CHAPTER III: To Be With You
Lana parked her car in front of the mansion. She closed her eyes and took a deep breath before opening the door. Millions of questions ran through her head. She asked herself if this courageous decision was the right one, or if she was going through some Alpha Lana state again. Before more doubts fill her mind, she grabbed the black coat lying on the next seat and got out of the car.
Lex was sitting in the library staring at the fireplace. Next to him was a whisky he hadn't even tasted yet. Completely lost in his thoughts. He suddenly turned to the sound of the doors opening. "I said I didn't want any late night visitors."
"It's me." Lana answered shyly.
He immediately stood up at the sound of her voice. "I'm sorry, I thought it was one of the maids."
"I look that bad, huh?" Lana joked.
Lex smiled at the comment wishing she didn't do. Playing cute was not helping the urge he had to take her in his arms and kiss her.
"So, what brings you here so late?" He asked trying to act as if anything out of the ordinary had happened during the past 48 hours.
"Your coat.I forgot to give you your coat the other night." She replied. 'Great excuse.' Lana thought to herself while handing him the coat.
Lex involuntarily caressed her hand as he took the coat. He didn't know what she had done to him since that night, but it was almost impossible not to touch her or to be near her.
"Thanks" he softly said.
Lana looked at him. She could feel her knees tremble as she nervously let go of his hand. "I should go. I just wanted to give you your coat back." she added walking towards the door.
"What did you really come here, Lana?" Lex asked harshly.
Lana closed her eyes unable to turn around and look at him.
"Really, because I don't buy the whole coat pretext." He added coldly while taking a sip of his drink.
Lana felt a tear running down her cheek. It was bizarre how his words had the power to penetrate deep down in her soul.
"I told you, I just wanted to give you your coat.That's all" she managed to say.
"Lana, please, don't insult my intelligence." Almost instantly the Luthor in him started to come out.
Lana simply lowered her head staring at the floor.
"It wasn't a mistake." she said breaking the silence. As much as she had tried to fight back the tears, it was impossible to do it with him right in front of her.
"What wasn't a mistake?" He asked confronting her.
"What happened the other night at The Talon" Lana replied regaining her composure. "I'm still not sure how or why that happened, but I can't just pretend that it didn't. I can't just put all behind and go on like it was nothing, ok? She paused. "Maybe I'm not as good as you are at covering things."
"Covering things?" He questioned with his typical sarcastic smirk.
"Yes. Isn't that why you came to the Talon tonight? To tell me what a huge mistake you've made. Well, who knows? Maybe I'm just another slip in your life." Lana didn't know why she was so angry, but those words had definitely hurt him. She could see it in his eyes.
"Is that what you think?" he asked putting the drink on the desk. "Trust me Lana, you are far from being a slip in my life." He finished.
"Look, I better go. This wasn't such a good idea. It's late and we may say things we will regret later." Lana said heading towards the door.
"Sure. Go. Go and hide in a book eternally waiting for Clark to come to the rescue." Lex answered sharply.
Lana felt a hole in her stomach as he said those words. "That's not fair."
Lex looked at her. She was clearly trying not to cry. It was unbearable for him to see her like that. The last thing he wanted to do was making her suffer. There was enough pain in her life to add another sorrow. He turned his back at her and closed his eyes waiting for her to leave.
Lana stopped before opening the door and walked closer to where he was standing.
"Today at school, Clark asked me if I would tell him if something were wrong. Do you have any idea how I felt when he asked me that? The very idea of Clark finding out about us is mortifying. This isn't only about me anymore, Lex. I don't want to hurt Clark."
Lex got closer and looked directly into her eyes. "I know." "Believe me, I hate to have these feelings for you and not be able to get rid of them. I've been trying all day to tell myself it was nothing, but it's not working."
Lana looked the other way, unable to make eye contact.
"Look" he said lowering his voice. "The last thing I want to do is go back to the selfish bastard I was back in Metropolis, and I don't want to hurt Clark either, but this doesn't happen to me often, Lana."
Lana looked down and felt a tear running down her cheek.
"Lana, look at me."
"I can't." She said.
"Please?" he asked softly.
She took a deep breath and look straight into his deep blue eyes.
"But the question here is not what's right or what's wrong, and it's not about what I want. It's what you want.What do you want, Lana? He asked.
