Once Upon a Time 1. Chapter 1

**A/N: For those of you on tumblr, just a reminder that I posted this chapter there as two separate scenes.**

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"Oh ow, my ankle ," Regina whimpers warningly unwrapping her arm from around Emma's neck. The action forcing Emma to grab the woman's waist afraid that the mayor's stubbornness will leave her unbalanced to the point where her face would meet the ground.

"Set me down gently!" The woman shouts angrily, elbowing her away and balancing herself on her good ankle.

"Seriously you're complaining about how I save your life?" Emma says with a raspy voice. She had taken in quite a few breaths of smoke and now she trying to speak was causing her to cough.

"The firemen are here. It's not like we were really in danger." The major points out snidely blatantly ignoring the fact that she had just been begging for Emma to save her life moments before.

"Fine," she swallows still having a hard time getting words out, "next time I'll just...I'll just...no, you know what," she walks back up to her, " next time I'll do the same thing, and the time after that because that's what decent human beings do. That is what good people do." And with that she walks away.

That insufferable bitch! She saves her life and not only doesn't she get a thank you but some bull shit anger spat complaint. She knows the woman just flat out dislikes her and that she is hell bent on driving her out of Henry's life, but her inability to hold any resemblance of a conversation without berating her is being coming increasingly annoying. She can't take any more of it. What she wants to do is get as far away from here as possible. Go home. Take a bath. Have a drink.

Suddenly a violent coughing fit hit her and she reaches out for the exterior of the fire truck to catch herself as she bends forward. Apparently her body has other plans.

"You all right lass?" An accented male voice asks as a pair of boots steps into view.

She nods through another cough before swallowing hard and bringing herself up to meet this stranger. Her heart flips at the sight of him and it takes everything left in her to not gape at him in awe. The man looks like he has just waltzed out of a photo shoot for one of those hot firemen calendars. He is leaning lazily to one side with his helmet under an arm. His suit is slightly undone at the top, revealing how truly gorgeous a neck could be. And then there is his hair. He has a full head of it, luscious and dark, that manages to be as sexy as it is messy. She finally meets his ocean blue eyes, taking in the stern concern laced in them before a smile creeps on his lips and playfulness takes over.

"Emma Swan, isn't it?"

"That's me," she says before her coughing returns which she quickly covers with the inside of her elbow.

"You still got smoke in your lungs. Come on then, let's get some oxygen in you" he tilts his head, his eyes telling her to take the lead.

"Oh, no really I'm fine," she puts her hand out in front of her brushing off the cough as if it was nothing.

"No you're not," he disagrees taking her outstretched hand and pulling her over towards the ambulance.

"Hey, what the hell?" she yells at him trying to free herself. Who does this guy think he is that he can just grab her like she is some damsel in distress. She can take care of herself, thank you very much. But try as she might, the grip on her wrist is iron strong, however, it doesn't stop her from stubbornly continuing to squirm anyway.

"You know," he spins himself in front of her tightening his grip on her wrist clearly aware she's aggressively struggling to piss him off, "smoke from fires is very dangerous, sometimes fatal. That cough of yours does not sound good. Now either you are going to take some oxygen or I'm going to give it to you myself." His overly serious tone surprises her. There is something in his eyes that tells her this isn't just about her and she even feels a little guilty for being so stubborn, a little.

"All right." she says suddenly realizing how close his face is to hers. Clearly this guy doesn't understand the concept of personal space. "Can I have my hand back please?"

