They sat next to each other on the narrow bed and laughed as Lois slipped her loafers back on and Clark tied the laces of his boots. Could they possibly be laughing because while they'd been in the throes of passion, Shelby had started to howl?

It could only happen to them.

He leaned over and kissed her before getting to his feet and holding out his hand to help her up. Shelby followed and then started to bark and he kept barking as he made a mad dash up the stairs and scratched at the door.

Clark picked up his sweatshirt from the floor and followed at a trot to see what had excited his dog and opened the door. Lois heard the frantic voice of his mother, calling for them as she headed up the stairs to the kitchen. She heard Clark's voice reassure his worried mother. "Mom, we're okay."

When she stepped through the low doorway, she saw her husband in his mother's tight embrace. "We got home as soon as we could."

The ashen faces of Clark's parents telegraphed quite clearly how worried they'd been and no sooner had Martha let go of her only child, when the older woman's arms were around her. Lois hugged her back, assuring her that they were all fine.

When it was her father-in-law's turn, he caught her up in a fierce bear hug. For someone who was usually so reserved with his emotions; she could tell that he'd been just as anxious as his wife. "You kids gave us an awful scare."

"And it ruined your day." Martha's look of regret made Lois smile as she stole a look at Clark, whose face had turned red.

"It wasn't ruined, Martha, just cut a little short." She shook her head, her own cheeks starting to burn self-consciously. "We're just sorry you had to come back from Granville; that was supposed to be your day."

"Lois, our day was finished when they hustled everyone down into the storm cellar." Jonathan shook his head and put an arm around her shoulders. "And once we realized it was headed for Smallville and not us, Martha insisted that we get home to make sure you were all right."

After an inspection of the house, to check for any possible interior damage, the foursome walked outside into brilliant sunshine and took a walk around the farm to survey what the twister had left in its wake. As Clark had figured, several of the shingles were gone, but none of the windows were cracked or broken.

The barn still stood in one piece, but for a large hole in the roof and one of the doors had come loose. All the animals were accounted for and Martha's chicken coop, as well; full of flustered, flapping, clucking hens.

"I'm glad that I insisted you secure the coop to the side of the barn." She remarked absently.

The Kent family had been fortunate their farm only received minor damage and the repairs could be done by Jonathan and Clark; but silent worry nagged because their neighbors might not have been so lucky.

As they walked back to the house, Lois could hear the telephone ringing and Jonathan broke into a run and headed toward the front door. "That's probably Ben or Ed."

"Clark, would you check on the crops for your dad?" Martha put a hand on his arm. "He didn't say much on the way home, but I know he was worried."

"Sure, Mom," He kissed her cheek and then Lois's. "I shouldn't be long."

He headed up the lane at a brisk pace, dodging mud puddles as he went and Martha linked her arm through Lois's, propelling her toward the house. "So how are you feeling after all of this excitement?"

"I don't know if excitement is the word I would use." Lois remarked. "It just all seemed to happen so fast."

"It's hard to believe that a force of nature that sets down for less than a minute can cause so much damage." She sighed. "And interrupt a romantic afternoon?"

"We made due." Lois' head dipped because she didn't know how she could explain. But when Martha laughed, she knew she wouldn't have to.

"The storm cellar?"

"There, too," Her face burned with a blush and she couldn't meet her mother-in-law's eyes.

"And might one of those other places explain your damp hair?" The gentle question came with a soft hand on her back.

"It would." She shouldn't have felt so completely mortified, but she did. Yet a laughing admission from Martha got a startled Lois to look up.

"The attic."

"I beg your pardon?" Did she mean what Lois thought she meant?

Martha gave her a look and nodded as though to say, "You heard me right."

"We hadn't been alone for so long and we'd not been able to do that yet, because even before my doctor said I could, my baby boy came down with the croup. Like all new mothers I wanted to take care of him myself and because I refused my mother-in-law's help and Jonathan's, I was always tired.

"So, our first Christmas after I had Clark, Jonathan's mother asked me to go up to the attic to get the last of the ornaments. I got distracted with looking through the boxes because Clark's grandmother had some beautiful ornaments that had been her mother's. Jonathan's parents were looking after Clark, so his mother sent him up to collect me and them and, well, one thing led to another."

