Chlollie Fanfic: Misdirection, Chapter 1

[babydee1]

All the Chlollie fans in the house, put yo' hands up!  Put yo' hands up!!  Put yo' hands up!!!

Once again, I'm whoring on the Chlollie side of the fandom and loving it. :-P

Remember that 5-parter Chlollie series I promised?  Well, here's the beginning of Part 3, Misdirection.  I'm working on getting a decent banner for it; I was feeling shy to ask the awesome Chlollie banner-makers for help. :-/

Anyways, here it is. Hope you like it.  And feedback makes my world go round, and speeds my writing hand. *hint-hint*

I'm hoping it rounds out at 5 chapters.  That means it'll probably end up being about 9 or 10.  The meaning of the word 'moderation' is completely lost on me, sadly. *sighs*

Enjoy!

Nominated for Best Multi-Chapter Fic in the ChlollieFanfiction Awards 2010



ETA:  I am so in love with this awesome banner kc_2009 made for me - it's MAGIC!  Thanks so much for this, Claudia! :-)

Title:              Misdirection

Author:          BabyDee
Pairing:          Chlollie

Rating:           R (this chapter PG13)

Warnings:     Some sexual situations later on
Timeline:      Season 7 (Siren) with references to Season 6’s Justice

Disclaimer:   All characters belong to the CW & DC comics. 

Summary:     Sparks begin to fly between our high-achieving couple.  Sequel to Trajectory and Slingshot.

Feedback:      …in spades. J

 

The Chlollie Series, Book 3

 

 

Mis·di·rec·tion (definition): the art of distraction; a deliberate attempt to draw one’s attention away from a particular thing and focus it on something else.

 

Read Book 1 here: Slingshot

Read Book 2 here: Trajectory

 

 

 

Chapter 1

 

 

Another day, another successful mission. 

 

Everyday, Oliver Queen was grateful for the unusual talents of all the members of his elite team.  Earlier this week, Chloe and Victor had tracked a Luthorcorp paper trail to an obscure factory in Colombia which had turned out to be one of Lex’s many 33.1 franchises under construction.  Thanks to the combined efforts of the team, he and some of the boys had jetted out there and put their trademark fiery stop to that.

 

But it was good to be back in the city.  Victor, AC and Bart had stopped off on the penultimate floor to raid the contents of his perpetually well-stocked fridge, but as always these days, he’d remained in the elevator and headed straight for the top floor.

 

Oliver smiled as the grated car took him to apartment at the top of the Metropolis Clocktower.  More and more he beginning to feel like Metropolis was home, even though his primary residence was in Star City.   He suspected it had something to do with the presence of a blonde colleague of his, but as always, he squashed that thought as soon as it surfaced in his brain.  It didn’t speak well of him that he thought more about his ex-girlfriend’s cousin that he did about said ex. 

 

The car came to a halt, and he slid the grate open and stepped into the brightly lit room. 

 

A blissful smile crossed his face as he sighed contentedly.  Home, sweet home. 

 

He closed his eyes and took a deep breath, enjoying the crisp tones of apple air freshener, sandalwood furniture polish, and…

 

…vanilla musk. 

 

His heart thumped furiously.  She was nearby.  He was certain of it.

 

And sure enough…

 

“Buenos dias, Oliver.”

 

Her voice rang through the air, breaking the silence.  He opened his eyes and saw her silhouetted form standing by the clockface window. 

 

He grinned and slowly walked towards her.  “Buenos dias, Chloe.  Cómo estás?”

 

Her smile widened as he approached.  “Bien, gracias,” she replied.  “Cómo estuvo el viaje?”

 

He grinned.  “Éxitoso,  fue muy éxitoso.”

 

She nodded.  “Good.  Welcome back.” 

 

“Thanks.  It’s good to be home.”

 

She cocked her head and frowned at the sound of raucous laughter coming from below. 

 

“I take it the boys are making short work of nonna’s homemade pizzas,” she mused. 

 

He gave a short laugh.  “You know them well.  Thankfully, I upped nonna’s allowance this time, so she was sure to make a double batch.”

 

She raised a quizzical brow.  “Just a double batch?  You have met Bart, right?”

 

He laughed, and she chuckled with him, her smile radiant.  He narrowed his eyes and regarded her with a sidelong glance. 

