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Leonardo was completely drained as soon as he got home.

His neck was sore and his shoulders felt as though they had been carrying a heavy loads all day. He stretched, his back clicking as he entered his home and blinking tiredly as Leonardo rubbed his eyes, desperate for sleep.

Kicking off his shoes, he yawned in fatigue as he took off his coat. It took him a moment to process the sounds he was hearing coming from the kitchen.

A familiar child's giggle ran through the entire house which caused him to furrow his eyebrows in confusion as he placed his coat away. Tugging his tight, black tie away from his neck, he slowly ambled his way to the kitchen where the sound of music filled his ears. Disney music specifically. The smell of what seemed to be risotto was apparent, mixed with a slight scent of burn, as though food had been overcooked.

Reaching the room, his eyes landed on Maria spinning Amalia around, his child's small, chunky body being twirled in the air as she giggled cheerfully. Leonardo was surprised to see his daughter in the house but felt slightly worried at the fact that she was dancing with Maria in the kitchen, a field of hazards waiting for them. The overly happy Disney music was loud, too loud for his throbbing head. He took his phone out his pocket and quickly read the message he hadn't seen earlier. It seemed his mother had an evening birthday party to attend.

What caught his attention was the mess of the place; the sticky counter, the sink filled with various dirty cutlery and soggy food, the stove with different pots boiling, with what he perceived to be mush, the splashes and specks of sauce on the wall and tiles and random table cloths laying around, one far too close to the cooker, stained with sauce or wet with water.

His nose scrunched up a little at the sight. It was difficult living with an untidy person.

Leonardo's mind instantly gave him a break down of what needed to be done; he would have to scrub the stove, mop the floor with antibacterial soap to get rid of all the oil, wipe the tiles down with spray, open the window and get rid of the scent, wash all those unhygienic dishes then dry them -

"Papa!"

The loud cry of joy broke through the plan forming in his head.

Maria and Amalia were finally still. Amalia's big, round eyes were full of excitement as she gazed at her father intently, her face bright with a wide smile showing her little gums with barely any teeth. Leonardo's face immediately softened at her delight.

Upon noticing Leonardo in the house, Maria avoided eye contact as she walked over to him, the smile that she was giving Amalia disappearing, as she passed the wriggling infant to her father. Her chest tightened as she glanced over at him while he wasn't looking. Since the night before, the two had been separated, and she felt quite awkward around him.

Leonardo swallowed roughly as he tried to catch her eyes but emotionlessly, she turned away and went to the counter. Picking up a knife and cutting some vegetables, her back faced him. On her side, she was debating whether to talk to him or not, and wanted to do anything to cut the tension between the two of them over a little disagreement that could be easily resolved.

Leonardo saw her action as a sign she was still annoyed at him. His heart sunk. He didn't understand why it hurt so much not being able to receive her infectious smile.

Despite hugging the baby and kissing Amalia's cheeks as she babbled to him, Leonardo's desperate eyes continued to land on Maria as two words, he wasn't used to saying, were beginning to circle around his mind. She was wearing a ruched, lace trim crop cami that was V neck and some shorts, meaning her legs were exposed and the extreme tininess of her waist was evident, showing off her figure.

Maria decided spontaneously to cut the silence. She turned again after placing the knife down and faced Leonardo, her eyes finally looking into his. He looked good; the fact that his tie was loose made his appearance even more ravishing. Maria felt her heart begin to palpitate. Amalia played around with Leonardo's tie, bringing the material to her mouth but he was focused on Maria as it was his opportunity to release the guilt burdening him.

"I'm sorry."

Her grey eyes widened in surprise as they both said the two words at the same time.

The corner of her pink lips rose slightly as she realised what he had said. It meant that he cared and reflected over what he had said, that he had been thinking about her and felt remorse for his actions. She was comfortable with the fact that he actually apologised.

For a second, Leonardo looked away, suddenly feeling reserved and shy. She fiddled a little with the strings of her shorts, drawing his attention to the lower half of her sculpted body.

Instead, Leonardo looked up again and pushed his pride away and added sincerely, "I'm sorry for blaming you. .and being. .harsh. ." Looking thoughtful, Maria nodded a little, looking quite bashful; her heart warmed at his words.

