A/N: As promised! Double update today! And I have to say, I absolutely loved how this entire chapter turned out. I must confess, because THE KISS hasn't actually happened between our leading ladies yet, I thought I would be generous and add a little erotic dream into this chapter, that Regina comes from reading Belle's recommended book. ;) I took my most favorite part of said book and turned into a fitting SQ scene for everyone's reading pleasure. To anyone who hasn't read The Mister by E.L. James yet. Do so now. Highly recommend, and it is filled with chemistry and romance between both characters. Happy reading! :)
Five minutes later, both women met in their pajamas, right inside the kitchen.
"Well, look at us." Emma grinned, taking in Regina's silk pajamas. "Looks like we are having our very own little pajama party."
Regina chuckled and shook her head. "Only you can convince me to eat pancakes at this hour of the night, Ms. Swan."
"Trust me, Gina, after you try my famous chocolate pancakes, you'll love me." Emma moved along the kitchen, heading toward the pantry and retrieving the batter, followed by the butter from the fridge and milk.
Regina watched Emma move around the kitchen, but she wasn't necessarily worried that she couldn't find what she needed. Her eyes were wondering how loose and comfortable the blonde's pajama bottoms looked around her waist. The tightness of her muscle shirt as it clung to her body, and how the muscles in her arms stood out with each movement she made.
"About you referring to me as 'Gina,'" the brunette moved around, tearing her eyes away from the glorious sight before her. She reached for a mixing bowl and a skillet.
"What, you don't like it?" Asked Emma, moving over to the brunette and reaching for the mixing bowl as she began to pour the ingredients.
Regina moved over to the fridge and reached for the eggs, placing them down by Emma.
"Thanks." The blonde smiled. "We compliment each other well in the kitchen." She teased.
And Regina's cheeks flushed, but she quickly hid them by answering her previous question and keeping her eyes on the blonde's mixing patterns other than her eyes or her arms, which was hard not to glance at them every now and again.
"It's not that I don't like it," the brunette rubs away at her temple, trying to keep herself from staring so much.
"If you don't like it, I won't-" Emma's mixing stops as she stares at the woman's nervous state.
"No!" Regina sighs, trying her best to compose herself better. "I don't mind it." She smiles a little. "I just realized that I don't have anything to refer to you by."
God, you're a mess. Just stop talking! The brunette mentally kicks herself over.
Emma's brow slightly rises and suddenly that very twitch is the sexiest thing Regina had ever seen. "Well," the blonde thought about it for a moment. Definitely not Em. "Um," she chuckles then as her cheeks turn a small shade of pink.
"What is it?" Regina asks.
"Nothing, I was just thinking…" Emma pauses, reaching for the bowl again and continues to stir.
"What?" Regina smirks.
Emma shrugs and her stirring stops once again as she sets the bowl back down on the counter. "Well… Alright- do you want me to be honest?"
"I would appreciate that, yes." Regina didn't know what to expect right now.
"I was just thinking, that… I actually like you calling me 'Ms. Swan.'" And as she says 'Ms. Swan,' Emma leans in to whisper it as if she were sharing a secret for only Regina to know before heading back over toward the pantry.
Regina wasn't expecting that! She can't even fathom how to react to what she just heard or how she just heard it as the words came out of Emma's lips.
The brunette looked over her shoulder as a small smirk appeared on her lips. There was a crease in between her brow but not of frustration or anger, but wonder. She liked it? "Whatever happened to me calling you Emma?" She had to ask.
And while Emma mixes in the chocolate with her batter and begins mixing again, she smiles. "Oh, I like how you say my name, too."
Regina can't help but notice the dimples that form against Emma's cheeks as she's smiling. Have they always been there?
"Alright, this is pretty much ready. Prepare to be amazed, yet again. I promise you you're going to love 'em." The blonde smiles again as she pours the first bit of batter onto the warm skillet.
Regina just stands to watch and smiles along. "You like making promises, don't you?"
