The rest of Regina's Saturday was quite busy, really. The cat nap she had hoped to take on the couch turned into wishful thinking when Henry came barreling downstairs and announced that he was ready to go to the dog park.

Well then. Regina had to get a move on, didn't she? She flashed her son a smile she hoped wasn't too tired and stood from the couch. Signed that she just needed to put on her coat and boots and then she would be ready to go.

"Awesome!" Henry grinned as he disappeared into the hallway to put on his own shoes and coat.

"You guys want some company?" Zelena asked. "I could use a little break."

A break from what exactly? Sitting in the armchair? Regina didn't say that. Instead she settled for nodding her head and smiling. Zelena was more than welcome to join them.

"Excellent," Zelena said briskly, standing from the chair and stretching her back until something creaked in it. "Oh, gosh darn it, I think I just hurt myself."

Regina wasn't really paying attention. The stretching gesture Zelena had just made, reminded her of a similar gesture Emma had made earlier this morning. Except that Emma had been naked. And grinning. What was she doing now? Had she gone back to bed like she jokingly had said she would? Regina had no problem with imagining Emma curled up in bed. Maybe she kicked the blanket off of her in her sleep. For some reason, Emma struck her as the type to do that. And if Emma had kicked off the covers, it would mean that her white tanktop and red panties would be on full display…There had definitely been something about that outfit. Regina would mind if she ever was to catch Emma wearing such an attire again. Those long legs and those muscular arms of hers. They way they had been holding her so close last night…

"Mom? Aren't you coming? What are you doing?"

Regina blinked herself back to reality and realized that she was standing alone in the middle of the living room and doing absolutely nothing. Oops.

She quickly got a move on and walked into the hallway where Henry and Zelena both were waiting for her. Henry was in his navy blue coat and scarf and brown boots and Zelena had shrugged on her furry green coat. Both of them ready. Henry looked a bit confused, but Zelena was smirking shamelessly. Regina made a point of ignoring her older sister completely as she grabbed the coat with the blue fake-fur collar and put it on. Her boots next. She smoothened a hand over her hair and then she too was ready to go. Henry was naturally excited about going. He loved going to the dog park. When he was younger, he kept asking her for a dog, but Regina never complied. A dog was just about the only thing she ever had denied her son, but a dog was a huge responsibility. And the time was definitely not right for getting a dog. She didn't even have her own place to live.

Since Zelena was joining them, Henry ended up being 'banished' to the backseat, but he didn't seem to mind that. He happily chatted on.

"What did you and Emma do?" he asked her, narrowing his eyes as though expecting her to reveal that they had played videogames or something else he wouldn't want to miss for the world.

Regina shrugged slightly, thereby telling him that they hadn't really been doing anything special.

Lies. But they hadn't played videogames.

"We should invite Emma to the dog park with us sometimes," Henry suggested. "Don't you think she would like that?"

Regina nodded and smiled at her son. She was positive that Emma would absolutely love that. She too had been a kid who had been yearning for a dog. She had told Regina that. But Emma had wished for a dog for much darker reasons than Henry had. As a child, Emma had desperately wished for a companion. Someone who was on her side all the time. Someone she could confide in when life with her controlling, abusive adoptive mother and the adoptive father who always had been on Mary Margaret's side. But of course they had said no. Of course they had denied Emma the only thing she had ever asked them for.

Regina hoped that Emma someday would get a dog. If anyone deserved a dog it certainly was her.

"When is Emma coming over again?" Henry asked, pulling her out of her thoughts. "You've been hanging out with her all weekend! I wanna see her too! You've had her all to yourself, and that's not fair." He laughed at his own joke.

Zelena laughed too. But her laughter was a bit more teasing.

Regina strongly considered elbowing her sister in the ribs. But Henry was in the car too and Regina would be damned if she engaged in any kind of unsafe driving with her son here. She settled for glaring slightly at Zelena for one second when it was safe to look away from the road.

Zelena scolded her features into something that was not a teasing grin, and Regina did her utmost to not get distracted all over. She was with her son and her sister right now. It wasn't the time to let her thoughts drift to last night. No matter how much she wanted to. Hopefully, there would be time to think about Emma and last night later on.

"I'm sure you'll get to hang out with Emma soon, Hen," Zelena said. "Isn't that right, Regina?"

