To put my 2 cents in this discussion about sleeping in the same bed: you've both got good points. I agree with Kathy that a mature adult has enough contol over their sexual behavior that they are perfectly capable of drawing the "this is only for sleep" line and sticking to it. Married couples do that all the time when, for medical or other reasons, they can't or don't want to have intercourse but do want to have the intimacy of sleeping together in the literal and not metaphorical sense.
However, I do think that an unmarried couple who chooses to step that close to the line is playing with fire. If I were a young woman who didn't intend to have sex with a man I would not sleep in the same bed with him, nor indeed in the same room. It implies a level of intimacy that is naturally designed to lead to further intimacies. It puts both the man and woman in a tempting situation.
That said, what L & C are doing here is very typical behavior in a romantic relationship. It is very common for romantic couples to, either consciously or not, 'play at' being at the next level of their relationship. It's a way of testing the waters. In other words, a girl who is out with her guy friend will pretend to herself that they are on a date. A guy who is on a date will pretend to himself that they are a committed couple, etc. In this case, L & C are a couple, and they are pretending that they are married, whether they realize it or not. Because, really, at this point they both are craving that level of intimacy.
Given what Clark needs in this situation, which is Lois's physical touch and comfort, a mattress on the floor is not going to cut it. He needs physical, but not sexual, comfort. The danger is that one often leads to the other not in an out-of-control-we-can't-help-ourselves kind of way but in a this-is-the-next-step-and-I-don't-remember-why-we-said-we-weren't-ready kind of way. Anybody who puts themselves in that situation has to be willing to either put effort into holding that line or step over it with both eyes open.
That one often leads to the other is the very reason why Carol loves to get these two in bed together in the first place.
It doesn't have to lead that way immediately, but it is a definite step in that direction.
