A/N: Thank you again for all the reviews. I apologize for the delay in updating this story. A close family member had a medical emergency and for the last month I have worked every day from early in the morning to late at night in the family business, leaving little time for even basics like laundry or home cooked meals, let alone writing. But thank you again for the reviews. All of them were in the back of my mind this last month, and were motivation to not give up on this story once life calmed down a bit.

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Emma had to take a moment to herself and just look around the cabin that she now had to herself. She could feel that a part of her felt like this was too much too fast… but if this was fast… it was beautiful. In some ways everything that Killian had set up here was just what his life had always been like for the most part before he had traded his ship for her. This beautiful cabin - no home - had housed, soothed, and transported that glorious man of hers for the last 200+ years. This room was in many ways an extension of him and even without him in the room all she could feel was warmth, care, and dare she say love?

No, she knew he loved her. And she hoped that he was beginning to see that she loved him. Things always crumbled around her when she admitted that she loved someone, but with him it was different. With Killian it was a feeling of understanding and reflection in one another. It was something much deeper than she had experienced before and that is what terrified her to voice any feelings. The loss would just be too great, and right now she wasn't sure if she could afford loss, but then there was much to gain.

Looking to the bath tub, the act itself of taking a bath in front of Killian not only was an intimate act, but it was also a vulnerable act. She did not like to lose control. She did not like to be in the weaker position. People always hurt her, even when they don't mean to, well people with the exception of Killian. Maybe that was why it was so different. She could feel the need that Killian had to protect and care for her. Not only where they a good team, but there was a dynamic with Killian as to where she could really feel herself wanting to be consumed by him.

In an interesting sense she felt that if she just let go, and let Killian catch her, that she was allowing herself to be free of responsibility for once. Taking a deep breath, she could feel the scents of jasmine, sandalwood, the ocean, and a touch of toasty rum fill her lungs. It reminded her of Killian. He already had caught her. She just needed to open her eyes and embrace him.

Emma walked towards the bath. She noticed on the wall there was a small metal valet that was perfect for holding the clothes that she was wearing. Also there was a red velvet robe with what seemed to be a silk liner. "Only the best for Captain Hook it seems" Emma mused and then proceeded to undress.

Emma was about to step into the tub when her phone started to rings. Groaning at the interruption Emma started to debate with herself whether she should ignore it, or whether she should answer it. Concerned that it might be Henry needing her, she immediately reached for the robe Killian had hanging, and slipped it on. It felt amazing – caressing and warming every inch of her exposed skin.

Finding her phone in her discarded coat pocket, Emma sees that it is her mother calling. Rolling her eyes, she decides to let it go to voicemail which takes a few minutes. Just as the indicator on her phone shows that a voicemail has arrived, Killian knocks on the door.

"May I come in?"

Shaking her head "Of course, it's your cabin." Emma says as she walks over to the door to open it to help since he said that he was going to have an arm full of firewood.

True to the promise of firewood, Killian's arms are full, but his face is confused and then intrigued.

"Red is a delicious color on you love."

Blushing a bit, Emma looks down at the robe and then the phone in her hand. "Thanks. I was about to get into the bath and then my phone started ringing. I thought it could be Henry, so I grabbed this." As she tugged at the soft collar of the robe. "I hope that is alright."

Killian walks over the stove and places the wood next to it, and proceeds to push the splinters off his clothes. He turns towards Emma again and sees her leaning against the edge of the bed with her head downturned looking at her phone with a forlorn expression.

"Swan, seeing you in my clothes is a very welcome sight. It is something I could really get used it. That frown though love is sight though that I wish I could remove."

Emma smiles up at him, pushes off the edge of bed, and walks right into his chest to embrace him. Not questioning Emma's need for him, he just holds her for a moment. "You just did."

"Who called you? What did they want?"

"My mother. I don't know what she needed to tell me. I let it go to voicemail. I should probably find out just in case."

"I'm here love. I told both your parents you'd be with me tonight, so if they have any common sense they would realize the need to leave you alone unless it was urgent."

"Well… let's find out." Replaying the voicemail on speaker, both Killian and Emma listen to Snow's message:

Emma, its mom.

I know that your father and I messed up, but we are trying to fix this. But running off from us isn't going to hold this family together. We need to stay united and figure this out together. Your father and I need you. We love you. We would do anything for you, and perhaps as Hook said to us earlier that is a part of the problem. But when you love someone you are not always going to be perfect. Sometimes you are going to make mistakes, and you have to trust that the person that you love is willing to listen and work with you to solve or forgive those mistakes.