 

She looked really pretty this morning.  Her make-up was minimal, which made her lovely features stand out all the more.  She was wearing a light green, jewel-toned silky blouse over dark fitted pants, giving her a casual yet professional appearance.  He always thought she looked best in green; it make her eyes sparkle like emeralds, and her hair always seemed more golden in it. 

 

Speaking of her blonde locks…

 

“You cut your hair again,” he mused out loud before he could stop himself.

 

She blinked and self-consciously raised a hand to her golden locks.  “Um…yes, I did, actually.  I get antsy when it starts tickling my shoulders.”

 

“I like it,” he said quietly.  “It suits you.” 

 

She snorted.  “It’s practical.”

 

He shook his head.  “No it’s…edgy.  Striking.  Not many people could work that look, but on you, it’s…” he trailed off, realising with a start that he was psychoanalysing his co-worker’s physical attributes. 

 

His cheeks heated rapidly.  Darn it, what was it about Chloe that had him dropping his guard all the time?

 

Dimly he noticed that she was still waiting for the rest of his statement.  He cleared his throat and dug his hands in his pockets, drawing his brows together in a light frown.

 

“So…” he said, trying for a businesslike tone, “…what did I miss?”

 

She followed suit.  “Not much, but it’s definitely the calm before the storm.”  She walked over to the desk and picked up a clear green folder containing some glossy 12 by 10 images, which she handed to him.  

 

“Sorry to hit you with this as you’re walking through the door, but it looks like Lex is up to his old tricks again,” she said wryly.

 

Oliver scowled as he extricated a photo from the folder.  “Oh, really?  Which particular trick?”

 

“Human cloning.”

 

He cursed loudly.  “He just can’t leave well enough alone, can he?  How did you find that out?”

 

“It’s a bit of a long story, but Lana’s been keeping tabs on Lex ever since she got back from China.” 

 

“Don’t you mean ‘came-back-from-the-dead’?” he said sarcastically.  He’d heard all about Lana’s miraculous return to the land of the living, and wasn’t convinced that she was as innocent as she portrayed herself to be. 

 

Chloe ignored his barb and went on.  “I severed her feed to the Luthor Mansion so it’s all old news now.  But I did go through the footage she’d gathered thus far, and retrieved those images.” 

 

“What are they of?” he queried, flipping through the photos.

 

“The images are a little blurry, but they’re snapshots of documents that were lying on Lex’s desk.  The top sheet of the document was partially covered by the newspaper, but the words of the last four lines in the lower left corner are clearly visible.” 

 

He read off the words in the small visible corner of the page. “…that Project Gemini…recovered stem cells from…successful creation of alternate…very few anomalies detected, but…second test subject responded positively to…” he squinted fiercely, but no more words magically appeared.  “Damn it, that’s all I can make out.”

 

Chloe grinned at him.  “Then you’re not looking close enough.”

 

He regarded her with a curious look, and held the photo closer to his face, squinting at the tiny text on the bottom of the page.  Then he smiled. 

 

“Please tell me that’s part of a filepath.”

 

Her grin widened and her eyes all but sparkled.  “I can certainly tell you that, and I can also tell you which exact computer it came from.”

 

“Which is…?” he prompted eagerly.

 

She beamed triumphantly.  “The office of the CEO of the Daily Planet.”

 

He gave her an admiring look.  “You probably hear this all the time, Chloe, but you’re a freaking genius.”

 

She smiled and blushed at his avid praise.  “Well, it never hurts to hear it one more time.” 

 

He waved the pictures at her.  “Does Clark know about this?” 

 

Her smile faded.  “He’s been dealing with some personal issues this week, so I decided not to burden him with it.” 

 

He snorted derisively.  “Let me guess…he bought Lana the wrong conditioner and her hair’s not shiny enough?”

 

She didn’t look amused.  “Clark’s evil twin escaped while Clark was imprisoned at the Fortress, and set up house with Lana.” 

 

His sarcastic smile disappeared.  “Bizarro?  My God.  He didn’t hurt her, did he?”

 

Chloe made a grim face.  “I think that would have been easier for Clark to deal with, frankly.”

 

His eyes widened as comprehension dawned.  “Ahhhh.  Lana got busy with Bizzy, huh?”

 

“It wasn’t her fault,” she said defensively.  “He covered his tracks really well.  She didn’t know it wasn’t Clark.” 

 

“But you did, didn’t you?” he said softly.

