My Own Worst Enemy
Folc4evernaday
Chapter 1
A/N: Still trying to narrow down a posting schedule but I'm shooting for Friday nights for this one. A lot going on in this one. I hope everyone enjoys.
***
Five Months Ago…“I love you,” Clark whispered against his wife’s lips, holding her to him as he brushed his lips against hers.
“I love you too,” She whispered, running her palms up the side of his face. She let out a soft moan as his lips found the sensitive flesh behind her ear. “Oh, Clark, five years and I can finally…call you ‘husband.’” She murmured breathlessly, “God, that feels good to say.”
He chuckled against her, “
‘Wife’ sounds pretty great too.” He murmured against her neck. “I can’t believe it’s taken us this long to get here.”
“We’re gonna be okay, right?” Lois asked uneasily.
He looked up at her, moving so he was lying on his side next to her. He moved his hand to cup her cheek and whispered, “Always. Nothing in this world could ever tear us apart.”
“Promise?” She leaned in to kiss him.
“Promise.” He repeated, recapturing her lips with his own.
Having squashed her fears, he allowed himself to be pulled into her arms once more, settling himself between her legs as he continued kissing her. He wanted nothing more than to kiss every fear and doubt away but he knew he couldn’t. Knowing her father had been working with people that not only knew his secret but could possibly expose his family and put them in danger scared him.
He promised he wouldn’t freak out.
He promised he wouldn’t over-react.
Holding his wife in his arms, he continued to push his fears to the back of his mind as his hands roamed dangerously high up her legs. He could still hear the music from the reception outside as his hands moved up her legs. She moved her leg against his allowing the silk and tulle to fall to the side as his hand moved daringly up her upper thigh. He brushed against the satin garter on her leg. He looked at her curiously. “What is that?”
She giggled against him, “It’s the garter.” He poked his head down to look at it, and she moved the tulle and silk of her skirt to cover it. “No peeking.”
“Peeking? Seriously? I don’t think there’s anything there I haven’t seen before.” He grinned at her mischievously, stilling his hands as he pressed himself against her.
“You’re supposed to throw the garter later.” She giggled.
“Maybe I should practice my throw.” He wiggled his eyebrows at her, leaning in to kiss her.
She giggled against him as he slipped his hand back up her thigh. He felt the satin and beading against his hand and moved further up her leg where he felt another satin garter. “Clark!” She grabbed his wrist, stopping his hand from moving any further up her thigh.
“Why are you wearing two of those?” He asked with an impish grin.
“One to throw and one for…you.” She murmured against his lips with a sultry smile.
“Really?” He grinned against her lips, “I think we need to go home.” He whispered, running his hands up and down her long legs from beneath her dress, “Get you out of this incredibly complicated dress…” He wiggled his eyebrows at her,” and let me kiss every inch of you until I make your toes curl.”
He smiled to himself when he heard her heart rate pick up. He knew it wouldn’t take a lot of convincing on her part. “Um, I don’t suppose we have to stay for the whole reception…” she began hesitantly.
“Nope.” He agreed, running his hands down the front of her bodice, grinning to himself when he saw the hint of white lace peeking through where her gown had slipped down during their embrace. Had she been wearing anything else but her wedding gown at the moment, he would have already ripped it off of her. He didn’t want to leave her arms. He didn’t want to do anything that required him to think about every what-if scenario that had been nagging the back of his mind after Lois had told him about her father.
“We can talk to my dad tomorrow…” she whispered breathlessly as his lips pressed against the satin covering her chest. “…or when we get back from….” His lips moved to her throat, nibbling at the sensitive flesh. “Oh, Clark,”
A hard knock at the door followed by the knob turning jolted him back to the present.
‘The door.’ He’d forgotten to lock the door. He jumped up, rolling off of Lois and turning toward the door just as it opened.
“Hey, Lois, mom wanted me to check on…” Lucy stopped mid-sentence when she saw Lois, readjusting her gown from where he’d pulled it down. Her hair was loosely hanging from the bun it had been pinned in earlier. “Yeah, I’m going to come back in like ten minutes and pretend I was never here,” Lucy mumbled hurriedly, closing the door behind her.
Lois burst into a fit of giggles, hitting him against the chest, “Oh, my God, you didn’t lock the door?”
“I wasn’t really planning on needing to.” He chuckled back at her.
