A/n: Wow, everyone. This has been my longest time without updating. My oneshot muse went crazy and I've posted 4 different Captain Swan oneshots (well, one was a two-shot) since I updated. I also posted a few short drabbles on my tumblr (lovingcaptainswan), but won't post them here. I'm sorry! Lol I still obviously adore this story, but I had some writer's block because I had so many different ideas how to go about writing the next chapter. Thanks for your patience, lovelies!

Rinoa Heart: Aww, that is SO SO sweet of you to say! I'm so happy that you enjoy it that much. Thanks for the review. :D I am beyond ecstatic that you said I could be a tv series writer, since that is something that I have always really wanted to do. Thank you!

Maz8645: Aw, thank you so much for taking the time to read and review every chapter and let me know your thoughts. It so made my day to see that!

Cammie: Don't worry, Jordan isn't pregnant. xD I think I mentioned that they pulled into a full shopping center, so she might not have been going to the baby store, but no, I don't plan on this story taking that route. I think Killian would have a heart attack. Poor baby. haha

CLAMPSfluffmeistergirl: I maaaay have referenced Milah there. ;) And yes, he did sleep with another woman, and he probably did enjoy it, t be honest, but I like to think Emma was on his mind in a way. We'll just have to wait and see what happens. ;) Thanks so much for the sweet review!

Aurora-Hatter: "Emma is supposed to detect lies, remember?" Who's to say that she didn't? She definitely sensed something was off, but she's logical and in love with him and she doesn't want to immediately assume that he's cheating on her.

Sinking Feeling

(26 Weeks)

"What the bloody hell is this?" Hook gave the infant swing a ginger push, cringing at the mechanical whir and taking a hesitant step back. "Is that safe?"

Emma rolled her eyes, grabbing his arm and pulling him back from the offending object. "It's a swing, Killian. You can set it to swing by itself." On any other day, she wouldn't be able to help but laugh at his adorable ignorance, but the sneaking suspicion that she had been lied to, mixed with her recent rush of hormones made her feel especially irritable.

"Whatever happened to a rocking chair?" He mumbled, casting a wary look at the contraption as they passed it and moved to the next aisle.

"You can sit and rock him all day then," she grumbled, eliciting a surprised look from Killian. She wasn't sure why she had even said that. After all the experiences that she missed out on with Henry, she honestly felt similarly about the issue, but something made her want to gripe.

Clearly remembering Mary Margaret's previous advice about not upsetting her, he bit back the urge to press her for what was wrong, something Emma was grateful for. Still, she could see from the look on his face that he knew something wasn't right.

"Sorry, I didn't mean that. I'm just… having one of those days," she apologized as they walked the store. "What about this?" She directed her attention to another piece of furniture.

"Are you planning to jail our child?" He teased, reaching to brush a hand against her shoulder, draping his arm around her gently until his hand rested on her opposite hip. "Despite our pasts, I'd hoped it wouldn't be needed so early on."

Emma couldn't stop her small giggle this time. "It's not a jail, it's a crib," she explained, this time less harshly. "It has the netting around the top so they can't climb out and hurt themselves."

"Is that really necessary, love?"

She leaned head against his shoulder. "It doesn't hurt to be prepared. It's just something to think about," she shrugged, turning to look him in the eyes, searching his expression for anything that would ease the nagging feeling. "So… directions, huh?"

A vaguely stormy look flitted across his expression for a split second, before it dissolved into a smirk so quickly that she wouldn't have noticed if she hadn't been paying attention.

"Are you still on about that woman outside? I didn't realize you were such a jealous type," he replied, reaching for her hand that hung by her side and squeezing it comfortingly, but Emma remained unconvinced. "Come on, love, she doesn't mean a thing to me. I'll take you home and show you myself if I must," he whispered, leaning in to give her a gentle kiss on her the side of her forehead. "…I love you."

Emma felt her heart chest tighten painfully - That was the truth. They had said the big L word for weeks now, but it hadn't been something that they had over-used – she liked that. It was saved for special times when it was needed, when it was truly felt, and it still made her a bit weak in the knees to hear him say it. She smiled, closing her eyes as his lips brushed her forehead.

"I love you too," she replied, squeezing his hand back.

~ASMG~

"So, how's the nursery planning going? Anything for me to see yet?" Mary Margaret hinted. Her eyes were painted with excitement as she glanced towards the direction of the extra bedroom.

