I am really sorry about the lack of updates, I was too occupied with work over this summer and didn't have time for writing. The update should be more frequent once September arrives.
As the last drop of coffee dripped into the foam swirls, Hermione lifted the cup up and placed it on Lucius' desk. It was her first time to brew a mocha, and she knew Lucius was particularly picky when it came to coffee. With 3 knocks on the door, she entered the office and placed the cup down. He lifted the cup and hovered it below his nose, inhaling the freshness and thickness of the coffee. Then he took a sip, as Hermione watched his Adam's apple moved a little she asked,
"Do you like it?"
Lucius licked his lips and stared into her eyes, then replied,
"I like you more."
Hermione flushed at the apparent flirtation and exclaimed,
"Stop being so frivolous!"
Lucius stood up and went towards Hermione. His arms quickly wrapped around her waist and he rested his chin on her shoulder, whispering to her ear,
"I thought you like me that way."
"Luckily the blinds are lowered," said Hermione, glancing at the blinds on the glass wall which faced the common office for the rest of the staff.
He swiftly scooped her up and dropped onto the sofa, pressing her hard below him.
"You tempted me to rise the blinds," he said and was about to get up.
Instantly, Hermione pulled his arm and said,
"Narcissa and Draco would see us!"
"Why should you be afraid?" said Lucius. "While I have never been afraid."
"Narcissa treats you as her partner, with me 'claiming' you, she wouldn't be pleased."
"And what makes you think she is such a person?"
"Everybody knows that, it's only you who never realise this."
"You know that Narcissa is merely a former high school classmate of mine," said Lucius.
"But I still haven't figured out the rationale behind the intimate relationship between Draco and Narcissa."
"When I started the company," began Lucius. "I didn't have as much staff, I need to manage a lot of things myself. Narcissa resigned and helped me take care of Draco, and to repay the gratitude, I pay her salary, and she took up full responsibility until Draco went to college."
"No wonder…" said Hermione. "I always knew they had a deep relationship, but never expected something like this would have happened."
"Draco has been growing up all alone for years, without any siblings, without anyone," said Lucius, then running his knuckles on her cheeks. "So that's why you will need to give him a few siblings so he could be as happy as he can be."
Hermione's face grew crimson and argued,
"Even if we could give him a sibling, they will have an age gap of 28 years!"
"Does that mean you're willing to have a baby?" asked Lucius, grinning.
Hermione could feel her cheeks growing redder and redder, and heat swirled on her cheeks. Lucius started planting kisses on her lips, cheeks and neck. She could feel his weight gradually placing on top of her, and his leg placed in between hers. The first instinct told her to shove him off, since they were in the office and anybody could walk in at any time. But then she had a tiny thought in her head that told her to let go of her control. This thought quickly engulfed her conscience and her limbs unknowingly clung onto his back, letting out small pants every time Lucius kissed her. His fingers glided towards her shoulder and pulled down the shoulder-less blouse. It felt so boiling that her shaking fingers tried to unbutton from the neck. The cold sensation on her chest sent her chills but immediately Lucius' lips warmed it…
Knock. Knock.
A gasp let out from Hermione's mouth and she quickly pushed Lucius away, standing as straight as possible. Lucius straightened his suit and as calm as possible, he said,
"Come in."
In came Draco, who was mildly shocked to see Hermione in the room. As he saw the redness of Hermione's cheeks, his gaze changed to a glare, as though he wanted to talk to his father in private. Noticing his hateful stare, Hermione said,
"I will leave."
"If it is about our business, there is no need for anyone to leave the room," announced Lucius and Hermione stopped.
Draco cleared his throat and said,
"Mr. Nott wishes to talk to you about the fair."
And he quickly left the room. Lucius' hand clutched the side of her waist and pulled her closer to him.
"It's such a pity that he came in and ruin the wonderful moment," commented Lucius.
"I'm glad he came in time," said Hermione.
"Stay here and wait for me in your room for lunch."
"Come on, I can't just stay here for the whole morning!"
"Did somebody forget the word 'sincerity'?"
Hermione chuckled and kissed him on the lips. The moment he grinned, Hermione pushed his hand away and she left.
"If you have so many opinions, why not just do it yourself!"
These words came from Kath, who was yelling at Draco.
"You're the person-in-charge and I am merely the CEO—" began Draco.
"Merely? Oh I am merely the advertising executive too!"
To avoid the predicable world war, Hermione said,
"Kath, I want to—-talk about the advertising information you gave me yesterday."
With one last leer, Kath took some files on her desk and went into Hermione's office. Soon as Hermione closed the door, Kath flopped down onto the chair and thumped the files onto the desk.
"You know arguing with him is futile," Hermione said.
"I know, but he's just way too annoying," complained Kath. "Unlike your Mr. Malfoy."
"Wait—since when is he my Mr. Malfoy?"
"Since you date him," relied Kath. "He is so gentle and caring, unlike his disgraceful son."
"What's wrong?"
"He's so rude and unreasonable," exclaimed Kath. "Whenever I mention you and Narcissa, he quickly grows angry and sides with Narcissa!"
"Be careful," said Hermione. "Narcissa could fire you anytime."
"Why should we live in fear when you have Lucius?"
"I don't know…sometimes I think one day he will grow bored of me and will no longer care for me."
"I know a quick and effective way that can help you," said Kath and she winked.
"What?" asked Hermione, not knowing what she had in mind.
"Babies."
"Sometimes relationship turns bad when a child is involved."
"What do you mean?" said Kath, puzzled. "We all know Lucius loves children, and certainly he will love his own too."
"I'm not sure about it"
"Did Lucius ever told you his feelings?"
Hermione nodded, which made Kath even more persistent.
"So why are you afraid?"
"I don't want Draco to feel bad," explained Hermione slowly. "After all, he is part of the Malfoy family. I don't want to be the cause of hate."
Kath nodded to show her understanding, but then she said,
"I know, but he is already an adult, he has his own life and you also have yours too. If Lucius wants a child, he can't protest or whatever!"
"I know—"
"Come on, are you really dating him? Should have known each other now that you have gone on dates already."
"We just…only have one date."
Kath gawked at her.
"Just one?"
"When we were in Russia."
"Hermione!" exclaimed Kath. "You can't just date a man once! Even me and Daniel date every possible weekend. This is how you get to know each other!"
"You know how busy Lucius is—"
"Stop giving excuses for him," said Kath. "Go ask him today."
"Today?"
"Yes, today!"
Kath stared at her intently, encouraging her to knock on Lucius' door. Hermione finally gave in, and said,
"Fine. I will ask him at lunch."
Kath seemed to be happier than Hermione herself. She scooted off back to her seat and continued her work. With Kath kept hinting her, Hermione went back to the room and began meditating. On one side she wished Lucius would ask her out, but on the other side she was afraid that she would interrupt him at the wrong time, or even delaying work because of her.
Lunch time arrived sooner than she wished, Kath knocked at the door and gave her a wink before leaving for lunch. Hermione stood up and went to Lucius' office door. With three knocks, she entered the room. Lucius turned off the computer and gazed at her, without saying a word. Hermione could feel her breath getting shallower and shallower. Finally she took a deep breath and said,
"Will…will you go on a date with me?"
She could sense the heat growing on her cheeks. The silence was unbearable and Lucius did not say anything. He simply flipped over the pages of a notebook, seemingly searching for something. Hermione regretted asking him, he was a busy man and her request could probably hinder his work. But then, Lucius said,
"Is next Saturday fine with you?"
"Huh?"
She was mildly surprised.
"If not we can choose another day—"
"Yes, it's fine."
