"It's about time!" I said, checking my watch.
"I'm sorry! I needed to make sure everything was in order at the office before leaving. Security needed a briefing about Zabini, and I had a last-minute meeting with McGonagall about his replacement. So you might want to change your tone with me since I just effectively secured the position for you," Hermione scoffed.
We were at platform nine in King's Cross Station, and our train was due to depart at 3:45, which was in ten minutes. I was used to her excuses that kept her later than planned at the office, but today she was cutting it closer than usual. Even though I wouldn't lose any money on the ticket if we missed the train, I'd never hear the end of it from my family if we were late.
We handed our tickets to the collector, who then directed us to our seats. I decided to do what any proper gentleman would and helped Hermione put her bags away before settling into my seat. I wasn't convinced first class was really necessary for a two and a half hour train ride until I sat in the comfortable leather seat.
Hermione settled into her own seat and immediately pulled out her laptop and headphones as the conductor made one last call.
"Er, Hermione, you aren't honestly planning to do work on the trip, are you?" I asked.
"Yes, why wouldn't I? I wasn't planning to take Friday off, so I need to get a few more things done to justify it."
"Shouldn't we be going over things?"
"What things?"
"Oh, I don't know, like the fact that we're pretending to be married and haven't even discussed what our fake relationship consists of or the other details that we should probably know about each other," I hissed.
She rolled her eyes at me. "It'll be fine! We'll just...say we met at the office, something about late hours and falling in love or some sappy story. What do you think you need to know about me?"
I couldn't believe her right now. We were doing this whole charade for her, and she wasn't even taking it seriously! "It's not me I'm worried about," I muttered as the train began its slow crawl out of the station.
"What's that supposed to mean?"
"Hermione, I know way more about your life than you probably believe, but what do you know about me? What's my favorite food? My favorite football team? How many siblings do I have? Where did I go to school? Who's my best mate?"
I knew peppering her with questions she probably didn't have answers for was going to rile her up, but I didn't care. She didn't seem to realize that even though this whole pact was to make her mother call off the arranged marriage, my family also needed to be fooled. It was going to be much more difficult than she was anticipating.
She huffed indignantly. "Let me try and get two things done, and then we'll discuss this further. Everything will be fine, Ron. We spend enough time together, so it shouldn't be that hard."
I watched her put her earbuds back in and began typing away on her laptop. I leaned back against the headrest and closed my eyes. If we were trying to fool any other family, sure. But these were Weasleys we were talking about, and Hermione had no idea what we were up against.
The train was pulling into the station, and Hermione was just now putting her laptop away. I'd given up after three more attempts to get her to discuss things, accepting that she clearly didn't care to learn anything about my family. But there was one thing I did need to know.
"Nice of you to join reality again," I sniped.
"Don't be so dramatic," Hermione quipped.
"Last I checked, the whole 'faking a marriage' thing is kind of dramatic. You may be under the impression that we can just make it up as we go along, but I do need to know what we're telling my parents."
"What do you mean?" Hermione asked. She'd clearly been so self-absorbed in making up a false story for her mother that she didn't think of what information my family would be privy to.
"Obviously, your side of the family is going to think we're married, but what about mine? Am I introducing you as my wife?"
Hermione's face went blank. "Oh. I—I didn't think about that…"
"Clearly. And now we get to greet my mother and aunt with no decision."
I hadn't been home since Christmas. I loved my family, I really did, but my father had been pushing me to my limit lately about the family business. Six sons, and I'm the one who gets targeted to take over. Hermione didn't know anything about our strained relationship or the fact that my family took the prospect of love and marriage very seriously. Not that Hermione would be able to grasp the concept, now that I'd gained insight into her own personal life. It didn't sound like she came from a very loving home.
"Well, let's just not say anything until we have to?" Hermione suggested.
"Hermione, when a Weasley brings someone home with them, it tends to mean something serious, so they're going to question our relationship," I finally admitted. She needed to know what we were up against.
She scoffed. "Surely you've brought women home in the past?"
I shook my head. "Never."
Hermione groaned. "Ron!"
"Save it, Hermione. I don't need you to scold me about how I 'should have foreseen this happening, and you should have brought someone home in the past to make this less conspicuous,'" I said in my best 'Hermione' voice.
"So, what then? Both of our families are going to think we're married?" she hissed.
Thankfully, first class was fairly empty, so we weren't drawing attention to ourselves with this ridiculous conversation. I threw my hands up in the air in defeat.
"Looks like it," I lamented.
"So, how are we going to tell them?" Hermione asked impatiently.