Regina nodded. Indeed. Hanging out with Emma would definitely happen soon…

The dog park was exactly as crowded and noisy as Regina remembered it to be. It was full of families and happy, barking dogs. Big ones. Small ones. Middle sized ones. Shaggy ones. Curly ones. Some with shorter coats. There was even a few bald ones wearing little coats in order to not get cold.

They found Nick and Ava and their father Michael waiting for them. Greetings were exchanged and Henry of course fawned over Nick and Ava's dog. A beautiful tri-colored collie, named Lassie. Of course. What other name could a collie even have? Regina too greeted the dog. She crouched down and allowed Lassie to sniff at her hand and then lick it. Much to Henry's amusement.

"Look at her, mom," he said, flashing her a hopeful look.

Regina nodded and didn't get affected by the look in his eyes. She knew all of his little tricks and charms.

"Isn't she cute?" Henry continued.

'Yes,' Regina signed. 'She is very cute'.

Henry looked at her for a moment longer. Then he sighed, slightly irritated because he once again hadn't succeeded in convincing her that getting a dog was a good idea.

"Well, she's all yours, kids," Michael said, unclipping the leash from Lassie's collar. Lassie let out an excited bark and wagged her tail. Henry, Ava and Nick took that as an encouragement, and off they went to play with Lassie and the other dogs and kids at the park.

Michael's phone rang and while he excused himself, Regina and Zelena found a bench close to the place where Henry and Ava and Nick were playing.

"He really wants that dog, doesn't he?" Zelena asked and chuckled.

'Yes', Regina signed. 'But the timing isn't very good. We still need to find a place to live.'

Zelena's knee-jerk reaction was to wince, and instead of getting annoyed, Regina reached out and gently patted her sister's hand.

"Sorry," Zelena said hastily. "I'm sorry. Of course I want you to build your own life and all that, but I have become so used to having you and my dear nephew around. It'll be strange when you aren't there anymore."

'We won't be going far,' Regina signed. 'No matter what, we're not moving far away.'

"I know," Zelena said and sighed a little. "But it'll be strange nonetheless. "Who's gonna run up and down the stairs and forget to take off his shoes if Henry isn't here? Who am I gonna watch Bakeoff with when you're not around?"

Regina rumbled and patted her sister's hand again before signing: 'we have to meet and watch television together. I promise you, it won't be so bad.'

"Of course not," Zelena said quickly. "I've just really loved having you and Henry around. I feel like we've gotten closer all three of us." She frowned. "Is that a terrible thing to say? The reason for your stay at my place…." She trailed off and bit her lip.

'I feel the same,' Regina signed. 'Before, we didn't see each other that much.'

"Which wasn't your fault in any way!" Zelena said firmly.

Regina nodded. She knew that. 'But still, I'm glad that we have gotten closer.'

"Me, too," Zelena smiled. "And I'm also glad you're ready to find your own place, sis. No matter how silly my instinctive reaction is, I'm happy for you. Really, really happy."

So was Regina. She truly was turning over a new leaf and starting to live her life again. Her new life. She thought of the pale, fragile permanently exhausted woman she had been when she first moved into Zelena's house. That woman wasn't gone, but Regina felt very far from her.

"Mom!"

She looked up and waved at Henry. Shook her head a little when he proceeded to roll around on the ground with Lassie on top of him. Well. Now she knew what she would be doing when they came home. Wash her son's coat. She didn't scold him for it, though. He was having a blast and it would be a shame to prevent him from that.

"So… that house you're looking for," Zelena resumed their conversation from a moment ago. "Will it be big enough for three?"

Three? Regina frowned. Then teased: 'the last time I checked, you had your own house.'

"I'm not talking about me, you dummy," Zelena laughed, giving her a nudge. "I was talking about Emma."

Emma? Regina frowned again. 'Why are you thinking about her?'

"Uhmm, for obvious reasons," Zelena deadpanned. "You love her. She loves you. You're in a relationship. A relationship that just got a hell of a lot more serious-"

'My relationship with Emma has always been serious,' Regina firmly signed and interrupted her obnoxious sister. 'And we are not talking about that. At all.'

"Of course not," Zelena said quickly. "Sorry. What I meant to say is that the two of you are close. I mean, you're pretty much texting all the time and seeing each other almost every weekend, so living together wouldn't be that bad, would it?"

'Of course not,' Regina signed. 'But it wouldn't make sense for Emma to move in with me. She just found her dream house, remember?'

"Well…" Zelena shot her a long look. "Emma's house is pretty big, isn't it? Big enough for two more people…"

Regina automatically shook her head. Then lifted her hands and wiggled her fingers. 'It doesn't work like that.'

