"See you guys in an hour!" Kristoff waves as he pulls out of the driveway, Anna in the passenger seat and their kids and Elsa's daughter strapped in the backseat.

"Drive safely!" Elsa calls out.

"You got it!"

"Love you, sweetheart!" Elsa waves to her daughter.

"Love you too, Mom!" Daisy waves back.

Her cousins call out, "Bye, Aunt Elsa!"

As the car disappears down the road, the ladies all throw their bags in the trunk of Emma's yellow bug. They could've taken Elsa's vehicle, but Emma insisted her trusty bug is reliable, even though it's old. Besides, Kristoff's parents' lake house is only an hour away.

Playing the part of the doting boyfriend they've made everyone believe, Killian comes up to Emma and wraps his arms around her, kissing her lips. "Bye, baby."

Emma blushes and grins at him as she winds her arms around the back of his neck. Ever since she knocked his socks off in the ladies' room on Mother's Day, their relationship has shifted a bit. And she can't deny that pretending to be Killian's girlfriend is fun. Almost too much fun, in fact.

Killian lowers his hands, giving her ass cheeks a firm squeeze as he dons a big grin. "Have I mentioned how much I love these shorts on you?" he whispers in her ear, obviously not complimenting her for show since no one else can hear him.

"Watch it, buddy. Hands off my sister!" Leo calls jokingly. He doesn't actually have a problem with them being together. In fact, he's happy for both of them. Which is saying something, considering he hated Neal.

"See you soon. Drive safe."

"You too."

Once they part, the ladies hop into the bug as the guys pile into Leo's truck, including Ruby's holidate for the day, Uncle Sam as she calls him.

"Alright, let's go," Elsa says, clapping her hands excitedly.

Emma turns her key in the ignition, and when it doesn't start right away, she tries again. "Don't panic, it always takes the old gal a few times to get moving."

But nothing happens.

"Dammit!" Emma hits the steering wheel in frustration.

Leo pulls up next to the bug, rolling down the passenger window and calling out to her through the open window of his truck. "Everything alright, sis?"

"Her car died," Elsa answers for her. "Can you take us to get mine?"

"Sure, hop in!"

Emma furrows her brows. "But there's no room."

"Relax, it's only a five-minute drive."

Emma's still hesitant as all four ladies step out of the car and grab their bags, throwing them into the back of Leo's truck, which is already full of the boxes of fireworks he and Killian picked up.

As they make their way to the back seat, Emma's doing the math in her head. They can fit Audrey or Ruby up front between Leo and Sam, but that still leaves four people to sit in the backseat, which only fits three full-grown adults, so that means…

"Emma, you'll have to sit in Killian's lap. That okay with you?" Elsa asks, sliding in next to him.

Ruby climbs into the front seat next to her date because Audrey didn't like the idea of sitting next to a strange man who smells like marijuana. Leo made him store his weed in the glove compartment, but Emma can smell it from outside the truck.

"Hop on, love. I promise I don't bite," he smirks, patting his lap invitingly.

Emma offers a small smile, gulping as she climbs into the truck and crams herself on his lap, moving around to find a comfortable position. She's not questioning the hospitality of his lap; she's worried about what's in between his lap. The beautiful cock hiding in his shorts—the cock she'd tasted in her mouth and sucked until she was rewarded with his salty, warm cum.

She tries not to think too much about their time in the restroom together, but when Killian stretches the seatbelt around them, strapping her to him and his beautiful cock, and wraps his arms around her stomach, her belly tightens with knots.

This will definitely be a long five minutes.

"Awe, you two are so cute," Elsa beams as she looks over at them. "Aunt Rubes, aren't they cute?"

Ruby cranes her neck to look at them, flashing a smirk. "Don't do anything I wouldn't do."

Leo ignores the comments and takes off down the road.

When they reach Main Street, all of them scan up and down the road, groaning and grumbling. Traffic is basically at a standstill because everyone's either coming or going since it's the Fourth of July weekend, which is very unfortunate since Elsa's house is on the other side of Main Street.

"Hey, sis, you gonna be okay with sitting like that for the hour drive?

Emma glances around the truck, everyone looking at her expectantly. No one else seems to have a problem with it, but then again, none of them have to sit in someone's lap they're painfully drawn to.