She stood up, examining herself in the mirror. “Mom’s going to kill me, but these pins keep sticking me…” Lois pulled the pins out of her hair, and he smiled, watching as her long locks fell over her shoulders.
He followed her over to the mirror, wrapping his arms around her from behind. “I don’t think we’re going to be able to escape with your sister right outside the door.”
“You’re probably right,” She looked back at him with an apologetic smile, “I’ll figure out what mom wants and try and get us out of here so we can start making a move.”
She rotated her hips against him, and he smiled, running his hands over her shoulders. “Sounds like a plan. I’ll…” He stopped for a minute. He couldn’t deny how tempting it was to not have that confrontation. Not have that conversation he knew was going to change their lives forever…But he needed to know…they needed to know. “I’ll find your dad and talk to him. Find out what we’re dealing with.”
Relief washed over her face, and he smiled back at her, “It’s going to be okay.”
“I hope so.” She whispered, leaning in to kiss him once more.
***
Sam Lane watched from the crowd as Lucy and Lois came down the steps leading toward the dining room where many of the guests were enjoying dinner, drinks, and dessert. Ellen had ordered everything, but the cake be served and held plates for Lois and Clark for when she was feeling up to joining everyone.
‘Never should have said anything.’ He thought to himself.
He’d felt his world come to a stop when his daughter had passed out in his arms—fearing the worst after everything she’d been through.
<<“Project K?” >>
<<“Darryl. You can call me Mr. Darryl.”>>
<<“You’ve got quite a grip there, Jamie.”
“He’s got his daddy’s eyes,”>>
<<“Blood sample from a subject we’re testing. I want you to run some tests and let us know if you come across anything…abnormal.”>>
<<“Get OUT!!”>>
<<“Good-bye, Jamie,”>>A tap on the shoulder pulled Sam to the present. He turned to see his son-in-law standing behind him with a stern gaze. “We need to talk.”
Sam nodded, following the young man through the crowd of people toward the kitchen where the food was being prepped. He opened a wooden door and found himself in the hallway of the hotel and followed Clark down the narrow hallway and into one of the empty office spaces.
Sam looked behind him to make sure no one had followed them and closed the door behind him. He turned to see Clark readjusting his glasses, “I, uh, guess, Lois told you?”
“Yeah,” Clark fidgeted with his glasses once more before diving in, “So, I guess my first question is how long have you known?”
***
Clark nervously fidgeted with his glasses before turning to Sam Lane, “So I guess my first question is how long have you known?”
“Does it matter?” Sam asked, clearing his throat.
“Yeah, it does.” Clark continued, pacing in the hallway.
“I’d rather not say,” Sam said gruffly.
“I’d rather not have my wife –
your daughter–stressing herself out about this.” Clark countered irritably, crossing his arms over his chest.
That seemed to register. The cool demeanor that had once been on Sam Lane’s face. He looked down then met Clark’s eyes. “I never meant for that to happen,” Sam argued with a pained expression.
“Well, it
did.” Clark shot back between gritted teeth. “I need to know everything you know.”
“Where do you want me to start?” Sam asked with a defeated expression.
“From the beginning,” Clark said with a raised eyebrow. “That would be a good start.”
Sam nodded, “It wasn’t something I signed up for.”
“What wasn’t?” Clark pressed cautiously. He watched as Sam paced around the room nervously. He’d only met the man a handful of times since his return. Each time he’d presented himself as articulate, well-spoken, and professional. Seeing him like this was different and showed a new side to him he doubted even Lois had seen before.
“Four years ago, I got a call. Found out I’d been offered a job in the Applied Science Division of a Special Organization.” Sam’s voice pitched at the mention of ‘Special Organization.’
“What kind of organization?” Clark asked, uncertain if he wanted the answer. Could it have been Bureau 39? Could Lois’ father really have been working with Bureau 39? With Trask? The man he’d grown to hate over the span of five years? The man that had taken everything from him?
“Never got a name,” Sam said softly, stopping mid-pace as he turned toward the window, staring outside at the reception that was still in full swing.
“How long did you work for them?” Clark asked, taking a cautious step toward his father-in-law.
“I don’t know that there’s a way to ever really stop.” Sam began hesitantly. Clark felt his eyes widen at that remark but allowed Sam to continue. “I was working on groundbreaking research. Uniforms for soldiers that would protect against chemical warfare. Developing plant life that would grow without water in parts of the world that didn’t have the water or nourishment needed for vegetables to grow.”
