A/N: I loved reading all your thoughts and reactions to the last chapter. I'm so sorry I've been a little slow at replying but I will be getting them straight away. Your support continues to overwhelm and bring me all the smiles. 3333 Thank you! Please check out the amazing chapter art by imagnifika on tumblr. I love everything she's done but, I adore how she's brought the postcards to life and just shows perfectly the progression of these two. Thank you, Kate! xo Always, thanks to shippingtheswann for the cheering and beta work (go read her wonderful story!), imagnifika for finding the heart of the story with her art, halobxist & meanderingcaptainswanmusings for everything xo. And please keep supporting all the other CSBB authors and artists. The content everyone is bringing is truly amazing. And now the morning after...

Chapter 7

The hostel is quiet and still when Emma jolts awake, nearly falling to the side from her prone position against the wall. She barely manages to hold in her groan as she straightens her neck but she swallows it back when she feels warm breath against her stomach. She holds her whole body still as she looks down to find Killian has moved in the night.

He's turned in his sleep, curled into her now. He looks younger despite his beard being more unkempt than usual, perhaps it's the red in it that is coming through or that some color has returned to his cheeks. She feels a measure of relief that he appears to have slept through the night and there's another feeling, one she won't name yet that settles over her seeing him seek her out in his sleep.

She also really needs to pee. How inconvenient.

She tries to quickly figure out the logistics of getting out from under him without waking him up.

She has to hope, between the drink and the stressful day, that he's a heavy sleeper. She gently lifts the pillow and although he shifts, he doesn't wake. She manages to slide out from under him and gingerly gets to her feet, her whole body protesting the movements.

As she stretches, she mentally goes through her itinerary, trying to come up with a better plan for the day. She would rather not head out on the road right away. She bites her lip watching Killian sleep. She's hesitant to make a decision without him but after his revelation the night before, part of her thinks he might regret passing Londonderry by.

She glances up as a thin strip of light slips through the curtains, dancing across her bare feet. She silently pads over to the window and peeks outside. The sun is just beginning to rise through the buildings. She watches as a man below wipes down a few tables and chairs, clearing them of the early morning dew. He continues with a practiced ease to set them up for breakfast, just as a delivery truck rumbles to a stop. A woman exits, calling out a greeting Emma can't hear, but the smile that blooms across the man's face is answer enough as he meets the woman around back. Together they cart in cellophane wrapped trays holding what looks to be pastries and sugary confections.

On cue, Emma's stomach grumbles, a clear reminder they never got around to eating dinner the night before.

"Well I know where I'm eating," she mumbles, giving a quick glance to Killian who continues to lightly snore through it all.

She looks back out the window and to the blue sky. It's only sparsely marked with clouds, just wisps of a painter's brush, likely to fade to nothing as the sun rises higher in the sky. A truly beautiful day, it would be a shame to miss it.

Emma gathers her things for the shower, and turns off both their alarms, the decision made.

She just hopes it's the right one.

xo

Oh God, she hopes it's the right one. She hopes this is not another of Emma's rash decisions.

"Hey." Emma mumbles to a guest going into the room beside her. She waits for the door to close before even attempting to open her own.

Rash decisions. Rash, impulsive, careless – she stops her thought process and shakes her head. This one isn't careless, as a matter of fact, she has put a lot of thought into this one. She's even rehearsed exactly what she wants to say to Killian a dozen times before finding herself where she is at the moment. She's had a full conversation while washing her hair and while she picked up coffee had planned her recourse if he absolutely wanted to leave.

She smiles thinking of the little café across the street.

The gentleman she had seen cleaning the tables earlier had greeted her warmly as soon as she hesitantly walked into the place. His name was Nemo and the café was his. He insisted she take an extra scone for Killian – she maybe had nervously mentioned her friend was under the weather but she wasn't sure if he'd want one. Nemo had winked and handed her an extra after she paid. "This one's for you. You can decide what you do with the other, but heed my advice, a scone often makes everything a little better."

Emma shifts one coffee to the crook of her elbow, grips the other in one hand and holds the bag of treats in her teeth while she searches her pockets for the room key. Once she finds it, she hovers over the handle trying to work up the courage to make the last step into the room. Half a dozen times she cancels in her mind all the new plans she's made.

Might it not be best to let Killian take the lead?

But she can hear Ruby's voice in the back of her mind, suck it up buttercup, she'd say. So, with resolve, Emma shoves the key into the lock and bursts into the room with a little more gusto than she had planned. She just manages to brace her chin on the coffee in the crook of her elbow before it slips out.

You got this, Swan – she thinks and allows herself a steadying breath.

"Alright there, love?"

Emma eyes shoot up towards the voice.

