Summary: "On average, the mind of a person takes between ninety seconds and four minutes to determine whether it is struck by love or not." Outlaw Queen. AU. Three-Shot. Established Semi-Relationship.

Disclaimer: Not mine.

Notes: Scroll down.

P.S: Oh look... Smut... Kind of. Not really.

Chapter Three
Stage Three. Attachment

It starts with a weekend. They'd spent the night with each other before, but neither of them have ever had an entire weekend kid-free until Henry asked to stay at Emma's for her birthday and Roland went to visit his grandparents with Marian. Friday night was expected. After Regina dropped her son off, she'd made her way to Robin's, as per planned during lunch, and it was only as an after thought that she decided to stop for groceries.

They weren't dating, exactly.

But just because they weren't dating, that doesn't mean she can't cook dinner.

It doesn't occur to her until she's placing the neapolitan ice-cream in her trolley, ( because Robin always has a tub in his freezer but ran out on Monday and didn't get a chance to replace it ), that she knows a lot more about him than 'just friends' should... a lot more than 'more than friends' too. It has her pausing in the middle of the frozen foods isle with a crease in her brow as she stares down at the food she'd collected.

Two pounds of chuck roast steak, onions and carrots and celery, beef stock and tomato paste, a bottle of Guinness Stout Beer - of which Regina's not fond of but she knows Robin prefers it over red wine when it comes to stew. It's not what she'd usually make but he'd regaled her with stories of his childhood and how he hadn't had a good, hearty meal like that since he'd last seen his mother a good ten months or so ago.

A jar of Nutella, heavy cream, three blocks of milk chocolate and hazelnuts, a punnet of strawberries and a can of whipped cream, because desserts are her forte and truffles are easy to make. Robin loves them. She'd made some to bring to school for Mary Margaret's birthday last month ( amongst a tray of apple turnovers and a cob loaf ) and he'd all but inhaled them all, had taken a few to give to Roland but, at the time, she'd doubted they'd even made it to his car.

She knows he's not a fan of coffee, but he keeps a jar of Nescafé Gold Crema just for her, so she picked up a box of Earl Grey and English Breakfast because he'd had to skip his tea that morning and she thought it'd make him laugh - as if he doesn't already have a shelf full of the stuff. There's a packet of M&M's, a packet of microwave popcorn and a can of Pringles and maybe it's a lot of food for just the two of them but Robin devours chocolate like it's the air he breathes and Regina... Regina's not much better.

There's a bag of rental movies in her car but they'll probably only get through one or two of them before he finds the blindfold she'd hidden in one of the cases and - why is she doing all of this? They're not dating. They're not... but this sounds an awful lot like a date.

It doesn't matter.

Not yet, at least.

Because so far they've been careful. Their rendezvous have been restricted to sex, and sex only, because they can't afford anything more. Regina knows that Jefferson suspects something, and if the not-so-subtle smiles that Mary Margaret has been throwing their way is anything to go by, she knows too. It's two people too many and it scares her, it really does. The rules are very clear and she loves her job, she loves her kids - Regina and Robin could be let go if they're discovered... Sometimes she questions herself, and her choices, and she questions him. Is it worth it? Are they worth it?

Yes.

No.

Maybe?

It's too much to think about whilst navigating the streets of D.C so she pushes it away, locks the doubt and apprehension that stirs within her heart in a box and forces herself to forget about it... for now.

He greets her in the parking lot under his apartment complex as she pulls up, grins at her from where he leans back against the wall with his hands stuffed in his pockets and he's changed clothes since school not two hours earlier. He opens her door and rests his hand on the small of her back and it's intimate and comfortable and that box threatens to break open when he spies the bags in the back of her car, and he laughs.

"What's all this?"

He steps around her then, opens the passenger door and grabs the first bag he sees. She answers him as he roots through the food she'd brought, "I thought I'd make dinner..." and he's already tearing open the Pringles by the time she closes her own door and swings her bag on to her shoulder. "Robin!" she scolds, snatches at the snack and drops it back in the bag, and rolls her eyes as he stuffs what few he'd managed to pilfer in to his mouth.

It's dangerously domestic, and that's another thought she throws in the box.

