"Looks like we're the chosen ones over Christmas," Robin commented as he looked over the rota they hadn't had a chance to peruse earlier with the crowd of late nighters that had quite suddenly piled in and ruined their plans of finishing at a reasonable time. It was now 3am and they'd just about finished cleaning the place up ready for the morning staff to arrive in a mere 4 hours' time.

Regina sighed, throwing down the cloth she'd been using to clean the bar top and moving to peer over his shoulder. "I knew it," she shook her head with a tired scowl, "Gold is such an asshole."

"Oh, I don't know," Robin grinned as he swayed enough to nudge her hip with his own, "if I had to be stuck working with anyone over Christmas, I'm glad it's you."

Her cheeks flamed even as she rolled her eyes and replied, "Be real," moving to grab her cloth once more and hide how his words had her so affected, "you're just glad it's not Zelena."

He chuckled, reattaching the rota to the clipboard he'd taken it from and slipping it back into the space beside one of the tills before he moved to lean against the pass-through, watching as she reassembled the newly cleaned coffee machine in front of him. "Whilst that is true," she scoffed and threw him a look over her shoulder before turning back to her task, "I do mean it, Regina. I always enjoy working with you. We just work."

"It's because we're the sanest people in this place!"

"You? Sane!?" he teased, catching the cloth she promptly turned and threw at him in feigned retaliation, "I beg to differ, short stuff."

"I am not short!"

He levelled her with a look that echoed his earlier sentiment of disbelief before he shrugged and told her, "It's nothing to be ashamed of," his eyes travelled the length of her before meeting her gaze once more, "I think you're cute." Her lips parted as she sucked in a gasp, completely offended, "pocket sized."

She moved to banter back, he could see it in those lovely eyes but, instead, she merely shook her head and raised her palms. "I'm not rising to it," she narrowed her eyes at him, "that's exactly what you want me to do."

"Oh, come on," he whined, taking a step closer to her as she folded her arms over her chest and leaned further back against the counter, "don't spoil it!"

She rolled her eyes at him, "You're such a child."

"And you," he chuckled as he drew toe to toe with her, lowering his voice to a whisper as he leaned in, "need to have more fu-"

She closed the distance between them, joining their lips in a kiss that was long overdue and lingeringly sweet. Her palms lifted slowly to cup his jaw as their lips parted only to close around one another's again and Robin brought an arm around her waist to pull her tighter to him.

Their breaths were ragged pants by the time they pulled apart, both equally affected but it wasn't until Robin began to chuckle that Regina was pulled fully back into the present as she frowned at him.

"What are you laughing at?" hurt coloured her eyes as embarrassment flamed upon her cheeks.

He was quick to assuage her worry, however, when he ducked down to steal another kiss from her lips, waiting until she began to kiss back before he parted from her once more and brought his other hand from behind her, revealing a bottle of whiskey from the shelf to her right. "I was just going to suggest a quick drink before we locked up for the night," he nudged his nose against hers, grinning at the realisation on her face before he brushed his lips lightly over hers and whispered, "but your idea was much better."