Acknowledgments: With gratitude to sxymami0909 for the beta.
Epilogue
Wayne Manor, Nine years later
"Wow Ollie! Don't you look the rogue," Chloe teased with a laugh.
Oliver fingered his beard and jutted out his chin. "I thought of shaving it off, but the ladies seem to fancy it, so I thought I'd hang onto it for awhile."
"Well come in, I mean the house is a bit chaotic at the moment. Bruce is away and the boys tend to get a bit stir crazy indoors." She waved him in and Oliver had to side step a skate board just inside the door. Chloe closed the door once he was inside the foyer. "I usually take them out, but I'm babysitting at the moment."
Oliver suppressed a laugh. "Your own brood isn't enough?"
He'd heard that Chloe and Bruce had adopted two boys. The mother of the youngest had turned out to be a mild psychopath with designs on Bruce. When he didn't succumb to her advances, she'd programmed the supply of a gas plant that supplied all of Gotham to overload. Gas lines had sprung wide spread leaks and resulting explosions had caused many casualties. People had died from methane poisoning or freak fires. The woman had been jailed, serving concurrent life sentences for her crimes. Her son, with no living relatives, had been set to become a ward of the state. Bruce and Chloe had adopted him. At six years old, Damian, had been a handful at first, resentful and bitter. However, under the loving attention of Alfred and Chloe, with the diligent mentoring of both Tim and Bruce, a bright, resourceful and appreciative young soul had emerged.
Bruce had run into Tim a few years back in the Narrows. His father had been a washed up fighter who was rarely sober and neglected his boy, leaving him to find his own meals and clothing. Tim had practically raised himself. After his father ran up debts that he couldn't repay, thugs had come to collect and killed him. With no way to pay rent, Tim lived on the streets. A run in with Batman led him to figuring out Bruce's alter-ego and a partnership was born. Tim had been reading about Batman and Nightwing fighting crime on the streets of Gotham for years. Living with Bruce and Chloe was a dream come true for him. There was never a more eager, intelligent or pleasant orphan. Okay, so there was Annie but was she even real?
Oliver pushed his hands into his pockets and thought about how to answer Chloe. It was the second time he'd just dropped in on her life without warning. She and Bruce were the only ones he felt he'd be welcomed by. He'd been on the road with Hal for years after Olivia died and after Carol had tried to kill Hal for the third time.
They'd traveled the globe fighting crime and giving power back to the oppressed. After eight years they'd finally decided to called it a day. Hal was going to Oa. He was ready for another assignment. Losing Carol to the Star Sapphire, he struggled to reach her, to remind her of who she was but it was no use. The crystal persona had complete control and all it wanted was his death.
Both of them found it difficult to come to terms with their loss, and so they had taken to roaming, never settling for long in one place, always serving justice. Hal had used the ring sparingly over the years, as a result he'd only needed to return to the source twice. He used good old fashion muscle, brains and service training to get him through most of the time.
Oliver wondered what it would have been like if he'd stayed. He'd tried for awhile to bond with Connor. They'd tried to make it work as a family for a year. He'd taken Connor to Ashram Monastery. After Olivia died, Connor had retreated into himself, started acting out at school, starting fights, arguing with the teachers. Oliver realized that he wasn't going to be able to help him through it when he wasn't dealing with his own grief very well. He'd gone to Ashram once for solace. He thought maybe he could find it there again. So they'd stayed together. Oliver taught him archery and learned a little of the boy's history.
Of how he'd come to know Olivia and what Connor's life was like growing up with his mother, Sandra. But after a year, Oliver grew restless and when he couldn't stand the boy's questioning eyes any longer he left. He was a coward. He realized that. The kid only asked because he missed her too. If fact, he'd stopped asking after awhile because he was a smart kid, Connor knew Oliver wouldn't keep turning him down. He knew the silence meant not to ask, so he stopped. But it didn't stop the lingering glances. It didn't stop Connor from pulling out those family pictures of his and inadvertently torturing Oliver with them.
Chloe chewed her lip and squeezed the little hand she was holding. Smiling down at the toddler fondly, she ruffled her hair. Oliver followed her gaze and found himself stunned into silence. The girl was very petite, with large, moist blue eyes, a small button-like nose and chubby rosy cheeks. She looked about two-years-old. He couldn't be sure. He didn't spend a lot of time around kids. She was standing on her own and she looked thoughtful. He doubted babies could look like that. Something inside him hurt just looking at her. She looked so much like a face he remembered. Her eyes especially. So much like eyes that haunted his dreams.
"Gabriella, this is Oliver. He's a friend of mine. How 'bout we invite him to lunch, huh?"
