So we're approaching the end of this story! I planned out the rest of what I plan on writing and there will be 11 chapters total (so 2 more left) and possibly an epilogue.

I'm really excited for this chapter and really hope you like it. This chapter is only in Emma's POV. Don't worry Killian's POV will be back in the next chapter.

Thanks to my beta Nicki- oncertwice for all her help!

Read and enjoy!


I was getting ready for another of my dates with Graham. In the past two weeks we went out a couple of times, he took me out to dinner, went to the movies—we did the typical stuff you do on dates.

He was always the perfect gentleman during our dates, and we haven't actually kissed yet, besides the kiss on the cheeks when we greeted each other and said our goodbyes. As I got to know him, I realised I really enjoyed his company, he was nice and understanding. I still didn't know where I wanted this to go but the only thing I knew was that I liked having him around.

I suspected that the main reason that I had a hard time knowing what I felt for him was because of Killian. After our kiss I finally admitted to myself that I found him attractive and that there was undeniable sexual tension between us, but I didn't know what to do with it.

So I did what I always do, deny the chemistry between us and run, which lead him to date that blond girl from his work, Tink. Seeing him with her at the diner the other night proved to me that I have made the right choice on going out with Graham.

Tonight, Graham invited me to come over to his place since he wanted to cook diner for me. I was kind of nervous, since going over to his place was kind of a big deal for me and I didn't know what to expect.

I finished putting on my make-up in my room and then went to the bathroom to brush my teeth. The front door creaked and was followed by a loud bang.

"EMMA?" David yelled as I heard his footsteps approaching.

"In the bathroom." I responded as I spat the water out of my mouth.

"Another date with Graham?" He asked as he leaned on the doorframe, arms crossed over his chest.

"Mmhm." I rinsed by toothbrush and dropped it in the cup where we kept the other toothbrush. I turned around and walked passed him as I walked towards the kitchen, my brother following me. I went to open the cupboard where the glasses where stored and took one out.

"So, how is that going?" He asked me as he went to open the fridge, taking a beer out.

"Fine, I guess." I answered him, opening the faucet so I could pour myself a glass of water. We both went to sit at the table with our drinks.

"You guess? I mean, you've gone out with him, what, five times now? Shouldn't you know by now if you like him or not?"

"It's more complicated than that, okay?"

"What's complicated? Do you like him or not?"

"What's not to like? He's handsome, sweet and caring." I answered defensively.

"But…?" He asked as he encouraged me to spill my insecurities. I sighed when I realised that I couldn't hide anything from my brother.

"I don't feel like he really gets me. I mean he does, but not the way I need him to."

"Which is?"

"I don't know, someone who can challenge me, someone who doesn't treat me like fine china, someone who can really make me laugh, and make me feel free." As I voiced out loud what I wanted, I couldn't stop the image of my roommate from appearing in my head.

"Do you think it's him?"

I shrugged my shoulders at his question, "Maybe."

As I answered him, we heard the front door open again, and seconds later Killian entered the kitchen, looking handsome as always.

"Hey mate!" He greeted my brother when he saw him. His eyes shifted to me, and made a quick nod of his head.

"Emma."

I greeted him with a small smile as I felt turmoil inside me, feeling suddenly nervous by his mere presence. I looked past him and saw the time on the oven.

"Shit, I need to go." I yelped as I realised what time it was. I got up and went to my bedroom to grab my purse.

When I got out of my room, Killian was sitting in my chair with a beer in front of him, and I caught him looking at me before his eyes went back to his drink.

"Have another date with Humbert?" He asked as he took the bottle in his hands so he could take a sip of it. His eyes levelling with mine, his stare burning through me.

"Yes." I answered as I tucked one of the loose strands of my hair behind my ear. He hummed as he dropped the bottle back on the table.

"Okay, so I'll be going. Don't wait up." I told them, walking out of the kitchen as I heard David saying bye. I walked towards the door, wanting to flee the tension that had suddenly appeared with our roommate's presence.

When I arrived outside, I looked at my phone to see the time and saw how late I was, I decided to hail a cab. Ten minutes later, I arrived in front of Graham's building. I paid the driver and got out of the cab, making sure I had everything with me. I walked towards the entrance door, and looked at the white buttons on the brick wall next to the door.

I took out the piece of paper Graham gave me yesterday with his address on it so I could see which number I needed to press. I raised my hand towards the buttons and pressed on the number 12, which was followed by a loud buzz.

I waited a couple of seconds before hearing Graham's voice telling me to come up. I heard a click coming from the door and pulled it open. I took the elevator and went up to the fourth floor and searched for the correct numbers on the doors.

When I found it, I stood in front of the door, inhaling deeply trying to get rid of my nerves. My hand formed a fist, and raised it upwards to knock on the door. Graham opened the door with a big smile as he opened the door further so I could enter, and closed it behind me. He leaned in for the usual kiss on the cheek.