Killian is sitting up in bed, sheets around his waist, hair sticking up on one side. His eyes seem to still be adjusting to the light of day but there's a small smile pulling at his lips and Emma feels a small part of her settle.

"Mm, perfect," she mumbles around the bag, nudging the door closed with her foot. She crosses to the nearest flat surface, and carefully puts down the coffees and bag. She tucks her hands into her back pockets and turns to face Killian.

"Hi," she adds, rocking back on her heels.

He shakes his head, a small smile peeking out, momentarily looking away but brings his gaze back to her, rubbing a hand through his unruly hair.

"Hi," he answers, eyes squeezing shut. "My head is fucking pounding."

She doesn't mean to let the snort of laughter slip but it does and he narrows his eyes at her.

"Sorry," she whispers and takes a few steps forward. He's shaking his head again.

"It's all my doing. You're more than permitted to have a laugh at my expense."

He swings his legs to the floor and attempts to push himself out of bed but his head must protest the movements because he drops his elbows to his knees and cradles his head in his hands.

Emma rushes to grab the pills she had laid out before leaving and joins him on the bed, sitting beside him.

"No, not at all, I didn't mean, I um, I have pills that might help," she trails off as his hand closes over hers. He tilts his head to look at her.

"It's okay, love. Thank you."

His thumbs rubs back and forth over her pulse point before sliding to take the pills.

"Uh, your water is —"

Emma motions to the head of the bed. He grabs the bottle and knocks back the pills in one smooth motion. She watches his Adam's apple bob as he swallows and has to divert her eyes. She runs her hands nervously up and down her thighs.

"I have coffee for you, if you feel like your stomach can handle it. I also have a danish. Oh, and a scone. Nemo insisted I take it. Apparently it has healing properties."

She goes to push off the bed but Killian's hand slips to her thigh, giving her a little squeeze. She looks down at the long fingers, feels the heat of his hand. She looks over. He's got his eyebrow raised.

"Nemo?" he asks.

"Oh. There's a little coffee shop across the street. We should go there, to— later. Anyway, the man who owns the place, that's Nemo. I think I looked a little frazzled, so he gave me a free scone."

"You look lovely, as you always do," Killian says quietly.

That's absolutely not where Emma thought this conversation was going. She feels her cheeks flush. Actually, this is not at all how she thought this entire morning was going to go. She desperately tries to get her mind back on track but it's difficult with his sleep rough voice and his warm hand on her thigh.

"Right, I mean, thanks," she internally groans. What the hell is she doing? She shakes her head and tells herself to count to ten. Once she reaches it, she turns to face him and finds Killian watching her, eyes blue and clear. The weariness of the night before still lingers on the edges but it's not nearly as staggering as the night before. The Killian she's grown to know is back and her words get caught in her throat.

"You stayed with me all night."

It's not a question but she still doesn't know how to respond, except if he knows that she stayed all night did he -

"Did you wake up? Did you have—,"

"No nightmares," he answers without having to hear her question. She feels herself relax again. "Did you sleep?" he asks.

"I'm fine," Emma answers quickly.

"Emma."

"Of course I slept."

It doesn't look like he believes her so she decides to change the subject and go all in with her plan.

"I was thinking. Well, actually I woke up and looked out the window and the sun was shining and I thought, it's an absolutely gorgeous day, it would be terrible to spend it in the car."

She chances a glance his way and he appears to be waiting her out.

"Right. Um, so, I spoke with the owners and we can have this room for another night. I thought maybe you would want to spend another day here and see some of the things we missed yesterday. We can skip the night in Letterkenny and just head straight to Glencolumbkille tomorrow. It'll be a longer drive but I don't mind. Unless you do. Then I mean, we can do whatever you want. We can skip all of…" Emma's words abruptly cut off when Killian's fingers find her chin and tilt her face towards his.

Before she knows what's happening his lips are pressed firmly to her forehead. He drops his head but not before she feels the scratch of stubble against her cheek, and the warmth of his lips ghost the corner of her mouth.

"Thank you," he finally says.

She blinks up at him.

"Thank you for last night, for the coffee, for the extra day. It's perfect."

And he's looking at her like she's more than she is, like she's the light and good he mentioned the night before. She doesn't know how to handle that. He didn't really mean it anyway, right?

"I'll let you do what you have to do. There's some books in the common room I wanted to look at," she finally says instead of acknowledging his comments, pushing from the bed.

"Emma."

"Take your time. We don't have a schedule today," she adds, grabbing her coffee and heading to the door.

"Emma," he repeats in that same earnest tone.

She pauses, hand on the handle.

"You're welcome, Killian."

She takes a deep breath.

"But it's not necessary. Anything you need, anything."

And before he can say anything else, she slips out of the room. She closes the door with a soft click and leans back against it, suddenly desperate to catch her breath.