"Lunch," Gabriella agreed with a nod of approval. Letting go of Chloe's hand she scampered off head along in the direction of the kitchen.
Chloe clapped her hands together and squeezed them. "So how have you been?" she asked, in a tone that implied she was trying to make pleasant conversation.
Oliver shrugged and followed her as they made their way down the hallway. Gabriella. The kid shared his mother's name. Chloe couldn't have known that though. Nobody knew his mother's full name. She never used it. Laura Gabriella Rogers-Queen. He half smiled at the memory.
"Been better. Thought it was high time I get my act together. Not getting any younger and I realized that I didn't have to be a loner if I didn't want to be. Don't want to die alone in the bush someplace and not have anyone remember me."
Chloe touched his arm. "We're always here for you Oliver. You never gave us a chance to help you."
Oliver ground his jaw together and shied away from her touch. "I know," he said gruffly.
"I just wish she had of told me, you know? We could have had more time..."
Chloe let out a shaky breath and stiffened, unable to meet his eyes for a moment. "You haven't spoken to anyone yet have you?"
"Auntie Coiee," came a shrill little cry.
Chloe jumped into action, running to the kitchen. Flinging the door open, she saw Gabriella leaving over the kitchen counter, precariously balanced on the edge of the bar stool while she tried reaching for the bread in the cupboard.
"Ella!" Chloe cried sweeping her into her arms before the little girl could topple. "You could have fallen. Do you want to give me a heart attack?"
Oliver tried not to laugh at the sight of Chloe mildly hyperventilating. "You're a real seasoned carer."
"Shut up," Chloe said with a scowl, narrowing her eyes at Oliver.
"Not nice," Gabriella said folding her arms and looking up at Chloe with a frown.
Chloe huffed and glared at Oliver again. "Sorry, Ella, but he wasn't being very nice to me."
She sat the little girl at the island counter, and picked up the chair from where Gabriella had moved it and put it back in its place. Chloe set about getting the ingredients to make sandwiches and put them down on the counter top.
"If I remember, you make pretty good salad sandwiches. The meat's in the fridge. You can do this while I round up the troops."
She didn't wait around to hear him argue, she turned and stalked out of the kitchen.
Oliver shook his head at the flipping kitchen door and sighed. "Okay, squirt, what do you want on yours?"
"Hahnut and jelly," she said her eyes widening with glee.
Oliver's eyes bugged and he gripped the butter knife tighter. Chloe had left him with a two-year-old that was already plotting to kill him. "Ah, I can't make that one for you. If you want that one, you'll have to wait for Chloe to come back."
"Please," she said cocking her head to the side and batting her eyelids, while giving him a toothy smile.
Oliver choked. Did a two-year-old just try to sweet talk him? He had to be asleep. Toddlers weren't capable of manipulation were they? He narrowed his eyes at her. "How old are you?"
"Near-ny two," she said proudly, before looking down at her hand to selecting two fingers to show him. "Dis many."
Oliver laughed, she looked so cute doing her best to keep the other fingers down while she showed him just two fingers. Before he could stop her, she'd climbed onto the counter top and was stroking his beard. She laughed, her eyes almost closing as she giggled. She pulled her hand back to her chest.
"Tickle," she said smiling widely.
"Ah Miss Gabriella, you've made a new friend I see," Alfred said warmly.
The old man appeared behind them from inside the Butler's Pantry. He must have come in from the garage. He leaned heaving on his cane and had a trolley full of groceries behind him.
"Need any help, Alfred?" Oliver knew from prior experience that unwanted help could be offensive to people who prided themselves on being capable and efficient.
Alfred shook his head and smiled. "It's very good to see you Master Oliver. We've missed you around here."
Oliver snorted. "Doubt that. Bruce would never admit to missing anyone and Chloe... Well Chloe's too nice for her own good."
Alfred nodded and went to wash his hands. Tying on an apron, he dried his hands. "Well little miss, I believe you'd like hazelnut spread and jam, is that right?"
"Nut butter," the little raven haired head bobbed excitedly.
"I thought she said peanut," Oliver scratched his neck. It was kind of hard to interpret a husky, sometimes clipped-kiddy voice.
Alfred smiled. "She has a mild allergy to peanuts, but she can have most other nuts. Her mother is very strict about a wholesome vegetarian diet so we stock everything she can eat in abundance. We're a peanut free zone here."
Oliver watched as Alfred spread the bread with a gooey, oily substance followed by a thin paste of apricot jelly. The sandwich was cut and placed on a plate in front of the child who folded her hands and closed her eyes.
