Hermione was so busy on her return to work that she didn't have a chance to visit either of her best friends until late in the afternoon. She stopped at Ron's office briefly, but he was in the middle of preparing his evidence notes in readiness for an upcoming trial with the Wizengamot, and although he was overjoyed to see her he had to send her away, very reluctantly, because he was too busy to talk, but not before promising faithfully that he would take her to lunch the following day. As she walked towards the office that Harry shared with their old school friend Dean Thomas she wondered whether Dean was aware of what had happened to her or whether, as within her own department, only certain people had been made aware of the true facts. She had discovered upon her return that most people in her department were under the impression that she had been off with an extremely bad bout of flu, which actually suited her perfectly. She was already ashamed enough about what had happened to her without every gossip in the office knowing and talking about it.
Harry leapt out of his chair when he saw Hermione come through the door. His look of delight at seeing her was unmistakable. She couldn't help but smile back as he pulled her into a huge hug that seemed to go on forever. Eventually, when she became worried that she was going to stop breathing, she pulled back from him, finally looking around the room.
'Isn't Dean in today?' she asked, trying not to sound relieved and feeling a moment of guilt at the thought that she was glad her friend wasn't there so she wouldn't have more questions thrown her way.
Harry shook his head, still smiling. 'No. Apparently the Hammers won a big game last night and he was out celebrating . . . more like over-celebrating, I reckon. He came down with a sudden case of food poisoning this morning.'
'Ah, I see . . . poor Dean. I hope he feels better soon,' Hermione said.
'Oh, I'm sure it's just the twenty-four-hour kind and he'll be right as rain tomorrow,' Harry retorted sardonically. He indicated for Hermione to sit down in Dean's seat as he took his own again. 'But enough about Dean. More importantly how are you, Hermione? We've been worried sick about you, you know.' He studied her intently as he spoke.
'I'm fine, Harry, just feeling a bit stupid for getting myself into that situation,' Hermione admitted.
Harry frowned. 'Hey, there's no need to run yourself down for that. It wasn't your fault Michael turned out to be a perverted creep. You acted in good faith and had every right to trust him based on the way he had acted towards you,' he said gently. Then he added, 'Of course, Ron always said he was a stalker although, mind you, he says that about all your boyfriends. But it turns out he was right for once. He didn't do anything to hurt you, did he?'
Hermione shook her head, not sure she was ready to completely share her experience with Harry just yet. He would only worry about her and she didn't need that. 'No. he just kept me locked in his bedroom most of the time. He let me walk around the house when he was there, but when he went to work he locked me up — so I couldn't escape or signal to somebody that I was there, although Merlin only knows how I would have managed that. He kept the bedroom curtains closed all the time, and there were shutters on all the windows so I had no idea whether it was day or night. It was completely disorientating and I didn't have a clue how long I had been there. To be honest, it seemed like an eternity, although I know now that it was only a couple of weeks.'
'And you're sure he didn't hurt you in any way?' Harry asked worriedly.
'No. He didn't want to hurt me, he just wanted me to have contact only with him and no one else. He didn't want me talking to you, Ron or anyone. He was just obsessed, that's all. But it was a bit scary at the time.'
'I'm not surprised. You've been through something terrifying. Ron was frantic when you didn't turn up to work that morning, and worse still when he couldn't contact you. When we realised your flat was empty I thought he was going to force his way into the Department of Mysteries and Imperio them into giving Michael to him.' Harry frowned again. 'Was Michael his real name? He disappeared at the same time as you and we couldn't work out at first whether he actually worked at the Ministry or had just been hanging around and stalking you.'
'As far as I know that's his real name. He told me all about his family — they're Italian, although I don't know whether they still live in Italy or are over here; he didn't tell me that. I know he arranged things so that he left work and started a new job the same weekend he abducted me. He said that because it took me so long to accept his invitation to stay it gave him time to do things like doctor our personnel records so he could hide me more effectively. He deliberately put down fake addresses so no one would be able to find me. I honestly believed I was going to be his prisoner forever.' Hermione shuddered as she remembered.
Harry frowned again. 'So, what — he just wanted you to live with him and nothing else? That really is mega-creepy.'
'He said I was his sex toy,' Hermione admitted in a whisper, a flush of shame staining her cheeks as she said it. 'That I belonged to him and he could do whatever he wanted with me.'
