Two weeks had passed and I'd been going through all my paperwork like an obsessive lunatic. Not once before had I ever showed so much dedication for my job as I had in the past weeks, but my mind kept wandering off to Killian if I didn't occupy it with something else.
But now that all the paperwork was done, I had to find another hobby to keep my mind off of Hook, and because Henry was spending most of his time at Violet's, I figured I'd take the empty house as an opportunity to clean it top to bottom.
My hopes of Killian returning were fading away with the second and I figured it wouldn't mind to carry some boxes with his stuff away to the garage. If I wanted to cure my heartbreak, I had to let go of him. The longer I held on to the illusions he'd come back, the more it'd hurt in the end.
I had avoided Regina as much as possible in the past few weeks. My cheeks still turned red whenever I thought of the strange dream I'd had and I was rather happy that I'd managed to steer clear of her, ever since our meeting in the Sheriff Station. Fortunately, the dream hadn't returned, but the one occurrence had been enough to make me feel ashamed for the rest of my life.
Henry was eating at his other mother's apartment today. I wasn't in the mood to cook anything and since Henry would get a healthy meal at Regina's, I figured I'd just go out and buy some junkfood to go, at Granny's.
However, my plans were rudely interrupted when Henry asked if I could come by to drop off his Geography books. He had a test on Monday and he wanted to study, but his books were still with me.
As much as I dreaded going over to Regina's house, I didn't want my conflicted feelings regarding the dream inflict upon my son's capabilities of studying, so I set aside whatever complexities I felt and drove over to the big, white mansion.
I parked my yellow bug where I always parked it and inhaled deeply before I opened the gate to Regina's garden. It wasn't a big deal. I was just a mom, helping out her kid in need. If I'd just be slightly in luck, I wouldn't even have to see Regina.
But, of course, things didn't go as planned. Why would they? Regina opened the door and gratefully accepted Henry's geography books.
"Do you have any plans for dinner?" Regina asked, kindly, and Emma stayed still for a moment. "I'm just asking, because I made lasagna and I've overestimated the amount of food two people eat. I've got way too much, do you want to eat with us? I'm sure Henry would like it."
I pursed my lips together and stepped slightly back. "No, thanks. I.. I don't want to be a bother."
"You're not a bother! I haven't spoken to you in what feels like forever. I'm sure your junkfood can wait a night," she teased and I felt my cheeks heat up.
"I had planned an overly healthy, vitamin filled meal, actually."
"Oh?" Regina replied, with a raised eyebrow. "That's new. What were you planning on eating?"
"Burgers," I curtly said with a slight smile and Regina opened the door further. I knew there was no getting out of this now, but the least desirable thing in this moment, was to spend an evening with Regina.
I huffed softly as I stepped inside. Regina observed me for a moment. "Did I do something wrong?"
"No," I responded, way too quickly.
"That was fast."
"It's true. Why would you think such a thing?"
Regina shrugged. "Because we usually talk much more during the week. I don't know, it's weird, but I felt like you were being distant."
"Everything's just hard, at the moment," I replied, as casually as possible.
Regina clearly didn't believe me. She always managed to look sceptically in a way that made me want to spill all my secrets and pay her for getting them out of me. She had a certain effect on me. Ever since I met her.
"There's more," she remarked and looked slightly offended, because I hadn't told her.
"Yes, but it's very embarrassing," I muttered, as I followed her to the kitchen. Henry came barging downstairs and exclaimed happily when he saw me.
"Hey! You got my book!" He grabbed it from Regina's hands and went upstairs again.
He'd grown so much. It was crazy how tall he'd gotten. The little boy he'd been when I first saw him was nothing compared to who he was now. Almost a man, strong and tall, with the kindest heart.
"He's clearly happy to see me," I said and chuckled softly.
"He's a teenager. I'm already glad he's spending time on his homework," Regina said and I nodded in agreement. "So, what's embarrassing enough for you to completely ignore me for two weeks straight?"
I swallowed thickly. "I never ignored you. We just didn't talk," I said, but Regina had already grabbed her phone and she was showing me all the messages she'd sent me, that had never received a response. Perhaps I had been ignoring her a little bit, but it had been for the best.
Now that Killian was gone, I really needed to work on myself and that was very hard with unwanted erotic dreams invading my mind. I didn't need more complications in my life.
"Tell me," Regina demanded in a tone that she rarely used anymore. "I'm getting the truth out of you one way or the other."
I chuckled softly. "Curious, are we?" I teased and Regina rolled her eyes. She looked in the oven for a moment, before she turned back to me. "It's nothing serious. I.. I had a dream."
