Author's Notes:
Special Thanks to my illustrator and contributing author ale_nena for the beautiful cover art.
Setting: Misthaven non-magical modern AU. The society and political system will be based on a combination of modern countries, with a probable bias toward the American system as I am an American. However, all characters are fictional and resemblance to real people or events is purely coincidence.
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"Goodnight, Lily," Regina waved as she made her way out of her office.
"Night!" her assistant waved back slammed her briefcase closed, and made a beeline for the elevators.
She chuckled, glancing over at Robin, "I guess she has big plans for tonight."
"I guess so," he agreed as they slowly made their way around to wait for the next elevator. They walked sedately to her car down in the parking garage, and began driving out into the city. Although it wasn't too late, being winter, the sun was already setting, the last light of the day glittering off the windows of the high-rise buildings.
"So," Robin asked, "Anywhere you'd like to go before heading home?"
"Hm," she sighed, leaning back against the headrest, "Nowhere in particular, but maybe take the scenic route?"
He smiled driving slowly through the city vaguely in a southwesterly direction, toward where the estate was located. Friday night traffic was in full swing, though, clogging the streets such that they'd barely travelled 10 blocks before hitting gridlock.
As he slowed to a stop, he relaxed into his seat, resting one arm against the center console.
Smiling at the irony of the fact that what was once an irritation was now an excuse to spend time together, Regina reached over and slipped her hand into his. He squeezed back, rubbing his thumb across the base of hers.
"What's on your schedule for this weekend? Some event at the country club?" he guessed.
She rolled her eyes, "No. My father is probably going to play golf, but I hadn't planned on going myself."
He laughed lightly.
"What about you?" Regina asked.
"Funny you should mention that, Marian texted me last night. Apparently she's coming to Unity City today," he told her.
She froze, "Marian?"
"Yeah," he nodded, turning onto the next road as the light turned green.
"She's coming to Unity City? What for?"
"A friend of hers lives here and is getting married tomorrow."
"What friend?" Regina asked.
"I think she said someone she met in photography school."
"Hmm," she grunted.
He glanced over at her, brow wrinkling, "What?"
"Nothing," she shook her head.
He studied her for a moment before continuing, "Anyway, she suggested we get together on Sunday before she has to go back to Sherwood."
"Really? And you're going to go, are you?" Regina deadpanned, taking her hand out of his.
"Well I had thought I might," he answered, looking over at her, "Unless you don't want me to?"
She gritted her teeth, "It's not up to me."
"Regina, come on, talk to me," he sighed, "You're clearly upset about this."
"Why would I be upset about you wanting to go out with your ex-girlfriend?" she muttered sarcastically.
"With my…" Robin began laughing as he trailed off. Regina crossed her arms, glaring at him, "I'm sorry, I just...you're not really still jealous of her?"
She simply glared harder.
He sighed indulgently, reaching over to take her hand again, "Come now, my love, I'd have thought after all that's happened between us you know I'm not interested in anyone but you?"
"Maybe you're not interested," she grouched under her breath.
"Well, as flattering as that is, I'm afraid you're wrong. Marian and I haven't had those feelings for each other in years."
She looked at him skeptically, "You're really still going to insist you had no idea she was flirting with you?"
"Highly unlikely."
Regina rolled her eyes.
"I'm serious, Regina!" he insisted, "It's been ages since we dated. We were in secondary school for Gods' sake! Besides, she broke up with me back then, so obviously she lost interest long ago. We're just friends."
"Uh huh," she grunted.
He sighed, "Look if you don't want me to go I can text her and cancel…"
She deflated, "No, don't. If you want go, you should go."
"I'm not going to go if it'll upset you," he insisted.
"I don't want to stop you from seeing your friends, Robin," she answered, "And if you say she's just a friend…I trust you."
As he stopped at the next traffic light, he gently tapped her shoulder urging her to look over so that he could meet her gaze, "Are you certain?"
"Yes," she answered firmly, "Go, I mean it."
"Come with me," he suggested.
She quirked her lips, "I don't think my mother would buy that I was working while out at dinner with you and someone from your hometown!"
"I know," he nodded sadly, "In the meantime, though, it looks like it'll be a long drive home."
She smiled allowing him to take her hand again, "Oh well...I guess we'll just have to endure it."
