Harley stood before the mirror in her apartment, looking at the outfit she wore and wondering if she should choose something different. The bed was littered with the other choices she'd already tried and rejected.

Her minidress was a vivid shade of bright red, matching her new stilettos perfectly. The dress narrowed at the top before connecting with the circular collar around the base of her throat. Both arms, shoulders, and most of her back were covered in sheer black mesh. Her legs were sheathed in black tights, and they were only visible because the red silk of the dress stopped halfway to the knee and the rest of the full length skirt was composed of the same sheer black mesh as the sleeves. The collar, the cuffs of the sleeves, and the bottom hem of the sheer skirt were trimmed in an inch of black silk and adorned with a straight line of red silk diamonds.

Glancing at the clock, she realized she'd be late if she didn't hurry. She grabbed a coat and threw it on over what she was wearing as the evening hours of Gotham tended to be cold even when it wasn't raining.

She exited the building and went around to the parking garage. Rather than use her motorcycle, she'd rented a luxury car as she didn't think she could convince Bruce to ride in the sidecar. The car she'd picked out from the rental agency was shiny black with a plush red interior. It started up when she keyed the ignition, putting the vehicle in gear and heading out of the parking garage toward Wayne Manor.

Bruce had offered to pick her up for their first dinner date, but since Harley had made all the arrangements and wanted to keep them a surprise, she insisted on picking him up at his place.

Trying to reach Wayne Manor proved to be an extra challenge as a barricade of reporters waited outside the main gate in the hopes of catching sight of Bruce Wayne. She'd known the reporters would be swarming over Bruce, his home, and his workplace after her announcement, but the numbers in front of her car were unbelievable. Harley thought it looked as if every reporter in Gotham had showed up.

The horn honked loudly as Harley pressed down on it with her fist. The mass of reporters parted, but because of the size of the crowd, the ones in front of her car couldn't get out of the way until those around them moved aside. Her progress toward the front gate was incredibly slow, punctuated by flashes of cameras that blinded her and forced her to drive even slower to prevent accidentally running over any of the reporters and photographers she couldn't see.

Harley stopped at the gate and started to reach for the call button out the driver's side window when the black iron partition slid aide and allowed her entry. She drove through quickly, and the gate shut behind her. Since Wayne had a reputation for being a very charitable donor to the Gotham Police department, none of the reporters or photographers wanted to risk a trespassing charge, so they remained outside the fence.

"Good evening, Miss Quinn," Alfred greeted as he opened her door moments after she parked in front of the massive building. "We've been watching for you."

"Hey, Alfred," Harley responded. She turned off the engine and removed the keys. Plucking a wrapped box from the passenger seat, she handed it to the butler. "Since I want to drive Bruce tonight, I thought I'd get ya something."

"This is most unexpected," Alfred said in surprise.

"It's a book I thought you might like," Harley told him.

"Thank you," Alfred accepted, taking the gift from Harley. "Master Bruce is waiting inside."

Harley skipped to the front door but waited for Alfred to catch up and open it for her.

"Yoo-hoo!" Harley called out, her voice echoing through the cavernous manor.

Bruce appeared at the top of the stairs, hurrying down from the second floor while adjusting the cufflink on the right sleeve of his royal blue dress shirt. The color of his shirt seemed to be intensified by the dark navy of his suit. His blue tie was striped diagonally with flashing gold.

"I'm sorry you had to deal with those reporters," Bruce apologized. "They've been camped out there ever since our little announcement."

"Doesn't bother me," Harley assured him. "I'm used to being surrounded by crazies."

Bruce smiled. "Are you sure you don't want to tell me where we're going for dinner tonight?"

"And spoil the surprise?" Harley asked. "Never."

"Very well," Bruce relented. "I'm in your hands."

Harley thought longingly about how much she wanted him to be in her hands. She let loose an energetic smile for she knew he would be soon enough.

Bruce offered Harley his arm, which she graciously and eagerly accepted, and the two strolled out the door to her waiting car. He held the driver's door open for her, allowing Harley to climb in behind the wheel before he shut the door and came around and got in beside her.