I heard the doors of the train open and stood up to begin unloading our luggage. "We? I don't think so. You lied to Cormac and your mum, so I think I'll be the one to tell my family when the time is right."
Who knows? Maybe they wouldn't actually question or suspect a thing. I could just say she's my girlfriend, after all, and none would be the wiser. Except, they all knew she was my boss. Shit, there really was no easy way around this.
"Fine," Hermione huffed. "Now tell me about where you live, so I don't look like a complete imbecile in front of your mum."
I grabbed the last bag and began walking down the narrow aisle toward the train's exit. "We live on the outskirts of Ottery St. Catchpole. We call it the Burrow."
"The Burrow? That sounds so...country."
"Well, considering we do live in the country, it fits. Ottery St. Catchpole's a smaller town, but it's got everything you'd need, so we don't have to travel far for groceries and other things. Mum does own some chickens that run rampant around the property, though."
Hermione was trying to hide the disgusted look that was threatening to creep across her face. I knew she always thought I came from a low-income family, and though she did her best not to outwardly judge that, I could tell she wasn't comfortable with it. But the joke was on her, and I couldn't wait to see her reaction when we got home.
I led us to the station concourse, where I saw Aunt Muriel holding up a sign that said 'Welcome home, Ron!' on it, and my mum was waving ecstatically. You'd think I hadn't been home in eight years, not eight months. I walked over and hugged them both.
"Ron, we're so excited you're home!" Mum said happily. "And you must be Hermione! Ron's told us so much about you," she said, reaching out to pull Hermione in for a hug as well.
I couldn't help but laugh at Hermione's discomfort. She did not like to be touched, especially by people she didn't know.
"It's so...nice to meet you," she said.
"We're excited to have you here! Ron's never brought a woman home before. You must be someone special," Aunt Muriel interjected.
"Oh, well, I don't know about that," Hermione stuttered. I noticed a blush creep up on her face. She was so out of her element that it was throwing me off guard, too.
"Alright, Aunt Muriel, let's not hound her too much. Should we get to the car?"
"Yes, yes! The rest of the family can't wait to see you!" Aunt Muriel clapped her hands together.
"So, everyone's home, then?" I asked.
"Everyone but Charlie," Mum chimed in. "He'll be flying in late tomorrow."
We all walked out to the parking lot and loaded into Mum's SUV. The Burrow was about a half hour's drive from the train station, so we had a bit of time ahead of us. Not that I could talk to Hermione about anything since Mum and Muriel were right there.
"The countryside is beautiful," Hermione commented.
I was surprised by her reaction. She was such a city girl that I wasn't expecting her to actually like anything other than smog-filled air, buildings that appeared to be on top of each other, and coffee shops on every corner.
"It is, isn't it?" Mum responded. "There will be so much to show you in the few days that you're here. Although, perhaps we'll have more visits to look forward to in the future?"
"Oh, er, maybe," Hermione said as I inwardly grimaced. It was already starting. "I did my best to get all my work done on the train, but I can't promise I won't need to slip away to take care of something at some point this weekend."
She was such a workaholic, and sometimes it worried me. "Mum, don't plan every waking moment, yeah? It's meant to be a somewhat relaxing weekend."
"Of course, dear."
"Speaking of, do you mind dropping me off at the hotel in town? I've booked a room there for the weekend. I just want to drop off my things and freshen up," Hermione asked politely.
"Oh, no need to worry about that, dear!" Aunt Muriel told her, and I looked up sharply.
"What do you mean?" I asked.
"We canceled Hermione's reservation. If she came here with you, then she's family, and family will stay at the Burrow!"
"But surely you'll need the space with the whole family staying there this weekend?" Hermione countered. I could tell she was trying to keep her voice even despite the rising panic of the sudden change of plans.
"Oh, don't you worry about that!" Mum said. "There will be plenty of space, I assure you."
Hermione shot me a wary look, but I wasn't going to confirm or deny my mother's statement. I could tell she was convinced the Burrow was a tiny, run-down farm, and I was going to let her think that until she saw it for herself.
See, my family wasn't actually poor. We used to be, since Dad was an entrepreneur. He'd obtained a computer science degree at university, so he'd started his own computer company from scratch. There were some rough years growing up with seven mouths to feed, but once he developed the prototype for the desktop and then the laptop, it quickly became one of the most successful companies across the UK and most of Europe. We were...pretty well off thanks to his creation of the MuggleBook. And so the company Phoenix was born.
"Ron," hearing my name drew me back to the present," I know you and Hermione had to work today, so I hope you don't mind...we've got a small gathering planned at the house with everyone tonight," Aunt Muriel said sweetly as we came into the town of Ottery St. Catchpole.
