TWENTY-SEVEN
Saturday, 21 November 2020; twenty-three weeks
The following Saturday, the delivery of their larger items arrived shortly after breakfast. James directed them to unload everything into the nursery where he told her they could worry about sorting through it the following day. It worked, since earlier during the week, she had made arrangements to pick out clothes and things for the baby with Ginny on Sunday. And where Hermione had been keen on spending the day relaxing around the house, James informed her after they ate lunch that he had other ideas for the day.
She had been about to protest, but upon seeing the look in his eye when he said he wanted to take her out on another date; a real one this time, she got a rush of excitement and hurried upstairs to get ready. She had always considered their last date a real one, but this would be the first one with them having been a couple. Either way, if it was anything like the last one, she was sure she was in for a treat.
Since she had already showered that morning, she was able to put her effort into her outfit for the day. She chose one of the dresses she had let Ginny talk her into, but hadn't worn yet. She liked the way the dress fit; that it was adjustable because of the wrap style and that the skirt, despite being labeled as a maxi, wasn't so long that she would trip on it. It was the color that put her off the most. She had never owned anything in the yellow family that wasn't a scarf or some other minor accessory. The dress itself was a mustard color and though it did compliment her complexion when she had tried it on, she was still too scared to wear it. Even the little flowers that decorated the whole of the dress, including the long sleeves, still left her intimidated by the garment.
But as she reached for it then, she decided to just be brave and go for it.
She paired it with a pair of brown booties without a sliver of a heel; something that were far too hard to find and a wine-colored scarf that was threaded with a sparkling gold thread. Not sure entirely where they were going or how long they would be out, she grabbed her jacket as well as a cream open front cardigan that she could keep in the car in case she needed either. For it being so close to Thanksgiving, the days were still on the pleasant side. If they stayed out closer to dinner time, there was a high chance that she would need both.
She kept her makeup light, going for a more natural look with emphasis on blush. Most days it was all she wore anyway. And to finish everything off, she considered braiding her hair, but after the third attempt at taming her curls, she gave up. Instead, she pulled the front sections to the back in a lazy sort of twist and tied them with a hair tie to keep them away from her face.
James was in the nursery next door to her room when she emerged from the hall bathroom. She leaned against the door frame, watching him for a moment as he took stock of what all needed to be assembled. She smiled as she wet her lips, her libido flaring to life at the sight of him. He was wearing dark blue jeans tucked loosely into black boots and long sleeve flannel that was mostly navy, but had a plaid pattern made of grey and a lighter blue. He wore it open, revealing a plain white shirt underneath and as she watched him push up his sleeves, she cleared her throat.
If they didn't leave soon, they weren't leaving at all.
"Sirius said he'd come over and start building all of this with me tomorrow," he said as he turned towards her, eyes raking over.
"We still need to find a chair."
He nodded as he came towards her, his hand finding hers right away. "Next weekend?"
She snorted as they moved towards the stairs, pausing so he could close the door behind him. "Black Friday weekend? No thank you."
"Right," he muttered as he let go of her so she could hold onto the banister as they began their descent. "The following weekend then."
She laughed as she reached the bottom of the stairs. "It's a date." She turned towards him when she felt his hand at the small of her back. "Speaking of, where are we going?"
He hummed as her arms wound around his neck, one hand diving into his hair as she stared up at him through her lashes. His hand pressed tighter against her back as his other one found her hip. "Nowhere if you keep looking at me like that."
"Promise?" she asked, her voice dropping significantly as she brought his lips down to hers.
His lips were soft as they pillowed against hers and their mouths moved in a series of gentle tugs and sweet kisses. But even when the hand at her back dipped lower, cupping the rounded flesh of her backside, he pulled away before either one of them could deepen the kiss.
"Come on," he murmured, the hand at her back directing her towards the door. "It's a bit of a drive." She gave a soft sigh and began to move, ready for whatever he had in store for her.
The drive was indeed a long one; more than she was expecting. But if it meant they were free to do something as simple as hold each other's hands without looking over their shoulders, she didn't care how long she sat in the car for. The secret of where they were headed was revealed when she started to see signs pointing them towards event parking in makeshift lots. Soon after that, there were signs informing them that traffic was being detoured due to a major portion of downtown being blocked off for a local art festival.
She had always wanted to go to one of these, but Ron had never been interested in anything that wasn't sports or video games. Could she do anything crafty herself? Absolutely not, but she appreciated those that had the ability to create. And there were more than just artists selling their work; there was a stage for live music throughout the day, several food trucks all around the area with a variety of food, and plenty of hands-on activities available to keep them occupied.
