Title: Unexpected
Rating: PG-13
Author: Ranting Idiot (Just call me Rant)
Summary: It only took one time of crossing paths with Lex Luthor, but it was more than enough. Chloe Sullivan may not have known much about life, but she would never have guessed it would turn out this way.
Disclaimer: Don’t own the characters copyrighted by WB or the Superman Comics. The story, however, is mine and I’d appreciate that you respect my property. Hope you enjoy the story! (Oh, and feel free to R & R)
NOTE! I started posting this on FF.net (on chapter 2 now) and Hope encouraged me a couple times to post it over here, so here it is. There was some level of confusion over what was going on, so here's the breakdown: It is a angst/drama/romance futurefic set at the end of Chloe's junior year in college. It will come in nine parts (which will make sense by the end of this chapter. I'll try to update between one and two times a week, so this story will be posted in a less than a month. Enjoy!
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Month #1
Sitting quietly, Chloe stared out the dirty windshield. A slight breeze came in through the open passenger side window, fluttering her hair across her cheek but she paid no attention. Thoughts settled on how just the previous afternoon, she’d planned on washing her car. It’d seemed simple then. Act busy. Look busy. Go to the drugstore. Wash the car. Go home.
And see.
She’d skipped the carwash all together. Her nerves had been on edge and it wouldn’t have done her any good to pretend that everything was just as normal as it should have been. Hands gripping the steering wheel tightly, she prayed that no one could see her from the road running next to the parking lot she was in. Chloe didn’t bother to look back, instead just focusing her eyes on the building in front of her. The windows of her alma mater gleamed brightly from the light provided by lampposts she’d avoided; a brief flash of paranoia convinced her that they were looking down on her dirty car.
Shaking her head as if to rattle out the thought, Chloe glanced at the cell phone that lay on the passenger seat next to her bag. The display remained dark, reminding her once again that she’d yet to receive the call she was waiting for.
Easy, Sullivan. It’ll come. He will call. He has to.
Of course, those thoughts didn’t give her much hope at all. Lex Luthor did what he damn well pleased; a call in the middle of a night from a quietly frantic woman whose world had just done a complete one-eighty wasn’t going to do much to make him start caring. It didn’t help that most of her nails were bitten down, her fingers gripping the steering wheel for all it was worth. What the hell was she going to do if he didn’t help? That taunt rolling over and over in her mind, Chloe leaned forward and let her forehead fall on her clenched hands. Urging herself not to shed the tears that had been threatening since the night before, she took several deep breaths to get a hold of herself.
“You finally called.”
Her body jerked ever so slightly at the abrupt voice that came from the direction from her phone, but not from the device itself. Chloe gritted her teeth and looked up, eyes dry so not to betray what was running through her mind. “Half an hour ago. You took your sweet time.”
“Now, Miss Sullivan, is that any way to greet an old friend?” Lex cocked his head at her and leaned into the car through the open window. “I expected something warmer than that.”
“Take what you can get at this point, Mr. Luthor.” Chloe instantly regretted the words.
“I must say that’s an interesting proposition. But all the same, I’m first of all curious at what brought you to my doorstep.” Looking down at where he stood, Lex let one side of his mouth pick up in a strange smile. “So to speak, of course.”
Chloe set her jaw, but refused to budge. Staring at him straight in the eye, she waited for a few tense moments before Lex, with a sigh and rolling of his eyes, opened the door to her car. She watched him slide in, his moves as smooth as everything he ever planned, but she wasn’t fooled. “I’m surprised you gave in so quickly.”
“I reserve my battles for the things that matter,” Lex studied the view in front of him. “You really do need to wash your car.”
“Is that one of your battles?” Chloe asked. Ice in her words, she continued, “Because I have much more important things to talk to you about.”
Raising an eyebrow, Lex spread his hands. “Then talk.”
This is what she had been waiting for, a chance for a show down on her terms, on her home court… damn him to hell for showing up rather than just calling her back. Where had he come from anyway? Chloe could deal with that mystery for now, but at the same time, his presence could be so overpowering that it was difficult to figure out just what she was going to say first. Licking her lips quickly, she stared at her hands until her mind finally shot off enough neurons to convince them to let go of their death grip. Lowering them slowly, Chloe let them lie on her lap. Time to begin. “Why me?”