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Shoving his phone into his pocket as his Flyt driver sped away after dropping him at the curb. He and Marian had agreed by text to meet at a BlueBird Grill. In spite of being a tacky chain restaurant, she'd suggested it since there was one near her hotel.
It was busy for a Sunday night. The dining room packed with groups of adults watching sports on TV and families sharing burgers.
Glancing around, he spotted Marian at one of the high-tops. Her back was to him as he walked over to her, tapping her on the shoulder. She turned around, smiling widely when she saw him.
"Robin, so good to see you!" she hopped off her barstool to greet him with a hug.
"Good to see you too," he hugged her back.
"It's been far too long," she said.
Chuckling, he let go of her, moving over to the other side of her table and taking a seat.
"So how have you been?" Marian asked as she climbed back onto her stool.
"Oh, not bad," he answered, "What about you? How was the wedding?"
"It was nice," she said.
Before he could inquire further a server stepped over to their table, "Good evening. My name is Al, I'll be your server. Could I get you a drink? Maybe start off with some hot wings?"
Robin ordered a beer, and turned to Marian, "What do you think? Wings sound good to me."
"Oh sure, why not?" she agreed, adding conspiratorially he walked away, "We're not at the Jolly Roger so I'll assume the food is fit for consumption."
Robin laughed, "How are Killian and everyone doing?"
"They're well. The Jolly Roger has been doing fine. John and Tink moved in together just after you were last in town. Will, he's...he met this college girl from Underhill on his delivery route. Anastasia."
Underhill was the next town over from Sherwood. A more affluent city than theirs.
"Oh yeah?" he asked.
"Yes. Her father's a judge."
Robin laughed, "Well maybe that'll inspire Will to stay out of trouble."
"Or get him into it," Marian said ruefully. The server appeared at the table, setting the basket of wings and Robin's beer down.
Marian smiled in thanks as Robin asked in concern, "You really think so? What's she like?"
She laid her napkin across her lap with a shrug as she picked up a chicken wing, "I only met her briefly once when Will brought her to the Jolly Roger. She's just...really different than him. You of all people know relationships like that never work out. Even if seems exciting at first."
He shrugged, taking a sip of his beer, "Well he's still young, and you know never know how things are going to go."
She chewed her wing, nodding, "Yeah that's true."
"So what about you?" he asked, in between bites of hot wing, "How's the photography thing going?"
She sighed, "I get editing work here and there. Not much demand for it in Sherwood, though, which is why I'm still waiting tables at the Jolly Roger. I mean, don't get me wrong, I'm grateful to Killian for the job, but trying to build a career while working a second job is tough. I wonder sometimes if it was worth it."
"What do you mean?" he asked, "If what was worth it?"
"Moving away from Sherwood to go to art school," she said, "I ended up back where I started anyway after leaving behind everything I had there...everyone."
"You'll figure it out, Marian," he assured her, "You were always driven to get what you want."
She twirled her beer bottle thoughtfully against the table as she spoke, "Listen Robin, I'm sorry that I wasn't there for you when your parents died. I wanted to say that to you so many times, but it never seemed like the right moment."
He set his own bottle down, "That's very kind, but you don't need to apologize for that. It was a year after you moved away that it happened."
She nodded, "I know, but still we had a lot of history. I mean, we were together for five years! Remember your mother always thought we'd get married?"
"Yeah, until you dumped me!" he joked, "After that, she wasn't your biggest fan."
Marian laughed, blushing.
"Mostly just on behalf of her prideful teenage son experiencing heartbreak for the first time in his life, though!" he acknowledged self-deprecatingly.
She looked down at the table, saying quietly, "I regretted that too."
He laughed, "Well don't worry about it. It was ages ago! And we're friends now."
"Yeah," she nodded with a smile, "We are that."
"Besides you were moving onto bigger and better things, and, I'm certain, will be again soon," he said, lifting his bottle toward her to propose a toast.
Smiling wider, she clinked her beer against his, "I'll drink to that!"
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"All done here?" Al asked, clearing away the basket of chicken bones they'd accumulated over the course of the evening. Not nodded affirmatively, "Can I get you another round?"
"No thank you," Marian answered, "Just the check."
Robin leisurely sipped the last of his beer as they waited for the server to return.
"So we've been talking mostly talking about me tonight? What about you? Anything new going on in your life?" she asked.
He shrugged, "Same old, same old mostly."
"Are you seeing anyone?"
"No," he answered, "My life is pretty boring to be honest."
