Clark met Bobbie at Mike’s Diner for lunch the following Wednesday, and he was nervous. He loved Bobbie. He was sure she loved him. He was as certain as he could be that Lois wouldn’t object to their relationship. In fact, he rather thought she’d cheer him on.
It was Glen who bothered him. And how he might feel about Clark horning in on his girl.
He knew his worries about Glen were ridiculous. As much as he’d loved Lois, his relationship with her was in the past. Bobbie’s relationship with Glen was in the past. What he and Bobbie were working on now was a future that conjoined them forever.
After they ordered, Bobbie turned her warm smile to him and asked, “Do you want to talk about it?”
He blinked. “Talk about what?”
“About whatever it is that’s bugging you.” She put her hand on his and clasped it gently. “I know you well enough by now to tell.”
He frowned and looked away for a moment, then sighed. “Yeah. I’m kinda wondering if you think – and please don’t misunderstand me, okay? I don’t doubt you in the tiniest little bit. This isn’t about you at all. It’s about me.”
“What I think about you? Is that what you’re asking? I would’ve thought it was pretty obvious by now.”
He turned back and forced a brief smile. “It is. It is blatantly and openly obvious. And let me preface this by saying that I think if Lois could tell me how she feels about you and me, I think she’d stand up and applaud me for daring to love someone as special as you are.”
“Thank you, kind sir.”
“You’re more than welcome. Anyway, what I’m trying not to say, I guess, is that I’m not sure Glen would feel the same way about me. About me being with you, that is.”
Bobbie tilted her head but didn’t speak. “Yeah,” Clark breathed out. “I sometimes get the idea that he’d look at you, look at me, and then say, ‘A reporter, Bobbie? Can’t you do any better than that?’”
She chuckled and squeezed his hand. “I’m going to try out something on you, okay? Something new to me – to us.”
“In public?”
She chortled and shook her head. “No nuptials before the wedding, okay?”
“I thought nuptials were the wedding.”
“Drat. I guess I’m in for a disappointment.”
“I’ll try not to let that happen. Anyway, what new thing do you want to try out?”
She squeezed his hand again and softly said, “Darling.”
He sucked in a breath and squeezed her hand back. “Uh. Yeah.”
“Do you like it?”
“I like it a lot. Much better than ‘Clark-if-you-want-to’ or just ‘Kent!’”
Bobbie chuckled. “You don’t have to pick a pet name for me unless you want to.” She tilted her head to one side so that her hair fell across one side of her face and almost whispered, “Do you want to?”
He took a breath, then pressed his lips together. “I don’t know. Can I think about it and get back to you?”
“Of course, you doofus. Just don’t make it too cutsie.”
“So ‘Angel of the morning’ is out?”
She shook her head and laughed with him, then said, “Back to Glen. I seriously doubt he’d say anything that dismissive, even if he didn’t know – you know.”
He knew she was referencing Superman. He nodded. “You really think not?”
She looked at their joined hands and put her other hand atop them. “I wasn’t going to tell you about this, but now I think I should.” She looked up at him. “I had a dream the other night after our Big Confession. Glen and Lois were both in it. Both of them smiled and told me to keep doing the right thing.” She grinned at him sideways. “And dream Lois told me you tasted good.”
He snorted. “That does sound like Lois.” He heard someone clear his throat, so he looked up to see their smiling waiter holding a tray with their drinks and salads. Their hands separated and left the table. “Sorry, Carl. And thanks.”
Carl deftly laid the plates down and set the drinks on the table. “No problem, Mr. Kent. It’s just that I have other tables to see about.”
Bobbie smiled at Carl. “You see about the other tables and we’ll make room for the main course.”
Carl nodded. “You’ll love it. Mike’s preparing the sea bass himself. Said he’s glad two of his favorite customers are back in the right restaurant.”
Bobbie picked up a fork. “We are, too. See you again in a few.”
They both attacked their salads. A comfortable quiet covered them, broken only by eating noises. Clark and Bobbie shared smiles between bites but didn’t speak.
Bobbie put her fork in her empty salad bowl and exhaled. “Excellent, as always.”
“I agree. What do you want to talk about while we wait for the fish?”
“I’ve been jotting down ideas about the wedding. You know, when, where, who attends and how many, who officiates, how many attendants, that sort of thing. Oh! And we still have to meet each other’s actual parents! I don’t want to wear an engagement ring until we all get to know one other.”
