Chapter 9

Mandy was lying in a towel on his bed and Jason was putting a towel around his waist both still wet when his phone buzzed

"Command" Jason sighed as he watched Mandy's face change from contentment to slight disappointment and a hint of worry

"You getting spun up?" She sat up looking serious

"Yeah, pretty much straight away, briefing us on the flight, sorry"

"I know how it works Jase, go do your thing I'm a big girl"

Jason dried himself off as he looked for his clothes "I know we haven't really done much talking since you got here…"

Mandy laughed and Jason smiled and winked

"…but it would be nice if you were still here when I got back" Jason suddenly didn't look his confident self, unsure of what he was saying

"You want me to stay in VA beach?" Mandy asked half surprised and slightly amused

Jason looked serious "Yeah. I want you to stay, in VA beach, here specifically."

Mandy was processing "You want me to stay here at your place while you're gone?"

Jason, now fully clothed came to sit beside her on the bed "you know for someone who read between the lines of CIA intel for so many years you are really not reading between the lines here…" Jason brings his hand up to stoke her face

"… I want you to stay here when I'm not here… and also when I'm here. I want you to stay here. You're the one I want to come home to"

Mandy went to open her mouth to speak but nothing came out, so Jason took the opportunity to capture her mouth in a kiss. When he broke the kiss, Mandy was smiling.

"Is that a yes?" Jason smiled suddenly looking giddy again

"Ok" she said happily, not quite sure what she'd just agreed to. "I mean I couldn't just disappear and let Emma down with our shopping trip n all"

The cogs in Jason's head were spinning now she could tell, he was working something out.

"Hey, how about you get dressed quickly and come with me to base then you have all my keys and you have access to the truck while I'm away, since I have no idea how long it's gonna be and you don't have a car here"

Mandy was taken aback with this new practical information but didn't really have time to process the implications since they needed to get moving "ermm OK" she pulled on her jeans looking around and finally finding her bra and stealing another one of Jason's t-shirts.

"Oh and Cerb…" Jason suddenly remembered

Mandy laughed "I'll look after him, just text me Theo's address I'll pick him up later"

Jason grabbed her face and kissed then stepped back grinning like a teenager.

He locked the door behind them and they headed to base.

On the journey Mandy was quiet "everything OK?" Jason reached for her hand with the hand that wasn't in the wheel "I know I kinda just dropped all this on you and now I'm disappearing again for I don't know how many days. And I haven't even asked you what you want, what your plans are, I just told you what I wanted"

Mandy glanced over "I'm not worried about that. This is good, we are good. There are options I've been considering in VA beach I just didn't want to properly explore them until I knew what this was with us"

Jason glanced over and squeezed her hand "what kind of options?"

"Nothing concrete just some offers, some conversations to be had."

"That was very CIA-speak of you" Jason laughed

Mandy giggled "you can take the girl out the CIA…"

"But there's options for you here? Outside the CIA?" Jason sounded hopeful. Mandy had never struck him as the stay at home military wife type, sure she'd said in the past that one day she wanted more, maybe even family of her own, but she was someone who liked to work, she was talented and he didn't want to stand in the way of her career by asking her to stay.

"Before everything that happened there were some unofficial offers of jobs here, So I might make some lunch dates while you're off wherever you are, feel-out whether the offers still stand after I went rogue"

"Better not be going on any dates with eligible men while I'm away" Jason glared at her

"I don't think you would class Lindell as an eligible date" Mandy laughed

"Captain Lindell?" Jason looked surprised "So there might still be chance for you to work on base? With us?" Jason was suddenly excited

"Possibly. I don't know all the details, I'm not really sure what role they would have in mind with me not being agency anymore... and as I said it was a while ago that it was first suggested. I don't know if the offer still stands"

Jason went quiet for a minute "But you and me? Fraternisation policy?"

"That's one of the things I need to subtly find out about" Mandy glances over at a Jason. "That's why I needed to know what this was first."

"So if the offer stands, we would probably need to put this relationship on record." Jason responded but it was less a question more a statement of fact

"Yeah." Mandy took-in the words "relationship" coming out of Jason Hayes mouth "We could probably work around the policy if the relationship is declared, at least with me being non-military. But I don't know how that works if we were to end up working together again"

Jason smiled "I'll declare it to anyone you want Mandy"

Mandy felt herself flushing "that would mean going public… with everyone"

Jason nodded happily "I know"

When they arrived at base most of the other team guys had arrived. Naima and Stella had dropped off Ray and Clay, who were hanging back with Sonny waiting for Jason.

