this took a whole lot longer than I had anticipated and for that I apologize. But hey! The next one should hopefully be up sooner! And just a reminder that the end is drawing near. Not sure how many chapters are left but there are not many at all. Anywho, happy reading! Please leave a review :)


With everyone outside in the backyard playing some version of tag, David made his way back inside with the excuse of needing to use the bathroom. He found Regina in the dining room sitting atop the table with her brow furrowed at her phone. She didn't see him as her focus was on her phone so he paused to watch her for a moment or two, smiling a little more when she tucked her hair back behind her ear after it slipped free. He could hear the kids playing outside and he couldn't help but be surprised at how skilled the king and queen were at entertaining.

She jumped a little when there was a hand on her thigh and another gently pulling her phone from her fingers but she relaxed and smiled when she looked up and found David. He was looking at her with that stupid smile that made her stomach flutter and her mouth pull in to a grin equivalent to that of a shy schoolgirl who caught the eye of the quarterback. She hated how it made her feel. But she supposed she also kind of loved it. It was a grin that teetered between 'I love you dearly, you darling little creature' and 'I am going to fuck you senseless and I promise it will be rough'.

"Whatcha doin'," David inquired with a smile and she smiled a little wider and dropped her pretty eyes for a moment before shrugging her shoulders up and looking back at him. He never grew tired of looking at her.

"Making sure everything is in order for Henry," she replied and he hummed as his eyes left hers to study the rest of her face. She still sat upon the dining room table and he was as close to her as he could get with his thighs against her knees and shins and his hands on the table on either side of her hips. She felt restless inside when he looked at her like that. With his eyes studying every part of her. He was an open book and she was able to see practically every thought that crossed his mind when he looked at her with such tender and loving scrutiny. She had always admired that about him.

"What are you looking for?" She asked curiously in a voice that was just barely over a whisper.

The corners of his mouth lifted a little higher for just a moment before he replied just as quietly with a single shake of his head, "nothing at all."

Regina hummed softly and felt her heart skip around in her chest and warm her from head to toe. She then tentatively crept her fingers toward his and was delighted when he responded in kind and their fingertips intertwined upon the wood of the table. "What do you feel when I look at you?" She questioned softly and watched him smile a little more with a gentle tilt of his head.

"Important. Valued. Appreciated. Happy. Adored. Loved," he nodded once and she smiled but it was with a nervous flick of her eyes between his. So he leaned in a little closer with a more playful grin and quietly diffused her discomfort, "and depending on the moment; sexy as hell," he told her and her tense smile split to show her teeth as she laughed quietly and bowed her head. He laughed with her for a little while and when she looked back at him once more with her head tilted and a smile curving those red lips, he nodded at her, "why?"

"Just making sure," she smiled and it was his turn to look back and forth between her eyes as he tucked her hair behind her ear.

"Making sure of what?"

"That I was looking at you right," she told him softly.

"You are a precious little thing," he breathed and she tipped her head in to his hand when he moved his thumb over her cheek. She watched him for as long as she could as he leaned in and when her eyes fluttered closed, he smiled just a little more and tilted her head back with the side of his finger beneath her chin so he could kiss her. It was soft first. Soft and loving and slowly building.

His fingers slipped further in to hers before his grip tightened around them and she let out a quiet sigh against his mouth as she opened her knees and allowed his thighs to touch the edge of the table. With her legs willing to open, he carefully detangled their fingers and let go of her head so he could take her thighs in his grip and pull her to the edge of the table. She slid across its top with ease and her legs hugged him close as she arched her back and held his face between her hands to keep him close

"I love you," he breathed and she kissed him back stronger. Furrowing her brow against his as she willed herself to say the words back but couldn't bring herself to follow through. He didn't try to coax them out of her. She would tell him when she was ready. He knew better than anyone that she didn't trust herself with love. But that didn't mean she didn't feel it.

Emma had seen the whole thing. She had come in to tell Regina of the demand for lemonade and had neglected to see David retreat in to the house before her. She didn't really have an answer as to why she had kept herself quiet and hidden. But she had. She had seen everything. The initial startled jump that told her Regina's focus was never flaunting the affair in Snow's face, the gentle approach David took to make Regina smile, the way he looked at her, the way she looked at him, the quiet words spoken between them, and then of course the kiss.

Again Emma's reaction to this affair was all over the map. She had never actually seen David and Regina together until now and it felt like a punch in the gut. It felt as though all the air was suddenly forced from her lungs. What drove her crazy was that it was perfect. Really, it was. She had spent enough time with Regina to know that the Evil Queen was not the Evil Queen for no reason. She had a past that Emma did not want to delve too deep in to. But she knew more than enough to appreciate and understand what was happening in front of her now.

