Part 2

They were lounging on the couch together watching a video late that night when Lois shut the television set off and turned to Kal.

"Kal, we know each other pretty well now, don't we?" Lois asked hesitantly. "I mean I feel I can ask you something and I know you wouldn't take it the wrong way. Friends do things for each other, right?"

"Sure, Lois." Clark said, wondering where she was leading him.

"If I had a problem, you'd help me with it, right?" she persisted.

"You know I would, if I could." He could hear the wheels turning in her head and it scared him.

"First, let me ask you a question. Am I kissable?"

Clark shot her a shocked look as she continued to thumb through a magazine.

"It says here in the Metropolitan Woman's Magazine that in order to be kissable, one of the qualities you must have are full and shapely lips." She studied his reaction as she pursed her lips and waggled them at him.

His eyes grew as round as saucers and he gulped, "They look fine to me..."

She turned her attention back to the article. "One of the worst features to have is 'lizard lips', the dry, crunchy, scaly kind that gives you paper cuts if you rub them the wrong way."

"Crunchy?"

"I know it sounds gross, but you know like in the wintertime, you see people whose lips look as if they're going to split wide open if they smile. I think I'm safe from having those."

"No Lizard Lips Lane in here," Clark grinned at her, but was still on guard as to what was going through her head.

"The best kisses are those that are memorable, but leave you pantingly wanting more," she read, emphasizing the text. "The language of a kiss is communication without words. At various times you want to communicate attraction, affection, love, passion, lust, and 'I'll miss you, baby'." She scrunched up her face and continued. "Pay attention to what your mate responds to, and what seems to turn him or her off, then adjust your techniques accordingly."

"Why are you reading this? Does this have anything to do with that favor you mentioned a few minutes ago?"

"Sort of. There's a man I know, I'm so attracted to him, I can hardly stand it. I even think my feelings have gone to a deeper level, but when I'm around him, I just freeze up and shut him out. I can't let him know how I feel; it's like there's a force field holding me back from responding to him."

"Why, Lois?" Clark answered uncomfortably as his heart fell hard at her revelation of being attracted to someone else.

"Somebody told me I was incapable of responding to a man, of feeling passion. I think he might be right?"

"What? That's ridiculous. Who would say such a terrible thing?" His cheeks began to flush as he remembered the one night they almost made love.

"A man I was involved with over a year and a half ago, in fact the only man I've ever... slept with." She wrung her hands nervously. "He said I was... it still hurts to say it - a cold fish."

"Oh Lois, you don't believe him, do you? You're the most impassioned person I know in whatever you do. I know we don't give a lot of details about our lives, but I know you, Lois, and anyone who you love is very fortunate..." Clark stopped, thinking if he continued he'd let everything slip.

"Maybe it is true, Kal. I thought I loved this man, this jerk, but... I think there's something wrong with me. But that's what I wanted to ask you. I know we're just friends, and this is embarrassing to say so, but kissing a pillow is not cutting it anymore. I know you won't read anything more into this, so could I practice on you? If I close my eyes and pretend you're him, would you be my guinea pig? You could let me know if I was doing something wrong or awkward."

"Lois, I don't know," Clark teased. "You know if a man suggested something like this it, it would come across as a big, pick up line." Although he smiled at her, he was not sure if he could pull off what she was suggesting because she might find out how he truly felt about her and that he was Clark.

"Believe me, this is not a ploy to kiss Superman, though I'm sure you get a lot of those. But seriously, you never answered me that night when we went flying. Was or is there anyone in your private life you love but can't be with for one reason or another?"

<She's sitting right next to me.> he thought, as he shifted uncomfortably on his seat.

At the sudden sadness in his eyes, she said pleadingly, "See, I knew it! I thought there might be someone; it's in your eyes now. Who is she?"

"Somebody who wishes I weren't around," he said somberly, realizing he couldn't get away this time.

"Oh, you poor baby!" Lois commiserated. "What's her problem? Does she know you're Superman?"

<Proceed carefully, Kent.> "No. She doesn't know I'm Superman. She hardly knows I exist. I thought we might have a chance at first, but all of a sudden she changed her mind. I don't know what happened." He hoped that was sketchy enough; he couldn't give too many details.

"Is she someone you work with? It has to be. You're always here with me when you're not out... " She gestured the flying signal with her hand. "What does she do?"