"Not even any new celebrity gossip?" she teased him.
He laughed, "Honestly, even if I were into that sort of thing to begin with...it gets old fast when you're around those type of people day-in, day-out."
"Yes, I would imagine so! Sounds insufferable!"
"It's a job," Robin shrugged, picking up the bill as Al set it down in the middle of the table, "One that pays well, so I can pick up the check."
"Oh...you don't have to do that," Marian answered, as touched smile crossing her lips.
"Please, my treat," he shrugged her off, sticking his credit card into the envelope, "You're on holiday after all."
"Thank you," she answered softly.
He glanced at her, but didn't think much of it as Al swung by their table to pick up the payment. They had just enough time to finish off their beers before Robin's card was returned with the receipt.
After signing it, the two made their way out of the restaurant. Seeing Robin scrolling through his phone, Marian chuckled, "Looking for a Flyt?"
"Yeah," he nodded, "What about you? Do you need one?"
"Nah," she answered, "My hotels is only a few blocks from here."
He glanced around pensively. They were in an industrial area of the city that, while not exactly a bad neighborhood, was somewhat intimidating after dark. A few hotels and restaurants had popped up due to their proximity to the train-station, but, otherwise it was mostly poorly lit warehouses.
"I'll walk you there," he said, shoving his phone into his pocket.
"Are you sure?" Marian asked.
"Yeah. I can get a ride from your hotel just as easily."
She could feel an excited smile playing at her lips that was going to be impossible to contain, so, to hide it, she turned down the street and began leading the way toward her hotel.
"Are you taking the train back down in the morning?" Robin asked as they walked along.
"Yes. I have a ticket on the 6AM train, but Killian gave me Monday off so I figure I can always sleep on the way to Sherwood."
He nodded absently, shoving his hands into his jacket pocket. The walked in companionable silence for about four blocks before she turned into the parking lot of a nondescript motel. Walking past the front entrance, she lead the way around to an outside staircase.
Pausing, she motioned to the door beneath the stairs, "This is me."
"Ah, well, it was great seeing you. Give my love to everyone back home," he said, leaning in for a farewell embrace. She returned it, wrapping one hand around the back of his neck and tugging his mouth to hers.
He pulled away in shock, "Marian, what are you-"
She silenced the question by pressing one finger to his lips, "Don't! Don't overthink it."
With that leaned back in for another kiss. Gripping her shoulders firmly, he pushed her back, "No, Marian, stop!"
She gaped at him, "But I thought…you came out tonight. You said you wanted to get together."
He shook his head, dropping his hands from her shoulders, "Listen if I gave you the wrong idea, I'm sorry, but...Marian, we're just friends. That's all this was. We were getting together as old friends."
"Old friends?" she asked in disbelief, "You're honestly going to tell me you felt nothing? All night we were together? There's still a connection between us, Robin, you can't deny it's there!"
"Marian," he sighed, "I'm sorry if you felt like there was still something there, but wasn't thinking anything of the sort."
"You didn't feel anything?" she demanded, "Five years, Robin! We were together for five years. You were my first love and now you're saying I just meant nothing to you?!"
"No!" he protested, "Of course you meant something, but what we had…that was years ago! We've moved on since then."
"Moved on?" she asked, "You said you aren't even seeing anyone."
He glanced at the pavement.
Taking in a frustrated breath, she asked, "Please don't tell me you're still sleeping with that spoiled brat you work for!"
His head whipped up, "How did you-"
"You are?!" she said in disbelief, "Oh by the Gods', Robin!"
"Marian how did you know…?"
"What? How did I know about you and her?" she asked sarcastically, "I'm not entirely stupid! I saw how you looked at her that time you brought her to Sherwood...how she looked at you."
Biting his lip, he spoke, "Listen, Marian-"
"But she's been parading around for months on the arm of that billionaire's son, so I figured that whatever it was between the two of you had come to an end. I mean, honestly, can't you see that she's just using you?"
"Marian…" he warned.
"Or have you honestly lost so much self-respect that you'll be at her beck and call?" she continued, her voice rising as she rambled on, "Ready to come running whenever she snaps her fingers? Now that he's out of the picture, you're her dirty little secret again?"
"Enough!" he yelled, "Marian, enough!"
They glared at each other, the chilly night air fogging each angry breath that escaped them.
