pray for the wicked

She made the best out of her favorite holiday, spending it with Paisley in the best way she could. Last year she’d spent it with Emerson, which would have been her ideal plans this year if he hadn’t gone away. Plus, the love potion she had someone making was taking longer than she expected, having to wait until after anyways to even try and use it. She eagerly waited for him to get home, having cooked dinner with his portion having the mixture in it. This was the only way she could think of getting him back, a smile on her face as she heard the door. “I hope you’re hungry. I made all your favorites.”

@emersonwheaton

The surprise caught him entirely off guard, perhaps paired with the news he was still trying to process, he wasn’t expecting such a welcomed return home. “Jemma?” He questioned, as he made his way to the table, unsure of anything anymore. “Any particular reason why you’ve prepared dinner for us?”

A brotherly date felt necessary with how much time seemed to past since the last time he saw him. His life was taking a turn for the better, happy for the first time in awhile without the help of drugs. A smile already on his face when he met his brother, “Hey, Em! It feels like forever since I saw you. How is everything?”

@emersonwheaton

It definitely had been a lifetime, or at least felt like one with all the craziness amped up in the town. “Everything’s...fine. I think.” He tried, still not sure what he and Cat were going to do about their whole situation. He already had one kid out of wedlock, a past time that he felt terrible for, but at the same time, he wondered if this was just what the new age of romance was. “Just...dealing with some things in my personal life. How about you?”

Whatever moment they were about to have dissipated as the words came out of her mouth. If she could have waited longer, she would. This wasn’t something though she could keep putting off, he needed to know no matter what day it was. “I really wish it were a joke,” she muttered, feeling much of the same. One drunken night ended in this, some sort of karma for all the lying she’d done to her family the past few months. “I didn’t mean for this to happen. Apparently the strong alcohol knows how to mess things up in more ways than one.”

He only stared, dumbfounded by the reveal, trying to take it in, process it, and even have a moment to figure out what to do next, but it all felt like the world was crashing down on him. At her words, he stood, before he began to pace as he shook his head, trying rationalize it all. “No really? I would hope you didn’t mean for an accidental pregnancy to happen!” He tried, growing a bit agitated in himself for letting this happen.

Her hand went to his cheek, thumbing running lightly across it. She hadn’t realized before how much she needed this, and how fast it might be gone after tonight. Caterina wanted nothing more than the make this official, the rock she needed to get through all of this. “It is good, and the way we’ve taken our time with it has made it even better.” She shifted slightly, looking down a the bed. “There is something I have to tell you though.” A deep breath filled her lungs, meeting his eyes again. “After the Centennial, I uh…went to the doctor’s and…found out I was…pregnant.”

At her words, his soft nature came out in a large smile, a relaxation calming over him with just a sense of coming to terms with their relationship and how it all seemed to work out. “I can’t tell you how much I’ve enjoyed taking things slow.” Comparing it to his relationship with Jemma was like apples to oranges, especially with Paisley in the picture now. Nothing could have prepared him for her announcement though, and it was as if he was experiencing finding out about Jemma being pregnant all over again. “What?” He looked to her with his expression faltering. “Ha ha, very funny. Please tell me you’re joking.”

A small smile crept onto her face at the light touch. After everything that had happened, he hadn’t run away yet. The past few weeks were hard enough, but he’d been the one good thing to come back too when she was at her lowest. She sat cross legged on the bed, the dressed tucked in. This one with more flow than the one she’d worn to the party, trying to hide some of the extra weight she’d gained. "You’re something special, you know that? And as much as we deserve this, I didn’t want you to think you had to spend it with me.”

“Am I?” He questioned back, a sheepish grin pulling at his lips almost immediately as she complimented him. It was the sweetest gesture, and Emerson could even feel a faint heat rise to his cheeks as he was flattered by her words. “I think you’re something special too Cat. Something that came into my life when I think I needed you most.” He continued looking over her with a soft relaxed sigh. “Well, I’ve been thinking about that too, you know, you and I. It’s good, right? I like the way we’re taking things. It’s been nice being able to have you around.” He wondered if it was going to be too forward to ask her to be his girlfriend, something he’d been debating for a while now.

The last few weeks were a blur with helping her father figure out everything after her mom passed. She might have been upset with him, but she couldn’t let him go through all of it alone. But dealing with one issue turned into too many, needing the short getaway to at least leave most of the stress behind. One aspect weighed on her mind, saving it for later when the timing felt right. “This was a much needed break, and thank you for not letting me spend this holiday alone.”

