the slightest it annoyed her instead. She had been all comfortable and warm and now his cold hands were on her body and he still reeked of cigarettes, too.

She placed her hand over his and gripped it tightly until he took his hand away. She hoped that she had hurt him a little bit. Served him right for just barging ahead with what he wanted to do. “No, I don’t want you to do any of those things. I want you to listen to what I’m telling you and stop. I know that you just got home but I am exhausted and not in the mood. And, stop thinking that I’m some cold bitch for turning you down”

When she heard him start to speak she said, “Don’t deny it, I know the way that you think. Me pushing you away once does not an ice princess make.”

Teddy stared incredulously at her back for a few seconds, before removing himself completely and turning onto his back. 'Fine, she wants to be that way, bugger this!'.

He stared at the ceiling for a few moments, waiting for her to regret her attitude, but when that didn't happen, he simply closed his eyes, regretting that he hadn't taken a chance at shagging the red-head that had ambled into the bar about an hour before closing time, asking him what he did after his shift.

[Addie]

I love this fic, great update!

[Gaia]

Not bad,not bad at all. I wonder what Felicity will say when Lex and Chloe
get together!!!!!! But that could really happen soon......:D
Well I'll just wait for the next update.!!!!
:D

[lexchloe]

Great update. Both Teddy and Skylar?? suck and I'll be glad when Chloe and Lex are rid of them. Can't wait for more.

[squash]

woooohoooooo.....Lex and Chloe are already acting differently around their partners...just another sign they are meant to be:)

loved the update and i can't wait for more soon

[teejei]

same reactions to different partners...hmmmm....v.v. interesting! :D

[hfce]

Oh trouble in paradise for Lex and Chloe. LOL! I am so glad that Skylar will be making an exit soon. She was a pain in Lex's ass. Now if Chloe gets rid of her guy it will be perfect. :D


Hope :)

[star del mar]

God! Chloe and Lex are dating such losers! I can't stand it but I know that it's a good thing because they can both get the hell out of their relationships and "spar" with each other a little more :) great update!!

Steph*

[Gemkat5]

After reading what the significant others are really like I think Lex and Chloe need another sparring match to work out some more frustration! What assholes! I like how both Chloe and Lex (for very good reasons) were both 'not in the mood' that night!
Selfish little piss ants! Can't accept that someone is just too damned tired?!?!?! PFFT!

Anyway, I loved this update and *patiently* await more! :D

[bluengreenswmer]

Chloe-the idiot shes dating=single Chloe
Lex-the idiot hes engaged to=single Lex
Single Chloe+single Lex=chlex

Isn't it beautiful the way things add up?

[autumngold]

I really think Skylar and Teddie would be perfect for each other!! They obviously only care about themselves and what they want!! They were made for each other!! I love your update!! I can't wait for Chloe and Lex's next meeting!!

[randa]

i loved that both lex and chloe turned down their partners...makes me happy.
im now excited for the next intervention by the fathers or the next run in for chloe and lex...raise the heat level by a notch... :yeahbaby:



randa

[LarkLuthor]

A/N: Sabby: Even in Exile, I manage to snag some internet. So here's an update you fiends. ... Oh and Lark, no more yelling or trying to instigate mob hysteria, that's not very nice of you. We appreciate any and all feedback though *smirk*. Hey! It's not my fault fiends aren't very well behaved! My fiend's job as the leader is more to direct the longings for fic into the proper areas and times...Even it out by ensuring one fic isn't left out when it needs attention and giving guidelines for when certain persuasive behavior is acceptable. I merely told them they were within their rights to continue to the next level of fic procurement. :grin3: They’re not allowed to start a riot until at least a couple weeks after the last update. Although, the nature of the stopping point has some influence on how soon certain behavior is acceptable. Also quality of a recent chapter ideal usually an author more time…

Wonderful portryal of the bored upperclass and their meddling mothers, entertaining yet not quite stereotypical.

I do so love an anoyed Lex! And Chloe sounded like she was going to hit the idiot. Remind me why living with the guy is a requirement when she's only in it for the sex?

And remember to update soon!:yeahbaby:

Lark

[BlueSabby]

A/N:Sabby: Okay fiends, this is a slightly longer one. And something you have all been waiting for shall come to pass. *Watches the collective minds plunge into the gutter* Heh, you're so easy, all of you *smirk*

A/N: Blue: A monster chapter filled with almost every character. Fights, humor and intrigue await you. Enjoy!


Teddy had been in an ubergrumpy mood the next morning. Whenever Chloe tried to start a conversation with him he shot her down and left the room. Inside, she was fuming but she didn’t let it show. Well, much. Once she was slighted by him twice she stopped talking to him as well.

She couldn’t believe the immaturity he was displaying. Her hopes for a quiet morning at home shattered, she decided to go to the office early. That way she’d have some privacy for what she had planned.

Once settled at her desk Chloe grabbed a nondescript piece of paper and everyday pen. She found herself wondering if Lex would get it checked for prints but shrugged it off. If he was going to get all crazy about it she’d just have to admit that it was her.

The note itself didn’t have to be very long or descriptive. After watching Skylar cave under her mother’s insistence Chloe had a pretty good idea as to what the woman was like.

Ask Skylar about Phillipe Contr' Vance

Simple and to the point. And when Lex blindsided the woman with his questions Chloe was sure she would fold under the pressure.

After taking the express train cross town to LuthorCorp Chloe rode up the elevator, smiling at one of the security guards that she recognized. She just hoped that Lex wasn’t in yet. Or, if he was, that he wasn’t in his office.

Walking down the hallway she noticed that the workers that populated the office were sparse. She peered around the corner and saw that both Lex’s office was empty and his secretary was not at her desk. Quickly, Chloe stalked into his office and placed the envelope with his name scrawled on it upon his desk. Just as quickly as she had entered the office, she left it.

Looking around she didn’t think that many people had seen her. Besides, no one would mention her presence to Lex being that they weren’t friends. Also, she’d stop in to see her dad to make sure she had a cover story.

Lex returned from his brunch meeting a little later than he'd expected, grateful that it had at least turned out with the wanted results. LuthorCorp had acquired a new liaison and he himself a new contact for his personal projects.

Striding past the desk of his secretary, he gave the woman a short nod, waiting for any pressing matters to be hurled at him, which thankfully didn't happen. He shut his office doors behind him and released a short breath, then continued briskly towards his desk to start in on another round of reports and day to day paper work.

His eyes landed on a small white envelope with his name written on top in a slightly large, loopy script. Snatching it up, he opened it to find a folded piece of paper inside.

His eyebrow rose slowly as he read the short instruction.

“Contr' Vance,” he murmured the name out loud, trying to find the connection to a face in his mind.

He opened his laptop and connected to the internet. One search bar entry and a few clicks later, he got his person.

His eyes narrowed as he scanned a short article about a Polo match in New Hampshire, that not only said Count had attended, but also, as luck would have it, his very own fiancée. 'Interesting,' he thought.

But why would anyone warn him about this, and why now? He minimized the article of the Polo match and tried to think of anything important that might have been the catalyst for this note.

'Last night, the Exhibition,' his eyes once again narrowing, he clicked his way through every article he could find on said exhibition, paying close attention to any guests listed. Nothing about the Count. Lex's brows narrowed.

He leaned back in his chair, steepling his fingers as his mind worked, his eyes focusing inward. He had a note, asking him to confront Skylar about Contr' Vance, an article of a Polo game dating back a few weeks, including a picture that showed the Count and the women of the Schultz family in conversation and most importantly a suspicious feeling tingling at the back of his mind. Of course that could be simply because he was always suspicious when receiving anonymous notes.

On the other hand, there was no proof that the Count and Skylar had had any contact aside from that one polo match and there was no indication that Contr' Vance had been attending the exhibition. Meaning, he would indeed have to confront Skylar. But he would have to do it in a way that wasn't too suspicious.

This note might well be a simple means of a jealous third party to torpedo his relationship with Skylar, thereby creating room for themselves to step in. Of course that would only make sense if the third party was going after Skylar since his interest in dating, or even fucking around had waned significantly after he'd actively started to get married.

He put the paper back in the envelope and tucked the envelope itself safely into his briefcase. Making a mental note to confront Skylar tonight, he turned back to his work. In case there really was more going on, he would get rid of Skylar immediately. 'Fuck, and here I thought it would be smooth sailing this time.'

~~~~
The tiny voices of Lex and Chloe played out on the state of the art speakers that were imbedded in the laptop. Lionel watched their back and forth for what had to be the fiftieth time. He couldn’t stop himself from doing so. He needed all of the information that was available to them in order for the plan to work.

After the numerous viewings, Lionel was sure that the pair had a definite interest in each other. Physically, at least. They also seemed to be able to bait one another quite well. Causing a certain kind of tension to hang in the air. He just wished that Chloe hadn’t tried that roundhouse. If she hadn’t, who knows where they would have ended up. Lionel looked at the small table tucked away in the corner wistfully.

Surely there was something wrong with rooting on your son to have sexual relations on a table in a break room. But now, Lionel couldn’t place why it was wrong.

He stared intently at Chloe, trying to figure out the best way for Lex to get inside of her mind and heart. She had hardened slightly over the years. That much was clear. And, it might take all of Lionel’s, Lex’s and Gabe’s combined bag of tricks to break through to her.

Gabe sighed, casting another glance towards Lionel who was still avidly watching the video feed of the meeting between their children. '26 times.' The meeting had been only yesterday and as far as Gabe knew, Lionel had been watching this video twenty-six times already. This time not counted. He shook his head.

“Lionel, even I can recite everything they said at this point,” he groused, “There is nothing that either one of us has missed, trust me.”

It was downright eerie how focused the man got to the point of forgetting about such important things as eating, never mind work. “We have to arrange another meeting between them, or maybe talk to them separately and bring the other one up or something.” He strode towards the desk, stopping right in front of Lionel and the laptop. “But this,” he closed his hand over the top of it and started pushing it closed.

“Is useless now.” 'Not to mention creeping me out!' he added silently.

Lionel ran a hand over his face. “I know that you’re right, Gabe. But, I have control over that damned video,” he said, gesturing to the now closed laptop. “I can speed them up, slow them down and zoom in. And, if I gave the IT guys enough time, I could make them do and say what I wanted them to, as well.”

He saw the look that Gabe was giving him and let that idea drop. “I just want to feel as if we’re making some headway in this. I can, however, concede that your plan is a far better way to go then making myself blind by staring at the screen.”

That didn’t mean that Lionel would stop watching it. No, he just wouldn’t do so in front of Gabe anymore.

He leaned back in his chair. “I think that feeling them out separately about each other is the best first step. Maybe also bringing up their current bad choices and then segueing into our choice for them might plant a seed of comparing the two.”

Lionel nodded to himself. “Yes, then we’ll arrange for them to meet again. After they’ve thought about each other in respect to their current significant others it might be interesting to see if there is any change in their interactions.” That would be a good experiment…plus, Lionel would have more video to go over after that.
~~~
After another 12 hour day at work, Lex made it back to his house a little after nine in the evening. He was sure that Skylar would be home, since she didn't have a particularly full schedule. He didn't even know if she even knew what regular employment was.

Opening the front door, he cast the yapping little bitch a glare that froze the annoying hairy creature in its approach, then kicked in the general direction of the beast before making his way into the kitchen.

“Skylar?” He called out for her when he'd found her neither in the living room, nor in the kitchen.

She couldn't possibly still be in bed? Or already in bed for that matter.

His mind had wondered back to the note in his briefcase at odd intervals and he was hell bent to find out what was behind it, sooner rather than later.

As she dried off her hair, Skylar heard her name being called. She had just stepped out of the shower. Lex’s voice boomed throughout the house and she pulled open the door to the bathroom. “I’m in here, I just got out of the shower.”

Pulling a towel around her body she stepped out of the bathroom and into their bedroom. She wondered if Lex wanted to discuss what had happened between them last night. She couldn’t decide if that was good or bad.

She’d spent the day with her mother going over all of the Count’s good attributes and it felt strange to still have to live with Lex when her heart was now elsewhere.

Lex nodded to himself when he got confirmation from the bedroom, then got a drink from the fridge. He wasn't sure yet how to approach the topic of the Count, but he would find a way to let it flow into the conversation smoothly.

Going back to the living room with his drink, he settled down on the comfortable leather sofa, waiting for Skylar to finally join him so they could have a long overdue talk about boundaries, respect and Contr' Vance. So much for an easy-going sweet personality.

Clad in her robe Skylar walked out into the living room and found Lex sitting on the couch. She smiled at him and then joined him, leaning against him and closing her eyes. Even though she knew that she was now destined to be with the Count, it didn’t mean that she wouldn’t enjoy her last few days with Lex.

Once sobering up she had felt bad about her thoughts of the previous night. But, she comforted herself with the knowledge that it was Lex’s actions that made her think that way. She was also certain that he’d find someone who would be a better match for him.

She didn’t look forward to the conversation when she informed him that she was leaving him. Then again, better he be on that side of the conversation than she.

Lex cast a glance down his shoulder at Skylar. Her hair was still wet and the water was already soaking through to his shirt. He gritted his teeth and kept his mouth shut about that fact. If he wanted to get anywhere, it wouldn't do to bring that up now.

“How was your day,” he asked smoothly, staring straight ahead into the empty fireplace.

Whatever her answer was, he'd somehow have to take it from there. Hopefully, it wouldn't take too long. Lex wasn't too fond of small talk, let alone when he knew it was likely to be as interesting as watching paint dry.

“Fairly uneventful,” she said. When Lex didn’t make a comment about it, Skylar felt herself continuing to talk. “I spent some time with my mother.” She remembered that she was supposed to be planning their wedding so she added, “She’s now on me about what type of dress I’m supposed to wear.”

She craned her neck and looked up at Lex. “You know, she doesn’t approve of the cut, the length of the train, the number of bridesmaids and the fact that I don’t want to wear a veil.”

Lex used the opening she had, however unwittingly, provided him, looking down at her from the corner of his eyes to be able to read her reaction.

“I'm surprised she approves of your choice of husband, the way she's disapproving of anything else involving this wedding,” he commented lowly.

He wasn't sure yet what exactly was going on between Skylar and Contr' Vance, or if there was even anything going on, but the answer to this question would already give him a clue.

Skylar blinked rapidly a few times and said, “Of course she approves of you, Lex.” She turned away from his gaze and muttered, “What a thing to say.”

Her heart was hammering in her chest and she had to change the subject of the conversation. And quickly. “So, how was your day? Any interesting hostile takeovers to speak of.”

Lex's gaze stayed fixed on her, even when she turned away. Her reaction had been a definite tell. She was lying through her teeth. Not to mention that she'd never before shown any interest in talking about his work, so her deflecting the topic onto him was a dead give away that something was not right.

The smirk growing a little more pronounced, he decided to use it to his advantage. “Oh nothing too exciting, endless amounts of paper work, conference calls, an invitation to a gala ball. Some major event of some royalty or other planning to celebrate his country, and of course his own existence while he's at it,” he recounted nonchalantly.

He'd checked up a little more on the Count during the day and found out that he'd hold a gala ball in a few days time. He hoped to get some more of a reaction to that one.

Skylar gulped and was certain that the noise was audible to Lex. Which was ridiculous, of course. But, she felt it nonetheless. Lex hadn’t asked her a question so a response from her was not necessarily warranted. However, she could feel Lex staring down at her.

“Well, you know royalty. Never missing an opportunity to toot their own horn.” Feigning nonchalance Skylar asked, “Are you going to be attending?” If Lex decided that he wanted to go to the party himself it would be a crimp in her and her mother’s plans.

Lex had seen her throat move when she had gulped at his comment. He was also aware that her lashes were still beating rapidly and the water that made its way down her temple in a single drop surely didn't come from the shower.

Keeping a small smile on his face belying his inward mood, he raised a hand to brush some hair of her face with gentle fingers. Her skin was clammy. “I think we should attend, don't you? I'm sure you would stun every man in the room and give every single female cause for jealousy when you show up in a new, breathtaking dress.”

Deciding he might as well add a little emotional blackmail to make things worse, he added, “I also would like to make up for not accompanying you to the exhibition yesterday.”

Smiling up at Lex, Skylar said, “I’d like that.” ‘Fuck, fuck, fuck.’ She needed to be at this event along. Why was Lex all of a sudden expressing such an interest in going to the gala anyway? It was so unlike him.

A heavy feeling presented itself in her stomach. She didn’t know how, and she didn’t know if she was being paranoid but she couldn’t shake the feeling that Lex knew. Trying to remind herself that only she and her mother were privy to the conversation that they had had last night, Skylar remained calm.

“But, I know that you hate these things. You don’t have to come if you don’t want to.” She leaned up and kissed him on the tip of the nose.

Now he knew that there was something going on. There was no way she'd pass up and opportunity to go to some glittery event, and even less of a chance that she'd actively give Lex an out of it, after he offered of his own volition.

“Skylar,” he murmured, making her name half question, half statement. He once again raised his hand slowly to brush her hair out of her face, planning to remove every last possibility of hiding behind something.

Lex was looking down at her and she felt as if he could see right through her. She had to try and get away from him physically, it was her only out. Maybe she could fake being sick. When she made a small movement to pull away from him, Skylar felt Lex’s arm tighten around her. She was now effectively trapped.

She wouldn’t give anything away that she didn’t need to, however. There was still the chance that she was being paranoid. “Yes Lex?”

Skylar was being down right jittery, and he knew that she was very close to breaking down. He couldn't care less at the moment for subtle, it was one more question, asked in the right way and he'd know everything he need to know.

At this point he was convinced that she was either a) already having an affair or b) planning to leave him for someone else. Said someone being the Count.

”Why don't you tell me, I'd really rather hear it from you,” he said smoothly, pinning her down with his gaze as much as his arm around her shoulder.

She evaded his gaze as she started to speak. “I was just thinking about us. And, well, I don’t think that you like me very much. We don’t have anything in common. I mean, I think that we both know that this was just a marriage of convenience.” She looked back up at him but she couldn’t read his face. As usual.

“So, I think. I think that it’s best that we don’t make a mistake and, um, go through with the…the marriage.” She let out a huge breath, already feeling much better about this. She’d just have to call her mother later and inform her that she thought it best to be free and clear when she met the Count.

Lex's brow rose slowly, keeping his gaze fixed on hers. So Skylar had lost interest in their marriage and turned towards greener pastures, namely Contr' Vance. “I see,” he stated slowly.

Smirking coldly, he got up from the couch and went for the cell phone in his jacket pocket. He didn't even look back at Skylar as he continued on, “Your things will be delivered to your apartment tomorrow morning, take whatever you want to have with you right now and leave my house.”

He pulled out his cell phone, flipped it open and dialed the number of his contact at the inquisitor. When the guy on the other end of the line picked up, he spoke without preamble. “You can release the article tomorrow morning, the usual commentary and enough rumor to make it believable. Bring up the name Phillippe Contr' Vance.”

“Lex,” Skylar screamed as she rose to her feet. “No, you can’t do that!” She didn’t think that he would take it this far. She assumed that they would just break up in a private manner as was customary in their circles.

He looked over to her, his phone still pressed to his ear. “Please, please don’t do this.” By now, she was clutching onto his shirt. “I’m sorry, I’m so sorry. You can’t do this, it will ruin me.” But, of course Lex knew that. Which is why he was doing it.

If this happened, her mother would be livid. And, it was uncertain if whether the Count would be amenable to their union. Even though royalty was always in the rags, the Count was famous for not standing for rumors that were perpetrated against him. He would have no choice but to denounce that he was involved with her.

“Haven’t I been a good girlfriend to you?” She realized how stupid that question was right about now and added, “Well, until this?”

Lex flipped the phone shut and turned around, looking at the hysterical woman in front of him. He had no sympathy whatsoever. “Causing a scene will not change anything,” he stated coldly.

Slipping the cell into his pant pocket, he took a hold of Skylar's hands and pried them off his shirt. “Now, take what you want to have with you,” he repeated slowly, “And leave my house.”

