(A/N-Special thanks to Kara for beta reading this. Appreciate it so much! Thanks to those who read, review, follow, and fav this story.)
When they arrived at the estate, Robin and David took the luggage up to the rooms that were set aside for them, while Ruth and Regina, along with Roland, went about exploring the place. Ruth was talking about how she came to this house when she was a little girl, and how she had her first kiss here.
"Kissing is yucky," Roland said with a grimace.
"Just wait until you are older," Ruth said with a smile as she watched her grandson head outside on the patio.
"He's going to be a heartbreaker one day. Girls will be chasing after him before too long with those gorgeous dimples of his," Regina commented.
"He gets those from his father," Ruth remarked with a smile as Regina looked over at her quickly. Ruth just gave her a knowing look,"Now, please make yourself at home here, there's the stables, the gardens, and there is even a private pool over there on the left in that building. There are plenty of swim suits out there as well. Clarice and I grew up together, and I know she would want you to feel welcome here."
"Thank you, Ruth, for inviting me here," Regina said.
Just then Robin and David walked out onto the patio, "Well, all the luggage is upstairs in your rooms. We're all on the second floor; once you go up the stairs, turn right, and the rooms are on the right. Come on and we'll show you." Robin said as they all headed upstairs to unpack and relax.
Regina was in her room unpacking when she remembered Ruth mentioning the private pool and decided to go take a swim to relax. She changed into a pair of lounge shorts and a top and headed downstairs towards the pool. She walked in and saw the ladies changing room with an arrangement of suits. She picked out a one piece and made her way to the pool. She got into the water and swam a few laps, just taking her time in doing so.
She leaned up against the side of the pool and just let her body relax. She closed her eyes and into her mind came the thought of Robin Locksley. She knew she had a wildly impossible attraction towards him. She pictured herself raking her nails down his back as they kissed, her hands touching him, to feel the silken hardness of his skin. It was madness, it had to be sheer insanity, and yet the desire would not go away.
"Regina?"
Robin's voice made her snap her eyes open, and she saw him standing there tall and proud in brief black swimming trunks. Obviously he had thought about taking a swim to relax like she had.
She couldn't help noticing how lithe and well muscled he was, how broad his shoulders, how narrow his hips. His skin was attractively tanned, despite the fact that his mother said he never took holidays, and that chest of his was a temptation to her fingertips.
"So I guess we had the same idea," Robin said as he got into the pool, she saw Robin's sleek head as he swam a leisurely breast stroke.
She watched as he swam to her side. Panic set in at the thought of him getting too close. "Let's have a race," she said quickly, and without waiting for an answer she pushed herself away from the side into a fast crawl. They did ten lengths before she stopped, and although he beat her each time, there was admiration on his face.
"You're quite a good swimmer, Regina," Robin said.
"I was quite a good swimmer in high school," Regina admitted as she hauled herself out of the pool.
"Congratulations. What else were you good at then?" Robin asked with a twinkle in his eyes as he followed her out of the pool as well.
She shrugged. "I did well in most things, but I didn't excel in any one subject. I wonder if I should go check on your mother." He was standing too close for comfort and she needed to put some space between them.
"Don't worry about my mother. David can get her anything she needs," Robin said.
"But-"
"But nothing. Come and sit with me, and we'll have a drink after our race."
Regina followed him to where two loungers were positioned on either side of a low table, he went to the bar and brought them both back some iced orange juice.
"This is really a fabulous place," she said, looking around her as he gave her the glass. "Your mother says you rarely come here with her for this annual event."
"Time is at a preminum, Regina."
Meaning time meant money, she thought bitterly. Maybe that was all he was interested in. "Then why have you come here now?"
There was a pause before he answered. A moment's space while he settled himself back on his lounger and looked into her eyes, "I guess I finally felt I needed a break," he said, watching her carefully through narrowed eyes.
"Or maybe you were just checking up on me?" Regina couldn't believe she had just said that.
Robin chuckled at her words, "Anyone who sits with my mother while she takes her afternoon nap when there's an inviting pool back at the house, has a conscience, a huge one at that. You're doing a great job, Regina."
"Why, thank you, kind sir," Regina said, looking at him over the top of her glass. The juice, freshly squeezed, was ice cold and delicious and she needed it to reduce her soaring temperature.
"What I can't understand," he said, "is why you're not married, or why you don't have a boyfriend."
Regina felt uneasy at this topic being brought up,"I haven't spent my entire life alone."
"Right, you were once married," Robin said.
"Yes, he died a few years ago," Regina said as she broke her gaze from his intense one.
"I'm sorry for your loss, Regina," Robin said. After a few seconds with neither of them saying anything, Robin took the lead,"Do you mind, my being here with you?"
She frowned then,"Why should I mind?" she asked testily.
"I don't wish to make you feel uncomfortable," Robin said.
"You don't," Regina said, even though inside she thought he did make her uncomfortable, only because he was easy to talk with. He was making her feel butterflies in her stomach, and she hadn't felt that in a very long time.
They sat in silence for a few moments, Regina with her eyes closed trying to pretend that Robin wasn't there. It was impossible, he was too dynamic a man, too sexy to ignore. What she really wanted was to feast her eyes on him, to run them along the whole length of his body, up those long legs, those powerful thighs, over the flatness of his belly, with the silky hair arrowing down into the waistband of his swim trunks, across the powerful chest, finally reaching the strongly chiseled face with those sensual lips and those velvety blue eyes that could melt a woman on the spot, along with those dimples of his.
"Do I pass muster?" Robin asked.
