If there was a thing that Regina Mills has never been in the three decades that composed her life, it was a sentimentalist.

Sure, she has loved and she has cared deeply about people, and there was no doubt in her mind that she would give her right arm away without an ounce of hesitation, if it meant to ensure the well-being of those she considered important enough in her life, but she would be lying if she said she was what one would call affectionate.

Cold, distant… sometimes even bitchy… according to a lot of people, those were the adjectives that actually described her better.

She didn't deny it, as that was the image she has always portrayed and dwelling in that area was her comfort zone.

That was the way it has always been, and ever since she could remember, Zelena always bugged her about it. She said that the youngest of the Mills had a heart of steel and a blackened soul and in retaliation, Regina would fire back and accuse her sister of being ridiculously mawkish and what was worse, annoyingly clinging.

That has been a point of eternal fight between them, even if according to her father, both statements had a little bit of truth to them. First, because Zelena was intense in the aspect of always being all over the people she was close to and second, because Regina was a bit dry and has always struggled when it came to letting her true feelings out.

But everyone who really knew her, and yes, that included Zelena, knew that Regina didn't act like that because she didn't feel things, or because she didn't care. No, they knew, that when it came to project what was inside of her, she was a hell of a lot reserved.

She usually withheld, and she did it a lot…

But in that afternoon, with the sun shining bright in the bluest sky she has ever seen, and with the fresh ocean breeze making her hair swirl wild, she couldn't help but to have this weird sensation that her chest was going to burst if she didn't let all of what she was feeling out.

It was an overwhelming thing, the pressure in her chest wanting to rip her ribcage apart so strong she couldn't even breathe.

Still, she didn't let her emotions pour out. At least not verbally, as she was too shaken to talk; but she guessed that in a way, she was externalizing all of what she was feeling by tightening her hold on Robin so hard she was sure her arms were going to ache afterwards.

And if her arms didn't end up sore, his neck definitely would.

What could she say? For some strange reason, it was as if holding him and pressing her mouth to his wasn't quite enough. No… she needed more to reassure herself, to convince her mind that he was indeed there, that after spending two months thinking about him, he was finally real to her. It was crazy… for him to be so tangible, and the only way to make sure that she wasn't dreaming it, was to feel every fiber of what she was press so very close against him.

"Regina-" He started to say in a strangled whisper against her lips as his hands moved from her waist and up her back.

His tone was a bit serious, and at first, the brunette thought he meant to pull apart from her, that he had enough of the embrace and wanted to break it off.

But when he instead reciprocated the hold with the same intensity, all that was left for her to do was close her eyes tight shut and breath out in relief.

Sure, for all she knew, he could be there to take her back, to arrest her as the fugitive that she was and just throw her back in jail; but if that was the price to pay to feel him like this, hugging her back when he was in all his right to hate her guts, then so be it.

It was just that… ugh, she has thought of him so damn much over the past couple of months, drowning into a sea of regrets over the way she left him bleeding out so this… whatever it was that was about to happen, simply felt like a blessing.

Maybe it would end bad, who knew? But just in case, she decided to milk it for all it was worth it.

"You're here." She mumbled at last, her mouth moving to the corner of his lips so that she could press a kiss there. Then, she was back at hiding her face into the hollow of his neck.

He let her do that, his arms firm around her as she breathed into his scent.

For the longest while that was all she did, hold on as if she wanted to absorb all of his essence into her. It was only when the need to look at him was stronger than her need to feel him, that she pulled a bit away. Just enough to be able to fix her eyes into his blue stare.

"How did you find me?"

Feeling the warmness of his eyes moving all over face, Regina watched as Robin drew in a breath.

His hands were still on her, settling back down to her waist; but there was still that serious shadow on his face she recognized as him being in full CO mode.

She has seen it before, way too many times, and more often that not she saw him like this when he was about to throw her into solitary…

"Playa Conchal, Costa Rica… you told me you'd be here." He said in a low tone that gave nothing away about what he was thinking.

Now, it took Regina a couple of seconds to remember that she has indeed told him this would be her ideal spot if she ever escaped, and that when he told her she was putting him on a tight spot by telling him about it, she suggested he could join her.

That felt like ages ago, but she could clearly remember how she has held her breath, hoping for Robin to say that yes, that he would go with her.

