The Secrets Her Heart Keeps

Chapter Twenty-Nine

Luckily, Regina still had Hope's car seat from when Snow asked her to watch her when Neal was sick. She buckled Hope in tight and drove home, where she could spend the next two hours with her baby before Emma comes over to take her back home for the night.

"Okay baby girl, we're home," she mumbles, kicking the door closed behind her and tossing her keys onto the side table.

Hope is the least bit interested in what she has to say because the sparkling silver necklace is fascinating her mind right now. Regina cradles the back of her head and kisses her forehead before walking swiftly into the living room. She magics a soft blanket on the floor and bends down to place Hope on it, so she can play, but Hope tightens her legs around her mother's waist, refusing to leave her arms.

She smiles at her baby and decides to sit down on the blanket herself. She rests her back against the couch and pulls her knees up to keep Hope balanced in her lap. Her fingers move to their own accord, sweeping those dark tresses to the side and smiling brightly as Hope continues to play with her necklace.

"I know you already have a mommy, actually I'm not even sure what Emma calls herself around you, mommy? Momma? Mom?" Hope resumes yanking on the chain lightly, uninterested in what her brunette mother has to say.

"Anyways, I know you don't know me, but I'm your mother too. I can be, momma, if Emma didn't claim that name yet," she softly whispers in the delicate space between them and watches as big brown eyes blink up to meet her gaze.

"Hi, baby girl," she softly coos, admiring the way her daughter's lips curl into a giddy grin that is the spitting image of Emma. "You're so stinking cute, I could eat you up," she gushes, cupping those pudgy cheeks and kissing the tip of her nose.

"I wonder if you even have a middle name?" She mindlessly rambles on, allowing her necklace to steal her daughter's attention once again.

"I'm going to kill your mother if she named you after Snow," she playfully teases. "I'm sure she did, but that's okay, I love that woman. Just don't ever tell her that, okay? That's our first little secret together."

Hope babbles as she tugs harder on Regina's chain, attempting to gobble up the necklace. "No, no, Hope," she gently says, removing the chain from her tight grasp.

She leans over toward the diaper bag and rustles through the items until she finds some chew toys. "How about this one?" She offers a tan monkey with little rubber hands and feet to help soothe Hope's itchy gums.

Hope bounces animatedly and quickly reaches for her toy. She hastily shoves the rubber piece into her mouth and babbles happily around it. Regina smiles back at her and just takes a second to revel in the moment with her daughter. Her daughter.

"Does mommy sing to you?" Hope's baby garble continues, but her big brown eyes are focused on Regina's face this time. "Do you like Wheels on the Bus?" Hope squirms and bounces more in her lap while she holds her little sides in place. "How about Itsy Bitsy Spider?" Hope removes the monkey from her mouth and shakes him violently before tossing him to the floor.

"I hate that I don't know anything about you, but I promise that's all going to change," she vows, stealing another kiss from her little forehead.

~~~~~~

"Hey," Emma timidly greets her as she steps across the threshold of the mansion. "Hi, Hope," she ecstatically acknowledges their daughter, her entire face lighting up with Hope's mirroring the same expression. Emma holds out her hands and their daughter leaps from Regina's embrace into her other mother's. "Hi, my sweet girl," she gushes, peppering her cheek with forceful kisses that produce the sweetest baby giggles.