AN: Thank you all for the reviews, really appreciate them! I don't know how to reply to Guest reviews but I just wna say I take every review seriously. Okay on with the story!

CHAPTER 4

Warmth. He was always something warm, comforting, intimate. A stark contrast to his exterior. Hermione didn't know that Draco Malfoy isn't like this to others. Only those selected few get to see this side of him. He was a different character at work, even at age 22 he was formidable but people learnt to respect instead of fear this young man for he was serious and committed at what he does for a living.

So as he held on to her face and kissed her she felt warmth. Like liquid gold rushing through her veins, flushing through every single cell of her being. She responded by opening her mouth a little, he didn't fail to notice that. His hands moved down to her sides as he held her closer to deepen the kiss. He knew that the nature of their relationship was about to change. But he didn't care, Cassie hung on the back of his mind, almost forgotten.

Just as the kiss was starting to grow into something more it stopped. It was Hermione who pulled away first. She looked bewildered, her fingers tracing her lips, blinking in confusion.

"I.. What was that about?"

Draco's hands were still hanging in the air, missing the mold that was Hermione. He moved them down slowly as he thought about what to say.

"Honestly, I don't know. It just felt right to me. You were in pain and I wanted to comfort you." He brushed through his blonde locks as he looked to the ground almost ashamed of his actions.

Hermione wiped away the remnants of her tears and sniffed. "It's okay, thanks for comforting me. A hug would have done the job as well right?" She joked, hoping to end the awkwardness that was filling up the room. "I better get going, I.. em I need to contact Michael's family to tell them about.. Yea Michael." She wanted to cry again but now wasn't the time. She was overwhelmed by everything right now, Michael's death, her grief and.. and the kiss. She took her coat off the hanger and looked at Draco again before she left the room, "Thanks again Draco, I'll see you soon k? Don't worry much about it. I'm fine." She wasn't sure if she was saying that to herself or him for he was still looking at the ground, lost in his thoughts.

When he heard her footsteps fade into the distance he looked up and placed his palm on his heart, it was still pounding.

What have I got myself into?

He decided to leave her office and seek the sanctuary of his house. With a pop he apparated back into his room. Conjuring a glass of firewhisky he stood by his window and thought about Hermione. She was just so different, he was serious when he said he wanted to be friends. She was a breath of fresh air from his crazy life. In order to get rid of the overwhelming pressure from work and just life in general he partied with Blaise whenever he could, he would go home with girls who were more than willing to sleep with him. They were just one-night stands, gone before the morning sun. They knew what was expected when they associated themselves with him. This was why he was attracted to Cassie. Oh dear Cassie. She was exactly like him, an equivalent. A young pureblood from a powerful family she too had the pressure of the family business on her shoulders, she didn't sleep around but the number of boytoys on her arm changed as frequent as the weather. She had the same facade on like Draco when she faced the public. To Draco, getting her was the same as finding someone who understands, someone who could support him like how his mother had supported his father. That was what he painted in his mind, she was beautiful too, she was simply put captivating in every way. Perfection.

With a sigh, he decided to ignore the confusion growing in his heart and focused on Cassie. She was the only goal.

Both Hermione and Draco seemed to have forgotten about the kiss as they went back into their daily routine. Hanging out at cafes or bookstores, it was like they're friends all over again. Nothing more, nothing less.

Everything was going fine until one day Draco didn't show up for their weekly coffee date at the usual hangout. That's weird, it's been an hour, he would have said something if he couldn't make it. Hermione thought as she walked out of the cafe, pondering if she should go look for him. Looking at her watch she decided to head back to her office.

"Dr Granger, you have a memo from Mr Malfoy on your table. It was sent to you an hour ago." Her assistant informed her as she was walking into her office.

"An hour ago?" That's strange.

Hermione,

I need to see you. Something happened to Lucius. I'm.. I need you.

D

She was instantly filled with concern as she rushed out of her office telling her assistant that she was ending her shift for the day. A million thoughts flashed through her mind as she thought about what could have happened to Draco's father. She still didn't like him but seeing how he was locked up in Azkaban she thought he deserved that for what he has done. She apparated to his house and was shocked at the state of his living room.

It was in a mess. No a mess was an understatement. It was as if a battle had happened in his living room. Vases were smashed against the walls. Broken pieces of glass everywhere. The coffeetable was struck into two. Bookshelves, cabinets everything was just destroyed. The curtains were drawn so the only source of light despite it being in the middle of the day was the fireplace which was the thing that looked unaffected by the damage.

"Draco?" She had her wand out, the state of his living room suggested that something had happened. She didn't want to be unprepared should someone try to attack her even though she knew that Draco had the toughest wards to break in the whole of London.

"Draco?" She repeated again this time moving towards his bedroom. She knew he'll be in there.

Pushing past the door that was slightly ajar she found his bedroom in a similar state as the living room. "Oh Draco what happened to you?" She found him in a corner curled into a ball, holding onto something. He was still silent as she approached him. Kneeling down she placed an arm on Draco's shoulder, he stiffened up but relaxed when he broke of his trance and saw that she was here. She noticed that his hand was bleeding, probably from all the smashing.

"He's.. He's gone Hermione. My father the Great Lucius he's gone. Dead. Gone." He wanted to break something again but there was nothing else to smash and he felt so tired. He just wanted to end the pain.

Hermione's heart felt a sharp tug when she saw how broken he was. He was usually the stronger one, the one who was always in control of his emotions. She placed an arm around him as she took him into an embrace, he leant into her chest, finding the familiar warmth that he needed. "Mother's crushed. She can't stop crying in the manor I couldn't comfort her I had to leave. I'm so useless. I have so much more to say to him you know? But as always he didn't give me the chance to say.. I didn't get to tell him that I loved him." Hermione looked down and saw that he was holding on to a family portrait, taken when Draco was much younger. It was the only thing that wasn't broken. She tightened her arm around Draco and hugged him closer to her. "It's okay Draco, just let it all out. I'm here just let it all out."

As if on cue, Draco let out the tears that he refused to shed before when he was too caught up in his rage. Destroying everything that he saw wasn't enough to make the pain go away. He cried out the hurt that was killing him inside and held tightly onto Hermione. She was the only thing holding him together now, if she weren't here he can't imagine the things that he would have done to get rid of the suffocating grip on his heart.

He stopped crying and looked up at Hermione, wanting to thank her for coming to him. She was almost in tears but she held them at bay for she knew she has to be the stronger one now. She healed his bleeding cut and held his face as she gently wiped his tears away, then she started to brush his hair away from his eyes.

Something snapped in Draco's heart. He went for Hermione's hand that was trying to straighten out his hair. He held on to it as he removed it from his face and placed it on his chest. She could feel his heart racing. He stared at her, shades of grey meeting warm hues of brown.

"Draco, I - " She couldn't finish her sentence. His lips were crushing on top of hers. It was needy, helpless, desperate for some form of comfort. Pain, so much pain. She could feel that radiating from him and she decided that she wanted to help him get rid of the pain. She kissed him back, with more force and passion. Soon they were all over each other, Draco's hands were moving, he cupped her breast and felt her nipples hardened through her bra. He removed her shirt in an instant throwing it over his shoulder he did the same to his clothes. Before Hermione could comprehend what was happening he was carrying her with her legs around his waist to his bed, still kissing with everything that he had.

He placed her on his bed, and for the first time he stopped the kiss and pulled away. Looking at her as his eyes were still filled with sorrow, he whispered

"Please stay with me."