#romancing the duke

[readerinsertsaremyguiltypleasure]

I've been on a Regency Romance kick lately (a genre I never expected to like) and I think I just finished my favourite one yet. Romancing the Duke by Tessa Dare. It's got everything. A blind and handsome duke, a resilient heroine, a castle, an army of cosplayers, a pet ermine, a thinly veiled joke about Star Wars, a load of smutty goodness, and ending that leaves a smile on your face and hope in your heart. Highly recommend.

[illustratus]

Lancelot crossing the Sword Bridge

Miniature illustration from a four-volume manuscript made for Jacques d'Armagnac, Duke of Nemours. Workshop of Évrard d'Espinques. Circa 1475.

[msfangirlgonewild]

🐝 𝒫ℯ𝓇𝒻ℯ𝒸𝓉𝒾ℴ𝓃 𝓉ℴ ℴ𝓊𝓇 𝓅𝒶𝒾𝓇𝒾𝓃ℊ𝓈 🐝

[magicaldestinyharmony]

When The Stars Align

regressed!duke x wife!female!reader oneshot (? it could be more idk)

Duke Ercan Revaz only ever loved one woman but she no longer exists. And it’s his fault. Well, if he wasn’t the only reason then he surely was a reason. He still remembers the first day he saw you. Standing under the moonlight in a garden looking like a goddess straight out of the founding myths of the empire. He stood, not far behind you, watching. Staring. You stood there in an elegant red dress with a champagne flute in your hand leaving the chaos and noise of the ball behind you. A sad sigh escapes your lips and, for some reason, he longed to hear your voice. At the thought, he freezes. He doesn’t understand the feelings flowing through him. He’s new to this sort of thing. Having spent countless years from one battlefield to another, he has zero experience with women. Another sigh from your alluring lips brings him out of his thoughts. He wonders, What is causing you to sigh so much? He then realizes that you were the woman who just publicly dumped her fiance. Your ex-fiance was a complete bastard. He was expecting orders to eradicate this nuisance to high society but you beat him to it and did a great job of ensuring he would never show his face again. He sees a woman approaching you which he recognizes as Countess Labelle. Countess Labelle calls you and you turn to face her. She must be your mother. he thinks. You leave with the countess. As he stares at your retreating back he feels that he must have you and he will make sure that once he does, you won’t be able to leave him.

Ercan now realizes that he went about making you his wife all wrong. Instead of trying to woo you, he did something that he still regrets. Using his power as a duke, he indirectly places your father in debt and demands that if he gets you as a bride, he will pay the debt off himself. Your father, bless his heart, tried to find other means to pay back the money but you stopped him and accepted the marriage. At the start of your marriage, things were fine. He never embraced you and always kept a distance, thinking that you might not have favourable feelings towards him. Still, you had a nice marriage. Things went downhill when he got sent to battle. You discovered papers with orders to place your father in debt in his study. Without him there to at least try to salvage the situation, your thoughts went wild. He came back to the report that you had tried to escape. He was frantic. Why would you try to leave him? He might indeed have placed you in debt, but he paid them off and also made sure that your family was well off. He found you bound to bed rest by the family doctor. You looked terrible. Pale and bags under your eyes. He got into an argument with you which ended with him confining you to your room. You resisted and your health took a hit. The day you died, Ercan regrets that the last thing he told you was a “Good night” and not “I love you” or anything similar. He woke to the balcony doors being opened. His blood ran cold. He ran outside only to see your disappearing smile over the railings. Ercan went mad. He lost you. He lost you. After the funeral was over, Ercan wished that he wouldn’t wake up again. He would rather die than face a world without you in it. He was surprised to wake up and find out that his wish had come true. Well, kind of. Ercan clenches his fist while he stares out the window of what used to be your shared bedroom. What will become your shared bedroom. I promise, this time I’ll never make the same mistakes again. I'll show you just how much you mean to me. This time, you won’t die in vain.

[to-the-stars8]

The Waynes' Nanny

Batfamily and Reader/ Bruce Wayne x Reader Chapters Ao3

Runaways

You didn’t know how to explain to Mr. Wayne that his two sons, Jason and Duke, snuck out of the house in search of you. 