Letting go of her hands, he stepped past her and back through the living room to the veranda, sliding the doors open and stepping into the cold air. “And don't forget your rat,” he added loudly when the ball of fur rocketed past him.

~~~~
When Chloe returned home Teddy was sitting on the couch watching some reality TV show. She still didn’t understand the draw of them and couldn’t believe that she was actually living with a man who enjoyed them.

As she shucked her coat off and made her way to the couch she noticed that he didn’t even give her a hello. During the day she had cooled off. But, Teddy’s infantile behavior got her ire stoked once more. The whole thing was total and utter bullshit. A fact that they needed to be clear about.

She was not about to be in a relationship of any kind where she was given a guilt trip for not wanting to put out when she was exhausted in every way, shape and form.

Sitting down next to Teddy she picked up the remote and clicked the TV off. “What the fuck is your problem?”

Teddy glared at the dark screen for a moment, before turning his face towards Chloe. “Except that you just turned off the TV in the middle of my favorite show,” he asked snidely.

He was still pretty irate about the fact that Chloe had held out on him, not only the night before, but also in the morning. She hadn't even apologized for her attitude and tried to make 'small talk' of all things. Teddy didn't want small talk, he wanted a nice hard fuck.

“I'm just wondering why you're acting like you do at the moment,” he commented blithely, “You on your monthlies or something?”

Of all of the things that Teddy could have chosen to say…

“Just when I think you can’t make any more of an ass of yourself you go and say something so stereotypically stupid as that,” she seethed at him. She threw the remote down on the table. “One would have nothing to do with the other but just for your information, no I’m not.”

She stared him down. “I’m sure that you’ve reasoned that I’m all crazy with the hormones coursing through my body. That it’s the only possible factor that I would turn down having you nail me before falling off to sleep.” Her eyes hardened as she spoke. Chloe was fine with not having the most perceptive of lovers but this was really just too much.

“How about the fact that when you come home semi-drunk from work you’re not very good at it? Or maybe the fact that I had already taken care of myself beforehand, knowing that you would come home like that and I would be better than you at that point?” Her voice was getting progressively colder. Then she leaned in and said, “Or how about the possibility that I was exhausted after getting up early in the morning to do all of the things that I asked you to do the day before, going to the gym, going to work and then going to an event I had to cover for work?”

She leaned away from him. “Nope, guess none of those things occurred to you. Then again, I don’t know if you ever think of anything past yourself so it’s not fair to expect that those thoughts would go through your mind.”

Teddy rolled his eyes. Of course he'd come away the asshole in this, never mind the fact that half the time he did all the things she 'asked' him to do, which pretty much amounted to the entire household, since she was oh so busy with her work. “Sure right, lay the blame on the guy. You knew from the beginning how my job works, and you didn't have a problem with it, now all of a sudden it's not convenient for you anymore, so you want to what? Just put me on the shelf until it suits you to have a fuck?” He got up from the couch, going straight for the bedroom.

He'd had about enough of that shit and the red-head had actually managed to get his cell number out of one of his colleagues, so there was nothing keeping him here.

“You know what? Bugger this!” He yelled the last over his shoulder, already throwing the few belongings he'd brought into Chloe's apartment into his duffel bag.

Chloe watched the impressive hissy fit in a detached manner. She hadn’t really expected anything else from Teddy. He wasn’t one of those sit and discuss things with you type of guy. More of the fly off the handle type.

Which is why, she supposed, she had pushed him. His display last night had been the last straw. She did know that his schedule was crazy and it had been ok with her. Mostly because it meant that she wouldn’t have to deal with him being around all that much. And, what did that say about her?

She watched as he packed his belongings and looked over to her. He clearly expected her to stop him. But, she wasn’t going to. This resolution was the best for both of them. She could maybe date someone with more substance and he could go back to screwing random bar patrons.

When Teddy reached the front door, the bag slung over his shoulder, Chloe held out her hand. “Key please.” Teddy angrily fished out his key ring and yanked her key off of it, throwing it in the general vicinity of her.

She shook her head. “Speaking of buggering,” she opened the front door and then pushed him through it, “go bugger yourself.”

Chloe started to slam the door but she was hampered by the fact that Teddy had stuck his foot in the doorjamb.

There was one more thing he had to say, and he'd be damned to let her just take the easy way out and push him out before saying it. Getting into her face, he stepped closer, his voice dropping and getting heavy on his natural accent, “'For you go shagging the next guy, you should stop and straighten out your noggin 'bout what you actually want.”

With that, he turned around and walked, closing the door behind him as he went. He could have left her the satisfaction of banging the door behind him, but why should he.

Chloe stared at the shut door and resisted the urge to go after him and beat him into a bloody pulp. Then she remembered that Teddy wasn’t worth going to jail for. Taking a few more deep breaths calmed her down.

When the phone rang she almost jumped out of her skin. “Hello,” she said in a highly annoyed tone of voice. She didn’t feel like talking to anyone right now. ‘Then why did you answer it?’ She shook her head, trying to clear it of Teddy’s parting words and getting herself to focus on the person on the other end of the line.

Gabe's brows flew up at his daughter's tone of voice. She managed to project a lot of emotion into one single word. “Hey sweetheart, it's me,” he started, toning down to a somewhat more soothing voice. “How are you?”

Not wanting to get into what was going on right now, Chloe checked her attitude and said, “I’m ok, Dad? What’s up?”

Sometimes her father called just to chat but she picked up on his slightly businesslike tone. He had a specific topic to broach with her and she just wanted to get on with it. That way, she’d be able to get off the phone, take a shower and then go to sleep.

In the morning, she’d clean the apartment, a ritual she always followed after a break up. But, she first needed to run to the store to get some of the cleaning agents. Being that it was already late, she needed to wrap up things with her dad so she could run out and get the necessary items.

Gabe's surprise turned into a frown. Obviously, Chloe was highly annoyed by something, but didn't want to talk. He knew from experience that pressing the issue at the moment would only lead to a fight, so he let it slide. But he would bring it up tomorrow.

“I was just calling to ask if you want to meet for lunch tomorrow,” he answered, “My secretary told me I missed you by only a few minutes this morning, so I thought I could make up for that.” Not to mention use the opportunity to feel out her thoughts and feelings in regards to a certain bald billionaire.

Chloe mentally went through her schedule. She didn’t have any assignments for tomorrow. She was just helping out the new copy editor in the morning and the afternoon would be spent in a story idea meeting. So, she could meet her father.

The question was whether she wanted to or not. But, best to face the music and the inevitable ‘I told you so’s that he would be thinking sooner rather than later.

“Yeah, lunch tomorrow sounds good, Dad.” She thought about running into Lex again and it unsettled her for some reason. Maybe it was the fact that the last time they hadn’t ended on the best note. Maybe it was because of her note. But, she didn’t want to take the chance in case he was skulking about the office.

“Let me know where and I’ll meet you. I think that would work best for me.” She took out the phone book from under the sink and thumbed through it. She was no longer in the mood to cook and a pizza sounded divine.

Gabe went from concern to confusion. Why wouldn't she want to meet in the office? She usually just showed up, reminding him that eating was a necessity and they'd both decide where to meet and head from there. “Alright, if you're sure. Where would you like to go?”

He didn't want to risk choosing somewhere she didn't want to go and rekindle her annoyance that just might sink to a lower level come tomorrow.

Pondering the question Chloe said, “How about that Thai place that we keep meaning to go to all the time?” There was a really good Italian joint that they usually went to but after tonight’s pizza she didn’t think she’d be in the mood for the place tomorrow.

Plus, from all the research that she had done about Lex back in Smallville, she remembered that he hated Thai food. That way, there was no way that they’d run in to him.

Gabe nodded, even though he knew Chloe couldn't see him. “Ok that sounds good,” he answered verbally.

He wasn't particularly fond of Thai, and he himself would have chosen their usual Italian place that was much closer, but if Chloe wanted sharp and slimy, she'd get that. Even though it made no sense, considering that neither Chloe nor him were actually so into it themselves, and it had more been a joke between them to actually go try it sometime.

“I'll see you tomorrow then, sweetheart,” he ended the conversation, knowing he wouldn't get anywhere.

Gabe made a mental promise to find out just what the hell was going on as soon as he could bring it up over lunch.

[lexchloe]

Hee hee. Both 'significant others' are history! Yay!!!! Lionel is hilarious and slightly creepy in this (he has wayyyy too much interest in Lex's sex life). Love how obsessive he's being but it's good that Gabe is there to be rational and balance him out. Glad that Chloe and Lex are now single again, bring on the next meeting!!!

[Gemkat5]

Well, Well, Well, it seems our lovely couple have made things just a little easier for Lionel and Gabe. They each got rid of their own worthless others! Course, I like how Chloe's little hint helped Lex have the upper hand to that bitches little scheme!

Oh, and Lionel's obsession to watch the video over and over and over again is so typical! Poor Gabe, he's finding out about Lionel's wierdness first hand!

This was a good chapter, though I can't wait for some chlex interaction of 'any' sort!! :D (Maybe they can at least ride the elevator together or something?)

[bluengreenswmer]

Skylar's gone!!! Skylar's gone!! *does a little dance*

What's this? Teddy's gone too? Teddy's gone!!! Teddy's gone!!! *does a BIG dance*

Finally!!!

[teejei]

“Haven’t I been a good girlfriend to you?” She realized how stupid that question was right about now and added, “Well, until this?”Well, duh, Skylar. You haven't exactly been loyal, for one.

WooT! All the roadblocks are gone!

---*cough*Skylar!*cough*Teddy!*cough*---

now Chlex won't have any excuse not to :hankpank: ! :devil:

[fussy_wuzzy]

Opening the front door, he cast the yapping little bitch a glare that froze the annoying hairy creature in its approach, then kicked in the general direction of the beast before making his way into the kitchen.

and


Letting go of her hands, he stepped past her and back through the living room to the veranda, sliding the doors open and stepping into the cold air. “And don't forget your rat,” he added loudly when the ball of fur rocketed past him.

While I'm glad we're finally rid of Skylar, I'm really going to miss Lex's annoyance with little Shim Shim. It never failed to make me laugh. wonderful update!!

[hfce]

:nsparty:Lets party Skylar and Teddy are gone. YES!!! Its about time they came to their senses. I so loved the beat down Lex gave to that weak bitxh and Teddy exit was great. Good job girls. :clapclap:


Hope :)

[LarkLuthor]

Wow, both gone already? I wasn't expecting it so soon. Lionel will be so happy...he might even act somewhat non-evil in his glee....

Update soon, because this is one of the more filling fics my fiends have to look forward to.

Lark

[star del mar]

Good they're gone...now maybe the master plan can go on! Loved the update, but Lex and Chloe have to run into each other at some point and then we can just sit back and wait for the fireworks :D

Steph*

[autumngold]

Yay!! No more Teddy and Skylar!! Perfect!! I'm so glad that Lex didn't allow himself to look like a fool!! Skylar should have thought of that before she played around on him!! I really wish that Chloe wasn't trying to hide from Lex though, she's just making things harder on Gabe and Lionel!! Thanks for the wonderful update!! Can't wait for more!!

[sylvia]

Eew, voyeur-Lionel!

But cool chapter, I especially enjoyed cold-heartless-bastard Lex getting rid of Skylar and ruining her social life in return for her disloyalty and irritatingness.

Update with more soon please!

[peepsRfun2eat]

Great update and woo-hoo glad both Skylar and Teddy are gone. Wonder what Lionel and Gabe will do. Bravo and can't wait for more.

[randa]

those were great breakups! i loved that lex was destroying skylar and chloe pushed teddy over the edge. AND they're gone!! excitement
....that just means its bout time to get down to business ;)


more soon

randa

[BlueSabby]

A/N: Sabby. We apologize to all the people having a thing for Thai food and hope you enjoy this chapter none the less.

A/N: Blue: It's father/child bonding time! And it goes super well. Ok, I just lied but what are you going to do about it? Enjoy!


Picking up whatever it was that was perched on her fork Chloe wondered how her father would react if she suggested that they make a break for the door. She was sure that the food was good…if you liked Thai, that was. Which, apparently, she didn’t.

She had tried it years ago and it hadn’t agreed with her. But, she had reasoned that it was just the place that she had gone to. Now, she wasn’t so sure.

Chewing slowly, she looked up at her father. They had been making polite chit chat for the past half hour or so and she just wished that he would get it over with already. It was clear to her that the only reason they were there was to discuss Teddy.

At least he’d be pleased to hear that they had broken up. Chloe couldn’t help the petty childish part of herself that was a little upset over it. She had been looking forward to this showdown. Her father needed to grasp the concept that she would date who she wanted. He no longer could control her, she was an adult.

Gabe observed Chloe over his plate, more poking at the food than actually eating it. One thing was for sure, this was the first and last time he'd have a meal at this place. Thai apparently just wasn't his thing. He took a sip of his drink, swallowing the heavy taste of saffron.

They'd been traipsing around the bush for the last half hour, him desperately trying to find a subtle segue into what she'd been pissed about last night and her current relationship, hoping that they were related. She meanwhile had done everything to prevent the conversation from turning onto this topic. It was time to bite the bullet.

“So, how are things with Teddy,” he asked as nonchalantly as possible.

Chloe shook her head and grinned over at her father. She always found it amusing when her father displayed a trait that he had clearly passed down to her. The blunt question asking technique was definitely one of them.

When she wrapped her hand around her glass of water and noticed it was empty she gestured to the waiter that she needed a refill. Her fifth already.

Leaning back in her chair and crossing her arms over her chest she stated, “Over.” A blunt question deserved a blunt response.

The waiter came over and refilled her glass and her father just blinked over at her. Clearly that wasn’t the response he had been expecting.

Gabe blinked. There really was no eloquent response for that in his brain other than, “Oh.”

Of course it made things easier for them. It removed a whole point in the plan. Taking care of the significant other. Well at least on his side, that was. Now he'd only have to make sure Chloe didn't hook up with the next 'Teddy' before Lionel and he got her together with Lex. Damn. That could get complicated. He couldn't wait to see what Lionel would come up with though. It was sure to be creepy, but hopefully, also effective.

Speaking about Lionel. Gabe checked his watch, then gave the room a quick glance. Shouldn't he have shown up already? They'd agreed that the Luthors would have lunch and oh so coincidentally, in the same restaurant as Gabe and his daughter. He didn't spot the man yet, which meant he had to focus back on the conversation and say something else, preferably fast.

“I won't pretend I'm sorry to hear that, but I am sorry if you are hurt because of the break up,” he voiced honestly.

She hated it when her father did that thing that he did so often. She wanted so badly to be able to defend her choice in men to him but she couldn’t do that when he was being all supportive and decent about it. True, he had gotten more heated about her not dating a ‘cavalcade of losers’ as he called it, but he never seemed to judge her for it.

Exasperation was the best word she could come up to describe it. Chloe supposed that every father thought the man that his daughter ended up with wasn’t good enough and there wasn’t anything wrong with that. She had just never been good with people judging her. Whether they really were or whether it was just in her head.

She shrugged one shoulder. “I’m not hurt. I broke up with him.” Looking up at him, she decided to be honest. “I realized that I couldn’t really have a conversation with him about anything important.” She thought about what Teddy’s parting words had been to her.

Her father was still watching her carefully and she could tell that he was truly interested in what had happened between them. It had been a long time since Chloe had honestly spoken with her father. The fact that it was of her own doing wasn’t lost on her.

“I think that it didn’t work because I wasn’t straightforward with either him or myself about what I wanted, or needed, from him.” Chloe took another sip of her water before saying, “So, any fatherly advice you want to impart on me?”

Smiling, she said, “It’s a one time offer so I’d jump at it if I were you.”

Gabe gave her a small smile, knowing that she was using the sarcasm as a shield. The Sullivans had always been apt at that. But what advice could he give her that he hadn't already imparted once, ten times over? More importantly, how would he have to word the advice to give her a nudge in the right direction, namely, towards the Luthor heir? Well here went nothing.

“All I can advise you to do is to look for someone who's not only supplying for one of your needs, but someone who will give you the whole deal. It'll involve fighting, and in your case, possibly not only in the verbal sense. But it'll also be someone that will see you for who you really are, and not just 'fed up' with your less admirable traits, but actually take them as part of you.”

~~

Lionel had been ignoring his son for the better part of half an hour. Firstly, Lex had informed him that he was not hungry. Then, Lex had told him that he didn’t have time for lunch. Lastly, he had told him that he did not eat Thai and would not be accompanying his father. And yet, here they were.

As they were seated, Lionel caught sight of Gabe and Chloe sitting at a table on the other side of the restaurant. Lionel would be able to see them from where he was sitting but Lex would not. He saw Gabe spot them, Chloe’s back was to Lionel, and he sat down.

Keeping the smug look off of his face was a difficult feat to accomplish and Lionel wasn’t sure if he was successful with it or not.

He could feel the anger and annoyance flowing off his son in waves and it struck Lionel as particularly funny. He was just trying to do what was best for the boy. Well, Lex would be able to show him his gratitude at a later date. There was a particular archipelago a few hundreds yards off the coast of Siberia that he had his eye on that would do quite nicely as a thank you gift.

“Lex, it’s a wonder that Skylar,” he sneered her name out, “stays with you if you display such unpleasantness in going to a restaurant as you have with me.”

Lex arched an eyebrow at his father, waving the waiter away as he approached with a menu. He'd joined his father, but he wouldn't eat anything. You could force a horse to the water, but... and how pathetic was it to think of himself as a horse, using a farming proverb. In any case, here they were and his father either had no idea what had happened last night, or he was playing pretend to heighten Lex's embarrassment. Only, Lex had nothing to be embarrassed about.

“Really dad, haven't you been reading the newspapers? A man in your position can't afford to be ignorant. I've decided to end the relationship with Skylar, she moved out last night,” he retorted in a smooth, slightly derisive tone.

The article in the Inquisitor hadn't been friendly, and Skylar would have a hard time picking up the shreds of her pristine reputation. Lex didn't care one bit. The bitch had decided to go looking for greener pastures and had planned on dumping him as soon as she was secured. It served her right. The only downside was that now he'd have to look for a new prospective bride. He was slowly but surely starting to make a fool of himself and he didn't like it either. But what had to be done, had to be done.

A chuckle rumbled out of Lionel’s chest. “Lex, I wouldn’t call the Inquisitor a newspaper. If I believed everything I read in there, well,” he spread his hands, “I’d be an alien now, wouldn’t I?”

He had seen the piece and had been overjoyed at it. After a little digging he had found out that it was, indeed, true. But, he wanted to hear it from the horse’s mouth, so to speak. (If one author is going to use that particular analogy, the other author will run like a cheetah with it).

When Lex chose not to respond, he said, “I would give you my regrets but we both know that they would be hollow.” As the waiter approached, Lionel fixed him with a look and the man changed the direction that he was heading in.

“I suppose that the tryouts for the new, future ex-Mrs. Luthor will begin as soon as humanly possible, as well.” Lionel picked up his napkin and placed it across his lap. “I can’t wait to see the next girl you bring home. I wonder if you’ll ever learn that marrying vapid women will never bring you what you seek.”

Lex stifled a snort, a small smirk gracing his face as he regarded his father. The man was almost as self-righteous as the late Mr. Kent and even more possessed by himself. They could have gotten along great if they hadn't been enemies from the start.

“What I am looking for, dad, is a woman that won't be inclined to kill me, or let herself be blackmailed, bribed or seduced by you. These two criteria unfortunately narrow down my options,” he shot back. Of course he'd prefer a more intelligent woman, but he didn't want to spend his future having to control and survey every move of his wife to make sure he didn't end up dead or penniless. Never mind the fact that his family would end up equally dysfunctional as the one he grew up in if that were to be the case.

“Those criteria actually help you more than hurt you, I would think.” Lionel was enjoying this more than he should be, but he didn’t feel guilty about it. He had struck a chord with Lex, that much was certain. The boy was already on the defensive and they hadn’t even ordered yet.

“You should have learned from those experiences. And yet,” Lionel sighed, “you continually surround yourself with women who would fail on those criteria.” He locked eyes with his son.

“I would hope that you would realize that I no longer have a desire to interfere in your relationships.” At least not in the way he thinks, Lionel said to himself. He saw Lex’s jaw tighten at his words. Clearly, they still had some trust issues. He’d deal with that later. Lex’s taste in women was a more important topic of discussion.

“Having said that, do you really believe that Skylar, or any of the last three women you pledged your troth to would repay the favor if I dangled a huge check in front of them?” When Lex remained silent, no doubt trying to figure out how to quietly kill him with his fork, Lionel smirked.

“I think not. The only way to avoid them failing you is to make better choices.” He picked up his menu and murmured, “I wonder what is actually edible here.”

If Lex hadn't already hated Thai food, his appetite would have vanished right that moment. Truth be told it didn't matter. The women he'd married wouldn't try to kill him, but Lionel was right, at least two of them would have been susceptible to bribery, if Lionel had hit the right sum. Looking back at it, his tactic hadn't gotten him anywhere. So there was only one more thing left to do.

“You're right, dad,” he said blandly, waiting for Lionel's reaction.

