For the Love (a Tom Hiddleston fanfic)

Chapter 28

A/N: You guys are awesome.  Thank you for reading and for all the support and hilarious comments.  Also, thank you for forgiving me for any errors, grammar issues, whatever in this story.  I try my best to catch them, but they get by. :)  It's nearing the end of my vacation, but I will do what I can to keep writing as much as possible!!

     Emie sat back in her chair, taking in the sight of how happy, and slightly drunk, her sister was.  Lucia didn’t often let loose, but if she was going to, now was as good a time as any.  It made Emie smile.  She was surrounded by friends and family.  Her sister was having the time of her life.  And yet there was something sad sitting deep in the bottom of Emie’s stomach.  She had been doing her absolute best to ignore it all night.
        They had gone through the rehearsal quickly and without any issues.  She made it down the aisle, on Leam’s arm, without falling or making a fool of herself.  Tom had escorted her aunt down the aisle, and Emie was pretty sure her aunt was completely in love with him at that point.  She kept calling him “Thomas” and “dear boy”, which made Emie giggle.
       “Do you need anything?” Tom asked softly, leaning over toward her.  They had just finished dinner and were waiting for coffee and after dinner drinks.
       “No, I’m good.  Thank you.” Emie smiled.  He nodded at her, giving her a little smile. He had been surprisingly quiet for most of the dinner.  Erica sat on the other side of Tom, and while he had her on a quiet simmer, constantly laughing and tutting over him, he hadn’t said all that much to Emie.
       Emie relaxed, listening to the small conversations going on around her. Lucia was fussing over how crooked Chris’ tie was, and Chris was quietly laughing with her.  Leam and his father were in some kind of debate over where the best place to get a pint was back home.  This made Emie smile, and chuckle to herself softly.  Next to her, she could hear Tom, flirting harmlessly with her Aunt.
       “Erica, I find it amazing that you don’t have a date to the wedding tomorrow. You see, I’ve found myself without a date as well.” Tom said, smiling widely.  Erica laughed, placing a hand on her flushed cheeks.  Emie wondered if her Aunt had also been sampling all the wine, as Lucia had been.
       “Oh Thomas, dear boy.  You know how to make an old lady feel special.” Erica patted him on the back and Tom laughed softly.
       “Ah Erica, darling, age is but a number.” He said with a wink, and Emie was surprised her aunt didn’t fall over. 
       “Stop flirting with my aunt.  She’s going to ask you to run away with her.” She leaned forward and whispered in his ear as Erica was distracted by a question from Lucia.
       “What else am I supposed to do? I can’t flirt with who I really want to flirt with.” He said and turned to her, his blue eyes focused in on her.  His expression was serious, though his voice was trying desperately to keep things light hearted.  Emie quieted, taken aback. 
       “Emeline, this one here is a keeper.” Erica leaned forward, her pretty face smiling.  Emie pressed her lips into a thin smile.
       “Oh am I? I’m afraid your niece may need more persuading than that.” Tom said, his voice light and airy, but his eyes were not as he watched Emie.  Emie narrowed her eyes at him.
       “Don’t worry, dear, we’re working on her.” Erica nudged Tom with her elbow. 
       “Yes, please.  Put in a good word for me?” Tom said sweetly.  Emie took a sip of her wine and didn’t say anything.  She was just going to let them keep talking and then maybe she would just suddenly spontaneously combust and wouldn’t have to think anymore if her whole head was on fire.
       “Emeline hasn’t had a serious young man around in so long.” Erica continued, and Emie shifted uncomfortably.  Tom raised an eyebrow, his face full of mirth.  He was enjoying this.  Emie wanted to hit him and then ship her aunt back home.
       “Is that true?” Tom asked innocently, though he already somewhat knew the answer.
       “Erica.” Emie said, her tone warning.
       “OH, it’s been quite some time.  Not since that horrid Kevin.  Have you ever met Kevin?” Erica asked, patting Tom on the hand.  Emie groaned.
       “There’s been others.” She grumbled under her breath.  “Aunt Erica, how would Tom have ever met Kevin? We just met.” Emie sat forward, wanting very badly to run away.  A waiter came by at that point, filling coffee cups and handing out ordered drinks.  Emie grabbed her refreshed glass of wine and took a gulp.
       “Thirsty?” Tom asked, looking as if he were holding in the biggest grin.  He could barely contain it.
