This is the last chapter, so thank you to all of those who read/reviewed/followed/favorited!
Also, this gets just a tiny bit smutty toward the end!
On Friday night, Emma's stomach was in knots. As in, literal twist and turns.
"God, I can't believe I let you talk me into this, Ruby."
Ruby snickered to herself as she watched Emma fidget in front of the mirror.
"Are you sure this is the right thing to wear?" Emma asked, giving herself an appraising look in the full-length glass.
The dress Ruby had picked out was a black number with three-quarter length sleeves. The neckline of the dress was modest, barely resting beneath her collarbone, but the back of it plunged halfway down her spine. The a-line skirt of the dress flared outward and ended just above her knee.
Ruby came up behind her and put a reassuring arm around her shoulders. "Yes, Emma, it's perfect. Now tell me: how do I look?"
Emma couldn't help but laugh at the abrupt change of subject. She looked her friend up and down, taking in the full effect of her ensemble. The dress Ruby wore was, of course, red, but the shade was closer to maroon. It was cinched at the waist, which played well with Ruby's lithe frame.
"You look great, Ruby. Really." Ruby squealed with delight and pulled Emma over to the vanity. She forced Emma into the stool there and reached for Emma's hairbrush.
"Okay, now let's do something with this hair of yours, shall we?"
After fifteen minutes of protest, and a few curses and a few elbows thrown, Ruby was finally able to wrangle Emma's hair into a romantic updo.
"There we are." She spoke to herself as she moved Emma's bangs around, perfectly framing her face. "There's no way Killian Jones isn't gonna notice you tonight, Em. Now, on to your makeup."
"Ruby," Emma started warily, "are you sure we aren't putting too much effort into this?"
Ruby stifled a laugh as she held Emma's face up by the chin, applying a lipstick that was a warm, almost-nude shade of pink. "Don't over think it, Em. Just go out tonight and have fun. Whatever happens happens."
When there was a knock on the door, Ruby left Emma to answer it while Emma moved on to her eyeliner.
When Ruby opened the door she was greeted by Victor and Graham, who took a few seconds to notice her as they were having their own conversation.
"Ahem," Ruby exaggeratedly cleared her throat, calling attention to herself instead of waiting to be acknowledged.
"Hey, babe." Victor greeted her as he moved in to kiss her cheek, carefully avoiding her red-painted lips. "You look amazing."
Ruby stepped away from the door and allowed the two men to enter the apartment.
Graham greeted her with a smile and a hug. "It's nice to see you again, Ruby."
She beamed at him in response, patting him on the shoulder. "You too, Graham. And thanks again for doing this. I know it sounds a little… weird." She shrugged her shoulders nervously as she twirled her engagement ring around on her finger.
The corners of Graham's eyes crinkled as his lips turned upwards into a smile. "It's alright. It's not like I had anything better to do. Why would I pass up the opportunity to spend the night with a beautiful woman on my arm?"
"What's so weird about a blind date?" Victor asked, clearly having been left out of the loop.
"Nothing, dear." Ruby answered him curtly before giving Graham a wink and going back to check on Emma.
When she returned to Emma's bedroom, she found her sitting on the edge of the bed, trying to buckle the ankle straps on her heels.
"Perfect timing, Ruby! Gimme a hand?" Emma motioned to her ankle and Ruby obliged, kneeling in front of her friend.
"Victor and Graham are here." She finished buckling the shoe and Emma helped her up from the floor.
"Okay," Emma sighed uneasily, "I guess we're actually gonna do this, then."
Ruby nodded enthusiastically. "Yes, we are."
"Alright, Ariel," Killian spoke, trying to get her attention, "they should be here any minute. Now, when they arrive, you are going to act as if you and I are totally devoted to one another, you got it?"
Ariel sighed, shifting her weight from one foot to another. "Whatever you say, Killian. I just don't know how Eric would feel about this."
"Hey," Killian corrected her, "that husband of yours owed me a favor. It was about time I collected on it."
Ariel folded her arms across her chest. "And you're sure that this is the way to win this girl's affections? By pretending that you're in love with me?"