"About what?"
This, I really didn't want to share with Regina. I had no idea how she'd respond. Regina and I never ever talked about sex or erotica, which made this all even more awkward.
"It was really bad," I muttered, but Regina didn't seem too affected by that.
"All the bad things you dream of, I've probably done in real life, dear," she said with a smirk.
"I can assure you, you haven't done this, yet."
"I've had sex, don't be too prude."
"I never said it was about sex."
Regina gasped and then laughed softly. "You had a sex dream!" she exclaimed and I immediately hushed her, but she didn't care. How this woman always managed to read me and get the truth out of me astounded me.
"I never said that."
"It's more than clear. Who did you dream abo.." Regina's words evaporated in the air as she looked at me. "You were making a big deal about a sex dream you had about me?"
I nodded, guiltily. Regina chuckled and bobbed her head in amusement. "Oh, dear, then I should have stopped talking to you years ago."
"Excu.."
I was interrupted by Henry entering the kitchen. His gaze was fixated on his phone and Regina cleared her throat. "I thought you had this big geography test to study for."
"I'm hungry," he mumbled and sat down at the table. "Is dinner ready?"
Regina served her lasagna and as expected, it was delicious. I never thought I'd be jealous of the Evil Queen's cooking skills, but here I was, enjoying her famous lasagna. Though, Regina was far from the Evil Queen, nowadays.
As soon as he was finished eating, Henry stood up from the table. "I'm going to Violet's to study," he announced and after convincing Regina that they'd actually study, he was allowed to go.
I loved seeing the two of them interact. A few years ago, I hated seeing the two of them together, but now it felt natural and familiar. They communicated with such purity and sincerity. Regina clearly loved Henry and I couldn't have wished for a better co parent.
"So, you've dreamt about me?" I said, as soon as I heard the front door close.
"Dreams are dreams, they're not real and they'll never be real. You shouldn't let them bother you so much. I don't let them bother me and I'm better than ever."
I didn't know whether I believed Regina was doing better than ever. She appeared happy during the day, but I didn't know how she felt. I didn't know what was going on inside her head.
It was a big discovery that she'd had sex dreams about me, though. Honestly, I hadn't expected it. It did make sense, in some way. Regina and I had kissed. We'd had some level of intimacy and that could make the mind wander.
I had to say I wasn't displeased by hearing this. Obviously, I wasn't going to act upon any of the things I'd learned, but it was enjoyable knowing that Regina Mills had dreamt about me in a way that was much more than friendship.
We sat at the table like that for a few minutes, just looking at each other. I started clearing the table, because the tension rose in the room and I wasn't too fond of that.
Regina helped me in silence and after we'd put all the dishes in the dishwasher, I cleared my throat. "Thanks for dinner, it was delicious," I said and Regina nodded curtly. "I probably should go now, though."
She nodded again, but then gasped. "Oh, I forgot. I'd already made dessert. Do you want some?"
I loved dessert, always had. Didn't matter what kind of food it was, but something sweet after dinner was just the best thing humanity had come up with. "Yes, I'd like that."
"It's nothing special, don't get your hopes up. But these strawberries looked delicious at the store."
"Uh- what now?" I questioned. My heart was already pounding louder at this coincidence. I'd finally started to forget about Regina in sexy lingerie, like she'd appeared in my dream, but strawberries.
"Oh, are you allergic?" Regina immediately asked and closed the fridge with the delicious fruit in her hands.
"No, no, they're delicious."
"You're all red, Swan. What's going on?"
"Nothing." I was a horrible liar. Well, I was an excellent liar, but whenever I was near Regina, I became a horrible liar. At many occasions, I'd seen through her. I'd often known what was up with her and whether she was speaking the truth, but she always managed to get the truth out of me.
"Do you want one?"
"Not this second, thank you," I quickly said and Regina shrugged. She sat down across of me at the table and grabbed a strawberry.
"Well, here they are, in case you make up your mind," she said, and bit in the bright, red berry. I felt like my mind was playing tricks on me, because I noticed one stream of strawberry juice leaking down Regina's chin.
"Oh, shoot," she muttered.
"You gotta be fucking kidding me," I muttered under my breath, but Regina heard. She was wiping her chin with a napkin and raised her eyebrows.
"Is something wrong? Should I not have used a napkin? Did you want to lick it off, or so? God, woman, you don't talk, do you?"
"Why would you assume I'd want to lick it off?" I immediately asked and felt regret boiling up as soon as I'd said it. Obviously, that was not what Regina was really thinking, but I'd made things much harder for myself.
