Chapter 22

Emma scrutinized herself in the mirror the next evening, attempting to ensure that nothing was out of place. She had put more effort into her hair today and it fell in soft waves around her shoulder. With the activity she picked for the date, however, she wasn't sure if she would just be better off pulling her hair back out of her face.

With a groan of frustration, she wondered why she didn't pick a more cliché date and just picked a fancy restaurant. Granted, Regina being the Mayor, she probably had the money to eat at all the fancy restaurants she wanted. Emma looked at her normal jeans and tank top and grimaced. It's like she didn't even put in any effort.

The bedroom door swung open and Henry came in. "What are you doing, Ma?" He questioned. He didn't often see his mom standing in front of the mirror, fussing over her appearance. That activity was reserved for his other mother who always spent time in front of the mirror prior to leaving the house.

Emma shrugged, "just making sure I look okay, that's all."

"You look like you normally do," he pointed out which brought out a groan from Emma.

"Exactly the problem!" She exclaimed.

"Are you trying to dress up for someone?" Henry asked slyly.

Emma tossed a glance in his direction. "That's none of your business, kid."

"Okay okay, just curious, that's all." Henry responded quickly.

"Speaking of business," Emma continued, "when I get back tonight, there is something I'd like to talk to you about." She had texted Regina earlier asking if they could tell Henry about the two of them after their date and she had agreed. She planned on asking if they could just go ahead and let Charming and Snow know as well. Emma figured it was best just to get it over with, plus, she wanted the freedom to be out in public with Regina.

Henry grimaced, "Is it something bad? Did I do something?"

"Nothing bad, kid, don't worry. Now get out of the room, I need to finish getting ready. Snow and Charming already know I'm going to be out for dinner."

Henry nodded and clomped down the stairs to find his grandparents.

Emma ran through her mental checklist of everything that needed to be done and nodded in satisfaction. She had already contacted the guy down at the stables earlier and he assured her that everything was in place and there would be no one else there.

Her plan was to take Regina out on a horseback ride along with a picnic at their destination. She had spent all morning finding the perfect spot off of the trail for them to set up. Personally, she could do without the horseback riding, but Regina had mentioned in a letter that she missed doing that. Emma had never actually ridden a horse before but figured it shouldn't be too hard. They had assured her that they picked out a very patient, friendly, and well-trained horse for her to use.

If Regina was curious about their date activity, she had given no indication of such when Emma texted her to let her know what type of attire she was to wear. She prayed that this would live up to whatever expectations Regina had for a date. Ready, she left the apartment with hasty "goodbyes" and drove over to 108 Mifflin.

When the door opened for Emma, she stood in awe. She had thought the Mayor always looked hot in her Mayoral clothes, but this might actually beat out the power suit attire. Regina had on fitted jeans and a loose t-shirt. Emma had never seen her dressed casual to go out before and she decided that she would love to see it more often.

"Uhh," Emma started, finding her voice, "wow."

Regina's mouth twisted into a smile, "Woman of few words, I see." She quipped with no bite behind it.

Emma shrugged. "It was the best description I could come up with." She stepped to the side so Regina could join her on the walk back to her car parked on the side of the street. "It was that… or I was going to tell you how hot you looked."

Regina quirked a perfectly sculpted eyebrow at her. "We need to expand your literary vocabulary." She said dryly.

"Incredibly hot," Emma said smugly. "That better?"

Regina chuckled. "If you say so. So, where are we going?" She asked as they got in the car.

"You'll see," Emma responded vaguely. "It's not far though."

Regina hummed and contently sat in the car as Emma's car radio played Taylor Swift through the speakers. She found herself tingling with excitement at the prospect of heading out on a date with Emma. In her mind, this marked the relationship as something more serious rather than just two people having an itch scratched. It wasn't that she thought the only reason Emma was around her was because she wanted to have sex, but there had been a lot of that in a very short time.

Her eyes wide and curious, she took in the scenery as Emma turned to drive down a wide gravel path. Up ahead she could see a barn on the side as well as stables.

"Are we going riding?" Regina asked.

"Yup," Emma responded. "Think that's something you'd like?" She asked, uncertainty creeping into her voice.

"I would love it." Regina responded enthusiastically. "But," she looked over at Emma. "Have you ever ridden?"

"Nope. I've not." Emma shrugged, "it can't be that hard. No big deal."

"I'll assist you if needed."

"No way," Emma responded adamantly, "I'm not going to need help." She pulled and parked randomly in the grass and got out. "Come on. They helped put the saddles on the horses already."

As they walked towards the stable, Regina noticed that the place had been modernized to some extent. Directly inside of the stable to the right, there was a wooden desk that had a fan sitting at the top. Behind it, there was a regular sized refrigerator.

"Your guy is the first stall on the right," Emma said as she went behind the desk. "Go ahead and get him out, I need to grab a couple things."

Regina nodded and made her way to the stall. As she did, she saw a black horse head appear and nicker quietly in her direction. She smiled and walked over, extending a hand for him to sniff. He was a magnificent stallion, muscles rippling off his body as he shifted his weight on his legs. Regina stroked his muzzle and murmured quiet words to him as they got acquainted.

