"Mr. Gold? This is Mary Margaret Blanchard." Gold heard her voice on the other end of the phone and immediately thought that something had happened to Emma.

"Miss Blanchard, is Emma OK?" Gold tried to sound calm.

"Emma came home from work a while ago and she's not well. She has a fever and she's cold and shaking and curled up in bed. I know you were going to see her tonight so I was hoping you could come over and stay with her. I have to be at a parent-teacher conference at 7:00 and I don't want to leave her alone."

"Of course I'll come over. I'm just closing up my shop now. I can be there by 6:30. Does that work for you?"

"That would be perfect. I'll still be here. Thank you."

"Good evening, Miss Blanchard. How's our patient doing?" the concern in Gold's eyes made Mary Margaret smile to herself.

"She's the same, Mr. Gold. She needs to take a fever-reducer and drink a lot of fluids. I left everything you'll need in her room." Mary Margaret gestured upstairs to the room on the left. "I hope she'll cooperate with you. She hates it when anyone tries to take care of her."

Gold laughed. "Don't I know it? The woman hates to accept help. Don't worry though, Miss Blanchard. I know how to deal with her."

Mary Margaret smiled shyly at him. "So I've heard."

Gold laughed again. "I'm sure you have. We're quite a pair, don't you think?"

"Yes, I actually think you two are perfect for one another."

"As do I." Gold agreed. "I just wish Emma saw it the same way."

Mary Margaret put her hand on his. "I wouldn't give up on her. She just needs more time than most people."

"I know. I'm trying my best to be patient."

"You're doing a great job." Mary Margaret smiled at him and looked at the package he held in his hands. It was a square box wrapped in pink paper with a pink bow shaped like a rose on top of it. "Is that for Emma?"

"Yes. It's a little end-of-the-deal gift for her. Can you make sure she gets it tomorrow morning? I don't want her to open it until then."

"That's so sweet. You do know that she's not the pink type, don't you?"

Gold chuckled. "I'm well aware of that. It's a little joke between us. Actually, it's something that Emma finds very amusing at my expense. I thought I'd give her a laugh."

"I'll make sure she gets it. Listen, I have to get going. Please help yourself to anything you find in the refrigerator. There's some leftover lasagna and chicken. And one more thing… please call me Mary Margaret."

"Thank you, Miss… Mary Margaret. Now don't worry about anything. I'll take good care of Emma."

Gold made his way up the stairs and entered Emma's room. It was the first time he had been in it, and knowing how private Emma was about everything, he almost felt as though he was intruding.

"Emma? Are you awake?" He whispered.

"Gold? What are you doing here?" Emma turned to look at him with feverish eyes.

"I'm here to make sure you get better, Emma. I need you to take some medication and drink some water." Gold moved closer to the bed and put his lips on her forehead. "You're burning up."

"I'm sorry, Gold. I can't go out with you tonight. I have to break the deal."

"Don't worry about the deal, Emma. Now just take these pills and drink as much water as possible."

Emma obeyed him. "Now let's get you out of these clothes and into something more comfortable. Mary Margaret left a sweatshirt and sweat pants out for you. I'm going to help you put them on." Gold managed to undress and dress her with very little help from her. He finally got her comfortable and tucked under the covers.

"Thank you, Gold. Please lie down next to me and hold me. I'm so cold."

Gold had already removed his jacket. Now he removed his vest, tie and belt and got into bed next to her. Emma immediately leaned against him and he wrapped his whole body around her. "Sleep, darling. I'm going to stay with you until you feel better."

He held her closer as she continued to shiver. Eventually the shivering stopped and he could tell that she was asleep. He relaxed and dozed off with her.

"So you're Emma… so beautiful! " The high-pitched voice made Emma jump as a gold glittery-skinned imp with curly matted hair danced around her. He put his face close to hers and stared at her with gold-amber opaque eyes that seemed more reptilian than human. He smiled at her with rotting gold teeth as he stroked her cheek with his finger and giggled maniacally. Emma stared at him. She knew him but didn't want to believe it. "The name's Rumplestiltskin, dearie. I've been expecting you. I just never expected you to be so lovely." He clapped his hands together in delight and whirled around her once again.

"Gold?" Emma choked the name out.

"Gold? What about it, dearie? I spin straw into gold. You can't buy your way out of this. You've been promised to me as part of a deal and you're now mine, all mine. You're here to care for my rather large estate, and by estate I don't mean my castle." He leered at her while sweeping his eyes over her body, paying special attention to her lips. "You see, Emma, I have an insatiable sexual appetite and you'll be taking care of my needs whenever I demand it."

Emma laughed. "And you think that's going to upset me? You know me better than that, Gold…I mean Rumplestiltskin. Nothing excites me more than to give you pleasure."

Rumple was taken aback. Who was this woman and why wasn't she afraid of him? Why wasn't she repulsed? And who or what was this Gold she kept referring to?

"Unlace my pants, Emma. And take me in your mouth. I want to see what you can do with those sweet moist lips and that naughty tongue."