He drops it but doesn't move back . She hold his gaze curious to how he could be so angry at her - a perfect stranger. She cradles her wrist against herself for a moment massaging the spot where the feel of his fingers lingers before turning away from him. Smiling politely at the EMT, she tells him who she is and that she was one of the people caught in the fire. As if on cue she begins to cough again and he hands her the oxygen mask while asking and examining her for any burns . She puts it over her mouth and takes a deep breath. A wave rushes over her body and she feels amazingly better. She swallows effortlessly and takes a few more deep breaths feeling both relaxed and annoyed. She really had needed the oxygen but she didn't like that he had talked her into it especially when she didn't know why he cared. She gazes over at him, his head is turned in her direction but he's looking straight through her, passed her, at something not in the physical world but in his mind. She thinks she catches a shadow of sadness in his eyes but it's gone before she can be sure. Whatever it was, it is replaced by intrigue which for him is borderlining on bedroom eyes. She tries actively not to be affected by it, refusing with no avail to blush. In attempt to hide the quickening her heart and the heat on her cheeks she goofily waves the oxygen mask at him regretting it immediately. Oh god, she probably looks like one of those approval seeking girls trying desperately to show him she's done what he asked.

"Thanks," she says to the EMT handing him back the mask. She wishes she could just leave right now but she walks back over to him, knowing full well that his eyes are still watching her.

"You feel a lot better don't you?" he smirks. She rolls her eyes. Seriously what is with this guy?

"Don't you have a fire to put out or something?" She asks purposely avoiding thanking him, not wanting to give him the satisfaction of being right.

"Ah, me crew can handle it. But speaking of which, where are my manners. Seems I've forgotten to introduce myself. The names James Barrier, but most people call me Jas. I'm the captain here, making sure everyone is safe and getting the care they need is also a part of my job description," he says before leaning in and dropping in voice. "Besides they seemed to have had a little help from blonde who knows her way around a fire extinguisher."

"How did you..?"

"You expect me to believe Mayor Mills laid a finger on a fire extinguisher?"

She sees his point.

" Also I saw you carry it out, with the Mayor over your shoulder too. Quite impressive." Smirking, anger, flirting, and now compliments, this guy is completely throwing her off. She just scrunches her face in confusion, not knowing what to say. Luckily she doesn't have to say anything because at that very moment their conversation is interrupted.

"Captain!" A man yells and they both look over at the mayor's office. There is no longer any sign of a fire but a man is standing on the threshold ushering the James or Jas over.

"Duty calls milady," he winks at her before heading off towards city hall.

-OUAT-

Emma shrugs her shoulders and shoves her hands deep in her pockets trying to keep herself warm; she has been here too long and isn't appropriately dressed to be outside for extended periods of time. Practically whole town has gathered at City Hall to discover firsthand what all the sirens and the commotion is all about and she finds herself surrounded by a group of faces she has become particularly fond of in her short time of being here.

"Did you really rescue Regina?" Mary Margaret asks her wide eyed.

Before she can reply Henry is standing next to her exclaiming, "She did. The firemen said it. They saw it."

She is elated. Henry is here and he's happy, something that she hasn't seen since Graham's death. She puts on hand on his shoulder finding herself looking over her own. Briefly she glances at the firefighters seeing Jas with his back turned to her. Suddenly she has the urge to ask Henry if it had been him that he talked to about her. Surely it had been, no doubt. But that was silly, ridiculous even. Why would it matter who told her son about her apparently heroic triumph? Goodness Emma. What's wrong with you? She takes a deep breath forcing herself back into the conversation.

"You are a hero." Ruby says looking at her with eyes full of admiration.

"We should see if they have a picture of the rescue," Mary Margaret lights up an idea clearly forming in the back of her head.

"We could make campaign posters." Granny jumps in with excitement.

"People would love that. That's a great idea." Archie adds before they all run off enthusiastically. Wow, maybe she can actually win this thing. Fate seems to be working in her favor and there are people out there actually rooting for her, trying to help her. It has been a long time since she has felt this happy. Her smile is so big it is accompanied by a small laugh. Maybe she has a chance. She kneels down wanting nothing more than to share this moment with her son.

"This is how good wins." She tells him. "You do something good and people see it, and they want to help you." Normally, she doesn't have this sort of trust in people but tonight she believes herself when she says it.

Henry takes a moment to contemplate her words before for smiling, "Maybe, you're right."

His smile softens her heart. Hopeful Henry is back and it is because of her, because of good. "See Henry, we don't have to fight dirty."