The surprise at the candid admission left her momentarily speechless. Lois couldn't seem to help it and started to laugh at the thought of her in-law's being so much like her and Clark; then immediately apologized.

"It's all right, honey." Martha laughed as well. "We were young and in love, we were new parents and we hadn't been together for months."

"So you found yourselves alone and nature took over?" She proffered delicately.

"I'm certain his parents knew what had happened when we finally came downstairs," Her cheeks bloomed as pink as her spring roses. "But they were gracious enough not to mention it."

"Sounds like some in-law's I know." Lois grinned and as the two women walked back to the house, Clark came ambling up the lane and escorted them to the porch steps, giving them an update.

"No damage." He was succinct. "We managed to escape the worst of it."

"But the Carmichael's didn't." Jonathan announced from the front doorway looking troubled, arms folded across his chest. It startled her for a moment because quite often Clark took that same stance; like father like son. "Ben Hubbard called. The Carmichael's lost their barn; half the shingles on their house and several windows are broken."

"Oh, dear," Martha sighed and ran a hand across her forehead. "Is everyone all right?"

"Ed and Lydia are fine." He assured them. "And the remains of the barn are a pile of kindling on the foundation, according to Ed. Ben's trying to round up all the men he can muster and we'll head over to Ed's place early in the morning to clean up the mess and get his barn back up." And he looked at Clark. "We could use all the help we can get."

"Just call me when you get up." He nodded his agreement.

"Thank you, son," Jonathan grinned with approval. He finally seemed to realize he'd lost the battle and the war to keep his only son from helping him.

"I'm sure Dad wouldn't mind lending a hand either, if you want it." Lois volunteered her father. "He's never raised a barn before, but he is handy with a set of tools."

"Thank you, Lois." He replied with a nod. "I know Ed would appreciate all the help he can get."

"I'll call him later." She promised as she felt Clark's hand slip around hers and squeeze. He gave her a grateful look before they followed his parents back into the house.

oooooo

It was just after dawn the next morning when Lois's father drove up to the farm house.

She wasn't sure why she expected to see him in fatigues, perhaps because he usually dressed that way, so it surprised her to see him dressed in dungarees and a tee shirt. Over that, he had on an old plaid wool jacket she recognized.

He'd been stationed in Texas where summers were blistering hot, but winters could be frigid cold. Not as bad as Greenland; but after awhile, cold was cold. He always told her that jacket kept him warmer than anything else he'd ever worn.

For several minutes after she'd let him in, he held her tight in his arms, trembling as he held her close. She'd been able to talk him out of coming to the farm the day before with the repeated assurance they were all fine and instead asked his help for the next morning.

The twister bypassed Fort Ryan, but several dozen soldiers stationed at the base had been dispatched by the CO to the surrounding communities to provide help in any way they could.

When they left the house an hour later after eating a hearty breakfast, Clark's parents and her father rode over in the truck while he and Lois went in their car. Martha had urged her to bake some of her turnovers for the refreshment table Mrs. Hubbard was organizing so Mrs. Carmichael wouldn't feel as though she had to feed the neighborhood army that was going to descend on their farm.

Martha, for her part made a batch of her fried chicken, mashed potatoes and gravy. Lois didn't have any idea where Mrs. Carmichael would store all the food until the men were ready to break for lunch, but knew without a doubt she would.

In turn, she would provide fresh coffee and her homemade doughnuts to get the work crew through the morning. This was relayed by Martha to the rest of the Kent's through several telephone calls she fielded between the Hubbard's, Carmichael's and other neighbor ladies who didn't want to bother either woman.

When they arrived at the Carmichael's twenty minutes later, they followed the line of cars in front of them to a small piece of land that had been set aside for parking. Mr. Carmichael's two oldest sons helped to direct the cars and then arranged them in such a way so no one got stuck if they needed to leave. When they were through, they walked back to the house to join their father on the roof to continue replacing the shingles. Others were already measuring and sawing the lumber for the frames while even more were clearing up the remains of the decimated barn.

Jonathan volunteered to help measure and saw, since he'd done it more than a time or two; while Clark and her father put their work gloves on and joined in the clean-up effort. Mr. Carmichael called to the men working on clearing the foundation, to salvage the lumber that could be used again.

With the men put to work, Lois and Martha took the food they'd brought with them into the house. It was a crush of women and children, jockeying to make their way into the kitchen to drop off what they'd brought and chat with the other women.