You had taken the day off to attend your friend’s wedding, which had been fun until your third drink. No sooner had you tipped the glass to your lips did a little old lady tap you on the shoulder saying that two young men were looking for you. Intrigued by the prospect of being sought out by handsome men, you followed her to an empty room. There, the boys were sitting and eating away at some cake. 

It took you a few moments to realize that they were there all by themselves, and all at once shock mixed with panic rushed through you. Once the relief of finding them alright had passed, you scolded them to the point that both boys were in near tears. Between long lectures you would pull them into hugs, saying how glad you were that they were alright.

“Oh, what were you thinking!” You exclaimed when you let them go. “You could have gotten lost or kidnapped. Mr. Wayne would have my head—Mr. Wayne! The man is going to have a stroke.”

When you went to find a phone, Duke burst into tears as he mumbled that he didn’t want to get into trouble. Jason, as he tried to comfort his brother, had started to cry, too. By the time you returned, the pair could hardly string a sentence along together without hyperventilating. Even when you assured them that everything would be okay, they still refused to calm down. You had hoped that maybe seeing their father would help them, but he had made the situation worse. Mr. Wayne had come barreling through the doors already demanding to know what had crossed their minds to do such a thing. 

“Don’t shout,” You snapped, stroking Jason’s hair and rubbing Duke’s back. “They already know they’re in trouble.”

“I’m sorry,” Jason gasped out between heavy breaths as he reached out for his father. Bruce didn’t let his anger stop him from pulling the boy into his arms, pressing a kiss to the side of his head. He pulled Duke from your arms toward him, mumbling to his boys that he was glad that they were safe. 

“I—I’m sorry, Dad,” Duke cried. “I’m sorry. I’m sorry.” 

You shushed him before suggesting to Mr. Wayne that the four of you go outside to the car lest curious guests look in. He seemed to quietly fight the idea at first, wanting an explanation no matter who watched but gave in at the sight of his poor boys. You carried Duke while Bruce carried Jason, who was looking over his father’s shoulder at you. 

There was little hassle getting them buckled into the car since Bruce had threatened them with an even bigger punishment if they didn't behave from that moment on. You knew he wouldn’t, but the threat had sounded real enough for them to comply. As soon as you began closing the car door Duke kicked his foot to stop it.  

Duke, weeping, said, “No! Stay!”

You had tried to explain that you couldn’t, that you needed to stay for the rest of your friend’s wedding, but they weren’t listening. Finally, you asked, “Why are you two acting this way? I was coming home later tonight!”

Jason, who was a bit more coherent, said, “Dick said you don’t love us, and you only spend time with us because you get paid.” 

You groaned, rolling your eyes as you shot a look over at Mr. Wayne. “Do you wanna have that talk with Richard when you get home, or would you rather it be me?” Bruce only sighed before turning his back to you and the boys. Shaking your head, you said, “I get paid to watch you kids, yes, but that does not mean I don't love you.” 

“Really?” Jason asked. 

You kissed his forehead and said, “Really.” Tugging at the buckles of the car seats, you made sure they were secure. “Be good for your Dad. You guys gave him quite a scare.”

“Okay,” They said in unison. 

Once the car door swung shut, you looked at Mr. Wayne with a coy smile. He only returned the light-hearted gesture by narrowing his eyes and frowning. 

“Don’t lie to my kids like that. I don’t want you hurting their feelings,” He said as he rounded the car to the driver’s side. 

“I wasn’t,” You tried to say, but he had already started the car. You didn’t know if it was the drink or your annoyance of his hot and cold temper towards you. It made you want to scream at him, to get him to stop shoving whatever feelings he had with having a nanny, and to say them to you outright. Instead of going to him, you decided to go back into the venue for another drink. 

You told yourself you hadn’t meant to drink as much as you did, but you couldn’t help it when the wedding was getting to be so much fun. The drama had gotten heated, the bar was endless, and it only doomed you from there. By the end of it, you were sober enough to call a cab yet not to walk in a straight line or not slur your words. When you returned to Wayne Manor you tried to be quiet getting in, but that only resulted in you running into the entranceway table. After skillfully saving a vase from toppling over, you began to remove your coat. 

