25. Ollie

I'm sittingin Mack's office, waiting on him for this impromptu meeting I requested. Bridget comes back in with some coffee and what looks like homemade brownies. Damn, I'm a lucky man.

"Damn, Bubbles, between you and Pixie, gonna have to up my workouts. Never had it so good."

She gives me a look, then smiles, taking a seat across from me at the corner conference table I'm sitting at. Again, another look, this one longer and very inquiring.

"So, I take it you're done with the wheelchair, Ollie? How's that walker working for you? Please don't rush it, honey, take it slow, it's a process. I know you've been working extremely hard but don't mess up all that hard work because you're bullheaded and want to rush it. You hear me?"

Grinning, I nod my head.

"No plans to fuck this up, Bridget. Especially after all the time and hard work of these doctors y'all have here. Best of the best. And the walker isn't too bad, but I can't wait to go to the cane 'cause that's one step closer to walking on my own. And no pun intended, ya know."

She laughs lightly, sipping on some coffee, so I grab a brownie off the end cut and dive in. Damn, so rich and creamy, but the edges are nice and crunchy. Perfection as chocolate heaven bursts in my mouth. Daydreaming on brownies, I miss the first part of her question, so I raise an eyebrow.

"Just like a man, put something sweet in front of you and your mind is blown. I said, since you're having a meeting with Mack, am I to assume the consultant job is not something you will be considering? And if that's a yes to my question, what does that mean for you and Paisley? Before you say it, Ollie, I hear it enough from Donovan and Mack, yes, I'm nosy, deal with it, SEAL boy."

I know I don't have to tell her anything, but I truly like Bridget, she's becoming a good friend. She's been around a long time working for this company, married to not only Nessa, Nova's sister, but was also in the military and came home with some issues. We've talked for hours in person and on the phone. She's one of the folks here who pulled me off the ledge. Taking a breath to get my thoughts together, I share.

"Yeah, sorry, Bridget, as much as I'm coming to love it here in Virginia and especially everyone I've met, this just doesn't feel truly like home. Been giving it a lot of thought, and I could probably go back to Cali and stay with Onyx until I find a place. Maybe see if Nova needs me for something out there. But again, not home. Since Bahrain and the shit that went down there, I've been giving much time and thought to my life, family, and home. I'm honestly starting fresh, so might as well try and do what I want, where I want, with whom I want, right? And you're right, as much as I loved being a Navy SEAL and hanging with the best of the best here, including yourself, I don't see myself sitting behind a desk for the rest of my life. And as far as missions go, not so sure I'll ever be a hundred-percent again. And I don't want to be the reason someone from my team doesn't make it back, get me? So, I want to talk to Mack about a possible opportunity that maybe FQS can partner up with, for some of the soldiers who come back and ain't as good a fit for this type of work, but need to get their emotions and heads back into the game, maybe in a new way that would help them and others."

As I explain my idea, as it's in the beginning stages, her excitement calms my nerves. If I can get the same kind of response from Mack, maybe then I can reach out to the parents and see if what I'm thinking is even an option with them. Then I need to go to my Pixie, explain my idea in exact details, and see what her take is on it too. So many moving parts but one step at a time. Bridget leans over, giving me a hug, just as Mack opens the door. Always the smart-ass, he starts as soon as he closes the door.

"Bubbles, you're breaking my heart. Damn, thought I only had to put up and share you with Nessa, but now I see it's old Ollie too? Not good, woman, not good at all. And you, brother, sneak attack when I'm not looking, you water dog."

As we all laugh, he puts his case down and takes a seat at the table, immediately grabbing a brownie.

"And you're giving this big asshole my brownies too? I'm not having a good feeling about this at all. That's just so wrong. No loyalty in this family anymore."

I watch the interaction between the two of them and pray to God I'm not making a huge mistake not taking some time to see if this right here could work. I'd be more than blessed as I've been accepted with open arms in this awesome family of ex-military.

"Mustang, honey, I've told you time and time again you don't have what I need. Nessa just pushes all my buttons, if you get what I mean. She gets my sails up."

Mack groans and before he can say a word, there's a knock at the door and Noodles and Stud Muffin walk in. Seeing all of us sitting around, Noodles raises an eyebrow as Stud Muffin immediately walks to the table, grabbing two brownies, moving to the sofa. Bridget stands, looks around, and shakes her head.

"I'll be back with some more coffee and brownies. Ollie, nice talking with you. Keep in touch, honey, no matter what. You're always welcome here."

As she walks out, I feel three pairs of eyes on me. Well, that was a good prelude into my talk, I guess. Again, before a word comes from my lips, I hear Quincy run his mouth.

"Why is it every time I walk into what looks like an interesting conversation, it ends, and I still don't have a fuckin' clue what's going on? What happened to us from battles and orgies to talks now? We're getting old, motherfuckers. Now it's wives, kids, and soccer games. Gotta live up to our names and reputations, men. And you, Ollie, we haven't even given you a name. Something we need to work on."

As he carries on, Bridget returns with coffee and brownies. We continue to shoot the shit, listening to all the ridiculous names Stud Muffin comes up with for me. No, I don't want to be called Shorty, Munchkin, or Tinkerbell. What is that bastard even thinking? If they give me a name, I want a cool one like they all have. Mack clears his throat and Bridget grabs Nessa by the hand and Quincy looks from them to us and back again.

"All right, all right, you just aren't any goddamn fun anymore. Come on, Nessa and Bubbles, let's leave these two workaholics to it."

When they're gone, Mack looks my way with a strange expression on his face.

"So, from what I got from Bridget's comment you're not planning on staying around, are you, Ollie? Shit, man, it's great to see you up and about on your own sea legs. See, all that fucking therapy does pay off, you whiny bastard. So come on, let's talk this out and see what's on your mind. Maybe I can persuade you to stay."

I start to explain until Mack tells me to hang on and he walks to his desk, motioning for me to take one of the chairs there. He picks up his phone, putting a call through. I hear him tell someone he wants them in on a conversation then he puts it on speaker.

"All right, Donovan, you got Ollie and me. Ollie was starting to tell me about an idea he's got that could involve us and him, just not in Virginia or Cali. Thought it would be easier to have your ears hear the same thing I do 'cause ya know I'd fuck it up trying to relay it after. Got some time?"

Once Donovan assures us he's got time, I start again and break it down for both of them. Question after question comes my way, and I do my best to answer them or write them down to follow up on. We go over logistics, get into some early plans, working around different scenarios. By the third hour, my head feels like it's in a vise. When I try to explain what my next two moves would be, they continue to fire questions at me. So, I'm honest with my responses. First, I need to have a conversation with Paisley—which they throw their two cents in about—and some really good suggestions and ideas. If that works out, then put a call out to my folks. So, what I thought would be a quick one-on-one conversation with Mack turns into a few hours with Mack and Donovan, the owners of FQS. In the end, I couldn't be more surprised or happier at the way we ended the call. Now gotta get with my Pixie, get her two cents.