Confessions

"You kissed her," Ginny shrieked excitedly.

Draco cringed and looked around quickly, thankful no one seemed to have noticed her outburst. "Shit, do you have to announce it to the whole crowd?"

The redhead had the good grace to blush and glanced at Neville who seemed just as interested in the topic at hand though he had no idea about the real depth of Draco's feelings. "Sorry, I've just been pestering you since before the wedding ceremony and you've finally made a move."

Draco sighed as he turned in his seat to face the quidditch pitch again. Hogwarts was having an alumni game which Harry had been invited to play in. The stands were filled and Draco found himself sitting amongst mostly Gryffindors.

His teenage self would have been appalled.

"Why aren't you out there again," he asked, hoping to shift the attention from himself. Truly, he didn't want any more unwarranted attention than necessary. People had already eyed him curiously when he stomped up the steps to their seats and plopped himself down with a couple of Gryffindors.

Ginny narrowed her eyes at the back of his head and poked him. "Because I'm always in the spotlight with quidditch. Harry loves to play and I wanted him to enjoy himself. Now stop trying to change the subject."

He lifted one booted foot to rest on the seat in front of him and crossed his arms with a huff. He shifted uncomfortably when his leather jacket inhibited some of his movement. He'd pulled the blasted thing out this morning when Hermione had said it was chilly out. Apparently she didn't deem the grey hoodie he'd donned enough, despite her shock that he owned a hoodie to begin with. He hadn't worn it in years and it was tight in the shoulders now.

"Merlin, you're irritating," he grumbled.

"I heard that, Malfoy."

"And I said it," he spoke louder, turning again to face two of his most unlikely friends.

"So, have you kissed her again," Neville asked with a grin of his own.

Draco rolled his eyes and colored slightly. "Perhaps."

Things were going well between them since their talk and he'd bared part of his soul to her. A good morning and goodnight kiss had become their ritual over the last week. Though he wanted nothing more than to initiate a full on snog—he'd been fantasizing about it for days—Hermione still seemed a bit nervous when he touched her.

At this point he was taking whatever he could get but he had learned a few things. A gentle suck of her bottom lip elicited a soft sigh from her. The best place for his hands wasn't at her shoulders but at the small of her back which seemed to make her press closer, even more so when he trailed his fingers down her spine with a gentle pressure. And he'd been lucky once to receive a gentle nip on his lower lip before she'd kissed him softly.

It wasn't that he thought she was shy with her affections but just still uncertain about him and he honestly didn't blame her. With their history, he'd likely be hesitant as well if he were her. Going from wanting a divorce after the year was up to being open to the possibility of an actual relationship was huge in his mind, even if she hadn't exactly said it.

Ginny shook her head at his non-answer and finally relented. "Where is Hermione anyway?"

Draco snorted before his lips drew into a smirk and he pointed down towards the entrance. "Meeting with McGonagall. She said she'd be here in time for the start."

Sure enough, Hermione and McGonagall were engaged in what appeared to be a lively chat for two academics. There was enthusiastic wand waving and polite smiles all included.

"You know," Neville started in a near whisper, "While I think she always saw Harry like her son, I really think Hermione was her favorite."

"Clearly," Ginny smirked. "I'm sure you remember how horrified she was when Hermione was missing for her seventh year while they were out hunting horcruxes."

Hermione soon joined them and took a seat next to Draco, one row under Neville and Ginny.

"Where's Hannah," she asked Neville.

He gave her a crooked smile, "House hunting with her mother."

"You didn't want to be there for that?"

He shrugged and shook his head. "I'm fairly easy. I don't really care where we live as long as it's with her."

"Aww," Ginny nudged him teasingly with her shoulder.

Draco turned to give him an incredulous look. "You're a sap, Longbottom." Though he really had no room to talk.

"Oh hush, you lot," Hermione admonished.

She chanced a look at Draco from the corner of her eyes and blushed when she caught him watching her with an amused smirk.

This was the first true public outing they'd made together where they knew they'd be seen by other people. Both had been a bit nervous even if neither had said anything to the other about it. People were curious enough at work. Now there were even more eyes on them.

