Still spoiling Gone, also Facade, Devoted, Jinx,
Chapter Nine
He collapsed on top of her, panting against her neck. "Wha's that noise?" he said blearily.
Her pounding heart must be so loud, he was hearing it. It was getting faster, too. "Chloe!" she heard. That wasn't her heart. That was coming from outside her door. The doorknob rattled. "Chloe!"
This wasn't good.
This was her dad. It figured it would be her dad, all the way down the hall. Only Lois would sleep through the sex of the century.
"Coming," Chloe called out, deepening her voice. Kal snickered against her neck. "Shut up," she hissed. "And get off me!" She crawled out from under him the minute he slid out. "Be right there," she called out, still deepening her voice. How else would she explain the masculine moans and graons which had previously been... "Are you deaf?" she hissed at Kal. He was just... lounging on her bed. "Get your clothes! Hide!"
He snickered again and leisurely got up to stretch.
"Stupid, stupid, stupid," she muttered as she pulled on her robe and stomped to the door. She was about to turn around and give him the dirtiest look possible, but he was gone. Not only that, his clothes were gone. She shook her head, forced her wide eyes to half-mast and tried to look sleepier. She unlocked the door and opened it just a crack.
"Hey, Daddy," she said deeply, then loudly cleared her throat. "Ooh, sorry. Little hoarse."
"Well, what's wrong?" he demanded, pushing past her. She winced. Wherever Kal was hiding, it better be good. "I heard these noises and I thought..."
"It must have been a nightmare," she said hastily, trying to deepen her voice. "God, this sore throat. I just can't... Mmmmmph..."
"I thought he'd sent someone again," her father said, practically suffocating her against the front of his striped pajamas. "I thought they were..."
"Daddy," she said, lifting her head. "I'm fine. It's just these past months have been so crazy."
"I know, Pumpkinface, I know." He embraced her again. She sank into it, feeling more than a little guilty at the real reason for his concern.
She rested her chin on his shoulder. "We're fine now, Dad. Lex took care of... everything." The last word faded out as she saw her closet door open just a crack. A pair of boxers waved at her, then the white gleam of a smile. "No," she mouthed. "Get back!"
"It's gonna take a while to chase all the boogeymen away," her dad said softly. "Remember when you were little and you used to sleep in the tub? You thought the boogeyman was in your closet and he was gonna come out and get you. I had to stab an umbrella into your closet every night just so you'd sleep in your bed."
A nervous laugh escaped her. "Crazy, right? Nope. No more boogeymen in my closet." She heard a snort from said closet and tried her best to duplicate it, forcing a giggle for good measure.
"But I'm still here, Pumpkinface. And I'll protect you now just like I did then." He ruffled her hair. "Whether it's a boogeyman or something worse." His face grew serious.
"Thanks, Daddy. That's good to know." She was rather touched. But... This moment would be so much more heart-warming if there wasn't a naked psycho in my closet right now!
"That's what dads are for." He smiled and started out. She almost sighed in relief, but he stopped, sniffing the air. "What's that... smell?"
Just sex, Daddy. No biggie. "Oh, that's... patchouli," she lied smoothly. "Yeah I got this room and pillow spray at The Talon. It's very... relaxing."
He grimaced and shook his head. "Long as you like it." He kissed the top of her head. "Just don't spray it around the house." He yawned and, finally, shut the door behind him.
She sagged against it, letting out a shaky breath. He was snickering again, at least it was softer this time. She squeezed her eyes shut as she felt him grow nearer. "I hate you."
"Aw, Pumpkinface," he whispered, playing with the sash of her robe. "Be nice."
She opened her eyes and slapped at his hand. "Oh, don't touch me," she hissed. "I'm not in the mood. In case you missed it, my dad was just in here."
"Yeah. Patchouli, huh?"
"Shut up!"
He chuckled as he pulled on his boxers. "So why Pumpkinface?"
She shrugged. "I was a little jaundiced as a baby and combined with the rosacea, my face was kind of..." He laughed harder, falling back on her bed. She locked her door again. "Shhhh! He's going to hear that and come back in here thinking I've gone schizo!"
"Fine." He sobered and sat up, pulling on the pants now. A lock of hair fell over his forehead. If she wasn't so pissed, she'd find him almost endearing right now, laughing at her. He was almost Clark. But he wasn't, she reminded herself.
"Promise me something?" she asked softly.
He looked up, pulling his t-shirt over his head. "Depends," he said when he finished.
She moved closer, almost towering over him for once. "Go home and take it off." She nodded at the ring. "Give it to your mother if you have to. Just get rid of it and forget this ever happened." She bent closer to him. "This didn't happen."
He grinned up at her. "You're awfully cute when you're bossy."
"Kal, please. Just..."
"Ooh! She learned my name." He grasped her neck and brought her down for a quick, rough kiss. He released her. "That's a good little pumpkinface."
She pulled away and glared at him. "Promise me."
He sighed. "Fine. This never happened." He stood up. "And I'll take it off, but..." He smiled lazily. "I'm not getting rid of it, Chloe. And you won't either. Because even though this never happened, we both know it's going to not happen whenever I want it to... not." He laughed. "God, I kill me."
"This isn't funny," she whispered.