<Oh, no! Don't go there, Lois!> "You wouldn't be trying to find out who I am again?" He grinned, trying to throw her off the subject while reaching for a cold piece of pizza. "Have you changed your mind?"

"I have to admit that I'm getting curious again. Your disguise must be great if that woman doesn't know that Superman is in love with her," she pondered.

<You have no idea, sweetheart.> "My mom says it's really good."

"Either that, or she's galactically stupid," she persisted.

Clark almost choked on his food. If she ever found out the truth, she'd kill him. This conversation was getting too dangerous. She was beginning to get interested in his identity again. It was still too soon.

"I wouldn't say that she's stupid, just... focused in other areas." Although he didn't want to know, he had to swing the conversation. "So what about your, um, interest? What is he like?"

"Are you sure you want to hear this? We might be here for a while. For starters, he's got a great body; maybe built... hmmm, slightly larger than yourself and he's just gorgeous." She noticed Kal squirming a bit but didn't care. It was fun to see the big guy embarrassed once in a while. "He has the kindest heart I've ever met, one of those people who'd give you the shirt off his back if you needed it."

She sighed in remembrance of Clark's well-defined chest when they were trapped in the old freezer. "He's very intelligent, moral and a good person, though being a moral person is highly overrated in my opinion. I think you'd get along very well with him if you ever met."

<In a pig's eye,> Clark thought. "So is he interested in you?"

"No, like I said before, I broke up with him; now he doesn't give me the time of day. I blew it with him; it's all my fault," she said regretfully.

"Lois, it's never all one person's fault and if this guy is as intelligent as you say he is, he'll notice you." He stopped talking. It was becoming too hard to listen to Lois gush about this other man, yet there was something very familiar about her description.

"So will you do it?" she asked.

"Do what?" Clark said blankly.

"Kiss me, you lunkhead! We've been talking about it for the past few minutes."

"Oh. Lois, are you sure this man is worth all this bother? Not that kissing you would be any trouble, but..." He sighed and shifted nervously. "I don't want to see you get hurt if it doesn't work out with him. You know I just want to protect you."

"I know, and that's very sweet of you, but Kal, I'm in love, for real this time," Lois moaned. "This guy is so easy to love. He has women practically falling all over him and he doesn't know why. Why I even think I have a chance with him is beyond me, though I'd probably run away again if he ever showed any interest again. Don't do it for him, do it for me."

No, it couldn't be him that she was talking about. He didn't have women falling all over themselves. Had to be someone else, he thought grimly. This might be his only time to be close to her again the way he had been dreaming, the way he remembered, before this other man woke up and realized the best thing in his life was right in front of him.

"Okay. I'm not totally convinced, but if it will give you confidence." He suddenly frowned, and asked worriedly, "What if this doesn't work? What if I make things worse for you? What if... "

"Will you be quiet for a second? Stop obsessing. You could never hurt me. I trust you."

He sighed in resignation. "How do you want to do this?"

"Thanks, Kal. I knew you would understand. You're the best friend I've ever had, a big teddy bear in tights." She patted his blue clad arm and laid her head briefly on his shoulder before continuing. "Let me close my eyes. Give me a few seconds, I need to picture him in my mind, then kiss me. Just pretend I'm her, just this once. Don't hold back, okay? I want a big, sloppy wet one. Maybe if I ever get a chance with my guy again, I won't feel so scared to show him how I feel."

At least she would be thinking he was pretending to kiss someone else. But the only pretending he would be doing would be thinking that Lois was really kissing him - Clark. She said not to hold back, and he intended not to disappoint her.

He watched her face as Lois closed her eyes and settled forward in her seat toward him. <She is so beautiful,> he sighed inwardly. He observed how her eyelashes lay quivering on her face as she conjured up this other man's presence, a secret smile playing on her lips. Whoever this guy was, he hoped he realized how lucky he was. She heaved a tiny little sigh as he watched her daydream about this mystery man.

How he wished she would open her eyes and looked at him the way she was obviously gazing at this man in her mind's eye. <I've got to believe she's thinking about me.> He threw all other thoughts out of his head and captured how creamy her skin looked, how the delicate muscles in her long neck played against each other as she lifted her head in anticipation of the kiss. How much he longed to bury his face in her silky hair, and how inviting her soft lips were. His eyes closed as he leaned forward to meet them.