"Miss Swan, a word?" an Irish drawl calls out for her and she knows immediately who the voice belongs to.

"I'll be right back kid," she stands up, once again patting him on the shoulder before turning in the direction of the fireman. Her face is still ablaze with a well deserved smile and she doesn't even consider suppressing it as she walks over to him.

"What is it, _Captain?_" her hands find her hips while her smile turns into a smirk. Woah, what did she just say? Apparently being happy is making her...flirty. She doesn't have time to process the her actions any further because although she catches the wave of smugness that washes over his face, she realizes that it had come from a more serious demeanor.

"I think there is something you need to see." The sparkle in his eyes and the upturned lips disappears, which make her lips thin press into a line. "Come on." He waves for her to follow him to the edge of the building where the fire had already been completely extinguished.

"We found the source of the fire." he explains as she catches up with him. "Normally, there's not enough evidence to suggest that a fire wasn't an accident but in this case, the cause is rather intriguing."

"Let me see it boys," he walks up to a group of fire fighters gathered in a circle.

"Ah, here it is." he turns to reveal a rope half brunt giving off a disgusting but familiar smell.

Emma's brow quickly turns in with shock and disbelief. She knows exactly where she remembers that smell from, Mr. Gold's shop. That bastard. The fire wasn't an accident. Gold had done this. The man she had aligned herself with to help her get elected sheriff. Her heart sinks along with her body. She knows this is all her fault, he did this for her campaign. Way to ruin her high, her hero moment. She is no hero, she apparently is just like every other campaigning skiver playing dirty just to win.

"Interesting," Jas comments staring at her intently cocking one eyebrow.

Fuck. Her heart begins to race. Her usual ability to keep a poker face has failed her. The last time she had been this caught off guard was when Henry showed up at her apartment, at least then she had a bathroom to excuse herself to in order to assemble one. Here she is left wide out in the open with nowhere to run to, nowhere to hide. What is she going to do? If Regina finds out the fire wasn't an accident. Well, even Mary Margaret couldn't bail her out of that situation.

She takes a step forward fumblingly rebuilding her wall. "This is what caused the fire?" she asks him reaching out and grabbing the rope slowly beginning to tighten her grip around it. If she could just...

"Ah." he pulls the rope out of her grasp. "Nice try, love, but it's going to take more than that to cover up that look you just displayed."

"What look?" She asks. Her confidence rolls back in and she deflects his accurate observation with a challenge. "What you're talking about?"

"Don't lie, lass. It doesn't suit you." He replies without hesitation.

Frustration begins to fester within her. How dare he see through her walls. She glares at him, angry he is able to spot her lie. He shouldn't be able to do that, that's her superpower. "Ok I'll admit it," she caves. " I was horrified." She caves a little. "Are you happy? What's the big deal? Is it a crime to be shocked that someone set fire to City Hall?"

" No, it's not; but it was more than that." he says looking at her as if she is a puzzle. Then securing the rope behind his back, he takes a step closer once again invading her personal space. "You know something. tell me what it is."

He saw right through her walls, again. God he is an infuriating handsome face. A handsome face with pretty ocean view eyes, she notices. Suddenly her breath is swept up in his beauty and her heart is throbbing from his proximity. He is so close she can feel him even though they aren't touching. Focus, Emma. He takes one step toward you and you've completely lost it. You are not going to let him win. You can't. " I don't know anything and _if_ I did, I am under no obligation to tell you. Now how about you stop withholding evidence and hand it over." She sticks out her hand.

He searches her face and it takes all her strength to keep her eyes locked with his because she for some unexplainable reason he is able to read her like an open book and that makes her uncomfortable.

"Fine," he sets the rope in her hands but before he lets go he leans in smiling. "It was nice meeting you, Emma Swan." he draws out her name, caressing each syllable, which sends an pleasurable tingle through her body. She turns around and walks away without saying a word pulsating with all the emotions he's igniting in her. Not a good day to be Mr. Gold because she is sure as hell ready to give him a piece of her mind.

