Chapter 9

That night, Harmony watched as Lana's maroon SUV, followed closely by Chloe's little red Bug, pulled into the drive. "They're here!" she called to Lex, who waited in his office. Together, they strode quickly to the front door, where Lex's butler had already begun to pull the door open.

"Hey, guys!" Harmony grinned. It had been a while since she had spent any time with Lana and Chloe, and despite the age difference, she had grown rather fond of them.

"Good evening, ladies," Lex smiled. "I trust you three will manage to keep yourselves out of the worst of troubles, so I will make myself scarce." With a kiss for Harmony, he vanished quickly up the stairs.

Looping one arm through one each of Lana's and Chloe's arms, Harmony steered them toward the spacious living room where she'd already set up her idea of a girl's night. "So, no guys. Just us tonight."

"Just us talking about you and Lex!" Chloe jabbed with a grin.

Lana's grin was just as exuberant, accompanied by a giggle. "You're with Lex?"

Harmony felt herself blush, feeling for the first time in her life like a real teenager. "Yeah," she ducked her head. "He's so cute!"

They flung themselves across the furniture, diving into the snacks that Harmony had set out.

"Cute?" Lana glanced at her as she attacked a slice of pizza. "Lex? I don't know about cute."

"Yeah, I don't think that's the first word that comes to mind," Chloe agreed as she popped chocolate balls into her mouth. "Come on, Harm. Are you really that into him?"

"Yeah, guys, I am," Harmony threw a handful of popcorn at Chloe, who leapt to her feet with a yelp. "He's a really great person. You'd know that if you knew him like I do."

Lana and Chloe glanced at each other, then both looked at the floor. "How, uh, how well do you know Lex?" Lana asked hesitantly.

"I'm not sleeping with him, if that's what you mean," Harmony answered. "Other than that, I like to think I know him pretty well."

Lana seemed relieved. This came as a surprise to Harmony, but she decided to ignore the issue. "So what's up with you and Clark?" she asked instead.

"Nothing," Lana's answer was closer to a grumble.

"And that's the problem, right?" Harmony nodded.

Startled, Lana's head snapped up toward Chloe. Chloe stared at the soda in front of her. Oops. Harmony cringed. She didn't realize that Chloe had feelings for Clark, too.

"Clark is a very complicated person," Lana replied carefully.

Harmony thought fast. She had to rescue the conversation before Chloe got upset and Lana became too uncomfortable to stay. "That's certainly true. Did you know when he was a kid, he had to have his peanut butter sandwiches cut just a certain way?"

Lana laughed, and Chloe glanced up. She didn't laugh, but she didn't look quite so upset, either. "I remember that he'd get so upset if Auntie Em cut his ham sandwiches the same way she cut the peanut butter ones. It was so funny. He was a very eccentric child. "

"The worst part about that story?" Chloe offered. "I can actually imagine Clark doing that."

They all laughed that time.

"So let's get back to you and Lex," Lana suggested eagerly. She leaned toward Harmony, almost hungry for anything she could find out about Lex.

"Lana!" Harmony groaned.

"What?" Chloe shrugged. "She has a point. After his wife, Lex swore he'd never ever love anyone ever again. I wanna know what makes you so special."

"Oh, gee," Harmony smirked. "I love you, too, Chloe."

"You know what I mean," Chloe rolled her eyes.

"What happened with his ex-wife, anyway?" Harmony asked. By now, there was a sizeable dent in the massive pile of food and snacks that Harmony had compiled in the living room.

"Apparently, after seeming like such a great, normal person while they were dating, she went all psycho on the way to their honeymoon," Chloe began.

"She'd been playing Lex against Lionel the entire time, hoping to knock them both off in the end," Lana added.

"After much speculation, the truth eventually came out that she'd drugged him and left him on the plane to crash into the island. I think he was supposed to die," Chloe continued.

"But, he didn't. He spent three months on the island until a fisherman or someone found him and brought him home, where he found Helen squandering all his money and playing the part of the mourning widow," Lana picked up.

"But she'd told everyone that someone had drugged their drinks and killed the pilot. When she came to, she woke Lex but there was only one parachute. Lex made her take it and jump, so he went down with the plane. Later, she revised the story to say that she couldn't wake Lex, so she took the only parachute and left Lex."

"But we found out from Lex that all that was wrong. She'd killed the real pilot, replaced him with her own pilot, drugged Lex, paid the pilot to drop her off somewhere else, and paid the pilot to go back up with only one parachute so he could jump."

"It was all very complicated," Chloe concluded, taking a sip from her soda. Harmony's head swirled by the end of the story, but she definitely understood why Lex didn't want to trust women again.

"As if all that weren't enough," Lana chimed in again. "When he got back, because of everything he went through because of Helen, he was forced into Bel Reave for another three months. Thirteen weeks, to be exact. By his father."

Harmony shook his head. "Wow. That really sucks. I'd be paranoid, too."

"So what finally attracted you to Lex?" Lana asked. "You guys are becoming a fairy tale couple."

"I don't know about that," Harmony laughed.

"I wanna know about the fight between you and Mr. Kent this morning," Chloe argued.

