"Everyone needs to believe in heroes, Clark, but even the best ones are far from perfect."

It had been a long time since Clark had showed up at the mansion looking like this. He usually came with accusations and anger in spades, accompanied by enough righteous indignation to unfailingly irritate Lex.

The current visit was apparently different.

At the moment, as he sat across from Lex on the couch, he looked so sorry--so contrite that Lex could almost hear his half-apology playing in the background. There was no doubt in Lex's mind that Clark was sorry. He was sorry that he'd believed the worst of Lex, sorry that he'd trusted in the wrong people, and sorry that he looked like such a fool because of it.

"I guess," Clark murmured in reply to Lex's statement, looking away. "But it's still hard to see them fall."

"It always is." Putting people on pedestals was bad, because those people always inevitably disappointed--Lex knew that all too well. Clark had been the one to teach him that lesson.

Realistic expectations were better. That was, it wasn't so disappointing when the person failed.

It was strange that Clark was still here, sitting on Lex's couch. Ordinarily, when they were done talking, Clark would go on his way. Later, they wouldn't mention their rare moment of civility. They'd pretend it had never happened at all, and instead they'd concentrate on the topic at hand--which was usually a lot less civil.

Lex didn't want him to leave. It had been a while since he'd had Clark just sitting here with him like they were at the moment, and he was beginning to realize that he'd missed it more than he'd been willing to admit. Besides, there was still one more thing he wanted to know.

"There's something else I wanted to ask you, by the way."

Clark raised his eyes, looking at Lex expectantly. The moment he did, Lex felt a little spark of heat go through him. Those eyes were captivating, no matter how normal the look Clark was giving him.

"You want to tell me what happened in that club?"

Lex had seen the security tapes--had seen Clark look as though he were facing a firing squad. He certainly had a lot to learn about going undercover, because when a man went to a gentlemen's club, they just did not look at a girl's breasts as though they were an odd and very dangerous enemy--not if they wanted to blend in.

The blush that rose over Clark's cheeks stirred a bit of amusement in Lex, and he couldn't contain the small smile that slipped onto his lips. "Lois has an interesting... style. A bit abrasive for me, certainly, and from what I could tell, you felt the same way."

"You watched the security tapes," Clark mumbled, looking away towards the floor. He wasn't asking a question--he'd known as soon as he asked Lex for help that he'd be watched. He might have even liked that, as loathe as he was to admit it. Of course, he'd lost Lex's security, which he always seemed to have a way of doing, not that it mattered. Lex had still gotten a very interesting show via the security tapes.

"Clark, you were using my membership--I wanted to make sure you didn't do exactly what you ended up doing."

"Sorry." The word was said down towards the floor instead of to Lex's face but, still, it was a start. An apology from Clark was always something worth taking note of.

"The entertainment was worth it."

"It was Lois, Lex," he muttered, still determinedly looking anywhere but at Lex's face. Lex imagined that the blush which had to be heating his cheeks was probably as attractive as ever.

"You would have reacted the same way if any girl had climbed in your lap."

Lex couldn't stop his grin from growing. Poor Clark had looked so horrified at the idea of having a girl in his lap, and he'd been downright stricken when Lois had motioned for him to slip a twenty into her top. The idea of that probably shouldn't be so amusing, but it really, really was.

Leaning forward, Lex grinned up at Clark, who was still barely looking at him. "The next time you go to a strip club, you'd do a better job blending in if you didn't act quite so gay."

Clark's reaction was instantaneous, as knee-jerk as Lex had ever seen it. "I'm not gay," he denied adamantly, looking annoyed. Ah, denial... again. No one did that look quite as well as Clark.

"Clark, being bisexual requires you to actually like girls. I'm sure you know this by now."

"I do like girls!" He looked so affronted that Lex almost laughed again. "Lana--"

"You had sex with her once," he pointed out, rolling his eyes.

