A/N: When inspiration hits…..

Warm, smooth, sun-kissed skin, her scent in his sheets, the way she softly moaned as his lips pressed along her limbs, and the private parts of her body. It was intoxicating. She was intoxicating. The way her nails scraped his scalp. Or the way her body trembled when she came. And especially the way his name poured from her lips. Sometimes breathily. Sometimes strained. Or sometimes so loud he thought the walls would shake. In the early morning light the two lovers spooned, Severus's long, dexterous fingers grazing her flat stomach. They were both tired, and completely sated. At least, he presumed so based on that beautiful smile Hermione wore and the way her eyes twinkled at him. He never imagined anything like this in a million years.

It was not the whole sleeping with an ex-student part. Although new for him; that was actually more common than one might think. But it had more to do with who she was. Hermione Granger. The brightest witch of her age. And his new employee. But as he held her Severus didn't feel an ounce of regret. If anything he felt like he was dangerously close to becoming addicted to her. Already he was dreading the time she would eventually have to leave. It was funny he'd been telling himself earlier just how bad of an idea it would be to get involved with Hermione and now he was loath to see her leave. "That's the biggest surprise of them all," Hermione's clearly amused voice reached his ears.

"What is?" he inquired, partly curious and somewhat apprehensive.

She must have sensed his unease because she gave him a warm, knowing smile before answering, "That you're a cuddler Severus."

With a slight roll of his eyes and a grin, he pressed an indulgent kiss on her lips, "Hush you. Besides, I have a naked, nubile witch in my bed so I'm determined to make the best of it."

"I daresay you have Master Snape, I'm surprised that my voice isn't hoarse from all the screaming," she chuckled, blushing a bit which the potions master found incredibly endearing. "This has been the best date I've ever been on. That is what it was right? A date?"

Her worried eyes made him smile because it confirmed that she was becoming as invested as he was. "Yes Hermione, it was a date. It might not have started as such, but I definitely want to make it a much more regular occurrence."

"You mean… "

"I mean that I would very much like to go out on another date with you. Preferably this afternoon if you're available?" Severus asked, looking into her amber eyes hopefully.

Hermione beamed, "Yes! I mean, I have some errands to run, but I can be free by 2," she offered, sitting up from the bed and giving him a lovely view of her breasts. She stood in all her glory, summoning her clothes to her hand and began getting dressed. He stayed on the bed simply enjoying the show, she must have felt his eyes on her because she laughed and came over to swat at his chest, "You're incorrigible. Anyway, I really should be going. But this was amazing and I look forward to this afternoon, Severus." She finished, leaning over to kiss him quite passionately.

"Leave now before I pull you back into bed," he growled, earning a whimper from the half dressed witch. "Meet me at The Leaky at 2, we'll leave from there," he instructed, giving one last kiss before freeing her to finish getting dressed and he lowered the wards so she could apparate away.

Luckily she was able to get to her room at Grimmauld Place without running into anyone else. She didn't feel like having to talk to anyone else just yet. She wanted to keep it to herself for a while. It was...nice to have something like this and so soon too. While she'd been at school she hadn't really been with anyone for long. Sure, she dated, but most of the time things ended rather prematurely for mostly the same reason; they couldn't match her passion. In or out the bedroom. She was a workaholic. And in school she was always going above and beyond. But she loved researching and making potions. It was something she found both rewarding and challenging and she couldn't imagine doing anything else.

But she also wanted that same pull and challenge out of her relationships. But oftentimes if they could stimulate her mentally they failed physically or vice versa. Snape could do both and then some. And while their history was complicated it wasn't enough to scare her away from him. If anything it only made her more intrigued. Perhaps that would be her folly but right now she was captivated by his darkness. Only because it showed just how strong his light side was. The fact that he could tap into that darkness and not be consumed was impressive and sexy. And since her time in the war Hermione learned a lot about magic, people, and life itself. She knew now that everything wasn't black or white. There were so many shades of gray in between.

Plus Severus ...well, he was so different now. Without the weight of the wizarding world on his shoulders he seemed a lot younger. And maybe not happy but content. Well, he looked happy in bed this morning. Just the thought of being with him made her knees weak. He had her in so many ways that night and early that morning. Merlin, she'd never orgasmed that many times in one night before. At least not by anyone's hands. Their chemistry was off the charts too. Why else would being with him feel so good or so natural? They just fit. And Hermione was glad that he appeared to be equally enamored. She would've been devastated if it was just a one time thing. The way he held her in his arms…. it felt like he wanted more. But she would just have to see for sure during their date. Speaking of which she needed to hurry up with the remainder of her errands; she didn't want to be late!