Mainly, he kept Arianna around to remind himself never to become emotionally involved with a conquest again.
He seems to have already failed at that with Lois.
It had broken his heart that he hadn’t been able to give his wife pleasure on their wedding night.
Maybe this is because he has a twisted understanding of pleasure.
Thankfully, she had been more than welcoming of his dalliances on the side during their marriage; actually, Ari claimed it as her idea. ‘Better you do that to another woman than me,’ she had informed Lex when their honeymoon revealed her abhorrence to her marital duties.
I have to wonder if it is more Lex's interpretation of the phrase that is the problem.
As long as Lex kept it to nothing more than sex, she allowed him to do as he liked to whom he liked,
Yep. I think it is Lex's twistedness that is causing the problem.
He didn’t know if it was because she already suspected him of stepping out on her, which he had, or if it was because she didn’t want to ‘lose him’, which she had, too.
Lex seems to always have been evil and twisted.
Lex told her the only reason they needed to divorce was to keep up his image of law-abiding citizen of Metropolis, not philandering cad,
He still is a philandering cad, just because he is not married does not lessen the fact he is a philanderer. Although it probably makes people less outraged about it.
but that in his heart he would always be married only to her.
Canon Lois:And he told me that I was the first women who matter to him. The no good liar.
He had seen Lois act this way in public no less, on occasion, with Superman, and wished Lois would look at him in the same subservient manner.
Now that Lois knows that Superman loves her, he has no chance of winning her. Ever.
Lois:I thought it was more that now that I know he is a murdering villain, he has no chance.
Reader:Umm, I think he had no chance long before Lois knew that.
Moreover, it would be a terrific and completely legitimate place to lock away one’s enemies, pests, and disgruntled employees.
Clark:Where did I put those notes on why this dimension needs to reform commitment laws, like we did on my home world, to make it so major employers can't run mental institutions, and to make it much harder to commit people to mental institutions. Especially when they are actually charged with a crime that under normal circumstaces would at most send them to jail for a few months.
“No, no problem. I have set up my flat next door, as you suggested, darling, and I thought…” She blushed and glanced away. “We could christen it, when we met for our anniversary dinner.”
The world is moving exactly on the lines of Another Lois.
Once a year, on the date of their anniversary, Arianna let Lex have his marital rights with her.
How can he have marital rights when they aren't married?
It was her anniversary gift to him, because they both knew she had a fear of intimacy and endured it out of her desire to please him.
Maybe it is just because of how Lex understands the thing that she has such fear.
In addition, Lex had claimed if they didn’t share their bodies at least once a year, the courts would no longer consider them ‘married’, even if the legal paperwork said they were divorced.
Oddly enough, since they got married in international waters by a ship captain, this might actually make sense. Generally weddings performed by a ship captain are not legally binding. Of course, it is possible that this captain was also a license to perform marriages by some specific government, but captains dod not have a right to perform valid marriages by virtue of their office as ship captain.
Lex enjoyed forcing her to relent year after year, making the night last the entire night through to get his money’s worth out of her.
This phrasing makes her sound like a whore.
During the terms of their premarital contract, Lex had negotiated complete control of their joint finances, which included her entire inheritance, and should they ever terminate their marriage, for any reason, he would continue to control Arianna’s share of the money as trustee to a lifetime trust in her name.
Why would anyone agree to these terms.
Arianna had agreed to these terms, Lex guessed, because she suspected he would want to divorce her after learned of her ‘phobia’ and this way she could be guaranteed contact with Lex, albeit forced, as trustee to her post-marital trust.
I don't buy it. I think her "phobia" is more a result of Lex's disturbedness than anything else. My guess on why she agreed was because she assumed there was no way Lex would leave her, since she loved him unconditionally, and so she did not care about what would happen if they divorced.
They had eloped, without her father’s knowledge, so Arianna had also signed the paperwork without her father or his lawyers’ advice.
And maybe without really reading all of them either.
Arianna’s eyes widened. “No, Lex. Saturday night is our anniversary.”
So that is why he sent the clone.
“Ari!” Lex scolded, grabbing her hands and pulling her away. “You know you are never to touch my things.”
Ari:You touch all of me Lex, can't I just touch a little of your stuff, just this once.
“But, Lex, if we don’t…” She shivered again in horror. “Consummate our marriage every year within the year, our divorce will be legal.
Interesting divorce conditions. Also, why would that be bad exactly? I am surprised that Lex does not propose consummating the relationship on Friday.
“I cannot lose you, Lex. I love you too much. I’m willing to do anything to keep our marriage alive; you know that... otherwise… otherwise, I wouldn’t…”
I am surprised that he does not propose consummating now, but that would not really give him enough time to carry out his disturbed intention on her.
“But, what? Are you planning to have sex with another woman on our anniversary, Lex?