Jason and Mandy got out of the truck, and Jason threw her the keys as he walked around to meet her. "She's all yours"

Mandy smiled and blushed.

"Are you blushing Mandy Ellis?" Jason laughed and looked surprised.

"Only because the guys over there are nudging each other and looking over wondering what I'm doing here with you" Mandy looked over at them and waved shyly as they all beamed back.

Sonny tips his hat and shouts over "Mrs Spook… Mr Spook" the guys all laugh, even Jason laughs and Mandy thumps him in the chest. "Don't encourage him!"

Jason turns to see Naima and Stella looking over, they give a wave and Naima winks. "Looks like we're the hot gossip on base Mrs Spook" He stepped closer to her, trapping her between his body and the truck, grinning. "How about we give them something to gossip about" He leaned closer but he paused, reading her face and giving her an out. He was letting her decide if she was ready for it to be out-there for everyone to know. "I'm all-in with you Mandy" he whispered. Mandy pulled him towards her by his belt and kissed him gently on the lips and then pulled him into a hug tucking her head into his neck.

"I'm not used to this. Being the one watching you fly off to god knows where" she spoke quietly as she looked up at Jason. He pulled her in close and kissed the top of her head "I'll be fine. Mission will be done before you know it. And then I'll be coming home… to you."

Ray shouts across "Jace, time to roll"

Jason steps back from Mandy she's playing with the keys in her hands and she smiles warily as he jogs over to catch up with the guys. She laughs watching the guys nudging Jason obviously giving him a hard time already. They were going to be intolerable. Jason is laughing and takes a last look around at Mandy.

She doesn't notice Naima and Stella at first, they walk up beside her.

"So now I know why my matchmaking attempts kept failing so miserably" Naima nodded towards Jason, "Turns out he only had eyes for you"

Stella laughed "Hearts will be breaking all over the bulkhead when this news hits, Master Chief off the market"

Mandy turned to them both laughing "Don't let him ever hear you say that, he doesn't need his head to get any bigger." Stella laughed and made the lips are sealed sign across her mouth with her fingers.

"So this is going to be weird for you right? Being the one left at home?" Stella asked

Mandy nodded "It's definitely weird."

"When did you get back in VA beach" Naima leaned against the truck next to Mandy as she gave Ray a last wave as the guys all boarded

Mandy laughed out loud at the ridiculousness of what she was about to say "Last night"

Naima and Stella just looked at her then Naima spoke "So… you drove down from DC last night?"

"No, I got off a flight from West Africa and came straight here"

Stella looked confused "waaiiit a minute so you have been in Africa being debriefed this whole time and the minute you got back to the states you came here…and you went where exactly?"

"To see Jason" Mandy said simply

Naima and Stella looked at each other smiling the biggest smiles. Naima put her hand on her chest "I think my heart is melting"

Stella was still trying to get her head around it "So let me get this straight… you guys were friends right? For all these years?"

"Yeah"

"And then you get captured. He goes off on one, like some crazy man possessed looking for you, rescues you. Then he has to leave you there to be debriefed. You come back to VA beach and by the next morning you're here… together? Together-together?"

"Yeahhhh, with his truck. And his dog...and his daughter" Mandy shakes her head laughing

"Wait what?" Naima is laughing

"24 hours ago I'm on a flight with no clothes but the ones on my back, no home to go to...And now I'm apparently living at Jason's, in charge of his dog and his truck and Emma is taking me clothes shopping later"

Naima and Stella are laughing so hard they can hardly breathe.

"If this was any other two people I would say you were crazy" Naima says between laughter "But you two are like… the least spontaneous people ever. You plan everything down to the minute and second and yet here you are jumping in without any plans. It's kinda perfect"

Naima glanced at her watch. "Ooh gotta go pick the kids up, I'm late. I'm meeting up with Lisa tomorrow night, girls night, why don't you come join us pass some of the time? Stella's going to try make it if she can"

This was all a bit new to her hanging around with the bravo wives but she had really missed Lisa and it would be nice to let her hair down. "OK, Why not. Text me the time and place"

Naima gave her a quick hug and Stella waved as she got in her car.

Mandy took a second to stand by the truck as she watched Jason's plane now in the distance and take in this new life that had suddenly started being created around her. It was scary and she was totally unprepared, which was not how she usually operated, but she was happy.

Her phone buzzed and she sees a new text from Naima with details for girls night tomorrow.

Underneath is a new message from Emma who is apparently picking her up in an hour

And below that is the unread message Jason had sent as they left the house with Theo's address. She opens it now, it has Theo's address and underneath "I love you Mandy Ellis"

Mandy beams, and climbs into the truck.