A KIND OF MAGIC ↝ Killian Jones

⇒ CHAPTER TWENTY-NINE

  WILHELMINA WASN'T SURE what to expect from the night that Killian had planned by himself, other than it was probably going to be better than anything she had dreamed of, greater than anything she could ever imagine, meeting every expectation and going beyond belief. However, she had to admit, when Killian led her to The Jolly Roger, she wasn't exactly shocked, but definitely happy that they were going to spend time there — it was peaceful, quiet, just the two of them on the gentle waves in the cozy ship. But despite the peace surrounding them, inside Wilma was a whole other world, a stormy panic raging in her heart as she held Killian's hand and tried to seem calm, but in reality, she was freaking out.

  She couldn't explain it, but it was first date jitters, for sure. Even though they had already their first kiss and what not, but it was still a big deal and she wasn't sure how to handle it — luckily, she wasn't the only one shaken by the fact that they were finally doing this. Killian, the confident, somewhat cocky pirate seemed nervous, like he was scared of somehow messing up, but as he led Wilma below deck to one of the rooms, where he had set up a candlelit dinner for the two of them, the woman was quite convinced there was no way he could mess it up. And after all, as long as he was there with her, it was dreamy.

  But indeed, the romantic dinner did impress Wilma, who gasped at the sight of an intimate, beautiful space created for just them. The cabin was quite small, but roomy enough, and in the middle of it was a table with candles and some roses on it, and of course, two plates with food and two glasses of what seemed a lot like wine — a surprising twist from the rum-oriented pirate. And in the corner of the room, was an iPod, playing what Wilma recognized as Led Zeppelin. That was what surprised Wilma the most, and she couldn't help but turn over to Killian with lifted eyebrows and wide eyes.

  "Oh, uh, Emma helped me", Killian gestured towards the iPod. "I tried to handle it myself, but there isn't magic powerful enough to figure out that bloody machine", he continued with a defeated look, but when Wilma broke into chuckles, he couldn't stop himself from mirroring the smile that spread out on her lips. It became quiet then, as Killian gestured for Wilma to take a seat, which she did quite nervously. She had hoped that her slight trembling would go unnoticed, but Killian was too perceptive for that hope to turn into anything but just that, and it prompted the man to question if his eyes were deceiving him. "You seem nervous", he pointed out, not even properly asking, just stating it like the fact it was, causing Wilma to turn red.

  Chuckling, Wilma nodded. "Well, as someone who can count all her dates with... just one hand, I think I'm allowed to be a tad nervous", she cleared her throat as she looked up at Killian, who took a fork in his hand and began to poke the food. Wilma followed his lead, and ended up twirling the spikes of the fork against her bottom lip whilst munching on the food he had gotten them — clearly, she was nervous, which she had expected, but not this much. She was freaking out, unable to relax, and she didn't know why. Maybe going on a date with Killian was much bigger of a deal than she had claimed to herself.

  "Are you serious?", was Killian's response, along with a chuckle, that instantly caused a wave of embarrassment to wash over Wilma, who looked down awkwardly. But the sight of her doing so only encouraged Killian to save the situation. "I apologize if I came off rude. I just... I find it hard to believe a woman as amazing and kind and beautiful as yourself doesn't have suitors running after her all the time. In fact, I consider myself rather lucky for having the privilege of taking you out", he explained and flashed a charming smile at Wilma. The woman thought she was going to swoon, but instead, she just laughed quietly, amused by his words — she did appreciate the kindness, but it felt odd to be described as some divine creature. Clearly, Killian was one of the few who thought so.

  "You make me feel lucky, too. Like the luckiest woman in the world", Wilma informed and smiled at Killian as he did the same, and with that, the man dropped his fork to take her hand gently in his.