Rules of Trust
Folc4evernaday
Chapter 3
A/N: Yes, so I've finished writing this one and it'll be seven chapters, not eight as I'd anticipated. Hope everyone enjoys.
***
Lois hung up the phone with Detective Wolf, turning toward Clark’s desk. He was finishing up a call of his own, cradling the phone in his ear with an annoyed expression. She bit her lip, allowing her eyes to wander over his broad shoulders, taking note of how the muscles rippled from beneath the crisp cotton of his dress shirt as he moved.
One date and they were already having a hard time focusing on work…well she was anyway. All she could think about right now was how she wanted to pick back up where they’d left off in the conference room before Jimmy had so rudely interrupted to tell them Detective Wolf had called.
Why did that detective choose that moment of all times to call and check in on the case? She’d given her statement and Detective Wolf had called to introduce himself and find out if she remembered anything else since this morning. At least the phone call hadn’t been a total waste. She’d been able to find out that the bullets used matched up with the magazine of a Tommy Gun, not something that would typically be used nowadays. So there was a clue.
She glanced over at Clark who was reaching for a message pad on the other side of his desk. She admired the way the cotton of his trousers stretched across his backside.
‘Bad thoughts.’ Dianne and Rachel walked by, blocking her view and she quickly turned her attention back to her computer which she still hadn't booted up yet. She hit the power button, catching the look Dianne gave her when she walked by. Had she been that obvious?
She fought to suppress the smile threatening to spread across her face. She was in trouble. One date and she was already acting moony-eyed and unable to concentrate. Oh, but the teasing and the flirting and the kissing….
He was really,
really good at the kissing. She bit the inside of her lower lip, fighting the urge to look back over at him. What was wrong with her? She’d gone from being angry and hurt to cautiously trusting in less than twelve hours. This morning she couldn’t seem to wipe the smile off her face, recalling her and Clark’s date last night and his revelation. No more hiding how they felt about one another. No more secrets.
Yes, there were still a lot of challenges they had to face with trying to merge her feelings for Superman and Clark. She’d spent a year seeing the two men as separate and combining the memories and how she viewed each of them into one would take time. It was nice seeing the walls come down with him. He had promised her no more secrets. She’d woken up to find a note explaining his absence and a bag of incredible pastries with a single rose. He was certainly pouring on the charm and she was enjoying every second of it.
Recalling the teasing from earlier, she let the smile spread across her face. Jimmy probably suspected something. Who knew how long he’d been standing there. She didn’t think he’d say anything but still… She couldn’t even be in the same room as Clark without fighting the urge to kiss him…and failing miserably. How did she seriously think she’d be able to keep their budding romance under wraps?
“Well, remind me never to make Bobby mad,” Clark said, walking toward her after hanging up the phone.
“Bobby?” Lois asked confused as she tried to pull her mind back to the present. “Since when does he offer up information without payment?”
“He’s still charging but he did say he’d take half if we can stop the guys that tore up his favorite all-you-can-eat buffet,” Clark explained taking a seat at her desk.
“Ah, food is involved.” Lois smiled back at him, “That explains it.”
“I told him we’d meet him in the usual spot,” Clark said, returning her smile with one of his own.
“Why would someone tear up a buffet?” Lois asked confused.
“I don’t know. The reason the owner was given was pretty strange. A man and a woman…dressed in clothing from a
bad gangster movie…as Bobby described them…came in and demanded moonshine.”
“Moonshine?” Lois asked quizzically.
“Well, apparently back in the day Al’s Buffet used to be a hot spot for illegal gambling and bootleg liquor,” Clark explained.
“They’re all coming out of the woodwork.” She mused, shaking her head. “Any thoughts on who might behind this from…?” she did a flying motion with her hand.
He grinned, shaking his head, “No, from what I hear he’s just as baffled as the rest of us. There was a robbery last night he helped out at. A private gun collector was cleaned out of his entire collection of historic weapons from some of the most notorious gangsters of the 1920’s.”
“Let me guess,” Lois began. “The robber was dressed by a gangster too.”
“Bingo.” Clark nodded. “Not sure what we’re dealing with here but somebody’s taking their session of ‘Masterpiece Theater’ a little too far in my opinion.”