He nodded. “I understand.” He smiled. “I don’t believe I’ve ever heard of a couple who introduced each significant other to their previous loves’ parents first.”
“It’s working out okay, though, don’t you think?”
“As long as I meet your mother before too much longer.”
She grinned. “And I get to meet your mom and dad soon, too.”
He grinned back. “What about this weekend? Either Saturday or Sunday lunch?”
Her face scrunched in thought for a moment, then she nodded. “I’m good with that, as long as Bill doesn’t have something for me. I’ll check with him and let you know.”
“Great! If you don’t mind flying Superman Budget Air, I’ll take you out there myself.”
“Hmm. Haven’t flown with Superman before. He won’t drop me, will he?”
“As long as you don’t distract him with your feminine wiles, you’re probably safe.”
“Oh, wow, I don’t know. Isn’t he supposed to be super-handsome?”
“I hope I don’t have competition, Bobbie. I might get angry, and you might not like it if I got angry.”
“I suppose you’d get huge and green and ill-tempered and even more muscular.”
“No. I’d just stand off to one side and pointedly ignore you.”
She laughed. “Okay, I give. Let’s aim for Saturday, okay? Pending my conversation with my boss.”
“Mine too. And I’ll give my folks a heads-up before we leave.”
“Good. Have you told them anything about me?”
“Just the good things.”
“That’s all?”
“It was a very short conversation.”
She showed her teeth in faux pique. “You do know that you’ll pay for that, don’t you?”
He grinned back. “For the rest of our lives together, I hope.”
She had no comeback for that. It was a good thing that Carl brought their entrees at that moment.
*****
The following Saturday, just before eleven-thirty, Clark knocked on Bobbie’s front door. Despite knowing that he was coming, the sound startled her. She’d never been nervous about meeting Clark before.
Might have something to do with meeting his parents, she mused.
She fixed a smile on her face and opened the door. He was dressed in his usual Saturday casual outfit – sneakers, jeans, and golf shirt – and he also wore that smile, the one that lit up any room he entered. She sighed and thought that she could look at his smile for hours. It might delay the meeting with his parents, but she was willing to make the sacrifice.
But he, apparently, was not similarly willing. His hand reached for hers and they came together as if magnetized. “Ready?” he asked.
“Am I dressed okay? Not too casual?”
He chuckled. “You look very nice. And they’ll love you.”
“Sure. Uh, we’re not taking off from here, are we?”
“There’s a hidden alley about two blocks from here. It’s between two warehouses and one end has a corner that blocks the east street. The other end opens across from the back side of Metro Sports Arena. Nobody’s there this time of day.”
“Okay.” She licked her lips and locked her front door behind her.
They found the alley and the corner with ease. Clark looked to either side, then stepped back and said, “One moment, please.”
Then he turned into a Technicolor whirlwind.
Two seconds later, Clark was gone and Superman stood before her, his arms folded over his chest and his hair slicked back. In a deeper voice than she’d expected, he said, “Are you ready, Detective Tracey?”
She took a deep breath and nodded. “Let’s do it.”
*****
Bobbie looked around nervously. It was her first time to fly with Clark – no, with Superman. She had to keep his identities separate in her mind but never forget they were the same man.
She wasn’t surprised that Clark sometimes referred to his super-self in the third person. Keeping his two identities separate could make a normal person a little bit nuts.
Might make her a little nuts, too.
After a few moments, she dared to look down. It surprised her that she wasn’t frightened. Clark – Superman – whatever! The man who loved her held her comfortably close. She felt as safe with him as she did in her own car.
They were at about seven thousand feet, too low for military planes or airliners, and he kept a lookout for civilian craft. He occasionally shifted direction, presumably to avoid airports, radar, or flocks of birds. They were traveling below the speed of sound – he’d told her that traveling above Mach 1 usually wasn’t comfortable for his passengers.
She moved her lips close to his ears. “How much longer?”
“About forty minutes. We just passed the confluence of the Ohio, Monongahela, and Allegheny rivers in Pennsylvania. That’s where Three Rivers stadium is.”
“Go Steelers! Wave the Terrible Towel!”
He laughed. “Please don’t say that to my dad just yet. He’s a big Chiefs fan.”
“I’ll be careful.”
Bobbie went back to admiring the scenery for a while, then shifted close to his ear again. “I’m glad I made that pit stop back at your apartment.”
He looked at her with a worried expression. “Um – you know there aren’t any rest areas in the sky, and there are no – er – facilities on this flight.”
