Full of Surprises

Oliver found himself at the Diggles' front door, in a slightly disturbed state of mind, for the second time that week. Lyla answered the door with a knowing smile and told him, "He's in the living room."

He crossed the hallway with quick steps entering the living room to find John on the couch, beer in hand and a recorded football game on the television. Oliver dropped down beside him.

"And how was it?" Digg inquired.

Oliver shot him an incredulous look, "You know exactly how it went," he grumbled. "Why didn't you tell me that I had to play nanny for a six year old?"

"Would it have made a difference? You needed a job. Now you have one." John replied, barely holding in his amusement.

"I could have been better prepared for it." So maybe Oliver was still sulking a little bit. But he felt somewhat justified, after all his training and experience, he had just accepted a job as a glorified babysitter. Not that working for the Smoak family was going to be too much of a hardship, if Felicity Smoak was anything to go by. She didn't seem like someone who would raise a bratty kid, but then again kids could be unpredictable. He still remembered what a terror Thea had been for her various nannies and babysitters, and he only hoped Joanna wasn't as much of a handful.

John chuckled, unable to resist when he sees Oliver pouting. "Joanna is a sweetheart. She is well-mannered, not too demanding and has certainly inherited her mother's charm. You're going to like her," he reassured Oliver.

"If you say so, John, but an early warning would have been nice anyway." Oliver strongly felt that this point needed to be conveyed to his friend, who seemed to be having far too much fun at his expense. Sighing, he turned his attention to the game playing on the television. "Man, you know the Stags played like crap in this game, why are you subjecting yourself to this embarrassment?"

John groaned and turned the television off. "Stupid team loyalties."

Oliver grinned, "You're welcome."

X-X-X

Felicity was nervous about this meeting between Joanna and Mr. Queen. She had not yet told her daughter about her new bodyguard and all she could think of was- how would Joanna react to having a complete stranger accompany her throughout the day everywhere? She hoped her animated and vivacious daughter would be excited about making a new friend and having someone who she could constantly chatter away to. She had wanted them to meet in the familiar environment of her home to ease Joanna into this new change, somewhere she would feel comfortable and safe. She glanced at Joanna who watching some cartoons in the living room; she hated that she had to resort extreme measures, would be instilling this fear of the unknown world- that may want to harm them- in her daughter at such a young age.

Felicity had briefly toyed with the idea of introducing Mr. Queen as her boyfriend, who would be moving in with them, as a way to avoid exposing her daughter to the fear and anxiety that came along with the knowledge of these threats. But she dismissed the thought quickly because 1. She couldn't lie to her daughter and Joanna would see through it immediately, 2. Their relationship was built on honesty, trust and respect and she did not want to destroy that. She also believed that by being honest with Joanna they could prepare her better for dangerous situations and she would understand and cooperate better with any rules, and it would also make it easier for Joanna to share any fears or uneasy feelings.

Of course there was also the fact that she had neither discussed this idea with Mr. Queen, nor did she want to burden him with such a complicated charade. Not to mention how completely awkward she could be, and how capable would be of making that particular situation uncomfortable with her inappropriate babbling and broken brain-to-mouth filter.

She couldn't deny part of her nerves came from the situation she was exposing herself and Joanna to, letting a relative stranger intrude into their lives. It had just been the two of them for so long; relationships not something that were her priority or something she had time for. Every now and then she would go on dates and maybe some would progress to a second one, but nothing substantial had ever developed. She didn't mind though, she was completely happy focusing on Joanna and avoiding a repeat of the kind of relationship she had with Joanna's father.

It also didn't help at all that Oliver Queen was an extremely handsome man, whom she would be living in extremely close quarters with. She would make a fool out of herself in front of him, of that she was sure. It was just a matter of time. But she had decided that she would try and watch herself and make sure to be professional around him- even if that meant being reserved in her own home- as he was crucial to Joanna's safety and she couldn't afford to scare him away.

She glanced at the clock. It was five minutes to twelve. She surveyed the open ground floor, making sure everything was in order- the kitchen was tidy and mostly unused. From her position behind the counter, she could see the entire living room. She had loved the house when she first saw it, with its floor to ceiling windows there was a lot of light (which was great for someone like her who could get lost in her various electronic screens for hours), the open design allowing the light to spread through the entire floor and had the advantage of being able to keep an eye on Joanna from anywhere on the floor. She, now, wondered if this house wouldn't be considered a tactical nightmare by the new bodyguard.

She went back to silently observing her daughter, watching her or being in her presence always filled her with a kind of peace and happiness that was impossible to compete with. Joanna had grown up remarkably well despite having her as a mother. Felicity had faced a lot of anxiety and insecurities throughout her pregnancy, she worried constantly that she would totally screw up, that she would drop her child on its head, that she couldn't take care of them, couldn't provide for them or give them a good and happy life.

Because who hired a heavily-pregnant barely 20 year old or a single parent with a newborn infant, even one with her qualifications. She was so sure that she would never find a job, that no company would want to hire someone who had so many limitations on their time, was resigned to her fate of going back to Vegas and moving in with her mom. But she had been seriously mistaken or seriously lucky, because she had caught the eye of Walter Steele- vice president of Queen Consolidated- who valued her qualifications over all else and gave her a few projects as freelancer.