He didn't say it, probably even dismissed her words as her talking empty dreams, but boy oh boy, she has meant all of it.

"Now I wasn't sure the invitation was real or if it still stood, but…"

Before he could even finish that sentence, Regina dragged her lips back to his mouth and kissed him, her lips molding to his in the most perfect of ways.

It came naturally, this one… so unlike that previous sloppy union of their lips that never progressed into a genuine kiss.

But this one? It was just starting, and it was already making her heart swell and beat so hard she felt it ringing in her ears.

It was as she felt like that, that tilting his head to the right and moving his hands into her hair, Robin found his way into her mouth, and just as she has dreamed it so many times since they parted ways, he stroked his tongue to hers.

He did it firmly, but at the same time so tenderly that she felt like melting, and if it wasn't because he was holding her so close, she was sure she would have done so.

If anything, that only increased her need to have him close so she kissed him deeper, stealing each and every one of his breaths to drink them as her own.

They did that for a while, kiss in the middle of the almost deserted beach, hands gripping and both their lips becoming more demanding, hungrier.

Now yes, it was good, he felt good… and finally having him there was satiating that innate need to have him close that has been bubbling deep within her for so long. It even prompted her own hands into roaming from his back to his shoulder and then up into his hair; but because there were so many things she wanted to tell him before embarking into anything else, she slowly pulled away.

It was easy, she wanted to apologize, to let him know that there was not a single day she hadn't thought about him, that there was not a moment when she didn't regret the way she left him at the prison… but when it was time for her to voice the words out, they got stuck in the back of her throat and all she could do was stare deep into his eyes.

"Well… I'm going to assume by that kiss that you don't necessarily hate seeing me here."

As he said that, a shaky snort that was born in the deepest part of her being escaped through her mouth as she slid one of her hands to his cheek. "Are you serious? I will never hate having you near… Robin."

He, on the other hand? God, he should really, really hate her.

She was after all the reason he almost died a couple of months ago. Shit… he was probably still healing…

But not wanting to ruin the moment so soon by addressing the messed up manner in which they parted ways, Regina searched for his hand and started to move from the spot they have been glued to.

"Come here."

They have been too exposed, so wanting to change that, she guided him to the place she has set a blanket and some snacks for Lily to lay down if she ever got tired of playing around.

It was a good spot to be because it was partly hidden, that was why she picked it, so it actually made it the perfect place for them to sit and have a talk without someone seeing them if they happened to walk by.

In her predicament as a fugitive, this was a very important aspect of her every day life, to lay low… which now turned to be very convenient when it came to this private one of one with Robin.

As for the man himself, if he found it odd, he didn't say it, he just followed her without protesting. That was all he did, walk by her side until she motioned him to sit down over the soft fabric covering the sand.

No words, no reproaching questions… he just stared at her as if he couldn't believe it was really her.

She recognized the look because it was the same one in her eyes.

"So are you alright?" She asked, licking her lips almost nervously.

He shrugged, his eyes narrowing a little. "I'm alive."

Yes, he was, and damn… after all of what happened, it felt surreal to have him actually be there. It was like the peak point of a movie that meant to have a happy ending… finally.

Now, she wasn't sure if that was her case, but she did know that she would never again waste a second when it came to him.

It was with that thought in mind, that she moved closer and kissed him again.

And yes, she wanted to talk instead of just kiss him, but as if his lips on her worked some sort of sorcery, she was unable to stop once she started.

"God, I missed this. You can't even imagine how much-" She whispered against his mouth, but before she could go on, he pressed her even closer against him, his tongue pushing into her mouth, stroking, swirling… everything he could ever do until she moaned in appreciation.

Victim to the circumstances she created, Regina moved from her spot and climbed on top of him, straddling him while her lips kept searching for his.

"I wanted you here since day one."

He didn't reply, but angling his face, Robin met her lips and kissed her again, his hands grabbing her face to him and his tongue parting its way into her mouth once more.

For a long while they kissed without thinking, breaths mingling together, hands roaming everywhere they could and bodies molding to one another.

It was too much, she was aware, but after thinking him lost to her, all she wanted now was to feel him close, to kiss him until she would get dizzy.

He apparently had the same thought and in his quest to bring her nearer, his hands went underneath her dress, finding her ass immediately to grind her against him.

