Author's Note: Once again, I own nothing. Enjoy this baby-centric chapter (although there is a major relationship development too!). Next chapter brings the drama and angst, so enjoy the fluff and happiness while you can. Killian's secret is soon to be revealed!

Emma sat next to Killian on the sofa as he softly read Dr. Seuss to the muffin. His soft, melodic voice was lulling her to sleep as she softly rubbed her protruding stomach. Now 21 weeks pregnant, her stomach was clearly visible through her clothes. The baby was moving, she could tell – it felt like she had constant heartburn. Killian couldn't feel it yet, but she knew he'd catch it soon enough. He was being amazing. He rubbed her feet, went to the store at 3 am for Rocky Road ice cream, and satisfied her hormonal whims. His new favorite thing was to read to her and the baby. He'd read some article in the newspaper about how babies can absorb information in the womb, so he now read all kinds of books from Dr. Seuss to Tolstoy and played music from Beethoven to Mariah Carey. It was adorable.

Emma's feelings for Killian were complicated. She wanted him. God, did she want him. And she knew that he wanted her. And there were multiple times when outsiders would mistake them as a happy, expecting couple. But Emma couldn't get herself to let down her walls. She was just so sure that as soon as the muffin was baked Killian's affections for her would disappear. It wouldn't be the first time that she fell in love and got abandoned. She had to keep her distance. But it was so damn hard. Every time he gave her that bright smile or laughed at her corny joke or kissed her forehead or held her hand, she had to force herself not to read into it. It didn't help that he insisted that she give input on baby stuff. It made it feel like she was part of his family, but she knew she couldn't be. This was not her baby – it was his.

"So, love, I was thinking we could get started on the nursery today," Killian said after he finished reading the book.

Emma smiled, "Whatever you say Daddy!"

That's how she found herself at a local baby boutique picking out furniture for the baby's nursery. Killian was like a kid in a candy store, jumping from one thing to another, laughing and asking questions of the sales lady. Meanwhile, Emma's ankles were swollen and she was sweating, so she sat down in a rocking chair to get off her feet for a bit.

"Swan, come see this set!" Killian yelled across the store. She hoisted herself up and made her way over to him. Her eyes widened when she saw the beautiful nautical themed bedding set and classic wooden furniture. They hadn't yet found out the muffin's gender, but Killian had decided (after consulting with Emma, despite her objections) that he wanted to do something gender neutral – light greens and yellows. And right in front of them was his vision in reality – white bedding with a nautical anchor pattern in pale green and yellow. Beautiful, distressed style mocha wood crib, changing table, and dresser. And even a matching rocking recliner. It was amazing.

"So, what do you think love?" he asked, scratching behind his ear. He clearly wanted her to love it as much as he did. And she absolutely did.

Emma smiled at him, holding a stuffed anchor to her chest. "It's beautiful, Killian. I think it's perfect." Immediately, he pulled her close to him and wrapped his arm around her. As they pulled apart, she couldn't avoid looking into his eyes. There was a storm inside of them – such emotion swirling around. When he leaned in a bit, she leaned in the rest of the way, kissing him gently. He placed a hand on each of her cheeks, holding her close to him and kissing her sweetly before pulling away.

"You're baby is going to be so loved, Killian. I'm so happy," she said, smiling as tears fell. Damn hormones, she thought.

"Emma, I want you to be a part of the baby's life… of my life," he whispered and Emma felt like she was going to pass out. Her knees went weak and suddenly Killian was holding her up and leading her to a nearby chair.

"K-K-Killian, I…" but she was interrupted.

"Emma, I care about you. I've never felt this way. You are as important to me as the muffin. I- I think I may be falling in love with you."

"No, you don't actually feel that way. You just think you do because I am carrying your baby. It's totally normal. You feel a connection to the mother of your child," she whispered. Killian kneeled down in front of her, making eye contact. He took each of her hands in his.

"Emma, I'm a smart guy. I know that you feel it too. I make you happy, and you make me happy. Can't we see where this goes? I mean, you don't have to be the baby's mother… at least not right away. You could just be Daddy's girlfriend." He smirked at that thought. "Please, I think we both deserve a chance." She melted. She couldn't believe he cared enough to fight her on this. She'd never had anyone fight for her.

"I don't know. I'm not good at keeping people around… once my feelings are involved, people leave," she whispered, conscious of the crowd of shoppers observing their little conversation. Damn Killian and his lack of an embarrassment bone.

"I'm not most people. We've been practically dating for months. I'm not asking for a commitment, just for you to be open to the idea. For you not to shut me out." Emma sat there silently, lost in thought. Killian had been to every doctor's appointment with her. He went to "family dinners" with her at Mary Margaret and David's house. He woke up early on the weekends to make her breakfast in bed. He gave her his coat when she was cold and made sure that he protected her when they watched scary movies. And she absolutely couldn't deny that she cared about him, too. Or that she was attracted to him.

After a couple of minutes, Killian stood up, looking completely dejected. She had never seen him look so sad. Clearly, he'd assumed that she was rejecting him. So she jumped out of her chair (not easy with her current lack of balance) and grabbed his wrist. "I can't make any promises, Killian," she said. "But I can try. I want to try," she finished. The breath was taken from her when he lunged forward and kissed her with more passion than she had ever experienced.

Maybe this could work was the last thing she thought as they made their purchases and left, hand in hand.

