When Mariana's foot had completely healed, Micah came over after work to cook dinner with her since they were going to Aspen the following morning. They were stood together in the kitchen, Micah was behind her as his arms were over her shoulder. Their hands kneaded some dough as music played from her phone.

She slowly swayed to the music. The green tank top she wore blew around as her hair was fastened with a flower clip. She kept on giggling because Micah wouldn't stop kissing the back of her neck.

"Stop it!" She said, bending her neck away as she was extremely ticklish. 

"But you're so cute," he said, caressing the top part of her hair.

"I know but stop it!" She wiggled away as they finished the dough. She wrapped it up in cling film and put it to the side.

"Okay, so now we gotta make the ragu sauce," she said, calming down while still giggling a little bit. They were currently making a pasta dish called Gnocchetti sardi with sausages.

"Okay, so what do we need?"

"Um we need this..." she got a sauté pan and placed it on the stove. She put some olive oil and then looked over at the packet of onions and garlic that were on Micah's side. "Can you hand me those ingredients over there?"

He handed them over to her and she chopped them up before putting them into the pan. She added some fennel seeds and one bay leaf before Micah began stirring with a wooden spoon.

Mariana went to the other side of him and watched as he fried the vegetables. She enjoyed cooking with Micah since it was something they both loved and were good at.

She held onto his arm and started snuggling it. It was so squishy and thick that she squeezed it with a huge grin like he was her cuddly teddy.

"Micah."

"Yes, my Mariana?" He said, planting a kiss on her forehead.

"Can you carry me?"

"Sure." He let go of the pan and took a few steps back with his arms opened wide.

A new idea then popped into her mind as she decided that she'll tease him a little.

"Are you sure you can carry me?" She smirked, approaching him.

"Um... yes."

"I don't think you can." She continued smirking and crossed her arms.

"You sure about that?" He smirked and then suddenly snatched her up by her legs, making her squeal as he rocked her in bridal style. He kissed her nose and cheeks as she buried her head deeper into his arms.

"I still don't think you can carry me higher than this." She grinned. She wanted to see how high she can go.

Micah lifted her higher until she was just above his head but he was careful not to drop her. She ended up screaming out of fright so he placed her more down.

He rocked her gently in his arms as she slowly began to calm down. She looked so cute in his arms, with that rosy smile, and those plush little cheeks. She was too adorable, he could stare at her all day.

"Rock-a-bye baby..." he started to sing, rocking her gently.

"I'm not a baby!" She exclaimed, suddenly getting out of his arms.

He chuckled and Mariana jumped onto his back and placed her legs around his waist. She hugged his neck as he continued frying the onions, making the air around them sizzle. There was nothing more satisfying than cooking with your man, especially when he knew what he was doing. 

His single plaits tickled her slightly when she added some sausage meat into the mix. Rio suddenly came meowing from the backyard. He wanted some of the food so Mariana just gave him some leftover chicken from yesterday.

She then added a tiny bit of white wine into the pan and leaned on Micah's shoulder as he mixed everything. He was really warm, especially around his neck. Which made him comfy like a pillow.

"I can't wait for us to go to Aspen," she murmured.

"Me too. It's the break that we both really need."

"Yeah!" She said and then poured in a tin of tomatoes with sprinkles of salt and pepper. Now they can let the sauce thicken while dancing to the music.

Mariana got off his back and poured them both a glass. She gave one to Micah and they drank while having their own mini party. They shook their arms and moved their lips toward the lyrics, their feet stepping out and their arms jiggling on the side. The liquid in their glass shook like it was dancing along with them.

This is what she wanted. She didn't want to get into a fight with Micah but to have fun with him in times like this.

They put their drinks down and Micah held her hands. He smiled at her affectionately as he swept her off her feet. The fringes of her top glided along her body, letting in the air. It felt so refreshing and made her feel even more happier dancing like this.

"Let me show you this dance that I grew up with." Mariana smiled warmly, and slowly let go of his hand. She stood in front of Micah and then held onto the ends of her top like it was a dress.

"Just start clapping towards the sides while I do this," she instructed, and then started tapping her legs while looking behind with a smile. He clapped while she danced forward and then retreated back him.

"Come here my baby," she said joyously and took his arms. She made them dance around in a circle while she laughed out loud.

"This is called the Il Trescone dance. It's an old dance from the Tuscany region of Italy," Mariana explained before she elevated heir arms, making Micah spin her around like a princess.