"Thank oo, Jesus. Amen." Grace said, she promptly took a large bite out of her bread and gave them both a crumb and jelly encrusted grin. "Yum. Thank oo, Uncle."
Alfred blushed and wiped his hands on his aprons. "You're welcome, little miss."
The back door flung open and a red faced Tim came stomping in. His right cheek was splotching and his shirt was covered in grass stains.
"It was an accident," came a yell from outside.
Chloe and Damian appeared soon after and Chloe stood with her hands on her hips. "Apologize to Tim and go and get him an ice pack."
"Sorry, Tim," Damian mumbled before stalking toward the walk in refrigerator. Yanking it open, he disappeared inside the frosty mist and reappeared a moment later with an ice pack.
Alfred passed him a dish towel and Damian wrapped it before offering it to Tim.
"Thanks," Tim said gruffly, packing the towel to the side of his face. He winced at the contact.
"It really was an accident," Damian wailed.
Chloe rolled her eyes and moved past both boys. "What happened to the sandwiches?" she asked Oliver pointedly.
Oliver shrugged and gestured at Gabriella who was happily munching away. "I was working on it."
Chloe couldn't resist smiling. "You've known her five minutes and she's already got you right where she wants you."
Oliver leaned back against the stove. "So what's the relation? She's not Lois' is she? Although it would explain how she's got the flirting down already."
Chloe smacked him on the arm. "She's twenty-three-months-old. She doesn't flirt... she..." She glanced at Gabriella and stopped talking as she noticed that the little girl had stopped eating and was listening intently to their conversation.
Damian took a large bit of the sandwich Alfred had presented him with and said while chewing, "She manipulates. Don't know what's worse, her doe-eyed pout or that kid in her day care that screams like a banshee when she doesn't get her way."
"Screaming, definitely," Tim argued, cringing at the audible memory.
Oliver folded his arms and stared at the child, he could sense Chloe shifting uncomfortably less than three feet away. Suddenly she took his arm and led him out of the kitchen.
His eyes were still fixed on the kitchen door, when he felt Chloe tugging on his jacket.
"Oliver? Hey?"
Oliver looked down at her wide moss green eyes. There was a time when he'd have thought her incapable of hurting anyone, but he was beginning to suspect she was about to gut him.
"Who's her mother?" he asked, barely able to control the agitation in his voice. Some invisible force was crushing him. The kid was intelligent, like possibly the next MENSA prodigy brain, she had dark hair, curly, just like someone he known before, and those eyes. Those keen, innocent, expressive blue eyes there was only one other person that he'd ever met with eyes like that.
"Olivia. Olivia King is her mother."
"Was," Oliver hissed savagely, although the statement made no sense at all he didn't know why it stirred something so violent inside him. How could a dead woman have a daughter less than two years old?
"Think about it Oliver. She's not even two. You watched Olivia die nine years ago."
"Exactly, I watched her die. I shocked her about five times to get her to come back. I begged you to save her," he ground out angrily. Bruce never let him forget that. "In the end I had to let her go."
There was a reason that Chloe, Bruce and Hal were among the few he still spoke to. He felt nobody else understood what he went through. If anyone had stepped up and staged an intervention sooner, if any one of them had thought to tell him what was going on before, they might have been able to save her. Richard, Hannah, Bart, Emil, even J'onn. None of them had wanted to act against her wishes. Olivia had been as good as mentally incapacitated, none of them had that excuse. If they'd cared about how it effected Connor and himself, they would have said something.
"Oliver, she's alive. Has been for the last two and a half years," Chloe explained in a quiet resigned voice.
Oliver staggered back, staring at her. There was no way. He would have heard, someone would have told him. Her parents. He shook his head recalling that Olivia's parents had died a few years ago. A boating accident. They'd gotten caught in a storm. "Nobody told me."
"She came out of stasis. It was a surprise to everyone. The JLA keep watch for activity on the old Moon base. It's the only relic out there that's still a secret. There was an energy spike in one of the laboratories. Turns out J'onn had brought her there and put her in one of the medical stasis pods. Stole her body from the morgue before she was cremated. Kept it a secret for all these years. He knew the technology existed and after she died, he couldn't let her go. He was convinced she wasn't dead, that he could still sense her but he believed there was no sense in sharing his feelings when he felt he could trust his judgment. He hadn't been around anyone who's mind was so much like his own. He feared that he was taking her death to personally. That maybe what he was doing was the act of a desperate man. He theorized that perhaps her body had just gone into hibernation like the Martian or Kryptonian physiology does when one sustains serious injury. The metabolism slows right down, the body mimics death. The heart beat is so slow and faint a machine wouldn't detect it. Dr. Mid-Nite said that if J'onn hadn't put her in stasis, without the proper medical care, she would have died for real. Olivia's told me that her mother also suffered from a year long coma before she was born. Her body making radical changes to her genetics for some kind of experiment she trialed which caused the coma."