He'd already made his decision and he was sure his father wouldn't like it. Would maybe even have a heart attack. One could wish anyway.

Lionel peered up and over his menu. Lex was sitting there, looking far too calm for his liking. His countenance coupled with the words that had just come from his mouth made Lionel decidedly uncomfortable.

However, it could just be the paranoia that Gabe accused him of having so he tried to shove it away. “I’m glad to hear you say so, Lex,” he said, evenly.

“Does that mean that I can look forward to your next relationship to be with a woman more appropriate for you?”

Lex smirked, leaning forward in his chair, closer to Lionel. “What it means is, that since taking a woman of low standards isn't serving the purpose, and applying high standards didn't work either, you can resign yourself to the fate that the father of Bruce Wayne would have had, if he'd survived to see it. As far as an heir to the Luthor line goes,” Lex shrugged a shoulder, “I guess you'll have to depend on Lucas for that one. I'm out of the game.” With that, he got up from the table, intending to leave and maybe get a sandwich before it was back to work.

“I think now is a good time to end this farce of a family get together,” he said, “I'll see you at work, dad.”

He'd just live his life as the eternal bachelor, fuck who he chose, when he chose, and tradition and family were two words he'd completely strike out of his dictionary. He didn't need it to be successful, so why bother anyway. It had been a delusion to think he could have it anyway. The regular Joe could live his life like that, but he was a Luthor, so it was either a marriage based on mindfucking and control, or nothing at all. He took nothing, thank you very much.

While the turn of events wasn’t all that unexpected, it still vexed Lionel. If Lex was in that mindset, it may be hard to get him out of it. But, if anyone could do it, it was Chloe Sullivan.

The more Lionel thought about her, the more pleased he was with his choice. Lex might be able to tell himself that he would be happy without anyone but once he realized that Chloe would make life much more interesting with her around, Lionel thought he might reconsider. That and his son wasn’t blind. She was a fine looking woman.

Lex didn’t give him a chance to respond, he just threw his napkin down on the table and stalked out of the restaurant. Lionel thought back to a tantrum that the boy had had when he was three. The behavior was strikingly similar.

When Gabe caught his eye, Lionel shrugged. They had gone to the same restaurant in the hopes of accidentally on purpose bumping into each other. It seemed now as if that was not to be. Leave it to Lex to be uncooperative without even knowing that he was doing so. Hopefully, Gabe would be able to lure Chloe back to LuthorCorp. That way they could come up with a Plan B.

Gabe's jaw clenched as he watched Lex stalk out of the restaurant. Trust Lionel to say something that would make his son up and leave because he couldn't stand being in the other man's company for one more minute without committing patricide. Sighing, he turned back to Chloe, pasting a smile on his face.
“So, what did you say you were doing after lunch,” he ventured.

Maybe if he could get her to come back to the office, they could arrange another meeting between Chloe and Lex. Give the two a chance to talk and maybe rib about their old men. Something like that anyway. Though he wasn't so sure if it wouldn't be pushing it to invite Chloe to come with him then send her off for some hair brained purpose to wonder the office grounds on her own the second time in three days.

Chloe didn’t fancy coming up to her Dad’s office for a myriad of reasons. But, the most pressing one was the way that she was currently feeling. She hadn’t eaten the same dish the last time she went to a Thai place, but it was having the same effect.

“I didn’t have any plans,” she said, concentrating on not throwing up. She could feel the tell tale signs presenting themselves. She was breaking out in a cold sweat and she felt kind of numb.

“However, I now think that they will involve me trying to keep anything in my stomach.” Chloe got up quickly and practically ran away from the table in search of the bathroom.

Gabe watched his daughter make a mad dash for the bathroom and threw his napkin on the table. “Should have made us go to the Italian after all,” he muttered.

Their plan had been utterly thwarted. Lex and Chloe hadn't even so much as noticed that they were in the same restaurant, let alone spoken to each other. Chloe wouldn't be coming back to the office and it could possibly be days, or even weeks until they could set up something like this again, if they didn't want to get suspicious. “Damnit,” he muttered.

Looking towards the bathroom first, Gabe seriously hoped that Chloe was ok. He ordered a large glass of water from the waiter, then turned towards Lionel who was still sitting at his table. He looked like he was plotting something, which couldn't be a good sign. Standing up, Gabe made his way over to the other man, stopping in front of him at the table.

“That failed spectacularly,” he commented.

“I have a tendency to agree with that interpretation of the situation.” Lionel felt calm even though it seemed as if everything was blowing up in their faces. When obstacles were thrown in his way towards a goal, it always made him rededicate himself.

“Lex just informed me that he had no intention of ever getting married again.” He saw the look on Gabe’s face. “Don’t worry, not yet at least. I think that we’ve been going about this the wrong way.”

He stood up and glanced in the direction of the bathroom. From the way Chloe had run from the table he didn’t expect that she’d be out any time soon but one couldn’t be too careful.

“We need professional help.”

Lionel realized what he sounded like he was implying. He decided to rephrase himself. “I mean that we need to go about this more scientifically. We can’t continue to have ‘secret meetings’,” he made air quotes with his finger, “in my office in order to come up with ways of throwing our children together. I’ve managed hundreds of hostile takeovers and this one won’t be any different.”

He threw some bills on the table even though they had not ordered anything. “I’ll contact you soon, Gabe.”

Gabe stood at the table, watching Lionel's retreating back with growing trepidation. He had a feeling that Lionel was going to jump the gun in the big way, the Luthor way, and fuck things up spectacularly, because he just couldn't give things their time. He didn't want their children to be together any less, but he knew that such things couldn't be broken over the knee. However, how to get that into the thick skull of Lionel Luthor was a different matter entirely.

Still shaking his head, he made his way back to the other table, waiting for Chloe to return from the bathroom. He'd make sure they never had Thai food again and he'd definitely check in with her tonight. Taking a sip from his drink, he eyed his own plate warily, then pushed it away from him enough to not have to smell the odors coming from it directly.

[fussy_wuzzy]

Once again, great work!!! I'm really enjoying Gabe and Lionel's efforts being thwarted.

[mimi71884]

more more more more more more!
more more more more more more!

more more more more more more!


more more more more more more!



more more more more more more!

[Gaia]

That ............ was.........sooooooooooo.....FUNNY!
Poor Gabe and Lionel, they are trying so hard...
I loved the update.:D
:)

[lexchloe]

hee hee. Great update. Nice Chloe/Gabe bonding and Lionel/Lex bonding (they were doing it in the Luthor way!!!) Lionel is hilarious in this. Love how he's so determined to get them together and Gabe is the rational one. Can't wait for more.

[bluengreenswmer]

This is hilarious! I love it.

BTW, is it too early to ask for an update?

[cwong]

Even now I still think it's beyond hilarious that Lionel Luthor is trying to set his son up with Chloe. Anyone else see the irony here?

[June]

“What it means is, that since taking a woman of low standards isn't serving the purpose, and applying high standards didn't work either, you can resign yourself to the fate that the father of Bruce Wayne would have had, if he'd survived to see it. As far as an heir to the Luthor line goes,” Lex shrugged a shoulder, “I guess you'll have to depend on Lucas for that one. I'm out of the game.” With that, he got up from the table, intending to leave and maybe get a sandwich before it was back to work.

I have a feeling Lex is going to be eating his words sometime soon. Lovely chapter, can't wait for the next one.

Oh, and the comment in refference to Lex's tantrum had me laughing for about five minutes. Priceless.

[hfce]

This is getting goood but very complicated. How are they going to get Chloe and Lex together. They are really stubborn and not very cooperative. Good luck it will take a miracle. LOL!

Hope :)

[star del mar]

This line killed me, lol...just too funny, lol


A chuckle rumbled out of Lionel’s chest. “Lex, I wouldn’t call the Inquisitor a newspaper. If I believed everything I read in there, well,” he spread his hands, “I’d be an alien now, wouldn’t I?”

I loved the update, Gabe and Lionel's master plan is being thwarted! Lionel's right they have to get a bit more creative and that can only amuse me even more :D

Steph*

[summer_enchanted]

:love2:Great update. Can't wait for more, Love it.:love2:

[Gemkat5]

I think it was good that they didn't see each other. Chloe knows for certain Lex doesn't like Thai and 'bumping' into each other twice in ...how many days? would have been too obvious, they're both smarter than that.

The problem I see now is that I have to wait for the next update!!!!!!

Telling you to make it a good one would be redundant....so... until next week ladies! :D

[autumngold]

This is such a fun story!! I know it's twisted of me, but I'm glad that Lionel and Gabe's plan failed this time!! Now they're going to have to bring out the big guns!! Please post again soon!! I can't wait to see what Lionel has planned next!! :)

[mimi71884]

yay!

love to see Lionabe fail once in a while, but i'm looking forward to seeing Strategizing!Lionel... :D
Can't wait to read more... will Lex realize who gave him the tip on Skylar? Is he curious about it?!

I'm so loving this, update soon please!! :) :) :)

[manny]

love the story but, could you not be so mean about thai food .I love it .please update soon .

[BlueSabby]

A/N: Blue: More back and forth with the meddling daddies. Enjoy!

A/N:Sabby: Yeah uhm...what she said.


There were reports to be looked at, calls to be made, heads that should be rolling. But, Lionel found it difficult to do anything expect read over the update from his personal private investigator. He’d already done so numerous times, if Gabe knew how many the man would give him a severe talking to and perhaps some medication, but he thought that he must be missing something.

Things couldn’t be as dire as they seemed. He refused to believe that.

The non-meeting in the restaurant had been six weeks ago. He had given the PI his new assignment the next day. Lionel didn’t know what he hoped to find by having them tail Chloe and Lex, but he thought that whatever information was collected would be helpful in getting their two pigheaded children on the path to matrimony. Not happily ever after, because that was impossible. Especially when you looked at the couple in question.

The report held no magic answer, however. The only encouraging sign was that neither of their children had shacked up or gotten into a relationship in that time frame. A huge feat for both of them. Sure, there was the random tryst, but nothing beyond that. Briefly, he had considered editing Chloe’s side of the report for Gabe’s benefit but Lionel knew that the man lived in the real world and there was no need to do so.

He threw the report back on his desk and tilted his chair towards the window. He resolved that he would leave the report alone and get some actual work done. He stared absently at the skyline of the city for a few minutes. When he shook himself out of his reverie he found that he had, again, picked up the report.

Disgusted with himself, he threw it across the room. Their children would have to bend to their will and it would have to happen sooner rather than later. If not, Lionel would be the second of the Luthor men to spend some quality time at Belle Reve.

Gabe picked up another report, reading through the numbers with one eye. Over the last few days, his mind had been steadily preoccupied with the 'Chloe and Lex situation'. It had been six weeks now and Lionel and he had made several more attempts at creating a coincidental meeting between the two, but it had failed every single time.

When they'd tried for a meeting in the offices, Chloe and Lex had managed to end up in different rooms at opposite ends of the floor. When they'd tried for the restaurant approach again, Lex had steadfastly refused to accompany his father and found one excuse after the other not to go. When they'd tried to get them together at some gala event, Chloe had called last minute and given a raincheck because of work. It was like the fates had a problem with them playing matchmaker and were doing their worst to thwart any and all of Lionel's and Gabe's plans.

At first, Gabe hadn't been too concerned. He knew that things like this took time and that pushing the envelope would only have a negative effect. Now however, he began to see things a little differently and was almost tempted to give in to Lionel's idea of shifting it up a gear. However, there was no way he would give the other man free reign in what they did or didn't do in terms of matchmaking. Heaven only knew what Lionel's mind could come up with and enact when not contained.

Throwing the fiscal report aside, Gabe leaned back in his chair and started to massage his temples. Brooding was not his forte and it tended to give him a headache. If only things could be a little easier. Their two kids could be together already and start a nice healthy, equal relationship and finally stop acting like lunatics without a smidgen of common sense when it came to their personal lives.

Chloe knocked on the door to her father’s office as she held fast to the huge item in her hand. His secretary was nowhere to be seen so she had no help as she hung onto the huge stainless steel mixer that she had splurged on for him.

After she had moved out, her father had taken up cooking as a hobby. The hobby had intensified with the years and he was now quite a proficient chef. However, he was held back by his lack of good cooking tools. He would never spend any money on himself so Chloe was forced to do it.

Her arms were burning and she prayed that her father was in his office. If not, the mixer would be hitting the floor in about a minute. She had already carried it a few blocks from the store and even though she was in fine shape, she wasn’t a weight lifter by training.

When the door opened revealing her father she smiled and said, “Help.”

Gabe was surprised to find a huge mixer in front of his face asking for help. Taking the kitchen tool from the arms supporting it, he found Chloe, slightly out of breath and red in the face.

“Sweetheart, you're mad! I told you I don't want you to spend money on me,” he started right in on her as he lugged the rather hefty equipment over to the side of the room and deposited it next to the fridge.

Truthfully, he could assess with one look that he'd love this piece of machinery and would put it to use whenever he could, but it still didn't sit well with him that Chloe spent what little money she made on buying him something. And of course it made him a bit suspicious, because usually when she bought him something there was another reason behind it. A reason that could be anywhere between wanting to be invited to dinner up to and including money for a new car or her latest misdemeanor.

Smoothing down her now mussed hair, Chloe snorted. “And since when have I ever listened to anything that you tell me?” When her father didn’t say anything she said, “Exactly, so I’m not about to start now.”

She plunked her purse down on the floor and then flopped down in one of the cushy chairs in her father’s office. It might be a few minutes before she was actually able to move again. Panting, she said, “You just better make me one of those amazing cakes as a thank you being that you won’t tell me what’s in it.”

Chloe fixed her father with a stern look. He would usually give her his recipe for anything. But, this was not the case with his triple chocolate cake. Chloe had tried time and time again to replicate it but she just ended up with a lopsided not as yummy cake. He had promised her that the secret to the cake would be her wedding gift. Every now and again she considered running off to Vegas just to get it out of the man.

Then again, the ensuing heart attack he had wouldn’t really be worth it. Truth be told she wasn’t really after him baking her a cake. She had seen the item, known her father would want it and just bought it for him. When she was growing up he had always gone without whatever he needed for her and she figured that now was the time to repay him…even if he didn’t realize it.

If he knew that, he would be aghast that she even thought that way. So she had to hide her true motivations by making it seem like she always needed something from him. It was exhausting.

Her father chuckled but before he could respond Chloe heard a crisp knock on the door and then saw Lionel Luthor enter the room. If she wasn’t so tired and cared a little more Chloe would have made herself presentable. But she figured that whatever Lionel thought about her was fixed in his head so why expound energy that she didn’t possess at this time?

Lionel’s gaze was fixed on the PI’s report. It was his building so he hadn’t waited for an answer before barging into Gabe’s office. He did it all the time and the man never seemed to mind. “Gabe, I think that I’ve got an idea about how to…”


Gabe's expression was as smooth as he could make it when Lionel barged into his office, even though the man had almost blabbed out their plan and thereby brought everything to fall. Getting up from his chair he walked across to the other man and picked up the report in his hand, giving it a quick glance before closing it. “The new project that's been giving us a headache for the last 6 weeks, that's great, Lionel. I'll be sure to look at it right away.”

He turned back to his daughter, giving her a genuine smile. “I'm sorry sweetheart, I'm afraid this can't wait.”

Lionel looked over to where Gabe was speaking. He hadn’t even seen the small woman because she was crouched down in the chair with only the top of her head showing. Damn. He had become so obsessed that he was now not even taking in his environment before speaking. This fiasco was causing him to slip. Unacceptable.

He smiled over at Chloe in what he hoped was a warm manner. After all, he would be her father in no time and it would be good if she stopped looking at him in the way that she usually did. He couldn’t blame her, really, but it would have to cease. He couldn’t be a reason for her not getting involved with Lex.

“No, Gabe, that’s quite alright. I’m sure it can wait a few more minutes.” He walked a little closer to the chair and said, “I’m sorry, Chloe, I didn’t see you sitting there.” His brows drew together when he took in her appearance. “Pardon me for being so bold, but are you feeling quite well?”

Even though she listened very attentively, Chloe found that she couldn’t hear the Twilight Zone music playing. Which was odd considering what was happening in the room. She couldn’t remember a time when her father’s boss had said more than two words to her. Or addressed her by her first name.

Sitting up a little straighter she answered the man. “I’m feeling fine, Mr. Luthor. I just spend the last few minutes carrying that,” she gestured over to the mixer, “so I’m a little winded.”

Lionel looked over at the heavy machinery and started to shake his head. “You should have called over here and we could have sent someone to help you with that. You could have hurt yourself.” He gave the young woman a stern look. He paused and then added, almost as an afterthought, “And please call me Lionel. I think that we’re past formalities after all of these years.”

Gabe's eyes widened at Lionel's obvious ploy to play nice and get in the good graces of Chloe. It was the exactly wrong thing to do, because Chloe would get suspicious and a suspicious Chloe was a snooping Chloe and a snooping Chloe would find out everything and their plan would go straight to hell, damnit.

“If you're sure, Lionel. But I thought it was an important matter, and I'm sure Chloe wouldn't mind waiting a few minutes or meeting up with me later, for lunch,” he turned to Chloe, shooting her a smile. “The mixer's great honey, but Lionel is right, you shouldn't have lugged it all the way over here. I promise if you come over for dinner tonight, I'll have that cake waiting for you.”

Now, however, he needed to have words with Lionel and make sure the man didn't single handedly botch up a pretty good, if slightly insane plan, because he hadn't got the right information.

Lionel was about to respond when he heard what was close to a ruckus outside the door to Gabe’s office. His red-faced assistant poked her head through the door and heaved an audible sigh of relief.

“Mr. Luthor, your son is waiting in your office for you.” Mimi was thankful that she had finally found her boss. Usually, he told her where he was going when he left but he had wandered out of his office without so much as a word to her. So, when the younger Mr. Luthor had shown up, he had to stall him.

Thankfully, she knew that Mr. Luthor was working on numerous things with Mr. Sullivan so he hadn’t been all that hard to track down. Unfortunately, the man’s office was all the way across the building. And, Mr. Sullivan’s secretary had not been picking up the phone.

Lionel was very perturbed. He had not been expecting Lex. Which meant that the boy was up to something. Which was not what Lionel needed right now. He nodded at his secretary and said, “Thank you, Mimi. Please inform him that I will be there directly.”

Taking in her harried look he added, “And there is no need to kill yourself getting back to the office. Wouldn’t want our insurance to go up because of an on the job accident, now would we?”

After she laughed nervously, Mimi nodded and left.

Turning back to the Sullivans. “It appears as if I have a meeting that I didn’t know about.” He handed the report to Gabe and said, “I’ll call you to discuss the matter after Lex has left.” He looked over at Chloe. “Have a good afternoon, Chloe.”

He rebuttoned the jacket to his suit as he walked over to his office. He had no time for Lex’s shenanigans today so he hoped his eldest son would be swift and then leave. But, with his luck what it was these days, Lionel didn’t hold his breath.

Gabe watched his boss leave, suppressing a scowl on his face. How was it possible that nothing ever went in favor for them anymore. Now Lex was in the office as well, and for once, neither he nor Chloe had been expected and neither Lionel nor him had a plan to use their presence to their own advantage. Damn.

“Well, I'm sorry about that. He's been a bit antsy about this particular project from the beginning,” he told Chloe.

Hopefully that would be good enough to cover up Lionel's more than unusual behavior and put her suspicions at rest. If it wasn't, they'd have a big problem.

Chloe laughed, “I’ll say. I was just about to ask you why you didn’t tell me that Lionel Luthor had lost his mind. Cause, really Dad,” she crossed her arms over her chest, “you can’t keep good front page stories from me just to keep your job. Your priorities are all out of whack.”

Thinking over Lionel’s brief appearance in the office she remarked, “You two seem to be on pretty good terms, though. I really never thought that I’d see a Luthor and a Sullivan work so well together.”

Well, neither had he, if Gabe was honest. How did that saying go, that a crisis makes for fast friends or something. “Yeah, well, it turns out we actually have more in common than we thought and when you're willing to cut the man's talons, working with him is actually quite fascinating,” he commented.

It was true, Lionel was too vicious and over the top in everything he did, but once convinced to take it a little slower or go a different way, things could work excellently. He pushed hard and demanded a lot, but that was why LuthorCorp was so high in the ranks of Forbes top 40.

“I guess Sullivan stubbornness just goes a long way in holding up against Luthor recklessness.” He shrugged.

Chloe shook her head and grinned as she tried to imagine she and Lex working together closely on a project. For some reason, she got the visual of an open window with one of them tossing the other out of it. But, she supposed if their parents could get along there wasn’t a reason that they couldn’t be civil to one another. In theory, at least.

Their last meeting had ended up in a physical fight, for god’s sake. That didn’t exactly bode well for their conversational skills.

“Well, I’m glad to see that you and Lionel have found a way to play nice with each other. While it might be a sign of Armageddon being upon us, the actual event not the crappy movie, I’m sure it makes work a whole hell of a lot easier.”

