I do not own Smallville. Read and enjoy:)

Chapter 4: Nights of love.

Friday morning came and Lois was so tired of speaking to mainly babies for the entire day; she loved her babies, but she did want to have one night alone with Clark. Their dance and reaffirmation of their love the week before had been as magical as anything they had ever experienced together, but Lois was also tired of supporting Chloe; her cousin was refusing to accept her situation with Jimmy and Lois also had the feeling that she was hiding something from her and Jimmy. Meanwhile, Lex was still in Smallville and, as far as Lois and Clark were concerned, he had had no contact with Tess. Jimmy and Chloe were on speaking terms, they saw each other and spent time with their son.

Just after Clark left for work, there was a knock on the front door and Chloe walked into the house. "Nicky's with Jimmy today," she sighed, "so I thought I'd come and see how you're doing."

Chuckling, her cousin answered, "Pretty soon, I think I'll be able to speak Baby language than the English language." She stopped and ran her hands through her hair, kissing her babies on the head. "I'm sorry. I know that I have a wonderful life, wonderful children and I made the decision to stay at home with Jane and Ben, but it's so hard sometimes, you know?"

"Have you and Clark made up?" Chloe inquired in a careful voice, referring to their argument about the house and Clark's part in helping out in the house. Lois looked at her cousin with shock in her eyes as she nodded. "Yeah, of course we have. When Smallville and I have an argument, it's all sorted out by bedtime, because we don't like to go to sleep at odds with each other- at least, not now. We did when we were dating to begin with." She sighed. "I can't believe that Lex hasn't been in contact with Tess. They've been married for about 10 years and they have two kids together and Tess'll probably take him back-if Clark didn't speak to me for that long, I would be so angry."

"Not everyone's relationship is like yours and Clark's." Chloe snapped, "I mean, not everyone has such a perfect relationship like you and Clark."

"Our relationship is hardly perfect, we normally bicker about something before breakfast."

"Yeah, but Clark would never suggest legal separation!" Chloe bit back her tears. She sat down next to her cousin's babies on the floor and Lois sat down next to her. Inhaling deep breaths, Chloe remarked, "The argument Jimmy and I had was about my reasons for marrying him. He thinks that I only married him because I was pregnant with Nicky. That isn't true, Lois, I married him because I loved him and he's the only one for me."

Lois sighed, wondering what to say to her cousin, knowing that most of what she would say would make no to little difference. "Chloe, I'm saying this to be honest with you, but I thought that was one of the reasons why you married him-obviously, you loved him, but maybe you wouldn't have married him so quickly. I even thought that, for a while"-she suddenly stopped, shaking her head and looking down at her babies.

Chloe looked up and frowned. "What, Lois? What did you think?" When her cousin shook her head, she added, "Lo, you can tell me, I won't get mad. I promise."

There was a long silence, before Lois cleared her throat. "Well, there was a time, after you told me you were pregnant, I wondered if the baby really was Jimmy's." The implication of her words was evident by the look of hurt in Chloe's eyes, as they began to brim with tears. She forced a smile, as she whispered, "Lo, you have to believe me. Jimmy's the only man whom I've ever loved, the only man I ever will love. He's Nicky's dad, I know he is." She hesitated, "but a couple of days before Jimmy and I got together, I did have a one-night stand with someone. I… was attracted to this guy, but it didn't mean anything, it was nothing compared to when I make love with Jimmy."

"Who was it, Chlo?" Lois asked, although she was sure that she would not receive an answer.

"I can't tell you, Lois, I'm sorry." The two women sat in silence for a couple of minutes, before Chloe suggesting, "It's Friday night tonight. How about I watch Jane and Ben for you and you and Clark can go out and have fun? I'll get Oliver to babysit with me."

A smile spread across Lois's face. "Thanks so much, Chloe. Smallville and I really do need a night to ourselves. What about Nicky?"

"He's spending the afternoon with me and then the evening and night with Jimmy, he's staying close by so it's very easy for us to exchange him." She laughed lightly, but the smile did not reach her eyes and her cousin could see the pain in her eyes. She knew that Chloe loved Jimmy with all of her heart and she could not imagine what this separation was doing to her. Maybe, in the long-term, it would help their marriage, but at the moment, it was doing more harm than good to Chloe and it broke Lois's heart.

Meanwhile, at Queen Industries, Clark was sitting at his desk working, when his mobile phone buzzed and he smiled, seeing that the text was from Lois. He replied, then was about to return to work, when there was a knock on the door and Oliver walked into his office. "Ah, Oliver. Lois has just texted me. Would you and Chloe be able to babysit Ben and Jane for us tonight?"