He just laughs at her, swoops in and presses a brief kiss to her lips, startling her in the process whilst somehow snaking the bags she'd begun to gather and transferring them in to his own hands, rather than hers. He pulls away, and she licks her lips, crinkling her nose at the few crumbs he'd left there.

It's not until they're half-way up the stairs that she notices that they're holding hands, and the realisation has her grip in his tightening.

She's quiet as he opens the door, motions for her to go ahead of him and she offers a small smile in return but he can tell she's lost in thought as she wanders straight through the living room to the kitchen. He follows, stands on the other side of the counter that divides them and starts to unload the two bags he'd carried whilst she unpacks the other. His gaze roams over every item he finds but it's not until the beef is in his hands and he finds the Guinness that he looks up, and he grins.

"Stew?"

Regina nods, smiling up at him as she turns and opens his freezer, holds up the ice-cream so he can see what she'd bought him. "Mhmmm," she hums. Robin is quick and light on his feet, so she doesn't hear him until he's winding his arms around her waist, kissing her neck gently and oh, yeah, definitely worth it. She turns in his arms, rests the palms of her hands on his hips and tilts her head back to kiss him properly. They don't make it far, not really. They're both hungry and they have all night to be together but they don't move for a few minutes, merely stand in each others arms before she disentangles herself and moves to the counter.

They cook together. Robin puts on some music and chops the beef while she does the vegetables. They talk quietly. Nothing serious or heavy, it's lighthearted and neither of them can stop smiling. She makes him trade places with her, because he was going to just dump the meat in the pot and she'd whacked the back of his hand with a wooden spoon. "No," she'd scolded, and he'd smirked in amusement, replied with a cheeky 'Yes, Mother' before moving over to the potatoes.

He watches as she tears two squares from the paper towel by the sink, watches as she picks up each cube of meat and dries them before covering them in flour and dropping them in the pot. He's tried to make stew before, but it's never been like his mother's and now he knows why. Is this a universally known trick to cooking beef or is it a coincidence that they both do it the same way?

This is the first time he's had the chance to watch her cook. He knows she can, has tasted the magic she makes for himself, but watching her make it is an entirely different affair. At school, she is methodical, organised. Everything has it's place. But when she teaches, she teaches through instinct. Regina doesn't have a lesson plan, not a solid and detailed one at least. She knows what she plans to teach that day, but she doesn't know how she'll teach it until the first bell rings. Regina memorises the textbooks she has to teach from, which makes teaching easier - for her. Robin has to read straight from the book, or at least glance at the passage before class starts. Regina cooks like she teaches. No doubt, she'd memorised the recipe like she memorises a book, but once she knew what she was doing, everything else is instinct.

She doesn't use measuring cups, or spoons. She adds each ingredient when she sees fit and stirs the pot when she feels it needs to be stirred. Not once does she ask for the time, nor does she look at the clock, and it surprises him that he's not surprised.

He knows her so well now.

He grins as he watches her steal a piece of carrot and she narrows her eyes at him, pours a rather generous helping of the beer she'd bought just for him and he knows she would've preferred to use the wine - it makes him love her all the more for choosing not to...

Love?

Robin shook his head and moved behind her, stood awfully close as he tried not to think of the dreaded L-word and he noticed her stiffen, noticed her hold her breath and it's a reaction he's drawn from her for a while now, even before they'd started... whatever this is. Her head tilts to the side slightly and she watches as he reaches above her, opens the cabinet and pulls out two wine glasses but he is ridiculously close and he affects her in ways she didn't know she could be affected. But he's gone a few seconds later. When she turns to look over her shoulder, she finds him pulling a bottle of Pinot Noir from his refrigerator and she smiles a small smile, turns back to the stew in time to add the stock as he pours her a glass.

Things after that are as per usual. He watches her, because that seems to be his favoured past time and she tries to hide the blush she knows he can see. How he does that to her is a mystery in it's own right, but she doesn't mind... not really. With the stew prepped and cooking, she starts on the desert and has a rather difficult time stopping Robin from eating all the chocolate. Once she's filled a zip lock bag with the Nutella - ( because Robin doesn't have a piping bag, which is what she would've used ) - Robin dips his finger in to the jar and she crinkles her nose, bites back 'wash your hands' as she makes the centres of her truffles. He licks his finger clean, dives back in and she should've known. After all, Robin's a double dipper. But he holds his hand out to her instead and Regina snorts, she didn't mean to but really, what else was she supposed to do? He urges her to try it, and she bites her lip as she glances from his finger to him and back, before rolling her eyes and opening her mouth.

