Part II

Chloe was waiting when Oliver arrived back at the penthouse. After a quick change into comfortable jeans and a casual button down shirt, he joined her in his office and outlined the latest League project. Once she got started, he went to the kitchen and grabbed his uneaten dinner from an earlier business meeting. He also got a bottle of water for Chloe, handing it to her as he sat on the other side of his desk to eat.

He used his laptop to go through some emails, replying to a few of them and marking others to be addressed later. He also checked his schedule for the following week and grimaced slightly at how busy it looked like he would be. Changing offices always resulted in some slight confusion. Eventually he turned his attention to Chloe. She was tapping her lip with her finger as she studied the information on the screen, something he remembered she did when she was concentrating.

Oliver glanced over at the number of bags she'd been carrying. Since he was bored just sitting there waiting for Chloe to do her thing, he started looking at the course books in her book bag. World War I History and World War I Literature – probably a companion class, he thought. Ethics in Journalism, Criminology…huh?

He looked over at Chloe. "Criminology? How is that related to journalism?"

"What?" She looked up at him, brow furrowed in confusion.

He held up the book with a raised brow.

"It's called an elective – and given my moonlighting for you and the team, it might be useful. Ollie, I'm trying to concentrate here." Her attention turned back to the screen.

Oliver flipped through the books for a minute and then reached for the shopping bags she'd brought in. One was from a shoe store. Not surprising since he'd noted before that Chloe had a thing for shoes, particularly boots and high heels. She'd worn a pair of leopard print heels to a League meeting once that had Bart salivating like she was his next burrito dinner. Oliver had to smack the back of his head twice to keep him focused.

One bag was from a sports shop and contained yoga pants and a couple of tank tops. He wondered if it was just loungewear or if she was planning to take up yoga. Maybe he'd ask her to join him – visions of Chloe doing the downward facing dog raced through his brain, and he shifted uncomfortably. Yeah, maybe not. The next two bags made him forget all about yoga.

The last bags didn't have logos, and he understood why when he saw what was in them. He raised his brows at the sexy cop outfit – a barely there pleated miniskirt with attached handcuffs and a front tie police shirt complete with badge. His groin tightened as he tried to wrap his head around the idea of Chloe buying a kinky costume like this. Maybe it was for Halloween? If she wore it out in public, she'd cause a riot, especially at a frat party or a club. Oliver was semi-aroused just thinking about her wearing the outfit while dancing. He decided to check with Clark about their Halloween plans. He might have to tag along to keep her out of trouble.

He made an effort to calm down as he looked at the other items in the two bags. He frowned, surprise turning to shock at the contents, and his stunned disbelief increased with each thing he saw. Bondage starter kit…fetish play variety pack…Dr. Good Head flavored gels…Mint Chocolate Deep Throat spray…a paddle? Jesus. She had enough condoms in the bag to supply her entire dorm. And the last few items were things he'd never have suspected she even knew about. What the fuck was going on?

He looked up at Chloe, still hard at work on the computer. Why would she buy all this stuff? Suddenly, he remembered Clark talking about all the crazy things Lois had been buying lately because of some bachelorette party she was planning for a co-worker. And of course, Lois being Lois, she got a kick out of showing the resident Boy Scout all her goodies. He relaxed, relieved that there was an explanation. Probably wouldn't help his brand new Officer Chloe fantasies, though.

"This is going to be quite the bachelorette party, huh?" Oliver was a little amused now, picturing Chloe in the kind of store that sold these types of things. She'd probably been blushing the whole time.

"Huh?" She looked up and an expression of horror crossed her face. "Oliver!" He was holding up the sexy cop outfit.

"Hey, this is the tamest thing in your little bag of tricks here," he replied with a smirk. "So when is this bachelorette party again? Because I'd be more than happy to escort you ladies around Metropolis for the night."

Chloe's earlier humiliation came flooding back. Why did no one believe that she could buy this kind of thing for herself? She'd never realized that everyone thought she was such a good girl type. She felt a surge of rebellion. "How do you even know about the bachelorette party? And for your information, that's my stuff."

Oliver grinned at her. "Oh come on, Sidekick. I know you and Jimmy broke up, which I'm sorry about, by the way." Ok, not really, but he was sorry if she had been hurt. He just personally didn't think Jimmy Olsen was good enough for Chloe.

Now she was angry. Chloe sat back and crossed her arms. "How do you know that?"

"Clark mentioned it to Victor, and Victor told me. And Clark's been talking about the bachelorette party Lois is planning. So, what are you girls doing? Making a honeymoon basket?"

"You guys gossip worse than a bunch of middle school girls. And why Victor would tell you about my love life, I have no idea," Chloe grumbled. "But that stuff is not for the bachelorette party. Lois is planning that, not me."

Oliver knew why Victor kept him updated on Chloe. It was because he had noticed the way Oliver flirted with her and had also called him on it more than once. Oliver always shrugged it off. He knew Victor thought he should make a play for Chloe himself, but he also knew that was a bad idea for many reasons.

"Yeah, ok," he said in amusement. "Because you're definitely the bondage type." Another fantasy he could now add to his Officer Chloe roster. He was seeing more than a few cold showers in his future. Or maybe he just needed to get back on the club circuit and find a girl he could blow off some steam with. He hadn't done that in a while, and it was his usual M.O. That girl just couldn't be Chloe.

