A/N: So I decided that since you've all been so wonderful with the construction on this project I thought I'd give you an extra long chapter. Thank for staying with the story! Oh and the pieces of conversation in Italian were done on Google translate so if you know the language better and have suggestions let me know.

I wasn't entirely sure about the Italian I was worried it might be confusing so if it is let me know and I won't do it any more but I thought it was cute that whenever they went to Café Lena's they spoke Italian to each other.

I'm still desperate for a beta for this story so if you're interested please let me know!

-X-

Hermione arrived home at her flat and looked for some dinner tea and toast would do perfectly. She was far too exhausted to make anything more substantial. She found he schedule on her kitchen table and leafed through it to find her next day off. She was surprised, it was next Friday she thought back to their last "date" and wondered if she'd prefer to keep Draco as a friend. He was very smart and an excellent healer. He was also extremely handsome and wealthy.

Hermione tried to tell herself she wasn't after his money but it would be a nice change after being with Ron. She and Ron had been together for four years after the war and she hadn't dated anyone since. She liked Draco though, he was a good friend and all meaningful relationships were built on friendship. Hermione made herself another cup of tea and began to reminisce.

She thought back to her first day as a healer how it had been chaos in the St. Mungo's emergency room after Aurors had tried to catch a group of death eaters. Many scenes like that played before her eyes and before she knew it she was thinking back to the day that she first saw Draco as a healer in the pediatrics emergency department.

He had done some growing up, his shoulders were wider and he was no longer lanky like he had been at Hogwarts. He'd filled out and seemed to be made of nothing but lean muscle. His face had lost none of its aristocratic features but it no longer had that permanently plastered on sneer. Then Hermione thought back to when she had realized he worked with kids…kids that would vomit on him and pull his hair and make snotty remarks. To this day she couldn't believe he was the head of the Pediatrics Department.

She guessed that was when her opinion of him changed just the slightest bit. She was all right with kids but working with them on a day-to-day basis would be more than she could handle. Adults were bad enough when they were injured or sick, she couldn't imagine a two or three year-old with a broken arm or something else like that. It pulled at her heartstrings as well that Draco worked well with children. He took their goofy questions and vomiting (on his Italian loafers) in stride.

Then she thought of how they eventually became friends…it was a touchy subject. Teddy, Harry's godson was about eight years old and he was just beginning to show his magical abilities. Apparently Harry had disciplined him for jumping on the bed and eating Ginny's secret candy stash and he had refused to stop jumping on the bed etc… all leading up to Harry saying that he wasn't ready to raise a child and he hadn't had the slightest clue what he was thinking when he took in Teddy.

Needless to say Teddy was crushed and used accidental magic. Both Harry and Teddy had ended up in St. Mungo's. Teddy was much worse off; he had made the bed collapse beneath him with magic and hurled objects around the room.

Hermione only needed to spend a few moments with Harry. Giving him skel-grow and using a salve to mend his cuts and bruises. When Hermione was done healing Harry she rushed over to the Pediatric ward, allowing other healers to take over Harry's care.

Teddy was seriously hurt with a head injury and a broken leg as she watched she could see that Draco was trying his best to keep Teddy from slipping into unconsciousness. She noticed that his leg was badly broken and was sticking out at an odd angle.

Flashback

"Healer Malfoy what can I do to help? He's Harry's godson." Hermione said in an even controlled voice that she reserved for tough cases.

"You can get back to your own wing and make sure his godfather is fine. I have this under control. He's got a hairline fracture in left temporal bone but it can be mended. His leg will re-grow with skel grow." Draco stated professionally then he handed off the repair of Teddy's skull to another, more experienced healer and took her aside

" I'm sorry I can't let you assist but you know hospital policy only pediatric healers can work with children. I promise you he'll be fine." He spoke these words softly as if he was speaking to a patient. He'd never been so kind to her in her whole life.

When Teddy was healing up the next day in the children's ward she came to visit Teddy and ran into Malfoy while she was visiting.

"I'm surprised to see you here Malfoy. Most of the emergency department healers don't check on their former patients when they get sent upstairs to their respective wards."

"He's my cousin," at his admission to knowing Teddy Lupin was indeed his cousin Hermione nearly hit the floor, "and family is family regardless of blood. I had to make sure he was progressing. The little guy gave me quite the scare last night"

Hermione was surprised 'family is family regardless of blood' did that mean he no longer held blood prejudices? That was a bit much to ask for in her opinion but she wanted to know and the best way to find something out was to ask….

