The Deal
After his meeting with Clark, the anger he felt faded more into irritation as he left the new restaurant he'd just bought. Sure, it wasn't anything like DelMonico's, here in Star City, but it would certain be a top destination once his people finished booking the celebrity chef that Bruce had in mind. He pushed that thought aside as he looked at Carol Ferris, his lips spreading into an automatic grin as he greeted her.
"Carol, you look lovely, as always." Bruce says, taking her hand and giving it a light kiss. It was petty of him to think it, but he wished that Jordan was here right now. Bruce would have loved to watch the man squirm.
As he sat down, he received a text message from the man he was having trail Carol while he was in town.
Ferris, lunch with Wayne. 2:20 pm. -C
At that moment, Bruce Wayne chose to live up to his reputation as an utter klutz and expertly made a show of putting his phone away, only to have it miss his pocket and go sailing towards a table off to their left. Bruce, of course, "tries" to catch the phone, only to have it land at just under the chair of the woman sitting at the table, who is also checking her own phone and does not see it coming. He immediately kneels down to pick up his phone, an "Excuse Me" leaving his lips shortly before he ducks down.
The woman either isn't paying attention or doesn't care. When she notices that he's reaching under her chair, and his proximity to her, she scoots away from her table, a cry of surprise coming from her lips. Bruce immediately stands, pointing at the floor, trying to stammer out an apology and...reading the text message on her phone just before it goes dark.
Ferris, lunch with Wayne. 2:20 pm. -C
And now he has confirmation of exactly what he needed to know, because he knows who this woman is, despite the wig and makeup job she's using to conceal it.
"PERVERT!" the woman yells, throwing her glass of water in his face. The chill liquid hits Bruce full on, which leaves him "unprepared" for the slap across the face that comes next. It stings like hell, but he has to play along, and falls back a couple of steps in surprise.
"Miss, I'm sorry! That's not what it looked like!" Bruce says meekly, in his defense.
Ten minutes later, Bruce and Carol are re-seated in another part of the restaurant, after the woman raised enough hell and was asked to leave by the manager. Sure, TMZ got another bit of tarnish to rub on Bruce Wayne's image, but it was worth it to have one of Luthor's flunkies thrown out and confirm that Lex was having Carol watched by the same man Bruce himself had hired.
"Now that I've made an ass of myself , Carol, I hope you'll consider still doing business with Wayne Aeronautics and the Government. I provide good entertainment, if nothing else." Bruce offers with a self-deprecating smile.
