Outlaw Queen One Shots

Counting On

The wailing echoed through the monitor, piercing the ears of the exhausted parents.

Both awoke with a start, sighing. She kept her eyes closed and groaned. She was exhausted. He was, as well, she knew; being new parents was difficult and the wonder had rubbed off, especially now that they were running on two hours worth of sleep, at most, per night.

She rolled to her side and buried her face in his shoulder. He rubbed her back, sensing her tiredness and feeling much the same.

"How about we take this one together, love?" He suggested quietly and she nodded against him. They rolled to opposite sides of the bed and she followed him to the nursery.

He turned on the soft lamp in the corner as his beloved wife retrieved the screaming baby girl from her crib. She cradled the child in her arms and swayed back and forth to rock her, calming her a bit, but not enough to silence the tears.

Regina sighed and turned to face her husband, who watched her lovingly as he leaned against the changing table.

"Let's go downstairs," she suggested, and Robin responded with a nod, placing a steadying hand on her back to help her down the flight of stairs.

They walked into the home office and sat in the chair in the corner. Robin pulled Regina to sit comfortably between his legs, their feet propped on the ottoman. She pulled down the spaghetti strap of her silk nightgown, exposing her plump breast. The baby latched on immediately and Regina lay her head back against her husband's shoulder. He wrapped his arms around her waist, helping to support the baby.

He placed soft kisses to her shoulder as her breathing soon evened out. He watched her as she slept while feeding their daughter, watched the little girl has her tiny fist curled in a strand of Regina's hair against her chest.

Finally, the baby was finished and pulled away. Robin pulled the dress strap back up over Regina's shoulder and gently shook her awake.

"Hm...?" She mumbled, peeling her eyes open.

"She's finished, sweet pea, and she's fallen back asleep. We can take her back up to the nursery now and go back to bed."

"Mmkay," she whispered as she heaved herself up off the chair, Robin close behind to steady her tired body.

He took the baby from her and insisted she head to bed while he took the child to the nursery. She reluctantly agreed and trudged down the hall, flopping onto the bed just as Robin was entering the room. He shut the door behind him gently and laid next to her. Her half-asleep self rolled closer to him and cuddled against his chest.

"Robin?" She whispered.

"Regina," he whiskered back in response.

"I now Josie's only eight months old, and it would be a bit soon because of that, but I'm not saying it has to happen now, or at all if you don't want to, I was just thinking-"

"Regina, love. Stop rambling and get to the point. You've no reason to be nervous," he said and brushed his lips lightly against her forehead.

She signed, pulling closer to him.

"I suppose what I'm trying to say is... I want to have another baby with you. If you want that as well, that is. And like I said, it doesn't have to happen now, we can wait. Unless you don't want to wait, then it can happen any time. But if you don't want another baby, we do-"

He cut her off yet again, this time by pressing a soft kiss against her plump lips. His fingers found her long raven locks and twirled them in his fingers. He broke the kiss and spoke with his lips brushing hers, "I would love to have another child with you, Regina. I was just thinking about bringing that up, actually."

He felt her smile against his mouth and rolled gently on top of her. He rested his forehead against hers as her lips found his once again. His hand came to rest against her cheek, thumb gliding across the bone just under her eye. He realized after a moment that her face was wet, and pulled back from the kiss to look at her.

"Why are you crying, my love?"

"I'm happy. Really happy."

He chuckled and wiped her tears away, kissing her forehead and moving back to lay on his side next to her. She scooted closer to him, fitting her head in the crook of his neck.

"I love you," she whispered.

"I love you, too, baby," he whispered back.

They were happy. Their family was growing, and that is all either had ever wanted. This was their happy ending, and they were living the dream.