All the Right Moves 6/10

[ihearttvsnark]

Title: All the Right Moves
Author: ihearttvsnark
Chapter: 6/10
Fandom: Smallville
Pairing: Chloe Sullivan and Oliver Queen
Banners: geek_or_unique
Rating: NC-17
Word Count: 7,119
Summary: This is the sequel to  Everybody Loves M e. When Oliver returns from the other universe, he realizes that he wants the kind of life the other Oliver has. Chloe is determined to help him become the man she knows he’s capable of being, but it’s not an easy road for either one of them. 
Previous Chapters: | One | Two | Three | Four | Five |





Chapter 6: Am I Bright Enough to Shine in Your Spaces

Chloe glared at the coffeemaker, irritated that it was taking so long to do its job. She’d barely slept for more than a few hours the night before and all she wanted was a cup of coffee so she could get some caffeine in her system. Maybe if her cousin bothered to refill it once in awhile, she wouldn’t have this problem. Her coffee would be waiting for her like she needed it to be. The worst part was that her cousin hadn’t bothered to come home from her date with Clark the night before so she wasn’t even there for Chloe to give her a piece of her mind.

Of course Lois would deny that it was a date and the less angry part of Chloe was curious to see what excuse her cousin was going to use for staying out all night with Clark. His potential story excuse had already been weak and it wasn’t like Lois could tell Chloe that was the truth because Chloe would simply ask her to see the story and that would be the end of it. She really didn’t understand why Lois was being so secretive about her relationship with Clark in the first place. Chloe didn’t know Clark well, but he seemed like a good guy so it wasn’t like she was going to judge or tease her cousin for getting involved with him.

Not like the way Lois would judge her if she got involved with Oliver. Chloe sighed at the thought, wishing it would stop popping into her head. She was never going to get involved with Oliver; she didn’t have feelings for him and he didn’t have them for her. He was just getting caught up in the moment and it was natural for him to project something that wasn’t there. They spent a lot of time together; they knew each other’s biggest secrets, but their relationship was never going to be anything more than that.

She couldn’t seem to stop her thoughts from drifting back to the night before when Oliver had been about to kiss her. Chloe also couldn’t seem to make herself stop thinking about what he’d said to her as he’d left about the conversation not being over. Chloe knew Oliver liked to get his way, but that wasn’t going to happen this time. The lines were already starting to blur between them and she needed to put a stop to it. She would put a stop to it and tell him next time she saw him that they were friends and coworkers and that was it so he would let go of whatever silly notion he had about them being something more.

Satisfied with her resolve, Chloe moved to grab a mug from the cabinet just as she heard the door opening. “That must have been some story Clark found for you,” she called over her shoulder, not bothering to turn around so Lois wouldn’t see the knowing smirk on her face. “It’s a good thing I knew you were with him or I would have wondered why you didn’t come home last night.”

“It was a stakeout,” Lois replied quickly, grateful that Chloe had her back to her so she wouldn’t be able to tell that she was lying through her teeth. “Clark heard some guys talking with that super hearing of his and he thought it was a mob deal which would have been a great story, but it was a false alarm.” Lois made a face at the lie; it was beyond pathetic but she was too busy floating on cloud nine after her night with Clark to care.

Chloe barely stopped herself from snorting at how ridiculous that sounded. She poured her coffee, doing her best to keep her face composed as she turned to face her cousin. “That must have been rough spending all that time with Clark and not getting anything out of it,” she commented before bringing her mug to her lips and taking a long sip.

“You know how it is,” Lois said with a shrug, carefully not meeting her cousin’s eyes. She stepped out of her shoes and pulled a paper out of her bag before flinging it on the table. “I was on my way in this morning and this caught my eye.” She set the paper down on the counter and moved around it to pour herself a cup of coffee.

Curious, Chloe picked up the paper, noting it was one of Star City’s most notorious tabloids. There was a picture of Oliver on the front page and the headline read ‘Playboy Billionaire MIA’. Her brow furrowed in confusion as Chloe skimmed the first few paragraphs of the article. “Are they kidding with this?” she asked in disbelief as Lois settled onto one of the stools on the opposite side of the counter.

