They were laying in her bed on their sides, nestled close together with Regina's back to Robin's front, the backs of her thighs bracketed by the tops of his. His arms were wrapped around her small waist beneath the covers and his lips were pressed to the skin of her shoulder as he whispered "I am so proud of you, Regina." because he was, incredibly so.
She didn't say anything in return for a long moment, just basked in the feel of his love for her as she reached down to unhook one of his hands from her stomach to lift the back of it to her lips, kissing the skin and allowing him to lace their fingers before bringing it back down to rest on her stomach once more. They'd put the boys to bed hours ago, before the darkness of night had truly begun to set in and so she was able to rest easy knowing they'd both be settled and deep in sleep. "Thank you."
He nuzzled into her in response, lifting his legs higher and wrapping his arms around her a little tighter as he exhaled a shuddered breath against her skin and allowed his tears to begin falling. "You are so precious to me, my darling." He pressed his forehead against the back of her neck, "I will never hurt you as he did," he shook his head against her, "never."
She moved to turn in his arms but, with the way he was holding her so close to him, she couldn't, not until she breathed a gentle "Robin…" that had him swallowing thickly before loosening his grip enough to allow the movement. Her cheeks were dry when she finally settled on the pillow they were sharing but her eyes were shimmering in the gentle light of the lamp on his bedside table, her brow furrowed as she lifted a hand to cup his cheek with a soft palm and whispered "I don't doubt that, my love." He continued to cry quietly though he kept his eyes on her as she went on to reassure him. "You have treated me with more kindness than I have ever known," her thumb stroked through the wetness beneath his eye as hers moved between his own, "with more patience and more tenderness than I could have ever hoped for despite my past sins." Her head shook as a tear finally fell from her eye though it was not one of sadness as she whispered "I love you with all that I have and all that I am."
"And I you," his voice quivered with his continued cries though she could tell that her words were calming his own sore heart.
She smiled gently, softly before leaning forward and pressing a chaste but no less passionate kiss to his lips and breathing "sleep now, my heart" that smile only deepening when he nodded and pressed one last kiss to her lips before guiding her head down to tuck beneath his chin and wrapping his arms around her once more with a deep and calmer breath ruffling the hair atop her head
"Would you feel up to that date tomorrow night?"
She smirked, lips curving against his skin because of course he'd still be thinking of taking her out even with a voice still trembling, even as he was still sniffing back tears.
"Little John will take the boys for the evening."
"Will he take them for the night?"
His arms tightened a little around her at that, the meaning behind her question quite clear, and she wasn't surprised when he moved to tell her "Regina, if you're not-"
"I'm ready," she lifted her face from his chest and tilted back enough to look him in vividly blue - if a little bloodshot - eyes, hoping to convey her sincerity, her excitement as she continued "I'm ready to smile again, to laugh again. I'm ready to go out for a nice meal with my soul mate," his crystal eyes sparkled at that as he grinned down at her and lifted a hand from her waist to stroke back errant strands from her forehead, listening intently as she continued "I'm ready to dance and to feel like a normal woman for once in my life and then," she leaned in to nuzzle her nose against his, her voice a gentle whisper, "when I'm all danced out," she tightened her arms around his waist, "I want to come home and make love to you until the sun has long since risen." She chuckled softly at the thick gulp he took, the way his fingers pulsed against the small of her back, "is that okay with you?"
Robin's nod was almost instant, his nose rubbing against her own, his face free of anything other than an adorable shock that she knew came from her bold plan for the following evening.
Her eyes crinkled with her smile as she joined their lips once more, laughing against his mouth when he moved with her when she tried to pull back to allow the kiss to linger for a moment longer, not willing to let her go just yet but when he did she merely chuckled and patted his bicep. "Now, get some sleep," she turned in his arms, pulling them around her once more when she'd settled and promising "you're going to need your rest, tomorrow's a big day."
She startled with an amused yelp when strong arms came to wrap around her waist and a warm chest - still blessedly bare - was pressed to her back. She hadn't heard him come down.
"Good morning, beautiful" he nuzzled his face into her neck, pressing a kiss to delicate skin and delighting in the shiver it pulled from her as she hummed low in her throat and proceeded to flip the pieces of bacon she had sizzling in the pan. The picture of domesticity.