"Ugh, I didn't realize it was going to be this chilly out," Hermione groaned as she hugged her thin trench coat tighter around herself. Being exposed to the weather was the thing she hated most about quidditch. She knew she'd feel silly if she used a warming charm. It was chillier than usual though due to the cold front from the rain the day before.

"Do you want some hot chocolate," Draco asked from her side.

Hermione bit her lip, feeling like she should decline but wanting desperately to say yes. He seemed to read her inner battle from her expression and merely rolled his eyes playfully. "Anyone else," he asked over his shoulder.

"Please," Ginny smiled and Neville shook his head no.

The blonde nodded and heaved himself up. Thankful for his height, he stepped over Hermione's knees, and began marching down the steps towards the vendor selling the warm drinks.

"You know, I think Malfoy would spoil you rotten, Hermione, if you let him," Neville smiled. "He's gotten soft over the years anyway. Call it a gut instinct but I think he's developed a thing for you."

Ginny bit her lip to contain her knowing grin and merely watched for her friend's reaction. She hated keeping his true feelings a secret from her best friend but it wasn't her place to tell.

Hermione just rolled her eyes at him. "Do be serious, Neville."

She wasn't ready to tell anyone else about his kisses and how much she was enjoying them. For once, she was trying terribly hard not to overanalyze the situation.

He just shrugged good-naturedly. "Call me mental but I think he would do well with having someone that needed him. He kept to himself for so long, I think he'd like taking care of someone else."

Ginny could see the wheels in Hermione's mind turning as she averted her attention back to the pitch.

"I don't think it's crazy," she added. "And you could do with having someone to spoil you, Hermione." When she gave her a skeptical look, she added, "I love my brother as much as anyone else, but he didn't treat you right. You really haven't dated much since. Draco Malfoy could though."

Hermione chewed the inside of her lip but didn't argue before turning her attention back to the pitch. She'd really never considered that maybe Draco wanted to be needed by someone. By her though?

They all cheered when Harry and Angelina zoomed past on their brooms and hovered over the pitch. Lee Jordan could be heard through the charmed megaphone just like when they were in school as he began his play-by-play of the game.

The teams were mixed from different houses, Gryffindor and Hufflepuff against Slytherin and Ravenclaw.

By the second time Harry zoomed past them in search of the snitch Hermione turned to her companions.

"Draco's been gone a while now, hasn't he?"

Ginny looked around the stands and then spotted him still near the wizard selling hot chocolate and other snacks. She scowled at what she saw.

"Could she be any more obvious," she grumbled to Neville.

"What," Hermione asked quickly.

Her friend pointed to where he was still standing, two cups of hot chocolate in hand, and talking to a blonde witch that looked vaguely familiar. The woman was dressed to the nines in a short dress and light coat which she had to be freezing in.

"Daphne Greengrass," Ginny answered. "I'd heard she and her sister were back in London again. They moved with their family after the war to France for a while. I ran into her when I was at the Daily Prophet for an interview for the sports column a few weeks ago. She's writing for their fashion column now. I think she used to have a thing for Malfoy back in school."

Hermione lifted an eyebrow as she watched the blonde laugh and reach out to touch her husband's arm. She watched the way the witch smiled at him, clearly flirting, and felt fire flood her veins.

Her eyes widened suddenly as an unexpected realization dawned on her. Sweet Godric, she didn't like it! Just watching the Daphne Greengrass flutter her lashes and lean in towards him made her skin itch.

She knew they'd made an unbreakable vow and he wouldn't do anything but she didn't like the idea of someone else wanting him. He was already hers—in the eyes of the Ministry at least.

Hermione managed to tear her eyes away from the witch and finally checked Draco's reaction. He had a polite smile on his face, the same one she'd often observed at work when he was interacting with his superiors, but he either wasn't aware that the woman was flirting with him or he just wasn't interested.

She loosed a breath she hadn't realized she was holding and folded her hands in her lap as he finally was able to part ways and began climbing the steps to their seats again.

"Sorry," he apologized as he handed Ginny her cup and then Hermione hers as he retook his seat to her right.

"Ran into an old girlfriend," Ginny narrowed her eyes at him.

