Five: What You've Got
"See? This is exactly what I'm talking about." Robin said.
Regina rubbed her head and sighed, staring out the car window. The rain was hitting the ground hard; Robin could barely see the road.
"What were you thinking?"
"Who are you? My father?" Regina snapped.
He slowed the car down and pulled over, "I'm just worried about you. If Will didn't call me and tell me that you've been gone for two hours, I wouldn't have saved you from that guy."
"Saved me?"
"He was taking advantage of you, Regina." Robin said.
Regina rolled her eyes, "For the first time, I actually felt free, Robin. I wasn't tied down by my morals or my decisions; I was able to let go of it all and do whatever I wanted."
"At the cost of him feeling you up?"
Regina stayed silent.
He turned to her and rubbed her arm, "You can't go to bars alone, especially not to ones with big dudes like that. He could hurt you with one blow."
"Do you think I'm that weak, Robin?" she said, turning to him, "I should have taken Daniel's deal when he offered it earlier. Then, I wouldn't be in this situation."
"Offer?"
She was fuming. She turned back to him, "I was overwhelmed with it all. On top of the damn trial, I am worried about you and how you'll react if you don't win. I'm worried that Roland will get sent back to Marian and suffer from consequences. And to top it all off, Gold and Daniel are out to get me. So, yes. I wanted a drink; I needed a drink. I had a few drinks like you did when you found out Marian was going to schedule a trial. If I'm breaking the rules of our marriage, then you must've done so much more with all that you've done."
"I don't think you're weak, Regina."
She rolled her eyes, "Right, and that's why your hands still haven't left my body since we drove away from the bar."
He brushed a piece of hair behind her ear, and skimmed her cheek with his knuckles. Her eyes shut at his touch and she forced herself not to smile. Then, he caressed her cheek, causing her to open her eyes again, and said, "You're everything I've got. That's why I'm so protective."
"Daniel has offered me something," she sighed, "In trade for a single date."
"What did he offer you?"
"The best lawyer in the country," she said, "And a promise of winning the trial."
Robin's mouth dropped at her words. He slowly took his hand away, but she grabbed it, "I didn't take it. I may have considered it but-"
"You considered it?"
"Well, considered isn't really how I'd put it. It was a split second that my past came back to me and I thought it would just be easier to do it," she squeezed his hand, "However, then my memories flooded my head, and I remembered all the special things I have shared with you and everything I hope to share with you. So, I'm going to decline his deal."
Robin nodded.
Regina smiled and kissed his hand, "We can win this, together. You were right."
"Let's go home." he said, before pausing and then pulled her into a light kiss.
A week later…
Robin paced around the foyer with his hands in his pockets. Back and forth, for the past fifteen minutes. Regina continued to sit on the couch, reading her book. She couldn't help but sigh and stare at him, then she stood and walked over to him, throwing her book on the couch. She grabbed his hand and stopped him from walking.
"You have to calm down."
"How am I supposed to do that? The trial is tomorrow." Robin sassed.
She pushed him against the walls and caressed his cheek, "Distract yourself."
"I can't distract myself until I have a statement." he sighed.
"Robin, you're going to win this. You have the potential to be the best father ever. There are so many things that I've learned from you, including street sense, sports, jokes, hobbies, work, word meanings, history, and even recipes. Any child who has the chance to call you their father is truly blessed. You don't have to worry about it; you will have Roland." Regina said.
He smiled, "You really think that?"
"I know that."
She placed a finger under his chin and leaned into him, placing her lips on his and starting a passionate, but tender kiss. Robin pulled her into him, and walked them over to the couch.
"Roland?"
"Sleeping." he smirked.
