A/N: Short installment here, but I wanted to post something for you, and I'm feeling a time crunch. I hope you like it. The good news (hopefully)—we're not as close to the end as I thought, especially if I continue to post shorter chapters. As previously promised, I'll let you know when we're two away from the end.

Regina was at her wits' end. She had showered, changed into fresh clothes, and taken extra care with her hair and make-up. Part of being put together was looking put together, after all.

Though she was far from it.

She had to get this man out of her house.

David was slowly, but surely, driving her insane.

She had briefed him on what she had told Henry about his role in retrieving Ms. Swan and Snow—they did, after all, need to provide a consistent message to Henry. Teaching him to wield such powerful magic was going to be dangerous enough without her precocious son deciding he smelled a secret and needed to investigate.

She had hoped that, by the time she returned downstairs, David would be ready to go back to his apartment to shower and change and, well, leave. Instead, she found him outside with Henry, hard at work fixing the support beams of her front porch. And not only was he being helpful, he was looking damn good doing it.

Gone was the mangy flannel, revealing a perfectly-fitted grey t-shirt over strong, toned muscles. He held a hammer, and his hands—they were calloused, capable. God, she'd always loved a man with good hands. She flushed, and her impatience flared.

Why was he still here? If he was allowing her to give Henry riding lessons unsupervised, surely he could leave her son here for a few hours while he Went. Somewhere. Else.

He may think that heartfelt speeches and a few good kisses could bridge the gulf between them, but she knew better. If they actually attempted any kind of romantic relationship, the only result would be disaster. The town would shun them—they would blame her, but they would still shun him—and he would inevitably begin to resent her and then despise her. And that would just be the town, not to mention Henry's reaction or how hurt David would be when he lost Emma's trust and broke Snow's heart.

All for something that wouldn't last.

Of course, it would be much easier to be sensible about their situation if he would stop with the sexy handyman routine. And when he smiled at her like that . . . oh boy. She was in trouble.

David smirked slightly at her reaction and took advantage of her temporary lack of composure.

"Hey, kiddo," David addressed Henry. "How would you feel about us moving in with your mom for a while? At least until Snow and Emma are back?"

Henry looked from one adult to the other. His grandfather was up to something, and his mom looked shocked. He knew she wanted him back, though, and after everything that had happened, he'd feel better if he knew she was safe. And he missed his mom's cooking. Mary Margaret had been the only one of his other family that could turn on a stove without also making the fire alarm go off. It would be nice to have something other than peanut butter and jelly sandwiches for lunch at school.

"Sure," he said excitedly, smiling at his mom. "It will be nice to be together again."

Regina returned her son's smile through suspiciously watery eyes. Her son wanted to come home.

"Henry," David said. "Could you go to the garage and find the level?"

"Yeah!" Henry said, scampering away from the adults and across the lawn. His mom never let him help fix stuff. She always did it herself. Or hired someone. Maybe with David here, he could actually hammer a few nails or something.

Regina took several steps forward, eradicating the personal space of the prince, who was looking far too pleased with himself. "Us?" she hissed. "I'm thrilled—confused, but thrilled—that you're letting Henry move back in, but it sounded like you plan on moving in too. What, exactly, would give you that idea?" she demanded as she crossed her arms over her chest. She and David needed to be spending less time together, not more.

"You said that the success of children doing magic has to do with their emotional stability. Splitting Henry between us doesn't seem very stable, at least in the short-run," David responded, as though this logic was his only motivation. "His room is here. This environment is more familiar—"

"You've made a compelling case for why Henry should stay here," Regina interrupted. "A point upon which you could hardly expect me to disagree. What I still don't understand is why you think you're staying too."

"The town would hardly understand if I just let Henry move back in," David replied with more confidence than Regina appreciated.

"Oh, because they'd really appreciate you shacking up with the Evil Queen instead?" she scoffed.

"I'll explain the situation with Henry and magic to Granny and Ruby," David said. "Once they understand, they can help convince the rest of the town, if it's necessary."

"Fine," Regina said, but the hard edge to her tone alerted David to the possibility that the cost of winning this battle had been higher than he expected. Her next words confirmed his fear.

"Let me make one thing abundantly clear, Charming," Regina sneered his fairytale name. "You will not put me on the spot like that in front of my son ever again. Do you understand me?"

"Regina, I . . ." David didn't know what to say. He had expected irritation—to have a little fun at her expense, but he hadn't expected this level of malevolence.

"Do you understand me?" Regina repeated.

"Yes," David replied. The Mayor was back. Just what had this little prank cost him?

"Good," Regina said. "You can have the guestroom at the end of the hall. I expect to see as little of you as possible." With that, she re-entered the house and shut the door behind her.

A/N: Please review. Coming attractions: Just how will David explain himself to Granny and Red?