Part 5: Elucidation and tribulation
Lionel peered at Lex quizzically, his son's apparent non-reaction becoming rather worrisome. He knew Lex wouldn't be too pleased to learn that Martha Kent had overheard him and Chloe in an intimate situation, but he didn't believe he'd have a complete meltdown. He leaned forward in his chair, waving a hand in front of Lex, "Son, are you all right?" he asked.
Lex blinked at him, frowning slightly and swallowing visibly as he pulled himself together. "I'm fine." He responded, sitting up straighter and taking a fortifying sip of his drink.
"Good, good. I was getting a little worried you might be on the brink of another breakdown." Lionel mused quietly.
Lex glared at him, "Should I be worried, dad? I did finally quit having my scotch tested regularly."
"Touché, but no need to worry, I'm done with that sort of thing." He looked at Lex pointedly, his gaze intent as he continued. "I just want you to be happy, Lex…that's all"
Lex rolled his eyes at him, "Time will tell…dad." He leaned forward, eyeing his father skeptically as he queried, "So tell me, for what reason was Martha at the mansion in the first place?"
"She wanted to talk to you about your campaign and commend you for not playing dirty as everyone assumed you would." Lionel sat back in his chair, "She'd wanted to speak to you for a while and had just found a moment to do so only to walk in on – well, you know."
Lex nodded, "Yes, I know, no need to rehash it yet again. But – I'm curious as to why Martha would contact you about what she overheard instead of just asking me or Chloe. Last I knew she had more angst for you than anyone…"
Lionel nodded in agreement, "Oh, it's no secret that Martha Kent has a certain amount of loathing for me, but our relationship has always been rather…complicated. I guess in this case she just considered me the lesser of the complications."
"How so?" Lex asked dubiously.
"Well, you know Martha has a soft spot in her heart for Chloe and she didn't want to embarrass the girl unnecessarily or put any undue strain on their relationship."
"Understandable, but that still doesn't explain why she sought you out instead of mentioning it to me. She's certainly had no qualms about pulling the matron saint with me in the past thus I don't understand why she'd feel differently now."
"Martha's rather old fashioned, but she's not completely ignorant to the ways of the world. She didn't want to get too involved not knowing your intentions, or Chloe's for that matter, and she didn't want to put any pressure on either of you. Discussing it with me was far less complicated than asking you or trying to talk to that overbearing husband of hers." Lionel said, sneering slightly at the mention of Jonathon Kent.
Lex smirked at the note of jealousy in Lionel's tone. "Is that why you decided to support the campaign of my opponent rather than stand by your own son?" Lex asked frankly, "Because of the torch you're still carrying for his wife?"
Lionel raised his brows at Lex, eyeing him coolly as he mulled over his response. His fondness for Martha Kent wasn't news, but he still didn't appreciate his son slapping him in the face with it. "I don't see what my feelings for Martha Kent has to do with anything…"
Lex snorted, "Well, she did go out of her way to discuss my sex noises with you. That has to stand for something." Lex paused thoughtfully, squinting in amusement, "Did Martha really use the words heated and guttural when describing what she heard? I have a difficult time hearing Martha saying something like that."
Lionel laughed sharply, a short burst of humor before tilting his head at Lex, "I wouldn't go as far as to say she gave a real description, per se, since she mostly just blushed and stammered rather incoherently. Basically, I just adlibbed as necessary, but she agreed with heated and guttural and told me the manner in which you spoke was undeniably an intimate situation. She was quite embarrassed really. I almost felt bad for the poor woman."
"I'm sure." Lex peered at Lionel suspiciously, "I still don't completely believe what you've told me, but I'm going to give you the benefit of the doubt for now because I'm not feeling quite masochistic enough to get Martha's side of things at this point." Lex stood up setting his glass on his desk and motioning for Lionel to do the same, "Now I'm going to find Chloe and fill her in on what we've discussed then let her take it from there. Hopefully, she won't completely freak out…"
Lionel set his glass down, frowning slightly as he met Lex's gaze, "Do you think she'll do anything…rash?" he asked tentatively.
"Rash? Chloe?" Lex snorted, "It's quite possible. I'm just hoping she doesn't do anything rash in regards to the future of our relationship. Things have been strained enough as it is and I hate to give her any more fuel for her fire."
"I'm sure she'll be fine, Lex, it's not as if she hasn't bagged herself quite a catch in all this." Lionel put his hand on Lex's shoulder, squeezing reassuringly. "I can't imagine she's be embarrassed to be…involved…with you."
"Of course, she's not embarrassed to be involved with me, it's just not the best time to have our relationship broadcast throughout the country. It doesn't fit in with our original plan at all..." Lex glared as his father gazed at him expectantly, "Don't bother, dad because I'm not telling..."
