"Will you come over tonight?"

Hermione frowned, glancing at the blond. They had already had a morning of adventures, but her shift started soon and she would have to leave. She wasn't even out the door yet and he was asking if she would come back later.

"I don't know," she replied honestly, avoiding his eyes. After their talk a few days ago she'd felt odd around him, uncertain exactly where they stood. They never finished their conversation about an emerging relationship and she wasn't truly sure where to go from there. The sex continued, but she felt like a fool playing along when her heart was beginning to feel something else and his was cold to the idea.

"Do you have other plans?"

"No," she said, grabbing her things. "But I have work and I might be tired later-"

"I can always come see you."

She paused, glancing at him. He rarely came to her apartment, almost never in fact. And when he did it was usually a courtesy, for he was often dropping her off from a night of sex or picking her up from one. He never came by to stay.

"We don't sleep at my house," she said curiously, eyeing him.

"We haven't yet," he replied lazily, taking a drag of his lit cigarette. "But it could be an exciting adventure."

Hermione wasn't entirely sure that he really believed that, but something was propelling him to come visit her home. Shrugging slowly, she crossed her arms over her chest.

"If you would like to."

Draco nodded, looking her over a few times. She was cold, not physically but in the way she addressed him. Since their blatant discussion a few days ago she had been acting strange. They hadn't been caught in the heat of the moment in a few days. It was all planned sex, it happened before they went to bed, and played out in the same order over and over again. He was tired of the repetitiveness.

He was also curious about her. He didn't honestly believe much she had to say the first time around. Hermione was a very level headed girl, and he had never truly seen her allow her emotions to overpower her judgments. But she seemed very driven by emotion during their last serious talk, more so than he had ever personally seen her be before. He couldn't help wondering if her feelings towards him were sincere. At first it seemed as though she was just getting ahead of herself, lost in the moment. But considering that it was still bothering her he wondered if there was something there that wasn't there before.

Draco wasn't sure he could handle that much emotion. He worked to be very emotionless himself when it came to human interaction, but he was stirring up feelings inside of him that made him afraid. He couldn't take an emotional overpower.

"I will come by around six," he told her, studying her back. She wasn't facing him now. "I'll bring dinner."

"I should be home by six."

He could hear the hesitation in her voice, despite her apparent attempt to cover it up. There they were again, those emotions under her skin that she sought to keep hidden. After his rather harsh rejection of anything outside of sex the other day he couldn't say that he blamed her for being guarded. For all he knew she might have dashed away any hope that they would have anything other than sex between them.

Honestly he wasn't so sure if that was the case. But emotionally he couldn't handle anything past sex right now. Maybe sometime he could take a relationship and properly handle it as one.

But he couldn't tell her that, not now. Why install false hope?

"I'll wait around if you aren't."

"Okay."

It wasn't the excitement he used to get whenever she spoke. He didn't feel like jumping her all the time, but then she didn't seem as agreeable in the game of sex. She wasn't as ambitious and interested as he wished she were.

He watched her leave, the gears in his mind shifting about. What did he want out of this experience with Hermione, really? Did he expect this to flourish into a relationship someday when he decided he wanted one? He doubted she would hold on that long. She wasn't clingy, and if their relationship dissolved and the sex lessoned he knew there wasn't much keeping her there with him. If she believed he only wanted her physically, she would hang around until that desire expired and then she would be gone.

Draco couldn't stomach that idea. It made his stomach do funny little knots. But he also couldn't force himself into a commitment he wasn't ready for.

He could keep bedding her though. Maybe it would suffice as enough for them both, at least for now.

Hermione was distracted. Usually she was enticed by images of Draco nude at work, distracting her daily jobs, but the past few days she had other things on her mind. And it had nothing to do with her favorite part of his anatomy.

She knew he had been acting strange the past few days. Sure, her behavior was less than normal too, but she already knew what was bothering her. He on the other hand was a puzzle to her, one that seemed to be missing a few pieces.

