I know it's been so long since the last update! I'm truly sorry but life got busier.

Hope you like this chapter! Things between David and Regina will heat up in a couple of chapters!

Christmas

Regina was looking out the window at the snow-covered landscape. David was driving her to Portland so she could visit her father for the holidays. But with the trial set to start in the last week of January, she found herself unable to relax.

"Penny for your thoughts?" David asked her in an attempt to chase the dark cloud hanging over Regina's head.

The brunette jumped slightly and turned toward her driver. "It's nothing." She shook her head. "I'm just wondering what it will be like to spend Christmas with my father. When I was a little kid, we used to spend the evening watching movies and drinking hot chocolate until I fell asleep on his lap. He would wake me around midnight so I could open my presents."

"Sounds like fun!"

"It was." Regina smiled fondly. "My mother would make lunch the following day."

"My family used to go to church." David shared his own experience. "Then we would go to bed and wait until morning to open the presents. My parents would always ask us to give away one of our presents that we would take to the local church for the less fortunate kids."

Regina was surprised by the tradition. "I'm guessing it was hard to choose."

David winced slightly. "You've never seen my grandma's knitting skills…"

Regina laughed. "Oh, I see. So it wasn't all bad!"

David shrugged. "I think it taught us to share."

"What happened to your parents?" Regina couldn't remember meeting them when he and Mary-Margaret had started dating or at their wedding for that matter.

"My father died when I was five." David looked straight at the road. "After losing his job at the factory, he'd started to drink. During a heavy storm, his car swerved off the road and collided with a tree. My mother was never the same after that. She died of breast cancer as I was finishing high school."

"David, I'm sorry. I know holidays must be hard for you."

"I've started my own traditions." One that he wasn't looking forward to this year: dinner at Leopold's.

Regina looked at her hands. "Christmas…" She swallowed hard. "Leopold was always rougher after a few drinks."

David tools a deep breath. He had no idea what had happened to Regina after he and Mary-Margaret would leave the mansion. "I wish I could have helped you sooner."

The two remained silent for the rest of the drive. There was nothing to say: Regina also wished David had helped her sooner. And as much as the sheriff was blaming himself for not recognizing the signs, she was blaming herself for not talking to him when she had the chance.

Regina only spoke when David drove toward the passengers' drop off area. "Thank you for driving me."

He smiled at her. "You're welcome." David parked his truck near the sign announcing American Airlines and got out of the car. He grabbed Regina's suitcase from the truck's bed and carried it to the brunette waiting on the curb. "Have a safe trip." He wanted to hug her but he didn't know if the mark of affection would be returned. David was afraid that these would be their last goodbyes. He knew tha Regina was considering her father's offer to stay with him in New York.

Deciding against physical contact, David retrieved the small gift he had gotten her from his inside pocket. "Open it on Christmas." He said as he handed her the gift.

Stunned by the gesture, Regina took the gift carefully with both hands. "Thank you." She murmured, slightly embarrassed. "I didn't get you anything." She confessed. She barely had enough money to afford her plane ticket - she would never have allowed her father to pay for it- and a small gift for her father.

David finally closed the space between them and took her into his embrace. "Come back." He whispered to her. The wish screamed against everything his mind was telling him. He was married and had a baby. Regina was forbidden territory as far as he was concerned. Yet, he couldn't fathom not seeing her again. He'd grown fond of her. Much fonder than he should have.

David released Regina when he felt her tense. Although she had started to allow for more physical contacts, she still needed her personal space. "Goodbye, David." She answered simply as she pulled the handle on the suitcase that contained most of her belongings. "Merry Christmas." She wished with a forced smile before turning her back to David and heading to the terminal. Her father wanted her to come live with him. The offer was tempting. But so was the forbidden sheriff with the disarming smile and blue eyes that could see right through her soul.

David watched as Regina disappeared through the cheerful crowd, his mind reaching for the impossible dream. His relationship with Mary-Margaret was in shambles and despite the reassurances he had given his wife, David wasn't sure he wanted to put the pieces back together. He could barely recognize the woman he had married. How could she have let Regina be abused by her father for so long? Sure, she had tried to help her stepmother since Regina had moved out of the mansion and filed charges against her husband, but David couldn't shake the feeling that Mary-Margaret was doing the right thing because she had to. Not because she wanted to.

David was brought back to reality by the angry hunking of an Uber driver. Dejected, David climbed in his truck and started his long drive back to Storybrooke.

ECECEC

"David," Leopold started in a honey tone that sent shivers down David's spine, "why don't we make ourselves comfortable in the study while Snow changes Emma?"

David would rather be spending time with his baby girl's dirty diaper than the vile creature in front of him but David knew that the request was more of an order than an attempt at civility. Mary-Margaret looked at her husband intensely. She knew he didn't want to be here. She had begged him to come to the family dinner. Despite everything, her father was the only family she had left and she wasn't ready to let him go. And David suspected she might never be.

The man nodded before making his way toward the study. "Make yourself comfortable." Leopold added. "I have a bottle of bourbon that I've been keeping for the right occasion."

"That's very generous…" Before David could finish his objection, Leopold had already dashed toward the kitchen. Resigned to his fate, David spared one last look toward his wife climbing up the stairs with a screaming Emma. When he entered the study, David couldn't help but notice the feminine touches that were all Regina: the flower vase on top of the fireplace, the various framed diplomas and certificates Snow had earned throughout her life neatly arranged on the console near the door, and the embroidered pillows on the couch.

David wondered how much time Regina had spent down there, alone. She had told him that she liked to read and judging from the well-stocked library, David gathered she must have purchased most of these books. As he looked around the room, the papers spread out on the desk caught his attention.

David slowly closed the door behind him after making sure that Leopold wasn't about to return. He then walked toward the desk and read the first paper. His heart started beating faster in his chest when he realized he was looking at the contract between him and Cora, essentially selling Regina into a life of servitude. With shaky hands, David retrieved his cell phone and snapped pictures of all the papers on the desk.

As he sat down on the couch, Leopold entered the study with the infamous bottle of bourbon. David pretended to concentrate on his phone, frantically exiting his photo app. "Candy Crush!" He showed his screen to his father-in-law. "Who knew popping candies could be so entertaining?"

Leopold smiled back as all politicians do. "These bloody devices are going to torn all of us apart."

You have no idea. David thought. He couldn't wait to go home and read the rest of the paperwork.