Chapter Nine: Read To Me

Kara's POV

"Are you sure about this?" I questioned as Lena zipped my dress.

"For the hundredth time, yes." Pulling out her phone, Lena dialed Miss Grant's number. Putting it on speaker, the CEO waited.

"Who is this and how did you get this number?"

"Ready to break that story?" Lena smirked knowingly.

"Miss Luthor," She paused. "What a pleasant surprise. How would you like to proceed?"

"There's a few hours before the event. Why don't you come to my apartment and talk to us? You can break the news before the event. Get some good shots before we're officially seen as a couple." As Lena spoke, I texted Miss Grant the address.

"Hello, Kiera."

"Hi, Miss Grant," I laughed.

"I'll be there shortly."

Ending the call, Lena placed her phone down. The CEO held out my glasses. "This might take some media away from the gala but I'll add a little more to the donation check."

Taking the frames, I put them back on. "As if you weren't going to anyway."

"You know me too well."

We finished getting ready before Miss Grant arrived. "She's here." I answered the door before she could knock. "Come in."

"Thank you." Looking me over quickly, she nodded. "You look good in Chanel."

"Thank you," I smiled. Closing the door, I led my boss into the living room where Lena waited.

"Miss Luthor," Miss Grant nodded.

"In private, can we please be on a first name basis? I've respected you for years and you feel more than an acquaintance because of Kara."

"That's fair." Holding out her hand, Miss Grant continued. "Nice to meet you, Lena."

"You as well, Cat."

Taking a seat, Miss Grant pulled out her phone to record the interview. "So, the two of you are officially dating. The CEO of L-Corp and a CatCo reporter. What drew the two of you together?" I coughed. "I'm going to assume you're catching a cold and there's not some twisted story here," she muttered. A moment later, she turned the recording off. "Off the record, what did happen? Now I'm curious."

Eyeing me, I nodded at Lena's silent question. "I got bored one day and kidnapped Supergirl."

Miss Grant's face fell. "Are you serious?" Lena nodded. "Evil villain much? What happened after that?"

"I found out National City's golden girl isn't as pure as you made her out to be," Lena grinned triumphantly. "All of this off the record, of course."

"Of course…"

"The weeks I was snappy was before I realized what I was feeling for Lena," I added. "The interview Lena gave afterwards was truly an interview. Nothing else."

"I know. If it was a booty call, you would have come back empty handed. Lena is definitely not a quid pro quo type of woman."

"To begin the official story, you could say I admired Kara's writing and decided it was time to come out of the shadows. It's not exactly a lie. I do admire her writing, it just didn't happen in that order."

"There was a connection between the two of you and you wanted to let it flourish before letting the world know," Miss Grant thought out loud.

"Exactly." Taking my hand, Lena continued. "None of it's a lie. You're just omitting a felony."

"Please, don't sell my girlfriend out to the police. I'm not pressing charges. For all you know, we set it up prior."

"Kiera, I do not want a pissed off Kryptonian and a pissed off Luthor on my hands. That does not sound pleasant for me."

"It wouldn't be." Lena and I spoke in unison.

"I do love the new confidence." Miss Grant stood. "The last thing I need is a photo or two."

"Of course." Snuggling into Lena, I smiled.

"Sickening," the older woman smirked. "Alright, one more." At the last second, Lena turned my face and kissed me. "I'll be sending my next dentist bill to you."

Walking Miss Grant to the door, she paused. "The two of you are made for each other. I'll work on the story tonight after the gala. See you soon."

"Bye."

Xxx

Lena's POV

Arriving at the gala, Kara took my hand. "Are you ready?"

Squeezing gently, I leaned close to whisper. "With you by my side, yes."

Entering the building, some heads turned seeing us. I think they're staring at me more than Kara. Here we go. Taking a steadying breath, I took another step forward.

"You've got this," Kara whispered.

"Miss Luthor." Jonathan, a director of the children's hospital board, approached. "A pleasure to finally meet you. I was glad to see you were able to make it this year."

"I'm glad to make it." Popping open my clutch, I pulled out a check. "Should I give this to you or is there a specific place for donations?"

"I'll take it." The man slid the check into his suit's inner pocket. "I hope you're not leaving already. You just arrived."

"Not at all. I can't promise to stay the entire event but definitely a few hours."

"I'll take it!" He smiled. Turning, Jonathan pointed towards a row of tables. "There's a silent auction going over there. Food and beverages are to the left."

"Excellent. We will have to check them out. Have you met Kara Danvers? She's one of CatCo's best reporters."