"You weren't completely wrong," Maria replied, her voice soft and warm. She looked radiant, it was hard not to be taken in by the magnificence of her beauty. "I tend to jump too easily into trusting people sometimes. . .you were only looking out for me. So I'm sorry too."

It's not your fault, He wanted to say, but Maria, upon sniffing the air, unexpectedly exclaimed with wide eyes, "shit, it's burning!"

Leonardo questioned how she hadn't realised before. She turned, her bare hand touching the lid of the metal pot. As soon as she lifted it, she yelped in pain, a high pitched screech coming from her. A loud clang rang though the air as she dropped the lid back onto the pot. It hurt like hell. Leonardo quickly placed Amalia down into the high chair Maria seemed to have found and practically ran over to her.

His large hand grabbed her small wrist and flicked the tap on, cold water pouring out all over her red hand to soothe the pain of the light burn. Maria grimaced a little at the sudden heat her hand had been exposed to but immediately felt better at the feeling of the cool water searing on her hand. Her wide eyes looked over at Leonardo's face, that was plastered with concern, as he rubbed her hand under the water. She felt touched that he was being caring - she would have to get hurt more often to see it - his humanity.

"Thanks," she delicately said, glancing between her hand and his face. "It's okay. It doesn't hurt now."

"Wear the gloves next time," Leonardo murmured, returning to his usual grumpy self. She smiled a little as he grabbed the cloth and dried her hands for her, exhaling softly.

Leonardo quickly turned off the stove and picking up the gloves, he moved the burning pot away before picking up a new one. "Why did you even try to cook? You can't cook to save your life."

Maria scowled at him, scoffing as she tried to redeem herself, "no! That's not true, I'm much better than I was before-"

"So. . .still bad?"

She shot him a hard glare as he brought water to boil. He was right and he held a playful smirk on his face. "You wouldn't know this, but I make an amazing omelet - and, I can even make quesadillas!" Leonardo's face was in complete disbelief. "What? For animals?" He tried his best not to laugh at the reaction he was getting from her.

She folded her arms in annoyance with her hip to the side as he emptied some pasta into the boiling point. "I planned to make risotto as a sign of peace."

"Are you sure about that?" He retorted, bringing meat out from the fridge as he assumed control of the cooking for that evening. "Seems like you tried to kill me." Maria looked as innocent as a child when she scowled, her eyes shooting daggers at him. "Hey, don't underestimate my cooking skills - when you're old and grey, I'll be the one making your meals."

He snorted incredulously. "No, I'll still be around here feeding us so we both don't die of food poisoning." Her ears picked up especially on the word 'both', a smile breaking through her glare.

"Fine," Maria gave in, feeling giddy as she watched him season the meat swiftly. "I'll just be here enjoying your meals, chef." He glanced over at her in slightly amusement as he slid the meat onto the pan before washing his hands.

Amalia squealed, her chubby hands clapping together as she grinned at the sound of her favourite song from the movie Frozen playing. Maria smiled at her happiness. "Vincenzo brought over Lia earlier. We've been singing since. You should sign her to Dream when she's older. I'm not sure where she's got the vocals from, but that baby can sing." He chuckled at her hyperbolic words.

"Vincenzo brought her?" He repeated, curious how they were without him. She nodded, remembering their previous conversation. "Yes, your filial brother brought her." He looked like a true chef while frying the meat, his hands working quickly as they moved the pan and stirred the meat. Her mouth watered at the sight of such succulent beef.

"Can you cut those vegetables? Do it right, and I might actually trust you to cook." Maria smirked, feeling proud as she pushed herself off the counter and began cutting big slices of the onion.

Leonardo's eyes picked up on her bad skills and he quickly interjected, "hey! Not like that! Small pieces or do you want onion skin and crunchy bits in your bolognese?" It wasn't long until her eyes began to sting and she frowned, squinting through blurry eyes whilst trying to cut the pieces small. She had to do it right but was struggling pathetically.

"Fucking hell," she complained a little too loudly as she sniffed, glancing over at Amalia to check she didn't hear.

"Finding it hard?"

"No!" Maria quickly replied confidently, blinking as fast as she could through the stinging, though it was just making the pain worse. "It's so warm today, it's the hay fever." Leonardo chuckled, feeling a lot less tired than he was before. She had brightened his evening, he was entertained by her lack of ability.

