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It seemed to become the new normal for Emma to join them for breakfast.
The morning after their date, Emma had dropped Henry off only to stay when she realized that Regina was making breakfast.
Then the morning after that, when she had come to pick up Henry for school, she'd gotten in early only to join them for breakfast.
Two weeks later, Regina didn't even bother acting surprised, and made sure she had a plate ready for Emma when she joined them.
"Morning, Kid."
Emma grinned when Henry grumbled, and then went to press a kiss to Regina's cheek. They hadn't had time for a second real date, and nothing had happened between them.
"Good morning, dear. What are your plans today?" Regina asked as she plated some food for Emma. "It's your day off, isn't it?"
She hadn't bothered changing out of her pajamas, and neither had Henry. Emma was wearing more casual clothing too—having forgone her jeans and choosing joggers and a loose fitting shirt.
"Yea, I was hoping I could take the both of you out for a day at the beach or something, it's really nice out," Emma said and then smiled when Henry perked up. "I know it's hell to get back over the townline though."
"Hell? What happens?" Henry asked and Regina sighed. She never really wanted anyone to know when she was in pain and now Emma was sharing it with their son.
"It's just a side effect from the curse," Regina said and then turned to Emma. "If you're worried about that, we have a beach—or something like it—right here in Storybrooke."
Regina saw the way Henry's shoulders sagged in disappointment and felt bad for even suggesting it, but then Emma agreed.
"I'll go home to get dressed after breakfast."
"Alright," Regina murmured before she sat down next to Henry and Emma at the breakfast bar.
Her own breakfast consisted of a slice of toasted bread. She'd never been a fan of breakfast, but today her stomach was upset.
"I hope you'll eat more than just toast—it's going to be draining to walk on the beach if you don't eat enough." Emma looked worried and Henry glanced between the both of them.
Regina blinked at Emma, swallowing a bite of her toast before she cleared her throat. "I'm not—I have a bit of an upset stomach."
"Are you sure you want to go to the beach then? We can just hang here." Emma gestured toward the living area. "Watch movies, or something."
"No," Regina replied quickly, clearing her throat again. "I want to go to the beach, Emma. And Henry does too, right, sweetheart?"
Henry hummed in agreement before he shoveled the last of his breakfast into his mouth. "I do, it just sucks that we can't go out of town. I heard that there was an amazing beach just near Boston."
He stood to his feet and for a moment, Regina felt guilty for being the one to ruin his fun. But Emma raised an eyebrow, and turned toward him.
"You do realize that we live in a fairytale town and your Mom is from another realm completely? We need to find a way to make the transition easier on her, before we can actually spend time outside of Storybrooke."
"But what even is the reason for the trouble? Like—what happens when she crosses the line?" Henry asked, his annoyance clear.
"It's something to do with magic, Kid. It makes her sick when we go over the townline, and it hurts her when she gets back."
"I hate magic," Henry muttered before he turned to Regina. She swallowed as she expected the angry rant to turn toward her. "I'm sorry Mom. I just—it's always messing with our lives."
Regina hummed. "Believe me, I know. I don't like it either, sweetheart." She reaches out her arms and he breathed in deeply as he stepped into her embrace. "I'll make sure that I find a way to make it easier on my body. Right now though, I would certainly be sick and it would be better if we stayed here."
She ran a hand over his back while her other hand went to his hair.
"And how are you going to make it easier?" He murmured against her neck. "More magic, I assume?"
Emma sighed and leaned closer. "Hey, Kid—why don't you go get ready? You can come with me to the loft so that your Mom has a moment to herself?"
Henry pulled back and walked out of the kitchen, annoyance clear in the way he stalked off.
Regina rolled her eyes before she turned to Emma, ready to make her feelings known. "I can take care of myself."
"I know," Emma said without missing a beat. "This isn't about taking care of yourself, this is about the way he thinks it doesn't matter that you get hurt."
She sighed and had to admit that Emma was right. He didn't seem to realize that she really did feel bad when she crossed the line.