Harry stared at her anxiously. 'What did he do to you, Hermione? He didn't do anything . . . well . . . you know . . . funny, did he?'
Hermione gave him a look that could have been termed old-fashioned. 'I'm not sure I know what you mean by "funny", Harry, but he didn't do anything kinky if that's what you mean.'
Harry looked relieved. 'You did have sex with him, though?'
Hermione's eyebrows rose in surprise at the question. 'Of course I did. That was the whole point of going there for the weekend in the first place. That's why it took me so long to agree to it. I needed to make sure I was ready for the relationship to get more intimate. I wanted to be sure he was trustworthy and wasn't going to muck me around like Stefan did.' She gave a small bitter laugh as she raised her eyes to the ceiling. 'God, I was an idiot.'
'And didn't he give you a clue what he was like . . . during the weekend, I mean?' Harry asked.
Hermione shook her head fervently. 'No, he honestly didn't. He was the perfect gentleman on Friday evening when we went out to dinner and things went really well between us, which is why I decided to go back to his house when he asked. I wasn't even sure when we woke on Saturday morning whether he would want me to stay, but when he asked if I would spend the rest of the weekend with him I jumped at the chance. He was romantic and loving and everything I could have wanted in a lover, and that didn't really change later. He just wouldn't let me leave.'
'There is definitely something mentally wrong with that man,' Harry said. 'So what happened? How did you get away from him? We looked for you everywhere but there was no trace of you. It was like you had suddenly ceased to exist. He had erased you from the Ministry records — it was really scary, actually. And as you said, all the addresses we had for him were fake. No one knew him, at least not outside of work, although even his work colleagues didn't know much about him apparently . . . but they all knew you were his girlfriend. Several even said he was obsessed with you. We ended up with the whole Auror office on the case but everything came up blank and we were at a complete loss. Eventually, we had no choice but to pass it up the chain to the highest levels of the Department of Magical Law Enforcement.
'Once we did that we were effectively out of the loop, although Mr Weasley knows someone who works in their outer office and so we got general reports, but we still had no real idea of what was going on. The first we knew for sure was when Yaxley sent a message down to say you had been found and successfully retrieved on Tuesday afternoon. I passed the message on to everyone although Ron didn't find out for a few hours as he was out on a job. But we still didn't get any details about what happened. It was only yesterday that Mr Weasley discovered they had caught Michael and put him in Azkaban.'
'It was Draco Malfoy who rescued me,' Hermione told him. Her heart beat faster as she thought of the handsome blond man who had been her saviour and was now so much more than that.
'Really?' Harry looked interested. 'I didn't know he'd gone into the Extractions branch. That's an interesting choice of career considering how much money he's got. You'd have thought he'd be doing something a little less dangerous, wouldn't you?'
Hermione shrugged. 'He seems to love his job and he's very good at it. He told me afterwards that Michael made a mistake. He didn't manage to erase me completely, and having put descriptions out for me and him in the Muggle world they got a response. They tracked Michael for a couple of days, hoping he would eventually lead them to me, which was how they found the house, but they decided to wait for him to go to work before they rescued me so they could get me out without a fight. They weren't sure what state I was in, weren't even sure if I was still alive, and they didn't want to distress me more than I already was.
'After they got me out, Draco took me home and stayed with me because I was terrified that Michael was going to come and take me back again. Two teams from the Department of Magical Law Enforcement moved in to arrest him — one at the house in case he bolted back there, and one at his new place of work. He went without a fight, apparently, although he kept asking to see me even after he was put in Azkaban. Draco said he's refused to talk apart from saying it's all a big mistake and they need to let him out because I can't survive without him.'
Hermione shuddered as she thought of Michael.
'Definitely not right in the head, then,' Harry said. 'I bet you were glad to be found, though, even if it was by Malfoy.'
'I didn't realise it was him at first,' Hermione admitted. 'I was so terrified and upset by what Michael had done to me that when Draco and his team broke in I was cowering on the bed like a nervous wreck. He literally picked me up and carried me out, but I was so out of it that I didn't have a clue what was going on. He took me to St Mungo's for a check-up, but it was only when we got back to my flat that I really returned to my normal self. Then, of course, I realised who it was who had saved me. He's been so nice to me, Harry. He's spent so much time looking after me and stuff. He's honestly been really wonderful, nothing like you would think he was . . . like he was at school.'
