Shakespeare (DCAU)

Bruce looked over the files that he'd brought home from the office, the wonderful aromas coming from the kitchen causing a distraction, but it wasn't his only distraction. He was trying to focus on the new proposal for a business venture that he was extremely interested. If everything went well, it could prove very lucrative for Wayne Enterprises.

He frowned as he jotted down a few notes that he wanted to review with Lucius tomorrow at the office. The manor felt so quiet…so empty. Before, he had always appreciated the solitude of the manor, the peace that it brought him to be one of only four people living here.

Of course, that was before her.

He didn't want to admit it, but he found he missed her. After completion of the second Watchtower, Diana and J'onn had moved out of the manor and into the new space station. That had been almost three weeks ago. For some reason, it felt like months since he'd heard her laughter echoing through the halls, coming into the kitchen to her warm, welcoming smile as she chatted with Alfred as he made dinner.

He never thought that he'd actually miss finding her shoes lying forgotten by the front door or her hair tie left on his desk in the library. He drew a deep breath, rubbing his temples as he tried to force her from his mind, but it was proving more difficult than he had believed.

When they had moved out, he'd told himself that he was relieved that things around here would finally get back to normal. No more of Diana's scent permeating the air, no more of her and Tim racing through the manor, no more having to see her coming into the house looking so enticing after a long run around the perimeter of the grounds. No more finding her sweatshirt draped over the banister of the stairs, no more seeing her every day that he came home from work and every morning at breakfast.

He could finally focus on his work and his mission. That was what was truly important, all that he should be devoting his attention to…not how much he wanted to run his fingers through her silken hair or wondering what it would feel like have her long legs wrapped tightly around his waist lost in the throes of ecstasy.

No more of that. It was best this way. He kept telling himself that.

Then why did he miss her so much?

He'd been up to the Watchtower a few times since she had moved out, but he'd missed seeing her because of a mission she'd been called out on or an unscheduled day off. Fortunately, there was a Founders meeting scheduled for Friday. He'd get to her see then. He just wasn't certain that was a good idea.

He didn't want to make it any harder than it already had been by finally seeing her. She invaded his mind at any given moment, threatening to consume him. He'd prided himself on how well he'd been able to remain in control around her the six months that she'd lived here.

Now, that wasn't to say that he hadn't had his moments of weakness, especially laying in bed at night knowing she was right next door in the guest room. He had prevailed against the growing temptation that had attempted to wreak havoc on him. He couldn't help feeling that control waver as he thought about her.

The hardest part had been seeing the look on her face when he'd left for a date with some up and coming actress or the next top model. The crestfallen expression that had momentarily appeared on her face…the hint of sadness that permeated her eyes would always make him second guess his decision to leave. If he'd had his way, he would have stayed home with her every time.

"Dinner is almost ready," Alfred announced, drawing him from his thoughts. "I'm afraid it's just you and me this evening. Master Timothy is spending the evening with Miss Cassandra and Master Damian is with Raven."

"Tim and Cassie have been spending a lot of time together," Bruce noted.

"It would seem so," Alfred replied. "I hope you're hungry because there will be plenty to eat. Too bad Miss Diana is no longer here."

"Yes…too bad," Bruce murmured thoughtfully.

"It's been rather quiet since she moved out," Alfred said with a sigh, "but I guess it's best things get back to normal around here again."

"I guess so," he softly said.

"Anyhow, dinner will be served in about fifteen minutes," Alfred said, turning to hide the hint of a smile that formed on his lips.

"Thank you, Alfred," Bruce said.

He sat there deep in thought for several moments, the work he'd brought home forgotten. The sound of the doorbell caught his attention, causing him to get up to answer it. "I've got it Alfred," he called down the hall.

Making his way to the front door, Bruce opened it to find Diana standing on the front steps. "Diana," he uttered her name, surprised to see her.

"Hello, Bruce," she replied with a soft smile. "I'm sorry to just drop in on you like this, but I wanted to return the book that Alfred had leant me before I moved out."

"No, it's all right," he reassured her, stepping aside. "Please, come in."

"Thank you," she said, holding the book in front of her with both hands. "I hope I'm not interrupting anything."

