Getting Closer

Slowly everything returned to normal again. The more Victoria recovered the more she grew bored with staying at the hacienda the whole time, doing nothing. She missed her tavern and her work. Diego would have liked her to continue resting but he couldn't keep her from her tavern. In accordance with the doctor she agreed to do only light work and take some rests whenever she got tired.

Diego was very busy now with his newspaper, the increased number of pages requiring much more work in addition to the coordination of the news exchange with the neighboring pueblos. He had to hire some helpers to do the actual printing while he was in charge as editor. In the morning he drove with Victoria to the pueblo and when she went to the tavern he headed for the newspaper office. For lunch he came over to the tavern to share his lunch and some kisses in the kitchen with her, making sure she was taking her break, before they went home to the hacienda in the evening again, since Victoria wasn't sleeping in the tavern any more and had in fact moved to the hacienda.

But sometimes he got so lost in his work that he forgot the time and Victoria had to fetch him from his office.

It was one of these days when Diego was late for lunch and Victoria was getting impatient.

"Where is he again?" she complained to Alina while they started to wash the dishes. "I probably have to pull him from his work again. He can be so annoying sometimes."

Alina only smiled at Victoria's complaints. She wasn't the only one to notice the changed relationship between Diego and Victoria.

"Victoria, you sound as if you were already married to that man. Before you got kidnapped and injured you never cared so much for Diego. You never looked at him twice and simply the idea of being married to him seemed to be ridiculous and now the two of you can hardly be kept apart with you getting angry when he doesn't appear in time, even your love for Zorro is forgotten. How could you do this? After all the years you have been waiting for him?"

"Zorro is no longer around and Diego was always there when I needed him. He saved my life and he cared for me during all these weeks while I was very ill."

"I could understand that, but both of you have changed so much. Diego has become very protective of you, I won't say possessive, while he was so reserved before. You were always so independent, Victoria and now you let Don Diego tell you what to do. For example when to take a break or where to stay at night. Do you really want to marry him? How much more will he change when you are finally married? Don't you want to think about it again?"

"I don't think there will be any more changes after our wedding in two weeks. I have made up my mind and it is already to late change it."

"Too late to think about what, Victoria?" Diego had entered the kitchen unnoticed by the two women, catching their latest sentences.

"Diego, you startled me. Alina just asked me if I really wanted to marry you and I told her it was already too late for me to change my mind."

"You are completely right, because I've got you now and I won't let you go." Diego swept her playfully in his arms and whirled her around before he started to kiss her.

"You two are quite impossible," annoyed Alina left the kitchen not wanting to be witness to their intimacies.

Ever since the day they had acknowledged their marriage they had started to sleep in each others arms. At first Diego had only stayed for a short time until Victoria fell asleep as he had done the first night. But as she grew stronger again, she returned to normal sleeping patterns and she didn't like to wake up on her own any more. The bed in the guest room Victoria was occupying was smaller than Diego's and proved to be too uncomfortable for two who were not really that close yet.

So Diego had started to take her up in his arms at night and carry her to his room across the corridor to have her sleep by his side saving him the need to cross the corridor to check on her breathing when he had nightmares of that terrible night again.

Diego kissed Victoria softly and tenderly like always since her injury, no longer showing the passion he had displayed while he had kissed her as Zorro.

"Diego, why are you so reserved towards me? We are married, but you are acting as if we hardly know each other. What has happened?"

"Victoria, you are not healed enough for us to proceed with our marriage, the doctor said we have to wait at least one more week. Just wait until we are married officially in the church in Los Angeles in two weeks."

Suddenly he swept her in his arms and started to kiss her passionately. His hands started to roam over her body while he kissed her neck sending shivers down her spine. Victoria slipped her hands under his shirt and when they finally drew apart they were both breathless panting heavily.

"Is that what you had in mind?" he smiled mischievously when Victoria stared at him. "You will sleep in your own bed again from today on," Diego declared resolutely before he kissed her again no longer holding back.

Diego stuck by his decision and made her sleep in the guest room again until the wedding, not hiding his attraction to her. Nevertheless he no longer kissed her like a brother but with a passion that showed his own impatience with the long wait.