"That wasn't because--" There must have been some kind of actual answer in that sentence, because as soon as Clark seemed to realize what he was saying, he clamped his mouth shut.

More secrets. It would have been almost amusing--in a twisted kind of way--if Clark didn't genuinely think he was lying well. In reality, with lies like that, Lex was surprised more people didn't suspect something strange. Hell, Clark didn't need enemies when he was this bad at lying to the people who actually cared about him.

Sighing, Lex stood up from the couch. Clark made to stand up with him, but Lex waved for him to sit back down. "Don't bother," he told him as he took a few steps, turning his back to Clark.

Clark's lies were addictive, but that didn't stop Lex from listening. He knew they were lies, knew Clark was lying to him yet again, but he still came back for more. He'd never been able to find a reason, even for himself. Clark was just... Clark, and that was somehow enough to make him want more, even when it hurt.

When Clark spoke again, his voice was soft, genuinely curious. "Lex, why do you still watch me? And don't lie, because I know you do."

Lex fought the urge to give a small, very un-Luthor-like snort. It had taken Clark the better part of a few months to realize he was being watched, and Lex hadn't even been trying to be subtle. He'd wanted Clark to know.

"Besides the entertainment value?" he asked wryly, turning back around to face Clark. "Because, really, watching you nearly fall out of your seat at the sight of a girl's breasts is entertainment enough." The tiny glare that Clark shot him made all the trouble he'd gone through in the last three months worthwhile. Clark was so easy to upset, and he looked damn good when he was annoyed.

Lex felt a bit of a stirring in his pants.

"Just tell me why, Lex," Clark snapped, rolling his eyes. "You've got to have a reason. You always have a reason for the things you do."

It was interesting how well Clark knew him--better than most people would think, at least.

"Last night?" he replied. "Last night I honestly just wanted to make sure you were safe." That wasn't a lie. He'd known Clark was in way over his head from the moment he'd told Lex he was going to go to that club. Pretty, naive country boys like Clark weren't meant to go to Metropolis strip clubs alone. Really, Clark was lucky that the worst that had happened had been a police raid.

"I don't believe you."

"Yes, you do," Lex murmured, taking a few steps forward until he was standing just in front of Clark. "You knew I was watching you the whole time. You knew that I'd access the tapes from that club--you knew that."

Clark had known that, and he'd still gone anyway. Lex was aware that, if he'd wanted to, Clark could have easily evaded his security and killed the cameras in the building--which meant that, at least at some level, Clark had liked that he was being watched.

And Lex liked the idea of Clark liking that a whole lot more than he probably should.

"How did it make you feel, Clark, knowing that I was watching you with a girl in your lap? Did you like that?" he asked, his voice just barely above a whisper. He was getting hot from this, as much as he knew he shouldn't, but Clark so often had that affect on him.

"I--" Clark murmured, wetting his lips with his tongue. His pretty green eyes momentarily flashed up to look at Lex before he looked back down and away again. "No, I didn't."

"Yes, you did. Don't lie." Clark had liked it, and Lex liked that he had. He wanted to see that again--that surprise on Clark's face when someone straddled his lap, forced their way into his personal space. "Yes, you did like it."

Not giving Clark a chance to protest, Lex moved the rest of the way forward and pushed Clark back against the couch. Clark had only a little time to look up at him with shock written all over his face before Lex easily slid forward and onto his lap.

As Lex had thought he would, Clark looked every bit as shocked as he had when Lois had done it--expect there hadn't been a very noticeable bulge in his pants when it had been Lois in his personal space. "Well," Lex said smugly, grinning as he reached down to press the palm of his hand against Clark's erection. "Look at that. I guess it works better with someone who doesn't have breaths."

"Shut. Up."

"Oh, Clark, you don't really want that. I know you--I know you want me to keep talking... and touching."

He did, too. Lex could see that in his eyes, the way his pupils were dilating with lust as he shifted in his seat, trying to get Lex's weight in a position where it wouldn't be quite so arousing.

