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It was a couple of hours later when Regina finally found the courage to leave the room, she was nervous about facing Robin after what happened. He was mad at her and she couldn't understand what she had done that was so bad, it wasn't as though she had been the one to invite Graham to share her shower. Sure, she could have put an end to their conversation quicker than she had done, but she was just being friendly. So what if she might have been flirting a tiny bit.
It wasn't as though they were actually engaged, but she supposed she could see where he was coming from a little bit, as far as Graham knew, she was marrying his brother, so it was a little out of line for him to talk to her the way he had done. She was just shocked at how angry Robin had actually been.
Taking a deep breath, she straightened her black and white sweater before smoothing down the fabric of her black jeans. She didn't really know what to say and hoped to put it off for as long as possible. She ended up lingering in the doorway, peering around and spying on the family as they sat in the sitting room talking about all sorts. Robin was beside his Grandparents, his two brothers were on one couch and his parents were on another, there wasn't a spare seat and that was enough to put her on edge.
She had a feeling they were discussing the work they had done with the cattle earlier and she was considering whether she should go in or if it would be best to just go back up to the room and pretend that she didn't exist.
"What are we meant to be looking at?" A whispered voice met her ears and she felt a presence behind her, also peering into the sitting room. She whipped around and came face to face with a tall blonde wearing a red leather jacket and a cheeky smirk.
"Oh… I…"
"Were you spying on my family?" the woman asked with a chuckle, still keeping the noise down.
"No, I just. I didn't want to intrude and…"
"Trust me they don't bite."
"I know that," Regina murmured, seeing the sparkle in the woman's green eyes, they certainly didn't match those of her brothers', she was assuming this woman was Emma, but she didn't know for sure. She'd seen childhood photos strewn around but couldn't be certain. "I just feel somewhat out of place."
"Not going to lie to you, you do look a little out of place."
"Oh, thank you very much."
"I meant it in the nicest possible way, it's not an insult trust me. You're just not like any of the girls my brothers usually bring home, you're clearly a woman… I mean, you look like a classy bird and well, my brothers aren't exactly classy if you catch my drift."
"I think I do but I can't be certain." The woman's accent was thicker than Robin's, Graham had a hint of the Yorkshire lilt in his voice, but any accent Robin might have had seemed to have disappeared since he moved to London.
"I'm Emma by the way."
"I thought as much. Regina."
"Robin's boss slash fiancée, got it. Can't say I'm at all surprised, people love a good enemy to lovers' trope. I bet you act like you hate each other when secretly you both want to tear one another's clothes off and have at it."
Regina simply stared at the woman, she didn't exactly know how to reply to that comment. If she had a brother or sister, she didn't think that she would want to even think about them having sex or anything like that, maybe that was because her family had been extremely conservative with their opinions. Growing up, sex had been a taboo subject in her house, one she had made sure never to bring up. "Something like that."
"I knew it! The moment he came home and told me that he hated you but you were hot I knew that this would happen!"
"Robin hated me?"
Emma's smile faltered a little as she shrugged her shoulder, "so hate might have been a bit of a strong word. And I know that he must love you now. To even bring you here to meet us he must really be invested in your relationship, he doesn't let us meet anyone."
"I see."
"Now are you coming in there or are you going to run off and hide?"
"I suppose I'll come in," she stated quietly. Robin hated her. Great. That was just great. She knew that many of her employees had a dislike for her but she'd never thought that Robin was one of them, sure she had known about his distaste for her sometimes when she was in one of her moods, but she'd thought that was all it was, maybe she'd been mistaken.
"Look who I found loitering on the corridor," Emma quipped as she gestured to Regina before making her way into the room and hugging her family members.
Regina's eyes fell onto Robin but he wasn't looking back at her, in fact, he was looking at anyone but her. He was still angry it seemed and she didn't know if she would be best sucking it up and apologising, not that she knew exactly what it was that she was apologising for.
"Hey," Graham grinned as he moved closer to her.
She offered him an awkward smile before taking a deep breath and pleading for the courage to do what she had to, "can I please talk to you about something?" she asked, looking up at the man whose smirk grew as he nodded and lead her out into the kitchen.
"Hey, what did you want to talk about?" he asked, going to the fridge and grabbing a beer for himself and offering one to her, but she shook her head in response.
"I just… earlier the whole bathroom situation. It was a little inappropriate," she whispered awkwardly, she knew he had been joking but she also felt as though she needed to set some boundaries and clarify that she was with Robin. Not that she was actually with Robin, but they needed everyone to think that, including his brother.
"Was it what I said about joining me in the shower?"
"Yes, that."
"Shit, I'm sorry, I didn't know it would offend you, I was just joking around."
"Yes, I know that, but Robin, he wasn't happy about it and I just feel like you overstepped just a little. I'm his fiancée and were getting married so… I guess what I'm trying to say is, as much as I am flattered by your flirting, I'm marrying your brother and there is a line that has to be respected."
"Yeah, I totally get it. Sorry. I guess I got carried away, you're gorgeous and I forgot myself. Forgive me?" he asked, pouting at her in a way that had her rolling her eyes.