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**So there it is. Sorry for the end. It was just not cooperating. **

**Next chapter is going to be amazing. A little bit of Jas's (Killian) POV and Emma's victory party (which someone is going to attend and attempt to buy her a drink)**

**Also a big thanks to trick-of-life for working out the idea for this story!**

**Until next time, review?**


	2. Chapter 2

**A/N: So originally I was going to wait to post this part with the victory party scene but my muse has taken a turn towards Irish Swan Trio (Killian/Emma/Graham), so I've been working on that. I'm going to try and work on this story again this week but I felt you guys deserved this scene. If you follow me on tumblr you may have already read it but if you don't then you are in for some feels! Thanks everyone who followed/reviewed/favorited!**

**Also I'm changing the name to Hearts On Fire so be aware of that change. The title is inspired by the song "Love Like This" by Wild Belle. It's an amazing song. You should listen to it. It made me want to make a fanmix for this story. I've already got some other songs to put it on it!**

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He can't get her out of his head. All his dreams and fantasies over the past few days have been interrupted by her blond hair and stubborn mouth. He keeps telling himself it's because of the fire, because he's associating both of them with flames that he keeps interchanging the two, but deep down he knows it's more than that. There is something about her that makes him curious, makes him want to know her, and that must be why, for the first time in how many years, he gets himself out of the house for something besides work.

When he arrives, the place is packed. The election for sheriff has been a major topic of interest for this small town and it seems everyone has showed up to witness the debate first hand. Jas finds himself a lone seat between an older gentlemen sporting a white beard and two seemingly twin sisters. The farther sister raises her eyes to his and smiles at him suggestively as he scoots passed people toward the middle of the row. Reflexively his lips turn up crookedly and he catches her bite her lip in response before he takes his seat. It's been a long time; so long that he had almost forgotten that his empty bed is a choice, not a curse . Once he had been a one night stand kind of guy, one that flourished in that particular lifestyle . He had enjoyed being with many women and not caring to stick to any one for very long, but that was before Milah, before he fell madly in love with her. Flashes of his love cross through his mind; her dark raven hair, her piercing blue eyes, her rambunctious laugh, they way she was just as fierce and commanding as him, and they way he awoke to her body in his arms perfectly formed against his own. Suddenly there is a slight clench on his heart as if someone is squeezing it. All his pain rushes back in and his one hand grabs for his prosthetic one crushing his wrist under a tight grasp.

He leans back in his chair suddenly a bit overwhelmed by the crowd of people. He shouldn't have come. What had he been thinking? This was all too much too fast. He needed to get out of there before he completely loses it and exposes the town to the shipwreck of his heart.

Anxious and slightly disappointed he drops his hands and prepares to stand but under his lashes he catches a movement on stage and he sees her, the Swan girl, peeking through the curtains. One strong and loud thud beats in his chest and the pain consuming him a moment ago leaves, forgotten. He can't make out the expression on her face but it doesn't matter, he continues to watch her anyway, a light smile forming on his lips. He decides to stay.

About ten minutes later the crowd settles down and a man nervously makes his way over to the podium..He introduces himself as the candidates step out from back stage, "Welcome everybody. My name is Archie Hopper, and I'll be your coordinator for tonight's debate."

Swan waves to the crowd barely forming a believable smile before taking her seat. As soon as she's seated she starts fiddling with her leather. The movements are small but he see them. He can tell she's trying to hide her nerves but she is doing a crap job of it.

He hears an assortment of whispers and looks over to find the twins with their heads locked together.

"Ugh, I can't believe they are letting that jail bird run for sheriff," he hears one of the two say and his fist clenches in response.

"I know. She's probably just running to keep herself on the outside of the bars," the other responses laughing pathetically at what she thinks is clever wit. He has an urge to invade their conversation and defend her, but he doesn't remembering he barely knows the woman himself and if it wasn't for a discussion he overheard at work he wouldn't have even know she had been in jail. Luckily his angry doesn't have time to fester as their commentary is cut short by the coordinator continuing his introduction.