She now understood exactly what Regina had meant when she told her she wasn't going to push David away anymore. Emma wasn't blind. She could see how Regina reacted to David, how she moved toward him, how she spoke to him, how she looked at him, how the tension that never seemed to leave her body simply melted away entirely when he touched her. Why would a woman so tortured and miserable and hurt choose to push away the person who calmed the raging storm inside her to a placid ocean without so much as a ripple.

Seeing it now, Emma would call her crazy for pushing such a thing away. And David. Emma had never seen him so enthralled in something. Or in this case, someone. He couldn't take his eyes off her and he couldn't stop smiling at her. Even if it was small, it was always there. And he was calm. His entire presence changed when he was alone with her. It was like every frustration and every conflict inside him melted away in to nothing. He was sure when he was with Regina. He was strong and confident and at peace, all of which were things he was not when he was at home. At home he was agitated and short and at times snappy between his brief and fleeting moments of contentment.

It was nothing like what she was looking at now though. When he kissed her, he kissed her with his entire body. His whole self just moved in to her and held on to her like she was the warmth he needed to survive. The sun his world revolved around, as it were.

"Regina," she interrupted quietly and the pair of them were quick to break their kiss and look at her with wide eyes as they held their breath. They both looked like they were panicking and about to have a heart attack. But even still, David didn't quite let Regina push him as far away as it seemed the mayor would like and his fingertips rested upon her thighs while she remained pushing against his sturdy chest. Emma didn't let the tense silence linger long before she continued with, "there is a high demand for lemonade out there."

Regina's heart sank at the tightness in the blonde's throat that she tried very skillfully to hide. But there was very little that could get past Regina and she caught how deep that woman's stress settled in her. Subconsciously licking her lips, Regina nodded once and couldn't help but notice how completely impossible it was for Emma to look at David, "I will get started on it right away," she replied and Emma nodded and quickly made her leave before she lost her composure.

"Go."

"What?"

"David, go right now," she nodded after Emma and he nodded with a sigh in agreement. Before he left though he gave her one last quick kiss and turned to catch Emma, "five."

"What? No that's...shit," he huffed at himself and Regina gave him a little smirk as she slid off the table. He wasn't even thinking. Now he only had one kiss left. But he left it alone for now and quietly jogged after Emma. It didn't take long for him to catch up to her and despite her efforts to get outside with everyone else and avoid the conversation, he caught her arm before she got to the door.

"Emma-"

"I don't want to talk about it."

"Doesn't matter. We've been floating around this for too long," he insisted softly and she still kept her eyes down and leaned away from him to try and will him to release her arm. But he didn't, "we need to talk."

"I don't want to talk about it, David! Why would I want to stand here and talk about how my father has fallen in love with another woman?! Why would I want to talk about the way you look at Regina like she is the only thing that matters in your life?! Why would I want to talk about the fact that this family is falling apart when we can just ignore it and pretend everything is still alright?!" She cried out and tried not to sob despite the tears pooling in her eyes.

Her thick and broken voice crushed his heart. But he answered her regardless of that fact and made sure his voice was as tender and warm as it could be, "because nothing is alright. And I don't want to ignore it anymore."

At that, Emma let out an exhausted breath and sucked it back in through her teeth as her tears started to fall. She was miserable and he was not in much better condition as he pulled her in to a tight hug and she returned it with a strength he didn't know she had. She cried quietly against him and despite her efforts, her body shook with every one of them. With a kiss to the side of her head he nuzzled his face in to the side of her head and let out a long breath and held her close.

"I love you, Emma."

"I know you do."

"So much."

"I love you too."

"I don't want to hurt you or Snow. But I just can't pretend anymore."

"I just wish you weren't my dad. Then you wouldn't hurt me and I could be happy for you without feeling guilty," she confessed against his heart and felt another tear roll down her cheek, "I really like you two together," she breathed miserably and felt his grip tighten around her as he pushed his head harder in to hers, "this would be so much easier if we were just friends."

"It would," he agreed but then shook his head, "but you are my daughter and I would have it no other way.". He could not describe the relief he felt at hearing she wasn't entirely against his relationship with Regina. That she was merely upset by the fact her family was falling apart after just finding it.

"Neither would I," she mumbled against his chest as she took fistfuls of his shirt.

"Talk to me, sweetheart."

...

