Title: Intimidation Tactics
Author: Pegasus153
Rating: PG-13, but I'm still new at this
Category: Action/Adventure/Romance
Spoilers: Season Two, to be on the safe side
Summary: Trying to force Lex into a shady business deal, an opponent resorts to scare tactics. Chloe gets caught in the crossfire, and through the ensuing events, Chloe and Lex try to figure out what they feel about each other.
Disclaimer: Obviously, the characters are not mine, just borrowing them
Feedback: This is my first fanfic, so feedback would be great. Any suggestions are welcome
~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~
" So tell me again why you're interviewing Lex?" Lana asked Chloe as she handed her a latte.
Chloe smiled. "Well, other then the fact that any reporter would jump at the chance to interview a Luthor, I thought that it would fit nicely into the paper since Lexcorp has donated equipment to the science lab after it burned!"
Lana smiled. "That's the only reason?"
Chloe looked up from her coffee and smiled. "Of course. Why?"
Lana shrugged. "No reason. Just curious. Ooh, just a sec." Lana trailed off as she grabbed a coffeepot, and headed out to refill a customer mug.
Chloe watched her from the counter, and frowned. Chloe thought that she had hid her burgeoning crush on Lex pretty well, but Lana was digging a lot closer to the truth then Chloe was comfortable with. So what if Lex was unfathomable rich, had a certain arrogant self-assurance that could be a little charming at times, and whose looks were starting to grow on Chloe. Whether because some part of her was growing up, or maybe seeing Lex more often due to Clark's friendship, Chloe was finding herself attracted to the playboy billionaire, and not really sure what to do about it.
It wasn't as if it was a normal crush on some high school jock. This was Lex. Not only was he, like, six years older, but he was rich with a bad reputation, maybe somewhat misleading, but still, to every rumor there is a grain of truth! Chloe sighed. Nope. It wasn't normal. No way she could giggle, and girl talk with Lana about Lex the way that Lana did about Clark.
"Boy, you look deep in thought!" Lana said, smiling as she returned to the counter.
Chloe glanced up, coming out of her reverie. "Oh, just trying to plan questions for the paper."
Lana nodded. "Well, I'm sure that you'll do fine!"
~*~
"If you will walk this way. Mr. Luthor is in his office." The butler gestured the way for Chloe to walk.
She was a little bit late for the meeting. She felt ridiculous for the reason, but she hadn't been able to decide what to wear. Chloe shook her head. It wasn't like Lex would even notice her clothes, let alone allow her appearance to influence the course of the interview. But Chloe had still spent more time then normal on her clothing, finally settling on an ankle length black skirt with a discreet slit up the side, and a crisp collared blouse. She'd worn the blouse as a concession to professionalism, and unbuttoned the first couple of buttons as a concession to her crush.
She reached the door to Lex's office and paused. She could hear raised voices and briefly weighed the value of giving Lex a minute, and the curiosity of overhearing something if she just went in. After all, the butler had said to go ahead. She pushed the door open and entered.
Lex was sitting at his desk with his back to Chloe, playing with a pencil. He flipped it around his fingers with such force that it flipped out of his hand, and flew across the room. He dropped his fist to the arm of his chair.
"The answer is still no." Lex said, his voice low and firm. There was no trace in his voice, of the tension that Chloe could see in his body language. "You will regret your decision, if you choose to go through with this." He paused. "No. That is not an issue. It will never be an issue, Winston. This conversation is finished." He paused again as he was obviously interrupted. Chloe saw his shoulders hunch forward, and Lex's voice drop to a menacing low. "Is that a threat?" He asked very quietly. Chloe shivered, making a mental note never to be on the receiving end of that particular tone of voice.
"Good-bye Winston." Lex said clearly, and then swiveled in his chair to drop the phone in the cradle. There was an infinitesimal pause as he noted that Chloe was already in the room, and he had no way of knowing how long she'd been there for. "Chloe." He said, his voice warmed, and the corner of his mouth quirked a little. Not a full-blown smile, but as close as Chloe ever expected to get.
"The butler told me to come in." She said, still feeling a little nervous after hearing Lex's conversation. He was never so threatening when she met him at the Talon, and she was suddenly overwhelmed by the realization that maybe Lex was more dangerous then her rose-colored crush had allowed her to believe.
"Have a seat." Lex said, gesturing to a chair. "Can I get you anything? Coke, water, coffee?"
"Water, actually, would be good." Chloe said, as she took her seat.
Lex got her a glass of water, before sitting down across from her. "So, Miss Sullivan." He said. "I do believe we have an interview to get though."
Chloe nodded, dug out her notebook, and a pencil. She pushed thoughts of being nervous out of her head, took a sip of water, and looked Lex in the eyes. "Yes, well basics first. The donation of lab equipment was both timely and generous, as the lab is now better equipped then it was before the fire. What prompted you, and by extension Lexcorp to make such a generous contribution?"
