"You can always cancel if you don't want to go," Mary Margaret said as Emma grabbed a light hoodie off the rack and threw it in her bag.

"No, I do want to go," she replied. "Just to, you know, hear what he has to say."

She turned back to see both Mary Margaret and David looking at her from their spot together in the kitchen. It was weird to see these people that were her age acting concerned as if they were her parents, especially considering they were her parents.

"You know we worry about you," David said. "So if you have any problems or need us to get you, you can just call us."

She shot them an exasperated look. "At what point are you going to start treating me like I'm an adult who has lived on her own for almost 30 years?"

Her father walked over and gave her a warm hug. "You can't blame Prince Charming for not trusting a pirate."

She just rolled her eyes in return before letting out a quiet laugh and quickly said her goodbyes. It was kind of adorable the way they had decided to be so protective of her since the curse broke, but she wasn't a teenager. She had lived by herself, spent time with men by herself, even caught some bad guys by herself.

Of course now she was walking towards a ship owned by a bad guy to have dinner with him.

The air was a bit cool but refreshing as she headed towards the pier. She tried not to get as dressed up as she had when she went to dinner for the first time with Will. This time, it was just her skinny jeans and black boots with a long-sleeved heather grey top. It was hardly something that would impress a man, but she still hoped she could get more than a passing glance from the pirate. Although to be fair, it wouldn't be that hard with him.

As she got closer to the harbor, she saw Hook standing on the deck of his ship, his black leather coat swaying slightly in the breeze. She kept her eyes on him for a minute or two, admiring his strong stance on the ship deck, before he finally turned and noticed her. She could see a smile form on his face that seemed to actually reach his eyes and make them bluer.

He began to walk towards the gangplank of his ship with a bit of a lightness in his step. "Good evening, Lady Swan!"

She had to give it to him - he definitely seemed to have become a bit more charming since she threw him in jail. "Permission to come aboard, captain?" she asked as he climbed up from the dock to the ship.

He bowed slightly and took her hand to help her aboard. "Behold the Jolly Roger, m'lady."

She looked at him and couldn't help but smile.

"I hope you didn't have trouble finding the place, Swan."

"It's hard to miss the only pirate ship in the bay."

He gave her a tight smile. "Come on, love. Let me get you something to drink," he said, putting his hand on the small of her back and leading her to the bow of the ship. "I was going to go for rum and then remembered that you aren't a pirate - yet. So perhaps some wine."

She gave him an encouraging look. At least he was trying. "Sure," she said, holding out her hand for an ornately etched silver wine goblet. "This seems kind of … excessive for a glass of wine."

"A pirate doesn't judge the taste level of the treasure he plunders," he said, raising his glass to wordlessly propose a toast. "To second chances," Hook said, holding his glass up to her.

Emma couldn't help but scoff. "You're going to need more than a second chance," she said teasingly.

"That's fair," he replied, clinking his goblet against hers. "I promise to do my best, Swan."

She took a sip from the goblet, tasting some of the best red wine she had ever had. "This is amazing," she said with a hint of surprise in her voice. "Where did you get this?"

He gave her a mischievous grin and leaned into her personal space. "Same place I got the goblets," he said, giving her a quick wink before turning back to the deck of his ship.

It was then that she realized there was a blanket spread out on the ship's deck that she must've walked past when she first arrived. There was a bouquet of flowers casually laid in the center with several small plates of food around them. Apparently, he had distracted her more than she expected.

"Do you like it?" he asked, a bit of apprehension in his voice. "I was going to get some candles as well but after being away from my ship for so long, the wood has dried out a bit. I don't believe dinner would be a success if I set the whole place on fire."

She let out a small laugh at his joke. "No," she said. "I guess that would be bad."

He gestured towards the blanket with his hooked hand. "Please, sit," he invited her.

She walked towards the blanket and found a nice spot near one of the corners closest to her. "Is this the blanket you took with us to the beach that night?" she asked.

He nodded timidly. "It had some good memories, didn't it?" he asked.

"It did," she responded quietly, her cheeks feeling warm from the memory of their make-out session on the beach all those months ago.

