Chapter Thirteen
"Thank-you for agreeing to do this interview, Mr Luthor", Chloe began with her sweetest smile. "You are known for never giving interviews, so this really means a lot".
"Please, call me Lex", he settled himself on the opposite settee from Clark and Chloe. "And it is my pleasure. You are quite right, I am normally considered quite a reticent man but I think that in your case I can make an exception".
Chloe raised an eyebrow.
"There are a lot of things that I should have said to you a long time ago", he explained, looking straight into her eyes.
"It's a shame that your last attempt at an interview was disrupted", Clark commented.
"Indeed", Lex smiled over at him. "Hopefully no one will get thrown through any windows this time", the smile appeared forced now.
"Well that depends on whether you will answer my questions directly".
Both of them men stared at Chloe, Clark in surprise, Lex in amusement.
"Well Chloe, you ask me a direct question and I will give you a direct answer. How is that for fair?" There was a challenge in his look.
"Very well, Lex. How do you respond to accusations that LuthorCorp is an evil conglomerate bent only on making money and without any regards for the world we live in, or its employees?"
Lex made a show of leaning back on the sofa and getting comfortable before saying, "In general I don't respond to accusations at all, I have the people who make them disappear", he left the threat hanging in the air. Chloe looked unimpressed while Clark bristled and appeared to be about to threaten Lex in return, so the billionaire continued, "But as you are a friend of my closest friend", he sneered, "I will make an exception".
"Your information appears to be out of date. The majority of the environmental problems which LuthorCorp has previously been accused of (although never officially) have been linked instead to meteor activity by a very talented local reporter", Lex smirked.
"Flattery will get you nowhere, Luthor".
He pretended to look confused, "You do not believe that Lana Lang is an excellent local reporter?"
Lex took a sip of his water to hide his smile as he watched Chloe battling with herself. She knew that he was trying to push her buttons and was trying to resist responding but it went against the grain.
"Excellent", she finally managed acidly.
"But surely you don't deny that many of the business strategies employed by your company have been unethical. You have underpaid for family businesses, fired good workers, and the employee based buyout was almost a complete disaster", Chloe challenged him.
"No, I don't deny any of those things. Almost everything that anyone ever does is unethical from someone's point of view. Just by being an American citizen you are considered a monster by many, but if you wish I will respond to your more specific criticisms", Lex maintained eye contact.
"I believe that I have always dealt fairly with people during buyouts, however there is always room for differing opinions on these matters. When someone has put their heart and soul into a business that their family has had for generations then the market value of that business or even five times that will never seem like adequate recompense - especially when the value of that property is evaluated by a hurt boy. If you are referring to the Ross factory, as I believe you are, you will find that a) LuthorCorp did technically pay more than the correct amount for it, and b) that my father was in charge of the company at the time".
"How convenient", Chloe muttered under her breath.
"May I continue?" There was a touch of steel, to his tone.
"Please".
"As for the policy of who is and is not kept employed, this is something my father and I have always disagreed upon. As you well know, when I first came to this town I refused to get rid of workers. I have always tried to work ethically where possible, this is something that has not changed although I will admit that sometimes there are greater pressures than someone outsides the business world can comprehend", seeing that she was about to interrupt, Lex held up a hand to her, "that is why I have appointed a new regional head of LuthorCorp Smallville, Mr Sullivan who I assure you is already coming up with ways to safe guard our employee's interests whilst making the plant profitable and green. Does that answer your question?"
"Yes", Chloe replied tersely.
"Your Dad got his job back and got promoted?" Clark asked, sounded thrilled.
"Yes, yesterday", Chloe smiled over at him.
"That's great. Why didn't you tell me sooner? We have to celebrate?" Clark hugged her.
"Yeah, it is. I didn't have the chance yesterday, and yes we should definitely celebrate later", Chloe returned his hug enthusiastically, noting Lex's reaction out of the corner of her eye. He looked like he would like to rip her and Clark apart.
She wanted to hurt him the way that he had hurt her, she thought about inviting Clark to dinner right there in front of Lex, but she couldn't bring herself to do it.
"We could go to the Talon", Chloe suggested.
"Yes, I am sure that Lana would love that. It will give you all the chance to celebrate together", Lex put in, determined that she shouldn't enjoy the hug or get any ideas about ending up with Clark. Chloe shot daggers at him, but he preferred that to her fawning all over Clark.
"Yeah, that would be great", Clark enthused and then realising that Lex was there, have given Chloe's father a good job, and was doing an interview for Chloe. So, being a Kent he had to extend the invitation, "You can come to, if you want Lex".
Lex wanted to scoff that he did own the place, but this was the first olive branch that he had been offered from Clark in a long time and wasn't about to ruin it, besides it would give him the chance to be near Chloe.