Oliver looked at him startled. "You want me to babysit with Chloe?"

"Yeah, we won't be gone for too long." Clark sighed and asked, "What's wrong with doing it with Chloe? I thought you were over her now?"

"Yeah, I am. It's just," Oliver bit his lip, thinking about how to express it in words, "Ever since she married Jimmy, we haven't really talked-I mean, of course we've talked, but before she married Jimmy, we spent so much time together and we told each other everything and that all changed after she married Jimmy. The time she used to spend with me, the things she told me are now all of the things she does with Jimmy."

Clark nodded in understanding. "I can understand that, the two of you were very close. I'm sorry about that." Their conversation was interrupted when the phone rang. It was Lex. "Lex, how are you?"

"Fine, thanks, Clark… How's Tess?" Lex sounded almost scared when he inquired about his wife. Clark looked up at Oliver, who shook his head and rolled his eyes. He hesitated, before answering, "If you want to know how she is, why don't you call her? Or better still, come home and talk to her. You haven't seen her or the boys for days."

There was a silence, then Lex murmured, "It isn't that simple, Clark. My relationship with Tess is never simple anymore. Just-I'll be back soon, I promise. Take care of her and the boys." Before Clark could say anything more, the line went dead, so he put down the phone. "That was Lex." He told his boss and friend.

"Yeah, I guessed," Oliver responded in a bitter tone, "I can't believe he's still in Smallville. I think he's probably up to something else in Smallville, if you know what I mean. He's done it before, I wouldn't put it past him."

Shocked, Clark frowned. "How do you know that he's cheated on Tess?"

A devious smile spread across Oliver's face as he replied ambiguously, "Let's just say I know things. I knew why before you did." He walked towards the door, then Clark asked, "Oliver, you know Tess better than anyone-better than me, maybe-do you think that she knows about Lex's extra-marital activities?"

"I think if it were anyone else's marriage, should would, but it's here own…people are very often blind to what's right in front of them." He paused, then asked, "What are you and Lois going to go and see tonight?"

Chuckling, his friend answered, "I'll let her decide that." With that, Oliver threw him a smile as he left the office. Clark returned to his work, but he wondered how Oliver knew about Lex's affairs.

In Smallville, after hanging up on Clark, his brother-in-law, Lex continued to stare at his laptop in a despite attempt to finish the piece of work on which he was failing miserably. His thoughts were interrupted when the door opened and Lana Lang walked in. Upon seeing him, a smile of joy spread across her face and she ran over to him. "Lex, you didn't tell me that you were back in Smallville!"

"Yes, well I thought it would be better if we kept our distance from each other." Lex answered in a dry voice, trying not to look at her; he did love Tess, but he also loved Lana and he did not want to betray his wife again. Lana nodded and sat down on the chair opposite him. "I understand and respect that, Lex. You're honouring your marriage vows and I think that's a very honourable move, especially with a wife like yours."

"You don't know anything about Tess or about my marriage!" Lex snapped, glaring at her.

Lana nodded, stood up and walked over to the door. "Wait!" Lex cried in a tone of desperation. Before he could think about what he was doing, he ran over to Lana, threw his arms around her and kissed her passionately. She pulled away, shaking her head, but he continued to kiss her and eventually, she kissed him back with equal passion. After a while, Lex smiled with joy and love and carried her to bed.

That evening, Jimmy knocked on the door of the house where he had lived with Chloe until about a week ago. The door opened and Chloe handed him Nicolas, after kissing him. "So, do you have everything you need?" she asked, sounding worried.

Smiling at her reassuringly, Jimmy smiled, "Chloe, I'm his dad, he's going to be fine, ok? I know how to take care of him, don't worry." He hesitated, then asked, "How are you?"

"Fine, thanks." Chloe replied, a little too quickly. She sighed and lent her head on the side of the door. "I miss you, Jimmy."

Jimmy bit his lip and whispered, "I miss you, too, Chloe." He kissed her on the check, before walking away with Nicolas in his arms. At the gate, he turned around and made Nicolas wave. Chloe laughed and smiled at Jimmy and their son lovingly as she waved back and until they were out of sight. She was very glad that she was babysitting Jane and Ben, because this was her first night without Nicolas since he had been born. She missed him and Jimmy.