"Yeah, I'll be fine," Emma laughs it off with a wave and cranes her head to look at Killian. "You okay with that, babe?"

He pulls her into his chest, letting her know exactly how okay he is with her riding in his lap. "I think I'll be alright," he chuckles, finding the question humorous. Then he grabs the hem of her shorts and whispers in her ear, "I don't know, with you in these little shorts, I find it hard to keep my hands off you."

Heat surges through her core, and she has to clench her thighs together.

Fuck.

This is going to be the longest hour of her life.

"Okay, I'm taking the back roads then," Leo announces before doing a U-turn and heading in the other direction.

Emma's comfortable at first, but about twenty minutes later, her body starts feeling stiff, so she leans back a little and turns her head, seeing Killian with his eyes closed. Taking advantage of the situation, she makes her best attempt to stretch out her body, arching her back and sliding slightly down on Killian's lap.

A sharp intake of breath tickles her ear as she feels his hands wrap around her hips. Emma moves around, trying to find the best position when Leo goes over a bump that probably would've knocked Emma out of her seat, if not for the seatbelt.

Emma relaxes again, sinking into Killian's lap, but jerks when she feels something solid underneath her ass. "Did you leave your phone in your pocket?" she asks, lifting herself up a little bit and reaching underneath her, feeling for Killian's phone.

His grip on her hips tightens and he speaks in a hushed tone, his words low and husky. "No—Emma stop, that's not—"

She chokes on air when she can feel the thick muscle between Killian's thighs that had been slightly prodding her. Heat pools in her belly as she snatches her hand away and tries to pretend everything's normal. If anyone in the truck noticed what happened, no one says a word or gives any indication.

She threads her hands together, placing them in her lap as she tries not to think about Killian's erection pressed to her ass and how much she wants to rock against him, but she wouldn't be able to explain that in front of her family.

Definitely not.

Thankfully, everyone arrives at the lake house without a hitch and soon, the ladies are chatting on the deck, sipping on Mai Tais. Kristoff is cooking hamburgers on the grill and the other men guzzle down their beers and shoot the firecrackers across the lake. Emma nixes the alcohol and instead drinks a mocktail. She has a feeling she wouldn't be able to keep her hands off Killian by the end of the night with a little liquid courage in her system as she thinks about the drive here and how she had to sit in his lap. Their relationship is shifting, and she's afraid all the excitement from the fourth will cause her to throw caution to the wind. It's bad enough she gave him a blowjob in a public restroom on Mother's Day. She blames it on the mimosa, even though she only drank one.

Killian lights the fuse of an M-80, holding it in his hand. "Ready?"

"Yeah, throw it, man!" Leo encourages, clapping his hands.

Killian casts the firecracker out into the lake, creating an explosion on the water. The men cheer and laugh.

"Now that's how you blow shit up, mate!" Killian hollers like he's a pirate's captain, warding off a threatening ship.

"Yep!" Leo and Sam give him a high-five.

"God bless America!"

"Whooooooah!" Killian cheers, throwing a fist in the air.

Emma rolls her eyes as she watches the scene at the lake and walks across the deck, sinking down into a lounge chair. "What is it about men and explosives?"

"It's all about the cock," Aunt Ruby replies, shifting her gaze to her niece.

Audrey furrows her eyebrows as she munches on some chips and dip. "What do fireworks have to do with a man's…anatomy?"

"It's like jacking off." Ruby shrugs. "Men live for the orgasm."

Emma, Anna and Elsa dissolve into laughter at their beloved aunt's bluntness.

"If they're not fucking, they're dreaming about fucking...or blowing stuff up. Next best thing to fucking."

"Wait…" Audrey scrunches up her nose. "So, they're all down there right now, thinking about…"

Emma nods, finishing what her brother's fiancé seems to be too proper to say. "Fucking."

Elsa giggles at Audrey's wide-eyed expression.

Poor Audrey. Everyone seems to pick on her for being so innocent and stuffy. Her brother is quite the opposite; he's laid back and fun, just like their father. But opposites attract, she supposes.

Another boom disrupts the air, followed by more cheering that's soon drowned out by Killian's screams and a slew of obscenities that pour from his mouth. "Fuuuuuuuuck!"

