Felicity groaned as she opened her eyes and was assaulted by a pounding headache.
"Here." A voice said from next to her. "Some water will help clear your head."
She took the glass being offered and swallowed. The coolness of the water rushed through her. She let out a happy groan as the throbbing in her head lessen, then whimpered as it was replaced by a burning itching in her shoulder. "Why me?" She groaned.
"Good question." The man next to her said. Felicity opened her eyes and squinted at the person next to her. Bruce Wayne was sitting comfortably next to her on the bed. Her eyes widened and she scrambled to pull her blanket over her. "I'd say." He continued, amused by her actions. "It's because you're stubborn to the point of insanity and that you've got a hero streak that hinders your judgement." He smiled down at her. "Though I think I'll gloat for a few minutes before I start berating you for your incredible lack of common sense."
Felicity covered her face. "Urgh, I should have let you get shot." How did he get in?
Bruce frowned. "Yes...though it doesn't sound as good coming from you as it did in my mind." He looked down at her. "Next time you want to show you don't hate me, find a way that doesn't end in me giving you stitches."
Felicity pressed her face into her pillow. "How are you in here?"
"After I dropped you off, I went back to my hotel, changed and came back." He hesitated and it looked like he wanted to touch her, but he shook his head, looking back at a tablet in his hand. "I didn't want to leave you alone." He glanced at her shoulder. "How are you feeling?"
"Like I've been shot." She grabbed for her phone, panicking slightly. "What time-" She stopped, realizing the stupidity of her question. She didn't have a job to get to. There was no need to be worried about being late. Bruce must have realized what she was thinking, because he murmured.
"I talked to Moira and she won't sue you."
"I don't see Isabel backing down so easily." Felicity muttered.
"Well, I made it very clear that it wouldn't be in her best interest." Bruce looked down on his tablet. "As to the IRS, there haven't been any threats, as of yet. If they do happen, we'll handle them." He put it down. "We should talk...when you're up to it."
"You're being very confident with your use of 'we'." Felicity mumbled as she closed her eyes, her stomach rumbling. "I'm hungry." The door opened and Alfred walked in.
"I believe that is my cue." He was carrying a tray. Felicity sniffed the air.
"Pancakes?" She asked. "I didn't know I had the ingredients for pancakes...or anything really...Come to think of it, I don't even think I have a tray."
"You did not." Alfred nodded. "So thankfully, I corrected your oversight." He set the tray at the foot of the bed. "Tea?"
"I'm usually a coffee person." She said. "But I'll make an exception." She took the cup he offered her, grateful for Alfred's kindness. Not wanting to talk to Bruce, she decided to focus on Alfred instead. "How long have you been working for Mr. Wayne?"
"Since before he was born." Alfred said, clearly amused by the formal way she talked about Bruce. "I have quite a few stories about your husband, and I'll be all too happy to share."
"Alfred." Bruce growled as Felicity blanched at the word 'husband'. She took a sip of her cup to distract herself.
"Consider this your punishment for not telling her sooner." Alfred said. Felicity choked on her tea, coughing. Bruce patted her back. As she caught her breath, he slowed his movements to rubbing small circles. Felicity hummed, leaning back into his touch. His hands were large and warm and oh so comforting. It also didn't hurt that she'd already experienced what they were capable of...She came to her senses, moving away from him, she glared. He held his hands up. Alfred was looking at them, a contented smile on his face. "I believe I will leave the two of you alone. Master Wayne, I'll be returning to the hotel." He smiled, moving the tray closer to her. "Mrs. Wayne, I entered my number into your phone, in addition there are several days of home cooked meals in your refrigerator. They're all labelled and awaiting your microwaving convenience."
Felicity blinked, unsure what to say. "Thank you." She whispered. "I-"
Alfred gave her a kind smile. "The only thanks I need, is you healing yourself, my dear."
Felicity swallowed the lump in her throat and nodded. She wasn't sure what she'd done to warrant such kindness from Alfred, but she was touched.
"You're never so nice to me when I get shot." Bruce said in amusement.
Well, I'm hoping this is a one time deal." Alfred frowned. "This tends to lose its charm after the 23rd time around."
He left. Felicity grabbed at the plate of pancakes. taking a bite, she let out a happy moan. Bruce raised an eyebrow. "Wasn't expecting to hear that noise from you again any time soon." Felicity frowned as she chewed.
"I have a knife." She warned, waving it in his direction. Bruce shook his head.
