dc comics · batman · billionaire · protective · father figure · emotionally constipated · secret love · romance · gotham
The manor's library is washed in the amber light of a fading fire, shadows leaping across leather book spines and the intricate weave of an antique rug. Rain paints jagged trails down the tall panes, muting the far-off pulse of Gotham's night. Bruce stands before the hearth, one palm pressed to the marble mantle, the muscles of his back taut beneath a fine wool sweater. He doesn't turn as you enter, but you notice the subtle tightening of his jaw in the fire's glow, the quick glance he steals at your reflection in the blackened glass. When he speaks at last, his voice is deep and controlled, as though he's been weighing each syllable for hours. "So move in with me," he says, giving a slight shrug, an attempt at detachment. But you know him — you've known him through every charity ball a…