The hard beating of her heart continued as she finally managed to pull away from the smiling faces of her colleagues asking questions she couldn't yet answer. Not until she saw him. Not until she spoke to him. She walked the room her thudding heartbeat matching her steps on the floor, searching for a flash of blonde hair she could find.

Finally she saw it. A brief profile of his face as he stepped through the open door towards the back of the room. She smiled and nodded her way through the crowds careful not to invite a conversation and distract her further from her goal. Him.

She stepped through the door into a corridor. To her right was a window looking out over the grounds of the bar. It overlooked a canal and she watched for a second as she saw a barge pass by, happy, laughing shadows filling her senses until it disappeared from sight. She turned to her left and followed a staircase up until it reached a closed door. She grasped the handle and pushed the door open slowly.

He was stood at the edge of the roof terrace, his hands flat against the concrete edge and looking down at the canal. He hadn't heard her arrival so she watched him from her position. She watched him staring blankly at the barges' passing by whilst the fairylights hung arcoss the terrace made his eyes glow. She watched him straighten up and take a deep breath before he reached for his glass and took a long swig of Whiskey, before he replaced it back on the ledge.

He noticed her then, from the corner of his eye but he didnt turn to face her. Her just returned to his watch on the canal. Watching the boats moored up and listening to the sounds of his employees laughing and joking below.

The silence was deafening. Filled with everything she wanted to say. Just as soon as her apology had slipped from her lips, he spoke.

"I'm sorry."

"I don't want you to resign."

Their words overlapped in the silent space and she urged herself to keep going.

"I'm sorry I push you."

"You wouldn't be you if you stopped pushing people." He said, turning her way,

"I mean, pushing us." She said trying to hold her own against his glassy stares.

"Us?"

He turned around to her and rested his back against the concrete balcony. She watched as he struggled to find his words. He looked everywhere. He looked at the floor, at the fairy lights glowing over their heads, lighting up his face. And then he looked at her. His eyes large and round and glimmering.

He looked at her like the first time he saw her after the Christmas party last year. She didn't really know what type of look it was she just knew she loved the way he looked at her. Like it hurt him. She didn't want him to be in pain... not like that, but just that he was feeling the same internal struggle that she was. That it wasn't just her, torn between her urgent feeling and her rational mind.

"Tell me what we are to you." He urged to his feet.

You are everything to me.

"I don't know." It was half true. She knew what he was to her, but not what they were to her. "I never... you never tell me how you feel. It's never an honest conversation with us."

He ran his hand through his hair and shook his head. "You're baffling you know that? Because you're speaking these words as if it's just me. When it's you too." She looked at her own feet. "You've never once told me how you felt. Never once been honest with me."

She was ashamed because it was true. All this time and she hadn't once just said... something, anything. "It's hard with you. You seem so closed off all the time."

She looked back up at him and he shrugged his shoulders. "And you're not exactly the same?" He asked.

She didn't know what else to say so she shrugged her shoulders too and let her arms rest by her sides. He watched her for a few seconds then let out a huff of exhaustion.

"Hermione, the rule we set; to not let us interfere with work; well it interfered." He stated.

"I know. That's why I resigned."

"I know." He nodded his head slowly. "I also know that I like what we have. I like us. But it's not enough for me."

She wasn't enough for him. Just as she had thought. It hit her like a tonne of bricks. She was lost for words. "I... I..."

"It's not enough for me because I want more."

And just like that the bricks that had fallen on her had vanished and she felt light headed. She watched in a blur as he pushed himself off the ledge and began slowly walking towards her.

"The proposition from Blaise was not only agreeable to my business life but to my personal life too. I wanted to step away from the business and let you take over, meaning we... us." He stopped a foot away from her. "We can give us a proper go."

She was stuck in her place, watching his face waiting for her reaction. But she couldn't move, only open and close her mouth. This is what she had been waiting for. For him to open up and be honest yet desipte him being so open now, his words had caught her off guard. Then his face changed.

"Unless you don't want this... Don't want us. Then if that's the case..."

"I want you." She said abruptly. "I want us."

The smile on his face crept in so slowly she was able to watch every wrinkle in his forehead, every line by his lips as they curved in happiness.

"Come here." He whispered.

