CHAPTER 04

The lies were beginning to become easier to bare, but it did not make the nervousness go away when I sat waiting for Malfoy's parents to burst into the living room any second now.

The French doors leading into the living room opened, making me jump up from where I sat on the long sofa. Malfoy walked in and came to stand by my side, an arm going around me in a casual and 'loving' embrace. When I looked away from Malfoy's casual smile, I looked straight into Lucas Star's set of pale blue eyes and held my breath.

"You're scaring her, Lucas."

I could feel, to the roots of my hair, myself turning a thousand shades of red as I looked away from him. There was a soft feminine chuckle, making me look over to see the most beautiful woman I had ever seen standing before me, one arm hooped through her husband's. Her smile was warm and full of affection as she stepped away from her husband to come over and take my hands into hers.

"You're Hermione." She said, and I could only nod as I continued to stare at her wondering if she was going to hex me for marrying her precious son.

Her smile broadened and before I could even blink I was in her arms.

"Thank you." She said to me, before pulling back, one hand still holding mine.

I looked at her, confused. She winked and looked over at her son. And I knew then that if I could love someone as much as I love my mum, it would be Narcissa Star née Black, no questions, just plain acceptance. It was strange how I could like her after all those years of prejudice and her son making my life miserable.

"So, were you ever going to tell us that you finally settled down?" Narcissa asked her son.

"Obviously not," Lucas said as he came up to stare down at me.

I stared back at him, wishing I was taller than my five two so that I did not have to look up so high, and the then Lucas Star did something that made me blush, he threw back his head and laughed, then turning to Malfoy he grinned, "I see why you decided to marry her."

At the end of the lunch hour I had acquired a new name and knowledge of who they really were. Narcissa had married Lucas Star right after the war when Lucius Malfoy was sentenced to death. Narcissa took Draco with her to live with Lucas in the Muggle world. Lucas also had kids of this own; three sons and one daughter. Draco surprisingly got along with them quite well and was close with them. With their physical appearances being so similar no one ever doubted that they weren't siblings in the outside world.

When his parent's left, I was left envying them and their relationship. They loved each other. With every look they gave with every little touch and every little smile. I wondered if I could ever have that kind of relationship with my husband, and then I looked up at Malfoy and realized that this was all just an illusion. Illusions, where no emotions were involved; there are not real tears or smiles, it was all made up from our minds.

Slowly I withdrew my hand from his as his parents car drove out of view, and walked back into the house with a deep thought. I should not have been so impulsive. There were limits to everything, and there had to be a limit in our so called 'relationship'. I went up to his study and found a piece of paper and a pen, and began to write. An hour later I went in search for Malfoy and found him sitting outside in the back patio, reading a book.

"Here." I handed him the piece of paper.

He looked at me with a gleam of laughter in his eyes, but kept it to himself and began to scan the paper. I watched as his face closed up, I could no longer read what he was thinking. When he looked up his grey eyes pierced me with a steady look, but he gave away nothing.

"So you've decided to draw up the terms for our marriage."

I nodded, unable to find my voice.

"Is this all?" He asked, looking back at the paper in his hand with a carefree glance.

I nodded.

"An hour you were gone, and you thought of only three things?"

I began to frown, "What would have come up with?"

Actually, there were hundreds of things I wanted to put onto the piece of paper, but convinced myself not to, because maybe I was asking too much out of him. His face changed, a grin breaking out as he shrugged and began to read the three terms I had scratched onto the paper.

#1. Lie no more than is necessary to family and friends about the agreement.

#2. No one is to know about the agreement.

#3. Respect each other's privacy.

He glanced up at me with a smile, "Anything else?"

I was staring at him so hard that for a second I did not hear him ask his question. Was there anything else? No. I began to shake my head 'no' then nodded my head 'yes' when something suddenly crossed my mind.

"What is it?" He asked.

How should I put it into words, and as I was thinking about it I could feel my face heating up. I wanted to groan and wished that specific thought had not crossed my mind.

"Well?"

"We shouldn't sleep with each other." I blurted out before I lost my nerve not to.

He stared at me and then grinned, the grin turned into soft chuckles that lead to a burst of laughter. I could feel my face burning red with embarrassment, I wanted to run and flea, but that would give him too much stratification in seeing me run scared just through the mention of sleeping together. That was what husbands and wives did, right?

So I stood there, waiting for him to stop laughing, glaring daggers into him. When he did sober up and stopped his laughing he shook his head, unbelievingly, and grinned up at me.

"Is that all?"

"Yes, that's all." I said, ready to jump on him and strangle him to death.

He got up and handed me the piece of paper.

"I'm hungry, want to go out for dinner?"

"Huh?" I looked up at him, still frowning. How could he change the subject so easily?

"I'm hungry." He said, taking the paper from my hand and settling it behind him on the desk.

My gaze followed the piece of paper.

"Hermione."

I looked up at him and then without another word he put his hands on my waist and picked me up, picked me up, from where I was standing and headed out of the room. I did not know what to think. I did not know anything but the feel of being so close to him, and the smell of him; fresh soap and the outside. His arms were strong, but gentle as he slowly lowered me down onto the floor on my own two feet. Still feeling a little stunned I took a step back away from him.

"I can walk." I said blinking up at him.

"Really? Well, you weren't walking fast enough. Come on, Tinkerbelle I know just the place." He said and was out the door before I could even blink.

Tinkerbelle?

I rushed out after him frowning. "Stop calling me that."

He grinned at my expression. "I think the name suits you. I can't believe Father was the one who thought of it though." He said as after-thought as he opened the passenger seat of a silver Jaguar for me, "You're so small and weight no more than a child."

I glared at him and he had the nerve to smile back.

When I was seated with the seatbelt on and he had started the engine I had a quick reminder of who I had married. He just had to drive one of these really expensive and very male cars and all I could do was sit there like an idiot and stare at the leather seats and gadgets and everything that shouted expensive.

"Stop that."

"What?" I turned to look at him.

"You look as if you're about to run like a startled doe."

I stared at him, watched him, as his face turned away from mine and continued to look straight ahead as he drove.

"I'm not going to eat you, and neither is anyone else."

I looked down at my hands, clenched together on my lap. There was a long silence.

"Your parents are really nice."

The cool look on his face began to evaporate and a smile tugged at the ends of his mouth.

"I'm sure my Mother is going to be talking about you to every willing person who'll sit long enough with her until the party."

"Party?"

"In two weeks there's going to be a little, shall we say, house warming party for the bride and groom."

"W-what? But-?"

"Don't worry. It's nothing big. Just the family and a couple of close family friends, that's all."

I closed my eyes and groaned.

"Did I tell you that I'm the wallflower of my family? I don't mingle well with people, especially if they're strangers."

He laughed. "You're Hermione Granger, Head Girl of Hogwarts and one third of the Golden Trio and you're saying you're a wallflower?" He shook his head and chuckled some more. "Speaking of which whatever happened to Potter and the Weasel?"

"It's Weasley. After I lost my magic from the trauma of the war I came to live with my parents again while Harry and Ron stayed and became Aurors. They both got married and had kids being busy and me being the Muggle world trying to keep myself busy, we lost contact after awhile and never thought to go back to them." I said briefly not wanting to go further into detail.

"Well, you'll do fine with my family."

I could hear the amusement in his voice and groaned all the louder but was thankful that he didn't probe any further.

AN: One more chapter for the evening. Hope you enjoy it! Thanks for reading and Please Review!