"You're perfect at singing and dancing, but can't even cut an onion. I guess even an angel like you can't be perfect." She blinked in surprise at his words, feeling her cheeks become hot again. "You've insulted me but I feel as though that was supposed to be a compliment?" Maria queried, her smirk growing in size. Leonardo cleared his throat as he avoided her intense gaze. He took the knife from her and, like a professional chef, began chopping up the other ingredients for the sauce.

Maria washed her hands and after drying them, dabbed her eyes with the tissue, feeling the stinging begin to dissipate as she stepped away from the dreaded onions. She noticed the pack of soft drink cans at the corner of the room. Walking over, she picked up a can and decided to have a drink; she didn't usually go for fizzy juices but randomly chose to have one.

It was cold to touch and she unconsciously shook the can, as if it were an orange juice bottle with bits, completely forgetting the acid inside as she went back to Leonardo's side. "Stop shaking it," he murmured, though she didn't take any notice to his words.

"What's your favourite food now, Leo?"

"It's still tiramisu. . .something about that dessert makes me crazy," Leonardo quietly responded, focused on the creation of bolognese sauce as Amalia coughed in the background. Maria nodded, remembering the past.

"I'm great at baking, I'll make it for you-"

"I'm okay, thanks. I think I'll save my taste buds."

He chuckled softly as she poked his hard shoulder with her finger, frowning at him.

"Don't think about cooking. I'll make all our meals in the future," Leonardo quietly said as he slid the vegetables into the pan, letting it cook. Maria's cheeks felt warm again as she watched him. "In the future?" She repeated wanting to hear a confirmation, her voice sounded so sweet that his eyes glanced over to her. He realised he had let himself go, given her false expectations and quickly his face returned to its usual emotionless look. Even he himself was surprised at those three words.

Leonardo cleared his throat and didn't meet her expectant eyes as he focused on stirring the sauce. Knowingly, she sighed and stared trying to open the can however it was difficult to unseal. She quietly grunted, attempting to pull the can open, still struggling. Nonchalantly, Leonardo took the drink from her hands and easily flicked open the can.

But as soon as he did so, he was showered with sticky, cold rushes of soda sprinkling all over him. With a small yelp, Maria had moved backwards, leaving him to be soaked alone. Her jaw dropped as her eyes ran up his dripping wet body, his clothes damp and a strong smell of Coca Cola filling their nostrils. She covered her mouth in shock and slight fear, stepping backwards even more as she registered the look of rage beginning to break through his face, recognising her mistake.

". . .oops. ."

Leonardo stared at the can and scoffed lightly, scrunching the metal up and dropping it onto the ground as he made fierce eye contact with her. An innocent look was on her face and it fuelled the frustration building within him.

"Come. Here. Now."

With those words said, she ran.

She sprinted faster than she had ever moved in a long time. The heightening sounds of his footsteps following her encouraging Maria to run faster, away from the man who was about to receive his revenge.

She squealed with laughter as she moved around the house, teasing a furious Leonardo by circling around the chairs, crawling under the table, throwing cushions at him. Leonardo had two, cold cans in his hands and was shaking them as hard as he could with his massive muscles shaking, ready to drown her as soon as he got his hands onto her. He was close until he tripped over the rug which she giggled at childishly whilst his anger built. She stuck her tongue out at him and ran off with a big smile.

But he couldn't help but break out into a smile as well as he, laying on the ground, watched her run up the stairs laughing. He was reminded of their younger days, running freely in the fields, pushing ice cream into each others faces in the summer heat, throwing water at each other at the lake. They were innocent then, casting their sorrows away when they were together.

He managed to catch the door open just as she had gotten into the bedroom. With her back against the door, trying to push it closed she begged for mercy, "crap! I'm sorry for shaking it - can we call a truce? You're really strong! I don't think I can hold the door!" He pushed harder on the other side and she yelped, her eyes scanning the bedroom to see if she could escape. The bathroom door was closed but if she ran quick enough, she could pull it and lock herself in to avoid him.

"A truce? There. .is. . no such thing!" Leonardo managed to burst the door open and with fear, she shrieked in fear, going for the en suite until his arms wrapped around her waist, pulling her to the mattress where her small body sunk into it.