"Yes, I'm sure I'm completely helpless against a tiny injured woman with a dull piece of cutlery." He deadpanned. "This is my end."
Felicity leaned back, looking at him. "Don't make me laugh, I'm trying not to like you."
"That's not an incentive for me to stop." He said.
Felicity frowned. "What's your end goal here?"
"Stealing one of your pancakes." He reached for the plate but Felicity smacked his hand away.
"I'm being serious." She frowned.
"So am I." He said. "Alfred's cooking is amazing. It's why I keep him around despite the fact that he's insubordinate."
Felicity shifted and winced as pain lanced through her shoulder. Bruce's amused expression faltered. "Let me see." He demanded. Felicity raised an eyebrow at the tone. He sighed and gritted his teeth. "Please?"
She put the tray aside and slowly turned so her back was to him. Lifting her t shirt, she frowned. When had she changed?
"You changed yourself." He mumbled, removing the gauze and inspecting the wound. "In that you walked in, took off your clothes and collapsed. I found you pajamas and put them on."
"Oh god." Felicity groaned, her face burning in embarrassment.
"Nothing I haven't seen before." Bruce smirked as Felicity glared at him over her shoulder. He ran his fingers around her stitches. "It looks okay, but you'll have to disinfect and change the gauze twice a day." He let out a shaky breath. "You'll be okay." He sounded relieved. He put a fresh piece of gauze on her back. Felicity pulled her shirt back down.
"Thanks for sewing me up." She said, turning to look at him. He wasn't looking at her, a distant expression on his face. She frowned. "Bruce?" He looked at her, giving a small smile.
"I'd say anytime, but I really hope that I won't have to again." He got up, moving away from her, rubbing his forehead. "Do you go out into the field often?"
"Sometimes." She admitted.
"And I'm supposing you don't have any formal training." He frowned, speaking more to himself rather than her. "Well that stops now. If you're going to be in the field, I can't be worried about you getting yourself hurt again."
Felicity felt her jaw drop. "Excuse me?"
"Another event like last night would be unacceptable and since I'm guessing you're too stubborn to listen to reason, I'll have to train you myself." He didn't seem happy about it.
Felicity got up and glared at him. "Listen to reason?" She hissed. "If training me is such a chore, then don't bother. I've done fine without you."
"Oh really?" Bruce shot back.
"Yes." She walked over stopping about a foot away from him. Putting her hands on her hips she glared up at him. "I've managed to go 3 whole years without getting myself killed, without you. In fact, the first time I got shot was last night and it was because I was protecting you." She poked him in the chest.
Bruce scoffed. "The Dodger? The Dollmaker? The Count? And those are just the names I've been able to uncover in the last few hours. Queen let you go out into the field without any formal training."
"I had backup."
"That's not enough." Bruce growled.
"Digg's been giving me defense training."
"Oh, so once a week, he has you throw a punch and that's sufficient?" Bruce shook his head.
"What do you care?" Felicity asked, he didn't have the right to show up after 3 years and try to police how she lived her life.
"The reason I didn't bring you to Gotham was because I wanted you to be safe." His eyes flashed. "It was a mistake, I should have let you know from the beginning and I-"
"Are you saying that because you believe ot, or because you're angry that I began working with Oliver?" Felicity snapped. Bruce looked away, his fists clenched.
"It might be a bit of both." He shut his eyes. "But I do regret not telling you earlier." He swallowed. "Seeing you fall after that gunshot..." His eyes closed. "It's not easy for me to admit that I'm wrong, but that...that showed me my terrible mistake."
Because of his parents. The realization hit her like a ton of bricks. She' d run a background check on Bruce, wanting to get a feel for the type of man he was. Of course he'd be upset that she'd thrown herself in the path of a bullet for him.
"I'm..." She didn't know what to say.
"I know you must be furious with me, and you have every right to be so how about I make a deal with you; I'm staying in Starling until we deal with Deathstroke. At the end of that time, if you want it, I'll have divorce papers drawn up. I'll also have a job for you at Wayne Enterprises. I couldn't get your old job back from Moira, but to be honest, is giving Oliver Queen coffee really an effective use of your skills?"
Felicity frowned. "I can't just leave here." She said. "My team..." She trailed off, the words 'needs me' stuck in her throat. Did they? Oliver was probably furious and now that Sara was there and with the destruction of the lair computers...did they?