       “Oh, well you know these actor types.  They all know each other.” Erica waved a hand dismissively.  Emie crossed her arms over her chest.
       “Kevin is hardly an actor.” She said moodily.  Tom just sat back, watching and absorbing.
       “He was in that soap commercial.” Erica pointed out. “Anyway, Thomas, dear boy.  She’s had quite a hard time finding someone worthy of her.  Lots of bad dates.  Lots of broken hearts.  She used to be such a romantic, but as you can see…now a days, she’s a bit more…” Erica paused, tilting her head.  Tom waited, a grin on his face.
       “Cynical? Cold? Stubborn? Hard to reach?” He said after a beat.  Emie frowned, her eyes narrowed.  Tom thought this was hilarious.
       “Perhaps.  I’d say she’s distrustful and a bit skeptical of it all.  But love is all around.  I mean, look at Chris and Lucia.  They are just lovely together.” Erica nodded toward the pair, who as if on cue, were staring lovingly in each other’s eyes.
       “Ugh, get a room.” Emie said under her breath.  Tom barked a laugh, shaking his head.
       “You know, I was engaged once.” Erica stated, her eyes far off.  Emie’s eyes widened.
       “I didn’t know that, Aunt Erica.” She sat forward, looking at her aunt in shock.  Erica nodded, looking sad.  Emie reached over Tom, taking her aunt’s warm hand.
       “Well, I was almost engaged.” Erica sighed. “I let him go.”
       “Why?” Emie asked.  She couldn’t believe this was the first time hearing about this.  Erica had never brought it up before, and never seemed interested in talking about it growing up.
       “He moved to New York for work.  A great opportunity for him.  But I didn’t want to leave Arizona.  I was scared of it all.  Scared of love, I suppose.” Erica sighed heavily and then gave Emie a small smile.  “If I had known better.  If only someone would have told me… you should follow love.  Wherever it goes.  If it’s real, then follow it to the end of the earth.” Erica squeezed Emie’s hand a few times and then laughed.  “It’s fine though.  He got married to someone else.  I still live in Arizona.  I suppose that’s how it was supposed to be.” Erica finished.  Emie sat quietly.  Her aunt had been in love once.  And she’d walked away from it.
       “I had no idea.” Emie said softly.  Tom was quiet as well, watching the two women.
       “Enough about my sad sob story.” Erica laughed, sitting up a bit straighter.  “Tonight is a reason to celebrate love.” She smiled warmly, as if a switch had been flipped.  Emie nodded slowly, but her thoughts were still with her aunt’s past.  Emie was lost in her thoughts as she heard Tom and Erica move on to a new topic.
       A few moments passed, and Emie still sat quietly in her chair.  Thinking about her aunt and the choices she’d made.  How would her life have been different? How would Emie’s life been different?
       “You are rather quiet tonight.” Tom turned to her.  Emie sighed.  She was feeling a bit morose, and part of her was reveling in it. 
       “Sorry.”
       “Mmm, no don’t apologize.  But why don’t you tell ol’ Tom what he can do to make it better.” Tom asked, leaning toward her, grinning like mad.  He was obviously in quite a playful mood now.
       “You are rather cheeky tonight.” Emie said, tilting her head.  They locked eyes, and neither of them moved or said anything.  Tom reached forward, taking her hand in his and then pressed a kiss to the back of her hand.  She heard her aunt sigh with romantic revelation.  Around them, the music that had been softly playing the entire rehearsal, suddenly got a bit louder.  Emie recognized the song, but she wasn’t totally sure what it was.  Something slow, soft and romantic.
       “We need to dance!” She heard her sister exclaim.  Tom was still holding Emie’s hand, watching her, as everyone around them slowly started to get up to dance.
       “Dance with me?” Tom asked softly, his expression gentle and serious now.  Emie nodded and Tom kissed her hand again, and then moved to stand up.  Emie followed, standing quickly and feeling the wine she’d been drinking rush quickly to her head.  As she stood up, she felt something pull hard at the back of her dress and then to her horror, there was a loud, terrible ripping sound.
       It was loud enough that everyone at the dinner stopped what they were doing and turned to look. Emie froze, half standing, half hunched over the table.  She didn’t move, terrified of what had just happened to her dress.
       “Oh my god.  Help me?! What happened?” She said, panicked.  Tom leaned toward her quickly, and then she felt his hands moving at the back of her dress.