We never wanted to hurt you. But also we never wanted you to struggle or be cursed by the evil that seemed to be constantly chasing your father and I. We wanted you to be happy and able to shine in the light of day without worry. I know that our need for control of your future now what stemmed from fear and as such only created a life filled with anguish for you. (Hearing her sniffle) I'm so sorry Emma. I'm so sorry. I love you so much, and I hope that you can find it in your heart to still love us too.

The line goes silent, and then the message ends.

"Killian…why? Why can't she just trust me to make the decisions that I need to work through this?"

To his credit, Killian just wraps his arm around Emma as she first stares at her phone and then tosses it on the bed.

"How am I ever going to trust them again?"

"You already did love."

"What do you mean?"

"You trusted them to take care of Henry. I know that you would never neglect your son. You knew that he was safe and in good care while he stayed with them. It wasn't a matter of you packing everything up, Henry in tow and moving into Granny's like you had when you came back from New York. On some level you do still trust them. Just maybe not so much with your welfare but…"

Emma steps out of his arms and starts to pace in the small room. "No you're right. You're right. God, I am just so blinded by all this. I'm just so use to people failing me, and when they did it was always in an epic manner such as me having to move again. Even in this case that is what I had to do, though this time it was me leaving them versus them leaving me."

Killian reaches for Emma's goblet of wine on the table and hands it to her. As she reaches for the goblet from his hand, she also steps back into his embrace. For a moment Killian's breath hitches and little does Emma know that it is because one of the shoulders of the robe starts to slide down along with one of her legs almost fully exposing itself. Instead of making a comment about this change of state of dress for Emma; Killian just wraps her tighter in his arms.

"Love? Let me take care of you. Take your moment. Enjoy the wine and enjoy your bath before it gets cool again."

"I'll just reheat it. I think I need to enjoy my pirate captain as well."

Killian can't help but laugh a little at that. "Aye. As much as I love holding you like this, if I continue looking at that lovely leg of yours that is peaking out from under my robe I am going to have to touch all of it to make sure that something of such beauty is real."

At that, Emma playful pats his chest.

"I assure you, it is real. Scars and all."

"Scars?" Worry etches his face.

"I'll show you sailor, once I am in the bath"

"Come love, let's get you in." And with that Killian guides Emma over to the bath, placing her wine on the shelf and spins her back against his chest. With that, he reaches his hook and hand around and quickly unties the knot of his robe on her waist. Carefully turning his head, he gives her privacy as he removes the robe from her body.

Emma can't help but pause for a second and realizes that she is completely bare inches away from this man who is being nothing but a perfect gentleman. She is tempted to tease him to see how long his restraint will last, but he has been too sweet this evening and she really doesn't want to torture him.

Emma steps into the bath and before she can even get her other leg over the edge of the tub she can't help but moan in pleasure.

Keeping his head turned towards the wall, "Love… that sound escaping your lips is sinfully sweet."

She can't help but let an even louder moan escape her mouth as she sits full in the bath and is surrounded by bubbles. "Killian. This bath… it's amazing. Is this really how you would bathe while sailing across the open sea? What's in here?"

Killian now turns towards Emma in his tub and can't help but feel this is just perfect. He wants more evenings like this. She is absolutely gorgeous with her hair piled on top of her head and surrounded by a cloud of bubbles. He hands her back her wine and pulls a small stool up close to the edge of the tub. "I might be a pirate love, but I am also a gentleman, and a gentleman knows how to take care of himself and the lady who holds his heart. The bath has various herbs to help the body relax, oils to sooth the skin, salts to pull the physical pain from the body, and some tea to give you a touch of energy."

"That's quite a cocktail for a bath."

"I have had many rough nights of this ship. Be it the weather; an ugly battle; and even the frustrating games of Pan. Taking a well dosed bath was sometimes the only way that the ache in my bones could find some relief. Can't have a Captain that is aching in front of his men."

"No, that would not due I guess."

"No, sometimes leadership is not letting others know that you are hurting. It makes it easier for my men to forget the pain if they believe that I am not hurting, then why should they." That comment seems to pull some memories to mind for him as Emma notes that he takes a drink from his flask.

Emma sinks her head back against the edge of the tub and turns towards him while taking a sip of her wine. She reaches for his hand, and he meets her part way. "Putting up illusions of strength is something that I am well acquainted with."

"Oh you mean those walls of yours that I have been scaling?"

Swatting some bubbles at him, "Yes those. But, you're up for the challenge. You climbed a beanstalk with me."

"And I would climb a 100 more to be with you." Emma can't help but take his hand up to her lips and kiss his knuckles. Reaching with his hook towards the shelf, he grabs a natural sponge there. Holding it in front of her he asks… "May I?"

"Please." Careful to not disturb the bubbles much, Killian dips the sponge in the water at the edge of the tub and starts long soft strokes along her arms, shoulders and neck. "Mhmmm… that feels so good."