@emersonwheaton

“Well yeah, of course.” Emerson stroked her hair softly as he looked to her, happy to at least take her mind off of things for a bit. He wanted to take things slow with her, to make things work out and do things right this time, especially with all the loss of the town recently. The man’s smile peaked out while he added, “I don’t think I could ever let you spend this time alone. Plus, we deserved this.”

Her head tilted, the kisses almost throwing off her plan of banging in the office, every touch pushing her closer to letting it happen practically anywhere. The hands on his chest started to work at his buttons, getting a head start as she saw the door she wanted. “Now we get to touch wherever we want,” she mumbled, reaching for the door and leading him through the door before letting the door close behind them. 

“It’s good to see you too, Em.” she chuckled trying to play off what he was correctly assuming. She knew she couldn’t deny it, but even she wasn’t sure how to explain it all. She stepped closer to him, sighing heavily. “It’s not what you think. It–it is him, but its not what you think.” She kept her voice low so only he could hear her. “I’m still trying to process the fact he’s here, that’s he’s not dead. I can explain everything, but you have to promise me you won’t get mad.” 

Emerson noticed the obvious subject change, before trying to let it go. Delilah was old enough to be making her own decisions, and Emerson didn’t want to keep meddling. They were living their own lives. But still, he was caught up in everything it seemed. “What do you think I’m thinking Del? If that’s who I think it is...he’s a dead man walking.” His brows furrowed slightly. “Why would I get mad?”

She wasn’t completely convinced he’d be the one to get them to the Mayor’s office, at least not in the state she saw him in. Only confirmed as she found her back against the wall, a smile playing at her lips as she kissed him back. Her hands ran along the muscles on his chest, pushing him back slightly. “We get to this office and there’ll be a reward waiting for you.” She said against his lips, keeping her body close to his as she backed him towards the room.

“Shit.” He muttered, the promise of a reward coming to mind as he practically panted against her form. Backing up slowly, he let Cat guide him, his hands feeling up her backside still, her dress skin tight as he continued to rub at her curves. “Thank god we got away from the crowds.” He muttered against her neck as he pressed kisses along her revealed collarbone. 

Her finger tapped on the side of champagne flute debating how much longer she would really need to be the buffer. She glanced to where her sister was, figuring if she stayed with Ben their father would stay away to not make a seen. Cat finished off the drink, setting the glass down before taking his hand. “There’s a rather big office calling our name. A perfect place to celebrate us tonight.” She started in the direction of where the offices were, “If we can even make it there.”

“A big office, huh?” Emerson was all too glad to take her suggestion after the evening had already gone off without a hitch. A drink or so in, and Emerson was gladly buzzed and eager to get his hands all over Cat’s body anyways, and here they were, heading out of the crowd already. “Oh, I’ll get us there, don’t worry Cat.” He kept his voice low before he found the exit doors, where he turned towards her and quickly pressed himself against her, kissing her against the wall. 

She draped an arm over his shoulder, sipping at the golden liquid in her glass. Besides the sexual chemistry the two shared, Cat was finding it hard to keep her feelings focused on that. She didn’t want this to be only for the sex, but with particular things going on in both their lives, she wasn’t sure how to make all of it fit together. A small smile came on her face at the short kiss, pushing her thoughts to the back to stay in the moment. “This is already going much better than the potluck. First, we’ve started the night off together, which is only going to lead to some more fun. Secondly, we’ve both drank and nothing bad has happened. I’d say those are two very important things to celebrate.”

“More fun can’t come quickly enough.” He whispered still, Emerson finding it unbearable to even be around her without so much as a further touch of her body. But, he restrained himself, knowing that the night needed to go off without a hitch as he remained civil, for the time being. “The only two things worth celebrating are you and me Cat. I’m sure there’s an office around here begging to be used. Is there anybody we need to...mingle with before we go....mingle together the rest of the night?”

@itsdelilahw

Only so much time could pass before she’d need to out of sight of any prying eyes, every inch of her body sensitive to his touch. “I can’t wait to find out.” She had some places of her own she wanted to take care of. “As long as you can still walk out of here, among other things, I’m not going to stop you from trying to keep up.” She held up her glass, clinking it against his. “I’ll toast to that, although I can’t take all the credit. You make me feel pretty special,” she admitted, taking a sip from her glass. “What made you decide to ask me anyways? Not that I’m complaining, I rather enjoy your company.”

“Oh, I’m counting down the moments until I get to make you mine.” Emerson seductively stated back in his short whisper, finding her irresistible towards the young woman in front of him. “And I’m not sure I’ll be able to walk straight, but we’ll just see how that goes.” He winked back at her before taking the first sip of his drink after the toast. “Well, that’s because you’re both pretty and special. Can’t deny that.” He offered another short kiss. “Because I wanted to give you my full attention tonight Cat. And I wanted a redo from the potluck.”