"The Christmas Trap" (Chlex Holiday Fic-AU Romance- PG-15): Chapter 1
SUMMARY: It's the holiday season and someone's determined to make sure Lex will get the Christmas he deserves.
AUTHOR: Lexie aka lillianschild
RATING: PG-15
A/N: The first chapters of this holiday fic have been sitting on my computer for almost two years. I've tried to finish it several times but got distracted by some fic or another. Since I thought it was a real pity to leave it languishing there, I decided to start posting it in the hopes that sharing it here will encourage my muse to keep on working on it.
THE CHRISTMAS TRAP
CHAPTER ONE
LEX'S PENTHOUSE- METROPOLIS
”I should kill you, Julian. Mom asked me what I thought of having a little brother to play with when I came back from Excelsior that summer and, stupid me, I said there was nothing I wanted more. What was I thinking? “ fumed Lionel Luthor´s first born, looking daggers at his baby brother- the apple of his father´s eyes.
“Come on, Lex! You know, deep down, you love me, “ responded the youngest Luthor sheepishly, with a smile that made the female teenagers of America go weak in the knees.
“Don´t try to use your Luthor charm on me to get you out of this one, brother. I´m not one of your legion of swooning fans, ¨ added Lex, pouring himself a snifter of his best vintage bourbon. “Spit it out. What do you want? “
“Why in heavens do you think I might want anything?”
“Over twenty years as your eldest brother. Smallville and the entire female population of that girls´ school next to the one you used to attend may think you´re the next candidate for sainthood, but we both know better, don´t we? You’ve got a hidden agenda. You may look like mom but Luthor blood runs through your veins.”
“I hadn´t seen my illustrious eldest brother in months and I thought... Christmas is almost here...what better way to drag him away from his cold sterile glass and crystal tower than to tell him Dad was with one foot in his grave?”
“I hate the old bastard, but that was a very cheap trick, Julian,” Lex answered, swallowing the remains of his drink in one gulp.
“I couldn´t think of anything to convince you to come home when I know you´ve always hated spending Christmas with the family. “
Lex set down the empty snifter on the wet bar and took a deep breath. It hadn´t always been that way. He used to love the season when his mother was alive, but everything changed when she passed away and both boys were left alone to be raised by Lionel. Julian couldn´t understand him; the boy had been but a two-month-old baby when Lillian died; he´d never know what it was like for his eldest brother to lose the one person who made him feel loved.
“I’m not staying,” Lex said, “so whatever plan you´ve concocted in that mind of yours will never see the light.”
“What makes you say that?” Julian asked, using that tone of voice that had always helped him get away with anything while Lex got the blame for whatever mischief the youngest had been up to. Lex had tried hard to hate him for getting from Lionel what he himself had craved from the day he´d been born, but he couldn´t; Julian looked too much like Lillian to hate him. There had been times during Lex´s teenage years when he had thought of running away with his baby brother afraid of what Lionel´s parenting could do to their fraternal relationship. Lionel hated his first-born; and Lex didn´t want the only person he´d left in the world to learn to loathe him as well. It had been precisely that fear of losing Julian that had led them to this point. Lex had never been able to say “no” to him, and the little bastard knew it.
While Lex didn´t have a hair on his head, Julian had inherited their mum´s reddish-brown colouring- a much more attractive shade than the deep red one that used to make Lex look like a carrot when he was a child. Both siblings had the same intense blue-grey eyes but, unlike Lex, Julian was always wearing a smile on his face. Lex was the dark handsome brooding and dangerous brother of whom people permanently expected the worst while, at almost twenty-one and a sophomore, Julian was an angel in everyone´s eyes- another Smallville aberration; a seraph born into a family of devils.
“Let me guess,” Julian said, “your secretary´s already booked you a fortnight in the Bahamas and you’ll be bedding the daughter of the CEO of one of LuthorCorp´s competitors. What better way to spend Christmas? Mingling fun and business.”
Lex poured himself another bourbon and looked at his brother archly, “ Is that what you think of me, Julian? That I only use people? That I´m incapable of having a meaningful relationship with a woman?”
“How do you expect the world to think any different with your one-night stands and your string of tall, cool brunette creatures? You deserve better and so do they,” responded Julian suddenly sobered.
Lex looked at his Napoleon-franc watch. “I have to go. My jet is waiting.” Julian looked at his brother finish his second bourbon and rise. “As much as I´d love to stay here with you discussing my love life, I´ve got things to do. “
“Save the irony for Dad, Lex,” Julian said heavily. “We both know you bury yourself in work not to see how barren your life is.”