There had been a time, right up until the previous year, when they wouldn't have played games like this. Clark would have come over, they'd have had fun playing pool and watching movies, and then they'd have gone upstairs to Lex's bedroom. They would have had sex. Clark might have stayed the night, and in the morning Lex would have gotten him up so that he could sneak back into his house before his parents realized he was missing.

Not anymore. Things weren't so clear-cut--not since Lex had made the mistake of sending a couple of meteor freaks after Clark. In retrospect, he knew it was a mistake, but he'd never meant for it to go as far as it had, and he'd just been so tired of the lies.

Lex didn't wait for permission, because waiting on Clark to sort out his feelings and take an initiative was like waiting for Lionel Luthor to become a good father--pointless, and disappointing. Instead, Lex leaned down and brushed his lips over Clark's, smiling into the kiss when he felt Clark stretch up to reach him more easily. Clark wanted this. Good.

The kiss turned deeper until Clark was leaning back into the cushions of the couch, letting Lex lean forward against him, pinning him there. They both knew he could easily free himself if he wanted to, but he couldn't do it without displaying greater than normal strength. That sort of bond was just as affective as anything physical.

"You didn't do that with Lois," Lex murmured once they finally broke the kiss.

Clark looked a little dazed, but it was clear that he'd understood--and was annoyed by--the comment. "It was Lois."

Lex laughed and began pulling up on Clark's T-shirt until Clark held up his arms, letting Lex slide it off. So much gorgeous skin, and that was something that Lex never got tired of. Clark had near-perfect skin, golden and softer than just about anything Lex had ever felt. Working on a farm and being outside so much, that shouldn't have been the case--not on his hands and face, at least--but it was yet another thing that Lex let go.

"Clark, you almost died of embarrassment when one of the waitresses tried to take your order. It wasn't Lois then."

"I didn't know her, and--"

"And you don't even like girls, Clark. Just admit that." Lana, maybe, but Lex was convinced that Clark was more in love with the ideal than he was with Lana herself. Lex hated to think what would happen if Clark ever realized that his ideal was exactly that--an ideal. It didn't actually even exist.

Clark's answering glare was offset by his groan of satisfaction when Lex unbuttoned Clark's pants and slipped his hand down inside. Clark was hard. It wasn't a surprising revelation, but Lex still got great pleasure out of that--he always had, every single time he'd ever slept with Clark.

"Damn, Lex, don't stop," Clark managed to choke out as he arched back against the couch, pressing up into Lex's hand.

Clark had a girlfriend, but right then, Lex knew that was the farthest thing from the front of his mind. Clark didn't think when he was having sex, and Lex knew he shouldn't be encouraging that--he shouldn't prompt Clark to be unfaithful to anyone. When all was said and done, and Clark went home again, he'd be racked with guilt, and Lex would be exactly where he'd been before he'd done anything with Clark. No one would win.

It didn't stop Lex from trying--or wanting more.

"I won't stop," he replied assuringly, almost as much to himself as to Clark. It was an easy promise to make when he was nuzzling into Clark's neck, biting and liking. Sitting on Clark's lap, with his hands down Clark's pants, it was easy to think like that--to not think about the consequences.

Lex had never seen anyone look more beautiful when they were aroused than Clark. Everything was so open on Clark's face, there and raw, all for Lex to see. Every want and desire was written in his eyes, and Lex didn't think he'd ever get tired of looking.

"Please," Clark choked out, his hands going to Lex's shoulders.

Lex had slept with Clark enough back when they'd been friends to know what Clark wanted. Admittedly, those times in bed had dramatically as of late, but the knowledge was still there, and Clark's habits were still the same.

It was comforting to know that--to know that everything he'd done with Lex was still part of him.

"Breathe," he gently admonished Clark as he slipped away from him, sinking to his knees in front of the couch.