His own runs dry as her lips close around his finger and he drags it back, a touch of red lipstick lingering around his knuckle and he swallows, she smirks, he shifts on the stool he'd sat on, suddenly uncomfortable. 'It's his own fault,' she thinks as she turns to place the tray of Nutella centres in the freezer before pulling out a saucepan to heat the cream in. "Are you okay?" She dares to tease him, and she's glad all he can see is her back because she is grinning like the damn Cheshire Cat as he hums behind her.

They both fall silent for a while after that, the music still playing and he is content with watching her whilst she is content with letting him, until...

"This is nice."

And she hesitates, blinks, nods.

"It is."

It really, really is.

It doesn't take her long to finish the truffles before they're back in the freezer for after dinner, and Robin's dipping strawberries in the left over chocolate. Holding one up to her lips as she wipes down the bench, Regina laughed, shook her head and licked her lips, muttering "This is a cliché," before biting half, watching as Robin popped the other in to his own mouth. He took her hand, lead her towards the sofa where he'd already placed the bowls of popcorn and M&M's, their glasses of wine and two extra glasses of water. The movies sit on the table in a stack, and Regina smirks to herself as she thinks about the blindfold she'd hidden inside The Hobbit. Because again, she knows Robin. He's a fantasy buff and he has every movie save for the latest. He'll want to watch that tonight, but he won't want to watch it first. Because he knows that she'll fall asleep sometime around the half-way mark, so he'll wait until after they've eaten before he cracks open the case.

She won't fall asleep this time.

In fact, she doubts he'll even put the disk in the player.

XxX

They get through Guardians of the Galaxy, with Regina curled up against Robin's side, and the title menu for The Wizard of Oz is playing on repeat when Regina extracts herself from Robin's hold, dances out of his reach with a laugh and tosses the pillow she'd been hugging to her chest against his own. The stew is ready, and they eat it in the living room, sitting on the floor in front of the table with all the snacks pushed to the side, a plate of bread in between them, and it's good, Regina's quite proud of herself, and Robin says "Mum'll love you". Regina stills with her hand raised, spoon hovering over her bowl because oh.

This is bad.

This is very, very bad.

Because Regina actually wants to meet her, and that wasn't part of the plan.

She knew, they both knew, that there were feelings shared between them. Casual sex was supposed to repress those feelings, but now he's talking about his mother meeting her and maybe things are a lot more serious between them than she thought.

That's bad.

Even though it feels so good.

They finish their dinner, with both of them ignoring Regina's hesitation and Dorothy and Co have only just met The Cowardly Lion when Regina brings out the truffles. Robin pulls her in to a searing kiss before sneaking the tray right out of her hands. Regina rolls her eyes, curls up by his side again and pops a truffle in her mouth.

They're both comfortable and content by the time the movie finishes. Most of the food is gone. There's left over stew for Robin to package and put away for the following week and she'd made extra truffles to put in the back of his refrigerator - because as expected, all the ones she'd brought out are gone. Most of the snacks have been eaten and the rest they can put away anyway, but the bowl of M&M's stay on the table as Robin reaches for the movie Regina's been waiting for.

She sits up, bites her lip and wrings her hands slightly in her lap as she scoots away from him an inch or two, turns to bring one knee up to her chest before her arms wind around it and she watches with a glint in her eye as he pops open the case. This is bold, even for her. Sex with Robin is intense enough as it is and neither one of them have expressed interest ( until now ) in spicing it up.

Regina watches in silence as Robin stiffens, lifts the blindfold by the elastic string and she leans forward, rests her chin on her knee as he turns to her with both eyebrows raised high. "Regina?" She ducks her head, gnaws on her lower lip before clearing her throat and looking up, flicking strands of hair out of her eyes. "I was thinking we could - try something different?"

"Is this for you, or for me?"

He asks with a swing of his finger, the blindfold dangling as he reaches out with his other hand to link with hers and Regina shrugs, grins at him and leans a little closer. "Does it matter?" And no, no it doesn't. Robin agrees. The movie and it's case lie forgotten on the table as he leans forward, kisses her softly and hovers his lips over hers. "I think Middle Earth can wait until tomorrow, hmm?"

