Within the week, Felicity had all the parts she had ordered, and then she had spent one whole day putting the computers together. Oliver had found her asleep on the floor of the smallest bedroom that she was going to use as an office. She was sprawled on the floor. Half under the desk, holding a small screwdriver. And she had a strong grip. It took some doing for Oliver to pull it from her hand. He placed it on the desk and picked his wife up, bridal style, and took the stairs to her bedroom. He placed her gently under her covers and kissed her cheek. And then he kissed her lips. He just couldn't help himself. she hummed in her sleep and for a moment, Oliver was afraid that she was awake. But she just cuddled in her pillow, with a smile on her face.
Maybe one day he would have the balls to kiss her when she was awake.
Things became quite hectic within the brotherhood the following weeks, but Lyla had assured her that things were looking up. The two women had become good friends, a good thing, too, as they spent their days together, usually inside the Queen apartment, but some days they would be at the Diggle apartment. But ever since they moved neighborhoods, they went out more. Recently they had visited a new tea shop that opened a couple of blocks from their building and Felicity found a love for Lady Grey tea.
As for her work, Felicity had started on the notebook as well. She picked names at random and dealt with them. She found everything she could about them and sent it to both local authorities and the FBI for good measure. Then she returned what money she could to those they were taken from and wired the rest to Verdant's accounts. And then she started buying all the properties that were for sale, one by one. And they were cheap, especially compared to the rest of the city. In two months, Verdant own one-third of the Glades.
Lyla spent an hour or so every day, teaching her some basic medical skills as per her request (and Oliver's approval). Oliver for his part had stashed an arsenal of weapons, okay she was exaggerating, around the house. Zari had shown her how each one worked, just in case she needed to use one.
By mid-March, they had settled in a new routine. Oliver would leave early in the morning, but he usually came home earlier than he used to, now that things were settling down. Felicity would find Lyla, or sometimes Zari, already in there when she woke up. They would chat while she had breakfast and then Felicity would go on with her routine of washing up and putting on some comfy clothes. Then she would air the apartment, make their beds, and wash the dishes. She would work for a couple of hours or talk her body woman of the day into watching a movie. She was working her way through the Marvel movies with Lyla and the Harry Potter series with Zari. They usually had salads or sandwiches for lunch and a few hours later Felicity would work on dinner or order pizza. Sometimes they would have dinner all together; Her and Oliver, Digg, Lyla, Zari, and Nate (Felicity suspecting that something was going on between those two). And she liked those days. Those people had become her family. And she never had family dinners growing up.
"Felicity?" Oliver called one night.
"Yes?" she took her eyes from her screens and looked at him.
"We're having a family meeting tomorrow night, here." He told her.
"Oh, okay. I'll stay away from the main house. I have work to do, either way." She offered.
"No, you're joining us for the meeting. You're the matriarch of the family." Oliver said firmly. "I was just letting you know."
"Oh, right." She said a little awkwardly. Matriarch? What was that supposed to mean? What was she supposed to do?
"We should all be here around eight."
"Okay." She nodded "Uh, how many people?"
"The Diggles, Zari, and Nate." Her husband said, then turned and left.
Felicity sighed. In the last few days, she had noticed that Oliver was more distant, colder. It was probably the stress of the last few months finally catching up to him, but Felicity couldn't help but feel a pinch in her heart every time.
She shook her head and returned to her work. He doesn't feel anything about you, Felicity. Get over it. She fell asleep on her desk that night, working herself to sleep, not wanting to think about her loveless marriage, and how she carved a little love.
However, she was confused when she woke up in her bed the next morning, with Lyla leaning on her doorframe. "Any idea why he is in a mood?" she asked.
"I don't know, Lyla. It's not like he is talking to me, either than the absolutely necessary." Felicity said bitterly and she could feel the tears crowding her eyes. She buried her face in her pillow and willed them away. She was not going to cry. She completely missed the look on Lyla's face.
