Chapter 3: Easy on the Eyes, Heavy on the Heart

Henry finished writing and heard the sound of the shower, knowing that his mother would be indisposed he quickly dressed before she was done. "I'm going to Will's!" He shouted through the house before exiting into the hall. He walked quickly to 4C, knocking on the door.

The door opened and the man peered down at him with a towel draped over his shoulder. "Can I help you, Henry?"

"Hey, I got this for Smee." He held out a small toy. "Can I give it to him?"

The man laughed and looked behind him at the dog. "Someone's here to see you, boy." He stepped to the side and Henry bounded into the room, squeaking the toy with his hands as the dog bounced up and down on his feet.

"I think he likes it."

"Aye, he enjoys the annoying sound, I think." He said with a slight groan. "How was your visit with your dad?"

Henry shrugged, "Eh, it was fine. My dad's…" He bit his bottom lip. "He's ok, he just doesn't always know what to do with a kid."

"I can relate." He said awkwardly. Stepping into the kitchen to stir the food on his stove.

"You cook?"

"Of course, how else would I eat?"

"Well, I mean, my dad only orders take out. And I think Graham actually burned water the other day." He rolled his eyes as he hopped up on the stool at the kitchen counter.

"Ah, and Graham is…" He asked softly.

"My mom's boyfriend." Looking around the kitchen he saw a familiar yellow bowl on the counter. "Is this my mom's?"

Killian turned to look at the object he was talking about. "Oh yeah, I borrowed it last night."

"So, you've met my mom?"

"Aye, for a moment."

"She's pretty, isn't she?"

"Aye, I suppose so." He answered nervously.

"Do you have a girlfriend?"

"Again, with all the questions, lad. Do you have a reason for all your inquiries?"

"Nah, I just like to know who lives here. I'm friends with everyone on this floor."

"I believe that."

"So, do you?"

"Do I what?" He turned toward the stove, stirring the pasta in the boiling pot.

"Have a girlfriend?" He repeated.

"Not exactly." He said quietly. There was a soft knock on the door and Killian turned toward it. "I have a very good friend, who I date, often." He opened the door and a pretty brunette walked in with a handful of bags.

"I got your groceries, and I was thinking we could have…" She stopped talking and stared at Henry. "Oh hello, and who is this adorable visitor?"

"My name's Henry, I live next door."

"Pleasure to meet you, I'm Belle, Killian's friend."

"Are you his girlfriend?"

She giggled and looked at Killian. "He is very inquisitive." The man replied.

"We're dating." She smiled. "But no, I'm not his girlfriend. Killian doesn't have girlfriends." She smirked as the man walked back toward the kitchen.

"That's weird." He said as he narrowed his eyes at her.

She winked at him as she set the bags down, leaning toward him and whispering quietly. "I've gotten used to it, let's just say I'm his #1 friend who is a girl, who buys his groceries, and eats dinner with him almost every evening, but isn't his girlfriend."

There was another knock on the door and Killian looked at the two of them. "This is a busy place tonight."

Henry tossed the toy toward Smee and he chased it across the room, picking it up with his snout and prancing back toward him.

Emma heard her front door slam shut before she had finished her shower. Stepping into his room, she saw his bag slung across his chair and his clothes spilling out from his suitcase on the bed. She slowly unpacked his bag, putting his dirty clothes into the bin and taking the basket to the front room. She would need to do laundry tomorrow.

She was happy that Henry was home, even if he did immediately head to Will's as soon as he got there. Sometimes she enjoyed the alone time that she was afforded during his visits with his father, but she was always anxious until he returned to her.

She placed the cheese on the buttered toast on the skillet, pressing the two halves together as she sang softly to the music playing over the speakers in the living room. Henry's favorite dinner was Grilled Cheese and tomato soup. She plated the sandwiches and stirred the soup when she heard the front door open and close.

"Dinner's almost ready." She yelled toward the living room.

"Well, aren't you the best friend anyone could ever have, mate."

She turned to see Will walk into the kitchen, reaching for the plate of sandwiches which Emma quickly swatted away.

"Hey those aren't for you."

"Oi, rude." He whined, pretending to be offended.

"Are you staying for dinner?" She asked, putting her hands on her hips, "I can put on another sandwich."

"Nah, I just came to see how Henry's time with dickhead was."

"I sure hope you didn't ask it like that." She snorted.

"I'll leave out the dickhead part when I see him." He hopped up on the chair, digging into the bowl of candy she kept there.

"When you see him?" She paused. "Henry went over to your place while I was in the shower."

"I can assure you he did not."

"What?" Emma dropped the spoon and walked back to Henry's room. She pushed the door open to once again reveal the empty room. "Henry?"

She came back to the kitchen, her eyes wide, "I heard him, he said he was going to your place."

"Emma, I'm telling you, I haven't seen him today."