Lionel smirked knowingly, shrugging as they walked to the door. Lex turned his head to look at his father once more, "Tell me something…are you going to test Chloe indefinitely or is there an end to your madness?"
Lionel tilted his head at Lex, responding without breaking stride, "Let's just say paranoid lunacy is far safer than unjustified benevolence…"
Lex sighed loudly, "That's what I thought… don't say I didn't warn you though. Chloe gets a little wound up and she's not afraid to show her fangs when she feels cornered."
Lionel smiled broadly, "I'm counting on it, son…I'm counting on it..."
Lex knocked on the door to Chloe's dorm room, ignoring the strange looks of passersby as he waited for her to let him in. He'd called her on his way over, telling her he had some news for her and that he'd be there shortly. She'd offered to meet him at his pent house, but he decided he'd rather see her in a semipublic location in the hopes she wouldn't freak out too much.
He knocked again, impatience running through him as he glanced at his watch. He knew how small dorm rooms were and he couldn't fathom why it was taking her so long to open the door. He'd just pounded on the door again when he felt someone tap him on his shoulder.
"Lex…" Chloe said tentatively.
Lex whirled around, his eyes narrowing as he took in Chloe standing before him covered only by a towel. "Chloe!" he whispered angrily, "What the fuck are you doing parading out here practically naked?"
Chloe rolled her eyes at him mockingly, "Well, if you'd get out of my way I'd be practically naked in the safety of my own room."
Lex moved over enough to let Chloe unlock the door, keeping his body closer to hers than necessary as he glared at everyone around them. "Hurry up," he muttered, "They're all leering at you…"
Chloe opened the door, walking inside and snorting at him in disgust, "Actually, Lex, they're leering at you and your public display of jealousy. What the fuck's wrong with you?"
"Wrong with me?! Chloe, you were parading down the hall wearing a towel!"
Chloe shrugged, "So? I don't exactly have a private bathroom here, Lex, therefore I have to use the shower located at the other end of the hall. I'll sashay from now on if it'll make you feel better." She said dryly.
Lex glared at her, his eyes following a droplet of water as it left a slick path down her neck, disappearing between her breasts. He licked his lips, inhaling sharply as a pang of desire pulsed inside him.
"Lex." Chloe said, smirking at the dreamy look Lex was shooting at her. "Lex, are you okay…Lex? Lex!?"
Lex's eyes shifted from her cleavage to her face, "I'm fine." He managed to say clearly, watching her as she removed the towel from around her body and started rubbing it on her hair.
"Good, now tell me what you found out from your father." She said, bending over and wrapping the towel around her head before straightening again.
Lex swallowed several times, frowning slightly. He cleared his throat, averting his eyes from her naked body as he gathered his thoughts. "You were correct." He stated, "My father knows about our relationship."
"Ha! I knew it!" she grabbed a bottle of lotion, pumping some into the palm of her hand and setting the bottle back down. She rubbed her hands together vigorously, smearing the lotion between them. "And how'd he find out? Is he spying on you again? Taking video surveillance?" she rubbed the lotion on her arms, "Please tell me he hasn't bugged the mansion again?!"
Lex stared at her dumbly as she squirted more lotion into her hands, this time smearing the creamy substance over her flat stomach. Lex closed his eyes, his hands fisting at his sides as he forced himself to rein in his desire. He opened his eyes to find Chloe staring at him, her brow furrowed in confusion as she watched him. "What?" he asked.
Chloe shook her head at him disbelievingly, "You were about to explain to me which underhanded method your father used to dig up personal information on you – this time."
"Oh, well according to him it was just a matter of chance."
Chloe peered at him doubtfully, "A matter of chance?" she asked. "So what, he only had one of three locations bugged and we just happened to act overly friendly in that exact location?"
"No, he swears he's done doing such underhanded things against me. He said someone else told him about us." Lex answered rather breathlessly, watching intently as Chloe smeared lotion over her full breasts, her hands rubbing and squeezing her flesh gently. He turned away from her, adjusting the bulge in his pants as he studied the pictures taped to the wall.
"Who could have possibly told him about us? The only person privy to that kind of information is Lois and I can't believe for one second that she would tell him"
"According to my father, someone happened to stop at the mansion and got more than they bargained for when they walked in on us in the study…" he replied, turning around slowly and groaning to himself as he watched her put her foot on the bed bending to apply a liberal amount of lotion to her leg.
Chloe smirked knowingly, "Oh great. Someone just happens to stop by uninvited whilst we're fucking like animals in your study," she muttered, slowly dragging her hands over her calf and knee, stroking along the smooth skin of her thigh up to her hip. She switched legs, again running her hands along her skin, up her calf and knee, along her thigh to her hip. This time she didn't stop there, instead bending over further and rubbing the lotion on her ass.
Lex gulped, ignoring her comment as he watched her hands move over her ass, "Do you need some help with that, Chloe?" he asked softly.
