A/N: I just want to start by thanking all of you who reviewed and commented for the lovely response to the start of this story! As promised, this chapter brings us Killian's POV and as such we can see that this is hardly a one-sided infatuation. Hopefully you all enjoy and let me know what you think!

Killian Jones had a million and one things on his plate. That was the nature of his job, as the editor in chief of Citizen NY. His time was rarely his own, thousands of people depended on him, and the absolute perfect story was always just out of reach. There was always something else coming down the pike that was bigger and better and that needed to be uncovered by his team, so try as he might Killian could never clear the ledger. There would always be more to do and achieve and aspire to.

Despite the hectic pace Killian loved that part of his work, this need to constantly be on the go was familiar to him and brought comfort when to most people it would bring nothing but pain and stress. He was good at this, finding a kind of adrenaline rush in getting the magazine to press each week and pursuing the best stories, the best photographers, and the best artists to be a part of this publication that was by all accounts his living legacy. It was always tasking to get each issue off the ground despite the bevy of support he had from his more than competent staff and often-silent co-owners. This was hardly a low-stress industry and that was just the way Killian liked it.

There was only one slight hiccup in the normal current of his life and it had been present for a few months now, or rather she had been present: the transfixing women on the train who held more life in those wide green eyes of hers then he'd witnessed ever before. It was his job to know people, to see things, to chronicle for the record big moments and important figures, to set tastes and frame the narrative, but there was just something about her that outshone all that.

Case in point here he was, swamped on a day where there were deadlines and meetings a plenty and all he could think of was that enigmatic look she'd sent his way hours ago and the way her voice washed across his skin when she spoke to their fellow passenger about the drawing she was working on. On the one hand Killian had been elated – the siren had spoken and that was a gift indeed, but it wasn't to him, much as he wanted it to be.

It also wasn't enough. Killian didn't know much of anything about her, not where she worked or if she actually utilized whatever kind of drawings the man commented on this morning for said occupation. He didn't even know her name, but it didn't matter. He'd been granted a snapshot into who she was by riding the train alongside her and what he saw through that window was fast becoming the highlight of his world. How could a practical stranger feel like the most important thing in his life when he had all this? He didn't know the answer. All Killian knew was there was this sense of loss in moments like this one when he wasn't in her presence.

Just get to the end of the day, Jones. She'll be waiting for you then. The thought brightened Killian's mood substantially even if he knew he should be embarrassed about the power one perfect stranger held over his emotions.

For a long time now, this mystery woman had been the deciding factor in the worth of any given day. The best successes at work were always heightened by the glimpse of her smile or undone by her absence from the line, and afternoons spent talking budgets or quarterly meetings were vastly improved by the moment their eyes caught across the train car.

It was borderline ridiculous really, how enamored Killian was with the entrancing blonde who happened to ride the same train as him day in and day out, but it couldn't be helped. There was just something about her that called to him and that made the rest of the world fall away. The all-consuming business of his life, the break-neck pace that he kept to make his magazine and his company a success, it gave way to her. She was the answer to problems he hadn't even realized he was grappling with.

"Mr. Jones?" Killian's head snapped towards the speaker on his desk through which his assistant (who everyone fondly referred to as Tink) spoke. He picked up the phone and smiled as he replied.

"Let me guess: there's someone in the waiting room who would find it suspicious if you called me by any of those mocking nicknames you've so kindly bestowed on me with Will?"

"Yes, sir. You're brother is here, hoping to speak with you before the meeting."

Killian bit back a groan. He loved Liam, he really did, but in the midst of a day like this when two of his head columnists had called out for personal matters, the printers were citing technical difficulties, and he'd only managed to have three cups of coffee, Killian didn't want to deal with his brother. Not that he had much of a choice, seeing as his brother was largely in charge of the family fund that made all of this possible. He was a silent investor in Citizen NY (just as Killian was) come to check on his investment. That he'd decided to ambush Killian wasn't a surprise. Liam was a shrewd businessman and more than a little tough on Killian hoping to see him succeed.

"Send him in then." Tink agreed and in a moment his doorway was filled with his brother's frame and appraising look. Liam glanced around their surroundings, not intending to scrutinize, but doing it all the same and then he turned to Killian and continued his silent analysis.

"Liam, it's good to see you."

"No it isn't. It's a damn tedious headache in the scheme of your day and you know it."

Killian grinned at that and Liam did the same, pulling Killian in for a brisk hug. Some of the tension was cut away now but Liam's mission, whatever it was, hadn't changed. If Killian knew his brother (and he did very well) then whatever it was would remain the forefront of the meeting no matter what.

"Blunt as always, brother. Let me rephrase: What can I do for you on this rather unfortunately crazed day?" Liam took a seat and Killian did the same back around his desk.