Chloe’s lungs were no longer burning and she was feeling much better. She hoisted herself out of the chair and walked over to her dad. “Now, what do you say we crack that puppy open and see what she looks like.” She gestured over to the mixer.

Gabe grinned at his daughter's statement and got up from the chair. He might just have made a little headway, if he managed to subtly press the point when ever it came up. And Chloe didn't seem suspicious about it, which was even better.

“Alright, let's see what you got your old man for bribery,” he joked.

At least this time, all she wanted in return was his triple chocolate cake. He'd half feared worse, like a new boy toy or well other things he didn't want to think of that directly followed this train of thought.

He still would have to talk to Lionel, though about what he could and could not do when it came to Chloe Sullivan. It was truly bad luck, or the fates' meddling that once again even though in the same building and on the same floor, Chloe and Lex wouldn't meet.

~~

Lex was standing when Lionel entered his office. Deciding to skip past the niceties, Lionel rounded his desk and sat down while asking, “To what do I owe this pleasant surprise of a visit, son?”

He hoped that his son wasn’t in the mood for a pissing contest. Lionel just didn’t have the energy to trade barbs with his son, all the while trying to figure out how to get him to want to be with Chloe Sullivan for the rest of his time on this mortal coil. It was far too taxing.

Lex's jaw clenched as he eyed his father over the desk and threw a file down in front of his face.

“What the fuck is this bullshit,” he demanded.

Before his father had time to say anything or play the 'I don't know what you're talking about' game, he went on.

“You're planning to cut down the workforce on Plant 7 by half, effectively ruining a plant that hasn't been in the red for years, only because it doesn't turn in the profits you expected the last fiscal? That's bullshit and you know it.”

Bracing his hands on the desk he leaned over the surface, getting in his father's face. “You also know that there's a much better way to handle this. Not only because we've used it before, but because of where it was used and who came up with it.”

Smallville was still a touchy subject for both of them, and the Luthor men avoided it like the bubonic plague whenever possible, but when Lex had seen the files on his desk, he hadn't been able to avoid it. The situation screamed plant number three from first to last paragraph and Lex would be damned if he let his father send another small town into ruin because he couldn't be bothered to use a more reasonable solution.

Even though Lionel had to be nice to his son he still found a witty retort that would send Lex into a rage on his tongue. He took a moment and then picked up the report. It had been prepared by one of his underlings weeks ago.

It was a bad plan from numerous angles but its true purpose had been to keep Lex on his toes. And, it had worked. However, Lionel could not afford to have Lex irate at him. And, if a plant in a small town was effectively killed by him, Lionel didn’t think that Chloe would be too fond of him either.

This was the major downside to the plan of the Luthor-Sullivan eternal happiness scheme. Both of the children would have far too much power over Lionel. But, like a good businessman, he knew that some sacrifices would have to be made.

“I’m happy to see that you’re bringing me actual figures instead of just your righteous indignation this time,” he remarked as he read over the red marks that lines the margins of the report.

Lex had thoroughly researched all of the options and had come to the correct conclusion that the report was, indeed, bullshit.

He looked up at Lex. His son appeared to be waiting for the perfect opportunity to throttle him, but Lionel wasn’t about to bite. He would give his son what he wanted. Not only would Lex not have a new reason to loathe him, but it also might throw him off balance. That could help them with their plan.

If Lex was questioning what his father was doing in the business world, he might be blind to see that Lionel’s hand was in other parts of his life.

Leafing through the pages, Lionel said, “I would have to agree with you, Lex. Obviously, someone made a mistake. I will take care of this matter right away.” He placed the report at the top of a stack of other reports.

He leaned back in his chair and awaited Lex’s response. He had spoken to some maintenance workers and Lionel was quite pleased with what they had to tell him. Now, he only had to get Lex out of his office and then Gabe on the phone.

For a moment, Lex was tempted to question his father's apparent lapse of sanity. Because that could be the only reason he simply agreed with what Lex had 'proposed'. Instead, he pulled himself together and nodded. “You'd also do the corporation a favor if you fired whoever was sloppy enough to draw up this suggestion. It's not going to be economic to use 'cutting the workforce' as a fits all sizes solution,” he stated blandly.

There was something not quite right here, it was downright suspicious that Lionel wouldn't make him fight more for this. The old man had always been about challenging him and going for the jugular. There'd never been a quarter given. When and more importantly why had that changed? Lex pushed it aside for the moment, content that he'd gotten this small victory.


A smirk slowly crawled up at the corner of his mouth as he remembered the first time they'd fought about this issue. 'That's the fifth time.' Back then, Lionel had been all grandeur and threatening him that he'd get one chance to defy him. Ever since then, Lex had worked harder and pushed himself beyond all limits to do it again and mentally kept a tally of how many times he'd managed to outright defy his father and get his way.

Lionel nodded. Lex would soon understand that in every company they kept at least one employee whose ideas were all bad. That way, they could leak that report to the competitors. They would be lulled into a false sense of security and then you could strike with your real proposal. He had caught numerous competitors off guard that way.

Chuckling, Lionel said, “I think that this company can survive who I want to keep on under my employment. I did a fairly good job of keeping this company afloat before you were born and since your joining up, haven’t I, Lex?” There was no need for the boy to think that he could actually give him directives. Even if they were worded as suggestions.

There was only so much that Lionel would abide while doing what was best for his son.

Now, he determined that it was high time that his son left the building. Lionel was itching to try out the new plan that he had hatched on his way over to his office. He wasn’t certain that Gabe would be pleased, but desperate times and all.

All he had to do was to get his son out of his office. And, he thought he had a pretty good way of doing that. “Son, I wanted to discuss your rash decision of not getting married again. I think that it’s dangerous and flies in the face of good logic.” He figured that should be enough to get his son to turn tail.

Lex straightened back up in his position, his face once more a hard mask. “And I think it is none of your business how I choose to lead my life,” he retorted.

If Lionel wanted to start a discussion about it, he could take it to his therapist, Lex wasn't interested. He'd made his decision and it was for the best. There would be no more messy relationships and no more future ex-Mrs. Luthors.

“I'll see you at the board meeting, dad,” he said as he turned on his heel and left the office.

The grin that spread over Lionel’s face was huge. But, he couldn’t dwell on the fact that Lex had played right into his plan. He’d do that later. For now, Gabe needed to be briefed.

He picked up the phone and dialed his direct extension. Chloe didn’t need to leave at that exact moment, but it would be very helpful if she left sooner rather than later. When Gabe picked up Lionel said, “Send Chloe away. Now. And then come to my office.”

He hung up the phone immediately. That way, Gabe couldn’t question Lionel about what was going on….and put a stop to it.

Lionel then picked up the phone to talk to the few men who he had in on this particular part of the scheme. As he did, he booted up his laptop.

Gabe hung up the phone, trying to keep his reaction in check. What the hell was Lionel up to now? Whatever it was, he got the sinking feeling in his stomach that it couldn't be good. But as it was, he didn't exactly have another reasonable option and he really wasn't inclined to find out what would happen if he went against the other man in this.

“That was Lionel, he's done with Lex and wants to go over these now,” he lifted up the file he'd taken from the man, earlier.

”Ok,” Chloe said as she gingerly placed the mixer back in its box. “I was just coming over here to drop this off. I didn’t have time for lunch, but thanks for the offer.” She kissed her dad on the cheek and then went over and picked up her purse.

“But, don’t you dare forget, you owe me one cake.” She paused and thought about how much stress she was currently under. “The bigger the better, too.”

She looked over at her father and scrutinized his appearance. “Don’t work so hard, Daddy. You look very frazzled. It’s not good for the skin. We’ll never catch you a woman that way. Which is, by the way, the next uncomfortable conversation we’ll be having at lunch. Consider yourself warned.”

Before her father could put up a fight on that one, Chloe whisked out of the office. She made sure to keep her stride pretty fast. She wouldn’t put it past her father to grab her and have a chat about her last comment, a waiting Lionel Luthor be damned.

And speaking of Luthors…..

[lexchloe]

How can you stop it there?????? :nono: There's more right? The rest just got cut off right? :puppydog: More more more please!!!

[hfce]

:eek: No this is not done. There is more right? Right. I want Chloe and lex to bump into eachother. Huh. Why do I get the feeling Lionel plan is to kidnap Lex and Chloe and have them stranded somewhere so they can finally get together. :yeahbaby:


Hope ;)

[bluengreenswmer]

I just know that my computer is cutting the second half of the chapter off and you didn't just leave it there. Right????

[star del mar]

I want Lionel and Gabe's scheme to work so bad that it's almost sad, lol, I'm rooting for them and they just keep on getting foiled!! But it sounds like Lionel has a good trick up his sleeve so I'll keep my fingers crossed and hope that Chloe and Lex fall into bed together :D lol, great update by the way.

Steph*

[hannagreen20]

That's it? Where's the rest? More please. My Queens, my goddesses, my inspirations. :) Please, more!

[autumngold]

I can't wait to find out what Lionel's new plan is!! ;) Kidnapping is a good idea, maybe you should just leave Chloe and Lex together on a deserted island!! I know, way to simple for two genius masterminds like Lionel and Gabe!! Thank you for the wonderful update!! Post again soon please!!:)

[fussy_wuzzy]

I absolutely love this story :love2:. Great chapter!!

[sylvia]

I love the way you're exploring not just a growing Chlex relationship, but all the other wonderful Luthor/Sullivan combinations as well (Lionel and Gabe's teamwork and management methods especially -- too funny). And I love your writing styles: the tonal changes as you switch from character to character are really well done. Can't wait for your next update!

[mimi71884]

AAAAAHHHH!


what?!?! My eyes must be failing me, I don't see the rest of the update! argh!!!


PLEEASE PLEASE PLEAAAASE update again soon!!

[Gemkat5]

I don't know about you, but now I want a triple decker chocolate cake!

oh, and this chappy good! :D I swear I smelled the oil from the cogs turning in Lionel's head! I like how Gabe covered up for Lionel so Chloe wouldn't be too suspicious, and its nice to know that Lex is still a little predictible. Good to know that they 'can' be channeled together--somehow.

Ok, now .... you were saying?? "Speaking of Luthor's"...

[carebear72884]

NOOOO! speaking of Luthors what?? ahhh.... I have read like 5 chapters to get caught up and you leave me with that clifhanger?? Come back, right now! I want more.
Good job btw, I really like this story. The Lionbe (is that right? I thought I read it somewhere) is great, what a fantastic idea for a fic.

[welshy]

Disgusted with himself, he threw it across the room. Their children would have to bend to their will and it would have to happen sooner rather than later. If not, Lionel would be the second of the Luthor men to spend some quality time at Belle Reve.

And I'll be sitting right next to you :P

I'm not wearing my glasses and I actually missed the proper ending right? please lol I love these fic, I hope there's going to be more

[Willower]

i'm really enjoying this story. i'm glad that teddy and skylar are out of the picture. please update soon :grin3:

[meg20]

I love this story and almost forget it, but fate couln't let it happen. I'm eagerly waiting for the next part.
Please update soon!!!

[LarkLuthor]

aw...Drat! I was hoping for another update while I was off line traveling home. Please Update!

Lark

[mimi71884]

I love this fic: so funny, so cute, and so sexy!... So please don't wait to long to... UPDATE!

UPDATE!

UPDATE!

UPDATE!

UPDATE!

UPDATE!

[dreamerjules]

One the plus side, I'm caught up enough to comment. On the minus side, Waaahh!! Speaking of Luthors, yes that's what we want. Many words on Luthors. What a wonderful premise. What fantastic execution. I love Lioniel. I love Gabe. I adore Lionbe. For the record, I'm not overly fond of author's notes actually in the story, but your's were wonderful. Intelligent, well thought out. Okay. I think even Lex would have difficulty coming up with enough words to adequately describe this fic.

BTW, I worship the Count's last name. Contr' Vance. Rather like Knockturn Alley, I didn't get it until I said it out loud for some reason. I wuv you!!!!

[ColumbiaBlue]

Just caught up and :worship: another great fic from you two so far! Lionel and Gabe had me in hysterics. I love those two.

Now, :eek: why isn't there a new update? I need a new update, you know.

:puppydog: :beg: Update soon!!!! Please!!!

~Manda :P

[BlueSabby]

A/N:Sabby: Oh I've been waiting for this *G* Heaven knows I did. *cruel smirk* Enjoy the monkey wrench!

A/N: Blue: Look...it's some Chlex. Not the kind you want but Chlex nonetheless

Lex had been waiting for the damn elevator for minutes already, getting progressively more annoyed when he heard a door bang somewhere down the hall. Turning to see what had caused the ruckus, he saw Chloe Sullivan coming his way at a clipped speed, obviously fleeing from her father's office.

He hadn't seen her since their chit chat and subsequent fight six weeks ago. The mat she'd threatened to send had never arrived, which turned out to be a good thing. She'd probably already gotten wind of the break up and he did not look forward to any comment she'd have about it. Somehow, females tended to stick together, no matter if they knew each other or not when it came to matters of who's 'fault' it was that a relationship didn't work out.

There was nothing to do but bite the bullet however, since she was already coming to a halt next to him. “Hello, Chloe. Running from something?” he quipped.

“Very astute, Lex,” she said distractedly as she peered over her shoulder. Her father exited his office but didn’t spare a glance in her direction as he walked further away from where she was standing.

Letting out a breath, she turned her attention back towards Lex. He was looking at her as he usually did. As if she were some strange specimen that he was studying. Instead of waiting for the usual question and answer period to start between them she explained, “But, it’s not something, it’s someone. I just informed my father that the next time we talk it will be his personal life that is on trial, not mine.”

“So,” she continued as she hoisted her purse further up on her shoulder, “I wouldn’t put it past him to run me down and explain to me that that wasn’t going to happen.”

She crossed her arms over her chest and rolled her eyes when she noticed another person that was waiting for the elevator. They were jabbing the already lit up ‘down’ button as if their life depended on it. It drove her insane. He could see that the button had already been pressed, what the hell was the point?

Huffing, the man stormed off.

Lex watched the man go, shaking his head slightly at the immature attitude, “It's funny that some people still think that stabbing the button until their fingers break will make the elevator come faster.”

Chloe's statement seemed a bit odd though, come to think of it, especially considering her strong emphasize on the word 'his'.

“So, meddling in his personal life for revenge, is that it?”

He could only pity the man if that was the case. As far as he remembered, it was hard to make Chloe let go of an idea once she'd gotten it in her head. Gabe Sullivan would probably find himself in front of the altar before he knew what happened.

The elevator dinged, signaling that its mechanical lazyass had finally climbed the huge number of stories to reach them. Lex motioned for her to go in first and she depressed the ‘L’ button, assuming that Lex was also on his way out.

“If I give you the kindergarten adage of ‘He started it,’ will you make fun of me?” Chloe leaned against the back of the elevator and watched as the doors closed. She added, “He’s constantly meddling under the guise of knowing what’s best for me. I just thought that it was time that he got some of his own medicine.”

Lex smirked, leaning against the adjoining wall. “Believe me, I know how it is to have someone interfering with your life at every step you make, so no, I won't hold it against you,” he answered.

The cabin was slowly making its way downwards, the electronic numbers on top of the doors alternately lighting up and fading out. If they could keep the conversation on the topic of Chloe they might just arrive downstairs without getting into a fight.

“So your father has been trying to set you up? It sounds a bit, off, if you don't mind me saying that.”

“I don’t mind you saying so, it would be off, as you put it.” She rummaged around in her bag and took out some gum, she offered some to Lex as she popped it into her mouth but he declined.

Not knowing why she was disclosing this to Lex of all people, she said, “He just judges the men that I do date. Finding all sorts of things wrong with them. I know that no man will ever think someone is good enough for his daughter, but, I really want to strangle him sometimes.”

No matter that she could see what her father’s points were with most of the men. It was her life and she would make the mistakes that she did.

The elevator continued its descent but Chloe swore that it never went this slowly. “I guess that you get that a lot from your dad, too.” She paused and then gave him a small smile, “Complete with the homicidal tendencies, I’d wager.”

Lex smirked and shrugged a shoulder. “It's been known to happen,” he answered vaguely, not interested to get in depth into the discussions between Lionel and him when it came to his choice of women. “But now I don't think it'll be an issue anymore.” He hadn't meant to say that much, but it had slipped out none the less.

He could only hope that she'd just run with it and assume it was because of Skylar, he really didn't want to get into a discussion about his new choice of lifestyle. Somehow, he didn't think Chloe would approve of hearing that he'd sworn off relationships completely and turned to the occasional fuck only to relieve his pressure.

He looked up at the numbers, wondering why they weren't in the lobby yet. The numbers seemed to go by slower than usual.

‘Don’t ask, don’t ask, it’s none of your business, don’t be nosy, don’t ask.’ Fighting her true nature was usually a difficult task for Chloe. She wanted to know if it was just the Skylar situation that Lex was referring to. However, there were a few things that held her back from asking.

One was the fact that Lex wouldn’t tell her anything, most likely. She was a reporter, after all.

Two was the fact that she supposed that it really was none of her business. She and Lex weren’t friends so she didn’t have a right to know what was going on in his head.

But, it was the third one that kept her in check. She didn’t want Lex to think that she was asking him questions because it would get her something. There were enough women in his life that used their relationship to their advantage and she wasn’t about to be one of them.

“I was sorry to hear about Skylar. I know that you don’t want to discuss it and we won’t but I just needed to tell you that.” Chloe continued to stare at the numbers on the console. They were between the eighth and ninth floor, then the numbers changed to ten and then back to nine. She blinked, assuming that her eyes were playing tricks on her.

“But, I’m sure that you’ll be able to put her behind you. Maybe have some fun.” She turned to look at him. “There is something to be said for just having a fun,” she caught herself from saying ‘meaningless’, “relationship every now and again.”

Lex shook his head, fighting a smile at Chloe's disclaimer. She seemed to have changed since he'd known her in Smallville. Sure, she was still stubborn and obstinate and jumping into things without thinking, but at least she'd stopped from going for the jugular when it really wasn't necessary.

“I'll give it a thought,” he retorted, looking up to the numbers over the doors.

They were flashing between the nine and the ten. Now that he paid attention, sure enough, the elevator had stopped moving. He pressed the nine button on the console. It lit up, but nothing happened. He didn't want to say it, but there was only one explanation.

“I hope you didn't have any plans for this afternoon,” he said slowly, “Because we're stuck.”

Lionel sat back from the computer screen and awaited both of the Sullivan’s reaction to the news. The new plan was not perhaps the best that he had ever come up with but it was a way to force the children to talk.

Plus, the last time that they had been in close proximity things had gotten interesting. He could only hope for the same result. Maybe if he kept them in there long enough they’d take it upon themselves to think that a nuclear attack had happened and it was now their responsibility to repopulate the earth.

Gabe entered Lionel's office in short strides, the secretary not even looking up from her desk. She'd gotten used to him showing up without notice fast. Closing the doors behind himself, he found Lionel at his desk, staring at the screen of his laptop. Not a good sign.

“You're not watching the tape again, are you,” Gabe asked, only half kidding.

The man could really get too obsessed for his own good. He half wished that they'd get new video feed so Lionel would have something else to watch. That thought made a slow trickle of dread run down his spine. On his way over, he'd noticed that the elevator’s numbers were acting up, flashing between nine and ten. Gabe swallowed hard. Something told him he'd need a drink and sooner rather than later.

“No, Gabe, I’ve got something new to watch.” He gestured to the screen and leaned back a little so Gabe got an unobstructed view of their children who were now trapped in the elevator. Before the other man could speak, Lionel said, “I assure you, they’re safe and no harm will come to them.”

Though he would do almost anything to ensure his son’s future happiness, putting him in grave danger was not one of them. He was assured that only that one elevator would be affected and that Lionel could end what he was calling ‘the test’ at any point in time.

“I just thought that they should get another opportunity to chat one on one.”

Chloe’s voice made him turn back towards the laptop.

Her face in her hands she groaned, “Why do these things always happen to me?” Realizing that Lex’s track record with weirdness was also very impressive she amended her question. “To us.”

She picked up the emergency phone and a crisp voice informed her that there was a small technical error that would be cleared up in a few minutes. She relayed that message to Lex. “So, what would you like to discuss world politics, the new Wayne Industry initiatives, just what either or both of us have done in a past life to deserve this?”

Lex rested his head back against the cool wall of the elevator and stifled a groan. “The government needs an extreme overhaul as bad as it did 5 years ago, Wayne's initiatives are inventive and inscrutable as ever and as far as past lives go, it must've been something involving the absolute disregard of people's right to freedom.”

He resigned himself to being stuck in an elevator with a woman that would probably find a way to start a fight within five minutes flat and mentally calculated the space they'd have, deciding there was no way they could sort it out physically this time. “Then again, maybe it was instant retribution for your scheme.”

Chloe pondered Lex’s words. Either one of his theories was workable in this situation. It was just a matter of deciding which one seemed more plausible. “Well, either of those options could be the cause of all of the problems. I guess we just have to decide whether it’s the amount of wrong doing involved that pissed off the gods. Cause if it is, then this is all your fault.” She looked over at Lex.