"I'll make a potion of sorts—maybe there's something I can enchant to make the transition a little easier."
Emma inclined her head and then focused her gaze on the hand on Regina's stomach. How was it that Emma saw through her so easily?
"You want to tell me what's going on? Why do you have an upset stomach?" Emma asked softly, her worry clear. "Is it like—are you on your period or something?"
Regina huffed. "I don't get periods anymore. Not after the potion I took," she said before she could stop herself. She gritted her teeth when she saw the confusion on Emma's face. "This might be one of those stories for another time?"
"Okay," Emma drawled slowly. "You still haven't answered my question though."
"I don't know, Emma," Regina sighed. "It could be a stomach bug—I really have no clue. It won't stop me from joining you and Henry at the beach."
"Alright." Emma stood to her feet and then slowly leaned down. "Will this count as a second date though?"
Before Regina could respond, Emma's lips covered hers. She lifted her hands, one hand finding the nape of Emma's neck and the other pressed to her cheek. Emma pulled her closer, and deepened the kiss.
Emma's lips were warm and soft against her own and she hummed against them. She knew how to get someone on their knees with a kiss, and Emma knew that technique as well.
Regina was weak in Emma's arms.
"Gross."
Henry's voice made them pull apart and Regina breathed in deeply before she turned toward Henry, a smile on her face.
"Okay, let's get ready for the beach, shall we?" Emma said cheerfully. She watched Regina for a moment before she smiled. "We'll come back to pick you up."
"Sounds like a plan."
—SQ—
It was still too cold to lay on the beach, but as Emma had figured, they could spend some time together outside of the house.
Even though—after two weeks—they still hadn't told anyone except for Henry. But then again, Henry was with them all the time.
Regina laced her hand into Emma's, not really caring if anyone saw. She watched Henry as he ran ahead, his hair wild in the wind.
"So, does this count as a second date?" Emma asked again and Regina glanced at her.
"Of course," she hummed. She squeezed Emma's hand and smiled. "I've even been counting our lunches at Granny's as dates."
"Wait," Emma looked up at the sky. "That means we've had way more dates than I thought."
"Emma." Regina stopped and pulled Emma around to face her. "If it wasn't for the fact that I am a fairytale character, things might have been different."
"Okay," Emma drawled.
"Look. What I mean to say is, that you're an amazing person and every moment we spend together, that only gets confirmed. We don't have to go on more special dates."
Emma smiled. "I get it. No need for special dates. But that doesn't mean we'll never have time to ourselves, right?"
Regina chuckled. "Gods, I hope not. The way you keep talking about that dream, I'm sure you have some amazing moves."
She hadn't brought it up in a while and Regina couldn't stop thinking about it. She wanted them to move toward that, she wanted more from Emma.
Emma flushed and smiled shyly. "Oh, you know it."
Regina chuckled before she turned and resumed walking, Emma flush against her side.
"We'll have time to ourselves, I promise you. And if we don't, we'll just try your dreams, maybe we can enjoy each other like that." Regina loved the way Emma flushed even brighter.
"Are you sure you didn't have the same dream? God, it was so real," Emma said softly. "I even—I even woke up with this heavy feeling in my bones, like I'd actually had the most amazing sex in my entire life."
It was a compliment she couldn't accept if she wanted to keep her lie going. But, it was a nice compliment.
"I have a lot to live up to, I hear. I hope I can do better than dream me."
Before either of them could continue their banter, Henry joined them with a sigh. "I wish you would let me get a dog. It would've been fun, running around with a dog."
"The moment you figure out that it's more than just running around, we'll get you a dog," Emma replied without missing a beat.
Regina gave her a gentle shove. "He's living with me, and you're promising him a dog?"
Emma shrugged. "It'll be a while before he actually sees that there's more to dogs than running on the beach. Maybe it's time for him to do some volunteer work—I hear the shelter needs hands."