"Okay, but really, this can't happen again. I really need Robin in my life and I can't jeopardise our relationship over meaningless flirting."
"Right, message received," he nodded before awkwardly walking out of the kitchen and leaving her alone with her thoughts.
She took a deep breath and leant against the counter, she knew that had been necessary and she had been stupid to even flirt around with him earlier that day. The next step was to talk to Robin, but that one was going to take much more effort than talking to Graham had, she didn't really understand why he had been as annoyed as he had been but knew that she was going to have to find a way to make it up to him.
"Are you hiding in here already?" Emma asked as she reappeared, walking straight over to the fridge, "you look like you have a lot on your mind."
"I suppose I do," she nodded with a sigh.
"I know we don't know each other really, but do you want to talk about it?"
"Not really, I don't talk about feelings."
"Sounds like someone else I know," Emma laughed, "you and Robin really are made for one another. He's just as much of a thought harbourer as you are."
"What has he actually told you about me. Don't sugar coat it, I want to know."
"Well, there have been quite a few tales told over the years and from what I could gather it sounded quite like he hated you most of the time," the blonde woman winced as she grabbed herself a drink and moved to lean against the counter opposite Regina. "I know the family were a little shocked when Robin called and told us that he was bringing you home to meet us all and that you were his girlfriend. I think though, to be honest, I had a feeling that there was more to his hatred of you than what it actually was. Like I said earlier, you have the enemies to lover's vibe going on."
Regina didn't know about that one, all she was hearing was that Robin hadn't liked her and now he had sprung it on his family out of the blue that they were getting married. It sounded suspicious and the worry began to blossom once again at the thought of this not going according to plan. "Well, I love your brother so…"
"Good, I'm glad, it's about time he found someone that made him happy. God knows Marian broke most of the trust he had in women."
"David and Graham mentioned her yesterday. Did she mean a lot to Robin?"
"Yeah, she was one of his first girlfriends and everyone thought that they would get married one day, but that didn't happen."
"Why? If they were so in love, why didn't they get married I…"
"You ladies gossiping in here?" Robin asked as he appeared in the doorway, his eyes meeting hers and she couldn't tell if he was still mad at her, there was a smile on his face but she couldn't be sure.
"You know me, Robin, I'm always one for a gossip," Emma winked, "I'm going to head back into the sitting room."
"Okay," Regina nodded, tucking some of her hair behind her ear as she was left alone with Robin, "can we go somewhere private to talk?"
"You still want to talk to me after I was an idiot this morning?" he asked, running his fingers through his hair in a way that almost made him seem nervous.
"Yes, I feel that we have quite a bit to talk about."
"Okay, I suppose we can head back to our room for a few minutes," he quipped before leading her up the stairs and towards their bedroom. She followed behind him knowing that this conversation was inevitable and she would rather get it over and done with, they needed to get back on better terms if they wanted this to work.
Once they the door was closed behind them Regain knew she just needed to get what she needed to say off her chest, "I talked to Graham about what happened earlier."
"What? Why?" Robin narrowed his eyes at her.
"I told him that his comments were inappropriate and that I didn't like it."
"You did?"
"Yes, I did. I know you weren't happy about it and I'm sorry, it won't happen again."
"If we're going to do this, we need I look as though we're actually engaged and that means being honest with each other."
"Yes, I agree. Do you want to tell me why his comment got you so annoyed and why you went off on one?"
"I'm sorry," Robin sighed, moving to sit on the edge of the bed, his hands rubbing over his face, "it's just Graham has always been able to get everything that he wants, even if that something belongs to someone else."
Regina rose an eyebrow and moved over to perch beside him, "why do I have a feeling that this isn't just about childhood toys."
"Ha, he took them too, but no. He always seems to go after women that I'm with, he's charming that way."
"Is this about Marian?"
"How do you know about Marian?"
"Emma told me."
"Oh, well yeah, after Marian I just stopped bringing people home to meet the family, I know it sounds stupid, but I'd like he's trained in the art of seduction."
Regina chuckled and shook her head, "I had a friend back home who was just the same."
"You had a friend?"
"Haha, very funny. It might be a surprise to you that I have friends but I do, well, back in America anyway," she whispered the last part. She didn't really have anyone here; all her friends were still overseas and with work, she'd had little time to make any since she'd been in Britain. "We went to school together and she would always try and seduce the teachers, she didn't even care what gender," Regina chuckled remembering how Mal would flirt shamelessly with literally anyone.
"Do you miss her?"
"God, all the time. We talk but it's just not the same, she was my first..." she stopped herself, not wanting to tell him about that, not yet anyway. "Friend, she was my only true friend, the only one who really understood me."
"You're quite a complicated person to understand," Robin grinned, nudging her playfully causing her to roll her eyes and push him back. "I think that I understand you well enough though. You're not as harsh as you make out to be."
"Ah, I don't know about that one."
"Think what you want, but I know that you're not all bad."
"Well thank you, I hope that was meant to be a compliment."
"I suppose it was," he chuckled before standing from the bed again, "come on, let's start again. Forget about Graham and just try to enjoy this trip."
