Eggnogs and Fruitcake
By: tweety-src-clt9
CHAPTER THREE – Beds and Business Trips
22nd December 2010
After nearly fifteen hours of flying from London to Manila, the capital of the Philippines, Harry and Hermione found themselves bound for another flight directly to the island. Now, here they were, making their way for Pamalican Island where Amanpulo was located. It was a two-hour flight and she had been squeezing his hand, holding on to him for dear life. She had always been afraid of flying, especially in a smaller aircraft. Since they were riding a private helicopter, they could easily feel the rocking of the machine as it glided with the wind. And boy was it windy.
"We'll be fine, Hermione. We're almost there," he leaned closer to her so she could hear. She looked at him, clearly confused, indicating she couldn't hear him. So, to convey his support, he lifted their joint hands and brought it to his lips. She squeezed his hand in a gesture of thanks.
"Mr. Potter, Ms. Granger, we are beginning descent. We'll be in Amanpulo in less than twenty minutes," they could hear the pilot through their headphones. As the chopper slowly moved downward, Hermione got even scared. Aside from her talent for drawing, she was really good at numbers too. So, she already calculated the probability of falling to their deaths. Hermione was an overthinker like that.
Deciding to reassure her that he was just there, he wrapped his arms around her. Meanwhile, she pressed her face against his chest. Harry sighed.
It was nearing Christmas but his father sent them for an emergency business trip to settle some issues with their local partner. The vision for Amanpulo was to create a sustainable resort paradise that would protect the natural endowments of the island. It was never in the plan to turn it into a very commercialized destination which would end up being harmful to the environment. That was what's originally agreed upon, to create a sustainable haven. And now, their partner suddenly wanted to change the business model with the argument that it was better to lower the target market to the Class B and C segments so that they could attract more tourists. Hell, no! Amanpulo was to be a luxury resort paradise that would not only be an escape for the wealthy but would also show them how to preserve and care for the natural beauty of the island as well. They wouldn't want the place to be another Boracay, another beautiful island in the Philippines that's slowly being destroyed because of high commercialization and irresponsible tourism.
His father decided to send him there so that he would be trained in the art of negotiation, dealing with difficult partners (his father's words), as part of his preparation for taking over the reins when his parents retired. Not that he could take over soon, given that the board of directors were adamant that they needed a married CEO, not a notorious playboy. If only Hermione liked me, then I could marry her, he mused as he glanced at the bushy head pressed against his chest.
He hugged Hermione closer to him and she returned the gesture. Despite her fear of heights, she conquered them because Amanpulo was her dream project. She had always been passionate about creating sustainable and eco-friendly buildings, hence the reason why she never left Potter Group despite other companies trying to poach her.
Finally, the flying stopped and they safely landed on a beautiful beach with pristine blue waters and fine white sand.
"Welcome to Amanpulo, Mr. Potter, Ms. Granger," their pilot spoke once again.
Hermione lifted her head from his chest and offered him a sheepish smile. He chuckled as he playfully poked her nose. He did that a lot when they were little, a gesture of friendship, affection, and understanding. She chuckled back, clearly remembering what this gesture meant.
Harry realized that ever since leaving Hogwarts, they both had gotten so serious that they barely talked about anything else except business.
Well, what did you know? Maybe we needed this impromptu business trip, after all, Harry thought as he helped Hermione in removing her safety belts before escorting her out of the chopper.
He couldn't wait to get into his hotel room and to just bloody sleep.
The week before was so tiresome since the final board meetings of the fiscal year took three long days. With the closing of the books, and finalizing priority action plans for 2011, he just wanted to sleep. Since it was merely two years since the 2008 Global Recession, contingency plans and strategies should always be made.
Bottom line, he was bloody tired and he was certain Hermione was too.
He could only hope that the man they would be meeting tomorrow, Don Alfredo Zamora, would be reasonable enough to stick to the original terms of the partnership.
"Good afternoon, sir. Welcome to Amanpulo . How may I help you?" the receptionist welcomed them as they were handed complimentary fruit drinks.
"Hi. Reservation for Potter and Granger. Here are our passports," Harry handed their documents.
"Thank you, Mr. Potter…" the receptionist seemed startled upon realizing who he was. Harry turned to Hermione, who despite her tiredness, was already taking some photos. Since she was an artist, she loved taking photos so she could use them as inspiration for her paintings and designs later on.
Hermione was wearing jeans and a loose long-sleeved red shirt. Her hair was now in a very loose bun because of the wind. God, she was so beautiful immersed in her element - nature, and the arts, he knew he had a wistful smile on his face as he watched her capturing the beauty of the island.
"Mr. Potter, sir?"
"Yes?"
"I believe there's been a mix-up," the receptionist was ashen-faced, clearly afraid of his reaction. The Potter Group owned seventy percent of the Amanpulo project, with Phase I and Phase II already completed. Phase III would start soon provided, that they could convince Don Alfredo to stick to the original plan.