Bruce pressed his lips together. There was something that was bothering her. "Do you want to stay married to me?" She asked. He nodded. "Why?"
"I'm not sure." He admitted. Felicity moved away from him.
"And that's what scares me." She said. "You decided you didn't want to deal with me, so you kept me in the dark for 3 years. What if, tomorrow, you decide that this isn't something that interests you and you leave?"
Bruce exhaled and shook his head. "I guess all we can do is get to know each other." His expression changed to one of amusement. "We're already part of the way there."
"Oh?" Felicity frowned.
"You trust me." He smirked. Felicity's face burned as the memory of her declaration in the Arrow Cave came back to her.
"I don't think you can hold a declaration made under the influence of painkillers against me." She frowned. "Although apparently a decision made 3 years ago under the influence of champagne can screw my entire career."
"Ah yes." Bruce said testily. "Lord knows there's a lot of upward mobility in being Oliver Queen's office decoration."
"That's not what I do." Felicity snapped.
"It doesn't matter what you actually do." Bruce retorted. "It's what people believe that determines your future. Queen screwed you when he made you his secretary. Face it, Felicity; the only company that's going to touch you now is Wayne Enterprises and that's because I'm its CEO."
"Because you got me fired."
Bruce stepped back, an arrogant look on his face and his pose relaxed. He clearly thought he was right. She grit her teeth, resisting the urge to slap him. "So tell me, what was Oliver's plan for you being his EA? Was there an end date to the position? If I hadn't shown up, what would have been your next job?"
Felicity opened her mouth, but no sound came out. He was right. Glaring at him, she shook her head. "You know, you'd scored some points for Alfred being awesome, but those are gone now." She turned, shuffling back to the bed.
"So we're in agreement."
Felicity gaped at him. Was he part of the same conversation? "When the hell did we agree on anything?"
"That at the end of dealing with Deathstroke, you get to choose how we proceed."
"Might as well print out the divorce papers now." Felicity snapped. "Because I get the feeling you're going to need them. And since you broke in, I assume you'll have no problem showing yourself out."
Bruce crossed his arms. "What are you planning on doing today?"
"I'm going to talk to Oliver." She said, opening her closet.
"Not right now, you're not." Bruce moved, putting a hand to the closet door and shutting it.
"Excuse me?"
"He's at work, amazingly, and going to QC really isn't in your best interest." Bruce growled. "You can go to the Arrow base later..." His phone rang. Looking down at the screen, he cursed. "It's Moira." He muttered. Schooling his expression he answered. "Hello?" His voice was light and pleasant. No one could have guessed that 3 seconds earlier he'd been acting like an over protective jackass. Felicity stepped forward, curious as to what Moira was saying. Bruce raised an eyebrow, but put the phone on speaker, a finger on his lips indicating she should be quiet. She nodded.
"Bruce, I did some checking into your request and I think I might be able to do something for you." Moira's voice sounded...nice. It was eerie and Felicity shivered in response. "I was wondering, are you busy tonight? It would be so nice to catch up and after bargaining with Isabel Rochev..." She sighed. "I just hope all my work wasn't for nothing."
Felicity felt sick as she realized that Moira was playing Bruce. Bruce gave her a reassuring smirk. "I was actually planning on having dinner with my wife." He paused. "But I suppose I can bring her along-"
Felicity made slicing motions across her neck. "no." She mouthed.
Moira sighed. "If that's the only way to see you, then I suppose Ms. Smoak is welcome to join." Felicity felt her heart sink. If Moira wanted her there...she didn't even want to contemplate why that might be.
"Excellent." Bruce said, "what time should we be there?"
"8" Moira said.
"We'll be there." He hung up. Felicity smacked his arm.
"No we will not." She hissed.
"Keep your friends close, but-"
"Don't give me that." She hissed. "You didn't even think to consult me."
"I didn't think she'd go for it." He said, clearly annoyed. "I miscalculated."
"Oh." Felicity scoffed. "You miscalculated. It's almost as though people weren't perfect equations that you could solve." She turned. "I'm going to take a shower. When I come back out, you better be gone."
Bruce sighed. "Felicity."
"GONE."
He sighed. "Fine. Just...make sure you're careful with your stitches." He turned. "I'm picking you up at 7:30. Wear something nice." He turned around. Felicity couldn't believe his audacity.
"I'll be wearing sweatpants and eating pizza on the couch." She shouted after his retreating back.