Keeping it Professional

Chapter 5

The next day, Emma brought the flash drive in and had it in Killian's hands by 8:59 AM. She couldn't risk having him short tempered with her. She made sure that the flash drive was in her hands the entire morning, that way, she wouldn't forget it. When she handed it to him, he responded with an agitated 'thank you,' and Emma rushed from the office. Neal hadn't shown up yet, and she was kind of glad. She was already starting to have second thoughts about the next step in their relationship, but, she wasn't sure if it was time to call it quits or not. While she was happy with Neal, she had a feeling that she could be even happier with someone else.

By the time lunch time came around, Neal still hadn't shown up. But, she wasn't worried. She had enough things to do. She made her computer go to sleep mode then headed towards the elevator. Maybe a good grilled cheese and a side of onion rings could life her spirits? But, as she passed by Killian's office, she heard something she didn't think she was supposed to hear.

"I don't know, Liam. This whole team has fucked everything up! I had an employee look over the drive with Gold's information on it, and I got it back, and it was an even bigger mess than before! I think it's an inside job. Someone here is trying to sabotage everything. I'll have to cut them off at the source, and I don't care what you say."

Emma's breath hitched in her throat, and she stepped away from the door before she was caught. She rapidly pressed the elevator down button over and over again. She felt as if she was going to throw up. Did Killian really think that she was trying to get information for Mr. Gold? Was he going to fire her?

"Miss Swan." She heard Killian's voice say from behind her.

'Shit.' "Yes, Mr. Jones?" She asked, turning around.

He had his hands jammed in his pockets and was bouncing on the balls of his feet, nervously. "I was wondering if you'd like to go to lunch today?"

"I'm heading there now."

"Would you mind if I joined you? My treat?"

'Maybe if I do this, I can get some answers.' "I would never say no to a grilled cheese."

He chuckled and nodded. He shut the door to his office and moved to stand next to her in front of the elevator. The doors opened with a ding and he let her go in first.

"How are you and Neal?" Killian asked, leaning against the rail of the elevator with his arms crossed over his chest.

Emma nodded. "Good I guess. He's moving in with me this weekend."

"So you decided to give it a try then?"

"Yeah, I did. I'm not sure how this is going to go, to be honest."

"Why do you say that?"

"I feel like we've been losing that spark, or that it's dying out. Have you ever experienced that?"

"No, I can't say that I have." He chuckled. The elevator bumped, causing Emma to jump and wrap her hand tighter around the railing. Killian's eyebrows furrowed. "What? Scared of elevators?"

"I've never been trapped in one, and I prefer not to be. Ever."

"Well, if it does get stuck, at least you have me to keep you company."

The doors opened again, and Emma eagerly stepped out. She was able to breathe again. Killian led her to the parking garage and took her to the same car from yesterday, opening the door for her, and letting her get comfortable before getting in on the driver's side. He pulled out and got onto the highway.

"Where are we going?" She asked.

He smirked. "It's a surprise."

They pulled up to a fancy restaurant ten minutes later. Emma had only heard of it, never been to it. It was called Ostria. A very expensive restaurant to be exact.

"Killian, I appreciate it, but I can't afford to eat at this restaurant."

"That's why I'm paying." She was going to protest, but he already came over to her side and opened the door for her. She stepped out and they walked into the restaurant. "Reservations under Jones." Killian told the woman when they walked in. She led them to a private table in the back.

"I've never been in here before. I feel under dressed." Emma said as she looked around. Mini glass chandeliers hung above each table, and each table had a clean white tablecloth covering it.

"You're beautiful no matter what you're wearing." Emma blushed and Killian pulled out a chair for her. They both sat down and ordered drinks. Killian got wine while Emma stuck with water and a little bit of lemon. She was determined to keep her price low, but it was really hard to do that because everything was expensive. After they had ordered their food, Killian folded his hands on the table in front of him. Emma swallowed nervously. Her throat suddenly became dry and she took a few sips of her lemon water. "You remember that flash drive I gave to you?" He asked.

"Of course. How could I forget?" Her strategy was that she would pretend she didn't know that he was going to fire her.

"Well, how bad was the information on it?"

"Pretty bad, actually. Nothing matched the information on the papers in the file."

"Exactly. I'm glad you fixed it. But, did you see a pattern of any kind?"

"No not really. Why?"

He leaned back in his seat and sighed. "I gave that flash drive to Mr. Cassidy first. He was supposed to fix the information, but ended up screwing it up."

"So, you aren't going to fire me?"

"Why would I do that?"

"As I was walking past your office this afternoon, I heard you talking to someone. Saying that you would fire whoever messed up the flash drive. I apologize for jumping to conclusions. I just assumed that it was me because I had looked over the flash drive."

Killian reached for her hand from across the table. "You are a wonderful, employee, Miss Swan. I won't be firing you anytime soon. You can trust me on that."