“When did coats get to be so hard to take off,” You mumbled to yourself, trying to shrug off your jacket, but it had gotten caught on your purse. 

“Are you okay,” A voice asked. 

Jumping, you tried to whip around to see who it was but tripped on your own feet. Luckily, hands caught you before you could fall to the floor. Looking up, you noticed it was Mr. Wayne, and you loathed to see him. 

“I’m fine,” You said, standing straight. “Thank you.”

“You’re drunk,” He pointed out like you didn’t already know. You rolled your eyes before trying to get your coat off again, but you only ended up stumbling right into Mr. Wayne’s chest. Mumbling an apology, you started to try again before he told you to stop. Mr. Wayne then slowly took off your purse and took your coat, throwing them on the table. “Come on.”

You hadn’t expected him to loop an arm around your waist and help you up the stairs. He was kind about it, too, which left you even more confused. “I love the kids, you know.”

“What?” Mr. Wayne asked, his tone mixed with genuine confusion and irritation. 

You gulped. “Earlier you said not to lie about loving the kids, but I wasn’t lying.” 

He didn’t say anything at first, and you thought he would just leave it there. But, after you made it up to the first landing of the stairs, he said, “I know. It’s…I don’t want my kids getting hurt if things go bad. Do you understand?”

“I do,” You grumbled, swaying a bit. His grip tightened around your waist and he pulled you more into him. “You’re a good father. I’d like to have you as my dad.”

He managed a smile. “A lot of people would.”

You giggled before you hiccuped. When you looked back up at Mr. Wayne to see if he noticed, he was holding back a chuckle. You groaned, before saying, “I didn’t mean to come home this way.”

“Yes, you did,” He corrected and the two of you finally made it to the first floor. “But, don’t worry about it. You’re good at your job, and this isn’t an often occurrence.”

“Plus, it’s my day off,” You added. 

He agreed with you that it was, indeed, your day off. When the two of you had made it to your bedroom door, there was a brief pause as Mr. Wayne considered whether or not it would be appropriate for him to enter your room. After you failed to open the door, he decided that no harm would be done. You fell onto the bed before kicking off your heels with a satisfied groan. 

Bruce was going to leave you until you called out, “Mr. Wayne.” He stopped, kneeling over you as you spoke. Your eyes were closed and you were slurring through every word.“Are Duke and Jason okay?”

It was sweet that you still were concerned for them. “They were upset when they got their games taken away.”

“Jason will be fine. He never played games much.”

“That’s why I told him no new books for a month.” Bruce paused before adding, “I apologize for saying you didn’t love the kids.”

You opened your eyes and smiled. “Apology accepted, but just this once…We’re friends, you know? Even though you’re my boss. I won’t betray you. I pinky promise on my life. We’re in this together, old man.”

Bruce tried not to dwell too much on the old man part of your sentiment. “Thank you, Nan. I appreciate that.”

“Very good, Mr. Wayne,” You said. “Good night.”

He was going to take that as his cue to leave the conversation, but your drunken brain had other ideas. You were quick to lean up and peck him on the lips before he even had a chance to say goodnight. All at once he felt a range of emotions; confusion, surprise, and embarrassment. You were so nonchalant about the whole situation, probably not having realized it had happened, that you simply turned over to sleep. Quickly, Bruce used that as an excuse to not bring it up since you were more than likely not to remember it by the next morning. 

Right as he was going to step out the door, you called him back. He poked his head into your room again and felt his heart flush when you asked, “Did I just kiss you?”

For his sake and yours, he answered, “No.”

You hummed before dropping your head back onto the pillow. Closing the door, Bruce reminded himself that the last thing he needed to be doing was thinking about an employee in such a romantic way. 

[tullipsink]

“The Duke and I”, Bridgerton

[notbecauseofvictories]

also I've spent the last couple weeks reading some older historical romance novels, and my made up, wholly unverified hypothesis that in the 2000s romance authors finally grasped that the old-fashioned "no, don't! stop, you brute" etc. scenes were not really landing with audiences anymore. So they faced a conundrum about the future of the genre. Ultimately, I think they chose to quietly stop writing those heroes, and switch them out for a more sensitive model. Still dark and brooding! But with limits, often a Heart of Gold, and more general emotional intelligence.