"Goodness!" Harmony grinned. "You two argue between yourselves and I'm gonna go get a garbage bag. Do we need anything else from the kitchen?"

"Naw," they both said at once, already beginning to argue over what the three of them would talk about when Harmony returned from the kitchen.

Harmony chuckled, shaking her head as she went first to the bathroom, then to the kitchen to get a garbage bag. She found Lex reading a newspaper at the island counter. "Hey," she smiled softly, wrapping her arms around his shoulders as she kissed his cheek. "What have you been up to?"

Lex turned around in the stool, pulling Harmony into his lap. "I called Clark," he said. "He's gonna come by in a little bit to hang out."

"Cool," Harmony nodded.

She leaned over to kiss Lex, then found herself trapped, so engulfed in the taste of Lex that she didn't want to pull away. Lex held her close, deepening the kiss so that neither of them heard Chloe and Lana enter the kitchen.

"Hey, Harm, we decided we need some- oh ho!" Chloe whirled around toward Lana, who's eyes bulged.

Harmony jumped, feeling her face flush. "Hi, guys," she said, dabbing at her lips. Lex just grinned.

"Yeah," Chloe nodded. "Hi, my foot."

Harmony chuckled, not entirely sure what to say to her friends' accusing looks. She knew they were playing. Lex stood up, kissed her on the cheek, and with a soft pat on the shoulder, whispered, "See ya."

"Ok, what did you need?" Harmony rushed, heading for the pantry where the garbage bags were stored. She could still feel the heat from Lex's kiss, and her grin still hadn't subsided. She knew she must look like a schoolgirl with a crush, but she couldn't help herself.

"We were gonna say something chocolate," Lana answered.

"But now I'm not so sure," Chloe cringed.

"Oh, come on," Harmony shut the pantry door with a bag in hand. "What's the big deal?"

"The big deal?" Chloe asked, perplexed. "Do you need to ask?"

"Harmony," Lana hurried. "We just don't want you to get hurt. The last woman that angered Lex found herself on an airplane destined to run out of gas over the ocean with no intention of being saved."

"Because that's what she did to him," Harmony retorted as they walked back to the living room. "As long as I don't try to kill him, I think I'll be safe from his vengeful nature."

"I'm glad you think it's funny," Chloe crossed her arms. They stood next to the couch, Chloe and Lana together faced off against Harmony.

Unbeknownst to the girls, Lex was listening from the balcony overlooking the living room.

"How well do you really know him?" Lana asked. "We've been around the Luthors a lot longer."

"What's that supposed to mean?"

"Just that we think maybe you should be careful," Lana suggested gently.

Harmony knew Lana had her best interest in mind, but she found herself having a very hard time keeping her anger in check. "You don't know him like I do," she said slowly, trying not to blow up. "I've spent almost an entire year with him day and night, apart for barely a few hours at a time, and only on occasion. Maybe once a week, if that. It's a good way to get to know the ins and outs of a person. Spend that kind of time with someone and tell me you don't know them almost as well as they know themselves."

"You didn't know about Helen," Chloe pointed out.

"So he doesn't like opening old wounds," Harmony retorted. "Can you blame him? I've known you for almost a year. What deep, dark embarrassments haven't you told me yet?"

Chloe shook her head. "I'm just saying."

"You're friends with him, but that's ok," Harmony glared at her.

"Friends, yeah. Not making out with him in the kitchen."

"Harmony," Lana's soft voice broke through. "We don't want to cause a fight. Maybe there are things about Lex that we don't know. But from what we do know, we just want you to be careful. Maybe around you he's different. We both know that you are definitely different when you're around him. In a good way, don't worry. Let's sit down."

Smiling again, the girls sat back down.

Upstairs, Lex leaned against the wall, hands shoved in his pockets. Chloe did have a point. He hadn't told Harmony about Helen. They must have. He'd have to discuss it with Clark later. Yet, Harmony was defending him to the only real friends she had. What did that mean? Did she honestly care about him? Maybe his heart was right about her; his instinctive paranoia could actually be wrong for a change. He decided to listen for a little longer, just until he saw the lights from Clark's truck in the driveway.

The beverage of choice had switched to water.

"He's actually very funny," Harmony was saying. "He makes me laugh, even when I don't want to. Usually when I don't want to. But he's always there for me when I need him to be. You know?"

"Interesting," Chloe looked puzzled. "In a strange way, it kinda sounds a little like Clark. You know how he's always somehow there when you need him?"

"Yeah," Lana smiled.

"That's how Lex is," Harmony grinned. "He listens to me. When he's not tackling me. Or tickling me. Or trying to run me over."

"Run you over?" Chloe shook her head. "Sounds like the ideal boyfriend to me, all right."

"It's funny, ok?" Harmony glared before continuing. "You asked, so be quiet. Anyway, seriously, though, he's a great guy. I can talk to him. I really feel like he listens. He actually has something to say when I'm talking to him. He explains stuff to me, like about his business. He doesn't treat me like a stupid woman who's just here to make him look good. I'm not the most business-savvy person in the world, but I'm not totally dumb. He talks to me, and he lets me talk, too. And he doesn't get all ego-trippy when I know something he doesn't, or if I correct him, long as I don't be stupid and make a total ass of him. You know what I mean."

