I was really worried when this started taking a turn for the romance between these two, especially since the manga literally starts with a problematic employer/employee relationship that she's trying to get away from. However, I'm fully on board now. It's lovely how considerate they are for each other and their interactions are incredibly tender and sweet. I do think seeing Sensei's thoughts these last few chapters have helped a lot with making it clear that it's mutual.
Something this manga also does really well is show the passage of time without making the readers wait forever (they both handcrafted their gifts for each other! That takes a while!), which gives the feel of a slow burn without dragging things on from our end.