"She doesn't care about you, Robin...she doesn't know you. Not like I do-"
"You haven't known me in nearly a decade," he said in a hard voice, "Now I think you should call it a night."
Jaw clenching, she whirled around to unlock the door to her room. Turning in the doorway she said, "You're going to regret this someday. She may have you under some sort of spell now, but to a person like that you're nothing more than a plaything that she'll eventually get bored of!"
With that she slammed the door closed, leaving him standing on the sidewalk, rage coursing through him.
Taking a few slow deep breaths, he made his way around to the front of the motel, and pulled out his phone to order a ride back to the estate.
In the five minutes it took for the driver to arrive, he'd barely managed to slow his heart rate back to normal.
After getting in, he confirmed the destination with the driver and sat back into the backseat. As the anger of the moment subsided, guilt began to sink in as he remembered the conversation he'd had with Regina a few days earlier.
He truly had no idea Marian thought….maybe he should have?
Regina had seen it. Had he just been ignoring the hints? Had he accidentally given Marian the wrong signals?
"Hey, buddy, are you sure this is the right place?" the driver interrupted his thoughts. Looking out the window he was surprised to see that they were already back at the Mills estate stopped in front of the gate house. The ride felt like it had taken no time at all.
"Yeah," Robin nodded, "Just let me out here."
The man looked at him skeptically, but unlocked the backdoor.
Robin punched his passcode into the gate as the Flyt driver backed out onto the road. As it slid closed behind him, he took a deep breath.
Whatever signals he'd misread, he knew that Regina was going to be furious when she found out. Resigning himself to it, he began the hike up the private drive, for once not minding the distance on foot.
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All in all the walk took him nearly an hour, as he wasn't particularly looking forward to what would happen when he got to the main house.
He went in the side entrance through the garden and got right on the elevator up to her floor, not caring about trying to be subtle for the security camera this time. Standing outside the door to her suite, he knocked softly.
Her footsteps echoed on the other side before she opened the door, and she ushered him inside.
"You're home early," she commented with a smile.
He nodded ruefully as she shut the door behind them. Stepping over she leaned up to press a kiss against his lips. He returned it briefly, catching her hands between his and pushing her back.
Wrinkling her brow she asked, "What's wrong?"
"I need to tell you something," he answered regretfully.
"Okay, what is it?"
He sighed, "Look there's no easy way to so say this so I'll just say it...you were right."
She quirked her head suspiciously asking, "...about?"
"Marian did think tonight was a date."
Dropping his hands, she straightened up, crossing her arms across her chest as her expression hardened, "What happened?"
"I don't know," Robin answered honestly, "Everything was going fine. We had dinner, a few drinks, and then decided to call it a night. I walked her back to her hotel-"
"You went to her hotel?" Regina asked.
"Not inside! Just to the door to make sure she got there safely."
She scoffed in disbelief, stepping away from him, "And then what?"
"Then she kissed me."
"I'm sorry...what?!" she demanded, "You kissed your ex-girlfriend?"
"I didn't kiss her, she kissed me-" Robin argued.
"Semantics? Really? That's what you're going with?"
He sighed, "Regina, I told her to stop."
She laughed bitterly, "Right, but she didn't listen and you never meant for it to happen-"
"Of course I didn't!" he cut her off, "If I'd known she thought it was date, I'd never have gone! I wouldn't lead her on that way!"
"Gods' forbid!" Regina muttered as she turned away from him, clenching her jaw. Her throat was tight when she asked, "Then what happened?"
He shrugged, "She said she wanted us to give it another go, but I told her I didn't feel that way for her anymore. She didn't exactly take it well..."
Regina turned around, swallowing hard, "That's it?"
"Yes," he answered.
She looked at him doubtfully, "She just kissed you for no reason? You said the two of you hadn't dated since you were 19."
"We haven't," he confirmed.
"So you haven't done anything in 11 years to make her think you're still interested in her, but you walked to her hotel room. However, you didn't do anything other than kiss...sorry, she kissed you!" Regina said sarcastically.
"That's what happened," he answered.
"Right," she scoffed.
"What's that supposed to mean?" Robin asked.
"Well it just seems pretty convenient," she commented.
"Convenient?" he echoed in disbelief, "That's not the word I'd use!"
She turned back around to face him, "Why are you telling me this?"
"What?"
"Why are you telling me the this?" she repeated, "It seems to me like you're trying to clear your conscience."