They fell onto the couch as Robin pulled her closer, continuing their heated kiss. He moved his hand down her body as she moved her leg, wrapping it around his body. He paused a moment, studied her, and allowed her to pull his shirt off. She studied his chiseled abs, running her hands across his strong chest, along the thin patches of chest hairs he had. She smiled before they continued to kiss. In one motion, he yanked her shirt over her head and smirked at her image. He unclasped her bra letting it fall the floor. She began to kiss his neck, lowering down to his stomach, as she unbuckled his belt, throwing it to the ground. She unbuttoned his pants, as he kicked off his shoes, pushing her back onto the couch, trying to be dominant. She giggled as he grabbed her hand, holding it above her head, kissing her neck, her collarbone, her ear, her breasts, her stomach, down to her pubic bone. Robin looked down at her, brown met blue, and then everything was forgotten. His hands caressed her cheeks and pulled her into a demanding and much-needed kiss that they both had been yearning for. He began to suck her neck in that same spot she always loved - the soft spot that made her go wild. When his lips hit the tender skin, her eyes grew wide and she moaned into his ear. In the next seconds, her hands were in his boxers, her hair a mess of it's own, her back arched, and her entire body aching for him to complete her need. She began to rub him in all sorts of possible way before her lips found the tip of his tool and began to work - oh, almighty. He groaned before pulling her up to him and taking claim of her lips again. Then, she broke the kiss and whispered, "I need you, Robin."
"What do you need, Regina?" He said.
She looked up at him and breathed heavily, "I need you inside me."
At her last words, he slid into her, allowing a loud moan out of her, and then started to thrust slowly and steadily. She demanded a faster speed, to which he much obliged to. Regina's hands found his back as she sunk her fingernails into his skin; she was almost there and he knew that.
"Robin-"
"I know."
In a matter of seconds, he collapsed on top of her, their breaths aligning in their fast speeds. They both breathed heavily as Robin pulled a blanket over their bare bodies and said, "That's a nice distraction."
"You're gonna win, love." Regina smirked as she kissed his chest and let her head fall on it. She shut her eyes and listened to his heartbeat, which had gradually slowed down since their little slip before. In a matter of minutes, she was asleep in his arms.
A knock.
Robin stirred on the couch and opened his eyes, staring down at the sleeping beauty in his arms. With a smile, he slowly untangled himself from her and threw on some clothes as the knocked got louder.
"One second."
After he was dressed, he covered Regina with the blanket up the her neck and then went for the door. He opened it and smiled at the mailman, who handed him a package and an envelope. With a nod, he shut the door and bid the man a good day. He placed the package on the ground and cut open the envelope, taking out a thick document addressed to him.
It read:
Dear Mr. Locksley,
As you know from our telephone conversation of a few weeks ago, the trial date has been moved by the court for your case. The trial date is now set for 8:30 a.m., July 14, 2017 in Department P of the Sherwood Superior Court. Please plan to be in attendance at that time.
Please also make appropriate arrangements to be present during the trial, which we estimate will last about 10 court days.
As we also discussed, it is entirely possible that the trial will not begin on that date for lack of available courtrooms. It may be delayed for a few days, or another date may be set a month or two later. I'm sure you appreciate that we have no control over what the trial court may do with respect to scheduling the actual date of trial. I will contact you with any information we may receive concerning the trial date. I will also contact you prior to the trial date to schedule appointments in the office to review the status of the case and our trial strategies, and to prepare you for your testimony.
Please do call if you have any questions or if I may be of assistance in any way.
Leroy
His mouth dropped at the notice - the official notice. Regina stirred on the couch and yawned as she opened her eyes. She wrapped the blanket around her body and stood before walking over to him, grabbing his hand and saying, "Is that it?"
He nodded.
She kissed his knuckles and took the notice from him to read herself. When she did, she rubbed his back, "Let's call Leroy and schedule some time to get your testimony down."
Robin took out his phone and dialed Leroy's number, "Hello?"
Yep, hey Robin.
"When are you free for a testimony runthrough?"
I'm free all afternoon.
"That works for me, how's around two?"
That's fine. See you then. You need my office address?
"Nope, I'm bringing Regina. She'll know where to go. See you soon, Leroy."
Bye, Robin.
"Alright, so let me hear it." Leroy crossed his arms as he leaned back in his chair.
Robin sighed and rubbed his hands together before pacing the room and saying, "I love Roland, and I believe-"
"Stop right there," Leroy said, "You need to appear confident, not like some scared little baby."
"Right," Robin took a deep breath and stopped pacing, "I love Roland, and I believe-"
Leroy shook his head, "No, no. Robin, look at me. You want your son, yes?"
Robin nodded.
"Then, stop pulling the 'I love him' card. Marian is going to pull it and it's not going to get either of you anywhere. Both of you love him enough to want him but you need to express why you should keep him for yourself." Leroy said, standing up, "Your goal is to prove to the judge that you are better for Roland than Marian is. Now go, prove to me that you'll be the better parent."
