When Emma falls in love

Chapter 14

As Emma's eyes lingered on the pages, she felt the warmth of the afternoon sunlight filtered through the blinds, casting warm rays on her body. She ran her fingers over the edge of the old paper before turning to the next page. The text in this book was sometimes slightly faded, but for how old it was, still in pretty good condition. You could tell that Regina had kept it like a prized possession. The police station was quiet, only the occasional turning of pages could be heard. Emma's brows furrowed in concentration, her lips subtly moved, sometimes forming the words she read.

She didn't know if it was the way the book was written or the fact that Daniel had sometimes written little notes next to the text. The blonde found herself brushing lightly over his written words with her finger, feeling mesmerized by that. Maybe it was because it felt like the presence of Daniel still lingered in this book, but her eyes became watery.

"What the fuck," she muttered to herself — she didn't even know this man, but everything surrounding his death was just utterly tragic. So much pain was glued to it, so much lost love and hope. Both versions of Regina absolutely did not deserve that.

The blonde released a deep sigh, allowing her eyes to flutter shut for a brief moment. It was only when she heard that familiar sound, one she had grown accustomed to lately, that her lips curled into a smile, even though her eyes remained closed. "What can I do for you, your majesty?" However, the moment the words escaped her lips, she abruptly halted her breath, realizing her voice had taken on a tone that was both too deep and too sensual.

The Evil Queen smirked, relishing in the sight of the other woman's flushed cheeks, feeling a heat rising within her own body. "Hello, Emma," she greeted back, her voice mirroring the low register the blonde had unintentionally adopted. "Zelena brought— brought me my phone. I assume you told her to?" Her green eyes shifted from the brunette down to her phone, which she held up before saying, "Thank you."

"Actually, I was the one to give it back to you, but she insisted—and was faster."

"Interesting," Emma chuckled. "First she shows up at my house, now she's the one giving me my phone back. Oh god, you don't think she's crushing on me, do you?"

The Evil Queen instantly made a disgusted grimace. "Ugh, no!"

"Wow, okay, okay," the blonde mumbled. "I'm not that bad, you know?"

"What?" The other woman's eyes widened. "No, that's— that's not what I meant, oh god! You're remarkable, really!"

"Remarkable," Emma repeated, her voice filled with amusement.

The brunette sighed, visibly frustrated with herself for fumbling the opportunity to impress the other woman with words that would leave her breathless. "I'm sorry, I— I'm not good with compliments," she mumbled quietly.

"Remarkable is a great start," the blonde smirked.

The Evil Queen concealed the smile that was beginning to form on her lips with a subtle cough. "Well," she said, shrugging nonchalantly, "if you say so." Her demeanor remained composed, but her heart was beating uncontrollably fast.

Emma chuckled before lowering her gaze again, letting it hover over the words in the book.

"You're actually reading it," the other woman observed, her statement more a matter-of-fact comment than a question.

"I didn't know it had Daniel's notes in it. Is that why it's so precious to you?"

"One of many reasons, yeah," the Evil Queen replied.

The blonde didn't say anything and instead carefully flipped through the next pages, patiently waiting to stumble upon another note from the man. Her persistence paid off a few pages later.