 

Chloe pursed her lips and folded her arms across her chest.  “I’m not discussing Clark’s personal business with you,” she said stiffly.  “When do you want me to access the Project Gemini files?”

 

Clearly he’d struck a raw nerve.  He was willing to bet that Chloe had been the first person to realise that Clark hadn’t been acting like himself.  He shook his head slightly. 

 

Clark was an idiot.  Here was a woman who knew him better than anyone, yet he was holed up with a vapid, self-centered shrew who’d had no idea she’d been bumping uglies with his polar opposite. 

 

Out loud, he curtly replied, “I’ll let you know.  Good work, Watchtower.”

 

The deliberate use of her codename was more a reminder to him that their association was a business one – or at least, was supposed to be.  He turned on his heel and headed for the elevator. 

 

Her heels clicked softly on the tiles as she returned to the Watchtower workstation and sat in her swivel chair, which creaked softly.  He waited till she was engrossed in her work before stealthily crossing over to stand behind her.  Grinning, he lifted the gift bag he had brought back with him and dropped it on the desk. 

 

She started suddenly and glanced up at him, then back at the bag. 

 

He grinned at her.  “You didn’t think I’d go all the way to Colombia without bringing you back some of their finest export, did you?”

 

She raised her brows at him, and he could sense the pending snark.  “I appreciate the gesture, Oliver, but I’m afraid cocaine isn’t really my thing.” 

 

Playfully he flicked the back of her head with his thumb and finger.  “Wiseass.  I have a lot of pull, but even I’d never have been able to sneak that through customs, not that I’d ever want to.”  He nodded at the bag.  “Take a look.”

 

Frowning curiously, she dipped her hands into the bag and lifted out a sizeable package from which emanated a clearly identifiable smell.  Chloe’s eyes widened and she lifted the bag to her nose, inhaling deeply and breathing out with an ardent moan. 

 

“Oliver, you’re the best,” she murmured huskily, her eyes closed in rapture. 

 

He swallowed, his body tingling at the sensual tone of her voice.  God, she had such a potent bedroom voice.  She sounded the same way he felt - seriously turned on. 

 

“Just doing my bit to keep my employees happy,” he managed to say. 

 

She opened one eye.  “Medium or full roast?” she queried. 

 

He raised an eyebrow sardonically.  “It’s for you.  Of course it’s full-roast.”

 

“She opened the other eye and smiled up at him dreamily.  “You truly know the way to a girl’s heart, Ollie.”

 

He grinned as she sniffed the aromatic beans again.  “I can honestly tell you that I have never had a girl react like that because I got her coffee before,” he said.  “Besides, I thought the way to a girl’s heart was chocolate.” 

 

“That, too,” she sighed.  “Ah, well.  I’ll settle for coffee.”

 

“Hey, don’t write me off just yet,” he said smugly. 

 

She glanced at him suspiciously, and then peered into the bottom of the bag. 

 

“Ollie!” she gasped.

 

His grinned widened at the look on her face as she held the gold-wrapped, 1‑kilogram bar of premium dark chocolate in her hands.  “Made from the finest Equadorian cocoa beans,” he said proudly. 

 

She stood up from her seat and turned to plant a soft kiss on his cheek.  “These are lovely,” she said shyly.  “Thank you.” 

 

A little ripple of electricity went through his jaw at the tender caress. 

 

She’d kissed him.

 

Chloe Sullivan had just kissed him. 

 

Wow. 

 

“You’re welcome,” he said gruffly.   He pointed to the chocolate.  “Just don’t tell the boys, or they’ll all want some.”

 

“Oh, I’m happy to share it with them,” she replied.  “I’m thanking you now, but my hips certainly won’t if I devour this monster bar by myself.”

 

He frowned.  What was it with women and their hips?  He happened to like hips quite a lot.   

 

Her hips, most especially.

 

“Your hips are fine,” he insisted, his voice deepening on the fine.  He cleared his throat again as she stared at him oddly. 

 

He turned and walked towards the elevator and opened the grate.  He smiled cheekily as he couldn’t resist one last statement. 

 

“You might want to do something about those thighs, though.”

 

Her jaw dropped.  “Why, you -?!” she sputtered.

 

Quickly he jumped into the car and slammed the grate shut as a throw cushion whizzed its way in his direction.  He pressed the down button with a wide grin and waved mischievously as her scowling face disappeared from sight. 

 

***

 

Chapter 2...