Crowds didn't ordinarily bother Lois but she started to feel lightheaded in the press of bodies, with the different smells of food and her hands got damp and started to shake. Observant as always, Martha took the plate of turnovers out of her unsteady hands, set them on the breakfront in the dining room and pulled her out to the quiet of the back porch.

Mrs. Carmichael must've seen it, too because she wasn't far behind them; her concern evident as she kept her voice low. "Lois, you're looking awfully pale, why don't you go upstairs to my daughter's old room and lay down for awhile; just until you get your feet under you."

"I'm fine." She tried to insist, even though she knew she wasn't.

"I beg to differ, honey." She laughed softly. "It's toughest early on because so much is changing. And if you don't go rest for awhile you'll more than likely swoon and give these good ladies something to talk about."

And they would, too.

"If anyone asks you, you're looking for the wash room."

"Thank you." Lois was starting to wilt.

"You'd best get back to the kitchen, Lydia; I'll get Lois settled." Martha rubbed Lois' shoulder in a soothing manner. "The ladies will start to wonder why you're out here with us."

"Very true," She agreed. "When we're ready to serve lunch, I'll have Martha come get you."

"All right."

Mrs. Carmichael moved quietly back into the house, apparently without notice to resume the food collection and Lois grinned at her mother-in-law. "The OSS could use someone like her."

Martha smiled back. "'The fog came in on little cat feet' ".

"Poem?"

"Carl Sandburg." She nodded. "It seemed the perfect way to describe how she slipped into that busy kitchen without any one noticing she was gone."

"Dad's like that, too; only he's has years of Army training."

"Well, let's see if some of that rubbed off on you so we can get you stashed away." And as quietly as she could, Martha led the way.

oooooo

"Up and at 'em, Lo," She knew that command, soft though it may have been. "Martha asked me to come get you."

Lois opened her eyes and saw her father sitting on the edge of the bed, her hand between both of his and rubbing it gently. "What time is it?"

"You've been out light a light for about an hour and a half." He told her and pressed the palm of his hand to her forehead; just as Mom had done with a young Lois to check her temperature. "Mrs. Carmichael and I have been taking turns checking on you, so Clark won't start to worry that his mother keeps disappearing and Jonathan's been keeping him busy so he won't notice that you haven't been outside since we got here."

"The crowded kitchen got to me." She gave him a short briefing. "And Mrs. Carmichael sent me up here."

He nodded and grasped her hand. "So Martha told me. Do you feel steady enough to sit up?"

"I think so." Lois nodded and the General eased her up to a seated position, her hand still in his; and then he started to chuckle.

"I remember going through this with your mother when she found out we were going to have you." He shook his head with amusement. "If she wasn't losing her lunch, she slept. And if she wasn't sleeping, she ate."

"The sleeping is something new." Lois told him. "But I'm finally getting over the morning sickness, so my appetite is coming back."

"I'm glad to hear it." He got an arm around her shoulders. "And since your mother can't be here to help you through this, I'm glad Martha is."

"So am I." She sighed. "She's been really wonderful about everything."

"With the Kent's looking after you, I won't worry so much when I have to head overseas."

Lois stiffened at the word 'overseas' and her heart tripped into double time. "Overseas?"

"Not just yet." He patted her arm. "I'm sorry, Lo; I shouldn't have made it sound like I would be shipping out soon."

She looked up at her father, seeing the look of concern on his face and smiled at him. "You have to wait until this kid is born, you know." She put a hand on her abdomen. "You missed out on Michael being born and I know you don't want to miss this."

"Of course I don't." He sighed. "But you know the drill; I go where the Army sends me; when they send me."

"I know the drill." She put her head on his shoulder, needing his strength at the moment. "And when the time comes, I'll let you go."

"You've always been my good little soldier." He pressed a kiss in her hair. "But since I don't know when I'm going to get my orders, we just have to make the most of the time we've got."

"Deal," She sat up and nodded firmly, as though they were sealing a pact and made to stand up when her father stopped her with the hand still on her shoulder.

"There's something I'd like to say before we go downstairs." He cleared his throat. "I've spent more off hours out here in the last year and a half, even before you came to call this community home and it's meant a lot to me.