"Malfoy since when did you change so much? You don't care that Teddy's father was a werewolf?"

"I don't care, no." He essentially answered her first question with his response to the second.

"Well I'm surprised but happy. I meant to offer you congratulations on your promotion to Department Chair but you know how it gets around here." Hermione gave him a small smile and kissed Teddy on the forehead and made for the lifts.

"Well, thank you. Look Granger I know we haven't had the best past and I should have looked to make it right sooner but can we settle our differences here and agree to be colleagues?"

Hermione was yet again shocked by how forward and dare she say it? Graceful Malfoy was being about this.

"Well when you say it like that I suppose we can." Hermione gave him a smile and blushed a bit noticing how tall he really was for the first time…

End Flashback

Time had gotten away from Hermione. It was nine-thirty at night and she still hadn't owled Draco. From what she knew of him he went to be late and got up early so she should be fine to send her owl now.

She quickly wrote him a note in her tidy scrawl that read:

Draco,

My next day off is next Friday. I'd love to go out for dinner with you. Owl me back and let me know if that works for you.

Best Wishes,

Hermione

She tied the note to Pig's leg (Ron had gotten an eagle owl and let her have Pigwidgeon) and said to him

"Now Pig you can't peck at Draco is that clear? Don't leave though until you've gotten a message from him though." Pig excitedly flapped his tiny wings and fluttered out her open window. Silently she wondered if the poor bird would ever find Draco in that huge mansion.

-X-

At Malfoy Manor Draco was sipping a cup of tea with a bit of whiskey in it unwinding from his hectic day when he saw a tiny owl pecking at the window to his study.

He lived in the Manor alone now. His mother lived in France and his father thankfully resided in Azkaban. Sometimes it was lonely but he had friends over often enough that it wasn't terrible.

He opened the window to his study and took the note from the bird wondering who in Merlin's name could have such a tiny bird. Hermione's usual owl was a large inconspicuous looking barn owl.

He read the note and responded quickly writing,

Hermione,

Next Friday sounds great. Can't wait to see you then. I'll pick you up at 8. Want to go for lunch tomorrow at Café Lena's? I know I said every Monday but I really like spending time with you. Lunch at one? Let me know.

Best,

DM

The little owl stood still while he attached his message and then flew out the window into the late summer breeze.

-X-

Hermione was getting tired and wanted to go to sleep. She had to be back at St. Mungo's at 8 the next morning and sleep was a cherished thing right now.

A few minutes later at about half past ten Pig came back with Draco's reply and she read it. She was quite happy he wanted to take her for lunch again. She didn't respond via owl but walked over the fireplace and fire called Draco. Soon she could see his masculine form standing over the fire.

"To what do I owe the pleasure Hermione?"

"Well my owl is quite tired so I figured I would just let you know I'll see you tomorrow at one for lunch. Thanks for inviting me two days in a row are you sure you won't get sick of me?"

He laughed "No Hermione I highly doubt that but I'm looking forward to seeing you tomorrow and I'm dreadfully tired as I know you are to so I'm heading off to bed a bit early. I'll see you tomorrow at work darling."

With that they ended the fire call, so he was calling her darling now? Hermione could get used to it. He was kind, worked well with children, was astonishingly smart and was devilishly handsome. If she had told Ginny that she met a man like him and his name wasn't Draco Malfoy she probably would have leapt for joy.

She thought of Ron, Harry and Ginny it had been a long time since she'd seen them and she meant to see them more often but work stole her time. She made a resolution to see them within the next ten days. Certainly she could spare time for her best friends?

-X-

As it happens she saw one of her best friends the very next day in a rather alarming state. When Hermione got into work she was called into a patient's room and found none other than Ron Weasley inhabiting the bed. Apparently he'd been there since around three in the morning. He had de-gloved (read: removed the soft flesh from his fingers to about his elbow) his right arm. She looked through his chart and saw that he had been in a fight with his girlfriend and had put his hand through a window. The nighttime healers had done quite well applying Essence of Dittany to the wound immediately. There was only new, pink flesh where the de-gloving had occurred she was quite happy with the results. No one was with him and he was sound asleep most likely from the pain potions they had given him. He was due for another round in a half hour so maybe she'd be able to speak to him then.

She made her rounds and took over for the lead healer on the night shift. They were on good terms, Terry Boot was the lead healer when she worked days and when she worked nights he was lead healer on days. He was competent and well adjusted for having only been in the field for three years now. He told her about the cases he was handling personally and handed them over to Hermione.