Lois shook her head. “Nope,” she replied, pausing to take a sip of her coffee. “Come on, Chlo, think about how it looks. The guy went from being on the party circuit nearly every night to virtually disappearing from the public eye. People want to know why. I’d want to know why if I didn’t actually know why.” She laughed at her words and took another sip of her coffee.

Chloe frowned as she read the rest of the article. It was basically a speculation of what Oliver was doing with his time now that he wasn’t showing up at the clubs or escorting supermodels to society functions and none of the implications were flattering. It wasn’t fair that Oliver was working so hard to change his life and the press was still trying to tear him apart even though he hadn’t done anything wrong.

“This is like an open invitation for the press to start stalking him again.” She chewed on her lip, knowing this was going to be bad for Oliver and for Green Arrow. Photographers were going to be stalking him more than usual, each one wanting to be the one to crack the mystery of what the billionaire was doing in his spare time. Chloe knew Oliver was good at dodging the press when he needed to, but now he was going to have to be extra careful to make sure no one connected him to his alter ego.

“It sucks,” Lois agreed. “But at the same time, he brought this on himself for the way he used to live his life.” She held up her hand. “Save the lecture, Chlo,” she warned. “I know what you’re going to say and I already admitted that Oliver seems different now and I think that’s great if he keeps it up. It still doesn’t take away from the fact that Oliver spent years behaving badly and this is a repercussion of that.”

Chloe glared at her cousin. “Oliver does not deserve to pay for that for the rest of his life.” She tossed the paper in the trash and picked up her coffee. “You need to start remembering to refill the coffeemaker when it runs out. I shouldn’t have to do everything around here,” she snapped before taking her coffee and stomping down the hall to her room.

Lois’s eyes widened when she heard Chloe’s door slam a few seconds later. “What the hell?” she muttered. Chloe had never been a morning person, but it wasn’t like her to go around yelling and slamming doors. Lois had a feeling that her behavior had little to do with coffee and everything to do with Oliver. She didn’t know what was going on with those two, but it certainly seemed like her cousin was in a lot deeper than she was willing to admit.

***

Oliver had been in his office less than ten minutes Monday morning before the door opened and Chloe rushed in, her heels clicking loudly across the floor as she crossed the room to his desk. She dropped the handful of papers she was carrying in front of him, giving him an expectant look as she gestured to them. He simply raised an eyebrow, waiting for her to say something. He’d spent the entire rest of the weekend thinking about her, alternating between mentally berating himself for not kissing her and assuring himself that it had been the right decision because at least now she had a clue as to how he felt about her.

He’d wondered what she would say to him and he’d purposely gotten to the office before she normally did so she’d be forced to make the first move and say something to him. But judging by the impatient look on her face, Oliver could see that Chloe had something else on her mind entirely other than their almost kiss. He glanced down to see what she’d thrown on his desk and rolled his eyes when he saw the various assortment of tabloids speculating on what he was doing with his life.

“Seriously?” Oliver asked as he looked up at her again. “This is what you want to talk to me about?” He wasn’t all that surprised that Chloe was trying to avoid the subject of what had happened Saturday night, but he’d expected her to come up with a better excuse than some bogus tabloid articles.

“Oliver, this is a big deal,” Chloe stressed. She couldn’t help the way her cheeks heated when her eyes met his. It was all too easy to remember what it had been like to be standing over him, cleaning his cuts while he looked at her in that intense way of his. She quickly pushed the thoughts aside and pointed to the papers. “Do you know what is not in any of these papers?” she asked.

“I could name a few things,” Oliver replied. When she glared at him, he sighed and leaned back in his seat. “Fine, Chloe. Tell me what’s not in these papers and why you’re so upset about it,” he said. Maybe when she was finished, they could talk the real issue at hand because Oliver had no intention of letting it go again.