A grin spread on his face. “Why not?”
Jerking her head to face him, Chloe glared. “I want something better than that.”
“I was under the impression that we both… benefited greatly from what occurred.” He shifted in his seat until his back was in the crook between the seat and door. “Or would you like to give it another try and see how it turns out this time?”
“Spare me the seduction, Lex,” Chloe said dryly.
“It worked before.”
Her face colored at the suggestion in his voice. “It’s a mistake I wish I could erase completely.”
“I have a feeling you’ll come to regret those words instead, Miss Sullivan. Now would you like to explain to me why I’m sitting in the Smallville High parking lot at two in the morning?” He waved a hand at their surroundings. “It’s not exactly a powerhouse environment, but I’m sure you had to take what you could get outside your father’s home. Though, Gabe is quite the guy, I wonder what he would have to say about his daughter meeting secretly with his boss.”
“Leave my dad at out this.”
“I’m just commenting.”
Her hands were starting to clench once more, but Chloe didn’t notice until she felt the pain of a few remaining fingernails biting into her palms. She’d planned this out, premeditated the conversation, but Chloe knew that she should have taken into account Lex’s penchant for playing with words, putting the control in his own hands. Well, if shock value was all she had left-
“You’re pregnant.” His bored voice broke through her thoughts and made her suck in a deep breathe at his apparently complete lack of interest despite opening up the dam inside of her.
Chloe stared once more out the windshield, wishing that she could be one of the bugs that had smashed into it on the drive over. Quick, painless, they didn’t have to deal with crap that the world sent their way anymore. Concealing an anxious laugh, the thought ran through Chloe’s mind that she was yet another bug to the Mack Truck that was Lex Luthor. And she was just as insignificant. “How did you know?”
“The same why I knew that you would call me, however eventually. I must say however, you impressed me by how long you held out. I would have figured to hear from you at least a week ago.” Raising both eyebrows now, he further goaded her with, “Bravo.”
Home court advantage meant absolute crap. “I just found out yesterday.”
“And yet you waited more than twenty-four hours. I’m still quite impressed with you, I always have been, Miss Sullivan.” He leaned into her, his warm breath sliding down her neck. “You always were full of surprises.”
Eyes wide at how close he’d become, Chloe blindly reached out for the door handle, scraping at the power window and locks buttons before finding it. Pressing herself against the door, she stumbled out after her mind finally put two and two together enough to pull at the handle. Barely holding on to the open frame, she stood on two shaky legs and slammed the door in his face. Not one to be deterred, Lex simply opened his own door without trouble and stepped out of the car, looking at her over the top. “I must admit this is a bit disappointing, I always thought you had more composure than this.”
“I guess it takes only one run-in with you in your bedroom to make a girl wary,” Chloe shuddered. “Though for the life of me, I would have preferred to learn that lesson the easy way.”
He began to walk around the car to her and Chloe couldn’t find the resolve to move. Not one bit. “I didn’t force you to do anything you didn’t want. And it was only hard because you wanted it that way.”
The images that flashed through her mind both provoked and disgusted her. Determined to not let it show, Chloe forced her body to relax; slowly turning, she let her back rest against the vehicle and her eyes fall on the man now at her side. “I had just gotten my heart broken. I needed someone to talk to.”
“And I listened,” he shrugged. “If memory serves me correctly, you are the one who initiated the entire thing.”
Her first true moment of stupidity… and that included finally spilling the total of her feelings to one Clark Kent. “I never once suspected it would go as far as it did. For all I knew, I was never going to speak to Clark again and it was ripping me apart. For one desperate moment, I needed someone to reciprocate my feelings. There was never any intention of carrying it further than a kiss, Lex.”
“Oh, but it carried further. You should know better than to start something you can’t finish.”
“I didn’t expect it to finish with me waking up on the floor of your room, Lex!” Her voice raged with the unfairness of it all, the time she spent wracking her brain over the question of whether she was carrying an heir, whether she could have done anything to stop it or not. It raged with the unfairness that she wanted it so badly to be the child of a Kent, not a Luthor, inside of her. “You knew how I felt, you knew that I was not doing that because I wanted you, but because I wanted someone. I’d gotten sick and tired of just hanging around in the background, waiting for someone to take notice of what I have to offer. I was sick of waiting for him!”