Regina held up a strawberry and moved it closer to my lips. She cocked her head and smirked slightly. "I don't know what's going on in your mind, but maybe you should taste one."
She looked me directly in the eyes and I felt my hands getting sweaty. I parted my lips slightly and bit the strawberry. It tasted sweet, but all my focus went to Regina and the way she looked at me.
My breathing hitched and her smirk grew wider. "You had a dream about this, didn't you?"
I swallowed thickly and Regina chuckled softly. "Two weeks ago, it was? My, I've really made an impression," she said and stood up from the table. I stood up as well, slightly in confusion as to why we weren't eating strawberries anymore.
Though my cheeks had turned red and my heart was pounding furiously in my chest, I loved this moment. Regina and I rarely spent time together with just the two of us and no crisis keeping us from bonding.
"You don't want any more strawberries?" I casually inquired, as Regina was washing her hands. She smiled at me and dried her hands before she looked at the strawberries.
"I don't want to give you the impression that I'm trying to seduce you," Regina said, but I grabbed the bowl of strawberries.
"You got to feed me one. Now I get to feed you one," I said and moved a strawberry to Regina's plump lips. Regina's lips that I'd had against my own once. Regina's lips that kissed amazingly.
She ate the strawberry and grabbed another one. She smirked and bit half of it off. I looked at the strawberry and cursed myself for wanting to eat the other half. I stepped slightly closer to Regina and she held the strawberry in front of my lips.
"Do you want it?"
"Yes." It was a quick response and earned a soft chuckle from Regina, but she did give me the other half of the strawberry.
"You spilled some," I suddenly noticed. There was a red stain on her blouse and Regina looked down. She hissed softly in annoyance, before she unbuttoned the three buttons at the top.
"Now you won't notice anymore," she said, as though all the problems in the world had just been solved. I didn't quite believe that she wasn't trying to seduce me, but whether she intended it or not, every movement she made was very arousing.
Her cleavage had become visible and I had a hard time keeping my eyes off of it. "Do you want to spend the night?"
My eyes immediately went up to Regina's face. The thought of spending the night with Regina had crossed my mind many times over the past few years. Not because I was so attracted to her, but mainly because I wondered what she was like in bed. Was she any good, sexually? It was merely a question that had crossed my mind, but I'd never thought the opportunity would present itself like that.
I probably stared at her for too long, because she quickly shook her head all of the sudden. "I don't mean like that. It's storming outside and I'd imagine you don't feel like going home through the rain. I have a guest bedroom."
"Oh," I chuckled softly. Frankly, I hadn't even really noticed the stom before, but now that I looked outside, I wondered how that was possible. It was raining like crazy and the wind was blowing around the house like crazy. "Yes, I'd like that very much."
My eyes drifted back to Regina's slightly exposed breasts and I couldn't even be ashamed of it anymore. She'd evidently noticed it and moved closer towards me.
"Though, you're always welcome in my bedroom," she husked and suddenly started walking fastly. I followed her upstairs, still not quite having believed what exactly Regina had just said, but also rather amazed that I'd never seen the upstairs of Regina's house before.
She pointed at a door. "That's the guest bedroom. The bed is already ready for use. Though I first want to get you something to wear for the night," she said and we walked to, what I assumed, was her bedroom. It was big with a queen size bed standing in the middle of it. Of course, it was perfectly made.
Before I could say that she didn't have to go through any trouble, she handed me silk pajamas. Though I really shouldn't have expected anything less, I was rather taken aback by the fact that people still bought pajamas. I usually slept in an oversized t-shirt, or nothing, if Killian and I had had sex.
"Thanks," I said, as I felt the soft material in my hands.
Regina smiled, but grabbed her phone after it buzzed shortly. She read the text and responded something, after which she looked at me with a smirk. "Seems like we're going to be home alone, tonight. Henry wants to stay over with Violet, because of the rain."
"Yeah, I'm sure that's the reason," I replied, but Regina didn't comment on it.
"Do you want to watch a movie?" she asked, instead. I nodded with a smile. "I'm going to change in my pajamas, first. You can stay and watch or go to your own room to get changed yourself."
Regina started undressing herself and though I knew she'd made a joke, I couldn't keep my eyes off her. It was very embarrassing, I was well aware of that, but she moved so elegantly.
"Nothing's going to get you out of this room, is it?" Regina teased and I finally remembered how to move. I hurried out of her bedroom to the guest room, that was just as impressive.
