24. "Wait for it..."

Lena’s promise lasted almost a week.

Within twenty-four hours of securing the last piece of the talisman, alien activity dropped back to normal in National City. If there were any bounty hunters left outside of the DEO’s holding cells, they were keeping their heads down. One day became two, then three... without so much as a friendly fight breaking out at the bar.

Kara didn’t trust it.

She was grateful for it, but she didn’t trust it.

Lena was less suspicious. Or maybe she was just too busy to be suspicious. Jess’ promotion was supposed to give her more time for her family, but the transition was a little rocky. While Jess was learning the ins and outs of her new position, Lena was breaking in a new secretary. The girl was bright and eager to please, but she was also inexperienced and unsure. She lacked Jess’ ability to anticipate, and Lena was struggling to be patient with her.

She also had very obvious crush on Lena, which annoyed Jess, amused Lena and confused Kara.

“She does know you’re married, right?” she asked after Molly had blushed her way out of Lena’s office the second day in a row.

“I think having my wife drop by for lunch let that particular cat out of the bag, yes,” Lena said, sitting down on the couch next to Kara and opening her salad. “Does it bother you?”

Kara shrugged, digging into her box of stir fry. “Not really.”

Lena tried to hide her sulk.

“Are you disappointed?” Kara asked, laughing.

 “Why would I be disappointed?”

“You, are! You wanted me to be jealous!”

“Well... maybe a little.” Lena admitted. “I’m married to the most powerful woman in the world. Is it so wrong to hope for a little old fashioned flexing?”

Kara rolled her eyes, but she showed up the next day in the cape and the skirt and the boots, telling Lena to lock the door before bending her over her desk and fucking her senseless.

“Is this enough flexing for you?” She whispered into her ear, twisting her fingers and making Lena moan.

Lena returned the favour a few days later. Ambushing Kara at Catco, she dragged her into the private office Cat had left for her and pushed her down into her chair before dropping to her knees with a wicked grin.

“Lena!?” Kara spluttered as Lena reached for her belt. “What are you doing?”

“I think that should be fairly obvious, don’t you?” Lena said, undoing the buckle and getting started on the buttons.

“But I’m at work,” Kara hissed.

“That’s slightly hypocritical of you, darling.” Lena didn’t rush as she drew the zipper down, enjoying the slow reveal of dark blue silk. Kara had been shopping. “I seem to recall a rather illicit visit to my office the other day...”

“That’s different! You – Oh...” Kara gasped as Lena pushed the hem of her sweater up and kissed the soft skin of her belly. “You’re the boss!”

Lena sat back to raise an eyebrow at her blushing bride. “And I’m sure having the cape on didn’t hurt either. How many times did you have to circle the building before you were brave enough to dive through my window in all your glory and screw me over my desk?”

Kara’s blush deepened and she mumbled something that might have been five.

“I thought so.” Lena smirked. “Now, do you really think James is going to fire you over a workplace booty call?”

“No,” Kara admitted. “But Snapper might.”

“Oh please,” Lena scoffed. “We’ll call it research. Don’t you have an article on alien and human relations to finish?”

“I turned it in this morning.”

“A follow up then...” She shifted closer, sliding her hands down Kara’s thighs to her knees and back up again, lingering on the play of long, lean muscles. “An in-depth exclusive between National City’s hero and a member of their most prominent anti-alien family...”

“In-depth? Really?”

Lena smirked. “In a manner of speaking.” She hooked her fingers over the waistband of Kara’s pants and tugged gently.  “Shall I proceed?”

Kara sighed, lifting her hips so Lena could pull them down. “If we get caught, I’m blaming you.”

Lean paused. “Won’t you be able to hear anyone coming?”

“If you think I can pay attention to anything else, while you’re doing... that... you’re seriously overestimating my powers.”

“Well, I’m flattered but also slightly worried... is being eaten out on your official list of weaknesses?”

Kara laughed helplessly, breath catching as Lena pressed a kiss to the inside of her thigh. “Only when you do it.”

“Hmmm... sweet talker,” Lena murmured against her skin, growling appreciatively when Kara tangled a hand in her hair and pulled her closer. She was so fucking in love with this side of Kara; bashful, but uninhibited, artlessly assertive without being pushy or demanding. Sex with her was easy and natural, and just so damn hot, in a way it had never been with anyone else.

James gave her an odd look when she left Kara’s office about thirty minutes later, slightly dishevelled, and swiping a thumb across her lower lip, but he forbore to comment. Lena gave him a self-satisfied smile and a smug little wave on her way out anyway. Gloating might have been in poor taste given the circumstances, but she was a Luthor after all and methods aside, making Supers scream was in her blood.

