Couple of things...
Be patient between the coats if you're doing it in winter. Give it a full day between coats. It's excessive but worth it in colder conditions.
Give it a few weeks to fully cure. It will be dry to the touch 2 hours after your last coat. You will be able to handle it safely without leaving any finger prints. But it wont' be ready to use. The paint will be soft and prone to scratching. Once the paint it full cured (assuming you applied it properly and used the correct paint) it will be a very durable coating. A clear coat, 2 or 3 coats worth, will add more protection to the paint job. Give the clear coat the same 2 week cure time.
The first time I did this (March time frame in the mid atlantic, so cool outside) I was discouraged by how soft the dry paint was and how easy it was to scratch. But after 3 weeks of leaving it alone and letting the paint really cure it's now a very durable finish.