"Santa Monica.." he grinned down at Emma, whose face and eyes glowed with the reflection of multicolored lights and the sunset. "We always wanted to come check it out but..." he didn't finish his sentence beacuse she took him by the hand and tugged him along behind her. "No way Zac. I thought for sure you guys had been here..." she said excitedly. "I LOOOVE this place..it's fun...it's LOUD.... and far enough out of L.A. that no one gives a shit WHO you are...well, as long as it's dark." She let go of his hand and spun, like a ballerina in a music box, he thought, unable to keep from chuckling at her enthusiasm. "Come ON.." she giggled and tugged his hand again. "Hey..." he tugged her back and slipped his arm around her waist. "I..." he stressed the word, "have ALL night." "YOU might, drummerboy, but I can't stay out ALL night." she smiled to take the sting out. "Pretty damn close though..." she laughed and took him by the hand, "...now COME ON..." He laughed and followed her onto the pier and realized he was starving when the smell of french fries, fried fish and hamburgers hit him like a ton of bricks. "Em...Em..." he tugged her hand, grinning. "Slow down, girl. If you plan on wearing me out, then at least let me buy you some dinner. Besides," he added, "I'm starving." She turned sparkiling green eyes on him and floored him with her dazzling smile. "Sorry Zac. Sometimes I have to be reminded to eat. Smells good, though. What do you want to try?" she asked.

"You decide, Em. Surprise me.." he grinned. "No surprises here, bud. I am an old fashioned, 'i'll-have-a-nice-greasy-cheeseburger' kinda girl." she giggled. "But these are the BEST..." and she tugged him by the hand to one of the smaller stands. She ordered for both of them and Zac paid the kid, who was stuck running the stand alone. They listened to him grumble an apology about the wait and late co-workers, then Emma led him to a picnic table that sat near the metal railing of the pier, so they could look out at the ocean. They talked and ate together comfortably, but when they were finished, Zac noticed her farawy stare. She was looking out over the water, the light breeze making her dark curls dance around her face and tickle her cheeks. 'God, she's beautiful' he thought, wondering what was on her mind. "Em?" he called to her. She looked him straight in the eyes, her clear green gaze making his heart pound as she smiled brightly at him. "Sorry Hanson. It's not you.." she chuckled. "Watching the ocean sort of hypnotizes me. I love the ocean." she said. "Me too." Zac answered, glad she hadn't gone quiet due to something he'd said. She started to collect the trash left over from their dinner, but Zac stood quickly. "I got it Em..." he took it all and deposited it in the garbage barrel next to the stand, then brushed his hands off on his jeans. Emma stood, brushed her hands off and let Zac give her a hand sliding herself off the picninc bench. When she was standing next to him, he took her hand, and her breath caught in her throat. His hands were warm, and very large, almost swallowing hers into oblivion. She could feel the callouses on his hands, and knew they were from many hours and years of playing those drums. Her heart raced as he smiled down at her and she wanted to kick herself for letting herself get so wrapped up in him so quickly. But there was something about him.

"Okay Em. Now what?" he asked  her with a gleam in his eye. "Come on.." she grinned and he found himself being tugged along once again. They stopped at every booth, carnival ride, and midway game they saw. Zac discovered that Emma had a better baseball throwing arm than he did, and he wound up carrying the stuffed monkey she won for the rest of the evening. Toward the end of the pier, things quieted down and the amount of people around lessened the farther out they went. They walked hand in hand to the very end, Zac toting the stuffed monkey underneath one arm. At the end of the pier there was a bench, the back of which faced the ocean. The sea breeze was stronger here, and also more bitingly cold. Emma pulled her jacket closed and sat down on the bench, sticking her feet through the space between the back and the seat, so she could look out over the balck water, the expanse only broken by the white capped breaking waves. Zac set the monkey down on the end of the bench and admonished it to stand guard, making Emma laugh. "You're a goober, Zac." she shook her head. "Hey..I've been called worse.." he grinned. Emma giggled again and then shivered. "It is colder out her isn't it?" he asked softly and stepped up behind her. She nodded, looking back out over the water, the breeze sweeping her curls back off her face. Her breath caught in her throat again, as she felt Zac's arms come around her waist and pull her against him. He rested his chin on her shoulder and she was painfully aware of his warm breath on her neck and against her cheek. He hugged her slightly and turned his head to look at her. "Better?" he asked, "You were shivering.." She nodded, the lump in her throat made her unable to speak. She looked back at him, and wanted to drown in his soft, warm brown gaze. She was also painfully aware of his strong legs, pressed against the outsides of her thigs as he sat behind her, wrapped around her, trying to protect her from the cold. She suddenly felt safer than she had in a long time. She smiled slightly and reached up, pulling his ballcap off his head. "Much better.." she said softly, "But I know why you wear it..." she added quickly, placing his cap on the stuffed monkey's head. Zac chuckled, thinking of what his younger sister's comments would be if they saw that. But he was ripped from those thoughts abruptly when he realized that Emma was looking intently at him. "Something wrong, Em?" he asked, tucking a stray curl behind her ear. She shook her head no. "I'm glad you picked this place, Em. It was fun." he told her. "Yeah, it was..." she replied softly. Zac leaned in and kissed her, on instinct, before either of them realized what was happening. She turned her body, so she could get her arms around his neck as he parted her lips gently with his tongue. Electricity pulsed through both of them as Emma responded to his kisses, Zac becoming more insistent as she pulled the tie from his ponytail, raked her fingers through his hair, and opened her mouth to let him in. Both were breathing heavily as the kisses became sensual, open mouthed, and demanding. Emma had pulled her legs out of the space the occupied, turned to face Zac and draped her legs over his thighs. He continued to kiss her, as his hand went to the back of her head and combed through her soft curls and pulled her mouth more fully onto his. Her head spun as she responded completely, pressing close to him and slipping her arms inside his jacket and around his waist. She slid her hands up his strong back and wondered what it would be like to feel all those strong muscles under his bare skin, or the strong muscles in his chest against HER bare skin. She moaned softly as he kissed her hungrily, over and over.

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