"How does it work then?"

'She actually has to ask me.' Regina could feel that she didn't want to talk about this.

"And when she does? What will your answer be?"

Nag, nag, nag. Regina was definitely annoyed now. Because Zelena had said 'when' and not 'if' when literally nothing was certain. Emma hadn't mentioned anything. Not even the slightest hint.

And perhaps that was part of the reason why Regina was annoyed. Because she did want to live with Emma. But she couldn't exactly just invite herself to live with Emma. No. Emma had to be the one to arrive at that decision.

"Alright, alright, I get it," Zelena said, sticking her hands in the air in mock-surrender. "I won't talk about that either. Blimey, there suddenly is a lot of things I'm not allowed to talk about…"

Regina ignored the gentle barb and turned her attention to her son who was still playing with Lassie. Now he was playing fetch with the dog, and he looked so happy Regina nearly decided to buy him a dog. She whipped out her phone and took several pictures of her happy son playing with the equally happy dog. She would definitely be showing the pictures to Emma the next time they saw each other. Which would be next weekend. Which reminded Regina that it was her turn to 'invite', and she immediately began to consider the options. Should they go out or stay in? Sure, it would be nice to go out for a nice dinner somewhere, but there was evidently something personal about cooking for your partner. That was exactly what Regina would do. She would cook something nice for Emma when she came over.

She glanced at Henry who was laughing with Ava and Nick. He surely would be home next weekend, wouldn't he? Zelena would probably be at Chad's place, but Henry wouldn't want to miss out on an opportunity to 'hang out' with Emma, and admittedly, that did make Regina's plans a little difficult. She wasn't sure she would be comfortable with sleeping with Emma when Henry was asleep down the hallway. And going to Emma's place again was out of the question. She couldn't keep leaving Henry for the weekend.

Well. The adult-date would just have to wait, then. Her next date with Emma would be strictly family orientated. And that was completely fine. Obviously. She could control herself for another week. It wasn't like she was obsessed or anything. Of course not.

Regina shifted a bit on the bench and looked at her boy. He was having so much fun. How nice it could have been if Emma was here with them. She would probably happily engage in playing fetch. And rolling on the ground with Henry and the dog. Regna smiled to herself. She would love to see that sometimes. She would have to ask Emma to join them sometimes. That could be really nice….

She woke up the exact same time as the alarm clock rang. Regina stretched and yawned. Monday again. Goodness, how fast a weekend passed by. But she didn't mind it though. The beginning of a new week meant that the next weekend wasn't as far away as it had been one day ago. And Regina had every reason to look forward to the weekend.

She reached out and grabbed her phone from the nightstand. Her vision was a bit morning-blurry, so she also took her glasses from the drawer and slipped them on. Her vision immediately became laser-sharp, and it didn't take long before she spotted the message Emma had sent to her a bit earlier. Regina opened it and smiled.

'Good morning, beautiful! I hope you fell asleep earlier than I did.'

'Good morning, my darling. I did indeed fall asleep relatively early. Did you sleep alright?' she hoped so. She hoped that Emma had been all cozy and curled up under the covers.

Or perhaps asleep atop of them. Wearing nothing but those red panties and that white tanktop.

Good god. Regina shook her head. Wasn't it enough that she had been dreaming very vividly all night? She was glad when her phone chimed and interrupted her thoughts.

'Yes, I did. When I fell asleep, that is. My mind kept wandering everywhere. What about you? Did you sleep well?'

'Yes, I did.' Regina automatically texted. But truthfully, she was wondering about the places Emma's thoughts had drifted to…

'I'm happy to hear that :) I bet you looked very cute all peacefully asleep!'

Regina scoffed. 'Who said anything about peaceful?'

'Elaborate?'

'I kept having dreams.' Very vivid and realistic dreams that had made her wake up gasping in the middle of the night. She hadn't been embarrassed. Only annoyed that she had woken up.

'Good ones?'

'Oh yes, most definitely.'

'Elaborate? ;)'

Tricky. 'I don't think I can.'

'Why not? Please don't tell me you're embarrassed! It's nothing to be embarrassed about.'

No. No, she wasn't embarrassed. But there was a part of her that still had a hard time grasping that she was dreaming like this now. 'I know it isn't. I'm just surprised that I have these kinds of dreams so regularly now.' She wasn't used to it at all. But it would appear that she would have to.

