Page 11 of Snows Sinful Seven

“So.” She looks around. “We gonna hang out here all day or what?” She laughs.

“Right, sorry.” I need air and some space... now.

Opening the door, I give it a firm push. We stumble out into the forest. “Did we just come out of a tree?” she asks, eyes widening when she turns around to see where we just came from.

“Yup.” I grin. “Pretty cool, right?”

“Very.” She smiles over at me.

Quickly, I put the door back into place. “Come on. We have to go.” I take a glance around, not seeing anyone. “This way.”

We run through the woods, the fallen leaves crunching beneath our feet as we go.

My heart pounds as the blood pumps through my body, pure adrenaline coursing through my veins. I smile over at her.

She grins back, and we both burst into laughter, something about it feels freeing to the soul.

A lot has changed since Mama died. Most of it is for the worse. But I’ve never truly felt trapped behind the walls.

Regina has gone from having a little bit of freedom to having nothing at all.

I’m glad I can give that back to her. Even just for today.

Only when my lungs scream in protest do I stop running.

“That was wild,” she laughs, matching my pose as we lean over with our hands on our knees, catching our breath.

“We should be good now. My father’s men don’t venture too far from the palace,” I inform her, and she smiles. “What?” I laugh.

“I love how you talk.” She shrugs. “It’s so prim and proper.”

“Oh.” I guess she is right. Apart from what I’ve seen on TV and the time I’ve spent in the village, I’ve spent most of my time around the rich and classy. “I guess my pompous asshole is showing.” I grin.

Her eyes widen before she laughs. “Naughty little Princess.” My belly warms at her choice of words. “I sure do like the way you sound when you speak bad words.”

She’s flirting with me. Right? She has to be. Darn it. I have no idea. Doesn’t matter anyway, I shouldn’t even be entertaining these thoughts.

“I’ll try to say more sometime.” I laugh as we start to walk towards the path that leads to the village.

We’re quiet for a little while, just enjoying the view around us, as well as each other’s company.

When I look over to Regina, I find a look of worry on her face. “Is everything okay?” I ask her.

Her head snaps to the side as if my words startled her. “Yeah. Everything's good. Why, what's up?”

“You look... like you're lost in your own head. You know, you can tell me anything.”

She sighs heavily before looking out at the path before us. “I know I can,” she starts. “It’s just... things like this... it’s a little weird with the whole me-technically-being-your-stepmother thing.” She shudders at the thought before shooting me an awkward smile.

“Like what?”

She looks away again. “Like the fact the other day the King came to my room to have a talk.” She looks back at me. “It’s the first time I’ve seen him since the wedding.”

My eyes widen, but I say nothing as she continues.

Her eyes drift off into the distance. “I thought I got lucky. He was so busy with his... other women that I didn’t think he cared too much about me. I thought I was just a solid deal to gain an important ally and connection. I was a fool to think that my husband wouldn’t want more from me.”

“What did he say?” I ask, my voice low like I’m not sure I want to know the answer.

---