Lex looked her over once, then twice, a certain coolness in his gaze. Finally, in an even voice, he said, “You said you wanted someone to see you. Well, I did that, Chloe. I cannot be responsible for the actions you initiated and showed to fully want. It would have stopped at your request, but you kept it going, so I kept going. It’s as simple as that.”
She didn’t want to remember, but how could it stay out of her mind? Memories of kisses on her neck, on her stomach rose up from the depths she’d thought they had been banished too. Lex had provided for her sensations she’d never experienced before and she’d been too caught up in imagining him to be Clark that it never even occurred to her to make him stop. Her own eyes fiery at the recollection and even more at his words, she spat out, “Last I heard, a woman can’t create her own sperm, Luthor.”
“No, but she always has a choice, especially with me.” Lex moved in, trapping her against the car. “I don’t make it a habit of bedding women who aren’t willing. You were and that’s the truth of the matter. Now we have to deal with the consequences.”
The warmth of his body was even more distracting in this position, so Chloe could only stutter out, “W-we?”
“Yes,” Lex smiled a smile that didn’t reach his eyes. “We.”
“You’ll find me a doctor? One that’s discreet?” She couldn’t think like this, not when he was connected to her inch by inch.
He barely masked a snort. “Why would I want to be discreet over this?”
Relief was quick to come and go, so Chloe’s confusion was short lived. Horrified, she asked, “You don’t want me to abort it, do you?”
Lex didn’t answer, instead he took advantage of the point he was at. Lowering his head slightly, he rooted at her neck, pressing his lips to the small area where a racing pulse was visible. Tasting her skin, not daring to show her how much he’d waited to do this once more, he ran his lips to the other side and up to her jaw.
Frozen in place, Chloe couldn’t do anything to push him away, to make him stop. Just like before. Gasping when his hands seized her hips tightly, she fought for decent brain waves to finish out the conversation. Ignoring her speeding heart, a result of his fueling, she untied her tongue enough to weakly demand, “Answer me.”
He left one last kiss right at the corner of her lips. Drawing his face back, Lex took in her wide eyes, “No, I won’t allow it.”
The eyes dimmed in a split second and her chin trembled. “Why?”
She was too damn close, too close for his comfort now. Lex let go of where he clutched and pushed off from the car behind her. Straightening his jacket, and using the opportunity to cool down as much as he could without letting her know, it was at least a minute before he replied with a calm, “Because I may have done a whole hell of a lot in my life, Miss Sullivan, but killing my children isn’t one I intend to start now.”
Before she could possibly protest, he reached out hand, letting one finger trail from her ear down her jaw line. “And we both know that I would not be happy if you went against my wishes.”
It was a struggle to swallow it all, Lex’s quick change in temperament to the obvious warning and challenge on his face. Chloe bit her lip and looked away, not bearing to see what he had to offer. She was a smart girl and, as such, she knew it was useless to fight. “What am I supposed to do, Lex? What am I going to tell my father? How am I supposed to finish school with this?”
“And what about Clark?” He added sarcastically. “We both know that’s what is really the big question.”
This is not what she planned. Plainly, with little to betray her, she uttered in a small voice, “I love him.”
Lex shook his head. “But he doesn’t love you.”
Looking as if she’d been slapped, Chloe took a moment to recover. “You don’t love me either.”
He looked up at the sky, smirked at the overcast clouds that threatened rain. Lowering his stare once more to Chloe, Lex let the smirk grow. “Does it matter?”
And that was what it all came down to.
It took one glance at Lex’s now resumed study of the threatening sky to make her realize that, no, all of that meant absolutely nothing now. And Chloe Sullivan couldn’t do one damn thing about it. Her fate had been signed and sealed in one night when she let her feelings consume her and Lex had allowed himself to be a replacement for Clark if only for a short while.
It was all she could do to turn back to the car, open the door and settle back in. Switching on the ignition didn’t take all that much concentration and her attention was barely piqued by the engine roaring to life. In the same way, Chloe hardly responded when Lex once more leaned in the window at brought his face to hers.
His lips were gentle against her cheek, but there was no such softness in his voice. “I expect we’ll work out the details of our relationship tomorrow. Come by the mansion for lunch at noon.”