"I'm glad you're here. I was kind of worried you got lost on your way over." He told me as he shifted nervously on his spot.

"I'm sorry, I just got sidetracked at the apartment." I turned my head around and looked at his apartment

It was one big room, kitchen, dining room and living room altogether. On the left there was the kitchen counter with a small kitchen island with two stools, on my right there was a table big enough for four. In the middle of the room there was the living room with all the essentials: a couch, a coffee table and a television with some other little furniture around.

"Wow, your place is nice." I told him as I turned my head around to look at him, seeing his cheeks turn slightly red under his stubble.

"Thanks, um… I hope you're hungry." He said shyly.

"Actually, I'm starving." I answered him with a smile.

Graham insisted on doing everything and I ended up leaning on the kitchen island drinking wine as he made the final preparations to the supper. I was pretty overwhelmed by the amount of trouble he went through. I was expecting something simple, like pasta, but apparently he went all out by making roast beef with steamed vegetables and rice.

When he finished, I tried helping him bring the food to the table but refused, telling me I was his guest, so I just sat at the table, not knowing what do. When the food was on our plates, he opened a bottle of red wine, and poured some in my glass and his.

The supper went by smoothly and we had fun talking like we always did. I insisted on helping him clear the table and do the dishes, which, as usual, he refused, but I went to help him anyway, not wanting to sit and wait for him to do everything. We finally came to an agreement and he let me help him clear the table.

When it was done, we grabbed what was left of the wine and poured it in our glasses and went to sit on the couch. We sat close to each other and without knowing how it happened, his lips were on mine kissing me softly.

He leaned back a little bit so he could look at me, silently asking me if I wanted him to continue. My hands went to the back of his neck so I could close the small gap that was between us. The kiss was sweet and slow as we both explored each other's mouths. As I closed my eyes and tried to succumb to the kiss, I couldn't stop myself from thinking that there was something missing, and I couldn't put my finger on it.

I suddenly remembered how it was when Killian had kissed me at the bar—passionate and urgent. Just the thought of it made a rush of lust course through me and I tilted my head so I could deepen the kiss, taking him by surprise.

I leaned back on the couch, pulling him on me as the kiss grew more passionate. One of my hands went to his hair, fingers running through his brown curls as the other roamed his firm back. He was holding himself up on his left forearm, his right hand on my waist, hesitating on exploring further.

Wanting him to do more, I wrapped my legs around his waist, and rolled my hips until I felt him through his pants as I tried to chase down the same sensations I felt when it was with Killian, but it wasn't the same.

He let out a strangled moan when he felt my core rub his, and broke the kiss as he leaned back until he was sitting on the couch. His hair was tousled because of my fingers, and looked at me with hooded eyes, mouth open as he tried to regulate his breath. I sat up in my seat and tried to understand what just happened.

"Emma, sorry, I don't think it'd be a good idea if we did that now." He told me with an apologetic stare.

"Oh…okay." I answered him in shock as I blinked my eyes. Seeing the look on my face, he moved towards me and grabbed my hands in his.

"Don't take this the wrong way, Emma. It's just that I really like you and I don't want to ruin this by going too fast." He raised my eyes to his, and the way he looked at me was so sweet and caring that I couldn't bring myself to blame him.

"It's fine, Graham, don't worry about it. Look, I think it's better if I just go home for tonight." I reassured him with a smile.

Of course, being the sweetheart he was, he walked me back home to make sure I'd get home safely. When I finally got home, the lights were off and the only light visible was the one of the street lamps seeping through the kitchen window at the end of the hallway.

I walked the path to my room, trying not to make much noise knowing that the guys must be sleeping. When I arrived in the living room, I saw some light coming out from under Killian's door. I felt my stomach flutter knowing that he was on the other side of the wall doing God knows what, and all I could think about was all of him, the way he made me feel that day and how I confused I felt when Graham didn't.

I continued the walk to my room and dropped myself on the bed as my body bounced a couple of times before going still. I stared at the ceiling as I felt guilt invade me when I realised that when Graham was kissing me I wished it were Killian. I let out a loud grunt before grabbing a pillow and burying my face in it.

-/-

The next day I had the apartment to myself since both Killian and David were working, and there was a big chance that my brother wouldn't come back home and would go at Mary Margaret's apartment. As for Killian, I didn't know if even planned on coming back here after his job.

Either way, I had the place all to myself for most of the day. I spent most of the day cleaning up, and late in the afternoon I suddenly had the urge to make some chocolate chip cookies. I went through my pantry to get the ingredients I'd need and dropped them on the kitchen table. I went to preheat the oven so it would be at the right temperature when I finished preparing the dough.

I started mixing up the dry ingredients before I added the rest. I took out a roll of parchment paper so I could place it on the baking sheet. With my hands I picked up some of the dough and made a small ball with it and dropped it on the baking sheet.