"I wouldn't miss it for the world", Lex said smoothly. He could have sworn that he heard some most unladylike language coming from Chloe's direction, but when he looked over at her she looked composed and inquired, "As I have been waiting for an answer for almost three years, are there any more secrete construction projects going on at LuthorCorp like level 3?"
"If there were I have no doubt that you would have found them by now. You do seem to have a knack for getting yourself into trouble … and into top security buildings after all", he said in his most charming voice.
Chloe bristled and refused to look over at Clark to see how horrified he was. "Well when you know that people are hiding the truth from you, sometimes you have to look hard for it".
"Sometimes people hide things for a reason", Lex suggested. That was not an argument that he would have made this time last year.
"Yes, because they don't want to be caught doing something wrong", Chloe threw back.
"Or because they are trying to protect suborn blonde –"
"Hey", Clark interrupted. He didn't quite understand what was going on, but he knew that that line of conversation wasn't going to end well.
"You're quite right Clark", Chloe placed her hand on his arm. She was pleased to see Lex's entire body tense.
"My next question was about your obsessions, Mr. Luthor", she said with wide eyes.
"Lex", he ground out again.
"Obsessions?" Clark repeated, looking a little worried.
"Yes, obsessions. Everyone has them, you know. Those things, activities or sometimes even people who just get into your head. I know that I have had that experience hunting down a story. These obsessions make you lose all sense of proportion, sometimes even of right and wrong because they are all that you can think of until it destroys your entire world and you realise that it just wasn't worth it", she blinked innocently several times before turning her full attention to Lex, "What are yours?"
At this rate there would be nothing left of his teeth by the end of this interview, if he kept grinding them like this. He had no idea what her original questions would have been, although he was sure that they would not have been easy to answer either, he knew that this was just to punish him. She was hurt that he had deleted her picture and thereby showed – in Chloe land, at least – that he didn't trust or respect her and now she wanted to hurt him as much as possible before leaving him forever.
Unfortunately for Chloe, anything that she could dish out in anger was preferable to her indifference.
"Well, that is certainly a direct question. I suppose that a while ago I would have said that it was getting to the bottom of a car accident that I had and survived, but that hasn't been the case for almost a year now", he fixed Chloe with a look that made her squirm. "Since then, it has been a woman", he finished.
"Eight women so far this year, wasn't it?" Chloe asked, remembering her research.
"Been doing your homework, Miss Sullivan?" His smile was far too cocky.
"Always, I am a good girl, as I am frequently reminded".
"Well I suppose then that you could say that sex is my current obsession, if you wanted to be more commercial", Lex said offhandedly.
"Sex?" Chloe choked a little and Clark just looked shocked.
"Yes, I certainly find myself thinking about it a lot recently", he licked his lips. "Over there on the couch where you are sitting, up against the wall, on the rug in front of the fire, on my desk. I am fairly certain that I have imagined it in every position in this office", he said, pretending to think about it for a minute before fixing her with a look that made her feel as if he could see through her clothes. "What about you?"
"I cannot say that I have ever thought of you having sex", Chloe lied smoothly.
"Now, who is not being direct?" Clearly she had not been quite smooth enough.
Damn the arrogant bastard! Well she would show him. She didn't even bother to look over to see Clark turning bright red, she had temporarily forgotten all about him.
"Maybe you should think a less about quantity and position and a little more about quality and stamina", Chloe suggested trying to ignore how hot the room had suddenly become. The wall would probably have felt cool against her skin …
"Excuse me?"
"Well you have been married twice and you aren't all that old. Surely there must be something wrong there. How do you think that you screwed those relationships up?" She cocked her head to one side, "Overbearing? Arrogance? Refused to think that they were capable of making their own decisions? Or could you just not keep them satisfied?"
Lex shot Chloe a piercing look and was pleased to see that she did look slightly uncomfortable and refused to look directly at him.
"If you are going to stoop so low as to ask me a question as personal as that with the intention of hurting me, then at least do me the courtesy of eye contact when I answer", his tone was low and dangerous. He knew that Chloe was angry with him, and had every right to be, but he did have limits of what he would allow.
Chloe looked up and was about to say, "Sorry", but the words died on her lips.
"I haven't had the easiest time with women, both of my marriages were errors from the very start. Both were interested in my money and position rather than me. That is true of every woman I have ever been with and I suppose that is why I feel like it is alright to treat them horribly, but recently I have begun to see that that is wrong. I guess that I always knew that it was but it suited me to ignore it", he appeared calm.
"What changed your mind?" Chloe couldn't help but ask.
Lex shrugged. "Since being in Smallville I have met people that I have to respect, even if I don't like them half of the time. But I learnt last year, when dealing with my father that I am inherently bad and will hurt anyone I get too close too. It is better to protect people you care about than to love them".
