Selina/Lois!

[icarus_chained]

It's been brewing for a while, and tonight I just sat down and wrote the thing.

Title:  Tiger & Hawk
Rating:  Um. We'll say R, to be safe.
Characters/Pairings: Selina/Lois. Background Bruce/Clark.
Summary:  Set in the same universe as Amor Verus and Noire et Rouge. Bruce and Clark are in love, and Selina's just found out. Lois helps, and the pair have a night on the town to try and get the men out of their systems. Things go from there.
Disclaimer: Uh ... no. Don't own.
Warnings: nudity, femslash, and a few odd bits of canon, like a tiny mention of events during Batman: Hush.
Notes:  Title comes from the forties slang for reporters being 'newshawks', and Selina as tiger ... well. You'll see.

Tiger & Hawk

 

She shouldn't have been surprised. She shouldn't have been shocked. After all, it wasn't as if she and Bruce had ever been exactly exclusive. But ... at least before, she had always had the comfort of knowing that no-one else had ever been exactly exclusive with Bruce, either. The man had what might politely be called 'commitment issues'. A lot of them. It was like that old song. 'You only tell me: perhaps, perhaps, perrrhaps!'

But somehow, that had changed. Somehow, he had found it in himself to actually commit to someone. Her only problem? That someone wasn't her.

Selina looked up at the pair of them. Utterly professional at the moment, of course. Just two titans of justice comparing notes on the recent skirmish, coming together in a purely professional manner to further a mutual cause. Like hell! Did they really think they were fooling anyone? Did they really think they were fooling her? She knew Bruce inside and out. She knew the way he leaned in to you when his thoughts were less than pure. She knew the way he stared at you with that particular intensity that denoted his caring. She knew how he looked when he might, just might, love you. And here, it was more than might. It was definite. It was complete. Bruce, Batman, was absolutely, head over heels in love.

With the Man of fucking Steel, if you'll pardon the crassness of the expression. And, oh, wasn't this little excursion to Metropolis ever an eye-opener? Wasn't it just!

She glanced sideways at the fourth occupant of their rooftop, one Lois Lane, reporter. Superman's lady. Or rather, had been Superman's lady. Bet that was a kick in the teeth. And she should know. But when Lois looked back at her, there was no shock, and no anger in her eyes. Just resignation, a little tiredness, and a little pity when she took in Selina's torn expression. Selina looked away sharply. She didn't need any pity! Especially not from someone who'd been just as royally thrown over as she'd been, even if she'd obviously had a little more time to get used to the fact. She didn't need anyone's pity!

She stared resolutely out over the city for the rest of the interview, waiting for her 'chaperone' to stop with the mutual appreciation society and decide that the cased here was closed. Not that she necessarily needed to hear it from him. But she wanted to see his face, wanted to know that he understood what he was doing to her. So she had to wait until he was done with his boyfriend, and condescended to talk to her again.

Finally, the two men turned around, and came back over to her side of the roof. Bruce turned to her, ready to say something, and stopped when he saw her face. When he saw the cool, wounded appraisal in her eyes. She let him, let him see her, and waited for him to answer for it. His eyes narrowed behind those slits of his, and he opened his mouth to speak, to explain, maybe, but something in her eyes got through to him. He closed his mouth again, and shook his head. When he looked back at her, there was apology in his expression, sorrow at having hurt her. And pity.

She stood up. Straight, proud. She put one hand on a firm hip, and favoured him with a sneer for his troubles. Then she turned, nodded once to Lois, one woman betrayed to another, and walked away.

And didn't look back.

But she couldn't leave the city. Not that night, anyway. She couldn't quite explain why, when she knew full well that somewhere in the darkness overhead, the Bat stood guard over his lover's city, and smiled in the blackness at the touch of a powerful hand on his shoulder. She knew it. And hated it, with a fury that set her teeth on edge at the mere thought of it. But she couldn't go back to Gotham. It would be like ... going home to an empty flat after your husband has left you. Gotham belonged to the Bat. Every inch of it spoke of him. Even more than seeing the two of them together, every street and rooftop in the Dark City was going to scream her loss at her. Every twisting route along which they had played their old game of cat-and-mouse. While he may be physically here, in Metropolis, somehow it was easier to bear than the thought of his city, as empty of him as she was.