Still, somewhere out there is a parallel universe where these authors decided to take the opposite approach---to write heroines as unhinged, cruel, impulsive, and emotionally ignorant as their heroes. I don't know if I want to live there, but I wouldn't mind a trip to their library sometime.

[missingpolinseason]

I don't know who needs to hear it, but Julia Quinn doesn't pitch women against each other. Shondaland's writers do.

Daphne and Cressida never competed because of man - in fact, in the "The Duke and I" book it's actually one of Colin's friends who sees Daphne and Simon in the garden. Penelope and Cressida never competed for a man.

Kate and Edwina (and Mary) have one of the healthiest family relationships I've ever seen. There's no fights, and definitely no quarrel because of Anthony. Edwina is so happy for Kate and Anthony when they are forced to marry and always stays by her sister side as she never had real fealings for him. Not to mention that Kate and Pen became really good friends as both are wallflowers at the sideways of the ballrooms. Book Kate even confess she falls in love with Anthony when he stands up for Pen after Cressida's bullying.

Sophie becames friends with her stepsister Posy (who is treated by her mother similar to the way Portia treats Penelope). Posy even ends up living with the Bridgertons before marrying a vicar.

Lady Danbury is Penelope's friend and number one supporter. Polin names their first daughter - in the books - Agatha after her.

Pen and Eloise never fight (nor break their friendship) and Eloise is so proud of Penelope for being Lady Whistledown. Their friendship is so strong that Pen is the one to find out El's whereabouts when she runnaways to Phillip's house in her book. Eloise and Phillip's first daughter is named Penelope.

In the show, every female relationship is destroyed by some fight (most of the times related to a man) or doesn't exist at all. Pen and Kate barely meet or talk. Edwina is in love with Anthony. Mary puts to much pressure in Kate. Pen and Lady Danbury's friendiship was never explored... Now Rosamound (Sophie's stepsister) is supposed to be interest in Benedict when in the books her mother, Araminta, mentions once that she should go for a Bridgerton - most likely because they're a rich and influential family rather than a desire for her daughter to marry an actual Bridgerton).

But somehow, the only actual mean girl in Julia Quiss' books, Cressida Cowper, gets her actions justifyed because of her family situation . She get's to have a friend in Eloise and get's to share some of Pen's spotlight in the one that was supposed her season. Seems unfair, when even Marina - that we only know post mortem in the books - got a plot with unplaned pregnace; planed entrapment and lies*....

*This is not a critic to Marina's character, I am barely pointing what the show did to her in the list with everything else.

[luxaofhesperides]

puddle

Your writing is amazing btw

Danny is usually fine with the cold. He's got an ice core, he's practically made for the cold. But Gotham autumn cold is another monster, especially when it comes with so much rain.

The city is constantly damp and dreary, switching between sprinkling on and off to a heavy deluge of rain.

Listen, he can handle the cold but not the cold and wet. That's just asking for too much.

He says as much to Duke over the phone, peering out from under the awning of the theater he's trapped at, hoping the rain will let up soon. It hadn't been raining when he left the apartment earlier to watch a movie, killing time until Jazz got back from her internship with Gotham's social services, so Danny had been caught totally unprepared when he stepped outside and got hit with a spray of rain as a bus drove past.

Duke laughs at him, his voice carrying a little static over the phone, and Danny pouts. No point in hiding it when no one's around to see it.

"How have you not learned to always carry an umbrella with you by now?" Duke asks, amusement coloring his voice. "Hasn't it already been a year since you moved here?"

Danny pouts and stares out into the heavy sheets of rain coming down just a few feet in front of him. "I was running late to the showing so I didn't check the weather! And it was almost nice out earlier so I thought it would be fine."

"Alright, new question: how have you not learned to stop trusting Gotham's weather? If it's good, then it'll get worse. If it's bad, it'll stay bad. That's how it is."