Chloe didn’t bother to look at him, she only nodded slightly and put the car into drive. Her goal of having a triumphant and proud exit didn’t exist as she could barely lift her eyes to the rearview mirror and note that Lex was watching her leave.
Indeed, Lex continued to observe her withdrawal from his presence until the red lights on the bumper became nothing but dots in the distance. Reaching into his pocket, Lex let the speed dial do the punching and he simply waited for the call to connect. “I’m ready,” he announced with authority. “No, I’m not in the same place. Come around to the parking lot on the other side.”
He looked around once at the empty spaces surrounding him. “I’ll be hard to miss.” As quick as it came out, back in his pocket the phone went. Lex played with it a little in his pocket before finally letting it drop. Crossing his arms instead, he finally let a small glimmer of a true smile begin to come onto his face. Finally sighing, in a way he would not let Chloe see, the smile began to spread and he finally spoke softly to himself.
“I’m going to be a father.”
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Month #2
“What do you mean you’re not coming back?”
Chloe groaned as she stuffed a few more t-shirts into her already-full suitcase. Jamming the lid down, it further irritated her to find that it was refusing to completely latch. Determined to come out the victor, Chloe tried the age-old trick of jumping on it. It didn’t help all that much. Butt planted firmly on a crooked lid, she blew hair out of her eyes and looked over at her guest. “Care to help me here, Clark?”
Though he looked at odds with himself, Clark moved to help her, gently moving Chloe off the suitcase and pressing it down. The latches clicked firmly in place and Chloe could only look on, feeling quite inept at that. “Thanks, I would have been fighting that all afternoon.”
His hands were still resting on top of the suitcase, but Clark’s eyes were scrutinizing her closely. “Are you going to ignore what I was asking you?”
“No,” Chloe said slowly. She threw her hands up in the air, “I just need to take a break is all, okay? And that means longer than the few weeks this school tries to call a summer vacation around here. Things have been a bit, well, stressful and I need some time off.”
She pretended not to see the look of guilt flash across his face, but Chloe couldn’t stop from hearing his words. “Chloe, I know we haven’t been the same-”
“Clark, please,” she held up a hand as she dropped a duffel bag next to her closed suitcase. “Don’t. I’d like to have one afternoon of hanging out with you that doesn’t consist of guilt trips or any ‘defining the relationship’ moments. You want to be friends, we’re friends, okay?”
He paused before grabbing some clothes from her closet and laying them on the bed. “You make it sound like a trial.”
Chloe pasted a smile on her face when she looked up from putting a few stray knickknacks in the bag, “What? The two of us having difficulties? You don’t say!”
“Chloe.”
She hated that impatient tone in Clark’s voice. It was as if he knew she was hiding something (which she was) and he figured that if he asked just enough, he’d make her spill it all out (which she usually did). Instead of giving in, though, she focused on taking clothes off the plastic hangers and throwing them into her duffel. She’d let one of Lex’s maids figure out the mess later. Voice striving to be even, she replied, “Things haven’t worked out the way I expected… in lots of areas of my life. Journalism is-”
“Your passion, so why are you quitting?” He threw another armful of garments onto the pile.
“Journalism is,” she continued, ignoring Clark’s interruption, “Something I’d like to continue in the future, when I’m ready. But right now I need to get out of here. For once, Metropolis has succeeded in stifling me. Would it kill you to be pleased with the fact that I’m trying to spread my wings a little?” In the general direction of a Luthor, but she wasn’t going to reveal that just yet.
She expected him to return with another load of her clothes, but Clark surprised her by sitting down her dorm bed, right on top of the small mountain he’d made. He regarded her slowly with the green eyes she’d long ago memorized the shape of and Chloe was close to squirming if he kept going with his appraisal. At last he said, “What happened to you being psyched about being editor for the Met U newspaper next semester?”
Could he twist the knife anymore? This time she tried to betray the ache inside by making her attitude dismissive. “Have you read some of the stories around here, Clark? Half the English students don’t deserve to hold a dictionary and I’m quite sure some of them never have. Why in the world I wanted to be an editor when it would have clearly driven me mad, I don’t know. I don’t think I’ll be missing anything.”
Though Chloe’s hands were still busy with pretending to pack and not be so aware of the man sitting next to her, it was difficult to keep up the pretense. It was even worse when he softly replied, “But I’ll miss you.”