Hermione felt that Draco was more bothered by the mention of Theo than he let on. Each day after she returned home from work he would floo her, and she would arrive shortly after. What she expected to be sex the first time was actually a conversation, one dropping small hints about whether or not Theo appeared again.

She remembered the conversation as she sat at her desk, pondering his odd behavior.

"How was work?"

She blinked, sitting stupidely on the couch. He was wandering the flat, pacing back and forth.

"Excuse me?"

He glanced at her, seeming just as confused as she was. "How was work?"

"You actually care to talk to me about that? Usually you find my job boring."

Shrugging, he sat beside her on the sofa, lounging back. "I was curious."

"Were you now?" she asked suspiciously. "And what made you so curious?"

"I don't know. Did you speak to anyone interesting today?"

"My coworkers," she replied, eyebrows drawing together. He seemed to be taking his time, remembering whatever she happened to tell him.

"No strange appearances?"

"No. Why would there be?"

"I don't know. No one odd stopped in to see you?"

"Draco," she groaned, rolling her eyes. "Come off it. You thought someone specific came by didn't you?"

"Perhaps," he said, avoiding getting specific.

"This is about Theo isn't it?" she realized, genuinely surprised. "You want to know if he stopped by again!"

The man shrugged, closing his eyes. "It was just a question."

"Yeah, a question full of interest. For the record Draco, no, Theo didn't stop by again. He's probably tired of getting rejected. So you can stop worrying about nothing now."

"Good to hear," he replied, opening his eyes again. She couldn't help but notice that he seemed lighter knowing that Nott hadn't made a new appearance.

Hermione nodded, slipping the information into the back of her brain. His behavior was odd, especially considering how non-concerned he was when she first brought it up. She wondered what stirred up such interest from him.

"Miss Granger?"

She jumped, having completely missed the set of knocks before the voice. Her heartbeat sped up, surprised out of her own memory. She could hear her assistant banging lightly on the door again, clearing his throat.

"Miss Granger? Miss Potter is here to see you."

Blinking, she frowned. Since when did Ginny visit her at work, much less when she's been avoiding her friends?

Could always be Nott trying to slip in.

She shook her head, setting it down on the desk for a moment. If he bothered coming to find her in such a manner then she had a big problem. But Theo really had few and far reasons to ever cross paths with Ginny Potter, and she doubted this was some sort of trick.

"Come in!"

The door opened to a redhead women pushing past Hermione's stumpy assistant. She barreled right up to her longtime friends desk, pointing a finger directly in her face.

"Hermione Granger, how dare you avoid me!?"

She blinked. "Excuse me?"

"Don't pretend you don't know what I'm talking about," Ginny huffed, sitting in one of Hermione's comfy chairs. "I've been trying to hang with you for weeks and each time you make up an excuse as to why we can't! Don't tell me you've been holed up in here for weeks doing nothing but work."

"Ginny-"

"I already asked your assistant about that," she continued as though Hermione hadn't spoken. "He actually said you haven't been around very much. So where have you been hiding exactly?"

"Well, I've been busy-"

"And another thing, Harry came home a couple weeks ago saying you were dressed up like a dancer," Ginny continued, studying her friends attire. "Now I can't imagine the Hermione Granger I know wearing anything less than modest. But I doubt my husband has made the whole thing up."

Her friend sat back and raised an eyebrow, waiting for the fuming ginger to finish her rant before she even tried to speak again.

"So what's going on Hermione? You never come around anymore. You've been back from Australia for ages now and we've spent very little time together. Are you alright? If you haven't been working yourself to death then where have you been?"

"I've been living my life," the brunette replied, shrugging lamely. "I don't necessarily want to spend all of my time being coddled by a bunch of couples. I've been spending time with some of my single friends recently."

Ginny frowned. "You have single friends?"

"Yes Ginny, I have friends outside of the lot of you, even here in Britain. Nothing's been wrong with me, okay? I'm not suffocating myself under my work and I'm not sitting at home all alone. I'm finding things to do in my time, and I'm quite happy actually."