Killian chuckled, straightening his tie. "Jealousy can be one hell of a motivator, love. You'd do well to remember that." He ran his hand over the back and sides of his hair, which was neatly parted and combed. "Answer me honestly. How do I look?"
Ariel looked him over from head to toe, suppressing the need to roll her eyes. "Like you care too much about how you look."
Killian flashed her a devilish smile and waggled his eyebrows. "Perfect."
The ride to the restaurant seemed longer than it was, and Emma just wanted to be out of Graham's car.
(Ruby had insisted that she and Graham ride separately from her and Victor, to make it seem "more real.")
Whatever.
It's not that Graham wasn't a nice guy, Emma just hated being left with nothing to talk about, aside from their plans for the evening.
"You really like this guy, huh?" Graham broke the silence, throwing Emma a quick sideways glance before turning his gaze back to the road.
"Well, I've never pretended to date another guy to make anyone jealous before, so I'm going to go with yes."
She didn't mean to sound so snarky, she was just really on-edge about the whole evening. Ruby wasn't really a great strategist, and Emma didn't want this little scheme to ruin any possible chance she could have with Killian.
"I'm sorry, Graham. I just like him a lot, I guess. And I'm nervous that this date he's going on is something serious. I'd hate to come between him and his girlfriend. Oh, god. What kind of person am I? I don't even know. This was a horrible idea. I think we should just—"
"Emma." Graham cut her off, and mentally she thanked him for it. Otherwise she may have kept babbling all night. "Seriously, I wouldn't worry about it. For all he knows, we could have something serious. So just chill out and take a few deep breaths."
Graham did have a point. As long as Killian remained clueless on how she felt about him, she could retain the upper hand.
When they finally got to the restaurant, Graham parked the car before taking off his seat belt and getting out to open Emma's door for her. She smiled and took his extended hand, coming to her feet and brushing invisible lint off of her dress.
Victor and Ruby pulled up a second later, and once both couples were on their feet, they made their way across the parking lot.
Before Emma realized what was happening, Graham took her right hand and placed it in the crook of his left elbow. She unconsciously gripped Graham's arm tighter as she saw Killian and Ariel waiting for them outside.
Of course, he looked amazing (but what else was new?). He wore a black suit with a black shirt and tie underneath. The elegance of his ensemble was totally understated, and he wore it well. And the way he had his hair styled only added to the whole "suave-and-debonair-maybe-I'm-a-super-spy" vibe that he had going on.
But then she was snapped out of her reverie when she followed the elegant lines of his arm to where it was connected with hers. They were holding hands. Fingers entwined and everything.
And, of course, it didn't help that she was gorgeous. Ariel had beautiful red hair that lay over one shoulder and she wore an equally stunning blue dress with long sleeves. it was calf-length and it had an eye-catching slit that crept it's way up to her mid-thigh.
She felt Graham's arm tense under her hand and she realized that she was digging her nails into his suit jacket.
"God, Emma," he whined, "if you hold onto my arm any tighter you may just rip it off."
She distantly heard Ruby chuckle beside her and she forced herself to release her grip on Graham's arm. When she did, he moved it and wrapped it around her waist, placing his hand on her hip.
"Evening, all." Killian greeted them as they finally came within earshot. "Everyone, this is Ariel." He motioned to the redhead at his side with his free hand. "Ariel, this is my best friend Ruby, her fiance Victor, Ruby's roommate Emma, and…" He trailed off as he looked Graham in the face. "Forgive me, mate. I don't believe we've met before."
Graham smiled warmly and extended his hand to Killian and then Ariel. "The name's Graham, Emma's boyfriend."
Killian raised an eyebrow and smiled, looking back and forth from Graham to Emma. "What a lovely pair you make." He motioned with his hand for the group to follow him, and they all filed into the restaurant.
Killian chuckled to himself. "Boyfriend? That's rich. I don't know who you think you're fooling, Swan, but that bloke is clearly not your type."
He also noticed that his words had the desired effect. Introducing her as his friend would have boosted her confidence, and he was sure that her boyfriend could handle that task just fine.
Emma trailed behind the group, angry at herself for even coming along. Ruby noticed, and excused herself to go and check on her friend.