Emma unlaced his pants and pulled them off of him. His erection bounced out at her and she felt herself immediately aroused. She loved taking Gold in her mouth and for once he was going to let her do exactly what she wanted without worrying about her needs first. Emma took him in her hand and licked the tip with her tongue. Rumple groaned loudly and grasped her head in his hands, his long nails digging uncomfortably into her skull. She took the head in her mouth and sucked on it while swirling her tongue around it. Rumple dug his hands in deeper and yelped a bit in response. She then lowered her mouth on him taking him almost all the way in. He lost control and thrust further into her. She gagged a bit and moved off of him. "Listen, I can take you all the way, just give me a minute to adjust." She took him again even further and he whimpered and tried not to thrust. She was enjoying this and he couldn't believe it. The woman wasn't protesting, she seemed to want to do this. Suddenly Emma started using her mouth to suck and lick him in a way that was making him lose control. He had to thrust into her in return but he refrained from controlling her movements because she was doing things to him that he hadn't expected and it was driving him insane. Suddenly he felt her hands on his balls and she squeezed them with just the right pressure to make him cry out. "Emma, don't stop Emma." His high-pitched voice was now raw and raspy and Emma knew she was driving him over the edge. She pulled back a bit and concentrated all of her efforts on sucking the head of his penis and he took himself in his hand and rapidly stroked himself while she sucked. He let out a guttural groan as he came in her mouth and he stroked and thrust as she sucked him dry.

He stared at her in disbelief. She looked completely self-satisfied. He suspected that she was dripping with desire so he pushed her onto the table, pushed her skirt up and tore her panties off of her. Emma put her feet up on the table and opened her legs revealing how dripping wet she was to him. He growled and set his mouth on her, lapping up her juices with relish. He stuck his very tense tongue in her and she gasped in shock at the intense feeling it elicited in her. "You liked that, Emma? Well, how do you like this?" He set about licking every fold with his tongue and teased her clit until she was begging him for release. He set his whole mouth on her and sucked her and stuck his tongue in her until she screamed at the torment and he granted her release. He followed her orgasm to its end, never removing his mouth from her.

"Don't get used to that, Emma. That was for me, not for you." And he pulled back to show her how erect he was again as he stood over her, pulled her closer to the edge of the table and thrust himself into her. His movements were wild and wanton and Emma could feel a climax building immediately. She bucked her hips and met his wild movements moaning as loudly as he was. He lifted her leg over his shoulder and pounded into her making full blissful contact with her swollen and aroused clit. Emma began to come again, unable to hold back, and he thrust into her several more times as she screamed his name and he released his semen into her.

"You came again." He was truly amazed at this woman's responses to him.

"Get used to it. There's this thing between us that's out of our control. You're going to satisfy me whether you want to or not. It's just the way it is." Emma smiled at him defiantly.

Rumple's eyes betrayed his confusion. He did not understand what was happening here and was determined to get to the bottom of it.

"Emma, are you OK?" Gold was staring at her as she opened her eyes. She pulled him close to her and kissed him. "Your clothes are drenched, Emma. The fever broke. Let's get you into some dry clothes. Emma was weak and let him help her.

"You were having some very intense dreams. You were wildly tossing around and I had trouble holding you."

"I had a dream about you… only you were the Rumplestiltskin from Henry's book and you were gold and glittery and had rotten teeth and long nails and…" Emma hesitated… "You told me that you were sexually insatiable and I was going to sate your every need whenever and wherever you demanded it."

Gold looked completely embarrassed. "You must have been disgusted and repulsed to see me as such a beast. How awful for you."

Emma looked at him thoughtfully. "No, I wasn't repulsed at all. I knew it was you, and I know this is going to sound strange, but I was attracted to you and completely aroused. You insisted that the sex was strictly for your benefit, but you ended up satisfying me beyond my wildest dreams."

"So it was as good for you as it was for me?"

Emma laughed. "I think it may have been better for me, Gold. And your alter ego, Rumplestiltskin, was completely shocked by it."

Gold laughed too. He had had the same dream and it had scared him in many ways. He thought Emma would be sickened by the real him. He was a disgusting monster, a beast, and yet she still wanted him and she wasn't intimidated by him and she wasn't afraid of him. She called him out the same way she always did. The woman was amazing and he was in awe of her. And the dream meant that she was beginning to believe. She was one step closer to breaking the curse.

"I think I should leave, Emma. I don't think Mary Margaret expects to see me here in the morning."

"No Gold. I need you to stay." She wrapped herself around him.

"OK. As you wish. But you need to get some sleep. You're still weak and need rest."

Within minutes she dozed off and Gold followed suit.

"Good morning, sweetheart." Gold was propped up on one elbow looking at her. "How do you feel?"

"Much better. She kissed his hand. "Thanks for staying and thanks for the great dream." She looked at him suggestively.

"Well that's going to have to do it for you for now, Emma. You're still weak and Mary Margaret is down the hall."

"You're right." She hesitated a minute. "I've decided what I want the favor to be."

Gold gave her his undivided attention.

"Can you extend the arrangement with Regina so that I can see Henry for another month?"

"Consider it done, my dear. The arrangement is extended."

"Don't you have to check with Regina first?" Emma wanted to make sure that she wouldn't have any problems with the woman.