The ginger blinked, looking slightly surprised that Hermione could be happy without her traditional friends. It took her a moment to compose herself and come up with a response. "I'm glad you're not isolating yourself Hermione, but why not introduce us to your new friends? We'd love to see you too!"

She cringed. "I think there would be a… clash of personalities."

"Well, you and Ron are friends and you two couldn't have any less in common. Clashing personalities are usual amongst people."

Not like you think.

Hermione brushed her hair over her shoulder. "Well, Ginny, I've just been out a lot lately-"

"Is that a hickey?" she cut in, completely ignoring whatever her friend was saying. She leaned in close to Hermione, studying the splotch on her neck.

The older woman blushed, remembering exactly how that came to be. But she had been distracted this morning and forgot to glamor the mark. Since she hadn't expected to run into any of her friends today who would ask questions she hadn't really worried about it.

"I-"

"Are you seeing someone?" Ginny asked, looking extremely impressed. "Oh Hermione, is that where you've been!?"

"I- yes," she admitted, deciding that so long as she didn't go around dropping names she probably could get away with this bit. It was better than admitting random sex with Draco Malfoy to her friend.

Clapping her hands together, Ginny squealed. "Oh, finally! Hermione I knew you'd find someone you liked. And apparently the two of you get along pretty well."

Hermione blushed as Ginny waggled her eyebrows, glancing at the love bite. She had absolutely no idea.

"I'm so happy for you," Ginny continued, wandering around the desk to hug her friend. "I always thought you needed some companionship, and I'm sure you've found someone wonderful. It's not exclusive yet, is it? I bet that's why you've been hiding it!"

She remained silent, letting her friend paint the picture-perfect idea of her love life that couldn't be further from the truth. Her heart constricted, remembering Draco's blatant rejection not too long ago.

"You hid it because you two haven't gone public yet, hmm?" the ginger asked, still off in her own world. Placing a hand on her cold wrist, Ginny grinned. "I won't say anything to Harry and Ron until you decide to. Getting a boyfriend is big news! Surprise me sometime with an introduction?"

Nodding, she barely registered whatever else her chattering friend said. Her mind drifted off somewhere else, wandering back to dashed ideas about Draco. If she stayed in this play game forever she was just going to hurt herself, and now she was realizing that.

"Will you bring him by sometime so we can meet him? Hermione?"

"Yes," she said lamely, deciding that her ordeal with Draco would be long over before that could ever happen. Hopefully Ginny didn't pry much further.

"I can see that you're thinking about him," she sighed, backing up. "I'll leave you to your things Hermione. But please don't be a stranger anymore! We miss you terribly. Come by soon?"

"Of course," Hermione replied, forcing a smile. She said goodbye to her friend, walking the pleasant redhead to the door. Once she was gone she shut and locked the door, sliding down the wood. She could feel the water pooling in her eyes.

It was silly to hope for love out of animalistic sex. She knew that. Nonetheless she wished that he felt something similar to what she did. Instead, he dashed away all the possibilities.

"I was starting to wonder if you were coming back here at all."

She glanced at Draco when she entered her apartment, noticing that he was sitting about examining some of her books. The bloke looked utterly bored, but nonetheless he had waited around for her to arrive.

Giving Draco access to her apartment was a step forward. It wasn't a big step, considering she could enter his home at any given time, but for Hermione it felt strange. If she wasn't going to move forward in her relationship with Draco then what good did giving him access to her floo do? Now they could have more random sex.

"I was busy," she said, her voice distant. With her back to the blond she couldn't see what he was doing, but she heard him shifting around on the sofa, and a moment later she heard footsteps approaching her.

Hands wrap around her middle, drawing the petite woman back into a strong chest. His hands came up for a moment, dancing over her round breasts, lightly toying with her soft nipples beneath her shirt. They lingered there only a moment before slipping down to rest around her waist. She didn't moan, but a small gasp escaped her lips.