In the close confines of the car, she could smell the light fragrance of his aftershave. She was half tempted to skip their dinner plans, move over to his side of the car, and smother him with kisses. Before she considered the distracting thoughts further, she started the car and drove away from the house.

Harley had put serious, relatively speaking, effort into tonight's plans, and she didn't want them skipped or ignored simply because she'd been unable to resist temptation.

The reporters were still waiting outside the gate as it opened to let Bruce and Harley drive out. While waiting for the gate to slowly move aside, Harley decided to give the photographers something good. Reaching over, she put an arm around Bruce's shoulders and pulled him into a passionate kiss. She could barely keep from laughing as a lightning storm of camera flashes went off.

The gate opened far enough, and Harley let go of Bruce to drive off the property, waving at the reporters in passing.

"Was that necessary?" Bruce asked.

"Maybe not," Harley admitted with a mischievous grin. "But, it was fun."

Bruce rubbed the side of his index finger above his upper lip absently. Although he tried to be casual, Harley watched him out of the corner of her eye and noticed the smile he was trying to hide. Despite his dating her only for the sake of his cover, she knew he was enjoying their time together. Harley could barely wait until he saw what else she had waiting for him.

A few reporters and photographers tried to follow in their own vehicles, but Harley didn't care because she'd already made plans to deal with them.

***

After a lengthy drive across town, Harley pulled past the parking lot of a restaurant called The Flaming Grill and entered a private garage around back. The door closed behind her rental car, blocking the reporters from following any further.

"This way," Harley said eagerly as she bounded out of the car and toward the elevator. "You're going to love this."

Bruce kept pace with her and allowed himself to be escorted from the garage. The elevator swiftly propelled them upward to their desired floor after Harley pressed the button. When the doors parted, Bruce got a grand view of the restaurant.

The tables, chairs, and all the wood trim were done in glossy black. The carpets, tablecloths, and seat cushions were in vibrant red. Crystal and polished silver gleamed from the one decorated table in the center of the spacious room.

"We seem to be the only one's here," Bruce observed.

"I thought you might prefer a little privacy for this date, so I bought the place out," Harley explained sheepishly, folding her hands behind her.

"It must have been expensive to reserve every table in here," Bruce responded.

"When I said I bought the place out, I didn't mean reserved seats," Harley corrected. "I own this place now. My security people outside will keep the reporters at bay."

Bruce turned to stare at her. "You bought the whole place just for our date?"

"Yep," Harley confirmed with a wide smile. "While I was watching you, I noticed you came here more than any other place in Gotham, so I thought I'd pick it up and it could be our place."

Harley was concerned he might take offense at her stalking him to acquire information as to his choice of dinner locales, but his smile put her fears to rest.

"That's very thoughtful," Bruce complimented. "It's a considerable expense just for the possibility of what might happen between us. You don't even know how this date will turn out."

"I'm not worried," Harley said, beaming with confidence. She unbuttoned her jacket and slid out of it, revealing the red silk and black sheer dress she wore underneath. Harley watched carefully for Bruce's reaction, and it was magical.

Bruce's jaw dropped, his mouth hanging open for a second before he regained his composure. Harley saw him swallow hard as he tried to maintain his cool facade, but she could tell he liked what he saw. Her heartbeat raced loud and fast in her ears and laughter echoed through her mind.

She gestured toward the decorated table. "Shall we?"

Bruce stepped over and pulled out a chair for her to sit down. She slid into the padded seat, and Bruce took the chair opposite her.

"Harley," Bruce began, his voice hesitant.

She could hear the steel shutters starting to close in his mind, cutting him off from her.

"Shhh," Harley ordered. "I had enough analysis back at Arkham. Stop trying to reason this out. There are no pros and cons to weigh, no angles to consider, and no mental shields in need of raising. This is just you and me, having a little fun, and seeing where it goes."

She knew exactly where their relationship was headed, she just needed Bruce to be willing to make the journey.

Harley picked up the slender champagne glass by her plate and held it up, slightly angled toward him. Bruce mimicked her actions with his own glass.

"To possibilities," she said.

Bruce hesitated a moment before he smiled and clinked his glass against hers.

Harley almost choked swallowing the champagne as she was so excited by this moment, the first of many she would spend with her soulmate.