December 24, 1943
As Sherlock Holmes would surely say, the game was afoot.
He didn't know what the game was, exactly; but since he'd returned, Lois had been acting squirrelly and keeping her distance. She couldn't have been sore at him for missing their anniversary because today was the day, and he was home.
It couldn't have been because Sam was colicky, because the last letter he'd gotten from Lois let him know he'd finally gotten over it. It was a big relief, after having shared floor walking duties with his wife the last time he was home, trying to get their son to sleep.
And when they weren't like two ships passing in the night, they'd slept, but rarely together.
Mom and Dad had made their share of offers to help, but it was important to both of the new parents to look after their little guy themselves, though Lois had confessed to accepting their offers when he wasn't home. And with his father-in-law spending as much time as he was able at the farm, it made things easier on her.
But now, the General had received his orders and he was headed to England to join the ETO. The day after New Years, he would board a troop train bound for New York and then a ship, which would transport them the rest of the way. It was damnable timing because Clark had not yet had the opportunity to talk to Lois about what he was considering and the fact that it might be the last Christmas they spent together for the duration.
He'd tried to talk to her after his return home three days earlier, but with the lukewarm reception he'd gotten, he wasn't sure how receptive she'd be; so he let the matter drop.
It was going to have to wait, in any case, because Lois's sister and her family would be arriving sometime tomorrow, Christmas Day, so Lucy would be able to spend some time with her sister and father before he shipped out. Lois wasn't saying much, but Clark knew his wife and though she tried to cover it up, she was anxious for her father and what might happen to him once he was overseas.
His orders were one of the reasons Sam had been at the farm so much, to spend the dwindling time with his daughter and newest grandchild and make as many memories as he could; Clark understood the feeling.
"You look about the way I feel." Sam Lane's low voice sounded behind him and got Clark to turn around and see his troubled expression. "You know, I never allowed myself to think about this moment; but now that it's here, it's even more difficult than I imagined it would be."
"Leaving two daughters and two grandsons can't be easy." Clark replied honestly, knowing nothing he said would ease his father-in-law's worry.
"It's not just my daughters and my grandkids." He shook his head and frowned. "I've got two sons-in-law in you and Andrew, that I respect a great deal and two good friends in your folks I have to say good-bye to as well.
"The truth is, after I found myself on my own with my girls gone and not much communication with either one of them, I honestly expected to find myself leaving the States without much notice. But because I've got Lo and Lucy back in my life and all of the wonderful people who came with them, it's going to make it a damn sight harder to do it."
Clark understood what his father-in-law was feeling because it had been hard enough saying goodbye to Lois every time he had to leave her when they were first married. But since they'd had Sam, it made it very nearly impossible. And now, he was considering doing something that would put them out of reach for longer than a few weeks.
"You're thinking about enlisting, aren't you?" It was asked so quietly that it startled him. Clark hadn't realized he'd given anything away and sighed, knowing how observant the General could be; Lois was just like him. "Does Lo know?"
"I haven't had the chance to talk it over with her." He could have denied any such thoughts, but he'd never been untruthful with Lois's father, and he wasn't about to start now. "I can't seem to think of much else. A lot of the fellows I went to high school with are already overseas and some of the agents I've worked with have left the Bureau to enlist, even though they don't have to."
"What are the chances you'll be drafted?" He kept his voice low aware, as was Clark, that his parents were in the kitchen and his wife and son were upstairs.
"I don't know." He replied quietly. "It turns out I'm not too old, but Federal agents are being discouraged from enlisting because we're needed on the home front."
"And tonight isn't exactly the time to talk about it, is it?"
"Sam, I don't think there will ever be a good time to talk to her." Clark admitted. "Any time I've even remotely broached the subject, she doesn't want to discuss it. And when she was getting close to having the baby, I didn't even mention it because I was gone so much and didn't want to upset her."
"Wise man," Sam cracked a smile. "You've figured out how to live with a Lane."
Clark couldn't help but answer his father-in-law's small grin. "I had it pretty much figured out before we got married."
"So you did."
"The two of you look far too serious for it being Christmas Eve." Clark started at the sound of his mother's voice as she walked in from the kitchen, "And the kid's anniversary."
"Our first anniversary," He couldn't help tease his mother, trying to allay her worried tone.
"And your first as a father," Dad chimed in as he followed behind. "It is a Christmas Eve of firsts, isn't it, son?"
"It is that, Dad." Clark answered with a smile and he noticed his father had his hat and overcoat on over his Sunday suit and Mom had her coat and hat on as well; it had escaped his notice while talking to his father-in-law that he had his coat over his arm and holding his hat.
