"You broke my bloody nose!"

Sure enough, blood is gushing down Ron's face as he holds his nose. His blue eyes are glaring at Malfoy, who has stepped away from him. Malfoy's silver eyes are examining the knuckles of his right hand, wincing slightly. At the sound of Ron's voice, Malfoy glances at him and narrows his eyes.

"You deserved it! I don't care what your opinions are Weasley, you have no right to talk to her or anyone else like that."

I glance toward Harry and Ginny, hoping they might be able to give me some clue about how I should feel about all of this. Ginny is doing her best not to smile as she glances between Ron's broken nose and Malfoy. Harry, however, is looking off to the left, his face set in a grim scowl.

"Hermione, get Malfoy out of here," he whispers, keeping his voice low. "Reporters are going to start flocking soon and I bet they already have some great shots."

"What about the whole point of dinner tonight?"

Harry's green eyes met mine before focusing on Ron. "Gin and I'll handle it. We stick by our decision to help you. Although… maybe next time, tell Malfoy not to be so physical in his defensive of you, yeah?"

I hurry over to Malfoy and grab his hand, pulling him away from the scene as we flee to the parking lot.

"Ouch! Granger, ease up a bit will you?"

My eyes flicker down to our joined hands. I am squeezing rather tightly and with a start, I realize I grabbed a hold of his right hand. The one he was holding gingerly after breaking Ron's nose. His second knuckle is already bruising and I can feel the swelling from how I've grabbed him.

"You broke your knuckle, you idiot!" I hiss, pulling him toward the car. "Why in the name of Merlin's pants did you punch him?"

He shrugs as he fishes the keys out of his pocket using his left hand and hands them to me. "You still had my wand. And besides, I couldn't let him get away with the things he was saying about you."

I force my facial expression not to change with his admission and motion for him to get into the car. I slowly count to five before getting into the driver's side and starting the engine. I don't look, much less speak, to Malfoy as I drive us away from the restaurant. In the rearview mirror I can already see the reporters crowding around Harry and Ginny. Their expressions are hard to read as I drive away, but they seem relaxed and patient as they answer the questions no doubt being hurled at them.

The tension in the car grows as I drive us toward my flat. I pull into the underground parking garage attached to my apartment complex and shut off the car, still ignoring Malfoy. He follows me as I lead the way to the elevators in the garage and press the call button. I can feel his eyes on me, but I continue not to look at him. My emotions are still running high after the whole punching incident and I'm still not sure how to feel about it. We step into the elevator as another couple comes up behind us. The lift only takes us up to the lobby of my building and is ridiculously small. Malfoy steps closer to me as the doors close, successfully trapping me between his body and the wall of the lift.

"Are you mad at me?" he asks softly as if the other couple can't hear, although he really needn't bother because they definitely can.

"No," I finally reply, still not looking at him.

I feel his fingers on my chin and he tilts my face up so I am forced to meet his eyes.

"Liar," he accuses with something between a smirk and smile on his lips.

I jerk my chin out of his grasp before I smile, but I don't think I am successful. The lift chimes when we reach the lobby and the other couple exits first. Before I can follow them, Malfoy's right arm shoots out, blocking my path. His good hand presses the button to shut the lift doors.

"What are you doing?" I ask in shock as the doors close and he presses the button to lock the lift in place.

"Why are you mad at me?"

I stare at him for a moment. "Did you seriously trap me in an elevator just to ask that question?"

"You weren't going to ever give me a straight answer. You were probably just planning on mending my hand, returning my keys, and then sending me on my merry little way, weren't you?"

I don't answer and choose to shoot him a glare, never mind the fact that that had been my original idea.

"Thought so," he says triumphantly. "So, go on then. Why are you mad?"

"Why am I mad? Malfoy, you broke Ron's nose!"

"Like he didn't deserve it!"

"Of course he did, but that's not the point!"

Malfoy steps closer to me at that and I take a step back automatically, my back pressing again the wall of the lift.

"Not the point?" he repeats. "Then what is?"

I fumble for a second before narrowing my eyes. "You can't just go around punching people!"

"Didn't seem to stop you during our third year!"

"You deserved-"

I choke on my words as Malfoy raises his eyebrows, success shining in his eyes. Damn it.

"It would appear we have a double standard here, Granger."

He is looming over me now and I have to tilt my head up to meet his eyes. The tension between us is still there, but it has changed from anger into something much more dangerous. Malfoy's eyes search my face and he steps closer when he seems to find whatever it is he's looking for.

"Double standard or not," I say thickly, hoping my words will distract me from the smell of his cologne, "punching someone in the face is hardly dignified. You could have just pulled me away and back to the car or-"

I stop talking abruptly when Malfoy's good hand comes up and brushes my hair off my neck, his fingers leaving a trail of goosebumps as they ghost down my throat.