She has a fleeting thought, a moment where she almost questions what the hell she is doing. What the hell are all these emotions welling up inside her? Emotions that would normally send her into a panic but as she catches her breath, there is something about the way her heart is pounding that doesn't make her want to run. It makes her happy to be right where she is.

Huh. Curiouser and curiouser.

xo

Staying is the right decision after all.

She knows it is as they amble about the town with no real direction, the contrast from the day before remarkable. There is no pressure to rush through it all, there's an ease to their exploring, and Killian seems to take everything in with a new appreciation. His camera comes out, slowly at first but more confidently as the day goes on, he spends time explaining a lot of what Liam had been drawn to when they had originally planned to come.

She knows it's the right decision as the shadows slip from his expression and she knows it because he tells her so, when he surprises her with a tight hug and a thank you pressed into her hair.

It's nearing the end of the day when they sit in companionable silence on a bench by the river Foyle, soaking in the last of the sun. They watch as pleasure crafts drift by and salmon fishermen pull into the wharf with the last of their haul.

"I've often thought, when I managed to be rational about it, that I wouldn't have made a good Navy man," Killian says out of blue, not taking his eyes off the closest wharf. There are a few men securing lines, their laughs carrying across the water.

She turns to take in Killian's profile, there's a small breeze and it catches in his hair and she pictures him at the helm of a ship.

"Why's that? Because I can see you on the water."

His gaze travels slowly to hers and his mouth ticks up as if he can somehow read her thoughts. She feels the blush heat her face and he must see it too because he reaches out to draw a finger across the apple of her cheek.

He's been doing that a lot more too, reaching out, touching. Whether it's a hand on her back, or a squeeze to her arm. She almost convinces herself it's just the after effects of the night before. She's simply a steadying presence. But then his eyes linger longer, they drop to her lips and Emma catches herself leaning in a little more, thinking a little more, wanting a little more.

Killian taps the tip of her nose with his index finger and laughs when Emma shifts back, nose scrunched up.

"I didn't say I wouldn't like to be on the water. Quite the opposite, I'd love to be able to work on the water. Liam and I, we used to work on small vessels, minor maintenance, swabbing the deck at the end of each day. I didn't feel I would ever graduate past an ordinary seaman but eventually I came across a captain that appreciated my hard work. That old man entertained my questions, gave me new tasks and eventually taught me a few things about the mechanics of the ship, where he got his own start and allowed me to tinker further with a few things. It's why I went into marine engineering."

Killian pauses to look back out at the water.

"So why not a Navy man then?"

He shrugs but there's more to it, so she waits him out, more than happy to watch the color of the fading sun dance across his features. Eventually, with a wry smile, he speaks.

"I've been known to have a hard time following orders. A little headstrong perhaps. Liam was always the more dependable Jones."

Emma turns on the bench, bringing her legs up to sit cross legged and tilts her head to study him. He glances at her out of the corner of his eye. She can't quite read his expression but she doesn't like what he's not saying, selling himself short.

"I've come to depend on you," she whispers and it has his eyes snapping to hers. "I could have muddled through this trip alone but, I'm really glad I don't have to."

Killian opens his mouth to say something but she doesn't give him a chance.

"And you know, I see a man in front of me that I'm absolutely convinced Liam would be proud of."

He blinks at her wide-eyed, lost for words, so she simply shrugs, studying him further until an idea pops into her head.

"A pirate then perhaps? Captain of your own boat."

He throws his head back and laughs, her statement breaking the tension. He shakes his head, eyes dancing across her face.

"Ship, Swan."

"Ok, Pirate Killian, your own ship."

"Mmm, you might be onto something," he agrees and his smile is back. They both turn back to the water, and watch as the sky fades further to yellows and pinks.

"Wait. Give me your best pirate smolder. Can't be a pirate captain and not have the look down."

He chuckles softly and for a moment she doesn't think he is going to do it but then he schools his features and looks away.

"You dare question this Captain's smolder?" he asks dropping his voice lower, a small air of menace before turning to stare her down.

She had been kidding but –

"Uh," Emma mumbles her mouth dropping open a little, clearly unprepared. His grin is wide and delighted, and his whole appearance changes morphing once again back into the Killian she –

She what?

The Killian she really, really cares about.

"And will you be my wench? Scouring the seas with me?" he asks and laughs at the unimpressed look she gives him. He wraps his arm around her shoulders and pulls her close. "My first mate then?"

She pretends to think about and finally looks up.

She's closer than she realized, she's close enough that another inch would bring her lips to his and she has a fleeting thought, would he taste like the sea? Would he taste like home?

She swallows hard and looks down but not without accidentally brushing her nose along his jaw.

