Emma leaned back against the granite countertop and crossed one ankle over the other, not even trying to conceal the smirk plastered across her face. She let her eyes wander down over the woman in front of her as she bent at the waist to preheat the oven.
"Are you sure you don't need my help with anything?" Emma asked, slowly approaching the woman and draping her arms softly over her shoulders to pull her in for a kiss.
"I'm can assure you, I can bake these turnovers in my sleep. I've been making them since I was a little girl, with fresh apples from the tree that grew in our backyard. But if you wish to help, I trust you can handle peeling those apples?"
"I'm on it, boss! Just don't forget the extra cinnamon, okay?" Emma nagged innocently.
"Your obsession with cinnamon is cute. Normally, I wouldn't dare to alter my recipe, but I suppose I'll make an exception just this once." She smiled back at Emma and planted a soft kiss on her warm lips.
Just before the turnovers went into the oven, Emma grabbed the cinnamon and sprinkled a little extra on top, resulting in a raised eyebrow from the woman holding the tray, followed by a visible eye roll.
"Did you just roll your eyes at me for putting on my signature finishing touch?" Emma teased.
"Oh, so this is your signature recipe now?"
Emma sunk her teeth into her bottom lip and nodded quickly. "Mhm," she hummed. "How long 'til they're ready?" She asked eagerly, rocking onto the heels of her bare feet.
"Not for 25 minutes. I can go grab us some wine from the cellar. How does that sound?" She began to turn and walk in the opposite direction, but Emma grabbed ahold of her hand and pulled her back.
Emma's gaze fell down, slowly, drinking in every inch of the woman's body. When she lifted her gaze, they locked eyes. "I can think of better ways to kill the time."
Before either woman could say another word, their lips crashed together. Emma lifted her up onto the countertop with ease, forcing a gasp out of the brunette.
The fabric of the woman's black skirt bunched up around her waist as Emma's nestled the weight of her own body closer, granting her access to rake blunt fingernails up the exposed skin.
Moving carefully, Emma broke their kiss only to trail her mouth up the woman's jawline with feather-light kisses before settling on the pulse point below her ear that she'd been aiming for.
"Emma, mmm."
Emma smirked at the sound she would never tire of hearing. Her teeth grazed the spot for a moment before soothing it with her tongue.
A sudden ringing sound startled her and forced her to pull away. "How has it already been 25 minutes?" Emma groaned.
"Mm, what do you mean? The timer didn't go off yet."
Emma scrunched her nose in dismay, the ringing continuing to flood her ears.
"Emma!" She heard her name being called out, muffled in the distance, just before she felt something soft hit her square in the face. "Why is your fucking alarm on?"
Emma shot upright and realized she was in a small, unfamiliar bed while Ruby was lying in an identical bed beside her.
"Did you seriously just throw a pillow at me?" Emma groaned when she remembered she and Ruby had checked into a room at the Inn late last night.
"Yes, along with those two others!" Ruby stated, pointing at two pillows on the ground beside Emma's bed. "You forgot to cancel your alarm and it's been buzzing for, like, at least 10 minutes."
Emma squinted her eyes in Ruby's direction then grabbed the comforter and pulled it up over her head, collapsing backward.
"Ohhhh, no. No, no. I don't think so. You woke me up so now it's time to get breakfast. You know I'm always hungry as soon as I wake up. Let's go downstairs and get Granny's."
Emma slowly peeled the comforter down but stayed locked in place as she watched Ruby stand. "You interrupted my dream, you know?"
Ruby laughed and dropped her weight down on Emma's bed, resulting in a scowl. "Technically, Em, you interrupted your own dream and woke me up. Besides, I'm sure you'll have plenty more. Probably before we even make it to lunch," Ruby teased. "Now let's go. I want pancakes. And I bet you need coffee before we spend the day exploring the town!"
"Fine, I'm getting up. But only so you'll stop bothering me." The promise of coffee wasn't so bad, either.
Ruby licked her lips as she drizzled maple syrup over her pancakes, eyes lighting up like a child eyeing the gifts under the tree on Christmas morning. While she was distracted salivating over the pancakes, Emma grabbed her fork and stabbed off a piece of the pancake to steal a bite.
Just before the fork crossed her parted lips, she gasped and dropped the fork onto the table. Her eyes went wide and the sound that came out of her mouth was more of a gasp than an intelligible word.
"Emma? Em, what's wrong?" Ruby tilted her head and stared at her best friend with narrowed eyes.
"It's—" Emma stuttered, her heart racing as she felt her breath catch in her throat.
"Emma? What is it? You look like you just saw a ghost."
"It's– it's her."
Ruby turned her head in the direction Emma was peering at, frowning when she didn't see any familiar faces.
"It's who, Emma?"
But Emma didn't say a word. Instead, her eyes remained locked on the woman sitting on the bar stool, dressed in slacks and a plum-colored blouse, stirring a small teaspoon around in her large mug of coffee.
Ruby caught sight of the woman and turned to look back at Emma.
"Do you know her?"
"Ruby. It's her. The woman I've been dreaming about." Emma's words came out stifled, her voice cracking slightly.
"What do you mean? Emma, that's not possible. You know that, right?" Ruby turned to catch a better glimpse at the dark-haired woman again, barely trying to conceal her apparent staring.
"I know her, Ruby. Trust me. That is her. I need to go talk to her. I need—" Emma slid out of her side of the booth, but Ruby caught hold her arm.
"Woah, woah. You can't just strut up to a stranger. You don't know her and just because she might look like the woman you've been dreaming about, she can't be the same person."
Emma shrugged her off. "Ruby, I have to go over there."