So she couldn't go home. Which left her stranded, in Superman's city, with a broken bloody heart and nothing to do. Damn the man! Damn all bloody men, while she was at it! Maybe those Amazons had the right idea. Just eliminate the male species, and settle back to enjoy the last days of the human race with people you could at least understand.

Or people who could understand you.

She paused at the thought. And looked out at the cityscape through her hotel window. At the great globe perched atop the skyline, one Metropolis' distinguishing features. And wondered if Ms Lane might be working late.

--------

 

She stood on a rooftop opposite the Planet building, and looked up with a bitter sort of smile at the light in a window she remembered as Lois' office. She'd kidnapped her out through it, a while back, when Ivy had gotten her claws into the Man of Steel. The reporter had given her a rather nice elbow in the stomach for her troubles, which, while it hadn't been exactly smart considering they'd been clinging to a flagpole at the time, had earned Selina's respect just for sheer guts. In fact, the reporter was someone Selina just generally respected, as a career woman with guts and a cool head in a crisis, who managed to run in heels out of a burning building on camera, and make it look good. It took a real woman to manage that one.

And it took a strong woman to come back from the kind of betrayal Lois had suffered. The kind of betrayal Selina was skirting the edge of, and refusing to think about. Even if somehow her thoughts kept circling back to the sight of the pair of them, oblivious to the women in their lives, and worse still, to the pity in Bruce's eyes. Pity because he had found in someone else what she had always hoped she'd one day find with him.

The thought of it sent a wave of sickness spiralling through her gut, and she shrugged the memory away angrily. And set her sights on that lighted window.

She tackled the building from the exterior. She was in the mood for a challenge, for a test of her skills. To prove she still had something. And for a cat-burglar of her caliber, the Daily Planet wasn't exactly an impentetrable fortress. More like a walk in the park, really. But with Superman around, why bother going overboard with security?

Ms Lane's office was a different story. Not that the room itself had any extra little traps. But the woman occupying it ... Lois looked up the instant Selina slipped through the window, and one hand slipped negligently under the desk before you could say 'hostage'. Practice makes perfect, after all. Selina held her hands out with a smirk.

"No need to be rude, Ms Lane," she purred. Lois didn't budge, and her hand stayed poised for action just out of Selina's line of sight.

"Indeed, Ms Kyle?" the reporter shot back, with just a little prickle of bored contempt in her tone. Selina's lips curved with a black delight. "Dropping by a little late, wouldn't you say?"

Selina shrugged easily, and found a handy desk to prop a hip on for that perfect casual air. "Well," she said lightly, "I was passing by, and I saw your light on. Thought I'd drop by, say hello. You're working awfully late yourself, aren't you?"

Lois raised a delicate eyebrow. "Are you working tonight, Ms Kyle? Because I really can't think what a woman in your particular line of work would want here." And wow, listen to that rich curl of contempt.

Selina gave a sharp little laugh at that. "Oh no, Ms Lane!" she cried, in a bright socialite's fasletto. "Why, this is merely a social call, my dear! I simply thought I would drop by, see how you were doing. After all, from the looks of things upstairs earlier, you've had a few upsets recently."

And all at once, Lois' face changed. The suspicion didn't leave, of course, but beneath it ... a shadow of sympathy slipped into her sharp, reporter's eyes. Selina looked away uneasily, cursing herself for the sudden rush of pain that she didn't hide nearly as successfully as she wanted to. Lois' voice softened a little then, the taint of condescension dropping away.

"Yes," she said softly. "It's not been ... easy. It never is, though, is it? To be betrayed, I mean."

Selina stood abruptly, and stalked back to the window, spine rigid as she glared out over the night. "I wouldn't know," she said stiffly. "Why would I ... why ..." Damn it! She cursed silently to herself, and refused to flinch when she heard the other woman stand up behind her, and come over to the window. Lois stopped a little behind her, and had the grace not to touch her or try to see her face. But the sympathy in her voice was like a physical blow to Selina's bruised pride.

"No," Lois said softly, but with a crackle of temper. "No. I can see why you wouldn't know what I'm talking about. I'm sorry. I shouldn't have presumed you would. You were never ... well. You were never really committed, were you?"