“You were…making a
difference.” Clark finished for him, realizing Sam’s reasons for being involved with this organization, to begin with.
“Yes,” Sam said softly, “until the day I wasn’t.”
“When was that?” He asked cautiously.
“I was given an abnormal blood sample to analyze. I was told it was from a …. donor.” Sam looked down as he spoke. “The sample had the same abnormalities in it that kept Jamie in the hospital an extra week for observation.”
Clark felt a lump form in his throat at the mention of his son’s name but didn’t say anything. The mere mention of his son’s name sent a wave of grief through him. Even the idea that this organization his father-in-law spoke of could be capable of hurting a child…his child…shook him to the core. He wasn’t sure how he was supposed to react. Remaining silent seemed the best as he eyed Sam uneasily.
Sam continued, “I thought they’d gone after him. Done something to him.”
“Had they?” Clark found his voice.
“No, but at the time I didn’t know that. I went over my supervisor’s head. In exchange for the promise of my family’s safety, I was to become the silent partner in something they called ‘Project K.’”
“What is that?” Clark asked.
“I don’t know. All I know is I received tests to perform once a month, and I did them without question. I was given assignments…some of them small…some of them ethically and morally degrading….but I did them.” Sam looked down at his feet once more. “Not my proudest moment.”
“Whose blood was it?” Clark asked.
“As I said before, I thought it was Jamie’s,” Sam said shakily. “Now, I realize…it wasn’t Jamie’s …it was
yours...and you and Lois are in a lot of danger.”
***
Lois looked around the room, trying to spy where Clark and her father had disappeared to. She could feel her stomach doing somersaults as she waited in anticipation. Clark had insisted she stay with everyone to prevent another fainting episode but sitting here waiting was torture. She wanted to know what was happening. She wanted to know what her father knew. She wanted to know who he had been trying to warn her about.
“How are you feeling?”
Lois turned to see her sister taking a seat next to her. She gave her her best forced smile, “Better.” Lucy didn't look convinced. Lois reached out for her hand, “I’m
fine really.” She motioned toward the dance floor. “Go have fun.”
“I’m not leaving till Clark gets back,” Lucy said adamantly. Then lowered her voice, looking around, "By the way, next time try locking the door if you're going to fool around. I thought slutty wedding sex was for the wedding party and guests, not the
bride and groom."
Lois blushed, letting out a light chuckle, "That was..." She couldn't suppress her smile, and Lucy rolled her eyes at her. "It just kinda happened." Lois finished.
"I'll bet it did." Lucy teased, wiggling her eyebrows at her.
Lois rolled her eyes, "You've got the wrong idea. All we were doing was..."
"Getting an early start on the Honeymoon?" Lucy guessed with a sly grin. "You do remember passing out on the dance floor earlier, right?"
“Luce, I’m
fine,” Lois argued.
“You were unconscious for at least ten minutes. You’re not fine.” Lucy looked around the room, “Where
is Clark anyway?”
“He, uh, wanted to talk to daddy about something,” Lois said, looking around the room once more.
“About what?” Lucy asked curiously, following her gaze toward the kitchen where Clark and her father had disappeared through earlier.
“Nothing, really,” Lois reassured her sister. She needed to find Clark. She wasn't' sure how much longer she'd be able to fend her mom off on the schedule or when she'd last eaten. She really didn't want to have dinner without Clark. She didn't want to do anything right now, to be honest. She wanted answers.
“If it’s nothing why do you keep looking around the room for him?” Lucy pressed.
“I, uh,” Lois met her sister’s gaze. It was hard not telling her everything, but right now she didn’t know what there was to tell. “I think I’m going to find a restroom.” She got up and headed toward the hotel.
“Lois...” Lucy called after her.
“I’m
fine,” Lois called over her shoulder.
***
Gretchen Kelly moved down the dark passageway, looking for her missing patient. When she’d gone to sleep he’d been resting. Now, it seemed he’d woken up. She hoped he hadn’t done anything to aggravate the wounds that were still healing. Over the course of the past month he’d found new ways to reopen the gunshot wounds. She’d had to perform surgery in the dark and dreary tunnels in order to remove the bullet he’d been shot with. Had she not found him when she did he could have easily bled to death.