Clark closed the front door as he arrived home. He almost ran into the kitchen and kissed and hugged Jane and Ben before he began to feed them some food so that Lois did not always have to do it, with their argument of last week in his mind. Lois stood at the door, silent, watching her husband with their two children, smiling to herself, as she remembered how great her life was. She finally made her presence known by clearing her throat. Clark looked up and saw her in a bed dress. Smiling, he walked over to her and held her in his arms. "You look…stunning, Lois."

Smiling back, Lois fiddled with his tie and replied, "So do you, Smallville, even though you've just returned from work." Their eyes met and they kissed, before she suggested, "How about you go and get ready, I'll feed the twins and then you and I can go out. How does that sound?"

"Perfect." Clark kissed her again, before letting go of her and walking upstairs to their bedroom. Lois smiled and sighed, happily, quite content with her situation in life and she wished that her cousin were thus as happy.

An hour later, Chloe was with Jane and Ben. After playing with them for a while, she put them in their highchairs and put CBBC on the TV for them, as she sat with Jane on her knee and read a book. Her reading was interrupted by her mobile phone going with the alert of a text; it was Jimmy, he sent her a photo of him and Nicolas smiling together. Whilst she knew that Jimmy's intention was to cheer her up to show her that Nicolas was having fun, tears of sadness filled her eyes, so she locked her phone and ran her hands through her hair. She missed Jimmy so much and the fact that he was alone with their son was heart-breaking. All she wanted was Jimmy back in her arms, and in her life, as her husband and the love of her life.

"Chloe?" She heard Oliver's voice from behind her, so she wiped her eyes quickly before turning to face him. "Hey, Oliver. I'm glad you're here. I think Ben's in some need of female company." The two of them had not really spoken to each other since she had married Jimmy and the tension between them was obvious.

Oliver cleared his throat, as he began, "Chloe, I'm sorry that things have been awkward between us since you married Jimmy. You're my best friend and I don't want to loose you."

"I know." Chloe stood up and walked over to her friend. "Oliver, I think that we need to put our past differences behind us and be friends again. You're the only real friend I've had and I'm sorry that you were pushed away from me when Jimmy and I married. I knew it was going to happen, I guess I wasn't ready for it, though." There was a silence, then Oliver asked in a careful voice, "You didn't tell Jimmy, about… what happened?"

Chloe shook her head and replied, "No, I didn't. I didn't because I think it's best to keep the past in the past, if you know what I mean. It's for the best. I guess I also- I felt really bad about what happened and that's one of the reasons why I've been avoiding you."

Oliver pulled her into a hug and she buried her face into his jumper. "You don't need to be sorry about what happened and I do understand why you didn't tell Jimmy." They stood apart and Chloe laughed nervously, before Oliver inquired, "Is that why you were crying when I came in? Because of Jimmy?" Their conversation had now suddenly shifted from their friendship to her relationship with Jimmy, as it was safer ground and easier for both of them. He walked over to the twins and picked up Jane to give Chloe some space.

"Yeah, we're now legally separated and he has Nicky for the night." Chloe sat down on the sofa. "I thought I'd be able to handle not having Jimmy and Nicky around, but it's harder than I thought." She began to sob. "I miss him, Ollie! So much. He's my husband. He said that I only married him because I was pregnant and that isn't true! It isn't!" Oliver sat down next to her and rubbed her back with his free hand in order to comfort her, as he remarked, "I know how much you love Jimmy-how much you love each other- and, deep down, I'm sure he knows that too. Just give him time. He'll come round soon. You're the love of his life, Chloe. And if it's any consolation, my love life is a complete mess." He chuckled slightly and Chloe smiled. "I can't believe that Felicity went to London and broke up with you."

Standing up to entertain Jane, Oliver remarked, "Well, I guess I wasn't good enough for her." He pretended to throw Jane in her air and smiled with joy as the baby girl giggled. Chloe laughed too, then asked, in a careful voice, "She didn't leave because you're in love with someone else, did she?"

Keeping her eyes fixed on Jane, her friend answered, "No, she didn't. Besides, I'm in love with her, not this other woman and she knows that." There was another silence, before he asked, "Have you heard about Tess and Lex?"

"About him being in Smallville, whilst she, Alex and James are here in Metropolis? Yeah, I have and I cannot believe him." Chloe's rant was interrupted by her mobile phone ringing. Looking at the screen, she saw that it was her dad, so she left the room to answer it. Oliver sighed to himself and continued to throw Jane playfully in the air, before he put her down to watch TV and started to do the same to Ben, who had been impatient of his turn for fun.

Half an hour later, Chloe returned and resumed her position on the sofa. "That was my dad."