"No! I'll do anything! Don't!" On top of her, he went to open the cans, resulting in extra squeaks as she squeezed her eyes closed, her hands trying to save her face from being drenched with juice.

Seeing her fight for her survival, he couldn't bring himself to ruin her precious face with it. He tiredly threw the cans to the side of the bed and glared at her, "don't forget my mercy." Maria slowly opened her eyes with the fear beginning to disappear. She exhaled in relief that she had been spared from being attacked with soda. She smirked impishly as he rolled his eyes in annoyance, his hands either side of her head as he gazed down at her breathlessly.

She raised her hand as a sign of peace. "Of course I won't. . .I knew you couldn't." He lifted the can again, ready to unleash its contents, and she immediately squealed in fear once more, squeezing her eyes closed but he tossed it to the side again, amused at her weakness.

Maria felt the heat rising in her from the closeness between them. He was on leaning over her; their faces were so close, it would be the perfect chance to kiss. Her mind began running through all the scenarios that could possibly happen between them romantically. She had clearly watched too many romance shows. Her dreamy eyes met his as she admired casually in a soft tone, "you look good on top of me, don." Her hand slowly slid up to his shoulder as she maintained her powerful gaze upon him.

Her words made him realise how much their bodies were touching. Leonardo was right between her smooth, bare legs. He stiffened a little as his eyes slightly widened; he had registered what position they were in. Feeling the same heat that she was feeling, his eyes unintentionally dropped down to her open neck, her prominent collarbones threatening to burst out of her soft skin, down to her chest, her slight cleavage free to see.

He couldn't stop his wandering eyes. It was the first time he had seen the explicitness of her breasts, round and evident under her top. As her chest rose and fell slowly, the shape of her small nipples, poking out from underneath, changed in his perception as she naturally breathed, catching his attention. Her top was lifted a little, her torso was thin, her feminine built body, most apparently her rib cage, increasingly moving up and down as her heartbeat increased. He slowly licked his lips as he noticed that whenever she breathed inwards, her slim stomach would move away from her shorts, they didn't fit her perfectly. It made his mind inappropriately imagine moving downwards and easily slipping them off to satisfy his sudden thirst.

She wanted to kiss him - no, she wanted him to kiss her. In that time, they had completely forgotten the world around them, fully focused on the intimacy between them.

"Leo. ." Her captivating voice filled his ears, causing him to tense up. Her pink lips looked moist, so soft, so tempting to taste. It was then that he almost broke down his wall and let his body do the rest until reality kicked in. He heard Amalia's cough downstairs, she couldn't stay unattended. Leonardo realised that had to do whatever he could to break the tension between them.

Opposite to what Maria was hoping for, his fingers moved to her forehead where he flicked the middle hard causing Maria to wince and yelp, her eyebrows automatically knotting together.

"Stop being ridiculous," Leonardo suddenly scolded, moving off her. He ran his hand through his hair as he turned around and began walking towards the door. He was flustered, boiling hot and slightly dazed as though he had been drawn in by a siren. "L-Let's eat. I'm sure Amalia - and you are hungry."

Maria rose, sitting up straight and watching his retreating figure as she tried to calm her racing heart, fixing her hair a little.

He looked back at her. She looked so ethereally attractive that he slightly wished he had followed his previous temptations. "I'll wash up. Set up the plates," Leonardo quickly commanded before adding, "please."

He left before she could even say anything.

Maria sighed burying her head in her hands.

Maybe she needed a shower as well since she was feeling incredibly discontented, sweltered and undeniably aroused.

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~ Author's Note ~

NEPENTHE has reached 200 votes! Thank you to everyone reading and engaging with the story! I really appreciate it <3

This chapter was fun to write - it was cute seeing the two of them bicker and run around like kids. For once, they didn't have to think about the pressing issues going on around them.

I believe this is the most Leonardo has shared his thoughts on Maria in terms of attraction and it's clear Maria wanted more in that moment than what he gave her.

Next chapter is an extension of some of the cuteness going on here. . .well - I guess that's true until the chapter's end. . .

Keep reading to find out!

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Votes and comments really help me know how the story is being received and helps boost my confidence for more updates :)

Thanks for reading!

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