When Lois shut her eyes, she filled her mind of Clark. Of Clark's intoxicating presence as he stood over her at her desk, his devastating, kind smile and that silly lock of hair that she longed to brush off his forehead. Of him thoughtfully holding her as she fell asleep lying skin to skin on his chest. A gentle hand on her face as he kissed her passionately in his apartment.

She felt soft lips on her own, tentatively at first, then more firmly as she responded and began to kiss him back. As the kiss deepened, her senses swirled. She felt a strong arm circle around her back and a warm hand caress her face on its way to entangling itself in her hair. <Just like I remembered Clark's kiss to be>, she thought as she allowed her hands to encircle his neck as she pressed herself closer.

They drew apart and Lois opened her eyes to see that Kal still had his eyes closed. Just when did he become so incredibly handsome?

He still had his hand around the back of her head and she felt herself being drawn toward him again. She involuntarily pulled in a deep breath as the need to kiss her best friend swept over her. This time Clark's face was replaced by Superman's in her head as she gave herself freely to the passion of his kiss. Her arm wound its way around his neck and she pulled him closer.

Clark broke it off reluctantly when he realized Lois was gasping for air. He opened his eyes and saw the dazed look on her face. He panicked, "I didn't hurt you, did I?"

"Oh no, Kal!" she said taking in a huge breath, surprised at the depth of her reaction to their most recent lip lock. "I don't have super lungs like you do, silly! Wow! You didn't hold back! Who taught you how to be such a good kisser?"

"Let's say I was inspired." He looked at her with his eyebrows raised, trying to cover how shaky he was feeling. The second kiss just happened; he hoped he didn't cross over the line.

"She doesn't know what she's missing," she said, her breath refusing to become normal just yet. She had to keep up the conversation. It wouldn't do to let him know how he affected her, at least until this was sorted out in her head. "So how do I rate? At least I didn't poke you with my nose or drool all over your face or give you paper cuts. Or did I?"

"No, in fact you were pretty wonderful yourself," he assured her, covering her hand that was in her lap. "Do you still believe that trash about yourself? Can I take care of the guy who told you that? A couple of hours in a nice smelly dumpster would show him how real garbage lives."

"My hero." She squeezed his hand, noticing for the first time how strong, yet very gentle it was, just like the man it belonged to. "I don't know what to believe any more, but I know I felt something when we kissed." <In more ways than one, buster!> "If I can ever get my guy to notice me again, I hope I don't ruin it by freaking out. Thanks again, Kal, you're better than a shrink."

"I'll be sure to send you my bill," he joked reluctantly, feeling his heart break all over again at the thought of Lois kissing another man. "I'd better get going on my patrols. Can't have Metropolis slide into high crime."

"See you soon." She smiled warmly at him as he rose from the sofa.

He leaned over and placed his nightly good-bye kiss on her forehead, lingering longer than usual. "Good night, Lois. Take care."

"Good night, Kal. Have a safe flight." She grabbed a pillow, although she felt the unfamiliar desire to hold on to him again, clutched it to her chest and settled back down into the couch with a dreamy dazed look on her face.

Clark hovered outside the window for a minute, trying to gather himself before his rounds. It was one the hardest things he had to do, leaving her tonight, but if he stayed much longer he was afraid he'd blurt out everything. Much to his surprise, he heard Lois whisper softly, "Oh, Clark! How I wish..."

<Clark?>

Clark couldn't believe his ears. Was he hearing things? Why would Lois be speaking his name? Unless...no! There was no way that it could be possible.

His mouth dropped open as he considered the possibilities.

******

Lois watched the curtains flutter as Kal left, feeling confused over her new feelings for him. "Oh Clark! How I wish... <we were best friends like Kal and I.>

Best friends. Maybe that was it. This was just a freak coincidence that all of a sudden she had these strange feelings for Kal. Of course! She'd been having romantic notions for Clark and they had transferred over to Kal.

It was that simple.

There was no other explanation for it.

Sighing, she rose from the sofa and tossed the pillow down where Kal had been sitting a few minutes ago. Her lips still tingled from their kiss so she decided that a distraction was needed. Ice cream was always an option so she walked to the kitchen and opened the freezer door.

Nothing but a couple of trays of puny ice cubes. Darn, she'd forgotten to restock her supply of comfort food. A couple of pieces of pizza still sat in the box on the coffee table. No, she wasn't hungry.

Yet, she was still restless.

Sticking in a tape of last week's Ivory Tower, she plopped down in the spot where Kal had sat and tried to erase the myriad of conflicting feelings in her head.