Her movements stilled at that. Though her heart wanted to run away with what he was saying, Chloe’s mind quickly screamed out that Clark, this Clark Kent, was not the one she’d always dreamed of. He didn’t have romance on the brain; he wasn’t going to miss her because he thought of her as much as she did of him… the real Clark Kent was simply going to miss his friend. This in mind, Chloe began to pack with even more fervor.
“I’ll call. We’ll talk. It’s going to be the same around here, just a little less blond, you know?”
“Chloe.”
“I mean, it’s not like I’m dropping off the face of the planet. I have a cell phone, you know it, just like you know my email. I wish I could give you a land line, but who knows where I’ll be from time to time?” The words kept coming out faster and faster and her hands tried to keep up.
“Chloe, please.”
“I mean, this week: Metropolis; next week: Gotham City. There’s a charm to that, don’t you think? I’ve always wondered if I could live the nomad style, it’ll be nice to try and figure it out. Maybe I’ll finally get to visit Europe, or if I don’t get there, maybe Canada. I hear Vancouver is lovely.”
Clark finally put his hands over hers, making her entire body go still and her mouth mute. “Chloe, I’m sorry. I really am.”
Chloe couldn’t stop the tears from gathering when Clark did that. Whether they were from anger or frustration or just plain heartbreak, Chloe couldn’t tell. Part of her wanted to throw herself at him, begging for at least one chance to show him how much she could be worth in his life… but the other. The other side was the rational one, the side that knew that Clark Kent was out of her reach now, more so than ever before because of Lex and what had been done.
That in mind, she wrenched her hands away from Clark’s. Turning away, she faced the wall and crossed her arms. When Chloe felt she had a grip on herself, she said, “I guess it was all a pipe dream, huh, Clark?”
He wasn’t sure how to answer, so finally he asked, “What was?”
Chloe stayed with her back to him, but her head knelt down as if in defeat. “This whole attempt at being just friends again. After what happened. After what I said.”
“But we are friends.” Clark’s protest, while heart-felt, was just not enough.
“No, Clark. We aren’t. We can’t be.” Chloe finally turned and he could see that her eyes were dry, though her voice was full of emotion. Left hand settled at her hip, the fingers of Chloe’s right hand idly tapped just below her belly button and she appeared deep in thought before saying, “I think you should leave.”
When he started to say something again, Chloe shook her head. “Just go, Clark. We’ll talk, maybe someday. Just not right now. I need to be alone.”
It was a few long moments before Clark stopped trying to find something to say and he finally, hesitantly got to his feet. Looking between the door and Chloe, he seemed to be fighting with himself first, between approaching her and doing what she was demanding. Only after Chloe broke the long stare between them by looking down at nothing in particular did it occur to him that his exit was long overdue. Nodding slightly, he breathed out, “I guess I’ll be going then.”
“I guess so,” she responded quietly without looking up
And with that, Clark turned around and walked out the door. Chloe never saw if he looked back or not.
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When the phone beside him rang, Lex couldn’t help but feel a wave of pleasure. He’d long ago memorized the number that was showing on the caller id, but it was hardly needed at all. Only one person knew this particular phone number, so he expected calls from only her. Picking it up and pressing ‘send’, he was honest in saying, “I’m glad you called, Chloe. I was just thinking about you.”
The other line was silent for a moment before Chloe said, “I need you to send someone over here after all. I’m not going to be able to carry some of these bags down the stairs by myself.”
He didn’t expect her to take the bait, but Lex couldn’t help a small feeling of disappointment. Reveling in it, he scathingly countered with, “What happened to the strapping Mr. Kent? You were adamant about him helping you out and not needing any of my help.”
Chloe looked around her empty room. The last of the packing had taken her hours; her stubborn nature had refused to let the number be dialed that would take the tiring process out of her hands. Even so, Chloe had to admit that the thought of carrying down several heavy boxes in her condition wasn’t the smartest thing to do. “Clark Kent is the least of my thoughts right now, okay? I just need some help over here, we both know I can’t do this by myself. The lifting, I mean,” she added quickly.
“Indeed, Chloe.” The sound of her name rolling off his tongue was still off-putting, but it was better than the ‘Miss Sullivan’ that he’d insisted on keeping up until she’d agreed to move into the mansion. “I’ll send over some of my guys. As luck would have it, they’ve been here at the offices all day with nothing to do.”