"I'm glad."

"I wonder if I had shown my parents my aches and pains whether they would have stilled viewed me as their perfect little girl who can do no wrong."

Worry once again etches his face. "What aches and pains love?"

Looking into those deep blue eyes of his, she knows she can trust him. Emma first takes a breath before recounting some of the other times that she had been hurt.

"As you know I did not necessarily have the best of upbringings. For some reason my parents thought I was safer in this world unprotected." Taking another breath, Emma leans forward in the bath water and lets the bubbles fall from her exposed back to Killian's view. At first all he can think is that she is the most beautiful woman he has ever seen, and then his thoughts are interrupted a sight that could only be generated by nightmares. He sees long crisscrossed marks on her back that have been there for a long time.

He can't help but reach out and trace the lines. "Emma… what happened."

"It was in a foster home prior to Minnesota. I wasn't in that home long. Turns out the man who owned the house was an alcoholic. One night, I got home later than normal because a school function was teaching students how to ice skate. I used to love watch people skate because the twirling and gliding seemed like dancing."

"See, I knew you were a natural." Killian's hand is now tracing the marks and causing soothing circles on her skin. She can't help but moan again. "Here love, lean back, let me take care of you while you tell me your story."

Emma leans back into his touch and lets her head back against the edge of the tub and his chest while his hand starts to dip into the water despite the rolled cuff of his shirt getting wet.

"Anyways, that night I got home late, he instantly confronted me and started to yell at me calling me names like parasite, and worthless. I tried to get past him and to the room I shared with one of the other girls there, but he was so big and angry. He reached out, grabbed me and flung me into the all glass coffee table that was nearby. I had long glass shards sticking out of my back and I was bleeding badly. Luckily his wife and her brother showed up and got me medical attention, but the cuts were deep. Before I even got out of the hospital, social services were moving me to another home."

Killian's hand stopped drawing circles on her back as he found his voice "Swan…"

"I didn't tell you that to get sympathy." Instantly the walls were going up.

Taking her now empty wine goblet and placing it slowly on the nearby shelf. He turns back to her. "I know you didn't. I know it took a lot to tell me, but I also know it is taking a lot for me to not want to track that man down and run him through."

"Don't worry, he killed himself driving drunk not too long thereafter." Raising her left leg out of the water, despite the beauty the scars are also evident on the portion above her knee. "I have other scars from a dog bite, cigarette burns, even a knife that one of the foster kids pulled on me."

Killian readjusts his seat again, leaving his arm in the water along Emma's back so that he can somewhat hold her even in the bath with bubbles shielding her skin. Emma leans back into his arm and swears she can feel the electricity of their touch in the water coursing through her on a low hum. Once Killian's eyes meet hers, she almost wants to ask whether he feels it too, but sees the understanding and mixed sadness from that understanding in his eyes. So instead she broaches the heart of tonight's topic instead.

"It's just that no matter what my parents try to tell me about giving me their best chance, and wanting a good life for me, I will always carry these scars with me Killian. They aren't going anywhere. My parents' abandonment of me will always be etched in my skin. It may not have been their hand that caused these scars, but it is their actions. I was doing better with all my resentment. I was letting go. But to find out that not only did they banish me alone to this world, but that another child went through the same things if not worse because they were filled with my potential darkness because of them? It's just wrong. No person should have to go through what I did, let alone two of us."

"I agree with you love. I truly do. I didn't have the best of upbringings either and perhaps soon I will tell you about it. But I know what it is like to carry scars from when you were too young to prevent them. What I have gathered of your parents is that despite being rulers with a brief hiatus of being a bandit or shepherd, somehow they were always loved by someone – family or friend. They don't know what it is like to be alone and abandoned. You do. I do. And you and I both know that emptiness of being alone can easily be filled by darkness and caution. But you have been so strong love." His fingers reach up and caress her cheek, and she swears that his touch is softer than the bubbles of the bath.

Leaning into his touch. "Not always. Don't forget that I too was on the wrong side of the law, stealing from people, sometimes not just because I needed something but the thrill of it, is kind of addictive."

"Yes it is. But you and I have both learned better now." Killian can't help but smirk.

"Have we? I don't know Captain. I think we might have stolen one another's hearts."

"I hope so Swan." His fingers draw Emma's face back to look up at him mere inches apart from one another. "Emma. I didn't fall for an illusion of the savior. I fell for you. Walls, scars, and red leather jacket. And I will tell you this… I am looking forward to plotting a course across these marks and soothing any memory that I can." Killian starts to lean down as his fingers trace the outline of her mouth. "Starting here."

Their lips meet in the most heartfelt kiss of Emma's life and in that instant Emma knows that her life truly is about to change once again this evening.

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Next Chapter: Bath time continues…