For some reason, that enfuriated Selina, and she spun on the other woman, seizing her shoulder angrily. "Wasn't I?" she spat. "I think you'd better check your goddamn facts before you start spouting out judgements, Ms Lane! Just because you happened to be marr..." She trailed off, and Lois smiled bitterly.

"Just because I'd gotten as far as marrying him before I realised my mistake?" she asked, removing Selina's hand with pointed calm. "Just because I was that little bit blinder than you?"

Selina looked away. She refused to be ashamed for her blunder! But ... there was pain in that quiet rebuttal. However resigned Lois seemed to be ... she was still hurting. No matter how strong a woman you were ... no matter how strong a person ... it was still a kick in the teeth to find out the man you loved happened to go for other bloody men. Even just one other man. But then, maybe that was what you got for falling for a guy who thought running around in tights with his underpants on the outside was a good thing.

Suddenly, she couldn't help smiling. Tilting back her head with a burst of sudden, black humour, she had to laugh at the pair of them. Put that way ... talk about pinning your hopes on the wrong man! They could be poster girls for how not to pick a man. Rule one: find out what side of his pants he wears his underwear on. Rule two: in the oldest game, find out what side he plays for in the first place. Rule three: if he plays for both ... you are absolutely allowed to kick his head in when he cheats on you with another guy. But only after you've kicked yourself for having missed it.

She looked back down to find Lois looking at her worriedly, and smiled a little sadly at her. "Somehow," she said quietly, "I get the feeling that someone, somewhere, is having a really good laugh at the pair of us. As blind as each other, I'd say."

Lois looked at her for a minute, and then returned a sharp little smile of her own. "Yes, well. You know what you do in a situation like this?"

Selina grinned. "Find whoever's laughing, and throw them out a fifth-storey window?" she asked innocently. Lois shook her head.

"Oh no! Not in Metropolis, dear. Too much chance a certain idiot in tights might catch them!"

Selina laughed. "Forgive me. You're right, of course. What then?"

Lois looked at her consideringly, and then looked back at her office with a slight frown. "Well ..." she mused. "There's always the option to go out and get roaring drunk?"

And suddenly, that seemed like an excellent idea. And she said so.

---------

 

They wound up in a club, close enough to the docks for that risque atmosphere, but not close enough for there to be too much genuine danger. They'd stopped by their respective rooms for a quick change, and Selina had to admit, she was impressed. While on air Lois seemed every inch the smart professional, her casual wardrobe ran a direct line to sexy, and the black skirt just short enough to be suggestive but not short enough to be cheap, with the red silk shirt which rather exquisitely hinted at just how much of a woman Lois really was without ever directly showing anything, made quite an ensemble.

Selina herself had gone for the full-body look, reminiscent of her professional gear, with tight black pants and an equally tight black top which outlined every curve but revealed not a hint of skin below her collarbone. Top it off with boots up to her calves and a black ribbon around her throat, and she rather thought she was a match for the woman at her side. Together, they made enough of a pair to have every man in the house on the floor, if she didn't say so herself. And damnit, but she wanted that. She wanted to feel sexy, to be looked at with desire. With her looks, it was the least she deserved!

The club was filled with the usual crowd of young men and girls out looking for the thrill of the location, and the older men looking for a little young thing to brighten up their night. Selina looked down her nose at the first group, and favoured the latter with a sneer of contempt. Lois, for her part, had a rather delicious look of disdain on her shapely features which delighted Selina as much as it pissed off it recipients. And while annoying that many people just by walking in the door maybe wasn't the wisest of moves, Catwoman and Superman's partner were not going to be too concerned. Especially as they were both as much in the mood to bloody someone's nose as have a good time.

It wasn't a classy place. There were few seats, and no room to stand and talk. But the drinks were good, the music was loud enough to drown thought, and neither of them were in the mood for talking. They were in the mood to move.

The dance floor was full of drunken teens and impassioned twenty-somethings, while the older crowd hovered near the bar and watched the movement of young bodies and listened to the slightly hysterical laughter that was the only thing you could hear above the pounding beat. Not that all of them were that badly gone, of course. But to the onlooker, it was the drunker ones that caught the eye, and aroused the interest.