"That is such a load of rubbish and you know it!" Chloe erupted. For a moment she had felt as if her heart were about to break for him, until she remembered what she had been through because he had made that decision without even consulting her … if it was her he was talking about, which it might not have been.
"It isn't better, it is safer for you to sit here in your ivory tower, mansion, castle, or whatever you call this monstrosity, feeling sorry for yourself and saying that you are bad and that you had better not get close to people. You have destroyed every single relationship you built up here in Smallville and it wasn't because you weren't capable of continuing them, I know you Lex Luthor, you are capable of anything. It was because you realised that they made you vulnerable. You are a chicken not to mention a Neanderthal".
"A Neanderthal?" He questioned, in confusion. Chloe seemed to be able to flick between topics with startling ease. He had been focusing on her assessment of his fear and now she decided that he was a Neanderthal.
"Yes, …"
"Chloe, I don't think that this is an appropriate diversion. Maybe we should get back on track", Clark suggested, he had believed Lex's excuse and felt for him.
"Clark", she yelped in surprise. She was about to tell him to mind his own business when she decided that that wasn't the way to really get to Lex. "What would I do without you?" She gushed in a Lana-esc way that made her feel slightly sick … although that did not mean that she agreed with the way that Lex rolled his eyes, that was just unnecessary - she hadn't over done it that much! Just for that she wasn't going to let him off the hook as easily as she had been planning to.
"Yes, getting back to your relationships. You seem to have a rather complicated one with your father and women. Which would you like to discuss first? Your dysfunctional relationship with your father who you claim to love and have several times defended but who you paint as the villain of the piece with yourself as the innocent school boy when it suits you? Or your inability to keep a woman happy?"
"I wasn't aware that I had ever painted any such picture, but seeing as how you seem to have a little obsession of your own, I will have to take your word for it. I do not think that it is abnormal for a child to love their parent even if they do not have an entirely positive relationship with them, it is not as if he just abandoned me after all", the moment the words were out of his mouth he regretted them.
"Chloe", he started as he saw the tightening of her jaw. He observed Clark reach over and rub her back slightly. Lex would have given anything to be able to do the same, at the end of last year he had had that kind of relationship with her. He remembered how easy it had been for him to place his hand on her back last year to guide her around the courtroom, now he couldn't touch her. God, how he longed for yesterday when she had been in his arms, even if he had smeared her with blood.
He knew that he would only bring her pain, he had been right to stay away from her. She was better without him. He would do this interview and then he would disappear from her life, he wouldn't even go to her celebration later as he had been planning to.
Chloe realised what he was thinking and growled. She didn't want this wimpy Lex. He had once again interfered and proved that he couldn't be trusted, she wanted to argue with him and she couldn't do that if he was being like this.
"Don't be such a pussy", she thought and then, seeing the boys' expressions, realised that she must have said it out loud. Oh well, too late to take it back now.
Lex gave her an unreadable look, then said, "My relationship with my father is very complicated and one that I imagine psychiatrists would have a field day with, so maybe we should move on".
"Very well, we will move on to women", Chloe said. She did not intend to talk about his wives again, that had been too low even though she was angry. She had just wanted to hurt him as much as he had hurt her when he had shown that he did not trust her and that none of the feelings, that he had encouraged her to have, were reciprocated. He did not love her like she loved him, if he did, then he would never have deleted her picture.
"Are you rubbish in the sack. Is that why the flops?"
"Want to find out?" Lex asked getting to his feet and moving around the table towards her.
"Not right now, thanks", Chloe said, trying to keep her cool. She could not let him see that he was getting to her, or that she wanted to throw herself at him. She had to think of something that would stop him looking so infuriatingly handsome at her. Then it came to her.
"So you are really rich, huh?" She tried to make her eyes wide.
"Yes", Lex said, crossing his arms over his chest and staring down at her. He knew that look and wasn't about to fall for it, wherever she took this next, he would be ready for her.
"So", she lowered her voice so he had to bend down to hear her as if were a secret. He still wasn't quite close enough so he braced his hands either side of her, on the back of the settee, and lent down so that she could whisper in his ear.
He did not miss the slow, satisfied smile which spread across her lips. She loved being in control, well they would see how long that would last.
She licked her lips before whispering, "So have you ever tried a toupee". As she pulled away to smirk, "because I think that it would be a very good idea". Of course she didn't, if anything she thought that he would look very strange indeed with hair, she liked his smooth bald head.
Lex appeared unruffled as he sat back on his coffee table, his forearms resting on his legs. "You know that is the second time that you have tried that particular line of insult on me. I let it slide the first time as you were not yourself, but now it raises certain questions". He pretended to think.
"What questions?" Chloe leant in, eager to know in spite of herself.
This time it was Lex who whispered in her ear, "If you have ever been spanked, because it seems quite likely that you will be in the near future if you don't watch that pretty, extremely temping", he ran her thumb across her full lower lip, "mouth of yours".