I winced, knowing Mum put Muriel up to telling me about the party. "Er, how many are we talking?"
"Oh, just the whole family and some of your father's friends from the town," Mum said, waving off my question while purposely avoiding looking in the rearview to catch my eye.
"So, no less than fifty people, then?" I groaned.
"Don't worry, Ronnie, it won't be too late!" Aunt Muriel said.
Hermione shot me a worried look, which she had every right to. I knew they'd purposely waited to tell me about the party until we got to town, so I wouldn't have time to argue about it. Yeah, this wasn't going to be good. We turned onto our road, and the Burrow gradually came into view.
"Here we are! Home, sweet home!" Mum said cheerily.
I watched Hermione turn to catch a glimpse of the house, and her eyes widened. In fairness, the house was huge, probably what some would label as a mansion. When the company began bringing in a significant amount of profit, Dad splurged on building us the perfect home. We had the land, and he wanted to give us everything. Mum didn't want all the extra space back then, but I have a feeling she appreciates it now when all the nieces and nephews are there.
There were ten bedrooms. One for each of us growing up, except the twins, who shared, plus a play-room and two guest rooms. Mum converted the play-room and one of the guest rooms into a bunk bed oasis for the grandkids who were old enough to all stay in the room together. My nieces and nephews loved being able to all sleep in the same room when they all came home for the holidays. And my brothers also appreciated the privacy. Ginny would, too, eventually.
Mum parked the car, and I got out to unpack our luggage. Hermione came around back to the trunk and hissed, "You didn't tell me your family was rich."
"You never asked," I said simply.
"You could have prepared me for this, though!"
"Yeah, well, I think we have bigger problems ahead of us if there's a full-blown party happening inside."
I handed Hermione her bags as we walked toward the house. After setting my bags at the top of the porch steps, I help Aunt Muriel up.
"Don't worry about your bags, dears, I'll take them in with me around the back and put them upstairs," Mum said as Muriel was practically pulling us toward the door.
"They're here!" Muriel said after opening the front door.
There was a stampede of little feet that were running to greet me, and I took turns hugging all of my nieces and nephews. After they'd thinned out, my brothers and sister each came over to say hello and to meet Hermione, who looked oddly out of place.
"So, ickle Ronniekins finally brings a woman home, and it's his boss?" Fred asked.
"It is interesting, isn't it, Fred?" George asked, a mischievous glint in his eye.
"Oi, leave him alone, you two," Bill, my eldest brother warned my twin brothers. "It's nice to meet you, Hermione. Don't mind them."
"It's nice to meet you all, too," she said politely, even though I could tell she was overwhelmed. "I'll do my best to remember everyone's names, but please forgive me if it takes a bit."
"It's fine; there are a lot of us. Although, if you get my name wrong, I will be offended," my sister Ginny said as she extended her hand.
I rolled my eyes as Harry came up behind her. "Hey, Harry!"
Harry was my best friend and Ginny's husband. He was the person I missed the most when I didn't come home often, but he'd come up to London at least once a month to get together, so it wasn't so bad. Although, with them expecting their first child in a few months, I had a feeling those might become fewer and far between as well.
I noticed Ginny and Angelina whisk Hermione away as I was catching up with Harry, and I figured she'd be alright.
"So, what's up with you and your boss? We're best friends, and you've never mentioned anything before," Harry said, giving me a peculiar look.
"Let's go outside, and I'll tell you," I said.
I couldn't keep this from Harry. Plus, it might make me feel a little better if I told someone. We sat on the front porch, and I told him everything that transpired last night.
"So, let me get this straight. You two are pretending to be married so her Mum won't force her into an arranged marriage?" I nodded. "That is the craziest thing I've ever heard. You know everyone assumes you're together, right?"
"Yeah, I s'pose they do. Not that I have any idea what to tell them. Hermione's under the impression we can just be friends for the weekend and don't have to tell anyone anything. She's clearly never met my family."
Harry laughed. "No kidding. Good luck with that one, mate."
"Thanks for the support."
"Anytime. Speaking of, I should probably warn you that Lavender's inside somewhere."
"Wh-what?" I was dumbstruck.
Lavender and I were high school sweethearts, but we broke up shortly after going to university. She stayed closer to home while I wanted to move away. We loved each other, but I knew deep down it would never have worked.
"Yeah. Molly invited everyone. I think she suspects you have an announcement since you brought Hermione with you and all."
I groaned. "If I make it through this weekend unscathed, you need to come to London, and we can hit up all the pubs. I'm going to need it after this weekend."