Terry mentioned that there had been a fight that night in the hospital when Ron was brought in between Harry and Ginny and that they were both escorted from the premises. Well that explained why no one was there with him. Molly and Arthur had died during the war and if Ginny and Harry couldn't be there she doubted the twins would show up. (They were quite busy in their labs making ingenious toys and magical concoctions of all sorts.)

So it was going to be a long day she thought to herself. Ron would get to go home today after another treatment with Dittany but he had some explaining to do. About a half an hour had past since she first checked on him so she went to retrieve a pain potion for him and went to his room.

He was awake, slightly groggy but awake.

"Hermione?" Ron said through the haze of his remaining pain potion.

"I'm here Ron. Can you explain what happened to your arm?" Hermione used her patient tone of voice.

"I tried to propose to Lavender and she threw my ring out the kitchen window. I tried to catch it cause' it was a really nice ring you know? But she sent it through the kitchen window with her wand and I just grabbed for it and put my arm through the window."

"Why would Lavender refuse your proposal?" Now Hermione was curious Ron and Lavender had been an item since before she broke up with Ron so certainly she wouldn't have any qualms about marrying him?

"I might have been cheating on her just a bit. Then tried proposing to make it up to her?" Ron said in a meek voice. Hermione went red in the face and walked out of the room. Ron yelled for her to come back but all she could think of was when he had cheated on her. So her best friend and ex-boyfriend was a serial cheater.

She spoke to one of her favorite healers under her charge, Parvati Patil and told her to apply more Dittany to his wound immediately and send him home as soon as possible with no pain potion.

-X-

Lunchtime finally came and she was overjoyed it had been a miserable day and she had told her boss, Healer Wells that she'd be taking the rest of the day off. Healer Wells was always telling her to take a day off because she'd accrued so much vacation time she might get it in her head to go on holiday for half the year! She disagreed and knew she was needed but this time she thought she could make an exception.

Right as she was exiting St. Mungo's Draco's handsome face came into view. He wasn't wearing his lime green healer's robes but a nice navy blue sports jacket and matching trousers. His shirt was almost a baby blue and he wasn't wearing a tie.

"You look nice Draco, where are your healers robes?" She said looking him up and down. He was down right beautiful. She never really thought of men that way but usually Draco was dressed in all black. While it suited him it didn't bring out the flecks of blue in his eyes or how absolutely fantastic his ass was….

"Is that your way of saying please wear blue more often because I think you just checked me out for at least thirty seconds without taking a breath." He leaned in close to her and let his lips graze her ear.

"Do I leave you breathless darling?" Hermione wasn't sure what had brought on Draco's daring move but she liked it. He backed away from her and kissed her cheek. "Off to the Café?" He said holding out his arm for her to take.

The haze residing firmly in her brain cleared and she responded "Yes let's I've taken the rest of the day off. We can make it a long lunch. I had an atrocious morning and decided to call it quits for the day." Draco looked surprised but said nothing and they walked to the café in comfortable silence.

When they got there he ordered for her again getting her a sandwich on ciabatta bread and a café misto. He got a large black coffee for himself and a Panini with spinach, tomato and mozzarella on it.

When they sat down and waited for their food to arrive Hermione surprised him by chatting in Italian.

"Che cosa ti ha così vivace?" (Translation: "What's got you so frisky?")Hermione asked with a smirk on her face. She could speak Italian quite well, much better than she lead anyone to believe, and she thought it sounded sexy.

"Oh, solo il fatto che hai preso il resto della giornata e mi piacerebbe passare con te tesoro." (Translation: "Oh just the fact that you took the rest of the day off and I'd like to spend with you darling.") Draco wanted to do truly wicked things with her and he wasn't dressed in

"How'd you find out?! I just told Healer Wells not even an hour ago!" Hermione huffed she had wanted it to be a surprise for Draco. She didn't expect him to leave work early as well but apparently he wanted to spend time with her and that was fine. He was just so damned sneaky!

"Oh mio hai dimenticato che io sono un Malfoy?" (Translation: "Oh my have you forgotten I'm a Malfoy?") Draco smiled widely at her flashing his perfectly straight white teeth.

Their food arrived but Hermione wanted to know what he was up to now so she sipped at her café misto and asked Draco questions about what he had planned for the day…in English.