“Lex?”
He turned to face her and she relaxed seeing him standing in a worn t-shirt and jeans in front of the makeshift office he’d created.
“What are you doing?” She asked, stepping toward him hesitantly. Experience told her not to touch him without permission. He was still prone to night terrors after the attack.
“Research.” He said flatly, staring at the billboard in front of him with different dates written on it and names she didn’t understand.
“What’s ‘Intergang?’” she asked hesitantly.
“That’s what I’m going to find out.” He said with a confident smile.
***
“This organization.” Clark began cautiously, “How much do they know?”
“I’m not sure.” Sam sighed, “I destroyed the file they had. I destroyed everything they had. From what I could tell Trask and Darryl were the only ones assigned to this ‘Project K’ but I’m not sure either of them were smart enough to actually make a copy of this file.”
“How did you find it?” Clark asked.
“Darryl was trying to get me to do testing on a…a meteorite. It was…eerie. When I was doing my research I found several things I shouldn’t have.” Sam said a little too quickly. “You have to believe me, I would never do anything to hurt my family.”
Clark looked at Sam, trying to make his mind up about the man. He knew Lois’ relationship with Sam had been strained over the years. He also knew he seemed to be making an effort to reconnect with his daughters. If he had been working with the people that had been behind his kidnapping—and he wasn’t a part of the organization anymore—it could help him and Lois bring them down.
He listened to his heartbeat.
Watched his breathing
Met his father-in-law’s gaze.
“I believe you,” He said softly, “but you’re going to have to do a lot more to convince Lois.”
“I know.” Sam nodded. “I’ve made a lot of mistakes.”
“I’ll say,” Clark couldn’t hold back the bitter tone in his voice. There was no love-loss between him and Sam Lane as far as he was concerned. He’d put Lois and Lucy through a lot over the years and by extension their mother. He’d gotten to know Ellen Lane pretty well over the course of his and Lois’ relationship. He’d only met Sam recently after Ellen had forced him to participate in his daughter’s wedding.
He still wasn’t sure if he could trust Sam.
He had been working with an organization that had access to his blood—which meant they’d had access to him. Bureau 39. He’d been working for an organization connected to Bureau 39. How could Sam expect him and Lois to trust him after everything they’d been put through?
“Convince me about what?”
They both turned to see Lois standing in the doorway with her arms crossed over her chest. Clark crossed the room to meet her, “I thought you were supposed to be taking it easy.”
“Hard to do when you keep imagining every worst case scenario.” Lois answered softly before turning to her dad, “What’s going on?”
***
Lois listened calmly, trying to wrap her head around what her father was telling her. She met his gaze uncertainly. She could tell from Clark’s expression he believed him—whether they could trust him—that was an entirely different question. He’d been working with people that had kidnapped, tortured, and brutalized her husband for five years. He claimed he didn’t know who this organization was. He claimed he didn’t have any information on who was behind it.
She just didn’t know if she believed that.
Years of experience had taught her that nothing was ever that simple with her father.
“How am I supposed to
trust a word you say?”
Her father had the decency to look ashamed as he shrugged his shoulders, “Because it’s the truth.”
“If what you’re saying is true, you were working with these people. Creating weapons and experimenting on innocent people…” Lois fumed angrily. “Do you have any idea what they put Clark through? What they put
me through? And you were…working
with them this
entire time! What is
wrong with you??”
“Lois…” Clark placed his hands on her shoulders, running them down her vertebrae in an effort to calm the rage that was festering inside her.
“I didn’t
know!” her father argued once more. “I should have known. You’re right. I should have, but I didn’t. You don’t know these people. You don’t know what they’re capable of. You don’t understand how they operate. No one knows who runs it. No one knows anything. You’re given a job and you do it or you’re replaced…and there is no retirement package if you know what I mean.”
Lois watched her father turn away, pain in his eyes. A small seed of doubt began to morph in her mind, poking holes in her theory of how she couldn’t trust him. He had come to her and told her he knew about Clark. He didn’t have to do that. He had warned her. That had to prove where his loyalties stood, right?
She glanced back at Clark, sharing a look. He believed him. The question was, did she?
***
“Bill, good to see you,” Perry shook his old friend’s hand when he spotted him walking through the crowded dining area of the reception.
“Perry, always a pleasure.” Bill Church shook the editor’s hand.