“There’s no mention of you getting into a bar fight even though I leaked it myself to three separate reporters,” Chloe replied. She hesitated for a moment and then she reached out, cupping his chin in her hand and tilting his head to the side so she could get a better look at the cut under his eye. It looked better than it had on Saturday, but the bruise was a nasty shade of purple. “Did anyone ask you about it?” She’d seen a crowd of photographers outside the building so she assumed Oliver had passed them as well.

“I was wearing sunglasses and I was in a hurry so they might not have noticed,” Oliver replied. He frowned when she dropped her hand from his face and took a step back from his desk like she was afraid he was going to reach out to her. He pushed that irritation aside for a moment. “It’s not a big deal. They’ll just make up their own stories,” he said with a shrug.

Chloe shook her head. “This is a big deal, Oliver. They know that something is off with you so they should have jumped on the tip about the bar fight. But there’s not even any speculation about it in any of the main tabloids. They’re much more interested in the real story and they’re not going to stop until they find something to use.”

He could see that she was upset about this, but Oliver felt like she was overreacting. The tabloids were always trying to get pictures of him and this was the longest he’d stayed out of the spotlight but he still didn’t think it was the end of the world. “They’ll get bored with me again before you know it. The only reason they didn’t run the story was because they didn’t have any pictures to go with it. That’s usually half the draw. I’ll try to walk slower when I leave.”

“What if that’s not enough?” Chloe countered. She could see that he wasn’t taking this seriously and that bothered her. Oliver was too arrogant for his own good and she was worried that might lead to him being sloppy and making a mistake. She knew how much being Green Arrow meant to him and she didn’t want to see him get caught in a bad situation. “A picture of you with a two-day old bruise on your face is not the same as a snapshot of you out on a Saturday night,” she pointed out.

He raised an eyebrow at her. “Would you like me to go out and get into a bar fight so they have a better picture to use?” Oliver asked, amused. He appreciated what she was trying to do, but Oliver had spent his entire life in the spotlight. He knew how to get around it when he needed to. He’d spent a solid month in Metropolis without a soul knowing where he was until he’d wanted someone to. “Chloe, don’t worry. I can fix this,” he told her confidently.

Chloe bit her lip as she watched him for a moment. Maybe he was right and she was overreacting. She’d brought it to his attention and there was nothing else she could do for the moment aside from keep an eye on the situation. “Okay, as long as you’re sure,” she said as she moved to forward again and started gathering the papers from his desk so she could toss them in the trash.

Oliver placed his hands over hers, watching the surprise cross her face as she lifted her head to meet his gaze. “Now that we got that out of the way, can we finish our conversation from Saturday night? I assume you’ve been thinking about me since then,” he teased, an arrogant smile crossing his face.

“You’re right, Oliver. I’ve been thinking about how delusional you are,” Chloe replied as she pulled her hands away from his and straightened up, leaving the papers where they were. “I told you that you were just getting caught up in the moment and I meant it. That’s all it was. Proximity and adrenaline,” she said firmly.

His mouth fell open. “Proximity and adrenaline?” Oliver repeated, looking at her like she’d lost her mind. “Chloe, I know you’ve had a low opinion of me in the past, but I thought we’d moved on from that. Do you really think I’m that shallow? Or is it that hard for you to believe that I might actually have feelings?” he asked, not bothering to keep the hurt out of his voice. Oliver hadn’t expected Chloe to fall into his arms, but he’d assumed she’d come up with better excuses than the ones she was giving him.

She heard the hurt in his voice and she couldn’t help the way her chest tightened at the realization that she had put it there. “No, Ollie, it’s not that simple.” Chloe chewed on her lip again, trying to find the right words so she wouldn’t offend him more than she already had. “I just think you’re projecting. I know your secret and I’ve been there for you so it’s easy for you to want to see something that’s not actually there,” she said.

Oliver gaped at her again, trying to figure out how someone who was so smart couldn’t see what was right in front of her. “Thanks for the psychoanalysis, Chloe, but you should probably stick to your day and night jobs,” he said sharply as he got to his feet and moved around the desk to stand in front of her. “You really don’t get it, do you?” he asked as he reached out and brushed his knuckles lightly across her cheek.