She nods, stands when he does and brushes past him, takes the blindfold from his hand and her glass of wine from the table before making her way down the hall to his bedroom. Robin watches, an odd fluttering in his chest that has been there for weeks now but tonight, tonight it seems stronger. He makes to follow her, before he pauses, turns, and grabs the bowl of M&M's. With a grin, he switched off the TV and hurries down the hall, where he can hear clothing dropping to the floor.

He finds Regina sitting on the edge of his bed, naked save for the black lace underwear. The same black lace that she'd worn that first night oh-so-long ago. She is stunning. Absolutely breathtaking, and he knew that before, he knew that the moment he first saw her. Her gaze falls to the chocolate he'd brought with him and she smirks, raises dark, alluring eyes and he swallows. "Hungry?" Robin nods, unable to speak as she leans back on her hands and draws her feet up to the bed, crawls backward slowly as he moves forward. "Very," he manages before the M&M's are dropped hazardously on to the bed, his own moving to the waistband of his jeans. Robin slips his thumbs between his hipbones and the denim, forces his pants down his legs and lets them drop to the floor beside her own. His shirt is tugged over his head before his knees his the bed and he crawls up and over her. Regina's legs press together, heat already pooling low in her gut as she squirms, and Robin smiles above her.

His head dips, bows to press his lips against hers and she rises off the bed, kisses him back fervently until he pulls away, reaches up to tug the blindfold down and she is shrouded in darkness. She can't see but that only enhances her ability to feel. And she feels a lot. She feels his fingers on her waist, his knee between her legs, his lips on her neck. A sound breaks from her lips, strangled and incoherent and her legs part, her hips lift off the bed and her breasts rise and fall with heavy pants. A crease forms in her brow as she feels his weight lift off her, feels the bed dip near the edge and she reaches up to remove the blindfold, thinks that maybe this wasn't a good idea, but Robin's hand darts out, his fingers wrap around her wrists and Regina startles. "Robin?"

"Leave it on... trust me."

She does.

She shouldn't.

But she does.

Regina settles back down, her head falls to the pillow and it disrupts the darkness for less than a second before she crinkles her nose and it moves back in to place. She sighs, but then stiffens when she feels Robin straddle her knees and place something small on her stomach. "Robin? What're you -"

He shushes her, places another a few centimetres apart from the first and starts to trail them down her stomach in a line between her ribs. He drops one in her navel, and laughter breathes from her lips when she realises that they're M&M's. Robin's hand rises and falls on to her chest, fingers splayed over her chest. "Don't move."

Regina's lips thin as she tries not to laugh, nodding blindly until he's satisfied, and he continues to move down her body, placing M&M's all the way down until he reaches her underwear. His fingers delve under the fabric, hooking slightly and tugging down. She can't move, can't lift her hips to help him but he seems to manage on his own. Robin crawls back up her legs, presses his palms in to the mattress on either side of her before bowing his head and pressing his lips to her stomach, tongue flicking out and over the first little chocolate.

XxX

They sleep in on Saturday morning. Granted, they didn't actually fall asleep until just after midnight and even then, she'd woken up at three with his hand nestled between her legs and his cock resting against the small of her back. So breakfast at ten-thirty was a given.

Regina woke to an empty bed. She's not a morning person, so it took her a good ten minutes to actually drag herself out, throw on a pair of Robin's shorts and one of his shirts, and make her way back in to the kitchen. Robin stood with his bare back to her, turning over what looked like an omelette and he knows her well, because beside his tea is a full cup of coffee. She could smell it from the hallway.

Regina drifted in behind him, slipped her arms around his waist and pressed her palms against his chest. She kissed his shoulder as he smiled, muttered 'Good morning' and she merely hummed, stepping away and around the counter to slip in to the stool he'd commandeered the night before. She's still half-asleep, which is something he smiles at and he represses a laugh as she drags her coffee towards her and closes her eyes with a yawn. "Hungry?" He asks, and he does laugh this time when, again, all she does is hum. Her hair is dishevelled, slightly frizzy, and he refrains from calling her adorable - because he knows she'll just glare at him and deny it, might even ignore him, she's done it before.