"Em, are you okay?" Ruby asked, holding her friend by the shoulders.
"Did you hear that? He introduced me as your roommate, Ruby. He doesn't even consider me a friend. How could he ever see me as more than that?"
Ruby smiled wistfully. "Don't give up yet, Emma. The night is still young. Let's go sit down."
Emma followed Ruby to the table their group had been shown to.
Oh, great.
It was a rectangular table with six chairs, Killian and Ariel sat together on one side, Victor sat at the head next to Ariel, and Graham sat at the head next to Killian. The way that the table was set up left no question as to where Emma was supposed to sit. Next to her date, obviously.
And across from Killian.
When they returned to the table the men stood, and Graham and Victor moved to pull out their dates' chairs for them.
Once they were all seated, the waiter came around with the wine that Killian had ordered for the table, and poured a serving into each of their glasses. He poured the last glass and took their orders, promising to return in a few minutes.
Once the waiter was gone, Killian turned his focus to Graham, eyeing him somewhat suspiciously.
"So, Graham. How did you two meet?" He smiled when he noticed a flash of panic in Graham's eyes.
"Uh, I met Emma through Ruby, actually."
Emma smiled, at least that wasn't a lie.
Killian nodded, seemingly satisfied with the answer he'd been given. "How do you know Ruby?"
When Graham smiled Killian could see that he was relieved to have passed some unspoken test. "I actually met Victor first. We were roommates in college."
Killian sipped from his glass and swallowed it before looking to Emma, and then back to Graham. "And how long have you two been together? I have to tell you, Graham, I haven't heard much talk about you."
Emma cut in next, not giving Graham a chance to answer. "And why would you have? It's not like we're friends or anything. You only know me as Ruby's roommate."
Emma noticed a flash of mischief in Killian's eyes as he nodded and flashed her a winning smile. "Quite right, Swan. However that doesn't answer my question."
They stared each other down for a few moments before Ruby spoke up. "Okay, then. Ariel, how did you and Killian meet?"
Killian leaned back in his chair, still making eye contact with Emma, and put his arm around Ariel's shoulders. Ariel leaned into his touch as she answered Ruby's question.
"We met at work." Ariel answered with a cheerful smile. "He's actually the one who hired me."
Emma laughed quietly to herself. "What, did he promise you a promotion if you went on this date with him?"
Every head at the table whipped around to stare at her as Victor choked on the wine he'd had in his mouth.
She felt Ruby kick her under the table, and she realized that she'd just spoken aloud. She looked at Graham, who only gave her a helpless shrug.
Her eyes were drawn to Killian, who was watching her with a raised eyebrow. He leaned forward on the table, perching himself up on his elbows.
"You know, darling, if I didn't know better, I would say it sounds as though you're a little envious."
Emma shook her head, trying to stop herself from blushing. She was saved from answering, however, when the waiter returned with their entrees. She leaned back in her seat as her plate was placed in front of her.
Everyone else around the table began to eat and talk among themselves, but Emma couldn't bring herself to eat much. But, she kept up the charade, laughing extra loudly at Graham's jokes and making sure to smile at him when she knew Killian was looking.
"So, Emma," she heard her name and turned to see Ariel smiling brightly at her, "what do you do for work?"
Emma smiled and swallowed the wine she'd been sipping. "I'm actually a paralegal."
Ariel raised her eyebrows and nodded. "Who do you work for?"
"Gold, Mills, & Blanchard, on 73rd." Emma picked up her glass and took a sip, almost choking as she felt someone brush against her leg under the table.
She looked to Graham with wide eyes, but he was engrossed in whatever Ariel was saying. She then turned her eyes to Killian, to see he was watching her with a raised eyebrow.
She tried to concentrate on the conversation she was supposed to be having with Ariel, but it was so damned hard to concentrate when he was drawing his foot up and down her leg.
Emma kicked him in the shin, and his knee jerked, hitting the bottom of the table.
When everyone turned to look at him, he cleared his throat. "Um, I think I need to make a trip to the washroom. Be back in a tick."
Emma stared at his back as he walked away and disappeared around a corner. Not even a second later, She heard her phone go off on her purse.
