"I don't date," Clark said immediately.
"Oh, nonsense," Glen said. "If I remember correctly, you didn't bring a date to my party. You spend too much time with your sister. You both need to get out more. I'll get out of your way and let you get dressed. Oh," he ran out and brought back her suitcase. "Here, you'll need some dry clothes obviously. I'll tell them down at the desk, you're going to need those clothes dried," he pointed to her wet clothes that were draped neatly across the chair, "before they mildew or something."
"Thank you, Glen," Lois said through gritted teeth. "You're so helpful."
Glen didn't notice her barely controlled anger. He said chipperly, "One of the body guards will stay outside your door. The other's coming down to the restaurant with me. I think I'm going to leave the hallway guard up here, so nobody sneaks into the rooms while we're gone."
"Dates?" Lois echoed when he was gone. "What a way to spend your honeymoon. I think I'd kill Glen if someone wasn't already on the job."
"I don't think that's a funny thing to joke about right now," Clark said, pulling out an outfit and tossing it to her.
She frowned. "Why did you give me a sweater? I only brought it along incase it got chilly and it's not," she said, dropping it on the floor.
"I know, but I want you to wear it."
"Oh, I see, defending your territory. That's kind of sweet in a prehistoric sort of way, but I'm not willing to sweat to death just so he can't get a good look at my scandalous, bare arms." she said, pulling the yellow sundress over her head.
"Fine," he said, heading toward the door, "but we're going to make this quick and you're going to keep your distance from this guy. I don't want you breathing the same air as him."
"You're cute when your jealous," she said, kissing his cheek. "I hope you know that goes double for your date."
They hurried downstairs because they wanted to get it over with, and Lois was still hungry.
The 3 people, waiting for them at the table, stood up. Glen performed introductions. "Katherine, this is Brian Puckett. Brian, Katherine Enders. LeAnn, this is George Wickham, George, LeAnn Puckett." They shook hands.
"George Wickham, huh?" Lois asked. "Isn't that a character from Pride and Prejudice?"
"If I had a dime for every time, I heard that—"
"You'd be a very rich man," Lois said, completing the saying. "Was your mother a fan?"
"No, Wickham just happens to be my last name and my maternal grandfather for whom I was named just happened to be named George. I don't believe my mother ever read the book or watched the movie."
They all took a seat. Lois and Clark were across from each other with their respective dates at their side. Glen sat at the head.
"So tell me about yourself, Brian," Katherine purred.
Clark looked nervous. "There's nothing much to tell really."
She tried to place her hand on his knee, but he scooted out of reach. "You're being too modest. It takes quite a man to run the size company you run."
"Co-run," Lois said with a glare, "and how smart does a man have to be to inherit a company from his father?"
"Oh, but he's done so much with it. I'd say he'd have to be a genius," she scooted her chair closer.
Clark had no more room to scoot to, so he stood up. "Hey, Sis. You want to switch places with me? You know how I like to be able to see the door."
"Sure," Lois answered, standing up. She had no problems from George as she had managed to offend him early on. She looked at Katherine, who looked properly ticked at the switch. Lois took a sip of her drink, choosing to ignore the woman.
"So," George spoke up. "What was your childhood like? Did you two know from an early age you would be running your father's business? Did it make you guys competitive?"
"Not really," Lois answered.
"We were still competitive though but for different reasons." Clark's eyes got wide. Lois was starting a game of footsies with him under the table. He tried to subtly indicate no to her, but she was staring at him innocently like she had no idea what he was talking about.
"Who's older?" George asked.
"I am," Lois said. "My first glimpse of my dear brother was when he wasn't wearing a single thread."
Clark blushed.
"Well, naturally," Katherine said in an irritated tone. "You're not born with clothes on."
"You don't look that much older than him to remember his birth," George said, looking surprised.
"Oh, I don't," she said with a smile. "I just like teasing my brother."
She wasn't just verbally teasing. His beet red face came more from what was going on under the table than what she was saying. He hoped nobody noticed. He didn't have siblings, but he was positive this was a game not played between a sister and brother.
Glen chuckled. "Look at your poor brother. Why don't you leave him alone?"
"Oh, you'd be surprised," Lois said. "He can hold his own when he wants to."
Clark smiled at her. If that's the way she wanted to play, he could certainly dish it back, under the table that is.
Glen had ordered everybody spaghetti. He certainly liked ordering food for people. When it got there, Clark and Lois face were about as flushed as the sauce, and they couldn't keep still. They made it about halfway through their lunch.
Clark suddenly said, "You know I just remembered something that my sister and I have to take care of. Could you excuse us?"
Glen, Katherine, and George just nodded; the conversation had come to a halt anyway.
Clark stood up and took Lois by the hand, dragging her off. He took them up the stairs rather than waiting on the elevator.
They said nothing. They both knew where they were going and what they were going to do when they got there. The guard was still out there. They stopped in front of their room. The maid was cleaning it.
Lois groaned and whispered, "Is the world against us being together?"
"We're having our honeymoon," he said with determination. He used the key Glen had given them and went into Glen's room.
"Are you sure this is a good idea?" she asked.
"It's a great idea," he replied. "We'll have to be extra quiet with the guard outside."
They laid down on the nearest bed. They were so involved, they didn't pay attention to the door turning and Glen walked in on Clark and Lois.