The first thing she did was go to one of the drink vendors and get the largest cup of hot cider they had to offer. It was her favorite drink; one that she would drink all year round, but was especially when the weather chilled. She was surprised when James ordered one for himself instead of a beer, but he assured her he liked cider as much as she did. Her cheeks had flushed as she recalled how he had always made it for her instead of hot chocolate like Ron and Harry asked for when they were younger. How he had always made it extra special by adding caramel sauce and whipped cream.
They took their time walking around the festival. They stopped at every booth, spending extra time at the booths where something caught their eye. They even found someone who had done an oil painting of a forest scene, complete with all the animals. Hermione had barely laid eyes on it before she was paying the artist and having it set aside for them to pick up on their way out.
About the same time they had finished their drinks, they stumbled across a booth where they could paint their own small canvasses. There were a myriad of easy to follow designs if they needed inspiration or they were free to paint their own. It was James that suggested they sit and each pick a design to recreate. Hermione was the one to take it a step further and insisted they keep their projects to themselves and reveal them at the end. He rose to the challenge and they got to work.
Where Hermione had gone for the recreation of a blue-sky gradient, complete with clouds and elongated M's for birds, James had made a forest. And while hers looked like their unborn child itself had painted it, his looked rather decent. "Any other secret talents I should know about?" she asked as they began to clean up their areas.
He chuckled and rubbed at his chin. "I learned to play the guitar in college, but I doubt I remember any of the cords."
"What'd you do, learn it for Lily?"
His grin was lopsided as he took the paintbrushes from her hand and dunked them into the cup to rinse the bristles. "Not for her," he started, turning his attention to the brushes. "But she did love to watch Sirius and I attempt play at parties."
"Weren't you already married by then?" she asked.
He nodded and she could see the slow grin on his lips even from his profile. "My father raised me with the notion that just because you have her, doesn't mean you should stop courting her."
Even if she had been able to think of something to say to that, the owner of the booth came over to collect their canvasses. Just as the piece of art they had bought for the nursery, they arranged to pick it up on the way out so it had time to dry and gave their information before leaving.
"What about you?" he prompted when she laced their fingers together as they resumed their stroll down the main road. "Any talents you have that I don't know about?"
She gave it a thought before shaking her head. "I don't really have any talents. Aside from ability to read insanely fast."
He chuckled at that. "I wouldn't say that, love," he said before angling himself so that his lips could brush across her ear as he whispered, "I'd say that thing you do with your tongue is quite the talent."
Gooseflesh erupted over skin as she shivered despite the heat that coursed through her at his words. She curled into his embrace, her free hand coming up to grasp at his shirt, keeping him anchored so she could claim his lips. She knew there were people watching; that there were probably thousands of people around them, but she didn't care. Her libido had been awake and thriving since she'd seen him in the nursery earlier that morning and she couldn't take it anymore.
"I need you," she breathed against his lips.
He nipped at her bottom lip just before he pulled himself back from her, his eyes darting around. "Here?"
She nodded, her fingers twitching against his chest as she forced herself to let go of his shirt. "Please don't make me wait until we get home." If he ever brought it up later, she would have denied playing up the needy whine that accompanied her words.
But when it was clear that it did the trick, there wasn't a morsel of guilt to be found in her mind. He tightened his hold on her hand and led her through the crowd. They kept their pace as normal as they could, but both of them moved with purposeful strides. After a moment they parted from the crowd and he continued on until they were off the main road. They found themselves rounding a small alley that led to the back of several older buildings. Once they were sure the coast was clear, she found herself being pressed against the wall with his lips crashing down on top of hers.
She had never done anything remotely like this before. Ron had tried to initiate something while at a party once, but she hadn't liked the idea of being so out in the open. She wasn't sure if it had been her age at the time or if it was just a lack of trust overall in her partner, but she only felt more aroused by the thrill of getting caught now. A possibility made greater by the fact the sun had only just begun to set. Without the cover of darkness, they really were at risk of being seen.
Instead of lifting her up like she anticipated, he placed his hands on her hips and turned her until she faced the wall. He reached for her hands then and guided them to the wall. He coaxed her hands open so her palms could flatten against the cool concrete surface. Then he was reaching for her hips again, drawing her backwards until she was slightly bent over. From there, his hands slid down, gathering her dress until her knicker clad backside was exposed to the chill of the late afternoon air.