"Before you got yourself involved with young Kent, I'd never had the chance to see much beyond the Army bases where we were stationed. But the closer you got to him and to his parents; you seemed to get closer to that place." He added with a grin, "And we did, too."

"It's like Jonathan says, it's the Kent farm magic." And she hugged him.

"Well, whatever you call it; I am grateful for it."

"So am I, Dad." She held onto him, not wanting to let go. Her father was finally a real part of her life and she wanted him to be a part of her child's life, too. He seemed to sense where her thoughts were going; but then, he'd always been good at that; harder to keep secrets from him that way.

"Come on." He patted her back gently. "Remember what I always said about borrowing trouble."

"The interest payments will kick you in the ass?" She leaned back and smiled at him.

"And neither one of us can afford it, can we?" He chuckled and let her go. "Mrs. Carmichael asked me to tell you everyone is outside right at the moment. And if you'd like to help her in the kitchen, it'll be nice and quiet."

She nodded. "You know, one of the nicest things about living out here is the way everyone looks after each other, even me."

"You're part of the Kent family, Lo." He put his hand on her elbow and guided her to the open doorway. "And it makes you part of their community."

"You're part of them too, you know." Lois didn't hesitate to remind him. "When I married Clark, you became part of the Kent family."

"I guess I did at that." He chuckled again. "With the exception of your mother's family, I can't think of a nicer family to be part of."

He walked Lois downstairs to the kitchen and Mrs. Carmichael smiled at them as she wiped her hands on a dish towel. "There you are. Feeling any better?"

"Much, thank you." She admitted.

"I'll leave my daughter in your capable hands." Dad squeezed her elbow. "I need to get back out there."

"Thanks, Dad." She kissed his cheek.

"Anytime," He squeezed her elbow again and gave a short nod to Mrs. Carmichael and walked out of the kitchen.

"I remember him from your wedding and the Hubbard's Christmas parties." The older woman commented. "A widower, is he?"

"Yes." Lois had to curb the urge to smile because she sensed some matchmaking might be in the works. "But he's still devoted to my mother."

"Some folks are like that." There was a thoughtful look on her face. "Men like your father never get over the loss and have no interest in marrying again."

"He's always appreciated the concern of his not being alone, but at this point in his life I think he's happy being a father-in-law and and grandpa. And he and Jonathan and Martha have become good friends."

"I'm glad." She took Lois' hand and grasped it. "A man can't have too many friends."

"Or too many grandchildren, if you ask him." She laughed. "He couldn't be with my sister when she had my nephew, so he wants to be here for this little one."

"I hope he can, honey."

"So do I," Lois replied and had to silently admonish herself, 'Don't borrow trouble'.

"Lois, if you feel up to it, would you mind taking this tray of doughnuts out to the table on the porch?" Mrs. Carmichael asked her. "You could probably use some fresh air after being cooped up inside."

Lois hesitated only because if Clark saw her holding a tray, he'd worry; even if he'd follow through on his promise not to coddle her. "This is going to sound like an odd question, but is it very heavy?"

But Mrs. Carmichael seemed to understand why she was asking and smiled at her. "Dealing with an overprotective expectant father, are we?"

"That's it." She was relieved Martha's neighbor understood her predicament. "I love him for being so concerned, really."

"All first time father's go through it." She assured the expectant mother. "Ed wouldn't even let me pick up a newspaper while I carried our first."

"Laundry basket," Lois pointed to herself.

"I've always thought even though we're the ones who carry our children for nine months and we deal with all of the changes our bodies go through, loving and caring husbands are right there alongside; going through those changes with us."

"He really is something, you know." She put a hand up to her abdomen and ran a hand over the slight swell. "If it hadn't been for him, I wouldn't have this one here or such wonderful in-laws."

"I suspect he probably feels the same way about you." She nodded her agreement. "He became such a man of the world living in a big city like Washington D.C. and traveling the country as much as he did. He's a far cry from the boy who escorted my Becky to their Senior Prom."

At the mention of his prom Lois started to laugh, she couldn't help it. It was one of the first things Clark revealed to her about his childhood.

"You know about the hayloft, then?" Mrs. Carmichael laughed softly, shaking her head in amusement. "I don't know who was more upset that night; Ed or Jonathan. And when Becky finally admitted that it was her idea, well, it just took all the fight out of her father."