Oliver ran a hand through his unkempt shaggy hair. "So she's alive. And Gabriella?" his voice broke.
What he was hearing was so unreal. Like something out of a sci-fi film. They'd scattered ashes that weren't hers? J'onn had kept her hidden all these years, never said a word. He'd tried filling the void left in his heart with work, he'd even taken a chance on love again, trying to rekindle an old flame after he'd returned from Ashram. But he and Dinah had just ended up at each others throats again.
They'd divorced after only six volatile months together. It wasn't all thorns. There had been some good times but for all the highs, the lows were just as bitter. He knew a large part of it was his fault. Nobody could live up to his memory of her. No matter how much he wanted the pain to end, it was something his soul and his body just couldn't seem to shake.
Chloe knew what he was asking even though he'd stopped short of saying it aloud. "She doesn't talk about him. We weren't there for any of that. If it weren't for my mother, I doubt I would have learned Olivia was alive. She keeps to herself."
Oliver stopped pacing and whirled on her. "Your mother. She's out of her catatonia? The doctors finally had a break through?"
Chloe shook her head, her eyes shining at the thought of her now lucid, happy and healthy mother. "Not exactly. Olivia explained to the doctors about a unique technology that could remove greenK poisoning. That being said not only is the operation risky with odds mostly on the side of death, Olivia's blood has healing properties. Since my abilities changed a few years back, Olivia knew I couldn't heal mom, even with the meteor infection removed. So she tried her own treatment. It worked. It was the best Christmas present I've ever received in my life. Of course you can't keep gratitude like a secret. My mother spilled the news the second we were both capable of speech again. All she had to do was say Olivia's name and Bruce and I tracked her down within the week."
"So where is she?" Oliver demanded.
"She's in Keystone at the moment. Visiting a mutual friend."
"So she's with Bart." Oliver rubbed his temples. He didn't think his headache could get any worse.
Chloe touched his arm at the bitterness in his voice. "Not like that. They're friends. He was as angry as you are about all this when he found out. But he got over it. He's one of the few old friends she still has. Obviously her regular friends would never understand the metahuman craziness. A lot of them grieved and moved on a long time ago. She's made a new life for herself."
"What about Connor?" Oliver said. His head hurt, hell his whole body felt like one massive bruise. His son thought of Olivia like a second mom. Olivia had even become his legal parent before she died.
"Connor was the one who found her. They threw him an early surprise 21st on Watchtower, since he was going away for awhile to train with Dick. He was there when Kyle picked up the energy spike. He didn't talk to anyone for days while she was still unconscious in medbay. When she woke up, he was just beside himself that she was alive, he didn't care about anything else."
"At least they have each other," Oliver said bluntly, shaking his head. They'd always been really close. Even before Sandra died, he noticed that Connor treated Olivia was more like a best friend than a parental figure. He clenched his fists to his sides. Biologically, Connor wasn't her son. In age, they were only about sixteen years apart. And considering she'd spent at least six of the last nine years in stasis while he got older, there'd be even less obvious discrepancies between them now.
Chloe snorted and clamped her hand over her mouth, her eyes widening. "Oh. No way. Just ewww! Oliver!" Chloe closed her eyes and shook her head vigorously.
"What!" he huffed, annoyed at her antics.
"Connor's her son. Not by birth but in every other way that counts. Oh gosh. You know, you always have been really dense when it comes to understanding relationships."
Oliver threw up his hands. "What am I supposed to think? Nobody tells me anything, and you're about as clear as mud."
Chloe folded her hands across her chest. "Don't blame us. You're the one who decided to cut off communications with everyone and rough your way through the wild."
Oliver deflated and stooped a little. She had a point. He'd chosen to be kept out of the loop. He hadn't wanted them tracking him or to hear any of their concerns. Most of all, he hadn't wanted any responsibility. If he wasn't in the know, then he couldn't be held accountable.
The door bell rang and Chloe squared her shoulders. "I have to get that before Alfred hears it and tries to beat me there."
Oliver followed her at a distance. Chloe opened the door and he watched her stiffen in surprise before she stepped out and pulled the door closed.
...
Chloe pushed the hair out of her eyes that the wind blew about her face. Her eyes darted between her friends' smiling faces.
"Surprise, 'Licious. Miss me yet?"
Olivia wasn't due back until Thursday. They'd obviously decided to move their reunion party to her doorstep. Chloe pulled her sweater tighter over her chest. "He's here," she said to Olivia. "Oliver's here."