"Not at all," he told her, closing the door. He tried his best to not notice her legs, but she looked exceptionally alluring in a simple yellow sundress that allowed a generous view of her long limbs. "I was just reviewing some files from work."

"I wanted to make sure I returned Alfred's book to him," she informed him. "I'm anxious to read the next one."

Bruce reached out, taking the book from her hands as the corners of his lips quirked with fondness as he read the title. "Romeo and Juliet," he said with a nod. "Starcrossed lovers doomed to never truly be together."

He looked up to find Diana gazing at him with a sense of sad awareness in her eyes. "I don't know if I'd call it doomed," she countered. "While it was tragic, I thought it was quite romantic that they would rather die than live without the one that they love."

Bruce studied her for a long moment, his curiosity piqued. "I never took Wonder Woman for a romantic."

"I may be an Amazon warrior but I'm still a woman," she reminded him. "I have dreams and wishes, aspirations…desires."

He stared deeply into her eyes, drawn in by her openness and hanging on her every word. "What would those dreams and desires be?" he asked, his tone earnest and sincere. He was more than anxious to hear about Diana's dreams and desires, wishing it were him.

She wrapped her arms around herself, averting her eyes with a sudden shyness that he found to be quite charming. "I want to find someone who will love me as deeply as I love him," she ventured, a fleeting glance gauging his reaction. "A child and a family of my own, a love to come home to…to wake up to every morning. Isn't that want most women want?"

"I guess so," he murmured, losing himself in her words. He found himself longing to be that man for her.

"Master Bruce," Alfred quietly interrupted the moment. "Dinner is ready."

"I'm sorry," Diana apologized, her arms falling to her sides. "I should be going. I don't want to interrupt your meal."

"Not before I get you another book to read," Alfred insisted, turning to leave before anyone could object.

Bruce turned towards his guest, the warmth that her presence created in the manor returning with a noticeable vengeance. "Would you like to stay for dinner?" he offered.

"I don't want to impose," she replied.

"You used to live here, Diana," he reminded her. "It's no imposition. Besides, I want you to stay."

He wasn't certain in that moment what he meant when he asked her to stay. For dinner? For the night? Forever? All he knew was that he didn't want her to leave just yet. He'd really missed her these last three weeks, her absence from the manor showing him how much he'd grown accustomed to her presence not only in the house but in his life as well. She just fit in so seamlessly.

The smile she gave him was nearly knee-buckling, the joy that she radiated bringing him happiness. "I'd love to," she agreed. "I have to admit that I've missed Alfred's cooking, although my figure has yet to recover from living here for six months."

"Trust me, Diana, your figure is absolutely perfect," he assured her, his fingers wrapping around her arm just above her elbow before leading her to the dining room.

"I bet you say that to all the women," she lightly teased as he escorted her to a chair.

"Actually, you're the first," he admitted.

"I see Master Bruce talked you into staying for dinner," Alfred noted, more than pleased with the turn of events.

"I hope you don't mind," she replied.

"Not at all," he assured her as he set a plate, silverware and cloth napkin for Bruce. "In fact, I was just telling Master Bruce that I have too much food and not enough people to eat it all."

"Where's Tim?" she asked, taking the cloth napkin from the table and gracefully draping it across her lap.

"It would seem that Tim has a girlfriend," Bruce revealed.

"Cassie?" Diana correctly guessed.

"You already know?"

"I could see it coming," she revealed. "You could hear it in his voice and see it in his eyes when he talked about her."

"How did I miss that?" Bruce mumbled to himself.

"You have been rather busy with the rebuilding of the second Watchtower," she reminded him. "Tim would come down to the cave to talk to me when I was doing monitor duty."

"Still, I'm supposed to be his father-figure," Bruce pressed the issue. "I should have known."

"Did you come home and tell Alfred about all the girls that you were interested in when you were in high school?" Diana asked with a laugh.

"No, he did not," Alfred confirmed for him as he brought them two plates of food. "In fact, trying to find out anything about Master Bruce's romantic life during his teenage years was harder than the proverbial tooth pulling."

Diana attempted to stifle her giggle, putting her hand over her mouth, but failed miserably. "I'm sure it's only because I'm a woman and I'm related to Cassie," she tried to reassure Bruce. "He probably wanted to know what I thought."