"I can see you don't." Emma states, keeping her eyes on the sizzling, bubbling batter against the skillet. "Why is that, by the way?"
Regina frowned, and shook her head. "I just don't think it's right to make promises one knows they can't keep."
"And what if they know they can keep them?" Asked Emma, finally flipping over the pancake.
"In my experience, no one has ever kept a promise."
"No one?" Emma frowns this time, her attention fully on Regina's eyes as she attempts to read them.
Usually, Emma was pretty good at reading a person's eyes, but with Regina- it wasn't always easy.
"Like ever?"
The blonde's shocked expression actually makes Regina chuckle, but it wasn't just that. It was her choice of words. She had to remind herself that Emma was still a young adult. "No, no one- like ever."
"Are you making fun of me?" Another raised brow came from Emma, which made Regina laugh. "You are making fun of me!"
"No." The brunette shakes her head and her smile reaches her eyes. "I'm sorry, I don't mean to seem like I am. It's just… You are so full of life, Emma. You make it so difficult to forget that you are just twenty-four years old." Her voice is soft now.
Emma's head tilts. "Am I that young?"
Regina's cheeks grow a shade of pink. "Of course not, but I am forty." Suddenly, she hates that number.
However, Emma doesn't seem to. "And?" She shrugs in a careless manner. "Age is just a number. It doesn't mean we can't be friends."
Friends.
Suddenly that word wasn't something Regina wanted to exist between them.
She couldn't believe what she was thinking to herself right now. Because she actually wanted more. Regina wanted- wondered- what it would be like to date someone like Emma- no! God, what was she possibly thinking?
That would never happen!
"Hey," Emma's voice was low and soft, and it did things to her insides.
Those damn butterflies found their home inside of her stomach again, especially once their eyes met.
"You're forty- that's not a hundred." Emma chuckles.
"That makes me sixteen years older than you are." Regina murmurs, unable to look away from her favorite pair of green eyes.
"And, to be perfectly honest with you, I like that about you." The corner of Emma's lip tilts into a gentle smirk.
She likes something about me? "You do?" Regina is shocked. Yet again.
The blonde nods. "Very much." Her voice is soft again.
Regina blinked, not because of this- what she would like to think as a shared moment- but it probably wasn't that. But, because suddenly the scent of a burnt pancake roamed through the air.
"Oh, my God!" She exclaimed, looking down at the smoke covering the skillet.
"Shit!" Emma stared wide-eyed as she quickly removed the pancake from the skillet and tossed it in the trash. She fanned the air as she heard a laugh escape Regina's lips, which made her smile. "Well, that's one way to burn a pancake, I guess."
Regina can't help but laugh a little more, placing her hand over her mouth when she realized she had laughed a little too loud. Not something Emma minded one bit.
"Well, you were right about one thing," Regina smirks, eyeing the skillet. "I am amazed." She laughed again upon earning herself a playful glare from the blonde. "Why don't you sit, and I'll-"
"No, no," Emma interrupts. "I can fix this, no problem."
"Are you sure?"
"Absolutely. Trust me." The blonde moved the brunette over toward the breakfast table, pulling out a chair for her. "Here, why don't you sit down, and I will cook these up very quickly- it'll be like nothing ever happened."
Regina chuckles as she happily observes the blonde as she gets to cooking.
And then, she frowns as reality sinks right into her heart.
Regina really liked Emma.
That was undeniable anymore, just like the remaining fact that Emma belonged to someone else.
"Well, you are just a master chef, aren't you?" Asked Regina as she stood by as Emma insisted on washing the dishes that had been used.
Emma smiles proudly. And Regina can't look away. "I have my mom to thank for that. And David- he taught me how to make these pancakes. Do you think we should save some for Sidney?"
Regina smiles. "I think he would appreciate that." She thinks about David and how highly Emma speaks of him. "Do you have a picture of your mother and David?"