"Tragedy has brought us here but we are faced with this decision and now we ask only that you listen with an open mind, and to please vote with your conscience. So without further ado I would like to introduce you to the candidates, Sydney Glass and Emma Swan. Glass. Swan. Sounds like someone a decorator would make you buy." The man laughs but the joke receives nothing more than the crowd's silence and Jas's cocked eyebrow.

"Wow. Crickets." the coordinator comments on his failed attempt to be comedic. "Ok, uh," he coughs, clearing his throat, "um Sydney Glass, your opening statement."

For the first time Jas takes a good look at Swan's competition, he had seen pictures of him on campaign posters but hadn't had the occasion to meet the man. The man is primped and prepared like a politician, dressed in a fine suit and wearing a genuine smile on his face that sports an odd mix of innocence and confidence.

"I just want to say that if elected, I want to serve as a reflection of the best qualities of Storybrooke: honesty, neighborliness, and strength. Thank you." Glass gives his statement slowly pronouncing each word delicately, a technique Jas believes he's doing it for emphasis until he realizes the man is reciting the statement from memory.

The crowd erupts, clapping generously as Glass leaves the podium and Jas's eyes reflexively return to her. Any effort of concealment has been removed from her face as he finds she is lost in a thought that is making her share a rather unpleasant expression. He wonders what exactly has got her so worried. Before he had thought she was just displaying the usual jitters one feels before getting up in front of a crowd but that wouldn't warrant the current look on her face. Something bigger must be troubling her.

"And Emma Swan," the coordinator says after the clapping has died down. Swan looks up at the sound of her name and takes a noticeable breath before making her way to the podium. Her hands clutch it's sides as if she's holding on to it as an anchor.

"You guys all know I have what they call a uh, troubled past but have been able to overlook it because of the um, hero thing. But here's the thing, the fire was a set up."

At that moment everything clicked: her horror struck face when he showed her the rope, her frustration at his prying, her sudden urge to run away with evidence, and why she has been a complete nervous wreak on stage this evening. He had been right, she had known who started the fire the instant he revealed the cause.

"Mr. Gold agreed to support me in this race but I didn't know that that meant he was going to set a fire. I don't have definitive evidence but I'm sure, and the worst part of all of this was, the worst part of all of this is that I let you all think it was real."

Everyone in the crowd is mumbling and aghast but all he sees is Swan's lips fall into a defined frown . This confession is breaking her but she is going through with it anyway, knowing full well that it might cost her dearly.

"And I can't win that way. I'm sorry," she says pleading at someone sitting in the front row, specifically apologizing to them.

Amongst the silence, the man he recognizes as Mr. Gold pushes himself up with his cane and makes his way towards the exit. Jas counts his blessings that he's never actually had a single conversation with the man, given all the horrifying things he's heard about him. He knows that he owns most of the town and isn't opposed to using that power to be cruel, but more importantly he knows that the man is not used to being defied and Swan here has just smoked him out. If he hadn't had admiration for this woman before he certainly did now.

The rest of the debate is uneventful. Although Emma can't shake the defeat from her voice, she answers each question without hesitation or pause, demonstrating she is in fact very knowledgeable about law enforcement. Glass's answers are as equally convincing, however, like his opening statement sound recited word for word from a very detailed script.

When the debate comes to a close and the final closing statement is made, Swan decidedly doesn't stick around, practically running off the stage as if she's already lost and is sparing the town her embarrassment.

"Well," the coordinator returns to the microphone after both Swan and Glass have exited the hall. " I believe we have the okay to go ahead and vote. Ballots and pens are being passed around. Please check the box next to the name of the candidate you want to vote for and then place your ballad into the box that is placed up here in the front.

Ballots are passed down the row and the twin sitting to his left passes him a stack with an overly sexual smile, which after her and her sister's comment s makes him feel utterly repugnant. He takes it from her and quickly slips one off the top for himself before handing them over the elderly gentlemen to his right. He smiles down at the piece of paper in front of him and decidedly checks the box next to Emma Swan's name. Delicately he folds the paper in half and follows the man next to him out of the row. It seems the majority of the crowd had no problem making a decision for there is already a long line to the drop box at the front.