“What are you doing here? I thought you were still traveling with Barbara.” Perry commented, confused to see Bill Church in Metropolis.
“We, uh,” Bill looked away, motioning for Perry to follow him away from the crowd. Once they had moved to the front of the gazebo where the wait staff was hurriedly cleaning up from the ceremony Bill let his defenses down.
“Something wrong?” Perry asked hesitantly.
“I, uh, Barbara left me last month, Perry.” Bill began hesitantly.
“I’m so sorry.” Perry placed a hand on his friend’s shoulder.
“We, uh, just couldn’t see eye-to-eye on things and it got to a point where neither of us were happy.” Bill explained with a sad expression.
“I’m sorry, Bill.” Perry squeezed his shoulder, “Uh, what are you doing here?”
“I rented a room for the night I’ve got a meeting with some contractors about the new store we’re building on Broad and 5th.” Bill explained, a smile spread across his face at the mention of his store.
“Right,” Perry nodded, recalling the Cost Mart stores Bill owned. “Well, I better get back. It was good seeing you.”
“Beautiful wedding it looks like.” Bill commented. “Friends of yours?”
“Yes,” Perry beamed, “some of my top reporters actually.”
“Finding love is a precious gift. It should be cherished. You never know when it’ll be gone.” Bill smiled warmly at Perry.
There was something about his tone…
Perry heard the squeal of laughter coming from the dance hall where the reception was being held. He turned to see Lucy Lane jumping up and down with the bouquet and a very nervous Jimmy standing behind her.
“Oh, brother…” Perry sighed, heading in to give the young man a few words of advice before he started looking for the nearest exit.
***
Lucy Lane watched her sister and brother-in-law on the dance floor. She wasn’t sure what had transpired earlier, but something was going on. Lois had never been close with their father. After the falling out they had over her college major they’d cut off contact with one another until their mom had forced his hand a few years later. Ellen Lane was not one to sit on the sidelines when it came to the happiness of her daughters.
She’d watched poor Clark endure every grueling test when he and Lois had first started going out. She’d insisted on them both attending Sunday dinners with her and he showed up to every one of them. She’d insisted he show up to every family gathering and be forced to endure the fifty questions from the ‘Joanne’ side of the family. She’d put him through the ringer, determined not to let Lois repeat what she called ‘her mistakes’ in life. After about six months she’d finally ‘approved’ of him and stopped putting him through the third-degree.
Not once in all that time had there been a mention of Lois needing to introduce him to their father or of Lois even talking to Sam Lane. Now, here they were six years later and Lois seemed to be talking to him every few minutes. The look on her sister’s face told her it wasn’t a pleasant conversation she’d walked in on when she found the three of them in one of the empty offices at the hotel.
“Uh, mom wants to know if you’re able to eat.” Lucy recalled saying before the trio had exited the room, returning to the party. No one said a thing. Instead, their father had excused himself and pulled Ellen Lane onto the dance floor—a move she herself had been shocked to see. Lucy had asked the waiter to have the kitchen bring out the bride and groom’s dinner and allowed herself to be pulled out on the dance floor with Jimmy.
A few songs later the cake was being wheeled out. She’d watched with amusement as the couple had cut the cake. Of course, neither one could go without teasing one another. Lois had taken a pinch of frosting and put it on Clark’s nose. A gesture he’d returned by kissing her and allowing the frosting to get on her cheek.
Nothing seemed out of the ordinary between them. They were still the loving couple they’d always been. There was just something …
different. She couldn’t put her finger on it.
“I’ve been told to get you on the front line.”
Lucy turned to see Cat Grant standing behind her, pushing her toward the crowd of women that were waiting impatiently for Lois to toss the bouquet. She caught her sister’s impish grin as she gave a teasing toss, acting like she’d thrown it but still holding the bouquet. It took most of the women a few minutes to realize there was no bouquet yet. When Lois finally did toss the bouquet, there were only a few undeterred women fighting for it. Lucy grinned as she reached up for the white and red roses, allowing them to land perfectly in her hand.
Lois gave her a wink and laughed when there was an uproar of disappointed women in the crowd. Lucy let out a squeal of laughter, excited about catching the bouquet. She turned behind her to see her nervous boyfriend looking at her as if she’d grown a third eye.
“Jimmy!” She leaned over to kiss him. “Are you having fun?”