She laughed. “I’m good. In fact, I’m rather enjoying the flight now.”
“Good. I’ve got to make sure I miss the airports between here and Smallville, so I may not be very entertaining for the rest of our air time.”
“No problem. I’ll just sight-see. This is a cool perspective.”
She smiled and kissed him just in front of his ear and giggled when he swerved off course. “Please don’t distract the pilot,” he muttered. “It’s not safe.”
She pouted. “Oh, all right, if you say so. I’ll just be quiet and behave myself.”
“That’d be a first.”
She narrowed her eyes and mock-glared at him for a moment, then settled down to enjoy the rest of the trip.
*****
They came down just inside the Kent’s cornfield with a thud. Bobbie looked up at him as he set her down and said, “That was a little bit of a hard landing, wasn’t it?”
He lifted one index finger and stepped back, then twirled into a mass of primary colors. Two seconds later, Clark Kent, wearing a golf shirt, jeans, and tennis shoes, stood before her once again. The sight amazed and thrilled her.
“Sorry for the abrupt touchdown,” he said. “There are a couple of cars on the highway that the drive connects to and I didn’t want anyone to look out the window at the wrong time.”
She adjusted her short sleeves, then pushed her hair back to finger-comb it. “Oh, I understand. I just wish you’d given me a heads-up first.”
He assumed a meek posture and ducked his head. “I’ll do better next time. I promise.”
She held the fake irritation for a few seconds, the slapped him on the shoulder. “Come on. Let’s go see your folks.”
He took her hand and smiled. “They’ll love you, Bobbie, just like I do.”
She looked at the house. Her feet might have been encased in sudden cement. “I’m not Lois.”
He tugged her closer. Still smiling, he said, “And they don’t expect you to be Lois. You are Roberta Lynn Tracey – with an ‘e’ – and you are unique. No one else is like you.” He kissed her on the forehead. “And you can reassure me next weekend when we go see your mother that she doesn’t expect me to be Glen.”
She smiled back. “I’m looking forward to that. I know Mom will fall in love with you.”
“And my parents will fall in love with you.” He looked at her feet. “Assuming, of course, that we actually walk over to the house and knock on the back door.”
She rolled her eyes. “Fine. We’ll go in through the servant’s entrance.”
They started their stroll. “No, no, the back door is the family entrance. I want you to start off right.” He gave her hand a reassuring squeeze. “After all, we’re going to be a family before too much longer.”
She shuddered. “I hope they don’t mind my being a detective. Some parents aren’t real keen on their baby marrying a cop.”
“They’ll love you, Bobbie. You have my promise.”
I sure hope so, she thought.
*****
Martha watched through the kitchen window as Clark and the tall woman beside him exchanged soft smiles and meandered across the yard. Must be Bobbie, she thought.
Hope that’s Bobbie or we’ve got big problems.
She was almost as tall as Clark. Her reddish-blond hair was cut just above shoulder-length and in a utilitarian style. She wasn’t beautiful like Lois had been, but her face was alive and she walked stride-for-stride with him. And she certainly wasn’t bad-looking, in a girl-next-door kind of way.
She wore a short-sleeved dark blue shirt, almost a golf shirt, and casual slacks. Her shoes were sneakers, low and practical, and she didn’t appear to have on much makeup. Martha wondered if all that meant the woman wasn’t vain or if she tried to look intimidating because she was a woman in a man’s job.
She’d know very soon.
Martha pulled the door open as the couple stepped up to the back porch. She smiled and held out her hands. “Clark, come on in! And bring this lovely lady with you! You must be Bobbie. I’m Martha. Please come in.”
Bobbie smiled and nodded. “Thank you, Mrs. Kent.”
“No, no, let’s start off on the right foot. I’m Martha and my husband is Jonathan. He’ll be here in a few minutes. He got hung up at the hardware store. Clark knows how Harlan loves to chat about machinery.” Martha took Bobbie’s hand and tugged her toward the living room. “Clark has told us quite a bit about you, Bobbie, and I want to know if he’s being completely honest.”
Bobbie looked a little alarmed as she sat beside Martha on the couch. “Wh – what has Clark told you? About me, I mean.”
“That you’re intelligent, skilled at your job, personable, friendly, fairly even-tempered, basically an optimist with just a mite of understandable cynicism peppered in. According to him, you’re just about ideal.”