"What the hell, Will. Where did he go?"

Emma stepped out into the hallway, looking toward the elevator, and then turning toward the other end of the hall. Stepping toward Ruby's apartment, she knocked on the door.

Ruby stuck her head out a small crack in the door. "What?"

"Is Henry here?" She asked anxiously.

"No, I have company. Haven't seen him all day, isn't he with Neal?"

"He got home an hour ago, I thought maybe he came here." Emma sighed.

"Sorry, Em, but I gotta go." The door shut in her face and Emma groaned. Where the hell did her kid go? She turned to head back to her apartment before she paused in front of 4C. It couldn't hurt to ask her hot new neighbor if he had seen her son.

Not that she cared that he was hot. Or that any of that mattered.

She raised her hand tentatively and rapped her knuckles across the wooden door.

The door opened and Emma was unprepared to see the baby blue eyes peering back at her, and she had to stop herself from the instinct to run her fingers through his dark unkept hair.

Pull yourself together, Emma.

"Um, hey sorry to bother you, but you haven't seen my son have you?"

He laughed. "Dark hair, about this tall, asks a lot of bloody questions?"

"Yeah that's him."

"He's in my kitchen."

"What?" She declared angrily. "Why is my way-too-young-to-be-hanging-out-with-strangers son in your house? Alone?"

He held his hands up in front of him. "Woah. What are you implying? The boy knocked on my door."

"And you just let him in your apartment? What kind of man invites a kid into their apartment?"

"I'm offended by the accusation, love."

"I'm not your love, and I'd like to see my son." She demanded, pushing her way into his home.

"What is it with this family and barging into my house?" She heard him grumble under his breath.

She stopped immediately once she entered the kitchen. Henry was perched on a stool at the counter, tossing a toy with a dog who was jumping up and down in front of him. Seated next to him was a beautiful brunette who was talking to Henry.

"Henry David Swan!" She shouted and her son jumped as he looked up at her. "We are going home right now." The woman sitting next to him frowned at the boy.

"It was nice meeting you, Henry." She said softly as Henry slid off the stool.

"You too, Belle. See you around." Her son walked toward her with his shoulders slumped forward, stopping in front of Killian. "Thanks for letting me see Smee."

"Aye, lad." He nodded at the boy and Henry stalked out of the apartment.

Emma glared at the man with her arms crossed against her chest. "Next time, try being an adult and not have my child in your home without his mother's permission." He opened his mouth to speak, and she retreated before he could utter a word, storming after her son.

"What in the hell were you thinking going into a stranger's home?" She scolded her son as soon as they entered her apartment.

"He's not a stranger, he's my friend."

"No, he's a stranger, you don't know anything about him."

"Yes I do, his name is Killian Jones, he works at the harbor as a Captain on a boat, he has a dog named Smee who likes me a lot, and his #1 friend is Belle, and she's very friendly and loves books. She works at the library downtown and even told me she could take me into the restricted section the next time I visit there."

Emma couldn't believe her ears. "You are not to go over there. Do you hear me? You don't get to hang out with strange adult men."

"I hang out with Will all the time." He responded as he sat down at the table next to Will. Will shrugged his shoulders and took a bite out of his sandwich.

"He's got your there." He spat with his mouth full of food.

"Don't encourage this." She scolded her friend.

"He's really a nice guy if you spent any time at all getting to know him." Henry pouted.

"Kid, that's probably not a good idea. I'm sure his girlfriend might have a problem if the woman next door and her kid keep coming around."

"Belle's not his girlfriend. She's his #1 friend. Killian said he doesn't do girlfriends."

Emma laughed and shook her head. Just what she needed, another immature man in her life. "Kiddo, that's just what men say when they are keeping their options open."

After dinner, Henry retreated to his room, closing the door behind him, and walking to his desk to retrieve his notepad. He couldn't wait for this coming weekend, he just needed to find a way to get his mom talking to Killian Jones. If she did, he was sure she would find him interesting.

Throwing himself down on his bed, he put pen to paper.

Captain Jones strutted onto the plank of the Jolly Roger, the fastest ship in all the realms. As soon as he was on board, he was approached by Lieutenant Smee. "Captain, are we to set sail?"

"No Smee, we will be here at least the evening, let the crew enjoy some time off the ship. But let's keep the ship ready to sail." He started to walk away before turning back toward the man. "Please send First Mate French to my quarters."

"Aye, sir."

He climbed down the stairs, pushing open the heavy door and shedding his leather coat. He reached into his cabinet, the dark bottle of rum waiting for him. Uncorking it with his teeth, he poured two glasses and set them on his desk. The door to his cabin swung open and his First Mate entered the room.

"Welcome back, Captain." She dropped down in the chair, reaching for the glass of rum, swirling the dark liquid in the glass. "Are you going to tell me what the ole man wanted from you?"