“Hey guys,” Jimmy walked up to them holding a file, “here’s that list you wanted of everyone in Metropolis that could have sold, rented, or bought the costumes and makeup for our Bonnie and Clyde.”
“Thanks Jimmy,” Clark said, taking the file from him. Jimmy’s smiled, nodding to Clark and then turned to leave.
“What was that about?” Lois asked,watching Jimmy continue to watch them as Clark guided her toward the elevator.
“He, uh, knows,” Clark whispered, leaning over to press the call button as he spoke.
Lois did her best not to react. “Knows?”
Knows what? That Clark is Superman?
A thousand thoughts ran through her mind as Clark guided her onto the empty elevator. She waited for the elevator doors to close before she turned on him, “What exactly does Jimmy know? Superman? Did you tell him?”
“No, of course not!” Clark shook his head adamantly.
“Then what did you…?”
“The conference room.” Clark reminded her.
Recognition washed over her face, recalling the look on his face when Jimmy had almost caught them kissing. “Did he see us?”
Clark rubbed his cheek. “It was hard to deny anything after I had to wipe your lipstick off of me.”
Lois did her best to suppress a giggle as the mental image of Clark wiping her lipstick off of him himself popped in her head as they stepped off of the elevator and into the lobby. “Which means half the newsroom probably knows by now.”
“He said he wouldn’t say anything,” Clark said, leaning in to whisper in her ear.
“Yeah, right,” Lois said, looking around the lobby. She noticed the group of reporters by Joe’s newsstand eying her and Clark under the cover of reading their magazines and newspapers. “So, you think Bobby will have any info on our Bonnie and Clyde?” They were still staring. She tucked a hair behind her ear, trying to ignore the looks.
“I don’t know,” Clark said, stopping at the coffee cart to fix a to-go coffee. “The police stopped carrying that kind of firepower years ago thanks to the gun laws. Whoever cleaned the collector out last night had to…” He stopped mid-sentence, getting the all familiar look on his face.
“Had to what?” she prompted.
He looked around the semi-crowded lobby and whispered, “Lois? I’ve got to go.”
“Go?” she asked, uncertain what he was referring to.
His eyes looked toward the door then back to her before drawing an invisible ‘s’ in the air.
Realization dawned on her and she smiled. “Oh, well, then I guess you should….” She still had a lot to get used to as far as merging the two identities in her head. It was so obvious. Clark was always the one that could find Superman for her when they needed to talk to him. How had she missed it for so long?
“What?” he asked, readjusting his glasses nervously under her gaze.
“Nothing,” She said, “I guess, it just takes a little getting used to.”
His eyes lit up in recognition and he smiled, “Ah.”
“So, I guess you should get going,” She said softly, looking toward the door.
He gave her a warm smile, “I guess so.” An amused look crossed his face.
“What?” she asked, self-consciously.
“Nothing,” He mused softly. “It’s just kinda nice having you know where I’m going.”
“Yeah?” she grinned back at him, looking around the semi-crowded lobby. “Me too.” She whispered, fighting the urge to touch him. From the looks she was getting from Joe at the newsstand it was obvious the flirtatious looks she and Clark were exchanging weren’t going unnoticed.
“I think our secret’s out.” He shifted his eyebrows toward Joe and the small crowd of reporters that were trying to pretend to be reading their magazines while watching them.
“Can’t ever keep a secret around here,” Lois mused, eying the small crowd with their eyes glued on her and Clark.
“I should go.” He motioned toward the door.
“Right.” She nodded, recalling their earlier conversation.
“Okay,” he smiled at her before heading toward the door to leave.
She let out an inward sigh, watching him leave.
‘Yep, big trouble.’***
After stopping an attempted carjacking on Fourth and turning the robbers over to the police, Clark headed toward Mario’s to pick up Bobby Bigmouth’s favorite selection of pasta and Italian dishes. He and Lois were supposed to be meeting Bobby at their usual place.
