Table of Contents Previously, on Part 17:
Clark wasn’t gone long before Lois started to miss him. She glanced at her watch. It was six o’clock. That gave her only a little less than fourteen hours to prepare for his return.
She grabbed her purse and raced out of the office. She had to go shopping.
A few hours later, she arranged her purchases upon her bed. $119.95 at Victoria’s Secret for the little blue number with all its veils, $48 for the custom-fitted bra that made her look so good—even if it did hurt her ribs a little, $39.80 for buy four thongs get one free, $44.50 for white pumps, $5.75 for the softest pantyhose she could find, $204 for makeup and skin care, and $88.50 for the dress. Such a beautiful dress—lacey and as white as her love for Clark was pure. She could hardly wait to see Clark’s face when he saw her in it.
Then, of course, there was $79.50 for the fragrance. She had spent hours finding the perfect scent, knowing how sensitive her lover was. She wanted a musk to signify her animal attraction to him, a floral scent to signify the feminine way he made her feel, an Oriental scent for how exotic he made her feel—oh, there was so much she wished to communicate to him on a visceral level. With some help from the saleslady, she eventually selected an ambery scent which spoke of flowers, woods, and even that animal drive with a classic, yet exotic sensation. It embodied the way being with Clark Kent made her feel.
She fell into bed, convinced she would be too excited to sleep. Instead, it was a matter of moments before her breathing evened out and dreams welcomed her.
And now, Part 18:
_________________
There was a song in her heart. A love song. The whole world sang it to her as Lois impatiently waited for Clark at his desk. It was a song of beauty that everyone sang to her.
Someone from accounting had brought in flowers, white for purity and red for passion. Lois plucked a red one to tuck into her hair. One of the secretaries was so moved by the flowers that she had unearthed some balloons from the supply cabinet. All the women gathered to decorate, giggling together as they told their own stories of love.
But Lois hadn’t helped with the balloons. She had wanted to wait for her lover in this place that was fully his. She could see his intellect in the way he kept things organized, his compassion in the story ideas she found neatly filed, his strength in the way he didn’t keep any sweets tucked away here or there, his…
And he was here.
Lois leapt to her feet. She skipped up the stairs two at a time. Her heart did cartwheels as she saw his handsome, but confused, face. His arms were open and she jumped inside.
His voice rumbled beneath her as she rested her head against the broad expanse of his chest. “We have to talk.”
“We do. We do,” she agreed. “I have so much to say to you.”
She tugged at his neck, hoping for a kiss, but he spun her around instead. She couldn’t blame him; she was anxious to talk to him, too. Still, she couldn’t help reaching for him as they walked toward his desk.
“Lois, you are not yourself,” he began.
It wasn’t what she had expected him to say. It ignored his passions, his feelings, his desires…
“You are not in control,” he continued.
That she could understand.
“Oh, I know,” she gushed. “For the first time in my life, I am free—free to love, free to live with abandon.”
“But you’re not yourself. No one here is acting themselves.”
“It’s better,” she reassured him. “We’re better. We’ve been liberated.”
“But I need you back the way you were. I need you to snap out of it long enough to help me figure this out. Please,” he begged her, “just concentrate.”
“Okay, I’m concentrating.” She struggled to settle her beating heart. “I’m concentrating on your handsome features. You look very good today. Oh, and you smell good, too.” She slid into his lap and breathed him in.
“Lois?”
“Oh, yes. I’m concentrating.”
“Okay, it seemed to start yesterday afternoon.”
“I remember. Yesterday was wonderful!”
“It seems to have affective almost everybody in the newsroom. Maybe it was something we drank or ate.”
“I had a bologna sandwich and you had a steak sandwich with fries. Oh, but Clark, I could have eaten you up. You looked so good yesterday.”
“The models were here with their perfumes.”
“It was the tie. Red is a power color. It looks so good on you…”
“Their perfumes!”
“…Because you’re so strong.” She couldn’t help herself any longer. Her hands began kneading the strong muscles of his chest.
Clark stood, and Lois spilled from his lap.
“Jimmy, do you have any pictures from yesterday?”
Jimmy hurried over with proofs. “Do I have pictures? Oh, isn’t she beautiful?” He held up some prints of an okay-looking model. “And she’s all mine.”
Clark spouted off some kind of gloom and doom warning to Jimmy about getting hurt, but Lois didn’t hear it at all. She was trying really hard but it was just so difficult to concentrate, particularly now that she had discovered the way his hair curled just so over the edge of his glasses. She combed it straight with her fingers, but it curled back again. And again. And again. She giggled.
“I don’t believe we’ve met…” The man’s voice was polished and smooth. “…An oversight I must correct immediately.”
Lois glanced up in annoyance. He was just another forty-two long, as far as she was concerned.
“The name is Lex Luthor. Perhaps you’ve heard of me?”
Lois shook her head and returned to stroking Clark’s hair.
“Well, I just happen to be the third richest man in the world,” he bragged.
Clark looked up in annoyance. “You smell like the models from yesterday.”