"Sure, mate. Speaking of, we should probably head back inside."
"Yeah, you're probably right."
We walked back in, and I went to the kitchen to get a drink. Hermione was in there, and she pulled me aside. "Why do they all keep asking to see a ring?"
"What? How would I know?"
"You said you didn't tell them anything!"
"I didn't!" I defended myself. "Although...Harry said something about Mum thinking I had a big announcement. So everyone probably thinks we're engaged."
"Well, they'll be in for a huge surprise if they find out we're married," she whispered. I could hear the air quotes in her voice even though she didn't use them.
"Only if we have to tell them," I reminded her through gritted teeth.
"Ron." I froze at the sound of my father's voice.
"Go find Ginny. I'll be back in a bit."
I loved my dad, I really did. But I'd be lying if I said our relationship wasn't strained. "Hey, Dad," I said, walking over to him.
"It's nice to see you home again. We've missed you, you know."
"Er, yeah. Work's been...busy."
"Too busy to not take a two-hour train ride more than once a year? You don't know how many years your aunt has left, and your mother misses you dearly. Ever since I asked you how you'd feel about taking over the company with Percy, you've become more and more absent from this family—"
"Because you won't take no for an answer! Dad, I love what I do—"
"You love being an assistant? You have a law degree! You could handle all of the legal matters for the company and put your degree to good work! Yet, you're currently working as an assistant. To your boss, who you've invited here tonight. Are you going to explain that to us?"
"I'm not interested in getting a handout in an area of law I'm not passionate about. You, out of everyone, should understand that. And what it's like to work up the ranks. If you really need to know, a spot has just opened up on the team, and I've been asked to fill it, so I won't be an assistant for much longer. And that woman you're already judging about being my 'boss' is my wife. I know you have issues with me not wanting to continue your legacy to pursue my own dreams, but do not drag her down with me."
I wasn't sure what came over me. I could normally hold my own with my father while remaining even-tempered. We'd have the same discussion, I'd tell him I have my own aspirations, and we'd go on the rest of my stay avoiding the subject and acting as if everything was fine for Mum's sake. But when he brought up Hermione, I couldn't let him get away with that. None of this was her fault.
"YOUR WHAT?!" My mother screeched.
Oh, fuck. Did I really say it that loud? The entire room was silent and staring at us. This was not going to go over well. My eyes sought Hermione's, who was showing the same shocked expression I was pretty sure my own face was twisted into.
"We're, uh, married," I said hesitantly this time.
"Why isn't she wearing a ring, then?" Fleur asked.
"Oh, I don't actually wear jewelry," Hermione said. I was impressed by her quick thinking. "And we only just eloped a few weeks ago. Things have been so busy at the firm that we haven't had a chance to go pick out wedding bands. And, with Ron's promotion, we didn't need people thinking he only received it because we're together romantically."
"And when were you planning on telling us?" Aunt Muriel asked.
"Er, tonight. We just weren't sure when. I didn't mean for it to slip out like that. Sorry," I muttered.
"Well, I think we should give a toast to the happy couple!" Fred said jubilantly.
Everyone seemed to come out of their shocked stupor at the sound of Fred's voice and raised their glasses in cheers. Soft chatter began to ripple through the room as conversations started to pick up again. I was about to walk over to Hermione and explain when Lavender walked up to me.
"Hi," she said shyly. "Long time, no see."
"Hey!" It really had been such a long time.
"It's good to see you," she said. "And I guess congratulations are in order."
"Oh, er, yeah. Thanks," I managed.
"She seems like a lovely person."
"She is," I half agreed.
I knew I sounded distracted, and I felt bad, but I just couldn't have this conversation with Lavender right now. There were other pressing matters to attend to.
"I don't mean to be rude, but—"
"Oh! No, it's fine. Really. I just wanted to say hi, anyways."
I nodded awkwardly as I dismissed myself and walked over to Hermione. "I'm sorry," I whispered in her ear.
"What happened?" she asked.
"It doesn't matter. I just let my temper get the best of me, and it slipped out. Good thinking with the elopement and the rings."
"Yes, well, it occurred to me when the question was being asked from your sisters-in-law."
"So…" Ginny interrupted loudly. "How'd Ron propose, Hermione? What's the story there?"
"How'd he propose? I want to know when they started dating!" Angelina chimed in.
"We've got time! Let's hear the whole story," Muriel insisted.
"Oh, erm, it's not that special, really," I said in an attempt to deflect the attention off of us.
"Don't be silly, Ron! Every love story is romantic in its own way," Mum insisted.