It had been another hour and a half before all of Henry's guests had left the house. And the very moment he closed the door behind the last one, he was at her side with a wide grin. She couldn't stop the smirk that pulled at the corner of her mouth, "what?"

"Everybody's gone," he grinned and David laughed behind him somewhere while the king and queen shook their heads in amusement.

"Indeed they are," she smiled and nodded and Henry groaned a laugh and leaned in to her.

"Can I have my present noooow?" He laughed and she feigned boredom and indifference but the smile pulling at her lips gave her away.

"I feel like going for a drive first."

"What? Mom! You said once everybody was gone that I could spend the rest of the day with whatever it is you got me!" He argued with a hint of frustration. The only thing that kept him hopeful and partially smiling was the thorough amusement plastered on the queen's face behind his mother.

"Patience, dear boy," Regina smiled and pressed a kiss to his forehead, "now whether the rest of you come or stay is up to you." All five adults joined them with hardly a word.

...

Henry was quiet and antsy the whole drive. He was constantly fidgeting and it only made Regina smile as she kept her focus on the road. Oh how she loved to torture her poor son like this. It was only when she pulled up to the stables that he perked up. She didn't look at him, didn't smile, simply put the car in park and took the keys with her when she got out. Henry was out a couple seconds later and was quickly across from her on the other side of her trunk while the rest of their company slid out of David's truck and Emma's yellow bug.

Still without a word, Regina finally cracked a smile and when Henry grinned, she popped open the trunk. The look on his face was enough to make her happy for the rest of her life. He could barely hold still as he grinned at the items neatly arranged in her trunk. A pair of tan breeches, a red polo shirt, a black belt, a black helmet, and a pair of polished black riding boots. He was practically vibrating.

His cheeks were hurting he was smiling so wide but he was waiting for confirmation before he exploded. He watched every painstaking detail as his mother reached in to the trunk and retrieved a leather halter with a blue and grey lead rope. He could hardly stand himself as he took it from her offered hand and read the engraved brass plate on the side of the halter.

Persephone

"She's all yours," Regina smiled and Henry looked up at her with the biggest smile she had ever seen on him. With a nod of final assurance, she was quickly tackled by her laughing son and she didn't stop the laughter that left her mouth as she hugged him back.

He jumped at her with a joyous shout and flung his arms around her neck. All he could do was laugh. He didn't have the capacity to speak so much as a single word he was so excited and shocked and grateful. He had missed riding so much since he had been back. He had gone from riding multiple times a day, everyday, down to nothing in weeks. He hadn't even seen a horse since he had left the Enchanted Forest.

He used to have a horse. The little paint that David had started him with. But the horse was never the same after the incident with Daniel. Skittish and bitter. So his equine friend had been taken under the wing of an old man with a soft spot for the gelding and the pair were quickly inseparable. He now lived on the old man's property and Henry hadn't seen him since.

He had no words to express what he felt as he gave a teary laugh in to his mother's neck and adjusted his weight on his tiptoes so he could hug her tighter. "Thank you," he laughed and sniffed and she hugged him tighter.

"You are very welcome," Regina laughed and then kissed his head. It didn't take long for him to bounce out of her hold and jump around in his excitement.

"Emma! I got a horse!" He cheered and Emma laughed with her eyebrows raised in surprise.

"Like a real horse?"

"Yes a real horse!"

"...Well where is it?" Emma chuckled as she looked around and Henry flailed his arms around while his grip on his leather halter stayed firm.

"I don't know yet!" He shouted in excitement with a jump in the air, "but I'm gonna find out!"

"Okay!" Emma shouted back, mocking his absolute excitement as she lifted her hands up. It only had her laughing more and Henry spun around again and bounced to his laughing mother.

"Mom! Where is she?! Can I ride her now!? Do you have a horse?! Will you ride with me?! We can race! And-!"

"She's in her stall next to Charlie," Regina laughed and she honestly didn't think he would ever stop grinning, "I will be happy to ride with you."

"Yes!" He jumped and spun and then ran to the stable door but then stopped, "which one's Charlie?"

"He's the big bay that can jump clean over my head," David replied with a laugh and Regina smirked, "you'll know him when you see him."

"Awesome! Ah! I am so excited!"

"Way to one up everyone's birthday present, Regina," Emma commented with a smirk and the woman shrugged a shoulder with a smirk of her own before following Henry in to the stable.

...