“I’m not a mere model. I am a self-made multi-billionaire.” He turned away from Clark dismissively. “And you, my dear, are one of the most beautiful women I’ve ever met.”
“Thank you,” Lois mumbled, without sparing him a second glance.
“Perry White is an old friend. He’s been after me for an interview for many years. You appreciate my reluctance, of course. A man in my position could be easily misinterpreted. I have had one or two bad experiences with the media.”
“I’m sorry to hear that,” Lois muttered.
“But since I’ve never had a bad experience with you, why don’t we try it tonight.”
“I hope you’ll forgive me for being so bold…” Lois started.
“But boldness is a trait I find very attractive in a woman,” Lex interrupted.
“…but I need you to understand something. There’s only one man in the world for me—Clark Kent.”
Clark smiled thinly and waved awkwardly. “If you’ll excuse us, we have some work to do.”
“Certainly,” Lex agreed, then turned to Lois and kissed the back of her hand. “I’ll be in touch.”
Lois settled down on Clark’s lap. She tried to help him, but she wasn’t exactly sure what to look for in all those boring pictures of so-so looking women.
“This is it!” Clark declared. He stood, once again knocking her to her feet.
“Where are you going?” Lois worried.
“Just down to the newsstand,” Clark assured her. “I won’t be long.”
“You promise?”
“I came back last time. I always come back.”
While he was gone, Ralph came over with a small, poofy teddy bear. “I won this for you in a challenge of strength.” He proudly presented his trophy to her. “I hope you like it, Chloe.”
“Lois,” she corrected him.
“Right. Lois.”
“Was there something you needed, Ralph?” Clark inquired as he returned with a virtual mountain of magazines. “No, I didn’t think so.” He settled the magazines on his desk and returned his attention to Lois. “I need to go find a quieter place to work. Are you going to be okay while I’m gone?”
Lois was disappointed to see him go, but Clark was hoping to find a way to return things to normal.
~*~
He found it! It was right there in the magazine, Miranda’s Elite Fragrances. He began to dial the number, but a knock at the door interrupted him.
Lois rushed in carrying a boom box and wearing an overly-large coat.
“It’s really late,” Clark grumbled. He was exhausted after two days of shooing her away. She ignored him, setting up the music inside the door. A Middle-Eastern twang filled his apartment. “What time is it? Aren’t you supposed to be in class right now?”
“Forget about time. Forget about school. Forget about work. Forget about the rest of the world. Tonight is just for you and me.”
She threw open her coat. It slid to the ground. Underneath she wore some frilly lingerie that was covered in gold sequins and blue-green veils and not much else. She began to dance for him.
“I love you, Clark. I want to spend every waking moment of the rest of my life with you.”
“You know how I feel about you, Lois. How I would love to spend my life with you. I’ve dreamed of this since the moment I meant you—err, well, not quite like this. But something like this.”
“I’ve dreamed about you, too, Clark. Last night I dreamed…”
“But this isn’t real. What you’re feeling, none of it is real. Whatever it was that was sprayed on you made you and the whole newsroom drunk on love.”
“But love is good,” Lois urged. Her hips moved to the ever-increasing tempo of the music.
“I can’t take advantage of you. Go home, Lois.”
“You’re here. This is my home.” She flung a veil toward him. Without thought, he caught it.
He shrugged. He was just too tired to fight with her anymore. He hung his head as he headed into the kitchen to make dinner for two. He needed some sustenance if he were to think clearly. Selecting the least romantic ingredients in his pantry, he started the process of making chili with beans and hardtack cornbread.
Lois wasn’t deterred. She danced around him as he cooked. She even made eating chili into one of the most sensual experiences of Clark’s life. He was a goner, for sure.
He had to get rid of her. But he couldn’t send her back to the dorm. Not like this. He only hoped that nothing had happened to her last night.
He couldn’t think about that. He had to focus on tonight. Only, he couldn’t focus on tonight, either, or he was really going to be in trouble.
He needed help if he was going to survive.
He dialed home. “Mom?”
“Clark? Is that you?” His mother hollered to be heard over the racket. “I can barely hear you! What is that? Jungle drums? What’s going on there?”
“I need to talk to Dad!”
“What?”
“I need to talk to Dad!”
“Dad’s not in right now. Can I help you with something?”
“No! No! I need Dad.”
“What’s going on? I hear giggling. Do you have a woman over there?”
“Yeah, but it’s not what you think. I need to talk to Dad.”
“Clark, if you haven’t got answers to the questions I think you’re asking about—Son, I think it’s a little late now.”
“No, Mom. It’s not like that. I just need to…”
“I know, talk to Dad. I’m not sure when he’ll be back. I don’t know who that lady is, but—BOY!—she sure sounds happy.”
Clark sighed. “That’s not a lady, Mom; that’s Lois. I mean… She’s not as happy as she sounds. You know?”
“Haven’t a clue. Whenever I sound like that, I’m pretty happy.”
“MO-O-OM!”
“Well, I guess you and Lois
have hit the naughty stage of your relationship. Huh?”
“Just have Dad call when he gets in. No. Never mind. I have a different idea.”