'Oh, I see. Can I please know what you were dreaming about?'

Hmm… Regina considered it for a moment. Then grinned. No. Emma could not. 'I don't think any description would justify it. How about I show you when we see each other instead?' a little morning-flirting never killed nobody, right?

'Oh yes, that definitely works for me! I wish I could see you right now!'

Mhmm! 'That would have been very nice. I miss you so much.'

'That's the kind of stuff that'll make me blow off work and drive straight to your place instead!'

Goodness. Regina grinned. 'Oh don't do that. I don't want you to get in trouble with Malena!' sure, Mal was a laidback boss and everything, but one of her employees blowing off work wouldn't sit well with her. Regina had once overheard Malena give an employee a stern talk to after having gotten wind that he had been lying about illness in order to skip work. It had not been pretty. Obviously, Malena hadn't been yelling. But the soft spoken way in which she had scolded the employee had been even more deadly than if she really had shouted.

'Urgh, fine. Point taken.'

Excitement rushed through Regina as she prepared to write the next message to Emma. She had a suggestion. 'But you could stop by on Friday if you'd like? Zelena and Chad are taking Henry bowling, and then they're going back to Chad's to watch movies and stay there for the night. We'd be home alone. You could stay the night.' She wasn't sure she could handle the disappointment if Emma said no. Not when things had worked out so beautifully. All thanks to Chad. He had stopped by for dinner last night and had asked Henry if he wanted to go bowling with him and Zelena. If there was one thing Henry loved, it was bowling. He had been a bit conflicted because he knew that Emma was coming over, but after repeatedly having asked Regina if she thought that Emma would get upset if he wasn't there, and she had reassured him that of course she wouldn't, Henry had said yes to a night of bowling and movies with his aunt and uncle. And just like that, Regina's Friday night had been delightfully free. She loved her son more than anything, but she really wanted to be alone with her girlfriend. It had been so hard to maintain a straight face when Chad asked if she and Emma wanted to go bowling with them too. Henry had been very on board with that suggestion, and Regina had lied just a tiny bit as she made up some excuse about their dinner plans. Henry hadn't detected the lie, but Zelena had, and once Henry and Chad had disappeared upstairs to find a particular game, she had grinned slightly at Regina and murmured: "well. That's pretty good timing for you, isn't it?"

Regina hadn't scolded or scoffed. Because yes, it absolutely WAS pretty good timing. Extremely good timing. Henry would be having fun at bowling court, and Regina wouldn't be feeling guilty for not being with him. Win-win.

'Count me the fuck in!'

The response that was so quintessential Emma made Regina rumble in amusement. And then get a little distracted because Emma had said the word 'fuck' quite a few times three nights ago….

She snapped out of it and answered the text: 'eloquent as always. I'll take that as a yes.'

'A very loud and clear yes! I can't wait to see you again.'

'I can't wait to see you either, darling.'

Emma didn't reply to that, and Regina figured that she had paused the conversation to get breakfast. That suited Regina just fine. She had to get out of bed anyway. Had to go wake Henry.

She shot Emma a quick text, explaining just that, and then she got out of bed and shrugged on her robe. Unfortunately not Emma's baby-blue one but her usual terrycloth grey one. Remembering that she was wearing her reading glasses, she slipped them off and put them back in the bedside drawer. Then she left the bedroom and wandered down the hallway.

Henry was barely awake and a bit grumpy when Regina gently woke him. He could have used a bit more weekend, but after a moment, he came around and smiled at her. "Good morning, mom."

Regina smiled at him and signed: 'good morning, sweetheart. It's time to wake up now.'

Henry let out a massive yawn. "It's too early!"

Early it was, but not TOO early. If he got out of bed now, he would have one whole hour to eat breakfast and get ready for school. She doubted that explanation would leave much of an impression, though, so she decided to 'lure' him instead. 'There is still a bit of bacon left from yesterday,' she signed. 'If you're quick, there's plenty of time to make it before the bus comes.'

"Bacon?" Henry doublechecked, sitting up so fast his pillow landed on the floor. "I'm up!"

Regina rumbled and ruffled his hair. She rose from his bedside and left his room knowing that he would get dressed and not go back to sleep.

She herself went into the bathroom to grab a quick shower. Once done, she quickly dried off and brushed her hair. Tied it back in a ponytail. That was how long her hair had gotten now. It hadn't been her intention to let it get so long, but she actually quite liked it. Perhaps she would just let it stay like this instead of cutting it short like she originally had planned.