Regina nodded in agreement and took his offered hand before going with him to re-join his family.
The rest of the day had passed rather uneventfully, she had been out to visit the horses with Robin and learnt how to muck them out. This was something she had done before and shocked him with her skills, what she didn't relay was that she knew because of the horses at her boarding school and how she had been put on stable duty most of the time. Horses used to be her method of escape, but it had been nearly fifteen years since she had even petted one. It had been nice for her to be around the majestic creatures once again.
In the time they had been at the stables she had been able to learn a bit more about Robin's past, finding out things she knew that she would need for the interview they would be having with immigration on their return to London. Yet she had allowed him very little insight into her past, she was reluctant to share with him she didn't know what it was but she never told anyone about her childhood, mainly because it hadn't been an exactly happy one.
As for the immigration interview, the first one had left their interviewer more than a little suspicious and that was why they were going to have to try extra hard if they wanted this to go according to plan. He had informed them that he would be keeping tabs on them and enquiring with people they knew. They had used the lie that because Robin was her assistant, they hadn't wanted anyone judging their relationship and Robin had cleverly added that he was in line for a promotion soon and they didn't want people thinking he had slept his way up the job ladder. This, of course, wasn't true, but seemingly it was going to be once they arrived home, he had made it one of the conditions.
They were sat around the dining table and Regina could feel Robin's grandfather's eyes on her, he still hadn't really talked to her and she was beginning to worry about it. There was a slight lull in the conversation and she took that as her chance to speak up, "so, Robin tells me that you're a keen fisherman," she stated, looking up at the old man and seeing him nod as he took a forkful of chicken from his plate.
"Robin hasn't told me much about you."
"Well, I'm really not all that interesting, but I bet you have many stories to tell," she glanced at Robin who was sat to her left and wondered not for the first time what he had told his grandfather about her.
"Sure," he nodded.
"Pops, why don't you tell Regina the story of how you and grandma met?" Robin prompted.
The old man looked at his grandson for a moment before relenting and nodding in agreement, "I met June during the post-war era, a couple of years after the war when I was just eighteen."
Regina glanced at Robin's grandmother who was smiling as she watched her husband, her heart clenched and she hoped that one day she would find someone to love her as strongly as the couple in front of her loved one another.
"He was a young and handsome cadet and we met at a dance, I was only sixteen at the time, but he swept me off my feet."
"She was the prettiest lass I'd ever laid eyes on and I knew that I had to make her mine."
"Two months later and we were married, my parents nearly had kittens, but I loved him from the moment I saw him. We've been together ever since. Doesn't mean we haven't had our ups and downs though, we certainly did."
"Hmm," the elderly man nodded, "seventy-two years later and here we are."
"That's amazing," Regina whispered, looking between the two of them in awe. "Thank you for sharing your story with me."
"I'd ask you how you met Robin, but we already know that you were his boss."
"Yes, it took a while for Robin and I to eventually fall for one another I must admit."
"Well, when you spend so much time with one person whether it be late night laboratory sessions or weekends away at science conferences, the connection is inevitable right?" Robin asked, allowing his arm to fall across the back of her chair.
"Something like that."
"I just don't understand why Robin didn't tell any of us that the two of you were dating, never mind engaged," Roland quipped.
"Well, that was probably my fault, I thought if anyone knew we were together it might jinx us. Then when Robin proposed I guess I realised it was probably time that people found out about." She offered his family a shy smile.
"How did he propose?" Caroline asked eagerly, "where's your ring? I was wondering that."
"Oh, he knew that I would want to choose my own ring, isn't that right?"
"Of course, it is sweetheart. Everyone knows that this woman is the most particular person on the planet, god forbid I buy her the wrong engagement ring. As for the proposal, I think Regina should tell this story, she's really good at it."
She cast him a tight-lipped smile to mask the expression of her want to murder him for putting her in it, they hadn't talked about a potential proposal story so she had no clue what to say. "Well, it was a hard time for me I have to admit, I thought maybe he was having an affair."
"What?!" Robin asked, nearly choking on the wine he had just sipped from his glass, "darling, you didn't tell me that."
"I know because I realised that I was being silly and you were actually planning the beautiful proposal, maybe you should talk more about the thought behind that."
"Well, since we're both so obsessed with science, I thought an interesting proposal would be to use a chemistry experiment." Regina nodded along with him, it sounded like a feasible idea. "Initially I was going to include a ring but I quickly realised that she would want to choose her own so I had to find another idea,"
"Okay son, we don't really need to hear the long version, skip to the proposal," his grandfather prompted.
"Fine. Well, I used a chemical reaction to spell out will you marry me and she said yes."
"It was quite the reaction," she smiled, "there was a lot of fire and colour and you did well to keep your eyebrows on your face," Regina grinned mischievously as she took a final bite of her chicken before placing her fork down. "Dinner was delicious, thank you."
"You're very welcome dear, time for dessert."
"Oh, thank you, but I don't eat desserts."
"One dessert won't kill you, sweetie," Robin quipped, his foot colliding with her shin under the table.
"I suppose you're right, I can't wait for dessert."