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It was finally the day – he was going to find out if he was going to have a little boy or a little girl. Currently, he was in his garage workshop, cutting the reclaimed wood that he was planning on using to make a feature wall in the nursery. He had painted the three other walls a pale mint green to match the bedding and fabric that he and Emma had picked out a few weeks ago. Emma was inside napping… the baby was really sucking her energy these days. However, there were some benefits to her being pregnant. For instance, she was especially turned on all of the time. Sometimes, she jumped him out of nowhere. He couldn't say that wasn't a perk. Killian was thrilled with the relationship he'd been slowly building with Emma. They went on several dates a week. Other than that, and the intimacy, not much had changed. They watched movies, hung out with friends, and talked for hours. It was amazing. He felt so close to her.

There was just one not so small problem. His secret was eating away at him. He knew he had to tell her. If he wanted a future with this woman, which he knew he did, he had to be honest with her. Hopefully, she wouldn't leave him forever. Every time he got close to telling her, something came up. The first time he'd tried to tell her, they had just made love – it was a couple of nights after his in store declaration. While basking in the afterglow, he started to talk. Before he could even really start, she stopped him, squealing. She grabbed his hand, resting it on her belly. After a few seconds, he felt it. A small nudge against his hand. His baby. Emma was crying and the awe on his face was apparent. His baby was kicking. Needless to say, whatever he had been trying to say was out of his mind.

Even now, weeks later, the thought made him tear up. His baby was really in there, waiting for him. All of the regret and pain that he had felt for years was finally going to be gone. He was going to make it right. This baby was his one shot at happiness. This baby and Emma.

Emma cleared her throat to announce her presence in the doorway of the garage. Just seeing her made his pulse speed up and a smile come to his face. She was 24 weeks now. It was a harsh winter, so she was bundled up in thick jeans and a layered sweater. Her hands were on her bump and her hair was pulled into a loose bun. "You ready to go, Mr. Handyman?" she asked, teasing.

As they walked into Doctor Whale's office, Killian found himself getting nervous. Sitting in the exam room next to Emma, who was in a hospital gown on the examination table, he started fidgeting. Emma reached for his hand. "Hey, calm down. This is exciting, remember?" She smiled reassuringly. He took a deep breath and calmed down a bit.

Doctor Whale came in a few minutes later. He completed the exam, asked Emma a few questions about how she was feeling, and did a sonogram. They were able to get a recording of the baby's heartbeat, which was thrilling. And then came the moment when Doctor Whale asked if Killian wanted to know the sex of the baby. Killian said yes immediately. He'd been waiting months for this moment.

Minutes passed. He squeezed Emma's hand a bit tighter. Doctor Whale smiled. "Well, it's a boy! Congratulations! I'll just go print off some sonogram images for you and leave you alone for a bit." Killian and Emma each shook his hand. As soon as he was gone, Killian moved closer to Emma.

"A boy…" he whispered. He'd really thought it was going to be a girl. Emma just smirked, clearly aware that she could say "I told you so" at any time. So she did.

"I was right!" she said, pulling him closer to peck him on the lips. He wrapped his arms around her, holding her close and savoring the moment. He breathed in Emma's scent, basking in the happiness.

"Let's go home," she whispered in his ear. He was on cloud nine as he followed the center of his universe to the car.

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He was going to tell her tonight. He was going to lay it all on the line and beg her to forgive him. Beg her to remember that he cared for her, and that the person that he was in the past wasn't the person that he had become. That he was going to be a good father. He hoped and prayed she would understand. As he grilled the steaks, he got lost in his thoughts. He couldn't lose Emma, not to mention baby Liam. He'd decided on naming the muffin Liam after his brother, who died far too young. He hadn't told Emma yet, he wanted to wait until after he told her everything. When there were no secrets between them, he would ask her how she felt about Liam Daniel.

"Killian, you're going to burn the steaks," he heard Emma say. She came onto the patio in her sweatpants and a sweatshirt and bare feet, standing next to him in front of the grill. "Everything alright?" Killian knew that she knew him well, that she knew something was off. But she wasn't going to pry. She appreciated that he didn't pry. That there were so many things she hadn't told him yet. She gave him the same courtesy. However, she didn't know what he was hiding from her.

"I'm fine, just got lost thinking about some business stuff, love. You shouldn't be out here in bare feet – it's barely 45 degrees. You're going to fall ill!" He admonished her as he plated the steaks and led her back into the kitchen.

Emma just laughed at him. "I'm fine. I just wanted to tell you that the rice and veggies were done. It was only a minute." He kissed her forehead and then created a plate for each of them. Just as they sat to eat, the doorbell rang.

"Are you expecting someone?" he asked Emma with a full mouth.

"Nope, I'll go see who it is…" Emma got up and made her way to the front door.

Killian heard Emma greet whoever was at the door, but didn't hear them announce who they were, so he got up to join his girlfriend. Just as he was about to round the corner to the foyer, Emma entered the room followed by a teenage boy and a little girl who looked about five years old. His knees went weak as he looked at the little girl with her dark hair and blue eyes. He stared at her, unable to speak.

"Killian, this is Neal Gold and his little sister, Sophie. Neal says he knows you," Emma whispered, confused at the entire situation, especially Killian's reaction.

The teenager gripped his sister's hand. "I'm, uh, I'm Milah's son." Killian already knew. He knew exactly who Sophie was as soon as he laid eyes on her. And he knew who Neal was. Suddenly his whole world was crashing down around him. His life was finally catching up with him. He was going to lose everything.