Deepest Desire 2/2
Title: Deepest Desire 2/2
Author: Calie
Rating:PG
Summary: Spoilers for Hex. Oliver finds his deepest desire and Chloe has a revelation.
Chloe stared at the screen in front of her. It was the only real light in the darkened office but Chloe didn’t mind, she liked to work in the dark. Usually it helped her concentrate, helped her focus. It seemed none of her usual tricks would get her article written. For the past few minutes she had argued with herself over how to write her article, trying to find the right words to get her point across. The problem was that she was too distracted. Her mind kept straying to her meeting with Jimmy and their attorneys.
The split had initially been rough. They had blamed one another for their inability to make it work. The truth was that they weren’t the same people that they were when they met. The divorce had at least been amicable. They both had been ready to move on with they lives after trying so long to make it work. They’d been married for such a short time that there hadn’t been much property to divvy up between them.
It was over, but she still felt the guilt, she still felt the failure. How many times had she heard of people that divorced after only a few months and she’d rolled her eyes? How many times had she said they should have known if they loved on another or not before hand. Of course not many people were kidnapped on their wedding day and possessed or in a coma for months.
As much as she hated herself for her failure she felt slightly relieved. Their failing marriage had been hanging over her head for so long, finally it was over. She could move on now, do it the right way.
The sound of steps in the hall way caused her to forget about her article and Jimmy. So far that she knew of no one was due back and the security guard usually stayed out of that part of the Planet. Then she heard voices. Two male voices. Whatever scenario her mind had made up she hadn’t been prepared for what came through the doors and turned on the light. “Oliver.”
“I’m sorry Ms. Sullivan. Mr. Queen he-.”
“Is very persuasive.” Oliver said with a grin.
“No, it’s okay.” Chloe waved the security guard off. “He’s fine.”
As the other man made his exit Oliver turned back to Chloe. “I’m glad you think so.”
She didn’t even notice his teasing tone. All she could do was stare at him in shock. “What are you doing here? I mean I know you’re here in Metropolis, but why in the Planet. You didn’t call my phone did you?”
“No.” He said before she could reach for her cell phone. “I thought I’d approach you in person.” Oliver glanced around the empty room, surveying the endless rows of desks. “How do you work like this?”
“Oliver.” She warned.
“Sorry. Look,” Oliver glanced down at his watch and closed the rest of the distance between them and took a seat in a chair across from her, “it’s almost eight. Did you eat dinner yet?”
“No, I-.” Chloe glanced at her unfinished article and sighed. It really wasn’t even due yet. It was just a work in progress. But she’d had little else to do to keep her busy. “I was trying to finish this up.”
“Why don’t you let me take you to dinner?” He offered and waited for the look of surprise. He wasn’t disappointed. “I know you don’t have any other plans and you have to eat. Plus, I’m paying.”
“But why?” It wasn’t that she necessarily objected to eating dinner with him. They were friends after all. But he wasn’t really the kind of friend that she ever considered going to dinner with. “I mean why now.”
“Because there’s no reason for you to sit here by yourself. I know you probably haven’t gotten anywhere with your article. And I have it on good authority that your now officially a single woman.” Oliver waited in anticipation for her response.
“News travels fast.” Chloe frowned. Even though she was friends with Oliver he wasn’t that good of a friend. He may have somehow heard about Chloe and Jimmy’s separation but it was slightly strange for him to know about the divorce only hours after it had taken place. It had to have come strait from Lois or Clark. She pushed those thoughts from her mind and forced herself to concentrate on the man in front of her.
“I knew a few days ago.” He leaned back in the chair and watched her closely. There would be no point in him taking her to dinner under the pretense of them just being friends. He wouldn’t push her, but he needed her to at least understand how he felt and what he ultimately wanted. Clark thought he was moving to soon, Lois thought it was perfect. Only time would tell who was right. Perhaps waiting would have been best, but he’d been waiting for close to a year, seeing her relationship unravel the whole time. There had been some guilt over his eagerness for it to end, but he hadn’t been able to help it. Oliver was willing to give her time, but he wouldn’t wait and give someone else the opportunity.
