I'm off to a meeting, but I wanted to post this first. Also, my boss convinced me that I need a tea party board on Pinterest, so I'll probably do that after the meeting. Is anyone else Pinterest obsessed? Please tell me it's not just me.

Chapter 14

Athena grinned mischievously as she entered the master bedroom. "Mummy, you're never going to guess what I just saw," she declared, climbing onto the bed beside her mother.

Hermione smiled and continued to fold the laundry. "What did you see?" she asked.

"My grandma, your mum, kissing a man," she shared.

Taken aback, Hermione asked, "Are you sure it was Nana?"

The little girl nodded. "It was definitely Nana," she replied. "They were outside on the front lawn, and it was icky. Like when you and Daddy kiss. I hope I never look like that."

"You won't be kissing any boys until you're forty," Hermione stated, picking up a pile of Clara's clothes. She left the room with Athena on her heels and entered the girls' bedroom. Draco was seated on Athena's bed with Clara on his lap as they played with dolls. He looked up, silently asking what was wrong. "My mother is kissing other men."

Blond eyebrows rose. "That's...surprising," he remarked. "Are you sure?"

Helene arrived home from the hospital exhausted. She had spent a sleepless night by her husband's bedside, and while the doctors ran more tests, she returned home for a shower and a nap. A small groan escaped when she realized they wouldn't come as soon as she hoped. As much as she loved seeing her daughter and granddaughter, she loved the idea of sleep more.

"Sorry to barge in like this," Hermione said guiltily. "Draco's away at a conference, so we thought we'd visit. I hope that's alright."

Nodding, she let them into the house and told her pregnant daughter to make herself comfortable. "Where's he gone this time?" Helene asked, setting two glasses of water down on the coffee table.

Hermione shrugged. "Australia, I think," she replied. "I don't know. I can barely remember my own name these days, let alone where my husband's gone. Does that make me a bad wife?"

Laughing, Helene sat down beside her. "No, sweetheart. You've just got pregnancy brain," she replied, wrapping her arm around the young woman's shoulders. "How's Tiny handling the idea of becoming a big sister?"

"Not well," Hermione admitted. "She's already figured out that a sibling means she won't be the center of attention anymore. Draco has already been warned that he's not allowed to like the new baby more. I'm hoping, with three months to do it, we can convince her that this is a good thing."

Athena, listening to their conversation, scowled. "I wouldn't hold your breath," Helene advised.

Fearful of changing the subject, Hermione let silence pass between them. A full two minutes passed before she spoke. "How's Dad?"

Sighing, Helene shook her head. "Not good," she replied.

"You can't ask her," Draco whispered, following her to Helene's bedroom.

Hermione rounded on him as she stopped. "Why not?" she demanded. "I have a right to know if she's seeing someone. What if she marries him? I don't like secrets."

"You kept me a secret," he reminded her. "When we started dating, you didn't tell anyone. It was weeks before you finally admitted it."

"That's different," she said, wearing a deep scowl. "You were...you. You had a reputation. Oh, and you hated me."

He uncrossed her arms and pulled her towards himself. "You don't know that this guy is any different," he told her. "She's been living in the wizarding world for the last two years. What if he's a wizard with a reputation?"

"You realize you just made my point, not yours," she pointed out. Smirking, he conceded. "Please, just let me ask her about it. It'll ease my mind to know what's going on."

Sighing, he let her go. "What if you don't like what she has to say?" he wondered.

Leaning against the wall, she hung her head. "I don't know," she admitted. "I just want to know what's going on."

Nodding, he promised to keep the girls occupied while they talked. Knocking on the door, Hermione awaited permission to enter. A harried Helene told her to come in, and smiled when she saw her. "Sorry. I was trying to straighten up and I tripped over a shoe," she said. "Why are you making that face?"

Hermione frowned. "What face?" she wondered, looking for a mirror.

"The face that says you know something, you're disappointed, and you want to talk about it," her mother replied. Sitting down at the foot of the bed, Hermione shared what she had learned from Athena. Helene sighed as she sat beside her. "It's true. I have met someone, someone I enjoy spending time with. He's a...what do you call them when they can't do magic but come from magical families?"

"A squib," Hermione told her. "Is it someone I'd know?"

Shaking her head, Helene began to tell her how they met. It was while she and girls were at the park months before. Clara, often the free spirit, had run off, causing her grandmother to panic. "Carl found her and brought her back," she recalled. "He was there with his grandson. I think you might know the boy. He's in Athena's class. Goldstein is the last name."

"You're dating Anthony Goldstein's father?" Hermione asked. "I didn't know his father was a squib. So, is this serious? Is he your...boyfriend?"

Helene chuckled at her difficulty. "I don't know what he is, sweetheart," she admitted. "I just don't want you to think that I'm trying to replace your father. I've loved him since I was a teenager. Him not being here doesn't change that. Carl has been a good companion, and yes, we've kissed. I'm not going to marry him though."

"Did you keep this from me to protect my feelings?" Hermione wondered.

Smiling, she touched her daughter's cheek. "I'm a mother. That's what I do," Helene said. "You're a mother. You know what it's like to want to keep your children from getting hurt."

"Yes, but mine are at the age when I'm trying to protect them from the stove burners, not a new father," Hermione retorted.

Scowling, her mother rose and continued her task of cleaning the room. "I told you - I have no intentions of marrying him," she stated. "I don't see myself ever getting remarried. I married your father, and as far as I'm concerned, 'until death do us part' goes for me too."

Hermione joined her mother by the dresser and hugged her. "Thank you for telling me," she murmured. She left then and returned to her husband. Setting aside the book he'd been reading to Clara, he rose and embraced her. "Promise me you'll never leave me."

Frowning, he kissed her forehead. "Never," he vowed.