*****

After his rounds, Clark landed in an alleyway and spun into his street clothes. He didn't feel like going to his apartment quite yet and decided to pay a long overdue visit to a friend.

It had been quite a while since Bobby 'Bigmouth' Cooper had provided him with information for one of his stories. It had been shortly after the Luthor bust when Bobby had called to inform him that he and his wife, Rose, were making a new start in life by quitting all of their former activities and starting a new enterprise together. For Bobby, it meant not being an informant, and for Rose, quitting her government job as a DEA agent.

Clark opened the front door to The Snitch and stepped inside an upscale, but comfortable bar. Leather booths lined one side of the room and the rest of the table and chairs were placed strategically around a small dance floor.

He looked around for a moment, then walked over to the bar. A couple of waitresses were working behind the counter and Clark blinked hard when he realized what they were wearing – chicken suits!

One of the waitresses nodded knowingly at him, then walked over to take his order.

"Hi! My name is Karen and I'm your cocktail waitress." She winked at him and fluffed her feathers. "Can I take your order?"

"Cocktail waitress?" Clark grinned back at her, noting that the chicken suits were more like dresses with plumage.

"Don't tell me you're going to grill me about this costume." She held up her order pad and poised her pencil over it.

"Wouldn't dream of it." Clark hesitated, then asked, "I don't suppose you serve chicken wings?"

The waitress gasped, then answered, "There'd be an awful lot of my relatives running around wingless. How about some peanuts?"

"Peanuts sound great. Is Bobby Cooper around? I'm a friend of his."

"Yeah, he's around somewhere. Probably discussing things with his wife again. I'll go see if I can 'hunt and peck' him up." She rolled her eyes at Clark and smiled.

Clark laughed softly. "You seem to have a lot of fun working here. Is the atmosphere always this light? And the puns so terrible?"

"Pays a bit more than chicken scratch, but the owners are great. Do you know we finally made the top twenty list of restaurants this past week? This place has only been opened three months."

"That's great!"

The waitress started to leave but turned around to ask Clark, "Pardon my manners but you'd think I was raised in a barn. Want anything to drink with those peanuts?"

"Sure. I'll take whatever you have on tap."

"Gotcha."

Clark smiled to himself. It appeared as though the Coopers were building a name for themselves already. He looked around taking in a bit more detail this time. There were a couple of closed doors joining to a restaurant and the sign on it read "Chez Grande Bouche". The lights behind the doors were dim, but a few of the staff could be seen clearing dishes and mopping.

Oh, he'd definitely have to return here in the daytime or regular business hours. Looking at the wall behind the bar, he was surprised to see in the far corner of the counter pictures of himself as Superman. There were newspaper articles and eight-by-ten pictures of his alter ego, a couple of dolls and figurines. It was a small shrine.

It puzzled him to see that. He didn't think that Bobby was a big fan of Superman. He thought he'd never get used to the idol worship bestowed upon him. At first, he'd been downright embarrassed to be the focus of all the attention and commercialism that the media and public spent on him. For a couple of months after he'd become Superman, the Miracle Mania had swiftly turned into a SuperMania feeding frenzy, and he had avoided any contact with the media like the plague.

Except for Lois.

Once every month or so after a particularly harrowing rescue, he'd allow her a brief interview for the Daily Planet and was careful to include a couple of other paper's reporters in the interview. He hadn't wanted to call attention to Lois as being the only one able to talk to Superman. She would be an even bigger target for criminals than she was now.

He had also made sure that most of the proceeds from the commercialism and paraphernalia went into a fund to help victims of disasters and other worthy causes. Yet, it kept him fairly busy trying to decide who got what, and he was now in the process of searching for a trustworthy lawyer to handle his foundation. Not an easy task by all means.

The door swung open from the back of the bar, and Bobby walked out.

"Hey ya, Clark!! It's about time I saw ya in here!"

"Hey, Bobby!" he greeted enthusiastically. "It's been a while." He held out his hand in greeting as Bobby came from around the counter and sat on the high backed stool next to him.

"And before you ask, I'm sworn upon penalty of death not to snitch any more. Rose and I have decided to leave the dangerous life behind."

"That's what you told me a few months ago. Don't worry; I won't get you into trouble," Clark grinned.

"Speakin' of trouble... you and Lois still on the outs?"