"Pardon?"
"The reservation was made for a couple, sir. Those were the instructions we received," the reception explained.
"Just find us a room with separate beds or better yet, separate rooms on the same floor, and we should be fine," he explained.
"I am sorry, Mr. Potter, but the resort is booked at full capacity. Since we were told that a couple would be coming here, we booked you at our best accommodation, the honeymoon villa."
Harry sighed. He was too tired to get angry. It wasn't the receptionist's fault anyway. "It's fine. We'll take it."
"Thank you so much for your patience, sir." After five minutes, Harry was handed his access cards and introduced to their butler, Roberto.
"Hermione, our room is ready," he said as he touched her arm.
"Thanks, Harry. I sure hope we get a room with a good view. This place is even more beautiful than the first time I visited," Hermione grinned.
"We got a good room, yes. But that's the problem. It's only one room because there's been a mix-up."
"Oh, it's fine. We can get separate beds," she shrugged.
"Hermione, the resort is at full capacity. The only vacancy is the honeymoon villa," he told her.
Hermione was quiet as she processed what he said. A minute later, she shrugged.
"As long as we have a comfy bed, I'm good. I'm so bloody tired," she yawned.
They followed Roberto to their private villa. Hermione was right. All they needed was a bed because they were both bloody exhausted.
As soon as they were alone in their beautiful villa, Harry started to get nervous as he saw the king-sized canopy bed. He was having erotic visions of himself and Hermione, the woman he happened to be in love with, all tangled between the sheets as they moaned in pleasure.
He gulped when he saw Hermione unbutton the top three buttons of her shirt and then she reached behind her back. He watched, both fascinated and lustful, as she easily maneuvered the removal of her bra without taking her clothes off. After that, she untucked the button of her jeans and plonked herself on the bed.
"See you later, Harry," with that statement, Hermione Granger was out.
When he heard her little snoring sounds, he shrugged. If Hermione could be nonchalant about this arrangement, then so could he. He removed his shoes, socks, and his shirt as he joined her on the bed.
Like Hermione, he immediately drifted off to dreamland as well…
Hermione's eyes slowly fluttered open and she noticed that it was dark. She could also hear the waves crashing with the beach nearby. When she felt that her pillow was gently rising and falling, she gasped. She was sleeping and drooling on Harry's chest. Drooling was a bad habit of hers when she was dead tired. And after the exhausting trip they had, it was to be expected.
"Hmmm… Hermione," Harry murmured, his leg wrapped against hers that she could feel his erection against her hip. She tried to get away so she could go to the toilet, but his arms tightened around her.
"Harry, I got to go pee," she said as she pried his arms away. Since he was stronger than her, his response was to hold her tight. Since she knew he wouldn't budge, she remembered he had a ticklish spot near his armpit. That's his downfall when they were kids, so she tried it.
As expected, Harry woke up with a yelp.
"What the – "
"Sorry, Harry. I gotta pee," she chuckled as she got out of bed.
"You're feeling hungry? I can get room service," he called out sleepily.
"Room service sounds good."
When she returned to the bedroom, Harry already had his laptop opened and he was typing. "I ordered pizza, chicken, and an extra treat," he winked.
"What treat?"
"Fruitcake for you and eggnog for me, just like old times."
"Brilliant!"
"You have got to be fucking kidding me!" Harry said angrily.
"Is something the matter?"
"I just got an email from dad. The meeting with Don Alfredo is canceled. It seems the old man came to his senses and is now determined to follow the original plans for Phase III. Dad says he got the notice from the don late since the old man's EA got the emails mixed up," Harry spat.
"Hand me the hotel phone," she held out her hand.
"Why?"
"Just hand it to me," she insisted. When he handed her the cordless phone, she pressed 0 and he watched as she waited for the receptionist to answer.
"Hi. Yes, that's right. Send us a bottle, I mean two bottles of your best wine, please. Thanks. Yes, that would be great. Bye." She handed the phone back to him.
"My! My! Two bottles of wine. Someone is in a partying mood," he joked as he returned the phone on the nightstand.
"After all the trouble of coming here for nothing, we might as well enjoy it. Besides, we deserve a break," she sighed and he understood.
"I'll just shower and then you can take one after me," she said to him.
When the bathroom door closed, Harry sighed. What in the bloody world was wrong with all the mix-ups today? Are people really that careless during the holiday season?
Thirty minutes later, Hermione exited the bathroom with a thick fluffy robe wrapped around her small frame and a towel on her hair. To Harry, she looked adorable. She actually looked way younger than her thirty-one years.
"You're up," she pointed to the bath. She noticed that their orders were already available. At least service here is quick and reliable , she thought.