“Don´t talk about something you don´t know a thing about, Julian. Once you´ve finished your university studies and have the responsibilities I do to keep a multimillion-dollar corporation afloat... then, and only then, you´ll understand why I do the things I do.”
“This isn´t about business and you know it, Lex. I want to see my brother happy. Is that a crime? I´m not stupid, you know. I´m no longer a child; I can see what- or rather, who- you´re looking for in those women. You´re deluding yourself if you think you´ll find Mom in them. There´s someone out there for you- someone who´ll be able to see beyond your name and your millions. Not every woman is like Desirée, Helen and Victoria.”
“Money and power´s what runs the world, Julian. The sooner you learn that the better off you´ll be. I´d hate to see you get hurt. There was a time I wanted so hard to believe what you´ve just said was true... “ Lex confessed emotionally.
“It is true, Lex. I´ve seen it, “ said Julian passionately, getting closer to his brother and grabbing his arm in a tight grip as if he were afraid he´d overstepped his boundaries and lost the brother he´d idolised from day one. “I need your help, “ he added with a hint of despair in his voice.
Julian never asked for help unless he really needed it, so Lex decided he could put off his departure for a short while and hear him out. The deal with the Japanese wouldn´t fall through if he delayed the conference call till the afternoon. Family was as important to the oriental as it was to the Italian; they´d understand if he told them he´d had some family business to take care of.
“What is it? And how much will it cost me?” sighed Lex. “You know that whatever you need, if I have it, is yours.”
“Not everything can be bought, I´m afraid,” murmured Julian, sounding defeated and walking towards the fridge under the wet bar to grab an imported bottled beer and a cold glass.
Lex eyed Julian speculatively. He´d never seen his little brother have an alcoholic drink in his life- true he hadn´t been of age before, but when had that stopped a Luthor?
“I’ve fallen in love,” Julian said blushing; then when no answer came out of his brother´s mouth, he looked up and saw one of Lex´s trademark smirks on his face.
“And?” Lex asked. “What´s the problem? Doesn´t she like you? Has Dad forbidden you to see her? Or is it our damn surname getting in the way?”
“Dad doesn´t know. And... she´s not like that, Lex. She doesn´t give a damn about who I am.”
“So what do you think you need me for? What do I know about love? With my lousy record when it comes to the opposite sex, I´m the last person you should turn to for advice.”
“But you know everything there´s to know about dating and romancing a woman.”
“Not the kind of women you might be interested in, Julian,” said Lex with a smirk.
“Think of Mom, then. How would you go about romancing someone like her?”
Lex looked at him with a puzzled frown. “You got it big, Jules. Who´s this paragon of virtue? I´m really intrigued... who´s this woman? And how can I help you?”
Julian took a deep breath. “She’s a young widow... and... a mother ”
“A widow with a child? How old is she? “
“What does it matter? “ Julian glared.
“Calm down. I´m not criticising her. Go on, “ responded Lex seriously.
“She lived with her dad and the baby´s father in Chicago until she moved back to Smallville at the beginning of this year when both men were killed in a car accident. She´s living in the apartment above The Talon. “
¨The Talon? The old movie theatre? “
“It´s a cafeteria now. She used to be friends with Nell Potter´s niece- Lana Lang- and now that Lana´s married to Pete Ross and no longer needs the accommodation, she´s let it to Chloe.”
“And what does ´Chloe´ do for a living? “
“She works at The Ledger. “
“A reporter? “ asked Lex, cocking an eyebrow.
“Not all journalists are like the ones you´re used to, Lex. She´s the sweetest person I´ve ever met.”
“If dad gets wind that his precious little son is in love with a single mother and that she´s a journalist to boot, hell will break loose.”
“He doesn´t know I´m attracted to her, but he admires her a lot,” Julian told him, sipping at his lager.
´Dad admires this girl? A reporter? She´s definitely someone worth meeting,´ mused Lex, keeping a straight face.
“She´s amazing, Lex. But... no man will ever get a chance with her with that boy of hers around. He´s jealous. He´s got her twisted around his little finger. He absorbs her completely. “
“Young children tend to be like that with their mothers, Jules. Oedipus complex, remember?” said Lex smugly.
“To the extreme of making it impossible for her to work? You know, Smallville isn´t Metropolis. The Ledger doesn´t offer its employees a day care centre and she needs that job. I babysat the monster a couple of times but... you don´t know what he´s like! I had to take him to the newspaper to his mom because he just wouldn´t stop crying and screaming. Chloe hasn´t got anyone to leave the boy with and she can´t afford a babysitter.”
“Mm. That can be solved. Let me make a couple of phone calls,” said Lex, taking out his mobile phone.
