Chapter four

"Christ, Harry you look like shit"
Harry glanced up as his best friend and business partner, Ron Weasley, slid onto the vacant barstool next to him. "Yeah well I feel like it too" he muttered taking a gulp of his second Firewhisky.
Ron grinned and signaled the bartender, "Hey, Bruce, I'll take a Tooheys New and.." Ron glanced at Harry "Uh-oh. straight Firewhisky?"
Harry rattled his ice in his empty glass "make it a double"
"Looks like I'm the driver tonight" Ron said, snatching Harry's keys off the bar and pocketing them. "but I suppose the favor is long over due, considering how many times you've bailed me out of this place at closing time"
"Yeah well, if I start singing or something, put me in a full body bind and AK me"
"Will do!" saluting Harry with his beer bottle, Ron took a drink.
Harry and Ron had met on the way to Hogwarts and had became best friends. After defeating He Who Must Not Be Named , Harry decided to move to Australia to get away from the media and Ron and his wife at the time decided to come with him. Harry had helped Ron get through his divorce from their other best friend Hermione. Now Ron was engaged to Pansy Parkinson.
Ron whistled low and gave Harry a friendly slap on the back. "Man, you got it bad for him don't ya?"
Harry's reply was distinctly profane.
Ron chuckled, unoffended. "Yes indeed, my friend you're as good as gone"
Harry didn't care for the sound of that. He'd always been able to walk away from other relationships unscathed, so why couldn't he with Draco? Thing was he didn't want to forget Draco.
"It's hell getting dumped, isn't it?" Ron commented.
Maybe that's what was wrong, Harry thought, staring into his glass. In all his dating he had never been dumped. He'd always been the one to walk away from a relationship before they got to intense, breaking more hearts than he cared to remember. No-one had ever walked away from him.
He frowned. Although Draco's rejection stung his pride and bruised his ego, there was a deeper level to his depression he didn't understand. Without Draco in his life, life just wasn't the same.
"Man, have you seen him lately, Harry?" Ron was saying as he scooped a handful of nuts off the bar "He's got this great new haircut, and he's traded in his suits for these really tight jean and shirts that show of his really nice ar...ms"
Harry glared at Ron. "Hey I wasn't the only one looking, Harry !" Ron said
"Where have you seen Draco?" Harry demanded.
"I've seen him a couple of times at Charlies nightclub" Ron shrugged, "He was there Saturday night" " The Dragon Lair?" Harry's stomach felt as though someone had just put it through a spin cycle "that place is a meat market."
Ron grinned wolfishly "Yeah, Grade-A Quality meat"
Harry gulped the last of his whisky, the liquor went down like a blazing inferno. "Who was he with"
"Ginny"
"Figures" he muttered. Anyone else?"
"Just the eight or ten guys trying to hit on him" Ron took a sip of beer "I have to tell you, even though I'm straight, I thought Draco was looking HOT!"
Great. Just what Harry didn't want to hear. "Did he dance with anyone?" And why was he torturing himself with all these questions when he didn't really want to know the answers?
"No but not for a lack of being asked"
Harry scrubbed a hand over his jaw and swore.
"I went up to him and said hi, we talked for a bit until some guy he knew arrived."
Harry hung his head. "Must have been the guy he said he was dating"
"From what Ginny told me he, he's a Lawyer"
"Did he dance with him?" Tell me no, because I can't stand the thought of Draco's body being pressed against another man.
"No" Ron said.
Harry closed his eyes and blew out a relieved breath.
But he did leave with him" Ron continued. "I've never seen you so torn up about someone before"
" I just don't know what went wrong between him and I. It was good between us. Nearly perfect." Harry shook his head.
"I bet you guys settled into a nice, comfortable routine, right?" Ron asked
'Yeah, I guess so" Harry answered.
"That's usually a sign that the romance is gone from the relationship" Ron said draining the rest of his beer "and when it's gone they start looking for something deeper. Usually a ring or a forever kind of commitment. That's usually the time to move on or rethink the relationship"
Harry didn't want to move on. "ok Ron I've rethought the relationship and I want to keep it." He couldn't believe he was gunna ask Ron for help "so what do I do now?"
"Romance him. Draco loves that kind of stuff" Ron replied.
Harry's head began to pound. He had never had to work so hard to keep someone but maybe that's what Draco wanted. He had nothing left to lose.