A queer feeling that he couldn't quite identify washed over him and his senses were suddenly on alert because he spotted two overnight cases sitting next to the front stairs and he asked in as casual a manner he could muster. "Going somewhere?"
"As a matter of fact, we are." Dad answered with a smile.
"Your father, Sam and I are taking our grandson to the Carmichael's Christmas party and then we're going on to Fort Ryan." Mom informed him. "Since we had a family dinner to celebrate your anniversary, we're going to leave you and Lois alone for the rest of the night to celebrate in your own way."
It's déjà vu all over again; that was the feeling he couldn't put his finger on.
"I don't understand." He felt his face flush as he shook his head because in actuality, he did very much understand. They were getting the chance to relive their first date, though they didn't realize that's what it was at the time, and their wedding night, as well.
"Does my wife know you're commandeering our son for the night?" He was trying not to smile because as much as he loved his baby son and being his father, it was the first time he and Lois were going to be alone in the house since their wedding night.
"She does." Mom didn't bother hiding her smile. "As a matter of fact, it didn't take her father too long to convince her of the benefits of putting your son into our care when we asked her yesterday. She said it would give her the opportunity to give you your Christmas present."
"I've got her and Sam, I don't need anything else," He frowned in consternation. "Though, I did get her a small gift; but it's to add to the gift I gave her last year."
"The charm bracelet?" Clark's mother asked and he nodded.
"I haven't had time since the baby got here because I've been gone so much." He tried not to sound defensive and didn't like it that he did. "But I managed to take care of it yesterday."
"Good."
"As much as you love your kids," Sam caught his eye and held his attention. "Your wife should always come first, because if not for your wife, you're not a father."
"Understood," Clark nodded again, letting his father-in-law know he really did.
"I thought you would." He replied while putting his hat on, before he unfurled his coat and slipped his arms through the sleeves, shrugging it on. "Now if you wouldn't mind hightailing it upstairs to let my daughter know her father and her in-laws are ready to leave, we'd appreciate it because we can't do that until we have our grandson."
"Yes, sir," Clark glanced over at his parents and they looked suitably amused. "We shouldn't be long."
"We're going to hold you to that." His father's voice followed him as he walked out of the parlor and up the stairs to the bedroom he shared with Lois where he stopped in the doorway and parked himself against the doorframe, quietly observing his wife and baby as she fed him.
He listened to her softly hum the tune of the song they'd danced to when they'd begun to fall in love, "Snowfall". And while she rocked back and forth slowly in her mother's chair, gently stroking the baby's cheek, he was completely mesmerized.
It didn't help matters that his infant son was grasping at the creamy skin of her full breast as he suckled and Clark felt an irrational jealousy that it wasn't his hand that was touching her.
He knew the last thing he should have been thinking about as he watched them, was how much he wanted her. She was a mother now, and he felt like a first class heel because he wanted to make love to his wife so much.
"You're going to burn a hole in something if you keep staring." Lois's soft laugh caught his attention and he started.
"I wasn't," He stopped and shook his head in embarrassment, knowing he'd been caught doing just that.
"Yes, you were." Her face flushed a rosy shade of red, but she didn't break eye contact. "And it doesn't make the wait any easier when you look like you want to ravish me."
"I just can't get over how beautiful you are," He told her honestly, "And how lucky I feel to have you and Sam."
"We feel pretty lucky to have you, too." She kissed the top of the baby's head. "And if you'll give me a few more minutes to finish getting this little guy fed, I'll let you take him downstairs."
"Would you mind if I kissed you while you do?" He boosted himself away from the doorframe and walked toward the rocker, his heart starting to race with anticipation.
"I know I've been a little frosty since you've been home." Lois flushed again and she sighed. "And it's not because I haven't missed you. I just needed to keep you at a distance until tonight."
Intrigued by her cryptic statement, he stopped in front of her and leaned over, grasping the arms of the rocker. "Why is that, Mrs. Kent?"
She lifted her face to meet his and smiled at him; that same sultry smile he was still certain a new mother shouldn't have. "You'll just have to wait until our parents take our baby and leave to find out, Agent Kent."
"I can do that." He assured her, just before he kissed her and she didn't hesitate to kiss him back. It was only after she'd managed to coax him into deepening the kiss that she suddenly broke it off.
She looked so adorably frustrated and Clark couldn't help but wonder if it was wrong of him to think so, but he knew better than to mention it. "Do I need to go downstairs?"