So she had moved to Star City, where she could work on the projects from home and was able to decide her own hours. Her mother had been amazing throughout, even giving up her job and life in Vegas, to move with Felicity and Joanna to Star City. Donna Smoak had been a huge support through her pregnancy, had supported her when she had made the hard choice of keeping and raising the baby on her own and was a crazy loving and doting grandmother to Joanna. Joanna had been such a blessing in every way, but especially in mending the relationship between Felicity and her own mother and making their bond even stronger.

As Felicity founded and worked on establishing her own company, and Joanna became old enough to attend pre-school, Donna moved in with her then-boyfriend, now-husband Quentin Lance. The two had met at the police precinct, where Quentin worked. Donna was involved in a minor car accident and he was the lead detective on the case. That reminded Felicity, she should probably tell her mother about the new arrangement, otherwise her next visit would be highly embarrassing.

Donna being Donna would, of course, not care that Mr. Queen was only Joanna's bodyguard. She would be over the moon to see a man in Felicity's life even if he was working for her. It was, as she always said, about the unexplored potential that was there, and she would try to persuade Felicity into going out with the man. Her mother knew all the tricks in the book, including the under-handed approach of using Joanna. But before Felicity could get a panic attack about her mother, the bell rang. She hurried to open the door for Mr. Queen. Damn she'd been hoping she'd exaggerated, in her head, how handsome he was, this was going to be a total disaster.

X-X-X

Miss Smoak stepped to the side, ushering Oliver into the house. She led him to the kitchen, while offering, "Can I get you something to drink? Coffee, tea, or water?"

"Water is fine, thanks."

While she got a glass from the cupboard and filled it up, Oliver took in the structure of the ground floor. He wasn't too happy about the windows, they were an easy target for a sniper. Maybe he should ask Miss Smoak to switch the glass to a bulletproof kind. The open-floor plan made it easy to spot threats but would make it hard to find cover in case of emergency. He compiled a list in his head of potential security risks and what he wanted to change.

"Mommy, I'm hungry." A voice said next to the counter. Oliver looked down and there stood Joanna Smoak, who seemed to be studying him closely.

"Alright, I was just waiting for Mr. Queen. He's going to be having lunch with us, so we'll order something right away, okay?" Felicity replied, as she handed Oliver his water.

"Order?" Oliver looked from Joanna to Felicity, wondering how exactly to manage security with delivery guys.

"Mommy can't cook, just like grandma. Not even Uncle Barry would touch her food and Uncle Barry eats everything." Joanna replies, before Felicity even gets a chance to say anything.

Oliver raised his eyebrow at Felicity. "Seriously?" Oh wow, it was worse than he thought, he would apparently have to monitor the delivery guys and the food packages they bring everyday.

Felicity shrugged, casually adding, "She's right. I burn even water."

Oliver stared at her in disbelief, jolted out of his thoughts by Joanna's next question.

"Mommy is he my bodyguard?" She asked with a very innocent look on her face, possibly a fake one, if the disbelieving and puzzled look on her mother's face was anything to go by. She then proceeded to declare, "I'm not stupid, you know. I'm six after all. And I heard you talking to Mr. Diggle."

Felicity still looked a little stunned, but she managed to collect herself. "Joanna, you know it's not nice to listen in on people's conversations. But yes, Mr. Queen is going to be with you all day and protect you, and he is also going to be staying with us for some time." She looked like she was bracing herself, and made sure to look Joanna straight in the eye, holding onto the little girl's shoulders and bending towards her, "There are some mean people who have been saying some not-so-nice things about us and sending us mean messages, okay? I don't want you to worry, but I do need you to be safe. So Mr. Queen is going to help us with that." Giving her a stern look, she continues, "You need to listen to what Mr. Queen says and follow his rules. He's very good at what he does, but that will only work if you listen to him carefully, yes?"

Joanna nodded seriously, she looked a little unsure about all the new information, but seemed to trust her mother's judgement. Oliver observed the way Felicity broke down the information and was honest with her daughter. That was something sorely lacking in his own childhood, and he was impressed by both mother and daughter at being able to dish out and accept the hard truths. It made him realize, this probably would be expected of him as well, from Felicity as well as Joanna. While with Felicity, he was obligated to provide all the information, he would have to curb his tendency to hide details in order to protect her with Joanna.

Oliver knelt down in front of her, once Felicity stepped away, so that he was at her eye level. He felt this need to reassure the little girl and also put her at ease. So he held out his hand, "My name is Oliver Queen, and from Monday on I am your bodyguard. I'll do the best I can at my job, and won't let anything happen to you, promise."

She put her tiny hand in his and shook it firmly, "Joanna Smoak. Nice to meet you Mr. Queen."

Then she turned to her mother. "I want pizza, please."

Felicity pulled open a drawer, filled with takeout menus, and pulled out one. "Salami?"

Joanna nodded and moved back towards the couch. Felicity then placed the menu before Oliver, "Please stay for lunch, you can talk some more with Joanna and get to know her. What can I order for you? "

He took the offered menu with a, "Thank you, Miss Smoak."

"Felicity"

He looked at her perplexed. She blushed, embarrassed as she smoothed her already neat ponytail.

"Miss Smoak makes me feel old."

He grinned. "Okay Felicity. Then please call me Oliver."

She smiled back at him, "So what do you want to eat, Oliver? The pepperoni pizza is superb."