Dean sits at the other side of the counter, watching me carefully as I lean down to place the baking tray into the oven.

One of the best things about living in the bunker is that we have a kitchen.

We've been hunting together with Sam for years now-about a decade if I had to do the math.

And I'm not the only one who's thankful for the kitchen. Ever since Dean found out that I could bake, he's been begging me to make him a pie.

Okay, maybe not begging, but still. He wants pie.

Now, all that's left to do is wait for the pie to finish baking in the oven.

"Y'know, sitting there, staring at me won't make the pie bake any faster," I remark, finally sparing Dean my full attention. He had pulled a chair over so he could watch me from across the kitchen island.

He leans back, manspreading as he smirks at me. "No, but it gives me something nice to look at while I wait," he says in a husky tone.

"Do you flirt with Cas like this, too, or am I just special?" I ask him with a smirk, leaning forward on my palms.

"Ha!" he barks a laugh, leaning his head back before looking back at me. "Oh, yeah. You're special."

I scoff at the double meaning. "You're an ass," I say, sending him a playful glare.

He merely smirks at me in response.

"Stop looking at me like that." I grin while shaking my head. "You're mean to me on purpose, aren't you?" I accuse.

"How am I mean? I just said you're nice to look at," he denies with a frown.

"Mhm," I hum, biting my lip to stop myself from smiling. We've been working together for years, and we've agreed that it's probably best that we never do anything romantic to keep our professional relationship intact. But that doesn't stop him from blatantly making comments to make me flustered. I tend to mask it well, but that only makes it a challenge he is willing to try harder at.

Like now. "How about you and I go on a hunt tomorrow. Just us. Without Sammy," Dean suggests with a smug expression.

"Dean," I scold, rolling my eyes. "No."

"I'm serious," he says. "Garth gave me a talk."

I squint at him suspiciously. "You got advice from Garth?"

"He has a wife, doesn't he?"

"I guess so," I hum in reply. "What are you trying to say?"

Dean clenches his jaw as he thinks his next words over. "I'm glad you're a hunter. You're good at what you do... We work well together."

"That sounds like a confession," I tease with an amused smile.

Deans smirk returns. "It is."

"Oh." I'm taken aback. "I see." His handsome face observes my reaction carefully. "So, we work well together, huh?" I repeat smoothly.

"Yup," he confirms with a nod.

I lean closer to him, making the space between smaller. "Don't take this the wrong way, but you don't seem like the monogamous type."

"When was the last time you saw me with another girl?" He frowns.

I pause to think about it. "You mean other than Jody, last week?" I ask, earning a playful glare in response. "Yeah, fine it's been a while, I'll give you that. But that doesn't necessarily mean that you want me for the right reasons."

"I want you, period, Y/n," he states firmly. "I don't want to keep pretending that our flirting is purely innocent. I think we'd work together. What do you say?"

Ding!

I hesitate, blinking at him, internally thankful for the distraction. "I say... pies' ready." I turn to fetch it only to be stopped by Dean.

His hand holds mine, halting me from stepping away completely. "Y/n," he insists, staring me down.

I don't want to break under his intimidating gaze but I can't help it. It's Dean...

"Are you up for giving it a try?" he reiterates.

I face him entirely once more before leaning back down into the table and looking him in the eye. I sigh before nodding solemnly. "You better not be messing with me, Winchester. I've liked you for years and I think you've known that. If you're not serious, you need to tell me now."

"Woah, for a few years?" he repeats, causing his eyebrows to raise towards his hairline.

I frown, still very aware of our joined hands. "You're telling me you didn't know?"

"No." He shakes his head, clearly pleased by this news. "When you say a few years, how long are we talkin'?" He smirks.

I roll my eyes, standing up straight. "Long enough that I'm too embarrassed to tell you." I slip my hand away from his and smile. "Now do you want your pie or not?"

He grins, almost batting his lashes at the mention of food. "Please."

I chuckle under my breath and out of my oven-mitts before turning it off. "Nothing can get between a man and his pie," I quote something I remember him saying when we first started hunting together.

He smiles up at me as I turn to place the dish on the table between us. "Nothing except you," he corrects, genuinely, before his usual teasing grin returns. "So about that private hunting trip..."

"I'm in," I concede. "Does this mean I get to drive Baby?"

"No."

"Ugh, Lame..."

★☆★☆★

Word count: 910