A/N: Another story from my archives. I've been posting in another forum, but I held off posting here at FF for a while due to the M content. After reading some other M stories here though, I feel that mine is actually less explicit. I went more for sensual than outright explicit in any case. This story stems from a writing exercise, and it was fun to try and make it fit Chlollie. I hope all of my awesome Chlollie readers enjoy reading it as much as I enjoyed writing it.

Part I

It was Saturday night in Metropolis, a night when most young people were out with friends or significant others. And what am I doing? Chloe thought. Working. Maybe she needed to take Lois up on the vacation she'd been urging Chloe to go on with her.

She'd been manning the hotline at the Daily Planet most of the evening. When her replacement arrived, she began going through some of her notes on a story she was putting together, but eventually her need of a caffeine fix prompted her to take a break.

Chloe's coffee break turned into a shopping excursion when she saw a pair of ankle boots in a store window calling her name. Fall was just around the corner, and her wardrobe was in serious need of some sprucing up. At a sports store, she added some new yoga pants and tanks to her purchases. She loved the comfort they provided when she was at home lounging or writing.

She had just left the coffee shop with her venti mocha latte when she saw Jimmy rounding the corner at the next intersection. He was with his new girlfriend, another staff photographer at the Planet named Stephanie. Chloe paused, inwardly groaning.

She and Jimmy had called it quits – for real this time – more than two months ago, and mostly she was ok with that. Their ongoing drama had been wearing on both of them, and she knew it would never change. She didn't think she would ever be able to fully bring him into her life, not when it involved sidekicking for Clark and Oliver's league of heroes. And as long as she had to lie to him about such a big part of her life, she knew they were never really going anywhere.

It still hurt though. Their last argument had been intense with both of them trading jabs out of frustration. The following day Jimmy had come by her dorm to tell her he was sorry about the things he said, but he thought it was better if they just went their separate ways. After all the arguing, their breakup had been surprisingly anti-climactic.

Although they had parted on mostly good terms, she really didn't feel like making small talk with Jimmy and Stephanie. The two of them had gained quite a reputation for being googly-eyed and giggly over one another at work, and she had to fight the urge to roll her eyes whenever she saw them canoodling in the office.

She ducked into the closest store before they saw her, taking a sip of her coffee as she looked around. Wow. She stopped short as she realized she had walked into the store called Love Stuff. She had heard of it before because Lois was a regular customer since taking on the responsibility of planning a Planet co-worker's bachelorette party. Lois also showed Chloe every kinky thing she bought, and she particularly delighted in pulling it all out whenever Clark was around. Chloe had to admit that watching her best friend turn twenty shades of red and purple while choking on his tongue was amusing, especially since she suspected the current back and forth between Lois and Clark was some sort of strange foreplay.

No problem. She'd just wait a few minutes and then head back to work. She walked over to a display of costumes, raising her brows at a few of them. She and Jimmy had never gotten into costumes or anything that could remotely be labeled kinky, really. She had bought furry pink handcuffs once, intending to use them with Jimmy on date night. But after she had cuffed him to the bed, they'd both been a little weirded out by it. As a foray into bondage, she didn't think it had been all that successful.

Their tame bedroom routine had been one of the more stinging of Jimmy's remarks during their last fight as a couple, especially since Chloe didn't consider that to be all her fault. Jimmy's idea of foreplay was like a coordinated routine and while moderately effective, it had never left her awash in the sort of afterglow Lois often described when she had a new boyfriend. She heard the door open behind her and turned to look. Crap.

Jimmy walked in with Stephanie, and they paused when they saw Chloe. Looking uncomfortable, Jimmy said, "Chloe… hey."

Chloe forced a smile. "Hi Jimmy. Stephanie, nice to see you again."

"You too, Chloe." Stephanie smiled back hesitantly, but Chloe noticed that she tucked her arm through Jimmy's and leaned in closer to him.

Jimmy cleared his throat. "So, guess you're helping Lois with that bachelorette party, huh?"

"No. Should I be?" Chloe asked.

"Well, I mean… it's not really your kind of store," he replied with a little laugh.

Chloe bit back the snarky retort that it wasn't his kind of store either. She could only assume it was Stephanie's influence, though she really didn't look like the kinky type either. But then you never could tell about those kinds of things. "I'm just picking up a few things to surprise my boyfriend this weekend." Whoa… where did that come from?

Jimmy looked surprised. "I didn't realize you were dating anyone."

She knew that was her cue to tell him who she was dating – kind of difficult since the only date she'd been on lately was a setup Lois sent her on last week. George Dean was a few years older than Chloe but very sweet, and he was one of the youngest detectives with the Metropolis Police Department. It had gone well, and George even asked to see her again. But Chloe put him off with the excuse that she needed to wait for her work schedule to come out for the following week. As nice as he was, she wasn't certain that starting yet another relationship based on lies was the greatest idea at the moment.

