Chapter 2

Emma turned out to be right about the club. When they got out of the car Bruce had hired, they were bombarded with camera flashes. Apparently Bruce Wayne was rumored to have one of his billionaire friends in town, and the media was going crazy for pictures of Lex.

As they snapped shot after shot of the three of them Chloe couldn't help but laugh at the various questions about where she'd gotten her outfit. She wore a black pleated leather mini-skirt, black stiletto boots that ended just under her knees, and a semi-translucent silver top with a silver chain over her left shoulder to hold it together.

Lex and Bruce posed unconsciously for the cameras for a minute before making their way into the club. The bouncer at the door shook hands with Bruce before waving them through, deftly pocketing the 100 pound note he'd been slipped.

The music pulsed around them while Lex led her to the VIP section, right behind Bruce. Bruce cleared a path through the crowd, to a large booth where two couples sat, already waiting. He introduced the others to Lex and Chloe, but the sound of the music drowned him out.

A waitress sauntered over to them to get them drinks. Lex looked at Chloe quickly before ordering her an apple martini and a scotch for himself. She didn't say anything about the drink, or his presumptuousness at ordering for her; she really didn't know her alcohol. Her friends in Smallville weren't very big drinkers.

While Bruce and Lex talked to the rather shifty looking guy across from her, Chloe busied herself watching the dancers on the floor below them. Hundreds of scantily dressed women and designer clad men danced amid the pulsing strobe light and thumping bass line. They dipped and rolled, grinded and gyrated...and she wanted to join them. The sultry bass and melodic techno-pop was making her antsy.

The waitress returned with her drink, a meteor-green concoction in a large martini glass. Chloe took a tentative sip; it tasted like candy apples with a very recognizable aftertaste that she later learned was a trademark of any drink with enough vodka in it. She finished the drink in a couple of minutes and then turned her gaze back down to the dancers. She really wanted to go down and join them, but she wasn't sure if that was appropriate. They were there to meet with business associates and she had a strong feeling that she was expected to wait quietly until business was over.

Luckily, the other two girls at the table seemed to be thinking along the same lines as her. The redhead leaned over Lex and let her red-stained lips hover near Chloe's ear, the neckline of her dress dipping slightly.

"Do you want to dance?" she asked Chloe smoothly, completely aware of the peep show that she was giving the bald man beside her. Chloe nodded and joined the red head and the other girl, a brunette with doe eyes to rival even Lana Lang's, on the landing in front of the stairs.

"I'm Leena," the brunette told her. "This is Tina." Chloe held back a snort.

"Chloe," she said instead and followed the others down the winding staircase to the dance floor, mindful of the stilettos on her boots.

Lex was bored with the club. The business part of the evening had passed quickly, with plans to meet the next day for lunch. With the formalities out of the way, the others moved on to the real reason they'd agreed to meet at Pandemonium—to see and be seen.

He spotted Chloe on the dance floor easily; she was laughing with the red head about something. While Lex had never been a fan of dancing, he was so bored that he was considering. Chloe and the red head left the dance floor and headed over to the bar, leaving the brunette by herself. She was just Lex's type: beautiful, leggy, brunette, and judging from the company that she kept, just as power hungry as he was.

Bruce seemed to share his desire for entertainment, because he soon rose to his feet and set aside his empty glass. "Luthor, let's join the ladies," he called over the music. Lex stood gracefully, sure to shoot Bruce and arrogant look and making sure that he was the first one down the stairs, not wanting to follow a Wayne anywhere.

By the time Lex and Bruce had reached the brunette, Chloe and the red head had returned. He cocked an eyebrow at the drink Chloe held in her hand, a pink concoction in a martini glass. Chloe smirked at him over the rim of her glass, holding his gaze defiantly while she took a large sip, draining half of the glass. He smirked inwardly at her brazenness, liking her more and more everyday. Lex made a mental not to keep an eye on her alcohol intake though, knowing that she wasn't much of a drinker.

The red head smiled seductively at him, distracting him momentarily from Chloe (who was finishing off her drink). Chloe set the glass down on a nearby platform before flashing them a brilliant smile.

"Are we going to dance or what?" she demanded, catching Bruce's gaze. To Lex's displeasure, Wayne was quick to slide his arm over Chloe's shoulder and lead her to the dance floor.