Chloe swallowed hard as every rational thought seemed to fly right out of her head. “Oliver,” she started. Her heartbeat was echoing in her ears and Chloe felt like everything around them had gone still. The tiny piece of her brain that was still working told her to take a step back and almost as if he anticipated the thought, Oliver wrapped his other arm around her waist, his hand splaying across her back and stopping her from going anywhere.

“I know you feel the connection between us,” Oliver said, his eyes locking with hers as he felt her tremble against him. He continued stroking her cheek and then let his fingers brush across her lips, watching as her eyelids fluttered. “This isn’t one sided, Chloe, and it has nothing to do with gratitude and misplaced feelings.” He traced his thumb over her lips again and she let out a tiny sound from the back of her throat. “Tell me I’m wrong,” he said.

She couldn’t do anything other than stare up at him, anticipation coursing through her as his eyes bore into hers. Chloe wasn’t sure she was even breathing anymore and she didn’t care. It was too late to turn back now and she couldn’t seem to stop her tongue from darting out of her mouth to wet her lips. She saw a hint of a smirk cross Oliver’s face and then he was leaning into her, his mouth a breath away from hers as she let her eyes fall shut.

The phone on his desk started to ring and it was like someone had suddenly thrown a bucket of ice water in her face. Chloe quickly stepped back from Oliver; her eyes wide as her cheeks flared red. Oliver tried to reach out for her again, but Chloe shook her head, turning on her heel and practically running for the door. “Answer your phone, Oliver,” she called over her shoulder, pulling the door closed behind her.

He stared after her, stunned that she could just walk away from him again. Oliver let out a loud curse, not caring if she heard him as he snatched the phone from the receiver. “Oliver Queen,” he answered angrily, fully prepared to take his annoyance out on whoever was on the other end of the phone.

Chloe winced when she heard the anger in his voice and she couldn’t help the guilt that churned in her stomach. She didn’t mean to keep upsetting him, but she had no idea what had just come over her. She’d accused him of getting caught up in the moment the other night and now she had done the same thing. Chloe had always considered herself immune to the famous Queen charm but apparently she’d been wrong about that.

Fresh guilt welled inside of her at the thought. Chloe knew that wasn’t fair; she knew Oliver wasn’t trying to charm her or seduce her. He was trying to show her that he was serious about his feelings and Chloe believed he was, but she was still convinced he was just projecting, no matter what he said. She sat down behind her desk and took several deep breaths, trying to get a grip and forget about how much she’d wanted to feel his lips against hers. That was never going to happen.

“Chloe?”

She let out a little shriek, nearly jumping out of her seat as her hand flew to her chest. “Victor,” Chloe said as she willed her heart to slow down to a normal speed. Between Oliver almost kissing her and Victor surprising her, she’d be lucky if she didn’t end the day in the ER with a coronary. “What’s going on?” she asked.

Victor raised an eyebrow. “Sorry I scared you but I assumed you heard me come in,” he said as he wondered what he had missed. Chloe wasn’t normally the jumpy type. “Do you have a minute or should I come back later?” he asked.

“Now is good,” Chloe told him, forcing a smile onto her face even as her cheeks burned. She needed to get her head back into work mode and stop thinking about Oliver. “What’s going on, Victor? Is there a problem?”

He nodded and moved closer to her desk, hesitating for a moment before he spoke. “I need help, Chloe. It’s too much work for one person.”

Chloe opened her mouth to ask him what he was talking about but stopped when she saw the look on his face. He wasn’t talking about Queen Industries’ business. “Victor,” she started, clueless as to how she was supposed to explain herself to him. He’d obviously figured out her identity and she felt like she should apologize or something, but she couldn’t seem to find the words.

Victor held up his hand. “We don’t need to get into all of that right now,” he said. “But this mission is more complex than I thought and I don’t want to waste time spending another week going through all those boxes. The stuff we’re looking for might end up moved or sold and then this will have been a waste. I need help,” he said again.