It was getting harder and harder to keep his Superman persona intact while at rescues. He had to suppress his grin as he helped deliver criminals to the police and rescued traumatized victims because all he could think about was Lois. He wasn’t sure what to expect this morning. Lois had been adamant about setting the rules of keeping their relationship quiet in the office. Given her history with Claude, he understood why she didn’t want it advertised that they were seeing one another. There was still a lot to work through.
He knew it was going to be hard after their date last night to act normal, considering he’d shared his secret with her. But he hadn’t anticipated how hard it would be. Just being around her was proving to be problematic. He couldn’t seem to hide his grin when he saw her this morning. Despite being caught by Jimmy, he’d enjoyed every second of the teasing from her this morning when she’d been trying to calm him down.
She said he needed to trust her to handle the situation herself. It wasn’t something he was used to. He wanted to protect her. He wanted to keep her safe. He hated that she’d been in danger this morning and he hadn’t been there to protect her.
He had found himself rescuing her from every impossible situation that could be concocted over the past year. He’d seen her call for help countless times, but today she hadn’t called for him. Her reasoning for not calling him made sense….somewhat.
If he had been on the other side of the world he wouldn’t have heard her. If she had yelled for help she could have drawn attention to herself and been shot. Under the circumstances, he could see why she hadn’t called him, but not being able to protect her scared him.
***
“Is that everything?” Lois asked, looking at the large bag of takeout Clark had placed on the middle console of her Jeep. She was starving. Her stomach had been in knots all morning and she’d only gotten half a croissant eaten before Jimmy had helped himself to the other two.
“A variety selection from Mario’s. Just like Bobby likes,” Clark said, buckling his seatbelt as she pulled out of the parking lot and headed toward the alley where Bobby left a note to meet them at.
“I still don’t know why Bobby wanted to change locations.” Lois sighed, putting the Jeep into park. She looked over at Clark before turning back to the food. It was really hard being in such close proximity with him. Accidentally letting Bobby in on their budding relationship would only fuel the rumor mill more. So far the only one that knew anything for sure was Jimmy and if he knew what was good for him it would stay that way.
“You know how skittish he gets,” Clark reasoned aloud.
She wanted to ask him how the rescue went but with Bobby Bigmouth being anywhere nearby she knew that wasn’t a good idea. Instead she decided to distract herself with her stomach. The pasta smelled divine. Clark always knew where to find the best food. “I’m starving,” Lois commented, glancing at the bag on the console. “That ravioli smells great.”
“We’ll get some lunch after,” Clark said, pulling the bag away from her.
Lunch? She smiled at the prospect of food. Would it be weird eating out somewhere together? Sharing a meal together? They’d done it hundreds of times before but this was different.
Lois looked around, “Where is Bobby?” She leaned back toward the bag, “If he doesn’t show up soon I’m going to start in on that ravioli.”
“You will not,” He admonished, pulling the bag back. “I’m sure he’ll show up soon.”
“I hope so,” Lois whined. “I’m giving it five more minutes. If he doesn’t show up by then I cannot be held responsible for my actions.”
Clark chuckled, reaching over for her hand, “You can’t take Bobby’s food, Lois.”
“I know, but it smells so good,” She complained.
“I promise to feed you soon,” He said with a grin.
Lois gave him a weak smile, uncertain if the butterflies in her stomach were from her hunger or the broad grin he’d just offered her.
“Really? What are we having?” Bobby poked his head up from the backseat of her Jeep.
Lois jumped back startled, “Bobby! How did you get back here???”
“Hi Bobby,” Clark said unfazed.
“Trade secret,” Bobby commented with a shrug, reaching for the bag in Clark’s lap.
“And how dare you eavesdrop on our private conversation,” Lois added with a scowl.
“I can’t help it. I’m a snitch,” Bobby said, sifting through the bag. “What'd you bring me?”
“A wide variety of culinary delights as always,” Lois said flatly.
“Mario’s,” Clark supplied, handing Bobby the other bag.
“Hey, do I detect an attitude? You know, I don't have to snitch for you. There's a reporter at The Star who'd give me my own chef if I started working for them,” Bobby said, taking a bite of his breadstick.
“Do that and you’ll never get any more authentic Swiss chocolates again,” Lois retorted.
“I do love those Swiss chocolates,” Bobby admitted with a sigh. “Okay, point taken.”