Draco looked confused but shook his head. "No, just Daphne Greengrass. She was in Slytherin with me." He shrugged and added more quietly, "One of the few people who actually spoke to me seventh year."

He didn't bother to add that their parents had once hoped to have them married. It wasn't something he'd been particularly happy about at the time.

Hermione could feel the witch's attention on them as she stood near the railing at the bottom of the stands. It rankled her nerves enough that she did something about it.

After her first sip of her drink, she leaned over a pressed a soft kiss to Draco's cheek.

"Thanks for the hot chocolate," she smiled slightly before turning her attention to the game. She made eye contact with the blonde witch and lifted a single eyebrow, sending a clear message. Don't cross me.

Draco's mouth parted in surprise. He looked down in time to see Daphne roll her eyes and march off to join her friends.

A slow smirk formed on his face and he relaxed back in his seat. He had no idea what had just happened but he'd take her affection however she was willing to give it. And in public no less!

He'd seen Rita Skeeter skulking around the stands earlier and was certain there'd likely be a picture of them now for the Daily Prophet in the morning. For once, he didn't even care.

Feeling rather confident, he stretched his left arm out and rested it comfortably on the back her Hermione's seat. It took a moment but he felt her relax more comfortably and didn't even flinch when he adjusted his arm until it was draped over her shoulders instead of the back of the seat. She even allowed him to play with the ends of her hair, curling the soft strands around his fingers repeatedly.

He watched her from the corner of his eye as her warm, brown eyes surveyed the pitch for her friend. Every time she brought her cup to her lips, he followed the tip of her tongue as it ran across them to savor the drink. It was like pure torture for all the years he'd been a prick to her.

Draco Malfoy was at Hermione Granger's mercy.

Neither was aware of Ginny's happy grin. She folded her arms over her chest and nudged Neville who grinned back. He waggled his eyebrows suggestively and she held a hand over her mouth to hold back her laughter.

Hermione was falling for him. That much was obvious. The question was only when she'd realize it herself.

~o~O~o~

Draco slammed his palm down on the conference table with a growl. "Finnigan, I'm warning you. If you don't shut up, I won't be responsible for what I do next!"

Seamus scowled at the blond and glanced at Harry. "Seriously, Harry? How does he get away with this kind of attitude still?"

Harry pushed his glasses up on his nose with an irritated sigh and shuffled the papers in front of him, not even bothering to look up. "Because his average spell casting time is two seconds and his arrest track record is spotless. He's caught the highest number of ex-death eaters on the run out of anyone in the whole office in the last five years." Harry looked pointedly at Seamus. "Basically, he's good at what he does so I tolerate a bit of his shit."

"Bet it's only because he thinks like one," Seamus muttered under his breath.

Draco's wand appeared in his hand and his wrist flicked faster than Harry could register. "Langlock," he snarled at Seamus.

Seamus' eyes widened and he began fidgeting in his chair as he tried to pry his tongue from the roof of him mouth.

"Malfoy," Harry admonished with a glare, "Don't make me have to assign you the filing again."

Draco rolled his eyes and muttered, "Finite incantatum."

"Bloody git," Seamus shouted when he could speak again.

Some of the other aurors who'd been at the end of the table watching just rolled their eyes. No one had any major issues with Malfoy anymore but it was well known that he could be surly at work.

Angelina Johnson approached their end of the table. "Harry, if the meeting's over, the rest of us are going to head out. I'm starving. Cormac, Ernie, and I are all going to grab something to eat if any of you wanted to meet us at the Leaky Cauldron."

Harry nodded and began packing his bag. "I'll owl Ginny to meet us there. Seamus? Draco? Either of you coming?"

Draco shook his head, a few strands of well-kept hair falling out of place before he pushed them back. "Can't. It's Monday," he told him.

Harry nodded in understanding but Seamus looked at him like he was nuts.

"Good going, Malfoy. You know what day of the week it is."

"Potter," Draco warned. Truly, he relied too much sometimes on Harry to keep him in line but it had been their system for some time while they worked together and it kept him out of trouble.

"Seamus, just back off of him."

Seamus groaned but nodded his compliance. "I still can't believe they matched poor Hermione with him," he muttered as he grabbed his pack to follow the others out. "Bloody cruel."