He sighed in response, "Okay. Here goes nothing. When I was eight years old, my taught offered to teach me how to play basketball. I wasn't really into sports at that time, in fact, all I cared about was video games. He continuously asked me, on my ninth birthday, my tenth, my eleventh, and my twelfth, but I always refused. On my thirteenth birthday, my parents disagreed on what was best for my future. I had two options: to go to a boarding school for science or my town's high school and pursue a regular high school experience. My mother wanted me to go to the science school, because my academics were the most important thing, but I was starting to care more about sports and love the game. Eventually, after lots of fighting and disagreeing, my father left us alone. I chose to go to regular high school and pursue sports. In my junior year of high school, I was announced the second best basketball player in the entire Eastern part of the US. When I tried to celebrate, my mother neglected to care about my achievement because she didn't care for my decision in the first place. I felt terrible that I ignored my dad all those years; for seven years, I ignored him. And then he left, and I didn't have a dad anymore. All kids need a father. Fathers encourage competition, independence, and achievement. Fathers' hallmark style of interaction is physical play that is characterized by arousal, excitement, and unpredictability. Fathers tend to stand behind their children so the children face their social environment. Perhaps it's their size, strength, or inclination to protect, but fathers appear to be better at keeping predators and bad influences from harming their children. Kids just need their fathers, and Roland needs me. I am his father and he is my son."
Leroy stared intensely at Robin for a few minutes, while he stood quietly and stared back. Regina sat still and eyes both of them in silence, waiting for a response from Leroy.
"I think it's a decent start," Leroy picked, "But it still needs work. It's a bit too much proving."
Robin nodded.
Leroy spun in his chair and then stared at Regina, "What's your take on this?"
"What do you mean?" she asked.
"When you get asked to testify, are you ready for it?"
Her mouth dropped, "I'm going to have to testify?"
"I'm sure they'll ask you to," Leroy said, "I'll run you through some questions, and you answer them. The key to testifying is that you answer only the question they ask you, take your time, and make sure you understand the question."
She nodded as Robin sat down beside her.
Leroy then began, "What is your relation to the child?"
"I'm married to his father and have been caring for him for the past month or so." she said calmly.
"Do you believe that Robin Locksley is the best option for Roland?"
"I do." she replied.
Leroy raised an eyebrow, "Why? And be careful now, you don't want to get too sappy."
She cleared her throat and began to speak, "Robin is the CEO of a successful business, so he has a steady financial situation to support Roland. He is an athletic, sociable, organized, and intelligent man, so he will be focused on Roland's well being and education. Robin also developed so much love for Roland in only a month, and will love him unconditionally if he had the chance to have Roland for good."
Leroy nodded, "Over the past month, how many times has Robin left for work that was unscheduled?"
"Twice, but each of those times, I was awake and caring for Roland."
"Does Robin become lazy and ignorant when he doesn't have a good day at work?"
She shook her head, "I wouldn't say that."
"What will you do to ensure that Roland lives a safe, healthy, and happy life in the Locksley household?" Leroy said.
Regina froze and thought for a minute, "I'll love him like my own."
Leroy paused and then nodded, "Robin, now some questions they might ask you. What is your financial status?"
"Steady and well."
Leroy modded, "What type of custody arrangement are you seeking and why?"
"I am seeking full custody of Roland, but will give Marian permission to see him occasionally. I deke this because I believe Roland will live a better and safer life with me." Robin said.
Leroy squinted at Robin for a few minutes, then continued, "What is your communication with the other parent like?"
"We are civil with one another and will make decisions best for Roland." Robin said.
Leroy nodded again and stared at the two of them, "I think you're both prepared for testifying, but Robin, I'd still work on that thing from before."
Robin stood and shook his hand, nodding and taking Regina's hand at the same time. She smiled graciously at Leroy and mouthed a silent 'thank you' to him. He winked at her as they left his office and shut the door behind them, both not saying a single word until they reached the car and began to drive home.
The trial was in nine days. They had nine days to get things under control.
Nine days to get Roland.
A/N: Next chapter will be up soon, it's not the trial chapter, but pretty damn close to it! Btw, sorry I'm a little late with this update, work has been crazy.
Love you all.