She turned only her head, tilting it down to rub her cheek against him much like a cat would with their owner - he didn't own her, didn't even pretend to but the affection implied was most certainly there - and grinning at the way he lifted his head from her neck to seek her lips with his own.
She'd thought it to be a brief kiss of greeting, just a simple 'hello' from one love to another but when their lips parted and he moved a hand up to cup the back of her head, bringing their mouths back together once more in a way far more than chaste, she found herself automatically moving the pan from the burner before finding the dial with nothing but touch and turning the stove off.
He dropped both hands to her hips, fingers pulsing there before indicating for her to turn with a little more pressure on her right side. It was early, the boys wouldn't be up for another hour at least and it seemed Robin planned to take advantage with parting lips and a sliding tongue that had Regina moaning rather eagerly into his mouth as she lifted her arms to loop around his neck, pulling herself against him, in need of more of him, always more.
"You taste like coffee" he murmured against her lips in a break for air.
"I'll fix you a cup."
"Later," he grunted before, quite suddenly, sinking down low enough to wrap his arms around her thighs, just beneath her rear, to pick her up and turn them both. She let out a small squeal of surprise that was soon masked when he lifted his head to connect their lips once more, shuffling over to the kitchen island in order to deposit her atop the countertop and fit his body in between her parted legs.
Her palms cupped his cheeks as she tilted her head to change the angle of their kiss, deepening it with an eagerness that he matched.
He lifted one hand to thread his fingers through her hair as the other dropped to grip at her thigh, kept from bare skin by the black yoga pants she was wearing. She was quite sure that he was ready to rip them from her body completely with the way his nails were scraping over them, she was quite sure that she'd let him if he tried.
Arousal burned hot in her stomach as they kissed and kissed and kissed and when she shifted atop the counter, she felt the slick slide of her panties that reminded her just how he affected her and how much she wanted him.
God, she wanted to let him take her right here on the-
"Gross!"
Their lips parted with a wet smack, breathing ragged as they turned to find Henry standing in the doorway staring at them with a grimace.
"We eat there!"
"H-Henry" Regina stammered, hands still holding Robin's face as though she'd forgotten they were there - he was still gripping her thigh, the other hand having fallen from her hair to rest fingertips on her collarbone, "wh-"
"You know what," he shook his head, still cringing, "I'll be in the living room." And with that, he turned on his heels and disappeared from sight, leaving a very perplexed and blushing couple to gather themselves.
"So, that's it?" Henry asked from his place on her bed, his legs crossed upon the quilt as he awaited her return from inside the closet, "no more Leopold?"
She frowned at the sound of his name falling from such innocent lips but pushed her disgust away, she'd done what she'd needed to. "He'll still be around, I suppose" though for how much longer? "But yes," she sighed, smoothing down the fabric of her dress before padding barefoot back out into her bedroom, "no more Leopold for us at least."
Henry nodded thoughtfully, no doubt worry still niggling at the back of his young mind - he was desperate to protect her and whilst it warmed her heart, it also concerned her. He'd been tense lately and far too stressed for a boy of his age - before he seemed to shake it off and looked her over with a wide smile. "You look really pretty, Mom."
"I'm not even ready yet, sweetheart" she chuckled fondly, making her way over to her vanity table and sitting down upon the stool, catching her son's eye in the mirror and shaking her head affectionately.
He shrugged, "you still look pretty."
"Well," she coughed lightly to clear her throat, her cheeks flaming a gentle red as she smiled softly at her boy, "Thank you."
"It's only the truth" he shrugged again and god, what had she done to deserve this precious angel? "Robin will back me up."
At the mention of his name, Regina cleared her throat once more, a little anxiety tickling at her stomach as she began "Henry," waiting for his full attention to be on her before she continued, "About earlier, I'm sorry abo-"
"It's okay, Mom" Henry stopped her with a grimace that told of his young age, "We don't need to talk about it. I get that people kiss when they're in love but could you just…" he cringed, "I don't know...keep it to yourselves?"
Her lips parted at his simple but powerful statement, the question on her lips of how he could possibly know that they were in love when they'd only recently told one another but again, he cut her off with a roll of his eyes.