Draco shook his head and lifted his leather bag over his shoulder as he followed behind Harry. "I'm telling you again, if you put that prat with me when it comes time to train in the field, I'm not holding back. It'll be your fault if he comes back in pieces."

Harry chuckled and slapped him on the back good naturedly as they walked side by side to the nearest apparation point outside. "We both know you're more bark than you are bite, Malfoy."

"Doesn't mean I wouldn't make an exception for him," he reminded him.

Harry eyed him for a moment and nodded. "Then again, I remember what you did to Cormac when he nudged you a bit too far. I think I'll likely pair him with Angelina. She has the most patience and they've always gotten on well enough."

"You're not a complete ass after all, Potter," Draco smirked.

"Stop being so surly, Draco," a voice said from behind.

Both men slowed and turned to find Hermione walking briskly to catch up. "Missed you at lunch today, Hermione," Harry grinned at her.

"I had another meeting with Professor McGonagall. Don't forget that you volunteered to participate in their career day as well, Harry."

"I think I'll just send Malfoy. That ought to go over fairly well," he grinned mischievously.

Hermione gave him an all too familiar glare. "Harry, don't you dare cross me on this."

They reached the apparation points and Harry backed away with his hands held up in surrender. "I'm not that thick, Hermione. I'll go myself if need be." He gave them a wave and with a pop, he was off.

She shook her head and then turned towards her husband.

It was an odd thing. She'd noticed she often thought of him more as her husband rather than merely Draco in her head lately. She felt oddly possessive of him as of late as well.

She'd come to the honest realization that she wanted him. And it unnerved the hell out of her.

"I'll see you at home later." He began to lean down to kiss her but she stopped him with a hand against his chest.

Hermione narrowed her eyes at him. "Every Monday night you come home late and you've never said why. Don't you think you should share that with your wife if we're going to be practicing consistent honesty with each other now?"

Draco swallowed and licked his lips. Where he went every Monday evening after work was a secret between him and only two other people—Molly Weasley and Harry. It wasn't that he was ashamed of it per se but he didn't feel the need to advertise.

When she crossed her arms he realized that he'd been standing there thinking for too long and needed to act quickly.

He held out his arm to her. "Come with me and I'll show you where I go every Monday."

She gave him an uncertain look but took his arm anyway. He knew she didn't like letting someone else apparate her somewhere so her trust gave him the confidence he needed.

With a crack, space compressed on them and pulled from their navels as he delivered them in front of seemingly dilapidated brick building somewhere in London. A single street lamp flickered on the quiet street.

Hermione glanced around them nervously and kept her hand on his sleeve as they stepped closer to the building.

Draco pulled his wand from his pocket and flicked his wrist in a circle, "Specialis revelio."

She watched as the single window of the seemingly deserted shop began to shift as bricks groaned and pushed aside for more bricks to slide out. It was like watching 12 Grimmauld Place appear.

"I should warn you that you'll be somewhat of a celebrity here." When she lifted a challenging eyebrow he rolled his eyes. "More so than usual."

He placed a hand on the small of her back and led her through the new doorway. They passed through a dark, narrow hallway that made Hermione momentarily nervous about where he was taking her. There was a light near the end and they turned into what appeared to be a makeshift classroom with desks and mismatched chairs.

There were many witches and wizards talking with each other boisterously from their seats. Draco led them to a table with a pair of chairs near the far left side in the back. As her eyes perused the room she recognized a few people and finally noticed the chalkboard at the front. Written in a jagged handwriting was 'Muggle Studies for Wizards and Witches: Modern Technology'.

"Draco, what—"

She didn't get her question out as a pair of wizards quickly approached their table as Draco was setting his bag down and removing his suit jacket and robes.

"Merlin's Pants, you're Hermione Granger," said a dark-haired man Hermione recognized as Finn Higgs, a Slytherin who'd been a few years ahead of them at Hogwarts.

The dirty blonde next to him nudged him in the ribs. "The ministry matched them."

"Um, hi," she swallowed, shrinking away and closer to her husband.

The fact that she was shifting closer to him for protection wasn't lost on him and he felt a bit of pride swell stupidly in his chest.

