Disclaimer: I own nothing.
AN: Okay people! Here's the next part of the DD saga...'the plan'. Special thanks to everyone who took the time to review the last chappie! I am grateful for the feedback.You guys probably guessed how this was going to go. Without further ado...on with the story...
Divided Devotions
Chapter 11
Lex had the overwhelming feeling of déjà vu; he distinctly remembered being in the very same position two weeks ago, when one Chloe Sullivan proclaimed her devotion for him. As he looked up at her he allowed himself to smile.
She finally found time in her busy schedule to set her vengeance into action. He was under no illusions that she was there simply for social call. He looked at her expectantly. He had no idea what her revenge was going to be, but he wanted her to get it over with. That way they could finally move on from the insanity that was her devotion. And maybe then he could finally start courting her.
Chloe bit her lower lip as Lex smiled at her. She had seen Lex smile over the course of their summer together. Their first few weeks together he did not smile at all, which wasn't all that surprising, after all his father did try to kill him. But as the summer progressed he smiled more and more often, but when they went back to their 'normal lives' he hadn't smiled, well at least not at her. It was a pity, his smile used to brighten up her days in captivity.
She shifted uncomfortably as Lex continued to stare at her. Her outfit deserved the attention. Lois refused to let her get rid of the clothes she acquired during her devoted phase. She was wearing a knee-length navy skirt and red v-neck sweater. She smiled at him tightly as she tried to quell her intense desire to bolt. Lois gave her explicit instructions to complete her mission; otherwise she would place a call to a select army brat unit she grew up with and enact her own brand of revenge.
Lex watched her as she continued to look incredibly uncomfortable. He merely sat back and waited for the pieces to fall into place.
"How have you been?" She smiled at him tentatively.
Lex raised a brow at her question. "I've been well, considering…" He refrained from smiling as he trailed off.
"About that, I'm sorry if I inconvenienced you during the entire meteor drink debacle." She said wryly.
"I believe the situation was out of your control." Lex replied amiably.
"Still I'm sorry about the whole ordeal." Chloe sighed deeply as she looked around the room in order to avoid seeing his reaction.
"You don't need to apologize. In fact I believe I should be the one apologizing. I took advantage of your altered state." Lex countered her apology with his.
Chloe shook her head, "I threw myself at you. I'm just glad that I was cured before things got even more complicated."
"I don't know what you mean." Lex' brows furrowed at her statement.
"I mean how awkward would it have been if…well you know." Chloe gave him a meaningful look.
Lex was being purposefully obtuse. He was certain that Chloe knew that he understood exactly what she was talking about and that he was being difficult on purpose.
Chloe fought the urge to stomp her foot in frustration. Lex was obviously not going to make things any easier for her.
Make small talk. I may have inadvertently told him that his turn was the next attraction.
She could practically hear Lois' voice in her head. "Anyway, I'm sorry if I avoided you. It was just…humiliating to know all the things that I had done, while under the influence of that drink." She distanced herself from Lex. "Mind if I sit down?" She looked at him expectantly.
Lex nodded courteously and leaned back on his chair. She looked like she was trying to settle an internal debate. He figured the least he could do was give her the time she obviously needed.
Chloe nodded and headed for the couch.
She looked at Lex as he looked at her. She checked the urge to roll her eyes. Lex was suspicious of her presence. That much she knew. And if her plans had any hope of bearing fruit she would have to do as Lois told her. Engage him in useless chatter. Even if the chatter would have to involve the discussion of the implications of her actions during her altered state. Chloe took off her shoes and made herself comfortable on the couch.
Lex raised a brow as Chloe removed her shoes. She leaned her elbow on the arm of the sofa and gave him a small smile.
"So?" She looked at him expectantly.
Lex shot her a questioning stare.
Chloe did not bother to hide the roll of her eyes. "You have questions. I'm here to answer them."
"You don't owe me any explanations Chloe." Lex muttered quietly.
Chloe laughed softly. "But that doesn't necessarily mean that you don't want them. The way I see it I'm being incredibly generous. I'd take advantage of it if I were you."
Lex cleared his throat. He did have a lot of questions, questions that were begging to be answered. But he was certain that she was there to get her revenge, not to satisfy his curiosity. He was however, not going to pass up the chance to ask her questions that would no doubt make her squirm. Maybe then she would stop with the farce and just get her reprisal over with.
Chloe's eyes narrowed at his hesitation to start the Q and A. "Afraid I'm going to be less than honest Lex?"
"Very well," Lex smirked at her. "Why did you pick me?"