She reached for the clutch and opened it, to see that she had a text from Killian. In it, there were two words.
Follow me.
She got up from the table, setting her purse down in her chair. After pushing her chair in and excusing herself, she walked the same path Killian had taken.
Once she rounded the corner, she felt a pair of arms grab her by the waist and pull her backwards into some sort of closet.
"What the hell, Jones?"
A second later, his lips were on hers as his hands explored her body, trailing from her hips up to the open back of her dress and everywhere in between.
She was caught off-guard, but returned the kiss in an instant, wrapping her arms around his neck when she felt him nipping at her lower lip.
He deepened the kiss, groaning into her mouth when she moved one of her hands to the nape of his neck and tugged lightly on the hair there.
When there was no air left in either of their lungs, he broke the kiss, trailing his mouth and his beard (god, why had she ever shaved it?) down her neck, leaving behind a trail of wet, open-mouthed kisses.
"Gods, Swan," he panted against her sensitive skin, "you bloody win."
She gasped when he pushed his hips into hers, and she felt his need straining against his pants. "I win what?" She breathed out, trying not to sound as wrecked as she felt.
"Do you understand how hard it was for me to control myself this long? Watching you flirt with that sodding moron? Wearing this dress, with your gorgeous back exposed to just anyone's wandering eyes, and your legs— gods, your legs—" He reached down and cupped her ass, prompting her to wrap her legs around his waist, "just begging for my attention? It was torture. You and your perfect pink lips. I couldn't stand to see them smiling for anyone but me."
He was grinding his hips into hers, and Emma had to admit that she was only half-listening to what he was saying. "And— fuck —what about your girlfriend?"
She felt him chuckle against her neck before he answered. "She's not my girlfriend. Besides," he paused to kiss her neck and worry the skin there with his teeth, "she's got a husband to get home to."
Emma was confused, but decided to save her questions for later. She pushed down when he pushed up, and she could feel the tension coiling low in her stomach. "Oh my god, Killian, I'm—"
"Say that again."
Emma was almost too far gone to understand him, having barely caught what he said. "Say what?"
"My name, Emma. Say it again." He punctuated his request with a sharp jolt of his hips.
"Killian!"
He chuckled into her neck again, his movements getting a little more deliberate. "That's it, love. Just like that."
She could barely hear him anymore, the roaring in her ears had taken over everything else. Before she could even recognize it, she was falling over the edge, gripping him by the shoulders as she leaned her head against the wall at her back.
She kissed him again, lazily and passionately, as the reality of what they'd just done began to set in. "Killian, what are we doing?"
He looked at her, and then looked at their surroundings before giving her a playful yet dangerous smirk. "Well, at the risk of sounding too frank, I believe we are dry humping in a coat closet."
She sighed, relaxing her legs and letting her feet fall to the floor. "You know that's not what I meant."
She opened the door to the closet, and looked up and down the hallway before grabbing him by the wrist and leading out of the back exit.
Once they were outside, she turned to him, crossing her arms over her chest.
"There a problem, Swan?"
"I just need to know where we stand." he opened his mouth to speak and she cut him off. "And don't make some literal joke, because I swear I will lose my mind."
Killian smiled wryly and shrugged his shoulders. "You know me too well."
He walked over to her and took both of her hands in his. "I don't know what we are, but I know what I want us to be."
Emma's voice was barely above a whisper when she spoke. "And what's that?"
He smiled, cupping the side of her face with an open hand. "Together."
She smiled and leaned in to kiss him, stopping an inch away from his face and leaning back. "But, what about Ariel?"
Killian laughed outright, wrapping his arms around Emma's waist. "I feel nothing for Ariel. She's just a friend. I should really be asking you about your boyfriend."
Emma felt her cheeks redden before her eyes widened in realization. "Did you plan this whole thing?"
Killian smiled, closing the distance between them with a kiss. "Some questions are better left unanswered, love."
She laughed and kissed him back in agreement.
Once dinner was finally over, Emma got to go home with Killian, just as Ruby predicted.
(Or, rather, he came home with her, but still.)
They stayed in her bedroom all weekend, and when the paper came Sunday morning, they filled out the crossword together.
The End