Draco cringed visibly at their behavior, "Bugger off, would you? I only brought Hermione so she'd know where I go every Monday."

The two men nodded nervously and wandered off, joining in on conversations buzzing around them as eyes glanced towards them before turning back to their circles.

Hermione relaxed and shifted to give him space when she realized how she was crowding him. "Draco, what is this?"

She watched with mild amusement as he pulled out a worn leather book for notetaking. He turned midway through the book, indicating that he'd taken many notes before in it.

"Just what the board says. Muggle studies. The ministry started it after the war mostly for ex-death eaters who were on probation and deemed able to be rehabilitated. Obviously, all of us needed educating on this particular topic." He pulled a muggle pen out and placed it in the crease of the book and turned to look at her finally. "I only had to take two courses: Muggles through History and Muggles Today, but I found them interesting so I kept taking them. They're three months long and the topics change. Now other wizards and witches take them, too, but it's still a lot of…us."

She was utterly dumbfounded. "I had no idea. I didn't even know the ministry had done this."

Draco brushed a hand through his hair, noting that he needed another haircut soon. "It wasn't something they heavily advertised. At first our sponsors were required to be present so Molly Weasley escorted me every week. It was after graduation and before I sold the manor to the ministry when they were still tracking my movement."

Hermione was in complete awe. Not only had he been required to learn about muggles, but he'd actually enjoyed it enough to keep educating himself.

She shifted in her seat awkwardly, half wondering if her expression showed the awe she felt for him right now.

"Well that explains your comfort in the park over the weekend and the microwave. Why are they all staring at me though?"

It was seriously beginning to unnerve her much the way it did right after the war. She'd hardly been able to go anywhere without being mobbed and getting back to Hogwarts to finish seventh year had been a Godsend.

Draco laughed as he glanced around the room to see what she meant. "Well, you're the most famous muggle-born witch in Britain, if not the entire wizarding world. And I'm the idiot the ministry married you off to so you're bound to cause a bit of a stir."

Before she could respond and tell him off for being so negative about himself, a grey-haired wizard in rich purple robes strode into the room and everyone began taking their seats. Hermione clamped her mouth shut and watched as he removed an ornate top hot and draped his cloak over the worn desk at the front of the room. He moved around to the front of the desk and leaned against it with a smile.

"Welcome back, everyone. I trust you all had time to reflect on last week's lecture on blenders and CD players. Any follow up questions or observations?"

A dark-haired witch on the opposite side of the room raised her hand. "Yeah, Malfoy brought his wife to class tonight."

The professor turned his attention to their table and Hermione felt herself shrink again under the attention. Draco, to his credit, sat there stone-faced—trying not to glare at the nosy witch if she had to guess.

The older wizard's face erupted into a bright smile. "Why, Mrs. Granger-Malfoy in the flesh, how very wonderful to have you with us this evening. To what do we owe the pleasure?"

She glanced at Draco, her brown eyes pleading for help. He nodded and spoke up. "I wanted to share with her where I go every Monday evening after work."

He nodded as his mouth twisted sympathetically. "Ah yes, I imagine these new marriages are a bit tricky for many of you. I've always found with my own wife that complete transparency is best. Though it's not always kept me out of trouble. Quite the opposite sometimes," he chuckled as he turned to address the whole class again.

"I'm sure everyone here is familiar with the name Hermione Granger. Being muggle-born, I'm sure she can be of great help to us this evening should we have any questions beyond my scope of expertise." He pushed away from the desk and summoned a piece of chalk to begin writing on its own. "Now, this evening we'll be discussing something you've all likely been looking forward to—the modern automobile. It's by far the most popular means of personal transportation among muggles."

Draco smirked at her before grabbing his muggle pen to begin taking notes.

Hermione was fascinated by the entire experience. It reminded her of when she'd taken Muggle Studies at Hogwarts third year. Their questions reminded her how differently they viewed the world she grew up in and their curiosity was palpable.

She smiled as she looked over Draco's shoulder to see his notes and doodles of various cars from the projector. She had to hold a hand over her mouth to hide her laughter when she spelled those doodles to move which caused him to jump in alarm. Fighting the urge to kiss him when he gave her a surprised look was harder than she'd imagined.

