Author: Mandy, a.k.a., Stari starigirl6@yahoo.com
Disclaimer: Gabi, Antonio, everyone else, belong to NBC, not me. Don’t sue. Please. I know, I know, Antonio isn’t mine. And I’ll give him back soon, I swear! What, you don’t believe me? C’mon, doesn’t my word mean anything? Oh…oh. You found him in the cellar. But he wanted to go down there, and he must have just tripped and gotten tangled up with those ropes. What? That’s not what he says? Well, it gets chilly, he probably got a fever or something. Dang old hallucinations. I’d better keep him here and nurse him back to health. WHAT? Oh, fine. Threaten me with the lawyers, ya know I asked you no to do that. Well, okay then, you can have him if you really want him that much. But I want to finish this story first! Thanks, I knew you’d understand. *scampers off to find a new hiding place* [alllll riiiiight Mandy, no more one sided conversations for you!]
Setting: Some bizarre universe where the cave in did not happen, but Antonio does have feelings for Gabi. She and Ricardo are seeing each other, but nothing more than that…mainly because she has recognized her growing feelings for his brother, but does not know how to admit them.
Note: Forgive me for any indescrepancies, I can’t exactly check the chronology sitting in Word Processing class =^P
Gabi Martinez walked into Sunset Central with thoughts of what she was going to prepare for dinner on her mind. It was her night to cook, not that she was expecting to have anyone to cook for. It was Valentines Day. Michael would be out with Vanessa, Meg with Ben, Sara with Casey…no one would be home. Ricardo had to work and she would be all alone, just like she had been through all of the twenty something Valentines Days that had come and gone throughout her lifetime. "Anyone home?" She called out, expecting no answer.
"Yeah!" She was surprised when someone did reply. A slow grin spread across her face as she recognized the voice to be Antonio’s.
"What are you doing here?" She stepped in to the kitchen and set down the grocery bag she had carried in. She found Antonio standing over the stove, mixing something with a long wooden ladle. "You’re cooking! But I thought it was my night."
"Nope, I’m taking over. Hand me that salt?" He asked and she complied, handing him the crystal salt shaker as she breathed in deeply the wonderful smell of spaghetti sauce. "Ricardo called me, he didn’t want you to be alone tonight. Afraid some guy would pick you up or something." Antonio shot her a grin that made Gabi’s knees weak. The only guy I want to pick me up is you. The thought shot through her brain and she immediately pushed it away. Antonio was a priest! Her boyfriend’s brother, the priest! And…as reluctant as she was to admit it, a priest she was falling head over heels in love with.
"It was nice of you to come over." She looked at him, letting her gaze linger over his well muscled biceps…that showed perfectly through the tight, blue T-shirt he was wearing. Slowly, and completely of their own accord, her eyes wandered down to where the shirt was molded to his chest, showing off perfectly sculpted chest…and lower…her pulse raced as she saw that had completely forgone his priestly garb for the night and had chosen tight, dark blue jeans instead of his normal black slacks. It was a change that Gabi wholly approved of. She was so into studying his perfect body that she didn’t even hear him talking to her.
"Gabi? Hey, Gabi?" He asked her again, waving his hand in front of her face. "Where’d you go off to?"
"Oh…sorry, daydreaming." She offered as means of explanation. "What did you say?"
"I asked if you would mind going upstairs and getting the duffel bag that’s sitting on my bed. There’s some things in it that I need." He said, a touch of mischief in his voice. Gabi looked a little puzzled, but said she would.
As she took off to get his bag, Antonio grinned to himself and hurried into the living room. Quickly, he dimmed the lights and grabbed a bottle of champagne, on ice, that he had stuck in a cooler beside the small table, set for two, that Gabi luckily hadn’t noticed. He hadn’t been anticipating her getting home this soon, so he hadn’t had time to set everything up just the way he had wanted…but this would do. And, if she caught on to what she was supposed to be doing upstairs, then everything really would be perfect.’
