Back from the Dead (PG-13/R)- CHAPTER 27 plus Epilogue (Aug 17, 2010)

[lexie]

OMG! Yup, I am reduced to such reactions. I can't believe it was Lionel. Maybe I am a little on the dense side, but I had no idea it was him.

Well, I´m glad it was a surprise then. I wouldn´t call yourself dense, it could have been another powerful man or an emissary of someone eager to settle some business with the Fairchilds.

And he's dead, so is Chloe's husband. Man!

Better kill two birds with a stone and leave no roadblocks for Chlex.

Loved the introspective look into Lex motivations. Can't wait for more. Too many questions remain unanswered. Update soon please!!!!

I´m pleased you´ve appreciated Lex´s inner musings and there´ll be plenty of those.

[ripsconscullmin]

I was bouncing in my chair when I saw there was an update and all the up to Lex leaving the house after finding out Chloe was alive. I am so looking forward to reading their first meeting.

Phil is dead, too. I have to say, I was partially looking forward to him being arrested, standing trial and dealing with Chloe's inevitable feelings of anger and betrayal when she found out that he learned about who she was and was planning on keeping it from her, but upon further consideration, this is much better. I wasn't worried that he would be an obstacle once his thoughts on keeping her identity from her were made known. That was a fatal error in judgment. I don't think Chloe would have forgiven him for that choice. Unfortunately, that wasn't the first show of how poor his judgment. Did I mention how him starting a romantic relationship with an amnesiac who had been his patient gave me the squicks? I mean, I can understand him feeling sorry for, protective of or attracted to her, but acting on that so soon and so strongly was just....I can't think of the word I want to use. For a second, I thought maybe I was being too hard on him and that possibly it was a setup to keep her hidden and safe, but after giving it some more thought, it didn't matter in light of him planning to not inform her of what he'd learned and the thought about how she was his (which coming from him was not attractive at all because the choice to marry him wasn't made with any real/full knowledge of Karen's/Chloe's self or situation) and he was going to keep her that way no matter the cost. Ick. Abuse much?

Then there's good old Lionel. Rats. Foiled again on the long-term pain and suffering. I loved reading Lex's plans for Lionel (they had me bouncing in the chair again and clapping). Again, further consideration brought the realization that this was much better. Lionel was a slippery bastard and there was no guarantee that he wouldn't have eluded justice again. Of course, him being gone doesn't mean that Lex and Chloe have escaped whatever he had planned. What did he have planned? That's killing me. I need to know. Was it something nasty and diabolical or was he born again Lionel in this world as well and wanted to somehow make amends for his past and apologize to Chloe and get to know his only grandchild (she is Lex's. Any thoughts to the contrary are unacceptable and anybody saying otherwise will reduce me to the childish behavior of closing my eyes and ears and la-laing in avoidance)?

And Lex. Oh, Lex. I am always proud and saddened by his ability to keep his thoughts and emotions to himself - to hide his reactions. Though, he's not always successful and it would seem that him seeing the portrait of Chloe was one of those times (looks like the Detective picked up on his reaction to seeing it). So far he's handling it well, but that's something that's got to take a toll. I am looking forward to the confrontation he has with the person who kept it from him. I appreciated him acknowledging that he would have done the same thing, but I have serious issues with the person who would allow her to land in the situation she was in when Lionel showed up.

Wow. I didn't mean to write that much. Anyway, eagerly anticipating more!

[ksa]

Hello lexie
i promise a promised feedback and so ... I really, really like this story so far and I can´t wait for the next chapter: What happend to Chloe, were she and Lex in a relationship and is he the father of her daughter? Well I feel a little sorry for Chloes husband, but now the only thing that stands in the Chlex Way is Lana...
So keep going the excellent work I can not wait till the next update.
Sandra

[lexie]

I was bouncing in my chair when I saw there was an update and all the up to Lex leaving the house after finding out Chloe was alive. I am so looking forward to reading their first meeting.

You´ll get a double post next time with the very much awaited first meeting. I´ve decided to give you an extra length update come August 16th because I can´t cut the meeting in the middle without spoiling the momentum.

Phil is dead, too. I have to say, I was partially looking forward to him being arrested, standing trial and dealing with Chloe's inevitable feelings of anger and betrayal when she found out that he learned about who she was and was planning on keeping it from her, but upon further consideration, this is much better. I wasn't worried that he would be an obstacle once his thoughts on keeping her identity from her were made known. That was a fatal error in judgment. I don't think Chloe would have forgiven him for that choice. Unfortunately, that wasn't the first show of how poor his judgment. Did I mention how him starting a romantic relationship with an amnesiac who had been his patient gave me the squicks? I mean, I can understand him feeling sorry for, protective of or attracted to her, but acting on that so soon and so strongly was just....I can't think of the word I want to use.