Selina curled her lip at the lot of them. She glanced sideways at Lois, and grinned fiercely at the contemptuous challenge in the woman's eyes, at the echoing intent that bloomed in that sharp, incisive gaze. By the time they were through, they'd show this lot how a real woman incited interest. Not by being drunk, by marking themselves out as prey, but by being strong and sexy as hell. And by completely ignoring every male in the vicinity.

It's called playing hard to get, dearies. And from the looks of this lot, impossible to get! They'd both had enough of bloody men for one night, and no-one here looked set to change their minds.

Selina took a minute on the edge of the floor, to listen to the beat. To get into the mood, into the rhythm. She turned her mind inwards, to touch the deeper rhythm inside her, the rush of power and adrenalin that came from moving, from the fight, the chase, where she was always at her most powerful, her most desirable. To touch that part of her that had once entranced the Bat, for all the good it had done her. But she wasn't going to think about that. It wasn't important here. Here, now, she was going to move, going to dance, and if they didn't have every man in the room on his knees by the end of it, she was going to be severely disappointed.

She listened to the music, to the rhythm of it, and let herself slip down into the deeper realm, taking the beat inside herself until she could feel it in the pounding of her own heart, in the rush of her own blood, in the whisper of her own breath. She let it sing through her, let it pound its way into her body, let it unmoor her mind from all her concerns and fill it instead with the sheer power of the dance.

And then she turned to Lois.

They moved out onto the floor together, a whisper of silk and a purr of leather, Selina's dark prowling figure leading the vibrant flare of colour and movement that was Lois. A space opened up around them as those lesser dancers fell back and stares swung their way, and Selina laughed in black delight. And was met by an equally fierce grin from her partner in crime. With their sharp little teeth matching each other smile for contemptuous smile, they let themselves go. And danced.

The music was that wordless, animal pounding that disdained voices, so loud it was nearly more felt than heard, a deep vibration that penetrated through to the bone and juddered through your whole body with a demand to move. And the feline predator in Selina leapt at it, at the jungle percussion in the beat, at the echo of night hunting in its screams. She felt herself move with fluid abandon, with taut, liquid power, and bared her teeth in an unconscious snarl of triumph at the hungry, envious stares of their spectators. It made her want more, made her want to make them sweat with hunger, made her want them to fall on the floor before her, made her hungry for the sheer power of it

Seizing Lois' hips possessively, she took advantage of a sliding sequence to slip down her partner's front with a harsh purr of leather, throwing her head back and laughing with delight as Lois grabbed her shoulders and pulled her back up and into her, sneering as the move had several boys around them tripping over their own feet. Laughed harder still when Lois stepped around her with stabbing precision to come in and wrap her arms around Selina's waist from behind, to lower themselves towards the floor with a rhythmic widening of their stance that pressed them firmly together, and come up again with one swift rush of energy before Selina swung Lois back around and marched her backwards across the floor. Lois blinked a little, then snarled in challenge and turned them in one flurried, shuddering moment, seeking a way to push Selina back. It was a war between them, and a war against all around them, and they were as much opponents as partners.Selina loved it. She loved the thrill of it, and the freedom.

They drank a little, between dances. But unlike their original intentions, they found that the desire to get drunk had faded. They didn't want to lose the edge from their movements, didn't want the rush of power to fade into the muddled swirl of inebriation. Enough to loosen up, to take away the harsh crackle in their throats from the heat and the energy expended, but not enough to dull the sharp, glittering edge.

The heat pulsed through them as the night went on, a dizzy intoxicant in and of itself, and after a while Selina could smell Lois' sweat when they moved together, could feel the rapid beat of a straining pulse when she seized her wrist, could see the answering knowledge when Lois grabbed her in return. The energy burned through them, the heat sending their heads into a gentle swirl, with the strange heaviness that somehow feels like you're floating, and a leaden tiredness settled into their limbs, so that every move was a double triumph. And the stares that followed them all night long, the hunger of the men, the envy of the women, sent a snarl of victory through them both. For that night at least, they were undoubtedly the most powerful, gorgeous, desirable creatures going, and not one single person was going to get a taste of them! They could deny everyone what they in their turn had been denied, and Selina was just petty enough to enjoy it.

