CHAPTER 3

Just as he's about to lower her nightgown further, the fire alarm suddenly starts ringing from the outside hallway. "What the..." he mutters. They stare at each other for a moment. Lois pulls the straps of her nightgown back onto her shoulders while Clark quickly rushes over to the door; flinging it open. And he's not the only one. Door after door opens; everybody spilling out into the hallway and rushing towards the emergency exits.

"What's going on? I don't smell any smoke?" Lois says; walking over and standing next to him. "Do you?"

Clark stands still for a moment; closing his eyes and sniffing the air. Then he opens his eyes and turns to Lois. "There's a fire on one of the lower floors Lois. We have to get out of here," rushing them back inside. He gets them dressed within seconds, then speeds around the room; gathering up all their things into their suitcases.

They quickly join the crowd of people gathered outside on the front lawn. Clark puts his arm around Lois and whispers in her ear, "I have to do something."

"I understand," quickly kissing him on the cheek. He gives her one more kiss; super speeding away. The second he's gone, she carries them over to a nearby bench and sits down. While she's waiting for Clark, she thinks back to another time that she had to wait for him...

"Where is he?" she wonders; looking yet again at her watch. She gets up from the couch and goes into the kitchen; pouring herself a glass of wine. As she sips it, there's a knock at the door. She puts the glass down on the counter and walks over to the door; peering out the peephole. Then she unlocks the door and opens it to see Clark standing there - soaking wet.

"What the h*ll happened to you?" she asks him as he comes into the apartment.

"I'm sorry I'm late," greeting her with a kiss. "I was on my way here when an alarm was set off at the bank so..."

"You don't need to finish that sentence," she says. "I understand. It's one of the hazards of dating a superhero," shrugging her shoulders.

"I'm really sorry," he says again; walking over to her and holding her hand. "I should have called when I was finished. But I couldn't wait to see you."

"That's so sweet," she says; running her fingers through his still wet hair. Her eyes linger on his chest; his wet shirt emphasizing his well-built muscular chest.

He looks curiously at her. "Something wrong Lois?"

"Huh?" a little distracted by how sexy he looks.

"Lois?" he says again.

She gives herself a mental shake. "I'm sorry. What did you say?"

He looks curiously at her. "I asked if there were something wrong."

She looks up into his eyes. "I can honestly say that there is nothing wrong." Then she says, "I'll be right back; disappearing into her bedroom.

She returns with a pair of jeans and a flannel shirt that he keeps at her apartment just in case; handing them to him. He goes into the bathroom and begins to change. She stands outside the door. ""But what I don't understand is how did you get all soaking wet?"

"That just happened a couple minutes ago. I had just crossed the street and was about to come inside when a truck drove through a very large puddle of water and completely soaked me."

"Well why didn't you just speed back to the farm and change?" she asks him.

"I was already late, and I didn't want to be any later than I had to," opening the door.

"Anyway, this was not how I wanted this evening to go," walking into the kitchen and sitting down on one of the stools in front of the counter; watching her as she starts to make some coffee.

She stops what she's doing; turning around to look at him. "Is there something special about this evening that I should know about?" she asks him.

He doesn't answer right away. But then he sees something in her eyes that makes him realize something. He gets up from the stool and walks over towards the couch; sitting down. "Can you come over here for a minute Lois?" patting the spot next to him.

"O-kay," making her way over to the couch and sitting down next to him.

Then he slides off the couch; getting down on one knee and pulling out a little black box from his pocket.

She stares at it in shock. "Is that what I think it is?"

"Please don't say another word until I finish what I have to say," he replies.

"Alright. I'll shut up," giving him a little smile.

He takes a deep breath, then exhales. Then he begins to speak. "Lois, I wish I could say that I loved you from the moment I met you, but we both know that we mutually disliked each other. But as I got to know you, I began to dislike you a little less - until one day I realized that we had become friends. But then somehow, someway, you snuck into my heart. And before I knew it, I was totally and passionately in love with you. And I can't imagine being with anyone else but you."

He stops for a moment; then opens the box and reveals a beautiful 1-carat diamond ring. "Lois Joanne Lane, will you marry me?"

She bites her lip; trying not to cry, but fails. "Yes Clark, I will marry you," a tear rolling down her cheek as he picks up her left hand and slips the ring onto her finger. She slides off the couch and throws her arms around him. Their lips meet in a passionate kiss. After their lips finally pull apart, she says, "I love you Clark," cupping his face with her hands.

"I love you Lois," smiling back at her just before he kisses her again...

She feels a hand on her shoulder and looks up; seeing Clark standing there. She smiles at him as he sits down next to her. "So what happened?" she asks him as he puts his arm around her.

"Well, the fire destroyed several rooms on the 2nd floor. But unfortunately the smoke is throughout the entire hotel. So nobody will be able to return to their rooms until at least tomorrow."

"But our flight is tomorrow," she says; an anxious look on her face. "Where are we going to stay tonight?"

"I talked to the manager - and he said that everybody was going to be relocated to a nearby hotel. So we can do that if we want. And if we didn't want to do it, then he'll give us a refund."

"But if we don't want to do it, then where would we stay tonight?" she asks.

"Actually, I have another place in mind. I don't know why I didn't think of it sooner."

"So what did you tell the manager?"

"I told him that we found other accommodations. So he gave us a full refund," smiling at her.

"Where exactly are these new 'accommodations Clark?" tilting her head slightly with a quizzical look on her face.

"That's a surprise," standing up and looking down at her. He picks up the suitcases. "I'll be back in a few minutes," super speeding away.

A few minutes later, he returns. She gets up from the bench and stands in front of him. He takes her hand and leads her to a secluded spot; lifting her up into his arms. "Where are we going?" she asks him.

"I told you it's a surprise. And you'll find out in about five minutes," taking off into the sky...

TO BE CONTINUED...