“Yeah,” He gave her a good natured smile. “A…a…a blast.”
“I think they’re going to do the garter toss next.” She whispered to him with a wink, pushing him toward the crowd that had begun to form around her sister and Clark.
Lucy moved to the other side of the room so she could get a better view of the event. Lois was sitting in one of the dining chairs in the middle of the room with her legs crossed. Clark was kneeling in front of her. His hands moved under Lois’ dress.
Someone from the crowd shouted out, “Come on, Kent, let’s see some leg!”
Lucy rolled her eyes at the comment. She saw a scowl cross Clark’s face for a split-second before he replaced it with an impish grin. He leaned in to kiss Lois, pulling out a white and blue garter from beneath the skirt of Lois’ gown.
There were some other shouts from the crowd, “Oh, come on!”
“Break it up! Save some for the honeymoon!”
Lucy laughed at that last remark, recalling her conversation with Lois earlier and what she’s walked in on in the hotel room Lois had been ‘resting’ in. It wasn’t something new for her. She’d found herself walking in rooms at the worst possible time. From the hospital after Lois had been attacked - when she’d caught Lois kissing ‘her friend’ to the time she caught the two of them in Lois’ bedroom. It had been a lesson in life to
always knock on every door before entering for fear she’d get another unwanted visual of her sister’s love-life.
A scuffle from the crowd caught her attention and she giggled, seeing Jimmy in the middle of the crowd holding the satin garter Clark had just tossed. Three other guys lunging toward him and Jimmy began running toward the dining hall.
She turned back toward Lois and Clark who were now standing in the corner of the dance floor laughing at Jimmy as he made his way toward her with two guys behind him. One of them she recognized as ‘Ralph’ and the other she wasn’t familiar with.
“Here you go!” Jimmy tossed the garter toward her and she caught it just as Jimmy ducked behind her yelling, “
Safe!”Lucy leaned in to kiss Jimmy on the cheek.
Ralph and the other guy that had been chasing him stopped. “Aw, man,”
Lucy laughed and Jimmy looked at her with a scowl. “How come you didn’t mention I was going to get chased?”
“I thought it’d be funnier to see what would happen. How’d you know
I was ‘safe’?” She asked, bumping his hip lightly.
“I figured they wouldn’t dare try to take anything from the sister of the bride.” Jimmy grinned, leaning in to kiss her.
“Yeah, I might have to arrest ‘em.” Lucy grinned back at him.
“You having a good time?” He asked, wrapping an arm around her shoulders.
Lucy smiled as the band started to pick up again. She spotted her sister on the dance floor with Clark and smiled. It was so good to see her so happy again. Knowing how much she’d been through to get to this point and seeing the smiles on her sister and brother-in-law’s faces made her heart soar. She hadn’t seen Lois smile that big since Jamie.
“Yeah, I am.” Lucy sighed happily.
“So, you caught the bouquet and…” Jimmy cleared his throat nervously. “I caught the garter.” He looked away then turned his head back, peeking back at her, “So…”
“So, what?” Lucy asked.
“We’ve only been dating six months.” Jimmy pointed out.
“I know.” Lucy laughed. “Jimmy, relax. I’m not fishing for a proposal. That’s not even what catching the garter means.”
“It’s not?” Jimmy asked, confused.
“No,” Lucy shook her head, “It’s supposed to be for good luck.”
“Good luck.” Jimmy said with a smile. “I like that.”
“Good.” Lucy looped her arm through his, guiding him toward the dance floor. “Why don’t you take some of that good luck and dance with me?”
***
“How are you doing?” Clark asked, wrapping his arms around Lois as they swayed to the music.
“Good.” Lois murmured, resting her head against his chest. “How are you?”
For the moment he felt relieved after their conversation with Sam. He wasn’t entirely sure how Lois felt about the situation but he felt like her father was being genuine with them. He had come to Lois and told her what he knew. That in itself had proven to him that his motives were pure. They had agreed to begin looking into the organization when they returned.
He and Lois had gone back and forth on the issue and despite the possibility of this organization possibly knowing his secret they both felt there wasn’t anything they could do now that would change in ten days when they returned. Robbing his pregnant wife of a well-deserved vacation and honeymoon wasn’t something he looked forward to either.