Without muttering a word, Lana slowly leaned her body against his and kissed him. He closed his eyes and took her by the waist pulling her closer. A kiss to her neck made Lana moan. Lex cupped her face into his hands and looked directly into her eyes. Lana smiled as he softly kissed her eyelids going down to her lips again. They had probably been kissing for just a few minutes, but it felt like hours. Suddenly, Lana took his hand guiding him out of the library and into the stairs. "Lana." He whispered questioning what she was doing. "Shhh." She said softly putting her fingers on his lips. Lex simply followed her to his room without any objection. Tomorrow, she will face the consequences. Tonight, she just wanted this. She wanted to be with him.
***********
The morning came to fast. Lana opened her sleepy eyes and found herself resting her head in his chest. She had heard thousands of times from different friends how awkward the morning after scene could be, but she felt incredibly comfortable around him. She grinned at the sound of his voice.
"Good morning." He whispered slightly kissing her head.
Lana looked up and met his eyes. "Good morning. How long have you been awake?"
"A couple of hours." He replied smiling.
"So, you just stay there watching me sleep?" she asked amused.
"It's a nice view." He answered with his typical smirk.
Lana smiled.
" I didn't drooled all over your chest, did I?" Lana jokingly asked.
"Nah..Well, just a little." He teased.
She smiled and kissed him. "Very funny." She replied kissing him again.
"Do you want me to get us some breakfast?" Lex asked.
"Thanks, but I think I better go home and change before opening The Talon. Lana replied while getting up the bed.
"Are you ok?" He asked.
"Perfect." Lana answered with a smile.
"Ok. Do you want me to give you a ride before going to the plant?" he kindly offered.
"Sure. I'm gonna get change." She replied. Lex simply amused himself watching Lana try to keep the ridiculously expensive white sheet around her body.
"What?" She asked curious,
"Nothing." He innocently answered. "Take your time, I'll wait for you downstairs"
Lana nodded smiling.
***********
All cleaned and dressed, Lex waited for her while checking the newspaper.
"Any interesting news?" she asked walking down the stairs.
"A fake-smile picture of my beloved dad in the business section." He sarcastically replied showing her the paper.
Lana simply rolled her eyes. "You look nice." She said looking at the black trousers and dark purple shirt he was wearing.
"Thank you." "You ready?" He asked holding her by the waist.
"Yes." Lana answered placing a soft kiss in his lips. She giggled at the childish "Hmm" he involuntarily let out as she kissed him.
"I was thinking that we can maybe have dinner here at the mansion tonight. What do you say?"
She looked straight into his eyes and nodded in agreement. Lana closed her eyes as he kissed her lips. A small intimate silence filled the room. "I have to pee."
"That's so romantic." He teased smiling.
She laughed. "I'll be right back."
"Ok." He smiled watching her walk towards the bathroom. For a moment, Lex felt like a stupid in love teenager, but being in love wasn't something he had experienced before which was probably why it felt so nice. For once in his life, he forgot he was Lex Luthor, the cold and cocky business man who always had everything (including emotions) under control.
A knock on the door snapped him out of his thoughts and before one of the maids rush to answer, he opened it.
"Clark!."
"Hey Lex. Sorry to bother so early, but my mom insisted in dropping this off before going to school." Clark said holding a box of fresh apples and placing it on the floor.
"Oh, you didn't have to bother. I could have sent somebody to pick them up." Lex smiled apologetic.
"No problem." He smiled back.
"Hey, have you seen Lana? I stopped by The Talon and it's still closed. I'm concerned. She's been acting kinda weird lately." Clark finished coming inside.
"I'm sure she's fine." Lex replied.
"You know, there are too many rooms in this mansion for somebo. Clark! Hi!" Lana said surprised.
"Hey Lana. What are you doing here?" Clark asked confused.
"Oh, I was just.I was just dropping some papers for Lex to sign before opening The Talon." Lana nervously replied looking at Lex.
"Oh.Well.I'm on my way to school. I can wait for you to open if you want." Clark offered.
"Um, sure. That'd be great." Lana answered putting her coat on.
Clark noticed she was wearing the same clothes than yesterday. He thought it would be rude to ask her if she was wearing the same clothes, so he simply ignored it and smiled.
"Well, let's go." She said heading towards the door.
Lex just stood there watching them. No word came out of his mouth.
"Umm.I'll see you later." Lana said looking at Lex.
"Yeah."
"Bye Lex" Clark said before opening the door.
"Bye" He answered closing the door behind them. Lex couldn't help but sigh and close his eyes in frustration. He wondered if this was the way things were going to be between him and Lana from now on. Always hiding and pretending. He considered himself good at hiding things, but what he felt for her was just a little hard to hide. Lex walked to the library and shut the door behind him.