Emma shoots up from her chair and darts over to the railing, her heart fluttering with panic as Leo sprints up the small hill and over to the deck, planting his hands on his hips as he catches his breath. "Hey, uh...do we have a first aid kit by any chance?"

Dread creeps into her stomach. "Maybe Band-Aids. Why?"

"Killian, uh…he, uh, just blew off his finger...just a little bit," he adds casually as if it's no big deal.

"Oh my God!" Emma screeches in fear, running down the stairs as fast as her feet will take her, heart beating erratically.

Kristoff turns away from the grill, remaining cool and collected as if he's been in this situation hundreds of times. But he has three kids, so he's used to dealing with chaos and injuries. He raises his hands, which are donning festive oven mitts. "Alright, everybody, remain calm. Audrey, go get some ice and a baggie. Elsa, find something to make a tourniquet." He turns toward the lake and calls out, "Do we have the finger?!"

Killian groans in pain as Emma secures a towel around his hand, and the rest of the adults dig through the sand with toy shovels, searching for his finger.

"Come on, a little hustle, everybody!" Kristoff claps his hands encouraging them to hurry. "We gotta find that finger."

"Got it!" Leo exclaims, holding it up like a trophy. He runs over to where Audrey is holding out a Ziplock bag of ice and drops it inside.

Killian grimaces as he looks at the bag. "Are you sure that's mine?"

"He's in shock," Kristoff states, because who else's finger would it belong to? Moving to the other side of Killian, he helps Emma stand him up. "We need to get him to the hospital."

"I'll take him," Leo offers, heading over to his friend.

"No!" Audrey pulls his fiancé back by the shirt. "You're drunk."

"Kristoff's sober." Anna points out. "You can drive him."

Aunt Ruby raises her hand. "We'll watch the kids!" she announces as her date cheers, dancing drunkenly.

"The kids can tread water, can't they?" Sam asks.

"Nope." Kristoff shakes his head, letting Elsa take over so Killian doesn't fall over. "No way I'm leaving my kids with those two."

Anna nods in agreement. "Good call."

"I'll take him," Emma announces. "I've only been drinking mocktails."

Leo tosses Emma his keys. "Take my truck."

Emma helps Killian to her brother's vehicle, and once she has him buckled in, she gets in the driver's side.

Leo approaches the passenger door, reaches through the open window and hands Killian the Ziplock bag with the finger in it. He pats him on the shoulder. "You're gonna be okay, buddy."

Killian's still slightly drunk, his face pale as he gapes at the bag in shock. "It's my fuck you finger!" He turns to Leo, starting to panic. "I can't lose my fuck you finger!"

"Sis," Leo looks at Emma, "drive safe. His fuck you finger is in your hands."

"Thanks, no pressure," Emma remarks sarcastically, trying not to freak out. Killian's bleeding into the towel, his finger's in a bag and it's up to her to find the hospital out here and get him there safely.

Nope. No pressure at all.

She starts the car and carefully but quickly backs the car out of the driveway, holding a conversation with Killian to try and keep her own nerves at bay. "Does it hurt real bad?"

Stupid question.

Of course it does.

Killian shrugs. "Not really, it's kind of like a paper cut."

Emma tilts her head at him in shock. "Really?"

"No, not really!"

Emma flinches at his volume. "Don't yell at me!" she screams, on the verge of tears as she tries to keep her cool. "I'm already anxious!" But why is she so anxious? She's not the one who blew off her finger.

"Oh, you're anxious?!" Killian holds up the bag. "My finger's in a Ziploc bag full of ice!"

"I know and it's really freaking me out. Can you put it in the glove box or something?" she pleads, the sight of his finger making her squeamish.

Killian sinks his head back against the headrest. "Oh, we wouldn't want you to be freaked out, now would we?" He opens the glove box to put his finger inside, pausing as he spots the small baggie of weed that Sam left in there.

"There's a lighter in my purse," Emma tells him when she sees it, thinking it will calm him a bit.

He shakes his head. "I don't do drugs."

Emma snort-laughs. "Oh, so you'll set off explosives while drunk, but you won't smoke a little marijuana?"