The smile dropped from Olivia's face and she paled. "He's seen Ella then." Her gaze darted to Bart. "I don't think I can do this. Not yet."
Bart touched her arm. "Then when, Liv? When will you tell him? When she's fourteen, like Connor was when he wanted answers?"
Olivia shivered and hugged herself. Bart squeezed her upper arms and he kissed her forehead.
"You're gonna run aren't you?" she said accusingly.
"I like my body just the way it is thank you very much. Boss man's always been a hot head. Can't imagine that's changed," Bart said with a shrug. "Self preservation."
"Wimp," Olivia teased lightly.
Bart squeezed her hand. "Call me later. I can flash back here if you need reinforcements."
Olivia chuckled once and pushed him lightly on the chest. "Go on, get, before I lie and tell him Gabriella's yours."
Bart's eyes widened and he shook his head, while holding his hands up in surrender. "You wouldn't. You like having me around too much."
"Go," Olivia repeated threateningly. Bart saluted once and vanished.
...
Oliver watched them from the window. So it was the same between them. Nothing had changed for them. They were still firm friends. It was as though time had frozen for them, neither of them had aged. Bart's metabolism, unique physiology and constant energy bursts made him age slower than the rest of them, while Olivia's body had been at a stand-still for half a decade. Olivia turned to face the house when Bart left and his breath caught at her flawless face. She hadn't aged a day from how he remembered her. He wasn't remembering how she'd looked in the lab with all the wires and machines. He was remembering her party and the night they'd spent together before she'd disappeared from his life, in which he thought was forever. Her long inky curls rode the wind, her nose was pink from the cold and her lips were glossy, yet free for artificial color, naturally bluish red from being outdoors. Her large blue eyes caught his and widened. She looked nervous. So she should be, he thought angrily.
Olivia followed Chloe through the door. Shaking out her coat and taking off her thick woolen scarf, she searched for him, careening her neck. The weather was a almost frosty in Keystone at the moment. Gotham had, had a rare sunny cloudless autumn day but the air was still chilly. She spotted him standing just outside the foyer with one shoulder propped against the support column.
"Hey Ollie," she said warily.
Oliver nodded. "Did you even try to find me? Or were you planning on seeing my kid behind my back for ever?"
"Your kid?" Olivia nearly choked. She shot a look at Chloe and then back at Oliver.
"Yes, my kid. I might not be around much, but he's still my son."
Olivia released the breath that she hadn't realized she'd been holding and felt her heart skitter the teeniest bit in her chest. So he wasn't referring to Gabriella. Nobody knew her true heritage except Bart, and as usual, it wasn't because she'd wanted to tell him. Well, she was sure J'onn and Connor had a pretty fair idea too, but she kept Gabriella's father's identity a secret. If she couldn't tell Oliver, she didn't want anyone to know. "Connor doesn't live with us. He visits now and again. He has his own life. He keeps my parents house in Star City. It's what they wanted. It's what I wanted for him." She took off her gloves and wrung them in her hands.
"Mamma!" a small voice cried.
Olivia had about three seconds to drop to her knees to envelope the human projectile that launched at her. "Hey munchkin, have you been a good girl for Auntie Chloe?"
The little head bobbed, curls bouncing. "And Uncle Alfwed made me bread."
"I think he made you a sandwich, sweetie. Although I'm pretty sure he knows how to bake bread too," she said rubbing her chin affectionately, while winking at the girl.
Oliver looked at them both. There was no mistaking that she was a miniature version of Olivia. Looks and brains. It was the last gesture Olivia made before standing with the girl, that had his heart racing. She thumbed Gabriella's chin lightly, in a short caress. When her thumb left the girl's face he noticed the dimple. The small indentation in the little girl's chin. The same one that Connor had. The same one that he saw in the mirror every morning.
He stared at her accusingly. "How?" he bit out painfully. The how covered so many questions that he had right now. How could she keep this from him? If their roles were reversed, he would have scoured the earth to find her. But then maybe it was because he loved her, that he'd want her in their child's life that he wouldn't give up. His chest felt like it was crushing the oxygen out of his lungs. He forced his feet to move. How did this happen? They'd slept together more than nine years ago. Even DNA cryogenically frozen wasn't considered viable after that long. At least not that he'd heard of.
"Oliver, it's complicated. No one knew how to find you. Even Connor tried through Kyle. Hal didn't want to be found either. I would have told you. I wanted to tell you."