"While we've not met in person, I have heard of Miss Danvers." Holding out his hand, the man smiled. "A pleasure to meet you. The story you did on Miss Luthor was wonderful." Pulling out a card, Jonathan continued. "Please give David a call. He oversees the PR and would love to work with you on a project. If you're able to. I'm not sure of the terms in your CatCo contract."

Taking the card, Kara smiled. "I'll talk to Miss Grant and give him a call. Thank you."

"Perfect." Jonathan's focus moved behind us for a moment. "May I introduce you both to the rest of the board?"

"That would be fine." Now that the tension is broken, things are much easier for both of us.

Nearly an hour later, Kara and I were very acquainted with each board member. The only reason we got away was because Cat waved us over. Joining the businesswoman, Kara sighed. "Thank you, Miss Grant."

"You're welcome. While Lena kept her expression engaged, you were five seconds from twitching."

"I have more practice," I chuckled. "Have you made any headway on the article yet?"

"I have." Pulling out her phone, Cat brought up the CatCo Magazine Twitter page. "A teaser that's close to trending."

National City's Power Couple will be dropped tomorrow morning at 9AM. Who do you think it is?

The likes, retweets, and comments increased by the second. She is a reporting genius. "I would say so." I gave the phone to Kara. "I'm sure I'll get some backlash for being in a romantic relationship with a woman but so be it."

"You would think people wouldn't care about that by now. It's the twenty-first century for God's sake," Cat scoffed. "Same-sex relationships have been around since the beginning of time."

"One would think. Have you tried the food yet? I don't normally eat at events but a certain reporter's stomach has growled four times in the past ten minutes."

"You could hear that?" Kara pouted. "I thought it was loud enough here that it would be drowned out." That pout will be the end of me.

"I have," Cat chuckled. "Definitely take our favorite reporter over there. You have exactly twenty seven minutes until the hangry Kara shows herself. Probably closer to twelve minutes now."

"I definitely need to get her fed then. If we don't see you before you leave, I hope you have a lovely evening." Placing my hand on the small of Kara's back, I pressed forward.

"You as well."

"Was my stomach that loud?" Kara asked as she picked up a small plate.

"No, it wasn't that loud. I know you need to eat every few hours and you have that look in your eyes."

"I have a hungry look?" Kara's cheeks turned pink.

"You have a few hungry looks." I winked, causing the pink to darken. "I couldn't resist."

"Oh, golly," She laughed nervously.

After mingling for a couple hours, I was getting overwhelmed. Before it started to show, Kara and I left. Calling my driver beforehand, the car was waiting when we exited. Relaxing in the car, I asked the driver to take us home.

Arriving at the apartment, I let Kara enter first. "I don't know about you, but I desperately want to be in something more comfortable." Placing my clutch on the table, I started for the bedroom.

"I second that." Stepping out of her heels, Kara picked them up and followed.

Gathering clothes, I entered the bathroom to change. I'm glad Kara finally brought some clothes over. More than just sleepwear. It makes nights like this easier. Standing before the mirror in my nightclothes, I stared at where my heart was. Kara loves me. She actually loves me for me. I'm sick of this part of myself that keeps me from giving my whole self to her. I need to talk to Winn soon. I believe I have a few options.

Rejoining the blonde, I laughed seeing her jump around trying to reach the zipper. "Would you like some assistance?"

"Please?" Kara smiled sheepishly. "I really don't want to rip your dress."

"You mean your dress?" I continued before she could argue. "This has been in my closet for years because of the neckline. It looks gorgeous on you." Turning the taller woman, I smiled. "It's yours."

Knowing when my mind was made up, Kara shrugged. "Thank you."

"You're welcome." I kissed Kara's cheek. "Movie or reading?"

"Read to me?" She grinned. Hope in her eyes.

"Sure. Meet you in the library."

Taking our current read from the shelf, I made myself comfortable in the chair. Thankfully this is big enough to fit us both. There's something intimate about reading to someone and them hanging on to every word. Before now, I haven't read aloud since high school. I hated every second of it. With her, I enjoy it. I laughed silently thinking about Kara shiver when I read in French. Hearing footsteps, I opened the book. "Ready?"

Climbing onto the chair, Kara got comfortable snuggled next to me. "Ready."

"Chapter eleven: Eyes With Which To See." Since the chapters in the book were short, I would read five or six a night. Knowing what was to come, I doubted I would get that far tonight. We've christened most of the apartment by now but never the library. That will probably change tonight.

A/N: Book is Islands of Mercy by Rose Tremain. Narrated by Katie McGrath. I love her narration so much! I hate that we can't buy the audiobook in the US.