He did find Charlie right away. He was certainly a horse fit for his mother and that made him laugh. His head was handsome and his dark brown coat seemed to shine like polished metal as he looked his way with big friendly brown eyes and a symmetrical stripe right down the centre of his face. There were two stalls on either side of him but he was the only one with his head sticking out above his door. He wasn't sure which side to go peek at so he stood there with a giddy heart hammering in his chest and called, "Persephone."

Hardly a moment later a curious mare poked her head out of her stall and looked at him with her ears pointed at him. He was absolutely thrilled. He didn't expect anything less than perfect from his mother but he was still in awe at the mare that looked him directly in the eye as he walked up to her. She was beautiful. Her head and neck were elegant and proportionate, she had a little pink marking on her muzzle right between her nostrils, and her eyes were dark and warm and curious. She had spirit and confidence and that made Henry smile as she stretched her neck down and forward so she could inspect him. "Hey, girl," he laughed and moved his hand over the front of her face.

Her coat was absolutely stunning. It was a warm dark brown but had stunning contrasts of inky black areas and rusty brown dapples. Like an artist decided to take charcoal to accentuate her muscular frame and then an eraser to make the simple brown in to something more eye catching. Her mane and presumably her tail, were long and thick and jet black and when he peered over the edge of the stall door he found her legs to all be black as well. Save for one bright white sock on her right hind leg. He was absolutely thrilled and when he brushed her forelock to the side he found she had a bright white diamond on her forehead.

"What do you think?"

Henry snapped his head to the sound of his mother's voice and laughed when Charlie nickered at her ever so softly in greeting. "I love her! She's gorgeous!" He grinned and wrapped his arms around Persephone's face.

"I'm glad you think so," Regina smiled as she stopped beside him and ran a hand over her strong and shiny neck, "she also answers to 'Percy' and I am sure it won't take long for her to learn any other nickname you happen to create for her."

"This is the best present ever!" He laughed and then let go of his mare's face so he could hug his mother again, "thank you so much."

"You deserve it, Henry," she smiled and kissed the top of his head, "now let's get her saddled up before the sun sets, hmm?"

"Yes! And how did you keep this a secret?!"

"Oh I have my methods."

...

"Have I ever told you how incredible your ass looks in those pants?"

"David!" Regina snapped quietly with an incredulous look over her shoulder and an open smile in preparation for a scoff.

"Kind of makes me want to find a riding crop," he nodded as his eyes stayed on her ass and his arms remained folded over his chest.

"You are terrible," she laughed through her teeth as she pulled her stirrups down.

"Just thought you should know," he smirked and she shook her head and laughed some more.

"You can spank me later, Charming," she smirked and couldn't stop grinning at the sound of his laughter behind her, "but with your wife around the corner, I'm not convinced this is the proper setting for such horseplay," she teased and tried to refrain from rolling her eyes at herself.

"Ms Mills," David laughed in surprise and she refused to turn and look at him, "did I just hear a terrible play on words leave that pretty little mouth of yours?"

"...Maybe."

"Oh I am pretty sure I did," David nodded with a wide grin and a laugh and he just knew she was hiding her smile from him, "it seems I am rubbing off on you."

"Now that is something I don't need. Please put it upon yourself to expand the distance between us lest I suddenly start wearing plaid."

"You seem to have forgotten that just this morning, I had you in nothing but plaid," he smirked and she gave him a delightful little laugh.

"Then it appears I have fallen deeper in to this predicament than I previously thought," she grinned despite herself.

"It would indeed appear that way, yes," he nodded once and laughed when she shot him a look over her shoulder. The amusement in those dark eyes was the best part. He couldn't stand it anymore. With a quick glance behind him for any approaching bodies, he snuck up behind his darling brunette and slowly turned her around with his hands on her hips and pinned her to her gelding's shoulder.

Regina's heart skipped with joy against her ribcage and she leaned in to Charlie as David's fingertips trailed along her waist and hips and danced with the idea of going lower. Meanwhile her hands slipped in to his back pockets as she laughed softly and rested her head back against her horse's neck. She wanted this. She wanted this all and she didn't want to have to tiptoe around in the shadows. She knew what she wanted. She just didn't believe she was ready. Although, she was never ready when it came to David.

"You make me happy," she smiled with a gentle laugh lacing her words as she sunk in to her horse and let David keep her hips in his hands. She didn't think she had ever seen a brighter smile on his face. Like it was his entire life's mission to make her happy and he had achieved it. When he leaned in to kiss her, their smiles never faded. His hands slid up her body to tangle in her hair while hers remained in his back pockets as she laughed happily against his mouth. Here with her horse and her man, she couldn't be happier.