Chloe had a fair idea all along who Gabriella's father was. The genetic similarities. The obvious ones were too hard to ignore. Olivia wasn't devious and bubbly by nature and there was no significant other in Olivia's life, even now. Hearing Bart's comments only confirmed her belief that Gabriella was Oliver's. And she was as curious as to the how as he was.
"The stasis. I didn't know I was pregnant. It wasn't until the third weekly check up that Dr. Mid-Nite picked it up. I was early stages, the embryo development was barely a crawl while I was under. I woke up with no idea how I was even alive, let alone what I was going to do with a baby. This isn't all just on me. We weren't exactly careful the last time we were together."
Oliver clenched his jaw. No, they hadn't thought about protection and he'd taken her multiple times that night fearing that he wouldn't hold her that way again. Fearing she was intoxicated and that she'd regret it. Partly because he thought she'd come to her senses come daylight, and partly because now he wondered if he had sensed her fading even then. He wondered if instinctively he'd known she was dying. "You named her Gabriella," he said his voice breaking.
"Gabriella Hannah King. After our mothers."
Gabriella looked between them with expressive eyes. Oliver was only a step away from them now. His eyes wet with tears. She reached out with chubby fingers and pushed his hair back from his forehead. She thumbed wrinkles around his eyes and cocked her head to one side. She seemed to be studying him. Finally, she moved her hands to his beard and covered his mouth. Staring at him, she squinted at him once before turning in Olivia's arms and looking up at her. "Daddy?"
Olivia felt tears burn in her eyes. She nodded. "It's Daddy."
Gabriella look back at him. Her bottom lip trembled a little as she small hand dropped from his mouth. "Stay, Daddy."
Oliver looked at Olivia pleading with her silently. What was he supposed to do? He did the only thing he could think of that seemed appropriate. He touched her round cheek and kissed her hair. "I plan on it, Ella."
Gabriella put her little arms around his neck and held onto him. Olivia shifted her to his arms and he held the child awkwardly feeling his throat close over with emotion when he felt her warm small weight against his chest.
"We watch old DVDs and look at family albums all the time. She's known all along who you are. I think the hair and the beard threw her a bit."
"Where does she think I've been all this time?" Oliver asked over her head, she had nestled into his shoulder. Moist puffs of air caressed his neck and it took all his effort not to snuggled back. He didn't want to scare her and he wasn't sure what she'd be comfortable with. He had this insane urge to hold her tight and never let go.
"I told her Daddy went on a mission, and he got lost. We've been waiting for him to find his way home."
Oliver leaned closer and touched his forehead to hers, burying his fingers in her hair and cupping her neck. "I've missed you so much."
Her first thought was for Connor. How much of his life had Oliver missed, and how much was he continuing to miss by avoiding him but she wouldn't bring that up now. "She's two next month. And she's heard about you her whole life. Trust me, dirty diapers, sleepless nights, potty training, you haven't missed much. You'll be here for all the good stuff; like a hundred and one questions about the same thing, trying to come up with creative ways to present healthy food and get it ingested, curbing bad behavior, averting tantrums, you know all the fun stuff."
Oliver straightened and quirked an eyebrow. "She throws tantrums?"
"Don't look so surprised. Don't you remember how you were when you were little?"
Oliver winced and looked a bit sheepish. "I try not to. I was a punk kid."
Olivia smiled. "She's not bad at all. She's just a normal kid."
Chloe coughed. "Not so normal but definitely a bundle of joy. What'd do you say we check on Uncle Alfred, Ella. Make sure the boys are behaving themselves?"
Gabriella nodded but when she realized that Chloe meant to take her away from Oliver, she clung to his neck tighter. "No, stay Daddy."
Chloe and Olivia shared a look. Chloe patted his arm sympathetically. "Reminds me of the first time Olivia left her with us. She was only six months old then. Good luck with that."
"Daddy can't carry you all day," Olivia reasoned rubbing circles on Gabriella's back. "I think he won't mind holding your hand though. Remember how Mommy told you that you're getting too big to be carried now. We can do cuddles but no carrying, okay?"
Gabriella looked at her with big watery eyes and Oliver wondered how Olivia managed to look so unaffected by it.
"Put her down Ollie."
Oliver didn't really want to put her down. Honestly, he could carry her all day and not even break a sweat. His quiver weighed more but Olivia didn't fold at all under the baleful eyes of their daughter so he thought it best to follow suit. He set the little girl down and no sooner had her feet touched the ground did she grab his finger. She'd tried to grab his hand but her little hand didn't even span his palm. He closed his fingers around the rest of her fist and stared down at her.
Olivia gathered Gabriella's hair and twisted it into one ringlet down her back. "Would you like to play in the garden for awhile?"
