A/N: Two updates in a day! I don't think I need to say how much this story has consumed me lol. For my reviewer who asked for Emma's POV. It will be included on here. As this is a slow burn, I wanted to go with how Regina has been feeling for the first few chapters, but you will see a little bit on Emma in here, and the chapters to come. As well as every character included in this story. Thank you all for your endless comments and follows. It means the world. This story is just beginning so hang in there. SQ will happen. :)

This place was Regina's safe haven. Pity with Leopold around she couldn't quite come around anymore. It had been years since she was last here. This was her favorite place in the world. It was the one thing that was given to her by her father that she was adamant in keeping after Leopold suggested once that she should sell the land for a good price.

No way in hell would she ever sell it. She had too many fond memories here as a child.

Emma was impressed to say the least. This wasn't just any piece of land. It was amazing! The grass was so green and went on for miles. There were wooden fences placed up all around, there were the stables and a man coming out of them as they drove up to the main house. Emma was surprised that with a land this big, the house that Regina pulled into wasn't as massive as her own home.

This home was a simple two-story brick home with a set of four stilts holding the roof that ended above the front porch. The porch was made out of white wood that gave the home a pop along with all of its windows that looked into the living room from first glance. There were flower pots decorating the porch as they were scattered around. It made Emma feel a sense of peace.

The sight of the land alone was so overwhelmingly beautiful that Emma could remember seeing an orchard of trees as they drove by, but she wasn't too sure. Perhaps she would ask Regina later.

"Welcome to The Orchard, Em!" Audrey smiled proudly, matching her own mother's smile as they exchanged a quick look.

Regina could feel her daughter's hand grab onto her own. She knew Audrey was happy to be here, and so was she. She had been dying to come back to this place. And Audrey equally knew that. She could tell just by the look in her mother's face that a weight had been lifted off of her shoulders. And she was happy for her.

Brown eyes look through the rear view mirror, focused on the surprised look on Emma's face. "Not too overwhelming, Ms. Swan?" She asked the blonde, snapping her out of her trance.

"Emma," Emma kindly reminded her, finding the woman's eyes through the rear view mirror.

Regina smirked, exchanging another quick look with her daughter before they stepped out of the Mercedes.

"Come on, Em! Let me show you the house!" Audrey excitedly takes her girlfriend's hand, turning for her mother before they rush inside. "Coming, mom?"

"You two go ahead, I have to say hi to someone." The brunette gives both of the young girls a smile before walking toward a man that was meeting her halfway with a smile of his own.

"Who's that?" Emma asked, keeping her eyes trained on how he freely hugged Regina.

"Oh, that's my mom's boyfriend." Audrey chuckles at the shocked look on Emma's face.

"Come again?" The blonde lets out a small laugh, looking back at the brunette and the man- Daniel.

"That's Daniel. He works over at the stables." She smirks. "I always like to joke that he's her boyfriend because he always looks at my mom with his tongue hanging out. Just look at him."

Emma could see what Audrey was talking about. Daniel did look at Regina with a certain devotion in his eye. Even if they were feet away from one another, she could clearly see a blush coating the man's cheeks as he exchanged a few words with her. Who could blame him, really. Regina Mills was, for an older woman, was extremely attractive. Even Emma was no stranger to that.

She had just arrived, but this whole look Regina had going on with her jeans, a pair of boots and white buttoned up shirt really complimented the woman well. In her opinion, not many mom's could pull off this care-free look.

"Poor guy. He's crushing on her bad." Audrey brakes Emma's train of thought.

"I mean, can you blame him? Your mom's hot." Emma wiggles her eyebrows playfully, earning another playful slap from her girlfriend in return.

"Don't let my dad hear that, he'll kill you." She chuckles in a joking manner.

"Oh, what? Just for complimenting your mom? You aren't even going to protect me as my girlfriend?" The blonde pouts.

"Aw," Audrey leans in, connecting her lips with the blonde in a quick kiss. "Of course, I'll protect you. I always will. Now, come on, let's get you inside and ready for your first riding lesson."

"Can't wait." Emma looks less enthusiastic which causes Audrey to laugh as they step inside the house.

"I see Audrey's brought a friend along this time." Daniel smiles as he waves at the couple, more at Audrey than Emma once they look their way before disappearing into the house.

Regina looks over her shoulder at her daughter and smiles. "That's Emma, you'll meet her shortly."

Daniel's gaze is back on Regina's own brown eyes. He loved looking into her eyes. "I'm surprised to see you here. It's been a long time."