"Ma!" Henry whined and Regina chuckled. "I don't want to do volunteer work!"
"It'll be good for you. Don't you think, Regina? He might learn a couple of things about taking care of your animals."
"I agree, darling." She winked at Emma. "Maybe that's true for all of us."
Henry frowned. "Wait, are you guys going to volunteer with me? Please tell me you won't?"
Regina smiled and mentally stepped out of the conversation, enjoying the easy banter between mother and son.
She leaned her head back and closed her eyes, trusting Emma to steer them around the beach safely. The sun was bright and warm on her face, even with the wind whipping around them.
This was something she'd want to keep doing with Emma—the easy way the blonde made a plan for the day made her feel at ease with even herself.
—SQ—
Regina leaned back, and pressed her hands against her stomach. Her eyes burned, and her stomach heaved as she clenched her teeth.
It had been a week since they'd gone to the beach, and already she wanted to go back to that moment in time. She had been so happy.
Her stomach clenched again and she swallowed thickly, the bile rising in her throat.
"Are you getting sick?" Snow narrowed her eyes at Regina. There was a moment where she felt like yelling at the pixie haired woman, but she decided against it.
She was dating her daughter—she needed to keep Snow as a friend instead of turning her into an enemy again.
She licked her lips. "No."
"You look kind of green," Snow pushed and Regina opened her eyes to frown at the woman. When would she learn when to stop pushing.
She swallowed against the bile. "I'm fine."
It took her a moment to calm down enough, her stomach still unsettled. But at least she didn't feel like throwing up anymore.
"If I didn't know better I'd say you're pregnant," Snow sniggered. "Good thing you're with Emma."
Regina hummed. "I can't get pregnant, so I'd appreciate it if you dropped this subject and never mention it again."
Her heart hurt at the thought, how she'd messed up her own chances of ever having a child that was biologically hers. Snow blinked and then paled.
"Wait, that's not just a rumor? What happened?"
Regina closed her eyes again, breathing in shakily. "Did you not hear what I just said? Can you—for once—listen to me? Please?"
She swallowed thickly, this time against tears that seemed to want to spill over. She rolled her eyes up even while they were closed and took another deep breath before she opened them to glare at Snow.
"Okay."
"Thank you."
Just as she was about to tell Snow to leave her alone for a moment, there was a knock on the door. Before either of them could react, it opened and revealed a beaming Emma.
"Hey, I thought I'd—oh, hey Mom."
Snow glanced between the two of them and then smiled at Emma. "Hey, honey. I was just about to leave—I've been away from Leopold for long enough."
Regina blinked when her stomach heaved again, and bit her lip to stop herself from saying something hurtful. They had gotten so far—even though they still weren't friends exactly.
"Oh, okay," Emma gave her an awkward side hug, and Snow turned to Regina one last time before she left the office, softly closing the door behind her. Emma turned to Regina. "Did I interrupt something?"
Regina shook her head. "No. Your mother was her obnoxious self, inserting herself in my life just like she's always done."
Emma lifted a brow and then moved closer. It was only then that Regina noticed the bag in her hand. Emma followed her gaze to it and held it up.
"I got you something from Granny's." She put the bag on Regina's desk, and for a moment she seemed unsure what to do with herself. "Are you okay?"
Regina hummed. "Of course I am." She smiled as she stood to her feet, straightening out her skirt before she made her way around the desk and pulled Emma close. "I'm happy to see you."
Emma grinned before she wrapped her arms around Regina and breathed in deeply. "I am happy to see you too."
Regina leaned back and pressed her lips to Emma's, a soft kiss that didn't go anywhere even though she wanted it to. Emma had been very sweet, and hadn't even brought up the dream again.
She moved away first, her heart lighter after a hug from Emma like it always was. Her stomach was still upset, but she didn't want to hurt Emma. She turned to the bag on her desk.
"What did you bring me?"
"The other day you were going on and on about that cheeseburger I had—I thought you'd like to have one too," Emma said as she opened the bag.