“However, if it is the latest sin that we’re being punished for than this is all my fault, I suppose.” She leaned against the back of the elevator and crossed her arms. “I think that it should be taken into account, though, that my actions are in direct response to my father’s. So, I say we blame him for this.”

Even though Chloe had prattled along, Lex's mind had ground to a halt at the 'all your fault'.

“What exactly were you alluding to with, 'the amount of wrong doing' and subsequently this being my fault,” he asked.

“Whatever makes you think that I'm the one leading in that category? For all we know about each other, you could have more skeletons in the closet than I have.”

He knew this wasn't going anywhere good, but he wouldn't let her lay the blame squarely at his feet. Even if they were only hypothetically speaking and there was no such thing as divine retribution for wrong doings, or at least it wasn't very likely. It was just an unfortunate coincidence.

In any case, if she tried to put the blame on him, she should be prepared for the echo. And that would be resounding, literally as well as figuratively speaking.

She was trying not to jump down his throat, she really was. But for Lex Luthor to imply that she had more wrong doings in her past was flat out ridiculous. It was just like his arrogant self to blame this on her in some way. Sure, he couldn’t have done anything that would have made karma come and bite them in the ass.

“I would think that based on what we do know of each other that if this were some sort of cosmic retribution, it would be sixty percent of you and forty percent of me. I’m not the one that looks at people as pawns in their game. The only thing that I’ve done in the more recent past to be ashamed of is try to get back at my father and give him a little taste of his medicine.” When Lex started to speak she ignored him.

Taking a step forward she added, “In fact, the one skeleton that you might even be interested in knowing about was something that was a good deed, not some nefarious scheme to overthrow another company, nation or whatever the hell it is that you do all day from your ivory tower.”

She wasn’t yelling…not yet. But she wasn’t that far off from it. Chloe knew that she needed to take a figurative, and literal, step back but there was nowhere to go. She and Lex were trapped together and she could see their conversation was spiraling out of control. And if the look on Lex’s face was anything to go by, things were about to get much worse.

It wasn’t that he looked mad it was that the mask that always settled on his face when he dealt with people who were of no consequence to him had fallen off. There was a hard glint in his eyes and he moved even closer to her but Chloe refused to back away.

Typical, it was just too damn typical. And grating on his nerves. Had been since he was old enough to understand. People automatically assumed that what they read in the newspaper was of course true and of course everything there was. Never mind the fact that not half of what his life was made of truly did end up in the newspaper, because he liked to have a smidgen of privacy left, thank you very much.

“What you know about me, is exactly nothing, Chloe. You've read about things I did, you've read about things I said. In a newspaper. But hell knows, you're probably still naive enough to think that just because it is printed in black and white, it is also true.”

He'd really had it with listening to the same bullshit people had been accusing him off ever since he had taken his MBA to use. “Convenient, isn't it. Never mind the fact that you should know better. Never mind the fact that you've seen for yourself how I do business. It was over a decade ago, granted, but I'm sure you can look it up in your archives. Or maybe, ask your father. I'm sure he will remember, after all he played an important part in it.”

He'd closed in on her and his voice had become colder with every word. This was a subject that had always and would always rub him the wrong way. From the start, he'd done nothing but tried to prove himself as a good business man and honest guy. Yes, there had been instances when he walked the shady side and yes, he had destroyed companies. But damnit, that was part of business. He wasn't evil incarnate.

Chloe wasn’t about to be strongarmed by Lex. Just because businessmen and mindless debutantes alike cowered before him did not mean that she would. She had kept her body ramrod straight when he had come face to face with her. She could feel the puffs of his breath on her face when he spoke.

“You make an excellent point, Lex.” She made sure to keep her gaze fixed on his. She wasn’t going to be the one to break eye contact first. “I did have an opportunity to observe you 10 years ago and I do have an extended archive on your business dealings then, and now. But, you’re presuming to know what I thought and found out about you back then.” True, Lex’s dealings weren’t all covert ops but he had done some questionable things even back in Smallville.

Chloe decided to ignore the fact that she had agreed with most of those decisions. It wasn’t germane to the discussion that they were having right now.

“As for my father,” Chloe spat out the last word of the statement because it was his fault that she had even mentioned getting back at him, “we both know that you would never have kept him abreast of every dealing that you made.”

Gritting his teeth, Lex shook his head marginally. “Believe what you will, Chloe. After all, if the Planet says I'm a soulless corporate raider, it must be true.”

Part of him wanted to mention the reason he'd just stormed in and out of his father's office, but he knew it wouldn't help his point. Nothing would. Chloe Sullivan had made up her mind and once she did, Lex knew she'd stick with it, how ever wrong it might be.

Lionel was faced with the fact that this might not have been his best decision ever. The two children were standing face to face but not in lust for each other, but anger. Lionel knew that the two emotions would interact in the relationship of the individuals that he was watching on the screen but not this amount of anger.

It was clear that they were both fuming at the other and something needed to be done. And soon before things got even more out of control.

He reached over Gabe and picked up the phone. “Get the elevator going. Now.” He listened to the other man on the end of the line. “What do you mean that it’s not that simple?” Lionel took a deep breath and remembered the other man mentioning that fact before this began. He wasn’t worried about it at the time.

He thought that that had to do with the fact that Lionel had thought that things would go well between the kids. And, therefore, the delay in getting them out would not have mattered.

“Just get it moving as soon as possible.” He hung up the phone and looked at Gabe. “It should only take a few minutes.”

Looking back on the screen, Lionel wondered if that would be too long. He was far too tired to cover up a double homicide today.

Gabe's eyes were riveted to the screen. His daughter looked about ready to throttle Lex and the younger Luthor looked like he was ready to make a call to have her disappeared. He could understand why. True, he knew for a fact that Lex hadn't always let him in on all his dealings. But if it had affected the plant in any way, Gabe had always known before anyone else and in some cases, Lex had even gone as far as to ask for advice.

He'd never talked to his daughter about it, because he didn't think she'd be interested in paper work pushing, and she'd had enough going on in her life to ask him about it. Now of course, he wished they'd talked more about it, because that could've at least prevented this fight.

“That's exactly a few minutes too long,” he muttered under his breath.

Chloe’s hands were fisted at her sides and she prayed that they stayed there. If not, she was going to be hauled in for assault as soon as the elevator doors opened on the Lobby floor. Lex was assuming that all of the information she got about him came from the Planet. Had he not seen her gather her own evidence and draw her own conclusions?

If not seeing it for himself, at least hearing about it from Clark. If she was honest Lex had never paid her much mind back in Smallville he had been too wrapped up in the dramas of both Clark and Lana. It didn’t leave much time for anyone else.

“I think that you’re making two crucial mistakes with your assumption. The first is that I get all of my information from the Planet and the second is that I think that you’re a, how did you put it, ‘soulless corporate raider.”

Chloe always played things close to the vest. Never show your hand was a motto that she truly believed in. But, in times like these, it was hard to stick to it. She shouldn’t let Lex know that she knew under the table things about his company, but she couldn’t help herself right now.

“I doubt that a soulless corporate raider would continue to pay for the private high school education of an executive’s daughter that was lost in a merger to another company just so she wouldn’t be uprooted from her friends and family.” There was a history of this in Lex’s business dealings. It didn’t happen all that often but there was a pattern nonetheless. He didn’t want the lives of the men’s families that he dealt with ruined by their bad decisions.

She crossed her arms over her chest, a difficult feat being that they were both still basically on top of one another. “I would really expect more than assumptions from the man who’s made the cover of Forbes more times than I can count. Your shareholders wouldn’t be too pleased with your lapse in rational thought.”

Lex's brows flew up for a moment as she threw that argument in his face. He'd been sure that none of that had gotten out. If he went around publicly playing the philanthropist for employee's of other companies he could very well bury himself right there and then. How the hell did she know about this? And more importantly, why the hell had she been keeping close enough taps on him to find that out. But more importantly. “You're attacking and offending my rationale after you just went from insinuating that I'm evil incarnate to throwing good things I might have done in my face within a minute flat?”

She was being downright ridiculous, that was for sure. “If I was you, I'd be more concerned with your own rational thought. If you act like that in the choice of your partners as well, it's no wonder Gabe is trying to butt in!”

Chloe had heard quite enough from the windbag standing in front of her. Especially since he was now attacking her choice in men. Who in the hell was he, of all people, to judge that. Before she could stop herself, Chloe tore into Lex.

“You have the audacity to judge me on who I date? The idea is fucking laughable, Lex.” By now her voice had risen to something close to a scream. She was, no doubt, red in the face and probably looked like a madwoman.

“At least I don’t continually marry one mistake after another, decreasing my wealth with huge payoffs to the bimbos that promise to love and obey me.” The elevator lurched to life but Chloe barely noticed it.

“I’m not the one who was engaged to a person that was with me just for my money and name. A person that could be so easily swayed away from me and who was set to make a fool of me in the process as well. If you want to judge someone’s relationships with the opposite sex I suggest that you start somewhere closer to home before attacking me.”

His eyes narrowed to thin slits as she practically screamed the last part in his face. Things started to click into place with dangerous velocity. “You,” he stated, pointing a finger right at her. “You wrote that note. I don't believe it!”

He turned around, barely stopping himself from kicking the wall. “Did it ever occur to you that I could have just put the damn thing in the trash? Wrote it off as an attempt of a jealous bitch trying to break up my engagement? Did it ever enter your mind that I might have ignored it and what consequences this could have had? What was this to you, some sick and twisted game to see if I was sharp enough to follow your clue and solve your little puzzle?”

This was incredible, absolutely unfathomable. He'd almost wrote the note off as just a stupid hoax and the only reason he'd followed through was because, well he didn't even remember why exactly he'd followed the clue, but that wasn't the point. The point was she'd been playing cat and mouse with him and he hated playing that game.

Enraged that Lex would think that all of that was a game to her Chloe didn’t stalk out of the elevator doors when they opened. He would hear what she had to say to him. He didn’t have to remember any of it or believe any of it but, dammit, he would listen to her.

“Yes, Lex,” Chloe said, her voice laced with sarcasm, “that’s exactly what it was to me. Only a game. Cause we both know that I love jerking other people around especially since that has never been done to me.”

She picked up her bag from the floor of the elevator and noticed out of the corner of her eyes that she and Lex were drawing a crowd.

“I do apologize, however. I’m sorry that I even attempted to help you. I should have just stayed out of the whole thing. But, we’re both just wasting our breaths here. How about you stay away from me and I stay away from you? I think that that would solve things quite nicely.” There was a flash of a camera as Chloe stormed out of the elevator, people opening gawking at her as she made her way out of LuthorCorp.

He knew she was trying to get the last word in and he'd be damned if he let her. He didn't even notice what was going on around him and shrugged off the irritating flash from his right as he stormed after her. “Oh that's right, play the scorned woman. If you want to be that way, by all means! As long as staying away also includes for you to stop sticking your nose in my business.”

He didn't even know why he was so damn angry but at the moment, he wanted to throttle her with his bare hands until she stopped being so fucking irritating and accusing. It would take a lot of alcohol for that feeling to go away. A lot. And maybe a ride out of city limits at high speed, of course before the alcohol. He was enraged, not stupid.
Chloe whirled around and took a few steps towards Lex, noting with satisfaction that people were scurrying out of her way. “I will be more than happy to stay out of both your personal and business life from now on. If I need to see my father, I’ll call ahead so I don’t have to step inside this building and risk seeing your smug face again. Agreed?”

Pasting a cold smirk onto his face, assuming that that was what she meant with 'smug face', he looked down at her and answered coldly, “Agreed. Have a nice life, Chloe.”

That said, he stepped past her and made his way outside the main entrance where he knew his Porsche was parked and waiting. He really needed a drive now. A long drive, at high speed. And if he never saw another irritating, annoying, pinch faced, yelling, meddling blonde again in this life, it would be too soon.

[mimi71884]

Spot!

[godddess1]

*sniff* I'll get some chlexy goodness soon, no?
Anger = foreplay+Chlex right? Looking forward to more. Ciao

[autumngold]

Heartbreaking!! I feel sorry for both Chloe and Lex, although I wish that Chloe hadn't of had to keep the argument going because her feelings were hurt!! How will Lionel and Gabe get them together now? It doesn't seem that Lionel's ideas are working!! :) Thanks for the great update!! I can't wait to see what will happen next!!

[Gemkat5]

That wasn't exactly what I had in mind when I asked for them to ride the elevator together... although I guess it's my fault for not being more specific.

Oh well, at least they didn't beat each other up! :D and Lionel now has 'new' footage to obsess over!! :D

Maybe Lionel can arrange for the two of them to get 'kidnapped' ... oh, that's right, Lionel doesn't adhere to blackmail, so that ruse wouldn't work. Damn.

Well...can't wait to see what the two dads come up with to fix this problem.

[star del mar]

Doh! I'm thinking that the plan is kind of a bust, it's not looking to good. I mean a blow up was inevitable but DAMN! They really tore into each other. I love Lex and Chloe equally but I can't help but always feel bad for Lex, he has this image that he's always fighting against. I think that the Papa's are going to have to do some major damage control. Great update!!

Steph*

[lexchloe]

No,no,no. Aren't enclosed spaces and heated argument's meant to lead to kissage???? Great update. Lionel as usual is hilarious. The Chlex was great too, love how they inspire so much emotion (even if it's anger at the moment) from eachother. Can't wait for more.

[LarkLuthor]

Very entertaining...

Although I get the sinking suspision that that was more to tease us than to further the plot...

Remember to update soon!

Lark

[welshy]

LOL, maybe its because I'm weird but I actually found the conversation between Lex and Chloe really funny :P Maybe its the fact the harder Lionel and Gabe push to get them together, the further apart they go ... I find that funny lol I'm kinda weird that way. I hope you update soon :wub:

[meg20]

This was an amusing one, I liked the interaction. Think what you want, but I would have loved the beating each other up. Lionel sucks at matchmaking, but it makes everything in this story interesting.
I hope for more updates soon!!!

[hfce]

Wow yeah ok good luck in getting those two together. ;)

[fussy_wuzzy]

Very nice and lively chapter! I'm really curious as to how they're going to get together.

[bluengreenswmer]

Their master plan isn't working.......

what do we do now???

buy our island?
eat a pig's eyes?

I don't know!!!

[asharnanae]

Fantastic as ever, but I love that fact that lionel is thwarted at every turnn!!

heheheh!

[Queen Of Tact]

Ok, now that i'm all update date... great fic love it... Gabe & lionel are the best now just for Chloe and Lex to see that made for each other... And yes Skyler and Teddy are made for one another... I can't wait to read more....

CC

[Susan S]

I loved that update! I really liked the arguement that Lex and Chloe had. I think it's great that the fact that Lex's knows Chloe wrote the note. I would have loved to see Chloe tell him she didn't think he was so stupid that he wouldn't check up on something like that in response to his questions about checking out the note.

I can't wait to see what Lionel and Gabe say about what happened.

Susan S

[bluebrise]

Great update - I thought this chapter gave insight to Lex and Chloe's state of mind at the moment. And of course, I loved Lionel trying to manipulate things again.

[Gaia]

I know that we all want Chloe and Lex to be together, but this was just
brilliant!! A fabulous interaction between, that only they can manage!!!
Update fast please!!!!!!!!!!!
:D

[BellaMR]

I'm loving this fic. The schemeing fathers are just too funny.

[conquest 15]

Brilliant this is one of the best stories at the moment - keep it going its both humourous and devious at the same time

[chril1]

this fic is great, thier arguments are just funny

love lea
xxx

[Evelyn]

I know I'm being greedy but I need more! Fantastic writing as always.

Evelyn

[dreamerjules]

Okay, granted I'm getting my BlueSabby fix by reading Playing House, but, but... it's just not enough.

You guys are amazing. I'm in awe of how well you capture Lex and Chloe. Love y'all.

[carebear72884]

LMFAO....so typically Chlex. I can't wait for more, update asap.

[BlueSabby]

A/N: Sabby: Here you go fiends! We got some lionabe for you! and a new character. We loooove bringing in new characters. Have fun reading and remember Feedback is what keeps us from coming after you with sharp, pointy objects *g*


A/N: Blue: Hello kind readers, we've got another barnburner for you. More Lionabe (the name that has been given it always makes me laugh) Lex and Chloe both in a foul mood and the hired gun shows up. Enjoy.

As their children had left the elevator Lionel had grabbed one of the remotes on his desk and turned on the security feed that played into his office. He put on the appropriate channel and watched their children verbally eviscerate each other…in front of what he assumed was a reporter snapping pictures.

The man scuttled out of the building quickly and Lionel turned off the TV. “Gabe, it appears as if our plan has hit a bump in the road.” The man gaped at him and he continued on. “I think that it’s time that we fought fire with fire.”

For some strange reason Lionel felt perfectly calm and at ease. No deal that he had ever brokered had gone smoothly so he wasn’t surprised that this union wasn’t going along as planned. When things started to spiral out of control Lionel felt the most invigorated.

He had already made up his mind that Lex and Chloe would wed and there would be no obstacle too large that he could not overcome along with the help of Gabe.

Gabe somehow managed to relocate his jaw from the floor to where it actually belonged. “A bump in the road,” he repeated incredulously, “A bump in the road?!”

Lionel had gone stark, barking mad. That was the only explanation. Absolutely, completely bonkers. “Lionel, their fight in the kitchen was a bump in the road. Their not meeting each other when we tried to set up occasional meetings was a bump in the road. Even their significant others were pretty much just a bump in the road, but this. Did you not hear what they said? Did you not hear my daughter clearly state that she never wants to see him again. And did you not hear your son whole heartedly agreeing?”

He shook his head, pacing over to the wet bar to get himself yet another whiskey. This would never work. It had been stupid to assume that there was a way to get these two together. “They're like fire and oil, Lionel. They can't even spend two minutes in the same damn room without starting a fight!” It wasn't going to work at all. Not even they would be able to bring those two together.

Gabe saw his dreams of the future evaporate before him and turn into dust. No marriage, no grandchildren, no happily ever after. He would be doomed to watch Chloe date one sorry ass excuse of a man after another for all eternity until he finally died a lonely death. And if she ever decided to stick with one of those candidates, that death would be sooner rather than later. He finished his drink in a long gulp, shaking his head afterwards and resigning himself to his fate.

Lionel waited until Gabe was done freaking out before speaking. He was very dramatic and he saw where Chloe got it from.

“I did hear what they both said but they are wrong. I know that no woman has ever gotten Lex to such a state in his whole life.” Lionel walked over to the window and looked down on the streets of Metropolis. “She gets under his skin and it infuriates him. For all of the time that they have spent apart in the past few years, she still can read him better than those that have worked side by side with him for years.”

“Chloe has also clearly never met a man who would put her in her place when she deserved it and hold her as high in esteem as she is worthy of. Both of our children are starving for something that they don’t even know they want.”

He looked over at Gabe. “Abandoning our plan now would be folding to our children’s petulant attitudes. We will take a step back, however. I will stop fostering meetings between them and we will regroup in the best way possible.”

Walking over to Gabe, he made sure that the man was paying close attention. “I will not allow either of them to get in the way of their future happiness. It is unacceptable. I will hire a team whose one job is to tell us the best way to go about this. We are amateurs and it is now time to bring in the big guns. No expense will be spared and no prisoners will be taken. There will be a wedding and it will be within the next two years. You need to recommit yourself to this, Gabe. And you need to do it now.”

Gabe looked up at his boss and partner in crime without blinking. 'Stark, barking mad'. However, he knew from just looking at the man that he was absolutely serious and that this team would be hired, no matter what Gabe said or did. So there was really only one thing he could do. He'd have to stay on the team and make sure that Lionel didn't go overboard. Well any-more overboard than he already was.

“I want them to be together as much as you do, Lionel,” he started. “I just don't know if it's even possible anymore. Let alone with a special ops team or anything like this.”

It seemed so wrong all of a sudden. Except that Lionel had a point with what he was saying. Not the 'special team' part, but he was right in that Lex and Chloe were both obviously starving for something they were most likely to find in each other. However, they weren't willing to see that and furthermore had just had a fall out of epic proportions. He knew both his daughter and Lex well enough to know that it would be a near impossible feat to get them past that. Neither of them was the 'forgive and forget' type. At least, not anymore.

“Ok, hire that team. We'll see what they come up with and then we can go from there,” he decided.

Lionel nodded and then turned away from Gabe in order to place the call. He knew that the man had reservations in this scheme. Always had and always would until things started to go their way. But, Lionel knew that Gabe also loved his child. And that would keep him working at this. It was their duty as fathers and they both took it seriously.