She hoped she hadn't blushed when talking about Draco, especially as she was gushing about how wonderful he was. That would have been a big giveaway, and she wasn't yet ready to share their relationship with Harry.
'So did he say anything about himself and what he's been up to? I bet he's done some fascinating and scary stuff as an Extractor,' Harry said curiously. He frowned. 'I wonder what his wife thinks about him doing that job. Ginny would kill me if I wanted to do something like that so it seems amazing that she would let him do it, especially with all his money. Did he mention her at all or say anything about any kids?'
'Wife?' Hermione felt a hard lump of something nasty and cold settle in her stomach at Harry's words. 'Draco's married?'
She was impressed that she managed to keep the dismay out of her voice instead, sounding merely curious and somewhat surprised.
Harry nodded his head as he looked at her with a slight frown. 'Yes, didn't you know?'
Hermione shook her head, hoping she didn't look as hurt as she felt. There was a pain in her heart that hadn't been there a minute ago and she was suddenly finding it hard to breathe.
'No. When did that happen?'
Harry looked at her in surprise. 'Blimey, do you really not remember? It must have been about four or five years ago. It was in all those magazines Ginny reads so voraciously. Loads of pictures of the two of them looking so blond and perfect together. The wedding cost a bloody fortune.'
Hermione looked blank as she tried to remember whether she had actually known Draco was married but had put it out of her mind, not wanting it to get in the way of what they were doing, but she was sure she hadn't.
'I honestly don't remember,' she said. 'Mind you, I don't read those sorts of magazines, so I probably wouldn't have known.'
'No, of course, you only read boring work-related stuff, don't you?' Harry joked. 'But it made the newspapers, too. You know what the Malfoys are like. He married that heiress Caroline Whats-Her-Name, the one who was a friend of Pansy Parkinson. I can't believe you don't remember — it was a massive society wedding. It was all everyone talked about for weeks because of the amount of money they spent.'
Hermione shrugged dismissively, feigning nonchalance. 'I probably wasn't particularly interested. I've never been impressed by Draco's money. Anyway, he never mentioned anything about a family. We didn't really talk about that sort of thing, to be honest. The conversation was more about the situation, if you know what I mean.'
Harry looked at her sympathetically. 'Sorry, I wasn't really thinking. He wasn't likely to make small talk, was he? Not considering what you'd been through.'
'He was great, actually. He really calmed me down and stopped me from being scared,' Hermione said automatically. She was horrified to hear the wistful tone of her voice, worried that Harry might pick up on it.
'Well, I'm glad to hear he wasn't a dick to you. Although he was doing his job so he couldn't be really, I suppose,' Harry said.
'As I said, he's very good at his job. I don't think it even occurred to him to be mean or whatever. Anyway, we've all grown up since school so there's no reason he wouldn't have, too. All that Pure-blood crap is long forgotten.'
'You're right, I guess,' Harry mused. 'I suppose because I haven't really seen him since we left I can't help thinking of him as he was at Hogwarts.'
'He's completely different,' Hermione said, unable to put Draco out of her mind although she was desperate to now. 'He rescued me,' she continued quietly, her tone of voice inflecting the three words to say everything they needed to.
She tried hard to ignore the nausea that rose in her as she thought about Draco and what they had done together. He had made her feel so happy and safe after her terrible ordeal, so much so that she had considered herself close to finally attaining those old fantasies: marriage and children. But now her world was about to come crashing down yet again because of him.
How could he be married? He had made love to her and given her the impression that they had something special, even that he was in love with her, when all the time he knew there could never be anything between them because he already had a wife and maybe even a family. He had been a dick, regardless of what she had said to Harry. Oh God, she had been completely wrong in her assessment of him. He was no different from the way he had been at school after all.
'And for that alone we will always be extremely grateful to him,' Harry replied solemnly. He picked up on Hermione's distress and began to worry that their discussion about the abduction was upsetting her. 'Are you okay, Hermione?'
Hermione shook herself from her thoughts and stood up, moving back towards the door. Harry followed her.
'Oh yes, I'm fine. Sorry, I was miles away. I suppose I should go and do some work. How's Ginny, by the way?'