Well, everyone seems to have strong opinions on Phil- either for or against the guy- that´s good; at least no one´s ended up being indifferent towards this made-up character. There´ll be more background information on him in later chapters; we´ll see if that affects your judgement for better or not.

For a second, I thought maybe I was being too hard on him and that possibly it was a setup to keep her hidden and safe, but after giving it some more thought, it didn't matter in light of him planning to not inform her of what he'd learned and the thought about how she was his (which coming from him was not attractive at all because the choice to marry him wasn't made with any real/full knowledge of Karen's/Chloe's self or situation) and he was going to keep her that way no matter the cost. Ick. Abuse much?

We don´t want any man calling Chloe "his" but Lex. We all love possessive Lex and think of possessiveness as psycopathic only in other men that might be interested in the blonde, which is great because that´s the way I see it too.

Then there's good old Lionel. Rats. Foiled again on the long-term pain and suffering. I loved reading Lex's plans for Lionel (they had me bouncing in the chair again and clapping). Again, further consideration brought the realization that this was much better. Lionel was a slippery bastard and there was no guarantee that he wouldn't have eluded justice again. Of course, him being gone doesn't mean that Lex and Chloe have escaped whatever he had planned. What did he have planned? That's killing me. I need to know. Was it something nasty and diabolical or was he born again Lionel in this world as well and wanted to somehow make amends for his past and apologize to Chloe and get to know his only grandchild (she is Lex's. Any thoughts to the contrary are unacceptable and anybody saying otherwise will reduce me to the childish behavior of closing my eyes and ears and la-laing in avoidance)?

We haven´t seen the last of Lionel I´m afraid. His presence will be felt throughout the fic even beyond death.I know you´re all dying to know if the girl was Phil´s or Lex´s, and some of you have already made up your minds. Well, I can´t spill the beans either way.

And Lex. Oh, Lex. I am always proud and saddened by his ability to keep his thoughts and emotions to himself - to hide his reactions. Though, he's not always successful and it would seem that him seeing the portrait of Chloe was one of those times (looks like the Detective picked up on his reaction to seeing it). So far he's handling it well, but that's something that's got to take a toll.

Lex´ll have to fight really hard to keep his composure around Chloe and not let his mask slip and he´ll fail on occasion- that´s all I´m saying right now.

I am looking forward to the confrontation he has with the person who kept it from him. I appreciated him acknowledging that he would have done the same thing, but I have serious issues with the person who would allow her to land in the situation she was in when Lionel showed up.

There´ll certainly be a confrontation but it´s several updates away because Lex´s got several fish to fry.

Wow. I didn't mean to write that much. Anyway, eagerly anticipating more!

Do write to your heart´s content! By the way, thanks for the PM; I´m really pleased you´re enjoying this fic that much.

[Julie]

Hello lexie
i promise a promised feedback and so ... I really, really like this story so far and I can´t wait for the next chapter: What happend to Chloe, were she and Lex in a relationship and is he the father of her daughter? Well I feel a little sorry for Chloes husband, but now the only thing that stands in the Chlex Way is Lana...
So keep going the excellent work I can not wait till the next update.
Sandra

*bump*

It got stuck in the post moderation queue

[lexie]

Hello lexie
i promise a promised feedback and so ... I really, really like this story so far and I can´t wait for the next chapter: What happend to Chloe, were she and Lex in a relationship and is he the father of her daughter? Well I feel a little sorry for Chloes husband, but now the only thing that stands in the Chlex Way is Lana...
So keep going the excellent work I can not wait till the next update.
Sandra

Thanks for commenting, and welcome to the forums, Sandra. I hope you´ll have a nice time hanging out here. There are tons of great fics to read, vids to watch and threads to enjoy.

You´ll get one answer in my following update.

[veronica525]

I love it! You are fabulous, seriously.

I am looking forward to reading about his and Chloe's first meeting...

[lexie]

I love it! You are fabulous, seriously.

You´ll give me a big head. It´s nice to know you´re enjoying this.

I am looking forward to reading about his and Chloe's first meeting...

You won´t have to wait that long.

[lexie]

A/N: Here´s a new update- a few hours before promised. It´s a double posting this time since I couldn´t find the place where to cut it without spoiling the momentum. This means my following instalment will be up in a fortnight.

Enjoy!

CHAPTER 3: Saying Goodbye, Saying Hello

STAR CITY´S CEMETERY

It was drizzling persistently as Chloe´s husband was lowered into the ground and the numerous mourners paid their last respects. Phil had been an admired and beloved member of the hospital community and several dozen of his co-workers and medical colleagues were in attendance. Even Philip Fairchild Sr was present, despite the enmity that had ensued when his son had decided to leave the family´s clinic and work full-time at the public hospital.