"Yeah," the blonde quickly dries her hands against her pajama bottoms for quicker effect and reaches for her phone as she begins to scroll through her pictures. "Here we go." She flashes her phone screen before Regina, showing off the latest picture of her mother and David.
The brunette can't help but smile upon seeing them, how happy they looked, and how great they looked together. Emma's mom remained keeping her pixie haired look, with a touch of gray here and there, and David's hair had equal gray areas. She could spot a five o'clock shadow around his jawline and cheeks that suited him quite well.
"They look wonderful together." Regina's voice is soft as she continues to observe their smiles, the wrinkles around their eyes, their clear-as-day love for one another.
"Yeah," Emma smiles as she glances down at the picture while holding her phone. "This isn't David's best look, but," she hears a chuckle escaping the brunette. "My mother likes a little stubble on him, I suppose."
"He's handsome."
"Yeah, he's a real 'prince charming,' at least that's what my mother says." Emma chuckles, tucking away her phone.
"You don't think he is?" Regina chuckles along. She could see it in David's eyes that he was a good man.
"Are you kidding? The guy is a love sick romantic. I remember when he first met my mother, she was so jumpy around him. She couldn't trust anyone, you know." Regina frowns as she nods, because she does know. "Well in order to convince her to go on a date with him, I remember he would always go into the same diner she did, for breakfast, every morning. And he would give her a flower each day."
"Each day?" Regina's brows skyrocketed as her smile stretched out to touch her eyes.
"Each day," the blonde repeated. "Until she finally said yes, and was convinced he was nothing like my father."
"He sounds like a patient man." The brunette's voice was soft at the thought.
"Oh, he is." Emma breathes. "Can you believe he still writes her a love letter for every Valentine's day?" She hears Regina laugh, and Emma nods. "I promise you. I can have my mom text me a picture of one of those letters. She's kept them all."
"Where did they go for their first date?"
"Uh…" Emma squints her eyes in thought. "Dinner, and a Drive-In, I think. Yeah." She smiles.
All that sounded so impossible for Regina. It was everything she has read about in books that she wished she could someday experience with someone.
Emma, perhaps- no! Stop it. Don't even go there.
"Hey," the blonde's voice brought her back from her sudden thoughts. "What's wrong? Are you okay?"
Regina forces a smile simply to not appear so sad. She didn't want to come off as pathetic- not in front of Emma. "I'm fine. It is late, and we should go to bed."
"Hey, Gina," this time, Emma holds onto the woman's shoulder in a very gentle manner to prevent her from leaving. "You can find happiness, too." Her eyes lock onto hopeful brown ones, unable to read whatever else they were saying to her right now. "You'll see, the right man will come along. It's only a matter of time."
She almost lets out a scoff, but swallows it down and decides to become brave for the first time in forever.
"And what if I don't want a man?" Regina asks out of bravery, feeling her heart wanting to jump out of her chest and dig a hole in the ground, six feet deep. "What if…" Her voice gets caught in her throat that she feels the need to swallow again. "What if I want someone else?"
"Someone else?" Emma echoes just as softly. "Like… A woman?" She can't understand why upon asking that question, her heart decided to stop beating.
She can't speak. She can't say anything to confirm that what Emma was asking was a hundred percent true. Regina can only nod.
And to her surprise, there's a small smile wanting to stretch out on the blonde's thin lips. "Well, no one said that was a bad thing." Emma's smile grows. Regina can feel the bridge of her thumb tracing small circles along her shoulder. "Believe it or not, if that's what you want, I say go for it."
"And what if I can't?" Regina swallows down another lump. "What if it's impossible?"
"Nothing's impossible, Gina. You just have to be honest about what you want, and the rest will clear out on its own. Believe me, it can be scary, starting over with someone else when all you've known is a life of abuse. I mean, I get it- how can you possibly trust that that person won't do the exact same things to you, right?"
"I know you wouldn't," before the brunette can catch herself, her mouth whispers what her heart feels and it's the end of her.