He looked down at her small frame pressed against him as they swayed together. Her hand rested on his chest as he ran his hands up her back, feeling her sigh against him. Right now he wanted nothing more than to take her home and ravage her. Ever since he’d felt the lace garter under her dress his imagination continued to tease him with images of his wife in every lace garment he could imagine.
“I’m fine.” He whispered, leaning in to whisper in her ear, “
Very motivated for this party to die down so I can take you home and finish what we started earlier.” He wiggled his eyebrows at her.
Lois laughed, “I was not referring to
that, Mr. Kent.” She lowered her voice a few octaves, “We could always rent a room for the night if you’re that impatient.”
He blanched at that thought. It was tempting but he knew it would be hard to motivate themselves to leave if they didn’t fly to Italy tonight like they’d planned. “One night might turn into ten. Then we’d miss the entire trip we planned. Have to cancel hotels, tours, dinners...” He pointed out, running his palms up her back, resting on the edge of the top button to her dress. “I really don’t like this dress. Looks like it is way too complicated to take off.”
Lois laughed, “Really? I love it. Plus, it hides the pregnancy well.” She looped her arms around his neck as she whispered, “I can’t believe how fast I’m showing this time around. I didn’t get all these curves till at least the end of the second trimester with Jamie.”
“I love your curves.” Clark whispered, running his hand down her side, tracing the outline of her hip to prove his point.
“You’re biased.” She whispered back.
“For the rest of my life.” He promised, leaning in to kiss her.
***
Bill Church sat in the dark office, staring at the familiar surroundings. Everything had been set. His men on the ground had been following Darryl for weeks before he disappeared without a trace. The last place he'd been seen was with Dr. Lane. Unfortunately, his investigation into the situation had proven fruitless.
“Mr. Church!” Martin Snell jumped, looking around the empty office to find Bill Church sitting at his desk. “What are you doing here?”
“We’ve lost contact with Darryl,” Bill said grimly, pulling out a box of white pills as he spoke. "Do you see this pill, Martin?" Martin Snell nodded and Bill Church continued. "High blood pressure. My doctor says, get it under control. Less stress in your life. Delegate." He narrowed his eyes at Snell, "I'm delegating, Martin, but my blood pressure isn't going down."
"I'll see what I can find out." Snell promised.
"You do that." Bill smiled with a sinister stare, "I don't want to have him trying to jump ship until I've had a chance to properly
educate him on Intergang's
retirement package."
"I'll get right on it, Mr. Church." Snell nodded.
"You do that, Martin." Bill stood up, walking toward the door, "Otherwise, the next person to
retire will be you."
***
Lois sighed happily, taking a seat on the couch as she massaged her feet. She may have overdone it with the dancing tonight but she’d had a lot of fun.
“Okay, patrol has been done.” Clark landed in the living room of their apartment five minuts after he’d just vacated the spot. He made his way toward the bedroom and she heard him moving at super-speed, “All packed for the Honeymoon.”
“Did you remember to get extra film?” Lois asked, peeking over her shoulder at him.
“Right here.” He patted the duffle bag in his hand. In his other hand were the two large suitcases. He walked toward her with a smile, “Now, you just have to get changed and then we’ll be ready to go.”
“No, I’ll change when we get there.” She responded, standing up, smoothing the sides of her dress.
“You sure?” He asked, setting the suitcases down. “You might get…
uncomfortable.” His eyes did a little dance as they moved up and down her body.
She grinned to herself. She knew it was driving Clark crazy not being able to pick up where they’d left off earlier. From the look on his face it didn’t look like flying to Italy was at the top of his priorities either. “No cancelling reservations….remember?”
She ran a hand down the front of his spandex suit, leaning in to kiss him and he groaned against her lips, “You’re doing that on purpose.”
Her breath caught in her throat when she felt his lips move down the front of her throat. “Oh, Clark,” she murmured, slipping her arms around his neck.
“Eight hours.” He murmured against her throat as his teeth grazed against the sensitive flesh. “No more lists or caterers…”
“Or family interrupting every two seconds.” Lois reminded him. Every time they’d come close to leaving someone else showed up to talk to them. Relatives from both sides of their families seemed intent on prolonging the reception and delaying the start of their honeymoon.
She was certain had she picked out a dress that was easier to take off Clark would have already had her out of it and in the bedroom. That had been the point. They wanted to take advantage of the time off and see things they hadn’t seen –well, she hadn’t seen. He’d already traveled all over the world in-between high school and college. It was that traveling that had gotten him in the same class as her at Met U and how they’d met in the first place.