He wasted no time in drawing those down too, but only pushed them down enough to get them out of the way instead of letting them pool to the ground. She sucked in a breath as she heard his belt buckle followed by the unmistakable zip of his fly. But instead of his cock filling her a moment later, it was his hand that cupped her from behind. She moaned as his middle and index finger sank between her folds and formed a valley beneath her clit. Her nails scraped at the wall as he worked up to the edge at a speed that stole her breath away.
But instead of letting her peak, he withdrew his hand. In the time it took to let out a breath and inhale another, he was palming her rear to spread her open and then slotting himself inside her entrance. They both let out stifled moans as he went right to it, thrusting away as if there were a time limit. She didn't care; she knew they could take their time when they got home later. Right now, it was about getting off without getting caught and she was already so close.
Normally she would need the attention to the bundle of nerves between her thighs, but with all the excitement and his foresight to work her up, she crested without it. She bit her lip to keep her cries as quiet as possible and she could tell from the way his hips jerked that her release had sparked his. He shuddered against her back as he came inside of her and then relaxed as they took a moment to catch their breath.
It was the sound of laughter a little too close for comfort that had them both jumping to attention. He slipped out of her as he stepped back when she straightened and she felt the rush of their releases begin to slide down the inside of her thighs. Quickly, she bent to pull up her knickers and then plucked at her dress until it fell back into place. When she looked at James, he was staring back at her, having reassembled his clothes as well. His brow rose as his eyes flickered down for a brief moment.
She gave a small shrug and stepped closer to him, ignoring the way everything pooled into the gusset of her knickers. "I like the feel of having you with me like that," she whispered, her eyes dropping to the ground as her face flamed from having said that out loud.
His hands were cupping her face, angling it upwards so he could mash his lips over hers before she could finish her exhale. Her hands rose; fingers curling softly over his forearms as she kissed him back with equal fervor. "That is something I will happily oblige anytime, Hermione. All you have to do is ask," he said as he pulled away.
She nodded, words of any kind failing her, but they weren't necessary. He simply reached for her hand and led her back to the festival where they resumed walking down the main road, enjoying the rest of their night.
After the sun set, James and Hermione turned their attention towards the food vendors and trucks around the event. They let their eyes be bigger than their stomachs and indulged in many a dish before they finally decided they couldn't stand to eat anything else. A feat they both hadn't thought possible considering she was eating for two and he still had the appetite of a teenage boy at times.
They sat for awhile after they ate. Mostly it was because she needed the rest after their little workout and all the walking they had done prior to that. But also in part to the fact that they needed to digest everything they had eaten. Due to their not being much seating around, another couple asked to share the other side of the table and they welcomed them immediately. The four fell into easy conversation and it was better than she thought not having to hide their joined hands under the table or guard herself from looking at him when and how she wanted.
They bid the other couple farewell after some time and made their way back to collect their items and hit a few other booths that had been a bit too crowded before. One of them was an elderly couple who made jewelry together. Not really much for wearing anything, Hermione was surprised to find herself drawn to a bracelet. It was simple; made of varying materials and finishes from pink to bronze for a rose gold look. It even had a few pieces of rose quartz woven in and a white rose charm that dangled from the clasp.
She didn't even protest when James purchased it the moment he saw her stare linger. Once the sale was complete, he put it around her wrist and brushed his lips across the back of her hand. With that, they waved off the elderly couple and continued on their way. Knowing they still had a bit of a drive back home, they decided to collect their paintings and head back to the car.
She grabbed her cardigan from the backseat while he placed the items in the trunk and waited for him to join her on her side of the car. She leaned back against the door and wrapped her arms around his neck, drawing him with her. "Thank you," she said as his forehead found hers. "Not just for today; for everything."
"Hermione-"
"I know I said that if it hadn't been you that night, it would have been someone else," she rushed on, needing to get it out before she lost her nerve. "I'm glad that it was you, James," she whispered.
"I'm glad it was me too," he returned before his lips settled over hers.
The kiss that followed was simple. Their lips remained pillowed against one another's without the need for more. It was just meant to comfort and express what neither one of them was quite ready to put into words just yet.
"Come on," he breathed, pulling both of them back so he could open the door for her. "Let's go home."
She remained silent as she smiled at him and took her seat. She waited until he was settled into his seat and had pulled out onto the road before she reached over to place her hand in his where he held it in his lap. They stayed like that the entire way home and instead of closing their date with another round of sex, they simply stripped bare and crawled into bed where they drifted off snuggled into one another's embrace. As if it were the one place they both truly belonged.