Gabriella nodded and pulled Oliver in the direction of the french doors. "Swing!" she squealed gleefully.
Oliver shot her a pleading look that said help. Olivia smiled and waved him on. "I'm coming."
They spent the rest of the evening laughing and talking. Olivia doing most of the talking, Oliver merely listened. She told him about Gabriella's first few months. Feeling like a cow for the longest time, till Gabriella started eating solids and she finally felt like she had limited freedom, time for herself, to do things like go out with friends and volunteer again. She was taking a few refresher courses so she could practice medicine again now that Gabriella was older and could be left with a sitter for longer periods of time.
During dinner, Gabriella insisted on sitting between them and only ate whatever Oliver ate. Turning into a little mimic. The bedtime routine was also thrown, when Gabriella would only go for her bath if Oliver sat where she could see him through the doorway. Oliver also got to read a bedtime story for the first time in his life. Even though she seemed to know the story back to front and turned the page every time he reached the last word, Oliver couldn't help but smile as she gazed at him in rapped wonder until he finished.
"Goodnight Ella," Olivia said bending to kiss her daughter's head and smooth back her hair.
"Ni-nite, Mama," she said snuggling into her pillow playfully. "Night Daddy."
"Good night, Gabriella," Oliver managed.
Olivia switched off the lamp and inched the door closed, leaving it open just a fraction. They barely made it four feet down the corridor before they were halted in their progress.
"Water, Mama."
"Go to sleep, Ella," Olivia warned.
"Some water, pleeese?" Ella said in a pitiful voice.
"You've already had some. Go to sleep, Gabriella."
Oliver was already walking back to the door. "I can fill her cup if..."
Olivia grabbed his arm and fixed him with a stern look. "It's a game. A test of wills. You give in once, the next time, good luck trying to get her into bed without asking for everything twice. We're the parents, she's the child."
"Peeessee, Mama."
"No Ella. Go to sleep," Olivia said in a non-nonsense manner. She narrowed her eyes at Oliver warning him to stand his ground.
They waited. The little voice didn't ask again. Satisfied her daughter had probably rolled over and was resigning to sleep, Olivia turned and headed for the stairs.
Oliver followed and caught her arm, tugging her up the landing and leading her into the corridor. He backed her to the wall and planted his hands either side of her head. Looming over her, he studied her closely. "You're good at this mothering stuff."
Olivia blushed. "I learn fast remember? It was a lot of headaches and tears in the beginning. It was tough having to do it on my own but we managed."
Oliver closed his eyes and squeezed her shoulders. He kissed her temple and gathered her close.
Olivia didn't protest until he was holding her so tight it was getting difficult to breathe. "Ollie. I'm here. If you want us, we won't be going anywhere."
"Damn right you won't," he said, pulling back, his eyes flashing dangerously. "I'm not losing you again."
Olivia sighed and held her palm to his bearded cheek. She smiled softly. "I didn't want to leave you. At least in my heart I didn't. Sometimes there's no choice in the matter."
Oliver couldn't hold back any longer. All day, since the first moment he's seen her, it had been like sitting on a spring, keeping the urge to jump her at bay. He needed to feel her skin, he needed to kiss her, taste her, hold her against his body so that he could prove to himself that she was real. "I need you."
At the raw urgency in his voice, she shivered involuntarily and her body tightened in awareness, her nipples hardening and her core pulsing in anticipation.
Oliver pulled her against him, letting her feel how much he wanted her. His erection throbbing against his clothing, the warmth flaring across her abdomen. He inched his head down and captured her mouth in a rough kiss, forcing her lips open as he thrust his tongue into her mouth.
Olivia opened her mouth and took him in, sucking on his tongue hungrily, welcoming the taste of him. Something so familiar and unique that she'd never thought she'd feel or have again swept over her. Her nipples tightened almost painfully and she arched against him, rubbing her aching breasts against the rough fabric of his denim jacket.
Yanking up his shirt from his pants, she pushed her palms up along his stomach to his chest. She flicked her thumbs over his nipples and he groaned into her mouth before nipping at her bottom lip. He grinned wolfishly at her and cupped her bottom with both hands, hoisting her up.
Olivia smiled at him and peppered kisses over his face before biting down lightly on his earlobe. Wrapping her legs around his waist, he walked them down the hallway to one of the many guest rooms at Wayne Manor. She started attacking his buttons with fervor and he chuckled. "You don't know how long it's been for me. I hope you're not feeling tired," he teased with a wink.
Olivia smirked at him, her eyes twinkling. "Oh I think I'll keep up just fine."