Harry smiled. 'Better, now you're back safe. She was really worried about you . . . well . . . we all were. Even Percy asked about you a couple of times.'
Hermione gave a wan smile. They really had been worried if Percy had got involved. 'Is she fed up with being pregnant yet?'
Harry sighed. 'Very much so. It's so bad sometimes that I wish it was me who was pregnant. It would be so much easier.'
'So does she, I bet. Although I don't think you realise just how difficult being pregnant is, otherwise you wouldn't joke about wishing it was you. Personally, I don't think you could cope with it.' Hermione gave a much larger grin now as Harry looked a little put out at her comment. 'Well, send her my love and tell her I'll try to get round to see her soon.'
'I will, thanks.' Harry stared at Hermione for a moment, then wrapped his arms around her again and gave her another hug. 'I'm so glad you're back safely, Hermione,' he told her honestly.
Hermione smiled again. 'Not as glad as me. I'll see you later, Harry.'
Her smile disappeared as she left the room. Immediately, she was bombarded with visions of Draco and his betrayal of her. She could feel the tears threatening and ducked into the nearest ladies' toilet to hide away until they passed. She was aware that she could probably get away with them as everyone who knew what had happened would be expecting her to still be upset about it, her boss had even expressed concern as to whether Hermione was emotionally ready to return to work. Hermione had assured him she was fine and because of that, if for no other reason, she didn't want him to see her like this in case he decided to send her home. Although she knew Michael was locked away in prison and couldn't get to her and no one else was going to abduct her, it didn't stop her being nervous about being alone.
That was why learning Draco was married was so hurtful. He had callously used her fear, taking advantage of her weakened condition to draw her into having sex with him. Obviously, he considered her a slut because she had slept with Michael and thought she would be an easy target. Had he also thought she was a sex toy to be used by anyone who wanted her? She hadn't got the impression that this was what he was doing, but then ever since she had met Michael her judgement on everything, especially men, had been completely awry. She should have known when she realised she fancied Draco. Regardless of what he said about them being perfect for each other, she should have known it wasn't right.
But their lovemaking had been so wonderful. Draco was an even better lover than Michael; Hermione had really felt a deep connection with him and had been certain that he felt the same way — he had told her he did. As the tears flowed down her cheeks, she doing nothing to stop them, Hermione remembered the first time they had made love, when Draco had hesitated and she had begged him not to tease her. Was he having a moment of guilt then, remembering that his wife was waiting for him at home while he had sex with her? She was horrified to think that might be the case.
It got worse as she couldn't help wondering whether he had only done it because she was so needy. She hadn't wanted him to leave, hadn't wanted to be alone, and she had definitely come on to him and made it clear that she was interested rather than the other way round. Perhaps he had never wanted her but had done it so she wouldn't break down. But surely that couldn't be the case, otherwise he wouldn't have come back. He would have handed her over to someone else to look after at the first available opportunity, pleased to be rid of her.
Instead, he had spent so much time with her over the last few days that she had become convinced that he really did have genuine feelings for her and had let her guard down again, even though she'd had misgivings. But obviously he was just after the sex. He was probably laughing to himself even now at how gullible she was. It was disgusting that he could treat someone like that, especially someone who had just been through what she had suffered. But then hadn't he always treated her badly? This was no different from any of the other things he had done to her at school. She just wished she didn't find him so bloody attractive.
Why did he have to be married? Hermione thought miserably as she finally quelled the tears and headed back to her office. It was so unfair that she had finally found her ideal man and he wasn't available.
Draco had been thinking about Hermione all day and had literally been counting down the hours until he could be with her again. It was still amazing to him that she had turned out to be his soul mate, the woman he wanted to spend the rest of his life with. Everything about her aroused him, and in bed they were dynamite together. He had to admit he was really looking forward to making love to her again. Although that creep Antenucci had been mentally unbalanced, Draco could sort of understand where he was coming from. He would never stop Hermione from seeing her friends and family or from working — that part of it he would never understand however much he thought about it. But like the Italian, he definitely wanted her to be his. And tonight would be another step closer to achieving that.