"It's something that still embarrasses him." She replied. "We didn't know each other yet when he told me, because I think if we had he would have been mortified."

"Clark was, and is, such a well-behaved young man and I had a difficult time believing any of it was his idea." She put a hand to her cheek in amusement and shook her head again. "Becky was a headstrong girl and being the only girl in a family of boys well, I'm embarrassed to say Ed and I overindulged her." Then she added swiftly, as though she felt the need to defend her daughter, "But everything is fine now. She found a wonderful young man who was able to tame that willfullness and they're absolutely devoted to each other."

"It's interesting what happens to a girl when she meets the right man," Lois agreed, "Or when a man meets the right woman."

"And you are a perfect example of that, honey." She put a hand on Lois' shoulder for a moment. "Don't forget now, the offer is still open to go through my old maternity clothes."

"Thank you, Mrs. Carmichael." The offer touched her and she nodded. "Would sometime next week be all right? I'll call you when I know for certain what day."

"Fine; and why don't you call me Lydia?" She handed over the tray of doughnuts and Lois silently hoped Clark wouldn't see her. She didn't want him to worry; she wanted all of his concentration on helping to raise the Carmichael's barn. Even though it wasn't heavy, Lois wasn't sure she'd be able to convince him. "We are neighbors after all."

"I'm still trying to get used to calling my mother-in-law, Martha."

"You do what makes you comfortable." The older woman smiled at her. "I certainly won't take offense if you don't."

"I appreciate that and the offer of the clothes, too."

"That's what neighbors do for each other, Lois." She walked with Lois through the kitchen and out to the front porch. "Just like what all these good folks are doing for Ed and me. And what we'll do to help the Hubbard's tomorrow."

"At least their house wasn't too badly damaged." She sighed, thinking about the swath the twister had cut through the Hubbard's property. Two fields uprooted as well as several broken windows and half the shingles gone on their house. "The damage we suffered was something Clark and Jonathan can repair."

"It didn't leave any of us untouched, that's for sure." Mrs. Carmichael commented and then took a short breath and smiled. "But enough of being Mrs. Gloomy Gus, We may have lost our barn, but there were no lives lost and no loss of our livestock either; so we can be very thankful. I'm heading back inside to get more coffee."

And she went back inside, the screen door thumping closed behind her.

The sounds of activity were everywhere; hammers ringing against the blunt end of nails as they were driven into the freshly cut planks slowly taking shape as the new frames. The single bladed saws cutting the boards and the snap of measuring tapes as they were retracted after pencil marks and measurements were made on the uncut wood.

The smell of sawdust hung in the air and next to the smells of late autumn fires coming from nearby homesteads, it had become one of Lois' favorites.

As she looked over toward the foundation where the old barn had lain in a pile of rubble, she was surprised to see all the damaged lumber had been cleared. The wood that could be used again had been cut and stacked, while the damaged wood had been piled nearby. Young boys were instructed by their fathers or mothers to collect what they could carry and take it to their respective trucks.

She finally spotted Clark, the General and Jonathan working side by side. It sent a thrill of love and pride through her to see her husband working alongside her father and his, hammering the two by fours together that were becoming part of the frame for the Carmichael's new barn. She could swear she felt the baby suddenly move, as though reacting to his or her mother's excitement.

The power he was wielding through each swing of the hammer showed in the way the muscles in his arms and back rolled and flexed. And she felt her face flush because she knew how those very same muscles felt underneath her fingers when he wielded the power of his body when they made love.

Clark seemed to sense Lois watching him because he suddenly stopped and stood up, stretched his back and took a surreptitious look over his shoulder and then smiled at her. His own face flushed, but she couldn't tell if it was the exertion or because he knew what she'd been thinking.

It didn't really matter because he slipped the hammer he held in his hand into the loop on his tool belt. And when he purposely started walking toward her Lois started because, from the look on his face, she wasn't exactly sure what to expect.

The sight of him striding with such intent in her direction, his damp tee shirt clinging to his strong body set her heart to racing as he pulled off his work gloves and shoved them into his back pocket while she waited. Friends and neighbors alike seemed to stop and wait as well; waiting to see what the young groom would do as the sounds of hammering and the handsaws quickly began to die away.

Clark seemed oblivious to the fact that he'd attracted so much attention and created the gradual silence, because he was a man on a mission. He stepped up onto the porch and came to a stop in front of his expectant bride; put his hands on her shoulders before he leaned over to press a gentle kiss to her cheek.