"For the most part; we're up for an award together for the Luthor story though," Clark frowned. "Guess that's something, I suppose."

He felt his heart flutter a bit remembering their kiss earlier that night, and the possibility that Lois could still care for him.

"You still got it bad, Kent," Bobby grinned. "Want me to set you two up on a blind date or somethin'? Maybe all you need is good hard shove."

"I don't know, Bobby. I kept hoping after all this time that she'll change her mind now that her career is going well, but she's got a brick wall set up around her now that I don't know how to break through it. We've barely spoken to each other."

A feminine voice interrupted. "Hi, my name's Nicole, and Karen is busy fanning herself in the back. She gets that way sometimes."

Clark turned and saw another waitress in a bright yellow shirt with feathers in her hair placing his drink and peanuts on the bar.

"Sounds like she's faking it," the waitress continued.

"Huh?"

"Your lady friend. If she didn't care, it wouldn't bother her so much to talk to you."

"I seem to bother her by being in the same room," Clark said dolefully.

"Aw, she'll get over it. Sometimes you just have to let things run their course. Give her time."

"Time? It's been almost a year."

Nicole, the waitress, scrunched up her face and responded, "Ooo! You'd better start groveling," She sneaked an appreciative look at Clark before turning around and heading to the kitchen.

Bobby waited until they were alone before stating, "Glad to see ya finally startin' to talk about her. You were clamming up for a long time. What's changed?"

"Don't know, Bobby. Guess it took watching her build her career and making a name for herself. For a long while, I resented being in journalism for the first time."

"Ya never did say what happened. Rosie and I came up with lots of very interesting reasons."

"In a nutshell, she wasn't ready to start a career and a relationship at the same time. There were some other issues, but I don't think I should get into them. But let's just say that things may be looking up."

"That's fair enough, man. Wish ya luck."

"Who needs luck?" Rose Cooper had come from the kitchen and surprised them. "Clark? Should have guessed it was you from the condition of my waitresses! How ya been?"

"Hanging in there. Great place you have here!"

"Thank ya! In spite of Bobby and I wanting to kill each other on a daily basis, we're having a good time for the most part. Beats chasing white-collar criminals around. Now all I have to chase is Bobby."

"And the world is safe from Rose's cooking," Bobby declared playfully. "She's managing the bar and I supervise the kitchen. I do my best to keep her away from the knives."

Rose swatted Bobby with a bar towel, and Clark could clearly see that they were happy. Rose was as relaxed as Clark had ever seen her, almost a different person from the one he'd first met. There was a mischievous twinkle in her eyes, but she appeared softer too.

"Hey! Why aren't you getting anymore Superman interviews, Clark? I've been looking for articles in the paper." She shuffled her feet, then asked almost dreamily, "What's he really like?"

Clark tried to catch himself from blushing. "He's just another guy, only he has superpowers."

"Don't burst her bubble, Clark. Rose here's been ga-ga over the man in blue from day one."

Rose scowled at Bobby. "I just think it's admirable that a being of his power and abilities has chosen to use them for the good of the world." Her eyes focused on an image inside her mind. "And the fact that he's so handsome is just icing on the cake."

Clark knew, without a doubt, whom the Superman paraphernalia belonged to. Seemed as though Rose, as unlikely a candidate as he would have first thought, was a huge fan of Superman.

Bobby rolled his eyes, and said, "It's good to know he's a regular Joe. Tell him anytime he wants to stop by, the meal's on us."

"I sure will, Bobby," Clark answered, making a mental note to drop by sometime.

"Same thing goes for you and Lois. We'd love to see you here – together."

"You and I both, Bobby. So tell me more about your restaurant..."

*****

After his visit with Bobby and Rose, Clark decided to walk home. He felt he had sufficiently placed enough distance between the time when he'd left Lois' apartment and being able to think rationally about it.

They had kissed.

One more time he'd kissed Lois, and it had brought back all the emotions and feelings from before, just as if it had been only yesterday.

Had Lois actually been thinking of him while they were kissing, when they were supposed to be thinking of the other people in their lives? She hadn't shown any indication at work that she was interested in him. Matter of fact, her downright hostile attitude toward him was very disheartening. Ever since the day they'd said goodbye, she had regarded him with cold indifference. That was not the behavior of a woman who could be in love with him.

How could she love him in his real identity anyway? Except for the first day and when they had said their goodbyes, they had barely spoken to each other except when necessary. She had made it perfectly clear to him that she wanted nothing to do with him.