"Well, we have the crib… and that's about it," she shrugged. "Killian always gets this blank stare whenever I ask him about what he wants it to look like," she laughed. "He still doesn't get why a baby would need a theme."

"He's a man, honey," her mother reminded her good-naturedly. "It seems like you two are doing well though otherwise…" She scooped a small spoonful of vanilla icecream into her mouth and cuddled into the corner of the sofa, handing her daughter her own bowl of dessert.

"How so?"

"Emma, the way he kissed you before he left was… pretty telling. You both really got past some trust issues. You look happy."

"Oh that? That's… I don't know what that is," Emma shook her head, swirling her chocolate icecream around the bowl absentmindedly. "He's been really clingy lately."

"It's called being in love."

"No, it's… weird."

"Emma, I knew you had your issues with true love, but-"

"Whoa, true love? No one ever said anything about true love. I'm still working on just love, thanks."

Mary Margaret just rolled her eyes at her daughter and shrugged innocently. She would learn in time, but for now, she knew that there was no pushing her headstrong daughter into admitting anything she wasn't ready for.

"So what's weird about it?"

Emma hesitated for a brief moment, once again torn between this being her mother and the old friend that she used to confide in about these things. "He's just been different lately, Mary Margaret. He hasn't been sleeping well at night, and he's been really clingy and affectionate since last weekend-" Emma stopped herself, wondering if these feelings were even worth having, or if it was just the baby-induced hormones trying to pull a fast one on her again. At her mother's expectant look, she took a deep breath, "He was talking with this woman in a parking lot, outside of Storybrooke… I walked over to see what was going on, and they both looked really flustered and she walked away … pretty fast. It's stupid-" she added quickly, realizing how ridiculous she sounded.

"Emma, your feelings about something that concerns someone you love are never stupid. What did he say about it?"

"Nothing," she replied, taking a large bite of the cold dessert, swallowing hard before answering. "He said she was asking for directions."

"Well? Couldn't she have been?"

"She could have," Emma admitted, "Except he was lying to me."

"Emma…"

"It all just feels like he's guilty about something."

"He couldn't be showing you more affection because he loves you?"

Her daughter raised an eyebrow. "When have I ever been wrong about him lying to me?"

Mary Margaret mulled over the question. She had to admit that she was right. Emma did have an uncanny way of telling when someone was lying to her, and from the day that they had met Hook, the day that he insisted on being a poor blacksmith, Emma hadn't been fooled for a second – and she hadn't even known him at that point. Hormones raging or not, she couldn't deny the connection that they had always had with each other.

"I don't know, Emma. The man you love starts kissing you goodbye like he's never going to see you again and all you can think of is that he's cheating on you?"

"I never said he was cheating on me. I said he lied."

"You can read Killian and I can read you, Emma. It comes with being a mom," she smiled reassuringly and placed a hand on Emma's knee, giving it a motherly rub. "You should talk with him. All I can tell you is that I see a man who adores you, and if he is lying…maybe there's a reason?"

"What? No, this is just some stupid, pregnancy related fantasy that I let myself build up in my head," she shook her head firmly. "Besides, what am I going to say? Who the hell was that skank in the parking lot and why are you screwing her? That'd go over well."

Mary Margaret frowned, crinkling her nose at her daughter's crassness. "There could be better ways to phrase that," she teased lightly, then paused to look her in the eyes and smile. "Like I said, Emma… he loves you. If it's bothering you, you need to talk with him about it. It's how relationships work."

"Yeah, well, I don't have a lot of experience with good ones."

"I think you're starting to," she said optimistically, removing her hand from Emma's knee and standing. "Now let's get some more icecream and put on a cheesy romantic comedy."

She laughed softly at her mother, feeling herself finally beginning to relax now that she had talked out her feelings. Maybe this whole thing would just go away now that she got it out of her system. She shot Mary Margaret a bright smile and handed over her bowl. "Mint chip this time?"

~ASMG~

Later that night, Emma gasped when she felt unexpected arms wrap around her waist from behind. "Jesus, Killian, you scared me."

"It's nice to know I still have it," he smirked, placing a tender kiss on her neck. "You know, sometimes I miss being terrifying."

"Yeah, you're really scary," she scoffed with a short laugh, reaching for the plate that she had dropped back into the soapy water.

