Notes: New chapter! I'm sorry it's not exactly a cheery Christmas tale but hope you enjoy it!
I'm still working on the last book of the Forgive me sage. 5 more chapters to write and I'll start posting.
David was juggling a screaming Emma in her car seat and the files he had brought to Granny's so he could read them over breakfast much to the diner's owner and Regina's amusement. Mary-Margaret was out of town for two days and he was trying to reconcile his parental duties with those at the Sheriff's station. Thankfully, Thomas had taken much of the patrolling rounds but that had left David with all the administrative workload. Combined with the erratic nights spent with his teething daughter, David was utterly exhausted.
"Let me help you." Regina rushed to his side to grab the files that were threatening to fall on the floor.
"Thank you." David said, visibly relieved.
"I'll get coffee and some eggs and bacon." Granny yelled as she walked toward the kitchen.
"You look like you need it." Regina added as she placed the files on the table in the nearest booth.
"You have no idea." David settled the car seat next to the files. "I don't know what to do to help her anymore."
"I think I have an idea." Regina smiled at him. "Be right back," she added as she jogged toward the back of the diner. By the time she came back to the dining area, all eyes were on the poor father unable to calm his daughter. She brandished the carrot as she approached Emma. "Here little one."
Dumbfounded, David didn't have time to protest. As soon as Emma took hold of the chilled carrot, the screaming stopped to the relief of everyone in the room. "Regina, you are my savior." Without thinking, he hugged the woman tightly. Taken by surprise, Regina tensed at first. When he felt her reaction, David let go of her and apologized profusely.
Regina placed her hand on his chest to stop the jumbled words from coming out of his mouth. "David, you don't have to apologize. You… you just surprised me." She added, turning her attention back to Emma, still chewing on the carrot. "How is that, sweetheart?" She asked the baby. She could see a lot of David in her and she smiled fondly. Of course, the Nolans had spent time at the mansion before, but Regina had stood aside, trying not to engage with the family she didn't want. But it was different now. She and David were friends and Emma was his daughter. "You don't have a teething ring for her?" Regina asked the overly tired father who'd just slumped in the booth.
"I tried everything last night: the giraffe, the ring, and the mesh thing Mary-Margaret told me worked every time." He added with some bitterness.
Regina caressed the infant's cheek with her index finger. "It hurts to have those sharp teeth piercing through the tender gums." Emma looked up at her with the same intensity as her father did. The baby babbled as she repositioned the vegetable. "But Daddy also needs some sleep, little one." She added soothingly.
"Daddy has given up on sleeping for the foreseeable future." David sighed as he rearranged the files in front of him. Although Leopold had honored the terms of his bail and had left Regina alone, his revenge had been directed towards his son-in-law in the form of additional paperwork.
"I can take care of her this afternoon if you want. My shift is over in an hour and I don't have anything planned for today."
David looked at Regina in utter shock: he hadn't expected the gesture. "I…" He needed the sleep. "Thank you."
"You're welcome." She smiled.
The exchange hadn't gone unnoticed by anyone in the diner, including the lawyer sitting in the back of the room. Mr. Gold grabbed his notebook and jolted down a few notes before reaching for his cell phone. All it would take were a few pictures to let his client go free. Discreetly, he captured the moment David reached for Regina's hand. However, his view was soon obstructed by Granny bringing a breakfast plate to the Sheriff. By the time the old hag moved, Regina had taken Emma from her car seat and was standing a few feet away.
The little girl cooed in the brunette's arms. With the carrot still in her mouth, she fell asleep. "You're a natural." David sighed.
"She is." Granny approached her protegee to take a peek at the quiet baby. "Have you ever wanted children of your own?"
The innocent question had the same effect as a thousand stab wounds. Regina's eyes filled up with tears and she started shaking. The memories the question evoked made her nauseous. Regina transferred the child into Granny's arms quickly before running toward the bathroom.
David and Granny exchanged a worried look that sprang the sheriff into action. He followed the woman he considered a friend. "Regina?" He called as he knocked on the door of the genderless bathroom. "Are you ok?" He heard flushing followed by the distinctive squeaking of the faucet. "Regina?" He called again after five long minutes.
David stepped back when he heard the lock on the door being pulled back. When Regina emerged from the bathroom, she was pale and shaky on her feet. David immediately wrapped his arm around her waist and helped her to the nearby wooden bench in the dimly lit corridor. "Are you alright?" He asked her again as he sat next to her.
Regina nodded. "Yeah. I'm sorry." She looked straight ahead of her at the small crack on the wall.
David gently moved her hair behind her ear before taking her hand. "Do you want to tell me what happened?"
"I just felt sick…" Regina answered evasively.
"Do you want to talk about it?"
Regina shook her head. "It's nothing."
After the last two sessions with Archie, David knew better than to push her. "Do you want to get some fresh air?" Another shake of the head. "Want me to leave you alone?" Regina hesitated before shaking her head again.
She squeezed his hand before taking a deep breath. "I just wasn't expecting Granny to ask…"
"About children?"
Regina sniffled before nodding quickly. "It's stupid. I'm sorry."
"Hey, it's not stupid and you don't have to apologize." He caressed her hand with the pad of his thumb. "I'm here if you want to talk and I'm here if you just want me to be here."
Regina nodded again. There were so many skeletons in her closet and every time she thought she had vanquished her demons, another one came. She was tired of fighting but she also knew this was only the beginning. "After our wedding, Leopold didn't take me on a honeymoon." She began. "We went to the hospital. He threatened a doctor to perform the surgery."
"What surgery?" David frowned.
Regina sobbed as she relived the moment that had sealed her fate. "Leopold didn't want any more children… he had my tubes tied!" She cried out. "I can never get pregnant."
David closed his eyes and swallowed the bile lurching from his stomach. He wrapped his arms around Regina and pulled her into his embrace. The brunette fisted his shirt and cried for the children she would never be able to have. "Once I got out of surgery… he… he said it was our wedding night. I was too weak to fight him and he…"
"Shhh…." David rubbed her back soothingly. How could someone be so cruel? He pressed a kiss to the back of her head and kept holding on to her as sobs shook her entire body. "I'm so sorry, Regina."
Regina buried her face into David's chest, trying to prevent her mind from conjuring the images of the first time Leopold had raped her. She could still feel the pain, compounded by the surgical procedure. "He took everything from me!"
"Regina, listen to me. He didn't take everything from you. He didn't take your will to fight nor your compassion. I promise to you that he'll get what he deserves."
"He took my future. I can never have a family of my own. Not after everything he did to me. Who would want me? Who would want someone unable to conceive?"
David swallowed hard. What could he possibly say to her to make her see how exceptional she was? "Regina, the question is not who would want you but who would be worthy enough to be in your life." David kissed her one more time, oblivious to the lawyer concealed in the darkness.
Gold smirked. Leopold was a true bastard but one that could make him even richer than he was. He also made a mental note to ask his client about this mysterious doctor, who could become a liability.
I'm sorry... Henry Sr will be in the next chapter.