“Wow, when did you get in on the inner circle of my soap opera?” He didn’t seem put off at all by her negative attitude.
“That’s beside the point. I figured that it would be best to wait until things were settled between you and Jimmy.”
“Wait for what?” She asked suspiciously. For the first time she really began to wonder about Oliver’s intentions. There was something very strange about his sudden arrival that she had not yet been able to grasp.
He cocked an eyebrow and took a moment to determine if she was really that dense. It didn’t take him long to determine that she was. Of course it had taken a very strange magician and months of denial before he realized what his feelings for her really were. That wasn’t saying much for himself. “Look Chloe.” He leaned forward and rested his arms on his knees. “I want to be totally honest with you from the beginning. So just listen for a minute. I’ve been waiting for a while to see if you and Jimmy would last. So my timing probably was bad, that was my fault, which is why I never said anything.” He paused for a moment to see if she would give anything away but she kept perfect composure. “I won’t push you into anything Chloe, I just wanted you to totally understand my intentions. We can be friends right now if that’s what you need, but I’d like for more then that.”
“You’re serious?” Even though she still wasn’t sure about what he’d just said her heart was still pounding in her chest at the implication. A few times in the past couple of months she’d wondered when and if she’d meet someone else, if she’d be able to start dating again. She hadn’t expected to have someone approach her just hours after signing her divorce.
“Do you think I’d be here if I weren’t?” At least she hadn’t told him no or that she needed time. He was willing to wait for her, but he wanted to at least have the opportunity to build on their friendship.
“No.” Oliver wouldn’t lie to her. “It’s just a little bit much. I mean you never…”
“Why would I say anything before now? By the time I realized my feelings you were already married.” She seemed to be considering him for a while, but he about to let her talk herself out of it. “Just come to dinner with me. You don’t have to promise me anything, and you don’t have to feel like you’re being pushed into anything. I’ll give you time. Just give me a chance Chloe.” Then he saw the fear that came over her face. He wouldn’t let her walk away from him, he’d waited to long. He rolled the chair towards her and grabbed her hands. “I promise you that I can make you happy if you just give me a chance.”
“I don’t know….” Her past with Jimmy seemed to flash before her eyes. Her wedding, Jimmy’s coma, and the end. Could she go through that all over again? Could she take the chance on someone only to be hurt? “I don’t know if I can.” Tears flooded her eyes and she immediately felt embarrassed. Crying in front of the rich and powerful Oliver Queen wasn’t something she did everyday. “I don’t know if I can again. I just don’t want to be hurt.”
“Hey.” He wiped the tears that had fallen down her cheeks with his thumb. “I can’t imagine what it is you went through. I know you thought you would spend the rest of your life with him.”
“I feel like a failure.” Chloe blurted out.
“Your not. Chloe you-.” He sighed, not sure how to say it without making her life sound hopeless. “You went through something that should never have happened. You and I, we’re not like Clark. We aren’t prepared to deal with that kind of thing. And I don’t think Jimmy really knew what your life was like.”
“It was a lie.” She admitted tearfully. “He didn’t know me, and I didn’t know myself. I thought he could handle it. He couldn’t. It was my fault.”
“No.” He rolled closer, sliding one of his legs between hers and reached up to cradle her cheek in his hand. “It wasn’t. He should have been able to deal with it. He married you Chloe.” Her wet eyelashes blinked, revealing green tear-filled eyes. There was a pull deep inside of him that he hadn’t been prepared for. It was presumptuous of him to think he could be that close to her and resist it. It took him a few moments but he pushed it aside. His main concern now was her. “I’m not like that. If anybody can deal with it then it’s me.”
“I’m not sure if I can again.” The lack of space between them hadn’t mattered to her at that moment. Any other time it would have made her uncomfortable, but at that moment she found she didn’t mind it. It actually gave her some comfort to know she wasn’t alone.