There was a lot of laughter and clapping and Lois felt her face flush. He put a hand to her cheek and smiled and when he gave her a soft, brief kiss she heard a smattering of catcalls and good-natured booing. "Don't look so disappointed, Lois."

She knew she looked like a blinking owl, which she usually did when he would do something she wasn't expecting. She had expected to be thoroughly kissed and her eyebrows went up to tell him how disappointed that she wasn't; that's it?

"I promise I'll make it up to you later." His eyes twinkled with amusement and some mischief as he let her go to rejoin their fathers.

"Darn tootin' you will." She answered quietly as she watched him go with a sigh while the sounds of hammers and saws gradually started up again.

After he put his work gloves back on, pulled the hammer out of his belt and bent back over to resume his labor, her father leaned over to say something to him and Clark grinned bashfully. His face turned a deep shade of red and Lois had a pretty good idea of what the General had probably said. "You should have grabbed her and kissed her senseless the way you wanted to."

But as much as he might have wanted to, she knew he never would have done it; his proper upbringing wouldn't have allowed it.

"I didn't raise my son to be an exhibitionist." His mother's long ago admonition to him echoed in Lois' ears.

Martha had commented to Lois soon after she and Clark were married how he seemed to smile and laugh so effortlessly. She said that it warmed her mother's heart because she got to see the carefree child he'd been during his boyhood. And she loved Lois all the more for bringing her happy boy back to her.

"He always seems to know exactly where you are." She felt the gentle hand of her mother-in-law on her shoulder. "Even before your courtship started, he seemed to know."

"Well that would make sense, seeing as how he was responsible for my safety." Lois put a hand over her abdomen and giggled. "And come to think of it, he still is."

"Honey, I don't think I've ever heard you laugh so much either." Martha commented with a laugh of her own, brushing a hand over Lois' hair. "Ever since you found out you were expecting, I always see a smile on your face and you giggle with the happiness of a little girl."

"Maybe that means I am having a girl." She teased and the older woman hugged her.

"Boy or girl, we'll welcome either one."

"So will we."

"I must say, you look much better than you did earlier; you've got your color back." Martha's hand was on her back, rubbing gently. "I was concerned you were going to swoon."

"It crossed my mind, too." Lois reluctantly admitted and reached toward the plate of doughnuts, intending to pick one up. 'Temptation, thy name is doughnut' andshe pulled her hand away. At Martha's questioning look, Lois explained. "Dr. Francis doesn't want me gaining more than twenty-five pounds; he said it's not good for me or the baby if I gain too much."

"Your doctor is a smart fellow."

"He is." She agreed with a nod. "And Clark likes him as much as I do, which I'm glad of."

Martha smiled at her and patted her shoulder. "I think it's just as important for the father of a coming baby to be comfortable with his wife's doctor as she is."

"Speaking of coming, Lionel was supposed to be here this morning." Lois scanned the Carmichael property for the second time since she'd been out on the porch and there was no sign of her boss. "He was in Metropolis when I talked to him yesterday and he said he wanted to be here to help."

"I'm sorry, honey; I haven't seen him." Martha replied with a shake of her head. "Maybe the Luthor mansion suffered some damage and he needed to stay to see to the repairs."

"Maybe, but it's not like him to say he's going to be someplace and then not show up." Maybe she shouldn't have been so concerned, but suddenly she was.

"If you want to call over there, I'm sure Lydia wouldn't mind if you used her telephone."

"I think I will." Lois decided with a firm nod. She walked back into the house and Mrs. Carmichael pointed her to the phone on the hall table.

"Is everything all right?" She asked, a worried look shading her features.

"I'm sure everything is fine," Lois replied a little worriedly. "I just want to make sure."

She dialed the club, thinking he might be there but no one picked up; so she called the mansion. It took more than a few rings before Lionel himself picked up, which caught Lois by surprise; Lionel never answered his own telephone. "I was getting worried because you hadn't shown up."

"I'm sorry, my dear," He seemed particularly subdued. "Today has been both a blessing and a curse for the Luthor's."

"Lionel, what's happened?"

"There's no delicate way to put this, Lois." And she heard him sigh. "Lana's dead."

Story will continue in two weeks.