August

Sitting at the desk in the study Blaise had set up for Hermione and Draco to use, he leafed through case reports, scrutinising their details. Hermione sat at a little reading table, thumbing through one of the old manuscripts the Zabini library held on Persian Dark Arts. Looking up from his paperwork, he watched his witch as she chewed on her bottom lip, her little gloved finger running carefully almost touching the lines as she read. Every now and again she would look up, screw up her eyes in thought, silently mouthing the words as her mind worked to translate the text. Her nose would twitch slightly and her eyes widen with her ruminations and then her eyeline would return to the text as she read on.

His cock twitched at the sight of her working and he privately mused that even a year later watching her work turned him on. She leant back in her chair, rolling her neck and shoulders before lifting her arms up to stretch, causing her flimsy silk shirt to ride up a little and Draco's breath to hitch in his throat. His desire for her never abated and a small smirk played across his lips as he thought back to when they had been in the kitchen of her townhouse in Richmond last week for their monthly meeting with Harry.

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"What is that infernal noise?" he complained, coming into the kitchen, leaving the case files on the coffee table in the lounge where they had been working.

"Music" she laughed, pulling him towards her as she swayed from side to side.

"Where's it coming from?" he asked her, eyes narrowed in confusion.

Hermione pointed to the radio on the window sill as she danced away to the island where she was preparing their dinner, singing along to the lyrics

"every little thing she does is magic, everything she do just turns me on, even though my life before was tragic, now i know my love for her goes on"

Hearing the words Draco couldn't help but think of her, and smiling he pulled her into his arms, before showing her, up against the fridge, how she was magic.

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Everything Hermione did was magic and everything she did turned him on. He mused on how his life before her had been tragic-hers too-and he knew his love for her would go on. Years later, if anyone was to ask Draco, he would tell them that right then, in that moment, that was when he knew he was going to marry her.

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Feeling the scrutiny of his gaze, Hermione turned to him, a small smile on her cherry lips.

"What?" she asked.

Draco silently placed the paperwork on the desk, stood up and walked over to her. She looked up, confused, and then smiled as he tilted her chin up, leaning down for a small kiss, his tongue gently touching her bottom lip as she slightly opened her mouth.

"Nothing dear" he whispered as he smiled at her.

Blaise's house elf Binny appeared next to them and averting her eyes from the couple in their intimate moment, she started to wring her hands nervously

"Master Blaise be wanting you to know dinner is ready and Mister Draco and Misses Hermione should be joining him on the terrace" she rushed out.

Hermione smiled "Thank you Binny, you may go."

The elf smiled and with a click she was gone. Pulling Hermione to her feet, Draco pressed a kiss to her temple before leading her to the terrace.

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He watched the amber liquid lap gently at the sides of the glass as he tumbled it in his hand. Hermione had gone up for a bath to ease the tension in her shoulders from being hunched over the text she had spent the last week translating, trying to work out what Avery might have been searching for. Intelligence had filtered into their department on a regular basis, but it was hard going. Unlike the murders, chasing shadows was an arduous and slower process. They both knew this from their time in the Middle East. While Hermione tried to piece the puzzle of what it was Avery had been looking for, Draco followed up leads of suspicious activity in Venice, Dark traces and possible smuggling operations. It was known that old smuggling routes between the area that had formerly been Persia and the Ottoman Empire and Venice existed, with the port city having been invaded many times over the centuries. Muggles knew this much but were unaware that Dark Wizards had been smuggling relics into the city to stop them falling into the hands of the Greeks, or that this was how Dark Wizards made their way into Europe from the Middle East. Together they had solved several kidnappings, shut down smugglers, captured Dark Wizards evading capture and even foiled an assassination attempt on the Italian Minister's life. But they were no closer to working out what Avery had been looking for and that was the source of Hermione's tension. She needed closure, and while their lust filled moments provided her with an outlet and distraction, they didn't give her the release that final puzzle piece would bring.

Blaise sat watching Draco, lost in his own ruminations and emitted a low chuckle as he sipped his Firewhiskey.

Draco turned and raised an eyebrow, questioningly.

"Galleon for your thoughts?" he asked Draco, holding his gaze.

Draco didn't respond.

"Not going to tell me?" he smirked, refusing to break the eye contact that was rapidly becoming a staring contest.

"Tell you what?" Draco replied, nonchalantly.

"About your little game with Granger" he chuckled "how you scratch that particular itch."

Draco knew what he was getting at. He looked into his glass before throwing back the last of his Firewhiskey and reaching for the bottle.

"You've already got it figured, Zabini, so what exactly do you want me to share?" he coolly replied as he poured himself a double measure. They were testing each other's boundaries. Sharing girls had never been an issue before Hermione, each man considering it sport. But Hermione was different. Blaise cared a lot about her and their friendship had become quite close, while Draco had fallen in love with her, wanted to protect her, wanted to marry her.

Both men continued to stare at the other, waiting for one to drop their guard.

Draco dropped his as he chucked back his Firewhiskey.

"Watching her flirt with you drives me to the brink of my sanity, but it also drives me to the height of my lust. Her's too." Draco confided, pouring another Firewhiskey.

"That much I gathered" Blaise told him matter of factly.

Draco glared before continuing "You turn her on" he told him quietly, taking a sip of his drink, stealing a sideways look for Blaise's reaction.

Blaise's features remained stoic.

Draco pushed his inhibitions to one side, the alcohol helping move it along.

"I get so fucking hard, knowing that she is wet because of you" he candidly told him.

Blaise made to reply and Draco wasn't sure if he should be relieved or shocked that Blaise didnt appear fazed by this revelation.

Swallowing down his last mental resistance, he confirmed Blaise's suspicions.

"I want to watch you fuck her."

A/N "Every Little Thing She Does Is Magic" is a song by British rock group The Police from their fourth album Ghost in the Machine. The song, notable for featuring a pianist (uncommon for most Police songs), dates back to a demo recorded in 1977. It was also a hit single that reached the top of the charts in the United Kingdom (topping its predecessor, "Invisible Sun") in November 1981 and hit number three on the US Billboard Hot 100 chart that same year

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