"If you wouldn't mind," Her color was high as she turned her attention to the baby. He'd fallen asleep, still latched to his mother's breast. "The way this kid eats, I don't think he's done just yet. And you still look like you want to ravish me."
"That's because I do." He leaned over and kissed her cheek. "But I can wait a little longer."
"I do love you, you know." The declaration came out quietly, but he knew it was as heartfelt as if she'd shouted it from the rooftop.
"I do." He grinned and with another kiss on her cheek, headed for the door before he turned around. "I love you, too."
"You'd better, after what I did for you." She teased with a playful glance at their son and he chuckled softly. "Tell them we shouldn't be long."
"I'll tell them." He assured her and then left her to finish tending to him.
When he got downstairs, his parents and father-in-law had settled down on the sofa and overstuffed chair and were having coffee. It was a cozy scene that warmed his heart because he was so thankful their parents got on so well. "She's just finishing up with Sam and said it shouldn't be long."
"The boy's an eater, from what she tells me." Sam commented with a smile. "He takes after his mother in that department."
"I think she'd take that better coming from you than me." Clark observed with humor and sat down next to his mother, who'd made room for him on the sofa and handed him a cup. "Thanks, Mom."
"I just hope we have enough milk in the icebox to keep him fed overnight." Sam remarked with a frown of concern. "But Lo assured me it would be."
"I can still hardly believe that contraption Dr. Francis finally talked her into trying after she'd refused so many times because she wanted to be the one to feed him." She shook her head in wonder. "But now, Sam can still get mother's own from a sterilized bottle."
"It was the colic that changed her mind." Clark took a sip of his coffee. "Between taking turns with me walking the floor with him and then feeding him on top of that, she was too tired to argue."
"My girl made the right decision to try that pump," Sam Lane declared, "Because after we were able to start helping her out in that department, she's bouncing back to her old self."
"And don't you forget it." Lois's voice coming from the stairs got all of them to turn around. Clark couldn't get a good look at her because she was holding the baby, but he could definitely see she wasn't wearing a maternity dress, as she had been since he'd been home. What he did see were curves and long, shapely legs in high-heeled shoes.
"I bundled him up nice and snug, so he should be plenty warm in the car." She sounded a little breathless as she held onto the banister, slowly coming down the last few stairs and walking into the parlor. "If it's too cold, you can cover his face with the blanket."
She was fussing, as new mothers always did and he almost wished their parents weren't taking Sam with them, because he wasn't sure how Lois was going to do with him gone for the rest of the night.
"He'll be fine, honey." Mom stood up and walked around the sofa, stopping in front of her. "We've been through this and I can tell you from personal experience that the first time away is always the hardest."
"And you've got nothing to worry about because the three of us have been around the horn a few times." Sam added with a bolstering smile. "So trust us to look after this bundle of joy and just enjoy the rest of your evening."
"I trust you, Daddy; you know that." Lois looked almost insulted that her father would suggest otherwise.
"Then get those worried looks off both of your faces." Dad got up and came to stand behind Clark's mother and put a hand on her shoulder. "This evening is our anniversary gift to you because you haven't had much time alone since you got married. Sam is in the best possible hands, other than yours and we'll see to it that he won't want for anything."
Clark moved next to Lois and put his arm around her. "Just chalk it up to us being new at this."
Mom nodded and her tone was sympathetic. "We understand, son."
And there it was; they were being given the chance to change their minds if they wanted to. Lois seemed to realize it too because she glanced at Clark and then down at the sleeping baby in her arms. She didn't say anything for a few moments and he thought she was going to back out.
But instead, she stroked his cheek and whispered, "You be good for your grandparents tonight and Daddy and I will see you in the morning." She handed Sam over to his grandmother's waiting arms and sighed. "If you need anything-"
"You made sure I'd have everything I need, Lo." His voice was gentle as he grasped her arm and Clark appreciated how solicitous Lois's father was with her. He'd been a new father, once and was letting them know it.
"I do trust you." She was so serious, as she reaffirmed the faith she had in her father and Clark understood how difficult the separation was for her. As much as he wanted some time alone with his wife, he couldn't help but want the time with his baby, too. "And we couldn't ask for better hands for our son to be in."
"That's my girl." Sam put his arms around his daughter to hug her and gave Clark a knowing look over her shoulder. "Make this evening a special one; they're gone before you know it."
As he acknowledged his father-in-law with a nod, his own father spoke quietly to his mother and picked up the overnight cases before heading to the front door. "Have a nice evening, you two, and happy anniversary."