 Something she spent the rest of the week proving. Over and over again. In bed, in the shower, on the couch, the kitchen counter, up against the front door... everywhere and anywhere they got the chance. Kara was both a willing victim and an unexpectedly adventurous adversary. She was just as likely to jump Lena as the other way around, and given that she could literally sweep her off her feet, they were fairly evenly matched.

 Their only real constraint in that department was Lizzy, but neither of them considered that a problem. Their daughter came first, always. But children sleep, and visit their aunts and go for walks with their uncles. With the immediate crisis past, Lizzy’s extended family welcomed her with open arms, loving hearts and lessons in hand-to-hand combat (courtesy of Alex.) Kara was also doing her best to live up to her self-appointed title of the fun-mom, already making plans for Lizzy’s second birthday party, beginning her musical education with the best of Nsync, and taking her out and introducing her to all of the best snack and dessert places in the city. 

Lena came home one day mid-week to find them in Kara’s studio, both giggling and covered in paint. Kara had cut down the legs of the second easel to make it child-sized, and repurposed an old T-shirt as a smock that covered Lizzy down to her red-spattered toes. Lena only caught a glimpse of what they were working on before Kara had zipped around behind her to cover her eyes.

“No peeking!”   

“Kara...” Lena tried to sound stern. “If you get paint on this shirt...”

“But it’s a surprise!” Kara kept one hand over her eyes and used the other to steer Lena around and back out of the studio. Lena submitted to the manhandling with a sigh.

“Does this mean I’m making dinner?”

“We could order in?” Kara suggested hopefully, releasing Lena once they were in the living room.

Lena turned around to give her a look of pure exasperation. “Again?”

Kara affected a pout, but her eyes were sparkling with mischief and there was a smear of blue paint across her chin, which ruined the effect somewhat.

Lena rolled her eyes. “Fine, but it’s my turn to pick the restaurant.”

“Deal!” Kara beamed. “Kiss?”

As if Lena could refuse... She did brace a hand against Kara’s chest before leaning in though. This was a very expensive shirt.

One kiss turned into three before Kara pulled back, humming appreciatively. “You got a little...” She wiped a bit of paint off of Lena’s cheek.

Lena gave her a little push. “Go on, get back to your surprise. I’ll call you when dinner gets here.”

Kara left with one last kiss on the tip of Lena’s nose, dancing back before she could retaliate. “You’re the best!” she called over her shoulder, closing the studio door firmly behind her.

Lena just shook her head and got out the takeout menus.

Later that night, with dinner eaten and the leftovers put away (Lena had learned that if she wanted leftovers for lunch the next day she had to take them out before unleashing her voracious family,) Kara sat Lena down on the couch and helped Lizzy carry a sheet-draped canvas out of the studio. Lizzy dragged it the last few feet herself and Lena took it from her when she got to the couch, lifting it up into her lap.

“Is this for me?” she asked.

Lizzy nodded, her little face serious. “’Izzy ‘dis, f’Mommy.” She scrambled up onto the couch beside Lena, leaning into her side, and pulled the sheet off.

Lena bit her lip, swallowing against a lump in her throat. It wasn’t a picture of anything in particular; Lizzy might be bright, but she wasn’t even two. Still, every inch of the canvas had been lovingly painted in vibrant hues of blue and green, with a dash of red. There were deeper patches of navy and indigo, swirls of lime and stripes of jade edging into emerald and turquoise. The red was crimson and burgundy, a brushstroke here, and a swipe across a corner, there.  At the bottom, Kara had clearly helped her with her initials, two shaky L’s side by side, and a smudge that might have been a D.

Without a word, Lena set the painting aside and gathered Lizzy into her lap, hugging her close and pressing a kiss to the top of her head. Blinking back treacherous tears, she looked up to meet Kara’s eyes across the room. Kara smiled and joined them on the couch, wrapping her arms around them both.

“Do you like it?” she asked.

“I love it. It’s beautiful, Lizzy. Thank you,” Lena added.

“Welcum,” Lizzy said matter-of-factly, enjoying the snuggling for a few minutes before she started to wiggle. “’Izzy, down?”

Lena let her go, relaxing into Kara’s arms as the both watched her pull a bin of toy cars down off her shelves against the wall and start lining them up across the carpet. She masterminded a “crash,” and then swooped in to save the day, carefully carrying the “injured” cars to safety.

“Mommy, fix?” She asked Lena, holding up the little metal toys.

Kara laughed, pressing a kiss to Lena’s temple. “She knows who the engineer in the family is,” she teased. “Your turn to be a hero.”

Lena spent the rest of the evening playing a strange combination of doctor and mechanic, teaching Lizzy about oil changes, brakes and alignments, while the toddler nodded sagely, returning the recovered “Patients” to the bin and bringing over new ones. Kara watched them from the couch, a sketchbook open and largely untouched in her lap.

But the week wasn’t all sex, take out and family fun.