Chloe felt the raindrops pitter-pattering on her black umbrella, blinked away a few tears and tightened her hold on baby Laura, who had fallen asleep in her arms. She turned her head to the right and pressed a soft kiss on the girl´s blond hair, closing her eyes and inhaling the soothing smell of baby cologne. It was at moments such as these when Chloe hated not knowing who she was. She would have given the world to have some family she could lean on now- a mother, a father, siblings and cousins. Although she had always felt an affective void she was unable to fill in, she had made a few friends in Star City. Susan- her amazing editor – was one of them and had come to her rescue when the house became a circus after the shooting, taking Laura away while the police and the reporters swarmed in and around the house. Chloe was thankful; the editor had even let them both stay over at her flat. However, now that the funeral was over and Chloe realised the finality of it all, the young woman decided it was up to her to take the reins of her life and be strong for Laura. They´d move out of the house and stay in a hotel until she could clean the small apartment above the coffee house.

Lex had parked his BMW in a lateral lane to be able to attend the funeral unnoticed. Looking at Chloe standing so composed in a classic and simple black dress and holding her child in her arms as she said her final goodbye to the man who had been her husband of three years, the young CEO couldn´t help but remember a similar rainy morning when he had been the one to bid farewell to her ashes for there had been nothing left to bury. Clark and Lois had blamed him three years ago for his inability to protect Chloe, and he had accepted their recrimination as fair; and now he blamed himself for having failed her then because his failure had brought death to her doorstep at present. If he had been more careful, Lionel Luthor would have never got closer to her and her loved ones again. If he had been more careful... there wouldn´t have been a Dr Fairchild in her life and the girl she was pressing to her bosom might have been his instead of her late husband´s.

As the last mourners left the cemetery the rain stopped and Chloe stayed behind for a while under the attentive look of Lex, who remained partially hidden by a tombstone. He wished he could be standing next to her to lend her the support she needed, but he had to console himself with the knowledge he was there for her if only at a distance.

Chloe felt Laura stir in her arms and clutch at the platinum medal which hung from the chain her mum was wearing around her neck. The blonde reporter had never been able to part with the exquisite piece- there was something special about it, something which made her feel protected somehow. The medal was the only physical link to her past and the engraving on its back- Fāta viam invenient (The Fates will find a way)- had occupied many hours of her thoughts more so now that she had a possible name to attach to those initials, Lionel Luthor. What role had the deceased played in her life before the explosion? Could it be they had had something going on? The man had been old enough to be her father. Chloe trembled and told herself she was letting her imagination run wild. Maybe the fact that the late billionaire shared the initials on her St Christopher´s medal was just a coincidence; there were thousands of people out there whose names began with L after all. No, the gift must have come from other hands, hands that hadn´t meant to hurt her.

“Mummy,” whispered the girl drowsily,stretching a small arm over Chloe´s shoulder to point at Lex, “man.”

“Yes, granddad´s waiting for us,” responded Chloe, hoping the older man wouldn´t try to talk her into moving in with them because she really didn´t feel like arguing when her mind was already made up.

“No granddad,” Laura shook her head and the young reporter turned around only to see a metallic blue BMW pull out and drive away.

LUTHORCORP´S STAR CITY CONDO

Lex entered the luxurious apartment he had in Star City for those rare occasions on which he stayed the night after some strenuous business meeting. Even though he hadn´t been there in months, Jennifer had taken care of hiring the cleaning service to make sure everything was spotless for his arrival. There was fresh fruit and vegetables in the fridge and a well-stocked bar, including his favourite bottled-water and imported vintage drink.

Divesting himself of the black jacket and loosening the matching silk tie to undo the first few buttons of his pristine white shirt, he threw the car keys in a crystal ashtray, which he had never used- he had always had a penchant for expensive alcoholic beverages and cordon bleu cuisine, but tobacco had never been amongst his vices.

Walking in a straight line to the wet bar, he removed the stopper of a decanter and poured himself a bourbon. He took a small sip to let his taste buds appreciate the bouquet and then, turned the stereo on to break the deafening silence. Out of the hidden loudspeakers came the haunting violins of Albinoni´s Adaggio, and Lex sat down in a comfortable armchair in front of the fire.

The skies were grey again, foreshadowing an imminent storm. A lightning-bolt illuminated the room, making the panes of the big sliding doors shake, reverberating in Lex in the same way as the first sight of Chloe in the cemetery had. Taking a swing of his snifter he replayed the scene he had witnessed that morning and couldn´t help but feel proud of the young woman´s dignity in the face of fatality.