"Thanks, Dad." Clark answered as Sam followed, taking one of the cases out of his father's hand. "We'll see you tomorrow."
He opened the door and the two men filed out, closing the door quickly behind them to keep out the cold. "Your dad is going to warm up the car so we don't have to sit for too long."
"I appreciate that." Lois nodded and Clark could see her eyes begin to sparkle and he suspected she was trying with all her might, not to cry. "And I appreciate you giving us an evening together even if it doesn't seem that way. As much as I love that little guy, I love this big guy a lot, too." She slipped her hand through his arm and caught his eye. "I wouldn't have one without the other."
"I don't expect we'll be at the Carmichael's for too long." His mother let them know. "We really only wanted to stop by long enough to wish them a Merry Christmas and to give Lydia the chance to see him. What with the baby having the colic, we couldn't take him anywhere before now."
"Please tell her Merry Christmas for us." Lois adjusted the blankets around the baby's face and stroked his cheek again.
"I will. And as soon as we get to your father's house, we'll call you."
"We'd like that." Clark tucked her hand against his side and held her close as he saw the door open and Sam poked his head inside.
"The car is as warmed up as it's going to get, so let's get moving."
Lois tensed up next to him as his mother walked to the door, cradling the baby in her arms. "Young man, you're a very lucky baby to have two parents who love you so much."
Mom smiled at them and then followed Sam outside, who closed the door behind her. They were alone; and the house was much too quiet.
"Is it just me, or does this feel a whole lot like two Christmas Eve's ago?" She pressed her cheek to Clark's shoulder. "Our parents deserted us then, too."
"It's not just you." He couldn't help but grin because he should have known her thoughts would follow the same trail as his. "But I'm hoping it will feel more like our wedding night before long."
"Trust you to think about that." Lois laughed softly and Clark was certain she was rolling her eyes. "But this Christmas Eve isn't like the last two, is it?"
He shook his head and smiled. "This one is much better."
"And it's also been three months." She sighed and put her cheek back on his shoulder. "That sounds terrible, doesn't it?"
"What does?" He turned his head to try and get a better look at her, at her expression.
"Here we are, alone and without our little munchkin for the first time," She sighed again. "And all I can think of is how much I want to be with you."
Lois's admission took him by surprise, because he was certain she was going to be feeling blue with Sam being with his grandparents for the night.
"We will," Clark promised her. "But if it's all the same to you, I'd kind of like to work up to it, if you don't mind."
"What did you have in mind, G-man?" She asked him as he grasped her fingers tucked next to him with his free hand and kissed them before he let her go and walked to the phonograph player that sat next to the piano and lifted the lid. He opened the door on the cabinet underneath and pulled out a new record, slipping it out of its paper sleeve and setting it gently on the turn table.
He hadn't told her he'd found a recording of "Snowfall" when he'd been in Washington, an unplanned and, frankly, unwelcome detour on his way home from Illinois. The pencil pushers in the War Department had wanted a report from him and the other agent who'd been interrogating German POW's before heading home for Christmas.
It was a wasted trip because the Krauts they'd both talked to refused to say anything. Maybe a few months of good eating, a warm bed and decent treatment would change their minds. It was more than the Japs were doing for the American boys they captured in the Pacific. At least the Jerries tended to remember the rules of the Geneva Convention; most of the time.
He turned on the power and lifted the tone arm to place it on the edge of the record. After putting the empty sleeve away in the cabinet, he closed the door and stood back; waiting, and couldn't help but remember the last time they'd danced to it.
The soft register of the piano chords was accompanied by the answering call of the clarinets as it wove a gentle spell around the pair. He carefully took her right hand in his left, put his right hand at her waist as she put her left hand on his shoulder. He looked at the parlor walls as they slowly began to turn together, then at the fire he'd stoked after dinner. The Christmas tree came into view and he couldn't help but notice one of the bubble lights had burned out.
He looked at anything that would keep his mind off the fact there was a beautiful woman in his arms, though at a proper distance and she smelled like lilacs.
Now, she smelled like talcum powder and Pears soap; he liked it so much more than lilacs.
He heard her soft laugh behind him and he turned to see her smiling at him. "Are we going to make this a Christmas Eve tradition; dancing to "Snowfall"?
"I don't think you'd mind," He answered, smiling back at her, "Because this song has a lot of meaning for the both of us." He walked back to her and took her left hand, kissed her wedding rings and then placed it on his shoulder. "I heard you humming it when you were upstairs feeding Sam." He got his arm around her waist, pulled her close and took her right hand in his.