Eventually, though, not even the lure of that triumph could match the weight of exhaustion in their limbs. And when Selina barely had the energy to raise her arm to spin Lois, she knew it was time to stop. Time to leave in tiumph, before they made fools of themselves trying to push too hard. Looking up, she caught the knowing smile of exhaustion on Lois' face, and nodded with a sheepish smile of her own.

Time to go.

--------

 

They went to Lois' place. Together. Selina wouldn't be heading out again that night. Not alone. She was too tired to want to have to forcibly disillusion anyone trying to tangle with a lone female, even in Metropolis. Even with the underwear-brigade out there somewhere, watching over the city. She just wasn't in the mood.

They staggered a little getting in the door. Maybe she was a bit more drunk than she'd thought, or maybe it was the tiredness, and the dizzy whirl of her emotions. Whatever it was, Selina suddenly felt like shit. She could feel the sweat sticking to her, feel it in the tightness of her clothes, and sweat of victory or not, suddenly she couldn't stand it. She wanted a shower. Badly. She turned, to catch the other woman eyeing the door to the bathroom with equal appraisal, and blinked. Lois looked at her in turn and smiled ruefully. Great minds think alike. But she doubted if either of them had the energy to wait for the other to finish.

Lois looked at her, then at the door, then back at her. And smiled. "Want to share?" she asked, with a hint of devilment, and Selina laughed.

"Sure thing!"

She winced a little as she pulled off her shirt, her tired muscles stiffening up, and grimaced as she struggled with her tight pants. Lois shrugged off her skirt with a smirk, and Selina glared at her, up until the other woman's tired fingers fumbled with the buttons on the red silk shirt, and it was her turn to smirk a little. But the smirk faded when Lois managed to pull herself free of the garment, and Selina found herself staring with disturbing admiration at a nice figure in a black lace bra, and wondering at the flush of heat she felt.

She paused to watch as Lois continued undressing, as the lacy bra followed the shirt, and a pair of black panties slid down those fit, shapely legs. She shook her head at the stirring of something in her belly at the sight, more than a little disturbed at how much she seemed to be enjoying it. Damn it! What, once Bruce went for another man, she suddenly started getting turned on by other women? Just how stupid was she going to be, by the end of this!

But ... put it that way ... if Bruce was allowed to fall in love with bloody Superman, why the hell couldn't she think Lois Lane was sexy? Because, lets face it, the woman was sexy. Together, they'd had an entire nightclub panting after them. They were both of them sexy as hell! Why shouldn't she appreciate that?

She looked up, to find Lois watching her with one eyebrow raised questioningly. And realised that she'd been staring at the woman's midriff in fascination. She flushed a little, but declined to explain, and got on with get out of her own sweat-stiffened clothing. But, as she stood to pull off her own panties with the coltish gracelessness of exhaustion, she looked up and caught an expression of equally confused, worried admiration on the other woman's face. Accidentally meeting each other's gaze, the two women stared at each other in embarrassment and a kind of anxious desire for a taut couple of minutes, neither of them really sure what to say.

Then Lois dipped her head with a rueful smile, and looked back up. "What a pair we are, right?" she murmured, and the wry wonderment in her voice loosened the tight muscles of Selina's shoulders. She returned the smile with a nod. "Lets get that shower, huh?"

Selina stood up to follow her into the bathroom, feeling a pleasant rush of warmth when Lois' eyes widened a little in appreciation, and together they stepped into the cubicle with hesitant clumsiness, and waited for the burst of heat as the spray caught them. Selina gasped as it hit her, and swayed sideways to bump into Lois, blinking as Lois' back touched the chill tiles at the side, and a shudder vibrated through the other woman. Dumb with tiredness, she watched the gentle movement of Lois' collarbone as she breathed, her arm wrapped around Lois' slick waist and her lips brushing the woman's shoulder. Lois blinked down at her, one hand pressed against the back of the cubicle to steady herself and the other clenched into a light fist in the small of Selina's back. For a second, neither of them moved.