“Then you came to the right place,” Oliver said from the doorway of his office, causing Chloe and Victor’s heads to turn in his direction. He smiled at the surprise on Victor’s face and tilted his head toward his office. “Let’s talk,” he said.

“Oliver, are you sure?” Chloe asked. She knew Oliver had been telling her all along that he thought working together as a team was their best option, but just because Victor had figured out her identity didn’t mean that he needed to reveal his. It was a big step.

“I’m sure about a lot of things,” Oliver told her. He held her gaze for a moment and then turned back to a bewildered Victor. “Come on in,” he said. “We’ll come up with a game plan.”

***

Chloe stood behind the computer in the command center, watching the three dots on the satellite feed. It was just past ten p.m. and Oliver, Victor and Clark had been at the warehouse for a little over an hour and they were down to their last three rows of storage crates. She glanced to her left at the catalog of items that Victor’s internal system was sending her. It looked like they had more than enough evidence to put the guys running the operation behind bars for a long time.

The com device in her ear beeped and Chloe’s eyes moved to the main screen and she saw the green dot had moved away from the other two. “Go ahead, Arrow,” she said as she reached for her coffee.

“We’re almost done here,” Oliver said as he watched Clark moving down the last aisle, x-raying each of the boxes. They’d come up with a simple system to split the workload; Clark used his x-ray vision to find the stolen artifacts, Victor scanned them into his system and uploaded the information to Chloe and Oliver moved the evidence from the crates to the truck they were going to use to bring it all to the police. “Are all the missing items accounted for or do we need to do another sweep?”

“Give me a minute, Arrow,” Chloe replied. She set her coffee down and pulled up the database that listed everything that had gone missing from museums and galleries over the past few months. She set up a quick program to cross reference the list with the files Victor had sent her. An hourglass appeared on her screen and then a few seconds later, it let her know the comparison was complete. “Everything is there. Do you want me to give the police a heads up on the location?” she asked.

“Not yet,” Oliver replied. He wanted to have a word with Victor and Clark before Chloe called the police and they needed to flee the scene. “So what do you think?” he asked. “Are you ready to tell me that I was right all along?”

Chloe rolled her eyes but she was glad he wasn’t there to see the smile that she couldn’t seem to keep off her face. She hated to admit it because his ego was big enough already, but she loved seeing the three of them work together so efficiently. The whole time Victor had been in the office with Oliver, she’d half-expected him to storm out and let her have it for lying to him all this time, but when he’d left, he’d simply waved and told her they’d talk later. He hadn’t seemed upset with her at all.

“I will acknowledge that you were right about Victor needing help on this mission and that is as far as I’m willing to go at this point,” she said. “Now shouldn’t you be concentrating on finishing the mission instead of trying to get me to offer you praise over the com?” she asked.

Oliver laughed. “You’re right,” he conceded. “I’d much rather you offer me praise in person so we’ll continue this later. I’ll let you know when we’re ready for the police,” he added before he turned off the com. Oliver made his way across the warehouse to where Clark and Victor were waiting near the truck. “Chloe said everything is accounted for but I asked her to give us some time before she called the police.”

Victor raised an eyebrow, but he didn’t say anything as he waited to hear what was on Oliver’s mind. He was still having a hard time believing that Oliver Queen and Green Arrow were one in the same. Victor had figured out a long time ago that Chloe was the Eye in the Sky, but he hadn’t said anything because she’d seemed to want to keep it quiet. He’d known there were other vigilantes out there but the idea that Oliver was one actually made his head hurt and that was saying something considering how much hardware was in there.

But he had to admit that working with Green Arrow had gone a lot better than he’d expected it to when Oliver had laid out the plan for him earlier. He’d told him about Clark and his abilities and he’d asked Victor to meet them at the warehouse that night. When he’d arrived, Victor had noticed a hint of apprehension on Clark’s face; it was obvious he wasn’t comfortable having strangers learn about his abilities. Oliver had taken control and it had been fairly effortless from there, a big change from the last few nights Victor had spent sorting through the boxes.