She peered at him over her shoulder, smiling slyly, "Sure, you can do my back if you want."
Lex stepped forward immediately, grabbing the bottle of lotion and squirting a liberal amount into his hands then dropping the bottle on her bed. She put her foot on the floor, putting her back towards him and moving the towel out of the way. She sighed in delight as his hands rubbed her back, firmly rubbing the lotion into her skin.
Lex groaned softly, his hands stroking over her flesh, massaging along her spine and dipping along the curve of her ass. Chloe tsked at him, "Behave yourself, Lex...that's not my back…"
Grunting in displeasure he dropped his hands, "Well, I guess you're all set then."
'Thank you."
"You're welcome." He grumbled, watching as she walked to the dresser, opened the top drawer and rummaged through her lingerie. He gazed intently at the scraps of lace and silk, lost in thought until her voice broke through.
"Mrs. Kent told him, didn't she?" she asked flatly, once again standing by her bed.
Lex gaped at her, "You…you knew that Martha Kent knew about us?"
"Technically, I never had any proof that Mrs. Kent knew anything about the extent of our relationship, but I've been getting some seriously strange vibes from her lately and she randomly mentioned your name to me for no apparent reason." Chloe shrugged, waving her hands around nonchalantly. "I just put two and two together and came up with four. It's all quite simple if you pay close attention to the details."
"I can't believe you've been suspicious of Mrs. Kent and you never once mentioned it to me."
"Oh yeah, because we spend so much time together I feel the need to waste time discussing suspicions and speculation beyond the normal issues we deal with on a regular basis." Chloe huffed, putting her arms through the straps of her bra and securing the front clasp. She snorted at him as she adjusted the cups holding her breasts.
Lex watched closely, mesmerized by the way the lace cupped her flesh, supporting her full breasts and framing them delectably. He licked his lips hungrily, his eyes glowing hotly as he stared at her.
"Stop ogling my boobies, Lex."
Lex blinked, "I don't ogle."
"Yes you do and that's exactly what you're doing now." She said, turning away from him and walking across the room back to her dresser.
Lex glared at her but remained quiet as she carefully chose her clothing. He quit gawking at her openly, only allowing quick glances out of the corner of his eye when she wasn't looking. He clenched his jaw against the urge to squeeze the firm globes of flesh in his hands, to suckle the hard peaks, to rub his – Lex shook himself out of his reverie, focusing once more the point of his visit.
"So what do you suggest we do now," he asked, his voice grateful as she pulled a shirt on over her head.
"I don't know about you, but I'm going to head to Smallville and seek out Mrs. Kent. We might as well get it right out in the open and I doubt she'll ever mention it to me without my prodding her into it."
"You don't mind asking her about what she heard?" he asked, releasing a pent up breath as she finally fastened her pants and stood before him fully clothed.
Chloe shrugged, "I'm not exactly excited about addressing what will most undoubtedly be my abject humiliation with the likes of Mrs. Kent, but I don't see any other alternative."
Lex nodded in agreement, relieved to know he'd be saved the task of discussing his sex noises with one as innocent as Martha Kent. Sighing resignedly he still made an attempt at being helpful, "Would you like me to accompany you?" he asked.
Chloe smiled at him affectionately, moving to stand in front of him and cupping his face in her hands. She kissed him sweetly on the lips, pulling back and gazing at him softly, "Very sweet of you Lex, but I'll be fine. Actually, it'll probably be easier without you around, so you're completely off the hook this time." She turned away from him in search of her shoes, "You go ahead with whatever you have to do and I'll give you a call after I talk to Mrs. Kent."
"Will you be coming back to Metropolis tonight?" he asked neutrally.
Chloe looked at her watched, shaking her head doubtfully, "I wouldn't count on it, it's already pretty late and I don't think I'll be up to driving back here tonight."
"Oh." Lex frowned, "Want me to meet you at the mansion later?" he asked hopefully.
Chloe giggled, seating herself on her bed as she bent to put her socks on. "That's really not necessary, Lex. This will give me some time to talk Lois out of her plans to sabotage your campaign. I'll just stay with her overnight and come back tomorrow morning."
Lex sighed softly, frowning slightly at the thought of her ditching him for another night. He walked over to her, bending over and placing a kiss on her forehead, "Fine," he murmured, "I guess I'll talk to you later."
Chloe smiled fondly, tying her shoes as he walked towards the door, "I'll be in touch," she said, "so make sure you keep your phone on you." She stood up, adjusting her clothes and looking around for her bag as she prepared to follow him out.
Lex stopped at the door, his hand on the doorknob, turning slowly to face her, "Chloe," he said, pausing as he waited for her to meet his gaze, "I realize you have a lot on your mind right now, but…" he swallowed, taking a deep breath before continuing, "How much longer are you going to withhold sex from me?"