He stepped toward her, breathed her in. "No. It's not." He toyed with her sash again. "But if I do what you want, you have to..." He tilted his head to the side, flashing her a brilliant smile. "Reciprocate," he finished.
She crossed her arms. "Reciprocate how?"
"No more arguments," he said, almost sternly. "When I come to you, you let me."
"You can't just..." She sputtered. "I won't... I can't..." She exhaled loudly, rubbing her face. Who was she kidding? She could and she would and they both knew it. "So you want to what? Have an affair?"
"It's only an affair if you're cheating on someone," he said persuasively. That was the thing with him. He was just too persuasive. "We're young and single and..." He peeked down her robe. "Very healthy."
"It feels like cheating," she said stubbornly. "I mean because Clark..."
"Put the ring on," he finished for her. "And he knew what that meant." He leaned in, nuzzling her neck.
"Well, if you put it that... No!" She held him at arm's length. "He didn't. If this ring brings out his Mr. Hyde, then... Well, that doesn't mean me. I'm not some alter-ego's toy."
He leaned in and bit her ear. "But you could be."
Her body went limp. "I could?"
"Just give in, Chloe. You know I'll make it worth your while."
Oh, she knew all right. And that was the problem. To have this man, this body, in her bed was hard to resist, all the more for having had him. But could she do it, knowing it was so... good? He was nibbling now, teeth grasing her lobe. That made it hard to find the downside.
But... Who was to say Clark would ever put it on again? In fact, she was sure this was it. He wouldn't come back. Of course not. This agreement was just a way to gat Kal on his way.
She sidestepped, putting a foot between them. She held out her hand. "Deal."
He looked down at it and raised an eyebrow. But he took it, if only to tug on it until she fell against him. He sought her lips and gave her the kind of kiss that could turn her legs into jelly. All rubbing, nibbling, and nipping until she found herself wilting against him. "Deal," he whispered. And he was gone so fast, she nearly fell on her face. She righted herself, opening her eyes. He was nowehere. The only movement in the room was her swaying curtains.
"The window again?" she muttered. She shut it before she could call him back. But he wouldn't come back. No. That was the only reason she'd made the deal. Not because she wished he would. Never.
"Deal," she whispered, pursing her lips. Deal with the Devil.
***************************
Of course, he came back as she'd hoped he would.
It hurt sometimes. Not with Kal, but with Clark. She'd begun to see them almost as twins now. One hardly knew she was female, the other knew all too well. And she sometimes hated the both of them. She hated them as badly as she needed them. One to protect her from all the trouble she attracted, the other to be more trouble than a thousand meteor freaks.
So she separated the two in her mind. It was the only way she could deal.
But it was hard sometimes. Hard when she saw him mooning after Lana. Those were the nights when she knew he'd come. Clark couldn't have Lana, so Kal would have her. But she coped.
And when Clark looked at her cousin, she just looked away. It was mean, but she was glad when Lois left for Met U. Because Lois had somehow become just another girl for Clark to look at in the way he refused to look at her.
It was funny, but she still held out this tiny bit of hope for Clark. When she herself was infected by meteor rocks-in punch, no less-she panted after him like a bitch in heat. The worst part was that she remembered every humiliating moment, every crushing rejection. Afterwards, she was as hopeful as she was embarrassed.
"Look, Clark," she'd said. "As much as I'd like to blame the pom-pom juice for this, I obviously still have those feelings in me somewhere."
And he'd looked at her so kindly, with such pity she wanted to smack him. "Chloe... I wish I felt the same way, but I don't. At least not right now."
And what about later tonight? she'd thought bitterly.
But she didn't say it. She'd forced a smile instead. "I know that. And I accept it. I just hope that we can keep our friendship. Except now you're gonna be, like, big man on campus." She'd forced a laugh to go with her phony smile.
"Well, I'm hoping my new editor will keep me in line. I'm gonna make time for the Torch."
"Wow. Superhero and journalist. What are the odds?" About as good as a simple, cornfed boy having a second sex-maniac personality, maybe? she thought. But she'd never say it. She wouldn't hurt Clark. She'd save that for Kal.
And she did. When he came that night, he found her in the Torch office, laid out on the airmat she'd been keeping in the supply closet. She was waiting for him. He couldn't let Chloe slide for crawling all over Clark. And she couldn't just let him off the hook for Clark's sins. That night, she used every trick in her arsenal to thwart him. No matter what he tried, she held off coming as long as she could. Of course, that meant Kal couldn't come. He was too conceited to let himself go unless he first proved himself a sex god.
"Just fucking come already," he yelled.
"When I'm ready," she'd growled.
Of course, he had his bones to pick, too. After that sleaze, Mxyzptlk, was brought down, he found her at The Talon. He barely said a word as he dragged her to his truck and drove them the Crater Lake.
He took her against his hood, muttering darkly. "F*cking Russian slimeball! Did he touch you?"
"Hardly at all," she said, a little smugly. He was jealous. Good.
Later, she found that Lana was angry with Clark over Jason's dismissal as assistant coach. She was starting to learn that, though Kal was driven to her, it was almost always Lana that drove Clark to the ring.
And she could live with that, or so she told herself. Because she knew she couldn't live without it.
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Chapter Ten
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