"What?" There's a frown on the blonde's brow.
Regina becomes nervous and moves away. She only hopes Emma actually didn't hear her. "What I mean is- I- I know you wouldn't do such a thing- to my daughter." She blinks and swallows down another lump.
And all that's left is for her to count her blessings. And pray that's enough to keep Emma off the muddy track that were her feelings right now.
"No, of course not." Emma chuckles, and something inside of her dies a little. Question was: Why? "I would never do that to anyone. Not just Audrey."
"I know you wouldn't." The brunette smiles, her heart still trying to revive itself inside of her chest. "Well… I suppose we should call it a night."
"Yeah," Emma glances at her watch, which reads almost two am. "It's late." She motions toward the exit of the kitchen and allows Regina to walk out first before she follows her close behind.
"Thank you for accompanying me today. That was sweet of you to do." Says Regina, feeling more composed from her earlier slip up around Emma as they head up the stairs and walk down the hall.
"You're welcome. It's a pleasure." Emma smiles, coming to a stop as they reach the brunette's bedroom door. "So…" She breathes, seeing Regina's eyes find hers. "Does this mean I can earn myself a spot on your phone now?"
Regina chuckles. "My phone's in my room, but I will add you as soon as I have access to it." She frowns. "However, I hope it's okay that I don't go by your name. You know with Leopold-"
"Regina," Emma's voice is soft again and there's a small smile that tugs at her lips. "It's okay. You don't have to explain. After all, it's not like I don't know your situation."
"Thank you." The brunette whispers. "Good night." And just as she's heading into her bedroom-
"Hey, Regina?" Emma calls out.
"Yeah?"
"Would you, um…" Her heart was about to explode inside of her chest and Emma can't quite figure out why the fuck that was. All of these unexplained feelings were becoming aggravating for her.
Just ask her, you idiot! It's not a date.
"W- would you like to have dinner with me tomorrow night?"
There. Easy.
The blonde chews on her bottom lip, and Regina can't possibly look away.
Regina smiles, because what could possibly make her happier than to have dinner with Emma tomorrow night? Even if it was just as friends.
"Dinner sounds lovely. I could make reservations-"
"No, uh…" Emma interrupts. "If you don't mind, I'd like to treat you to dinner."
"You would?" Her heart couldn't be jumping much higher right now, even if she had to remind herself not to get too attached to Emma.
"If that's okay?"
"Of course, yeah." She does feel free to smile. "I'd love to have dinner with you tomorrow night."
"Great." Emma's smile reaches her eyes as she waves- she actually waves and immediately kicks herself over the head for possibly appearing like a moron in front of the brunette. "Good night, Gina." She breathes.
"Good night, Ms. Swan." Regina remembers the blonde mentioning that she grew to like that nickname, so she used it.
Upon entering her bedroom, she leaned against the door and closed her eyes for a minute to help herself breath and count down from ten.
What the hell was that back there? Regina shakes her head at her stupid slip up as she begins to count and begins to breathe.
Sleep. She just needed sleep, and she needed to collect her thoughts before tomorrow night.
Regina had fallen fast asleep while reading a book to keep her mind from thinking of Emma. She began reading the book Belle had allowed her to borrow, and found herself highly enjoying it. It was different, a love story between two opposite strangers.
And she dreamed.
That night, Regina dreamed that she and Emma were not Regina and Emma, but Maxim and Alessia. In the version of themselves, of course, as confusing as that just sounded.
Emma was the photographer slash, music composer, slash DJ who fell in love with Regina at first glance upon entering one surprising morning, and found Emma lying naked in bed after having enjoyed a one night stand with God knows who- not Audrey- this dream was all about them. Regina came in assigned like every morning to clean it, not even expecting to find anyone home.
Now, Regina had never seen anyone else naked, apart from her husband. She hadn't even seen Emma naked before to actually have a perfect visual, but she didn't lack imagination either.