"I probably knew before you guys did," was his way of explanation, as though it were the easiest thing to have guessed in the world, "you look at each other like Grandma and Grandpa do," and before she could threaten to take his phone away for such a terrible thing, he amended "only less googly and more...more like regular people, I guess." and when his mother only continued to smile at him - that smile she got whenever anyone said or did anything nice to her, as though such a thing had never really happened to her. It hadn't, not really - he smiled back and told her, quite simply "it's nice."
The boys had both said their goodbyes to her upstairs, Little John having arrived to take them, duffle bags and all and he'd laughed - the sound surprising Regina - when she'd made him - upon beckoning him up the stairs to her - promise to check in with her and Robin later that night and let them know that the boys were doing okay.
"These men are made for the woods!" He'd exclaimed, patting the littlest and the newest - Henry had flushed with pride when Little John had called him so - member of the Merry Men on the backs before withering a little under Regina's glare and agreeing that "yes, I will text you just before I send them off to dreamland." and then, with one last hug from Henry and a rather sloppy kiss upon her cheek from Roland, they'd disappeared leaving Regina alone to finish her makeup and Robin downstairs waiting for her. Or, at least, that's what she had thought.
It's on the third consecutive knock that Regina finds herself rising from her seat and moving towards the hallway, curling her palms over the banister and calling out "will you please get that, Robin?" only to hear absolutely no answer nor movement from below except another round of knocking and it twists anxiety in her gut because she'd heard him say goodbye to their boys only a half hour ago and she could get it herself, she's ready, had been psyching herself up to face Robin dressed up as she was and now she doesn't really want to ruin the surprise but it doesn't seem that he's here anyway so she begins making her way down the stairs with her brow furrowed and her mind doing overtime.
What if he's gone? After everything, what if he just left?
No, she decided, stop being such an idiot. He's a far better man than that.
She shook her head free of her damning thoughts and inhaled a deep breath, hoping that whoever stood on the otherside of the door wouldn't mind the abrupt goodbye she was going to give them before searching the house for Robin. The thought that he could possibly simply be in the bathroom had her chuckling a little and the weight on her shoulders lessening just as she curled her fingers around the door handle and pulled down to open the door to find…"Robin?" standing on the other side with a warm smile and a red rose held by the stem between his index finger and thumb. He looked absolutely unbelievable in denim pants that showed off his thick, toned legs and a black button down shirt that she wanted to tear open with her bare hands. "What are you doing?" she managed after a long moment of simply staring at him, one he seemed to have taken to do the very same if the look on his face was anything to go by.
His eyes had lifted from the long black dress she had decided on, the bottom quarter a rim of ruffles and the top, the neckline, revealing just a hint of cleavage, to look over her hair - she'd curled it, loose waves that she'd run her fingers through for even more volume and she'd decided she'd quite liked the look, judging by his reaction however, she decided that she loved it -before blue eyes trailed over every inch of her face.
Her makeup was far lighter than it used to be but still, she'd outlined dark eyes with a slick of kohl and painted her lips red. Her lashes had been curled and painted with mascara and her cheeks had a dusting of highlighter that gave her a beautifully dewy glow. It was something she hadn't really tried before and a stab of insecurity still flared within her stomach.
He didn't let it stew for long however but instead lifted his free hand to bring one of hers to his lips in order to drop a tender kiss there before answering her question. "I have come to spend a wonderful evening eating and dancing and laughing," she smiled at his repetition of the words she'd used the night before, "with the most beautiful woman that I have ever laid eyes on."
Her cheeks tinted pink as her lips parted and she found she couldn't look away from his kind and loving gaze.
"Would you do me the honour of accompanying me?"
"Well, I am all dressed up…" she tried their usual banter - much to his apparent delight with the way his grin widened - and ignored her breathlessness before allowing him to lace their fingers and begin pulling her out of the front door.
He smirked with absolute affection in his eyes as he looked her over once more and gave back "and what a shame it would be to keep such beauty from the world."
And wow, she thought as she fell into step beside him, lifting her other hand to cross over her body and grip his bicep lightly as they walked, what a shame indeed.