I do not own the characters in this story, they are owned by whoever produced or directed the tv show Once Upon a Time.
Summary: Trapped in a loveless arranged marriage to the local Mayor, Regina Mills admits something private to two of her best friends who promise to help her. Along the way, she is surprised to find not only love but strength, happiness, and a new family.
"Regina!" The shoulder-length brunette glanced towards the sound of her friend's voice. A smile lit her face as she saw her friends Ruby & Belle waving for her to join them. Belle, Regina and their friend Mal had been friends since childhood, it had always been the three of them until Belle met Ruby and joined their group five years ago. The couple now happily married. The group met at their local bar called The Rabbit Hole every two weeks to catch up, and tonight will also be the first time that the three women would meet Mal's latest girlfriend.
"Hi ladies." The brunette greeted as she pecked each woman on the cheek. "Where's Mal?"
"Still to arrive. Have you heard anything about this latest one of hers?" Belle asked as Regina rolled her eyes and shook her head in the negative. "How's Robin and Roland?"
"They're fine." Regina dismissed the question with a flick of her hand. The last thing she wanted to talk about tonight was her pathetic husband and their loveless marriage.
"Why don't you just divorce him, Regina? You deserve to be happy and loved." Ruby implored.
"You know why, Ruby," Regina growled before they were interrupted by the arrival of Mal and her latest lover.
"Ladies!" The striking blonde smiled as she hugged each of her friends. "I'm glad we could all meet up tonight, I've missed you all and I would love for you all to meet my new love, Victoria."
The three brunettes turned towards the newcomer and smiled as Mal introduced her friends, all sitting with similar thoughts of Victoria being another one of Mal's long list of women. However, this one had to be special for Mal to formally introduce to them, so they welcomed her with open arms.
Later in the night, Regina was talking quietly with Belle until she started to feel a little uneasy as she felt eyes on her. Her body tensed when she moved her head slightly and locked eyes with Victoria's. Seconds passed before Regina cocked her eyebrow and Victoria broke the gaze to whisper into Mal's ear, she stood and left for the bar.
"She is amazing." Mal gushed as her eyes followed Victoria to the bar. "Oh my god, she had me tied up earlier and did things to my body that I've only dreamed of."
"Tied up?" Regina gasped.
"Yes, I've never had such powerful orgasms in my life."
"I can relate to that." Belle giggled as she looked over to her blushing wife.
"She might be the one, ladies. I can't imagine my sex life getting any better than this." Mal beamed as her eyes returned to watch Victoria return to their table.
At that moment, Regina felt a presence beside her and looked up, she rolled her eyes as Victoria sat down. "May I help you?"
"I think the question is, may I help you?" Victoria asked. "Mal told me about you and your unhappy marriage."
"That's none of your business." Regina snapped at the woman as her fiery eyes glared at Mal.
"Don't be like that, darling." Victoria purred. She moved closer into Regina's body. "Why don't you allow me the opportunity to show you what you're missing out on. Such a beautiful woman like you, it would be my pleasure to introduce you to the joys of sapphic love." She whispered into Regina's ear and placed a hand on her thigh.
Regina inhaled deeply, she forced herself to reign in her temper. How dare this… this stranger approach her in such a manner. Yes, she is in a loveless marriage with someone she detests but Mal had no right to gossip about her life to a perfect stranger. A stranger who is now hitting on her in front of her own girlfriend.
She scowled at her blonde friend that sat across the table, and Regina could also see in her peripheral the wide eyes of both Ruby and Belle as they watched the scene unfold. She slowly turned her furious chocolate-colored pupils towards the outsider of the group, then snarled. "I will allow you the opportunity to remove your hand from my person and your existence out of my life before I will destroy you and your happiness."
"Regina!" Mal screeched as she heard her best friend threaten her new love. "No need to be so nasty, darling."
"As for you, the next time you decide to share my life with one of your belt notches, you best believe our friendship will cease to exist. Now, take your flimsy wench and leave." Regina demanded.
"I'm sorry, Regina. I didn't think she would…"
"That's right, Mal, you didn't think. Now, get out of my sight before I do something that we will both regret" Regina was enraged as she watched Mal drag Victoria away and out of the club.
"I'm going to get some refills," Ruby spoke as she gestured for Belle to talk to Regina.
Silenced surrounded the two women. One still fuming within herself and the other unsure how to move forward. Even the music in the background seemed to be dulled by the silence around their table. Minutes slowly passed by before Belle decided to take a risk. She knew that touching Regina while she was angry could have disastrous repercussions for herself, but she also knew when her friend needed to be held and would sacrifice her own safety for Regina. As she knew Regina would for her. Belle moved off her chair to stand in front of her friend, she raised her arms and pulled Regina in for a hug, one arm embracing her shoulders and the other gently guiding her friends head towards her chest.
