The Dancer

Chapter 12

Cait smoothed the fabric of her satin halter dress as she gazed at her mother's earrings, which were adorning her ears. Her dress was a light pink color with accents of gold. Slipping her feet into a pair of muted gold heels, she deemed herself ready to face dinner.

For the past ten years, Thomas Nott had been taking his children to The Hind's Head for dinner on their birthday. They didn't know the meaning behind the gesture, but it was actually the place where he first met their mother. Like his children, he always missed his wife most on the day of their birth.

He watched as they made their way into the entryway, ready to apparate to the restaurant. Caitlyn in her soft pink dress—she looked more like her mother every day, especially now that she was turning eighteen—and Theodore in smart black suit and a tie that nearly matched the color of his eyes.

"Are we ready?" Thomas asked his children.

Caitlyn nodded her head and Theodore responded with a, "Yes, Father."

Upon their arrival to the Hind's Head, the Nott family was quickly ushered into their own private dining area. Cait always thought that this was over the top, but tonight she wasn't in the socializing mood. All day she had been thinking about the letter that Harry had sent to her. It only made her feel worse about deceiving him. He actually seemed to genuinely care for her—maybe even possibly the real her—and for her it was all just a scam. She didn't have romantic feelings towards Harry however; she had grown to care for him as a friend. It was hard not to like him.

"Happy birthday, darlings!"

Cait's mind snapped out of her thoughts of Harry and into the dining room. Standing before her were the Malfoys. Not only was Cait not in a socializing mood, but she was not in a mood to deal with her confusing feelings towards Draco. Smiling politely, she thanked Narcissa and then deliberately took the seat between her father and Theo, positioning herself directly in front of Narcissa. This was as far from Draco as she could get without being overly obvious. Already, she could tell, Theo had an idea that she was avoiding Draco.

The waiter appeared and took their orders. Cait had decided on the tea-soaked salmon with soda bread and the wild mushroom macaroni with pheasant egg. Her brother ordered the bubble and squeak cake with mushroom, quail egg and potato leek sauce.

Throughout dinner, Thomas and Lucius conversed with Narcissa interjecting occasionally. Theo and Draco were also in conversation. Cait mutely sipped on her white wine. She noticed her brother and Draco giving her questioning looks, but she remained quiet. When her blackberry fool finally arrived, Cait let out a sigh. It meant that dinner was nearly over. She was sure that they would all be retiring to the manor, but she would have her chance to escape once they arrived home.

A knock at the door caused Cait to look up. She could see Draco standing outside of her dance studio. She sighed and gestured for him to enter. When they had arrived home, Cait had changed into dance attire and made her way into the studio, but she couldn't bring herself to dance. Instead, she was sitting against the wall with her knees pulled up to her chest and her arms wrapped around her legs.

"Hey," Draco called as he sank to the floor beside her.

"Hi,"

"I just came to give you your gift," he began, but paused. "Cait, is everything alright?"

"I don't know," Cait sighed, resting her chin on her knees and closing her eyes.

"Do you need to talk about it?"

Cait chuckled, "Probably." She could use someone to talk to, but talking to Draco wasn't what she needed. She couldn't tell him that she was confused about the way she felt about him, especially not about the fact that she wanted nothing more than to launch herself at him at that moment.

"You know you can talk to me, Caity."

Cait just nodded her head. She could already feel her cheeks heating up.

Draco cleared his throat before pulling something out of his inner jacket pocket and handing it towards Cait. "Happy birthday."

Cait turned her head towards him and slowly reached out to grab the box. It was a soft, dark velvet. "You didn't have to get me anything, Draco." She told him, her voice just above a whisper.

"Just open it," he smirked.

When Cait finally opened the box, she found a beautiful three stone necklace inside. The center stone was a dark, dark green that appeared black in the dim lighting. The stones on either side were a teal color. Cait didn't realize it, but Draco had chosen them because they were the exact shade of Cait's eyes.

"Oh, Draco, this is beautiful." She said, turning to him .

He gave a shy smile, "I'm glad you like it."

Draco had insisted on walking Cait to her room and wishing her a good night before he left to return to Malfoy Manor. Finally, Cait agreed to let him walk her to her room. When they reached her door, she turned to Draco.

"Thank you, Draco, for everything." She whispered before lightly kissing him on the cheek. Before she could turn towards the door, Draco gently pulled her closer and kissed her fully on the mouth. Cait let out a surprised noise before she gave in and brought her hand up to his bicep. As the kiss deepened, Cait reached back with her left hand and pushed open the door. Draco briefly broke the kiss and searched Cait's face. Her cheeks were flushed and her lips slightly swollen. She's never looked more beautiful, Draco thought as he stepped forward and closed the door behind them.

With the door firmly closed behind them, the two resumed their intense kiss. Eventually, they found themselves on Cait's plush bed. Draco skimmed his hand under Cait's top and across the soft skin of her belly. Cait tugged on his hair as she felt the muscles in the base of her belly tighten. As they continued to kiss, Cait brought her hands down to his chest and she slowly began to undo his tie and unbutton his shirt. She moaned into his mouth as his hand traveled higher up her body, snaking their way under her sports bra and cupped her left breast. As she pushed his shirt off of his shoulders, he made a move to remove her top.

His mouth returned to her, but instead of connecting with her lips, they connected with the skin just below her ear. She gasped at the feeling causing Draco to stop and look into her eyes.

It was no secret that Draco had been with girls before—he was certainly demonstrating to Cait that he knew what he was doing—but Cait had not been with anyone in such an intimate way. Of course she had dated guys and made out with them, but this was very different. Everything about it felt different. As she lay there beneath Draco, a million things were running through her head.

"We can stop," he whispered, voice panting.

Cait stared into his eyes, she could see something vulnerable and unguarded in them. "No, keep going. Just…be gentle."

Draco looked surprised, "Cait, is this…have you…"

"I don't want to think any more, Draco. Please."

"But, Cait—"

Cait tugged on his hair, forcing his lips back onto hers and effectively silencing him.