"This city is out to get me," Danny complains. "If I get sick because of this rain, just leave me to die."

"You're so dramatic," Duke says fondly.

"You would be too, if you were stuck out here." He takes a step to stand just beneath the edge of the awning and peers up at the sky. Heavy gray clouds hang above the city, hiding the sky from horizon to horizon. The wind isn't strong today, which means the clouds are barely moving. No doubt the lower streets have already begun to flood, water rising as storm drains struggle to keep up with the heavy rain. He sighs and reaches back to draw his hood up to cover his head. "I think I'm just gonna have to make a run for it."

Noise erupts from Duke's end of the call; rustling, doors slamming, metal moving. "Wait, stay where you are! You're at Harbor Theater, right?"

"Yeah."

"Give me like ten minutes. Don't move!" And then the call ends without another word, leaving Danny to blink out at the rain, confused. He pulls his phone away from his ear, stares down at the screen where "Call ended" stares back up at him, and shrugs.

Sure. Okay. This might as well happen.

He retreats back to the door, more protected from the rain, and leans against the brick wall of the building to wait. It's only ten minutes, and he's not in a rush to do anything else today, so he can wait. As long as he stays mostly dry, he'll be fine.

Despite his many complaints about the rain, Danny does enjoy Gotham storms. They're quiet and steady, with only the really big storms carrying thunder into the city. The storms in Amity Park were always loud, with howling winds and earthshaking thunder, lightning flashing nonstop until it was over. Compared to that, Gotham rain is peaceful; the steady patter of raindrops against windows is soothing and has made him fall asleep more than once. As long as he's safe and warm inside, he likes the rain.

As it is, when he's outside and stuck hiding beneath an awning, he very much does not like the rain.

The street is mostly empty as everyone with common sense is inside where it's dry. A few cars pass by, driving fast despite how hard it must be to see, and send water splashing towards him. He's just outside the splash zone, thankfully, but that doesn't stop him from glaring and muttering curses to those drivers.

Danny sighs again and closes his eyes, hoping to make the time pass by faster if he makes his mind drift.

It doesn't feel like it's been ten minutes when he hears Duke call his name. It barely even feels like five. Danny opens his eyes and pushes off the wall, looking down the street where he can see a bright yellow umbrella moving up and down as Duke runs through the rain to meet him. Did he really run all this way, just to get Danny an umbrella? That's really sweet. Danny bites the inside of his cheek to keep from grinning too much like some kind of lovesick fool.

Which he is, to be fair, but he doesn't need to show that.

"Dude," he says when Duke reaches him, stumbling to a stop under the awning to catch his breath. "Did you seriously run from your place to here? Don't you live on the other side of Gotham?"

Duke shakes his head and takes a moment to catch his breath. "I was nearby," he says, gesturing vaguely behind him, "Don't worry about it. You heading back home?"

"That was the plan, yeah."

"I'll walk you then. C'mon."

Duke offers his elbow as though escorting Danny to the ball. Danny takes it, stepping beneath the umbrella, so cheerfully yellow it almost feels aggressive. "My hero," he teases. "My knight under yellow umbrella."

"Listen, it was the only one I had that wasn't broken and it was a joke gift from a friend."

"A joke gift?"

"It's a Signal umbrella. Look at the handle."

Danny looks. The curve of the handle ends in a bat symbol. "That's amazing," he says, biting back a laugh as they step out into the rain. The umbrella protects them, but he can see that both their shoulders are getting wet; it's hard to fit two bodies beneath one umbrella. He pulls at Duke's arm, tugging him closer, so they can both fit more securely under the umbrella, walking arm in arm down the street.

It would have been nearly perfect if it wasn't for the fact that the streets were full of rainwater and a step into a puddle too big to avoid leaves his shoes and socks wet.

"Aw, man," he groans, frowning at his shoes. "I just can't win today."

"You used up all your good luck calling me," Duke jokes.

"Worth it, if it gets me you," Danny says without thinking. Then he squeezes his eyes shut and regrets because flirting with Duke has become a habit when they became friends, and it's a dangerous habit know that Danny's figured out his massive crush on Duke.