Unless she was feeling the same way he did about the situation – that it was too hard to be in each other's company without remembering and wanting to kiss her silly. It had been easy for him to get angry about the whole break-up. He supposed that was why they were always snapping at each other.

But what about those insecurities she had just expressed to him? The ones about her freezing up whenever she was in 'this man's' presence? It made more sense to him now why she was so prickly when around him.

Maybe the first step was to get her more comfortable having him around her. Then all he needed to do was to wait for the right time to start a more personal conversation.

He just hoped his future efforts wouldn't backfire on him.

*****

After a restless night, Lois was up and in the Daily Planet before dawn, feeling as though she hadn't slept a wink. Coffee was foremost on her mind, but no one was there to make it, so she suffered through the first hour or two of working.

The morning had begun to grow busier and Lois was soon lost in chasing down a source for a story. Frustrated after another dead end, she ran her hands through her hair and leaned back in her chair. It was strange how everyone had disappeared already.

She was tired. She couldn't help but to think about Clark last night and about how to let him know that she was at least willing to be friends again - if it was possible after all this time. She felt her heart tug at her insides, and she sighed. God, she loved Clark! Would it ever be the same between them again?

A steaming cup of coffee suddenly appeared in front of her. She turned around to see the heart-stopping smile of her dreams.

"Hey," Clark said softly. "You looked like you could use this." He produced a chocolate donut and set it on her desk.

"Thanks."

"You're welcome."

Clark walked over to his desk and returned with a small tree-like plant for her desk. "I bought this for you, too. I hope you don't mind. Your other one looks like it's half-dead."

Lois stared up into his face and was rewarded with a lopsided grin. Feeling a tiny bit nervous, she responded, "Guess you're tired of seeing me murder plants. Tell you what, you can take care of it, but if anything happens to our future Kerth, the plant gets it."

"Fair enough." Clark activated his super hearing and heard her heart pounding rapidly. She was affected by his presence, and this time didn't seem mad at all. He felt his own heart skip a happy beat.

Lois took a deep breath and said quietly, "I didn't mean it about the Kerth award. You can keep it. Just means I'll have to work harder to get my own."

"No, that's okay. You keep it. That'll just mean I get visitation rights, hopefully lots of them. And I'm sure you'll be getting one by yourself before you know it."

The air was suddenly charged with an undercurrent that hadn't been felt between them in months. Lois felt her insides grow weak, and she quickly looked down at her coffee cup to prevent herself from saying something stupid, or worse yet, launching herself full force at him.

Jimmy walked up before either could speak again and slapped an envelope on Lois' desk. "This was delivered to Perry yesterday while you were out and he told us to hash it out between ourselves. The unanimous decision was that you should get it, Lois."

"Unanimous decision?" Lois demanded as she tore into the envelope. "What is it?"

Jimmy grinned at Clark and crossed his fingers behind his back.

"A free night at the Lexor hotel? I don't get it!" She glared at Jimmy and waited for him to answer.

"Um… we thought, that it might improve your disposition if you had a some time away for yourself. You have been biting everyone's head off lately."

"Very subtle, Jimmy," Clark retorted, despairing at the timing of his colleague.

"Improve my disposition?" Lois' face began to turn red. "There's nothing wrong with my disposition!"

Jimmy backed away, making a hasty retreat as Lois turned her fury to Clark. "You didn't have anything to do with this, did you?"

Clark lifted his hands and shrugged. "I had no idea what was going on."

Lois raised her cup of steaming coffee over her new plant and spilled a couple of drops onto the dirt. "You swear?"

"I swear, scouts honor." He grinned tentatively at her. "Please put the coffee down and the plant won't get hurt."

Lois eyed him curiously, then lowered her cup. "I always figured you to be a boy scout."

"No scout, just 4H. Won a few blue ribbons with my pig, Hambone."

"Hambone? No, I won't even ask. Anyway, thanks for the coffee and stuff."

"Anytime." Clark replied, and turned to go. No sense in pushing things. It was better to quit while he was ahead.

After Clark returned to his desk, Lois reluctantly looked at the contents of the envelope again. Free night, free room service and the promise of a hot tub - preferably with lots of bubbles and a glass of wine. It did sound rather wonderful. She haphazardly stuffed the brochure in the middle of her purse, then got back to work.

Her co-workers hiding in conference room silently cheered.

*******