That first night after the library, even with Lizzy tucked safely in between them, neither Lena nor Kara took could sleep for more than an hour or so without waking up to check on her. They were both wrecks the next day, and Lena called Eliza no less than three times from her office to make sure Lizzy was okay. Kara confessed after work that she’d been listening in on both of them on and off all day, apologizing shamefacedly for the breach of privacy. Lena pulled her into a kiss and told her not to worry about it, though she reserved the right to ask her to stop at any point.

The second night, Kara woke up screaming.

Jolting upright, she wrenched herself out of Lena’s arms, scrambling away to huddle with her back pressed against the headboard, hands over her eyes and shoulders bowed, breath wheezing in and out of her lungs.

“Kara...?” Lena reached for her, but Kara flinched away, a flash of bright light winking between her fingers.

“Don’t, I...”  She gulped. “I can’t- I don’t want to hurt you.”

 Lena sat up slowly and carefully, heart pounding and the sick taste of adrenaline in the back of her throat, but she kept her voice calm. “Okay, I won’t come any closer, but I’m right here. Can you tell me what happened?”

“Everything was black,” Kara rasped. “Black and cold and quiet, and I was all alone...” She swallowed and dropped her hands to tangle in the sheets, eyes still shut tight. “I haven’t had that nightmare in a long time... not since the first year after I-”

“Fell to Earth?” Lena finished for her, and Kara nodded.

“I’m sorry,” She said, squinting and blinking a few times before opening her eyes all the way. “I’m fine now.”

“You’re not fine.” Lena edged a little closer. “May I touch you?” 

“Please?” Kara melted into her arms, burying her face in the crook of Lena’s neck. She was still trembling, and her skin was cold and clammy. Lena held her as tightly as her fragile human strength would allow.

“Was it just a nightmare?” she asked gently.

Kara shook her head. “It’s a memory,” she admitted. “From my pod, after Krypton exploded.”

“How long were you up there?”

“Twenty-four years.”

“Kara...” Lena had no idea what else to say to that. She knew Kara had been young when she was adopted by the Danvers, and her heart ached at the thought of that little girl floating through space all alone for so long with nothing but the memories of a dead planet to comfort her. She didn’t wonder that Kara had resisted getting attached to their daughter. She was only grateful she’d been able to take the risk at all.  She stroked a hand through Kara’s hair, brushing her lips against her temple. “You’re not alone anymore,” she whispered. “Not now, and not ever.”

Kara warmed under Lena’s touch, her shaking eased, and eventually they laid back down, trading soft, soothing kisses until Kara’s eyelids started to droop and she yawned, rolling over and pulling Lena’s arm around her. “Thank you,” she murmured. “For being here.”

Lena kissed the back of her neck, holding her close and breathing her in. “Always.”

“Do you think...” Kara hesitated, playing with Lena’s fingers, her touch lingering on the two silver rings she wore. “Would you, I mean... I was thinking, maybe we should get married?”

“Didn’t we already do that?” Lena said after a beat of silence, the teasing an automatic deflection even while her heart was suddenly beating double time.

Kara elbowed her. Gently. “For real, silly. Maybe on our fourth anniversary? We could tell everyone we were renewing our vows, and Lizzy would be old enough to be the flower girl, and there are some Kryptonian customs I’d like to add in if that’s okay with you. Lena?” she added when Lena didn’t respond right away.  “Are you okay? We don’t have to...”

“I-” Lena took a deep breath and tried again. “I would love that. I would really, really love that.”

“Oh...” There was wonder in Kara’s voice, and she laced their fingers together, holding their clasped hands against her heart. “Good. Me too. So... are we engaged now? Or re-engaged, I mean?”  

“I guess?” Lena could feel laughter bubbling up in her chest. It was ridiculous really, how quickly Kara could turn despair into delight. “Should we make an announcement?”

“Hmm...” Kara took a moment to think about it. “What about a dinner party?”

“Of course,” Lena agreed. “When?”

“Friday,” Kara decided. “We’ll invite everyone who knows.”

“I’ll call a caterer in the morning,” Lena offered. “Is there anything else?”

“No?”

“Kara...”

“I um... it’s something Alex and I talked about, and then Lizzy mentioned it at the Library and I wondered... do you want more kids?” she asked in a rush.

“Oh...” Lena had expected that was a conversation they would have sooner or later, but she’d kind of been hoping for later. It wasn’t that she didn’t like the idea as an idea, she did, it was just... “don’t you think that’s moving a little fast?”

“I don’t mean right now,” Kara clarified hastily. “But maybe someday? I’d like Lizzy to have a sister or a brother, like we did.”

“My brother went mad and tried to kill me,” Lena reminded her.

“I know, but before that he gave you a harpoon to fend off sharks in the bathtub.”