"Sweet talker," Duke retaliates. He's unfazed, carrying on normally, so Danny relaxes. As long as he can keep his crush quiet alongside his many other secrets, he's fine.

Leaning into him a little more, Danny ducks his head to hide a smile as they keep walking. Under one umbrella, together under the sheets of rain, it feels like there's no one else in the world but them.

Maybe there is something to enjoy about rainy autumn days.

Even if it ends with him walking home in waterlogged socks.

[dearabsolutelynoone]

“The family is noted as full of perfectly handsome sons…

…and perfectly beautiful daughters.”

[transbookoftheday]

Hi, do you know of any trans m/f romances? I feel like the majority of them are m/m, which I enjoy, but I want some variety sometimes!

Yes! Here are some of my favorites:

Book Titles:

A Lady for a Duke by Alexis Hall

For the Love of April French by Penny Aimes

A Shore Thing by Joanna Lowell

A Shot in the Dark by Victoria Lee

Drag Me Up by R.M. Virtues

Chef's Kiss by TJ Alexander

[horribluh]

jinbei joining the luffys crew with the misconception that zosan are together is so funny. hes like "what a spirited couple have they been together long?" and everyone just looks at each other and then just goes "yes. oh forever. they tried hiding it at first but theyre sooo obvious." franky is crying bc "their love is sooo beautiful guys." usopp claims he had a hand in getting them together. nami and robin are like fighting is how they show love. luffy and chopper don't get the joke but they agree that zoro and sanji are really close! brooke is playing a raunchy love ballad in the background

zoro and sanji walk in and jinbei is like "the crews just regaling me with tales of your enduring romance, truly a love story for the ages." zosan take in the crews shit eatting grins and proceed to try and murder each other because "this is all your fault!" and jinbei is like "ah youth how i envy you two"

obviously they get together after this and jinbei only finds out that it was because of him when theyre saying their wedding speeches.

[sea-owl]

I GOT MY ILLUMICRATE BRIDGERTON BOOKS AND THEY'RE GORGEOUS!

[tomfoolerytommytom]

I decided to draw Theo one more time just for those who found my account through the fandom and for the friends I made. I hope the rest of y’all stay safe and have a good one 🖤 To those who are still here for my original art or the fanart I’ve made for other fandoms, I’ve attached some more below :)))

Here’s the other stuff I promised, idk if I posted some of these already I have terrible memory😇

[lovelylildepressedsoul]

Rewatching Bridgerton seasons 1 & 2 for the zillionth time and am wondering if anyone else has caught this??!

When giving bb Simon advice, Lady Danbury tells him, “I attempted to dissolve into the shadows” and then goes on to say “I knew I would have to step into the light someday”

Out of the Shadows and Into the Light are the names of the first and last episodes of season 3!!

Just more evidence of Lady D & Pen’s similarities🥹

[to-the-stars8]

The Wayne's Nanny

Batfamily and Reader/ Bruce Wayne x Reader Chapters Ao3

Ex in the House

You hadn’t expected to see your ex in the kitchen when you went to make some coffee, but he looked just as smug as the day he broke up with you. Alfred, who had been washing dishes at the sink informed you that your ex had arrived thirty minutes prior demanding to speak to you, acting as if the man he was talking about wasn’t even there. Politely, you thanked the butler and asked him to watch the kids so you could speak with your ex alone. Truly, you wanted Alfred gone so your drama wouldn’t be added to his menagerie of gossip. 

Once the two of you were alone, you shook the chair he was sitting in until he stood. Exasperated, you exclaimed, “Are you crazy?”

“What? No! But, you may be,” He said. You took a step toward him and your ex quickly put up his hands in surrender. “Hold on. Hold on. Don’t get all crazy on me yet, I came over here to talk.”

You slowly back off, telling him to sit and he obediently did. “Talk about what? Talk about how you still owe me my last check?”

“I don’t,” Your ex inserted. “But, no. I wanna talk about us.”

“There’s nothing left to talk about,” You spat, refusing to sit when he gestured for you to do so. Your ex sighed before standing, coming over to slowly rub your arms. You loathed his touch and shrugged his hands off of you. “Just get it out.”