"I spoke to her on Saturday, Emma. I was pretty sure that you'd use your favor to gain more time with Henry."

"How could you know, Gold? I was originally planning to use it to get to you in some deliciously wicked way."

Gold laughed. "I was well aware of that, my dear, but I also knew that you wouldn't waste it." Gold now paused and looked a bit uncertain. "What about the other part of the agreement? Do you want that to continue?"

Emma looked like she was deep in thought debating the pros and cons. She knew the answer but wanted to make him squirm a bit. She finally took pity on him. "Yes, Gold, I want to continue that part of the deal also."

Gold looked relieved.

"Tell me, Gold. What would you have asked for if I owed you a favor?"

"The same thing, Emma. I would have asked that we extend our deal for another month."

"So the favor would have been the same no matter which one of us won the bet?" Emma was just beginning to understand the implications of this.

"Exactly, my dear." Gold smirked. "I never make a deal that doesn't work to my advantage. And in this case we both win."

"You had no way of knowing that I'd extend the date portion of the deal, Gold. Especially when we first made the bet." Emma challenged him.

"No, I couldn't be 100% sure, but I was pretty certain that you'd want to continue. You know that what we have is something that you just don't throw away. Your main issue is that you can't make a commitment. Extending a deal by eight dates bides you time without the commitment."

"You really are incredibly sure of yourself, aren't you? You really think you have me figured out?"

Gold grinned. "Pretty much."

"Well before you get too smug, darling, let me tell you that there's one small twist to our arrangement." Emma was now the one smirking. "You'll be having eight dinners with me this time around; I won't be having eight dinners with you."

Gold laughed. "Very clever, sweetheart. You're taking control away from me. But let me point out that I let you take the lead and set the pace most of the time, didn't I?"

"That's just it, Gold. You let me… you were still in control. This time I'll be the one in control. That has to take you right out of your usual comfort zone, don't you think?"

Gold laughed. "You win, Emma. You beat me at my own game. But let me tell you this, darling. I never expected anything less of you. I'm looking forward to seeing what you have planned."

Gold traced her lips with his fingers and kissed her gently. "You're beautiful and clever and I'm pretty crazy about you."

Emma kissed him back hungrily. "I'll try not to make you suffer too much."

"Now, now my dear. You must get some rest. Your little dream is going to have to hold you over until next time." Gold got up and got dressed. "I'm going to let myself out before I disturb your lovely roommate. Tell her I said good-bye."

Gold noticed that his gift for Emma was sitting on the kitchen counter as he let himself out. He smiled to himself thinking about her reaction when she opened it.

"How are you feeling, Emma?" Mary Margaret was happy to see Emma up again. "Did Gold leave?"

"I'm much better. He stayed the night and nursed me back to health, but wanted to leave before you got up. He thought he'd disturb you by being here."

"Not at all. He's really very sweet, Emma. You should have seen how concerned he was about you last night. He has it bad for you."

"I know. He's not the only one… By the way, I decided on my favor."

"Oooh… I can't wait to hear."

"I asked him to extend our deal. I'll continue to see Henry and I'll also be seeing him for eight more dinners."

Mary Margaret couldn't help grinning. "I knew you were going to keep on seeing him."

"Yeah, I couldn't resist. But I also found a way to make the situation less than comfortable for him… he's having eight dinners with me… I'll be the one in control, not him."

Mary Margaret giggled. "I bet he wasn't expecting that."

Emma grinned. "No, he was gracious about it, but I think he's a little concerned."

They both laughed.

"Oooh, before I forget, Gold left you a present last night." Mary Margaret handed her the pink package.

Emma laughed again when she saw the pink wrapping. She opened it carefully and then stopped dead in her tracks. "I can't believe him."

"What's wrong? What is it?" Mary Margaret tried to see in the box.

Emma opened the box and showed her eight white envelopes with eight blank swan-shaped cards inside.

"What does it mean?" Mary Margaret didn't understand why Emma looked so annoyed.

"It means that he knew that I was going to tell him my favor, he knew what my favor was going to be and he also knew that I was going to change the terms of the arrangement. I don't know how he does it. It's as though he can read my mind. The worst of it is that I didn't decide what I was going to do until this morning."

"I don't understand what the notecards have to do with it." Mary Margart was still in the dark.

"Before each of our dinners, Gold left me a gold envelope with a gold card inside that would tell me where we were meeting and at what time. It also used to say something that made me feel pretty good about myself."

Mary Margaret laughed. "So he gave you these cards so that you can do the same now that you're calling the shots?"

"Exactly." Emma couldn't help laughing in spite of her annoyance. Gold had said he didn't expect anything less from her, and as much as she hated to admit it, she didn't expect anything less from him. Well, let him get the last laugh for now. She had eight chances to get back at him… and that's exactly what she was going to do.

Gold arrived at his shop on Monday morning and found a white envelope on his counter. He opened it and found a swan-shaped card inside.

Thank you for being there for me, Gold.

I feel the same way you do, but I'm afraid.

Meet me at the station at 7:30 on Saturday evening.

And be prepared to pay.

Gold smiled to himself. She felt the same way he did… for that he was willing to pay anything.