She found him impossibly hard against her, the rough fabric of his jeans rubbing deliciously against the wet spot between her legs. It made her gasp, and as a response, he kissed her even harder.

But then, when they were both getting a bit carried away, someone they were definitely not expecting interrupted them by clearing her throat and surprised by the intrusion, they pulled away, staring dumbly at the blonde that was pointing a gun at them.

It was a quick thing, one moment she was kissing Robin and thriving from the sensations he was provoking, and the next one, her mind was spiraling out of control.

It came like a collage of images invading her… images of Robin being followed by Gold, Emma and even Cruella to ambush her… but then, as her eyes adjusted and her mind cleared, she saw what was going on and understood.

"Fuck, Regina!" The woman almost yelled, putting the gun down. "You scared the shit out of me. Lily came running into the house, telling me you sent her to tell us to move and I almost crapped my panties. I thought they got you, and it turns out you are here making out with…"

Holding her rambling there, Mal groaned.

"You know what, I don't know what pretty boy is doing here, but you scare me or Ruby like that again and I swear I'll kick both your buts."

With that said, her fellow fugitive puffed out a breath and left.

"Shit." Regina mumbled, a mixture of embarrassment and guilt eating her inside out and making her slump against Robin.

Grabbing her face with both hands, the blue-eyed man lifted her chin up and placed one final kiss to her mouth.

"Alright, I think that was a good call to slow down…"

"Iknow." Regina responded, because it was obvious they needed to talk. But even though she said that, she closed her eyes and bumped her nose against his.

It was a simple thing, even chaste, but because he was still holding her face to him, his breath on her lips made her swallow on dry.

Opening her eyes, she smiled softly. "I can't believe you are here."

He didn't smile back. "Honestly? I can't either. This wasn't exactly on my plans. By all rights I should be on England right now… leaving this, you… and all of what happened buried in the past."

Now she wasn't going to lie, what he said about how she was something he wanted to leave behind stung quite a bit, but in all sense of being fair, she understood.

She has done nothing but to fuck his life, over and over again… so it wasn't really a surprise he felt that way.

"So why aren't you there?"

Twisting his mouth, Robin settled his eyes deep into hers. One of his hands was still under her dress, tracing lazy patterns on the flesh that wasn't covered by her underwear, and for some reason, that made her shiver.

"I don't know. I was going to, I even had my way one ticket back home already; but when I was about to board that plane, I just couldn't do it. I had you right here…" He said, pointing at his temple almost angrily. "All the bloody time, so even if I didn't want to… or how much I thought the last thing you wanted was to see me, I just… let the plane go. Next thing I knew I was here, looking for you."

Unable to stop herself, Regina pecked his lips, a wicked part of her feeling content that even though he didn't want to, his heart brought him to her.

Now she just needed to make him see why he should stay.

"I did want you here. God knows I would have stayed there with you just to know you were okay. These past few months all I have ever thought was about that, about how I shouldn't have left you. Jesus Robin… I am so so sorry."

Closing her eyes because they were starting to water, Regina drew in a shaky breath. It calmed a little the need to cry her eyes out, but it did nothing to ease down the frantic beating of her heart.

But because she needed to talk and plead her case, she went on.

"I would take it all back, all of it, just so you wouldn't have ended up hurt."

His hand went to the back of her head, and even when he didn't say anything to what she just told him, he kissed her.

First long and deep and then moving his mouth to her jaw, his lips trailing down her neck. He gave her a few wet kisses like that, over her pulse point and she threw her head back, loving the way his tongue found all the sensitive spots of her skin.

She wanted to talk, yes, but that right there made her mind become a mess. All of a sudden, all she could concentrate in was in the air cooling every time he left one spot to find another; underneath her jaw, below her ear, down the column of her throat…

"I don't know what you are doing to me. I shouldn't be here, let alone like this. But I see you and all I want is to kiss you, to have you."

Regina hummed because the raspy tone in which he spoke did things to her, but then, as if that wasn't enough, his hand traveled its way down to the apex of her thighs so that he could brush his hand against her wetness and she was lost.

It made her gasp, especially when his index finger slipped inside the fabric of her panties to touch her more intimately.

He probed a little, her legs automatically spreading for him and yes, they shouldn't be doing that in that moment and let alone out there, but she wasn't strong enough to stop him.