There were muffled curses and stomping as Emma walked over, arms laden with things. There was a big wicker basket that took both her hands to carry and a large blanket over her shoulders.

"Shit," Emma panted as she plopped the basket down. "What's in here anyways, bricks?"

"Language, Miss Swan," Regina admonished half-heartedly. She couldn't help but find Emma quite adorable as she struggled with the basket. It also didn't hurt that they showed just how toned Emma's arms were.

"With stuff this heavy, I think it warrants the language," Emma retorted petulantly. She looked at the stall next to Regina. "That ones mine," she said. She pointed at the basket and blanket on the floor. "This is supposed to go on the back of your guy because he's bigger." Regina nodded and busied herself with getting her stallion out of the stall and the items loaded on.

As she worked, she kept hearing Emma grumbling and cursing under her breath as she tried to do the same for her mare. The mare was standing patiently, waiting for Emma to mount her but Emma continued to walk circles around the horse, muttering and pulling on the stirrup straps.

"Problem, Emma?" Regina finally asked after another particularly loud groan.

"How the hell are you supposed to get on this thing?" Emma complained as she made yet another lap around the horse.

Regina chuckled. "Like this," she said as she place her foot into the stirrup and swung herself effortlessly onto her saddle, her muscles remembering the familiar movement.

"Wow," Emma said. "That was hot."

Regina rolled her eyes despite the butterflies in her stomach. "Did you catch that? Or were you too busy in the gutter?"

"I got it." Emma said. She placed her foot in and pushed herself up. Halfway up, she realized she had placed the wrong foot down and was not going to be able to get on the horse properly unless she felt like sitting backwards. Midway up, she tried to readjust, causing her to land on the horse, draped across on her stomach. She grunted as she used the saddle handle to try to rotate and dislodge her foot so she could swing it around.

Regina couldn't help the laugh the bubbled out of her watching the event unfold. "Still don't need help, dear?" She called out to the now panting blonde who was using her arms to hold her weight while trying to detangle her feet.

"Piece… of… cake…" Emma grunted out with each failed effort. The horse shifted the weight on her feet causing Emma to let out a yelp of surprise as she clung on to the saddle. The shifted movement however, caused the stirrup to finally free her captive foot so Emma pulled and rotated herself on the saddle until her leg finally got around the horse's other side.

"Whew," she said with a grin as she sat up. "See? Didn't need any help."

Regina shook her head in amusement at the tousled hair and the skewed top. "You look like you got in a fight."

"Maybe I did," Emma retorted.

"Right… With an inanimate object."

"The horse is alive!"

"You were fighting with the saddle, dear."

Emma harrumphed and pointedly looked away in mock annoyance. "Let's get going," she said instead. "We still have to go eat dinner."

"Yes," Regina steered her horse around. "Lead the way, Savior." She grinned to herself as she watched Emma pick up the reigns and try to figure out how to make the horse walk forward. With a few jerky starts, they were finally off.

"This is beautiful," Regina admitted as the dismounted their horses and tied them to a nearby tree. Emma had led them to a clearing in the forest and there was the sound of a nearby creek, trickling.

"I had to do a lot of hiking and research to find this place," Emma said. "It's worth it though." Regina hummed in agreement and helped Emma unload the picnic basket from the back of her stallion. Emma groaned as the started walking away from the horse. "My legs are so sore," she commented.

Regina chuckled. "You just need to get used to it, dear."

Emma grimaced at the thought. "I think I'll pass," she responded. "I don't think horse riding is really my thing. You should just teach Henry and it can be your guys' bonding event or something."

Regina's heart swelled at the thought. She looked adoringly down at Emma as she busied herself getting the blanket laid out. Emma had this way about her where she was looking out for Regina and her feelings. She mused at this and wondered if Emma even knew if she was doing that. It was something that Emma had always done for her and why Regina fell for her in the first place. When the entire town was against the Evil Queen, Emma stood up for her.

Despite it seeming like she was going to take Henry away, she brought him back instead, encouraging him to spend more time with his mom.

Numerous times, Emma had stood up against her own family and friends to defend her, believing in the good inside of Regina that she herself had had a hard time seeing until recently.

Even before Emma knew that she had a romantic interest for her, she reached out and considered them friends despite the attitude Regina always had towards her.

"Uhhh, Regina?" Emma said from the blanket. She was sitting with her legs crossed and all the food laid out before her. "Come join me?"

Regina nodded, feeling her heart constrict at those simple words. She descended down onto the blanket and leaned over to give Emma a soft lingering kiss.

After all these years, here in the woods with Emma, she had found the place that she belongs. A place where she was accepted and wanted. She has finally found her family.

To top all of that off… the once Evil Queen had found it with the Savior. Now that… was definitely something unheard of.

The End

Please favorite this story if you've enjoyed it! It has been a great journey writing and posting for all of you.

Have no fear… I have an epilogue to upload next week!