Chapter Text
“Amor, would you hand me the…”
Before she had had the chance to reach the end of her sentence, she felt Gus sidle up behind her and smiled when he reached around her to add the cilantro she had chopped earlier to the pot of chicken soup she was stirring. He’d decided to help her out in la cocina this afternoon since, thanks to her hermana, there was a torrential downpour taking place outside which meant they had had no choice but to cancel their picnic plans. Initially, she’d been frustrated because they had been counting down the days all week and she had been excited for some alone time with him, but now she was actually glad this was the way things had turned out.
Her familia knew not to bother her while she was cooking since she liked to be the only one in the kitchen so she could concentrate, so they had been alone together all afternoon thus far. He had been helping her by washing and putting away the pots and utensils she’d finished up with, fetching her herbs and other ingredients she had been in need of, and just been there to watch her work and try it a number of times too. Although he had been wonderful and his help invaluable to her for the most part, there had been times when he’d been unable to help himself and he’d started nuzzling her neck.
She had indulged him for a while each time, leaning into him and chuckling when he found one of her weak spots, but she had told him to be good each time he’d turned his attention to her ears. For as long as she could remember, she’d been particularly sensitive there and she’d had no doubt that she would have lost her entire train of thought if he had gone that far. It would have been much less of an issue should they have been on their picnic, but since they were in the kitchen it was a risk she refused to take. They were surrounded by knives and scalding liquid and she could just picture the disaster.
The feeling of his hands settling upon her hips through her apron pulled her from her thoughts and she smiled when she felt the slight trembling of them. They had been courting for a little while now, but he was still slightly cautious when it came to their intimacy. He’d grown confident enough to kiss her on the cheek when he greeted her and when he brought her home following a date – well, following her climbing out of her bedroom window to meet him – but she knew a part of him was still worried he’d push his luck and make her uncomfortable. “Here,” She said gently, letting go of the spoon for just a moment so she could take his hands in her own and bring his arms to wrap snugly around her. “How does that feel?”
He tightened his hold of her with a smile. “Perfecto.”
Her face was inches from his and she could feel his breath on her skin when he spoke, prompting her gaze to fall to his lips before she caught herself and her cheeks burned when she looked up at him a second time. She hoped that it had gone unnoticed by him, but the fact his cheeks had gone almost as red as hers told her different. For some reason, she almost felt the need to apologize, but before she could open her mouth to do so he leaned in a little. He stopped right before their lips met and nudged his nose against her own, the two of them sharing one breath as she gazed up at him through her lashes and she swallowed.
“You can kiss me.” She whispered, her heart pounding within her chest.
“Ay, I want to,” He shook his head. “You don’t know how much, but…”
“But…?” She encouraged.
“Ugh, are you kidding me? Is no one safe in this casita anymore?”
The two of them all but leapt apart at the sound of Bruno’s outburst and looked his way, the sight of him standing there with a disgusted look on his face causing them to chuckle despite being a bit embarrassed at having been caught out. “Bruno, nothing was happening,” She rolled her eyes as Gus took his arms from her around her and she began to stir the pot again when it began to bubble, her brother sighing with relief as he walked into the room. “But I can use this to my advantage when you annoy me in future, so I call it a win-win situation. Well, at least for me. Not quite so much for you.”
Agustín snorted with laugher.
“Okay, first of all, rude and gross,” Bruno grumbled. “Second of all, Mamá wanted me to ask when dinner will be ready.”
“Um…20 minutes?” She shrugged.
“Good,” He rubbed his hands together. “Uh, is Gus joining us?”
She turned to look at Gus who was now leaning against the table. “Would you like to? If Mamá agrees?”
“That would be nice.” He gave her a smile.
Turrning back to her brother, she nodded at him. “Ask her for me? And at least try to sound happy while doing it, por favor.”
“If you promise not to be disgusting at the dinner table, I’ll be as happy as you want.” Bruno scoffed.
“Promise,” She palmed a curl from her face. “Now, if you want me to get this done as soon as possible, you need to go.”
Without a word, Bruno turned and left la cocina to go and speak with their mother before she went back to cooking the soup and smiled at the sound of movement behind her. “Are we really not going to be 'disgusting’ during dinner?” Gus asked as he put his arms around her once again and rested his chin on his shoulder. “Because that was the main reason I agreed to join you all for dinner this evening if I’m being honest.”
“Oh, of course we are,” She smirked while looking back at him. “Bruno just hates us for it, so we’ll have to be discreet.”
“And how do you plan to do that? You know your mamá is going to have us sat at opposite sides of the table.”
“Don’t you know by now not to underestimate me? You know I have my ways.”
“Sí, mi amor, I do…” He chuckled, nuzzling into her neck while going back to watching her work. “I certainly do.”