“I’m sure, Lex. They just happened to be there,” Chloe rolled her eyes at his blatant manipulation. “Look, just send them over all right? I’m tired in more ways than one and this has taken me all day already, I’d rather not continue with the conversation games right now.”
“Very well,” she could practically hear his grin. “What did you eat for lunch?”
Chloe sighed, “Turkey sandwich, some fruit, water. That was hours ago, though.”
Lex tsked into the phone as he wrote a message on a piece of paper. The secretary was quick to come in and take it off his hand when he called her on the intercom system. “That won’t do at all. Here, just leave the dorm key inside your room and leave it unlocked, the guys are on their way.”
“I just want to go home, Lex,” Chloe moaned.
“Nonsense. If you’re so tired, you certainly can’t handle a three-hour drive to the mansion by yourself. Just get in your car and drive over to the office. We’ll order in something for the two of us, we need to discuss some things anyway about our accommodations. I’ll see you in thirty minutes.”
“Lex-” But he’d already hung up before Chloe could object to his ‘suggestion’. “Damn, I hate it when he does that.”
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There was no resisting the inward reporter, no matter how much morning sickness proved to be detrimental. It called out, no, it more demanded in a screaming voice for Chloe to leave her room and study her surroundings. She couldn’t ignore it, so here she was at the top of the stairs staring down at her grand new adventure. There was only a flicker of hope that her stomach would stay still for the rest of the day.
The wooden banister was as smooth as glass underneath her fingertips, and possessed an even more brilliant shine. Chloe let her fingers dance across it as she took each careful step down the staircase, drinking in the picture before her. The biggest decision she’d had to make in the past couple of days was the one being presented to her now. Right or left? Down to Lex’s business area of mansion or to the family rooms were the options, which held an ironic tone to Chloe’s skeptical opinion. It took only a few quick thoughts to convince herself that she’d probably get more use out of the living rooms, so Chloe headed in that direction, all the while letting her fingers join in the journey by strumming them against the cold stone wall.
A quick glance into different doorways showed rooms filled with stylish furniture and light from the tall windows. It was a relief to know that some of the panes were clear rather than strained, as she’d seen in Lex’s own offices. Soon, however, the décor seemed to be blur before her and it was hard to take much interest in what was set up for all to see. It was plain to see that while all these so-called family rooms were dressed to the nines, they held a certain loneliness and emptiness that defied the name.
It probably wouldn’t have mattered to her much, but Chloe decided to try one more door, only to find herself pleasantly surprised. Not only did the room possess more worth than the past seven combined, it also contained something special: another person.
“Oh, hello.” Chloe smiled weakly at the older man who was looking at her with a strange expression on his face. “I was wondering if I’d run into someone, unless of course you’re a ghost. I’d expect that from an old Scottish castle, the damp and darkness just fits a poltergeist, don’t you think?”
As if he had to shake himself from his surprise, the older gentleman began to shake his head. “I assure you Miss Sullivan, I’m no ghost. I am Louis, the head of the staff.”
Chloe raised an eyebrow at his almost haughty voice and high-set shoulders. “I guess that would explain how you know my name, but please, call me Chloe.”
“Very well.” Louis picked up a newspaper from a large, well-used coffee table that sat in front of a similarly treated sofa. “Have you found everything to your satisfaction?”
“Um, yeah,” Chloe chose to take a chance and ventured further into the room. It was charming in its own under-stated, I-didn’t-cost-thirty-thousand-dollars-to-decorate feel to it. “I just finally wanted to take a look around here, see what the Luthor’s had to offer in the way of comfortable rooms. I have to say, this is my favorite.”
Louis looked at her strangely once more.
“What, do I have something on my face?” Chloe picked up a self-conscious hand and touched her cheek. It was bad enough that she couldn’t stop herself from jabbering on, what if she had a foolish look to match?
He finally allowed small smile. “Not at all, Chloe. It’s just that you missed the family rooms. This is the common area for the staff.”
“Ah-ha! So that’s what’s different,” surprising him, Chloe seemed to relax even more. She glanced around and played with the fringe of a blanket thrown over a welcome-looking armchair. “Mind if I stick around a bit? I have a feeling I won’t find a place like this even if I were to look all over the house for the next three days.”