"Besides, pirate treasure doesn't usually include blankets so I suppose I have to keep using the one from Gold's shop."

"You got this from Gold?" she asked. "Am I going to get a call from someone in town telling me you took their pre-cursed blanket?"

He smiled. "Well, I did see one of the dwarves eyeing it suspiciously when I took it to the laundromat to get cleaned."

Emma made a mental note to try and see the pirate in all his leather glory standing among the washing machines and dryers the next time he needed something cleaned.

"I have a plate for you, love," he said, handing her a small silver tray that matched her goblet. She gently took it from his hands and began to help herself to the small plates he had already laid out on the blanket in front of them.

He joined her and the silence between them was soon filled with casual conversation. Hook talked about some of the work he did on his beloved ship since it was returned to him. Emma told him about the minefield she was trying to walk through learning how to deal with parents for the first time, especially when those parents were Prince Charming and Snow White.

After dinner was finished, a slight lull in the conversation brought on a smile from Hook. "So I believe the only way to end this dinner would be with something I know you'll enjoy," he said, arching an eyebrow towards her. "Wait here."

She gave him a puzzled look and watched as he headed down a hatch behind the wheel, his black leather pants clinging to all the right places. She assumed he was going down to his captain's quarters and became a bit concerned about what exactly he would bring up with him from below deck. But then he emerged with a small plastic food box with a delicious looking piece of tiramisu tucked inside. He remembered, Emma thought as a wave of warmth came over her.

"I missed seeing a smile like that from you, love," he said as he sat down across from her, pulling out two plastic forks and handing one to her.

She slowly sunk her fork into the dessert before taking a bite, tasting the cinnamon as the tiramisu melted in her mouth. They eased into another easy but superficial discussion, trading bites as the breeze began to pick up off the water. By the time Hook let Emma have the last bite, she was ready to grab the hoodie from her bag.

"I can lend you my coat, Swan," he offered.

"I'm OK," she said, zipping up the sweatshirt and stuffing her hands in the pockets. Even in the cool night, her palms were beginning to sweat. The night had been nice, but there were things she still hadn't been able reconcile in her mind about who exactly this pirate was in front of her. She just wasn't sure how - or if - she was going to ask them.

Hook must have easily been able to pick up on her apprehension and cleared his throat as if he was ready to tackle whatever it was. "So, Swan," he said "What do you want to ask?"

"Who said I wanted to ask anything?"

He gave her a tight smile. "You may not realize this, love, but you're a bit of an open book."

"Really?" she asked incredulously.

Hook shrugged and looked at her. "You deny you want to ask me something?"

"No," she responded quietly. Damn him.

"Open book," he replied. "So."

"So."

Hook waved his hand invitingly in front of him. "Your question, lass."

She swallowed and took a deep breath. "You don't seem to be the same pirate I threw into the cell in my office a few months ago."

"That's not a question."

She stared at him and took a deep breath. "What changed since I arrested you?"

Hook's features became serious and he looked away from her, his playfulness instantly disappearing. He began fidgeting with the rings on his right hand before taking a breath to look up at the wheel of his ship. "When I first got back here after being released from your brig, I sulked and couldn't do anything. But I've spent quite a bit of time working on the Jolly Roger this past month. I repaired some rips in the sails and fixed that bloody loose board on the deck. I took an inventory of everything in the ship's hold where I found your cinnamon." He smiled, then took a deep breath and looked at her. "I had all this time alone on my ship and instead of looking at maps or plotting my next course, I kept trying to find reasons to stay in port."

Emma gave him a sarcastic smile. "That sounds like you failed at being the captain of your own ship."

"It does, doesn't it?" he replied quietly.

"So what kept you in Storybrooke for so long?" Emma asked, fidgeting with the wine glass in front of her.

She could see his jaw tense slightly. Then he looked up at her with his piercing blue eyes. "I couldn't leave you."

Emma swallowed, trying to control her emotions. "You know, I was finally starting to get over Will."

He reached out and pulled her hand from the hoodie's pocket and placed it in his. He played with her fingers and she could feel his cool rings against her warm skin. "Emma, please don't ever get over me."

