Work Text:
Mercedes works on weeding her garden. It really isn’t so much a carefully manicured plot, more of a meandering bramble of color that cascaded over the rocks and climbed the fences. The flowers are, of course, native to the San Dimas Valley and were a mixture of tall wildflowers for the butterflies and hummingbirds and low, dense shrubbery that would help prevent soil erosion. The sun beating down on her is hot and harsh and makes the work all the more satisfying.
Henry watches Mercedes pile her dense mane onto the top of her head, adjusting her bandana to try and contain the errant wispy hairs that clung to her forehead. She absently wipes her brow, inadvertantly rubbing dirt into her hair, but Henry couldn't care less. He had lovingly rubbed SPF 50 lotion into her neck and shoulders to protect her from the harsh sunlight, and she was radiant as if she has absorbed the sun’s harsh rays.
“Boys! I’m going to romance your mother, you may want to go for a bike ride--” Henry’s eyes leave the back window for a moment to track the twins. After several gemini-interruptus , Henry had taken to directly getting Lark and Sparrow to respect their privacy.
“Ew! Gross! Byyeeeeeeeeeeee~” Henry’s beautiful boys, Lark and Sparrow, grab their helmets and make a speedy retreat to the garage to grab their bikes and LEAVE.
Kicking off her scuffed gardening boots, Mercedes flops down onto a chair, stripping off her socks. The station’s classical music is still playing through the speakers, with a soothing feminine voice breaking through after each song to describe the work. That’s when she notices it-- she could actually hear the music. There were no explosions, no crashes, no screaming boy-children with frantic Henry in the background.
“ Mí amor , you need to keep hydrated!” Henry breezes through the french doors and presents her with a much needed cool glass of water. He leans down to press a kiss to her brow, not caring about the sweat or dirt, full of love for his incredible wife.
“ Gracias querida , but where are the boys? It seems eerily quiet,” Mercedes shades her eyes from the sun as she looks up to see Henry. A wicked smile spreads across his face as he leans down to kiss her, and he unclasps one of her overall straps.
“I thought they needed to burn off some energy with a bike ride; I also seemed to have some excess energy to attend to,” he whispers into her ear as he undoes the other strap. Her bib falls down to her waist, exposing her purple sports bra and the tanned expanse of her collarbone. Trailing kisses down her neck, he presses his fingers where he knows knots live in her shoulders. Mercedes arches into his touch, savoring the rare moment of quiet together. With a stretch, Mercedes wraps her arm around Henry’s neck and lets the rest of her overalls fall to the patio. Panting slightly, Henry presses his forehead to Mercedes’.
“Let’s take this to the shower, you need a good scrub.” Mercedes nods and leads Henry to their outdoor shower. Serving as an oasis, their outdoor shower is stocked with eco friendly body wash and shampoo; even the boys at their most feral enjoyed the shower.
“I’m not the only one, stinkbug,” Mercedes laughs as she paws Henry’s Life is Good shirt over his head. There’s heat behind her eyes as she drags him the rest of the way into the shower, closing the door behind them.