"I was." Lois leaned forward and pressed a soft kiss to his lips. "And all the while I was thinking about doing this." She kissed him again and deepened it so slowly and so gently, it took him a moment to realize his hand had slipped from around her waist down to the small of her back, holding her against the evidence of how much he wanted her.
No other woman he'd ever known seemed to blend with him as well as she, and it unsettled him.
But it didn't stop his continued caress of her back as her immediate proximity brought his cheek against her hair and the scent of lilacs filled his senses. Her own hand continued to caress him and the muscles in his back began to relax under her light touch; then all he could think of was how much he wanted to kiss her.
The song wasn't even finished and Lois had her arms around his neck, fingers in his hair and his hands had slipped even lower down her back. They'd never kissed quite this way before, with such abandon and visceral want. But with constant separations in the last couple of months and not being able to make love the way they wanted to when he'd return home, they had a lot of time to make up for.
"Clark." Lois's breathless use of his name brought all of his senses alive in a way they hadn't been for a long time and he couldn't help but smile. "I don't care if we do it down here or you take me upstairs to bed, but we need to do something, now!"
As romantic as it would have been to make love to his wife in front of the fire, he wanted their first time since Sam had arrived to be as comfortable for her as possible. So he got an arm under her knees, the other behind her back and swung her up into his arms. He carried her to the stairs as she put her head down on his shoulder and her soft laugh warmed his neck. "I guess you decided where we're going."
"I have." He brushed his cheek against her hair and took the stairs as quickly as he could. He walked briskly down the hall and nudged the bedroom door open with his shoulder, carrying her inside before he set her on her feet.
She laughed again and it sounded wonderfully nervous as she grasped his tie and pulled him close; he gave her a quick kiss and grinned at her. "Let me guess, you want me to close the door."
"Leave it." His wife requested of him. "For the first time in our married life, I want to make love with the door open."
"Are you sure about this?" He wanted to be certain of her wishes before they got to the point of no return. She answered his question with a damp kiss that assured him of what she wanted.
"I'm sure, handsome." She kissed him again and as she did, unknotted his tie. Then she went to work on the buttons of his shirt and pushed it and the tie over his shoulders and it dropped to the floor.
"I'm no B-girl, Miss Lane." Clark felt his face flush at the speed with which his wife was disrobing him and teased her to cover his surprise.
"That's Mrs. Kent to you, farm boy." She reached for his belt buckle and loosened it before he stopped her eager hands with his own, which had begun to shake.
"Before you get me down to my skivvies, Mrs. Kent, I think it's only fair we even things up a little." He turned her around gently and started to undo her back buttons. "I'm sorry I didn't have the chance to tell you how beautiful you look in your dress."
"I bought it after you left for Illinois the last time and made a promise to myself that I would fit into it for our anniversary." He heard her sigh. "That's why I've kept you at arms length, because I didn't want you to know before I was ready."
"The maternity dresses."
"That's it." She nodded and glanced at him over her shoulder. "If I'd let you hold me the way I wanted you to, the cat would have been out of the bag and I wouldn't have been able to surprise you."
"It was a nice surprise, sweetheart." He skimmed the dress down her arms and kissed a warm shoulder before sending it to the floor. His heart hitched in his throat as he got a gander at Lois in her full slip. In the last months while she was still carrying Sam, she wouldn't let him see her unless she was fully dressed or still under the covers in bed. His hands started to shake again as he slowly turned her around and this time his heart stopped for a couple of beats when he saw the changes in her. "Look at you."
Her answering blush, so out of character for his wife, charmed him and he smiled. She'd regained her figure, except now it was fuller with the addition of the alluring curves he'd only gotten glimpses of earlier when she'd come down the stairs.
"Dr. Francis told me I wouldn't get my old figure back." It sounded to Clark as though she were apologizing and he wished she wouldn't feel she had to. "He said having a baby changes a woman's body and there isn't anything I can do."
"Honey, you don't need to do anything." He assured her. "I think you're beautiful. Having our child has changed you, but I think it's made you even more beautiful."
"Says you." She quipped, but he heard in her voice how his honest assessment pleased her.
"Says me." He leaned over and kissed her other shoulder. "Happy Annniversary, Lois."
"Merry Christmas, Clark." She put her hands on his shoulders. "So what am I getting?"
"Me."
"Is that all?"
He grinned. "Isn't that enough?"
"Oh, it's more than enough." She smiled back at him, a smile that told him it certainly would be and he kissed her again as they proceeded to celebrate their anniversary as he'd hoped they would.
It was definitely more than enough.