"Maybe I am, Oliver. How would you know? Believe whatever you want," she said calmly, "but I did not buy that stuff for the party. Everything in those bags is mine." And that was the total truth. He didn't need to know she had been planning to return what she could because of the cost. Now she was almost determined to keep every single item. And not just keep them – use them. Just so she could say she had. Take that, good girl image.

Oliver waited for her to say 'Gotcha!' Nothing. She had to be kidding. "Chloe, be serious."

"I am being serious, but I don't have to convince you because it's not your business what I do or who I do it with." Chloe turned her attention back to the computer.

He stared at her, dumbfounded. "You're telling me, in all seriousness, that you bought this stuff for yourself?" Suddenly, he was far less amused.

"Yes."

Not a blink or a twitch – shit, she was actually serious. "But you and Jimmy broke up at least two months ago."

"Last I checked Jimmy Olsen is not the only man in Metropolis."

Oliver had a sudden, horribly awkward thought. "This isn't uh… it's not for Clark, is it?" Please say no.

Chloe looked shocked. "God, no. Geez, would you just drop it?"

Relief shot through him because the last thing he wanted was to think about Chloe and Clark together like that. Or Chloe and anyone together like that. He ran a hand through his hair, frustrated by her vague answers and determined to get to the bottom of this.

"Have you been reading that 'Fifty Shades' book?" Oliver demanded. God knew it had given a lot of women the wrong idea about fetish and bondage play, and the kinds of come-ons he'd been getting lately bordered on the ridiculous. The woman who wrote that garbage had a lot to answer for in his opinion.

Chloe momentarily forgot her embarrassment. "'Fifty Shades of Crap?' Are you kidding me?" She shot him a look of disbelief. "If I wanted to read weird Twilight fan fiction, there are free websites out there - and probably better authors."

"Then I don't understand this." Oliver held up the package labeled 'Ben Wa Balls.' "Do you even know what these are for?"

No, she didn't. But he didn't need to know that either. "Yes," she muttered through clenched teeth.

"And these..." He held up the one called 'Love Beads.' "These are not Mardi Gras beads, Chloe."

Her temper flared. "You know, Jimmy and I dated for a long time. I'm not a virgin, Oliver, and I haven't been one since I was sixteen." Also true. Of course, there had been a great big dry spell between Jimmy and… well, Jimmy. My love life sucks, she thought morosely. She was going to have to concede Lois's point on that.

Oliver snorted in disbelief. "There's a big gap between being a virgin and this, Chloe. I'd bet every dime I have that Jimmy doesn't know what this stuff is either. What was his idea of getting kinky - fuzzy handcuffs? And I bet he giggled his way through it."

Chloe's cheeks burned. They had both giggled their way through that, actually. "You don't know anything about my sex life with Jimmy."

"I know this isn't you," he said, waving his hand at her bags. "What's going on?"

"How would any of you know what is or isn't me?" She stood up, rounded the desk, and started throwing the packages back in her bags. "You only notice me when you need me to be research girl. You know, I'm not just the Justice League's sidekick, Oliver - I am a woman. I had a date last week, and I'm seeing him again next week." Not her original plan, though George was nice; but maybe she did need to put herself out there more like Lois said. "Maybe I've decided to take a walk on the wild side for a change."

Oliver watched as she grabbed her jacket, unsure how to respond to her tirade. "Chloe, wait."

"I'll email you with the rest of my research," she said, not meeting his eyes as she walked into the elevator.

Damn, he thought. That didn't go well at all. And maybe that was his fault because Chloe did have a point. She was an adult, and he'd sort of implied that she had no idea what she was doing. The problem was that he was afraid she really didn't know what she was getting herself into with all the stuff she'd bought. You needed to at least be able to trust the person you played 'tie me up tie me down' with.

And who the hell was this date? Someone at work? Someone older? The last thought made him scowl as he wondered if someone was taking advantage of her naiveté. Predators abounded in this city. He spent enough time out as Oliver Queen to know that, not to mention what he saw when patrolling.

It's none of your business the practical side of his brain reminded him. True. But if some weirdo was trying to take advantage of her then as her friend, he felt like that was his business. Unfortunately, he was also back to acknowledging his attraction to her. It was something that he'd recognized not long after he met her. But given that she was Clark's best friend and a member of the League in her own right, he'd unofficially instituted a 'hands off' policy when it came to Chloe. His own reputation was less than stellar in that department anyway.

Feeling restless, he decided to head out and make one more round of the city before calling it a night. And tomorrow, he'd see what he could find out about Chloe's date.

A/N - Just to be clear, this will NOT be a kink fest story. Some mentions of Chloe's purchases are strictly for humor. That being said, there will be a few chapters with an M rating and some of the purchases are used. I just tried to keep it from being too explicit and more on the realistic side, and I wanted to keep it in line with the characters. I was kind of going for a sensual love story, so if you like it then please let me know. Hope you're enjoying the story! I'll post as often as I can, and updates are coming for other stories too - I've just been having some Internet trouble and posting usually requires multiple attempts.