"Well, of course I am! I wouldn't keep something like this from you!"
"Why?"
"What do you mean 'why'?" he asked, frustration entering his voice.
"If nothing happened other than she kissed you and you pushed her away what do you have to clear?" she asked, "You didn't do anything wrong...if that's what happened."
"That is what happened," he said firmly, "I wouldn't lie to you, Regina."
"So you're not a liar you're just oblivious?" she asked bitterly, "I told you she was flirting with you, Robin! I told you!"
"Yes," he nodded with a sigh, "You were right."
"Yes, I was!" she said stepping toward him, "If you'd listened to me this never would have happened!"
He couldn't argue with that, so he simply nodded. Shaking her head, Regina stared at the other side of the room.
Letting out a breath he walked over to her and gently placed his hand on her shoulder.
"I'm sorry...come here-," he said, wrapping his arms around her waist.
"Ugh! Don't touch me!" she protested, shoving him away, "Gods, Robin! You're gonna try to be all lovey-dovey now? How long ago was it you were kissing your ex? Has it even been two hours?!"
"I didn't mean to kiss her!" he repeated in irritation.
"Yeah, well, whether you planned on it or not, doesn't mean I want that woman's sloppy seconds!" she snapped.
If he'd gotten angry at her for the words it would have been easier to deal with than the hurt that flashed through his eyes.
That just created a sinking feeling of guilt in her stomach that clashed with the hot anger coursing through her.
"Just go," she said, looking away from him.
"Regina…" he pleaded, pain audible in his voice. She needed to get away from that voice, from that look in his eyes.
"Go! Leave!" she snapped, storming past him to open the sitting room door. Keeping her gaze firmly away from him, she heard him let out a defeated breath. She remained tense and still as he walked past her, slamming the door closed as soon as he cleared the threshold.
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For the next week Regina didn't speak to Robin. Fatefully, he was assigned to her mother or father every day that week, and with all the planning involved for the upcoming trip to the family cabin for Yule season, she didn't have to make too much effort to avoid him.
Each day that passed, through, tension gnawed inside her. She knew she should say something, but just couldn't bring herself to do so.
That came to an end, however, on the day they departed for the cabin.
Zelena had been moody all morning, complaining on the way out the door that the coffee Regina packed for the road was making her feel sick.
In an effort to keep the peace, she said that she'd wait for the third car that was carrying the rest of their luggage rather than riding with Zelena and Blake.
When it pulled up, however, she nearly let out an audible sigh of defeat when Robin got out of the SUV.
She really should have expected it. She knew that he didn't travel for Yule since he had no family to visit, and any of the security team who were willing to work over the holiday would probably be assigned.
Poking her tongue into the inside of her cheek in annoyance, she made her way down the front steps.
"Good morning," he said civilly as he opened the car door for her.
She stepped past him to climb in, pretending not to notice how good he looked dressed for the trip in jeans and layered winter clothes. She stared out the front window as he shut the door behind her with a sigh, slowly walked around to the driver's side and started up the engine.
She sat stiffly as they followed the other two SUVs off the estate property, down the road, and onto the highway.
Traffic was heavy as a lot of people were travelling for the holiday, but it was moving at a decent pace.
She watched the SUVs merge into traffic a few cars ahead of them, slowing getting lost in the melie as they headed north.
They drove for about 30 minutes in silence before Robin spoke, "So how are you?"
She gripped her travel mug tightly, but did not respond.
He sighed in response, "Come on, Regina, how long are we going to not talk?"
Out the window they had begun to leave the outer suburbs behind and were getting into the more heavily wooded areas north of Unity City. They weren't quite to the areas that had snow on the ground at this time of year, but the trees were gradually shifting from bare stalks that held leaves in warm months to thick, bushy evergreens.
"I'll say it again. I'm sorry about what happened with Marian-" Robin spoke again.
"Shut up," the words slipped out of her mouth.
"What?" he asked.
Regina let her eyes slide shut as she stared out the window at the passing scenery. Beside her Robin glanced between her and the road, waiting for her to speak again. It didn't happen, though. She simply continued to sit silently with her head turned away from him.
He shook his head. The first time in over a week he'd gotten her to say something and it was barely two words! "How many times do you want me to apologize, Regina?"
"Would you just stop?" she whipped her head around, "Stop!"
His asked gently, "Tell me how to make this better?"