My embarrassment grew, but I quickly put on the pajamas and went to the bathroom to brush my teeth, before I went downstairs where Regina was already sitting on the couch. "I want to apologize for.. you know, me staring etc.," I said awkwardly, but Regina merely laughed.
"I invited you to. Don't worry about it. I've had worse people stare at me naked. I've had worse people done sexual acts on me, in general."
I raised my eyebrows and grabbed a pillow to make myself more comfortable on the couch. "Did the Evil Queen have so much game, then?"
Regina winced and swallowed. "Don't want to talk about that," she said. I nodded curtly and she turned on the TV. "What do you want to watch?"
"Snow White and the Seven Dwarfs."
"Not happening. Anything else?"
"Please? I'm really curious as to what you'll think of it."
"I don't need to watch it to know I hate it."
I pouted slightly and Regina groaned softly. She put on the movie and rolled her eyes, exaggerating. I'd wanted to watch this movie with Regina ever since I learned about her past. My mother hated it, when we watched it together, and kept pointing out all the flaws. Regina would probably find it even worse.
~~~~
"This may be the worst movie I've ever watched," Regina complained, once the end credits played on the screen. "The Queen most certainly lacked my sense of style. Her clothes were just hideous."
She scoffed and I chuckled softly. It was very amusing to see her like this. She'd been acting like this since the beginning of the movie and it just kept on getting funnier.
"You only chose this movie to annoy me," she grumbled.
"Obviously," I replied and earned a stern glare from Regina. She moved closer to me and squinted her eyes. "See, that queen totally missed this way of staring. You can look at people very intensely."
Regina didn't say anything, but put her hand on my thigh. "It reminds me of when we first met each other. "You have no idea what I'm capable of"," I said, mocking her voice, but Regina still didn't say anything. "I wondered ever since, was that something sexual?"
Her hand moved higher up my thigh and I felt my arousal growing. I moved closer towards her as well and felt the tension rapidly building. "Do you want it to be?" Regina whispered. "Because once you discover my skills in bed, you'll never want anything else."
My breathing got intenser and I felt myself genuinely wanting this. Whatever it was. She moved her hand underneath my silk pajama blouse and I arched my back. Our lips were nearing and I decided to just go for it. I leaned in, but right before our lips were to connect, Regina moved away.
"I'm going to bed," she said and yawned. "I'm rather tired."
I pursed my lips in disappointment and Regina chuckled softly. "This, my dear Emma, was your punishment for not picking out a better movie. If you want to kiss me, present a better movie."
"You wanted to watch porn?" I questioned, before my mind could register and I immediately realized that was not what she was talking about.
"It would still be better than this sin of a movie," Regina said and left the room with those words. I went upstairs as well and when I arrived at the guest room, I saw Regina standing by her door.
"I liked tonight," she said, with a sincere smile and I felt my heart flutter. "Sleep well, Emma."
"Good night," I softly said and got inside the room.
As soon as my head touched the pillow, Killian invaded my mind again. This had been the first evening in two weeks that I hadn't thought of him at all, but now the heartbreak had returned and I felt worse than ever.
Regina and I had been flirting back and forth, but Hook was still my boyfriend, officially. Though I'd convinced myself that he wasn't returning, part of me still hoped. Killian and I had planned a beautiful future together and if there was even the slightest chance for that future to become reality, everything I'd ever wished for as a kid would be true. But for that to happen, Hook had to be here.
But he wasn't.
He'd left.
I'd been whining about it for the past weeks, but the feeling of abandonment cut deeply and I hated that Hook probably didn't even realize it. He was living his best life under the sea and meanwhile, I was crying over him. I was crying over the man that had left me without an explanation.
At this point, I didn't even know what would make me feel better, him staying away or him coming back, because I didn't think I could ever love him like I used to. But, these are all issues for a hypothetical situation that was never going to happen. Hook was gone and I had to find a way to move on.
~~~~
My eyes fluttered open and I immediately felt Regina's silky pajamas clinging to my back. I was drenched in sweat and as soon as I realized why, I felt my cheeks heat up.
I'd had another sex dream about Regina. This time even more explicit and we went all the way. I could still feel the way her lips touched my body in my dream and it was absolutely bizarre.
As a child, I used to think that dreams were about the thing I'd last thought about, but I'd fallen asleep crying over Hook, so that was certainly not the case. In every way, it would've been more natural for me to dream about Killian, so why was Regina the one that kept appearing? I'd never had a sex dream about Killian, but this was the second I'd had about Regina.
I got off the bed and stretched my stiff legs. My throat was dry and I wanted to freshen up before I continued sleeping. The alarm clock showed that it was 2 a.m., so I still had plenty of time to rest.