~~~
When Chloe arrived home that night she had never been happier to see the place. Her day after the screaming match with Lex had gone downhill. Something that she had not thought possible after leaving LuthorCorp.

She had gone about her business, talking to the contacts for the story that she was working on, for a few hours before returning to the office. When she did, she was amazed at the amount of messages that her phone mechanically told her she had.

However, she hadn’t gotten a chance to check them because the managing editor of the paper had hauled her into his office. He had thrown paper after paper on top of his desk, reading out the headlines. His personal favorite, he informed her was, ‘Lovers’ Quarrel! - Who is the new spitfire on the Luthor Scion’s side?’

He had leaned over his desk and started grilling her for information on her relationship with Lex…and why the paper that she had worked for had gotten scooped.

At first she had tried to explain how she and Lex had known each other, but when she had mentioned high school and Patterson had assumed that that meant she had been involved with him since then and holding out on the paper, she changed tactics.

After an hour of explaining that she hadn’t dated Lex, wasn’t dating Lex and had no intention of ever dating Lex, she and Patterson had come up with a generic statement to give to the rest of the papers. Because, like it or not, this story was not going away.

She had gone back to work and finished her story sitting at her desk. Which was difficult because it had been wrapped with all of the front pages of the various papers. They each had the same photographs of her and Lex screaming at each other. Chloe got particularly irate when she noticed that her screen saver had been changed to read “Mrs. Lex Luthor.” If ever she wanted to kill her coworkers, it had been at that moment.

After putting her story to bed she had grumpily made her way home. This was not the way that she had intended to make a splash in the world of the media. A Nobel was more along the lines of what she was thinking. Not being linked to Lex as one of his trollops.

She sat on her couch and listened to the various messages from newspapers, TV stations, old friends, her father and even Teddy.

Deciding that she had dealt with this enough for one day, Chloe got up off of the couch and started to get ready for bed.

~~~
When Lex picked up the evening edition of the newspaper from his front door, the first thing his gaze was drawn to was the large picture on the front page center. Chloe and him in each other's face, mid argument in the LuthorCorp lobby. Taking a deep breath, he closed his eyes for a moment, exhaled and went back into his house, closing the door behind him with a resounding bang.

He made his way into the kitchen and sat down at the counter, the newspaper open in front of him, then slowly lowered his eyes to read the headline. At this moment he was only hoping that a few keywords wouldn't be in there. No such luck for him.

“New Lady in Lex Luthor's Life” was the headline and a scan of the first few paragraphs offered the words 'conquest' 'love interest' and 'possible future wife'.

Lex closed his eyes once more and counted to ten before he opened them again. Then he slowly reached for the phone. He had a few calls to make and a few heads were going to roll for this. How could he have been so stupid as to start a shouting match with the infuriating blonde in the middle of an open lobby even though he'd heard the click of a camera and seen the at least half dozen people around them? This was all [I]her fault. Now he'd need to get hell only knew how many newspapers to print a retraction and deal with Lionel and Gabe about the incident. Lex was sure neither man would be overly happy about this and the paper was already out, so there was no chance that either one of them didn't know.

“Peachy, just fucking peachy,” he growled under his breath as he dialed the first number.

~~~~
The meeting was unlike any that Guyan had ever had. Usually, she was tasked with psychological batteries whose focus was to break a person down. She had worked for various government agencies, not always the good U. S. of A., she went where the money was. But this was something new.

As was the payoff. The amount of money that Mr. Luthor had quoted to her was exorbitant. But then so were his expectations. He had told her in no uncertain terms how displeased he would be if the plan failed and that he would hold her personally responsible.

She had given him the speech that she had delivered to dictators and presidents alike. That it wasn’t an exact science, that the services that she and her team performed just increased the odds of getting the outcome that was advantageous to the people that had hired them.

Lionel Luthor had listened patiently and nodded his head. However, she could tell that he was just humoring her. He wanted a success and would be very displeased if he was disappointed. But he had to be prepared for whatever outcome.

It was not in her usual repertoire to make two people fall in love.

The new challenge was exactly the reason she had taken the job. She wanted to see if her methods could be used to bring two people together. It would greatly increase the number of jobs she could take and, therefore, her income.

The man sitting on Mr. Luthor’s right, Mr. Sullivan, was the one who was uncomfortable with what her team was doing. He was going along with it, however. She decided to tailor her presentation to him the moment after she had been introduced. Mr. Luthor was clearly on board but Mr. Sullivan seemed uncomfortable.

“As you can see, we aren’t manipulating anything in their environment. The reports that we have provided you are just our assessments of their personalities, propensities and way in which they look at the world. All of this already existing information will give you two everything you need in order to ensure that this..”

Guyan had to remind herself not to chuckle at the word that was being used to describe setting two people up to fall in love. “Merger occurs.”

She sat down at the table and looked over at the proud papas. “This isn’t mind control, this isn’t tying their hands in any real way. It’s merely a tool that we use in order to understand those involved.” Leaning back in her chair she said, “After understating what will and will not work with the participants involved, the battle plan becomes clear.”

Mr. Sullivan made a face at her last statement but it couldn’t be helped. She needed to sound aggressive for Mr. Luthor and yet not scare Mr. Sullivan. It was a line that would take some doing in order to walk.

“These reports are to ensure that neither of you go too far in what you are doing. If you do,” and then she glanced over at Mr. Luthor, “you will do far more harm than good.”

She stood up again and introduced the various members of her team and their assignments. They were grouped in regards to the five different tasks that they would perform. One group would be assigned to each of the participants. They would get to know Lex and Chloe, respectively, better than their own families.

Two other groups were tasked with interviewing former flames of each participant. There was enough money flowing around in order to keep all involved quiet. If not, she had other ways, as well. But, she thought that those that the two lovebirds had ‘dated’ in the past would be all too happy to take a quick payoff.

The final group was the most important. They would take all of the information and put it together in order to see what strategies could be used in order to bring the two reluctant participants together. The sooner the better.

The various reports sitting on the table were just preliminary data that they were able to pull together from speaking with the fathers about the history of their children.

“You both need to understand that it is key that you do nothing right now. You also need to understand that you will do nothing from this point on without my say so.” Again, Mr. Luthor needed to hear this as did Mr. Sullivan. Just for different reasons.

“If you do not listen to my directions it will severely undermine the future happiness of both you and your children.” She got up out of her chair and walked over to where the two men were sitting. “Do we understand one another?”

Though it wasn’t a binding agreement she felt it necessary that both men verbally agree to her terms. She did not have time to oversee her team while dealing with people taking matters into their own hands.

He'd listened to the lady carefully, looked at all the data, had reluctantly read a few of the former assignments she had successfully completed and gotten almost sick when he recognized a few of the names on the list as high ranking politicians. Two facts remained though. This whole scheme was completely crazy. Absolutely beyond all reason. Sadly, the second fact was that it was also their only chance to achieve their aim.

With a reluctant sigh, he locked his eyes with the woman in front of him and nodded. “Agreed, but if there's anything, and I do mean anything in your scheme that I cannot justify, or that I feel not only unnecessary but also as an infringement on my daughter's personal choice, or Lex's for that matter, there will be hell to pay,” he stated, looking over at Lionel to get some back up on that statement.

Lionel was ruthless, but Gabe didn't doubt for one second that the man had limits when it came to his own offspring, he wouldn't want something done that would constitute as permanent harm.

By now Lionel had learned not to be surprised when Gabe laid down the law. The other man could be just as forceful and hard nosed as himself. Especially when it came to his only child. “I’ve already had this conversation with Ms. Guyan, Gabe. She understands.”

Gabe looked over at him for a moment in a questioning manner. He had met with Ms. Guyan before hiring her and given her the requisite threats. She had barely blinked.

Now that the men knew their place, theoretically that was, she told them her last requirement. “We will be working closely together on a very important phase. I understand that I am a hired hand but I think a certain amount of familiarity on everyone’s part helps the process along. You will address me as Celeste and I will also use your first names. It seems silly to fall back on formalities at this point.”

This was usually a key point. She found that those that readily agreed and adhered to this point had better success in getting what they wanted. It made them more at ease with her and fostered a sense of working together that couldn’t be bought.

Gabe's brow arched up. Not for the first time, he didn't like the tone that this lady was using. She played on her position too much for his liking and he had a sinking gut feeling that this would cause trouble in the future. Especially with Lionel being involved. He looked over at the man in question to get his cue, even though he had already decided that he wouldn't let her address him like everyone else.

Lionel had to remind himself that he was doing this for Lex. He wasn’t accustomed to being told what to do. By anyone. Especially someone that worked for him. If she wasn’t the best in the field he would have sent her packing at this point in time.

Some of her demands were ludicrous. But, he wouldn’t tell her that now. It was best to see how much information she and her team could get out of those in the children’s’ lives before getting rid of the whole team.

He wasn’t a patient man and if he didn’t see some results in the previously discussed time frame he would hire someone else.

The last demand she had made wasn’t a surprise to Lionel. He had done his research on the woman. He knew that working with her would be difficult for him. She was the best in her field and knew it. That was a dangerous combination.

Some of the men he had spoken to had strictly adhered to her rules and others had not, with differing results. He was certain that both he and Gabe would push back as far as they could without actually breaking said rules. Then, he would see how she reacted to that.

Lionel responded to the power that she seemed to think she had, he didn’t want a weakwilled yes man in charge of this, but the woman needed to see that he wasn’t one who could be overpowered.

This whole operation would have to be played very carefully. The balance between the three of them was crucial but he was still the one paying for her expertise. If he sensed any insubordination from her she would learn how unpleasant it could be to cross him.

She was still waiting for an answer. “You will address me as Lionel at all times. Your team, however, will use my surname as well as Gabe’s.” He turned to the other man. “Do you have any ground rules?”

Gabe nodded curtly at Lionel before turning back to the woman as well. “You can call me Gabriel. If you need anything from me, you can call my secretary and she will give you an appointment,” he said.

He was not about to let this woman barge in on him whenever she felt like it. He had other work to do and wouldn't be the laughter of the entire floor when he let some unknown chick enter and exit his office without so much as a by your leave at any given time. Trying to think if there was anything else that needed to be addressed, he came up empty for the moment.

She nodded brusquely at the men’s demands. They would soon see that she had no intention of treating any of them with disrespect and knew that interrupting their lives was unacceptable.

Her ways sometimes ruffled the feathers of those that she worked for but she had far too many bad experiences with those that employed her undermining her team and then blaming them for the failure.

Lionel and Gabriel would not be on board after one meeting. They would just have to watch her work in order to determine if the three of them were a match.

”I understand that. I have no intention of causing either of you any more grief.” She looked over at her team. “We will get to work now. I’ve left you both copies of the reports that we’ve put together. How often would you like either myself or a team member to contact you with updates?”

Celeste took out her leather bound notebook in order to write down their instructions. She had found that there was no rhyme or reason as to when her employers liked to be contacted. Some preferred a call once an hour while others just wanted to be told when the job had been completed.

Shooting a quick look at Lionel, Gabe decided to give the woman an answer. “We want weekly updates and in addition to that, we want to be informed whenever anything of interest occurs, meaning for instance, if progress is made in any one area or additional information is gained. There's no need to call us every time either my daughter or his son sneezes, but we want to know if anything of importance to the situation changed that Lionel or I might not be aware of otherwise.”

They'd continue tailing their children of course and ask for information. If they completely dropped all talk about significant others when it came to their children, both Lex and Chloe would get suspicious in a snap. So they would gather their own information and in addition get the one the team was able to dig up. It should at least give them something to work with should this whole special ops team deal not work out.
Lionel didn’t feel the need to add anything at this juncture. Gabe’s directions were letter perfect. If he was given an hourly or daily update on the progress he was certain he would go mad. He had a feeling that he was already headed down that path, put there by Lex and his antics, and wanted to stave it off for as long as was possible.

Celeste smiled at Gabriel’s sneezing comment. He had obviously met and dealt with men like the ones that she had worked for in the past. While she was certain the two men before her were assessing her, she was doing the same.

Gabriel was unmistakably the clearer headed of the two. Most likely because Lionel was used to getting what he wanted. The report structure was what she preferred and was happy about her directions.

She took two business cards out of her suit jacket pocket and gave it to both men. “That is my current home number, my cell phone number and my beeper number. If any problems arise on your end, you want an additional update or are displeased with either my or any of my team member’s performance I can be reached using those numbers.”

That was the team’s cue to pack up. They did it efficiently and quickly. They left the room.

Celeste looked back at the men. “This job is different from the ones that I’ve done in the past.” She paused knowing that she wouldn’t have to enumerate the reasons how. “However, I will treat it with as much vigor as is expected of me. I give you my word that your children will not be harmed in any way that I will do my utmost to ensure the outcome that you both hope for. Now,” she swept up the last of her papers, “if you’ll excuse me, I have work to do.”

She waited until Lionel nodded at her before exiting the conference room. Once out of it, she got on her cell phone immediately. She needed to feel out the situation that the front page news of the not so dynamic duo had created.

[hfce]

Oh my Lord I love this woman already. I can't to see how she gets those two stubborn mules together. LOL!! They are to funny they are so much alike its scandalous. Great update girls I can't wait until the next installment. :D


Hope ;)

[lexchloe]

Another great update. Can't wait to see how Celeste and her team bring them together.

[bluengreenswmer]

Oo, now they're bringing the the professionals....Chloe and Lex won't stand a chance!

[fussy_wuzzy]

This story is sooooooooooooo good! Can't wait for more.

[autumngold]

I'm so glad that Lex and Gabe are now bringing in the proffesionals!! :) Great update!! Can't wait for more!! ;)

[tigroon]

This story is fascinating. I'd like to see more chlex though.
Regarding the kickboxing match it seems pretty unlikely that any experienced kickboxer would agree to a match in a kitchen and without protecting gear. I know I wouldn't spar without chest protection and most guys I know would not spar without groin protection. Gloves and mouthguards are also necessary. Kickboxing is a contact sport. But well who cares about likeliness as long as there is chlex ;)

[dreamerjules]

Yay! A new part. Really like it. Like Celeste. Can't wait to see what she comes up with.

[meg20]

Can't wait to see whats next.
Great update as ever!!!

[star del mar]

That was an awesome update! I almost can't believe the lengths that Lionel and Gabe are going to but I guess when you want something done...lol. This story just keeps on getting better and better, now all Celeste has to do is some major damage control :)

Steph*

[carebear72884]

Love the Lionable...love the OC...love the Chlex...love the bluesabby..more soon.

[Gemkat5]

The Both of you have really set this story in the deep end of the pool, you know that right? *EG* I love it! I like this Celeste woman, she really has her hands full with doing her 'job' and dealing with lionable-- but I think she can handle it as long as Lionel doesn't get too impatient and do something stupid.

As for the Chlex-- If I were Chloe, I'd be shooting rubber bands at everyone for putting that screensaver on my desktop! And poor Lex thinks a retraction is gonna fix things!

Great update, Ladies! :D :D

[LarkLuthor]

Oh, man...They hired real matchmakers? LOL Update soon!

Lark

[Louie]

This story is great can't wait to read what the teams find out

[mimi71884]

LMAO.... :D :D :D :D

They've gone and gotten the mercenaries of love to give them a hand. lol.

Celeste is a little... *cough* intimidating, no?!

Can't wait to see what sadistic/clever plan she and her team come up with.

This is absolutely hilarious. You've mixed in just the right amount of outrageous-ness!

Hope you update soon!! :)

[BellaMR]

Loved the chapter. I wonder if Celeste will become more important to one of the dads later. Lionel certainly needs a woman who can put him on his place.

[Louie]

I wonder if Celeste will become more important to one of the dads later. Lionel certainly needs a woman who can put him on his place.

I was rooting for Gabe myself

[Nadia_]

Don't now how I' writing.. This was just too damn funny! It's almost 2 in the morning, and I'm laughing like a mad here...I can't belive Lionel called mercenaries! But then, it's Lionel, eveything is possible!

I have the feeling that I will really like this Celeste... She seems to handle lionabe very well! And, as for her becoming more important to one of the papas I have to agree with Louie, I'm thinking in Gabe.

But now it's wait to see. Hope you guys post more soon!

[BlueSabby]

A/N: Sabby: So we have some more Celeste and of course the Lionabe and... bugger me if I know how much actual Lex and Chloe is in there. Look for it, though.


A/N: Blue: More meddling by the fathers. What, I've run out of witty A/Ns ok?



Lex was avoiding him. That wasn’t out of the ordinary but right now Lionel couldn’t afford that sort of thing going on. He would have to speak to his son about what happened. It would be a good way to gauge how he felt about Chloe.

It was too bad that he couldn’t see him face to face. He knew that there were those in Celeste’s team whose job is was to analyze body language. But, there were others who also analyzed the stress and certain other things in voices so a phone call wasn’t a lost cause.

One of his phones in the office had been outfitted for this reason. He picked it up and flicked a switch on it. A green light appeared and he knew the apparatus was working. He dialed Lex’s number and hoped that his son would pick up the phone. Caller ID was really quite an annoying contraption sometimes.

Lex stared at the ringing phone. Or more specifically at the number displayed on the screen. His father. Great. It didn't take a rocket scientist to figure out why the man was calling him at 7 pm at his own house when business was going smoothly. Taking a fortifying breath, Lex picked up the receiver and brought it to his ear.

“Hello, dad.”

He really didn't want to talk about it, but the longer he put it off, the worse it would get and the more likely it became that he would smash something. Those anger management classes he'd had back in Smallville really hadn't helped for long.

Well, this was a good first step. At least his son was amenable to speaking with him. Now Lionel needed to not show his hand when asking about Chloe. He needed to keep his questions within the range of those that he would normally ask.

“Hello, son,” he said, using the same tone as Lex. “I was just calling to commend you on the press you’ve gotten in the past few days.” He paused, as if he was considering something. “I would have rather it had been about a huge deal that you closed but a lover’s tiff in the lobby is just as good, wouldn’t you say?”

Letting the sultry tones of his father's voice wash over him like white noise, he answered, “How nice to hear from you, I'm doing good, and how are you?”

He couldn't help the sarcastic comment, even though he knew it wouldn't get him anywhere and was as likely to piss his father off as the loss of a pen or a secretary for that matter. “The press blew things out of proportion and context as usual, dad,” he continued. 'And without your help for once,' he mentally added. “Miss Sullivan and I got stuck in the elevator, she insinuated and outright voiced several insults and when I refuted them she obviously wasn't able to cope.” That was about as good as he could sum up the fight between them without making himself a target for his father's amusement or reproach. Damn Chloe Sullivan to hell for getting him into this.

“When she stormed out she was too busy ranting to notice the cameras and before I could say or do anything it was already too late. I'm sure you've seen the retractions this morning, though.”

It had cost him the better part of the night to get to all the newspapers and make each and every one of them print a retraction on the front page. However, he knew it wouldn't do any good. No one read retractions, since they didn't come with big flashy pictures or juicy headlines. There it was again, the headache building behind his eyes. He knew it wouldn't get any better from here on out, because Lionel's answer was coming his way. Lex knew he wouldn't like it.

Lionel chuckled in what he hoped was a patronizing tone. This wasn’t too difficult. “Yes, I did see the retractions in the paper. In fact, I’m looking at them right now.” Lionel picked up the various reports on his son and flipped through them.

“I noticed that they were on the front page. Nice work. However, it might have been better had you been able to get them above the fold.” He threw one of the reports back on his desk. “Your contacts in the press appear to be slipping, Lex.”

He picked up a glass of water and took another sip. “I fear that that trend will continue now that you and Ms. Sullivan have had a falling out. She’s not that high up on the journalist totem pole but they do look out for their own.”