As he climbed the stairs to Hermione's flat he whistled a jolly tune. He was happier than he had been in a long time and it was all because of the beautiful woman he was about to spend the evening with. He wondered whether he would be able to stay the night. He would have to wait and see how things went. He didn't want to push it and make Hermione feel uncomfortable, but he no longer had any urge to go home. He was aware that Hermione was still recovering from her ordeal and would be sensitive for quite a while yet. But he was going to be there to help in her recovery and hopefully she would realise that love wasn't the scary thing Michael had made it into but something beautiful and pleasurable.
Draco had spent more time that day thinking about his feelings for Hermione and the way the two of them had reacted to each other at school and was now absolutely convinced there had been attraction there — for both of them — which they had been desperate to keep hidden because of the circumstances in which they found themselves. He had felt quite depressed for a short while when he realised that had he acted on his feelings rather than subjugated them, he and Hermione could have been together for years rather than days and his life would have been absolutely perfect with her as his wife rather than Caro. But then he reminded himself that everything could only get better from here on in, and it had cheered him up no end.
He waved at Hermione's neighbour, Mrs Hamblin, today wearing a long emerald green robe. She was entering her door as he arrived on the landing. She gave him a beaming smile and waved back before going into the flat and closing the door. He rapidly crossed the landing and rang the doorbell, waiting impatiently for Hermione to answer.
Hermione's first reaction when Draco rang the doorbell was to pretend that she wasn't there and hope he would go away. She had seriously considered not going home so she actually wouldn't be there when he came to call, but she knew that was just burying her head in the sand. Eventually, she was going to have to face him, and although it would hurt it was better to do it sooner rather than later. There didn't need to be any big deal about it, she just needed to tell him to go home. She was certain that once he discovered she knew about his wife, Draco would probably leave anyway.
She took a deep breath and opened the door, trying to steel herself against the sight of the handsome man who she knew would make her heart both melt and hurt when she saw him.
'Hullo, Hermione. How was your first day back at work? Was everyone sufficiently relieved to see you, and was it as boring and normal as you thought it would be?' Draco asked brightly as the door opened.
Hermione stood in the doorway, looking at him but not saying anything. Draco's smiled faltered a little as he wondered what had happened to make her look so unhappy.
'What do you want, Draco?' Hermione's voice was cold and unfriendly.
Draco frowned. 'To see you, of course. You invited me round for dinner, remember? Are you okay? Has something happened? Let me in and we can talk.'
He reached out to wrap his arms around her but Hermione took a half step back and shook her head.
'No. I think you need to go back to your wife and leave me alone.'
Draco looked at her in surprise, his heart sinking at Hermione's coldness. What was going on and why was this suddenly an issue between them?
'Hermione, darling, let me in. We need to talk.' Draco tried to keep his voice as soothing as possible.
Hermione shook her head again.
'No, we don't. You need to leave.'
She stepped back again, and before Draco could capitalise on it, she slammed the door in his face. Draco stared at the closed door in confusion for a few seconds. Why was this suddenly being brought up now? He could understand if she had mentioned it the first time they had made love, but she hadn't said a word then. What did Caro have to do with anything except for the fact that she was stopping him making Hermione his wife, although to be fair he hadn't envisaged that happening for a while yet. Eager he might be, but even he didn't think he could ask Hermione to marry him after only a couple of nights of what was admittedly wonderful lovemaking, even if they had known each other for years. He had expected the relationship to develop a little before they moved down that road, which would give him plenty of time to divorce the current Mrs Malfoy.
He rang the doorbell and then, just to make a point, banged on the door as well.
'Let me in, Hermione. We obviously need to talk and doing it through a closed door won't do any good.'
Hermione stood on the other side of the door, unable to move away, wanting but not wanting to open the door. She could feel her heart breaking as Draco continued to ring the doorbell and knock.
'I'm not going to go away, so you might as well let me in,' Draco said.
'Go away, Draco.' Hermione's voice was wobbly as she spoke. She could feel tears welling and breathed deeply, trying to stop them. The last thing she needed was to cry.
'No! I'm not leaving. I'll stay out here forever if need be, but you will talk to me eventually so you might as well make it sooner rather than later and save us both a lot of pain.'
Hermione took another deep breath. 'Go away. I don't want to talk to you and I'm not going to talk to you.'
Well, we're in a bit of a stalemate situation, then,' Draco told her. 'Because I'm not leaving until you let me in. I can wait as long as it takes.'