Lex smiled to himself, without letting much of it show. Chloe Sullivan intrigued him in the most enjoyable ways. It was rare for Lex to meet a woman who wasn't interested in his money, and wasn't scared of him or his power. He had sensed something when he had first hung up the phone. Maybe anxiety, maybe just nerves, but she had covered well, plunging in with a journalistic passion. She didn't beg forgiveness for overhearing his conversation, offering a reasonable explanation, but not an excuse. She had a poise that was alluring in that it said very clearly, hands off. He watched as she smoothly crossed her legs as she waited for his answer, and felt his mouth go dry. Her skirt was slit, halfway up her thigh, and her legs were mouth watering. Realizing, suddenly that his thoughts were getting out of hand, he quickly formulated his answer.
Chloe dutifully wrote down the high points of his answer to refer to later, and then looked him in the eye. "It is this journalist's understanding that Lexcorp holds academic excellence in high esteem. What other contributions have been made in support of furthering education?"
Lex opened his mouth to speak, when his office door was slammed open. Chloe jumped as the noise smashed in the fairly quiet room. Fully in control, Lex turned his head to see what the disturbance was. A heavy set man with a toque over his head barged into the room. Two more men, dressed in black, and also with masks over their faces, were right behind, both holding automatic weapons.
Lex stood, the primary emotion playing across his face being disgust. "If Winston thinks that physically badgering me will get him any further." The ominous threat was cut off as the heavy set man crossed the room in three strides, and cold cocked Lex with the butt of his gun.
Chloe jumped to her feet as she watched Lex crumple to the ground. She heard someone screaming and realized that it was her. She moved around her chair, and then behind the desk, warily watching the three men. The obvious ringleader bent to check Lex's pulse, while the other two converged on Chloe, coming around both sides of the desk. Feeling adrenaline pumping into her system, Chloe grabbed a paperweight off of Lex's desk to fight back with.
"Whatcha gonna do with that girlie?" One of the men asked.
Suddenly, rushing the rude invader, she clubbed him upside the head with all her might before running for the door. She made it almost three steps before the third man stood up, and pointed his gun at her.
"One more step and I'll shoot you down."
Chloe skidded to a halt.
"Drop the paper weight" The leader said. It slipped nervelessly out of Chloe's hand, and landed with a thud.
"Heartless bitch!" The man who Chloe had hit was clinging to the side of his head. There was blood on his hand. "Just shoot her Mac!"
The leader gave his companion a withering look, before advancing on Chloe. "You picked the wrong time to come a calling on Mr. Luthor. You should pick your boyfriends more carefully next time."
"He's not my..." Chloe got out, before the Leader smashed the butt of his gun into her skull. Chloe heard herself cry out, as the ground rushed up to meet her.
~*~*~ A/N: First fic, first idea... if the story is good, I'll keep going... so please let me know!
Author: Pegasus153
Rating: PG-13, but I'm still new at this
Category: Action/Adventure/Romance
Spoilers: Season Two, to be on the safe side
Summary: Trying to force Lex into a shady business deal, an opponent resorts to scare tactics. Chloe gets caught in the crossfire, and through the ensuing events, Chloe and Lex try to figure out what they feel about each other.
Disclaimer: Obviously, the characters are not mine, just borrowing them
Feedback: This is my first fanfic, so feedback would be great. Any suggestions are welcome
~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~
" So tell me again why you're interviewing Lex?" Lana asked Chloe as she handed her a latte.
Chloe smiled. "Well, other then the fact that any reporter would jump at the chance to interview a Luthor, I thought that it would fit nicely into the paper since Lexcorp has donated equipment to the science lab after it burned!"
Lana smiled. "That's the only reason?"
Chloe looked up from her coffee and smiled. "Of course. Why?"
Lana shrugged. "No reason. Just curious. Ooh, just a sec." Lana trailed off as she grabbed a coffeepot, and headed out to refill a customer mug.
Chloe watched her from the counter, and frowned. Chloe thought that she had hid her burgeoning crush on Lex pretty well, but Lana was digging a lot closer to the truth then Chloe was comfortable with. So what if Lex was unfathomable rich, had a certain arrogant self-assurance that could be a little charming at times, and whose looks were starting to grow on Chloe. Whether because some part of her was growing up, or maybe seeing Lex more often due to Clark's friendship, Chloe was finding herself attracted to the playboy billionaire, and not really sure what to do about it.
It wasn't as if it was a normal crush on some high school jock. This was Lex. Not only was he, like, six years older, but he was rich with a bad reputation, maybe somewhat misleading, but still, to every rumor there is a grain of truth! Chloe sighed. Nope. It wasn't normal. No way she could giggle, and girl talk with Lana about Lex the way that Lana did about Clark.
"Boy, you look deep in thought!" Lana said, smiling as she returned to the counter.
Chloe glanced up, coming out of her reverie. "Oh, just trying to plan questions for the paper."
Lana nodded. "Well, I'm sure that you'll do fine!"
~*~
"If you will walk this way. Mr. Luthor is in his office." The butler gestured the way for Chloe to walk.
She was a little bit late for the meeting. She felt ridiculous for the reason, but she hadn't been able to decide what to wear. Chloe shook her head. It wasn't like Lex would even notice her clothes, let alone allow her appearance to influence the course of the interview. But Chloe had still spent more time then normal on her clothing, finally settling on an ankle length black skirt with a discreet slit up the side, and a crisp collared blouse. She'd worn the blouse as a concession to professionalism, and unbuttoned the first couple of buttons as a concession to her crush.