She yawned at his question. She knew that he was going to ask that particular question. "Didn't I answer that already?" Chloe eyed him critically.
Lex shook his head. "You answered that question while you were under the influence of the meteor drink. Pardon me for being skeptical."
Chloe sighed loudly. "I meant what I said. You were there for me when I had no one. I guess I became accustomed to your presence. So you seemed like a natural choice." She shrugged nonchalantly.
"And Clark?" Lex leaned forward, interested in her answer.
She frowned slightly. "Residual feelings I guess. I'm not in love with him if that's what you're asking."
"Yet you still picked him as the object of your devotion." Lex commented offhandedly.
"I did. So what?" It was her turn to look at him with such interest.
"The meteor drink, according to Lois, was emotion based. The driving force of the actions you committed while under the influence of the drink was highly influenced by the way you felt about the persons you've picked to devote yourself to. Therefore it is not entirely a leap to conclude that your choices, i.e. Clark and I, are not mere afterthoughts, but rather your primary thoughts." Lex declared with confidence.
"True. According to the research that I've done on the drink, the emotions that the drinkers have are enhanced by the amphetamines that the bimbos put in the drink along with the meteor rocks, not entirely dissimilar to a person's reaction to chocolate. So my feelings…for you and Clark were completely heightened, so I wouldn't be so arrogant to assume that I was in love with the both of you, which was your point right?" She eyed him critically.
Lex nodded. "So you're not in love with me or Clark?"
Chloe shook her head smilingly. "No, I'm not. Next question."
"Now that we have that all cleared up, what kind of hold do you have over Enrique that he allowed you to come and go as you pleased during the entire debacle?" Lex got up from his chair and slowly walked over to where she was sitting.
Chloe bit her lip and gave him a puzzled look. "Don't you remember? You practically gave me an all season's pass to your mansion while we were working on…you know what, provided that I don't print anything about it. I guess you never revoked those orders and I think he likes me."
Lex' brows furrowed as he thought back on his orders regarding Chloe. When they started working together he did give her free access to the manor. He did give Enrique clear instructions that Ms. Chloe Sullivan was never to be turned away even when he was unavailable. He might have to rethink his decision, particularly since he basically gave her free reign in his house. She was a budding journalist and he was not about to let himself become the object of her next story.
"It's really great that Ricky likes me. Whenever I stopped by he would always give me snacks." Chloe smiled brightly at him.
"I'll have to have a talk with Enrique." Lex muttered mostly to himself.
"About giving me snacks?" Chloe grinned at him impertinently.
Lex shook his head in slight exasperation. "So about Clark."
"What about him?" Chloe leaned back on the couch and looked at him warily.
"I have to thank you." Lex stated quietly.
"For what?" Chloe's brows furrowed. She was really at a loss; she had no idea what Lex was talking about. Maybe she missed a lot when she was doing her best to avoid him.
"If it hadn't been for your condition," Lex cleared his throat. He was not accustomed to thanking anyone but he truly owed Chloe a lot. Her situation drove him and Clark to fix their relationship, even though they were initially at total odds with each other.
"You and Clark made up?" Chloe's eyes widened at the implication of his words.
Lex shook his head. "We did not make up. We merely repaired our damaged friendship. It was a direct result of your circumstance. We were forced to work together and now…"
"Now you two are buddy-buddy again. Having afternoon coffee at the Talon, just like old times." Chloe ended his thought. "You two would have made up on your own. You did not need me to get your friendship back on track." She commented simply.
Lex gave her a measured look. "Since you're feeling particularly forthcoming I have to ask."
"Ask away." Chloe countered generously.
"What's going to happen to Clark on Monday?" Lex sat across from her, on the coffee table and looked at her intently.
Chloe smirked at him and asked sardonically. "Why should I tell you?"
"You said that you're here to answer all my questions. This is me simply taking advantage of your generosity." Lex volleyed back.
"I'm not going to tell you." Chloe looked at him through narrowed eyes. "You're just going to warn him, now that you two are happy together. Besides, I'm actually proud of this one." She smiled at him mischievously.
"I suppose this act of vengeance involves the violent Jason Teague." Lex said snidely.
Chloe laughed at his tone. "Coach Teague was under the influence of the meteor drink, you cannot hold his actions against him. If you're not blaming me for my actions when I was under the influence of that drink then you shouldn't blame him either." She declared confidently.
"He almost slapped you." Lex muttered viciously.