Felicity spent her day in front of her computers, barely taking her eyes off the screens. Lyla had to drag her away to eat something and have some water. She powered them off four hours before the meeting was to start and went to the kitchen. She prepared three platters of finger foods and then disappeared into the bathroom. She showered and washed her hair. She dried her hair and put it in a sloppy ban until it was time to style it. She pulled the dress she wanted from her wardrobe and put it on the bed. It was wine red with a boat neckline and reached a couple of inches above her knees. She found her black Jimmy Choo's and some gold accessories.
She put on the dress and did her makeup. She worked on her base, first. Nothing too heavy, and then applied some feline eyeliner in black. She picked a lipstick that matched her dress perfectly and sprayed some perfume on herself. She straightened her hair and curled them at the ends. She put on her accessories and shoes. Looking at her phone she realized she still had thirty minutes until the others were to arrive and decided to go downstairs and join Lyla.
"Dressed to impress?" Lyla teased.
"Well, it's my first family meeting." She shrugged. In truth, she wanted to exact a little revenge on Oliver. He probably wouldn't care, but she had to do something. And maybe it was childish, but hey.
"In any case, you look amazing." Lyla winked at her.
"Thank you." She blushed a little. "Hey, do you know what I'm supposed to do as matriarch?"
"Yes, but let's save it for tomorrow. It is a long talk." She said just as Oliver walked through the front door.
It was almost comical to see his face when his eyes landed on his wife. His eyes widened and his irises darkened, as he took her in. His jaw clenched, and Felicity thought that he may break something. She bit her cheek to keep from babbling.
"Oliver," she said as coldly as she could manage.
"Felicity, Lyla." He cleared his throat, trying to pull himself together.
"Hello, Oliver." Lyla looked at him hard.
"I'm going to grab a shower; the others should be here soon." He said and left the two women heading upstairs.
"Essentially, you are the boss lady of the family," Lyla said. "And this" she pointed at her indicating what had happened the last minute, "is a great start. Someone needs to remind him that he is not Thor."
"God of thunder?" she frowned.
"Almighty," Lyla explained.
And Felicity laughed. "I love you!"
Little did they know that Oliver heard that last bit and it was like a bullet to the heart that those words were not directed at him.
Thirty minutes later they were all seated in the living room. Zari had gushed over her dress and winked at her. Digg and Nate had politely complimented him and she thoughτ that Diggle had glared at Oliver, but it was probably her imagination playing tricks.
It was time to start planning their return to Starling. Well, not Oliver Queen's public return, but rather Bratva Captain Oliver Queen's return. The local Captain was finally retiring, and Oliver was going to ascend in his place. So, they were flying to Starling in two weeks to start the transition. They had to find a house for their base and see what renovations it needed and do them. Then Oliver also wanted to find construction companies to start on his plans or renovating and building the Glades, plus he had to see what the current Captain had going on. and attend a mob gala. Awesome.
And when Felicity asked what he was planning for Oliver Queen's return, her loving husband growled at her. And Felicity felt all her confidence leaving her. Well, screw you, Oliver, she thought.
She tuned them out after some time, they were talking about the logistics of the whole thing, and the details of the house. She didn't care. She wanted to punch Oliver, which, yes, it was going to hurt her more than him, because the man was pure muscle, but still. She thought they had a good thing going on. they weren't spouses, in the true sense of the word, but she thought that they were sort of friends and she liked that. She loved that. But evidently, she was wrong. So, wrong. And it hurt.
Bloody Oliver.
It was almost midnight when they called it a night. Felicity hugged them all goodbye, and Zari asked her quietly if she was okay, to which she shook her head, her eyes trailing to her husband, who had his back to her, talking with Nate. Zari understood. She promised to drop by tomorrow for lunch and with another hug, she left. Lyla gave her a knowing look, and sent a glare to Oliver's back, before following her husband to their apartment. Nate followed shortly after them.
Felicity didn't even look at Oliver, passed him, and went to the living room, picking up the dirty dishes. She dumped everything into the sink and, again ignoring Oliver, she went upstairs to get ready for bed. She gently took off her shoes and her dress and wrapped herself in hew black silk kimono with blue and silver flowers, before going to the bathroom to take off her makeup and to her skincare. When she got out, Oliver's door was closed. And for some inexplicable reason, Felicity felt her anger rising.