And she had caught that one glimpse of her removing her shirt in front of her when she was ill, of course she had her bra on, but that was more than enough to imagine how the rest of her looked. Regina could be the first to tell you that Emma looked absolutely glorious. If she came close to how she was dreaming her up right now.
What were the odds, Maxim also had green eyes in this story that had captured her attention, so once Emma came out of her sleeping state for a short second to look up at her, and just as she could see the skin on her back, hidden within the crisp white bed sheets, she could see the green sea color of her one droopy eye. And it was marvelous.
You know that feeling when a dream is so clear in your mind, you can just see it and feel it all the same?
This was Regina's case.
And just as she saw Emma naked against her bed, she could then see them together in a car, running away from the bad men that wanted to get to Regina. Emma was risking everything to keep her safe. Just like Maxim risked everything to keep Alessia safe.
They were hiding out in one of her family's many houses that only she would really use. All Regina had with her was a t-shirt and some Spongebob pajama bottoms to sleep and walk around in. Emma had promised her she would take her shopping for more clothes later on.
They played a game of chess, which Regina successfully won, and Emma looked so defeated it brought a smile to her lips.
"Checkmate." Said the brunette, chewing down on her bottom lip as she could see Emma's green eyes turn dark. But, not the kind to be feared.
It was the kind she lusted for.
Yes- this was a dream- so she could admit it to herself in here. She lusted for Emma to touch her, kiss her, look at her in the way she wanted to be seen. Sexually, that is.
And in this dream- she was.
Oh, she was looking at her with that want, that desire that would probably only exist in her dreams.
After a, 'Well played, Regina Mills,' from Emma, both engraved in a small conversation regarding the brunette's background and family. Followed by an agreement to try out a pie Emma had ordered to be delivered to them. It was her favorite. Banoffee pie.
And as they head into the kitchen, Emma watches her. Carefully.
In this dream, she wasn't wearing her red leather jacket, but a pair of jeans, and white turtleneck sweater. Her hair was tied up in a messy ponytail with a few fallen strands to caress the sides of her face, which really brought out the green sea color of her eyes.
She looked stunning!
Regina was too full to try the pie after their big lunch they had just consumed, so she denied a slice, leaving the blonde no choice but to tease her as Emma slowly took her fork, dug right into the softness of the pie and helped herself. Her lips wrapped sensually around the spoon as she hummed out a small, sensual and heated, 'mmm,' sound that alerted Regina's senses.
She knew what the blonde was doing, of course. "You are teasing me. You want me to want your dessert?" She asked with a raised brow.
"I want you to want a great many things. Right now it's dessert." Emma smirks as she licks her lips. With her fork she scoops up a small piece smothered in cream and offers it to Regina. "Eat," she whispers, her voice seductive and her heated stare is absolutely mesmerizing.
In response, Regina parts her lips and accepts the forkful of pie.
And pie had never tasted better in Regina's entire life. Her eyes slowly closed as she savored the taste, and when she opened them, Emma was staring at her with an I-Told-You-So grin. The blonde presents her with another larger piece this time. And this time, Regina opens her mouth without an ounce of hesitation, but to her surprise, Emma pops the offered piece right into her own mouth with a mischievous grin as she chews and gulps it down. She was clearly feeling so playful.
Emma offers her another bite, which this time she gives up, but not without rewarding the brunette with another grin. Her green eyes stray to her lips as she gently wipes the corner of her mouth with her index finger.
"You missed this," she murmured, holding up her cream-smeared pointer finger. Her humor was gone. Lust was back. It's replaced by a darker, simmering look. It makes Regina's pulse beat faster and faster.
They had had champagne along with lunch and a little before, so she could easily blame that for her boldness. Because in reality- Regina knew she would never dare to be this bold. Not toward Emma. But in this dream- she wanted her. Badly. And to make matters absolutely-fucking-fantastic- Emma wanted her! So, Regina did the unimaginable, she leaned right into the blonde's finger, and with her eyes glued to green sea ones, Regina licks her finger with the tip of her tongue.