The scent of meat drifted up and for a moment, everything seemed fine. Regina had been talking about the cheeseburger Emma had been eating—it had smelled amazing and had looked even better.
Her upset stomach heaved and she took a step back, her face cold and her eyes closed as she tried to force herself to calm down.
"Close the bag," she choked out. She pressed a hand to her stomach and pursed her lips and then her stomach heaved again. Emma frowned, but did as she was told.
It was too late though. Regina stumbled as she moved toward the bathroom attached to her office. Her vision blurred as she sank down on her knees in front of the toilet, emptying her stomach.
Emma slowly sank down next to her and held her hair back, a cool hand pressed against her forehead as she dry heaved.
"Are you sick or something?" Emma whispered as Regina leaned back against her.
"I guess," she choked out. She sighed, and then swallowed thickly. She forced herself to get up, Emma scrambling to help her. "Thank you—I'll be right out, okay?"
After brushing her teeth with one of the spare toothbrushes she kept, she glanced at herself in the mirror.
She looked like hell frozen over. Her face was a sickly pale and her eyes were red rimmed, the whites a pale pink as if she'd been crying.
When she made her way back into her office, Emma was leaning against her desk and the bag of take out was nowhere to be found. Even the smell was gone.
"If I didn't know any better, I'd say you're pregnant." Emma unknowingly echoed her mother's words and Regina took a shaky breath. What were the odds?
"If I didn't know any better I'd say you heard what your mother said to me." She gritted her teeth as she made her way to her chair. "I told you last weekend that my stomach was upset—I just think I've caught a stomach flu."
Emma turned, and then sank down in the visitors chair. "Okay. I'm sorry—I didn't mean to upset you. Maybe you should go home and take the rest of the day off to sleep, make sure you feel better."
"I'm the mayor, dear, I can't just take a day off."
"Of course." Emma leaned back and then smiled. "You could always call Mom back and have her take over—I'm sure she'd be fine unless there's an emergency."
Regina sighed and then looked up at Emma. "I just don't see the use of taking time off. I feel much better."
"Your lies are getting worse the closer we get, did you know that?" Emma asked conversationally. "I mean, before, sometimes one would slip past, but now—now it's like my lie detector is honed in on what you say with about a hundred percent accuracy."
"Alright. I don't feel any better." Regina leaned back and ran a hand over her face. "I don't understand how, after all those years, I suddenly get sick."
Emma took a moment and then grinned. "Are you sure you didn't have the same dream I had?"
Regina blinked and then rolled her eyes. "I'm sure." She had said those words so often that even she believed them. She hardly even remembered the dream, but Emma did.
And she loved rubbing the dream in her face every chance she got.
"Okay, but just so you know, I was going to ask you on another date," Emma said as she stood to her feet.
Regina frowned. "What changed?"
Emma huffed and then rolled her eyes. "You're sick, and you will stay in tonight. Hell, if you want we can have a night in and just hang out."
"Isn't that what we always do?" Regina whined and then swallowed as surprise raced through her. Since when did she whine?
"We can have a date another time," Emma said softly, her eyes narrowed and her expression confused. "If we stay in, we could make out when Henry goes to bed."
"Make out? Make out? Are we teenagers now?" Regina huffed before she bit her lip. "Gods, Emma I don't know what's going on with me today."
"You're annoyed because you're sick," Emma said as if it was normal. "That's why I'm telling you, you need to go home and take a break."
Regina sighed, and then finally inclined her head. "You're right."
She stood to her feet, and moved around the desk toward Emma. When she wrapped her arms around the blonde's waist, and pressed her face into her neck, she could feel tears burning into her eyes.
"Okay, why don't you get your stuff, I'll call Mom," Emma held on to Regina tightly.
Regina hummed but didn't want to move. Emma's arms around her made her feel safe and loved.
"Alright."
"We have to move, if we're going to get you home." Emma chuckled and then squeezed Regina one last time before she stepped back.