“Is this going to take long?” Clark asked as he glanced at his watch. “I still need to patrol in Metropolis and then there’s someone I need to meet,” he added, giving Oliver a pointed look. He hadn’t been thrilled when the other man had called him and told him that he’d shared his secret with Victor and they needed his help for a mission. But Clark believed in the greater good so he’d run to Star City without too much complaint. Not that Oliver had listened when he’d attempted to air his grievances.

“Relax, Clark,” Oliver replied, a hint of amusement on his face. He assumed Clark’s plans with Lois had gone well the other night since he hadn’t shown up at his place to mope again. “I just thought we should take a minute and talk about working as a team and if you’d both be willing to do it again in the future.” He hadn’t mentioned Bart or AC yet since he wasn’t sure if Victor knew about their abilities and Oliver figured he and Chloe should probably talk to them one on one first.

“You know I’ll help whenever I can,” Clark replied. He’d been wary of the team aspect from the beginning, but working with Oliver and Chloe wasn’t so bad and Victor seemed like a good guy. He was obviously focused on getting the job done and Clark respected that in a person.

“Thank you,” Oliver replied sincerely. He liked to give Clark a hard time since it was so easy to get him riled up, but Oliver did appreciate that he was so willing to help. He glanced at Victor. “What about you? Do you think you could see yourself doing a few less solo missions?” he asked.

Victor shrugged. “They probably won’t all go as smoothly as this one,” he pointed out. “But I wouldn’t be opposed to having some help in the future. Are we talking about just you two or are there others?” he asked curiously.

“Both,” Oliver replied, his tone implying they would be leaving it at that. “We should get out of here so the boys in blue can take this the rest of the way and Clark can go save the world and get to his date,” he teased, barking out a laugh when Clark’s face turned redder than his shirt. “Sorry, you make it too easy, man.” Oliver patted him on the back and then moved to check the truck one last time to make sure everything was in order before he called Chloe again.

***

Lois juggled the bags in her hands so she could reach into her purse and find the stupid keycard. She’d assumed Chloe would be at home so she’d lugged everything there first after she’d left the store but when she’d found an empty apartment, she’d known her cousin was probably at the command center, drowning her sorrows in work. Lois managed to get the keycard out of her purse and let out a triumphant sound when she got the door open on the first try. Maybe that was a good sign.

“Chlo, are you here?” she asked as she pushed the door open, shifting the bags again so she could close it behind her. Lois tried to keep her voice cheerful. She wanted Chloe to know that she was there for her and she was not going to say ‘I told you so’ because she loved her cousin more than she loved being right. Clark was going to get an earful when she saw him and eventually, she would remind Chloe that she’d been right, but not now when she knew her cousin was probably hurting.

“Hey Lois, what are you doing here?” Chloe asked, glancing over her shoulder when she heard the rustling of bags. “What’s with the bags?” She turned her attention back to the monitor to check Oliver’s progress. He was working with Victor again, this time to infiltrate a potential drug den in nearby Centre City.

“I brought all the essentials,” Lois replied. “Wine, ice cream, candy, popcorn and plenty of tissues,” she said. “I picked up movies too, but I left them at home since I was hoping to convince you to go back there.” She studied her cousin’s face, searching for any signs of tears. Chloe was looking at her strangely and Lois wondered if maybe she hadn’t let herself absorb the shock yet. “Chlo, it’s okay. I’m here for you.”

“Thanks?” Chloe replied, confused. She had no idea why Lois had brought all that stuff there or why she was looking at her like she expected her to fall apart at any second. “Did something happen?” She stopped herself from asking if something happened with Clark since she still wasn’t supposed to know about that even though Lois had spent two more nights away from the apartment that week.

Lois frowned. Apparently, Chloe was going to make her come right out and say it. “Chlo, you don’t have to pretend for me. I know Oliver let you down and I’m here for you. I will put all my feelings for him aside because I love you. Now do you want ice cream or wine first? I could just pour it right in the carton,” she offered.