“You don’t have to worry about me.” It took him a very long time to get over Zatanna’s revelation. Oliver didn’t want to be alone, but the last thing he had expected was his deepest desire to be Chloe. Now he finally understood. Eventually he’d tell her about his experience with Zatanna, but he was pretty sure he would scare her if she realized how badly he wanted her. “If anyone would walk away then it would be you.”
“You don’t know that.” Chloe shook her head and tried to look away but he pulled her face back gently so that she was looking at him again.
“You don’t know how I feel. I’ve been waiting close to a year for you Chloe. I won’t leave you.”
She didn’t even really know him. She knew some of his deepest secrets, but she didn’t really know him at all. So how could he feel that way about her? But there was something exciting about his revelation. She hadn’t felt really excited about anything in a very long while. “How did you find out I was divorced today?”
Oliver slowly dropped his hands from her face and reached over to another desk for a tissue. She thanked him for it and wiped her face. “Clark and Lois. Lois was very ready to spill everything once she knew why I wanted to know.”
Chloe laughed as she blew her nose. “And Clark?”
“Think of him as an over protective father.” She smiled at his words and it gave him some hope.
Chloe had other questions, but she supposed they could wait. “I don’t know how long it will take.”
“It doesn’t matter.” He took her hand in his. “I’ll wait. But in the mean time, we can at least get to know one another.”
“I don’t want Jimmy to know. I don’t need him getting ideas in his head.” The last thing she wanted is for Jimmy to see her with Oliver immediately after their divorce and assume she’d been having an affair.
“My lips are sealed. Lois on the other hand…”
“I’ll deal with her.” Chloe smiled and slid her hand from his. She saved the document quickly and logged off her computer. When she turned back to Oliver he was already standing up, waiting.
“Ready?” Oliver offered her his hand she laid hers in his.
Chloe let Oliver pull her out of her chair. “Yea, maybe a little scared.”
“Please, what is there to be scared of?” They walked towards the door and he pushed it open for her.
“I’ve read about Oliver Queen in the paper.” She responded with a smirk. In fact she heard a great deal about him from the girl who wrote the society pages.
“All lies. Besides, I can promise you I haven’t been in the paper for months.” Once they reached the elevator he pushed the arrow pointing down.
“You’re sure about this?” Chloe asked him and immediately regretted seeing the seriousness on his face. “I mean taking out a freshly divorced women. I hear they’re all weepy.”
“I figured as much.” The elevator dinged and opened before them. “Which is why I thought I better be the shoulder to cry on before some other guy took the job. You know what they say.”
Chloe stepped into the elevator and waited. When the door shut and he still didn’t respond she couldn’t wait anymore. “What?”
“Finders keepers.” Oliver easily grabbed the hand that swung at his arm. “Now that’s no way to treat the man that’s buying you a very expensive dinner.”
Chloe fought against the grin tugging at the corners of her lips, but it was impossible. He was cocky to be sure, and it used to aggravate her to no end. Now that he was directing it at her in a more flirtatious manner she couldn’t help but smile. “Really?” Daring him it turned out was not a good idea.
Oliver held her hand at his side and stepped towards her. Her breasts brushed gently against his chest. He probably wouldn’t have noticed if it were not for the face she’d been the only woman on his mind for months. He could hardly miss her sharp intake of breath and the way her chest rose and her breasts pressed harder against his chest. It was tempting, being so close to her, but he could handle it. With a smirk he released her hand. “Perhaps when you’re ready.”
Chloe released a shuddered breath. His closeness had been scary to be sure. For one thing they had never been that close to one another. What scared her even more was the wave of excitement that had spread through her. For a moment she had forgotten everything because of his physical proximity and in her foolishness had wanted him to kiss her. It was lust clouding her brain she told herself. In the future she knew she’d have to be more careful around him.
The door dinged, signaling their arrival to the first floor and Oliver held his hand out. “Ready?”
Chloe looked up and him and felt the flutter of excitement that overcame her again. From that moment on she knew she was in big trouble. She wasn’t sure of anyone who could resist the charms of Oliver Queen.