He felt too good, so hot, as if his finger was molten lava. That was why she was burning, why she was melting under his touch.

"Is this okay?" He breathed out, the ball of his finger running from her dripping entrance and up to her aching clit.

"Yes…" Regina moaned, the word barely above a whisper.

She wanted him to go on, she even needed it, true, but she also wanted to do this right. It was because of that, that she pulled her next move.

"But let's go into the house. It's not that far… and we could really talk there."

Without stopping his tantalizing touch on her, Robin bit into his lips. By then, the tip of his finger was about to enter her… she could almost feel it slipping… and despite her previous words, she rocked her hips into his hand.

The movement made him go in, all the way, tearing a moan out of her.

"You sure I won't get shot in there, I mean… that would be kind of anti-climatic."

Gasping because talks about him getting shot took her into a really dark place, Regina narrowed her eyes. "Robin-"

"Yeah, I know." He pulled his hand out, his tongue clicking to the roof of his mouth. "Let's do the house thing."

Nodding and climbing off of him, Regina gathered everything up. She was for some reason shaking, so she was glad when he helped her, carrying most of the things all the way into the house she shared with Mal, her daughter and Ruby.

Luckily, they didn't find anyone as they walked in, so taking him up to her room was done without any kind of problem.

"Well… this is definitely an improvement." He said once the door was closed. He did it while looking around the spacious room. "I mean, it's better than the last place you were in."

Regina saw him do it, his eyes roaming slowly around and stopping over the balcony that faced the ocean.

"Guess it was worth almost losing my life for it."

And there it was, the bitter reproach she has been both waiting and fearing.

"You know I didn't mean for things to happen the way they did. You weren't even supposed to be there… that was the one thing I made sure of before going on with the plan."

Robin nodded, his eyes still looking out the window as he bit absentmindedly onto his lips.

"You know… I'm not sure that makes me feel any better, and it's another one of the things that keeps going around in my head. I've had a lot of time to think about everything and we were together that same morning, Regina; you knew what was going to happen and you still let me be with you like it was nothing… even made me think we fixed things; but all the while you were just planning to leave without even giving me a warning."

Her jaw clenched because yes, she blindsided him that day. But what could she say? It wasn't like he didn't know she was planning to escape.

"You knew I wanted to get out, that my life depended on it."

He blinked at her words, his right hand going up to scratch down his neck. When he was done, he let the hand fall back to his side. "You want to know why I was there? Because the moment I heard the library caught fire, I immediately thought of you. First thing to cross my mind was to get there and make sure you were okay. So yes, I knew you wanted out and that whatever we had meant nothing to you-"

"That's not true."

"-but giving me a heads up maybe would have prevented me from getting shot in your escape plan."

Sucking in a shaky breath, Regina felt her chess tighten. There was a whole sea of guilt flooding her, insides and she wasn't sure if she could keep afloat.

"You are right, and I'm sorry. You can't even imagine how much. I had Gold on my toes and I was desperate and needed out so yes, I did what I did, but don't you ever think for a second that I did it that way because I didn't care about you. I do… and I did, and that's why I didn't want you involved."

Robin shook his head, his jaw clenching, and Regina had the impression he was mentally getting ready to walk out on her.

"What I said, about taking it all back. I would do it, in an instant if that meant you wouldn't get hurt because of me."

This time, he did look at her, but just as he did when she first saw him at the beach, there was a somber expression taking over his features. "I meant what I said too, about not wanting you in my head, you know?"

Blinking slowly, she said nothing. There was nothing to say.

"I don't even know why I came here… why I dropped everything to find you. It certainly wasn't to throw things in your face because yes, I get it. I get it more than anyone, as I knew who was on your toes back in prison and trust me, I would have taken all the bullets in the world if it meant keeping you safe. But I just… I definitely didn't appreciate the gaslighting and now… I'm confused, what I know and what I feel is… they are too whole different things and now I have you here and I don't know what to do."

Walking to him and acting out of an impulse, Regina reached for his hand. "Then don't think about it… just do what you feel."

Exhaling forcefully and using his tongue to push insistently on the inside of his lips, Robin shook his head once again; but then, apparently doing as she said, he closed the short distance that separated them and kissed her.