Killian glares at her. "What happened to our no judgments rule?"

Emma raises her hands briefly. "I'm not judging. I'm just trying to lighten the mood here, okay?"

Emma and Killian dissolve into laughter as they sit on his hospital bed, waiting for the doctor. After inhaling a few puffs from the weed she threw in her purse before helping Killian into the emergency room, Emma's mind is foggy, and she doesn't even care about the smoke billowing up past the curtains around the room.

"Just relax," Emma says, taking another drag. "I've got it all under control." She places the joint between Killian's lips, letting him take a turn. He eagerly accepts the joint, taking a slow drag from it. "You don't have to lift a finger."

They dissolve into another fit of laughter that's promptly disrupted by a nurse throwing the curtains open.

"Seriously?" she scolds, shaking her head in disappointment.

Emma jumps off the bed, moving to stand to the side as the nurse checks Killian's vitals.

"I'm too tired to report you."

Killian sighs in relief. "Thank you, mate."

Emma apologizes, putting the joint out on the plastic chair.

Pointing at the nurse, Killian tilts his head. "I know you from somewhere."

The nurse shakes her head, not knowing where he would have seen her before.

"Aye, I just can't…" he looks at Emma and can't help but chuckle at his own joke, "I just can't put my finger on it."

The nurse rolls her eyes as Emma bursts out laughing again, nearly falling onto the floor. "The doctor will be with you shortly. He's reattaching a toe."

"A toe?" Killian reverts his gaze to her. "Wait, a finger must take priority over a toe, right?"

"Sorry." The nurse says in an unapologetic tone. "If only you'd been a jackass a little earlier in the day." She flips his chart shut before leaving the room.

Emma's mouth opens in shock. "Wow…" She points at Killian. "You've really got her…" she giggles between words, "wrapped...around...your...finger!" She falls onto the bed and places her hand on his shoulder as they laugh once more, this time being interrupted by the doctor.

"Okay," he says, his voice sounding weary as he scans Killian's chart. He's wearing dark blue scrubs and looks awfully familiar. Or is she imagining things?

No, Emma may be a little high, but she's not that stoned.

"Graham?"

The doctor looks up, his eyes clouding over with concern. "Emma? Are you hurt?" He sets the chart on the bed and rushes over to Emma, checking her over.

"I'm fine," Emma assures as she stands up from the bed, surprised to see him here. "I didn't know you worked all the way out here."

"I normally don't," Graham explains. "They called me in to reattach a pinky toe."

Emma giggles, staring at Graham as if he'd hung the moon and the stars. "That's so amazing."

Graham shrugs. "It's a crucial phalange."

She bursts into laughter again, causing the doctor to chuckle along with her as she playfully shoves his chest. "You're doing such great work."

"I'm just doing my part." Graham smiles, taking her hand in his. "I was a little disappointed I didn't hear back from you."

Killian clears his throat. "And I'm disappointed I don't get to see my favorite bunny suit."

Graham turns to look at him, releasing Emma's hand as though he's just been caught doing something he's not supposed to, and wags a finger at his patient. "Ah, yes, Killian. From Easter." He walks over to inspect the bandaged hand. "Sparkler got away from you, did it?"

"It was an M-80, actually."

Graham lifts the injured hand enough to inspect the severed area, Killian hissing at the pain while Emma avoids looking over at it. "Skin's a little crispy, but it looks like the bone didn't shatter," he confirms after checking the x-ray.

"Thank gods." Killian sighs in relief.

"Hang tight. We'll get you prepped for surgery."

"You can fix it?" Emma asks him before looking at Killian. "He can fix it!"

"We'll see." Graham chuckles and raises his hand, crossing his index and middle finger. "Fingers crossed." When Emma and Killian stare at him blankly, Graham lowers his hand. "Tough crowd."

Emma helps a drowsy Killian into his apartment and keeps him steady as he kicks off his sandals. "I've got your prescriptions right here." She holds up the white paper sack with the pain medication Graham prescribed him and sets it on the coffee table. She places her hand on the arm wrapped around her shoulders as she looks around his apartment, noticing how absolutely spotless and clean it is. It looks like something out of a home magazine. "Granny's Diner will be delivering your soup."

"Mm mmm," he hums in approval.