He sighed and said, “I want you back. I realized how much I fucked up.”

You stared at him, torn between smacking him or laughing in his face. If you hadn’t known that his fiance left him a week ago, you would have believed him a little. Instead, you stayed quiet and let him go on a long-winded rant that left you feeling almost sorry for him. Obviously, the guy was in a deep hole of pathetic loneliness. 

You were so distracted by your ex that you hadn’t seen Jason watching the two of you from the slightly cracked kitchen door. He knelt down just enough that you would likely not see him if you looked over. 

“Please, get to your point,” You demanded as soon as you got tired of hearing his voice. 

Your ex sucked in a breath and finally said, “I want you to come back. Come back to work. To me.”

You stared at him before sarcastically saying, “Okay, let’s go!” 

Jason felt his heart sink at your remark. You seemed so eager to go that it made him wonder if something had happened to make you stop loving them. Had they not been good enough? Did he do something to make you want to leave? Jason could hardly breathe and could only think of running to his room to get some comfort. 

You noticed the kitchen door swing back and forth slightly, but that didn’t stop you from going on, “As if, asshole. I like my job, my kids, and my life now. I wish I realized how much sooner it sucked with you in it.”

Mr. Wayne abruptly entered the room before the conversation could continue. He looked just as surprised to be there as you were to see him there. Bruce truly hadn’t meant to intrude, but Alfred had told him your ex was there. Suddenly, he had to be in the kitchen. Bruce chose not to look for an explanation for his thought process. 

“You sleepin’ with him, is that it?” Your ex said, tone trying to be threatening. 

“No! No, he’s my boss. You think I would make that mistake again?” You looked back at Bruce, who didn’t seem phased or at all impressed, before saying to your ex, “You need to leave. We’re done. You can’t be causing a scene here. There are children.”

“Fuck them kids,” Your ex said. 

It happened in a blink of an eye. You extended your hand and slapped your ex so hard that it knocked him over. He didn’t quite fall to the floor, but it caused him to stumble into the pantry door. Fortunately for you, he didn’t have time to return to gesture as Mr. Wayne put himself between you and him. 

“Get out of my house,” Bruce said, voice angry and serious. When it took your ex a second too long, your boss used his angry parental voice and yelled, “Now!”

You even jumped, but you would be lying if you said you didn’t like it. Your ex grumbled something as left. Once your ex was gone, you were left embarrassed and flustered. You stumbled over yourself in apologies to Mr. Wayne, especially since the man was allowed so close to the kids. 

“Mr. Wayne, I don’t even know what to say. I am so sorry for all of this,” You reassured him in hopes he wouldn't make you leave on the spot. 

 Bruce grabbed your shoulders gently, looking down at you with a worried look in his eyes. You had expected him to be angry, not kind. “Are you okay?” 

Stunned, you stumbled over your words, before managing out, “I mean, I’m better than my ex right now. Did’ya see the way I slapped him?”

The was a moment of silence before Mr. Wayne began to laugh. It was a rumble that started in his throat before bubbling out of his mouth. It sounded more like prolonged chuckling, but it was a pleasant sound. Not to mention his smile. Damn, you thought, what you wouldn’t do to see that smile again. No wonder half the world was in love with him, Bruce Wayne was a beautiful man. 

“Well, I hate to say it, I don’t think he’s coming back,” He said. 

“I hope he doesn’t.” You said, eyes going down to his lips. They were perfect and pink. You admired the cute little cupid's bow on his upper lip and wondered how soft they were. The two of you stared at each other for a few seconds too long, and you only broke the tension when you turned away to go back to the kids. 

You didn’t see Mr. Wayne again until dinner. He sat at the head of the table with Dick on one side and Cassandra on the other. You sat in the middle of the little kids since it would be your job to make sure they ate their food. After a few minutes of conversation, you noticed Jason hadn’t come down for dinner yet. You hadn’t seen him since a few hours earlier once you really thought about it. 

You passed the basket of rolls to Tim as you asked Alfred, “Where’s Jason? Still in his room?”