“Can we get down to business now?” Lois asked annoyed. “Some of us haven’t eaten very much today and would like to get some lunch before the turn of the century.”
“Ah, yes, the lunch date.” Bobby nodded with a knowing grin. Lois shot him a glare and Clark suppressed a chuckle. Bobby shrugged, “I forgot. Keeping it quiet. Very happy for you two.”
“Bobby, we’re not here to talk about…” Clark began but Bobby cut him off.
“I want you to know a lot of people are pulling for this to work out,” Bobby added taking another bite of his breadstick.
“What people?” Lois asked aghast.
“What you think it’s some big secret Clark here’s been mooning over you?” Bobby asked with a knowing grin.
“Bobby, what were you able to find out about these gangster wannabes?” Clark interrupted.
“Ah, don’t want to talk about it, huh?” Bobby gave them a knowing grin. “That’s fine. Take your time. I love being in love. There’s no feeling like it in the world.” He took another bite of his breadstick, “Except maybe a really full stomach.”
“Bobby! The story,” Lois prompted again with a glare.
“Okay, calm down,” Bobby said, motioning with his hands for her to settle down. “Word on the street is they aren’t wannabes. They’re an experiment gone bad.”
“Experiment?” Lois asked, her curiosity was piqued.
“Some sort of science fiction thing going on. I’ve got some feelers out to find out more on whose experiment. Give me a day or two and I should have some more for you,” Bobby explained. "I'll call you when I have something concrete for you. Bring the chocolates next time.”
“No problem.” Clark nodded as Bobby opened the backdoor to get out. “Oh, and Bobby?”
“I’m not going to say anything,” Bobby said with a grin. “Good luck.”
The door slammed shut and Clark looked over at her with a smile. “What do you think he meant by experiment?”
“I don’t know, but I can’t think on an empty stomach.” Lois shot him a pleading look.
Clark smiled, pointing to a parking spot across the street. “Park over there next to Rosie’s. I’ll fly us to go get something to eat.”
“Fly us?” Lois echoed, pulling into the empty parking place Clark had pointed to.
“It’ll only take a few minutes.” He shrugged, stepping out of the Jeep.
“Flying to lunch,” She muttered to herself. “Why not?”
She locked the door and allowed Clark to guide her down a narrow alleyway behind Rosie’s and away from peering eyes. He scanned the area to make sure no one was around before disappearing into a red and blue blur before her eyes. A second later she stood face to face with Superman.
She tried her best not to allow her jaw to drop from the surprise of seeing him change into Superman for the first time. “Wow…”
He grinned, scooping her up in his arms. “Come on, I know this great pizzeria…”
***
“Better?” Clark asked after Lois finished the last bite of her slice of pizza.
Lois nodded with a satisfied sigh, looking over at him a smile. “I can honestly say when I was complaining about my growling stomach earlier I wasn’t expecting to be picking up pizza in another zip code.”
He smiled back at her with a broad grin. “Bartoli’s is the best.” He’d flown them out to Chicago to his favorite pizzeria. It had been incredible flying with her and knowing he didn’t have to hide anything from her anymore.
“So, do you do this often? Fly off to random places to try the different cuisine?” she asked, reaching for another slice of pizza from the pan.
“Sometimes,” He said. “I spent a year after college traveling. Seeing the world and getting a taste for what cuisines I liked and which ones I didn’t like.”
“So the Chinese from the other night was from China I take it?” Lois prompted with a grin. “No wonder I couldn’t ever find the place in New Troy.”
“Summer Palace,” he shrugged, catching her gaze. “Local place in Beijing I found when I was traveling.”
“So do you get jetlag from sprinting all over the place or are you invulnerable to that too?” she teased, tearing apart her breadstick to take a bite.
“No jet lag,” He chuckled.
“So not fair,” She muttered with a smile.
“Sorry.” He offered her a smile. “Can’t help it.”
Lois smiled, looking down at her plate before looking up at him shyly, “This is weird, isn’t it?”
“What is?” he asked, not following what she was referring to.