       “You’re caught on your chair.” He sounded a bit stressed as she felt him moving behind her.  He moved the chair and she felt another tug at her dress.  “I hope this dress wasn’t expensive, but I have a feeling it was.” He cleared his throat. 
       “Emie! What happened?!” Lucia called from across the room.  Emie looked up to see Lucia dancing with Chris.  Her aunt was dancing with Leam.  Everyone was turned, staring at her.
       “It’s fine! Keep dancing!” Emie waved her hands, as if nothing had happened and Tom wasn’t frantically grabbing at her.  “It’s just a tiny snag.” She assured them, and she heard Tom laugh humorlessly behind her.   She felt her face burn with embarrassment and then she felt Tom’s hands graze her butt through the material.
       “Tom!” She exclaimed, but he made a worried noise.
       “Emeline, exactly how attached are you to this dress?” Tom asked, kneeling down next to her.  Emie turned, and he made a noise as they both heard another sickening tearing noise.  Emie whimpered.
       “It’s one of my favorites.” She cried softly.
       “Ok well, I’ll buy you another, darling.” He said and then without warning, grabbed handfuls of it, pulled hard and ripped her free from her chair.  Emie lurched forward slightly, and let out a little whimper knowing full well just how ruined her silk dress must be.
       “Oh my god.” She breathed.  Tom still had the back of her dress in his hands, and he handed her the material and then was quickly shrugging out of his jacket.  She stood still, not wanting to move.  He quickly put his jacket over her shoulders and then gave her a once over.
       “You need to change.” He said gently, smiling through his teeth.  Emie frowned, feeling at the back of her dress.  She felt the tear, and it went clear up to her ass. 
       “Oh my god.” She said again. 
       “You’re okay.  My jacket is covering you, but everyone is going to get a free show if you’re not careful.” He was trying not to laugh.
       “Emie! Your dress!” Lucia had come over, and she started fussing over the ripped material.  Emie sighed heavily.  This was not how she saw the night going. 
       “It’s okay.”
       “Nice panties.  Lace? I think I have those in black.” Lucia said, bending down and lifting up the back of Tom’s jacket.  Emie squealed and swatted at her sister.
       “I’m going to go change.” Emie sighed, holding Tom’s much too big jacket tight around her.  “I cannot believe I just ripped this dress.” She groaned.
       “Want me to walk with you?” Tom asked, rolling up the sleeves on his dress shirt.
       “No, I’ll be fine—“
       “Yes, she does.  Go with her Tom.  We’ll be here for a bit longer and then a few of us are going to the bungalow.  Join us there? Unless you have better plans.” Lucia said with a laugh.
       “Ok, Lucia.  We’ll see you soon.” Tom laughed, ignoring Lucia’s last comment.  He put a gentle hand on Emie’s lower back, steering her carefully toward the door.  Emie shuffled out of the restaurant. 
       As they made their way toward her suite, Emie was thankful for the dark pathways. 
       “No one’s here.  Don’t worry about your knickers.” Tom whispered into her ear as they walked.  Emie laughed and shook her head.  She pushed her hair away from her face and sighed.
       “This is so embarrassing.” She let go of the back of her dress and relaxed slightly.  She felt the slight wind coming off the water, and almost immediately felt it go up the back of her dress. 
       “Oh! That’s breezy.” She giggled.  Tom laughed and pulled her to him, wrapping his arm around her shoulder.  Emie pressed against his side, and against her better judgment, wrapped her arm around him as well.  He was warm, and solid.  Strong. Dependable.  Tom kissed the top of her head.
       “You’re adorable.  Clumsy and adorable.” He said into her hair.  Emie couldn’t fight back the smile.
       “We should play a game.  And see how many ridiculous things I can do in a short amount of time.” She sighed.  Tom laughed, and then kept walking, moving as one through the dark pathways.  The stars were shining above them.  The breeze blowing softly through the tropical plants lining the pathways.  Emie held onto Tom, leaning against him as they walked.
       “Well you would definitely lose that game.” He chuckled. 
       “I would.”
       “So what would I get? As the winner?” He asked, his voice teasing.  Emie felt a bolt of electricity rush up her spine.  His voice was filled with deeper understanding, a longing.  Emie swallowed.
       “What would you like? Besides the pleasure of seeing me do stupid things?” She asked softly.  Tom was quiet for a moment. 