He knew that Lex start to seethe at his ignoring his comment that he and Chloe were not involved. Lionel just had to stoke the fire a little more. “I do see your draw to Ms. Sullivan, though.” Here was where things got tricky. He knew that he’d have some explaining to do with Gabe about the comments he was about to make.

“She is rather pleasing to the eye and I must admit that there is a certain sway, shall we call it, to her hips that would intrigue any man.” He closed his eyes, trying not to disgust even himself. His reasoning was two fold. He hoped that his son would warn him away from Chloe. If he did, than she wasn’t of no consequence to him. Also, maybe his son would start to see that sway that Chloe did, in fact, possess. God, he really was a dirty, old man every now and again.

“Just ensure that it doesn’t get messy. I’m sure that Ms. Sullivan does have her price but it might be more costly than those women you’ve aligned yourself with in the past. I’m sure she could get a handsome fee for an exclusive into your bedroom. Make a name and career for herself.”

There. He had insulted both her physical person and her character. That should be enough for now. He just had to wait for Lex’s reaction. He hoped there was nothing expensive in his son’s vicinity or things could get ugly.

Lex listened to the drivel his father was spouting without batting a lash. He picked up a pen and let it travel through his fingers from thumb to pinky and back. “I can assure you, dad. There's nothing going on between Miss Sullivan and I. I have no interest in this woman whatsoever, and if you should have an interest in her yourself, you should be careful and brush up on self defense courses.”

Even though the thought of his father and Chloe Sullivan together made him revolt, he would not rise to the bait. His father was trying to rile him up with the usual tactics. It might have worked, if he gave a damn about her, which he didn't. She was irritating, back stabbing and had caused him more trouble within the span of a half hour than other women had in the span of a month.

He didn't give a flying fuck about the way her hips swayed or what her contacts with the press were. She was so low on the food chain he could end her career and most likely her entire life with one phone call. She knew that, so she'd be cautious about what she said or did. Irritating blonde viper that she was, she was smart enough not to cross him. Not on a public level anyway. Not intentionally in public at any rate. Suppressing a snarl, he threw the pen across the room, watching it land with a dull thud on the carpet. Not satisfying at all.

Lex had spat out the word ‘woman’ with a vengeance. Chloe had clearly gotten to Lex on a level that his son wasn’t aware of. Or, had chosen to ignore. Either way, it was an interesting turn of events. One that almost made Lionel giddy.

His son’s voice had remained level and even. But, Lionel could tell that he was beginning to get to his son. He didn’t want the boy blowing up on him. He just wanted to push him enough so that he would be thinking about and analyzing Chloe.

Lex would rationalize that he was only doing so because she had created problems for him. But Lionel thought that the more Lex dwelled on the woman the more he would see how different she was from the rest of the flock.

Again, Lionel laughed. “I’m sure that I would be able to handle that little slip of a girl if the opportunity presented itself. I could have her under my thumb in a matter of minutes. Unlike some men I know.”

Lex couldn't suppress the snort at that. His mind provided him with a high resolution image of Chloe executing a flawless spin kick and sending Lionel flying across the room into a random piece of furniture, preferably with sharp edges.

“Sure, dad. If you're so convinced. But don't tell me later that I didn't warn you,” he retorted.

Yes, she was a vicious creature, yes, he'd be happy never to encounter her again in this life time, but Lex still could give credit where it was due. And when it came to kick boxing, it was definitely due. If they hadn't been in such close confines, his ass would have probably ended up on the matt. Thinking about closed confines, he remembered the blow out in the elevator and his eyes narrowed.

“In any case, if there wasn't anything else that you wanted to talk about, I actually have to get going, so I will see you tomorrow at work,” he stated, his tone just this side of polite.

“There isn’t anything else that can’t wait until tomorrow,” Lionel admitted. His deed for the day was done. Just keep Chloe in the back of Lex’s mind. Where she was, no doubt, wreaking havoc on his sanity. He had to admit that the blonde would cause Lex numerous headaches along with pleasure. He smirked. Lionel couldn’t wait.

“And thank you for the warning, son. I’ll note it.” He hung up the phone and let out a breath. This was going to be worse than pulling teeth. He thought of the numerous green vials that he had scattered around the country. Some of them would be very helpful in this situation. But, he couldn’t use them. Gabe would surely murder him.

Lex hung up the phone and closed his eyes for a second, pinching the bridge of his nose to stave of the headache. He actually didn't have anywhere to go, but it suited him that way. His life was on fucking display whenever he left the house and it would be especially now that this thing with Chloe Sullivan had hit the press. Sighing deeply, he made his way into the kitchen and grabbed a bottle of water.

He'd thought cutting off the alcohol consumption was a good idea, but times like these it was really harder than it should be to not reach for the scotch. Damn Chloe Sullivan to hell, she was really the last thing he needed and he surely hoped that she got at least some trouble out of this whole deal at all. Reasonably he knew that it wasn't likely she'd get harassed too much, but it was still nice imagining.


With a smirk on his face he went back into the living room and out onto the veranda. No yipping furball going for his ankles and his home was his and his alone. It was a damn good feeling and he still appreciated it at the oddest times ever since Skylar had moved back out. Who the hell needed a relationship anyway? He was doing quite well on his own, thank you very much.

~~~~
Chloe slammed down the phone for what had to be the twentieth time that night. She was getting more and more pissed off. The papers would just not stop calling. Even people that she worked with were trying to pry the ‘truth’ out of her.

She had briefly considered changing her phone number but wouldn’t let them get the better of her. When she saw the retraction at the bottom of the front pages of the newspaper she had groaned. Lex had flexed his muscle to get them printed and it was a clear sign that he was not going to be bothered with this anymore.

Which left all of the annoying reporters calling her instead. She wasn’t anyone that could have them buried in an unmarked grave. So she had to endure all of her colleagues trying to get a story out of her. A story that didn’t even exist.

But she couldn’t let the pressure get to her. She was always cordial on the phone with her ‘no comment.’ If she turned into a ranting lunatic she was certain that the new headline would read something like, ‘Newest Luthor Bimbo a Head Case.’ Chloe wasn’t about to let that happen.

When the phone rang again she took a deep breath before answering it. “Hello.” Her voice was flat and she was just waiting for the barrage of questions to begin.

Gabe heard the tone of voice and winced. Apparently the article that came out yesterday had had a deep impact.

“Hello, sweetheart. How're you holding up,” he asked without preamble.

He'd meant to check on her earlier, but whenever he'd tried the phone had been busy and he'd not gotten a hold of her. Now of course he knew that all those calls had probably been the press bothering Chloe about information, never mind the retractions that had been printed and published in the next morning paper. If he ever got his hands on the sleazebag that had shot the picture, he'd give him hell.

Chloe smiled at her father’s tone. They might not always see eye to eye but she knew that he’d do anything for her. “Eh, I’ve been better,” she admitted honestly.

“If I have to try and not answer one more question about Lex I just may scream.” She flopped down on her couch and closed her eyes. Trying to do her job all the while attempting not to become a story herself had been more difficult than she had originally thought.

“Especially annoying, personal and totally out of line questions, at that.” Those at her own paper had been having a field day of it. Some of them were having far too much fun with it. They would ask her totally over the top questions, all the while trying not to laugh.

They weren’t the ones driving her crazy. At least they got a chuckle out of her. The ones that were the worst were those that had beats below hers. They looked at this as an opportunity to get ahead.

Plus, there were the women who wanted a little information on Lex for their own unseemly reasons. All in all, she was disgusted by the press this week.

Gabe made a disgruntled, agreeing voice. He had a few questions himself, even though he'd seen everything there was to see from the very beginning. Technically, he knew he shouldn't do anything at this point, but he still couldn't help but want to fish for some useful information. Lionel would have a fit if he knew. Taking a breath, Gabe decided to approach the subject carefully.

“So I take it they all still believe there's something going on, despite the retractions,” he asked slowly.

“Of course they believe that something is going on. It makes better press.” It was a hard situation that she was in. She understood where people were coming from. There had been a rather heated fight between herself and Lex. One paper had even transcribed their fight from eyewitness accounts.

Chloe had to admit that what they said could be misconstrued as two lovers having a fight. And, she knew that people always lied about being in relationships with those that were high powered.

“Plus, when you look at the fact that both of us just recently broke up with our significant others it makes things look even worse.”

Teddy had gotten involved. It hadn’t been a big article or one that was picked up on by many people but he had given an interview about her. Most specifically about how she was hard to please. So, that would have fit in with her and Lex having a fight.

Gabe hmmed once more in agreement, focusing his attention completely on Chloe. “It's good press, but not true. If you don't mind my asking, what made you get into such a fight with Lex anyway? I thought you hadn't met in years,” because technically, he didn't know about the meeting she'd had with Lex before they'd bumped into each other in the elevator. Chloe hadn't breathed a word about the little tiff in the coffee room to him and Lex never came up directly in any talk between them.

It was highly irritating, Gabe realized, that already now he had to be careful about what he said around Chloe. That he couldn't give away any information that might out Lionel's and his plan.
Running her hand through her hair, Chloe sighed. She had gone over the fight in her head and both she and Lex had acted like royal assess. It had been one misunderstanding after another. But because of their personalities neither of them had been able to see that at the time. Or diffuse the situation.

“That’s not entirely true. I ran into him a little while ago. Our conversation, that time, went fine.” Chloe decided to leave out the part where they physically accosted one another. She thought it was better that way.

“But the other day we got trapped in the elevator and then started blaming each other for it happening. After that, things turned personal. And you can imagine how well each of us took that from the other one.”

Getting up from the couch Chloe wandered into the kitchen and opened the fridge. But, nothing looked appealing to her so she shut the door again.

Stifling a snort at Chloe's rather blasé and not entirely truthful answer, he answered, “Yeah, I can see it clearly.” 'On tape, several times if I wish to look over Lionel's shoulder,' he mentally added.

“So do I have to be afraid of Lex ripping my head off the next time I see him in the office,” he asked, trying to find an approach for the next question which wouldn't be so easy to ask.

It really was a bitch, considering that the two of them fit so well together, that they seemed incapable of getting along for a span of more than two minutes at a time. If they would only use that spark towards a better purpose.

Chloe was a little thrown by the question. Why would Lex take it out on her father? He wasn’t like that. Though maybe Gabe didn’t know that. But it seemed odd that he wouldn’t realize that being that they worked so closely together.

“Dad, I sincerely doubt that Lex would take out his aggression on you. It’s not really like him.” Chloe wandered back out into the living room and flipped on the TV. The Weather Channel seemed a safe bet to avoid anything Luthor related.

“Though, if the picture frame that holds my graduation photo mysteriously breaks, I think we would both have a pretty good idea at who the culprit would be.” She chuckled at the thought of Lex sneaking into her dad’s office and throwing her picture on the ground. The man was prone to hissy fits but that would be a little too transparent for Lex.

Gabe chuckled, unable to even imagine Lex doing something as transparent and childish as that. Lex Luthor had grown to be very mature. It took a lot these days to make the man loose it, but Chloe didn't know that.

“Alright, so I'm safe, but what about you? I mean you two are prone to run into each other again, next time you come to the office or something, isn't that going to be a problem,” he asked as off-handedly as possible.

This was where he would find out. The turning point that would give him an idea if there was even a chance that the plan this special ops team had come up with could work. If Chloe was still hell bent on avoiding Lex Luthor, there was nothing even a specialist could do to change that.

Her poor dad. She could just imagine him being worried about World War III breaking out at his place of business. Though neither of them had shown any evidence to the contrary Chloe was fairly certain that both she and Lex would be mature enough to ensure that that didn’t happen. Well, she was, at the very least.

“Firstly, I don’t think that’s an issue. I told Lex that when I met you I wouldn’t come into the office anymore.” She wanted to assure her father that there wouldn’t be anymore of this going on so she expanded on what she was saying.

“And if we did happen to run into one another I think that we would be forced to be civil with one another. I don’t that either of us wants a repeat of what happened the other day.” Chloe turned off the TV. Weather wasn’t all that scintillating.

Gabe closed his eyes in resignation. So she was definitely still hellbent on ignoring Lex. And her saying she would be civil towards Lex if she should happen to bump into him was like promising not to breathe as long as someone wearing a godawful perfume was in the same room. Sooner or later, instinct would kick in and over power will.

“Alright, that's good to know,” he said anyway.

Now what the hell was he supposed to do? He knew that their plan could go up in smoke easily if the situation didn't change.

“Staying away for the moment sounds like a smart choice anyway, considering the press is still after you. Wouldn't want to have it smeared all over the front papers as if you and Lex ever decided to talk about it or something.”

Chloe snorted. She wasn’t sure how much her father had read about their conversation. He had probably just glossed over it knowing that he could get the full story from her. That was the only way that he would make a statement about she and Lex talking about it. The image of the two of them curled up watching Oprah and discussing their hopes, feelings and dreams was almost enough to make her crack up.

“I don’t think that’s likely to happen, Dad. Neither of us want a repeat of what happened and we both said we’d keep out of each other’s way. We managed to do it for a few years so I don’t see why we wouldn’t be able to keep on with that tradition.”

Gabe's face fell with that statement. He kissed the future goodbye once more.

“If you're sure,” he stated slowly.

This just wasn't fair. It was actually all Lionel's fault. Gabe distinctly remembered he'd been against the idea of trapping the kids in the elevator from the moment he'd known what the other man had planned. Look what happened if you tried to push these two together with extreme measures. You ended up getting exactly the opposite.

“So what're you going to do for the rest of the evening?”

Even though her father couldn’t see it, Chloe shrugged. “Nothing much. Just do some research for the current piece that I’m working on and ignoring the phone. I think that turning off the ringer is my best option. I’m sure that this will all blow over in a few days.”

Thinking about her schedule for the rest of the week she asked, “Do you want to meet for dinner on Friday maybe? I swear no more Thai food.”

Gabe thought about it for a moment, then nodded as he answered, “Yeah that'd be good. We could go to that little Italian place, or you could just come and pay your old dad a visit. I believe I owe you a triple chocolate cake?”

He hadn't forgotten about that, even though enough had happened to make him forget about pretty much everything else. If only Lionel hadn't fucked up so spectacularly. Gabe sighed silently.

“Oh, that sounds good. The cake I mean.” And the fact that he catered to her every whim, too. Chloe knew that her father spoiled her. She usually fought against it but she had had a rough week so she’d let him run wild this one time.

“I’ll be over around seven.” They said their goodbyes and Chloe was happy that she now had something to look forward to. Hopefully it would be enough to get her through the rest of the week.

~~~~
Another week had gone by and they had nothing to show for it. While Lex was only speaking to him when he absolutely needed to, Chloe had spent some time with Gabe. However, the two children had not seen each other since the public blowup. And, according to the reports that Lionel had just been handed, it was best for him to not interfere again.

The psych evals that he was looking at weren’t all that shocking or anything that Lionel wasn’t aware of. Both of the children had commitment issues along with abandonment issues along with the ‘I’m always right’ issue. Of course the language in the report was denser than that.

His left hand rested on the two reports that he hadn’t yet read. He was sure that there would be a fancy name on the cover sheet of them but it should have been entitled ‘Your Child’s Sexual History.’ Unsurprisingly, Lex’s was at least an inch thicker than Chloe’s. Not that the younger woman’s wasn’t impressive, as well.

Lionel couldn’t deal with those reports right now.

More crucial was the fact that Celeste had informed him that actively doing anything would jeopardize what the endgame was. She said that she and her team would come up with a strategy that wouldn’t end in such a scene in the lobby.
The only good news was that the tapes of their first meeting had been analyzed. While it didn’t take a rocket scientist to figure out the kids weren’t as disinterested as they reported it was still comforting to have hard data that backed up that notion.

In the report there was a breakdown of their physical contact, their body language, the intonation of their voices, their word choice and others of different variables. The report was cautiously optimistic of their interest in one another.

Sitting back and doing nothing was not a situation that he was accustomed to and not one he enjoyed. He would give it another four days before stepping in again….Celeste’s recommendation be damned.

[fussy_wuzzy]

I loved reading what Lex and Chloe thought of one another. Great update!

[bluengreenswmer]

That was just wonderful. Hiope we get some more chlexy soon!

[LarkLuthor]

"Your Child's Sexual History!" :rofl: :rofl: :rofl: Even Lionel is a bit phased by that one! Wonderful! Enjoyed the reactions of Lex and Gabe on the telephone particularly. Please update soon!

And really Blue, don't be so sad about it. This is the first time I've ever seen you without something witty to say and I'm sure I've read at least most of the over 200 posts you two have together... wow... you guys sure write a lot... I'd forgoten how much..
Lark

[lexchloe]

Excellent update. I'm loving the meddling fathers. Also think that despite all their protests they're getting under eachother's skin. Hope the team can turn the animosity between them into something else. Can't wait for more.

[dreamerjules]

Last line is so very Lionel. Love the update.

[Krysia]

Great update I loved how Lionel is "playing" Lex on the phone to judge his reactions to Chloe. I wonder if anything is going to happen before Lionel looses his patience or will he go against the sugestions of the "specialists" and meddle :)

[hfce]

:rofl:Chloe and Lex crack me up. I love how they hate eachother with a passion but we know its actually like. I can't wait to see what the plans are to get them together. Good job girls. :clapclap:


Hope :D

[BellaMR]

Excellant update. I'd be scared of those folders, too. I hope :ionel doesn't do anything too drastic.

[meg20]

:rofl:can't wait to see how Lionel fucks up next.Would also like some Chlex interaction. Great job!

Update soon!!!

[chril1]

i love lionel

he's just so crazy

*sigh*

lea
xxx

[carebear72884]

hahah...more soon you two. Now!

[Gemkat5]

Uhm... Hello... What is Lionel paying the woman for if he isn't going to listen to her advice? *plucks Lionel in the forehead*

Gabe had the right idea, mention Lex casually. He even got her to unwittingly defend Lex. But Lex's new resolve to be a happy one night stand kinda man has got to go.

I don't suppose you'll update this in 4 days??? I seem to have the same patience level as Lionel for results... I want more!!!!!

[autumngold]

Poor Lex, he really hates Chloe doesn't he? I wish that both he and Chloe could realize that neither of them handled the elevator situation well!! Great update!! I love Lionel trying to be patient, I could see how that wouldn't be easy for him!! :) Please update again soon!! I can't wait to see what will happen in four days!! :)

[star del mar]

Lionel is a crazy bastard, I swear to God. But just so damn amusing, lol. Great update!

Steph*

[asharnanae]

oh this is just one of these perfect stories, and I love every word!

Champion!! cant wait for the next installment!

[ColumbiaBlue]

Oh goodness... Lionel hiring a "professional" just to get Chloe and Lex together... Hysterical! I Love Lionel and Gabe in this. Really. To pieces.

Can't wait to see what happens from here. It's gonna be interesting.

More soon!

~Manda

[Clannadlvr]

Hee! So glad to see another BlueSabby story! I love the more than a little creepy way Lionel is going about things, as well as the Chlex volatile interaction. And do I sense a little Gabe/Celeste?

Great job, guys!

[Louie]

oh Lionel, your just going to make things worse silly man.

hoping for more soon

[LarkLuthor]

okay, been a week....I can beg now.... Oh Sabbby! Blue, dear... May I pleeaassse have an update? Soon? Somewhat soon?

Lark

[BlueSabby]

A/N:Sabby: So..you know how fate sometimes has a tendency to do stuff that you'd never be able to arrange...yeah, the daddies are going to learn that in this story. Take this chapter for instance... have fun!


A/N: Blue: Without further delay, an actual Chlex interaction. They don't end up in the sweaty, nekkid pretzel but I think you'll still enjoy it as much as we enjoy the pleading for new updates. *G*




The stir caused by the article had slightly smoothed over, but Lex still had had to spend the better part of the night fielding questions about it. Why he'd chosen to attend this exhibition opening he didn't even remember. Oh right, Public Relations.

“Mr. Luthor, you're attending this event alone, rumors have it...”

“Rumors may have what they want, but I don't pay attention to them and more importantly, I don't answer questions based on them,” he smirked at another insipid reporter and turned away to cut his way to the crowd.

He needed to get out of this, now. Sadly, it wasn't even past nine, so there were still quite a few hours to go before he could make a dignified exit. The only viable option was the restricted area of the exhibition that wouldn't be officially open until next Saturday.

Nodding at the security guard as the man opened the red rope for him he stepped through. Down the hallway the noise was already fading and around the first corner, Lex found himself able to breathe a little more freely.

Chloe had felt like she was going to scream at numerous points in the evening. This assignment had come directly from the Editor-in-Chief. Patterson was still pissed about her ‘holding out’ on him.

