In The Depths Of Her Soul

Chapter Thirty-Two

The tip of her nose is bright red matching the tinge highlighting her cheekbones, putting Rudolph to shame. Her golden locks are covered by a grey, knit beanie that Regina can only assume is older than she is. She crouches down in the fresh, powdery snow and holds the sled firmly for their children to climb aboard all while Regina's heart swells with a type of love that steals her breath away.

Henry settles down on the back of the plastic sled and helps Evie sit down in front of him. They both beam at Emma with nothing but excitement dancing in their eyes and mile-wide grins.

"Okay ma, we are ready!" Henry confidently states, his arms wrapping around Evie's puffy purple jacket.

"Alright, kiddos," Emma enthuses, her boots dipping further into the snow as she makes her way behind their children. Her gloved hands grip the bottom of the sled and she tugs the heavyweight toward her own body. "One," she excitedly counts, sliding the sled forward the slightest bit. "Two." Another jerk toward herself. "Three!" She screams into the night air and pushes the sled forward with all the strength those sculpted arms can manage.

And Regina must say, now that Jack is out of the picture, her girlfriend has been eating right, not starving herself, and working out regularly, and that physique is something a Greek God dreams of.

However, her daydreaming is interrupted by her daughter's scream of pure joy. Henry is giggling, but he's holding on even tighter as if she will save him from any future falls. Emma pops up next to her, cupping her own hands, blowing her hot breath into the gloves.

"What the hell? The kids are on spring break!" Emma grumbles.

"Welcome to Chicago, dear," she sarcastically quips through a sly smirk.

This is nothing new for their town, in fact, she has seen snow fall all the way up until the middle of April. Sometimes in the middle of February, when some of the coldest days occur, they could endure temperatures around seventy-five degrees. Seasons mean nothing to The Windy City.

"I don't like it," Emma scoffs, slowly swaying closer into Regina's side.

Her heart races from the simple action alone and she wishes she could tug her girlfriend into a heated kiss, that would surely warm their chilly bones, but she knows that would just make Emma feel uncomfortable. So instead, she lightly bumps her shoulder into hers and smiles playfully.

They turn their attention back to their children, who have now vacated the sled at the bottom of the hill. They are laying in the snow, their contagious giggles echoing through the night while they create snow angels.

"Do you think they've had enough?" Emma questions, her body scooting a little closer to hers once again. "I'm frozen solid," she whines.

She glances over at her girlfriend a little baffled by her proximity, considering the confession about public affection not too long ago. She takes a quick gander around the park and notes that they are the only people out there tonight. And Emma must feel safe enough to at least cuddle next to her to steal her warmth.

"I'm sure they are growing tired," she answers, watching the duo abandon their angels and begin creating snowballs instead. "It is getting rather late."

A cold, wet drop lands on the tip of her nose prompting her head to fall back to inspect the midnight blue sky above. A few glowing white snowflakes descend from above, inspiring a smile to grace her plump lips.

She peeks out of the corner of her eye to discover her girlfriend enthralled with the snowfall as well. She's absolutely stunning with her glossy green eyes and rosy cheeks and Regina's finding it rather difficult to keep a safe distance in the moment.