Chapter Two

Three days later, Clark found Chloe in her usual spot at a side table at the Talon. "How's the diet going?" he asked casually, as he wandered over to the pastry counter.

"Great. I've lost a whole pound already," she replied, still deep in whatever article she was researching on her laptop.

Clark smiled hopefully as he examined the offerings in the display case. "Then can I talk you into splitting a piece of apple pie? It looks pretty good today." He'd had to finish his bag of chocolates by himself the other day, and while it hadn't exactly been a hardship, he'd discovered that the candy hadn't tasted nearly as good as the treats he usually shared with Chloe.

She barely even glanced up from her work. "Sorry, no can do. Besides, I'm on a deadline with this article. The Planet's nice enough to let me file stuff from home this month to help me recuperate, so I don't want to let things slide."

Clark could hardly believe his ears. "You can't eat pie?" Some diets, he thought, were definitely not worth the trouble.

Chloe snorted in amusement. "Not all of us are blessed with a metabolism as super as yours, Mr. Stomach of Steel. For you, there's pie; for us mere mortals, there's the South Beach Diet."

Grumbling, Clark pulled up a chair next to Chloe and collapsed into it dejectedly, the chair groaning under the weight of his large frame.

At the sound, his friend glanced up from her computer. "Quit pouting," she said tartly.

"I am not pouting!"

Chloe sighed and powered down her laptop. "How would you like to go shopping with me?"

It wasn't Clark's first choice, but at least they could spend time together. "Sure."

Her eyebrows waggled. "In Metropolis?" She darted a cautious glance around the sparsely populated coffee shop, and her voice dropped. "By Kent Express?"

Clark's grin returned, full force. "Sure."