The shadows over his face moved as she stepped closer. When she was right in front of him, he stroked his thumb over her cheek. She moved her hands to grip his waist and pull him closer. The ache in her heart that she had been feeling for most of the evening lifted as he placed his soft lips to hers and pushed his hand into her hair.

You know that feeling you get when you've had a long day and all you crave for is a hot soapy bath so wash your worries away? Well kissing Draco, kissing him was like slowly sinking yourself into that hot bath and feeling the ache between your muscles slowly disappear. That's what he did. He made her aches disappear. He made her worries leave her, if only for a few moments she was completely immersed in him.

His tongue tickled her lips and she opened her mouth to him, massgaing her tongue against his whilst he slid a hand round her back and left it just above her bottom, gripping slightly incase she dare move away from him. He broke the kiss but kept their close proximity, his breath tickling her nose as he spoke.

"I want you to go downstairs and have a drink, relax with everyone. I need to do the rounds for an hour or so then I want you to go to my house and wait for me there." He kissed her forehead lightly then moved to whisper in her ear. "I want you to take off your clothes, all of them and go to my bedroom. I want you to lie down ontop of the sheets and I want you to wait for me." His hand gripped her bottom tighter and a rush ran through her body. There was no end of excitement when it came to what even his whispers could do to her... or what his hands could do.

She moved away from him, only a fraction so she could press her lips against his and breathe him in. "One hour... however will I cope." Then she patted her hand on his chest and stepped away from him. She let herself take him in, rake her eyes over his flushed cheeks and dark eyes before she bit her lip and shook her head. Fuck - she didn't want to leave him. Yet she took a deep breath and turned herself towards the door, but before she got there it was slammed shut infront of her and large hands gripped her hips, spinning her round into his arms. As she crashed into his strong chest, excitement bubbled in her stomach and she smirked at him urging him on. Her heart was already starting to race as she watched the glowing lights dance in his sultry eyes.

"I can't wait." He whispered before she was against the door, his lips pressing desperately onto hers and his fingers gripping her hips while he pushed his own into her. Heavy breaths followed his grinding crotch then his hands pulling her dress up until it was bunched up around her bottom.

She giggled into his mouth at the de javu she was experiencing, remembering being pushed up against the door of the restaurant cupboard barely two weeks ago. Back then she was angry at him, hot and angry. Now she was happy and excited but still so wet for him and his touches.

"We seem to be in this situation quite often." She broke the kiss giggling still. He pulled back from her and put his hand to her neck, gripping lightly as he pushed her further into the door.

"This isn't going to be the last time I get you against a door." He said pushing his hand into her knickers and sliding her fingers down to her entrance.

"Is that a promise?" She gasped as he slid his finger inside her slowly and curled them up inside her drawing a delicious moan from her mouth that made him growl into her ear.

"Yes. You naughty, naughty girl." He nibbled at her ear lobe and pulled his fingers out of her, skimming towards her clitoris. When he reached her sensitive bud he pushed mercilessly in hard circles whilst his heavy breaths tickled her ear in time with his relentless touch. Her hands were turning white she was grasping his shoulders so tightly and it spurred him on. The hard she dug her hands into his skin the harder he pushed.

Within seconds she moaned loudly, closing her eyes and letting her head fall against the cold door as he circled his fingers until she saw blinding lights across her eyes. Roll and roll, wave after wave of euphoria washed through her body and she gasped for breath. He moved his hand away from her sensitive bud and released her neck taking her face in both of his hands and pressing his lips to hers in a breathy kiss.

"One hour, Granger."

.x.

I know you're going to be mad it's only a small lemony part to this chapter but I needed them to finally realise their feeling for each other and I think this chapter does it justice! Hermione is so vulnerable because of their past so Draco needs to be the one to take the first step. What will happen when they get back to his house in the next hour...

Thanks for the blooming awesome reviews! You guys are amazing!

Sassanech as always - your review makes me happy!

Malfoylover-ish I hope you weren't too disappointed with the lack of smutty goodness... I promise... it's coming!

Websterdevil I hope to explore their personal relationship more now their working relationship will disappear. Thank you for your lovely words and I'm glad you feel what I'm trying to put across.

-Any suggestions are welcome, how do you see their relationship forming?