"Something's been troubling you," he murmured, lightly biting her ear, toying with the skin. "You haven't been yourself lately."

"I happen to believe I'm fine Draco. I've been acting like myself for quite some time you know."

He bit harder a moment before the pressure disappeared altogether and h pulled away from her ear. "No, when we began you were timid, but then you became very carefree and exuberant. Lately you've been rather reserved."

"Well maybe I don't want to have random sex at all hours of the day."

Draco frowned, turning her around to face him. Her hips were pressed lightly against him, with her lower back hitting the counter behind her. She looked up at him, defiance in her eyes. His eyes searched through them, looking for a sign of what was causing her trouble.

"Is it something Theo did again?"

Hermione frowned in return, narrowing her brown orbs. "Lately all you do is jump to conclusions about Theo. He doesn't bother me Draco. He's a little pushy but he's no fool. I can handle myself."

"Can you blame me for wondering if it is him?" he asked with a shrug. "After your last confrontation I doubt you would be elated to see him."

"No, I wouldn't. But I could handle whatever dilemma he tries to throw my way. Theo is tedious, but the more I shoot him down the less propelled he seems to follow me." She crossed her arms, putting a bit more space between their bodies. "You don't have to be so concerned you know. It's not like it's something you need to worry about."

He stroked her cheek, eliciting the gentle sigh he desired. "I can worry about people troubling you if I so choose."

"You only worry about those you care about," she replied, staring directly into his eyes. "You don't care about me Draco, not in a loving way. We're nothing to each other except a booty call."

Arching an eyebrow, he continued to stroke his skin. "Do you think I would continually push the other women who desire to get into my bed aside if you were just someone I came to for sex?"

"You've said it before. You don't see a relationship forming, you don't see anything past what we have right now happening. And I don't want to live in an illusion. If my hearts telling me one thing and you're telling me it's impossible then I should do the smart thing and get out of this situation now before I'm in too deep."

Chuckling, he kissed her ear. "Doll, don't you think you're in too deep already?"

"No."

Her voice was small when she spoke, laced in uncertainty and apprehension. He was close, his body calling out to hers as it often did. She could feel herself already beginning to react to his intoxicating touch, but he had hardly done a thing yet.

It took more than a bit of effort to push him away when he lent in for a kiss. Surprised the man stumbled back, taking a moment to regain his composure as he stared at her through clear, lust filled eyes.

"We can't," she said softly, shaking her head at him. "I have to stop this while I have control Draco. I fall into your touch all the time because it feels good. You make me feel good. But it's not real- not to you. This is all a game to you, just as it was always supposed to be. I slept with you in the beginning because it was fun and different and new, but now I do it for different reasons. The freedom that was once there is gone, crushed by emotion. We can't do this anymore."

"Can't or won't?" he asked, his eyes staring straight through her. "I know you've been feeling differently Hermione, but that doesn't mean we still can't fool around."

"I won't be hurt by you," she said, closing her hands into fists. She wasn't angry at him, quite the opposite in fact. But she was worried she might unravel at any given moment. "You may not feel the same way I do, but when it comes time to say goodbye I will be the one who's hurt. It's safer if we just end things now before we get in any deeper."

He clenched his jaw, glancing away momentarily. She didn't know how off she was from the truth, but he wasn't about to tell her so. He had that debate with himself earlier this morning, about whether or not he should bother explaining himself to her. But in the end he decided it was all for naught. What she wanted right now was something he couldn't give. He wouldn't if he was just going to dash away from her when everything became too much.

"So are you saying I should leave?"

Hermione shrugged, her hands unclenching as he glanced back to her. She looked defeated, tired of the same old battle, but underneath it all he could see the hurt. Despite her best efforts to cover it up he knew her well, and he knew she wouldn't let all those emotions out in front of him. If nothing else Hermione Granger was known for being strong.

"You don't have to leave," she whispered. "You could stay… just for tonight. We could make it our parting."