When the oven beeped, I took the cookies and put them in. As they baked, I cleaned up all of the dishes I used while preparing it. When the time was up, I went to check if they were done. I took them out, and left it on the top of the oven so it would cool down.

During that time, I went to my bedroom and decided to put on my sweatpants and prepare myself to watch a chick flick since I was going to be alone at home without the boys.

I came back into the kitchen and took the chocolate powder from the cupboard. Then I got a mug and poured milk into it. I warmed the milk and then stirred the liquid with the powder until it was well mixed. I went to get to can of whipped cream from the fridge and poured some on my hot chocolate. When I put it away, I took the cinnamon and put a generous amount on top. I grabbed my mug and a plate with two warm cookies on it and went to get myself settled on the couch.

I set my mug and my plate down on the coffee table and tucked my feet under me as I took the remote to turn on the television. I went on Netflix and started to browse the romantic comedies section and decided to watch the movie 27 Dresses.

Just when I pressed play and took a sip of my hot cocoa I heard a pair of keys fumbling with the door and seconds later Killian walked through it. He walked slowly towards the living room, looking completely exhausted.

"Hey." He mumbled as he walked by front of me before he tumbled on the couch next to me.

"Hey." I answered him as I glanced at him next to me; he was rubbing his eyes with one hand as he sighed. "Long day?"

"You have no idea. I'm just glad to be back here, doing nothing." He answered as he locked his eyes with mine for a brief moment before turning his head towards the TV, where the opening credits just started to appear.

"So, what are we watching?" he asked as he got himself comfortable on the couch.

"27 Dresses." I told him with a small smile, taking a bite of one my cookies, waiting for his reaction.

"What? No! Let's watch Scarface instead." He said with a disgusted face as he turned his head towards me with an outraged look, and I couldn't help but laugh at his overreaction.

"Scarface, really? You want to watch a movie about a drug lord who uses his bazooka? I say nope!"

"Oh, come on! Have some pity, I had a hard long day at work and I just want to relax at home, watching a good movie." He pouted in an exaggerated, pleading voice. I giggled and looked at him with a teasing smirk.

"If we watch my movie, you can have some of the cookies I baked today." I offered, waiting for his answer. When he slumped on the couch and sighed loudly, I knew I had won.

"Fine, you win this time, Swan. Next time I chose the movie." He said, getting up as he went towards the kitchen. He came back with a glass of milk and some cookies and reclaimed his seat on the couch.

My eyes were stuck on him and couldn't wipe the smile off my face. Killian must have sensed it, since he turned his head to look at me with a mouthful of cookie.

"What?" He asked with concerned look.

"Nothing, you're cute. You look like a 10-year-old boy with your glass of milk and your cookies."

He gulped the food he had in his mouth and looked back at me with smirk. "I can assure you, I'm anything but a boy."

At his answer, I rolled my eyes and looked back at the screen. "Watch the movie, Jones." I told him, trying to stifle a smile since I knew his eyes were still on mine. He chuckled and turned his head towards the screen.

Halfway through the movie, Killian interrupted the movie as he suddenly got up. I glanced at him, intrigued with what he was doing.

"I'm hungry, I'm going to make some grilled cheese, do you want one?"

"Sure, why not? Want some help?" I asked him as I got up from the couch.

"It's only a grilled cheese, love, but I wouldn't mind the company." I slapped him on the chest before following him into the kitchen.

As he spread the butter on the bread, I took two beers out of the fridge and sat down on a chair as I watched him do his thing. I couldn't help but feel content and carefree in this moment. This was what I liked about Killian, when he wasn't trying to flirt or just being an ass he was such pleasant company. I felt like I could be myself with him, that he wouldn't judge me or walk away from me. It wasn't like this with Graham, and it should be. With him I always tried to be on my best behaviour, afraid that if I revealed the real me, he would leave.

I kept staring at Killian as I let my mind wander about him and how he made me feel, something that I couldn't deny anymore, emotions that I couldn't run from anymore. His back was to me, and he turned his head back to look at me with an eyebrow raised.

"You're awfully quiet there, Swan. Penny for your thoughts?"

"I was just thinking that it has been a long time since we had fun like this." I answered him with small smile. He nodded as he turned his attention back to the bread in the pan.

"Indeed it has. It's nice isn't it?"

"It really is." I said in a low voice.

We both stared at each other with a sheepish smile, and I felt a shiver run down my spine. When Killian finished doing the grilled cheese he put them on a plate, we both grabbed our beer and went back to the living room to watch the rest of the movie.

When the movie finished, Killian begged that we start watching Scarface, and I couldn't say no to the puppy face he was making.

We started to watch his movie and I slowly felt my eyelids go heavy and didn't even realise that I felt asleep on Killian's shoulder, until I woke up the next morning tucked under his arm, my head rising and falling in tune to the rhythm of his breathing.