" The flowers have got to stop" Ginny walked into the office carrying another flower arrangement. "The place is starting to look like a funeral home. But then it kind of matches your mood around here lately"
"How am I supposed to make him stop sending them?" Draco asked absently stroking the soft satiny petals.
"Have you tried calling him to tell him to stop?" Ginny asked
"Yes but he is never in his office, and Pansy doesn't know anything about the flowers"
"I'm impressed" Ginny said generously " at least he isn't making Pansy order them, like most bosses would make their secretaries do."
Draco agreed, secretly pleased that Harry was taking the time to do this himself "I told Pansy to tell him to please stop. I guess he hasn't go the message yet"
"Or he is ignoring it, which is probably the case" Ginny winked a violet eye at him, which matched her hair colour for the day "men don't like being turned down or dumped"

"I didn't dump him" Draco said emphatically "I just thought we should go our separate ways"
'It's the same thing Dray" Ginny plucked the little envelope nestled in the arrangement. "Lets see what he has to say for himself this time"

Draco snatched the card from Ginny's hand " Incase you can't read Virginia it say my name on here not yours"

Draco read the card and gave a little giggle.
Ginny grabbed the card and read it ' tu-lips are better than one. Always yours, Harry' she chuckled and shook her head "The man has a way with words"

Ginny moved to the front of Draco's desk " I have to admit , it is kind of romantic. It's flattering to know someone will go to so much trouble for you."

"Flowers are not going to change my mind about the way I feel" Draco said

"I have to tell you Dray I didn't think Harry had it in him to be this romantic" Ginny said with her nose in the tulips.
"Is Rodney romantic" Ginny asked
Draco glanced up from the card he was holding "He is...Nice"

"Nice?" Ginny looked as if Draco was from another planet "Puffinkins are nice, Dray. Cauldron cakes are nice. Rodney is a gorgeous male specimen."
Ginny perched on the edge of Draco's desk "so tell me... Is he a good kisser?"
"He's ok" Rodney kissed like he was in a hurry to move on, leaving Draco no time to protest.
Ginny leaned closer, eyes sparkling mischievously. "Have you guys, well, you know?"
The thought of doing you know what with Rodney left Draco unmoved, although Rodney seemed intent on reaching that goal. Draco didn't know how much longer he would be able to hold him off without coming out and bruising that ego of his. "No"
"No?" Ginny sounded disappointed then looked a little worried "he's not straight is he?"
"No" Draco snorted "he has more hands at the end of our dates that the giant squid. I'm just not ready to go that far yet" then added "we're going to dad's party together but I'm ending things after that. I don't want to string him along"

A voice cleared in the direction of the door and they both swiveled their heads to see who it was. It was a delivery boy "Is there a Mr. Draco Malfoy here?"
Draco sat up straighter "Uh, that's me"

"This is for you" the boy handed Draco a gift across the desk.
'"Thank you very much" Draco said graciously
"My pleasure, enjoy your gift. Your boyfriend selected it himself"
"Where's it from?" Ginny asked once the boy had left
"Bra's 'n' Things" Draco read on the side of the box.
"Sounds interesting. Hurry up and open it" Ginny urged
Before he lost his nerve Draco untied the little green and silver bow and ripped of the paper Draco stared into the box stunned.
"Oh my god" Ginny gasped a huge grin spreading across her face" The man sure knows woman's underwear"
The "underwear consisted of a black satin and lace garter belt, three pairs of black, sexy sheer panties and three sets of black, thigh high silk stockings with lace encircling the tops. One pair had a seam running down the back another pair had a smoky tinge to them and the last pair had a delicate dragon embroided into the stocking on the ankle. Swallowing the knot in his throat, Draco retrieved the envelope and read Harry's message inside

Let me tell you a fantasy of mine, of you
Wearing black garters and stocking and
A wispy pair of panties beneath a sexy,
Short black dress. It's night and although
There are people all around, no-one can see
Us in our private corner as I caress the
Smooth skin of your thigh where the
Stockings end, and I touch you where you're
Hard, warm and sensitive.

Remember the fantasy...

Always Harry

Draco groaned, he was glad to be sitting behind his desk to hide the erection that was straining against his suit.
"That good, hey?" Ginny asked, seeing Draco's blush.
Draco nodded, pressing his legs together to ease the ache between them.
Ginny tried taking a peek at the card but he quickly stuffed it back in its envelope and putting it in his desk drawer. Ginny pouted "Aren't you gunna share?"

Draco shook his head, still unable to speak, trying to get Harry's written words out of his mind. "What am I going to do with all this stuff" he finally asked.
"Wear some to your father's party and give the rest to me" Ginny said hopefully, sliding out the door "Enjoy the romance while it lasts because it never lasts for long."