True enough, Lena had to admit, but she was still struggling to believe that Lizzy was really theirs. She was still braced for loss. The possibility of opening her heart to even the idea of more children seemed a foolish hope under the circumstances. “Can I think about it?”

“Of course!” Kara assured her. “Whenever you’re ready. I won’t say another word until then. But for now...” Kara pressed back against her, mood suddenly shifting to something a little more suggestive. “Since we’re up anyway...” she added, rolling over with an impish little grin. “Should we have our own celebration?”

“I don’t see why not.” Lena ran a hand down her side, pulling her closer. “Since we’re up.”

It wasn’t Kara’s only rough night that week, but it was the worst. After that the nightmares faded, until by Friday they were gone, and Kara was all sunshine and dimples again.

Which was a relief, because Lena knew how to host a Gala for five hundred, but she had no idea what to do with an intimate gathering of friends and family. The Luthors had been known for their dinner parties, but no one would have ever called them intimate. At least not with a straight face.

Kara seemed to sense Lena’s apprehension, and she stayed close until Lena started to relax, helped in no small part by Alex and Maggie, who seemed determined to make Lena comfortable. Eliza was also a serene, loving presence who didn’t so much try to get through Lena’s walls as simply embrace her, walls and all. J’onn was a little harder to read. He seemed happy enough to welcome her into their unusual little family, but Lena didn’t really know him, and he had walls of his own. Winn was everywhere, talking to everyone and rewiring their entertainment system in shameless revenge for Lena’s criticism of his set up at the DEO. 

Talking to James was a little awkward, mostly because Lena couldn’t resist needling him, and he was clearly trying to be on his best behaviour, which took all the fun out of it. Lena steered Jess his way when she showed up, introducing them and escaping again before she could get pulled into the conversation.

“Playing matchmaker?” Kara asked, coming up behind her and wrapping an arm around Lena’s waist.

“Maybe?” Lena tugged her into a quick sideways kiss. “Where’s Lizzy?”

“Showing J’onn her room. I think she’s finally forgiven him for the cookie incident.”

Lena laughed. “The one where she tried to steal his cookies?”

“She has a unique sense of justice.”

“That’s one way of looking at it. Come help me in the kitchen?”

“Please tell me that’s a euphemism...”

“Unfortunately, no.” Lena pulled Kara along with her into the kitchen to refill the plates of appetizers, kicking her out again within minutes when more of the food ended up in her mouth than on the trays.

Winn came in to help her carry them out and put the boxes of extras away. “Aw...” he said, closing the fridge on the last of them and catching sight of the list stuck to the door. “You have family rules, that’s so cute! But why is this one crossed out?”

“Winn... you might not want to-”

 “Wait,” he frowned at the list, ignoring Lena’s warning. “I think I can read it... No wet Superheroes in the... oh my god! How could you let me read that with my own eyes?”

Lena sighed. “I tried to stop you.”

“What are you yelling about, Schott?” Maggie demanded, leaning over the island.

Winn snagged the list off the fridge and handed it to her. “Look at rule number two. Three guesses as to why they crossed it out, and the first two don’t count.”

Maggie perused the list of rules quickly, cackling when she deciphered the second one. “Ooohh... but isn’t number three a problem too?” she asked, raising a brow at Lena who was trying to endure the teasing with some attempt at equanimity.

“Only for me,” she admitted dryly.

Winn hooted with laughter and Maggie snorted. “Kara!” she yelled across the room. “Get your butt over here!”

“What?” Kara looked confused until she saw the list on the counter in front of Maggie. “Oh, no...”

“Hell, yes.” Maggie grinned, tapping the third rule. “Explain. Supergirl is too good to swear now?”

Kara wrinkled her nose. “It’s crass...”

“And having sex at the office isn’t?”

Kara flushed, covering her face with her hands. “You heard about that?” she squeaked.

“Oh honey, everyone heard about that.”

“Excuse me, I’m just going to go die now...”

“Whose dying?” Alex joined them before Kara could make her escape. “What’s that?” she asked Maggie, but the detective quickly flipped the list over.

“Nothing you want to see, Danvers. There are some things a sister doesn’t need to know.”

Lena loved Maggie just a little bit for that. “It’s nothing,” she added quickly. “They’re just teasing Kara. Would you mind helping me with the wine?”

Alex was duly deflected, and if Winn and Maggie spent the rest of the evening snickering and taking turns trying to make Kara blush (it wasn’t difficult,) then at least she was spared that extra mortification. Lena would have been annoyed, but it was so good natured, that she found herself laughing along, and even Kara joined in eventually.

Everything was perfect until they gathered everyone together to make their announcement, and four phones started blaring out a warning all at once.

J’onn got to his first, but it was Alex who broke the news, her face white and fingers closing so tightly around her phone it was a wonder the screen didn’t crack.

“There’s been a break-out at the DEO...”