"Just coming to check in. I was hoping you'd changed your mind about all this, but with the returns I just got from the quarterly report I doubt that's likely." Hardly. Nevertheless Killian was surprised at the semi-direct praise. Liam must really be impressed if he'd even given credence to the profit Citizen turned.

"So if you knew that then why come at all?" Liam cleared his throat and straightened up some from his already immaculate posture in his chair. This meant he was finally ready to get down to business.

"It's come to my attention that we're approaching a crossroad."

"Is that right?" Killian asked, thrown off slightly by his brother's sudden flustered expression. Usually Liam was the picture of austere control. Right now though he seemed younger and a bit bashful, which Killian was completely astounded by.

"Aye. Oh I'll just come right out and say it. Neither of us is getting any younger and I think it's time we both of us settled down."

A beat past and then another before Killian broke and found himself laughing harder than he had in a very long time. This was an absolutely phenomenally delivered joke and Killian couldn't help but laugh heartily at it. His brother, the adamantly work-oriented control freak, was thinking of settling down? That was jus too rich. But when Killian collected himself again Liam remained there completely unimpressed. Only then did it begin to dawn on him that Liam might actually mean it.

"You're serious?" Killian couldn't believe it.

"I am. I've consulted an elite relationship consultant -," Oh Jesus.

"You mean a matchmaker." Liam blinked at the interruption. "Just call it what it is, brother." Liam ignored that request entirely and pressed on.

"I've given her our requirements and backgrounds. She's come back with some suggestions. Five for each of us."

"Oh it's us now, is it?" Liam harrumphed at that. "Have you actually gone mad?"

Killian didn't know why he even bothered to ask the question. If Liam thought it was at all appropriate or necessary for him to look not only for a wife for himself but for Killian too then he was more than daft. And what was all this talk about requirements? Did Liam really expect Killian to consider such a scheme, one where they bulleted out lists of what the ideal woman might consist of? It was sheer nonsense and he wanted absolutely no bloody part of it.

"It's a smart move, Killian, a wise investment in the future of our company and our family."

"Can you hear yourself right now, brother? You're looking at marriage like it's a business. It's not some bloody contract negotiation." Killian realized too soon that he'd allowed Liam an in with that metaphor.

"That's literally what a marriage is, Killian. The service guarantees companionable compatibility and discreteness -,"

"Let me just stop you right there, Liam. There is no way in hell that I am ever submitting myself to such an arrangement and I know, you fancy yourself a man above emotion, but even you deserve actual love, brother. Not some woman who fits you on paper, but one who means the world for reasons you can't explain. You won't find that this way. You'll be settling for less than what makes marriage worth it."

Killian expected coldness or maybe anger at his rebuttal but what he didn't expect was a smile to appear after Liam had a moment to digest Killian's words. His brother leaned back and grinned like the cat who caught the damn canary. It was unsettling and Killian felt himself go red, which only added to Liam's delighted response.

"You've already found someone and you didn't tell me!" Busted. Killian was so totally busted.

"I beg your pardon?" The feigned ignorance didn't work at all and Liam just steamrolled over his questioning tone.

"So either you're embarrassed of her or you haven't told her how you feel. I almost hope it's the former. If it's the latter we are in rougher shape then I expected." Killian ran a hand through his hair in frustration.

"I never said anything about finding someone at all." It was a weak reply and Killian knew it. Liam looked liable to contradict and dig for more when a knock sounded at the door and Tink's head popped in.

"I'm sorry, sir, but you have that staff meeting starting."

Killian hoped his relief wasn't incredible obvious but in many ways his prayers had been answered. He was spared this conversation with his brother, who Killian was convinced was actually a little crazy. Who was this man hell-bent on matrimony and what had he done with his elder brother? Liam meanwhile stood up and buttoned his jacket back up, that shit eating grin still plastered on his smug face.

"When I get back from London you'll introduce us." Introduce them? Killian hadn't even said a word to the woman in question. What was he going to do, walk up to her with a smile and an offer to meet his family day one? Not bloody likely.

"No I won't."

"Oh yes you will, or I start making these little visits a daily occurrence." Killian groaned.

"Don't you have an empire to oversee?" Liam laughed and slapped a hand on Killian's shoulder.

"Sometimes work can wait." Killian scoffed.

"Since when?"

"Since right now."

With that Liam left and Tink stared after him, clearly surprised at the lingering smile. It was so rare an occurrence that she probably hadn't witnessed it in all the years she worked for Killian. He understood the feeling. Everything his brother had just said left him relatively shell shocked despite years of thinking himself beyond being surprised. Killian was still staring after Liam and fighting off ideas of introducing him to the woman on the train (which was actually certifiable since she probably wanted nothing to do with him) when Tink spoke out, pulling him to the present.

"You okay?" Killian nodded as he buttoned his suit and readied himself to head to the meeting.