"The main point being is that he almost slapped me. Me and almost, he didn't succeed because you had a couple of guys following me around. If I remember correctly I was in the middle of making a great point to Coach Teague and one of your men stepped in." Chloe gave him a disapproving look.
"I suppose you already forgave that man for that incident." Lex commented dryly.
"It was beyond his control." Chloe countered.
When Coach Teague approached her to apologize she was a bit apprehensive. She could remember with such clarity the moment that Lex was referring to. In her mind a teacher attacking a student, a female student at that, was inexcusable. But when she found out that he too was a victim of the cheerleaders, she felt a certain affinity for him. They talked about what happened to them and Chloe even got his permission to publish his experience while under the influence of the meteor drink, as long as she picked a clever pseudonym for him.
"Did you know that he also attacked Clark? Twice actually." He added icily.
"Clark seemed to be faring well, despite the attack." Chloe replied easily. She actually did not know about that. All she knew was that the football coach was acting rather vicious and from her earlier interactions with him, he did not seem like a violent man. And Clark did not look worse for wear, he was the same old Clark to her.
"You know we're never going to agree about him." Lex asserted in a hard tone.
"Maybe not. But I'm not going to dismiss him because of an isolated incident. If I had done that with every other person I met then I would be friendless." She gave him a significant look.
A long quiet settled over them. They simply stared at each other challengingly, waiting for the other to concede their point.
"So…" Lex began.
"So?" Chloe looked at him with interest.
"So you really won't tell me what's in store for Clark?" He finished somewhat lamely. He did not want to keep arguing about Jason Teague. He refused to allow Chloe's continuing association with the man to ruin what he hoped to have with her.
Chloe grinned. "I'll never tell. But I'm sure that you'll know what he's going to go through. Lois is in charge of…documenting everything. And rest assured that she won't be sparing any expense for that." She said laughingly.
"Lois seemed to be out to get Clark." Lex commented offhandedly. Lois and Clark's interaction was becoming more intense with every passing day. And he had a feeling that Clark's reaction to Lois was more than actual aggression towards her. And maybe with Clark completely occupied with Lois, then that would mean he wouldn't have to compete against his friend.
"Yeah, just a little bit." Chloe grinned mischievously as she agreed. It was time to move the seduction plan along.
She got up and in turn he too got up, the distance between them was almost negligible. "I guess I should get going." She glanced at her watch and then at him.
Lex nodded. He was finally convinced that she was in fact there to satisfy his curiosity and not to plot her revenge.
"So…are we okay?" She lowered her gaze and asked him shyly.
He lifted her chin up and smiled at her. "Yes Chloe. We're okay."
Chloe nodded. "Good. I'm glad. That we're okay." She slipped on her shoes and smiled at him.
"Me too." Lex replied softly.
She nodded in agreement again. She bit her lip and summoned all her courage for what she was about to do. She continued smiling at him. Her gaze landed on his blue shirt and when her hand practically raised itself to adjust his collar she did not even try to stop her impulse.
Lex froze when Chloe reached out to adjust his collar. Her gaze was locked on what she was doing, seemingly unwilling to meet his eyes.
'Now or never.' Chloe thought to herself; she could feel the warmth of Lex' skin underneath his shirt. She took a deep breath and allowed her eyes to meet his questioning blue orbs.
Lex was completely confused at the sudden shift of mood. He could still feel her hand resting on his shirt collar. Their eyes connected for a brief moment before Chloe placed a gentle kiss on his neck. His heart almost stopped. A part of him was screaming that this was it. This was her revenge. She came there to play with his emotions. But when she pulled back and he saw her expression he knew. She was just as confused by her actions as he was.
Chloe could not believe that she just kissed Lex' neck. She pulled back and had every intention of withdrawing her hand from his shirt. But Lex' own hand stopped hers from its retreat. He looked at her with such intensity, as if he was searching for answers in her eyes. He nodded and the next thing Chloe knew he was pulling her closer to his body. He wrapped his arm around her waist and clutched his free hand, which was holding hers, close to his heart. Chloe licked her lips nervously. Her action finally spurned Lex into making a move. He kissed her chastely before pulling back. What he saw obviously convinced him that she was fully aware of what was happening and that she had no objections.
Lex released Chloe's hand and raised his to caress her cheek tenderly. He looked at her with such profound affection. He smiled warmly at her before pressing his lips against hers tentatively.