He was taking his time with this kiss and he was smiling as he did. His touch and grip were soft and she was putty under it. She was warm and giddy and this was perfect.

What she didn't seem to remember was a particular little detail in their bargain. One that David was careful not to forget. She had agreed to six kisses when no one was watching. So far the count was five in secret and one with a witness. It seemed he was going to get that Main Street kiss after all. He couldn't wait.

"When is this birthday over so that I may kiss you as many times as I please?"

"As soon as I return from my ride with Henry."

"Excellent."

...

She wanted so badly to confront Regina. She wanted to fight, she wanted to scream. But the rational part of her brain knew there wasn't a chance in hell she would gain anything from such an argument. She knew very well that the only thing she would achieve would be more anger and frustration. Regina was too good with words, too quick to dodge and deflect, too practiced in arguing to even give Snow so much as a chance of coming out victorious. Not that there was any victory in such a position.

To get any information from Regina, Snow was going to have to adopt her tactics. She was going to have to catch Regina off guard and hit her where she knew she would get a reaction from.

When she heard Regina's laughter she bristled and snapped her eyes to the source but worked the tension out of her body when she saw the king and queen laughing at a filly lipping at her majesty's fingertips. It wasn't the mayor, it wasn't her husband, she could handle the king and queen. She had managed to compartmentalize the king and queen as a couple of their own but that was about as far as she could reach.

Once relaxed, her gaze was focused back on Emma and Henry as they fawned over the truly stunning mare Regina had shipped in for Henry. But while her eyes were on them, only part of her mind was enjoying the excitement from the pair. The majority of her mind space was filled with what had set Regina off in a murderous rampage in the past. Loneliness, pain, anger, jealousy...she could work with jealousy.

Regina was possessive and God help you if you tried to take something of hers. Now, try to take something she thought was hers but was wary it could never truly be hers...that was a combination that was sure to bring out a reaction. Unless of course there was no possessiveness or jealousy to be felt. Snow was almost certain that this affair was taking place. This gesture would either confirm the affair or eradicate the idea entirely.

As though on cue, the voice of the woman on her mind and the sound of her horse's hooves stepping on the pavement reached her ears. She looked over her shoulder and found herself physically biting her tongue to keep herself from scowling at the way Regina and David were caught up in easy conversation. It killed her to watch how happy the pair of them were together. She and David used to be able to do that. What had happened? Bracing herself for pain, Snow stood up straight from leaning her back against the truck and made her way to the trio of horse and 'friends'.

The amount of rage that shot through Regina's system surprised her when hers and David's conversation was interrupted by Snow's mouth on his. It shot through her spine and tightened every muscle as the hairs rose on the back of her neck. Her scalp tingled with the sensations and emotions and she even leaned forward with the beginnings of a snarl to tear Snow away from David. But then she remembered her place and clenched her jaw shut and balled her hands in to fists. Her place was in the shadows just as she had told David she wanted to be for the time being. But that didn't mean she wasn't going to feel the absolute murderous rage that set fire to her bones at the sight of Snow kissing the man she had not cherished. Yes they were married. But when it came down to it, that didn't really matter.

A good hit of betrayal was just the cherry on top when David didn't pull away or push her off. He didn't even try to stop it. Regina knew he shouldn't anyway, she knew that she had told him to keep up the charade. But that didn't mean she had to like watching it. She wanted to wring that girl's pale little neck, she wanted to dig her nails in and draw blood, she wanted to-.

She needed to stop. Or she was going to follow through on those homicidal habits. She had almost put her expression back to show nothing. She had nearly ridded her face of her shock and rage and accomplished a look of indifference. But all progress she had made was thrown out the window at the hum that resonated in the pest's throat before she softly broke off her kiss. Regina was livid and she was sure it showed. She also wanted to curl up and cry at the stark reminder that David was still not entirely hers. She had no one to blame but herself for that fact but that didn't mean she was alright with watching him kiss Snow White. The selfish and oblivious little-.

"What was that for?"

David's voice cleared her head immediately and Regina quickly broke eye contact with Snow and cleared her throat as she turned and walked away with Charlie beside her. Lucky horse remained entirely oblivious to what had just happened. Wouldn't that be nice.

"I want to go home. Now," she told him quietly in an empty voice as she rested the side of her face against his chest so she could watch Regina walk away and meet Henry who was already on his mare's back and chattering endlessly. She had her answer. She didn't like it but she had it, "and you are going to tell me how long you have been sleeping with Regina," and with that, she stepped away from him and walked back to the truck. He followed without a word.