She changed her route and went down to the kitchen and picked up a bottle of red wine she had picked up during her last grocery shop and a glass. Then she went to bed. With her laptop.
The next morning Lyla found her in bed with a half-empty wine bottle on her nightstand. She wasn't impressed, but she understood. Zari came over for lunch- they ordered pizza as Felicity had a hangover from hell- and they had some girl time. Zari asked her what was wrong the night before, but she regretted it when she saw Felicity fighting her tears as she told them both about the changes in Oliver.
They were all in agreement: Oliver is an idiot.
The next two weeks were spent in a vicious routine, for the most part. Felicity would spend her days working on the lists Oliver had given her, with Lyla keeping her company even if she didn't know what she was working on. Zari joined them when she could, and they had lunch together. Felicity had taken on wearing only her silk kimonos. She felt like a small victory every time Oliver saw her in one and got that weird look on his face. She couldn't explain it, but he looked like he wanted to punch something. It was the only reason she didn't wear her yoga pants and T-shirts. She pretty much ignored him otherwise and only talked to him if he talked to her first. Immature? Maybe.
The only aberration of this routine was the day Felicity had gone shopping for the gala. She picked a red dress, which Lyla approved, a pair of Jimmy Choo sandals, and a matching clutch. Lyla had said that it was a killer outfit.
Zari and Lyla had practically taken overpacking for her. They had put in all her silk nightgowns and their matching kimonos and all her more feminine outfits that showcased her curves. Yes, she had to try them on to be approved.
And then the day of the trip arrived. And Felicity honestly dreaded spending eighteen hours in an aircraft with Oliver giving her the cold shoulder, which granted she returned. At least, it was a private jet and they wouldn't be alone. And she had downloaded three seasons of Castle to watch.
But she had to get up early. She got ready, figure-hugging jeans with a white shirt and a pair of comfortable flats and took her luggage downstairs and had a cup of coffee, all before Oliver came downstairs.
"Are you ready?" he asked.
"Yes," Se said, not even looking at him.
John knocked on their door soon after. The men took their things to the car and Felicity was left to lock up the house. She took a deep breath and putting on her sunglasses she went downstairs.
She was relieved to see that Oliver had opted to seat on the front. Lyla and Felicity shred the back seat.
The ride to the airstrip was quiet. Not uncomfortable, at least not too much. Zari and Nate were already waiting for them. Zari looped her arm with Felicity's, and they left the men to unload the car and dragged Lyla in the plane with them.
By the time the men joined them, the ladies were already on one of the sofas, watching the first episode of Castle. Felicity didn't spare Oliver one glance for hours and she was pretty proud of herself.
However, by the time they reached Staring and got in the cars, Felicity was exhausted. She didn't speak until they reached the hotel. Oliver had gotten separate rooms for Zari and Nate, but he got a suit for them and the Diggles because it had to at least look like they were sharing a bed, her and Oliver.
"I'm hogging the shower." She told them the moment they entered the suit.
"I'm going next," Lyla called her dibs.
Felicity opened her suitcase and grabbed a blue and black nightie with its matching long kimono and her vanity case, before disappearing into the bathroom. She didn't take too long, but by the time she got out John and Lyla had gone into their room. Oliver was standing by the window and Felicity purposefully let her kimono opened, showing the short piece she was wearing under it.
She went about like Oliver was not even there, even though she could feel his eyes on her. She knocked on Lyla's door to let her know the shower was free and then, still ignoring Oliver, she grabbed her laptop and climbed on the bed. Two could play the game, Mr. Queen.
They had room service all together that night and Oliver assigned both Zari and Lyla on Felicity for the duration of their trip. And that was great for Felicity's plans. She booked a pampering day the day of the gala for the three of them and then she planned on having fun when she wasn't required to be seen with Oliver to this thing or the other. She had plans for the following day including the zoo and ice cream. Of course, she had to meet with the broker first and tell him what they were looking for. Oh, well.