"Do you know why I punched that lousy excuse for a man?" Malfoy's voice is soft, his face close to mine. I can feel his breath on my skin, each word like a stroke of his fingers. When I don't speak, he continues. "It's not because I don't think you can handle yourself or that you are some damsel in distress; I know you aren't and besides, I'm hardly the knight in shining armor on horseback type. It's because I didn't punch him the first time he insulted you in my presence. When he claimed you were going to be anything less than a wonderful mother. It's because I don't know any curse or hex good enough for him, but also because I don't want to waste my magic on someone like him."

His body is pressed up against mine now, securing me against the wall so there is no escape; as if I'd really want to escape. His hand moves from my neck to cup my face, a smile tugging at the corners of his lips.

"But mostly," he whispers, "I punched him, because I thought it might be a good way for me to let out some pent up emotions."

"Well that is hardly healthy-"

And then his lips are on mine, swallowing my witty retort. And despite his body pressed up against mine, and my back pressed firmly into the wall, the kiss remains soft and tender. His lips move against mine gently, trying to gage some type of response from me no doubt. The hand holding my face moves to tangle in my hair and briefly I think how smart it was that I straightened my hair so he could freely run his fingers through it, before giving myself completely into his kiss.

The moment my arms wrap around his neck, Malfoy's kiss becomes hungrier. His teeth scrape against my lips before his tongue traces the outline of my mouth, causing me to moan and my mouth to open for him. Our tongues meet in a frenzy and he pushes me harder against the wall. In response, I tangle my fingers in his hair, dragging my nails against his scalp. I hike a leg around his hips when his mouth leaves mine to trail down my throat, pausing to bite and suck as he goes. I begin to wonder why he doesn't help me lift my other leg around him when his hand grips my thigh and his lips reconnect with mine.

"Malfoy!" I push him away from me slightly, grabbing a fistful of his shirt to keep him at bay. "Your hand!"

"What about my hand?" he asks impatiently.

"You broke your knuckle, you idiot!" I say for the second time this evening. "And we've been snogging and not doing anything about it!"

"Granger, it really isn't that bad-" his voice trails off when he finally glances down at his hand, finding it very swollen and his knuckle even more bruised than when I first told him it was broken. "On second thought, maybe I would prefer it if you healed me."

I unhook my leg from his waist, albeit very reluctantly, and gently push him away from me so I can reach the button to unlock the lift. Just before can I press the button, Malfoy's good hand grabs my arm and swings me back around so we are chest to chest, his mouth immediately lowering to kiss me again.

"We are going to talk about this," he says when he pulls away and leaves me breathless.

"O-of course," I breathe.

Satisfied with my answer he releases me, allowing me to unlock the lift. The doors slide open to reveal a confused old man. Malfoy and I quickly exit, hopefully before he notices our rumpled clothes and my smeared lipstick. We cross to the other side of the lobby and call the elevator that will get us to my flat, finding ourselves again confined to a small, enclosed space. Thankfully Malfoy does not make a move this time. I count the seconds until the doors open. Malfoy may be retraining himself but I need some self-control because I have not had a proper snog in months and Malfoy is above and beyond a proper snog.

We step out into my hallway and I hurry toward my door, unlocking it as swiftly as I can and ushering Malfoy inside. I kick off my shoes and deposit my coat and purse on the table before going to the freezer and grabbing a bag of frozen vegetables.

"What are you planning on doing with that?"

"Oh just sit down," I say, moving from the kitchen to the couch, motioning for him to follow me.

He sits down beside me, cradling his injured hand against his chest. I hold out my hand and he gives me a warning look before letting me take it. Gently, I hold the frozen bag of corn to his knuckle, shooting him an apologetic look when he hisses in pain.

"Sorry, but it's better if I numb it before I fix it."

"You do know how to fix it, don't you? I mean, you know which spell, right?"

"Don't be ridiculous, of course I do."

He chuckles and shakes his head. "Sorry I doubted you."

We sit in silence for a little while, broken only by my occasional asking if he thought it was numb yet. After a couple minutes, he finally tells me that it's good enough and that I might as well just mend it.

"It's going to hurt," I warn.

"It can't be that bad- fuck!" Malfoy instinctively pulls his hand out of my grasp once I've performed the spell. "What the bloody hell was that?"

"Me fixing your knuckle, you moron. Here, put this back on it," I say, handing him the frozen corn. "I'll get you something to secure it with it."

I move back to my kitchen hoping I can find something to tie the bag around his hand with. I ultimately decide on a small towel that I can just knot around his hand, but when I turn to bring it to him, I find Malfoy standing directly behind me.

Before I can scold him for scaring me, his hands are on my hips and his mouth is on mine. My hands rest on his upper arms as he moves me backward until I hit the counter. One of his arms side around my back and he lifts me up without breaking the kiss and sets me down on the countertop, standing directly in between my thighs. He draws my lower lip into his mouth and bites down, resulting in a moan from me and me scraping my nails down his back, which he seems to like.