It's quiet now. But it's comfortable. He dishes out the breakfast he'd made them whilst she inhales her coffee. They eat, holding hands and linking fingers at some point and it's nice, it's really really nice. Regina should make her excuses, should dress and leave before she overstays her welcome - but she doesn't want to. She's content.

And happy.

It's a happiness that stays. It doesn't fizzle out, it's not snatched away. Eventually, she finds herself sharing her bed with him, and Henry even asks Robin for help with his homework. On the nights he has Roland, he stays at his apartment, but one night, Roland comes with him. She cooks them dinner, and they play Monopoly for an hour, until Roland falls asleep on her shoulder with his mouth wide open, and she helps tuck him in at night.

She meets Marian too. It's a little awkward, and a little tense, but Regina doesn't hate her, she doesn't feel threatened, even though Robin's ex-wife is gorgeous, and they have a history that she can't compete with. They get along, and that's enough.

They're both happy.

It's almost perfect.

But they start to slip. They get careless. Robin kisses her cheek in the morning one day, and it's just lucky that no one else was there except for Mary Margaret. But Mary Margaret has never been very good at keeping secrets, and Regina pales when Belle smiles at her in the hall one day, and tells her that 'she's happy Regina's happy,' and this is not good. Belle knowing is one-step closer to Gold knowing. They are married, after all. She's tense and uncomfortable for weeks after that, with every knowing smile tossed her way. Hell, even some of the students have been looking at her, then at Robin, and giggling with their friends.

She over heard one Senior talking about Robin being a 'lucky son of a bitch', and she'd flushed red almost immediately. Something he only found amusing. Something she found horrifying.

"Maybe we should stop," she says softly one day, her gaze firmly planted on her cooling cup of camomile tea. It's not her favourite drink, but it has a calming effect on her, and it was either that, or a bottle of red.

Robin looked up at her, pausing mid-way through wiping down the bench, but she was too afraid too look up, and gauge his reaction. This was her thing. It was a built-in mechanism. Run when things get tough, or grin and bear it. And she didn't think she could pretend anymore. It was just too hard now.

"Stop?"

She nodded.

"Yeah."

He's silent for a moment, and she assumes he's staring at her. He his. His heart is aching, and he's not sure what to say, or do, but eventually, he shrugs and nods, choking out "Okay," softly, bowing his head to stare at the counter top. Regina's snaps up, and she stares at him bewildered, hurt in her eyes. "Okay?"

He sighed.

"I love you, Regina." Her breath hitched. "I didn't want to tell you like this. I wanted to make it special. But... I love you. And if you want to stop, than okay. But I hope you know, it won't change anything. It just means I can't touch you, or hold you, and that - the mere thought hurts. I want to be with you. Completely."

But they can't.

No matter how much they want too.

So they stop.

Regina lies awake at night, cold and empty and he does the exact same thing from the other side of the city. They pass each other in the halls but Regina's head stays bowed and she doesn't look up until she's sure, absolutely sure, that he's gone. There's a tension between them, one everyone seems to pick up on and it breaks her heart when Henry asks if Robin's coming over tonight. 'No,' she says firmly, and then closes her eyes when he leans back as if scolded, nods his head and slides from the counter, hiding himself in his room for the rest of the night.

It hurts.

A lot more than she thought it would and that... that's not fair.

It wasn't supposed to be this. It was supposed to be something fun and light-hearted, something between friends that took the edge off. It wasn't supposed to be serious, it wasn't supposed to mean anything. But it does, it did, and she curls in on herself at night with an aching heart. She can't look at him at work, won't talk to him, can't even bare to stand in the same room longer than absolutely necessary and it takes it's toll.

She's called in to Gold's office just a few weeks later.

She's packing her bags the next day.

Notes: So... That's it. That's the end. I know it took a while to get to but, I tried my best to get through it. I, personally, think this chapter was a little... boring. But, oh well. Anyway, thank you all for being so patient and well, that's it, I guess. Nothing much more to say except... ahahahahaha did you seriously expect me to end it there? I'm not THAT cruel. Originally, this was supposed to be a three-part fic but, this was getting a bit long and drawn out so... there will be an epilogue. Hopefully, I can resolve the ending of this chapter to satisfy you all next chapter. Xoxo.