Now Lex's intentions for what he plans to do to Lois after the opera seem even more disturbed. Although why he thinks he has a chance with a woman he insulted by buying her in an agreement she knew nothing about, not to mention that he shot, is beyond me.
Lois:My plan is working, Lex believes I am attracked to him.
Clark:Lois, why do you want that evil sociopath attracked to you?
On the celebration of our love?” Arianna demanded.
More like emotional distrubedness on both sides. This relationship is not healthy for either of them.
Lois had finally agreed to go on an official date with him.
Clark:
Why does Lois keep on dating that evil man.
Why was I so stupid as to turn down a date with her. Maybe if I had gone with her and not Linda she would not be so desperate to be with Luthor.
On the other hand, maybe I should start charging for Superman rescues so I can afford to take Lois to a fancy restraint and the opera, if that is what she wants.
Even with the most stubborn of women, he had been able to succeed with the opera.
Lois:Yes, but those women had not been with Superman.
Although, once he did a quick review of the most difficult women he had seduced over the recent years, he concluded they were the ones with whom he couldn’t be seen in public:
So he actually has not tested any difficult women against the opera.
Claudette Wilder (because she was married),
Is that the crazy mother of the evil doctor in "Target:Jimmy Olsen".
Lena Harrison (same, this had been before he had fired her husband),
So much for her claims to believe in marital fidelity.
she was disloyal to her husband. That seems out of character for her.
moreover Lex discovered both she and her husband were candidates for Ari’s mental intuition),
I guess they were a bit excentric, but excentricity does not usually lead to commitment if the people are rich.
Diana Stride (double agent with Intergang),
This is just making it more ironic that Lois went ballistic on Clark for supposedly having a relationship with Cat, and yet spent most of the summer dating Luthor, Metropolis's #1 philanderer, who has bedded more women than Clark has even shaken hands with.
Gretchen Kelly (since the Medical Ethics board frowned on doctors sleeping with their patients),
They really should have had scenes where Lois testifies before the medical ethics board to get Dieter's license revoked.
and Lois Lane (Superman’s love interest).
Who unlike all the others, Lex has not seduced in any way.
He had also recently dated Lisa Rockford, the model, after his run-in with Superman in November,
When Lois started to see through Lex's façade to chavanist who dismissed her thoughts underneath.
but she didn’t want to be seen too much in public with one man, due to her suspicious Nazi friends, whom she didn’t think Lex knew about, but he did.
I am surprised Mindy later Church did not appear on this list. I guess she would not have been a difficult conquest.
Anyway, Lex wanted to try Miranda’s Revenge on Arianna for their anniversary to see if she became fierier,
Maybe Scardino can show up if word gets out that there is evidence that Revenge is still floating around.
Mrs. Chow:Arthur, why do you react so strongly when I wear this special perfume. I am almost out, and I like when you go irrational for me, how can I get it to happen without the perfume.
Arthyr:Hmm, dear, I love you, but I think it is best we not get too irrational. Maybe we should send this away to get it tested. Some of our help were acting peculiar when you applied that stuff around the place yesterday.
and he would hate to wait a year for his next opportunity.
Lex is not a very patient man.
Lois:Well, actually the surprising thing is that his deparved actions have not landed him in jail yet.
Hmm, I guess with his power, he is always able to find willing accomplicies.
Lex knew he needed to keep Arianna happy because she knew more than her fair share of his secrets.
Exposing the L.U.X. would definitely undermine his philanthropist image, even if Bender could avoid any actual prison time for him.
If he used her any night, other than their anniversary, then that could change.
I guess that is why he does not propose Friday. Especially since the only way to get her to agree to Friday is to convince her that his arrangement for Saturday is too pressing to cancel. I doubt even if he had no sexual intentions for the meeting with Lois, and it had a clear business purpose, he could convince Ariana it was an acceptable reason to postpone the date.
Arianna could be vocal, and if anything she said arrived at Lois’s ear, it would be twice the trouble to undo it.
Considering Lois put two-and-two together on seeing the out-dated but precise copy of her apartment, there is really nothing that Ariana could say that would change Lois's views. Now, maybe if Ariana's statements were brought to the attention of the courts, but not to Lois. Although I guess Lois has managed to hide her true feelings towards Luthor.
Also, he looked forward to this date. It was the one night a year he was allowed to do whatever he pleased to torture his ex-wife,
He is more disturbed than I thought.
One thing is for sure, I have never felt any sympathy for Lex being tricked by Lois in this story.
Clark:It is Lois being tricked by Lex that worries me. Or killed, maimed, raped, who knows what.
Lois:I do know martial arts.
Clark:I fear it won't be enough, and I won't be fast enough. I am afraid what he intends to do to you Lois.
Yet, if he knew Lois would be willing… no, he would not turn down a guaranteed show of power with Ari for more patience with Lois.
Lois:He has no chance. I am not going to violate my new rules. And anyway, even if I had never met Clark I would not give myself to such an evil, disturbed philanderer as Luthor.