Lana parked her car in front of the mansion. She closed her eyes and took a deep breath before opening the door. Millions of questions ran through her head. She asked herself if this courageous decision was the right one, or if she was going through some Alpha Lana state again. Before more doubts fill her mind, she grabbed the black coat lying on the next seat and got out of the car.
Lex was sitting in the library staring at the fireplace. Next to him was a whisky he hadn't even tasted yet. Completely lost in his thoughts. He suddenly turned to the sound of the doors opening. "I said I didn't want any late night visitors."
"It's me." Lana answered shyly.
He immediately stood up at the sound of her voice. "I'm sorry, I thought it was one of the maids."
"I look that bad, huh?" Lana joked.
Lex smiled at the comment wishing she didn't do. Playing cute was not helping the urge he had to take her in his arms and kiss her.
"So, what brings you here so late?" He asked trying to act as if anything out of the ordinary had happened during the past 48 hours.
"Your coat.I forgot to give you your coat the other night." She replied. 'Great excuse.' Lana thought to herself while handing him the coat.
Lex involuntarily caressed her hand as he took the coat. He didn't know what she had done to him since that night, but it was almost impossible not to touch her or to be near her.
"Thanks" he softly said.
Lana looked at him. She could feel her knees tremble as she nervously let go of his hand. "I should go. I just wanted to give you your coat back." she added walking towards the door.
"What did you really come here, Lana?" Lex asked harshly.
Lana closed her eyes unable to turn around and look at him.
"Really, because I don't buy the whole coat pretext." He added coldly while taking a sip of his drink.
Lana felt a tear running down her cheek. It was bizarre how his words had the power to penetrate deep down in her soul.
"I told you, I just wanted to give you your coat.That's all" she managed to say.
"Lana, please, don't insult my intelligence." Almost instantly the Luthor in him started to come out.
Lana simply lowered her head staring at the floor.
"It wasn't a mistake." she said breaking the silence. As much as she had tried to fight back the tears, it was impossible to do it with him right in front of her.
"What wasn't a mistake?" He asked confronting her.
"What happened the other night at The Talon" Lana replied regaining her composure. "I'm still not sure how or why that happened, but I can't just pretend that it didn't. I can't just put all behind and go on like it was nothing, ok? She paused. "Maybe I'm not as good as you are at covering things."
"Covering things?" He questioned with his typical sarcastic smirk.
"Yes. Isn't that why you came to the Talon tonight? To tell me what a huge mistake you've made. Well, who knows? Maybe I'm just another slip in your life." Lana didn't know why she was so angry, but those words had definitely hurt him. She could see it in his eyes.
"Is that what you think?" he asked putting the drink on the desk. "Trust me Lana, you are far from being a slip in my life." He finished.
"Look, I better go. This wasn't such a good idea. It's late and we may say things we will regret later." Lana said heading towards the door.
"Sure. Go. Go and hide in a book eternally waiting for Clark to come to the rescue." Lex answered sharply.
Lana felt a hole in her stomach as he said those words. "That's not fair."
Lex looked at her. She was clearly trying not to cry. It was unbearable for him to see her like that. The last thing he wanted to do was making her suffer. There was enough pain in her life to add another sorrow. He turned his back at her and closed his eyes waiting for her to leave.
Lana stopped before opening the door and walked closer to where he was standing.
"Today at school, Clark asked me if I would tell him if something were wrong. Do you have any idea how I felt when he asked me that? The very idea of Clark finding out about us is mortifying. This isn't only about me anymore, Lex. I don't want to hurt Clark."
Lex got closer and looked directly into her eyes. "I know." "Believe me, I hate to have these feelings for you and not be able to get rid of them. I've been trying all day to tell myself it was nothing, but it's not working."
Lana looked the other way, unable to make eye contact.
"Look" he said lowering his voice. "The last thing I want to do is go back to the selfish bastard I was back in Metropolis, and I don't want to hurt Clark either, but this doesn't happen to me often, Lana."
Lana looked down and felt a tear running down her cheek.
"Lana, look at me."
"I can't." She said.
"Please?" he asked softly.
She took a deep breath and look straight into his deep blue eyes.
"But the question here is not what's right or what's wrong, and it's not about what I want. It's what you want.What do you want, Lana? He asked.