The brunette blinked and shot a bored look at the other dancers before turning to her friend. "Tina I'm going to find Vaughn," and then she stalked away, making sure that Lex saw the way her hips swayed a little more than necessary while she went.

Not wanting to be rude, Lex smiled his most charming grin at the red head. "Tina," he leaned in close to her ear, as she had done earlier with Chloe. "Dance with me." He didn't ask, didn't have to. Tina didn't seem to mind.

She ran her hand down his shoulder and grasped the front of his shirt, pulling him towards the dance floor, making her way over to where Chloe and Bruce were dancing. Lex followed easily, not paying attention to the girl in front of him, but finding himself watching Chloe and Bruce. He hadn't given much thought to her outfit earlier, but now that he was watching her dance he noticed how the skirt rode up when she dipped. The flared pleats swayed when her hips shimmied, and the semi-translucent fabric of the shirt shifter, the neckline dipping dangerously, when Bruce ran his hand down her side.

She looked wild and wanton, a perfect wet dream. If he wasn't a brunette man... The thought shocked him and he swiftly reprimanded himself for thinking about Chloe that way. It wasn't the first time he'd found himself attracted to her, but their situation was very different now. As long as he was under his guardianship, she was off limits from him, and people like him. Including Bruce Wayne.

Tina moved closer to him and his arms slipped automatically around her as she ground her hips suggestively into his. As beautiful as his dance partner was, he had issues with red heads; they brought back unpleasant memories of cornfields and meteor showers. The flashing strobe and beams of colored lights madder her hair look darker though, and he had to remind himself of that a few times later that night when he and Tina found a private shadowed spot on the catwalk. The red heads attentions made up for the unpleasant memories, and while he kept his body occupied with her, his mind continued to stray bitterly to Chloe, now on her fourth drink and still dancing with Bruce Wayne.
Chloe squinted at the map in front of her, and then turned it 90 degrees to the left. She was standing on the sidewalk of Charing Cross Road, trying to locate Shakespeare's Globe Theatre on her map. But old Billy was proving to be rather evasive.

"Am I even on the right street?" she muttered, checking the map again. "Oh! No, I'm not..." Chloe groaned and rubbed at her temples. Her head was still sore, despite the aspirin she'd taken two hours age, and the map wasn't helping.

The club had been fun, but Chloe had woken up that morning with a throbbing headache. Lex had smirked superiorly at her and handed her two aspirins and a glass of water. She had to force herself to bite her tongue when he did. She knew how easy it would be to wipe the smirk off of his face, all she had to do was mention his not-so-clandestine-escapade with Tina on the catwalk, but she actually was thankful that he'd cut off her alcohol intake when he did. He'd stopped her from buying a sixth drink, taking her by the arm forcefully and leading her away from the bar to a row of plush benches along the wall. At the time she'd been mad, but now she was glad that he'd done so; she shuttered to think what her head would be feeling if she'd had more to drink.

Chloe was about ready to give up on finding the Globe Theatre. Her map told her that it would be easy to find Trafalgar Square from where she was now... Mind made up, Chloe began to make her way down the road, in the direction of the famous square. She walked leisurely, pocketing the map and wondering how Lex's meeting was going. He'd told her that he wouldn't be able to join in her sightseeing that day, because some business problems had arisen and he had to meet an associate. Chloe had seen the way he'd eyed Leena at the club, and didn't really blame him for not wanting her there for that particular meeting. Not even he had enough money to make her watch that.

Walking down the street, amongst the busy cars and hurried pedestrians, where no one knew her, Chloe felt like...Chloe again. For the first time in a long while, she wasn't getting looks of pity or sympathetic smiles. She was so caught up in the feeling that she didn't see the man that was following her.
Randy Miller swore lightly to himself and dodged yet another swarm of tourists as they came out of the Hard Rock Casino entrance. The girl was getting away from him as she successfully weaved her small frame through the throng of pedestrians.

Randy sidestepped an old lady and pushed his way through the rest of the group. He didn't want to get too close to the girl yet, in case she saw him and decided to run. It was important that he not screw it up, not this time...

TBC...
A/N: Thanks for reviewing guys. Just curious though, what was it about the last chapter that some of you didn't get? If it's something big I'll look into changing it. :0)

Also, a shout out to my mom for letting me use her computer while mine's in getting fixed. Thank you mommy! ;0)