She walked back to her bedroom and started to get dressed. Grey slacks and white blouse. Grey camisole instead of the white one. That one was still at Emma's place.

Henry was very satisfied with the bacon which Regina had made sure was plenty crispy. Regina ate a few pieces herself and she had to admit that they were actually pretty good. Not so healthy, but definitely good.

Still, she ate more scrambled eggs than bacon.

Henry gave her a big hug and a kiss on the cheek when she walked him off to the bus. She waved at him and was delighted when not just he but also Ava and Nick participated in the waving. That was very sweet. Regina kept waving until she no longer could see the bus.

She turned around and nearly collided with Zelena who came running right towards the door with her red curls flying around her face and in the process of unwrapping a cereal bar while simultaneously trying to put on her shoes.

Regina raised an eyebrow and stared at her sister who looked like all the fires of hell were snapping at her heels.

"Bloody hell, I am so late!" Zelena groaned as she finally managed to unwrap the cereal bar. With the result that it flew out of its wrapping paper and landed on the floor. "Fuck it!"

Regina swiftly bent down and picked up the escaped cereal bar and handed it to her sister.

"Thanks," Zelena said and grimaced slightly as she managed to wiggle her feet inside the boots. "God, I overslept! I can't believe that I didn't hear the alarm this morning!"

Regina pursed her lips slightly but otherwise didn't do anything. She had a pretty good idea as to why Zelena was running late this morning. As mentioned, she had woken up in the middle of the night, and during that occasion, she had heard voices in the hallway and the sound of the front door opening and closing. It hadn't been difficult to deduce what had transpired. Zelena had said a heartfelt goodbye to Chad and then Chad had left the house. In the middle of the night.

"Jesus Christ, I really hate starting my morning like this!" Zelena complained, now stuffing her face with cereal bar.

Regina fought hard to conceal her amusement, but if it became visible on her face, it wouldn't be the worst thing in the world. Zelena could handle a bit of teasing after the way she had been poking and prodding all weekend.

"Don't you dare," Zelena growled.

Regina very much did dare. She rumbled in amusement.

"Regina! It's not funny!"

Oh, but it was. It absolutely was, and Regina kept rumbling all the way into the living room where her laptop and today's work was waiting for her. And when Zelena yelled goodbye, she merely rumbled in response. Just because she could. And because there was something amusing about a hectic Zelena…

It was a little bit later when her cellphone chimed again. Regina immediately turned her attention away from the open laptop and grabbed her phone instead. A snort of laughter escaped her when she read the text from Emma.

'Not trying to brag or anything, but you just missed out on the most epic singing session ever!'

'Imagine that.', Regina texted. And wished that she had indeed been present for Emma's 'epic singing session'. That surely would have been entertaining to witness.

'What are you doing right now, babe?'

'I am in the middle of planning tomorrow's online lesson. Aren't you at work right now, miss Swan?' texting in the middle of work? That was risky business. At least until Mal found out who Emma was texting. Right now, Mal's soft spot for Regina came in very handy.

'I'm in the elevator, so technically, not yet.'

'You are in Dragon Publishing's building. Ergo, you are at work. Stop texting me!' she scoffed to herself. She was a fine one to try and enforce a good work moral when she wasn't working either.

'Stop replying to me ;)'

'You texted me first. I was just trying to be polite.'

'And now you've just replied to me again. Ha!'

Regina groaned in quiet exasperation. 'I swear to god your humor sometimes...'

'...Is positively delightful and you love it to bits, like you love the rest of me?'

Regina smiled. Well… 'Yes. Exactly.'

'I love you too. All of you. And to bits.'

Warmth spread through Regina's body. She could have texted something awfully sentimental, but for once, she chose to keep up the banter. 'I don't think you're getting paid to flirt with me.'

'No, but if I was, I would be a goddamn millionaire by now!'

Millionaire? Try billionaire. 'You definitely would. Now get to work.'

'Yes, Ma'am ;)'

For a split second, Regina strongly considered whether that was sexy or not, but ultimately, she decided that it made her feel old. 'Do not call me that.'

'Okay. How about "fucking goddess"? Didn't I call you that this weekend?'

Regina took a deep breath. 'You did. And the exact time you called me that is etched onto my mind, so kindly stop reminding me of it and distract me.' Seriously, she kept imaginging that moment over and over again!

'But I like to distract you.'

Now Regina sighed. Very helpful, Emma. 'I know you do.'