Before Ruby could say another word in protest, Emma was halfway across the diner and pulling out the stool next to the brunette. Ruby pressed two of her fingers to her temple and shook her head, keeping her eyes glued and waiting for the inevitable fallout.
The sound of Emma's weight dropping down onto the neighboring stool caused the woman to turn her head to face Emma, but only for a moment. As their eyes locked, Emma's breath hitched. This was the woman. Right down to the deep slit slashing above her upper lip. Emma couldn't do more than just stare, unblinking.
This was the woman she'd spent months dreaming of. She was here. Somehow. Even more real—even more perfect—than anything her mind could concoct for her. Her hair was longer, resembling how Emma recalled it in her latest dream. The ends curled inward and brushed over her collarbones. Emma admired the deep color of her lips as they finally curled up into nothing more than a polite smile.
The gesture alone made Emma's mouth dry.
Emma finally opened her mouth to speak just as the woman began to turn her attention back to her coffee.
"This might sound weird, but do I know you from somewhere?"
The woman laughed and as the sound echoed in Emma's ears, her stomach fluttered. "I don't believe we have met, but I'm the mayor of Storybrooke. Perhaps you have seen me around?"
Emma shook her head slowly and frowned. Yes, she'd been seeing her around, but not here.
"I'm only in town for a visit, so I don't think that's it," Emma's tone was uncertain, unsteady.
Neither of them said a word for a few passing moments, but Emma didn't dare to avert her gaze. Not with the woman of her dreams finally this close to her. All she wanted to do was reach out and touch her. To make sure she wasn't dreaming right now. To learn if she felt the same in person as she had imagined her so many times. To brush her fingertips over the curve of her cheekbone and see if her skin was just as soft.
Finally, the mayor cleared her throat, snapping Emma out of her thoughts. "Well, I do hope you enjoy your stay here. Storybrooke may be small, but it can surprise you." She smiled warmly again in the way that made Emma's stomach muscles tighten.
"Oh, it's full of surprises. I can see that already," Emma laughed softly, unsure how it was possible for this conversation to flow so naturally for her. She didn't want to end the conversation, but something told her that she'd see her again soon. "I'm sorry for interrupting your morning coffee, I'll leave you to it."
Emma began to stand and climb off of her stool when she felt the woman reach out and touch the top of her hand. The feeling of warm skin against hers felt like a jolt of electricity, waking her up.
"You didn't tell me your name, dear."
Emma gasped, her voice so familiar and soothing after being only a fantasy for so long. "Emma. Emma Swan."
"Nice to meet you, Miss Swan. I'm Regina." Regina's lips curled up again as her dark eyes glistened.
"Regina," Emma whispered, relishing in the taste of the name on her tongue. "See you around, Regina."
Emma glided back to the table where Ruby was finishing the last of her pancakes and waiting impatiently for Emma's return. Emma could feel Regina's eyes on her, and she slowly turned her head to look back over her shoulder. She couldn't help the way her cheeks burned when she realized Regina's attention was still on her.
"Well, was it her?" Ruby asked, her tone almost amused, taking a casual sip of coffee from her mug.
Emma nodded softly, her eyes glowing with excitement and her entire body buzzing. "Yes, Ruby. It was her." She laughed nervously, rubbing at the back of her neck.
When Emma was back in her seat, she noticed Regina getting up from the barstool and proceeding toward the exit. They locked eyes a final time before Regina pushed open the door.
Less than a moment later, a beautiful young woman with long, chestnut hair peeked her head over the booth behind them.
"Sorry to interrupt, but I have to ask… do you have magical powers of some sort?"
Emma and Ruby both looked at her with a blank expression.
"Magic powers?" Emma echoed back, her brow furrowed.
"Sorry, I'm being rude." She laughed, her voice warm in a way that was almost soothing. "My name is Belle. I just have never seen Mayor Mills take to someone like that before."
Emma laughed and bit her bottom lip to contain the stupid grin that refused to leave her face. "Nope, no magic here," she shrugged. "I just introduced myself, that's all."
"Hi, I'm Ruby. You're beautiful." Ruby said unashamedly to Belle, interrupting the conversation, and Belle blushed.
"Sorry, she's not very good at subtlety." Emma laughed, shaking her head, as she apologized for Ruby's behavior.
"Well, I'm flattered. It's not every day a gorgeous woman pays you a compliment," Belle flashed a friendly smile. They both locked eyes and Emma cleared her throat to remind them that she was still standing there.
Belle blushed again, this time from embarrassment, before peering over at Emma and then back at Ruby.
"Are you both new to town? I haven't seen you around."
"Oh, we just came to visit my Granny." Ruby said, nodding in the direction of her grandmother behind the counter.
"You're her granddaughter? She's amazing. And her burgers are even better. You must be lucky."
"Oh, I'm a lucky woman, alright. But only because I've decided you are going to accompany us tonight for drinks. I'm going to show Emma around town today and then we're hitting The Rabbit Hole. And you have to join us so I can buy you a drink. What do you say?"
Emma sighed and admitted defeat as she peered back up at Belle.
"Well, how could I pass on an offer like that? I can meet you there after my shift at the library." The mention of work dragged her attention down to her wrist and she frowned and rummaged through her purse to pull out cash to cover the cost of her breakfast. "Oh, I'm going to be late. I'll see you both tonight then."
The second the diner's door closed behind Belle, Emma tilted her head and let out a soft laugh.
"Ruby, you never cease to amaze me, you know that?"
"How else would I keep you entertained and on your toes?" Ruby laughed.
Emma shook her head and downed the remnants of her coffee mug before they said goodbye to Granny and headed out the door.