He left something inside him break a little, but he didn't let it show as he leaned back against the wall. Watching her.

"Just tonight."

"Yes, just tonight. We made plans this morning and it would be rude to cancel them."

Just from her words he knew she didn't really want this to end. But she wasn't going to push for more at a dead end either. Nodding, he removed all emotion from his face, unsure what would shine though.

"And then we won't speak again."

"We can talk," she said, looking at him once more. "Just no more sex. Nothing that can even touch on being near a relationship. We'll stop all physical, sexual contact. Maybe we can go out for tea."

Tea. That's the last thing I can ever imagine doing with you. Bloody tea.

He nodded, crossing the small space between them again. He wasn't quite pressing against her, but he was close enough to feel her body heat.

"Tea sounds good. Maybe in a few days."

"Yes, a few short days."

Nodding, he watched her eyes close. They couldn't make this into something it wasn't. It wouldn't become some undying love fest right before they broke apart. Romantic sex would leave too much unsaid on both sides and confuse both players of the game. He would go about this the same way they always did. If they finished on the same note they had started then it would be as though nothing had really changed at all.

Only everything had changed. And maybe not for the better.

She moved and gasped in his arms just as she always had when they played together. He could recall every sound she made every which way he would caress her. A part of him would miss her responsive body beneath his.

They never slept in her bed- never. But tonight he made an exception, whisked the lovely witch up off her feet and carried her in there, kicking the door closed for effect. She giggled as he dropped her on the bed, and the sound went right to his heart.

I'll miss her.

"Draco," she whispered, his teeth leaving little trails down her skin. Despite himself he wanted to remember everything about her; he never met someone who moved as well as she did with him.

I'll miss the way she purrs my name in bed.

He kissed her more than he ever did before. Even while she moaned on the end of his erection he left little kisses on her skin, anywhere but her lips. He couldn't fathom kissing there and then never getting the chance to again.

She cried out his name as they finished, sending pinballs floating about in his head. He couldn't forget that sound as he fell asleep, and he wondered if he'd ever find someone again who made him feel the way she did.

Never Draco, never.

Hermione woke in the morning to her hand hitting loose air. She was reaching out, searching for her lovely bedmate, but her hand fell flat on the sheets. Rolling over, she sighed.

She didn't need to open her eyes to know he was gone. The bed was small compared to his, and Draco was a rather large person. He was nowhere to be found as her hands swept over the soft linens.

Sighing she opened her eyes. He had left the sheets in utter disarray, but all this things were gone and there wasn't a trace of him. She couldn't hear the shower running or the stove on in the kitchen. She didn't see any smoke drifting up from the sofa in the living room, and she certainly remembered him kicking the door closed just last night.

He didn't even wait around to say goodbye, the bloody wanker.

Hermione attempted just once to sit up in bed before collapsing back on the sheets. Her heart felt heavy despite all her internal protests that his absence didn't bother her a bit. He didn't wait around because the established last night that things were over. Why would he wait around for her if he knew there was nothing left between them?

There's so much left. You left a lot unsaid between the two of you. You never really asked him what he wanted out of everything.

I didn't need to ask. If he truly wanted something, he would have spoken up when I made all those accusations about him. But he said nothing. So just accept the fact that it's true, he doesn't want you. Pick yourself up and quit being a crybaby. There's no use waiting around.

But Hermione didn't get up. She sat there for a long time dusting her fingers over the empty ruffled sheets.

More than anything she wished he had waited until she woke up. Maybe they had something else to say to each other before he left, but now they would never know. She certainly wouldn't bring this up again.

A/n: There's an epilogue coming. I didn't think it made sense for them to fall in love just yet. Time has to pass first. They haven't exactly been that close yet.

These past few chapters haven't had a lot of sex in them, I know that. Perhaps for the final chapter I can try to work something in.

Reviews, comments and everything else are welcome. Check out my facebook page if you like!

~Haley