"He had a lucrative offer, one that could be beneficial to us." He took a swig from his glass, thinking over the plans for the evening.

"How lucrative?"

"Very. More than we have been offered in the last three ports."

Her grin grew on her face. "So, what do we have to do?"

"We need to capture The Swan Thief!"

She gulped uncomfortably on her drink. "How are we supposed to do that? No one even knows who he is. He's a ghost."

"The King knows his identity; and he believes him to be in port already. He also believes that he will attempt to steal a diamond from the Queen at tonight's ball."

"A ball?" She groaned and Killian mused at her discomfort. "Does that mean I'll need to stuff myself into a dress tonight?"

He stood from his desk, opening his wardrobe to find his dress coat. He hung the garment on his ladder and reached for the small chest stored in the corner of the room. Unlocking the chest, he grabbed a small bag of coins and tossed them toward his First Mate. "Sorry, love. I fear it does, indeed. You always did look stunning in yellow." He grinned.

"The kid really likes you. Do you talk to him often?"

Killian looked up from his plate and locked eyes with Belle. "I'm not sure what I did to attract the kid's attention, but he's very curious, I wasn't kidding earlier, I swear he works for the CIA."

"I think he's sweet."

"I'm not interested in babysitting kids. You heard his mother she basically told me to stay away from him, I sense she was accusing me of predatory behavior."

"Yeah she didn't seem to like you very much. Did you say something Jonesy to her?"

"Something Jonesy?"

"Yes, you have a way about you, sometimes you say things that are…" She bit her lip. "Not exactly shining examples of your winning personality."

"Those things seemed to work on you." He mused with a smirk.

She cackled loudly. "Nah, that was just the rum." She winked.

"Cheeky lass." He sat his glass down on the table. "I'll have you know that regardless of the things I say, women find me very attractive, some might even say devilishly handsome."

"You're easy on the eyes, Jones, but heavy on the heart." She said softly, her tone suddenly full of melancholy, the ease of the previous flirting suddenly gone.

"At least I'm up front about who I am. You knew from day one what this was going to be."

She nodded, sipping from her glass. "I know. I'm just saying, not all women are as understanding as I am."

"Why are we even having this conversation?" He jabbed at his chicken, furiously sawing with his knife.

"I've known you long enough to know when you find a woman attractive."

He dropped his fork to the plate. "I've barely spoken to this woman who just got done admonishing me for having her son in my apartment. I'm failing to understand why you are getting so upset right now."

"You're right. It's nothing, Killian."

"Then stop acting like a jealous lover. I'm not interested in this Swan woman." He said louder than he had meant it to come out.

She finished her bite of chicken and sat her silverware down on the plate, wiping her mouth with her napkin. "I have an early morning; I should probably head out."

"Belle don't do this. I'm sorry for raising my voice." She stood from the table and gathered her coat, walking toward the door. He stood from his seat and chased after the woman. Reaching out he grabbed her lightly by the arm. "Belle."

She turned and looked at him with glassy eyes. "No, you're right. I don't have any right to be upset."

"You know you're my best girl." He said with a smile and the corner of her lip turned upward in a sad smile.

"Good night, Killian." She pushed up on her toes, pressing her soft lips against his mouth. "I'll see you this weekend for the barbeque."

He watched as she walked out the door, the sound of it clicking closed causing him to flinch. He cared deeply for Belle, he enjoyed being with her, the sex between them was amazing, and she was the first woman he had met who actually listened when he was talking and joined in the conversation.

She was a genuinely kind person and part of him felt guilty for keeping her hanging on. He should have ended things months ago; they had been seeing each other for much longer than any other woman he had slept with. She deserved better, but he enjoyed her company, regardless of the fact that he couldn't offer her anything more than what they already had.

He had no idea why Belle reacted the way she did toward Emma. Yes, the woman was gorgeous, even a blind man could see that, and he could feel her passion in the way she carried herself. He was sure that sex with her would be mind-blowing, not that he had spent much time thinking about it. But he was still a man.

However, he had resisted flirting with the woman, had kept his usual innuendos in check in the times they had spoken. She did after all have a young child, an ex, and a current boyfriend. All things that spelled trouble and made her off limits to him.

His relationship with Milah had cost him greatly and was the reason he didn't make permanent connections with women. He stayed away from women with current entanglements, he didn't need the distraction when there were perfectly available women for the taking.

This Swan woman may be an angry goddess, who would probably rock his world, but he wasn't interested in having his life blow up in front of his face.

Belle would come around, she always did. They weren't dating or married, which is why as he stood in the steaming shower, water pouring around him, his hand gripping his cock, he tried not to feel guilty as he imagined his next-door neighbor, her milky white legs wrapped around his waist as he slid into her hot center. A loud grunt escaping his throat as he spurted against the shower wall.

Maybe he'd feel guilty tomorrow, tonight he just wanted to sleep.