Even though she had explained dozens of times that there was nothing going on between she and Lex he still didn’t believe her.

And this was her punishment.

It was a highly publicized event and he knew that Chloe would have to deal with fielding questions as well as asking her own. She had even had a run in with a few of Lex’s exes. Needless to say those conversations hadn’t gone well. The quotes that they had given her were totally unusable.

After some rich prick had told her that he had more than Luthor could give her Chloe had excused herself….after accidentally digging her high heel into his foot that was.

She knew that there was another section that the public didn’t have access to and that no one would be in. Therefore, that was where she needed to be.

There was a guard posted there but he wasn’t too hard to take care of. She dug a pen out of her small purse and lobbed it over his head. It clattered down the hall and he turned in its direction.

“Come on, you should go and check that out,” she murmured.

Like a good little guard he did just that. With the rope unarmed, so to speak, Chloe slipped past it and breathed a sigh of relief.

The closed off room was huge and had numerous pieces of art in it. Chloe smiled, realizing that she could actually stay in here for at least an hour and not get bored.

At the sound of high heels clicking behind him, Lex turned around from his perusal of a renaissance portrait of some nobility or other. His jaw tensed the moment he recognized the woman heading directly his way. Of course she had to show up here, it wasn't like fate could be smiling at him at least once every blue moon.

Lex resigned himself to the situation. He wouldn't leave just because she had shown up and if that meant having to act civil until she disappeared, that was fine with him. How she'd gotten in here in the first place was another matter entirely.

“I do believe the press isn't allowed access to this area, Miss Sullivan.”

There was only one person on the face of god’s green earth that could inject that much pomposity into thirteen words strung together.

She turned her head in the direction of his voice hoping that she had fallen asleep downstairs at some point and was now trapped in a nightmare.

But, she wasn’t lucky enough for that to be true. Straight ahead of her stood Lex Luthor in all of his expensive finery. He was standing next to a hideous portrait of a woman who greatly resembled the dog curled at her feet.

If he thought that she was going to shrink away from him, he had another thing coming. Their running into one another was bad luck, indeed. But she was not about to go back downstairs. She’d wager that he had slunk up here to hide from the rest of the world.

“Your beliefs are correct, Mr. Luthor.” She addressed him crisply and then turned her attention back to the portrait of the woman. It wasn’t any better close up.

“However, I am not inclined to go back downstairs into the Lion’s Den.” Surveying the room once again she said, “I believe that we can both coexist up here for at least an hour without having to speak with one another, is that amenable to you?”

Even if it wasn’t she would stay up here. She doubted that Lex would drag her kicking and screaming from the room. However, best to be civil and pretend like she cared what the answer to the question was.

Lex brow arched at her overly stiff vernacular. They hadn't been in the same room for forty seconds and already she was mocking him. That woman was simply incapable of being civil it seemed.

“Of course,” he answered glibly.

Taking a silent breath he kept surveying the piece of 'art'. How the museums curator hadn't noticed the fact that style and color were haphazard and cheap and that this was in no way a Renoir, he didn't want to know. As long as it wasn't his money that got wasted, he didn't care anyway.

The silence stretched as it was bound to do and Lex couldn't help but wonder and silently count the seconds. He knew that Chloe Sullivan would eventually break and try to start conversation. On top of that, she wouldn't let the chance pass by to address the article. Judging by her earlier statement, she hadn't been left unharrassed by questions, either. Good.

Taking a few steps back from the painting, Chloe wondered how far away she would have to get before she felt as if she wasn’t endangering her retinas by staring directly at it. When she felt another velvet rope hit her in the butt she realized that she had no further to go.

She shook her head as she walked back over and stood next to Lex. “The dog is more attractive,” she commented before moving off to the next piece of art.

Lex frowned for a second before he realized what she'd been talking about. He'd become so absorbed with the color scheme and obvious flaws that outed the painting as a faux that he hadn't noticed there had been a dog in the painting as well. Taking a step back, tilting his head to the side, he found himself having to agree with Chloe's opinion. The dog really was more attractive than the woman portrayed.

Leaving the painting behind, he turned in the same direction she had, for lack of another option. What had the architect been thinking when he'd designed this labyrinthine hallway? Probably a specific order by the museum or the owner of the collection, to make sure you had to suffer through the entire ordeal with no way out.

Chloe had stopped at a painting that looked like a three year old gone wild with crayons on printing paper. However the plaque assured the viewer that it was really a French newcomer with an unspeakable name, gone wild with acryl on canvas. Lex didn't see the difference. He moved on.

Not for the first time Chloe thought that she had gone into the wrong field. These painting were horrible. She really didn’t understand how slapping some paint on a canvas constituted art. The sad thing was that she knew that if any of these pieces went up on the auction block that they would fetch a pretty penny.

If only she had been more interested in bad art like Lana. Thinking of the other girl Chloe was surprised that she didn’t see anything by her hanging on the wall. Lana was just as bad, if not worse, than the rest of these artists.

Sure, she wasn’t from another country but Chloe was fairly certain that if the other girl started crying about her dead parents that one curator in the land was likely to fold.

Imagining Lana explaining her all pink work to an art crowd got Chloe smiling. Then seeing her former friend detailing how each shade of pink had a different meaning got her giggling.

This was bad. Once she started to laugh inappropriately there was almost no stopping her. It had happened more times than she liked to admit. Usually in staff meetings. Some of her friends would time how long it took her to get to a point where she had to excuse herself.

Chloe put her hand over her mouth to stifle the noise. Her shoulder began to shake as she thought of anyone critiquing Lana’s work in front of her. The vacant expression and the blinking back of tears while her lower lip quivered.

She tried to think of death and destruction and all sorts of horrible things but it was no use. Chloe burst out laughing.

Maybe it was all of the pent up tension from the last few weeks that had made her lose her mind completely. She didn’t care it felt good to finally let go in some way.

Finally regaining her composure Chloe stood up and wiped her eyes, careful not to smudge her makeup. When she rounded the next exhibit she found Lex staring at her from in front of it.

Lex had swiveled around on his heel when he'd heard the outburst from around the corner, but stopped himself before he could go back and ask what it had been about. He didn't want to know, curiosity be damned. When the blonde finally made it around the pillar she was still wiping her eyes, her make up was smudged and her dress just a little rumpled. He didn't want to know.

Arching a curious eyebrow to acknowledge the outburst, he turned back to regard the piece of pottery. Whoever had thrown together this exhibition clearly had no sense of style whatsoever. He briefly wondered if Skylar had had a hand in it.

“Pathetic,” he commented out loud.

When Chloe looked at what Lex was remarking on, she groaned. “I can’t draw a straight line and I could do a better job than that.” The small bowl was encased in glass and Chloe went down into a crouched position so she could look up at the bottom of the bowl.

“Well, I don’t see a child’s scrawled name on the bottom so we’re going to have to assume that an adult did this one.” She stood up and pulled her dress down a little. “I really do have to quit my day job.”

While Chloe couldn’t stand any of the artwork she really couldn’t wait to see the next piece. It was like the stuff just kept getting worse. Perhaps this was what she would write about. Her mouth hung open when she saw what was next.

The next piece of ‘artwork’ was on the floor. The only reason that she knew that it was part of the show and hadn’t been left behind by a work crew was because it was behind the velvet ropes.

In front of Chloe and Lex, sitting between a painting and a sculpture, was an orange hazard cone. It had the word danger painted on it in blue.

Lex was amazed that one word from him could create an entire line of babble from her. And none of it had been insults towards him. Merely insults towards the creator of the exhibition pieces. If he kept enough target material around, maybe they could actually have a decent conversation. Then he remembered the words she'd thrown in his face and his expression turned grim once more.

He gave the piece she'd mentioned a sparse glance before moving on. What people called art these days. “It's a perfect example for the gullibility of the average human.”

People were willing to believe almost everything if you just presented it in the right manner. Put a hazard cone on the street and it's a signal of warning. Put it in a museum with ropes around it and all of a sudden it became art. “Ridiculous.”

Which could also be said for the next piece. If he wasn't mistaken, somebody had collected old egg cartons, shishkabobbed them with a steak knife then mounted them on a styrofoamboard with - Lex stepped closer - a stapler.

After seeing the next exhibit, Chloe wasn’t so sure that her plan had really worked. Looking at this crap was just another type of torture. “I would have been better off staying downstairs,” she remarked.

She looked at the artwork and tried to think about what type of symbolism the artist was going for. Give it a chance. But, she just couldn’t get past the stupidity of the whole thing.

Lex turned his head sideways fighting down the urge to make a snide remark. No need to destroy the image of civility now.

“The pictures do have an advantage, though,” he offered instead. “They won't try to get a quote out of you.”

He shook his head at the egg carton art and moved on, hoping to find at least one worthy piece in the exhibition, so he wouldn't have to lie when giving a comment. He rather liked being able to answer honestly in the few occasions it was allowed.

Chloe followed after Lex and thought about what he had said. It was true, the artwork couldn’t do her any overt damage. Just scar her psychology and make her mad at a world that paid hand over fist in order to own something made by a no talent hack.

Chloe chuckled under her breath. “Yes, but I think that the artwork would have the same amount of luck as my compatriots downstairs.” She looked at the next painting which was an amalgam of reds and oranges of the sun. It was done abstractly but Chloe actually liked it. “I’m skating on thin ice as is with my editor,” she said distantly as she inspected the painting more closely.

Lex gave the piece she was looking at a second glance then turned to face her. He had expected, even hoped for the press to give her hell, but her own editor. Shouldn't the man she worked for know better than to fall for the same bad headlines everybody else had?

“Your own employer believed what he read about you in a gossip rag?” He shook his head. Granted Lionel had been extending his feelers in that direction as well, but that was a different matter.

Chloe looked over at Lex, surprised that he was surprised. “Well, he didn’t disbelieve that it was possible. He was more upset that, if it was true, I hadn’t told him.”

She spared another glance at the painting and then moved on. The next section was photographs. Chloe kept talking as they moved on. She supposed that it was fine that they discussed the fallout of their fight…just not what was actually said.

“Generally speaking, your private life is your own at the paper. That is unless you’re involved with, in any way, someone that you might have to cover. Or that the paper might have dealings with, as well.”

The first bunch of photographs were self-portraits of the artist. Various close-ups of certain parts of his face. After scrutinizing the pictures she turned back to Lex. “So, he wasn’t too pleased to read about my dating you.” She shrugged. “It would make him look like a fool to the other editors of the paper.”

Moving on to the next set of pictures she finished, “It’s why I’m here. I’m being punished.”

Lex nodded, understanding the sentiment behind the simple statement. What better way to punish her than sending her into the fray, making sure she got to deal with uncomfortable questions while still trying to get some information herself. This opening hadn't been likely to make front page anyway. It was something for the society section, below the fold, 500 words or less.

“So he still believes that we're dating,” it was halfway between a question and a statement.

However the answer would be, it would give him a clue as to how long he'd have to deal with the aftermath of that single article. Inwardly, he cursed himself once more for not realizing, or even worse, outright ignoring the click of a shutter in favor of rising to the argument with the head strong woman standing merely a foot beside him. He was smarter than that, usually.

“I don’t think so,” she said, now turning to face him head on. “I told him that we weren’t dating and that the whole thing is just a trumped up story. When he stopped to actually think about it that made more sense to him than me having an illicit affair with you since high school.”

“He has a tendency to fly off the handle before thinking things through when it’s something that’s important to him.” It was one thing that she and Patterson had in common, unfortunately. That’s why she was usually the one that could talk him down from the metaphorical ledge.

Thinking about Lex’s motivations for asking the question, she added, “I promise that my paper isn’t going to spill any more ink on this.”

Lex smirked and stepped forward and up to the next painting. “Oh, I wasn't worried about your newspaper in particular,” he answered. But it was good to know that there was one less on the list and this meant grass would grow over the whole thing pretty soon and he could move on with life and be, ok.

“But he's still punishing you,” he continued. “If he knows that you didn't hold back anything, why the punishment?”

Not that he was sorry for her. She deserved every ounce of pain for what she'd cost him that day. Literally and proverbially speaking.

Chloe was getting tired of the little game that they were both playing. Talk a little, remark on the painting, talk some more. She saw a piece of artwork that would actually help her to stop this little dance with Lex.

Some of the artwork was encased in glass but other pieces were only protected by the velvet rope. She studied the piece of ‘art’ that was on the opposite side of what Lex was currently looking at. It wasn’t really art, just an heirloom.

Confident that she wouldn’t be ruining anything, Chloe toed off her shoes and stepped over the velvet ropes.

She settled herself in the oak rocking chair, careful not to get her dress too wrinkled or caught in the legs, before answering Lex’s question. “I think it’s to make sure that I’m not lying.”

Remembering Patterson’s words precisely, she repeated them for Lex’s benefit. She even affected his slight Chicago accent. “I see one picture of you and Luthor together you and I are going to have a not so friendly chat.”

Dropping the accent, she added, “And if I’m not lying it’s punishment for getting myself into the situation in the first place.”

Lex had only half listened to whatever she was saying, as he'd watched her step over ropes and into the closed area of one of the pieces, namely a rocking chair. He'd actually held his breath, waiting for the alarm to go off. When nothing happened, he approached her slowly.

“Chloe, you're sitting on approximately fifty thousand dollars. It might not have occurred to you, but the red ropes are actually there for a reason,” he stated.

He couldn't believe she'd just done this. They'd been having a conversation that didn't involve insults or physical violence and she went and did this. Chloe Sullivan apparently wasn't only incapable of acting civilly for a longer amount of time, she was also quite insane.

“Fifty thousand dollars?” Chloe looked down at the chair that she was sitting in. Suddenly, it looked very fragile indeed. She knew that the ropes were there for a reason, of course. Now that Lex had mentioned the price of the chair she couldn’t very well continue to sit in it, though. Every move would make her far too paranoid.

She carefully got up out of the chair and then looked back down at it. She had moved it slightly so she dragged it forward about an inch until it was back to its original resting place.

After stepping back over the ropes, Chloe picked up her shoes but didn’t put them back on. “Never thought you’d be such a stickler for the rules.” She tried not to smile as she imagined a badass teenage Lex watching his grown up version.

Lex's brow arched at her jibe, but he vowed to not let his temper rise. “I was merely trying to save you from breaking an expensive object and ruining your otherwise good credit.”

Not that he knew anything about her credit, but she seemed the type. 'Stickler for the rules,' he thought dismayed. 'You try getting away with breaking rules when everybody's looking at your fingers no matter what you do'. Of course he had on occasion bent rules, maybe even broke a few, but he'd had to be careful every time.

Except in his teenage years, but that was called 'Rebellion' and he was still trying to make up for the mistakes he'd made then. Or at least trying to make the public think he wasn't the same guy, which was quite tricky in some cases.

Chloe regarded Lex carefully. She had forgotten how sensitive he was about his reputation. However, she doubted that he would admit that to anyone. She decided not to make a comment back to him. It seemed safer to keep her mouth shut when it came to anything personal with Lex. It ensured that they wouldn’t get into another screaming match.

Though it still did bother her that he had even thought she was playing a game with him by sending that note about Skylar. She had to remind herself that Lex really didn’t know her. She was a friend of a friend. The latter friend and Lex didn’t even speak regularly anymore, either.

They had finally worked their way back to the beginning of the ‘artwork.’ Chloe looked at her watch, it clashed completely with her outfit but she could have cared less, and determined that she had been up here for as long as she could be.

She had gotten almost nothing accomplished professionally during the night. Looking over at Lex she decided that she wouldn’t let that hold true for her personal life.

“This isn’t an apology of any sort,” she started abruptly. “It’s an explanation.” She peered towards the way that she had come in and noticed that the guard was, once again, not at his post.

“I thought that you needed to know about Skylar. Even though I don’t know you very well, and don’t like you very much right now, I didn’t think that you deserved to marry another woman like that.” She’d leave the psychobabble about why he did it out of this conversation.

Lex was watching her closely and she could tell that he was surprised that she was doing this. And annoyed, or possibly angry. Chloe really couldn’t tell.

“I didn’t want to have to face a grand inquisition by you which is why I didn’t tell you in person. I thought that the note was the best way to do so. That, at the very least it would peak your interest and get you to do some digging. I see your point about the,” she paused, getting mad at his insinuation again, “game, but that was not what I was doing.”

She looked out again and the guard was still gone, she needed to go now. “Have a pleasant evening, Mr. Luthor.”

Lex didn’t appear to have anything to say to her so she walked through the door and then down the stairs. She’d stay another twenty minutes and then leave.

Lex stood very still, looking after Chloe's retreating back and wondering where the hell her little impromptu speech had come from. Part of him wanted to write it off, since it obviously didn't matter in a grander scheme of things what her motivation had been for writing the note or if she'd explained it or not. They weren't in the same social circles and didn't need to get along to stay out of each other's hair.

However, it was intriguing him why she'd made her confession just now. What had motivated her to tell him all this and try to make amends? Logically there wasn't anything that she could gain from this. Chloe Sullivan had 'known' him long enough to know that he wasn't the type to forgive and forget at the drop of a hat. Much less grant favors because of something like this.

So why had she done this? It made no sense. Lex shook his head and left the closed wing, joining the crowd for another round of polite hand shakes and coldly professional 'No comment's. He didn't see Chloe Sullivan for the rest of the night. It didn't occur to him until he was back in his Porsche on the highway towards his house an hour later that he hadn't doubted for a moment that what she'd told him was the truth.

[Louie]

You just have to give them room to move around and they can get along. They must just have a weird kind of clostaphobia that makes you fight with other people.

It was some great interaction.

[meg20]

Loved the interaction and hoping that Lex tries to talk to Chloe for some reason. Can't wait to see what the team and Lionel will make out of this!

Update soon!!!

[fussy_wuzzy]

It's been a long day for me, so you can imagine how excited I was to find an update of this story when I got home. Great update!

[lexchloe]

Great update. Yay Chlex interaction and they didn't start yelling at eachother. A few more meetings like this (without parental interference) and they might start warming to eachother more and more. Can't wait for the next one.

[jaxie926]

*chants to self: this is why i don't read wips, this is why i don't read wips...*

I love this story! Please please please give more!!!
I love lionel-light, the lionabe is hilarious... and i just cannot wait until the tables turn in both of their heads!

*chants to sabby and blue* "update, update, update"

[hfce]

Aww that was simply amazing. I loved the little dance they did. The back and forth cha cha very nice. I also like that he believed her at the end. :D


Hope ;)

[asharnanae]

YAY!!! they didnt fight! and it looks to be the start... of just what, I am not sure, but fantastic!!!

[BellaMR]

Chlex with no violence!! Excellant way to end my night.
I loved that they went through that maze of crappy art together. It reminded me of a science experiment where rats are dumped in a maze with all these little traps and can't get out till they figure out what the mastermind scientists want them to do. You see the art was the torture devices and they were supposed to learn to act civil to each other. When this was accomplished (by Chloe explaining herself) they were allowed to leave. Maybe I'm reading too much into this - it is very late. Please ignore my rambling.

Great chapter.

[Krysia]

Me thinks that Lex is becoming intrigued with Chloe's behaviour :)
I love the way Lex "talks to" reporters and I think the whole idea of them having to spent time in the same room and interact is just neat. Can't wait to see what the profesionals want to do to get them together.

[Clannadlvr]

Nifty! Great use of close space and forced interaction.

I'm curious to see how their relationship develops when they realize that they don't always have to be at odds.

[star del mar]

That was a great chapter. Not only did Chloe and Lex get to talk civilly but at least one thing was cleared up. Chloe wasn't just playing some twisted game with him and I'm so excited at the fact that Lex took what she was saying at face value, he didn't doubt her honesty. I'm glad they ran into each other and I must admit I laughed out loud at the idea of a hazard cone being called art because someone scrawled a word on it. And I loved, LOVED the fact that Chloe stepped over the velvet ropes... I've always wanted to do that! :D Great update!!

Steph*

[FroggyJump]

No fight, amazing. A friend of mine teaches art and there have been many times where i have just zoned out of her explaination on what could have been a motivating force behind some art works. The witch's hat made laugh last time I went to an art museum one piece was just blocks scattered on the floor. Nice little bit of interaction.
I adore the relationship between Gabe and Lionel and I liked the line about Lionel weening Gabe off beer. These two make a good couple with meddling ways. The balance is exactly right, Gabe is there to tame some of Lionel's wilder ideas and to keep him somewhat honest.

[carebear72884]

*pinches Chlex's cheeks* awwww! They're so cute! I love the interatction...but I want more Lionable. More soon.