The little girl´s hair was as golden as her mum´s and seeing them both together had revived in the billionaire his dreams of having the happy family which had never been his. He had tried to convince himself he could build such a family with Lana Lang; however, there was something important missing in that formula: Lana wasn´t Gabe Sullivan´s only daughter and Lex had never felt for the brunette the communion he had experienced with the feisty blond.

Chloe had always awoken his protective side not because she was a run-of-the-mill damsel-in-distress but rather because his feelings for her ran deep and his possessiveness claimed her as his. Being around her kept him on his toes- she was a challenge and Lex lived for them. What´s more, unlike Clark and the Kents, she didn´t see the world in black and white- she was in many ways his reflection but with the moral compass he lacked many a time.

Chloe Sullivan centred him and he needed her back in his life; the question was how he would go about getting her trust now that she knew the identity of the man who had brought destruction to her door. Knowing her as he did, he suspected she must have already started or was about to begin her own investigation, and it was only a matter of time before she discovered Lex´s existence. Moreover, the fact that Lionel´s heir was a fixture on the society and business pages of every major newspaper and economic magazine in America didn´t help his cause. Therefore, asking his assistant to create him a fake identity, family, educational background and the works would be a waste of time. Being hard to forget was an asset when he was intent on intimidating someone but a liability in this particular case.

Stretching an arm he picked up the book from the coffee table- it had arrived by courier before he left for the cemetery and he had only had time to read the back cover and the prologue. Smiling faintly he leant back and opened the volume at the first chapter.

STAR CITY´S GRAND HOTEL

After a revitalising shower and a light brunch in the privacy of their room, Chloe tucked Laura in for a well-deserved nap and slipped under the bedclothes to lie next to the girl. In the semi-darkness she went over the events of the past couple of days, trying to find any clues that might explain what had occurred in that garage. Phil had been unusually nervous and worried that morning as if he had known something bad was going to happen. She had perceived it and when he had denied anything was amiss, she´d chosen to let it slide. Along the way she had learnt there were things he´d never share with her and she respected that just as he respected her need to get away with Laura from time to time.

Phil had been there for her when she had no one to lean on during the difficult months after the explosion, and it had felt natural to say `yes´ when he proposed and yet, she had always sensed there was something more, as if she had seen in him someone she had known in her past. In a marriage there´s always one who loves the most and in theirs it had been Phil. In retrospect Chloe realised it had been in part her loneliness and the need to feel she belonged somewhere what had drawn her to him.

Although there had never been fireworks between the two, now that Phil was dead she regretted not having been able to return his feelings in equal measure because she knew he had loved her, and he had deserved a lot more than her gratitude. She had cried his death as much for the human being he had been as for her own incapacity to give him the one thing he had lavished on both her and Laura- unconditional love. Having no memories of her life before Phil, Chloe relied on her instincts; just as they had told her her first book would be a hit, a sixth sense told Chloe not only that she had loved someone deeply but that she had also been in Phil´s shoes once.

Combing Laura´s golden tresses with her fingers as she looked at the girl lying sound asleep, Chloe swore she´d discover what had led to her late husband´s death- she would take the weekend off for her and Laura and start her inquiries on Monday.

THE JAVA NOOK- SATURDAY AFTERNOON

Jerry was climbing down the stairs which took to the cosy apartment above the coffee house when a tall expensively-dressed man came in through the front door making the wind bell chime. Chloe´s right hand followed the bald patrician guy with his eyes until the customer decided on a small table at the back. The man was decisively a non-regular; not only had Jerry never seen him before, but the rich patron made a careful appreciative examination of the shop- a fact which identified him as a first-timer.

Chloe was proud of what she had done with the coffee house when she took over after the original owner decided to sell to retire to the mountains. Although the place had had a good clientele when Chloe bought it, it increased exponentially once she added a well-stocked library, a reading nook and the specialties baked by a Danish pattissière she´d met by chance one rainy afternoon she sought refuge at an obscure baker´s . Business was good, particularly over the weekends, and now the shop was also attracting the occasional voyeur interested in catching a glimpse of Dr Fairchild´s widow or the murder mystery aficionado intent on meeting the promising novelist Karen Leigh Callahan aka Karen Fairchild.

Lex sat down at the secluded table impressed by the relaxed and homely atmosphere. The place was classy- he hadn´t tasted anything yet but the smells were tantalising enough to make his demanding taste buds water; the coffee and pasties offered were definitely first-class.

“Good afternoon, sir,” Jerry greeted Lex stopping by his table. Although the young man rarely waited on customers, there was something about this particular patron that called his attention. “Would you like to have a look at our menu or would you rather I recommended one of our specialties to you?”

“Thanks. I´ve already made my choice. I´ll have an espresso and... a piece of that appetising chocolate cake I saw on the top shelf of the display cabinet on my way in.”