Chloe and Lana stared at each other. That was not the Lex that either of them had ever imagined. They had never thought of Lex as a sexist, but they never thought that he'd be one to be corrected in public. "You do mean in public, right?" Chloe clarified.

"Yeah," Harmony nodded. "Long as I'm tasteful about it. Same as he is for me."

"Wow," Lana was shocked.

"What?"

"The thought of anyone actually correcting Lex Luthor, and living to tell about it, is just a lot to absorb."

"Let me guess," Harmony rolled her eyes, stretching back on the couch. "You just figured Lex to be a spoiled rich kid too proud to take a little constructive criticism. He's always right and everyone else is always wrong."

"Well, kinda," Lana was beginning to feel a little ashamed. "I guess I was a little off on that one, huh?"

"Just a little, my friend."

Chloe grinned. "Hey, you learn something new every day, right?"

Just then, they heard a car pull up outside. "Oh, that must be Clark," Harmony stood up. "I'll go find Lex."

Upstairs, Lex slipped silently back through the door, easing it shut and hurrying across the balcony to the other side that overlooked his office. He made as though he were just coming up the stairs from beside his desk, just as Harmony entered from above the living room. "Hello, Harmony," he smiled. He hated his deception, especially after overhearing the way Harmony had so vehemently defended him to Lana and Chloe. "I was just about to come see if Clark had arrived yet."

"Actually, I think he has," Harmony grinned, wrapping her arms around him. She was supposed to be with her friends, but she wanted to be with Lex, just for a moment.

Lex lifted Harmony up so that she could wrap her legs around his waist. He held her tightly, standing in the middle of the balcony as he prepared his mind for his confession. "Harmony," he mumbled into the curve of her neck.

"Hmm," she had buried her face into his shirt, breathing in his smell. It was a smell she was becoming sure she could grow to love.

"I lied."

"About what?"

"I know Clark is here. I've been listening to you guys since I left you in the kitchen."

Harmony sat up. "You've been eavesdropping on us?"

"Yeah," he nodded, looking at her shirt, at the floor, at the wall behind her, anywhere but at her face.

"Ok."

Startled, Lex almost dropped her. Harmony screeched, clinging to Lex's neck, tightening her legs. "Lex!"

He sat down in the overstuffed chair in the corner, pulling her down with him. "Ok?" he stared at her. "I was listening to a private conversation, and then I lied to you, and you're ok with that?"

Harmony sighed, rubbing Lex's shoulders. "No, I'm not ok with that, but something made you tell me about it on your own. I choose to think that something is that you care about me enough to feel guilty about doing something that you know would hurt me, especially if I found out about it from someone else. I think that's a good thing that deserves forgiveness. I'm not happy that you were spying on me, but I don't think you lied to me. Not telling isn't lying. You didn't know for sure that Clark was here. The car you saw pull up could easily have been-and could still be-anyone. Most likely Clark, since that's the only person anyone's expecting, but could have been anyone. Ergo, you didn't lie. But again, something made you feel like you did, and said something made you feel bad about it. Again, you volunteered the information rather than running the risk that I'd find out from someone else, hence running the risk that I'd get hurt. Apparently that's a bad thing, indicating that you care about my feelings. Cliff notes, you spied on us, but you care about me enough to confess on your own. No hard feelings. End of story."

Lex laughed. "You are an amazing woman, Harmony Kent."

Clark was already waiting when Lex and Harmony arrived in the living room. "Hey, Lex," he hugged Harmony, and he and Lex vanished toward Lex's private wing of the giant mansion. The were already discussing the newest additions to Lex's motor pool, Lex's new arcade games, and the underwater disco light that Lex had gotten for his swimming pool. Before they were out of earshot, Harmony heard Clark say that they had to check out the swimming pool before they went to bed.

Suddenly, something soft slammed into the back of her head.

"Let's get back to our party!" Harmony grinned as she threw the attacking pillow back at Lana.

With a scream of giggles and screeches, the three girls burst into an all-out pillow fight.

The next morning, the sun crept slowly in through the living room window, playing colorful displays of patterns across the sleeping girls. Lana was the first to rise, heading for the kitchen to start the coffee. By the time the other two pulled themselves into the kitchen, she already had their steaming mochas waiting and had begun work on breakfast.

"So, ladies, what'll it be?" Lana asked. "Eggs, bacon, toast, something else?"

"Yes," Harmony mumbled, plopping her head on the tile counter top with a thud. "Ow."

"What about you, Chloe?" Lana asked, flipping the sausage, already figuring she wasn't going to get a coherent answer.

"Mmmpfh," Chloe's head rested in her hands, at risk of falling into her coffee mug.

Suddenly, Harmony's head snapped up. Clark came running into the kitchen. His hair was a mess and he was in his pajama bottoms, as he always slept. He looked panicked.

"Clark, what's wrong?" Harmony jumped off her stool, rushing to her cousin.

Clark's eyes finally focused on Harmony. "Lex is missing."