He waited hopefully for several minutes but Hermione didn't open the door. Sighing, but resigned and determined, Draco sat down in front of it.
He waited for five minutes, then knocked on the door again.
Hermione ignored him.
This pattern continued for the next forty-five minutes, until Hermione could stand it no more.
'Please go away, Draco. I'm begging you.'
'No, I'm not leaving, and if you don't let me in soon then I'm going to break the door down.'
'But I don't want to talk to you,' Hermione told him miserably.
She closed her eyes, trying to convince herself this was true although she knew it wasn't. She desperately wanted to see Draco, to hold him and have him tell her that everything had been a big mistake and he wasn't married. But because he was, that was never going to happen.
Draco drummed his fingers on the floor as he waited. How long could Hermione last before she gave up and let him in? He honestly would wait as long as it took, but he wanted to be in there now. He needed to sort out whatever the problem was and get back to the romantic stuff, and he couldn't do that through a closed door.
'Hermione, please, I really need to talk to you,' he begged, not caring what anyone who might hear him thought. He wasn't too proud to beg. He could feel Hermione slipping away from him and he couldn't allow that to happen.
He realised that someone was standing next to him and looked up to see Mrs Hamblin from next door looking concerned.
'Are you all right, dear?' she asked kindly, her voice warm and pleasant.
She looked at the closed door and then back at Draco.
He nodded and gave her a smile. 'I'm fine. We've just had a small argument and it's taking me a little while to convince Hermione to let me in.'
Mrs Hamblin patted him on the arm. 'Don't you give up,' she whispered.
Draco shook his head. 'Never. I have no intention of giving up where Hermione is concerned.'
Mrs Hamblin smiled approvingly and walked back towards her flat. Once at the door she turned and looked at Draco again and mimed knocking before going inside and closing her door.
Draco stood up and rang the doorbell then knocked on the door once more.
'Hermione, talk to me, please. If you don't open the door right now I am going to break it down. I've got my wand out,' he warned.
He pulled his wand from his pocket and pointed it at the door.
A moment later the door opened and Hermione peered out, looking unhappier than he had ever seen her.
'Why don't you just go home to your wife? I don't want to talk to you, Draco,' she said morosely.
Draco looked defiant. 'I'm not going home. I don't want to go home. I want to be here with you, Hermione, and I believe that under whatever it is that's got you so upset you want me here, too.'
'There's nothing for you here,' Hermione told him. 'So you might as well go away. There's no point in dragging things out for no good reason.'
'You're here,' Draco pointed out desperately. 'That's why I'm here. You know how I feel about you, Hermione, so please let me in.'
Hermione shook her head sadly. 'You need to go home, Draco. I don't want you here.'
Draco, seeing his chance, pushed Hermione backwards into the flat and followed her through the door, slamming it shut behind him with his foot. Before Hermione had a chance to react he grabbed her, his arms clamping tight around her body to stop her moving away, and his mouth found hers in a kiss that she initially tried to stop, but only half-heartedly it seemed to him. He released his grip on her a little for a second kiss, but after that failed he let her go.
Hermione turned away and walked into the lounge without saying a word. After watching her go, Draco followed. Hermione stood in front of the coffee table with her arms folded, looking at him angrily, although he could see the tears in her eyes.
'I don't understand what I've done, Hermione,' Draco said honestly as he walked towards her his arms out as if ready to hug her again. 'Let me hold you, please.'
'You shouldn't be doing that — you're married,' Hermione hissed. 'Everything we did together, Draco, all that stuff you made out was so special . . . and all the time you were married to someone else. I knew you were a bastard but I honestly thought you had changed — thought you had grown to be a better man. Instead, you're worse than you used to be.'
Draco looked at Hermione in astonishment at her outburst. She was acting this way because he was married? But why was it such a problem now? Had she spoken to Potter and Weasley about their relationship and they had been disparaging about him and intimated that he didn't really care about her? It was the only reason he could think of for her suddenly turning on him over this.
'I don't understand what the problem is,' he said as he walked towards Hermione again. 'I've never lied to you about how I feel about you. You know I adore you and I love the time we spend together. I never want it to end.'
'And then you go home to your wife,' Hermione told him coldly. 'Do you tell her the same things you tell me?'
'You've lost me,' Draco said, looking confused. 'Why is my wife suddenly so important to you?'