“Excellent choice, sir. The pattisière baptised that pie `Karen´ after our boss. It´s her own favourite and you won´t find it elsewhere,” smiled the manager and, as if on cue, Chloe made her appearance carrying an empty storage cardboard box. “I´ll bring your order in a sec,” he added, leaving the table to prep the espresso machine.

“Jerry, I´ve finished unpacking the china. Would you do me a favour?
There´s a leak in the sink, and it seems to be getting bigger by the minute. Could you check it out and tell me what we´ll need to fix it? I wouldn´t like to wake up in the morning to find I´m on board the Titanic,” Chloe asked Jerry as they crossed in the middle of the coffee shop.

“Sure. Jerry the handyman at your service, madam,” he grinned, saluting her . “I´ll fill the order for the gentleman at the back and then I´ll see to your sink.”

“Leave the gentleman to me, Jerry,” she responded, shooting a sideway glance at Lex.

“If I haven´t come down in twenty-minutes, send for the lifeguards,” the manager laughed at the bottom of the stairs.

“Any special requirements?” she cocked an eyebrow.

“No inflated lips or enhanced bosom,” he said, stopping on the first step as Chloe fetched the chocolate cake and cut a piece to place it on a dessert plate.

“No Pamela Anderson then,” she responded while grinding the coffee beans to fill the metal filter of the espresso machine.

“I can hear the dripping calling,” he replied as he feigned to prick up his ears.

“Coward´s your surname, Jerry,” she finished, adding a spoonful of whipped cream to the dessert and preparing the tray to carry the order to the back.

Lex, who had witnessed the playful banter between boss and employee, smiled as memories of his old verbal judo sessions with Chloe at The Beanery and The Talon came rushing to his mind. However, the smile disappeared to be replaced by trepidation as he saw her make her way to his table.

“Good afternoon,” said Chloe warmly, laying a table mat in front of Lex to set down his order. “An espresso and a serving of chocolate cake,” she added, raising her eyes to meet a pair of intense blue-grey orbs looking at her as if they could see right into her soul.

Time seemed to come to a standstill while they gazed at each other without uttering a word. Although he had read about her amnesia in the report, he felt a stab of pain the moment he saw no hint of recognition in her eyes- she was even more beautiful than he remembered. Motherhood had given maturity to her curves and the hazel green of her eyes was deeper and more alluring than ever; he read confusion in them and knew he should say something instead of staring like a lecher or an infatuated teenager. He wondered if others were looking at him now the way he and Chloe used to look at Clark when the farmboy was around Lana, but the billionaire couldn´t help it- he had spent too many years in the desert and she was an oasis amidst the chaos his life had become. He drank from those bottomless pools like a man who hasn´t had water in a long time, and his eyes traced the creamy complexion of her face, every memorised mole and the almost invisible scar that disappeared in her hairline to convince himself she wasn´t just a mirage.

Fairchild had done an admirable work with his plastic surgeon hands- one had to look really close to see the faint lines on her face and her neck. Lex had seen pictures of Chloe prior to her surgeries and knew her face was the part of her body least affected by the fire and the shards- her back... He cursed Lionel Luthor and the FBI to hell and back for what they had put her through.

Chloe saw an indefinable emotion flicker in the stranger´s eyes, and she felt herself tremble under his scorching gaze. She experienced a bout of self-loathe when her body started getting aroused, and she thanked the jacket she was wearing on top of her blouse for concealing the tell-tale signs. What the hell was wrong with her? She had buried Phil just two days ago and now a man- someone she had no recollection of- looked at her and her libido was suddenly in overdrive. She felt the urge to slap herself and to tell him... What? In other circumstances, she would have made use of her wit and sarcasm to put the stranger in his place, but this time everything felt really odd. He was devouring her with his eyes, stripping her down as if he were trying to see beyond each and every barrier she had erected and yet... she didn´t feel insulted- it was as if he were worshipping her, as if she meant the world to him.

Seconds elapsed and Chloe tried to find enough coordination to open her mouth and say something to break the spell; however, no words would come out. She wondered if he could hear the thumping of her heart as his eyes caressed the column of her neck and lay on the expanse of milky skin revealed by her scoop neck. Taking her shaky fingers to her quivering bosom, she clutched the St Christopher´s medal as a lifeline and heard his voice for the first time.

“Everything looks delightful. I´m sure I´ll never taste anything better,” he managed to utter once he gained enough control over the commotion Chloe´s presence had caused in him. God! She was wearing that perfume of lilacs which he´d never stopped smelling when he closed his eyes in the solitude of his study. She was just an armful away, and he couldn´t touch her, couldn´t seal those lips with a kiss to find out if they still fit his so perfectly, if her mouth still tasted of java and mint.