“Yes, Miss,” Alfred said. “He threw quite the fit when I insisted he come down to eat.” 

You shared a glance with Bruce before pushing back your chair. “I’ll see what’s going on. You kids keep eating.”

After reassuring the rest of the kids that you would be back (you were starting to get the sneaking suspicion that they were developing separation anxiety), you made your way to Jason’s room. His room was usually spotless, but, upon entering after hearing a meek come in, you saw it was a huge mess. Things were thrown about, books knocked off the shelves, clothes pulled out of the drawers, and even writing on the walls. Oh, Bruce would not be happy about the state of his room at all. 

You stopped in the middle of the mess to see Jason curled on his bed facing away from you. “Jason, what happened here?”

He barely lifted his head and looked over at you, before putting it back down. After a few seconds of silence, he said, “I hate you.”

That threw you for a loop. Truly, you didn’t know Jason had a hating bone in his body. You sat on the edge of his bed, rubbing circles on his back, before trying to get him to tell you what made him hate you. At first, he refused to talk, just saying he hated you over and over again. You wouldn’t lie, it got to you a little, but you refused to show it. From what you learned from the parenting self-help book Alfred bought you, you knew he was just acting out an anger he couldn’t come to you about. 

“Jason, tell me what’s wrong, sweetheart,” You said. “I want to help.”

“No! You don’t. You just want to leave like Bruce always does and you hate me like Catherine did,” He said quickly so you wouldn’t hear the crack in his voice. 

“Oh, sweetheart. I don’t hate you. I never have, and I know your mom didn't hate you, either.” You pulled him into you, hugging him close. “What makes you think I want to leave?”

“You said so. When that man was here. He told you to leave with him and you said yes,” Jason mumbled. 

That’s when you finally realize it. It wasn’t Mr. Wayne who was there like you initially suspected when you first saw the door swinging by itself, it had been Jason. Squeezing him, you explained what had truly happened— Granted, leaving out some details. 

“I don’t hate you at all. I never have.” You pressed a kiss to his cheek. “And, your dad works a lot. I wish you knew how much he loved you kids and wants to be with you. I can tell just by looking at him.”

Jason, turning to lay on his back, smiled a little. “Yeah? What does he look like?”

You pushed some of his black curls out of his face and rubbed away the tear streaks as you spoke: “He gets all brooding and upset when he has to go to work. But, when he comes home, he’s all smiley.”

“Dad doesn’t smile.”

There was a knock on the open door and the two of you watched Mr. Wayne slowly walk in. His eyes scanned the room, noting everything amiss, before landing on you. Before you could tell Mr. Wayne not to get mad, Jason mumbled an apology. 

“Jason,” Bruce said in a soft voice. He crossed the rest of the room in two strides before stopping at the edge of the bed. “Are you okay?”

Jason was quiet for a moment before mumbling, “I didn’t want Nan to leave. I didn’t want her to hate me, either.” 

“I told him I wasn’t going to leave or ever hated him,” You added, glancing up at Mr. Wayne. 

Bruce reached down and played with Jason’s hair before messing it up playfully. The boy whined and tried to pull away, but his father was much bigger than him. Kneeling to look up at his son, Bruce took his small hands into his. 

“I promise you Nan isn’t going anywhere. I’d fire her then rehire her if she tried.” Mr. Wayne smiled, and you knew it was one just for his little boy. He glanced back up at you, before going on. "Plus, I think we all like her here. With you kids, that's a rare find."

Jason looked over at you. “You were right. He does smile.”

“And he's actually good at smiling, too,” You said. “Now, come on. There’s dinner downstairs for you.”

Jason leaped off the bed, loudly stating how hungry he was, and practically ran for the door. Bruce was quick, though. He grabbed the back of the boy’s shirt and dragged him back a little so they could be face-to-face. 

“When you’re done with dinner, you will clean up this room, and we need to talk about you acting out like this,” he said. 

He agreed, before now slowly going toward the dining room. Considering the state of the room, you knew Jason would drag out dinner for as long as he could.

Mr. Wayne must have known, too, because he made sure to add extra vegetables to the boy’s plate.