“What?” Chloe turned away from the computer to face Lois. That was the last thing she’d expected her cousin to say. “Lois, I don’t know where you’re getting your information, but Oliver hasn’t let me down,” she said. If anything, she was having the opposite problem where everything Oliver did seemed to impress her more and more. It had been two weeks since he’d almost kissed her in his office and Chloe had spent nearly every free second she had obsessing over it.

She’d expected him to make another move, but so far he hadn’t, at least not anything as direct as trying to kiss her. Oliver still stood closer to her than was necessary and he always made sure their fingers brushed together when he handed her paperwork or he took something from her hand. Chloe kept catching him looking at her and while most people would look away, he just held her gaze until she had to look away because her thoughts were drifting to places they shouldn’t.

Chloe realized she was doing it again and quickly pushed those thoughts aside and looked at her cousin expectantly. “Well?” she asked. “Why would you say that Oliver has let me down?”

“He’s out partying again every night,” Lois replied, wondering if Chloe had had some sort of psychological break that stopped her from being able to see the truth. “Chlo, it’s all over the papers. I have some if you need to look at them.” She reached into one of her bags and pulled out the tabloids she’d picked up at the store in case Chloe wanted to have a bonfire. “Before I left work, I heard he was spotted at that new club on Taylor tonight.”

“Oliver is not at a club,” Chloe stated. She pointed over her shoulder at the green dot on the screen. “He’s in the middle of a mission with Victor and he’s been patrolling every night without fail. I know because I’ve been talking him through them.” She snatched the magazines from Lois’s hand, flipping through the pictures.

It was definitely Oliver in the pictures and if she didn’t know better, she would believe they were recent shots. They were taken at various clubs around the city and there were a few other shots of what looked like a beach vacation. Chloe noticed the same woman was in most of the pictures with him, but she didn’t recognize her. Of course, it was difficult to tell what she looked like when her face was attached to Oliver’s in most of the pictures, Chloe thought bitterly.

“Wow,” Lois mused as she watched the dot on the screen for a moment and then turned back to her cousin. “I have to give credit where credit is due and it seems like Oliver went all out on this one. I wonder who he paid off to get all these pictures into circulation. Sorry,” she added sheepishly as she waited for Chloe to give her a hard time about thinking the worst about Oliver again.

“Don’t worry about it,” Chloe said. She gave Lois a tight smile as she set the magazines down and turned back to the console, trying her best not to glare at them. “You can stay if you want but I have to help Oliver and Victor.”

Lois raised an eyebrow, noting that something seemed off. “Actually, if you’re good, I have a few things to do tonight,” she said. Since Chloe hadn’t said anything about Clark being part of the mission, Lois assumed that meant he was probably free and she wouldn’t mind spending a few hours of quality naked time with her favorite farm boy. “I am sorry, Chloe.”

“It’s not your fault.” Chloe gave Lois a genuine smile over her shoulder. “I appreciate you looking out for me even if you were misguided. Enjoy your night, Lois,” she said. Her eyes fell on the magazines again and Chloe’s smile faded as she turned back to the screen. She knew the pictures were fakes but even if they weren’t, there was no reason they should bother her. Oliver was her friend and that was that.

***

Oliver rolled his eyes as he sat behind his desk, listening to his publicist going on and on about the latest round of tabloid photos. “Scott, don’t worry so much. Just issue the statement that my private life is private and leave it at that.” He caught sight of Chloe standing in the doorway and motioned for her to come in. “Last time I checked, spin control is what I pay you for.” Oliver hung up the phone before the other man could say anything and grinned at Chloe. “It’s been awhile since I gave Scott a headache. I think he missed it,” he joked.

“Is there a reason you didn’t mention your little tabloid crusade to me?” Chloe asked. She paused in front of Oliver’s desk, folding her arms across her chest as she met his eyes. He was far too amused with himself for her liking. After Lois had left the command center the night before, Chloe had flipped through the magazine pictures again and she’d found herself getting angrier and angrier. “I thought we were in this together, Oliver.”