“I think we should just skip the family reunions this year.” He murmured against her lips. “We’ve been updated on everyone’s stories and ailments for the year.” He began walking her back toward the bedroom, running his hands up and down her side. “I can think of many other things I’d rather be doing this Summer…and right now.” His hand found the top ribbon that was wrapped around the satin buttons of her gown. “How do you get this thing off?”
“I’ll tell you after we check-in.” She grinned against him.
“So not fair.” He groaned.
“Maybe, but it is our wedding night.” She whispered, tightening her arms around his neck, “No need to do everything at super-speed, Superman.”
He smirked at the mention of his alter-ego’s name and leaned in to kiss her. “I love you, Lois,” he whispered, tracing the outline of her face with his thumb.
“I love you, Clark,” She sighed happily, “I can’t believe we’re finally married.”
He let out a long sigh, “You’re really not going to change?”
“Nope.” She grinned back at him. “The sooner we get there the sooner we…” She was cut off by his mouth capturing hers mid-sentence and him scooping her up in his arms. She felt a cool breeze brush against her and she looked down to see Metropolis becoming smaller and smaller as Clark flew her into the night sky.
“Hold on.” He whispered. A few minutes later they crossed over the Atlantic Ocean and were on their way to Italy to begin their honeymoon.
***
Eighteen minutes. It had been eighteen minutes of torture, flying himself and Lois to Italy. When they’d arrived back at the apartment he’d tried to convince her to change instead of continuing to torture him with the thoughts of lace and satin he’d felt on his blind exploration up her dress during the reception.
‘Wife,’ he couldn’t help but smile as the word came to the forefront of his mind. He was carrying his wife into their hotel room. It had taken everything in him not to sneak a peek under her dress all evening. He knew if he did he’d have been a goner. Whatever she was wearing underneath the massive collection of satin and tulle someone liked to call a wedding gown he was certain it would be coming off the minute he got her out of that dress.
Married. They were
finally married.
He wanted to take advantage of every second he could of uninterrupted time with his wife. There were no deadlines. There were no stories being chased. There was no Jimmy or Perry or Lucy to interrupt them. It was just him and Lois—finally together as man and wife—just as it should have been years ago.
The bellboy followed them into the spacious hotel room with a cart with their luggage. Clark set Lois down, wrapping his arms around her from behind as he looked around. She walked him toward the wall to wall windows in the bedroom, looking out at the breathtaking view of the city. The light grey curtains were pulled apart on both sides, letting the light in. Closing those would be first on the agenda. The bathroom was right across from the bedroom with a large garden tub and double sinks. It was perfect.
“It’s beautiful.” Lois breathed, leaning back against him.
“You’re beautiful.” He whispered in her ear, his hands reached down to cover hers as they rested against her growing abdomen.
“Milan has the most beautiful city.” The bellboy explained in a thick Italian accent. He reached for their bags to help them unpack.
“No, no,” Clark stopped him, moving toward the bags the bellboy had brought it. “We’ll take it from here.”
“Non vuoi che mi sfogo?” He asked confused.
“No,” Clark shook his head, pulling out a few bills from the money he’d had converted to lira. “We’re fine,” He grabbed the bags from the man before he could argue.
“Io vedo.” He nodded his recognition. “I see.” He repeated in English.
He heard Lois laugh from behind him when the bellboy rushed out of the room, closing the door behind him. Clark followed, making sure to lock the door and put a
‘Non disturbare’ sign on the door. He wasn’t taking any chances tonight.
He turned around to see Lois, pulling the curtains closed. “You read my mind.” He said, closing the distance between them. His hands rested on her shoulders and he placed a kiss on her neck. “Now, where were we?” He turned her in his arms to face him.
She grinned up at him, fingering the collar of his dress shirt, “I think we were right…”
***
“An LNN Special Report…” The announcer’s voice filled the newsroom as Brock Thomas began speaking, “This is Brock Thomas with LNN. Officials found an unidentified body in Hobb’s Bay this morning. Forensics is on the scene, and an investigation is underway but –”
Sam Lane clicked the television off, looking back at his office filled with files on everything he’d been able to obtain from the ‘organization’ before ghosting himself out completely. It appeared Mr. Darryl had been taken care of. Would he be next?
TBC…
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