There are not many moments in her life that Regina had allowed people to embrace her, but with Belle, Regina knew she was always safe. "How could she do that, Belle? How could she easily talk so openly about my life and then sit there and allow that… that… that bitch to talk to me like that? I don't understand?" She whispered into her friends' neck.
"You and I both know that Mal will do and say things without thinking of consequences until it's too late. And, we have always put up with it and allowed it. But that was not right, Regina and we need to make her accountable for that."
"I cannot forgive her for embarrassing me like that. I know my marriage is a disaster. I know I'm not happy. But if I leave then I will have nothing, no job, no money, and especially a life without my son. He is the main reason why I have not left; I can't lose him."
"Regina, listen to me. Sometimes, life is worth more than a job and money. And you know that you and Roland will always be welcomed to live with us, our house is big enough. And, that is more than many women have to restart their life with. Think about it."
"I just want someone to love me for me. I want someone who will cherish and respect me. I want someone who will make love to me, that's all I want. I don't want to be this person that I am right now. A person who is a wife to a man that married me because of who my mother is. I don't want to be a person who is used in bed… Belle…" Regina gulped before she proceeded. "I am still to experience an orgasm! Can you believe that?" Regina asked as she finally looked up into the surprised eyes of her best friend.
"You've never had an orgasm? What the… Regina, are you kidding me right now?" Belle was shocked.
"No, I'm not." Regina blushed as she looked away in embarrassment.
"That's it. Ruby and I can help you with that."
"I'm not going to have sex with you two, are you out of your mind?" Regina replied in shock as she stared at her friend who was now laughing. "Glad you find this funny. I'm just going to leave and return to my dismal life."
"No" Belle giggled as she tried to catch her breath. "No, Regina." She giggled more.
"That's it. Tell Ruby I said goodnight."
"No, wait, I'm sorry! That was just so funny!" Belle finally stopped giggling as she tugged on Regina's wrist to pull her back down to her seat. "As much as I love you, Regina, I wasn't implying for us all to sleep together, you idiot." She smiled.
"Then what the hell were you referring to?"
"Well, Ruby has this cousin who owns an escort agency."
"Oh, hell no!" Regina deadpanned. "You expect me to go and sleep with another man?"
"No, of course not," Belle replied before she took a deep breath and exhaled slowly. "I thought you might want to sleep with a woman." She whispered.
"What the…"
"Look, hear me out first, okay?" She asked awaiting Regina's nod before she continued. "I'm bi. So, I have been with both genders, and as great as a man can be in bed, they have absolutely nothing in comparison to making love with another female, Regina. Women are sensual, soft, and I agree with the saying that only a woman knows what a woman wants." Belle spoke quietly to her friend.
"Okay ladies, sorry I took a while but here are your…" Ruby halted her speech as she looked at her wife and friend. "Oh fuck… I interrupted, didn't I? I'm sorry, let me just grab my glass and return to the bar." She apologized.
"Don't be silly and sit down." Regina smiled. She loved Ruby and her open and warm energy. Whatever she could say to Belle, she knew she could also say to Ruby and have faith in the knowledge that neither of her friends would hurt her and would always keep her safe. "Belle was just telling me about your cousin who owns an escort agency."
"Ahh… yeah. How the hell did you two get from discussing tonight's events to my cousin's escort agency?" Ruby laughed.
"Shall I tell her?" Belle asked Regina.
"Sure, I know I can trust Ruby."
"Okay. Well, Regina has never experienced an orgasm and I thought we might be able to hook her up with one of your cousins' ladies." Belle smiled at an open-mouthed Ruby who sat stunned as she stared at Regina.
"Oh, shut up and close your mouth, Ruby." Regina glowered which happened to snap Ruby out of her daze.
"Oh, my fucking gawd! Regina, how the fuck did you reach 27 years of age without a fucking orgasm?" She whispered so no other patron could hear their conversation. "I'm going over to your house tomorrow and knock some fucking sense into your husband. I know he is shit, and I know what your marriage is like, but how can he be so selfish? Fuck him! I'm going outside to call my cousin and make an appointment for you. Are you sure you want to do this? I don't want to force you."
"Umm..." Regina started. Did she want this? If Robynn found out it will end their marriage without a doubt, but if he didn't find out then there is a possibility that she could finally feel what she had obviously been missing out on.
"Regina, we don't need to do this. It was only a thought." Belle consoled her friend.
"Yes, Ruby. Why not? I mean, if I decide to forgo, I could always just say no once I have met them, right?" Ruby nodded. "Then yes, I think I do want to do this," Regina confirmed as she took a drink from her glass and watched her friend leave the bar to make the call.
"I don't think you will regret this Regina." Belle hugged her friend.