"So what did you have planned?" Hermione asked

"Oh a little of this and a little of that…" Draco said stubbornly not wanting to ruin her surprise.

"Right. Let me guess you're trying to surprise me?" Hermione looked impatient but finally gave in, "Well the last time you gave me a surprise it was my espresso bar so I can't complain about your surprises. Just nothing sneaky alright?" She finally bit into her sandwich she hadn't realized how hungry she was until she tasted it. As usual Draco had picked something that tasted like it was handmade by Merlin himself. Draco didn't bother responding to her question. What was life without a little sneakiness?

They settled into a comfortable silence as they ate their food. Hermione really liked this place. She made a mental note to take herself here sometime without Draco. It would be a good place to think about things (like her stupid ex-boyfriend).

She finished the last of her café misto and Draco asked her if she'd like dessert, she politely declined and stood up to go.

He led her out the door and they walked back to an apparation point near St. Mungo's. Without preamble she side-along apparated with him to Diagon Alley, after arriving in Diagon Alley Draco steered her directly into Twilfitt and Tatting's.

He leaned in close to her and whispered in her ear, "Pick something out that will make my jaw drop when I see you in it. Make sure you put it on my account. I'm going to Flourish and Blotts I don't want to see the dress till our dinner date next Friday." With that he kissed her soundly on the lips and strode casually out of the shop.

Damn Malfoy for his cocky swagger and his ability to make her weak in the knees. He was paying for the dress too? She'd been in Twilfitt and Tatting's once with Ginny but that was only to pick out her very very expensive wedding dress, so she assumed this was not a cheap place to shop. Typical of Draco, he only wanted the best of the best and right now he made it seem like she was what he wanted.

She got to looking around at cocktail dresses of varying length. An emerald green silk dress that was about mid-thigh length struck her eye. He loved Slytherin colors to this day; he even had Slytherin ties to entertain the kids he worked with.

The dress had rouching down the sides and had tiny green crystals (Hermione was ninety percent sure they were crystals and not actual emeralds but she'd never been great when it came to discerning that type of problem) on the capped sleeves. It looked very luxurious and it looked like just the right thing to wear for Draco.

She tried it on and she looked dazzling, she wished she could show Draco now but was happy to have a surprise for him, especially when he had given her such a nice surprise.

She didn't bother looking at the price tag when she took it off because she was certain if she saw how much it cost she would never wear it.

After telling the woman at the register to put the dress on the Malfoy account and walking out with a small bag she made for Flourish and Blotts.

She snuck up on Draco and he jumped what must have been six feet in the air. Grasping his chest he panted, "Don't scare me like that woman or you won't have anyone to wear that dress for." She pouted at him just a little then kissed his cheek and looked at the book he had dropped.

"'Care of Magical Beasts: The Wild and Dangerous Wonders' what type of book is that and how could you possibly keep wild critters in your town house?"

"That's for me to know and for you to find out doll." Draco said smirking at her and trying not to peer inside the bag holding her well wrapped dress.

"Right well where are we going now since you've rather pleasantly hijacked my half day off."

"I have a few things in mind. But I'd really like to sit and talk with you for a while. There's a park by my town house we can go to what do you think?" It was mid-August and it was a beautiful day so she really had no better ideas.

-X-

They apparated to a park bench in the small park by Draco's townhouse, it was such a quaint little park Hermione thought to herself.

They began with small talk about how the first half of their days had gone. Draco's had been considerably better than Hermione's apparently the children's wing had been deserted and he hadn't had much to do. Hermione was a little annoyed with this since she'd had plenty to do and plenty of patients to attend to.

"So I was thinking of doing some star gazing tonight would you like to join me?" Draco asked

"Where would we go to star-gaze in London? Haven't you heard of light pollution?"

"Where we're going would be a surprise but I think you'll love where I picked. It's not in London I'll tell you that much."

"Do you promise to not make any moves on me mister?" Hermione said earning a glare from Draco.

"You know that I respect you and your wishes. It's true I'd like to make love to you till you can't remember your name but first and foremost I want you to want to do the same thing to me before we take it in that direction. I don't just want your sexy body, I want your love as well."

With that he kissed her passionately on the lips and quickly gained access to her mouth, tongues dancing together, caressing and then Draco broke away to suckle on the soft skin just below her ear.

He whispered into her ear "I'll make you mine. You'll never want to be with any other man once you've been with me" She moaned at this and broke away from him looking him deeply in the eyes.

She said in the faintest of whispers "I don't doubt that Draco…"