It happened fast, one second his mouth was seeking hers and the next one he was lifting her up, his hands resting underneath her ass cupping the cheeks possessively and pressing her into him.

Regina didn't waste any time and kissed him back, her arms going around his neck to keep him close.

That way, he took her to bed, putting her down on top of the mattress and quickly following the descent of her body with his.

Meanwhile, he never stopped kissing her, his tongue rolling over hers as his hands searched for her dress to pull up.

It was only to take her clothes off that he hit pause on the kiss, and Regina took the moment to do the same, grabbing the hem of his shirt and bringing it over his head and away from his body.

Once off, his mouth was back on hers and her hands started to roam his skin like she was trying to smooth it out.

They went to the nape of his neck and then slowly started to slide down, her fingers enjoying everything, from his strong shoulders to the smoothness of his skin rippling with the movements of his muscles.

As that happened, Robin's mind went completely blank, as he decided not to give things so much though. It wasn't worth it… to keep dwelling on the past or obsessing about what could happen when he could simply live right in that moment.

He found her, after a hellish week where he was sure he lost his mind for arriving to Costa Rica on a hunch, he finally found her and she apparently has been thinking about him as much as he has been doing about her.

And what was better, there was no sign of the supposedly boyfriend that almost sent him to hell two months ago.

Taking on those little victories, Robin felt her hands clasp to the back of his neck as she pulled him down to kiss him deeper, apparently not wanting to lose that contact.

He gave her what she wanted, a deeper kiss that almost left him breathless, and the more he did that, the longest his tongue moved with hers, the more he was sure this was how it was all meant to be.

Yes, it was messed up… but it also felt so right… it made him feel alive after almost two long months where he only moved and breathed by instinct.

Now what was making him feel alive was her. He has tried not to feel it… but it was undeniable now… and what was making his blood run through his veins was her, this woman that has somehow interrupted the course of his life in all possible ways.

Thriving on the feeling, the former correctional officer reached behind her and unclasped the lacy bra covering the swell of her breast, figuring that this was where the encounter was headed.

She didn't seem to mind, even helped him by pulling it out of her to toss on the floor.

Once out of the way, she pulled him even closer, her breasts pressed up against his chest as the kissing continued.

She felt heavenly, more than what he remembered so without wasting the opportunity, he made his right-hand sweep over her right breast, his fingers flickering at the nipple a little bit, helping it stiffen before his thumb grazed across it, rubbing it gently in soft circles.

By then, he was hard as steel inside his jeans and the pressure was killing him. It made him feel on edge, especially when her hips would teasingly buck off the mattress so that her groin could make contact with his.

"I want you… so bad."

"Fuck Regina-" He started to say as she moaned against his mouth, her hands going to his pants so that she could begin the process of getting them off.

It was a bit of a struggle, and when the belt was off and both the zipper and the button were undone, his eyes closed tight shut, his brain trying to hold for dear life into one last vestige of coherency before he would completely fell off the edge.

There was no turning back after this, because he was sure that if he gave into it, he would never want to leave again.

"I've wanted to have you like this for so long," She said in the sultriest of tones once her hand was inside his pants, searching for him.

"Yeah?"

"Mmm yes, dreamt of it so many times… it was crazy, missing this." The desperation in her voice hit him hard.

Then, her fingers were wrapped firmly over his erection and that was it for him. Whatever trace of coherency in him vanished with that touch and all he could do was moan against her mouth.

What could he say? She was stroking him, her hand smoothly going all the way down to the base of his cock and then going up his shaft, reaching the crown of it before sliding down again.

It was so good that he let her do it for a while, his lips raining kisses down her collarbone, up her chin and just about anywhere his lips would reach.

But needing more, he pulled away and leaned up on one of his knees to completely take off the rest of his clothes. He did the same with her, sliding her panties down her legs, leaving her completely naked before him and God, she was a vision come true.

"Come here." She purred, lifting her leg up to his hip, the invitation clear.

He looked at her, saw how her eyes were hooded and filled with lust and that made him twitch in anticipation. That was how, without thinking it twice, he made his way to her, accommodating himself right between her legs.

He slipped inside her slowly, hissing at the warm way in which her velvety core gripped around him.

"Fuck… you shouldn't feel so good." He shouldn't want her so bad. And still there he was, his arms trembling as held away the need to just fuck her hard and fast.