"I thought you and Will weren't the same person."

Hook smirked at her. "Perhaps we have more in common than I first wanted to admit," he explained. "You, for example."

She gave him a sad smile. "And what about that whole thing with you not being the person I deserve?" she asked quietly.

"That's still true, unfortunately," Hook said, slightly scoffing before looking up at her. "I don't deserve you, truly, but I want to become someone who does."

Hook slipped his hand from her grasp and tucked her long blonde hair behind her ear, then gently traced her jaw line with his thumb. She could feel herself melting into his touch and leaned her head into his palm.

The pirate's hand stilled and he hesitated for a moment before leaning in and gently kissing her. His lips working on hers were just as she remembered when she kissed Will and she could feel a warmth reigniting in her chest. He may have been going by a different name and wearing different clothes, but she could tell by his kiss that there really was a bit of Will's heart still in him.

Her hand came to rest on the thigh of his leather pants, her kiss deepening against his lips before they wordlessly slowed down and pulled away from each other. Hook's forehead was still resting on hers and she could feel his warm breath on her cheeks.

"Stay with me tonight," he said, his voice hoarse and almost pleading.

She wanted to, she really did, but she could feel the doubt creeping up in her that was trying to protect her from more heartbreak. "I can't."

"Emma, stay."

She pulled away from him and took a deep breath. "I'm sorry. I just …" She shook her head in an effort to get some clarity. "I'm not there yet."

He sat back, his hand slipping down from her face to cover the one she had left on his thigh. "Do you think you'll ever be there?"

"I hope so," she said - and she meant it.

His eyes rose and she could see the honesty in them. "I hope so too," he said. "Very much."

Emma gave him a small smile and ducked her head to avoid his glare. "I should probably get going," she said, sliding her hand slowly off his leg.

"You don't have to leave this early, Swan," he said.

"I do," she replied reluctantly, her mind swimming with thoughts that were too confusing for her to sort out without taking her leave.

He nodded. "I understand," he said quietly, a bit of disappointment creeping into his voice.

But Hook was a gentleman, standing up and giving Emma his hand to help her off the blanket. Her knees went a little weak as she stood and she couldn't be sure if it was because of the wine, the long time sitting on the blanket, or if it was just him.

"Can I at least walk you home?" he said quietly, his breath again dancing across her cheeks.

She just shook her head, imagining the kisses in front of her apartment door that would muddle her thoughts. "I'll be OK," she said. "It's not far."

Hook nodded and rather than protest, let her hand slip from his so he could lean over to grab her bag for her. "It was a pleasure having you on the Jolly Roger, love. I hope to see more of you here."

"More of me?" she asked in a flirtatious tone.

The pirate just raised an eyebrow. "You can take that to mean whatever you wish, m'lady," he said, putting an extra emphasis on the old-fashioned moniker as he took a bow in front of her, a playful smile blooming on his lips.

"Good night, Hook."

"Good night, my Swan."

He took her hand and helped her step over the threshold of his ship onto the gang plank and when she finally let go of him, her skin immediately felt cold where his warmth had lingered. She stuffed her hands in the pocket of her hoodie and turned to walk down the dock when she heard him yell at her.

"Swan!" She turned to see Hook standing at the top of the gangplank, the bouquet of flowers from the blanket in his hand. "You forgot these, love." He tossed the flowers down to her and she stared at them - the reds and whites of the daisies bright against the darkness in the bay. She smiled and turned to see the pirate looking down on her with a smile to match.

"Thank you," she said earnestly.

He nodded and she turned to walk home, feeling his eyes follow her until she ducked around the corner of the old cannery and was out of his sight.

She stopped and leaned against the wall, taking in a deep breath to smell the scent of the daisies surrounding her. Her mind began to race, over-analyzing every bit of their conversation from that night with Hook. She actually had an amazing time with him. Maybe she should give him a chance, she thought. Maybe he had changed from the broken man she arrested all those months ago. And maybe, just maybe, the daughter of Snow White and Prince Charming could accept to trade a now impossible relationship with a kind waiter for one with a devilish pirate.