Chloe was immobilized by the feel of Lex' lips on hers. This was it. This was her plan all along. But now that it was actually happening she was completely at a loss. Her instinct was screaming that she kiss him back. She and Lex had shared a number of kisses while she was under the influence of the stupid drink. This was the one kiss in which she was a willing participant. Chloe grabbed the back of his head and deepened the kiss between them. Once he realized that this was all part of Lois' master plan, Lex might banish her from his life.
Lex welcomed the fact that Chloe took control of the kiss. He allowed her to set the pace, he remembered promising himself that the next time he kissed her, truly kissed her, she would be completely aware that it was him she was kissing.
He maneuvered the two of them so he ended up sitting on the couch while she was straddling his lap. The change in their position made Chloe pull back from their make out session, she eyed him speculatively and then she smirked at him in a way that reminded him of the days when they were working on sending his father to prison.
During one of their most intense moments together he got too riled up, something that he hadn't done all through out the entire process. The stress finally got to him and he had to give Chloe full credit. If it hadn't been for her he would have put a hit on Lionel just to get the situation over with.
She managed to calm him down by asking if he would give her smirking lessons. She teased and taunted him until he agreed to teach her the right way to smirk. Though he never lost it after that one instance, that one moment frightened him, the fact that she displayed the ability to pacify his worries with minor teasing. It concerned him that in a span of a few months Chloe managed to develop the ability to discern his moods and also the ability to keep him from dwelling on those moods.
"I never pegged you as the passive type." Chloe murmured softly as she gave him a challenging look.
"I'm not the passive type Chloe." He replied quietly as he pulled her closer to him. His arms tightened around her petite frame, his mouth took hers in a long, thorough kiss.
He suddenly flipped the two of them over so he was hovering over her. Lex pulled back ever so slightly and gazed at the woman in his arms. 'I could love you for always.' He thought to himself.
Chloe's eyes fluttered open at the abrupt halt of Lex' kisses. She saw the look on his face and she couldn't help but feel a rush of emotion from the way that he was looking at her. She raised a hand to caress his cheek tenderly and she smiled up at him. Chloe grabbed the back of his neck, pulled him towards her and kissed him gently.
Lex felt his heart skip faster as their kisses became more than about need. There was a sudden shift in the mood. It was more than a burst of passion, he felt like it would always be more than that. With Chloe, every kiss and touch would always mean the world to him.
She was lost. Lost to the sensation of Lex' lips against hers. Chloe could remember enjoying every kiss that they exchanged when she was devoted to him. But the kisses that they were sharing at that exact moment, she couldn't help but feel overwhelmed by everything.
An insistent ringing broke through her stupor. For a second she had no idea what could be the source of noise. And that was when she remembered. This was a plan of seduction. She was supposed to stop at some point. At the rate that they were going there was no stopping in the horizon, unless she made the conscious effort to get out of there. The ringing ended and once again she forgot what she was thinking.
And then the ringing started up again. Chloe and Lex parted and they looked around, searching for the source of the annoying sound. The noise stopped again. The two of them simply stared at each other. And just as they were closing the distance between them the ringing began. They both sighed in annoyance.
The ringing continued and Chloe finally remembered that Lois was supposed to call her. Her cousin suggested that she called Chloe an hour after she got to the manor. Somehow she agreed to everything that Lois said and the phone call was just one of the things that she agreed to. Chloe extricated herself from Lex' embrace and stumbled towards her purse. She grabbed her phone and answered the call.
"Chloe!" Lois practically screamed through the lines.
Chloe watched Lex as he got up from the couch and watched her as she conversed with Lois. "Yeah." She answered quietly.
"Come home, there's an emergency." It was the line that Lois said that she would utter when she made the call. Just so they wouldn't be so obvious.
"Okay." She replied and then she hung up the phone. She looked at Lex and saw that his lips were set in a grim line. He probably knew everything by now. "I have to go." She murmured softly as she gathered her stuff, she tried to avoid Lex' gaze as much as she could.
Lex nodded imperceptibly. He knew that Chloe finally got her revenge. And nothing felt more wrong than acknowledging that fact.
Chloe finally got the courage to look up and saw that Lex too was looking everywhere but her. It didn't feel right. She felt like she betrayed Lex and the knowledge weighed heavily in her heart.
"I'll see you around." She said as she headed for the door. She looked at him one final time and felt the intense urge to weep. She mentally cursed Lois for putting her up to the entire revenge thing.
Lex nodded again. He watched as she disappeared from his view. He walked towards the window and waited a full minute. He saw Chloe practically running towards her car. He took a deep breath.
"Payback really is a bitch." He muttered spitefully as Chloe's red car hightailed out of his property.
TBC