"Is he ok?" Oliver asked. He had never met Chloe's dad, but he had heard that he was very good and kind man.

Chloe nodded. "Yeah, he's fine thanks." She stopped and closed her eyes, before murmuring, "I've never told Jimmy the full story about what happened with my mother. I mean, I've given him the outline of the situation, but I've never told him the full story, nor Lois for that matter and she knew me when it all happened."

Slowly, Oliver sat down next to her with Ben in his arms, then inquired, in a quiet voice, "Well, if you've told me, why haven't you told Jimmy, your husband?" His tone was not unkind, but Chloe did understand the point which her best friend was making and she sighed. "Ollie, to be honest I told you, because I knew that you would understand, you have a history of mentall illness, so I-I felt safe telling you. With Jimmy-it isn't that I don't trust him, I worry that he won't understand. I shouldn't feel that way; he's my husband, my soul mate! He should know everything about me and my past. Does-did Felicity know about your… problems?"

"Yeah. I mean, she knew after-after my parents died, so she was with me when they started to develop." Oliver replied, in a strained voice, before shaking his head and insisting, "Look, this may seem like a strange thing for me to say, but Jimmy will come back to you. I know he will, he loves you, Chloe, more than anything." Chloe turned to face him and she smiled. Their eyes met and Chloe saw compassion in his eyes as well as something which she could not quite understand. Her analyse of Oliver's eyes was interrupted by his mobile phone ringing. It was one of his employees. After ending the conversation, he turned to Chloe and asked, "Are you going to be ok here on your own?"

His friend nodded. "I'll be fine, Ollie. Go, sort out the problem." She forced a smile, but she was also glad that she would not he completely alone, as she was with Jane and Ben. Oliver passed Ben to Chloe, grabbed his jacket and slipped his phone into his pocket. "Ok, I'll see you soon, then." He kissed the two babies on the heads, before turning to Chloe and murmuring, "Bye, Chloe. Bye." With that, he walked out of the house, locking the door behind himself. Chloe sighed and began to watch the TV, as she was too tired now to read.

Lois and Clark walked into the cinema, holding hands. "Do we know what we're here to see yet or is it a surprise?" Clark asked his wife with an amused expression.

Tilting her head slightly, Lois replied, "Hmmm.. the latter. It's more fun and we need some spontaneity in our lives, I think, Mr. Lane-Kent." They chuckled and rested their heads against each other's for a second, before returning their attention to the list of films which were showing. They ended up choosing to see a romantic comedy, but what they saw did not really matter, as they were together and having fun. Before the film began, Lois leaned closer to Clark and whispered, "Do you remember the first time we went to the cinema together?" They both chuckled and she kissed him on the check, which he received gladly and would have kissed her back had the film not started. As the film began, Lois rested her head on Clark's shoulder.

When the film ended, Clark saw that Lois had fallen asleep on his shoulder. Understand that it was because she was so tired, he woke her up, helped her to her feet and helped her walk to the car. Upon arriving at their house, even though she was now awake, he put her arms around his neck and he carried her into their house.

"You can put me down now, Smallville." Lois remarked, chuckling. Clark fixed her with a fake-stern gaze, their eyes met and they began to kiss passionately, before they were interrupted by Chloe. "Guys, your kids are asleep upstairs and, no offense, but I really do not want to see that." Embarrassed and blushing, Clark let Lois slip out of his arms and mumbled something about checking on the twins as he made his way upstairs.

"Did you have a good time?" Chloe inquired, as she began to gather her things together.

Lois smiled at her cousin. "It was great, cuz. How were the twins?" Chloe replied that they were fine, before Lois asked, "I meant to ask you this earlier, why did you ask Oliver to babysit with you? I mean, I know that he's great with Jane and Ben, but it seems as if there was more to it."

Chloe sighed and replied, "Ok, ever since I've been married to Jimmy, my friendship with Oliver has virtually been non-existent. And you know how much he means to me, he's my best friend, so I was trying to get the chance to talk to him so that he could be friends again."

"Did it work?"

"Yeah, it did," Chloe answered as she slipped on her coat, "we talked and we're fine now." She hesitated, then asked, in a slightly broken voice, "Lo, do you mind if I stay here tonight? It's just-I don't want to go home to any empty house-with no Jimmy or Nicky." Lois understood, hugged her cousin, then led her to the spare bedroom and lent her some of her pyjamas.

After checking on the twins and kissing them goodnight, Lois went into her bedroom, to find that her husband was already lying in bed, with his eyes closed. "I had a great time tonight, Lois." He whispered.