"Aye. Just Liam being Liam." Tink nodded as if she understood though Killian wasn't sure anyone could.

"You know there's a foolproof way to assure him right?" Killian raised a brow at her statement. Did she listen in somehow to the meeting? No, she couldn't have and even if she could Tink wasn't that kind of employee.

"Is there now?"

"Well according to Ariel in the marketing office we could sell an extra ten thousand subscriptions easy if you included a photo of yourself on the letter from the editor."

Killian barked out a laugh appreciating the joke from Tink and glad for the fact that she didn't actually know what the meeting was really regarding. He played along with her jest, however, not interested in hashing out the true cause for his brother's bizarre visit.

"If Liam isn't reassured by our already fantastic earnings then nothing will change his mind, love, not even my smiling face winning hearts across the city."

"All right, all right, no need to get a big head about it. It was just a thought." Killian shook his head as he smiled and they departed for the meeting, finding that the conference room was already full of people all waiting for him.

"Right then. Let's just jump right in. Where are we at with the next issue?"

"What, no hello?" Killian smirked at his second in command, Will Scarlet, who sat across from him at the other head of the table with a smile on his face.

"Hello. Now, status updates?"

Will sighed dramatically as some people around the table laughed, but Killian knew underneath Will's goofy and comedic exterior was a man just as driven and focused as him. They had been best mates since childhood and though Killian never understood how Will managed to be so good humored all the time, he respected it. It made for a more relaxed chain of command. His friend had found a sweet spot between demanding the best of their employees and still keeping things light enough to not make the work a chore.

"Everything is all set for this issue. No last minute headaches despite the staff changes. We're in good shape. As for next issue… we've got a couple of holes to fill most notably features."

"What happened to the piece on that guy trying to build a castle on eighteenth?" Killian looked over to Sydney, the man who'd been writing said piece.

"Just got sued for fraud, all assets frozen, so bye-bye castle."

"Well that's shit luck. Okay so what else have we got?"

A few of Killian's writers pitched ideas but none of them felt right. He'd learned to trust his instincts on matters like this and he had a pretty good read on the public and their audience in particular. He wanted something fresh but approachable. This was a feature and it should tell a story that was unique but identifiable.

"I might have something… but it isn't fully developed. I was thinking of saving it for a while but it actually might be better to do it now."

Killian looked to one of his newer writers, Belle French, who was seated only a few spots away from him. She had been hired less than a year ago from a bigger publication. She was a definite asset to their team and her best skill was her ability to be discerning. Belle didn't follow a story for the sake of filling pages. If she had a hunch, he was willing to follow it.

"Hit me." She smiled and laid it out for them all.

"There's a new place, not too far from here actually, that's a one stop shop for weddings: planning, cakes, dresses, media announcements you name it..." Killian found himself interrupting despite his usual tendency to listen fully.

"Matchmakers?" Belle smirked and shook her head.

"No, but I'll pass along the suggestion. That would be a riot. Anyway, they even have an in-house dress designer. She's fantastic, a rising star and easily the biggest selling point."

"Who is it?" One of the women asked across the table and Belle replied but at that moment Killian's phone buzzed with a text from Liam.

L: Two weeks brother. I mean it!

Killian cursed, and put his phone away, apologizing. He'd missed the name of the designer, but it didn't matter. Her name was a mere detail, and it was clear from some of the new excitement around the room that there was name recognition there.

"Sounds good. But is it a story?" Belle smiled and leaned forward a bit, eager to tell them all.

"That's the thing. They're all friends. They met day one of college orientation and they're all incredibly different. One's old money from Newport, another was in the foster system. But they're confident enough to launch something like this and from everything I read online their first day has been going great."

"How do you know all this? What's your in?"

"I met one of the friends through her last job. She might have more industry contacts then I do." Killian chuckled at the thought. It was very unlikely, after all, given Belle's resume.

"And it's never been done? There aren't any other one-stop-shops for marital bliss?" Belle shook her head, smirking at his phrasing.

"Not like this there aren't." Killian nodded.

"Then run with it, but keep me updated."

"Will do boss." Killian noticed the clock at that moment across the room and promptly jumped from his seat. It was later than he'd expected and time to get home. If he didn't hurry he was going to be late for his train.

"Okay then. That'll be all today. See you all tomorrow." With that everyone was dismissed but as Killian rushed down the hall, he was stopped by a smiling Will.

"You're certainly in a hurry mate. Afraid you'll miss the train? You do realize you have a company car at your disposal, and oh wait, any of the dozen cars your brother has to choose from." Killian grumbled about his friend being too nosey for his own good.

"I'm watching my carbon footprint." That was a lie and the truth was he'd gone on the train one week because his car had been in the shop and had stumbled upon his own personal angel. The want to drive never returned and he'd been train bound ever since.