"And…" she eases Killian onto the couch, "I called your brother."

"Really?"

Emma lifts his legs onto the couch and grabs a blanket, covering him with it.

"What did he say?"

"He didn't answer, so I just left a message. I told him you had a little accident and that he should probably give you a call."

"Thanks," Killian says gratefully as Emma tucks the blanket around him. "I'm really sorry I ruined your Fourth of July."

She shakes her head and sits on the coffee table. "Holidate rule number three—leave no holidate behind…" She places her hand on Killian's arm, which is in a sling. "Or their appendages."

They share a soft laugh as he subconsciously places his hand on hers. Emma's breath catches as their eyes meet and all the air leaves her lungs as she realizes they're practically holding hands. And it's not for show or because they're trying to convince anyone they're a couple.

She laughs nervously, averting her eyes and pulling her hand away. "You should probably get some rest."

Killian nods in agreement. "Aye, I should."

Emma leans in to kiss his cheek, finding it extremely difficult to pull away, but forces herself somehow. "Unless you need anything else?"

"Uh…" He scratches behind his ear with his good hand and looks around his apartment as if trying to think of something before his eyes connect with hers again. "No, I think I'm good. I think I'm—" Emma bites her bottom lip and can't help but notice Killian staring at the movement and having to pause from what he was going to say. "I think I'm fine, I'm just really tired."

"Okay." Emma finally stands up, tilting her head toward the door. "I guess I'll just go then."

"Okay. Goodnight, love." Killian waves a bit at her as she slowly and awkwardly makes her way out of the apartment, not really wanting to leave just yet, but not having a good reason to stay.

"Night, Killian." Just before reaching the door, Emma changes her mind about leaving and spins around to say something, but the words catch in her throat when she sees he has his head resting on the couch, his eyes closed.

Her heart sinks, but she imagines he's exhausted after the day he's had. She turns around again and opens the door to leave, shutting it quietly so as not to disturb him.

As she's leaving his building, she's surprised to see Liam walking toward her.

And he doesn't look too happy.

"What happened to my brother?" Liam demands curtly as he approaches her, not bothering with any pleasantries.

"Hello to you, too," she retorts snarkily.

He crosses his arms, waiting for her to answer.

Emma hangs her head, toying with her fingers, knowing he'll be even more pissed once he hears what happened. "He blew off his fuck you finger."

Liam's eyes widen, anger spiraling through him. "He what?!"

"We went to a family reunion, and he bought some fireworks with my brother and threw firecrackers out over the water."

"What the bloody hell?!" Liam buries his face in his hands and sighs. "How could he be so stupid?" He lifts his head, glaring at her as if this was all her fault. "How could you let him be so reckless?!"

Emma scoffs, her eyes widening. "Um, excuse me?! I'm not his mother—I'm not even his girlfriend, so why is it my responsibility to be his babysitter?"

He nods and points an accusatory finger at her. "Aye, that's right. You're not his girlfriend. If you were, then maybe you'd actually care about him." As Liam passes her, she gasps in complete and utter confusion, spinning around to glare at him.

"I do care about him!"

He chuckles almost mockingly as he turns around to face her once more. "Oh yeah? If you really cared about him, then you'd cut this holidate bullshit and set him free."

"What the fuck are you talking about? Set him free? I didn't make him do anything!"

"Maybe not, but you're confusing him. He's too much of a gentleman to tell you he wants a serious girlfriend, not someone he can only see on the fucking holidays. You're holding him back from that."

Emma scoffs, not believing he's blaming all of this on her. "Yeah, well, you don't have to worry because I'll never invite him to another holiday again!" She turns around and storms away, lifting both of her fuck you fingers over her head at him.

As soon as she makes it to her brother's truck and climbs inside, tears stream down her cheeks, a mixture of emotions overtaking her—sadness, anger, regret, shame, sorrow—and she sobs against the steering wheel.

As much as she hates Killian's jackass brother and wants to believe he's completely wrong, that she hasn't been holding him back from being in a meaningful relationship, maybe he is right.

Maybe this whole holidate idea has been a complete waste of time.

Maybe she should accept the fact that she's going to be alone and stuck sitting at the kids' table every year for the rest of her life.