“You´ll never have a chocolate cake that tastes like this one- that I can assure you,” she responded slightly breathless, experiencing a sudden and inexplicable urge to cry as the sound of his velvety baritone reverberated in her and her feminine core clenched intimately. “Enjoy your coffee,” she told him with as controlled a voice as she could muster, walking away from the table with her skin slightly on fire.

Lex looked at her receding back and impaled the fork in the spongy cake before dipping it into the whipped cream. Chloe might not remember him, but her body and soul did- he knew her well enough to recognise the signs; she had been aroused when she walked away from him and although he understood the guilt she must be feeling, a part of him was proud of the effect he still had on her.

“Hey, boss! My inspection´s finished and I´ve got a package for you,” said Jerry, climbing down the stairs with Laura by the hand. “Here´s the Princess; just awoken from her nap.”

“Hello, Laurie. Are you hungry?” responded Chloe with one of those smiles Lex remembered from her days at The Torch when a clueless Clark would inadvertently hurt her feelings and she would make an effort to mask what she was actually feeling.

“Is everything OK?” asked Jerry in a low voice, noticing her flushed cheeks.

“Yes. Why do you ask?” she replied, taking a comb to disentangle Laura´s golden tresses.

“Does he make you uncomfortable?” he asked Chloe while looking at Lex out of the corner of his eye. “He hasn´t taken his eyes off you since you came downstairs. If you want, I can...”

“Jerry,” she cut him off,” I know how to handle male attention. I wasn´t born yesterday, you know,” she added under her breath.” So... what´s the verdict?”

“Verdict?” frowned the manager.

“The sink, Jerry. Can it be fixed? Or will we have to stay at the hotel for an extra night, praying you find the main valve before my furniture starts to float?”

“Oh, that! The locknut needs to be tightened, but I´m afraid we haven´t got a wrench that´s big enough for its diameter. I can drive to K-Mart and see if they´ve got one,” responded Jerry, rubbing his neck. ”Unless you want me to cut the water supply and phone the plumber tomorrow.”

“I want to be able to use the sink and take a shower now not in two months´ time,” sighed Chloe as she tied the girl´s hair with a green ribbon.

“Excuse me, I couldn´t help but hear you´ve got a plumbing emergency,” a clearly-enunciated voice interrupted their exchange and the comb slipped from Chloe´s shaky hands. “I´ve got a wrench in my toolbox.”

“I wouldn´t have pegged you for a do-it-yourself kind of guy,” she replied ironically, holding his gaze unflinchingly.

“And I wouldn´t have pegged you for the kind that passes judgement on a person so quickly,” he retorted, taking his wallet to pay the bill at the counter.

“Touché,” she cocked an eyebrow. “I´d really appreciate it if you could lend us that wrench.”

“Let me go for it then. It´s in my trunk,” he smirked, walking to the entrance door. “Keep the change. That cake´s worth every dime and more.”

“Laurie, why don´t you go and fetch your favourite storybook while I fix you some hot cocoa and a plate of those coconut cookies you like so much,” Chloe told her daughter when the door closed.

By the time the billionaire came back she had brewed herself a strong black coffee with her favourite beans and was boiling some milk to fix Laura her hot chocolate.

“I´m back with the wrench,” Lex said to Chloe´s back and saw her jump.

“Shoot!” she exclaimed when she spilt some hot milk and burnt a couple of fingers.

“I´m sorry. It wasn´t my intention to startle you,” he apologised. “Have you hurt yourself?”

“Don´t worry. There´s no permanent damage. Do you always walk so stealthily?” she asked him, turning around and placing her daughter´s meal on her Winnie-the-Pooh´s tray.

“Only when I´m pursuing an elusive target and I´m afraid it´ll dart away,” he responded wryly.

“We aren´t in the forest and I´m no hunter´s game or trophy,” Chloe told him gravely.

“I would never mistake you for one,” he replied, looking her straight in the eye.

“Oh, good! You´re back. That damn pipe´s starting to leak like the Niagara Falls,” exclaimed Jerry, taking the tool from Lex´s outstretched arm.

“Would you like another espresso? It´s on the house,” Chloe offered the young CEO, wondering what this man had that made her body want him and her tongue seek to duel with him.

“You can make free use of my wrench but, if you´re determined to pay for it, I´m ready to take whatever you´re willing to give. An espresso sounds wonderful,” he said with his characteristic poker face.

Damn the man! Why was it that everything he said sounded like innuendo to her ears? It was so wrong; she was in mourning for God´s sake!

Laura found her favourite volume on the shelf where they kept the children´s books, and she leafed through it until she got to a particular illustration. Meanwhile, Lex leant back in his seat as Chloe prepared the espresso machine and the last couple of patrons said their goodbyes at the door. A couple of minutes later, he felt a tug at his trousers and looked down to meet a pair of intelligent eyes.