I looked at Hermione, attempting to gauge who she wanted to tell it. Maybe we'd pass on and off. That'd be a real trick, considering the whole thing was going to be made up.
"Well, we started dating two years ago," Hermione started. "So many late nights at the office, and it just blossomed into something more. Ron would always make sure we were stocked with food and would insist on leaving after a certain hour. He's always taking care of me and making sure I don't overwork myself too much—"
"—Which is why I suggested we get away for a few days back in June. There was this great deal on Groupon for four days and three nights in the Bahamas, so we decided to go on a whim. There was a lull in cases, and we both had holiday pay."
I needed to interrupt her because my family knew I went away in June. It all needed to line up.
"Yes! A few days on the beach with the ocean view was just what we needed. We had a few too many cocktails, and before we knew it, we went from talking about our next steps to having a private ceremony on the beach. The sunset was in the background, and it was perfect. I have so much stress at work that I didn't want to deal with all the stress of planning a wedding."
All of the girls were 'oohing' and 'aahing' until Bill said, "But I was just out there a couple of weeks ago. You two don't still have separate flats, do you?"
"We're waiting for my lease to expire next month," I said quickly. "It's been giving us time to find a new place to call our own."
This whole lying thing was coming far easier to us than I was expecting. Not that it made me feel any less terrible about the entire situation.
"Oh, that's just wonderful!" Muriel said as my mother agreed.
I was relieved we got through it unscathed, but I needed to talk to her tonight about making sure the other details lined up. Before I could excuse myself, Fred and George began clinking their beer bottles. I caught Harry's eye, and he gave me a sympathetic look as more family members joined in.
"Come on, kiss! Don't be shy!" Ginny said, egging everything on.
Hermione looked up at me, her brows furrowed ever so slightly, expressing her concern. I raised my eyebrows in an attempt to ask her if she was okay with this nonverbally. She nodded ever so slightly. Well, here goes nothing. I tentatively moved closer before leaning down to capture her lips with my own.
It was incredibly awkward and stiff as we shared a quick peck, hoping that would appease everyone. Unsurprisingly, it didn't, and there was a chorus of 'boos', begging us for more. We shared a frazzled look before I placed my hand on her waist and pulled her in for something a little more romantic.
I reminded myself this was all for show as we both opened up a little bit more and committed to the kiss this time. I wasn't expecting a jolt of energy to flow through me as our lips met the second time. Her mouth parted ever so slightly as I started to pull away, but then she leaned in and kissed me back. For a moment, I forgot this was simply an arrangement, as we stood there in a close embrace. I was completely unaware that my hand had travelled up into her hair or that her arms had snaked around my neck.
We broke apart quickly when one of my brothers joked about getting a room, and Percy reminded us to 'keep it PG-rated for the kids.' I knew my ears were as red as her face was. Everyone chuckled, and the party resumed once more.
An hour or so later, most of the guests left, and my siblings were getting their kids tucked into bed. Mum led Hermione and me to my childhood bedroom. The full-size bed had been replaced with a king at some point, but there were still elements that reminded me of my teenage years, like the more subtle shade of orange on the walls and the few Chudley Cannons posters that remained. I was sure my room had been converted into another guest bedroom, which was the only reason why the bed was now a king. If any of my siblings knew, they'd be sure to give me hell.
My mum was always a wonderful host, showing Hermione the bathroom and where she placed all her bags before wishing us a good night's sleep. She shut the door behind her as Hermione sat on the bed.
"Well, that wasn't a complete disaster…" I said lightly.
"No, but now we're sharing a room for the next three nights."
"I'll sleep on the floor. You can have the bed."
"It's—It's probably big enough if we grabbed some extra pillows and just placed them down the middle if you wanted," Hermione suggested.
I eyed her carefully. "Are you sure?"
"Y-yes. It's your house. I'm not going to make you sleep on the floor."
"If you say so. I'm just going to use the bathroom first, and then it's all yours. Sorry again about tonight."
"It is what it is," Hermione said. "Just a few more days, and then we can get back to our own lives.
"Right."
I settled into bed and rolled over to face away from her. I tried to force myself to sleep, but I couldn't stop thinking about our kiss. Not the first one, the second one. The one where she leaned in for more, and I'd gladly obliged. There was something about her lips on mine, and much to my dismay, I wanted more. Why did I want more?
This was Hermione we were talking about. My boss. Maybe it was just because I hadn't been with anyone in a while. That's probably why I was so desperate for more. Yes, that had to be it. At least, that's what I kept telling myself as I fell into a fitful night's sleep.