She barked out a laugh and looked back out the passenger's side window.
He gripped the steering wheel tightly, unable to stop the annoyance building up inside him at that reaction, "You know I am really trying here!"
He was trying and that was what was eating her up inside.
"So now you're back to not talking?" he asked, predictably getting no response.
"Are you excited for Yule?" he asked bitterly. After a few more moments of silence, adding, "Want to listen to the radio?"
Glancing between her and the road in the silence that followed, he remarked, "You know, at this point, you're just being childish!"
Turning back to him she asked, "Excuse me?"
"That gets you talking," he muttered under his breath. She stared at him for a moment before he answered, "Look, I'm sorry, but I'm trying to have an actual conversation about this! I have been for a week, and you're just...pouting."
"Pouting?" she repeated slowly.
"Yes!" he shot back, "I know that I hurt you. I'm willing to hear what you have to say on that. To listen to you. But how am I supposed to do that if you're ignoring me? Honestly, do you just like that you can get me to grovel?"
"You know what?!" she blew up, "You...you…"
He glanced at her expectantly as she trailed off.
"Pull over," she said abruptly
"What?"
"I said pull over."
"Why?"
"Just do it!"
"Alright!" he said, flipping the signal to get on an off ramp toward a rest stop.
"No, not there!" Regina reached over, wrenching the wheel to force them back onto the highway.
"Good Gods!" he yelled, the car swerving back and forth as he scrambled to regain control, "Regina, what the fuck?!"
She ignored his angry exclamations, glancing at the road signs as they drove past. Pointing to a ramp ahead, she ordered, "There. Go there."
"There?" he questioned, "Why?"
The glare she gave was response enough. With an irritated grumble, he pulled off the highway down a road toward a national forest.
"Over there," she directed as they drove deeper into the area, the density of the trees blocking the daylight.
He looked at her in confusion, turning off onto a dirt road, "I think this is supposed to be an employee access road only."
"They aren't around. The park is closed this time of year," she commented.
"Yes, that's probably right," he agreed, "So why are we here?"
"Stop the car," she said.
"What for?" he asked tiredly.
"Just stop the car will you? You're the one who demanded we do this now!" she snapped in response.
Pursing his lips, he pulled over into an area where the shoulder was wide enough to park the SUV, "Alright, fine. You're the boss. Everything's on your terms."
"Oh, will you just shut up already?" she snarled, setting her coffee in the cup holder as the car came to a stop.
He ground his jaw as he flipped the shoved the gearshift into park and flipped off the ignition. Hearing Regina shuffling as she unclipped her seatbelt, he turned to her, anticipating another blow-up.
He was shocked, however, when she reached over and began unbuckling his pants, "What are you doing?!"
"It's called makeup sex, Locksley, keep up!" she said bruskly, letting go of his belt as she pulled it open. She unzipped her fleece jacket, and violently shrugging it off to toss into the footwell. Reaching over him to the window control panel, she pressed the seat angle button, abruptly lowering the back of his seat down.
"What? I thought you were-" he asked. She ignored him, however, as she lowered the zipper on his jeans and tugged them open, "Uh...keep in mind it's below freezing out."
She looked up at him with a smirk and responded, "Guess I'll have to warm you up then."
As she hooked her fingers in the waistband of his underwear and pulled them down, he braced himself for the shock of cold hands. He was pleasantly surprised, though, when her touch was warm and comfortable. His head lulled to the side as she slowly stroked him to hardness, catching sight of her travel mug steaming in the cup holder next to her. He bit his lip, thinking to himself that he was grateful for her caffeine addiction.
Regina let go of him, grabbing ahold of his waist band and roughly yanking his clothes down to his thighs. He felt goosebumps break out as his skin was exposed to the frigid air. The chill only lasted a moment, though as she leaned over, her hair draping over him like a blanket as she pressed light kisses up his inner thighs.
He moaned, gripping the edges of the car seat as she moved her head down, her warm, wet mouth engulfing one of his balls.
She gently ran her tongue around him before carefully releasing the one ball, and moving on to give the other the same treatment.
"Oh Gods," Robin placed one hand gently on her head, moving her hair aside to get a glimpse of her face.
Backing away momentarily, she tossed her hair back, wetting her lips as she took his cock in her hand and slowly ran her tongue from root to tip. Up and down, she used light, teasing licks that had his mind coming unhinged.