When it's his turn he deposits his ballot through the slit of the handcrafted wooden box and steps off the side unsure whether or not he should stay for the outcome. He certainly isn't about to return to his seat, he'd rather do just about anything than willingly put himself back into the vicinity of those two rather judgmental twins. He walks towards the back of the room where there are groups of people are standing around chatting is hushed whispers. There is an empty space on the wall next to a couple who are standing awkwardly next to each other. He leans back shifting some of his weight to the wall and crosses his arms before taking a quick survey of the room realizing that to him practically everyone is a stranger.

"So do you have any other plans for the rest of the evening?" he overhears the tall and muscular man next to him ask the woman he is quite clearly being nervous around.

"Granny said that she is going to hold a victory party in her back room for whoever wins." the woman answers. "I'm going to head over there if Emma wins, and if she doesn't I'll probably head back to the apartment. I want to be there for her when she gets back. I'm a little afraid of what could happen if she doesn't win. When she was fired she destroyed the toaster and well I don't think our appliances can handle any more damage."

"She destroyed the toaster?" he asks.

"Yeah." she laughs. "I can' really be mad at her. She did warn me that she wasn't exactly the roommate type."

Jas notices that the awkwardness between them has faded and he glances over to them to find them much closer to each other. Before he has any time to think further into the drastic change between them, he hears the coordinators voice loudly broadcasted over the microphone.


	3. Chapter 3

**A/N: Hey guys! I know I'm a horrible updater but I swear to you even if it takes me 7 years I will finish this fic. I will not abandon it. **

**Anyway I wanted to say something quick. I got a lot of comments on the name "Jas" and I just want to say I chose the name because of James Barrier, who wrote Peter Pan and Captain Hook's name first name is originally James. However the name James is already given to David/David's twin so I wanted him to have a nickname and I saw "Jas" on wikipedia and I like it. Sorry to anyone who doesn't like the name but I don't want to change it. Hopefully my explanation gives you enough understanding to accept it as his cursed name.**

**That said. Enjoy!**

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The victory party has been all the she expected and more. Not that she had really expected anything since she had walked out of Town Hall convinced she was going to lose, but still having Henry back on Operation Cobra and glued to her side for the past half hour has been more than she could have ever wished for. Unfortunately, Regina had come and finally peeled him away from her, pointing out that Henry still had school tomorrow and making a quip about how the sheriff should probably cut herself off and go to bed as well seeing as she had duties now that shouldn't be taken lightly. The woman was lucky she was in a good enough mood to ignore the comment and hug Henry goodbye instead of unleashing her wrath upon the mayor. As much as she hated to admit it, Regina had been right about one thing. She may need to cut herself off, or at least stop accepting drinks from people. Everyone at the party is being excessively generous and she had accepted quite a number of drinks, enough to get her to the point where she is effectively "feeling it" right now.

She excuses herself from the group she is in, suddenly realizing she desperately needs to relieve her bladder. Normally she stuck to harder liquor and smaller quantities but that had not been the case this evening, tonight is going to be one of those nights where she is going to be making routinely trips to the bathroom. When she fumbles with the lock on the bathroom door, she decides that maybe it's time she switched to water. Making her way up to the bar, she stops to say goodbye to a few people that are leaving. She takes a seat at the stool and waits for Granny to finish up other people's orders.

"Another drink Sheriff? It's on the house," Granny makes her way over to her.

"Thanks, Granny. That's very kind of you but I could really go for a glass of water."

"Whatever you want dear." She gives Emma a big smile and turns away to fetch her a glass.

"Sheriff Swan," a distinct and familiar male voice calls from behind her.

She turns her head to find the firefighter, the attractive firefighter, she meet the other day taking the seat next to her.