Without muttering a word, Lana slowly leaned her body against his and kissed him. He closed his eyes and took her by the waist pulling her closer. A kiss to her neck made Lana moan. Lex cupped her face into his hands and looked directly into her eyes. Lana smiled as he softly kissed her eyelids going down to her lips again. They had probably been kissing for just a few minutes, but it felt like hours. Suddenly, Lana took his hand guiding him out of the library and into the stairs. "Lana." He whispered questioning what she was doing. "Shhh." She said softly putting her fingers on his lips. Lex simply followed her to his room without any objection. Tomorrow, she will face the consequences. Tonight, she just wanted this. She wanted to be with him.
***********
The morning came to fast. Lana opened her sleepy eyes and found herself resting her head in his chest. She had heard thousands of times from different friends how awkward the morning after scene could be, but she felt incredibly comfortable around him. She grinned at the sound of his voice.
"Good morning." He whispered slightly kissing her head.
Lana looked up and met his eyes. "Good morning. How long have you been awake?"
"A couple of hours." He replied smiling.
"So, you just stay there watching me sleep?" she asked amused.
"It's a nice view." He answered with his typical smirk.
Lana smiled.
" I didn't drooled all over your chest, did I?" Lana jokingly asked.
"Nah..Well, just a little." He teased.
She smiled and kissed him. "Very funny." She replied kissing him again.
"Do you want me to get us some breakfast?" Lex asked.
"Thanks, but I think I better go home and change before opening The Talon. Lana replied while getting up the bed.
"Are you ok?" He asked.
"Perfect." Lana answered with a smile.
"Ok. Do you want me to give you a ride before going to the plant?" he kindly offered.
"Sure. I'm gonna get change." She replied. Lex simply amused himself watching Lana try to keep the ridiculously expensive white sheet around her body.
"What?" She asked curious,
"Nothing." He innocently answered. "Take your time, I'll wait for you downstairs"
Lana nodded smiling.
***********
All cleaned and dressed, Lex waited for her while checking the newspaper.
"Any interesting news?" she asked walking down the stairs.
"A fake-smile picture of my beloved dad in the business section." He sarcastically replied showing her the paper.
Lana simply rolled her eyes. "You look nice." She said looking at the black trousers and dark purple shirt he was wearing.
"Thank you." "You ready?" He asked holding her by the waist.
"Yes." Lana answered placing a soft kiss in his lips. She giggled at the childish "Hmm" he involuntarily let out as she kissed him.
"I was thinking that we can maybe have dinner here at the mansion tonight. What do you say?"
She looked straight into his eyes and nodded in agreement. Lana closed her eyes as he kissed her lips. A small intimate silence filled the room. "I have to pee."
"That's so romantic." He teased smiling.
She laughed. "I'll be right back."
"Ok." He smiled watching her walk towards the bathroom. For a moment, Lex felt like a stupid in love teenager, but being in love wasn't something he had experienced before which was probably why it felt so nice. For once in his life, he forgot he was Lex Luthor, the cold and cocky business man who always had everything (including emotions) under control.
A knock on the door snapped him out of his thoughts and before one of the maids rush to answer, he opened it.
"Clark!."
"Hey Lex. Sorry to bother so early, but my mom insisted in dropping this off before going to school." Clark said holding a box of fresh apples and placing it on the floor.
"Oh, you didn't have to bother. I could have sent somebody to pick them up." Lex smiled apologetic.
"No problem." He smiled back.
"Hey, have you seen Lana? I stopped by The Talon and it's still closed. I'm concerned. She's been acting kinda weird lately." Clark finished coming inside.
"I'm sure she's fine." Lex replied.
"You know, there are too many rooms in this mansion for somebo. Clark! Hi!" Lana said surprised.
"Hey Lana. What are you doing here?" Clark asked confused.
"Oh, I was just.I was just dropping some papers for Lex to sign before opening The Talon." Lana nervously replied looking at Lex.
"Oh.Well.I'm on my way to school. I can wait for you to open if you want." Clark offered.
"Um, sure. That'd be great." Lana answered putting her coat on.
Clark noticed she was wearing the same clothes than yesterday. He thought it would be rude to ask her if she was wearing the same clothes, so he simply ignored it and smiled.
"Well, let's go." She said heading towards the door.
Lex just stood there watching them. No word came out of his mouth.
"Umm.I'll see you later." Lana said looking at Lex.
"Yeah."
"Bye Lex" Clark said before opening the door.
"Bye" He answered closing the door behind them. Lex couldn't help but sigh and close his eyes in frustration. He wondered if this was the way things were going to be between him and Lana from now on. Always hiding and pretending. He considered himself good at hiding things, but what he felt for her was just a little hard to hide. Lex walked to the library and shut the door behind him.