'In fact I'll be doing little else when I see you this Friday!'

Oh, Christ! 'Start working, Emma.'

'Would rather talk to you.'

Still helpful. 'Fortunately enough I'll still be here when you're done working.'

'Oh yes, and I'm fucking grateful for that!'

Tsk, tsk, tsk. 'Language, Emma.'

'You didn't mind a bit of foul language that night, babe ;)'

Regina damn nearly dropped the phone, and her mind instantly overflowed with memories from that night. 'Okay, now you're really distracting me!'

There was no answer. Perhaps Emma had finally started working. And perhaps that was a good thing. Had this conversation continued, it would undoubtedly have descended into R-rated territory. And while that was well and good for other occasions, it wasn't the luckiest thing when Emma was working.

Regina turned her attention back to today's work. Planning tomorrow's lessons. Honestly, it wasn't the most interesting thing in the world, and one could pretty much do it on autopilot. Once again, Regina thought of how wonderful it would be if she could come back to the university and teach again. Physically. If only she had been able to speak…

She wrinkled her nose. There it was again. The 'should or shouldn't I' question she had forgotten all about during the weekend. Now it was back and echoing annoyingly in her mind. Reminding her that she really did need to make a decision about whether to get that surgery or not. If only it had been easy. If only there had been more pros than cons or vice-versa. But that wasn't the case. There was a fairly equal balance between the good things and the bad things about getting the operation. In fact she could add another thing to the 'cons'-list. No strenuous activities for six weeks. And including the list of activities, was sex. If she got the surgery, she wouldn't be allowed to have sex for the next six weeks, and she wasn't sure she could live with that. Not now. Not when she and Emma had just started to…

Maybe she should just say no. Once and for all. She knew what she had, and her life was rather good even though she couldn't say a word.

But…

What if…

What if the surgery did in fact restore her voice? What if she once again would be able to say 'I love you' to her son? To say Emma's name out loud for the very first time? What if she by saying no let the opportunity of a lifetime go to waste?

God… Regina huffed in slight frustration. Now she was driving herself crazy again going back and forward in her decision. How she wished she simply could choose one and settle with it.

She was speculating so much that her concentration was lost, and rather than forcing herself to keep working, she went upstairs and changed into her yoga attire. She wasn't planning on doing a long session today. Just twenty minutes or so.

It helped. Just as it always did. Regina felt much more at peace as she laid on the mat and relaxed afterwards. She felt so relaxed and peaceful, she nearly missed the sound of her cellphone chiming again, but after a few minutes, she suddenly remembered that her phone had made some kind of sound a moment ago, and she quickly grabbed it. It was another text from Emma.

'Oh my god, you'll never guess what just happened!'

Two exclamation points and an 'oh my god'. Regina sincerely hoped that it was something positive. 'You're right, I can't. Tell me?'

'Malena just gave me a contract and asked me to sign it! My book is being published! This is actually happening!'

Oh. Oh! Regina rolled onto her back and stuck a fist in the air. Yes! This was the best news ever! Emma's dream was coming true, and Regina was so, so happy for her! This was fantastic! Oh, if she wasn't working, she would have driven straight to Dragon Publishing and march in there and kissed Emma. Hard.

'Oh my goodness! Emma, that's wonderful news! I am so happy for you, and I am so, so proud of you! You've truly deserved this.'

'Thank you, babe! I can't wait to come and celebrate it with you on Friday :):)'

'I'll make something extra special!' something very, very special!

'Oh no, you don't have to do that!'

Oh, pish-posh. Regina scoffed. Now was not the time for Emma to be modest. 'Nonsense. Of course I do. Now, what would you want for dinner?' she was quite literally prepared to make anything. If Emma wanted chocolate chip pancakes for dinner, fine. If she wanted some good old fashioned Mac 'n' Cheese, great. If she wanted breakfast for dinner, Regina was down for it! As long as Emma was happy!

'Uhhh... Something without garlic.'

Regina frowned. Had Emma suddenly transformed into Count Dracula? Or COUNTESS Dracula, that was. 'Okay. Can I ask exactly what you have against garlic?'

'I don't have anything against garlic.'

Curiouser and curiouser. 'Then why don't you want garlic in your food? I've seen you eat food with garlic in it before. Is this perhaps a new, strange Friday rule of yours?' she grinned and felt tempted to make a joke about whether Emma would need to be invited into the house to and if she had lost her reflection and feared the full moon too.