Stretching her tiny arm Laura laid her book on the table and pushed it towards Lex. “Laura wants you to read,” she told the billionaire.

“The Jungle Book,” he said, looking at the book cover and smiling at the girl. “Laura´s a beautiful name. How old are you?” he added.

The girl put up two fingers just as Chloe got to the table to serve Lex his coffee.

“Sweetie, don´t disturb the gentleman,” the blond reporter chided her daughter.

“She doesn´t disturb me. Laura and I were talking, weren´t we?” he responded, boring his eyes into the kid.

“Man,” said the child, pointing at Lex and raising her eyes to meet her mum´s.

“Yes, that´s what I said. Gentleman,” Chloe corrected her.

“No, no gen´man,” the girl shook her head.” Man,” she insisted, recognising in Lex the man she had spotted at the cemetery.

“It seems I haven´t made much of an impression on either mother or daughter,” he cocked an eyebrow.

“Man´s going to read Laura,” the two-year-old told Chloe once again.

“She likes you. That´s her favourite book and... the only person she´s ever asked to read to her... was my husband,” Chloe confessed with a lump in her throat.

“I´ll be honoured to read her the story then,” replied the billionaire with the ghost of a smile after a pregnant silence.

“Are you sure you don´t mind? I suppose you must have other places to be,” she frowned.

“If you don´t want me to stay, just say the word and I´ll leave,” he said gravely.

“No, no, it´s not that. I just thought... you don´t look like someone who´d have the time to...” mumbled Chloe, hating herself for being unusually inarticulate.

“Read to a child?” he completed her thought. “It´s Saturday and I haven´t got a boss looking over my shoulder.”

“All right. I´ll bring you your cocoa and more cookies, Laura. Let´s sit you on the chair, first,” smiled the young widow as she lifted the child and sat her
next to Lex.

“Do the voices,” the girl told him, kneeling down on the chair and placing a tiny hand on his forearm for leverage as she got closer to be able to see the pictures while he read.

Lex rested his eyes on the golden hair and studied the girl who had dared not only boss him around but also invade his private space and get away with it. That a child would approach him so innocently when he was so unlike the Clark Kents of this world baffled him, and the fact that child was Chloe´s daughter overwhelmed him.

Chloe observed Lex from the counter and wondered what had possessed her to break every sensible mum´s golden rule; the handsome man sitting with her baby was a virtual stranger who could be a paedophile for all she knew and yet... something told her she could trust him. The scene was really incongruous... a well-off businessman, wearing a pair of shoes worth more than she earned with the café in a month- was reading her two-year-old a story, doing voices and looking unflappable as the small child´s hand, sticky with sugar, grabbed his 150-dollar dress shirt.

“Laurie, here´s your chocolate,” said Chloe, giving the girl her favourite sippy-glass.

“I see a pattern here,” smirked Lex.”Is that Winnie-the-Pooh?” he asked pointing at the Disney illustration on the glass.

“Pooh,” beamed Laura, and the billionaire thought that was what Chloe must have looked like when she was a tiny tot- except for her eyes, which were a different colour but as mesmerising as her mum´s.

“I should have never let Phil buy her that DVD. Now she´s got that bear on her sheets, on her nightgown, on her comforter. She´s even got Winnie-the-Pooh-shaped soap, a Winnie-the-Pooh lamp...” the blonde laughed, combing her daughter´s hair with her fingers.

“Does obsessiveness run in the family?” asked Lex, cocking an eyebrow and trying not to betray how much the sound of her laugh had affected him.

“I guess I´m a tad obsessive,” confessed Gabe´s daughter.

`And relentless and intrepid and loyal and giving... and utterly selfless,´ added Lex to himself.

“Do you like reading murder mysteries?” asked Chloe when her eyes fell on the novel he´d left face down on the table.

“My mother used to have a leather-bound collection of Conan Doyle´s complete works issued by this very same publishing house. I read them as a child and then Poe, of course,” he responded, wondering what direction the conversation would take now.

“Poe? I hope you didn´t read Poe at such a tender age,” she frowned.

“My father had me read The Art of War at a tender age. I´d have had Poe any day of the week,” he said ironically.

“What kind of a father would give that sort of literature to a child?” she replied disapprovingly.

“The kind who sees the world as a battlefield and considers people mere pawns to achieve his ends irrespective of the means. The kind to whom love and compassion are signs of weakness,” he stated grimly.

“That´s a monster not a father,” she said with disgust.

“That´s the kind of father I had,” he replied with a guarded look.“Fortunately, not all fathers are like him,” he added with a lump in his throat as he remembered the late Jonathan and Gabe. He had admired the former, despite the older man´s inability to see beyond Lex´s name, and he had loved and respected the latter.