Regina took a deep breath before she wiped at her cheeks. She didn't remember the last time she cried for no reason at all. She didn't understand.
"You need to know, I don't—I'm not like this."
Emma laughed and then rolled her eyes. "I know this, Regina."
As Regina went to grab her coat, she could hear Emma talk to Snow on the phone. She sighed and then breathed again.
She pulled on her coat and turned toward the door, watching Emma as she spoke to her mother.
What were the odds, that two of the women she was close with, had mentioned pregnancy? She didn't remember the last time she'd felt sick, but this certainly didn't feel like a normal stomach bug.
She felt much better, now that she'd emptied her stomach and she wished she could just keep working. She just didn't want anyone to think that there was more to this than a stomach bug.
"Ready?" Emma asked, all of a sudden standing right in front of her. "Mom is on her way here so she'll take over unless there's something she needs help with. I told her to call me."
"Isn't it your day off?" Regina asked softly and Emma hummed. "Why are you taking care of me on your day off?"
"Hey," Emma stopped Regina from turning and gently held her chin, to make sure that she didn't look away. "You're worth spending my free time on, and even if we weren't dating I'd make sure you're okay. Regina, you're the mother of my child."
She blinked and almost stumbled back in her surprise, the words not making sense until she realized that Emma was talking about Henry.
"Right."
Emma winked. "Now, let's get you home and in bed."
—SQ—
She leaned in, her thigh between Emma's and her lips pressed against pale ones. There was a tingling in her stomach, moving down and settling between her legs when Emma returned the kiss with fervor.
She wanted more—needed more.
She pushed herself flush against Emma, and smiled into the kiss when finally, Emma took control and pushed her on her back.
With Emma's knee now firmly between her legs, Regina moaned and rolled her hips. When the blonde broke the kiss to suck on her pulse point in her neck, it was all she could do not to magic away their clothes.
"You're so sexy," Emma murmured against her throat before she moved down, slowly unbuttoning Regina's blouse and trailing kisses after her hands.
Regina hummed when Emma's hands stopped, leaving the last buttons buttoned, and then moved back to her breasts.
"Oh," she moaned when Emma cupped her breasts. She was more sensitive than she'd ever been, and she wondered if it was because she was so attracted to Emma.
"So responsive."
Emma pressed a trail of hot, open mouthed kisses down to her breasts and then took a nipple in her mouth, gently sucking and using her tongue to lessen the sting.
"Gods."
Emma pulled and Regina gasped when instead of pleasure, it only brought pain. She pushed at Emma and gritted her teeth before Emma looked up at her, a frown of confusion on her face.
"What's wrong?"
Regina shook her head and pushed the heel of her hand against the bridge of her nose.
"Nothing is wrong," she murmured and sighed when Emma looked at her, unbelieving. "That hurt—and I'm exhausted."
"Are you thinking up excuses to not have sex with me already?" Emma said, her tone teasing as she laid down beside her. "Maybe we aren't ready for it yet?"
Regina huffed. "I'm ready, it's just—"
Emma pulled her into her arms and pressed a kiss on her forehead. "It's fine, I get it—we're not in any rush, are we?"
"No."
It still felt like she was rejecting Emma. She shifted and looked up at her, only seeing understanding in those green eyes.
"Okay. Let's just cuddle until Henry comes home, and then I'll make sure you guys get fed."
Regina hummed when her eyes closed, her eyelids too heavy. She knew she should tell Emma that she was fine to cook—she'd been fine before. She was fine now.
"What time is it?" She asked softly, as if speaking louder killed the vibe in the room.
Emma shifted beneath her and the movement made her stomach roll before it settled again. Regina sighed.
"It's two o'clock."
Her core throbbed, but she knew she'd scared off Emma for now. She sighed, and she could practically feel her body getting heavy with sleep.
"Tired."
"I know, sleep. It's fine, I'll be here," Emma murmured and then pressed another kiss to Regina's head.
She fell asleep within seconds.