"Thanks," he locked his laptop and stood from the bed. Before entering the bathroom, he said, "don't you dare start eating without me," his voice was laced with playful warning.
"Tsk! I'm not the one who could eat nearly as much as Ronald Weasley," she huffed.
"Oi!"
Hermione was about to put on her pants when her cellphone rang. Since her colleagues knew she was on a business trip in a different time zone, she knew this was important. So, she postponed donning on her pants and ran to her purse to grab her phone in just her underwear. She reckoned Harry would still be in the shower anyway.
"Hermione Granger. How can I help?" she answered the phone.
"Boss, it's Draco. There's an issue with the project in Germany," came the voice on the phone.
"What happened?"
"Some parts of the lot turned out to be owned by another party who's unwilling to sell. Hence, we must change the design of the hotel. However, when we do that, we'll have an issue meeting the specs required by marketing for profit maximization… I started some work on the adjusted design, I sent it via email."
"Stay on the line, I'll just set up my laptop."
"Sure, boss."
Hermione grabbed her laptop along with the HDMI cable. She quickly set up the cord to connect to the TV's HDMI port. Pressing the on button, she waited for the laptop to boot before she logging in to her work email. Clicking on Draco's new message, she read the email on the large TV screen. She clicked the attachment and perused the design.
"Hmm… Stay on the line, I'll quickly do some calculations," she said.
"Okay."
The first sight that greeted Harry as he exited the bathroom was Hermione Granger busy at work. While this wasn't an unusual scene to him, the fact that she was only clad in the sexiest piece of lacy black underwear made his jaw drop.
When he slept with Hermione many years ago, her feminine endowments were not as pronounced and developed as the ones he saw now. Also, the teenage Hermione didn't wear lacy thongs and slightly see-through bras that he could easily see her pink nipples.
He licked his lips. Big mistake, Hermione. You should never flaunt your assets if you don't want to be seduced… I let you go once, my sweet. But now that you're here, sleeping in the same bed as me, I will never let you go... You're mine.
"I agree with what you've scraped off the old design for we have no choice. However, based on my rough estimates, if you increase Section A by three times, decrease Section B by half, and add an extra floor wherein you could build an indoor pool with a spiral metal staircase leading to a penthouse bar and night club, it can work. Since the lot is now smaller, we decrease the land space intended for the outdoor pool since we're moving it inside. Have a Zen garden or some gazebo arrangements set up in that area instead. Rough estimate, we still have the same number of rooms available, complete facilities, hit profit max targets, and we have significantly decreased cost on land. Do those changes and send me an update of the design after Christmas… Yes, that sounds good. Thank you. Happy holidays, Malfoy," with that, Hermione ended her call. Her eyes were once again glued to the TV screen.
"Ahem!"
"Harry, you scared me!"
"I didn't know that the secret to your genius is walking around the room only in your underwear," he smirked.
Hermione yelped upon remembering her state of undress. "Turn around you bloody pervert!" she hissed as she hurriedly grabbed a shirt.
"Nothing I haven't seen before, darling," he winked, and she threw a pillow at him that he easily dodged.
"Harry Potter, I swear – "
"Geez! No need to resort to violence, woman," he turned around to give her privacy.
"How long have you been standing there?"
"A few minutes," he shrugged. What glorious few minutes it was...Your brain in action and your body on display! Hottest sight ever!
"God! You're such a git!"
"In my defense, I didn't want to disturb you from your zone. I learned that the hard way at Hogwarts. You get bloody mad when someone distracts you when your brain is at work, busy with some big puzzle," he defended himself. Point Potter.
"Good point... You can turn around now."
"Brilliant idea you told Malfoy by the way."
"Thanks."
"I just have one last question."
"Ask away."
"Since when did you start wearing thongs and see-through – "
"I swear to God, I'll kick you so hard on the bullocks it will make your ancestors dizzy!" she threatened menacingly.
"Just kidding, love… Let's eat. Some fruitcake will do you good," he winked. She only replied by smacking his face with a pillow. He didn't care. She could smack him all she wanted. The sight of her in that lacy thing as her brain processed ideas a mile a second was the perfect wanking material. He could easily see it now. He was the CEO of Potter Group with his sexy brilliant design master on his bed every night and by his side, every day in the board room.
Now that was a future worth looking forward to.
A/N: Amanpulo is a real place in the Philippines. It's part of the Pamelican Island in the province of Palawan. It's a very beautiful and a very expensive paradise. Basically, it's a hotelier's dream investment and a tourist's ideal tropical vacation.
Meanwhile, Boracay is another island paradise in the Philippines. Because of high commercialization, the island is slowly dilapidating. Thankfully, due to conservation efforts, it's slowly regaining its full natural beauty all over again.
Now that we're done with the backgrounds on the islands, let me know what you think. Reviews, faves, and follows are highly appreciated.