“It isn´t written we´ll be like our own parents,” she said emotionally before veering the conversation. “What do you think of this novel? Is it any good?” she asked Lex, wondering if his stopping by had been either a coincidence or a planned visit.

“It´s a promising first novel. I admire the writer a lot,” he responded with a conspiratorial grin.

“Is that why you came here?”

“I wanted to see you; and I was told you serve the best coffee in town.”

“The plates on your car are from Metropolis. Did you drive all the way just to meet me?”

“Star City isn´t that far from Metropolis. I know of fans that have travelled longer distances to see their favourite writers or stars,” he said helping a tired Laura get down the chair.

“I suppose you´re right. Although you don´t look like the regular fanboy, if you know what I mean.”

“Does that mean you won´t autograph my copy?”

“That´d make me a lousy businessperson. Who should I dedicate it to?” she asked him, taking a pen out of her pocket.

“To Alexander.”

“OK. Here I am at last. Problem solved, boss,” Jerry interrupted them as he dried his wet hands with a tea towel. “Mr Saviour, here´s your tool,” he added, handing the wrench back to Lex and then picking Laura up to wash her face and hands.

“I´ve been called many things in my life, but never a saviour.”

“Well, you´ve been our saviour this evening. If it weren´t for you, Laurie and I would be staying in a hotel room for another night.”

“I´m pleased to have been of assistance, “said the billionaire.” Thanks for the espresso and for this,” he told her, picking up his coat and the autographed book. “Say goodbye to Laura on my behalf; she´s a very interesting young person.”

“She´s special in many ways,” conceded Chloe with a wistful look.

“She must be; she´s your daughter,” he replied, boring his intense blue-grey eyes into her.

“Your being here this afternoon isn´t just a coincidence, is it?” she asked with a hammering heart.

“Do you believe in fate?” he asked slipping one of his hands in his pocket.

“Fate as in kismet? As `I felt an invisible force that dragged me to this coffee house or to enter a bookstore and buy this particular book.´? You don´t seem a man who would do anything on impulse or who would let anyone or anything dictate to him what to do with his life,” she responded, making an effort to hold his gaze and hide how much his proximity was affecting her.

“You can fight fate as much as you want, but it always finds a way,” he told her, applauding her inwardly for her unchanged knack for reading people, for reading him.

“Fāta viam invenient,” murmured Chloe as she clutched her St Christopher´s medal and eyed him speculatively.

“That´s an exquisite piece you´re wearing; St Christopher, Patron Saint of Travellers. The only church on this continent devoted to him is located in Montreal,” he stated resting his eyes on the Florentine jewel and wondering if Chloe´s agile mind had already put two and two together.

Chloe´s head was spinning and her stomach was tied up in knots. Could this attractive and imposing young man- this man who made her feel things she shouldn´t be feeling- be the same one who had given her the platinum medal she hadn´t taken off in almost three years? Were LL his initials? He had told her Alexander was his first name- Xander, Alex... or Lex. He could be, some sixth sense told her he was. However, that´d mean he... Relief and agony was just a question away. Dared she ask it? She wasn´t ready, not if his answer were affirmative. Although she didn’t know many things about herself and her past, there was one thing she had always known. She wondered now if he knew and if that was the reason for his being here.

“I´ll store that piece of information for my next visit to Canada,” she said with a smile, hoping it disguised the tumult inside of her. “Are you a Catholic?”

“My mother was. She loved telling me about the Church´s old saints. When I turned eleven she bought me a box made out of a piece of St George´s armour at a Kasban in Morocco. That and this Napoleon franc watch are the only things I´ve got left of her,” he confessed, pulling up his cuff.

“St George and the dragon. She knew your father well, didn´t she?” she asked him with an ironical smile. “How come you were baptised Alexander and not given some Biblical name?”

“New Testament. Joseph. That´s my middle name,” replied the billionaire with a lopsided grin. `Smooth, Chloe. You haven´t lost your touch.´

“Well, Alexander Joseph, thanks for stopping by. You´re welcome to come back on your next business trip to Star City,” she beamed, walking him to the door as she got ready to close for the day.

“I sure will. Until we meet again,” he told her, stepping out onto the pavement and unlocking his BMW with the remote.

“Goodbye and thanks again for the wrench,” she shouted, locking the front door and flipping the notice to “Closed”.

“The ball´s in your court now, Chloe. Festīnā lentē. Make haste slowly,” he murmured, firing the engine and pulling out as a faint perfume of lilacs accompanied him all the way to Metropolis.

TBC

[Fouzia]

thank you for this wonderful story!!!
I can't wait for the next update!!
thank you for advance:::::
I am dying!!!!