"We could negotiate something, co-captains maybe," she finally whispers.

She can feel his laugh more than she can hear it, so she presses herself closer, happy when his arm slips lower, holding her tighter.

"As you wish, love."

xo

They don't have a late night, instead they fill up on fish and chips and turn in early, each retreating to their side of the room, Killian finding a book to read and Emma looking through her guidebook for the coming days.

Emma pulls out the postcard she was using as a placeholder, a similar view of the waterfront they had been watching earlier. Her finger traces across the sailboats dotting the dark water before flipping it over.

Let's sail away...

You said that earlier, taking my hand and leading us towards dinner.

I didn't say anything out loud but I hope you know my answer.

Today, tomorrow, whenever.

Yes! Yes! Yes!

Emma's pen stills on the last exclamation mark as Killian's yawns become to frequent to ignore. She stows the card away and watches as he rubs his eyes, clearly exhausted, but forcing himself to stay awake. He blinks in an attempt to focus on the pages in front of him.

"It's almost eleven. I guess we should get some sleep if we want to get on the road early tomorrow. We have a longer drive than normal ahead of us."

She waits for his reaction, even though she's pretty sure she knows what he's doing.

He startles and looks up, minor panic in his expression but he hides it quickly.

"Right. Yeah, we probably should."

She gets up from her bed, as an idea forms. She keeps her back to him, worried she won't be able to lie without him picking up on it.

"I'm going to go see if I can settle up with the place, let them know we'll be off early. Why don't you use the bathroom first."

She pretends to look through her bag and grabs the first piece of paper she sees. She looks over at Killian who is staring at his bunk, scratching behind is ear.

"Killian?"

"Yeah, yeah. Sure," he mumbles and she feels a little bad but she also thinks she knows how he'd have reacted if she made her suggestion obvious. She slips out of the room but doesn't close the door fully. She waits just on the other side, and when she hears the click from the bathroom door, she heads back in.

It's a quick rush to pull her sleep clothes on and situate herself in his bunk, this time she brings her own pillow and props herself up. She busies herself on her phone and doesn't look up when he emerges from the bathroom.

She doesn't think either of them breathe.

"Emma," he says softly, her name an exhale.

"Mmm?" she hums, just barely glancing up. He's frozen in the doorway, clutching his t-shirt to his bare chest.

She hadn't anticipated that. She focuses on her phone but pats the narrow bunk beside her.

He takes a few steps forward and she peeks up. He's ringing the t-shirt in his grip.

"You don't have to do this," he finally says.

She drops her phone to her lap and fixes him with an unimpressed look, although inside, her heart is beating frantically.

"Of course I don't have to, I want to. Come to bed," she says, glad her tone doesn't hint at her nerves.

He shifts from side to side, jaw clenching.

"You won't be comfortable," he argues but they both know it's a half-hearted at best. Emma stares him down a moment before rearranging her pillow beside his. She lays down on her side and makes a show of settling in her spot.

"Oh my god, your bed is sooo much more comfortable than mine. I guess we'll have to share. It wouldn't be very gentlemanly of you to impose uncomfortable sleeping arrangements on me."

She takes his small snort of laughter as a victory. He still waivers a moment but ultimately drops his shirt and brace over his bag and quietly pads over to turn off the light.

"I don't quite believe your logic really holds up," he whispers into the dark.

"But?" she prompts, eyes adjusting to the darkness. He crosses the room and carefully sits on the edge of the bunk, looking down at her.

"But I'm too bloody tired to argue and -" his words trail off as he shakes his head and lowers himself to his pillow, pulling his legs onto the bed. He settles on his side, back to her, as stiff as ever.

But Emma, rather than doing the same, chooses not to hesitate, instead she brings the covers up and slides closer. She brings her hand to his hair and resumes her movements of the night before and decides to not let him off the hook so easily.

"And what, Killian?" she whispers, her breath ghosting across his bare shoulders, lips itching to follow the same path but knowing it's not the right time.

He reaches back, stilling her movements and pulls her arm around him, resting her hand over his heart. And instead of panicking, she lets her body melt into his warmth. How can she panic over something that feels so right?

"And it's hard to argue against something I so desperately want."

She freezes over his confession but her heart kicks up into a beautiful mess.

She presses her lips to his shoulder, and whispers her words so close that hopefully, he not only hear them but feels them against his skin as well.

"I'm right here. You've got me, I'm not going anywhere. I promise."

His breath shudders out but his grip tightens on her hand and best of all, he doesn't argue, finally falling asleep in a matter of minutes.

"I'm yours," she finds herself whispering into his skin before drifting off herself.

Thanks for reading!

Tell me, Emma and Killian went for fish and chips for comfort food, what's yours?

See you next week for Chapter 8!