She reached the door to Lex's office and paused. She could hear raised voices and briefly weighed the value of giving Lex a minute, and the curiosity of overhearing something if she just went in. After all, the butler had said to go ahead. She pushed the door open and entered.
Lex was sitting at his desk with his back to Chloe, playing with a pencil. He flipped it around his fingers with such force that it flipped out of his hand, and flew across the room. He dropped his fist to the arm of his chair.
"The answer is still no." Lex said, his voice low and firm. There was no trace in his voice, of the tension that Chloe could see in his body language. "You will regret your decision, if you choose to go through with this." He paused. "No. That is not an issue. It will never be an issue, Winston. This conversation is finished." He paused again as he was obviously interrupted. Chloe saw his shoulders hunch forward, and Lex's voice drop to a menacing low. "Is that a threat?" He asked very quietly. Chloe shivered, making a mental note never to be on the receiving end of that particular tone of voice.
"Good-bye Winston." Lex said clearly, and then swiveled in his chair to drop the phone in the cradle. There was an infinitesimal pause as he noted that Chloe was already in the room, and he had no way of knowing how long she'd been there for. "Chloe." He said, his voice warmed, and the corner of his mouth quirked a little. Not a full-blown smile, but as close as Chloe ever expected to get.
"The butler told me to come in." She said, still feeling a little nervous after hearing Lex's conversation. He was never so threatening when she met him at the Talon, and she was suddenly overwhelmed by the realization that maybe Lex was more dangerous then her rose-colored crush had allowed her to believe.
"Have a seat." Lex said, gesturing to a chair. "Can I get you anything? Coke, water, coffee?"
"Water, actually, would be good." Chloe said, as she took her seat.
Lex got her a glass of water, before sitting down across from her. "So, Miss Sullivan." He said. "I do believe we have an interview to get though."
Chloe nodded, dug out her notebook, and a pencil. She pushed thoughts of being nervous out of her head, took a sip of water, and looked Lex in the eyes. "Yes, well basics first. The donation of lab equipment was both timely and generous, as the lab is now better equipped then it was before the fire. What prompted you, and by extension Lexcorp to make such a generous contribution?"
Lex smiled to himself, without letting much of it show. Chloe Sullivan intrigued him in the most enjoyable ways. It was rare for Lex to meet a woman who wasn't interested in his money, and wasn't scared of him or his power. He had sensed something when he had first hung up the phone. Maybe anxiety, maybe just nerves, but she had covered well, plunging in with a journalistic passion. She didn't beg forgiveness for overhearing his conversation, offering a reasonable explanation, but not an excuse. She had a poise that was alluring in that it said very clearly, hands off. He watched as she smoothly crossed her legs as she waited for his answer, and felt his mouth go dry. Her skirt was slit, halfway up her thigh, and her legs were mouth watering. Realizing, suddenly that his thoughts were getting out of hand, he quickly formulated his answer.
Chloe dutifully wrote down the high points of his answer to refer to later, and then looked him in the eye. "It is this journalist's understanding that Lexcorp holds academic excellence in high esteem. What other contributions have been made in support of furthering education?"
Lex opened his mouth to speak, when his office door was slammed open. Chloe jumped as the noise smashed in the fairly quiet room. Fully in control, Lex turned his head to see what the disturbance was. A heavy set man with a toque over his head barged into the room. Two more men, dressed in black, and also with masks over their faces, were right behind, both holding automatic weapons.
Lex stood, the primary emotion playing across his face being disgust. "If Winston thinks that physically badgering me will get him any further." The ominous threat was cut off as the heavy set man crossed the room in three strides, and cold cocked Lex with the butt of his gun.
Chloe jumped to her feet as she watched Lex crumple to the ground. She heard someone screaming and realized that it was her. She moved around her chair, and then behind the desk, warily watching the three men. The obvious ringleader bent to check Lex's pulse, while the other two converged on Chloe, coming around both sides of the desk. Feeling adrenaline pumping into her system, Chloe grabbed a paperweight off of Lex's desk to fight back with.
"Whatcha gonna do with that girlie?" One of the men asked.
Suddenly, rushing the rude invader, she clubbed him upside the head with all her might before running for the door. She made it almost three steps before the third man stood up, and pointed his gun at her.
"One more step and I'll shoot you down."
Chloe skidded to a halt.
"Drop the paper weight" The leader said. It slipped nervelessly out of Chloe's hand, and landed with a thud.
"Heartless bitch!" The man who Chloe had hit was clinging to the side of his head. There was blood on his hand. "Just shoot her Mac!"
The leader gave his companion a withering look, before advancing on Chloe. "You picked the wrong time to come a calling on Mr. Luthor. You should pick your boyfriends more carefully next time."
"He's not my..." Chloe got out, before the Leader smashed the butt of his gun into her skull. Chloe heard herself cry out, as the ground rushed up to meet her.
~*~*~ A/N: First fic, first idea... if the story is good, I'll keep going... so please let me know!