Emma closes her eyes, and releases the sexiest hum of appreciation Regina had ever heard escape her beautiful throat. Regina- embolden by her appreciative hum- licks again, and teases the tip of the blonde girl's finger with her teeth, which cause Emma's eyes to open in erotic shock. And that's when Regina sucks. Hard.
And what a divine taste it is.
She continues to suck, and Emma watches her, allowing all of her erotic senses kick in with extra power, given the way she begins to chew on her bottom lip and licks it right after. Regina is surprised at herself in this dream, because who knew she had this ability to overpower her like this? To stir her so wildly that she can't take it anymore? It's a revelation. She scrapes her teeth along the pad of her finger, hearing a pleasuring groan escape Emma's throat.
"Fuck the pie," Emma hisses out in a whisper that Regina could clearly hear, right after she withdraws her finger from the brunette's mouth oh, so slowly. The blonde grips onto the back of her head and kisses her. Hard. Passionately. Wantingly. Erotically. Regina can feel Emma's tongue going all the way in, the exact same way her finger had taken its course inside of her mouth. Wet. Hot. Exploring and claiming her.
And Regina is immediately responding right back. Her fingers hungrily losing themselves in between Emma's main of blonde hair, brushing back the fallen strands, feeling others fall back down to caress the back of her hands as she does. And she's just as hungrily kissing, claiming Emma's lips with her own.
She tastes of pie, and of wine mixed together with her lust.
"Bed of chess?" Emma murmurs against Regina's lips.
A thrill of lust pulses through Regina's body like a lighting strike. "Bed." She whispers back, her lips brushing softly against Emma's.
"Good answer." Emma caresses her cheek, brushes her thumb across her bottom lip, and smiles, her eyes sparkling with nothing but sensual promise.
This is the way Regina wishes Emma would look at her. This is what she wanted. More than anything in the world. She couldn't understand how it was possible after all she's been through with her husband, but here- in this dream- she didn't have a husband. She had been enslaved by a bad man who had used her for sex in exchange for a better life, and in came this beautiful, gentle, sexy, wonderful woman- that was Emma- to save her. To have her all to herself. To make her fall deeply and hopelessly in love with her. To be loved back.
Emma grabs her by the hand, breaking their kiss and smiling as she leads her up the stairs, flickering on the lights to what would be their bedroom for a while- because in this dream- Emma wanted her here with her. She wanted to protect her. Keep her safe from anyone ever harming her ever again. And as soon as the lights flickered, that's when the blonde allowed her instincts to take over, she pulled Regina in once again by the back of her head, careful for it not to appear at all forced or in a rough manner, and kissed her. Hard. Pressing her body against the wall that followed them into the bedroom.
Regina could feel how eagerly Emma's throbbing sex pressed up against her own, and she was no stranger to just how much the girl wanted her. Here. Now. In her bed.
Something Regina clearly and equally wanted as well-
A hard, exasperated gasp escaped Regina as she abruptly sat up from her bed that night, awoken by the same erotic dream she had clearly fallen victim to. Her free hand landed right on her heavy breathing chest, and her eyes looked around for simple confirmation that it had been a dream. That she was alone.
Emma was in her bedroom, probably fast asleep by now, while she was here, dreaming about other people's stories and imagining them as her own. Regina was here, in her bed- actually fucking wet between her thighs- without a clue as to what to do about it.
Okay, she knew. But, the thought of pleasuring herself never crossed her mind.
She was even surprised that she was even having this type of dream to begin with, and with the one person who was forbidden to her. Forbidden! She had to remember that word around Emma from now. She had to make a mental note and repeat that word to herself like a mantra before attending dinner with her daughter's girlfriend tomorrow night.
Breathless and poured in sweat, Regina rushed over to her window, parting them both open and immediately feeling the night air breeze struck her glistening skin as she continued to experience another one of her newly come panic attacks.