Gradually, our kisses begin to slow. Malfoy's hands find mine and lace our fingers together as he presses his lips chaste against mine. When he pulls away, we are both breathing heavily.

"Sorry," he finally says. "Got a bit carried away for a moment there."

"I don't mind."

"Careful what you say, witch; I might not stop next time."

The thought of that makes my heart leap. I definitely have not had any sort of action since Ron left and Merlin, Malfoy is loads better than anything Ron ever did. I didn't know what snogging was missing until Malfoy kissed me.

"What exactly sparked this sort of reaction from you?" I finally ask. "I mean, you punched Ron and snogged me; are you feeling all right?"

"Oh, I definitely am not feeling all right," he laughs, his hands leaving mine so he can wrap his arms around my waist, drawing me closer to him. Instinctively, I wrap my legs around his hips. "I have no idea what you've done to me."

"What I've done to you?" I ask. "I think the real question is, what have you done to me?"

He shakes his head but humor still shines in his eyes. "I don't know about you, Granger, but I quite like you and frankly, I'm starting to wonder if you've slipped me a love potion or something."

"Wait you… you like me?"

Malfoy arches an eyebrow and smirks. "Granger, I just punched your ex-fiancé in the face, snogged you against the wall of an elevator and on your kitchen counter; I'm not sure how more obvious I can make this for you."

My hands rest on his chest, my fingers spread out to touch as much of him as possible. "When did that happen?"

"What? Me liking you? I don't know honestly, but I'd venture around the time Weasel broke off your engagement."

"That was almost two months ago."

"I am aware, but I don't think my feelings really showed themselves until tonight."

I arch an eyebrow. "That's pretty sudden."

He shrugs. "I realized when Weasel threatened to get a restraining order against me on your child's behalf- which I know is not possible- that I really did not like the idea of not spending time with you. Tonight was one of the few times we've ever been out together that did not consist of us working and I liked it. And if Weasel has a problem with that, he can go fuck himself."

"Wait a second, I never said I liked you."

Malfoy smirks. "You don't have to like me. Not yet, anyway. Your response to me kissing you is good enough for now."

"You honestly think you can get me to like you through snogging me?"

"There are certainly worse methods I could try."

He is right on that front, and in all honesty, I am almost one hundred percent certain that I could fall in love with him for his kissing alone. A girl could certainly get used to the way Draco Malfoy snogged.

"How about we add a section to our agreement, Granger?"

"I don't know, Malfoy. We've already signed the contract." My voice is teasing and he knows it, because he simply smiles in response.

"A private section then. I propose that you give me a chance to woo you."

"Woo me?" I choke back a laugh. "You are going a bit old school, aren't you?"

"Perhaps. But come on. You've already agreed to let me babysit your kid and fix up my public reputation. Why not give me a chance in the world of dating too? No one else has to know if you don't want them too. We can break it off the moment you give the word and if it's too awkward for you, I'll even pull my other deals off the table so you don't have to see me more than necessary. It's a win-win."

I hesitate for a moment as I study his features. Date Malfoy? I mean, I had already agreed to let him babysit my unborn child and defend me in the custody battle for said child, and true to his word, someone had already been assigned to my case. Harry and Ginny have agreed to help me improve the general public's opinion of him. And…

Well, he is pretty damn attractive. He has a sense of humor that I like, a work ethic I admire, and intellect that could make me swoon. He had pretty much everything I would look for in a potential boyfriend. But…

"I'm pregnant."

"Yes, I am aware of that, Granger."

"You don't understand; I'm pregnant, Malfoy. With someone else's child. Are you okay with that? With helping me through the pregnancy beyond the role of a friend?"

He pauses while he thinks about that. "I'm not sure," he finally replies. "But I'm willing to find out."

Well, at least he's honest. But there was still one more thing bothering me.

"How do you know I'm completely over Ron?"

"I don't." Truth rings in his voice. "Although…"

He leans in and kisses me again, his hands cupping my face and tilting my head back so he can kiss me deeper. My hands grip the sides of his shirt, my nails scratching the skin hidden beneath the fabric. One hand trails down the side of my body before pulling my leg tighter around him and I gasp in surprise when his body rubs against mine. He pulls away before I'm done and gives me a satisfied smile.

"Based solely on the way you kiss me back, I'd say if you aren't over him yet, you will be soon. But, please, correct me if I'm wrong."

I grab the collar of his shirt and register both the surprise and happiness on his face when I finally initiate a kiss between us. I let one hand ghost down the front of his chest, feeling his muscles through his shirt, moaning in satisfaction with what I find.

"I'm definitely over Ron," I say breathlessly when I pull away from him.

"Is that a yes then?"

I laugh. "Yes, Malfoy, it's a yes. Go on and do your best; woo me."