No, that was werewolves. Oops.

'That depends on whether we're going to make Friday night dinners a tradition. You see, I'm planning on kissing you a lot on Friday, and I don't want my breath to smell of garlic ;)'

Oh. Kissing her a lot, huh? Well. Regina definitely was looking forward to. She grimaced when she felt a little pull of excitement low in her stomach. 'Oh, I see. No garlic then.', was all she could muster. But she felt as though that was a VERY short message, so she quickly added: 'how would you feel about chicken and sweet potato fries?'

'I can't wait. And I can't wait to hear more about that dream of yours either :P'

Her mouth dried as she immediately remembered every last detail of the dream. 'Weren't you working?'

'I am in a moment. What are you doing? Working on tomorrows lesson already?'

'No, I just did yoga, so now I have to go and take a shower. A very cold and pressing shower.' Ha. Perhaps that would teach her.

'Low blow, Mills! Low. Blow!'

Very low indeed. Regina smirked. 'It's not my fault that Friday is so far away, is it?'

'Urgh, just... Just go and take your shower.'

'Okay. I will. Shall I tell you how it was afterwards?' her grin widened a bit.

'No! I'm working!'

'Very well. Have a nice day at work then. And text me when you get home.'

'I will. I love you.'

'The feeling is entirely mutual, my darling.'

Knowing that this WAS the end of this conversation, Regina got up from the yoga mat with some reluctance. She had been very comfortable just laying there and texting Emma. She didn't want to work. She wanted to continue to text and flirt.

But unfortunately, the reality did not allow her to do that. She had things to do. Adult things to do. Like taking another and quick shower after her yoga session. And then getting back to her work. Seriously, she needed to start working.

She headed into the bathroom where she stripped out of her yoga pants and tanktop. She was very tempted to send a picture of herself in only a towel to Emma, but felt that perhaps that would be a bit too cliché. And distracting too. Emma had things to do too. And besides, they would see each other this Friday. In just three small days. She could survive until then. Of course she could….

She hustled through the rest of the week. Did all the things she needed to do. Including seeing her therapist. Of course Doctor Kristine got an update on 'everything'. Meaning that Regina told her about the development that had happened with Emma over the weekend. No details, no blushing cheeks. Just that she was happy. Doctor Kristine was of course incredibly respectful and asked how she felt and all that. They talked a bit about the importance of letting the mind catching up with the body and once Regina had assured that she was incredibly comfortable with everything, they didn't talk anymore about it but continued onwards to other subjects.

And when Friday night finally came, Regina was watching the street through the window like a hawk. When Emma's little yellow car arrived, she nearly bolted out of the door to greet her. It was only barely that she managed to contain herself until the point where Emma knocked on the door.

Regina ripped the door open and held out her hand towards Emma who smilingly took it. "Hey, you look- oh!"

Regina effectively swallowed Emma's surprise by kissing her fiercely. She couldn't help it. She had to.

Emma's arms wrapped around her waist and soon they were pressed flush together. Good. Regina cupped her cheeks and pressed kiss after kiss to Emma's lips. Some of them hard. Some of them just tiny little pecks.

"I've missed you," Emma muttered between kisses. "God, I've missed you! So, so mu-"

Once again, Regina didn't let her finish. She kissed Emma again and wrapped her arms around her girlfriend's waist, very much enjoying the way Emma tethered slightly.

Emma answered by cupping her cheeks with hands that were just a little bit cold from being outside. Regina would make sure every part of Emma soon was warm again.

Breaking the kiss for just a split second, Emma murmured "hey, beautiful" against her lips, and Regina simply answered by kissing those lovely lips again. More than little pecks now. She did not care that this was the hallway. Kissing Emma thoroughly was what she had dreamed of doing all week, and she would be damned if she didn't give Emma a proper welcome. She was very pleasantly surprised when Emma deepened the kiss. Perhaps they were thinking the same thing.

Regina thought about later tonight. How she would kiss Emma then. For far longer than this kiss was gonna be. Yes, tonight she would take great pleasure in kissing-

"Why, hello there, Emma. I thought that was you I heard."

Zelena's voice and Emma's surprised yet adorable squeak against her lips effectively ruined the moment, and Regina broke the kiss and turned her head. There was Zelena standing. At the bottom of the stairs. God, she had a knack for showing up when least expected. And least needed too.

Next to her, Emma blushed, cheeks turning a pretty pink color. She ducked her head slightly. "Uhh... Hey."