Professor Drudgers requested her input on a particularly amusing question about the function of fuzzy dice in the sample photo they'd been shown. She hadn't really had a good answer for them but they seemed riveted nonetheless.

"Very good then," the professor grinned as he sent the chalk away. "Next week we'll discuss the completely fascinating television."

Everyone began packing their bags, chattering amongst themselves as they departed for the night. Draco packed his book and slung his bag over his shoulder.

"Hungry," he asked her as he stood and held her coat out for her to slip her arms into it.

Hermione slid her arms in and shivered pleasantly as his hands slid across her shoulders in the process.

"Starving actually. What do you have in mind? It's getting late."

He gave her a sneaky grin and looped her arm through his. "Do you like Italian?"

She tilted her head back to look at him and nodded. "Love it. Particularly tortellini."

"Cheese or meat filled?"

She looked at him as though he were mental. "Cheese of course."

They walked a couple of blocks down the street to a small Italian restaurant. It was a half hour before closing but they seemed to recognize him as they stepped inside.

"Evening, Mrs. Ricci," he greeted an older muggle woman behind the counter.

"Mr. Malfoy," she grinned. "Here for your usual to go order?"

"Yes, ma'am. An order of your cheese tortellini for my wife as well."

The older woman's eyes finally found Hermione and her grin grew if that were possible. "I had no idea you were married."

Draco nodded as he pulled out the proper amount of pounds and handed them to her. "It's quite recent really."

She gave him his change with a wink, "Quite a beautiful catch you got there. Grab a seat and it'll be ready in about fifteen minutes."

"Full of surprises," Hermione shook her head as they took a seat to wait.

"This is one of the first places I ever came in the muggle world without Mrs. Weasley."

"They don't know that we're—"

"Merlin, no! I'm not daft."

She tried to stifle her laughter behind her hand quickly at his seemingly offended response. "So what does your mother think of all this? You being so accepting of muggles, I mean. Does she even know?"

Draco heaved a heavy sigh and folded his hands on the table. "I cut off a lot of contact with her after the war. She'd write me letters seventh year and it became clear by Christmas that while she was accepting of Voldemort's defeat, she'd never really wanted to be involved with death eaters anyway, she still hadn't changed her views on people…" He paused as he thought of how to word what he wanted to say.

"People like me," she guessed.

He nodded with a reluctant grimace. "People like you."

"Have you received any letters from her since we were married?"

It didn't truly matter what Narcissa Malfoy thought of her or their marriage. She couldn't deny that she was perpetually curious though. She sometimes even forgot about his parents since he lived as if they never even existed.

The look on his face could only be described as disgusted when he nodded again. "One. It's on my desk at work. I received it last week but I haven't opened it yet."

"Ready to go then, Mr. Malfoy," Mrs. Ricci announced as she came around the counter with their bag of food.

"Thank you," he smiled politely.

"Now off with you two lovebirds," she snickered and made shooing motions with her hands.

Hermione took Draco's arm and they went back out into the night. After they found a nearby alley, she disapparated them back to their home.

"I'll unpack everything if you want to get out of your work clothes," Draco offered.

She nodded and left him to change into her pajamas. After donning a comfortable sweatshirt and some striped pajamas pants, she braided her hair to get it out of her way. She found Draco already in his pajamas as well and munching on a brownie as he set two glasses of water down with their plates on their living room coffee table.

She'd recently introduced him to her old DVD player and movies on the television she'd brought with her. They'd taken to eating in the living room sometimes to watch a movie together after work. His amused comment about how horrified his mother would be if she saw him eating on the floor in front of a muggle television still made her laugh when she thought about it.

"Bitsy left dessert," he explained when she gave him a quizzical look.

She settled on the cushion he'd set down for her and waited for him to join her.

"I really need to do something for her. She does so much."

Draco shrugged and took a bite of his food. The first bite was always the best and he smiled. "She likes hats," he offered after he swallowed.

"Hats?"

He nodded and dodged her hand when she started to slap his hand away when he stole one of her tortellini. He knew by the bright expression in her eyes and the way she was biting her lip to hide her smile that she wasn't upset.