Hermione looked at him in amazement, then gave a laugh of disbelief.
'Why do you think she might be important, Draco? Everything that's happened over the last few days is a total sham. How can you can you talk to me about babies and tell me you don't want to leave me when you've got a wife waiting for you back at home?'
'Because I don't love her, I love you,' Draco said honestly. 'That's why I want to be here with you and why she isn't a big deal.'
'And that's why you never said anything about her, is it?' Hermione asked bitterly.
'Why would I talk about Caro?' Draco asked, sounding even more confused. 'I try to spend as little time thinking about her as it is and I've no idea would you want to talk about her.'
'At least if I'd known she existed I could have made better choices,' Hermione said miserably. She sank onto the sofa, her head bowed as she cried.
Draco looked at Hermione in horror.
'You didn't know I was married?' he asked, sounding stunned.
Hermione looked up and glared at him. 'Of course I didn't. Do you honestly think I would have done anything with you if I'd known you had a wife? I would never have . . . .'
Draco moved to join her on the sofa.
'Hermione, I'm so sorry. I didn't realise you didn't know. I thought everyone in the bloody world knew about me and Caroline getting married. It was in all the papers and magazines at the time. You know what my parents are like for publicity, and Caro's are ten times worse. Every paper and magazine ran extensive articles on everything from table decorations through to the flowers. It went on for weeks. Even the Quibbler had a section where you could redesign her wedding dress. It never even occurred to me for a single minute that you weren't aware of it.'
'So, what, you think I'm some sort of slut who goes around sleeping with other people's husbands for the fun of it?' Hermione asked belligerently.
'No, of course not. This thing between us — it's been building up for so many years. It's like we were meant to be together. You know we fit perfectly, Hermione, when we make love, even when we're just together. There's something special between us. I just assumed you were ignoring my marital status because you and I have something far greater than any marriage.'
Hermione shook her head. 'No, I had no idea — and even if I had, how was I supposed to remember that after what I'd just been through? You took advantage of me, Draco. You made me into a fool and that hurts.'
Draco took hold of her hand, stroking it soothingly. 'No! No, that's not true, Hermione. I didn't make a fool out of you.'
Hermione gazed at him miserably, her voice quiet as she said, 'Yes, you did. You knew you were married and yet you still . . . .' She broke off as she started to cry.
Automatically Draco pulled her into his arms, gripping her firmly as he hugged her.
'I really am sorry that you didn't know, but it doesn't change how I feel about you. Caro and I have never really been suited and we certainly don't have the spark that you and I have got. I felt it the moment I picked you up in that house, and then again when I saw you at the hospital – and I don't care what you say, I know you feel the same way about me.'
'So why did you marry your wife? You must have loved her to do that,' Hermione said.
She pulled away from Draco's arms again, no longer crying although she dabbed at her eyes with a tissue she had retrieved from her pocket.
Draco shrugged. 'I'm not sure I ever really loved Caro. I certainly admired her and it was an advantageous marriage on paper, but that was all.'
'And what does that mean?' Hermione asked tersely.
'It means that theoretically we were perfectly matched. We come from similar backgrounds and have a similar amount of wealth. We move in the same social circles, so in theory we're ideally suited. But it's rubbish. In reality it means nothing because we're not at all matched. Once you take away the money, the only thing we really have in common is that we were both in Slytherin and we have the same friends. That would probably have been enough . . . if I hadn't met you again.
'I love you, Hermione. I didn't want to rush things and make you feel uncomfortable after what you went through with Antenucci, but it's true — my heart belongs to you and there's nothing I can do to change it.'
Hermione continued to gaze at Draco miserably.
'It's true,' Draco insisted. 'I have done for years. Think about it. That's why we used to fight all the time when we were at school. It was because we fancied each other and didn't want to admit it. It lay dormant all those years and then suddenly we were thrown back together, in a time when the things that used to cause a problem are no longer of any relevance, and those desires erupted. It was perfect and beautiful and like nothing I've ever experienced before, and every moment we spend together makes it even better.'
Hermione shook her head. 'It doesn't matter how it feels, Draco. It doesn't count because you're married to someone else.'
'And I shouldn't be. I should be married to you, and if I hadn't been so bloody stupid at school I would be,' Draco retorted, convinced that this was true.