Smiling and taking off her clothes, Lois smiled back. "Me too, Smallville. It was the first time we've been alone for a long time." She slipped into her pyjamas and slipped into their bed. "I said that Chloe could stay the night."

Clark opened his eyes and asked, "Is she ok?" He knew his cousin-in-law quite well and he knew how much she meant to his wife and children.

"No, she isn't," Lois sighed, as she rolled onto her back, "she's missing Jimmy and Nicky's with him tonight, so she's missing both of them." Lowering her voice, she remarked, "She told me today that she had a one-night stand with someone, before she and Jimmy were together."

Clark stared at her, startled. "Really? That doesn't sound like Chloe!... Did she say who?"

Lois shook her head and murmured, "No, she didn't. And, I may not be right, but I'm guessing that Jimmy doesn't know, because this guy-whomever he is- was the first person with whom Chloe made love. That's quite a big thing not to tell your husband, don't you think?"

"Secrets destroy relationships and marriages, as we are well to aware." Clark remarked, seriously, before smiling playfully and turning on his side. "Now, I would prefer it if there was nothing between us too." He was trying to be serious, but failing. Lois rolled over to her side to face him and whispered, "Well, that can be arranged, my dear husband." She leaned forward and they kissed, as they whispered their love for each other and turned off the light.

In Smallville, Lana woke up and her heart broke as she saw that Lex was not lying beside her. Wrapping herself up in a dressing- gown, she walked out of the bedroom and walked around the mansion to find her and her searching finally bore fruit when she found him in the library, staring at his laptop. "What are you doing? Do you want to come back to bed?" Lana asked, as she walked over to her lover.

There was silence, then Lex shook his head and ran his hands over his wife. "I am so sorry, Lana. I should never have started this with you, I've never really be faithful to Tess when I still have you in my heart and she's my wife and I love her. But I love you too."

Lana rested her hand on top of his, as she whispered, "And I you, Lex. So why don't you leave your wife and move to Smallville with me?" There was a begging tone what she was saying.

"Lana, I can't do that, I'm sorry." Lex sighed, before continuing, "I can never see you again, I'm sorry. I have to make my marriage work and I can't do that if I'm with you, I love you too much." He finally looked up at her and realisation dawned over Lana's face. She kissed Lex on the check, then walked out of the room. As soon as she was gone, Lex rested his head against the back of the chair and closed his eyes, wondering how he had become this man, the man whom he had hated his father for being, because it had hurt his mother so much. If Alexander and James ever found out, would they hate him as much as he hated his father?

A couple of hours later, as Oliver was about to enter a small food shop in the centre of Metropolis, he saw Tess sitting on the steps. Frowning, he walked over to her. "Hey. You ok? Where are the boys?"

"They're both at sleepovers." Tess replied, in a barely audible tone, before looking up and asked, "Why are you here, Oliver?"

"I wanted to check that you were ok."

Tess chuckled bitterly. "Yeah, I'm swell. My husband won't talk to me and he's in Smallville. I haven't heard from him in nearly a weak." As Oliver sat down next to her, her tone changed and she asked, "Can I be honest with you? I really regret ending our relationship, Oliver. I regret hurting you in the way I did. I regret… that you and I never made love, because we agreed to do it on our wedding night- a wedding which never came. I ended our relationship because I was in love with Lex. Did you know that?"

Oliver bit his lip as he replied, "I had my suspicions. If you loved me, why did you leave me?"

"I thought that Lex could fill the whole in my life… but he didn't." She sighed and whispered, "You know what they say? You never forget your first love." She smiled and looked down at the ground. "If I'm completely honest with myself, I loved you more than I ever loved Lex, but I was too blind to see that at the time. I am sorry."

Oliver smiled slightly, before asking in a whisper, "So, Lex in Smallville, does that fill the whole in your life?" He hesitated, before adding, "You know, Tess, I'd be lying if I told you that I never thought about us, about what could have been. Seeing you with Lex was one of the hardest things in my life and I-I can't stand the fact that he hurts you. I would never hurt you the way he does." Their eyes met and suddenly, they both leaned in closer and began to kiss passionately. Oliver moved away, breaking their kiss. "Tess, you're married. This is wrong."

Tess shook her head. "Yes, I am, but I still love you. Please, kiss me again. I know that, somewhere deep down, you still love me." Oliver smiled and resumed kissing her. Their hands intertwined and they sat their enjoying being with each other and enjoying their passion for each other. They did still love each other and they knew it in their hearts.