"Too long, Daniel. Way too long." Regina cups his shoulder, giving it a gentle squeeze. "It's so good to see that you have been holding up well, and still keeping this place in top shape for me. Just like my father liked it. I appreciate that."

"It's always a pleasure, you know that. Besides, I really like it here. It beats living in the city." He shrugs.

"That it does." The brunette murmurs, a sad wave taking over her gaze. She just arrived here, and now she already dreaded heading back home later.

But, the good thing about going home later was that Leopold wouldn't be home. Not until late. At least there was that.

"Will you…" Daniel's voice startled her thoughts. "Be staying here tonight? Getting away from home?"

Regina's eyes locked into Daniel's, she knew that tone well as he asked his question. Because the one thing that Daniel had was that he was a very loyal employee.

And, he knew.

That's right. He had caught on Regina's situation with Leopold since a long time, but he was such a good friend to her that he never spoke about it to anyone. Him and Regina had made a pact once upon a time ago- after he had seen Regina sporting a black eye, despite her trying her best to hide it- that she had a friend whom she could confined in. And whatever she dared to talk to him about or admit to, he would take it to his grave.

Of course, Regina never dared to tell him anything. Even if he knew what type of monster Leopold was. She continued to keep her secrets to herself. Just as she knew he respected whatever she decided to do. When you were in love- you would do anything to see that person happy, am I right?

That was Daniel when it came to Regina.

"No," Regina shook her head, smiling at him kindly. "Audrey and Emma will want to head back to the house, I'm sure."

"Regina-" He is interrupted by the brunette.

"I'm fine, Daniel." There was a sternness in her voice that he knew not to cross. "I promise. I'm alright."

"I know you are," he nodded, almost bowing his head like a puppy who had gotten in trouble by its master. "You know I just worry about you, that's all."

Regina reached to touch Daniel's arm once again, "I know you do. And I thank you. But, you don't need to worry about me."

If only that were true. Daniel knew nothing was fine as long as she continued being married to a man like Leopold White. Regina was never going to be happy unless she decided to change her life around for the better instead of for the worst by staying married to him.

He would worry every day of his life until he saw Regina could be happy. With him or anyone else that knew how to treat her like the woman she was.

But be as it may, he would always keep his feelings hidden from her. After all… What could a stable boy like him possibly offer a woman like her?

Although Regina never carried herself as a woman who cared about money.

In her experience, money was something that gave people like Leopold unnecessary power over others. And she absolutely hated that.

"Mom!" Audrey's voice captured both Regina and Daniel's attention. "You won't believe this! But, I had Emma try on a pair of your breeches for riding- and they fit perfectly!"

"Is that so?" Regina's brow lifted.

"Em, come on out! It's okay." Audrey beckoned her girlfriend who was seeking shelter inside the house. She refused to come out, so Audrey took her by the hand and pulled her out, forcing her to show off a pair of Regina's white riding breeches, along with a pair of old boots, and she had changed her out of her shirt and leather jacket into a more comfortable flannel shirt- which also happened to belong to Regina.

"Audrey- no! This is so embarrassing!" Emma's cheeks grew crimson red upon being forced onto the porch in front of the house.

"Don't they look so good on her?!" Audrey asked excitedly.

Regina was in a state of shock that Emma could perfectly fit into her clothes. Not even Audrey could fit into her clothes, given that she was a tiny bit more thin. But it wasn't just the fitting perfectly into her clothes that shocked her, but how well Emma looked in them.

"How funny is that? Not even I could fit into your pants," Audrey laughs, breaking her mother's train of thought.

"They sure do fit her perfectly. As well as my shirt, I see. And my boots." Regina tilted her head, her eyes trained on Emma.

"I'm really sorry," Emma's cheeks grew red again. "It was Audrey's idea-"

Regina smirks in a playful manner. "It's quite alright, dear. They look better on you than they ever did on me, anyway. And you need to be as comfortable as possible for riding." She turns to Daniel next. "Daniel, please prepare three horses for me, will you?"

"With pleasure," he smiles upon feeling another firm squeeze from the brunette as he walks away.

"Thank you." Upon turning back to her daughter and Emma, she catches them staring, not so much Emma, but Audrey had a known smirk on her face. "What?"

"I think it's cute how you are so naive toward Daniel's puppy love around you, mom." Audrey chuckles.

"Stop," Regina shakes her head as she makes her way toward the house. "You two go on ahead to the stables, I'll meet you there."

"Alright. Come on, let's go." Audrey takes her girlfriend's hand again, leading the way toward the stables.