Red hot heat scorched Regina's skin. She had not only been thinking it, she had been doing it! And he had caught her! How mortifying. How utterly, utterly stupid. "I don't know what you're talking about." Even her voice sounded shriveled.
Robin just smirked at her, to Regina's intense relief, his son chose that moment to walk into the building, smiling when he saw the two of them,"You've been swimming with, Papa?" he asked as he came to sit on the lounge with his father.
"Yes, we had a great swim," Regina said.
"Regina's an excellent swimmer. I had my work cut out to keep up with her," Robin said.
"Can I go swimming now, Papa?" Roland asked.
"I don't see why not. Regina, would you like to join us?" Robin asked.
"I'm sorry, I need to make a few phone calls, but you two have a good time and I'll see you later for dinner," Regina said.
"Will you sit by me for dinner, Regina?" Roland asked.
"I would love to," Regina said, smiling as she left them by the pool and headed back to the house. Once she was back in her room, she took a quick shower and wrapped a huge, fluffy towel around her body and laid down on the bed to let her eyes rest...
A little over an hour later, Robin was back in his room, getting Roland ready for dinner when David walked in,"So you two ready for dinner?"
"Almost," Robin said as he finished buttoning his son's shirt.
"Papa and Regina went swimming earlier," Roland said, excitedly.
"They did? Well, I'm sure your Papa enjoyed that," David said with a smile on his face. "I'm going to get Mom, Roland would you like to come with me?"
"Sure!" Roland said as he walked towards his uncle, but then turned back to his papa,"Will you go get Regina, Papa?"
"I will," Robin promised him. David took Roland towards their mother's room, while Robin finished dressing. He then took a deep breath and looked at himself in the mirror once more before heading over to Regina's room. He knocked on the door, and waited a few seconds. When no answer came, he knocked once more, this time a little louder.
He was in the process of raising his hand when the door of her room opened and there stood Regina with a white towel wrapped around her body. "Robin? What...what are you doing here?"
Robin was at a loss for words to see Regina standing there with her hair still damp, and her body wrapped up in a towel. "I...uh...I was coming to see if you were ready to go down to dinner. But, I see that you're not."
"Oh, I'm sorry I must have overslept, I'll meet all of you downstairs," Regina said as she caught herself staring at him in his dark blue shirt and dress pants. He looked so handsome, so tempting, so... at that moment her mind went somewhere else and in the process her grip on the towel wasn't as strong as it should be causing her towel to slip. She made a mad dash to grab it and succeeded, but the tips of her breasts became visible to Robin's naked eyes. She saw the lust appear in his eyes, lust that was probably in hers earlier as she had looked at him.
"Right, I'll see you downstairs then," Robin said as he turned and started down the hallway. She was intoxicating, just being around her today at the pool, and he had wanted to bring her back up to his room for a few hours. Talking to her had been easy, even though he could tell she was a little reserved.
When Regina made her way downstairs to the dining hall, Robin noticed her as soon as she had walked in. She was wearing a black cocktail dress where the top part was see through, and Robin's mouth just dropped. Black was definitely her color.
"Regina, you look beautiful," Roland said as he motioned for her to sit by him. Regina smiled as she made her way over to Roland, Robin was sitting on the other side of her.
"Papa, why is your face like that?" Roland asked.
"Because, he's in awe," David whispered to him.
The dinner was pleasant as well as the atmosphere. She enjoyed being with the Locksleys, they didn't make her feel like she was just an employee to them but family. Afterwards they all made their way upstairs. The next day was to be races at the track on the outskirts of the stables.
The following day, Regina made her way to the stables first. She loved being around horses, always had since she had been little. She was petting a dark beauty, when she heard the sound of another horse that was obviously being ridden, she looked out to see that it was Robin on the horse. She watched the way he rode the horse, the two seemed to be one as they went around the track. She watched the way he seemed to bounce as he rode the horse, the way his jeans hugged his butt. She found her thoughts turning into another direction, wondering how he would be if he rode...her?
"He's an excellent rider," a voice said from behind her.
"David, what are you doing here?" Regina asked, flushed that his simple sentence was close to what she had been thinking.
"Same as you are right now, watching my brother ride," David said as the two of them stood there watching Robin finish his ride.
"You're going to ride, right Regina?" David asked.
"Yes," Regina said as she turned and started getting the horse ready.
David watched her as she made her way out onto the track, right as his brother was making his way back. He watched the way his brother's eyes were following Regina around the track, Robin quickly dismounted and let one of the stable boys take his horse to be rubbed down.
"She's something, isn't she?" David asked as Robin's eyes were still on her.
"Indeed," Robin said.
"She's got a nice pair of legs, nice pair of hips as well," David said.
"What's next, David? You're going to tell me her hips are nice for childbearing?" Robin asked.
David smirked at his brother as they watched Regina set the pace of the ride faster. Her hair was whipping behind her as she enjoyed the ride, her smile was evident on her face.
An hour later, they were all watching the horse race. With Clarice's youngest son winning the race. "I'm so happy that you are enjoying your time here at my home, Regina." Clarice said as as she walked up to them all.
"I love it here, you have a wonderful home," Regina said.
"I hope to see you here more often, who knows, "Clarice said, "maybe you might be a part of the family."
David and Ruth shared a look and a wink. Clarice gave Regina a coy look before looking at Ruth and David, who both had the same thought, yes Regina as a member of their family, Robin's wife one day.
"Thank you so much for having me," Regina said.
David chuckled as he said into his mother's ear,"Not as much as Robin would enjoy having her."
Ruth laughed at her son's words and smacked him on the arm,"Behave."
Secretly, she had to agree with David. The spark was there, there was an evident attraction between them, and hopefully after this weekend, a flame would be burning.