"Captain Jas," she replies playing off his use of titles. Despite the fact that he is the man who had started her on this bumpy roller coaster, she is actually glad to see him here. Everything has turned out for the better.

"Captain Jas Barrier, that is. " He corrects her then leans towards her as if he is about to tell her a secret, "It has a better ring to it."

She rolls her eyes.

"But enough about me." He shifts back to an upright position. "I think a congratulations is in order. What are you drinking?"

"Water," she answers truthfully.

"Water? Swan, that's insulting. This is supposed to be a celebration."

She can't stop herself from smiling because for some reason he's acting like they have been friends forever and she likes it. "Oh trust me, I've been celebrating all right," she says.

"Well not with me you haven't."

"Jas," she warns him.

"Come on it's just one drink." he signals to Granny.

"I can't."

He scoots his chair closer to her. " You're honestly not going to let the man who saved your life buy you a drink."

"Excuse me." Oh no he did not just play that card. "I hardly think trying to pressure a girl into an oxygen mask qualifies as saving her life."

"Well, darling, if you had preferred mouth to mouth all you had to do was ask. I would have generously shared my oxygen with you."

As she watches his eyes dip to her lips she realizes how close they are. She could count his eyelashes if she wanted. Her heart is thumping loud. Without thinking she moves closer. It's as if they are magnets or he has some gravitational pull that is pulling her toward him.

"A large glass of water for Sheriff Swan and what can I get for you sir?" Granny asks jolting Emma back to reality. She moves a considerable amount to sit up straight again and hastily grasps the glass in front of her with both hands. Raising it to her lips, she takes her time sipping slowly hoping the glass is fully covering her surely flushed face.

She hears Jas order rum, "and none of the spiced stuff," he adds causing her to roll her eyes. What is with this guy? He throws in a little small talk, trying to charm his way into Granny's good graces - something in other circumstances she would pay to see. The man is one hundred percent a lady's man and she had practically kissed him just a moment ago. On one of her normal nights out this would be an easy situation; she would let him buy her drinks, take her home, they'd have sex, lights off, and she'd sneak away as soon as he fell asleep. Then she would avoid where they met, ignore any voicemails, pretty much whatever was necessary to make sure they never crossed paths again. But this wasn't a city, it was Storybrooke, a small town where everyone knew each other, where she had just become sheriff, where her son was. She couldn't just run anymore if things got too personal, and she couldn't have sex with someone and expect never to see them again. To top it all off, she would be lying if she said she didn't want to see every inch of that man bare and exposed in the light even if it meant exposing herself in the process. She is curious and sure it would be a sight to see.

"A bit thirsty there Swan," Jas comments managing to do what she's been trying to do - pull her out of her unnecessarily hot and heavy thoughts.

She takes a final gulp of water and sets the glass down in front of her. "I don't want to have a hangover my first day on the job."

"Ahh, so the truth comes out." he shakes his head sadly.

"What the hell are you talking about?" she demands getting defensive.

"You're a lightweight. That rather a misfortune lass."

"I'm not a light weight!" She defends herself firmly, even sizes him and looks him up and down, "I'm confident I could match anything you drink."

"Don't challenge me Swan or I just might take you up on your offer."

"Go ahead," she says before thinking. Shit, didn't she just decide to stay away from this guy. Now she goes and offers him the opportunity to get drunk with her which, with how it's been going, could easily lead to a night of them tossing and turning in bed together. Something she desperately does and doesn't need.

"You're confidence is chilling," he compliments her with a smirk, "but these are dangerous waters you're treading in lass. Are you sure you're not going to come to regret these bold statements in the morning?"

No she isn't going to regret it in the morning, she's already regretting it now but she's sure as hell not going to back out- that's not her style. "I don't do regret," she counters him, "and for your information, I know fully well what I'm challenging you to and I don't think it's me that should be worried."

"Says the woman drinking water."

"Says the man that has yet to drink a lick."

"Point taken," he says smiling one of the most genuine smiles she may have ever seen in her life. "Ohh you're a tough lass." It should be illegal the way his smile is enhancing his features making him even more handsome than he already is, especially since she can't ignore the fact that the smile is for her and that completely stuns her and makes her heart flutter - not ok.