A few hours later, they lay naked together on the bed. The blue moonlight casting an enchanting glow over them and the white linens a tangled mess between them. Olivia had her head on his chest, and one leg tucked between his. Oliver had one of her hands between his hand he was rubbing light patterns over it. He stopped over her ring finger and brought her hand to his lips.
"Marry, me," he whispered against her fingers.
Olivia propped herself up and studied his face. "Is that what you really want?" she asked. She knew Oliver could be impulsive, and she knew he wanted her. It was obvious in the way he was half hard against her leg. Three times already and he was raring to go again. But lust was a passing urge that could be satisfied in a lot of different ways and not necessarily by the same person. He loved her. He had before and by the way he was holding her now, the tender way he touched her skin, worshiping her like a goddess of some kind, the way his eyes were searching hers in the darkness, it was like her answer was his lifeline.
"You know what I am without you. Just going through the motions, living but not really breathing, seeing but not taking in anything. I couldn't let you go before. I just don't know how." He kissed her hand and held it against his heart.
It was thundering in his chest. He truly was afraid to lose her.
"No one lives forever Ollie. No matter how much I never want to put you through that again, I can't promise you anything," she said sadly her voice breaking. She leaned over and kissed his mouth with all the love she had for him. "But of course I'll marry you."
At her answer, Oliver smiled that roguish, charming, heart palpitating smile she knew so well.
"And I hope you don't mind, but I want to get working on baby number two. You've always wanted a big family too right?"
Olivia laughed loudly as he turned and settled himself till he was nestled between her legs. "You're insatiable. I thought I was horny being celibate for so long. You know you corrupted me all those years ago and being without it for this long nearly drove me crazy."
Oliver snorted in protest. "Woman, imagine how frustrated I felt when I thought someone else had you. Although whatever made me think anyone could sire a beautiful kid like Ella but me, crazy huh?"
"You're the king of green, that's why." Olivia slapped his arm, before she dragged his head down to kiss him again. She gasped with a silent oh against his mouth when he entered her slowly. She was already warm and slick from all their lovemaking and her body stretched around him, sheathing him completely. His heavy weight running the length of her, his taut well sculpted arms braced at her sides, never had she felt more content or blissful. He began to move inside her with long steady strokes. Over and over pushing deeper, hitting that spot past her womb that made her breasts tingle and her abdominal muscles flutter. In a matter of minutes he had her soaring again and one stroke against her clit and she was plummeting, falling with him. Sobbing his name into his neck as she trembled all over, her walls milking him, drawing his seed into her core.
Oliver rolled to his side holding her hip firmly, so that he stayed inside her. "So you never answered me, before. You do want more kids?"
Olivia brushed his damp hair back from his eyes. He needed a hair cut, his bangs were practically down around the bridge of his nose. She smiled and cocked her head regarding him thoughtfully. "I don't know, can you really afford us as it is?"
Oliver groaned at the reminder that he had never really worked at sorting out his lack of employment. He'd never settled down long enough to make something stick. "I'll work as a mechanic if I have to. Or maybe I could try public service? There's a lot of things I've seen over the years. Stuff I'd like to change about the way our government operates."
"Oliver Queen, Mayor of Star City. I don't know, it could work," Olivia teased with a thoughtful grin. "After all, if I was your campaign manager, how could you lose?"
"You'd really go back? I thought you wanted a new life. No doubt people would recognize you. Running for mayor would put us in the spotlight."
Olivia smiled and took his face between her hands. She kissed him thoroughly. "Someone with the right kind of access owed me a favor. On paper I'm, Olivia Quinn, second cousin once removed to Olivia Eimear King. My story will stand up to any background check or nosy reporters who cares to go digging. Mom's second cousin is a renown Irish playboy, he's probably sired a fifth of Ireland's generation Y. As for my appearance, I was thinking a change of hair style and maybe some specs. It works for someone else we know."
Oliver rolled his eyes at her insinuation at Clark's disguise. Nothing got by her and he wondered how many secrets she kept locked in that head of hers. Checkmate had certainly sent her all over digging up information on all the masked heroes and villains alike. Although she'd never said if they'd questioned her about him, he knew she would have protected him any way that she could. It's just how she was. Even at the expense of her own life. He never did get to thank her properly for what she'd suffered to protect his secret from Lex.
"Olivia Queen," he said softly, kissing her lips. His bearded chin rubbing slightly against her smooth one.
Olivia smiled up at him, her eyes wet with tears. "After all this time. I finally have you? Checkmate, Mr. Queen."
"For you. I happily surrender, Ms. King."
The End
Thank yous: To Nienna Tinehtele for sticking with me all the way through. I kept working away for you and FlyingHigh (K-site) to get this completed. I hope you enjoyed to journey. :D