There was absolutely nothing to be embarrassed about. Regina took it all in strides and rumbled in amusement as she slipped an arm around Emma's shoulder and pressed a light kiss to her temple. A message to not be embarrassed. And that there would be more kissing later. Out of the corner of her eye, she saw Zelena beam at them and mouth 'aww', but she couldn't bring herself to care.

"Now..." Zelena said smile becoming a bit more teasing. "Are you two absolutely SURE that you don't want to go bowling with me and Chad and Henry?"

Regina shook her head and wiggled her fingers to remind Zelena not to let Henry go completely overboard with the sweets tonight.

"Oh yes, of course. I'll make sure to give Henry extra cola and candy," Zelena snickered.

Very conveniently, Emma brought a hand to her mouth, and Regina was sure she heard a chuckle masked as a cough. Cute, very cute. Had they been alone Regina surely would have kissed her for it. Now she had to deal with her obnoxious older sister instead. And she did that by lifting her hands and signing a simple word. 'Asshole'.

That was one of the benefits of Sign Language. You could get away with cussing.

"That was rude," Zelena said, not at all affected by Regina's insult and then turned her head and yelled up the stairs: "Henry Mills! Get. A. Move. On!"

"I'm coming!" Henry yelled at the top of his lungs. "Is Emma here yet?"

"Oh yes!" Zelena shouted in response and chuckled. "She most definitely is!" she turned to Emma and said: "congratulations on the contract. My sister tattled."

Tattled? Regina had done no such thing. She had BOASTED. And bragged. And gone on and on about Emma's success until Zelena was laughing at her.

"Thank you," Emma grinned. Now she was blushing again. But this time it was with pride.

A horde of elephants came barreling down the stairs. No, wait, that was just Henry coming downstairs. He came rushing into the hallway and without hesitation, he hugged Emma tightly around the middle. "Hey, Emma!"

"Hey, kid," Emma grinned and ruffled his hair. "How's tricks?"

Henry let out an adorable giggle that made Regina smile. She watched as her son hugged Emma tightly once more. Then asked: "how come you and mom won't go bowling with me and aunty Z and Chad?"

Regina was just about to come up with an excuse, but Zelena beat her to it: "that's because your mom just spend half of her afternoon preparing a romantic dinner," her face was completely serious, and her lips didn't even twitch. "And it would be a shame to let that go to waste, wouldn't it?"

"Right," Henry said and looked a bit reluctant as he released Emma. "But it could have been fun if you and mom could have come with us!"

"Next time," Emma promised and flashed Regina a secret little smile over Henry's shoulder.

"You guys are boring," Henry said plainly. "What could be more fun than bowling?"

Well….

"Dinner's smells awesome," Emma said hastily, as elegantly as a white knight, she prevented the conversation from getting really awkward. Bless her.

"And we better get going," Zelena said, and now her mouth was definitely twitching in amusement. "You've got everything you need, Hen?"

"Yep," Henry confirmed, lifting his backpack to show that he indeed was ready.

"Excellent. Say goodnight to your mom and Emma then."

"'Night, mom!" Henry said, grinning as he wrapped her arms around Regina's waist and hugged her tightly.

Regina crouched down and kissed the top of his head. Then she lifted her hands and signed: 'win for me'.

"Sure," Henry grinned. "I'll win!" the confidence gleamed in his eyes as he turned to Emma and hugged her too. "See you tomorrow, Emma! Because you're still going to be here when I get back, right?"

"Sure am," Emma assured, and Regina smiled again as she ruffled his hair fondly.

Off he went to wait in the car on Zelena's instructions, leaving just the three adults in the hallway.

"Have a nice evening," Zelena smiled.

"Thank you," Emma said and returned her smile. "You, too."

'You too,' Regina signed as an echo of Emma.

"And enjoy," Zelena innocently continued, but couldn't quite hide a smirk as she added "the dinner."

Oh, for fuck's sake! Regina glared at her sister as Emma muttered a halfhearted: "right. Thanks."

Zelena laughed shamelessly and was clearly delighted that she had managed to get under Regina's skin as she once again wished them a good night and finally, FINALLY took off and left the house.

Regina was still feeling murderous when she heard Zelena's car speed away, but Emma's laughter and her lips against hers soon made her snap out of it.

"Looks like it's just you and me now, babe," Emma said and grinned at her.

Regina smiled at that. Motioned for Emma to follow her into the kitchen. It was time to have dinner….

To Be Continued…