"Daniel!" Audrey beamed as she ran toward Daniel, who was bringing over a second horse to stand next to the other. Both ready to ride.

He was all smiles as he wrapped Audrey into a tight hug, spinning her around in delight as her feet raised up from the hay covered ground.

"Audrey, look at you!" He placed her down, grinning from ear to ear and taking a good look at her. "I remember when you were just a little thing. Six-year-old girl running around here with your mom."

"And I remember you as a sixteen year old teenager, so focused on your love for my mom that you neglected to see my crush on you at the time." She blushes as she says this.

Daniel laughed off his own blush, obviously not believing her for a minute. While Emma stood there with her eyebrow raised.

"Oh! Sorry, babe-" Audrey took Emma by the hand, pulling her toward her friend. "Daniel, this is my girlfriend Emma; Emma, Daniel."

"Hi, Emma," Daniel met the blonde's halfway as they both shook in greeting.

"Hi. It's a real pleasure, I'm sure." Emma forced a smile out of her lips, not wanting to appear rude. She didn't hate the guy, but she didn't like Audrey being overly-friendly with him either.

Even if it was true and he was all in love with Regina.

"So, are the horses ready?" Audrey asked with excitement oozing from her voice.

"They are," Daniel patted one of the stallions along its neck with a smile on his face. "I just have to get your mom's ready and all three of you will be good to go."

"Great! You have time, she went into the house for a minute." Audrey turned to Emma, who nudged her arm along with hers in a gentle shove to capture her attention as Daniel's was given to a beautiful white horse.

"He likes to be overly-friendly, doesn't he?" She whispered over to her girlfriend, nodding her head toward Daniel.

"What do you mean?" Audrey's head tilts quite like her mother.

"Well, first your mother and now you. It's like he wants to set a personal record."

"Oh," she chuckles, smacking Emma playfully on the arm. "He's been in the family for years, Em. He's a cool guy. Really. Once you get to really know him, you'll like him, too."

Placing a kiss against Emma's cheek ends that conversation and Audrey quickly moves her girlfriend over to meet the horse she will be riding.

"Come on, I want you to meet Rocky."

Emma immediately tenses up, her heart accelerating inside of her chest but her feet force her to go near the animal. "Rocky, huh? He- he's cute."

It was a beautiful stallion. Its coat was dark brown and shiny, and not to mention he was extremely tall.

Audrey petted the fur along his neck with a grin, "You want to pet him? He's very gentle."

"Gentle? With a name like Rocky?" Her brow raised.

"Stop it," the girl chuckles, catching an apple in the air that was tossed her way by Daniel. "Look, you can even feed him. He loves apples."

"Uh… I don't think so." Emma shakes her head, taking a step back.

"Come on, Em. It'll be fine. Look, I'll do it with you, okay?" Audrey places the apple in her girlfriend's hand and guides it toward the stallion's mouth.

"I just want to point out that if it bites my hand off, I won't be able to satisfy you anymore." Emma says jokingly, this time seeing Audrey's cheeks turn crimson red as she looks over at Daniel, who is oblivious to what is being said.

"That's why you have two hands," she jokes back, stroking her hand along the blonde's back to help her stay calm. Which didn't help.

So, Emma did the next best thing. She closed her eyes and allowed Audrey to guide her. Her hand wanted to jerk back a little as she could feel the stallion's mouth tickle her wrist little by little. She didn't dare to open her eyes until she heard a loud crunch, followed by the feel of an empty hand.

Her feeding him had been successful. Rocky was chewing on the apple.

"See! You did it! Nothing to it." Audrey smiled, allowing herself to pet along the animal's neck once more. "Now, you can mount him."

"What?" Emma's eyes grow wide. And her heart comes to a complete stop.

"How is everything?" Regina steps inside the stables with boots more suitable for riding, her jeans and her sleeves rolled up to her forearms for more provided comfort. Her hair was loose and freshly cut just a little above her shoulders. It was still long, but no longer passing them.

"Mom! You cut your hair!" Audrey grinned.

"Just a trim," Regina shrugged. "Which reminds me. Emma… If I may," she took a hair band that she wore around her wrist, showing it to Emma as she asked for permission.

"Oh. Sure, yeah." Emma nodded, understanding perfectly well that she meant to tie her hair back. Just as she was about to turn around to give Regina a better angle of herself, she was stopped by the brunette, who simply stepped closer to her and began to expertly tie up her hair in a ponytail.

A messy one. But a ponytail at best.

Suddenly, Emma didn't care about the animal anymore. She could suddenly understand why Daniel was so in love with Regina. She was a woman that seemed to age like fine wine. And that scar above her lip. Was that always there? How was it that she never noticed it before?