Gabi stepped into Antonio’s room, but saw no duffel bag sitting on the bed, like he had said there would be. Shaking her head, she was about to call out and tell him when she saw what was on the bed. A dry-cleaners bag, with a note bearing her name on top of it.
Gabi, It said as she picked it up and began to read, do me a favor and put this on. – Antonio
Curiously, Gabi picked up the bag and unzipped it. Her mouth fell as she saw the gorgeous black dress it held. It was the normal length for her, short, and made of a silky material. Biting her lip nervously, Gabi wondered what Antonio was up to. Ricardo certainly hadn’t asked him to do this, had he? Oh well, Gabi thought to herself. Why not? So she quickly made her way tot he bathroom and slipped on the dress, stopping by her room to find a pair of shoes to match.
Antonio changed into his own suit as quickly as he could, hoping that he didn’t look a complete mess. He wasn’t accustomed to dressing up like this…he really hoped that Gabi wouldn’t laugh at him. God, that would be awful. God…God. A pang of guilt washed over him. No matter how much he relied on the excuse that Ricardo had asked him to stay with Gabi, he knew that Ricardo had most definitely not meant for him to wine and dine her like this. But…he couldn’t help it. The need to know what it would be like to be with her, even if it was just for a night, was overwhelming and the temptation too great to pass up. Besides, it wasn’t like anything was going to happen. Gabi didn’t have feelings for him…it would be perfectly innocent. And didn’t everyone deserve to be with someone on Valentine’s Day? Of course they did, he tried valiantly to convince himself.
He dressed as quickly as he could, and tried to make everything perfect. Slow, soft music in the CD player…a brilliant red rose in a crystal vase in the middle of the table, tall white candles next to it…two crystal wine goblets next to two plates…wonderful. It was just like he had imagined it being. Perfect…
"Antonio?" Gabi said softly, unable to believe the transformation that the living room of Sunset Central had undergone in the ten, fifteen minutes tops she had spent changing and touching up her make up upstairs. And the transformation in him himself was what was most amazing. He was standing in front of Casey’s stereo system, fiddling with the volume. She could feel his appreciative gaze as he turned around and saw her descending the staircase. Mentally, he reminded himself to thank his sister for picking out the dress again. It looked perfect on Gabi…stunning. Acting like he thought a gentleman should, Antonio walked over to meet her as she reached the bottom step. Bowing slightly, he took Gabi’s hand and brought it to his lips. A surprised smile fluttered across her face as she whispered the fist thing that came to her mind. "Wow…"
"You like it?" Antonio said anxiously as Gabi looked around, taking it all in. The room was dim, lit up only by the candles placed sporadically around, on table and above the fireplace, as well as the table that they were to eat at. Gabi smiled at his boyish anticipation, knowing that he must have worked very hard to fix this place up as well as change himself in such a short time. And…he must have been working all day to get this ready. The music, the candles, the food…
"I love it." She replied truthfully. "This is amazing…how…why…?" She looked up at him, unable to believe this. There was something in his eyes…something she had never seen before…something surprising, but something that pleased her. It seemed a mirror to her own emotions, bubbling so close to the surface now.
"I…didn’t want you to be home alone…tonight…" He offered as a reason, but Gabi didn’t believe it.
"You still didn’t have to do all of this…it must have taken you forever. And…this dress, it must have been expensive…really, you didn’t have to do this, Antonio." She said, looking at him. With a rush of warmth, she realized that he hadn’t let do of her hand yet. He led her across the room and pulled out a chair, offering it to her. Smiling her thanks, she sat and he moved to sit across from her.
"I wanted to, Gabi. Trust me…I really wanted to." He picked up the bottle of champagne and poured half a glass for each of them. "Dinner’s almost ready…"
"That’s nice…" Gabi said, for some reason unable to meet his eyes. "So…" There was an awkward pause as Gabi raised the glass to her lips. Antonio reached out and touched her wrist, signaling that he wanted to make a toast before they began to drink.