"You should have seen me in my prime."

"I beat you in a sword fight, and that was like the third time I had ever held a sword."

"I let you win, love. To be honest, I was just happy for the excuse to be on top of you," he chuckled.

Emma could feel his smile against her neck. When he gave her no indication that he was going to cease the bear hug that he had captured her in, she casually she went back to washing the dishes, hoping that he would take the hint and walk away. Instead, he tightened his arms around her and rubbed her belly, clearly intent on stealing her attention away from chores.

"Killian…" Again with the clinginess, and along with it, the sinking feeling in the pit of her stomach making a triumphant return – so much for getting it out of her system. "I'm trying to finish the dishes, give me some space." She gently nudged him back with her elbows.

"What? The father of your child isn't allowed to touch you?" He kissed the top of her ear, but loosened his grip around her body reluctantly and wandered towards the fridge, lazily.

"With that logic, I should be letting Neal touch me. I'll be sure to let him know that's how it works, now that he's moving to Storybrooke."

"He won't be touching you if he wants to keep his hands," he growled, the irony of his statement not lost on him.

Emma rolled her eyes, but secretly found his jealousy reassuring now that he was no longer smothering her. "Are you seriously hungry already? We just ate."

"Says the woman who had me go all over town last night to look for a certain icecream. That you didn't even like, I might add."

"That was different…" Her tone softened, becoming sheepish and she bit her lip to avoid smiling. "The baby made me want it."

"Well, the baby is making me want this," he wiggled a chocolate chip cookie playfully and took a bite, ignoring her rolling her eyes at his newfound love for junkfood. "I hope that the creators of 'peanut butter chocolate swirl' are happy with themselves by the way. It's nearly impossible to find in this bloody town."

"Don't be so dramatic."

"Dramatic? I wandered all over bloody Storybrooke on foot for an hour at midnight for that!"

"Well, when you're pregnant, I'll get icecream for you," she said snippily, but after a few seconds, her smug looked turned into a sad smile. "You really have been great about all this, Killian…"

"About all of what, love?" he leaned against the counter idly, taking another bite of his cookie.

"All this," she said, motion to her stomach with both hands. "My cravings, my mood swings… if I wasn't stuck, I'd have wanted to run for the hills too."

"And what makes you think I want to run?" He looked concerned, and stood up straight.

"Nothing," she sighed. "It's nothing."

"Emma love, I told you that I wouldn't leave unless you wanted me to, and it wasn't just to bed you – though it did turn out to be some of the best sex we've ever had… I'm not going to leave you."

Emma love. Her heart melted and butterflies fluttered around her midsection whenever he called her that particular pet name. How did this pirate always have this effect on her?

"I know you won't, Killian."

"Then what's wrong?"

She smiled and shook her head. "Nothing," she promised, reaching for his hand and pulling him close until he bumped into her protruding belly. "Come here, pirate," she whispered and gave him a tender kiss, finally feeling the stress of the week melt away. "Let's go to bed."

"God, I love hearing you say that," he teased, kissing her again chastely.

"I meant to sleep."

"Well, of course. What else could we possibly do in bed?" He grinned and then brushed her lips for a third time, chuckling when she kissed him a bit harder, knowing that her resolve was weakening. "I am beginning to get really tired… Let's go sleep, love," he rasped in her ear mischievously.

~ASMG~

Emma awoke to Killian shifting in bed uncomfortably and grunting softly in his sleep. "Killian?" He didn't respond. His eyelids were twitching rapidly and his fist was gripping the sheets. "Hey…" she reached over and rubbed his shoulder comfortingly. "Killian, you're having a dream," she whispered, shaking his arm lightly.

"Jordan…" he mumbled a few indistinguishable words under his breath, still twitching and shifting.

"What?"

"God, Jordan…"

A/n: I know, I know, I'm slowly but surely delving into the angst, it hasn't quite hit yet... after all, Emma is still trying her hardest to learn to trust again and Killian is trying to maintain that trust in the only way he knows how. Poor misunderstood things. I hope you all enjoyed! Please let me know what you think. My wheels are already turning for the next chapter. ;)Btw, I have a poll up on my profile that is currently tied between my readers wanting a Captain Swan Neverland WIP and a continuation of this fic after the baby is born (whenever this is over), so if you have an opinion go vote!