"I'm sure that is it," Alfred agreed. "I set Macbeth on the library table in the foyer for you to take home with you whenever you're prepared to leave, Miss Diana."

"Thank you, Alfred," she replied as he left them alone once more.

"You know I could download all of Shakespeare's work onto your IPad for you to read," Bruce offered as he poured her a glass of wine.

"I know, but there's just something special about the feel of a book in my hands," she revealed with a wistful smile. "I love the smell of old books and the feel of the pages as I turn them. It's more authentic to me. I guess it comes from growing up on Themyscira. We used a lot of papyrus and scrolls."

"I can see that," he agreed. "I know Alfred enjoys sharing his love of Shakespeare with you. He had two missions in his life when it came to me. The first was to mold me into the perfect gentleman and the second was instilling into me a knowledge of all things Shakespeare."

"What is your favorite?" she asked as she dove into her meal.

"I think it would be either Macbeth or King Lear," he revealed.

"Why would that be?" she inquired.

"Not giving it away, princess," he told her. "You're going to have to read them and decide for yourself why they are my favorite. We can discuss it then."

"I'm anxious to read them then," she decided.

"How are your new quarters on the Watchtower?"

"They're very nice," she confirmed. "In fact, I went out shopping for a few things for my quarters yesterday."

"What did you get?"

"Some frames for some special pictures I have," she informed him with a smirk.

Bruce automatically groaned, his fork clanking against his plate as he sat back in his chair. "Oh no," he uttered. "Not that picture. That picture needs to be burned."

Diana laughed, a delicate snort escaping and taking them both by surprise. She began to laugh harder, her hand covering her mouth in embarrassment. "I love that picture."

"Don't change the subject," he said with a laugh. "Did you just snort? I've never heard you make that sound in all the time that I've known you."

"And you won't hear it ever again," she insisted, her cheeks flushing pink.

"Now I'm on a mission to make you snort again," he readily decided.

"No, Bruce," she said, trying to stifle her laughter. "It's embarrassing. You're not supposed to know about that."

"Too late, Diana," he replied. "It's all out now."

"If you tell anyone, I will cause you physical harm."

"Hmmm…that could fun," he flirted. "What did you have in mind?"

"I'm not kidding, Bruce," she insisted, trying to muster a glare but it was difficult with the tears of amusement in her eyes.

"I'm not scared of you," he taunted her, leaning in closer to her.

"You should be."

"Really?" he said. "I'm finding it difficult to be intimidated knowing that you snort when you laugh."

"Bruce, I'm warning you," she threatened him.

Bruce leaned in closer, his lips lingering dangerously close to hers. "Burn that picture," he murmured.

"Not on your life," she insisted with a giggle, pushing him away.

"You don't play fair."

"It's a great picture, Bruce," she claimed. "I already know that you destroyed the other copies. I'm not about to let you get your hands on mine."

"I didn't know you still had it," he grumbled.

"You have to admit it was a hilarious moment captured on film," she reminded him.

"There is nothing funny about Wally playing a prank on me."

Alfred smiled to himself as he entered the dining room with the dessert that he'd made, Bruce and Diana bantering back and forth over a photo. He silently removed the dirty dishes, pleased with how the evening was going for the pair.

"You can bring the photo with you when you bring Macbeth back," Bruce told her.

"Only if I get to eat Alfred's cooking again," she suggested. "Then, we can also discuss the book."

"Deal," he quickly stated, the tines of his fork sinking into the cheesecake. "What do you want for dinner?"

"I get to choose?"

"Of course," he replied. "It's only fair since I'll be getting that photo back."

"Who said I'd give you the original?" she teased. "Maybe I'll give you a copy."

"Don't make me break into your quarters and search for that picture."

"You wouldn't."

"Try me."

"Do and you will regret it."

"I doubt it."

Alfred chuckled softly as he exited the dining room with the dirty dishes. Things were going very well this evening. He had a feeling there was going to be many more dinners in the future for the couple thanks to Shakespeare. With any luck, Bruce and Diana would be married before she even got halfway through his collection of books.

"I always knew the Bard would come in handy someday," Alfred said to himself with a smile.

A/N: Starting Chp 5 of Take a Chance on Me and working on an update for Impressions! :)