The corridor was dark, but I managed to find the bathroom and turned on the lights. My head was red and drops of sweat were rolling down my neck. It had already been an intense night. I really didn't like the way my skin was all wet and I also didn't appreciate waking up this horny in the middle of the night.
"Emma?"
I gasped and turned around. Regina was standing in the doorway with messy hair and sleepy eyes. "What are you doing here? Are you okay?"
"Yes, I'm fine. I always have trouble sleeping when I first stay the night somewhere else," I said. It wasn't even a lie, but it was not the reason why I was in the bathroom. "Did I wake you?"
Regina shook her head. "No. I haven't slept, yet."
I quirked an eyebrow and chuckled softly. "You do know I can tell when you're lying, right?" I questioned. Even someone who hadn't grown up as a living lie detector could see that Regina had been in a deep sleep. "Why aren't you telling me the truth?"
Regina huffed and walked to the sink, where I was standing. "None of your business," she muttered and grabbed a washcloth. She made it wet and patted her neck with it.
"You had a dream!" I exclaimed and Regina immediately turned to me.
"No."
"You had a sex dream about me? I thought they never affected you," I quipped, but Regina didn't seem to appreciate my enthusiasm. I knew I was right, though. Everything about her gave it away.
"Don't get too excited, Swan. You weren't that good," she said and tucked a strand of hair behind her ear. "If you can't even pleasure me in my dreams, I'm not sure what to expect from you in real life."
I felt the corner of my lip curling up. "Too bad you'll never find out," I said, seductively, and felt a strange thrill of exhilaration wash over me.
Before tonight, Regina and I had never flirted. We'd kissed, once, but that was all. We never had these kinds of playful banter or seductive remarks.
It stayed silent for a moment between us and Regina handed me the wet cloth. "You clearly had a sex dream too. Do you want to cool off?"
"I'm always hot. I'm used to it," I said, with a slight smile, but accepted the cloth. I poured some more water over it and had to suppress a smirk.
Regina gazed at herself in the mirror, eyes half closed, and I really, really wanted to do this. So, I grabbed the drenched cloth and squeezed it above Regina's bosom, soaking her pajamas.
"Emma! What the hell?!"
"Sorry, I couldn't help it."
Regina grumbled inaudible things, in utter annoyance, and scowled. She looked rather confused as to what to do know, but eventually, she grabbed the wet rag and pressed it against my stomach, wetting my pajamas blouse as well.
"Fuck you, Swan," she whispered as she pressed her stomach against mine, the cloth still between us. I was leaning against the sink and Regina squinted her eyes. "I don't like water and I don't like waking up in the night. You just combined the two and I am very angry at you for that."
I couldn't help but chuckle slightly. Regina's hairdo was too messy to take her threatening tone seriously and I pulled away the washcloth between us.
She unbuttoned the highest button of my blouse, or rather her blouse that I was wearing, and looked me in the eyes. "I'm all wet, because of you," she grumbled.
I shrugged. "It's just a little bit of water on your blouse. Just grab a new one from your closet, if it's that-"
"I didn't mean that," Regina said and moved her head closer to mine. I could practically taste her lips, but I wasn't sure whether I could actually kiss Regina. I wanted to, I really wanted to. I hadn't had this much fun in a long time and I felt utterly relaxed and safe around her. "I meant between my legs."
That comments caused my own arousal to grow as well. I'd already felt a damp spot between my legs, but being so close to Regina only stimulated that.
"You know, I would have kissed you right now, if you didn't have a boyfriend," Regina whispered. I unbuttoned another button of my own blouse, Regina still standing close to me.
Though I kept replaying her words in my mind, I didn't respond anything. I kept on unbuttoning the silk blouse, until it was fully open, and I looked at Regina. She furrowed her eyebrows slightly, in confusion, but took her shirt off in one swift move.
She gently wiped over my shoulders, letting the blouse glide off and looked at me for reassurance. I nodded slowly and she moved her body closer. Her precious, curved body.
I wrapped my arms around her waist and though I had absolutely no clue as to what we were doing, I didn't care at all. I managed to fully enjoy the moment, without invasive thoughts. It was just the two of us, embracing each other in the middle of the night, shirtless.
She moved her lips closer to mine. Her gaze wasn't moving and she looked me directly in the eyes. When our lips were nearing, I closed my eyes and connected our lips.
It was the softest kiss. Better than I remembered and much better than in my dreams. This was real. Regina was standing in front of me, kissing me gently, with her fingertips digging in my back, pulling me closer to her.
I didn't think I'd ever felt this at home with someone.