Wait, the blonde's head suddenly found itself tilting. Is it wrong to crush on your girlfriend's mom?

Where was this admiration coming from?

She kept her eyes from looking anywhere else but into Regina's. Her cheeks were beginning to feel hot and it wasn't due to the nerves of riding an animal the size of a bear.

This didn't go unnoticed by Regina as she placed her hands against the girl's shoulders in a gentle manner. "There you go. Much better." She smiled, brushing back a strand of long blonde hair behind her ear. "I wouldn't want you to fall off Rocky because you couldn't see where you were going."

"Thank you," Emma heard herself murmuring, her throat feeling so dry as she gulped down the dry lump inside of her throat.

Seriously, what the hell was up with her right now?

"He's all set for you," Daniel smiles, happily bringing out Regina's white stallion.

"Thank you, Daniel. You are always a great help." She smiles back in gratitude.

"Have fun." He waves them off and goes about his duties.

"Bye, Daniel!" Audrey waves, mounting up on her horse. "Em, now you mount Rocky. It's super easy. Just place one foot on the stirrup followed by the other."

"I don't know, maybe you guys should go and I'll just go with Daniel-"

"There's absolutely nothing to it, dear." Regina gives the blonde a reassuring smile, she grabs a hold of her arm to guide her toward the innocent looking stallion. "Think of it as… Mounting a bike."

Emma chuckles, "That's a big bike."

Regina chuckles at her attempted humor. "You're right. Bad example. Here, why don't I show you, and then you can simply follow my lead?" She nods.

"Okay," Emma nods. She felt more comfortable with that idea.

"You two have fun, I'm heading out there." Audrey flashes a smile toward Emma as she rides off. "Don't worry, Em- you're in great hands!"

"Just watch me. Like so." Emma was watching. She watched how swiftly and how elegantly Regina was able to mount that horse without so much as a flinch. It was even more mesmerizing to see how easily she dismounted the animal just as quickly. "See? It's very easy. Here," she moved along behind Emma. "Now, you're standing on the animal's left side, so you'll want to take your left leg." She nods as she sees Emma holding up her left leg. "Place the tip of your boot in between the metal stirrup." She points to the stirrup and nods again as Emma does as she's told. "Good. Now, grab onto this part here- firmly." She points toward the horn on the saddle.

"Okay," Emma grabs on, her heart accelerating a thousand beats per minute.

"Use both hands. And you'll want to pull yourself up, but be careful not to be too rough, or he'll knock you over."

Emma's head literally looks over her shoulder at Audrey's mother. "Well, that's reassuring."

Regina chuckles, "One important thing you have to know about horses, Emma. They can sense when you are nervous. Just, try to relax."

"They can?" Emma sees a nod in affirmative from the brunette and she turns to look over at Rocky, who appears calm. "Tell you what, Rocky. You work with me here, and I promise to take you to go see the film. Deal?"

This makes Regina smile. And here she thought she was the only one who made deals with her horses.

Rocky makes a snorting sound that excites Emma as she turns to look over at Regina who is still standing protectively behind her.

"Hey, listen to that! He likes me!" Emma grins excitedly, as does Regina.

"Try again. Left leg up." Regina instructs, stepping back a little this time to give Emma room to move as she observes the blonde.

"Okay," Emma repeats the same steps as before. She lifts up her left leg first, placing the tip of her boot inside the stirrup, and using her left hand then her right, she grabs onto the horn on the saddle.

"Good. You're doing good, Emma. Now, lift up and mount."

"Lift up, and mount." Emma murmurs to herself, using all of her arm strength to begin pulling herself up, she struggles at first, but quickly tries again. "Whoa!" This time as she is able to pull herself halfway up, she feels her foot slip and her body slide off, that her hand instinctively instead of grabbing onto anything else that could possibly help her, it grips onto the reins that yank on the stallion.

"Don't pull on that!" Regina shouts out in warning, her eyes growing wide as the next thing she sees is Rocky lets out a loud neigh that startles Emma even more, making her fear for her life as she could feel the animal jump up on his two front legs, successfully knocking the blonde to the ground.

Regina could see Emma's body fall and roll off to the side, her eyes growing wide again as she sees her standing up. "No, Emma- don't!"

"Shit!" It was too late. The next thing Regina could see, and Emma's own fearful wide eyes could see was one of the horse's back legs deliver a kick right to her face.

"Oh, my God- Emma!" Regina runs right for Emma with fear in her eyes.

Everything turned black after that.