Gently easing his foreskin back, she fluttered the point of her tongue against the sensitive base of the head and was rewarded with a bead of milky fluid.
Lapping it up, she slid her hand down to grip the base of his cock and took him into her mouth.
"Ahh! Oh, Regina," he moaned as she eased him in and out through her lips, her hand following her mouth up and down.
Looking up through bleary eyes, he watched the dark green tree branches swaying gently through the sunroof as he laid his head back, luxuriating in the feel of her velvety tongue laving over him. Each firm stroke of her hand and wet slide through her lips drawing more pleasure out of him.
"I'm...I'm gonna" he warned.
Relaxing her jaw, she took him in as deeply as she comfortably could. He cried out as he came, her throat working around him as she swallowed all of his release. His hands stilled on her head as he recovered. She gently released him, sitting up to shift herself over and straddle his hips.
Her pupils were blown wide as he looked up to see her unbuttoning her blouse. Leaning over, she kissed him hard. He could taste himself sharply on her tongue, but he didn't care as she leaned back and roughly ordered, "Touch me."
Lifting his hand, he eased his fingers below the waistband of her slacks and into her panties, finding her slick and wet.
She'd told him before that going down on him got her hot and bothered, but feeling the evidence of it now was overwhelmingly arousing even after the intense orgasm he'd just experienced.
Groaning, he lifted himself into a sitting position, wrapping one arm around her back to support her on his lap. Pushing her pants further down, he slid two fingers inside her, angling his thumb to rub across her clit.
"Yes!" she gasped, "Yes, like that!"
Burying his face in her chest, he nipped at her, using his teeth to pull down the edge of her bra until his lips found her nipple. Suckling it into his mouth, he eased his fingers back out of her, adding a third as he slid back in.
She yelled out in pleasure at the deep feeling of being stretched inside, gripping his shoulders as she thrust her hips, literally fucking herself on his hand.
Tossing her head back, she screamed her pleasure to the shadowy forest around them.
They clung tightly to each other as the two caught their breath. Robin slowly easing his hand out of her pants when her internal muscles relaxed their tight grip around him.
Pulling back he looked up to meet her eyes, "Hi."
"Hi," she breathed back, still gasping for air.
Swallowing hard, he relaxed his forehead against hers.
As her breathing returned to normal, she cupped his cheek.
"Does this mean I'm forgiven?" he joked softly.
She shook her head, "No."
He pulled back, looking at her in confusion.
"No, because you shouldn't have to ask for forgiveness. You didn't do anything wrong," she clarified, sitting back onto his thighs with a sigh, "I believe you. What you said happened with Marian, I believe you. I was just pissed off and needed time to process it."
He look at her sadly, "Regina, I swear I had no idea she was planning to-"
"I know you didn't," she said, "I know you'd never lead someone on that way, or betray me. I do even appreciate that you told me right away even if I hated every word you said!"
"I understand you were upset," he acknowledged.
"Yeah," she nodded, "But what I said to you...I had no right to lash out at you like that. If you said that to me...you'd never say that to me. I wanted to take it back, but as the days past I just couldn't bring up the subject. I'm sorry."
He smiled, lifting his lips to her brow, "I'm sorry too. For what it's worth I wish I'd never gone that night."
She smiled back, stroking his beard gently as they took a moment to bask in each other a little while longer.
Finally, Regina sat back gripping the steering wheel to lift herself off him and sit back down into the passenger's seat. Taking a breath she began re-doing the buttons on her blouse. Beside her Robin put his seat back up and tucked himself away in his jeans. She swallowed a sip of coffee to wash away the taste of sex in her mouth, passing the cup over to him.
He took a sip as well, glancing at their surroundings. The windows were almost completely steamed up as the air inside the car, thick and humid from their body heat, met with the cold outside.
The two laughed between themselves as he handed her coffee back to her, pressing the button to open the windows and clear away the fog.
Taking a deep breath of cool air, Regina leaned her head tiredly against the headrest. Glancing over at him with a smile, she reached over to squeeze his thigh, "You going to be okay for the rest of the drive to the cabin?"
Glaring good-naturedly at her smug inquiry, he answered, "I think I'll manage."
She laughed as he started up the car and turned them around to drive out of the forest.
"Robin?"
"Yes?"
"You're certain Marian went back to Sherwood, right?"
His laugh filled the SUV as they merged back onto the highway to catch up with the other cars.