They continued dancing by joining arms and switching sides out in a rhythm. They did this until the sauce was cooked, to which they started making the malloreddus pasta with the dough they had prepared earlier. They combined the sauce with the final dish and grated it with cheese on top.

They sat down together on the dining table with candles and Rio napped in the corner. It was now late evening and pretty much dark except where they were seated.

"Today was fun, I enjoyed it." Mariana sighed with content as she took a delicious bite out of the food. She was now exhausted but it was all worth it.

"Yeah I enjoyed it too and now we get to share a meal together."

"Yeah..." she muttered softly as she daydreamed a little while shaking her head. "So are we going to stay in a hotel when we get to Aspen?" She asked curiously.

"Actually I was thinking we could rent a cabin for a change."

"Really? A cabin? That'll be nice." It was different from what she expected, but having a cabin all to themselves just seemed so much better and romantic.

"Yeah, I thought it would be cozier than being in a hotel. What do you think?"

"I think that's a great idea!"

"Okay, once we get there then we can find a cabin to rent out, " he said and they continued eating.

His eyes then wandered casually her shoulder and into the corner by the TV. He then noticed her piano just sitting there in the shadows.

"Hey Mariana, do you mind playing a song on the piano?"

"Oh, you want me to play my piano?" She looked at it, slightly hesitant because she wasn't used to playing in front of people. It was usually just for her own pleasure.

"Yeah, you don't have to if you don't wanna, but I would really like to hear you play something," he said, his voice graced with earnesty and the most pleading smile. He didn't get to hear her play much, only once in a blue moon but she sounded so beautiful when she did.

"Hm okay, I'll just play a little something." She got up and then sat at the stool of her piano. Her hands rested on the keys, started to twitch as her heart raced and her cheeks started to burn up. Micah joined her and then cuddled her a little for encouragement.

She eventually warmed up and was ready to play. "Okay, so you know the theme song for the game Tetris?"

"Yeah, I know it."

"Well, I'm going to play that."

"Okay!" He got ready to hear the beautiful melody that will soon be produced by her fingers that were green for music.

She started playing and at first, her rhythm was slow, but then she picked up the pace when Micah started clapping along.

She unraveled her hair, ruffling it out, and played even faster. The melody played off her fingers as they skated down the keys.

"Wow, you're really good!" Micah exclaimed, "I could never play that fast, even though I had some piano lessons when I was younger."

"Haha, thanks." She blushed. She continued playing until Micah suddenly took her hand off the keys.

"Come, I wanna show you something."

They went outside and stood at the door. Micah pointed to the black car that was in front of her house but it blended well into the night.

"Is that for me?" She asked.

"Yeah. My mom also told me you were in a car accident so I just wanted to get you off to a good start once you got better."

"Oh thank you!" She pulled him into a hug and kissed him before running over to it. Her fingers ran all over the doors, the roof, the wings, and the hood to which she saw the logo.

"Is this a Mercedes?" She asked which came out more like a shout. She's always wanted one of those.

"Yes, it is."

She squealed and tried to keep herself from jumping out of joy because they were still outside.

"Look inside the backseat," he said and unlocked the doors.

She went around and peered through the window. On the backseat, was an enchanted forever rose trapped in a glass case, with golden vines intertwining each other and flowed down on the rose like a golden waterfall. It looked similar to the one in Beauty and the Beast.

She brought it out and it had her name at the bottom. It sparkled like fireflies in her eyes, causing them to tear up a little. It looked so beautiful that she couldn't believe she held something in her hands like it. It was like a dream.

She carried it in her arms and went back to Micah with a happy smile plastered on her face. She was definitely going to keep the rose in a safe place.

They went upstairs because they were now feeling tired and they had a long day tomorrow. She got changed into a different tank top and shorts as her pajamas. She climbed on top of him while he already got in bed.

He wrapped his arms around her whole body, pulling her into a full embrace, as she put one leg over his and her hands enveloped around his chest. They were both very sleepy, as their eyes could barely keep away from each other but he managed to mutter something.

"I love you my little nugget," he said and bopped her nose.

"I love you too..." she said, giggling a bit as her lips then faded into a small smile.

He came closer and their warm lips slowly melted into each other. They kept exchanging small kisses until one of them fell asleep.

A/N: Hey I hope you enjoyed the chapter! This one was so much fun to make🤗🤗🤗.