‘Leaning back against the door, she softly asks, “What do you want to do?”
“Kiss you.”
She swallows back her surprise. “Want to do that often?”
“All the time, actually,” he answers as he steps forward, his hand going to her wrist and this time she doesn’t pull it away. The way he draws slow circles around the inside of it makes her take a stuttering breath and she blinks. “More than you’ll ever know.”
“Then why do you keep asking?” Her voice is huskier than she intends and he smirks.
He takes another step closer, their lips just a hairsbreadth apart and he whispers, “Because I understand that you need time to get use to the idea that maybe you want to do it, too… and that’s okay. I’ll wait. I’ll always wait for you, Emma.”
His gaze moves to her lips and it’s a fight to keep herself from kissing him. She wants to, more than she ever has, but there is still something holding her back.
“And if I’m…” She clears her throat. “When I’m use to it?”
His eyes finally connect with hers and he breathes, “You need only ask.”’
Emma has lived her life at the Fae Court, but she has never quite felt like she belongs, always haunted by something like a memory, something she can’t quite recall. When she meets a darkly handsome stranger with a devilish smile, she isn’t fooled by him, and she isn’t charmed, either.
Banished long ago for breaking his oath, Killian knows what it is to be lost better than most. And the lady Emma is lost, even in midst of a court that adores her.
He doesn’t mean to fall in love with her. It’s stupid, reckless, and most of all, forbidden. She knows better than to fall in love with him; he’s dangerous, and love is such a human thing.
It’s just that neither of them can quite deny the suspicion, and the dawning hope, that they both have somewhere they belong, after all.
Summary: Leaving home and a career as a roller coaster engineer on a whim with his six year old daughter was one of the last things Killian Jones wanted to do. But after falling in love with someone he’d met online to find out he’d been catfished, it seemed like the best idea. It seems even more appealing when Emma Swan, musician and bartender at a charming Irish Pub, enters his life… even if his brother and daughter have to be the ones to help him realize it.
Rated: M for a dash of salty language and a pinch of smut.
Trigger warnings: Mentions of death resulting from labor and mentions of abandonment and emotional and physical abuse. Deals with catfishing/scamming over the internet.
A/N: Oh gosh, after four months of working on this little story, I am thrilled to be able to present it to you. In the beginning, I struggled coming up with something that would meet the word-count requirements, so there are some people I would like to thank who helped me, inspired me and allowed me to burden them with this thing while offering an endless amount of support.
First of all, I wanted to give a shout out to all of the moderators of @captainswanbigbang for putting this project together and for always being responsive and helpful throughout the process. And thank you for blessing me with a fabulous artist @shipsxahoy who I really enjoyed working with. Thank you so much, Bianca, for the perfect artwork to accompany this story, including the fic banner above. Please check out the other piece she made for the story and be sure to reblog!
I also have to thank @irishswanff for this prompt that helped me get this story rolling, taking on a life of its own. I can’t say too much about the the actual prompt though, because bits and pieces of it are slowly revealed throughout the story. Then there is @resident-of-storybrooke who came up with Killian’s former occupation when I was struggling to. A shout out to @distant-rose who’s as sweet as a cupcake and looked it over, offering a bit of her cultural knowledge and setting me straight on some things. She is the reason Killian’s daughter has an Irish accent, although she is also the reason I had cut out most of my original smut scene 😉
Last but not least, I have to thank my wonderful beta-reader and dear friend @rouhn for all of her suggestions, for always getting me to see things from a different angle, for her encouragement and allowing me to bounce ideas off of her and for always being my biggest cheerleader and support. Thank you so much for sticking with me Lydia!
I am open to all reviews, even if you don’t like the story! Thank you all for reading and for your support and encouragement!
Then it’s just them and the ship, sails and sea, and when Emma opens her eyes, the sun is warm and king, beating down lovingly instead of hiding behind clouds of ice. Killian wraps his arms around her, holding her tight before he kisses her cheek.
“This is the world I’ve always wanted to show you. Not curses and castles, but the beauty of the sea.”
“It smells nice.” Emma sheds her winter coat and hangs it near the door below deck to put away later.
“You haven’t even seen the beaches.”
“Do I need a swim suit?”
He tilts his head and then smirks. “Not where we’re going.”
It All Starts With a Dance 