“This.” She motioned between the two of them. “I mean, in less than twenty-four hours we’ve gone from being completely….This is why they say not to date your co-workers. It makes everything so complicated and…”
Clark relaxed, feeling a weight lift off his shoulders as she dove into babble-mode, “Lois,” he interrupted, taking her right hand in his to calm her down.
“I’m babbling again, aren’t I?” she asked, looking up at him.
He chuckled, watching her tuck a stray strand of hair behind her ear self-consciously. “Just a little bit,” He said, running his thumb over the knuckles of her hand.
“Things are different,” She said softly.
“I know,” He said, leaning closer to her. “That’s why we said we were taking things…slow,” He reminded her.
“A lot of good that did us.” Lois rolled her eyes. “Jimmy knows. Most of the people in the lobby that were staring at us probably suspect something. Then there’s Bobby,” Lois listed off as she ticked each point off on her fingers.
“Yeah, but Jimmy said he wouldn’t say anything. He’s the only one that knows for sure.” He wiggled his eyebrows at her.
Lois gave him a half-smile, “I hope you’re right. I just really don’t want to deal with another Elvis and Priscilla yarn from Perry or overhearing everyone’s opinion on our relationship when we’re still trying to figure everything out.”
“Perry does like his Elvis stories.” Clark grinned.
“So
many Elvis stories,” Lois agreed with a sigh.
“He cares….with Elvis yarns.” He chuckled.
“I know he does,” She whispered softly. “Jimmy does too in his own way.”
“He means well,” Clark said with a light smile.
“Yeah, I suppose,” She said softly, taking another bite of her pizza.
There was something about her tone. He looked over at her in concern, “Something wrong?”
“No,” she smiled at him, “So, what do you think is up with these wannabe gangsters? You gotta admit, it is a pretty genius way to not get caught. Dressing up like dead criminals. Dangerous talent for a criminal to have,” Lois commented, tearing off a piece of her breadstick. “Who all did Jimmy have on that list?”
“He’s got makeup artists, a few lookalike agencies, and a Halloween costume store,” Clark read off the list.
“Lookalike agencies?” Lois echoed in disbelief. “I don’t even want to know.”
“I guess if you’ve got the talent to look like anyone…” Clark shrugged.
“Well, at least this group of lookalikes isn’t using their talent to assassinate people,” Lois said with a frown.
“Sebastian Finn is in prison,” He reminded her gently, taking her hand in his.
She gave him a half-smile, “I know.” She turned to look around the semi-crowded restaurant and leaned into him, pressing her lips to his for a moment and pulling away with a smile.
“What was that for?” he asked.
She shrugged, moving her hands up his shoulders as she fingered the fabric of his jacket, “Just for being…you.” His hand moved to cup her cheek and she leaned into him once more, brushing her lips against his once more. She pulled away and smiled. “I think I could get used to this whole not having lunch in Metropolis thing.”
“Being able to fly anywhere has its advantages.” He grinned at her.
“I can imagine.” She smiled back at him. “Must be nice to be able to fly off whenever you want.”
“If you’re up to it maybe we could get dinner in Heraklion. There’s a great place near the gulf.”
“Heraklion?” she echoed.
“Greece,” He supplied with a smile.
“I’ve never had Greek food before.”
“You’ll love it. Trust me.” He grinned.
“Okay,” she lightly tapped her fingers on the table. “Greece it is.”
“It’s a date.” His face broke out into a broad smile, meeting her gaze. He really wanted to kiss her. He wanted to do nothing but kiss her every second of every day for the rest of his life. It was an urge... An urge he was fighting with all his might. He was trying to take things slowly with her and rebuild her trust in him.
“So, I guess we should probably head back,” She said softly, looking at the empty pizza pan in front of them.
“Yeah,” He smiled, watching as she picked up the list from the table they’d been reading earlier.
“How many lookalike agencies
are there?” she asked, scanning the list.
“Thirteen that carry professional costumes,” Clark leaned over her shoulder and read from the list.
“Oh, brother, this is going to be one of
those investigations isn’t it?” she groaned.
“First one on the list is ‘Ralph’s Talent Network,’” Clark read off.
Lois rolled her eyes, “Come on, let’s get this over with. The sooner we bag these clowns the better.”
***
TBC...
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