She’d obviously surprised Louis again, but he quickly recovered. “Of course. Would you like me to bring you anything? Are you thirsty?”
“Well, if you don’t mind, sure,” Chloe replied easily as she plopped down into the armchair and gave him a real smile. “This is great. Oh, drink, right. Can I have a chocolate milk?”
“Chocolate milk, yes.” Louis bowed his head a little at her and left the room just as another woman began to enter the room. Chloe watched his departure with an amused expression.
“I have a feeling I’ve somehow gone against what he was expecting of me,” Chloe remarked to the woman who had come into the room as Louis left. “Hi, I’m Chloe.”
“Ann-Marie.” The older woman smiled at her, quickly showing her ease with the young blond. “It’s nice to meet you, Chloe. Now what did you do to Louis to make him look that way?”
“I ordered chocolate milk. Oh, and requested to hang out in here.” Chloe jumped a little in the chair and tapped on the arm rests. “Is it really so shocking?”
“Yes,” Ann-Marie answered plainly. “The past ladies of the mansion have always tended to stay away from the staff quarters and their tastes are a bit more extravagant than Hershey’s chocolate.”
“Well, believe me, I’m not a demanding person. I’d sooner try and help you guys clean up than let myself be shooed out of a room so you can pick up my crumbs,” Chloe motioned to the couch next to her. “Are you on a break? I’d really love some company.”
Ann-Marie didn’t answer at first, but instead gave a deep-searching look to the younger girl. It was odd, but her boss had never brought someone home quite like her. Then again, the circumstances here were completely different. It was well known among the staff that there was an heir-apparent in this woman who was obviously more comfortable in her presence rather than a Luthor’s.
“Um, Ann-Marie? You’re making me squirm here.”
“Oh, excuse me.” Breaking out of her thoughts, Ann-Marie sat down on the couch. “So, tell me what you think about the castle.”
Chloe rolled her eyes. “Where do I start?”
***************************************
“Hello?” Lex glanced around the doorway to find the room dark and empty. Feeling slightly foolish, he uncertainly called out, “Chloe?”
It took a few blinks of his eyes after a moment of waiting for any telltale noises to make Lex realize that Chloe wasn’t in her room. “Just as she would have it,” Lex grumbled to himself as he sharply shut the door behind him. “The one time I go looking for her myself and she’s gone.”
He stood for a moment in the hallway, hands on his hips, wondering where to go to next. Admonishing himself for not just calling Chloe to his office, Lex consulted his watch; there wasn’t any reason that she’d left the house, but then again-
The door slammed back open with a bang and Lex strode in quickly, barely making time to flick on the lights as he entered. The first place he looked was in the closets only to find Chloe’s clothes hanging exactly where the maid had last unpacked them. Still not convinced, he began to pull the empty baggage off the shelves, rifling through them and counting to make sure that all that Chloe had come to the mansion was still there. They were, but it was hardly satisfying to him. He didn’t bother to put back the bunch as he came back out of the second closet. All right, he thought grimly, she might have just left the way she was, but Chloe wouldn’t have left without it.
But it was Chloe’s purse and just as his thought ended, Lex’s gaze fell on the nightstand where it sat. Lex hesitated for a moment, silently acknowledging that the brightly colored item looked completely innocent and if he was smart, he would leave the room; the hesitation was short-lived, though, as he made up his mind and picked it up, quickly looking through the various pockets while every once in a while sparing a glance to the still empty doorway.
“License, checkbook, coin purse, lipstick,” Lex picked up the last one as he ticked it off out loud. Opening the cap, he couldn’t help the feeling that he’d seen the shade before. “Oh, right,” Lex twisted his lips into a smirk as he thought back to their fateful night together and threw it back into the purse. Now convinced that Chloe had to be somewhere around, and not off somewhere trying to hitchhike into oblivion, he put the purse back on the dresser, only to have it tumble off the side.
Shaking his head, Lex began to stuff everything back in, but his hands froze when he laid his eyes on a picture booklet. Picking it up off the floor was easy, but it was his breath that stopped when he opened it up and began to flip through it. Clark. Pete. Lana. Chloe and Clark. Pete again. Clark. Clark.