"Well, it's kind of new," she answered vaguely.

"And you're shopping in here?" Jimmy looked doubtful.

Later, Chloe couldn't say what made her do it – only that the idea that he thought it was weird for her to be in that store just pissed her off. She grabbed a basket and smiled at them. "Nice to see you, but I have somewhere to be."

She headed down the nearest aisle. Bondage and fetish – yikes. Pushing down her initial squeamish reaction, Chloe grabbed a few packages that looked interesting and kept going. Flavored body products, check. Sexy costume, why not? By the time she walked to the checkout desk, her little basket was full. For good measure she grabbed several large boxes of condoms, all different flavors and colors, and all in the most generous size available.

Chloe hid her embarrassment as the girl at the checkout desk began ringing up her purchases, feeling especially self-conscious when she heard Jimmy and Stephanie approaching. But apparently this was just another day at the office for the store clerk because her bored expression never wavered. Chloe had to wonder what kind of sex life she had that none of the items even fazed her.

She gave Chloe her total, more than two hundred dollars. Suppressing a cringe, Chloe handed over her card even as she made a mental note of the store's return policy. Grabbing the two bags and adding them to the ones she already carried became a balancing act, but she managed.

Chloe turned to Jimmy and Stephanie, and the expression on Jimmy's face was worth every dime she had just spent. With a smirk at his lone bottle of massage oil, Chloe said, "See you on Monday!"

With all of her bags, Chloe decided she'd probably better pack it in and just take a cab back to the dorms. Her car was in the shop for minor repairs and wouldn't be ready until Monday morning. But the cab gods were not smiling on her, and five blocks later her hands were cramping up. She paused briefly on the darkened street, setting the bags down and flexing her hands before picking them back up. She thought she heard a noise behind her but saw nothing when she turned.

Just as Chloe was passing an alley, she felt someone grab her from behind. She tried to shriek, but the gloved hand that came down over her mouth prevented any sound from escaping.

"Hands full, no pepper spray at the ready – I'm disappointed, Sullivan."

The deep, distorted voice was familiar, and Chloe sagged in relief as the man released her and drew her further into the dark alley. Turning, she glared at the cocky vigilante standing before her. "And apparently Green Arrow has nothing better to do than scare people for his own amusement? What the hell, Ollie?"

He grinned at her, features only barely discernible beneath the hood and dark glasses he wore. "Come on – you had that coming. You might as well be wearing a sign that says 'Come get me.' Your arms are full and you had no way to defend yourself once I grabbed you. Seriously, Chloe – you should know better."

Chloe sighed, knowing he had a point. "I didn't plan to have this many bags, and my car is in the shop. I was just walking back to the dorm."

"Well, if you don't have better plans, is there any chance I can convince you to swing by my place and help me out with some research? I was planning to call you when I finished patrolling."

"When did you get back? I didn't even know you were in town," Chloe said.

"This afternoon. And it's looking like I'll be here indefinitely, at least for a while. I have a lot of business at the QI office here that needs to be addressed. So, gonna help me out?"

She glanced down at her bags, biting her lip. "Yeah, ok. I need to get a cab though. There's no way I can carry all this down to Queen Towers."

Oliver held up his phone. "Not a problem. I sent a text to my driver when I saw you walking alone in the dark. He should be waiting at the next intersection. You have the codes to the penthouse, so just let yourself in. I'll be there soon."

"Driver, huh? Must be nice." Chloe took a moment to look him over. Even as the billionaire CEO of Queen Industries, Oliver Queen demanded attention. He was cocky and confident, and it came across in every meeting and interview he conducted. But cocky had a whole new meaning when he took on the Green Arrow persona.

His lips lifted at the corners, clearly amused by her checking him out. And that was exactly what she had been doing without even realizing it. Her cheeks flushed a little despite the cool night air. "I'll see you at your place."

Oliver watched her hurrying toward the intersection, keeping her in sight until he saw her get into the car waiting there. He had to admit that getting the jump on Chloe Sullivan was the highlight of his evening because it so rarely happened. Despite the trouble she occasionally got into, it was almost always related to something she was doing for Clark or the League, and she was usually hyper aware of her surroundings. It made him wonder about the source of her distraction.

She was also damn cute when she got flustered, remembering her embarrassment when he caught her checking him out. Not that he hadn't checked her out on occasion; the first time he'd seen her in Clark's barn came to mind. But he never allowed his mind to wander too long in that direction because Chloe was young and too valuable an asset to the team for him to consider getting too friendly.

Since everything on the crime front had been unusually quiet, he decided to head back early and get Chloe started on the research he needed. It was actually nice to be back in Metropolis, and he was looking forward to the change of scenery.