Then, slowly, with a kind of fearful hesitance, Selina leaned forward a little to press a kiss into the pulse of the other woman's throat, and shivered as she felt Lois' gasp of appreciation beneath her lips. With a soft sigh, Lois let go of the wall and wrapped her arms around Selina as they slid gently to the floor and let the water pool around them. Tipping her head back out of the spray, the reporter smiled slightly as Selina rested her head against her breasts. And for a while, they just sat there, and with careful movements let their hands wander gently over each other, and explore.

Selina was drifting lightly, caught in that tingly dizziness that came with heat and exhaustion, when she felt Lois shift a little, and looked up to see the other woman's eyes fastened with dull sharpness at something on her hip. Selina followed her gaze down to see what had caught her attention. And saw Lois' hand tracing out an old scar, riding up over her pelvis. She blinked. She couldn't even remember where she'd gotten the thing. No Man's Land, maybe. Or the War Games. Or any of the other violent episodes of her past. She tried to avoid the messier confrontations, but in her line of work the occasional injury or fight was inevitable. She had a few more scars, scattered around the place, even if right now she wasn't really bothered to remember where. She wondered why it fascinated Lois.

She looked back up to catch the woman's eye. Lois met her gaze, something somehow vulnerable and tired in her eyes. "It happens to all of us, doesn't it?" she whispered, sadly. "All of us mortals. We ... can't stop it, the way ..." And Selina understood. He hadn't been scarred, coming to her. He hadn't been ... mortal. Suddenly, she felt a rush of searing tenderness for this woman, for what she had lost, and for how helpless she had been against it. For how weak it had to have made her feel, to be unworthy of something close to perfection. It hadn't been that way with Bruce, of course, but Selina understood, nonetheless. It is a terrible thing, to feel weak, to feel mortal, to look at all you might have had, in the hands of someone more deserving. To look at the one you loved, and be denied.

"It's ..." she began, and swallowed against the sudden hoarseness of her voice. "It's the way of the world, isn't it?" And if she meant something deeper than its habit of scarring everyone who went through it, well, she knew Lois understood. It was the way of the world. Their way.

Lois closed her eyes for a minute, and if she was crying the beads of mist and sweat from the shower disguised it, but Selina let her have the moment anyway. And was pleasantly surprised when Lois opened her eyes with a smile of challenge, all traces of pain gone or hidden. The other woman traced her finger over the scar, her nail biting a little so that Selina shuddered with it.

"So," Lois murmured, throatily. "Tiger stripe or tabby?"

Selina blinked at her for a minute, and then felt her lips stretch in a fierce, delighted grin. Pulling herself together, she shifted sideways to throw one leg across Lois' lap, straddling her, and knelt there, the water streaming over her hair and back, her hands braced on Lois' shoulders and her lips poised above the other woman's. Breathing deeply, she leaned in to nuzzle lightly at her cheeks, over the strands of hair clingly wetly to her cheeks, before pulling back a little and smiling.

"I don't know," she purred, deep and satisfied. "Why don't you choose?"

Lois looked at her, and then laughed a little and leaned up to nip lightly at Selina's throat. "In that case," she murmured, breathlessly. "I choose tiger." And moaned when Selina leaned in with a fierce grin, and kissed her.

"Definitely tiger!"

----------

Bruce was in the office the next day when Lois went in to work, perching a hip against the edge of Clark's desk, their heads together as they poured over some papers. Perry mustn't have been in yet, or Bruce wouldn't have risked that close a proximity. But the sight of her hardly stirred them, although she did catch the flash of guilt in Clark's eyes. Well good! He should be feeling guilty.

She settled herself at her desk, sorting out her notes and turning on her computer while pointedly ignoring the pair of them. She could feel them watching her, feel their vague unease, as if they sensed some dark intent in her. Well, she couldn't fault their instincts, anyway. Whether reporter or detective, both of them could tell when someone meant them ill. And she knew she was exuding evil intent in smug waves. She couldn't help it.

This was going to by fun.

Right on cue, just as Clark made to open his mouth and say hello, try to take the edge off the tension, the elevator pinged, drawing all eyes automatically. And Selina strode out, head raised haughtily, one hand on her hip in a smooth, sex-laden swagger. Lois shifted appreciatively. Damn, but she had to learn how to manage that!