"Bull shit! What's it really about? You join one of those performance troops or something? Are you a flash-mobber now? Or perhaps mariachi is more your speed." Killian rolled his eyes as he grabbed his bag and made sure he had everything before walking out of his door again.

"You're looking for an angle that isn't there." Will laughed again, following Killian as he moved through the floor.

"Now you're lying to me?! You know that's only going to make it worse, right? I'm a journalist. It's my nature to investigate when someone doesn't want me to." Killian's prayers for a quick elevator wait were answered when the moment he pressed the button the door opened.

"So I should start digging deeper into the feelings you have for Belle?" Will blanched as Killian stepped into the elevator car and he smirked. "Yeah I know about it, and no it's not obvious. Just a reminder not to come at me of all people with that kind of threat."

"Whatever it is, it must be good," Will said after collecting himself and Killian couldn't help but think that his stranger was better than good. She was perfect.

"Goodnight, Will."

The doors closed as his friend waved goodbye and Killian moved quickly from there. He wove through the street down the block to the station and managed to get there just in time to make his usual train. It brought a sense of profound relief and then excitement in its least tamed form. The adrenaline rushed to the surface and as the train car moved to her stop and all he could hope was that she'd be here, than he'd catch a glimpse of the woman who was never far from his thoughts in their days and nights apart.

When her stop arrived Killian was worried that she wouldn't come, but after an influx of people before her, he spotted her golden hair tied back tight. He was spellbound by her but he had to try and keep his cool. He realized that was likely impossible, and there was a very good chance the lady was simply too kind or too wary of his constant leering to say anything, but he attempted to be discrete as she found a spot across the car.

God she's gorgeous.

The thought was an obvious one, but it couldn't be denied. Killian worked with words for a living but they failed them when it came to her. She so far superseded radiant or magnificent. She deserved a language all her own and as her attention turned from the car around them to her drawing pad Killian felt freer to observe her. He must have lost himself in the process though, for a few moments later he felt an arm shoving into him from the seat beside where he was standing.

"Are you just going to stare at her all night, or are you going to man up and introduce yourself?"

Killian stammered a bit in reply at the old woman who had chastised him and he looked to the man beside her who only shrugged and smiled as he held the woman's hand.

"My wife doesn't have great manners, but she does have a point."

Killian was a bit thrown by having someone actually speak to him on the train (he would bet anything that they were tourists) but his eyes naturally moved back to his stranger. This time, however, her eyes were on his and a moment past where the whole world simultaneously clicked into place and fell away entirely. He was tangled up in a host of feelings he was unfamiliar with that always found him when she was near. There was need and desire, wonder and awe, but there was something deeper, a sensation that they knew each other or that they were meant to.

"What are you waiting for?" The old lady whispered and Killian cleared his throat.

Fuck it. I'll never know if she's interested unless I ask, right? Besides Liam will use that weird new sixth sense of his to muck up my life somehow if I don't.

Killian was about to get it together and actually move her way when the shrill ring of a phone cut through the whirring ambient hum of the train. He was remiss to find that it was hers, but there was a slight balm on his feelings when he heard her answer. Despite the bit of bite he could hear in her words, it was still the most surreally beautiful sound he'd ever heard.

"Ruby, I was just there. What could possibly have gone wrong since I left?" Killian stood there paralyzed and he dropped his gaze. It moved back to the older couple and the woman tutted remorsefully.

"Well that's just bad luck. Perhaps she'll hang up before your stop." At that moment the bell sounded and the automated voice sounded out his station.

"Unfortunately not." Killian was about to move towards the door when the old man spoke once more and left him with some final words.

"Take my advice, son. We only get so many tomorrows. You gotta make the most of them." Killian nodded and bid the couple goodnight but as he slipped out the door and took one last look at the train, he swore that the woman looked as sorry to see him go as he was to leave her.

That's it. Tomorrow this ends. Tomorrow I man up and ask her to dinner.

The resolution in his chest was empowering and with this new path decided on, Killian felt better than he had in a long time. There was a not so subtle sense of hope that clung to him from the train to his home and then well into the night. Because maybe, just maybe, being brave would pay off and he'd get the chance not just to admire this woman but to know her too, and Killian could hardly think of a single thing in the world that he wanted more than that.

Post-Note: So this story is coming to me in waves but it's so nice to be at the start of a plotline again. Anything is possible and nothing is set in stone (except for the fact that CS end up happy and there's lots of smuff along the way). I know some of you are probably a little impatient and were wishing for more meaningful contact between our two heroes this week, but next week will bring that for us. I wouldn't call this a slow burn so much as a slow-for-me-burn. Anyway, thank you all so much for reading and let me know what you think! I love the feedback and am so interested in hearing what you all are hoping/imagining for the story.