His smile faded as he tried to figure out what he had done to piss her off because it was obvious he had done something. “You were the one who said I needed to do something about the press before they stumbled on my secret. I did something. What’s wrong?” Oliver asked.

“Nothing is wrong,” Chloe replied. On some level, she knew she was being irrational. Oliver was right. He’d solved the problem for the time being and that was a good thing. There was no reason for her to be upset about some doctored photographs, assuming they were doctored. “Is the woman with you a friend of yours? How did you explain to her that her face would be on every tabloid in the city?” she asked, attempting for a casual tone but she couldn’t keep the bite out of her voice.

“She’s an aspiring model so I don’t think she minds,” Oliver replied with a smirk as realization set in. “You’re jealous. That’s why you’re so angry. You don’t care that I didn’t tell you about this ahead of time; you’re just upset that there might be something going on between Kim and me.”

“I am not!” Chloe snapped as the smug look on his face had fresh irritation coursing through her veins. “I don’t care how many pictures of you and Kim are floating around out there. I just want to do my job and make sure you’re doing yours. A heads up would have been nice,” she said, turning to leave before she gave into the urge to slap that look off his face.

He was up and out of his chair in a matter of seconds. Oliver grabbed Chloe’s arm, pulling her back and pinning her body between his and the desk. Still smirking, he cupped her cheek in his hand, tilting her head up so she was forced to look at him. The anger he saw on her face had him fighting back a laugh. “All of those pictures are old, Chloe. There’s nothing for you to be jealous of because the only woman I intend on kissing is you.”

She struggled against him, more on principle than anything else. “I am not jealous,” Chloe said firmly. “I…” He cut her off when his mouth crashed down over hers, his hand sliding from her cheek into her hair as his lips moved over hers. The last coherent thought that ran through her head was that his lips were even softer than they looked. Chloe held onto his arm, her other hand cupping the back of his neck as she tugged him closer.

He went willingly, his body pressing hers into the desk as his tongue teased the seam of her lips until she opened her mouth beneath his and let him deepen the kiss. His tongue swept over hers, savoring the taste of her, his hand sliding down her side to rest on her hip as she let out a soft moan from the back of her throat. Oliver kissed her until his lungs started to burn for air and then he dropped his mouth to her neck, pressing kisses along her soft skin as he squeezed her hip through the fabric of her skirt.

Chloe couldn’t resist running her hand over his chest, even through his suit; she could feel his muscles beneath her fingertips. She slid her other hand into his hair, teasing the short strands around her fingers as she tilted her head to the side, giving him more access to her neck. Every touch felt incredible and she let her eyes drift shut, another moan falling from her lips as he traced her pulse point with his tongue before sucking the sensitive skin into his mouth.

Oliver dropped both hands to her hips and lifted her up, placing her on his desk as he moved to stand between her legs, his mouth claiming hers again. He felt her hand tightening in his hair as he deepened the kiss once more. When air became an issue again, he pulled back, resting his forehead against hers as he waited for her eyes to open and meet his. “I want you, Chloe. Can you finally admit that there’s something between us?” he asked.

It took a moment for her brain to start working normally again and Chloe’s first instinct was to run away. But Oliver was still holding onto her so she forced herself to take a deep breath and not panic. Her second instinct was to pull him closer and let him do whatever he wanted with her. It scared her just how much she wanted to go with that option.

“Ollie,” Chloe started as she struggled to breathe normally. “I don’t want to do anything that we might regret.” She brought her hand up to his cheek and gently rubbed her thumb over his chin. “I need time.” She also needed space where he wasn’t pressed up against her; reminding her just how amazing he felt.

That wasn’t what he wanted to hear, but Oliver decided the fact that she wasn’t completely pushing him away was a good sign. “Okay,” he said as he brushed some of her hair away from her face and tucked it behind her ear before he kissed her again. “But we’re not going to pretend this didn’t happen, Chloe.”

She swallowed hard and nodded, knowing that wasn’t going to be possible. There was no way she was ever going to forget Oliver kissing her and the spark it sent through her entire body. She just didn’t know what she was supposed to do about it.

Seven.