"To friendship…" He said and Gabi smiled softly, raising her glass until it met his with a soft ‘clink’. They both took a sip and then set their glasses down. Another strangely awkward silence filled the space between them. Suddenly, Antonio stood and reached out for her hand again. "Let’s dance."
"All right." Gabi agreed, and stood. The slow, romantic music set the mood as she slipped into his arms. Antonio held her tightly against him as she melted into his embrace, both of them swaying with the music softly. "This feels good…" She whispered, her cheek resting against his chest. Antonio moved his face down a little, breathing in deeply the scent of her hair.
"Yeah, it does…" He agreed. Something somewhere deep inside of him whispered that this wasn’t right…this was exactly the kind of scenario he had convinced himself wouldn’t happen…but he couldn’t stop himself from holding her a little closer, moving a little nearer…loving her a little more.
"Antonio…" Gabi whispered softly after they had danced in silence for a few minutes. She raised her head a little and smiled at the look in his eyes. He was enjoying this just as much as she was, she suddenly knew with a surprising certainty. Maybe…maybe he even felt the way about her that she did about him. Maybe…maybe.
"Gabi…" He answered her just as softly. His hand moved up the small of her back, tracing the contours of her skin, her softly curved shoulders, her slender neck, until he could reach around and press the palm of his hand into her cheek. She leaned against his fingers, the warmth and gentleness sending tremors through her soul. "Oh Gabi…" He moaned her name, surprising her with the amount of frustration in his voice as he removed his hand from her face.
"What is it, Antonio? What’s wrong?" She said, and the concern in her voice touched him. Smiling bitterly to himself, Antonio answered. "Do you know how much I want to kiss you, Gabi?"
"I think I do," This time it was he that was surprised. "Almost as much as I want you to kiss me, I bet."
His eyes widened and Gabi almost laughed at his expression. "Wh…What…?"
"You heard me, Antonio. I said I want you to kiss me. Now." By then they had stopped moving altogether, but they were still standing close, her arms on his shoulder, his around her waist.
"God help me…" Antonio whispered in a pained voice as he swept her into a passionate embrace. His grip on her was almost suffocating as they’re stared into each other’s eyes a split second before moving forward. Their lips met with the fury of a frustrated passion finally released, with the trepidation of new lovers and the tenderness of best friends. Stars exploded behind their eyes as they both delved into the kiss with all they had.
"Oh…" Gabi gasped as they broke apart for a much needed breath. Regarding each other a little bit warily, they slowly back away. "What…what happened here, Antonio?"
"I…I don’t…" He stopped and looked up at her. "I do know what happened. Something that’s been building up for a long time, I think. Something that has been between us for a while…" His voice had been confident until that moment, where he faltered. "I mean…I…unless you don’t feel…the same way I do."
"I do." Gabi answered with a second’s hesitation. "I do feel the same way…I think…I think I’m falling in love. With you."
"Oh Gabi…" In that moment after hearing those words, Antonio felt all at one guilty, jubilant, dreadful, excited, anxious, and like the worst human being on the earth. He looked into her bright, excited eyes, so full of love and kindness and caring…she had so much to give. "Gabi…I love you."
"I…oh, Antonio!" Gabi threw herself into his arms and Antonio caught her, holding her tightly and laughing. Her smiled was bright and pure, something that warmed him to the very core. He pressed his lips long and hard to the top of her head before pulling away. Slowly, her smile faded as she looked up at him, running her hand over his face. "What are we going to do, Antonio?"
"Gabi…I really can’t say that I know. But…I do know that we have a bottle of champagne ready to be drunken, a meal ready to be eaten, and music ready to be danced to." He picked up her hand and held it tightly. "So…Miss Martinez…will you do me the honor of being mine for the night? Be my valentine?" His eyes sparkled as he asked her, and Gabi felt her lips curving into yet another undeniable smile.
"Yes, I will, Antonio." She reached up to kiss him softly on the lips. Hand in hand, they walked back to the table, both intending on living this night to the fullest.
the end...happily ever after...and all that ewy-goey stuff that comes with this d@mned holiday ;-)