Obediently, Clark took a deep breath, squeezing his eyes shut and throwing his head back against the couch. He looked so desperate, as though he were trying to last until Lex got his pants down.

"Easy," Lex soothed, giving Clark's thigh a gentle pat before reaching up to pop the button on his jeans. The familiar sight of red cotton greeted him, and Lex grinned a little. Clark was a farm boy through and through.

"Just do something already," Clark snapped, letting Lex know that he'd taken too long for Clark's satisfaction. Clark always had been demanding in bed. Usually, a tendency to enjoying bottoming would imply submissiveness... just not with Clark. It had taken Lex a little while to figure out that it wasn't the idea of giving up control that turned Clark on--it was the idea that it would be harder to lose control when he was on the receiving end.

Clark's noises were always hot. Little gasps, sometimes whimpers, and occasionally something that sounded almost like a squeak. He always made noise when Lex took him in his mouth, and when Lex moved forward to do that, the trend held true. Just those sounds alone were enough to make Lex hard.

Gasping for air as Lex took more of Clark's cock into his mouth, Clark arched back against the couch, his hands in balls at his side. He never gripped anything when he was having sex. Lex hadn't understood that at first, but the reasons had become clear as he got to know more about Clark and his... uniqueness.

"More, Lex. Damn. More, please, more, more..."

Lex gave him more. Relaxing his throat as much as he could, he took Clark all the way in, swallowing him down. Clark's shout of pleasure was reward enough. He loved making Clark lose control to the point where he yelled, even if he had to make sure that the servants were well compensated for their silence.

It wasn't long before Clark was coming, long and hard, a string of swears and pleas spilling out of his mouth. They didn't matter--only the last word did.

"Lex"

Clark sounded so needy, and it was moments like that when Lex couldn't help but hope. In those seconds, Clark didn't sound like a man who thought Lex was evil--he sounded like a man who wanted what he'd had. He sounded like he still wanted Lex.

The taste of Clark was strong in Lex's mouth as he moved back up next to Clark. It was so easy to pull Clark in against him and lean back onto the arm of the couch--it seemed so natural. Clark went with him without protest, letting his face drop into the curve of Lex's neck.

Clark eyes were closed as he rested, and his breathing was even. There had been a time, not so long ago, when they'd have laid like this for another hour. It was never quite clear who had been the one to shatter that--Lex with his instable curiosity, always pushing for Clark's secrets, or Clark, with his misdirections and lies, always so guarded. It didn't really matter anymore.

Lex just wanted a way to get back what they'd had.

Hope was a strange thing. It could sustain--give a person a reason to keep trying--or it could be a person's greatest weakness, because shattered hope could kill more effectively than almost anything else. Lex knew that, but he couldn't push away his hope in regards to Clark, not even knowing that it made him vulnerable. He knew he should. He should let Clark go, let them both move on, because what they were doing wasn't helping either of them.

Lex was aware that it was better to have realistic expectations, but Clark always made him hope. It was inevitable. He knew that he'd be hurt eventually--probably sooner than later--but there was something about Clark that just made him crave more. He never had enough, Clark never gave enough, but Lex could never stop hoping that some day he would.

"Stay tonight," he whispered.

Eventually, there was the possibility that he'd get more. Someday, Clark might realize that he wasn't going to be happy in the ideal life that he'd painted for himself, and then maybe he'd finally let himself have what he wanted--what both of them wanted, but only Lex would admit to.

It wasn't a realistic expectation to hope for from Clark, but Lex couldn't stop himself.

"Just tonight," Clark agreed, laying his face in the crook of Lex's arm. "Only tonight."

For the moment, it would be enough. Tomorrow it wouldn't be, but for the time being, it was. It would have to be.

Sighing, Lex laid his cheek against Clark's dark hair, reveling in the softness. Someday, he'd find a way to have Clark all night, every night, all the time. He'd accept nothing less.

He wouldn't let himself accept anything less.

Someday, he hoped that Clark wouldn't, either.