Lex flipped over to the last page.
Clark.
It was all he could do not to take out the smiling picture of his best friend and rip it up into a thousand pieces. It took all of him to not even crumple it in his hand. Lex instead found his satisfaction of throwing the booklet down and kicking at the dresser with his specially made leather shoe. The mess stayed on the floor as Lex stalked out of the room, his mind consumed with an unfair and momentary disgust at the other man.
As far as he was concerned, Clark Kent had given up any claim over Chloe Sullivan.
So why was the mere memory of the man stopping Lex Luthor from getting what he wanted?
***********************************
Ann-Marie and Chloe were both girlishly giggling into their hands when they heard the door creak open. Ann-Marie automatically stood when she saw her employer standing there. “Mr. Luthor. How is your evening?”
“Good,” Lex replied amiably. He turned to Chloe, giving her an intense stare. “Better now, though.”
Chloe looked at him with wide eyes. “Lex. Um. Ann-Marie?” She looked at the other woman for help.
She smiled serenely in response. “I’ll see you later, Chloe. Make sure and tell me if you are having anymore morning sickness, I’ve got some home remedies that’ll make you feel better.”
Face colored, Chloe nodded as Ann-Marie began to leave, but Lex caught her by the arm and whispered something into her ear. The other woman nodded quickly and left just the same.
“What was that all about?” Chloe cocked her head in bewilderment.
“Oh, someone just made a mess in another wing of the house. Ann-Marie’s going to take care of it.” Lex stuck his hands in his pockets and rocked back and forth on his heels. “Though I would have sent someone else if I thought I would be interrupting.”
“Right, Lex.” A little annoyed by the intrusion now, Chloe stood and began to fix up the pillows on the couch.
“I mean it,” he grabbed the another pillow and tried to hand it to her. “You were enjoying yourself, I’m sorry that my presence made you feeling like stopping it all.”
Chloe’s hands stopped short of taking it off his hands. She stared at him oddly as she asked, “What are you doing here, Lex?”
“Last I understood I live here.”
Moving now towards the door, Chloe shrugged, “Really, what do you want?”
“Must I have an ulterior motive?” Lex followed after her into the hallway.
“You’re Lex Luthor, of course you do,” Chloe said back over her shoulder.
“To be honest, I was going to ask you to join me to dinner tonight.”
Chloe stopped in place and turned. “Dinner?”
“Yes, that meal that comes at the end of the day,” Lex mocked. “What’s the fun in eating alone when you can have perfectly lovely company there? I’m sure you’re bored of sitting in your room by yourself by now. Although, self-restriction wasn’t ever really my thing.”
She was looking at him as if he’d grown a second, fully-haired head. “I don’t get you. I seriously don’t.”
“I have to say the same back to you, Chloe. What’s wrong with spending a little time together?”
“Because you never do that. I’ve been here for nearly two weeks, Lex. For the full period of that, all I’ve seen of you is when I have any updates from the doctor and you know what? I’m more than fine with that. Why this? Why now?”
Lex frowned at her and ran a hand across the back of his neck. “Can’t a person change things up a little?”
“Not when it comes to you, Lex.”
His expression visibly grew colder and the mask came over him. “If that’s what you wish, Chloe, then fine. I was just trying to be a little friendly. I suppose that won’t be called for when it comes to you.”
“You don’t do anything without careful planning, Lex. I just have to figure out what you really want,” Chloe said off-handedly.
“And you never had problems like this with Clark, now did you?” Lex asked coldly. “He was perfectly clear on what he did or didn’t want. Or should I say who?”
Chloe sucked in a deep breath. “Damn you.”
“Very well,” Lex started walking again and moved past her, towards his office. “The doctor will be coming in for your next examination tomorrow. I expect a full report on what he suggests for your prenatal care, especially concerning your morning sickness. Maybe he should look into your mood swings as well, they’re becoming more apparent.”
Chloe glared at him as he continued with, “Is my request clear?”
“Crystal,” Chloe muttered. She began to climb the stairs to go to her room, but then stopped to turn in the direction Lex had gone to. She yelled at his retreating back, “That’s what I mean right here, Lex. One minute warm and the next cold. The mood swings probably come from your side of the family!”
Lex didn’t answer and simply disappeared into the dark shadows of the hall.
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