The List

Chapter 25

She glanced at my lips. I'd longed to kiss her for a while now and before the first date had turned so incredibly uncomfortable, I'd really thought we would have kissed again by the end of the night. Today, however, I'd lowered my expectations and I'd expected it would end even sooner than Monday.

I caressed her cheek with my thumb and then "accidentally" brushed against her lips. She looked up at my eyes and my breathing hitched. I hadn't had many times in my life where I'd longed to kiss someone the way I did now. I wanted to feel Emma and I wanted her to take the lead.

We were back to our old, comfortable selves. It was as though the date last Monday hadn't existed and the moment right now was all there was. Just the two of us, surrounded by candles in a dark cave. I'd never experienced anything like it.

Then, she kissed me. We'd kissed before and I'd thought back of that moment many times during the past months and yet, somehow, I'd forgotten how it'd felt. Or rather, I'd forgotten just how amazing it felt to have her lips against mine.

The sweet scent of cinnamon filled my nostrils, which turned me on even more. Emma's lips moved slowly against mine and I was savoring every second of it. It felt as though we had all the time in the world, as if time stood still.

Her lips were warm and soft and I didn't think I'd ever get enough of this. I couldn't hold back the soft moans I let out, but I also didn't want to. I wasn't worrying about anything in this moment, I only felt Emma's body pressing against mine and her lips moving along with mine.

I slipped my hand underneath her dress, needing to feel more of her. Her warm hip against my hand got me longing for more. I wanted to feel her skin against mine, without any clothes restricting us, but I wasn't sure Emma was ready for it.

Right when I wanted to break our kiss and ask, she rolled on top of me. I'd never had anyone on top of me, which was odd given the amounts of times I'd had sex. People had always expected me to have sex the same way my characters did, it'd always felt like I was pretending someone I was not. Even with Graham, who hadn't even watched my shows, it'd felt like an act.

But not this time. I'd never felt more real and alive than I did right now, with Emma taking off my dress and kissing me tenderly. I'd never let go of control during sex, but with Emma it felt more natural than ever before. She took the lead, she was in full control and I surrendered completely. I trusted her and it seemed she trusted me too.

Emma took off her own dress and I unclipped her bra. She looked at me and though Emma and I had often looked each other directly in the eyes, I'd never felt as seen as right now. We were both naked, Emma was still on top of me and I'd never been as attracted to her as I was in this very moment.

I pulled her head down and kissed her passionately. Her hands roamed my body and she touched me where I needed to be touched. Her lips left mine and paid attention to every inch of my body. I'd never had sex like this, I'd never had sex with someone who seemed to care about me the way Emma did. No one had ever tried to get to know me other than as a star, except for Emma.

I'd be forever grateful for that.

~~~~~

I'd never arrived late at work in my entire career, because I was to uphold a good reputation, but Emma and I had completely forgotten the time and now I was hurrying to the makeup trailer.

My mind was completely elsewhere. I'd always thrown myself into work and when I was on set, I always managed to cut out my personal life, but with Emma's touch still fresh on my body, that was much harder than usual.

"Regina? You're never late," Kathryn, my costar, called out. She looked at me with a raised eyebrow, which caused me to blush.

"I know, I fell asleep. Forgot to set my alarm," I easily lied. My makeup artist, Elsa, looked just as skeptical as Kathryn did.

"Yes, on someone's lips, it seems," she said, with a smile, and pushed me down on a chair. I hadn't bothered looking in the mirror before I got here, but I wished I had. My hair was messy and though that would've been embarrassing enough, Emma had left a hickey on my chest. With the v-neck I was wearing, even blind people could've seen it.

"Oh, God," I muttered and instinctively covered the bruise.

"Don't worry, I'll take care of it," Elsa said and looked through her stuff. "No one will ever find out. I am curious who gave it to you, but I understand if you want to keep that to yourself."

"It's just.. someone I know," I said. I'd tell them the whole story once I was ready, because Emma certainly wasn't just someone I knew. I liked Emma, more than I'd ever romantically liked someone in my entire life.

"Sounds promising," Kathryn said, with a genuine smile. "Oh, Regina, you just missed it, but Samdi just announced that he wanted to hold a party at his trailer next week, to celebrate the end of the shoots. He specifically asked for you."

I'd dreaded these shoots beforehand, I'd been in no mood to film anything after hopping from one project to the other, but now I realized I was going to miss this. I didn't want to stop filming, because that meant I had to leave Storybrooke and I wasn't yet ready for that.

"Of course he did. I'm fairly certain the producers are planning a party on their own as well, Samdi just craves some attention."

"He's really into you," Kathryn said. "I'd thought you two would be together by the end of the shoots, but I'd also had that thought with you and Felix when we were shooting The End, so I probably should've known better."

I laughed and bit my lower lip in embarrassment, she'd discovered my secret. I liked flirting with people, I liked people craving my attention when I was in full control. Earlier today, I'd discovered for the first time that I liked craving people's attention as well, that I delighted in needing someone's touch and care, and receiving it.

"Well.." I said, softly, "I guess it's safer for me not to comment on this." Elsa and Kathryn laughed as I cracked a smile. I looked in the mirror and was glad to notice Elsa had already covered the hickey, without attracting suspicion. She was really talented.

"So, are you coming to Samdi's party?" Kathryn asked and I shrugged.

"I don't want to think about next week. I can't believe it's almost over," I said. The shoot had been much longer than regular movie shoots, given the fact that it was one story told in two parts, that could be viewed as two separate movies, but I didn't want to say goodbye yet.

I also hadn't told Emma that my stay in Storybrooke was over so soon, mainly because I'd been in denial about it all. Emma and I had now known each other for six months, but it felt like I'd known her for years. Yet at the same time, it felt as though we were just getting to know one another.

"Last time we talked before the shoots, you told me you didn't want to start. That you'd forgotten why you'd taken the part. Are you liking the atmosphere so much here or does it have to do with the hickey-mystery-person?" Kathryn asked.

I blushed again. The thought of Emma was enough to make me red like a tomato and giggly like a lovesick teen.

"Things just started to.. become something between us? I think? It's nothing serious yet, but I really like her," I confessed. I realized it was impossible to keep all this to myself. "I'm not yet ready to leave this town."

"Then don't," Elsa chimed in and Kathryn nodded agreed.

"Yeah, you said yourself you needed to take a break. Why not take a break here. God knows it's been forever since you had a peaceful moment of vacation. This seems like the perfect place to stay for awhile."

I looked at both of them in dismay, until I realized they were right.