"Your rum," Granny approaches them. Jas looks way from her breaking the spell his smile seemed to cast over her. Able to move again, she watches Granny slide Jas his drink which he catches smoothly with his hand.

"Thank you milady," Jas say leaning forward over the count giving Granny an overly seductive wink.

Emma suppresses a smile and bites back a laugh as Granny turns away rather unamused by his flirtations. It's the silent laugh she's holding in that alerts her once again full bladder and she doesn't waste a second of this pause in their conversation to decide now is the moment she needs to take her necessary trip to the bathroom.

"Speaking of drinking too much, you'll have to excuse me for a moment," she says as she swivels towards him in preparation to jump off the stool. She steps down onto the floor and maybe it's because she is intoxicated, or because she is staring at him too intently, or maybe she just loses her footing but she stumbles and falls forward throwing her hands out in front of her hoping it will take most of the blow. In that split second of falling she worries more about being that embarrassing town drunk than she does about getting hurt. But her hands don't hit the tiled floor, they smack into a different surface, something softer that her fingers are able to fist around, while her waist is steadied by a pair of hands. His hands. She has literally just fallen into his arms. She stands there for a second feeling his hands on her. There is something odd about the way he is holding her; he's got her in a tight death grip with his right hand and he is keeping her upright with an open palmed hand on her back with the other.

"Are you all right, lass?" he asks before she has a chance to analyze how he is holding her any further.

"I'm fine," she says staring at her hands still fisted in his shirt. He bends his head down pushing their waists closer together and she realizes he's trying to look her in the eyes.

"I'm fine," she repeats looking up at him. "I just slipped."

Once again Emma is caught off guard by how his gorgeous and blue eyes are but she is more baffled by the hint of concern hiding beneath them. She can't seem to understand how someone who has only knowing her for a mere few hours could be so worried for her safety.

"Mmm hmm," he nods a mischievous smile appearing on his lips, " still think you can drink me under the table?"

And just like that the magic is broken but she is glad. She is actually eternally grateful that he said something annoying because if he hadn't, she wasn't sure how long she would have just stood there in his arms. Under normal circumstances now would be the time she would push him away, but like everything else tonight , nothing she does is normal. This time she fights back in a more calculated and devious manner hoping to affect him as much as he is affecting her. She lets go of his shirt and brings her hands down to his wrists wrapping her fingers around them in succession. Slowly she removes his hands from her waist, without any sort of resistance on his end, all while keeping her eyes perfectly locked with his. Lastly she raises herself up on the toes of her boots, breaking eye contact for just a brief moment to deliberately glance at his lips.

"I know I can," she whispers her lips a breath away from his.

She holds her pose counting: _one, two, three, gotcha._ He glances down at her lips and she drops his wrists falling back down to her heels.

"Enjoy your rum," she brings her hand up pushing his drink towards him. Her fingers leave his glass and as she brushes passed him she trails them across his chest. She turns around and heads towards the bathroom a smile sprawled across her face. It had felt better than she had expected to toy with him and the blood rushing through her making her feel alive coaxes her to play some more. Needing again to see the affect she has on him, she whips around to catch him staring lower than he should be. His eyes flash up to meet her but not quickly enough, she had caught him undoubtedly staring at her ass.

"Oh and Jas, don't you even think about doing anything to my water, I'll know it was you," she says savoring the stunned look on his face.

"I wouldn't dare," he throws his hands up all innocent like but behind them she can see a small smirk emerging on his face. She heads back towards her original destination suddenly reminded of her painful need to urinate.

* * *

**Well there you have it. I did have to break up the scene once again. I just want to get it to you guys as fast as possible. I have a good portion of the next part written. Emma has a little chat with Ruby and there's a bit of jealousy that stems from them. The next chapter will be the last from the "Desperate Souls" episode for those of you who want to keep track of where we are in the season one time line.**

**Review?**


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