'But you're not . . . and you can't just take what you want, Draco. It's not fair. Not to me or to your poor wife.' Hermione's voice shook as she fought tears once more. Why wouldn't Draco just admit he was wrong and leave so she could let the pain out at last?
'I could be your husband — if you let me and give me time,' Draco replied, sounding desperate, his own misery now breaking through at Hermione's reluctance to see reason. 'I love you, Hermione. Please give me a chance.'
Hermione shook her head sadly. 'I want you to go and I don't want you to contact me again. Go back to your wife and your dangerous job and leave me alone. Just forget you even know me.'
'That's not going to happen, you know it won't.' Draco grabbed hold of Hermione's hands, gripping them tightly as he gazed into her eyes, wanting her to know he was being sincere. 'I didn't forget about you after leaving school, not really. I just tucked you away where I wouldn't think about you so much and it only worked because I didn't see you. As soon as you came back into my life it was like you had never gone and I knew I couldn't let you leave again. I love you and I will keep saying it because it will continue to be true, whatever the current situation is.'
Draco wrapped his arms around Hermione as she broke down in tears, holding her tightly as she sobbed into his shoulder.
'I'm not willing to give you up,' he whispered.
Draco's fingers gently brushed her back as he tried to soothe her, his lips moving slowly to kiss her neck before gently claiming her mouth. For a moment he thought she would push him away again but instead, Hermione kissed him back. His heart beat faster at the possibility that he had finally got through to her and she would stop trying to send him away.
'Don't do this to me, Draco,' Hermione whispered miserably once the kiss had finished. 'It's not fair.'
'We should be together, you know we should. We were made for each other,' Draco said staunchly. 'You know how good it feels. How much better than with anyone else.'
'But I can't do this. Not now that I know you're married,' Hermione told him.
Draco kissed her gently on the lips. 'Yes, you can. Hermione, my marriage was over the minute I rescued you from that house . . . and it will happen, it's already happening, it just takes time. I need you to give me that.'
'Have you told her about us?' Hermione asked quietly.
Draco shook his head. 'Not yet. There's not been time with all the work I've been doing. But I promise I will tell her as soon as possible.'
'You should go home and talk to her now, then,' Hermione suggested.
'I don't want to go home. I want to stay here with you,' Draco said. 'I promise I will talk to Caro about it, but I'm not leaving you tonight.'
Hermione knew she should send Draco away and refuse to have anything to do with him until he divorced his wife and proved to her that he was serious about his intentions toward her. But the desire that had caused all the trouble in the first place was still there, breaking down her resolve to send him away. She needed Draco to leave, but at the same time she didn't want to let go of him and was desperate for him to make love to her in the same beautiful way he had done so many times before.
He smiled at her and Hermione knew she was lost.
'I didn't make you any dinner,' she told him ruefully.
'It doesn't matter, I didn't really come for dinner,' Draco said with a smile as he pulled her close again. 'I'll say it a million times if I need to: I just want to be with you.'
He kissed her, and then he kissed her again . . . several times.
'Let me love you, Hermione. Let me stay with you all night and show you how much I love you.'
'I don't think your wife would be very happy about you staying out all night. Won't she wonder where you are? Or are you often away from home overnight?' Hermione asked.
Draco immediately understood the inference and deflected. 'I haven't stayed away overnight before but I often have to work extremely late. Sometimes Caro and I don't see each other for days. If I get home after she's gone to bed then I sleep in the spare room and often I'm gone again before she gets up. I'm not a serial philanderer, Hermione. I've never even looked at anyone else. I'm just in love with you and I'm not going to leave even if it means sitting on this sofa alone all night.' He looked at her with pleading puppy-dog eyes that made her heart melt a little bit. 'Please don't make me stay on the sofa all night.'
Hermione sighed in resignation. She obviously wasn't going to get Draco to leave of his own accord as he clearly didn't feel guilty about what he was doing at all, and she wasn't strong enough to force him out, especially when she still didn't have a wand. And the main problem was he was still so gorgeous that she couldn't resist him, especially knowing how good he made her feel.
'All right, you can stay,' she said finally. 'But I'm not happy about what you're doing to your wife. You need to sort that out.'
'I promise I will,' Draco said happily, and he pulled Hermione towards him once more.