Bruce stood up slowly, staring as she approached. Lois stared too, but probably for different reasons. Selina hadn't told her she'd be dressing for the occasion. The loose black pants, with the tight white woman's shirt and the short jacket, turned the slinky jungle predator of the night before into a sharp, confident professional woman. But what caught Lois' particular interest was the short black tie Selina had added. Lois had a thing for ties. She had always enjoyed tugging Clark's, liked the feel of her fist in the cloth as she pulled his face down.

She wondered how Selina had known. Or if she was just going to be blessed with a psychic partner.

As Selina made as if to brush by them and come towards Lois, Bruce stepped in her path, blue eyes glacial in warning. "Ms Kyle," he warned, danger in his tone. "To what do we owe the pleasure?"

Selina favoured him with a casual sneer that Lois had to admire. "Down boy," she laughed, waving one hand dismissively at him. "I'm here for pleasure, not business." If anything, his expression grew more constipated, and Lois had to hide a laugh at the mix of terror and protective jealousy in Clark's face. She schooled her face to warm impassivity as Selina brushed past Bruce with a whiff of perfectly toned perfume, and sauntered towards her desk.

Sitting back at a jaunty angle in her chair, Lois turned herself so that they caught the glimpse of her red heel as she crossed her legs, and smiled faintly at Selina as the other woman leaned in over her desk with a smirk. Perching herself languidly on the edge of the desk, Selina placed a purse delicately between them, and smiled.

"You forgot this, darling," she purred, and reached forward to catch Lois' chin gently as she leaned forward to take the item. Lois paused, and allowed herself to savour the gentle exploration of Selina's fingers over her cheek. Selina's lips curved. "You mustn't forget things, or I'll begin to worry."

"Worry?" Lois asked, low and laughingly, thoroughly enjoying the performance. "What about, dear?" Selina smiled sharply, and took a more possessive grip along the side of her face. Lois heard the strangled noise in Clark's throat, and struggled to repress a smirk.

"I'll start to worry if you're going to forget our lunch together," Selina murmured, stroking her cheek. Lois shook her head lightly.

"As if I could!" She reached up to catch the caressing hand in one of her own, and stroked a finger lightly over the back of it. "Don't worry, Selina. I won't be late."

"Good," Selina murmured, in obvious satisfaction, and leaned down to brush her lips lightly over Lois' as the reporter gleefully wrapped a hand in her tie, just as the elevator pinged again. Lois was a bit too preoccupied to check who it was immediately, not even when she heard a thump as if whoever it was had dropped something rather heavy, but she noted Jimmy's awestruck features when they came up for air. As well as Clark's striken ones, and Bruce's suddenly rigid glare. And she didn't bother to repress this smirk at all.

"Tell you what," she said briskly, entirely professional once more. "How about I walk you downstairs?"

"I'd be delighted," Selina answered, and held out a courteous hand to help her up. Lois picked up her key as she went, and casually looped a possessive arm through Selina's as they walked out past the three thunderstruck men. She kept her composure admirably until the elevator doors closed, and they'd descended a couple of floors.

Then she burst out laughing, echoed closely by Selina.

"Oh," she breathed, a few minutes later when she'd calmed down a little. "Oh, that was beautiful. Did you see their faces?"

Selina bit her lip. "Ohhhh yes," she purred. "Oh, I did indeed. I think I'll be remembering that for a long time yet! Serves them right, the bastards!"

"Sing it, sister!" Lois laughed, and leaned in to kiss her again. Pulling back, after another few breathless seconds, she grinned sharply. "What next?"

Selina paused to consider for a few minutes, and then a wicked smile curled over her features. Lois grinned back in anticipation. "Well," Selina mused. "I'm sure someone has a certain high-tech car parked around here somewhere. Do you think, if we found it and ... well. Do you think they'd notice?"

Lois laughed evilly. "I suppose that depends," she murmured. "On how ... enthusiastic ... we were."

Selina pulled her close with another rich purr. "Oh, I think I plan to be very ... enthusiastic. Very enthusiastic indeed."

And they leaned in for another little kiss, while somewhere above them a certain man with superhearing blushed like crazy and tried desperately to deflect his lover's determined questioning.

Damn, but it was good to be a woman!