"Not sure why but she has a collection of them. I usually find her some sort of hat for Christmas. Top hats, sock hats, muggle ball caps—she has some of everything. A little odd but I don't question it."

"Seems like a preoccupation with house elf freedom," she teased. That earned her a playful glare but she knew it was half-hearted.

"Of course you would say that. When I freed her, I actually used a pair of striped socks, thank you very much."

She gave him a prim smile. "I stand corrected then. Perhaps she merely loves hats."

After dinner Hermione sent the dishes to the sink with a quick wandless spell. It was late already and with full stomachs, sleep was imminent.

They climbed the stairs together and stopped in front of her bedroom door for a goodnight kiss. It was their unspoken agreement. She'd never admit it to Ginny but she found herself looking forward to it, almost wondering why he hadn't tried kissing her any other time.

However, there was a part of her that was still slightly hesitant. She feared that her strong reaction to him was due to the novelty of kissing someone she'd never imagined she would.

It seemed that Draco knew what she'd been thinking though. After the usual gentle kisses against her full lips, he braved running his tongue along her bottom lip again. This time when she parted her lips tentatively, he took his chance and slid his tongue in to caress her own.

Hermione fisted his shirt in her hands at the surprise intrusion in her mouth but didn't fight him. One hand continued to grip his shirt while the other snaked its way to the back of his head and into his soft, blonde hair.

True to her nature, she gave as good as she got and he groaned when he felt her fingertips scratching his scalp after a particularly aggressive stroke of her tongue. She was the first to pull away, leaving him panting like a teenager over her.

She licked her swollen lips and met his eyes, bracing both hands against his chest as she looked up at him. He was opening and closing his mouth as though he had something to say but wouldn't say it.

"What is it, Draco?" She brushed her thumb over his bottom lip and her skin prickled when he kissed it.

There was a tenderness about him when he held her like this that awed her, perhaps because it was so unexpected from him and he didn't show it to anyone else. She was used to being independent and taking care of herself. Perhaps Ginny and Neville hadn't been too far off. Maybe she'd like to be taken care of for once. It couldn't be that bad to allow someone to hold her every now and then, right?

But, especially after their talk that night last week, she realized she wanted to take care of him, too.

He was sporting a similar nervous look to the one she'd seen in his eyes that night in Malfoy Manor. "I want to be honest with you but I'm afraid of scaring you."

She tipped her head in understanding. "Always be honest with me."

She felt his chest rising and falling quickly with each breath he took under her hands. Why was he so nervous suddenly?

Draco took a deep breath and nodded. He pulled back from her slightly and took each of her hands in his, rubbing his thumbs over her knuckles reverently. "I know I wasn't your choice and I know you started this with the goal to go our separate ways but I really don't want to do that. I—I don't think I can imagine having children with anyone else now."

Her brown eyes widened considerably and a thrill shot through her body at his words. He wanted to be with her. He wanted to have children with her. Merlin, that meant…

Draco could see the complicated wheels in her mind turning as she processed it. He was sick of holding it in. So sick of hiding. Sick of not feeling like he truly had her despite being married to her.

Whether he deserved her or not, it didn't matter anymore. Damn it, he wanted his wife!

"Draco, you know that if we…if we were to have sex," a blush consumed her cheeks before she met his eyes again, "there's no going back. You can't change your mind. You know as well as I do that wizarding marriages are nearly impossible to break. Consummating the marriage is our only loophole with this law."

"I know." He tone was almost pleading. His grey eyes had gone soft. He was looking at her as though she was withholding his favorite toy and it was making her heart flutter in the silliest way.

"And you want to be with me, despite everything? Despite that we're still working through our murky history with each other and despite everyone waiting for us to fall apart?" She paused, her eyes pleading with him. "Do you want a real marriage? Do you really want me?"

He managed to smirk but it wasn't full. "No, they're waiting for you to decide I'm an ass and you want someone else." His smirk fell and he looked more serious. "But I've wanted you for the last seven years. I don't see it changing now."

She paled suddenly. "What," she whispered.

Steeling his resolve, Draco pushed forward with the last bit of his pride. "I've been in love with you for the past seven years."