But no, he wouldn't last too long if he did that so he took a deep breath and tried not to get too carried away by she gravelly way in which she moaned as he seated himself inside of her.

Once completely in, he kept them like that for a second, his eyes digging deep into her clouded stare.

Gone was the franticness of their lust, instead replaced with an intimacy both craved for far too long.

"Shit Robin…"

"I know."

He moved inside of her, and it was slow at first, his hips setting on a soft but steady rhythm that had him seeing starts, but then her hips rose up to meet him and their pace gradually grew until they both couldn't get enough of one another.

Regina moaned, her eyes rolling because Robin was somehow hitting all right places, every spot inside her body and that quickly had her arching her hips to meet his every thrust.

It was so good, and she let him know by gripping harder against him and kissing him almost desperately, her tongue swirling over his as her hands touched all of him that she could.

And the more they kissed, the stronger he would push into her, his cock deliciously sliding in and out of her, parting into her and like lighting, leaving a path of fire that ran into the deepest part of her existence.

She came undone like that, in a frenzy, burning on the wake of his kisses, her insides melting and her limbs turning to rubber.

She mumbled his name like that, asking him not to stop, telling him how good he felt, how bad she has missed this… him.

In response, he confessed how much he loved having her like that… how he couldn't get her off his head.

He didn't have to, shouldn't had to fight it when they could be forever like that instead… she told him…

And it was as that exchange took place, that his thrusts become erratic and Regina knew he was close too.

"I want to feel you come inside of me… please let me feel you- oh."

"Ah, Fuck..." Blowing out a breath, Robin buried his face into her neck as he reached his pinnacle.

It was breathtaking. His weight on her, his scent around her and his essence spilling warm and so deep into her.

She was so sure she loved him right in that moment, when he was all hers.

She didn't tell him though, as they still had a lot to fix, but it felt good to finally realize how deep her feelings ran… it was in a way liberating.

When it was over, he stayed inside her, resting against her comfortably.

Regina held him, her fingers trailing down the back of his neck and for a while, neither one spoke. She just stroked his hair lightly as his breath settled against her neck.

"You could stay here, you know?" She said at last and at those words, he lifted his face to look at her, the blue of his eyes as bright as she has ever seen them. "We can be together…"

"And do what, live as fugitives?"

Licking her lips, Regina moved her hand to his face. "Yeah… I think we could do just that. I mean, it's better than living in a prison and having to sneak into closets just to kiss. Or I don't know, you throwing me into solitary… after being hosed down or to keep me from getting murdered in a dirty corridor."

"Regina…"

Sensing that he was going to say no, she sucked in a breath, her thumb tracing the outline of his lips.

"You know I-"

"I know, and it's okay, you don't have to do it if you don't want to. Just… never mind what I just said."

Blinking a couple of times, he pushed a bit harder against her, probably to prevent his cock to slip out of her.

"I do want to stay… I shouldn't, and you know that… but I do want to."

"Then stay." She blurted out. "We'll make it work, and I'll-"

Not letting her finish, Robin pressed his mouth into hers, silencing whatever it was that she was going to say.

When he pulled away, he was looking so intently into her eyes that she was left breathless.

"You know I love you, right? And I can't do this, if it's just a game to you."

Gasping at such confession, Regina felt her heart do a summersault inside her chest.

"It's not a game. I… love you too. I mean, I think I do… well I'm kind of pretty sure."

He frowned, but there was a slight curve gracing his lips that almost resembled a smile.

"That… doesn't feel too convincing."

Regina snorted, her eyes closing as one of her hands went to slap her own face.

God, she was such an idiot. There he goes telling her he loved her and instead of coming clean about how she felt, she managed to fuck it up.

Opening her eyes, she sighed. "What I mean is… I do love you, and this is not a game. I want you to stay, more than anything else in this world."

Nodding, Robin lowered his eyes to her lips, his hand settling once again on her breast. Maybe she was crazy, but she could feel him stirring back to life inside of her. "Is that so?"

She just nodded and yes, by the way he rolled his hips into hers, she knew that he was back to hard in her.

"Guess that I will have to stay then." With that, he kissed her deep, and Regina was simply lost into the promise of their future together…

-Fin-

So here it is, thanks so much for the support for this story, it really meant a lot!