“Wait! ¨exclaimed Julian when his eldest brother was starting to dial his office number.“I haven´t finished yet. I think I could handle the kid... I´d be willing to do it ... if only I had some time alone with her. I´ve already got the person for the business. I even showed her a picture. Lex, I was so desperate. You´ve got to believe me... “
“Oh, no, you didn’t! You’re not getting me into this. I have places to be and deals to close.”
“How long has it been since you gave your employees time off at Christmas? I know Jennifer, that gorgeous secretary of yours, will thank you for it. I’ve never felt this way about anyone, Lex. All I need is some time alone with Chloe. If I could get her alone, I know I could...”
“Make her fall in love with you? That’s not the way it works, Jules.”
“Maybe not,” said Julian, “but at least I’d like to try.”
“You´re turning twenty-one next month, Jules. Say she falls for you... do you think you´re ready to take up the responsibility of supporting and raising a family?”
“I know you´re too cynical to believe what I do but, trust me, I know when two people are meant for each other,” Julian persisted.
For a moment Lex studied his brother in silence. Julian never asked for help for himself; he´d made a habit of being the champion of the underdog... always talking Lex into contributing to his latest project- more often than not lost causes.
However, this time Julian was asking Lex to help him with something personal, something that didn´t involve his drawing a fat cheque.
“Didn´t she recognise me when she saw the photograph? Excuse me if I´m sceptical but I´m far from forgettable. Besides, she´s a journalist and I´ve been on the front page or in the society section more times than I care to remember,” he said with a smirk.
“Well... actually... she did...” answered Julian hesitantly.
“There´s nothing more to say then. I´ll phone Jennifer and ask her to get the most qualified babysitter in Metropolis, “ Lex cut him off, slipping his hand into his Italian suit to take out his mobile again.
“Wait! I told her Lex Luthor was a cousin of yours and that when you were children you used to drive our parents nuts by posing as each other. I told her only Mom could tell you apart.”
“And she believed you? “ he frowned. “I guess she did. Who wouldn´t believe whatever comes out of Julian Luthor´s mouth? OK, I´ll do what I can. I don´t know what the hell I´m doing because I don´t know a damn thing about kids. Never been around them. Don´t even know if he´ll like me. Still... I´ve never said ´no´ to a challenge. Four hours a day looking after a boy... .”
“Lex, there´s more. “
“More?!What exactly did you have in mind?”
“To live with her,” mumbled Julian.
“What!? You expect me to live with her? And she said yes?”
“Please, Lex, there has to be someone in that apartment who can keep that kid away from her. And it has to be someone she can trust or she won’t allow him to babysit.”
“I’ll call Jennifer. She´ll get me the best Swiss nanny in the market-”
“No! It has to be you! Not a Swiss nanny.You, “ Julian pleaded vehemently. “Timmy needs a man’s touch. You´ve got something... I don´t know how to call it... I wish they sold it in bottles over the counter, Lex. You were great with me as a child...”
Lex felt flattered and exasperated at the same time. He knew he was being manipulated and, what was even worse, that he wasn´t far from capitulating. The boy had a point in what he´d told him, Lex had been as much a father as a brother to him, being eleven years his senior. Lillian had died when Julian was just a couple months old and Lionel hadn´t stopped working- he´d buried himself in paperwork for hours and was absent from home for countless days a month- so they just had each other. Pamela, Lex’s nanny had been fired after Lillian’s death and Lionel had sworn never to engage the services of another woman who could grow soft on the children and try to pollute Julian against him the way Pamela had tried to with Lex.
“All right. I´ll do it. I´ll look after this kid for a week. Seven days´ll be enough to see if you get a chance with the mom, right?” he answered reluctantly. If the LexCorp Board of Directors could see him now, they wouldn´t believe it. The unflappable and ruthless tycoon who´d never budge caved in with a few well-chosen words delivered by his goody-two-shoes little brother.
“It won´t be easy, Lex. “
¨Have you forgotten who you´re talking to? Nothing´s come easy in my life. And I´ve never been one to back away from a challenge. So... let´s go and meet this monster and the paragon of journalism who´s not only got my baby brother entranced but managed to charm the old cobra, “ the eldest brother responded.
“I need you to promise me you won´t turn this job to your secretary or to someone else. “
“Have I ever broken my word to you, Julian? I said I´ll do it, and I will.”
“OK. Thanks, Lex. See the bright side, bro´. You´ll be home for Christmas. Isn´t that better than spending the holidays alone in this cold lifeless penthouse of yours? “
“I hope I won´t live to regret this, “ mumbled Lex under his breath as they left the penthouse for the town he had only visited once after the meteor shower which had left him bald when he was ten.
CHAPTER 2