       “It would be easier if I showed you.” He said simply, stopping in the middle of the path.  Emie stopped as well.  Tom turned her to face him, and she felt his face come up close to hers.  She swayed, then steadied herself by grabbing his forearms.
       She breathed and waited.  He didn’t immediately kiss her, as she expected, but left her waiting.  She couldn’t quite see his face in the dark, but just the blueish outline of his features.  He was looking down, his lips achingly close to hers.  Waiting.  Just waiting.  For what, Emie wasn’t sure.  She squeezed his biceps and tilted her head up, beckoning him closer.  Still, nothing.  Emie held her breath, not sure what he was doing.  She shifted her weight, feeling unsure.
       “Show me.” She finally breathed.  Tom shifted then, his hand coming up to the side of his face.  She felt his fingertips against her chin and then across her cheek.  Soft, almost whisper like.  It had been four days since their last kiss.  Four long days.  It felt like an eternity.
       “Tell me you’ll have dinner with me.” He said brushing his cheek against hers.  She felt his skin, warm and soft against hers.  His fingers made a trail down her neck and across her collar bones.  Emie shivered.
       “We just had dinner.” She licked her lips, turning her head ever so slightly toward his.  Tom moved at the same time, but away from her lips.
       “Then tell me you’ll have breakfast with me.” His voice was low, seductive.  Emie felt her knees weaken at the double meaning of his statement.  She felt every sensitive part of her come alive, waiting and willing her to give in. 
       “Kiss me. Please.” She nearly begged.  Emie stood on her tip toes, leaning into him.  She felt the press of her breasts against his chest, and she waited. 
       “Say it, Em.”
       “Tom…I…” She faltered.  Tom groaned then, sounding frustrated and exasperated.  He took a step away, leaving cool air between them.  Emie felt her chest tighten.  She reached for him, but he didn’t respond.
       “What is going on in that head of yours?” His voice was soft, but stern.  He sounded wounded and confused. 
       “Tom—“ She couldn’t think.  She felt the panic in her chest and stomach, seizing up.
       “I have never, ever met anyone like you.  Someone who so heartily refuses to believe something good is going to happen to them.  Run with your instincts, Emie.  Don’t take the conventional path. What’s the worst that could happen? I will hold your hand the entire way if you want me to.  You might be surprised by what you find.  A revelation, a surprise.” He spoke quickly, passionately.  Emie could hardly breathe.
       “It’s not that simple.” She breathed.
       “But it is.  It’s just that simple.” Tom stepped forward again, taking her hands.  “Let’s not mince words.” He sighed. “I will do whatever it takes to be with you, Em. I don’t want to waste this. I will wait for you.  I will follow you to the ends of the earth.  But exactly how long do you want me to wait? You give the word and I will be there.  Two minutes from now, two months from now, two hundred years from now.” He pulled her hands up to his chest, holding her arms against his chest, his heart. “How long do you think it will take for you to figure out if this...if I…am worth breaking your blasted rule for?” Tom was silent then and Emie was speechless.  They stood, inches apart, his hands covering hers.  She could feel his heart beating fast under her palms, giving away his true feelings despite the slow, steady way he was breathing. 
       Emie closed her eyes for a second, feeling like a volcano that had been bottled up for far too long.
       “Stop flailing, you idiot!” A voice came out of nowhere and Emie and Tom both turned quickly toward the noise.  Two figures were coming down the path, laughing riotously. 
       Tom murmured some curse word under his breath.
       “Tom! Old chap.” It was Chris.  Emie stepped to the side, fighting back tears.  Talk about bad timing.
       “What’s going on?” Tom asked, his voice steady and flat.
       “Leam is pissed, the bloody bastard.” Chris laughed. “Help me drag him back to the bungalows?” He asked.  Someone else came running up, shuffling through the sand.
       “I told him not to do so many shots.” Maggie said, laughing.
       “Shouldn’t I be the one puking in the bushes?” Chris asked.  Emie pressed her lips together, watching Tom.  He wasn’t saying much.
       “Mate, can you grab his arm?” Chris asked as Leam slumped toward the ground.
       “Yeah.” Tom agreed, jogging over to them and wrapping an arm around Leam.  Emie bit her lip.
       “Emie, want to meet us back at our bungalow? Still have to go change?” Chris asked, grunting as Leam started trying to stand up.  Emie nodded.
       “Yeah, I’ll meet you back there.” She said finally. And with that, the boys were off, stumbling down the pathway.