Bobbie relaxed a bit. “Oh. I see.” She turned and looked at Clark, who sat in one of the chairs wearing a cat-ate-the-canary smile. “It might be that he’s been editing his portrayal of me just a little bit.”
As innocent as a newborn kitten, Martha asked, “What? Clark, gilding the lily? You mean you’re not the ideal woman for my son?”
Bobbie’s expression flattened and she sat straight upright facing Martha. “On advice of counsel, I decline to respond to that question on the grounds that it might incriminate me.”
Martha held her own expression for a long moment, then chuckled. “You’re good. You’re very good. I’d guess that Clark doesn’t put anything over on you. And thank you for not taking offense.”
Bobbie nodded almost imperiously. “Don’t worry, Martha. I’ve developed a tolerance for teasing. Besides, I think Clark and I will discuss it later.” She looked at Clark again. “I may need a parachute.”
Clark tipped back in the chair and laughed. “You might if you insist on nibbling at my ear in the air.”
Martha laughed as Bobbie turned a lovely shade of reddish-purple.
*****
Bobbie dabbed at her mouth with her napkin and sighed with contentment. “That was probably the best meatloaf I’ve ever had, Martha.”
Martha dimpled. “Thank you, Bobbie. It’s one of Jonathan’s favorites, so I try to make it when I have the time. And I love serving it to folks who haven’t tried it.”
“I’m glad you had the time, Martha,” Jonathan said. “You may have cooked it for Bobbie, but I got to have some too.” He patted his full tummy. “And it was delicious, as usual.”
Bobbie smiled and thought about the openness and acceptance Clark’s parents had displayed since her arrival. Neither of them had mentioned Lois Lane at all, nor had either one hinted that Bobbie might not be a suitable wife for their beloved son. She hadn’t been nearly as nervous as she had been the night she’d met Ellen Lane.
She wondered if they knew where she and Clark had first met.
No matter. She was pleased with their attitude toward her, and she’d believed both of them – especially Martha – when they’d said that they were happy that Clark had found a good woman to love. And they’d been pleasantly surprised to learn that she could cook. Jonathan had offered that now maybe Clark could put some meat on his bones.
They’d all laughed about that.
Jonathan pulled her back to the present when he slid his chair away from the table and said, “I think it’s time to pull out the photo albums and embarrass our son.”
Bobbie giggled. “This should be the highlight of the evening.”
“Not my meatloaf?” mock-wailed Martha.
“More like the eighth and ninth wonders of the world,” Bobbie replied.
Martha pouted for a moment, then smiled. “I’m mollified. I’ll get the pictures.”
Clark sighed. “Fine. Just let me get a blanket to put over my head so no one sees my constant blush.”
*****
They flew back toward Metropolis in the gathering dark and at a much more leisurely pace. Bobbie nestled against Clark’s shoulder and sighed contentedly. “Your mom might be the only cook I’ve ever met who’s better than you. I can’t remember the last time I enjoyed a meal that much.”
He glided to a halt, hovered, and guided her face toward his. The kiss made Bobbie forget she was airborne until she tried to shift her legs. The resulting wobble startled her and she grabbed Clark in a chokehold.
He chuckled. “Sorry about that. But now you know what you do to me when you nibble my ear mid-flight.”
Bobbie caught her breath with an effort. “Fine! I get it now! I’ll keep my distance while we’re airborne!”
Clark gave her a quick peck and resumed his flight. “Did I not assure you that my parents would love you?”
She smiled. “You did. And they certainly seemed to. They were nicer to me than I would have expected.”
“They love you, Bobbie. I just hope your mother likes me half as much as my folks like you.”
“We’ll find out next Saturday at lunch. One o’clock at The Catch of The Day.”
“Your mother likes seafood?”
“Loves it. She’d rather cook and eat a lobster than just about any – Hey!”
Superman suddenly jerked to a halt in the sky between Dayton and Akron. He twisted around and stared at the ground, then dove.
“Bad accident on the Interstate below us. Just happened. Gasoline tanker tipped over on a couple of cars. I’ll drop you off behind the nearest rest stop and come get you when I’m done.”
“No! Take me with you! I’m trained to handle this kind of thing!”
He landed behind an unoccupied tourist stop but didn’t put her down. “Bobbie, I can’t put you in danger. Please don’t ask me that.”
“You’re wasting time, hero!” she growled. “Let’s go!”
The look on his face made her wonder if the decision to go with him was the right one.
He tightened his grip on her and whisked her closer to the wreck site.
